Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency & Opensea

20/12/2021 Mon 

After so many years since I first came across Bitcoin, the platforms for buying, selling and wallets are still the same.  More players now but none are flexible, none are safe. Fiat money disappears in trying to buy Crypto currency. Exchange platforms don't take fiat money, only take crypto currency. Supposedly more legit platforms want identity verification (KYC) (Coinbase/Binance) that puts people off. All these problems that prevented me from going into Bitcoin, are still the same. Even after so many years.

Now I take another look. Spend some time looking around. And nothing's changed. I wanted to buy Bitcoin but end up still didn't buy. 

Frankly, I don't see any value in holding Bitcoins or other cryptocurrency when people are having to give up--undoubtedly--a more valuable fiat currency. If fiat currency weren't more valuable, reviewers wouldn't be feeling painful when platforms take their fiat money but give no Cryptocurrency in return. Obviously, it's better to have held on to fiat currency. 

I downloaded Trustee Wallet on my phone based on good reviews. Only to discover that: How come the wallet search for "best" offer for buying Bitcoin and Ethereum keeps listing only 2 players: Mercuryo and MoonPay? Checking out these 2 shows several severely negative reviews.

I will most likely uninstall Trustee wallet. It's a pity because it's more intuitive than ChangeNow. It's also fun to select 12 words instead remembering just 1 password to get into my account, although those 12 words have to be saved somewhere.  

I looked around Trustpilot on Changelly reviews (bad). Gate.io reviews (bad), Fixedfloat reviews (they don't accept fiat currency, despite good reviews). Uniswap (bad). Simpleswap (bad).

ChangeNow? Somebody said high fees that were not stated in purchasing "coins". And how come the app doesn't allow me to buy $50 USD of Bitcoin or Ethereum? It only responds when I key in $90 USD (Ethereum) or $100 USD (Bitcoin). 

Looks like I will be deleting ChangeNow from my phone too. 

So what's left? Any more wallets?

What am I supposed to do with Bitcoin or Ethereum anyway? Even if I do buy a bit, like 0.001. Not keen on putting down more than $50 USD. Fiat money is still more precious and real in the hand versus a digital token. 

Token. Something that has no value except for the fiat currency that has value that goes to buying it. Like the token you put into a kiddy ride, that was purchased with real money.

I will probably just hang on to ChangeNow (and Trustee wallet) for a while until I need space for my phone. Will uninstall if it's still not in use by then.

I have looked up Opensea. Curious about making money with NFT. Tested it with a photograph and when I wanted to list it for sale, the bill came to $325 USD. Just to list X'mas lights in a tall bottle. Haven't make money, I have to spend money. And if it doesn't sell?  No idea why everyone is crazy about NFTs. Makes no sense.

Coinbase wallet? Cheat. Based on their app reviews.

These cryptocurrencies and "wallets" are just some clown games.

Coinbase? 78% negative reviews on Trustpilot. Only 9% positive. I don't know why Google articles keep saying they are the best. 8 hrs ago, a reviewer lost $100 USD or more. Even after his identity already verified at first, Coinbase still wants further "verification" action which sounds humiliating.

The more I read these reviews, the more it's obvious that these platforms are just fakes wanting money to be deposited with them. And those Google reviews about people getting huge profits from "investing" on these platforms could also be fake or they only made those "profits" on paper and not in their bank accounts.

Their modus operandi is let the person open an account first. Pretend to verify his identity so that he puts his first "investment" inside. When he makes a profit and wants to withdraw, ask him for further verification and then reject anything he sends or just ignore him. Or close his account or freeze it if it's a big investment he put in.

It's wanting-to-belief that's creating "value". Irrational, but nobody cares because they are desperate, which is why countries like Cuba or unstable economies are more into Crypto than other countries. People in unstable economies with depreciated local currencies need Cryptocurrencies to work. It has to work and so, they make it work by being part of the cogs, wheels and chains.  

I also want to be in on this Bitcoin and NFTs craze. I also want to believe in their value and investment potential. But what I find is what keeps showing me that it cannot be done 1) without input of a lot of money upfront. That 12 year-old or 13-year-old who is reported to make a heap of cash from NFTs by drawing some picture, needed to borrow thousands of dollars first. And nothing is said about how or where the "profit" has been cashed out. 2) without an exchange platform and wallet platform that can be trusted to handle money.

Psychological privilege Covid Vaccinated

29 Nov 2021 Mon 

I recall the Discover article that said humans have gotten stupid and are getting stupider over the years due to cities taking away their ability to think.

There is no longer a need to use their brains to find or hunt for food,  to build shelters, to navigate or to make social connections for survival and well-being. People's brains have become under-utilised. And therefore, they have become stupid. 

This Covid proves that it's true. 

How come governments are copying each other?  Where do people get the idea that only vaccinated people like themselves,  are safe? 

Where is the democracy and people's rights that many countries have been so proud of? 

In the end,  all the ideals and assumptions are thrown out the window. Countries that I thought are open and progressive, are not. Countries least expected to be open,  become saviours of people displaced by their own countries. 

I KIV (keep in view)  the countries that are forcing people. So many. Austria,  Australia, USA... 

I keep them in view whenever they appear in the news,  so that I don't give my tourist dollars to them when travel opens again. Not giving them money means not supporting them,  not supporting what they do, not supporting what they have done to their citizens, to people. 

Humans have a tendency to make themselves feel more privileged than they really are,  to make up for what they lack. Any excuse will do,  if it can set them up as "superior" than others. That is how there's slavery and the rest. 

For instance,  "I am vaccinated (you are not). So I feel safe knowing that everyone around me is also vaccinated.".  

Where's the logic of such a remark that is made by various persons interviewed in the news? 

Maybe they didn't read? Maybe they prefer not to know? 

Vaccinated doesn't mean the person is not infected. He/she could be a carrier. Or even a variant might even emerge from a vaccinated person. And you think it's safe sitting beside  him/her? Isn't that more dangerous?

There's still a lot of information to be learnt about Covid. 

