Fallen
..sick. Yes here I am sitting in front of my pc wearing a sweater in this hot weather.. waiting for my body to break out in sweat after my medicine takes effect. I've been going through this tiring process umpteen times since tuesday but my fever still refuses to go away. I discovered that western medicine only relieves symptoms but it doesn't target the root of the problem; my fever medicine only helped to cool down my body for that 1 or 2 hrs and after that the heat will all come back again, no matter how many times I've eaten the medicine. My body was so hot that it was really unbearable..especially my hands and my face, felt like it was burning..I was so worried that my body will get *fried*. =///Luciky after I drank the chinese herbal medicine that mum prepared for me, I felt much better.. my body was still very heaty but at least I didn't feel that terrible. Then there was my blocked nose and my horrible sore throat, which developed into a bad cough with lots of phlegm by wednesday. My throat now feels like a giant swollen volcano that has erupted..so painful everytime I cough and hurts everytime I swallow food. =///Sigh..I feel like this has been accumulated in my body for ages and now it has finally exploded all at once..I think I'm going to take a long long time to recover.. I've been missing work for 3 1/2 days now..duno what my boss thinks, after all I've worked for barely 2 mths and I've already taken half of my mc leave. Badly need to drink more water but everytime I try to swallow more my stomach can't seem to take it..it feels bloated and uncomfortable. My body feels weak cuz I can't eat alot of food now that I'm running a fever and I have a bad throat, so basically I feel very *sian*..restless and strengthless. I duno whether I'm feeling cold because of my fever, or is it because of my empty stomach.. one word summarizes all : GONG.I don't wanna be sick no more..I've been stuck at home for so many days. I pray to regain my health and strength soon so I can go out and breathe some fresh air.. :)
Finders Keepers?..NQS!
This morning when I switched on my office pc, I heard the Microsoft Windows startup alert.. for a moment I was a little puzzled coz I usually don’t hear this music every morning.. but anyway I just happily ignored it. I checked my office email as usual after that and a sound came from my pc again..this time was new email alert. Hmm I felt something amiss..a thought suddenly struck me. I immediately checked my CPU.. shucks..WHERE’S MY EARPHONES??? It’s GONE!! Dammit..
Ok let me explain. My workplace here is kinda noise-free, you don’t hear radio music playing in the open, so if anyone wants to listen to any music it’s implicitly suggested that you plug in your own earphones. My CPU has a convenient earphone plug in front, which is beside the power on/off switch.. but somehow it doesn’t work, so I have to connect my earphones all the way to the main earphone plug located at the back of my CPU. It’s very inconvenient to remove and replug my earphones every morning coz there are chunks of wires behind my CPU and it’s quite hard to find the port.. the back of my CPU is blocked by the partitions and I would have to poke at every hole to find the correct one. Since it’s so troublesome, I just left my earphones on my CPU everyday instead of locking them up in drawer. Though I’ve heard from my colleagues that there have been cases of theft in the past and warned me to look after my belongings carefully, I thought no one would take it..I mean it’s just earphones! Erm ok..besides that fact that it’s sony and orange in colour which is qt nice??
I left it there for almost a month now and nothing has happened. Sigh..now it’s gone for good. what a way to start my week. =( Well maybe someone has been eyeing it for some time already..I wouldn’t know. And I specially brought a few of my fav CDs to add on to my office CD collection so I can listen to some good music and cheer up my Monday morning.. now I can’t listen to any music for the whole day..until I get a new set of earphones soon. *BOO* Okay. Maybe I have to bear part of the responsibility for leaving my earphones in the open. BUT then again, I thought it’s nothing expensive or valuable, so much so that someone will really take it. It’s not a CD player, handphone or some fanciful IT gadget..it’s just EARPHONES!? Ok I really need to get this into my head.. it’s either someone took it. OR my earphones has legs.. *walk walk walk walk,.* The more I think of it, the more angry I am. ARGH =////
About 2 weeks ago, my friend Grace also had her phone stolen in her office. She had accidentally left it in the toilet cubicle and the next minute when she went back to find it, it’s gone. So much so for trust between colleagues. I was just consoling Grace for her terrible experience and now it’s my turn. I’m more angry than I am sad, after all I can just get a new set. But the fact that someone took it, whoever it is who has access to our office, really irks me. Such people who have itchy eyes and itchy hands should be taught a lesson. Please don’t be greedy. If you want something, get it within your own ability! If it’s not, then just let go of the idea, what’s the big deal?? My colleague told me even the instant noodles she left in the open was also stolen last time..can you believe it? I’m totally disgusted by such people, and I learnt my lesson the hard way. Never, never let your guard down wherever you are and whichever of your belongings are concerned as far as possible.. it’s really no use crying over spilt milk after the theft has taken place, you’ll never get your things back.. especially when you don’t even know who took your things.. like me!
