faithsheep went to greener pastures
hello friends!
sorry for the dead blog here, faithsheep has officially moved on to tumblr.com.
see you there! have a great december 😀
work
okay another update after a while!
today, i was just telling someone that i actually missed working. as in doing the office job kind of work, like my past internships. haha, was at vivo and while looking at the lunch time office crowd, i suddenly missed the routine of going to work everyday, ironing and wearing my office clothes, and squeezing on the train every morning during that mad rush hour. i think i’m a closet workaholic! but then when i met up with some of my coursemates in the evening for dinner, as i talked to them, i was thankful that i didn’t have to do an internship this holidays somehow. maybe i might have felt that i was missing out on something especially when most of my friends are doing theirs this holidays, either for clearing the modular credit or the experience. but i know that this time, i chose not to work because i want to give more time for other things, and to really spend my holidays meaningfully instead of going through a routine which takes up more than half of my time of the day, leaving only those few precious hours of evening time. and then just now i came across my brother’s blog, and he wrote something related to work which i feel makes a lot of sense too:
“If you look back the few years you’ve worked, what is memorable? Staying late to rush a project timeline? What in the end has the project done? Has it helped anyone? Has it ever made a difference to anyone’s life? Answer would likely be no, it would only add to the revenue which came back as a number, cold hard number on the P&L, balance sheet, cash flow statement.”
reading this, it makes me think twice about going into the finance and investment sector. i know that most people in my course are aiming for that because of the glamour and the pay, but seriously, what difference are we really making by doing those number crunching? currently, i’m still quite unsure of my niche field in real estate.. whether it’s marketing/development/valuation/finance/urban planning.. somehow i feel that my interest lies in urban planning, it’s been an interest of mine because of its aesthetics side (used to like to draw floor plans since very young and loved design & technology in sec because i could conceptualise and visualise 3-d images very easily.. haha used to want to be an interior designer actually). however, i know that it’s very hard to get into URA to be an urban planner, and they accept mostly architects because of their specialised knowledge. haha well, the other option is marketing which is also my passion since jc days because of a marketing internship i had before, i would love to be designing the tenant mix of a shopping mall and come out with marketing campaigns to ‘revive’ the mall but i know that retail marketing requires a lot of time at the malls especially during weekends, and i definitely don’t want to give up my weekends for work. which leaves me with finance and investment.. which is something i’m not that comfortable with, facing huge sums of money. hmm.. i guess the only satisfaction derived from being in the sector is knowing that you brought in a lot of money to the company, adding to its bottomline at the end of the financial year.
oh well, work is really something that i’ve been thinking about suddenly, but i still have some time to think about what i really like to do before i graduate in a year. hopefully, by then, i’ll be more clear about my strengths and passion in real estate! =)
no such thing as business ethics
i came across this book yesterday when i popped by tecman, and i was secretly and happily saying amen when i saw it, which confirmed the uneasiness that i felt this semester as i was taking a module called Real Estate Practice and Ethics, which my lecturer had strongly advocated being ethical as something that is unrelated to religion, not being right or wrong, but doing what is appropriate and acceptable.. which in fact brings us many questions of, who deems what is acceptable? and being appropriate means it changes in different contexts? what theories do we apply in making that ‘ethical’ choice? what the module had taught us was to apply questions to the situations that we face, but it lacks in providing the answers. i just couldn’t understand how we could define a set of standardized ethics using such varying sets of standards and rules, which may at times even be at conflict with each other. for example, using a so-called ‘trusted friend’ test, where you are supposed to ask your friend regarding an ethical dilemma, and if your friend supports your decision, it would be deemed as ethical, so if say your friend is ‘unethical’ (again, who defines that), then probably he/she will give you advice to make an ‘unethical’ decision, which in his perspective is ‘ethical’ (appropriate and acceptable to him).
well, and if there have been books about business ethics (like the textbook i tried reading for exams, which turned out to be useless cos it wasn’t tested much..) and so much for creating tests and tools, then why do we still see unethical practices happening in corporations as in the case of Enron and Satyam, and people still unclear and misguided about how to make ethical decisions in situations of conflict? i strongly believe that the failure of such human-defined ethical systems just prove that we are fallible, that the law as created by us has its flaws and we need a more standardized set of rules, which is God’s standard. it’s only God’s standard, as shown in His word, that draws clearly for us the way we should be living our lives, which also applies to the way we work.
haha yup, for a while i was wishing i had this book for the open-book exams and placed my matric card on it so my lecturer could see it as he checked my matric card.. lol on the other side, he might straight away give me a C for that module or something..
heart of surrender
Lord, send me anywhere,
only go with me;
lay any burden on me,
only sustain me;
and severe every tie,
but the tie that binds me
to Thy service and Thy heart.
