Affectionate Yx

Silly girl ate yogurt and got some on her nose 

My girl wyx3 is getting more affectionate and sweet these days.

She will say things like, "Are you going to work tomorrow? Don't go to work forever, ok?" followed by "Wo hui xiang ni leh (I will miss you)" complete with a look of reluctance on her face.

This was yesterday when I asked for a photo -



She leaned towards me and placed her hand on me. #heartmelts
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<3 p="">This morning, I woke yx up as I was gonna carry her to grandma's house. She opened her sleepy eyes, picked herself up and walked towards me gingerly. As she reached out and clutched onto me, she mumbled, "I love you, Papa."
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Wyx prefers skirt

Sometime in Oct:

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While helping my 3yo daughter wear her shorts:

Yx: "Why shorts? I want to wear skirt!"

Me: "Girls can wear skirts and sometimes they wear shorts too."

Yx, after a thoughtful pause: "But I am princess!" 

AIG Musical

A great performance from all the talents!

Event: ATC Celebration Week

I acted as a crazy rich PRC backpacker.
A few commented my acting was natural and they liked my ang mo English accent. =D

Maiden corporate emceeing experience

Was approached to take up the emcee role for an annual TEDx event. I took it up readily as it has always been one of the things I'd like to try out.

My first corporate emceeing experience was at a relatively small scale event; the number of audience was less than 80 and the auditorium was cosy and the stage lights were not glaring or daunting. The setup was relaxed and graced by a D I was comfortable with. Nonetheless, first impressions count and I made sure I put in time and effort to rehearse :)

19 Aug 2018

Happy that it went well, I didn't sound nervous and didn't do funny gestures. Though I realised I tended to stand on one leg on a few occasions, this is one of the areas I need to avoid in future!


Tips for Emceeing:

- Speak slowly. It will make you sound very coherent and your words will not come out minced and slurred
- Maintain a smile
- Upright posture. Shoulders pulled back, chest out, both feet shoulder width apart and firmly on the ground.
- Use plenty of eye contact with the audience. The best is if you can find a couple of faces in the audience who give you positive feedback (e.g. warm smile, head nodding), positive body language translates that you are doing a great job and they are engaged in your delivery
- Your script should only be used as reference for your talking points. When you refer, refrain from reading and speaking at the same time. Here's what you should do - Look down at your script only after you have finished your sentence. Take a quick glance of the para, raise your head, then speak again.
- Always turn up 45 mins before the event starts. This will allow you sufficient time to test the PA, get yourself comfortable with the physical environment, acquaint yourself with the guest speakers etc.
- When introducing anyone, give eye contact to the same person
- Be mentally prepared for last minute changes to the programme (e.g. guest needs to leave midway, tea refreshment is delayed etc)
- Very useful to have a wide range of adjectives that may come in useful
- Practise, practise and practise!!!

Life lessons

This person shares 3 lessons he learned while his plane crashed:

1) Everything can change in an instant

2) Remove negativity from your life

3) Be the best parent that you can



So apt, in light of the passing of a few good people already this year...

How much longer do we want to take our lives for granted?

I See Tea (high key 1)

Served my first high key I-See-Tea (IST) from 13-20 Aug 2018.

To clock a high key and serve only 8 days is a bargain. This, plus no need to spend any nights in camp, is terribly shiok!!! Also I need to thank my pal J for hitching us to and fro camp everyday!


Had been kinda looking forward to the event, partly because work was really mundane and uneventful; and partly because it was like "a week long chalet with talk cock friends", as I described to wifey. I was kinda looking forward to going for tea breaks and relac one corner, blending in with everyone else wearing the same uniform. And since every man is on similar status and share the same entitlements/benefits, there is little or minimal need to bother about politics (being in the good books of your superiors), outlook (so what if my boots are not shined and I'm wearing some overnight stubble?) or behaviour (just honestly use your hands to eat your drumstick without a need to care how carnivorous or etiquette-less you may look).

