+ Work | Farewell Boss

Have been very preoccupied with lots of stuff happening at the office both mentally and physically.

Today, I bid farewell to my Operations Director as it was his last day with the company of 19 years.

Also today, I bid farewell to our Quality Manager of 6.5 years too.

Today really suck! The whole Engineering Office was somber and not much work done. Mentally we were drained when we see the two anchor people leave us the same day.

What an impact that did to our morale. Not much say about where the company is heading. This sucks!

As everyone was preoccupied with the farewell lunch and the plague as a gesture of appreciation to our OD, our QA Manager sprung a last minute surprise on us to inform he was leaving the same day.

Since the QA Engineers under him was not doing anything with such short notice, I got permission from our Operations Manager to take time off work for an hour to get a plaque for our him as well.

Went to Royal Selangor Pewter at Raffles City Shopping Mall to pick a plague and headed-off to ST Ming Souvenirs at Orchard Plaza in Orchard Road to have it inscribed an appreciation note on it.

Had my lunch at Burger King while the plaque was being engraved, while the whole lot of people attended our OD Farewell lunch at a Chinese restaurant where they presented the rather large and very expensive plague to our OD.

We presented a small token of our appreciation to the QA Manager a our before the day ended. Took lots of pictures with both of them using my Sony Ericsson's cell phone camera.

Unfortunately I cannot post the photos as I would then be divulging too much information on company affairs and may get myself in trouble quickly, who knows?

Parting with such a heavy heart. All the years working together, my OD knows my capability and really appreciated all my service and efforts by rewarding my handsomely with salary.

I feel that with the parents gone away from the house forever, we are expose defenceless against invading force to break and tear the family and house down. We are at their mercy since the house belongs to them.

I have been working without management's foresight and direction for some months now and it is getting harder to wake up in the morning and drag myself to work. I work one day at a time which is such a terrible way to live everyday.

Today is nothing, but come Monday next week and the weeks ahead, our fate will be revealed as the force occupies the higher ranks and authority.

I already have a backup plan and am executing it as I feel my time with the company is also limited to a few months before I finally have to take the "big leap" and do the same as my managers.

All I have to do are primarily 2 things. Firstly to secure the jobs for 4 Engineers under my charge with HQ projects and stabilize my backup plan as quickly. Once done, I will make that "big leap" into the abyss - the unknown world outside electronics manufacturing.

The Almighty provides; we must put the effort to achieve our plan; God decides. Good luck to me. Amin.

+ Shop | Our Own

Yes! Finally... after so much time spent searching for our first-time ever shop for my wife's little business is finally over.

Last two weekends, my wife found and ad that wished to sublet a shop space at Bugis Village - a haven for accessories and unique finds. The human traffic there is incredible. Hope the buying power is too.

She went alone at first to take a look at the location and enquired about the requirements. She must have impressed the lady owner to consider us among the other 4 contenders.

I went with her on Saturday afternoon, 11 March 2006 and met with the owner. She was nice and seemed sincere.

To impress her further, we gave our online store website Chic Couture, well... blog-site actually, and our proposal of the intended layout that we are considering base on the square feet given. We submitted it the next day.

The monthly rent was reasonable and very competitive in fact, but not without the very fierce competition offering more than we could afford.

To sustain, we figured that as long as we have our merchandise unique with a matching price tag, the pie is big enough for everybody there.

Before we could call her to inform her of our submission on Monday, she called my wife in the morning to inform us of the good news.

We signed the agreement today for the length of 3 months trial period extend-able yearly if we wish to continue. Went off to buy our display racks and cloths for the layout at Jalan Sultan and Ikea.

Though it is only a 60 square feet space, we intend to maximise the area we have, to be able to display as many as we can without a cluttering look.

It is a very interesting proposition and maybe my career path to be in business when I decide to leave my manufacturing job.

We need to work hard and make good, informed choices as best we can for a smooth path to establish ourselves in the retail business.

Hope we can persevere through to stabilize and grow.

+ Life | And Death

Overwhelming feeling it seems. Lately, I have been swamped with the news of demise. My colleagues at work and friends I know, are in morning over their loss.

Since I can remember working here, I have always been the one who prints out condolence letters and go around collecting contributions for the bereaved colleagues in the office and production floor.

I would be one of the guys who would attend the funeral to pass the contributions to them. I do not know why, but I feel that it is their time of need however small a contribution of my efforts could provide.

These two weeks have been the peak of such news. People under my charge have their Grandmother and father passed on. A few days later, my boss lost his grandmother, but before that an office colleague on the 4th floor lost her mother.

