RACONTEUR-ESQUE SCRIBBLINGS

And probably in the wrong time... I made a sudden decision some time ago to register with an online job search service in order to look for some freelance and part time writing gigs. It was a tough process determining what category to put myself into - should I look for something technical, or try out editing, etc, but I made it as wide ranged as possible, because at the end of the day, it would be me who filters through the vacancies to choose what to apply for. I got the first ever job notification a few hours ago - and they're apparently looking for an assistant editor (hardly looks freelance or part time to me), but here's the catch... It's for the Chinese Language Edition of the Magazine. And I don't even speak the language. Oh well, I'm sure others will surface soon enough :)

In just three days, the nation will be celebrating the 52nd Independence day from the British after they (the British) seemed to have lost interest in the Asian nations for several reasons that I can't really recall but which I could recite without any problem about 12 years ago when I used to be 'ahem' book smart ;) In the old days, we looked at Independence day with awe, at home and at school. I remember getting up early as a child to watch the parades on TV (I should ask my mom why she made it a point to wake us up to watch it, though - on a public holiday of all things!), and I even used to be able to sing along to the particular year's chosen song. I drew the flag, even if I never got the 14 points of the star symmetrical enough and put it in front of the house because we didn't have a cloth flag back then. Independence day or Merdeka (as we call it) used to be something to really look forward to. These days, other than it being a public holiday (long weeke...

So, it's been 5 days since I took an unofficial, unannounced break from blogging, which when you come to think of it, wasn't that much of a break seeing that I had actually written about 2 unpublished posts (because I never completed them) and that I kept visiting to stalk other blogs, as well as to reply to comments. The only way I would totally disappear from this world which I have become so dependent on for the sake of my sanity is if I were totally disconnected from the internet like I was somewhere around this time last year. I had some sort of minor withdrawal symptom back then. Anyway, just to get back into the groove (this is all for the added drama effect, but then since I had missed out on 5 days events - not that my life is eventful in any way, in fact it is so dead boring that I am sometimes amazed at the fact that I can spew out so many things here on the blog... some that I'm okay with, and some that I regret putting up a few days later...) I thought that I...

If life were a sitcom, then yesterday would have been the season's special episode for physical comedy. Falling down or hurting myself in a comedic way has been a part of my life since I can remember, the worst of the lot being the time when my left heel gave way on a stationary escalator and I literally tumbled down it, scaring all the people who were there, destroying my sister's pants and scraping the skin off my shins which took forever to heal. This happened way back in 2004, but the scars are still visible, albeit slightly. I must also hold the record for being the one and only person to have sprained my ankle before entering a jungle for some training, or to have dropped a box set of books on someone's head (she shouldn't have been sneaking a read under the shelf of the bookstore, though - so maybe I was just the channel karma used to hit the person), and I'm also capable of making any ballerina turn green with envy at my ability to do a pirouette in a ...

It was hardly expected the first time around that a certain game that goes around by the name Risk could twirl me round it's fingers (if it had any, that is) so easily because I was never one for large group games - once again being a loner of sorts. It took just one game over the bed in one of the rooms during the trip to Kuching to get me and a few other first timers hooked. Now, a game like Risk is the kind of game that gets better the more players there are, and for that very reason, when JV suggested that we reunite to play again, I jumped with joy (not literally, of course) at the idea. Our little game started at JV's house, and there were only 5 of us, including JV's cousin who was playing for the first time. So naturally, she had 1 seasoned veteran teaching her, and 3 other wannabe veterans attempting to teach her the game amidst laughter and chips! She got hooked as well! Of course JV aced the game quietly and stealthily while the rest of us looked on in horror a...

In the middle of our small circle was a rectangular blue tank/pool filled with water, with things bobbing around it - flags on floats as path markers. We all had some small polystyrene hemispheres which had to be filled with the perfect combination of materials (which were provided) to enable the hemispheres to balance themselves and move along with with the current in the tank. However, this seemed much more challenging that it seemed, and after a few trials and errors, one of our team members had managed to get the right combination which he then proceeded to teach the rest of us who were there by accident as we were supposedly supposed to play a game of Risk! On another day, I was very inconveniently informed that I was required to travel to another country at the very last minute. Grabbing my suitcase, I rushed with another person who seemed to be in the same boat as me. Somehow, without going through normal airport security, we managed to land in that other country with a whole ...

Every year, towards the end of July or early August, about 200 people will be jumping with some excitement over the annual company event which either consists of a casual outing (usually to a water based theme park) or a dinner where people dress their best and eat boring sharks fin soup . I used to wonder what it is about shark fin's soup that leaves people in awe... it tastes pretty normal and each time they bring the dish to the table my thoughts go to the shark that lost it's fin, all bleeding and falling deep into the ocean floor as it can't swim. Then it dies. But I digress... This year, nobody really jumped. The trip to Tambun was looked on as an inconvenience as it involved a 2 to 2.5 hour drive one way, and us needing to stay there. Of course those who work in the company had everything sponsored except for travelling expenses, but parents had to pay for their kids - especially if they're above 90 cm. In the end, not that many people went. (Oh, they decide...

Re-post from the old blog: August 1st 2005 I wrote this about 4 years ago, after the very first company event I attended. The reason for this re-post is that I just very recently went for this year's event and haven't been able to post it up yet because everything is still scattered all over the place in what I'd call my brain. The sun was shining brightly and everyone was happy…. that was last Saturday, when the company I work in had their first ever family day at Desa waterpark. (Actually it is the first ever Family Day I participated in - they might have had others before I joined) I was a bit apprehensive at going at first due to the fact that I can’t swim and that I also have the buoyancy of a stone. Sucks huh? Anyway I went, because this was also the first ever company organised thing I was going for, and I figured, if there was nothing much I could do, there was always the alternative of observing people which would have been interesting… hehehe (the evil gears ...

Over the weekend, while certain people were busy being unintentionally ignorant of the going ons around them, the streets of KL were abuzz with a peaceful rally against the ISA . Now, the keyword here is peaceful, and although we know that things can turn from peaceful to nasty in a matter of seconds (for instance the lion which seems so docile but suddenly decides to attack it's trainer) , the police actually started with roadblocks on Friday night itself. On Saturday, apparently even more police personnel were deployed to various areas where the rally was supposed to take place and there was even backing up from the FRU . It's interesting to note that demonstrations/rallies/marches/protests are deemed illegal in this beloved nation of ours, and therefore despite the numerous press releases and the assurance that this one was going to be peaceful (after all, it is a large group of people marching to give a memorandum to the palace) it was still illegal, and therefore the peo...