So after an exhausting day of exams (two exams in one day really is way too much..), I'm taking a short few days break from studying and looking at travel plans for the upcoming Asia trip. I've been travelling so much the past few years, that I've almost gotten use to the preparation part and actually kinda enjoy sorting everything out.
Looking back at my pre-Europe posts, I remembered I had those five goals of the holiday: 1. decrease anger, 2. decrease employment stress, 3. less worry, more fun, 4. make new friends, 5. new experiences. I never got to reflect on those when I got back (mainly because I've been too lazy to post my Europe adventures STILL). I think in all goals, I more or less succeeded during the trip. It was definitely a relaxing trip, had lots of fun, hardly thought about work/unemployment, made a few good friends and experienced wonderful Europe. What a great trip, hard to believe it was only a few months ago.
The Asia trip ahead is going to be the icing of my year. Everything seems to be concluding well coming the end of November and I'm glad I have this last chance to travel before the year is up. I think I'm going to focus on my career mostly next year and there will be many moving parts to keep me grounded in Australia for a few months at least (moving out, updating all my details as non-student, figuring out fees and covers etc.). So I see this as my last travels for at least a year (but who knows!). And I haven't been back to Malaysia for so long, I feel I should at least stop by and see some relatives.
The above combined with the fact I've always wanted to go to Hong Kong with Amanda makes me excited for this trip. Can't think of a better friend to spend a long holiday with than Amanda and I'm looking forward to all the fun we're going to have.
A part of me is a little nervous, as I've never really been comfortable travelling in Asia. In general, I guess all countries have their dangers (pickpocketers in Europe for example), but Asia just seems the most dodgy of all in my opinion. I also speak a next-to-nothing amount of Chinese (going to hold onto Amanda so much), which just makes my confidence drop so much. But I'm sure it will be OK!
teoh,
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Monday, October 31, 2011
Google Extras
They've actually bundled it all together with additional software, extensions and themes, which is really smart. One of the hardest things about using Chrome was figuring out how to put 'add-ons' or 'extensions'. It took me ages to find out how to do it, so I could have my mouse gestures (which incidentally is really useful: hold down right mouse button, make a shape/gesture and it does a function, such as go back a page, close a tab, refresh etc.). But now it's all in the AppStore, and you just need to click install and it does it all for you.
There are some really useful ones, like currency converters on the fly, games in browsers (Angry Birds), Google App tie ins (Calender, Reader, Gmal) and different themes that can be applied so easy. There isn't a huge range, as compared with Android or Itune stores, but I guess it's pretty early.
The only thing is, once the excitement and wonder had died down, I realised that I didn't quite like the whole idea. The one thing going for Google Chrome is that it's light (software wise). It's one of the, if not the most, fastest browsers on the market. It's simple and elegant. Adding all these extensions don't come without consequences, and the consequence is processing power. Obviously, some of these apps need to run in the background (e.g Gmail icon needs to constantly check if you have mail), so it's running even when you're not doing anything. Have a couple of these, and Chrome is suddenly slowing down not only itself, but your computer in general.
So I installed a few...and then uninstalled them when I saw them eating up my processing power. Maybe when I have settled down, and I have a monster PC, I will use them. But for the humble laptop, I can't afford it.
Still nice advancements. Also, using pictures on blogger is SO much easier now, thank god.
teoh,
P.S Good luck to everyone for exams.
Monday, October 24, 2011
VICTORY!
Today is a day of victory! For I was able to win my car insurance liability dispute. Hurrah!
For those who might've not known, a quick summary of events: basically I had turned left into a Coles Express site, to be impact with another car who had gone onto the road shoulder to by pass the line to get to a slip-lane after the Coles Express store. What followed was about $4000 worth of damages for my poor SAM and insurance, while first inclined to not assign liabilities to me, then turned around and said that it was not completely clear and liability was currently sitting with me.
Not to go too deep into the debates and arguments, after about 6 weeks, the claim is finally resolved in my favour. This has been hanging over my head for so long, cause it's $900 excess that I cannot afford at this point after recently quitting the CSC and cutting back on work hours. Not to mention savings for my Asia holiday trip.