Time for Personality Test!
Fun time again with personality tests..courtesy of Siwen's blog. =p The results are indeed quite accurate. ;) Here it goes:::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::Your view on yourself:You are intelligent, honest and sweet. You are friendly to everybody and don't like conflict. Because you're so cheerful and fun people are naturally attracted to you and like to talk to you.
The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:You like serious, smart and determined people. You don't judge a book by its cover, so good-looking people aren't necessarily your style. This makes you an attractive person in many people's eyes.
Your readiness to commit to a relationship:You prefer to get to know a person very well before deciding whether you will commit to the relationship.
The seriousness of your love:You are very serious about relationships and aren't interested in wasting time with people you don't really like. If you meet the right person, you will fall deeply and beautifully in love.
Your views on education: Education is very important in life. You want to study hard and learn as much as you can.
The right job for you:You're a practical person and will choose a secure job with a steady income. Knowing what you like to do is important. Find a regular job doing just that and you'll be set for life.
How do you view success:You are afraid of failure and scared to have a go at the career you would like to have in case you don't succeed. Don't give up when you haven't yet even started! Be courageous.
What are you most afraid of:You are concerned about your image and the way others see you. This means that you try very hard to be accepted by other people. It's time for you to believe in who you are, not what you wear.
Who is your true self:You are mature, reasonable, honest and give good advice. People ask for your comments on all sorts of different issues. Sometimes you might find yourself in a dilemma when trapped with a problem, which your heart rather than your head needs to solve. Try GET TO KNOW YOURSELF BETTER now ;p
Big, Big World...
I have recently just graduated from NUS and gotten my long-awaited degree.. it is something that I have been working hard for all my life, and now it’s mine, finally. Speaking of which, I don’t deny that kids here are indeed very fortunate; all of us are granted a chance to go to good schools and receive proper education the minute we were born. It may a norm in our society, but compared to many other kids in backward countries, it is really a privilege and luxury we enjoy.
The education system in Singapore always gives itself credit for helping to equip students with the necessary skills and expertise and developing them into outstanding, all-rounded individuals who excel in their work in future..blah blah blah. Yes, everything sounds so good, so glam..it’s perfect, isn’t it? So after 15 long years of education, we are ‘supposed’ to be all set to conquer the working world, survive good and fight like a brave warrior, yea? But the truth is, we are NOT ready (!!)
Most graduate students like me are hesitant and generally negative about entering the competitve working sector. With our stacks of certificates and years of academic experiences, why do we not seem all well-prepared for work life the way our education system assumes to be? What is it that is holding us back from moving forward and embracing the next phase of our lives with open arms? True. All the essential technical stuff is in place, no doubt about the high standards of learning opportunities our education provides us with; our brains are so good at analysing sciences and churning out answers for complicated mathematical problems. But something vital is missing. It’s like: all parts of a car are intact and in good working condition..it looks good and ready to run, but without petrol, what’s the use?
Being constantly spoon-fed in our school days, we do not have to think much for what we want for ourselves. All we had to do was to follow the mainstream path that has been laid down nicely for us. We hardly have the chance to make major decisions all by ourselves - the chance to make important decisions that concern our own future, and the chance to take up the responsibility of bearing the consequences of our own actions. How many times have our decisions in the past been influenced or manipulated in some way by other external forces, like our parents and societal expectations? Maybe countless. Having being brought up in such a ‘protected’ environment where everything has been taken care of for us, we are suddenly expected to know how to manage the tons of responsibilities and decisions that come with the transition to working life.. alll these overnight. How is that possible?
We only know how to do algebra, solve complex equations, draw IS-LM curves.. no one taught us how to cope with the realities of life..how to overcome failure and how to manage our emotions. Have our parents or the society ever asked us what we really want in our life when we were young? Hardly? Never? We were not taught to think – to think about what we want to do with our own lives; life was never just about books and studying, but we didn’t know then! The path has been laid down for us..like it or not, we have to follow it.
