Happy birthday, Mee

No matter how much time passes,
No matter how tough the going gets,
No matter how far we've flown away from the nest,
We will always celebrate the day it all began.
For her, for him and for us.

Sweethearts

Someone told me recently that we look like childhood sweethearts. Curious and slightly amused, I asked the person to explain how she came to that conclusion.

Her answer : "Coz you both look so happy together, so comfortable with each other, so confident of each other."

Huh?

Does that define what childhood sweethearts are?
Maybe to some, but definitely not to me. Nor to him.

So I pondered on it abit and figured what the person was trying to tell me was that we seemed like soul-mates, considering that we seem to read each other's body language and facial expressions really well. And the confident vibes that others get around us, I guess that just gave her the impression that we've been together for a really long time. Like forever. LOL.

(Can't believe it's gonna be 7 years in another 2 months. Geez, where did the time fly to? And will we be hit by the 7-year itch? Heh. Only time can tell, eh)

Honestly, I do not know if forever exists but what I do know is that I treasure my 'now' and will do all in my power to maximise my 'now' rather than mull over forever.

Do you believe in forever?

P/S - The more I think about it, the more I think I am turning into a cynic. Good or bad, I still haven't decided. :P

Doing for the sake of doing

It's amusing, really.

For some folks to pen articles telling the world of how they've saved lives, changed the world, etc. All from doing something that they have to do, or found themselves forced into circumstances that dictate them to do what they do.

Well, I guess one can argue that they took lemons out of Life and made lemonade. But to me, being proud of something is when it's accomplished through passion. Through dedication. Through perserverence. Through believing in oneself.

So, no I can't say that I agree to certain articles singing praises for individuals who do what they do because they are thrown into the circumstances. I cannot react to the article with a "Wow!". The best I could give is a hmpf and a if-i-have-nothing-nice-to-say-i-better-shut-it smirk.

So, hmpf.

My God!

She is carefree.
She is reckless.
She is restless.

"She must be a non-Christian", someone remarked.
"Why do you say that?", I asked.
"Because if she has found God, she wouldn't be so empty. Which is what she seems to me. Empty as an abandoned shell by the seashore", that same someone said.
"Sorry, I beg to differ. Her faith has nothing to do with her choice of life", I snapped back.

And that has touched a sore spot in me.

Why does a sick/sad person got to be non-Christian?
Why does a lost person assumed to have not found God?
Why does God have to be Jesus Christ?

Who died and made them GOD?!

Geez.

P/S - I don't look down my nose and tsk'ed at you for being restricted by your religion. You claim to be smart, with brains blessed by God. So, use it to remember that you have no right to look down your noses at others who do not share your faith. Remember that well.

A letter to Tony

Had quite an experience traveling home last weekend and decided to share it with the man behind it all. Didn't expect much though. So, imagine my surprise when I received an email reply from The Man this morning.

Here is my original email :-

To the Management of AirAsia Berhad,

Flight #: AK 5806
Departure Date: 20 November 2011
Departure Airport: Penang
Destination Airport: Singapore
Assigned Seat #: 24D

Since January 2011, I have been a faithful monthly supporter of AirAsia, picking it above the other budget airlines to commute between my workplace (Singapore) and my home (Penang). So far, I have encountered the occasional flight delays but
thankfully, never encountered any flight cancellations or any other major changes.

However, the good impression I had of AirAsia was tarnished by a recent incident. Flight details as shared above. Dutifully, I performed my mobile check-in for my 20Nov flight on 18Nov. As usual, I received the 2D barcode and email confirmation on the same day (as per attached email). My SIN-PEN travel leg was smooth but I cannot say the same for my return leg from PEN-SIN. I learnt that AA double-booked the same seat to 2 different passengers. We’ve all heard about promotions of 2 tickets for the price of 1 but this is definitely a first to hear of 1 ticket for the price of 2!

I have attached a copy of my boarding pass which clearly stated that my assigned seat is 24D. However when I reached my seat, a guy was already seated at the same seat and when we compared boarding passes, we were both shocked to see that we were assigned the same seat for the same flight on the same travel date.

Now, if it was a human mistake, it would be understandable and somewhat acceptable. This, however, was an auto-allocation from your booking system. I learnt from the fellow passenger that he performed his mobile check-in and was allocated
that seat number by your automated system. Just like I was.

For a company that boasts of being the “Best low cost airline” award winner for many years running, it was indeed an unpleasant surprise and definitely a disappointment.
Now, I will be always wondering if the system is pulling a fast one on me every time I perform my mobile check-in. Definitely not good customer experience.

I had to stand at the back galley of the aircraft and waited for all the other passengers to board before the crew could find me a vacant seat to sit me for the flight. Fortunately, the flight was at 95% capacity, which meant that I didn’t have to be offloaded from the flight (Imagine a very stressful traveler on a late Sunday evening after a very busy weekend in Penang before heading back to prepare for an equally long week ahead in Singapore. Being offloaded would NOT be fun!).

Thankfully, this story has a good ending.

The crew on AK 5806 on that night were very helpful especially one particular crew by the name of Jeffrey Koh who did all he could to help abate my growing anxiety as I watched more and more passengers board the aircraft, taking up all the seats I could see that were vacant. So I would like to thank Jeffrey who helped turn an otherwise stressful traveling experience into a decent one. Decent enough to avoid a freaked out, grumpy passenger onboard an AA flight.

Having said that, I would still like to lodge an official complaint against the apparent gaps in your online booking system that have caused unnecessary anxiety to your passengers. Logic tells me that I would not be the only passenger encountering this for as long as the system gap is not addressed.

