Finally…a taste of rest.

So I decided to mess about and make changes to the blogskin. My custom header image of the Crossroad remains the same.

Apart from that, I got rid of the useless parts of the site index and fit in new stuff, mainly the tag section and the blog stats. I’m not too sure whether the blog stats actually work. If they do, they don’t count the user’s own viewing — which i suppose is smart.

The current 280 is both large and small at the same time. Compared to the blogs of others, i’d say this is very small. My classmate, Mr F‘s blog that covers educational/ tuition stuff seems very “into” the blogosphere. His count — is 8000 more than mine. I’d expect the KKYS to have a few thousand also considering that its been awhile for quite sometime (and heh heh, it is automatically accessed everytime I ‘Restore Previous Session’ for my firefox. just happens to be one of te few hundred windows that are open) .

Compared to my expectations, that obviously is huge. Almost worrying. i do after all prefer things smaller and more personal anyway.

There are several things i need to do:
1. Clear my room — note, clear, not clean. The problem is I have so many stacks of books, I have absolutely no idea where to put them. And I already have thrown away random working paper. Where could I chuck all my clutter to at least make space for my new books which will (mostly) come on Thursday? I reckon rushing through my room the night before to get it cleared. It’s probably possible just not easy. I’d rather have another few days of carrying furniture.

2. Cut my hair — getting too thick and too long for my liking. Personally i prefer short hair? But I havent cut since the september holiday. Two days before the Republic P. debate finals to be specific. Technically I can last one hair cut a term. Except that I forgot to count in the holidays as part of the term. In other words, it has already exceeded one term by now. When I cut, it’ll have to be extra short. Heck, I’ll wait for december. I’ll cut when I can tie my hair.

3. Collect my books for next year — This probably marks me deciding on my options already. I’ll get the privilege of not stepping out of my house till Thursday to collect almost all my books. Namely all the SL english books (maybe with the three that A lost), IOC and Hist notes (made by A), uh an econs photocopied text, HL math book (with file and notes).
Estimated price I’ll pay: $100+
Estimated price I would have to pay for the originals:around $400

There probably are people willing to offer them at lower prices, but fair enough la. I’m too lazy to wait too long for prices to drop. I believe that I’m saving quite a bit already.

Though I need to get my Bio book. I’m rather unwilling to buy it since I already have an ib bio book at home but they changed the syllabus.

This week is expected to be a great (while plain) week for resting. Its been so busy for the past two weeks with meeting people back to back etc. (and my first week of holidays were spent being ill) Time sure passes fast. It’s week four already. Time is tight. I’d probably need to use my time more wisely from now on.

Next week december will be near.

 

the buyer’s dilemma

I have been trying to get my hands on second hand books for next year. My book prices are seriously crazy, 20 each for 11 to 15 english books, 80 each for econs, bio and math. I already have a bio book but the stupid ______ is changing the book.

i’ll probably be getting my english, history, bio (SEMI-relevant), econs (3/4- relevant) books from my Year 6 senior foc — though i plan to treat him lunch as a thank you (It’s unlikely that he reads this post btw)

But I am going to have to buy my math book from some other senior…

Today I received an email about the book, sure i was excited, but the issue got harder when he asked for the price specifically. Big mistake — I should have asked about price first in my reply. Damn.

Here he has the advantage in selling if i’m going to tell him what price i am looking for first considering that I don’t know how much the books is worth to him. This most annoyingly is like a sealed auction, people offer their auctions in an envelope and no one sees the price. No one is really too sure whether to offer a higher or lower sum, people will give the highest amount they are willing to pay. A brilliant if you ask me.

If i offer too low a price, someone else may get it or he may not be willing to sell it. Though he will if no one else wants to buy it.

If i offer too high a price, enough said — i could have gotten a lower price.

Or i can wait.

If i wait too long, someone else may get the book first.

If i don’t wait long enough, i may lose out on someone else offering the books at a lower price.

People say that “the early bird catches the worm” however one may realise that fatter worms may appear later. By then the bird would have missed the chance.

Bearing in mind that this is the First person to send out the email about selling books even before his exams are over, what am i able to judge from his behaviour? What implications can i draw with regards to the price?

I’d say that he is rather opportunist judging from the fact that he is following “the early bird catches the worm” mantra and this may mean that he will try to get the best he can out of the deal. Naturally, anyone would. He’ll have to wait to see if the other people on the email list want to offer a higher price.

Lloyd’s evil resolution?

It was essential that i balanced the information towards my end. I’m going to check the market out — for the buyer’s side at least. I’ll also have to wait for more willing sellers in the meantime. I foresee that there will be more willing sellers in time to come since year 6s naturally have the incentive to get rid of their books and get some money out of it.

For more information, ask me online. i realised that my blog can be googled. tmd.

 

The Dilemma (till early next year)

“In life, there is always the presence of crossroads where major decisions have to be made.” How apt to have been the first line of my 3000+ word project last year (on junior colleges, my dilemma for last year)

And this photo was used for my ISO poster that scored me pretty high (thanks madam m—-)

It’s quite a simple dilemma — IB subject options and it can be summed up as:
Higher Math versus Higher English — which should i take? No doubt, a post of boredom, i would have preferred to lay off academics on the blog but it cant be helped if it will be the question taht bugs me for the next two months.

Basic logic: consider the criterias involved (floh would laugh at me here for my parkpole/metrerule)
Criteria 1: What is best for myself?
Taking whatever that benefits more/is more important to uni and in the long run.
In other words, this results in “Friends ” having a lower priority =\ since friends come and go, and while i have opened up a lot more this year i stil keep the belief that a lot of things are still pretty much temporal. We’ll all make new friends anyway and being in the same class is not a prerequisite anyway. Furthermore there are some who WILL be in different classes already anyway (i.e. SB in my class and E who may take HL chem *cough* urk)

Enjoyment probably also goes down the line. Besides, enjoyment is moot — i like math on the same level as i like reading LIT (lit ><) somewhere in between. I also think that enjoyment can be cultivated. Furthermore people do not do well because they enjoy the subject (i mean i like bio, somewhat) but they enjoy it because they do well.

Which leads to
Criteria 2: Which is more important — getting a a)higher total score or b) fulfilling prerequisite subjects
A higher score will be helpful for a scholarship (which i’ll prob need to not go NUS) and getting admissions but prerequisite subjects are course specific.

Which leads us on to
Criteria 3a: Overall points — would math or english give me a higher total points?
3a. Higher English is not much different from SL english apart from having four more books and a bit harsher on marking.
Math on their hand is supposedly having a larger difference. The total from HL eng SL math would be higher than SL eng HL math since it dips more for math and virtually none for eng (or so i speculate)

Criteria 3b: Prequisite subjects — which is more necessary for uni courses, English or Math?
3b. Math wins hands down — esp if im considering econs in the long run. English would “help” law and journalism but SL woudl do just fine and it is not a prerequisite. However compare a lower grade higher level math with a higher grade standard level math, which would have more value?

Overall, it’s quite a gamble on striking a balance and hopefully going beyond that. I feel some urge to draw a useless speculatory graph (which may incorporate my this year’s grades to predict a trend) I can’t really do much apart from pray and trust God in this case.

On a more saucy note, if the issue was about enjoyment vs importance, it will be like marrying a woman i don’t love only because she’s rich and is a CEO or something >< (while i get to stay at home and sleep, play xbox, read manga, watch anime and korean dramas like aunties, ferry kids from school, cook, clean and wash.)

How much i want that, is a different issue altogether =x
(oh, why is there a tag called evolution-of-gender-roles, does that mean there may be more of such tags to come?)