What I would like to record are the steps I took to win the argument, so that others may also learn from my Insurance Turnabout episode (I've also been recently playing Phoenix Wright Attorney on NDS emulator hehe OBJECTION!). Basically, here is what I've learnt:
At the scene
It is important to document as much as you can on the scene. Photos are the most valuable things you can get, so hopefully your phone can take photos. Take photos of 1. your car damages 2. other party's damages 3. location, specifically road markings. These photos will most likely only be used as evidence if the case goes to court, which is very unlikely. But they will help you remember the incident and what has happened as weeks go by (and insurance claims can take a very long time!).
Also, obviously take all the other parties details. Name, phone number, licence plate (take a photo too), address and insurer. Be polite and make sure the other is OK. It never hurts to be nice, as most of the arguing will be spent with insurance. Don't spend time arguing about who is right or not, as ultimately that is all decided by insurance. NEVER admit that you are in the wrong, even if you're pretty sure you are. Until you have thoroughly looked at the road situation, you may be in the right.
Witnesses are good to have. In my case, I did not have any, so I'm not too sure how involve they become in drawn out cases, but I'm pretty sure they would be very helpful. Most cars won't stop to help you, so if you know someone saw something, try and flag them down safely and grab their contact details at least.
Obviously if you're car is not drivable, you will need to contact off-road assistance. If people are hurt, I believe you need to call the police and obviously any medical assistance if required. This falls outside of my scope.
Notifying Insurance
From my experience and other's, it best to contact insurance as soon as possible. Get the ball rolling, especially if your car needs repairs. Before you call them, take a few minutes to collect yourself and prepare what your statement will be. The guy I spoke to in this incident was very helpful in phrasing what I want to say. Some insurance people may not be as good.
What is important is that your story matches 1. the evidence/damages and 2. road situation. Remember, the insurance was NOT with you at the time of accident. So while it may be obvious to you, keep in mind that these people may not even drive in your area. Keep it simple and to the facts. They do use Google maps, so have a look yourself before you call.
If you are not sure if you are at fault, another thing you can do to assert your position is call your local police station. They enforce all road rules, do NOT call VicRoads for clarification of road rules/markings. The police will have a traffic department that will confirm whether or not something is legal or not.
In the long run
Never give up. My friend William gave me this piece of advice: Insurance companies are bastards and will 90% try and take your money. Don't feel intimidate or flustered when they call you up to tell you are at liability. Simply ask the reasons why and logically dispute it. Don't get defensive, just point out the facts that you believe makes the other party liable and ask them to explain why this isn't valid.
Insurance companies expect people to dispute when they are at liability. I was told to fill in a mailed traffic diagram to explain what happened, which was good as I was able to more clearly explained what happened. I believe this is what tip the decision in my favour. I described a situation that clearly saw the other party's car leaving off the road, based on the evidence that the speed that the car hit me at (shown by the damages), it couldn't of been directly behind me. As the Coles Express entrance was only just after the single lane, the other party must've left the road and therefore illegally created their own lane. (TAKE THAT!)
Do everything and then forget about it
What I wasn't able to do. Dealing with insurance is stressful and requires a lot of patience. Whenever you are frustrated with the situation, just remember this: What can be done to see that the situation is turned out in your favour? Have you done it? If you have, you cannot do anymore, so forget about it.
This has turned into a very long post, so I will stop there. Goes without saying that I am very relieved and happy =]
teoh,
For those who might've not known, a quick summary of events: basically I had turned left into a Coles Express site, to be impact with another car who had gone onto the road shoulder to by pass the line to get to a slip-lane after the Coles Express store. What followed was about $4000 worth of damages for my poor SAM and insurance, while first inclined to not assign liabilities to me, then turned around and said that it was not completely clear and liability was currently sitting with me.
Not to go too deep into the debates and arguments, after about 6 weeks, the claim is finally resolved in my favour. This has been hanging over my head for so long, cause it's $900 excess that I cannot afford at this point after recently quitting the CSC and cutting back on work hours. Not to mention savings for my Asia holiday trip.
What I would like to record are the steps I took to win the argument, so that others may also learn from my Insurance Turnabout episode (I've also been recently playing Phoenix Wright Attorney on NDS emulator hehe OBJECTION!). Basically, here is what I've learnt:
At the scene
It is important to document as much as you can on the scene. Photos are the most valuable things you can get, so hopefully your phone can take photos. Take photos of 1. your car damages 2. other party's damages 3. location, specifically road markings. These photos will most likely only be used as evidence if the case goes to court, which is very unlikely. But they will help you remember the incident and what has happened as weeks go by (and insurance claims can take a very long time!).
