EXAMS ARE FINALLY OVER!

Truth be told, I haven't been studying the past 2 days anyway... the Public Management paper was decently easy enough that I could get through it by just going through the common sense and experience process.

It's good to have exams officially over though; it means that I can now go crazy on WoW and other stuff without a sense of guilt. I'm having some friends over for dinner on Tuesday night, will probably be cooking mee siam (courtesy of Prima foods) and some grilled chicken kebabs.

And I'm officially headed off to Orlando again with Milena on Thursday! My last chance at theme park madness before I become a working stiff again. Strangely enough, I am looking forward to coming back to Singapore and working again. Part of me wants to get on with my career and do something useful and valuable in my work.

Where should I head off to?

I'm also kinda planning my next trip after the exams end. I'm thinking of heading back to Florida to enjoy some more Disney, with some time spent in Miami, or maybe back to Vegas to enjoy the nightlife and shows. California is definitely an option, but I'm saving that for when my stint here at UM is over and I'm on the way back home.

Speaking of on the way back home, I'll be stopping off in Brussels, Belgium for about 2 weeks. Milena's having her internship there, and it's a good place for me to do some sightseeing of europe. Cool huh?!

For those of you who've known me, I've been bitching about not being able to travel since forever! And now in the span of 8 months, I've been to Niagara Falls, Vegas, Orlando, Cedar Point, New York, Cancun... I think I'm hooked! =)

Restarting my blog

After having laid off my blog for what must have seemed like forever, I'm restarting my blog again.

I'm happy to report that it's FINALLY t-shirt weather in Michigan. Today's weather was an awesome 20 deg C, good enough for me to finally go out running on the sidewalks without freezing my butt off.

On a more sober note, there's about 2 weeks left in the Winter 2008 semester. Which means EXAMS and DEADLINES! I have Econs and Stats finals in 2 weeks, as well as a paper for Public Management and another one for Drugs, Crime and Terrorism. I particularly enjoy the latter class; the instructor was a former Assistant Secretary of State and Ambassador to Bulgaria. His experiences and stories are really what makes this class that much better.

Haven't been blogging since forever. Been busy with life and travelling and studies =)

If you want to see some photos that I've taken, you can look me up on Facebook. My email address is c hr i sng x at um ic h. ed u.

Please translate into normal email speech =)

Blogging from Vegas

Posting this from the McCarran Int'l Airport in Vegas, waiting for the flight back to Detroit. I posted up some new photos on Facebook... in fact, most of my photos are on facebook. I find it easier to upload to facebook I guess.

Vegas has been fun, if a little tiring. I think I'm way too spoiled now; 3 days of walking and my legs are killing me. Gambled a bit, watched a bit of shows, generally had pretty good fun for a solo trip out here by myself. Wouldn't do it again on my own though, I prefer some nice warm company the next time I get here heh.

I'M SNOWED IN!!!! (and without a nice girl in my house either)

So what does it mean when there's a "winter storm" coming? Well, it means that about 3 inches (8cm) of snow falls, and since its a Sunday, no one's cleaning it up. The roads are full of snow, my car is covered in snow, the walkways are covered in snow. Very pretty! But it also means that I'm not going anywhere until it's done. I'll have to meet Milena for coffee another time then...


In other news, I'll be headed down to Vegas over the winter break. Solo trip this time round, for less than obvious reasons. Got a pretty good deal on accomodations at the Luxor ($70 a night for an upgraded room, 3 nights). Total cost for this trip will be about $520+ USD, plus expenses money. Won't gamble much, since I'm the kiasu person who just hates losing money.

Should be a blast. I haven't uploaded my florida pics yet. My bad. I'll try to do that in between hanging out with girls, World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy 12. Oh and Netflix DVD rentals.

Sorry for the long absence

It's been about 3 weeks since I last updated this. Besides the Florida vacation, there have been papers and presentations and stuff to do. I'm supposed to upload the pictures from Florida as well, which I haven't. I'll get that done ASAP.

It's officially Winter now in Ann Arbor. I don't care what you call it, -15 deg C outside qualifies as winter to me. Snowflakes fall, my fingers get numb-ish, brrrr. 3 layers is mandatory now, and I shudder at the thought of doing laundry in this weather. (which is what I'm going to do after this post).

