How was your day?

There are days when you woke up on the wrong side of the bed. You leave your bed with little motivation and enthusiasm to go about your day that although nothing bad happens, (your day) just lacks that umph.

Other days, you wake up the moment that alarm clock rings and you immediately hop off the bed, sing or dance in the shower and proceed to have a mini-adventure of your own later that day.

I think I just had one of those days where I felt alive and chatty.

I had all reasons to be grouchy because I had to wake up at 5am just to make sure that I finish my work before 7am and have it ready for the boss to go over at 10am.

Plus, I had to rush all the way to Bandar Baru Sg Buloh to meet a class or Fifth formers who published a book, which is now in its second print. I’ll blog more about that some other day.

And then, I had to take the komuter to go back to the office and finish another piece of writing to be submitted before my sub leaves the office and takes the day off tomorrow.

But today, I also have a lot to be thankful for.

I work up at 5am and managed to finish my work within two hours  –  just like how I had planned. Normally, I would set the alarm at 5am and would hit the alarm and go back to sleep.

Then, my husband was free to send me to Bdr Baru Sg Buloh, so I didn’t have to take the train because I was running late anyway. We got to the school without any problems because I could find the school in the GPS and it took us right to it, right on time.

I had a blast talking to the students and some of the teachers who treated me to lunch. And then, one teacher — who was on the way home — was very kind to give me a lift to the komuter station.

I had to wait for only 15 minutes for the train to arrive and had a good chat with a Sixth former who was going back to her boarding school in Seremban. Before I alighted the train at KL Sentral, she actually salam-cium my hand as a sign of respect because earlier I had told her I was older than she thought. She thought I was a college student. Haha! That made my day

I got back to the office just in time to write the piece and still managed to leave the office at 6pm.

And when I got home, my mom-in-law had cooked yummilicious nasi ayam and I had that for dinner.

My day couldn’t be any better, really!

So I wonder what kind of day is in store for me tomorrow? Whatever tomorrow lies for me, I’ll start the day with a prayer and a rock-out session with my Disney princesses Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez.

I love my manufactured pop and rock songs

I was nervous but the butterflies flew away

Oh looky… Sesame Street turns 40 this week!

That means the SS gang is not that much older than me. (For the record, I’m 31) Yikes! But I love SS. I learned English watching the show.

Anyway, I felt like blogging again today but I’m going to do it real quick because I do have a deadline to meet tomorrow.

Now I haven’t forgotten what I wrote in yesterday’s post. That I’d prefer to wake up early to meet a deadline than do work at night.

But I think I have to make an exception tonight.

I’ll just spend an hour on it tonight — promise! I really must do as much as I can because I have an appointment at 1130 hours in Bandar Baru Sungai Buloh. So I had better make sure the copy is ready by the time I reach the office. I really hate missing deadlines.

Which reminds me; I forgot to pass the cover photo to the graphic artist. I forgot to do it because it wasn’t on my Ta Da list — figures! But then again I didn’t see him today either. Oh well. I’ll just consult the boss and let her choose which one she likes.

Because this is a super quick story, we would have to settle with what we have. When we’re not so pressed for time, we normally go for illustrations. But we can’t be perfect all the time, now can we?

Initially, I was really nervous about completing this story because of its pretty rushed. But thanks to some extra information the organisers emailed me today, I’m much calmer now. I just need to focus. And for an added boost, I’ll need some kick-ass soundtrack playing in the background

Ok. Blogging time is up. Next: hot shower. to wash the day away.

Till next time!

 

 

 

 

 

Put off to tomorrow what you can’t do today

Just so you know, I tried uploading my HK pictures on FB twice tonight. But the Internet connection is kinda slow right now, so I guess I have no choice but to home from work tomorrow. Really, I’m forced to do it!!I gotta keep my promise, right?

