24 Feb 2006

Good day,

These two weeks my boss is going on a business trip again. What’s more, all of the big bosses will go too because they are going for a management meeting. How grand it sounds like. Anyway, all I care about is whether there is anyone who can see what I’m doing on my screen. Besides that, nothing really bothers me.

So it’s just this long time of boss-free situation that makes me think of what I can do while I’m in the office and when no one can see what I’m doing. You know, my office is an open one and everyone can see what the others are doing at the same time. I wonder when will they start to put people to sit in a big circle so that everyone is being watched while watching the others….

Well let’s go back to what thought of doing. Actually I had brought along with me the travelogue (or just diary) of the Taiwan field trip we had in the Christmas of 2004. I loved the trip so much and I would really want turn back time to be there once again (though impossible). So maybe by preparing this diary to be published online will make me reminiscent of the old memories again. So I brought along to the office with me this several pieces of loose paper.

Those are pieces of paper from the old schedule book that the CUHK SU distributes to everyone in our university. When I was packing my luggage for the trip, I thought of bringing some kind of note pad with me so that I can write down what exactly do I feel during the different moments in my travel. I have this idea when I was just about to finish up my packing and lock the luggage.

During my Taiwan trip, I tried to squeeze time to write as many as I can when I have the time. Most of the times, those are situation where everyone is sleeping sweetly on the coach with their friends, while I’m staying awake to write on that little piece of paper at the end of the aisle (where I was miserably seated) with dim light on unstable seat. Reading back the pieces of notes now, sometimes I really don’t know what I have written on the pieces of paper. But I can still see through the papers to see my happiness or unhappiness (or sleepiness) during the time I was writing on the shaking and bumping coach.

There were so many memories during the 9-day trip. There were so many.

During these two days I have been reading what I wrote on the paper. It wasn’t a lot, but the writings are so poorly-written that it takes me more time to read than to digest. Just when I thought that after I read them all, I should have a good grasp of what I should type as a complete diary, I saw something that shocked me and don’t know how to continue.

Day one, typed. No problem.
Day two, missing. Nothing written about it
Day three, written in details. good
Day four, written in superb detail. Almost can do read-and-type.
Day five, nothing. Only a ? mark was written. What the F was I doing.
Day six, written only 4-5 sentences. Better than nothing, but isn’t far from it anyway.
Day seven, nothing written. Not even the set of words “Day 7 – “
Day eight, words recording my emotion that time, but I don’t know what was I thinking. So, again, useless.
Day nine, same as Day seven, not a word was written.

I flip through all the pages and desperately searching for more words or more hidden messages that I stupidly created for myself but there just wasn’t anything.

My goodness. How can I continue to prepare the travel diary if my records are presented in such a poor manner? With so many days of missing and useless info?

The only way to rebuild the data, as far as I can think of, is from looking at the photos taken. And this cannot be done within the office, everyone knows.

Ohhh….I have no idea what to do.

15 Feb 2006

Another new phase in my job

Well by this title I don’t actually means that I am shifted to a new post nor do I actually have a new job to do, which is surely misleading by this title. What I mean actually is that I am entering a new “boring” phase in my work. I’m experiencing a different psychological stage in my job now.

Originally I was feeling extremely bored in my office. Then as I started to adapt to the working environment of office, I start to get unhealthy, and almost stopped exercising. Life inside and outside work is both dull. I tried to keep myself alive.

Then I started to learn the ways to surf the internet in the office, to use MSN Web messenger on the internet daringly, to kill time easily by searching things in Wikipedia. That really helped. Sometimes I find some ad hoc tasks to do to kill some time too. I was spending a whole lot easier times, especially when those people that can see what I’m doing on my screen are left for business trips. It’s heaven here (in a jail’s sense).

Now the freshness of these activities are gone and I went stale again. I know “stale” this word doesn’t really suit describing my situation now, but I found this world appallingly close to what I think of myself for the time being.

Well, there are many wishes in my heart. I wish for a better job, which means I should start finding now. But if I am really able to find a new job, then it means I have to start working again without break…which I wait for so long. I wish for the summer holidays back. So it is best that my break between the jobs is in the mid-summer, where the weather is hottest, sweat is heaviest, girls are hottest, clothes are least and the sun is shiniest! YEAH SUNSHINE!

