Countdown to work

2 and a half weeks more of maternity leave left.

Time flies so very fast.

How i wish i can stay with my notti boy till he reaches 6 months old.

A Year

Today marks one year, one year into the new job. I like the colleagues, sure hope that i'll be able to stay till the second year mark before more pondering the future, work wise =)

Pilling Up

The to-do-list at work is piling up... gurrp.... is it me, or the workload simply too much? *Signz* Sure hope things will change for the better soon.. It Must! It Will!

So Sunny

For the past few workdays, i've been having external meetings which ends rather early. Some days, I am home by 5.30pm woa.. a luxury which i have never (almost lah) experienced before . The sky being bright and sunny from the windows of the homeland. Today, i managed to finish the novel which i had been reading by 8pm. Ahh..the price of leisure on a weekday. i so wanna find moi a job which allows me to knock off on time and yet bring home the moolah. Such wistful thinking i know.. just like the loads of work left undone because of the meetings. *signs*

3 Days Already??

Gosh! You mean 3 days have passed already?! The long weekend came and is gonna be over soon. We've been sleeping late and waking late. Relishing the moments of simply doing nothing. The days passed in a blur.. We celebrated the MIL's birthday at a Zhi Cha restaurant nearby on Friday, plus trips to both the parents' place. The mommie was doing this qingming ceremony thingy today and we popped by. I really need to spend more time with the mommie. I so wish that she would move nearer to us. *Signz*

I think I'm having long weekend withdrawal symptoms and dreading work tomorrow. Pondering the meaning of a purposeful existence. Is work the end all and be all? Perhaps I'm simply overwhelmed having to cope with 2 portfolios in this transitional period at the workplace. *Aiz* I sure hope things pend out well...

This Sat

We managed to check out the Playground at Big Splash with the mommie. We had claypot cuisine at Claypot Fun. The food was alrights, but it din quite meet our expectations , although it could be that we had set our standards high as its a restaurant managed by Jumbo.

After lunch, we popped over to the neighbouring Old Town Cafe for drinks and some snacks. Mommie liked the "Ipoh" styled food served at the Cafe, so I gathered that we will be back to the area for more food. The place was not as crowded as I thought it'll be, and we strolled along, checking out the many stalls selling a great variety of items, new and old.

Went home to catch some movies, catch a few episodes of my current fav Korea drama and ended the day with a short trip to Ion with the sis-in-law and the 2 cute babies.

Its been a nice day, not having to worry about work. Or work at the new place. A rightful decision which was made 1 year ago to take the plunge, I'm certain. If not, I'll prob be struck at work (old workplace), managing the anticipated yet unavoidable surge in demand for our services, for this entire weekend. The perils of customer service. Plus, the crazy 8am to 9pm work weeks. Eeeps.. Now that's a rather scary thought. (Although I still miss the old pay.. ;p)

2 Days 1 Night

Just got back from the co's annual retreat. It took place on a rustic country club on our sunny island. A 2 days 1 night getaway from 'work' work. We had the usual presentations ( although i kinda found the presos interesting), a GPS related team building activity, workplans, discussions. Phewz, it was hard work walking round under the hot sun trying to spot landmarks. We ended day 1 with a bbq dinner at a rustic family themed restaurant. A rather novel way to end the day.

We played 'hard' after dinner. While the rest of the peeps returned home or to the lodge with the charted buses, the colleagues decided to stay for "Prawn Fishing" which was offered at the restaurant. Golly, I've not prawned for so long, and it felt good to rediscover a favourite childhood past-time. And the best part? It was "ladies nite" and there was a one-for-one offer. We got 4 rods at the price for 2, so it cost just $7.50 for an hour of prawning per pax. So shiok! We caught a grand total of 2 prawns between the 4 of us who fished and broke personal records in the one hour. ( ha ha..3 of erm had never done prawn fishing before mah ).

My room for the night..

This was followed by bowling at the club's bowling alley upon our return to the club. Gosh, it felt great to do a game of bowling. Another of my favourite childhood activity. I should really do it more often. We ended the day with some wine and a round of card games. A rather jolly time we had. Am glad I opted to stay overnight.

