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Friday, October 31, 2008

Just for laugh

WIFE VS. HUSBANDA

couple drove down a country road for several miles, not saying a word. An earlier discussion had led to an argument and neither of them wanted to concede their position. As they passed a barnyard of mules, goats, and pigs, the husband asked sarcastically, "Relatives of yours?" "Yep," the wife replied, "in-laws."

W O R D S

A husband read an article to his wife about how many words women use a day... 30,000 to a man's 15,000. The wife replied, "The reason has to be because we have to repeat everything to men... The husband then turned to his wife and asked, "What?"

CREATION

A man said to his wife one day, "I don't know how you can be so stupid and so beautiful all at the same time." The wife responded, "Allow me to explain. God made me beautiful so you would be attracted to me; God made me stupid so I would be attracted to you!"The Silent Treatment A man and his wife were having some problems at home and were giving each other the silent treatment. Suddenly, the man realized that the next day, he would need his wife to wake him at 5:00 AM for an early morning business flight. Not wanting to be the first to break the silence (and LOSE), he wrote on a piece of paper, "Please wake me at 5:00 AM." He left it where he knew she would find it. The next morning, the man woke up, only to discover it was 9:00 AM and he had missed his flight. Furious, he was about to go and see why his wife hadn't wakened him, when he noticed a piece of paper by the bed. The paper said, "It is 5:00 AM. Wake up." Men are not equipped for these kinds of contests.

How to make the most of salad bar













I always knew us Chinese were stingy ! But this is just crazy !!
In China, customers are only allowed to take Pizza Hut's salad once, so let's us see how Chinese beat this rule!



First you pile the bottom, then create your first storey

Add your second storey !!



Continue the addition and make sure you keep the foundation strong

Add your favourite dressing


Then try the 6th and 7th storey








Finally... one serve salad feeing 10 people
The following even amazing...



PAGODA!!

Pizza Hut suffering loss. So morale of the story don't open buffet restraurant

Bad English - Part 2

Here is a second part of the Bad english photo... seriously BAD BAD Translation.....
I think they were trying to state the obvious ...
This would certainly upset dog lovers
Mmmmmm ... i should say no more.

Pesky cleaners !!


Enough said


Robot Jesus ?? People are trying too hard


This must be a very unhappy neighbour





My absolute favourite










Thursday, October 23, 2008

Something funny

The Guys' Rules
AT LAST A GUY HAS TAKEN THE TIME TO WRITE THIS ALL DOWN FINALLY , THE GUYS' SIDE OF THE STORY. (I MUST ADMIT, IT'S PRETTY GOOD.)
WE ALWAYS HEAR 'THE RULES ' FROM THE FEMALE SIDE.
NOW HERE ARE THE RULES FROM THE MALE SIDE.

THESE ARE OUR RULES!

PLEASE NOTE.. THESE ARE ALL NUMBERED '1'
ON PURPOSE!


1. MEN ARE NOT MIND READERS.

1. LEARN TO WORK THE TOILET SEAT.
YOU'RE A BIG GIRL. IF IT'S UP, PUT IT DOWN.
WE NEED IT UP, YOU NEED IT DOWN.
YOU DON'T HEAR US COMPLAINING ABOUT YOU LEAVING IT DOWN.

1. SUNDAY SPORTS IT'S LIKE THE FULL MOON
OR THE CHANGING OF THE TIDES.
LET IT BE.

1. SHOPPING IS NOT A SPORT.
AND NO, WE ARE NEVER GOING TO THINK OF IT THAT WAY.

1. CRYING IS BLACKMAIL.

1. ASK FOR WHAT YOU WANT.
LET US BE CLEAR ON THIS ONE:
SUBTLE HINTS DO NOT WORK!
STRONG HINTS DO NOT WORK!
OBVIOUS HINTS DO NOT WORK!
JUST SAY IT!

1. YES AND NO ARE PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE ANSWERS TO ALMOST EVERY QUESTION.

1. COME TO US WITH A PROBLEM ONLY IF YOU WANT HELP SOLVING IT. THAT'S WHAT WE DO.
SYMPATHY IS WHAT YOUR GIRLFRIENDS ARE FOR.

1. A HEADACHE THAT LASTS FOR 17 MONTHS IS A problem . SEE A DOCTOR.

1. ANYTHING WE SAID 6 MONTHS AGO IS INADMISSIBLE IN AN ARGUMENT.
IN FACT, ALL COMMENTS BECOME NULL AND VOID AFTER 7 DAYS.

1. IF YOU WON'T DRESS LIKE THE VICTORIA'S SECRET GIRLS, DON'T EXPECT US TO ACT LIKE SOAP OPERA GUYS.

1. IF YOU THINK YOU'RE FAT, YOU PROBABLY ARE.
DON'T ASK US.

1. IF SOMETHING WE SAID CAN BE INTERPRETED TWO WAYS AND ONE OF THE WAYS MAKES YOU SAD OR ANGRY, WE MEANT THE OTHER ONE .

1. YOU CAN EITHER ASK US TO DO SOMETHING
OR TELL US HOW YOU WANT IT DONE.
NOT BOTH.
IF YOU ALREADY KNOW BEST HOW TO DO IT, JUST DO IT YOURSELF.

