Arrived 6.55pm and the carpark at the front was almost full. But upon arriving at the restaurant, barely half of the tables were filled with people.
The food and company were great in the midst of more than 30 tables. Seating was designated so sat among friends and not strangers.
Dinner started at 8pm and by the time I left at 10.12pm, the last course of dessert had not been served.
I digress:- The worst wedding banquet I attended (in the sense that I do not know anyone except the bride and groom) happened in 1984 while I came back for summer holidays from Down Under. I was seated among strangers and the only words I uttered the whole night were congratulations to the newlyweds before I entered the restaurant. How boring can it get? To save myself from further torture, half way through the dinner, I called my dad to save me and fetch me home.
As I received your news this morning, I was shocked.
For a moment there, I told myself, I couldn’t be reading what I was reading. I became so emotional and wanted to grieve out loudly but I couldn’t because of the people around me.
I am sorry I couldn’t call you straight away as well.
But rest assured I can feel the pain you are going through, because I can feel the pain in my heart as well, though not to the extent as you are experiencing it.
The only thing I can do is to keep you in my prayers that God will bring you and your family through this difficult time.
Mum arrived back tonight almost time for dinner. She is darker. She enjoyed herself so much until she said those places she went are so much better than KK. I am glad to hear that.
She left here with two bags and came back with four bags. She bought a lot of winter clothings while she was in KL for her upcoming trip to UK and USA.
When I first started working in my current job, I wore skirts to work. But after those skirts ran their course, I did not get new ones and have since been wearing pants until today.
I only sometimes wear high heels on Sunday and never during work. In fact, most of my colleagues wear slippers as soon as they arrive at work. I am the only one who wear my sandals and do not change to other footwear.
After the new air-conditioner had been installed, I feel better and migraine does not occur as often as before.
At times when it was raining outside, I was cold. So from today onwards I started to wear socks during work. And I do not feel cold anymore.
The only other time previously where I wore socks was when I was exercising, either working out in the gym or doing other physical activity like playing badminton.
Thanks to Jeff who bought me this pack of raw salmon last month to apologise for something he did not do. CTY and I were able to enjoy this with my freshly made sushi this evening accompanied with red wine. Cheers.
We had a good time of chatting with Aunty Alice as well after dinner.
Today is the last day of training for one of our trainees. We had lunch in the office consisting of curry chicken, sweet and sour fish, mixed vegetables and bean curd.
The trainee JL excused himself around 11a.m. and told me he had to go out from the office for a while. Half an hour later he came back with two plastic bags, one on each of his hand.
I only discovered an hour later, he went to Big Apple Donuts & Coffee to take away two dozen donuts of different flavours.
After lunch, with an already full stomach, I took this donut on recommendation from one of my colleagues.
This is a durian flavoured donut, with real durian in the middle of the donut.
For someone like me who usually does not eat dessert, It tasted ok but I would not rush out to Big Apple Donuts & Coffee to buy one anytime soon. I can live without it.
This morning at 7.40a.m. mum accompanying by her youngest sister Linda attended an interview for her application for USA visitor visa at the following address.
U.S. Embassy Kuala Lumpur
Consular Section
376 Jalan Tun Razak
50400 Kuala Lumpur
At 11.13a.m. I received a phone call from my sis-in-law telling me that mum has obtained her USA visitor visa after being interrogated like a criminal by the officer. I am so happy to hear the good news. Mum is finally able to visit her younger brother and family in London and younger sister and family in California, USA this year.
Yesterday Aunty Linda called me to tell me that she and mum were shopping for winter clothings for mum in KL.
About half a year ago, Contractor Wong CZ’s (WCZ (the one who gives me angpow during CNY)) company was tendering for a project under my company. He has the confidence that his company will be awarded the project. So he told me if the client awards his company the project, he would treat everyone involves in the project to a trip overseas.
Today finally we received the news from the client and Contractor WCZ’s company was awarded the contract. I tried to call him to tell him the good news, but he did not pick up the phone. He was probably busy talking on his mobile phone.
When I told the boss the news, he called Contractor WCZ right away and beat me in being the bearer of good news. When I finally talked to Contractor WCZ, he told me he already knew yesterday because the client had called him directly and told him.
After congratulating him, I jokingly told him if he still wants to treat the whole team to a trip overseas, I would rather mine to be in the form of cash. He laughed and asked, ‘Like that also can?’. So I told him ‘yeah, why not?’. Haha
He said he will probably plan a trip to Japan. I told him not to include me since I do not have the time for vacation in the near future. He laughed again.
Today before lunchtime the following conversation took place between my ex-colleague JC and I.
JC: “Kung Hee Fatt Choi”
Spinxie: Hey, you only know how to wish but where is my angpow?
JC: I’m not married what.
Spinxie: Got 4 kids already, still do not want to admit you are married!
JC: Hey, where got 4 kids? Do you know who I am?
Spinxie: Of course I know who you are. You are JC.
JC: How come you know it’s me? Anyway I am calling to ask you for Company X’s phone number.
Spinxie: Hey, you think I am a walking directory?
JC: I have been thinking for a long time where I could get that number from and only today I finally thought of you.
