Klutzy Me...

A funny thing happened to me on Thanksgiving eve about 2 weeks ago. I can say it's funny coz it was funny now that I think back to it, but it wasn't funny at all when it happened.

Every Wednesdays, at the branch I used to be at (I have seen tranferred to a different branch the week after this incident happened), I can be found managing the drive thru counter at the bank I work at. The drive thru is normally quite cold that it was dupped "the Igloo". So on this particular cool Wednesday, I was dressed for warmth..my usually blue bank buttoned down shirt and black pants but instead of the dress shoes I normally wear, I put on thick socks and a "clunky" pair of what I call "Manshoes" so that my feet won't freeze in the Igloo.

I was working open to close like any other day and at about half an hour before we closed, I did a pre-balance of my drawer and found that I was short by exactly US$30. Well, I freaked out a little since I do not like to be off (of course, neither does the bank), so I recounted my drawers to make sure that I didn't missed anything. I had about US$450 worth of rolled coins (I was the back up merchant teller) in a coin bag as well as in a box which were both on the bottom drawer. If any of you had ever carried rolled coins before, you can imagine how heavy $450 worth of coin weight. I pulled those out to recount them, found that the amount was correct and since we were about to close, left them on the floor to recount my top 2 drawers. After counting the top drawer I was still short US$30 so I decided to go around the corner to ask someone to check my calculations. I was sitting on a stool while I was doing the counting and as I turned around to my left, my right foot slammed into the bag & box of coins on the floor. I had totally forgotten that they were on the floor! I was falling towards the wall so I put my left foot forward to try and break my fall and guess what I did? I slammed my left foot into the wall! So now I don't know which foot to hop on since they both were hurting.

You should see the look on my face! I almost broke my neck tripping over some rolled coins. When I looked down, that bag and box was exactly where I left it...It did not even budge!!! After a few multi-lingual choiced words, I limped around the corner to the teller line for help.

As I drove home that night, I could feel my toes throbbing like crazy so I know that they were swollen. I tried wiggling them to make sure that they are not broken..they are not (thank goodness!). When I took off the shoes at home, the 2 big toes were swollen, throbbing and numb at the same time. I soaked them in warm water and on Thanksgiving day they were still throbbing and red. The bruise didn't show up until the 3rd day...I woke up on Friday with my 2 big toes BLACK!!!

Anyways, the pic above was taken just now. The bruises have subsided a little tho the nails are still black. I am just glad that they weren't broken.... I don't know why but I've become more clumsy lately...

Vacation

I was, technically, supposed to be on vacation last week but I really wasn't. First of all, it was more of a "stay-cation" since we didn't go anywhere. This is what I did all week...

Sat (Aug 1): My vacation officially started at 2:15pm after I was done at the bank. Had planned on going grocery shopping but since I left my wallet (driver's license and all) at home, the plan was scrapped. Once, I was home, I didn't feel like going back out, especially in the hot sun (temperature was about 109F, that's about 43C!)

Sun (Aug 2): Did grocery shopping in the morning before it started to get too hot. Cleaned the house a little then hung out with my 3 boys.

Mon (Aug 3): Only the hygiene side of the dental office was open today. Since Doc was not in, I didn't go into work (my part time job). No point for me to go in since I needed the Doc to sign checks and such...

Tue (Aug 4): Doc was back in the office so I went to work for about 6 hours (6am-12pm). Got the bills paid and worked out the numbers for our monthly staff meeting on Thursday. Had lunch with Leanna, (who was in town from Flagstaff), Anjie & Christina at Steve's Krazy Sub. Stopped at Walmart to get some groceries that I forgot to get on Sunday. Hung out around the house with my 3 boys.

Wed (Aug 5): Cleaned out the bathroom & kitchen. Vacuumed the house then hung out with my boys. Sammy & Tiger started to get curious that I'm home so they kept following me around the house.

Thu (Aug 6): Went into work at 6am. Finished the numbers for Doc for the staff meeting and left work at 10am since Jim had someone from the Dept of Public Security (or something like that) coming to our house to evaluate his capabilities to go back to work. They had called earlier in the week to confirm the 11am appointment. They also mentioned that the lady who was coming has severe cat allegies so if we have any cats to put them in a room while she was there. To make sure that Tiger didn't run and hide when the door bell rings, I took him and Sammy into our computer room at about 10:30am. I hung out with them in the computer room while Jim waited for the lady to show up. 11am came and went...so did 12pm then 1pm came around. The lady didn't show up!!! She didn't even bother to call us. Jim called his case worker to find out what happened, she said she'll try to find out and call us back but I think she never did. Typical!!!

