DILLONYONG.COM

SEO results - Page Number 1 in Google Search

2011-12-20T21:47:00.000-08:00

Hi Guys,

Positive news to share!

As promised in my previous post Keyword Competition Analysis, I will share with you the proper strategy of backlinking to be in the first page of Google Search. After waiting for a few weeks to observe the strategy, here are the result.

Key in "Keyword Competition Analysis" in Google search and you will find Dillonyong.com in spot number 13 (take note that the positioning may change from time to time, but all you really need is to build a small number of useful backlinks to it and you will be back to top spot)

Ok, as you can see from the chart above, the post is on number 13 which means page 2. Not quite page 1 yet but it will be if I continue building some backlinks to it and wait. Here's what happened during the last 3 weeks:

1) Week 1 - the post was on number 72 (page 8)
2) Week 2 - the post was on number 30 (page 4)
3) Week 3 - the post is now on number 13 (page 2)

From this chart above, you can see the dramatic rise in organic traffic which means that most visits come from Google search itself. This is no joke. Before this, I have like hardly 8% traffic that comes from Google but now it is almost 80% of the traffic comes from Google.

Now if I keep doing proper research of keywords before naming the title of my blogpost, I will ensure that this blog will continue to gain more organic traffic. Will the blog be popular in time to come? Well, of course. At least I hope so :P.

Ok. Enough of BS! Let's go straight to the point of what I did.

1) Research (refer to my previous post on keyword competition analysis)

2) Register a free SocialMonkee account and build backlinks to your post. It's free. You will get a standard 25 social bookmarking backlinks per day which is perfectly alright (dont worry about the blackhat BS which people keep telling you. Bookmarking is fine.)

3) Use Bulkping,com to submit your URL (the url of the post) and also submit RSS feed of your page to their RSS directories (Not only Bulkping provides fast indexing/pinging service, they also provide some free backlinks to you. Pinging is a way to tell Google to visit your page as there have been an update while Indexing is a way to tell you that Google recognised your page has a recent update and published it in search result. I hope my explanation suffice. LOL)

4) More free backlinks from 247backlinks that you can use. Frankly, I like this service. It's easy and fast and definitely play an important part in improving your search ranking.

5) Key in "Angela Backlinks" in Google Search and follow what Angela tells you to do. This method require abit of work but it's really worthwhile. I must confess that I was quite lazy for I had only build 6 backlinks from Angela's strategy. LOL. (But her method is the one that accelerate your page in Google Search, so it is important to follow what Angela says)

6) Use Growsocials.com and Traffup.net to get some Google Plus One and Retweets to your page. I do not know how important is this but then some experts as I observed in their blogs said that Google is now paying important attention to social media ratings. In short, if you have more people voting for your page with Google Plus One, you will rank better. As for retweets, you can use Traffup which is brilliant in bringing in traffic from twitter.

Alright people. That's about it. All the above can be done within a day. And then, all you really need to do is to wait and check your result via Mike's Marketing Site.

Now if you like this post, remember to do me a favor. Press +1 on your left. That's all for now.

XOXO,
Dillon

Keyword competition analysis

2011-11-30T21:36:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys,

I got something new for you. This is something that I just learned and would like to share with you. It's very useful. It will make sure you get organic traffic to your blog by doing a clever and simple research before posting your article.

How do I rank well in Search Engine with my blog post?
So you have a brilliant piece of article that you want to post in your blog. You were wondering:

1) Will people read my post?
2) Hell, where can they even find my post or my blog?
3) What kind of words they will key in Google to find out about information related to the article that I've just written?

The solution is simple. Use GOOGLE KEYWORD TOOL and do keyword competition analysis.

This is the step by step guide of what you should do

Let's just you are writing about "How to cure dandruff"

1) Download SEOQuake and Mozilla Firefox. It is a must so that you can check which website is in the first page with the keyword "how to cure dandruff" and how do they rank

Notice that the page show you more info? You can see the "PR Rank" and "Google Index". In the picture above we can see that www.ridiculouslyextraordinary.com has PR 2 and Google Indexes of 303

2) Login to GOOGLE KEYWORD TOOL.

3) Key in "How to cure dandruff". Then select "Only show ideas closely related" and also select "Exact" Phrase Match

4) You will see the result showing "1300" in global monthly search and the competition is low which is very good. If your keyword global monthly search is below 500, well it's best to search for alternative words to your topic. Use the words that has over 500 searches at least. Click on the keyword to see the results in Firefox.

5) You will see that most are PR2 and above and they have massive number of Google Indexes. That means to kick them off their top spots may take a long time.

6) Then as you scroll down further, you may notice that there are 2 websites ranking only PR0 (treatdandruff.net) to PR1 (cure-for.info/dandruff). What's more the google indexes is not much. Only 227!

7) So you have a higher chances of knocking those 2 fellas off their perch. What to do next? Select this as your topic. Your title and keyword and labels ---> "How to cure dandruff". Your picture name ----> howtocuredandruff.jpg / howtocuredandruff2.jpg

8) Post your blog post and then build backlinks to it. (In case if you do not know what is backlink, this is the explanation. Backlink is your url link posted in other people's website)

So how to build backlinks automatically or manually? I shall share this in my next post. Come back for more tips. :)

XOXO,
Dillon

This site is now Google Rank 1 - Thanks to the strategies in the previous post

2011-11-17T11:29:00.000-08:00

Hi Guys,

Sorry for not updating more often as I am as usual, busy studying more online strategies prior to sharing all with you guys. As a result, you will get to enjoy only successful strategies because I am testing everything. Strategies that are less effective or I think it's a waste of time will not be shared here.

Did you managed to change your blogger site according to my previous post? Well, you better do. My blog is now ranked in Google, and it is down to the previous strategy that I shared with you. Here's the result:

Just a short post and it's goodbye for now.

XOXO,
Dillon

How to get higher page ranking if you are using blogger.com

2011-10-31T01:46:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

Lately, I've been busy studying online marketing strategies everywhere which includes affiliate marketing and I've been developing my other blog and forum, www.freebooksfor.com, which gives out free e-books.

How did I manage to get so many e-books? Well, I sort of bumped myself into many sites lately and utilizing lots of resources everywhere and got hold of about 100,000 articles. Serious? Yes. Serious. In fact it could be more. I lost the count. Anyway, I'm so proud that I managed to setup my 1st forum in www.freebooksfor.com/forum. Check it out.

Ok back to the quick tips. So you must be wondering why I choose the domain name as freebooksfor.com. Use Google Keywords and you will see that the words "Free Books For" has about 5,000,000 searches monthly. Yes.... 5 freaking million searches! And another beauty is, the competition for this keyword is low. That means you dont have 20000 Ali, Abu, Craig and Salma fighting tooth and nail with you to be on top of the search list in Google. Sounds good!

When it comes to SEO optimisation, there will always be another expert who is better than you or me. If you build 1 backlink, they can build 10, if you write a quality content, they will write 20. If you play with tagging, meta and all sort of stuff, they will still do better than you. So is buying traffic and spending lots of money the only way to beat them? Not necessarily. One way you can beat them is to buy keywords built-in domain name.

That's why I got freebooksfor.com which doesnt make sense to many people but it does make sense with Google. That's the important thing.

Domain names are like your online real estate. It's low in value when you just bought it. It can potentially make you thousands and millions. Just like how real properties can be. Google gives preference to domain and post title with high relevance to the words that you key in the search button. Hence this is something you can exploit. Do you need to register a domain? Preferably. It's gonna have much more credibility than a cincaibocai.blogspot.com. It's only USD7.49 anyway. Well worth it.

Another tip will be the title header. This is only for blogger.com users. Blogger has a major weakness although it belongs to Google, it was not really SEO friendly. Sounds strange isnt it? The problem is that Blogger captures your domain as the title header first and then only your subject title. Example:

NisaCurihoney.blogspot.com - The 101 celebrities meltdown in 2011

This will massively affect your ranking in Google. People dont search for "Nisacurihoney". They will search for "celebrities meltdown 2011". This means that the blog will never be in Google's first page. How to solve this? Just do the following:

TIPS FROM EBLOGTEMPLATES.COM

Step #1

In your Blogger dashboard, go to “Layout” => “Edit HTML”.

NOTE: BLOGGER DOESN'T ALLOW ME TO PASTE THE CODE HERE. THIS IS SHOWN IN PICTURE.

You can copy the actual code here in http://www.eblogtemplates.com/improve-your-google-rankings-in-one-easy-step/

Step #4

Save your template and go back to your blog. Click into any individual post and look at the page title.

All your blogger posts are now much better optimized to rank higher in Google. I’m not going to promise you a night and day difference but you’ve taken a step in the right direction. Now just go post unique high quality content so people searching Google will find your blog first!

-eBlogtemplates

And there you go. Now you shall see this;

The 101 celebrities meltdown in 2011 ~NisaCurihoney.blogspot.com

Last tip would be utilizing social networking sites. There are hundreds of social networking sites like Facebook, tumblr and so forth. Each brings quality linkback to your site. So make use of them.

Best of luck.

XOXO.
Dillon

Online Marketing: How to increase your followers in Twitter and Facebook Page in the fastest way

2011-10-18T03:55:00.000-07:00

There may hundreds of articles stressing the importance of social media channels in online marketing hence I am going to be direct in this article. There is no denying the fact that the growth of social media is so rapid that we are looking at an estimation of over 800 million users in Facebook currently according to the article by bufferapps.com.

Most people are no longer depending on mainstream channels such as newspaper and television to get the most updated news and happenings. One of the main reasons will be the fact that social media channels spread the news faster.

So naturally, the big question will be how to get your share of the cake? Having a strong base of followers naturally gives you the advantage as your words will be seen by thousands of followers. So let’s get straight to the point of how to increase followers in your social media channels in the fastest way.

1) Twitter

I will begin with twitter which is currently growing 7 times faster than facebook in the last 5 years as according to bufferapps.com. You may have read many articles online which give very little indication of guaranteed growth. I have been there. I have been frustrated in reading every piece of articles carefully, following the steps as closely as I can; and yet the growth was slow. After all the hard work, I have about 8 followers. I have been following users in twitter but to no avail as they don’t normally follow back. I am impatient. I do not intend to make a 5-year plan of making my social media channels successful. If slow and steady is not your style, you can consider the following:

a) Redesign your twitter page to make it look interesting.

All you really need is to search for twitter background design in Google and you will have plenty of free templates to download.

b) Sign up an account with social network growth channels like Twiends.com.

The website offers points to your account as you follow others in twitter. You can set your targeted audience carefully by adjusting your topics of interest. For instance, you can select internet marketing as your topic. People who are interested in internet marketing specifically will be displayed as an option for you to follow them and of course for them to follow you. You can select up to 5 topics of interest. It even has a feature of allowing only twitter users from your country to follow you. The users will be more than happy to add you because they will be rewarded with points. This is the easiest way to promote your twitter account. You can also sign up the packages to be featured users and be rewarded with points with a small amount of investment.

c) Insert a twitter widget in your website or blog.

Unique twitter widget design of xiaxue.blogspot.com

And my very own customed-made twitter widget

If you do not know how to do this, just search in Google and there will be plenty of articles guiding you. It’s just a few simple steps. I even took the effort to custom make my widget in order to make it look interesting to increase the chances of getting more followers.

In only a matter of 1 month, I have amassed over 8000 followers by following 3 simple steps above. Now I have natural followers who are not from twiends.com adding me daily. With that number of followers, I am driving them to my blog and facebook page to increase the numbers as well.

2) Facebook Page

You may have heard of people offering candies or lollipops to their fans just to get more followers on their Facebook page. I’m not going to dispute on that. It may just work wonders or it may not. Before that can even happen, you will need to have a least a small base of followers to help you spread the messages across to others. How to have guaranteed Facebook likes?

a) Upload a landing page with interesting design to your Facebook page. Again, the template can be found online via Google search. Make it look as interesting as possible.

b) Sign up an account with another social network growth channel like Willyoulikemy.com. It is almost the same system like twiends.com and it has a feature to promote your Facebook page. Again, users will earn points just by liking your page.

c) Keep updating your status in Twitter to your followers to encourage them to follow your Facebook page. You may now consider giving some incentives to them if you have a considerable number of followers in Twitter.

"The first 50 that like our facebook will be promoted in twitter with the following text to our followers: Follow @ryanseacrest @giulianarancic @example.com"

d) Insert a Facebook box widget to display your followers and the option to like your page.

Now that you have guaranteed followers, make sure you have the strategies in place to keep them.

They may share about you with their followers or friends which will most likely lead to more users becoming your followers. These channels need to be active daily or people will naturally drop out hence wasting your efforts in building them in the first place.

Some useful links

Social Media Marketing Magic

Social Media Training - Social Media Marketing

Social Media Management For Celebrities

Easy Blogging Guide

Blog Training & Mentoring By The Blog Success Academy

Dillon Yong

Liv Vs MU: Post match reaction from both side of fans and the top 5 alleged divers of BPL

2011-10-16T04:07:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

The match has ended in 1-1 draw, but it was nothing short of controversies. The Anfield side has been accused of 2 things. Diving and racist slur. While the Manchester side were accused of playing negative tactic by leaving out Rooney and Nani and got away with a point.

The Racist Allegation

Suarez: Feel like going for a pizza after the match, mate?

