Hello..people!

It’s been a while since my last post. But I am still alive. Sorry guys for the lack of update and not visiting your blog lately. One of reason of my absence is the interruption of internet services in our office. Yeah, I am using the company’s facilities but not to the extent of abusing the office hour ya…*wink* Oh, I do have Streamyx at home but my 'ancient' desktop rosak la pula…arrgh!

Let’s see, there are too many issues happening in our company these few months. Re-structuring is one of the main issues. The top management has resort to drastic cut-down in operation cost…forcing our main office and branches to move to the other subsidiary office. To make things worse, the management only gives one week notice to the staffs about the relocation. *headache* This re-structuring thingy has also caused a number of staffs losing their job especially the contract staffs like moi. Yes, I am going to be one of the thousands of unemployed in the country in two more weeks. I am having mix feelings on being unemployed.

Though Hubby said he is okay with it, I am still worried that it will burden Hubby for he will have to bear all the monthly installments of loans, utilities and the household expenses. On the other hand, another part of me can hardly wait for my last day of work! I found myself wishing that the last day will come quicker than it should be. I think I am excited to be a full time homemaker.

It’s quite a coincidence, all these happenings…my maid just went back to Indonesia for good and I am going to be out of job soon. This is sort of like a perfect opportunity for me to try being a full time homemaker! But seriously, am I really ready to become one? Well, I will never find out if I don’t give it a try, right? *smile* So, I am taking it one day at a time. Hopefully, everything will be fine.

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I'm back

Physically, I am back to work. *grin* I can’t say the same about my heart and mind though. They are still on holiday…hahaha…Anyway, here I am., doing a very short post before going off. For five days, I haven’t updated my blog. Gosh, I miss it terribly! *smile* Of course, I miss visiting yours too. I’ll be making my round, blogwalking tomorrow. *wink*

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It's urgent! You must find them!!

Last weeks, one of our account officer at HQ e-mailed a long list of reference numbers to every branch’s admin staff, together with a cute little note asking us to find ALL of them and send back to them IMMEDIATELY because they need those supporting documents for billing purpose. “Good, finally, they are going to pay our vendors/agents on time. No need for us to find excuses for the delay in payment”, I thought.

But, when I look through the list…I was stunned. My head started to throb short after. Most of the supporting documents they requested are old documents, dated back in 2006! And it is now 2010. Can you believe it? It took them 3 years to realize that they can’t bill the customer without the complete document! Really smart!

Being a good employee, I looked into each of the old files available. I only found a few of the documents they requested. I’d even ask our appointed agents in Tawau, Sandakan and Labuan to send to us if there is any document with them. To cut the story short, I’d sent what I found to the person-in-charge, complete with a message, “I’ve checked ALL our files here and also with our agents, and these are ALL I got. There is NO COPY OR RECORD of the others.” Two days later, I received an e-mail reply, “Please find the others. This is urgent! We MUST have the other documents ASAP” Yeah, right. “Should you need any assistance, please let us know. We will send somebody to help. ” Aiyo…which part of “There is NO COPY OR RECORD of the others” that you don’t understand?! LOL…want to send somebody to help some more....hahaha… Unbelievable! How to find if there is nothing to find??! *slap forehead*

“Dearest person-in-charge, it is good that you offer assistance but the thing is, there is NO RECORD to be found. If that will make you feel better, go ahead; send us your search team ASAP. You can even send the whole department. We sure can use some extra hands in tidying up our store room.” Oh yes, I really feel like replying with these sarcastic lines. But I didn’t. I don’t want to create more fuss…hehe…Nanti kena cop berlagak, mau tunjuk pandai …So what I did was replied them politely, that even with the extra help, the chances of finding those missing documents are as good as zero. If they want to send somebody, then it’s up to them.

