Showing posts with label Me. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Me. Show all posts
Conclusion of the day
I took a day off to shop around for my hiking gear (I am so last minute it's worrying hahahaha). The end result is a 40L hiking bag (Gregory!). Yes, that's the only thing I bought after shopping the whole day. It's a little pricey after some price comparisons but it's really light weight and the quality stood out. Since having my backpack disintegrate while hiking/climbing is not a priority on my list, I decided to pay that little premium.
At least there's motivation to climb/hike more in future! It's all about the returns on investment man.
Terribly exhausted now as well since all these camping/hiking/climbing gear shops are always at some secluded corners of Waterloo Street or Beach Road. Best part? I lost my way so many times despite using Google Navigation.
Conclusion of the day: I seriously suck at this activity call shopping and also an app called Google Maps.
At least there's motivation to climb/hike more in future! It's all about the returns on investment man.
Terribly exhausted now as well since all these camping/hiking/climbing gear shops are always at some secluded corners of Waterloo Street or Beach Road. Best part? I lost my way so many times despite using Google Navigation.
Conclusion of the day: I seriously suck at this activity call shopping and also an app called Google Maps.
2012
I'm extremely stuffed from all that Christmas food at home - so that's day 4 of my state of food coma. Will be locking myself in the gym next week man. Hahaha. Don't get me wrong, I'm still grateful for the company of all these amazing people in this festive season :) Oh yes, the food and gifts too :) Hurhur.
Amid all the eating, drinking, partying and gift receiving/giving, it's also time of the year to give thanks for all the amazing things that have taken place in the last 11 months and to welcome yet another awesome year with a grateful heart :)
2012 was well.... eventful. An extremely unpleasant working experience and a sizeable amount of wallowing in self-pity took up the bulk of my 2012. I reported to an emotionally abusive boss, was completely demoralized about my future career path, got fired for no apparent reason, threw myself into 6 months of joblessness and ended my rocky love relationship. Looking back, it has been quite a ride.
It has however, also became a year of discoveries for me. That I could be a true blue Debbie Downer if something hit me hard enough. That I have the potential to turn bitter. That real naysayers do exist, and in definite abundance. That I really do love hotels. That when some things are not meant to last, they are not meant to last. That no one can take away your self-worth unless you allow them to.
Being Debbie Downer made me miss my jovial self very much and I'm more than happy to have her back now :) Most importantly, I never want to lose her again! Niahaha. I guess sometimes things need to happen for one to understand only you know what's best for you. So to all you peepz out there who can't stand me being the forever energizer bunny, too bad guys. I got her back and I ain't ditching her again. So deal with it. Hahahaha. I've learn that naysayers exist not to run you down, but to fortify what you want/don't want in life. So instead of resisting them, embrace them. There's no need to get defensive or break down under their words. Let them probe about your passions or capabilities - acknowledge them and then surpass them. Simple as that. Last but not least, sometimes when you feel that a certain relationship is not a good fit, you are probably right. Don't ignore what your heart or your inner voice tells you. Most of the time, they are eerily accurate.
This year has shown me one thing - that like what my friends have been telling me for years, I'm truly a very blessed child. Clearly, much have happened this year so that I have access to better things. I guess Ted Mosby (for you How I Met Your Mother fans) was right when he said "Things fall apart for better things to fall in. You just have to believe in it.". And things have turned out just like what the director in my previous company said, "Everything will get better. It always does." 10 months ago, I sat in his room, thinking that he was mad when he was speaking those exact words. But now, I see what he meant.
I've come a long way for 2012, or at least I'll like to think that way. Hurhur.
Sometimes instead of looking how far we are from our goals, we need to celebrate how far we've come as well :). I certainly am miles away from where I expect myself to be but I'm equally thankful what a long way I've come today.
Will need to start cleaning the bedroom and work on those plans for 2013!