– David Livingstone
i was just reading a book, and came across this. how meaningful it is: a heart of surrender unto God, a heart which obeys out of love for Him, a heart willing to be used by Him in any way because the person knows that he does not own his own life, but God. as we are reminded by the love of our Saviour who died for us this Good Friday, let’s also acknowledge Him as Lord, knowing that He is the Sovereign One who created us and who gave us a new life in Him. because of His love for us, He knows how to best fulfill us when we give our lives over to Him.
so let us put down our weapons in fighting against our Master today and running our lives independently, and let us surrender wholeheartedly with gladness and thanksgiving. and let this point of surrender pave the way for a lifetime of surrender, to continually relinquish control to a God who loves us and who holds our lives in the palm of His hand. amen 🙂
blog/block in my mind
(an attempt at sounding philosophical here.. haha)
i realise that i like reading people’s blogs, yet do not like writing on my own. i’ve been blog-surfing and enjoying understanding people from their posts, but never really came back to this space to write something. i guess partly it’s due to the reason that i write rather slowly, needing some time to process my thoughts and picture how to best write out the post in a lucid manner. i don’t just want to write a random incomprehensible post leaving readers deciphering what i’m driving at, but one that is well-thought through, which makes sense and sheds light with clarity on the issues which i wish to bring across. the mechanical reporting of daily happenings just don’t seem to justify the purpose of this blog. it wasn’t meant to be a site for ramblings in the first place. even if it were so, i’m not satisfied with the way they were written.
ah well.. maybe i just lack the inspiration and the drive these days to post something. it has to be discovered once again, before my lack of passion for blogging forces this blog to its closure!
safe in a crazy world
Safe in a Crazy World by Corrinne May
I try to smile my tears away
I try to keep my cool
Oh but one more door gets in my way
I feel like such a fool
Trampled and bitter
My heart just wants to bleed and stop
Believing in me
It feels like nothing is for certain
and that nothing comes for free
When they’re lowering the curtain
to the theatre of my dreams
I stumble and I crumble and I’m
Sinking to my knees but you
You cradle me
You keep me flying
You keep me smiling
You keep me safe in a crazy world
You understand me
Embrace my fragility
You keep me safe in a crazy world
And in your arms I find the strength
to believe in me again
Noise keeps chasing me
No matter where I go
Oh and life likes pretending that it’s
On a TV show
When it’s hard to tell what’s real
From what the world just wants to preach
You are the voice I seek
You keep me flying
You keep me smiling
You keep me safe in a crazy world
You understand me
Embrace my fragility
You keep me safe in a crazy world
’cause when I’m wrapped up in your arms
Nothing else can touch me
What a wonderful way to recharge
I feel like I can breathe again
You keep me flying
You keep me smiling
You keep me safe in a crazy world
You understand me
Embrace my fragility
You keep me safe in a crazy world
And in your arms I find the strength
to believe in me again
i don’t really post up song lyrics usually.. but i was just praying to God about something related, and this song came to me. corrinne’s songs are always so soothing and therapeutic, if i may say. and i like it that song lyrics help to express ourselves, speaking from the deepest of our hearts. indeed, we all need Jesus to keep ourselves safe in this crazy world. i am not the strongest person; i fail and am weak. and there is nothing which i can boast about that does not belong to Him already. and that’s why i need His strength and grace all the more each day, to bring me through, to keep myself safe in His arms. when i’m tempted to give up, let me be reminded that all i need can be found in Him alone, and there is hope 🙂
yes Jesus can!
this is the recess week and so far it’s been an enjoyable week! just came back from DCLTP camp on tues morn and personally have been refreshed by everything – the teachings, the lessons learnt, the things which God spoke about. experiences are given by God to be meant to bless not only ourselves but also the others, so i will be faithful in what i have learnt to be able to pass these on to others. yup it is exciting to be able to serve such a great God, to love Him with everything we have because He first loved us.
