The sad truth of a long-term holiday

How quickly... or slowly time has passed.
I realise it has been exactly a month since i arrived in Malaysia.
Or left Melbourne.. whichever one comforts me more.
So it's exactly a month since i took this picture. (which i think bears an eerie resemblance to the one on veron's blog)
Today was Thaipusam, a public holiday. (which meant absolutely nothing to me. everyday is a holiday) Today was when they found Heath Ledger dead.
Today is when I spent the whole day at home and realised it was like slowly dying.
Employment beckons! How else to get that bar running in 10 years?
Well, here's an inspirational video i stumbled upon on Facebook of all things.
It got me to click so there's good advertising for you.
Other than that, i am sad to report, that absolutely nothing is going on in my life. :(

Pet Peeve #46: Why do people put plastic bags in plastic bags?

If there's one thing that has frustrated me in this country it is the extreme disregard for matters of environmental concern.
Coming from a city where the use of Green Bags is exceedingly common and really, a way of life in the last 3 years, I have had to consciously restrain myself at checkout counters. Heck, even with my mother. (she hasn't heard the end of my complaining)
Example of the mentality:

Mum: Look dear, I'm using the recyclable bags now because you told me to.
Me: Oh great, mum!

~ watches as she takes a plastic container of jackfruit, already packed into another plastic bag by the market lady, brings it to the counter to be put in a plastic bag with the grapes, and then she puts it into the recyclable bag ~

Mum: There look. It's all in the bag.
Me: ....

The whole city is mad. At the checkout counter today the dude packed as if he was shitting out plastic bags.
1 5-pack of noodles. Seal the bag. (they have this sticky label thing to make sure you're not stealing... like that works)
2 pieces of vegetable. Seal the bag.
1 pack of biscuits and 2 sticks of butter. Seal the bag.

I seriously wanted to whack him out of the way and pack the bags myself. Bad enough you're using plastic bags [Mum: i'm running out of bin-liners already] but WHY? Why pack so little into one?
My latest theory is that there's some sort of plastic bag manufacturing monopoly in this city. There's too much money in it for the government to shut it down. AAaaaRRRggHhH!!!
[haha! proven! Australian Bureau Statistics show that Malaysia, with 20% of the share, is Australia's 3rd largest plastic importer!]
Oh yeah, and Malaysians just don't care.
(why save plastic bag? Supermarkets give free wat.. Take more!)

Well, think about this. In Ireland, shoppers are required to pay for plastic bags and this has reduced consumption by 90%!! The Plastax, explained exceptionally well in this article by Reusable Bags website (yes, i know they're in it for the money too) , has saved 18, 000 000 liters of oil! Less animals choking on the stray plastic bags. Less oil being used. More to hand over to your children, childrens' children, yada yada yada.
You catch my drift.

And here's something i didn't know either. Plastic bags CAN be recycled. And they're made into:

• bags
• railway ties
• traffic cones
• decking
• patio furniture
• and even PLASTIC WOOD
  

How about that? I am doubtful Malaysia does or has the facilities, most of the websites i've looked up only make industrial type plastic and resins. Recycling's recycling though. Maybe recycled traffic cones are coming?

Anyway, here are the cinchers.
The case for NOT using plastic bags. (in point form)

• They don't break down quickly. When they do, the chemicals just become smaller units but they still pollute the land/water they're in.
• Up to (and probably over) 100 000 marine animals are killed every year as a result of plastic bags. Some think the bags are jellyfish and ingest them (thereby choking if not strangling their internal organs for a slow painful death). Others get entangled in them and suffocate or starve.

• Plastic bags clogging drains have been known to cause floods, leading to loss of life in extreme cases. (e.g in Bangladesh)
• The world is round. The plastic bags you throw away on your street may end up off the coast of China, causing unthinkable environmental damage all along the way.
• Bags littered everywhere are just an eyesore.

Next time you shop, try to remember to bring a bag along. If you really don't think it's worth forking out the AUD 2 or RM 1, I will sponsor your bag. And please spread the word.

First Job Interview in the Bag

One job interview done.
I don't think ANY of you reading have been through anything like that.
So i finally get to Sri Pentas and find the place (sneakily hidden in the Engineering department - who would've thought?) and ready myself for an interview. Where you from? Why should we hire you? La dee da.
I get ushered into a room where there are 2 other interviewees and this girl hands out creative briefs (a writeup of what a client wants in an ad, what the product is, etc) and she says. Alright, you guys have to create an ad. Any questions?
In my head, i'm thinking. What? Create ad? Huh?
So... here's the deal. 15 minutes. One in Malay AND one in English. Radio ad for HOT fm and Fly fm. (but they stressed the HOT fm bit..which is Malay)
It's a 30 second ad for fruity shower gel.

