In this era of advanced technologies, many aspects of our life can pretty much be automated. Remember Alexa? It appeared in movies, heralding a future of home appliances commanded by a voice, providing weather updates and playing music suitable to the owner's mood. Many years have since passed, how many people actually use such a device? I have one sitting somewhere in a corner at home. Luckily it's a freebie. My take is, don't rush to use a technology until it's proven. When the Iphone was first launched, I also waited for about a year to let the bugs be resolved. This approach is what I took with regard to digital door locks. Samsung and some Korean brands were the early frontrunners. At one tradeshow, I was tempted to buy but retreated due to the $2000 price tag. Since then, many new brands have sprouted, from China to Europe and even Singapore. Early this month, I asked my second son to do a market research. In one visit, together with my wife, we decided to purchase his recommended choice, Kaadas Q9 that costs close to $800. Within a week, the installation was completed. I don't have to carry keys in my pocket anymore. It's been a smooth transition for a good price.
I met up with a couple of friends from school over dinner. We last met about six months ago and as usual, the conversation doesn't stop. A topic that came up was the soon-to-arrive expected bonus. Public servants received 2.7 months (1 AWS, 1.7 AVC) for last year's work. For the private sector, things are more variable, depending on the industry. My company should be giving 2 months even though market condition was not easy. My friend's husband is a pilot with the national airline, so we gave our congratulations in advance to her. The aviation sector has performed well since Covid as I'm sure people can attest to the deluge of tourists everywhere especially in Japan. Her response was quite shocking. Even though it's reported that aviators should get around seven months of bonus, she mentioned it felt more like three months. Bonus is based on the underlying basic salary and a widely accepted norm. In this instance, her husband's pay has not been restored to the pre-Covid days. She estimated the pay cut he took was around 50%. Adding to his woe is that he missed out on an upgrade (which was due) during the pandemic period. Therefore, the "lost" amount is effectively half of the bonus issued and still counting.
Last month, I mentioned about my aching left knee that's still in recovery mode. It's not gotten worse but neither much better as I dare not place much weight. Instead, the focus has been on stretching and no cardio activities (I don't fancy swimming). Then, after school barely started, my second son sprained his ankle while playing frisbee. Ah, another familiar injury that I used to get playing soccer. I've had at least two sprains per ankle along with a few fingers. My son's condition didn't look that bad but an Xray was taken as a precaution. The RICE method was applied and it looked better after two weeks. For now, he probably has to continue on crutches for a while. If not, next up is the Sinseh where I had my limbs straightened out a few times. In Chinese saying, misfortunes usually come in pairs. I hope no more health concerns for the family this year.
Tip: Marcus Molitor Riesling 2022, good mineral uplift, lingering musk melon, balanced acidity
No comments:
Post a Comment