I, usually don't purchase NST but since Star wasn't at the newsstand yet yesterday morning, I resorted to buying a copy of NST. At least, I could read the weekly pullout on Football. An article, titled "30 things that tell us we're Malaysians Read lah!" was the main feature for the Youth Quake section. Since, Merdeka Day is just around the corner, there's a lot of articles about being Malaysians and what independence meant to us, bla bla bla. Just thought I'd share it with you all. :)
Saturday, August 28, 2004
A Lot Has Happened
The Astro current tagline is "Macam macam Ada" or MMA. That kind of rings true for me as well as to what had happened since the last blog entry. At that time, I just came back from sending Awi and Haziq to Bidor. Later during that week, Awi then came down alone to KL to attend her training in Bangi. Haziq was left under the care of Awi's parents. At first, we all thought Haziq will cry his eyes out upon being left behind but he was just fine with his Atok & Opah actually. It was the mother (and the father a bit lah) that worried but nothing bad happened and my boy was fine and happy there, even making friends with cats, chickens and 2 Indian girls living in the neighbourhood.
Haziq was left in Bidor a three nights before we both came to take him down to KL. We joined Abah's company trip to A Famosa, Ayer Keroh. It was a lot of fun with Haziq playing at the water park, saw a lot of animals and basically chilling out with the whole Nik Farid Kamil clan. All of the five siblings joined in the trip including Razif, Razi and Iskandar. It's been sometime since we were able to join in family trips such as those, I think, this was the first since Adiknor got married.
We came back from Malacca on Sunday and the plan was to drive back to Kerteh on Monday. We did get some distance on the journey as the car broke down on the Karak highway. For some reason, the radiator cap came off and all the water had turned to steam causing for the engine to fail. It was a really distressing moment for me. I personally checked the radiator water level one week before embarking on the journey and it was fine. I'm sure I put the cap on really tight at that time. Anyway, what to do, we had to travel back to Bangsar with this good Samaritan and the car was left to be repaired. I was in a really foul mood because I've planned to go back and now everything had gone haywire. At that particular time, there's some sort of crisis at work as a virus was on the loose, a computer virus that is. I'm sure the boss wasn't that happy with me being in KL at that time and now having delayed my comeback, I don't suppose I'll be in his good books for some weeks.
The next day, we decided to borrow Adiknor's car since the repairs will take more than one day. (At the moment of writing, after 10 days, the car is still not ready). So we drove back and along the way, I succumbed to a bout of flu and was just glad to be back in Kerteh safely. My colleagues were working the night off to clear the virus from affected PCs but I just don't have the energy to join them.
Rightly so, the next day the boss kind of 'sindir2' me for being away while they had to face the crisis. I just make dumb je lah, what to do, certain things were just out of my powers. I can't be at the office all the time, right? The others just have to make do, I suppose. Nobody is indispensable, in my opinion.
Then a few days after coming home, Haziq got the fever, his body temperature shot up. We went to see a normal GP a couple of time, gave him the medicine but it was only short relief. Last Saturday, we brought him to see a paeditrician in Kuantan and he prescribed some antibiotic to Haziq. He felt fine for a few days then on Tuesday, his body became hot again and it won't come down even after we gave him the fever medicine. So on Wednesday, we went down to Kuantan again to see the doctor. He offered to ward him but we were not so keen to do that and so a stronger antibiotic was given. Alhamdulillah, after a few days, his body temperature is now back to normal and has remained for a couple of days.
Adiknor also experienced something unfortunate this week. She had a miscarriage on Tuesday and had to undergo a short operation to take out the feotus, if that is the right term, at 10 weeks old. I do feel pity for her and Razi because she was so excited about wanting a baby and I hope they'll try again. She'll be 24 this year and Insyallah, kalau ada rezeki, they'll have many babies in the future.
My newphew, Iskandar also got the same symptoms that Haziq experienced. Fever coming on and off, especially during the night. It's kind of worrying if there's some sort of virus going around. We've been calling it the Malacca since both of them got sick a few days after that trip. Maybe it's the hot weather or the late night at the Cowboy Town. Whatever it is, we should take caution in the future especially, like Haziq who had to travel every 3 days or so, average.
As I mentioned in the beginning, it sure has been a busy 3 weeks. There's a lot to be done at work as well, things are progressing reasonably but my team needs to be pushed further. It's a challenging environment and we need to prepare for what's to come.
Haziq was left in Bidor a three nights before we both came to take him down to KL. We joined Abah's company trip to A Famosa, Ayer Keroh. It was a lot of fun with Haziq playing at the water park, saw a lot of animals and basically chilling out with the whole Nik Farid Kamil clan. All of the five siblings joined in the trip including Razif, Razi and Iskandar. It's been sometime since we were able to join in family trips such as those, I think, this was the first since Adiknor got married.
We came back from Malacca on Sunday and the plan was to drive back to Kerteh on Monday. We did get some distance on the journey as the car broke down on the Karak highway. For some reason, the radiator cap came off and all the water had turned to steam causing for the engine to fail. It was a really distressing moment for me. I personally checked the radiator water level one week before embarking on the journey and it was fine. I'm sure I put the cap on really tight at that time. Anyway, what to do, we had to travel back to Bangsar with this good Samaritan and the car was left to be repaired. I was in a really foul mood because I've planned to go back and now everything had gone haywire. At that particular time, there's some sort of crisis at work as a virus was on the loose, a computer virus that is. I'm sure the boss wasn't that happy with me being in KL at that time and now having delayed my comeback, I don't suppose I'll be in his good books for some weeks.
The next day, we decided to borrow Adiknor's car since the repairs will take more than one day. (At the moment of writing, after 10 days, the car is still not ready). So we drove back and along the way, I succumbed to a bout of flu and was just glad to be back in Kerteh safely. My colleagues were working the night off to clear the virus from affected PCs but I just don't have the energy to join them.
