I am a Dreamer: Oversea Robbing Mission!

Friday, 2nd September 2016

TGIF! But it was a tiring day. Perhaps I have played too much games or worked too hard? LOL

Body felt exhausted and brain juice was running real low, I switched off my brain and rested comfortably on my bed.

... 

Yawn, I woke up at home. There, I saw my cousin (阿颜) and remembered I wanted to go his house to have a festive feast (Perhaps is ghost month). But it was too far from my house, I couldn't go without a car. I was so desperate to go, probably my stomach complaint too hard. Then I asked my cousin whether he was going back. And he said yes, but when stepping out of my house, I saw my aunts and other cousins came, they brought down all the food and set them up like catering. I was so happy until I forgot what food there was. I remember... Curry? 

When I turned to my back, out of sudden I physically appeared in another place. This time is a flower garden. 

I saw a gang of strangers but I felt like I knew them. They walked towards me. We had a little chat, and know what the topic was about? Robbing somebody oversea. I remembered vaguely the excitement when we decided on this mission. "He deserved it! He was so rich and we should target him", circulating in my mind. The excitement and the sensation was so real. Then we somehow came to a consensus and a plan which I had forgotten. What I remembered was I happily left the garden and turned my head back, I saw vivid and colourful sea of flowers, purple, yellow and etc. They were so lively and dancing gracefully. I could sense the joy from them.

Story seemed to fast forward when I suddenly appeared in an airport! That's it, it made sense because it was an oversea Mission! Wohoo, my brain told me the airline was EMIRATES! In real life I took once, it gave me Super good impression. 

This made me even more excited! I bought a big backpack and hold some stuffs on my hand. I saw a little cute plant (something like Money Plant) in its flower pot. I somehow knew the purpose of plant, it was to distract the officer on my Mission to rob people! "Hahaha". So they would ask a lot about the plant and forgot about my big backpack (Super naive!!!). 

The airport was so huge and looked sophisticated. I remembered how impressed I was at there. The spacious lobby, the cool air-cond, the exciting Mission, my adrenaline level was so high! I also couldn't wait to hop onto the Emirates airplane! 

When I approached the airport scanner gantry, I saw a guy in his uniform with Super Black Face! He was not in a good mood man! Then I put my stuffs down on the scanner belt and ready for them to get scanned, including my little cute flower pot. Out of sudden, the officer was mad and raged, he flipped my stuffs downside up just like flipping a table! He showed his poker face! But I felt INFURIATED. I quickly attended to my stuffs on the floor and my little cute flower pot was broken into pieces and the soil was everywhere. I was sad and mad at the same time. But wait! I was rushing to meet my friends, they all passed the scanner already. I was so nervous and needed to hurry up! I quickly ran toward another lanes and suddenly something strange popped out in my mind. I saw some lady officers were handling the other lanes, they were Japanese! And they are wearing big earphones. My mind told me they were listening to some training because they got no free time to attend physically a training. "Omg! Out of story". 

But they ignored me and didn't want to serve me. I was so so mad and Geram!!! I was in rush lah! The airplane was taking off!!! The image of airplane taking off flashed in front of me! I gonna miss my flight! Damn! I shouted loudly, "I am going to complain you and all of you!!!!" (Sorry I live in Singapore for quite some time, LOL) 

Then I ran again to another lane, the lady officer there welcomed me but there was a stupid guy scanning his stuffs, he got 4-5 boxes of colourful boxes to be scanned. It slowed the process down! Then I took this time to retrieve my stuffs on the floor. I picked up as many stuffs as I could, and inside the messy soil, I saw my Blue MuayThai hand wrap and I immediately grabbed it. (Perhaps because in real life, I am going to Saturday morning MuayThai Class! haha)

I ran to the scanner and wanted to take out my passport. 

But wait, I couldn't FIND IT!!! WALAO! Not this time! Where was my damn passport! I took out all the cards in my backpack pocket. I saw my EzLink card only, NO SIGN OF PASSPORT!

