Sunday, February 27, 2005
yesterday was my first ever attending a whole day interview, and it's industrially known as "assessment day". why the name?
have u ever been in amsterdam along the streets of the red light area? there are those fish tanks which houses girls, and they're all just put on display right... well, that was exactly how it felt. i was in a fish tank, so small and minute to the whole world looking in... scrutinising my every move, harping on every single word i said.
impressing someone for half an hour to an hour at an interview is nothing. i'm perfectly good at first impressions. unless the first impression occurs outside phuture/zouk/velvet/winebar, then that's a whole diff issue. my halo effect has a life span of abt an hour, 2 hours max... then it starts fading away, eroding layer by layer until the person actually sees who i am, a self-caniving bitch who only cares abt herself and no one else.
it's hard to keep smiling for one whole day u know. there is only so much my lips can go north... sigh. isn't it hard to keep pretending u're someone u're not?
anyway, here's some stats... they received around 400 applicants, 80 got called for the video interview, and there were only 45 there yesterday at the last round... they are planning to chose 20-25 people, so i have like a 50% chance of getting in.
u know, it's not something that i want to do, but i never thought that getting picked and going through all these rounds wld be so tough! i can't believe the torture and the pain i take to prepare myself for each interview, and in the end, i just get rejected.
sigh. life is tough ain't it.
i am waiting for 3 calls next week. an offer from barclays, an interview with ubs, and an offer with credit suisse. credit suisse is just an internship, but i don't mind doing that while waiting to start work with whoever i get an offer from...
~*~
i am waiting for this coming week to be over. some things i know will come, and others i'm just not so sure when they'll come.
"how are u feeling?" he finally asked how i was doing. asked him out for a show last night but he was doing something, and i was too tired to go down walas and join addy as well.
"keep ur fingers crossed" was that the best he cld say to me? haha... of course i know he wishes that i get it, but oh well..... i don't know what else to say to him also lar...
why? why do i think i can do it all by myself? why can't i show him how i feel? that i really need him next to me at this pt of time when everything is so uncertain. i just want him to hold me and tell me everything's going to be alright. all he can offer is,
"don't think so much yea"
men. sigh.
Friday, February 25, 2005
ubs was alright i guess. pretty stunned though, cos they received over 400 applications, they called in 120 for the numerical test. so that's like the top 25%. out of this 120, they're calling in 30 for the interview, and only 15 for the assesment day itself.
what are my chances? 15/400 = about top 4% for the assesment and they prob will hire 5 the most? so that's like 1% chance.
the odds are against me.
talked to kc this morning b4 i went for the test. he said that come tues, he'll disappear from my life again. wtf. i told him to go do it, since that's the only thing he does, and he does it so well.
i wonder why i'm still accomodating to him. it's not as if i'm living under the same roof as him that i have to be civil. we very much lead 2 different parallel lives. it can go on to infinity and we will never see eye to eye.
but yet, why?! why tania why are u so dumb, why are u so stupid and why are u so hung up?!
i know that nothing good ever comes from my meetings with kc. but yet, i still go. it's like playing with fire and begging to be burnt.
"u know something? u're the most irritating guy i've ever met. and a part of me wishes that i never met u, or can erase u from my life entirely. but i can't."
this is a really really long chapter in my life, and this time is a defining moment.
"i'm avoiding u cos it hurts too much when i think of u."
why can't i do that? why can't i just avoid the fire and not get burnt...again?
ubs later at 2.15pm. shawn called and said that they actually called around a 100 over to take the numerical test man. shit. and the most that they're going to employ? 5?! 10?!! so that's like wat, a 10% survival chance?
sigh.
went out with jt last night. we sat at kap macs and just talked. it was nice of him to sit down and talk to me after how much kc bugs him. and i know how much that ass hole can bug someone.
sigh
what am i going to do?! i only have one option, and that's my only option. but is it right?! i don't want to think abt it until next week... it's abit jumping the gun here, i mean, i don't even have anything right now. panic for wat right.
