Interests:Ugh ... me man ... me like red meat and rotting fruit juice ... me like boomstiks and nekkid girlz Expertise:light saber combat, dual pistol fighting, Gundam pilot, wine and food pairing, pleasuring a woman, staring into space, quoting quagmire and pointless discussion about everything. Occupation:Dual class:Lab rat/Dilettante Industry:Academic (Feuilleton Era)
Since I have moved Singapore, I simply don't have the time and energy to come up with even semi-intelligent blog posts. So much to do, so much to see, so much to learn, so much to eat and so little time to do it all. Working at the National Cancer Centre in Singapore have so far been the most educational, interesting, frustrating and exhilarating experience of my life and I want to make the most out of this experience. Unfortunately that does mean this blog will be closed down again for the foreseeable future I just don't have the time anymore to update anymore.
But before I go again into the void, fair readers ... let me give you one last song that I think will articulate everything I am feeling
Time to say goodbye ----------------------
When Im alone I dream on the horizon And words fail; Yes, I know there is no light In a room Where the sun is not there If you are not with me. At the windows Show everyone my heart Which you set alight; Enclose within me The light you Encountered on the street.
Time to say goodbye, To countries I never Saw and shared with you, Now, yes, I shall experience them, Ill go with you On ships across seas Which, I know, No, no, exist no longer; With you I shall experience them.
When you are far away I dream on the horizon And words fail, And yes, I know That you are with me; You, my moon, are here with me, My sun, you are here with me. With me, with me, with me,
Time to say goodbye, To countries I never Saw and shared with you, Now, yes, I shall experience them, Ill go with you On ships across seas Which, I know, No, no, exist no longer; With you I shall re-experience them. Ill go with you On ships across seas Which, I know, No, no, exist no longer; With you I shall re-experience them. Ill go with you, I with you.
Some things don't change even if I move across the pacific ocean to a new country and a new life . I am just a lone wolf at heart ... it's ironic because wolves are intensely social creatures and a lone wolf is an exception in that it cannot accept the social structure of the pack. I don't think, at my age, that I can ever accept the social structure and interactions of humanity. I have moved across the ocean to another country and another culture, still I drifted to moving alone on a friday night and loving it .
I can't stand it when people think they got me in a corner then proceeds to kick me around because they think I have no choice but to take it .
I have wrestled with the computer server vendors for the past couple of weeks ... I managed to knock the price way down with a downgrade of certain computer server requirements and honestly all it needs is one final change in the RAM specs, a little drop in price and I am all set.
I was WILLING to let them have the few thousand bucks difference (hell it's not my money and time is running out) if either vendor was fast about getting the RAM specs modified correctly. Instead, after two goddamn days for a minuscule change, they not only gave the WRONG specs ... the final price went UP close to nine thousand dollars . The ridiculous part is I even DREW them the fucking DIAGRAM detailing the size of the RAM and how the RAM chips should be slotted and how the final numbers should work out. Even my labmate who have NO idea about computers can tell from the diagram what I wanted .
And they have this bad attitude about the whole situation ... I have to call them and email them MULTIPLE times and I am the fucking client. One guy even have the gall to tell me he has the numbers but he will send them to me tomorrow when he said on LAST friday (and its monday now) he will send them by noon on Monday. He said it in such a way that says "You will work at MY convenience because I know you are screwed for time, you have no where else to go, you don't know enough to respec' the server and all your changes are annoying me so you will take your punishment like a little boy misbehaving."
Actually it's not difficult to decipher the source of their arrogance and contempt:
a) I am not a hardware or IT specialist b) The project is behind schedule and a lot of things needs to be done in a short time c) They think they control all the information about the server ... pricing, specs, models etc. d) Even if I can get my hands on the information ... they think I am too stupid and too short on time to figure it out e) From all of the above ... There are no other options so I have NO choice but to take their attitude and bullshit with a smile and let them gauge me for all the project is worth.