Thankfully I've a portable heater in my room that can help turn up the heat somewhat. Heat in my apartment is supplied through radiators powered by a central hot water boiler. Thing is, by the time the water flows to the apartment, it already has lost some heat, so the temperature inside my apartment is a slightly chilly 22 deg C. Brrrrr. I've problems with the portable heater as well. My apartment is pretty oldish, built in the 60s or 70s, so it doesn't handle large power draws very well. Putting the heater on any of the default wall plugs will trip the fuse rather quickly, so I have to leave it in the bathroom (which has power points that were supposed to power washing machines and dryers). I can also use it in the bedroom in the evenings when all the other lights and stuff are off, so it's not too bad.

Alright, I'm off to do the laundry. I promise to get the photos uploaded somewhere by the weekend.

Of Snow and Lazy Ants...

It's finally started to snow in Ann Arbor... well, something like snow. On my way back from class on Wednesday, I was mildly surprised to hear the little tinkle tinkle of hail falling on my car. Hail is like ice pellets, thankfully they were pretty small and harmless. (Snow comes in the light flaky form). Snow also means that I have to wear multiple layers now, since it's abominably cold outside, and my skin dries up into scaly flakes (ugh).

School-wise, I'm approaching the end of term (Dec 15) and then there's a short 2 week break for Christmas. You would think that the US is predominantly a Christian nation, but in fact, the US takes great pains to keep religion out of the public square. For example, there are laws in some states that you may not display the nativity scene (Baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph) in public because of its religious significance. Similarly, no religious holidays are permitted in the US. In a manner of speaking, I think that Singapore is far more accepting in celebrating the different faiths in our community.

It's always amusing to see how life and nature imitate the culture of the country. After dropping a chocolate chip on the floor (baking accident), I was somewhat annoyed to see an ant trail leading up to the chocolate chip the next morning. The strange part is, the ants move soooo slllooooowwwwwwllllllyyyyyy. Like they were having a leisurely walk. Whereas in Singapore, the ants scurry around like the world was coming to an end. Make whatever conclusion of that as you will =)

I should be headed down to Florida next week for the Thanksgiving break. I'm pretty stoked about FINALLY going to Disney and Universal Studios. Yes, I'm the biggest kid around here haha.

The Colors of Autumn

Linguistically, since I'm in the US, it should be the "Colors of Fall", but I'll make my exception for my fellow British ex-colonialized countrymen.

It has been a really chilly and blustery autumn lately, with temperatures from -2 to 8, but the wind really makes it a challenging affair. The wind can blow right through 2 layers of clothes and set your teeth chattering. In the morning, the steering wheel of the car is so cold that I have to wear gloves to drive. How cold is it? Take 2 bottles of ice water out of the fridge. That's how cold it is.

I'm headed down to a latin music and dance concert today with a friend. It's part of the University's Arts and Eats programme. For $15USD, you get a pizza dinner and a lecture by a member of the University's music faculty on the history and background of the music/performance. You also get a student priced stall ticket (normally about $35) in one of the best concert halls in the country: The U of M's Hill Auditorium. According to my math professor, the conductor of the Boston Philharmoic Orchestra will only perform in 2 places in the US: The Orchestra's home concert hall and Hill Auditorium.

Anyway, I have a great set of photos to share: The Colors of Autumn. Check it out, especially the gorgeous houses/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/19385174@N04/

Woohoo, it was cold last night. How cold you ask? I was out this morning to grab my GPS for recharging, and there is a layer of frost on my car. FROST! Brrrrrr

Some updates on my life. School's been school, and we've officially crossed the mid-way mark for the semester. Coming up will be Halloween (which is huge in the US, like the equivalent of Christmas in Singapore. Pagans *cough*) and Thanksgiving (4th Thursday of Nov). I have several papers due this week, but unfortunately I just got started in World of Warcraft again. Decisions decisions... anyway, it was great to go raiding with the gang again.

The colors of fall are really pretty, all golds and oranges and browns. The leaves are starting to fall though, so hopefully I can get some pictures up before they all go away. I'm headed up to Professor Waltz's place today; she's having a house party for all students in her Foreign Policy class. It's an hour's drive away (see attached Google Map)


View Larger Map

Holiday plans: I should be headed down to Florida during Thanksgiving (finally off to Orlando), and over to the West Coast in December when school ends. Have traveling companions for both, so it should be a blast!

