Owh......

Today was a "interesting" day. It's been quite sometime I didn't have a connection to go online.

I took this chance to read all the blog and FB-ing. First bombshell I learn is my 2nd ex will get married soon. So happy for her although we have many many many misunderstandings. Last I know, she's still not in talking terms with me. Hopefully she'll accept my sincere wishes.

Next I found out that my recent ex (comm'on, not that many la. 3 in total) is in another relationship. When I was back in KL for CNY, I did met her to pass her some stuff. It turns out that she wasn't single anymore then but she didn't tell me.

It's never good to learn about something from 3rd party. Like I said previously, we are the most distant close friend. We know each other well but we are so distant with each other. It's actually very sad that a person that I've spent 5 long years of my life treats me this way.

Hopefully both of them can be happy. I still feel sorry for the things I've done.

Which one?

	US	New Zealand
Position	WiMAX Product Manager	Head of WiMAX Team for Australasia
Job	Same as current role. North America region includes US and Canada. Will be serving biggest WiMAX operator in the whole world.	Overseeing 3 staffs. Australasia region includes AU/NZ/Pacific Island. Will be serving top tier WiMAX operator in Asia Pacific.
Career growth	I have the opportunity get exposure dealing with biggest operator and a whole new market.	I have the opportunity to learn to be a proper "Manager".
Moolah	Will be paid in USD and I'm guessing the pay in US will be ok due to high cost of living and currency.	Will be paid in AUD and there will be a increment for the promotion.
Challenges	Market penetration into a tough operator. Sales volume will be a big challenge as we are the new/late comer.	Handling staff for the first time but sales volume will be guaranteed and I will be actively discussing with potential operators and keep current account in check.
Things to think about	I'll be far away from home. If I get lucky, I may get to go back to Malaysia once a year.	I'm not quite ready to be a Manager. Previously I'm managing projects and receiving directions from bosses.
Reporting	My immediate boss will be fantastic but the HOD will be a bit tricky.	All bosses in SP and Australasia are fantastic.

Did I miss anything?

Where'd you go?

I was all set for US but 2 bosses from my current team gave me a good proposition. They asked me to stay in Australia to be the Head of my Department for Australasia covering AU/NZ/Fiji/Vanuatu/PNG/Samoa/etc.

Both will be paid in local currencies (eg. USD and AUD). Average for last year, USD is higher than AUD by 20%.

The job in US is the same as my current one, just that the region is different. On the other hand, I will be overseeing 3 staffs in Australasia. One of them is a pain where the sun doesn't shine. I'm sure he won't be accepting me as his boss due to his character.

There are so many things to think about. Any suggestions?

St. Damien

While I was walking at a beach filled with girls in bikini holding my camera, a pair of teenage girls asked me.

Girls: "Why are you talking the pictures of girls for?"
Me: ** Puzzled ** Errr........
Me: Wait, let me show you.

** A pat on the shoulder **

Me: You see, I'm a nice guy. I shot a few hundred of bird in flight photos today. If I get it right, the result will be amazing :D

Relax

As most of you already know, my internet is dead.

The secretary is still not able to pin point which operator fuels my apartment with internet.

What do I do without an internet? The answer is plain simple, I find internet.

Problem is solved by going to my colleague's place to go online. It's not the same though. I can't lie on the sofa because the sofa is too small. I can't lie on my bed. I feel bad if its midnight already and I better start packing.

I'm actually writing this post at home and will only publish it when I go to her place. Prior to writing this, I cooked instant noodles for lunch, did half of the laundry, and cleaned my camera.

I've actually find cleaning the camera very therapeutic. Using a cleaning “pen” and a high quality lens cloth, I clean the serviceable parts of the camera bit by bit while slowly taking them off. I always feel calm and nice when doing this.

DSLR also can so self-portrait :P

Don’t get me wrong, I abhor cleaning the dishes, house or whatever sort of cleaning that will make my hands wet. It doesn’t stop there, as the skin on my palm is very sensitive, it will slowly die off and peel.

So whoever girls out there who is considering me, please do consider again.

As always

Got an email today saying that the venue for annual meeting has been changed to Jakarta rather then Bali. Boo hoo........ Anyway, I still have to go.

Tagged by Simchi and Mictsen in FB

Rules: once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. at the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. you have to tag the person who tagged you. if i tagged you, it's because i want to know more about you.

to do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.

1. Hope to do a MBA in the future.

2. I have 2 exactly opposite character in me. I'm actually very shy and I have low self-esteem. To hide this side of myself, I always force myself to be bold and show confidence.