ubs today, barclays on sat, 2 diff departments for credit suisse on tues.
if everything goes well, i shld have an offer by next week.
but what's the pt of thinking abt these things when it's not happening yet right? why make plan A and plan B in case of this, and in case of that?!
i know i only have one choice, but i'll feel horrid abt it. how can i do it?! have i become so cold and heartless? and it doesn't help that i'm all alone in this, no one is there to tell me which to choose, which path to take in life.
this is life changing. it's a whole new phase of my life. what shall i do?! research at ubs? credit risk at credit suisse? general ops at barclays?
but nothing is comfirmed yet, i just wished that he was here with me, telling me that everything will be ok and things will work out for the best. but then again, he's scared.
he's freaking out worst than me, and since it's my life, i don't understand why he's so freaked out abt.
help. i just want this week to be over.
Thursday, February 24, 2005
why?
i told myself that i'll be good. i told myself that things will get better. i told myself to forget him and move on
but he has, and i haven't.
but he wasn't all i imagined it to be. or maybe when u imgaine things, u make them to be so perfect, so unrealistic.
anyway, it ain't over yet, i shld know the results by next week. worst case scenario, he wld have flown back already, and i'll be all alone, again.
he is avoiding me.
maybe i shld just wipe him out of my mind, and start afresh.
Wednesday, February 23, 2005
i am stunned.
this week is supposed to be my term break, i've charted out a list of things to do, watch webcast, tutorials, study for midterms etc... but omg, there's just so much work to be done and so little time to breathe, let alone sleep.
why?
i've got so many interviews this week it's crazy.
i went for my CSFB for the RMM department yesterday, i think it went pretty well. i can say that they were rather impressed. "a person of ur calibre must be applying to alot of another places." woah. impressive. haha... so that internship with db really opened alot of doors for me man!
i had an interview with prudential today, but i cancelled it cos i don't think i wanna be an insurance agent. i have so little friends already, can't afford to get them running all away after i become an agent.
i just received an email from UBS for a meeting this fri. woohoo. that means i passed the initial stage, and now it's all up to me ready. it's a numerical test this fri on investment banking, so i hope that i can at least pass that stage to go for the interview. that way i can wow them with my stella personality. haha.
this sat is Barclay's final round of interviews. it's going to be a whole day thing at Four Seasons Hotel. they're hiring 60 for operations cos they're expanding in s'pore. so this is like my best bet lar. this is the final final one man! after all the hard work going through so many cock-a-nathan interviews with barclays, this is it. crunch time.
next week on tues i've got another 2 more interviews with CSFB, one in the Treasury department and another with ORMG. don't know how those 2 will go.
so yes, how many is that? 6 interviews in 7 days?! no joke man!
i'm mentally drained, my feet hurt from walking in heels so much. but oh well. a lady's got to do wat a lady's got to do right? the price of wanting to look taller and slimmer. sigh. we go through ALOT of pains ok.
i can't wait for my job thing to be settled. that way, i can plan my grad trip(if it'll ever materialise), lasik for my eyes(i'll be out of action for 2 weeks) and basically just spend some time by myself, cleaning my room, re-organising my clothes! haha...
i don't know how it'll go, but i hope everything will be a-ok.
looking back, maybe it was a good thing that i didn't get DB. i wld be conplacent and not go through all these crap, and not cherish the job. this way, i learn more, meet new pple and really really be thankful for getting a job.
*on a side note, i'm hurting from gym. everytime i go i feel like i'm being tortured, and that my body just pays for it the next few days. sigh.
Monday, February 21, 2005
"We know that 80% of the town of Meulaboh in Aceh was destroyed by the Tsunami waves and 80% of the people also died. This is one of the towns that was hit the hardest. But there is a fantastic testimony from Meulaboh.
In that town are about 400 Christians. They wanted to celebrate Christmas on December 25th but were not allowed to do so by the Muslims of Meulaboh. They were told if they wanted to celebrate Christmas they needed to go outside the city of Meulaboh on a high hill and they can celebrate Christmas there. Because the Christians desired to celebrate Christmas the 400 believers left the city on December 25th and after they celebrated Christmas they stayed overnight on the hill.
