Fate/Stay Night

Emiya Shirou is the sole surivor of a great fire that wiped out a substantial part of the town he lived in. The fire had robbed him of his parents, and he was saved by a sorcerer named Emiya Kirutsugu who became his step father. His step father too succumbed to illness and left Shirou alone.

Learning basic magic from his step father, Shirou vowed to champion justice. Life for Shirou as a normal high school student took a different direction when he one evening stumbled upon two powerful warriors figthing. One wielding twin blades, and one wielding a lance. Shirou was soon killed by the lance wielding warrior after Shirou was seen witnessing the fight.

Strangely, Shirou wakes up feeling disorientated and recalls being stabbed by the lance wielding warrior. Most surprising, he finds himself alive because of his certainty his was stabbed in the heart. Unknowingly, Shirou has gotten himself into a battle of sorcerer in which he was not supposed to witness.

Subsequently, the lance wielder knowing that Shirou did not die from his stab sought Shirou out to make sure of killing Shirou. When the lance wielder attacked Shirou in his home, Shirou unconsciously summoned a sword wielder called Saber.

That is when Shirou begin to realise, he was a master to a warrior just like other sorcerers. The fight between the warriors is actually part of the war of the Holy Grail, whereby the only remaining sorcerer and his warrior will be able to grant their wishes using the Holy Grail.
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RocketDock brought to you by Punk Labs

So there are some of us here that are really pro-Windows users, but deep down in your heart you are wishing you had a dock like the one Macintosh users get to play around with all the time. But then, you do not want to be over spending on a Macintosh that is probably over-priced in Malaysia, and spending too much time trying to get used to a Macintosh if you really do migrate your workstation from a Windows to a Mac. Let's not forget, Macs can get pretty unfriendly for users who have probably been on a Windows since they started using a pc.

The solution - some great guys at Punk Labs decided to make Mac's ever popular dock availabe for Windows users. It's called RocketDock. That's not all. It's free (i.e. you don't pay a single dime unlike a pricey Mac), and it is user-friendly and fast.

Check out the screenshot I took from my desktop:

I installed it, and initially did not expect much since I thought it probably wouldn't be good or it may take up alot of resources. To my surprise, it is fast, hardly takes up any resources, and highly customisable in terms of colours, themes and size.

For those looking for some convenience to executing programs from the dock rather than having to go back to the 'start' button all the time, RocketDock is a must-have!

Available for download at http://rocketdock.com/

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Fans of Final Fantasy VII who want the wallpaper, drop me a comment and I will make it available for downloads! :)

disappointment looming in the horizon

Last day of D-Day for the sitting, and it turned out far from satisfactory. Frankly, I am expecting to fail this paper and go for another round in the next sitting.

I knew the subject of Corporate Reporting has always been a problem for me even since my university days. Come to think of it, I never really understood the subject thoroughly and coming into ACCA, I am talking about the introduction of a plethora of new accounting issues and the demand for an in-depth understanding of accounting standards. Judging from my performance in the past six months, clearly I am in need of dire help.

Only thing left for me to do for now, is to pick myself back up and try to get back on track. After all, every now and then we fall down, and the reason we fall down is because we can learn to pick ourselves back up. Most importantly, is whether I can put this downfall behind and keep pushing foward.

Lesson learned from this experience:
1. Distractions have to be kept at bay, no matter what. At the end of the day, distractions only bring about inefficiencies;
2. Time management is the only way to go in keeping oneself organize and getting things done;
3. Basics are important, get them wrong from the start, and you are on the road to no where!

First exam paper out of the 2 for the semester.

Today was D-day for me, and I underwent the first exam paper. I had no expectations for the paper and I only hoped to write as well as possible.

With the new syllabus and the introduction of the 15 minutes reading time, I thought it would be better for me. It was only natural to think that 15 minutes reading time to annotate important points would help. However, in reality it did not make much of a difference because by allowing the 15 minutes reading time the examiner made sure the paper was difficult enough to warrant the 15 minutes.

My thoughts on the paper:

1. It looked manageable at first take, but when I got down to it clearly it was not as simple as it looked.

2. The 15 minutes time, made me overestimate the amount time I needed to write the answers, thus making me think I could finish the paper quicker when in reality that was not the case.

3. I am not so sure if passing the paper is possible.........
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One way or the other I thank God in Heaven for keeping me cool and focused throughout the exam.

Just to reflect.....

Getting a job you truly love to do is definitely not impossible, but chances like that are very, very scarce. But the thing is, it is important to understand that the world is tough out there and we are in no position to be choosy about what job we land. Most importantly, each one of us have to be honest. If you don't like the job, you don't like it. But no one said you should just quit and walk away saying, "this job don't suit me".

I'd rather sit tight and try it out. At the end of the day, if you cannot really love what you are doing, no harm trying to like it. Unlike many, I'd rather be honest with myself. I am also trying to like what I am doing by staying away from negative thoughts, keeping a straight mind and looking at things from many other perspectives. You'd be surprise how much you can see and learn by looking at yourself from other viewpoints. Most of us, or probably even all of us are simply too bothered about "me, me, me, I, I, I". Because of one very reason - humans are greedy and selfish people. Everything has to be, "what do I gain from this? why should I do this? I dont' like this!". Frankly, if we stop thinking that way for just one moment, we'll be a lot happier about ourselves.

