Busy busy busy... that's what I've been since my first week back to work in Malaysia. No time to go gym, no time to read the news, no time to upload my photos from my camera... even time in the office just seems to fly like nobody's business. I'll come in at 8:30 and with a blink of an eye... it'd be time for lunch and I would have hardly gotten anything finished. Come back from quick lunch at 1, *blink*, 6pm... What the?!?! Where did time go?
I'm finding it a little hard to adjust being back in the office. When I was in Bahrain, all I had to do was that project and nothing else. But being back here, means I'm easy prey for the bosses. First day back and had two deadlines to meet by the next day. Bleh. Plus... audit is coming so we have to rush to file all documents properly and to make sure that we've got everything in order. Also, am put on a new project which I am totally not familiar with so really need to do some reading. But where's the time?
Eee... I want to go holiday again... Phuket was great! Even though having my wallet stolen was a HUGE dent on the holiday... but nevertheless, I still had a great time being a beach bum :)
Next destination to look forward to: Bangkok at the end of May. Although technically it's not a holiday but some training, still... since there will be bunch of us from the dept attending the training, it's going to be a blast!
Okay... time to get back to work... no time to go toilet also!
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Back from London...
What can i say? I had a wonderful 3 and a half days in London. Definitely not enough time to sight-see and shop though. Will definitely have to plan another holiday there. Thanks to my wonderful sister who provided me with accomodation, some payment of my food and transport and a visit to a West End show. The public transport there was superbly efficient. Of course, you would expect that from a city that's centuries old. I love the architecture of the city. The mix of centuries old buildings with new and modern skyscrapers. I love the Victorian buildings and the cobblestone streets and the statues / memorials that are around every corner. I love the tube with its centuries old tunnels even though they're infested with rats. I love the parks and gardens at every corner and the posh apartments with their Victorian architecture and red brick walls. I love the churches and their steeple tops. I love the buildings with their chimneys sticking out which remind me of Mary Poppins and the chimney sweeps. I love the street names which brings back fond memories of when Monopoly was a huge part of your life. Mayfair and Park Lane are the posh and expensive part of the city. You've King's Cross station just around the corner. Picaddily Circus and Leicester Square just adjacent to each other. Bond street. Oxford Circus. Regent Street. The whole city is so picturesque that you can never stop taking photos and so I decided to not take any photos of the architecture because every building is just so unique that if you take a photo of one building you have to take photos of every building to give them fair justice. Hopped over to Portobello Road market which made me think of Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Went to Buckingham Palace to catch a glimpse of the changing of the guards. Queen wasn't in :) Walked the streets of Covent Garden and Chinatown. Roamed the theatres of West End. Appreciated Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Chair, Leonardo da Vinci's Virgin on the Rocks, Monet and Reubens at the National Gallery. Climbed the steep steps of St Paul's Cathedral to the Stone Gallery at the top of the dome. Gazed in awe at the wonderful knave of the church and walked in sombreness in the crypt. Stood outside Westminster Abbey and gazed in awe of the church but didn't have time to go in. Saw and heard the bells of Big Ben chiming the hour at the Houses of Parliament. Saw London Bridge that isn't likely to fall down. Walked the span of Tower Bridge. Saw the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London and had a tour of the castle / prison with the original guards of the Tower, the Yeomen Warders (or more popularly known as Beef-eaters). Saw the tower Elizabeth I was kept in. Took a cruise along the River Thames. Went up the London Eye to look at the wonderful city from a bird's eye view. Visited the Tate Modern for a view of modern art. Walked amongst the pigeons of Trafalgar Square. Shopped along the streets of Oxford Circus and Regent Street. Caught an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical at the Palace Theatre. Window-shopped in Harrods. Ate lunch in one of the many parks on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Love the food there as well. M&S has such wonderful take-away food. And pretty cheap too. I love M&S!!!
London is magnificient. And I obviously didn't have enough time to go outside of London to Bath to go see the Stonehenge and the Roman Baths. Buckingham Palace was also closed to visitors so I didn't get to see the Queen's staterooms. Definitely need another trip back. And the shopping was pretty alrite. Got an England jersey (kids size) for myself for only 9 pounds. Was on sale. Plus, if England win the World Cup, I can get a refund on my jersey! Got cordurouy jeans from GAP for 10 pounds and a few more other items. Too bad most things weren't really on sale. But every London-er seemed to be out on a shopping spree during the weekend. Met up with my cousins whom I haven't seen for 10 years. Aunt and Uncle were away in Amsterdam so didn't get to see them.
But I love London. The rich history behind the country and city fueled by countless reads of Victorian romance novels intrigues me. Would I want to live and work there? Definitely. Is there a chance? Maybe... in the near future... if I play my cards right :)
London is a city of walking. Everyone walks. They take the tube / bus and walk to their destination. I have never walked so much in my life for a very long time now. The hectic running around of sight-seeing is something I haven't done in a long time. And the ladies wear gorgeous heels and boots and I wonder how they walk so fast from one place to another with those 3 inch heels. And the wonderful and stylish coats everyone wears! And me with my plain fleece jacket and borrowed scarf and sneakers. It's no wonder I was freezing my ass off!
And so ends my journey to London where there are more photos kept in my head than actual photos taken on my camera, my sister's camera and my phone.
London is magnificient. And I obviously didn't have enough time to go outside of London to Bath to go see the Stonehenge and the Roman Baths. Buckingham Palace was also closed to visitors so I didn't get to see the Queen's staterooms. Definitely need another trip back. And the shopping was pretty alrite. Got an England jersey (kids size) for myself for only 9 pounds. Was on sale. Plus, if England win the World Cup, I can get a refund on my jersey! Got cordurouy jeans from GAP for 10 pounds and a few more other items. Too bad most things weren't really on sale. But every London-er seemed to be out on a shopping spree during the weekend. Met up with my cousins whom I haven't seen for 10 years. Aunt and Uncle were away in Amsterdam so didn't get to see them.
But I love London. The rich history behind the country and city fueled by countless reads of Victorian romance novels intrigues me. Would I want to live and work there? Definitely. Is there a chance? Maybe... in the near future... if I play my cards right :)
London is a city of walking. Everyone walks. They take the tube / bus and walk to their destination. I have never walked so much in my life for a very long time now. The hectic running around of sight-seeing is something I haven't done in a long time. And the ladies wear gorgeous heels and boots and I wonder how they walk so fast from one place to another with those 3 inch heels. And the wonderful and stylish coats everyone wears! And me with my plain fleece jacket and borrowed scarf and sneakers. It's no wonder I was freezing my ass off!
And so ends my journey to London where there are more photos kept in my head than actual photos taken on my camera, my sister's camera and my phone.
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Wah!!!
Was just doing some searching online... and London is one bloody expensive place! All the dang tourist attractions have an admission price! Just to go see a church (St Paul's cathedral), I have to pay 9 pounds! That's RM63!!! Was doing some calculating and my money spent on tourist attractions will amount to about 50 pounds!!! Wah!!! Actually it'd be more since I don't have the full pricing list of some of the other places I want to visit. The admission price for Madame Tussauds is already 24 pounds! Not to mention I'd have to spend on transport and food. Plus I would like to buy a few things of course. And I want to watch a West End show. How now? Looks like I'll have to purchase the London pass (for tourists attractions) and the Travel Card (for traveling on the tube). Why so expensive!!!
Things to buy:
England football jersey (for him... and if not too pricey, one for me too!)
Small (and affordable) souveniers for dear friends
Clothes (let there be cheap clothes!)
Nice English butter biscuits from M&S (I love those things!)
Again... London, here I come! Expensive as you may be...
Things to buy:
England football jersey (for him... and if not too pricey, one for me too!)
Small (and affordable) souveniers for dear friends
Clothes (let there be cheap clothes!)
Nice English butter biscuits from M&S (I love those things!)
Again... London, here I come! Expensive as you may be...
In brief...
I read this in the NST today:
He doesn’t like to be ‘boss’ "YES, boss" or simply "boss" has found its way into the local vocabulary and most people have come to accept this form of address.
Not so Datuk Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, BN MP for Santubong. "If I see something I really want to buy and someone calls me boss, I won’t buy it," he said during question time yesterday."When I was at a hotel yesterday, the chef asked me, ‘Boss, what do you want?’ I said to him: ‘Thank you, I don’t want anything’."
Dr Wan regretted that the word "boss", which was used by Americans during their gangster era, had taken hold in Malaysia.He wanted to know why a "useless and bad" word like "boss" had become a "culture" in the country.
Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said the use of such words was the result of accepting words from other languages into Bahasa Malaysia.Rais said a committee consisting of representatives from his ministry and the Education Ministry was looking into the matter.
(They should discover that the word "boss" is from the Dutch "baas", meaning "master", and was used to mean that long before the "gangster era" in the US.)
Er… don’t you think our MPs would have more important things to worry about? Granted ‘boss’ may not be a ‘good’ word but to worry about such things and actually discuss it when there are so much more high priority issues at hand…. I’m at a loss for words…
Another funny comment by one of our esteemed MPs:
‘Overeating cause of failure among athletes’ IS overeating a reason for the poor showing of Malaysian athletes in international competitions? Hasni Mohamad (BN-Pontian) suggested that athletes from Africa succeeded because they did not have enough to eat.
"But our athletes and officials eat too much which causes them to fail at international meets." Hasni was responding to comments by Datuk Razali Ismail (BN-Kuala Terengganu) during the debate on the 9MP yesterday.
Only in Malaysia, can we have someone saying food shortage and starvation is a good thing. I’m sure there are plenty of reasons why our local athletes aren’t doing well but I don’t think making them starve will motivate them any further to excel. Again… at a loss for words…
We should take note of Thailand:
(from Bernama)
… the whole episode was a learning process for the Thai people who have learned about democracy and how it could be made to work the way it was intended.
"People learned that they can take their fight to the streets against a government that has lost its legitimacy to rule, and they can also take their fight to the ballot box. The avalanche of abstention votes cast by democratic-loving citizens was a resounding rejection of Thaksin, his Thai Rak Thai Party and the culture of deceit and corruption that they stand for," the Nation said.
The paper said the most remarkable thing was that the titanic struggle between Thaksin, a seriously-flawed, but democratically-elected leader, and the people who had taken to the streets to oppose him was played out over two volatile months without violence.
How about that? If our dear neighbour can make a change, why not us as well? We just need to get more people to be more aware of what’s happening and for people to believe that we CAN make a change. Most of the time, we just think “Complain also no use… nothing will change….” Yeah… so, c’mon people… be aware of what’s happening and be aware that we CAN make a change.
