The proud VCP

I feel so guilty. In the midst of preparation for my beginning of semester, I nearly forgot about my darling. Not forget him as a person but I forgot to write something important about him. Hehe! So sorry, my darling. This is an important achievement and I don’t want to leave it out from the blog. Hehe!

While I love to pursue higher degree, my darling loves to pursue higher certification. At least, we are in same mind when it comes to education. He has recently gone through a VMware course and finally passed the paper. Now he’s a proud VCP, VM Certified Professional. For those who are not IT geek, VMware is a famous software in the market for server virtualization. Too technical, doesn’t matter. The course itself is very expensive. It’s a 4-day course. Thanks to his company, it’s all paid for. Taking the certification is part of his company’s target for him for this year. One of his colleagues has passed the exam a few months back, hence when he finished the course and was preparing for the exam, he was a bit anxious. He’s worried about passing the ’so-called’ difficult paper. I could see the tension around him before the exam. It made me worried too. But as always, I told him he could definitely pass. He really worked so hard, studying the paper. I always believe that hard work pays in the end. And it did. I’m so happy for him.

I still remember that day. It was the Friday that we both took leave. I was supposed to attend the welcome ceremony but it was cancelled. He had scheduled his exam in the morning. Since I had nothing to do in the morning, I accompanied him to his exam. Both of us were anxious. I was praying hard that he passed. Coz he promised me nice lunch if he did. Haha! I waited there around 1.5 hours for him, reading my novel and watching people came and went. When he finally came out from the room, all smiling, I knew he had succeeded. I was so relieved. Hooray! To my great lunch. Haha!

So that was one episode of him taking exam. He told me not many days after that he’s already preparing for another certification. Sigh! Another episode of anxiety later…

 

Dear Blacky

All the puppies have been adopted by good people last month, except the black one that we called her Blacky in Cantonese. Hehe! I was reluctant to give her away for adoption actually. As she was the last one left, I intended to keep her for ourselves. A companion for her mother. A direct descendant from our ‘daughter’, a granddaughter for ourselves.

She’s now quite big, weighing at 5.6kg. Isn’t she adorable?

She’s not the most active among her siblings, hence she’s not the first choice during adoption. She chose to hide herself most of the time when people came to pick up her siblings. But the funny part was once her siblings were all gone, she came out from hiding and became all active. Totally playful with her mother. I guess she must be thinking now that she has her mother 100% attention and all the food without sharing. Haha! She’s adorable just like the rest of her siblings. Although she doesn’t really look like her mother, she has her mother’s mild temperament. Of course, a puppy is still a puppy. She still tends to be playful and like to chew on shoes. Especially my slippers. Hehe!

She’s exactly 3 months old as of yesterday. Unfortunately, it was her second time visiting the vet in this week.  Her left leg was injured due to an accident and she just had x-ray done to see how bad her condition was. The vet said there’s a fracture on her leg. The best solution, of course, is surgery but it would cost at least RM700. Another solution would be to let her rest and not move about for 4 weeks. OMG! I wonder if that’s possible as once she’s not in so much pain, she tried to move about and refused to be tied down. Sigh! It’s more difficult to tend to a baby, I tell you. She just won’t listen or failed to understand. We are all so worried as she looks so pitiful with her sad eyes. Whining whenever someone touches her, trying to tell us she’s in pain. However, when the vet touched her, she went rigid and no whining at all. I guess she could smell the vet and fear.

We truly hope she will get well soon. The vet said she’s a puppy and her healing process is very fast. Though her bone may not heal back to her original condition, but she will heal nonetheless and walk normal again. Let’s pray for her.

 

Volunteer orientation

When I was asked to share my experience as volunteer in GS, I started to count the years. This year is my 5th year working as volunteer tutor in GS. However, it’s only my first orientation last Saturday. Hehe! Although I have attended many events before, it’s the first time such orientation for volunteers was being held. Not many had come though but good enough to start off the first step.

