Meerkat On the LookOUT

Loooong weekend

2009-09-19T09:19:00.003+08:00

Thanks to the Hari Raya and all of us can enjoy a long weekend to unwind ourselves. I've been so busy with my new job and I haven't got time to update my blog for quite some times. Even though at times I do have some random thoughts that I wanted to share, I don't have the time to jot it down. Sigh...

Yea, I'm still settling down in my new job after 4 months..Wow...4 months, things have changed and I don't do the same everyday at work. I meet all the ad hoc request deadlines and get answers for people who are going for presentations... Indeed, this is a challenging job. No pain, no gain. Some times, I started to wonder is this God's plan. But, there's a reason why all these happen cos He allows it. I hope that I can learn as much as possible in this new place and I'm trying my very best to perform. Heavy workload, heavy responsibility, that's life. I can't be staying at junior level forever, I need to move on and do better...

Stop worrying...

2009-09-13T20:33:00.002+08:00

"Worry pulls tomorrow's cloud over today's sunshine. You can't trust God and worry at the same time" said my pastor during today's sermon.

This advice really touched my heart and it hit me...

The art of communication

2009-08-22T16:17:00.002+08:00

At this new workplace, I've started to monitor how people speak and communicate. One thing that I learned is the art of communication. Being a person who does not beat around the bush during a conversation, I'm pretty straight forward and direct when I want to get message transmitted. I go straight to the point and share my opinion.

Amongst all professionals, sales people are considered to have the best communication skills because they can twist and turn, finally you just get convinced and buy the product. I'm not saying sales people of not good, but I'm really impressed with them. My late father was a sales person and he could talk very well with all his clients with different races, from Indian to Chinese. I respect him. Yesterday, I learned a new jargon at work. Sales people that bring $$$ to the company are called ATM machine. Whoa..my late father was an ATM machine.

I find there is huge difference between an engineer and business graduate. Living example, engineer like me, I'm very rigid and most probably I studied too much of Math and Digital Electronics. Math only thought me if i manage to calculate the exact figure, I get full marks. In Digital Electronics, there were too many 1s and 0s, either 1 or zero, nothing in between. On the other hand, business graduate like Tengku Mahkota are very flexible. Things can fall in between, no right or wrong, most of the things are viewed thru reasoning. One of the advantages he has is his law knowledge.

Recently in one of the conversation with my superior, I was tested to provide insights on one of the research areas. He kept on banging the same word on my mind, finally my answers were like making sentences using that word. After the conversation was over, I felt that I was conned. Sigh... Since then, I've been very careful when I speak and listen.

Teluk Kumbar - Mini Genting in Penang

2009-08-16T21:39:00.000+08:00

Our trip started with Pulau Tikus Wan Tan mee for breakie. Tengku Mahkota's trip back to Penang will not be complete without this Wan tan Mee. He craves for it whenever he comes back to KL. Finally, he found the difference between WanTan Mee in Penang and KL -->the noodle in Penang is so much nicer and Wan Tan mee comes with gravy on top and his favourite fried WanTan.

After some narrow roads all the way up the hill and passing by some chicken farms, we arrived in Teluk Kumbar. It's a tourist spot in Penang and it was my first time to be there. Thanks to Juliana & her bf. The road was so narrow and I respected the guts that Juliana had to drive her supplier all the way up with her manual car. Her bf shared with us that he once drove Kancil up and he could sense his Kancil panted non-stop after reaching the top of the hill. What's the interesting food up there? Thai Food. I was told the owner married a Thai lady. It's like a different world when you get there.

A group photo...

Tengku Mahkota really enjoyed his food. He said 'The trip is not wasted even though the road is narrow. But the food is GOOD!' So, thanks to Juliana and her bf for the dinner!

Tortoise

2009-07-19T21:22:00.002+08:00

I love tortoise since I was little. I had this tortoise toy given to me by my most soft-spoken 3rd uncle. I remember there was a string attached to tortoise for me to pull if forward and backward. When the tortoise moves, its 4 legs waddles. I really enjoyed playing with this tortoise toy. Everytime after finishing playing, I would put it back to the box.

After I grow up, my mom bought me 2 tiny tortoise (real one) but their lives were short. One died after another. Sigh..I used to leave them in the living room and allow them to move around freely. Then, I would catch them whenever they went out of sight. My late father liked to tease me and remind me whether I wash them. I'm a clean and hygien freak, I bathed them and brushed their shell everyday to make sure they are clean at all time. But, I didn't manage to keep them for longer period.

