seeing double

while most working people have their eyes glued to one one screen...i have to stare at two. and now i have four!!! win liao. i only have one pair of eyes. alot of times, i can't even find my mouse cursor lor. haha. oh well...work's been fine so far. i've been trying to "appear to be more serious" at work. apparently, i haven't been that successful yet. hmm... but at least i haven't been rocking my chair and biting my nails at work now! haha.

too young to be matured, too old to be childish

you know how some people start to turn all haggard and old once they start working and that soon they look much older than they actually are?...

heh, but today, when i was at SuperCuts...the lady said to me: "now we have special promotion for students, 30% discount for chemical services" hahahahaha........yes! i convincingly passed off as a student!

while the hairstylist was cutting my hair... he said "so which poly you from?" and i was like..."no lah, i'm in uni"...and he said "huh?! i wanted to ask which secondary school you from! but since you asked for hair colour then you can't be in sec sch lah.."

ok...now this worries me. i don't think it's a good thing when i'm 25 yrs old, already working and someone still thinks i look like a sec sch student. I DONT WANT LAH! even the boss told me that i should try to behave like i'm serious.

ok, as of monday...I WILL SHOW THEM THE SERIOUS SIDE OF ME! let's start off by... stop biting my fingernails!! stop rocking the chair!! stop eating twisties!! haha take snacks from pantry also must take those "matured looking" snacks. twisties? cannot! too childish!

just act like you know

and so...i will not have to sit beside the boss from tomorrow onwards. another new hire will sit beside her. but the boss got me to be at another desk which is now even further from the heart of all the action! gosh, this is sad. haha.

actually come to think of it, i like sitting beside the boss. got sense of security lah, as in you know you're sitting beside a walking encyclopedia and she gives you the ten year series kind of answers providing solution to all my problems. haha.

but now that i'm not exactly the new, new person in the department, i think i better stop asking her too many questions. i've seen how she said this to my senior: "i don't understand why you are asking me this now because you should have known better!" (ok to be fair to the boss...that senior asked a pretty dumb question lah..so he abit orr bee good to be scolded hahaha)

i was like.....hmm...see, that's going to be me on the receiving end next time. haha. so my strategy now is, just act like you know first...then flip those damn textbooks frantically later when no one's watching you! yes!

NABEH! SIBEH SUAY!

guess what? i failed yet another test in BB today lah!!!! and the most upsetting thing was, i didn't fail it cos i don't know the answers...(well i'm sure i'll be able to find those damn answers if i took my time to do it) but i clicked on dunno what shit thing and the entire thing just submitted the answers by itself. the next thing i know...the screen appears with my score and i failed liao.

seriously...fucked up, don't know if it's the system that's fucked up or the user (ie: me) that's fucked up. in any case, i'm so screwed lah. NABEH LAH! why i keep failing all those tests set by BB. makes me appear damn stupid. and why does BB has so many never ending tests?!?!

and i had to like fail this test on a sunday afternoon lor. NABEH! SIBEH SUAY! if i could, i'll pick up a sledge hammer and destroy that piece of machine so that my grades cannot be recorded. argghh!!

just to fill you guys in...i'm seated right in between two bosses. left side is the direct boss (boss J) and right side is...the other boss (boss S). everytime when i talk to the client on the phone i feel like creeping under the desk, in case the bosses hear me saying something that i shouldn't be saying!

ah siao is buay song

i'm so damn happy today can. because i finally got to watch my HK drama which has been sitting in the drawers since i started work. haha. hmm...i just checked my phone calendar and it seems to me that i have dinner plans from Monday to Friday...why does the entire world want to meet me next week?!

oh, all of us at home forgot to buy cat food and today it has finally ran out. poor ah siao was meowing so loudly asking us to feed him. but errm...i was super lazy to get out of bed. so i looked at ah siao and said "aiyah you got so much reserves in your fat tummy...eat those stored fats first lah" hahaha. i is damn evil. in the end mum gave up...she went to buy cat food for him so that he will shut up.