And looks like our govt is establishing yet another body to oversee the implementation of projects in the 9MP. Another body. Another plan. I wonder when they will realise that a plan is only good if (1) there is actual implementation, (2) the implementation of course has to be done well (ie cost efficient etc) and (3) the body overseeing this implementation has to be free from corruption and crony-ism to make the plan work.
To quote our PM:
"For example, we also do not want a situation where there are no doctors once a hospital has been completed. The people get angry with the government when we do not build a hospital and when the hospital is ready the people again find fault with the government because there are no doctors," he said."Other matters include water, electricity and roads. For example, we do not want to have a completed project without an access road," he said.
So they want proper planning to be done BEFORE projects are actually implemented. Let’s hope it works. I think all of us are too familiar with situations where projects are completed only to realise… Oops, no telephone line. Oops, forgot to build road. Oops, got university but no students and lecturers. Never mind, dump in poor students who can’t afford to fund their own studies. Who cares about shitty lecturers and poor quality of education? Oops, oops oops. Sounds like a Britney Spears song… I’m wondering who will be in this new body. I’m interested to see how things work out.
And apparently, we can be jailed / fined for kissing and hugging in public.
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/49310
Now I’m no advocate for issues on morality but I just don’t like it when people throw out the words ‘Asian morality’. And I don’t like it when people compare Western value to Asian values. True, just because kissing and hugging are widely accepted in the Western world doesn’t mean we can emulate it too. But doesn’t it all come down to moderation? Yes, we Asians, are supposed to be more conservative when it comes to these kind of things but c’mon, we’re now in the 21st century and more and more people are being more open. Now, if there kids who were in the park were just in the act of smooching (no tongue!) and hugging, I guess that would be alrite. But if it was more like the act of second base, then I’d say “Get a room!” There’s always a limit to everything and this is just one of those things. Anyway, does ‘public’ constitute clubs as well? If so, then the govt will have a field day charging people! Myself included!
I was watching CNN last night and during one of the commercial breaks, an advertisement for Malaysian Tourism came on. Looking at the wonderful pictures shown during the ad, I was never happier to be a Malaysian. But when our PM came on the picture to utter some words of welcome wearing a batik shirt (hehe… how typical), my only thought was “What did he say?” I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t understand what he said coz the pronunciation wasn’t quite there. Heh…
Taking a short break tomorrow onwards. London here I come!
He doesn’t like to be ‘boss’ "YES, boss" or simply "boss" has found its way into the local vocabulary and most people have come to accept this form of address.
Not so Datuk Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, BN MP for Santubong. "If I see something I really want to buy and someone calls me boss, I won’t buy it," he said during question time yesterday."When I was at a hotel yesterday, the chef asked me, ‘Boss, what do you want?’ I said to him: ‘Thank you, I don’t want anything’."
Dr Wan regretted that the word "boss", which was used by Americans during their gangster era, had taken hold in Malaysia.He wanted to know why a "useless and bad" word like "boss" had become a "culture" in the country.
Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said the use of such words was the result of accepting words from other languages into Bahasa Malaysia.Rais said a committee consisting of representatives from his ministry and the Education Ministry was looking into the matter.
(They should discover that the word "boss" is from the Dutch "baas", meaning "master", and was used to mean that long before the "gangster era" in the US.)
Er… don’t you think our MPs would have more important things to worry about? Granted ‘boss’ may not be a ‘good’ word but to worry about such things and actually discuss it when there are so much more high priority issues at hand…. I’m at a loss for words…
Another funny comment by one of our esteemed MPs:
‘Overeating cause of failure among athletes’ IS overeating a reason for the poor showing of Malaysian athletes in international competitions? Hasni Mohamad (BN-Pontian) suggested that athletes from Africa succeeded because they did not have enough to eat.
"But our athletes and officials eat too much which causes them to fail at international meets." Hasni was responding to comments by Datuk Razali Ismail (BN-Kuala Terengganu) during the debate on the 9MP yesterday.
Only in Malaysia, can we have someone saying food shortage and starvation is a good thing. I’m sure there are plenty of reasons why our local athletes aren’t doing well but I don’t think making them starve will motivate them any further to excel. Again… at a loss for words…
We should take note of Thailand:
(from Bernama)
… the whole episode was a learning process for the Thai people who have learned about democracy and how it could be made to work the way it was intended.
"People learned that they can take their fight to the streets against a government that has lost its legitimacy to rule, and they can also take their fight to the ballot box. The avalanche of abstention votes cast by democratic-loving citizens was a resounding rejection of Thaksin, his Thai Rak Thai Party and the culture of deceit and corruption that they stand for," the Nation said.
The paper said the most remarkable thing was that the titanic struggle between Thaksin, a seriously-flawed, but democratically-elected leader, and the people who had taken to the streets to oppose him was played out over two volatile months without violence.
How about that? If our dear neighbour can make a change, why not us as well? We just need to get more people to be more aware of what’s happening and for people to believe that we CAN make a change. Most of the time, we just think “Complain also no use… nothing will change….” Yeah… so, c’mon people… be aware of what’s happening and be aware that we CAN make a change.
And looks like our govt is establishing yet another body to oversee the implementation of projects in the 9MP. Another body. Another plan. I wonder when they will realise that a plan is only good if (1) there is actual implementation, (2) the implementation of course has to be done well (ie cost efficient etc) and (3) the body overseeing this implementation has to be free from corruption and crony-ism to make the plan work.
To quote our PM:
"For example, we also do not want a situation where there are no doctors once a hospital has been completed. The people get angry with the government when we do not build a hospital and when the hospital is ready the people again find fault with the government because there are no doctors," he said."Other matters include water, electricity and roads. For example, we do not want to have a completed project without an access road," he said.
So they want proper planning to be done BEFORE projects are actually implemented. Let’s hope it works. I think all of us are too familiar with situations where projects are completed only to realise… Oops, no telephone line. Oops, forgot to build road. Oops, got university but no students and lecturers. Never mind, dump in poor students who can’t afford to fund their own studies. Who cares about shitty lecturers and poor quality of education? Oops, oops oops. Sounds like a Britney Spears song… I’m wondering who will be in this new body. I’m interested to see how things work out.
And apparently, we can be jailed / fined for kissing and hugging in public.
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/49310
Now I’m no advocate for issues on morality but I just don’t like it when people throw out the words ‘Asian morality’. And I don’t like it when people compare Western value to Asian values. True, just because kissing and hugging are widely accepted in the Western world doesn’t mean we can emulate it too. But doesn’t it all come down to moderation? Yes, we Asians, are supposed to be more conservative when it comes to these kind of things but c’mon, we’re now in the 21st century and more and more people are being more open. Now, if there kids who were in the park were just in the act of smooching (no tongue!) and hugging, I guess that would be alrite. But if it was more like the act of second base, then I’d say “Get a room!” There’s always a limit to everything and this is just one of those things. Anyway, does ‘public’ constitute clubs as well? If so, then the govt will have a field day charging people! Myself included!
I was watching CNN last night and during one of the commercial breaks, an advertisement for Malaysian Tourism came on. Looking at the wonderful pictures shown during the ad, I was never happier to be a Malaysian. But when our PM came on the picture to utter some words of welcome wearing a batik shirt (hehe… how typical), my only thought was “What did he say?” I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t understand what he said coz the pronunciation wasn’t quite there. Heh…
Taking a short break tomorrow onwards. London here I come!
Monday, April 03, 2006
*silly grin*
I’ve got a new toy!!! Well, two actually. Bought my camera right before I left for Bahrain but just didn’t write about it. Anyway, the latest toy is something I’ve been harping about for a long time. And now I finally got it! And for below RM1000! WooHoo!! What a steal! It’s so white and shiny, I’m afraid to touch it for fear I’ll leave finger prints all over it’s white shiny surface. I don’t think I’ve ever liked seeing U2 so much before!
Anyway, to give some credit to my first new toy:
My new Casio Digi Cam!
How’s that? Woo Hoo! Super thin. Got it for quite a good bargain too. Got a 1GB memory card with it, a mini tripod, LCD screen protector and 3 year warranty. The features ain’t bad for someone like me. Just point and shoot :) WooHoo! Will be fully utilised in a few days time when I fly over to another continent. Can’t wait!!!
Moving on… to my newly acquired toy:
My new Apple Ipod!!
Hahaha! I finally got it! The Apple Ipod 30GB. And for less than RM1000! I couldn’t believe when the salesguy (who was very cute) told me the price. I kept asking him again and again until he finally said “It’s the price I told you!” Unfortunately, they didn’t have anymore black ones. In fact, I just bought the last one they had!
It’s a newly opened hypermarket and I actually went there with the intention to get a 4GB Ipod Nano coz they were having some promo I saw in a leaflet and it cost only RM980. Which is cheaper than what I can get back home. So there I was, looking at the Ipods they had on display and opened my mouth to ask the cute salesguy (CS):
Check out the super reflective screen!
Thingamajigs that come with the Ipod.
Anyway, to give some credit to my first new toy:
My new Casio Digi Cam!How’s that? Woo Hoo! Super thin. Got it for quite a good bargain too. Got a 1GB memory card with it, a mini tripod, LCD screen protector and 3 year warranty. The features ain’t bad for someone like me. Just point and shoot :) WooHoo! Will be fully utilised in a few days time when I fly over to another continent. Can’t wait!!!
Moving on… to my newly acquired toy:
My new Apple Ipod!!Hahaha! I finally got it! The Apple Ipod 30GB. And for less than RM1000! I couldn’t believe when the salesguy (who was very cute) told me the price. I kept asking him again and again until he finally said “It’s the price I told you!” Unfortunately, they didn’t have anymore black ones. In fact, I just bought the last one they had!
It’s a newly opened hypermarket and I actually went there with the intention to get a 4GB Ipod Nano coz they were having some promo I saw in a leaflet and it cost only RM980. Which is cheaper than what I can get back home. So there I was, looking at the Ipods they had on display and opened my mouth to ask the cute salesguy (CS):
Me: How much is the Ipod Video 30GB?
CS: 30GB? Hold on… let me check… (went to ask another salesguy who was ALSO cute – the electronics dept seemed to be crawling with cute salesguys)
Me: Dum di dum…..
CS: Oh, it’s 97.9 dinar (around RM 979)
Me: Sorry? Could you repeat that? (with a silly grin – CS might have thought I was smiling at him, now that I think about it, coz after that he was really friendly and all)
CS: 97.9.
Me: Oh okay. Do you have black colour? (still with silly grin)
CS: Let me check… (rummaging around display case, asking his cute colleagues)
Sorry, this is the last one.
