Soul is a stray male cat we took in two nights ago from the streets near our home. Vivi and I saw him alone at a open space area near our block of flats where it used to be a basketball court. We played with him for a while and after a long consideration we decided to take him home.

Soul does not look like he was born stray because he has a really nice medium length coat and beautiful bushy tail. It is very likely he was abandoned by some cruel people, probably because of the lack of a left eye. According to the vet we brought him to, he’s about 10 years old which is considerably old for a cat. Old cats are prone to health problems so that might also be a reason why he was abandoned. We think Soul might be close to a Nebelung breed. Maybe someone can help identify his breed.

We brought him to the vet for a checkup the next day for a precautionary anti-flea treatment, a blood and urine test for potential kidney problems and general assessment of his health. We will know the results of the tests in a few days. We also went to a groomer to get him cleaned and groomed.

It is our first time keeping a cat so we are a little nervous but we think it should not be difficult. We bought him a litter pan, a “taxi” for bringing him to places like the vet, some toys, food and water bowls and a pack of kibble (cat biscuits). We bought the trial pack of kibble because cats are known to be finicky so it’s better to try different brands in smaller economical packs. Surprisingly, he really likes the food, so I guess that should save us some headache. Maybe it’s because it’s one of the more expensive brands. The brand is “Orijen” and is made from real fresh meat such as chicken, salmon and white fish. It also contains botanical ingredients like chamomile flowers, rosemary and other herbs supposedly to supplement a carnivorous diet.

We named him “Soul” after the character “Soul Evans” in the anime “Soul Eater”. The cat has a dark, cool and melancholic personality, just like the character in the anime.

Seeing now that he’s lazing in a cosy new home, we can’t help but start to wonder, how much longer is he going to be with us, as he is past his prime. But no matter what, we will definitely enjoy his company and he will also receive a good life he missed during his days as a stray cat.

Here’s the shady-looking box.

Here’s what the box says it should contain.

Here’s how the opened box looks like, pretty brand new.

Here’s the box and to its right, its contents, or should I say content. What happened to the other stuff? And look at the scratches on the mirror.

Close-up of the scratches.

Apparently BHG staff has decided to tape up a box, left it on the shelf for unlucky people like us to buy it, instead of checking the contents and removing it from sale. What atrocity. Now I have to make a trip down for a refund. Thank you BHG for wasting our time and spoiling our Christmas eve.

Message:

Hi everybody!
I’m looking for two new flatmates, the rooms will be available between 1st and 15 november…
here is the complete description, please forward if you know somebody interrested!

Common room to rent (16m2) in my flat from november 15 or maybe a couple of weeks earlier , 1 month deposit (850), charges (internet+utilities:60 per month).

I am a french painter and i work at home in my art-studio.

The flat is a 3 bedrooms walk-up appartment in an old 3 storeys building, 414N River Valley Road. Don’t expect a condo, it’s a boheme old flat, with one simple bathroom to share ( but no queing in the morning… ) and simple amenities.

But it’s very colourful and fun, and very close to orchard and the river(for bars,clubs and nice quiet walks…). buses are just downstairs to go everywhere, with buses to orchard every 5 minutes, you get there in just 5 minutes. (or 10 min walk). Direct buses downstairs to City Hall (10-15min drive) and Raffles Place (15 min drive).

7/11, dvd rental and all night great food just downstairs+ 2 food centers. 2 minutes from 3 supermarkets and Great World City Mall. Great swimmingpool complex nearby with a nice walk along the river to get there in 10 minutes! Great yoga studio just opposite. Gym at Great World City. Nice jogging area just behind along Nathan Road towards Botanical Garden.

Kitchen is furnished, you can cook, i am vegetarian but have no problem with non-veg. wireless broadband internet.TV in the main room, but we never watch it!

The room comes with a single bed, side table, a wardrobe and a desk/chair. Aircon is available in the room, but for additionnal utility cost as we don’t use aircon.

I’m a quiet person and looking for somebody independent and respectful of others, which basically means keeping the bathroom and kitchen reasonably clean and making no noise at night.

It’s the perfect place if you would like to be in the center without paying too much for the rent! We are good hearted people and do our best to live together in a nice and peaceful way…

Long term preferred, chinese nationals/speakers welcome as i’ve been studying chinese for 3 years now.
NOTE: IT”S NOT A CONDO, No couple, minimum 5 months…thanks!

Lee Hsien Loong, Singapore
(Country GDP: $235.6 billion - 2008)
Politicians in Singapore are amongst the most highly paid government officials in the world. Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of Singapore earns five times more than the American President. Lee Hsien Loong takes an annual salary of $2.46 million.

Barack Obama, USA
(Country GDP: $13.81 trillion - 2007)
Second on the list is the President of the biggest economy of the world with a GDP of $13.81 trillion (2007). President Elect, Barack Obama will be getting an annual salary of $400,000 when he joins office next year.