3. My toe pinky has weird sharp because I wore very tight shoes when I was young because mom wants to save money.

4. Doesn't like disco, prefers pub or bar.

5. Can't sing or dance or play any musical instrument.

6. Doesn't wear underwear since university.

7. Hopes to see Aurora, whether it's borealis or australis.

8. Loves to show off. Still learning and trying to control.

9. Has torn ligament and meniscus in both knees due to sports injury.

10. Is a black belt in taekwondo.

11. Longest hour without sleep is 50 hours with continuous work and stress.

12. Have loads of stretch mark all over my body because I was diagnosed with a rare case where my bones grow faster than my flesh and (oh well) I was very very very fat when I was young (this explains point number 2).

13. I've only been drunk once in my life. It was kinda scary to think back how did I manage to drive home that day.

14. Loves Samurai X, Futurama, Simpsons and Family Guy.

15. Likes to support the underdogs when watching sports. If the stronger team wins, its expected; when the underdog wins, bring on the celebration!!!

16. I'm a light sleeper, will wake up to any sound and light. Unless I'm really tired, then I'll snore :P

17. I cry quite easily. Ok, not as in cry lah but I shed tears quite easily. When watching movie or reading sad stuff.

18. Not so much of a fiction book fan, likes to read about real life experience and technical stuff.

19. Andy Lau is my distant relative. Seriously.

20. I'm always lazy to take med. Not because of the taste, just lazy. Will always gives excuse that I'll be fine without med.

21. I forget -ve stuff easily. I'm not good with dates as well.

22. I know what is a lexicographer. It's a person who writes dictionary.

23. Will always be on time for any appointment and end up being the first to arrive. Always! So don't be late for my wedding.

24. I'm an atheist. I can't seem to believe anything that can't be explained with logic. I've tried to understand and accept but I just can't. But this doesn't mean I give up. Sometimes I still try praying/hoping but I just get disappointed always.

25. I love cooking but I hate doing the dishes. My request for cooking is, "I can cook but you must do the dishes. Deal?".

Bonus 26. I plan to name my daughter (if I have one) Hazel Leong.

Happy Chinese Valentines

I had some food left from yesterday's dinner

Salted Vege Soup

Bitter Gourd with Snapper Fillet in Spicy Tao Si Sauce

Stir Fried Lettuce with Egg

Wanted to finish them today but realized today is the last day of CNY. Thought it would be good to have something I like so I went to Ding Hao BBQ Restaurant.

As usual, was served with a complimentary hot soup when they bring over the menu

Told the nice Malaysian girl I don't need the menu, ordered my fav Roast Duck with Roast Pork Rice.

And this amazing tasty + big portion plate appeared in front of me soon after.

To gauge how big the plate is, I've put my handphone in the background for comparison. Meals usually comes at NZD8-12 for 1 portion and this plate cost NZD11. Good value for money I would say :D

Do I get to go this time?

Remember Silly Nangka? This year's meeting will be at Bali! It will be from 19th to 22nd this month.

The Account Manager was transferred, so now I'm also the Account Manager for my current project :x

As I have more responsibility in my current project, not sure whether the office here will allow me to leave for Bali. Anyway, it's on the weekend so I'll try my best to go as I've never been there before ;)

Wish me luck!

Illegal Kuli

Few days back while I was in Malaysia, I went to Asia Cafe to have my dinner. Half way through my dinner, the workers there ran like crazy. I thought there was a big fight going on until I saw officers with Imigresen written on their back. Those who had legitimate documents made a beeline and walked calmly to the officers.

After I finished my dinner, I had to walk past them. I was shocked to see that they were asked to squat while waiting for the officers to check their document. Come'on, didn't they queued properly and handed in their documents? You don't have to treat them that way right?

Actually I can relate to the foreigners because in a way I'm actually one of them. You see, when I went to Philippines and now New Zealand, I've always used a visitor visa instead of a business visa.

Why didn't I apply for a visa? Well, company usually wants us to fly to a country immediately so there's no time for that. Further more to apply for a business visa to NZ, we need to send in the application to the NZ embassy either in Singapore or Sydney.

While I was coming into Auckland this time, my colleague went through a lot of trouble. It took us almost 2 hours to clear immigration and customs.

I certainly hope that I won't be blacklisted from entering a country, subsequently being barred from other country.

Sidenote:
I spoke to US boss about dates. As I would go there much later than he expected, Canada was out of the picture as they need me there within this month. He said most probably I'll be in Chicago. This feeling is the same like when I joined the company, they can't make up their mind on where to send me to.