Honestly, I did my best to help. I’d even call-up an ex-colleague (the longest serving staff in KK) who’d left the company 6 months ago, to find out if there was a file on the 2006 documents. (All the us left here had only join the company in 2008.) I didn’t blame him when he said he doesn’t remember. :) “Kenapa sekarang baru sibuk-sibuk diorang mencari? Kenapa bukan dari dulu lagi? Kalau diorang suruh cari awal-awal, maybe bulih dapat lagi.” Yes, exactly. Well, what can I say, they are too busy to look into it that the neglected until now? *roll eyes*

Lack of manpower to check those documents? Most unlikely. Our head office has a large number of staff in the Account Dept but it is so obvious that they (not all of them though) did not do their job properly. I mean, if they did, they should have found out the lack of document on the spot, right? Why wait 3 years later to look for them? *sigh* If only they had done their job at the first place, we won’t face this situation.

Todate, we (branch staff) still get desperate call from the Acc. Dept urging us to send the other out-standing doc by the end of this month. But like I said, I’ve done my best. I don’t know where else to find those missing document. If they are not satisfied with my effort, they can complain to the top level. I don’t care!

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Cherishing the moment

The holidays are over. But why oh why am I still in holiday mood? Somehow, I got a feeling that I am not the only one. LOL.

I’ve cleaned up my desk, my In and Out tray, filed some loose documents into its files, etc. Now, I don’t have anything to do in the office. Most of my Muslim colleagues and superiors will only be in next Monday. So, it is so peaceful and quite in the office. I am sooo enjoying this rare blissful moment. Even the phone is extremely quiet, adding to the tranquility. It has been that way since yesterday and hopefully, it’ll stay like that until tomorrow evening…*fingers crossed* … hahahaa…..

Since the line is all clear. I grabbed the chance to browse for a new layout. I found a few but am still considering which one I prefer the most. *smile* Okay, I may have abused the office hours and the internet facility, but what am I suppose to do to kill off some time? Hehe…my boss better not find out about this or else I might end up kena goreng sotong and be part of the country’s jobless statistic! *wink*

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Monday surprise

This morning, one of my colleagues announces that her resignation letter has been accepted by the company. Her last day will be on 15 August.*faint* I was surprise to hear that as I thought that the management could work things out with her. Ever since she tendered her resignation letter, I have been silently praying that she would be asked to reconsider her resignation. “You know, I don’t think the company has any intention to hire a new staff. So it is most likely that you will ‘inherit’ my existing job,” she added with a smile. Huh??! What ?!! *faint again* “Considering the additional workload, this is the best time for you to demand for a pay raise,” another smile followed.

Aiyo Sis, it’s not about getting a raise or what, but it’s more like, can I handle all the responsibilities?? Is it worth getting MORE PAY and in the same time MORE STRESS ?? I debated in my heart. Apparently, I was not in the mood to argue the point, so I just let it drop and focus on the certain things like my mounting paperwork.

Ever since my company secured a new business deal in KK early this month, I had to handle a lot of additional paperwork and deal with unfamiliar things like logistic. *sigh* At the end of the day, I often end-up with throbbing headache, muscles sores on my neck and shoulders due to prolonged keyboard use…and look something like our little friend here…

Now they are thinking of adding some more tasks? Oh, no! Thinking of the possibility alone is enough to cause me a headache. If it really happens, then I think I am going to die.

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Customer is always right???

We rarely get any walk-in customer but when we do, they were not as difficult as this one particular guy. He was very fussy! Must be my unlucky day (and maybe the Tech too)!*sigh*

Mr Fussy came in to get his Notebook(NB) repaired. He claimed that the bluetooth function would some time go on and off automatically. Just like Chipsmore, now you see it, now you don’t. He was so kan cheong and determined to have it fixed before the warranty expires some time this year. But, the weird thing was, the problem seemed to occur only when he was using his NB, regardless whether he’s in the office or house or Coffee Bean or Starbucks.Everywhere he goes, he'll get the same problem, so he claimed. When he sent it to our service center HQ in PJ last month, our engineer there failed to detect the problem. After 3 days of monitoring, it was returned to him.

