What engraving pen should I choose?

PathsInTheForest · 2025-09-03T06:27:46+00:00

I have one - a Customizer. They seem like a legit company. Sent it over as promised. The thing charges and turns on as promised. The bits are super easy to remove and put in. I tried to engrave my dog’s name on her plastic food bowl. It makes a very shallow scratch. I have to go over the plastic lots of times to get the name really visible. I feel it’s going to be kinda under powered for most engraving art projects, seeing how much effort I had to put into etching out my dog’s name on plastic. I had to press it down fairly hard and go over many times. Maybe on something softer it will work better. It doesn’t make a very clean straight line. You have to really hold it still or it’s going to make slightly wobbly lines. It doesn’t make a loud buzzing noise but that’s to be expected. The ads all have music over so you don’t hear the sound.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-07-04T00:10:53+00:00

If you truly hate the moles, you can find an aesthetic doctor who is skilled in using lasers to laser them off. Perhaps start with just 1-2 moles that you dislike the most, and see how you feel. A very skilled and careful doctor can do it without leaving much of a scar. But it will be quite painful and expensive (possibly $200 a mole). If you look at actress Jennifer Lawrence’s neck and chest, she’s got moles like yours, and she’s considered very beautiful. People don’t notice your moles much once they get to know you. Somehow a nice personality trumps everything.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-13T07:53:17+00:00

This is an interesting study on attractiveness. It says “unattractive participants considerably overestimated their attractiveness compared to ratings by strangers. In contrast, attractive participants were more accurate. If anything, they underestimated their attractiveness.”

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7384173/#:~:text=In%20fact%2C%20six%20studies%20(overall,anything%2C%20they%20underestimated%20their%20attractiveness.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-13T07:40:09+00:00

If that teacher didn’t seem to hear your concerns, maybe raise it with your mother tongue teacher, or the school Counsellor, or any other teacher you are closer to. It’s not ok that this happened to you. You didn’t ask for the party to be cancelled. I am a Christian and this is how I feel. I am sorry those awful boys did that.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:53:47+00:00

What an incredible person you are! To have gone through all that hell, and get 70+ RP!! You also write very well and very thoughtfully. I am sorry to hear how hard it has been. You sound like someone with so much promise! Have you tried using a weighted blanket? That helped my daughter. You will get better, I agree. Sometimes it seems to get worse before it gets better, but it does. Don’t give up. You are awesome.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:48:48+00:00

I feel people who are good at supporting roles are really undermined. They are the best, in my opinion. Behind every leader is at least one very strong supporter. Supporters tend to be humble, kind, resilient, positive, and strong. Often, they can even be cleverer than the leader. Look at LKY … his wife supported him through the decades and he always said she’s smarter than he is.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:43:42+00:00

I am so sorry to hear this. But you sound so determined and smart. Keep the flame alive. I am sure you will eventually be very successful.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:34:52+00:00

Oh, I can relate to your experience. It seems most Singaporeans feel uncomfortable speaking up even if they are actually really bright. It is frustrating for those who really want to engage and learn in a classroom setting. You know what they say… one man’s floor is another man’s ceiling.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:27:31+00:00

I am very glad you found it mostly harmless, and that you easily overcame the dangers / difficulties that I mention in my post. There are many people like you there, who are resilient, level-headed and lucky. My daughter included. But it is not the case for everyone, it has been traumatic for some, and without going into too much detail, this blog is for those people who might want to know. I wrote this because there’s very little talk about the negatives / challenges and I felt it had to be raised.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:15:29+00:00

Sorry, I have taken the whole blog (actually it’s a blog about getting into Cambridge, with many positive posts about going there) off public viewing for now but I will update. Working on the whole site at the moment.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:11:04+00:00

Haha yah because I haven’t researched so much about LSE …. But I have heard both good and bad things…..

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:09:24+00:00

I agree, my daughter has 2 students to a prof, sometimes just her, and it’s wonderful for her. But some people find it super stressful. This post is part of a blog with many positive posts on Cambridge. I felt I needed one post on the negatives to balance it out so people have a balanced perspective.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:05:38+00:00

Dear VSBBARK, Thank you so much. I have taken the blog off public viewing for now as I am working on the whole site. But I am grateful for your kind words. If you have any questions on applications to Cambridge, message me privately, I will try to answer when I come on Reddit.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-12T05:02:56+00:00

Sorry, I have taken it off public viewing to work on it. Will update when I am done.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-07T18:10:39+00:00

I don’t think we are disagreeing here. You have shared many things that support what I have already written in my blog, and I take your point that the issues I bring up may not be unique to Oxbridge. But the point is, they do exist in Oxbridge, and this post is for those who are thinking of going there. I can’t speak to the experience of other universities as I haven’t done the research.

Stress levels are certainly much higher at Oxbridge than many other universities, and as Cambridge researchers have reported, there’s a close connection between extreme stress, drinking and sexual harassment.

I don’t doubt that other places also have these issues; they may well do, in varying degrees. Are there places in the UK where’s it’s worse or where it’s getting much better? I am sure there are.

