October

I think I am developing a habit of writing about September in October, and talking about October in November.

If not for yenew’s quick hello and reminder, I’d probably remain lazy and not click on the “New Post” button.

October has been a month of decisions and changes.

On decisions, I never knew there could be so many things to decide on.
From the color of the walls, to window grills, to the lamination of the kitchen cabinets.. to the lightings, sinks, toilet bowls.. we had to decide, decide, decide.

The flat is coming together quite nicely.
We have chosen almost everything that needs to be chosen. The fake Italian floor tiles have been laid, plastering done, and the next stage would the installation of the air conditioners and rewiring, followed by all the carpentry work.

We have bought the big ticket items like the fridge, washing machine, dryer as well as furniture for the dining and living room.
Bed frame, check. Mattress, check.
Honeymoon, check!

It is liberating to spend by the thousands, you know. Though instead of feeling rich and happy, we always walk away feeling poor and happy.

We are a pretty decisive couple, which I guess is a good thing. We do look for good deals but we do not visit 10 shops before deciding on one thing to buy.
The bf, however, has a habit of going to another shop to check the price of something we have already bought, just to confirm we got it at the same or lower price.
As someone who has never believed in discussing answers after the exams, I am both amused and at times frustrated by this strange, auntie habit of his. ^^

Anyway. On changes.
JBB is leaving for the US right now, as I write this entry.
I have yet to really feel the impact of his departure, though I am not sure if it is simply because it’s going to be a delayed response, or I am just not going to feel anything.

I have also yet to really feel the impact of FJB’s presence in my life, though for this, I am very sure it is a delayed response.
She is difficult to figure out. Most of the time she looks either serious/stern, or she simply looks bored. I have no idea what she thinks or feels about me/my work because she only talks about facts and next steps. She tries to smile from time to time, but it doesn’t get rid of that serious, don’t-mess-with-me image.
The funniest thing is, sometimes I think I might be staring at my own reflection. The bf says my retribution has come. Haha.

In other unrelated news, my latest obsession is 败犬女王.
Yes, I know it is not that new anymore. But when else would the DVD set cost you only $19.90? Hee.
It’s been a long time since I have watched something so funny, so touching, so heartfelt, so inspiring..  I am forcing the bf to watch it too. Haha.
I am at episode 27 (out of 30).. and I actually can’t bear to finish the series.

I have lots to write about the show but I will save it for the next entry.

(5oo) days of summer

This is a story of boy meets girl, but you should know upfront, this is not a love story.

Spoilers ahead.
Please read on only if you have watched the movie, do not mind spoilers or do not intend to catch it.
If it’s (3), please reconsider it!

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I love the movie.

I love how  the story was told - non-linear, quirky, at times hilarious, at times sad.
Isn’t the way our memories work? We recall only the particular scenes, but we cannot seem to recall, with clarity, the sequence of those events. We look back and almost always manage to laugh at how we used to cry over split milk.

I love the characters.
Aren’t we, at different points in our lives, a Tom or a Summer?
Tom, who believes in true love and finding The One, who refuses to let go, who eventually moves on.
Summer, who scoffs at the word love and refuses to understand it, who just wants to be free, who eventually commits.

The entire scene at the bench where they met again, probably for the final time, was particularly moving.

The closure.
It no longer hurts, yet your heart feels that wrench all over again.

Why me.
Why not me.

“Are you really ok?”
“I will be. Eventually.”

“I woke up one morning and I just knew.”
“Knew what?”
“What I was never sure of with you.”

“You weren’t wrong, Tom. You were just wrong about me.”

“I truly hope you will be happy.”

Summer would eventually be over, and there’s (almost) always autumn to look forward to.

There would be a happily ever after, after all.
It’s just.. not you.

是有命中注定的。
只是.. 不是你。

(Photos from http://500daysofsummer.tumblr.com)
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The bf hated the movie. He basically concluded that it is a lousy movie (like how he concluded that that Lust, Caution was ’just about sex’).

He hated how Tom was portrayed to be the pathetic fool, how the movie seemed to be sending the message that guys are always the fools at the mercy of the girls.

I thought he was being biased and unnecessarily harsh on the film - he hates Summer, but this does not, and should not, make it a bad movie.

The story would be as real, even if the roles were reversed. Summer could have been Tom, and Tom could have been Summer. Yet, it’d just be like any other “great girl meets playboy” plot.. and no one would pity the girl because she is just too stupid for her own good to know that he is a playboy and yet still fall in love with him.