Some tips on how to cope with a job you hate~

If everybody loved their job, they probably wouldn't call it work. The lucky ones are those guys who figured out how to get paid for doing what they love, while the rest of us simply get paid so we can afford to do what we love on the weekends.

But for some of us, the workplace can be miserable, so much so that it consumes your whole life. And in a tough job market, the idea of quitting without having another job lined up is just too risky.

If you find yourself dreading work in the morning, or unable to relax at the end of the week, here are a few tips to help you cope with a job you hate, whether you decide to tough it out or find something else.

Reading some self-help books, I bump into these 9 tips, which will help you cope regardless of why you hate your job, whether it's a terrible boss, nasty coworkers, or incompetent subordinates.

1- Rant, rave & holler
Just don't do it at the office. It used to be that the only people who heard us complain about work were our wives or girlfriends. But this is the age of feminism, so she's probably working too. Your friends are out, they've got their own problems, and you can't complain to your coworkers, since they might be part of the problem.

Try posting your gripes on a site like Jobvent.com. You'll feel better when you get it off your chest, and while you're looking for a new place to work, you can see what people have to say about some of the companies you're looking at. Plus, if there's one universal rule, it's that someone else always has it worse, so the other guy's horror stories might put things in perspective.

2- Remind yourself that this isn't permanent
It's easy to think that things won't ever change. But that's just not true. The average worker no longer has just one career. According to the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, a group that tracks economic trends, the number of careers a worker can expect to have in a lifetime is five -- and growing. Changing your job every few years has become common practice, so you shouldn't think that a few years here and a few years there is a warning sign on your resume.

3- Make time for yourself
The truth is that this is good advice whether you hate your job or not. It's easy to get into the painful grind of sleeping, working and eating. Turn an activity that you enjoy (anything from working out to reading the paper) and apply it your morning routine. That way you'll be getting up for the activity, rather than the job.

4- Add something fun to the mix at work
Nobody works all the time at the office. Try and give yourself a little break from your workday. Check out your favorite sports teams on ESPN.com. Or, listen to music (if you can). Step out for lunch and use that time to decompress from the rigors of the office. Play the occasional game on your computer. The trick is to find something that you like and have fun with it for a few minutes during your day.

5- Keep your sense of humor
It's not just an old wives' tale that laughter is the best medicine. Many scientists believe that humor can enhance your ability to cope with a number of situations by giving you perspective and helping you to see that the problem is manageable. Try and add humor to your daily routine whenever possible. Watch a sitcom over a drama or listen to a goofy morning radio show rather than the news. Keeping your sense of humor will allow you to be optimistic in the face of adversity, which will help you keep the ball rolling forward every day.

6- Focus on life outside the office
If you spend eight hours a day at work, and eight hours sleeping, that leaves you eight hours all to yourself. When you let a crappy day at work take over your life, you're letting the company steal your time without paying you for it. Take your time during the day and focus on what you want. Release tension by playing ball with the guys. Go see a movie with that cute woman in your building. Or, have a nice meal on a Tuesday night for no reason at all. Ultimately, the goal is to ensure that you leave your work at work.

7- Be a better worker
You may not be happy at work, but you don't have to waste your time. Since you're likely applying for other jobs anyway, you might as well do all you can to enhance your skills. Take advantage of training programs, if your company offers them. Better still, try and convince your boss that you need to leave early once a week to attend a class at a local community college. That way you'll get out of work and make yourself more attractive to future employers at the same time.

8- Don't jeopardize your job
On a note related to the previous tip, however awful things are, you don't want to ruin all the hard work you've done. Even if you're eventually leaving your job, you don't want to leave it on bad terms, so make all the effort you can to keep from destroying relationships at your job. Also, don't slack off. How you perform at your current job can determine if you get your next one. Use that as motivation to keep your performance up. A positive attitude will go a long way in getting you out of a bad situation.

9- Organize an activity at work
If your problem at work is that it has become a grind, chances are that some of your coworkers probably feel the same way. Assuming that you actually like your coworkers, try suggesting an activity with them to liven things up. Make plans for the office to go bowling one night. Or, get a weekly softball game together (ask some of the companies you do business with if they'd like to play against your team and maximize your networking potential).
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For those who currently love their jobs, good on you. For those less fortunate ones, try some of these tips and have a great day! ;) Cheers!

Introducing an interesting blog ~

A really close personal friend of mine is a real estate agent. One of the very few that does what he does because of passion and the liking, unlike many of us who are simply in for the money. He is also one of the very few that decided to take a huge risk and leap into a different field.

I keep in touch with him often and it is definitely not easy being a real estate agent. Striking real estate deals definitely can give you big commissions, sometimes even hitting five figures per deal. However, the risk still lies within the fact that you may strike a good deal this month and not strike any deals for the next few months. So, for those thinking of venturing into the real estate line, do not think it is a big paying job and hope to be the next Donald Trump.

Anyway, back to the today's main topic. That friend of mine, has created a blog to share ideas in the field of real estate. That blog is called - Real Estate Sales Technique. For those already in the real estate line, I believe his blog will be a good place to learn new techniques and ideas. For those planning to go into the real estate profession, his blog might give you a new perspective. Lastly, for those looking to make purchase, his blog might assist you in making a more informed decision. Take a browse, never know what you might learn today!