Volunteers in GS are divided into few groups: academic/tutors, counsellor, home visit and school visit. The biggest group of volunteers, of course, is the academic/tutors group. In this big group, it’s further divided into different subjects. Unfortunately, I’m the only one in the Malay subject group. Many tutors are in the English subject and a few are in the Maths subject. Many I have met before during events and some I have known for years as long as I have been a volunteer. There’s also a new volunteer who tutors Account and hopefully another volunteer would join soon, I heard. The most wonderful was my first ever student was sitting next to me, joining us as volunteer as a way for her to give back to the home that she lived for years before finishing SPM. Hehe!

The purpose of this orientation was to get to know each other more and share experience. It’s going to be more like a support group for each other. I think it’s a great idea. We shouldn’t work alone on our own. We should work together to achieve better results with the girls. The best thing about this orientation was I got to meet the volunteers that pay home and school visits. Their experiences really gave me the sight on the other side of the coin. These volunteers share their experience of what they saw during home visits to the girls’ families. Some stories were so sad that make me feel grateful for the life I have so far.

I just feel that my decision 5 years ago to become a volunteer was the right one. I have never regretted my first step. Of course, it took me a lot of efforts to help in whatever way I can. However, I’m truly glad that I have at least made some difference, no matter how small, in someone’s life. Especially when that someone turns to you one day and tells you that she’s thankful for the help and time spent all these years. That’s what keeping me forward…

 

Welcome ceremony

I took leave last Friday just to attend the welcome ceremony. Unfortunately, it was cancelled last minute due to unforeseen circumstances. Guess what’s the unforeseen circumstances? AH1N1, no kidding. I didn’t realise that UM takes prevention precaution so seriously that the biggest event for our welcome ceremony has been cancelled. A big loss to them, I guess, seeing all the preparation all around campus. So my morning session has been left with nothing much to do. I have to reschedule my itinerary to match my darling’s. He took leave too to take his exam. At the end, I accompanied him to take his crucial exam in the morning. As a reward, he spent me lunch at Chilis’. Hehe!

In the afternoon, I had briefing at the faculty. It’s my first time stepping my feet at my faculty. This is the place that I will spend nights after nights for my classes starting 6 July. There weren’t many people present for the briefing. Not surprise as the last minute mess-up with the cancellation in the morning. I bet many candidates didn’t get the chance to read the email or visit the IPS website on the night before. Nevertheless, we had around 30-40 people attending the briefing and I could see mostly are foreigners. I didn’t realise our university has been so famous to foreigners that one of my soon-to-be coursemates comes from Maldives, fully sponsored by his government. Some that I met are on sponsorship by companies that are giving them one whole year study leave to do fulltime master course. How I envy them! Hehe! But on second thought, it’s not so much fun to be on their shoes though, as they must complete in one year, which is unlikely. The fastest is 3 semesters, at least 1.5 years. The faculty dean has expressed his wish that we all should complete in 4 semesters, at best. Pressure is already building on me. Sigh!

After the briefing, those like me who enrolled in MCS got to meet with the head of the department. We discussed very briefly on issue pertaining to our course. Many had concerns over the specialisations. We have been advised not to worry about specialisation as we can make our choice on second semester, if we want. I had seen the timetable. In this first semester, only 3 core courses are being offered. Some electives from DC, MIS and AI specialisations. I have my concerns over the number of courses to apply versus the number of semesters needed. If I take 4 course in Semester 1, then I can complete my other 4 courses in Semester 2. But as I see it more realistically, it’s not possible to complete in just 2 semesters. I have to take my darling’s sacrifice into consideration. The more I take, the more days I spend attending classes, then the more pitiful my darling will be in commuting home after work. Moreover, he only has one request. No class please on Friday. Hehe! He takes Friday very serious for our dinner outing night. Hehe!