As we all know, in the morning of Sunday, December 26 -2004, there was the earthquake followed by the Tsunami waves destroying most of the city of Meulaboh and thousands were killed. The 400 believers were on the mountain and were all saved from destruction.
Now the Muslims of Meulaboh are saying that the God of the Christians punished us for forbidding the Christians from celebrating Christmas in the city. Others are questioning why so many Muslims died while not even one of the Christians died there. Had the Christians insisted on their rights to celebrate Christmas in the city, they would have all died. But because they humbled themselves and followed the advice of the Muslims they all were spared destruction and can now testify of God's marvelous protection.
This is a testimony of the grace of God and the fact that as believers we have no rights in the world. Our right is to come before God and commit our lives to Him. Our right is kneeling down before the Lord Almighty and commit our ways to Him. He is our Father and is very capable to care for His children.
Praise the Name of the Lord.
Bill Hekman Pastor, Calvary Life Fellowship in Indonesia"
today was the first time we hugged. not that it was anything romantic, but it was ... a pleasent surprise.
i went over to watch the highly antiscipated movie of the year, the reprise of 'the sunshine tans'... haha... they are indeed a very harmonious family man... hahah... really a joy.
saw how dave changed throughout the years and i must say it's remarkable, unlike jon or mike... but his features have become more and more defined, and in a manly kind of way... haha... the guai boy-next-door kinda look
he's too nice for me.
it wasn't right 8 yrs ago, it's still not the right time now.
anyway, i stretched out my hand to wish him all the best, and he stretched out 2 hands instead.. i was really surprised man...
i must say that i've hung out more with him this time round than any other time... i guess the lack of time, or the fact that time is limited forces us to call each other and pop by. we finally played that long over-due table tennis match!! haha
he has always been someone that i looked up to, someone that i know i can call and talk to abt personal stuff and he wld never be judgemental. he wld give me unbiased advice, and i know it's not of the world.
so came the dilema when i was deciding whether to see him off at the airport tonight. i was going to take the car, but then pop wanted to use it, and i had to have dinner at home cos mummy cooked a pretty good dinner. so the timing was off...
all throughout dinner i sat there and looked at the clock, mentally calculating in my head whether i cld make it if i rushed down in a cab... and i felt guilty, like he was hoping that i'll turn up to send him off. albeit a little channel-8 drama-ish
in the end, dinner dragged too long, and i was too full to move anyhows.
sigh, so he left, won't be back till june. but hey, that's a really short while if u think of it... cos i wld have graduated by then.
we are on different paths and work on different timings.
it can't work out... for now at least.
Saturday, February 19, 2005
i just watched 'a long engagement'.
IT'S DAMN FREAKING GOOD!!
ok, marcus didn't like it, and i didn't start off the show with a good start cos i just saw jason with his new beau and let's just say i wasn't all that cherry blossom happy inside.
ANYWAY, it's such a good show, and it stars the 2 most popular(in my opinion) french actresses! i love foreign flims, the cinematography and story line is just so different from the typical hollywood blockbuster!
i'm just swooning over it.
sigh. there was a time when renyi wld queue up for tix to a french show on the opening night and surprise me with the tix and a dinner out...
that's all but over.
i miss having someone there who appreciates the same things as me, and we can just go out and talk abt common interest. sigh. but i think if there's a male version of me i wldn't like him very much.
haha.
oh well, i might consider watching it again. yes, it's that good!
i actually woke up to go to the gym!! *applause*
haha. achievement ok. proud of myself!! *beams* and i feel great too! ok, my arms are aching and i'm sure that they'll ache much more tomorrow, but as of now, i feel great. =)
but...
i passed this blind man at the busstop on the way home, there wasn't anyone at the busstop, and he was holding out a sign 961, and pointing it to buses as they pass by.