Ask graduates out there, what are the occupations that they know of in the job market. Answers they give most probably are accountants, engineers, doctors, lawyers, IT specialists..the normal stereotypes, what else? These are the jobs that we have been taught since young as the “ideal” jobs, and we were brainwashed to look up to these jobs as GOOD jobs right from our early years of education, and to work our way towards THESE “good” jobs. Why are these jobs good? Because society tells us so. AND they tell our parents so. But does every Singaporean kid want to become a doctor or an accountant? Of course not. What about those people who have a passion for the music and the arts? Oh sorry, society says “no future”. JTB – ‘Just Too Bad’.
Prestige is prestige, happiness is happiness.,they do not always come together. We see successful working adults doing well in their areas of expertise and enjoy the social status their jobs give them, but they are not happy. Why? Because these are not the things they enjoy doing. Some people may want to move, to do things that they like, but they may not have the means and access to do so. Time doesn’t wait and we can’t turn back the clock. Parents play a very important role when their children are young; they have the power to choose whether they want to tie their children down with societal norms & opinions, or set their children free to soar into the big blue skies and let them decide for themselves where they wanna fly to. What the society sees as “right” or “good” may not suit each and every individual; it is too cruel a thing to try and force one single template on different people, which obviously do not fit.
During my schooling days, I never had to think about “my future”. What is my future anyway..it sounds so far-fetched. Anyway everyone else knows better that after primary sch comes secondary sch, and after that it’s either poly or JC followed by university. Every kid just has to follow this safe route and there’s nothing to worry about at all. When the student finally graduates, he has to get out of the comfort zone and start worrying about what job he/she wants to look for..it’s his future that we’re talking about, no joke about it. It’s scary cuz you suddenly realise you haven’t been thinking much about it and now you’re expected to produce an answer immediately. One word: LOST.
If I could turn back time, I would want to become a dancer, a professional dancer – dancing will be my career and I think it’ll definitely be very colourful and exciting. Sometimes I think it’s a pity I didn’t have the chance to pick up dance basics when I was young so I could develop my potential from there..I believe I would have done a great job. Well, it will only remain as a dream.
There’s nothing we can do about whatever that has passed, but we can start living our lives the way we want it right now. Find your hobbies and indulge in the pleasure and joy of doing what you really enjoy doing. It’s ok if I can’t become a professional dancer, but I can still dance for leisure all I want now! Do it like no one’s controlling you and telling you what to do..you decide coz it’s your life!
ConVo ConVo ConVo!
It's 14th July! HOORAaaY!!~ A day to remember - the day of my graduation. It's a time to feel good about myself.. and attempt to look good too..after I painstakingly pinned and ironed my gown until nice nice the night before..hehe. I like the pink sash a lot actually..it's very very prEtty..our gown would be quite boring without it. =D Everything's good, except for the mortar board..no way to make it look nice on me..hmm. Somehow I look quite funny with a bare forehead and with hair hanging on the two sides of my forehead. After looking at the photos I took today, still think without mortar board looks better..hehe. Anyway I had a great time taking lots of pictures today..it was most fun =)
Special mention about Shiqi.. she's one of the few Economics 1st class honours graduate and I can summarise her academic records in one word: "WOoooW". Well, because on top on that, she has won not one, but NUMEROUS special awards. So by the time the person was announcing her THIRD award (which was already ALOT), she's still not finished..while the guy sitting in front of me turned to look at his friend and gave the super stunned look.. hahaha. But shiqi didn't behave like one who walks with her nose in the air just because she's very intelligent. She wore a friendly smile on her face throughout her presence onstage and presented her speech in a sincere tone.. no "I'm so smart" look on her face, no "jia4 zi3".
It's hard to be very smart, but it's even harder to be humble when you are very smart; it's hard to be very rich, but it's even harder to be humble when you are very rich. Personally, I think humility is invaluable; it earns you the utmost respect and admiration that people willingly give. Smart people who go around telling people how smart they are as if they are so scared no one knows, and good-looking people who desperately want to show off how handsome/pretty they are, simply put others off.. whereas people who truly have what it takes but are humble about it are those who truly deserves others' admiration. This is exactly how I feel about shiqi. I admire her for her capability of coz, but I look up to her even more for her great sense of humility. Not everyone can be like her..it's not easy to keep your feet grounded, especially in our practical society which places great emphasis on grades, money and status every single minute. It's so easy to subconsiously slip into the way of becoming so self-centred (if you have assets that society values and others don't have), that you don't care about other people's emotions and feelings..so, kudos to shiqi!