Since the problem persisted, Mr Fussy was advised to send his NB here. Suspected faulty parts are to be replaced. The moment he came in, Mr Fussy demanded to see the replacement parts. That’s when all the commotion started. “Why only 2 parts arrived? Your boss said he would send 3 – the bluetooth board, cable and antenna. “What happened to the antenna?” “Did you lose it ?” bla, bla, bla….Both the Tech and I had a very hard time convincing him that those were all that were sent to us. Obviously, Mr Fussy did not buy that; he showed us my boss’s e-mail to him. And there it was. Our ‘dear’ Boss DID promised him that he would send us the 3 components. Damn. If only he bothered to inform us earlier we won’t be so dumbfounded. THANK YOU BOSS FOR MAKING US LOOK STUPID IN FRONT OF MR FUSSY!!!

Mr Fussy demanded an explanation on why the antenna was not sent. Fair enough, he deserves one. As I was Skype-ing my boss, Mr Fussy just couldn’t keep his big mouth shut. “What did he say?”, “Did he carelessly omitted the antenna?” etc, etc…Can you believe this guy??? Surprisingly, he was able to sit tight in his chair. I half expected him to peek on my conversation with Boss…hehe. After explaining the situation to him, Boss only came-up with this, “Just tell him that the antenna is not necessary.” Yeah, right. “Easy for you to say Boss!” but of course, I only said those words in my heart.

I didn’t really pay much attention to Mr Fussy after that. I was too tired to answer all his endless "What if...?" questions. Thankfully, he got the message. Alleluia! He shifted his attention to my colleague aka Tech, interrogated him on his experience on fixing this kind of problem. Truthfully, Tech admitted that it is his first and the Engineer would guide him from HQ via Skype video call. From the corner of my eyes, I saw the discomfort and lack of confidence in Mr Fussy’s eyes. He demanded to be present during the fixing and testing process. Made it clear that he wants to see the existing components replaced as promised and make sure every screw, every little thing are in its right place.

Tech was obviously not comfortable with that. Neither do I. I can imagine Mr Fussy scrutinizing Tech’s every move, criticizing here and there. Whoa, how can you do any work in a situation like that? I immediately sought Boss’s advice on Mr Fussy’s demand. Again, Boss-the man with few words said,” Tell him it is not necessary for him to be present.” Just as I expected, Mr Fussy hit the roof when I relayed that to him. ”How would I know if you replaced the parts or not?”, “How would I know if everything are in the right place?” bla, bla, bla…Once again, we tried to convinced him that his property will be treated with utmost respect. Suspected faulty parts will be replaced with new one. Tests will be done to ensure that it functions normally. We’ll call when it is ready for collection and he himself can check his NB performance before signing the acknowledgment slip. Well, all our effort was in vain. Mr Fussy held his ground and insist to be called when fixing process starts. *faint*

An hour after he left, our Engineer launched a video call and begins the fixing process. We told him of Mr Fussy’s firm request but this nonchalant response was all we got, “Takpe. Kita buat dulu, test semua. Bila semua ok, baru kita bagi tau kat customer supaya datang collect. Customer mana boleh tengok kita buat, company policy."(It’s ok. We fix it now and run some tests. When everything’s ok, then only we call customer to come. Customers are not allowed to see the fixing process. It is the company’s policy.") Tech and I were speechless. I’m sure we’re thinking the same thing, “How are we going to tell Mr Fussy about this?” Mr Fussy will sure explode this time! We were in a dilemma, to adhere to our superiors and get slaughtered by customer OR make customer happy and get fired by Boss for violating company’s policy. Either way we’ll get all the bashing. *sigh * We chose the former.

As foreseen, after receiving my call about the parts had been replaced, Mr Fussy disconnected the call and sped to our office. He was fuming mad and bombarded us with his frustration. What can we say? We told him that we were only following order. We offered to open-up his NB for him to have a look at the internal. With a glare, he refused by saying that the act would only cause further damaged to his NB due to frequently loosening and tightening the screw. With that, we both telepathically agreed not to provoke him. We apologized to Mr Fussy and kept our silence and listened to him rant. Eventually, he calmed down and agreed to leave his NB with us for another 2 days for observation.

