back from holiday and back into the craps
4 days of leave ... 5 days 4 nights on a holiday to rustic hanoi, vietnam. reading up on hanoi is no fun. travellers are talking more about the sellers on the streets and the mundane scenery. best was my fren whose 1st comment on hearing that i was going to hanoi was ... "i'm sure you know that hanoi is a BORING place ... ". gave me the creeps but well, its really boring i would say, but on a $100 return ticket, whois to complain?
we were picked up at the airport by a nice chap who was leaning on the horn the entire journey and flicking the lights almost every 15 secs that i was getting a little cheesed off by the sound of the flickering. but it gave us a good insight on the traffic conditions in hanoi ... that the motorcycle is king of the road. the hotel is nice ... packed in the ancient quater of hanoi. its a family run hotel which only the owner himself speaks english. nice and clean rooms, better than i expected for USD 15 per nite. went out to find pho on the streets like 8pm or so. after walking along, we found the place recommended by the owner, but i suspect that we got cheated.
the next couple of days were spent walking around hanoi looking for buys (and trying to guess the prices of stuff so that we wont get ripped off) ... going to the supermarkets around the town which is akin to a wet market on the ground floor and shops on the 2nd floor selling clothes and the likes. we found the ONLY air con shopping centre in hanoi and best thing is that there was a supermarket so we could get stuff that has prices on them. at least we know the relative prices of stuff on the streets.
one highlight of our journey was a shopping trip which the owner's wife brought us on. we managed to find some of the more local hangouts and places where they would get their stuff (basically in supermarkets / markets, not on the streets as the prices will be higher). we were also introduced to the most popular local coffee hangout where the coffee was great. we also found fanny's ice-cream which sold good ice-cream scoops for S$1 each. tasty and good.
overall, the trip was a good relaxing one. soak in the ancient feel of the town. i would say that hanoi is a countryside town where the people are mostly related to farmers and the likes. imagine singapore's own chinatown in 1960s and there you have hanoi. streets upon streets of people trying to sell their goods to you. i dont think i will be travelling back to hanoi soon, but i would say that i would want to try out Saigon instead ... so called the bangkok of vietnam.
wise words from a wise man
treasure every moment, treasure what you have... you won't realise what you have, till you lose it....
MOOD ANALYSIS TEST RESULTS
You are seeking an affectionate relationship, offering fulfillment and happiness. You are capable of powerful emotional enthusiasm. Deep down, you are a kind loving person, always helpful and willing to adapt yourself if necessary to realize the bond of affection that you desire. But you need the same consideration and understanding from others and it is this need that will sometimes hold you back... so let go, trust and you may pleasantly surprised at what happens.
You are totally dissatisfied with your present situation. Matters are not going right for you and you are seeking a means of escape. Your mental state of mind necessitates that you need to change your thinking patterns. Remember, if one particular modus operandi doesn't seem to work, then try something different.
You are not an argumentative sort of person and 'rather than fight - you'd switch' (an old cigarette ad cliche). But when you try to assert yourself - as sometimes you may try to do - you meet with so much resistance and effrontery that manifests itself so obviously that you become hurt, indignant and resentful. So in order to have peace and quiet you tend to become inhibited. You keep it all to yourself but deep down, you 'feel' and 'hurt' a lot.
For whatever the reason, you find it extremely difficult to sustain relationships - that is to sustain them in the manner that you would wish. You are a very gentle sort of person, full of feeling, sensitivity and susceptible to love and affection, looking and longing for a partner with whom you can enjoy 'All things bright and beautiful' - someone with whom you can seek out the more esoteric things of life. But up to now this person has only existed in your imagination. You are very choosy, appreciative, refined and extremely artistic in temperament and it is your hope to seek others who will allow you to form and express your own taste and judgement and who at the same time may assist you in your intellectual or artistic growth.
You are inclined to be too trusting and you feel that you need to be on your guard against the possibility that your endeavors and actions may be misunderstood. Too often you have been taken advantage of and you have been mentally abused. Now you are seeking a relationship which can provide peace of mind, where you can be yourself and not have the need to put on a false front.
http://www.colorgenics.com/sps/
a week of discharge ...
yups its been a week since i last blogged. its been a rushy week for yours truely. lots of emergencies to clear and getting things back on track at work that made me to tired that you feel so drained when you return home.
15 Sept marked a day when we knew the outcome that we were waiting for. i would say that the decisions made were crappy and out of sorts. does the new management think that they are SO SUPER that they are super humans. we are talking about engineering here. its not like some things that you are able to understand over night. what about the history in them? it took months to understand the concept and operations and now they are throwing all the experienced gained back into the rubbish bin. kiddos to them. good luck to all.
but one thing for sure is that i still have a job, for the next 6mths at least. although we know that in this kind of topsy turvy world, things can happen overnight and you are powerless to stop it. it just rushes at you like a train at full speed and all you can do is step aside and stare. decisions beyond your control. sucks. but then again ... this is life.
hmmm ... anyone wants to try me?
| The Keys to Your Heart |
You are attracted to obedience and warmth.
In love, you feel the most alive when things are straight-forward, and you're told that you're loved.
