taiwan

Stunning Works

Take a look at some of these images. They are sculptures or paintings but they look so exquisite. Almost like a photograph!

Gottfried Helnwein - Oil and acrylic on canvas

Diego Fazio - Charcoal pencil

Omar Ortiz - Oil on linen

Paul Cadden - Small drawing pencil on paper

Gregory Thielker - Oil on canvas

Alyssa Monks - Oil on linen

Credits -buzzfeed

CFA Level 1 June Examination 2013

Recently, I just completed my CFA Exam Level 1.


I was studying a little during my last semester at school but the real studying only starts on 5 May 2013. That meant that I only had less than a month to truly study.

During my school term, I managed to finish Volume 1 of the CFA books. It was then that I realised that it was clearly impossible for me to go through all the materials. I will never make it.

Hence, I did a backward induction form of studying. What I did was that I went to do the practice questions for all 18 readings instead. I tried the questions and then I referred back to the answers for clarifications of my doubts. I find that a lot more effective. In fact, if you merely study the materials, you might think that you understood the content but in actual fact, you don't.

Hence, doing the practice questions actually help you revise and help you learn at the same time. Perhaps, its different for me because I'm a finance student so I already knew all the concepts. It was pretty much a refresher course for me. I have learnt all the content in school before so nothing was new to me. The only problem is that some topics like Economics and Accounting are the modules I took in Year 1. Hence, I don't remember much in terms of the details. However, the general concepts are still clear to me.

So on the day of the CFA Exam, there are 2 sessions at Singapore Expo, 9am to 12 noon for the first exam and 2pm to 5pm for the 2nd. Basically the doors are open for you to enter at 8am and 1pm respectively. The latest however is 830am and 130pm. I will recommend that you don't enter so early because you can't do anything until the exam starts anyway. You can take the extra time to just look through your Summary notes one last time, take a deep breathe and enter the exam hall.

Another thing to note is that you are only allowed to bring in your passport, calculator, pencils, erasers, sharpener and batteries. You cannot bring in anything else like your passport or even water bottle.

Remember to bring your lunch as well because the queues are insane. Mainly because its a Saturday so there are a lot of events happening at Expo so naturally the crowd is massive.

I think the exam results should be out by the end of July 2013. In the meantime, I shall go enjoy myself before I start work in July :)

Monsters University

I'm so excited to catch the Monsters University. I have always had a liking towards cartoon movies. They just brings me back to my childhood and teach me to just take a step back in life sometimes, just to enjoy myself :)

As we all know, University has always been the place many fears. Because of the challenging examinations, hard work and tonnes of assignments waiting to crush you. However, its going to be really funny watching how a place so stressful like the University can be turned into a place of joy, where friendships are forged and tears are shed.

In this movie, the monsters that we are all so familiar with are going to be learning how to scare people, which is kinda cute to be honest. They are so harmless to us but they are really trying so hard to scare humans. Maybe the next time I see something creepy, I won't be as scared anymore!




I think the highlight of this movie is really watching how Mike make new friends at the University. He is really excited to begin on this new journey in an attempt to major in scaring. However, things do not always go as planned and I guess we will witness a lot of twists and obstacles that he will facing along the way.



This is somewhat similar to what's happening to us in the real life as well. Typically, right at the start, we always have very high expectations and hopes. However, obstacles are bound to appear in an attempt to trip us up. It's really important to get back on your feet and move on whenever that happens. I guess there will be alot of that shown in this movie. Hence, I can't wait to catch this hilarious movie!



Furthermore, the previous works include Wall-e, Finding Nemo, UP. I guess this just goes to show that this movie will not disappoint because none of the previous works have ever disappointed me!


Check out the Official Trailer for Monsters University here!




"Catch Disney•Pixar’s “Monsters University”in Singapore cinemas this 20 June 2013! For more updates, like the Official Walt Disney Studios Singapore Facebook Page, follow @disneystudiosSGand subscribe to the Official Disney Studios Singapore YouTube Channel!”



