It’s The Weekend!
July 3rd, 2009
so i’m just wrapping up the first week of my internship, which explains the long silence around here. the plan for summer had always been to have no plan, to simply spend a glorious three months doing absolutely anything, or nothing; but i hit some kind of panic mode last month when i realized that i no longer want to major in political science & economics. so against better judgment, i decided at the last minute to do an internship over the summer, so that i could dip my toes in a new industry and see if it’s something i would consider working towards. i have no regrets, but sometimes i still think wistfully about the things i wanted to do this summer in pure leisure — traveling, reading, playing piano and learning a programming language and how to drive.
the internship has been an interesting experience so far, though i’ve been asked not to blog about what we do. pace has been slow for the first week, but with a reasonable learning curve. the team is great: smart, funny and chill. subject matter is highly engaging as well. i’m kind of treading in two different industries — one of which i am completely unfamiliar with, and possess only a smattering of industry knowledge about the other — but i’m loving the two sets of jargon, scope and novelty :) i’m still curious about many things.
my only occupational agitation arises from the fact that our work gets quite nomadic, so sometimes we have to work in places where there’s no internet. that really frustrates me because i can’t google anything, especially all these new things that i dont know anything about!!!! at least i have mobile 3G to keep me sane — i think i’m going to start bringing my mobile phone charger to work so that i can tether the 3G connection. then occasionally i hear this high pitch sound that no one else seems to hear, and that drives me crazy too, but i’ve battled the problem by bringing earphones to work. /smug though that births a new problem, because then i start listening to all my sappy music and become very emotional. le sigh. cant win them all.
but the chairs are awesome! the seat back is made out of a soft mesh so it’s cooling and allows circulation, the reclining is smooth but not heartbeat-skipping, and the armrests can be adjusted by a wide range! love it. i wanna bring one home. a picture:
oh and that is Eng Han!
when i was being interviewed for the job, i found out at the end of it that Eng Han had also interviewed with the firm and was starting on an internship along with me. it’s nice to have a friend here! some more he’s quite entertaining — he always brings his hand sanitizer along when he goes to lunch, and occasionally he brings his whole pantry with him to work. the other day, he came in with this funky gourdlike Argentine teacup with a metal straw, and started brewing his own herbal tea with a hot water thermos and loose leaves -_-
picture of aforementioned teacup:
my immediate boss is pretty cool. he was very unsmiling at first, so i felt very awkward because i’m always so smiley, and thus willed myself to stop smiling while talking to him. hahaha. but it’s not so bad now. he’s a great teacher and explains things very economically. but he reminds me a lot of Martian. they’ve got the same vibe and even the same hongkong look. sometimes i feel like asking him if he’s a martian :)
on my first day, Boss (must come up with a codename for him) explained to me the three most important filters of any task on the job:
Filter 1 – the client is always right
Filter 2 – the boss is always right
Filter 3 – if uncertain, refer to Filter 1 & 2
-_-
on another but slightly related note, working in such a structured environment has made me realize that although i’m getting older and traversing into more adult worlds, i’m very much still holding on stubbornly to my 16 — or 19 — year old self. i suppose it’s fine if i had an inner child that surfaced every now and then, but it seems likely that i’m never going to grow up. i’m still impetuous, commitment phobic, indecisive and rely way too much on intuition. and apparently i smile too much.
the problem is that i like the way i am. i like that i’m a kid and that i always make a mess when i eat, that my pinkpau email address isn’t appropriate for a CV, and that i use a cookie mirror for my compact. decorum is so boring and stressful; and this whole growing up business is making me feel a lot more inertia than i would like. forget this nonsense, you know? i want to fall in love. go treasure hunting. bake a cake. tell a really stupid joke. and giggle like a hyena as i read lamebook.com.
sigh, adulthood. why?
oh, and here’s a picture of one of the leather bags i bought from singapore during the great singapore sale! sorry i forgot to attach it in the previous post; i dont have the other pictures anymore :( will take some when i remember to. this is the bag i use for my laptop:
SGD 25 from Far East Plaza
i am exhausted. cant wait to catch up on sleep. daytrip to melaka tomorrow! :)
by the way, i thought it would be noteworthy to mention that i’ve been early every single day of work. and by early, i mean an entire half hour early. adulthood is changing me.
