Office Range Of Snacks – Our Private Department Stash

Office Snacks

Our department is never short on snacks.

Uncle Amir returned from Turkey and gave us a box of Turkish Delights. A tad sweet but it is a snack for visitors popping by or for a team member if they needed a spot of sugar LOL! Who needs extra sugar rush right?!

Left to right :-

Dried mangoes from Philippines and this is a favorite of mainland Chinese nationals including Ms Pouty and our infamous Rotating Blade Manager (so called because when she blunders at her job, it kills).

The round swirly biscuit is an antiquated treat of yesteryears. Slightly spicy and sweet this is a fun cookie to gnaw as a light treat.

The 2 types of Murukus (Indian snacks) are also from Malaysia bought by our resident “Policeman” who trots across to JB for his cheap shopping cum massage trip with wifey.

Kreitens candy is a treat from Chicken who saw this age old sweet from her childhood days. Chewy toffee that is minty chocolatey it is refreshing.

Below this Kreitens candy is peanut candy. Flaky sweet that crumbles like flakes, this dessert has been around since 1930s and is a Teochew favorite!

Yam flavored rice crackers from Thailand completes the range of snacks.

Spoilt for choice but it keeps us happy in our department 😀

Advertisement

Hot Tum Yum Soup

Aaaah today was a real treat as Bird and her disciple (mentee) offered to trudge out in the heat and package take away lunch from a canteen in another building some distance away.

As always, the line for this stall’s cooked to your taste buds menu, was snakingly long. Patiently they stood in Q and to ensure their efforts did not go to waste, I decided to doggy bag some dishes for dinner or put into my fridge for what Chicken calls, “Fridge Worshipping” – Bird and Chicken tend to think that I offer food offerings to the Fridge God as I tend to buy and stock stuff in my fridge and take ages to finish.

I had gamely told them of food that I would re-cook or meals that I would cook over a Sunday and it was to last me for a whole week. But then, I get tired of eating the same food and then forget about it and let it sit in the fridge till the next week comes by and I would eat that again.

Awful habit they said and told me plainly, “Stop worshipping your fridge! It is unhealthy!” LOL!

Well, I have not been back in my little red dot for a while and I was game for hot tom yum fish and pork with white cabbage we call Wong Bok!

It was extra spicy and I liked it the way it was cooked. Still with rising inflation and food prices, $4.30 did not go very far but who could complain as Norwegians pay SGD100 for a bowl of “Fish Soup” made out of clams, mussels etc. Yup, I learnt the hard way that “Fish Soup” in Stavanger is actually shell fish soup and not slivers of fish.

My Tom Yum Fish Soup had sliced Tioman Fish (literally “Snake Fish”) and pork. The slivers of servings were thin and you could count them. But I was not fussy as I knew these days things were not cheap.

But in Batam, SGD25 can serve 5 dishes with rice and drinks for 4 adults! Even in millions of rupiah, our exchange rate was great at SGD 1 equally Rupiah 10,000.

I get lost in the zeros and find that everything is in excessively large bills that is almost equivalent to hell notes.

Hell Notes are notes that is burnt as offerings to the dead for their after life expenditure. Hell Notes have loads of zeros and they also mimic USD too. This is practised by Taoists to offer hell notes during the funeral service, and in quantum of 7 days, 49 days, 100 days after death and on special occasions like Hungry Ghost Festival or 7th Lunar Month!

Hmm….I am in spiritual limbo and so, if anyone does burn me these useful notes after I am dead, I would not mind as it would be great to have financial fluidity in hell too!

Sigh…inflation sure can kill!

I slurped my Spicy Tom Yam Soup and thanked Bird and her mentee for going out to buy take away lunch for me 😀

Removing Benefits From Employees Is A Sad Sad Thing To Do

The employees who work in a land where no birds would come to roost and who have to forage for lunch food will soon have another benefit removed from them.

Sad, but the ugly act will have to be done by my department.

As it is, there is zero benefit. I managed to get coffee, tea and beverages for the employees but now the big ticket items of medical and health care items will be deleted.