A RanDOm shot

2009-07-19T21:15:00.002+08:00

Study room

2009-07-19T21:08:00.004+08:00

How to decorate the study room? I believe I'm going to spend most of my time here to practise my violin, work, messaging and surfing the Net...

Thanks to Kapitan Yap, I really love the pink and light blue which turned out to look more like purple. The combination of pink and purple reminds me of our wedding theme color...

I need to get an L-shape table, book shelf and chairs. Thank god that a closed sista in christ has decided to give us a sofa bed... Whoa...I can lie down and read my books and slowly crawl into Zzzzland...

Sleep

2009-07-17T23:41:00.003+08:00

How many hours of sleep we need per night? How can a person works for at least 15 hours a day? I can't imagine how much strength this person has. He does not feel tired?

My usual routine on weekdays are going to bed by 10.30pm and get up at 5.50am or latest by 6am. Due to the heavy traffic jam, Tengku Mahkota and I leave for work really early. We're basically join the students on the road early morning. My body has worked in a way if I sleep less than 6 hours, I feel tired the next day. The worst thing is my body produces heat. As a result, both cheeks turn red and my entire body is very warm, but my hands and feets are cold most of the time. It's something like feeling feverish yet no where near fever temperature. I'm still trying to find out the reason. Anyone can explain to me?

So, if I don't have enough sleep, I can't think well and be efficient the next day. Hence, I truly understand that my body needs a balance between work and rest, I don't abuse it because I can't afford to get sick.

I'm not sure why I just don't feel like getting to bed tonight. Perhaps, it has passed my bedtime. Alright, good night and have a blessed weekend!

Reminders

2009-07-17T23:27:00.003+08:00

Do you think everyone needs reminders?

Personally, I'm the kind of person who needs reminders. I need to get reminded or if there's something important that I need to remember, I'll jot it down before my mind gets distracted and I forget about it. Thanks to diary and auto reminders integrated into our Email application.

But, the question remains, am I not using my brain enough? Am I not fully utilizing it? At times, I can remember it even before my calendar's auto reminder alerts me. I notice I'm not good in words, but I can remember stories better because I change the stories into pictures. A picture speaks a thousand words! Yes, picture is better. I remember when I was in uni, my professor always asked me to draw the circuit out instead of reading it for more than 3 times. Once you get the figure out, it's easier to understand it and picture it. I totally agree with him.

Yes, I'm in the process of learning to fully utilizing my brain fully. In other words, I try to pay utmost attention when I'm in the meeting. I reduce my usual exercise in taking notes but staring at the person who's talking and change it to story. I'm still learning hard to train myself in this area. Determination is required.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder

2009-07-12T20:37:00.004+08:00

Tengku Mahkota was on night shift started from Saturday till Thursday. His working was 8pm till 6am. Can you imagine how tired was his body everyday and he basically had to make rounds in the hospital in the wee hour whereas I tucked in the comfortable sheet?

Due to his night shift, we have adjusted our schedule. It started off on the first night that I sent him to work by 7.30pm. Then, I got up at 5.45am and went to pick him around 6.30am. It took us 10mins from his hospital to get to my office, that was the 10mins that we catch up with each other. Since the day was too young to go my office, we basically talked abit more until 7am. Then, he drove the car home to rest. We took turns to warm the bed. This reminds of the Indian waiters in my workplace, wherein since these Indians come from India to make money and they're on shift in 24 hour Mamak restaurants, two people will share a bed. When one goes to bed, the other goes to work and vice versa. I can't help but comparing Tengku Mahkota and I with the Mamak waiters. In the evening, he'll come and pick me from work and I drop him to work again.

