Inter alia

Hold your head high

2012-01-18T18:48:00.001+08:00

It is hard to hold your head when all the rest around you are losing theirs. This is so true when you see vices being done by people you know are indulge in what they feel are small negligible vices but you know these are significant breaches to audit and compliance.

Well what do you do? Join them? No... You hold on to your good name and continue to do what is right. Your name and integrity is the only legacy which truly belongs to you and no one else, so guard them with your life. Once you have lost your name and integrity, it is as good as losing others trust and confidence in you.

Just some food for thought...

little b at camp

2011-11-24T09:26:00.001+08:00

Little b is at the camp today and being a paranoid parent, I have to tag along (also to see what kind of fun I am missing).There is a briefing about rules and safety and the presenter was trying encourage all children not to be picky and finish all food that is served. Presenter: we serve you good food, so they are tasty. You must eat it all. If it is not good, then what must you do? The answer he was expecting was : "still must eat it all". But the children answered, "Complain!!!"

In Memory of Steve Jobs (1955 - 2011)

2011-10-09T22:00:00.000+08:00

This is good. I copied it from Guy Kawasaki's blog as I didnt want to lose his lessons.

Guy Kawasaki - Yesterday 5:12 PM (edited) - Public

(Sat01) What I Learned From Steve Jobs

Many people have explained what one can learn from Steve Jobs. But few, if any, of these people have been inside the tent and experienced first h...and what it was like to work with him. I don’t want any lessons to be lost or forgotten, so here is my list of the top twelve lessons that I learned from Steve Jobs.

Experts are clueless.

Experts—journalists, analysts, consultants, bankers, and gurus can’t “do” so they “advise.” They can tell you what is wrong with your product, but they cannot make a great one. They can tell you how to sell something, but they cannot sell it themselves. They can tell you how to create great teams, but they only manage a secretary. For example, the experts told us that the two biggest shortcomings of Macintosh in the mid 1980s was the lack of a daisy-wheel printer driver and Lotus 1-2-3; another advice gem from the experts was to buy Compaq. Hear what experts say, but don’t always listen to them.

Customers cannot tell you what they need.

“Apple market research” is an oxymoron. The Apple focus group was the right hemisphere of Steve’s brain talking to the left one. If you ask customers what they want, they will tell you, “Better, faster, and cheaper”—that is, better sameness, not revolutionary change. They can only describe their desires in terms of what they are already using—around the time of the introduction of Macintosh, all people said they wanted was better, faster, and cheaper MS-DOS machines. The richest vein for tech startups is creating the product that you want to use—that’s what Steve and Woz did.

Jump to the next curve.

Big wins happen when you go beyond better sameness. The best daisy-wheel printer companies were introducing new fonts in more sizes. Apple introduced the next curve: laser printing. Think of ice harvesters, ice factories, and refrigerator companies. Ice 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0. Are you still harvesting ice during the winter from a frozen pond?

The biggest challenges beget best work.

I lived in fear that Steve would tell me that I, or my work, was crap. In public. This fear was a big challenge. Competing with IBM and then Microsoft was a big challenge. Changing the world was a big challenge. I, and Apple employees before me and after me, did their best work because we had to do our best work to meet the big challenges.

Design counts.

Steve drove people nuts with his design demands—some shades of black weren’t black enough. Mere mortals think that black is black, and that a trash can is a trash can. Steve was such a perfectionist—a perfectionist Beyond: Thunderdome—and lo and behold he was right: some people care about design and many people at least sense it. Maybe not everyone, but the important ones.

You can’t go wrong with big graphics and big fonts.

Take a look at Steve’s slides. The font is sixty points. There’s usually one big screenshot or graphic. Look at other tech speaker’s slides—even the ones who have seen Steve in action. The font is eight points, and there are no graphics. So many people say that Steve was the world’s greatest product introduction guy..don’t you wonder why more people don’t copy his style?

Changing your mind is a sign of intelligence.

When Apple first shipped the iPhone there was no such thing as apps. Apps, Steve decreed, were a bad thing because you never know what they could be doing to your phone. Safari web apps were the way to go until six months later when Steve decided, or someone convinced Steve, that apps were the way to go—but of course. Duh! Apple came a long way in a short time from Safari web apps to “there’s an app for that.”

“Value” is different from “price.”

Woe unto you if you decide everything based on price. Even more woe unto you if you compete solely on price. Price is not all that matters—what is important, at least to some people, is value. And value takes into account training, support, and the intrinsic joy of using the best tool that’s made. It’s pretty safe to say that no one buys Apple products because of their low price.

A players hire A+ players.

Actually, Steve believed that A players hire A players—that is people who are as good as they are. I refined this slightly—my theory is that A players hire people even better than themselves. It’s clear, though, that B players hire C players so they can feel superior to them, and C players hire D players. If you start hiring B players, expect what Steve called “the bozo explosion” to happen in your organization.

Real CEOs demo.

Steve Jobs could demo a pod, pad, phone, and Mac two to three times a year with millions of people watching, why is it that many CEOs call upon their vice-president of engineering to do a product demo? Maybe it’s to show that there’s a team effort in play. Maybe. It’s more likely that the CEO doesn’t understand what his/her company is making well enough to explain it. How pathetic is that?

Real CEOs ship.

For all his perfectionism, Steve could ship. Maybe the product wasn’t perfect every time, but it was almost always great enough to go. The lesson is that Steve wasn’t tinkering for the sake of tinkering—he had a goal: shipping and achieving worldwide domination of existing markets or creation of new markets. Apple is an engineering-centric company, not a research-centric one. Which would you rather be: Apple or Xerox PARC?

Marketing boils down to providing unique value.

Think of a 2 x 2 matrix. The vertical axis measures how your product differs from the competition. The horizontal axis measures the value of your product. Bottom right: valuable but not unique—you’ll have to compete on price. Top left: unique but not valuable—you’ll own a market that doesn’t exist. Bottom left: not unique and not value—you’re a bozo. Top right: unique and valuable—this is where you make margin, money, and history. For example, the iPod was unique and valuable because it was the only way to legally, inexpensively, and easily download music from the six biggest record labels.

Bonus: Some things need to be believed to be seen. When you are jumping curves, defying/ignoring the experts, facing off against big challenges, obsessing about design, and focusing on unique value, you will need to convince people to believe in what you are doing in order to see your efforts come to fruition. People needed to believe in Macintosh to see it become real. Ditto for iPod, iPhone, and iPad. Not everyone will believe—that’s okay. But the starting point of changing the world is changing a few minds. This is the greatest lesson of all that I learned from Steve.

Fat + Me = Gym

2011-09-12T21:46:00.006+08:00

Yes... these past one year has seen me becoming a couch potato ....but not watching TV though... Watch the computer screen .... I had been busy catching up on everything that there never seemed to be enough time....

Oh well, with everything getting more convenient like mobile payment and all kinds of apps, there should be more time in our hands to rest. But hell no.... they are advertisting more and more new ways to steal away your time.... (not to mention money too). And the worse thing is, we willingly let them ....

Your truly recently indulged in a pain-inflicting and self torturing activity and is starting to like it....Before you start thinking that I have taken up S&M as my new hobby, let me clarify. I have joined the Gym!!! It's been a few weeks now since my first class in August and I still can proudly say I have deligently gone every week at least once. And I am quite happy with myself. And before you comment that you dont see any difference in me, let me just tell you that I am taking this slow and easy. I mean, I have not exercised for what seems like billions of years. I think the last I went to a Gym was back in Uni days. And those who knows me will say, "Now that's a VERY long time ago..." So let's not risk being knock out and burnt out.

Anyway, the whole point I am writing this is to remind myself why I sign up for the gym. I hope it motivates me back to the right track each time i read this.

A lot of people go to the gym to lose something that they found in abundance....
Ironically, the purpose I go to the gym is to find something that I have lost.

I will leave this hanging here for a while for you to ponder upon... mainly because this author here is tired and aching all over.... and needs to get her beauty sleep. Cheers to a healthier and fitter lifestyle.

Quotable Quotes

2011-06-23T00:24:00.003+08:00

"Things don't go wrong and break your heart so you can become bitter and give up. They happen to break you down and build you up so you can be all that you were intended to be." (Charles "Tremendous" Jones)

This quote came just in time... Was a bit bitter these 2 days over some trivial incidents at work, and it caused quite a bit of unproductivity. As I think back now, I was a fool to lose focus of the bigger picture and felt slightly embarassed to have throw tantrums (even though subtly within the four walls of my room).

Alright, no time to lose....Hurry back to the drawing board to strategise and catch up on lost time.

Happy Father's Day

2011-06-20T22:29:00.006+08:00

Sis is wondering what toy to buy for little b, coz she's trying to find a toy that's both "child-approve" and educational at the same time. Incidentally, Carmen got him a toy that I totally approve (2 thumbs up for being educational), but given a big "Nah..." by little b... You see, Carmen got him a "Human body" science set that comes with a real sethoscope and a human figurine with all the organs detachable for examination. Plus it comes with flash cards of question and answers about each body part, eg, "What creates the "lub-dub" sound that the heart makes?", "Apart from helping digestion, what is the other main function of the liver?, "How long does food stays in the stomach?", etc...I betcha didn't know those answers off hand, eh?

When I brought little b to choose his birthday gifts, did you know where I found him hanging around? The Bop-It shelf...!!! For those who have never seen a "Bop-It", it looks like this:

The Bob-It is meant for toddlers, to hone their motor skills, even though it is stated on the toy that it's for children aged 8 and above. Little b loves it because he has played with it before at a McDonald's party. And each time he plays with it at the toy store, I tell him that it’s kid’s stuff, to which he will cleverly retort, “I know, Mom, I just want to play here… not buy it!!!” He says it loudly, with all sincerity and innocence, and in front of other customers and shopkeepers… making it quite embarrassing because everyone will think that I taught the kid to play there and not buy....*^v^*

Talking about teaching, we went for a movie yesterday . And there was this kid, (umm, about 4-5 years old), sitting right behind little b. This little kid was a bit sick as we can hear him coughing away throughout the movie. And then, all of a sudden, he sneezed and coughed very hard (probably choked on his popcorn which he inserted through his nose)..... And with that sneeze, thousands and millions of his saliva droplets (probably with pheglm and do I need to mention germs) flew out from his sick mouth and nose, and conveniently dropping onto little b and myself!!!! It was so gross. It felt gross. Even thinking of it now makes me get goosebumps and my reflex automatically signals me to wipe my hair and arm again now.....

Bryan shouted “Yuks” and rub the back of his short hair in a vain attempt to clean himself of "cooties". My eyes took a quick dart to the back to catch a glimpse of the kid and his dad, and I noticed the parents just didn’t care and continued watching movie. So I took the cue from little b and fussed loudly, “Yer, so dirty! So much germs!!!” and started wiping little b and myself vigorously and frantically (on purpose). But the parents still didn’t care, especially the father.… just “buat tak tahu”. So I turned my head around to look at the parents, and the father pretended to be so engrossed in the movie that he did not to see me. I turned my body around to stare at the mother and I see her poking the husband to do something. I was aghast that the obnoxious father still didn’t care and continued watching the movie, without even caring to teach their son about hygiene and closing their mouth when coughing or sneezing. And one wonders how H1N1 spreads so fast in this country.

Only after I turn around to look at the mother again, did she manage a feeble “Sorry...” But still she didn’t reprimand the child and reinforce about hygiene. By that time, it was already too late, as the elapse time was already too long and the kid wouldn’t understand what he did wrong even if you scold him.

And best part is…the father still didn’t budge and was totally glued to the big screen, probably oogling at Mystic's figure. I guess he was just too engrossed in his Father’s day present (to watch X-men uninterrupted) to bother about anything else in the world. I wanted to shout at him “Happy Father’s day, I hope your son grows up to be a better father” …. But of course I didn’t…. coz I know better to care about other people's life.

Instead, I just turn around and told little b about the importance of hygiene and how yucky it would be if he was to sneeze like that kid… and just at that moment, a sneeze crept up into little b's nostrils.... and he covered it with 2 hands before he let go of a soft sneeze.

Bless you little b. Atta boy.... you made your Father's day happy just by being a good kid. :)

Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there.

Everybody gets a little lost sometimes...

2011-06-19T23:12:00.003+08:00

Hmmm.... recently I got pleasant surprise call from my long time friend... A brilliant doctor, with a big heart. We were catching up and he was happy to learnt that i have move on to another company after being there for so long .... which led on to his curiousity to compare notes on how he is fairing among his peers. When I told him that I am earning only a little lesser than he does and he joked about how good it was to be in my position, where we dont need to spend so many years "studying" and still earn just as much...

Well, I reminded him that I don't get over time for all the hours I put in... (docs like him get to charge by the hours and earn quite a bit on overtime especially when on-calls).... And also reminded that he gave up being a specialist surgeon (the dough-generating profession) because chose life over money.... And also told him that we all are proud of him being a doctor because he's so self-less and is making the world a better place daily by just doing his daily job.

To which he agreed that he's one of the few good guys left out there... hahaha...

I hope I have somewhat helped to motivate him to reinforce that he has made the right decision to be a doctor all these while. Everybody gets a little lost or doubtful once in a while...on whether you have made a good decision, esp a decision that can impact your whole life or a good part of it..... and it's okay to discuss about it and find some supportive hands to nudge you back to your course of direction and push you along to reach your intented goal.

Just remember, that whether the decision is right or wrong, it was the best choice you made at the time of your decision. And whatever happens after that, is your effort to make that choice the best one that works for you. That itself will ensure the decision is always right... :)

Reflections

2011-06-18T11:42:00.009+08:00

As I reflect on the past one year and my achievements, I find that I have indeed grown quite a plenty in such a short time. In just 6 months I manage to launch an innovative product to sell through the web, and I have 3 more products in the pipeline, with 1 already ready for launching. I have learnt to manage upwards, downwards, sideways, horizontally, vertically, diagonally,.... you name it, I've almost done it all. Perhaps I need 3D glasses to demonstrate the dimensions I've been thru ahahah... but I wont confuse you that much. To put it simpler, I have to manage up to the CEO level, and down to even the tea lady and guards, and have to deal with so many different types of customers, which spans from the highest level to the lowest level..., and also learnt to leverage on my peers strength and weaknesses... all these while taking care of and growing my own team.And then there's insource, outsource, hybrids of staff and equipment, thus rendering experience and decisions that can impact from just my notebook up to the nationwide WAN with our unique Active-Active data centre model. Of course, I have my shares of ups and downs, from lavish welcome lunches, appreciation dinners and team building karaoke session, to unwilling farewell buffets (our company culture dont encourage farewell celebrations so it's kept to a minimum). I also have the opportunity to tap into the purview of senior management and how they work especially on the running of a department, a division, a company and how an AGM is prepared and conducted. Also on how deals are negotiated, best practices incorporated into each process and how change management is implemented and controlled. While it may seem to many that we're a "one-leg kick" or master of all trades, but since most of us are handpicked from the best in the industry, many from multi national conglomerates, we came along with our best-practises and compliant processes to ensure the correct proceduce and processes are implemented and followed thru. We have seen the many pitfalls of processes not followed thru and how a simple breach or mistake of "convenience over procedure" can lead to huge financial lost and massive reworks and even lost of jobs. With our experience and background, we understand the meaning of "with great powers, comes great responsibilities". There's plenty of stories that I can tell, from just one year stint here, mainly because I clock in double the normal working hours. The culture have redefine the meaning of "working from home". I see a lot of "advertisement" in Facebook to encourage ppl to work from home and if you think "working from home" means less stress and less work, please re-examine your priorities and goals before you jump onto the bandwagon. People have asked me if all these are worthy since I am not paid a hell lot more for the time spent, but I tell them that it's not all about money when we work. It's about the passion to achieve your goal that will sustain your lifespan in the company. To have an inquisitive mind and the passion to learn to do things better and easier for all, to elevate others in order to elevate yourself, and to grow together with your company and career, .... that's some of the things that I have achieved or this company have given me the opportunity to achieve, which makes it all worthwile.... Of course, (in case my boss is reading this), having good (and higher) pay is definitely a bonus motivating factor... hahaha I hope with all my stories, I am able to inspire others, especially my family to be able to achieve a sense of passion in everything they do, to be able to sustain their morale to boost them to achieve thier goals.

Losing my touch

2011-03-10T23:44:00.003+08:00

Hardly have the time to write these days.. .

And when I look back at my recent frail attempts to blog.....OMG!!! They sux big time...

It was like....I was just trying to write something... anything, just to write something... and it turns out to be a really really bad,crazy attempt. I am telling myself, "Don't ever do that again...."

I haven't been blogging for, like 1000 years... I am losing touch with flowery words and catchy phrases and witty one liners... Can't think of any... and bummer, it's already bed time.... I am losing touch... England is leaving me... :*(

Good nite...

:(

2010-12-21T19:33:00.001+08:00

Finally realize that I cannot depend on you too. But it is just too late...

:(

2010-12-21T08:09:00.003+08:00

:(

2010-12-21T08:09:00.001+08:00

Thank you....Amen...

2010-12-14T23:53:00.002+08:00

Thank you for giving me the confidence and the courage to stand up for my team, for my rights, and for my project.

I didnt know I can defend my team as well as I did today if not for your support.

Even though you didnt say anything, your consistent confidence and moral support to me has given me the courage to stand up in front of more than 20 people today to present my case and try to get the buy in from all. Your silent protection have helped boost my courage and confidence which pushed me beyond any limits and have taken me to greater heights that I can ever imagine. Something that I have only thought I could, but never realised until today.

I dont think I will ever have the courage to do all these if not for the chance you have given me and your ability to let go and let me lead, explore and grow. I know I still have a long way to go and a lot to learn.... but these are the challenges which I have to face and with every obstacles that I resolve, brings me to a higher level of confidence, comfort and experience.

Thank you for seeing the potential in me and helping me realised my strengths and improve my weaknesses....

Thank you... Amen....

Same same

2010-12-10T23:38:00.000+08:00

It's the same... always had been...

I am back...

2010-11-17T07:57:00.001+08:00

Excerpt from batman:

Alfred Pennyworth: Why do we fall sir? So we might learn to pick ourselves up
Bruce Wayne: You still haven't given up on me?
Alfred Pennyworth: Never

Thank you for not giving up hope on me. I will bounce back... With leaps and bounds.. *all smiles*

When are you coming back ? Miss you la..

2010-11-16T11:53:00.001+08:00

What happened to the happy go lucky cheerful girl I once knew?
Where is your smiles and your contagious laughter?
Where are those happy carefree days?
Where are the dreams and the hot summer nights and rainbow filled days?

When are you coming back ?

I miss you...

Moving on....

2010-11-15T22:57:00.001+08:00

And Moving forward...

New Challenge - Gen Y

2010-11-15T02:16:00.007+08:00

How do you motivate a staff who:

1) would like to be spoon fed
2) is a gen-Y and thinks that you owe them a living even though they have no business experience or technical background
3) wants to have high remuneration package and yet do not want to put in effort to earn their worth.
4) do not want to learn things from end-to-end but would rather take the easy way out and ask if there's a short cut - (*without business knowledge or technical expertise, it's very difficult to bluff your way through la, dear... Even amateurs like me can see right through your shenanigans.)
5) demands to work on a 9-5 basis only but yet do not want to be viewed as merely a clerical. (want to be regarded as professional it seems)
6) thinks that you are too restrictive when you do not allow access to Facebook, MSN chats and webmail services. (Actually, I am very liberal. If you can justify your need for these services in relations to your job efficiency and effectiveness improvement, by all means, please apply and I shall approve accordingly).

It's pretty worrying to see that in this competitive world, where we not only need to compete with peers but also machines, there are still people out there who thinks that they do not need to work hard to prove their worth.

While I know that if you have such staff, you also would like to slap her to wake her up, we cannot do that. We have to handle the case professionally.

First of all, we would need to ensure she understands her job scope or job description. It is important to discuss the job expectations with your staff in relations to the KPI to ensure she does not lose focus in her job.

Also, ensure she understands her career path on why she needs to learn from end-to-end. (I have already tried this but beware that a sly and lazy person will try to wriggle themselves out of every hard work where necessary. Thus it's important to put in the right amounts of control checks like milestones or checkpoints).