Anyone know the long-term effects or side-effects of the vaccines? How about: Are we going to need boosters all the time for the rest of our lives? 

Vaccinated people get vaccinated because they want to live. They are to be applauded for putting their lives on the line for trusting the vaccines. 

Not vaccinated people also want to live. They are also to be applauded for having the courage not to be vaccinated (due to the risk of death) and instead take their chances outside.

I just have to ask 1 question. The news articles say death from the vaccines is "rare". Does anyone want to be that "rare" case while everyone else moves on? 

Punishing the unvaccinated

15 Nov 2021

Well it seems the virus Covid didn't have to do anything to turn humans against humans. If someone said Covid is caused by the devil,  I would believe it even though I am not religious. 

It's so easy to segregate or divide humanity. All you have to do,  is put out a virus. The humans will struggle and find some kind of vaccine. As expected,  some will take the experimental solution, some will not. Then you just let it play out among themselves. What happens when those who take the "vaccine" turn against those who don't? 

Pretty soon,  they won't be fighting Covid. They will be fighting over themselves. What could be more brilliant? 

The virus will do its job and the rest will be done by humans themselves. They think they found a vaccine. By the time the virus is done,  there will be nothing left of humans because they will do themselves to shreds. 

I am very surprised that European countries supposed to be smart. How come stupider than Singapore? 

How to progress with the mindset of blaming unvaccinated people? What did Austria invent anyway?  What is their contribution to humanity? Arnold Schwarzenegger? 

Countries like Netherlands need to ask why despite 80% fully vaccinated population,  there's still a high of 16,000 cases daily. Is it because people are not wearing their masks? Most likely,  because vaccinated people become relaxed thinking that they are protected.

Tesla in Singapore

This shows how back-dated Singapore is. Tesla and charging ports were already in Kaohsiung Taiwan in 2018. I saw the charging ports at an open-air car park. Even their motorbikes are electric and quiet. They also have charging stations for the batteries. 

Even Taiwan's Ikea is faster than Singapore by 2 years. Meaning their Ikea had products that Singapore Ikea didn't have, and it will be 2 years later that the products appear on Singapore Ikea shelves. 

Ebola vs Covid

27 Oct 2021 Wed

Both are RNA viruses. As Covid is still being understood...No one knows the future of injecting Covid vaccines into adults and now,  in children. 

Ebola resurgence report 4 Oct 2021:

https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/body-and-mind/ebola-resurfaced-some-viruses-are-never-really-gone/?amp=1

At the height of the pandemic, I was telling Bro that this Covid virus might just suddenly disappear, just as it had suddenly appeared. Like locusts. It comes and then it retreats. True enough, recently, Japan is baffled by the sudden plunge in number of cases.

Spain Apologises to its people

Oct 26 Tues 11.25p.m.

No vaccination (vax) no hire?

Oct 25 Mon 4.14pm.

Employers in Singapore have just been given another tactic of not hiring people at the slightest excuse. They have been discriminating  based on age,  gender,  etc.. And now whether an applicant is "vaccinated" or not. If they could discriminate based on the number of horns people have (if people grew horns), they would "select" based on that. 

Stupid companies across the board aren't really even hiring. They put up an ad but when you go there,  it's fun and games for them. An interviewer can go so far as to breach your privacy into your family, your parents even when this has nothing to do with the job application. 

If you have a degree,  you are over-qualified. If you don't have a degree,  you are not good enough. If you have a lot of experience,  you don't have the "relevant" experience. If you have experience and a degree,  you are over-qualified. If you have no experience,  they want some experience. 

If you are a woman,  they actually prefer a man. If you're a man,  they prefer a woman. They don't advertise this,  so you waste your time going to an interview even if your resume makes it through (which is itself odd when they prefer the other gender). 

What people can do, is note which companies are discriminatory in this "no vaccination no hire" criteria and avoid or boycott such shortsighted and small-minded companies.

Even students in the US are smart enough to say that they would rather not go to university if a vaccination is required to get in.  They would rather forfeit getting a degree and just work to earn money. 

In Singapore,  or even around the world,  you don't need a degree to get around and make money. In fact, the ability to get money has nothing to with intelligence. 

It is ridiculous for a country to follow the methods of China that spread the virus in the first place. China says no vax no entry to shopping malls.  Other countries do the same. 

Europe or US says no vax no hire. Other countries follow. 

Just for once,  I wish Singapore is different. But of course,  it never will be. 

Nothing but disappointment. 

Is it guaranteed that vaccination equals hire? If you're dead from a vaccination, that's just too bad. There's always another applicant behind you. If you don't want to get vaccinated,  that's just too bad. There's another applicant who is vaccinated just behind you. And even if you are vaccinated,  gee, you go to the restroom too many times anyway, so you're fired. 

A country can be very beautiful but if the people are discriminatory like this,  then it's just an ugly piece of land.  

More and more brains are choosing to work as digital nomads. Vaccinated or not,  they don't need to come to office anymore. By insisting on having only vaccinated workers,  the company loses out. 

And a lot of companies are having difficulties finding people for jobs. There are simply no takers. People just have better things to do with their lives than work for peanuts. Covid has forced people to assess or reassess their work and their lives. 

Goodbye Daiso さようならダイソー

20 Oct Wed. 9.17pm. The last things I bought from Daiso on 18 Oct a day before the malls closed on unvaccinated people were: 1 pair of scissors. 1 storage bag.  1 pair of elastic belts. 3 pairs of men's socks. 1 box of spectacles wipes. 2 watches. 1 waist pouch. 2 boxes of potato soup powder. 1 packet of dried seaweed. 1 luggage belt. It's hard to tell myself that I won't be able to eat the Daiso chocolate cookies ice-cream anymore. Nor have it put into those uniquely small blue plastic bags that fit the ice-cream cup size perfectly. Small things like that,  you know? And let's not forget those little spoons given by the cashier for the ice-cream. Daiso,  I am sorry I cannot wait for your Tiramisu ice-cream shipment anymore because it's taking longer than this malls closure. 