1. WHENEVER POSSIBLE, PLEASE SAY WHATEVER YOU HAVE TO SAY DURING COMMERCIALS.

1. CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS DID NOT NEED DIRECTIONS AND NEITHER DO WE.

1. ALL MEN SEE IN ONLY 16 COLORS, LIKE WINDOWS DEFAULT SETTINGS.
PEACH, FOR EXAMPLE, IS A FRUIT, NOT! A COLOR. PUMPKIN IS ALSO A FRUIT. WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT MAUVE IS.

1. IF IT ITCHES, IT WILL BE SCRATCHED.
WE DO THAT.

1. IF WE ASK WHAT IS WRONG AND YOU SAY 'NOTHING,' WE WILL ACT LIKE NOTHING'S WRONG.
WE KNOW YOU ARE LYING, BUT IT IS JUST NOT WORTH THE HASSLE.

1. IF YOU ASK A QUESTION YOU DON'T WANT AN ANSWER TO, EXPECT AN ANSWER YOU DON'T WANT TO HEAR.

1. WHEN WE HAVE TO GO SOMEWHERE, ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING YOU WEAR IS FINE... REALLY.

1. DON'T ASK US WHAT WE'RE THINKING ABOUT UNLESS YOU ARE PREPARED TO DISCUSS SUCH TOPICS AS FOOTBALL, MOTORSPORT,
OR GOLF.

1. YOU HAVE ENOUGH CLOTHES.

1. YOU HAVE TOO MANY SHOES.

1. I AM IN SHAPE. Round IS A SHAPE!

1. THANK YOU FOR READING THIS.
YES, I KNOW, I HAVE TO SLEEP ON THE COUCH TONIGHT;

BUT DID YOU KNOW MEN REALLY DON'T MIND THAT? IT'S LIKE CAMPING.

PASS THIS TO AS MANY MEN AS YOU CAN -
TO GIVE THEM A LAUGH.

PASS THIS TO AS MANY WOMEN AS YOU CAN
TO GIVE THEM A BIGGER LAUGH

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

News from Singapore

With the recent spate of Non profit being under scrutiny for the misuse of money like NKF and Renci Charity. Its heartening to know that the largest church in Singapore has shown how important it is to be a good steward of God's money.

COC Gives Green Light

17 October 2008, 2:48 pm by Ong Chor Hao

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City Harvest Church has cleared the governance review by the Commissioner of Charities (COC). This review was conducted on seven of the largest religious and charity organizations in Singapore.

In light of the recent debacles in charity organizations, this piece of good news comes as a relief to many inside and outside of the church. In a press statement, the Commissioner said the seven institutions studied, including City Harvest Church, have proper systems and processes in place. They also have complied with regulations under a Code of Governance set by the office, such as financial management and fundraising practices.

The COC ordered a review last year into these charities under its jurisdiction with annual incomes of at least 10 million dollars, after fallout from several charities which were accused of or sentenced for misuse of public funds. The office concluded the audit in September and deemed all these seven organizations to have done relatively well.

It does however wish to see improvements in several key areas. The COC feels that salaried staff from these organizations should not be appointed as board members, and has called for a formulation of better conflict-of-interest policies. Loans and donations to external parties should also be monitored closely so as to prevent a misuse of funds.

Ryan Wee, 23, a Christian, says, “It’s always good to know that these churches are accountable to their congregations, and any flaws would be picked out by the Commissioner’s office and rectified by the parties involved.”

A member of City Harvest Church, 24-year-old Daniel Tan, shares similar thoughts. “It just shows that our churches and charities are accountable for the money collected and have nothing to hide.”

He adds, “It’s always good to have an impartial authority assess such organizations to better allay public fears.”

“Ultimately, I think that the review clears a lot of the misconceptions and misgivings people have about charities,” said civil servant Kris Ye, 25, a freethinker. “It stops people from having wild conspiracy theories about these big organizations.”

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Single and Available



My close friend and brother of many years... is now 32 and still single. I promise him to help him look for suitable mate, i thought of Christian dating site but...... maybe not. So if you think you have the qualification please let me know

1. Must speak GOOD english
2. Have a good sense of humor - please laugh at his jokes
3. Christian of course....
4. Can cook for him ... nothing too spicy and make sure no porridge
6. Iron clothes and Clean up after him
8. Must be almond skin color
9. Loves comics... and can play the toys with him ( his fav is Marvel heros)
10 Loves movie and wont talk during movie asking him question. ( his pet peeve)

Fresh Pasta Recipe

I just bought a pasta machine.. so i guess this week will be italian week.. i intend to try and make my own pasta... hopefully.. it will turn out excellent...

Basic fresh pasta

Time

40 minutes

Makes

550g

Equipment

You need a pasta making machine to make your own pasta, and for our recipes in this section. Pasta machines are available from department and kitchenware stores from about $60. The most common brands are Marcato, Imperia and Atlas. Electric pasta machines are also available.

