Chengdu.

I just got back from a 4-day working trip to Chengdu.  This trip was for the preparation of the upcoming big project which I’m working on (if you are interested in finding out more about this project, you can check out the event website at http://www.ghmc2014.org).

I don’t think I could ever have more gratitude as far as this trip was concerned.  Normally working trips are not fun trips because of the nature, and sometimes they get more stressful rather than anything else, but this time round it was a little less stressful because I had a lot of help from the folks in Chengdu.  Furthermore, my stay in Chengdu turned out to have actually allowed me to get away from the typhoon that hit Hong Kong.  Some may say that I was unlucky to have been unable to get that half-day typhoon-inflicted holiday, but seriously, I never think typhoons should be anything that we should feel happy about.

This trip was also rather uneventful for me in a sense.  For the 2 nights, I would have dinner with my colleagues and then it’s back to the hotel for some rest and personal admin.  In the past I probably might have taken the opportunity to do some walkabout in the city, but somehow this time round I was more comfortable to be just staying in the hotel room to rest, catch up on some office work and go for an early lie-in.  Is it that I’m really getting old?

安順廊橋 – One of the locations which I was working at these few days.

Endnote: These couple of nights have been much easier for me than it would otherwise be.  Thank you so much…

Work.+

Work lately has been quite crazy for me.  The big event that I’m part of would be happening in about three weeks’ time, and while I haven’t been exactly losing sleep over it, it would be fair to say that I have been rather anxious lately.

I must say, work is sometimes a stimulant for me.  When I’m on full throttle working on something, it can take quite a bit to stop me or slow me down.  And with the event looming large, somehow it seems that I’m getting excited and I can say that there’s as much anticipation in me as nervousness.  I mean, obviously this is going to be quite a nerve-wrecking event because there are so many things at stake and there really isn’t much room for errors.  But at the same time, I thought this opportunity is something that I have been waiting for and I just want to do a good job.  There are many challenges and difficulties lying along the way in this event, and some of them are really frustrating.  And sometimes these things do make me, who is always impatient, get on my nerves.

Pray for me, my friends.  I definitely need all your prayers now.

Emotion.

I know I shouldn’t be so emotional, but I guess I can’t really help it.  It’s not like I’m down, it’s just that my head has been spinning like a record these couple of days.  Too many things going on in my head and I guess there are some things I haven’t really gotten over yet.

In any case, one of the things that I’ve been bothered with – and it is just one of the things – is the direction that I want to be taking in my life.  I mean, I’ve been back in Hong Kong for 7 years already, and while I can’t say that I don’t like it here, I am getting a little weary and a little jaded.  I hope to be doing something else – like going back to school on a full-time basis.  For the past couple of months, I have been really harbouring the thoughts of studying again.  And this time round I wanted to do it full-time, i.e. putting down my work for one or two years and just study.  I wanted to explore the world again as a student, and I want to learn more things that I have yet to learn.  Make no mistake, working is great.  The experiences that I’m getting at work is great too and I like what I’m doing right now.  But it’s just that I believe in everyone’s life, there is always going to be a point in time when one feels that he/she wants to take an extended break.  I guess after working for 7 years, I might be getting to that point too.  Also, I want to be studying in a different environment, if I choose to go back to school again.  I did my undergraduate studies in Singapore and my first postgraduate degree in Hong Kong, so perhaps I want to do my next degree somewhere else – Korea would be a good choice (though if I can’t make it to anyone of the SKY universities I probably won’t bother) – but I haven’t really thought about what I want to study in.  I guess doing some international-related degrees would sound interesting.  And I would probably want to do a Masters degree first, and then decide if I want to do a PhD after that.  I guess I’m good at studying.

But please don’t misunderstand, I really like my job and it’s not like I’d go back to office and tender my resignation tomorrow.  Far from it – there are things that I still want to achieve at work.

Flu.

As I’m writing this, I’ve sat at home for the whole day, after being given a day of sick leave by my doctor.  I was down with the flu.

It’s actually not too often that I fall so sick that I have to take sick leaves.  I mean, for the past couple of years, I average about less than one day on sick leave, and for the whole of 2013 I don’t think I was so sick that I couldn’t turn up for work.  It looked like for last year, my illness always seem to know when they’d come visit – on the weekends or my leave (I was down with a bad cold when I was in Korea last February).  I guess in a way, my body likes to turn up for work.

But for today, I woke up with a very bad headache and muscle ache.  I’ve been having headaches for the past few days so I didn’t take too much notice, but the muscle ache came just like that.  The first thing I thought of was the flu, and true enough.  When I went to see the doctor he said that I was having the flu – the fever proved it – so he gave me all those medication and ask me to rest more.  In a way, I was relieved that I could take the day to try to recover, but once I remember the work at the office, I don’t think I could say I enjoy staying at home.