The unfortunate incident above occurred two days ago. Yikes! Observation period is over. Mr Fussy is coming again today. Maybe he is on his way now. *roll eyes* I have no interest whatsoever to deal with him. I’ll let one of my colleagues deal with him…if I have a choice. *wink* They are already speculating that it won’t be our last encounter with Mr Fussy. He will be back sooner complaining about another problem if not the same. I sure hope that all their speculating is wrong!!! I don't want to see Mr Fussy again!

Now that I managed to get it off my chest, I felt much better. Phew! I hope I didn’t bore you with this long and winding post of mine. :)

Updates:- Mr Fussy was supposed to come collect his NB on Friday but he couldn't make it. Instead he came on the following Monday. He came with a serious face and didn't say much except when he replied my greeting. Packed his NB, signed the acknowledgement slip and go.

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Cat-nap

Thank God Monday is over. I’m referring to the working hours ya *wink*. How’s your day? Mine was the usual, typical Monday, work, work and some more work *roll eyes* How NOT exciting!!!

As I was typing, I can’t help but wonder..how nice it was if I was home right now, catching an afternoon nap like Mew-Mew here?

This is one of my pet cats in his daily routine. He spends most of his time sleeping on the sofa… sampai my mum use her old sarung to cover it to avoid the furs sticking on the cushion.Normally, Mew-Mew would curl himself into a ball but yesterday he did a different sleeping position. It was funny to find him all stretch-out, truly enjoying the moment…until my little girl woke him with the squeaking sound of her rubber ducky. LOL! Kesian si Mew-Mew..takajut bah dia dingar tu bunyi... Now where did my little Vanessa get that wicked idea? Well, she got it from her mommy! LOL!

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Lawsuit

I used to work in a law firm as a legal secretary. My job scope includes typing, typing and typing. Yes, I did the typing on all kind of legal documents, eg. Affidavits, Writ of Summons, correspondences to clients and/or to other legal firms and so on, with my boss sitting beside me dictating the each and every words/sentences. Being a lawyer, he valued his time very much, “Time is gold” he said, so writing down a draft is a waste of time. * Sigh * It is impossible to catch-up at his speed!

During my tenant, I came across various kinds of civil cases as my boss does not take crime cases. One particular case that I remembered was this client; a well-known businessman who was suing his neighbour for causing damages to his brick wall/embankment. They tried to resolve the dispute via arbitration but obviously, all efforts failed.

Good thing that our client is a rich man for the cost of retaining a good lawyer like my former boss would be too much to bear. Trust me, many case end-up sitting in our dear ol' Mahkamah Kota Kinabalu system for a few years before it is finalized. There will be a lot of hearings involved and these process needs money. But not all of us are rich.

So, where can we find the money to bear all the costs? If only we have a lawsuit loan , then the financial burden may not be as heavy to shoulder. This loan can provide the cash we needed while our case is in progress.

LawsuitFunding.com offers various type of funding/loan such as the Plaintiff Funding, Structured Funding, Attorney Funding and Commercial Funding. The process is quite simple. First, we need to fill-up a form, then somebody from the Management will contact us the soonest possible. Well, we can always contact them if we can't bear the wait. *wink* After reviewing our case, we'll get our fund within 24 hours. Whoa, that is probably the fastest turnaround period. Too good to be true? Well, it is supported by testimonials of others who have had the benefit. There's more, we only pay if we win. Ah, if only we have it here in Sabah, misti ramai peminat ni... * smile*

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Joke cum reminder

Moral of the story : In these days of cost-cutting, leaves the office early!!!