In camp, nobody gives two hoots about what title you hold at work, how much you earn, or whether you are vertically challenged - the only thing that differentiates is the number of stripes and bars imprinted on your insignia. Yes, one may be 152cm, has poor complexion and suffering from a receding hairline and speaks ah beng English - but as long as the rank insignia on his torso bears a symbol that resembles one or more underwater animals, your neighbourhood hawker centre uncle shall be able to summon the attention and respect of a whole battalion.


On top of the usual admin briefing and conducting of IPPT, the main programme highlights from this IST:
- 3 days of lecture room style refresher training (MY FAV KIND OF TRAINING, for those who know me well); and
- 1 day of shell scrape digging (3 persons to 1 within 100 mins you bet our arms were screaming).

Sample shell scrape (source: google image)

Based on how the activities went, I personally think it's a rather enjoyable high key IST, relatively speaking.

Combat rations? What combat rations? =D

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Some observations I made from this IST:

1) Our soldiers need to be fitter

It has become a worrying trend - men gain weight and become less fit after ORD, and/or after they have kids.


2) You can count on us to be united

Most will know or may have heard that during IST, men adopt a 'slack' attitude. For example, some may chao geng (report sick) while some may appear disinterested during activities. So I was happily surprised when I observed a massive turnout for the most shiong activity of the whole event - the shell scrape digging. Although it was a physically taxing activity, the mood was light and we cracked jokes and some were singing. It was evident all of us would put our best foot forward when the need arises.


3) There are really helpful souls

After completing the digging of our shell scrape, we had to cover it back with soil and level the ground. We were already extremely beat from the digging, so most of us were lacklustre and lethargic during this part of the task. A group of 3-4 men had completed their tasks and instead of heading over to the training shed to rest and hydrate themselves, they went around and offered help!

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Overall, I appreciated the break away from work. And I will never forget the AWESOME nasi padang from the canteen OMG the assam stingray was freakkkking good. The meat was sooooo succulent and tender!

Look at the size of the stingray! The belacan was very spicy and good too. This plate only cost $4+!

The next day, I returned to eat the assam stingray again, but it was still being prepared =( So I ordered their curry chicken. To my holymoly surprise, the drumstick meat was sooooo fresh and tender! AMAZING!!!

This stall is currently no. 1 on my "Best Nasi Padang" list.

Delivering effective training

Attended a 3-day course at SAA on "Instructor Training".

Tips on delivering effective training:

a)

P EAR for Prepare
E GG   for Engage

b) 4 'R's:

Recap -> Recall -> Reflect -> Retain

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Areas of improvement for delivering an effective training:

- Too soothing voice
- Do not fidget with watch!
- Include more ground participation and spaced in between "presenter talking slides"
- Deliberate eye contact; not into voids

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Sensible wyx2

Said she whilst posing, "Take a picture of me."

Our lil' girl is growing up day by day, her knowledge, awareness and linguistic skills increasing every minute. At times, she corrects our English pronunciation ("It's not 'Sin-GA-pore', should be 'Singa-pore'); other times she teases us ("Huh, why can't you find the item? Don't you have eyes?"); most times she pesters us to play with her ("Why is it I am playing by myself?").

Cheeky lil imp

Yx is such excellent company - she laughs easily at jokes, jumps for joy when we suggest a bus/train ride, enjoys yoghurt and peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and loves singing aloud to songs she's familiar with. And she's also sensible.

One night, we were carrying out our nightly routine of reading before turning in. Yx was lying on the bed on her stomach when suddenly, she kicked one of the pillows hard. It fell off the bed and in the process tipped over a cup of water on the bedside table.

Not wanting to bestow blame onto her knowing that she didn't mean for the accident to happen, I reacted mildly, "Ahh, see what's happened?" Yx crept over to the edge of the bed and leaned out for a better view. I went to grab a cloth. Whilst I mopped up the water from the bedroom floor, I explained to Yx in a gentle, non-condescending tone, what consequence her action has caused.

Peering down at the spilled water, Yx said, "Papa?"

Me: "Yes?"

Yx: "Sorry."