Rightly so, the next day the boss kind of 'sindir2' me for being away while they had to face the crisis. I just make dumb je lah, what to do, certain things were just out of my powers. I can't be at the office all the time, right? The others just have to make do, I suppose. Nobody is indispensable, in my opinion.
Then a few days after coming home, Haziq got the fever, his body temperature shot up. We went to see a normal GP a couple of time, gave him the medicine but it was only short relief. Last Saturday, we brought him to see a paeditrician in Kuantan and he prescribed some antibiotic to Haziq. He felt fine for a few days then on Tuesday, his body became hot again and it won't come down even after we gave him the fever medicine. So on Wednesday, we went down to Kuantan again to see the doctor. He offered to ward him but we were not so keen to do that and so a stronger antibiotic was given. Alhamdulillah, after a few days, his body temperature is now back to normal and has remained for a couple of days.
Adiknor also experienced something unfortunate this week. She had a miscarriage on Tuesday and had to undergo a short operation to take out the feotus, if that is the right term, at 10 weeks old. I do feel pity for her and Razi because she was so excited about wanting a baby and I hope they'll try again. She'll be 24 this year and Insyallah, kalau ada rezeki, they'll have many babies in the future.
My newphew, Iskandar also got the same symptoms that Haziq experienced. Fever coming on and off, especially during the night. It's kind of worrying if there's some sort of virus going around. We've been calling it the Malacca since both of them got sick a few days after that trip. Maybe it's the hot weather or the late night at the Cowboy Town. Whatever it is, we should take caution in the future especially, like Haziq who had to travel every 3 days or so, average.
As I mentioned in the beginning, it sure has been a busy 3 weeks. There's a lot to be done at work as well, things are progressing reasonably but my team needs to be pushed further. It's a challenging environment and we need to prepare for what's to come.
Sunday, August 08, 2004
I Love the ECE!!
At last, after all these years of driving behind heavy lorries and facing unnecessary dangers due to overtaking, I can now enjoy what people on the West Coast had been experiencing all these years. Earlier this week, the long awaited East Coast Highway (Expressway) or ECE is now open for use between Karak and Kuantan. It's kind of a coincidence that I have to do a lot of travelling through and fro KL this week so I've had the opportunity to test out the new highway. And let me tell you that I am going to be the strongest supporter of this highway. It's so much better in many ways. No more tailing behind lorries or slow cars while awaiting for a chance to overtake. No more 90 km/h speed limit, it's 110 km/h all the way man!! Of course, I went up to 150 at times but it's just to test out the road and it's so tempting seeing the empty road in front of you. It's such a lovely and excellent experience. I did 4 hrs from Kerteh to KL the first time we drove down. Today, I did 5 hours from Bidor to Kerteh. Can you believe that? Usually, it would take me 8 hours to travel that distance via road. And it's not as stressful as well, in fact, I truly enjoyed to drive, which is something really rare for me.
I'm sure most people won't mind paying the toll because of all the hardship endured for so long. I hope the highway will also be a catalyst for economic activities in the 3 East Coast states. Logistics has always been a problem, hopefully after this, and also once the 2nd phase is completed, there won't be so much of a hassle to move things quickly here from KL or the West Coast.
I'm sure most people won't mind paying the toll because of all the hardship endured for so long. I hope the highway will also be a catalyst for economic activities in the 3 East Coast states. Logistics has always been a problem, hopefully after this, and also once the 2nd phase is completed, there won't be so much of a hassle to move things quickly here from KL or the West Coast.
Saturday, July 31, 2004
New Phone
Alas, I made the decision to change my phone. The Treo 600 I've been using since last November hasn't really performed up to mark. It kept starting up on its own after being knocked around a bit, it's just so sensitive. I guess it is true that PDA doesn't make good handphones and vice versa. Also the unit is a bit bulky but I've endured the hardship because I really like the idea of having a phone and PDA functions together in one unit. Beats carrying 2 items all over anytime. However, the time has arrived for me to make the change. I've paid the deposit for a new phone but since it hasn't arrived at the shop yet, I'd better not make any announcement, in case something happens between now and tomorrow.
Sunday, July 25, 2004
Bring On the Competition Maa!!
An article that came out in a local daily, written by a well known individual was brought to my attention at the end of last week. It was another commentary on the Petronas IT outsourcing issue. His article was on two factors that weaken the Malays, the first due to a has-been politician expressing his intention to contest as a candidate for the party presidency and the second was because of the outsourcing. It's quite a farfetched theory, in my humble opinion but do have a read on the excerpts below and my comments which followed it.
Berita hangat di pelbagai akhbar pada 10 Julai itu ialah tentang hasrat Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah menawarkan diri untuk dicalonkan bertanding merebut jawatan Presiden UMNO dalam perhimpunan agung tahunan parti itu bulan September nanti. Surat pembaca yang tersiar di Utusan Malaysia pada 6 Julai itu adalah tentang penswastaan perkhidmatan teknologi maklumat (IT) di syarikat gergasi Petronas.
Manakala kesilapan Petronas menswastakan perkhidmatan IT-nya itu pula bukan sahaja akan `membazirkan' bakat dan sumber tenaga manusia Melayu di satu bidang yang sangat penting dan kritikal, malah lebih merunsingkan daripada itu ialah kita (Petronas dan negara) berhadapan dengan satu risiko kebocoran rahsia penting kepada warganegara asing.
Sebelum penswastaan itu dilaksanakan, perkhidmatan IT Petronas diselenggarakan oleh lebih 500 orang pakar IT yang sebahagian besarnya terdiri daripada tenaga-tenaga muda Melayu yang mahir dalam bidang tersebut.