The image of airplane taking off was flashing in my mind again. I was so so so MAD and ANGRY, shouted loudly, "WHY WHY WHYYYYY!!!"

ARGHHHHHhhhhhhh.....!!!!!

Then I woke up. 

Haha. I had a weird dream again. That was a failed mission! But I think I would never rob someone in real life. LOL!!!

Love these funny dreams lah! 

Before it faded away, I hold the pieces of memory and wrote them down. 

Hope these dreams entertain you :)

I am going to write down all my weird dreams here in my blog! A DREAM Blogger! wohoo. Haha.

And my dreams got colors! Do you? Haha.

I am a Dreamer: Weird Zombie Dream!

A Wednesday Night! After tiring exercise, I took train back home with a friend. We talked about what nice movies to watch. Screening through the movie list on Cathay Cinema, I recommended Train to Busan and he suggested Don't Breathe. Both are kind of horror movies. I seldom watch this type simply because I don't wish to spend money to scare myself. 

Some more movies in Singapore are EXPENSIVE!!! LOL!

Cleaned myself and done bible study, I called it a day.

When I close my eyes... From there, it started.

When I opened my eyes, I heard people screaming and running around in a park. My brain told me: "I knew this is going to happen!". Out of anxiety, I started to run forward with full strength as well. Suddenly a guy with blood on face and messy hard hold my hair and said: "It is time to follow mother's order and become one of us". Strong desire to live made me lie to him saying "I will but later a bit". Then he agreed and let go of me. In his ripped shirt and horrific appearance, he continued his hunting. Obviously, he is a ZOMBIE!!! 

People were screaming, running and dying.

With pounding heart, I was escaping in full speed. I knew this would happen! I was running towards a small hill in the park. With crazy ability, I could jump over fence easily and effortlessly. "I knew this would happen!" I kept telling myself. While maneuvering a corner, I sensed this was the end of the world. Our world was going to be consumed by Zombies and That's it! I kept blaming myself why I didn't think of a safe place to hide before this happened!
Then, I suddenly thought of my family, they were not saved by Jesus yet, I should call them and get them pray together with me! 

Strangely, I picked up my phone and called my boss. I complaint to him in panting voice. "I knew this's going to happen! We should bring that virus into our lab! I knew it!", I told him.

Then my boss laughed loudly, "Garen, hahahaha". Then he told me, "Garen, please take out the big red cherry in your pocket". I did what he asked me to. I saw the big red cherry. Then he said: "You are dreaming lah!!!!" 

I woke up.

This was a dream. 

But I could feel my freezing feet and body shivering like real. 

I always have strange and imaginative dreams. Most of the time, my dreams are not logical and funny. I hate dreaming because it will make me tired. I love it because that is my most creative moment.

Love-Hate relationship with Dreaming. 

Hope my dream can be entertaining to others :p

I am a dreamer.

I dream everyday.

Lessons from World Champion of Public Speaking 2014

It is a lazy Saturday evening. 

After shopping and singing K in the day, tiredness made me lose energy to do anything. But I requested myself to do something meaningful, at least one or two. So I opened some TED talks to watch. The videos reminded me of the world championship of Toastmasters. So I searched Youtube for Manoj's speech and also the speech of 2014 world champion. My intention is to learn how they made it to the international stage and what qualifications they had. I dreamed to be one of them (Finger Cross).

After watching the speech from Dananjaya, the 2014 world champion, an idea pops out in my mind. Let's write down what I have learnt from him in my beloved and long abandoned blog! LOL

First of all, the video is here :) Do enjoy it.

I will skip the standard and basic qualities of a good speech such as eye contact, body gesture, confidence and etc. 

From what I observed, he designed some incredible tricks in his speech:

1. He used props. A physical item that he could use to demonstrate his idea in more effective way. As an audience, I could feel the destruction of a beautiful object when he tore the petals and the revival when he presented a new flower. 

This increases the impact of the message and hooks up the sympathy of audience.

2. His speech was engaging. He engaged audience with his story in Toastmasters. This was wonderfully designed as most of the audience were toastmasters, the audience could relate easier.

