What is this feeling...

Exams are finally over! This is my most shiong semester ever. I think that AT and AFA is a deadly combo, should be taken with care. I'm most uncertain about the outcome of my essay based exams. The two numerical ones are just off. AFA would depends on how much prof gives us marks for 'workings'. For MS, the finals is so freakin easy that in a course the 'bells' the students, mid terms will become the determining factor....n i didn't do well in midterms....haiz...

On a positive note, i am truly grateful for my experience in Accounting Theory. It opens my mind to new ideas, new realities and possibly, new definition of 'true and fair' that accountants hold so dear to. I also realize how inadequate my abilities to read, write, and speak are. If i can't express my thoughts, how will the other party understand what i intend to say.

Thankful to all those people who helped me tremendously this sem, xin hong, chin ta, shakeeb, say wai, wen xiang and many more.... I hope we all do well.

Reading jie chao's post on the futility of exams makes me a little sad. I agree with his general idea that exams tells us little about how a person will perform when given a task. But i think that to a limited sense, it shows the discipline, mental curiosity and work ethics a person has. Furthermore, in the SMU where a subject that can be taught over a year is taught in 14 three hours seminar, to do well, one must learn 'how to learn'. If someone is equipped with the right skills to learn, one can evolve and adapt to the ever changing environment. What we learn in schools have a useful life of probably 4-6 years after graduation anyway. So have the right perspective and attitude towards learning is what i've gained most over the past 3 years.

Time to apply some more financial institutions in hope of getting some internship opportunities next summer. Given the current nationalization of banks, i wonder what the future of the financial market will look like....

To all my friends applying for internships, ALL THE BEST! 

so tired....i am.....rather lost....sleep....

One Day More!

Listened to Les Miserables on my way to school. Sang (hopefully silently) in the MRT and felt better.

I'm really stressed out by this exam, more so than any other terms. It could be a combi of the modules that i'm taking and also that Andrew, Daniel & Damien, whom i've depended so much on for the past few exams are now on exchange. Fortunately those that are still around provides me with sufficient support to survive...

There is a glimmer of hope for AFA, understood some concepts better over the past week. However, speed is still a HUGE problem. Since i don't have the luxury of time during exam, i must level up in terms of speed over the next few days.

Tmrw is my AT exam. I think i got my content knowledge. But how do i present them in a form that show the prof i know my stuff? The following advice is given by Prof JJ "Try to spend a little time reflecting back on what it took to write a good General Paper in A levels....Also, try not to be repetitive in your arguments....Of course style is important so try to write with a dark pen, in a way that I can read, and with good professional quality." GP is my weakest subject in JC and I've not written a single argumentative essay for the past 6 years!!! I can only imagine the pain JJ will be going through trying to decipher my message when he marks my paper.

MS, by Prof Pascale is NOT EASY. Haiz, Andrew said she's fine and that her exams are fine. But now i realised that that's Andrew speaking. Once he understands something, he can execute smoothly. I can't do that. I need to practise. MS as taught by Pascale is so fluid that attempts to spot qn and find model solutions are futile. Totally ignored MPW. Leaving it for the rest of Friday afternnon and Sat moring before sitting for the exam.

One day more to AT. One week more to liberation! Run Freedom Run!!!!

To whoever reading this blog and having exams. ALL THE BEST!






Tomorrow is the judgement day
Tomorrow we'll discover
What our God in Heaven has in store!
One more dawn
One more day
One day more!

Learning Curve

From MPW...Stages of learning

1. Unconscious Incompetence

2. Conscious Incompetence

3. Conscious Competence

4. Unconscious Competence

My improvements in AFA over the past week;

Unconscious Incompetence --> Conscious Incompetence

Luckily there's such a thing called 'past year paper' and 'exams'. If not i'll probably be at the stage of unconscious incompetence forever.

The current financial tsunami showed the world who has been swimming naked when the tide was high...mmm...the market has a peculiar way of showing off the emperor's new clothes. However, those who can identify accurately their own circle of competence, AND not stray out of it, will probably be constantly in a state of Conscious or Unconscious Competence. Ask the Fried Hokkien Mee uncle if he thinks about what to do after heating the wok he'll probably laugh. Thats Unconscious Competence.

Hopefully within a week i can level up....

Comic Relief

Joel sent me these funny pix...much needed relief form studying...thx!