Anyway, today felt like I didn’t accomplish anything. I feel this way when I didn’t manage to write a single sentence for a looming deadline. But in reality, I did go over two stories which I had prepared for my stockpile {yay, stockpile!} for grammar etc and made sure all the correct pictures were attached. I also attended a meeting in which we discussed ideas for a future revamp of the section I write for. Besides that, I discussed with colleagues the comments to put for the stories we’re nominating for the annual dinner/award night. We submitted quite a number of stories so hope that at least one “mengena” (gets picked). I also wrote a few emails arranging for photos for my upcoming stories based on the event in HK. AND, I made a phone call requesting for an interview in the near future. I mean, these are proper “work” stuff, right? But why is it that unless I’m writing my stories, I feel like I’m not doing at all? Annoying, isn’t it?

So tomorrow, I vow to start fresh. As I like to put it, “hit the ground running”. I’ll try to do work but if I find myself answering more calls than I am typing my ideas down, I’ll count that as part of a productive day. If answering calls isn’t productive or part of a day’s job, then why do phone operators and receptionists get paid?

Ok…now, I’m rambling.

Anyway, today, a simple conversation about career paths post-my current establishment got me seriously thinking about my next career. Don’t get me wrong, I love writing. It’s what I live to do. But I’ve been at this job long enough to feel like it’s “same old same old”.

So, when I do leave my current job for “greener pastures”, I’m definitely going to a company where technology is its core business. Since I’m so deeply entrenched in the education field, the organisation should put a premium on education and not just something it would do as part of its corporate social responsibility efforts. I’ve got several organisations in mind but I have to do my homework on them. And this could take months if not years.

I’ve been in my present company for seven years but I don’t claim to have learned everything that I can from it. I still have a lot of crucial skills — like presentation, communication etc — to master if I want to function “out there”. I have no doubt that I’ll be able to pull through should I get thrown into the deep blue sea. I always do. But before I take the plunge, I’d like to learn how to swim first, if you know what I mean. A postgraduate degree won’t hurt (in what? that I have to decide) and that’s definitely one thing that I should aspire for, among other things.

Well, enough talk about the future for now. The present needs my attention too. Later!

Post Hong Kong

I’m back people!!!

My working trip to HK was — in short — successful, inspiring and memorable. I met really nice people there, was wowed by the efforts of the teachers who attended the forum and amazed by the sights and sounds of Hong Kong.

There were nine of us from Msia — 3 media reps, 3 moe reps, 2 ms reps and 1 teacher/quarter-finalist. Most of us had only met for the first time at the airport. Having gone for the regional event in Hanoi in April, I was already familiar with the 2 MS reps and teacher. It turned out that one of the media reps was formerly from BH in JB (hansolo, I’m sure you know who she is because she left the company a few months ago to work in KL). We had met each other perhaps a couple of years back but both of us couldn’t remember what assignment or occasion it was. We became fast friends anyway.

We left Msia at about 9.30am. That meant leaving the house at about 6.15am to check in by 7.30am. I had omellette and watched Baby Mama on the plane. I really recommend this movie because it is funny as h3ll!! I laughed and cried watching this movie — the guy sitting next to me probably thought I was crazy. If you’re into spoilers, read all about Baby Mama here.

I could relate to the movie because I’m trying for a baby myself. It hasn’t been particularly easy for me so this movie, about a successful business woman who’s trying to have a baby alone at 37, hits a chord with me. Tina Fey and Amy Pohler were both hilarious and excellent actors. I knew that they were funny from the Saturday Night Live days but I never knew that they could do drama as well. Believe it or not, the movie was categorised under Drama under the Movie on Demand list. The script is brilliant at mixing hilarious moments and touching ones all in one scene.

I loved the film so much that I recommended it to the former BH girl but too bad the movie was removed from the play list on our flight back to Msia. I wanted to watch it again but because it was no longer available, I decided to watch Wall-E. The missing narration makes it a bit boring but I still think it’s a sweet movie. I must be really hormonal then because not only did I cry watching Baby Mama, watching Wall-E go about his work all alone on Earth too almost moved me to tears I loved the movie. Well at least I didn’t fall asleep watching it as I did while watching The X-Files right after Wall-E. Not that it was incredibly boring or anything. I think I was just tired by then.

