Engineered to the Core!

Ford!

2007-10-08T11:19:02Z

Yay, something to post about! Got offered a job working at Ford next year, so that should be awesome. Still have an interview with Holden tomorrow morning but I need more interview experience :D Anyway, back to work, only 4 weeks until exams :O

Snow!

2007-07-09T12:54:25Z

Leaving for the snow at 9:30am tomorrow :D Back on Saturday. I'm still packing, trying to fit all my clothes stuff in the one bag, plus sleeping bag, plus other stuff bag :P Should've done this earlier, but I was eating delicious coconut prawn skewers and sesame seed salmon cubes...

Oh hello :)

2007-06-14T08:47:29Z

Yes, I have been neglecting to update this due to me being quite busy right after exams...

Finished exams last Thursday, had a week to do a final ergonomics assignment for design, due tomorrow. Started it yesterday of course :D I'm not too worried about my exams this time around, so I'm hoping for some good marks. The waiting game :D

Got quite a few extra shifts this week which is good, because I have to pay my insurance, registration, car service and a million and one other things next week :( At least I got my health care card today, save $90 or whatever on my registration.

Got the car booked in for a service tomorrow morning. I can't think of any complaints to make, which is good :) Except, why am I going in at 9am, when they say my car will be ready at 3pm... Can't I drop it off at 1pm then? Oh well...

Freezed my arse off this morning going to work, this is what the temp sensor thought:

Going to try and get some cool photos of the valley tomorrow morning if its the same.

Baw Baw got a good amount of snow (~20cm) in the last couple of days, hopefully its some good cover that can be maintained with more snow before we go up in July.

Anyway, back to assignmenting, designing programmable digital switches for lights, fans and home stereos.

Oh man...

2007-05-23T13:37:28Z

Got up yesterday morning, got ready for uni and everything, checked my tyres before I left and I found a nail right through the sidewall :( Pics here somewhere Took it in this morning, $265 and a scratch in the wheel later and its all fixed... Sometimes I hate not having enough shifts, but I don't have time for more. Only 2 weeks till I've finished exams and I'm not even finished semester yet.

Here's a good quote from one of the workshop guys at Uni after us complaining that our model won't be finished: "Hope isn't a method"

Foooood!

2007-05-12T05:59:29Z

Best Japanese dinner I've had I reckon. Went out to Eat Drink Bento for Eliza's 21st. Was pretty awesome, Jess and I shared the entree Peking Duck (yes, I thought it was weird for a Japanese restaurant, but it was very good), regular sized nigiri sushi plate and a Seafood and Vegetable Tempura bento box. Quite good value, the food was extra awesome, the waitresses were very helpful and they knew their menus. I shall be returning :D

Enough procrastination from me, I have assignments to finish, plus my first exam is on the 28th of May! Arrgh! *hair pulling*

Motivation

2007-05-01T15:21:07Z

Work harder to please yourself
...
I am responsible for the life I create
...
Tomorrow is too late

Taken from: here

Gah...

2007-04-23T14:53:37Z

Never again am I working on a Monday night after uni.

Got up at 7:30am.
Caught the train into Prahran by 9:30am. Was delayed by about 8 minutes.
Caught the train back to Glenferrie at 11:30am. Was delayed by about 5 minutes.
Had a 3 hour management lecture.
Had a 2 hours machine design lecture.
Caught the train back home at 5:30pm. Missed the all-stations to Blackburn so had to wait 15 minutes.
Got home, ate dinner.
Left for work starting at 7pm.
Worked until 12am.

I don't think I've ever been so uninspired and bored doing nothing for hours on end. Although the design lecture was interesting. Have to make foam models of ergonomically redesigned products for elderly people. Thinking of doing a power drill. Or perhaps a blowlamp for cooking...

Ooh sexy...

2007-04-16T09:28:38Z

Well, in between the mountains and mountains of work that seems to have piled up, I've had a chance to do something very enjoyable and relaxing. Thanks to a fellow detailing forum member, I borrowed some Swissol Concorso. The best thing about this wax, is that it smells like passionfruit. The second best, probably the fact you have to apply with your hands. Not so good is the $290 price tag. However it does contain 51% carnauba wax, as opposed to my current wax - which is $50 with around 25% I believe.

