redundancy

cruel truth - only the good ones are allowed to stay

Last Friday, my team leader requested to have a chat with me.
Gahhhhhh.......shoot me please! I dislike talking to him in person.

He broke the news to me that he has been made redundant.

Not that I was expecting this to happen, but it didn't came as a surprise to me either.
Perhaps I was too caught up emotionally with the fact that Derek's leaving, I don't know.

I could only manage, 'Oh okay.'
I know it sounds emotionless and uncompassionate, just couldn't help it Lol.
My heart has turned cold for him.

He asked me to provide feedback on how he could improve for his future roles.
He said in his TWENTY years of career, he hasn't come across a work-relationship as strained as ours - he wants to know what and where went wrong.

Well, in my SEVEN years of career experience, I haven't come across someone who's so difficult to work with and at the same time incompetent. Usually, people are difficult because they know too much but he is the total opposite.

With 20 years of experience, he should be Principal or Manager and be telling people what and how to do things. Not just sit around and give excuses like 'I haven't done this before' and 'I'm new to this'.
It feels like he hibernated for 10 years in between those years.

I really hope he can improve but I do need to maintain professionalism hence I can't be too blunt with my words.

The only thing I told him was to not contradict himself.
Be sure of the information he is giving out. Don't say one thing today and another tomorrow. If unsure, just don't say anything, so that people don't get confused (and f**ked up) because of his contradicting words. It's hard to progress if he keeps changing his mind (reason why I can't work with you because uncertainties drive me MAD haha) while nothing's fixed  - it's a waste of time and effort (and after all the wasted time, don't fking send emails and cc everyone above reminding me of deadlines; indirectly holding me responsible for the missed deadline - such a cowardly behaviour for a team leader).

Thanks to my EQ, I didn't utter the sentences in brackets above. Lol.
They were already at the end of my tongue.

I guess it all goes back to the fact that he doesn't know his stuff.
How can one be sure of anything if he knows nothing?

I hope he finds himself a job which can relate to his 20 years' experience and be a more 'useful' engineer.
All the best to him (and his future colleagues too of course).

farewell

a hard goodbye deserves a smile because it happened, 

not because it ended

Got to the office at 10am yesterday.
Had a quick breakfast, checked emails, and calendar.
There was a meeting invitation for 'Derek's farewell presentation' at 11am.

His reaction to the invitation was Do we really need this? Are you people trying to embarrass me on my last day? Wanna see me tear up?

Ann told him to bring a box of tissues with him. Lol. How supportive is that?

I thought he was joking about tearing.
He has always been the rational, calm, and no-worries kinda person. The last thing I'd expect from him is being emotional.

By the time I sent out two emails, it's 11am. Time for the presentation. He went into the boardroom with a box of tissues. Lol.

screen showing how he looks like in review meetings - where engineers get grilled

He's leaving Sydney for good and also resigned from the company he has worked for for 30 years.

All for the sake of his passion in engineering - to make things happen. He's going to work on a project to put a $2 billion pounds tunnel under the renown Stonehenge site.

He said if not because of the project, he would not have made the decision to leave Sydney. The last 1 year had been the best 1 year of his life. And he'll definitely be back in the future.

And he started tearing...........omg!
Haha.

Only so far written by half the office and it's already 80% filled.

The A3 farewell card. Not the typical 'All the best and good luck' wishes. The long messages show just how much he means to us :(

After the presentation, he spent a few mins on his own in the boardroom to straighten up. Haha.

At 2pm, he decided to go for drinks as he couldn't concentrate while being emotional.
He told me to join him if I want to, whenever.
I couldn't concentrate either. There's always Monday to do all the works isn't it? Lol.
So I went down to join him and Ann.

He told me when he first decided to come to Sydney, his brother-in-law warned him that Sydney is the place on earth where once you step foot on, it's hard for you to leave.
He didn't believe him.
Now that he needs to leave, he couldn't agree more.
The weather, the city, the people, the neighbourhood, the blue skies, the culture, the simplicity, and so much more...
He is leaving with a heavy heart.

He was the person who interviewed me for my role, hence was the first person I met from the company.
He taught me to love what I do and do it well.
He told me to be great at what we do and be proud of it.
He bought me a plant to 'green' up my desk.

When I left the farewell party that night, his last words for me were, 'You be good' in which I replied, 'I will.'

It was a short 12 months encounter but a very memorable one.