Evra: Dont touch me, ok?

note: Pizza is a racist word in Planet Jupiter :P

Was it because Evra's English is really bad or perhaps Suarez, because he was just learning the language? Past stories about racist allegations

Evra was previously the subject of a later unfounded racism probe against Steve Finnan following a clash between Liverpool and United in a game at Old Trafford in February 2006.

He was banned for four matches for his part in fracas with Chelsea groundsman Sam Bethell at Stamford Bridge in March 2008, after which another dismissed racism claim was made.

TWICE! Twice this buggar tried to make racist allegation against opponents and now this is the 3rd time. WE MUST FIND MR. EVRA AN ENGLISH TUTOR AS A MATTER OF URGENCY. He's definitely speaking Frenlish at the moment. Example of words that can confuse Evra:

Papi = A handsome man Puppy = Dog

The Diving Accusation

Gerrard: So did you touched Adam or was he diving?

Ferdinand: No No No! I did touched him abit but I still think he was diving.

Gerrard: Ok Rio. Define diving.

Ferdinand: Damn it! Let me get my dictionary.

As usual, heated exchange of words has ensued with fans of both sides after an exciting match like this. Here are their views.

A friendly start at first......

"I really impressed with this Suarez guy, one-man show pawning 4 MU defenders"

ProbMan

"so far this is the greatest liverpool football for me this season... but de gea so super godlike today..."
Alan_kong84

With even praises for the Man Utd goalkeeper David De Gea from Liverpool Supporters

David De Gea

"Their goalkeeper had a very good game; that says a lot about our performance.."

weichieh007

"So many chances...damn it that de gea is BEYOND GODLIKE!"
SomaCruz89

"Props to De Gea though. Excellent saves."
bitebug

And I even throw in a joke at the Liverpool owners

John Henry - Liverpool Owner

"It's not De Gea's heroic. It's FSG! They came, they saw, they jinx and we draw. Hehe. John Henry and Tom Werner, please stay at your hotel and watch the game next time, Sir. Please Sir. You are costing us the points. hehehehe."
dillonyong

Then this comment flares everything up

"LOL.seems like the jinx didnt go away.The hypocritical fans on the other side are accusing us of diving when they have an academy which produces divers and cry babies."
Rotuham

My reply

"It's normal. The sourgrape MU fans who instead should focus on their alarming negative tactic. They got away with the handball (Evans), they asked for a penalty when Nani raised his boot, they got away with a 2nd yellow card for Ferdinand, their captain Evra is the most unsporting footballer by moaning here and there and finally gotten himself a yellow card, that just sums up what United is all about. A team of cheaters. If Man City win the Premier League instead of us, I would be disappointed but I would still applause. If Chelsea win, i will still applause. If United win, I would spit to the very ground and feel disgusted."
dillonyong

And it became ugly (Partly I was responsible for it. For my comment of course)

"enrique oso got handball
lucas oso fouled ashley young once when on yellow
and as if luis suarez nvr complain here n there
i wonder u did not see that or u just choose to not see that"
tzxsean

"Why u even bother to look at our post?
I don't know what's your point to invade other's planet, but to sum it out, FXXX OFF."
LukeMJSTC

And became uglier

"average?which teams?our teams?average means half table teams"
Shamsul_LP

"Let's put things in perspective shall we? First off, we didn't claim to be the "real reds", it's you mancs that do. Like I pointed out in a post yesterday however, we first wore red in 1892 while you lot only did in 1902, duh!
Secondly, I agree with redshaun on the comment about there being many retards. Now, I'll gladly put my hand up if we had lost, I have always done so but last night we came out guns blazing in the 2nd half. There is no argument who played better but fairplay, you don't always win although you played the better game. Sometimes you need to grind out a result. If the situation were reversed, only a dumb f*** manc would agree that they didn't play better,"
Duke Red

AND BEHOLD - THE SUPER DUPER UGLY COMMENTS

"Man U Fans - Hating Liverpool more than They love Their Club...
MikeShashimi

"Same to Liverpool fans also hate united more then Supporting their club, else why call united scums ? Sports only, people kill ur family till you wanna call them scum ? Don't be hypocrite ... U all not deserve to be called best supporters ..."
clsiluf

"look at their ex-captain ...rio ferdinand and ryan giggs..one failed in drug test and one get caught for cheating his own brother ..yea yea , I am expecting someone to said our captain involved in bar punching someone"
leaF

FINALLY - Take it out for real?

Liverpool VS Man Utd Fans Wrestling Match. :)

"Oohhh someone insulted me on a personal level did he? Like to see him come out from behind the keyboard and do it face-to-face as any real man would. It's expected though. When you can't put up a decent argument, one usually resorts to insults out of desperation."
Duke Red

I burst out into laughter after reading all those. Anyway, don't worry. It's normal because THAT'S FOOTBALL. If both sides don't have disagreements, it will be so boring. I might as well watch birds flying in the sky than a football match.

Now, let's look at top 5 alleged divers in BPL

1) Luis Suarez (Liverpool)

The striker has been accused of making too much of challenges. Suarez, however, insists there is nothing sinister about his reaction to tackles.

2) Ashley Young (Manchester United)

Winger Ashley Young has revealed his hurt at being accused of being a "diver''. Young admits he has had that accusation thrown at him "on numerous occasions''.

3) Didier Drogba (Chelsea)

When prompted by the interviewer regarding allegations about his tendency to dive, he said: "Sometimes I dive, sometimes I stand," before immediately retracting his comment: "I don't dive, I play my game"

4) The Manchester City European Players

Bolton striker Kevin Davies slammed Manchester City's 'European' players for play-acting. "When there is not much contact and they go down screaming, it is embarrassing from a man's point of view," Davies told the Manchester Evening News.

5) Theo Walcott (Arsenal)

Arsenal player Theo Walcott admits to diving in a candid interview. He quipped “I’m not happy with myself for doing that"

Past famous divers
Who can forget the famous Mr. Ronaldo

and of course Mr. Robben

Look at that. Almost every team have been accused of having players that dive. And mind you, those are top class players. It depends on who you support, opinions can differ. I really like Drogba's picture :).

So are they smart or are they cheaters? Your verdict.....

The Mancunians’ Nightmare: My Top 3 Finest Moments of Liverpool VS Manchester United

2011-10-14T07:50:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys (Man Utd supporters, look away. Read something else :P ),

As a lifelong supporter of The Reds, nothing satisfied me more than watching a game that Liverpool dominated and subsequently walloped, bullied and outsmart their fiercest rival, Manchester United. Don't get me wrong. I have lots of respect for Man Utd and this is not a post to insult them. This is a post to relive the moment where the boys from Liverpool worked their socks off to get good results against one of the best teams in the world. This is to recap the magic moment and I sincerely hope that the boys will pull off such an excellent performance once again this Saturday.

Luis "The headline grabber" Suarez tormented the Devils
Liverpool 3 Manchester United 1 (2011)

Liverpool were a struggling team for half the season due to turmoil off the field with the change of owner and poor results on the pitch but with the return of King Kenny and the signing of Luis Suarez, fortune quickly favored The Reds as the Uruguayan Suarez subsequently tormented United's defense and became the star of the show.

My reaction: I jumped, screamed and shouted and clapped in enjoyment throughout the match.

Ferdinand's Spanish Nightmare
Liverpool 2 Manchester United 0 (2009)

Torres had a quiet game until 65th minute when Rio Ferdinand decided to take a nap. The Spaniard raced towards the goal and scored with a powerful shot. David Ngog wrapped up the game with a second Liverpool goal in the dying minutes of the game.

My reaction: I was biting my teeth throughout the whole game. I was so afraid that Man Utd will score a late equaliser and so when David Ngog finished them off, I screamed "YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The Devil Shocker
Manchester United 1 Liverpool 4 (2009)

Football fans of both sides watched the game in disbelieve as Liverpool absolutely outclassed the eventual champion Manchester United. Torres, Gerrard, Aurelio and Dossena each scored beautiful individual goals in this game.

My reaction: My mouth was wide open. I couldnt believe it! When United scored, to lead at 1-0, I was thinking "Ah...it's just gonna be one of those days". Even when we were leading 3-1, I was skeptical. I was holding both my hand and hoping United wont score a 2nd goal. So when Dossena scores the last goal for Liverpool, I finally accepts that we are going to win. We are gonna get the big scoreline. And naturally, I jumped and screamed!

My ideal team formation for this Saturday's match

I strongly feel that Manchester United is getting stronger andPublish Post stronger with Ashley Young as their new acquisition, they have speed and power. Imagine Nani, Rooney and Young combining together, what is the outcome of that so far? 24 goals in 7 matches. Disturbing, no? With the slow legs of Jamie Carragher, we may be in for a rough time if things at the back are not taken care of. So I think 5-4-1 is the best formation and it is exactly the same formation when we thrashed them 3-1 in March. I hope the King will pull this off and give me an entertaining match. It's up to him now. Good luck!

It's goodbye for now.

XOXO,
Dilly Menaly

Top 5 Korean female celebrities that have committed suicide

2011-10-08T12:33:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

It's no question that I am absolutely obsessed with the Korean entertainment world. While surfing Wikipedia for some Korean dramas, I discovered that some of the Korean Celebs are dead. Shocking? Yes, very shocking! Most of them are suicide cases.

I went on further to read all about suicide in Korea. Even more SHOCKING! Korea is number 1 in the world in terms of suicide cases. At least 14,000 people commit suicide every year in Korea. Huge number, no? That's like the whole population of Buckingham in England just suddenly died. What makes these people to think they have no other way in life? Very sad.

Anyway, back to the celebs. Here are those 5 who will be missed dearly.

1) Korean Pop Singer - U;Nee (1981 - 2007)

Remember Altantuya the Mongolian who was murdered? The press made a mistake in publishing U;Nee's picture instead of the real Altantuya. Perhaps it's rather an unfortunate coincident. Few months later, U;Nee decided to take her life citing depression and the pressure of fame. The beautiful and popular singer was only 25.

Video of U;Nee

2) Fashion Model - Daul Kim (1989 - 2009)

One of Korea's most famous model. She has appeared in the cover of some of the top magazines like Vogue. Prior to her death in 2009, she had once attempted suicide in 2007 citing loneliness and her struggle in being herself. She then quipped that she was just kidding with her fans. But event that took place in 2009 was no joke. She took her life and she was just only 20.

Video of Daul Kim

3) Korean Actress - Jang Ja Yeon (1980 - 2009)

Perhaps her death surprise me the most. After watching "Boys over Flowers" the famous Korean drama, I went and search Wikipedia just for fun but only to discover that Ja-Yeon is dead. :(

Her death created a big time national scandal in the Korean entertainment biz. Ja-Yeon claimed that her agent Kim Sung-hoon had regularly beaten her and forced her to have sex with a string of VIPs which Mr. Kim vehemently denied. She had been suffering from clinical depression and at the time of her death, she was only 29.

Video of Jang Ja-Yeon

4) Korean Actress - Jeong Da-Bin (1980 - 2007)

Famous for playing high school girls in most of her roles, she noted in her blog that she was suffering from depression. Jeong's last diary entry read:
“Everything is so complicated. I get angry for no reason and I feel like I’m going crazy. It hurts so much that I feel like I’m getting sea sick. My head hurts so much that I start to tear. I was becoming a slave of my temper. I thought that I was losing myself, losing my identity… Then at that moment, as if I was getting an electric shock, I found peace. God came to me with love. He made me realize my importance and gave me courage. He lifted me up and he said it’s going to be okay. I’m okay.”

She was found hanging in the bathroom by her boyfriend. At the time of her death, she was only 26.

Video of Jeong Da-Bin

5) Korean Actress - Choi Jin-Shil (1968 - 2009)

She was considered one of the best actresses in South Korea, nicknamed "The Nation's Actress". Since her debut two decades ago, she played a leading role in 18 movies, 20 television dramas and 140 commercials. Trouble marriage and abusive husband are part of her misery in her life. Dubbed as the "Julia Roberts of Korea", the cinematic sweetheart had trouble dealing with the pressure of being single, divorced, working mum as it is consider pariah in Korea and also online gossips were largely blamed for her demise. She was found hanged at her home and at the time of her death, she was only 39. Her brother Choi Jin Young also committed suicide a year later.

Video of Choi Jin-Sil

Rest in peace. Ahn Young.

Sad right? I know. The price of fame is sometimes too much to bear. In come all pressure of being famous and being a role model. I think being a comedian is better. At least it's more relax and when people laugh at your jokes, you feel good.

Top reason for dying? Depression. It's killing more people than AIDS! The world needs to pay serious attention to this. Care for your friend who is in pain. You can never know what could happen to him or her. Dont wait till it's too late!

PS - By the way, it's 3.28am now. You think it's too spooky to write this kind of things at this kind of time right? Well, I have to confront my fear to be a good writer. And so I did it :)

It's goodbye for now.Publish Post

XOXO,
Dilly Menaly

Technorati ID ZU4KR9XNA48D

Wedding Photos

2011-10-07T00:46:00.000-07:00

Hi Guys,

Some of the wedding photos.

Me and my bride

Hahaha~ I wish, Min Jung would marry me. No... this was some lame photoshop editing. Anyway, let's get down to some serious business. No joking... lol. Photos from Jerret's wedding.