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 375g (2 1/2 cups) plain flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 4 eggs, at room temperature
  • Plain flour, extra, to dust

Method

  1. Sift the flour and salt together onto a clean work surface. Use your hands to shape the flour into a circular mound. Make a well in the centre. Place the eggs in the well and use a fork to lightly whisk. Use your fingertips to gradually blend a little flour into the egg mixture. Working with your fingertips, continue to gradually draw the flour into the centre (being careful the egg mixture does not run out of the well) until the mixture forms a dough. To check if the dough is the right consistency, press a clean, dry finger into the centre of the dough. If it comes out clean without being sticky, it is the right consistency. If not, knead in a little more flour and test again.
  2. Lightly flour the surface if necessary. Firmly knead the dough by using the heel of your hand to firmly push down into it and then away from you. Lift the dough with your fingertips and fold it back on itself towards you. Turn the dough a half turn and repeat. Continue and repeat. Continue kneading the dough for 6-7 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Kneading is an important part of the pasta-making process as it develops the gluten in the flour, giving the pasta a firm, tender texture.Divide the dough into 4 equal portions and wrap each portion in plastic wrap or cover with a clean, damp tea towel. This will prevent the dough from drying out. Set aside for 10 minutes to rest. This helps make the pasta more pliable and easier to roll out.
  3. Attach a pasta machine to the side of a workbench and adjust the machine's rollers to the widest setting. Spread about 4 clean, dry tea towels over the work surface close to the pasta machine. Unwrap a portion of dough and use the palm of your hands to flatten it into a rectangle. Dust the rollers with flour and roll the dough portion through. Dust again with flour and repeat on the same setting. Fold in the shorter sides of the dough to meet in the centre to form a smaller rectangle and feed through the machine again. Repeat this process 5-6 times or until smooth.
  4. Reduce the width between the rollers by 1 and roll the dough through as before. Repeat the process, reducing the setting each time until the dough is 1-1.5mm thick. The settings on all pasta machines vary. The last setting on some machines may roll the dough too thin, resulting in it sticking to the rollers and tearing. So be careful to only reduce the setting and roll the dough until it reaches the desired thickness.
  5. Spread the pasta sheet over the clean tea towels. When laying out the pasta sheets, they must not touch or overlap each other as the moist pasta will stick together. Repeat steps 3-4 with the remaining portions of dough. Set the pasta sheets aside for 10-15 minutes (depending on the temperature in your kitchen) or until dry enough not to stick together but pliable enough not to crack. Trim the edges of the pasta. Cut into 14 x 25cm pieces to make lasagne sheets or see step 6 to make fettuccine.
  6. To cut the pasta into fettuccine by hand, loosely roll up a pasta sheet starting from the shortest end. Trim the ends and discard. Use a sharp knife to cut the pasta crossways at 5mm intervals. Unravel the pasta. To cut pasta into fettuccine using the pasta machine, you will need a fettuccine cutting attachment. Fit the machine with the attachment and feed the pasta sheets, one at a time, through the fettuccine attachment. Cook immediately or store individual portions as loose nests.

Notes & tips

  • Variations:

  • Beetroot pasta - Omit 2 eggs. Place 180g drained canned whole baby beetroot in a blender or food processor and process, scraping down the side occasionally, until pureed. Add with eggs in step 1.

  • Fresh chilli & coriander pasta - Add 3/4 tsp chilli flakes and 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh coriander leaves with the eggs in step 1.

  • Fresh herbed pasta - Make the basic pasta recipe to the end of step 4. Gently press 5 mint leaves, 9 coriander leaves and 1 1/2 tsp snipped fresh chives in a single layer over half of each sheet of pasta. Fold pasta over and roll through pasta machine once more to enclose herbs.

  • Fresh pesto pasta - Place 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, 1 crushed garlic clove, 2 tbs finely grated parmesan and 1 1/2 tbs toasted pine nuts in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped. Add the basil mixture with the eggs in step 1.

  • Fresh spinach pasta - Omit 1 egg. Trim 1 bunch English spinach and wash leaves. With water still clinging to the leaves, cook in a medium saucepan over low heat for 3-4 minutes or until it just wilts. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool slightly. Use your hands to squeeze out any liquid. Finely chop the spinach and add with eggs in step 1.

  • Fresh sundried tomato pasta - Omit 1 egg. Add 75g (1/4 cup) sundried tomato pesto with the eggs in step 1.

  • Orange pasta - Add 1 tsp finely grated ornage rind with eggs in step 1.

  • Saffron pasta - Combine 1/4 tsp saffron threads with 1 tbs warm water. Stand for 5 minutes. Add saffron water and threads with eggs in step 1.

Source


Australian Good Taste - April 2002, Page 76

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Thai Corner

Finally, after years of contemplation, we have decided to try out thai corner. They are the current 2008 Best thai restaurant. The last time i went there to buy a take away was back in 1998, exactly 10 years ago. I thought the food back then was too expensive for me, but coming back i realise that the price was quite reasonable. I realised its because back then i was in university so a $25 dish is just too much to handle. Back then, it was the the $3.50 chicken rice in Karawara, that was my standard barrier for food price.

But anyway, going there was an interesting experience, the one thing I notice was the ambience. It was nice and very "thai". The had items on the menu that you would not normally find in a typical thai restaurant. Some were good, some so-so, some..... left much to be desired.





Chicken wrap in pandan leave - This one was delicious








Tried both their tom-yum - one in coconut milk, one plain... and both were yuck... I can make better



Ok.. this one is certainly one of their better dish... roat duck with some sauce... yum !





Beef thai salad.... not that good too much lemon grass....





Crispy noodle... just crispy ... not bad... but not great either



NOt sure what this is.. but... if it can't leave an impression it must not be good





This was King Cobra Chicken... suppose to be spicy... but... not much pow ! if you know what i mean




Here is the food gang !


Overall... the place is not bad.. but be selective with the dishes... and you will find it a pleasant experience... if you are on a date... bring her to the river for a walk after the meal....

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

God of my forever

This is my current favorite worship by City Harvest Church. If you have not heard this song below is the youtube.

