A Grolsch night

Guess what? I got off work at 8pm today. Yeah, not 11pm or midnight, but 8pm. That's only 11 working hours today, not my usual 12-14 hours. It certainly feels good. As soon as I was out the office door, I knew this was a rare opportunity for me to kick back, have an ice cold beer and a proper meal. I've not had a proper meal for days. It has been "to go" for the past 2 weeks, usually consumed in front of the laptop in a hurried fashion.

And so I headed for my neighbourhood bar - a bar with great food and an excellent selection of imported beers, although mostly German and Dutch beers. However, to me, these are the best beers anyway and I would gladly pick from a selection of only German or Dutch beers. I walked in, sat at the bar. It was a relatively quiet evening considering today being a weekday but I was loving the somewhat solitary surroundings. The bartender, noticing it was me yet again, uttered "Grolsch?" I smiled at the mention of Grolsch. The name was comforting almost, suggestive; it surely took me away from my daily grind. The trademark Grolsch bottle was opened right in front of me and there I sat, looking at it in anticipation. Oh, I really love that bottle. It is one of a kind! Aesthetically pleasing...  I then enjoyed my ice-cold beer while I waited for my favourite dish to arrive. Sheer bliss!

I had one of the best dinners in a long time. Refreshing drink, delectable food, relaxing environment - what more could I ask for. Well, I could have used some company. Yet, I thoroughly enjoyed my alone time with a beer in one hand and the other hand rubbing a truly satisfied tummy :-)

This was supposed to be sent out last night. I dosed off at the laptop and woke up on my bed, 30 minutes before a meeting. And it took me 75 minutes to get to work during rush hour.

Where good times are made

I am beginning to worry about my lack of consistency with my blogging. I've meant to write every night, before bedtime, ala the teenage doctor of the late '80s/early '90s that I've mentioned before but my crazy working hours are ruining my plans. I need to find another way. Time to strategise!

I almost forgot its my mom's birthday this weekend and so I've been somewhat occupied with trying to find the ideal place to have a nice family dinner. After much asking-around, searching on the internet and browsing through a plethora of food blogs (there are sooooooo many food blogs out there!), I found it. Its old and rustic and its a place where my family used to dine at least 15 years ago. Apparently, the place has had a "facelift" and the menu expanded. And judging by the restaurant's tagline "Where Good Times Are Made", I'm sure some awesome memories will be made come Sunday night.

Public holidays

This was supposed to go out last night, but I dosed off at the pc.

Another busy day at the office. Fortunately, I was able to leave early, beat traffic, have a nice dinner, buy groceries and be home before 10pm. Not bad at all!

Its a public holiday tomorrow (today). I'm sure many are awaiting another day to sleep in, laze around or just hang out. I read, last week, in the newspaper. A journalist wrote about Malaysia having too many holidays and how these holidays affect the productivity and competitiveness of Malaysia. Is it really a cause for concern? On average, a typical working Malaysian will have 12 days of leave from public holidays. Add that number to the average number of days for annual leave of 18 and that gives you 30 days. That is one whole month! Now imagine those who are given up to 30 days annual leave. They have a whooping 42 days to do as they please.

However, this is what I think. Yes, we Malaysians have holidays in abundance. But we also work our butts off. 12-hour days are a norm. So are 60-hour weeks. So having a month to kick back is not a luxury at all. In fact, I think it is necessary for us to avoid going mental. People in countries such as Australia or New Zealand rarely work after 6pm. I think it is actually a policy not to work past official working hours. Work-life balance are given great importance in countries like these.

Therefore, I wonder what the fuss about Malaysia having too many public holidays is all about. To me, its definitely warranted!

A 14-hour day

So much for wanting to write every night. 14-hour-days at the office doesn't help at all. All I want to do once I'm back home is shower and sleep. Hence, I've set my phone to ring just before midnight every day, as a reminder to pen down my daily happenings. I think that'll work...unless I fall asleep on the couch or on the can or while blogging. Which has happened by the way - all three instances. Its 1am but I can't sleep because I am so friggin' awake! And I need to be at the office at 8am. Looks like tomorrow's strategy is "How to not look like a zombie." Time to find a way to get sleepy. On the can perhaps? 

...and the documenting begins

The memory of everything that has happened in my life is in my head. But sometimes, letting everything out from the head can be just so damn liberating (no pun intended). And so I begin this journey, or endeavour, if you will...of documenting my life in the form of a blog. I hope it becomes a daily ritual, following in the footsteps of a certain teenage doctor in the late '80s/early '90s plus the Technicolor of course :-). Life in Technicolor. Which reminds me of a Coldplay song...hmmm

A rather typical day at the proverbial office. The weather wasn't typical though. Wet, cool and overcast. The kind of weather which makes us want to cuddle in bed and proliferate. Did I just say that? Hmmm, not a bad idea at all. But I didn't. I watched a dvd instead. Brilliant movie! If only I had watched it earlier. Better late than never they say.

I ended the day at the cinema. What a lousy movie it was. So I guess the day was a tale of two movies - one grossly underrated and the other over publicised. 

I'm getting tired. I think I'll call it a night now. I think I should start a routine of going to bed at the same time every night. Having a bedtime-range of between 10pm-3am is not good for the body, mind and hair. Yeah, I'm balding. Is there a correlation between the lack of sleep and hair loss?

Good night!