Now that Spring Feast is over, and that I'm badly aching all over my body, I would like to reflect on what happened yesterday and how things can be improved.
First, the not-so-salubrious aspects.
Obviously my planning could have been much, much better. I understand that some of my friends weren't very happy with my indecisiveness which really dragged their time. I got the impression that some thought that I was pushy with getting things done, and was not appreciative of other people's help, especially when they were not called in the first place, being dragged in when things got really tough and complicated.
To that, I'm really sorry if I gave people that impression, or if it was done knowingly. Thinking of so many friends here.
Kelvin - that you have to carry the steamer machine, table, 98 dumplings (bak chang), 72 containers filled with dim sum, and 125 paus in your car last night.... and to James' factory at Bayswater this morning. That I'd say is the biggest oversight I made last night, i.e. not making enough preparations to figure out how leftovers can be brought from UWA to Curtin OCFers houses, and then again to the factory for reheating to sell at Curtin's Pasar Malam tonight. Thanks a lot for saving me there and apologies for the massive inconvenience caused.
Lindy - if you thought I was being indecisive over whether to sell all our leftovers to the guy who wanted to buy them at a bargain, and hence kept you waiting. I know you had to rush off to Subi... Yeah but I'd also hope that it can be appreciated that some decisions can't be made right at the spot without thinking of the possible consequences.
Rachel, Lydia, Dorcas - for helping out during the peak hours when I didn't calculate that your help was needed then.
Esther and Jason - for helping out during the entire 6 hours of Spring Feast.... especially Esther whom I only asked for her help for setting up and during peak period only. Turned out her help was needed for the entire duration. Jason, for handling the money for most of the period, and just being a wonderful housemate and friend to me.
Yeah part of my confidence was shattered from the start cos' just before that, I consulted my lecturer over my Global Governance essay that is due this Monday. I finished writing it on Wednesday, but I was very uncertain about whether I was answering the question, which was, well, our own self-formulated question. Roderic then modified my original question so it would suit what he thought I was answering better, but I'm still not sure if it does answer the modified question still. Will have to work on it today and the weekend. And I still have 2 more essays to write, due very very very soon. Not done anything about it yet.
There were problems with a particularly difficult customer, which saw me losing my temper big-time. Don't think anyone in OCF saw me that pissed before. That's all I shall say.
Problems with City of Subi councillors also (i.e. health inspectors).
But if there were good things to be learnt,
I learnt that planning is so damn important.... I possibly can't stress this enough. John and Andrew will probably go, "haha so now you know what you got to do for Convention proper, eh?"
Yeah, it was, come to think of it, the first event that I coordinated in OCF. And I'm quite happy about it actually. Got to know so many people much better, and hopefully it helps my perennial problem of being uncomfortable with breaking out of my comfort zone. It's a perennial problem, I assure you.
I haven't done the proper accounts yet, but based on preliminary estimates, we made about $930.
Thanks also to James, who helped us so much with the dim sum and paus.... and to all the aunties who cooked and donated food for us to sell.
And to xy who listened that I was happy that I thought spring feast went well, and who then had to listen that I was quite upset when people starting telling me that other people told them they weren't happy about how I executed everything.
And for lessons learnt, and watching over everything, I know I owe it to the Lord.