Sebahagian besar daripada mereka, malah mungkin seluruhnya, memiliki kepakaran tersebut dengan bantuan biasiswa Petronas sebaik sahaja mereka berjaya dengan cemerlang dalam peperiksaan Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM). Ertinya Petronas telah melaburkan satu modal besar untuk memberikan pendidikan kepada mereka menjadi pakar IT.
Apabila perkhidmatan IT Petronas itu diswastakan kepada satu syarikat yang baru dibentuk, tidak sampai sepertiga daripada pakar-pakar IT Melayu yang seramai lebih 500 orang itu menyertai syarikat tersebut.
Sebahagian besar ingin kekal menjadi kakitangan sepenuh masa Petronas dan oleh kerana terpaksa melalui satu proses mendapatkan kemahiran semula iaitu proses memperoleh kemahiran baru di luar bidang IT.
Manakala syarikat baru dengan kekuatan tenaga pakar sepertiga daripada yang diperlukan untuk meneruskan perkhidmatan IT untuk Petronas itu, terpaksa mengimport tenaga luar, terutama dari India.
Dengan demikian satu komponen yang sangat penting dan sangat kritikal untuk operasi Petronas itu sekarang terdedah kepada orang asing yang bukan sahaja bukan Melayu malah juga bukan Malaysia.
Sekali gus ini bukan sahaja merugikan Melayu malah menakutkan Malaysia. Tidakkah mungkin kita berbalik ke pangkal jalan? Pergerakan Pemuda UMNO dan ahli-ahli Parlimen Melayu patut meneliti perkara ini lebih lanjut. Semoga yang tertitik tidak akan tertumpah.
The main points he made on the outsourcing issue were:
"Competition will ensure that you remain on your toes, get better, innovate, reduce your cost, be creative, be resourceful and grow. And that's how you grow big, strong and rock the world. So, remove the barriers and let the fight begin. No one owes us anything."
Berita hangat di pelbagai akhbar pada 10 Julai itu ialah tentang hasrat Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah menawarkan diri untuk dicalonkan bertanding merebut jawatan Presiden UMNO dalam perhimpunan agung tahunan parti itu bulan September nanti. Surat pembaca yang tersiar di Utusan Malaysia pada 6 Julai itu adalah tentang penswastaan perkhidmatan teknologi maklumat (IT) di syarikat gergasi Petronas.
Manakala kesilapan Petronas menswastakan perkhidmatan IT-nya itu pula bukan sahaja akan `membazirkan' bakat dan sumber tenaga manusia Melayu di satu bidang yang sangat penting dan kritikal, malah lebih merunsingkan daripada itu ialah kita (Petronas dan negara) berhadapan dengan satu risiko kebocoran rahsia penting kepada warganegara asing.
Sebelum penswastaan itu dilaksanakan, perkhidmatan IT Petronas diselenggarakan oleh lebih 500 orang pakar IT yang sebahagian besarnya terdiri daripada tenaga-tenaga muda Melayu yang mahir dalam bidang tersebut.
Sebahagian besar daripada mereka, malah mungkin seluruhnya, memiliki kepakaran tersebut dengan bantuan biasiswa Petronas sebaik sahaja mereka berjaya dengan cemerlang dalam peperiksaan Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM). Ertinya Petronas telah melaburkan satu modal besar untuk memberikan pendidikan kepada mereka menjadi pakar IT.
Apabila perkhidmatan IT Petronas itu diswastakan kepada satu syarikat yang baru dibentuk, tidak sampai sepertiga daripada pakar-pakar IT Melayu yang seramai lebih 500 orang itu menyertai syarikat tersebut.
Sebahagian besar ingin kekal menjadi kakitangan sepenuh masa Petronas dan oleh kerana terpaksa melalui satu proses mendapatkan kemahiran semula iaitu proses memperoleh kemahiran baru di luar bidang IT.
Manakala syarikat baru dengan kekuatan tenaga pakar sepertiga daripada yang diperlukan untuk meneruskan perkhidmatan IT untuk Petronas itu, terpaksa mengimport tenaga luar, terutama dari India.
Dengan demikian satu komponen yang sangat penting dan sangat kritikal untuk operasi Petronas itu sekarang terdedah kepada orang asing yang bukan sahaja bukan Melayu malah juga bukan Malaysia.
Sekali gus ini bukan sahaja merugikan Melayu malah menakutkan Malaysia. Tidakkah mungkin kita berbalik ke pangkal jalan? Pergerakan Pemuda UMNO dan ahli-ahli Parlimen Melayu patut meneliti perkara ini lebih lanjut. Semoga yang tertitik tidak akan tertumpah.
The main points he made on the outsourcing issue were:
- Malays are losing out because what used to be a Malay dominated field in Petronas, will now be given to foreigners party, specifically from India
- A critical operation to the country, (Petronas being a national oil company) will be 'exposed' to foreign powers and influence
- the author suggested that UMNO Youth and Malay Members of Parliament will take up this issue and fight for the so-called weak Malays
My comments:
The points in the article is so backwards and not suitable with this age of globalisation. Malays as a race don't need protection, we need to be competitive and the ability to stand tall with the rest of the world. If we just want to be protected and not allow competition to arrive on our shores, then I'm really afraid for our future children and countrymen. Being one of the person that joined the new company, I am quite insulted, as I'm sure my other colleagues, by what the author wrote. We joined the new setup because we want to be better IT professionals and to do what we love and know best. Simple as that. We knew of the risks leaving a larger and more establised company but I guess the spirit of being pioneers kind of appeals to us. It doesn't matter who work for the company, be it Indians or Africans or even the Eskimos. What we need to do is learn from them and espouse to be as good or better than them. Foreign workers are a norm in many of our larger companies. They've been there even before the IT outsourcing issue was raised a couple of years ago. I suppose someone told the author about this issue but not the whole story. Being someone with credentials his writing would carry weight I suppose among the highly emotional group, but economic sense would just prevail, I hope. I believe the new UMNO Youth Deputy leader will not be caught into such issues. If not, then I don't know where this country is heading to.