This is why I always involve my audience in my speech, so that they can feel their importance.

3. Of course, his humor spiced the speech up. Humor is one of the most important part in a good speech. It can keep audience listening to the speaker and entertain them at the same time. Who doesn't love to laugh out loud. He fully illustrated his talent in humor which made audience love him. This is a powerful tool. I have to learn it. Words are wisely chosen and sentences are cleverly twisted to create the LOL factors. 

4. Inspiring speech using personal stories. A well designed story-line can only be awesome when it comes with fantastic storytelling skills. Personal stories satisfy people's curiosity towards the speaker too. Most importantly, he made the whole speech inspirational! Well paced stories with excellent narration caught the audience's attention and created a strong ripple in their hearts with great inspiration! Message of the speech was absolutely clear and remarkably presented. Not to mention, his whole speech is DAMN natural. 

This is simply GOOD JOB! 

Retrieved from Dananjaya's Facebook

Perhaps there are more things can be learnt from his speech. 

But I am too sleepy to absorb already. Haha. 

It is never an easy task to be a good speaker. Continual practices and relentless self-improvement are required. There is no destination for public speaking, but it is an enriching journey. 

Public speaking is frightening yet fun. Once you conquer the fear, the satisfaction is beyond description. 

Hope everyone will learn something, be inspired and enjoy his jokes. 

It is time to say Good night. Yawnnn.

Mastering the Leadership - The Mousetrap way

Monday - It is a Toastmaster Day! 

I happily left office earlier and attended this energetic meeting. 

Feeling contented with lots of reading on Entrepreneur.com, I mark myself 90% for time utilization today. The 10% is in the office when I feel disturbingly sleepy. 

Toastmaster meeting today is definitely a rewarding one.
It is about LEADERSHIP. 

And we are blessed by the workshop conducted by Manoj Vasudevan, one of the top 3 in Toastmaster international speech competition 2015.

Undoubtedly, his presentation brings this common topic alive.

The vocal variety, the engagement, the structure and etc colored his speech to a marvelous level.

It is entertaining to listen to him.

Ok, what is so great about the speech content? Of course the inspiring ways to leadership!

The speech is a short and sweet summary of his Book, 

Mastering the Leadership - The Mousetrap Way

Photo from http://thoughtexpressions.com/

Yay! Not need to spend money to buy his book already! hahaha. Joke. I believe there are a lot of essence in his book. For example, why the Mousetrap way?

Some leaders are born to be one, but a lot of leaders learn to be one.

I have received 4 impactful ways to master leadership today.

Firstly, Ownership

"Ownership is the habit that leads to leadership

Leaders take initiative without directive!"

Hey, I am going to say, I can't agree no more. This hits me so hard until I wake up and open my eyes big. Sorry for my exaggeration.

But truly, I somehow feel I am too slack in my work. When manager has nothing for me, then I just do nothing. Happily say good bye earlier. That's why I feel my progress is so minimal. 

It is so true that, we shall take initiatives instead of a hammer and nail relationship.

Secondly, Confidence

"Competence is important, Confidence is Paramount."

From my past experience in leadership, one thing I am lacking of is decisiveness. Being decisive is not easy for me, but I really do need to improve on this. The person with greater confidence has the upper hand. It reminds me the Henkel Challenge, people shouting their opinions loudly and confidently appear to be performing well, even though what they say are nonsense. Ok, not a positive example. 

Speaking with confidence can be magically convincing and persuasive. No Shaky, No Lousy.

But to remind myself, over-confidence is not a good thing. Everything needs to be in balance.

Thirdly, Idea Infusion

"Generating Ideas is not enough! Infuse the Ideas!"

You can have great ideas, but if you can't infuse the idea to others, people just do not resonate with you and willing to follow you. I think this is very very very important.

There are 6 infusion points: Pleasure, Profits, Power, Productivity, Prestige and Purpose. The most important one is Purpose. 

To me, I agree with both legs that the purpose influences the most. If your idea has great purposes, it can easily link to people hearts and minds. Through this, the ideas flow from you to the others. In the same way, others are more receptive to your ideas. 