Make no mistake ... this is a powerplay and they are working me like a speedbag to show their indispensability and my desperation.
However, they made several crucial mistakes .
a) I am the ULTIMATE jack of all trades .... I am a chemical engineer/bioinformatician. I have the theoretical background on all different branches of sciences. Learning servers with my background is a lot more easy than someone with just a pure science background. I may never be as SKILLED as someone with a concentration in a particular field but no one can match me in learning a new science because I already have the background. b) The project is behind schedule and time is tight but I have the backing of my boss ... he knows full well about asshats like these vendors (he dealt with plenty of asshats in Singapore). He told me if I can't get their cooperation, I got the green light to cut them off and restart the whole process even if the project completion will be delayed. c) The internet is the ULTIMATE equalizer in terms of information. If you have the curiosity to look stuff up ... you can find it and in huge volumes too. I managed to find all the possible models, configurations and pricing just poking around the internet .... all it takes is curiosity . d) Bitch please .... I may look like Sleepy McLazy most of the time but that's a front. I rarely work above 50% brain capacity ... I try hard to project an image of sleepy, quiet, easy-going, friendly and harmless nice guy but that doesn't mean I am that way when shit needs to be done or I feel someone is deliberately insulting my intelligence and learning capability. My Sleepy McLazy look is to buy time while I learn everything and put it together then proceed to skullfuck you a new eye .... I am already confident that in a few more days, I can spec a new server using Sun, HP or IBM systems. e) In a sense, respec'ing is not the optimal solution because that still takes too much time ... the smart thing will be to have a system ALREADY spec'ed and ready to go. My brain came up with a possible option that was not fully considered before ... what about the same company (Illumina) that sold us the Genome Analyzer? It would make sense they would form an alliance with a server company like Sun or HP or IBM and work out a server that would serve the genome analyzer's needs. Quick check through their webpage and BINGO !!!! A fully preinstalled, preconfigured and validated HP server system offered by Illumina.
Huzzah ... that was my third fuckyou option from two bad options. A fast easy (and probably cheaper) solution that solves every one of my problems from my lack of expertise to the time crunch .
The fact that the scientific investigator works 50 percent of his
time by nonrational means is, it seems, quite insufficiently
recognized.
Intuition, like a flash of lightning, lasts
only for a second. It generally comes when one is tormented by a
difficult decipherment and when one reviews in his mind the fruitless
experiments already tried. Suddenly the light breaks through and one
finds after a few minutes what previous days of labor were unable to
reveal.
As to luck, there is the old miners’ proverb: “Gold is where you find it.”
-- William Friedman, WWII codebreaker
Update: they are still messing with me ... they just sent the EXACT SAME quote as last week and claim the RAM already fulfills my requirement. Ummmm no because I can do simple math .... but still being nice Sleepy McLazy, I helpfully pointed out their "error" in calculation and once again reiterate in detail what I want to see on the quote. Nothing like saying nice doggie till I find a big enough shotgun .
Comment: More than 8,500 people are feared dead after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck China in its Sichuan province. Apparently, it was powerful enough to be felt in Pakistan, Thailand and Vietnam .
My parents are in Shanghai and my brother is in Beijing right now . But they are okay although they all felt that earthquake .... my mom was actually in the elevator going up to the apartment when the sucker hit .
and so little time to do it all.
I just don't have the time anymore to update anymore.
. I am just a lone wolf at heart ... it's ironic because wolves are intensely social creatures and a lone wolf is an exception in that it cannot accept the social structure of the pack. I don't think, at my age, that I can ever accept the social structure and interactions of humanity. I have moved across the ocean to another country and another culture, still I drifted to moving alone on a friday night and loving it 
.
.
. The ridiculous part is I even DREW them the fucking DIAGRAM detailing the size of the RAM and how the RAM chips should be slotted and how the final numbers should work out. Even my labmate who have NO idea about computers can tell from the diagram what I wanted 
.
.
. 
