A for Actuary

Mango

2011-05-05T19:13:00.001-05:00

I bought two mangoes the other day
When I was eating one
I thought of giving one to you

In a hot summer day
You bought a big mango
You, me and my sister shared it together

It was a good memory
The radio was playing your favorite Cantonese opera songs
My hands were sticky from the mango juice
you told me to wash my hands before I took a nap
And I was happy

We had so little
But we had so much love from you
Happy early mother's day, grandma!
This poem is for you :)

On Love

2010-06-16T20:31:00.002-05:00

I love Lady Gaga- her music and also her open-mindedness. Every once in awhile, she would said something really insightful during interviews.

She said the following during the interview with Larry King,

"Well, I’m looking for love just like everyone else, Larry. But right now love is in the form of my fans. Love comes in many different forms. Right now I’m passionately only serving them."

Love is like beauty, it comes in all shapes, sizes and forms.

What's your form of love? For me, after many unfruitful attempts at looking for romantic love, I finally surrendered. I've concluded that there's a time for everything and now is not the time. On the other hand, love comes easily through my work, my friends and myself. And I'm going with the flow.

You'd better shape up

2010-06-16T20:07:00.004-05:00

Just want to share this comic here. This is pretty much what a lot of us are experiencing right now but don't have the guts to admit it. Thanks CK for the link!

Something you can fall back on- mulch or insurance?

2010-06-16T19:48:00.004-05:00

An insurance company likes having the actuaries and finance folks to volunteer at the local parks. Particularly mulching at the children's playground.

Each time after completing the mulching work, the CFO would put up a sign, right next to the swings. Then pictures would be taken for the company's marketing campaign. The sign was written as, "Our mulching is as good as our products, both are safe enough for you and your children to fall back on."

(The above story was partially fictional, but I thought it would be a good commercial ad for any insurance companies. It's two birds in one stone- building good reputation around the community for the volunteering and a good tagline.:))

I walk, therefore I am

2010-06-09T20:08:00.003-05:00

My company has a running/walking challenge. People within the company can form their own teams to log in how many miles they've walked or ran during this month. I don't really run, I signed up because of the cool t-shirt.

And guess what the actuaries named their team? The calorie reserve team.
What about the team captain? The actuarial pedestrian. :)

Brandi Carlile "The Story" Acoustic

2010-06-07T05:31:00.000-05:00

Great song!

Billy Elliot Expressing Yourself

2010-05-26T19:20:00.001-05:00

My favorite part of Billy Elliot.

"Cos what the hell is wrong with expressing yourself
For wanting to be me?"

"Everyone is different
It's the natural state
It's the facts, it's plain to see,
The world's grey enough without making it worse
What we need is in-div-id-ual-ity."

梁詠琪嫌棄

2010-05-08T16:12:00.000-05:00

Love the lyrics:

曾說放手　仍在你手　完全沒自尊跟你走
符合許多的要求　卻困在瀑布的下游
曾說放手　仍在你手　就算美與醜　風光與否
可不可以照單全收

MAMAS GUN YESTERDAY'S NEWS (cover 李香兰/Li Xiang Lan/Ikanaide)

2010-05-08T15:54:00.000-05:00

Love this song. The original of this is actually a Cantonese song by Jacky Cheung.

Keane - Somewhere Only We Know

2010-05-08T15:51:00.000-05:00

He's Just Not That Into You - cliches

2010-05-08T15:43:00.000-05:00

This clip always make me laugh. :)

Carly Simon - You're So Vain + Lyrics

2010-04-26T19:46:00.000-05:00

Dream or Boo, pick one.

2010-04-25T07:19:00.003-05:00

“Some women choose to follow men, and some women choose to follow their dreams. If you’re wondering which way to go, remember that your career will never wake up and tell you that it doesn’t love you anymore.”

—Lady Gaga in the April issue of Cosmopolitan [Page Six]

I like this quote from Lady Gaga. Yet here's my question- what if your dream is to follow men and your career is to be a homemaker?

Your DAC

2010-04-07T06:38:00.003-05:00

At a conference call with some actuaries and financial analysts:

Financial Analyst: My DAC is too small. And I'm not happy with it
Actuary A: Excuse me, your what is too small? I can't hear you!
Actuary B: I think you may need to call some helpline or counseling service, we can't help you with that. And it's not that appropriate to discuss such private matter in a conference call, don't you think?

DAC (pronounced as "Dack") means Deferrable Acquisition Costs. It's a common daily GAAP term in our work. In FAS 60, the acquisition costs vary with and are primarily related to the acquisiton of new and renewal insurance contracts, e.g. commissions, issue costs and underwriting costs.

Sometimes if you don't say the word clearly, other people may think you are saying another word which means a human body part.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off

2010-03-19T21:06:00.001-05:00

Watched with 80s comedy classic last night.

Ferris: Life moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

Is it raining outside?

2010-03-13T09:26:00.002-05:00

I forgot to bring my towel to the spinning class this morning.

Big mistake!