One senior colleague circulated this cartoon via e-mail. Obviously, he meant it as a joke (or a reminder), but some other colleague does not like it. I have no comment on that. Different ppl, different point of view, right ? *smile*

Anyway, during this period of economic downturn, we may find ourselves in the similar situation as the worker in the cartoon. So, don’t be surprised if we’re asked to leave the office on time. :)

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Now and Then

Finally, we had our ex-3B1 reunion last Saturday morning. Well, a mini reunion is more appropriate for it. Out of 7 original 3B1 members, only 4 of us made it. The other 3 couldn’t make it due to various reason, ManD was working, Bet was not feeling well and Elly is in Tawau. Our last reunion with full attendance was on 2007 during Just’s wedding reception.

So, the 4 of us met at Tg. Aru, Rahayu Café as suggested by Just. It was an express reunion actually. Just was flying back to KL that afternoon. There was sooo much to talk about but so little time to spend. Nevertheless, we managed to update each other on life and works with motherhood as the main focus…hehe….

The reunion went well except for some uneasy feeling. There was this apek who was pacing to and fro silently at the sidewalk. At one time, he came over to our table and took a look at our faces! Phew..we were so relieved when he left and went back to the sidewalk. No doubt he was looking for somebody. But obviously, there was something wrong with him. Got a PHD (Permanent Head Damage) maybe...

We took quite some time staring at the menu, don’t know what to order. Hehe…At last we ordered the same, roti canai with leong fun susu and air jagung for iLLa. She also ordered a bowl of tomyam soup, just to try how good (or bad) it was. So, the verdict on the food? The taste was so-so but still edible la. The café was quite comfy though, and wifi is available.

Now : (L-R) Just, me, iLLa & Sab

Then : (L-R) Elly, Bet, me, Just, ManD, iLLa & Sab

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The longest wait...

What a hectic day it was in the office yesterday. Since I was on leave the day before, all the work had pile-up on my desk. Didn’t even have time to post a new entry. By the end of the day, I was so exhausted.

I took a leave on Monday to accompany mom for her annual review at the Eye Clinic, Queen Elizabeth Hospital. She has undergone a minor surgery on her left eye 2 years ago to remove the cataract. It was our first visit since all the clinics were moved to the adjacent new building. They evacuated the old one a few months ago (not too sure though when was the exact date…) due to safety reason. The building structure was simply too old and might posed safety hazard to people. A hot debate topic on the local papers. All warded patient has been moved to Sabah Medical Centre (SMC) old building in Likas.

The new building was clean, comfy and plenty of seat for the patients to occupy while waiting. Temperature inside was cool, just nice. Not too cold like the old one..where ppl were shivering with cold. They even set-up a corner for the children to play. Good idea.. :)

Despite all that, the waiting time was still the same old story. No wonder la most ppl dreaded going to gov hospital/clinic. Mom and I were not so happy to go there either. But no choice, have to go also. *sigh * Visit to Government Hospital/Clinic = Long, long wait by the lobby..

Mom appointment was @ 8.30am but we came late @ 9.00am. Being our first time there, we’re not familiar with the place. We relied on the signboard and asked around for direction. Eventually we managed to locate the Eye Clinic safe and sound but sempat juga bah sesat sekejap :) .

It took 1 and half hours wait before mom was registered. * sigh * How frustrating. There was this Inai (aunty) who complained a few times. It’s understandable. She claimed that she has been waiting since 7.30am (operation hours start) but still not registered yet. The Inai didn’t lose her cool, instead she voice out her complained in a calm tone. Some other ppl were getting edgy due to the long wait and started crowding the Registration Desk, complaining. The reason given for the long wait was “ Fail susah mau cari, baru pindah bangunan baru. Tolonglah sabar ya.” Nasib baik lah the Nurses explained politely. If only they asked, I was more than happy to lend a hand to look for the files. Hehe...anything to expedite the process!

Going marah-marah also no point, it won’t do any good. So mom & I waited patiently. While mom was getting chummy with the Inai, I started reading. Lucky I’d bring along a book to kill-off some time or else I’ll die of boredom! Hmm…the book was NOT interesting at all, but boy, am I glad that I had it then..haha..

