Humble Origins @ NUS Ventus

Decided to have lunch at this very secluded location in NUS. Very nice place to sit back and relax. Didn't know NUS has such a nice hidden gem.

Nice scenery from table

Choices are limited but coffee is pretty decent

Lookin' good. Just plain good. 

Weird-looking tree. But hey, it makes the whole place feel lush and green...

Did I mention that the croissant tastes awesome? Well, now I did. 

Renewing Malaysian Passport in the Malaysian High Commission in Singapore (updated Apr 2014)

So after a few failed attempt of renewing my passport in Malaysia (system down, change process so that cannot collect in one day), I decided to do it in the High Commission in Singapore. As this is my first time, and they change the process quite regularly, I think it's worth a blog. This might help busy Malaysian PRs in SG renewing their passports in the future, especially if in a rush due to work commitments.

The process was smooth enough. If you want to read up on it, it's available here on the official website. http://www.kln.gov.my/web/sgp_singapore/passport_renewal. In a nutshell, this is how it went for me:

Day 1 - Get queue number, submit documents and old passport along with S$124 when queue number called. Took me from 7:40am ~ 8:25am
Day 2 - Collect new passport at 2:30 - 4pm

Day 1

So I arrived at the embassy at 7:40 with all these documents ready:

• Completely (more on this later) filled IM.42 form (Use Singapore address for part A.7)
• 2 White-background passport-sized photographs (3.5x5cm)
• Malaysian IC with photocopy
• Singapore PR with photocopy
• Original old passport
• S$124 exact change

UPDATE:
- Photographs must be taken without teeth visible, else they will ask you to retake.
- Instant photobooth and photocopy machine available if you need them
(thanks mUsiCMeL)

These are the requirements for the most common application, 18 and above, with Singapore long term pass. As these requirements change regularly, I recommend checking the above link to confirm that they are still the same.

There was already a small crowd outside the side gate to the entrance when I arrived, but what they (the people there) didn't tell me is that I needed to change a pass from the guard house at the main gate (maybe because I didn't ask). So off to the guard house I went. I got pass #9. Pretty good for a start, I thought.

The counter doesn't open till 8am. So after the Indian lady guard checked our forms and documents, she seated us in a very orderly fashion towards the left of the hall. Later on, she will ensure that you move to the queue number collection counter in just that order. She's quite bossy by nature, so play along and she'll be an easy one.

This is when I realized that the number on the pass from the guard house doesn't really matter. It is at this step where your position in the queue is determined. So it does pay to come prepared, completely prepared. I was one of the first to verify my complete documents (and sucked up to the guard a little by proudly showing my form to her like a teacher's pet would, hey, don't judge me, I had to rush off to work). When the queue collection counter opened, I walked off with queue #1001. The queue starts from #1000. I'll post the example forms on the notice board here so you can come prepared too (though there's no saying when this will change):

Needless to say, I didn't have to wait much. All I had to wait for was for the actual document handling counter to open. After handing over everything, the lady behind the counter (who happen to be the same one who handed me my queue number back at the other counter) took my left and right thumbprint a couple of times, digitally and once with the traditional stamp pad thingy. And I got me a ticket number to collect me brand new passport tomorrow afternoon! I didn't even have to take time off, and was actually early for work, Surprise!

Day 2

Collection was a very different story. I arrived at 2:50 and went straight to the guard house to exchange for a pass. This time, the pass number is actually the order with which you collect your passport. So my advice for the collection is to arrive as early as you can, and make a beeline straight for the guard house.

Collection itself is a pretty fast process, the line moves at a healthy pace, it was around #50 or so when I arrived, and in 15 minutes the guard was already calling for #81 - #85.

Remember one important thing my Malaysian boss reminded me to do, check all the information on the first page of the passport before signing the acceptance form. He had a bad experience once when they refused to change the info on his passport allegedly because he has already signed. He had to apply for amendment, which is a whole different process again.

