First Day Back At Work

After a week of laid-back holiday, it's gonna take some getting used to getting by a regular day...

6:30am	Alarm clock went off...
6:40am	(alarm kept going for 10 minutes before I could actually hear it) Set alarm clock to 7:00am... went back to sleep... zzz...
7:00am	Alarm went off...(I was actually having a colorful baby dream within a 20-minute nap!) Press snooze button... Went back to sleep... zzz...
7:10am	Ditto...
7:20am	Got out of bed (finally).
7:30am	Made breakfast
7:40am	Devotion (kinda rush)
7:55am	Had breakfast
8:10am	Left home for work (cold...) (traffic was really light... guess most people were still having their day off.) (gas price at 113.9¢/L!!?? ARRRR...!!!) (sunrise looking good! At least the weather was nice.)
8:30am	Arrived at office Chit-chat... Check/reply emails... Greet new colleagues...
9:30am	Continued with data check and report writing from where I left off before the holiday... (and where was the data?) (the network drive was kinda slow... so was my brain...) (40% efficiency)
10:00am	Warming up and getting up to speed... (60% efficiency)
10:30am	Snacking -- Belgian chocolates (holiday gift from client) offered at lunch room. =P
11:00pm	Full throttle! (100% efficiency)
1:45pm	Lunch time...
2:15pm	Rolling start... (80% efficiency)
2:45pm	Winding down (post-lunch syndrome)... zzz... (70% efficiency)
3:00pm	Snacking (only 2 pieces of Belgian chocolate left!?)
3:15pm	Turbo charged!! Feeling kinda levitated... (120% efficiency)
5:00pm	Shutdown... Off-line...

Average Efficiency = 85%.  Not bad for the first day, I guess. =)

Well, better pull myself together, get adjusted, and get ready for little ToTo... who will be here in less than a month!  Yay!!  Can't wait!  =)

The Little Angel on the Top of the Christmas Tree

Someone posted this in the office today, and had a good laugh out of it!  Great way to get ready for the holiday season!  Having a bad day at work? Think of poor Santa.  :)

When four of Santa's elves got sick, the trainee elves did not produce toys as fast as the regular ones, and Santa began to feel the Pre-Christmas pressure.

Then Mrs Claus told Santa her Mother was coming to visit, which stressed Santa even more.

When he went to harness the reindeer, he found that three of them were about to give birth and two others had jumped the fence and were out, Heaven knows where.

By now Santa was in a bad mood. He began to load the sleigh, but one of the floorboards cracked, the toy bag fell to the ground and all the toys were scattered....

Seriously frustrated, Santa went in the house for a cup of apple cider and a shot of rum. When he went to the cupboard, he discovered the elves had drank all the cider and hidden the liquor.

In his frustration, he accidentally dropped the cider jug, and it broke into hundreds of little glass pieces all over the kitchen floor.

He went to get the broom and found the mice had eaten all the straw off the end of the broom...

Just then the doorbell rang, our highly irritated Santa marched to the door, yanked it open, and there stood a little angel with a great big and gorgeous Christmas tree.

The angel said very cheerfully, 'Merry Christmas, Santa. Isn't this a lovely day? I have a beautiful tree for you. Where would you like me to stick it?'

And so began the tradition of the little angel on top of the Christmas tree.

- Author unknown

Getting Ready

My work schedule had been quite hectic recently.  While working for at least 10 hours a day on-site, I had been writing reports for other projects at home in the evenings and on weekends for the past 3 weeks!  I had never worked under such crazy schedule and stress.  Now I know how it feels like to be an elastic band being stretched like it had never been stretched before...

Tonight, PJ talked about being aware of the spiritual meanings behind everything that happened in our lives.  That was a good reminder for me at the right time.  In such busy schedule and tiring days, I could hardly find time to think deeply about the spiritual meanings behind all these.  God could have molded me for His purposes using different ways, including ways that I would never imagine, like making use of my crazy workload!!

We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.

Isaiah 64:8

I am not sure how things would work out, but knowing that there is a purpose behind all these unbearable workload, my working attitude would become very different.  Maybe all these crazy working hours were just “warm-up” exercises for me to get familiar with what a busy lifestyle is like, so I am getting mentally and physically ready for the coming of little ToTo!  :)

There is one thing I am sure – it’s all in His good hands.

Little ToTo at 12 weeks old.

Our 13th Valentine

I love to see and hear you smile;

it seems to take away my trouble.

Your smile has always warmed my heart

like a hot cocoa with floating marshmallows.

I love to sit next to you

to watch an episode of "Chibi Maruko-chan" or two.

Your giggles and laughs are like music to me;

to duet with mine like a symphony.

I love to hear you play piano;

a precious sound from deep in your soul.

Musical notes expressed in an unique way

delivered to God who is worthy of our praise.

I adore your passion on music;

Chopin, Mozart, they all sound romantic.

Learning music is fun but not that easy;

You have opened up a whole new world to me.

I admire your passion on teaching,

even those kids always give you headache.

Your patience and persistence always remind me

"Thy Will Be Done" and it is not me.

But... sometimes we fight, sometimes we quarrel;

the silent treatments had made us sorrow.

But after all things got resolved,

they've made me understand and love you more.

You brighten up my days though you drive me crazy;

You have become the rainbow of my life.

I thank God for giving you to me

to cherish as the apple of my eye.

Exam is Over... All Over!!!

After writing 8 technical exams and 1 technical report required by PEO in the past 10 years, I was finally done writing the PPE exam this afternoon! With every single drop of brain juice squeezed out in this 3 hour exam, I was so exhausted afterwards, but felt so relieved and excited. Finally, it's all over now! YEAH!!

I have learnt a great lesson to rely on God during these exam years. There had been a few occasions that I was sick when writing the exams, but amazingly, it turned out that those were the ones I got the highest marks! It is totally by His grace that I have gone this far, and not just by my own effort.

Also, I really have to thank Jen for her support during these years. Without her caring love and continuous encouragement, I would have given up long time ago. I thank God for giving me such a precious life partner!

Trial

Amazing thing happened at my trial for the speeding ticket today! While the judge assistant was taking attendance, she told me that they could reduce the fine to $45 without any demerit point. Knowing that it was the best deal available at that moment, I accepted and pleaded guilty. I thanked God for this arrangement, as I didn't need to worry about the insurance company raising my premium, and I could get back to focus on my PPE exam preparation.

While the judge went over my file, to my surprise, she announced that the charge was dropped and I was free to go, because somehow the ticket was not properly filed! Wow... that was totally unexpected! Praise the Lord, not for letting me get away from speeding, but for giving me a second chance, and let me have one less thing to worry about before the coming PPE exam this Saturday!

Speeding

Sigh... got a speeding ticket on my way back from a job site today. It was a downhill road, and the speed limit was reduced from 80km/h to 60km/h somewhere in the middle.  Before noticing that, I got radar-gunned, pulled over by a police officer, and received a speeding ticket saying that I was going at 82km/h in a 60km/h zone! That's a fine of $107.50 plus 3 demerit points!  :(

I admit I was at fault for not paying attention.  Hoping that the judge would go easy on the fine, it seems that going for a trial is my only option......