funnies

Goofy Face Gallery

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My Goddaughter, Rach is such a silly goose and has been making all these faces that crack me up.  Best of all, she holds them long enough for you to take a picture of her different faces.  She isn’t always going to do this so I’m doing a post of goofy faces for me to remember and to check in whenever I need a pick me up.

When she’s old enough she might force me to take it down or make this post private.  In the meantime, enjoy them as much as I do.  She’s a live wire and I have to admit I’m a little curious as to how her teen years are going to be :p

Happy Halloween

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Nothing in this world is perfect and sometimes things don’t go our way … if you read Dilbert, work can sometimes be the least inspiring place but with my friends at work.  I have to say, it’s a good place to go to on a daily basis 🙂  So from me and my friends from the office:-

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

You know the people you go to work with are cool when you want to see them on the weekends too!!  And thank you, Shu who brought a smile to all of us with his little creation to spread the Halloween cheer 🙂  He probably doesn’t realise this but just by the very way he carries himself, he’s taught me the rest of the world can be dead, we don’t have to be 😉  Thank you, Shu!!

Trick or treat!!

When I’m CEO

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Beneath my seemingly unambitious exterior, there are times I lie in my bed and want to take over the world.  Mwahahahahahahahah!!  That super villian world domination ambition happens occasionally 😉 Most nights though, it’s just thoughts of becoming the boss I dream of having.  Here’s a reminder in case I get corrupt with power and turn into one of those I cannot respect:-

  1. Pay people what they’re worth, not what you can get away with. What you lose in expense you gain back several-fold in performance.
  2. Take the time to share your experiences and insights. Labels like mentor and coach are overused. Let’s be specific here. Employees learn from those generous enough to share their experiences and insights. They don’t need a best friend or a shoulder to cry on.
  3. Tell it to employees straight, even when it’s bad news. To me, the single most important thing any boss can do is to man up and tell it to people straight. No BS, no sugarcoating, especially when it’s bad news or corrective feedback.
  4. Manage up … effectively. Good bosses keep management off employee’s backs. Most people don’t get this, but the most important aspect of that is giving management what they need to do their jobs. That’s what keeps management away.
  5. Take the heat and share the praise. It takes courage to take the heat and humility to share the praise. That comes naturally to great bosses; the rest of us have to pick it up as we go.
  6. Delegate responsibility, not tasks. Every boss delegates, but the crappy ones think that means dumping tasks they hate on workers, i.e. s**t rolls downhill. Good bosses delegate responsibility and hold people accountable. That’s fulfilling and fosters professional growth.
  7. Encourage employees to hone their natural abilities and challenge them to overcome their issues. That’s called getting people to perform at their best.
  8. Build team spirit. As we learned before, great groups outperform great individuals. And great leaders build great teams.
  9. Treat employees the way they deserve to be treated. You always hear people say they deserve respect and to be treated as equals. Well, some may not want to hear this, but a) respect must be earned, and b) most workers are not their boss’s equals.
  10. Inspire your people. All the above motivate people, but few bosses have the ability to truly inspire their employees. How? By sharing their passion for the business. By knowing just what to say and do at just the right time to take the edge off or turn a tough situation around. Genuine anecdotes help a lot. So does a good sense of humor.

So to all my friends and love ones, when I become a boss and there’s an inkling that I forgot this list, please please please send this post back to me.

Big Friends and Little Friends

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When Daph and I first met in 2006, I was still single and she wasn’t a mum.  Fast forward to 2010, I’m married and she’s a mum 🙂  It’s been quite the pleasure working with someone who’s become a good friend.  Someone who I reckon if we were in school together we’d be hanging out too.  Someone who helps me keep it real at work and shares the craziness we have to put up with :p  So it’s bigger treat when the young’uns in our lives are friends too 🙂

A recent jaunt to a nearby ice cream place had them talking and tickling each other … it’s funny what gets to kids these days 🙂

The Hail Storm

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There were warnings of a thunder storm when we woke up on Monday morning.  Coming from Singapore, Resh and I weren’t the least bother at all.  Here’s a little trivia about Singapore, we have the highest incidence of lightning strikes in the world.  So we weren’t worried.  After all it was a BEAUTIFUL day and we were in need of a red dress for Part 2 of the wedding so we left home with a mission.