Since I have been feeling quite down with all sad occasions, last night I received and email from a dear friend who is loosing her adopted father.

I wrote her something I have never written before, but could not totally relate to as I have never lost someone close to be before. So the magnitude of the feeling of lost has not strike me yet. I hope I will not go through it, but that is not life.

As I wrote the reply to her, I realised that, that was how I view it. It has always been never thought through for me, but that was how I view it.

I wrote that it is a journey of life that everyone has to go through... alone. It is a frightening path to cross over, but it would think it would be easier to cross to the hereafter with the love and warmth of the people you love surrounding him, to give him strength to make that leap.

I may be wrong and it may totally be untrue, but that is how I would want to feel when it is my time. There may be a lot of things that I cannot complete, and a lot of wrongs I cannot make right again before I go, but if I can feel the love and warmth of the people I care surrounding me, I would feel closure and gain strength to leave.

The rest of the journey will be between me and The Almighty. The good deeds I have done, my contributions on earth to myself, my wife, my child, my parents, my siblings, my neighbours, the society at large and to my God.

This is the journey I have to take alone. Only the sincere prayers of my child and wife, my parents and love ones will lighten my sins to face Him.

This is an emotional post for me. I feel that I have to do it for my own sanity and to lift my spirits up amidst all these mounting load at the workplace...

What was with the audits from the ISO Standards Board, technical audits from our visiting US Customer; my dear, former boss whom I have worked with for the past 14 years leaving the company; the constant loss of people I know from the manpower cuts, the setting up of my wife's new shop... all the insecurities seem huge now, all at once.

The last one is a passion for both my wife and I, but I cannot fail either, because that may be the path for me beyond this company. Going into retail and manage our own little business.

My view in short to all I know, the passing of someone we love is inevitable. We have to deal with the loss and the memories that are left - both good and bad, because only these memories will make the person truly real in our hearts as we go on with our lives.

The prayers we contribute to them are the best food in their afterlife. Take care the ones that are around you still. Time heals every wound. Bless you.

+ Life | Boston City

You Are Boston

Both modern and old school, you never forget your roots. Well educated and a little snobby, you demand the best. And quite frankly, you think you are the best. Famous people from the Boston area: Conan O'Brien, Ben Affleck, New Kids on the Block

What American City Are You?

Wow, never imagined I would be Boston and snobbish too. Not an American and live in the equator, but tried the fun quiz anyway from Carol's A Revision blog.

Though I have been to the US with my wife and son on 3 separate occasions before - Texas, California and Ohio, I had always wanted to go to New York and Hawaii.

Of the 3 states I have been, I definitely love San Fransisco the most. The weather there is perfect outside. The fusion of people around the world is like a melting pot of food and culture. Awesome place to be and live.

All the states have wonderful places that we get to visit within the very short period of 2 to 4 weeks tops. Wished there was more time for each to explore the state further.

Quickly come to mind are San Antonio and The Alamo in Texas while we stayed in Austin.

Hollywood in Los Angeles, Lake Tahoe and Mojave Desert in Las Vegas, 17 Mile Drive, Monterrey Bay. Alcatraz, Susolito, The Golden Gate Bridge in San Frans.

Cosi Science Museum in Columbus, Newport Aquarium in Cincinnati, Downtown Dayton and the Air Force Museum in Dayton Ohio.

Wonderful places, wonderful people I worked with, most wonderful memories for the 3 of us!

Should post photos of place we have been and friends we made there in my Photography and Escapade sections one day, but before that, scanning of the photos will take a bit of time.

It should invoke wonderful memories again.

+ Life | Teal Green

You Are Teal Green

You are a one of a kind, original person. There's no one even close to being like you. Expressive and creative, you have a knack for making the impossible possible. While you are a bit offbeat, you don't scare people away with your quirks. Your warm personality nicely counteracts the strange habits you may have.

What Color Green Are You?

Another quiz link from Sister Celtic's - Life On Lopez Island blog. I do agree with most of what is said here.

"One of a kind" person sounds a bit scary to me. I would rather blend-in and not stick-out like a sore thumb in a crowd or room. I cannot stand the attention if singled out.

"Making the impossible possible..." I wish it is mostly true.

"Offbeat... but don't scare people away" I scared a lot of people in my lifetime plenty, me included.

"Warm personality..." I try my best sincerely, without faking it. A genuine interest to at least make someone feels nice about the day or themselves, even if it will last a few seconds. My wife says there should be more of me when I give a positive perspective of something unpleasant happen two week ago.

Now for the next interesting quiz out there...

+ Son | Lost Puffy

Puffy is missing!