I think I’ll go have my lie-in now.  I could already imagine the sight that I would see when I stepped into office tomorrow. Ha!

 

Future.

Some of you probably have realized by now that I’ve actually gotten a promotion at work.  Not exactly something to be overly delighted about because ultimately, things that I have to be doing are still the same, and I have more to look after now.  Obviously I appreciated that my bosses thought that I was good for the job, and I’d just want to keep working hard.  My portfolio at work has changed quite a bit, and I am now part of something big and I hope to be able to handle all these.  It’s not going to be easy, so I need all your prayers and support.  After this promotion, I am actually finding myself to be even more involved with work, but at the same time, I am worried that I would be consumed by only work.  I am still trying to leave office early, but I am seeing my knock-off timing getting pushed back further and further.  Some of my colleagues who have been used to doing that would probably think that there’s no big deal with that, but for me, it’s almost like a whole new ball game that I’m trying hard to get used to.  But I know I could do it – after all, I got through a difficult period at the start of my current job and did decently enough, so I guess I would be able to do it.

One thing though that I am getting a little concerned is actually my future.  I mean, I have a decent job that pays well, I have my own apartment to live in, I have some decent academic qualifications – all seem good, doesn’t it?  But recently I have been thinking about going back to school to study.  I know I already have a Masters degree, but let’s be honest, that Masters degree isn’t really helping me with my job except that it allows me to have a slightly higher pay.  And it’s actually my dream to be able to study abroad.  I never had the chance to study out of a place that I’m familiar with, and I hope to be able to do that sometime in the future.  I know there would be a lot of things to worry about before I could actually take that step, but I’d like to keep that dream going.  I’m not sure where I want to go yet, but I see my future being in Asia, so probably somewhere in Asia would be good.  And you’ve guessed it, I’m thinking about Korea.  One of the reasons is obviously my interest in the country, but to be really honest, I just thought that this country is pretty amazing.  Completely destroyed because of the war 60 years ago, and now being one of the biggest economies in the world, as well as a highly technologically advanced country.  The experience is definitely something to learn from, and if I were to come back to Hong Kong or Singapore after that, it would be something to take home with.  And of course, and perhaps most importantly, there is another selfish reason to it.

By the way, some of you guys were getting a little bit over-excited about the picture I posted in the last entry (as well as on my Facebook), but let me clarify certain things.  I’m sure all of you have, at some stage of your life, be a fan of some artist, footballers, or famous people in general.  The pretty lady, whom I took a cute picture with, is actually a radio DJ and a former artist with one of the biggest entertainment companies in Korea.  And because I listen to her program very frequently, we kinda know each other and I make it a point to visit her at the studio every time I go to Korea.  So it’s not what you lot are thinking about.  As I always say, there’s always more than meets the eye, and there are times that you have to see beyond the surface.  If you are really keen to find out more about that, my next chicken and beer session would be on you.  Hahaha.

Mood.

Strangely, I woke up feeling a bit weird today, and definitely wasn’t in a good mood. I don’t know what hit me, but it’s just that I’m not feeling too good about myself today. I guess there’s always times when one doesn’t feel right even though nothing is wrong. I have quite a bit of things going on in my head – work, life, love, and the lot. I guess for people around my age we start to think a bit too much.

I would say that I can’t really complain about the life that I’m living now. Not the best life, but I guess it’s one that is already better than a lot of people. I mean, there are certain areas that I think I could do better in, but I think overall I should be satisfied on how life has been treating me so far. It’s not like I’m struggling to make ends meet, or have any serious hardships. I mean, hardships, they are always there, but mine are probably pretty manageable. I still pretty much am on my own, that’s probably the only down side. And seeing my friends from college and senior high school getting married and having kids, sometimes I do think a bit more towards that direction. But what to do, I’m never one who knows how to handle relationships well, so things have never worked out so far. As much as I look forward to one, I am also afraid of how to handle one. I don’t know how the future’s going to be, but before that happens, I probably would live the way that I have been living, and perhaps pray to God that something good would happen to me. It’s in His plans, I believe.

Anyway life has pretty much gone back to normal after my one-week holiday and it’s good that this period really isn’t the busiest period of the year, and I am able to catch a breather and sort out some of the work that has been waiting for me for a while. And in the meanwhile, I look forward to my next holiday…

Home.

I made the first step to being an ice-cream seller in Disneyland – I handed in an application yesterday!

I’m going to be taking a recruitment examination later, which is the first of a whole series of exams. If I get through this one, there will be another one to take in about one and a half month’s time. If I manage to get this job, then I’m pretty hopeful of a fairly decent pay. But then again, talks of getting the job at this time is way too premature, so what I can do now is just hope and pray everything were to go well.

It’s pretty cold in Hong Kong right now – apparently the temperature this morning is just 14 degrees. Worse seems to be on its way because it’s going to be 12 tomorrow onwards!

Have a great weekend!