==============

(轉貼)
有一個男孩有著很壞的脾氣，於是他的父親就給了他一袋釘子；並且告訴他，每當他發脾氣的時候就釘一根釘子在後院的圍籬上。第一天，這個男孩釘下了37根釘子。慢慢地每天釘下的數量減少了。他發現控制自己的脾氣要比釘下那些釘子來得容易些。

終於有一天這個男孩再也不會失去耐性亂發脾氣，他告訴他的父親這件事，父親告訴他，現在開始每當他能控制自己的脾氣的時候，就拔出一根釘子。一天天地過去了，最後男孩告訴他的父親，他終於把所有釘子都拔出來了。父親握著他的手來到後院說：「你做得很好，我的好孩子，但是看看那些圍籬上的洞。這些圍籬將永遠不能回復成從前的樣子。你生氣的時候說的話就像這些釘子一樣留下疤痕。如果你拿刀子捅別人一刀，不管你說了多少次對不起，那個傷口將永遠存在。」話語的傷痛就像真實的傷痛一樣令人無法承受

===========






如果你拿刀子捅別人一刀，不管你說了多少次對不起，那個傷口將永遠存在。」話語的傷痛就像真實的傷痛一樣令人無法承受





..

13 Feb 2006

I really can’t believe it but that happened.

I’m sure the severe air pollution yesterday contributed to the large number of participants reported suffering cramps and short of breath and other illnesses during the marathon. However, someone from the editorials also pointed out that many of the participants are inexperienced, ill-trained amateur runners who can barely finish even the 10k run.

The prize is raised, and the atmosphere is raised as well. More and more people are interested in joining into the long run for either money, challenge, or simply for fun.

But absolutely not for the chance of being a living dead for the rest of your life.

Few days ago I was jogging around my home and saw someone wearing the tracksuit for the marathon this year. However, from this appearance and his shape, I am sure that he’s no runner at all. I’m pretty sure if that guy didn’t know his limits yesterday, he could have very probably one of the 5000 victims. Hong Kong loves vanity, loves ranking and loves fame. But the record-breaking number of 5000 injuries and illness from a single sports event…is INfamous instead.

God bless the patients in the hospital, especially those who are severely injured.

9 Feb 2006

I’ve watched the Fearless霍元甲 few days ago and frankly, I really don’t know who the f*** choose Jay Chou to sing the theme song. Jay is no problem for singing theme song but the main problem is the song itself. The movie is nice and was shot in a good way. The arrangement of scenes and scripts are good too. When everything was just so well placed together and culminated to the end of the movie, there comes Jay Chou’s Hip Hop Rock Soul Funk whatever it is song.

My goodness. How can Ronny Yu accept this? That’s totally anti-climax!

22 Jan 2006

我真係好讚嘆 and 佩服方文山。

佢填的詞真係好勁好勁。好的歌詞我地都見過唔少﹐起碼香港都有一個林夕同黃偉文。但係佢地填的詞係「到肉」﹐係「中」。而方文山填出來的詞係「清秀」﹐係「典雅」.....唔係呀, 唔係白花油呀.....唔好笑啦.....佢真係填得好架呢.....

一早估到你會諗白花油, 衰鬼。

今次賓周倫隻碟的水準係唔錯, 但係絕對睇唔出有乜野創新之處....簡直就係了無新意。

所以, 係一樣的歌, 一樣的編曲, 一樣的含糊其詞的唱腔, 一樣的聲嘶力竭的唱慘情歌之下........
......方文山的詞就起到好大的「撐住」作用。

....想像唔到沒有方文山的賓周倫會係點。


p.s. 孫燕姿的歌的歌詞都好鬼正架, 中 point 中得很。仲好過梁靜茹呀。

17 Jan 2006

It’s not easy to type diaries in my office these days. I have moved from the original “centred” position I was sitting in the office to a new seat which is on the “border”. Theoretically it should give me more chance of doing things that others can’t see but this office really designed in a good way…you screen is showering to everybody no matter where you sit. Even those sitting at the back row who thought no one could see what they’re doing on the computer actually had their images reflected on the huge glass window behind them.

Shall I say exquisite?

=====================================

We hear from time to time that “love is something difficult to explain” or something like that. It’s something that makes you think so much of it’s meaning. We all hear that so much from our everyday lives.

