This Part of my life is called HAPPINESS

I have made a crucial decision late last year after giving it a thought for some time.It has been a holiday mode for the first two months but after that it has been hell as things is not going as i have wished or desired.
As months passsed , i have concealed that i have made a mistake and all those negative vibes played around my mind.Thankfully, my loved ones are there to support me throughout the tough times.I wonder where i would end up if not for their support.After months of struggle, i have finnally got i wished for but that too after some hiccup which made me so devastated.

I have learned that anything is not permanent, be it happiness or sadness.If we don't keep trying to solve our problems we will never be able to solve it , just keep trying no matter what !
This part of my life is called HAPPINESS. :) :) :)

Hindu influence in Indonesia

Do you remember the currency note worth of 20,000 rupiah printed on the state currency of indonesia?

The ganesh incribed currency note was only an example.Please find other influences of hindu in indonesia.

Ganesha as University's symbol

Ganesha is a symbol for one of the oldest and leading university in Indonesia.. check yourself at http://www.itb.ac.id

The statue of this stoned Ganesha is located in the front of ITB main gate.

Indonesian national carrier

 The Indonesian national carrier is called GARUDA, a mythical bird from hinduism mythology and also known as vahana for Lord Vishu.

Wayang Golek

Wayang golek is a wodden doll puppets that are used for story telling originated from west java.In the 18th century this traditional story telling moved in to the mountains of West Java where it was eventually was used to tell the stories of the Ramayana and Mahabarata, the famous Hindu Epic.In India very few would be able to identify who Ghatotkach is. But very popular in Indonesia. Indonesian knows more about Ramayana and Mahabharata than Indian.

Krishna-Arjuna statue at Jakarta main square

In addition, the official mascot of Military Intelligence in Indonesia is Hanuman.(known as Anoman in indonesia).It certainly amazed and impressed me that Indonesia, the most populous muslim country in the world has so much of Hindu influence.No wonder the country  itself is named after india, indonesia!

My Journey in mobile phones so far

First mobile phone was demonstrated by a researcher Dr.Martin Cooper in Motorola in 1973.First handset weighed 2 kg.But the first commercially available handset was DynaTAC 8000x in 1983. Although it was commercially available starting 1983, usage by common people started growing only in early 90′s. One of the key contributor for mobile phone growth is Nokia.


It' been almost 11 years since I bought my first phone.I think it's about time to look back my phone evolution starting since 2001.

2001:Nokia 6110 

My very first phone , not a surprise it's going to be a Nokia phone and a heavy one indeed.I used to have it during my college days.Works great and battery last a week on standby.But it's too heavy and big to carry around all the time.And to be honest, you look outdated really using this phone in public.

2003:Nokia 3210(AKA Indestructible Nokia 3210)

The most legendary mobile device of them all.It is considered as one of the best selling phones of all time. Indestructible Nokia 3210 is the nickname given to Nokia's 3000 series poking fun at their durability and heavy weight.“Nostalgia” that contained an image of an iPhone with the caption “Falls to the floor / Break the screen” and a Nokia 3210 with the caption “Falls to the floor / Break the floor.” 

2005:Sony Ericsson K700i

 My first Sony Ericsson phone and since I came from Nokia 3210  to K700i , I don't have to tell you my excitement.The size, looks,display, MP3 player , the best VGA 0.3 MP digital camera with video recording back then with image interpolation upto 1.3MP.LED flash , which was very bright and strong ,41 MB of shared memory.The cons would be horrible battery life and the absence of memory card slot.

2008:Sony Ericsson W580 (walkman)

What attracted me to Sony Ericsson Phones is the good review i have heard about them.Sony Ericsson W580 is my first slider type phone.I ABSOLUTELY love the MP3 player on it , it is very loud , outbeats a lot of others.It has beautiful and bright display, even in direct sunlight.The phone comes with 2 megapixel, fixed focus camera.Which means it does not have autofocus, nor does it have a flash.I'd keep the phone if it had better reception but nevertheless its my of my favourite !

2010:Samsung Wave S5333

Hello Samsung, my journey with you has just begun.One major selling point of Samsung Wave S533 is it offers you the choice to use QWERTY keyboard or touch screen according to your needs.I LOVE my QWERTY!.Beside that it has a bright display, inexpensive and good sound.On the con side, the applications of Bada are not that good like Android, some glitches when stopping the music player.If you are OK without 3G, this come second to none.






While I love gadgets, I think the practicality is more important. I would not buy one for the sake of following the latest trend. I think there is a lot of pressure to acquire things.I'd rather have happiness and lots of laughter.\m/

Attempted suicide is a crime ?!