"Competition will ensure that you remain on your toes, get better, innovate, reduce your cost, be creative, be resourceful and grow. And that's how you grow big, strong and rock the world. So, remove the barriers and let the fight begin. No one owes us anything."
Saturday, July 24, 2004
Myths of Outsourcing
An interesting piece on IT outsourcing. This is something really close to everyone's hearts at the moment but as the author wrote, "The only constant in today's work environment is change." It's how you handle the change which really matters. Those who couldn't shape up might have to ship out.
Long Absence
It sure has been quite a while since I wrote in this blog. Not sure why it was so, could it be because IE on my house computer screwed up or I was just plain lazy to write. Maybe I'm experiencing some sort of writer's block. Whatever it is, I've changed the look of the blog again, want to have a darker look on it. Just to recap some of thing that occured over the past month or so:
- Abah & Cu came over here a few days ago. It was the first time I met up with them since they got back from Mekkah. We haven't travelled down to KL for a month now.
- Awi got into an accident but she is okay. The motorcyclists she hit were not so lucky. Someone else was at fault but hopefully that person would've learnt her lesson and either she does something about her driving or better yet, hang up her license lah.
- Adiknor is confirmed to be pregnant after 3 month's of marriage. The newly weds must be in a hurry. Also they got their wedding pics inside the magazine, Nona.
- I'm settling down rather nicely in my new position. However, there are some unfinished business in terms of the management, hopefully the people at the top can clear things up quickly because us little people down here just want to carry on with our jobs. People who are dissatisfied should just put up with what's happening now and move on, for God's sake.
- Greece, lo and behold won the Euro 2004. As usual England had to bow out, yet again on penalties to Portugal, who went on to meet the Greeks in the final.
A lot more had happened but I just couldn't be bothered to rack my brains remembering all of them. Hopefully, I can safely say, I am back at blogging after rather long absence.
Friday, June 18, 2004
Everything Changes But You.......NOT!!
This line from a song by Take That suddenly appears in my head when I was starting this blog entry. It just dawned on me that everything changes even you, by that I mean everyone and anyone. The past few weeks and days have all been about change, that's what life really is. Haziq just turned one year on 15 June 2004. I've suddenly been elevated to a higher responsibility position due to the departure of Am to Kuantan. It really is scary and daunting but my motto in life at the moment is to take things one day at a time. It is not an impossible task and equipped with the right tools and people, anyone can do this job. It's not like a PM's position, right? Nevertheless, similar perks would've been great.
There's a lot of work to be done and with Am away in Kuantan, the boss now wants us to fly on our own. And it really is a swim or sink situation. Challenges are abound but so far we've been able to handle them. Things like no office space, no PCs for the new people to work on. These can all be dealt with given time and resources. I just hope they can focus on the job and have the dedication to stay the path. I guess it is my job now to lead them. Funny how things turned out, eh?
With new people, there will be new challenges as well. I saw one example yesterday a situation concerning one of the new people. It really is kind of simple actually. A user called the IT office at 4 pm, which is the end of office hours on a Thursday here. The user is having some problems with his PC but his office is like so far away inside the plant. Of course the new guy who answered the phone wanted to go back and was relunctant to attend to that user's problem. The new guy cited that it's already at the end of office hours and basically gave the message to the user that it's too late, can we do this next week? To me, that's not a good response to the user. He must be thinking that we're providing crap services. The new guy should've tried to understand the user's problem and give other alternatives like logging in to another PC or inviting him to the IT office and do his work there and so on. Instead of closing one door, other doors need to be opened. That's what our job is, to provide service and assist the users. They don't want to listen about no connection, server problems or virus. They just want to do their jobs so it's our job to take up the problems. It's not an easy job but I guess I like the part about helping people which kind of draws me to it. It does get exasperating at moments but once I know I've helped a user in completing their work, I get a feeling of satistaction. I suppose best practices say there shouldn't be any problems in the first place but hey, we are in the real world and things do screw up.
So, mindset change is required and as I also have a lot to learn, the new people also need to catch up in terms of knowledge and culture.
There's a lot of work to be done and with Am away in Kuantan, the boss now wants us to fly on our own. And it really is a swim or sink situation. Challenges are abound but so far we've been able to handle them. Things like no office space, no PCs for the new people to work on. These can all be dealt with given time and resources. I just hope they can focus on the job and have the dedication to stay the path. I guess it is my job now to lead them. Funny how things turned out, eh?
With new people, there will be new challenges as well. I saw one example yesterday a situation concerning one of the new people. It really is kind of simple actually. A user called the IT office at 4 pm, which is the end of office hours on a Thursday here. The user is having some problems with his PC but his office is like so far away inside the plant. Of course the new guy who answered the phone wanted to go back and was relunctant to attend to that user's problem. The new guy cited that it's already at the end of office hours and basically gave the message to the user that it's too late, can we do this next week? To me, that's not a good response to the user. He must be thinking that we're providing crap services. The new guy should've tried to understand the user's problem and give other alternatives like logging in to another PC or inviting him to the IT office and do his work there and so on. Instead of closing one door, other doors need to be opened. That's what our job is, to provide service and assist the users. They don't want to listen about no connection, server problems or virus. They just want to do their jobs so it's our job to take up the problems. It's not an easy job but I guess I like the part about helping people which kind of draws me to it. It does get exasperating at moments but once I know I've helped a user in completing their work, I get a feeling of satistaction. I suppose best practices say there shouldn't be any problems in the first place but hey, we are in the real world and things do screw up.
