Monday, April 26, 2004
the end of the world
someone once said that i would be the last to leave the country...that is if i ever leave at all. well...that someone was wrong. as of yesterday...i am now legally binded by the 'republic' of singapore to work 44 hours a week...46 weeks a year...for 2 years. the only thing that can unbind me from such a contract is my medical report. results are not out yet and although i want to be declared healthy and fit to work in their god damn country...a part of me wants to hear something like 'i'm sorry you have AIDS...please go back to your country and don't come back'.the past couple of days have been really hectic. i was in singapore making arrangements for a place to stay...signing a whole lot of papers and undergoing a medical check up. i had time to meet up with a friend who told me that the smartest thing i can do in singapore is not to reveal my nationality. so i'm guessing that singaporeans gossip about malaysians the same way we do about them. and hey...when is gossip ever positive? i tried to be optimistic this time around. i actually took the initiative to try and figure out how things work around there and i sat down and observed their behaviour. i must say...we (malaysians and singaporeans) look the same but we're worlds apart. they'll probably be able to tell i'm malaysian just by the way i walk....very very slowly.
anyway...enough about singapore. i have less than a week before i start working there and i just wanna enjoy myself. i've never worked 44 hours a month in my life and now they want me to do 44 hours in a week. i'm eager to see how well i'll cope.
i know i've been AWOL for a couple of weeks now and i should write more than what's been said but i'm too lazy. i'm eager to watch 'party monster' which incidentally happens to be a movie on my 'movie wish list'. whooppee...1 down 128 to go :)
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feefs, 11:27 AM
Tuesday, April 06, 2004
dua puluh empat
i'm officially hooked. thanks to a couple of friends of mine i have been stuck to my television/laptop for almost 48 hours straight. a couple of weeks ago i borrowed season 1 and 2 of 24 from a friend but i didn't watch it till about a week ago. i thought it was some CSI/Alias type show but i was wrong. i'm not going to post any *spoilers* here so all i'm going to say that it is one hell of a good series. that is if you're into action/drama. anyway...season 3 is not out on dvd yet (by dvd i mean the non legal kind) so i've resorted to either leeching it off my friends or just downloading it myself. i hate to have to watch an episode a week...i'd prefer it if i watched the whole season non stop.i'm going to officially start packing tomorrow. need to start doing some of the things that are on my list of things to do as well. the one thing that i seriously need to sort out is my finances. i would probably need a fair sum of money to start up over there and the foreign exchange rate just went up. a couple of weeks ago it was 2.17 but now it's like 2.26 i think. anyway...i definitely need to renew my driving license which has been expired for almost a month. i've been driving around with my fingers crossed though and so far it seems to be working. i probably need to go get my laptop reformated as well...it's all cranky and shit right now. i don't care what other people say...i believe women and gadgets just don't blend well. my laptop's having mood swings...my handphone is cranky...my camera is dying on me. is it just me or am i just unlucky?
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feefs, 2:26 PM
Sunday, April 04, 2004
office wear?
got an email today from my future boss. he was explaining all the rules and regulations at the work place and i came across one section that said that employees have to follow a dress code. never in my 3 years of teaching have i ever had to follow a dress code. i'll usually wear jeans and a top and sometimes if i'm feeling extremely lazy i'll just wear my flip flops. things were always casual and nobody complained. now i've got to wear 'office wear'? i don't even know what that is. i don't understand why we should wear such formal clothes to work when all we're doing is teaching kids. yeah yeah i know we have to keep up a professional appearance but do they have to be so anal about it? anyway...that's not a reason to pass up on the opportunity so i guess i have to bear with it. unfortunately i don't have a single piece of 'office wear' in my wardrobe and i don't have the funds to change that. i'll start off with mixing and matching what i do have and trying to pull it off as 'office like' and hopefully...with enough persuasion...i'll be able to incorporate jeans into the dress code. somehow i really doubt that'll happen. singaporeans are really strict...the phrase 'let it slide' is not in their vocabulary.i've already handed in my resignation a week ago. i've already been relieved of some of my duties. hopefully i'll be unemployed by mid april so i can do my packing and moving without having to worry about work. i haven't started anything yet...except i did come up with a list of things to do before i go. other than that things have just been stagnant. 1 month seems like a very long time to prepare but since i'm such a lazy ass i figured i'll probably end up doing everything at the last minute. i have a feeling i'll probably forget to bring some stuff over or i'll forget to settle some bills or something. we'll see how organised and reliable i am once everything has been done.
anyway...i've been staying home a lot lately. i'm averaging 2 movies a day which is definitely 1 too many. my personal favourite this past week was igby goes down. at first it sounded like some lame ass teeny bopper movie about a teenage boy who lost his way in life but after watching the first 10 minutes i changed my mind. it's actually quite interesting and it has an A list cast....susan sarandon, bill pullman, jeff goldblum, ryan phillippe, kieran culkin, claire danes and amanda peet. it's a challenging movie filled with sarcasm and some dark humour. i also managed to watch taking lives, master and commander, hope springs, hable con ella, pieces of april, human stain, eternal sunshine of the spotless mind and intermission.
time to go watch another movie.
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feefs, 12:27 PM