According to the Chinese tradition, the bridegroom must have a chicken drumstick early in the morning prior to hitting off to the bride's house. I wonder what is that for? Anyway, Chinese are always full of BS.. you know what I mean. If do this and do that, it will be good.. there will be good fortune..and yaa daa yaa daa crap. If so, I might as well marry few hundred times and eat a few hundred chicken drumsticks and I will be the next Bill Gates. Bollocks!

The guys are getting ready early in the morning. I had wake up at 6.40am and head over to Jerret's house at 7.30am. And I didnt even sleep well prior to that. Gosh!

Getting ready to pick his beautiful wife

The married men of MY. They said they couldn't be bothered with their looks. Rightly so, married men always make the same kind of mistake!

A little surprise snapshot

Bridegroom and his best man, Jeff

As we reach, the eagerly waiting brother in law is there to greet him. Well, it's all about Angpow, eh?

Yup. It is about Angpow. He even opened it up and negotiate a better deal. What the hell? This is a marriage or a business deal?

The greedy girls of the house. Eagerly awaiting to rip us off! I hate Chinese tradition :) hehe.

There you go.. yaa daa yaa daa ding dong ding dong. Finally agreed on a price that is enough to buy a Versace gown. Happy? duh....

Is it all over? Not yet...most unfortunately. We were made to play games.

Answered wrongly? Well, there's the punishment.

Lipstick Jungle Season 5!

More punishments! Actually the friends suffered more. That's why Chinese weddings are all about guys being a day of slave and girls get all the enjoyment. Nevermind. I had told Jerret to follow European style wedding but he disagree. He deserved it! hehe.

Round 3 over...all done? no... round 4.

Round 4 is all about further humiliation. Sigh. Pity the boys.

No! I retract back my statement. These boys, they love it. LOL

The mean and greedy girls had enough and decided to finally hand over the keys.

Even this is not easy. He got the wrong key and had to pay another Angpow just to get the right key. See? Girls are greedy.

After going through the wall of china kind of challenges, he finally get his wife. Yeah!!! It's tougher than winning American Idol.

I'm sure he was thinking, "Darling, you will get it tonight. Nicely get it! Now take the flowers, take it!" Hahahaha.

Beautiful couple

Becareful of the make-up!

Wait! Didnt they just got married? That was fast. Already had the first baby? Hehehe.

My God. They even had a daughter! haha

Heading home, fellas?

Ahh.. finally all the ordeals are over!

It's party time. Opss i mean wedding dinner time.

Getting ready. She told me she was freaking nervous. Not like you gotta sing on stage. Stay calm, Temmie.

He claimed that with this look, he's better looking than the boys from Farenheit (Taiwanese pop group). Come on! Wake up!

Eh? Even the married couple need to give Angpow? No no,... mistake! hehe.

The bunch of suckers!

The brother in law and younger brother

The accidental couple. No..they are not~. :)

Sweet memory :)

The idiots at my table! hehe

As usual, typical group photos. Smile guys, at least try!

Ok good job for the night! Cheers fellas! Dont drink and drive!

Hope you enjoy the pictures. It's goodbye for now.

XOXO,

Dilly Menaly

Is there something wrong with me? People keep saying I am becoming more feminine

2011-10-02T23:53:00.000-07:00

Hey guys!
It's rather disturbing to hear comments after comments about me becoming more feminine till the fact that people thought that I'm gay.

At my best friend's wedding yesterday

LOL. I know it's not something to be proud of as a man but I cant help it. People would laugh and make fun of me alot more these days although it's nothing new. I got the same kind of shit since 15 years ago but it wasn't that serious back then. It's a little hard to swallow but I am taking it well so far. So let's review those comments.

Cecilia Lee (my cousin): For the longest time, I thought you were gay. I always think that the mystery behind you being single and not married till now is because you are gay.
Me: So if I'm gay, do you think I'm the girl or the guy?
Cecilia: Girl of course. You are a softie...
Me: DAMN IT!

Nicole Chong: I know you are not gay only because we've been friends for many years since college days. But if I'm not your friend, I would think that you are gay.
Me: Why?
Nicole: Dude, the way you brag about things, the way you speak softly, the way you gesture, there's just nothing manly about you.
Me: Seriously?
Nicole: Even this tone right now sounds like a girl

Grace: I seriously thought you were gay many years ago.
Me: Typical. Most people said that.
Grace: Dont you think it's wrong?
Me: It was wrong when God decided to have differences between men and women

Jenny: Your looks. You're very fair. Do you put make-up?
Me: I use concealer to cover the dark circles of my eyes. Blow me?
Jenny: HAHA. No...it's okay.
Me: So you think I'm gay?
Jenny: The way you care so much about your look, yes. I would think you're gay if I do not know you. But it's okay. I know you are not.
Me: How you know? I may just compete with you and take your boyboy away
Jenny: Now you sound like a gay. Boyboy, my God! HAHA.
Me: Jenny...uhhhh
Jenny: Stop it. You're getting there.
Me: @#$%&#*

Margaret: Have you ever consider being one?
Me: Why would I do that?
Margaret: I mean I have many gay friends that I can introduce to you. You know, just in case if you have switched. Let me know.
Me: To hell with you and your gay friends. Hehe
Margaret: You have potential
Me: Potential to be what? BACKSIDE player?
Margaret: HAhaHA...yeah...HAhahha
Me: Yeah..my ass! Arghhh....

My best friend's wedding
I attended Jerret's wedding yesterday. It was wonderful to see the couple happily married finally. The night wasn't colorful and it was pretty dull at first. That was until I bumped into the bride's aunt. So what do you think all the aunties said about me? Well, they thought I like man. Even their daughters think so. Even the girls as young as 13 thinks so. BITCHES! hehe. Okay, I still love them. No worries.

Aunty: So seriously, do you like man or woman?
Me: Man! (I accidentally said it wrongly in Chinese. I hate myself. arggghhh).
The crowd: Ohhhh.....ohhh... there you go.
Me: No no.. I mean woman.
Aunty: When you are drinking and you said it hastily, that means it is your real feeling. You like man!
Me: No Aunty, I accidentally said it wrongly.
Aunty: It's okay. It's okay. I know already
Me: DUHHHH..................
Aunty: I asked again, you like man or woman?
Me: Man. (I said it wrongly once again. Even I cant believe myself. How can I make the same blunder twice in a matter of minutes. Gosh)
Aunty and the nosy crowd: Ohhh.....you just confirmed it.
Me: No no....shit... I mean woman. I keep saying it wrongly.
The crowd: It's okay. We know you are gay.
Me: %$#%%@

Jerret laughing as I moaned about the comments I received from people

Seriously. Even the photographer thinks that I am gay. He's quite dead certain and were not impressed with my explanation. How disturbing. LOL.

The Hallyu factor

My addiction to Korean fashion doesn't help either. I mean just check out the picture below and you can see why. That hair, that lip covered with lip bum and he obviously use concealer to cover his dark circles.

My idol Kim Hyun Joong. Now he looks like a girl ok!

Most guys wont like this kind of look but I do. Is it illegal to adore this in Malaysia? Unless they come out with Fashion Act 2011 in Malaysia, I wont bother giving up my adoration. When you look like this, you arouse attention of both sexes and it could be dangerous. Most men would avoid this. But I'm a risk taker. I want to look like this. Blow me?

My secret liking of dominant female

For the longest time, it was my dark secret. I loathe sharing this with people but now I guess I don't give a jack shit. Perhaps it's sick but I like dominant and fierce woman like she's ready to teach me some lessons about being obedient. WHY? Listen, if I know the answer to this, I can cure cancer. You may be thinking, perhaps now it starts to make sense as to why I am more feminine huh? 2 strong characters can never be a pair. Well, perhaps!

I started thinking back about the past as it suddenly occurred to me that I wasn't a compromising man back then. No way a softie. I would yell and moan at my girlfriend. Totally a jerk! Since then, I hated myself being such a lousy guy to women. I changed. I learned to respect women. I became soft and much much more tender. Unfortunately it is now sending a wrong message and it backfired. LOL.

Unlike my more manly friends, I am on the softer side. I dont like to pretend that I can suddenly become Gladiator like kind of macho behavior and starts yelling "Who's the man!!!" LOL. I am who I am. It's either you like me and hate me. It doesn't really matter. I'm not interested in aiming at your lousy butt. Haha.

So am I confused?
No I'm not confused. I like girls. I really do. Look at the picture below.

Well you get the idea now! :)

It's goodbye for now!

XOXO,
Dillon - The "Ah Girl" who is not a gay

For my new design, twitter box

Everton 0 - Liverpool 2 - Controversy marred Liverpool's victory against neighbor Everton

2011-10-01T10:43:00.000-07:00

A win is still a win but I felt for Everton as they were hard done by the referee's decision. In my previous post, I had mentioned that I hoped the referee will be fair to Liverpool and yes he did. Unfortunately he was mean to Everton. So sorry for the Blue lads for they were absolutely up for the game and have been matching Liverpool's multi-million assembled team minute to minute until the sending off of Jack Rodwell. It was rather unfortunate that the incident had spoiled the entire game. 10 against 11 men is obviously an uphill task for Everton and I thought they contented Liverpool's pressing game really well. I rarely respect the opposition team because obviously it's none of my business. I support Liverpool and will be delighted with the result but not the team's performance as a whole.

Unlucky Jack of Blues

It was a disastrous game for Stewart Downing and Charlie Adam as they lacked the passion in handling a derby match. Everton looked more determined and they were working their socks off. Up until the substitution and the introduction of Steven Gerrard and Craig Bellamy, Liverpool doesn't look like a team that will go on the scoreboard. In fact, they were struggling against 10 men Everton.

Without saying, I was relieved that King Kenny took Adam and Downing out of the game. I think Gerrard and Bellamy changed the game entirely. From the minute they stepped in, it was entirely a different Liverpool team. The crosses and passing have been superb and sublime. Their pace and passing caused chaos to the Everton's defense.

Congrats to Andy Caroll for his first league goal of the season and Luis Suarez for the 2nd goal although both strikers have been largely ineffective due to the superb defending of Jagielka and Distin. Overall it wasn't a comfortable game for Liverpool and I hope the King learns a lot from this. We absolutely cannot afford the same kind of naivety with Manchester United in 2 weeks time. The marking is still poor by the way. Rooney and co is no easy meat.

My hero Luis Suarez

As I said, it's still a win and I'll take it. If we have the same kind of luck against MU, I wouldn't mind but it's best to be good than lucky. Congrats!

It's goodbye for now.

XOXO,
Dilly Menaly - Liverpool number 12

My LFC story and My Liverpool Starting 11 Vs Everton today

2011-10-01T00:14:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! Back in KL for now and I want to talk about my favorite team, Liverpool FC ahead of the weekend derby match with Everton. I've been obsessed with this team ever since I was 7 following my old man's preference. When you support Liverpool FC, it's just a special feeling that is not explainable. For better or worse, LFC fans stick together like a family. The theme song said it all. "You'll never walk alone". We sing in victories, we even sing in defeats. That's how LFC is. Special.

I remember I almost cried in joy watching Liverpool's comeback win against AC Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul 2005 on television. It was unbelievable. From 3-0 down, they came back and won the match. I jumped and jumped and jumped and then woke my dad up who cant seemed to believe me.

"Pa, you wont believe this. Liverpool won the Champions League. Liverpool won the Champions League!!" I shouted in joy

"Impossible. They were rubbish. They were 2-0 down even before the first half ended" he replied

"It's REAL! They really won. They came back and won the match!"

He went to sleep when Liverpool were 2-0 down. He was jumping in joy when it was confirmed that Liverpool had won the match. Now my old man rarely do that. It was special. Really really special. That's what football can do to you. A usually calm person can just unleash all the deep affection for the team he supports!

My mum was typical. She shouted at me for waking dad up and cheering madly as if I had struck a lottery.

"It's just a bloody football match for God's sake. 22 idiots chasing after a ball. Seems like a useless activity nevermind a competition. And you are jumping like a monkey as if you had won the match instead"

THAT IS WHY WOMEN CAN NEVER UNDERSTAND US! DUH.......

You can run a poll and ask the men to select which of the following they would rather give up:

1) Wife

2) Supporting their Football Club

And you would probably find that most men would rather give up their wives! HAHAHA! Kidding.

Anyway, back to the topic. The previous game against Wolves was a scrappy affair. Liverpool were in control in the 1st half and then just lost their way in 2nd half for quite abit. A CHANGE IS NEEDED in formation and I hope KING KENNY will listen to everyone's plea. Drop Jordan Henderson for God's sake.

My starting 11 as follow

Fast and pacy attacking formation. Finish them off in 30 minutes and kill the game. Remember Arsene Wenger's 10 minute football policy in 2002? Dont let us suffer watching a scrappy game that could go either way. I'm gonna have heart attack!

Luis Suarez has been amazing so far this season and I got to admit that I am really looking forward to Gerrard coming back and feeding him and Caroll with more opportunities to score. As for Stewart Downing, he needs to up his game for this one. We know what Downing is capable of.

Good luck lads! AND I hope the referee will manage the game fairly. They have been sub-standard in most of Liverpool's matches so far. Never send English referees to World Cup. They are just catastrophe in waiting.

Okay I'm done! Well, it's goodbye for now.

XOXO,

Dilly Menaly - Liverpool number 12 :)))

I am just so positive today

2011-09-05T09:05:00.000-07:00

And i know not why... perhaps the beer helps.

