Xin Tian Yong's blog

350: (un)settled

I hope I get used to life here soon.

349: summer in Paris

It's nearly 7am here - breakfast at Hotel Tolbiac will open soon. I wonder how Shauna found the time and energy to blog frequently during her stay in Paris. By 10pm I feel so exhausted that brushing teeth is a chore.  Perhaps the cold is sapping my energy.  Fingers slightly too numb for a longer post. 

What happened to summer?

348:

I now have to force myself to write.  I think it's a good habit, but recently I just haven't had anything meaningful to reflect upon.  Probably just like what Edmund said - FSOs are so caught up fussing over plans and details that they never get any (good) academic pieces out.  Need to get into the good habit of reading, reflecting, and writing.

I do envy the people who've been able to pursue various interests in the past months, while I've worked nearly non-stop since Jan.  But I don't regret it.  I came out of the experiences more aware of myself and others, and I know now how to improve before joining the working world.  It also helps to have a great bunch of fellow scholars, who, it seems, are more close-knit than other batches.  I look forward to an excellent summer next year.

One step at a time.  For once shortsightedness could come in handy.

347: recent reads

Should I Flush My Goldfish Down the Loo? and other Modern Morals

Black Swan Green :

Catch 22

All intringuing reads in their own right.  Joe Joseph's take on moral dilemmas can be a bit too dismissive even if his replies to readers' questions are meant to be humourous.  After a while his responses take the same form - and you can just read the start and end of each his responses to know what he actually wants to say.

Black Swan Green - a very growing-up story that touches close to home.  So much more readable than his awful Cloud Atlas.  Now for The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet...

346: Paradox of Choice

It's not about having more choices, it's about having better choices. 

345:

Foals will be in town when I'm in Paris!

Finally, something to cheer about!

344: Frasier S4 E23

Frasier:

Now you see the predicament I am in.  Every time somebody gives me a valid 
argument, somebody else comes along and gives me a perfectly valid counter-argument.  
One minute I think the answer is yes, the next minute I think it's no!  God, this 
is driving me crazy.  Well, I've got to stick with it, Niles asked me what I think... 
that's it... what I think!  Of course I don't know what I think right now, well.  
But it's hard to be focused...

343: I'm so afraid.

-

342:

This is excellent, excellent - Sciences Po has a adopt-a-student (boursier) programme. The numbers don't seem to fit, but in principle, this is great. The adopter (parrain / marraine) donates a certain amount, and the state will deduct from his/her taxes a value equivalent to two-thirds that amount. By 2012, Sciences Po hopes to make 30% of their student population scholars. [Note: Actually the term in French is closer to 'recipient of bursary' than 'scholar', but the former is a clumsy term to use.]

Sciences Po also makes it sounds like all their graduates find well-paying top jobs, with the United Nations, Soc-Gen and L'Oreal ranking among the top ten recruiters. Again, the list is probably outdated, but relevant nonetheless. If only they could go into detail about international students, and the annual real disposable income instead of just annual salary...

340: french world cup humour

Un Sud-africain a dit à un Français - "Vuvuzanalé déjà" ?