Last Saturday was Earth Hour. You know, the day where everyone around the world switches off the lights for 1 hour and then say, “Yes, I’m showing my support to save the Earth.”

Yep. That thing. Well, the whole thing originally started in 2007 in Sydney and is organised by the World Wildlife Fund. Since then, lots of other cities around the world have adopted the event in 2008.

Earth Hour 2010's favourite pictures on Flickr

Personally, I think it seems like a pretty good idea. We’re only just switching the lights and all the other stuff off for one hour. We sit around in the dark for fun, taking part in this global event. We pledge our support for Earth Hour. And when it’s all over, we get back to our lives with just one flick of a switch without thinking about it until the next event happens.

But how many people actually continue with their pledges to save the Earth when the event is over?

Truth? Not a lot.

Most of the people whom I know don’t really care about things like these. In fact, I have one friend who’s so jaded about this whole event. He sees environmental activists and thinks that they should care more about human rights than the Earth. And he even said this to me recently: “If we can’t even protect ourselves, how can we protect the Earth?”

There is some truth in what he says. After all, there’s all sorts of horrible things happening around the world. Things like rapes, wars, fights, and crimes. It’s horrible.

So well, I guess what I’m really trying to say is that while Earth Hour is a great way to show our support, there is more that can be done to save the Earth. This... is just the first step.

To actually make a difference, we have to go beyond just switching off the lights for one hour once a year. We have to do the little things like remembering to switch off the lights in the room if we’re not in it, and switching on the fan instead of the air conditioning.

It’s the little things that count.

So what are you doing to help save the Earth?

I was at work that day when this really random thought hit me - sometimes I believe that not everyone loves what they're doing and I have this love-hate relationship towards my current job. Don't get me wrong, I actually love my job more than my previous jobs and I love it more than I detest it.

Honestly, I had no idea why I chose retail in the first place. When I announced that I was going to get a retail job, the first thing my mom told me was, "You sure? It's going to be very boring you know. Just stand there and wait for customers to come in". That got me thinking for a bit but then again, I can't exactly be a chooser, can I? I started off with FNB years ago, but I gave it up due to my inability to balance anything more than a plate on both hands. Neither was I able to hold a tray with my hand without unintentionally drenching my customer with 5 glasses of iced cold water on a really cold night. (Thank god, she was really forgiving!)

So retail it is, or was.

Turns out that my mom was kinda wrong. Working in retail can be quite the challenge so here are my quick guide if you ever wanna consider working in retail part time to support the shopping and expenses while in poly!

The dummies guide to working in a retail shop!

1. Be fast reacting.

You could be happily munching on your dinner / lunch / snack when a customer comes cruising in and decides to ask about the price so that would mean you need to transform into a hamster almost immediately and stuff the extra food somewhere that isn't visible and answer them.

2. You will be ignored 1/5 of the time.

When customers come into the shop and you sink into a very happy (can be genuine or not) "HI, WELCOME!", be prepared to just be ignored. If you're lucky, customers would turn and smile at you and say hi but there are the few who would just continue walking as if they didn't hear you. But it's not their fault, really. Some people are just shy or prefer to shop alone without interference whilst some just... don't bother. Hahaha.

3. You have to smile, at all times.

Retail is customer service and you always need to have a smile ready. Hahah, initially when I started out retail, I was telling myself "Omg, I have to smile all the time, I'm going to look really silly" But you'll get used to it after a while, think about it this way, you wouldn't want to walk into a shop and have the retail staff look at you as if you owed them money right right right?

4. The customer is mostly right.

Ok I said mostly right because sometimes the customers might have the wrong information about pricings and promotions so.. it's your job to correct them in a friendly polite way! But other than that, yes the customer is right, they know what is right for their feet or for themselves. I have had customers who are very insistent about getting a smaller size even though the bigger size is better, and despite me telling them about it, they still prefer the smaller size, I would just smile because after all, they know their comfort levels better!