I guess spending some time reading, logging on to FB and updating blog helps alot. AND that is exactly the kind of mood I want to bring to all my interviews next week onward. Let me close all the deals!!! :)

BTW, I'm planning a vacation soon. Short trip, getaway. Just what I needed. Alone possibly...coming back in pairs or groups probably... LOL. who knows? Nah...

Tell you more if I do get to go...till then it's goodbye for now.

XOXO,
Dillon

The job that was never meant to be

2011-09-04T08:16:00.000-07:00

1 week. Just 1 more week. 5 days to be precised is all it takes. Then I walk away from the place I once adored. I took great pride in coming here with fiery ambition to be successful but it was a job that was never meant to be for me. It's been half a year and we are still clueless about our direction, still messy, still implementing changes after changes and above all, struggling to find our identity. If 2 years into the business and you still cant find your identity, there is a big chance you never will. So I decided to walk away from Doorstep, the company I'm working in.

WHY? What's with the sudden decision?

I really believed that in every organisation I have joined, it brought me great improvement. "The experience is second to none. I learnt a great deal." AND that is supposed to be what I gotta say now but NO!

In fact, after joining this company, I have massively taken a step back in my career progression. I'm lacking confidence in making decisions, I can't write as good as I know I'm capable of, I lost my momentum, I couldn't present well and massively lacking creativity which are all my strong points in the past.

SO WHAT CAUSES ALL THESE MISHAPS? That is for me to know and for you not to find out because I don't wanna get sued!

SO WHAT'S NEXT FOR ME?

I've been considering this for a while now. I've rejected the idea for the past 15 years. But after witnessing how successful my elder sister and brother were, I've got to succumb to it even if it meant hardship and no more freedom. I was talking about working in Singapore and staying in JB.

What can the 2.46 exchange rate do to your life?

First of all, you can have this. In fact you can own a few of this after a few years of working. Well, at least in JB.

AND you can easily own this. Easily.

HOW? Consider the fact that SGD4000 is almost equivalent to RM10000. Let's evaluate further.

SGD4000 = executive, senior executive, assistant manager
RM10,000 = Director, Senior Director, General Manager, AVP, VP

WONDERFUL. Isn't it? Now's let's evaluate the tough part.

The disturbing scene at checkpoint that I will face every working day.

The daily sleepy face... as I got to wake up as early as 5.30am.

"MOST PEOPLE CANT TAKE IT!" says Jerret. But I'm not most people. I'm gonna do it!

What's with the sudden determination?
I'm earning a reasonable pay. Really reasonable. But what I do realised is, inflation is catching up faster than my increment. By the time I reach my target, things changes. Sick of it. It's been 10 years of working life and achieving very little compare to my siblings who are all working in Singapore. So wish me luck in getting a job and adios to KL and PJ Party Life. Hopefully this time is for real.

On a lighter side...

To kill my boredom these few days while waiting for my notice period to be over, I've been playing with my webcam. LOL. They said blogger need to have lots of pictures and videos so I gotta accustomed myself to get used to it. Cant get the hang of this thing though. I took a few pictures and recorded a video but couldn't fix the sound. Sucks!

Anyway, here's my first video.. Taaa Daaaa. Guess what I was trying to say...

And a few ugly photos. Who cares!

Who knows maybe blogging itself may bring me fortunes which will make my elder all get jealous big time. Hehe... but for now... I'm still clueless as to how people like Kenny Sia or Xia Xue can earn so much money. I know the former is all about being funny in a stupid way and the latter is all about bitching here and there. That's their identity. So I guess I gotta find my identity. What can I be? I'm not funny and I'm not good at bitching either. So I'm screwed!

Or I go for something that's super daring such as unveiling scandals.. maybe interview with ghosts and spirits... well something that's out of the ordinary. Something that people rarely do... but first I gotta find my balls.

Till then, it's goodbye for now.

XOXO,
Dillon

To be number 1 in Malaysia

2011-04-17T07:51:00.000-07:00

Taking a break from my Life stories in ME just to share with you what I've been up to lately. I've been focusing on building my way to be No.1 in Malaysia.

No. 1 in what? You must be thinking.

Number 1 in exploring ways to communicate with ghosts?

NO! Geez... NO!

Or is it Number 1 in discovering ways to cure AIDS?

I wish!

Or is it to be the number 1 transsexual celebrity in malaysia?

NO WAY! heHe.

I want to build my way to be number 1 most twitter followers in Malaysia. It is still achievable although it takes a bit of time. 1 year? Not possible. 2 years, maybe.

So who's number 1 now? Let's take a look.

There you go. Some Aaron dude is number 1 and our Prime Minister is at number 2.

What about me? Where am I now? Let's review.

I have 2,648 followers and where does that stand?

Number 66 in Malaysia! I am not so far behind eh?

NOT TOO FAR FROM BEING ONE OF THE KINGS OF SOCIAL MEDIA.

Here's my certification

AND THEN.....I get to hangout with top celebrities like Carmen Soo..

I get to hangout with top bloggers like Hanis Zalikha..

AND .... top politicians will be kissing my ass to campaign for them...

Big dream right???? The journey begins now.... hehehe

XOXO!

Chapter Ten - Life in ME

2011-04-09T05:53:00.000-07:00

Apologies as my other commitments have taken time out of me lately. I am spending a lot of time with my parents shopping for stuff to keep filling our new home. Plus, I do not love writing without inspiration. I need that momentum and sometimes I require a short break to regain it.

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

Beginning the journey of a Design Manager in ME

Till these days, I am still very thankful to Jacqui, Neil and Jason for what they did for me. They had made something positive happened to my life from out of nowhere. God knows how long I have to endure with nothing.

It was a long wait for morning. I hardly had any sleep. If any, it was just 1 or 2 hours maximum of rest. I cant sleep well when I am overexcited. It is from this point onwards that I started to suffer from insomnia. I travelled to work as usual but I reached the office at 7.15am. So freaking early? Yes. So I took my time slowly and went for breakfast alone, killing some time off. My promotion to Design Manager was not yet a closed deal. I am still waiting for the memo from Jacqui. And the first thing that greeted me in the morning as I step into the office was Bern’s congratulation wish.

“Congrats, Dillon. I am so happy for you” said Berny

“Ah! She sent it. She sent the email to everyone to announce this. How efficient” I thought to myself

So with absolute confident, I replied “Thanks, Bern. Yours will be coming”

Obviously I couldn’t wait to turn on the computer and open up my inbox. It was there. 1 memo for my reference and 1 announcement to the public. Finally, a huge step forward in my career. My inbox was swamped with messages of congratulations and I took time to reply one by one.

Then I printed out the memo and signed it and passed it over to Jacqui who greeted me with a warm smile. She was obviously delighted with my decision to stay. All this excitement caused me to forget my friend Jason who was anxiously waiting for me to sign the letter of offer. So he finally called and I was expecting hell. I was thinking of how angry he will be and the image below instantly came into my mind.

“My friend, what’s happening? I am still waiting for you to sign the letter” enquired Jason

“I am going to say something that is going to let you down” I replied

“huh.. let me guess. So they counter offered?”

“Yes they did. It was a really good offer”

I explained in detail to Jason about the offer ME made for me. Every word I uttered out was constructed carefully as I fear losing him as a friend. This kind of thing can be really sensitive. What I do not know is how wonderful this friend of mine turns out to be.

“Think of it from a good friend’s perspective. Which one would you advise me to go for?” I asked

“Stay with your company, my friend. Stay. It’s a good offer, of course. Go for what’s best for you” replied Jason

How selfless that was. No emotional outburst. He was in fact happy for me. Now do you understand what a good friend he is to me? He may be a Mean Monster to many others who do not like his character, but to me, his friendship meant a lot. You don’t find that kind of friend who don’t turn on you when things are not going their way that often.

Next chapter: The price of going up

Back after a long break from writing

2011-04-09T05:33:00.000-07:00

My bad. I know. It's been long overdue. SO WHAT? :)

At least it is back with a new look now. Ok ok. Back to business.

Next: My Story: Life at ME - Part Ten - Beginning the journey of a Design Manager in ME

My Story: Life at ME - Part Nine

2010-10-18T06:02:00.000-07:00

My apology readers as I have been busy shifting to my new home hence the delay in Chapter Nine which promises to be a really long one. Am very happy with where I am staying and the swimming pool and gym will definitely help me to keep in shape for many years to come. :)

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

The ABF offer and my dramatic U-turn

For the longest time, no one, I mean absolutely no one except Jason Teoh, my family, Shwu Yan and Jerret knew about what came to me that brought me into a big dilemma. Nobody knows. Not Jacqui, not John, not Neil.

After some frustrating time I had with ME with little progress, an offer came my way which I am extremely delighted to receive. This was an offer from a friend, a really good friend who wish nothing but to help me to grow in my career. Like an elder brother taking care of a younger brother.

I received a call when I was driving home on one fine evening. This is a call that changed my life.

“I want you to consider joining me in ABF” said Jason, who was the head of production at that time

“But I am not qualified. I don’t have experience in production and hell, I’m only just a diploma grad (As you know, back then, I am only a diploma grad till I further my studies part time and earned my degree in business)”

“I don’t care so much about paper qualification and experience. It’s the quality of the person I am looking for. You are coming in as a junior and I can definitely help you to develop further in this line. Think about it”

“Well then, I cannot be more delighted. Thank you for considering me my friend. What’s the arrangement now?” I enquired happily

“You’ll get a reasonable pay and commission as you already know how’s the structure like in production. It will all be stated in the offer letter that I will send over to you tomorrow”

“Oh my God. You brighten up my day which was so gloomy till you call. I now can’t wait to join you in ABF”

“No problem. I’m counting on you as well. Treat this as a chance to help me to help you”

“I will”

My boring, gloomy and uneventful day was suddenly full of joy. I cant wait to go home and share this with my parents and Shwu Yan. I drove impatiently and out of joy almost knock down a bike. 

This may be nothing to many people in the world but to me the job offer was like Jessica Alba telling me she loves me kind of happiness. Just my way of describing how sweet it was. As I reached home, I tried to calm myself down before I die of heart attack because of overjoyed.

“Ma, Pa, guess what. I got an offer from a company. They offer me to go to production. Something that I had always been interested in”

“Which company?” my parents asked eagerly

“ABF. Just like ME, a conference company. My friend is working there and he hook me up. What do you think?”

“Well, it’s a no brainer. Take it, son. Not like you have any progress in ME. Years without review and no appreciation. It’s great that you have an option now to leave” said Dad

“Yeah, I know. I’m gonna call Shwu Yan and tell her. She’ll be delighted”

I called and informed Shwu Yan about the offer and of course she couldn’t be happier to hear this and encouraged me to go ahead with it.

“So you’ll hand in your resignation tomorrow?” said Shwu Yan

“Yes, babe, on the morrow. When I receive the offer, I will hand in my resignation letter to Neil”

It was “Sleepless at Seattle”, ooppss I mean Ampang that night. I feel that every cell in my body is banging against my skin just to celebrate. I know some people don’t appreciate the job of being a producer but for me it was a change and more importantly a dramatic increment of salary. Again, don’t forget about my peanut paycheck at ME.

The next day came so slowly that I couldn’t wait. I got to office hastily and turn on my computer. Will he send it to me like yesterday? So I opened up my email. Fat hope! He told me today. So I just have to wait.

Lunch time came, still no email and no letter of offer. Perhaps it takes time to prepare one. So I happily waited but almost every hour, I will refresh my Gmail inbox.

At 3.30pm, I called Shwu Yan.

“It’s not here yet babe. Maybe he changed his mind?”

“It will come, alright. Just wait. Don’t be so impatient” said Shwu Yan

“How long does it take to type one miserable letter? I can type it in within 15 minutes and scan my signature and attach it in 1 minute”

“He won’t be calling you and having this serious conversation with you just to pull an April fool joke on you alright. Just calm down”

“Ok… call you later when I receive it”

4.30pm and still no sign. I was getting really impatient. Concentrating on work? FORGET IT!

If I do a count, I think I refreshed my Gmail inbox few hundred times that day. Hehe. At 5pm, still no email. ARGH! I’m screwed. My head is spinning with uncertainties. Did he bloody changed his mind and forget about me?

I decided that I should not wait any longer. So I called Jason.

“My friend, are you supposed to send the offer letter to me today or did I hear it wrongly?”

“What are you talking about? I sent it like 2 hours ago” replied Jason

“Uh? I did not receive it. Where did you send it to?” I asked impatiently

“To your Yahoo email”

“DAMN. I didn’t check that email. I was checking my Gmail all the time”

“Well then get on to it and download the attachment”

“Ok ok!”

For all my agony of waiting, it was sent to my Yahoo account 2 bloody freaking hours ago without me realising it. How dumb of me. Since we always communicated through Gmail, I naturally assumed he will send to my Gmail account instead. So I learned a lesson. Never assume. Never put an ASS infront of U and ME. If I had called earlier, I wont have to go through that agony. It doesn’t matter. For all my anxiety stress, it was worth it. It was finally here. The big “Dear Dillon” letter is here!