So, mindset change is required and as I also have a lot to learn, the new people also need to catch up in terms of knowledge and culture.
Monday, June 14, 2004
My God! England is SO DAMN STUUUPID!!!
I can't believe those bunch of idiots. Already leading by one goal, got the chance to finish France off with that penalty and Becks couldn't get even that right. Down to the 90th minute, Zizou got a free kick and converted it. Shit lah. After that a cock up combination by 2 Liverpool players, one currently playing for it, the other is an ex. In the end, France got a penalty and Zizou effortlessly scored it. From facing defeat, they got a win. Call that class or what? England was too negative in the 2nd half and it serves them right, I suppose.
Thursday, June 03, 2004
A Dream
"It is our dream & wish that you all move forward in your career in the new environment with CONFIDENCE. Pls take this as an opportunity to progress and continue learning. In this critical moments we hope you to keep spirit high, enjoy the challenges, be united, be focus and NEVER forget to PRAY to ALLAH to ensure what we do are with the BLESS from ALLAH."
I've never thought I'd be quoting my boss in this blog but this mail he sent to us yesterday really marked a new beginning for me at least. It is confirmed, Am will be transfered to MTBE to head iPerintis operations over there. I guess the boss had been mulling over this issue for weeks and yesterday he made the decision to push forward with it. The transfer was approved within a few hours and Am will be heading down south in I guess a couple of weeks, maybe less.
I guess it is good for Am to be in that new capacity but I will definitely feel a loss. Dah lah kat sini memang tak cukup orang and personally, I think we need as many experienced people as possible to keep this place intact or stabilised. But the management as decided and there's not much I can do or say to stop it. As the boss said, it's going to be challenging and Wan even remarked that I'll be the one facing the most challenges. Mostly new people will be coming on board in the next few weeks and there's a lot to be done to improve things over here. I suppose I have to be a good XO to the boss since I'm the most senior executive here after him. I don't covet any position just as long I can perform and do something I like. My passion still remains but it sure is daunting to take over Am's responsibilities because I've never been much exposed to the things he's doing now. So with him gone, I have to assume that role.
Whatever it is, I can only pray to Allah for strength, support from my family and friends and hopefully a lot of patience and resolve.
I've never thought I'd be quoting my boss in this blog but this mail he sent to us yesterday really marked a new beginning for me at least. It is confirmed, Am will be transfered to MTBE to head iPerintis operations over there. I guess the boss had been mulling over this issue for weeks and yesterday he made the decision to push forward with it. The transfer was approved within a few hours and Am will be heading down south in I guess a couple of weeks, maybe less.
I guess it is good for Am to be in that new capacity but I will definitely feel a loss. Dah lah kat sini memang tak cukup orang and personally, I think we need as many experienced people as possible to keep this place intact or stabilised. But the management as decided and there's not much I can do or say to stop it. As the boss said, it's going to be challenging and Wan even remarked that I'll be the one facing the most challenges. Mostly new people will be coming on board in the next few weeks and there's a lot to be done to improve things over here. I suppose I have to be a good XO to the boss since I'm the most senior executive here after him. I don't covet any position just as long I can perform and do something I like. My passion still remains but it sure is daunting to take over Am's responsibilities because I've never been much exposed to the things he's doing now. So with him gone, I have to assume that role.
Whatever it is, I can only pray to Allah for strength, support from my family and friends and hopefully a lot of patience and resolve.
Friday, May 28, 2004
Great News!
I got some great news from my ex-boss regarding my performance last year. It sure is gratifying to know that your hardwork and effort is recognised by the company even though I am not part of anymore, per se. Nevertheless, it did strengthen my point in deciding to join my current company, as I know that this is my calling. Hehehehe, not really lah but at least I hope to do something I can be good at. So this decision is, Insyallah, the correct one.
It's kind of interesting observing different type of people who are affected by the current transformation process. Some just want to be rebellious, some accepted the fact that change is inevitable and chose to either remain in the same field or move on to something different. Whatever it is, the reaction that you express kind of shows the type of person you are. I suppose people like myself who opted to join have experienced it all. The looks people give, the whispers, the jokes, dry comments, dissatisfaction about this and that. Maybe I am too young to really bother about all this and in the end, just want to go to work, do something I enjoy, regardless how challenging it might be and go back home to my family. We can have an impact on things we have power on. Can I stop the sun from rising in the East? Can I avoid what is going to happen from the 1st of June? Some people just need to get off their high horses and reflect on how they themselves can contribute and not just criticise or 'berlagak bagus'.
It's kind of interesting observing different type of people who are affected by the current transformation process. Some just want to be rebellious, some accepted the fact that change is inevitable and chose to either remain in the same field or move on to something different. Whatever it is, the reaction that you express kind of shows the type of person you are. I suppose people like myself who opted to join have experienced it all. The looks people give, the whispers, the jokes, dry comments, dissatisfaction about this and that. Maybe I am too young to really bother about all this and in the end, just want to go to work, do something I enjoy, regardless how challenging it might be and go back home to my family. We can have an impact on things we have power on. Can I stop the sun from rising in the East? Can I avoid what is going to happen from the 1st of June? Some people just need to get off their high horses and reflect on how they themselves can contribute and not just criticise or 'berlagak bagus'.
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
People Management
"Lawa baju". "Merahnya!!". I've been getting these remarks from almost everybody when I walk around my old company. The new jacket colour is flaming red which can be seen from miles away. In the beginning I was quite self conscious to wear the new jacket but my friend Am just didn't seem to give a damn wearing it, so I'm now more comfortable wearing it everywhere. :)
It has been quite an experience to be thrown into an unfamiliar territory and to take up quite a major task, the biggest so far in my short working career. I see now that the most difficult is in managing people, not the technology or working culture. It is the people that we have to take care of. In my new working environment, I can see a lot of the people whom I'm interacting with are wary of our presence. Some are not sure how to deal with us, some are just downright cold as ice. Which is to be expected but not really what it should be. People should just be professional especially in handing over tasks and responsibilities. It's now we're the ones who are causing all these. It's the people up there, our bosses. If you don't like it, take it up with them not us, who just want to move forward and get on with our lives. You chose your path and I have chosen mine. We should just respect each other.