5. Know your stuff.

This is super duper important! Like when customers ask you about the products you're selling, you need to have at least a little knowledge about it so you wouldn't be standing there with your mouth wide open searching for answers frantically!

With all that said, I think I made retail sound like some sort of slavery in which you have to bend over backwards for customers but noooooo, that's not true ok? It's fun because you meet customers from all walks of life and the intereaction with each of them is different in their own little way. Plus you get funny experiences with some customers that you can laugh about when you get home, so why not right?

Hahaha, oh and I shall share a little secret with you guys. I'm not a fan of closed toe shoes, I loooooooooove wearing flip flops and most retail shops require you to wear shoes but lucky for me! This is what I wear at work!

OKAY BYEEEEEEEEEEE! <3

"Singapore has an average temperature of 32-35 degrees. Occasionally our temperatures can go down to 25 degrees, but that's very rare. One thing we're known for? Our notoriously unpredictable weather. The sun can turn to rain very, very quickly. So it always pays to bring along a small umbrella wherever you go."

That's what I tell tourists every day in my job as a duck tour guide (see other post). Plan a beach outing, the rain spoils it. Want to have a picnic, it's scorching hot. So i always tell tourists that Singapore has built mega malls for us to escape into if the weather is unfavourable. And boy am I proud of our bigger malls in Singapore like Vivo City and Suntec City...

But I digress. Sifting through all these malls, there is a particularly neat one along orchard road called Orchard Central. Boy do i love this mall. Huge empty spaces, very arty designs and exhibitions, and not to mention a magnificent sky garden on the eleventh floor. (yes you heard me right, on the eleventh!!!)

But then i have digressed again. Someone please stop me.

OKAY here's my point: The point of me bringing up orchard central is that there's this neat tidy place on the 4th floor known as Border X. For all you rock climbing fans, even this name might come across as something foreign to you. I used to love rock climbing back in secondary school. Being here in Singapore with its predictable weather, rock climbing outdoors isn't particularly enjoyable as it may sound, with you being at the mercy of the sky above. I used to love heading down to Tanjong Pagar many years ago where they had this really neat indoor air-conditioned rock climbing facility for use. And then...it closed down!!!

So I read the papers recently about 'Border X' located in the heart of town, with very very interesting walls and various levels of difficulty in terms of climbing for amateurs to seasoned climbers! Every fan was raving about it so I simply had to see what all this fuss was about being a former climber myself! I immediately google pictures of this structure and I was surprised to find a wall that looked pretty sweet from the official website. Copyright belongs to Joel Lim who took pictures for the website I think. :)))

After oogling at the pictures, I simply had to confirm it for myself and off i went to town! I was really really excited to check it out so i headed to orchard central two days ago and boy was i not disappointed! Infact i was in a bit of a shock. The actual place was even better than i had imagined!

For one, it is brand new. So that means the safety equipment for rent is also new, nice-smelling, and shiny. No sweat!

And the wall is structured such a way on the 4th floor of this new big spacious mall, that you really do feel like you're very very high up, even before you start climbing! Now one thing special about Border X, which has featured in our media a huge amount of times (you only have to google them), is that apart from the traditional rock climbing facility it has, it also houses the very unique and exciting 'ferrata'.

Now i know many of us would go 'ferra wha?', and so did i, until i went down today and asked around. (:

Ferrata is a traditional European mountaineering activity, reputed to have been started in Italy in WW1 as a means of letting the Italian troops cross the Dolomites. Since then, many other via ferrata routes have sprung up around Europe, allowing hikers and mountaineers to ascend peaks in total safety.

Bearing in mind that a climbing course had to be built with mass participation in mind, the via ferrata course is designed with multiple courses of varying difficulty. This allows climbers to choose a via ferrata route that will let them challenge their skills, allowing them to also cross their own personal borders.