My stay in Hong Kong was wonderful. I would have loved to do more shopping but I find HK to be rather expensive. I mean, a bottle of Evian costs RM5 there. A bottle of regular mineral water costs RM3. So you can pretty much tell how expensive other things can be. It didn’t help that our hotel, The Langham in Tsim Sha Tsui is right across a Louis Vitton boutique. It was an exclusive area, so shopping around the jotel area was limited.

But Ladies Market was just four MTR stations away. I didn’t really like it there because I found the bargaining process really tiring. Some of the proprieters are rude — they just shoo you away. But I managed to get the usual souvenir stuff — fridge magnets, t-shirts etc — for not-too-bad prices. The t-shirts were of good quality so I’m happy with that. I wanted to buy a bag for myself but I ended up with a pair of flat shoes instead. It was for RM32. I’m happy with that because it looks good with my jeans.

I loved watching the young women in HK. They dress really well, very trendy with their calf or knee-length boots. HK this time of the year is slightly cooler than in Malaysia and less humid too. You don’t need a coat or anything. You’l be fine with your t-shirt. But if you were to wear your jeans and t-shirt, you’ll look slightly out of place in Tsim Sha Tsui area where the girls were shorts, dresses or pretty blouses with skirts and boots. Sure, there will be people in just t-shirt and jeans but they’re mostly guys

Books in HK are pretty expensive too. If you think your RM34 paperback is pricey, wait till you have to fork out RM45 for the same paperback in HK! I’m never taking book prices in KL for granted anymore. Of course, I’ll buy them online so I’ll get a 30 per cent discount.

Sasa in HK is cheaper (certain items) and bigger. I almost bought a Sasa-brand lengthening/volumising mascara for HK$98 (98xRM0.46= about RM45) but decided against it. I didn’t really need it. I already have my Maybelline mascara that does the job for less than RM40. Never mind that I still think about it now (I think I’m in love), enough to make me want to go to a Sasa store and see if they sell it here too. But I bought 3 miniature perfumes — Eternity (15ml) and two Burberry Weekend (5ml) — for RM50 from there. Not bad eh?

All this talk about shopping makes you wonder whether I did any work at all in HK. Of course I did

I was there to cover an international forum for innovative teachers and met teachers from 60 countries who are not short of inspirational. If all these teachers were to work in one school, that would be one heck of a brilliant school. These are teachers who worked outside of office hours to create games, movies etc to enhance their teachings. You will be amazed by what these teachers can do. Some of these schools are rural ones that have no Internet access at all. Yet the students learn with the aid of technology everyday.

I really want to do justice to the article which I will prepare in the coming days. I hope I will do a great job at it.

Anyway, after spending four solid days in Hong Kong, staying at a 5-star hotel with great breakfast and company, it still feels good to be back in the comfort of my own messy room and table writing this entry.

Oh, that just reminds me of something. I need to register the free MS Office One Note 2007 software I got from the forum online and also check out Piggley’s blog. Piggley is the mascot of a school in rural Nothern Ireland. From his blog, I could see that he had a whale of a time in Hong Kong. Read all about him here and also notice how Piggley asks the students to look up some information on Hong Kong and its culture. This is the kind of learning that these teachers are promoting. Fun, isn’t it?

Well, I’m signing off too. I wish I could have done a day-to-day blog like Piggley but to tell you the truth, the Internet charge was too expensive and I frankly didn’t have the energy to even switch my laptop on at the end of the day.

Anyway, see you soon!

P/S: No pictures yet. I’ll probably transfer some photos tomorrow and I’m also waiting for some REALLY good pictures from MS representatives. More of that next week I guess. I’l probably upload them on FB. Later!

Three days before the trip.

I probably should go to the gym — since my husband is going to take another 20 minutes or so playing futsal with his colleagues on the rooftop — but I’m too lazy to even change.

I guess I’m not so worried because the hotel where I’m staying it has a gym. By the way, I just discovered that Subuh in Hong Kong is quite early, as in 5.15am or something… (gah!). Syuruk is something like 6.15am (double gah!!). So, I guess I can wake up for Subuh and help open the gym (lol!). I’ll probably give myself only 45 minutes there… okay, let’s be real… 30 minutes. If the gym opens at 6am, that means I’l finish just before 7am. Then, since my programme only starts at 9am, I can sneak in maybe an hour’s nap, before I go down for breakfast and attend the programme. Planning baik punya!