Personality test

Saw this on cg's blog and tried it out. mmmm...quite true.

Quiz available here

Your view on yourself:

Other people find you very interesting, but you are really hiding your true self. Your friends love you because you are a good listener. They'll probably still love you if you learn to be yourself with them.

The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:

You are a true romantic. When you are in love, you will do anything and everything to keep your love true.

Your readiness to commit to a relationship:

You are ready to commit as soon as you meet the right person. And you believe you will pretty much know as soon as you might that person.

The seriousness of your love:

Your have very sensible tactics when approaching the opposite sex. In many ways people find your straightforwardness attractive, so you will find yourself with plenty of dates.

Your views on education

Education is very important in life. You want to study hard and learn as much as you can.

The right job for you:

You're a practical person and will choose a secure job with a steady income. Knowing what you like to do is important. Find a regular job doing just that and you'll be set for life.

How do you view success:

You are afraid of failure and scared to have a go at the career you would like to have in case you don't succeed. Don't give up when you haven't yet even started! Be courageous.

What are you most afraid of:

You are afraid of things that you cannot control. Sometimes you show your anger to cover up how you feel.

Who is your true self:

You are mature, reasonable, honest and give good advice. People ask for your comments on all sorts of different issues. Sometimes you might find yourself in a dilemma when trapped with a problem, which your heart rather than your head needs to solve.

CQ

Bill Gross on common sense:

"A CQ is what I think of as a “Common Sense Quotient.” It refers to an ability to not just absorb information and recycle it upon demand, but to analyse it and apply it within a uniquely different environment or context. A CQ Mensa candidate is able to view the world in a state of apparent equilibrium and wonder – “does this make sense?” And if not, “what might change it, and when?” The problem with measuring CQ, however, is that you never can be quite sure that you or anyone else has it. It’s elusive and perhaps even ephemeral. It’s also uniquely personal: the world always makes sense when viewed from your own eyes – it’s those other people who can’t seem to understand. Still – in the business and investment worlds – time has a habit of unmasking one-dimensional pretenders who have the obvious IQ, but score below 100 with an experience-tested CQ. Warren Buffett, a bona fide Mensa in both categories, said it best many years ago in his usual folksy way: “You don’t know who’s swimming naked until the tide goes out.”

Read the latest Bill Gross article here. Subscribe to the podcast and listen to articles from 2 years ago. Amazing learning experience for me.

Derivatives...yes no maybe?!?

Submitted our AFA project today. All projects finally submitted. Phew. Time to mug.

Reviewing FRS 39 today (tmrw and the next few days) and i tried to link it back to 'real life' situations. Then i thought of my Monopoly game with my cousins a few weeks ago. There was one transaction that i think i'm not sure how to account for.

The transaction

I want Jolyn's Pentonville Road (cost 120) and she wants my Leicester Square (cost 260). I have the other 2 light blue property so i'm keen to get my hands on Pentonville to form a set so as to built hotels for my lovely cousins to stay in. However Jolyn is NOT willing to part with it, cuz i think she only has no money on hand to develop her properties (even if she does form a complete set).

Meanwhile i have a hotel built on Vine Street ($2000 per stay). So i gave my cousin the deal of the century, she get to have Leicester AND one free stay at Vine street in exchange for Pentonville Road.  She agreed. How should should Jolyn account for her property?

She gave up Pentonville and gained 1 property and a free stay.

I think the journal entries would involve the following

Dr Free Stay

Dr Leicester

Cr Pentoville (at historical cost of $120)

Cr Gain on sale???

Now, should Leicester be valued at MY historical cost of $260, or at a exchange price of $XXX?

How should the free stay be valued? Is it a derivative? I think it is the present value of $2000 discounted at some rate given some probability distribution. But i don't think it fits the definition of either options or forwards. I can't even think of the payoff function from Jolyn's point of view...

Would there be the credit Gain on Sale? is it a residual after we value 'free stay', 'leicester' less 'pentoville'? If the 'free stay' is indeed a derivatives, is it governed by FRS 39?

by the way, Jolyn is Sec One. So i think she fully meets the 'knowledgeable and willing seller + arms length' criteria. I'm not a bully k?

ok. far too many question marks. Please tag to let me know what you think. (other than telling me you think i streeessssseeddddd. hahaha). 

Oh ya, thanks to cheeguan, i gotta clear some more CIP hours during the christmas caroling. yippee!