i've seen this man b4, and he works at tan chong as a telephone operator.
and i just walked past him, walking up the overhead and just ignored him.
now, who's the blind one?
sigh. it seems that even though we have eyes, we can't see, or rather, we are partially blind. selectively blind. we see things that we want to, when they concern us, and when it's convient for us. i'm sure that that blind man sees much more than i can... he can't see the outer appearance, so i guess he forms images in his mind... and this is a reflection of a person's true inner beauty.
so yes, as i walked up the overhead, i felt guilty and i turned back to help him. as i was walking down the stairs towards him, this other man walked past him and approached to help.
so there i was, shacked from gym, blessed with an abled body to even sweat it out in the gym, stood at the overhead bridge stunned for a while.
since when have i become so cold hearted? i mean i wasn't a girl scout rushing to help the old lady cross the road, but ...
i hope i can stop being so self centered, and actually see how blessed i am.
Wednesday, February 16, 2005
it's not abt finding the right person, it's abt being the right person.
this month being feb and all, it's the month of love... with just abt everyone talking abt marriage, love and getting together! my pastor too! he has started a whole sermon abt marrigae, and i must say that it's one of the most interesting sermons that i 've gone for.
i really felt God speaking me regarding this issue.
today i was watching, "touched by an angel" and it was an episode abt this woman trying to find love... and yes, she was looking for them in all the wrong places (this sounds like a song)... and what the angel finally told her at the end was,
"you can't expect to find the right person, u got to be the right person and this will attract him. i know u might feel impatient, but God does not deliever in your time. He delievers in His time. and He delievers only the best, so isn't the best worth waiting for? He does not deliever on ur time because He knows that u are not ready for it. He will only give u the best when u are ready to receive it. "
now, how true is that?
it's not that i don't want to be attached, it's that i'm waiting.
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
i am feeling somewhat better.
today someone commented that my phlegm looked smelly. and this comes from the guy that takes my tutorial and copy and goes up to the front of the class and presents and claims credit for it ok. so obviously i don't like him. and it doesn't make things better but telling me my phlegm looks smelly.
it's like saying, hey, u look like you have BO. it's not that i can smell it u know, it's cos u look like it.
smash his face.
i'm feeling pretty much better... not so much so that i can go mambo tom, but well enough to wear contacts and not feel that my eyes are going to burn through them or explode.
starting to get down to study. aiyoh. it seems like my life has much less distractions now and i can finally do things at my own time. it's pretty enjoyable. no tuition, no church commitments, no commitments period. haha... i'm a free bird.
didn't even realised that it was val day yesterday until i saw the trongs of pple in school walking in pairs, cuddling flowers inbetween them. aiyoh, grow up lar. buying flowers on val day is like falling into the trap of the money hungry florist who capitalises 50% of their yearly income on this single day.
but who am i to say. while half the world last night were orgasmically having sex, the other half obviously didn't and sat around bitching abt it.
guess which half i belonged to?!
anyway, it seems so long ago that i've been with someone... and it just takes a single day like this to remind me that i've been single for a pretty long time. now before i start to sound angry (i juz remembered i've got a bet to keep)... let me say that i am retrospectively reflecting...
i've realised that i've grown in the past 2 years. i've grown in ways as an individual that i'm sure that i wldn't have if i was attached to someone. let me explain.
being with someone is not all abt making ME happy. it's abt comprimising to get along. there have to be instances which u wld have to act of ur other's half interest rather than ur own to make both parties happy. and by doing so, u are in a way shortchanging or depriving urself of a better choice had u made it if u were alone.
so yes, i think i've grown in maturity being alone these past couple of years.
i've finally figured out who i am as an individual, and my sort of rough direction that i want to go. it's not that i've finally mapped out my life, cos well, nothing in life is certain, but i do have a rough plan in mind.
i've reflected on past relationships and found out where i've gone wrong and am working on those character flaws...
my hierarchy of values have somewhat inverted. friends don't seem as impt as they used to be. family has taken preceedence, and i've glad to say that i've grown closer to my family in the past 2 years.
i am much calmer now... i realised that life is short and i don't bear gruges anymore. yes, i still bitch abt life, but hey, once it's out of my system, it's out.
as a christian, i've grown too. not so much, no exponentially, but i have grown. still growing, a long way more, but not giving up.
so see, valentine's day ain't all abt being bitter and resentful abt being alone. there are pple out there who are looking on the bright side of things and purposfully reflecting on life.