Of wine and Fun

Day 2 started with a round of "Yoga". Ha, I'm a mountain turtle, and its my first Yoga session. I enjoyed the session! Yup, maybe it'll be great to start having Yoga lessons. This was followed by more workplan sharing and team building activities. Although I was kinda slack in participating in the treasure hunt..;p Moi was totally exhausted by the time we ended the Retreat. However, the entire event was well planned and executed. I learned alot and enjoyed alot more at this Retreat that the others I've attended in the previous work place. Even more than the last one i attended, although i was the chairperson. Ha ha.. maybe coz i'm feeling old and it feels great to be just a "participant". Overall..this Retreat was less rigid, less repressive, more humane. More interactive despite the longer duration. I've learned loads and played hard in the last 2 days.. :)

Packed Weekend

We had a fun-filled learning journey at work on friday. The theme was "Style & Glamour" and moi was roped in for the bags portion despite the fact that I'm no bag expert. Phewz, managed to hoodwink my way thru. We went to Vivo City for lunch and the practical part of the learning journey! It was kinda fun lunching out with the chaps at work. We had great fun walking round the place.

Met up with the sec school fres thereafter. We had seafood dinner at Marina Square followed by drinks at the lounge of Marina Mandarin. I so luv the place and ambiance, despite the pricey drinks. Eeeps..we even had 2 rounds of drinks. The company was great as well. We had interesting conversation, despite not meeting up often. This is representative of friendship through the years. Got home around 12.30 am. Glurp, so unused to late nites out..... :)

Had the last steamboat dinner of this CNY with the babes at the homeland on Saturday. Of course, cute Baby Kayson was present! The Mother-In-Law was wonderful. She helped moi prepare the items for the dinner, so it was a breeze. There was even yums lychee martini cake from Pine Garden which Jinny brought and a Cienna 2008 ,which was a gift from Hui for Christmas. I enjoy the sparking sweetness of the wine, although it was too sweet for Jinny and Noven. Its been a great weekend thus far. Meeting up with the fres. Something that should be done more often.

Lychee Martini Cake

Quiet Christmas After the Whirlwind

Been busy with work, so much so that I've not have time to do many things in the whirlwind workdays of mine. We did manage to sneak in a short trip with the dear in-laws and sis-in law's family. This year, the Christmas pressies were brought so last minute (Well, it was also quite last min last year). This moi was still buying and wrapping pressies on the 23rd till about 1.30 am! So tiring!

Pressies, finally wrapped

Aiz..I resolute to start pressie shopping a month before Xmas 2010..okies. And to bake some yummies, organise a little gathering or watnot.. And put up a pretty tree in the homeland. Yes! I must! Next year.. ;p

The blessing, is that moi finally gets to enjoy the type of workplace Christmassy feeling which has been lacking the past 5 years in the old workplace. There was a furry of peeps busy handing out gifts to other peeps! And we did a gift exchange for the unit.. Before handing for the big unit's Christmas Eve Buffet early afternoon. Very Holiday with many emails 'unworked' on, peeps eating together. I like! Something I've craved for the past work years! It was half day at work, and i got to enjoy the mad rush to leave office mid-day. Well, I managed to leave office at 2.30pm. Late by normal standards, veri early by mine.. (compared to the full day work of the old place.. ;p

Gift Exchange Corner

It was a quiet Christmas Eve this year. And I'm glad. It gives me time to catch up on life. Late Lunch with the dearie, more shopping for pressies and dinner with the in-laws. Only thing is i din get to meet up with the mommie. Maybe I'll do a mini family dinner for the in-laws and mommie next year. :)

Seasons greetings, enjoy this Yuletide season with your loved ones, family and friends. Of great food, giving, sharing and making merry.

He Calls

When we were still dating, he calls daily and I look forward to our nightly chats. He calls nightly, this week that he is overseas. To nag in his uncle-y style to lock the door, off the switches. Reminds me of the yester days. Lifts my spirits in this whirlwind work week of mine.