The visit involved 5 processes – Registration, Visual Acuity Exam, Consultation with Dr @ Ophthalmologist, Further Check-up with Optometrist and consultation with Dr. again. Each checking and consultation took only 30 minutes max but the waiting was unbearable, seems like an endless wait. * sigh*

We were so relieved when Doc said mom eye was ok. Can go home liao …But before leaving we have to endure another wait. This time, for the Nurse to return the Appointment Card. Adeiiii!! It’s already noon time and we’re starving. Good thing we came in handy with some kuih ubi manis and water. Even that didn’t manage to suppress the growling monster in my stomach. Hehe…but better something than nothing at all kan…sorou poh. The canteen was a far walk from the new building. We finally left at about 1.30pm and the poor Inai was still not done with her check-up yet. * sigh *

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The truth behind...

I’m sure all of you out there have gone thru an appraisal interview before. Here are the most common comments that we may get. Cool comments eh?! Do check-out the real meaning behind….hehe…

Weekend datang lagi..plus one extra off-day on Monday! Yey ! Have a happy-happy weekend and holiday ya!

To all Muslim friends, Selamat Hari Raya Haji.

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Finally...

Wah, only 5 days absent , I felt like a year already…how I miss my blog! Been quite busy lately with work and personal errands. When I finally got some free time yesterday, my PC at home malfunctioned pulak..Ceh! How frustrating! Grrr….

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was preoccupied with an assignment. Hmm, it’s not exactly my own, I was “helping” a friend’s friend to do her assignment. The assignment was on the Principles of Microeconomics. Well, since my friend said it required only basic knowledge and reference book will be provided, plus having taken Economics as an additional subject in SPM ; I accepted it with arms wide open, after only a quick glance at the questions. When I started to go through the questions properly…I was mong cha-cha, my brain went blank…no idea at all on how to answer it. Adeiii! * A slap on the forehead* I was already considering to return it ..but in the end, I did exactly the opposite. I decided to give it a try…haha

BESIDES some basics, e.g the law of supply and demand, market equilibrium, price elasticity, cost etc; one ALSO need a firm understanding on the concepts and the applications in order to answer the questions. *sigh* So for 4 days, I struggled between works and spent my spare time in the office studying and refreshing my rusty memory..(my last encounter with Economics was in 1st Semester at Uni… that was 5 years ago…LOL) trying to come up with the best and comprehensive answers. I was getting paid to do this assignment, and somebody’s grade is depending on it, so it was right for me to give it my best, not cincai-cincai. Otherwise, no more chances to cari makan in the future *grin *

After straining my brain cells for days, finally I managed to finish the final write-up. I was quite satisfied with the output. As agreed, I passed it over safely to my friend aka my agent last Friday so that she can then hand it over to the rightful owner. All the effort, time and energy spent, minus commission for friend (for getting this assignment)….is worth the fee I’ll be getting…probably at the month-end. * wink-wink * can buy something for myself…a new pair of shoes or a handbag perhaps…:p

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Busy, busy, busy...

Just as I anticipated, most of the KL staff is back from their Raya leave. So today, I am in busy mode. It’s been hectic since this morning, no peace at all. I was bombarded by calls from them, asking latest updates on some out-standing cases. A few colleagues even dialed the wrong number, dialed our office no. instead of Kuching’s office no. Co-workers in Sandakan and Tawau help add to my busy-ness also. Thanks guys….* roll eyes*

Got this pic from http://www.shutterstock.com

All this busy-ness is related to EON updating their SAP system, ALL branches nationwide at a time ya. In turn, we need to dispatch our techs to attend to it pronto. Whichever not attended today, have to get it rescheduled to tomorrow, to the day after tomorrow etc…

Only now, I’m able to relax a bit but still need got a handful task to clear. Now I’m having this throbbing headache (courtesy of the bombarding calls). The nape of my neck is also aching… for sitting too long facing the computer. Hmm…despite being busy, I managed to drop one or two comment on some blog during lunch hour. Hehe…sempat juga bah.

I guess, I’ll end my day with pain in my head and neck…

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