Credits -nuffnang images

NTU Results

For the last semester, finally got my results. Thank god !!!

Really satisfied with my results to be honest. I remembered getting a perfect score for Year 1 as well but as I moved to Year 2. My GPA slipped in the first semester and it again slipped in the 2nd semester. Fortunately I was able to go on exchange in Year 3 Sem 1. I was a little afraid that I will be slipping for my final semester because I was too relaxed during my exchange.

Thankfully, I got my momentum back and managed to reap in the As for my final semester. Talk about ending with a BANG!

So for the last time the review of the modules and tips for the juniors.

BF307 Derivative Securities: It was rumoured for a long time that this is the toughest module in Finance. Truth be told, the concepts are definitely more complicated. However, if you take time to slowly understand it, then it actually appears to be very logical.

For a breakdown, I got ...

Mid Terms (25%) : 42.5/50
Assignments (10%): 9%
Quiz (10%): 10/10
Class Participation (5%): 5%

For the final examination, it was pretty easy to be honest. If you are clear about the concepts, the questions are very easy to tackle. However, it is important to be consistent in this module. Practice Practice Practice! Don't be lazy and you will do well.

For my FYP (AB329), my team did a topic on the Macroeconomy and the Stock Market Liquidity. There were really tonnes of hard work involved. We started roughly 11 months ago. We had to pick up new skills like dealing with SAS to help us resolve the data given by our Professor. Having said that, we could not have come so far without the help of our Professor Chen. He really went the extra mile to assist us in our research and whenever we have any queries, he's always there for us. He responds to our email within 1 hour and he is always free when we want to schedule an appointment for a discussion. Every discussion was extremely fruitful and all our doubts are always clarified in each meeting.

Though this project, I really learnt that working in a team is very important especially for such a massive project with tonnes of data to churn. Therefore, it was especially meaningful that we scored an A for our FYP.

Yeah, and with that I have finally graduated.

To be perfectly honest, I didn't expect to do so well for University because I knew that there were a lot of competitors in NBS. Everyone is so smart and many came from top Junior Colleges like Raffles and Hwa Chong. It was definitely a little scary having to go up against them. However, I now know that I can compete with the best of the best. This experience definitely boosted my confidence but I will always remember that I have come a long way to achieve these results. Therefore, I have to constantly remind myself to stay grounded and not get ahead of myself :)

Ma Maison & Jones the Grocer

Went to Ma Maison yesterday for Dinner followed by chilling at Jones the Grocer with my friends.


Talked about our future expectations about the workforce. Really a great catch-up session. Looking forward to the next one for sure :)

Birthday Celebration

Celebrated my birthday with Wei Qi and Pearly this year. We first went to watch Ironman 3 which was really awesome. I knew nothing about the plot so I guess it was really interesting to go with the flow. The people who can turn their bodies molten is kinda scary. I think I got scared during one of the scene. My friend said the whole row shook when I jumped LOL!

Then after that we went over to Orchard Central for the Kiseki buffet. The people who reserved got to go in first :) (ME! LOL)

Then, followed by people who didn't reserve. Initially I thought we were going to stay there from 6pm till 1030pm. But turns out we were full by 9pm. So we decided to leave right after we are done. Afterall, buffets are sunk cost. So its okay that we leave early :)

Below are some of the pictures we took that day :) Enjoy ~

Kai and His Girlfriend, Ellen

Haha he's the cutest thing in the world.

Kids are the most innocent thing on Earth man.


Credits -theellenshow

Graduation

It feels so surreal because I just finished my last exam at NTU and I have unofficially graduated. Now is just waiting for my convocation sometime in July. Actually, I don't even know when's the date at the moment. But I think the school will inform us soon enough.

Looking back at the 3 years, I think its really fantastic. I remembered when I first entered Nanyang Business School (NBS), I was really scared because I knew that I was no longer sheltered. What do I mean by sheltered? Well, all along, I came from neighbourhood schools all along. Since young, I was always looking at those people from Raffles and Hwa Chong in awe. Hence, now that I'm at NBS, its sort of the convergence point for all the elites. Naturally, I'm a little intimidated.