Me: What?! Really? Oh no.. are you sure? Can you check again? I’m so upset… (basically just making a lot of noise and whining)
CS: Okay… I’ll check in the back store room… just for you (smile)
Me: (heart fluttering… yeah right!) okay… I’ll wait.
CS: Sorry, this is really the last one.
Me: That’s okay. I’ll take it anyway. (WooHoo!!!!)
So there you have it. How I got my new toy. Am in the midst of installing iTunes into my computer now. BTW, cute salesguy is Persian and is from Iran. His girlfriend is a Thai. Random information.
Check out the super reflective screen!
Thingamajigs that come with the Ipod.
The only annoying thing about the ipod is that it doesn’t have international warranty. Which means I’ll have to fork out more moolah when I’m back home to buy a 2-year warranty from the Apple centre. But what the heck… Ipod 30GB for less than RM1000!!!
Hahaha…. And so…. Here begins my journey with an Apple. Being the blur person I am, will probably take some time to learn how to sync my stuff with iTunes etc. WooHoo…
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Grr...
Disturbed I am by the recent (and not so recent) events happening back home while I am here in the land of sand. More importantly the issue about non-muslim citizens being threatened by one of our ‘esteemed’ ministers is extremely disturbing. Sick also I am about non-muslims citizens treated like second-class citizens. A few quotes which irked me:
Non-Muslims should not interfere in the religious affairs of Muslims, as this will make the Muslims uneasy.
How the heck does questioning something related to Islam make Muslims uneasy? And should we not ‘interfere’ in something that directly affects us? Especially the act which denies us the right of a fair trial in civil courts should be have converted into Islam. It’s not like we have been ‘interfering’ with what Muslims have been practising but isn’t it fair for us to question something that will directly affect our lives?
… warned that the Government would not hesitate to use the Sedition Act against those who insulted Islam.
So is it only Islam or will this apply to any other religion? Not that I agree to prosecuting anyone, but if you want to make a statement like that, then does it apply to all insults on any religion? Or like the double-standard way you govern, it only applies to whatever you want? Another point is how does questioning something become an insult? How does questioning an Act turn into an insult? Unless of course you’re thinking of the MPs we have in the Dewan Rakyat who do not think twice about shouting and hurling derogatory insults, then of course, questioning is insulting.
Expressing his concern about some recent articles written by non-Muslims, he said the tolerance level among Muslims was high.
Eh? Tolerance level among Muslims high? Then why would you think questioning something is an insult? And why would you think calling for a review and reform is an insult? Hallo? Why would everything related to Islam be an insult? If you’re talking tolerance, what about the tolerance level among non-muslims? Why not address that in the same breath?
“We do not want to take away your rights but religion is an important matter, especially to the Muslims,” he said.
He said there was also no need to have a law to curb open discussions as the people could practise mutual respect, tolerance and understanding while taking into consideration religious sensitivities.
What the…? In the first few paragraphs, he threatens non-Muslims and then suddenly preaches about mutual respect, tolerance and understanding? Firstly, I think all of us are currently practicing tolerance, respect and understanding. Some more than others thanks to self-righteous pricks who first threaten us then tell us we’re tolerant. Secondly, I think the group of people which you call on to be tolerant are those whom you CLAIM are so tolerant that they’re bleeding tolerance out of their ears.
Again, this shows us the level of intelligence our esteemed ministers have. They really should learn to process before shooting out of their mouths. But then again, if there’s nothing much up there, then it’s no wonder.
Next comes this whole issue of wearing the ‘tudung’ for non-muslim women police officers during official parades. When I read this, the first thought that popped into my head was “Why the heck for?” And how does the ‘tudung’ translate into part of the police uniform? How does making a woman wear a ‘tudung’ add to uniformity? Oh wait, everyone’s head is now covered so it looks very uniformed. There’s Malaysian mentality for you. The worse part is that the non-muslim women featured in the article said the regulation should not be questioned. Again, Malaysian mentality. The take all the bullcrap that is handed down and sit down and shut up. Not that I’m a religious person, but isn’t the ‘tudung’ part of Islam where the women folk have to cover their hair? So how does that apply to uniformity? Why impose something religion-based onto those who are not part of that religion? This comes back to the IIU ‘tudung’ incident as well. If we’re practicing freedom of religion (to some extent) then why impose a uniform rule which is religion-based?
Anyway, more stuff did I read about IPMC, APs etc. I found the notion of the govt re-educating AP holders highly amusing. The last time I checked, these AP holders are already very rich businessmen made richer by the APs and certainly do not need our poorly managed govt re-educating them on how to make money. Unless it’s a course on how they can siphon more money from the govt. Then, I’m sure they’ll be very interested in your re-education.
Can’t upload the photos I took with my camera. Silly me. I brought the docking station for the camera but didn’t bring the usb cable to connect the dock to the laptop.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Interesting...
| Your Scholastic Strength Is Inspiring Others |
 You should major in: CounselingEnvironmental studiesLawSocial workPolitical scienceNursing |
What Should You Major In?
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
The land of cheap petrol and sand
Here I am, back again. Everyone I meet here goes "oh... you're back again..." ^_^ Chee... Anyway, I've been moved from the conference room to an office of my own. WooHoo. Better than back home! I now have my own room. Feels like I'm permanently working here. Will try to sneak some shots of the office.
Facing the same hurdles here. Trying to get in touch with these people is so hard! I don't know if they're conciously avoiding me or what. I mean, they're all very nice. But it's so hard to secure some time with them. Bleh... and sometimes, I'm also chicken shit... coz I feel like I've been 'in their face' too much... but that's what I have to do! Since being polite and nice and waiting for them to get back to me isn't working!
Note to self: must be more assertive.
Will wait for another hour to try calling these people again. Probably having lunch since it's lunchtime (duh!).
Facing the same hurdles here. Trying to get in touch with these people is so hard! I don't know if they're conciously avoiding me or what. I mean, they're all very nice. But it's so hard to secure some time with them. Bleh... and sometimes, I'm also chicken shit... coz I feel like I've been 'in their face' too much... but that's what I have to do! Since being polite and nice and waiting for them to get back to me isn't working!
Note to self: must be more assertive.
Will wait for another hour to try calling these people again. Probably having lunch since it's lunchtime (duh!).
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
1 month hiatus
Ever since I found out that I’ll be returning to Bahrain in 2 weeks time, everything has been rather chaotic. And when I mean chaotic, I don’t mean my work but rather stuff has been happening between us and we’ve been arguing a lot.
I’m kinda feeling a bit tired of all this. Our ‘night n day’ working times is putting a huge strain on us. Is it wrong of me to spend as much as time as possible with him since I will be away for a whole month next week onwards?
He said he will stay at my place for the whole week after work. But now, since we spent the weekend together, he said he doesn’t have to anymore? Huh? Why must the 2 things relate to each other? I was assuming that they were mutually exclusive. But I’m not upset that he’s not staying with me considering his mobility problems. I’m just upset at why he can’t call or sms me to let me know that he isn’t coming. And I rushed myself yesterday to duplicate a set of keys for him, thinking that he was still coming over to my place.
I admit that I expressed myself poorly last night and made it seem as if I was upset at him not coming and not at him not calling. And then after our argument, I get an sms from him which was rather upsetting. The gist of it was this:
(a) he doesn’t spend as much time with his family as should because of me
(b) he should have just gone to PD over the weekend as planned instead of hanging out with me
(c) he has his work to worry about which is more important than staying with me
When I read the sms, I was just stumped.
(a) I don’t spend as much as time with my family as well ever since I’m with him. But I don’t go pointing my finger at him and say it’s his fault. I CHOOSE to stay back with him. And even though my choice is obviously because of him, it wouldn’t be fair for me to blame him for not going back home. Because it obviously isn’t his fault. It’s MY choice. So I found it really unfair for him to suddenly point his finger at me and say ‘it’s your fault I’m spending so little time at home’. WTF?!?
(b) Again, this boils down to choice. If under normal circumstances, by all means, go drinking with your buddies. But the difference this time is that I will be going away in a week’s time for a whole month. Obviously I would want him to spend the weekend with me. And I told him how I felt about it, but inevitably, the choice was his. Again like (a) it would have been influenced by me, but still, his choice. And if he had chosen to go, then it would have summarized where our relationship is. But he chose to stay with me and now suddenly, it’s my fault?
(c) Yes, worry about work. And because of his mobility problem, I admit that it was my fault for overreacting. And I understand why he was feeling down last night. But I overreacted because he didn’t tell me he wasn’t coming and I had to call him to find out. And it was already 5 am at that time. Of course I was cranky.
And so I didn’t reply his sms because I was upset and I knew that I would say something that would worsen the situation. But I couldn’t sleep after that and was tossing and turning for over an hour plus. From that sms, I derived that his family comes first, friends second, work third and then me. After all, his exact words were “you’re just my girlfriend, that’s all”. Obviously family comes first. But what about friends and work? Shouldn’t there be some sort of balance? I know we’ve tried to achieve some sort of balance so why suddenly turn around and put me at the bottom of the list? I’m the only person he can say “no” to. With everyone else, it’s “sure, I’m there”. Does that not scream taking me for granted?
I think it’s time for him to think about where he wants to be in terms of us. Hitting the 2-year mark with him was great and I obviously would want to still be with him, but if it means having to go through the same things again to hit another 2 years, then I don’t know if I want to do that. I don’t know if I’m up to it. Challenges I can take. But the same obstacles again and again?
So where do we go from here? I don’t know. Even though this mess right now is caused by my going away, I’m glad that I will be gone. I think it’s time for us, or at least me, to take a break from all this. I’m tired of arguing about the same things over and over again. I’m tired of having to justify my feelings when we argue. I’m tired of explaining myself over and over again and for him to not understand what being in a relationship means. I’m tired of having to sacrifice so many things for him and not having the same being done for me. I’m tired of being the one to always call or sms. I’m just tired.
I’m glad I’m going away. At least it will give us some time apart (even though we’ve been apart for weeks at a time since November). We’ll see how things go after this. Tired, tired, tired.
Looking forward to this:
London, here I come! It'd be a great break from the monotony of Bahrain and the chaos of KL.
I’m kinda feeling a bit tired of all this. Our ‘night n day’ working times is putting a huge strain on us. Is it wrong of me to spend as much as time as possible with him since I will be away for a whole month next week onwards?
