Mudslinger, you stupid or what?

It’s the New Year already, and it’s the second day of coming back to work. I’ve been on a long holiday from work and from blogging. My blog like nak mati already.

I don’t know what’s wrong with me these past few days. I thought with the coming of the New Year, I would be refreshed, renewed and revitalised with great ambitions and resolutions. Alas, all I feel is pooped and disillusioned. It’s depressing. I didn’t even feel like coming to work yesterday. Well, I have been on holiday since the 22nd of December, and that seemed like so long ago. Eons, ages, centuries ago! Okay, one thing that hasn’t changed is the fact that I have a tendency to exaggerate.

Where did I go during my long holiday? This is the question that’s fired at me. Well, I went to the UK and then to Japan and then to Ireland. Hahaha, I wish! The answer is not that fantastic. I only went to those places through the books I’d read during my break. All in all, last year, I only managed to read 20 books. Hmm, should have gone to 24, and that would at least mean 2 books per month. But twenty? I’m kinda disappointed with myself. Fourth Day of New Year’s resolution: Read 24 books or more this year!

Speaking of resolutions let me tell you that for the past six or seven years my main resolution was to work harder. What kind of a dumb resolution is that? It started when I was in Uni, and continued all the way till last year. I still aimed to work harder. Tsk tsk, how naïve and stupid of me! My resolutions should be fun stuff to do, not stuff that will kill me! So this year, I’m gonna read more books, watch more movies, try to write more, go holidaying more (even if it’s just PD or Melaka), and generally have more fun.

I’m gonna be thirty this year. That’s right, the big three-oh. So I should definitely live it up.

Oh, better get back to work. Getting fired is definitely not my resolution. Till later….

Hollywood-ised? Cheap!

I was looking for the book Memoirs of a Geisha some time ago, when I realised that all the bookstores no longer carried that book. I was told that they were either sold out or out of stock. Don’t worry, they assured me. The new stock would come out soon, just in time with the movie. But like I had expressed before, I was looking for the book with the old cover and not the one with the movie Zhang Ziyi cover. I have nothing against her; I just don’t like movie tie-in covers. It’s just one of the rules that I live by. Probably makes my life ten times more dramatic to have such insane rules.

So yesterday, I was at the MidValley MPH. I saw that the book had arrived. No longer able to withstand the pressure of reading the book before watching the movie (which is, by the way, another one of my crazy rules in life), I grabbed the book. So that’s what my whole rambling is about. I got the book. Now I’ve got a week to read it. Or more. As long as I finish reading it before watching the movie.

By the way, going back to not wanting books with movie tie-in covers, I just feel that they kind of cheapen the book. I know, I’m crazy. It’s like the literary weight of the book is lost when it is Hollywood-ised. Get what I mean?

My Apprentice lineup

On Sunday, I watched the first episode of Season 4 of The Apprentice. After watching three seasons and the first episode on Sunday, I noticed a pattern - some similarities among the participants. Among all the participants in each group, you are bound to find the following:

The “I have a lot in common with Mr. Trump” type
Normally a male, he will start the competition or 13-week interview by telling the audience that he has a lot of similarities with Mr. Trump. He works as hard as Trump and thinks he should win on that criterion alone. Unfortunately, Trump will think he talks too much, or is a time bomb waiting to go off, or is too difficult to manage.

The “I look like a beauty queen but don’t mess with me” type
This one is strictly for the females. She undoubtedly has long blond hair, looks poised and has a pageant type-smile most of the time. Some of the things that she might say are, “Just because I’m beautiful, doesn’t mean I’m stupid,” or “I have beauty and brains, so don’t think I can’t do a good job”, or “I, like, so can be project manager!” She sometimes uses her looks to her own advantage.

The “I just got out of business school” type
He would most probably be the youngest participant. Recently graduated, he is here to prove that he can do the job as well as the others. He has book smarts and can be a bit too idealistic. As he is the youngest, sometimes he tries too hard to please everyone, thus ending up being not the great leader that Trump is looking for.

The “I am not crazy no matter what you think” type
Most recently seen as female. She would pull stunts like making deals on the phone under the table without the knowledge of her teammates, or disappear in the middle of a task. All her teammates think she’s crazy, but she defends herself and says that she’s just ‘different’.

