You talking to me???

Those three words...
Yesterday I wrote this great long piece and guess what happened? As long as I was about to post it, the connection went kaput. I was mad. Fuming. The message? Cannot find server. Those three words really get the best of me. I tried logging on to other sites. And guess what? Again those three words stared back at me. Challenging me. Mocking me. Ugh….

Strike!
It was bowling night for our dept yesterday. This was fun. It seems that my new dept people always go for social outings or out of the office activities. In my last dept, there was no such thing. Bowling. Yes! Even though yours truly doesn’t bowl, hubby joined the team and he even got a prize for the best individual player. All right!

No excuse
We were supposed to be there by 8pm, but of course everyone started coming by 8.30pm. What is it with Malaysians and being 5 to 10 to sometimes half an hour late at meetings, events, and such? The excuse? Malaysian time mah…. Wha?!? You mean to say we have our very own time zone here in Malaysia where things move slower than everywhere else in the world? Whoa…. who’d have thought….

Why do people like being late? I hate being late.

There’s no such thing as being fashionably late. If you’re late then you’re late. Shoddily late.

A method in the madness
All my watches go 10-minutes faster, so that I’m never late. Why can’t other people exercise some self-discipline and do the same? Just find some way to be early. Don’t have to follow my way… coz…. well, I’m a weirdo. The clock in my old car used to be 13 minutes late. Why 13? Well, it was just a coincidence, but it stuck and I got used to it. When my bro borrowed my car, he called me a weirdo coz my clock was haywire. But I liked it that way as it keeps me mentally doing calculations in my head. Keeps me alert and on my toes.

Now it’s Saturday. Tonight we’re gonna have another sleepover at mama and papa’s. And we’re going for dinner coz it’s gonna be anick’s birthday third of May. And ehm, yours truly’s on the 12th. Plus it’s papa and mama’s wedding anniversary.

Going back to my birthday… I’m gonna be 29. 29!!! You hear me?!? That means I’m gonna be 30 next year. Three decades. Man, lots of things can happen in 3 decades. In another 3 decades, I’ll be 60. Old me. Okay I’m getting ahead of myself here. Better go do some housekeeping….

I could just scream!

Some people are just so full of themselves. Man, this morning I was forced to meet with one of my least favourite person for an event. The way she handled things, you could see that she felt she was the most important person there. I have never felt so patronised before. You condescending biatch! Damn you.

Feels good to get that off my chest.

Hmmmmph!

Tragically depressing

Yesterday was about one of the worst days of my life. Well, maybe not the worst, but it’s certainly down there somewhere. I don’t understand it. How can two people who love one another so much have so many things unsaid between them? It was really sad to be forced to look at a reality which I’ve been unconsciously ignoring. Sad doesn’t even begin to describe it. It was depressing. Tragic. Just plain terrible. I’ve been selfish without even realising it. It was always me, me, me. Always what I wanted, what I needed.

I hate myself….

Mmmmm Monday....

It’s Monday. Blue Monday, Black Monday, whatever you call it, it generally evokes the same kind of feeling from all working people. Monday = Work. Unless of course, you so love your work, then Monday will not be a big problem to you. I used to dread Monday. Well, I still do but not as much. New dept = stress free.

Me? Mean?
I had a blast this weekend. Had to work on Saturday. The office was busy, as we had to rearrange our furniture. The office was getting too cluttered. It’s true. First time I got here, I nearly cried out loud as the office didn’t look much like an office. Looked more like one of those staff rooms for teachers in a primary school. All cluttered and haywire with file cabinets placed haphazardly in the middle of the room. Yep, you read right, right smack in the middle of the room. So after work, hubby and I went to his parents’ house. He was to break his fast there. So we stayed there till dinner. All ten of us went for dinner (courtesy of papa and mama). Papa and mama, hubby and I, anick and mesir, nurin and fahmi, dalila and ilyana. It was a lot of fun. I couldn’t stop laughing and giggling throughout the night. Hmmm, could it be the flu tablets and cough medicine I took that made me deliriously happy? I was really on a high….

After dinner we just talked and laughed some more. Then we played a card game called Arne or something…. That was extremely enjoyable as it was game that brought out your mean side as you try to collect points for yourself, while at the same time, bring down the other players. Loads of fun, as we played till about 1 in the morning. And so it was decided that we sleepover at papa’s house. We didn’t bring any clothes with us (nor our toothbrushes for that matter), but that didn’t stop us….