On this matter, I'm quite impressed with how Am has been dealing some 'difficult' people. He's just being happy-go-lucky, sometimes acting manja-like, but never showing discomfort or anger. We know that we're getting a not-so-good deal but our passion for the job and if we do things well, I'm sure will bear sweet fruits in the future. As been said before, the power of 3 will work wonders in this region. Whatever challenges lies ahead, we can overcome them if we use our heads and work together. Nothing is impossible, right? Regardless of the colour of the jacket we wear, what matters is what we do and produce. The rest is just cosmetics and makeup.
It has been quite an experience to be thrown into an unfamiliar territory and to take up quite a major task, the biggest so far in my short working career. I see now that the most difficult is in managing people, not the technology or working culture. It is the people that we have to take care of. In my new working environment, I can see a lot of the people whom I'm interacting with are wary of our presence. Some are not sure how to deal with us, some are just downright cold as ice. Which is to be expected but not really what it should be. People should just be professional especially in handing over tasks and responsibilities. It's now we're the ones who are causing all these. It's the people up there, our bosses. If you don't like it, take it up with them not us, who just want to move forward and get on with our lives. You chose your path and I have chosen mine. We should just respect each other.
On this matter, I'm quite impressed with how Am has been dealing some 'difficult' people. He's just being happy-go-lucky, sometimes acting manja-like, but never showing discomfort or anger. We know that we're getting a not-so-good deal but our passion for the job and if we do things well, I'm sure will bear sweet fruits in the future. As been said before, the power of 3 will work wonders in this region. Whatever challenges lies ahead, we can overcome them if we use our heads and work together. Nothing is impossible, right? Regardless of the colour of the jacket we wear, what matters is what we do and produce. The rest is just cosmetics and makeup.
Sunday, May 23, 2004
Still in the Office!!
I'm still in my new office (read: KIPC Data Centre) which is freezing cold. I'm just hanging around while the security system server is being configured. It crashed a few days, it's 4 GB hard disk space just couldn't cope with us being here. Hehehehehe. Actually, it's part of the handover process from the guy who is actually doing the work tonight.
I know Haziq will already be sleeping once I got home. I'll miss carrying him around the house like I usually do after coming home. So, I only got to spend a few minutes this morning with him and it kind of sucks that I couldn't spend more time. Hmmm, biasalah kot, being a father to have these sort of feelings. Hope Awi won't suddenly get jealous sudah lah. :)
It's almost 10 pm and I hope the work will complete soon so that I can go home, have dinner, watch some TV, sleep and wake up to play with Haziq tomorrow morning!!
I know Haziq will already be sleeping once I got home. I'll miss carrying him around the house like I usually do after coming home. So, I only got to spend a few minutes this morning with him and it kind of sucks that I couldn't spend more time. Hmmm, biasalah kot, being a father to have these sort of feelings. Hope Awi won't suddenly get jealous sudah lah. :)
It's almost 10 pm and I hope the work will complete soon so that I can go home, have dinner, watch some TV, sleep and wake up to play with Haziq tomorrow morning!!
Saturday, May 22, 2004
Jalan-jalan di hari Sabtu
Awi and Haziq are flat tired now. Both of them went to bed early after a day trip to Kuala Terengganu. We met up with Abah, Mak, Adiknor and Razi this morning when they travelled by air to the state capital of Terengganu. Their main objective was really for Razi to be 'officially' introduced to all our family members in Terengganu. I also did this when I got married a couple of years ago but we went around, just the two of us.
Abah showed us the new house for my grandmother, Siti, which is currently being built. Quite a good location and not as big as the current house. There's some complication with the land on which the current house is located on as a result of it having a status of wakaf land. After that, we visited several relatives and we were on our way back at 5 pm, once Abah and Mak left for the airport.
The drive back shouldn't have taken more than 1.5 hours but the police force decided to do a road block, causing a long traffic jam, all for them to inspect everyone's driving license. What a waste of time and energy. Are they seriously going to catch criminals by doing such meaningless roadblocks?
Reached home before 8 pm, to find my auntie and uncle, Mak Chak & Ayah Nik to be at the house. They're on their way to KT from KL and since their son, Hadi is staying here, they decided to stopover. We had dinner at one of their relative's house and I am now back home, fresh after taking a bath and can't wait to go to bed. It's been a hot and tiring day. Can't wait for work tomorrow....
Abah showed us the new house for my grandmother, Siti, which is currently being built. Quite a good location and not as big as the current house. There's some complication with the land on which the current house is located on as a result of it having a status of wakaf land. After that, we visited several relatives and we were on our way back at 5 pm, once Abah and Mak left for the airport.
The drive back shouldn't have taken more than 1.5 hours but the police force decided to do a road block, causing a long traffic jam, all for them to inspect everyone's driving license. What a waste of time and energy. Are they seriously going to catch criminals by doing such meaningless roadblocks?
Reached home before 8 pm, to find my auntie and uncle, Mak Chak & Ayah Nik to be at the house. They're on their way to KT from KL and since their son, Hadi is staying here, they decided to stopover. We had dinner at one of their relative's house and I am now back home, fresh after taking a bath and can't wait to go to bed. It's been a hot and tiring day. Can't wait for work tomorrow....