BorderX is not only sited in Orchard Central, a shopping mall in the heart of Orchard Road. (many schools and facilities in Singapore may have indoor rock climbing today, but few have outright ease of access and entry as Border X).

A few days back when i was there, there was this bunch of kids from NUS having the time of their lives, racing up the walls. A 'Gelare' is situated right below the wall, and i bought a huge smoothie, sat down at the comfortable couches, and enjoyed the view!

So the next time you complain that Singapore is too small, and there isnt much to do, and that all the malls here are boring, think again (: There's always something new and exciting sitting around the corner, just waiting to be discovered.

I didn't go for the ferrata as i wasn't in the most comfortable of attires (Skinny jeans and Rock Walls arent the best of friends) but personally, i cannot wait to try out this new and interesting ferrata experience. How about you? (:

This was meant to be a post about two concerts (Kings of Convenience and Shugo Tokumaru), but as much as I love Shugo and his quirky/weird multi-instrumental music, I loved KoC so much more that I'm just going to blog about them. Especially since KoC is a duo consisting of one of my favourite persons in music - Erlend Øye. I am sort of convinced he's a genius. I have listened to everything he's done so, yeah, I'm a little more than obsessed. And he's cute to me, regardless of what anyone else may say. OKAY I MUST STOP RAMBLING BEFORE I SEEM LIKE SOME KIND OF WEIRD FANGIRL.

Cute! Erik (left) and Erlend (right) :D

I'm really happy that the Esplanade decided to bring KoC back another time this year, because I missed it when they came in 2006. Back then, I was only a poor secondary student and had $0 to go for concerts, except free ones like Baybeats. I heard that concert was much better but, hey, this one was amazing too, so I have no complaints. Random fact, but Erik and Erlend met when they were kids at a geography contest. How dorky/cute is that!?

Not the actual version at the concert, but this was the one with the best quality!

This was my favourite segment of the night: when he sang Thirteen by Big Star. To tell the truth, it's not my favourite cover (Elliott Smith's version will always be my absolute favourite, because it's just so heartbreaking), but it was awesome because it's my favourite 'romantic' song and it was completely unexpected! I didn't think he'd do it, but I suppose it's because of Alex Chilton's (from Big Star) very recent death (RIP!). My other favourite was when Erlend danced during two songs, Singing Softly to Me and I'd Rather Dance With You, because he's adorable. But that's just my inner fangirl talking. I REALLY hate that I forgot my camera, but it's okay because people took vids.

SO JEALOUS OF THE PEOPLE AT THE FRONT. You can't really see it from the video but he climbed over the seats. I KNOW. And where was I?! ALL THE WAY AT THE SIDE.

KoC is dear to my heart because of all the memories I have with their music. There was one part, during the concert, when Erlend asked if the crowd knew their new album (Declaration of Dependence) and, when everyone cheered, he said something like "Good, I didn't want our songs to just be memories from when you were 15" or something like that. BUT THAT WAS THE CASE FOR ME.

I developed music tastes kind of late in life and their CD, Quiet is the New Loud, was one of my firsts. I used to listen to it all the time (on my old school CD player!) before school, after school, on the bus, while trying to study for my prelims/O levels. Okay, enough of walking down memory lane for now. For those of you who haven't listened to them before, YOU HAVE TO.

I'll leave you with two of my favourites from the night, Cayman Islands and Homesick (both from my favourite album of theirs!):

So what do you think of them? Let me know in the comments below!

Hey there! It’s me, Geraldine again, and this time… let’s talk about our future! And by that, I meant future education. Hehe.

For those of you oldies who’ve just graduated from NP (;P), I bet you’re thinking about what lies ahead next. Well… There is always the degree route, because higher education definitely makes you more qualified when you apply for a job.

If you’re diving straight into the work field, though, never underestimate the power of an awesome portfolio! So remember to pull out all your best work and present it to your interviewer. Maybe you’ll be able to stun them with your awesomeness. ;)

But that’s not really what I’m going to talk about today. To be more specific, let me tell you about the degree courses that you can take in Ngee Ann! 