Engage her in her responsibilities in explaining to her that the importance of on the job training and the importance of learning end to end. Every staff have to know that they are part of the complex wheels that turns the company. Every staff is a cog in the company's wheels and as they fit, mesh together and work with other cogs, they can generate enormous power to turn the wheels of the giant machine called company. Let them understand the goals of the company, the division, the section, the team, down to the level of individual team members. All of the goals and objectives must be in line with each other and each supporting its own and the higher level.

The real challenge is to instill the basic value and underlining self motivation into the individual. They must understand that despite how much potential they have in them, it doesn't count if they are not willing to do the difficult, mundane and repetitive daily tasks that are essential to success. Yes, it's difficult to instill humility in an individual, but that's the challenge we have to face today with the gen-Y.

The above 3 things are important factors to ensure you are covered in the old management style perpective especially if your HR is still of the baby boomers generation. One thing we need to understand about the gen-Y is that they have a higher comfort level whereby most graduates nowadays move back to stay with their parents and don't really have the urgency to carve a career path and working is not a survival need, affording them the luxury to choose a job that they truly enjoy. So motivating them with only money is not enough.

They want to have fun at work and if it's fun, money and time spent at the office is not really a problem. Gen-Ys enjoy challenges, are face paced and want to learn new stuffs all the time. So to motivate them, we have to make our work environment fun and a place to hang out, i.e. Google makes its office environment so comfortable that you can literally stay there without going home.

These are some basic traits of gen-Y so that you can identify whether the staff is just plain lazy or the complains are the true manifestation of a disguntled gen-Y.

Good luck and let's have some fun in managing the gen-Y. hahaha.

~ viewed from the eyes of a hybrid of gen-X and gen-Y.

Moodless in the cradle

2010-11-09T22:49:00.001+08:00

Don't know why ... Just feel the absence of any mood ... Thus mood less.. haha... Moodless is not even a word... But I don't know how to describe the feeling of an absence of any feeling... Not moody because that will meaning I am unhappy with something .. But no, I m not unhappy .., just normal I guess ... Hahaha....

Well, feels good to be normal instead of being constantly estatic all the time ... Hahaha ...

Have a nice day 

Apple of my "i"

2010-10-16T22:35:00.005+08:00

Can't help but blog about iPhone again. Apple makes me fall in love over and over again. And it's a great feeling.....I remember professing my love shamelessly towards the imac a couple of years back and now I am in love with the mini version of the powerful machine. Just cant help it... they are so sleek and suave and smooth .... Just can't resist the apple of my "i"... just have to be with it, touch it at every opportunity that I have.

Excuse me.. but I have to go entertain my iPhone.... (he entertains me, i entertain back... that's how reciprocrative our relationship is... which is why it's so fulfilling and so heavenly... Steve Jobs really creates miracles... the more we love our iPhones, the more it will love us back and keep us happy... :)

Can't contain my feelings any longer.... "I love you, you are the apple of my i... :) Muaks..."

Best Day Of My Life

2010-10-13T22:06:00.002+08:00

Thanks for making today one of the best days of my life.... *winks*.... It feels like heaven on earth...I shall remember it forever and ever.... tattooed in my heart ... :)

Me and my new love

2010-09-29T22:38:00.006+08:00

Welcome to the world of buying accessories, accessories and more accessories.. .

Let's start with a screen protector - Has to be fingerprintless type and has security features.

Then a casing to protect the sides from scratches
Then a pouch or sleeve to ensure total protection when you put in your pockets or bags (in case your car keys scratches the smooth exterior)
Then another pouch to suit another occassion (you cannot wear the same shirt everyday right?)
...Then an extra charger for home, the other for office (too cumbersome to bring adapter here and there...)
Then an extra sync cable for times when you are mobile
Then a car charger just in case you run out of battery
Then a aux cable to connect to your car audio system to play music from your iphone in your car
Then a mobile charger (extra juice) to ensure you have enough battery on the go.

The above are only the absolute necessary...the other luxuries can go on like a docking system for your house audio video system, a wifi sync system for downloading songs, changing your car audio system to enable fittings of iphone into the car if your current system is not "iphone ready" etc... and the list goes on until you finally need to buy a new BMW to match your iphone.. :)

Better get started soon... I am already ahead of you a few steps towards getting my BMW... ahahhaha

Blogging from IPhone!

2010-09-18T09:25:00.002+08:00

OMG! How cool is technology? Wayyyyyy cool! I am very impressed with this small powerful piece of gadget called iPhone! It's simply AMAZING! I can truly call myself a mobile user now. I am writing this from my iPhone. And the best part is, the response time is pretty fast! So, moving forward, I can write down my ideas immediately in blogspot instead of scribbling notes everywhere.

I guess this really is a worthwhile investment. It can bring a lot of joy to online addicts hahaha

Alright, keeping it short and simple as I can't wait to post my first blog with my iPhone !

•guess I mentioned the word iPhone many times in this article. Can't help it.... Think I am in love....

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Maaf Zahir dan Batin

2010-09-12T17:23:00.002+08:00

Got this message in a forwarded email which a certain JackDS forwarded to a yahoogroup. I don't know him, and also don't know the original writer for this poem, thus I don't know who the credit should goes to. However, I think it's very appropriate for this Hari Raya. Just want to take the opportunity to wish all my friends a Happy Hari Raya and Maaf, Zahir dan Batin.

Ampun dan maaf andainya saya ini...

Terkasar bahasa dalam bicara

Tersilap bicara semasa bersama

Termarah yang tak kena tempatnya

Tertanya tak tentu hala ..

Tersasul yang tak sengaja

Terpukul kat mana-mana

Terpekik kuat di telinga

Terhantuk terketuk di kepala

Terpinjam terambil harta & benda

Termoody tak semena-mena

Terumpat bila ada cerita,

Teremail benda yang tak sepatutnya awak terima

Termacam-macam yang kena-mengena..,,

Di hari yang mulia sepuluh jari ku hulurkan semua,

Memohon kemaafan atas segala dosa yang ada

Kerana saya masih bernama manusia

Pastinya tak lepas membuat dosa

Semoga dimaafkan,

Salam Aidil Fitri Maaf Zahir & Batin

The Power of English

2010-09-02T11:36:00.003+08:00

English is a wonderful language... you can upset people unknowingly or scold some people but yet they feel happy about it ... it all boils down to the puns, or idioms that you use to express yourself...

No brainer by definition, means...."Something so simple or easy as to require no thought" .... When I said that a report is a no brainer (meaning to say it's a good report that does not require further thought to decipher), a colleague from another department went crying thinking that I scolded her that she has no brains... Hahaha.. A compliment to the report turned sour...

And then, when I scolded someone Smart Alec, that person was HAPPY, thinking that I complimented him for being SMART... hahaha...

Such are the oxy morons of English... And just to be clear, I am not implying that anyone is a "moron"... An oxymoron is a figure of speech that combines normally-contradictory terms (2 words with opposite meanings forming a meaningful word), such as pretty ugly, or deafening silence.

So, you can see, it is useful that you master English... it can be a very powerful communication tool indeed.

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If a small thing has the power to make you angry, does that not indicate something about your size? ~Sydney J. Harris

Managing people

2010-08-29T22:26:00.009+08:00

Managing People.... as people comes in all shapes and sizes (meaning all different kinds of characters, behaviours, attitude and office cultural background) it is one of the most difficult but most crucial aspect in an organisation. An organisation is made up of its people, thus managing people is unavoidable.

Nobody can see in the eyes of management until they have sat in the hot seat of "management". All my previous theory in management has not equiped me with all the experience required in managing people. Well, this is good as it means I still have much to learn and much more room to grow... :) And being young means I am allowed to make some mistakes here and there as long as the lesson came with it.. :)

Isn't life full of surprises and challenges which makes it sooo much more colourful... ?

Having said that, I find it easier to work with male conterparts as they, (irregardless of ranks), tend to be more logical, systematical, fast, direct and less petty in their daily dealings. They tend to be less emotional and make their judgements and decisions base on facts and logic rather than depending on feelings and gut feel. Yes, being a female, I admit to generally making the same gender prone, hormone induced mistakes. However, I try hard to think like a man....

Ok...ok..... Not wanting to risk being labelled as gender biased, let's have the following pictures do the talking... :)

pictures sourced from Zits comic archive http://www.chron.com/apps/comics/showComick.mpl?date=20040101&name=Zits

Management 101: Self Motivation

2010-08-25T22:53:00.003+08:00

How do you motivate people to take responsibility for their work and also things that are not even in their job scope and to make them do it willingly and whole heartedly .... taking the lead and taking all responsibilities and accountability from head to toe, from documentation, reporting and updates while ensuring quality on spec on time... ?

A big question mark. Tough but still not impossible.... I have seen many self motivated people out there working way beyond their call of duty and while occasionally grumble and grunt but still get the job done with pure heart and soul.

Self motivation is very important as you go up as your bosses no longer have the time to spoon feed you with motivation. I mean, look at all the top management. You think the CEO have time to sit down and motivate them slowly? At their level, motivation is easy as most of the top management already have their self agenda and targets and are motivated by actualising their personal targets which usually they will try to align to the CEO's target to get where they are...

At our lower level, well, we just need to find the motivation factor that can give us the passion to do our work and that very passion will spur us to walk that extra mile, take the extra weight and push extra harder....

And then you will need to try to identify what motivates your staff.... now that's the challenge because not everyone is at the maturity level to be self motivated. They are motivated by various factors such as money, good working environment, career path etc etc... So it's our job to help them identify their goals and motivate or guide them accordingly.

A big task... easier said than done... I am still learning this skill too.... Care to give a pointer or two?

More management lessons - Looking Up, Down, Left, Right, Centre

2010-08-22T08:43:00.007+08:00

All my life I have been taught to LOOK UP...

1) Look up, reach for the stars, so that you wont end up with a handful of sand...
2) Look up to people and respect them....,
3) Look up to role models, follow their footsteps to success...
4) Look up, heads up, look ahead and think ahead...
5) even in IT, we have to lookup tables...

However, I now realise, it's equally important to look down as well. Yes, look down and see your people. Look down to see where you came from and learn from both your success and your mistakes. I am in middle management now... so it's equally necessary to look both Up and Down. I have to look up to follow the footsteps of senior management and I have to look down upon my staff to ensure that they are taken care of. I have to ensure that they are comfortable and happy with their environment and with "woman on top". :)

*Note: it's not looking down ON them but looking down TO SEE them....y'know, the "I see you" ala Avatar style...

For example, the working environment have to be kept clean and healthy and functional to ensure staff grousing are kept to the minimal. Staff welfare is utmost important for management because that's their essential job scope, which is to be responsible for your staff. Yes, the responsibility spreads wider than just the daily operational work but also include office ergonomics to ensure everyone has good fit in the working environment which will make work safer, healthier and more productive and eventually lead to happier and more productive staff...

So I learnt that I need to check on whether their cubicles are ergonimical, or if they have enough office supplies, whether the lights are bright enough, whether there's clean water supply, provide a comfortable and convenient pantry (**) , and most of all, ensure a fully functional, hygienic washroom.

** You may be surprised by this research findings but pantry is one of the most important office areas (next to corridors and elevators) as it provides a relaxed avenue for creative ideas exchange and team building. Thus you see Google and Microsoft spending on building nice, comfortable pantries for their staff.

So there...the take home note is ...remember to look up and look down.... and of course, don't forget the age-old lesson which you teach every child....to look left, right and left again... you must look-to, look-for and look-out for your peers as well.. ;) *wink*

Self Reflect

2010-07-24T10:25:00.003+08:00

A lot of things happened within these 3 months. A lot of things are positive and contribute a lot to my personal growth. However, nothing is always as rosy as we want it to be. We carved a comfortable path for all to thread on. The path is clear and beautiful but along the way, people may steal some flowers from your lawn... But that's life... there's bound to be some set backs and hiccups... which makes the experience more challenging, more colourful, more complete which helps build our character and gives us an opportunity to create legends and stories we can tell to touch our kids and grand kids....who will in turn be proud to tell their kids and grand kids and generation to come.

I take responsibilities for things that happen... and I tend to analyse it a lot especially when it concerns me, to see what I could've done better to make the outcome more positive. I'd like to learn from the situation and better myself in the process. So now it's time for self reflect.. and see how I can do things better... Will update more when I find myself...

Practical Management 101: Maturity level

2010-07-23T00:41:00.004+08:00

To groom someone to become a manager, you must first identify their maturity level. This maturity level here doesn't direct correspond with age. It doesnt mean older is wiser in management. It's the amount of exposure and experience a certain mind has gone through before the mind has mature to the management level to understand why certain management decisions are made.

When my friends and I first started work, fresh out of school and all naive, we used to play more than we worked. Of course, there was the usual gossip/grousing against "management" and the boss. We used to hate our bosses coming into the room during our gossip sessions... until one young girl (who also gossiped with us), maybe 18, told us off, by reprimanding "Of course the boss have to be strict with us. Don't expect the boss to come gossip with us to encourage us not to work. The company will "chup lup" (fold) lor..."

She was way matured for her age to be able to think for the bosses. True enough, with her maturity level, it was quick for her to rise the corporate ladder, being a manager after 1.5 years.

Sometimes you see some people become "pets" of bosses.... mostly because these "pets" have matured to a level where they know what the management likes and is able to act before the management tells them what to do ... (actually it applies outside the office as well... Try pre-empting what your spouse wants to eat and prepare that for dinner, or give your partner a massage before he/she ask for it on a day when he/she is tired..... I am sure you will become the apple of your partner's eye and guarantee to reap very positive results *wink* *wink*)

So if you can think like your bosses, then you have somewhat reach a certain management maturity level. If you can think FOR your bosses, you have reached an even higher management maturity level. If you can think of SOLUTIONS FOR your bosses... then... you know.. you are close to taking over your boss ahhahaah...

Moral is... to groom someone to fill certain shoes (positions)...select your candidate carefully, first you need to see his appetite to the task (appetite will determine the drive and motivation) and check his maturity level. The last thing you want is to promote someone who will bite you on the hands just when you need him the most... Ensure your staff's maturity level is there where you want it, and develop it accordingly to ensure high standard level of the delieverables.

If the staff has no heart or no appetite and haven't mature to the management level, then just forget it. Dont waste time on grooming him, as you can never teach an old dog new tricks.

BW

2010-06-19T13:55:00.005+08:00

Was being bogged with a terribly hard puzzle last week. Something that made me wonder hard and long… and made several of my colleagues thought hard and long too. Almost cannot eat and sleep thinking about it.. ahhaha Exaggerated a little…

You see, there’s a floor in our building that is labeled as BW in our elevators. I am new to the building and I was intrigued by the BW on the lift. Several inquiries fell onto deaf ears as nobody knows what “BW” stands for. I asked my best friend Mr Google and he too drew blanks. I was told that BW stands for Barang Wilayah, Black and White, in BetWeen, BaWah and other such nonsense. And the funny thing was, I was told that it was a “ghost floor”. Every building comes with its ghost stories but this one takes the cake. She told me wide eyed with all honesty, “Really geh…. There’s one floor nobody dares to go to. And it is not accessible also. Go ask Gavin and the operators and see… and they will tell you all kinds of stories… “

Just so happen, I called a dear friend from MBA classes the other day to catch up... Coincidentally, he worked in the same building before 10 years back... and told me that.... BW .... stands for..... Breeze Way...

Why Breeze way? Well, it's because that part of the building is open air and the corridor serves like an airwell which welcomes a flow of breeze to ventilate that floor... thus, Breeze way lor...

Hahaha...

Another mystery is history….

Relativity Concept

2010-06-14T00:10:00.000+08:00

Everything is relative... I watched 3 movies today, Jennifer's Body, Bounty Hunter and New Moon... And even though New Moon wasn't like drop dead good with lots of loose ends, somehow, after 2 bad movies, New Moon seems like "Wow, this is great romantic stuff... I like..." .... So if you wanna look good, try the relative concept.. Stand next to losers :P

Thank God for the internet...

2010-05-29T03:00:00.002+08:00

Probably have internet withdrawal symptoms.. havent been well since yesterday...

And so coincidentally my streamyx was down...

Luckily I have recently converted my mobile phone line to an unlimited data plan.... so I am able to connect to the internet via my mobile phone..

Incidentally, once I got my connection back via mobile phone, I don't feel so sick anymore....In fact, the doctor also couldn't find anything wrong with me....

Thank God for technology... now, everyone can stay connected with everyone through the www. Cool...

(btw, just in case you are wondering, today is a public holiday and thus, no.. I didn't go to a doctor just to get MC)

life is all about learning - another first today...

2010-05-24T22:27:00.003+08:00

Had my first taste of interviewing and picking staff today. And guess what? My first candidate is a gwai lo ... lucky me... hahaha...

Well, he was from Iran.. big, tall and handsome... but ... didn't have enough technical skills to carry him through... I do look for brains over brawns.. .hahaha... No offense... We didn't make it a difficult interview but we just want to ensure the people who come in can start work immediately.

Anyway, the second candidate, a sweet honest lady was much better and we decided to give her a try...

Well, I learnt how to gauge people from their first looks and how they answer questions ... pleasant... and I guess I still have to do a lot more of these.. There's also the price negotiations skills which I have yet to learn... One step at a time....

Reach for the stars

2010-05-17T11:53:00.004+08:00

Just my 3rd week and I feel that I have undergone more training than 3 years if I were to stay in previous company.

I am attending Java training now,... a programming tool just to equip ourselves with the basic Java knowledge since the fundamental language used to write the core system prorgams here is Java.

There's so much to learn here... and I am given the opportunity to learn from the best players of the industry.... imagine, the CEO meets with us to touch base with us and plays an active role in giving input and feedbacks on most projects. Awesome.. I get to see how management works, how they brainstorm. Yes, I know I have to learn fast, so that I can spread my wings to fly on my own... but I know that the correct guidance and appropriate training is available for me to tap on.

And I also get a taste on how other functional areas works as we all work closely together. I even get to see how the sales do their work and also have a taste of the work of a PA... These job functions are usually not available for my viewing due to the back room nature of my work. Now, I get to see what they do and how they operate (or how they entertain ... hahaha).. .

There's so much to learn... let us all reach for the stars...... When you reach for the stars, even if you don't always end up getting a star, at least you will not end up with a hand full of dirt. - (adapted from Leo Burnett)

Lego

2010-05-17T00:15:00.002+08:00

Lego... They are such wonderful inventions...

So creative and so educational ... and so meaningful...

Each piece is a building block to the entire complete structure. No piece is too small ... all are important...

Bryan finished building his T-rex today (Allosaur which he promptly corrected me as it has 3 fingers), and he proudly paraded it to us... When we finally goes to bed, he bid litte Allosaurus good night... :) Such a cute gesture... He must be really proud to be able to conquer the T-rex ...with little help ..

Anyway, I am slowly putting the pieces of my new career together.... sort of like building up my own lego as well... Let's hope I can tame my T-rex just as easy as Bryan.. :)

Happy Birthday Bryan... :)

The on-boarding experience was great.. :)

2010-04-26T22:47:00.009+08:00

The experience today was superb....

Was anxious initailly like all first timers would be...

But with the help of some caring friends, super efficient IT and a diligent HR... the on-boarding experience was a very very pleasant one.

For one, the traffic had been kind... reached there in record time at 7:45am. 40 minutes from home at peak hour... that's a feat that was thought to be impossible in the past... Well, guess it's just the right omen to encourage me to do what initially is thought to be the impossible.

Then parking was a breeze. And all the arrangements that was to be done, was done within minutes... as HR has done the necessary arrangements prior to my arrival. HR and IT was very efficient whereby my "ghastly" morning-face photo was prompty taken and a temporary pass was immediately issued to enable immediate access to the company. I was made to feel that I am part of the company immediately. My email access, login ID, telephone extension, and even business card was all ready for me on my first day!

Breakfast was a bit of a let down though, without half boiled eggs and toast... Well, nothing can be that perfect.. :) hahaha

And then I have to comment that the lift service was superb. You must understand why this impressed me .... Many employees in my previous company was in fear of being trap in a lift with 20 others. We had to live with this fear for more than a year because of the maintenance works done on those ancient elevators in the old building. The maintenance works is still on-going until the end of the year.