Scorpion King and Pig Head Without Tail feels that this is a cost and such costs must not be borne by employers. Hmm…this is the same Scorpion King who has a sibling who suffered from cancer last year and now that this sibling is deemed in the “safe” zone, it is off with the benefits! Is any cancer survivor ever in the safe zone but heck, they are wealthy enough to survive the cost if cancer returns I guess.

Cancer patients lose their hair during chemotherapy. But guess what? Sibling of Scorpion King is so rich that she could afford the latest cocktail of chemo drugs such that she kept her crowning glory. She had the gall to approach us underlings to Shave our Crowning Glory for the Shave For Hope program.

Many retorted her to shave hers first! Hoots of laughter as she has kept her cancer status as if like a State Secret that not even KGB or CIA can torture it out of her.

The 11th hour has come and no news from the Scorpion King to declare the royal Scorpion edict to renew policies. His mentality has been, if employees do not like it, they can leave. Others will come. There is no need to talk of talent retention and that recruitment is not an issue!

I find this mentality and mindset baffling!

This Neanderthal has a brain of a pea and the sympathy of a stone. Borne out of a father whom we heard was a glorious kind hearted being that developed and gave him the business he has today, he has not much of a commanding presence. Sans character, demeanour or self carrying, he is not one whom people would gape or gasp if he walked into any room. In short, no presence of sorts but a mousy character!

His father passed from cancer too and so, all the more I am even baffled at his lack of sympathy for the less fortunate.

I was at an event where he unwillingly presented $20,000 to a cancer foundation and was upset when he found out that he had to be seated with the two minions who were sent to receive the cheque. He had to fulfil his CSR quota – CSR is now a bad word to me as when CSR is done without heart, it just ain’t CSR.

There are CEOs and there are CEOs…….but then there was also my then boyfriend who also claimed he was a “Chief Servant” – all these puny CEOs of their fiefdom will not aspire to the ranks of Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates. Zany or otherwise, at least their contributions to the good and benefit of society is significant and not in any way demeaning.

Will there be a reprieve at the a minute before stroke of midnight when policies lapse? I doubt and am not hopeful and hence, will not be holding my breath……I might just be asphyxiated by doing that! 😀

Make Singapore A Home For Birds….Hmm & For Otters Too!

I laughed so hard when I read Monday’s paper today. Yes, I tend to have time only to read newspapers days later. On the record, I usually read newspapers on Saturdays for Mondays to Fridays. I still like newsprint as reading the papers, mean literally to me, holding up a paper, flipping the pages and getting newsprint on my fingers! 🙂

Call me antiquated but reading too means holding a book and turning pages as I read. All this E books or E papers is not the same, though I do read them to get a feel of the news first hand.

My entire life ( so far) has been mired in a situation of “in betweens”) – is in a generation where deemed experimental bunch. I had to learn 3 languages before educators realised that English and Chinese were the obvious choices! But, the good news is, I am in a better stead than others.

I also had to be in between for snail mail and E mails. Now we have smart messaging, quick chats that is almost instantaneous in replies! Way cool! As what Bart Simpson would say. Yes, I still love watching Simpsons and other animated series, including crazy American sitcoms or mini series.

So when I saw the headline grabber in the Forum Page (where readers write in to contribute letters to the Editor), “Make Singapore A Home For The Birds” – I immediately thought of my resident Bird, my colleague in my department. The writer to the press meant that given Singapore’s strategic path along birds ‘migratory patterns of flight, we have been seeing new species of birds, rarely seen in our Little Red Dot.

Here to roost, stay or stop over, we are seeing birds of all colors and sizes! Ornithologists would be so pleased as it means they can start “stalking” these birds and observing their habits.

Aaahh but a family of otters have been seen with their 4-5 pups along the Marina Bay area! Whooops of joy as these otters are happily eating fish from the waters ( I doubt as I would know if fish of those sizes I see in their paws are naturally fished off the waters). Actually, I suspect fed to them.

Soon, the bond between nature and humans would be breached just as we had Monkey issues when these primates decided that they cross out of the forested areas and started foraging in the kitchens of domains along the forested areas!

Next would be Otters chasing pedestrians and financial dealers I guess! LOL!

