Wednesday, October 31, 2007

5yr Service Awards

Can't believe that I have 'pledged my life' to my current company for such long.

What does this awards mean to me?
1. One-off SGD200 pocket money
2. Darn, time flies. (Time to change?)
3. If in average, my hair falls 200 a day, by now,
200 x 365 x 5 years x 5 (pressure factor) = 1.825mil fallen hairs.
Yes, Im balding... ;-( But, I don't give a damn ;-)

4. Very conservatively, assuming work 50hr per week, then
50hr x 52weeks x 5 year = 13,000hr - (720hr x5) (30days off annually) also ~22% I work in my life.

Say, I sleep 8hr a day, = 56hr per week.
168-56 = 112 my available hours.
112 x 52 x 5 = 29,120hr my available hours in 5yr.
[13,000hr - (720hr x5) ]/ 29,120 x 100 = 32.3% of my active life!

Worth it?

Anyway, what a milestone it is!

JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge NYC - 06.10.2007

The weather:
The weather was just nice on the running day. Cloudy and not too cold. It's a significant sign of global warming wherever I go.


The Goal:
One realistic goal - not to finish LAST! Not having any timing in mind to achieve as I did not run for months and I was very much in vacation mood. Worse, I was sick.


The Run:
I jogged through the 3.5miles but really not enjoy watching other runners overtook me like Ferraris. My 1st ever running experience with dry air and low humidity. It hurt my nasal system quite badly. My throat was uncomfortable with mild pain after the run.

The Result:
Most of them are serious runners. Just look at their timing. And, we got 34 out of 35 in our Mixed Team category ;-)



The Gallery:
1) The representatives from Singapore. HSBC, Singapore Army - SAFSA (ladies in RED) & SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE - Gurkha (gentlemen in BLUE). Backdrop is the Grand Central in NY. Equivalent to KL Sentral Msia.


2) The aftermath: Half dead face. Puffed hard even I just jogged through it. Start to feel the chill too.3)My teamates. We reached a consensus - the best part of this trip is the shopping experience!

Monday, October 08, 2007

New York Trip - 03.10.2007-12.10.2007

After a terrible experience with US embassy in sg, the horror continued at the US Custom. Me and my Indonesian colleague were held for an hr, being 'interrogated' at JFK airport. We were already tired with the jet-lag effect, so it really made me felt upset on how they treat on certain nationality. Halo, if not due to the invitation, I won't thk of going yo your country too!

Other than that, I really feel the courtesy of the organizer and the people in NYC. Yeah, courtesy. Say, when you ask for direction or you drop something, you can expect someone to give you a helping hand volunteerly. Everyone seems friendly. But, when day turns into night, it was my instinct to stay alert from any kind of crime. I don't feel safe at night.

Have to overcome the jet-lag on the 1st day. But, my team mates were already talking abt shopping. Words like 'Coach bag', 'True Religion', 'Ed Hardy', 'Abercombie & Fitch' kept being reiterated. Eventually, we went to shop at Woodbury warehouse. Absolutely fantastic shopping experience! And, Macy's deparment store too (The world's largest!) Tonnes of cheap branded stuff. 5-star recommendation!


Time Square at night: It is a MUST that every retail store to parade their brand in such vibrant ads. This area never sleep!

UN: This land area is owned by all the members in UN. Given by the US gov. No wonder US not shy to use their veto.


Underground Steaming System: It keeps the NYC warm. Reaching every neighbourhood.

Grand Central: Equivalent to KL Sentral but much better managed of course. The very beautiful Chrysler Building, once, the tallest building in the world before overtaken by the Empire State Building.

NYC Subway: The most sophisticated subway routes in the world. Cover almost every corner in NYC. But, the train & the statis looks rather out-fashion and a bit stuffy and smelly. Heck, as long as it brings the convinience.


Nobel Medal in UN: Special dedicated to TBK. Make sure you fulfill your promise ok!
Rockefeller Center: Equivalent to Suntec Singapore conceptually but far more larger in terms of vision and the size of development. Rich with history & vision. Can only feel it when you know more abt it.


NY Financial Center: View from Brooklyn side. The JP Morgan dinner was held in 1 of the tower in picture.


NYC Night View: From Empire State Building. Misty night.


Intercontinential Hotel: Nice. Sponsored by JP Morgan.
Statue of Liberty: Finally, I got to know why is it so special. History it is.


Empire State Building: Made famous by King Kong. In fact, that film rescured the building owner by making it a fame via the film. Full occupany after that.


Sky scrapers: Matchless in any other cities. Hardly feel the sunlight unless you are at the crossroad.
Parade of Sky scraper: Basically, that's the height of each building at each block in NYC.

Church in NYC: Each church is uniquely built by each nation along 5th Ave. Italy, Norway...


Time Square at dawn: Their never turn off the light.


Former Venue of World Trade Center: Paying tribute to this landmark... World Peace everyone! Imagining the magnitude of the destruction. All the buildings around it still undergoing repair.


It's an eye-opening trip indeed. A city rich with history. History of American entrepreneurship, American Dream, bold vision to develop the city, city of opportunity for all the post war immigrants. I have to admire how those people built this mega city.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

New York? New York??

Up to this moment, I still feel skeptic if I am going to make it to the New York flight or not. Thanks to the US embassy here. Due to 'unforeseen' reasons, they were yet to approve my visa until my sports club superior & team captain showed the quality of leadership to ask help directly from JP Morgan people to contact the embassy. Being told would get back my passport with visa tomorrow.

Keep the finger crossed.