Fri (Aug 7): Worked at the bank from 7:45am-4:45pm. It was Christina's last day before moving to Texas. We've known each other, even before the bank. Both were hired, within days of each other, at Dillard's in '00. Then we both were hired at the bank in '01. Said my goodbyes to her and hopefully we will keep in touch.

Sat (Aug 8): Jim went over to Hollywood Videos and rented "Doubt" & "The Wrestler". Watched "Doubt" and hung out with my boys.

Sun (Aug 9): Went over to my sister-in-law's in the afternoon with Jim. Hung out with them and did karaoke. Sat around listening to the rest of the family singing. I normally don't sing but Jim convinced me to do a duet with him of the song "Picture" by Kid Rock & Sheryl Crow.

Mon (Aug 10): 6 yrs since my mom passed away. Went to my doctor's appointment at 7:15am then to work at the dental office from 8am-9:30am. Hung around at home for a little bit then went to lunch with Melissa & Aubree at Cici's while Jim was at his doctor's appointment. Spent the rest of the day with my boys, watched "The Wrestler"

Tue (Aug 11): Back at work at the bank....

And that was how I spent my "stay-cation".

Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince

July 15, 2009... a date I've been waiting for for a long time. Before July 15, 2009, the date I waited for was November 21, 2008. I waited for that date for almost a year when they decided to postpond it to July 15, 2009. So, I waited, and waited and waited...for July 15, 2009. A few weeks before that date, there were rumblings. I saw trailers for it on tv, ads in the magazine, people being interviewed. I was so excited for this date to come coz I waited for it for almost 2 years! To keep me occupied, I reread the books gazillion times that I can repeat it word for word. I did quizzes and trivias about it online. I've become pretty good at it that I am ranked 1712 out of 324671 on Facebook (I'm still trying to get to that #1 spot but the current holder has about a million points ahead of me..he he he). The anticipation was getting a little overwhelming, I drove Jim nuts!

It finally happened! Wednesday, July 15 finally came....and went. I wanted to be first in line for the midnight premier but alas, I had to work. Maybe it was a good thing that I didn't go that first few days coz the theater was packed! The movie racked in US$30.4 million on its first day. Can you imagine that? I can! But still I haven't gone to see it...I was still waiting...For what? I don' know...

Finally today, Monday, July 27, 2009...12 days after it premiered, I went to see "Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince". I got done with work at the dental office at 10am. Since Jim has an appointment at 11am that he didn't need me to go with him, I went online to see what time the movie starts at the theater near my work. There was one starting at 10:40am so I quickly locked up my desk and drove over to the theater. There was a few people in line in front of me but all of them were getting tickets for the movie "G Force" which opened last Friday. I asked the clerk if the theater is full and he said it's almost empty.

After I got my popcorn and soda, I walked over to theather #18 (there are a total of 24). There was only 2 other people in there and 2 others came in after me! I was so happy coz now I get to enjoy the movie without the distractions by other viewers, especially those pesky little kids he he he.

The movie was pretty good tho the book is obviously a lot better. I really like it but I have to say that I am bias when it comes to Harry Potter. Of course they have to cut out some parts of the movie. I had hoped that they will include Ron's eldest brother Bill in this movie coz his character in the book is quite interesting but alas, they didn't. I also thought that they could have made the scene of Dumblebore's death/funeral a little bit more intense coz that is the point that Harry realized he has to face Voldemort in the end and that he might die in the process.

Anyways, watch the movie if you can....

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To Tell or Not To Tell

We have a customer (lets call him "M") who comes into our branch about every other day. He is a little eccentric in term of his mannerisms and clothing. He is a compulsive "collector" as in he collects things especially our freebie markerting materials (eg pencils, notepads etc). He also never fails to fill his big travelling coffee mug with the coffee that we provide at the customer waiting area every time he comes into the branch. Being that Arizona is warm mostly throughout the year, he normally wears a t-shirt, "fisherman's" hat, bandanna tied around his neck and short shorts (& when I say short, it's SHORT!).

Anyways, like any other morning, M came into the branch to do a small withdrawal today. After running his transaction, I went back to reading the "Ink" magazine that my bank prints out for their employees. A few seconds later, my assistant manager came up to me and whispered, "Did you see M's short?"