Degrees in Marine Technology
Newcastle University, UK
School of Engineering

Our school has been hosting this two-year degree in Naval Architecture since 2008, but come September, Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) is going to manage the programme! It’s still held in Ngee Ann though, so that’s a good thing.

And you know how they say good things come in pairs? Well, guess what! There’re two new courses: a degree in Marine Engineering and a degree in Offshore Engineering.

While this degree caters mainly to Marine & Offshore Engineering graduates, it’s open to all graduates of Mechanical Engineering-related courses. So if you’re really interested, all you have to do is just a bridging course and you’re all set!

And what’s awesome about this programme is that you get to experience a four-week immersion trip in Newcastle, UK. Talk about getting a quality education filled with opportunities. ;)

So if you’re interested, make sure you visit the SIT website and submit an online application!

For more queries, email adm@singaporetech.edu.sg.

http://www.singaporetech.edu.sg/?p=165

Degree in Creative Producing
Chapman University, Orange County, California
School of Film and Media Studies

Are you interested in making films? Do you get totally psyched when you’re working on a film? Well if you do, check out this two year accelerated degree programme made just for you! It’ll impart the knowledge of the ins and outs of working in an international environment, and not only that, Hollywood practitioners will teach this specially designed course!

Opportunities are aplenty, and you can look forward to serving your internship in the filmmaking capital of the world at the Chapman campus. Isn’t that exciting? ;D

And this time round, this degree is no longer limited to graduates of Film, Sound & Video and Mass Communication students. You can apply even if you’re from other polytechnics/institutions (as long as your diploma is related to the degree).

Application closes on 31 March 2010, so make sure you sign up now before it’s too late!

http://www.np.edu.sg/fms/furtherstudies/Pages/chapman.aspx

Degree in Early Childhood Education
Wheelock College Center for International Education, Leadership, and Innovation
School of Humanities

So you’ve just finished your diploma in Early Childhood Education and Child Psychology & Early Education, and you know you want to go on to university to get a degree. So… ever thought about getting your degree at NP?

Hehe. In case you didn’t know, Ngee Ann actually offers a degree in Early Childhood Education. It trains you to be a critical thinker, so you’ll be able to teach the little ones (cute kiddies alert!) using different approaches. After all, everyone has their own way of learning, and this way you’ll be nurturing our future generation to be awesomely talented individuals!

Not only that, you get to spend five weeks at their Boston campus for a hands-on education during the summer. ;)

http://www.wheelock.edu/sing-np/

So what are you waiting for? If you’re thinking about getting a degree, look no further! Check out the degrees you can get here right at Ngee Ann!

PS: I think these options are all pretty cool (and I’m pretty keen on the Creative Producing degree myself), especially since you get once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to travel overseas while studying. What do you think of it? Let me know in the comments below!

Hellooo everyone!

I'm sitting here typing this and applying aloe vera lotion on myself, haha! Having quite the rare case of sunburnt because just last week, while I made my tiny disappearance from this blog, I was actually out of Singapore! :D Pardon the smiley face because it was my first time out of Singapore without my parents along with me! Yes, I'm quite the sheltered child and I won't feel safe without my mom in the same country as I do!

But as a reward to myself for getting through 3 years of poly life and as somewhat of a graduation trip, I headed to the nearby islands (any further and I'll be homesick!) - BINTAN! It was quite an impromptu trip actually. My friend and I made the decision a month before, I hurried down to get my passport done and off we went to...

Nirwana Beach Club is actually part of a bigger resort called Nirwana Gardens and there are many different resorts under Nirwana Gardens such as Mayang Sari (for the romantic feel), Indra Maya, Nirwana Resort Hotel and many more! We chose Nirwana Beach Club because we wanted something simple and I mainly wanted to go to the beach. My whole aim of going to Bintan was really to actually laze on the beach in my bikini everyday and just relax after stressing through 3 years of school!