10月20日（水） 9.17pm.予防接種を受けていない人々がショッピングモールを閉鎖する前日の10月18日にダイソーから最後に買ったものは：はさみ1組でした。収納バッグ1個。 1組の弾性ベルト。メンズソックス3足。眼鏡ワイプ1箱。 2つの時計。ウエストポーチ1個。じゃがいも汁粉2箱。乾燥海苔1袋。ラゲッジベルト1本。ダイソーチョコレートクッキーのアイスクリームがもう食べられなくなるとは言い難いです。また、アイスクリームカップのサイズにぴったり合う、独特の小さな青いビニール袋にも入れていません。そのような小さなこと、あなたは知っていますか？そして、アイスクリームのためにレジ係によって与えられたそれらの小さなスプーンを忘れないでください。、ティラミスのアイスクリームの出荷が、このモールの閉鎖よりも時間がかかっているので、もう待てなくてごめんなさい。

Goblin & Tale of the Nine-tailed Fox Korean dramas

 

In Goblin, the Grim Reaper doesn't lock his new phone because he doesn't know how. And when he finally locks it, he forgets the symbol to unlock it... 

Ahh... I also don't lock my phone for precisely the same reason. For my own convenience. I don't trust these technological crap. True enough, the phone will lock you out if you keep getting the pass code wrong. Locked out of my own phone? No thanks. 

The Grim Reaper cried the first time he saw the jade ring and the woman...

The first time I heard a Buddhist prayer music on Youtube, I cried. However, I am not religious, don't have a religion and am a skeptic. I told myself it must be because it sounded so beautiful even though I don't know the meaning or the words.  Only that music.. I can't recall which one now. It must be because I felt forsaken by Buddha despite my devotion in my previous life. I have been told by 2 different spirit workers on separate occasions that my soul has spiritual practice. I don't know what sort of "spiritual practise" and I don't know what it means. 

In Nine-tailed Fox... Shin Ju the vet prefers cash over credit card...

I also prefer cash when I sell something. Cold hard cash. Can't go wrong with that. I read online reports about someone who said she didn't receive payment from a buyer because buyer sent via Paylah instead of PayNow.  I refuse to get PayNow or Paylah. I don't want to understand them. As a seller, I don't want this type of crap.  I don't want delayed payments either, so those escrow Shopee seller platform or other platforms that hold my money after the buyer has received the product... is out for me. 

Tale of the Nine-Tailed Fox: Does Creamy Cream Premium Ice Cream Shop exist in Korea?

The way the (ex-) mountain spirit ate his choco mint ice cream made me want to go to Korea to try it too. But checking online, there don't seem to be such a shop in existence. Was it just a decal pasted onto a glass panel of another shop? 

The Choco mint ice cream in a tub that he loves to eat however, has been covered by other bloggers. It's Peacock brand Yolow @ nearly 6000 won (SGD$7) which isn't cheap, similar to Singapore's pricing of foreign ice-cream tubs in supermarkets.

This drama is even better than Lee Min-Ho's time travel drama... what's it called? ... (checks online)... The Eternal Monarch. 

Nine-Tailed Fox ... the guy is very lovable and cute. The writer created a very memorable character who is both powerful and resourceful but not invulnerable. Sexy man (Lee Dong-Wook).  Makes me watch certain episodes a 2nd time. Makes me miss him after the show such that I have to watch him again by replaying from ep 1. This is the first time I have seen this actor.

Music however, is not so good and Eternal Monarch has slightly better OSTs. 

Siblings are Outsiders

 

2pm Aug 31 Tues 2021

Now we have money from the sale of the house. We manage to stay in a hotel-like room with some amenities. Yet happiness eludes us. Due to Covid, we remain stuck in Singapore wasting our precious money for every day we are here.

Bro just walked out in a foul mood and he went ballistic over just 1 comment I made while at the escalator at 100AM after Donki. I just said, "Why do you keep looking at your phone?". These few days, he has been taking out his phone and abruptly becoming engrossed with it despite lack of Wi-Fi connection. And it's irritating to see while we are shopping every time I turn around. 

I can understand why it's socially unacceptable when going out and a person keeps looking at his/her phone instead of interacting. 

With that comment, he shot back that "That's what it's made for.".  Meaning, the phone is made to be looked at. After that, he just went on and on about "So I don't have to look at the world... this also cannot, that also cannot. What you want me to do?".  He said my tone in my question was rude.

I don't like having to defend myself to anyone, having to justify and explain. I am used to the freedom of independent thought because our parents never cared except pinning our physical bodies down with regulations. I never had to ask anyone their opinions in order to do my things according to my decisions. The only thing my parents couldn't touch was my thoughts.  

He said the room has problems, he can't clear the symptoms. I said if he don't like the room, move out and sleep at the X and when the 10 days are up, I will look for him. Or he also has money (from the sale of the house), he can rent a room for himself. 

He said it's not about that & went on to say all kinds of things until it became the compromises he had to make too .. for example, when I want share something with him on my phone and ask him to see and he has to interrupt his own watching of his video or music on his phone (which goes to sleep when he isn't paying attention and he has to turn it on again and get his video/music back on...) to look at mine. 

I didn't know it was a disturbance to him. I didn't know about his phone. I just in my exuberance to share with him, didn't think I had to be considerate like towards an outsider. No wonder every time, he would peel his eyes away from his phone to look at mine, and he was taking longer these days to turn to me. I didn't realize the meaning of it and was somewhat annoyed that I was made to wait longer these days, which ruined the significance of what I wanted him to see.

As he talked out his thoughts, I realized he felt he was making compromises which he was defending because as he said, "you are my sister.". Compromises, sacrifices. 

He said despite this, it's not enough. "So what are you going to do, what can you say now that I feel like jumping off a roof?". 

I said nothing. I just thought that the more and louder he grumbled while I was showering, the more I wondered if he had really gone insane. 

I finished showering, sat on the bed with my phone. He said, "So what do I do? The room is quiet and you are not saying anything?". 