I got myself really tired and went to bed straight. Yea, I miss the time when we read His words and pray for each other every night. It was really tough when I see him for that average 15mins in the morning and 25mins in the evening (due to traffic jam). What can we share more? Absence makes the heart grow fonder. One thing I'm really thankful is my lovely parents in law. Kapitan Yap got up 5.50am every morning to unlock the gates and doors for me. Permaisuri Yap also got to wake up early to see me going off to work, locked the doors and so on. In the evening, they waited for me to have dinner. One of the nights, I got home at 8.05pm due to massive jam, I felt so touched when I was told 'Let's have dinner!' I quickly changed to a short and had dinner. Thank god for a wonderful family I'm in and for having such lovely parents in law. :)

Bondage vs. responsibility

2009-07-12T20:12:00.003+08:00

What's the first thing that come to your mind when the word 'bondage' is mentioned? Let me share about my first thought when I heard the word bondage. To me, it sounds like as if you're tied down by certain rules of game. It was one of the prayer meet when this word was mentioned. One of my sisters was advised to break the bondage from her previous idol or religion that she believed in. Yes, being a Christ follower, we're told in His word, Exodus 20:3 says 'You shall not have other gods before me'. In other words, we are only supposed to worship Him and Him only, not any other gods. This tells us that we have to stay focused.

This morning I heard a sermon in the church and pastor mentioned the word 'bondage' and I can't recall the the definition. But, I remember one of the words covered in the bondage definition is sin. It didn't hit me directly until I got home after the badminton game in the evening.

At workplace, we're given job descriptions before you decided you want to go on a job. After understanding the work portfolio, you're convinced that you would like to take up the challenge (assuming you have some work experience in this area or you're given an opportunity to take up the job). One thing that I can't deny in my every job that I was given is giving thanks to the Lord Jesus and I truly believe God puts me there for a reason like for better experience and moulding my character. Whatever happens, it's not by chance, but by His divine intervention.

We're given tasks to do at work, being a responsible employee, we will strive for our best to deliver. But, but, but... This is where bondage comes to play. But, we do not have bondage to force ourselves to work and work until we threaten ourselves, 'I'll get fired if I don't work based on what my boss thinks' or 'If I make the wrong decision, my entire division will get fired'. I believe this situation will happens if you have made an enemy to your boss and your boss would really want to fire you. Thus, he makes the decision solely based on a single mistake.

I would say most of the senior management people that I came across are pretty reasonable. They respect each other and everyone is treated fairly. No doubt, some people have different preference. So, we shall not put ourselves in a bondage. Nevertheless, all in all, give thanks and honour God.

Blessed anniversary

2009-07-04T22:58:00.004+08:00

One year has passed and we thank god that He has got us together, two has become one. Tengku Mahkota has been such a blessing to me and my mom. Our florist made this flower for us upon our request to give thanks to God in Sunday service.

The mess is finally over!

2009-07-04T22:46:00.001+08:00

Thank God, the humble house has reached the final stage of renovations. We're just waiting for the cabinets to come in. God has been good to us and all glory be unto Him. He has blessed us in many ways especially in getting this house done.

Firstly, my wetwork contractor, we called him Engineer, he was really good. We're very satisfied with his work. Since he loves fishing, he has been sharing his prawns with us.

Secondly, my grill guy introduced by Engineer called Uncle Wong has surprised us in a couple things. The grill quality is good and design is consistent. More importantly, he made emergency exit for the window in each room with keys given to us. It looks really nice and we don't have to spend extra money on locks. We really appreciate his thoughtfulness.

Thirdly, my electrician introduced by Ayam Togel also did a good job. He hacked the line carefully from the main switch box all the way to the wet kitchen. He advised us accordingly so that we wouldn't waste money in unnessary additional point.

Forthly, my churchmate's sister has given us good discount on the lights and fans. Her discounts allowed us to save a few hundreds. We're really thankful. Her workers made sure all the fans and lights are fixed properly and they were pretty friendly too.

The only thing left is the cabinets. I shall leave my comments till I get my cabinets installed.

All in all, with a thankful heart for this humble home.

Fact of life

2009-06-19T23:19:00.003+08:00

Tengku Mahkota shared with me a lesson that he learned at his work place: 'it's a fact of life that people will look at our flaws'. Personally, I find that this is so true. People will not remember what are the good things you've done, but people will always remember the mistakes that you've done.

I like to look at things on the bright and positive side. Things that have taken place is good to remember and serves as a gentle reminder that we shall not repeat the same mistake. That's what history all about. Learn from the history, practise the good things and avoid the bad things. I once come across a workmate who loves to talk about other's weaknesses and mistakes but not her own. Throughout my working experience there, no one wanted to point out her mistake. The most important lesson that she has missed is she has no rights to talk/tell story about people's mistakes. Indirectly, she becomes the spokeperson for everyone.