I am finally holding an Ace in a poker game and I can now resign from my post in ME peacefully. So the next thing to do is to plot a plan. A peaceful exit plan without arousing suspicion. I know how fierce the rivalry of ME and ABF are and I feel sorry for ME but I had no choice because I wasn’t getting any opportunity to grow and I need to start thinking about myself after 2 years ++ of selflessness.

“Tell them you’re going back to study” suggested Dad

“That’s the lamest excuse you can ever think of. Even I can’t believe it myself. People who usually use that reason are openly lying but in a stupid way”

“Then? You have a better idea?”

“A rather brilliant one. I’m gonna tell them I am going back to my ex-employer, APN. I’m gonna bull and tell them I got a fantastic offer that I can’t afford to turn down. Since APN is a web design company and poses no harm to ME, they’re gonna let me go peacefully”

“Good. Sounds like a good exit plan”

When the next day came, I couldn’t wait to prepare my letter of resignation. No, I was not that artistic so I decided to just go to i-resign.com and copy the template there. Simple, straight forward and easy “Dear Neil” letter.

I talked to Neil who was calm and handed him the letter. The man didn’t say much and smile. He told me that he will hold on to this letter first. He insisted that I talk to Jacqui first claiming that she will be badly affected. But prior to that, I talked to Margaret, the new designer, who was shocked.

“It’s very sudden” said Margaret

“I know. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier because I shouldn’t”

“What’s gonna happen to the Design team?”

“Don’t worry. You’ll be just fine. Just continue doing what you’re doing. You are good”

Minutes later, I walked out of the room and head straight to Jacqui’s room. One must know one golden rule about Jacqui. When she closed her office door, that means “DO NOT DISTURB”. When it’s open that means “Feel free to make your way in”. On this occasion, it was closed. “I couldn’t give a jackshit. I’m just gonna barge in, tell her swiftly and then go off” I thought.

I knocked and went in to see a surprised or rather annoyed Jacqui.

“Can you come back later?” said Jacqui

“It’s urgent. I need to talk. I’m quitting my job. I just hand my resignation letter to Neil but he wants me to inform you first”

“Neil did the right thing then. Come on in and close the door” Jacqui was shocked on hearing my resignation intention and her emotion swiftly changes and became rather attentive to me

I sat down and listen carefully to what she has to say.

“So you got an offer from elsewhere?” asked Jacqui

“Yes. From my ex-employer” I lied

“Have you signed the letter of offer?”

“Not yet. I had wanted to hand in my resignation letter first and make sure everything is handed over properly before signing the letter of offer. Don’t worry. I will serve my 1 month notice”

“That’s great. You can still reconsider. We can’t afford to lose you. It will be crazy”

“But I received a really good offer that ME can’t offer me the same”

“Oh come on! We can definitely offer you a better package. Let me get back to you on this. In the meantime, please do not sign the offer letter yet”

To be honest, I was shocked at hearing this. I always thought they will ask me to “Piss Off and Go Away”. I know not how to deal with such surprises. I always thought nobody wants me but now all of a sudden, a company wants me and my own company wants me to stay. How delightful. Whether the counter-offer was a good one or not, it doesn’t matter. At least, they really recognised my work and all my hard sweat effort. I walked back to the Design, CRM and Marketing room still stunned at the event that took place. Now our room is shared with the CRM and Endorsement Marketing team which means we are sitting with 3 girls, Katrina the CRM Manager, Bernardine and Pheng Pheng, the 2 former protégé of evil Winie.

Just barely 30 minutes later, Jacqui came knocking at our door and called for me. I was asked to go to the CFO’s room where Jacques greeted me with a warm smile as he always does.

“Let us talk plainly and straight to the point. I heard everything from Jacqui and frankly speaking we do not want you to go” said Jacques

“We were not aware of your situation and your unhappiness and it was a mistake on our side. I hope you can bear with us. Ok, we will offer you XX amount, promote you to Design Manager and in addition you shall receive a RM500 design bonus every month as long as the design load is dealt with and Jacqui is happy with it. She will approve your claim every month. On the other hand, you will be in charge of recruiting more designers as we look forward to build the design team to support production. On top of that, there will be yearly review” as Jacques continued explaining the offer to me.

I was in seventh heaven. From a nothing situation to an offer from ABF to a counter offer by ME to a promotion to manager. What has inspired all this madness? Is this even real?

I couldn’t be more delighted but only one thing that I was not satisfied with in this offer.

“I want the opportunity to go into Production and be able produce events in the future. I wanna be involved in something that generates revenue for the company. Will that be possible?”

“Well, of course. Yes it is possible” said Jacqui

“It will all be in the memo?” I enquired happily

“Yes. In written black and white. And if every 6 months you are not happy about something, come and talk to me” replied Jacques cheekily

“Great. Give me a day to think this over”

Brilliant! Two days ago, I got a really good news, now I got an even more excellent news. And you can imagine how I felt driving back home.

“Ma, Pa, ME counter-offered me and asked me to stay. It’s really good money and career advancement as well. They will promote me to Manager. They also promised to let me be involved in production one day. What do you think?”

My mum and dad smile.

“Ah. Finally they show their appreciation, ha. It was quite a wait but a worthwhile one” said Mum

“Yes, Ma. They gave me 100% increment. How does that sound?”

“Good of course. But what about your friend’s offer?” asked Dad

“I don’t know. I haven’t even thought about it. Let me speak to Shwu Yan”

Shwu Yan instantly advised me to stay with ME as it was really a good offer. So does my sister and brother.

“But Pa, why did they wait till last minute to offer me this kind of deal? Why cant they do it earlier if they are sincere” I asked Dad

“Take it this way. They wouldn’t even consider offering you anything if you are not worth it. They have overlooked on this matter, yes. But to make an effort in a such a quick manner to get you to stay, that means a lot”

“Yeah, true. Alright I’ll sign the memo tomorrow”

My only worry now is that my dramatic U-turn will cause uneasiness on my friendship with Jason.

Next chapter: Beginning the journey of a Design Manager in ME

To be continued….

My Story: Life at ME (2003 - 2009) - Part Eight

2010-10-05T08:21:00.000-07:00

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

A new dawn or a dead end?

It was a really strange day and I was shopping for something inside a complex named Low Yat Plaza. I was taking the escalator up and saw the usual anti-virus advertisements and so forth. I passed by the mobile stores and was making an effort to go up further as I was probably interested to check out some laptops or so.

It was shocking! Really really shocking. No matter how many times I try to go to the computer floor, I can never reach there. I keep seeing the same mobile stores again and again as I moved up. Keep passing by the same vendors who were standing there to greet me to come to their stores to check out the phones.

“WHY? What the hell just happened?” I thought

I made another effort. Yet again, it was in vain. It was really frustrating. The frustrating part is, I am stuck. What should I do? Is this for real? Fortunately it was a dream. Just a scary little dream that bears a meaning to me. It was there to remind me of how my life was stuck in ME. How little progress I have made all these while and still patiently waiting for my chance.

After 2 years plus of service, there was no increment, no promotion, no review, no appreciation and before Neil came, no direct reporting line as well. I was a poor little orphan without even realising it.

Don’t forget readers, I was still getting a very miserable pay. A pay package that goes along the line of office junior admin or front desk executive. Yet, I was patient. Yet I believe the time will come when better things will happen to me because ME is an international corporation. Yet, I was a DREAMER! Just a dreamer who was never awake. For in ME, nothing will ever happen until you make it happen.

Joyce once told me a famous quote in ME which is “Ask and you shall get, seek and you shall find”. That is so horrendously true. At this time, Afida has already left us citing no future in the company and wanting to seek greener pasture elsewhere. She found a job and moved on. The company has by this time hired 2 new designers, Margaret and the other girl who addressed herself as Dell (You know, name like that wont get out of my sight without getting a tease. I called her Compaq.).

Then came a heart to heart talk with Neil which will forever alter my life.

“You know what’s your problem, Dillon?” said Neil

I shook my head.

“You just go quietly contributing to the company without making an effort to make it known that you are contributing a lot. In short, people can’t seem to understand what you do in your small little corner. I bet some people don’t even see why we need a person like you. They perceived your role as just a “copy and paste” person”

“That is crazy. It may be a standard design following templates but imagine taking care of Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, India, Roadshow, Congress, Regional, Korea and at times we have to cover for Australia as well when Ron goes on leave. Not to mention the design we have to do for Ops and Marketing like buntings, web banners, event advertisements, job advertisements, table cards, updating sponsors and partners logos and also designing event catalogue for congresses” I replied hastily

“Wow! Truly astonishing. But do they know? I mean them. The bosses, the directors, the managers and the people that you work closely with. Do they know how much you have to do? The production, the operations and the marketing. How much do they know?” asked Neil

“Not much”

“Exactly my point! When they do not know of your importance, why would the company thinks that you deserve anything?”

“Perhaps, I’m humble”

Neil laughed and replied “Then stop being humble mate. Being humble will get you nowhere. Do something about it. What will make people realise that you are covering a lot of things in this company?”

“Not a clue unless they take interest in asking me”

“The work load listing mate. Make it public. Make it online in fact. Make them see how much you are doing. Use the excuse that they need to queue up and if they are interested to see where their queue number is, they should access the schedule sheet. Do it. Let Jacqui and Christine see it”

I followed his advice thoroughly. As I said before, he’s a wise man and he is pointing me to the right direction. The queuing system was being discussed with Jacqui and being made into practice. The idea was not to make life difficult for production, marketing or ops but rather to see to it that everybody realise just how busy design can be. The idea works out in an almost magical way with instant effect.

Producers, marketing execs and ops execs soon found out just about how sickening the queuing system can be. Firstly it takes an effort to make a booking and then to realise that you are at number 29 is no joke with only 3 designers doing the job. Catherine from Sydney suffered the most I guess. She was always very demanding and always jumps the queue in most occasions but now that the queuing system has been implemented, she has no other alternative but to follow.

“Will you be able to do mine first? It’s just a very simple amendment. Please…” said Catherine

“I can’t. There’s a system being implemented that I am expected to follow. By doing you favour, I’ll be condemning myself and this I will not do”

“Ok. What should I do to get priority? This is very urgent”

“Send a quick email to Jacqui and get her to approve it if you want your request to be priority”

Sending emails to Jacqui and demanding nonsense requests can have severe repercussion. It’s the reality that most producers realised instantly and hence dare not abuse the priority request unless it is extremely urgent like there’s no tomorrow. In the past, there was no system in place but now I am going to make a difference. Let’s be fair, fast and efficient. That’s my aim.

It doesn’t take long for the bosses to realise just how tough life can be at Design. Copy and paste job, my friend? Get out of here…!

“Jesus Christ, Dillon. I didn’t know you guys can have such massive loads everyday. I just learned that my queue is 23” said Jacqui

I gave her a smile and replied “Is yours urgent? Do you want me get on with your request first?

“Nah! Just wondering how you cope with such crazy loads everyday”

“I’m a survivor”

“Is there anything we can do to cut down the load?” she asked

“There is a way but it will require your help. You need to instruct the producers to gather more updates before coming to us instead of updating small little details every now and then.”

“Great. I’ll shoot them a quick email. Let’s cut the load down and let me know if it’s working”

“Ok, Jacqui”

You can see how Neil’s clever little idea is working out. Soon everyone pitied us. Prakash even came to me and said if I needed him to sign a proposal of supporting increment or extra incentives to Design, he will do it. I do not know how true it is but at least the objective is met. He knows how busy we are. Neil’s objective was pretty simple. He wants me to aim at people that will be directly affected and that was what I did.

Next chapter: The ABF offer and my dramatic U-turn

To be continued…

My Story: Life at ME (2003 - 2009) - Part Seven

2010-09-27T09:01:00.000-07:00

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

A learned Aussie with the task of sheltering us from the danger of Winie

From the very moment Neil settle into the office, uneasy eyes were laid on him. Those were the unfriendly eyes filled with anger, jealousy and hatred. Those were the signs that show someone’s medulla oblongata is heavily messed up. Those angry stare were meant for competitor who were a threat. A threat that can end up throwing you out of your position. The devil is under a very much different stress now. She’s not stress with the people who just questioned her leadership not long ago but rather stress about the stranger who are about to be in a higher position than her.

“Why are you always feeling down these days?” asked Sheila, my colleague who carpool with me everyday

“I just want to be able to have one day, going into the office, without feeling insecure, then I’ll be happy” I replied

“Come on. She couldn’t be that bad. I bet she’s over it and moving on”

“Winie’s your friend, Akka (in Tamil means, Sister). I can understand that. I am not going to brainwash you into hating her. Never my intention. Just beware of her. She’s born with 2 heads”

“Hah. Alright. Just try to concentrate on your own stuff and ignore her” said Sheila (Just so you know, this same person who is on such good terms with Winie would end up in the same situation as me. That is to say her friendship with the devil didn’t last when they both joined the next company together. Not so much details were given by Sheila, but she did confirm that she hated Winie. Did I not say that she will never change?)

Perhaps Neil came at the right time to divert her attention from concentrating her attacks on us. The devil has a problem to deal with now. A much bigger problem. The problem is Neil. For now, Afida and I report to him, we are pretty much under his protected shield. It’s now up to the rest of the gang to follow suit.

Direct Marketing was introduced into the team, hence, Prem, Reva and Fiona were given a choice to either join the Direct Marketing team with Neil or to join Winie’s Marketing Endorsement team. I guess you should know that the choice was obvious.

