things will work themselves out...

i feel happier and lighter (well metaphorically speaking! did i just use a big word there? that is so so sooo unlike me man!) these days..yeah, i am still jobless but things are really looking up..just this week alone, i have five interviews! i feel bad that i have to take time off to attend these because it also means that i have been cancelling meetings and abandoning justin and the k1 project..i am glad that he is understanding enough..though i know that it must be frustrating for him especially when we are nearing the climax of the event...

another reason why i am smiling wider (as wide as my "narrow" face allows of course!) these days is because of my princess! :) in april, my world basically collapsed on me when "the ex" walked away..i did not want to know why but yet i was not satisfied not knowing either. i guess that happens when you believed so whole-heartedly that that person was the one you were going to spend the rest of your life with. but life has this funny way of sneaking up on you and smacking you with a frying pan when you least expect it!

if you can believe it, i most definitely did not expect to get into a relationship so soon..much less give so much so willingly..but she has really changed my life and brightened it infinitely. she has stood by me quietly all this while, from the moments i was really down and depressed, over the breakup, over the joblessness and over spraining my back (i have yet to touch a football for 2 whole months already..even my heart surgery did not keep me down this long!)..but through those times, i had not seen her as anything more than a release. it was only recently that i found myself drawn to her amidst the numerous smses exchanged, the late nights on msn and my self-denial..it was just not possible! but then, incredulous as it sounds, all it took was one "friday that was not supposed to happen" to break my resistance (and i found out afterwards, hers as well!)..if it sounds drama, it is..but that is really how it happened..the feeling i got on that friday was so surreal, i kept telling myself it cannot possibly happen in real life except that it did! and despite all the doubts i casted in that instance, it just would not feel wrong...

now i just cannot imagine a life without her at any point of time..and i do not want to waste time imagining that happening either. if it is one thing i have learnt, it is to treasure each moment as it passes..else these moments (which incidentally only passes by once) will simply pass us by wasted...

God will always send love our way...just like he leads the thirsty to water..at the end of the day, it is our decision whether or not to let love into our hearts..and thank God, i am not thirsty anymore! :)

ps: the princess has requested that her identity be kept hidden for "security" and "image" purposes..(apparently) it is awfully "unglam" to make royal announcements over blogs and msn..in the meantime, please patiently wait your turn until the royal guards deliver the good news to your "peasant-villes"!

pps: find out more about motorsports in singapore and the k1 grand finale - the first event taking place on the f1 track - happening at the f1 pit building on 26-27th july. stand to win yourself a canon ixus digital camera when you take part in the k1 quiz. or if you are up for more attractive prizes, sign up for our pit crew challenge or k1 m-bassador search! visit us at www.k1.sg today!

ERP

it is not normal for me to blog twice a day..or at least, not on two posts anyway..but i think this warrens a post of its own. i was just reading the report on the erp hikes and it amused me..yep, amused! the reason why they are charging more and at more gantries is because..vehicle speeds are slowing down! it is no longer because there are too many vehicles in the city area..or because of air pollution or traffic jams..we are all tired of the same stories every time so now the new problem is people are going too slow!

but increase erp? come on now..if that was the solution, why haven't the past times work? so if no one drives into the city and the neighbourhood areas become congested with vehicles, also put up erp gantries? and then when people refuse to drive further than their mama-shops because there are erp gantries everywhere else, put erp gantries in carparks? then when people are sick and tired of the gantries, tax them for selling off their cars? don't you civil servants have any brains or any creativity? (guess not!) now here is what addy will do,

1. ban taxis within the city area
as all drivers know, taxis are road hazards. keep them out of the city! that way, other motorists can drive faster on safer roads too!

2. ban buses and all heavy vehicles within the city area
these vehicles take up too much space and move too slowly. when cars slow down for buses and heavy vehicles, traffic naturally slow down too! it's called cause-and-effect dear civil servants..come repeat after me...cause..and..effect..as for public transport, i am sure smrt will be very agreeable with my suggestion!

3. encourage speeding (no drinking of course) within the city
that way, journeys would be smoother and everyone can get to their destinations faster.

4. remove ALL unnecessary traffic lights
without so many traffic lights, cars do not have to stop every 10 meters or so and thus will speed up traffic flow. for pedestrian crossings, build more overhead bridges or underpasses!

see what a little creativity can do? huh? what you mean that..oh? sorry, my bad..due to economy slowdown and stagnant growth, the increase in erp charges and the number of erp gantries is absolutely necessary for our government to properly run the country..if no extra money come in, how to buy the now even more extra expensive rice? if no rice, how to maintain the energy levels required by a good government? if no good government, you think singapore can carry on prospering like we have? no right? so yes, erp...very very good idea!

why? because...