Is it a fair comparison? I don’t know but I believe Barrack Obama has way more on his shoulders than Mr Lee. I feel a little saddened.

Here it is. The MacBook Pro we ordered came yesterday night just before 10PM. It took a week to reach here from Apple’s factory in Shanghai.

It is a 2.4GHz model and came configured with 4GB of DDR3 memory with everything else stock. The screen resolution is 1440 x 900 and things look pretty nice and sharp on the gorgeous 15 inch glossy screen. It is much easier on the eyes compared to my 17 inch MacBook Pro with a 1920 x 1200 resolution which makes everything look small. The new glass trackpad has a much larger surface area than the older models which makes tracking easy and effortless. The only thing we find it hard to get used to is the no-button design. It is a great idea but for those who are used to navigating the trackpad with a thumb on the button, this design will take some getting used to. The overall construction and build quality is top notch. Holding the MacBook Pro, it feels thin, sturdy and solid, unlike the creaky, plasticky flex you get with older models like my 17-inch one.

Here it is side by side with my 17-inch MacBook Pro. I planned to convert all the computers in the house to Macs early this year and now it is reality. We now have 3 Macs, including Vivi’s old 13-inch MacBook which is now serving as a print server.

Link FESTO

Early this year I bought a 17-inch MacBook Pro for serious work and gave the old MacBook to Vivi. We are not delicate users so after 2 years of abuse, the white MacBook which I gave Vivi, though is still working fine has shown signs of age. The screen has started to develop a yellow tinge and looks a lot darker compared to the higher end MacBook Pro. So I decided it is time for Vivi to own a new and better computer, something that is more joyful to use and useful for her music composition work.

Yesterday, I made an order at Apple Store online for the new and recently launched 15-inch “unibody” MacBook Pro for Vivi. And here’re the juicy specs she will be getting.

Processor: 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory: 4GB 1066Mz DDR3 SDRAM-2×2GB
Storage: 250GB Serial ATA @ 5400
Optical Storage: SuperDrive 8X DL

The extra memory is the only upgrade I configured, the rest are all default. I reckoned we could use our external hard drives if we need more storage capacity.

Look at how thin it is. It’s even thinner than my current 17-incher.

Simply… a work of art.

Want to know something about my personality type?

“INTPs are relatively easy-going and amenable to most anything until their principles are violated, about which they may become outspoken and inflexible. They prefer to return, however, to a reserved albeit benign ambiance, not wishing to make spectacles of themselves.”
- INTP Profile (TypeLogic)

“The Architects’ distant goal is always to rearrange the environment somehow, to shape, to construct, to devise, whether it be buildings, institutions, enterprises, or theories. They look upon the world — natural and civil — as little more than raw material to be reshaped according to their design…”
- The Portrait of the Architect Rational (iNTp) (Keirsey)

“The INTP is above all a thinker and his inner (private) world is a place governed by a strong sense of logical structure. Every experience is to be rigorously analysed, the task of the INTP’s mind is to fit each encountered idea or experience into a larger structure defined by logic.”

“INTPs contribute a logical, system-building approach to their work. They like being the architect of a plan, because of the scheming and thinking involved, far more than being the implementer of that plan. Implementation tends to be drudgery. They are content to sit back and think about what might work, given their view of the situation. INTPs may ignore standard operating procedures. The hours that they spend are not what is important to them, but rather the completion of their thought process”
- INTP - The Wizard (Lifexplore)

“INTPs live in the world of theoretical possibilities. They see everything in terms of how it could be improved, or what it could be turned into. They live primarily inside their own minds, having the ability to analyze difficult problems, identify patterns, and come up with logical explanations. They seek clarity in everything, and are therefore driven to build knowledge. They are the “absent-minded professors”, who highly value intelligence and the ability to apply logic to theories to find solutions.”
- Portrait of an INTP (The Personality Page)

“likes solitude, not revealing, unemotional, rule breaker, avoidant, familiar with the darkside, skeptical, acts without consulting others”
- Jung Type Descriptions (INTP) (similarminds.com)

More information the the INTP

I order the Richard Dawkins Foundation T-Shirt more than a week ago for 20 dollars and it arrived today. Check it out, it’s a nice navy blue. The words read “Richard Dawkins Foundation – RDF – For Reason and Science”. I’ll be wearing it tomorrow and very often.

Anyway I’ll use this opportunity to say this to any religious person who might be reading this blog post. By the way atheism is not the kind of “ism” that speaks of a religion. Atheism is the absence of religion as opposed to theism. We do not worship Satan or any monster. Atheist are just ordinary people who chose to think rationally and question the world and therefore decided to not believe in crap due to the absolute lack of evidence that can support ridiculous theistic claims, such as the one that says the world is about 6000 years old, according to the Christian bible. Anyone with a right mind will know that is bullshit.

For Reason and Science!

AWESOME.