Friday, May 21, 2004
Culture Shock
I do believe that my cousin, his wife and friends are experiencing some culture shock after being in Kerteh for 2 days. All the adjectives have been said, quiet, relaxed, small, no big shops, nothing happens on Friday etc. Kesian lah jugak but that is the reality of living in Kerteh. I guess the place just grew on myself over the years. It did got me to think about the time when I just touched down in Kerteh. Just the two of us with Reza, my old housemate. We moved houses a couple of times before settling down in Panalex housing area. I guess, we took things in our stride and did manage to last until now. I do feel at home nowadays, but I still bitch about the long traveling hours. I'll try to reassure my cousin because things can only get better, right?
Trip to MTBE, Kuantan
For the second time in one week, I travelled with my boss, this time to MTBE, Kuantan which is another location which falls under the responsibility of my boss. At times, I do pity him because the new management had assigned him with quite a considerable heavy task. Looking after a huge area, encompassing about 10 companies which would have about 3000 thousand users. It's not an easy task and I do feel the uncertainty but I really want to see if all of us, a minority group, are able to pull this through. It's such a massive challenge and I don't regret the path that I had chosen. I suppose it gives me a chance to prove myself. Who knows, maybe one day I'll be handpicked to run a large corporation like Wahid (Telekom) and Che Khalib (TNB)? Hehehee, wishful thinking, I guess.
Anyway, the trip to MTBE wasn't as difficult I thought it's gonna be. We're supposed to collect data on the company's IT inventory but it turned out they've already done it. Somehow, someone lost the information and we had to dig it up again. Thankfully, the MTBE people were helpful enough and our main objective was achieved within a few minutes. We then proceeded to check out the data centres in the proximity. I have a feeling I'll be visiting those locations many times in the coming months!!
During the drive up and down, the boss and I talked on a variety of things. From the interesting (read: sex-filled) court cases to his old colleagues to how to strategise our approach in handling our new clients. He realised that he's no superman but I liked the way he's going to take things one at a time. I could sense his nervousness at taking up the big responsibility but I intend to give my best to ensure our success, as I'm sure Am and Wan will be doing so as well. I still remember the vision that our old setup had in EPEMSB, which is to be the best IT setup in the East Coast. I believe that vision still holds except that it is only left to a handful of us. Thay're many naysayers but I have moved on and it is time to look for the future and work our asses off.
Thursday, May 20, 2004
Testting Mail2Blogger
Blogger has updated their template and features so I've changed mine and this is just to test out its mail to blog option. It'll be easier after this...:)
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Overdue Blogging
I just came back from KL, attending my new company's orientation program. Quite an interesting half day event. To me the highlights of the event were the opening remarks by the CEO and one of the founders of the company. They basically stressed the importance of teamwork, loyalty and wanting to be the best. I have to say that I was quite inspired after the session. There's a lot of effort, time and energy that needs to be put in after this. I think most of my colleagues in the East Coast region are ready and will plough on despite the new challenges coming our way.
Tuesday, May 04, 2004
All Modes of Transport
Yesterday, we made the journey from Bidor down to KL and then up again the East Coast to Kerteh. We drove down in the morning using Adiknor's car, went for lunch at my auntie's house in Kg Tunku, then back for a while to Bangsar, then took the train from KL Sentral to KLIA, flew to Kuantan and finally drove home on my trusty Honda. I would be lying if I say that it wasn't tiring but I suppose it beats driving any other day. Awi also felt the fatigue and we're not really looking forward to the traveling that we have to do again this weekend. Don't get me wrong, I love to be in KL but the journey can literally kill you. If not the road accident, the fatigue can really put you off balance for a few days. Especially for a mother like Awi, it is not easy to do all those. I hope we can rest for a few weeks after this because there'll be more events coming up in June pulak.
We went down to KL for a few functions. The main one being to attend Awi's best friend, Amy's wedding. They were housemates in Kerteh for four years before Awi got married. We were at the akad nikah on Friday night. It was kind of boring because Awi left me alone waiting outside while she went up to the bride's room with Haziq. There weren't many people who I know, in fact none. :) So the groom came and did all those akad nikah's stuff, took pictures, I'm sure some women must've cried and we proceeded to dinner, which was quite a delicious affair, masakan ala kampung dgn kerabu and sambal belacan.
The next morning, we had breakfast with the new couple on the street, Razi and Adiknor. My parents with Cu and Ucop went for a short holiday in Langkawi. It was a long weekend due to Labour Day, Maulidur-Rasul and Wesak Day happening on 3 consecutive days. The original plan was to have Kak Nik and Razif also but Razif got the fever, so it was just the 5 of us.
After breakfast, we then drove up to Bidor to visit Awi's parents. Usually the journey took max 2 hours but it took me almost 4 hours to get there, plus the stops I made to take a nap. Many cityfolks took the opportunity to balik kampung like we did so in resulted in a major highway jam. Only in Malaysia, I believe this could happen. A traffic jam along a highway!!
On Sunday, I drove up to Kuala Kangsar to visit my good friend and ex-housemate, Basheer. His wife, Sarah just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Fatima something. We both got married in the same year, 2002 and I haven't seen him since then because he then went to Japan to work. He's back in Malaysia now and I hope we can meet up more often after this.
So, all in all, it was quite an eventful weekend. Tomorrow, I will start work as an iPerintis staff. I do feel some sort of excitement and some unsureness but I hope to give the best I can in my new position. I foresee more responsibilities and challenges. However, it is good for my career and the most important thing to remember is that I chose this path so I must make sure that things will go well. It is within my powers to do so, with God's assistance of course.
PS: Do check out my photoblog. Got loads of pics there from the wedding and events over the weekend.