Fall is back!

Fall weather is back! And the temperatures are hovering between 4 deg and 16 deg these days. BRRRRRRR!!! It's at times like these when I totally appreciate having a car; being able to drive right up to school and spend the least amount of time in the chilly air is always brilliant. The leaves are turning a gorgeous shade of yellow now, so I hope to get some great pics up for you guys =)

I'm headed down to Cedar Point, Ohio on Saturday. (www.cedarpoint.com). It's touted as the amusement park with the most number of coasters in the US! Woot! I'm gonna coaster all day! October is the off season for cedar point, so I hope to be able to get on all the rides with a minimum wait. BUT, the catch is the temperature is 15 deg in the day. If its chilly just walking around, imagine what it would be like hurtling around at 100kmh in this temperature! MADNESS! I'm definitely gonna dress warm =)

I really ought to make a shopping list when I go to the supermarket. And it's not because I forget stuff. Example: I wanted to get some lemons, honey and soy sauce for a chicken chop marinade that I planned to do for dinner on Thursday night. I ended up with about $100 worth of groceries from just browsing the shelves. Ugh. Oh well, at least I have 2 types of marinades, barbeque sauce, a pepper grinder, balsamic vinegar, lemons, honey, soy sauce and other goodness sitting in the kitchen cabinet. =)

Next post should come with cedar point pics =)

Sweater and Cider Party!

Some weird parties are thrown in Ann Arbor: Hung out at a "Sweater and Cider" party on Saturday night. It's the Fall season and the apple harvest, so apple cider is available in abundant quantities. Typically, apple cider is warmed and spiced with cinnamon for a comforting drink when the weather gets cooler.

Only problem is, the weather is ridiculously warm this week. The temperatures in Michigan have climbed to Singapore levels, so in all honesty, drinking warm cider isn't going to make me happy. And the theme of the Sweater and Cider party is to wear an ugly sweater to boot (which incidentally, I'd rather not buy an ugly sweater just for one party).

Alright, so my friends and I ended up in T-shirts and beer, but we were sweaters and ciders in spirit heh.

Microeconomics test coming up on Monday, and several essays due in the following week. I'm trying to get all my stuff done by Friday so that I can make a run down to Cedar Point in Ohio for a day of ROLLER COASTERS!!!! WOOT!!. (http://www.cedarpoint.com)

1 month milestone

It's been one month since school started, and 6 weeks since I first woke up to a US morning. Time really flies...

Gull Farms Corn Maze!

Been a long time since I've updated my blog. School work's been getting tougher, with tests and papers to write. Weather's still a bit silly though, warm as summer lately, although the evenings are blessedly cool (about 18 deg C in the evenings).

Couple of the Ford school folks and I dropped by the Gull Farms Corn Maze on Saturday. (http://www.gullmeadowfarms.com/) A corn maze is just that: literally a maze carved into a corn field. It's also a farmer's market, where you can buy fresh apples, apple products, pumpkins and stuff! =)

It was a 1.5hr drive each way, and my first real experience on the highways in the US. Michigan highways are unbelievably boring, just miles and miles of straight, bumpy concrete slabs and nothing but farmland all around. Yawn... I can't imagine what it would be like to drive 4 hours to Mackinac Island

Bought a bag of apples, some apple cider, apple butter (sweet baby food haha) and a half dozen of ridiculously crispy deep fried cake doughnuts.

Some photos for your consumption =)

A) Things to do in the Corn Maze:


B) The Corn Maze. We cheated by bashing through the maze:



C) Milena, me, Siobhan:



D) Inside the Farmer's market

Completed Kitchen!