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I felt super surprised by and happy with her apology. Surprised because she actually bore the consciousness and awareness of the event; and happy because she was really sincere and apologetic about it. And I was surprised and happy because I succeeded in helping her realise the incident's cause-and-effect without having to scream or yell at her; neither did I use an authoritative, didactic tone which would have led to her feeling bad about herself. Instead, an explanation in a patient and gentle tone, without unnecessary injection of sigh ("haiyoh!") or alarm ("wah lau!"), worked excellently.

Me, returning an assuring smile: "It's alright, we'll learn from this."

And Yx acknowledged, "Okay."

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Finally! Pretzzzzzzzel!

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS PERSON?

Characteristics:

- Lived a carefree life and didn’t need to worry about being seen talking to a particular group of homosapiens

- Watched football weekly

- Would put in conscientious effort to meet up regularly with us

- Didn’t take hours to reply msgs

- Made a point to meet up with different circles of friends

- Wouldn’t buy a $36 trotters in appreciation of our overwhelming Carl$berg support and claim, “I bought this cos I know it’s hard for you all to arrange a common schedule for a meal” (c’mon, that's crap coming from u).

Last seen – 2014 (after being recently attached)

If you see him ----------->  buy TOTO.

- $

Been spending/have spent quite a bomb lately T_T

June:

• Wisdom tooth extraction and follow up - $750

In July alone:

• Annual car insurance - $970
• 6-month car road tax - $380
• Annual personal accident insurance plans - $338
• New refrigerator from Samsung - $723 
• 2 tickets to Lion King musical - $300
• New pair of specs - $280 
• New work shoes from Pedro - $129.90
• Angpow for brother's wedding - undisclosed

Anticipated expenses:

• Family trip to Perth in Sep - $2000(or more?)
• Renew mobile phone contract in Nov - $300-$400

POK GAI LIAO! T_T

Final farewell to Block 123

Block 123 Tampines Court
1988 - 2018

Taken 10 years apart - trees in the distance have grown (and quality of phone-camera improved drastically!)

Entrance to master bedroom - I would sit there chatting  and/or discussing homework on the landline with my friends

Kitchen - had countless meals here

Living room taken from balcony

Bathroom for 3 of us - we played watergun and soapy-sliding on our buttocks!

Master bedroom looking at the common walkway. My bro and I played football along the the walkway

Upstairs looking down at living room. I would leap from one staircase landing to the next

Oil painting

CARC organised an introductory oil painting class. Priced at $50 for a 3 hour session, I felt it was pricey (compared to what one can get on Groupon/Fave), but I decided to go for it anyway, given the convenience of location.

Very happy with my drawing!

Teacher really 画龙点睛 , literally made the dogs' eyes come alive, using subtle yet skilfull dabs of the paintbrush.

Volunteering with AIG

Another year, another day of happiness brought to the less fortunate, this time at Mett@ Welfare Assoc.

Madly impressed by the camaraderie and teamwork put up by my colls. We sacrificed much personal time into the preparation, and were the clients full of glee being entertained by dance and songs, receiving balloon sculptures and handmade decoupage rattan fans! And also folded their own origami paper hearts. Full of love! 

Organised this as early as Jan this year, and was mildly disappointed midway when a few colls couldn't make it and/or displayed lack of interest, resulting in postponing the proposed date not once but twice. Thankfully to the home in-charge for accommodating us and for their patience in answering our questions, we finally got our acts together on 13 July. There were a number of fresh faces as compared to last year and that was really heartening to know there are more like-minded people putting in a shift to contribute back to society.

Thanks to everyone who made it happen! I am proud :)

The day I lost Wisdom -2

Plucked out 2 more wisdom teeth on 28 June at CGH.

This is X-ray taken one week after surgical extraction of my LR impacted wisdom tooth:

Though it wasn't giving me problems, I was strongly recommended to remove it asap as the older one gets, the more complications there could be. Moreover, there could be food trapped between the teeth which could lead to tooth decay, if not cared for thoroughly. So I went the polyclinic -> government hospital way to remove 2 of them. After this plus last year's surgical extraction at Raffles, I still have 1 remaining on upper right. It is still hidden beneath the gums and not likely to cause any problems in the (near?) future.