Monday, February 14, 2005
i almost died last night.
or at least i thought i was lar. my fever reached a super mega high in the night and trust me, i cld feel my brain cells being killed off one by one. aiyoh.
shuttling btw clearing my left or right nostril, i guess that only thing that i can be glad is the amt of constant green phlegm i like to emit. gross. i know.
finally went to the doctor this morning. yes, i hate doctors. i hate waiting in the waiting room cos i'm sitting there with strangers that are obviously sick, but i have no idea with wat. i might catch something from them rather than get cured. bleh.
yes, so after a whole week of self medicating, i decided that it's not going to work...coupled with the fact of my near death experience last night, i succumed... and went to see dr teo.
=(
anyway, forced myself to go to school even though i took a 2-day MC from the doc. stupid IO class got test, so bo pian. but crap lar, didn't study for it... was super sick the whole week how to study?! damn. sigh...
ok, brain is pretty groggy, shall stop here. no gym this week for me AGAIN! damn it. i'm just wasting my exsistance on the face of the earth.
damn it.
Sunday, February 13, 2005
how abt that?!!!
the bloody system outsmarted me and i've got elimated. at the talent stage at that! damn it mfb.
URGH.
so much for being honest.
Saturday, February 12, 2005
mummy and i!
yu sheng! lou hei ar!
the food. i designed the layout!! woohoo
family at reunion dinner. steamboat.
today was alright... though i'm still emitted green wasabi-like phlegm. everyone say "ewwweee"
yes yes, i am still sick. and it's the weird kind. i feel so cloghed up in my head, like there's so much pressure and i'm like going to explode or something... and i don't know whether it's the weather or something, but it's really really FREAKINGLY hot man. grr...
anyway, ate super good food today. had lunch at pushi tei with my dear luyi... she's going back tom!! sob sob... didn't even get to go phuture with her last night. but at least i made it for lunch k... unlike some ungrateful frog.
we tried on some tags at this watch place at taka. and there's this tag that is really nice!!! haha... not that i'm bored with mine, but hey, this was a really nice one. and i think the price is pretty alright. it's er... 1,800 i think. not that bad wat. the one i got was 1,100 i think... and this one had dimonds too!! haa... but i think if i get this other tag, mummy might scream though! =(
ok, went to have coffee with leanne at paragon. initially wanted to go baker's inn, but there was such a long queue there!! oh well... the cuppacino there is really good, but oh well, we ended up at coffee club instead. not too bad a trade off.
had a fun time bitchin'. as usual. haha... well, i mean, the only thing gd abt mr teng is that he gives me something to bitch abt right... i mean... he's there for entertainment value only!! haha...
oh well...
oh. didn't managed to go to the gym today. my butt ached too much for me to go. but will go tom. mental note.
coffee with leanne @ coffee club paragon. she's going back on tues! sob... everyone's leaving... i've got no one to bitch to!! =(
luyi and i @ pushi tei taka. she's going back tom 9am!!! *sob*
got this from a friend's site. how true...
"I miss you when something really good happens, because you're the one I want to share it with. I miss you when something is troubling me, because you're the one who understands me so well. I miss you when I laugh and cry, because I know that you are the one that makes my laughter grow, and my tears disappear. I miss you all the time, but I guess its not the same anymore....
when you took the "L" outta LOVER and now its "over"...
and guess what? I did cry today.
Not because I miss you or even wanted to be with you, but, because I finally realized that I'll be alright without you."
