Snippet Of My Life Episode 27 – Some Kind Of Diary

A list of random thoughts and observations that bombard me lately begins with a comment made by my good buddy whom I met for lunch at Changi, somewhere so far away that colleagues aside, I have only got two lunch buddies to hassle with and naturally, they have become – again, colleagues aside – the second and third person I see most often, first being Cynthia of course.  Fortunately, both are guys.  Otherwise, Cynthia would be very suspicious of my activities in this faraway land.

My buddy asked, “What do you write in your website?  It is not a diary.  And I can’t find any moment of intimacy* inside!”

* Note: Censored for PG rating.

I guess I am not that good in sequencing my daily thoughts and actions into one neat post.  And besides, something are better left to the readers’ imagination.  Do you consider posts like this one some kind of diary?

*     *     Best Friend At Work *     *

Every year, we have to complete a corporate survey.  Every year, I am amused by some of the questions I have to answer openly and honestly.  The most intriguing question, philosophically speaking, is: Do you have a best friend at work?

Think.  How long does it take for me to acquire a best friend outside work?  One year?  Two years?  Many years?  After working in this company for more than three years, I am still perplexed by this same question.

So I have done some soul searching.  And I have come up with a list of what it takes to be my best friend.

  1. My best friend accepts me for what and who I am and still thinks that I am the coolest person on Earth despite all my shortcomings.
  2. That includes the fact that I am often late for my appointments and I enjoy playing video games a lot.
  3. My best friend is ever so supportive to all my ideas, always keen to listen to my ideas, even though my ideas suck at times.
  4. My best friend and I trust each other with our lives.  When I say “Jump?”, I know I am not the only one who will dive in.
  5. My best friend fixes all my problems and make me the coolest person on Earth.

Tell me.  Do you have a best friend at work?  If you do, I am truly happy for you.

*     *     Who Cares?     *     *

I find the following question equally mind-boggling: Does your supervisor, or someone at work, care for you as a person?

Who cares if someone at work care for me as a person if my boss doesn’t?

Inspired by a question on whether or not my good work has been recognised and praised upon in the past 6 months, I turned to Cynthia for an answer.  She gave me a definite yes.  Her colleagues at work are the supportive kind.  I was in tears.  Happy for her.  When I gave her my answer, she too was in tears.  But not the same kind of tears.

All of a sudden, at a macro level, I think I have unlocked the mystery of why some people spend so much more time at work than at home, thinking about work all the time, and messing with their business phones all the time.  Take me as an example.  My direct competitors are Cynthia’s colleagues, who are showering her with praises and recognition during working hours.  If I am not giving her as much, if not more at home to balance that out, she would prefer to spend more time at work.  Make sense?  Here is a list of I-mean-what-I-say-when-I-say-to-Cynthia for sharing.

  1. You are the best!
  2. You smell great (any time of the day).
  3. You look great (even when her sensitive skin acts up).
  4. I love your hair (even when her hair flies everywhere).
  5. You are the best!

As for Cynthia, she is the lucky one.  She does not need to do much for I am getting none at work.

*     *     Where Are The Aliens *     *     *

We have not found any aliens.  Are we looking at the wrong places?  Or we are looking at the wrong thing?  Recently, scientists suggest that aliens may have evolved into sentient machines.  The pinnacle of evolution.  That, my friends, sound very much like one of my favorite video games Mass Effect.

Are video games art?  Don’t some qualify as the expression or application of creative skill and imagination, typically in visual form, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power – as defined by the Oxford dictionary?

Video games transcend the meaning of art.  Video games foretell our future.

Back to the aliens, if you were to ask me, in my wildest imagination, I think aliens have the following attributes.

  1. Female only species evolved to physical perfection.
  2. After the age of 24, physical appearance stays that way for as long as they live (note: I wanted to write 18 but some of you may think that I am a pervert).
  3. Able to read our minds – when we want it, how we want it.
  4. Long hair, long legs.
  5. …*

* Note: Censored for PG rating.

*     *     Daily Surprises     *     *

Here are something about me that some of you may have observed.

  1. Very easily excitable.
  2. Attack all things with passion.
  3. Appears to have all the time in the world to do different things in life.
  4. Does not appear to run out of things to do …
  5. … even though some of these things that I write and do make me looks like an idiot – retrospectively speaking.

Recently, I have made my first attempt to order Japanese music albums from the Amazon Japan website.  It was an exhilarating experience as I do not read Japanese.  I had no idea I could do it but I did it nonetheless.  Talking about Japanese efficiency, there is only one shipment option: express.  The moment my order was received, the shipment arrived at my doorstep within 24 hours.  I am impressed.  Very impressed.  I was so happy to see the DHL delivery man.  Being a DHL delivery man must be one of the most rewarding jobs on Earth.  I would love to see the smile of people every time I make a delivery.  Talking about recognition and praises at work.

One of the few things that keep the trapped Chilean miners from getting depressed – according to the news – is to give them daily surprises.  Daily surprises destroy monotony and boredom.  Perhaps that is why I keep on creating opportunities to give myself daily surprises.

