Back to Red and White

This thought just came across my mind upon logging into blogger: I'm never going to succeed in life because I'm not even disciplined enough to get a blog going. Jokes.

From "Accelerando"

by Cyril Wong:

And whose heart is not a hungry fish?

Singapore >>> Japan >>> Taiwan >>> Singapore

Alright. It's been way too long since I've last blogged. Have been pretty busy. And now this blog will turn into a travel log for my ambitious (by my standards) budget Japan-Taiwan trip.

Abracadabraaaaa!

And now this is a travel log! This first post will be about flight-booking.

First of all, I am definitely not an expert because I have already made a newbie mistake. Not knowing when are the "in-season" for booking flights. I booked my flight from Singapore to Narita, Tokyo during the June period when Scoot announced their birthday promotions. My thought was: Their birthday offers will probably be their best. I mean, it's their birthday! What else would be more important than their own birthday?

I was obviously wrong. There is a more important birthday and it's called SG50. So due to my kanchiong-ness (translation: impatience?), I booked a flight that costs slightly more than SGD$200 to Narita (with 20kg baggage). Could have fallen under $200 and saved 20 to 30 bucks. But just my luck luh.

My second booking (made just 1h ago) is via Vanilla Air, which takes me from Narita to Taoyuan Airport. I paid SGD$140 for this flight (comes with 20kg + free cancellation), which is definitely the best deal I found so far. But after booking, I suddenly remembered that there will be a national holiday in Japan in Sept. Which may not equate to promotions, but still, SCREW MY KANCHIONG-NESS!

Have yet to book my Taoyuan back to Singapore flight. Shall try to be more patient this time.

Quick summary of Japan part of the trip
- WWOOFing in Azumino-city, Nagano (15 ~ 1 Oct)
- Homestay in East Tokyo (1 Oct ~ 4 Oct)
- Internship in Tokyo (4 Oct ~ 5 Dec)
- Couchsurfing in Chiba area (5 Dec ~ 8 Dec) [Tentative]
- 8 Dec: Taiwan-bound

I'M SO FUCKING EXCITEDDDDDD.

To-do-list for Day 1
- Collect data SIM card. I have paid for the data SIM card online - via cdjapan, to be collected at Narita Airport. 9,000 yen for 90 days. With unlimited data usage. Not bad I must say. Hope it's reliable.
- Buy Limo Bus/ NE'X (Narita Express) ticket to Shinjuku, Tokyo 
- Get Suica card (30,000 yen for a start?) --- something like our ez-link card
- Go 100-yen shop at Matsumoto Station to buy things like shampoo, poncho

On a side note, my friends keep telling me that 20kg and SGD$2500(how much I'm budgeting for the Japan part of the trip) is not enough for 3 months in Japan. I'll at most turn to buskering or withdrawing from the ATM.

And I'm trying to come up with an un-lame name for this trip. Don't really like calling it "the trip". Wouldn't be able to differentiate this from my future trips then.

Mid-year updates and reflections

HELLO! My blog is a hermit crab who has found a new home: https://enaeki.wordpress.com/

I didn't do well for Y1S2. I'm disappointed in myself, and I probably deserve this. I definitely didn't study my best, and forgot my regrets and determination that I had in semester 1. There's no going back; I used up 2 S/Us and I'm only into Year 2. This may be for the better though; I'll probably be pushed into survival mode in Y2S1.

But, I will also not be starting Y2S1 together with my batch mates cos I'M GOING TO JAPAN FOR INTERNSHIP. AND IT'S WITH THE AWESOME ASHINAGA. An internship that I never dreamt of getting as a Year 1. But anything can happen! The whole process+outcome is just so unbelievable, yet I am also certain that it is because of my faith. Now I finally understand what my seniors in faith mean when they said, "You'll know it when you truly chanted and gained benefits."

I am excited+nervous+scared because I feel quite inferior about my academic abilities especially after Y1S2 results came out. Do I deserve such a privilege to intern at Ashinaga? I seriously doubt so... I'm going to be in the Fundraising Research Team, which honestly wasn't my first choice (Student Support Team was) because I didn't think that I was ready for another research internship - wasn't too proud of my achievements during my time in MSF.

But since I've been gifted of the position, I need to work super hard and even harder than super hard to repay my debt of gratitude!