Lastly, 

We are never too small to be Big

But are we ready to lead? 

Personally, to be a great leader, Commitment is extremely Important. Since all the leadership skills can be learnt, it left with one question. Can we stay committed until the end despite all the challenges and hurdles?

How about you? Are you ready to lead? 

Solo HongKong Trip: Reflect, Prepare, Entrust

As I shared before I am in the midst of changing my Job  From one place going to Another, it is the best to "KitKat" Take a Break. Once I confirmed I was going to have a week break, I booked air tix to HongKong without much hesitation! You might think, I am rich but in fact this is just small investment on myself, and who care about how you think about me? Haha, Joke XD. Oh ya, I forgot to mention, I went ALONE! Yay!!! HongKong!!!

 

22nd April, my last day in Sulzer. 23rd April, my flight to HongKong!!! (I don't want to mention the worst experience with Scoot that they delayed the flight from 150am to 430am one week before and then to 510am on that day; no more scoot next time.

You may imagine I have planned the trip upfront, but actually, I planned nothing and didn't know what I was going to do. Where to go, where to eat, how to go. I don't know! Haha. So what I have done was, book the air tix and hostel.

Because from my experience, the hostel owner will give me some great advices. Hehe. Of course my colleagues and friends did give some rough ideas where can go and what I should take note (The extreme unleash of "18SX words" of HongKie)

I am not going to elaborate in detailed my itinerary here, may be next blog post. Travelling in HongKong is really Easy. Google Map and some online research will be sufficient. So I think HongKong is suitable for Solo Travelling, for girls too. Safe and convenient.

What I mainly do: Look for good food, Walk around and observe the people there, sit down in cafe and read book, blank my mind for hours facing the amazing HK night views (almost every night). It sounds boring and lonely? To me, not at all, I enjoyed so much. Here some photos :)

 

I love skyscrapers 

Night view of first day

 

 

Nightview of third day

 

 

Night view of last day in HongKong

 

 
Cider plus nigh view, perfect!

The purposes of escaping to HongKong alone are to reflect what I have done so far and prepare myself for the next challenge. I also take some time to think about my future too.

The awesome night views of HongKong island really give me a lot of inspitations and encouragement. When we look at the Skyscrappers, the tallest or the biggest will always catch our eyes first. It is similar to our lives. Are we outstanding enough to be noticed by other? Are we significant enough to contribute to the society? However, I don't think I am capable to be the tallest building which impacts the world immensely. I just wanna be the colourful building which fulfills my missions on the Earth. Everyone lives with different purposes. Thankfully, I kinna know my direction in life =) God has shown me some light. 

Next job, a new platform for me to start a new stage of life. I will be working as front sales who deal with customers all the time and will be driven by the numbers. This excites me as I really love numbers that's why I start my career with sales. I promise myself to give it 200% efforts and 200% commitment. Be it consumes my private time or weekends. It is true that I am still young to take all the hardship and tortures. I believe these will make me stronger and wiser. "What doesn't kill me makes me stronger", I agree on this. My expectation towards myself has increased further, this will definitely make me feel the pain more when I fall. Positive side, this is the way I can improve myself drastically. 

I have my own goals and achievements as targets. I hope I can make it. 

1. Steep learning curves especially on interpersonal skills and communication skills.

2. Build strong networking and be known.

3. Be a TS.

4. A bold jump in 5 years. 

Hopefully my expectations can be met. Finger Cross. I am ready for it. I will conquer and bring back victory!!! Hahaha.

Thinking back to the first job, I did learn a lot

1. Separation technology, I love the plant design, it is fascinating and interesting. The Process Flow Diagram, Distillation columns and etc.

2. Less Haste, More Pace. Doing things slower can give better result with lesser carelessness and better efficiency. I tend to do things too fast and neglect the details. This is the biggest lesson and it is  really a tough learning for me. I should be more 细心.