Gosh, seriously where do wisdom teeth come from??? Firstly they don't serve any purpose; secondly it costs a bomb to remove them! Anyway, I'm just relieved to have them removed before they cause me any further tooth decay and/or pain. Since I've gone through extractions at both private and government hospitals, thought I'll share some wisdom with y'all on the differences between both:

	Private (e.g. Raffles)	Government (e.g. CGH)
Procedure	Surgical extraction (2017)	1 surgical extraction + 1 normal extraction (2018)
How to book an appointment	Call in	Book an e-appointment at the polyclinic to have your X-ray done, and to receive a referral letter
Waiting Time	2 weeks	>6 months comprising: - Polyclinic appointment: 1 week in advance - Hospital appt: Depending on how busy, mine was 3 months for first appt, then another 2 months for surgery.
Comfort, facilities, equipment	Excellent	Excellent
Skill of Dentist	Excellent. No pain at all, after morning surgery, I could eat solids by dinner	A lot of probing and hard pricking. Struggled to eat solids for a couple of days. L Though this is very subjective, could be that this particular tooth had very strong roots
Follow up	None required. Stitches dissolved by themselves.	1 week after surgery, for routine inspection and stitch removal (which otherwise would dissolve by itself as well). Also given an open appointment valid for 2 years i.e. I can walk-in anytime without having to wait on clinic's availability.
Cost	~$990	~$700

Mejustloves2eat's recommendation:

• If your wisdom tooth is giving you hell, quickly make a call to Raffles. Money solves the (root) (oh wow, that's a pun) problem.
• If wisdom tooth not giving problems, can have them done at G hospital. Although my G surgery gave me some pain, the pain isn't unbearable. The savings is a few hundreds.... can buy oneself a branded wallet or shoes or something.

Both gave 5 days MC, quite "market rate". Of course, if a few hundreds isn't much to you, go Raffles lor... quick and fast!

My (bad) luck with shares

I shall begin by admitting I am guilty for the decline in share price of Starhill Global Reit (SGX: P40U).

When I put in my purchase order in May 2018, its 52-week price hovered between 0.710 to 0.79. I put in an order at 0.715 and was delighted to get it! Immediately after I bought the shares, this was what happened:

Today, Starhill Global Reit is at $0.64 a 5-year lowest.

Whatever shares I buy, their price drops as soon as I I buy them. Same for Guocoland and QAF I bought in the last few months. I think I kinda influence the future lol.

Really no luck with shares. T_T

Cruising with Fam

Did a look back and realised the last time the whole family went for a holiday was 8 years ago! All because one of us is a slave of MOE. Jun and Dec are really terrible times to travel overseas due to peak prices and/or extremely hot/cold weather, especially with a young one in tow.

Thanks to Sponsor Daddy, all of us ventured onboard Royal Carribean's Voyager of the Seas on a 4D3N cruise to Port Klang!

Happy times:

I really, really honestly highly recommend Royal Carribean for a quality, relaxing family bonding holiday. Since everything (well, almost) has been paid for and everything you need is on board, going for a cruise is itinerary-less and stress free. On top of that, RC staff are passionate and customer centric, one feels very much like a premium guest at all times! RC is also very big on cleanliness - there's no rubbish nor stains along common areas, and it is almost mandatory to sanitize your hands before you enter the restaurant. I was most impressed by their eye for details for customer touch points, when I noticed one of them POLISHING THE EXTERIOR OF A METAL RUBBISH BIN!

Okay, I can go on and on about how fabulous RC is, go on one and experience it for yourself ;)

Anyways, as I was saying, it's been so long since the whole family spend some time together. Thanks to this holiday for allowing me to do these, which are hard to come by nowadays:

- Watching my mom dancing along to rock 'n' roll music. You should have seen her face light up when the band played "Woolly Bully", a song unheard of in my life.

- Playing table tennis with my dad. Dad was the one who introduced the sport to us. Brought back memories of our vacations at Park Towers in HK.

- Playing 1 on 1 basketball with my bro, just like our younger days! The disparity in height (and size) between then and now is stark!