But like the last time in Hanoi, I managed to squeeze in some exercise around 5.00pm-5.30pm. That was when I caught the last season of American Idol on Starworld. Thank God that hotel had Astro-like channels! So, it would be good if I can do that in HK too.

But the thing is, the evenings is when the Malaysian teachers disappeared to the shops. I love tagging along with them because they’re good fun. But this time, they’ll be more media people and they’re all girls… (I hope they’re nice people) so hope it will be MORE fun We’ll see how it goes…

I’m glad I’m already familiar with the MS chaperone we had the last time. She’s really nice and helpful.

Anyway, I’m looking at the tentative schedule and notice a great difference in the scheduling this time around. I don’t see interview sessions being slotted at a specific day and time anywhere like in Hanoi. Maybe it’s a different event company which is handling this one. The last team was alright. Hope this one’s better, though. Oh, I just noticed that on Tuesday we will be briefed on the “media schedule for the next 3 days”. Ah, maybe they’ll have another schedule for us then.

Okay, what else. Well, my work at the office is done — for this weekend and even the next (both my cover). I have my e-tickets, my passport and my running shoes ready. I’ve even bought my travel insurance (cheap – only RM34). I just haven’t packed yet. So many decisions to make — which shoes to bring, which pants to wear etc. One important thing. I must remember to delete all adult movies I may (stress on the word may) have on my laptop because I don’t want to be caught and appear in the news like those Malaysian pilots in Australia. Hahahaha!!!

Be calm my tummy!

9:25pm

Sitting down and having a conversation with a face reader who can also sense your biorhythm (see what it means in wikipedia) can be intimidating. It makes you want to run the opposite way.

The fact that I sat through an hour plus interview with said man, knowing full well of his “talent” makes me a very brave soul indeed.

As I was asking him questions and as he deliberated his answers (on his job not his ability to read my face), I couldn’t help but to think if he could read my mind too. Apparently, he couldn’t. Thank god for that!

But there was no hiding that I had some kind of gastrointestinal problem from him. When I asked him how he knew, he said that it was because he could sense the heat I was eminating. My body heat was telling him that I was as heaty as a durian lover post durian feast (okay, so he didn’t say that. He just said that I was heaty). The way the skin pulls under my eyebags also gave my condition away. Then he asked me if I often have constipation. Hah, I wish!

Anyway, I told him that I have IBS and then he proceeded to ask me if I drink enough water or that I’m getting enough fiber. Then he gave me some tips. The next time I drink, I am to gulp and not sip. The motion of gulping is believed to help my sensitive guts function better.

So right after the interview, I went to Juice Works and ordered my Tummy Calmer. I remembered his tips and duely gulped my drink. Guess what – it kinda worked. I was having some stomach discomfort all throughout the interview and I hardly noticed how my stomach felt – the way normal people do (or rather don’t). Maybe it was a coincidence, maybe it was my Tummy Calmer – I’m not really sure. But it is a tip worth trying again.

Anyway, said man also shared with me information about his next exhibition based on his years of research about people’s personality traits based on the day they were born. He told me that I was born on a Saturday which made me a baby with a pair of eyes which were a topic of everyone’s conversation. I was also apparently a baby which developed very fast. I was very tight with money and I have a natural talent for music and dancing.

If he had met my parents years ago, he would have suggested that they encourage me to take Accounting and dancing lessons.

He said that I have a natural talent for numbers and for selling insurance or unit trust funds. I would do very well if I were to pursue such careers.

Interesting eh?

I have been interested in accountancy since I covered an assignment about an accountancy programme a month ago. I mean, why not? Every organisation needs an accountant and if I were one, I would probably be more up to date with my taxes. So who knows? *lol*

It’s a pity that I’m not going to write about his talent for reading faces, biorhythm or numerology(?). But he is a man with a talent for painting so my angle would be that and how young people can follow his footsteps.