Another thing I liked about the building/company is the 'ladies'... which is situated within the office, i.e. one must have access through the security door before having access to the ladies. This company does put the safety of ladies first.

Then just when I thought lunch was going to be lonely (MC was on MC, (an ex-colleague whom I thought could be my regular lunch) while the rest had business lunch arrangements), my immediate boss treated the team to a nice cozy lunch.

And to top all these great happenings (sugarry sweet with cherry on top), I found a bouquet of flowers on my chair as I returned to my seat... It was such nice sweet gesture which really made my day... (Wei Keyman.. Never expect to claim my bet today... it was great timing.. Thank you sooo much... you are indeed a man who honour his words.. err.. .bets... ahahaha)

Of course I do understand that the road ahead is not all rosy and there's a lot to shoulder and to bear... but more friends make light work... As keyman once told me, didn't realise 10 years flew by, because I was too busy enjoying working with the team...

So here's to brighter, rosier days ahead.. :) Cheers...

Excited...

2010-04-25T19:57:00.004+08:00

Yes... excited is the word I have been looking for...

Have been excited quite some time.. and tomorrow is the start of a brand new day... brand new breathe of fresh air... brand new me... at a brand new place... (pun intended as they just did a rebranding this year ahahha... so its 'brand' is new... hahaha)

Yes, I know the road ahead is not all rosy... but I am looking forward to taking that new step on that new road and face all the new faces and new things along the way.... I will try my best to enjoy the new journey.... And leave the rest to God...

Maybe I really am a workaholic.... hahaha

Wish me luck... :)

"May we all find the serenity to accept things we cannot change and the courage to change the things we can and have the wisdom to know the difference... "

~ adapted from the Serenity Prayer, Alcoholic Anonymous...

Picture source from William Warren @ GetLiberty.org archives

Smile, where have you gone?

2010-04-23T23:20:00.004+08:00

This is the story of the girl,
Who cried a river and drown the whole world
Why she looked so sad, in photographs
I absolutely loved her... when she smiles....

... Absolutely (Story of a girl), sung by Nine Days... (2000, The Madding Crowd Album)

Pawn-der

2010-04-14T07:08:00.003+08:00

I am just a pawn... The Kings tells me that I am special... but in actual fact, all are just selfish in their intentions... and just feeding me with just a decent meal... without fancy trimmings... while others non-deserving minions get to eat meals fit for Kings...

Busted leg, wasted night

2010-04-06T22:28:00.006+08:00

That's it...!!!

I am keeping it dry! High and dry!!!

It's been more than 2 weeks since the Manchester United vs Liverpool game (21st March 2010) and my wound still hasn't healed. No, I am not bleeding for Liverpool due to their 1-2 loss, (I am a MU fan by the way.. :P)

I am talking about my wounded feet... Yea, I hurt my leg again... This time it's the right leg. What happened was a little stupid but I guess everyone can learn something from my silliness, so here's the story...

T'was a dark, cold and rainy night, but we brave the winds, chills and wetness to get to the game. It was the match of the year, or so they tell me. It was held in Sunway Amphitheatre... a nice stage hidden in the secluded areas of the Sunway woods, unknown to yours truly. I cannot imagine living in PJ for umpteen years and not knowing that there's an amphitheatre in Sunway.

Anyway, it was raining and the path to the amphitheatre is long, wet and winding. As I quickened my footsteps, I stepped on the slippery road bump and slided. "Wheee....!!!", I went, and not in the pleasant way... And next thing I know, I was doing a split on the slimmy tar road. As there were throngs of people trying to make their way to the amphitheater, yours truly got up promptly and gracefully, quickly gathered her composure and went forward on her way...pretending nothing has happened when in fact, blood was flowing profusely from her knees and feet. All these was thanks to the decision of wearing crocs slippers instead of sports shoes....

What happened next was like a numb travel through the passage of time where I couldn't enjoy the rest of the game..... worrying how my legs are going to heal... And that's not the worse thing. Walking back miles and miles (that's what it felt like with a wounded limb) to the car park in the rain and getting stuck for 30 minutes (no joke!) in the car park as there were too many cars exiting at the same time. Busted leg, wasted night...

Umm important lesson learnt was: don't wear crocs slippers on a wet slippery day... and don't make haste on a wet day, else you will make more waste...

Hmm come to think of it, I have been having bouts of pains lately, especially after I tendered my "splitting" intention. Suffering from a severe wisdom toothache recently, with swollen throat and gums and splitting headache pains... And then leg infection after that "graceful split"... Hmmm, wondering who is cursing me ahahha.... stop cursing me please... your blessing is important to me... :)

Your blessings is important to me.

2010-03-27T20:42:00.006+08:00

As I read my previous post, it does sound like some grousing of a dissatisfied employee, cursing the whole world and lamenting on his own poor life. Actually, I am not complaining nor angry. I know complaning is useless and retaliation is futile. I'd like to think I am just taking a positive step towards solving my issues before it's too late. (We've always been taught to solve our own problems anyway). I am not leaving because I am unhappy. I just want to be happier. :) hahaha But really...I just want to take up an opportunity in a new environment before I get too old or too complacent.

Opportunity don't knock on a daily basis and I was taught to seize the day and grab the bull by its horns. Yes, I will be facing a lot of uncertainties but it will be a challenge that I have to take.

Wish me all the best and I really hope to go with your blessings rather than being cursed. I sincerely wish all of us success and happiness in everything we do.

Breaking off

2010-03-27T10:37:00.009+08:00

As I updated my resume, I feel extremely sad. Embarassed actually. During my last 10 loyal years with my current company, I noticed that the company didn't really develope me. My professional/technical training column remains almost the same as it was 10 years ago. So there was no accolades to show or anything to shout about if the new employer interviews me on personal or technical development. And I have to pray that they don't delve into this department of my resume which luckily, they really didn't. How pathetic is that!!

Can you imagine, during my short stint of 6 months in a vendor company prior to my current job, I was given 3 trainings to equip me with facing a very difficult project and a very difficult customer (Citibank). 3 trainings in 6 months compared to 0 in 10 year. My point was, that company was willing to develope their staff as a person. They are willing to give as much as they are taking from us. Ok, you may wonder why I left the vendor company if it has developed me so well. Umm, there was another complicated issue back then... and the reason I left was purely personal and has nothing to do with the company. :)

I have always been a simple person. I dont ask for much, have always been nice and giving. Thus has always been the victim of being short changed. But I didnt mind as Mom always brought me up to be optimistic and be humble and be thankful for what I have. And that's why I have been just thankful for last 10 years. In other words, I am turning complacent.

And that's the last thing I want to be. I mean, c'mon, I'm still young. The road ahead of me is still long. I can't start to be complacent now. And because I wasnt much of a trouble maker and practically a workhorse, my current company thinks that I am docile. And as such, they have been happily torturing me for the last 5 years, thinking I will grow old with them as a good old obedient horse. It's worse when we see horses that seem to work less from the next stable being fed better grass only because they make more noise

The company have to understand that staff are human beings, not robot and feeds on the social biscuit just the same. And to eat that social biscuit, we need money to buy it first. So if they cannot send me for trainings, it's ok, please pay me well enough and I will go for the trainings myself. And it was my own intiative to do the MBA ... with my own money. I know that my company harps on the benefits of on-the-job training rather than professional training but seriously, they need to realise that there needs to be a balance. To have better quality work, fresh ideas and a more professional perspective and attitude towards the job, we have to inject some good professional training into the company's staff. The level of professionalism needs to be upgraded with injection of outside ideas and dynamic teachings, in order not to breed a dead pool of complacent staff.

Maybe I cannot blame my superiors because they are training me the way they best know how because they themselves do not have proper trainings themselves.

I have invested 10 years of my youth in a company that was unwilling (or forgot?) to invest in me. Perhaps they were afraid that I might leave after training me. This is so shallow of them. I have shown them again and again how passionate I was with my job with my commitment to delivery and acceptance to change without complains. And they should know by now that if I am passionate about something, I can put 101% of dedication to the issue to achieve amazing results. Toastmaster itself has helped shown this side of me but alas, management doesn't recognises this. And because of that, I have lost my passion for toasting and have resigned from the toastmaster's club. It' a shame I know, but what's the point of doing it when your heart is not there

As such, it's time to think for myself again, as the company won't think for me. Time to move on to something more concrete than holding on to empty promises. I do not have another 10 years of youth to waste. Actually, it's much like a boy-girl relationship. Why do people break off? There are many factors, but essentially, it's because one or both parties are not getting what they want from the relationship and don't see the potential to reap what they sow...and all these small small depressed feelings will eventually turn into unhappiness which will stress the relationship.

Breaking off with the company is much less complicated that a relationship breakoff but the essense is similar and no less painful. There will be a lot of reasons but there is only one result - which is going separate ways. How, where to, why, what happened and who instigated is all immaterial as everything that can be done should have happened during that 10 years and not when one party become so stressed out that they have to call it quits.

As I walk to office with a heavy heart on Monday, (as usual, breaking off carries a lot of guilt especially with a such a long term relationship), I have to remind myself that I have to be proud that I am finally taking this brave step and doing something for myself and my own future.

Atta girl... pat yourself on the back.. :)

*Breath a sigh of relieve.....*

Jokes

2010-03-14T21:07:00.005+08:00

Little b is picking up on telling silly jokes nowadays.

He came to ask me suddenly, "Mom, why do gorilla have big nostrils?"
Then he answered by himself, "Because they have big fingers!" and went on to laugh a hearty laugh and I cannot help but laugh at his clownish antics..

He went on to ask, "What kind of nuts are not hard?"
"A donut! Wohahahahaha...Get it? A doNUT. Oooohahhahaaha."

Little b picked up all these jokes from the Cartoon Network and was practising them on me... he even wrote them down in his own "joke book", which was made-shift from one of his school exercise book.... I found that exercise book on his desk when I came home one night and did my routine check on his bag. It immediately brought a smile to my weary face.. :)

Anyway, Michael Schumacher is made his comeback in a Mercedes on the F1 race track today. It's big news on the race track in Bahrain as he managed to clinch the 7th place on the grid, the same starting position as his debut race at Spa, Belgium in 1991. Everyone is expecting some kind of magic from this seven-time champion.

Yes, it's big news alright... but I was busy washing the dishes when the race was about to start. So Big B asks little b to convey the message about Michael Schumacher's comeback to me.

Big B said, "Go tell mommy that Michael Schumacher is back."

Little b obeyed the instruction with a quick "Okay!" and proceeded to dash high speed towards the kitchen while yelling, "Mom, Michael Jackson is BAD!" ....

I couldn't help but laugh at silly little b... That was one of his funniest jokes yet... :) And the best thing was, he told it with a straight face. Aaaaaaaaaaaaarrrhahahahaa...

It's the Company that counts

2010-01-16T08:22:00.010+08:00

Went for a poon choy dinner yesterday at a small village in Sg Buloh... The place is called Restaurant LYJ. If you do not have GPS, I think it's easy to get lost in that area especially if you are not familiar.

And it wasn't a pleasant experience at all because:

1) Traffic Jam. Even though we had carefully planned to delay our meal time from 7 to 8:30 to avoid the Friday jam, we were stuck right before the NKVE toll and the jam stretched for about 2 km. Try being hungry and stuck in what seemed to be an endless jam... and you'd know what i mean.

2) We were running out of fuel. We were so near yet so far, we were unable to get to Shell station which was located just after the toll due to the jam, (since the GPS says that our destination is only 6km away, we thought we could make it to the next petrol station as we were unaware of the stretch of jam ahead) and we had to check and recheck the GPS to see if there were another petrol station nearby. When we finally reached the petrol station, the petrol station's systems were all down. Bummer. Had to queue up for manual service.

3) The roads towards the restaurant were so narrow but the cars were driving like they are on a highway!

4) There were no more parking in front or nearby the restaurant. Had to park quite a distance away.

5) When I stepped out of the car, me with my open toe sandals went right into a puddle of dirty water.

6) As we tried to cross the road towards the restaurant, we nearly got hit by the cars which were driving at highway speed on a very narrow road that has cars doubled parked on both sides. Yep, we nearly got hit..... twice... (it was a 2 way street or should I say highway) !!!!!

7) The washroom was unisex but the toilet cubicles were wet (flooded is a more appropriate word). So I had to clean my wet leg outside the cubicles. Had to hurriedly clean up so that no one will see the ugly sight of a girl in mini skirt wiping her legs... yuks. Surely lose appetite when you see. hahaha.

8) The restaurant was sooo busy and noisy. It was a full house yesterday night and so you can imagine the noise level. We could hardly hear each other speak. Felt rude as I shouted "THANK YOU!!" (a few times) when tea was served to me.

However, we still had a lot of laughters (especially when we fight for the "jewels" in the pot) and the food was good for the price we paid. Only RM32 per person even though all 8 "hungry ghosts" were very very full after the dinner. And there were enough leftovers for Marianne.

Despite all the unpleasantries, when I reminisce the night now to write this blog, it is with a warm and funfilled feeling.

And so I can conclude that, it's not so much the food, the place, and the price. It is the company that counts.

Viva la Company! :)

2 is better than 1

2010-01-11T11:33:00.003+08:00

There's this new song, 2 is better than 1..... Sung by Boys like girls featuring Taylor Swift..... I think it's nice...and sweet...... Give it a listen...

(Actually I wanna say, it rocks and it's awesome.... but then after listening for a while, I thought of Vege's conversation with Keyman...... as follows... and my appetite was ruined...)

SourVege: Keyman, remember for me that this download file,ABC1234 is for (some stupid reason)...

Keyman: What for want to remember? You remember lar.

SourVege: 2 people remember better than 1 mar..

Keyman: What stupid idea is that.... Don't want la. You write down in your own notebook lar... then can remember la.

SourVege: You write down in your notebook also la, so that you also can remember where to find ma.

Keyman: Don't want la. If like that also can forget, means not important. Then better don't have to remember.

SourVege: Jahat Jahat Jahat.

==================================================

But Keyman denies all the above. He says the conversation was between SourVege and MC as below:

SourVege : remember for me what color of panties I wear today, I don't 1 2 wear the same color again.....(some stupid reason)...

MC: What for want to remember? You remember lar.

SourVege: 2 people remember better than 1 mar..

MC: What stupid idea is that.... Don't want la. You write down in your own notebook lar... then can remember la.

SourVege: You write down in your notebook also la, so that you also can remember what color ma.

MC: Don't want la. If like that also can forget, better don't wear lah

SourVege: Jahat Jahat Jahat.

Colors of awareness

2010-01-10T13:12:00.006+08:00

Why am I posting colors on my facebook status?

Many would wonder and in fact, facebook doesn't give any explanation. Facebook doesn't need to. It just serves as a powerful, far reaching, high traffic marketing tool. Nothing beats word-of-mouth as a better and more effective marketing tool. C'mon, how many times have we tried a product or changed brands because it is "highly recommended" by your friend, family etc.

Anyway, the color thingamagic is for good cause, so I just explain it here in my blog. There's a campaign to raise awareness about breast cancer and the female users of facebook are encouraged to update their status with a simple word ..... which is the color of their bra.

It is the hope of the US Cancer Cure foundation to raise awareness and educate or remind the women to check themselves often or get a mammogram because early detection can save lives. However, their spokesperson said that it wasnt them who started the facebook color craze. Even Business Week reports that they are unsure who came up with this idea.

So there you are, go update your status with all the beautiful colors...

Ok, I just updated my status with "black"... ;)

P/s. If you are not wearing any for the moment, update as *nude* .... I mean, guys.. don't think dirty.,...there are moments where you're on mobile upload and you're at the massage parlour, or hitting the showers at the gym or something... :P

Be aware, show you care...

Old batteries

2010-01-10T09:36:00.007+08:00

Everytime I boot up my notebook, I get a warning message,"Your batteries are charging normally, but it is approaching the end of its usuable life." When I go off A/C, i.e. use it without the power cord, I get only around half an hour to an hour usage. Yes, that's a signal that I need new batteries or an alternative battery source.

Even my handphone, seems to have the same symptoms. My mobile comes with 2 batteries and they use to be able to last me more than a day each without recharge. Now, I wont be able to make/receive night calls if I don't change/recharge batteries in the afternoon. Yes, that's a signal that I need new batteries too...

Lately, I have been feeling very tired. I used to be able to make do with very little sleep...i.e I could go active a long time without A/C.... And I don't need afternoon naps to recharge...Yea, I was like the Energizer Bunny - going on and on and on...... but these couple of days, I doze off in front of the laptop at around 11pm ...

Hmmm... a signal that I need a new battery/energy source too?

Photos courtesy of Dreamstime.

The mix feelings of giving

2009-11-23T08:08:00.005+08:00

Have you ever bought an expensive toy for a kid, and all that he finds facinating was the box. And he spends hours playing with the box, totally negleting and unappreciative of the contents?

Well, yea that feeling sux. You feel that all your effort, where you spend hours looking for the perfect toy to make him happy, has gone down the drain. It's worse than a slap in the face or punch in the guts. It's like your heart breaking into a thousand pieces. You feel that you have let him down by not being able to make him happy with the gift (because the whole intention of buying the gift was to make him happy).

And when you think THAT is the worse feeling, try finding out that the kid actually thinks that someone elses' gifts are better. Yes, that's like rubbing H2SO4* (acid) into an open wound. Yea, sux even further. It's like those thousand pieces from your broken heart falling into an abyss that's so deep that it's deeper than Mariana Trench**. Yea, it's so deep that even as I type, the pieces are still falling. Nope, it hasn't reached the bottom yet...

Well, kids don't intentionally wanna hurt your feelings, but from their excited feeling when they receive other gifts or by showing off the gifts of others or when he's genuinely happy with playing with other gifts, you know that they prefer other gifts than yours... And that feeling sux...big time...

And that is why.... today, I am rather happy, to see little b so happy..... mainly because I made him so happy.. hahaha

I received a green cap (similiar to that of Ben 10) in the mail from a contest, and I gave it to him. He was estactic, as it made him look like his current favourite superhero Ben Tennyson. And then in the car, I surprised him further with another present, a Ben 10 comic book. His eyes GLEAMED with excitedment as he opened the present. He whispered, "Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy.... I think it's a Ben 10 book." And it was... And he can't wait to open the plastic cover and kept repeating while I was driving, "Mom, can you help me open the plastic, please?"

And then he realised that it's the schoold holidays and exclaimed, "Oh, what a pity that I don't have school tomorrow. Otherwise I can show it to my friends." (All his friends are fans of Ben 10 and have Ben 10 books of their own. This is little b FIRST Ben 10 book.).

Kinda makes me feel proud that he's so happy with his present that he wanted to show it off to his friends. And then he even make a logical comment and say, "Oh, it's ok. I can read it first, and then show them in January! There's school again in January, right Mom? "

He's still new to the concept of time, days, months, and year. So I find it a BIG DEAL that he could say such logical words. I couldn't help but give him a big hug and a big kiss and praised him profusely.

Upon reaching home, he burst into a chant... (almost a song), "Yeah yeah, I've got a cap ....and I've got a Ben 10 book..." And ran to show off to his grandmother while gigling with glee...

Haha, I die a happy Mom tonight...

p/s In the excitement of fussing over his new pressies, he left his favourite Ninja turtle in the car (which he takes to bed every night). And when he willingly accepts the Ben 10 book as a substitute bedtime pacifier, I know I have bought the PERFECT gift.. :)

* Sulfuric Acid

**the deepest point in the world, located in the Pacific ocean.

*** End note: The author is not preaching that it's good for kids to show off, nor condoning arrogance. The author merely uses the "show off scenario" as an example on how to gauge whether a kid is happy with your gift.

Rock

2009-11-14T22:02:00.002+08:00

I wish I was hard as a rock mountain,

Being able to be selfish and unbudging...

Being able to withstand all kinds of weather, without a single word...

But alas, I am not...

I am just being pinned down by a rock... unable to move, unable to breathe, unable to say a single word..

Sufferng in silence... for a rock...

Same

2009-11-11T08:29:00.002+08:00

And then I realise....

That essentially all of us are the same...

Delayed Reaction

2009-11-02T08:21:00.005+08:00

OMG... Woke up with muscle ache all over my arms and legs - a delayed reaction from the fatigue caused by over-exhaustion of my body on Friday. I feel wobbly on my arms and legs and don't feel like waking up...