We too had wild pigs digging up parks etc.

Nice to know that though we are an urban island state, we still have nature at our door step.

Thank goodness our resident Bird, is similarly 2 legged but at least she speaks and maintains her “birdiness” in the brain department 😀

 

International Older Persons Day – October 1

Say what?! Yup, if you just had a birthday and you are “older” heh heh heh then you are eligible for International Older Person’s Day on October 1!

I love this usage of “older person” as opposed to senior citizen, old folk or our latest coinage of “Pioneer Generation” in my Little Red Dot! The Hokkien dialect group here are already having their fun ribbing “Pioneer Generation” to make it sound like “Pai Mieh Generation” which means “Hard Life Generation” in their Hokkien dialect.

One cannot fault the creativity of fellow Singaporeans! We are best at acronyms, even better at twisting the English Language in a dialect and having a good laugh!

Last two days of riots in HK has set my little hamster in the brain department thinking. We do take security, peace and tranquillity for granted in my little red dot. Women and children can saunter the streets of our little red dot and know that we walk safe. Unlike in USA, especially in the ghettos or even in areas marked unsafe zones, there is no such thing as being safe to walk saunter down the streets. Thankfully whilst living in Oregon during my UO days, Eugene was safer as I lived on campus grounds, at Ferry Street.

It is even worst in countries like Nigeria where I remember colleagues who worked there had to live in safe compounds. Freedom to walk as you like, when you like is a luxury. Herded into cars immediately on arrival, zoomed straight to office and then off to the safe compound. Kidnapping is real! I admire the Nigerians for living in such a country and their steely nerves.

HK has lots going for themselves – economically vibrant and an SAR of China. One country two systems. But the freedom to strike, assemble with such huge numbers is mind numbing and alarming. Clogging the central business district, it has forced banks, corporations and businesses to shut. Hang Sang dipped! Can this be sustainable?

I hope peace reigns such as things normalise and October 1, children can bring their older parents out without fear of riots or unsafe streets!

Yes, safety and peace is not a given. We all contribute to safety and must play our part to be vigilant always 😉

Happy Internal Older Persons Day!

11th Hour Or A Minute Before Deadline

I dislike having to wait for a decision to be made at the 11th hour or a minute before midnight as the saying goes.

Good Managers or head honchos plan their decision making process, eliciting feedback or getting input to make informed decisions.

But there are idiots out there who may be people in positions of power yet, dawdle on their royal asses or touché because they do not know how to make a decision but yet want to show the world that they are King, Hear Me Roar mentality!

A whole year to say, make a renewal of a process making decision. 15 months on and the decision is still lagging up to the 11th hour or as the proverbial saying goes, the stroke before midnight, then Cinderella becomes servant girl and carriage transform to pumpkin?!

Why the delay? I asked? Absolutely befuddled by all this hoopla.

Penny pinching most times as owners tend to question what if we self insure our risks?

Sure you can, my advice would go. But do take a look at the statistics. Based on insurance claims, this is quite a ‘toxic decision’ as there is no wining if you choose to self insure risks.

Stats? I must have used a Greek word to the ruddy fool! Probably the fool never learnt statistics in University. Hmm, I thought to myself, probably paper milled his degree too. But for crying out loud, do read the materials.

Cost savings is one thing but, being an oblivious and ignorant statistical fool is plain Dufus!

A decision, pleasant or otherwise has to be made. It is a gamble or as they say, hedge risks! All it takes is a catastrophic accident or mishap to wipe off any profits for a financial year.

Leaders are not borne is my philosophy but made. Leaders born with a silver spoon and bestowed a business will usually not last past the Pioneer Generation who braved the seas to migrate to our shores and became successful. Business empires may lose ground as the namby pansy spoilt brats take the throne of business without any skills….well maybe IQ without EQ and no business acumen.

To which, my simple comment is….Let It Burn….Let It Burn sung to the tune of Let It Snow, Let It Snow….

Procrastinating a decision is postponing the inevitable.

 

 

Burning Heartless Employers On Stakes

I am having one of those wish I could burn employers on stakes day!