since then, my ah siao hasn't been very happy with me for the entire day. i don't know if it's because of my statement earlier but i do hope he gets over it soon though.

instances where i left the boss speechless

the boss: Peiqi, think...think logically.
me: i am thinking! just that my logic and your logic is not the same.
the boss: ...

the boss: Peiqi, that's not the way to do it.
me: i wouldn't know until you tell me but now that you've told me then i know!
the boss: ...

the boss: can you improve on your ettiqute? you sound very unfriendly on the phone..
me: i think i sound very gentle.
the boss: ...

the boss: look at the end of the sentence, what does it say?
me: so should i read from left to right or right to left?
the boss: tell me, how do you read a book?
me: well, it depends on what book i am reading. a chinese book would read from right to left, english book you read left to right.
the boss: ?????

anyways finally some happy news today!!!!! I AM LIVE! a.k.a i passed my training! phew! although still a little disappointed that i took longer than expected to pass, but moving forward, i want to think that i am there to achieve bigger things! haha.

Will she emerge Champion in BB??

And so I've been invited by the Champion (until the day she joined BB) to write on her blog... Probably because our dear friend is still undergoing shock by the cultural differences between BB and school. Or rather, in the process of shocking BB with her own cultural difference! Trying to act professional is tough when you've been acting cool your whole life you know.

Now for the summary of what I've heard. Somehow, she'll suay suay kena all the rare calls that most people will never ever pick up in their entire lifetime. From asking about how to take bus to the BB office in Indonesia, to some Nanjing woman trying to bao-doh Chinese officials in some conspiracy setup. As usual, the cool qix will give some random answers at the top of her head, which are not scripted to the professional standards set out by BB. Her poor colleagues who listen in to her calls would be left in a total state of shock and cannot understand her supposed logical thought process which is illogical to everyone else.

Not only is her weakness in strictly following textbook answers being exposed, she remains vulnerable to the endless tests set by BB. Especially when the tests cannot be smoked! Since the day she joined, she already failed the first test. Right up to the latest test on "Name the Global Managers" based on their pictures, she still failed to pass. Sigh, I really can't help u out on this one already, pq. You used to sms me in the middle of your school quiz or test to ask me for answers. But it's not going to work this time...

So is the Champion going to survive at BB? I think if she uses her brains to focus on the textbook instead of thinking how to cheat (which obviously only takes her a minute maximum), she might be able to do this. Till then, let's dedicate the song "I will survive" to her, and wait for the next blog entry. To be continued......

EC aka doramon

convocated

24th July was my convocation day. it turned out to be really good. i like the guest speaker of that ceremony. she was some ang moh lady who is a big shot at Citigroup. i was enchanted by her speech. let me share some of her speech...

"I am a great believer in luck. It seems like the harder I work, the more luck I get."

"Earn your reputation, every hour, every day... Consistency...Results..."

"Some of you, many of you, or all of you, will reach the top."

then i got quite emotional when it was time to show my gratitude to my parents. especially when mum went to buy a convo teddy bear for me. i can see that she's really really happy that day. somehow i didn't know how to say "THANK YOU" cos i knew if i were to say that, i'll probably break into tears...so i kissed dad and mum on their cheeks that day, without saying a word after that. i hope they know what i mean.

today was really sweet

didn't expect the TP gang to celebrate my birthday in advance today. i mean, we always celebrate each other's birthday and i should have guessed that they arranged to meet today cos it's round the corner. but i totally forgot all about my birthday! it's like once u hit 25, you don't even want to think about it. heh. yeah right, let's see how things are when i turn 30. FREAK OUT!after the birthday lunch i went home to "study" the three thick manuals BB gave me last Friday. it's for tomorrow's training. i "studied" one manual then fell asleep. dammit. when i woke up, i went to TM for shopping..yes...again! apparently TM having some mad sale lah. then i bumped into Bygon and wife at Isetan. so we went for drinks at Cartel while they had dinner...chit chatted abit.