Anyway, took the weekend to give the car a good polish, then applied the cleaner fluid and then the wax. Feels weird to apply by hand, don't think anyone saw me though :P But ZOMG so nice; it just adds so much more depth to the paint. Must get some full sun shots up, the metallic flake looks brilliant.

Pics on my flickr!

Don't do what Donny don't does...

2007-04-02T11:48:14Z

So what have I *not* been doing since my last post?

1. Not posting on LiveJournal. Really only because I haven't done anything worth posting about and/or haven't had time.

2. Not sleeping. Was up until 3AM last night finishing off my presentation boards.

3. Not working. I need more shift damn you Coles! OK, so I got 4 shifts last week, but that still doesn't make up for not giving me shifts, or giving me only 1 per week for the last month or so. Consistency, people!

4. Not studying. I just can't be bothered any more. At least I have a week over Easter to consolidate lecture notes - wish it were the 2 weeks like the pre-VSU days, though.

5. Not exercising. I told myself I'd go running at least once a week. Never happened.

6. Not not buying snacks at Uni. Well its hard to resist huge curry puffs for $2.20. They got a new "contractor", I guess, for the cafe. The Coffee HQ part is really small now, and they have "Meeting Place" or "Meeting Point" or whatever its called. Mostly Asian-based foods, but some pies and chips and stuff also. And Calpico; it's a rip-off ($2.something a can!?) but they still have it!

Arrgh, black interiors

2007-03-01T13:10:42Z

So I started at the Motor Show today. Drove from Uni to the Exhibition Centre and it took 45 minutes. I'm taking the train next time... Bloody $14 for parking.

Anyway, we're working on the Mercedes/Maybach/Smart stand. I got the job of vacuuming every single car. I think there are about 15 of them. Should've got it done in an hour but I was paying too much attention to detail than I should have :P Finished in 2 hours. Got to vacuum over $3mil worth of cars I reckon. Wasn't really concentrating on what they were, too busy working.

The Maybach 57S was a bit of a disappointment. Same floor mats as my uncle's C-Class, and they feel like a door mat. Much prefer the carpet underneath. Heaps of soft trim everywhere, the carpet is awesome underneath. The boot is tiny compared to its size, the E-Class boot is massive comparatively. Also got to do the CL63 which is a sexy car. And the CLS is a very nice car, wouldn't mind one. Suede roofliner, nice seats. Those designo options are pretty nice too. I'll take pictures when I'm down there next time :D

djintegr8 @ 2007-02-26T23:26:00

2007-02-26T12:34:58Z

Mmm, Mondays back at uni. Going to be fun this year. Wake up before 7, 9 at Prahran for 2hrs, then 1.5hr break to get back to Hawthorn for 3hr lecture at 12:30, then 2hr lecture at 3:30... Need to bring lots of food next week. I get Wednesdays off though, planning *not* to slack off this year...

In other news, I got a job doing some "detailing" at the Melbourne International Motor Show. I believe this entails wiping fingerprints off cars, and vacuuming them at the end of the day. Should be awesome fun, basically working nights on the 1st, 4th, 8th, 11th. If you see me, say hello and keep your greasy mitts of the cars :D

Comet McNaught

2007-01-25T13:45:12Z

Hello my neglected LiveJournal. So technically its Australia Day. Happy Australia Day everyone! Hope you're eating lamb today :P

Anyway, went out tonight to check out Comet McNaught with my parents. Should've gone out last week as it was a lot brighter, but you could still spot it with the naked eye. Maybe another couple of days and it'll be gone. Got a few nice shots, should've upped the ISO in hindsight, to get some more detail into the tail. Oh well, may go out tomorrow night and take some more shots :D

For those wanting to spot it, it should be in the sky between SW and SSW. Around 9:30-10:00pm. I went out to the memorial tower at Kangaroo Ground, a good 100 or so people there.

Stuff...