But what about career? Does anyone think that “career is something difficult to explain”? had anyone think what is the meaning of career in one’s life? We all know that you should do something you like it, but does that mean turning your hobbies into your job / career / occupation / (whatever English terms out there)? How do you balance life and job? Except money, why are you working for what you are doing?

Ok, you might think I will give a thought on the above questions, ya? In fact, I’m not. I’m just asking, I don’t like to be too philosophical at times. It drives you crazy, and I prefer stick to be lame sane enough.

============================================

So many scandals and malfunctions around the KCR these days. It really remind us the differences between British-management-style MTR and Chinese-management-style KCR. We won’t go deep into the topic, let’s just stick to the surface – and the surface of KCR’s trains is uglier than MTR’s for million times enough. Jesus Christ, who the f**k propose using this blue body and red doors and yellow bands…even the circus train is better than that!

============================================

My Big boss is really a fun guy (sometimes). One day when he was whistling in the office (yes this is HIS office, he is everything), the rhythm is just so familiar to all of us. In fact, we are surprised to find out that he is whistling 月亮代表我的心 by 鄧麗君! And hey! He’s a Gweilo! He’s a Dane and he’s listening to Teresa Tang’s songs! Haha. Music has no boundary. Then he’s enthusiastically asking us whether we have listen to her songs before. Of course we do, we’re HKers from the 80s! (me from the 90s, please be noted)

==========================================

You know, I’m starting to think I should go back to the university to study instead of coming out of the society to work. It just doesn’t suit me. Yes I know it’s just escaping. I know.

Hmmm…..

Sometimes I really miss the days of last summer, when I can do whatever I like to everyday, and I can bathe under the sunshine in the nice beach / swimming pools…I wish I can have those days again. Whenever I don’t want to work, my minds would be drifted to those days again. I don’t fancy having a lot of money, I don’t fancy having well-paid jobs without working, I fancy those days.

Those summer days.

===================================

Suddenly became busy for a moment when boss tell me to help him do some stuff, haha, so happy, finally have something different to do (although very easy jobs)

14 Jan 2006

今晚有少少無聊, 於是打開個日記睇睇, 嘩, 原來我咁耐無打過日記架喇。

睇來係 office 調左位之後的日子都唔係咁好過呀下。成日都會好近咁有個人可以睇到我係度做乜野。於是番到屋企之後就已經無晒心機再打日記。

不過我都係要真係無聊到極, 或者係有感而發的時候先會想打日記。好似衣家咁, 我有機可以打, 有覺可以訓, 不知幾唔想打。

所以, bye bye la~

28 Dec 2005

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone.

I have witnessed the crazy crowdedness of TST in Christmas Eve’s night. People are crowded together and extends from TST to Jordan and beyond. That’s the spectacular scene that you can easily find in Hong Kong but not the other places. Yo man I love Hong Kong (to some extent).

Christmas is finally over. New year is coming. And in between, many of us has to work 3 days.

Boring. After this long holiday, I really just don’t want to start working.
I wish the holiday never ends.

I wish the holiday never ends.

Countdown to New Year's Eve: 3 days only!!

15 Dec 2005

Just to remind every of my friends:

我仲識打中文的
只係我公司打中文的話太張揚
所以打英文…感覺上無咁張揚
雖然呢段中文我都係係公司裡面打的…
因為見到…大家因為我被逼打英文日記之後
讀者人數暴跌

我知我仲有好多要學好英文地方
同埋英文日記真係令人唔好受
但請多多包咸, 越包越咸…

多謝收看~~

15 Dec 2005

Can anyone tell me what the hell are the Korean farmers are thinking?!

They are experienced, they are organized, they are structure, they planned, they trained, they rehearsed and of course, they prepared.

This is no demonstration, I can definitely tell you. Their actions proved far beyond demonstration are not their ultimate want. I really do not understand why do the police conform to that primal violence that could only be out of some uneducated rioters. They don’t just want to tell, they want to catch attention and demonstrate their power.

Just as the editorials of so many newspaper these two days commented, things had gone too far from just being protesting. They are showing to the world that they have the power to bulldoze the way. And they have the will to do so.

I have thought of two things afterwards, one is about the police the other is about the farmers.

For the police.