I was thinking, he is worse than Evi (my ex-girlfriend from Indonesia). At least she was quiet and I never got to hear her thoughts even though I asked. In the end after 5 or 7 years, I broke up with her.

I start to understand why siblings go from each other to live apart. It's not that they don't love each other. Not that they are not close. But that, siblings have different thoughts and personalities, and different needs and wants. So it is not possible for siblings to be inseparable. I don't know of any brother and sister who live together like husband and wife.

I asked Bro what else that I do that he feels is a compromise on his part. He said it's not about compromise, why I wanna know etc... etc... I said, "So that I don't do it again.". 

I was thinking even better the more things he tells me that bothers him. Cause it will save me from doing all those things. Less effort on my part. Giving less. Because it always bothered me to give him less. With his admission, it's as if I have been freed from the obligation of my love to give him more.

In all things, I put him first. Even money. I rather deplete my account for both our use than deplete his (although I am hoping that we can share his when mine is down).

Now that he has spoken his thoughts and letting the room door swing back on me without holding it while I came in with the tray of ice and hot water... and recalling the psychic's words about not giving away 100% of my love... I understand how risky my trust and giving have been to myself. 

I realize he has gotten worse. I  don't know if he is insane or not. I don't know if it's safe to sleep in the same room with him or not. 

It would be best to hold onto my money carefully. As I already learnt, it's best to have a close friend on hand. Friends and money.  To get through life. Not family. Not siblings. 

Be very careful about trusting family. It cannot be emphasized enough. Always make sure you have money, the more the better. And get as many guy friends with money as possible.

This morning if not for the rain at 11.30am, I would have gone swimming. Had I went, this argument wouldn't have happened. But because it seems he has been bottling up his thoughts and irritations, it is only a matter of time. If not today, then tomorrow. 

I made one big mistake in trusting my parents and they betrayed us. If I continue to be blind to Bro's words, then it will be a repeat mistake and this time, it will hurt more.

Siblings are outsiders because we don't know what the other person is thinking. What they are hearing. What their hearts are feeling. Money has no such need for such considerations. It's also why people prefer animal pets to humans.

The psychic is wrong at one part: I don't have a "couple" of reliable people. I don't even have 1. 

The best is to be an orphan and live alone in adulthood with a lot of money and generous male friends who have a lot of money. Parents are useless and siblings are outsiders because you trust them completely but you never know them completely.  There lies the danger of unexpected betrayal. My advice to anyone: Find your way in the world yourself quickly without being tied down to family or friends. They serve their own interests not yours. Your youth is your asset. Trust no one except yourself.

Z.com webhost webhosting Review

Update: 31 Aug 2021 Tues

Their support is fast although not 24/7. When they do get online, it's responsive and helpful. They offered to link my site to Google for me. Wow. But I already managed to do it myself.

It just takes a while to learn their cPanel and how everything works. It does take some time. Since I already bought the domain name, I have to make it work. I just got Google to recognize/verify my domain name without "Support" help as it was a Sunday. But the site is still not appearing on my phone Google. 

-----------

3.26pm 26 Aug Thurs 2021

Just 2 days after paying $24.61 ($2/month on their website) for 1 year's sign-up whereby I tried and couldn't even get a Wordpress theme up on my website...  I got a domain name & that was all. The cPanel was useless.

Their customer chat quoted me in PHP currency. Weird. Can't she see in her system that I am from Singapore? And here in this screenshot, it shows they are using Philippines as their center. If I had known it's not Japan, I wouldn't have signed up.

I find today I can't access my cPanel due to their maintenance. I don't know if the more expensive Bluehost or Dreamhost do that. They are more expensive in that they require 3 years' up front payment to get the same price per month as Z.com that requires just 1 year's up front of just $26+ ($24.61 with GST + $2.62 bank transfer using debit card to pay). 

Prior to paying, I found only 1 brief good comment on Z.com. No other reviews. Z.com seems to belong to a big company GMO (?), so I thought it should be ok... And it seemed Europe and US don't know of Z.com that operates in Asian regions with HQ in Japan. 

NDP Maskless just because vaccinated?

 9 Aug 2021 Mon

As expected, predictably, everyone got the idea that vaccination equals safe. No need to wear mask. MRT and busloads of mask-less students on the way to NDP. Perfect with the more infectious Delta version floating around. 

Recent reports warn of fully vaccinated people coming down with Covid and spreading the virus. 

These vaccinated people can spread among themselves or get it along the way. No mask?

At first, I thought I was mistaken when looking at the photos: the students had no masks on. A second photo confirmed that no one was wearing a mask. 

Stop using Age Discriminatory Terms Singapore

 

26 July 2021

The media needs to stop using these age derogatory terms in addressing people. Everything that is wrong, is wrong here. Why write articles that refer to people as "uncle" and "auntie"? Unprofessional, uneducated, small-minded reporters.   

Where do these newspaper reporters/writers come from? Chinese-educated? Do they have a degree? Work only for a small island & report crap. Island reporters. 

Since when was "auntie" and "uncle" endearing in addressing strangers? Why impose your own prejudice regarding older people with words that clearly look down on them? 

One does not call presidents and their wives "aunties" and "uncles" when one meets and greets them. Do you call a CEO of a company "Hello, auntie." or "Hi, uncle." even though he/she obviously isn't young anymore? Of course not.  You want to be laughed at for being a peasant? 

So why embarrass yourself by calling another person who is unrelated to you, "auntie" or "uncle"? Why can't you extend the same respect for a CEO to any older person who is no less an individual? 

Why hurt the person with the age-related insult when it was unprovoked? Why attack the older person psychologically? 

Such terms of address that target a person's age, are psychologically damaging. And those people who do that, know that. In other words, they are evil-hearted, malicious. Far from the "respect" that they pretend to feel for persons whom they perceive as older than themselves, they aim to belittle and demean. Such people have psychological issues such that they need to put other people down in order to feel good.

Even when the person expressly want to be called by their name, the age-discriminator will refuse to call the person by his/her name, and instead purposely call the person "auntie" or "uncle".  Why? 