After the class, when I walked into the changing room, a lady thought it was raining outside because I looked soaking wet.

Quote of the Day

2010-02-18T08:19:00.001-05:00

Heard it from a chief actuary during a meeting:

You don't get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate.

Ingrid Michaelson "Everybody"

2010-02-13T17:48:00.001-05:00

I heard this song at my cycling class this morning.

A little bit of Valentine's day spirit here. Happy Valentine's Day!

Everybody wants to love
Everybody wants to be loved....

My When Life Works List

2010-02-10T19:19:00.005-05:00

1. When I exercise everyday
2. When I have a healthy breakfast
3. When I take my vitamins
4. When I get a hair cut every 6 weeks
5. When I shower twice a day
6. Stay hydrated (borrowed this from Sean, didn't realise it earlier)
7. When I think positive and optimistic
8. When I am reading a good book
9. When I am learning
10. When I get up early
11. When I get at least 7 hours of sleep
12. When I have something witty to blog
13. When I dance once a week
14. When I talk to my friends or family
15. When I am generous
16. When I am kind
17. When I feel creative
18. When I pour my heart into the tasks at hand
19. When I come up with solutions to a challenging problem
20. When I travel once in awhile

Snow day

2010-02-10T17:06:00.004-05:00

Snowing is a big deal here. So far, we've been having 3 days off due to the snow storm. When I was living in the mid-west, I don't remember my school or my office were closed due to inclement weather. Time has changed, nowadays snow storms across many states of different regions are not uncommon.

Here's the timeline of what happened in a typical snow day:

8:00am -Leaving my place, brushing off snow and scraping off ice on the windshield.

8:05am -On my way to work

8:10am - Got a voice message from the office - the office is going to open at 11am due to the weather.

8:11am - Made an U-turn and went back to my place to chill.

....

10:30am- About to get ready for work second time of the day. Brushing off snow and scraping off ice again.

10:35am - On my way to work. The road condition was messy.

10:36am - Got another voice message from the office - "For employees who haven't come to the office yet, please be adviced to stay home."

10:37am, - Made a careful U-turn and go home. Yay!

Kia's 2010 big game commercial

2010-02-09T07:41:00.001-05:00

Great commercial

Employee Appreciation

2010-02-06T10:35:00.004-05:00

Boss A: Thank you for everybody's hard work during the year end. Y'all are going to have an extra day off this year.
Crowd: Hurray!!! (Clapping and cheers)
Boss B: Oh, some restrictions apply- you can take the time off only on the weekends. See your managers for details.

Friend Request

2010-02-06T10:13:00.003-05:00

I don't know why you want to friend me on Facebook.

Are we friends?
Do we have a connection?

There are only two things I know about you:
1. You disliked my present at the Christmas Party.
2. You have a distinctive sneeze.

I guess we all have different definitions of what friends mean.

Let it snow

2010-01-30T19:41:00.004-05:00

Every time when it's snowing, it reminds me of Christmas. It also reminds me of how fortunate I am to have a warm and safe place. I am also grateful that I use a laptop for work. And that means I can work from home under severe weather. And you know what makes me happy? A friend lives across the street called me up to make sure I'm all right during the snow storm. :)

Henry Gummer- Dont Stop the Train

2010-01-26T20:00:00.001-05:00

Heard this song from Julie and Julia. Good songs make me happy. :)

The road less travelled

2010-01-25T20:22:00.003-05:00

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
two roads diverged in a wood, and I --
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

-Robert Frost

Operation in Progress: pushing buttons

2010-01-22T07:26:00.004-05:00

Executing valuation procedures.....eh...you mean pushing buttons?

Sean Stephenson - Get Off Your But

2010-01-21T08:43:00.001-05:00

"Take a stand, because you need to be playing much larger with your life. Not so that you can have more fun. That'll be a by-product. Do it so that you can nudge humanity one more inch closer to what it needs to be.

I don't care how old you are. You should not be looking at what you can't do. You need to be looking at what you can do. I've done a lot of things that I'm proud of. But, the greatest is, I've never let the external conditions define who I am; and you shouldn't either"

Obsessed with numbers

2010-01-21T08:29:00.004-05:00

Got this brain-teaser from an email:

They say only people with an IQ with 120 and over are able to figure this out.

If:
2 + 3 = 10
7 + 2 = 62
6 + 5 = 66
8 + 4 = 96

Then:

What's wrong with the problem? AND
9 + 7 = ????

To make this problem harder, my co-worker has modified slightly of the problem.

Here's the asnwer: 144 (highlight the line and you will see it)

That's why we have something called Hobblies

2010-01-21T08:16:00.004-05:00

Think outside the bun- eat more taco bell
Think outside the box- don't try it in your cube

Can't get a date?