Also, obviously take all the other parties details. Name, phone number, licence plate (take a photo too), address and insurer. Be polite and make sure the other is OK. It never hurts to be nice, as most of the arguing will be spent with insurance. Don't spend time arguing about who is right or not, as ultimately that is all decided by insurance. NEVER admit that you are in the wrong, even if you're pretty sure you are. Until you have thoroughly looked at the road situation, you may be in the right.
Witnesses are good to have. In my case, I did not have any, so I'm not too sure how involve they become in drawn out cases, but I'm pretty sure they would be very helpful. Most cars won't stop to help you, so if you know someone saw something, try and flag them down safely and grab their contact details at least.
Obviously if you're car is not drivable, you will need to contact off-road assistance. If people are hurt, I believe you need to call the police and obviously any medical assistance if required. This falls outside of my scope.
Notifying Insurance
From my experience and other's, it best to contact insurance as soon as possible. Get the ball rolling, especially if your car needs repairs. Before you call them, take a few minutes to collect yourself and prepare what your statement will be. The guy I spoke to in this incident was very helpful in phrasing what I want to say. Some insurance people may not be as good.
What is important is that your story matches 1. the evidence/damages and 2. road situation. Remember, the insurance was NOT with you at the time of accident. So while it may be obvious to you, keep in mind that these people may not even drive in your area. Keep it simple and to the facts. They do use Google maps, so have a look yourself before you call.
If you are not sure if you are at fault, another thing you can do to assert your position is call your local police station. They enforce all road rules, do NOT call VicRoads for clarification of road rules/markings. The police will have a traffic department that will confirm whether or not something is legal or not.
In the long run
Never give up. My friend William gave me this piece of advice: Insurance companies are bastards and will 90% try and take your money. Don't feel intimidate or flustered when they call you up to tell you are at liability. Simply ask the reasons why and logically dispute it. Don't get defensive, just point out the facts that you believe makes the other party liable and ask them to explain why this isn't valid.
Insurance companies expect people to dispute when they are at liability. I was told to fill in a mailed traffic diagram to explain what happened, which was good as I was able to more clearly explained what happened. I believe this is what tip the decision in my favour. I described a situation that clearly saw the other party's car leaving off the road, based on the evidence that the speed that the car hit me at (shown by the damages), it couldn't of been directly behind me. As the Coles Express entrance was only just after the single lane, the other party must've left the road and therefore illegally created their own lane. (TAKE THAT!)
Do everything and then forget about it
What I wasn't able to do. Dealing with insurance is stressful and requires a lot of patience. Whenever you are frustrated with the situation, just remember this: What can be done to see that the situation is turned out in your favour? Have you done it? If you have, you cannot do anymore, so forget about it.
This has turned into a very long post, so I will stop there. Goes without saying that I am very relieved and happy =]
teoh,
Friday, September 30, 2011
surviving the week
I am digging blogger's new layout/theme. In fact, I am digging all of the google transformation.
I am not digging the new facebook's privacy invasion.
**
I have never really liked the phrase TGIF. But today, after surviving two weeks of home alone, week of uni, multiple stress events and three days of full time work in Hopper's so far away Crossing, T.G.I.F.
Today I came home to a letter addressed to my mum, naturally I opened it (don't worry, I have been instructed to open all mail, I'm not a freak). It was from the Metropolitan Police, apologising and sympathising that she had become a victim of crime.
Victim of crime? VICTIM OF CRIME!?
My first thought was, no kidding, was my mum attacked before she left and never told me about it? Then I realised it was the Metro Police in London, West End. Then I remembered my family telling me about how my mum lost her wallet in London and suspected someone taking it from her bag. But never fear, the Metro Police has offered support for any mental or physical trauma she might have incurred and some local information about how to be safer. How nice.
Have a good Grand Final weekend everyone (that's all they talk about at work).
teoh,
I am not digging the new facebook's privacy invasion.
**
I have never really liked the phrase TGIF. But today, after surviving two weeks of home alone, week of uni, multiple stress events and three days of full time work in Hopper's so far away Crossing, T.G.I.F.
