a new career, a new life

a whole new chapter

::i took this picture while chilling along Crown St on a hot sunny day with lipei. my iphone went haywire and corrupted this pic. but i love the accidental effect::
the first week has gone by.
it's definitely a whole new experience.
i learnt so much more in just a short span of four days as compared to 3 years in uni.
working for a design studio certainly isn't a joke.
it's insanely hectic, from the moment i step into the studio at 0830 all
the way to 1830 in the evening, there's just no stopping!!!
work keeps coming in one after another.
many of us don't even have the time to go out and have lunch.
seriously, it's that bad...
some would bring in their own lunch from home and eat it while working on the projects at hand.
for me, i skip lunch altogether and wait till i knock off from work before treating myself to a well deserved feast.

so yeah, the company i'm working in is pretty small;
about 14 people.
we also have offices in brisbane and perth, but the numbers just account to a handful.
when it comes to designers, there's only 3 of us.
there's S, M and me.
and well, of cos our CD, who's basically in charge of all the design work and would sometimes get her hands dirty by doing some design work too.
so, as you can imagine, with only 3 designers, you can image how busy it can get. M mentioned that the company should take in another designer.
i totally agree with him.

usually after work, i would be so drained and exhausted...
by 1030pm, i'll be struggling to keep my eyes open.
coming from someone who sleeps at 6am in the morning and wakes up at 6pm in the evening,
it's a major big change.
yesh people, i'm finally a working adult!
(omg, saying that just feels so foreign to me)

there's still a lot for me to learn.
so far, i think i did ok.
they were nice enough to teach me a lot from scratch.
from creating print ready artwork to dealing with colours and creating mock ups.
it's awesome that they are so patient with me, but i feel like an idiot.
i mean, i feel like i have not lived up to their expectations yet.
i sometimes ask very retarded questions like,
"how to convert the black and white image to spot colours?"
or "how did you do the masking thing again?"
or "the indesign artwork is freaking 707MB, and the client wants it in eps, what do i do?"
and i keep forgetting what jobs i've worked on.
someone would come up to me and ask me about a job i've done, and i'll be like... "erm... which job title again?"
in my defense though, i am working on multiple projects at the same time.
and because i work on half finished projects, it's really difficult to remember all the job titles. i'm trying but it's not easy....
Ben says it's all part of learning and that i shouldn't worry too much.
it has only been my first week, and he says that there are people who have been in the company for a year and still make silly mistakes.
simply put, we are still humans.
i agree... but that doesn't stop me from doing my best and proving that they have selected the right person to do the job...
time will tell.
after all, like every new job, i'm on a 3 months probation.
we'll see if they'll keep me after that.

and just to clear the air,
working in australia is not as slack as most people presume.
people here believe in quality, not quantity.
translation:
it doesn't matter how many hours you put it.
what's important is whether at the end of the day, you have completed
what you have been tasked to do.
productivity is the key word.
and Australians are productive.


::pic of me after a day of shop-whoring. the day was warm so i get to wear shorts!::
after surviving the first week,
it's time to treat myself to a little something something.
(fine... "little" is an understatement.)
decided to do some shopping in the city.

i think i have gone way past the words "retail therapy"....
as what ben would describe my current situation,
"you're SHOP-WHORING!!!!"
....................
fine...... i admit....
i AM shop-whoring...
but i really NEED the nice awesome half leather black havarsack...
and the Insight T-shirt...
and the Peter Alexander poka dot pyjamas shorts...
and the T-shirt from Lee...
and the album from MGMT...
and the Ben Sherman polo T... and T-shirt....
and not forgetting my precious Lady Godiva....

i blame it on stress...

on a different note,
the economy sure isn't doing well at all.
it came as a surprise to me that singapore has being hit by the recession,
and that the Aussie dollar has dipped tremendously...
almost on par with the SG dollar.
times are bad.
i pray that no one close to me loses their job,
because it's difficult to sustain oneself during a recession without one.
and i pray that something good would come out of this.

the American elections is next month.
anyone keeping track of it?
i sure am, since it started.
i believe that it'll affect everyone through a chain of events...
you could say "a chain reaction" of that sort.
and i believe we need a change.
a change that would help us get out of our current slump...
i'll say no more. not gona talk politics here.

here are just a couple of pics.
no time to filter the large library of pics i have...