He said he will stay at my place for the whole week after work. But now, since we spent the weekend together, he said he doesn’t have to anymore? Huh? Why must the 2 things relate to each other? I was assuming that they were mutually exclusive. But I’m not upset that he’s not staying with me considering his mobility problems. I’m just upset at why he can’t call or sms me to let me know that he isn’t coming. And I rushed myself yesterday to duplicate a set of keys for him, thinking that he was still coming over to my place.
I admit that I expressed myself poorly last night and made it seem as if I was upset at him not coming and not at him not calling. And then after our argument, I get an sms from him which was rather upsetting. The gist of it was this:
(a) he doesn’t spend as much time with his family as should because of me
(b) he should have just gone to PD over the weekend as planned instead of hanging out with me
(c) he has his work to worry about which is more important than staying with me
When I read the sms, I was just stumped.
(a) I don’t spend as much as time with my family as well ever since I’m with him. But I don’t go pointing my finger at him and say it’s his fault. I CHOOSE to stay back with him. And even though my choice is obviously because of him, it wouldn’t be fair for me to blame him for not going back home. Because it obviously isn’t his fault. It’s MY choice. So I found it really unfair for him to suddenly point his finger at me and say ‘it’s your fault I’m spending so little time at home’. WTF?!?
(b) Again, this boils down to choice. If under normal circumstances, by all means, go drinking with your buddies. But the difference this time is that I will be going away in a week’s time for a whole month. Obviously I would want him to spend the weekend with me. And I told him how I felt about it, but inevitably, the choice was his. Again like (a) it would have been influenced by me, but still, his choice. And if he had chosen to go, then it would have summarized where our relationship is. But he chose to stay with me and now suddenly, it’s my fault?
(c) Yes, worry about work. And because of his mobility problem, I admit that it was my fault for overreacting. And I understand why he was feeling down last night. But I overreacted because he didn’t tell me he wasn’t coming and I had to call him to find out. And it was already 5 am at that time. Of course I was cranky.
And so I didn’t reply his sms because I was upset and I knew that I would say something that would worsen the situation. But I couldn’t sleep after that and was tossing and turning for over an hour plus. From that sms, I derived that his family comes first, friends second, work third and then me. After all, his exact words were “you’re just my girlfriend, that’s all”. Obviously family comes first. But what about friends and work? Shouldn’t there be some sort of balance? I know we’ve tried to achieve some sort of balance so why suddenly turn around and put me at the bottom of the list? I’m the only person he can say “no” to. With everyone else, it’s “sure, I’m there”. Does that not scream taking me for granted?
I think it’s time for him to think about where he wants to be in terms of us. Hitting the 2-year mark with him was great and I obviously would want to still be with him, but if it means having to go through the same things again to hit another 2 years, then I don’t know if I want to do that. I don’t know if I’m up to it. Challenges I can take. But the same obstacles again and again?
So where do we go from here? I don’t know. Even though this mess right now is caused by my going away, I’m glad that I will be gone. I think it’s time for us, or at least me, to take a break from all this. I’m tired of arguing about the same things over and over again. I’m tired of having to justify my feelings when we argue. I’m tired of explaining myself over and over again and for him to not understand what being in a relationship means. I’m tired of having to sacrifice so many things for him and not having the same being done for me. I’m tired of being the one to always call or sms. I’m just tired.
I’m glad I’m going away. At least it will give us some time apart (even though we’ve been apart for weeks at a time since November). We’ll see how things go after this. Tired, tired, tired.
Looking forward to this:
London, here I come! It'd be a great break from the monotony of Bahrain and the chaos of KL.
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Okay, bye bye
It’s been a week since I’ve been back in Malaysia. Have stuffed myself with all types of yummy food, from good ole’ bak kut teh to banana leaf rice. Yum… I can’t believe that I’ll be flying back to Bahrain next week. I mean, I knew I would be going back but just didn’t think that it was going to be so soon. I thought I’d have at least one month to chill here. But no… came in to work on Monday morning all smiles and BHAM! I got called into my director’s office and she told me the ‘good’ news. Oh well. All in the name of work. So I technically only have 2 working weeks and one weekend before my flight out. The highlight of this trip would be the little holiday I will be taking when I’m in Bahrain. Will update more of this trip once I’ve gotten my flight ticket. Right now, it still feels a little too hard to believe. Why didn’t I find this out earlier! Damn! I could have gone to so many other places! Anyway, am supposed to get my ticket on Monday. Keeping my fingers crossed till then!
Anyway, there are still people griping about the fuel price hike but I think we’re all kind of resigned to the fact that it’s happened and there’s nothing we can do about it right now except maybe hope that the govt will actually stick to their word about improving the public transportation system. And that we, the public, will remember this thing as well as all the other things they have done when the time comes for the next general elections.
Then there’s the news about rape and incest cases. For me, the one that really stood out was the case where two brothers raped their younger sister after watching porn. I was like “WTF?!” If you’re going to offer an excuse for committing rape, at least give a better one than that. But then again, what kind of excuse CAN you give for raping your sister or anyone for that matter?! Anyway, I’m pretty sure after this case, there’s going to cries of “porn is evil” etc all over. What I don’t understand is why we can’t be open about sex and sexuality? Why do we have to hide the subject away and censure everything related about it? Again, this points to our attitude of ‘ignorance is bliss’, ‘better not to talk about it since I’m so uncomfortable about it’ etc. Sigh… somehow, it’s just so sad when you hear of incest rape cases… if you can’t trust your family, who else CAN you trust?
All I can think of right now is how much will the public remember when the time comes to vote? Will we then forget all the past mis-deeds when we hear their empty promises come election time or will we still vigilantly hold on to our opinions and feelings when they continuously mess up. Will we hold them accountable for what they’ve done and to want more transparency? Or will we once again succumb to their sweet words and empty promises which works time and time again? Will the blogosphere change our attitude towards accepting these kind of deeds or will we continue to bend over and accept everything and anything they do? Will we demand for a more transparent govt and a more accountable govt?
I’m just hoping that when the time comes, we will do the thing that matters.
Anyway, there are still people griping about the fuel price hike but I think we’re all kind of resigned to the fact that it’s happened and there’s nothing we can do about it right now except maybe hope that the govt will actually stick to their word about improving the public transportation system. And that we, the public, will remember this thing as well as all the other things they have done when the time comes for the next general elections.
Then there’s the news about rape and incest cases. For me, the one that really stood out was the case where two brothers raped their younger sister after watching porn. I was like “WTF?!” If you’re going to offer an excuse for committing rape, at least give a better one than that. But then again, what kind of excuse CAN you give for raping your sister or anyone for that matter?! Anyway, I’m pretty sure after this case, there’s going to cries of “porn is evil” etc all over. What I don’t understand is why we can’t be open about sex and sexuality? Why do we have to hide the subject away and censure everything related about it? Again, this points to our attitude of ‘ignorance is bliss’, ‘better not to talk about it since I’m so uncomfortable about it’ etc. Sigh… somehow, it’s just so sad when you hear of incest rape cases… if you can’t trust your family, who else CAN you trust?
All I can think of right now is how much will the public remember when the time comes to vote? Will we then forget all the past mis-deeds when we hear their empty promises come election time or will we still vigilantly hold on to our opinions and feelings when they continuously mess up. Will we hold them accountable for what they’ve done and to want more transparency? Or will we once again succumb to their sweet words and empty promises which works time and time again? Will the blogosphere change our attitude towards accepting these kind of deeds or will we continue to bend over and accept everything and anything they do? Will we demand for a more transparent govt and a more accountable govt?
I’m just hoping that when the time comes, we will do the thing that matters.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
$&%**$*@*@#&
I forgot to blog about this when I found out about the petrol price increase. Cibai. 30 sen increase. The increment in my salary won't be enough to cover the price hike. And we're not only talking about petrol. Everything will go up! Mahai. Why didn't the Govt at least announce this first before dumping this policy on us? I'm not saying they should continue subsidising petrol indefinitely, but at least do lar some proper announcement and they should have done it at the end of last year. They would have known how much oil prices would be and should have announced last year so that the public (US!) would have time to plan for the next year. And companies would be able to increase our salary much more! The govt really should put a mandate on companies that all salary increment should reflect at least petrol price hikes. Cibai. Damn pissed off. And don't talk to me about car-pooling and public transport. Yeah, it's a swell idea if you've got people colleagues staying nearby or your housing area has easily accessible public transport. But what if you don't? Take for example, me. None of my colleagues are nearby so car-pooling is out of the question. Besides, our working hours aren't exactly so fixed that we all come and leave at the same time. There are no bus stops / lrt stations / ktm stations near my place OR my office so there's really no chance for me to even think of using public transport. So what now? I have to drive lar, rite! Cibai. And don't give me this crap that the money saved from the subsidies will be put to development projects and improving public transportation. More like the money saved will line your pockets even more! What a load of bull-crap. You have local councils going to South Africa and Australia for field trips and you tell us you want to save money for the good of the general public. Cibai. Going to South Africa for a study on toilets?!?!?! Going to Sydney to learn how to plant flowers?!?!?! Hello!?!? The fucker who approved these visits must have had his ass as his head. Motherfuckers. We, the public, are not stupid. Well, not all that stupid anyway. Yes, we understand the rationale behind lifting the subsidy. But like I said earlier, why was there no prior announcement? Or did some minister just think, 'Hmm... 28th February is an auspicious date... let's raise petrol prices!'. Cibai. You would think with 90 plus ministers in the Cabinet, one of them would have brains. I applaud our PM's efforts in wanting to eradicate corruption and whatever else he announced when he got the position but so far, it's all just been talk. We still have cibai local councils going on 'study trips', we still have cracks in major highways which can and will endanger our lives, we still have 'consultants' being hired to do menial things and being paid shit loads, and the list goes on. Cibai. I just can't stop saying Cibai. And then I just read that civil servants have to go on a 3-month training course to improve services. Eh? WTF? Who's going to pay for those courses? US!!! Hello, it doesn't take a genius to know that the only way to improve services is for them (civil servants) to actually work instead of taking coffee / tea breaks all the time. Why have 4 counters if only 1 counter is going to be manned? And the person manning it doesn't know shit most of the time!?!?! Then, the govt also wants all civil servants to sit for SPM english papers to improve their english. Eh? Again, WTF? No doubt I think this is important but we're not asking for our civil servants to have perfect english with no grammatical errors. I think we're more than happy if they speak broken english but are efficient. Bloody hell. Cibai fuckers.
So what now? We, M'sians, can complain to the Govt till Kingdom comes and there will still be no change. See lar... vote lar for the same party again! Cibai. And don't give me this bull-crap about how the other parties are un-tested etc. Hello, if we don't give them a chance, then they will ALWAYS be un-tested. What a Catch-22.