Age-discriminatory name calling is prevalent in Singapore. Even policemen and policewomen do it, not just the lower levels of society. If you work in F&B where they are plenty of Malaysians and other foreigners, you get hit by age-discriminatory insults everyday. 

It becomes hard to stand up tall, after a while. Imagine: you fit a facial mask routine everyday, you dress beautifully, you do your hair. All this work, for what? All so that you look youngish and pretty. You feel positive about yourself. Then you go shopping and suddenly for no reason, at some point, someone calls you "auntie". 

A few more times everyday & you are going to start feeling like it's true. You start thinking "I am old.".  Nothing you do is going to change that. You stop fixing your hair in the nice way when you appear at work. You don't see the point anymore. You feel depressed every time you go out. You want to quit working at such a place. Worse, you fear. You fear getting abruptly insulted just by stepping out of your house door.  The number of your age keeps popping up in your mind whatever you do. While you are swimming and some handsome person admires you, the good feeling is killed with the thought that you are "X age", you are "X age". 

But let me tell you: This age-discrimination problem is only in Singapore and perhaps in other Southeast Asia countries.  

When you travel to other countries, you will find that people respect you as a person. See you as a person. In Taiwan, wherever I went, people called me "Xiao Jie" (Miss). They call every lady "Miss" regardless of whether she has kids or not with her. For men, they are "Xian Sheng" (Sir/Mister). Very neutral, very professional, very respectful. 

In this alone, Taiwan is superior to Singapore. Not Taiwanese food superior. Their brains are superior. I was very happy to know this. That I need not suffer what I suffer in Singapore everyday living here.

After enduring all the age-discriminatory insults everywhere in Singapore, I feared going to Taiwan recently. I feared their customs would at some point address me in an age-discriminatory way. I felt anxiety and worry. I feared how I would be perceived upon entry into Taiwan. Thankfully, --thank you Taiwan,--my fears never happened. 

Plus the fact that the Taiwanese people and even their dogs are better behaved than Singaporeans, plus their trains... I realized that Taiwan is superior. 

I have been there before some years ago but at that time, I was younger. I passed off as only in my twenties even though I was in my 30s. Recently due to circumstances in life wherein any person will look like shit, I haven't been looking great. Still, there is no need to highlight a person's age since it is none of anybody's business. 

I begin to see why so many educated people,--or those with better minds--left Singapore. 

Calling someone "auntie" or "uncle" is as bad as racism. There is no difference.

There is also difficulty in getting hired even in F&B where age-discrimination is the worst. They can really give zero respect to a person just because he/she isn't a teenager anymore or not pretty due to age. So the fact that F&B is in trouble, I say they deserve it and it's high-time they suffer.

I am surprised that Singapore calling itself "global" is just a village with island mentality. I have so many incidents to describe that have been so insulting, it's unbelievable how the people of Singapore have become like this. Or have always been like this.

Recruitment Agency DS human resource

Avoid. Terrible agents. Uncouth, unreliable, rude. Avoid DS if possible. They pay but ...

In the months since taking up jobs, I have felt very insecure in terms of payments, their sudden changes to procedures & their unreliable & missing agents who frequently turn up late.

The previous agent was an irresponsible, immature fellow who often appeared late & with a smile. The agent before him was a female with a baseball cap, shitty face, uncouth manners & rude attitude.

The latest agent is a plump female with a shit-face, shitty mouth & shitty attitude to match. I am certain many who signed up have been offended by her. Terribly rude. Mentally unstable, unreasonable & stupid.

On the phone, in front of everyone, she inflates herself by loudly & rudely dismissing someone who has yet to arrive at the appointed time.

For whose benefit is the loud, rude voice for?  To show off in front of the RWS male managers & flirt with them better? Obviously these agents forget whose money they are taking. They take their commission out of every worker's pay & don't even have the decency to be polite.

Why? Because they have no respect for people.  Pimps. To them, a person is just a mule that they send to work. Replaceable.

They never think that for every worker lost, particularly a good & reliable one, they lose many hours of commission that they could've gotten out of that person. That's why such agents are stupid. Certainly, they have lost me for good.

I have always avoided recruitment agencies & their agents. But recently signed up with DS for some urgently needed cash inflow.

For so many months, I have been wanting to stop.  The last time was supposed to be a few weeks ago, but I found myself working another 5 more times because I needed the money. It was most certainly a drag every time going there.

This early morning would have been the 6th time, but thanks to the shitty agent's madness, I finally had the chance of walking away & don't need to look back. I finally don't have to work for DS anymore or go back to that shitty place!

I can finally walk away from:

1) The age discriminatory name calling by the RWS managers & the "captains".
2) The lowly, boring, long-hours job.
4) The low pay that is supposed to be the "highest in the industry".
5)  The missing or very late agent who causes everyone to be late because everyone is waiting for the T-pass without which, no one can get a uniform in the goddamn hotel.
6) The stupid requirement for the ridiculous little paper T-pass that forces me to take the same pass from TCC (another agency) every time because the stupid DS agent who has the damn "pass" is never around on time.
7) The stupid, uneducated people that I have had to put up with.

Welcome to Singapore.

All for the sake of money. Peanuts for my entire day. And yet I continue booking slots whenever they pop up. Which brings me to point number 8:

8) DS job slots are very seldom, unpredictable & very few. Two to three weeks can go by without a single job appearing on their App. Consequently, you cannot survive on the payout. It works very poorly as a source of income.

9) The stated payout is supposed to be the next day before midnight. But often, the pay doesn't arrive in your bank account for various reasons. When you ask for it, the "boss" Desmond or his agent will be clueless. Or your money arrives late at night which is difficult if you need the money in the daytime. Very stressful waiting for your money to appear in your bank account.

10)  At first, people complained about their DS App. Personally, I had trouble loading up photos into the thing for some reason. Never been able to fix it on my side. Consequently, my profile photo was not my face.

Then there was the T-pass, which is a charred (blackened) photocopied, small rectangle piece of paper that the agent was to issue to those working a slot. When the agent is late or missing, how are you going to get in?