Back to the subject, i'm still trying to reduce my mistakes and try to open my eyes wide enough to hunt for mistakes. It's a tough lesson, with god's strength, i'm sure there'll be improvements.

in His time

2009-06-08T07:43:00.003+08:00

Ecclesiastes 3: A Time for Everything

These verses came to me last night before Tengku Mahkota and I sat down together to do quiet time. This is my 3rd week into my new job and we're still trying to settle down due to my hectic new job. I spent almost every weeknight working late and poor him has to make 2nd trip to pick me around 9.30pm. And we spent our time together the entire weekend to work on several things. Life has changed since i got into this new job. But, i wanna give thanks to God for all He has provided. In His time, things fallen in the right place and He has His plans to prosper us.

I continue to pray that I don't have to stay back every night so that I can go home on time to have proper dinner.

Busy...Busy...Busy...

2009-05-26T21:05:00.002+08:00

I've started my new job yesterday and one word to describe my new job --> Challenging. Within these two days, I could hardly sit down and do proper work. I was called in for meeting, one after another. I'm praying for wisdom to be able to grasp the concept of a few projects and providing my opinion so that I can bring value to my boss.

My new place is relatively nearer to Tengku Mahkota's place and it takes him less than 15 mins to get to my place. We used to spend Rm1.50 everyday when I was at old place. Now, we can save the Rm1.50 everyday and he has promised to bank in the money we save into the piggy bank :)

I reckon I won't have so much of updates until I'm more settled down in the new place. By then, i hope that they won't call me for meetings so often.

Feeling excited and challenged at the same time.

Closing another chapter...

2009-05-21T08:08:00.002+08:00

God knows my needs, God will not put us in a situation that we cannot bear.

Yes, after updated my CV and uploaded it on the Web 6 months ago, God found me a new job. I'm closing a chapter tomorrow. I'm counting down now... :)

Thank you, Lord Jesus for the new job.

A lil Update...

2009-05-21T07:48:00.004+08:00

Renovations is going well. Finally, the backdoor has arrived beginning of the week and we can lock the backdoor again.

We're very satisfied with electrician that Ayam Togel has recommended us. This electrician did a good job and he advised us where to put the extra points. More importantly, he helps us to save money. The orginal alarm vendor quoted Rm80 per point. With extra 5 windows and a door at the back, I need to pay Rm480. That's so expensive. Thank god, we met this electrician and he quoted a price that we're really happy to pay for it. That's my wet kitchen with lots of power points for my oven, microwave, rice cooker, mixer, slow cooker, etc.

Tengku Mahkota and I are very thankful that God has brought us good contractors. Despite the economics crisis, God bless us with good deals for lightings for the whole house. Since Tengku Mahkota can't sleep without air con, we've put our air con purchase on high priority and we've managed to pay for it. We came to realise certains things turned out to be on top priority even though we assumed we didn't need it. Oh yea, we bought a bedframe for Rm1 from Macy, pretty good deal yea? And, the salesgirl gave me free mattress protector after hearing me telling Tengku Mahkota that we need to get one.

A few other things that we need to do research are as follows:-

Curtain
Toilet accessories
Mozito netting
Locks
Dining set
Sofa
etc.

An adventurous experience

2009-05-06T07:23:00.011+08:00

Last weekend, my pre-u friend, Mr D, organized a trip to Tmn Pertanian Bukit Cahaya, Shah Alam. Yes, it's a park and we signed up for Skytrax. In fact, that's the whole purpose why we went all the way to Shah Alam. I met a few familiar faces and they look like those faces that I've seen when I was in Taylor's College. Anyway, I was really glad to meet up with my 2 classmates.

This's the banner to give you an idea what you're getting yourselves into right outside the registration counter. Please remember to fill in a form with 2 contacts that they could call in case of emergency.

So, are you scared or not??!!

This is the pretender. Tengku Mahkota has done 'kinda' skytrax over in Perth before.

Let's snap a photo before we start climbing up to the first platform. *SMILE*

Notice the ladder? It's really Higgghhhhh and looooong.. This is the way to go up the trees and enjoy the nature

Indeed, it was very tiring to climb such a long laddar. I rested two times because I was too tired. Remember, there is no turning back. You just need to continue climbing.