Enjoy

Thursday, October 9, 2008

The Great Depression

Had a good chat with my friend from in the banking industry. He send me this article, i can only say, maybe the signs are here. Would this be the end of times ... well read the article and i will highlight some interesting points..

1. The great depression started in US and was due to the extensive borrowing.
2. It all started in the Financial industry
3. The initial depression got worse because the government then did not do anything to intervene ( Maybe that is why now, the world RBA are trying to bailout the financial system)
4. With so many speculation going on, the government might push for a one world currency
5. Lastly, isn't this interesting that more and more institutions are becoming "nationalised" meaning owned by the government. I wonder... what will happen next.



Great Depression
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Great depression)
Jump to: navigation, search
"The Great Depression" redirects here. For other uses, see The Great Depression (disambiguation).

Dorothea Lange's Migrant Mother depicts destitute pea pickers in California, centering on Florence Owens Thompson, a mother of seven children, age 32, in Nipomo, California, March 1936.
The Great Depression was a worldwide economic downturn starting in most places in 1929 and ending at different times in the 1930s or early 1940s for different countries. It was the largest and most important economic depression in modern history, and is used in the 21st century as a benchmark on how far the world's economy can fall. The Great Depression originated in the United States; historians most often use as a starting date the stock market crash on October 29, 1929, known as Black Tuesday. The end of the depression in the U.S. is associated with the onset of the war economy of World War II, beginning around 1939.[1]
The depression had devastating effects both in the developed and developing world. International trade was deeply affected, as were personal incomes, tax revenues, prices, and profits. Cities all around the world were hit hard, especially those dependent on heavy industry. Construction was virtually halted in many countries. Farming and rural areas suffered as crop prices fell by 40 to 60 percent.[2][3] Facing plummeting demand with few alternate sources of jobs, areas dependent on primary sector industries such as farming, mining and logging suffered the most.[4] Even shortly after the Wall Street Crash of 1929, optimism persisted. John D. Rockefeller said that "These are days when many are discouraged. In the 93 years of my life, depressions have come and gone. Prosperity has always returned and will again."[5]
The Great Depression ended at different times in different countries; for subsequent history see Home front during World War II. The majority of countries set up relief programs, and most underwent some sort of political upheaval, pushing them to the left or right. In some states, the desperate citizens turned toward nationalist demagogues - the most infamous being Adolf Hitler - setting the stage for World War II in 1939.


[edit] The snowball spiral
The Great Depression was not a sudden total collapse. The stock market turned upward in early 1930, returning to early 1929 levels by April, though still almost 30 percent below the peak of September 1929.[6] Together, government and business actually spent more in the first half of 1930 than in the corresponding period of the previous year. But consumers, many of whom had suffered severe losses in the stock market the previous year, cut back their expenditures by ten percent, and a severe drought ravaged the agricultural heartland of the USA beginning in the northern summer of 1930.
In early 1930, credit was ample and available at low rates, but people were reluctant to add new debt by borrowing.[citation needed] By May 1930, auto sales had declined to below the levels of 1928. Prices in general began to decline, but wages held steady in 1930, then began to drop in 1931. Conditions were worst in farming areas, where commodity prices plunged, and in mining and logging areas, where unemployment was high and there were few other jobs. The decline in the American economy was the factor that pulled down most other countries at first, then internal weaknesses or strengths in each country made conditions worse or better. Frantic attempts to shore up the economies of individual nations through protectionist policies, like the 1930 U.S. Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act and retaliatory tariffs in other countries, exacerbated the collapse in global trade. By late in 1930, a steady decline set in which reached bottom by March 1933.

[edit] Causes
There were multiple causes for the first downturn in 1929, including the structural weaknesses and specific events that turned it into a major depression and the way in which the downturn spread from country to country. In relation to the 1929 downturn, historians emphasize structural factors like massive bank failures and the stock market crash, while economists (such as Peter Temin and Barry Eichengreen) point to Britain's decision to return to the Gold Standard at pre-World War I parities (US$4.86:£1).
Main article: Causes of the Great Depression
Recession cycles are thought to be a normal part of living in a world of inexact balances between supply and demand. What turns a usually mild and short recession or "ordinary" business cycle into a great depression is a subject of debate and concern. Scholars have not agreed on the exact causes and their relative importance. The search for causes is closely connected to the question of how to avoid a future depression, and so the political and policy viewpoints of scholars are mixed into the analysis of historic events eight decades ago. The even larger question is whether it was largely a failure on the part of free markets or largely a failure on the part of governments to curtail widespread bank failures, the resulting panics, and reduction in the money supply. Those who believe in a large role for governments in the economy believe it was mostly a failure of the free markets and those who believe in free markets believe it was mostly a failure of government that compounded the problem.
Current theories may be broadly classified into three main points of view. First, there is orthodox classical economics: monetarist, Austrian Economics and neoclassical economic theory, all of which focus on the macroeconomic effects of money supply and the supply of gold which backed many currencies before the Great Depression, including production and consumption.

Chart 1: USA GDP annual pattern and long-term trend, 1920-40, in billions of constant dollars[7].
Second, there are structural theories, most importantly Keynesian, but also including those of institutional economics, that point to underconsumption and overinvestment (economic bubble), malfeasance by bankers and industrialists, or incompetence by government officials. The only consensus viewpoint is that there was a large-scale lack of confidence. Unfortunately, once panic and deflation set in, many people believed they could make more money by keeping clear of the markets as prices got lower and lower and a given amount of money bought ever more goods.
Third, there is the Marxist critique of political economy. This emphasizes contradictions within capital itself (which is viewed as a social relation involving the appropriation of surplus value) as giving rise to an inherently unbalanced dynamic of accumulation resulting in an overaccumulation of capital, culminating in periodic crises of devaluation of capital. The origin of crisis is thus located firmly in the sphere of production, though economic crisis can be aggravated by problems of disproportionality of over-production in the manufacturing and related production sectors and the underconsumption of the masses.