Friday, February 11, 2005
every muscle in my body screams for attention. ok, maybe not ALL the muscles, but those that i need to walk!!
damn it, i'm walking like a duck, i sit like i'm pregnant and i walk down the stairs like an elderly. sigh... what have i come to man?
my mum said i look like i got fu*ked really bad and i can't sit down.
right.
it's all cos of the body pump i did yesterday. the 100 squats that i did... yea, that killed me balls. shit... hopefully i'll have a nice round and tight ass. haha. yea right. i'm not really an ass person. i care more abt the shape then the ass per say.
ANYWAY, i plan to wake up tom for bodycombat class. yes, that's something like kickboxing i guess. oh well, but there's no way i can go for class if i'm still a limpin' idiot. sigh... wanna go also so ma fan ar... chey...
but i'll be meeting luyi for lunch at pushi tei. yes, both our samsung phones call it pushi tei, and meeting leanne for tea at baker's inn at paragon. the thing is, if i'm not un-sore enough to go for gym, then how can i walk around orchard road like a duck?! crap.
and guess wat? i'm actually at home on a friday night man!! it's stupid i know but, hey, i'm a changed person!! doing my labour tutorial, half way done, and prob going to start abit on my IO tonight. see! i'm a consciencious prick.
acutally i'm sick lar. *tee hee*
i need some TLC!!!
Thursday, February 10, 2005
woah, almost a week since i blogged! haha... tired lar
today was the first time i went to cali. and i'm sick!! did intro to bodypump which is this resistance training class... but i just used the bar only man... didn't even put any weights on it at all!! haha... but it was tough man. really. felt like dying. like really dying.
on the way home, i nearly fainted man!! yea, too little oxygen man... crap. so out of shape xia. i think it's also cos i'm sick with a block nose and i can't really breathe properly...
nmind, came home and collasped man...
later went over to dave's house to pa nian... wah... his parents are really nice man. sat down and talked to us for abit and it was nice catching up with viv, peter they all... was fun lar.
i guess cny is a time for me to actually meet my extended family... it's not a time to grow closer to my immediate family. i think i am pretty close to my immediate family already... but we can always get closer right!! yea... hopefully we'll be a tight knit family.
anyway, don't really want to upload pics... nothing much also lar... don't really like my extended family that much too!! haha... oh well...
and i shall start gyming man!!! new chinese new year resolution!! haha...
Sunday, February 06, 2005
pan pac suite, ruixin, elton, alvin's birthday celebration, 5th Feb 2005. mai tu liao, PARTY ON!!
woaHO! i've got H20!!!
jerry drinking water?!!
cheers!!
1,2,3,4,5,6, that's where you're WRONG!!
i try so hard... and got SO far
deb and i
a very RED rui!!
the guys!!
the girls!!
woah.
i'm a famous celeb now!!
haha... came back from the shooting today. was pretty fun, though i was a calafare... haha... wasted my whole morning there man. bleh. but at least i got paid!! haha... watch out for the commercial that i'm going to star in!! will post the link up if it's on the internet!
anyway, went for the panpac "retreat". was superb man!! will post up pics soon, words speak for itself!! haha... it was really really fun.
food was great, drinks were fantastic, but company was EXCELLENT!! woahHO! can't believe that i'm growing old with these folks. fantastic. my life is going to be a blast man!!
Saturday, February 05, 2005
take that!
Embracing Reality at a Subdued Deutsche Bank
By MARK LANDLER P
ublished: February 4, 2005
RANKFURT, Feb. 3 - A year ago, Deutsche Bank was the subject of some of the hottest rumors on the Wall Street grapevine - a global financial competitor just itching to merge, buy or be bought. On Thursday, as the bank presented its 2004 financial results and laid out its plans for this year, the lack of buzz was palpable.
None of the rumored deals ever materialized, and the bank's chief executive, Josef Ackermann, spent most of Thursday's session detailing cost-cutting plans and Deutsche Bank's renewed focus on Germany. "We are not empire builders," he said in reply to one more question about deals. "We are here to make the bank as profitable as possible. We don't make acquisitions that are not in the interest of the shareholder."
