New Kid On The Blog

18-JUL-2009:

Every year, Sky organizes a company-wide event. For the past 2 years, it was a Christmas party. On my 1st year there, it was called the "Winter Party" because if I'm not mistaken it was not to offend people who don't celebrate Christmas. I didn't attend it that year. On my 2nd year there, it was called "Christmas Party". This time, I went but I didn't enjoy it at all. I thought it was really pointless - only suitable for party animals. It started really late (like around 9pm). It was like a large crowded disco. There were drinks (alcoholic). People were just standing around holding their drinks. Some were dancing (I think) but it looked really silly especially when everyone was still sober because there wasn't a dance floor. There was finger food too but because it was 9pm (after dinner), I wasn't hungry. I don't like alchohol at all and it was too noisy to even carry on a conversation, therefore there was nothing to do except to stand around. I left as soon as it was polite to say goodbye to my colleagues.

This year, there wasn't a Christmas Party (I mean, last year). There was one actually but a departmental one and I didn't bother to attend. Instead, we had a summer festival (called Sky Fest) over two days - Friday night for single people and Saturday for family. I had been looking forward to it because "family" sounds exactly the kind of thing that will suit me. Finally, the day has come but Saimun has flown off to Malaysia last night. At first, I didn't want to go at all since Saimun won't be around. But when I checked out the programme guide and I saw the words "Train Ride", I made up my mind to go even if it was just Dom and I. Dom will never miss a train ride.

As it turned out, it was more than just a train ride. There were some other rides but Dom was rather selective. He only went for the train ride (for like 10 times), the merry-go-round and the ferris wheel. All rides were free of charge.

This is the coach that took us to the site (at my office).

It was close to 12 noon when we arrived so we had something to eat. I was given �7 worth of food token. There were a number of food stalls to choose from - burgers, sandwiches, jacket potatoes, fried chicken, fish & chips, etc, but my Chinese son chose Thai noodles in green curry chicken. And ice-cream, of course. Before we left (at around 3:30pm), we Thai noodles again (this time with sweet and sour pork) and apple juice. The �7 token was of course insufficient. I had to top up �9 by cash.

It wasn't very busy when we got there, so Dom has the opportunity to go on any rides he wanted. He enjoyed the train ride the most (needless to say). After a while, he insisted to go onto the 2nd carriage only and I wondered why. Later I found out that it was because the 2nd carriage had a button that makes sounds when you push it.

We went on the ferris wheel. It was rather scary actually, especially when we were at the top. Dominic was a bit scared too but he didn't cry. He just yelled, ""Woahh ... mummy!" everytime we reached the peak and descended again. We were going round and round a few times and I was silently asking "When are we going to stop?".

There were some adult rides that we didn't go on.

There were stage performances too and indoor games. Dominic likes the bowling game but by the time we got to the indoor activities, it was almost 3pm and the place was full of people. The queue to the bowling game was quite long too, so he only had one go.

By the time we got home, it was almost 4:30pm. We called daddy on the way home and he had just reached his parents' home. Dominic refused to take off his wrist band and he insisted to put it back on using cello-tape after his bath. He thinks that as long as he still has the wrist band on, he can go to this fun magical place again!

There was nothing there for me at all but seeing my little boy enjoy himself was all that mattered. It would have been perfect if daddy was there too.

# posted by Skye @ 2:39 pm 1 comments

16-JUL-2009:

It's true when they say that everything is in God's hands. Many of you know that we had always wanted to move back to Malaysia. One day. Eventually. Only that we didn't know when that 'one day' will come. We've had so many considerations that the sequence of events is a bit fuzzy in my memory now.

I remember talking about it when the recession hit and Saimun's company was offering redundancy packages. We thought it would be great to leave the country with a big lump sum of tax-free money. But then, he got promoted. We said we would wait and he should experience his new role for a few months. There would be another one - most probably.

True enough, there was a 2nd round of VSS - I'm not sure if it was 6 months or 1 year later. But he didn't take it. I don't remember why exactly but I think it's because the recession was really bad by now and I guess we were worried that we might not be able to find jobs back in Malaysia. Besides, I think I was pregnant and I wanted to enjoy my maternity leave and pay. We didn't know that the pregnancy was going to end prematurely.

Finally, I got pregnant again early this year and everything has been fine. Our plan was to deliver the baby here, stay for about a year and then perhaps move back to Malaysia. Then, about a month ago, Saimun's project got shelved and he has been on the bench ever since. In fact, he's been spending all of his time at home up till now because he didn't know which office he should go to. Meanwhile, he spent some time looking for other projects because he can't possibly be non-chargeable for long. He had a tough time because all of the projects are based outside of London, which means he'll have to be away from home for most of the time.