when the bill came...i took some bucks out, wanted pay for my share...then Bygon said: "to me...你明天开始做工才是真正的大人了！(to me you are an adult as of tomorrow when you start work) so today still my treat"

seriously...i was so moved by what he said. Bygon and i have known each other for some 12 years...and he's always like the big bro to me. (altho he always suan me haha) we belong to different TKD clubs...but there were no bad blood between us. no politics, just friendship. and his words also struck me...that, i am really truly going to be an "adult" tomorrow...although i am super overaged by 21 yrs old adulthood standard..but yeah..you know what i mean lah...

mum's been so sweet tonight too, she's like helping me iron all my office clothes. and she gave so much attention to every shirt she's ironing and did it with so much detail. i can see they're really happy for me that i've graduated with good results and found a good job. it is not the "i'm-so-glad-i-don't-have-to-pay-her-tuition-fees-anymore" and the "she's-going-to-earn-money-for-us-now" kind of happy... but truly proud of me kind of happy.

tomorrow first day of work. i must be motivated! PQ u can do it!

new recipe...and they are my guinea pigs

tried out some new recipe today, the food was pretty much gone by the end of lunch... i take it that it tasted ok? guess i will cook oriental dishes for my friends next time.this is our last chance for the NTU gang to gather before SF and i start work on Monday! hopefully we can still maintain this friendship and regular gatherings even after working. a toast to friendship yeah!after the NTU gang left, big face wong and her BF came over in the evening. had another round of food. felt really happy today...to host so many friends at home. i love it. really.

BUT...BV gang...you are the ones i host the most number of times...always coming over to my house for lunch. though i love it too...but hor...except for LL and Dorakitroy, no one has ever shown their appreciation by treating me a meal or drink leh! kanasai lah! now i abit buay song liao. HAHA. everytime i cook lunch for so many of you at my place (its alot of $$$$ hor) then i never get free treat one leh. nahbeh. so you BV gang know what to do hor??

office wear and tear

i blew almost $600 bucks on buying office wear...i always think it's important to look good. since i lack natural beauty...i shall make up for it with nice clothes! haha. i can just imagine myself walking painfully in those high heel shoes...and those evil shoes are so going to tear the skin of my poor feet. get ready some handiplast!

monday, is the big day. start of work! get set and go..............pantry! yes!

UPDATED:

after yesterday the figure has officially exceeded $700...i am so broke now. what to do...don't have pretty face...then better have pretty clothes lor. going into office this afternoon for orientation now...damn sianzzzzzz.

i survived the farts

the flight back was pretty alright, except that one person kept farting every half an hour. it either came from the one sitting beside me or the one in front. yeah, those were some very smelly flatulence. poor guy (or girl?), he must have a pretty bad constipation. nonetheless, i am happy to be home, and even made it in time for LL's BBQ gathering. hah.

i'm so amazed that i carried all these foodstuff back all by myself! kao damn heavy can. yes, they are ALL foodstuffs. haha.

Keelung Yeliu

i've been telling EC i'll go to Keelung since day one but i've been putting it off forever. yesterday i finally went. yay! so proud of myself. haha.it was much easier to get there than i originally expected. i nearly wanted to join a day tour bus by the hotel for NT900 bucks, but in the end, it took me just NT74 to get there! walau, the difference is damn great lah. luckily i went on my own!Yeliu is the main attraction in Keelung - it's a 1.7km long cape that juts into the sea, where wave erosion, weathering, and the action of the earth's crust have combined to create sea-eroded trenches. among the most spectacular and famous results of erosion here is the Queen's Head Rock.

i quite like this place for its serenity and fresh air - something you can't find in Taipei city. the water was very clear, i could see small fishes, crabs and other creatures. and it makes an ideal dive spot.