2007-01-13T11:47:17Z

Had Eliza's BBQ Bash today. Pictures are up on my Flickr account. Good times, got a few good shots with my camera. Still have to practise getting that focus right. Jordi's Blue Pavlova was pretty good. Lots of food but I had to leave for work early. Work was slack. Up early tomorrow 8:30am for R/C racing!

Camera!

2007-01-11T09:57:43Z

Woooo! Finally got myself a camera. Now I will be the one taking photos all the time, moohaha... Its a Canon Powershot S3IS, and its awesome :D Now I have full manual control over my camera. Going to buy a bigger 1GB SD card tomorrow. Already got a 128MB one, but I don't know why they bother bundling a 16MB one with the camera, you only get 4 shots before its full anyway... Expect many photos to follow :)

Mmmm trout...

2006-12-30T09:03:59Z

Went down Dromana way for my cousin's 21st. On the way we stopped at the Stillwater Restaurant at Crittenden's. Really fantastic food. Nice restaurant too. The service was good, but the food was slow to come out. Luckily I ordered 2 entrees as a main so I got one before the other :D Here's the "Cured ocean trout with a mizuna and cucumber salad, citrus soy dressing, wasabi mayonnaise and dusted with shichimi pepper". The trout tasted good, I'd describe it as being halfway between a raw trout and smoked trout. It doesn't have the smoky flavour, but it doesn't taste like the ocean either, so you get the full trout flavour. The salad worked well too.

I already started eating it then thought I might take a picture of each dish and blog it. But then I forgot about the others because I was hungry. Oh well. They were really good though.

Also, here's a cool glass I got my Coke in:

The other entree I had was the "Feta, spinach and pesto ravioli tossed with asparagus tips in a white wine and thyme tomato sauce, fried breadcrumbs and lemon oil topped with Red Hill Goats curd". That was pretty good, should've got the main, but its expensive...

Then went on to my cousin's place. She was having a party later in the evening so we helped a bit with helium balloons and stuff. Not much exciting news from there, except one cockatiel they have thinks it's a rabbit so it hangs out with them :P (the birds and rabbits live in the same cage).

Anyway, heading out to Pancake Parlour later on, maybe I'll blog about whatever I have there later :P

Long time no post...

2006-12-25T11:51:43Z

Been busy lately.... In the last week, I worked 20 hours. Which is a lot for me :P Trying to get some cash back into my account before I go blow it all on a camera :) What else have I been up to...

Tuesday: Had a BBQ at my cousin's house with some family members preceding my cousin (Andrew) and his wife's (Christine) wedding. Lots of food there, lots leftover too. Also played Buzz! Junior: Jungle Party against Christine's cousins and kicked arse! Played Buzz!: The Music Quiz and kinda sucked cos half the songs were old.

Wednesday: Worked... Then did something which I forget... Hmmm....

Thursday: Worked until 10pm, then rolled on by Eliza's Christmas party. Ended up staying real late which wasn't the plan, but got home in the end and crashed in bed.

Friday: Got up kinda early and went shopping with Jess for family presents. Got my family a hamper with lots of delicious stuff like jams, cheeses, biscuits, chocolates, coffee and cups. Then had to rush off with another massive dinner at Christine's parents house. Lots of Singaporean food, felt quite full afterwards. Headed off early to get some sleep.

Saturday: Got up early intending to wash my car before the wedding but couldn't be bothered in the end. Wasn't all that dirty anyway. Headed off to arrive at the Salvation Army Church in Box Hill at 10am, picked up Jess on the way. Got there and there were only a few people there, mostly people from Andrew and Christine's church band practising. Hung around the car park and pointed people in the right direction. My job of the day was ushering and making sure people didn't park in the front of the church where the bridal cars were going. Andrew was there quite early looking tired and waiting for coffee :P Anyway, all went well, squashed about 300 people into the church. Christine wasn't too late, the wedding was to start at 11:30am and she arrived around 11:45am. The service was great, lots of laughs. And lots of food for lunch afterwards.