No T-pass = no uniform because the idiotic RWS staff won't give you one, as if a terrorist is going to bother queuing up for a uniform just to get in. Who the heck wants to come all the way, just to get a damn uniform in your damn hotel? Of course, it's a damn staff coming to work for peanuts.

I got around to fixing that problem with taking TCC's T-pass which TCC always kindly leaves hidden around for its mules. Fortunately, TCC's T-pass was often reliably there for the taking.... until a few days ago when the TCC agent kept the T-pass & would only give it to TCC workers.

Then, DS suddenly came up with a new procedure: selfie taking. What was wrong with signing in & out with a pen on an official attendance sheet that has been working so well?

At that point, I was quite ready to quit before the procedure was officially "launched". I have nothing against digital but if it threatens what worked best, then I opt out because I have seen enough of the consequences of people signing out at the end of the day. They become a mob that is so difficult to control that the managers have had to yell for order. I myself barely managed to be the first or the first few who sign out & get out before the mob entirely swamps the managers.

The recruitment agencies & their agents don't know this because they aren't there at the end of the day.

*This post was done 2.5 years ago but was not posted. I am posting it now 26 July 2021.

Covid & Asian Discrimination

6.40p.m. Sunday 4 July 2021

No matter how beautiful a land is, it's not worth going to, if the people endangers your life rather than the terrain or Covid. No country is worth your money,  no country is worth going to if there's physical violence. Ultimately,  it's just a piece of land that will remain and break up in geological processes even after humans are gone. 

Mountains, meadows,  lakes, canals, forests...not worth getting killed over. 

I best stick to Asian countries. Unfortunately,  that's how it is in this era. Never changed even in this century. Even in Singapore,  there age discrimination/ageism.

Maybe one day,  I will have a clear and safe chance to go Europe. Maybe in my next life, but I am not coming back. 

I am content with reading and seeing photos of European countries which appear to be boring anyway unless you are a fan of old architecture, old buildings.

Tourists Paid but Didn't Fly: Anti-Asian Anti-China/Chinese Amsterdam, Europe

9.45a.m. Monday 2021

Amsterdam? You want "not rowdy" tourists who would appreciate your city? Well,  you have just scared 2 away. What a pity for the Netherlands and a waste for us. 

I tried to defy all odds in order to go but itz not Covid that stopped us. Itz anti-Chinese reports coming out of Amsterdam, Europe and the USA. 

At this point in time,  my brother and I should be in the hotel room in Amsterdam planning on going somewhere already planned last night. Today this Monday,  the Albert Cuyp Market will be open. So that will be the first thing we will be going to. Landing at 6.50am at Schiphol airport yesterday Sunday, we would have missed Albert Cuyp Market since it's closed on Sundays. What is after Albert market today? I don't know. I don't plan until I get to Amsterdam. Will there be time enough for Philips museum at Eindhoven and get back to our Amsterdam hotel by evening? Probably not if we spend too much time at the market. 

We would have spent some Euros on food and maybe bought some interesting vintage items or anything. We would be strolling and enjoying the canals and beautiful summer scenery and trying out their coffees that bloggers have been raving about. This morning,  we would have just woken up in a nice quality bed with crisp white sheets in the expensive (yet the cheapest for its quality in all the accommodation listings) hotel room, showering and thinking of where to go for the rest of the day. 

Would we have completed our 9 nights and 10 days enjoyably without Anti-Chinese or Anti-Asian incident? We will never know. 

Because we didn't go. I paid for the flights from Singapore to Amsterdam and Amsterdam to Bucharest, Romania, plus 9 nights of an Amsterdam hotel room,  but we didn't board the 777-300 plane on Saturday 11.55pm.

We will never know if all of that happened as imagined. Whether we succeeded in finding the hotel on Saturday morning after landing, whether we were happy. 

We will never know whether we got from Schiphol airport to the hotel intact, safe from Anti-Chinese hate attacks . Whether we got a taxi or took the tram to the hotel. Whether we boarded the tram without incident if we had chosen that mode of public transportation. 

We will never know what it was like taking the tram. Or how difficult, or easy, it was to use their OV chip cards. 

We will never know what the food at Albert Cuyp taste like. Or what it would have been like to browse the stalls while walking through this "largest" street market in Europe. 

We intended to visit Philips museum in Eindhoven because my brother is a fan of their lightbulbs. My plan was to stay at Amsterdam the whole time and explore other regions of the Netherlands via trains and trams. For Eindhoven, I planned to take train from Amsterdam to Eindhoven and return to Amsterdam by evening because it's said that Eindhoven at night is not safe. 

Bro has been looking up to Philips as an inspiration. But now we won't know what it feels like inside the museum or what we would have seen. The museum gave us more of a reason to visit the Netherlands since we know nothing of the country. 

I certainly wasn't aware of "slanted-eyes" bullying that has been practised in the Netherlands for years, to the extent of tormenting Asian children throughout their childhood, or that Asian hate has now progressed to "gratuitous violence"---spike in reports due to Corona/Covid blaming China.

I have been so desperate to leave Singapore that although I read of the Anti-Chinese rally in Amsterdam,  I presumed it happened to Dutch-Chinese living there and not to tourists. I assumed that as tourists,  we would be spared. Though an Anti-Asian rally happened just 2 months ago,  I thought the unrest had perhaps cooled and it should be fine to travel there. Besides,  thus far,  I haven't read of a report where tourists were targeted.

I didn't want to check up on Amsterdam or Romania because they are only 2 out of 3 countries that we can go to without tests or quarantine (Romania is also cheaper overall than Amsterdam.). The other country--Albania--is difficult or impossible to access without going through horrible European airlines from Amsterdam,  and no direct flight from Singapore to Albania. 

Croatia that used to allow free entry for Singaporeans, is off-limits without tests and vaccination. Same for Turkey (I assume it's due to the discovery of UK/Delta variant in Singapore that Singapore was taken out of their list for green entry without restrictions). 

I didn't want to know (even though there was a nagging feeling to check). I didn't want to see any negative reports about Amsterdam or Romania because there was no other choice besides Amsterdam and Romania. I had to assume they are safe. That's how much I needed to leave Singapore. 

