Investing In Luxury Timepieces

September 2, 2010 – 11:15 pm

A friend told me that he has started to collect luxury timepieces. While I too love watches, I cannot really comprehend why someone would splash so much on a watch and not wear it. You should see the way my friend keeps his luxury watches; in a glass cabinet so that he could admire them now and then.

When my friend sent me a text message informing me that he just purchased a Ulysse Nardin Macho Palladium, I went to the website of Lussori to have a look. Lussori deals in luxury timepieces and fine jewelry and I knew that they would carry this brand name.

I admit that I am most impressed with its luxurious design and craftsmanship. I now understand why my friend just needs to have it. It commands attention!



The Half-Price Trap

September 1, 2010 – 9:01 pm

Today, I went to buy a bottle of supplements. I was recommended to it last month by a pharmacist but because I didn’t have enough cash on me and she doesn’t accept credit card, I decided to buy it one month later, when I would surely visit the store again to pick up my monthly supply of supplements.

During this month, I frequented more established retail pharmacies and noticed that a bottle of these supplements with 100 tablets per bottle is sold at MYR80. I didn’t buy because the first pharmacy gave me a “discount” and told me that she is selling it to me at MYR57.90. Her mark price for the bottle of supplements is actually MYR100.

Today, when I went to another smaller pharmacy that was just adjacent to my bank, this pharmacy sold it to me at MYR57, which I bought. Her mark price for it is also MYR100.

In this post, I am not trying to boast how much I saved buying the bottle of supplement but I am actually highlighting the extremely high price that pharmacies mark up their stocks and sold to customers at a seemingly “steep” discount. Can you imagine that even at a price of MYR57, she already has a profit margin?

Now, I am not begrudging anyone from making a profit. This pharmacy which I finally bought from, expanded her business from one shop lot to two and newly renovated too, but doesn’t anyone think that to put such a high price tag on supplements and then give a discount like that is a gimmick, when it’s not during a sale? Imagine if I had bought from the retail pharmacy, I would have paid MYR80 for a bottle of supplements!

I believe there should be regulations to govern how high goods could be priced so that consumers do not fall into such traps. Consumers should really be extra careful when shopping.



Making hCG Diet Work

August 31, 2010 – 10:58 pm

Although I do not have a weight issue, there is no denying that I do have some body fat that I would gladly get rid of, and fast! I have asked some friends for their opinion and suggestions and among the many weight loss options, hcg has been mentioned the most.

I have been reading up on the hcg diet recently. While some claim that it works, apparently, there are people who claim that it doesn’t work; didn’t work for them. I am not sure if it really works but for it to be around for over 50 years already, the failure probably lies in the user themselves, in most cases.

I have read that whilst other diet plans may work, they may cause muscle atrophy, which then causes us a medical problem, in addition to our weighty issue. The hCG diet, though low in calorie, when supported by hCG, doesn’t only help one to lose weight by suppressing appetite, but also helps to maintain our muscle mass and prevent other negative side effects that are commonly associated with other diet plans, like headache, back ache, nausea, thirst and constipation.

There are two types of hCG; injectable hcg and homeopathic hcg. While injectable hCG was the first to be introduced, it is not for everyone. Imagine having to syringe yourself. Frankly, not everyone could do it. Luckily, there is an easier, pain-free way to administer hCG now, in the form of homeopathic hCG where a patient would just have to pop it under her tongue.

There are many benefits of homeopathic hCG over injectable. Besides being cost-saving, doing away with syringes, needles and mixing kits in one go, patients no longer have to mix the drops themselves! Worse of all, the poking! Oral hcg drops is so convenient compared to injectables! The best news of all is that oral drops are said to be just as effective!



Making Money Go Further

August 31, 2010 – 10:10 pm

I have a friend, though not wealthy, has a sizable savings in the bank, in cash. I have suggested that he invests the cash into something that would bring him passive income, like Fixed Deposits, without risks, but he isn’t keen. I think he is looking down on the $200 +/- monthly that he could get in FD interests.

My friend thinks that it’s good to have cash on hand in case he needs it but it has been years that he has kept this cash, but still has no reason to withdraw a large lump sum of money thus far. Imagine the money sitting idle in the bank account, only earning extremely low savings account interest.

I know it’s none of my business but I really think that it’s a waste for anyone to keep so much idle cash. I would advise the same to anyone who is in a similar financial position as him. While $200 +/- per month may not be much, it all adds up at the end of the year.



Being Employable

August 31, 2010 – 8:38 pm

Recently, I have been looking for a part time job as I would like to pick up a new skill. However, I found that I am highly unemployable. I don’t have qualifications or experience in anything at all and although my friends told me that my small business should be advantageous but employers don’t look too highly on online businesses.

If I lived in Kansas, i would definitely enroll in a beauty school in Wichita. Although I don’t beautify myself, I have always had an interest in beautifying others and I believe that graduating from a beauty school like Regency Beauty Institute would make me highly employable.

Come to think of it, armed with a beauty qualification, I may end up working for myself again, opening my own beauty salon!



Rating Customer Service Staff

August 31, 2010 – 1:41 pm

I had an occasion to call up the customer service centre of a large telco. I made two calls in total and both times, at the end of the call, the staff asked me how I rate her service, from one to five, one being lowest and five highest.

Both times, although I still had questions not answered, I still give them a five. I know that their evaluation by management would depend on all these ratings by customers and it would be to their advantage to get as many fives as possible.

While I don’t begrudge the rating I gave them, I find it a little awkward that I have to give the rating in front of the person that I am rating. Even that totally odd? I find that such ratings would be truer if we were not made to rate the staff like that. What do you think?



Waiting For Next PC Fair

August 31, 2010 – 12:43 pm

The long awaited PC Fair (II) is over and done with, finally. Unfortunately, I did not pick up anything because I couldn’t see any good deals. Of course, some items were sold cheaper, some were retailed at the same price as during non-fair days, and some were sold cheaper, but then the items were getting obsolete soon.

Although I didn’t buy anything at the end of the fair, I had wanted to look for a printer, a desktop and also laptop computer. I didn’t have too much time to browse the items in detail, unfortunately, because thunderstorm was brewing and I had to rush home. LOL

So now, I hope to wait for the next PC Fair to catch deals on these essentials. Couldn’t work well without these technology essentials!