After lunch, went to my grandparents house for a tea ceremony with both families. Basically an inception of the married couple into the families and they get money, etc. We hung around there until 6:00pm when we headed off to the reception at this place on Bell St which I've totally forgotten. But it was massive. 11 course meal, prepared with the help of a chef from Flower Drum apparently... But this was the menu: Suckling Pork Platter, Stuffed Crab Claw, Braised Prawn with Cashew Nuts, Supreme Shark Fin Soup, Fresh Lobster & Ginger Shallets (sic), Abalone & Mushroom with Sea Cucumber, Rosted (sic) Pigeons, Steamed Coral Trout, Hokkien Fried Rice, Double Happiness Desserts, Fresh Fruit Platter. All in all, a good meal. Ate everything, plus some of other peoples :D

The bridal dance was to the Grease song, You're the One That I Want. Andrew and Christine sung as well, it was pretty funny. My uncles gave a joint speech which went well until one of them started talking about testicles. Keep in mind he wasn't drunk :P At the end of it all, I think everyone had a great time. Helped Andrew and Christine load their presents into the car. We needed 2 cars to carry all the gifts, and some of them were quite heavy. Got home late, with lots of food.

Sunday: Slept in until 2pm or so. Went off to work until 9pm, then went to visit Jess and collect presents for the family. Snuck inside back home at 1:30am and went off to bed.

Today: Ate lots more Christmas food; prawns, gosling, turkey, chicken, pork, etc :P Now I'm way too tired to type any more so I'll leave it at that.

ZOMG 12 days till Christmas!

2006-12-12T15:03:36Z

Jeez, Christmas has snuck up quickly... I think I have my shopping list down :P

Dad: Probably give his car a good going over with a clay and polish. Might get some new wipers for him too. I think I might give out a few "vouchers" to the extended family for car detailing or something. Can never think of anything to get them.

Mum: Install my old JVC CD player into her car.

Michelle: No idea, I'll give her a high five or something :D

Jess: Also no idea, been bugging her for ideas but still haven't got anything out of her. Maybe some nice jewelry or take her shopping on Boxing Day.

Myself: Canon Powershot S3IS camera, and some accessories. Probably get 1GB High-speed SD card and a circular polariser. Maybe a camera bag later on. Tripod bag. Better battery charger.

Shopping list for others for me :)

- Tint for my car
- Open-mouth grille for my car
- Front strut brace for my car
- HID headlights for my car
- Nice leather wallet
- Any funky electronic gadget, having LEDs is a bonus!
- Black iPod Nano 8GB
- Anything from this store.
- An Eten G500 PDA/GPS/Phone
- Car detailing gear
- PS2 + GT4 + DFP
- BMW 335i Coupe. So sexy...

Yeah, I wouldn't mind just one of those... Last one would be nice though ;)

A lesson learned...

2006-12-08T13:50:42Z

I feel like a right git... :D

Ok, so the story starts 2 days ago when my fuel reserve light came on cruising down Yarra Boulevard. Its a Wednesday, fuel is expensive, so I figure I can go another day or so without filling up. Drive another 2 days, to and from work. Its about a 30km round trip, plus the distance to the picnic and back.

As I pulled up at work tonight, there was no warning (except for the reserve light) that I was about to run out. No engine spluttering, I just pulled into the parking spot and went to work. Came back to the car at 10pm. Turn the key... Chugchugchugchug, nothing. First I thought it was the fuel pump. Try again, chugchugchugchug, nothing. Damn. Did some calculations, from the last set of fuel consumption figures, I technically should have 2 or so litres left :tongue: I was also facing up hill.

Called up Julza who came out with Dan and 5 litres of precious fluid known as petrol. Chucked in about 4 litres before it started dripping down my arm so i stopped... Damn Handy Cans. Engine started after a good hold of the accelerator. Must have flooded it before. Drove up the road to Mobil and put in 50.24L of the good stuff. They don't lie when they say its a 55L fuel tank.

Lessons learned?

1. The reserve light means fill up you idiot...
2. Park facing downhill if low on fuel.
3. Mates are awesome at late hours of the night.
4. Stop being tight with fuel prices.
5. The reserve light means fill up you idiot...

DFO...