I would seriously like to know how our govt works. How each ministry functions. Because it just seems that there is no planning involved in anything. Everything just seems to be thrown together haphazardly. Cibai.
After everything that's happening back home, the thought of accepting the job offer here seems more and more tempting. After all, at least over here, petrol price is cheap, pay is good (tax-free!), things seem to be efficient (but could be deceiving), and... pay is good. :) Time to give this serious thought...
Cibai!
So what now? We, M'sians, can complain to the Govt till Kingdom comes and there will still be no change. See lar... vote lar for the same party again! Cibai. And don't give me this bull-crap about how the other parties are un-tested etc. Hello, if we don't give them a chance, then they will ALWAYS be un-tested. What a Catch-22.
I would seriously like to know how our govt works. How each ministry functions. Because it just seems that there is no planning involved in anything. Everything just seems to be thrown together haphazardly. Cibai.
After everything that's happening back home, the thought of accepting the job offer here seems more and more tempting. After all, at least over here, petrol price is cheap, pay is good (tax-free!), things seem to be efficient (but could be deceiving), and... pay is good. :) Time to give this serious thought...
Cibai!
By your side
So many things happening in the world. So many issues being discussed in blogs and forums. So many thoughts running through my head on some of these issues.
Tolerance. Unity. Objectivity. I believe these 3 things are essential in the world we’re living in today.
I stumbled upon this issue of a forum being asked to remove a sensitive topic discussing the cartoon debacle merely because a few people who posted stuff in the forum were offensive. So what’s the usual “Malaysian” way of dealing with sensitive topics? Sweep it under the carpet and forbid people from talking about it. After all, ignorance is bliss, right? To a certain extent, yes, ignorance is bliss. But in today’s world, you can’t afford to be ignorant. You can’t keep living under the coconut shell and ignore everything else that’s happening outside. We also can’t give the excuse that we’re not ready to deal with these things. Well, if we never deal with these things, then we’re never going to be ready. Sweeping things under the rug doesn’t help things. Suppressing what we think and feel isn’t going to make us progress. Not talking about sensitive things doesn’t mean they will magically disappear. It doesn’t mean that we’re ‘tolerant’. We just have to buck up and face the issue head on. Just like everyone else.
Why must discussing the issue of a certain religion be sensitive? And mind you, I’m talking about proper discussions and not derogatory comments that say you will go to hell if you don’t follow a certain way. And why must we be extra sensitive when it comes to a particular religion? After all, we’re not dissing Islam or Muslims in any way. If it’s just a discussion about world issues that is centred on the above topics, do we not have that right to talk about these things?
Frankly speaking, it’s really just our country that seems to want to prove themselves to be more Muslim than others. Trying to hard, I would have to say. Why do we equate race to religion? Why do you HAVE to be Muslim if you’re Malay? I think this is something that has been meshed together for so long that we think being Muslim and being Malay is one and the same. Well, they’re not. Why is it that only our country has this law that dictates what religion you believe in because you’re of this race? Why is it that only our country has a law that says a non-Muslim who marries a Muslim HAS to convert? Shouldn’t conversion to any religion be because of faith and belief? Not forced? Why is it that only our country says that once we’re into Islam, we can’t change our faith? There are plenty of Arab-Christians other Muslims countries. Their laws don’t say that if you’re born an Arab, you HAVE to believe in Islam. I just feel that our country is trying too hard to prove that they’re more Muslim than others.
I had a lot more things to say but I went for a meeting and I’ve forgotten what I originally wanted to type. Damn. Short-term memory loss.
Anyway, with everything that’s happening, this small country I’m in feels much safer and more tolerant than home.
On a totally separate note, have been listening to Sade’s ‘By Your Side’. Beautiful song. Makes me appreciate the people who love me and support me unconditionally. Thank you. And shouldn't everyone just appreciate the things around them instead of fighting?
SADE - By Your Side
You think i'd leave your side baby
You know me better than that
You think i'd leave you down when you're down on your knees
I wouldn't do that
I'll tell you you're right when you want
And if only you could see into me
Ha ah ah ah ah ah
Oh when you're cold
I'll be there
Hold you tight to me
When you're on the outside baby and you can`t get in
I will show you you're so much better than you know
When you're lost and you're alone and you cant get back again
I will find you darling and i will bring you home
And if you want to cry
I am here to dry your eyes
And in no time
You'll be fine
You think i'd leave your side baby
You know me better than that
You think id leave you down when you're down on your knees
I wouldn't do that
I'll tell you you're right when you want
And if only you could see into me
Ha ah ah ah ah ah
Oh when you're cold
I'll be there
Hold you tight to me
When you're low
I'll be there
By your side baby
Oh when you're cold
I'll be there
Hold you tight to me
Oh when you're low
I'll be there by your side baby
Tolerance. Unity. Objectivity. I believe these 3 things are essential in the world we’re living in today.
I stumbled upon this issue of a forum being asked to remove a sensitive topic discussing the cartoon debacle merely because a few people who posted stuff in the forum were offensive. So what’s the usual “Malaysian” way of dealing with sensitive topics? Sweep it under the carpet and forbid people from talking about it. After all, ignorance is bliss, right? To a certain extent, yes, ignorance is bliss. But in today’s world, you can’t afford to be ignorant. You can’t keep living under the coconut shell and ignore everything else that’s happening outside. We also can’t give the excuse that we’re not ready to deal with these things. Well, if we never deal with these things, then we’re never going to be ready. Sweeping things under the rug doesn’t help things. Suppressing what we think and feel isn’t going to make us progress. Not talking about sensitive things doesn’t mean they will magically disappear. It doesn’t mean that we’re ‘tolerant’. We just have to buck up and face the issue head on. Just like everyone else.
Why must discussing the issue of a certain religion be sensitive? And mind you, I’m talking about proper discussions and not derogatory comments that say you will go to hell if you don’t follow a certain way. And why must we be extra sensitive when it comes to a particular religion? After all, we’re not dissing Islam or Muslims in any way. If it’s just a discussion about world issues that is centred on the above topics, do we not have that right to talk about these things?
Frankly speaking, it’s really just our country that seems to want to prove themselves to be more Muslim than others. Trying to hard, I would have to say. Why do we equate race to religion? Why do you HAVE to be Muslim if you’re Malay? I think this is something that has been meshed together for so long that we think being Muslim and being Malay is one and the same. Well, they’re not. Why is it that only our country has this law that dictates what religion you believe in because you’re of this race? Why is it that only our country has a law that says a non-Muslim who marries a Muslim HAS to convert? Shouldn’t conversion to any religion be because of faith and belief? Not forced? Why is it that only our country says that once we’re into Islam, we can’t change our faith? There are plenty of Arab-Christians other Muslims countries. Their laws don’t say that if you’re born an Arab, you HAVE to believe in Islam. I just feel that our country is trying too hard to prove that they’re more Muslim than others.
I had a lot more things to say but I went for a meeting and I’ve forgotten what I originally wanted to type. Damn. Short-term memory loss.
Anyway, with everything that’s happening, this small country I’m in feels much safer and more tolerant than home.
On a totally separate note, have been listening to Sade’s ‘By Your Side’. Beautiful song. Makes me appreciate the people who love me and support me unconditionally. Thank you. And shouldn't everyone just appreciate the things around them instead of fighting?
SADE - By Your Side
You think i'd leave your side baby
You know me better than that
You think i'd leave you down when you're down on your knees
I wouldn't do that
I'll tell you you're right when you want
And if only you could see into me
Ha ah ah ah ah ah
Oh when you're cold
I'll be there
Hold you tight to me
When you're on the outside baby and you can`t get in
I will show you you're so much better than you know
When you're lost and you're alone and you cant get back again
I will find you darling and i will bring you home
And if you want to cry
I am here to dry your eyes
And in no time
You'll be fine
You think i'd leave your side baby
You know me better than that
You think id leave you down when you're down on your knees
I wouldn't do that
I'll tell you you're right when you want
And if only you could see into me
Ha ah ah ah ah ah
Oh when you're cold
I'll be there
Hold you tight to me
When you're low
I'll be there
By your side baby
Oh when you're cold
I'll be there
Hold you tight to me
Oh when you're low
I'll be there by your side baby
Monday, February 27, 2006
Homesick
I always thought of myself as the type who can stay anywhere in the world. Well, looks like I was dead wrong! I've been in Bahrain for a total of (2 + 2 + 2 + 3 weeks) 9 weeks now and I'm seriously suffering. It's not a bad place. Really. It's peaceful. Crime rate is low. Food is cheap. But it's just not home.
The thing I miss the most is the food. Besides the usual fare of Indian and Arabic food, I can't get anything that resembles food from home. And i'm talking about basic stuff like Hokkien Mee :) Or even decent fried rice. Everything 'chinese' here still tastes like Indian food. And that's because the chefs are all Indian nationals. The only thing resembling food i can get back home is stuff i cook myself. And i'm not a good cook. So i'm basically limited to very simple things. Another problem is vegetables. Basically the only type of greens i'm eating is in the form of salads. Lettuce. Carrots. Cucumber (yucks!). Tomatoes. I want Sawi! I want Kangkung! I want Kai Lan stir fried with garlic! :(
It's not like being in UK or US or Aussie where (a) you understand the language everyone speaks in, (b) you get your fair share of other Asians around and (c) it's super easy to get the type of food you want. Over here, I don't have (a) and (c). As for (b), there are only Indian nationals and Pinoys. And i still get stares.
For me, I think the hardest part(s) about being here is (1) the food and (2) the language. Language is not exactly a barrier since everyone can speak english but they'll be babbling away in their language and you're left to wonder what the hell are they saying and if they're commenting anything bad about you.
Of course there are other factors like cultural differences - asking questions like "Are you married?" / "Do you have a boyfriend?" seem to be alrite. Practically everyone I've met from the people in the client's place to the taxi driver(!) have asked me questions like that.
I want my char siew rice, pork noodles, hokkien mee, nasi lemak, roti canai, bak kut teh, chicken rice, char koay teow, leafy vegetables, sweet and sour pork, etc...