3. Thoughts beyond the surface. Generating a quotation could be very easy, but strategies and thoughts behind it are far more important than the words. This is something I really wish I can master. 

I shall keep these in mind.

Future plan? Still in process. But I have incredible idea in mind. Not mature enough to share. Keep it between God and me. 

The hope, I hold, with God's Grace, I will move forward and soar higher. Never forget, everything is for Him. Amen.

Tomorrow is the day. New working environment and new colleagues. I can only hope for the best. Stay positive. Yay!!! (Anyway, tomorrow going to meet customer with my boss... on first day! Steady lar)

Good Bye ~ My Dearest Sulzer

A windy night, lying on a bench, looking at the tall buildings, I told myself "Progress, or else you will regret, waste no more time". I felt my heartbeat, it told me I could do much better than now, what were you waiting for, your goals and your dreams awaiting.

Yes, I should start my engine and break the comfort shield. It was for my better future. Actions taken reluctantly without strong determinations, after all I was having good life and great friends. Little fall down but it didn't hurt so hard. I was contradicting myself, but this was how indecisive personality hit.

Flipping through my life records, good things always happened when I didn't really desperate for them. Yup, a chance popped out, it looked attractive in all expects. It seemed to fit what I desire, the growth and learning I wished to possess. An instant offer placed in front of me, but I needed time to think. I had gone through a tough decision making process; seeking consultation, researching, self convincing and praying. It was not easy as I had minimal pushing factors. What I am going to forsake is friendship and great environment; what I was facing is uncertainty and risk. After all the struggles, my soul told me one word: GO. 

Today is my last day in Sulzer Singapore, My first ever job in life. Sweet and sour one year and a half. Amazing experience and of course rewarding. With gratitude, I wrote this to my dearest colleagues:

11.11.2014, Sunny day,

 An innocent smurf came to a vibrant village with his little bag and big expectations. With overwhelming excitement, he stepped into the village. Fast heartbeats reflected how nervous he was at the same time. However, he felt relieved very soon as other smurfs in the village were welcoming and friendly. Slowly he settled down and established his own comfort zone as if found the right position to rest comfortably on a sofa. Friends were easily made in the village and everyone was working hard to build the Smurf Castle. Before this he was warned that the people in that world, where the village was, could be harsh and mean. Thanks Goodness, he was blessed with a political free (at least at his level) environment and all the smurfs were always helping each other. He even managed to get best friends among them.

With grateful heart, he was so blessed by helpful advice and guidance; enriched by the hurdles he overcame; strengthen by the failures and difficulties; empowered by all the learning.
He was happy.
But, he felt something wasn't right, he thought of trying other job that could help him in a long term. He struggled and made a tough decision to leave his friends here in the village, for the sake of his future. He knew he would never get back the same friendship anymore in other places.

22.04.2016, Sunny + Rainy Day,

Here comes the very last day of his stay in the village, he is sure that this one and a half year is definitely an unforgettable and meaningful journey. All the sweet memories will be in his little head forever. He might not be there anymore, but everyone there will be in his heart. 

Again, he picks up his little bag, which now becomes heavier with all the blessings,  embarks on his new journey. He has left a message before leaving to everyone:

"Dear Sulzer friends, thanks a lot for taking care me like a family for all the time, words can't fully describe my gratitude to all of you. My presence could be forgotten easily, but I will not forget my time with you. Please do keep in touch. All the very Best.

With Utmost Gratitude, GarenTee"

If you ask me how I feel about leaving the company, I would say, a little bit sad. Because those true friends will always keep in touch.

If you ask me am I happy for the new job, honestly, I have no clue whether I will truly love my new job. But I strongly believe I can learn the things I want to learn there. A new chapter in my life again. Pray and Hope for the best.

And yes, now I officially left Sulzer. The earth will still spin and life goes on.
Look forward to the next chapter of my life.

Life is good when you are surrounded with friends.
I really appreciate!
May God bless us all :)

Best Spots for Sakura In Tokyo, Japan

Allohaaa!!! Long time no Blog! 

It is April!!! What to do with April? Of course is Sakura lahh!!! Yay!!!