Oh, and SEA Games ended so well despite the repetitive trainings. So proud of my fellow Cattleya Orchids - so much love for them <3<3<3

Poem of the month

Which will probably stay with me forever:

"Hardship becomes one’s strength.
Suffering becomes one’s wisdom.
Sorrow becomes kindness.
One who experienced the greatest suffering
Will enjoy the greatest happiness."

- Daisaku Ikeda

My B grade essay for GL2102 (Yes, I included the pictures in my essay)

Hey, I've moved over to https://enaeki.wordpress.com/ -- see you there ;)

The task was for us to come up with an original story about three people and their positions in the supply chain/ GPE. I'm sharing this simply because I am proud of my essay (except for the convo part... was aiming for something more realistic but was constrained by the word count) regardless of the lacklustre grade. Based on the feedback, I got a B mainly because I did not have any citations and that there are some parts where I could have summarised and developed my story further. Anyways, please enjoy:

Mr. Taxi Driver (Inspired by a true story) 

Part 0: The Vehicle of …? 

This is a story centred on this car below:

Figure 1: Taxi car. Credits to the author. 

If you do not recognise this vehicle, you are probably not a Singaporean because this is plausibly the most common vehicle on the street (they usually vary in fashion but the LED crown on the roof is pretty standard). If you take this vehicle on a daily basis, you are probably richer than the average Singaporean, or simply have bad time management. This vehicle is one of my most necessary tools of survival right after air, water and food – which supplies may depend on this vehicle as well. I depend on this non-living metal produce like a baby depends on her mother’s milk. ‘Milk’ being the metaphor for money and everything else that comes with it, of course. My father has been a taxi driver for as long as I can remember and the one question that I ask him most often is: Why do you drive taxi? The answers that my dad gives comes in several variations like: “To earn money lor”, “To pay for your school fees”, “To put food on the table”, etc. But what my dad does not realise while answering this question is the true intended meaning behind my question. What I really wanted to know was WHY – Why, a taxi driver? His ‘answers’ can be achieved with other types of jobs too. So, why, a taxi driver? 

Biographical insert: My father was born into a family of seven, him being the eldest son. His mother (my grandmother) worked as a dishwasher while her husband (my grandfather) patronised illegal gambling dens around the country. My father never found the need to study hard, nor did my grandparents. I guess for my grandmother, she simply did not have the time and energy to care. He dropped out of school at fifteen and signed on to 5 years of national service. His career choices were limited, so he only tried out two other sales-related jobs before settling down as a taxi driver, a husband, and a father of three. We are not doing too badly; low-middle income, all kids in school (one in, supposedly, the most prestigious university in Singapore), albeit still trying to pay off a few bank loans. As you can tell, we are quite the average family (though not quite the kind that the government would feature on National Day).

My father always says that I need to study hard or I will end up like him. He likes to tell his friends that he has a daughter in university and that he can look forward to retirement. I think he places all his hopes on my siblings and I because he knows that he is stuck with being a taxi driver. ‘Mr. Taxi Driver’, that is his label in society. I understand that with my degree, I am more likely to be better off in terms of material and probably, non-material well-being (which is often made possible by money too). My father even tells me that I can change the world if I want to, and that my background does not matter, but what can a university degree guarantee? There are so many more factors involved in the journey to world domination. Am I bound to become just another worker (albeit paid higher) like my father? For whom am I working for? Am I simply a product of the capitalist production chain that is fated to become the factor of production for an even larger production chain? 

Figure 2: Human Capital Map. Credits to the author. 

Average, I realised, is a very scary state to be in. Because it is so average and normal, I wonder if I would be stuck in it without realising.

PART 1: The Taxi, The Driver and The Creator

One day over dinner, my dad shared with us that he drove his first billionaire. As my father recalled, these two men in suits, one visibly older than the other, entered his taxi and then just sat there, as if waiting for something to happen. It was obvious that they have never taken a taxi before because for the first time in a long time, my father had to ask, “Going where?”

They sat in silence throughout the journey until the older man asked if my father could turn up the air-conditioning (which was already at its maximum). My father apologised, and then went on to explain, “Sorry, FomfortGelgro taxis not very good these days.” The older man flared his nostrils (yes, so much so that my father saw it happen through the rear-view mirror) and said, “What are you taking about? This is FomfortGelgro, the best taxi company in Singapore, if not, the world!”