Thanks for being a part of my career journey. You will be missed.

quiet day at work

aura - flows from within and radiates outwards

Yesterday...

Admin: I'm leaving now. Are you okay, missy? You seem quiet today. 
Me: Did I?
Admin: Yea. You haven't spoken a word today.
Me: Haha. Cos you told me not to talk to you today, right? So you can get your work done.
Admin: Oh ya. Okay. 
Director: Are you sure it's because of that? She hasn't been singing all day either. She was singing for the last 3 days. 

For someone who is insensitive and pays no attention to details, my silence must be very obvious for him to notice.
I did find the songs on my playlist crappy yesterday. Not sure why I did not sing though. Didn't realise until he mentioned. Lol.
As for not talking, that's true too. Not because she told me not to. I just didn't feel like it.
Wasn't expecting them to feel the aura, it must be too strong to ignore. Haha.

A couple of days ago, out of randomness...

Admin: You know, when I get old, I'm just gonna be like an owl.
Me: Owl?
Admin: Ya owl.
Me: Why's that?
Admin: Well, don't you realise they just sit on a branch all day and not make a noise? I guess I'm just gonna be like that.
Me: .....Okay.....good on you. (*can you be more random*)
Director: So, are you gonna be able to turn your head 360 degrees like an owl too?

LOL!!!!

Admin: Ohh! That's not the point! You're always here to spoil everything!

From wanting to be a quiet owl, the conversation ended with her on top of her lungs and the director laughing happily because he successfully annoyed her.

Such is a typical day at work with Derek around.

A dramatic and loud blonde admin.
A sarcastic, humorous, and wise old man.
A calm and quiet me.
Not sure how the dynamic works with this combo...but it worked out well.

When Derek leaves, I'm so gonna miss the random conversations and dramas three of us had in the cubicle we share.

instafeel

friends who are connected by heart

Miss Petite texted me out of the blue today because of the photo above which I posted on instagram.

We don't normally text each other but she asked a random question which kinda caught me off-guard and by surprise - her 6th sense is creepy. Hahaha. The question was triggered by the photo but was unrelated to the photo at all. Wonder how that happens...

Hopefully she's the first and last to ask this, for now. Haha.

Months ago when I posted this, she texted me too.

Funny how her senses are connected to mine through photos. She does 'feel' me well. Haha. Ladies and their 6th sense are no joke.

le meridien chiang rai

expensive doesn't always mean good

Woke up to this dirty water view overlooking a hazy river on the last day of my 15 days holiday. 

Lots to share but little time to write. Haha. 

Le Meridien Chiang Rai. Not something I'll recommend to people.

No daily newspaper.

Receptionists/Room service speaks below average English.

Room phone with biscuit crumbs on it.

Provides homebrand toiletries set. 

stained glass door at the restaurant

Dirty and stained doors at the buffet restaurant.

Took 15 mins to deliver a bottle opener.

Replaced all towels when not told to do so - what's with the environmental-friendly reminders in the room when your staff don't even follow simple NO-instruction.

At 6 times the street price, it serves the worst khaosoy among all the others I had in Chiang Rai.

And it's located so far away from the town centre.

Any small hotels with high ratings on Agoda could have done better than this hotel.

Definitely has low value for money.

make a stand

make a stand for ourselves and others, for the change we want to see in the world

Came across this page from Brave by Margie Warrell.

"...make a stand for something: for the values we care about, for the difference we want to make, for the causes we believe in and for the injustice we don't."

This reminds me of the people whom I've come across in life.

Those who do not stand for themselves.

Those who see wrong and not make it right - just because minding their own business is the best for them, but is it the best for others?

Those who blindly apply 'let it go' for most things in life - it makes peace and makes you look like a saint for the moment but it does not change anything for the better or make a difference.

I was assigned a window seat on my flight to Yangon. As we were the last few to board the flight, there was already a Burmese guy on my seat. Oh well, I'm an aisle person so it doesn't really matter if the window seat was taken - middle seat won't make any difference.

So I sat on his middle seat instead. Not long after, there was an announcement specifically reminding passengers to be seated at their allocated seats and changing seats are not allowed.

Haha. Okay. It must have happened so frequently on this route that such reminder is required. After hearing the announcement, so many thoughts ran through my head.