Moreover, the story was told from only one perspective – Tom, the guy’s point of view. Hence it really becomes inevitable that Summer is the evil one, and he is the victim and nothing but the victim who has nothing wrong to deserve this.

Isn’t that yet another oh-so true facet of life? 
In the history that we piece together, the past that we see through our own eyes, we see ourselves as, more often than not, the victim.  
He was the one who cheated. She was the one who lied. He was the one who treated me like shit. She was the one who dumped me.
It is his bad, her loss, whatever.

It is you, yes, you. Not me.

I enjoyed the debate with the bf. We have different views from time to time, but seldom this conflicting. I am not sure if he was convinced that this movie is really a gem, because at the end of our debate, he was still adamant about how lousy it is.

Yet, when we went shopping for furniture after the movie, he said to me, “Dear, I don’t know how to tell you this, but… there’s a Chinese family in our bathroom.”

LOL.

September

came.. and went.

Lots have happened.

• I turned 18 19 28!
  (Thank you for all the birthday wishes and gifts!)
• We got the keys to our flat!
  The fengshui session went ok, and I was really glad that Tom did not go to our flat, his excuse being ‘leg pain’. Now, I don’t really care if the pain was really that bad or if he intentionally chose not to avoid conflict or if it was another emotional blackmail.. I am just thankful there was no drama.
• We’ve bought the aircon, refrigerator, washing machine, dryer and even a sound bar. We’ve also chosen the tiles for the flat. My mom was worried about the quality of the renovation and couldn’t stop reminding us to do a spot check every now and then, to make sure they do not use made-in-china stuff etc etc..
  Unfortunately the agreed quoted price for the flooring is homogenous tiles @ $3.60 psf, which, coincidentally, happened to be made in china. So when my mom asked if we’d chosen tiles made in ITALY, I could only hum and haw. For the record, those tiles from Italy cost at least $20 psf, there’s no way we could afford those lah. And for another record, the renovation would already cost us a whooping $37,ooo including all the additional stuff we had to do according to The Fengshui Master.
  I’m sorry we cannot afford 意大利; we can only manage 一小粒.
  I know we are going to get nagged at again, for using laminated flooring in the bedrooms instead of tiles – to save us hacking and material cost – which is another $3,000. But sigh, it’s really difficult to please everyone, you know? I know people mean well, and we can listen to EVERYONE’S comments and feedback and suggestions if we’d tio-ed the 9 million toto or if we got sponsored for whatever suggestion people make. But, too bad. We didn’t tio toto, my mom didn’t sponsor us for the renovation, we do not have  all the money in the world.. so, too bad. 
• I got promoted!.. And I have a new boss now.
  The announcement for JBB’s new posting and relocation to the US was announced last week.

It didn’t come as a surprise, as he has pre-empted me since August regarding the relocation.
Once again I do not feel any strong emotions though I know for sure I’d miss having such a good boss.

JBB has been the only constant in my 2 years and 3 months with the company.
In fact it started even before I was accepted, for he was my 2nd interviewer (out of the 3 interviews I had to go through).
I still remember him telling me that I should feel proud of myself, that at the very least, I was one of the 15 people who was selected for the interviews, out of some 500 applications for this one position.
Gosh, I really thought I wouldn’t get the job.

But after working with him and getting to know him, I know that it is just his way of encouraging his people.
Throughout these 2 years, he has given me a lot of opportunities, pushed me as much as he rewarded me. There’s nothing else I can ask for.

Hence, after JB, and now after JBB, I have a new boss who is, well, still JB. The difference, is that she’s a female JB.

It has only been a few days and I can’t say for sure if my life would change for the better, for the worse, or stay the same.
I’ve never had much luck with female bosses. In my past experiences, with the exception of one or two, I usually end up hating my female bosses.
They were usually either mean or they’d nag wayyyy too much, or they’d pretend to be caring and proceed to leave at 6 while you continue slogging till midnight.

I’m not too sure about FJB yet – she seems like the stern sort, though according to her, she’s flexible, works only for the sake of working, and believes in work-life balance (not sure if it means, “you do all the work, so that I’m balanced”?!).
I read somewhere that people working under female bosses tend to be under more stress than people who have male bosses. Scary, isn’t it? It looks like J@pan H0ur might not be closed down after all.

After a short lull period, work’s going to get crazy again.