Seeking dx/dt = 0

Still can't believe the mid term break has just ended like that. I remember how relieved I was after pulling through the busy final week of the 1st half semester. There were so many plans laid out in my mind for the following week - "I shall do this and this...", "I will start this and there should be time for this too...". So many hopes and plans for that short duration.

It started off quite well though, as I managed to complete a few assignments on CNY eve, a day which one normally wouldn't have the mood to do any homework at all. So proud of myself haha. Was thinking that if I were to continue at this pace, I'll be left with plenty of time for the weekend before school starts.

Even went as far as bringing my notes along when visiting relatives. Better to make good use of the time rather than to sit around waiting for the 'mandatory period' to pass. My plan looked pretty good so far.

There were days where I stayed home almost all day, giving me lots of room to clear off my workload, and hoping to proceed to the 'extras' (reading supplementary materials, etc).

Within a blink of eye, the other weekend had come. Why was I still struggling to clear my primary workload? I had started working on it on the eve, and tried to utilize time during visiting. What happened?

Nevertheless I continued. Until the final night of the break, I still had some unfinished work, which was pushed to Monday night. Was I really that busy? Was the workload really that unmanageable?

Looking back at each and every day I spent, it appeared quite alright as I did complete some work during the free time in between. So what went wrong?

Then I realised something: I was steady but SLOW. In other words, I was inefficient. I took a longer time to complete a work than what is normally required. Was surprised at how terribly inefficient I was.

Often, I spend a considerable amount of time pondering over what I did. I would try to double-check if it's indeed correct, or try to convince myself even though I don't really understand. This is more time consuming than expected.

'The more time you spend, the better the work produced.' I wonder if this is true. So what if I spend so much time trying to make sure something is perfect (or at least close)? Will this extra time spent be better utilized on other tasks to achieve a reasonable standard?

Let's say you're given 1 hour to finish 2 questions. Would you spend 45 min trying to perfect the 1st and the remaining 15 min to give a half-hearted answer for the 2nd? Or split the time equally and attempt to answer both to a reasonable standard?

Sometimes, spending more time on things doesn't pay off. The result you get upon spending 3 hours may not be any much different from the result after 2 hours. Most of the time, spending extra time is just for the sake of self-satisfaction. We would feel uneasy if something is missing, or not up to our expected standard. We may feel satisfied with our perfect work, but then start crying when we realise that there is no time left for subsequent tasks.

To comfort myself, I could say that I'm more conscientious and willing to put in effort. But to put it crudely, I spend lots of unnecessary time trying to create an insignificant difference, resulting in inefficiency.

Time is limited. It passes and never returns. Thus sacrificing time for ineffective work is usually a bad move. That's why there is this concept termed 'optimization', which teaches us to make use of minimum time to produce maximum work.

And here I am wasting precious time typing this entry...

Whether something is worth the extra effort, it's up to us to decide. But the speed of passing time is not up to us to control. Between spending time and getting best possible result - which consideration should take priority? The answer is obvious.

See and Whine

For obvious reasons, I neglected my blog for almost 2 weeks. We all know what takes priority for a student.

Very relieved that the CNY break cum recess week is here. An early pit-stop would mean that I'll have to endure more for the next subsequent 8 weeks. High chance that school work might accumulate to even more than what I had experienced for the past week. No thanks to the disappointing email which came few days ago.

Enough about school, let's talk about CNY.

Since n years ago, I've heard people, especially youngsters, complaining about how the CNY atmosphere isn't as lively and bustling as in the past, which makes them look forward less to the festive season. As for me, whether the atmosphere has dwindled or not doesn't matter that much and I still very look forward to CNY, for various reasons:

- Compared to my childhood days, I'm not as excited when receiving hongbao anymore, but receiving some cash still has the value of being looked forward to. The total amount received is not much though, but it still gives me a little more spending power. Despite inflation throughout the years, the amount in each packet never changes. I wonder if 10 years down the road people will still give the same amount. Can tradition be ever adjusted to suit the economy?

- Food!!! Eating good food makes me happy haha. Although people rarely visit my house, my mum still buys snacks and cookies every year. The guys in my home will then quickly finish them up hehe. Unfortunately most snacks my mum bought aren't that fantastic (some even tasted like plastic/rubber), so I normally eat a lot at my relatives' house haha, where the quality is much better. My mum doesn't buy bak kwa, so I've to eat them elsewhere. Therefore, the first thing I do upon entering my relatives' house is to scavenge the table for goodies haha.

- Anyone noticed these few years there is always a four-day long holiday? As long as chu yi falls on a Saturday, Sunday, Monday or Thursday there will be an extra long holiday. So the chances are actually quite high eh. Sadly this year's potential has been wasted, thanks to the flexibility in adjusting the term calendar. For dating NUS students, won't it be a double whammy? Hahaha...

I wonder what I can eat tomorrow...yum ^_^

To end off, enjoy your 'see and whine' holidays everyone!