P/S: please do the poll on my sidebar! i kinda need some direction in life. i hate all of you who already selected the last option >:(
Entry Filed under: General
43 Comments Add your own
1. Ee Vonn | July 3rd, 2009 at 11:53 pm
All the best to your INTERNSHIP, Pinkpau! :) Relax for the weekend and have fun in Malacca! :) Besides your bag is very nice! :)))
2. annant | July 3rd, 2009 at 11:55 pm
my internship had just ended…
to me, it’s like a transition from uni to working..and i learnt that, working aint a bed of roses. seriously…
3. Ee Vonn | July 3rd, 2009 at 11:56 pm
during the weekend* :)
4. Ee Vonn | July 3rd, 2009 at 11:58 pm
Can post pictures and write about your Malacca Day Trip, Pinkpau? :D
5. fatcat | July 4th, 2009 at 12:25 am
HAHA. YOU REALLY ARE STILL HOLDING ON TO UR 16-YR-OLD SELF!
I’m 16 and I use a cookie compact mirror, am indecisive and smile (and laugh) way too much. Haha. I like your laptop bag! :D
6. claudia | July 4th, 2009 at 12:50 am
pinkpauuuuuuu <3
7. carol | July 4th, 2009 at 1:00 am
ya limsuann that part about “smiling too much” ??? ya you need to import that back here okay.
GOOD JOB on being early! one step closer to adulthood wtf.
8. sheon | July 4th, 2009 at 1:26 am
thats a mighty handsome leather bag!!! i want one!! always have had an affinity for leather bags….
welcome to the adult world? well, adult working world is not so different from teenagers’ world in college; deadlines, backstabbers, hierarchy, systems and protocols, gossips, ’snaking’, etc….. just that guys do it with less hair, and girls with more powder on face.
i wish i had a chair like that!!! maybe if i worked in HQ i would get one just like that, but alas i’m working kinda ‘nomadic’ too, so, makes no sense to splurge on premium office-ware.
well, have fun interning, and while you make your way down malacca, i’m heading to ipoh for food tmrw morning. take care!!
9. kiasu andrew | July 4th, 2009 at 1:59 am
pinkpaaaaau i miss youu why you never buy me leather bag
10. Kevin | July 4th, 2009 at 2:57 am
Where’s the option ‘i don’t care’ or ‘ just don’t blog ever again ‘ =P
11. Ping | July 4th, 2009 at 9:28 am
i’m slightly older than you are, but very much reckon myself as a kid still despite being in the corporate sector. as long as when it comes to work, the seriousness is there, then it don’t matters. that is what i think la.
and ooooo, i love the bag you used for laptop!
12. Michelle | July 4th, 2009 at 10:28 am
I’m glad I’m still 19 but I have this strange feeling that it’s going to come soon.
13. mei yueh | July 4th, 2009 at 11:45 am
su ann!!! eat satay celup for me and ikan bakar. =)
14. EVo | July 4th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Sorry haven’t been here for awhile. aiyo i’d hate to be so direct but working life always is, if not 80% of all jobs stoic, serious, stressful. i mean it’s about survival already, not just studies. what to do, what to do. how’s work for a ‘political science and economics’ student anyway?
15. zj | July 4th, 2009 at 2:38 pm
i have the same issue with using unprofessional email haha sigh and have to create a official one instead. but that one still pretty much abandon heh.
although the poll on less text more picture are winning but PLEASE dont do that :(
if not i have nothing else good to read around oredi.
16. chm | July 4th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
who in the world asked you to put the last option in in the first place you nut? :P:P:P and i din pick it so dun pick on me :P have fun gal!