2006-12-06T08:14:20Z

So, went to DFO with my mum and Jess to look for wedding clothing... I freaking hate Warrigal Road, at all times of the day. Never again. Anyway, walked around for a few hours without finding anything I liked. Took a break at Gloria Jean's and had Tim Tam Ice Chocolate. Then ended up at Roger David and got me a bargain $50 velvet jacket :D And also a dark blue and a brown shirt - 2 for $40. Mum got some shoes as well. Jess didn't end up finding anything :( We'll have to check out other places soon.

Thank God...

2006-12-05T22:06:35Z

Oh yes, finally got my subject results. The one I was worried about is sitting at the bottom of the list ordered by mark, but its the same as my worst mark so far. Must concentrate more next semester, study hard, do my homework :D No HD's this semester though :( First D for Product Design though, YAY!!! So close to HD too... Next semester... Average of 74.25, just under Scholarship retention mark, but last semester was 80.33 so its all good.

Product Design 4 D 83
Materials And Processes D 78
Materials And Manufacturing 1 C 70
Machine Dynamics 1 C 66

So sore... but so fun!

2006-12-03T12:09:13Z

Go-karting yesterday was awesome. Still sore though. Went to the one down at Port Melbourne. Pretty nice track, but I just couldn't get a good lap going. I qualified fastest of the slow group :P Which meant I started at pole position for the consolation final :D Everything was going great until someone crashed in front of me. Got stuck behind the two last people and got impatient, tried to jump up the inside and got cut off :( Finished 4th out of 7 in the end. But got the fastest lap in that race with a time of 27.1s. My cousin actually won the consolation final by not crashing. Fastest lap of the day was a 25.9s by my cousin's brother-in-law to be. But he'd been before so it doesn't count :P Want to go back again, but it was expensive and want to try another track, possibly outdoors.

So... got some time on my hands...

2006-12-01T03:58:25Z

Heh, some of you might find this funny, but anyway, I quit Campion today :P For those of you counting, I've had 4 jobs this year, though technically only 2 this financial year. I was so freaking tired this morning I couldn't concentrate properly... From Wednesday afternoon, I worked 5-10pm at Bi-Lo, then had about 6 hours sleep, worked Thursday 8:45am-1:30pm at Campion, had about 2 hours at home then worked 5-10pm at Bi-Lo, had another 5-6 hours sleep and then worked again this morning at Campion... I couldn't keep doing that for 4 or 5 days a week. So I'm looking at getting 3-4 shifts per week at Bi-Lo which will be good.

Also, my cousin's Buck's "Events" (its not really a party as such...) on tomorrow. Go-Karting at 11am in Port Melbourne. Should rock pretty well. Then lunch somewhere, my cousin is paying so knowing him he might just take us to Maccas :P Then got a few parties of Jess' friends that afternoon/night. Was meant to be working Campion tomorrow morning but its gone now :D

Campion!

2006-11-28T07:23:55Z

Started my first shift at Campion today. 8:45am to 1:30pm... Pretty easy work, started off today doing picking, basically shopping for other people who leave orders with us. But its tiring walking up and down. Maybe I need some better walking shoes. And I'm working Thursday 8:45am to 1:30pm at Campion, then 5:00pm to 10:00pm at Bi-Lo, and the same on Friday... Nasty.

I also put together a set of drawers and a cupboard for our deck area. I kinda smacked one of the dowels too hard and it went through the particle board and laminate :P But you can't see it anyway so it's all good. Nothing else interesting happening, my cousin's wedding on the 23rd of December and I have to find a suit, etc...

Acapella!

2006-11-14T07:06:40Z

Went to check out Maddie's acapella class performance last night. Was pretty rockin, put some videos up on YouTube for those who didn't go (just uploading videos at the moment). Sorry the last one cut out, ran out of space :(

Video 1
Video 2
Video 3
Video 4
Video 5

I gots me a tripod

2006-11-12T15:35:46Z

Finally got a tripod so I can take night pics of my car. Always look better than day pics IMO :P Had a photoshoot with the Oz Mazda Club tonight, pics are here. I think I did alright, borrowed Jess' camera which looked funny on the tripod because its so small but did a nice job with the photos. Buying myself a Canon S3IS for Christmas :D