To give and to receive
On Sunday, we went to Ikea. Straight from papa’s house (with the same clothes as Saturday, mind you) and we had some ideas on how to design the interior of our new home. We were to get a wedding gift for one of hubby’s friends. I feel that this is one of the best places to get a wedding gift for couples. I mean, if we look at our Malaysian wedding scenario, we have this tendency to give electrical appliances. Undeniably, all just-married couples do need all these appliances to start their new home, but seriously, 5 toasters? 3 rice-cookers? 21 sets of drinking glasses? What would be better is to give other items that are not so run-of-the-mill. I know that it’s the sincerity of the gift-giver that matters, and it’s the thought that counts, but come on folks, put in some effort in your ‘thoughts’! As we are not accustomed to using the services of a bridal registry, we should really think what to get newlyweds. I remember getting 3 or 4 irons from well-meaning friends and relatives. I also remember giving them away, and keeping only one. I have 3 identical tea sets which are still in their boxes, waiting their turn to be used. So what should we give then? Thinking back, some of the really useful gifts that we received include table lamps (good for everywhere in the house), bed sheets / duvets (more than 1 is always welcomed), and gift certificates (very good since we got to choose what we really needed). What we got on Sunday was a floor lamp from Ikea. Hope the couple will find that useful....

Oh happy day.... NOT!

It's Friday.... Finally.... What's that I hear you say??

TGIF? .... Not!
Looking forward to the weekend? .... Not!
Happy to be free from work? .... Not!

My throat is sore and scratchy. My eyes are watery. My nose is running. My head feels light, and I'm coughing like there's no tomorrow. Oh happy day! .... NOT!

I just wanna lie down.... and yet, where am I now? In the office, for goodness sake. I got my medicine from the doctor, but he probably didn't think it was necessary to give me the day off. So that means I'll be back in the office doing work as usual tomorrow. Tomorrow! Oh what joy.... I mean, how else would I love to spend my Saturdays besides coming in to the office to do whatever work in the few hours that we have. Seriously work on Saturdays just suck. It's a big waste of time, and effort, and energy, and money for the employers and employees.

Corporate rebranding my foot!

Ahhh, Tuesday. Today I did loads of work. Well, compared to no work on some days, today was a huge load. I have to prepare a powerpoint presentation to be sent up on Friday. Info is all there, but need to put everything nicely and presentable enough for our Chancellor. Also was rushing as tomorrow I've got a doctor's appointment. Going to see my surgeon. Hope everything is okay. Also, it's a public holiday on Thursday, as it's the Prophet Muhammad's birthday. So I won't be in tomorrow and Thursday, meaning I'll only come back to office on Friday, which is when the presentation is due. AAAAGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!

My eyes literally feel like popping out of my head.

I've been glued to the PC since morning. Had a great lunchbreak with ex-dept mates. But actually came back to work at 2, which is like exactly on the dot. I'm gonna try out the neopets thingy. Since adopting Piko the Pink Penguin (see right hand column), I think it might be fun to see other cyber pets. So I'm going to the site now....

Oh no, that means I won't be able to log in to this blog till Friday. Damn that TM! And that's another thing. We applied for a telephone line for our home. And the people at Telekom Malaysia said, Sure, we'll go look at your house on Tuesday. And that was last Tuesday mind you. It's been a week and still no sight of them. Well, they've recently gone through a rebranding exercise and are now known as TM. Hmmmph!

What's the use of rebranding your corporate image if your services still suck!

And don't even let me start on streamyx! Stupid TM....

The manic depressed can't do accounting

It's a manic Monday. I've been so utterly confused with regards to the unit's budget and request of petty cash and opex and capex and other finance related matters. I mean, what do I know of account codes and what goes where?!? My background is in language and i know a lil bit of literature, but that's it. No accounting background whatsoever....

And another thing... I missed The Apprentice yesterday. And what's worse, there was no O.C.! It had to be shelved to make way for some chinese award show. Grrr....

You want peace? You can't handle peace!

Since moving to this new department, I feel relaxed and happy at work. I used to be in the chaotic world of corporate communications. Not anymore. So yesterday I had some new responsibilities given to me. I will be in charge of all admin matters relating to internal funding for research for the faculty. Yippee! New stuff to do. Finally some work to be done. Work in here is periodic. Sometimes I have stuff to do, like at the end of the month when I have to collate all info from various units and prepare reports for my vp. And at other times, I can be really free, that I'd actually go ask if the vp has work for me to do. Normally the answer would be no, but hey, who's complaining? That gives me more time to blog anyway....

But.... hmm, there's always a but.... but after a while it gets boring and I worry that my other workmates would find it funny that I'm just surfing my time away. They're probably thinking...