Till then, make merry and enjoy the festive season with your very loved ones :)
A month in summary
The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of dinners, meetups, more dinners and well you get the idea. It's after all MY birthday season! Hahaha. Well everyday is supposed to a celebration anyway, isn't it ;)
It's already (gasp) December 16! 9 days to Christmas and 15 days till a brand new year. Time is jetting me by at crazy speed and I'm pretty sure it's the same for the rest of you :)
The view at Level 33 is amazing. The skies were clear that night and the view of Singapore's skyline was breathtaking. That being said, the microbrewery's beer (so much for being a brewhouse!) is not quite up to mark. Well I guess with a view like that, it doesn't really matter! Hahaha.
It's already (gasp) December 16! 9 days to Christmas and 15 days till a brand new year. Time is jetting me by at crazy speed and I'm pretty sure it's the same for the rest of you :)
I actually have yet to do a proper update for a month! Well minus the filler posts inbetween. Hahaha. People who knows me well have full knowledge that I'm terrible at remembering anything. So I can only look through my iPhone photos and try to remember what happened to me in the last few weeks.
Dinner at Fika (Swedish restaurant) @ Arab Street with the girls! (Oh remember the day I met my Angel who appeared right when I needed her to shelter me with an umbrella).
Absolutely love this bunch of girls - we have been through 10 years and its amazing we are still the same bunch of crazy people. Love you girlies! :) And yes, I cannot wait for Hidayah and Joyce to get married :)
There was the ultimate KFC/Pizza gathering with the JC folks at Evelyn's house. One year on and so much have changed! Bro has proposed to his long time girlfriend and Evelyn and Jeremy are now parents! :)
Don't mind the candles - it was a very feeble attempt to get all romantic and stuff. We ended the night with Argo and major plans to hike Mt Kinabalu next year (together with Fireflies forest and river rafting). Cannot.wait.man!
Don't mind the candles - it was a very feeble attempt to get all romantic and stuff. We ended the night with Argo and major plans to hike Mt Kinabalu next year (together with Fireflies forest and river rafting). Cannot.wait.man!
There was the dinner at RedDot Dempsey and drinks at Level 33 with an excellent view of Singapore.Food at RedDot was good. Or maybe the crowd was great and hence overall everything was great. Haha.
I actually can't remember in details what I ate there, except for pizza, a really delicious salmon avocado salad (you know how I hate salads but this is really nice) and too much spicy wings. And you should be able to tell by now I would fail terribly as a food critic or blogger or whatever. Eating is one of my core skills, writing about them is not. Hurhur.
The view at Level 33 is amazing. The skies were clear that night and the view of Singapore's skyline was breathtaking. That being said, the microbrewery's beer (so much for being a brewhouse!) is not quite up to mark. Well I guess with a view like that, it doesn't really matter! Hahaha.
And then there was the dinner at Keong Saik Snacks:
It's a nice quaint little dining place off Keong Saik road and serves.. well really good food but in super small portions. I don't deny the food tasted good, but it's so overpriced for its serving size! That cup of fries (to be honest tasted OKAYYYY) cost $6! Pretty sure I could have polished that off in like under a minute. My Jason's Very Hotdog is probably the most filling thing on the menu and costed around $19. I probably won't visit again unless I feel like I have a lot of spare cash to spend.
We moved over to the bar, which is just next door. It's called The Library and you would need to get password of the day from Keong Saik Snacks. I presume they share the same owner since they share the same menu for bar snacks. The password for the day was Candy Cane but I first heard it as Tender Gay. I repeated it (loudly may I add...) like 4 times before the server realized I got it wrong. It was really awkward. Hahaha.
After verifying you and your group of friends have the right password, the lady will point to the bookshelf and you are supposed to pull the shelf open. Alas! Behind the bookshelf is a tucked away bar (sits around maybe 20-30 people?). It's really dark so be careful when you first enter and give your eyes some time to adjust. They have really some really cute drinks (which are quite overpriced as well). I had a non-alcoholic one called Daddy's Pink Shirt - taste like pink lemonade.