But nevertheless, having talked to them, I realised that they were not as elitist as I once thought. In fact, everyone was really down to earth and nice to chat with. I think the things that count the most with me are really the small chats along the corridors, discussions in the tutorial rooms, project meetings both in school and outside. These little bonds we shared are probably the things I will remember 20 years down the road.

Following graduation, I will be joining Keppel Corporation as their Management Associate in July 2013. To be honest, I'm really excited because I feel that I can finally have my own career. I have always been extremely career-minded. Having watched so many TV dramas and shows, I really want to be successful in my career and make a name for myself in the end. I have always admired the lawyers, doctors in the drama shows because they always seem to be able to make a huge impact on the society and they are supposedly the prestigious and coveted careers to be pursued.

Nonetheless, I'm really happy with where I'm heading after graduation. I believe the first step is key and I really hope to make the best out of it.

Yeah, so I will continue to blog about my life from now on :) To keep my readers updated about myself and also to remind myself of how far I have come as I progress in my career. I think I will be very emo when I read this post 10 years into my career hahahaha.

Yeah, till the next post :) Bye Bye. Thank you for reading.

Mother's Day

At first, when I was watching the video, I thought it was just for laugh. But towards the middle, I realised that there were many important messages. Things that we missed out about our mum.

1. She scrimps and saves so that you can have the best
2. While you are living your life, she sacrifices hers.
3. Even when in pain she nvr complains.
4. She devotes all her time to you but you never have any for her.
5. You don't ever listen to her but she gives you her undivided attention.

Its surprisingly touching. Definitely pulled some of my heart strings. I really have to be nicer to my parents man.

Guocoleisure Valuation

From UOB Kayhian's Report

The valuation report for Guoco Group has been released yesterday. 

We have extracted the valuation reports for the assets of GuocoLeisure, 
Based on the valuation report, the fair value of Guocoleisure’s UK hotel assets and Molakai development properties as at 31 Jan 2013 is S$1.9b, which is S$300m (13%) below our SOTP valuation. 

We are currently reviewing our recommendation and target price. 

Savour 2013

I was looking through the website of SAVOUR.

Really wanted to go man :( So sad this year couldn't go.

Next year is a must go !!!


Biltong Cured Beef Fillet with Bone Marrow Dressing


55' Smoked Organic Egg




Apricot Paper, Pink Guava Sorbet, Raspberry Gelee 



Causa 


Hokkaido Scallop, Cod Brandade, Verjus, Scallion


Slow Cooked Beef 'Cottage Pie', Hot Smoked Potato



Cod with Egg of Quail



Credits -savour

Psy Gentleman

Psy's followup music video following Gangnam Style is coming up

After performing the song live for the first time at his ‘HAPPENING‘ concert, Psy has released the music video for his latest song “Gentleman”!

The MV received a lot of hype before its release for featuring the ‘Infinity Challenge‘ membersand Brown Eyed Girls‘ Ga In.

Watch out for them and the ‘butt dance‘ in the “Gentleman” MV below!

UNITED STATES NON FARM PAYROLLS

Non Farm Payrolls in the United States decreased to 88 Thousand in March of 2013 from 268 Thousand in February of 2013. Non Farm Payrolls in the United States is reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Historically, from 1939 until 2013, the United States Non Farm Payrolls averaged 118.09 Thousand reaching an all time high of 1114 Thousand in September of 1983 and a record low of -1966 Thousand in September of 1945. Nonfarm payrolls is an employment report released monthly, usually on the first Friday of every month, and heavily affects the US dollar, the bond market and the stock market. Current Employment Statistics (CES) program from the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, surveys about 141,000 businesses and government agencies, representing approximately 486,000 individual work sites, in order to provide detailed industry data on employment, hours, and earnings of workers on nonfarm payrolls. This page includes a chart with historical data for the United States Non Farm Payrolls.

I think we are probably heading downhill........

Credits - trading economics

Friendship

Look at the friendship between these 2















Credits -yahoo