Today I came home to a letter addressed to my mum, naturally I opened it (don't worry, I have been instructed to open all mail, I'm not a freak). It was from the Metropolitan Police, apologising and sympathising that she had become a victim of crime.
Victim of crime? VICTIM OF CRIME!?
My first thought was, no kidding, was my mum attacked before she left and never told me about it? Then I realised it was the Metro Police in London, West End. Then I remembered my family telling me about how my mum lost her wallet in London and suspected someone taking it from her bag. But never fear, the Metro Police has offered support for any mental or physical trauma she might have incurred and some local information about how to be safer. How nice.
Have a good Grand Final weekend everyone (that's all they talk about at work).
teoh,
Thursday, September 15, 2011
many many bytes..
from whatsabyte.com:
hahaha, 11 trillion years to download a yottabyte! amusing.
Exabyte: An Exabyte is approximately 1,000 Petabytes. Another way to look at it is that an Exabyte is approximately one quintillion bytes or one billion Gigabytes. There is not much to compare an Exabyte to. It has been said that 5 Exabytes would be equal to all of the words ever spoken by mankind.
Yottabyte: A Yottabyte is approximately 1,000 Zettabytes. It would take approximately 11 trillion years to download a Yottabyte file from the Internet using high-power broadband. You can compare it to the World Wide Web as the entire Internet almost takes up about a Yottabyte.
teoh,
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
circular wounds
here's a random post for you.
I cut myself with my razor the a few weeks ago, right in the corner of my mouth. It was only a small cut, but because it was in the corner of my mouth, it stretched every time I opened my mouth (to speak, eat, brush my teeth etc.). So it eventually became a circular wound.
Because of the constant flexing of my mouth, the wound would never really heal properly. The initial um, I dunno, regrowth of skin tissue would begin but then it would split again when I opened my mouth. It also hurt. I applied my usual treatment for cuts (aloe jelly), but to no avail.
Eventually, excess skin built up around the wound, creating a small mound of skin, making it look like a big pimple in the corner of my mouth. It took a weekend of not going out and not talking (no one at home to talk to anyway) for the skin tissue to finally stretch over the wound chasm and allow the wound underneath heal.
It made me think about something I read in a book about back in the olden times, if you got a wound from a spear, they would actually cut the wound bigger so it wasn't circular. This allowed it to heal faster apparently. Wondering if that would've helped, I googled it but alas found nothing.
It was a very frustrating wound. Doctor Marco, any advice (that's not sarcasm?)?
teoh,
Friday, September 9, 2011
leaving the csc
It is with much sadness that I announce my resignation of my position at the CSC....is what I wrote in my resignation letter.
WOOHOO! Haha, well not really. I've decided to quit my three and half year old job due mostly to time issues. Had a huge week (gee it's been awhile since I've updated) involving large amount of uni reports due, construction work, Monash Pharm ball, and CSC shifts and it was just getting a bit too much. Money is not too much of an issue, as my construction job pays pretty well and I am doing 18 hours a week there anyway. Now that I've quit, I have forgotten what it's like to have nights and weekends free.
A rather blurry rotation shot of the CSC.
I will seriously miss the CSC. The job was easy and at times, fun. Mostly due to the amazing people that I've met there and I will hopefully try to maintain some good friendships that have come out of there. They gave me a nice send off, including a nice card and $100 chadstone gift card :) Thanks guys!
In other news, I was given a verbal job offer for full time position at Civilex next year! Yay! I guess I now have to believe that things do work out eventually (I feel a told you so from Tracy coming..). That being said, you also have to allow opportunities to happen (my being nice enough to fix someone's computer :D).
In other other news, me and Amanda have booked most of our accommodations and flights for our asia trip at the end of the year. I'm super excited; I've always wanted to go to Hong Kong with Amanda and now we're finally going to get the chance to go. Our travel plans are Singapore, KL, Penang, Langkawi and Hong Kong.
Even more exciting is that we moved our accommodations around so that we could stay at the Marina Bay Sands for two night! For those who don't know it, it's a 5 star hotel with a ship on top of three separate hotel 'columns'. I've read a few bad reviews about the service though, but hopefully it'll still be an experience !
That's all for now I think...til next time! Hopefully with this extra time I can make more blog post :P (doubt it).
teoh,
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