My father then replied, “Sir, I think you really haven’t taken taxi before. FomfortGelgro rental so high but taxis break down so easily! Always have to waste my time to go repair!”

“How can you say that about my company?!” The older man bellowed, “You should be thankful that we even offered you a job!” My father cannot stand arrogant people and so, despite the fact that this man can (and probably will) make him lose his only source of income, he continued the argument and it went something like this:

Father: Just because you’re CEO doesn’t mean you can be so hao lian (arrogant) hor! Why do you think you are where you are right now, earning millions and billions of dollars?

CEO: Because I am capable, I am the one who brought FomfortGelgro to a position that no one can beat.

Father: Could you have done it without taxi drivers?

CEO: …No, of course I will need workers. But it is because of the brand that I built that people would even be willing to tap on your labour. Which person in the right mind would board on a brandless vehicle? There is no assurance for them as to whether this particular service will be credible or effective! My status packages your taxi service and my high social status is passed on to the service that you provide. A service that people are willing to pay $3.40 the very moment they engage with it.

Father: Yes, but who created this perception of credibility and efficiency? We taxi drivers are your spokespersons! Without us, you and your brand are nothing.

CEO: All I know is that I don’t need a spokesperson like you! You are just another driver, there are hundreds of people who can take over your position. Have fun living in the bottom of the food chain!

Strange enough, my father is still driving taxi hitherto. Perhaps ‘The Creator’ left in such fury that he forgot to note down my father’s licence plate.

PART 2: The Thermos Flask

“Pa, this is your birthday present this year,” I said as I passed him the $50 (god knows why*) Thermos Flask that I bought from the department store. He asked me why I bought it for him, and I said it was because he sits in his air-conditioned taxi all-day. He then said my gift was redundant, because it would make him go to the toilet more often. Does he hate going to the toilet? No. My father avoids drinking water because it makes him go to the toilet which then leads to less chances for him to drive people around and make money. I wish I was exaggerating, and it hurts that it is true, but on a daily basis, my father drinks less than 500ml of water over a period of 12 hours (usual shift). How can he work so hard, to an extent that threatens his own well-being, and yet earn so little? It never made sense to me. Same goes for blue-collared workers like construction workers and factory workers; why are they all succumbed to such conditions? We are all human, but it is perhaps inevitable that we carry different sets of skills, skills that are not equally valued in the society. Because of this, we have to accept unequal conditions. I am reminded of that dark-humour quote from Animal Farm: “All animals are equal, but some are animals more equal than others.”

Before my father became a taxi driver, I used to complain about how high taxi fares are, and that people who spend their money on taxis are just spoilt rich people whom cannot think of better ways of spending their money. But of course, now that my own father is a taxi driver, I know the sacrifices taxi drivers have to make and I complain about how taxi fares are not high enough given the profit margin. Yes, it is very ironic but it goes to show how one’s perception of value can be biased and may be subjected to change.

In other words, an average consumer probably does not value the taxi service as much as I do. Taxi fares are deemed ‘too high’ when the average consumer finds that it is given more value than it should and if we talk in terms of simple economic principles, the demand of taxi service would drop with relatively higher taxi fares. Even if the taxi company does not start retrenching, my father would probably still earn less money than before (given that taxi services are not exactly necessities to the average consumer due to the availability of public and private transport). Moreover, driving is just driving; technically, anyone who has a driver’s licence can be a taxi driver. My father’s labour is very replaceable and high in demand (i.e. labour can even become its own determinant). What matters is the end product; as long as they are able to reach their destinations, who would care about who is driving? Who would request for taxi drivers who give better customer service when they are rushing to get to work? And if the consumer does not care, the firm would not need to care either since their perceived value is derived from that of the consumer. There are, however, times when the consumers are constrained by the producers (be it workers or firms), especially in cases where the consumers place such high values on certain goods and services to an extent that is disadvantageous to themselves. Every actor in the global political economy is so intrinsically bound to one another that it is sometimes difficult to identify who is being played and who the player is. I feel that the power of the individual cannot be underestimated yet cannot be overestimated either. It all ends when you overestimate the power of certain actors.

*I know I said 'god knows why' but it's really just for comic effect. Me no Christian or Methodist or whatever subsidiaries they have.

Response to a typical day on the MRT

I get this weird satisfaction when I am at the top of an escalator looking down, and all the people going in and out of trains, going up and down of the escalators look like bees in a hive.

