never burn bridges

keep bridges well

no river will only be crossed once in life

I have to admit that I've been blessed with helpful colleagues and seniors in my previous job.
Of course, they were a few nasty ones but they're not worth to be mentioned.

Those who helped me grow.
Those who inspired me to think and solve problems like an engineer.
Those who taught me to be tough.
Those who covered my ass when there were holes in my pants.
Those who helped justify my sickies to the boss when I wasn't really sick - just sick of work.
Those who came up with excuses for me when I decided to 'work-from-home'.
Those who shared their experience unconditionally.
Those who shared knowledge on investment, insurance, tax return, etc.
Those who served as my talking encyclopedia, allowing me to be reliant on them for quick answers.
Those who taught me to save on household bills.
Those who made working hours seem short and fun.

I miss them all!

Everyone who has asked about my new job - family, friends, ex-colleagues - would have heard stories about my current incompetent team leader.

While family and friends provide a pair of listening ears, a pair of reading eyes, and some words of wisdoms, ex-colleagues have come about with job opportunities for me.

Each time I speak to my ex-senior, he'd ask if I'd like to return to the company.
The answer is always No. Haha. I can't see myself turning back to the path I left behind.
Though I really miss working with them, the key is to advance and not look back.

A senior I've worked with in a joint venture project has also told me about job opportunities in his company. I've missed the Linkedin message until 2 months later. Woops...

Recently, another ex-senior has informed me of a job opening in his company. I've decided to try my luck this time.
It's not a guarantee that grass will be greener on the other side, but where I am now, the grass isn't any greener either. I've got nothing to lose.

People say, wherever you go, never burn bridges.

My experience proves that any river would be crossed more than once in life.
Keep the bridges and keep them well, so no repair is required when you need to cross that particular river again.

strange fate

something more than stranger

For 3 Mondays in a row...

Same time.

Same train line.

Same 4th upper carriage from the front.

Same 3 grannies.

Different starting point.

Different destination.

Different reasons for being in the 4th carriage.

Different concerns for choosing the upper carriage.

Funny how little things like these, could make people cross paths.

This scene is a kind of comfort which reminds me of popo at home.

They've unintentionally become my 'companions' to start off the week. 

Hope to see them for as many Mondays to come, in healthy shape and size.

leader with ego

ego and good leadership don't function together

So, we haven't spoken more than 5 sentences in the 3.5 days since he came back from holidays.
A very apparent sign of a strained work-relationship. Hehehe.

Him: How was your Melb trip?
Me: Ok.

Him: Are you checking those drawings?
Me: Yes I will. But not now.

Him: Have you submitted the form?
Me: I did.
Him: You didn't copy me in the email so I wasn't aware.
Me: Ok.

Me: You can have a look at the Appendix first.
Him: Ok. I'll look at it tomorrow.

There's nothing healthy with the way we're communicating now.
He is obviously pissed at something.
But who cares? LOL.

The story is, he did a crap job on one of the projects and it attracted few criticisms on the work he produced. As a team leader, even if you didn't produce those crap, you automatically absorb the blames anyway. What more the situation now is, he did those crap and he is also the leader. Double shot. Lalala.

The criticisms were raised when he was on holidays so we picked up his mess and got it sorted before he returned. For him to apply the silent treatment on me (specifically) is totally understandable. He must have thought I'm all above his head now and he has nowhere to stand as a leader. So it's a mixture of embarrassment and ego in his attitude. He's also 'punishing' me silently by refusing to assist me or provide input/comments on anything.

Now, he doesn't bother checking on the progress of the amendments under way - started the crap and won't participate in rectifying it. He doesn't bother checking on the progress of all other projects. He just sits muted and rooted to his desk. That's okay. The more jobs I got done without his assistance, the more he would feel he's hopeless and redundant in this office.

I'm enjoying the sight of him:
- Being emo at his little corner
- Being very uninformative (as usual) that no one bothers asking him anything
- Being not useful to the team cos he can't give proper technical advice, he can't lead the team, he can't guide the team, he can't do his own work correctly, he can't convince us that he knows his stuff.

Somehow he has to wake up from his slackness, recklessness, and hopelessness.

What a start to 2016.....it's just the beginning.

randomness

be naturally random

Yesterday, the admin very randomly asked if I know who Coco Chanel is.

I said yes.

I thought she was going to say something along the lines of 'you are what you look'.

She then read out loud to me.

'Dress shabbily and they remember the dress; dress impeccably and they remember the woman.'

I quickly took a look at my attire.

Ok. I don't think I'm dressing shabbily. At least not today. Haha. But I shall bear this quote in mind.

Today, I went to her to take a photo of the Coco Chanel quote.
It was already in the bin.
She is someone who keeps no rubbish and deals with no shit.
Someone who dumps things (and emotions) easily. The good thing is she forgets them easily too.

She then told me today's quote was rubbish but Monday's is meaningful.
I couldn't agree more. :)

Around tea time, I heard minor explosions from the kitchen.
A suspicious blue packet was popping in the microwave oven.
It was her and her randomness again.
She said when she ordered milk this morning, she came across popcorns and decided to add them into the cart.
Suddenly, the office smelled like a cinema. Hehe.

Things won't be the same without her in the office. 

I like randomness.