I refrained from writing this entry and kept hoping that we could find her again. But after the 3rd day, I think she is finally gone.

It happened last Sunday evening.

My wife was not feeling well, so we had take-outs from the neighbourhood food stall. My son, Danish went out to buy of dinner from the S11 Coffee Shop 2 blocks away.

He decided to bring both Puffy and Buddy along in a box strapped-up to his kick-scooter.

Bought the food and lost Puffy on his way back. Only to realize that Puffy was not in the box when he reached home.

Retracing his steps back, he last checked the 2 guys in the box before he crossed the traffic light, so the stretch of path where Puffy had gone missing is from the traffic light, right up to our home.

I could see Danish's face, in panic, he rushed out, handing Buddy to me on the way to look for Puffy.

He came back empty-handed. I came out with him again to look for her, but was in vain too. We went out to look for her again right after dinner.

Expecting to see anything that scurry across the grass verge or under the shrubs, but nothing still. Both my wife and Danish cried their eyes out.

Danish cried the most as he felt so guilty for not taking extra care of the 2 while there were out, against my wife's advice not to bring them out at all.

On my way to work in the morning yesterday, I looked around too until I actually missed a vacant cab. You know how difficult it is to get a cab on Monday mornings.

Still felt a tinge of hope, I called my wife at lunch time to check if Danish had maybe... found her. No still.

Danish had been patrolling the path several times a day in the hope of finding her, but the odds are so much against it.

Puffy is so tamed that she will not be afraid of anything that comes near her. A cat, dog, bicycle on the pathway, or even worst get run-down by a car if she were to go down into the road.

On my way back from work in the evening, I searched for her again. That hope of finding her was still there.

I just cannot imagine her frightened, hungry, cold... Is she alright, hurt, or even be alive not eaten-up by a cat or mauled by a dog. Oh, God, help protect her. Bring her back to us.

Else, let someone find her and place her in his/her care or a proper home. She has never been in the wild to fend for herself, how is she ever going to survive?

Wherever you are, we will love you, Puffy. Please be safe. We are missing you.

+ Life | Stroke Symptoms

A friend forwarded an email about Recognizing A Stroke.

A story was related in the email of an encounter that could have been prevented if any of the bystanders could recognise the symptoms.

My Mom suffered a mild stroke about 2 years ago. Received a call from Dad while I was at the office. Everyone rushed to our parents' home and called the our family doctor immediately.

Her symptom was noticeable that of a stroke. The loss of feeling and control of her left side with the drooping lips to one side. It was a scary moment for us all, a terrible one for her.

Everyone felt helpless as we could not do anything for her at that point of time, but called the doctor and be there by her side, massaging her and lots of reassuring words to lift her spirits to give her strength to fight it, at least mentally.

It was a terrible time not being prepared or ignorant.

Coming back to this email, not so clear symptoms are important to know, with these 3 Steps and get the victim help within the 3 hours to reverse the effects:

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke...totally. He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed an getting to the patient within 3 hours which is tough.

RECOGNIZING A STROKE:

Thank God for the sense to remember the "3" steps. Read and Learn!

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking 3 simple questions:

1. Ask the individual to SMILE.
2. Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.
3. Ask the person to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE

(Coherently) (i.e. . . It is sunny out today) If he or she has trouble with any of these tasks, call 9-1-1 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

After discovering that a group of non-medical volunteers could identify facial weakness, arm weakness and speech problems, researchers urged the general public to learn the three questions.

They presented their conclusions at the American Stroke Association's annual meeting last February.

Widespread use of this test could result in prompt diagnosis and treatment of the stroke and prevent brain damage.

Whoever reads this, should remember these 3 Simple Questions and most importantly spread the awareness to anyone they know.
This awareness can save lives and prevents disabilities. So start now!

+ Parents | TTS Hospital

Took off from work again today.

Mom sure has so many medical appointments scheduled for her since we decided to transfer her medical care from a Private GP in Pasir Ris to public Medicare subsidised by the government.

Woodlands Polyclinic, under the umbrella of SingHealth as referred her to Tan Tock Seng Hospital for her backache she has been having for the past 3 to 4 years.

It was her first time receiving medical service from the hospital. Her appointment was at 10:30am Medical Centre B1A . We reached there 5 minutes late and got our queue number 2203 at Room 5.

Dr. Fong Shee Yan name was at the door. She was called less than 5 minutes after we sat down at the waiting area when the last number flashed was 2202.

A nice an smiling Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Fong asked a series of questions about her walking conditions and her fall four years ago.

She was then referred to Radiology for X-rays on her spine in a forward and backward bent-over position to see her spine movements.

An MRI scan was also issued to be done.