Just like what the Elizabethan or Merlin era, I would love to round up a bunch of  heartless, stingy employers and tie them onto stakes amidst a pyre of flames!

Not unlike the Hindu methodology of cremating the dead except these cruel callous cold hearted blokes and dames will not have their ashes scattered in the Ganges River (sacred River for Hindus). Instead, I shall scatter their divine ashes in garbage bins! They are pollutants alive and garbage when quite dead. LOL!

I think it has to do with type of industry and size of the business. MNCs tend to be fairer and more defined in their policies. Staff or employee welfare is quite defined and fair across the board, rank and file included.

In a typical ma or pa grocery shop, the shop hand or store hand is treated like family. It tends to be more heart than ‘hard’.

In Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), this is where dilemma arises. Bosses tend to tout retention of talent, grow talent and valuing staff and talent in front of the public to show their magnaminous style but behind close doors, in whispered tones,  ‘staff can go to hell’ – cheaper is better and if one serves and rise from the ranks and is deemed expensive, time to evict the fella!

Bosses like these are somewhat cold, callous and value only cronyism. It is the typical war chant of theirs which sounds like, “cheers to me and to hell with the rest of the world!”

In today’s modern society and experience or see this, it makes my toes curl and blood boil. I wish I was a witch with great powers and I would unhesitatingly turn them all into toads, complete with warts and banish them to Toad Land where they can croak in unison amongst their kind, sans flies or insects such that they can starve and fight amongst selves for the limited flies or insects in their Toad-dom of sorts! 😀

Or if I was Merlin, I would cast a spell such that if their ugly selfish unkind attitude is meted out to staff, turn them into lowest scum one would find in a pond and see them trying to forage for living space amongst scum in the pond.

Ooh, I am indeed the evil one 😉

 

Ugly Monday Blues

Half an hour more before I can be released from this place, called work! Phew!

It has been an ugly Monday as the issues surrounding me are not simple.

I had to face off two men who decided on their own that building cracks will not cause a structural collapse. They are not schooled in building certification of fitness mind you and they told me that, “nah it will not collapse”

UGH! I asked Mr Law & Order if he is a certified building professional engineer that certifies building fitness? Obviously he is not. But he speaks as if he is and I asked one simple question –

“What happens when it does collapse? How will we manage the loss of 120 lives?”

Speechless and silence ensued.

I stated my position and that is, we are non structural specialists. Visually the cracks and real and this stretches to roof and pillar ( Mr Law & Order let slipped that he saw pillar cracks and then tried to correct himself by saying erm… “no”) – non one can guarantee the walls or roof will not tumble down.

The likelihood of a ceiling slab falling is real and we are not talking raining dirt or peanutty crumbs but ceiling slabs of concrete.

I cannot unfortunately take the risk of endangering the lives of any human being with visual cracks showing so obviously.

Pity that people generally like to think, “It will not happen to us” mindset – but the reverse is also true….”what if it did happen, what then?”

Mr Construction Man wanted to ally with Mr Law & Order to try and avoid getting building fitness. Hmm, I am not doing Lego here guys!! I am talking about genuine building defects that have to be rectified as humans dwell in that place, not stuffed toys or inanimate beings. Sheesh….even if my favourite Garfield, stuffed furry friend of Jim Davis  lived there, I will also remove “him” – stuffed or otherwise, Garfield does not deserve a life of being squashed by concrete slabs.

Human lives are important and Scorpion King must decide as to if he wants to continue to let people live in unsafe buildings!

I am meanwhile, their worst nightmare as who died and made me Safety Queen!

 

Amazing Mobile App Changes Photo To Sketch

I just loved what this mobile app did to my photo of Garfield.

As If I Drew My Furry Friend!

I cannot draw a straight line, much less sketch this great drawing. The app converted my photo into this!

Awesome 😀

Best Paying Mindless Per Hour Job By The Hour

Walking Tortoises?! My Dream Job!!

I received this from Bird and we both howled, ” gimme this ideal job!!”

Trust me tortoises don’t go far and I can get paid handsomely doing nothing really!
😀

Whoever did this project is so smart and perfect choice of words too….LOL