martyrs shrine taipei

The National Revolutionary Martyrs' Shrine is dedicated to the people who sacrificed their lives fighting for the Republic of China. the buildings on this compound were modeled after Ming Dynasty palaces. two military police officers stand guard at the front gate while two other officers guard the main shrine inside.the changing of the guards occurs once every hour and is quite an elaborate process. there were stories about the dark lines on the floor caused by the boots of the guards and their constant marching. most of the guards there were tall dark and handsome! it's a pity that they have ugly uniforms.i pretty much stayed in the hotel since i got back from Taichung, except to go to the shrine and to have dinner at Taipei 101's 85th floor. apparently EC was over the moon when Citi-bank finally sent her a replacement card to Taipei and not Pasir Ris (where they sent her first replacement card to). hmm..actually the Citi-phone operators quite dumb hor?

so she had to eat something "good" to celebrate (which usually means Expensive). yeah. our meal there last night came with a hefty price tag..it was like part celebration part revenge. haha. if you know what i mean. but i'm not complaining since my job was just to EAT. oh and in view of my appreciation for EC...i will help her write a complain letter to Citi-bank and to like ask for some freebies and vouchers in return. yeah!

weekend Taichung

i was so glad to get out of the oh-so-boring Taipei for awhile to spend the weekend in central Taiwan - Taichung. we went up to this place called Alishan which is about 2450m above sea level. it was quite a last minute decision cos we contemplated too much about going there after watching the exxagerated Taiwan news report about trees falling onto the scenic railway. and EC was like blaming me for watching too much TV lor.since we didn't really plan to go up Alishan we were not prepared for the change in weather. the temperature was 12°C and all i had was a pullover and 3/4 pants. which wasn't as bad as the time when i wore a pair of shorts and t-shirt in Korea even though it was less than 10°C outside. hah.the plan was reach the peak of Alishan to watch the sunrise at about 5am so we had to set off from the hotel at 130am! the cab driver who drove us up the mountain was driving so safely, in fact too safely that we missed the tram that's supposed to take us up to the sunrise spot by like 3 minutes! SIAN! damn sian. i was actually quite looking forward to singing "阿里山的姑娘" at the peak during sunrise one lor! plan failed.we paid NT5,000 (about $250) for the cab to bring us up Alishan and couple of other places.Sun Moon Lake...sucks big time. the water level has dropped and lots of construction works in the area. conclusion is: don't bother going unless it's on the way.Wen Wu temple near Sun Moon Lake.Pu Li Shaoxing Winery.super lots of shaoxing wine product sold over here, like shaoxing sausages, shaoxing ice cream, shaoxing jelly, shaoxing mochi, you name it they have it..oh and this interesting poster shows the different categories/types of drunk people. i belong to the monkey drunk 猴醉. characteristics of monkey drunk includes: singing loudly, jumping around, fast actions and quick reactions. you can check what's yours! haha.

chao sng ice??

chao sng = food turned foulit took me a while to figure out that the signboard meant 臭豆腐，酸梅汤，冰品

after 3 nights in Taipei...

i realised it was a bad choice to come here for 2 weeks. cos this place is so sian. HK is about 500% more exciting and vibrant. yeah. there's absolutely nothing going on around my hotel, except for a 24hr Mac. the weather's a little erratic too, alternating between very hot weather and a thunderstorm. i pretty much spent my time online and watching TV which is an amazing thing to do cos there are so many channels and variety shows to watch.

the amount of motorcycles on the road reminded me of Vietnam. well, one good thing about Taipei, it is less crowded compared to HK and back home. plus, so far i have not seen a single Ah Tiong, which is a good thing. you don't want too many of them when having a holiday, trust me.