But after booking and paying,  it occurred to me that I should just have a look online. Googled "Asians and Covid and Amsterdam".  And did the same for Romania. 

All the ugliness came up. Amsterdam's anti-Asian discrimination, Romania's pickpockets, stray dogs, snatch thieves, child beggars and old buildings that are the verge of collapse due to government policy that don't incentivize them being torn down. 

It was a moment of revelation completely different from the romanticized bloggings. 

The more I read of the anti-Chinese situation in Amsterdam, and the attacks in Europe and  the USA,  the more fearful I got. Oh my God moment. 

This was serious news. They have started  physical violence against Chinese or Chinese-looking persons. They don't care where you are from. They attack before you can even explain. 

And I had just paid for the Amsterdam hotel and Bucharest flight. The booking platforms state no refunds in the event of cancellation or no-show. 

It was either forfeit the money or forfeit our lives if we fly there. 

I so much wanted to go. I already booked and paid, and for weeks, prepared things to bring. I even had a hard time with my brother in opening a new global multi-currency account with OCBC bank (don't do that unless you need the cards over the counter on the spot). 

Took an hour or more just to open the account linked to a savings account which I also had to open to get the global multi-currency account. 

I put total $9500 ($5930 euros) combined into the 2 accounts. Was prepared to put more if not enough during travel. 

I planned to stay longer in the Netherlands but too expensive. So based on cheapest airfare days,  it became reduced to just 9 nights. We would then leave for Romania and stay there for 1 month or 2 and see how. 

I paid total $3073.15 ($1918 euros) inclusive of OCBC's expensive exchange rates back and forth, but we didn't go to Amsterdam or Bucharest. Flight 777-300 left Singapore at 11.55p.m. for Amsterdam on Saturday with 2 empty seats that I had chosen and Paid for with care. 

All because of anti-Asian hate attacks now across Europe and the USA. 

Stupid Europe say they want tourists.  Actually,  they want only Caucasian tourists. 

If as Europe says, their economies are dying due to lack of tourist cash,  then I say for Amsterdam,  penis-suit-wearing tourists is all you are going to get since Netherlands and the rest of Europe are cutting out a big chunk of Asian money. 

Amsterdam pretends to be prim and proper by announcing they only want tourists who respect their "beautiful" city.  Well, my brother and myself have respect but after reading online reports of attacks,  Amsterdam and the rest of Europe won't be getting our money. The downside is that we don't get to see any beautiful European sceneries either. Lose-lose situation. 

What is so beautiful about a country that has been tormenting other people since childhood? 

All the online posts about travel destinations and how many European countries are open for travel are for Europeans and Americans. All the positive reviews are from European/Caucasian bloggers. Their experiences are unsurprisingly positive. What about experiences of Asian tourists? 

Europe makes travel difficult by wanting the digital travel pass which I already blogged is big mistake. Plus they haven't controlled the Covid numbers low enough yet they are opening to tourists. Plus there's anti-Chinese or anti-Asian discrimination. Now is not the time for such discrimination if you want money. 

As tourists entering your country,  we run the risk of bumping into Covid and its more contagious variant Delta. Plus the amount of money spent just planning a trip to your country. Just to see...

Discrimination and racist treatment against us who are not even from China? Just to see old architecture and canals? 

Do we even have time to explain that we are from Singapore before we get attacked? 

Europe needs to do better for tourist dollars.

At first and even now,  I regret spending that money without checking the countries more factually first instead of just reading travel blogs. My defence is that it is a reflection of how badly I want to leave Singapore. 

Yet  I cannot regret not going because the latest news is that Europe is unable to control Delta virus. 

While booking,  I also considered that there's a risk of virus exploding. Airports may close,  stranding us in Amsterdam whereby we don't have so much money for long stay . We cannot return to Singapore even if we are not stranded because returning means $2000 quarantine in hotel room for 14 days. 

So we'll be floating around outside. 

Europe wants tourists but European countries also need to consider how hard it is for travellers from Asia to get there. If you want European or Caucasian or American tourists only,  then say so. 

I still want to go to Europe. Even though I see online that Amsterdam has toilets problem. But I don't know when, if ever, I am going. 

Age Discrimination in Singapore as bad as Anti-Asian Anti-Chinese in Europe and USA

5.40pm Tues 29 June 2021

I notice Singaporeans, due to their small village mentality,  cannot discern situations before offending people. That's how they get people angry with them. Examples: red T-shirts "Ambassadors" and security personnel. 

Hurt and anger directed at them can be easily avoided if they only use their brains. 

For instance,  just now I was sitting away from the crowd to a quieter area at Vivocity board walk on street level.  I was taking out a piece of pita bread and just about to spread some pepper tuna with a spoon when I heard a security male call from across the pond, "Auntie! Wear mask after you eat Ok?". 

??? He called me what? I looked up at him,  really displeased.  My meal totally ruined,  my mood for some peace completely gone. 

What a stupid, hateful man.  

I said,  "I am not 'auntie'. Don't call me 'auntie '." and turned back to my food. 

Just as we don't appreciate racism, don't insult people based on age-discrimination.

I don't even know him. We are not related in any way.  I have 2 university degrees (what has he got?).  I just want some peace to quietly eat my meal and get a decent Wi-Fi connection from being closer to Sentosa.

Why insult me? I haven't even taken a bite of my pita bread. And he's telling me to wear my mask "after" I have finished. Come on. You cannot let me eat in peace first? 

Of course after eating,  I will put my mask back on. Needless to say. He is so free walking back and forth just like the library "service ambassador" that he can't wrap his brain around that and must say useless things. 

How would you feel if someone tells you off at your meal? 

I wished that when it is his turn to eat,  his food will drop to the floor. 

As a person,  regardless of race or age,  you gotta have common sense. Where is the benefit in getting a stranger angry with you? The anger directed at you is bad. Why incur it? 

