Sorry for not updating in so long but now that I have started work, I am hardly online ...

The first day of work was fine. There were 2 other girls that started too but they are going to be posted to the airport. We did mainly briefing that day, was told was to do and what not to do, very boring stuff. Was placed on the shop floor for awhile and it was quite fun. It's nice to be surrounded by all the bags and trying them on for size :)

I have been place with another senior in the store who just so happens to be my bro's friend's friend. He is really nice and very enthusiastic about his job. Too bad he's gay and has a bf (I also met his bf that day .. I was introduced as "Sherwin's sister" :P

There is alot of paperwork involved when making a sale which I find really tedious but I guess when u are dealing with goods that are worth hundreds, it is inevitable.

Will be going to a company dinner later tonite, it's supposed to be for celebrating the lunar new year I guess. It will be a great opportunity to meet all the big guns of the company. It is going to be all the way at East Coast Jumbo restaurant and I have yet to decide how to go there. My mom is afraid that I might get lost if I drive but if I don't it would mean taking a cab to and fro.

Talking about cars, my parents have bought a new car, or should I say, a MPV (multi person vehicle) and will be trading in the current car. It was something that I was against, but it is not my money and I technically have no say in it. I wanted them to get a smaller car and then keep the current car but they decided to get a bigger one altogether. What is the point in getting a huge car? How often are we going to go out as a family and fully utilize the 7 seats? Moreover, I heard from my mom that when my bro and sis have a kid, they would be getting a car on their own.

Anyway, it is already done .. now if I would to drive that huge monstrousity on the crowded S'pore roads and park on the tiny lots, I would have to make sure that I do not scratch my mom's new baby.

This Lunar New Year just did not feel right. You would think that after 6 years away, I would feel the atmosphere here but unfortunately I did not. Yes, I did go down to Chinatown, saw the decorations, see the new year goodies, I did go visiting, collected some ang pow, gambled, hung out with friends, but it just seem like any other day. Maybe it's because my dad isn't in town and we did not spend it like we used to ....

And for one thing, I have yet to have my yusheng! :(

Anways, on the first day, my forth uncle's family and my brother came to visit. We woke up early expecting them at around 8+am but they did not show up until 10.30am. We were almost ready to throw in the towel and head back to bed when they arrived.

On the second day, I finally made my way out of the hse. We went to visit a neighbor that lived about 3mins away. She always has a huge gathering at her place, would hire a caterer and invite a lion dance troupe.



Ok, maybe that did put me in a little in the lunar new year mood (btw, that is where I caught the fake coach bag too, in case anyone is curious). It has been awhile since I have caught a lion dance act so it was really quite fun.

On the third day, I went over to Christine and TY's hse where we had a gathering with my pre-u friends. I love their hse! Gambled a little, lost $4 twice. Well, I lost $4 and gave up, but then Ben gave me $1 which I used to win my money back, even making a profit of $1.50, however, I lost it all again .... sigh. Ben won the most, followed by Huiyi and then Chye Huat, I think.

One more day of freedom b4 I start work tomorrow ..... will be going down to town to get some a few studs, yeah, I am switching out my hoop earrings. Hopefully with the discreet studs, they would not pick on me .... HOPEFULLY. I would hate to take them out :(

Fake Coach Bag...

My favorite game when out and about .... "Spot the Fake Coach!" I have even trained my sis to spot them too! :)

When visiting during Lunar New Year, I spotted one. Does she honestly think that no one will know?



Hmm ... maybe I'll make this an ongoing thing. There are definitely enough fake Coach bags roaming the streets of Singapore. Damn them all!

新年快乐, 恭喜发财！

Here's wishing all a Happy and Prosperous Lunar New Year!

Valentine's came and went, it was just another day for me. However, I did spend it with friends I love :)

Early in the morning, I drove KL to is job interview which was near my place. While he was doing his thing, I set in the car reading, waiting for him. It took him about an hr to be done with the interview and after which we headed to Junction 8 for my dose of caffeine.