17. princesiglo | July 4th, 2009 at 4:30 pm
welcome to working life. My first internship is that I have to wake up at 6am and reach my workplace around 8am(if lucky). I drove to LRT station n took the commuter to work. You have to squeeze like sardines and you can smell different odors as well, hehe. I voted ‘malaysian blog’ for your poll but actually im interested with the last option. HAHA! Keep blogging n I’ll be reading :)
18. Fu Han | July 4th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
OMG are those Herman-Miller chairs. Those are like 4,000 Ringgit!
19. Eva | July 4th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
Yeah I totally get what you mean by “smiling too much”. Heck I even laugh too much so much all the time! Imagine my mum telling me to STOP SMILING AT EVERYBODY cos guys may get the “wrong idea”. -.-
Smiling just makes me feel so much better 1) when something’s bugging me, 2) for no reason, and even better when I’m in a good mood. :))))
The downside is, friends would actually expect me to be smiley all the time. People can totally tell when I’m in a HORRIBLE mood cos that’s how much it takes to wipe the smile off my face for the day. I was very worried about something one day and a friend caught me putting up an unsmiley face (guess that was his first lol) and told me that made him depressed cos to him I was “the happiest person he knew”. :\
Things are much easier when I was in the US but when I came back it feels as if everyone here needs to loosen up big time!
20. Eva | July 4th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
And oyah, thanks for last time. Keep smiling, don’t let people ruin your mood that easily! ;)
21. Mandy | July 4th, 2009 at 11:38 pm
Hi,
I’m the Mandy who sent you the postcard from Hong Kong. Sorry, I was too shy to leave a message here. Just want to let you know I’m still reading your blog!
Will you be keeping your address in NY? I’ll send you another one next term!
cheers,
Mandy
22. Shaun | July 5th, 2009 at 5:43 pm
Oh please oh please do a post about the Malaysian education issue of Maths and Science in english :(
Having a divisional debate soon its one of the motions oh please give a take about it even if its a short one..
it’s alright if you can’t manage it tho i ‘l just crack my head for points but i feel your opinion matters so yeah..
cheeers~ :)
23. ahBan | July 5th, 2009 at 7:22 pm
They have those chairs back in Malayland oso la
24. Patricia | July 5th, 2009 at 9:42 pm
ahaha u so cute!
oh ya. how ar if u bcome a mother to kids when u are actually still a kid yourself? that could be fun actually, i mean everyone enjoys ice-creams and legos! :D
nice bag :D:D
& where got poll!
25. pinkpau | July 5th, 2009 at 11:06 pm
ee vonn : unfortunately i was sick for almost the whole weekend, so it’s not been very pleasant :(
annant : dont you empathize now when adults complain about the daily grind?
ee vonn : i cant :P didnt take many pictures cos i looked like crap
fatcat : haha enjoy your youth :) it slips away so quickly.
claudia : skyleryyyyy <3
carol : i think its likely that this will happen every day :( sucks to be an adult.
sheon : that’s what i keep hearing about the working world. sounds like a scary place to be in, but i seek comfort in the fact that the workings of high school and college prepared me for it somewhat :P
kiasu andrew : cos u left me :(
kevin : get lost stupid beaver, the worst friend on earth!
ping : ya but it’s hard being so serious all the time..
michelle : ya enjoy being 19 while it lasts :)
mei yueh : we ate neither :P
evo : it’s not too bad :) i’m liking it. but there’s barely time to do anythign now cos all i want to do after work is sleep. i understand now how all my working friends feel when they say they dont want to come out during the weekends…
zj : haha thank you!! you are my friend :P i could put pictures and stuff la but my blog is always going to be more about the writing.
chm : must represent all opinions mah :P
princesiglo : why did you choose that option!!!
fu han : yes that’s what i was told.. not sure if these are ori’s or copies though
eva : ahh dont stop smiling :) world needs more of those. and loosening up, too!
mandy : please leave me your address so i can send you something back!! and yes i’ll be having the same address for all 4 years :)
shaun : will try :)
ah ban : huh thats where i am wat. where are u now ?
patricia : nice wat .. can be on the same wavelength as my kids! but pity my husband-to-be la :P got la the poll! its on my sidebar
26. Esther | July 5th, 2009 at 11:31 pm
Awww, ur fren is so cute. Is he still single? *wink * wink
27. chareli | July 6th, 2009 at 12:28 am
that is a damn gorgeous leather bag and only SGD 25?! insane!