Tired from the nearly 12 hours working day. So much that i am not gonna do any 'home work' tonight.

By Myself

The dearie just left for his work trip to Jakarta. He will only be back on Friday. He just left, and I'm already missing him. So much, its scary how he's become such a big part of my life. How he's replaced the mommie's placing so so fast. That i'm a tad guilty about it.

And the best part of it, is that the mommie is also away. She also hopped onto a plane today, bound for community work in Cambodia. The Bro is also overseas. So, I'm literally by myself. Its scary, how loney one can feel when one is alone. I guess much of my energy in live comes from the confidence in noeing and having that cocoon of love from the loved ones. Yet, when they are all not around.. i miss erm all terribly.

Hmm.. and coupled by the downs and challenges at work for the coming week.. this donkey's feeling a tad blue. Silly old me. Starting to doubt my suitability in undertaking the portfolio. Silly silly.

The Annual Function

Tits the first function of the organization that moi is attending. The event was held after work, with shuttle service to the event venue. Only a few colleagues from the unit attended the event. Moi, i only went because mountain turtle moi have not been to the Singapore Flyer before and wanted to check out the place. Plus, a chance to see the flow of the event.

Table Decor

Compared to the more glitzy annual dinner from the previous organization.. tonight's event was more heart warming because it was a divisional event. More like the event i attended for the previous workplace. The glaring difference, is that the people around me were laughing more care-freely, for even the big bosses were participating in the fun. Even though the budget appears smaller and the venue and food not as atas. (well, not dwelling into work undercurrents yet)

The requisite function games

The newbies had to perform in 4 groups.. although for some reason which i cannot fathom, moi was not included even as those who joined the same time as moi were conscripted into the groups. Haa, whether even the reason for the left out, i am glad. For, i am a behind the scenes kinda person and invisibility suits me just fine. For i realise that its not the colleagues around me that are getting younger. Rather, its moi who is getting older by the day. Its a more sanguine and grown-up moi reacting to work-life. After nearly 5 full years in the work force.

Lucky Draw Prize

And, the most amazing part of the night? I won the 8th prize in the lucky draw. Now, thats a lucky win for someone who's never even won any lottery/major prize at all. Although i was joking with the dearie.. "lucky in small wins, unlucky in work". Heck, l'll just enjoy the ride and see how this part of the journey goes.

The mystery of the missing work pass

Sleepy eyed.. i walked into the lobby of the office building this morning.. And was jotted awake trying to find my work pass. Gosh!

I almost flipped over my entire bag. Hard as I tried, I could not find my work pass! so i had to change a visitor pass and was in 2 minds about it the whole day trying to figure out the whereabouts of the missing pass.. worried that i had to report the pass as lost and shelling out monies for a replacement. Plus the inconvenience of using a visitor pass.. *Glurp*

So this silly donkey rushed home after work.. hoping that the elusive missing pass would turn out somewhere. It did!!! *Phews*

Guess where the missing work pass is? caught in between the pages of the copy of the free newspaper i pick up yesterday. I had tossed the paper aside upon reaching home. The pass was just in between the pages of the paper. Aiz.. Silly old moi. *heaves a great sign of relieve*

Just the Worker Bee

I had dinner with the ex-colleagues last friday. The ex-asst mgr gave a treat and he invited moi. Before some of them came, i had time for a quick catch up with the 2 dear colleagues. I so miss them, for they made staying at the old place fun!

I was also duly reminded of the very reasons why i left the work place and why i should be grateful that the new place provides moi with the very factors i was looking for. Like no or veri little customer interface, no operations with need to deploy loads of staff to man the counters. Being able to take long weekends without guilt and being able to eat out for lunch with the whole unit. Being able to go for training and no needing to do shift in the long run basis. Factors which were missing from the old job that I was so determined to find elsewhere. That were definitely push factors while the pull factors was a chance at doing a portfolio i've always wanted.

