Lesen L

 I can now ride a motoecycle with a leaner's license

The exam centre is a surreptitious one btw

Genting

 Cable car is the way to go

Home cooked meals

 

The President is missing

A fast paced and easy read.  White house technicalities are tastefully distilled, classical (albeit somewhat cliched)  thrilled elements are abundantly sprinkled throughout the story. 

However the cyber security plot which is central to the story is absolutely lame. The horribleness cannot be overlooked

5/10

Ah miao's wedding

 

Blast from the past

 Late 2019. Msk galore

回忆杀

Thai stir fried seafood with basil, one of my favourite foods in the UK, packs a punch of memories and emotions for me

Moderna bivalent jab

 Extra protection administered to keep omicron at bay! 

Nurse advised no strenuous exercise for a week... 

Ta-da.. Upgrade complete. 

Very productive day

1) Opening of UOB FD account (it has been a long, arduous journey) 

2) health check

3) moderna bivalent jab (take that Omicron!) 

4) take flight

Klang bkt

 Undisputed authenticity and deliciousness, just the way it's meant to be

Mouth watering menu

 

Kazu offered to take me to this place! 

Jlpt n2

 

3 meals a day

 

Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Therapy for pets

This feels more like therapy for the owners.  Animals are animals after all 

Movie night

First time in the cinema since the pandemic began. 

Things seem to have gone to normal, or rather they have to.  

Watching a movie in the cinema is like meditation 

 You cannot help but be engrossed wholly in the movie for 2 hours as the environment is not conducive for anything else.  Throughout this period you take a total break away from everyday woes and and stress. 

Love and thunder, true to being a marvel production is entertaining and satisfying. As slapstick as it is, there isn't a dull moment 

N2 - countless years in the making

I had never been motivated enough to go for N2.  The closest time was in 2020 where I tried to register but exam was cancelled due to obvious reason. 

Earlier this year, somehow Scott influenced me enough to take the plunge. 

I headed into it with in a nonchalant mood as I did not prepare enough to have an understanding of what to expect. I did go over the grammar points a few times, attempted some listening test examples om YouTube, and very little else. 

Gears of war 

Entrance ticket 

Bumped into Scott at the exam venue 

Front-line assignments 

Entrance

My fellow N2 takers, I was definitely way older than others

I found the reading section most challenging. I had 10-12 heavy questions to complete with 15 mins remaining. I took a deep breath and reminded myself that the next quarter of an hour would be make or break for me, and calmly trundled on. I had to guess the last 2 questions as I ran out of time. 

Overall there was some trepidation (because of the reading section) but I was quietly confident of at least a pass. 

7-8 weeks later

I not only passed but got an extraordinary score. Even if I don't attempt N1, having such high score on N2 is concrete proof that I am a guy who knows some Japanese.