anyway, this picture of Jesus (in an Obama yes-we-can style) was taken outside this church near YMCA. i’ve always seen this church putting up creative posters and have been impressed by them. their posters usually come so timely and relevant, speaking about current issues which are close to our hearts. heh as you can see, there was another guy who was intrigued by the poster at the same time i was taking the photo. yup, and sure.. with all the Obama craze (eg. breadtalk came up with an obunma bread, and ben and jerry’s came up with a peCAN flavour), it’s great to see one leader who never goes out of style, whose name has been celebrated for ages. this name which is name above all other names, which goes down further in history than the current ‘hottest’ name in town. and yes, when this person says He can, you know we can trust in what He says cos He really CAN.
a ‘niu’ update
okay, an update of what has been going on in January since school started..
firstly, would like to wish everyone an abundant and blessed lunar new year! this year’s visiting has been quite alright.. visiting both grandparents of both sides, eating grandma’s specialty ngoh hiang and mee sua, and catching a movie with cousins and aunt. out of impulse, we went to catch The Wedding Game in the afternoon on chu yi. well, the plot was rather expected.. no surprises, and the effects were so-so. well, actually they weren’t good. for a movie going for $10 (public hol, no discount), i wouldn’t say it’s worth it, unless you’re a fan of both celebrities. haha, shall not create a spoiler here, in case any of you intend to catch the local film anytime soon. but i do think there are better shows out there which deserve our watching more, and considering the state of the economy now, it’s better to be selective in what we spend on eh. even for some of us who have collected enough angbaos to last the year, which i highly doubt so, the money can always be put to better uses.
hmm. i hope i’m not sounding like one of those grouchy movie cynics who throw their popcorns at the screens and scowl at the smallest boo-boos. but, this is the first time i’m having such bad comments about a movie.. maybe it was the price, or maybe it’s just me being more picky and having high expectations, since it’s one of the most talked-about films.. but well, you catch it for yourself and be the judge 😉
and as shown from the photos, the past few weeks i’ve been busy with organising the career festival for our school and helping at one of the volunteer events held with Keppel Volunteers. the whole career festival was 2 weeks, and i was part of the welcome committee, ushering companies for their talks with the students. it’s not the first time that i’m helping out at the career festival, but it’s a good experience being able to contribute at a greater level to such school functions. and the volunteer event with Keppel went well too, as we worked with children with special learning needs for the day as we brought them to the Science Centre (been ages since i stepped there..) and caught exhibitions and shows. haha, and there was a magic show which brought out the child in me (i was fascinated with magic when i was a kid, even took up magic classes during the holidays). it’s been some time since i went for volunteering, and through the event, i witnessed the passion of the volunteers and caught their spirit as well. it was amazing, observing how the adults interacted with such joy and care for the children. i’d love to work with these volunteers again if there’s a chance, and to have more opportunities for volunteering in the future.
ah and yes, as the last photo shows.. there was a F-I-R-E just at the back of my block on chu er past midnight. i was at home and smelt some burnt smell, and went to the back of my house and saw black smoke rising from the rubbish garage which was just 100m from my block. i immediately alerted my mom, who didn’t hesitate to pick up the phone and dial 995. yes, it was the first time we called the fire emergency number! thankfully, someone else had called the firemen so within minutes the fire engine came, the drama unfolded with firemen shouting at each other to “cepat (hurry)!” to get the hose fixed with the hydrant, and thereafter the smoke subsided and all was well again. it was quite an adventure watching it ‘live ‘, seeing heroes in action. thank God it was a rubbish garage so there was no one trapped inside. yeah, it was sure a fiery chinese new year that we had 😉
so, after all the action-packed career festivals, volunteering, chinese new year visitings and fire-watching.. i think it’s time to get back to earth again. haha, suddenly there’s a pile of work waiting to be done.. the biggest of them to be handled would be deciding on my topic for dissertation, to be handed up on the 11th of feb. i haven’t had a slightest clue as to which track i should focus on, whether planning, management, marketing, or finance.. really need the wisdom! and i’ll need to be at the school library the next few days to dig out all the dissertations..
okay, this post has been mainly rambling of details and happenings. so pardon my wordy-ness!
