Tuesday, October 27, 2009 @ 7:42 PM Author: clarinda

Monday, October 26, 2009 @ 10:12 PM Author: clarinda

Saturday, October 24, 2009 @ 1:58 PM Author: clarinda

		'I was surprised and stunned that that would happen in the city of Dallas because we are a very, very diverse city,' said Chief Kunkle. -- PHOTO: AP

CHICAGO - A TEXAS police chief apologised on Friday after at least 39 people received traffic tickets because they couldn't speak English.

'I was surprised and stunned that that would happen in the city of Dallas because we are a very, very diverse city,' Dallas police chief David Kunkle said at a press conference. I apologise to the Spanish speaking, Hispanic community.'

The incident came to light after a woman went to court to challenge a ticket issued by a young officer which cited her for being a 'non-English speaking driver'.

Chief Kunkle said his department reviewed its records and found that 38 similar tickets had been written in the past three years by six different officers.

All fees will be refunded and the police will ask for all convictions to be reversed, he said.

The department is also considering dereliction of duty charges against the officers involved and the sergeants who reviewed the citations. -- AFP

Friday, October 23, 2009 @ 9:29 PM Author: clarinda

Saturday, October 17, 2009 @ 4:16 PM Author: clarinda

I want to watch the following two drama series!! That is in addition to the Korean dramas I am currently watching..

TOKYO - A CENTRAL Japanese town targeted by an American film for its annual dolphin hunt said Friday it is checking residents for mercury poisoning that may be caused by regularly eating whale and dolphin meat.

Taiji won notoriety after the recent release of 'The Cove,' a documentary that shows fishermen herding dolphins into a hidden cove and killing them with spearlike poles.

The film argues that dolphin meat is too dangerously laced with mercury to be consumed.

The tests on strands of hair are being offered free of charge to any of Taiji's 3,500 residents who want them, a town official overseeing health and welfare said Friday.

The Taiji official denied the mercury-level tests are related to the movie. He reiterated the town's position that eating dolphin and whale meat is part of a 400-year-old culture and said the town has never had any apparent cases of mercury poisoning.

Many Taiji residents are suspicious about the portrayal of its annual dolphin hunt, especially by the foreign media. -- AP

Friday, October 16, 2009 @ 7:25 PM Author: clarinda

I bought two tubs of Ben & Jerry's Ice-cream for SGD$9.00 yesterday. I have, today, almost finished half a tub. That is in addition to an entire can/tin of Pringles.

Conclusion: I should go to the gym more often to make up for succumbing to temptations.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009 @ 9:14 PM Author: clarinda

An email received from the university..

Stay well - avoid winter bugs

At this time of the year there are often viruses around. Students are reminded to maintain good hand hygiene and follow seasonal advice from the NHS. If you are unwell you should let your School know.

During your period of study any number of circumstances may affect your ability to perform well in assessments and one of these factors is serious ill-health. Updated Advice and Guidance on Student Mitigations is now available http://www.as.bham.ac.uk/study/support/sca/mitigation.shtml

The University continues to monitor the threat of swine flu as part of our business as usual activities. You can find out more here: http://www.newscentre.bham.ac.uk/influenza/index.shtml

Monday, October 12, 2009 @ 8:43 PM Author: clarinda

Yesterday was a rather tiring day for me. I got up at around 6am and was about to leave the house when I realized that the trains were not in operation for that day due to engineering works. This meant that I had to take the bus instead. It took me some time to find out how to go. Even so due to the marathon, I was dropped off a few stops earlier. Thus, instead of being on time, I was late by 15 minutes. Thank goodness that everybody was still there when I arrived. We were each given a T-shirt and an addidas sweatshirt (of good quality wor). Initially, we as goodie bag distributors had nothing to do. However as time passes, we got very busy. I carried about 10 bags at a time and walked about to distribute them to the runners who have completed the marathon. I realized that there were scores of people who were coming in below 2 hours for the 21km marathon. If I were to be running, I would definitely need at least 2.5hours (I think so). On the whole, it was not a bad experience; I got to understand their definition of blanket for a race. It meant foil blanket which was meant to keep the runners warm. Interesting isn’t it?

Next Sunday, Acorns children's hospice trust and the University are organizing the annual University 5k run on Sunday the 18th October. This event raises money for acorns, a local charity which helps children and their families. I would be helping out with the stewarding portion. I do hope that it would also be a great experience.

Tomorrow, I would go to the event organized by the Birmingham Entrepreneurial and Enterprise Society. I am basically accompanying Steph. However I am, on my part, interested in what will they be doing =)

Saturday, October 10, 2009 @ 8:36 PM Author: clarinda

Today I went to do volunteering work at the Super 8 Challenge. The Super 8 Challenge is for young people aged between 5-16 years old to take part in 8 different sports. Basically, I helped out at the trampolining area, counting the number of sit-drops done by the kids in one minute. Subsequently, I convert the number into points, based on a points system. In addition, I am also a runner, i.e. I collect scores from each of the sports and bring them to the results area. The kids are really amazing. They could jump for a long period of time (~ 5-10 minutes) without feeling dizzy. Some of them could do somersaults while jumping as well. Of course, there are instances whereby the kids get injured. One of them hit against the edge causing pain to his tummy, and another had continuous nose bleeding after jumping up and down for a long time. Other than that, I was also surprised at how easily satisfied they are being able to just keep jumping, not even feeling bored at any point of time. One of the parents even asked for my email as her daughter is having problems with 'A' Levels Chemistry. I wonder if her daughter will actually email me.

On a side note, I have completed the drama series 'Take Care of the Young Lady', starring Yoon Eun Hye and Yoon Sang Hyun. I love the ending a lot!! There have been several criticisms on Yoon Eun Hye's acting skills. However, I felt that she have fabulous acting skills.

Oh..there have been complains about the PSLE Maths Paper yet again this year. I tried solving one of the questions, and all of a sudden, I was stuck as well. Nonetheless, I managed to solve the problem using simultaneous equations. It was then I realised that the question was actually very easy. However, did the primary school kids learn simultaneous equation?? Anyway, my solution is as followed:

Tomorrow, I have to get up at 5+am. This is because I have volunteered for the IAAF World and Birmingham Half Marathon as a goodie bag distributor, and had to reach the NIA by 8.15am. This means that I have to leave my house by 7am so that I would be able to reach earlier than required, hence not so rushing.

Anyway, I just finished watching Fann and Chris Wedding Video. It was very sweet!! However, the following clip is hilarious!! I could not stop laughing while watching it..haha =D

Tuesday, October 6, 2009 @ 5:33 PM Author: clarinda

Monday, October 5, 2009 @ 9:24 PM Author: clarinda