I can assure you that his artistic pursuit is no less interesting than the conversation we had before we wrapped up the interview. Now, all I have to do is make sure that I do justice to this man. Pressure much?

I’ve packed my bags and am ready to go

To Hanoi, Vietnam that is. I was stressing over electricity plugs just now and then I found a website which reassured me that most newer hotels now install G type of plugs, which is similar to Malaysia’s. So, that’s one thing less to worry about that.

I’ll be in Hanoi for a from tomorrow until Friday, which is when I leave for KL. By the time I reach home, my husband would have arrived and probably be amidst some shopping in Bandung, Indonesia. He’ll be there on a company trip because his department made some money from last year’s sales. Good for hubby because he hasn’t travelled abroad since he was in school. So, looks like I’ll be spending the weekend of April 12 and 13 alone without him

I packed in an extra bag in case I decide to do some “serious” shopping. But I’m not bringing a lot of cash though because my husband is going to Bandung, THE shopping heaven, so he needs more cash. Anyway, my bag is a bit big and heavy right now. I also brought extra t-shirts and my running shoes as I plan to work out at the hotel’s gym (I’ll be staying in Sheraton). I also went to the gym when I was in Albuquerque’s Hyatt. When I stayed there last May, I was pleasantly surprised to see that at 6am, there were already a few people using the hotel’s gym. What was I doing at the gym that early? Let’s just say that jetlag from the 20-hour flight totally screwed up my sleeping pattern.

I’m really not sure what to expect from the trip. I mean, I have the itinerary and all but it doesn’t make much sense to me right now. I’ll just wait for the briefing tomorrow at the airport and maybe later after checking in.

I’m typing this entry with my eyes practically closed, so I better upload this and log off

I’ll try to blog from Hanoi. Later!

Coming to Africa

Here’s the thing. I’m travelling to B0tswana on Thurs and I can’t even be properly excited about it *lol*

I’ve been so preoccupied with a lot of things – work, social life etc – that I hardly have the time to take a deep breath and stop to ponder about what’s going on around me.

Anyway, I’m travelling to B0tswana to cover a graduation ceremony. Yep, I kid you not. I normally get super excited about my trips and start googling all the travel infos that I can possibly get from the internet. But these are the things I managed to find out so far:

a) Where B0tswana is situated in the world map (above South Afr1ca, if you’re wondering)
b) Gab0r0ne, the city where I’ll be travelling to, is quite the metropolitan with a large expat community.
c) That the currency is called Pula and the exchange rate is RM1: B0tswana Pula 1.8 (roughly). But I’m sure they use USD liberally there.
d) That it is quite cold over there. Lowest temperature is around 15 degrees celcius. But I have a feeling that next week, the weather will get warmer. But I expect some precipitation going on.

Other important things I found out about the trip:

a) There will be at least 2 other Malaysian reporters. Woohoo!
b) I’m flying SIA up until Johannesberg, South Africa. From there, I’m flying South Africa Air. Coolness!

Dalam pada tak ada masa tu, I managed to do some important things like:
a) Request for advance. I’m not ashamed to admit this. I’m always broke and trips can come at the most inconvenient time.
b) Get roaming for my postpaid Digi line.
c) Get new call cards that I can dish out liberally over there. Kidding!
d) Charles and Keith’s store at Changi Airpot is open at 6am. Nampaknya, I can finally get to see the shop which my neighbour Racha3l often raves about. She recently bought a very nice bag from there. Before that, she had bought a really nice pair of shoes. Since then, I swore that I will get my own C&K bag/shoes the next time I’m at Changi or Spore. Initially, I thought that I would not have the privilege to do so because my transit times are so off (11pm on the way to B0tswana and 6am on the way back home). But Racha3l assured me that it’ll be open at 6am because she asked the salespersons

Bak kata Janet Jackson, “That’s-a-it” about the trip that I can update you with so far. Obviously, I haven’t packed but I’m quite an expert at that already thanks to all my trips all these years. So I’m really not worried about overpacking and exceeding the baggage weight limit. It’s such a short trip anyway. Fly there for 10-11 hours, sleep, attend the graduation ceremony and do some campus tour or something, sleep and check out of the hotel and head for the airport the next day. Wham-bam-thank you-mam.