2010-01-19T20:51:00.005-05:00

Co-worker A: I'm going to sign up for a professional match-making service online.
Co-worker B: Oh yeah, how does that it work? You sign up and they arrange a date for you?
Co-worker A: Yes, that's pretty much it. Can't trust the online-dating site, need to do it the old-fashioned way.
Co-worker B: How much are they charging? Do they charge you per date that is arranged?
Co-worker A: That's something I need to find out.
Co-worker B: Let say you are running out of your dating budget this year, are you going to say to your date, "I'm running out of money to date, and you are my last date from the match-maker. I guess you are THE ONE, and I'm going to settle."?

Beautiful- Christina Aguilera

2010-01-18T18:39:00.001-05:00

Who's the MAN?

2010-01-17T21:25:00.004-05:00

In Generally Accepted Accounting Principles world, there are three main standard setters:
AICPA = American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
FASB = Financial Accounting Standards Board
SEC = Securities and Exchange Commission

If you are playing a game, you want to know who makes the rules and what the rules are, right?

Work and Study

2010-01-17T09:50:00.004-05:00

Lifelong working
Lifelong learning

Keep me in the loop

2010-01-15T18:40:00.002-05:00

Delegation at work - eh...you mean forwarding emails?

2010-01-14T20:08:00.004-05:00

Can you meet me half way?

2010-01-13T07:49:00.004-05:00

Fergie singing...Can you meet me half way.....right at the borderline.....
Actuary: Can you meet me half way....er....in statutory reserves approximation?

Nemesis

2010-01-12T08:13:00.003-05:00

Joint Policy Statement was issued by Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants in 1991 to address how the actuary and auditor should interact in meeting their professional responsibilities and how their roles should be disclosed to readers of financial statements.

Not your kind of Blue Book when you are selling your car

2010-01-11T07:24:00.005-05:00

Each year a life insurance company is required to submit financial statements to the insurance department of each state in which the life insurance company has issued a policy that is still in force.

The cover of the annual statements is blue, namely, the Blue Book.

Where do reserves come from?

2010-01-10T20:49:00.004-05:00

Trying to post some stuffs that I'm learning from the reading material.

New Year Resolution: flying solo in life

2010-01-10T20:01:00.007-05:00

I enjoy flying tandem in life. Especially when you are flying with an experienced pilot. Thinking and making decisions are totally not necessary. My experienced pilot friend has probably seen it all and can help me with all kinds of situation in life. I feel dependent and I feel safe. I know I couldn't possibly fail because I have a friend who will make the best decision for me.

The safety and comfort come with a price. And that is the opportunity to do it yourself. There's a difference between watching someone doing a task and doing the task yourself. There's a gap between knowing and doing.

My 2010 resolution is to learn flying solo in life. I may be afraid, I may be slow at first and I will make mistakes. If this is my way to learn, then so be it. Life is not only about comfort and safety. It's about time. I may not remember everything that I'm told, I do remember all the rules of thumbs and principles. It's about time to apply them in my life.

I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand. - Confucius

HD Black Eyed Peas - Meet Me Halfway ( Official Full Music Video ) HD + Lyrics

2010-01-10T14:27:00.001-05:00

A song I've been listened to when working out.

Don't Quit

2010-01-10T12:06:00.001-05:00

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

- Author unknown

Why baby steps matter

2009-08-19T07:43:00.002-05:00

Just read this from a daily quote from The Universe:

The real reason so many have trouble with the baby steps, -- doing all they can, with what they've got, from where they are, no matter how humble or seemingly futile -- is because they haven't yet grasped that the baby steps trigger unseen forces that throw wide the floodgates of unstoppable momentum, infinite abundance, and eternal life.

Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams 1983

2009-07-22T23:10:00.001-05:00

I guess this is one of my favorite songs from the 80s

A song to those who pass the exam

2009-07-14T20:48:00.002-05:00

Queen- We are the Champions

This is just my little way to congratulate my friends who pass the exam in May.

You are the champion, my friend.
And you keep on fighting til the end.....
You are the champion...

A song you should listen when you feel discouraged when studying

2009-07-14T20:16:00.004-05:00

Beat it - Michael Jackson

Here's a song for those of us who feel frustrating while reading that 2600+ pages exam material.

Just Beat It, Beat It, Beat It, Beat It
No One Wants To Be Defeated
.....

Just Beat It, Beat It
Just Beat It, Beat It
Just Beat It, Beat It
Just Beat It, Beat It

A song for those who didn't pass the exam this time

2009-07-14T20:13:00.002-05:00

You are not alone- Michael Jackson

My friend Socrates suggested this song to all the actuarial students (including yours truly) who didn't pass the exam in the May sitting.

You are not alone. ;)

Miley Cyrus - The Climb

2009-07-13T05:09:00.001-05:00

I was talking to an exam buddy last night and we both feel this is the song that describes exactly how we feel about taking the exams.

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb

Lifestyle Adjustments

2009-06-30T18:33:00.004-05:00

As our financial reporting work is switching from quarterly to monthly routine, there are several adjustments me and my fellow co-workers need to make to our lifestyles.

"Honey, I don't think it's a good idea if the baby is born during the first two months of the year. You know, I need to make sure I finish the annual filing on time."

"Ok, try not to plan our vacation to Hawaii on the first week or the last week of the month, ok? My team expects me to be there to do the monthly reporting."