This is a sign....
...
...
...

That I haven't been exercising for a long time!!!

(Haven't gone clubbing like in years and sudddenly dance/move for 5 hours... hahaha)

I know I know... I can almost hear you saying under your breath,"It's a sign of getting old la...."

Well, as I always say... we're only as old as we think we are... party on people... p-p-p party everyday... while we're still alive...(body ache shows that we're still alive.. :P)

Just something positive to chase away the Monday blues... well, me better go get ready for work...

Dogs

2009-11-01T20:04:00.001+08:00

I watched "Up" with Bryan on DVD recently... wasn't paying much attentin to the movie actually, but there was one scene which caught my eye.

There was this dog, whom the master has shouted at and given up due to desperation of the moment... and the dog and master parted ways, leaving the master all by himself in a lonely big old house. Then later when the house flew up into the sky with the balloons, with the owner thinking he was up in the air all by himself, there was a knock on the door. To his pleasant surprise, when the master open the door, it was the dog.

The dog, Dug, said, (yeah, it was a talking dog!), "I hid under your porch because I love you, master."

The point that the movie tries to highlight is that dogs can love their master unconditionally... regardless of what you do, because they just simply love their master. And this kind of reminded me of a certain dog owner... or dog lover actually... who cannot have a dog in the house due to parents objections. But still she loves dogs and will find a way to help dogs and feed them at animal shelters everyday before going home (even though her job is taxing and requires long hours). What's more amazing is that, she finds time to feed the dog first before going out to treat herself i.e. singing or clubbing which she fancies a lot. I find that she has some similar traits with dogs in terms of loving someone unconditionally.

Why do I say that? Well, I find that she loves the people around her a lot, regardless of the things they do to her. Her brother for example, has done innumerous naughty things to her, like maybe feeding her barbie doll set to the dogs, but she has always find a way to forgive him as she tells me that she only has one brother... (awww.... If that's not love, what is? Munster hates me for publishing such soapy stuffs but hey, I always report the truth...hehehe). And her unconditional love for dogs is commendable. And I can see that she loves her parents and other relatives a lot by the things she does..... and she does love her friends a lot too.. :P And I know she loves me.. :)

Thanks for being there .... and still loving me even though I liken you with a dog.. HAHAHHA...

Happy Velvety Halloween

2009-10-31T12:03:00.008+08:00

"I am dehydrated", said Alex-san, one of the clubbers yesterday night who drink and dance at the Halloween party at Velvet, while sipping his orange juice next to me on the way home.

Yeah, regular clubbers knows that they have to keep themselves hydrated because after a night of booze, the body is totally dehydrated, not only of fluid but of energy. I remember there was one part of the night where I couldn't feel my legs due to non-stop 3 hours of dancing on high heels. But it was all fun... just to release some stress and forget the real world for a second and party with the "ghosts of the night" in the spirit of Halloween.

T'was a pretty crazy night... with the earlier part of the night spent singing our lungs out in the Scary Karaoke before we adjourned to Velvet to join the other scary party (Ummm.. Munster was really scared (worried) of who his designated driver would be coz Alex-san crashed his car twice recently and he was equally scared that any of us would dirty his beloved car with puke (including his own).... )

Highlights of the night includes partying with a bunch of cool beautiful girls and getting Leo Ku to party with us!

Well, I couldn't get hold of all the pictures... so here's just a few to scare you.... Happy Halloween everybody.. :)

Halloween for little b

2009-10-31T10:10:00.000+08:00

Little b was quite excited about trick or treating for this halloween. He even came up with his own costume that came with a mask (which he made in school) to boot. I know it's not our culture to go trick or treating, but with the influence of disney channel, I am sure he's happy just to be a part of an international celebration. Well, I think he just enjoy having someone t play with and the new toy and new activities of making a costume an a mask.. :)

Happy Halloween.. :) Trick or treat... Muahahahah

Culture of Compliance

2009-10-06T23:03:00.003+08:00

Blue Ribbon for yours truly, despite being accidentally misjudged for speaking out of time. The Timer (being a first timer - pun intended haha...) thought that the speech was to be delivered within 6 minutes instead of 7, and buzz me off while I was delivering the final punchline at 6:30 minutes. The impact of her actions took the entire point out of the speech, which is crucial for this assignment since the main objective of Project 3 is "Get to the Point". Anyway, all's well ends well.. :) But it'll be fun to see her face if I were to become her timer during her next speech. Ting Ting Ting Ting...Buzzz!!!! Muahahahaha....

=================================================

Does anyone know this man? He is Flavio Briatore. Who is Flavio Briatore? This is the face of a Cheater!

Ladies and Gentleman, Fellow toastmasters and friends,

Why am I talking about this cheater? Who is he? What has he cheated me of? Not of my money, as he has 100 times more money than I do. And I am not jealous of his wife. This man is closely link to all of us. And I feel I need to make all of you aware of this man and what he has done to us. Flavio Briatore was the Managing Director of the Renault Formula One team. And this man has now been suspended for life from F1 activities!

Up until last week, ING was sponsoring the Renault F1 team. And luckily, ING was very wise to denounce the sponsorship immediately upon knowing this incident, otherwise ING will be labelled as a CHEATER as well. Imagine the impact if our customers were to associate us as cheaters if we continue to associate and endorse a cheating team.

You can see how this one man, Flavio Briatore has brought shame to the entire Renault F1 team by masterminding a race-fixing scandal and indirectly bringing shame to all of us in ING as well. For those who are unaware, let me tell you of this scandal. Everyone loves to hear a good scandal, don’t we?

Who watched F1 last Sunday? Where was it held? Yes, Singapore. Incidentally, last September in Singapore, Flavio Briatore ordered Nelson Piquet Jr. to crash his car so that teammate Fernando Alonso could win the 2008 Grand Prix title. His action not only compromised the integrity of the sport but also endangered the lives of the spectators and drivers!

Sports is considered to be an avenue for clean competition, thus you see many big companies endorsing sports event and promoting sportsmanship. And F1 is supposed to be the Big Boys Sports -the luxurious lifestyle where fame and fortune comes hand in hand with face. Thus this scandal is a big blow to the world sports body and all the companies involved.

In our corporate world, the people make the difference. Many do not realise the importance of compliance or corporate governance and how one mistake from one person can change the entire image of the company. Corporate governance is not only about having rules and regulations and policies. We know it's not enough to have policies. It's not enough to have procedures. It's not enough to have good intentions. All of these can help. But to be successful, compliance must be an embedded part of our firm's culture.

With the major impact shown by various major companies such as Enron, Arthur Andersen and Barings bank, we've noticed that the root cause is mainly their poor cultures of compliance. In many cases it seems clear that the culture of immediate, short-term profit overwhelmed the culture of compliance. Scandal teaches us that the culture of compliance must be taken seriously. As such, ING and all of us must learn from all these scandals and not make the same mistakes. I strongly believe that having a culture of compliance must be part of every firm's core business model.

A wise person once said that the test of a truly moral person, is whether he does the right thing when no one is looking. Certainly, the test for all firms is whether they maintain and each day, reinforce, a culture of compliance — which includes a culture of doing not only what is within the strict parameters of the law, but also what is right — whether or not a regulator or anyone else is looking. It is critical that firms establish a strong culture of compliance that guides and reinforces employees as they make decisions and choices each day.

In conclusion, having a healthy compliance culture is very important to our business. As we witness all the scandals and their impact, we will benefit, because it will help us sharpen the focus of our oversight in the compliance area. But more importantly, it will also enhance the protection we deliver to investors, which is after all, the ultimate goal of every culture of compliance.

So I leave you all with a simple question. If your boss was Flavio Briatore, and you were in Nelson Piquet Jr’s shoes, would you have done what your boss have asked you to do? Remember you can make a difference. You can make the change and be part of the culture of compliance.

Broken

2009-09-12T21:36:00.004+08:00

Something happened earlier which completely killed my passion to write. My spirit was so broken... I couldn't type on the keyboard... All I could manage was just to click insanely on the mouse (to play some totally silly games) to kill my meaningless time...

That's why my blog site is Tundra-like these days... so barren and empty.

Well, I am slowly getting over it...

The seeds are already sown...

Just waiting for the rain ...

Maybe some fertilisers will do me good.. :)

Yellow Ribbon for Helping Friends

2009-08-23T14:02:00.005+08:00

Me joining a humourous speech contest. That must be a joke. Me being given less than 10 hours notice that I have been entered into the competition is a bigger joke. Amazingly, I actually accepted the challenge. (Actually, I was made to do this. I mean, your CIO came up to you and ask you nicely whether you can help to do the speech. And this is not the first time he asked (a few times and all nicely some more)... Well, since I already was preparing for my second speech, I thought, what the heck, just do it.... I had tough time preparing myself mentally but my funny friends really did help ease the burden by sharing my worries (really does beat carrying the mental anxiety all alone) :)

And when it was time to speak, it was comforting to know that I was speaking on home ground with all my supporters behind me... (yea, now I know how MU feels playing at Old Trafford).... Anyway, I was still nervous... as I was up against all the veterens. These people definitely looked seasoned but I thought, what the heck, it was the experience that counts. To cut a long story short, yours truly got 3rd place!!! Not bad for a new comer, eh? And it feels really good when Mr. VPE (sorta like the Minister of Education in Toastmasters terms) came up to me and say, "If there was a prize for "Best Newcomer Award", I should be the one receiving it. :) Well, yours truly was all smiles when the whole thing was over... If you were there, you really could see me breathe a sigh of relieve that I hadn't let my whole club down... :)

Here's the "humourous" speech that I made that day... haven't have the chance t get my hands on the video and the photos of the winners... so you'll just have to put up with the 3rd best thing for now...

===========================================================

Friends helping friends to succeed.

Good evening ladies and gentlemen,

How many of you have friends, raise your hands? Or How many of us don’t have friends? So pitiful, come and see me later, I will try to arrange something for you.

Fellow toastmasters, guests, and friends,

“Friends helping friends to succeed”. I find this tagline very appropriate because essentially Toastmasters is a non-profitable club and so what is the driving force behind all you motivated members? This is not the official answer, but I find that one of the driving force is friendship.

I feel honoured to be amongst friends today, friends like all of you, helping me to succeed in my communication, in my speech and in so many other uncountable ways. We have all kinds of friends, some are good, and some are not. So what is friendship, really?

Friendship is a special kind of bonding that is similar but yet differs from all other relationship. It starts from acquaintance but friendship differs from social acquaintanceship, as friendship is based on love. It defers from lovers and marriage, as friendship is free from jealousy. Unlike family ties, friendship is not a responsibility but build on voluntary affection. Friendship has no status in law. Business partnerships are based on contract, so is marriage. Parents are bound by the law, as are the children.

Friends are there to stand by you, to give you courage, a push when you’re stuck, a helping hand when you need one and a steady shoulder to lean on when you you’re down.
I have to say I am lucky to have friends. I was stuck with this speech for quite a while and due to my lack of experience, I couldn’t find anything to say. I told my friends that I have a problem, and they laughed at me. I told them, “No, I have a serious problem.” They laughed even louder. They said, “Kelly, don’t worry. You don’t have t be a One Speech wonder. We can help you become a legend like Michael Jackson!”

And then they brought me to a tea session to help me loosen up and get my speech going. And they came up with 1001 topics for me to talk about. Some of the more interesting one was to talk about my dating experience as they thought you all would like to know about my past boyfriends… or girlfriends. But no, I can’t talk about relationships as I am not the type who kiss and tell. So don’t worry Alan, your secret is safe with me.

And they also suggested talking about my funny experience of how they have helped me make my decision to replace 10 year old car. Not too long ago, I went on a car hunting trip to replace my 10 year old jalopy, my dear old Iswara. I was so serious about getting a new car because I am a person who drives a car for a very very long time (yes I am a very loyal person). So I want to have the best car possible with the limited budget that I have. Thus I came up with a spreadsheet. IT people always come out with spreadsheets to do comparison. Look at all the parameters.

[Show PPT Spreadsheet]

You know I am a serious buyer when you see my spreadsheet. And then I showed this spreadsheet to those lighthearted friends of mine and guess what they did? They changed all the inputs for the parameters to compare girls!!!!

These friends of mine helped me see the lighter side of everything and help loosen me up so that I can be myself and excel. There have been there with me through some thicks and some thins. Friends bask in each other’s success, and despair together over failures. Friends take care of each other, nurse each other and learn from each other’s lessons. Life is too short to make all the mistakes by ourselves, and that’s why you need to learn from friend’s lessons.

So you can see how important friends are to me. And incidentally Alan has adopted the “Friends helping friends to succeed” as our ING Leadership Toastmaster’s club tagline. I will conclude with this simple poem that I wrote on how friends can help friends to succeed:

Friends cannot solve all your problems, doubts and fears
But they can listen to you and help you find courage and answers
Friends cannot change the past, the heartaches and pains
But they can remind you not to make the same mistakes again,

Friends dont take your joys, triumphs, successes
But they are here to share your sorrows and happiness
So take my hand and a journey together we proceed,
And let friends help friends to succeed.

To Ah is human

2009-08-05T23:20:00.005+08:00

Yours truly was the “ ’ah!’ counter” for the day. Ah counter is one of the roles played in the Toastmasters International Club and it’s purpose is mainly for personal growth, i.e. to practise the listening skills. The Ah Counter also helps the speakers get off their crutches and their dependencies on “Pause Fillers” during their presentation.

The role of an Ah Counters is exactly what the Title depicts. I count the number of Ahs that is used in a presenter’s speech. Actually I count other words or sounds such as “Ummm”, “Err”, “La”, “You know”, “So”, “Ok” etc. These are what the people in the public presentation world call “Pause Fillers”. Pause fillers are considered crutches that a speaker use to sustain their speech. In other words, pause fillers are, y’know, the time when you stand out in front of the crowd and you forgot what you wanna say and you start saying,” Ummm”, to break the silence while you try to remember the next line of your speech. Opps… I am also a sinner in this area. I use “Ah”,”Lah”, “Ok”, “Ummm”, ever so often that it has become second nature to me while talking and even while writing. Everyone does it, afterall, to “ah” is human, I mean, to err is human… :) We all do it but with the feedback from the ah counter, we hope that the dependencies on these Pause fillers are reduced if not eliminated.

Incidentally, today we found that even the most experienced speakers uses pause fillers in their speech, subconsciously… So to those new in public speaking don’t despair. Help is on the way. With more practise, we can all get rid of these crutches and stand on our own two feet.

To "ah" is human,
To forgive divine,
Lessons learnt are for a lifetime...

To learn is to change,
To change is to grow,
To grow is to a better tomorrow.

Toast to a better you and me. Cheers.

Speech Bug

2009-07-27T23:38:00.004+08:00

little b has also caught the speech bug.. :)

I was bz trying to crack my head over the next topic for my speech when little b became impatient (coz he wants to use my notebook and I was hogging his "ben 10 game" time). He told me, "here, let me show you how to make a speech!"

And here's what I manage to catch on camera... :) I found it soooo cute....

Blue ribbon for the girl with the most names

2009-07-16T00:05:00.011+08:00

"Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen, Fellow Toastmasters and Guests..."

That's the opening line for my Toastmasters IceBreaker Speech that I keep practising for the pass 3 days in front of a few of my closer colleagues, so much so, that they run away from me each time I go near them. And thus each time I only get to practise this opening line. Nobody seems interested in my toastmasters ice breaker speech. Yes, ice breaker speech can be boring for some....

So, I tried to practise in front of little b and he thought I was playing a game with him and started acting out the Sam Witwicky Classroom scene in Transformers 2, whereby Sam had a mental breakdown and started talking gibberish.

And Mr. Big B, not to pleased with me laughing at his name in my speech, also avoided me whenever I tried to practise in front of him, and gave me weird advice, like doing the Michael Jackson moonwalk while doing my speech or doing the human boom-box to catch people's attention like those who auditioned for the American Idol.

Anyway, all my "hard work" of practising inside my car while driving to work these 2 mornings have paid off well because tonight I won the Blue Ribbon for the Best Speaker for Prepared Speech. I guess I won because I was the only one who didn't use any notes and my speech was presented in an interesting "storytelling" mode instead of the usual "chronological introduction to my life" kind of presentation. (*Note: The icebreaker speech is a 4-6 minute speech to introduce the speaker to the rest of the club members.)

What makes winning this award all the more special is, I was up against 6 other more "seasoned" speakers as they hold positions in the office which required them to give presentations on a daily basis while I seldom (if ever) talk in the office. (Boss, if you are reading this, please do not start assigning me with presentation work, ok?).

Actually, you cannot imagine how estatic I am now with my achievements tonight. Yes, it feels great having so many people congratulating you and clapping for you. Kinda motivating in a way, especially for the other newbies seeing a nobody like me can actually be 1 up against all the other giants or "hot favourites".

I just reviewed my video, and I found that my speech wasn't that great but I feel it was still one of the best among those who spoke tonight. (Actually, I think my boss's speech was very good too and I probably won due to popularity vote, but hey, isn't this world about popularity nowadays - just look at all the reality shows they dish out to us on the idiot box which we call TV). Whichever way it is, the bottomline is I still won the ribbon, and tonight was MY NIGHT. Wooo Hooo!! Yeeee Haaaa!!! AHAHHAHAHAHA (Allow me to gloat for just once, ok? This doesn't happen to me very often... :)

So I guess I will bask in this euphoria for another 2 weeks before they crown another Blue Ribbon winner for the next meeting. But right now, having the best speech for the night is ....... priceless.

==============================================

Here's the speech I delivered earlier tonight...

A rose, by any other name, is just as beautiful.

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, fellow toastmasters and guests.

It is very intimidating for me to stand up here to talk in front of all of you after all those superb speeches given by my colleagues. Everyone knows that I am a shy person, and it took me a lot of courage to stand up here and open up myself. Even as I speak now, my heart is beating like [thud thud thud] 100 times a minute and my brain is working 1000 harder to control myself from having a heart attack. In fact, I think that there should be another role introduced into the Toastmasters Club, which is the Paramedic Role, to save people when they actually have a heart attack and collapse right here at the lectern.

Ok, now that I didn’t collapse, I have no choice but to continue with my speech. The title of my speech is “A rose by any other names is just as beautiful”. What better way to introduce myself than with my name. Once upon a time, not so very long ago, (I won’t tell you how long ago because it will reveal my age), my half-Japanese grandmother wanted to name me, Keiko Kawashima, meaning “the adored one on the river islands”. But the name on my IC, the last I checked, is XXX *(Censored to protect the writer's identity). My Chinese father, insisted on my Chinese roots and named me XXX instead. What does it mean? I don’t really know actually because I don’t read Chinese. My parents tell me that they got the name from the fortune teller when I was born.

The told me that my name was carefully and painstakingly chosen and they had to go through so much hassle to book the famous fortune teller in town just to get me my name. But I don’t believe them, because much later, I found out that my name is similar to the Taiwanese singer, Teressa Teng and she was very famous around the time I was born, thus I think they just conveniently took her name and gave it to me.

So all through my childhood, and teenage life, my friends call me by my Chinese name. Then I went to college and suddenly there was a fad in having an English name. I resisted the temptations of having one until later I went over to UK to further my studies. And then Oh My God!!! Most of my foreign classmates could not remember my Chinese name and had difficulty pronouncing it, and it sounded so horrifying that I don’t even want to mention it. In order not to allow them to further degrade my beautiful name, I chose to be called Kelly. And that is how I am better known as in the REAL world… as Kelly Kong.

REAL world? Yes, you heard me right. Because I live in another world too - the cyber world. I am very active online. I participate in forums, and online chats and have facebook, friendster and twitter accounts to keep in touch with my friends and family. Naturally, being a cyber citizen, I also keep a blog to log all the happenings in my life. One of the main reasons why I kept a blog was because I have very bad memory, thus I like to write down all the good things that has happened into the blog. Yes, it’s a little like keeping an online diary, so if you would like to get to know me better, you can just go to my blog and read all about me. Incidentally, it was my blog that landed me the task as the editor for ING Leadership Toastmaster’s Club newsletter. You can comment on my writings when you read the newsletter when it is published later. If it’s good, let me know. I’d try to pretend to be humble when you praise me. If you don’t think it’s good, you can just keep quiet. Haha, kidding, constructive criticism is welcome as I am always looking for ways to improve myself.