If they keep on the absolute defence strategy, they will be able to keep the farmers still away from the venue. So far, the farmers can’t do much except grabbing some shields out in the chaos. On the police side, however, they will be gaining sympathy from the public because they are trying to be very “gentle” towards the protestors. However, they are not gaining respect because they are relatively coward then the imaginative situation that police should be “suppressing” the protestors instead of “fending” them off. Both ways will earn some reputation, though.

For the farmers.

There is no sign of easing or retreating. Escalating tension and violence is expected. When the agricultural products issues discussed in the convention do not provide a satisfactory consensus, which VERY probably won’t, he farmers will probably throw everything they have to the police. By everything it could mean physical objects, human resources, tactics…I mean, to civilians of Hong Kong, it’s better to stay home that day.

What I thought for the farmers are not mainly about this. What I thought is: they are so angry, they are so outrageous, they will give their lives to demonstrate to the people.

What for? What is their driving force?

Maybe the answer is simply “because their livelihood is really gravely endangered” and “because Korean cultures are very extreme and resolute”. But I’m more 陰謀論者. I think someone is behind, stirring up their emotions further in order to use their forces and their united spirits against the WTO. Well you might think I’m crazy to think so, but there could be a high chance that this is true. You see, how many Korean farmers are well-educated actually? It’s always easier to coax illiterate into upheaval than those intelligent ones. And mind you, people who are against WTO are not just Korean farmers. They come from all over the world, including western countries. What’s better than having a large team of “strike force” with unlimited courage and energy and the willingness to die for? And is free? And is easily stirred? And is in large amount? And is easily persuaded?

Man, these orcs are even better than those produced by Mordor!

Countdown to Christmas’ Eve: 9 Days only!!!
Countdown to 2006 New Year’s Eve: 16 days (close, too)

9 Dec 2005

Well, I’m finally graduated from the university. And I’m a man now not a boy anymore, though I totally don’t think so.

You know what? Sometimes you dream of something to happen in your life, and you still fancy it even though you’re getting older. And one day when your dream comes true, you don’t feel like happy as if the TV commercials do. You just go through it, nothing special.

This is what my university ceremony gives me feels like.

Can’t imagine everyone is being so calm, including me. This is a monumental moment for our families, for the one who loves us. Yet, we are very unimpressed by the moment. Part of it might be because we feel like we are almost obliged and certain to be graduated than with our hard-work and luck.

Maybe because there are too much resource around for us to use. Take a look around. We are blessed with so much funding into the education system that makes studying in the university possible. And the strange system of it guarantee almost everyone to be graduated. How can people feel gratified if everything around them is taken for granted?

If it wasn’t that my parents and relatives were so overjoyed for my graduation, I would have never give a thought on this. Friends around me are just as calm (or emotionless) as I do. We were very passionate and excited this April, when we first try to put on our gowns and take photos with friends and hose everyone else with champagne. We cherished the moment, just for fun.

The meaning behind is loosing. And I can’t see the coming generation will tighten it up.

=====================================================

When will my passion come back?
When did I turn to be so apathetic?

======================================================

Countdown to Christmas’ Eve: 13 Days (entering the fortnight…Prepare yourselves!)
Countdown to New Year’s Eve: 20 Days

2 Dec 2005

Almost everyone knows me aware of my almost-addictive attitude towards video games and computer games. However, I’m not as everyone thought as to be having a lot of “investments” into those things. Actually, I didn’t bought any new game consoles ever since Playstation one.

You might wonder why I didn’t buy PS2. Well, I can’t think of a reason too. When I was in secondary school, I know that I don’t have the money to buy it. My parents don’t like me to do so, too. They think that I’m too addicted to such things that hampered my social developments, my time spending with family, and also to my health. The most important reason is my brother. When my bad habits towards video games are magnified to a level of several times, that’s him. And worse, he isn’t performing too well in school. To my parents, academic performance is a prerequisite for anything. I was lucky to be having better results, so I have more bargaining power towards my parents and have less discipline. My brother, on the other hand, ain’t so lucky.

I guess it’s more family matter than myself, to a certain extent.

Moreover, that time I was living in the hostel in university. I seldom go back home. I just love the hostel, everything it has. Within there, I don’t need PS2 to make myself happy. I have plenty of things to do in university, and they are giving me satisfaction and happiness far more than a game machine. Those were the days that I was feeling I’m doing something meaningful in my life.