“I can’t believe it. She actually asked me to join her team” said Fiona

“Are you sure? Why would she do that? She hates you” I replied in a shocked manner

“I do not know what’s her agenda. I am not interested. Over my dead body. There was no bloody way in the world I would want to join her” Fiona explained furiously

“Maybe you can rekindle the old friendship with her and you both will be best buddies in no time” I said cheekily

“My ass! No way”

“She is so unbelievable. Perhaps it was the pride matters” I told Fiona

“Pride? What do you mean?”

“She just can’t take it that all her people are leaving her for Neil. That’s sort of embarrassing and affects her already tainted reputation further”

“I give a jackshit about her reputation” said Fiona as we both burst into laughter

It’s official. The devil is down by 3 more which leaves her alone in her miserable team of Marketing Endorsement. She has to recruit newbies.

Ronald, the Senior Designer from Sydney was assigned to the KL office for about a month or so to take care of the recruitment of new designers and also to train us. Ronald and I always communicated through emails and this was the first time I am meeting the man himself. Sue, the Marketing Director in Sydney is also in town to help Neil to kick-start the Direct Marketing team.

Winie was relocated to the room next to us. On her final miserable day inside our room, I gave her a good gesture. Till now, I do not know why I did it but there will be repercussion.

“When are you moving, Winie?” I asked, with the intention of helping her to move

“Soon enough. Why? Cant wait for me to leave is it?” she said angrily

“Ouch! Whatever bitch” I thought to myself

I had really wanted to help her and for that instant moment, I hated myself. Why in the hell did I offer my services to the devil and only to get backlash? Stupid me. I should have known that the devil will always be the devil. On occasion when she walked past me or Fiona, we would offer her a smile while she would give an angry stare and look away. How childish. Even at her age, she’s still incapable of practicing professional manner.

It was during this time when I started to date Shwu Yan and we always meet in car park. I know it was not quite a romantic spot but back then, it was to us. It was blessing to be working in the same company but different offices with no conflict of interest. During one occasion we bumped into Winie on our way to taking the lift.

“My marketing team is the real marketing team. Neil’s direct marketing team is nothing. We are doing association and media partnership which is the real marketing and involves promoting events. We are gonna grow and I will have a team” said the devil

WHATEVER! Like I give a bloody fuck about it. I just listened and ignored. In my mind I was thinking “Just as long as you leave me alone and why the hell you are talking to me all of a sudden. Was I not the enemy to you?”

The devil left feeling satisfied that she had explained to me her glory.

“How weird can she be? She hardly even smile to me and now she can afford to speak to me. Perhaps she needed to parade her ambition and needed someone to listen to especially the enemy just so I know she is alive and kicking. How childish” I said

“She’s scary. All of sudden mocking you with details of her progress as if you needed to know it” said Shwu Yan

“Ah, she matters little to me for your existence has brought brightness to my life that I never had. It was gloomy all along until you came” I said to Shwu Yan.

“Well, I’m glad you don’t need to suffer anymore. Her look says it all. She doesn’t seem to look like a good boss”

“She’s a devil, my dear”

When Neil and Ron came down to KL, we all hangout quite a bit together. Fiona would always warn Neil about Winie. Just so Neil is aware and wont be taking surprises from the devil. Neil is always calm for he’s always 2 or 3 steps ahead of the devil in whatever she does or plan hence need not to be afraid of her. In short, he’s a clever man and to take him down, one will have to be the master of mind games. In later chapters, I will tell you more about this man.

Just a few months later, the devil resigns and finally leaves us in peace. Nobody miss her I guess. She left quietly. Brian wanted to throw a party celebrating that occasion with us. As for me, I am just relieved.

It was our happy moment at last. We held it as long as we could and survived the storm. It was the end of fighting with the devil. From the moment it started to the way it ended, it was well tormenting enough.

"It is imperative to know that there are some people who will walk into our life and try to hurt us. It is even more important to know that a smiling face may not necessarily be your friend. Some people betray in order to defend, while others do it for some gains" - my take on life and friendship in office

To be continued..

My Story: Life at ME (2003 - 2009) - Part Six

2010-09-14T07:46:00.000-07:00

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

The aftermath 2 – To live is a pain, to die is just as painful

I specifically named this title for the aftermath not because of wanting to sound dramatic but rather to describe how we feel at that time. To live is a pain, to die is just as painful was the perfect fitting as we struggled everyday going to work in the same room with the person whom we have just recently classified as the “clear and present danger”. She’s a mean time bomb. She’s watching our movements and her ranting did not ceased. Quite clearly, she’s still pissed.

I tried focusing on my job and distracting myself but whenever the devil had a chance, she will torment my ear with unfriendly words just so to remind me of how ungrateful I was. She would call her husband and complained right in front of us loudly just so we can hear her dissatisfactions. She was not that particular in attacking the others. She was concentrating on me and Fiona. Till now, I do not know why. Maybe others were just mere sheep to her but me and Fiona, we were shepherds. Easily disperse when the shepherds are taken care of.

“Because of you guys, I didn’t even want to plan to have a baby with my husband for the moment, just so I can concentrate on building this team. Just so you will all benefit. For my sacrifice, this is what I get in return” said the devil to me

“What is she? Moses? With all that sacrifices and planning she made, just to take care of poor little me. For that, she should perhaps be rewarded a Datukship, a street should be named after her and more importantly a statue should be designed in her honour”, I thought.

The once harmonious atmosphere in the Marketing and Design room was gone not just for a few days, but perhaps for good. Everyday, you can feel the tension surrounding us and it’s like sitting near to a serial killer who is waiting for a right time to strike us all down. Waiting for the right moment to pounce on us and then yawp “Now take this, you suckas!”

You would never believe the extent of how far she will go in discouraging us from continuing to stand up against her. When words of dissent failed, the threatening ensued.

“Get yourself a sound recording phone, son. You must protect yourself. Record everything that she said to you from now onwards. Keep it as evidence. While we do not want to harm her, we must protect ourselves” said Dad

I was still using an old phone at that time. Hell, she gave me every reason to change my phone at least.

Poor Reva suffered the most perhaps in our struggle. The devil had threatened her that she will not sign or approve her application for university. Punishment for joining the group. Punishment for complaining about her to Jacques. Now, do you still think that she is Moses?

“What happened to Reva?” Afida and I asked

“Well, Winie doesn’t want to sign her university application just to get back at us” said Fi

That is freaking unbelievable! It’s her second attempt in destroying someone’s career/ambition. Who in the right mind would want to deny someone from pursuing further education? Quite rightly, I would have signed the document even if it’s for my worst enemy in the company. I understand that she’s pissed but to take it this personal? That’s another new low even for a creep like her.

We were speechless as we watched Reva cried silently in pain. Prem shook his head and broke the silence.

“She’s too much! Really too much” said Prem

“I know. How horrible can she be? Reva, you gotta go to Jacques” said Fi

Reva kept quiet and continue crying. Perhaps regret came bugging her mind. I don’t blame her. It was bugging my mind too. Did we take it too far with the devil? Poor Reva! It was never our intention to cause so much suffering to Reva who is the victim of this now. How are we going to survive this? What’s the devil next move? All these questions kept attacking my mind restlessly.

“Reva, stop crying and go to Jacques. Don’t let her get away with this. Go Reva” I uttered

“Yes, Reva. Go now” said Afida

With her eyes all wet, Reva got up and went to see the CFO together with Fiona and told him everything. Thank God, Jacques took care of things perfectly. HR will endorse the application and Reva was relieved. Even the usually cool headed Jacques was pissed with Winie’s action.

“Winie! You stay out of this, ok? I want you to stay out of this” screamed Jacques to the horror of the devil. It was a big slap on her face. We were all there when it took place and it was quite a yell in the room. The devil struggled to hide her face. With all that embarrassment that was implanted into her, I guess she would have dug a hole and stayed in there. It was a setback that she never anticipated. “Serve you right, Moses wannabe” I thought.

“It’s confirmed. She’s not your direct boss. She never was. You need not to report to her from now onwards’ said Jacques, the CFO

I was stunned. “Are you sure? How is that so?” I replied

“The truth is, we haven’t found a replacement to fill up the void left by Jacqueline and we are now on the verge of filling that void. I was surprised that you actually reported to Winie. We thought you were comfortable with that and hence we didn’t look into this matter. However, be rest assured that you do not need to report to her anymore. You will soon be reporting under a new boss. Mostly like will be Neil”

“Neil? That sales guy Neil from Shanghai office?”

“The same. He’s on the verge of being promoted to Marketing Director. You know him?” asked Jacques

“Not really in person. We communicated through emails”

“Nevertheless, I hope that is good news to you my friend”

I hope so too. To be honest, at that period of time, anything will do for me. Anything other than Winie’s hell horror seems like a bonus to me.

“If I don’t report to her, can I move away from her? Can I move to the far end corner nearby the door?” I asked

“Yes please. Move to wherever that’s comfortable for you at the moment. Wait till your new boss settles in and he will re-arrange your seating.” replied Jacques

Bloody hell. She was never my boss to begin with. Naturally Afida don’t report to her as well. What a huge bloody mistake to pay so much respect to her and it backfired so badly on me. Moving away from the devil is a must and a priority for me. Still I was sorry for Fiona, Reva and Prem because they still have to report to the devil till further notice. I couldn’t be bothered about informing the devil that I don’t report to her anymore. Neither do I care about whether the CFO did inform her or not. I just want to be away from her. That is all I care.

“Punk! I know you are busy, but I need help urgently. I need to move. I need to move away real fast from Winie” I impatiently uttered those words to the IT guy named Pang.

“Okay! Okay! You’ve been saying that all morning. It’s like you’ve been sitting next to the ghost all these while and suddenly just realised that she was a ghost” said Pang

“Punk, you do not insult the ghost anymore alright. Do not insult them. They were far better than Winie. At least, they were quite harmless compare to her”

“That serious my friend?” laughed Punk

We both burst into laughter and he helped me to move my desktop and fixed the wiring swiftly.

“THANK GOD! Freedom was found at last!” I screamed my lungs out quietly in my heart

Next chapter: A learned Aussie with the task of sheltering us from the danger of Winie

To be continued...

My Story: Life at ME (2003 - 2009) - Part Five

2010-09-02T07:48:00.000-07:00

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

The day we declared in one voice “We had enough” and the aftermath

It was lunchtime and the usual suspects gathered to talk about some real serious stuff. The speeches got very emotional and fiery as it went along. The usual laughing lunch mates who were normally cheerful all these while were feeling down and apparently upset. Very upset at the turn of things lately. Each took their turn to fire up the conversation. With emotions flying and blood boiling moment like this, I wouldn’t be surprised if they are grabbing their fist as they were talking. As for reconciliation with Winie? Forget it!

“Whatever she did to Mona is absolutely sux! I know Mona has got her own disciplinary problems and I’m not entirely siding her but what Winie did to her was terrible. You can even assumed that she plotted the whole thing all these time” said Fiona

“Yeah ha... she’s quite evil” said the normally blur but cheerful Reva

The usually quiet Prem also responded “I never like working for her. Didn’t you guys saw what I was doing? I was surfing Jobstreet”

“Yeah, and she complained about it, you know? She asked us why you were surfing jobstreet? She wants know if you are seeking for another job” I said

“Even I can’t stand her. She changed. She became so bossy and intolerable” said Afida.

“I want you guys to back me. As I said, I am filing a complain against her” said Fiona

Everyone was supportive and chanting in agreement but in my heart, I was a little sceptical. I don’t know if this is a wise plan because that would amount to declaring war against the devil.

“After that, what would happen? Once she found out, she will hate us. All of us” said Reva

“Fi, she’s evil. Once we complain, then it is “War”. You do know that right? There will be no turning back and there may be consequences for every one of us. Think about that” I said

“Yes I know. Have you not heard of ‘All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing’?. We must do something about it. We cant just tolerate her abuses everyday. If it ends up bad, it ends up bad. If the company would not back us up, then at least we know it is not worth staying. If I fight all the way for us and you guys were to give up, I will be speechless” replied Fiona

Images of Winie’s mistreatment and lousy bitch-ass attitude flew past me in that very moment. I said before, I cant continue to work with her like this everyday. I was thinking of quitting the job. So what pain it will cause me if the consequences of all this is, I lose my job?

My friend Fiona can be such a fine politician if she chooses this profession. If Hitler succeeded in persuading the Germans to kill the Jews out of hatred, Fiona succeeded in her hate speech to persuade us to go against evil Winie.

“Can you imagine how life will be everyday coming to work, reporting to a devil like her? Do you guys feel happy? Do you want to continue working like this? For me, it’s no way!” Fiona’s angry speech continued

“Of course, we are not happy. I feel the pain just by knowing that I have to come to work every morning and not knowing what will happen next. I dragged myself to work today” I said

“No, Fiona. You know we are suffering” said Afida

“Prem and Reva?” asked Fiona

“Ok. Let’s do it” said Reva

“Yeah.. Alright” said Prem

When I was a little kid, people always tell me not to trust the Indians when they give their words and promises. (This is not a racist statement)

“You rather trust the snakes than the Indians” said some people

But Reva and Prem live up to their promises. We gave Fiona our assurances and we are going ahead with the plan.