"Let's make plans for dinner and a drink afterward. Don't plan it too late because the admin data downloads will be coming in at midnight and I need to kick start some runs."

"I can't go to the outlet mall with you because I need to start mentally preparing for the quarterly work starting next week."

Beggin' (Madcon)

2009-06-27T09:34:00.001-05:00

The original version of this song is sung by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. I also heard this song in the Jersey Boys. What a good song, when I first heard it on the radio, I wanted to dance. :)

Jersey Boys London perform at The Royal Variety Performance 2008

2009-06-26T20:52:00.001-05:00

I watched this musical in Chicago last week. The song Sherry is just so catchy and memorable. Sherry becomes my morning boost, gotta listen to this everyday before I start my day.

The Fray- Never Say Never

2009-06-26T20:46:00.001-05:00

Heard this song on the radio on my way home. I like it....

Gems

2009-06-26T07:42:00.001-05:00

Friends are like gems. If you find a good one, keep it.

Serena Cuevas and Serena Williams Gatorade G2 Commercial

2009-05-04T19:40:00.001-05:00

Good commercial with a message. Serena and Serena. What's common between them is that they both try as hard as they can to be the best that they can.

An Actuarial-related celebrity news

2009-04-26T18:09:00.003-05:00

I've been watching Make Me a Supermodel on Bravo every week. Just want to give a shout-out for the contestant, Salome here. You go, girl!

I don't really know Salome personally, but me and my entire department are rooting for her to win this show. Why? She's remotely-related to the actuarial community! (Salome's older brother, who's also an actuary, used to work with me.)

And what a small world- another contestant, Colin, the medical school student, went to the same high school with my co-worker's wife.

One thing I notice from the show- it takes more than good look and good body to be a super-model.

Motivation on studying for Actuarial Exams

2009-04-25T07:56:00.003-05:00

I saw this on a friend's favorite quotation on Facebook and I thought it's worth sharing.

"U.S. (and Canadian) actuarial examinations form the most difficult system of professional examinations that exists in the known universe. The exams are not just hard because they are hard, but they are also hard because they are unreasonable -- you can't see how your test was graded, model solutions posted are not model but so-so, tests are often not published, and there is no clearly defined pass mark. Just suck it up and do not waste time on complaining. If you are in the top 5% in mathematics skills in the U.S.... you will make it if you work hard.... But you will get the best job there is, bar none."

-Dr. Krzysztof Ostaszewski

If you go to Dr. Ostaszewki's site, you can find some tips on how to pass actuarial exams. I like the way he compared how serious the actuarial exam is - "Becoming an actuary is not just about getting a job. This is a prominent, prestigious profession. Be very, very serious about it. The day you take an actuarial examination should be as real in your mind as if you were a quarterback playing in the Superbowl, an athlete competing for a gold medal in the Olympics, a tennis player in Wimbledon final, or the Yellow Jersey cyclist in the last stage of Tour de France."

Three Places you want to visit

2009-04-24T11:25:00.003-05:00

Towards the end of a house-warming party, about 10 of us from my department were having a group Q&A session. Here's how it works- someone asks a question and then we all take term to share our answer.

It reminds me of the campfire talk while everyone tried to open up to share their feelings etc. Dwight talked about his top 3 criteria to select a mate, while another girl shared her most embarrassing moment...

Co-worker A: Tell us 3 places that you have to visit.

Co-worker B: I have to visit an small island with beaches because I like the sun, Thailand for the food and New Zealand.

Co-worker C: Building 1, Building 3 and Building 4.

(Note: My company has 4 buildings on campus and my department is located in building 2)

On Self Defense

2009-04-20T19:06:00.002-05:00

Big Boss was trying to teach a female co-worker self-defense in the narrow hallway between cubicles one day.

Big Boss: Ok, now if I grab your collar, what would you do?

When I was pondering what I would do with my rusty Wing Chun background, I thought, "Ok, is it too much when the first thing I thought is to poke his eyes? I mean, that's ABSOLUTELY going to work.....Wait, or maybe I can step on his toes like stepping on a cigarette butt and then run away....."

Actually what I heard from my co-worker was this and it really amazed me.

Female co-worker: Errr.....I guess I'd take my shirt off.

Cuddling with a Panda?

2008-11-22T05:07:00.003-05:00

I have a weird sense of humor. Sometimes reading news like this just made me laugh.

Apparently there's a guy who jumped over the fence in a zoo and tried cuddle with a panda because the panda is too cute.

According to the news, "Yangyang was so cute and I just wanted to cuddle him," Liu was quoted as saying from his hospital bed. "I didn't expect he would attack."

Polar Bears and Grizzly Bears are quite cute too. Wanna hug them, anyone?

Passing....definitely not an exam

2008-11-10T18:12:00.002-05:00

We are on our way to our Exam Passing lunch at noon.

Boss Cartman asked Co-worker A: You want to join us for lunch? Did you pass anything?