We went down to KL for a few functions. The main one being to attend Awi's best friend, Amy's wedding. They were housemates in Kerteh for four years before Awi got married. We were at the akad nikah on Friday night. It was kind of boring because Awi left me alone waiting outside while she went up to the bride's room with Haziq. There weren't many people who I know, in fact none. :) So the groom came and did all those akad nikah's stuff, took pictures, I'm sure some women must've cried and we proceeded to dinner, which was quite a delicious affair, masakan ala kampung dgn kerabu and sambal belacan.
The next morning, we had breakfast with the new couple on the street, Razi and Adiknor. My parents with Cu and Ucop went for a short holiday in Langkawi. It was a long weekend due to Labour Day, Maulidur-Rasul and Wesak Day happening on 3 consecutive days. The original plan was to have Kak Nik and Razif also but Razif got the fever, so it was just the 5 of us.
After breakfast, we then drove up to Bidor to visit Awi's parents. Usually the journey took max 2 hours but it took me almost 4 hours to get there, plus the stops I made to take a nap. Many cityfolks took the opportunity to balik kampung like we did so in resulted in a major highway jam. Only in Malaysia, I believe this could happen. A traffic jam along a highway!!
On Sunday, I drove up to Kuala Kangsar to visit my good friend and ex-housemate, Basheer. His wife, Sarah just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Fatima something. We both got married in the same year, 2002 and I haven't seen him since then because he then went to Japan to work. He's back in Malaysia now and I hope we can meet up more often after this.
So, all in all, it was quite an eventful weekend. Tomorrow, I will start work as an iPerintis staff. I do feel some sort of excitement and some unsureness but I hope to give the best I can in my new position. I foresee more responsibilities and challenges. However, it is good for my career and the most important thing to remember is that I chose this path so I must make sure that things will go well. It is within my powers to do so, with God's assistance of course.
PS: Do check out my photoblog. Got loads of pics there from the wedding and events over the weekend.
Tuesday, April 20, 2004
My Little Sister
I promised Adiknor that I'll write something about her in this blog once she got married. Well, she did so, last week. It was a rather elaborate ceremony I have to say but that's the modern Malay way of holding weddings, I suppose. Actually, to ask me personally, I thought she got married a bit young for today's standards but come to think again, why delay something which is encouraged by our religion and if she found her life partner this early, she'll be among the luckiest people in the world!! I know many who haven't still.
I gave a speech during the lunch event but I didn't touch too much with regards to Adiknor. The thank you portion was so damn long, thank to Abah. Adiknor is 4 years younger than me and I like to believe that we wre quite close while growing up. We quarell sometimes but I think I've hold on to the position of the big brother protecting litte sister quite well over the years. We shared quite a lot of secrets, I knew about her many 'peminat' and she read all my letters which I've kept while studying in the UK. She even pried into my very secretive diary when I was in Form 4. There was once during the Mask toy craze and she wanted this one toy car. We shared money and we bought the toy together. I can still remember those days and I hope she was damn happy to get that toy because if I recall correctly, she kept it only for a short while.
When she moved to a boarding school, I was at the verge of flying off to the UK to further my studies. However, still we kept in touch through mail, phone and eventually, email, irc and ICQ. See how the technology progressed as the years of my living abroad increases. I visited her at school and even provided free Science tuition whenever she's available. Till this day I'm not really sure whether she was excited about me coming for the tuition classes or the McDonalds value meals I brought along.
Throughout those years I really did enjoy helping her in any way I could. I was away most of the time, after studying abroad, coming here to work. So, whenever possible, I will do whatever I can. What is a big brother for anyway, right? It was a good brother-sister relationship and I do pray that in this new phase in her life she will be happy and contented.
Adiknor, you want advice? Well, as I said before, it's a multitude of factors but work hard and make the wedding enjoyable. Listen to Razi and make sure he listens to you as well. No more retiring to caves in the forests, okay? Work with one another and not for one person only. A marriage is a partnership and I do admit that sometimes I don't do as much as I'm supposed to but I'll try to improve, right Awi? :)
All in all, Adiknor and Razi, have a happy marriage, enjoy the rest and don't forget to visit us one of these days in Kerteh!!
I gave a speech during the lunch event but I didn't touch too much with regards to Adiknor. The thank you portion was so damn long, thank to Abah. Adiknor is 4 years younger than me and I like to believe that we wre quite close while growing up. We quarell sometimes but I think I've hold on to the position of the big brother protecting litte sister quite well over the years. We shared quite a lot of secrets, I knew about her many 'peminat' and she read all my letters which I've kept while studying in the UK. She even pried into my very secretive diary when I was in Form 4. There was once during the Mask toy craze and she wanted this one toy car. We shared money and we bought the toy together. I can still remember those days and I hope she was damn happy to get that toy because if I recall correctly, she kept it only for a short while.
When she moved to a boarding school, I was at the verge of flying off to the UK to further my studies. However, still we kept in touch through mail, phone and eventually, email, irc and ICQ. See how the technology progressed as the years of my living abroad increases. I visited her at school and even provided free Science tuition whenever she's available. Till this day I'm not really sure whether she was excited about me coming for the tuition classes or the McDonalds value meals I brought along.
Throughout those years I really did enjoy helping her in any way I could. I was away most of the time, after studying abroad, coming here to work. So, whenever possible, I will do whatever I can. What is a big brother for anyway, right? It was a good brother-sister relationship and I do pray that in this new phase in her life she will be happy and contented.
Adiknor, you want advice? Well, as I said before, it's a multitude of factors but work hard and make the wedding enjoyable. Listen to Razi and make sure he listens to you as well. No more retiring to caves in the forests, okay? Work with one another and not for one person only. A marriage is a partnership and I do admit that sometimes I don't do as much as I'm supposed to but I'll try to improve, right Awi? :)
All in all, Adiknor and Razi, have a happy marriage, enjoy the rest and don't forget to visit us one of these days in Kerteh!!
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