Doesn't she have work to do? Isn't she the assistant to the VP? Doesn't that mean she has tons to take care off?

Well, what can I say....

Am I the dumb one or what?

I still don't get it. I called my HR Dept and they said I didn't have to pay for taxes. The officer said if I did not receive any forms from IRB, well, I should just be thankful and keep quiet about it. Then, I asked my friend in HR and he said that I had to, what more with this self assessment thing-a-ma-jig happening. He said I should get on with it, as April 30th is looming. So I emailed the IRB, in the hopes that they would reply to me. But what are the odds right? I mean, do these people even read their email? I hope they do though.... else I'm dead meat.

Man, I feel so stupid today....

Taxing over taxes

It's already the 12th of April and we have about 18 days to submit and declare and pay our taxes to the govenrnment. And I have no idea how to do so. I tried looking the info on the Net, and all I got was mumbo-jumbo which might as well be Greek. Okay, so I took some time out and read and tried to take notes of the whole situation, but nowhere did it mention what to do if you're new to this whole paying taxes thingy. I mean, I've never paid before and I don't know the difference between Forms B2002, B2003 or B2004 or Potongan Cukai Berjadual or whatever. I believe I don't even have a Borang Cukai Pendapatan. I probably don't even have a file with the IRB! So where do I begin? What am I to do?!? Aaaaagh, this is so frustrating!

Apprenticeship in Orange County

Yesterday night we all watched tv.... we being my sisters, my brother, my hubby and I. So tell me, how come they changed the time for The O.C.? Really pisses me off. I mean it was all great when The O.C. was at 10pm on 8TV and The Apprentice was on at 11pm on TV3. So we would watch The O.C. and then swich to The Apprentice. Last week, some person thinks it's a great idea to put in this comedy thingy before The O.C., so that OC starts at 10.30 and ends at 11.30. That means we would miss one half of either show.

Now tell me who this great person is, cause I would like to wring his neck.

Eeeee, makes me so mad thinking about this. I know they're just tv programmes, but I get really mad and that kinda spoils my mood every Sunday night. It doesn't help that they're showing the shows on Sunday afterwhich the next day is a Monday. A working Monday. Sheesh!

Moments of happiness

Yesterday we went for lunch and dinner at Midvalley. Well, we didn't plan to stay for dinner but we did. We got there at about three-plus and immediately had lunch. Then we went here and there and here and there. We went to the jigsaw shop and contemplated buying one, but we realised we didn't have the proper table or space to do it so maybe some other time (when we have our own place probably). So we spent, oh what, six hours there? We hung out at MPH and looked at all the books. Hmm, so many books that I wanted to buy but they'll just have to wait....

For dinner, hubby said let's go to chilli's. So okay... we went to chilli's and had yummy yummy fajitas and their triple play. i loved the eggrolls. We were so stuffed that I had trouble standing and walking back to the car. Oh okay, i exaggerate, but we were really terlampau kenyang.

Then hubby said, how about watching Be Cool? Seemed like a good idea since it was already eleven at night. But the movie was at 11.45p.m. and that could finish about 2.45 and then we'd get home about 3p.m. Suddenly the good idea became a really ridiculous venture, so we chucked that out.

But I thoroughly enjoyed the outing. Remember what I said about being impulsive and doing things at-the-spur of the moment? Well, the Midvalley visit was definitely one of them. Tired, but definitely contented and satisfied.

Of yummy prawns and ice hockey

I'm hungry. I had some fried rice this morning, but it is now 11 plus, so my stomache's rumbling. Hmmm, where's my cheese stick?

Ok I'm back. Yesterday night, we went to Sunway Pyramid for dinner. Saw this beatiful batik being sold at the concourse area. Really loved this black kebaya piece which costs about 500 plus. A bit pricey for this month, so have to stop thinking about it. They were having some sort of promotion for all things batik, and other craft from Malaysian states like tenunan Terengganu and Pahang and they were simply gorgeous.

Anyway, had a really yummy experience at the Manhattan Fish Market Restaurant. I ordered this tiger prawns dish served with some sort of creamy cheesy sauce. Mmmm, delish! Then afterwards we went towards the skating rink and saw that there was an ice-hockey match going on. So hubby bought an ice-cream cone from McD's and we watched the match. I know absolutely nothing about ice-hockey, but that didn't stop me from cheering the players. That was really fun.