One evening, he told me that there's a role with Telekom Malaysia and should he apply? I had doubts, only because Plan A was so set in my mind and I was really looking forward to it. I've already notified my company that I'll start my maternity leave on 1st September. I will send Dom to the nursery for half a day, five days a week and I've got all the activities planned for the afternoons. On Mondays, we will go swimming. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, we will attend play groups. On Wednesdays, we will bake a cake at home, and on Fridays we will take a break and just relax. I was totally looking forward to the two months with Dom before I deliver the baby. In spite of all that, I told Saimun to go ahead because he seemed really keen. Besides, they might not want him. :p

A couple of days later, he received an e-mail from the Asia Pacific office in Singapore informing him that Telekom couldn't afford him because he's too expensive being a UK resource. Plan A was in full force again. Until the day (which was 2 days ago) he received another e-mail informing him that "Telekom would like him on board as soon as possible". Don't you hate the phrase "as soon as possible"? Saimun called me at work and we talked briefly about it. I could tell that he was really excited and with no effort at all I decided that I will support his decision, if that's what he wants. After I put down the phone, I made a pro/con list. Do you know that the best way to make a decision is to make a pro/con list? :-D

Pro:

1. Saimun can get per diems
2. Will be able to get private medical care - can have more scans to find out if baby is really a girl. (Later, I realized that this is not really a benefit because I can always pay for private scans here as well)
3. Family to help around with
4. Dominic can attend "proper education" - start to get used to M'sian education system
5. Can use time to look for new house in M'sia
6. 2nd hand baby clothes from Shaynne (niece)

Con:

1. Need to pay hospital bills
2. Baby will not be born in UK - no discount for tertiary education (Saimun explained later that since both of us are still employed in the UK, we can always come back after my maternity leave and then we can apply for PR-ship)
3. Risk of flying - blood clot and radiation
4. Short notice to company - may not be able to take off early (but that's all settled now - I'm starting maternity leave on 1st Aug instead)
5. Saimun will have to work hard and late in M'sia (he added this himself)

So there. The pro/con list really got me excited because obviously there are more pros than cons. Besides, both of us will still be paid in ���s. We'll be expats in our own home country. We'll have "benefits" - perhaps free housing, company car, etc. But actually no. The project is just too cheapskate. They told Saimun to take a cab to work instead (claimable expense, by the way) and they don't provide housing. The project manager wants him there on Monday (critical 2 weeks, architecture design, bla, bla, shit), therefore Saimun will be flying off this Saturday night and he'll come back 2 weeks later to pick Dom and I up. The project is for 6 months initially but if you've worked with Accenture before you'll know that things can change by the minute. Chances are we'll come back after 6 months and continue life as usual. Or we may decide not to come back. Saimun sees this as an opportunity for transitioning and to find out if we can ever adjust back to life in M'sia.

# posted by Skye @ 6:16 am 0 comments

10-JUL-2009:

Things happened recently. First of all, Saimun got sick. He thought he had a fever on Friday but it went away. In any case, he wasn't sure it was a fever since it was too mild. Then it came back on Tuesday afternoon (not mild this time) and saw a doctor on Wednesday afternoon. You know how cold and flu symptoms are almost the same and the doctor couldn't tell for sure if he was having a flu or a cold without doing any lab tests. In normal cases, if it is a suspected flu case, they will send a sample (of whatever - saliva maybe) to be tested for swine flu but there have been many flu cases and they aren't able to test everyone anymore. Because Saimun's fever was quite high and he had all the other symptoms, the doctor just assumed that he had a flu and to be "safe", categorized him as a "suspected swine flu" victim. He was told to stay away from people as much as possible and I had to pick up his Tamiflu prescription from the Town Hall. At the Town Hall, two guys sat at the entrance and one of them sprayed my hands with anti-septic foam on my way in and out. I told the worker Saimun's name and she retrieved a form from a box. There were many boxes full of forms (for people who would be collecting their Tamiflu) and I commented to the worker that there was an awful lot of people with flu. She nodded and said that's only in Ealing. Imagine the whole of London.

Saimun was sick for an awful long time. By Sunday, when he still had a fever, I told him that it might be a bacteria infection and that he had better call the doctor. He did, but since it was a Sunday, the doctor asked him to wait it out until Monday. On Monday, he was diagnosed with a throat infection and was prescribed anti-biotics, and about 2-3 days later, he gradually felt much better.

So there ... we may never know for sure if he actually had the flu but I think it was bacteria infection all along. All those Tamiflu medication actually gave him adverse side effects instead, such as diarrhoea, nausea, etc. Meanwhile, for 2 weeks he isolated himself in the bedroom. Ironically, you can miss someone even though you're under the same roof. For almost two weeks, I've not been within 2 feet from him. Dominic was not allowed to go near him as well and when 2 days ago he heard that daddy was "getting better", he shouted "Yay!". I slept in the living room and only moved back into the room last night. In fact, I wasn't allowed to go into the bedroom at all. The weekend was awful. It felt like only Dom and I, and it was tiring to be the only one there to response to his constant needs. Anyway, we managed to bake a strawberry cake on Saturday which took up a bit of our time. In addition, the weather was rather horrible. It was summer last week but didn't feel like summer at all this week. I think it's not unreasonable to say that it might snow next week. :p