Went home and had to wash the car as I parked under a tree and it was attacked by a couple of birds. Of course my mom spotted it ... sigh.

Took a nap and then met up with KL and Huiyi in Chinatown. Got a little lost at Outram Park MRT station, took me awhile to find Huiyi but I managed to make my way through the endless exits to find her. We then went to find a place for dinner. We ended up eating porridge with Frog Legs and Pork Liver (haha, yes, to all my American friends, it was yummy)

After dinner, we went to browsed along the streets of chinatown to check out the new year goodies. However, it became apparent after awhile that everyone was selling basically the same stuff. Thankfully, probably because it was Valentine's, it wasn't too crowded.

Will be going down today to sign my appointment letter. My boss SMS me last nite .. it was kinda weird getting an SMS from her, but I guess SMSing is so common here that it is the norm ... While replying, I had to ask myself whether it was ok to use short forms and after checking her msg (she used "toml")I figured it was alright. Guess this is one "Organizational Communication" that I did not learn.

Singapore Idler No More ....

So, it was kinda stressful waiting for Mon to come. I half expected them to call and say, "Sorry, u are too much trouble, we decided not to offer u a job after all. Bye." Yes, that is the "glass is half empty" me talking. However, I also knew that if they were not reasonable in their negotiations, I was prepared to say no. I was ready either way, I even started looking at the employment ads again.

Susan called this morning at 10+, her usual time. She said that she has discussed it with her boss and they have agreed to my counter offer .... and it was the first offer of $300 more. WTF? She then mentioned again about how they are going to groom/train me for an AM role and that there will be lots of responsibilities, blah, blah, blah .... She then asked whether that is ok with me or if I needed more time to think about it. I told her no. She then gave me details on when I was starting, where, what I needed, etc.

And then I had to confirm again, cos it was still unbelievable that they would give me my higher offer and I said I would settle for less. She said yes .... Hmm, I still better read the fine print on the appointment letter :) Who knows what they might cut?

So, the lesson learnt?

Ask and thou SHALL receive! :)

Job Offer Update ....

Made the call this morning asking them whether there is room for negotiation. I guess I had to ask or I would always be asking "What if ....?"

I counter offered for an extra $300, she then asked how did I come up with that figure ... blab about my degree and years of experience in the service line. It was then her turn to blah about why she quoted the original figure ... blah, blah, blah. She said that they might be willing to look at a $100 increase .... *pause* .... I then told her that I would be willing to take $200.

She said that she would have to check with her boss, either call them today or she will be meeting with them on Mon. She will get back to me.

Ask and thou shall receive? We shall see ....

There had to be a bump ...

Sigh, I knew things were too smooth sailing, there had to be a bump somewhere and it has come. It was too good to be true, I can't get everything I was hoping for. Now the question is how much am I willing to settle for?

Here's how it went ...

Mon (5 Feb)
Afternoon
Sent out 2 resumes via email. One was for the Valiram Group who were looking for Boutique Mgrs, however they did not specify for which outlet or brand.

Tues
11am
Received a call from COACH asking me to come down to the store THAT DAY for an interview. Holy crap! I nearly peed my pants! I started to get nervous as hell. I had not expected such a fast response and it was going to be my FIRST official interview.

4pm
Interview, or rather, it felt more like an interrogation to me. Was not really prepared to answer some of the questions. I just felt that she didn't seem to like the answers that I gave her. Was nervous as hell. She mentioned that she does not think I have the necessary experience to work as a mgr for a luxury good (yes, Coach is considered a LUXURY good here in Singapore ... it's kinda laughable ... kinda) She asked whether I would be willing to considered an entry level position .... I said yes .... the interview went on ....

After more than 1 hr, the torture was over .... and she asked me back for a second interview the next day. She mentioned that the director would prob have more difficult questions for me. WTF?!?! I left the store still feeling mighty demoralized .... I felt that I did horribly in the interview but then I was asked back for another interview so it couldn't be that bad, right?