So there you go... My first taste of an advertising agency job interview.
Somehow, i managed to squeeze in singing as well. (it's radio, right?)
Naturally, I was the first person to have to present and i think i had a pretty solid concept but they thought my malay was shoddy. (really? whatever gave you that idea?) I think i convinced them i have excellent English though.
Had to do another ad in Malay as I watched all the other interviewees troop in and then go out again (Why? Why me special? Super retarded?) I have a feeling their Malay didn't have to be checked again. =(

At the end of my 2nd presentation they were all smiles and everything. (was that a *grin* don't call me we'll call you kind of thing?) Like Kee Hong, i DID forget to ask for my gaji. (aiya... dare to say he's silly somemore.. oops!). They're interviewing more people this week, I'll hear from them either the end of the week or next week.

Mmm... so what interview tips do I have?

• be prepared for anything. Like a 15 minute ad creation
• be courteous and smile to everyone. can't hurt right?
• try to pee before going into the room cos you never know when you'll end up stuck there for 2 hours.. (learnt this the hard way)
• bring a bottle of water because sometimes they don't offer you any (learnt this the hard way too)
  
• bring a pen (haha! I did this right!)
• drive there early because you may have to park in the hotel next door (haha! did this right too!)
• don't stress too much about it. A job's a job. Make sure you'll be happy there! (don't sell yourself short)

Going to work on a portfolio so i can dazzle any other potential employers. Haha. Who would've known this is what I'd do after an Arts degree? Not even me!
*sigh*
I miss Melbourne terribly. Especially the people.

And so Phase 2 begins...

So i have my first job interview.
A proper one - not like the internship where i was given the security tag as soon as i sat down. (although that was pretty sweet)
it's on Monday and at Sri Pentas - yeah.. where TV3 is in 1U.
Excited? I guess so. I'm entering the next phase!
Right now I am job-surfing though and it's all quite... mmm.. not daunting. not exciting. more like... overwhelming!
So many jobs! But only one me...
Anyway, it spurs somewhat existential questions.
How will i stand out? What will make me different? How do i get noticed?
haha... job hunting and resume submission definitely not for those suffering from self-worth issues.
Anyhoos, my latest job of the moment - writer/photojournalist for a Malaysian tourism website.
Isn't that what i said i'd like oh so many blog posts ago? wow.. i didn't even mean that one. i was thinking of this one instead.
So i already had some inkling of staying in Melbourne and writing for a living. All the way back in first year.
Cool.
Perhaps after Monday I shall write a useful post for once in a long time. Interview tips and Worst case scenarios? Keep your eyes and ears posted. =)

Resolutions mean resolving the rift in yourself

It took me a whole week into the new year to write again?
Man, losing the routine of uni has even been bad to my blog!
So, it's 2008. if anyone comes here to check up on me, the biggest question mark is

What is in store for 2008?

And i suppose i answer the way i always do. That's a very good question.

I don't think that answer works anymore. You know the 5 year plan and the 10 year plan and Jeannie's attitude of pooh-poohing it all. Well, i think it's all catching up to me.
Stocktake.
At the beginning of the year, i have:

• 1 home in KL. Food, utility bills, car and parents included.
• 1 long distance relationship.
  
• 0 employment.
• at least 5 industries i am interested in: (radio, advertising, management, consulting, events, marketing, hospitality)
• 1 (maybe) social group [1 thing checked off the get-off-your-ass-and-do-something list; i joined the KL Young Singers choir... but now thinking whether to stay]
• 1 expiring student Visa for Australia (i have til March)
• Many many books on the reading list
• 0 travel plans.
• 0 idea if this is where i want to be
  

It's times like these i wish life came with a sensor. Sort of like a tuning fork. Imagine if you can dip your feet into the water, or i suppose in this case, just poke around 1 direction in life and there is this beepy thing that tells you if you're supposed to head that way. Or maybe a little litmus paper thing that turns a certain colour if you're going the right direction.
Remember, this is life. It's never that easy. Or straightforward.
And i guess that would spoil half the fun.

Maybe it's a soul-searching time for me. A risk-taking time.
Bartending. Ad company. Magazine. Radio. THROW IT ALL AT ME!
i just need to stop living in melbourne..... *sigh*