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Asia One In pursuit of happiness By all accounts, Madam Karen Khew is fairly successful. The financial controller in an MNC earns $12,500 a month and heads a team of eight people. Her husband runs two alfresco cafes - one in Jurong and another in Orchard Road. The couple, who have a nine-month old baby boy, live in a semi-detached house in the East. He drives a Mercedes and she a BMW. But Madam Khew, 39, claims she is unhappy. "How can I be happy when I do nothing but work all day? What's all the money if I can't enjoy myself?" she laments. "Erm, your statement is likely to raise a stinker," I point out to Madam Khew, "especially among those who are less successful. "But really, what will make you happy?" She leans back into her plush $4,500 sofa and ponders the question. "It's easy actually," says Madam Khew. "I just want to work about four to six hours max and spend the rest of the time with my baby and my husband." With no pay-cut. Madam Khew's unhappiness seems to support the survey findings by marketing communications agency Grey Singapore early this week. The top reason for unhappiness among 30- to 44-year-olds is their work-life balance, with more than 18 per cent indicating they were very unhappy with this. The survey of 200 citizens and permanent residents, aged from 18 to over 60, found that baby boomers between 45 and 59 were happiest with where they lived, their closeness with family members and their spirituality. The least happy group were those between 18 and 29 years old. They were most disgruntled with their savings and expenditure in the past six months, and with their job satisfaction. Ah, happiness. It's been a hot button issue in the past week, with MPs locking horns in Parliament over how to measure it, and claims that Singapore is too focused on economic progress, at the expense of citizens' happiness. But well before the debate became national, The New Paper on Sunday had, in its humble manner, introduced its own Happiness Index, based on the week's good and bad news (See page 3). Our Happiness Index is hardly scientific. Admittedly, it is often arbitrary. How do you measure happiness, really? It's relative, really, says Mrs Michelle Leong, 47, a housewife. She quit her job five years ago when her daughter's grades began to slide drastically three months before the PSLE. "Really, if you ask me, I'd tell you I was unhappy. But now, my girl is in a good JC and she is doing well," says Mrs Leong. "That makes me happy. Very happy." Indeed. What lights up Madam Neo Ah San's life is when her two children pop over with her four grandchildren, aged between two months and seven years old. "Nothing beats having everyone sit down together for a meal," says the grandma in Khek. "Every Sunday is like a reunion dinner on Chinese New Year's eve." For hardware stall owner Siew Khim Teng, he's happy as long as he can make a sale, it doesn't matter if it barely covers the daily $50 rent. Mr Siew, 50, whose stall is in a Clementi wet market, says: "Business is bad. I'm happy as long as I can make a sale before the shutters come down." Nasi padang stall owner Madam Narimah Mustafa, 48, considers herself relatively happy even though she is divorced and childless. She reckons it's a blessing that she's healthy and does not have to depend on handouts. Madam Narimah says: "Not only can I feed myself, I can cook and feed others while making money." For Mr Brandon Ang, his unhappiness stems from his inability to set aside money for his wedding. The 28-year-old salesman, who earns $3,000 in a good month, says: "More than half of my pay is gone the minute the money goes into my bank account. "There are bills, bills and more bills to pay." He has proposed to his girlfriend, a 27-year-old teacher, but they have yet to set a date. "How to? I don't even have enough money to pay for the downpayment of a flat." If the gauge from all the 40 people randomly polled by Ground Zero is any indication, happiness is indeed almost impossible to measure. Sometimes, it's the simple things in life, and the way we see it. Not enough money? Too little time to smell the roses or raise the kids? Take a leaf from how Bangladeshi conservancy worker Balakrishnan Hassan, 22, sees it. Says the man who has been working in Singapore for almost a year: "What makes me happy? "As long as I can finish my shift without having to clean any vomit or adult's urine at the void decks or in the lift."

Car chases or pursuits have always been something of my favourite, whether they involve the police or not. As a matter of fact, that's one reason why I love movies like 'Transporter' (starring famous actor Jason Statham) and 'The Fast and The Furious'. With that being said, if you're like me, then the following video should be of your interest, too, somehow. I found it quite interesting, at least while waiting for the 'Fast and Furious 7' - which will also star Jason Statham - to be released in theatres in July 2014. The video was shot by - a pretty creative Japanese guy, I would say - someone known as LUXE37 on YouTube. While car chases will normally endanger human life, this one puts no harm on anyone at all. It's because the video was shot in a miniature retro Japanese city. Not only is the city retro, even all the automobiles involved seem retro as well. It seems like the automobiles used were those that came from the 80s, if not the 70s. However, being shot in a miniature city doesn't necessarily mean that this video isn't interesting at all. In fact, I think it's worth watching. It's also quite humourous and features plenty of crashes, even an explosion! And, despite the fact that the automobiles were all retro, they somehow produced V8 sounds, too! You bet, the sounds are fake, of course. One thing that caught my attention was the guy driving the blue muscle car. He must have been like a really skilled driver if he existed in real life. He seemed to know every inch of the city and where he can escape the chasing police officers through narrow alleyways, well, until the car finally exploded, of course. LUXE37, I wonder if the ambulances actually managed to rescue that driver in the end? He was burning, you see.

http://www.theasiamag.com/patterns/the-pur...es-in-singapore agree or not? confirm? confirm?

Finally did the GS300 as requested by one of the bros ( Sorry i forgot your name ) Car was badly beaten up as it's a weekly maid washen car. Did a clean up.. Body - Wash < Clay < 501 ,< 105 < Aquawax Wipedown Wheels - APC < Wash with DG shampoo < Apply some 501 to clean some stains. Results

Dear All, Needed your info or assistance. I have installed the above immobilizer for my car in Malaysia. But recently found-out that 1 of the spare immobilizer decoder is not working anymore. I need to see whether anybody in Singapore, could give the contact to get the dealer. Abit concerns without the spare key decoder. FYI, the immobilizer is installed in Ipoh, Malaysia 2 years ago. Thank you for your attention. Cheers, Antz

Lexus takes pride in its motto "The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection". The first generations of Lexus indeed live up to the expectations of its motto. But how about the current generation of Lexus? First, let us take a look at the new IS250 which has reached our shores not long ago.