Good stuff today. Except for my worst ever shopping experience at my favourite Charles&Keith. Wisma branch was very packed as usual..despite during working hours and GSS is long over. So I guess that's the main reason why the staff all looked so bek cek. And even the customer myself also have to see their "face colour". 1st - the branch was basically under-staffed; instead of staff taking initiative to serve me, I practically had to hunt for someone to get my size for me.. because it was so crowded and for one moment, they suddenly all disappeared. Nvm.
2nd - After waiting for some time, I finally managed to spot an emptyhanded staff who was about to enter the storeroom, so of coz I approached her. Guess what kind of response I got? She didn't even look at me and just waved her hand in the air and dashed into the storeroom. Hey, I was expecting to get at least an answer that's at least made up of WORDS. What kind of attitude is this? It made me feel stupid standing there and being ignored. I don't take busy getting shoes for other customers as an excuse..it's basic manners ok.
3rd - there were 2 people at the counter, and apparently one of them didn't appear to be busy. I tried alerting him twice and I believe he can hear me unless he never dig his ears properly, so I had to raise my voice and go "EXCUSE ME!" before he finally turned and looked at me. I merely asked if they have black colour for the design I showed him, he said "NO" flatly with a "salty fish face" look. Ok that's it, I had enough. I didn't even bother considering buying anything cuz I was so pissed by their attitude. I concluded it's their staff problem.. not one, but seems all of them are so unhappy to serve their customers. What lousy service. I walked out of the shop coz I didn't want them to spoil my good day any further. Btw just one word of advice I have for people in the service line: If serving a large crowd of customers is already enough to test your patience, then you are NOT suited to be here. If you think it is not your business that customers are unhappy with you, fine. Just don't forget that you also have plenty of chances to be a customer yourself, and when you are one, be prepared to be served the same way you serve your own customers.
Well well.. unhappy moments --> SHOO SHOO away! haha ;p It's been a tiring day. Rushing here and there sure takes the toll on me but I'm just glad that the convo ceremony has ended beautifully.. and I have gotten my certificate today.. thanks to my family and friends who were with me on this special occasion. Great memories for me to keep and think back on for many many years to come.. :)
What CartOOn Character Am I?
The Art of Oversocialisation
How many of us are truly thankful for all the things we have? How often do we show appreciation to our dads and mums for all the big and small things they have done for us? Or when was the last time we showed concern for our loved ones when they needed it most? Some fundamental things to ponder about when everyone seems to be so caught up in the rat race of striving for good grades and earning big bucks, so much so that ANY thing else becomes relatively less important, and EVERY thing else becomes apparently unimportant.
Most of us lead a good life here in a “first-class” city. We have handphones, even kids today have handphones too.. we have TVs, HI-FI sets, microwaves/ovens, air-conditioner, etc. and these are already considered “basics”. Water and electricity are just one press of a button away.. and btw, supply is unlimited. Life is so comfortable..we have much much more than what we really need to lead a decent life. What do we have to complain about?
At least we do not have to endure the sufferings of endless wars and live in chaos and instability like many others in other parts of the world; we enjoy peace and order in our country, which is being taken for granted. Our high standard of living gives us the means to fend ourselves from harm because we eat well and we have access to plenty of facilities. But remember there are people out there in some corner of our world who drink the same water they used to bathe themselves, and they are totally helpless when diseases attack. Thousands of people lose their lives from our so-called ‘minor’ sicknesses. When we lie comfortably under our blankets on cooling rainy days, think about the destitute who don’t even have a proper house to live in. They feel cold and insecure, but for us, we never have to worry because we have a secure roof above us and we feel warm and safe.
It remains a fact that we ARE indeed very fortunate. We are so much better off than millions or even billions around the world. We never have to search for these basic yet vital things..there were just there since the very first day and our duty was just to enjoy them. It’s understandable why we tend to neglect their importance since it sounds too far-fetched that we will ever lose them. But this doesn’t mean we have the right to take them for granted. This is exactly the reason why people nowadays are easily discontented with life. We don’t have to fight for our survival, so we are able to channel our energy to attaining material goals. Grades and money become top on our priority list and our lives begin to be organised around these superficial things. Our mentality is: everyone else seems to be in the race..the more the better, the higher the better.. if I don’t join in, I’ll lose out… I cannot lose out! But the race takes away our minds.. we lose focus, stuck in a vicious cycle, and we are willing to sacrifice a lot of things just to keep ahead of others in this ugly race.