Co-worker A: No, thanks. You don't want to know what I just passed. (smiled dirtily)

Little Moments

2008-10-25T20:33:00.004-05:00

Me and my Little sister went to make T-shirts today. Apparently I chose the wrong size of the t-shirt and this is too small for me. :(

Why are we still working

2008-10-22T17:22:00.002-05:00

Co-worker A: If our company stock price keeps going down tomorrow, I'm going to buy some more.

Me: You are the ultimate investor! While other people are panicky about the stock market, we are talking about buying more shares here.

Co-worker B: That's why we are still working... :)

Warren Buffett on buying stocks

2008-10-17T16:40:00.004-05:00

I read this Op-Ed piece by Warren Buffett on NY Times today about his investing philosophy during the financial crisis.

He wrote,:

"A simple rule dictates my buying: Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. And most certainly, fear is now widespread, gripping even seasoned investors...In waiting for the comfort of good news, they are ignoring Wayne Gretzky’s advice: “I skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where it has been.”.... In short, bad news is an investor’s best friend. It lets you buy a slice of America’s future at a marked-down price."

So looking at the stock market, who's feeling as if they are walking into the mall and everything is on sale?

On Arranged Marriage

2008-10-16T19:06:00.004-05:00

S: Are you going to have an arranged Chinese marriage?

Me: Yes, I am. How do you know that?

S: I didn't know actually. That thought occurred to me yesterday.

Me: In fact, I got my engagement ring in the mail today and I need to go to the UPS to pick it up before they send it back to the sender, aka my future husband!

S: Stop it. Serious?

Me: Yes, I'm seriously joking.

This was the conversation me and S had through email today. It's just silly and funny that I need to post it here. :)

Your Piggy Bank of Effort

2008-10-13T21:53:00.010-05:00

Something Michael Phelps said during the Olympics keeps popping up in my head these days.

"Bob has a saying about putting money in the bank. When we train, sometimes we have sets that I don't like, or don't want to do, and Bob says: 'This is putting money in the bank, and at the end of the year, you are able to withdraw everything'.

"I put a lot of money in the bank over the past four years, and we pretty much withdrew every penny so after Bob and I have a little break, it will be time to start re-depositing."

The idea of working hard as if you are putting money in the bank applies to all kinds of trade. To me, I put money in the bank (not just metaphorically, but literally) by doing a great job at work and also studying and passing the exams.

On the same note of effort, Seth Godin had a great post on Effort vs. Luck.

My friend Socrates likes to say, "Only luck alone won't make you successful. A successful person has to be self-disciplined, down-to-earth and hard-working."

I particularly like this part:

Effort takes many forms. Showing up, certainly. Knowing stuff (being smart might be luck of the draw, but knowing stuff is the result of effort). Being kind when it's more fun not to. Paying forward when there's no hope of tangible reward. Doing the right thing....

And that's the key to the paradox of effort: While luck may be more appealing than effort, you don't get to choose luck. Effort, on the other hand, is totally available, all the time.

I'm A PC Part 2

2008-10-12T08:28:00.003-05:00

I'm A PC Part 3

2008-10-12T08:28:00.001-05:00

I'M A PC [I am a PC]: Full Ad

2008-10-12T08:27:00.001-05:00

It's official

2008-09-25T07:29:00.002-05:00

Co-worker A: I friended you on Facebook last night.

Co-worker B: I've always thought we are friends. But now that you added me on Facebook, I think that makes our friendship official.

Trip to St. Louis

2008-09-23T18:53:00.005-05:00

Exam Seminar: $1,450
Staying at Ritz- Carlton: ~$200 per night
Hours of studying each day: 8

I was so lucky to get to know Tycoon at Stratton's on my first day in town. And he was such a great host who drove me around and gave me a city tour. So getting to know a new friend who opens up my world, that's priceless. :)

Special Thanks to my company which paid for my entire trip to the Exam Seminar. Thank you!

Some Pics from DC

2008-09-23T18:49:00.005-05:00

Back from DC

2008-09-22T07:10:00.003-05:00

Back from DC. Overall, it was great to tour around DC. Probably I have to go back to DC again for the National Gallery of Art. I can spend hours walking around inside with the audio tour.

Will post some pictures here later. :)

DC, DC

2008-09-18T06:56:00.004-05:00

Going to Washington DC for 5 days with J for a vacation. I'm not taking my laptop this time, so probably I won't be blogging much, if at all.

Have a great weekend!

Studying and Eating Your Vegetable

2008-09-18T06:56:00.003-05:00

Sometimes I feel like studying for the exam is like eating the vegetable on my plate when I was a kid. I may not like it at the time, but I know it's good for me. :)

It's amazing how much excuses I can think of when it comes to procrastinating my study. This was the conversation me and Socrates (see the nicknames of my friends on the left) had yesterday.

Me: I think I'm going to subscribe the WSJ. I read the entire paper at the hotel today and I really like it.

Socrates: It's worth it only if you have time to read the Journal every day. Do you have time for that?

Me: I think so, I can either read it in the morning before I go to work or after work...