The thing I miss the most is the food. Besides the usual fare of Indian and Arabic food, I can't get anything that resembles food from home. And i'm talking about basic stuff like Hokkien Mee :) Or even decent fried rice. Everything 'chinese' here still tastes like Indian food. And that's because the chefs are all Indian nationals. The only thing resembling food i can get back home is stuff i cook myself. And i'm not a good cook. So i'm basically limited to very simple things. Another problem is vegetables. Basically the only type of greens i'm eating is in the form of salads. Lettuce. Carrots. Cucumber (yucks!). Tomatoes. I want Sawi! I want Kangkung! I want Kai Lan stir fried with garlic! :(
It's not like being in UK or US or Aussie where (a) you understand the language everyone speaks in, (b) you get your fair share of other Asians around and (c) it's super easy to get the type of food you want. Over here, I don't have (a) and (c). As for (b), there are only Indian nationals and Pinoys. And i still get stares.
For me, I think the hardest part(s) about being here is (1) the food and (2) the language. Language is not exactly a barrier since everyone can speak english but they'll be babbling away in their language and you're left to wonder what the hell are they saying and if they're commenting anything bad about you.
Of course there are other factors like cultural differences - asking questions like "Are you married?" / "Do you have a boyfriend?" seem to be alrite. Practically everyone I've met from the people in the client's place to the taxi driver(!) have asked me questions like that.
I want my char siew rice, pork noodles, hokkien mee, nasi lemak, roti canai, bak kut teh, chicken rice, char koay teow, leafy vegetables, sweet and sour pork, etc...
Sunday, February 26, 2006
Damn funny
I watched this video clip in the office and was trying really hard to keep a straight face. The link to the video:
http://www.youtube.com/?v=dUto_zdvb90
http://www.youtube.com/?v=dUto_zdvb90
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Rants
Goodness. Another cartoon controversy. C’mon people. Have a sense of humour. The cartoon published by the NST was not even close to offending Islam and their Prophet. I actually thought it was pretty funny. With all the violence that’s been happening in other parts of the world, I don’t think it was bad taste at all for NST to have published a cartoon which looks at the controversy with a humorous air. If you can’t find humour in anything, then we might as well all be caught up in the violence and start rioting ourselves. I really think it’s important for people to take a step back and actually think about what’s going on. Actually think about what they’re doing. Actually being able to laugh at themselves. Why must we always portray ourselves as being so self-righteous all the time that what everyone else says, thinks and does is always wrong? Yes, there are always things people don’t agree upon but that’s just part of being in a world with so many different kinds of people. Why can’t people just take things with a pinch of salt?
Do I think the original cartoons published were offensive to Islam? Yes, I do. Do I think that the newspapers that printed them should not have re-printed them? Yes, I do. Do I think the newspapers should apologise to all Muslims? Yes, I do. Do I think the people who reacted to the cartoons by protesting with violence and burning is wrong? Yes, I do.
There’s always such a thing called moderation and the in-between. Alright, so you’ve published the cartoons and suddenly everyone is angry about it. Is it so hard to say I’m sorry? So some newspaper has published some cartoons that make you feel offended. Is it so hard to stop and think a while and maybe even finding humour in the situation? Is it so hard to voice your opinion via proper means rather than burning buildings, flags, effigies, cars, etc?
The Muslims say they’re misunderstood and why are they being discriminated against. So is their way of correcting this situation is by being violent. What a great way to portray yourselves of peace-loving people.
Found an interesting article in Yahoo. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ucac/20060209/cm_ucac/calvinandhobbesandmuhammad
I just feel that people need to deal with issues objectively. Especially controversial issues like these which affect the whole world. And this comic in NST? I still think it’s funny. And how is it offensive? I don’t know. Apparently the people who are offended by it and have filed police reports against the NST have not exactly explained how it is offensive towards Muslims. So maybe it was bad timing to publish the cartoon when the whole world is heated up. But being able to laugh is the first step in decreasing the tension. If you keep talking about it or try to suppress the issue, it’d still come back and bite you in the ass. I was also pretty surprised that Jeff Ooi would actually play up the issue by accusing NST of having some sort of ‘udang di sebalik batu’. Oh well, he might have some personal issues as well. Everyone has their own opinion.
I just read about the protest which will happen on 3 March. Another protest. Apparently coordinated worldwide. Question: what are they trying to achieve from protesting? To get the world to agree with them that it was wrong for the newspapers to have published the cartoons? Wait… hasn’t the world already agreed with them? So… what is it these people are looking for? Looks like I’ll actually be safer in Bahrain. Have been here for 3 weeks now and no mention of any protests. Unlike my poor colleagues in Pakistan. Anyway, why can’t everyone be moderate like the Bahrainis? I applaud these people for being the moderate Muslims that everyone is talking about.
Have got so many thoughts on stuff I’ve been reading online.
The racial profiling of Malaysians who apparently take drugs in clubs.
Heck, what the hell is the racial profiling for? So that some racist fuck can point fingers and say “Haha… you Chinese druggies”? So much for Bangsa Malaysia. Aren’t we all supposed to be tackling social problems as a nation? Hello! Bangsa Malaysia? Not Bangsa Cina Malaysia, okay! If race is so important, then why do I keep telling people that I’m Malaysian? I might as well tell people I’m Malaysian Chinese. Or better yet, just Chinese. After all, that’s what my government views me as. Not as a Malaysian.
Damn… This post is pretty jumbled. Basically just jotting down whatever comes to mind first.
I want to go home to my friends and family.
Do I think the original cartoons published were offensive to Islam? Yes, I do. Do I think that the newspapers that printed them should not have re-printed them? Yes, I do. Do I think the newspapers should apologise to all Muslims? Yes, I do. Do I think the people who reacted to the cartoons by protesting with violence and burning is wrong? Yes, I do.
There’s always such a thing called moderation and the in-between. Alright, so you’ve published the cartoons and suddenly everyone is angry about it. Is it so hard to say I’m sorry? So some newspaper has published some cartoons that make you feel offended. Is it so hard to stop and think a while and maybe even finding humour in the situation? Is it so hard to voice your opinion via proper means rather than burning buildings, flags, effigies, cars, etc?
The Muslims say they’re misunderstood and why are they being discriminated against. So is their way of correcting this situation is by being violent. What a great way to portray yourselves of peace-loving people.
Found an interesting article in Yahoo. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ucac/20060209/cm_ucac/calvinandhobbesandmuhammad
I just feel that people need to deal with issues objectively. Especially controversial issues like these which affect the whole world. And this comic in NST? I still think it’s funny. And how is it offensive? I don’t know. Apparently the people who are offended by it and have filed police reports against the NST have not exactly explained how it is offensive towards Muslims. So maybe it was bad timing to publish the cartoon when the whole world is heated up. But being able to laugh is the first step in decreasing the tension. If you keep talking about it or try to suppress the issue, it’d still come back and bite you in the ass. I was also pretty surprised that Jeff Ooi would actually play up the issue by accusing NST of having some sort of ‘udang di sebalik batu’. Oh well, he might have some personal issues as well. Everyone has their own opinion.
I just read about the protest which will happen on 3 March. Another protest. Apparently coordinated worldwide. Question: what are they trying to achieve from protesting? To get the world to agree with them that it was wrong for the newspapers to have published the cartoons? Wait… hasn’t the world already agreed with them? So… what is it these people are looking for? Looks like I’ll actually be safer in Bahrain. Have been here for 3 weeks now and no mention of any protests. Unlike my poor colleagues in Pakistan. Anyway, why can’t everyone be moderate like the Bahrainis? I applaud these people for being the moderate Muslims that everyone is talking about.
Have got so many thoughts on stuff I’ve been reading online.
The racial profiling of Malaysians who apparently take drugs in clubs.
Heck, what the hell is the racial profiling for? So that some racist fuck can point fingers and say “Haha… you Chinese druggies”? So much for Bangsa Malaysia. Aren’t we all supposed to be tackling social problems as a nation? Hello! Bangsa Malaysia? Not Bangsa Cina Malaysia, okay! If race is so important, then why do I keep telling people that I’m Malaysian? I might as well tell people I’m Malaysian Chinese. Or better yet, just Chinese. After all, that’s what my government views me as. Not as a Malaysian.
Damn… This post is pretty jumbled. Basically just jotting down whatever comes to mind first.
I want to go home to my friends and family.
Sunday, February 19, 2006
OMG!
Update:
The Head of Operations just sat with me for 30 minutes trying to convince me to accept their offer of a job here. This is so tempting. Not only will the work be interesting but the financial gains will definitely be triplefold of what I'm getting now. Not to mention the prospect of their high bonuses every year. Not only that but the exposure I would be getting will definitely get me better opportunities in the future.
Hmm....
The Head of Operations just sat with me for 30 minutes trying to convince me to accept their offer of a job here. This is so tempting. Not only will the work be interesting but the financial gains will definitely be triplefold of what I'm getting now. Not to mention the prospect of their high bonuses every year. Not only that but the exposure I would be getting will definitely get me better opportunities in the future.
Hmm....
Flying with the wind
I've decided to let certain things that bug me fly with the strong wind that's been blowing across Bahrain for the past few days. I've decided if these things bug me and there's nothing more I can do from my part, why worry? Why let it continue to bug me? I've treid countless times to let him know that it bugs me and that I would appreciate it if he could do as I ask. I don't think it's too much to ask for an sms everyday considering we are currently so far away. But since it seems to be so difficult, I might as well let it go rather than let it bother me and nag him which makes the both of us unhappy at the end. There are also a few other things which I've decided to let go of which I shall not go into details as they are rather personal and also am too lazy at the moment to type them all out.
I decided this when walking across the mini-desert from my apartment to the supermarket. Seriously, I call it the mini-desert because it's just an empty piece of land filled with sand in front of my apartment. I really should start snapping photos. I keep forgetting. Anyway, I suppose that land belongs to some rich Arab who just hasn't decided what he should build on it. Notice I said he because it most probably is a he. Hard to explain but all the rich business people are still men. There are hardly any women in top positions here. Most of the women in the working world quit after they get married and have kids. Anyway, I digress. Was going to talk about the wind. Me being me, I walked out of the apartment building with just my t-shirt and lazy pants since the weather previously was warm and pleasant. Little did I know that the wind decided to swoop in. And even after stepping outside with the wind happily blowing, stubborn (lazy?) me decided to walk to the supermarket anyway without going back in the apartment to grab a sweater. Wrong decision. I also decided to cut across the mini-desert instead of going by the road. After all, the shortest distance between two places is a straight line. So there I was, braving the wind, walking across the desert. Shit. The wind was so strong that it nearly blew me off my feet. I could literally feel the wind pushing me from the sides, the back and the front! And I'm not exactly feather-weight. Imagine anyone skinnier than me. They would have been flying across the desert already. Plus, the wind blew up the sand. So not only was I being abused by the wind, I also had grains of sand pelting me. Nice... Imagine my joy and happiness when I finally reached the shelter of the supermarket. I almost felt like camping out in the store until the wind dropped a bit. But then I was already hanging out between the aisles for so long, the workers were starting to give me funny looks. The walk back was even worse. Because I was laden down with so many packages, I couldn't walk very fast. Decided to take the long route back which I suppose was better since I didn't have grains of sand abusing me. But the wind decided to pick up and my plastic bags were in danger of flying out of my hands and I was also in danger of toppling over. Oh, how strong the blasted wind was. By the time I reached the apartment lobby, I looked like I just rolled around in the sand. My hair was a mess and I looked dusty. Bleh.