But I also think to myself, why do I have so little close friends (relative speaking). Like, a person living in a 1000-people village probably have more close friends than I do! I probably have more acquaintances than she does, but in terms of close friends... I'm really not too sure.

Response to my own blog, March 2015

I realised that my blog posts are getting increasingly less intellectual (not that I ever was but yeah). This coincides with recent comments from a few of my friends that NUS is making me more dumb. Maybe my brain isn't functioning as well as it used to. That's really sad because I have really big dreams that I want to fulfill that I will definitely need brains for.

What's my dream? Creating a culture of appreciation. Appreciation for everything.

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I am not the only one." - If you don't know where this is from, google it.

P.S. As you can tell, my posts tend to progress to something totally unrelated to the title.

Response to my GL2102 essay

Omg I don't get why I'm having so much trouble writing my GL2102 essay... My current confidence level is like zero and I just keep deleting&addingdeleting&adding meaningless words onto a Microsoft Word page.

Am I not cut out for Global Studies...?

Does money influence our moral actions?

Just read in the paper (Straits Times) that the number of households who support their elderly parents "out of love" is higher in the above $8,000 monthly household income group as compared to households of lower monthly incomes, where the lower the monthly income, the less likely it is for the household to support it's elderly "out of love".

Are our morals determined by our capabilities? Or in this specific case, our economic status?

How does our control over money (or lack thereof) come between our moral intentions/actions?

I find this a bit dark... yet understandable.

Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose.

But aren't we losing the opportunity to do something else every single second that we're living? What is losing? Is it only losing when the alternative is significant? How can we lose freedom when we have free will?

Mid-semester response to Y1S2 2014/15

Half a semester has passed.... Don't feel like I've achieved much. Did I just waste like, $2000?



Are rights man-made?
People only talk about rights when they feel threatened. 

Family

There's this visually impaired student in one of my modules and his father would come into lecture with him every time. He would politely go up to the podium and request to record the day's lecture. And then, very cautiously, he would place the recorder right beside the professor before retreating quietly back to the seat beside his son's.

This is probably only 1% of what most parents would do for their own child/children. Nevertheless, it warms my heart. And I'll end with this question: what are you willing to do for your family?

An endless rat race

Came across this remarkable piece of modern art. It's as old as I am. Meaning, people have been stuck in the same tedious cycle of living for at least 20 years now. Someone go put on the firecrackers.

Horses Running Endlessly, Gabriel Orozco

 

Just a line that stood out to me today

"Some things, slide by so carelessly." - Smile Like You Mean It, The Killers

Quote of the Month

"Never be swept along by force of habit." - Daisaku Ikeda.

What happens after we die?

Consider these 3 scenarios:
1) After we die, we wait for our next life/ we go to hell or heaven/ other religious theories. And that of all religions, only one is "correct", or perhaps, there exists a sole force that governs all religions.
2) After we die, we simply cease to exist.
3) After we die, what happens to us depends on the belief that we held pre-death, on the assumption that there exists more than one universe. In a sense, all religious beliefs are "correct".

 

The first two were straightforward enough. I came up with the third one after recalling some Fringe (a show of concentrated, wouldn't say pure, awesomeness) episodes so this is probably not a new/ original school of thought.

 

I'm just curious about what other people believe in (hence the poll) and your responses wouldn't really affect my current beliefs but do note that this should not be taken light-heartedly. And if you clicked 'Others' please comment down below on your alternative scenario/ belief.

 

free polls

Response to Y1S1 2014/15 results

HELLO! My blog is a hermit crab who has found a new home: https://enaeki.wordpress.com/

Just got my results today! And sadly, I am quite accurate when it comes to guessing my final results hah. Got a B- for GL1101E(this will be the first and last time I'm revealing my final grade), but who cares, I'm officially a Global Studies major! Lesson learnt from this semester: 好的开始是成功的一半 (A good start brings you halfway to success). I totally started on the wrong foot this sem, which was made worse by my complacency, thinking that college is easy to handle. Complacency is seriously one of my greatest weaknesses that has brought me down so many times... I am not going to let myself ruin my university life. Not only that, I realised that I have been constantly complaining about the modules that I'm taking and most of the time, I didn't take pride in my work. And when I did feel proud of my submission, it was returned with good results. So this is another lesson learnt. You'll do well when you enjoy what you're doing because you'll naturally put in more effort. I'm sure you've heard this more than once in your life (well, I certainly have) but you have to put it into practice for yourself to believe it. I'm glad that my Y1S1 results gave me a knock on my head cos I'm not about to let myself repeat the same mistakes again.