Yet, intrinsically i am at times nostalgic about the old organisation and the work which is a tad more dynamic in nature. But i've come to realise that there is no perfect workplace. Its a matter of adjusting your mentality and moving on if you believe there is a better organisation and culture out there.

The new workplace is indeed no where perfect. Errors in the handling of matters at the workplace, are reflective of the underlying problems of high attrition and lack of proper procedures and hand-over. I am only afraid of the implications of the errors when correlated with performance and rewards.

Yet, for me, the new workplace is not as bad as the old..as I have guessed. Its just that one has limited memories.. or rather, awareness fades with the passage of time. Hence, i dun wanna forgot the very factors which propelled the switch.. as one gets more familiar with the new place and the little bits starts to erode the old memories. The complacency and smugness sets in..

Anyways, i'm not looking for a promotion or anything on the radar.. my goal was to give myself 2 years to build up the CV..so i guess, just do the job like a true blue worker bee. Although there is no big honey pot at the end of the rainbow, at least the little pot of honey is good enough for daily living. For having that little pot, already is a blessing in itself yah.

New Routine

The dearie is back on shift work..although he needs to do only 1 night shift per week. This has altered our established pattern. When he's on afternoon shift, i can stay longer at work because i dun have to eat at the in-laws. It also means less home-cooked food. Yeeepps.

Its actually straining to be putting long hours at the workplace. Especially when one knows that one has no career luck with the series of unfortunate incidents which leaves one feeling low on energy. The glass always seems greener from the other side.. whichever side you happen to be viewing from. * Sign* Nostalgic about the old work place. But, i guess its a blessing to be able to fret about such trivial issues. Not needing to worry for the basic necessities in life. One is never contented with one's lot in life.. that's why we are constantly unhappy complainey peeps. Learn to count our blessings on a daily basis... Yah!

New Found, Long Lost Friend

The workplace has a practise of introducing new staff with a pic of the newbie. Someone saw silly old moi and found me familiar..Wha Hoo..its a long lost primary schoolmate of moi's. We used to be really great fres.. who just kinda lost touch after going separate ways in sec school. She went to a better sec school while moi languished at a neighbourhood school.. and we found new fres and moved on with our lives.

In the span of 16 years that we've lost touch.. we've bum into each other like probably only once in Uni..and we've both gotten married and the fre already has a baby boy as well. Obviously we've changed and grown.. yet, we had been close fres when we were so very young. Life is quite funny at times.. Lines that cross can become parallel and yet converge together again. And oh..not to mention that she's gotten herself the same "ang moh" name that i did, in the exact letterings some more.. so we have quite similar email addresses.. ;p

We met up for lunch today and caught up with each other. She's also fairly new, having been in the workplace only 5 months before moi. We're from different sub units.. one floor apart. Its great to have one more lunch kaki.

This newbie has loads to learn

Its finally the long weekend.. long and keenly awaited coz the long daily commute means this silly one needs to catch up on Zzzz. One week on the new job. The old job was pretty rojak, which meant that i had combined surface understanding on a wide scope. The new job is more administrative, with a large base of "clientale" which we are servicing. Hence, workin fast, accurate and smart is the way to go. Moi, is of course struggling.. and found moiself to be lacking..coz i've not done purely administrative portfolios and is non too meticulous. Was after all a "Jack of all trades, Master of none"..

I was task to send out a series of emails, of which i made a few mistakes.. left out some.. send to wrongly. Kinda not good an impression to make. I was struggling with a long winded method and i took some time before i learned a more accurate and simple way to do the task. The young colleague taught..phewz.. which basically more accurate, effective and time saving. Wellz, this few days have shown that moi has loads of techniques to learn ( haiz, at moi advanced age somemore.. ;p). Sure hope i can master the requisite skills and techniques to handle the job.. for i have a nagging thought that my direct sup can be none too forgiving of errors.