Spinxie: Yeah, me the walking directory. The number is xxxxxx.
JC: Hang on, let me save the number. Can you repeat it once again?
Spinxie: xxxxxx
JC: xxxxxx?
Spinxie: Yeah. Before you hang up the phone, can I ask where are you attached to right now?
JC: I am still with ______ _____. But I have resigned already.
Spinxie: Oh, starting your own company?
JC: Yeah. Small renovation company.
Spinxie: Oh, after what you had learnt in Company S, now you are starting your own company.
JC: Yeah learnt renovation from Company S, design work from Company XXX. I am starting a small company only but I need some advice from you.
Spinxie: Ok, shoot.
JC: Do I need to keep every document? How do I differentiate which documents to put into different files?
Spinxie: (advice given)
JC: When are you free so that I can see you to ask you some more questions? Can I call you again next month after I set up the company this month? Maybe we can go out for lunch or meet up on a Saturday.
Spinxie: if Saturday, then have to be afternoon cos I am working in the morning. Btw, my expertise is not cheap. When our ex-colleague FW asked me if I want to join his company, I told him unless he paid me double my current salary. And he said ok.
JC: What? You cut throat until like that?
Spinxie: Of course, afterall he’s a rich man’s son.
JC: Hey, but I am not. So please do not do that to me.
Spinxie: Why? You have a post for me in your company?
JC: Yeah.
Spinxie: But I am sure you know a lot of other friends who can help you.
JC: But I rather have you to help me.
Spinxie: See how first.
I do not mind extra income from doing part-time work for him. But I would not count on it. Afterall a lot of people like to make passing comment and do not mean it at all.
Exactly a week ago today, mum and some of our relatives went to Bangkok for vacation. They were there for a week and are back in KL today for another week.
Before mum left for her vacation, she already prepared so much food to put into the freezer so that we could just heat up whatever food we want to eat. We are so blessed by her.
Hope she is enjoying her two weeks away from all of us.
Yesterday on the way back from grocery shopping at Servay Hypermarket, Plaza Juta, I discovered that the front right wheel of the car did not have enough air. I did not drop by the petrol station to pump. In fact I have been very ignorant when it comes to car, I only know how to drive but I do not know how to maintain it.
This morning I told the office boy to help me to pass the car keys to my mechanic whose shop is below my office for him not only to help me pump the tyre but also to service the car. He was going to check on something as well which is not functioning well.
I am thankful that he does not charge me anything to do this sort of service.
When you send out SMS to either people in your own mobile network or to people using other mobile networks, the confirmation of message sent does not mean anything at all.
What I mean is eventhough you receive the confirmation from your mobile network, the recipient may not have received your SMS.
Recently I sent out some SMS to friends from my own mobile network and also to other mobile networks, but there was no reply from them. When I met up with them, I asked whether they received those SMS and they told me they did not.
Some of them also asked me the same question and I told them I also did not receive their SMS.
This thing happened not only during the recent festive seasons but as recent as a few days ago.
So if you have something important to tell a person, making a call would be a safer thing to do.
On a side note, since the beginning of this year, I have been receiving a lot of "rubbish" sms on different offers available and most of the time they are not from my mobile network.
This morning in the midst of busyness at work, God was doing an emotional open heart surgery on me. As much as I wish to be in the familiarity of my own bedroom so that no one can see what an emotional wreck I was, I had to continue to pretend everything was fine with me but my heart was aching like no one’s business. I think the last time I had this kind of feeling was when I had a broken heart. I had a hard time in controlling my emotion. Out of a sudden I felt like weeping but I managed to control it.
After all the things I have done for the people who have hurt me, I thought they appreciated all my contribution but in fact I was not prepared for the worst. Not only they do not appreciate what I have done for them, they think the worst of me. I have learnt not to put expectation on these people because the higher the expectation, the greater the disappointment. As the years progress, my expectation of them has become like zilch. But yet the truth that came out knocked me off completely. I would never have guessed that is how these people see me.
I cannot get rid of these people who are sucking the living daylights (or in another words ‘get rid of the sucker branches’) out of me because I come into contact with them quite often. In order to protect myself from now onwards, I just have to distance myself away from them.
I wanted to sms some close friends to ask them to pray for me but somehow God is stopping me and at the same time telling me to forgive these people who have hurt me. He wanted me to confront the matter head on so that when I obtained victory, I can only give glory back to Him and no one else.
The ‘angel of light’ is very subtle and he will attack us on those things that we feel vunerable the most. He wants us to live a defeated life. But instead I was resolute not to allow him to do so. I did not want to allow the negative emotion to rule over me. Instead I want to live victoriously so that my life is not ruled by my emotion/s.
I thank God that He helped me to overcome my negative emotion and I was back to my normal self after a quick snooze during lunchtime. All glory and honour to His name.
I believe life itself is a gift from God and in having a relationship with Him.
I am on this earth for a purpose. I do not seek to change the world but to touch the world of one more person if I could, as long as there is breath in me; and to be a blessing to others.
A food lover who totally agrees with the chinese saying 'to be able to eat is prosperity'.
For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favour and honour; no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless. Psalm 84:11