So anyway, that's the story of my battle with the wind. And how I decided to let everything go and let them fly with the wind.
It's a boring Sunday in the office and I'm just writing my wind story because that's about the only interesting thing that happened to me over the weekend. Besides the fact that my attempt to cook me some vegetable soup didn't turn out too right. And my attempts to do some exercises also didn't turn out too well either. But hey, at least I managed to do some abdominal crunches everyday so far. Am hoping to keep that up so that at least I won't feel so guilty for having bought that tub of Sara Lee's ice-cream and packet of strawberries to go with the ice-cream. Also that packet of buttery light Marks & Spencers biscuits that go so well with milk as a snack. Yum. But then again, I would give all that up (maybe not the strawberries) for a plate of chicken rice & char siew. Or maybe a bowl of pork noodles. Or Hokkien Mee. Or good ole nasi lemak. Or a bowl of tom yam soup. Okay, the list goes on. And I'm already beginning to drool.
Another 2 weeks here. Before I go back for a few days, binge on yummy Malaysian food then fly back here again for another 2 months. There's a project in Bangkok which I might be able to be on it if the stint here finishes in April. Keeping my fingers crossed.
I decided this when walking across the mini-desert from my apartment to the supermarket. Seriously, I call it the mini-desert because it's just an empty piece of land filled with sand in front of my apartment. I really should start snapping photos. I keep forgetting. Anyway, I suppose that land belongs to some rich Arab who just hasn't decided what he should build on it. Notice I said he because it most probably is a he. Hard to explain but all the rich business people are still men. There are hardly any women in top positions here. Most of the women in the working world quit after they get married and have kids. Anyway, I digress. Was going to talk about the wind. Me being me, I walked out of the apartment building with just my t-shirt and lazy pants since the weather previously was warm and pleasant. Little did I know that the wind decided to swoop in. And even after stepping outside with the wind happily blowing, stubborn (lazy?) me decided to walk to the supermarket anyway without going back in the apartment to grab a sweater. Wrong decision. I also decided to cut across the mini-desert instead of going by the road. After all, the shortest distance between two places is a straight line. So there I was, braving the wind, walking across the desert. Shit. The wind was so strong that it nearly blew me off my feet. I could literally feel the wind pushing me from the sides, the back and the front! And I'm not exactly feather-weight. Imagine anyone skinnier than me. They would have been flying across the desert already. Plus, the wind blew up the sand. So not only was I being abused by the wind, I also had grains of sand pelting me. Nice... Imagine my joy and happiness when I finally reached the shelter of the supermarket. I almost felt like camping out in the store until the wind dropped a bit. But then I was already hanging out between the aisles for so long, the workers were starting to give me funny looks. The walk back was even worse. Because I was laden down with so many packages, I couldn't walk very fast. Decided to take the long route back which I suppose was better since I didn't have grains of sand abusing me. But the wind decided to pick up and my plastic bags were in danger of flying out of my hands and I was also in danger of toppling over. Oh, how strong the blasted wind was. By the time I reached the apartment lobby, I looked like I just rolled around in the sand. My hair was a mess and I looked dusty. Bleh.
So anyway, that's the story of my battle with the wind. And how I decided to let everything go and let them fly with the wind.
It's a boring Sunday in the office and I'm just writing my wind story because that's about the only interesting thing that happened to me over the weekend. Besides the fact that my attempt to cook me some vegetable soup didn't turn out too right. And my attempts to do some exercises also didn't turn out too well either. But hey, at least I managed to do some abdominal crunches everyday so far. Am hoping to keep that up so that at least I won't feel so guilty for having bought that tub of Sara Lee's ice-cream and packet of strawberries to go with the ice-cream. Also that packet of buttery light Marks & Spencers biscuits that go so well with milk as a snack. Yum. But then again, I would give all that up (maybe not the strawberries) for a plate of chicken rice & char siew. Or maybe a bowl of pork noodles. Or Hokkien Mee. Or good ole nasi lemak. Or a bowl of tom yam soup. Okay, the list goes on. And I'm already beginning to drool.
Another 2 weeks here. Before I go back for a few days, binge on yummy Malaysian food then fly back here again for another 2 months. There's a project in Bangkok which I might be able to be on it if the stint here finishes in April. Keeping my fingers crossed.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
Take a deep breath...
Aah..... the weekend is here... i can take a deep breath and chill for 2 whole days without thinking of work at all. The past week has been so crammed with meetings and work that I hardly had time to think about the next steps and what I have to do next. So why have I suddenly become so busy? Well, my manager was here for the past week and we tried to cram as many meetings we could. Plus, I suddenly had to rush things for her so she could review them before she leaves. Plus, a lot of other things which I shall refrain from mentioning in case it gets back to me later and bites my ass.
Have been going out for dinner with my boss for the past 2 nights. Spent Valentine's day with her. Hehe. How romantic for the both of us. Anyway, bought some fabulous cookies and cereal from Marks & Spencers. Yummy. Imagine having cereal with real strawberries. Bought more undies from M&S again. :) I'm set for at least the next 5 years with the amount of undies I bought! Zara was on sale! But unfortunately, I couldn't find anything. Looked real hard to find something I could buy... but nothing caught my eye. At least not the ones I could afford. Damn.
A bit of an update. Looks like I'm going to be in Bahrain for a tad bit longer than planned. More like another 2 months. Possibly. Maybe more. Will have to get into the details of implementation and making sure the project kicks off. Plus, offered a job by the client :) In fact, the whole team who's been here have been offered jobs. Very tempting... but how do you jump up and down and say "yes!" when you were offered the job infront of your boss? :) Heehee. Anyway, the client wouldn't be an easy person to work for. It's different when you're the outside consultant. But if you're directly under him... hmm... think again. Loads of politics here. Anyway, with the extension over here, I won't be on any different project. And I thought I would be in one of the risk jobs for Bangkok or Pakistan since there are no more Strategy jobs in the pipeline. Oh well. Looks like I might as well specialise in the line I'm working on now.
It's almost going home time! Yay! I feel so tired. My eyes ache. My head is filled with things I need to do for next week. My Monday next week is fully booked with meetings. Plus need to prepare presentation slides for a proposal meeting back in KL for my boss. Bleh... Loads of things to do. But I'm not going to think about any of those right now. Am just going to go back, draw myself a nice hot bath, have my dinner and plonk myself in front of the tv for the rest of the night. Heehee. Oh ya, the client offered me their corporate membership at the Ritz-Carlton spa. Told me to go pamper myself. Haha. Sounds lovely. I could do with a bit of pampering.
Cheers to the weekend!
Have been going out for dinner with my boss for the past 2 nights. Spent Valentine's day with her. Hehe. How romantic for the both of us. Anyway, bought some fabulous cookies and cereal from Marks & Spencers. Yummy. Imagine having cereal with real strawberries. Bought more undies from M&S again. :) I'm set for at least the next 5 years with the amount of undies I bought! Zara was on sale! But unfortunately, I couldn't find anything. Looked real hard to find something I could buy... but nothing caught my eye. At least not the ones I could afford. Damn.
A bit of an update. Looks like I'm going to be in Bahrain for a tad bit longer than planned. More like another 2 months. Possibly. Maybe more. Will have to get into the details of implementation and making sure the project kicks off. Plus, offered a job by the client :) In fact, the whole team who's been here have been offered jobs. Very tempting... but how do you jump up and down and say "yes!" when you were offered the job infront of your boss? :) Heehee. Anyway, the client wouldn't be an easy person to work for. It's different when you're the outside consultant. But if you're directly under him... hmm... think again. Loads of politics here. Anyway, with the extension over here, I won't be on any different project. And I thought I would be in one of the risk jobs for Bangkok or Pakistan since there are no more Strategy jobs in the pipeline. Oh well. Looks like I might as well specialise in the line I'm working on now.
It's almost going home time! Yay! I feel so tired. My eyes ache. My head is filled with things I need to do for next week. My Monday next week is fully booked with meetings. Plus need to prepare presentation slides for a proposal meeting back in KL for my boss. Bleh... Loads of things to do. But I'm not going to think about any of those right now. Am just going to go back, draw myself a nice hot bath, have my dinner and plonk myself in front of the tv for the rest of the night. Heehee. Oh ya, the client offered me their corporate membership at the Ritz-Carlton spa. Told me to go pamper myself. Haha. Sounds lovely. I could do with a bit of pampering.
Cheers to the weekend!
Monday, February 13, 2006
Big problems, small issues
I get upset too easily. And when I'm upset, I sometimes say things that I don't mean or that I know I wouldn't say if I was calm. But then these things get said, and I would be regretting saying them.
I'm reading about what's happening in the world right now, and I feel so small. The problems I face everyday are so trivial when you read about the violent riots, the fights in the middle east, the nuclear issue in Iran etc.
I'm feeling extremely small right now. And I'm regretting telling him what I did. What if it backfires in my face? I HAVE to calm myself down before I do / say anything. I don't understand why and how I can be the calm and reasonable person I am at work but when it comes to matters of my family and him, my mouth just shoots off the first thing that comes into my head.
As a wise sista of mine quoted, "It's easy to take advantage of the ones we love most".
And I have to admit, both of us have been guilty of taking each other for granted in this 2-plus year relationship. I can't count the times when we have had arguements about the same things over and over again. And somehow, it's always me who ends up being the 'bad' person. Because it's always me who can't keep her mouth and brain working together. It's always me whose mouth decides to say something before consulting the brain. So, in an arguement, it's always me who looks bad. Sigh...
What do you do when your fights are always revolving around the same thing? He says A, I say B, he won't change his A to my B, and I won't change my B to his A. There should be something in between A and B which we can achieve. And I would have liked to think that we had already found that 'in-between' but once in a while, that 'in-between' place crumbles and we're back to square 1.
Sometimes it's not about him or me but just about the situation and environment that we're in. Our working environments just clash so much that sometimes, it's unbearable. Actually, not unbearable. More like annoying and frustrating because there's nothing the both of us can do. I've told him and myself that I will and have to accept that fact and will try to work ourselves around this.