I didn't even know why we chose Bintan because firstly, I have motion sickness and the only way to get there was through..

I swore I didn't even remembered my motion sickness with all that excitement until I was 1 metre away from boarding the ferry. I grabbed my friend's arm and went "Oh my god, I.. am sea sick!" Okay I shan't elaborate on my friend's mortified face when I said it and the paranoia that followed. Let's just say I sat through the 55-mins ferry ride with a huge NTUC plastic bag on my lap. It didn't matter anyway, I fell asleep 10 minutes after boarding. Hahaha. Ok back to Bintan! I shall let the pictures do the talking!!

Hahah, I had to take the typical touristy shot :D

Our resort even had a mini zoo with animals like crocodiles, pythons, vultures and eagles! It's a pity I didn't manage to get a shot of the animals but these animals were actually confiscated from people who tried to smuggle them out of Indonesia and then donated to the Nirwana Mini Zoo! I was quite amazed because hey, how often does a resort you stay in have a mini zoo with such animals!?

So after exploring the area around the resort, we decided to venture OUT of the resort for some dinner and shopping. We asked the hotel staff and turned out that the resort provides a free shuttle service and different intervals to take you out to this small shopping area called Pasar Oleh Oleh.

It's quite a cool area because the shops are kampong-styled and some of the shop owners actually even live above their shops! I was expecting things to be overpriced over there but noooo, everything was in SGD and are priced quite reasonably. But I guess Bintan's more of a relaxing place rather than a shopping paradise so the only things you can get there are souvenirs and handicrafts and FOOD!

YES, spot the greed in my eyes! I was famished because we barely ate the entire day when we got there so when we spotted this restaurant that sold pretty yummy food at relatively reasonable price! So I plonked myself on the nearest chair and refused to budge. What can I say? A hungry man girl is an angry man girl! For the 2 nights we were at Bintan, we came to the same place for dinner! I loooooooved the food so much, I'm drooling thinking of the food now ):

Well, we spent the rest of the days hanging around the beach because the weather really was perrrrfect and even at night, the stars in the skies are nothing like the sky we see in Singapore. I guess it's because Bintan is darker as compared to Singapore so the stars are much more obvious in the skies. I even spotted a shooting star! Thinking of Bintan now really makes me regret not staying for a day or two longer! But oh well, I'm sure I'll have another chance!!

Shall end up with a happy-girl shot of me at the beach (THE WATERS ARE REALLY CLEAR!!!!). I know you can't see my face here, but I'm not exactly a jumpshot person, thank god for the long hair or you might just see my really extremely unglam face! :D

Let me know what you think about this and leave a comment! Happy holidays all!

You know back when i was in secondary school, i remember us thinking that our school was the best thing in the world. It didn't matter that we hardly followed any of the rules, wore ankle length socks, tucked out our uniforms, kept our hair long, or came late countless times. The list goes on. But give us an inter-school event be it sport, debating, or even an educational challenge, as long as it involved pitting ourselves as a school against another school, suddenly we became ferocious, passionate, die-hard supporters of the colours of our uniforms.

It's pretty unexplainable, but there's just something about competition that riles us. It didn't matter if we were from a neighbourhood school, or one of the top schools. All that matters was that we would be cheering and shouting louder than the other school's supporters.

I remember loving that kind of healthy rivalry and competition. Every time an event was coming around, there'd be a growing sense of excitement amongst everyone around the school, even during lessons, especially on the day of the event. I remember participating in a debating competition and being so excited to represent my school (i was from a neighbourhood school, mind you)!

Now this brings me to my point, about NYBC (no, it's not some cop show though it sounds the part). The National Youth Business Challenge is interesting in so many ways that i truly regret not having heard about this back in my days at secondary scool (NOT too long ago okay!). If you've ever felt there's a business-setter living deep inside you, someone who loves the challenge and pressure of dealing with everything a business has to offer, from running a business, to simply analysing trends, and even managing various levels of people and situations, then continue reading!