- Chilling in the room with my fam and snacking while watching dumb shows on TV

- Rhetorically debating whether it is better to have stinky breath or stinky armpits =P

- Queuing and taking photos with mascots

- Late night partying with wifey till 11.30pm (mom and sis helped babysit yx)!

Thank you Royal Carribean!
We'll be back! :)

OUCH #pocketburn

#incometax

Okay, nation building, better public transport, improving amenities... at least the money goes towards my paymaster....

Feedback to my MP

Ever since we shifted to my current abode, we have always felt that the passageway from the carpark leading to the void deck comprised a blind spot, and it was a real safety hazard. Basically, it is at a T-junction and one is unable to sight oncoming human/bicycle until one stands at the junction. There were a couple of near-misses when I nearly walked into another's nose, but we just reminded ourselves to be more careful.

However, not too long ago wifey was carrying yx were using this passageway when a teenage boy riding an electric scooter zipped past, just mere inches away from causing an accident. This prompted me to feedback the issue to my MP. I took a few photos and described the situation:

The MP in charge of my zone, Ms Cheng Li Hui, replied the next day personally pertaining to my feedback. She understood the safety hazard and tasked her team to look into improving the safety measures. I replied and recommended installing concave mirrors.

4 weeks later:

MIRRORS! 

Great work!!! So efficient!!! =)

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Coincidentally, Ms Cheng was doing a residential block walkabout last Sunday with her team. Her sudden appearance caught me by surprise and I greeted her, "Hi Mrs Cheng..." by mistake, oops!

We chatted while her team stood seriously in the background, penciling down notes while stealing a few photos. I expressed my gratitude for acting so quickly into my feedback. She was like, "oh was it  about the PMD along the childcare centre?", so she remembered my feedback. Ms Cheng was really friendly and sincere during our short convo, so I took the opportunity to pass two areas of improvement (basically about the lack of sheltered drop-off point and water ponding issue at void deck), since I'm more than aware that the feedback were being documented and thus the Estate/Facilities mgmt team would be more serious looking into them.

She also shared there are many activities for seniors in the vicinity like healthy cooking demonstration. I recalled seeing something recently on the RC notice board, so I replied, "oh ya, was it the Briyani?", to which drew a loud, wide-mouth surprised gasp from her and the team! I explained I pay attention to the notice boards very often, haha.

Unfortunately yx was napping this time, or I would have asked her to see Ms Cheng in person, for when yx was younger she would mistake Ms Cheng's poster picture for wifey! Hahaha. So anyway we shook hands a few times before she and her team continued visiting other units.

But two stayed behind. The guy with the clipboard was responsible for noting down residents' feedback, and so asked for my name and contact. The lady asked if I was interested to volunteer in the RC. She shared that I seemed aware of the block and neighbourhood, as compared to "most residents who were only concerned with going to the bus stop and back home". She passed me a form and said someone would be contacting me to follow-up.

Funny incidents with wyx2

1) 

At gong gong house - I was feeding yx her dinner and her mouth was full when gong gong sat down beside her and asked, "Never greet gong gong?"

Based on what she had been doing for the past x months, her anticipated response was that she will shy away and remain silent. 

But not this time. Almost instantly, Yx replied, gesturing at her mouth, "吃饭不要讲话."

All of us burst out laughing!!!

2)

Yx has really impressive memory, other than being able to match clothes to wearer, she is able to recall where she last saw her toys and books!

Scene - at nai nai house. My mom was searching high and low for the foldable strawberry recyclable bag, to no avail. 

I asked Yx, have you seen the strawberry bag? 

She nodded and pointed at the bag on top of the ikea toy kitchen. NO KIDDING IT WAS INDEED THERE!

Came to airport for lunch one day. Gaining back her fats hehe

3)

Likes reading out aloud like a teacher reading out to students in a class.

Yx recited the mandarin words in gibberish except for the following:

- "一" - correctly as "one";

- The full stops as "dot";

- Open and close inverted commas as "眼泪"  ROFLOLOLOL.