*     *     Drowning In The Stream Of Consciousness *     *

… and yes, driving away from town – after dropping off Cynthia at her office – away from the traffic congestion, the rudeness and ruthlessness of the drivers, especially the taxi drivers, and away from some of the unpleasant memories of working in town for a decade or so, I feel such freedom when I am propelled to the highway, heading towards the east, towards the blinding morning sun, the smooth traffic, a future yet to be written, and on my way to an office that is less than half a year old, a place dotted scarcely with commercial buildings, a place covered with green turf and palm trees and in the middle of the business park, a man-made lake with a man-made tiny fountain, and yes, even that short palm tree in the middle of the road, which I often have my face poked by its sharp and hard leaves while I am not paying attention – I cannot stop but to think of the many things I have grown to love about Changi: the butterflies, the fresh air, the tranquility, the sun, and the morning dew that wets my shoes when I walk across a long green field as part of my daily walking ritual after lunch for there are nothing else to do in Changi Business Park except to work on the 3rd floor, and eat on the 6th floor, and work, and eat, and yes, it is possible to make the daily routine more interesting by introducing other routines such as the daily lunch time walk, such as staring at the blue sky through the window by my desk and admiring the aeroplanes of different shapes and sizes and airlines take off by the minutes – such are the scenes that will stay the same tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and many years to come, eating up my life one day at a time initially, and when I am not paying attention, one month at a time, one year at a time, one decade at a time …

PS. An experimental piece on the “drowning in the stream of consciousness” writing style as inspired by Thomas Foster’s book on reading novels.

11 thoughts on “Snippet Of My Life Episode 27 – Some Kind Of Diary

  1. JoV

    Man, I have so much to say that I’m speechless. You write like a dream and I think you should published. The Last one “Drowning in the stream of consciousness”. I used to write like that many moons ago, but with so many years of logical and management conditioning, the stream are not flowing anymore for me.

    Your definition of best friend is great. I think I’m going to show it to my best friend. and I find this question equally mind-boggling: Does your supervisor, or someone at work, care for you as a person?

    and like you I think “Who cares if someone at work care for me as a person or not? even if my boss doesn’t?” I think I’m a responsible adult, responsible for my own action at work. I care about other colleagues but will never expect anyone at work to do the same for me. I think I have toughen and harden enough to do what I need to do and not need any pat on my back, or any superficial management talk or encouragement to tell me I have done a good job…

    because I know I am good at work, and there is no other assurance required.

    1. wilfrid Post author

      JoV – You have hit the nail right on its head! I think it is because like you said, I know I am good at work, I am OK not to have those nice-to-have assurances. But they are really nice to have though, I think … ha ha ha.

      I suppose boredom does breed creativity. And in my case, since there are time on my own after being relocated to another part of town, I seem to have lots of ideas streaming into my head.

      Hey, why don’t you build upon the list of best friend means to you? I am very interested to see how individuals define what best friend means!

  2. G

    I am quite amused by that question in your corporate survey!
    I think “best friends” are so overrated. I wouldn’t even use that term now. I would much prefer “good friend”

    That being said, I wish I had a corporate survey, I have loads of suggestions!

    I agree with you on what you mentioned about people spending more time at work. I also feel that some people are obsessed with work probably that’s the only thing that defines their self worth, in their opinion.

    1. wilfrid Post author

      G – Wait G, I am not your best friend forever?! I am hurt!

      Hehehe, kidding. I know what you mean. And no, that corporate survey is pretty stressful. There are only a handful of questions for people to rate and the answers have direct impact to your boss and to your department. So people often have to think twice before clicking!

      I think some manage to find self worth at work because of the recognitions they received? And they are not getting any outside work? Perhaps everyone wants to be a hero, or appears to be one … hehehe.

  3. Mark

    I am totally with you on the best friend at work thing. In fact, I will go so far to say that there is really no such thing as a best friend unless you both spend effort and time to stay in touch and spend time, be it just a phone call.

    In my entire working life, I have not really been in a company that truly cares. At the end of it, the result still speaks volumes and that is what most people care about. It’s not about the person.

    Now, the truly interesting part for me is the one about aliens. Age 22 might be one of the better years for females I think? Long Hair, Long Legs… you know what the fairy tales used to caution all the time – be careful what you wish for. What if the long hair all grow on the long legs?! How sexy is that now?

    1. wilfrid Post author

      Mark – Aahh, I don’t mean facial hair or bodily hair! Just hair on the head! Hehehe. Age 22 eh? Interesting. I think I am seeing what you mean … hmmm.

      Well, I think it is possible to have great friends at work and when we quit the job, we can become best friends. Hard to come by but it is possible. Like you and I! OK, let’s jump, shall we?!

  4. cynthia

    My colleagues don’t stand a chance against you ! Don’t worry. I don’t think we need best friends at work because I’d rather be best friends to my family and best friends.

    Here are my honest “I mean what I say”
    1. You are the best !
    2. You are funny !
    3. You are a great writer !
    4. You take great photos !
    Last but not least: No no no, *you* are the best !

  5. Yovita

    Yes! Wilfrid. I agree with JoV, you should get this published.

    The “Best friend” at work…really makes me think.

    Lucky me, I think my Boss does care about us, as our state-of-mind will affect how we perform at work. This will then affect how he works. Ha ha ha.

    1. wilfrid Post author

      Yovita – Thank you for your kind words! I will need a very good editor if I wish to get my work published since I am not literature trained! But should the opportunity arises, I will bite onto it and never let go 🙂

      It is good to hear that your boss cares about you. Treasure that as it is not a given.

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