Back to my name. In the cyberworld, I go by the pseudonym Kelly Rivers. Why Rivers? My surname Kong means Rivers in Chinese.

And then there is one name that I seldom use or try to avoid using. I went on to marry my husband and automatically I inherited his name and guess what? His surname is Bean. Mr. Bean. So I become Mrs. Bean. I don’t think I need to explain why I don’t use this name.

So as you can see, I have many names, but essentially there’s only one me. I am the same nice person irregardless of all the names you call me, just like the saying goes, a rose by any other names, is just as beautiful.

First Toastmasters' meeting

2009-07-02T09:51:00.009+08:00

1/7/2009 - The first toastsmasters meeting for our ING Leadership Club has just came and gone... but the dust can hardly settle. And yea, I know, not only you cannot believe it.... even I can't believe it myself. Me, a toastmasters? Ha Ha. Someone like me ,who can write a lot, is usually the quiet or soft-spoken type, the shy type.... If I go to a party, you'll see me slowly blending with the wallpapers. Yes, I can be very very verbose when I write, (my good friend Gina will call it verbal diarheoa), there's usually not enough words for me to write if there's a word limit. However, when it come to speeches, boy, I am done for. I mean, where do people find the words to say after the usual niceties like, "Good evening, it's good that we have nice weather tonight to conduct this party." (even though it looks like rain outside but I just use the same line over, because I do not carry a whole black book of "pick up lines" like the guys often do.)

Anyway, back to the meeting...It was two hours orientation by the Division W Governor and other mentors who are going to help us get the club going for the first 6 months and after that they believe that we can stand on our own two feet. Wow, there were a lot of information or just one meeting. And we were given some demos on how we can train to give impromptu short speeches and also give slightly longer prepared speeches. It's all like a course in public speaking and yours truly being an advocate to learning something new was like a young girl given a new toy.

Ok ok, bad analogy. Perhaps I should say it's like a young kid on their first day at Kindergarten. Remember how fun Kindergarten was, With all the teachers making learning fun and all your friends who doesn't have any care in the world? And all the kids were eager beavers in learning new things. And oh, remember the teabreaks where they serve milo, cakes and koko crunch? And in some kindies, they even have show and tell. And the "table topics" (impromptu speeches) in toastmasters are pretty much like show and tell. You can talk basically about anything, because the main thing that they want to teach you is to "speak".

Anyway, to cut a long story short, the meeting was 2 hours but it didnt really feel long as the energy level created by those experienced Toastmasters were excellent and everyone went home feeling that they could somewhat benefit from the program. Well, I was quite skeptical at first because I didnt believe anyone can help a quiet person like to talk like Anthony Robbins or Obama. I mean, you can't teach an old dog new tricks, can we?

However, after watching how dedicated the mentors and other volunteery council members are, I was sold. These people are very motivated and they dont profit monetarily which is what earned my respect! (But I still wonder where they find so much time, and energy and how they get so motivated... hmmm....).

Well, there's still much to learn and much to practise. As for now, it's just the beginning of the journey and we learn a new thing a step at a time...and that's what makes our journey more pleasurable, more meaningful and more colourful.

Cheers to all who are embarking on this new journey. :)

Honesty, it's such a lonely word

2009-06-17T04:31:00.003+08:00

Honesty.

(Yes, this is a single word blog to illustrate that honesty is indeed a lonely word and is so hard to find these days and it's what I need most right now.)

Badminton fever ... again?

2009-05-15T00:12:00.007+08:00

Yes, I did it!

I finally played some badminton...

Yeah, I know... I cannot believe it myself.. Hahaha... sometimes I surprise even myself... :P

I finally picked up enough courage to join the group to play...(mostly due to fear of retribution as previously I was fond of laughing while others play) ...Well, now that I have done it, I am pretty happy about it. Not that I know how to play... but being able to hit the ball across the net was great enough achievement for me.. :)

And being able to sweat so much and drink lots of water feels good. Having the body aches makes me feel alive!(instead of feeling old as I initially feared!) In fact, I feel I look much better after a game of sport... hahaha...I know it's all in the mind, but still, I liked what I saw in the mirror. Haha, I know you are probably puking yesterday's meal now.

Anyhow, despite me not being able to do well in the game, it still feels good to have done some exercise. Somehow exercise can amazingly relax or open your mind, and if done regularly, can also do wonders to your physique.

Talking about physique, it reminded me that I have never been into sports that requires me to be physically active. I was never a sports person, basically because I am not a sun person. Besides, mom doesn't think it's wise for weak old me to be too indulged in sports... because I have already spent too much time on rhythmic gymnastics and she'd rather I spent more time on my books. I would agree that I have a weak physique and had never really excelled in sports. Thus, I guess God is fair and gave me some brains in place of brawn, ha ha. Can you imagine that when in school, and we're suppose to join at least 1 sporting event, and I chose chess! (Heck! If they had "9 ball pool" as 1 of their sports options, I bet I would've joined that too!)

So you see, my bad habit of avoiding physically active sports started from school. And then it stuck until university days, where I would rather choose to have a pool game or fooseball than to hit the gym. So that's another reason why I am pretty happy today... coz I am breaking the negative mould!

Well, I am pretty tired... Almost dozing off... must be the effect of the "physical active sports" kicking in.. Ahahha..

Ok, I have done my part, now you too pick up your lazy bum and go get some exercise done. (No, sending sms or clicking the remote control or surfing the net doesn't count as exercise.) C'mon, give exercise a chance.... If nothing else, perhaps it'll help you sleep better.. :) It's a much better way to cure insomnia than booze.

Good night, and signing off for today as a tired but happy blogger... :)

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T15:19:00.012+08:00

"Mom, can I have a dollar?"

"Why dear?"

"I wanna buy a flower... from school... It's made of plastic. For Mother's Day celebration. Must show it to my mom..."

I must say, initially, I was kinda touched by this simple gesture from him. Then he said...

"What's Mother's Day celebration, mom?"

Haha... he doesn't even know what's Mother's day and yet the people from school are already introducing material stuffs for the pupils spend their pocket money on.

"No need to buy flowers lar. Keep your money and use it to buy books."

"Can I have 4.90 to buy Ben 10 books then?"

Wow, this little guy is smooth.... first he try to pull my heart strings but his actual intentions were to get 4.90 to buy his Ben 10 stuffs... hahahah...

Probably grow up to be a good politician ahhaha

====@@@@====

Nowadays, Mother's days are somewhat blown out of proportion by consumerism media to become a comercialised celebration for all to earn an extra buck. Having said that, I would still be delighted to receive flowers as a token of appreaciation. haha...

From a mother's perspective, I would say, all mothers like to be appreciated. I mean, everyone loves to be appreciated.

Be nice to your mother today even if you can't be nice to her everyday... Just imagined that she loved you unconditionally for the first few years of your life even though you were crying all night and fussing all day... Treat her to a nice lunch, or dinner if you think getting flowers or giving her a big hug are too cheesy... Make her happy... because... she's the only mother you'll ever have...

And even if she "seemed" unappreciative of your efforts (like how I ask little b not to waste money on flowers... ), know that deep inside, she still likes it and would be deeply touched by it... (I would know coz I am a mom...)

Happy Mother's day to all the wonderful wonderful women out there.... :) Have a great day, today and everyday....

====@@@@====

Why are mothers special?

When I came home in the rain,
Brother snorted, "Why didn't you take an umbrella?"
Sister advised, "Why didn't you wait till rain stopped?"
Father angrily warned, "You could've caught a cold!"
But Mother, while drying my hair said, "Stupid rain! Couldn't it wait till my child came home?"
- Source unknown

Which is GOOD?

2009-05-06T22:51:00.005+08:00

I was busy minding my own business at work when two grown men started the following conversation in front of my cubicle. And they were pretty loud, mind you, so I wasn't eavesdropping...

I have changed their names to protect the innocent.... ummm, even though they are anything but innocent..., well, let's just use Ping vs Pong in this scenario to depict the fast-paced (because 1 party wanna leave the place fast!), adrenalin pumping (aka blood vomit inducing) exchange of words that took place in front of me.. ..

Pong: "Ping, what printer good ah?
Ping: There's no good or no good 1.. depends on your requirements
Pong: U using printer at home?
Ping: Yeah, so what are your requirements?
Pong: Just to print kid's project la
Ping: Aiyah, that 1 then chinchai buy 1 would do lar… no need to buy good 1
Pong: But what is GOOD?
Ping: *(Still patient but can see slight discomfort as he stares at me as though asking for help) I told you , got no Good or no good... Depends on requirements

Pong paused for 2 seconds…

Pong: So if print project, which one is good?
Ping: *(Getting frust and smile at me like asking me, “Is this guy for real?”) Aiyah, already say there's no good or no good... Just normal and highend... up to you wanna buy normal or highend lar...
Pong: yeah, but which brand is GOOD?
Ping: *(Getting really frust) Sigh,…. I said ady lokkkkk.... there's no good or no good... just normal or highend

Pong: What brand you use at home? Goodor not?
Ping: *(Getting really impatient and starting to move away) XXX Brand... but I said ady lokkk…. cannot say good or no good... depends on your requirements

Then Ping went away...

Pong turned to me and say, “But I still don’t know which brand is good.”

I guess if it was someone else other than Ping, there will definitely be bloodshed... hahaha

Malaysian Idol Contestants

2009-05-01T22:23:00.009+08:00

Was browsing some old videos and found these 3 funny home videos. It was taken during Chinese New Year 31 January 2006. Hope these kids dont sue me for royalty when they grow up... :P

Contestant 1. 7 years old. (Song: Tung Hua By Michael Wong)

Contestant 2. 5 years old. (Song: Lau Tzu Ai Ta Mi) Note: Check out the ending where another contestant cant wait for his turn)

Contestant 3. 4 years old. (Song: Yellow by Coldplay)

Badminton Fever Part 3 - Prize Ceremony

2009-04-28T22:48:00.012+08:00

The situation was funny and “liun sui” (messy). All the winners wear eager to get a glimpse of their prize money and trophies. The guys were teasing and asked the girls why they never dress up for the prize giving ceremony and Shirley retorted that she forgot to bring her night gown. Then Desmond added that she should just go Sg. Wang to “set up” her hair. Incidentally the winners of the Women’s doubles (from another department) were actually in full make up when they were playing last Saturday, so we really wondered if they really did go to the salon before going for the prize giving ceremony haha. (Hello, this is a sports prize giving ceremony, not your high school prom, ok?…. hahaha)

The winners : Check out the one with "full make up" - can you find the prom queen?

All the winners were totally excited (almost drooling!) when they saw their prizes. I don’t blame them old folks, as the last prize giving ceremony which they have been to was their junior high sports day or probably their kid’s school sports event. So you can imagine how long it has been …

In all his excitement to receive the final and most prestigious prize for the morning, the champion trophy for the Men’s Singles category, Sam dropped his Men’s doubles trophy which he had received just minutes before. Watch the video to see the commotion which he caused with his funny antics. Who would have thought something as hilarious as this would happen on a mundane prize giving ceremony? Well, there’s always something funny when you’re with this bunch. Check out the video to see what I mean...

(*Just for your information, the happy guy in green was just a representative for Sean (2nd runner up winner for Men's singles) but doesn't he seems sooo happy to receive the prize? haahha)

Badminton Fever Part 2

2009-04-28T00:25:00.010+08:00

25 APR 2009: It was a hot sweltering afternoon and as I drove to the tournament grounds in PJ, I can't help but wonder to myself if the trip was even worth it. My text message to LP on whether it was already too late to watch any of the games went unanswered and I thought probably the answer was not favourable, thus she didn't bother to answer. You see, the games started at 9am but I could only get off my other full-time job only at around 2pm. (Eh, eh, What were you thinking? I was refering to my weekend housewife job!) Ah well, even if there weren't any games left, I could always go for the MPH or Diethlam Sale ...

And so I went, and I have to say, I was really surprised to see most of the teams already entered finals or semis. As I walked into the stuffy hall of heat and sweat, all of them were already complaining about back aches, arm injuries, muscle pull, leg strains ... all kinds of everything, which makes it even harder to believe that so many of them have qualified (I actually asked a few people, a few times, to confirm that they really qualified... haha).

At that time, against all the odds, the men of IT have already qualified for both men's singles finals and men's doubles finals. Sean was already in a game fighting for 3rd placing in men's singles which he eventually won without much stress. There were 2 women doubles team from IT and one of them have already qualified for the finals (hurray!celebrations guaranteed!) and the other women doubles team was already halfway in the semi finals game (so "kancheong" aka. exciting). It was a really close game as we could see the girls fighting right to the end of the rubber set. Despite this little setback, the girls still made us really proud for bagging the 2nd and 3rd placing. Go gurlllls!!!

The mix doubles semi finals was pretty fun to watch with Puah saying that his arms were dropping off and Patrick and LP joking around in the courts during the game. There was one part where Pat asked LP if she hated him so much that she was giving the opportunity for the opponent to smash the shuttle at him. It was probably part of their strategy as the opponent started to eavesdrop onto their conversation and laughed and began losing points. On the other court, Puah jokingly called out to Sam for a helping hand and Sam passed him a wristband (or was it a hairband!?) to "prevent Puah's arms from falling off"!

Then the real action began. Sam played a tough opponent to grab the Men's Singles Champion title with rubber set while Sam and Patrick took home the Men's Double Champion. (The guys had played a total of 16 and 14 sets each on the same day! Amazing!). Actually, it was pretty intimidating when I first saw the 2 tall and lean young opponents; both of whom had that "National Badminton Player-look". It was like watching Malaysia vs Indonesia doubles finals. Little did I think that our IT guys stood a chance against those young, mean looking opponents but yet again, they surprised me pleasantly by giving these young opponents a run for their money! (watch the video but kids, dont try this at home!)

At the end of the day, IT bagged 4 out of 11 titles offered (3 positions for men's singles, 2 each for women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mix doubles) .... A very impressive figure, wouldn't you say, considering the stereotyping of IT techies/geeks to be weak in sports.

I have to put my hats down for our IT Badminton team. They can really have fun during training and yet when it comes to business (tournament), they really can beat the living daylights out of their opponents. In my humble opinion, if every department adapts this kind of culture into their daily work (have fun at work but yet getting the job done!), I am sure we can build a tight, fun, highly motivated and successful team.

Badminton Fever?

2009-04-21T23:43:00.007+08:00

It's badminton night again tonight. I cannot believe the bunch will follow through after last week. I thought it was like the Gym craze where participants will drop out like flies and eventually die a natural death. But no, this week, it was full attendance. Despite all the complains from all the old folks about arm pains, leg pains, here pain, there pain, all of them turned up for the practise this week. It is pretty amazing to see how team spirit can bring out the best in people.

You see, there's an intra-company Badminton Tournament this coming weekend and it's interesting to see quite a number of participants from our department. Even though majority are old folks and possibly joining the competition for the sake of some exercise (old folks are more concerned about health), it's refreshing to see new blood blending in too (the younger ones tend to speed up the game and make it a more interesting watch ahaha).

Today, there were major casualties. 3 players got sprained... and the funny thing was... all 3 had injuries at the unthinkable areas!!! All sprained their BUTTOCKS!!! I find it so weird as I have never heard reports about badminton players spraining their buttocks. Imagine, the newspapers reports: Lim Chong Wei drops out of Malaysian Open due to BUTTOCKS INJURY. Ahahaha.. I think even Misbun will chuckle during the press conference. HAHHAHA

I think I will just leave you with some photos and let you be the judge of what the tournament this coming weekend would turn out to be. And some of them already finding excuses for not winning the tournament due to injuries.

Incidentally, there's a high chance for our IT division to win some titles due to the low participants from other divisions. So probably some of us might just get lucky and eventually walk over to win some titles. Whatever the outcome, yours truly is just eager to join in the yumcha and gossip sessions after all these games. hahaha. As they say, winning is not everything... but sure is a bonus.. :)

Ham sup blog

2009-04-20T23:18:00.009+08:00

As you know, I have the blogger's block earlier ... and somehow doesn't feel what I write. When I don't feel what I write, the stories just goes down the drain. So I rather not write than to write something that bore the living daylights out of you.

And then, some brilliant friends came up with the idea of writing a hamsup (lustful) topic because everyone is attracted to these topics in one way or another... either because they are really lustful(hahaha!) or because they are just curious. Also, coincidentally, today's yumcha (tea session) garnered a full crowd when told that the yumcha topic was a "hamsup" topic.

Anyway, before you think this is going to be an X-rated blog, rest assured that this is just a PG13 blogsite... and you won't get full X-rated stuffs in here (sorry to disappoint those real hamsup fellows who are reading this... hahaha).

The whole hamsup topic was brought about because Keyman says that we cannot judge a book by its cover, i.e. we cannot tell whether a guy is lustful by just looking at his appearance. There were some interesting sweeping statements which was brought up:

1) Most "sei ngan jai" (4 eyed boys a.k.a be-spectacled guys) are hamsup. (reason being, they hide and read a lot of playboy magazines thus spoiling their eyesight).

2) Most "fei jai" (fatty/chubby guys) are hamsup. (reason given was that they have too much fat tissues, thus causing their body temperature to be higher than most boys, thus getting "aroused" easily).

3) Most "woo sou jai" (moustached guys) are hamsup. (This statement was made purely based on looks where guys with moustache looks generally more villiany or vice inclined)

4) Most "gong tau jai" (balding guys) are hamsup. (The rational is that there are more male hormones, i.e. testosterone, in balding guys and these hormones are responsible for higher sexual desires thus making them more lustful)

5) All real men should be hamsup. (refer to story below for the reasoning:)

Cat, Descool, and I were on MSN messenger one night. It was already midnight and Cat just signed on. Cat just gave birth and was waiting for the right time to breastfeed her son.

Descool: Eh, why midnight wake up to feed milk one?
Cat: because mine is a son.
Descool: Why son must drink milk at night?
Cat: because guy more hamsup so drink more milk (lol).
Descool: ka ka ka..... Kelly, your son got drink milk at night or not?
Me: hahaha, no wor....
Cat: yeah what, a guy who is not hamsup is not a guy.
Descool: ka ka ka..... so Kelly, you must teach your son to be more hamsup lar
Me: hahaha, crazy fellas.... midnight talk about hamsup stuffs
Cat: yeah, married woman all very hamsup one.
Me: Yerr, why you talk like that?
Cat: Yeah hor, I forgot I am also a married woman.. hahaha

So you be the judge.

Are those statements really true about the categories of men being more lustful? Ahaha...

*Disclaimer: The above statements are made purely based on the author's friends' personal judgements and are not based on any scientific research or facts. The article is meant as a joke for merriment and fun only and not meant to offend anyone. If the statements, by any chance, bears any resemblance to any persons, it is purely coincidental.

BM lessons anyone?

2009-04-11T11:20:00.008+08:00

I was revising Bahasa Malaysia (BM) with little b the other day. I haven't been using nor reading BM for gazillion years... but now I have no choice... little b really needs help. His BM is so atrocious! He doesn't know what's "Saya" or "Satu" ... yeah, it's that bad... So I had to do something...

I went out to buy a few simple BM story books and a tri-lingual picture dictionary. And I asked him to read a page, then I test him...

Me : What's "mother" in BM?
little b: "Emak"
Me : What's "father" in BM?
little b: "Papa"
Me : (Press lips to pronounce clearly) "BA-PA la!!"

Me : What's "cousin" in BM?
little b: Errr,... Err.... Se... Se....
Me : Yes?
little b: Se.... Su.... Yes! SUSUPU!!!
Me : (in between muffled laughs...) NOOOO!!! You wanna drink Susu is it? (*knowing that Bryan hates milk)
little b: I know I know.... SESUPU!
Me : (Roll eyes) SE-PUPU lar!!!

Me : How to say "stupid" in BM?
little b: Stares and blink at me blankly!!
Me : BO..... (Trying to help him remember by giving him the first syllable)
little b: I know I know... BO-DAH!!!! (*PODAH means "go away" in Tamil)
Me : (Tries very hard to refrain from laughing)... It's BO-DOH, honey... Say "Bodoh" 10 times so that you will remember.
little b: Bo-do-bo-do-bo-do-bo-do....