Funny things Yx says

On usual weekday mornings, when I'm done with brushing up and changing, yx will still be in slumber and wake up groggily only when I carry her over to my parents' place. This morning, as I stepped out of the bathroom, I noticed that yx had already woken up, and was resting herself comfortably on the bolster.

Upon seeing me, she pointed excitedly at a spot on the bed and exclaimed, "你看, 你看 (look at this!"

Yx sounded victorious. I glanced over and discovered a wet spot on the bed... Gua gua gua... Okay so her diaper had just leaked, and she felt it was an amazing sight....  -_____-

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2 days ago Yx was playing by herself in the living room when suddenly she called out to nai nai, "wo de jiao zhan bu dao ti shang liao (my feet can't stand on the ground anymore)!" And then she started tearing!

Concerned, my mom went over and checked on her, and realised that Yx, after sitting cross-legged for some time, had developed pins and needles in her legs HAHA!

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Don't belittle the 2 hours that Yx spends at daily playgroup, she learns and absorbs many things during that short period of time. Sometimes, Yx surprises us with new nouns and songs we've never taught her before.

For example:

- Yx is able to make a rectangle using her fingers, and describe it as "2 sides long, 2 sides short"

- We've been teaching her this (in)famous Chinese rhyme, which Yx is familiar with and is able to repeat the entire thing by herself:

"大头大头, 下雨不愁, 我有雨伞, 你有大头"

So one day, my sis was repeating it with Yx and it went like this:

Sis: "大头大头, 下雨...?"

Yx: "不愁"

Sis: "我有雨伞, 你有...?"
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.
.

Yx: "Raincoat." 

We've never taught her this word before, figured she picked it up from school! HAHA!

Life is Fragile

Forewarning: Depressing post



It is most unfortunate this blog's 1000th post has to be a sad one.

Received a super devastating news yesterday... my bro's future brother-in-law met with a road accident and passed away almost on the spot. It was no fault of his; he was travelling in a passenger car when a van collided into his vehicle. And the tragic irony was - both drivers escaped unscathed.

To receive news of a loved one's passing is devastating...
To receive news of a loved one's SUDDEN passing? I don't have a word for it. The feeling's indescribable.

Also just learnt that my cousin-in-law will be going bald later this year, in support for Hair for Hope. Her motivation is to support her two close friends who were diagnosed with cancer this year.

Life is fragile. Whether you like it or not, death is the end for everyone. There's nothing one can do. The question is just when - sooner or later; and how - sudden, in a blink of an eye, or torturous, painfully over a period?

Was googling for an image to end off this post with a suitable photo for "Life is fragile" -

... but I wasn't able to decide on ONE image, for every phrase, every abstract in the images seem to describe and illustrate so aptly, so aptly that our lives are weaker, more fragile and more delicate than we think we are.

We are like glass.

Pray that the deceased's family will be granted strength through this difficult time.

wyx2 at 31 months

Haven't been noting down Yx's milestones for quite some time. 

Boasting a wide repertoire of nouns and vocabulary (mostly learnt from what we say at home), Yx is very conversant and is able to understand most things you ask/tell her. She's also very observant and has a very good memory, she can remember what she heard us say and repeat the majority of it. So Yx is like a very chatty friend, just very tiny, haha.

Nightly activity - reading out to her

- She can remember who the clothes/ shoes/ bag / cups belong to! For example there is a stack of laundry. Pick up every piece and she is able to tell you who they belong to. When it is her laundry, she will ask who bought it, and she remembers it by heart after that. That's amazing la!

- Does not like to see her dabian. Will close her eyes and if she sees her dabian, she will retch. Seriously!

- Has a very acute sense of smell. Slightest hint of dabian smell and she will be covering her nose.

- Does not like to be interrupted when she's in the midst of an activity, but will be ready for you once she is done. For example, if we ask her to go shower or drink milk when she's doing sth (e.g. flipping through books or doing colouring), prying her away physically will incur her violent protests and cries. However, if you ask nicely, she will reply, "Later, 等一下."

When she is done, she will run to you and announce, "我来了 (I'm coming)!"

- Can feed herself but very much prefers being fed. -____- Okay, on the positive side it is less messy...