"It is through education that we are liberated from powerlessness, from the burden of mistrust directed against ourselves. To awaken the abilities that have been lying dormant within. To arouse and extend the soul’s aspiration to become full and complete. Can there be any more sublime experience in life?" - Daisaku Ikeda

Even the people who shine most are subfuscous.

Response to Y1S1 2014/15 in NUS

HELLO! My blog is a hermit crab who has found a new home: https://enaeki.wordpress.com/

Caution: These are all my personal opinions. In other words, please just take it with a pinch of salt.

I really wanted to do this module review because I had a hard time deciding what mods to take as a freshie and bloggers who did mod reviews really help a lot by just giving me that peace of mind during module bidding. Also, simply because sometimes ivle offers no substantial course descriptions.

Mods that I took in Y1S1: FMA1206M, GL1101E, GEM1031, SN1101E, NM1101E. I will not be revealing my grades because they may set up unrealistic expectations for certain people.


FMA1206M - Food Politics
- Bid points: 300+
- weekly responses, research paper (own choice)

By far the best mod I've taken this sem. The 300+ points were worth it. Super chill prof (Mr Matthew Lepori) but still carries the class well enough - especially during class discussions. I participated quite actively, which was hard not to because there are only 15 in the class (very limited quota) though in the middle I was getting a bit sian cos the various problems of food politics were ultimately based upon a few fundamental issues so it was more like looking at those issues through the various aspects e.g. land, labour etc. We also had to do a one-page response every week based on one part/all of the week's readings; very manageable.

The research paper was 70% and works exactly like an EE (those who took IB will know this) so I thought I had it in the bag but the research period also fell during the presentation overload + midterms weeks so I didn't have a solid research. Which is still, no excuse because I should've given more thought to my research topic. First draft ended up with a less than ideal grade. I was still thankful because I knew that he was rather lenient and gave me extra credit for doing a survey.


GL1101E - Global Issues (Exposure mod for Global Studies)
- Bid points: 200+
- Term paper (assigned questions),
- Group essay/presentation,
- Finals (short and long answer)

GL1101E can be used to fulfil either the Humanities or Social Science exposure basket. This is my intended major so I put in a bit more effort for this module. I participated actively in class throughout the 4 tutorials (I heard all political science mods are like that) and I probably scored quite well for class part because my tutor/lecturer (Dr Hyejin Kim, who is also the author of the novel Jia) actually recognised me outside of class (She couldn't recall my name but it was more that I'd ask for).

For the lectures, I know a few friends that don't like Dr Kim's pictorial-talking style but personally I find it more engaging especially cos she's the type that likes to bring in some personal experiences regarding the topics. So lecture is basically just summary of readings + Kim's own relevant experience.

I liked the readings because they really made you give a second thought about our perceived image of globalisation. The only flip side is that the readings are crazy long. For a freshie. So obviously I didn't finish all the readings. I think 80 pages was the minimum each week haha. But if you're one of those people who keep up on current affairs regularly and have a good background in history, this mod should be rather straightforward and easy to ace. Didn't do too well for my term paper though; I semi-bullshitted my way through 40% of the paper and ended up with (what seemed to be) the average grade for this assignment.

First grade that I got from this mod was a B- (okay this will be the only grade I will ever reveal just to remind myself and others to not repeat my mistakes) and it was a HUGE blow to me because I didn't expect it to be that bad. It was a group essay cum presentation thing and we had to choose one TNC and explore one or more issues surrounding that TNC; e.g. environmental, political. Although I know that our essay wasn't the best shit on earth but I was at least expecting a B/B+. Not because I thought that our essay was superb, but because there were 2 seniors in my group so I thought that the standard of our essay would be sufficient for a decent grade since they've spent an appropriate number of years in NUS. Everyone did what they needed to do but I guess we overestimated ourselves.

The final paper wasn't too bad but certain questions definitely require students to read and analyse the readings rather than simply depending on students' knowledge on concepts/ current affairs/ history.