Taiwan has very strong Japanese influence. Jap restaurants everywhere and most of them are quite good. SOGO stores are everywhere too. went for dinner at this restaurant called Momoyamma and the food was neat. the set meal i ordered cost NT1680 and that's about $84. it has shabu shabu beef with lobster soup. haha shit, did i say my plan was to lose weight here?!

what goes around comes around

today a friend called.

she told me X applied for a position in her company. she happens to know that i am a friend of X...so i was asked to be a character reference.

now what you have to know is that X wasn't too kind to me before and i obviously do not like X as a result. so i had nothing positive to say. but i did not sabotage X's chances of getting the job by defaming. i merely told my friend my honest feelings about this person. which i think is the rightful thing to do.

now if X does not get the job because of my comments, X probably would never figured that i had a part in it. it's so bizzare and difficult to imagine that i was actually one of the determinant factors in X's career...

it's amazing how this world is round and everything is so inter-linked. and that you will never know who you have to deal with in future. it always pays to be kind to people and not say or do bad things. this shall serve as a reminder to myself.

shop till i drop

what i am feeling now is as if i have just finished a 10K run this morning. i am super exhausted from all the walking, trying on of clothes, queueing up for payments and carrying of shopping bags.

i realised i only have today to do all my shopping for office wear before i leave for Taiwan tomorrow! so it was madness the entire day trying to get enough clothes into my 'office wear wardrobe' so that it can last me for at least a week before i think of Plan B later.

i bought 3 pants, 2 skirts (yes it reads: SKIRT), 1 jacket, heels and bags. hopefully it is enough for me to get started. office wear = sian + uncomfortable + must act gu-niang. argh... good thing is, with the Great Singapore Sale going on, i was actually able to get all the items at a pretty good bargain! :)

Taiwan here i come!! i hope to lose some weight while i'm there so that i won't look like a short fat blob in my nice office suit. and since Sheraton comes with a nice gym and a super nice rooftop swimming pool + the last time i was in Taiwan i didn't think too highly of the food there...i think my wish might just be able to come true!

two things

1. i signed the offer letter this morning. i am employed!

2. i booked my ticket to Taiwan after i signed the offer.

both happy and nervous about my new job. happy = to end my unemployment + nice office + not bad pay + branded company + good benefits. speaking of benefits, when the HR lady was talking to me about the health benefits, she pointed at the "Vision Care" section...and said: "For example if you think you need some eye protection from the sun, you can get yourself a pair of Chanel sunglasses or any brand lah..provided it falls within $700." WOAH...hahaha..it's damn funny lor!

nervous = i suck at Finance and i think it is the last thing i will ever comprehend in this world, apart from Accounting concepts that is. and i am desperately trying to look for my Yr 1 Finance textbook to erm...yah "refresh my memories". but...take a step at a time i guess? i strive to work hard and to do well in it. wish me luck. :) hope i don't kena "pok-ed" too soon!

will be flying off to Taiwan this Sunday, for 2 weeks. last chance to enjoy before i work! LL sorry to say i cannot join you for Gigi Leung's Shanghai concert in August, cos cannot take leave for first 2 months leh...your offer is indeed damn tempting. but... sigh! i can buy the pom poms for you to bring there to cheer for Gigi lor...

others screw more

we should always believe that there will be others who screw things up even more than you!

yes, even when i had a pretty bad idea of what equity, forex, bonds and all the shit are...BB called to offer me a job today!! it's pretty decent pay for an entry level.

this wednesday i am invited to their nice office to discuss the offer letter in detail with HR. i am inclined to sign on the dotted line already! oh...and LL said, BB uses a super stylish bright orange file to contain their offer letter. i know, we sound so cheapo. haha.

time to find a nice pen and practice my signature liao. my signature is like kindergarten writing! i think i need to come up with something nicer. something that i can still use when i reach CEO level in future hahaha think too much! woot!

don't ever say "good luck" to my face again

it was supposed to be a 2nd round interview with them. it turned out to be a video conferencing format. cool. never tried it before. i thought i aced that interview! then they told me if i could spend 1 hour shadowing a staff there...just to observe how she works and sort of to let me have a feel about what to expect.

that must be a good sign right? i mean i must have done well enough in 2nd round for them to want me to stay on to observe...

later, i was told that the Sales Manager would like to see me for the 3rd round, since i was there. it caught me totally off guard. but well, well, another good sign right. people always say usually the 3rd round is just for formality...chances are, they'd hire you.