NYBC is an annual outreach programme organised by Ngee Ann Poly's School of Business & Accountancy, where hands-on learning (which is the only way to learn imo) is the major draw of this program. Experiential learning, with real life settings, dealing with macro & micro forces which come to play, is indeed, PLAY. (pardon the pun)

You'll learn various topics that include entrepreneurship, marketing, customer service, retail management, operations management, and human resource management. Which may sound like a whole lot of stuff that's too niche for you to settle on, but THAT"s exactly the point! (: You can give it a try in these settings, and you've nothing to lose, just all to gain as you can find out through these competition's process whether or not you like these kinds of fields, in terms of business. Of course, through this all, you also get to bond with your friends, and classmates, as it's a perfect setting for getting closer (:

If you want more information about the competition, you can check out the website at www.nybc2010.com

Here's two pictures of the teams that participated last year (note the smiles):

More information that you'd defitnitely need, like how many of your friends should form a team, how many teachers do you need going with you, and how where exactly is it held (hint: its a mega mall!) can be found over there on the website.

So i say give it a go, if you're reading this, you want excitement, adventure, you want to grow closer to your friends, and you want to learn something in the process, and who knows-one day maybe join the business industry, you can find all that out and more if you make the first move!

Don't be like me and regret that I didn't participated in more of these events when i was in secondary school! (: Your chance is NOW.

Despite the fact that our holiday timetables clash with our JC friends, I really love that we have March free, because it gives me more time to go for concerts during the Mosaic Music Festival! This time, the first one I went for was the awesome Au Revoir Simone show held last Sunday at the Esplanade. It was an amazing gig, really.

Two of my favourite songs: Another Likely Story and Sad Song

Au Revoir Simone is this lovely pop group made up of 3 really, really pretty girls. During the concert, Annie (the one in the striped dress) commented that Singaporeans were surprisingly friendly to her and I heard somebody near me say "That's because you're caucasian. And hot.", which made me laugh because it was really true. 

They didn't play some of my favourite songs like Hurricanes and The Lucky One, but the whole concert was <3 anyway. AND AND AND there was an autograph session after! Yeah I love autograph sessions, all the better to make awkward conversation with your idols. You know how it's so easy to think of what to say before you actually meet them, but when you're in front of them face-to-face, you suddenly become this stuttering, pathetic fangirl? Yeahhh. Okay, it really wasn't as bad, but I wanted to slap myself because all I could think of to say was: OH MY GOD GREAT SHOW. Oh, but Annie called my friend and I "cuties" so I'm pretty much happy. They were all really sweet and nice, though they did seem really tired. 

I'm sad I didn't get to take a picture with them because of the security guards (ugh). Someone I knew got to go for a meet-and-greet, so I was really jealous! Ah well, next time, maybe? They did say they liked Singapore but, then again, everyone who comes here says that! Well, let's hope today's concerts (Kings of Convenience/Shugo Tokumaru) go as awesomely, which I'm sure they will because they are great musicians. Till next week! 

Hey there! How has your holidays been going so far? For those of you who’ve just been admitted into Ngee Ann, I’m sure some of you have been heading down to our Convention Centre to get your laptops for school. So here I am with some of my favourite apps ever that you can get to prepare your laptop for those hectic school days that are sure to come!

#1. WriteRoom (Mac, $24.99)
http://www.hogbaysoftware.com/products/writeroom

WriteRoom is like, my favourite app of all time. Being a writer myself, I just love the simplicity of the app. It just makes it so easy to concentrate on writing alone and not get distracted by anything else. You know, like procrastinating and doing stuff like checking your email or chatting with your friends on MSN instead of working on that essay you have due tomorrow!

