October

1 year 3 months into my time in the current company & the current job. Things have changed a great deal during this period of time. Last October, things were still chaotic, extremely stressful & unfulfilling.

This October brought with it new challenges in different areas. Somehow I find it difficult to say that I don't enjoy my current work given the diversity it sometimes offers me; way beyond what a usual HR person would get. Among the usual list of things, I help plan ahead by making recommendations for the future (though not all gets accepted); go for mega conferences & events by world-renowned speakers in the field; mingle with others from the same sector and colleagues from other areas esp. when we cross each other's paths to get a particular plan through.
All in all, still a lot to learn from. Not only in work, but more from how to deal with people.

This October would see 3 major events:

• the hosting of foreign guests at meeting & me as liaison officer tag
• invitation of Dave Ulrich to give a talk at our site sometime this month &
• secretariat & presenter for our monthly Human Capital Meeting.

A whole series of new challenges & a very tight timeline to deliver. They are still not impossible, but not entirely easy to deliver. As the clock counts down to the dates of each event, I'm both excited and fearful. Even before I get started, the stress already threathens to overwhelm.

I will get though this in one piece, like i always have, and come out a better and stronger person. More skills, more adaptablity and more experienced.

Short muses on my vacation

Been gazillion years since I wrote on this blog or even paid it any attention... Was rather surprise to see that it still existed.

Blogspot decided I might still come back after all... or perhaps such musings have some value to the site. I don't know.

Have been sometime since I started working already. Been about... say almost close to a year? Ups and downs. Not that easy to explain either. Think the hardships were mainly becos I wasn't use to how work was going to be like. Going in with the wrong perceptions.. and even thinking that work could be stimulating.

Like real....

Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh, 05 May - 09 May 08

Just came back from a trip over a week in Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh city). Shopping was a bit bad though. Had expected to come back with truckloads of stuff. Didn't manage to though. Hate it when a place becomes too touristy. Things sold are catered to the tourist market. Somehow the city seems to be sort of disjointed... Any development you see most likely sprang out of the tourist dollars that was pumped in by people bored of visiting the conventional Thailand for shopping (me included).

Shops like these were common in HCMC and they serve the local fares such as pho-bo etc on their menu.

What results is an interesting mix in the landscape of the city - high-rise air-conditioned buildings and cafes on one side against the roadside stalls that the everyday Vietnamese would patronize. The difference in prices, could be substantial. We decided to try out one of these shops for their ca-phe sua (local milk coffee). We were paying twice or thrice more for the same thing in cafes that cater mainly to tourist or the upper middle class locals.

Iced coffee at a roadside stall opposite a school after our visit to the museum.

One of the key takeaways we had for this trip was to cross the roads bravely. Drivers here at HCMC are always on alert for pedestrians and motorcyclists that frequently zip out of nowhere. There seems to be little point in following the signals (red, green or yellow there's always cars/motocycles on the move). Just cross and they'll avoid you naturally. Panick, and you're likely to get knocked over.

Another point to note, perhaps you would like to pick another time to visit Vietnam. It was HOT, HOT, HOT while we were there. Temperatures averaged 34 - 35 degrees everyday. I came down with a heatstroke. The trip was an eye-opening experience, and allowed us to see the city in the hot summer heat and through torrential rains typical during this period.

Waiting for the rain to end at the Ben Thant market

I was never very much of a blogger in the first place. Now with work... think the amount of bloggin would drop tremendously. I will still make an effort to drop by and leave a few rods no doubt; as and when I can stole the time.

Work turned out to be a lot different from school and very tiring as well. Long hours in front of the screen, moving from task to task and disrupted occasionally by phone calls and meetings and what have-you...
And when the day ends, you're probably too tired to do anything else. Even if you aren't, the thought about having to turun up at work again and the amount of energy and level of attention needed at work would just put you off entirely for a night out in town. I guess everybody faces the same problem as well...

Still doing the things I love and busting my dollars at dance as well. Dancing brought me and J back together after our break-up and the entire halabaloo that we both went through brought us one level closer to each other than before. He's become a pillar of support after a long day at work or whenever I am going through a rough time. Its a fact that I've gotten so used to having him around its hard to imagine a life without him again. Something I wouldn't want to have to go through a second time. And yes, I love the man.

Leaving school and transiting into work life is quite a change. Hardly had a chance to read... which is a very bad thing. Could already feel my brains turning into mush. Wanted to do mask today... still haben do yet. sigh...

Was listening to the Elton John's "Candle in the Wind" playing on my hi-fi as I surfed through the net.

Then I stumbled on a documentary that's meant to be aired today on Channelnewsasia's website:

Embracing romance and basking in luxury, her jet-set lifestyle is the stuff of
fantasy. One year after her divorce with Prince Charles, Diana is living life to
the full, amid the constant glare of publicity, in the company of Dodi Al Fayed,
son of international business tycoon Mohammed Al Fayed.
Accompanying the
lovers from the palm trees of Saint Tropez to the sparkling streets of Paris,
this powerful and emotive film reveals the key moments leading up to their
death. Ten years after the fatal crash that stunned the world, interviews and
compelling full-scale drama capture the final days of one of the 20th Century's
greatest icons

So its been ten years since I last bought this CD. Ten years... has it really been that long?...

You Are a Good Friend Because You're Supportive

You are almost like a life coach for your best friends. You give them help when they need it... but you also know when to give them a push. People tend to rely on you for moral support and advice. You've probably always been mature for your age, so this is a role that's you're comfortable with. A friend like you is one of the rarest kinds. You are both a good mentor and companion. Your friends need you most when: They are confused or worried You really can't be friends with: Someone who only wants to complain Your friendship quote: "The only way to have a friend is to be one."

What Makes You a Good Friend?

大战小强

I really really dun like 小强s... They unnerve me and they disgust me. Those tiny feathery legs running across your body is a disgusting thought. My disgust for them increased from the day I realize they could fly... oh shit..

So when the health authorities decide to fumigate my rubbish chute this afternoon; I knew I was in for trouble. True enough, the 小强s started to crawl upwards and into any crevices they could find to escape the fumes. Since our family did not install the flushed rubbish chute designs that were designed to keep out these pests and the fumes.. The 小强s came into the house.

Round 1 begins... Shieldtox the opening of the chute (not very helpful but hopefully deter more from entering). Guard the chute opening and Shieldtox any of those creepy crawlies that were unfortunate enough to choose my house to get away from the fumes.
Stomped on the bigger ones with the slippers I was wearing. YUCKS!

And I thought they stopped coming. I was wrong... Round 2... Bigger 小强s. OMG!! Somehow they look a bit different from when they're older. The older ones have wings on their backs, the young seemed to have segments for their bodies. Little sections... eeeeeeeeeeeeee.

Maybe I should have given a more serious thought about convincing my parents to install a good rubbish chute...

You Are a Natural Flirt

Believe it or not, you're a really effective flirt. And you're so good, you hardly notice that you're flirting. Your attitude and confidence make you a natural flirt. And the fact that you don't know it is just that more attractive!

What Kind of Flirt Are You?

You Have Your PhD in Men

You understand men almost better than anyone. You accept that guys are very different, and you read signals well. Work what you know about men, and your relationships will be blissful.

How Well Do You Understand Men?

Wahahaha!!! I still don't think I understand men at all.

You May Be a Bit Borderline...

Your mood swings make a roller coaster look tame! When you're up, you're a little bit crazy... And when you're down, your whole world is crashing Scary thing is, these moods can change by the minute!

What Personality Disorder Are You?

Take note and beware...