Finally finished up what I wanted to do for the kitchen/dining area! Pics for your viewing pleasure

BEFORE:

AFTER:

SUB ZERO!!! RAWRRR

For the blog fans and campers, you might realize that it has officially hit sub-zero temperatures in Ann Arbor. Totally unexpected though, a cold front moving across the north-east dropped temperatures down. Wore a light fleece to sleep at night, since the central heating doesn't come on unless sub-zero temperatures are forecasted for 2 nights in a row =(

On the other hand, the football team performs better when it's cold. We crushed Notre Dame 38-0 in Saturday's game, officially ending our dry spell and duck egg. Much celebrations around! There's something awe-inspiring about being in the largest football stadium in the US =)

Took some shots of Ann Arbor and my school building, which is just about the newest on campus at the moment. Downtown Ann Arbor, as I've mentioned to some before, looks a lot like Malacca with white people. Narrow streets, shopfronts, street parking, the works. Welcome to small town USA. This is a shot of Weill Hall, which is the building for the Ford School of Public Policy

And turning 180degrees around, this is the view of the streets of Ann Arbor. Ok, I chose the shot which most represented my observations. =) There are better locales in Ann Arbor heh

Great for a laugh!!!

Alright, the following website got me ROFLing a lot today... don't know why I happened to chance on it... (WARNING: Rated NC-16)

http://www.hotchickswithdouchebags.com

Read the blog comments, they are absolutely hilarious!

The Original Borders!

Cool fact that you didn't know about Ann Arbor: Borders the bookstore opened its first branch in Ann Arbor, and it's spread all over the United States and ended up in Singapore as well. =)

Managed to buy a 27" TV for about $100, it's an old Sony with the curved screen. But I figured that it'll be a TV that I could sell for $20 at the end of the day and it wouldn't bother me at all. Unfortunately, carrying that damn TV from the Eclipse to the apartment gave me a massive backache... it still hurts when I try to get out of bed.

Also, I managed to buy a 1 month old PS3 from an american dude for the affordable sum of $385 USD (retail price is $499 USD). Great deal, I even have the receipt as proof. And the PS3 is something I can ship home to Singapore at the end of the study trip here.

School's started and it's been very interesting and stimulating. In particular, I'm taking a class on International Policy, which requires me to write and present an International Policy issue and discuss proposals to overcome it. Sounds a lot like work in IRAS, but on a much more macro scale. I'm also taking a class in Values, Ethics and Morals in Public Policy, which focuses on the softer, moralistic side of public policy. In essence, we ask ourselves questions on values and ethics: Should economic analysis be the only way in which public policies are evaluated? It's a good question to ask, seeing as how the Singapore public service bases a lot of its decisions on pure economic analysis.

With these classes come readings, a whole lot of readings. I think I'll be spending lots of time preparing for class, as opposed to actual homework. But it'll be fun, it's exactly what I need to jump start my brain again.

The Big House

Just attended my first big American Football game on Saturday at the UM Big House, which is THE largest football stadium in the US (about 107,000 capacity). The place is huge, and the atmosphere is electrifying. The guys here really love their sports and it shows.

Well, it would have been even more electrifying if we actually won. In what must have been the biggest upset in college football, the Michigan Wolverines were beaten by the Appalachian State Mountaineers 32-34. ASU is a division 1-AA team, which is the equivalent of a English Premier League Division 1 team, and UM is a ranked team, which like a premier league team. Totally heartbreaking and a terrible way to start the football season.

The weather yesterday was blazing hot as well.. didnt bring a cap or sunscreen, and I think I'm gonna end up with sunburn on the face and arms. Ouch. Lucky I have moisturizer to prevent the skin from peeling off, but it's still rather tender.

School starts this week, but it's the Labour Day holiday weekend now. Monday is Labour Day, so school officially starts on Tuesday. Enough spazzing around, time to get back into the swing of things =)

My Eclipse

Yes it's in silver, I really wanted black but it was out of stock. This particularly sweet looking coupe is the US-only Mitsubishi Eclipse 2007 model. Mitsubishi was having a 2007 clearance sale, and offered a factory rebate of $2k on the vehicle. On top of that, the dealer was eager to move units, so he also sold the vehicle at invoice price. And since he couldn't get me a black model, he threw in alloy wheel locks and an alloy fuel door for free.

Won't tell you how much I paid for it, but I love this car and it's really a car that I would never get to drive in Singapore. =)

Of course, there's all issues and concerns going around: Is it car thief target? Will your fellow students resent an Asian guy driving a coupe and vandalize it?

Frankly, I don't really care. I like this car, and I'm gonna keep driving it =)