Getting My Shoe Mended

While rushing to appointments one morning my shoe decided to come apart.  I managed to tape it back together, but was relieved to stumble across this shoe repairman as I came out of Somerset MRT on Orchard road.  After 15mins my shoe was glued back together and still is....

Some Changes

What an outstanding approach to dealing with a rotten boss and then an insecure professor: bugger off on a trek and then train for a new career - I had to raise a glass of champagne in salute. 

This was the response from a friend of mine to the news of some major changes that have been occurring in my life recently, which culminated in November by taking the 1st steps to leaving a full time job and working for myself whilst combining a number of things that I enjoy doing - meeting new people, helping people whilst still staying connected to the financial services industry.  As part of these changes my blogs have changed too.  In addition to A Measure of All Things I also had a photo blog highlighting different aspects of life in Singapore, but wasn't really keeping up to date with either of them, so I have now combined them and you can find stories and pictures from life in Singapore under the Singapore tag.  

Along with my new change in career I have started a personal finance blog called Managing Your Financial Risk.  My aim is to share what I have learnt from spending more than 10 years in the industry and in the process empower my readers to take charge of their finances by explaining financial terms and concepts in plain and simple English.

This change is going to be a challenge as it is something new, but it is also exciting.  What changes do you have in your lives?

Best wishes for 2012.

Kim

Graphic from Affirm Your Life

Traditional Japanese Art with a Twist

Over the weekend I stumbled across this amazing artist ... Kim Yong Soo creates what looks at first glance like traditional Japanese art, but on closer inspection the images are created with electronic components. All is not what it seems.

Product Review: Solar Powered USB Charger

I've mentioned in a previous post about the concerns I'd had around keeping myself occupied on my trip to Pakistan. Usually I take my iPod (no, I don't own an iPhone!) when I go travelling as it compact and  contains music, games, videos and spoken books which can keep me occupied for hours.  It seemed like the ideal thing to bring, but there was one teeny tiny little catch - we didn't have access to electricity for 17 days of the trek and once the battery went flat it would be dead weight.  It seemed like the most logical and weight efficient option, but for that small catch of what to do once the battery had run out!

I'd seen solar powered chargers before, but apart from a really expensive iPhone only charger I wasn't able to find anything thing suitable in Singapore.  Fortunately I found one on Amazon for US$30 and arranged to get it sent to me in Singapore.  The reviews for the product on Amazon were not particularly complimentary, but for the price I reckoned that all it had to do was to work for the trek and I'd be happy.  Well, the good news is that I'm happy.  Actually, no, that's an understatement, I'm ecstatic about the charger as it completely exceeded my expectations.  When it arrived I noted that it had a tiny LED attached (had I read the full product description I might actually have noticed this) and I found it really useful to use, rather than waste the batteries of my torch, when fussing around the tent at night.  It is about the size of an iPhone and slightly larger than my iPod and doesn't weigh much at all.  The unit can be charged either via a USB cable or the sun so it functions as a very useful "spare battery" and has a USB-out connection that allows any device to be charged this way, rather than just limited to an iPhone or iPod.  The battery holds enough charge to charge 2 iPhones completely.   It is possible to both use the charger and charge the battery at the same time.  Towards the end of the trip I had a bit of a "melt down" and listened to music for the better part of 2 days to try and calm myself down (it worked).  I would not have been able to do this without the charger which was attached to my backpack to absorb the sun whilst simultaneously charging up my iPod!  The one thing I realised from this event is that I need some new music.  The last time I put new music on my iPod was in 2008!

My only suggestion for improvement is that the windscreen suction cups are great if you have a vehicle in which to mount it, but I had to fashion a way to attach it to my backpack or to hang it from the tent from cable ties.

As far as I am aware, it is not possible to charge cameras or larger sized batteries (can someone please design an electric toothbrush with a USB charger), but the photographer on our trip brought a solar panel capable of charging camera batteries.  Doug's focus on getting every last drop of energy from the sun became a standing joke of the trip (especially as the 1st week was overcast and cloudy).  It got so bad that at Broad Peak Base Camp a very ill Doug delayed his departure back to camp because the batteries were charging!

Sunday means Ultimate Frisbee

Nearly every weekend we get together (usually at the Botanic Gardens) for a game of Ultimate Frisbee, followed by dinner at a local food court.  Its a great way to end the weekend.  If you want to join, you can find the Facebook group here.

Product Review: Monopoly Deal Cards

I, and I'm assuming most of you, have great memories of playing Monopoly.  Hours of strategy, highs when you win, disappointments when you lose and for some people winning was all that mattered - no matter what it took to achieve this goal.  So I was very excited when I stumbled across a set of Monopoly Deal Cards at the checkout of my local supermarket before I departed on my trip to Pakistan.  I had been very concerned as to how I was going to keep myself occupied during the trek (limited weight and no electricity for 3 weeks) and this seemed like a great idea.  

Views from Singapore Flyer

Marina Bay and the CBD

Looking North over Kallang River

Dressing Appropriately (or Not) in Pakistan

Photo from Doug K of Sky
all rights reserved

The slutwalk movement began in April 2011 when a Toronto police officer suggested that to remain safe "women should avoid dressing like sluts^1" and even as recently as 4 days ago an official in Jakarta said a similar thing². I have mixed feelings on this matter.  On the one hand I agree that no woman "asks for it", but on the other I have wondered what some women were thinking based on how they were dressed.  And when you add "what is culturally acceptable" into the mix what is appropriate to wear becomes a very subjective question.

Accident on the Baltoro

 

K2 from Goodwin Austen Glacier

How do you describe a trek through one of the more remote places on earth for 13 days; seeing the worlds 2nd highest mountain and 48 hours driving on a road that has been referred to as the 9th wonder of the world?  Awesome, amazing, awe-inspiring, an experience?  How would the description change if during the above experience 3 people died and another 2 were seriously injured?

Quick Update

It has been a while - I know.  I've been travelling in Pakistan and Indonesia for the past 6 weeks and its taken a  little while to get used to staying in the same place (and organising photo's and writing the posts - which is happening so watch this space...)  In the meanwhile, please enjoy some pictures from the amazing views that we experienced on our trek up the Baltoro Glacier in Pakistan.

View of K2 at sunrise from Concordia