Socrates: What about your studying? Don't tell me this is your another attempt to avoid studying...

Me: Eh....yes...subconsciously....probably this is my intention I wasn't even aware of...

So the conclusion is....no WSJ subscription for me until my exam in Oct.

What's your excuse?

2008-09-15T21:53:00.003-05:00

Here are a couple of real life stories I came across from people I met over the last few weeks about studying for the actuarial exams:

1. I met a lady at the exam seminar last week and she inspired me.

She has 3 kids. Since her husband is in graduate school, she's the sole breadwinner.

When I asked her how she managed to pass her exams on every of her first try. She said, "I wake up every day at 4am to study."

2. My manager was cleaning up his office the other day. And he showed me his dog-eared copy of study manual of Course 8. In front of the manual, it was a picture of his two kids. And he said, "that's my motivation to pass my exam."

3. This one is not actuarial exam related but I thought it's worth sharing. There's a 50 year-old lady came to my friend for math tutoring lessons. This lady has tried dozens of math tutors over the years and she's still failing in her math courses in a community college.

Her husband insisted her to stop taking math tutoring lessons as he thought it's a waste of time and money. She persists as her dream is to get a college degree. Guess how she manages to finish her homework given by my friend? She tries to finish her math problem in her car every day before she goes home. She even hides her homework at the back of the trunk so her husband won't discover it!

Over the last few days, I was at an exam seminar in Ritz Carlton. While sitting in a ballroom, looking up the gigantic chandelier and sipping the cookies n creme gelato shake I got across the street, I feel I'm very priveleged to have all these resources for me to prepare for the exam.

This also makes me think- if others can pass the exam with lesser resources and time than I have, what's my excuse for not studying?

Charice Pempengco on The Ellen DeGeneres Show (FULL!!!)

2008-09-10T23:23:00.001-05:00

Powerful voice.

United Airlines' new ad - Heart

2008-09-09T07:23:00.001-05:00

I watched this commercial during the Olympic Games on TV. It's just so memorable that I have to look it up on Youtube and watch it again.

This commercial resonates with a part of my life. Friends, you know what I'm talking about. :)

Je ne veux pas travailler

2008-09-08T07:09:00.002-05:00

I heard this song at a bar last Saturday. This song reminded me of R as R always have this song in the ipod. :)

And here's the translation of the lyrics from SongMeanings:

My room is a cage
The sun streams through the window,
the bellhops are at my door
like those little soldiers
who want to take me away.

I don't want to work,
I don't want to lunch
I only want to forget and so I smoke.

Long ago I knew the smell of love,
a million roses didn't smell as sweet.
Now a single flower in my way makes me sick.

Chorus

I am not proud if this life
that wants to kill me.
It's magnificent to be sympatico
but I have never known this.

Chorus

Family, Money and Vulnerability

2008-08-26T22:26:00.003-05:00

Penelope Trunk wrote about vulnerability is the key to likability at work today. Here's my take on vulnerability. I don't think I'm going to talk about this at work but I do have an urge to write it here.

I got an email from my brother today and he told me his ESL tuition in a community college in California is going to cost $3,900 for this semester.

And guess who pays for it? Yours truly.

Just thinking about this makes me angry. Really, angry enough that I need to blog about it to let it out.

Two weeks ago, my boss asked me what I'm going to do with my big raise for becoming an ASA. Originally, I was thinking of buying myself a new car (probably a Honda Civic or a Nissan Altima) since my car is already 10 years old.

Nope, no new car for me anymore. My brother's tuition is way more than what I expected to pay. When he was studying in Michigan, the tuition was about $1,700. Now that he's studying in the Bay Area, the tuition is more than double!

I probably won't mind paying for his tuition if he's getting straight As and has strong motivation to do well. What's happening was- he failed all of his classes last semester. And in addition to that, he punched a hole in the wall of my old apartment when he was angry one night. And guess who paid for the damage again? (Hint: not my brother.)

Because of all these, I told my parents that my brother had to go home after the Winter semester. To me, he's not ready to have this opportunity and privilege to study overseas. Do you know how many people will fight for his chance of coming to the US to study with all the expenses paid for? But then my parents kept begging me for giving him one more chance.

Okay, just one more chance. I'm going to pay for his tuition for one more semester and I won't give a dime for his living expense because he has to learn to get a part-time job on campus. If he can get all Bs in his classes, he can stay for one more semester.

But now that the tuition is more than double what I paid before, I have to raise the bar- 2As and 2Bs. If he doesn't get 2As and 2Bs in his classes, he's going home.

I felt angry because I felt this whole thing is not fair. (I know life is not fair but I'm just ranting here). I put myself through college by getting a scholarship, a student loan, working at a few campus jobs and internships.

Now that I've graduated, I'm still making payments for my student loan every month. For everything I have right now, I worked hard for it. Now that I started to make some money and live a slightly more comfortable life, why do everyone in my family has to come and ask me for money???