Me : How to say "clever" in BM?
little b: (confidently) GAYA.
Me : What?
little b: Yehhhhssss (while nodding his head).... GAYA means smart... (very confident and adamant that his answer is right because he watches Ultraman Gaia a lot)
Me : hahaha.. ok... ok... But I want Clever, not Smart....
little b: ..Umm.... Pandai...
Me : Good, Pandai pun... So how to say "stupid"?
little b: stunned for a while, and stares at me blankly again, indicating that he had once again forgotten ...
Me : BO.... (trying to prompt him again)
little b: I know! BO-DAH!!!!
Me : (Faints!)

Dinotrek at Petrosains

2009-03-30T23:35:00.009+08:00

Ok, everyone around us knows that little b is crazy over dinosaurs. Neighbours can hear us watching Jurassic Park 1,2,3 and the making of Jurassic Park over and over again and in that sequence of order.... And little b is so sensitive to dinosaur sounds that he can hear if our neighbours are watching Jurassic park.. he'll go..

"Listen mom. What's that sound? It's a Velopciraptor, isn't it?"

He'll repeat this until you answer him... if you still don't answer, he'll grab your face and force your head to turn and look his way and answer him. Yes, he's insistent and persistent... And he had been through all the dinosaurs website and youtube clips on dinosaurs a zillion times.

So, when I told him that there's a Dinosaur Exhibition at Petrosains, KLCC, he was estactic! And he started surfing the Petrosains website the whole Saturday and repeatedly asked us if we're going to Dinotrek....even went to bed early on Saturday and bugged us whole Sunday Morning until we gave up.

"Mom, wake up, it's morning!! See the sun? Wake up!!!"

So when we trot off to KLCC and he was so excited... and he kept telling me about T-rex vs Spinosaurus, in between his "Are we there yet?" whinings.. ;)

The irony is... little b already knows that there are dinosaurs which are carnivores and some which are herbivores. Yet, he would stop at nothing just to get the kick out of feeding the animals. (watch the video to understand what I am getting at. He'd feed the animals anything... from ferns to meat!). He tells me, "But Mom, they are hungry...", in the most sincere tone with the most innocent eyes... Now how can I get mad at him for being kind!

However, what worries me is that he still doesn't quite understand the concept of danger with meat-eating animals. He didn't hesitate to offer his own hands as food to the Spinosaurus when facing the moving carnivorous giant monsters of yesteryears. Luckily, the Spinosaurus was not fond of "small" servings... hahaha... Here's the video to show you what I mean... :)

Anyway, all in all, the Dinotrek 2 exhibition was quite educational, with activities and fun stuffs for children. Not a big exhibition area, probably takes up 45 minutes to 1 hour to cover everything on a low patronage day (also depending on how long you can linger).

A real "value-for-money" family activity place where tickets costs RM3 for children and RM6 for adults. (This exhibit is a separate display, independent of the Petrosains Centre. You would need to purchase separate tickets into the Petrosains Centre. There are concession rates if you buy the combo tickets. We didn't visit Petrosains because the crowd was too much for comfort on that school holiday weekend and it closes quite early... around 6pm on a weekend.

Despite all the high tech animatronics, I think most kids found the conventional sandbox the most fun. All of the kids couldn't resist being Paleontologists for a day; digging, brushing, unearthing the burried Triceratop and Parasaurus Fossil.

Confessions of a Glutton

2009-03-25T07:23:00.007+08:00

In a moment of gluttony,
I have downed 2 packets of Indomie,
Now I am full of guilt,
A huge waistline I have built!

To top that up,
Creamy Milo Dinasaur, one gigantic cup,
Made me so sleepy,
That I forgot my maternal responsibilities!

So to school I must go,
With a lunch box in tow,
To seek repentance,
through inconvenience.

And forgiven I have been,
When greeted by the sweetest smile I have seen,
All the effort have been worthy,
Oh, thank you for being my baby....

Blogger's Block

2009-03-22T20:28:00.010+08:00

Havent blogged much lately because the writer have come to a bloggers' block (again!?)... The heart isn't where it used to be. There are ideas which comes and goes in the writer's head but they remained as ideas and never manage to see the light of a published article.

There are a few things I would like to blog about ... LV's wedding, The Game bachelor's night with the "add ice" incident, and trivia matters like the WPC moment with my boss,.... minor funny things that used to become life's little joy has now become somewhat so trivial (or worse, on the brink of being boring!)... My mind is kept busy with all the things I should have done or be doing and would like to do.

What are these things? Amazingly, I don't know... (Yes, I know you feel like slapping me silly) What do I want? I don't know...(Ok, now I feel like slapping myself silly).... There's nothing that I really crave for or really want... which makes me a little worried.. .That I don't have a drive or direction anymore...

Maybe I am just lazy. Maybe mid-life crisis has kicked in again. Maybe it's just the end of the school holidays that's giving me the jeepers creepers...

Maybe all I need is a nice long bath....

Pictures source: www.123rf.com

A day at the zoo

2009-03-10T23:38:00.005+08:00

T'was a lonnggggg day at the zoo. Was there from 11am-6pm... People who don't know us well might think we're a kiasu family, trying to squeeze the value of our entrance tickets. It's only RM15 for adults, and RM6 for children/senior citizen. Optionals are RM4 for parking and RM3 and RM2 for the tram ride for adults and children respectively. One of the most economical family outing sites in KL actually.

We were just in time for the animal show when we arrived. The 20-minute animal show wasn't really that good (as compared to the Bird Park shows or the animal show in A'famosa Safari) but it still drew a full house because that was the highlight of the whole zoo. After that, my sister's daughter started to complain of a stomach ache and had to poo poo... . hahaha..... Right after pooing she was bright and happy and running around like a wild horse with Bryan. Before that, she was so moody and lethargic....(probably because she was too eager to go to the zoo after waking up and didn't go poo in the morning ahahah)

So after that, we went around to show the kids all the animals. Little b was exceptionally eager to see the reptiles, especially the Anaconda and crocodiles. With him being so naughty, Mom and I was just so paranoid that he might jump into the crocodile pit. You see, he had seen a National Geographic documentary on crocodiles in Australia recently and in that documentary, Allistar, the guy who survived a crocodile attack was re-enacting the whole scenario and little b was very intrigue with crocodiles after that. He spent like a whole 5 minutes just staring at the crocs, asking me why are they waiting so silently inside the river. Sister told her daughter about the Sang Kancil and the crocodile story about how the crocs pretended to be logs in the river to prey on unsuspecting victims. After hearing that story, little b wonders if the crocs were waiting to prey on children and repeatedly asked me what were the crocs waiting for... as if to confirm if there were really waiting to prey on them. I hope he doesn't have any nightmares like how he had nightmares after watching the movie "Frankenfish".

Then we adjourned to the Savannah walk, which had an arch that looked like Jurassic Park and Bryan was humming the Jurassic Park song as we enter the Savannah to experience the African Safari. Yeah, Bryan is obsessed with Jurassic Park recently after getting the DVD box set as a present...

Well, it was somewhat awesome to see the almost extinct white rhinoceros basking in the wild amongst the giraffes, zebra and ostriches... but the heat was a bit too much to bear for this princess... . So we went to find a nice cool spot to sit down and eat the fruits and sandwiches which we brought along... sorta like a picnic... And then my sister's daughter, who is quite artistic (read this to see what I mean), whisked out her drawing block, and started to draw the giraffes. I thought she would want to draw the whole savannah but then after drawing the outline of the giraffe, she told us she's done. Hahaha.. so much for artist's block....

Anyway, all in all, it was a very tiring day because we practically walked from 11am to 6pm... we didnt take the tram because it was slow and hot....My legs, which are not used to exercise, are kinda reacting to the long walk only now (1 day after the trip) ahhaha... feeling very "syuen" (cramp) . Y'day was a good day because the weather was good and most of the animals were awake.

The Lions, Tigers and Hyenas were awake when we were there... Usually most of them are sleeping at the corner of their liar. But yday, the King and Queen of the animals were quite vain and paraded themselves on the pedestal (exhibitionist!!). Initially, the Lion King was just lazing on the pedestal after waking from his afternoon nap...Then, the lioness went up to join him and rub herself against the lazy Alpha Lion (hmm didn't know big cats are into PDA too...)... and ended up sitting on top of him... while he lie down in sweet surrender... pretty romantic scene.... hahaha. And the tigers were awake too and went for a swim in the moat that separate us and their lair, giving us a pretty close look at him.... And we saw cougars, pumas (very fat ones), and leopards being very active too. There were some animals which I have never quite seen before like the Binturung (the civet cat which isn't a cat, but looks like a fox and it's very fat ahaha and belongs to the mongoose family), the Barasingha (which is a deer and not a singa/lion), the Prairie dog (which is not a dog but a squirrel), and the flying fox (which is a bat and not quite fox..hmmm.... I had always thought a flying fox was a squirrel but I learnt something new yesterday.....) hahaha...

Well, the kids had fun not only because of the animals, but because of the company of each other and having ice-creams together on an extremely hot day... hahaha. Actually, they had the most fun when they were feeding the giraffe and goats with leaves. Kids find it extremely fun when the animals take the food from their hands. They were laughing and giggling their heads off and were plucking leaves from the trees non-stop citing that the giraffes were still hungry. I had to scold them to stop them from killing all the plants at the zoo! hahaha

I guess the children used up a lot of energy during the trip... coz when we went for Korean dinner after that, my sister's 8 year old daughter had 1.5 bowl of rice!!!She wanted more but her mom stopped her from overfeeding..... Amazing, considering she's not that big size (*quite thin really)...

So much for my trip to the zoo.. :) Didn't manage to say hi to your relative though.. coz the primates section requires us to walk up way beyond the Savannah. Too tired and too hot to do that hahaha... Rather sit by the Savannah and enjoy an ice cream while the kids try their hand at capturing the savana on their art block ahhaha... Till I get my hands on the photos, here's hoping that you too will visit the zoo to contribute to some animal feeds. :)

Valentine's day or SAD, which is worse..?

2009-02-17T00:05:00.011+08:00

14/2/2009

Today is Valentine's day.... a day to celebrate the greatness of love ...

However, also a painful day for the single and lonely... i.e.one without a valentine to declare your overwhelming love to...

Thus it's a day when the singles become very aware of their status... and their situation.. which is very single and alone... especially after being abandoned by "couple" friends around them. Hence, it's also aptly named Singles Awareness Day.

Was having tea just now with a relative and he lamented how terribly "sien" (boring) and uneventful his V day was.

In between his grouses and jokes about *how girls don't know how to value good stuffs when they see one, a thought came into mind... (Ting! Not really a lightbulb moment but close.. ahhaha)

Which one is worse?

NOT having a Valentine and thus, not celebrating Valentine's day...

Or having a Valentine, but STILL DON'T get to celebrate Valentine's day...

Yeah, to be celibate or be uncelebrated... that's the question...

In the first scenario, your expectations are low, and thus the slightest thing that happens on that day is Bonus...

In the second scenario, imagine the feeling of being disappointed year after year... after waiting 365 days for this day to come,.... each day planting a seed of hope that your valentine would somehow reinstate their vows and profess their strong undying love to you all over again,.... only to have it pass you by without any significance...

I asked a few of my married friends about their Vday plans,... (at least 4 - yeah, Kens, Khoo, Key, TFL, ... you guys are in the list) and they tell me that they are not celebrating Valentine's day. Kens even went to the extent to tell me that V day is S*Hai Day (In Cantonese, S*Hai means Suckers) as the V-day related items (cards, flowers, dinner, chocolates, ice-cream, or even anything with slight relationships, i.e. car park, hotels) are all exhorbitantly priced!

So, bro, sometimes being alone* ain't all bad.... It's just a matter of perspective.... hahaha

*these meat, I mean, words were deliberately minced, err.. changed to protect the innocent and to promote blogging ethics

Chap Goh Meh

2009-02-09T18:38:00.013+08:00

Happy Chap Goh Meh to all...

Today is the final day of Chinese New Year 2009. It's called Chap Goh Meh (in hokkien meaning "15th night"). It's the Chinese Valentine's day actually, where "hopeful" single women throw "kam" (mandarin oranges) into the river while the daring single men go all out to grab these oranges. The most romantic day of all the days in Chinese New Year.

Incidentally, today marks the wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. Keyman. Kinda romantic when I think about it falling on a Valentine's day. However, Keyman tells me that he's celebrating the day with his "gay" friends.... (gay = in cantonese meaning machines/gadgets i.e. hi-fi, audio video stuffs).

Today is Ginger's birthday too (based on the Chinese Calender). Also very romantic because her actual birthday falls on 14th February, the western Valentine's day. How coincidental. She told me that this phenomenon only happens once every 19 years and it happened on the day she was born. How romantic, I thought. However, she tells me she's not celebrating tonight with a date, nor is she going to celebrate the coming Valentine's day with anyone.

Then cousin told me that his friend has organised a clubbing session this coming Saturday, but it's only for the singles. I was somewhat offended initially, thinking that I was prejudicially excluded from the outing on purpose. And then he told me I was not invited because it's "Single Awareness Day" (SAD) and only then did I realise that next Saturday is Valentine's day. Clubbing on Valentine's day for the singles seems like a romantic occassion until cousin told me that the meaning of single in his context does not refer to marital status but being alone!

Such irony. For what seemed to be romantic stories or situation, is actually celebrated with the least romantic inclination.

Closer to home, Big B is going for Badminton tonight, totally oblivious to any romantic relations...

So I decided not to be alone.... I went to cousin's house for some Guitar Hero. And boy was it fun...

"And so what, I'm still a rockstar..." Ahhahaha.. pfffttttt....

Happy Valentine's Day (said in rocker style... yeah! Peace, man, peace! hahaha)

*Disclaimer: This article is not a flamer to those romantic couples nor do I disapprove of romance, love and affection (I am a hopeless romantic, actually). Just something to spread cheer and help lift the spirits of the broken-hearted or the faith-departed.

PS3 - Playing Seriously 3 - Wanna be a rockstar?

2009-01-31T21:32:00.021+08:00

The latest craze in the gaming section seems to be the Rockband or Guitar Hero games. Almost every other computer shop have stocked up these mock band sets in their stores like it's the hottest items for Xmas. It's popularity is further spured by it's compatibility with PS3, Wii and Xbox 360. I suppose a lot of people buy them in conjunction with long Chinese New Year holidays. Good idea too as it's something you can show off to your guests when they come visiting besides being good entertainment value.

I now understand why cousin bought it just a few weeks before the New Year. Just ample time for them to practise. And their practise paid off as they can play expert level for drums and guitar now. No wonder he kept asking me to practise my vocal chords before coming to his house for an "audition". He seriously warned me against making a fool of myself with the vocals should I play expert level.

I still remember the eager beaver look on my cousin's face when he first got the PS3 set. He came to my house with the new toy and insisted we go for yumcha. It was pretty weird for him to insist that I go for yumcha even though there was a special guest that he wanted me to meet. True enough, Miss Cake was back from UK but I guess the real reason was to practise the Guitar Hero as it needs 4 people to make up the complete band of drums, guitar, bass and vocals.

Practising with the Guitar Hero for the first time was pretty frustrating (although fun) since everyone was new with the game. (We were so amused by the new game that we stayed till 4am - but I think the neighbours weren't too amuse with our bad music and laughters...). We couldn't even go pass the first bar without mistakes or totally striking out. Cousin Mun said he wanted to sell the set at ebay the next day. Guess he wouldn't part with it for a 1000 bucks now that he's mastered some of the songs like Hotel California, Beat It, Eye of a Tiger, Living on a Prayer and About A Girl. (To further illustrate and emphasize how frustrating it is to play "expert" level without practising: even Little b was frustrated, and shouted, "What is wrong with you guys?" when he was playing the "easy" drums while we keep striking out with our "expert" instruments. "C'mon Miao, let's get out of here", cried a bored Little b and ran off to play in the garden with his cousin Miao after we struck out a few rounds).

With this game, we now appreciate how difficult it is to play music, let alone be a rockstar (especially when you try and play No Doubt's Spiderwebs) and thus, perhaps think twice before we give in to piracy. (I know I know, the heart is willing but the flesh is weak).

Here's a few rockstars wanna be...

This one looks like a serious Yee Woo player rather than a rocker.
Aren't we a little too ambitious to play and sing at the same time?
This one takes the cake.... King of all ROCKERS!!! Yeah Man...!

The "band" singing (or killing) Nirvana's About A Girl

Living on a Prayer? How apt to be playing a rock song in front of the altar! Omitofu... Yau Kwai Muk Kwai.... (translated to something equivalent to "Father please forgive me for I have sin...")

Miss Clumsy

2009-01-24T18:02:00.015+08:00

Cant believe that the CNY predictions are so accurate... This Miss Clumsy slipped and fell flat on her bum yesterday. And now I can't sit for long. I can't enjoy my favourite passtime of web-surfing without risk feeling that sharp, piercing painful pull on the tip of my backbone after sittng for 10 minutes. This is torture. Going up the stairs makes me feel like an old lady. When I got in and out of the car, my slow-motion back breaking expression makes little b exclaim, "You're getting old, mom..."

Ohhh... this is frustrating. I hate the feeling of being helpless. It's so depressing. It makes me vulnerable. It makes me crave for attention.... makes me yearn for loads of pampering and TLC... makes me wanna cry for help....

But I can't or I won't because I was brought up with the notion "to help ourselves first before seeking help". Seeking help should be the last resort....

And these 2 conflicting internal emotions are taking a toil on me. The normally patient and composed me has turned into a short-fused unreasonable monster, short of being foul-mouth.

However, I still don't feel sorry for the nurse who made me wait 20 minutes for my painkillers which I probably wouldn't consume. And she has the cheek to tell me that she was on the phone. There were 3 staff and all 3 were chatting away and I patiently waited at the empty clinic (I was the last of a series of patients and the wait for the consultation itself took me around 30 minutes). I was kept busy with Bryan's funny school stories for the first 20 minutes until I realised 2 other walk-in customers taking their medication before me and I went into RAGING MAD MODE. I stood up and ask the other 2 nurses, who wasn't on the phone, to pass me my medication as I have been waiting for almost an hour. They just stared blankly at me. The woman finally put down the phone and started to look irritated by saying, "Mana ada 1 hour. Just now I couldn't serve you because on the line..."

I told her to shut up, stop wasting time and to prepare the medication and swipe my card. I also started scolding them about their incompetence. And they didn't have the courtesy of saying sorry. Really stupid. I was sooo freaking angry, that when I left, I criticised the stupid fat woman (don't even think she's a qualified nurse), "Don't even know how to say sorry! No manners!"

And then I left the clinic in a huff, only to realised I had forgotten my receipt. I went back, still in raging mad mode, demanding for the receipt. Initially, they said they couldn't print it again since I didnt request for one earlier. Then they tried to press one of the buttons on the credit card swipe machine, and the receipt was printed out. I was still so boiling furious that I scolded her, "Bodoh!" as I took the receipt and left again ... for good.

I know, I know, I have been unreasonable for scolding them, but given my situation, I bet you all would have reacted the same way (if not worse!)... And to top off all of those internal topsy turvy mixed up feelings, I have to suffer from PMS too. Arghhhh...

Maybe I went to the doctor for wrong ailment, thus getting the wrong presciptions. Maybe I should've just gone to a spa and have a good looking masseur pamper me instead of getting all tensed up with those incompetent nurses!

Any prescriptions for internal emotional turmoil, anyone?

Pictures source: www.123rf.com

First day of school again

2009-01-05T23:05:00.015+08:00

Just finished wrapping son's text books - 2 nights in a row, because I ran out of wrapping plastic covers earlier. Yeah, kids nowadays are spoiled brats, the parents do everything for them...but what to do, most family units are small and usually the only son or daughter, thus the extra pampering...

Hard to believe that time flies so fast. It's like only yesterday that I blogged about his first day in Kindergarten! It's really frightening sometimes to think that all these while I have been so protective. He has never crossed the road by himself before and today I had to let him cross all by himself while watching behind the bus stop with a weary heart. He thought it was fun to have a Pedestrian Crossing Policemen to guide them across (little b calls him the "School Crossing Guard" which I later found out to be the more correct term. Hmm... he learns quite a lot from the Higglytown Heroes from Disney Channel!).