Big sigh... I feel so small. Honestly, I'm glad that I'm in Bahrain right now as at least it gives me time to be with myself and not needing to meet anyone's expectations (besides work). I've escaped here. And hopefully when my time here is up, I would have found the strength to be the person that I want to be.
I'm reading about what's happening in the world right now, and I feel so small. The problems I face everyday are so trivial when you read about the violent riots, the fights in the middle east, the nuclear issue in Iran etc.
I'm feeling extremely small right now. And I'm regretting telling him what I did. What if it backfires in my face? I HAVE to calm myself down before I do / say anything. I don't understand why and how I can be the calm and reasonable person I am at work but when it comes to matters of my family and him, my mouth just shoots off the first thing that comes into my head.
As a wise sista of mine quoted, "It's easy to take advantage of the ones we love most".
And I have to admit, both of us have been guilty of taking each other for granted in this 2-plus year relationship. I can't count the times when we have had arguements about the same things over and over again. And somehow, it's always me who ends up being the 'bad' person. Because it's always me who can't keep her mouth and brain working together. It's always me whose mouth decides to say something before consulting the brain. So, in an arguement, it's always me who looks bad. Sigh...
What do you do when your fights are always revolving around the same thing? He says A, I say B, he won't change his A to my B, and I won't change my B to his A. There should be something in between A and B which we can achieve. And I would have liked to think that we had already found that 'in-between' but once in a while, that 'in-between' place crumbles and we're back to square 1.
Sometimes it's not about him or me but just about the situation and environment that we're in. Our working environments just clash so much that sometimes, it's unbearable. Actually, not unbearable. More like annoying and frustrating because there's nothing the both of us can do. I've told him and myself that I will and have to accept that fact and will try to work ourselves around this.
Big sigh... I feel so small. Honestly, I'm glad that I'm in Bahrain right now as at least it gives me time to be with myself and not needing to meet anyone's expectations (besides work). I've escaped here. And hopefully when my time here is up, I would have found the strength to be the person that I want to be.
Saturday, February 11, 2006
The week after CNY whizzed by like nobody’s business. I came back from Bahrain just before CNY, went back home to Penang for the holidays, then bham! Time to start work again. My time in Bahrain was so relaxed as I only had to work on one project. So when I went back to work in KL, I was hit with so much more things to do besides the current Bahrain project and a whole lot of other admin things to do. Had to work on a proposal, slides for a presentation for a proposal, to come up with a strategy map for an internal project and more deliverables for the Bahrain project. Bleh… I have no idea what I did during the week so I’m just trying to recap my days….
Monday
Back to work after really long break… Obviously not in much mood to work :) Was still quite relaxed as bosses have not caught up with their emails yet hence no extra work yet. After lunch, got a few emails from boss to do this and do that. Deadline: end of Thursday. Aiya! Die la! Still had some time… so of course I procrastinated.
Didn’t bring my phone charger back from Penang… so had to leave work around 6 plus to meet my friend in OUG who brought my charger back from Penang for me. Was stuck on the road for 1 hour plus and finally reached home at 8 something. Met Syl for dinner so when I finally got home to shower and all, it was already 10 plus. Tiring!
Tuesday
Started on some of the new work and pushed aside work for Bahrain project. Had to go shopping during lunch time for the gift exchange thing during company party on Friday night. 7 of us bought thongs for the guys we’re giving the gifts to…hehehe… and to top it up, we put a condom in each box. Funny!
Met Ju for dinner at Chili’s and tried to answer her questions as much as I could to help her and David out.
Went back to Botak’s house after dinner and lamed the rest of the night away watching Astro.
Wednesday
Was in a discussion with my boss for practically the whole day about the Bahrain project. How to get any work done?!
Was also Zub’s birthday but we pretended we didn’t know and snuck out during lunch to buy a cake for him. Managed to keep it from him and went for drinks as a cover-line when he was stuck with the boss. Surprised him with the cake and all. We attached a little baby doll to the cake since he’s the youngest and we call him Baby Zub.
Cute baby, huh?
Rushed back as had a Chinese New Year dinner with the Voices bunch courtesy of my dear housemate, Bots :) Lots of good food and good company. Dinner was at a restaurant in Puchong. There were 16 of us squeezed at a table meant for 12. Lots of bumping elbows action.
Anyway, as pure CNY custom, the dinner started out with good ole Yee Sang. Lots of chopstick action and bits of yee sang flying here and there thanks to vigorous and enthusiastic ‘lou-sang-ing’. Lots of wishes for good things to happen. After that, came the rest of the dishes. It was very surprising to see all the dishes coming out at the same time. There was asparagus, kampong chicken, fish, prawns, claypot taufu, roast duck and a vegetable dish called ‘4 Heavenly Kings’ which consisted of petai, French beans, ladies fingers and long beans. The food was really really yummy especially the roast duck but the problem was all the dishes were served at once! So it was like sitting at the already full table and not enough room for the dishes. So the waiters kept taking the dishes away to put them into smaller plates and then taking other dishes away to make space for new dishes. It just felt rushed and chaotic. I felt like I had to stuff my face with everything I could get before the dish was taken away. And that was exactly what I did.
We decided to adjourn somewhere else for a drink after the dinner and off we went. Caught up with the latest gossip and happenings with the sistas. By the time I got home, it was already 1 am. Aah!
Thursday
More meetings and discussions. More work to do! Left work pretty late and then just lamed at home doing more work and watching the Grammy’s.
Packed up my stuff for trip back to Bahrain.
Friday
Rushed to finish pending work. More discussions. More meetings.
Left office in a rush to make it on time to the company party in the heart of KL. Got stuck in the jam for 1 hour plus! To add on to the stress, my fuel tank was almost empty and I was chanting mantras to not get stuck as my boss was in my car! Reached the party in a foul mood (thanks to the jam) and just started on the drinks. Hehe. Was a fun party and had quite a good time laughing at people.
Left KL around 12:30 am to go back to the office to collect my stuff then rushed home to shower and pack somemore.
Saturday
Whole day spent on the plane. By the time I reached Bahrain, my ass felt flat and my back felt like it was going to break into two. Bleh. There were 2 cute French kids sitting next to me on the plane. Didn't understand a word they were blabbing to each other and their parents but it's so cute listening to 2 blonde little kids speaking French.
Sunday (today)
Back at the client’s place. As always, feeling a bit disoriented and blur as to where to start. Thought I’d start by confirming meetings but the people I’m supposed to meet are not around (as usual). So decided to blog instead. Tee-hee. It’s going to be a long 2 weeks and 5 days.
Monday
Back to work after really long break… Obviously not in much mood to work :) Was still quite relaxed as bosses have not caught up with their emails yet hence no extra work yet. After lunch, got a few emails from boss to do this and do that. Deadline: end of Thursday. Aiya! Die la! Still had some time… so of course I procrastinated.
Didn’t bring my phone charger back from Penang… so had to leave work around 6 plus to meet my friend in OUG who brought my charger back from Penang for me. Was stuck on the road for 1 hour plus and finally reached home at 8 something. Met Syl for dinner so when I finally got home to shower and all, it was already 10 plus. Tiring!
Tuesday
Started on some of the new work and pushed aside work for Bahrain project. Had to go shopping during lunch time for the gift exchange thing during company party on Friday night. 7 of us bought thongs for the guys we’re giving the gifts to…hehehe… and to top it up, we put a condom in each box. Funny!
Met Ju for dinner at Chili’s and tried to answer her questions as much as I could to help her and David out.
Went back to Botak’s house after dinner and lamed the rest of the night away watching Astro.
Wednesday
Was in a discussion with my boss for practically the whole day about the Bahrain project. How to get any work done?!
Was also Zub’s birthday but we pretended we didn’t know and snuck out during lunch to buy a cake for him. Managed to keep it from him and went for drinks as a cover-line when he was stuck with the boss. Surprised him with the cake and all. We attached a little baby doll to the cake since he’s the youngest and we call him Baby Zub.
Cute baby, huh?
Rushed back as had a Chinese New Year dinner with the Voices bunch courtesy of my dear housemate, Bots :) Lots of good food and good company. Dinner was at a restaurant in Puchong. There were 16 of us squeezed at a table meant for 12. Lots of bumping elbows action.
Anyway, as pure CNY custom, the dinner started out with good ole Yee Sang. Lots of chopstick action and bits of yee sang flying here and there thanks to vigorous and enthusiastic ‘lou-sang-ing’. Lots of wishes for good things to happen. After that, came the rest of the dishes. It was very surprising to see all the dishes coming out at the same time. There was asparagus, kampong chicken, fish, prawns, claypot taufu, roast duck and a vegetable dish called ‘4 Heavenly Kings’ which consisted of petai, French beans, ladies fingers and long beans. The food was really really yummy especially the roast duck but the problem was all the dishes were served at once! So it was like sitting at the already full table and not enough room for the dishes. So the waiters kept taking the dishes away to put them into smaller plates and then taking other dishes away to make space for new dishes. It just felt rushed and chaotic. I felt like I had to stuff my face with everything I could get before the dish was taken away. And that was exactly what I did.
We decided to adjourn somewhere else for a drink after the dinner and off we went. Caught up with the latest gossip and happenings with the sistas. By the time I got home, it was already 1 am. Aah!
Thursday
More meetings and discussions. More work to do! Left work pretty late and then just lamed at home doing more work and watching the Grammy’s.
Packed up my stuff for trip back to Bahrain.
Friday
Rushed to finish pending work. More discussions. More meetings.
Left office in a rush to make it on time to the company party in the heart of KL. Got stuck in the jam for 1 hour plus! To add on to the stress, my fuel tank was almost empty and I was chanting mantras to not get stuck as my boss was in my car! Reached the party in a foul mood (thanks to the jam) and just started on the drinks. Hehe. Was a fun party and had quite a good time laughing at people.
Left KL around 12:30 am to go back to the office to collect my stuff then rushed home to shower and pack somemore.
Saturday
Whole day spent on the plane. By the time I reached Bahrain, my ass felt flat and my back felt like it was going to break into two. Bleh. There were 2 cute French kids sitting next to me on the plane. Didn't understand a word they were blabbing to each other and their parents but it's so cute listening to 2 blonde little kids speaking French.
Sunday (today)
Back at the client’s place. As always, feeling a bit disoriented and blur as to where to start. Thought I’d start by confirming meetings but the people I’m supposed to meet are not around (as usual). So decided to blog instead. Tee-hee. It’s going to be a long 2 weeks and 5 days.
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