Then in the midst of our shopping, we hear the rain come down and slowly it sounds like rocks are plummeting the roof.  It’s so heavy that rain and HAIL STONES start flying into the shop.  The girls run frantically to close the shutter doors.  The power go out twice.  I’m by the window taking videos and photos.

I’m all excited because the last time I was in Perth experiencing a hail storm was like some 15years ago.  I turn around and look for Resh, half expecting her to be as intrigued with the storm as me but she was no where to be found.  I looked around the store and was wondering where could she be hiding when I found her trying outfits in the fitting room 🙂  She is a true Singaporean … nothing will get between her and a good buy.

After the hail stopped, the rain kept going and the flood waters were rising.  My Dad called to tell us that the roads are all messed up and that we should drive safe, better yet find a good restaurant and sit the storm out.  That was our exact intention but we were not at all ready for what we had to face.

It was a scene from a disaster movie.  The traffic was NOT moving.  It took us an hour and 10minutes to move what would normally take 8mins to drive.  We did eventually, thanks to the newly minted Mr and Mrs Christian, find a Thai place to have dinner and sit out the aftermath of the storm.

Like all good storms, there’s always a rainbow at the end of it.

You can barely see it from the picture but the smidgin of it is there in the background between the buildings.  So I guess all’s well and ends well, with Resh and I driving home safely with a day to remember 🙂

9 Words Women Use

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Here’s something that is really quite true about women and I couldn’t stop laughing when I read it.  My cousin emailed it to me and I’m posting it up especially for all my friends who are guys, you have been warned 😉

(1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

(2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

(3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm.  This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.

(4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don’t Do It!

(5) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing.   (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)

(6) That’s Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That’s okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

(7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or Faint. Just say you’re welcome. (I want to add in a clause here – This is true, unless she says ‘Thanks a lot’ – that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all.    DO NOT say ‘you’re welcome’ … that will bring on a ‘whatever’).

(8) Whatever: Is a women’s way of saying FUCK YOU!

(9) Don’t worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking ‘What’s wrong?’ For the woman’s response refer to # 3.

This is a pretty accurate general list.  While I don’t use all of them, if you ask my husband, #1 is the one I use the most often 🙂  Guilty as charged … and yes, when I use it I usually want him to just not say a word anymore.  I’ve done a couple of others as well but I am trying my very darnest to work on myself and just say things as it is.  Each time I want say ‘fine’, I’m trying to take a deep breathe and tell my husband as calmly as I can, “I’m open to the possibility that you are right.  For now though, I reckon I am right and all I need right now is you to agree with me and not say anything else.”  I’m t.r.y.i.n.g.

In my little world, I’m thinking if only … if only men realise women are the superior gender and bow at our feet and smoother them with kisses when we walk in, the world will have a lot less problems 😉

Guilty As Charged?

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That was the subject of an email my friend sent me, with this attached:-

I could not stop laughing.  I’ve been there.  For most part of my career, I’ve been in a vendor position and so I totally relate.  I’ve also been on the client side and have actually fought as much as I can but still G.U.I.L.T.Y.  Now though, I want to make a video of when the vendor rips off the client with crazy prices and substandard work.  We’ve all been there, right?