US industrial production (1928-39).

[edit] Debt

Crowd at New York's American Union Bank during a bank run early in the Great Depression.
Debt is seen as one of the causes of the Great Depression[citation needed], particularly in the United States[citation needed]. Macroeconomists including Ben Bernanke, the current chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank, have revived the debt-deflation view[citation needed] of the Great Depression originated by Arthur Cecil Pigou and Irving Fisher:[citation needed] in the 1920s, American consumers and businesses relied on cheap credit[citation needed], the former to purchase consumer goods such as automobiles and furniture, and the latter for capital investment to increase production[citation needed]. This fueled strong short-term growth but created consumer and commercial debt[citation needed]. People and businesses who were deeply in debt when price deflation occurred or demand for their product decreased often risked default[citation needed]. Many drastically cut current spending to keep up time payments, thus lowering demand for new products. Businesses began to fail as construction work and factory orders plunged.
Massive layoffs occurred, resulting in US unemployment rates of over 25% by 1933. Banks which had financed this debt began to fail as debtors defaulted on debt and depositors attempted to withdraw their deposits en masse, triggering multiple bank runs. Government guarantees and Federal Reserve banking regulations to prevent such panics were ineffective or not used. Bank failures led to the loss of billions of dollars in assets.[8] Outstanding debts became heavier, because prices and incomes fell by 20–50% but the debts remained at the same dollar amount. After the panic of 1929, and during the first 10 months of 1930, 744 US banks failed. (In all, 9,000 banks failed during the 1930s). By 1933, depositors had lost $140 billion in deposits.[8]
Bank failures snowballed as desperate bankers called in loans which the borrowers did not have time or money to repay. With future profits looking poor, capital investment and construction slowed or completely ceased. In the face of bad loans and worsening future prospects, the surviving banks became even more conservative in their lending.[8] Banks built up their capital reserves and made fewer loans, which intensified deflationary pressures. A vicious cycle developed and the downward spiral accelerated. This kind of self-aggravating process may have turned a 1930 recession into a 1933 great depression.

[edit] Trade decline and the U.S. Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act
Main article: Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act
Many economists have argued that the sharp decline in international trade after 1930 helped to worsen the depression, especially for countries significantly dependent on foreign trade. Most historians and economists partly blame the American Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act (enacted June 17, 1930) for worsening the depression by seriously reducing international trade and causing retaliatory tariffs (i.e. a tax increase) in other countries. Foreign trade was a small part of overall economic activity in the United States and was concentrated in a few businesses like farming; it was a much larger factor in many other countries.[9] The average ad valorem rate of duties on dutiable imports for 1921–1925 was 25.9% but under the new tariff it jumped to 50% in 1931–1935.
In dollar terms, American exports declined from about $5.2 billion in 1929 to $1.7 billion in 1933; but prices also fell, so the physical volume of exports only fell by half. Hardest hit were farm commodities such as wheat, cotton, tobacco, and lumber. According to this theory, the collapse of farm exports caused many American farmers to default on their loans, leading to the bank runs on small rural banks that characterized the early years of the Great Depression.

[edit] U.S. Federal Reserve and money supply
Monetarists, including Milton Friedman and current Federal Reserve System chairman Ben Bernanke, argue that the Great Depression was caused by monetary contraction, the consequence of poor policymaking by the American Federal Reserve System and continuous crisis in the banking system.[10][11] In this view, the Federal Reserve, by not acting, allowed the money supply as measured by the M2 to shrink by one-third from 1929 to 1933. Friedman argued[12] that the downward turn in the economy, starting with the stock market crash, would have been just another recession. The problem was that some large, public bank failures, particularly that of the Bank of the United States, produced panic and widespread runs on local banks, and that the Federal Reserve sat idly by while banks fell. He claimed that, if the Fed had provided emergency lending to these key banks, or simply bought government bonds on the open market to provide liquidity and increase the quantity of money after the key banks fell, all the rest of the banks would not have fallen after the large ones did, and the money supply would not have fallen as far and as fast as it did.[13] With significantly less money to go around, businessmen could not get new loans and could not even get their old loans renewed, forcing many to stop investing. This interpretation blames the Federal Reserve for inaction, especially the New York branch.[14]
One reason why the Federal Reserve did not act to limit the decline of the money supply was regulation. At that time the amount of credit the Federal Reserve could issue was limited by laws which required partial gold backing of that credit. By the late 1920s the Federal Reserve had almost hit the limit of allowable credit that could be backed by the gold in its possession. This credit was in the form of Federal Reserve demand notes. Since a "promise of gold" is not as good as "gold in the hand", during the bank panics a portion of those demand notes were redeemed for Federal Reserve gold. Since the Federal Reserve had hit its limit on allowable credit, any reduction in gold in its vaults had to be accompanied by a greater reduction in credit. Several years into the Great Depression, the private ownership of gold was declared illegal, reducing the pressure on Federal Reserve gold.


Mr Lim's Birthday

For those who are in the know, my wife told me his birthday is round the corner. Yes... age is finally catching up with him. He quite busy nowadays so if anyone sees him don't forget to greet him.