It seemed that in one country somebody tried to commit suicide.He was rescued by the emergency service and rushed to the hospital where doctors revived him.Now the interesting part...When he recovered, he was sentenced to death for attempted suicide and was executed.The would be suicide got his wish fulfilled after all !!


Yet another scenario..a 42 year old British woman was recently reported to have committed suicide , and although she announced her intention to do so in a status update on Facebook, none of her 1000+ even thought to check on her despite some of them living in walking distance of her home!.It wasn't until the woman's disabled mother wrote the message on her facebook that finally people realized the seriousness of the situation.It seems clear that this woman was deeply troubled, but we think this says something quite serious on how people are using , and communicating with others, on websites like facebook , and it's not a good thing.We can't believe that someone would write something like that , and not one person who saw it would be so unconcerned that they'd not only ignore a cry for help, but openly mock it ! 


Now the reason why I bring up the topic "suicide" is because I came across an article indicating the suicide rates is on the rise in Malaysia.The normal perception from people on suicide would be....they are stupid,cowards, selfish etc.YES it is, but you don't see it like that when you are there, when you think anyone will miss you,you don't think anyone "really" cares ,you think you are so tired of life and nothing to live for, you think you just want the pain to stop, you think the world will be a better place without you in it etc.
Mental illness is not rational or logical. We all need to learn how to spot and support depression so that those in distress can get help.


How many of us taken the the first step which is just being there and listen to them describe their problems?
How many of us have asked them ..what would need to change, to make your life worth living?

The message is there ARE options, and the suferrer is worth helping.They need help and support, not punishment !

Walk Down Memory Lane | Primary School Days

As I recall my primary school and secondary school days,part of me is sad that most probably my children won't get to experience the independence and fun of walking "a mile" to school like we did in the "old days".
I realize that it's a different time in which we now live.Walking to school for us was the earliest form of a non-electronic social network for youth. It was "face time" instead of "Facebook" with your friends. It was "talking" instead of "texting." It was "real" life instead of "virtual" life. When you touch your laptop it clicks. When you touch your friends and family, you feel them.It is disappointing to me, but we live in a culture emphasizes every child kidnapping case that happens (creating a false sense of danger in our communities).

Image depict where i used to stay and the schools/routes
i have taken.

One of the best memory of walking to my primary school was the infamous "flat bukit chagar" - also known as city's most famous eyesore.I had to pass the infamous flats to reach my primary school which is just a stone away from the flats.

The Bukit Chagar flats were constructed by the Johor state government in 1980's to house the low-income group.There were total of four blocks , each 16 story high.Bukit Chagar is best remembered with its burst rooftop water tank in 1993.Now both the flats and the school are down to dust due to construction of ICQ which is completed and the proposed train station that will serve as an extension of Singapore's MRT line.

Demolition work on Bukit chagar flats (2008)

Now back to school days, I had lots of fond memories during my days with SK Ungku Abdul Aziz Majid(SKUAAM) from 1989-1994.I still see my primary school friends as the best friends i ever had even though i lost contact with majority of them.There was something magical about our years there ^^. 

Our School Badge

• I remember the "perhimpunan" which usually occurs on Monday mornings and how much i dreaded it.
• I remember when we used to Bunk Maths extra classes and lepak at Taman Riadah Bukit Chagar.
• I remember when nasi lemak used to cost only 20 cents per plate and a drink 10 cents( now it's a freaking Rm1.50, add egg RM 2.00)
• I remember stealing mangoes from mango tree in our school garden.(the taste of stolen mango was way sweeter than eating mangoes from your own backyard :P).
• I remember the punishments from teachers.some that i can recall..standing,standing on a chair or table,standing behind or outside classroom,carry chair/school bags/books above the head, and finally see the principal if all things don't work.
• I remember how we used compass and dividers to dig holes in our desk to play golf.
• I remember the various colours of chalks which is used to write on a blackboard.
• I remember the multi purpose duster.One is of course to erase the blackboard and another purpose is for the teacher to throw it at those naughty or sleeping students.
• I remember those chalk and duster marks left on the face once the duster hit your face.But back then , no parents seem to bother to complain and students also don't bother to tell their parents too.
• I remember walking home from school in the rain.
• I remember playing “Rubber” where we bring our own unique erasers( with country flags etc) and roll against each other.
• I remember making a long rubber band chain and that indirectly, there is a competition for who has the longest.
• I remember being introduced to “Ceper" (bottle caps).You need 5 bottle caps to play them.First use them to throw and catch with barehand and throw again to catch in forehand. Used to play an obstacle version of carom.
• I remember playing “Guli”(Literally means marbles) on a patch of earth.( i don't remember where all my marbles went but i do seriously wish to get some and keep them as memorabilia).
• I remember how excited we will be during Pendidikan Jasmani.But grumble during the end of it as we will be forced to find rubbish even though we have a fairly clean field.

