30th Mar 2023
Just got back from Penang. Next time, I know I can bring some incense. Still won't being bringing joss paper though.
Saw dried flowers at the grave of my great-aunt too. Someone visited, maybe a week ago.
02nd April 2023
So after all these decades, I finally learn that the tiny brown wingless bugs up to 1mm big that appear frequently on my walls, sometimes in my books, in my bed, and even in food containers... are booklice. Not bed bugs, not dust mites, but booklice.
Booklice are harmless, they are named due to their love for the glue in book bindings, but their preference for starch has gone beyond that paste in today's world. In fact, they're also a common pest in the agriculture sector as they like to feed on starchy grains like various types of cereal.
My guess is my books are all infested by them. Not a problem at all, but their presence, to me, should also indicate the presence of dust mites, since both are present in my bed when it's not cleaned often.
Also, no wonder stuff in my store room don't get attacked by them - humidity under 50% keeps them away, and I keep the room at 60% at most though usually at 40+.
04th April 2023
Finally went into the casino in MBS, with a modest budget of just S$1000.
Lost about $900 at $25 Texas over the afternoon, realised you need a lot more money to begin with to enjoy, since the bonus is probably where it's at, whereas the ante, flop, turn and river are all merely for surviving another round. S$2-3k would be a more reasonable budget for spending half a day or the entire day at Texas, so that I can bet about $100 on the bonus, while the rest of the game costs $5 on the jackpot (for anything full house and above on the flop), $25 on the ante (to receive your two-card hand), $50 on the flop (first three cards), $25 on the turn (4th card) and another $25 on the river (5th card). For most games, I'd bet till the flop, sometimes I'd fold there, sometimes I'd bet on the rest, so that's generally $(5+25+50=80) per game without the bonus, or $180 with, hence $1000 would be too little for it.
For my budget, the S$2.50 roulette was more fun, more chill. By betting just one number each round, I could last VERY long with the remaining S$125. Never made sense to me to bet multiple numbers since they'd be eating into each other given that only a single number wins each round. Once my chips exceeded $250 after a while, decided to add in the S$150 levy into my expenditure, so my gambling budget was reduced to $850, and I left with $170, ie spent $830 yesterday total on a day of excitement.
Strangely, I don't find it as exciting as it used to be when I first tried these games at Genting. Nothing to do with the venue, it's probably just me.
In any case, even though it often feels like you should play every round no matter the cards in your hand, folding in Texas seems to make sense overall when you have no picture cards and nothing consecutive and suited. It was roughly 40% of these occasions when I could have won if I hadn't folded, so odds were indeed against me when my cards were bad.
06th Apr 2023
Just when I have the mood to visit the framer, the old postcards from France vanished! They were postcards written by random people before either WW1 or WW2, just mundane stuff, but their age made them quite intriguing to me, therefore not only were the pictures printed on one side important, but so were the words written on the back, which means only a custom framer could help.
Except I can only find the few from Canada, including one sent from "Walbrook, Kings County, NS" in 1908 (WW1 began in 1914). Wonder where the French ones went, because they were spotted in recent years and I thought to leave them in a unique spot where they wouldn't mix with other things.
Guess it was too unique and now it's not somewhere I'd think to look.
Speaking of the WWs, recently learnt that steel from before them are actually valuable because they're used in the most sensitive Geiger counters, due to the fact that the nuclear tests around that period had left trace amounts of radiation in the atmosphere (also a useful fact in the wine industry), so steel that has not been exposed to our air today can be closer to perfect zero than anything we can produce today, ie steel salvaged from ships sunk in WW1 and WW2. Apparently people mostly do it illegally because it's about destroying artefacts with historical value.
11th Apr 2023
Random thought: if our country has been planned so far ahead, and most things are really within expected limits today except for our MRT and maybe real estate markets, is our healthcare system really also one of those exceptions?
Was considering how the world would be like if hospitals do not have an issue with capacity, polyclinics always have slots for walk-ins, and A&E queues are always short, and felt that the classic line of thought that it's beneficial for the healthcare system if we remain unhealthy indefinitely might actually work for that ideal world.
Maybe this is completely crazy, but what if we are intentionally toeing the line between being filled to the brim and actual overcapacity so as to avoid the desire to keep people unhealthy for profits?
23rd Apr 2023
Wanted to write down something that happened for the first time while taking a piss last night, but was so tired I've now completely forgotten what it was.
Probably the date. Finally went on one with my course mate whom I suspected was interested in me. Didn't have enough sleep even on Thursday, and on Friday there was the Basic Cardiac Life Support (and AED) course which was definitely a full upper body in its own right, so sleeping from a little before half past eight to half past three that night was probably insufficient even though there was clearly seven hours.
Got a ride to pick her up and get to Macritchie by 6am to catch the (partial) sunrise. Then my hiking boots finally crocodiled (partially at the front on the left, from the front to the arch on the right) so much it had to be repaired, so I tore off the right sole (just the outermost) and held it in my hands while we walked back and went to my place so that I could put on another pair of shoes.
In any case, the rest of the layers on the right are fine, but on the left, I count two layers that have begun to peel off, though both to a smaller degree than the one on the right boot. Since the grooves were still perfectly fine with even the heels still clearly defined, it only make sense to glue them back, and the plan now is to send them to a shoe repair shop and see if they can do a better job than me with my old leather shoes.
Also took a shower and offered her a towel and some water, before I gave her a brief tour of my place which was in a complete mess because I haven't had a guest in months and was not expecting her to be here. Didn't show her the bedrooms though. This is also the first time a girl comes over on a date and nothing sexual happened. All the souvenirs overwhelmed her just like it does for everyone, then went to the Star Vista for some coffee.