From now on, don't ask me for money to throw those celebration party on behalf of me. I don't buy this anymore. I haven't even bought myself a nice dinner for getting the ASA yet.

And don't ask me for money to finance your business trip etc. because I haven't gone for an overseas trip for 2 years.

Recently, I don't feel like talking to my parents and my brother because I know eventually the conversation will be about money.

Anyway, enough ranting. Every cloud has a silver lining. One thing I keep telling myself is that "With great power comes great responsibility." And hopefully I can claim my brother as a dependent if he gets a social security number this year.

Stop Talking Start Doing- IBM Globalisation TV Commercial

2008-08-26T20:34:00.001-05:00

Just watched this commercial on CNBC. Quite a funny one when the Chinese team walked away from the American boss at the end.

Note: The lady was translating English to Cantonese.

GE Commercial - Healthcare Re-imagined (China)

2008-08-22T20:10:00.002-05:00

I guess the idea of this commercial came from this Chinese poem:

一顧傾人城，再顧傾人國

A glance from her, the whole city falls; a second glance leaves the whole nation in ruin

GE Olympic Commercial

2008-08-22T19:50:00.001-05:00

Another cool commercial during the Olympics

Oreo Commercial - Girl on train

2008-08-20T19:38:00.001-05:00

Oreo Commercial during the Olympics.

It seems we all have more things in common than we think - like Oreo and Milk. :)

McDonald's Ad for Olympics

2008-08-20T19:20:00.001-05:00

Too busy watching the Olympics and here's a cool ad that I saw.

How to swing a golf club like Tiger Woods

2008-08-15T22:26:00.004-05:00

My first golf lesson

2008-08-06T21:10:00.001-05:00

Just came back from my first golf lesson. Finally I can hit the ball and I'm so amazed how far and how high the ball went.

Thanks, B (remember the co-worker who gave me the golf towel?), who talked to me for at least half an hour to convince me golfing is a great sports to learn. And B also helped me to choose the golf clubs.

And thank you C, who referred her instructor to me and also sharing her experience when she first learned golfing last year.

Between now and the next golf lesson in a month, I'm going to the driving range at least once a week. It will be a good break between working and studying. ;)

Trivial Psychic Journal Part 2

2008-08-05T17:57:00.002-05:00

Last Wednesday, after the golfing outing, the team who won got to choose some gifts from the gift box prepared by a co-worker, B. We all sat in the club house to chit-chat and wind down. After B has left, I noticed that B has left a golf towel on the table. So I brought it home and decided to bring it back to B the next day.

The next day, while I was driving to work, (here comes my trivial psychic thought), I thought, "B is going to give that golf towel to me after I give it back to him."

Once I arrived, I went to B's office and told him he left his golf towel and gave it back to him. He said thank you. I waited for a second. Nothing happened. So I thought, "Oh well, maybe what I predicted wasn't right this time."

Two hours later, B came out of his office and asked me how I liked about golfing yesterday. And guess what, he gave me the golf towel as a present. :)

Trivial Psychic Journal Part 1

2008-08-05T17:44:00.004-05:00

Last week, there was a candidate coming into the office for an on-site interview. Since I'm relatively new to the company, I wasn't on the schedule to meet with the candidate.

While sitting in my cubicle and I was about to start working, I thought, "probably my boss is going to ask me if I wanted to join him and the candidate for lunch later."

An hour later, my boss called me to his office. And he said, "So what restaurant would you suggest? You are going with me for the interview lunch."

Dances of the Month

2008-08-04T20:07:00.002-05:00

Foxtrot and Swing.

I signed up for 4 lessons of ballroom dancing this month and those are the two dances I'm going to learn.

Thanks to my experience with Argentine Tango, it's much easier to pick up the steps for Foxtrot today.

It's weird, I enjoy ballroom dancing a lot and I know I can dance decently well with practice. But then when it comes to dancing in a club with all the hip-hop music, I don't have a clue and I am still self-conscious on the dance floor.

When life gives you golf outings and golf courses, learn golfing

2008-07-30T06:55:00.002-05:00

I bought a starter set of golf clubs with a co-worker yesterday. Finally I have decided it's time to learn golfing here. With the set of golf clubs, 2 dozen of golf balls, a glove and some tees, everything all together was less than $200. (I guess I'm going to eat peanut butter jelly sandwich for 2 weeks!)

I wasn't planning on learning golfing before. But considering the facts that: 1) my department has at least one golf outing every month, 2) there are at least 7 or 8 golf courses in my city, 3) it's relatively cheap to play here, and 4) there are no rock-climbing gyms nor Tango studios in my area, I think it's a good idea to learn golfing now.

A Milestone

2008-07-25T16:45:00.002-05:00

The new ASAs list is out. As expected, my name is there. :)

And now my mom can officially throw a party on behalf of me to celebrate my achievement. Since we are so far away, I won't be there at the party but I'll be paying for it. No, I'm not being sarcastic. I do feel happy that when my family and friends are happy for me about my success and achievements. :)

The Hearing Impaired Subtitles

2008-07-25T07:01:00.004-05:00

I was watching P.S. I Love You last night. As usual I like to turn on the subtitles while watching the movie. One thing I noticed, for most of the dvds I watched, the English subtitles are always for the Hearing Impaired.