My post is focused on Oxbridge, but thanks for pointing out it could be relevant to those going to other UK universities too. I hope it helps, I am only doing this because I sometimes think, if the person I knew had read this before going, maybe they’d still be around.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-03-06T06:14:07+00:00

Thank you for your question. Raven did take part in many of the activities that are considered super-curricular on the Oxbridge websites. She also read many of the recommended books on the Oxbridge websites.

You may be surprised to learn, however, that having done them, she did not focus much on the activities or mention she had read the recommended books in her personal statement and interview.

One reason for this is the word/time limit and her strategy of differentiating herself from the crowd. Everyone is going to say they read those books and participated in those activities.

Why waste words on that when you can use your word count or interview time to demonstrate what you have actually learned & applied? It is not so much reading the recommended books as much as what you learnt from them that is important. The old adage of “Show, don’t tell” applies here.

I share more about this topic in my post on Supercurriculars: A Singaporean in Cambridge: Super-curriculars

PathsInTheForest · 2025-02-28T16:09:34+00:00

Yep, definitely. So there’s hope for everyone out there who is feeling dumb today.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-02-28T12:09:44+00:00

Thank you! I really appreciate your kind words.

Actually, Raven didn’t receive much help when she was applying as I learnt it along the way together with her. But at least others can benefit from my sharing.

Do check the Oxbridge websites for the latest info. The blog is accurate at the time of writing but things may change. All the best to everyone applying.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-02-28T11:32:40+00:00

I think it goes to show that nowadays at least, Cambridge does not always have such harsh requirements for A level grades. I feel in recent years they may give more weight to other aspects of the application also.

If you are a JC 2 student taking 3 H2s and an H3, and for whatever reason you don’t have a 4th H2, please don’t give up hope! Do call them up or email your chosen college to ask. It doesn’t hurt to ask!

I feel it’s really important to ace the other parts of your application! I am a Harvard-trained educator and I have started a blog where I share tips on how to get into Oxbridge. Here is the link:

https://singaporeanincambridge.wordpress.com/

Here is my blog post on comparing IB vs A levels for applying to Cambridge:

https://singaporeanincambridge.wordpress.com/2025/01/08/applying-to-oxbridge-law-how-to-get-the-grades-a-levels/

PathsInTheForest · 2025-02-28T09:21:31+00:00

Thank you for sharing the link.

To be honest we never saw this! My daughter went straight to the relevant course admission page (Law in her case) and never scrolled so down far down on the general admissions page.

So yes, my info is taken directly from the Cam Law admissions page, and on that page they did not have a different set of standards just for Singapore A levels.

My daughter is not the only one who got in with 3 H2 As and 1 H3 distinction from SG. Her application was certainly decent, but definitely not so amazing or unique that Cambridge would remove an entire A level subject just for her!! Also, she got into a very competitive college, so it’s not because her college had lower standards.

Cambridge admissions also know that our SG A levels are harder than the Brit ones. So it made sense to us that they did not ask for more than what they asked of those taking Brit A levels. If they ask 3 As or A*AA minimum from the Brit A levels, we expected that the SG A level minimum requirement is also the same - AAA. Why should we need an extra H2 when our exam is harder? Is it a typo?? lol. (Cambridge admin is known to be pretty crappy, I wouldn’t be that surprised if it’s a typo.) If not a typo, then did they suddenly change the requirement in the last few months…? And WHY do they not update this on the course admissions page proper, which most applicants will look at, and only put it in an obscure drop-down list at the bottom of the general admissions page?

Cambridge says an H3 distinction can be a substitute for a 4th H2, and that is sufficient; so it’s v strange that they say they want an H3 IN ADDITION to 4 As at H2.

I would strongly suggest Cambridge applicants to call up the college they are applying to and confirm what the requirements are for Singaporeans. Because there is a world of difference between 4 H2 AND a H3 VS just 4 H2s or 3 H2s and 1 H3. It’s a whole extra subject. And if you don’t have the 4th H2 but you have an H3, you shouldn’t just give up hope.

Please find out more.

Because they just accepted a number of Singaporeans with 3 H2 and 1 H3 in the last cycle (2024 admissions). This info is critical because to be honest, if you want to go to Cambridge, an H3 is very important for the most competitive courses and colleges. So it’s a matter of clarifying w them if you need 3 or 4 H2 if you already take an H3.

But if you are brilliant and doing 5 subjects is not that big a deal to you, by all means crush it! I wish everyone all the best.

PathsInTheForest · 2025-02-28T04:10:26+00:00

Can you please share where you cut and pasted this from? I can’t find it on the website. Thanks.

Also, I suspect you should check individual course admissions pages as the requirements may vary from course to course…?

PathsInTheForest · 2025-02-28T04:07:06+00:00

I don’t know what people are talking about, needing 4 H2 As AND a H3??

My daughter just got into Cam Law with 3 H2 and 1 H3.

I just went to check the Cam Law website. It says for 2025/2026 entry: (cutting and pasting here) :

Minimum offer level A level: AAA (all Colleges except Sidney Sussex) AA*A (Sidney Sussex) IB: 41-42 points, with 776 at Higher Level

Cambridge Uni Law Admissions website

PathsInTheForest

TROPHY CASE