Ok, now I’m rambling. I better get ready for dinner. Talk to you later!

Happy 2008!

Happy New Year everyone! Where and how did you spend your NY eve?

I had to work on Dec 31 but left early – around 4.30pm – to spend the night at a three-bedroom apartment near Awana Gent1ng. This is my second time spending NY there (or is it my third? I really can’t remember). Everyone dressed up to the nines for the private party but as usual, I was the most dressed down person. I was in my sweats and yoga pants and my hair was wet because I had just washed it.

It didn’t occur to me at all to bring my new “cocktail” dress I bought from Message. But then again, it would have been pointless because I would be asleep even before midnight Also, I figured who is there to impress anyway?

It didn’t make sense to dress up because half of the time I was up in my room finishing work. Yeah bummer. But good thing that I have subscribed to digi’s high speed mobile access data unlimited plan which costs me RM66 a month. Of course I’d be happier if it were any faster – home wifi kind of fast – but beggars can’t be chooser, can they? I’m sure digi is working hard to improve the speed. In the meantime, I suppose I have to make do with 900+ kbps per second, which isn’t too bad.

I’m just grateful that using my Nokia 5700 MusicExpress phone, I was able to get on the Internet in my room and get some work done. I even got to chat on google talk with Princess. That’s not too bad, no?

When the clock struck 12, I put on Colby Caillat’s Older. True, Colby. It IS tough getting older. It’s tough because there’s bills that need to be paid, family to take care of etc.

But some people never grow up. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. I’m still a big kid but I know when it is time to assume responsibility and when not to menyusahkan orang lain. Speaking of menyusahkan orang lain, my colleague and I had an argument with someone from the office on NY eve at work – let’s call the person Si Polan.

We have given Si Polan face many times but enough is enough. The final straw was when Si Polan was suppose to attend a meeting with us to discuss work. Si Polan not only turned up close or more than an hour late and gave excuses which were questionable, BEST OF ALL Si Polan did not complete the task given to Si Polan before the weekend.

On Friday, we had all agreed to work during the weekend to make sure that by Monday morning, we would be able to sit together and discuss about this project of ours. The task was simple – go over a list of 28 websites, choose the best ones and provide reasons to support your claim. SI Polan came on Monday mid morning and unsheepishly announced that Si Polan had only managed to view 6 of 28 sites because Si Polan has neither a computer nor Internet access at home. But Si Polan managed to view the 6 sites because Si Polan came to the office on Saturday. This would have been alright if Si Polan had been a mother who had to take care of her sick infant.

Si Polan is single and lives just 5 minutes away from the office. Si Polan kept silent all through the weekend despite numerous sms-s from the project leader (my colleague) to see if “everything was ok”. If there was a problem, why didn’t Si Polan inform during the weekend. Why did Si Polan decide to surprise the project leader on Monday during the meeting?

My colleague and I – married women with house to clean and husbands to layan *lol* – had completed more than 3/4 of our lists which also had 28 or more items.

When we told Si Polan that dia punya excuse was lame, Si Polan got defensive. In fact, Si Polan was in the defensive from the start because Si Polan knew the scolding that was coming Si Polan’s way. Well, Si Polan deserves it. It takes a lot to tick off my colleague and I. I think Si Polan thought we were going to excuse Si Polan again this time – “just give me 1 hour to finish my list!” like it’s going to take Si Polan just ONE hour to do so. Boy was Si Polan in for a shock!

The worst part about Monday was that Si Polan didn’t see why we were upset. Of course it was “only Monday” and there was time to finish Si Polan’s list. But the point is, SI Polan was suppose to complete it during the weekend. It we could, why couldn’t Si Polan?

Put it this way: if it was Donald Trump who had called for the meeting, do you think he’d give Si Polan just another hour to finish Si Polan’s work? I don’t think so. Si Polan would be fired there and then.

The lesson to be learned here is respect other people’s time, honour your words and do your part. Susah sangat ke?