Now, the days of “don’t know what I’m doing” is back again, just like those days when I was in secondary school and don’t know what I’m doing everyday. There is no excitement and there is no fulfilment. You feel like live every day yet you also feel dying every day. Playing computer games become so attractive and so escape out of the reality. I can’t help myself from stop playing.

Recently I would like to play PS2 again. Although I know that it’s very late as a follower to buy this…but hey, there’s going to be a lot of games out there. And now I finally have the money to buy this piece of thing that I wanted for such a long time already.

I know there are going to be a lot of new things coming out of the market. But you know, new things are always the most expensive. Just like few years ago when PS2 was introduced to the market, everyone is crazily going after it. Now everyone is still crazily playing it, but not to the extent that will be so expensive. And technology advanced to a level that using no-disc can also play it.

The new things that I know would be Xbox 360, which is out in the marketing already. The other two things will be Revolution, by Nintendo (poor, they were once the king in the market when Super Famicom was still the main stream). I’ve watched the promotion video clip and found their technology really kind of amazes me. Wow, games are now no longer games. I wish I were born later, so that I can have more chance to play those new things…

The other one, of course, is PS3. I’m not sure what time will it be released. But since the fame and popularity of PS2 is so damn overwhelming…ya, you know.

Just when I was outside for lunch, I saw on some video games magazine telling that the Xbox 360 is having some poor quality consoles. This greatly ruins the image of the newly marketed game console. Not difficult to think of, so as the price of it. It was once speculated to rocketing high prices but now, according to the magazine, can be bought at around 1200. My goodness, that is even cheaper than PS2 to ANY extent.

I think I will buy PS2 very soon. But I hope I can find a second-hand one, because it will take some time before I feel safe to buy the next generation one, either Revolution or Xbox360 (good quality version) or PS3.

Anyone who has second-hand PS2? Or a cheap new one?

Countdown to Christmas’s Eve: 22 Days
Countdown to New Year’s Eve: 29 Days

We’re in the DECEMBER now~~~YEAH

29 Nov 2005

It wasn’t before long that I found myself very sleepy this afternoon. I didn’t have enough sleep these few days. But then I think of something: is that because I have no pressure from the work or is that simply not enough sleep makes me feel so sleepy?

I seem to remember had asked my friends about this one: are you more easily prone to sleepiness when you’re having a lot of work and exhausted, or when you are having unimportant things to be done and feeling useless?

Of me, when I’m really under great pressure of deadlines, I can suppress my sleepiness. This is the experience that I had when I was in university. Well, let’s put it in this way, I had most of my experience from the past three years of university more than all the other years in my life. Diversity really makes you know yourself more. And diversity could be best found in my university. (yeh, MY university only, ho ho ho…).

=================

These days, I can feel that myself is getting much and much lazier. I just don’t want to work hard. When jobs are given to me, I will finish it as quick as I can. But when those ad hoc jobs are finished, I don’t want to move again. I’m not motivated enough, neither internally nor externally.

I become more selfish too. I just want more for myself and less for the others. I just think of myself first, and not the others, even if those people are precious to me.

I become less willing to change, or to give up things. I just want things the way they are now, unless it’s really very bad. I’m so reluctant to change and so used to comfort.

I’m decaying. In three aspects I am decaying. One is physically, second is mentally, and the third, morally.

What happened?

25 Nov 2005

Back a few months ago, while the summer heat is still high and the sun is still the beautiful mid-summer firewall, there was a nice young boy who goes to swimming almost everyday. He wasn’t really going to swim like fish, though, he’s just enjoying the water, enjoy the freedom of movement (without others’ laughing), enjoy the summer’s heat, enjoy the big bright sunshine, enjoying the tanned and beautiful crowd, enjoying the summer, enjoying the atmosphere. He was in good shape. I mean, eh, he was in a much better shape. And he didn’t care whether he looks good or he looks not good enough.

Then the young man found a job and started working 10-7 each day. Because of the extraordinarily silent and motionless environment in the office that he’s working in, and because his boss is just sitting very NEXT to him, he feels great pressure every time he tries to walk away to do at least some stretching. The first two week of working, to him, is a total torture. Every muscle in his body is yelling and complaining from actively moving everyday to total sedentary, total handicapped on the chair, in front of the monitor, everyday.