PS: If you haven’t experienced procrastination yet, hehehehe... Then again, there are some people who are just waaaay too organised and immune to procrastination. T_____T

Yup, that's a screenshot of me working on this blog post! ;) And on the right is how it'd look like on a Mac!

Unfortunately, though, WriteRoom is not a free app - I got mine only because of the MacHeist Nano bundle last December. But! I have an alternative for you. Although not as sleek as WriteRoom imo, this app still manages to get the work done properly! Plus, it works on Win and Linux too ‘cause it runs on Java, so that’s another bonus for those of you non-Mac users!

Alternative: JDarkRoom (Mac/Win/Linux, free)
http://www.codealchemists.com/jdarkroom/

JDarkRoom is almost exactly like WriteRoom, but not only that, it also allows you to customise the colours that you see on your screen. Personally, it doesn't do much for me, but maybe it's to your taste! ;)

Colourful, eh?

And now we move on to our second app of the day!

#2. iProcrastinate (Mac, free)
http://www.craigotis.com/mac/

iProcrastinate is one of the few free task manager apps that I have found. I’m kind of like a geek that way because I go around searching for free apps when I’m bored and feeling techie. Anyway, it's awesome because it has features that allow you to create subjects for your different modules, and then in those modules, you can create different tasks for your homework.

Another awesome feature about it is that it allows you to link files to your tasks, so let’s say that you’re working on an essay (heh, again with the essay), you can link the document you’re working on to your task. It makes it easy to get to your document and get straight to work, instead of spending time searching for the document.

Then again, this might not be your cup of tea. Maybe you prefer seeing all your tasks in one list instead of categorising them. So here’s another alternative!

Alternative: Remember the Milk (online, free)
http://www.rememberthemilk.com/

This is another pretty good task manager (though it’s technically not an app), and there’s quite a couple of features in it. The good thing about this is that you get to take your tasks with you everywhere, so if you have an iPhone (or some other device with 3G), you are literally connected on the go!

Some old tasks I'd completed! :)

And now we come to our third app of the day!

#3. Freemind (Mac/Win/Linux, free)
http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Download

I love mindmapping. In fact, I strongly believe in using it when I’m brainstorming because that’s when ideas just pop out from nowhere in my head and it’s just impossible to put my thoughts down linearly. Mindmapping allows me to just think and connect different ideas in my head, so it’s extremely useful to have an app like this on standby! It’s also very simple and easy to use, with no complicating head-messing features that you don’t really need. The good thing about this app: It runs on Java, so it works on almost any operating system with Java. Good for you, eh? ;)

A little story outline I did. Hehehe

And sometimes, after all that hard work, you just need to unwind a little! So here’s the fourth app that you definitely need!

#4. VLC (Mac/Win/Linux, free)
http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

VLC runs on almost any operating system out there, so that’s one plus point for it. Personally, the reason why VLC is one of my favourite apps is simply ‘cause it is just able to play nearly every file format that I’ve thrown at it so far. And it also allows you to increase the volume of the video by 400%, which is absolutely awesome! Sometimes the audio of the video that I’m watching is just too soft, so this lets me amp up the volume and hear clearly what they’re saying. ;)

And yup, that's Lips of An Angel by Hinder ;)

And finally we come to our last app of the day!

#5. Tweetdeck (Mac/Win/Linux, free)
http://www.tweetdeck.com/

Tweetdeck. Hehehe. Well, in case you didn’t know, Tweetdeck is an application for Twitter, so you get to check your tweets and stuff on it. The good thing about it is that it allows you to add multiple accounts from Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and even LinkedIn! You can also create custom Twitter lists and easily check up on who’s tweeting what. :)

As a side note: I know more than a couple of friends who’ve decided that they’re not joining the twittering frenzy, but here’s why you should: You get to follow your favourite artistes and see what they’re tweeting, and if you follow Straits Times and Channel News Asia, you also get news on the go! So it’s not just all pleasure, but you get informational stuff too. Hehe.