So at this point of time,  I have decided to take 3 courses for this first semester with no Friday class. For specialisation, my darling suggests that I take MIS instead of DC. I will have to think more about it though I somehow agree with him. Registration is on this Thursday. Another half day leave is gone. Sigh! I can’t believe that it’s finally starting. My journey to my postgraduate study. Wish me work hard, okay? As I always tend to procrastinate…hehe!

 

Yoga for me

I was having neck pain last weekend. My darling thought I watched too much dramas on bed, that’s why. Hehe! Although I made angry face in retaliation for his remark, somehow it was true. I watched a lot of downloaded dramas during the weekend. It’s probably my pillow that gave me a neck pain. Sigh!

The pain was quite intense that I forced myself to practise yoga at home last evening. Though it was just merely half an hour practice, I feel good today. The neck pain has lessen tremendously. Power of yoga. Hehe! It has been so long since my last practice that it took me quite some time to warm up. I did 4 rounds of Sun Salutation, some forward bends, a seated twist pose and tree pose. Of course, I ended my practice with savasana and it nearly put me to sleep. Haha!

I have read recently that many have questioned about the right time to do yoga. I, myself, have wondered many times and even tried to find the right time for myself to practice. Many said that the morning is best where you can do almost all kind of asanas to create positive energy needed to wake you up in the morning. Since I can never find myself wake up earlier than 6 a.m. to practise, my only best time is after work early evening. I’m not supposed to do asanas that are too invigorating especially near bed time. So, I have to learn which asana has which effect to the body. Here are what I have learnt recently:

1. Sun Salutations create heat and flowing movement connected to the breath.

2. Forward bends are calming and helpful when you are feeling over stimulated.

3. Backbends are invigorating and not recommended before going to bed at night.

4. Standing poses build strength, stamina and a sense of grounding, since your feet are rooted into the Earth.

5. Balancing poses cultivate concentration.

6. Twists detoxify the body and relieve tension in the head, neck and back.

7. Inversions which turn us upside down, literally change our view of the world and remind us of the impermanent nature of everything, especially when we are stuck in a rut.

Finally, always finish the practice with savasana. Then hopefully can sleep like a baby…ZZZZzzzzzz…

 

Take him for granted

Marriage is an amazing thing, I learn. You get pretty comfortable in the relationship after awhile. You settle on certain daily routine and just go through life together as if you have been married for decades. For me, of course, I’m pretty cozy with married life. Sometimes I felt like I have been married for very long though it’s only barely 2 years. When things get cozy in life, I begin to realise that I have been taking my darling for granted. In truth, I find myself dependent on him much more these days that I suddenly feel scared.

It’s funny how our life has settled into a comfortable routine that I just take it for granted that he will just fix the sink, clean the toilet, change the bulb, chase off lizards (while I go screaming into the house…hehe) and pay for most of everything. I just take him for granted that he will always be there for me. Somehow, I got worried when I realise that I have become so dependent on him that I’m afraid I would not survive without him. Of course, many have told me before how lucky I am to have my darling as a husband who does all the house chores. I have to admit I’m simply blessed to have him as my husband and I thank God for him. He’s really a good husband who always take care of me and always find ways to provide for me. That’s undeniable the best quality of him. I couldn’t have asked for more.  

Nonetheless, I too always try my best to do my part as good wife. I make sure he has enough to eat at home, wash the dishes, take care of him when he’s sick and occasionally I clean the toilet. Hehe! After all, marriage is all about give and take between two persons. It’s just a matter of who gives more and who takes more. Obviously it’s me who takes more in our relationship. Hehe! Just don’t expect me to chase of lizards, I guess I’m ok in giving more in return. Haha!

 

Mailing List

I can’t believe I have to say this. But I really want to shout here. That some people are just so silly. And you expect better from these bunch of people who are going to pursue postgrad courses. Sigh!

You see, nowadays every information is put online. The postgrad is applied online, application status is checked online, offer letter is printed from online portal, and even courses registration will be done online. Yet, so many people are IT ignorant. Okay, I know most people are not doing courses in IT but do they never know a thing called mailing list? That’s why I think these people are so silly.