But human are surprising creates. They can easily adapt to different environment. After one and a half month, the young man is used to the severely handicapped-style, stick-you-ass-to-the-chair-all-day working style. Slowly, his body is disintegrating from inside. And he can do nothing over it because there are many watchful eyes in the office. He knows he’s decaying, with a visible speed and a tangible touch.

Two month’s over, the young man had decayed so fast to a rate that he can’t even walk too fast. His legs are totally crippled (metaphorically speaking, of course). His arms are so weak that even he’s leaning his head upon his arms, his arms are too tired to support them, shown by shaking and shaking. His waist, however, keeps bulging and bulging. That is the part where the body seats and there is the part where the excess energy is stored. That is also the part where his body moves least, if any.

The young man is very sad. He can do nothing over it while overlooking himself getting worse. He can’t swim under the sun because he never sees it in weekdays. He can’t jog because after dinner it’s too tired already. He can’t move his body because that shows he’s too impatient on his job, which is way too visible for his boss 1m away from him. He’s bored, he’s tired, and he’s dissatisfied. He knows this happens to nearly every job in the world, and that’s what makes him even more dejected.

Before, he can put on pants with 32inch waist…….then he has to wear 33…..then 34……and coming 35….just within 3 months!!!!

Question: how many days can his meat and fat feed another person if he’s being hunted down in a no-man island?

Answer: at least a year…I guess.

Sigh…

=================================================================

Tell you something…

…it’s only one month from the Christmas~~~~Yeh~~~~~

Countdown to Christmas’s Eve: 28 Days
Countdown to New Year’s Eve: 36 Days

15 Nov 2005

Very tired. I'm just too tired to work today.

Last night my mother need someone to help her to input quite a lot of data into her company's system in order to generate some presentations for meeting the deadline today. And that was already early in the morning (I would say it's early in the morning rather than late at night, you know). I just don't want to continue when she keeps on pulling me from sleeping and help her finish with all the input.

During daytime I have my whole day facing the computer doing everything with "data" already. And now when I'm back at home, late at night, my mom would keep on pressing me to do something that I don't want to do. That's not the main point.

She keeps on depriving my sleeping time, and that's the main point out of all!

I could hardly make it to the office today if I'm not having several alarms at a time. I hate the feeling of doing something so monotonous with such sleepiness. I'm ok to deal with sleepiness when things are neeeded to be done, such things happened often during university. But not when I'm doing something that...seemingly can be done at anytime with any pace, I'm prone to inefficiency then. Everyone does, I reckon.

======================================

This two days we are having a management level meeting in our office. Most of the management from the Asian offices are coming to HK to have their meetings. My boss had meeting with them yesterday as well. It was a very quiet day. It's the same situation here today, except that my boss left silent for his business trip again. And again, he didn't tell me anything beforehand.

After the lunch, the managers all come back to the office and start to work. Then the worst thing happened: someone smokes in the office! The smell is SOOO damn offensive that I feel that I can't breathe! There wasn't much fresh air in this office for all of us already. There's really no point in aggravating the situation to suffocate of all us! My god! I have to go outside just for a deep breathe of some not-so-fresh-but-better-than-smoke-polluted air.

I'm feeling very, very sleepy now...anyone know what's the cure for hypoxia? help....

Countdown to Christmas' Eve: 38 Days
Countdown to New Year's Eve: 45 Days

10 Nov 2005

Flu of the century

I can't remember when did that happened already.

It was a fierce epidemic raging through the territory;
People keep dying, doctors in desperate doubt that solution nor source could be found;
The public is in great panic. Everyone felt their lives threatened when even the authorities and the professionals, whom they seek advice and help during situations, are helpless themselves this time;
The media blackens everything and threats everyone;
People tried to take their "hygenic precaution sense" to unbelievably high level, almost paranoid;
The city is so helpless that the only way to do was simply submerge everything into chlorine solutions, in a proportion of 1:99. Until the plague is gone, they will finally surface.

That was a few years ago already, though I don't remember which year was that exactly. It seems to be when I was Year 1 in CU.

That was 2003, I guess. That was SARS, I'm sure.

Fear and sadness that once sieged the poor little city silently slipped away as time goes on. HK people are always good at forgetting.