It is to check her nerves as the Doctor believes that movement of the spine may pinch her nerves making her sometimes, loose feeling or pain and cramps on her legs as she is complaining now.

It will cost us S$475.00 and not subsidized at all for a specialty procedure. We have to pay in cash when we come on that day.

Our queue number at the Diagnostic Radiology was A0045. We waited for another 10 minutes when she was called to Room 3 to change and her x-rays taken.

I was a tat uncomfortable to help her undress, and asked her if she would like Dad to come in and help her.

Instead, she surprised me with her mature and open outlook in handling the awkward situation than I could. "Don't worry, you are my child." That was reassuring for me when she was comfortable with the situation.

Less than 2 minutes, I was called back in and took her out to change back to her clothes.

Wheeled her back to B1A Room 5 to see Dr. Fong. We waited about 10 minutes before she was asked to go in.

As he expected, the last 3 vertebrate are displaced from the one on top whenever she beds forward. She suffers from LSS or Lumbar Spinal Stenosis.

That created some pinching on her nerves. In this case her right leg gets the brunt of it.

That explained the intermittent pains and cramps she suffered when she walked to much of accidentally put her posture at an awkward position.

The doctor explained that it was not due to her fall, but a normal degeneration of the spine when age catches up with you.

He quipped that he will be getting this same condition when he is at her age too.

The MRI will tell exactly which nerve is affected due to the slipped vertebrae and the next course of action.

Since there will not be any medication for such condition, the normal way would be to do physiotherapy to strengthen her back muscles to relieve the weight off the spine somewhat.

Since the pain is not consistent and extreme, surgery is not imminent, but surgery can relieve the pinching affect permanently if so chosen.

Made payment of S$50.20 and made a date for 30 March 2006 for two stops:

• 30 March 2006 at 8:15am - Physiotherapy Assessment and advise
• 30 March 2006 at 11:00am - MRI scan
• 7 April 2006 at 3:20pm - Dr. Fong consultation on the MRI results and next course of action.

Now must discuss with the rest of my siblings for these appointments and update the status of her condition. That's that for now.

The level of service has greatly improved and so has the infra-structure that looked cheery like a shopping centre than a gloomy, intimidating hospital, my Mom commented.

All 3 of us had Penang Laksa for S$3.50 each for lunch in Kopitiam Food Court at the hospital. Surprisingly delicious.

Met my wife at Park Mall Shopping Centre in Orchard Road.

She intends to rent a kiosk there for April 2006 and was there checking out the human traffic there since 10 in the morning by herself.

Looked good so far, so we went ahead to the Management Office on the 8th floor for the request.

The Officer, Joey Lee was lively and very nice to us. She already prepared a proposal for us taken the photos from our Chic Couture website to present and propose to her management for approval.

Keeping our hope to get the approval and start this 1 April 2006 for a month trial and to continue with another 2 months if the reception is good.

Went to MacDonald's at Singapura Plaza for afternoon tea and headed back to Causeway Point Shopping Centre in Woodlands for some window-shopping before sending my parents back home.

A full day. Made my leave off work worth while. I just needed a warm bath before I retire to bed.

+ Life | Happy Hedonist

No, nothing sexual. Just a description of my personality test after I took a survey in Starhub's new cable Smart TV.

No, not "X" or even "R" rated cable TV shows. Not in Singapore you will not! It is the new DVD Recording cable TV program over broadband lines. The ability to record TV programs simultaneously as you watch other shows.

Guess it is old news to certain countries that already have it, but an exciting here. And will be the first ones to try out if chosen when launch mid this year.

Anyway, the best thing about the survey after pages of questions on my viewing habits and likes and dislikes, the survey gave out an accurate summary of me.

WOW! Read what it said:

A spontaneous and dynamic person, you don't presume to know what the future holds - and like it that way. However, the eternal optimist in you likes to believe that tomorrow will be better than today.

You seldom make plans, and can be quite allergic to routine. Keenly attuned to the possibilities of each new dawn, you are quick to recognize and capitalize on opportunities.

In your downtime you like to switch off, kick back and zone out. You tend to be highly receptive to new technology, and easily excited by novelty. A childlike sense of wonder heightens your enjoyment of new products - 'wow' is a word that often falls from your lips.

Your enthusiasm is contagious, and you enjoy sharing your discoveries with others. You like to keep abreast of innovations, and preferably one step ahead of them. The cutting edge is your comfort zone - you wouldn't be seen dead sporting an 'old' model of anything. (Unless of course it's 'classic' or 'vintage'.)

Your big personality attracts an adoring fan club.

You are a passionate lover... of life.

