...Happy happy, joy joy...

...Euphoria at the click of a 'Read More' caption...

the day started out meh. Had that assessment block. Went home. Went back to campus to study. Uneventful, really. I was glad that the assessment session was over, as that only leaves one final one come Thursday. One more burden relieved, allowing me one step closer to home. What made my day a reason for inner-me to jump about ecstatically is... *drrr* the allowance is out!=D And that, ladies and gents, surely warrants it's very own entry! (Well, I'm too excited I can't keep it to myself anyway;D)

I'll attempt to make it a more substantial entry, however, by expressing some...discontent, shall we say. True that it's a cause for relief, happiness and smiles all around, I'm sincerely very grateful, but the lead-up to this event has been filled with endless laments and gripes. It's arrival, after all, has been much overdue. It's into the 3rd week of October and there's only 5 fricking days left before I fricking leave the country. A lot of ca$h-requiring errands need to be taken care of before leaving. What's so hard about giving the money on time? It has, after all, already been budgeted out. True that it's a 3-month chunk and so the relevant authorities might...erm, overlook supplementing our welfare but they've been doing so well for the last few batches that I thought gone were the days of late laaate allowance arrivals! I thought efficiency was part of the reason they switched to that electronic system. Well, with a history of similar miserable waits for the elusive, tardier-than-tardy deposit, I can go on and on rather heatedly about the matter. But I think I'll just pave way for some constructive suggestions=)

Let's just establish something... If the $ is our primary source of welfare for the given period of time, it should theoretically come before that period starts so that recipients are able to start their surviving. For example, if the mode of welfare is to support one from October through to December, it should arrive the day before, or on the actual 1st of October, so that one would be able to use that money to support one's self from the 1st of October to the 31st of December, right? So suggestions?

1. Ensure a fixed date that one should expect the bounty. Say, by the 1st of each month. The relevant authorities can give it as early as they like or as late as they like as long as it was mutually understood that students can rely on having the mode of their survival by the 1st of the month. This would also facilitate better financial planning as you know the exact lifespan of a budget before supplementaries come into the picture.

2. Since the tri-monthly deposits may understandably pose a challenge on the relevant authorities in their quest to remember to send us students what is essentially our life support while abroad among so many other matters that plague their everyday work-life, why not arrange for an auto-payment via direct debit? Create an account for the sake of categorizing (if feasible) for say, NZ students. Then, deposit the budgeted amount (I don't know the system here, whether they have a large sum to begin with and divide early on, or have continual top-ups to eventually accumulate into the one large budget for the department) for NZ students into this account and have it auto-pay the individual amounts to the individual students at the set dates. Would be tres-convenient and, if my understanding is correct, then the electronic system they now utilise should prove useful in that respect.

3. Well, that's about the actual constuctive suggestions I have so now is a sort-of suggestion in the form of

Personal remarks and opinions shouldn't have to factor. The facts of the matter remain, regardless. What's important is a mutually respectful form of communication...

constructive and inherently well-meaning 'criticism'. Whenever it is asked whether we students have any problems and the matter of late reception of the allowance inevitably arises, it really is well-meant and only brought up in the hopes of there being a constructive change to be made. Remarks along the nature of the following aren't really the most appreciated...

- That we should budget and rely on our savings.
My opinion: Yes, of course. I completely agree. But I think that is the individual's individual matter. The fact remains that the agreed upon source of support should arrive at the appropriate time such that we would actually be able to use said support at the time we are meant to be using it. So, in other words, October $ is to be used for October, not for the remaining half of October. Where goes the unchecked first half? If the student was in truly dire straits for whatever reason, it's not exactly impossible that they face eviction, starvation and all sorts of maladies. And to reprimand with the notion of 'saving' and 'budgeting' is not exactly fair and is actually an unnecessary measure. It's simple: $ for a given period should arrive in the appropriate time to be used for the given period. Anything else is beyond the realms of professional relations and venturing into one's own personal agendas.

- That there is that expectation that our funds are cared for by our parents.

My opinion: I personally think that this is another non-issue, venturing into personal agendas yet again. It's not fair to expect one's parents to support him/her during a dry period. I, for one, don't really like the idea of having such expectations and don't expect that it's my God-given right to receive any of the sort. The reason one works hard for a scholarship is for one's own future and to lighten the load on one's parents. It's not like most individuals are an only child and it's not like one has a fundamental right to such support anyway, I feel. Again, keeping it simple: One person does his job. The other does his. If both ends are well-maintained, there is no reason for discordance, no?

I guess I mean that personal remarks and opinions shouldn't have to factor. The facts of the matter remain, regardless. What's important is a mutually respectful form of communication=)

So, yeah, that was rather emotive, I know, but I always can't help but feel the issues could be handled that much better. Enough griping, though, and I'll just enjoy the fact that it's actually here now and keep hoping that the constructive suggestions will be met next time around=)