13th month payment: It’s not a ‘bonus’?

Fri, 27 Nov 2009
1 min read
1 Comment

I was quite curious about how and why there was a need for a 13th month payment after reading this article. So I Googled for some answers, and found a few posts on this topic.

Read them first, bad English and all, before coming back here:

Actually, they all say the same thing (with some variations) so the summary here:

  • We are paid according to the British system of accounting i.e. based on 28 days of work (one week has seven days; therefore four weeks has 28 days).
  • Since our salary comes in monthly, we have 12 payments in one year.
  • But one year has 52 weeks. 52 divided by four is 13.
  • So the 13th month is something that is entitled to us. However, we have been conditioned into believing that it’s a ‘bonus’.

Hmmm. Any thoughts on this from anyone?

Things to do in Singapore!

Wed, 2 Sep 2009
2 min read
1 Comment

Most people assume there’s nothing to ‘do’ in Singapore, but in truth – there are many things to do, though the experience might not be as culturally rich as, say, a visit to the American Museum of Natural History (RAWR!) or a stroll through Central Park.

Well, perhaps it’s just the prejudice innured into us by politicians past and present, that we have never been good enough, aren’t and never will be good enough. But I think that one will always find things to do as long as one gets access to the information from the organisers themselves.

It’s not always easy, and I don’t have the perfect solution (though Facebook + Google Reader + Twitter + a whole host of other Web 2.0 apps, along with mailing lists help a lot in getting info), but as part of my belief that we need to share as much info as we can (perfect knowledge and all that jazz), I’ll do my bit to advertise about stuff that’s happening which is relatively affordable for anyone, from couples on dates to students.

So!

In the next few months or so, I’d ideally like to go for these two things (click on the links for more info):

  1. The Image of Our Landscape (Price: Free!).
  2. Baba Bling: The Peranakans and Their Jewellery (Concessions on Fri evenings.)

I know, I know – some of you might be thinking: ee yer, so [insert appropriate pejorative here].

But believe you me – it’s good for all of you to start going for these things. Without not being preachy enough, it is all too often that Singaporeans ironically end up becoming tourists/foreigners in their own land.