Juju came home last weekend and threw a party at Grandma's. It's been some time since we had a celebration at Grandma's. Ever since Grandpa passed away 5 years ago, she didn't want any form of celebrations at home, not even her birthday.
Thanks Juju for making the effort and it was a really good get-together with everyone in the family and extended family :)
I'm pretty sure there were a few more dinners like the one at the Ramen place in Raffles City (I can't even remember the name..), La Cantine (their baby quich and truffle fries are to die for), L'opretta (will write about that soon!), copious servings of desserts at Canele, drinks at Harry's (mini fish and chips are awesome), lunches at Wee Nam Kee (god I can never get tired of eating chicken rice) and many more.
It's a miracle I can still fit into my clothes.
Inbetween all these meals, I caught Argo twice, had a free ticket to SPH's preview of The Hobbit, had too many office parties and put my hand up to be Wendy's helper on the ROM day. Now I just hope my new gown gets delivered on time. If not, I will wear my second choice(s) - the purple Geek goddess dress or the pink short toga one. HMMM. Choices choices! No harm storing that many gowns in the wardrobe since I have tons of weddings coming up. Hurhur.
Now I have to go work on my year end post (so many things to reflect on and so many resolutions for the coming year!) and many more stuff to clear off my table for work.
Life has been really really good to me and there are so many things to be thankful for every single day. Thank you all the lovelies in my life and a huge thank you to the higher powers above! :)
Serious soft spots
I can resist splurging on most things in life. Except for stationery...and books. I have some serious soft spots for them, especially if the books are in Chinese and are all about self-improvement. I blame my dad for making me a geek.
The very reason why I should never be left alone in a book store. Either I'm going to bring home either some new (and in my opinion always cool) stationery or just a pile of books.
I'm already running out of space to store them.
The very reason why I should never be left alone in a book store. Either I'm going to bring home either some new (and in my opinion always cool) stationery or just a pile of books.
I'm already running out of space to store them.
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Some sort of fetish
Most girls are crazy about dresses, bags, makeup and whatsnot. I have an obsession with stationeries. It usually worsen when I'm stressed out - for instance, I bought a grand total of 20 mechanical pencils during my Junior College days because band practices and overwhelming workload was driving me up the wall. ike seriously, do I need 20 mechanical pencils?! Well, no. Haha
My consulting days of living in various hotels resulted in my current drawer-ful of hotel pens and pencils. Including all those that I've amassed during my university days, they take up about 2 full drawers now.
So crazy man. And trips to China (read: land of dirt cheap stationeries) does not help. My recent trip to Tianjin resulted in this:
My consulting days of living in various hotels resulted in my current drawer-ful of hotel pens and pencils. Including all those that I've amassed during my university days, they take up about 2 full drawers now.
So crazy man. And trips to China (read: land of dirt cheap stationeries) does not help. My recent trip to Tianjin resulted in this:
Seriously I think I was happier getting stuck in the pens section at Walmart than shopping around elsewhere. Now I need to go think about how I'm going to use them all up.
Or I could just send them over to my cousin in Australia. Haha
Or I could just send them over to my cousin in Australia. Haha
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Longest 134m ever
I think Google Maps is retarded. Either that or I'm retarded. Hahaha. So I was supposed to meet my ex-colleagues for dinner at Chin Chin Restaurant. Hey look, it's a really easy route. Here I am standing at a cross-road and facing the exact direction where I need to be heading. And come on, it's only 134 metres and 2 freaking minutes away:
Cross the road and walk, easy peasy right? No. Guess where I am RIGHT AFTER I crossed the road:
HAHAHAHAHA.
If you did witness a weird brown-haired girl pacing herself up and down the area around Shaw Tower while looking at her phone, there's a high chance it's me. Oh wait, scrap that, it WAS me. HAHAHAHA. Looking completely retarded, waving my iPhone in that stupid figure of 8 to re-calibrate the direction.