Anyway, when he finally saw me following from behind, his dependence began to seep in and he started to ask me where he should like up for the assembly. I told him that I wont be here tomorrow and he would have to ask the teacher. He was quite shy and was still tugging at my hands to bring him to the correct line among the throngs of other children in the assembly. I stayed put and just then, the bell rang, signalling the start of school. My son was like suddenly hypnotised (struck by fear perhaps?) and quickly ran to the teacher to ask her where his class is. The teacher-in-charge pointed out his class to him and he hastily walked towards the back to join the line of his cute tiny comrades.

The kids nowadays are much braver than how we used to be last time, which is good. And they are more verbal. I followed the class as their teacher bring them around to tour the school and I noticed the Year 1 children dare to ask questions, like, "What's an auditorium?"

I also find that the teacher has a hard time answering the questions belted out by these tiny tots. There's one particular stair case which leads to the staff room and the children are not suppose to use that stair case. During the tour, the teacher was warning the children not to use that stair case and one of the children shouted, "Why cannot use that staircase?"

The teacher was at her wits end and said, "I say cannot means cannot. You cannot ask me why cannot."

And then towards the end of the tour, one of the children shouted out to the teacher, "When can we go back to the class?" (in a very bored tone). Their short little legs must be tired after walking around the big school. Little b was a little frightened by the sheer size of the school and told me, "This school is dangerous, Mom. It's too big. I can get lost in it!"

I sometimes wonder how the teachers can withstand not laughing at the children, or pulling a straight face when the 30+ children starts behaving naughty. During the lesson, the teacher was explaining the discipline record book and how she would jot down their naughty deeds to show to the parents. One of the kids pointed to his neighbour and shouted at him, "She's talking about you ah!" I muffled my uncontrolled laughter at the back of the class.

And then when it was time to go home, some of the children just pack their bags and run out of the class because they were too eager to reunite with their parents. The teacher had to shout, "OOIII OOOOIIII OOIIII.... jangan balik dulu. Beratur dulu." (Don't go home yet. Have to line up). All the parents waiting outside couldn't help but let off a chuckle seeing that scene.

As I see willing parents lining up in long queues (which takes up to an hour) for school books, I can see that children nowadays are having it easy. Having said that, the standards set for them is also much higher now. I am sure these very parents, who are willing to queue up with Crocs slippers and six-inch heeled glass slippers (I am serious!), expect their children to perform much better than anyone else. As I leave him to take care of himself, I now understand that this first step in school does not only mean his first step to independence, but his journey to the survive and strive in this complex and perplexing society.

Good luck my son. May your journey be sweet and smooth....

A collection of tea sessions

2009-01-01T10:43:00.027+08:00

As the year comes to an end, it's always a good time to reminisce the good times...(just to hold on to the good times, or whatever that's left of good times since 2009 is speculated to be a recession period, thus difficult times ahead.)

It's been quite a year for the HP club. Our main target for the HP club is to conduct fun "yumcha" sessions (tea drinking sessions) to help reduce our stress, revigorate our youth and basically to bond.

Never thought that our club could achieve so much this year. Not only did we manage to have our happy hours almost on a daily basis, but we also manage to bring our tea sessions to various locations (even outstation!). And we've brought our sessions to a new height with our "high-tea" sessions.

So I will dedicate this blog to thank the various hosts who have been so generous and kind to introduce and bring out the best in their areas to help make HP club such a fun and exclusive club.

Let's start with the Chinese New Year excursion to Ipoh/Lumut. Never really thought it would happen because our members are quite lethargic and indecisive but hey we went all the way to Ipoh and Lumut just to meet up with our oustation friends to reduce their boredom and bring the hustle bustle of the city (and our silliness) to their quiet hometown. We have Keyman and LP to thank for their warm hospitality and sumptious lunch and dinner when they treated us to sample the warmth and the beauty of the 2 suburbs. Read more about the trip by clicking here.

And then who can forget the recent 2 Seremban trips - so full of events, laughter and joy! All the things that happened could be used as tea session gossips for a whole month! We have MC to thank for bringing us around the place he spent most of his growing up years.

Oh, and the special yumcha trips to Puchong and Sg Long to visit the members staying in these faraway areas. We have Keyman to thank for his Puchong hospitality. The Puchong tea session was a memorable one with a good cause. Read more here.

And the Sg Long trip was a funny one albeit stressful. It was a New Year's eve yc session. We wanted to escape the city jam, thus we decided not to drink in KL but in the suburbs.

MC was suppose to lead the way but he ditched us for his other plans in Sunway. And then Keyman, with his limited memories of his trips to Cheras and Sg. Long decided to lead us to meet up with Mr. MyHump's "hometown". All was well until we reached the highway in Taman Connaught where the right lane is for U-turn to the infamous Taman Connaught pasar malam while the left lane goes through the underpass to lead to Alam Damai/Taman Len Sing. However, the road sign on top of the U-turn shows Kajang/Cheras. So, as we approached the U-turn, Rachel called from the office to report some problems, causing a confused and unfamiliar Keyman to take the U-turn. Once we hit the U-turn, our stress level increased because the traffic was building up in Cheras and we don't know how to get back on track. Just then B called and question if his plans for New Year's eve dinner was still on. With that traffic, stress level peaks, and I told him he has to go without me...

After about 15-20 minutes of bumper to bumper traffic, we finally managed to get back on track and found that Sg. Long was indeed the suburbs. The passing of 2 tolls makes it feel like we're going outstation to Mr. MyHump's hometown! As we follow the road sign to Sg. Long, Mr. MyHump called and told us that he's not really living in Sg. Long! OMG.... are we lost again!?? Stressed up again! Finally, after getting directions via phone, Keyman finally got us there and the italian food at Susan's Bistro was worth the trip albeit all the stress. The spaghetti was superb and the tiramisu was rich with enough rum to tease the tastebuds. (Can't compare to Alexis's because that is not the conventional tiramisu). And the price was reasonable too. Thank you Mr. MyHump for the Sg. Long hospitality.

Happy New Year to all from the HP club.. :) May we have many many more yumcha sessions to come.

We like to duet duet (sung to the Madagascar tune "We like to move it")

2008-12-29T15:04:00.016+08:00

Finally, Will.I.Am has met up with Fergie.

Mr. MyHump has finally met up with cousin and they finally manage to practise the whole song, My Hump, without the usual jeering from the K-gang about 'The Market song". (The K-gang always laugh at the song being a "See Hump" or "Lala" (cockles and muscles in Cantonese) song.

And MC was all smiles when cousin says he's a real "singer" and continued to sing his chinese songs without having to fight with CK and D.

This isn't a very funny blog, because the 2 male "singers" were really serious about this practise session and cousin was totally lost because she has never heard of those old school songs belted out by the 2 "male singers".

So, she and I just continue to find new K songs (boy, I just realised she's good at bringing forth those powerful R&B songs).

It was a duet day, where we all practised mostly duet songs..Most fruitful for Mr.MyHump where he duet with cousin (My Hump), with myself (Come what may) and with MC (Dao Lang's chinese songs)... even Cousin and I having a duet song for ourselves... the old school "Top of the world" hahaha...

MC and I, however, didn't have enough time to practise our duet... as the karaoke kicked us out before our song came on...

Well, it's alright, don't think it'll be long before we have another duet session.... :) And I am sure we all had fun during the "high-tea* cum gossip" session with the "Lobster" and the "what happened to your face!"stories. hahaha

*Note: our high-tea doesn't refer to the afternoon hi-tea buffet at hotels. It refers to our high class tea sessions, a phrase coined by our teaman, err... Keyman. hahaha.

Tiramisu o tiramisu.

2008-12-22T10:43:00.000+08:00

A special note on the recent Puchong yumcha trip which was somewhat funny but meaningful.

You see, it was Keyman's wive's birthday but he was bored with his "forced" long leave and decided to invite us to a tea session just before he goes to a nearby spaghetti deli to have a simple celebration with his dear wife. As they were a pair of "seasoned couple", Kee mentioned that he has stopped buying flowers or cakes for birthdays. MC and I felt sorry for the wife, and brought Kee to CakeSense to buy her a cake. As we entered the cakehouse, there were already 2 aunties (one standing, one squating) busy selecting cakes. So Kee said to me, "Aiyah, chin chai lar (anything would do). Just buy small one." I spotted a small tiramisu at the bottom corner of the fridge and I told Kee, "Buy Tiramisu la. Tiramisu is nice."

Hearing us, the 2 aunties IMMEDIATELY shouted for the shop attendant, "HALLO, HALLO... I WANT TIRAMISU".

Since there were 2 Tiramisus in the fridge and to avoid the shop attendant walking twice to the fridge to get the cake, Kee also requested for the Tiramisu. Then the shop attendant ask if we wanted to write anything on the cake. Initially, Kee thinks it's not necessary (since it's such a small cake). So the 2 aunties also shake their head and say "no need". I thought it'll be a romantic gesture to have a personalised message and told the shop assistant otherwise. In a flash, the 2 aunties also changed their minds and wanted to personalised their cake too. Keyman's message was simple, "Happy Birthday, to my dear wife".(ok ok, you'd know I added the latter part if you know Keyman's manly man character.)

As the 2 aunties hurried to write their uncreative message (maybe trying to beat Keyman to see who can write faster) , I noticed that there were lots of scratches and corrections on their piece of paper. They finally gave up writing and told the shop attendant, "Put la, 'Happy Birthday From Goh Family.'"

Now the 2 aunties, at the height of their 'kiasuism'*, thinking that we're figthing with them for service or the cake, began to scold the store assistant for "unfocused" service. Aw c'mon, there are 2 cakes... and besides, to fight for service when you're paying RM20 for the cake? How much tips do you think those aunties would pay even if the shop attendant rendered perfect service?

(*hokkien word for behaviour where one is afraid of losing out to others)

Anyway, we finally paid for the cake and got into the car, and started to rejoice that we had a great, eventful yc session and wondered how Mrs. Keyman would react to the surprise cake and the lovely message. Suddenly Keyman panicked and exclaimed, "Oh no, I didn't check the cake. What if she opens the cake and it says, 'From Goh Family'! How am I to explain?"

Well, I am sure creative Keyman can think of something.. :)

First time on stage

2008-12-16T01:02:00.006+08:00

All the practice sessions in the karaoke did not prepare me for the embarassment which I brought upon myself last Saturday. I was literally forced to duet with a fellow colleague on stage to help foster better relationships within the team. Team building it seems. Somehow, I just get a feeling I was being conned - you know, like the famous cantonese saying, "being put on a table" (Umm, this has slightly different meaning from the English Idiom, "putting someone on a pedestal" (which has a good meaning). The Cantonese version refers to putting someone in a spot and subsequently forcing him to do something unwillingly where the task is totally non-beneficial to him whether or not it is performed). While it was a good experience, I cant forget how my hands shivered as I held the microphone on my right hand. I had to grasp it with both hands to stop it from being obvious. Now I know why people use both hands when they sing in a competition... ahahaha..

And it all started so badly that I fumbled on the first 2 lines. I was too playful and concentrated in trying to make my duet partner mess up his lines that I messed up my own lines. I was teasing him asking him to put in more feelings... and laughing to distract him but he was good... he didnt get distracted nor panicked. Yours truly, however, was so panicked that I forgot the whole tune ahahah.... The song was "When I fall in love", by Nat King Cole and Natalie Cole. ("Dont even think about trying Celine Dion's version", I warn myself!) Not a difficult song at all but if you do not know how to bring out the best of the song, it'll sound as boring as watching grass grow...

And to think that my cousin's band wanted to use me as their back up lead singer last time (I can't be the lead singer because I can't be commited to the band :P - well, you know, with big B and little b, I can't go for practises and gigs as often as I wanted....). I think they must have thanked their lucky stars for not being serious about their band... hahahah...

Oh well, it was a boring first time... A line that Macau Tycoon Stanley Ho's daugther Josie Ho said during the Forbes interview repeats in my head. Btw, Josie is 8th in Forbes Billionaire heiress list and is the only Chinese on the list. She said, "I stopped my singing career after singing very badly off key on stage..... but my friends encouraged me not to give up...."

So.... if you think you have rid of me and no longer have to fight me for the mic in Karaokes, you are dead wrong.... ahahahaha Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go practise my vocal chords..:) La la la la la la la....

Shy guy

2008-12-14T23:41:00.004+08:00

I am slightly worried about little b's shyness. I mean, he's a boy, he has to grow up to be a manly man, but he's pretty shy sometimes. For example, during the first day of school, during assembly, where all the kids were pretty at home after a while, little b just sat by himself at the corner. One boy came over to play with him but little b avoided his advances. Others would say that it's arrogance but I still think it's shyness and his reluctance to open up to others bothers me. The other little boy was so brave and he made friends in no time. And the funny thing was, he was quite adamant to make friends with little b. That brave boy tried and tried to play with little b, by playfully patting him here and there, and luring him to play tag fights, disturbing him, but nothing works. After a while, he was a bit frustrated at little b's arrogance, and he turned to me and say,

"Auntie, why your son don't talk one?"

Hahaha.. I just shy away and pretended I didn't hear and continued to snap photos..

Then again, there's really nothing I can do about his shyness but hope that he'll grow out of it. Perhaps, as he thread along life's long and winding road, he'll find the courage and also discover all the good things that life has in stored for him... Meanwhile, I think I better start to enjoy my life too and stop being a worry wart.

Sinfully Penang

2008-11-24T23:47:00.015+08:00

Just came back from food paradise and feels a bit remorse after all the sins that I have committed during the weekend.

I have to repeatedly remind myself that I am only human, and to err is human.... I mean, who could resist all those temptations? Cheap and delicious seafood; prawns (mantis and normal), crabs, fish, cockles, muscles, snails, escargots, oysters, all fresh from the sea into the wok, cook to perfection...

And even the hawker food is super tantilising:- asam laksa, curry laksa, prawn noodles, fried koay teow, koay teow th'ng, wantan noodles (It's spelled as 'Wan Than Mee' there), popiah, lobak, Batu Maung satay (with the sauce burnt in), o'chien (fried oysters on eggs),....

Also the deserts are mouth watering.... ais kacang, cendol, rojak, fried ice-cream (@batu kawan), apam, apam balik, tody (coconut wine@Ong Cheng Huat), etc

*Note: For hawker's treats, I find that Gurney and Air Itam laksa are too commercialised. Instead, go for Lorong Selamat, Swatow Lane, Pulau Tikus, Jalan Datuk Keramat to experience the hidden treasures.

The food list goes on and on.. and even though I have an indefinite appetite for good food (and highly unrestrained but acute tastebuds to match), I was short of time and had limited stomach capacity, and thus, much to my dismay, I couldn't fit everything in one trip. However, I am quite pleased that we managed to pack in as much as we can and besides, it's the quality, not quantity, that counts.

As we've been to Penang many many times, we strived to go to places less travelled and take the roads least taken. We literally drove around the island in search for food. We went from "Beginning of the World" to the "End of the World" to sample the best and cheapest seafood around. Did you know that the mantis prawns can cost RM3 per mantis prawn in one restaurant and RM100 per 1 kg in another and these 2 restaurant are in the same area (Tambun) and only a few doors away from each other? Ok, I know the price commensurate with the size but I find it exhorbitant to price it at RM100 per 1 Kg! I might as well eat imported Alaskan Snow Crabs with this price! We also go to great lengths to taste the Batu Maung Satay. You see, the Tasty Seafood restaurant which used to be located on stilts at sea, has been replaced by a a quay. If we weren't adamant enough to ask around, we wouldn't have found out that it has moved to a shop lot nearby.

Enough said about food, let's talk about places of interest. With time constraint, we visited only selected places, mainly to introduce the kids to the uniqueness of Penang. We visited the Snake Temple (to show the kids real snakes in close proximity), and Kek Lok Si (to view the old and new statue of Kwan Yin and it's one of the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia). And since the kids have never been to the beach, we took them to Gurney Drive, Pulau Jerejak Jetty and Batu Ferringhi to show them the different types of seaside (man made, rocky and sandy). Also introduce them to some natural water resources by showing them 2 of the 3 dams in Penang, i.e. Air Itam dam, and Teluk Bahang dam and then later on the way home, took them to Sg Klah hot springs in Sungkai (teach them how to boil an egg or half boil if you please)

And a trip to Penang is not complete without buying the authentic "Tau Sar Pneah" (aka green bean/dragonball/Tambun biscuit) and Sesame Oil from Ghee Hiang. Incidentally, we also bought Heong Pneah from a peddlar after tasting the sample at Tambun seafood area.

Anyway, nothing beats the real thing, so dont let my words and photos influence you. Go taste and experience Penang for yourself.

Monkey see monkey do...

2008-11-16T17:42:00.004+08:00

The title sounds like monkey business, eh? Actually, I am talking about a more serious issue here. It's about exposing children to the violence and profanities that a lot of movies or games which are often simply rated U here to allow more audience and to boost up ticket sales. Yeah, many would say that I am just over-protective ... but something that little b said today reinforced my need to filter all the things that gets to his eyes and ears...

He was playing with his Ninja Turtles figurines... and was talking to himself...

"Hey, I am a lady, which one of you are attracted to me?"

Actually, this was a line said by King Julien in the Madagascar 2 trailer.... There's nothing vulgar or inappropriate about this line. It's just the fact he's repeating the words without knowing the meanings of it that bothers me.

*note: I have parents telling me that they hear their sons repeating profanities such as the following after playing some games.

"Die you a**h*le!"

"F*ck!"

"Sh*t! Not again!"

You see, I am very careful about what movies that little b gets to watch or what kind of games he can play... online or otherwise. I have trained him from young to avoid TV shows or movies which are too violent, too much blood, or has too many swear words or shouting going around. I told him that these are "adult movies" and he would often tell me that he prefers to watch cartoons or disney channel whenever there were killings or fist/sword/gun fighting movies are around. Also he would tell me about violent games he comes across online and I would tell him to avoid playing them and play with educational games such as Fisher Price, Barney, Disney Channels etc instead.

Lately, he has taken up the fancy of watching movie trailers on the Apple website. I allow that because I trust that US have strict movie ratings systems and even the trailers have ratings. And so I gave him full access to watch anything he likes and since he's been trained to avoid those horror/thriller movies, he'd go for cartoons, and comedies. Then again, cartoons are being catered for adult viewing nowadays and so the dialogues in it may not be too appropriate for younger viewers.

Maybe I am a little paranoid, maybe I am over-protective, maybe I have to accept the fact that little b is growing at his own pace... no matter how fast it may be. Yeah, he's growing up real fast. With the internet, his access to knowledge is way faster and is way beyond the frontier of what it used to be during our "ancient" (before internet) times.

Oh, side track a bit, yesterday I brought him to his new school to register for Year 1 and as I watch him mingle with the other 6-year-olds, I wonder where and how all these 6 years flew pass. I really can't remember it all. When I see other flustered parents; bumbling around looking for their classes, their books, the teachers, fussing over their kids with cameras and video cams, I know I am not alone in bringing up my bundle of joy.

And none of the kids cried or cling to their parents. I can hear parents telling the children, "Quick sit in front" or "Just tell the teacher what you want" or "Say your name loudly" ... to which the children reacted positively... i.e. they sat in front, and told the teacher that they wanted to sit next to a girl all by themselves, and wasn't afraid of public speaking. And then I realised that this is the new generation. A generation who are not afraid to speak their minds, very independent and is highly capable of taking care of themselves and their own needs.

So, back to our topic of filtering the best for our children, seeing how assertive this new generation can be, I still think it's best to filter out the good things to "feed" to our children to build their foundations. I know that I can't protect him forever, and he's expose to 1001 bad things out there but I can rest in peace knowing I have done my best for him. The rest is up to God and himself... :)

PDA (no, it's not your handphone)

2008-10-25T16:51:00.006+08:00

I wanted to blog a little about PDA - Public Display of Affection (No, even though I am an IT geek, I am not referring to the Personal Digital Assistant)... but I guess I just let the pictures do the talking... :)

Live from Station 1

2008-10-25T00:12:00.005+08:00

Hey hey hey... never knew I could do this.... live blogging.... Yours truly and her clubbing gang are at Station 1... a cafe with live band (it's crappy-imagine a guy who had to do both the woman and a man's voice when singing... but hey it's live entertainment so we try not to complain too much) and alcohol (the live beverage) ...

