Einstein the Philosopher

"The world is a dangerous place not because of people who do evil, but because of good people who look on and do nothing about it."

-Albert Einstein-

I never would have imagined him as a philosopher - this is...quite refreshing. 

OMG facts

Came across this website today - OMG-Facts. For the most part, its filled with inconsequential and nonsensical-type facts that do not help you or add to your intelligence in any way. For eg.

"There is caviar-flavored ice cream!" Takes 'atas' to a whole new level.

"Bob Marley had 3 children born in 4 weeks to 3 different women!" He did sing about 'One Love' and 'Three Little Birds', didn't he?

"Pandora's Box was actually a jar." There goes our history lesson on Greek mythology.

But forget the rest, 'cause among all the random facts I read, this was the only I could relate to:

"Guinness draft has fewer calories than skim milk!"

Lethargy

Feeling a little under the weather, more lethargic than anything else. I wonder if its the couch potato-ing that begets lethargy or vice versa. Regardless, I actually do look and feel like Homer here. A picture says a thousand words.

The clock ticks

There ought to be more to life, something to look forward to...every day. This keeps us on our toes and gives us a sense of purpose. Time is then not idled away or merely spent at the office. Have a sense of purpose...as time and tide wait for no man.  

Our moments of silence

The moment of silence after a hard day's work brings laughter, a smile, excitement, tears and often times...regret.

Questions

Again, its been a while. Why? Because I discovered twitter. Like I've said before, its ideal for posting short and concise thoughts. However today...I feel like I have more to say.

I'm wondering what my purpose in life is. A colleague asked me that same question not too long ago, and my response was instantaneous - to fulfill my potential. It is quite a conundrum knowing that you have the potential but not knowing where to start. I bet if people actually used a few minutes to take a step back and ask themselves the same question, many won't have an answer. This is also the reason why, I think, people do not stop working, for the fear of not knowing what to do; of not having answers to the many questions that may pop up once they stop. Some may even brush this off as nonsense.

Seriously, why do we get an education for? Why do we look for a good job, a high paying job? Why do we enter into relationships, buy a property, get married, have kids? Is it because its the right thing to do? Why do we work our butts off to get into a good school? Why do we want a fancy car? Why do we pursue material things? Why do people tell me, sometimes almost as a caution, that I should get married soon, that I'm going to miss out? Is it wrong to not get married, to not want it? Are these all what we're meant to do with our lives? Who decides all these? Our parents? Society? I would really like to know.

Again, I feel people are afraid to stop to think. Its like inception, they don't want to plant any of these thoughts in their heads. And so they keep moving, keep working, keep busy. But are they really dealing with these issues, or are they merely being ignorant and delaying the inevitable? Something big will eventually hit them and hit them hard, stop them in their tracks, and make them question - who am I?

I know who I am. I still haven't found what I'm looking for.

Similar trends

I'm finding it increasingly difficult to jot down my thoughts in this space regularly. Perhaps I'm one of those who needs to speak my mind immediately, as and when a thought/idea/comment surfaces. It is a whole lot easier writing in the 'moment' - I tend to write more freely, and the message is usually better communicated this way. Its all about impromptu, being spontaneous. However, the fact that I am unable to access this blog site at work means I'm unable to make regular posts. The similar trend of not blogging as frequently as I would like to continues.

In this case, twitter makes more sense to me. It is short, direct and allows for quick and multiple postings. The need for concise tweets delivers a message succinctly. Log in, speak your mind, log out. Or stay logged on for, in my opinion, one of the fastest sources of news updates on anything and everything. The best part is this - one is not distracted by invites, events, photographs, etc. We'll save that for the latter part of the day, when we wind down.

On a completely different note, I've noticed an increasingly apparent trend of 'politics' and 'facades' at the workplace. There are cliques, those who just can't mind their own business and others who bitch and bicker behind your back. None of these things bother me much, but I actually thought this workplace was different from my previous attachments. Boy, I've been wrong. A corporate office will forever be a corporate office. And facades are exactly what they are - a piece of cloth that covers a person from showing his/her true self. Again, a similar trend from before. 

Hopefully, I can hop on a positive trend soon.

Of seawater and a long drive

Well tomorrow's going to be eventful...or rather in about 6 hours, when work officially resumes. Its a weekend getaway for the company, and there's much preparation as there has been hype, so everyone's gearing up and raring to go. Some are on half day leave, while many others will leave a few hours before 5.30pm. A 3-4 hour drive awaits, depending on what numbers one's speedometer needle fancies or how heavy one's right foot is. Friday will be chilled out, with drinking sessions planned as soon as all arrive. Saturday will be packed with team-building games and activities, but I, along with 12 others are hitting the golf course for what is called the company's Annual Golf Challenge. Everyone's rooting for me to win for some reason, but I'm sure others have an equal opportunity to come out on top. Funny enough, golf was never on the agenda. We (the other golfers and I) thought, "Hey, lets mingle. Golf will just take too many hours." After seeing what was in store for us earlier in the week when the weekend itinerary was "leaked", any plans for mingling was history. I'm sure many wouldn't want to collect seawater with their hands to fill up a bottles. Or run around in a gunny sack. But I'm sure some may think otherwise. And of course there's going to be food and lots of them. And a thematic dinner. And finally free flow of you know what all Saturday night long.

So off we go on a weekend company trip with buses, food and games galore. Don't tell anyone, but I actually think it'll be fun.

The right path...

Its a difficult world we live in, with many uncertainties and what ifs to consider. Its easier living the moment and not trying to forecast the future, but fortune-telling happens to the best of us, even for those steadfast carpe diem-type individuals. There will always be experiences or situations or scenarios which will question our beliefs, our principals, or even our sheer determination. Most of the time its just a small nudge, and we may get pushed off path but in no time we're back on track and raring to go again. But sometimes we get shoved off track and getting back on the initial path takes considerable effort and time. What if we get shoved and we crash? What if we get shoved and end up being forced to look for or assume another path? Its a difficult life we live in, and sometimes I wonder if I was even on the right path to begin with.

I'm at a crossroads, perhaps I should consider the road less traveled...

Word of mouth

Today, I witnessed first hand how the power of word-of-mouth has currently made Chatime, a Taiwanese-origin tea chain one of the hottest names in the Malaysian F&B industry. As I stood in the queue (at the Gardens branch) awaiting my turn to place my order, I watched as the number of people queuing increased in a matter of minutes. It didn't help that I was making 12 orders, which somewhat held up the line. As I waited for my order while it was being prepared, a small crowd gathered, at least 15-20 people, all waiting for their respective orders. I looked around and saw some saunter into queue while others hurried to get a few spots ahead, almost afraid that the tea will run out. For those waiting, some waited while chatting with a friend or two. A few seemed anxious - waiting impatiently to get their hands what their hearts desire. People, mostly adults, had the gleam in their eyes, like a child waiting excitedly for the new toy daddy is about to hand him.10 minutes later, as I collected my order, the waiting crowd had grown larger and the queue longer. It reminds me of the time when Big Apple Donuts came to town. Queues were lined zig-zag and it took 30 minutes to place an order. Nowadays, the queues aren't as long. Hence, I think this is just a phase and in no time people will realise that although Chatime is good, it is not great. Perhaps I'm just not buying the hype, or it has been hyped up excessively that I expected an out of this world experience, only to be disappointed. But hey, the constant mentioning of Chatime by my colleagues eventually compelled me to try it, so recommendations/ testimonials/ word-of-mouth are arguably some of the best means of marketing.