2 years later, we're now facing another epidemic that will soon arrive. This time, everyone else on Earth are shaken and alert, but not HK people. Vaccinations and tensions are together injected to the public in the foreign lands. What about us? Yes we had some measures now, as far as we can tell.

But where is the "excessively paranoid hygenic precaution" sense that the public had when they faced SARS? I don't see anyone shocked, shaken, or even moved here. The bird flu, which is imminent and perhaps more deadly than SARS, is striking from different directions now (refer yourself to the news).

Even National Geographic and Discovery Channel are describing this wave of bird flu as "Flu of the Century"...

Geeeeeeeeee...what happened?



Christmas Eve's Countdown: 43 Days
New Year's Eve Coutndown: 50 Days

8 Nov 2005

This is definitely the sick week.

First I had the flu. Every time the city has the epidemic flu that rages around the region I must be one of the pioneers for it. Last time I shared the flu that spreads all over Hong Kong with all other patients is around March something. That time the loss is tragic, I can say. I missed my chance of going to Thailand together with my family, not to say the loss of money…though there was insurance claim.

Then I had the gastritis. Well of course I don’t know this English name until I check the doctor’s certificate. It doesn’t hurt me much. But feeling the pain at 4 in the morning is definitely torturing. I just can’t work the next day without sleeping all night.

Now I’m back to work. There’s something about the work that I don’t like now.

So many entries in the database are duplicates. Some are easier to identify, some are just as complicated and sophisticated as the authentic one. You can never distinguish which one is an extra one that should be removed. Sometimes the duplicates can even appear in the Operations System, Invoicing system, or even the accounting system! My goodness. How can the brokers use some poorly-spelled names on invoices? If any legal arguments are to be involved, we are definitely going to be on the disadvantaged side.

Then of course anyone with some sense will try to seek help. So do I. I sent mails to various brokers for various entries to ask for their help. The result? 95% of them do NOT answer my mails. Our intricate system allows us to see who had read your mail. And 100% of them had read my mails already, as I can see from the system. That means, they read the mail and do not reply, even if it’s a personal, internal mail to them.

Christ’s sake…what’s happening? Am I really such a disposable man that doesn’t deserve some attention or respect? I know I’m doing something that seems very meaningless but that’s not so. At least, I believed not so. For just answering me “yes A is the real one B is useless entry” you can help the poor little kid struggling with the database everyday.

Why are you guys just so apathetic? Please.



Christmas' Eve Countdown: 45 Days
New Year's Eve Countdown: 52 Days

1 Nov 2005

I guess if I wasn't having the "aftermath" of a serious flu, I must had been out to LKF to join the Halloween party last night. You know, these things are just so important to me. I mean festivals. Usually I will enjoy them and I expect them. I like people and crowds. I like atmosphere. I like yelling and cheering and laughing among the crowds. Of course I also like having a drink and a deep chat with my friends in a decent cafe or the seaside. But festivals just aren't going to get away from me.

Anyway, I can join again next year. Full attention shift to Christmas please, the most important festival of all.

Countdown to Christmas' Eve: 52 days
Countdown to New Year's Eve: 59 days

26 Oct 2005

Almost everyone around me knows that I like to play computer games. However, different from what most of my friends would expect, I'm not such a person so into computers stuff. I mean, of course I like surfing the internet and ICQ and what else. But I’m just not those kind of person that like to study what is BIOS, what is backdoor, what is firewall, what is CISCO...blah blah blah. And so I didn’t' develop the ability to handle the computer when there is something wrong.

And when the computer goes wrong, it's just so similar to the sky fall. And I'm not exaggerating it, you know. Those that had their computers something wrong before will feel as frustrated as I am as well if there is. We are so relied on such things already.

Then I developed the habit of leaving the computer's problem until someone will voluntarily help me or the problem will be solved by itself but just not me to open the casing and remove the darn parts or to reinstall the whole damn windows again. Time goes on and I guess I have developed a kind of "phobia" towards downed computers.

===============================================

Recently I have took out the game of Red Alert 2 to play AGAIN. Well I admit that I really LOVE the game and I have nothing to play too. I would really like to buy some computer games but those pirated ones are so rarely seen and the quality is so low now. I've heard pirated CDs the quality so low that concert VCDs are actually AV porn and games CD-ROM are actually cartoons record from TV. My goodness. How on Earth could I trust them anymore.

