One more driver on the road

YAY ! ! !
I finally passed my driving test ! ! !
Third attempt, lol.
For those who know me, I'm a pretty lousy driver, as my instructor will put it, my arga-ration techniques is damn bad, lol.
It was a close shave, because I strike kerb during vertical parking, haha.
But anyhow, I passed ! ! !

So, as i have promised myself, as celebration of my newly acquired license, i went on to
1. Mod the cable of my Triple-Fi 10 to Westone ES2 cable
2. Buy the new Sony NWZ-W252

I've been wanting to change the cable of my TF10 for some time already. The stock cable it came with is simply lousy, spoils every 4 months or so no matter how well you take care of it.
So after lunch, I went to Jaben and got it done (Jaben is located at The Adelphi #04-16)
The cable itself is S$70, and worksmanship is S$5.
Basically the differences in sound are:
1. Clearer/Sharper Treble
2. Somewhat wider soundstage due to the treble
3. Punchier bass
More importantly, the ES2 is alot studier, and it doesn't have the kind of memory effect which causes the 'curls' to stay due to the winding of cable due storage. And it definitely feels (and is) more durable.
here are some pics:




After getting the cables done, I dropped by my workplace @funan to say hi to the guys. To the think of it, seems kinda dumb to visit your workplace on your off day, lol.

Next i went to Sim Lim Square to get my NWZ-W252. For those of you who are Sony's fan (like myself), you would know that Sony's product is kinda pricey, and the price doesn't drop. However, this shop at SLS third level sells Sony stuff slightly cheaper than other shops. I got my W252 for S$119 instead of the RRP of S$129. SLS is not exactly a safe place to shop because of the many fraud cases, you just have to be experienced enough to know which shop is trustworthy.

Anyways, the W252 is great, very lightweight, comfortable fit, with pretty decent sound quality.
Here's a few pictures of the W252:

More Blood

The exam saga finally ended, it is time for some ECP cycling.

Thursday: D-day-1, Prep for event
I modded the wheelset for my bike to the shimano m565, costed me a freaking s$330.


I passed my old alex rims which came stock with the bike to Randy's $80 bike.
As any cyclist can see, it's a GT Aggressor, amateur bike. I'm no pro in cycling, just a small time hobby/leisure cyclist.
Generally, the new wheelset is good, very smooth, faster acceleration, and longer glide.

Friday: D-day
I had an interview at esplanade mall that day, bad choice to put it together with the cycling event. The interview + walking-around drained alot of my energy, seems like I'm getting old. Anyways, I popped 2 cans of red bull in attempt to recover the lost energy, another bad choice.

The plan was for Anthony to take Randy's bike, and he and I will cycle to ECP from Toa Payoh. That is when I realized the Red Bull was a bad choice. At roughly 10% of the journey to ECP, when we were crossing the PIE, I had a cramp at the calf, that was the first cramp.

Fast forward, we managed to reach the ECP, where another bad choice happened. You see, when they say not to use your handphone while driving, you should have listened. We were supposed to meet the rest of the group, so they called. I have a habit of free-hand riding, so both my hands were free to take the phone. I used my right hand to hold the phone, while continue cycling. The crucial part was when I over-estimated myself, and attempted to change the rear gear, which shifters are on the right side of the handle bar, with my left hand. It happened within micro seconds, my bike turned, and crashed.

I must say I am extremely satisfied with my break-fall ability. Being as accident-prone as I am, I have had many permutations of accidents, and with that much experience, my damage control is pretty good. Anyways, it ended up with this:



That's quite abit of blood, but still ok to continue the journey. So, we went on with the trip.

The rest of the cycling wasn't exactly peaceful with the injuries, but still manageable, afterall, I gotta be still alive to be write this correct?

The event concluded with a good dinner of seafood bbq, and a 20 min zuo-bo at a random hut looking at the sea. And I clocked 3 flesh wounds, 23 cramps, 1 numb finger, and 1 sprained ankle, freaking happening day.

Of course, I had to cycle all the way back to Toa Payoh.

I'm planning the next ECP cycling trip already =D