This made me think- why do people have to assume the English subtitles are only for the hearing impaired? Didn't they know there are also a lot of people who watch Hollywood movies but English is not their first language?

Gifts

2008-07-23T06:43:00.005-05:00

My friend, The Oracle sent me a package to my office the other day. I was so surprised that 1. I got presents, and 2. The Oracle ordered the present from ThinkGeek! (I still remembered when I first saw the ThinkGeek catalog in The Oracle's home and commented how cool the products were. And that was at least 1 year ago :))

And let me show you what I got:

A Robot Tissue Box- cute and practical!

A coffee mug with all the well-known formulas. I kept looking at the formulas and I couldn't find the one for calculating the NPV. :)

A two-dimensional pendulum with magnets which can create chaotic motion.

An Effective Way to study for FSA exams

2008-07-21T21:04:00.003-05:00

Since I signed up for the ILA-DP exam, I've been researching on how to study the FSA exams effectively. I wonder how I am going to understand and memorize all the study material, being able to write fast enough and apply the formula correctly under the exam (read: stressful) condition in 6 hours?

Here are some links that I found which seem to be useful:

Dealing with FSA exams
Studying philosophy for actuarial exams
FSA exam advice from a grader
Another discussion thread on tackling FSA essay exams

In a way, studying for the FSA exams is like training different parts of my body. It's just like working out in the gym- I have pretty strong biceps and back muscles. (In terms of actuarial exams, I rely on my talent in pattern recognition and the unconscious familiarity of the material through practicing lots of problems.)

But then in order to have a well-toned body with strength, I need to start focusing on the muscle groups that are less developed (e.g. my triceps, have you ever heard of the terms flabby arms? :)). (In terms of studying the actuarial exams, the part that I need to work on is my ability to understand and memorize, and get used to the essay-exam format.)

If memorization is part of the educational system to be an FSA, just as memorizing times tables is a part of elementary math education, then I will accept it as the rule of the game. And I will do whatever I can do adapt.

I'd say the FSA exams is my own private Mount Everest for the next 12 months. And admit that your own private Mount Everest exists. That is half the battle.

Bottle It Up- Sara Bareilles

2008-07-16T07:02:00.001-05:00

I heard this song on the radio a few times before but I didn't know the name of the song.

And finally I found it here!

I passed the Final Assessment

2008-07-13T17:26:00.002-05:00

Just got an email from SOA this afternoon. Apparently I passed my Final Assessment! :) Hopefully I'll see my name on the new ASAs list this month or next month. Stay tuned! I really need to go out to celebrate tonight.

Dear Y:

We have completed your FAP Final Assessment grading.

You have been graded as Meets Minimum Requirements.

Candidates who have now completed all Associate requirements will be
on the listing of New ASAs, posted on the SOA website at:

http://www.soa.org/education/exams/exam-results/edu-exam-results-detail.aspx

Listings are updated on a monthly basis.

This email confirmation is your official notification of completion
of the FAP Final Assessment. No gradeslip will be issued.

Congratulations!

FAP Staff

Who's expecting the first child?

2008-07-09T17:13:00.005-05:00

I saw this on some executive's biography the other day. (Names changed to protect the innocent)

Peter lives in City A with his wife, Mary, and two boxers, Mayo and Mustard. They are expecting their first child in October.

So who's expecting the child? The boxers or the boxers' owners?

If we don't clarify on this, what are we going to get for the baby's shower? Really, we narrow down to two choices of stores- PETCO or Baby "R" Us.

Defined Muscle Arms and Getting Attention

2008-06-30T06:29:00.002-05:00

When I first started working out with E and W at the Y two weeks ago, I asked E, "How can I have my arm muscle as defined as W's? I wish I can have her arms...." And E said, "Focus on building your strength, and your 'defined muscle arms' will come later." And in two weeks, E said he could see me having tiny little bulging biceps. :)

My "body-building" experience somehow reminds me of what C constantly tells me. She said, "Focus on developing your skill set and your characters, and the attention from others will come." How true. And now I'm convinced.

Updates

2008-06-29T09:13:00.003-05:00

It's been awhile since I blogged last time, here are a few updates for my dear friends who are concerned about my well-being:

1. I finished my FAP Final Assessment (FA) last Tuesday. It may take up to 7 weeks to know the result. In the mean time, please keep your fingers crossed for me!

2. The day after my FA, I signed up for an online seminar/course for the Design and Pricing (DP) exam in October. So I've been building my momentum to studying and memorizing a little bit a day.

3. I met two new friends at the Y and I've been following their work-out routine for the last three weeks. It's very exciting and motivating to see myself improving every week. (Look! I can lift 5 pounds heavier and my arms are less flabby this week! :))

4. I don't want to go into too much details here, but most of my friends knew about it- W said it best the other day, "You are in love, but not in a relationship."