Anyway, here's some pics ... pre-Deepavali celebration... whoo hoo....

Alright... excuse me for now... before the tower of carlsberg finishes .. haha and there's a lot to catch up to do on the hot gossips ... :)

Special note: the most juicy gossip for the night revolves around Kenson and the fishballs and Alex and his origami flowers muahahaha

The stress releasor

2008-10-19T14:29:00.006+08:00

I went for a stress management class recently. My boss appreciates me enough to acknowledge that I do have a lot of work and think that I should attend this class. That's positive thinking. The negative sentense to the same thought sounds like this, "My boss thinks that I am not handling my work well enough and thus creating a lot of stress for myself and sends me to this class to learn a thing or two to increase my performance."

Much like the "secret", which I discussed in my previous blog, this class emphasis the importance of positive thinking...Positive thinking is stressed over and over again as one of the main stress reliever. To change your state of mind is the basic step to overcome stress.

One of the exercises was to ask you to write down what your average day look, sounds, feel like. This is what I wrote:

"I wake up rested to the sound of my mother in law fussing over my son's getting ready to go to school. I go to work with the sun in my eyes, the sound of traffic horns and busy policemen in sight. I step into the office to hear the frantic buzzing of ringing phones and constant chattering of some busy colleagues. As I sit down, the dull drone of my slow PC fills my ears and I continue working to churn out solutions after solutions to help ease my customers with their daily manual processes. I return home to the smell of my mother in law's cooking and the hustle and bustle of the TV and my son playing."

The trainer asked me to read out my passage and she in turn change all those into negative forms.

"I wake up barely rested to the sound of my son, fussing and refusing to go to school again. My grumbling mother in law is not helping and my husband is complaining that his shirts are not ironned. I set out to work to find a horrendous traffic jam and the stupid policemen are not doing anything about it. I curse and honked at the cars beside me because there are a lot of donkeys behind the wheels. As I reached the office, the phones have already started ringing, signalling that there are more problems to be reported to me. I see colleagues running late for meetings while swearing loudly. I sit down wondering when my slow PC is ever going to produce the results which my screaming customers are already waiting for. I return home exhausted but I am forced to eat my mother in law's cooking. My couch potato husband will watching TV while my son will be playing instead of working on his homework."

So you see, the scenario is basically the same, but the CHOICE of words that we use are pretty powerful. If we look at the scenario in a positive manner, it does seemed like a good life to live, doesn't it?

While we may question whether this is living in denial, the trainer says it's not self denial but a CHOICE. We CHOOSE to look at the beautiful and positive side of things because the easiest thing to change is within ourselves and we should take that first step to look into ourselves and make that change. What she's preaching is that we try to see the brighter side of things so that it's easier for us thread along this path called life....

Of course, this change in the state of mind doesn't solve the problems that we have, but at least it clears the mind of negative thoughts so that our emotional brain doesn't take over to make irrational decisions. It clears the way for our Rational brain to evaluate the problems and the possible solutions while not being cluttered with negative emotional thoughts. When our emotional brain gets a rest, and our rational mind is able to solve the problems systematically, then our stress level will reduce.

Hope the sharing of this quick tip (positive thinking) helps..

The Secret

2008-10-19T09:18:00.010+08:00

The current buzz is all around "The Secret"....

The SECRET is OUT... everyone is talking about it...

What is it actually...?? Well, allow me to enlighten if you haven't already heard "The Secret". Rhonda Byrne, an Austrlian talkshow producer, discovered "the secret to the most powerful law in the universe" through a 100 year old book (The Science of Getting Rich, 1910 by Wallace D. Wattles). She captured all her findings in a book (and a film) to explain the secret to life where you can create unlimited happiness, joy, youth, love, health and prosperity.

While I haven't read the book nor watched the film, I can tell you a gist of the secret (*because everyone is talking about it and its even on Oprah!). It basically teaches you the "Law Of Attraction". What Rhonda wants to tell us is... "if you are thinking about how bad your life is, bad things will continue to happen; if you start thinking about great things, they will inevitably manifest." Rhonda explains that by POSITIVE THINKING will make your gloomy life brighter because once you think positive, it will attract the intergalactic forces of nature to work its way magically to give you whatever you wish for...

Ummm... let me forewarn that there are also writers ("The Secret: Ten Problems I Have with Rhonda Byrne's Best Seller" by Charlie Campbell and "The Secret Promotes 'Name It-Claim It' Theology" by Don Whitney) who ran into problems when they practised Rhonda's Secrets. I have also been warned by people who practices these so call "secret" to BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR.... because while your wishes may come true, you do not know how the intergalactic forces of nature works and it may grant your wishes in the most unimaginable way and bring unforeseen and unwanted consequences. An example quoted by "<cant remember the name, will update when I find it> " is; a poor couple practised the secret and wished for some money and the next thing they know, their child is dead and they get to claim a sum of money from his insurance. Sounds grim, doesn't it?

I am an optimistic person and while I agree that positive thinking is good, I am worried that people may take this Secret thing a bit too far. For example, are we saying those who are starving, isn't thinking about food hard enough or those in war-ridden or poverty-plagued countries isn't fantasizing about "blue skies and everything nice" with enough enthusiasm? I worry about the younger generations thinking that now they don't even have to work for their wealth, as they can just have to sit back and dream it into existence.

The point I am getting at is simple. Don't overdo with this secret thingy. We need to question ourselves, "Are we matured enough, both emotionally and mentally, if we are empowered with "THE GREAT POWER OF THE UNIVERSE"? It's one thing to think positive and another thing to RELY ONLY on positive thinking. You have to work towards the goals you set or the dreams you dream. Yes, the good things in live will manifest but you still need to do something about it instead of just sitting down there doing nothing but dream. Heed the wise words of Uncle Ben (Spiderman), "With great powers comes great responsibilities."

While I don't deny the power of "The Secret", I would prefer the teachings to tells us that we have the CHOICE to POSITIVE thinking and whether we WANT TO BE HAPPY depends entirely on us. I mean, it's obvious that threading on with our lifes with a positive outlook is always easier than a negative one. We can choose to dwell in anger and other negative activities but it's OUR CHOICE to snap out of it and channel that negative energy to something POSITIVE. I know it's not easy to just snap out of it so that's why I say it's OUR CHOICE; you can choose to be in any state you want because only you know best when you are ready (emotionally, mentally and physically) to switch from the negative to positive state of mind. This is no secret nor will it guarantee joy, health, wealth or whathever Rhonda Byrne promised in her book, but at least it will help make our lives a little easier to thread on. Don't you think so? (Oh...You better agree with me or Rhonda Byrne will say you're not POSITIVE enough, ha ha.)

Have a great positive week ahead!

Here's the official "The Secret" website for your reference. Sounds interesting but take everything with a pinch of salt. After all, it's your choice.

http://www.thesecret.tv/

Bryan - attached to the computer or to me?

2008-10-11T14:24:00.005+08:00

Bryan is sitting on my lap as I type this blog. It's a pretty nice feeling as only yesterday I was complaining to my friend that my son isn't attached to me. Yeah yeah, I know, it's all my fault that I don't spend enough time with him but no, I am not going to dwell on that right now... because I just want to enjoy this moment with him...

"Ok Bryan, it's time for me to play the computer. You go watch your Kung Fu Panda..."

"No Mom, I don't wanna watch that. I want to sit with you Mom. I promise I won't touch anything."

Those goodie two shoes words are bound to melt any mother's heart, even the strictest...

"Alright then. Do you want to play with my facebook? Like feed the werewolves?"

"But Mom, feeding them are SOOO BORINGGG! I rather go read my books..."

With that statement, I can't help but laugh...

Well well well, Bryan has grown up and has a mind of his own... no longer accepting everything I feed him... He knows what he wants online. He goes into Google and search for his own entertainment, be it Disney Channel, YouTube or online games like Scooby Doo, Spiderman or Batman. Yep, he started to surf the net at the tender age of 3, thanks to the online addicted Mom. My intentions isn't to make him technology savvy but to tap onto the advanced US websites such as Fisher Price and HIT Entertainment (Home of Barney and Thomas & Friends) whereby they have modern methods in making learning fun. Ok, ok I confess...I was also lazy. I let the web teach my son the ABCs and the 123. But hey, it works. My son even learnt about shapes and colours all through the web!

Ok, this leads me to another confession... this Mom is also guilty of leaving language teaching all to technology whereby his son learnt all the English phrases from Channel 613 - Playhouse Disney Channel on Astro. No regrets though, as his command of English is pretty good for his age and I liked the way he practises his English with me. I remember there was one night 2 years ago when I came home from work and he said with all seriousness and in perfect English intonation,

"Where have you been, Mom? I am so glad to see you... I missed you."

However, I didn't get a hug or any emotional display of the intense missing feeling, so I assumed it must have been some line he picked up from the Playhouse Disney Channel. Still, he certainly made my day and has touched my heart with that line and you bet I'll remember it for the rest of my life!

While I am proud that he's had a head start, just a word of caution to the parents out there - Just be sure that they don't play or stare at the monitor too much. Too much of a good thing is always bad. And try to get an LCD monitor, if possible. I think my earlier cathode tube monitor and cathode tube TV may have caused some short sightedness in Bryan. Although some may argue that his short sightedness might be hereditary, it never hurts to be safe than sorry....

What makes me happy?

2008-10-04T17:38:00.004+08:00

Seeing his squinty eyes,
telling me all kinds of adventure,
in all its silliness.

His small little hands,
holding on to my weathered hands,
asking me for protection.

His inquisitive mind,
bewildered by all new things,
Daring to try and experiment.

His cheeky little smile,
His chuckly bursty laughter,
His mischievous style.

Yes, all these little things
means the world to me,
and simply makes me happy.

Movie Experiences and it's not THX

2008-10-01T13:31:00.017+08:00

My movie outings are never short of "extraordinary" incidents. Yesterday I went to watch Painted Skin with my girlfriend, MissS. Since she's single, I decided to play cupid to get her a date. Furthermore, I owe a guyfriend, Mr.G, a treat for helping me out with my dead car batteries. No no, I am not saying I am giving away MissS as a treat, but hey, if she's willing, it's a bonus ha ha. Anyway, he wasn't very keen at first, as he was already getting ready for bed, but who could resist when I said I would bring a beautiful girl along. He even cancelled his earlier supper plans with his friends, just to meet MissS.

While I appreciated their spontaneity, I had only half an hour to pick up the 2 of them, get to 1Utama, get a parking lot, get the tickets and get the popcorns - so much to achieve, huh? Well, we made it there around 9:35 (show scheduled for 9:45pm) so I had to ask MissS and Mr.G to get the tickets first while I park the car. MissS insisted that she can get the tix by herself and had Mr.G accompany me to the carpark.

"Aiyah, you girls are so fickle, I can't be in 2 places at the same time, so I will just stay put." With that, Mr.G remained seated at the back of the car, laughing, teasing and making me look like Driver Ahmad... Darn!

If you thought that was the worse thing that could happen, brace yourself. S came back with the tickets, all separate seats! She rationale that there was only front row seats left and she wanted to have good seats in the centre of the cinema and dont mind seating separated from us! So she got 2 seats for 3rd row from the screen, and 1 for the centre of the cinema. Mr.G couldn't believe it and wanted to take a picture of the tickets as he's never known anyone who would buy such tickets. (but MissS wouldn't allow me access to the tickets in case I force her to sit with him... silly woman!) It was really an embarassing predicament for me, but since we were already late for the movie, we quickly move on to the confectionary counters to get our popcorns and rush to the movie.

Luckily (or unluckily for me?), Mr.G didn't fall asleep during show despite being so tired. He kept himself busy by guessing the script/dialogue and telling me aloud (much to the chagrin of my neighbour). As for me, I just couldn't wait to get out of the cinema due to my full bladder!

So much for the movie outing with Mr.G and MissS but that is not the silliest I have experienced.

My silliest and most embarassing one would be the time when I was way younger and my date didn't tell me our seat numbers. I went into the dark cinema and my eyes couldn't adjust and I just stood there while my date went to his seat. When my eyes finally adjusted, I couldn't find where he was seated and so I had to just stand at the back of the cinema until he came back to guide me. It was so embarassing but somehow darn funny when I look back now!

Another funny experience would be the one when my guyfriend came in late and had to traverse through a whole line of people to get to his seat. First, he was already silly to get in from the side where there were more people. Second, he had to choose to go through these people with him facing the seats rather than facing the screen. So, midway, when he lost his balance and fell on one of the women (stranger), we couldn't help laughing our heads off!

There was another time when one of my movie partners couldn't stop talking the whole movie! I could only laugh as I was concentrating on the movie but I could hear something about Bourne Identity's Matt Damon being greater than Jackie Chan!

Of course there are those who goes to the movies and starts sleeping. It is fine if he goes around the world (*head tossing and turning around as he dozes off) but it can be both embarassing and distracting if he starts snoring! You would never believe that one can sleep and snore through an interesting and explosive action-packed movie (The Red Cliff). I had to poke him a few times to stop him from disturbing other viewers!

There was also one time when MrB went to the movies with me in kitchen slippers (*See pic). Boy, I couldn't stop laughing at him.

I guess I better stop revealing too much of my movie experiences before I scare away all my movie partners. Rest assured, your movie outings with me will never be a boring one!

Relationships - like a pair of ill fitting shoes?

2008-09-21T23:09:00.010+08:00

Lately, I bought a lot of shoes... I don't know what contributed to my sudden liking for shoes... Perhaps I was under the influence of Sex and the City... where Carrie Bradshaw owns like every branded shoes in New York city. ahahaha

I have always thought shoes should be:
1) lasting (I hate the hassle of having to always shop for shoes),
2) comfortable to wear (as I used to do a lot of walking) and
3) pleasant to the eyes. (I am not a fashion slave, so anything that's not ugly would be good for me.)

Hmm... doesn't the above makes you think of criterias when looking for a partner?
1) lasting relationship
2) comfortable to be with and
3) pleasant to the eyes. (beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, right?)

Come to think of it, shoes are the perfect analogy for a partner...

Some shoes are beautiful to look at, but they are more often than not, very uncomfortable to wear. Yet, people choose to wear them, hoping that their feet will either get used to it or the shoes will get bigger with more wears. Very much like hoping for a partner to change or hoping that we would one day get used to our partner bad habits. Wishful thinking.. You'd probably end up with sore feet and bad blood circulation with ill-fitting shoes, much like in a relationship, where both end up hating each other for their bad behaviours.

Some people buy shoes because they just want to horde. Maybe it was the last pair, or maybe someone else was eyeing for the same pair of shoes or maybe it was a bargain you couldn't resist. This kind of purchase usually ends up in regret, as the size might not fit (last pair with odd size) or we find that we didn't really like the shoes in the first place. Analogous to some people getting a partner due to peer pressure, or simply because the guy/girl was a "hot item" where everyone else seems to be interested in.

And if the shoes doesn't fit, it's pretty simple to just kick them off and buy a new one. Nowadays, we can pretty much say the same about relationships whereby some people take the easy way out to find a new partner when they find that they no longer fit into each other's life.

Having said this, I don't deny that there are plenty of good looking, comfortable and lasting shoes out there.... We just have to find them. And when you do find them, take good care of them, as they can accompany you on a long lasting and comfortable journey.

So much philosophy in just a pair shoes .. ahhaha... Maybe I think too much...

Good luck in finding your perfect fit...

Mooncake festival - Lanterns and mooncakes galore

2008-09-15T21:33:00.008+08:00

My family is still practising the Chinese traditions... and I am quite proud of that because I believe, these traditions will fade with the new generations. All of my siblings have no idea how to carry on these traditions, thus... they are going to be lost forever ... and what's left would be these pictures and blogs to remind the next generation of how to celebrate these chinese traditions... :P Ours is a pretty simplified celebrations of the Mid-Autumn festival... but I am sure the kids enjoyed themselves with the pretty lights and the goodies.. :)

(from the pictures below, you can see gluttony runs in our family.. hahahah)

Happy Mooncake Festival

2008-09-14T15:26:00.010+08:00

It's mooncake festival today... I haven't had the time to blog recently and there's a lot happening in my life right now... Mostly work related... so I have been busy, busy, busy (which translate to stressful, stressful stressful)

It was fun bringing little b and his cousin Miao to a community mooncake festival organised by the local political party. Despite all the news in the newspapers lately, it is great to see people of various races gather together to celebrate the mooncake festival in peace and harmony.

New Notebook, New Modem

2008-08-10T23:06:00.006+08:00

I've got a new baby. Check her out...

Havent had time to do editing as I haven't got my photoshop installed yet... but you can tell I am pretty excited. And the great thing is... TMNet's service changed my perspective on government telecommunication service. I logged a service call yesterday morning regarding my constant disconnection and they told me they would have it fixed in two working days.

Well, 2 working days means the weekend without internet access. That means I would've died last time but now with my XPS, I can bring her to any "hotspots" and get connected. So when they say 2 days, I thought, "I can live with that!". Surprise surprise... I got a call today morning saying that they'll come look into the problem. And came they did. And even told me that my faulty old modem is on waranty (even though it's a 2004 modem but the Streamyx package that I signed up with gives me lifetime warranty on the modem!! I didn't even know that!).

So now I have a brand new modem and brand new machine... isn't that sweet?!!!! Look at that sexy ADSL light on the new modem. It's constantly turned "on".... not the constant blinking which I faced ever so often when the old modem got hot! Now, it gives a different perspective to the meaning: "turned on". hahahah

Lazy Sunday Afternoon... by the Rain Doctor

2008-08-03T17:05:00.009+08:00

Hmm.... they say, "Lightning doesn't strike the same place twice... "

"Bullocks!", I say.

There's no other surefire way to make rain than letting me do the following things, (as I found out earlier but confirmed today):

1) Put some freshly washed clothes out in the sun to dry. And then go out for lunch and groceries. (or as a matter of fact, just go out, as you'd be back within the hour or two, thinking, "Hey, it's such a sunny day, it can't possibly rain, can it?")

2) Take your car to the car wash.

These 2 works for me EVERY TIME.

Each time I go out, I think to myself, "I can't have such 'good luck' to have the rain each time I sun-dry my clothes." Besides, I'm just going for brunch and some groceries nearby, I won't be long. And it's such a nice sunny day. I am just short of checking the weather forecast. And yep, each time, whenever I reached home, I am greeted with dripping wet clothes and someone grinning behind my back that I need to re-do my laundry again! I am tempted to shout "Why do bad things happen to good people?" (like how silly Ross did in one of the episodes in the sitcom 'Friends')

And let's not talk about car wash. It even drizzles just as I leave the car wash. And it doesn't matter where or when I do it. It even rained after lunch when I took my car to the carwash on a weekday during lunch!

You might as well call me the Rain Doctor.

Yep, I just reconfirmed my powers today. All I wanted was to enjoy a lazy Sunday afternoon today but guess that's not going to happen. Was forced out of bed by Big B as he was hungry and wanted breakfast. Well, to be fair, it was already 10:30 and little b must have been hungry too. I dragged my lazy self up. After what seems to be forever to Big B and little b, we got ready to go, and I thought, "What a beautiful sunny day. I should let the clothes get a bit of sun. Besides, we won't be long." I carefully took the clothes out to meet the sun even though they are already 80% dry due to the wind from yesterday. And then, I literally jumped into the moving car, because the 2 hungry lions were glaring at me as though they were ready to pounce and devour me if I were to keep them away from their food for 1 more minute. (umm, actually it was around 12 already)

Brunch went on fine, and so did our grocery-shopping. When we stepped out of the hypermarket, the sun was STILL bright and sunny. And just as we load our stuffs into the car, it started to drizzle. And mind you, the day was still BRIGHT and SUNNY! As we drive back, which only about 5 minutes, it rained cats and dogs! And big B had to rub salt into the wound by saying, "Yeah, this things happens to lazy people!" I was just thin line away from giving him a shiner, when the phone rang. Talk about being saved by the bell!

Another ironic thing was, as I stepped into the house, the "cats and dogs" rain has fizzled out. The sun was still out. Well, to look on the "bright" side, I still get to sun my clothes after re-washing them.

Yawn... Think I'll just go for a short afternoon nap to salvage whatever that's left of my Lazy Sunday Afternoon....