Few analysts think that Mr. Ackermann, a Swiss-born investment banker who has run the bank since 2002, has lost his appetite for deal making. But they say the reality of Deutsche Bank's position, with higher costs and a lower market value than its American or British peers, has left it with few ways to seize the initiative in a consolidating industry.
Deutsche Bank is also hurt by a broader stagnation in German banking - no longer in crisis but still fragmented, stifled by regulation and unattractive to foreign banks. Credit Suisse, a rumored merger partner, recently ruled out a deal in Germany.
Mr. Ackermann expressed frustration with his bank's market capitalization of 35.5 billion euros ($46 billion), which is less than a fifth that of the world leader, Citigroup. Deutsche Bank explored the idea of merging with Citigroup early last year, but a deal was scuttled by political concerns in Germany because Citigroup would have ended up swallowing Deutsche Bank.
"If there were to be new discussions," said Simon Adamson, an analyst at the research firm CreditSights, "they would like to be in a stronger position, and a stronger position would imply a higher cap."
Mr. Ackermann's goal is to vault Deutsche Bank into the world's top 10 in market capitalization. It is currently ranked 23rd, trailing the likes of U.S. Bancorp of Minneapolis. Ranked by assets, Deutsche Bank is the world's sixth-largest bank, behind HSBC.
To close the gap between what it owns and how it is valued by the market, Mr. Ackermann has promised to deliver a pretax return on equity of 25 percent by the end of this year. In 2004, the bank improved its return on equity to 17 percent from 10 percent the previous year.
"This is very much a make-or-break year for them," Mr. Adamson said. "They are desperately trying to reach this 25 percent."
He and other analysts said it might be a stretch, given the weakness of Deutsche Bank's home market, the uneven growth of its trading businesses, problems in its asset management unit and the reduction of its work force by nearly a third since Mr. Ackermann took over.
On Thursday, the company announced a fresh round of job cuts, affecting 3,280 people, or 5 percent of the remaining work force. In December, it said that it was cutting 1,920 jobs in its German staff. Together, the reductions will save the bank more than $1.4 billion a year.
Deutsche Bank's fourth-quarter earnings were affected by 574 million euros ($746 million) in costs to cover the job cuts. Excluding the special charge, net income declined 38 percent, to 269 million euros ($349 million), on revenue of 5.3 billion euros ($6.9 billion). Net income for the full year, though, was 2.5 billion euros ($3.25 billion), an 87 percent jump from 2003.
In trading here on Thursday, shares of Deutsche Bank rose 1.3 percent as analysts said the cost savings had exceeded expectations.
Mr. Ackermann did not rule out the possibility of an acquisition. But he said that the most obvious deal - a merger with another German bank - was not attractive because Deutsche Bank would have to pay a premium and absorb the costs of integrating two German work forces.
Still, he said that his bank was putting a renewed focus on the German market, mentioning Jürgen Fitschen, a rising star who was named last fall to take charge of the German franchise.
The most immediate challenge facing Mr. Ackermann is Deutsche Bank's huge asset management division, which has been stung by an outflow of funds, especially in Britain, where it has had to contend with management instability. Investors withdrew 20 billion euros ($26 billion) in assets from the entire division in the fourth quarter.
Reluctant as he was to talk about deals, Mr. Ackermann made an exception in the case of the troubled British unit. "You try and fix it," he said. "If you can't fix it, you sell it."
sex on the beach, illusion, pinapple malibu, gin tonic.
and that was just starters for the night.
i had an awsome time last night, LUYI's BACK!! my one regret was that i didn't even get to club when i was over in UK, esp at MOS when i lived so near it!!
anyway, luyi and i came up with a "bet" that we'll each go pull a guy tonight... let's just say that i'm not the one with saliva down my throat, ears and neck!! hahahaa.... but fred's friend was really cute... (right luyi?!!) and i was pratically drooling man! *slurp* and he's a totally gentleman too, but then again, it cld be cos i'm fred's friend so he kept his hands to himself.