::more pics of the sea outside my place... love it during sunset::


::nothing beats an ice cold bottle of coke on a hot day. lipei and i chilling along Crown St::


::lipei having her favourite date and pumpkin scone while waiting for the train::


::ben and his gentleman hat. looks good it in eh::


::ohh... my precious Godiva Chocs.... how can you resist them... a luxury indeed::

so yeah, i hope everyone's doing great back in singapore.
i seriously cant wait to go back for a holiday....

that's all for now.
XOXO,
D

i made it!

OMG!

::pic of me on the steps that lead to my apartment::
the pounding of my heart...
the gasping for breath...
pupils dilating...
sweaty palms...
nauseous on the verge of a black out...
all these while trying to act calm and compose...
taking a deep breath once again,
i attempted a simple yet almost impossible act; a reply...
"yes, i would like to take up the job offer."
"great, we would like you to start asap, so come down on Tuesday to sign the contract etc...", the creative director said.
"sure." i replied, with a big smile on my face.
and with that, i finally landed my first job, ever!

1 application,
2 interviews,
3 days trial,
a young lady to compete with...
and God knows how many applicants later...
i got the job!!!!!

omg!!!
i got the job!!!!!
it sure feels like american idol...
selections, perform, judge, winner.
let's not forget all the waiting in between.

the path that led me here was long and winding and emotionally draining.
it was everything BUT easy!!!
and i can safely say that it's definitely harder to obtain than most jobs out there.
i really had to earn it, prove myself, and rise above the rest to obtain that 1 position.

finally, a sign of relief.
i was so close to declaring myself bankrupt...
finally i dun have to rely on my parent's fund anymore. :)

i'm hoping that my future entries wouldn't be centering over one topic: work.
i'll make sure that i wont be a slave to my work.
got to make sure that i dun think about work when i knock off.
and got to make sure that i have loads of fun during the weekends.
i'll try, but no guarantee. :P

ok enough of me!! (then again, it's my blog...)
took some pics so decided to upload them here.
there are still tons of pics to filter and upload.
so be patient while i get to them...


::lipei and i went to this cafe called Pablos Vice at Crown street. i love this cafe cos firstly, the food is delicious, secondly, it's relatively cheap, and thirdly, it has this awesome vibe. i love just sitting along the pavement, sipping coffee and eating my breakfast while we watch the world go by. it's the aussie version of a road side kopitiam. :) love it! ::


::took this pic of lipei while we were having lunch at Lavender Bay. i love this area because they have great restaurants, a very cute bookstore and a stone throw away from the view of the opera house. gota love lipei's beehive!::


::took this pic of ben at Newtown. luv luv luv Newtown. it reminds me of Brunswick st in Melbourne; very bohemian, grungy, artistic. the very definition of non-commercialization. love the shops here and every saturday, there's a small art flea market::


::this is another pic i took while walking around Newtown. there's a canvas painting leaning against a painted wall. and you'll see many of such art work as you walk along King St, Newtown::


::pic of pedro and lipei. the three of us were chilling at pedro's apartment after having cakes and coffee at the nearby Kirribilli Cafe::


::my next door neighbour's cat. he's called tyson and he has a sister. very adorable cats. they like to come to our apartment every chance they get::

wana thank everyone for their well wishes!
i appreciate it a lot!!

also wana tell fauz, ping and angeline that i wana go "Mustafa-ing"!!! :P
and i miss playing monster hunter with you guys!
yesh... i miss singapore a lot.

that's all for now!
XOXO,
D