“There you go. We go to Jacques, voice out our unhappiness” said Fiona

“Jacques? Of all the people? Can we trust him? Why him?” asked everyone

“We certainly can if we bring a voice recorder. He’s in charge of the whole 12th floor and he’s the CFO. We have to go to him”

“What’s with the voice recorder?” I asked

“Just so he wont gives us empty promises. I will have it recorded as evidence of our complains”

“Sounds like a plan. So let’s say hey to Uncle J”

Here we go. No turning back unless you are prepared to be despised by your gang and be labelled “coward” by everyone. The consequences of the person turning back on this plan are worse than dying. Imagine coming to work everyday with people swearing and cursing at you as you walk past them. “Pukimak.#$!@%$* Chicken shit! Asshole! Scared shitless dick! or even worse, he’s such a pussy” duhhhh …..I will fight with Winie till I fall. 

On that fateful day when we will be launching our attack plan, Winie was on leave. Perfect day, perfect time. All 5 of us went to Jacques and of course Fiona led the discussion in the meeting room. Jacques patiently listen to our complains and compliment us for not resigning and leaving without a word. Everything was smooth except for one thing. Just one thing.

“I’ll discussed this issue with Mathavi and we’ll come out with a solution” said Jacques

“Mathavi??? That devil? Oh my God. Don’t you know Winie and her are like BFF? If someone said they both sleep together I wouldn’t be surprised” I thought

“Can we trust Mathavi? She’s very close to Winie” asked Fiona

“Yes. She will carry her duty professionally” replied Jacques

My first silent reaction to this was, “Professional, My Ass!” It would take an angel to fly out of my ass, Kim Jong Il to change his profession to a pastor, Bin Laden to love America and Anwar to hug Mahathir like a loving brother to happen first before that devil escaped from hell named Mathavi would carry her duty professionally.

“Listen. You have my words. Mathavi follows my instructions. I don’t care if Winie’s her friend. She works for me, not for Winie” explained Jacques trying to kill off any suspicious thoughts that we may have against Mathavi.

For me, it doesn’t change a thing. I am just placing my bet into the CFO and his so called reliable Mrs Number 2, Monster Mat..! How unfortunate. If I could work this out again, I wouldn’t know if I still have the courage to go ahead and fight if I knew I had to rely on that devil to against the devil in my room.

For the complete secrecy of this mission, we each promised each other not to let another soul know about this apart from really trustable close friends who were nowhere close to Winie. We completely placed our trust into the hand of the CFO and parted with him from the meeting room happily. We were relieved. We were just so relieved that at least someone with power or higher authority has listened to our sufferings. At least if we did not achieve anything in the end, her evil acts will never go unknown. If we are casualties, the next generation will be on full alert. If we are going down, we are bringing her down. If we win, we will go about our business quietly and move on and pray to God although it’s near to impossible that she will change. Cause if she does, that would be one of the biggest highlight on planet earth since Olympic was created and Uruguay won the first World Cup.

The Aftermath

The next morning painfully came. Perhaps you can sense the almighty has promised us a fashionable day full of dramas and events to fill our empty life with something. It began with the usual suspects going into the room where the devil is comfortably sitting. She greeted us warmly as if to tell us that she had a wonderful break. Fiona couldn’t even afford a weak smile in return, while I gave a faint smile and looked away. The devil was stunned at the level of coldness given by her colleagues. She smells something was not right and her devil instinct told her to go all out to find out what had transpired this cold treatment. To get her first clue, she had to rely on a normally reliable source, the other devil. She retreated from the room and went missing for half an hour or more.

The information that she got back instantly changes her mood into a nasty one. It was the exact opposite of the cheery mood that greeted us warmly not long ago. A closer look at her, one can tell her blood is boiling, as her angry looking face became more and more apparent.

“What had happened Dillon. Why did you all complain to Jacques about me?” said Winie

I was shocked. How did she know? That bloody secret can’t even be kept from her for more than an hour? And why asked me of all people. I am not prepared to answer to any allegations at this point of time till further notice. Hehe.

“Who told you that?” I asked

“It doesn’t matter. Why did you guys do it?”

“We had to”

“What do you mean you had to?” asked the devil

“You were crossing the line. We had no choice”

“What do you mean you had no choice? I told you if there’s anything, you can tell me openly and we can discuss. Why do you guys resort to complaining to Jacques and put my reputation into question?

I was annoyed. Why keep attacking me with shit load of questions? And who is the culprit that told her everything? Questions keep coming into my mind. Son of a bitch. Must be Mathavi! Well of course. Who else would it be?

Didn’t I already say that Monster Mat can never carry her duty professionally? Need more convincing? I bet not.

To be continued....

The Aftermath 2 – To live is a pain, to die is just as painful

My Story: Life at ME (2003 - 2009) - Part Four

2010-08-25T07:44:00.001-07:00

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

Winie - From Ms. Congeniality to Monster Inc.

There were 7 reasons to explain why Winie would turn into a sudden monster that would disrupt my otherwise peaceful life for some time.

1) She was all along a sleeping monster, waiting to rise
2) She was a hypocrite
3) She embraced and worshiped Nazi
4) She believed and practiced the Feudal system (Master and slaves), believing it's the best system at work.
5) She's anti capitalist
6) She's a sadist
7) She has been influenced by another monster, Mathavi

And only reason number 1,2, 6 and 7 was reasonable to me anyway. Especially reason number 7. :). Perhaps it changed her knowing that another monster is around and they had something in common - ie: Tormenting people's life.

Before Winie became a monster, life was about:

1) Lunch with Fiona, Mona, Prem, Reva, Brian, Sunitha, Seng Hong, etc
2) Welcoming Geraldine into the gang
3) Joking and laughing with Winie herself
4) Partying with Max, Rita, Kar Wai, Geraldine, Brian, Fiona, Prem, etc
5) Looking forward to end month parties and Christmas
6) Avoiding troubles with Mathavi
7) Starting to know Shwu Yan in ME
8) And above all, working peacefully

So what on earth happened?

The events leading to the revolt against Winie

1) Change of office
ME has expanded and we have moved to 12th floor office, newly renovated for production, finance, marketing, design, ops and the rest of the world. So how would that affect us, one might wonder? It’s simple. We are sleeping with the enemy now. An enemy we never realise all along. We are in the same room with Winie. When one spend an awful amount of time with Winie, one would learn all about her and know what type of person she really is.

“You know, Prakash is a real lazy fella. His marketing handover is always incomplete. It’s like he never really put any effort into it at all,” said Winie

“Seriously? I thought he was a very hardworking fella all along, is he not? In fact, I can see guys like him getting a bright chance for promotion,” I responded
“Promotion? Never! Perhaps in his wildest dream but not in reality,” Winie declared

Everyone of us were laughing before someone unexpected opened the door.

“Hi Prakash! How are you?” said Winie aloud with intention of signalling to all of us the person she just bitched so hard about, just turned up. We are expected to show no sign of whatsoever to him. We are supposed to cease laughing and pretend normal.

“Hey Winie, I’m good. What about you?” Prakash innocently replied as I looked at Fiona whom, like me, was struggling to hold our laughter. In fact, every one of us was surprised that Prakash turned up at a moment like this. What a coincident.

They had a short discussion about marketing activities, endorsers and partners and so forth and it ended up with Winie agreeing to everything Prakash proposed in a friendly manner. Very friendly manner indeed. Too friendly for someone who was complaining so much just 5 minutes ago. A very clear sign of hypocrisy from our friend.

“Why didn’t you tell him what you just told us? Perhaps he can work out a thing or 2 and give you what you want” I enquired curiously

“I did. I told him to put more details in the handover. Anyway, what difference it would have made? These guys will never change. I rather save my breath” replied Winie

Our day to day working life is filled up with Winie telling us stories about almost everyone. Well, not stories, it’s more like unconfirmed rumours. She would pin-point the sluts and the weirdos in particular for her attack speech to begin.

“OH MY GOD! Did you know who and who slept with who and who? How disgusting! Ewww.. So distasteful. Just by knowing it makes me wanna puke!” said Winie

“Are you serious?” we all enquired curiously

“Yes”

“But how would you know?”

“Someone told me. It was from a good source. I just cant believe it. Oh gosh. Yucks!”

That was how dramatic and we all buy it because she was so convincing. As I said, it was unconfirmed rumours. By the way, if you must know, most of the rumours flying around in ME are hogwash (bollocks). How do I know? For one, I was a victim as well and two, I have dispelled many rumours lately when I met up with most of the other victims.

There was once a rumour flying around about me sleeping with a lesbian and then as it passes on to another mouth and another mouth, I apparently slept with a transvestite. So you can see the dramatic changes of how the rumours were being transmitted in ME. I was furious and blood was boiling. Accusing me of sleeping with someone is bad enough but sleeping with a transvestite? NO WAY!

“Did you hear the rumour about me?” I asked Ian

“The one about you sleeping with changed sex faggots? I loved that one the most! HAHA” Ian replied jokingly

“Dude, it seems funny to you but I am the victim of this bloody rumour, alright?”

“Alright… alright… bloody calm down. Calm down dude”

“If they had said about me with a girl, I would have just laugh and forget it but with a trans… bloody hell.”

“I know, I know. I wouldn’t mind as well. Hehe. So did you err…?”

“You are an ass, you know that right?” I said to Ian

“Oh come on… move on with it. It’s not like there’s anything you can do. The more you do, the worse it will get. People will soon forget about it”

“Sigh…. Did they say how the trans look like?” I enquired

“Nope. Does it matter?” asked Ian

“Well, just curious. If they look something like you, I would consider suicide to prove my innocent! No kidding”

We both laughed and soon this rumour was forgotten as it didn’t carry much weight anyway. Perhaps, too little evidence or I am not someone so important. Still, it was a traumatising experience.

Then there were another rumour about me knowing all the salaries of ME staff because I am good friend with Jerry.

“Did you know what happened?” Jerry said furiously

“I don’t. What happened?” I enquired in a serious tone

“They dragged me into the meeting room and accused me of telling you the salary of all ME staff”

“Let me guess. Mathavi?”

“Yup. Mathavi and my boss Jacques”

Again my blood was boiling as you know how much I loathe that woman.

“This is nonsense. Let me walk up to them and end this rubbish now right away” I said angrily

“DON’T! Please don’t” said Jerry

“Why not?”

“If you walk up to them and tell them off, you would only prove them right. They accused me of telling you everything, including confidential things like this one. So if you go to them, when no one is supposed to know about this, and then talk to them about it, we are screwed!” pleaded Jerry

“Sack of Wine! How did that bitch came out with such a story?”

“Perhaps you were my friend and she didn’t like me. It’s convenient to use you to get to me. And if you walk up to them, she would have succeeded even more. So stay put, my friend. I can take this shit. I’ve taken lots of shit before this and survived. Just don’t feel bad about it. I just feel that you should know as you are a victim too, just like me”

“Jerry. We gotta be careful. Perhaps that monster is bored so she starts creating fantasy stories these days. Maybe next time, she may accuse you of falling in love with her and then buying roses for herself just to give more weight to her story”

“My ass! I would rather die than to fall for her. Even if she was the last female on earth, I will still choose to die by burning my own body so that she don’t even benefit anything from my motionless body”

“HAHA…. Well, for all you know, she can be romantic. Who knows? Maybe that part of life is depriving her. You know, romance. Fulfil her wish, Jerry. Make her normal”

“I rest my case and I leave that honourable task to you instead”

We both laughed but Jerry was disillusioned with his boss starting from this point onwards.

2) Mona Vs Winie went to another level
Tension grew as both are eager to find fault with each other but unfortunately the evil one would prevail at the end. Till now, I do not know the actual story behind it but as I mentioned in my previous chapter, for this conflict to end, someone will have to go.

Mona came in one day, and was told to leave. She packed her stuff under the watchful eye of Mathavi and Winie but she didn’t leave just like that. A scene followed soon after. She went to Jacqui’s office to bid her farewell and also to complain. It didn’t matter. Once Winie knew she was still in the office, she went to Mathavi and reported it. Mathavi then went to Jacqui’s office to chase Mona off but was refused by Jacqui. Monster Mathavi did not let it rest as she brought Jacques this time and Jacqui has no choice but to comply. She was never allowed to step in to the office anymore. It was just after lunch. I was stunned and so were everyone.

“What happened to Mona?” asked Fiona

“I don’t know. Whatever it is, Winie has got something to do with it” I replied

“Yeah. That I know”

Mona text Fiona and ask her and the rest of us to meet up after work. We complied obviously as we want to know what was going on. Winie keeps quiet the whole time about this incident, pretending that she has got nothing to do with it. 5.30pm sharpish, we went down to Carnegies, the bar at ground floor to meet up with Mona. Jacqui was already there with her.

“What happened?” we asked curiously with deep sympathy

“That bitch! She manipulated the whole thing. She got me sacked” said Mona

“You mean Winie? But how?” I asked

“On the grounds that I had poor discipline. Being late to work on many occasions. She went in to complain to Mathavi many times and so finally, they had to do something. That bitch don’t even allow me to talk to Jacqui in the office” Mona angrily said

“We know. We saw it. Premo innocently asked why you were in Jacqui’s office and she heard. Once she found out, she complained to Mathavi straight. The rest is history” said Fiona

Till now, I do not know what actually happened or are there more reasons to her dismissal. She was too emotional to tell us. We consoled her.