HAHAHAA if i saw you friend on the streets (before reading this port), the last thing that to pop to my mind would HAND SANITISER and the rather striking teacup. hmmm. where did he get that one so unique? haha hand sanitiser. hahahaha. i don’t know why but i always laugh when i hear that someone has hand sanitiser with them.
yeah i second you on adulthood. the thought of having to grow up and horror of all horrors, conform to what people expect of you really puts me off life. sigh.
28. charlz | July 6th, 2009 at 9:22 am
(dooooon’t do that !!!!!)
29. bloop | July 6th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
nooooo! please don’t do less texts and more pictures.
your wonderful writing is the very essence of this blog! at least for me la.
30. Ping | July 6th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
no need serious all the time, even if at work :-) just .. well, you know, when there’s a time need for serious, then serious, if not just be :-D your ownself
31. pinkpau | July 6th, 2009 at 4:06 pm
esther : ahha NO he’s not :P dont play play
chareli : he got the cup from argentina during his study abroad program. quite cool right? but the tea very gross
charlz : sorry :P
bloop : THANK U SO MUCH T____T
ping : i will :)
32. KY | July 6th, 2009 at 4:08 pm
but your pinkpau email address is the one that will standout from the 2000 CVs HR has to go through
33. Ee Vonn | July 6th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Su Ann, are you still sick? Get well soon! :)
34. Mellow Yellow | July 6th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
Eh, so you’re really the one whom I saw at the washroom/discussion room at my level. Wanted to say hi to you but wasn’t sure if it was really you.
How long more will you be working at the office with the wonderful mesh chairs? I believe you aren’t allowed to disclose the client’s office and so I won’t do so here ^_^
Tip of the day: To connect to the wonderful Internet, simply plug into the LAN port using a cable and borrow one of the staff’s login ID ;) Don’t tell anyone I gave you this tip! =X
35. Mellow Yellow | July 6th, 2009 at 9:42 pm
And oh btw, you can get such awesome chair at RM1,600. That’s what I heard anyway XD
And second btw, if you so happen to be a bread lover and always patronize the bakery at Level 1, there’s the buy 1 get 1 free starting from 5pm daily and full day on the 17th of every month =D
And third btw! Final one, I promise! When you just feel like chilling out, just feel free to buzz me. My colleagues and I will bring you to have nice lunch around the area ;)
36. Jeff from LA | July 8th, 2009 at 1:57 am
Don’t ever change Pinkpau! The world already has enough ultra-serious people that don’t smile close to enough and nobody likes them. Plus, I’m sure clients will prefer you more for always being happy than if you always appear grim and sober.
37. pinkpau | July 8th, 2009 at 8:33 am
ky : if only it were in a good way!
ee vonn : i am not, thankfully! :)
mellow yellow : omg the world is too small. it’s nice to ‘meet’ you :D hehe sometimes i can use the wifi, but LAN doesnt work for me. and yes i do know abt the bakery after 5pm, but i did not know about the 17th. why the 17th? and how do i buzz you?
jeff : but the adult world discriminates against happy people :(
38. Mellow Yellow | July 8th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
I’ll email you at gmail with all my contact details inside ;)
39. Mellow Yellow | July 9th, 2009 at 8:40 am
Pink pauuuuu… I’ve already sent the mail to your Gmail account. Hopefully it doesn’t end up in your spam box >.<
40. Devinz | July 9th, 2009 at 4:17 pm
Welcome Su Ann to the coolest office in town!
Enjoy your stay and psst, i sent you an email on where to find free Starbucks coffee here…hehehehe
41. ahban | July 11th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
i mah at malayland lo
sweat
42. Anonymous | July 12th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
Hello Su Ann,
The photos of the chair, the office and the laptop looks really familiar. I’m guessing that we work for the same firm :)
43. hoho | December 2nd, 2009 at 8:10 am
I recommend Herman Miller’s Aeron,….
Leave a Comment
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed