merry is love ;

Suay until cannot suay any more

I had to cough out $20 just now as a stupid couple (actually they are quite clever) left without paying. I hope this incident will deter the managers from putting me at the al fresco area again.

I never did want to do al fresco and I never want to again.

Besides being the area easiest to escape (heard that Polina also had a customer run away this week), it is also hot and stuffy, full of deadly cigarette smoke, lonely and a downright killer since the person in charge has to do all the closing for that area and clean all the menus one by one. Let me see, I started on the menus at 9.30pm and by 11pm, I was only two thirds done with them. In the end, closing was a real mess even with Sabrina's and Janice's help.

-sigh-

Only good thing was that I got a free cab ride home. =)

Ball of a time

The truth is - surprise surprise - I've been enjoying work! Though the pay really sucks. Got my second pay slip today - $285.25. Man, a month of work isn't even enough to pay for the phone that I've been eyeing for so long - the sleek Motorola Razr V3. Now, who is willing to get me that as a Christmas present?

The last two nights, especially last night, were just horrid. It was so freaking busy! Thank goodness I was with Idah the manager. She didn't say anything when I made mistakes with the customers' order not once but twice last night! I bet if it was Cindy or Siew Lian, I would have gotten blasted at. So it was only yesterday I realised that she's actually a very nice woman. I don't want her to leave!

Today, for the first time since I started working, I'm not responsible for the cleaning of tables, clearing of dishes, refilling and serving water and taking of orders. But being the helpful me, I did help with all those too. I was ice cream runner! Gosh was I happy when I heard of my duty tonight. Though I suspect it could be because of what happened last night. There were a few times when my hand started shaking when I was serving because of the sheer weight of the tray. All cool still! At least I now know which ice cream is which already. I hope that position goes to me again tomorrow.

I'm a happy happy girl. =D And I'm looking forward to work. Things are totally opposite of that three weeks ago.

Brr it's cold in here

It rained the whole of yesterday and it is still raining now. As a result, I was freezing cold practically the whole of yesterday and am still feeling cold now. A cup of hot chocolate would be absolutely wonderful.

There will be training later. -woohoo!- I've been wanting to sail so badly. Missed being out at sea in the sun. Oh, I hope the sun will be up there later. Sailing in this weather will be nothing short of punishing. By that I mean teeth clattering, body shivering and the desperate need to not end up in the water 'cause then there will be worse teeth clattering and body shivering.

Was supposed to catch a movie with Samantha yesterday. But lo and behold, there was no show available till 9pm. Nevermind, next week next week. Kids nowdays are either too rich or free I reckon. No movie = Nice good dinner at TCC. -grins- Ordered traditional chicken wings which I didn't know was a huge plate of 5 whole wings. Duh I couldn't finish since I already ate rice back at Swensons. So it was a wing to Sam and 4 for me. -hmm- Actually that's a lot too, isn't it? Man, the calories I consumed yesterday; I can just see myself growing. Horizontally that is.

I realised that being in the F&B industry, albeit temporarily, has made me conscious of the service provided. TCC scored bad!

The Working Life

Things worth noting the past week:
1. I started taking orders and really it wasn't all that tough after all.
2. I got my card! It's gold and nice but it doesn't have my name. Crap!
3. I worked my first 12 hour day yesterday. It sucked. It downright sucked.

Things I have learnt after working for almost a month:
1. Never to trust anyone easily. You never know what they are thinking or saying behind your back (or for that matter, in front of you, just in a language you don't understand).
2. There are always two faces to each person (except for me I guess, since I don't exactly keep the dissatisfaction to myself. I just show it to my supervisors and 'seniors'). Some people just love to act hardworking in front of superiors and when the higher-ups are not around, they are as lazy as pigs.
3. I don't like being ordered around by people I feel shouldn't be doing so. So I tell myself that I will work hard next year so that I will never ever be at the bottom of the employment ladder again. One day, I will be served by all of them or have all of them having to take orders from me. -wahaha-
4. I forget easily. I could be ranting on and on about a particular person the day before but all is well the next day. Perhaps the only exception is Siew Lian.
5. I take some time to warm up. I report to work 'moody' almost everyday but as the day goes by, I'll feel happier and happier (if things go my way that is). I think the same goes for school. And the main reason for that will be lack of sleep. Tiredness makes me really cranky.

Things that I hate about the place:
1. ~~Newbies~~ I always get bullied. I suspect the supervisors are delibrately making life difficult for me. Have got no idea why they are doing it (maybe it is just a joke) but if it continues, I will very likely blurt out what I have been thinking so much the past few days, "If you want me to quit, say it straight in my face. I will resign right on the spot. You don't have to go one big round and put in so much effort". See I have already thought of The Speech. That's how much I have been thinking of it.
2. Just when I feel settled and comfortable, it gets all crappy again. Now I have to master the keying of orders into the computer system. That wouldn't be too difficult if I had some kind of an instruction manual. But no, there ain't no guide for you. It's you, and yourself and of course, you. Oh c'mon, it's only my second day woman! You don't have to tsk tsk when I ask you for help. And that would be none other than Siew Lian. To think I was just beginning to have a good impression of her. Cindy (she's becoming nicer), Rohaini, Ida and Mary Joy have been oh so kind yesterday and today.
3. 'Juniors' do the dirty work. Somehow, there is this silent 'policy' that says newbies will do the dirty jobs like clearing tables or soiled dishes. Oh and not forgetting, refilling water. Baby is the best person I have ever met. She has an empty tray, the table has 3 empty ice cream cups and she didn't bother to clear them. Best man! Lagi best! -boo!-

There is more to add on to everything above most definitely but nah it's getting late and there is work tomorrow. Want to catch some TV shows before I head to bed. Notice I didn't talk about anything good? 'Cause if I did, it would be so few, it would actually look quite ricidulous. -sigh-

/edited

My brain is still functioning!

Been busy studying (can you believe it?). One test down, another to go. The Swensons one was alright. I obtained 89.6% for that so am officially qualified to take orders tomorrow. Scary. But that isn't the important one. Physics SPA is tomorrow! What worries me more than anything is whether I can wake up in time for that. My body clock is absolutely screwed! Now I sleep at ungodly hours and wake up at crappy hours too. Like yesterday, I had difficulty even waking up at 11am and that SPA exam is at 9am. Uhuhuh. Plus, I'm going to get home late today 'cause they rostered me to work from 6 - 10pm at the last minute. They actually wanted me to work till 11pm. Crazyness, no way!

I got my first pay cheque! It is pathetic I tell you - $82.75 for the month of October. How much lower can it get? Thank goodness for birthday presents. Received $200 odd in cash and a $50 voucher. =D Oh and a Fila bag, sailboat pendant and perfume for now.

You see, we'll most probably be going to Thailand during x'mas 'cause Ah Gong wants to. Yay, shopping shopping shopping! The weekend market, here I come! So I need money for The Vacation.

Quote of the week:
Ability is within.
Ability is yours.
- Seline E. Matis

An idea that went pop! in my head

I think I'm going to have a quote for the week from now on. Just for the fun of it and just to see how long I will keep at it. Maybe it will help my GP too? -grins-

Quote of the week:
I like being a mess. It's who I am.
- Ally McBbeal

Here's a Happy 18th Birthday to me

Messages started coming in when I was walking home last night. Aww so sweet! But no presents?! -grins- The house is going to be very lao jiak tonight 'cause the whole family is coming over to celebrate a late hari raya and my our (cannot discount my other half, Sarah) birthday.

Have I mention before that I've been walking home from this particular bus stop everyday I work a night shift? It's so therapeutic. Cool air, few people and quiet-ness. Okay okay I admit, it's also to burn some of those calories from supper. =)

Work yesterday began with Sir Jason 'reprimanding' me about applying for leave so late. I guess I came out sulking a lot 'cause Ida walked by to tell me to smile. That horrid state of mind led to a refill of a cup of water till it overflowed. Then that group of Indian guys started teasing me. Crap. When they were leaving, I thought one of them looked remotely like Sarah's classmate, Ashwin. But there's no way of affirming my suspicions 'cause Sarah won't message him. Ahhh! A customer left without paying. Last night was the first time I saw Sir Steven mad. So Sabrina didn't get her strawberry milkshake. Unlucky. Oh I got a chocolate milkshake from him this week apparently as a reward for working hard. Checked the schedule for next week. I only have to work four days and out of that, there are two 3-hour days. Slack physically but not mentally. Janice is going to have her test on Monday so I reckon mine will be real soon and there's also SPA! Poor Sheena and Sabrina have got a 11-hour day next week. Pity them. But I was a happy girl when I left the outlet. It's been a long long time. =D

Goodness me! Did I just rambled on and on and on about work? -starts reading the above paragraph-

Oh yes I did! Man it is getting to me. It is getting to me already.

Attitude

Been flaring up a lot lately. As in a lot. Two days in a row to be exact. That's so unlike me. C'mon, some of my mates in school have even told me that they have never seen me angry before.

Note to self: Must keep temper in check.

Only highlight yesterday was that the dishwashing aunties fought quite aggressively. Argued I mean. And I soda-ed all the tables and chairs in the outlet. Other than that, it was a crap-pish day. I can't believe that Baby actually 'backstabbed' me. Is this what they call office politics? That totally pissed me off.

Anyway, today is a brand new day at work. Shall go in with a positive attitude (I showed a fair amount of attitude to Fion yesterday 'cause I didn't like what she was saying/telling). Going to get pay check today. Reckon it's probably unimpressive. No, it's sure to be unimpressive. Ah whatever. Money rolling in.

Friendster hates me

Sabrina! I can't check your Friendster message! The furthest I could go was the page listing all the messages in my inbox and that's it! The next page was extremely stubborn and just refused to load even after many many tries. =( Oh well, I guess this is how Friendster punishes those who don't log in too often. If I'm not wrong, the number of times I've logged in the past half a year can be counted with the fingers of one hand. What a screw up.

Oh but I managed to see your picture though. The one of you looking sweet (we all know better -hur hur-) yet with a kind of attitude. Do a act-cute pic the next time? Gosh, I can't imagine. -grins-

Just got news that I have to take my Physics SPA next Thursday. What crap. My brain had already stopped functioning after promos. Did I mention before that I couldn't catch that supposedly simple Math topic, Mathematical Induction? Yeah I couldn't understand that. And now I got to memorise two sets of notes. Ah I'm feeling a very strong sense of foreboding here. Students can never get off studying, can they? I think I'll take Wednesday off as well. And since I already took off next Friday, it means three consecutive non-working days! Woohoo!

Okay I just counted; this is about my 12th hour at the computer ~~today~~ since yesterday. Man, better get my ass off the seat now.

Update: I thought of attempting to try to read the message one last time before I get off the computer and miraculously, this time I was successful! So ranting about it actually does work! I remember reading an article a few days back about having to be an unpleasant customer before you can get good service. This is one classic example.

Siew Lian

See that name above? I absolutely abhor that freaking woman. I hate her! Being so anal 'bout sweeping and not giving people the respect they deserve just isn't the way to go you know. I can't believe I woke up still pissed just 'cause of her. No way man!

No Sir Steven means no supper but just some leftover food. Nonetheless, Sabrina and me were 2 hungry souls at the metal counter last night. Again.

Rohaini was quite a sweetie; very much the opposite of what I heard from Sheena the other time.

My theory has been proven invalid. No Chinese girls were at work yesterday but fun factor is a dismal 3 2 out of 10.

The A'levels started yesterday. Here's wishing my mates (oh and of course, my sis too) best of luck. =)

I don't enjoy work 75 percent of the time and I'm seriously beginning to wonder why the hell did I put myself through this.

Everything in its time - Corrine May

Sometimes I wonder what lies ahead
How long till my hunger is fed
They say it's hard to make it in this part of town
So many people on this merry-go-round

Some folks try astrology
Some turn to crystal balls
To find an answer
To get through it all
I just fall on my knees and I try to pray
In the silence I can hear Him say

The river runs and the river hides
Out to the ocean and under the sky
I promise you, the answer will come
Hold on to patience and watch for the sign
Everything in its time

I often feel like that I'm two steps behind
Somebody must have moved that finish line
There are a thousand reasons
Why I should give up
But I'm stubborn in the things I believe

The river runs and the river hides
Out to the ocean and under the sky
I promise you, the answer will come
Hold on to the patience and watch for the sign

'Cause maybe there's another plan
One I still cant see
A little surprise, like your love in your life
Funny how time changes how we see

The river runs and the river hides
Out to the ocean and under the sky
I promise you, the answer will come
Hold on to the patience and watch for the sign
Everything in its time
Everything in its time

Pain pain

My left wrist is hurting so bad and there's still more tray carrying tonight and tomorrow night.

Enjoyed work last night 'cause Sabrina and Janice were working too. There was also supper prepared - catfish baked rice and tom yam soup with beehoon. Apparently, that was a first. It seemed as though the 3 of us were the only hungry souls after work. 3 butts sticking out at the metal counters and heads bent over the bowl. The tom yam soup tasted more like tomato soup though. I reckon it must be the American influence. One of the managers lamented, "nothing is spicy here! Even the tom yam soup isn't spicy".

Hey I just realised something. Fun factor is directly proportional to the number of Chinese girls around.

No chinese girls yesterday; fun factor - 9.5 out of 10
Chinese girls present the day before; fun factor - 3 out of 10

Night absolutely sucks!

It was just non-stop clearing of dishes (which I actually don't mind) and cleaning of the outlet. Which means newbies get bullied again! Tough jobs like sweeping and mopping were naturally pushed to us. I practically swept three quarters of the whole restaurant last night! Sabrina mopped about two thirds of the place. In addition to that, we had to soda tables and chairs and change bottle caps.

After work, I immediately sms-ed Janice, "omgosh janice.. I don't ever wanna do closing again!". But (there is always buts) guess what? It's night shift for me the whole of next week! Well, almost. And while the rest of my mates only have to work 5 days next week, I got to work 6! Don't know what's going on in Sir Jason's mind.

The managers were all back to their old selves last night - the good people. Their change from baddies to nice guys and vice versa is so sudden. Pretty scary.

Oh Ally didn't get fired. I saw her back at work yesterday. Well well.

Wahliao!

Ally got fired yesterday! Apparently, it was because she was rude to two chao ah bengs. From what Janice told me, it was probably the other way round. Ma'am Sabrina tried offering them complimentary drinks and ice cream but nah it didn't work. In the end, Ally left and Ma'am Sabrina ended up doing everything from orders to serving food and even clearing tables. But guess what? I don't pity Ma'am Sabrina one bit! -grins- That's for blasting at me in the afternoon. I'm evil, aren't I? Well, as people always say, never offend a woman.

Ma'am Sabrina asked Janice and Sheena if they wanted to work OT today. Pay for OT is quite good you know. It's 1.5 of our basic pay which means $6.75 per hour. They flatly rejected the offer. How clever! =D

And that Dekai didn't even inform me that the sailing meeting today was cancelled. What the hell? So Amanda and me were the only two idiots who went to school. Crap, this team is never going to work out. I want out!

Sarah just told me that Ain knows hers, mine and even Lynette's blog address. Just great. I seriously thought she was just kidding till I saw the email thanking for that little - note sarcasm - piece of info that she had let on. My life is mystery no more. Oh well, it has never been in the first place.

Ahh! I'm so going to miss being able to see my beloved J2s peeps and of course, Kent around school. Not forgetting those who are going through what I went through last year - being retained. School life will not be the same any more.

Bad Day

Thank God I don't have to work tomorrow.
Sir Jason and Ma'am Sabrina ain't that nice anymore.
I'm wondering if it's because of big boss's visit yesterday.
Never mind the fact that Cindy and Siew Lian the supervisors have never been nice.
I think the best people are Sir Steven and Idah the supervisor.
I know it's busy.
But one should not always move so fast.
We should slow down a little, take a step back and appreciate what's around us.
I bet they haven't heard of 'the slow and steady wins the race'.
They are stupidly trapped in the horrid fast-paced world of ours.
They are sad people.
I wouldn't be surprised if they become spinsters.
I hope they do.

I am tired

Legs are feeling sore now.
Getting to know colleagues better
Makes work more enjoyable.
Like today.
Just realised many of them smoke.
I wonder why when a pack of cigarettes costs around $10.
2 whole hours of work.
Dishwashing auntie and chef offered me food.
Just what I needed.
6 hours without a break isn't too bad if only we don't see food all around.
Big boss of Swensons came by just now.
Hypocrisy everywhere.
You see managers, supervisors all out on the floor looking busy.
Trying too hard to be busy.
Oh well.
Guess that's just life.
6 hour days the whole of this week 'cept Friday.
And there's a sailing meeting at school on Friday.
Beginning to feel the strain.
Ah the money.
Working for the money.