- What's the consequence of changing seats?
- What happens if the flight attendants found out? I'm gonna argue that they were the one who didnt make sure he sits on his own seat.
- Do I ask him to surrender my window seat? (But I don't want to change seat cos he looks oily and smells of something, it's better if he stays where he is)
- Do I tell him that I'm aware that he has taken my seat but it's no biggy? (Just so he knows that he is on the wrong seat)
- Would he get annoyed and stab me with a knife?
- Could he pass the security scans with a knife on him? What is impossible in Msia?

I decided to close my eyes and go to sleep. Hahaha.

While waiting for the plane to take off, he was constantly on the phone, texting or taking selfie. I wonder if the AirAsia staff were his friends that they all deliberately missed him when doing the routine seatbelt and electronic devices check. Wth...

This joker was still texting and taking videos when the safety demonstration took place. I was freaking annoyed because I am kiasi. What impact could an electronice device have on the take off? I have no idea. But if they set out a reminder, there ought to be reasons for it.

So when the joker was not aware, I pressed the 'assistance' button. Hahaha. The steward came over, I pretended like it wasn't me who press it. Then he saw the joker with the phone and told him to switch it off. He did as told...for a few seconds before he turned it on again. Zzzz.

He continued recording video of the take off. I couldn't stand it anymore. Wtf....I should have taken the window seat from him. So I tapped on his shoulders and told him no handphone. He said Okok.

After few seconds, he took out his phone again and gave me the "quiet" sign - signalling me not to tell the staff. Zzzz. At that moment, I gave up. I could only pray that the plane will take off safely and I don't end up dying because an idiot decided to record video of the take off.

If only he speaks english or chinese, I would have told him that nobody will ever watch his stupid video because it was recorded at an angle, it gives headache, and YouTube has better videos...most importantly, he is putting everyone's life at risk (I think? Haha).

As I'm still able to write this post, it means the plane took off and landed safely. Hehe. But it doesn't mean that what he did was right. Getting away once means he might repeat this in future. Ya it was a peaceful ending for us, but does it change anything for the better?

The next time around, I will let whoever know that he is on the wrong seat but he can continue to enjoy the window seat if he wants to. If he is keen, I will give him a lesson on how to read the tickets and take the right seat. And handphone is strictly prohobited during take off and landing!

"...fall mindlessly into the path of least resistance, maximum self-interest and minimal contribution...contributes little to the welfare of others..."

It's easier to close an eye on issues than to stand and voice out our views (not in a critical manner) for the betterment of others. Wrong application of 'letting go' of issues could lead to ignorance.

Everyone plays a part in making the world a better place. Don't keep mum when you could have made things change for the better.

myanmar 2016 - Day 5

when you travel, you voluntarily get pushed to the limits

This is by far the dirtiest feet photo I've ever taken in my history of feet-photos. This is not a pair of tanned feet. It's a pair of mud and dusts-covered feet.

Just when you think it's the dirtiest it could get, it got worse each day.

I kept comparing my feet to the locals' as somehow theirs were not as dirty - I'd say clean. How did we end up with so much dirt? Lol.

It's either we haven't mastered the skill of not catching dusts on our feet or because we have fairer feet than theirs so the dusts become obvious.

Shoes are not allowed in all monasteries, temples, and pagodas. As most of the sightseeing places are either monastery, temple or pagoda, it means we walked barefeet most of the time. Apparently in Myanmar, socks are part of shoes too. So no socks allowed! Wtf...

The 40 degrees weather isn't helping! The floor is scorching hot! Marble, wood, cement, stone, tar, sand, wild grass, you name it - apart from being hot, they sometimes come with pokey elements too. It's like undergoing a perseverance, patience, and determination test.

After 5 days, blisters developed under my feet due to the hot grounds. I so had enough of all these feet-burning sites. Thankfully, we'll be having 1.5 days break from temples and pagodas or else I'll go berserk.

Apart from dirt and blisters, there are also mozzy bites and bruises everywhere on my legs. Goodbye fair and smooth princess legs. Hahaha.

The weather was so hot that a layer of mist/cloud formed at the horizon. Otherwise, sunset would have been better.

Sunset - U-Bein Bridge.

Dinner was half cup of Nescafe and 2 biscuits. Haha. Didn't have appetite and got sick of the local food.

Missing Sydney and Tibet.

Price Guide:
Whole day driver costs to Amarapura, Sagaing, and Ava = 45000 kyat + 5000 kyat tips.
Boat to Ava = 1000 kyat per person return.
Horse cart at Ava = 5000 kyat per person. 
Lunch burmese food = 3733 kyat per person.

(1200 kyat = 100USD)