Only three people can stand on a platform each time. Hence, everyone needs to be brave and not keeping everyone waiting. I didn't start well, I kept everyone waited for me. In fact, some of the tracks are pretty tough and the gap for the steps are relatively wide. It's not meant for Asians. Asians are slightly shorter than westerners. Hence, the gap between each step has to be closer. I came to realize that you need to some stretchings before you start. My arms and tummy muscles ached for 3 days because we hold on to our weight by ourselves in some activities. But we had good fun!

Some videos for entertainment

*please tilt your head*

The Flying Fox that I enjoyed the most, breathing the fresh air in the woods and enjoying the moment I was hanging in the air.

But I caused a slight delay in the 2nd final platform and thanks to the lead instructor. He rescued me. He pulled me to the side and that made me easier to climb to the next platform.

Overall, good fun. Both of us enjoyed ourselves very much. I think it was a good activity besides getting ourselves busy with house renovations. Drawing ourselves closer to the nature.

Work in Progress

2009-05-01T22:11:00.001+08:00

It has been a month since the renovations started in our new place. Progress of the renovations is considered fast and we want to thank the Lord for His wisdom in selecting our contractors. The renovations have kept Tengku Mahkota and I busy for the past few months to go around for shopping. Even though we have a lot more to buy for the house, we've decided to take our time and we shall be more thrifty in the midst of economics crisis. I also came to realise that more sales can be found during this economics downturn as compared to when times are good, certain things turn out to be slightly cheaper. I'm counting my blessings one by one...

Come to the father

2009-04-23T14:10:00.001+08:00

Because of His first love for me, I'm able to call him Abba Father. Walking with Him day-by-day and it's a pleasure and honor to know Him more and more.
I give thanks for the joy, peace, love, patience, blessings, protections, ...etc that He has showered upon me.
Let's come to the Father and give Him our praise and worship.
Hope you enjoy this music video, i love it very much. Its meaningful lyrics really touch my heart and speak my mind.

Dream...Dream...Zzzz

2009-04-20T09:44:00.003+08:00

I dream almost every night and I read from a paper that '98% of people cannot recall their dreams' and I'm one of them. However, in certain occassions, I'll remember them in the middle of the night when I get up for toilet breaks or early morning and I'll share that with Tengku Mahkota on the way to work.

The weirdest thing is I dream of things that I hear and I speak during the day.

Case 1:

I went to a lighting shop near my place and I saw this light that could be used for my new place. But the promoter quoted us Rm460. That's expensive. Hence, before I left the shop i told the girl 'I'll come back again, hopefully you give me better price and I'm going to think about it and dream about it.'

Yes, true enough. It appeared in my dream on that night. I dreamt of the light from the exact angle when I looked at it. Till date, despite the fact that I've visited more than 4 lighting shop, I still find that this RM460 light cannot beat any of them. Let's see...

Case 2:

Yeh yeh is going to Perth tonight and I heard Tengku Mahkota told him where to visit, what to eat, what to buy and so on. Then, I read from someone's blog that Margaret River is one of the top 5 places that this blogger wishes to visit. How does Margaret River look like? Is it a port? A quay?

Yes, again. I dreamt of Perth. I missed the bus to Perth. I got up in the middle of the night and I told Tengku Mahkota 'I missed the bus to Perth'.

Case 3:

I watched Pastor Edmund Chan VCD on his recent conference in DUMC. He mentioned about his first church was in Bukit Panjang.

Again, I dreamt of Bukit Panjang. My mom and I attent a new church service, but it was not in the church. The Sunday service took place in a bus and they picked up church member from one spot to Bukit Panjang. Along the way to church, I notice my mom and I were in Singapore, not in Penang or KL. The pastor gave the sermon in the bus and finally we reached the church at Bukit Panjang for fellowship and had some refreshment.

Can anyone shed a light on what's happening to me?

I seem to pick bits and pieces happening during day time and bring it into my dream. Am I not having good sleep?

How do oink-oinkS talk?

2009-04-17T08:28:00.001+08:00

Kindly visit this site:-

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7998780.stm

It's really interesting!

Have a blessed weekend!

Blessed birthday, TM!

2009-04-08T20:59:00.003+08:00

The cake was superb...I'd recommend to anyone who loves chocolates. Kindly order from fatboybakes. Double thumbs up !!! This cake really reminds me of the chocolate cake that I had in a shop called Valeries, very nearby to Harrods, London.

Hello World

2009-04-07T20:55:00.000+08:00

2nd meeting with Myron in the church to celebrate full moon.