alfred's blog

Jun 22 2013

Everyday

Things to be positive about the haze

Singapore has been shrouded in a persistent haze for about a week now. There is a lot of complaints, finger pointing and gloom, understandably. While driving home earlier, I was thinking, surely there are some upsides to this and here is my attempt.

1) Get in touch and reconnect
The haze is a great reason to call or message old friends and family, those that you have been out of touch, to see how they are.

2) An opportunity to give – adversity always brings people together. This is an example that has been going around.

3) Enjoy the indoors – stuck indoors? Find things to do that you never had the time for. Dust off that 10,000 piece jigsaw puzzle. Snuggle up on the sofa and watch a movie. Read. Clean out that storeroom.

4) Be thankful – we tend to take the simplest of things for granted. Like the air that we breathe! Let this be a reminder that we should always be thankful for what we have, and not what we don’t have.

Tagged haze, positivity, singapore

Mar 01 2013

1 Comment

Toys & Gaming

Grove Bamboo case for iPhone 5 mini review

I ordered the Grove Bamboo case for the iPhone 5 in Dec 2012. The Grove case is cool because it’s made of bamboo, which is something I love – to the point that I have bamboo flooring at home. But I digress. Grove also allows one to pay more for custom engraving. You can pick from lots of available styles, create your own, or just engrave text. I chose the latter. The total price including shipping? A whopping USD143.97.

So after 3 months, I finally received the Grove case! And sadly, what a disappointment.

The case is pretty much made up of 2 sleeves. One for the top and the other for the bottom. The problem is that the top one is so loose that the iPhone will just slip down if I am just holding the top. Here’s a video.

The concern is if the case will slip off I don’t think it is meant to be like that, so perhaps not all Grove iPhone cases are like that.

I have some difficulty working the mute switch and volume buttons as well due to the cut-outs. Maybe it’s due to my short nails but well, not that great.

Other than the above 2 points, it IS a beautiful, handcrafted case. I have written to Grove since on the 2 issues, and will update this post when I hear from them.

Update: Grove has refunded (minus shipping)

Tagged bamboo-case, grove, grovecase, grovemade, iphone5

Jan 20 2013

A trip to Osaka, told by Google Location

Day 1 – Singapore to Osaka
Screen Shot 2013-01-24 at 9.26.00 AM

Day 2 – Exploring the heart of Osaka
Screen Shot 2013-01-24 at 9.26.13 AM

Day 3 – Day trip to Kyoto
Screen Shot 2013-01-24 at 9.26.24 AM

…and getting lost in Kyoto (we rented a bike and cycled around)
Screen Shot 2013-01-24 at 10.21.09 AM

Day 4 – Back to Osaka
Screen Shot 2013-01-24 at 10.23.52 AM

Day 5 – Back to Singapore
Screen Shot 2013-01-24 at 9.26.47 AM

Tagged google location, japan, osaka

Jan 15 2013

Data Roaming is awesome!

So I went on a trip to Osaka, and this time instead of hunting for wifi spots, I signed up for data roaming. This means that I can use unlimited data while overseas for a flat $20 a day, just as long as I stick to a specific carrier. This is just awesome. Make sure you apply for this before you fly off, otherwise be prepared to pay a ridiculous $25 per megabyte! Yes, that’s quite ridiculous right… so based on my usage of 650MB, I could have paid – get this – $16,250! Sheesh. So yes, $100 for 5 days of unlimited data is a great deal.

Tagged data roaming, dataroaming, singtel, travel

Oct 30 2012

5 Comments

Everyday

YNAB mini review & 10% off discount/coupon code – RARE!

So I was looking for a money management tool for the longest time. My requirements are simple. To be able to set defined budgets and monitor my spending to ensure I keep within the budgets. This should come in a form of an iOS app which I can use on my iPhone since it’s with me everywhere, and also ideally on my Mac for detailed management and reporting.

There was only one product that checked all those boxes. YNAB – which stands for You Need A Budget.

YNAB is built on 4 rules: Give every dollar a job, save for a rainy day, roll with the punches, live on last month’s income. What I really like about the YNAB methodology is that it is real world friendly. It doesn’t expect us to keep to our budgets perfectly. It understands that life will always throw its surprises and it ensures you are ready when that happens. Dread that yearly road tax bill? Hey, YNAB will ensure that by the time the bill hits you, you will not blink and be confident you have that tucked away for this.

The YNAB resource has a great website with lots of resources. Read the interesting book on how YNAB came about, register for a live webinar with real people – where your questions get answered immediately, or just read up online.

After a 34 day trial, I was ready to pay the full $60 (USD). I usually do look for coupon codes before I purchase any software but I could not find one – and there isn’t even a form field to enter any code during the purchase process. In fact, YNAB even has a page saying how there isn’t one! Cheeky because one will probably find that upon searching for YNAB coupon code.

But days after my purchase I received an email inviting me to a referral program where one can get $6 off each purchase of YNAB! That’s a tangible 10% which I wish I had. As a matter of full transparency, I do get $6 for each purchase made through this referral link. But truthfully, if I am not a fan of YNAB, I will not even bother to do this.

So learn more about YNAB, download the trial, and if you are convinced, come on by to get $6 off when you are ready to purchase!

Link to get $6 off YNAB for Mac/Windows

Tagged budget, coupon code, discount, money, personal finance, YNAB