SN1101E - Exposure module for South Asian Studies
- Bid points: 1
- Group presentation,
- Midterm (MCQs and short answer),
- Finals (long and short answer)

I did okay for midterms cos the MCQs were surprisingly easy except for a few random trivial fact type of questions, unlike NM's. My short answer pulled me down actually, sigh. I was super thankful that the lecturer decided to change the format of this semester's finals(which were not too bad too). Past year papers can be found it in NUS library.

I was quite a umm, leech (SO not proud of it) for group presentation; simply because I had no idea what was going on for the topic that I chose and I had three Year 2s in my group that did a lot of work. There were 6 in a group so we split into 3 pairs for each South Asian country that we covered. My partner literally assigned me what to research on, with 50% of the research already done by him. I feel super bad but at the same time, it was kinda for the better cos I really had no clue where to begin. Will never let this happen again.

There were two main lecturers and both were quite passionate about what they're teaching. Actually most of the info presented during lectures are not too far from the readings(comes as a course pack) so I guess the lectures just made it easier for me to pick out what to take note of. But because I didn't have much of an interest in South Asia (wanted SEA but the bid points were too high), I didn't really enjoy studying for it except for the Sino-South Asia relations and Gender in India topics.


GEM1031 - Study of Names
- Bid points: around 150
- Midterms (short answers, open book)
- Group essay/ presentation
- Term essay (1000 words)
- Finals (short answers, open book)

2 misconception that I had when I decided to take this module. 1) I thought this mod would be super interesting and chill (which is actually not that inaccurate), 2) I overestimated my interest in the English language. I complained a lot about this module because I didn't really consider what I was learning useful? I know I'm probably offending lots of people but for me it was really one of those interesting to know but impractical subjects.

Both the midterms and finals were in similar formats, the prof (Dr Peter Tan) provides past year final papers on IVLE. Both are open book exams, aka saving my ass. Oh, and do bring along your term essay for the final paper!

Actually, now that I think of it, I don't know why I ranted so much about this mod throughout the sem cos the prof is actually a really nice guy and even prints out the notes for you. .... Probably cos I only enjoyed doing the term essay where I did a comparative analysis of puppy names and baby names and was rewarded with a decent score.


NM1101E - Exposure module for Comm. & New Media
Bid points: 1
- 1 individual assignment,
- 2 group assignments,
- Midterm (MCQs),
- Finals (MCQ)

Didn't enjoy this module at all. Lectures were boring, readings were seldom interesting (there was this whole 30 paged chapter on group communication aka talking about teamwork and shit and this was not the only redundant chapter). I remember being shocked by the midterms questions cos I could barely do 50% of the 25 MCQ questions. It was just a bunch of jargon on everyday topics. So, if you don't study and you're bad at guessing the definitions of the terms, don't expect a good grade. Finals were 90 MCQ questions, probably cos they doubled the quota to 400+ for that particular sem and it wasn't too different from midterms; random questions here and there.

Tutorials (1h or less) weren't too bad at first and tutorial time always passed like a bullet train. The only good thing that came out of the tutorials was my marketeers gang (inside joke). By the time we reached the last few tutorials we couldn't even be bothered with the materials that we're suppose to prepare. 3 assignments that we had to complete: 1 individual and 2 group (randomly assigned). Not difficult to score as long as you apply the concepts and having group members who are good at fluffling helps too.


Hope this post will be insightful for anyone who gets to read this and all the best for the upcoming semester! :)

P.S. Year 1s, please take advantage of your S/Us to either 1) clear out compulsory mods that you're not confident in, or 2) take advantage of people who slack around (like I did) and emerge at the top of the bell curves. I was stupid not to make full use of this privilege, don't make the same mistake.

Edit (25/12/2015):
According to Google stats, this is the most-viewed post on my blog. Not surprising because this is one of the more useful posts on my blog HAHA. But the thing that I want to point out is, whether it applies to you or not, please don't be too dependent on such a post like mine. The main objective of me providing this post is just to give a peace of mind to freshies who might find starting school in a new environment daunting and to point out any modules that might differ from their module description. 

I personally feel that at the end of the day, it is best to choose the modules that you find interesting. Of course, it is important to make sure that the modules that you take are manageable, but I just get disappointed when I hear people choosing modules just because they heard that it is easier to do. I have a very average CAP, like second lower kind of average haha, and I definitely wish my CAP can become higher with easy modules but that's not the point of university education. Youth is a time for you to challenge yourself, not fall into a path that is easy to travel.

Let's try to create some meaning in our rigid university system.