The better course of action is to walk away first. Let the person eat.  Give the person some space since it's obvious the person wants to be alone from the crowd.  Then after a suitable time,  walk back. If by then,  the person didn't wear a mask,  then tell him/her nicely. Just say,  "Please wear your mask. ". That's all. No need to call the person any age-discriminatory terms.

It's just simple consideration towards another person. It's also self-preservation from people's anger and hate and evil eye towards you.

There is no difference between the Anti-Chinese/anti-Asian racism in the Netherlands and Europe, and the age discrimination in Singapore. Both are attacks on people. 

I regret that because I feared racist attacks in Amsterdam,  I let the plane fly without me. I should have left.

Very tired of Singapore. No meaning. All fakery and illusions. I am sure the poor woman who lost her son to the army understands this all too well. She made a terrible mistake in inculcating the wrong ideas in her son, resulting in his death. 

EU Travel Covid Digital Pass

13 June 2021 Sunday 6.28p.m.

I didn't expect the EU (or Europeans) to be so stupid. Travel pass. Now? And they say they are desperate for tourists. If really desperate,  the travel pass shouldn't be implemented, at least not now. Are they even thinking of tourists outside of the EU? 

Now the EU countries have become a question: Are you worth it? 

And it appears countries such as Amsterdam and Malta realize this. Ergo,  they are starting to, or planning to, clean up their image. 

It's now like a beauty pageant. Who is the prettiest and  most worth spending money on?  In the past, such EU countries could get millions of tourists. Not anyhow anymore. 

In travelling to the EU now,  we take a big risk. Besides exposing ourselves to the virus...

The travel pass makes it an even harder decision. We could be stranded in an EU country because we don't have the travel pass. We might be denied entry into supermarkets and cafes and public transport because we don't have "entry pass". And we can't come home because there'll be 2 weeks of quarantine at a $2000 cost and tests which we are trying to avoid in the first place. 

1) Worldwide, or even Europe, vaccination percentages are low, not even 50% of their populations. And there's shortage of vaccines for many countries. Issuing the pass now denies entry to many travellers who haven't been vaccinated. 

2) What about travellers who prefer not to be vaccinated due to various risk concerns regarding the vaccines and allergies? Also,  going to clinics/centers to get tested exposes people to the virus. And until better (non-invasive) testing becomes available,  the travel pass is a barrier to EU travel. 

3) It's surprising that the EU is not democratic after all.  What individual rights? Like the US has said of the EU,  "no vaccine, no service". Segregating people into 3 categories is forcing people to be in one. If not compliant, then one simply cannot enter. So how can the EU say they need tourists?  Even if they mean only EU tourists,  many of the EU countries are still having high infection numbers with low vaccination percentages. 

4) The travel pass is based on the assumption that vaccinations and PCR tests are accurate and reliable.

Come 1 July,  there will be an explosion of infection all over the EU since the message is that vaccination and prior PCR testing or recovery testing equals "safe". People will be complacent since it is assumed that everyone who have entered are "safe".

The EU seems to be ignoring reports of cases of infection or re-infection and deaths even after vaccination and negative test results. 

It's also unknown whether vaccinated people can transmit the virus or are spreading the virus (although if they are transmitting, infection numbers in the population would have gone up with increasing vaccinated percentages). 

The vaccines were released in a hurry and vaccinations done in the absence of more data. Meaning, the world's populations are being used as guinea pigs. 

5) Discriminatory. What happens to tourists who go to the EU before the travel pass is issued? They are stuck without the travel pass and become forced to take tests in order to leave or go to another EU country?

I really want to go to the Netherlands now to see the famous markets and second shops and museums. But this Amsterdam regulation troubles me. Won't the restaurants deny me entry in order to get more customers and lie that they are full because I don't have an entry pass? 

6) I am disappointed to think that Amsterdam may have to wait before I can go,  if at all. I have been checking flights and hotels reviews and it certainly looks very bad. 

Apart from the travel pass problem, Netherlands hotels are expensive, above $100/night. Even for that price, they don't fix the heating and air-con before guests arrive. No breakfasts. Paid breakfasts are poor. The Dutch seem to be stingy people since room price don't include breakfast. They may not clean the room. No bathtub. No swimming pool. 

Despite their stated regulation that masks must be worn at the airport, review shows and mentions that passengers crowd around without wearing masks. 

Then there's the negative reviews of KLM. They do have direct flights from Singapore to Amsterdam. But. Poor meals, flight delays, no refunds. Nobody answers the phone,  uncontactable office that don't exist? I find their online booking platform goes weird when I am checking prices for one-way tickets. 

I look to SIA since they also have direct flights,  although at higher prices. Their booking platform is also suspiciously oddly behaved.  So I asked their messaging box if they still fly to Netherlands or to the Hague. And the reply contains no greeting, just "No". No to which one? SIA always been like that or only now? No wonder they are in financial trouble. 

All these problems just to get to the Netherlands... Plus the Travel pass. It's not that I don't wanna go. It's just more and more impossible.

Even at the risk of exposure to the virus, my brother and I still want to fly because every day, we grow despondent, stuck in Singapore. Meaningless. 

At this time,  there's only Netherlands,  Romania and Albania open freely to Singapore residents. No direct flights to the latter two. 

It's not that I don't wanna go to the Netherlands.

I just read an article about Amsterdam. And I have also checked with a few enough hotels to know hotels don't accept cash, which I thought was strange. 

Amsterdam don't take cash. Supermarkets take only Maestro cards. Not even MasterCard allowed? The writer goes on to warn: be careful of buying 2ndhand bikes from street sellers. The bikes might be stolen or be missing vital parts. And don't buy drugs from street sellers because it's illegal. Cyclists may run through tourists who stray or linger. As the canals go round the buildings, you might get lost without GPS or Google Maps. 

Another writer says don't walk out late at night in Eindhoven in the suburbs or might be mugged. 

However,  Amsterdam/Netherlands is one of the safest countries. Uh-huh. 

I don't even need to go to Amsterdam to feel familiar with it. The mess and the restrictions sound like Singapore but worse. We would just  be stepping from one to the other but pay more.