- Likes Barney still but not as much. Has been exposed to and enjoys cartoon songs from Dragon Tales, Thomas the Train, Let it Go and a few from Lion King and Moana. 

 - Poses for photos:

- Verbalises who she wants for company. She requested I walk her to school today:

And so we were outside my parents' door waiting for the lift:

Yx to nai nai: "你煮我的粥."

Nai nai replied: "今天有salmon! (which is her favourite meat nowadays)"

Yx replied: "Ok! 今天没有 ABC soup." --> (she knows what there is, and what there isn't)

Money saving tips

Hi guys, I admit I'm not the most financially savvy guy you know, but I do have more than sufficient knowledge to engage in an intellectual kopitiam talk.

Sharing some tips to make the most of your money!


1) Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) 

Did you know, other than bearing children and topping up CPF for self/dependents, there are other ways to reduce your personal income tax? SRS is such a gem! Thanks for my old friend CT for sharing with me (he had vested interest though), I signed up for it and saved not a meagre amount in tax payable!

Find out your total chargeable income, which is your total earned income less deductibles and reliefs:

Source: https://www.iras.gov.sg/irashome/Individuals/Locals/Working-Out-Your-Taxes/Income-Tax-Rates/

A few illustrations:

Scenario 1)

Your total chargeable income is $40k-$80k.

If you invest $10k into SRS, you save $10k x 7% = $700!


Scenario 2)

Your total chargeable income is $80k-$120k.

If you invest $10k into SRS, you save $10k x 11.5% = $1,150!


Scenario 3) 

Your total chargeable income is $91,000. Say you did not put money into SRS. Your tax payable (refer to 4th row of the Table above) is $4,615 which is made up of:

- First $80k - $3,350; and
- Next $40k - $11k x 11.5% = $1,265.

However, should you have transferred $12,000 into SRS, immediately your taxable income ($91,000 - $12,000 = $79,000) would have been downgraded to the next lower bracket! Your tax payable (refer to 3rd row of Table) would have been  $3,280:

- First $40k - $550; and
- Next $40k - $39k x 7% = $2730.

So you would have achieved cash savings of $4,615 - $3,280 = $1,335! No questions asked!


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The above illustrations show that the more you earn, the more savings SRS provides. Sounds very good right? But like anywhere else, take free sample and give freebie also must have a limit right?

a) The maximum amount per year one can deposit in SRS is $15,300.

b) Well, of course the SG Gahmen doesn't give free lunch (with the SG Savings Bonds a surprising exception); there is penalty for withdrawing the money before 62 yo; and even if you withdraw after 62, you can't withdraw 100% overnight. Do read up and find out more on SRS (https://www.iras.gov.sg/irashome/Schemes/Individuals/Supplementary-Retirement-Scheme--SRS-/).

c) And some may argue the opportunity cost of locking in that amount of money is very high. Say one buys REIT stocks with $15k, the returns p.a. are estimated 5-8% = $750 - $1200. Well, good news for you - you may use your SRS money to buy stocks and unit trusts, and also endowment plans! So I think the only disadvantage of locking in your money in SRS is if you need significant cash in the mid to long term? E.g. changing car, purchasing 2nd property, starting a biz etc.



2) Keep a repertoire of Credit Cards handy - always!

Illustration: the overrated Passion Card

When I paid $12 to sign up for a 5-year Passion Card membership some years ago, it was only for 1 benefit in mind - it gives you $1 off KFC chicken set meals. Considering I need only 2 years or less to eat 12 KFC meals, it was an economic decision.
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But anyway my Passion Card is the POSB-linked one, so it's just in my wallet as it doubles as my ATM cum Ez-link card. And anyway last weekend we dined at Sakae Sushi, I was footng the bill when the cashier asked if I had Passion Card. I flashed it and YES I GOT $10 off my final bill!!!! Before discounts my bill was like $48, so the discount worked out to be like 21% off WOW!? Yes, #dontsaybojio, flash your Passion Card at Sakae Sushi and enjoy $10 discount with min. spending of $40 before taxes and charges.


Signing off for now,
the giam siap Singaporean uncle