Then we spent the day at the Star Vista followed by Orchard Road where we shopped a little bit at Uniqlo, had dinner at this Gorogoro place that reminded me of the Mongolian bbq place in a day tour in Taiwan, but mostly sat down at various cafes and talked even though I was tired for most of the day. Wanted to see where it went and what would come up. Fortunately my efforts were rewarded because she was open about many things, including how she didn't feel good about some things that she'd done in the past, and I reassured her everything she'd confessed to was mild compared to my exes.
The conversations also included information on other classmates that fit with what others have told me, which turned suspicions into truths, though none of this will factor into my studies.
She was not experienced at dating for sure, because she didn't know how to insist on paying her share even though she tried to ask if half the bill at Gorogoro was a certain number that I've forgotten and which I ignored while looking for my card, and later she paid for my Uniqlo clearance sale tshirts. The two S$9.90 shirts were roughly what her share of the meal had cost and did not cover everything else, but the fact is that this is the first real date she's been on in probably five years or ten, and she still managed to cover a significant part of it.
Quite sweet too, insisted that I used a wet tissue from her to clean the boot sole a little and for my hands when I tore it off and held it for the rest of the walk.
Yeah, I'm trying to be more positive with the ladies I date now, ever since a close friend agreed that I rarely praise anything and anyone, and her partner asked me what I liked about this course mate. It might be why my previous relationships were not successful - I might have focused too much on their bad points.
Anyway, called it a day at eight and sent her home in my ride before returning home, probably my first time doing it for someone who doesn't live between the pickup location and my home, resulting in a V-shaped route. Overall the date was still quite affordable, at:
(doing this probably because recently saw some people discuss the cost of dates, and because it seems fun to do some calculations for myself)
- $20 for the first ride to pick her up and to Macritchie
- $11 to my place for a change of footwear (and etc)
- $12+14 for the coffee/tea and another $8 for my pastries
- $9 for her water and chocolate which she paid for
- $1+1=2 MRT fare for the both of us which we both paid
- $10 for a book
- $6 for a tube of shoe glue
- $8 for a drink at Starbucks for somewhere to sit
- $7 for a drink at Haakon for a place to sit
- $49 for our steamboat
- $20 for my shirts and $30 for her stuff at Uniqlo which she paid for
- $21 for the way back
So in summary, the date cost $227 in total, $60 from her perspective, $167 from my wallet's perspective, well within my expectations.
Also, could tell she really wanted to spend as much time with me as possible, likely because she has been alone for a while. Regardless, she was very sweet and accommodating throughout.
29th May 2023
Still dating her. Been over a month now, and it's starting to calm down a bit as we get into something of a routine. Most of our dates are at my place since we both like to stay in, and her mostly vegan diet makes it a challenge to eat out. Regardless, it is working out quite well for the both of us, as far as I can tell, although she's beginning to want to go out now, recently mentioned something about a museum.
I could visit a gallery myself, could do with another piece of art.
She's also the first one since my almost-marriage whom I sent home even when the date is at my place. Didn't book a car for her, no we took the MRT to her place. A first for me. She spotted her mother working at the supermarket when we visited for some chocolate, but her mother was busy and we were too shy to call out to her.
05th Jun 2023
My body aches. My biceps ache, my triceps ache, my shoulders ache, my lats ache, my hamstrings ache, my quads ache... but I am alive.
But damn have I aged over the last few years! Just restarted Body Beast last weekend and just with Legs and Back+Biceps a rest day was immediaately required. Two days! Two! Not to mention I was using baby weights, like 2.2kg dumbbells, up to 5kg max per side. This was below what I used in my last cycle, and it wasn't this bad back then. Then again, I hadn't done Body Beast for a very long time, as compared to my last attempt, so this makes sense. This feels similar to when I first tried this workout routine, but not as bad. Also, more caution this time.
Still, the inability to sleep on the second night was proof that I had overtrained within two days, and it was so bad that on the fourth day, ie today, my cold sore returned.
I have indeed aged.
06th Jun 2023
Biceps still ache. Straightening my arms after having them bent at the elbows for a while is still painful.
Also, passed my tests on IM/SC injections and IV last week, and will be looking at male urinary catheterization in the coming weeks. All the fun stuff.
And my cold sore is back since yesterday. This time it returned fast!
Spent quite a bit today because I'd been looking for a dehumidifier for my book shelf, and my TV just died. Didn't want to get it repaired only for it to die again in a year, so went to look into TVs. Ultimately, this one has served for over a decade, maybe even a decade and a half, so it's time for a change.
Looked into TVs of the same size but for LG and Philips because these brands are still pretty good, and it turns out LG TVs are affordable - the UHD ones, that is. The OLED range is insanely expensive to me. Second hand TVs are only a hundred or two less than the promo prices, so decided not to get those. The LG UHD TVs come in 43", 50", 55" and the 65", so I was torn between the last three. Going for the same size as what I currently have was about S$800 on a normal day, and I could save S$100 by downgrading 5". On the other hand, if I were willing to fork out another S$100 during a regular sale instead, the 65" fits my home too.
Today, managed to get the 65" at effectively S$810, a price that immediately stopped the debate in my head. Also got a Philips dehumifier at S$529, which is nice.
Coke Zero isn't cheap these days though, even with the shrinkflation, at just above 60cents per 320ml can. I thought they used to be about 30-40cents each last year.