Doy. It was almost 7.30pm when I reached the restaurant! :O
But it's okay, I totally know my way to the Chin Chin now. Oh did I mention it's like my 5th time going there?
TV days
Found this photo in my phone and have no idea who took it and when it was taken! But I reckon it belongs to my inbetween-jobs-TV-watching days. Hahaha.
I look so freaky with my eyes all white like that. HAHA. Oh those relaxing days :)
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The one from Middle East
Colleague #1: So where else have you lived in? I mean besides Singapore.
Me: Only Beijing. For a summer internship when I was in university.
Colleague #1: You can speak mandarin?
Me: Hahahaha of course! I'm Chinese.
Colleague #1: Yeah I mean, you're mixed right. One of your parent can't be a Chinese.
Me: Both of them are..
Colleague #1: Oh! I thought you had half Middle East blood or something.
Colleague #2: See! Told you! I thought you were Eurasian. Haha!
I should seriously consider fabricating some sort of a complicated family tree just to get a kick out of this.
Me: Only Beijing. For a summer internship when I was in university.
Colleague #1: You can speak mandarin?
Me: Hahahaha of course! I'm Chinese.
Colleague #1: Yeah I mean, you're mixed right. One of your parent can't be a Chinese.
Me: Both of them are..
Colleague #1: Oh! I thought you had half Middle East blood or something.
Colleague #2: See! Told you! I thought you were Eurasian. Haha!
I should seriously consider fabricating some sort of a complicated family tree just to get a kick out of this.
Childhood progression
Clockwise from top left: Less than 1 year old, 2 years old, 3 years old and 7 years old.
Because my gut said so
So I've been getting some notes from friends about an update about my job/job hunt. Hurhur so here goes.
Besides the 3 job offers I turned down previously, I shamelessly turned down another 2. Key reasons for turning down: (1) Unusually probing questions into the status of my ex-employers (2) Man we so do not click. At this point in time, I'm considered half-employed - meaning I'm hired as a Consultant for one of the dream companies that I long to work for, albeit not on a full time basis. The current level of projects they have at this moment, really doesn't justify hiring another headcount. That aside, I do appreciate the MD giving me a project to devour on for the last 2 months, when he could have easily dismiss me since he couldn't convince all the heads in Asia to agree on hiring another person in times where project levels are not at an all-time-high. The project earned me really good money, and one small little badge on my resume too :)
So I'm currently on a available-for-projects-that-may-require-an-additional-helping-hand status - of course I'm free to go as and when another offer comes knocking by. The MD was very sweet as well to offer help that if he came across similar opportunities within or outside of the company, he would have me recommended first. That's real sweet of him :) Although I must say the role I'm fighting to get in, is a pretty niche one. This situation certainly reminds me a famous quote from "The Last Lecture" -
I have another pending offer (meaning if I were to say "Yes" that role would definitely be mine) and another interview next week. Not too keen on the interview because it's not exactly a core part of my career path, more of agreeing to meet because I'm pretty interested in the background of the company. The only reason I'm not saying Yes to the pending offer is because I have 2 headhunters and 1 close mate discouraging me from joining the firm - "It's too messy" they say, "unless you want it as just a placeholder to gain some experience while waiting." Hmm. Will ponder about that.
All in all, discounting the 2 paid months I was on the project, I'm officially unemployed for around 2 months already. The horrors!, one may say. Trust me, I have my moments of uncertainty too (just ask my BF or my bro how annoying I've been ranting about worries and fears that seriously, don't exist) - but at this point I would like to let my hopes and dreams be greater than my fears. Especially since my greatest fear is to sign into another role just because I feel the rush/urgency to do so. I've learned my lesson once with my previous employer, my guess is I won't want to subject myself to that again. Hahaha.