So today perhaps I can share with everyone, the three best spots to view Sakura in Tokyo, from my own perspective and experience! You can find super awesome and impressive Sakura Blossom here.

Sakura is so beautiful as we can see from pictures, videos and drama.

But standing under a sky of Sakura yourselves is definitely worth the time and money! 

Mesmerized and deeply impressed by the God's creation!

As if we are in the Japanese animation or drama!!! So Coooollllll ~~~
The best viewing period is Very End of March to Early of April!!! Take note on this ya.
(I went there from 26th March 16 to 2nd April 16 - and I see most of the Sakura on 1st and 2nd April in Tokyo)

Ok so, First of all, drummmmmm rollll,

Shinjuku Gyeon National Garden 

What are the specialties here:
1. One of the Best Places in Tokyo to see Sakura Blossom.
2. Large and beautiful landscape. 
3. Sakura with lots of different Varieties! White, Red and Pink colours!
4. Near to Shinjuku Station and Shinjuku Shopping Streets! (Big Plus point)
5. Best place to picnic under the Sakura Trees
6. Extended Sakura Blossom viewing season (Mid March to late April). You can see Sakura here even you miss the peak period :)

However, 200 Yen admission fee is required. No worry, definitely worth it! 

Pictures say a thousand words and powerfully. So, let's have some photos!

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden- Sakura Blossom

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom - White Sakura vs Red Sakura

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom - The most impressive Sakura Tree I have ever seen!

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom - Surrounded by the aweosome Sakura

Shinjuku Gyeon Natural Garden - Sakura Blossom

How to get there?
Google Map - The best Approach 
Address : 11 Naitomachi, Shinjuku, Tokyo 160-0014, Japan

Nearest Stations:
Shinsen-Shinjuku Subway Station or
Shinjuku Main Station (JR ot Subway)

Ueno Park

Ueno park is the most popular and romantic Sakura Blossom location! 

1. There are more than 1000 Sakura trees lining a central pathway. So imagine you walk with your family or spouse slowly along the pathway under the Sakura Trees! Wonderful. I call this "A sky of Sakura!"
2. An awesome place for picnic as there are dedicated picnic places there.
3. Free of Charge! No admission fee.
4. Some nice temples and museums around. I didn't visit any of them because my time was fully occupied by Sakura! Sorry. haha

Ueno Park - Cheery Blossom

Ueno Park - Cheery Blossom

Ueno Park - Cheery Blossom

Ueno Park - Cheery Blossom

How to get there?
Nearest Station:
Ueno Station (Subway or JR)


Chidorigafuchi Park
千鳥ヶ淵

Sakura Blossom along the river. Water and Flower form a lovely combination! And you can walk under the sakura trees. The trees are not tall so you can take awesome pictures with Sakura here!

Free of Charge as well!!!

Chidorigafuchi Park - Sakura Blossom

Chidorigafuchi Park - Sakura Blossom

Of course as an energetic kid, Jumping style is a MUST!

Chidorigafuchi Park - Sakura Blossom - YAY!!!!!

Chidorigafuchi Park - Sakura Blossom

How to go Chidorigafuchi Park?

Nearest Station:

Hanzomon Station (Subway)

Why Malaysia and Singapore no Sakura!?? T.T

Sakura blossom is really mesmerizing and breathtaking. You will feel joyful and upsurge of relaxation. Walking under those Sakura will definitely brighten your day. 

Besides, if you are a camera freak or lover, please don't miss out the opportunities to capture flowery photos!

Oh ya, there is a Great website that can help you in your Travel Research which is:

http://www.japan-guide.com/

Hope what I share here can give you an idea where to have wonderful Sakura viewing locations in Tokyo. All places above are really the perfect spots for Sakura! Trust me! You can see how impressed we are:

Sakura Blossom

Plan for your trip Next Year! Japan! April! Sakura Blossoms!

#Sakura Viewing In Tokyo

#Best Locations to view Sakura Blossom in Tokyo

#Sakura Blossom Viewing in Tokyo