Sunday, July 18, 2010

Family Day, and no more weekends

I joined my staff for a family day at a water park. It was a shady morning and they were enjoying themselves when I finally left after 2 and half hours. It was just too humid for me! Hardly two months into my new job I got to meet family members of my staff. I used to have 13 staff in Switzerland, and now it's 149! So far they have been very responsive and welcoming. I had warned them that my working style would be something they might not be used to, so it would be a question of adjustment and accommodation from both sides. Let's see how it works, so far so good.

I don't seem to have any more weekend to myself these days, always occupied with work engagement or otherwise. Last Saturday along trip to a village in Pahang to launch a restoration project of an ancient surau (small mosque) followed by one of the best lunch I've had in a long time, of simple kampung food (with patin fish fresh from the river no less, sambal tumis ikan bilis and petai from the jungle and the best durian I have had though I am really no fan of durian).
Then a short trip to an elephant reserve where I was appalled to see that all visitors including busloads of foreign visitors made to take off their shoes just to get passes to enter the sanctuary at the ticket/information centre. What on earth for, imposing such inconvenience, we were not entering a house for heaven's sake. I found it totally stupid and unnecessary to impose such a rule!
After that a long drive back to Putrajaya for "Floria" the annual flower show where our outfit had a stand too. It was to run for ten days, and I wondered how the flowers were going to last!
The next day I attended my good friend's first granddaughter 'cukur jambul' ceremony (when a baby's hair/head is completely shaved - God knows why, I can never understand it!) followed by lunch. My dear friend HP who was visiting me from JB joined us and it was sweet and in a way touching to see a Chinese sitting on the floor among the rest of us while we were performing the marhaban and tahlil (spiritual recitations and prayers), but he said he was least uncomfortable about it. Late afternoon I had to launch an exhibition in a gallery in Ampang. On the way home a stop at the pasar malam to get my week's supply of fresh fruits, and my Sunday was gone!
Yesterday four events in a day, a wedding luncheon reception near my house, a birthday lunch at Cafe Lui in Ulu Langat, a cultural launch at Batu Caves (I asked my deputy to attend, no way I could squeeze that in) and an award dinner ceremony at a hotel in KL, you see some really glamourous, dolled-up people there! I left before dessert! I must be getting old as I found it all so tedious!
Home at last now and I have a good rest of the afternoon and evening to myself! Thank God.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

My Sunday morning Plumeria

I woke up rather late today having gone to bed late too watching a soppy Ida Nerina telemovie. She was really good next to a rather stiff and deadpan Eman Manan - and the story had an unconvincing ending. And not a single female cast wore a tudung!!

Anyway it had been weeks or months since I watched tv, and when I switched it on last night caught myself with minister Ng Yen Yen at the Contemporary Malaysian Art and Tourism launch yesterday in the news. Gosh my hair has turned even more silvery (as opposed to grey, hehe)!

Breakfast of the most delicious naturally-ripened mangoes from my Putrajaya house (bless the previous tenant who planted the trees and my brother Wes who lovingly tended to the fruits) and wonderful pure Nespresso coffee (eat your heart out George Clooney!). The coffee can only be made with its own special machine and coffee pellets and both are not yet available in Malaysia. It's big thing in Europe these days with Nespresso coffee 'boutiques' sprouting everywhere, and Mr Clooney giving his most dazzling smile as its spokesperson. I was presented with the machine by Nestle's Vice-Chairman who is a huge fan of Malaysia, before I left Switzerland. And for a long time it had been lying in my kitchen as I was simply too lazy to read the instruction how to work it (and endlessly waiting for Nina and Ayob to teach me how). It was a month ago when dear Hoong Po visited from JB and figured out the whole thing for me. God knows how long before my stock of 400 pellets will run out and then I'll have to order them from overseas.

Since working I had hardly ventured into my garden, and especially since I will be moving out anyway, and Ayu had kept it immaculately tidy. I took a peak today before breakfast and lo, my crimson frangipani (I prefer the Hawaiian name PLUMERIA)had bloomed beautifully again. When I moved back into the house five months ago, all that was left of the once blossoming tree I planted some 7 years back was a dead-looking stump overwhelmed by zealous bamboo ferns. I tended it back and now the beautiful results.
While admiring the plumeria I heard loud banging and I looked down below at the two houses being renovated for endless months now - one is putting up a swimming pool and the other another floor blocking all views from my two guests rooms and saw a worker banging away with a hammer. A sharp rebuke that it was Sunday got him walking away head down! Thank God I no longer have to put up with the noise during week days since working again, except Saturday. And thank God I am moving house anyway, and you can be sure I will dig up my plumeria tree and plant it in my new house.
Have a nice Sunday all, God bless.