So continue to cross the fingers and pray hard! :)
Besides the 3 job offers I turned down previously, I shamelessly turned down another 2. Key reasons for turning down: (1) Unusually probing questions into the status of my ex-employers (2) Man we so do not click. At this point in time, I'm considered half-employed - meaning I'm hired as a Consultant for one of the dream companies that I long to work for, albeit not on a full time basis. The current level of projects they have at this moment, really doesn't justify hiring another headcount. That aside, I do appreciate the MD giving me a project to devour on for the last 2 months, when he could have easily dismiss me since he couldn't convince all the heads in Asia to agree on hiring another person in times where project levels are not at an all-time-high. The project earned me really good money, and one small little badge on my resume too :)
So I'm currently on a available-for-projects-that-may-require-an-additional-helping-hand status - of course I'm free to go as and when another offer comes knocking by. The MD was very sweet as well to offer help that if he came across similar opportunities within or outside of the company, he would have me recommended first. That's real sweet of him :) Although I must say the role I'm fighting to get in, is a pretty niche one. This situation certainly reminds me a famous quote from "The Last Lecture" -
"Brick walls are there not to stop you, but to show you how much you want something." - Dr. Randy Pausch
I have another pending offer (meaning if I were to say "Yes" that role would definitely be mine) and another interview next week. Not too keen on the interview because it's not exactly a core part of my career path, more of agreeing to meet because I'm pretty interested in the background of the company. The only reason I'm not saying Yes to the pending offer is because I have 2 headhunters and 1 close mate discouraging me from joining the firm - "It's too messy" they say, "unless you want it as just a placeholder to gain some experience while waiting." Hmm. Will ponder about that.
All in all, discounting the 2 paid months I was on the project, I'm officially unemployed for around 2 months already. The horrors!, one may say. Trust me, I have my moments of uncertainty too (just ask my BF or my bro how annoying I've been ranting about worries and fears that seriously, don't exist) - but at this point I would like to let my hopes and dreams be greater than my fears. Especially since my greatest fear is to sign into another role just because I feel the rush/urgency to do so. I've learned my lesson once with my previous employer, my guess is I won't want to subject myself to that again. Hahaha.
So continue to cross the fingers and pray hard! :)
I've found it, Mr. Jobs. Just that I'm taking some time to find the right company to grow it :)
The one from Sarawak
The cute shampoo lady asked if I was from Sarawak.
"Erm what?" I replied.
"Sarawak." She said. "Singaporeans don't have big eyes like you, so I suppose you are not local."
"But why Sarawak?" I asked.
"Oh because in the context of Malaysia, most girls with big round eyes are mostly from Sarawak. Big and round, just like yours."
OH. Okay. Well that's a new one..
"Erm what?" I replied.
"Sarawak." She said. "Singaporeans don't have big eyes like you, so I suppose you are not local."
"But why Sarawak?" I asked.
"Oh because in the context of Malaysia, most girls with big round eyes are mostly from Sarawak. Big and round, just like yours."
OH. Okay. Well that's a new one..
Quote of the day
goes to....
Epic. I'm not sure what kind of feelings I'm supposed to have after hearing this.
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"I have a Thai father, but I still look more Chinese than you!"
Epic. I'm not sure what kind of feelings I'm supposed to have after hearing this.
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"Are you from North India?"
Someone from Aman asked if I was from North India. I'll like to imagine she thought I looked like some rich North Indian lady who came here for leisure instead of for a work-related project.
Blogged from my laptop which is connected to shitty internet at Starbucks, Bali Airport
Blogged from my laptop which is connected to shitty internet at Starbucks, Bali Airport
Walking it off (or not)
As an attempt to improve my shiteous mood (for reasons I'm not allowed to talk about), I spent 3.5 hours walking from Bugis to Orchard, and back.
My mood did not improve at all.
On the bright side, I burnt much calories from the walking and skipping of dinner.