So what are you waiting for? Most of these apps are free, so go get those apps now! If you think you’ve got a better app to recommend, let me know in the comments below :)

PS: We’re on Twitter too, so follow us @npfriends if you haven’t! Go go go! :D

Hello people! How have your holidays been? And more importantly... how has the job hunting been going? 

Every holiday, I tell myself that I will find a job, but I always end up procrastinating everyday with excuses like "I need a break after the exams" or "I just want to sleep in". So the days roll by, and my holidays wind to an end without me ever finding a job.... which also usually means that I end up broke the entire holiday! I mean, our allowances really aren't enough for us to get through this immensely "stressful" period in our lives that we call: the boring holidays! I just want to go out with my friends every day, but my rapidly dwindling finances tell me to stay home instead. =______=

So! This time round, I made sure to send out my resume to the few companies that I was interested in working at part time. AAAAAAAND... voila!

Nope, I didn't become a duck. Nor do I drive this funny-looking duck-looking car/boat/whatyoumightcallit.

I'm working at Singapore Hippo & Duck Tours as a Ducktainer!!! That's what they call us (: And basically, what I do is to give live commentary on the tours that take place every day. But more about my job later! First I shall talk about this very adorable machine!

I remember back when I was still in year 1, I was innocently walking along Suntec City's Convention Hall... and just as I was crossing the road, I felt (heard, rather) my life flash before me. I thought I was going to die! Okay, heh, cutting down on the melodrama, what happened was that one of these machines roared to life! Now the sound of the engine was crazy, it almost felt as though I was in the middle of a war scene! And frankly speaking, that's exactly what these ducky machines were built for (: Very interesting amphibian machines built by  the Americans that were used during the Vietnam war to travel on BOTH land and water. When my friend told me that, I didn't believe him. Deep down, though, I told myself that I was gonna have to sit on one of these things one day.

Now here's a picture of the same machine in the water:

So when I passed my job interview, I told them that I could start work on the weekend after my last paper. That meant that while my friends were getting into the 'holiday groove' and enjoying the beginning of blissful holidays, I was cooked up at home memorising a 1 hour land script and a 30min river script. Admittedly, it was tough at first, but once I had the gist in my head, it was easy! And I totally have NO REGRETS about working hard just to memorise the script!

Work is truly fun as I get to go onboard these very cute ducks every day, talk to people (indians love that), meet tourists from all over the world every single day, and watch them marvel at my country! I dare you to find a better job than this  (: I get rude tourists every now and then, but for every one of them that comes along, there are 10 nice tourists I meet whom appreciate your commentary (and tells you so!), laughs at your jokes, smiles at the monuments, and cheers when you're done. And all of these just make this job so worthwhile. In fact, I tell my friends it's not 'work' that I'm going for every day. I can't bring myself to call it 'work'!

Besides the duck tours, though, I also commentate for river cruises every now and then. The view of the Singapore River at night never fails to take my breath away!

In fact, every time I get home I find that I don't miss my holidays, or the lack of rest from. I don't even look on at my friends in envy. (: I get to do what I love, and earn money whilst doing it. What better way to spend the free time that I do have? And not only that, I get to meet my pals after work and not have to worry about money at all! (;

PS: My usual favourite places for job hunting include the Night Safari, the Zoo, Sentosa, and the like. As you can see, I'm a bit of a touristy person. I love meeting new people every day! So if it's your holidays, my friends, and you're bored at home, and you want to try something exciting and different from the normal conventional jobs, go out there and do yourself something you love!

And if you happen to have loads of free time on your hands and just maybe, you're passing along Suntec City or our beautiful Singapore River when you find this huge ducky vehicle blocking your path, look right up and maybe you'll find me there! Wave and smile alright! I'll be looking out for you too. (:

Alrighty, back to my duck life. Quack! (;

So how's your days been? Let me know in the comments below and happy holidays! (: