Happy and Sad

Now that for two weeks I am rid of the tiring function of earning a living, I have decked my room to resemble Rasputin’s den of dark shadows and dank tea leaves, sans the debauchery naturally. I ain’t so lucky.

So here I am sulking in front of my PC in a dark room, trying to stoke the dying embers of creativity so that I can actually write something worthwhile, yet all I can think about is Kermit the Frog and how articulate and misunderstood he is. If all kids can speak like the green frog instead of taking after Elmo, won’t English teachers have less problems with their blood pressure?

This clip is a hoot.

Through rose-tinted glasses

I knew this would happen.
I just knew it.

I complete my chambering yesterday and as expected I am feeling all sentimental about it. Not to mention experiencing severe doubts as to whether I am prepared to leave this profession.

Despite all its shortcomings, I readily agree that it is a profession whose members are intrinsically bound by a deep sense of fraternity, solidarity and resounding pride. It is not unlike an exclusive club whose membership is by baptism of fire. Entrails before entry.

Legal study is punishing, practice is damning and remuneration is shameful, as you probably know by now from my bitter confessions on this blog over the last few months.

Nevertheless in true fashion time has diluted my loathing for the legal system somewhat. In the last few weeks as I manoeuvred the labyrinth that is the Magistrate Courts, I became aware of a surprising yet not unpleasant sense of belonging. And there is this unspoken understanding that while I am crossing swords with opposing counsel, I am still only duelling with a colleague.

I will never forget the day I got severely scolded by my Pupil Master for bringing two versions of an affidavit instead of just one for her approval. I was sharply criticised for not making my own decision and defending my choice.
“Because you are Counsel!”, she shrieked.

Indeed.

I am Counsel.

I will be called to the Malaysian Bar as an Advocate and Solicitor of the High Court of Malaya in late October. I have won my place in this fraternity and oh yeah, the pride is certainly resounding.

SoundSleeping

You know the mood music compositions that combine say drum beats with the sound of the ocean or a raging thunderstorm? There is one real cool site where you can actually customise your own, for free! Pretty cool.
Check it out: www.soundsleeping.com

Ready, Set, GRIMACE

I attended another job interview 2 days ago just to get initiated with the company. Located quite out of the way, this is one major Chinaman enterprise and I was quite surprised that a panel of 6 people was there to interview humble old me for this position that really ought not have required so much formality. Present were the GM and even the Chariman no less.

It was a very intimidating and uncomfortable experience certainly. I got the impression that they aren't very pleased that I am leaving a "honourable" profession to join them. Most of the questions hinged on the legal side oddly.

While I was not afraid, I wanted out immediately. I felt that they blocked out the sun with their sullenness. Like, how much would it cost to smile? One guy silently left the room when I was there and didn't return until I was about finished. I thought that was very rude. The Chairman ( a Datuk) would not even make eye contact with me!

Upon leaving the place I bet my long sigh of relief was heard even in Toronto. I won't go back there even if you gave me a winning racehorse.

Postscript: They called me back to say that I didn't make the cut. Pity. I would have loved the opportunity of turning them down.

Grammar Mama

Until a week ago, I did not know how to spell diarrhoea. Or manoeuvre.

I also knew diddly-squat on the differences between "its" and "it's". Elementary I know yet with the advent of Microsoft Word's spell check, my spelling and most of my grammar have degenerated to the state of stale Swiss cheese and now with the automatic spell check option, I am none the wiser. Hence if you got a handwritten Christmast card from me last year, it wasn't my fault!

Yet on the other extreme, becoming a grammar snob is so unbelievably anal.
Can you imagine combing through publications to find that one fatal typo, the one rouge apostrophe to ruin the day of the already highly-strung writer? More and more of these self-appointed language centurions are now even writing to the papers complaining about the state of our English. I say, may the one who has never made a grammar gaff cast the first paperweight!

More than the writers, I look at the industry's pencil-chewing proofreaders in new light now. Besides the indigestion, the stress that comes from having to be constantly aware of every semicolon would be insane. One would wonder who would ever want such a crummy job?

Apparently I would. You see, I just got hired as an Editor. To deal with English language teaching materials. So when your kids start spelling Christmast my way, kindly remember that it is really not my fault.
Blame Bill Gates.

Scratching cars

Lately we have been trouble with parking space. Or the lack of it.

A handful of tenants at this condo here seem to take little heed that our car park is NOT THEIRS. Even my tenant's FRIEND is claiming it for her own! We have asked the guards to clamp cars before yet it does not seem to work.

Even my tenant's friend seem to be claim to the guard that the car park is HERS and to to clamp all other cars besides hers. Audacious, right? I just got to know this new development after another fracas with the guards for not keeping my car park space empty.

I will be getting a house on my own the next time I move as I can't really stand this stress.

I want a Hedgehog for Christmas

What a listless Saturday.

So we decided to look for a pet. I have my heart set on a pair of hedgehogs.

They are less timid than rabbits, far larger than hamsters and with far more character than fish. I have all the space for them and while they are no dogs, I secretly intend to teach them to bark.
Anyway, we popped by Pet’s Safari at The Curve today. A hedgehog cost a whopping RM400! Should have just smuggled one out when I was in England.

www.monster-this-way.come

Lately I have been playing with the idea of starting a new blog, with a personal domain name and more pictures, with my present anonymity cast away so that friends and family can visit. Yet there are benefits hiding behind by the Bear and Sheep (which by the way sounds like a good name for a pub.)

It is the attestation of my cowardice. As my online journal, the blog chronicles my good days and my bad days, of family celebrations and heartbreaks, of good friends and the people I want to chop into small tiny bits to stuff into dumplings but who have no idea I think of them that way - your know, the historical fluff that one gathers in the infinate roll of the dustball of time.

I don't necessarily want to lose my job or hurt anyone's feelings but due to the stresses of daily life and the most annoying parties I have to deal with on a regular basis, a release mechanism has to be in place so that I won't end up in a straitjacket cooing to the tune of Rocky. Hence Monsterpiece.

I began this blog soon after I broke up with my ex Boyfriend. I figured that it is a public enough platform to vent on what a low-down-good-for-nothing-spineless-bastard he is. But surprise, surprise, I have not blogged about him even ONCE until now if memory serves me right. Of course I went on to vent about a HOST of other things. And I am getting very attached to this little plot of cyberspace.

Having an open blog would mean that I would have to censor myself.
OR it could mean that I would have to stop complaining and focus on the positive rather than the negative. Darn. I have become very attached to my little spot of raincloud too.

I need my own motorised vehicle

It has been pouring bathtubs in KL lately.
Naturally traffic was at chaotic.

It culminated to a climax last night when the KTM Kommuter to KL Sentral station was experiencing scheduling trouble, the Monorail was down and the LTR Putra was down as well. So many train services and each as hopeless as the other.

Of course cab drivers had a field day picking and choosing their passangers and hiking the prices. I had to offer the taxi driver an extra 10 buck on top of the meter before he would agree to take me home. I normally detest spoiling the market like this but I was so desparate to go home.

I seriously don't get the transport system in this country. It is customary for the public tranport providers to blame the heavy rain and floods but after all this is tropical country, duh. It is not as if it was a snowstorm or something. You would think our engineers would have figured it out.

This business of soul searching is tiring business. Actually the term is a misnomer is it can’t really be regarded as searching when:
1. I have no idea what I am looking for
2. It has never gone missing. The lot is still here.

Maybe the correct term is DECIDING.