Blogged from my iPhone
My mood did not improve at all.
On the bright side, I burnt much calories from the walking and skipping of dinner.
Blogged from my iPhone
Just an update
While ironing clothes this afternoon (I'm now my mum's trusty housemaid hurhur), I got a call from my ex-colleague from my first company. The familiar "hello homey! How have you been!?" never fails to crack me up. He called to ask how have I been and how was job hunting. Still hunting, I replied and updated him as well which stage I'm at with the top 2 companies that I'm very keen to get an offer from.
It will come, homey. It will. We are all here, right behind you, he said.Thank you for the vote of confidence, I replied inbetween laughters.
I've turned down 3 job offers so far. You can call me idealistic or picky, but those offers didn't feel right at all. The packages were good, don't get me wrong. But interactions with the teams during each company's interview process didn't leave a good impression on me. Some were haughty, some were downright judgmental (one commented that I wasn't interested in earning money because as a finance grad, I wasn't interested in bonds and shares.). Most importantly, none of them had anything to do with specifically hotels, which is pretty much the only thing that really excites me. All were roles with real estate funds, which are roles I'm not marginally interested in. It reminds me of how I spent 9 months job hunting for my first job because I was very serious about where I landed at. I applied for everything/anything I could find, slowly eliminating options/nature of industries that I wasn't keen. Interviews ranging from big investment banks, boutique finance firms to the likes of Google and even insurance, I've been there. Turning down those 3 offers weren't easy, but I wanted to keep in mind what my professors told me 4 years ago.
Why be so specialized at your age, you may ask. Explore something else, you may say. I do get that question and comment quite often, from banker friends, and my sister as well. I remembered during one of my recent interviews which involved a call from Shanghai, one of the directors asked why I liked the role I was applying for. I'm lucky to find what I love early in life and I can't imagine myself doing anything else, except that for the rest of my life, I replied. She laughed. I don't know what that means, but at least I got a call a few days back that they are having an internal debate on company needs and my preference for office placement. They want me to rank my preferences and see if arrangements could be made. I'll have to see where that goes.
Cross fingers and wish the best for me! :)
It will come, homey. It will. We are all here, right behind you, he said.Thank you for the vote of confidence, I replied inbetween laughters.
I've turned down 3 job offers so far. You can call me idealistic or picky, but those offers didn't feel right at all. The packages were good, don't get me wrong. But interactions with the teams during each company's interview process didn't leave a good impression on me. Some were haughty, some were downright judgmental (one commented that I wasn't interested in earning money because as a finance grad, I wasn't interested in bonds and shares.). Most importantly, none of them had anything to do with specifically hotels, which is pretty much the only thing that really excites me. All were roles with real estate funds, which are roles I'm not marginally interested in. It reminds me of how I spent 9 months job hunting for my first job because I was very serious about where I landed at. I applied for everything/anything I could find, slowly eliminating options/nature of industries that I wasn't keen. Interviews ranging from big investment banks, boutique finance firms to the likes of Google and even insurance, I've been there. Turning down those 3 offers weren't easy, but I wanted to keep in mind what my professors told me 4 years ago.
Why be so specialized at your age, you may ask. Explore something else, you may say. I do get that question and comment quite often, from banker friends, and my sister as well. I remembered during one of my recent interviews which involved a call from Shanghai, one of the directors asked why I liked the role I was applying for. I'm lucky to find what I love early in life and I can't imagine myself doing anything else, except that for the rest of my life, I replied. She laughed. I don't know what that means, but at least I got a call a few days back that they are having an internal debate on company needs and my preference for office placement. They want me to rank my preferences and see if arrangements could be made. I'll have to see where that goes.
Cross fingers and wish the best for me! :)
Epicly old stuff
Ok scrap the previous post about matriculation stuff being old.
I actually found my book list for kindegarten. That's freaking 1991!
I actually found my book list for kindegarten. That's freaking 1991!
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