is that alright?

(in a british accent)

it's amazing how the brits always manage to talk their way out of anything. 

last night i was telling d about a conversation in the office. my brit boss was on the phone with the bankers. he was about to reject a transaction. he starts off really friendly, "you alright? have you fallen off the roof yet?" (no idea what that means but it was friendly banter). and then he goes on to qualify how he has not been as close to the deal as his colleagues (i.e. juniors) but in the nutshell it is pretty rubbish deal. after about a minute spent breaking the bad news, he goes, "is that alright?" as if nothing bad happened. poor banker on the phone had no choice but to agree. of course i've heard this many times before, usually after you've been given some negative feedback, or some complicated task, but never quite thought about the power of these magic words. 

today, it was my turn to get tricked. i was trying to arrange a temporary blackberry for when i work in singapore later in the year. but somehow, the conversation deteriorated very quickly, and the subject became getting a permanent device. the flattery begins... you work so hard anywya, always in the office waiting for emails, logging in from home, a bb would be good for you, you can reply emails from home, work harder, clear emails on your way to work, etc etc.... IS THAT ALRIGHT? and what could i say. 

magic words, those. only if said in a brit accent. i need to learn. for now, goodbye life. up until now, i could completely erase everything work related as i walked through the main doors. walking through the doors again the next morning everything would suddenly come rushing back to me, just minutes before i plonk myself in front of my computer and open my inbox. i guess that's no more to be. owell.

the black trousers of memories

on the first work day of the new year, i woke up, thinking i would start the new year afresh, bright and early without rushing to work. 

of course that didn't happen. i was sleepy and tired, and late as usual. at a loss of what to wear, as usual, i reach for the my faithful black trousers that has lasted me so many years... maybe it was a new year thing that causes one to become more sentimental, all these thought about being one year older, another year away from family, etc etc...

so the story of the black trousers began back in 2007. I was about to embark on my first internship at IE Singapore , and the night before I was to start, for some reason I decided that i needed a pair of black work trousers. It was a Sunday night and mummy was out of town on a mission trip. So Daddy took on  Mummy's usual role, and we went to Robinson's centre point on a mission. Only problem was they were all really expensive (at that time), but I really didn't want to spend $60 on a pair of trousers, but Daddy was ever-supportive, and the ever-patient passive shopper. He hung around the ladies section while i looked (as he usually does when he's out with 4 ladies, haha).... and then he made his comments and gave his opinion. We bought it in the end because he said this was a good pair of trousers which would last a long time, and he was right of course. It has since lasted me 2 internships and almost 4 years of work. I would reach for it every couple of weeks without a second thought. but this time i thought of this little simple incident and I missed my daddy. He put down what he was doing on a sunday night after dinner, went down with me to town, and spent a fortune (for someone whose lunch budget was something like $20 a week) on a whim of his daughter who thought she was to embark of a career which turned out not to be. 

it all sounds very trivial now but it's amazing the little things we remember and the acts of love in them. hope my dear family is off to a great start to 2013!