Met up with valerie today (Tue, 6 July). Went to bugis seiyu and giordano and discovered that I didn't like any of the clothes on display (again). Made our way west to Queensway, where I bought a new pair of shoes and more pairs of socks. Seeing so many sajc people in the vicinity of Queensway and Ikea made me pretty nostalgic again. heh.
Guess what happened (again)?
I was at the shoe shop.. and I saw a pair of shoes which I thought was pretty good.
Me: "Heyy excuse me.. do you have a size 9 for this pair of shoes?"
Salesgirl, chuckling: "This pair of shoes are for women. hehe."
Eh. This is the second time in two days I made a fool out of myself in the same manner k haha.
Had dinner at...
Round 1 at Kreta Ayer Hawker Centre:
1) Dry fishball noodles
2) Char Kway Teow
3) Chee Kuey
4) Sugarcane water
Round 2 at that thorough-fare street in Chinatown which is converted into an "eating road":
1) Mutton soup
2) Rice balls from "Ah Balling"
3) Ice kacang
Hmm. the food at Chinatown is much better than Newton loh. I think Newton is pretty over-rated. Do you know a cup of sugarcane at Newton costs 2 dollars? (!!!)
I saw this signboard at Chinatown MRT. looked interesting to me, so I snapped it. :)
Just wondering if we're so obsessed with time, or rather the lack of it, that we have to resort to saying that "it takes 94 steps to get to so and so..." What's the difference between 94 and 95 steps anyway?
One step.
Neil Armstrong said while landing on the moon, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
And a big thank you to u (val) for your card too. A long message u delivered, very frank and sincere. For that, I am eternally grateful. Really. It's not very often where you have friends who are not afraid of giving you brutally honest opinions in the hope that you'll fly much higher.
Many times in the last one year, I failed to live up to my name. no will. no determination. lost direction. But i think, I've finally gotten my act together and I hope I'll be able to end 2004 on a very high note.
The road is long and arduous, but if one bothers to sow the seeds dilligently, I'm sure God won't deprive him of the chance to savour the fruits one day.
As for money, it's something I have to worry about loh. But of cos I agree that I shouldn't be worrying till the point it takes over my studies. For one, if I want to attend university seminars or public lectures (UWA just had one on "Indonesian History and Political Leadership through film studies), I'd have to fork out extra $ loh. And I think it's about AUD110 for each public lecture.
Your farewell present was so nice that I just had to take a picture of it and post it on my blog... :) Thanks a lot. It'd definitely remind me of God's grace to all of us. And that I'm blessed to be given a second chance, hence I'll try my best to be a better person, be more focused and not ogle at Kylie's butt too often when I'm in Oz. =X
The three cubes towards the bottom of the cross writes "Jesus Loves Me".
Eh.. u forgot to buy the nails and hammer for me to hang the cross leh! :)
A big thank you to my paternal grandmother for kindly making out a (not a blank) cheque to assist me in my education and Auntie Rebecca (my mum's bez friend) for giving me a red packet.. though I wasn't at home to physically receive it. :)
Lastly, I was pretty inspired and motivated by this newspaper article which appeared in The Star (Malaysia's most widely read English newspaper) on Monday.
Envoys – our ‘salesmen’ abroad
By MERGAWATI ZULFAKAR
Malaysia has nearly 60 ambassadors abroad. What is the job of a foreign envoy like? Not easy and, most times, not that well-paying either apparently. MERGAWATI ZULFAKAR spoke to a few of them to find out more about their roles and responsibilities as the country’s “pointmen” in the countries they are sent to.
WHAT makes a good diplomat?
According to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the person, among others, must be well read, multilingual and IT-savvy.
Officers in the foreign service, he said, had done well and must do better.
Countries that are slow and inefficient will only get the crumbs and Malaysia should not be left collecting crumbs.
Abdullah should know.
He was one of the longest-serving foreign ministers.
He made these remarks during a recent visit to Wisma Putra.
Ambassador Datuk Abdul Majid Khan described diplomats as lawyers.
“The Government is our client. We promote, articulate and protect its interests.
“A good diplomat must be well equipped with the necessary tools, so that you have the flexibility to operate and convince others of your objectives and agenda,” said the ambassador to China.
Another senior ambassador concurred.
“Most important is experience. Diplomats are not made by courses or by the issuance of diplomatic passports. They emerge after long years of training, experience and serving under those who have experience.
“What a dismal record we have in foreign languages. I am not sure whether many of the next generation of ambassadors will be able to hold their own in debating and negotiating in English,” he said.
The issue of English proficiency among diplomats was raised as far back as 10 years ago by then premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who wanted diplomats to master the language to be effective in international affairs.
Wisma Putra addressed the issue by conducting foreign language classes for junior diplomats at the Institute of Diplomatic and Foreign Relations.
Has the standard improved?
“It is not at the level we wish for but it is improving,” said an ambassador.
More than 80 heads of missions abroad are back home this week for their meeting in Putrajaya.
The meeting, last held three years ago, comes against the backdrop of the country’s change of leadership and foreign policies in an era of globalisation.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said while the principles of the country's foreign policy have remained, the style and approach of the leadership have changed.
“It is not unusual. For diplomats, we have to understand the new style and how we give meaning to core policies. There has been a marked difference in approach and style but the stance is still the same.”
A diplomat who has served in the Government for 30 years said Abdullah was trying to rebuild old relationships that were bruised over the years.
“Perhaps he believes that to have friends one must show himself as friendly. Although I must admit to some nostalgia for the old days of ‘aggressive responses,’ the prime minister is doing the right thing for the good of the country.
“We have much more to gain by projecting ourselves as responsible, moderate and open to all nations. All the past approach did for us was score points with those who within the grand scheme of things mattered little to us economically and politically.
“A gentler, kinder approach, especially with the bigger powers will win us wider respect and influence. I see it as a real change in mindset and we (diplomats) will have to modify our basic and ingrained responses.
“We don’t need to depend on provocation to gain respect any more because we have solid fundamentals that will cause us to be respected,” he added.
Malaysian diplomats, however, face budget and human resource constraints in carrying out their tasks overseas.
“We have such high-profile international standing that we have expanded our missions at a fast rate. Our problem is we are stretching the manpower.
“We have to run missions overseas and yet the allowance is miserable,” said a diplomat.
One diplomat based in an African country said the rental of his residence alone cost nearly US$100,000 (RM380,000) a year while the allowance of an ambassador in an European country is about the same as that of the first secretary of an embassy in an Asean country.
The Government increased diplomats' allowance by a minimum of five per cent earlier this year.
Syed Hamid admitted the last review was done 10 years ago.
“Our coverage is 24 hours a day. Our diplomats work seven days a week. I did bring up the matter to the Cabinet,” he said.
Syed Hamid said a good diplomat should have interpersonal skills, be humble and put personal feelings aside.
“Then you will be able to serve the country better. Diplomats must be able to say no without having to say it and if they want to say yes, they must not be overzealous.”
Yet in carrying out their not-so-easy duties, Malaysian diplomats must remember that they have to succeed in making Malaysia the preferred brand name in international relations.