These are memories you don't get to forget throughout.
Do you remember any of these moments?

"There is no happiness , they are only moments of happiness"

Malaysia's Epic Ice Cream

Colourful, ain't it?


Have you tried Malaysian ice cream before?I am sure 80's & 90's kids will remember these legendary Malaysian ice cream, only 20 cents per ice cream back then !
It is crazily cheap right ^^.

Asam Boi

My favourite would be the Asam Boi.I still remember i always choose the one with asam boi at the bottom so that it will be the last one to be eaten. Please take note there are two type of eating it, cut on the knot or split in the middle :P.They are easy to make but sadly hard to find nowadays.

The taste is heavenly on your taste bud and they are the answer for hot sunny days ! I can assure you that :)

I believe it's time for me to do some business and bring nostalgia back to life. :P

 

Interview - know your worth !

I got called for an interview for a job which i am not qualified for a month ago.So i had mixed feelings about the interview:

1. Overjoyed as even though I don't have the experience nor the qualification what they were looking, I was under impression perhaps they see something parallel from my past experience.
2. Sceptical as the recruiter didn't even bother to give me a ring to discuss about the job instead sent me an e-mail requesting me to attend interview and so forth.In addition, I had tried to call them several times as I would like to re-schedule the interview but to no avail.I sent them an e-mail instead and on which i received an unceremonious answer. "OK" !..Yes..straightforward answer "OK"...That is all !

On the day of the interview-----I managed to be there on time, infact much earlier than the scheduled time.I was greeted by a malay gentleman who should be in his 40's.He then requested me to take my seat and fill up the application form which could be upto 5/6 pages.They were two other guys sitting beside me and one of them was sleeping soundly.As I was filling up the form given to me, i had a glimpse of the meeting room which is just opposite where I was seated.I got a bit sceptical as I overheard the interview going on was conducted in Malay !..YES.. MALAY !..My mind was occupied with thoughts such as  " what IF the interview is going to be conducted in Malay?!.."how am I going to reply them with the appropriate words in Malay".Not that I don't speak Malay ,i can speak and read Malay fluently.Its just that I am not good in putting up good malay words especially those in professional terms.Furthermore , working in an American MNC company for almost 4 years doesn't help at all ^_^
As all these thoughts come into my mind, i heard a call "Mr.err..I was like " Yes".."u can come in now"..me with huge sigh of relief smiled and went into the room.I was seated at the head of a 40-foot long table, surrounded by 3 hiring managers, and they all sat there staring at me like I was an alien.A Chinese gentleman , the so called boss..sitting as though he is in a Chinese coffee shop, next a heavily pregnant Malay lady with a huge smile on her face and third a malay gentleman with a huge smirk smile.I proceed to shook hands with the two gentleman and acknowledge the lady with a trademark smile of mine.
concisely..these are the questions directed to me :

1. "What you doing before ah? "
2. "this job requires someoene who is strong and can handle people.U sure u can handle people ah?"
3. "can reduce your salary ah?"
4. "u sure u can handle people ah?" (I had to re-assure him again)
5. "how about Malay language" " can u speak malay fluently" ( It's evident he didn't pay attention when I introduced myself early on)

Several question from my side than I can recall:

1. Beforehand, could you tell me the day to day responsibilities/duties? ( as the HM begin to discuss if its okay for me to work on weekend)
2. What are the prospect of growth and opportunities?
3. Does that answer your question? ( as there was awkward silence after I have answered one of their query) 
4. Would it be okay to take a minute and lead you through my professional background? ( As the HM didn't even bother to check my professional certs)

Summary


I have to say it was one of the most disappointing and rushed interviews I have ever had in my life.The whole thing was done and dusted within around 25 mins.No reference was made towards my past work history, and they seemed to care very little about the experience I already had as a team leader.Very little eye contact and kind of rude ! Most likely will not accept the job if offered.


Advice

• Don't be afraid to end an interview on your own if you are told you are not qualified early into it. Your time is precious and those kinds of statements mean they have made their minds up based off something other than your qualifications.
• Research the place you applied for before the interview, you might not like it.
• If the place of the interview seems disorganized and there is confusion going all around you - just leave, this is not a place you want to work.
• Don't interview at a company that doesn't value your time or take you seriously.
• If the hiring manager is a jerk, don't accept the job or don't go further in the interviewing process.