This is going to be a great Christmas cos I'm no longer in the office!
When I was a teacher in La Salle, I'd start on the Christmas cards and gifts in mid November (right after school closes!). Polish up the necessaries like hair, bod, clothes ... clean up the spirituals (reflection and repentance.. lots of that.. heh heh!). Then it would be time to do spring cleaning (the most amazing bit would be scrubbing the driveway with soap and water!), dig up the Christmas tree and decorations, strings of lights..wrapping christmas gifts and hiding them. Someone would remember the carollers' visit at the last minute so we'd rush to bake cakes and buy packet drinks. Oh we had fun.
Then I moved to the office. Urgggh.
November would mean lots of meetings in KL or Malacca or Terengganu where I'd hear lots of carols in the shopping malls and gaze at huge (don't touch!) Christmas trees in hotel lobbies. At night, I'd be crunching numbers in Excel which would be a herculean task on my 12.1" laptop screen. December would be time for wrapping the year up and presenting our plans for the next year. There was one time my mum was surrounded by a saggy Christmas tree, recalcitrant tinsel and wild n woolly angel and santa decorations... she cried out,"Help help! I'm doing this all alone!". But there I was in my office clothes, hugging a humming notebook and dragging my bag of documents.. rushing for the door and thinking,"Help help! I'm late for the meeting!" There was one year when a meeting was held on the 27th of December! That meant that I had to be on a plane by 10 am on the 26th (only seat available cos nobody sane wants to fly that early on the morning after Christmas!). Then I spent the afternoon loitering in shopping malls miserable cos I was surrounded by happy families eating and laughing together while mine was far far away. That evening was spent in 'taklimat mesyuarat'.. yuk.
I expect this year (and all the years to come!) to be different. I expect it to be BIGGER BETTER
When I was a teacher in La Salle, I'd start on the Christmas cards and gifts in mid November (right after school closes!). Polish up the necessaries like hair, bod, clothes ... clean up the spirituals (reflection and repentance.. lots of that.. heh heh!). Then it would be time to do spring cleaning (the most amazing bit would be scrubbing the driveway with soap and water!), dig up the Christmas tree and decorations, strings of lights..wrapping christmas gifts and hiding them. Someone would remember the carollers' visit at the last minute so we'd rush to bake cakes and buy packet drinks. Oh we had fun.
Then I moved to the office. Urgggh.
November would mean lots of meetings in KL or Malacca or Terengganu where I'd hear lots of carols in the shopping malls and gaze at huge (don't touch!) Christmas trees in hotel lobbies. At night, I'd be crunching numbers in Excel which would be a herculean task on my 12.1" laptop screen. December would be time for wrapping the year up and presenting our plans for the next year. There was one time my mum was surrounded by a saggy Christmas tree, recalcitrant tinsel and wild n woolly angel and santa decorations... she cried out,"Help help! I'm doing this all alone!". But there I was in my office clothes, hugging a humming notebook and dragging my bag of documents.. rushing for the door and thinking,"Help help! I'm late for the meeting!" There was one year when a meeting was held on the 27th of December! That meant that I had to be on a plane by 10 am on the 26th (only seat available cos nobody sane wants to fly that early on the morning after Christmas!). Then I spent the afternoon loitering in shopping malls miserable cos I was surrounded by happy families eating and laughing together while mine was far far away. That evening was spent in 'taklimat mesyuarat'.. yuk.
I expect this year (and all the years to come!) to be different. I expect it to be BIGGER BETTER
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