The “I’ve got seven degrees, an MBA and a Ph.D.” type
This one would typically be male and in the first introduction we would hear his list of 5 or 6 or 7 degrees from such renowned universities like Harvard, Stanford, MIT and whatever hallowed-hall institution in the top ten list.

The “I’m Asian / Black / Latina so I know what I’m talking about” type
Typically a feisty one, she asserts her actions based on ethnicity. She is brash and straightforward. She doesn’t take crap from anyone. Usually, she is at the centre or the cause of heated ‘discussions’. She resents those who raise the question of ethnicity or race, but inadvertently she’s the one who’s always doing it.

The “I’m my own person” type
This one always stands out in the crowd. Be it by wearing a bow tie, carrying a walking stick, strumming a guitar, or sporting a ponytail. Add to that, openly expressing his own sexuality and admitting to being gay.

The “I’m a bitch” type
Well, this type speaks for itself. Typically a female, she will strut around like she owns everything. Gets into everyone’s faces. Provokes everyone. Hates everyone openly. Wants things done her way most of the time. Is sweet to Mr. Trump only.

The “I’m a self made entrepreneur” type
This type achieved success mostly by starting taking risks and venturing on his own. Probably does not have college education, but is successful through hard work and perseverance. He believes he has had sufficient training through his hands-on experience. Can have animosity towards college grads.

The “I’m a small town guy / mum” type
This small town guy is amiable, well liked and generally considered a good guy. Always with a big grin, he is probably the CEO or Director of his own successful business. The small town mum thinks she can handle the corporate world after raising two / three kids and running a business ‘empire’ in her hometown at the same time. Both small town guy and mum are instantly noticeable through their ‘delightful’ drawl.

Nothing to see here

9.28a.m.
Man do I feel sleepy. That’s crazy! How can I feel sleepy when it’s only 9.30 in the morning on a working Wednesday morning? It’s not that I slept late or anything. But my eyelids…. They have a mind of their own. They just want to shut down and switch right off. It doesn’t help that my work requires me to sit at the desk the whole time. Better put on some music.

10.43a.m.
Colleague has just asked for some help in editing documents. Well, ho-hum. What? Zip file? Alamak, my zip knowledge is almost nil. Sure I can open them, but I don’t know how to zip them up. D’oh. Spend about 10 minutes editing and about another twenty minutes an hour figuring how to ‘zip up’.

11.25a.m.
Okay, now that the required work is done, I will clean up my C drive and get rid of all the nonsense stored in there. Then again, it doesn’t seem like a good idea, as most of the nonsense is none other than my library of songs. Sheesh….

12.08p.m.
Hmm, it’s cold in here. Time for a bathroom break. Look at the time. Hurray! One hour till lunch. What should I eat? Maybe there will be some ikan bakar. I love ikan bakar. Yumm…

12.25p.m.
One of the associate deans is treating us lunch. Kebabs for all! Yeah, looking forward to it….

12.30p.m.
Hmm, let’s see what’s on PPS….

Scrapbooking my time

Okay, I’ve done all my work. What else is there for me to do? It gets really boring when I have totally nothing to do. I feel bad sometimes. It’s like they’re paying me to do a job that really doesn’t require that much time to do. I mean, I think I can do more, but guess what, there is nothing more. I know, I’ve asked. Well, it was just this morning that I asked my boss, “Is there anything else that you’d like me to do? Anything at all?” He replied with a “Not at the moment, no. When I have something for you, I’ll let you know.” It’s been quiet so far. And now he’s in a meeting. Bosan lah pulak....

Oh, I know, maybe after this I’ll go search some articles on scrapbooking. I’ve been meaning to do this for so long. I really am interested and would love to start out a small project. But I still need some basic equipment, so that’ll have to wait till payday (three more days to go) on Sunday. Yes, I think I’ll start that....

Oh my nanowrimo novel is really stuck at 6000+ words. I know I have a few more days, but I just cannot continue. There is no way I can write at the office, and then when I get home I am just too tired to write. 6000+ words, and it ain’t going nowhere. Sad, but there’s always next year. Yup, put me down for next year!

So I’m off now, to go look up scrapbooking. Wonder where I can get the supplies? I know there’s a shop in the Curve.... Laadeedaadeedaa....