He is the one on the left ..... the other one handsome guy on the left is his best friend for many years.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Eagle Eyes



Tonight we caught a movie called Eagle eyes with Chong Yee and Kris Bather. Had dinner at Kabuki because Chi was full and Makan Makan was close, i think because of the Hari Raya.

I shall review the movie in a couple of days but i think the movie was not too bad, abit like diehard but of course cannot compare to having bruce on the screen.

The movie probably could do much better if they had bigger name stars but with dreamwork behind the scene it would not be bad at all. If you are a movie buff like me, sometimes i like to actually sit back and think if what happens in the movie really makes any sense

It does make watching movie more fun, especially when you realise some factual and actually funny goof of the movie. If you have not watch eagle eye here are some things to watch out for.

GOOF - EAGLE EYE

  • Revealing mistakes: The music played by the children's band includes several loud cymbal clashes, but there is no cymbal player in the band.

  • Continuity: During the first chase scene, when Racheal is driving the black Porsche with Jerry, the glass on the driver side door repeatedly changes from cracked to normal to severely cracked.

  • Factual errors: The gun Rachel takes off the dead soldier inside Eagle Eye is a Glock 19. The U.S. Military sidearm is a Beretta 92.

  • Factual errors: The scene supposedly set at the Dayton, Ohio Airport features a Hawaiian Airlines 767. Hawaiian doesn't fly east of Phoenix.

  • Factual errors: When Evan is shown in the computer control room he is wearing the Army's ACU uniform rather than the correct Air Force ABU which is distinct by the shades of blue and its retro tiger stripe pattern. As the movie is set in 2009 an Air Force Officer working at the Pentagon would never be allowed to wear the wrong uniform to work.

  • Continuity: The SUV Rachel is driving during the car chase has a 6-speed manual transmission, making it a Porshce Cayenne GTS. Though in one shot of the rear of the car, the "Cayenenne Turbo" badge is seen.

>>> WARNING: Here Be Spoilers <<<

Goofs below here contain information that may give away important plot points. You may not want to read any further if you've not already seen this title.

  • Factual errors: SPOILER: The sound-activated bomb detonator in Sam's trumpet is set to activate when it detects a sound of a particular frequency. The "Operation Guillotine" mastermind has set the detonator to activate when it detects the second F above middle C, with the intent that the bomb explode during the word "free" of the first verse of "The Star-Spangled Banner" (assuming the anthem is played in B-flat major, as it is in the film). The script writers apparently fail to realize that this note occurs earlier in the melody, at the point corresponding to the words "red glare." A bomb set to detonate when it detected the note in question would have exploded at that point in the melody, especially given that Sam's trumpet part has the melodic line throughout the performance and already played the note. In the film, however, the band and Sam play that part of the melody without incident.

Couples photo

AHHHH... i did a big boo boo... someone was rushing me tonight to go for dinner and i type Lee lian instead of Vivien.... ... Kag Sang would be stress... hahah..... ( so here is the edit )


COUPLES PHOTO FROM THE DINNER



Hendry & Lydia




Keith & Caroline





Allen & Kelly





Kah Sang & Vivien.... ( this time correct spelling)



Me and Esther



Selvi and ???? Mystery ???

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Commonwealth Bank to Buy bankwest

So the Bankwest train has halted. I got my loan from Bankwest, wonder if they will have system glitch and my loan becomes $1, well it was just an afterthought. But, with these acquisition, it does means that alot of people might loss their job due to the restructuring. Hopefully they can jump shop to Commonwealth Bank sooner than later.



Commonwealth Bank to buy BankWest

Article from: AAP

October 08, 2008 09:41am

COMMONWEALTH Bank of Australia is to acquire the Bank of Western Australia (BankWest) and St Andrew's Australia from their UK based parent HBOS for $2.1 billion.

The nation's biggest mortgage lender said the purchase was conditional on all necessary competition, regulatory and government approvals.

The Commonwealth Bank said it would maintain and grow the BankWest brand after the takeover, and customers could make transactions at either's ATMs without penalty.

Commonwealth said it would fund the acquisition through a $2 billion accelerated institutional placement.

It said the method of funding the acquisition would allow it to maintain APRA Tier 1 capital at 7.6 per cent and Tier 1 capital under UK FSA rules at 10.1 per cent.

The Commonwealth said ratings agencies Standard & Poor's, Moodys and Fitch all had confirmed the group's credit ratings with stable outlook following the acquisition.

The Commonwealth Bank said, even with the acquisition, it was determined to continue to carry substantial surplus capital due to the current volatile market conditions.

Commonwealth Bank chief executive Ralph Norris said the purchase from the troubled UK banker, HBOS, offered rare value.

"The Commonwealth Bank regularly reviews acquisition opportunities but rarely have we seen a quality asset such as BankWest become available on such attractive terms to us," Mr Norris said.

"The strength of our current capital and funding position combined with the strategic value of this transaction makes this an attractive opportunity for the group and its shareholders."

Mr Norris said the acquisition of BankWest provided a significant opportunity to further develop the group's business in the WA market.

"It complements our existing operations and will deliver additional growth opportunities in key market segments, as well as enhanced product and service delivery opportunities for customers."

He said the Commonwealth Bank intends to maintain and grow the BankWest brand and that Commonwealth Bank and BankWest branches will not be closing as a consequence of the acquisition.

Both Commonwealth Bank and BankWest customers would be able to use each others ATM's without paying additional fees, he said.