It saddens me when I hear of people around me who fall out with their family members because of money issues.. siblings’ relationship with each other sours because of very mundane matters.. or siblings who quarrel badly over problems with taking care of their elderly parents. One question. How many fathers do we have? Two? Three? And mothers.. and siblings? Are they all over the street so we can just grab any tom, dick, harry to be our family member? It’s a sad thing when people see material things as more important than priceless human ties. Money cannot buy back a life.. If we learn to cherish some things only when we lose them, it will be meaningless.
I guess it’s only when we learn to be thankful for every single thing we have in our lives now, especially our health, that we can be contented and be truly happy. It’s ok to grumble abit.. about how our stressful school life is.. about how unreasonable our bosses are.. or how unfair this world is probably most of the time.. BUT when we are sincerely thankful for even the smallest thing we have, we can recover from our discontented thoughts quick. When we encounter “down” periods, no matter how upsetting things may appear to be, we can tell ourselves “It’s okay”, because ultimately we know we cannot be worse than say, someone in a third-world country and no matter what we STILL have a lot.
Society expects a lot from us, but it is our choice whether we want to be part of the race. It looks glam on the outside, but we never know whether it is just an empty shell on the inside. It is always the little things from the heart that do not take a lot, but means a lot to others. Money and material things only feed our impulses, but they don’t feed our hearts. Hearts are meant to be filled by love and warmth that money cannot buy. It comes from the people around us, so cherish the people around us and show them that you care. I make it a point to remember all the kind things that people have done to me.. and I’ll leave them to next time. Hugs and Kisses for now~
Congratulations...It's A Celebration!
The next thing on my agenda that I'm so looking forward to is convocation on the 14th! Congratulations to myself..yes..haha ;) Congratulations too!..to all my friends who are graduating together with me at this time.. Meihui, Weili, Liting, Mich, Joyce, Driz, Siwen, Jaclyn and many others whom I duno too..heeh. =p We have all made it here to where we are today.. and if that doesn't call for a celebration, then what else? *CHEERS GuYs!!*I'm very glad to be graduating with bell especially..we'll be wearing the gown together on the same day and getting the piece of paper that we've been working so hard towards for all our lives now.. and finally we are going to have one of our own, with our very own names printed on it..yipeee!I took half-day last thursday to collect the graduation gown with bell in the morning, and unexpectedly, it was a totally enjoyable experience. It was good to be back in sch agn; we weren't back for more tests, assignments and neverending deadlines, but this time, I felt I was finally going to be granted a pair of wings, and I'm ready to fly and soar~~ into the big blue sky =)
The hall was surprisingly empty and the entire collection process was very systematic and organised..nothing like the "crowded flea market style" that I was expecting to see..haha. Great start! So we leisurely took our time to try and choose our gowns.. everywhere I could see happy faces with light-hearted smiles.. it was sucha pleasant sight.. =D At the end of the day, I had an unexpected reward.. I decided to get a plague for myself! There were conventional designs and also those with a more modern outlook.. all of them look gorgeous! I had a great time in that 1 hr preparing stuff for my convo, and the school staff were very nice too.. they were very patient and friendly while serving us, and their smiles seemed to convey a contratulatory message, like they were equally happy for us too! So when the plague thing came, I thought why not? I wanted to get one not to please anyone, in fact mom thought I didn't need it. But I felt good about my graduation, and it is something that calls for a celebration, so I think the plague came just the right time! A bachelor's degree is ordinary compared to other degrees, but it IS a personal achievement for me.. and I'm really very happy and contented to have come this far.. having accomplished what I have basically set out to achieve in my past 15 years of education. A plague looks good, and displaying it will help to remind myself of my good old years in school. ;)I don't care how much this piece of paper is worth in the job market now, that's something I can't control, but all I want to care about now is to have a good time at convo, taking lots and lots of pictures..that's what I can do! It'll be a great chance for my family to get together, a happy occasion to get papa, mama, sis and myself a tad excited! 10 more days to go!