I agree every word it said. Most probably it is a standard answer to each combination of questions answered, but it described me so accurately, that I was stumped for a while. The last line is what this blog has been about, all this while!

The person who created this is truly gifted.

Let's see if my wife and son can give the survey a go too.

+ Life | Sunday Shopping

It was an enjoyable Saturday yesterday and a pretty good Sunday today as well. We planned today entirely for shopping as the list goes:

1. Get a replacement hamster for Puffy.
2. Send Danish's cell-phone for repairs. Sigh...
3. Get a new wristwatch for Danish. The last one lasted a month. Sigh...
4. Shop for groceries.

ONE : Hunt for Red October

No... its March, we were hunting for a White Winter Russian instead.

Since the class Pet Project needs the hamster back. we decided that we keep Puffy and replace her with a another hamster. We had to find one today.

Bought a new cage for Puffy with all its glory of hamster accessories yesterday at Harbour Front, World Trade Centre. It cost us S$59.00 for the cage and S$30.00 for the accessories including her toilet pallets.

A month-old White Winter Russian hamster cost $41.00 each! 5 time more that what it cost when the class purchased Puffy at Per Safari. We gave it a miss.

So today we visited Pet Safari at EastPoint Shopping Mall in Simei.

We decided to get Puffy a buddy to avoid her felling lonely. So we had Puffy tagged along in a shoe box with all the hamster comforts-inside.

We had to find a buddy that will mix around without fighting. It has to be of the same breed and size.

After a Tom Yam Noodle lunch at Banquet, we headed for Pet Safari on the ground floor, but unfortunately the large store was under renovation.

A smaller, temporary version was located on the 3rd floor, but did not sell any live animals yet except some fishes until they moved back down. Yikes!

Bought Puffy's bottle of sand-bath for S$10.00 and continued our search for a replacement.

TWO: Save the Communicator!

So happened that newly opened Sony Ericsson Service Centre was on the same floor a few shops away.

I let the service guy checked Danish's T610, but it had rusted around several spots rendered the mainboard not recommended to be repaired. Sigh...

Danish accidentally dipped it into the sea water at Palawan Beach in Sentosa yesterday. The phone was able to call out and receive calls too, but the display just showed a blue screen.

So off we went to continue searching for Puffy's replacement and third-party repair at Marine Parade.

A neighbourhood pet shop in front of the Hawker Centre had many breeds of hamsters and rabbits, apart from the array of fresh and sea-water fishes.

Each White Winter Russian cost S$21.00, a Pudding at S$40.00, a Sapphire at S$19.00, a Roborovski at S$31.00 and others that I could not remember.

Cute, cuddly little ones barely a month old, huddling together sleeping, some buried under wood shavings.

We fortunately found the second hamster to mix with Puffy without any disaster. The first one was chased away by her mercilessly. Naughty girl!

The second one stayed and huddled together like long-time buddies. It regurgitated some seeds and Puffy excepted by eating it. Guess it was a welcome gift.

Turned out to be, the second one was a male, while the first was a female. The domineering Puffy actually needed a partner, not competitor. Wow!

Sold! One month-old male White Winter Russian for S$21.00. With much debate between Mom and Son, they finally amicably settled a name for Puffy's buddy... Buddy!

Welcome to the family Buddy! We are now a family of 5!

PS: Tons of photos and portraits of Buddy will ensue...

Yikes! We still have to buy one to replace Puffy. We got one at Tampines Street 81 neighbourhood pet store later in the evening.

It was sadly scared of human touch. Squeaked every time we tried to hold it. We could not name it or we will end up taking her in too. Sigh...

THREE

A few stores away we found a nice sports watch for Danish, with many fancy functions including flashing colourful background lights.

Hardy and sturdy for an active boy. He fell for the colourful lights. Sold! For S$18.00. Not a bad bargain. Now, for the reliability test by Danish.

FOUR : Food, Food Glorious Food

Next in the schedule... groceries shopping. Walked to Parkway Parade Shopping Centre to Giant Hypermarket.

The groceries amounted to S$183.15, almost all the items listed for the whole of this month.

I got myself a 50-piece CD-R for S$12.90. Calculated to 25 cents a piece, not bad. I have tons for an ever increasing amount of photos to burn.

Ran to GNC for a 30% discount Protein Powder that cost me S$194.50 for 2 tubs of 2kg each to feed my muscles after my daily workouts. Yes! Good bargain too. We were set!

The day went well. The whole weekend was great and I am personally pleased with it. Thank you Allah, the Almighty for making our days wonderful.

Now, ready for work tomorrow and lots of photos to burn. Signing off.