St Andrew's is HBOS Australia's wealth management business, providing life insurance and wealth management products.

"Its range of products is complementary to the group's existing wealth management business," Mr Norris said.

Commonwealth Bank said the purchase did not extend to HBOS's other Australian businesses, Capital Finance Australia, BOS International (Australia) and HBOS's Australian Treasury operations.

Commonwealth also confirmed that it had conducted "high level, exploratory discussions" with Queensland-based banker-insurer Suncorp-Metway.

If the acquisition is successful, it will create a bigger bank than a combined Westpac-St George and would give the Commonwealth Bank the biggest market share in WA, which has amongst the highest growth rates in the country because of the mining boom.

Credit Suisse has served as exclusive financial adviser to the group on the transaction.

BankWest and St Andrew's owner, HBOS, is in the process of being taken over in the UK by rival bank Lloyds TSB Group, in a deal worth £12 billion ($29.65 billion).

Sous-Vide

Sous-vide (pronounced /su ˈvid/),[1] French for "under vacuum",[1] is a method of cooking that is intended to maintain the integrity of ingredients by heating them for an extended period of time at relatively low temperatures. Food is cooked for a long time, sometimes well over 24 hours. Unlike cooking in a slow cooker, sous-vide cooking uses airtight plastic bags placed in hot water well below boiling point (usually around 60°C or 140°F).

The method was developed by Georges Pralus in the mid-1970s for the Restaurant Troisgros (of Pierre and Michel Troigros) in Roanne, France. He discovered that when cooking foie gras in this manner it kept its original appearance, did not lose excess amounts of fat and had better texture.[2] Another pioneer in the science of sous-vide is Bruno Goussault, who further researched the effects of temperature on various foods and became well-known for training top chefs in the method. As Chief Scientist of Cuisine Solutions, Goussault thoroughly developed the parameters of cooking times and temperatures for different foods.[3] The sous-vide method is used in several gourmet restaurants under Thomas Keller, Jesse Mallgren, Paul Bocuse, Joël Robuchon, Charlie Trotter, and other chefs. Amtrak has used this method of cooking in the dining cars of its long-distance trains, and recently began using the method on its Acela Express trains. Non-professional cooks are also beginning to use vacuum cooking.

Clostridium botulinum bacteria can grow in food in the absence of oxygen and produce the deadly botulinum toxin, so sous-vide cooking must be performed under carefully controlled conditions to avoid botulism poisoning.[4] To help with food safety and taste, relatively expensive water-bath machines (thermal immersion circulators) are used to circulate precisely heated water. Differences of even one degree can affect the finished product.

In the USA and other English speaking countries, the technique of vacuum packaging may be known as Cryovacking[5]


I am contemplating buying a vacuum packing machine and use it to cook some dishes in the Sous vide method. There are just so many different method and style of cooking that i think i would take a lifetime to actually master some of these technique.

2 of my wish list in my cooking utensils will be pasta maker and a vacuum pack machine and a water bath machine. I can't wait to do some great tasting food using scientific technique






Monday, October 6, 2008

Hope Singapore Audio Sermon

HALLELUJAH !!! Finally Hope Singapore have online sermon you can listen to. I have been catching up with sermon series from Ps Jeff all week. Great teacher and preacher of the Word of God.

They now have an audio library, which you can listen to sermon online. If you are in Singapore, you can visit Hope Singapore right in the heart of Orchard Road

http://www.hopesingapore.org.sg/audio.php

You can say i have been truly blessed to have learned so much in my formative christian life under Ps Jeff.

There are also other notable online sermons i can recommend

1. Ps Wayne Corderio ( New Hope - Hawaii )
2. Ps Kong Hee ( City Harvest Church )
3. Ps Greg Laurie ( Harvest - USA)

These are the 4 teachers and preacher of the world i will carry on my iphone, which i comes highly recommend if you like to listen to sermons.

The Housing Market overview - Australia

Tuesday Reserve bank will probably cut the official interest rate by 0.5 basis pt. And you will hear many agents trying to hard sell the property and say that the boom is here soon. Having been to so many display homes and open houses. One of my pet peeve is agents telling me that the market is picking up and the property market have bottom out and prices will start rising soon.

9 out of 10, the agents don't really know what they are saying and 10 out of 10 it is because they are just out to make some commissions. The truth is no one can predict how low the market will sink. But there are some data which might prove useful in the long run. The worse thing an agent can do it to try and convince me about their economic data.

One of the craziest newspaper report i read, i think in the West Australian or The Australian where someone wrote that share market tumble will send house price soaring because people will take their money from share and park their cash in brick and mortar. What the so-called journalist don't realize that if you already invest heavily in shares, then its pure insanity to withdraw the money... a paper loss is only a paper loss until you sell your share. And if you invest $100K and now your share is worth less, would you hold or sell it for less and invest in housing or keep in the bank ? I wonder what will you choose.

If you want to play shares, learn from Mr Warren Buffet, the "bill gates" of the share market world. We buy stocks to keep long term. The only losers are those people who speculate in the short term.

So will house price rise or fall ??? Actually it will all depends. Common sense will dictate that its about real income. If Australia job market worsens then probably we will face big problem. What i will do is look at both the pro and cons. Work out which has more.

Looking at housing affordability compared to real income will give us an indication of the market. There are also the economic state of different states, the key reason besides interest. Finally select some key indicators. Of course i can't tell much, so at least if my data analysis is correct. I can be the first to benefit. If it works i will share it in the future.