WRONG!

i screwed the 3rd round with the Sales Manager!!!! his questions were damn tough!!!

Sales Manager: tell me why shd i hire you?
me: because i am bla bla bla bla...
SM: no no no, you know i don't want to hear that! pls, tell me something more interesting.
me: ok i bla bla bla...
SM: oh dear you sound just like anyone else on the street, nothing special. i can't think of any reasons to want you. i am not at all convinced.
me:......

SM: ok tell me about the equity market.
me: ......
SM: how about oil prices...stocks and bonds?
me: ......
SM: you must know something about Forex?
me: ......

SM: alright i think that's all i have for you today.
SM: Good luck!

WHAT GOOD LUCK??!?!....i wanna hear "hope to see you again" leh!!!! what do you mean good luck? good luck for your other job search? good luck cos i am not going to see you again? good luck cos you'll have to remain unemployed for awhile more now...

SHIT! i doewan "good luck" lah!!!!!!

ROAR!!!!

anything

today at a drink stall...

me: auntie...do you have "Anything"?
auntie: we have everything...and it's all here.me: ^^"

tamade. stupid name.

this is about how i am so happy today

i found an old school dessert shop that serves the bestest mango sago in milk i ever tasted and i had FIVE(5) bowls of this today. yes, FIVE.
my exam results are out and I SCORED WELL!! i obtained 2nd Upper Class Honours!! that fucking Studentlink kept hanging on me (cos everyone was rushing in to check results at 0000hrs). the waiting for the results page to load part totally killed me. i was shivering all over, and felt like slapping someone.

but all that wait was so worthwhile when i saw this:i felt like crying lor..it's like..i finally feel like i have done something to make my family proud and all that money dad spent on me can be justified. i finally can put on my resume "Obtained 2nd Upper Class Hons" instead of something dodgey like..."Expected 2nd Division Hons"... hahaha...

Happy Valley, Aberdeen and Market St

finally got a chance to watch a horse race in Happy Valley! so fortunate to catch the last races of the season! the place is damn grand, clean and vibrant!the horses are so so beautiful. it looked like they are made up of 100% muscles! their fur so bright and nicely groomed and they had an ass i could die for! they are so sexy.most tourists visit Aberdeen for the junkboats and the JUMBO floating seafood restaurant.but i came here for this:yup that's right, a chinese cemetry. not just any chinese cemetry, but the one that keeps appearing in HKTVB dramas and movies. hahaha. looks familiar right?!

the Hongkongers are very serious about their food. they like it fresh, and that means, alive until the time it is ready to go into the pot. at about 4pm in the afternoon the market was filled with people. they buy their groceries fresh everyday, unlike us where we buy once a week. it was quite an eventful day to see chickens being culled on the spot, and fishes being clobbered to death...

guest blogger

yup some happenings in HK can also be found at:
http://doramon02.blogspot.com/2007/06/champion-chen-in-house.html

food updates

wan ton min!! with more shrimps than pork. sibeh important.krispy kreme is in HK and not SG! that's not very fair!Teochew orh nee!! i eat it as if i'm having calories insufficiency!tau fu far from Tang Chao! the same thing Gong Li ate when she was there!salted chicken + goose meat rice. somehow i forgot how to say "breast" in Cantonese so in the end they gave me the thigh part which i hate. but...still very tasty.



ahaha yes! i finally ate the poor bird. it's my first time eating a pigeon. altho it's tasty cos it's from Maxim restaurant. but somehow there's still a mental block. cos i see them in front of my windows everyday leh..to eat them it's like... abit...

and it didn't help when they served the whole bird with its broken neck/head staring at me.