That was the turning point by the way for we finally saw the “real Winie” and we were disgusted and very much disturbed. We saw the whole thing and how she took care of things. The thing for us is, she went all out to kill her enemy without any sense of remorse. Bad enough she ended someone’s career just like that, she actually even took the courtesy to ensure that Mona cant spend another 5 more minutes saying goodbye to her friends and Jacqui. It was a real low point even for someone like her.

3) The feeling of full autonomy as Mona left
This is also one of the biggest reasons that changed her instantly. She feels that she had full control of Marketing and Design now that her main rival Mona has left. She acted swiftly to micro managing everything. Perhaps under the tutelage of her best friend, evil Mathavi, she adopted the character of never letting a single incident go without getting involved. The way she carries herself, the way she speaks, the way Winie used to be, is completely gone by now if you are still wondering. Fiona and I became very disillusioned with her as tension grew.

She would come in with an attitude and saying things like:

a) “I forbid you from doing this” (What the hell? It’s like a command from a dictator. Anyway, I was just gonna do a small favour for the Ops department and that was her response)

b) “That is absolutely rubbish. How can you get approval for this? I am going to speak to them and highlight to them how stupid they were for approving this” (on occasion when Producer came out with a well, less than creative ideas)

c) “You are not to speak to who and who without my consent” (applicable to everyone of us)

d) “You are not allowed to go to any events without my approval” (this one was for Fiona)

On all these occasions, she did it with yelling. There were occasions of verbal abuse towards Prem, Reva and Afida as well although it was much lesser. The main victims were me and Fiona. Soon, everyone became disillusioned. I was very affected. I started to think that I need to look for another job. I just can’t work under this monster. She is constantly looking for faults just like Mathavi.

Next chapter: The day we declared in one voice “We had enough” and the aftermath

My Story: Life at ME (2003 - 2009) - Part Three

2010-08-24T08:46:00.000-07:00

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

After some time, it did occurred to me what if there are some really hardworking innocent souls in sales who was actually unlucky in pitching the client all the way but the marketing form slid in out of nowhere under their noses and they lost the deal. Not that it is any of my business but I was thinking why cant they share the deal if the salesperson in question can provide a just cause like written emails and follow ups. The company didn't share my view. Again, not that it is any of my business, just a thought. Anyway, these hardworking innocent souls belong to the minority group if they at all exist. Majority are crooks! No question.

A girl named Mona came in as Marketing Executive for the Singapore market after Yati was transferred to Ops. Raj was assigned to be the GM of Singapore office and he was in KL briefly. He came in with a smile and told Mona that he got a deal and he's gonna share it with her as Mona assisted in some ways.

"What a hell of a guy this Raj is", I thought to myself. Sharing deal between Sales and Marketing? It has never happened before. Not before my eyes at least. I mean that was so selfless and what a good start to his reign as GM. Without question, of course our girl Mona was delighted. I was quite taken by this selfless person and he totally earned my respect. I would addressed him "Sir Raj" and he would called himself "the truck driver". Perhaps, the polluted environment in ME affected him badly for his good nature were soon just a part of history and nothing more. Whether it was really from the heart in the beginning or an act, till now I do not know. Well, if you must know, most people do hate him now. Whenever you mentioned the name "Raj", cursing and swearing will naturally follow the smooth flow of the conversation. Yet, he never mistreated me during my time there.

My direct boss Winie and Mona never really get along. It was all well at first until a small conflict took place and it changes the whole thing. It was really just a small petty issue.

One would understand why they addressed each other as "Bitch" and I can tell you I never enjoyed a bitch fight. Not a single time. They usually end up with the quote like "There will be blood" or "it will be a bloodshed!" sort of situation. You know what I'm saying? For a conflict like that to end, someone usually have to die. Or in this case, someone usually have to get fried, I mean fired. Only the strong will survive. Sounds like a gladiator drama filled scenario and indeed it was.

They would spend days after days, hours after hours, minutes after minutes bitching about each other. Joyce and I are ears to their never ending normally over dramatic complains. If they had save their breath, I think they can have 3 more healthy years to add on to their life span. No kidding.

The only thing they have in common was, acting. They can act really well. Both of them. When they are facing each other, they can smile pretentiously and treat it like nothing has ever happened. Well, just as Winie walked out of the room, a familiar word came ringing to my ear again.

"BITCH!" yelled Mona.

I seriously never understand why a person would put so much effort into hating another person. Martin Luther King once said that "Hate is so much of a burden" and I couldn't agree more. My own brother is a person who is full of hatred and that has brought him lots of anger, grievances and worst of the lot, grey hairs.

Mona vs Winie isn't the only WWE program on ME television network everyday if you ever wonder. There was JK vs Raj, J. Anil vs Linda, April vs Annie, Sonia vs almost everyone, Manuja + Rita vs Joyce (double KO match) and many more. Life is happening at ME for the right or wrong reason. I dont know. Peace can be boring sometimes which is why the CFO, Jacques embrace controversies and that's because he love dealing with it and actually has something to do!

Anyway, April (Ops) vs Annie (HR) went on to another level when she resigned and wrote a hate note describing how Annie was a racist and JK never listened to her. Kar Wai found the hate note in April's former working desk and shared it with me during lunch time. Till now, not many people knew about this. I guess she just needed someone to know how she felt which is why she did what she did. So, isn't hating someone so much is such a burden? It makes you go crazy and do stupid things that you would normally not.

After a short while, Annie resigned from her post as well as describing to me that she found a better offer elsewhere. I was happy for her but I missed her. For after her time is up, came a cold and manipulative monster called Mathavi. Most people in ME would suffered for the next few years. The very first day I laid my eyes on her, I knew this woman was never going to be my choice for Miss Congeniality. Making life difficult for people is her hobby. She's exactly the sort of character that the CFO loves. Finking. She would fink and report everything to him with a bit more of dramatic accusations added into the already undeserving over-hyped daily incidents or dramas. Small petty issues, she will bring it up to Jacques. Not a single fly miss her dark sullen eyes.

She would begin with "Jacques, you know what? Yaaa yaaa yaaa yaaa yaaaa daa daaa daaa daaaa...." and so forth and then plot evil things.

To be honest, I feel sorry for her. This is the exact life of a sadist. My direct boss Winie, became her only good friend in ME. For some time, I wondered why a good person like Winie would befriend an evil like Mathavi? (Well, at least I thought Winie was a really decent person at that time except for her squabbling with Mona, she has carried herself very well thus far. One can only fear the worst when 2 evil forces combined.)

Joyce soon resigned claiming that she wanna fulfill her dream of backpacking. Honestly, she wont be a person I would missed that much as she had constantly harassed me with her mood swings. There was a few occasions, she even yelled at me. But during her last few weeks, we really click along well. Maybe the stress was over for her. She finally put it down.

"Dillon, I am so sorry for whatever wrong that I did to you. It was never my intention to cause any hurt to you", said Joyce

"Sigh, during the Asian Tsunami disaster and you were in Penang, I had hoped you were one of the victims" I thought jokingly

"Don't worry about it, Joyce. I sincerely hoped you will enjoy your trips and become a changed person" said I.

In all fairness, I was sincere. I hoped she will change. I told you before, for what it's worth, she was real all this while. She was never a hypocrite.

Fiona, who would be a close friend of mine till now, joined the company taking over from Joyce. In the meantime, a caucasian woman named Jacqui (my future direct boss), who was in charge of Korean and Regional production team was officially announced by the company as Regional Head of Production and overseeing the whole production team in Asia. Then came Afida (the other designer), Prem and Reva (the marketing assistants). The company finally hire another designer to help me after poor me was ill for 2 weeks. Down with chicken pox and Jacqui took the initiatives with the advise of Winie to hire another designer. Of course Jacqui couldn't bear with the workloads piling up and nothing moved.

Next chapter:
Winie - From Ms. Congeniality to Monster Inc.

My Story: Life at ME (2003 - 2009) - Part Two

2010-08-24T05:46:00.000-07:00

*note: This post is solely based on my life experience at ME and my opinion and in no way meant to offend anyone still associated with ME.

It was early in the morning and she would come in with a warm smile offering to buy us starbucks coffee and sandwiches.

"Starbucks anyone? It's on me!" said Winie

"My direct boss is unbelievable. She's pretty, warm, great human touch, loves her colleagues, easy going, approachable and totally a team player". That was what I thought when I told Kar Wai who on the other hand complained about his direct boss.

"Linda on the other hand is the most unbelievable b*tch alive! Mood swings every second. One second laughing and the next screaming. I think Margaret Thatcher (the ex-prime minister of Britain) is easier to get along with than her."

"God, you and the malay girl must be suffering. How are you coping?" I replied

"Heads down when she's scolding, smile faintly when she's joking. You know what they used to say? Jacqueline, Annie and Linda are the Soong Sisters. Ladies with Iron Fists in ME!"

"Sounds good. It's Nazi rule, dude. You can survive that. The Jews have survived. So will you, the great Au Kar Wai!" I joked at my friend's misfortune.

"Ha Ha Ha. Very funny! Wait till you get it from your boss"

One will never predict that curse will one day come true.

On a fine morning, faxes came in to marketing room when the marketing executive and the marketing manager was not around. They were on leave or something, I cant remember that well. It was 7 bookings from Indonesia. Not that it mattered to me but I was delighted for my company. I went in and picked it up to pass to the receptionist who would normally register the bookings"

"Wow Shima. Looks like there's alot of faxes coming in for Marketing today. Looks like marketing got lots of deals" I said smilingly, never knowing a few sharp hearing crocs are nearby.

Just only a few seconds of uttering those words, a number of the sales people all gathered around me like I'm the scandal of the town. They each took turn to grab the faxes away from me. One even got the courtesy of copying every details down without asking for permission. They just literally took it away from me like hungry dogs seeing a bucket of fresh cooked chickens! I didn't retaliate. I kept quiet and let them do whatever they want.

"Whatever these guys are up to, it ain't good. I can see evil. That suspicious look, that evil grin just alarmed me that everything they did was not right" I thought to myself.

"ARE THEY GONNA STEAL THE DEALS?????"

"OH MY GOD!! I must do something" I thought to myself.

I cant let this happen. I'm sorry but it's my moral duty to ensure these buggars do not profit from what it's not supposed to be theirs.

I mean, come on!. Work hard to get what you deserve. Resorting to stealing is the most disgusting behavior I ever witnessed. I knew how desperate they were to perform and get good KPIs but stealing? No way!

I walked straight into the HR room with the faxes that I got back and reported it to Annie. Names were revealed one by one.

"Annie, I think they are up to something but I am not so sure. Whatever it is, promise me you will stop these evils", I said impatiently

"Don't worry. You did the right thing. I will know what to do next", Annie replied

Well perhaps, they got what they deserved. JK dragged them in to the meeting room for a tongue lashing session and the marketing deals were registered as ....well, marketing deals after all. Sweet victory? No?

Nah...Relieved? Yes. But I loathed the idea of fighting with these people and my immediate thought was "Are they gonna hate me, boycott me, gang up on me or what?"

Surprisingly, none of that happened. They even treated like nothing had ever happened. They knew it was me but still smile to me warmly. Now that put me in precarious situation. What does that mean? Are these jokers either waiting for a chance to finish me off quietly like accusing me of something and get me into trouble or just really wanting to move on and not offend me? I think I prefer the latter.

Anyway, a week passed by and it was all calm until Yati came in with a marketing deal one day.

"What am I to do with this?" said she

"Give it to Shima. She will know what to do"

Yati went out in a hush hush and bumped into a man named Imran on the way. Imran pretentiously chatted with Yati with one eye peeping at the details of the booking. Yati noticed. Thank God.

"I think Imran was trying to copy the details, Dillon. What am I supposed to do?"

"What? That fella who prayed 5 times a day, often brag about honesty in being a Muslim and carrying the honor of his religion is doing this dirty little rubbish act?", I replied angrily. I just couldn't believe it. Him above all should know that God can see what he is doing.

"What is he doing?", asked Yati innocently

"He's trying to steal the deal, my dear friend. Dirty rotten pretentious a**hole!"

"Come with me, Yati" I demanded.

We both went to HR, reported to Annie and as usual, Annie took care of business and the rest is history. The deal went back to marketing. It turned out that the dirty scum indeed tried to steal it.

In case if you are wondering how they can steal the deal, well it's simple. As long as the deal has not been registered into the system, anyone can contact the clients, lie to them about some technical errors, resend the booking form with their name to the client and tell the client to re-fax it again. Innocent client will do it of course. Never knowing the dirty politics going on.

Imran never let the case rest. He barged in to the room and asked me and poor Yati.

"Why? Why did you do it?" he asked

"It was not your deal, Imran. I don't care if you hate me, but it was not yours. I know I could stay out of this but I dont want to. And it's because you dont deserve that deal", I replied without fear

"At least be honest with me. Dont bloody give me that fake smile and then report me to HR" he said angrily and left.

I know I am supposed to be angry but I couldn't for I pissed myself laughing with Yati.

"Did he just mentioned the word "Honest" again? Oh my God! That man need to self-evaluate big time" I said as I burst out laughing with Yati who reacted dramatically as well in agreement.

Again my ending to chapter 2 will be typical of me. There are many more dirty scumbags whom I do not want to mention here. So if you from sales, and you're reading this and thinks that I am talking about you, well, then that's you! :)

"Observe the smile that came your way for it could spell evil intentions"

To be continued....