Which set me thinking.... all the things done spontaneously or at the spur-o-the-moment could actually be more fun and more memorable than some of the meticulously planned outing. So perhaps I should learn to be more spontaneous and impulsive rather than wanting to know what time everything is happening. I know I have this terrible habit of wanting to know the details if we have a thing to go to. Like for example:

Me: Hey, are we going to your friend's wedding this weekend?

Hubby: Mmm, yeah...

Me: What time do we have to be there?

Hubby: After two. The others will be there by two.

Me: Invitation says what time?

Hubby: After twelve.

Me: So what time are we leaving?

Hubby: After zohor prayers.

Me: What time after prayers?

Hubby: As soon as we're done.

Me: Mmm, ok. What time is zohor?

I can be very irritating, I know. But sometimes I can't help it. I need to know details. Maybe I should try to not be so uptight. Man, I do sound irritating.

Which reminds me, we need to go shopping for some stuff at the pharmacy. Maybe we'll go to Sunway again. Hmmm, if hubby's ok with it.

Wonder what's for lunch....

My lost entry

Man, I had a whole long entry yesterday, and the intenet connection here went haywire, and I lost it all before I could save it. Damn! And I feel really frustrated because I wrote so many things and so many feelings and so many emotions and so many observations and so many.... (sigh) oh, what's the use of crying over lost entries. I just have to start over....

Out of this world

So today I was at Yahoo and I saw a pic of Harry Potter. This sent me into an absolute frenzy. I had to see the production photos of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. So it's coming out in November. This is definitely one of my must-sees. Especially Hermione going out with Krum, and Ron with his (wild) hair, and Harry and Cho Chang, and Fleur... definitely a must-see.

Also I spent some minutes downloading the trailer to Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. This is another must-watch-no-matter-what. Seeing Anakin embrace the Dark Side and finally becoming Vader... I'd queue at the cinemas to catch this asap.

These are the other movies that I really look forward to viewing:
* Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (sometime soon... I hope)
* Batman Begins (June)
* War of the Worlds (June)

Talking about movies, I read an article about our local movie Sepet which received mixed reviews. Many thought of it as a briliant move towards better quality Malaysian movies, and yet there are others who see it as a film with a non-Malaysian identity. This issue of "non-Malaysian identity" was even brought up to Parliament (I heard). The movie makes use of many languages, thus earning it the title "non-Malaysian". Hello? Whaddaya mean non-Malaysian? Don't we speak malay, cantonese, mandarin, english etc. at any place we like at any time we want to? So, we mix them all up. Isn't that what makes us even more unique? We have such a rich diverse background that we should be proud of. Essentially it's the differences in all of us that unites us and makes us special. I mean seriously... I'm sure Parliament has more important things to discuss. Sheesh....

Hide and Go Seek

And I watched Hide and Seek the other night. Sad to say, I was disappointed. I mean, everything went on well enough, building into the climax and after that it was just a waste of time. The murdering rampage was so-so, the final moments were a bit comical and by the end, I felt cheated. Where's my dynamic ending???!!!

Tonight perhaps I shall go watch another movie....

A walk in the rain heals the aching heart

I took a walk in the rain this afternoon. I was crossing over between office buildings and was hidden under my umbrella. I'd forgotten how good it felt - the wind blowing, the rain tap-tapping on the umbrella, the smell of the wet grass. My shoes sloshing in the puddles... my new sandals sloshing in the puddles. It never fails to happen. Wear a pair of new shoes to work, and whaddaya know, it rains! Well, my sandals aren't exactly new, but it's only been my fifth time wearing them. It's good we're having all this rain. It used to be so hot in the afternoons and even hotter still at night. Now, things aren't looking that bad.

Saw my friend today. Still with a swollen cheek. On Monday when I saw her, I thought she had a toothache, so I made nothing out of it. Yesterday while having lunch with her and the others, I saw she had a cut in the inside of her lower lips. I asked if she had accidentally bit herself, and she just smiled. Today I saw her again, and this time, I could've sworn there were lightish green lines on her cheek. She looked liked she was hit. It was horrible to see, and more horrible still not being able to ask. I mean, how do you ask such things? And yet, not asking makes me feel like I don't care.

In what possible situations should a husband lay his hands on his wife? Even in Islamic teachings, the husband should not reprimand with beatings. He can reprimand, (and maybe give a smack on the butt) but to slap her across the face? To kick her into a corner and lash out with a belt? That's just monstrous behaviour. What has become of the world today? What has happened to love and romance in a marriage? Where is the patience? The understanding?

So, how do we teach kids and teenagers to be civil to one another if we as adults cannot discipline ourselves to do so?