Speaking of the Red Alert 2, It's really fun and diverse. For so many times i played the game there is almost never the same response from the computer.

So because of the admiration to the game, I search for the game when I was working with the Wikipedia to search port names. To my shock, there is a story behind:

Westwood studios had been making good games. Their greatest success was the launch of Command and Conquer, which is groundbreaking for the Real Time Strategy games (RTS).

Another game that I've bought and played is the "Lands or Lore 2: Guardian of Destiny". 4CDs the game has. The game is so complicated, the maps are so large that I've tried more than 5 times but never able to make it to the last piece of CD.

The success of smaller companies are always ending happily. Westwood Studios was soon being "purchased" by Electronic Arts games, which is the famous EA Games. Something, then, happened which makes the old staffs in WW Studios unhappy. They left in a bulk and set up another Studio called Petrogylph (something like that). Petroglyph mainly consists of old WW staffs. Those that unwilling to stay in EA games later also joined the Petroglyph.

Maybe this is the reason why the third C&C game (Generals) is so lousy. The Elites are all gone.

So what's the exciting news? Petroglyph is undergoing a project (of course an RTS game, it's their game) which is using their skills and experience to blend with the Force. Yes, they are making the RTS game for Star Wars! Wow. Although I'm not as exciting as playing the similar game for Lord of the Rings, I am, anyhow.

24 Oct 2005

Another new week start. This should be the last week of the month already. I have been waiting for this week for such a long time already. And the only reason for this is money.

Today my working morale fell to lowest. I feel like I'm so sick of everything around here. I don't want to sit here, nor do I want to sit in another office. I don't think I will feel calm too if I lie on my own bed. It's just doesn't feel right. I just want escape from everything. It's just not right. I just feel pressures all around.

I don't want to do such boring work. But deep in my heart I actually appreciate it. Well, think of this: I can go to work at 10 (deadline). The office is just in Causeway Bay, the favourite place for me in HK. And it's very close to my home too.

I can visit the Pet Street every lunch time because it's in the Causeway Bay and I have 1.5 hours of lunch time. Just looking at those cutie and lovely puppies and kitties could really cheer me up for the rest of the day. I have plenty of food to choose in Causeway Bay. I have a Central Library close to my office where I can go read some books during lunch time. I can go for a stroll in the Victoria Park. I can go to the games arcade in the World Trade Centre. I can go to the Cat Cafe to have lunch and play with the cats. I can choose to eat expensive meals or just buy breads from bakeries or supermarkets. I can window shopping during lunch time (although I seldom do).

In the office, it's kind of boring. But actually it just depends on whether I want to work or not. That's because my boss isn't checking me from time to time, but I have my duties to do. Since no one is really keep checking, I do so the same amount of work within one day or spread it over a whole week...no one knows. You can say it's so free or you can say it's so meaningless. Yes, my seat is facing the wall / entrance while the rest of us can face the windows and admire the skyline of Causeway Bay and some even the Victoria Harbour. And yes, everyone else can see what's my monitor is showing so I can't play games in the computer (Ouch! That hurts!). But, Hey! This job got nothing to do anyway. This diary means that I am at least so free to do other things instead of working. Many of the others outside are still working hard everyday just to contribute all their time in working. To them, I'm living in a slice of heaven on Earth.

So what am I feeling not contended with? I keep asking myself this question this morning. Everything seems fine here. Am I really adventurous to get some excitement from another kind of job or am I just being too picky that nothing on the world will satisfy me?

Gee, what the hell am I up to actually.

One thing I'm for sure: If I cannot figure this out ASAP would not have the determination to find another job and leave this one. And always "time and tide waits for no man".

Viola had introduced me the Jardine's MT programme. I thank her for this but I'm kinda sure I'm not as eloquent and able as those guys / girls. But if I can really be one of them that would really be a great leap forward in my life.

Perhaps if Jardine's recruiting clowns...I might have a better chance. Just not with data again, please. Suit yourself, not me.

p.s. It's past lunch time already. I came back from a walk in the pet street with those lovely puppies and some leisurely reading in a book store. The world is as beautiful as before provided that I don't fell asleep on my own desk. My only wish now it to lie naked under the burning hot sun on a beautiful tropical beach alone...eh, heck with it.