Well if you are house hunting - Good luck and be bold try your luck its a buyers market. Just throw in a figure you like and see what happens. Lets just say my colleague bought a house for 400K whose asking price was 549K . A whopping 150K from the asking price. Hey ! there is no harm to keep prices low. You never know you might find a bargain

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Special Dinner night



Since i discovered Mondo butcher, life has never been the same. In case people in perth do not know. There is a premium butcher shop in Beaufort St, which sells premium meat from Angus beef, Wagyu Beef, Grain-fed chicken,etc. Its a fresh meat paradise, which is absolutely ideal for people who loves to try expensive food at reasonable price.

Many people i talked to told me that Wagyu beef is nothing special, but i think maybe they have been conned by the so called restaurant. Its important to find out what grade of meat are they serving. If you start eating Wagyu, you can tell a grade 1 and Grade 9 beef with beautiful marbling in the meat

I bought 2 different grade to give it a try, to see what is the main difference




Grade 5-6, Wagyu - as you can see the meat is redder and less marbling. The price is $90/KG. Its not bad but... below is the VIP Wagyu Grade 9




Grade 9 VIP - As you can see the marbling is absolutely fabulous. Apparently the fat is an Omega 3 fat like that of the salmon. The meat is alos tastier and more flavoursome. This one cost $175/KG

Wagyu Beef recipe - I tried using 3 sauce - One was the Japanese Mayo with Cayenne Pepper, Garlic and Light Soy with Wasabi and lastly the Chinese BBQ flavour sauce with Spring onion, hoinsin, oyster and also garlic.

Of all the 3, my fav is still the light soy with Wasabi. I reason it is an absolute waste to make a strong sauce. The aim to eat Wagyu is to sample the meat, so the lightewr the sauce the better.


My Benito Wild Mushroom Fried rice - Super simple to cook I used Sushi rice, 5 different mushroom, Truffle oil, Benito flavour spice, spring onion, onion, garlic, Corriander, salt, egg and pepper.




Simple steamed Veg.




Once the Wagyu is done my next dinner night will be Seafood night or Lamb. I would like the opportunity to sample some of the worlds best meat at wholesale price. I reason no point paying premium dollar at restaurant when you can cook at home

Saturday, October 4, 2008

The purpose of Money

The purpose of money

Having heard so many teachings from different pastors from different church. I finally come to the conclusion. That walking the middle road is the most balance form of christian living. Some pastor only preach prosperity gospel, while some preach poverty gospel, each have their own point but often negating the other. The problem is that by only focusing on one we often cannot be balance in our views. God has never condemn money, in fact

Deuteronomy 8:18 tells us to “Remember the Lord they God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he swore unto thy fathers.”


God always wants us to be the head not tail. Above not beneath. When God created the earth, guess what God did - Well he directed adam to where there was gold and precious stones

GEn 2:10-12 :10And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.11The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12And the gold of that land is good: there is beryllium and the onyx stone.

If God had hated wealth, he would have not ask Solomon to build the temple made of pure gold. instead he would be asking solomon to build the cheapest temple with the cheapest resource he could find. Though I have to qualify that wealth is not a measure of spirituality and being in lack is not a sign of godliness as well.

The key to understanding the purpose of money, is to understand God our father and how he measures wealth. Here are a couple of truth


1. Money has no morals.

It is a medium used in this world to buy goods. Therefore as servants of God. When God blesses us he do it for 2 purpose - so that we can use it to buy food to eat, to build his house ( church), to bless others who are less fortunate and who God wants to touch. But when we start to live only for money and money alone, then Money becomes our God. When God prosper the people in the bible like Solomon, Issac and Abaraham he did so so that they could be an influence to the society

2. Money is used to build our character and skill.

An often overlook area about money is that God often uses it to refine our skill. One key area is is the area of stewardship and management of money. In fact, when a christian only knows how to spend but do not know how to save and is often in lack or have to borrow from people. Would it be surprising then that he or she becomes a bad testimony to the other non-christian. Guess how the term " as poor as a church mouse" comes from. If we understand God, he only gives more when we are proven to be a good steward. I am a believer that we should learn to have a rainy day fund, and have enough to make sure that i can take care of my family, to bless God's work and also bless people
1 Timothy 3: 1Here is a trustworthy saying: If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer,[a] he desires a noble task. 2Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. 5(If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God's church?

So may we live out life's as a great testimony, be a good steward of God's wealth, use it wisely, manage it well and be a blessing to people around you.
















Ninniku Experience

This is one of the restaurant a group of us decided to try as it was in the entertainment book and really near all of us. Situated along Vic park and opposite of Ten Ten, we have previously been to this place to eat a couple of times. And well its pretty close to authentic korean food as it will ever be. The place was pretty nice, good atmosphere and good service. We had like a sort of hello and farewell dinner for Keith and Hendry.

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We were waiting eagerly for the food...



The killer sizzles... we ordered the supposedly very spicy Octopus. I think the chef was trying to make a point. The sizzle filled the whole restaurant, everyone including our table started to cough... me ? Well i just continued eating.... the portion was quite generous....



You can see the impact of the food.... smoky ......!! That is what i call Killer sizzle...

Overall the food was great, tasty and spicy like the way i like it. Best of all the entertainment card gave us a huge discount... which in a way was great ! We had $70 off from the original receipt !!! Can u believe ! Almost 40% discount !!


Give it a shot if you are adventurous