So there, my experience of renewing passport at the Malaysian High Commission in Singapore. Hope this helps any Malaysians in Singapore planning to renew their passport but not planning to have a long trip back to Malaysia.

One more thing...

Have this change lately? Is your experience different from this? Feel free to share in the comments section to help other fellow Malaysians in their future passport renewals!

UPDATE 26-Feb-2014: Passport photo is now white background. Included the change above. --Thanks, Yvonne! 

The Inkeeper, by John Piper

Wonder what it cost to bring the Messiah into the world? The world is a place of suffering and sorrow, and turning away from God only serves to make the hurt deeper.

Turn to Him this Christmas, because the truth about love is the only way to comfort deep wounds, and to provide full, everlasting joy.

The book of Jonah

I always like plots to have a nice conclusion a nice ending, and always hate it when a plot leaves me hanging... Did his dad finally abandon his drug habits? Did the pets reunite with the family in the end, will Batman actually settle down with Selina?

Jonah is one such story in the bible. I always wondered with that story ended with a question and I'm just left hanging. That was until I realised that I haven't been reading it correctly, in the right context. It wasn't a story, it was a narrative, a first-person account.

Most scholars believed it's very likely that Jonah himself wrote that book. In fact, there isn't any significant evidence suggesting otherwise. And for him to write such a book, to tell the whole world that he is such an ass, an ignorant bigot who hates the big city of sin, who is self righteous in every way, running away from God because he do not want the city to be given a chance... It must be the truth, in fact, I think nobody in their right mind would write such a story if it weren't true of himself, and even more unlikely for Jonah himself to have written this unless he have understood the question God gave to him, and have been overcome by God's unconditional and racially or culturally agnostic love!

The thought provoking question itself is the main theme of the plot, it is the resolution to the main climax. The question is a perfect conclusion to the theme in question.

1 month into my first job

It's a month into my first job as an IT Analyst. Gosh.. That title sounds so chim, I don't even know how does "analyst" fit into what I am doing so far. Haven't been "analyzing" anything. That -- at least I'm sure of.

Anyway, today is the most exciting day so far as my job scope and responsibility is starting to materialize and become clearer to me. Suddenly, I see more and more of what is expected of me, and where I can actually contribute.

First, there was a meeting called by the project manager to clear up on the technical stuff for a project I'm in charge of, which I am taking over from a colleague who's leaving. Then, I went to 2 datacenters to install a server each. Gosh, the way servers are designed and all, makes it so efficient and convenient for us administrators. Little features and gadgets here and there which one wouldn't realize are a necessity until one has seen and used it. It's almost like Apple products... But enterprise class!

Just a picture of the server I installed. Didn't get to take a photo of it mounted and running in the datacenter however, as no cameras are allowed there.

Btw, datacenters are horribly noisy and cold places. Even want to talk also must shout. Not a place anyone would like to be. The moment a server is installed and set up to the bare minimum, which typically takes less than an hour, we normally then proceed to our comfy cubicles (with a mug of hot coffee, of course... Maybe I'll post a pic of my cubicle In some future post more related to that) and remotely do the rest of the installing and monitoring from there. Ever seen one of those remote controlled toy cars that's has a camera attached to it to show you where you're going on the remote itself? Well, this is somewhat like a grown up version of it. With almost everything (except the physical location of the server itself, of course) able to be controlled from anywhere in the world, servers are very expensive toys indeed. :-)

Be Thou My Vision

FYP is so stressful, I can't fall asleep at night.

Sometimes, I just feel so depressed, and just don't see how I'm going to be able to pass my FYP at all, with the thesis due in 2 weeks time, and my project is not quite completed yet...

And then I was reminded, that I should shift my vision to God and know that even the fact that I'm alive today is by His grace and mercy. Once He's out of our vision, life will be a ship in a storm, no bearings, not destination, and no hope...

This so hard to start from scratch...

My social networking site is still an empty eclipse project. So much knowledge, so much readings, but actually putting teeth to stone is just so difficult. So many choices, and not having a good estimate of the cost of committing to each one is very traumatizing.