Next, let's rewind back to CNY earlier this year in M'sia. We met up with my uncle for dinner and Saimun popped the question, "Uncle, what is the secret of your success?". Mind you, this uncle of mine is a big shot in his company, but I'm not sure what he is really. So what did my uncle say about being successful? It's all in your presentation skills. Basically, you don't need to know your stuffs. All you need is to be able to present and be convincing. In fact, the more you know, the more work you do and you'll always remain in "working class". So, taking his advice, I enrolled myself in a professional presentation skills training course when I got back from my holidays. I actually have no aspiration to be successful in my career but when I came back from holiday, there wasn't much work left for me and I thought it's good to get some training. I was put on a waiting list and subsequently scheduled to attend a 2-day course on 17th April but I had to postpone that because my ultrasound scan was scheduled on the same day. I was put on the waiting list again and finally had the training last Monday/Tuesday. It was a great course and from the videos (taken during our own mock presentations) there was "obvious" improvement on the 2nd day. Feedback from the other participants about me was that I appeared "shy and quiet". On the 1st day, that is. On the 2nd day I wasn't shy and quiet anymore! During those 2 days, I also get to know myself better. In my 1st presentation, I tried to rehearse and memorize every word I was going to say, like politicians do, because I thought that would suit me well. But it didn't work well at all. I'm not that kind of person. I can't stick to a script. I have to say what's on my mind.

Finally, I have some updates on Dominic too. One night, he drank a whole cup of water right before going to bed and I said "You're going to wee-wee soooo much tonite that your nappy will overflow and wet your pants". He replied, "I'll get up and wee-wee in the toilet". Before I could stop myself, I said, "Hahahaha (fake laugh). Yeah right! You don't even wake up when you're alllll wet". Guess what? That night itself, he actually woke up and pee in the toilet! I was lying in bed (the couch really) and heard him open the door, get his stool, pee, flush the toilet and go back into his room. However, the next morning his nappy was still very full. On the 2nd night, it happened again! But not on the 3rd night. I'm just going to lie back and let him do his thing whenever he's ready. It's great knowing that I don't have to train him for him to train himself. :-) All I probably have to do is say "Yeah right (sarcastically)" a few more times. Hehe!

# posted by Skye @ 8:43 am 0 comments

1-JULY-2009:

So a couple of days ago I posted pictures of my baby bump and asked you to guess if the baby is a boy or a girl. I only did that because I wanted to know if the ancient theory really works and also because some of you claimed to have your ways of telling.

I went for an ultrasound on Monday. I'm 23 weeks pregnant now and I've only had 2 ultrasound scans, and I'm not going to get any more scans unless I have a complication (which I hope won't happen). So really, that was my last chance of knowing the gender of the baby. Although I've had only 2 scans here compared to a scan every 4 weeks when I was pregnant with Dom back in M'sia, I have to say that the quality and overall experience was much better here. I totally enjoyed the "sessions". The sonographer explained what she was doing all the way and there was a flat screen mounted on the ceiling so that I didn't have to turn my head to look at the tiny monitor next to me, and so that Saimun could sit, relax and watch the flat screen too.

I've been really looking forward to the scan for a long time because I really wanted to know the sex of the baby, and of course to know that everything is fine with the baby as well. However, just days before the appointment anticipation turned into anxiety as I tried to imagine what would happen. I imagined that the sonographer told me that it's a boy and I could feel my heart plummeting with disappointment. I reminded myself not to feel that way because whatever it is I should be happy. I imagined the sonographer telling me that it's a girl and I pictured myself breaking the news to my friends, possibly jumping up and down. Really, I'm not sexist but it makes sense for me to want a girl when I already have a boy, right?

Anyway, during the scan I remembered a friend of a friend - a doctor who complained about her patients (behind their backs) who asked about the sex of their baby 'as soon as the probe was on their tummy', the way she put it, as if that was the most important thing in the world and the health of the baby didn't matter at all. I argued with her a bit that if there's anything wrong with the baby, anyone would expect the doctor to tell without being asked. Having said that, I didn't want my sonographer to have that kind of impression of me (hehe), so I waited patiently for her to finish, asking relevant questions here and there, and in the end I popped the question. And here's what she said.

"Ultrasound is not 100% accurate in determining the sex of the baby but it looks like a girl".

My ultrasound report says - GENITALIA: Appears female.

I'm happy with the news but at the same time I can't jump for joy because it just 'looks like a girl'. The most agonizing part is that I'll never know for sure until the baby is born. I can of course pay for a 4D private scan but what if that is inconclusive as well? I'm not sure if it's procedural that she uses the phrase 'looks like' and 'appears female'. If she saw a dick, would she have said 'it looks like a boy'? Would the report say 'Appears male'? Or just 'Male'?

Anyway, we are treating it as a girl for the moment, and I guess it's time to start thinking of a name. Should we also think of a boy's name, just in case?

Lastly, did the ancient tummy-shape theory prove wrong or right? Out of 9 people who voiced their opinions, 6 said girl and 3 said boy. I personally think that the shape of my tummy looks the same as the 1st pregnancy. The only differences in this pregnancy are:

1. Morning sickness was worse. There was no vomitting before but lots of vomitting this time. I've read that women are more likely to have morning sickness if they're carrying a girl.
2. I think I looked better the last time - skin was more radiant and not so fat, but that could be due to my increased age.

# posted by Skye @ 5:31 pm 0 comments