You'd like to your lover to think you are stylish and alluring.
You would be forced to break up with someone who was ruthless, cold-blooded, and sarcastic.
Your ideal relationship is open. Both of you can talk about everything... no secrets.
Your risk of cheating is zero. You care about society and morality. You would never break a commitment.
You think of marriage something you've always wanted... though you haven't really thought about it.
In this moment, you think of love as something you thirst for. You'll do anything for love, but you won't fall for it easily. |
something about kissing ...
| Your Kissing Purity Score: 66% Pure |
 For you, kissing isn't a casual thing
Lip to lip action makes your heart sing |
sick ... n other thoughts
felt feverish last nite, coupled with a pounding headache that drove me to return early from my workplace at 5pm. i dunno if its the food intake i was eating or maybe the lack of sleep over the last 2 nights. somehow, my body isn't the same as in the past when i could get on with 6hrs or less of sleep. i was knocked out by 10pm last nite (with the influence of x2 normal panadol) and didnt get up until 7am this morning.
was a tad emotional for the past couple of nites. i dunno if its the uncertainty of the future of work in my company or maybe i'm feeling neurotic. maybe its both. stress from all difference sectors. it made me think and ponder about lots of stuff and wonder if i'm doing the right thing all along. i hate being kept in the dark about stuff, esp those that i'm pretty passionate about. sometimes a wrong decision gets you so down that you wonder very often what is the correct to resolve the issue. i guess as a trained engineer, it is built into me to think, ponder and analyse about problems and find ways to get those problems resolved. but when the problem is out of my hands or there is no way to get it solved, i think i get very frustrated easily.
got into a wierd arguement the other night. thinking about it, i wondered why i brought up all those points which were shot down so convincingly by the other party. i dunno if i'm losing my touch or just that i was feeling frustrated and not thinking fast enough. maybe its the tiredness of it all. waiting is a game that is hard to do. when one's patience is worn thin, frustration just boils over and i think i did lose control over that matter. however, i think a clear mind is required if one really wants to be able to work out all the points in an arguement and counter-argue. but then again, one has to be sensitive and understanding about the points being brought up and not to get too emotional until it becomes ugly. an ugly arguement leads to a fight, which is not a very good way to resolve issues.
another month has gone by ...
i'm counting all the months and see if they really adds up to years to come. i nvr did ask for any commitment of sorts, i just know that the months will still keep on counting ... whatever may be.
its almost a year since i started out full time work. its really an eye opener in this industry and work environment where there is simply no proper guidance / training / path to follow etc. they throw you in and watch at the sidelines if you float or sink. very challenging i would say, cause it needs you to be on your feet at all times to sort things out. and often enough, you got to think of intelligent ways to sort out the issues on hand. taxing on the brains i would say.
well, i think i've learnt a lot, really. it beats some other work where everything is done by the book: step 1, step 2, etc etc. here, you have to explore the unknowns and get something going out of nothing. i guess experience helps a lot here and how the things are said and done. what makes it more challenging is after your job is done, there is more of other kinds of responsibilities to take on, including the job and works of others.
at the end of the day, you got to ask yourself what do you ultimately seek; are you learning something new today that makes a difference to you? - wise words from a wiser man.
Monday ....
hai ... izzit the real monday blues or what. my mind is really slow thinking of stuff that needs to be completed and even the things that i want to say.
did a 3km jog today ... the last 400m being a really slow jog. basically i'm pretty happy with my jogging progress. at least my lungs are not blowing up and my legs do not feel like lead at the end of it all.
hai ... sometimes when things hurt the most you got to find some way to get it out. sis had the unfortunate event of getting my car hurt in an accident. hit the front LEFT mud guard against a railing. THIS IS TOTALLY no excuse as this side is on the driver's side of the car. all one has to do is to look out of the window and you can see that corner. sickening to the core. hate it. craps. i wonder how much it cost to get that part replaced. i would estimate about $500. crap, my car is barely 3mths old ~ just crossed the 10,000km mileage marker. GROAN .... sheeh ... i'm still fuming. !@!%&(#^*%!!
missed temptations ....
every pc show is a testing time ... really. the temptation to BUY BUY BUY and UPGRADE UPGRADE is always there. oh well ... was tempted this time by an LG 19" LCD with dvi. $540 only. dirt cheap price i would say, coz when 17" lcds were out on the market ... it was $999. oh well, prices will always go down for that matter. and when it comes to buying expansive things, i'm pretty particular. it has to meet all my requirements, if not .... no go.
one thing about these shows that since it runs like 4 times a year, the deals are not going to get any better from those commonly found in the shops. typically, in the past, pc shows always have big discounts of say $100 - $150 off normal retail prices because they come like once or twice a year and the suppliers take that opportunity to clear their old stock of goods. so today, we are getting like only $30 - $50 off the normal retail prices at SLS, so its not really a 'good deal' that you are going to get at the shows.
i guess i'll stick with my 15" LCD for the moment. its still working well and still giving me the effect that i want. so until the next show that is ... when temptation knocks on the door once more.
what is love ...
"To love at all is to be vulnerable. To be vulnerable of being hurt. But we still have to love, cos what's life without love..."