I hope this email gets to the right parties within the AirAsia organization so that some needed changes can be made for a better traveling experience for all of us faithful AirAsia passengers.

Thank you and have a nice day.
From: Eleen , a frequent AA traveler

And his response less than 24 hours later:-

Dear eleen, pls accept my sincerest apologies on what had transpired. It is embarrassing but definitely non-intentional. I suspect a tech glitch and certainly did not oversold your seat. Lau is the head of ICT and will revert on why this has occurred. Regards, tony

Followed by another email from the head of ICT within the same day.

Hi Eleen,We have begun checking how this could happen.Will revert shortly. Thank you.

Short and sweet.

Let's see if they have managed to turn this negative experience around. So far, I must admit I am somewhat impressed.

"I learnt from you"

For every smile you flash,
Every step you take/falter,
Every opinion you articulated,
Every decision you make,
Every perspective you share,
Every stand you take,
And every strength you attain,
You credited them all to me.

Sometimes, I don't know if I should be flattered or insulted.

11.11.11

Did up a little something for 2 folks who used to be my daily mirror back in my Dell days.

They remind me to always believe in myself, they remind me to be proud of who I am, and they remind me to count my blessings for having them in my then-family.

Out of sight definitely does not mean out of mind and heart, yes?

Happy birthday, you two!
:D

How much cholesterol is enough?

A few days ago, my man chanced upon this article and felt it interesting enough to share with me.

I read it, thought about it, and went "Hmmm....interesting indeed." I then decided to change my habit of chucking the 4 egg yolks whenever I made my oats & eggs meal as fuel after workout.

What got us thinking was the point where it mentioned that if we cut down on our cholesterol intake, our bodies will "upregulate" by making more cholesterol to meet our bodies' needs. If that's true, then all the years of our consciously cutting down on high-cholesterol food may just be futile?!

So tonight, I reminded myself to keep the yolk when cooking my oats & eggs dinner. The result, yuck. I don't like the taste and smell of the egg yolks with my oats. Maybe I have gotten used to just oats and egg whites. Or maybe the yolks made it thicker which I didn't like. Or maybe I just lost the appreciation for egg yolks after chucking them all these years. Maybe.

Food for thought, definitely.

All-est of All

"I need you to do this and that for me but don't do it too well, ok"

Sorry.
I don't know how to do anything un-well.

If I am tasked to do stuffs, I give it my all. And I really mean my all-est all.

Otherwise, it'd be a waste of my effort and time. Which happen to be 2 of the most precious elements in my books.

So, please think carefully before you approach me to help you with anything. But we are all humans. We make rash decisions sometimes. So I promise you that I will not be offended if you withdraw your request for my help.

It's Ok really.
It just means that I will have more time and resource to do other things well.

Thank you and have a nice day.

Positively Sickening

"Why are you always so positive? It's sickening sometimes!"

I get asked this question from time to time and it never fails to amuse me. Admittedly, it annoys me abit when I am having a not-so-great day but generally, I get some kind of entertainment watching those folks jump around in agitation. Heh.

The way I see it, there are certain things in Life we just cannot get away from. Death is one. Work is another (unless you have a sugar daddy/mommy stashed somewhere). So why bother whinging about it when you know that at the end of it all, you *still* need to get it done?

Sure, I get the occasional dose of crap that makes me wanna throw a bitchy fit. And there are days when I drag my feet to complete certain tasks. Not to mention the folks I have to hee-hee-haa-haa with on days when I don't feel like being friendly. All part and parcel of what we gotta do.

But does whinging about it at breakfast or lunch or tea break or dinner make it go away? Or any less necessary to be completed?

Maybe I am being too pragmatic. But seriously.

The way I look at it, I have 2 choices when it comes to doing things that I gotta do. Do it happily, or do it miserably.

I know my choice.

Do you?

"Every life is a story, make yours a best seller"

Strength

Read this on a FB wall and found it very profound. So, I'm sharing it here.

"Strength isn't really about the number of kilos you press, but about the number of people you lift and inspire"

So, so true, eh.

I've lost count of the many folks who've inspired me to push myself beyond my comfort zone, who reminded me that fitness is a lifelong mission. Not a short term goal to lose weight.

Sustainability above all else, they tell me. "If you cannot sustain it for the long term, don't waste your time."

Then there are those who come to me telling me that I've inspired them to love themselves more and work hard at getting fit. Some made it a lifetime practice, some lost steam after a few weeks/months. I never push them to do what they themselves don't think is important enough to sustain. What's the point, eh.

So to those who've lifted me through the years, thank you from the depths of my being.

It's 20-10 again

This will be the fifth year that I maintain a tradition of dedicating a post to you on your day. It will be a tradition that I will keep for many years to come. Well, as long as I have the means and tools, that is.

So, happy birthday, you! :)

I tried looking for you over Skype late last night and early this morning but you seem to be offline. Taking the day off, I see. Good on ya, mate! I know you are gonna give me sh!t about the Aussie slang but hey, when in Rome...;)

Hope you had an awesome day today.

And here's to wishing that you find your way to 台灣 soon. As you know, that is my secret dream too. Maybe we get to meet again when our dreams are realized. Even if it means we are using walking sticks by then!

Take care and see you when I see you.

Lots of love.

New Chapter

This is way overdue. Something I've been thinkin about for awhile but never got round to doing.

If you found your way here by yourself, well...hi.
If you got here based on my directions, welcome back. And you are definitely wondering why I decided to change space. No exciting or mysterious reasons, I'm afraid. Just plainly because the tool was getting to be a real pain to blog from.

More posts and updates coming up. Stay tuned.