CLASSES FOR MEN

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Couple of weeks ago as I prepared for my trip, I was clearing work emails and found this:-

(Women In Charge Of Everything)

Is proud to announce the opening of its
EVENING CLASSES FOR MEN!
OPEN TO MEN ONLY
ALL ARE WELCOME

Note: due to the complexity and level of difficulty, each course will accept a maximum of eight participants

The course covers two days, and topics covered in this course include:

DAY ONE

HOW TO FILL ICE CUBE TRAYS
Step by step guide with slide presentation

TOILET ROLLS- DO THEY GROW ON THE HOLDERS?
Roundtable discussion

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN LAUNDRY BASKET & FLOOR
Practice with laundry basket (Pictures and graphics)

DISHES & SILVERWARE;
DO THEY LEVITATE/FLY TO KITCHEN SINK
OR DISHWASH BY THEMSELVES?
Debate among a panel of experts.

REMOTE CONTROL
Losing the remote control – Help line and support groups

LEARNING HOW TO FIND THINGS
Starting with looking in the right place
Instead of turning the house upside down while screaming –
Open forum

DAY TWO

EMPTY MILK CARTONS;
DO THEY BELONG IN THE FRIDGE OR THE BIN?
Group discussion and role play

HEALTH WATCH;
BRINGING HER FLOWERS IS NOT HARMFUL TO YOUR HEALTH
PowerPoint presentation

REAL MEN ASK FOR DIRECTIONS WHEN LOST
Real life testimonial from the one man who did

IS IT GENETICALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO SIT QUIETLY
AS SHE PARALLEL PARKS?
Driving simulation

LIVING WITH ADULTS;
BASIC DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
YOUR MOTHER AND YOUR PARTNER
Online class and role playing

HOW TO BE THE IDEAL SHOPPING COMPANION
Relaxation exercises, meditation and breathing techniques

REMEMBERING IMPORTANT DATES
& CALLING WHEN YOU’RE GOING TO BE LATE
Bring your calendar or PDA to class

GETTING OVER IT;
LEARNING HOW TO LIVE WITH BEING WRONG ALL THE TIME
Individual counsellors available

My husband was laughing out loud when he read it … probably coz he relates to a couple of them especially the empty milk cartons one but in our household coz we don’t drink milk, so it’s empty juice cartons. Honestly though, other than that, he was made for me 🙂

Little Zizou

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A couple of weeks back at the opening of the Asian Festival of First Films, I caught a gem of a film from India called Little Zizou, where Zizou refers to footballer Zidane. In the film, it refers to the lead boy who is hoping that Zidane comes to Mumbai. For lack of a better comparison, it’s India’s answer to Little Miss Sunshine – a dysfunctional family in a marginal community of India.

The film reminded me of a John Updike interview I read a long time ago, when asked what makes a good story, he said something to the effect that a good story has charm, funny moments and is always surprising. That in a nutshell was this English language film from India. It’s a simple story with heart … and when I came out of the film, I found myself asking why can’t we Singaporeans make films like that? I haven’t quite found the answer but maybe 2009 will surprise me.

Meanwhile, I hope this film is released in the theatres locally. My 2 cents is that everyone should go catch it.

Burn After Reading

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What a smart script!! And without spoiling anything for anyone, the movie is my biggest fear come true about how MY office may be run too :p The Coen brothers take the spy genre into another level, which is often what they do anyway.

http://www.burnafterreading.com--live.com/

http://www.burnafterreading.com--live.com/

I simply love the randomness of their stories. There is a level of hopelessness that makes it sad and yet at the same time a humour, which sort of makes it kinda like real life. You never truly know what you’re going to get, kooky idiots are everywhere and when you step back from it all, it’s always funny. Well, to me at least, that’s my life in my office. Deluded characters who actually think the world surrounds them and in all honesty, I wouldn’t be surprise if they ever did some of the things that happens in the film. Thankfully, my life outside the office isn’t quite as detrimental and guns aren’t allowed in Singapore 😉

It isn’t a movie for everyone though, there’s a kind of black humour that people find rude and although, I don’t think this movie is rude, I can see how some people might reckon it is.  Black or white and no grey, I say.  Completely for matured audiences who has an ability to discern … like the tagline says “Intelligence is relative” so is taste.

To the Coen brothers and their impeccable cast, I wonder if this movie could be adapted for the stage?