Just hung up the last piece of our washi calendar for the year. And yet I felt like it was only just a few months back when I bought the set a couple of months in advance before the new year.
How the year flew!
Last Month of 2023!
Category Archives: beginnings
Learning Polish in Summer 2023
Out of curiosity, Yui googled what is the most difficult language to learn (from Japanese perspective) and found it’s Polish.
So she’s set her mind to learn it this summer break. Let’s see how long this resolve will last.
Bye my IP Phone
Our office had made the switch to mobile phones. So today I said goodbye to my beloved IP phone, that’s kept me company since 2012.
Funny that during the pandemic, I used this phone for probably only three times max. And yet only this week I’ve communicated with our Client via this phone for like 6 times.
That’s what I call “going out with a BANG!!
Life with a grade schooler: Confessions!
A couple months ago, Yui told me she has a crush on one of her teachers in her after school school.
Last week, she told me she confessed and expressed her feelings to the guy, 12 years her senior and twice as tall. I wanted to ask details about how she said it, what was the setting, (and most importantly) what he said. She just wouldn’t share she eventually got angry because I kept on badgering her.
And then this evening, she suddenly blurted out, without preamble: he told me to say again what I said ten years after (in Japanese).
I was at first confused on what she meant. Then it dawned on me. Ahhhhh!!! I’m happy for my baby though.
My baby. Now a lady with crushes.
Oh, The Places You’ll Go! 小学校4年
I wanted to keep our tradition going, so I bought us a new copy of our tradition book.
The good thing this year, and especially with this new book, is that you’ve come to appreciate this yearly tradition. Plus your English reading skills has recently significantly improved (you’ve already read all our Dr Seuss books!) and you can read it now.
You’ll be starting joining clubs from this year. And you chose Theatre Club at that! I know you wanted to join Drawing Club, and Computer Club more than Theatre Club, and that you only joined it after seeing a video of what the club is about and learning what I’ve been saying is true. But I hope you’ll find a place to nurture your love for voices, singing, and performing. You’re already having extra classes for Drawing and for Programming, hence I am glad of the choice you made so that you can work on your other talents.
God bless you my baby. Spread your wings. 
Downtime Reflections
Took a week off in between projects. From my first month in my last project, I’ve been clamouring to be demobilised. Had to talk to management too to correct some injustices. I finally settled down on Month 4 and accepted my fate and resolved to flourish and do my best at the current project. On Month 5, another project wanted to get me. But the “wardens” of the project I was involved in wouldn’t let me go. Then on month 15, another project asked for me as well. But “wardens” were determined to keep me, despite my workload already in trickles. They couldn’t let me go because the other units are still fully loaded even when I’m not. Why the huge disparity on unit status I cannot explain.
The wardens finally let me go on Month 20. Only, the two projects who asked for me can’t have me now because they had no choice but to already have somebody else in. World events also altercated plans for the project I was supposed to be in. So I was in an ironic situation wherein before, projects were strongly fighting for me but now I’m left with no projects. Of course the Management heard A LOT of complaints from me. There should be better management. Hopefully they’ll improve soon. But for the mean time, I have to be with a project wherein they have to specially carve a place for me because it was not planned in the first place (world events. But my situation is nothing compared to what’s happening with Ukraine). And while I’m on vacation, I also need to summon yet again my inner drive to perform in this project despite not meeting my ideals (I really so so sooo wanted to be in those two projects that wanted to get me).
But something to be happy with:
(1) When you see the terms and methods you’ve been using for years at work is finally being used by others too. Kilig. Super. Influence one person at a time. And see the ripple effect. ❤️
(2) It is kilig too whenever teammates (different nationalities) say they’ll always follow you as their lead anytime. Especially when those certain colleagues have been evaluated by other leads as exceptional engineers. 🥰😍
(3) When colleagues from other departments would say you’re one of the very few people in your department’s team whom they have absolute respect. (Although on hindsight this is not good for my department. I need to work on this next time!).
As I have my downtime this week while I transition from one project to another, I need to reflect though on how I can improve on 2 things: my temper. And how to avoid miscommunication when working remotely. I always tend to argue with a teammate when on remote.
Improvements. Improvements.