first week at school
this semester’s bidding has been the most exciting so far, because up to round 3c at 1pm, i was still deciding which module to drop and which to bid for. haha, think it was due to my indecisiveness which led to such a consequence, bidding for modules and dropping them the following round. and at the end of it, i ended up with 5 modules all from Real Estate, which were the initial 5 modules i thought i would be doing at the very start. it was just that, along the way, my heart got swayed as bidding points for some outside fac mods became so cheap (think lelong sales 1 dollahh, 1 dollahh..) and some of them were of my interest; haha i even considered vietnamese or japanese. and my friends were dissuading me from doing certain modules like environmental issues cos that module had very few bidders, which probably indicated that either the lecturer or the topic was boring. and oh yes, the timings were other issues as well, as RE modules are well known to have evening lectures, and this semester was no exception. and so.. after much thought, almost-sleepless nights, changing, dropping and bidding, i decided on these modules:
RE Practice and Ethics
Research Methodology
RE Finance Law
Advanced RE Valuation
Environmental Issues in RE
all level 3 modules which leave me with a rather undesirable timetable of monday, wednesday and friday 7-9pm lectures. sigh. i really hate having my evenings taken up by school because it leaves me with much less time for other things, but i guess there is really no choice cos most of them are my core compulsory modules. i’m quite afraid that my sleeping pattern may change though, with such a late schedule. i have to be disciplined to still sleep early and wake up early even though my classes may start in the late afternoon!
and besides these weird timings for school and potentially heavy workload coming up (esp. the finance law.. yucks finance + law, 2 of my most feared subjects), there are still some other adjustments i have to make. yes i’m referring to the company in school. though it hasn’t been the full-blown term with all the tutorials, it has already been weird not seeing some people and sitting beside them in lectures.. yes.. i’m missing those SEP-ers. but these days, i’ve also been talking to people whom i usually don’t talk to as much, and i guess it’s also a new experience for me to know them deeper. hopefully i’ll be able to find joy and count my blessings in such new relationships forming, so that i wouldn’t miss the little things which He has prepared for me each new day.
let each day be a day of thanksgiving.
p/s. btw, does anyone know how to put a tagboard on this blog? wordpress seems to be lagging in this area, and i think the tagging of comments for each post is not working well for this blog.. hmm, maybe i should consider changing back to blogspot?
2009, let this year shine!
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- zhong qin’s new hairdo looks great on her!
so, this is the last week before school starts! while reality continues to sink its roots in my heart, i shall count the blessings of being able to spend time with people during this break and enjoy this breather before i go back to the sleep-inducing 151, lectures and tutorials. i’m thankful for being able to sleep and wake at almost any time without much worries, and do the things i’ve wanted, like visiting the marina barrage today with a dear friend joycie. we enjoyed ourselves tremendously, and it was such a wind-swept experience! (literally, because the winds were so strong and our hair was so messed up in the photos that i dare not put them up here). the barrage is a lovely place with a lovely view, and it has large green spaces on the roof for gatherings and even kite-flying. we also saw a couple taking their wedding photos there. the government is doing a great job with urban planning, creating more green and open spaces for recreation. the only thing is, they do not provide good signage so when we left the place, we did not know where to board the bus back to the mrt, and we ended up walking along the dark roads by the construction sites for quite some time. yeah, not that we want to complain, but it was really ulu. hopefully the accessibility would be improved when more developments in the area, like gardens by the bay, are completed. but well, i just discovered another good place for bringing the caregroup to!
and since this is the first post of the year, let me comment a bit on it. year 2009 has been rather exciting so far. yes i know it’s only been 8 days – but i experienced a bit of downs already, as i self-reflect. resolutions have been penned down, and they just need to be coupled with action, determination, and faith too, in order to see them come to pass or at least move towards the desired direction. if i were to summarise year 2008, it was a year of small milestones and also a little shaking of my boat, with testings here and there. and i believe that in year 2009, there will be even more shakings and forcing myself to step out of my little boat. last year, i tasted the joy of walking in obedience, and i believe that was only a teeny bit of what God has in store. so i’m looking forward to tasting more of His goodness in this year as i take steps towards Him. it will definitely be challenging, but it will be worth it!
may this year be a victorious and fruitful year for all! 😉
He leads me beside quiet waters 