We received mailing list notification email to tell us that we are subscribed to the mailing list for our 2009/10 intake. The notification was very clear about how to unsubscribe or changing of personal preference, though the link provided was not usable.  Yet, I received 50 over emails replying to the mailing list to ask for subscribing to the mailing list. Hello? You are ALREADY IN the mailing list once you receive the first email. How come people just don’t read properly? There are good people who replied and explained that they are all in the mailing list and asked them not to reply unless they want to share something important. But no, people still replied to request for adding or unsubscribe. The worst was a few people replied saying this mailing list is spam and we should all block this spam. WTH. How can they be so silly, right? We are not young or uneducated? We are pursuing our postgrad, for God’s sake. Yet, I’m surprised how people reacted to such emails.  And you would think we are highly educated and intelligent bunch. Silliness apparently has no end. Sigh!

 

Just a bad week

I’m praying that this week will bring better luck for us. As last week was really bad. My darling was very sick. First with sore throat and fever. Then the fever came back. And now it’s stomach wind and sleepless nights. Sigh. I wonder what went wrong the whole week. Things just got better and then got worse again. The worst part now is he couldn’t put anything down for long. He would just want to vomit, hence more wind in the stomach if there’s nothing to digest. He couldn’t sleep at night because of the stomach’s wind. I suspected it could be the strong medicine over the week that had disrupted his digest system. I’m so worried. I have tried all kind of methods to help him relieve the wind but to no avail. He kept on telling me not to worry but I just couldn’t help myself not to worry.

Life is just so tough especially when your stomach hates you. Life is tougher when the sick is your husband. Who couldn’t sleep. So I couldn’t sleep too. Sigh. I pray that he will get well soon. Or else both of us will have more sleepless nights.

 

Insanity

There are only 2 people who are living in this house. Can you count how many notebooks are there? Are we insane? The worst is none of these are mine. Sigh! They are all my darling. The most insane, obssessive, IT geek husband ever. So you see. there’s no denying that we are not IT techies. Hehe!

 And to make our home more techie, see what we bought? A robot vacuum cleaner. Hehe! 

I have seen similar robot long time ago but never really thought that we would own one. This is not the original brand that created the famous iRobot vacuum cleaner and we were tempted to buy the original actually but the cost is just too high. So, we bought the imitation which cost half the price of the original from HomeFix. And it works just the same. It was kind of cool to have a robot cleaning the house. Hehe! I wonder what my darling will buy next???

 

What have I been doing lately?

I feel so guilty that my blog is so neglected nowadays. It’s not that I have nothing to say, it’s more like I have no mood or time to organise my thoughts. It’s school holidays and I quite free after work without tuition class. Weekdays pass us by so fast that I feel weekends pass us even faster. Time comes and goes just like that. I wonder what have I been doing lately?

My favorite show Supernatural Season 4 has come to an end. The end was not really an ending, as usual. It was kind of hanging and let you drooling for Season 5. Sigh! That was expected, actually. Since I couldn’t get enough of Supernatural, I’m rewatching the previous seasons. Haha! I have bought a new external hard drive just for storing all my precious dramas too. I have gone insane. Hehe!

Oh, I nearly forgot about our wonderful outing last Saturday. We went to watch Terminator Salvation in Cineleisure. Got free tickets from my colleagues and I shared some tickets with my best friends and my darling’s colleague. We had a very good time indeed. Dinner was at the Heaven, The Curve after the movie. It was so long since we last been to a cinema and I think the last time was also free tickets for Transporter 3. Hehe! On Sunday, I spent most of the day at home, watching DVDs and napping. It was so bliss but I thought I had wasted too much time on my weekends and did nothing productive. I think my darling has provided me so much at home that I feel myself overindulged. Ok, I’m not complaining here, just counting my blessings. Hu hu!