Messy March

March has been pretty much the same except for some eventful happenings at home.  Work has been very tough too as usual, with it's own share of dramas.  One major story we worked on had some features rolled back even after UAT as the local users thought the feature could possibly spam the customers.  Well...  just give them what they want.  

Early Friday Meeting - Galaxy Note 9

Juggling January

So here's my first post for 2022.  January started quite uneventfully.  The kids returned to school and our lives pretty much returned to our old routines.  Just before school and work started we went to a small ice cream cafe called Geometry at Brickworks Estate.  It was like, starting the year on a sweet tooth.  The missus was hooked on the Earl Grey Tie Guan Yin gelato, which I must admit is a very unique flavour with a very pleasant fragrance.   

Waffle With Earl Grey Tie Guan Yin & Pistachio Gelato - Galaxy Note 9

Aghast August

This hasn't been a good month. Sometime in the middle of the month, I learnt that my brother, my aunt and a daily helper at home finally became part of the statistics of COVID-19 patients in Surabaya.  I'm not too worried about them, I'm more worried about my mom.  At first I thought of getting my mom to move out to avoid staying too close to them.  Yes, there's no quarantine in dedicated facilities or hospitals... that's $💀#💢*!💣! crazy rite... Even my brother had to drive himself to the hospital to get tested again. But then again, moving out does not guarantee my mom will be any safer since she'll be exposed to more strangers.  In the end  I thought it would be much safer for her to just stay home and make sure she doesn't get near my brother and my aunt, and in case she had to go near them, to make sure she puts on all necessary protective equipment.  At least the daily helper is not coming in for the next 3 weeks.  The daily helper already has antibody in his system, which means that he had contracted the virus way earlier and somehow recovered without even noticing it.  This episode really got me worried sick here.  There's really nothing much I can do but hope for the best.  I really, really hope my mom's luck won't run out on her just yet.

On a much lighter note, we paid a visit to Marina Bay Sands earlier in the month.  It was an unusual sight to see a mostly empty The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands.  

An Uncharacteristically Quiet Rain Oculus - Galaxy Note 9

Just July

As July comes to an end, the past 3 weeks have been crazy stressful at work.  The e-approval processes I have set up suddenly required urgent fixes because the send mail notification and the approval connectors were decommissioned (deprecated in Microsoft lingo).  The approval connector deprecation is especially hard to swallow, as I will need to re-design 6 of my flows - which I'm still figuring out...  At least, the other 43 are already OK...  I tried parallel branching, which brought down the nesting level to 9, just one over the maximum allowable 8.  I also looked at using Child Flows, but after careful consideration, I will end up with more flows to manage if I use this technique. Not forgetting to mention that this technique also requires premium subscription and a crash course on JSON, so...  nope, using child flow is also out.  The last technique I need to explore is variable initialization.  And I somehow must make this work.  Prior to this "breakdown" there were the usual office drama, politicking and reading between the lines which really, really drained me... man...  I really wish I could just jump ship.  

Along Alexandra Road - Galaxy Note 9

Jerky June

The kids returned to school this month.  At first they were alternating each week, but as of yesterday, all of them returned to school for good.  However, it's not all good news as Lincoln has his common test this week.  *crunch time* 

Just Another Sunrise - Galaxy Note 9

June Cycling Diary

I have been cycling once a week with the missus in the past 3 weeks.  So far we've been to Marina Bay Sands, Gardens by The Bay and Henderson Waves.  From Alexandra Canal Park which is right in front of our apartment, we could go all the way to East Coast Park if we'd like to.  It really is amazing how we can get to experience so many places with our bicycles.  

Stopping by Rodalink Commonwealth to Adjust My Bike's Saddle Post - Galaxy Note 9

Muted May

It has been a very quiet May, naturally, since we are in the midst of the Circuit Breaker period. Although the kids started their holiday this month, they have not been able to get out of home. And Youtube is just not wholesome for them... not even Youtube for Kids.  So I took out mine and the missus' 16 year old Nintendo DS and let them have a go at proper gaming.  Seeing how much they enjoyed it, I decided to splurge on a Nintendo Switch Lite.  Real gaming is still the best as compared to the new capitalist mobile games where you have to pay to win.  And just because you have forked out a princely sum, that still does not guarantee that you'll enjoy the game.  I also hate how the new mobile games seem to run like daily chores with no end in sight.  There is no story arc, grinding does not get you to the top, after a while some new characters will be introduced which makes your previous grinding (and sometimes purchase) meaningless - seriously, even other open ended games like The Sims or Sim City are way better.  Old school gaming is still gold.  So it's Nintendo Switch Lite + Final Fantasy + Mario Odyssey + Mario Deluxe.  I'm the only one who still loves RPG, so much that I'm the one playing Final Fantasy III on my DS now while the kids play with the new Switch Lite. 

Good Old Nintendo DS - Galaxy Note 9

Austere April

Today marks the 24th day of Singapore's Circuit Breaker.  We started with exactly 1000 infections on 1st April and have by today reached 16169.  That is a massive 16 fold increase over a period of 30 days.  If any consolation, the local community transmission has somehow reached single digit today numbering to a moderate 6.  The foreign workers in dormitories continue to make up the largest numbers of infections, my heart really goes out to them and I really hope that they can overcome the infection.  As for those who are not infected, I sincerely hope they will remain safe always.  

For the rest of us who are very fortunate to be allowed to work and study from home, life has become a lot simpler as compared to pre-COVID-19 era.  We eat at home a lot more, cook more than usual, enjoy each other's company no matter good or bad, and just finding things we can do at home. 

Well, I had a go in making the viral Dalgona coffee.  I succeeded after 3 tries.  The first 2 were foamy, I didn't get the water ratio right.  The third attempt was the charm indeed.  My incarnation came with crushed Lotus Biscoff for added flavour.

My Take on The Dalgona Coffee - Galaxy Note 9

Alexandra Canal Park

Part of the Circuit Breaker measures implemented this month includes closure of condominium's gyms.  So that means I have to bring my workout outdoors.  Which is not so bad actually.  I had known for a while about Alexandra Canal Park (ACP) opposite my condominium complex but could never really find a good reason to go there until now.  

Sunset in ACP, by Prince Charles Crescent  - Galaxy Note 9

Circuit Breaker April

Last week, the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong announced an unprecedented move in implementing a "Circuit Breaker" (CB) measure from 7th April to 4th May, where everyone's supposed to work from home as much as possible, while students will move on to home-based learning.  Only essential services can continue operating during this period while observing safe distancing measures in their work premises.

Prime Minster Lee Hsien Loong Addressing the Nation on The Circuit Breaker Period - Galaxy Note 9

Manic March

COVID-19 tightened its grip on the world this month.  We saw plenty of lockdown orders from governments around the world, and most alarmingly, how the number of infected and deaths continued to rise throughout March, especially in Europe.  

A Serene Guoco Tower Atrium in The Morning - Galaxy Note 9

Frantic February

Oh yes....  A frantic month it has been.  The word of the month is "Covid-19" as it took centre stage in February and triggered our very deeply ingrained humane trait of survival into overdrive.  While some of us did so elegantly, there were others who were simply just plain awful.   

Declaration Form & Sanitizing Station in My Office Lobby - Galaxy Note 9