E xtra
R evenue
P roduced

sellout!

i absolutely hate civil servants..i hate their cockiness (though most of them have nothing to be cocky about)..i hate their smarts (though most of them have bigger memories than brains)..i hate their taiji skills (though most of them cannot really do the sport)..seriously, i've had the (unfortunate) chance to deal with not 1, not 2 but 4 government bodies or related associations over the past 2 weeks..and not a single one has proven me wrong! yes, including that goon who cannot even pronounce my name correctly! how someone is able to read my name as TON yong SENG is really (light years) beyond me! sure i don't have the prettiest handwriting, it is at least legible yeah? some say my handwriting is like a primary school handwriting exercise (you know the ones where you write the letters within the block?)..but for goodness, it was a screen shot from the web! i'm not even going to mention what happened with the other 3 but since you are curious (i assume of course..you are free to skip the following and proceed to the bottom of the post), i shall entertain you a little!

1. addy needs a map screenshot and being a law abiding citizen, decides to get permission from government agency.

g.a.: please call this other party
other party: they everything also refer to us la..it is under them!
(back to g.a.)
g.a.: let me refer you to my officer
g.a. officer: please call this other party (the exact same "other party"..AFTER i have told this person that i had already called that "other party")

-exasperated-

2. addy attends a meeting with government agency.

g.a.: basically pr has two arms, one advertising and the other pr
addy: -thinks to himself- HUH?! two arms? she means P and R si bo?
(for the benefit of non-marketers, advertising does not fall under public relations)

g.a.: so..how are you going to pitch your advertisement?
addy: -thinks to himself- PITCH? advertisement?!
(again for the benefit of non-marketers, "pitch" sounds very glam and all important but..it is a term usually used for pr..no one pitches an advertisement!)

for the record, i was in the meeting with two other project mates, one from events and the other from the press and we were all very very impressed at her "smarts"...

-amused-

3. addy enquires about the status of his car from a government agency.

first call: g.a. promises to check and call back
(no call back)
second call: g.a. starts with "you have called once before" and goes on to keep me on hold until the line went dead!
third call: g.a. starts with "you have called once before" but before she can go further i told her "of course i have called more than once before..because this is my third call!" i wanted to add that i could count but thought that that would be rather mean so i did not...

-can die-

ok, now for the bummer part -ahemz- i have been shortlisted for a job in a government agency and really enthusiastic about it! i know i know..absolutely, spineless sellout! but i will be a rare breed in there..and they need people like me so that we can serve you better!

glad you could see it my way! :D

---

someone sent this to me some time back...

time together brings two ppl closer
time apart may cause eventual drifts
time heals wounds
time lost can never be retrieved
time is something you cannot buy even if you had all the riches of the world

if you think that it is stating what is quite the obvious, it actually is la! :P but sometimes, it is the obvious which we do not see..and for a moment of time i did not either...

i do now :)

ps: i know the sentence structure is quite bad..but people say copyright leh..cannot anyhow change wor!

confronting my demons

there are certain things which i have successfully avoided for the last few months because simply, i just cannot bear to..at times, it is to the extent that it may seem unnecessary behaviour and selfish but when i am in that state, i do not really care. some of these occasions i absolutely refuse to turn up for are baby showers and weddings..really happy and blissful stuff which i had once not long ago, foreseen myself partaking in rather than being a spectator. and then there is that thing which i love but have since avoided like the plague..ktv. sounds trivial eh? but it is especially hard when she has been your regular ktv companion for the past few years and every song you sing has bits and pieces of her in them..her reaction to the song, her expression, her singing along..it kills me.

no more.

why should i allow someone who has chosen to walk out on me maintain control over me?

she does not deserve it.

transition...

how do you blog about events which have messed up your life on what was seemingly a smooth sailing journey without sounding too childish and bitter? you cannot, really..though it is all about perspective and the side you are taking...and since you are reading my blog, i take it that you are on my side..right? but i shall not dwell into details here because, much as i love to whine, it has been a while and i'd rather let things pass..it has not been easy and it still is tough but i am pulling through..surely.

on the work front, i am in between jobs at the moment (which is a nicer way to say that i quit my job and cannot find another yet!). on the other hand, i have been kept busy with some freelance copywriting which i am grateful to bryan for and working with another friend on a major national project..which i am currently unable to divulge further details on. these are really exciting times ahead but the fact remains, i am unemployed..and there is only that long my optimism (or funds for that matter) can last me.

on a lighter note, i applied for a deferment from my reservist to aid in my job hunt..and mindef (being the all important civil service it is), sent me a sms asking me to send in supporting documents before they can process my deferment. like, what "supporting documents" can i produce? maybe i'll just write them a letter..

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am really really really unemployed..REALLY! As evidence of my unemployment, I have attached 5 pictures of me 1) at home sending out resumes, 2) eating instant noodles (at home of course) and 3) wandering the streets aimlessly (near my home of course) for each weekday of the week.

For your kind consideration.

Best regards,
Adrian

PS: I have also taken the liberty to cc: you on every single job application I am sending henceforth.