My inadequacies in handling the job and bosses aside, other factors like quiet environment, non front line customer service, transferable long term skill, longer lunch, 5 day week.. ability to work from home are draw factors absent from the old job. So, this moi has to put on the learning hat and positive learning attitude to learn from the seniors, so as to achieve the objective of colouring up the cv in the new field.. aiz. Buck up .. buck up..;p

Being a Newbie

The thing about changing jobs thats freaks moi out is the idea of being a newbie. On the previous job, moi was the one who had been there the longest, the one that others come to for templates and wat nots. At the new workplace, moi is the newbie.. not a great feeling, having to start afresh, asking others for assistance. As per my character, I'm a tad reclusive and distant on first contact. Have-ta warm up fast. I miss the old colleagues at the old workplace loads today.

On a more encouraging note, the work culture appears more humane on first impression, at least. The lunch hours are longer, and there is no customer service component and 5 days work week. Well worth the paycut..hee. Wat more can this silly donkey ask for? Sure hope first impressions hold.

Last Day @ the work place

friday was a day which i have waited anxiously for. yet, as i walked into office that morning, past the public area with the red plastic chairs, i felt a slight tangle of the heart, afterall, i have spent the 4.5 years in the organization, the last 2.5 years in the unit. good and bad times, good and bad memories. i've learnt alot in the past few years..from the big boss, from the exboss.. while i started out not noeing what i wanted to do, i now noe what i do not like to do, and the conditions that i can live with or without.

life at the unit has improved drastically from the madness that was 2007, with its workload, projects and new initiatives.. with more manpower, lesser and predefined workload, indeed life is good. my staff asked me.. " things have improved greatly, why are you leaving?". my answer: "this is the best time to leave". not when the conditions were tough, coz that means you leave because you are in a pressure cooker. leaving now signifies that my leaving is not because of the heavy workload. a myriad of factors, both push and pull. major long term considerations.. like passion for the work, public interface, shift work, constraints of the scheme, practises which i cannot concede with.. my regret? not making the move earlier, maybe..bittersweetness..

tingle of sadness, at leaving the colleagues who have become lunch khakis, good friends.. who share the same situation, aspirations of work and life.. of leaving the comfort zone. of uncertainty at the new place, with the posting still unfinalized at such a late moment.. an arbitrary decision from the HR department of both sides which may alter where i end up.. coz i am not gonna be doing the portfolio i originally moved for. hmm..the mantra to uphold: " if it does not work out, fret not.. move on..regret not the decision you make, but the decision you did not make.."

i surely will miss Mel dearly, and mdm R as well.. and my batch mates.. and team mates from the shift work era.. this last week was a furry of farewell lunches and dinners. after the deleting, shredding and clearing, the work station no longer holds traces of me, just like the unit will no longer hold traces of me.. its just this easy to erase me, the 2.5 years in the unit. the only mementos that i take away are my bags of personnel effects, pics of the work station, colleagues and the farewell gifts from thoughtful colleagues and fres.. wish me luck.. in the great move to the unknown yah..

( Gifts i will surely cherish....)

A Melodramatic Week

It was a terrible start to the week. a week at work i rather forget. i admit that there were oversights on my part regarding the matter. the way they made it sound like, i was the one who was 70% at fault while D was 30% at fault. i would accept my shortcomings, for i could have prevented and stopped the matter. but my part in the whole affair was about 30%, yet the whole matter sounded like i was the only one at fault. it was utterly bias and an unfair assessment which i cannot stomach, for it is logic that procedures must be followed. the politics of the workplace and the easy shifting of blame. a session meant to humiliate me in front of so many others. i so wish i could forever be a student..or my own boss, yah..

its a real blessing that i have chosen to move. although the place is slowly becoming totally unbearable. everyday i am there, my spirit is being sapped away in bits and pieces. i would have just throw in the letter, if not for the dearie's advise that i only have months to go. yes, being too rationale and logical is a hindrance too. the new place is not the one i had initially chosen, but under the current circumstances, any place would be great. although i am still pissed that that i should have gotten the position which i had accepted, rather than the unknown which i am forced to accept because of time difference.

i guess. i am glad the week is over, for that signifies one week less to go. the kakis tease that i sound like i am on parole, the way i count the days and weeks and that they do not count, for its life imprisonment for them. i agree. totally. 2 more months to go.