Wed
4.15pm
Was even more nervous, did some homework, studied on mgt styles. That was something that stumped me the day b4, I wasn't prepared to describe my style. Went in the office, shook his hand, the first thing he said? "Nice bag." Haha, of course I was carrying my Coach .... I had it on Tues and during the interview, Susan (that's the lady's name, also my mom's name .. is that a sign?) also took notice of it and mentioned it. I guess that is one thing I did right.

The interview lasted 15 mins and he did not ask "more difficult questions" like Susan said he would. It was more of a getting to know me. Once again, it was mentioned that I wasn't qualified enough for a mgr position, that they would only be setting me up for failure. However, he said that there are many stores opening and there are lots of opportunity ... "the sky's the limit" so cliche ... blah, blah, blah ... They said they would get back to me, hopefully b4 the weekend.

Thurs
It was a waiting game .... I absolutely hate waiting for the phone to ring.

It never did ...

Fri
10.21 am
The phone call finally came .... The job offer is made. The only thing that would make this a storybook ending would be if they gave me what I want. But I knew it was too smooth sailing ... the offer that they made was lower than what I expected. I told her I needed a day to think about it ...

Which leaves me in a dilemma.

What should I do? I know I am going to try to negotiate, but how low will I go b4 accepting the job? Do I even take it? Can I do better in another industry? Am I expecting too much? I know that I don't have the necessary experience for the line and I am starting at an entry level .... it supposed to be an "Senior" position, WTF is that? However, I do have a degree, so I should be worth something, right? I think it is a great opportunity to work for a brand I love but is this going to be a moment's fancy? Technically, I will not be working for the brand but under the company that governs the brand. They still have to follow guidelines set by the parent company and Susan mentioned that she was in NY last week doing buying ... drool. I think that accounts for why the bags here are way more expensive than in the US, there is the middleman.

And, NO, I did not ask about employee discount, I just thought it would be imprudent to touch on that. It is not at all part of my decision process. I don't need a discount to buy my bags. Plus, with the huge markup, I wonder whether it would still be cheaper getting it direct from the US.

I think there is opportunity for advancement, I have shown interest and they seem to be wanting to groom me and have high hopes for me. Must be all the BSing that I did .... However, I am afraid that I might have been fooling myself and them into thinking that I am more than I truely am.

Yes, my self doubt, low self esteem, non existent confidence is creeping in .....

It looks like I might not be able to meet my goal .... however, I plan to leave the ticker there to see how long it will take me. I still think that I have done a pretty decent job and have gotten a few complements from friends and my cousin.

Will be going over to my cousin's this sat for a reunion dinner (that's why trying to lose the remaining 3.6kg is going to be tough) They always have their reunion dinner earlier because they have their in-laws whom they have to have reunion dinners with too. This will be the first time I am joining the .. my bro and ash have been invited for the past few years when I was still in the US. It will be just my GuMa, cousins, their spouses and their kids.

On my side, we will be having our reunion dinner on 17 Feb, that's next Sat. How the hell am I supposed to resist the temptation when there are going to be a spread of scrumptous food? I'm really hoping to have some Yu Sheng, I have not had it in 6 years! Those salmon ones that I have seen look so yummy .... I love raw fish! :)

Yeehaw!

Have been doing some shopping the past few days ... u know, it's the Lunar New Year and we must have new clothes and shoes. Since I already have stuff for new year's ... thanks to my shopping spree when I first came home :) I was out shopping for other stuff.

My fave purchase on Fri was the Keith Urban cd .... There are 2 songs there that I loved so I had to buy it ... The 2 songs are You'll Think of Me and Making Memories of Us. Umm ... in case some of u don't know who he is, he is Mr Nicole Kidman. If u don't know who Nicole is, u better go jump off a bridge.

The other cd is something that my sis wanted b'cos of the song What Hurts The Most .. it is a super sad song and the video is great, go check out YouTube.

I was so happy to have found the cds. I went to 2 other stores b4 I found it at Sembawang Music ... HMV with it gazillion cds did not have a single Keith ... I guess country is dead here (in more ways than one)

I know that I would never be a huge fan of it like Helena, but hey, I'm trying ....