So, how did the argument end? Boss intervened and said that Si Polan is to be removed from the project. Clearly embarrassed and upset, Si Polan told the boss that Si Polan needed 10 minutes to do entah apa and we never saw Si Polan again after that.

Tomorrow’s going to be really awkward. I’m hating the prospect of Si Polan apologising for what happened Monday because frankly I’m not quite ready to do so. Si Polan will probably ask what Si Polan needs to do to make amends. I’ll tell Si Polan to honour his words. Say something and mean it.

I’ll also tell Si Polan that what Si Polan did on Monday only proved Boss’ suspicions right. Boss was unoptimistic that Si Polan would actually do the work assigned to Si Polan. My colleague and I thought we’d give Si Polan the benefit of the doubt. Clearly, Si Polan did not do Si Polan’s self any favours.

In boss’s eyes, Si Polan’s rep is as destroyed as it can be. I’m afraid to say that it’s the same with me. Sorry, Si Polan… you brought this upon yourself.

Happy New Year everyone. Hope you learned something from my NY’s eve story.

Early riser

I was reading success stories about women who have managed to lose weight on shape.com website two days ago and found Sarah Robin’s story.

She says that part of her slimming success is rising at 4.30am daily to go to the gym. She said that by doing so, she can get home by 8am to help her kids go off to school. This is not the first time I have read about mothers waking up before anyone else in their house just so that they can have their “alone” time.

All these women say that waking up when it’s still dark outside is one of the best decisions they have ever made. One thing is for sure, these women can safely claim that they get so much done even other people get started. By getting things out of the way early, they have their evenings free. Isn’t that great?

I have occasionally been forced to wake up early. Usually because I have a deadline to meet. I dreaded the prospect of waking up that early but once I was awake, I find that I write best in the early morning when it’s really quiet. I almost never get a writing block when I’m writing at 5am because parts where I got stuck the night before seems to untangle itself after a few hours of sleep.

I’m already sold on the idea but knowing how easy it is to talk myself into going back to sleep at 4.55am, I did some reading on the subject of rising early. A website called Zen Habits explained it all in an article titled 10 benefits of being an early riser and baby steps to become one.

And so yesterday I thought I’d give it a try. I set the clock for 5am. 4.30am is too early for me, quite frankly. The alarm rang and I hit snooze. So I ended up getting up at my regular 7am
But I wasn’t about to give up. So I tried again this morning. Succes!

Granted, I didn’t get to tick off ALL of the items on my to-do list. But at least I managed to shot off some e-mails and finish the first draft of my story for next week. That’s a start right?
Granted, I was feeling drowsy again by 11am. But I allowed myself a break/treat and finished my Madonna storybook titled The Adventures of Abdi (yep, I got it for 30 per cent off at the Times Book store Warehouse Sale in Sect 13, PJ. I was so excited to find it. The illustration is beautiful but I still prefer Jehan’s book, Yakov and the Seven Thieves.

I bought five other novels by Anne Rule (The Stranger beside Me and If You Really Loved Me); Anita Shreve (Resistance); John Grisham (Bleachers) and Elizabeth Noble (The Reading Group). These are authors who I have never read before – yep, not even Grisham. These books may not the best from these authors but I wanted to challenge my literary sense to… different stimulants, if you like. I could have easily picked up Plum Syke’s Bergdorf Blondes but I’m tired of reading about rich women with unlimited budget for everything.

I spent about RM130 on all the books – which is a great deal and would have spent more if not for the assignment I had after that. Yeah, Jehan and I used out lunch break to shop for books.

If time and budget permits, I’d like to go again, maybe Sunday. I only covered a quarter of the sale – just the bargain area (between 30 and 90 per cent off). I’d really like to see if there are other Anita Shreve’s Light on Snow is there. The last I checked – MPH Bgsr Village 2 – only her latest book Body Surfing is available and in hardcover at that. Who has the $ to buy hard covers?

I think this entry is getting a little long. I shall save news about the development of the family’s currently-under-renovation home tonight or tomorrow (with pictures!) for next time. Watch this space!