or maybe cos i'm ugly... *whines*
anyway, had a really fun time last night. i've not been to zouk since after the exams before flying off to uk. and well... the crowd hasn't changed much. it's still as young! shit. i got picked up by like 17 yr old boys can?! shittz...
bern was there too, and he kinda fended off some guys for me. haha... not that i wld have mind dancing with random weird strange guys, but it was ok lar, nothing lost cos they weren't really cute. at least they weren't wearing a mickey mouse t-shirt!!
max got a few stares and middle fingers after he fended a few off... haha... he was a natural bouncer man!! hahha... neway, why are all the guys in phuture so damn bloody short?!! fred and sam were like the tallest there man. sigh...
oh, i'm SO looking forward to going law pagent on fri... i wanna see sam!!! luyi, i don't think i can be the queen of hearts!!! =(
oh yea, i went shopping before i went chiong as well... went out with sa tan and got my stuff from ferragamo... haha... too bad they didn't have the wallet that i wanted. shit. make him come down all the way and then don't have. sigh.
and tonight's the party at pan pac. how cool is that?! haha... excited! don't think i can drink too much too cos i don't wanna puke in front of the people. not too glam man. haha... but looking forward to spending some time with them, just drinking and talking and stuff. haha... happening xia.
*groans* i want sam!!!! (isn't that a name of a movie?)
Thursday, February 03, 2005
how abt that?!!
i spoke to MR RAY TENG. yes, i actually took time off, to listen to someone who speaks out of his ass. (listen to this leanne, this is good...!!!)
yes, so we've broken up in J2. yes, mr teng, that's a whole 5 years ago. can't u get over the fact that i've stopped worshipping the ground that u walk on and think u're god?! please.
so i am as always accomodating, i am poilet. i'm not going to tell him in the face F*CK off right. i've got more class than than.
so anyway, he wants to talk. yes, after 5 years, he wants to talk. hey, u broke up with me dude. as i recall, i was the one crying my eyes out, doing badly for As and devastated. and so yes, YOU want to talk.
what? did i fan the banana leaf too lightly that your highness felt too hot? or was i not giving u enough love and attention?! pls, i gave all i cld at that time, if i can recall. (but then again i'm biased right)
so anyway, he wants to tell me that he still loves me as a friend, and wants to be part of my life if i can let him. dude. WTF?! no way am i letting u back into my life. there's strictly a members only policy, and u just don't cut it.
URGH... thinking abt him makes me mad.
there were many other things that he said that i just kept quiet abt. i just sat there and listened to the guy fart right.
so i was like, "are u done? is there anything else more u'll like to say? no? ok, take care then, bye"
and he msg-es at the end,
"oh juz wan u 2 know tht even tho i know the outcome of the relationship and the tuff 5 years to follow, i will still go for it if I have the chance to turn back time. Thx for being the best gf and all the happy memories u hav given me."
yea right
(leanne, we HAVE got to meet up soon, i need to tell u this story in person!! believe me, it's good! we'll arrange a date after cny ok!!)
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
i just joined california fitness.
woohoo to healthy living, and good bye flabby tummy...
yea right.
anyway, i do hope to acomplish at least 2x a week, or 3x ideally... and get myself in shape. gosh... when those idiots there measured my body fat... fuck man. i'm damn fat lar...
i somehow remember screaming over my 23% of body fat in JC when i used to go visit mr chee in the pe department everyday. believe me, this time i fainted. it was an obsence amount... ridiculous to be exact.
so yes, i have scientific proof that i'm fat.
ok, so i've made the first step into committing myself to get in shape. hopefully i'll be able to get into some of my clothes better. haiz.
looking forward to going with angie and rui too once they finish their exams. and of course with addy after school and hopefully with vic for some yoga lessons.
so yes... i am going to start working out... at least i'm commited to at least a year now... not sure what my job is going to bring me and where... but hopefully it'll be alright.
i am going to start getting in shape.
aiyoh... it's going to hurt man.