I looked over to the coffee table where M is standing getting coffee, and lo & behold his ASS was there in all it's glory for everyone to see. I was in shock! His short shorts had ridden up that you can see his butt even when he's standing straight up. I was in delima coz I don't know if I should go over to him to let him know or just let it go. I can see the other customers waiting in line were giving him looks but as I was contemplating on whether to tell him or not, he was done filling his coffee cup and walked out the door.

If it were you, what would you have done? I am still not sure what I would do since I do not want to embarass him and either way seems like it would.

p/s The picture above is NOT of M!. This was just something I found on Google

Goose Egg

The bank I work for closes at 6pm on Mondays - Fridays & 2pm on Saturdays. So, like any other Wednesday, we were closed at 6pm yesterday. After balancing my cash drawer and putting it in the vault, I ran to the restroom. There are 2 stalls in the restroom and I normally use the smaller stall instead of the larger handicapped one. The door of the smaller stall swings inward and I am so used to it. Anyways, someone was already in the smaller stall so instead of waiting, I decided to use the handicap one since I really needed to go...he he he.

Well, I wasn't thinking about the door when I pushed it inward to go into the stall. WHAM!! the door slammed shut on me and I ran right into it and hit my head on it. I was so intend on getting to the toilet that I forgot the door swing outwards. Luckily, I didn't hit my head too hard coz otherwise I would have gotten an enormous goose egg on my forehead! I felt so stupid and luckily whomever was in the smaller stall didn't outright laugh at me...LOL

My Week

This is how my week normally goes:

Mondays:

5-5:30am: Wake up, shower, make myself pretty, fill the boys' bowl with their breakfast.

6:00am-12:00pm: Work at the dental office.

Noon-5:00pm: Doctor's appointments for Jim or myself. If there is no appointments, then grocery shopping, laundry, clean the house.

6-7pm: Clean the boys' litter box, fill their bowl with their dinner, start making dinner.

Tuesdays:

6-6:30am: Wake up, take my shower, make myself pretty, fill the boys' bowl with their breakfast.

9am-6:15pm: Work at the bank.

7pm: Clean the litter box, fill their bowl with dinner, start making dinner.

Wednesdays:

5:30-6am: Wake up, shower, make myself pretty, fill the boys' bowl with their breakfast.

7:45am-6:15am: Work at the bank.

7pm: Clean the litter box, fill the boys' bowl with dinner, start making dinner.

Thursdays:

5-5:30am: Wake up, shower, make myself pretty, fill the boys bowl with their breakfast.

6-8:45am: Work at the dental office.

9am-6:15pm: Work at the bank.

7pm: Clean the litter box, fill the boys' bowl with dinner, start making dinner.

Fridays:

6-6:30am: Wake up, shower, make myself pretty, fill the boys' bowl with breakfast.

9am-6:15pm: Work at the bank.

7pm: Clean the litter box, fill the boys' bowl with dinner, start making dinner.

Saturdays:

7-7:30am: Wake up, shower, make myself pretty, fill the boys' bowl with breakfast.

8:45am-2:15pm: Work at the bank.

2:30-7pm: Grocery shopping, clean the house.

7pm: Clean the little box, fill the boys' bowl with dinner, start making dinner.

Sundays:

7am: Wake up, might take a shower, fill the boys' bowl with breakfast, might go back to bed.

Rest of day: Clean the house, laundry, cook etc.

Repeat this cycle every Monday...No wonder I am tired!

Food Poisoning

Monday was Memorial Day here so I had the day off for once since the bank and the dental office I work at are both closed. We were going to have a BBQ at my in laws but my mother in law wasn't feeling too good so we all decided to go to the the chinese buffet at the restaurant not far from their house instead. After lunch we went back to my in laws and watched the Chicago Cubs game on tv. We were there until about 8PM and when we left, I was feeling a little hungry so we stopped at the McDonald's on the way home. I ordered a McDouble and a couple of apple pies and devoured it as soon as we got home. After spending some time playing with my boys I fell asleep at about 11PM.

At about 2AM I woke up with a cramp in my tummy. At first I thought that maybe it's my normal monthly cramps but as I lay in bed, my tummy started to feel & get more and more bloated. Soon after I ran to the bathroom and threw up everything that I ate that day, the chinese food as well as McD. Sammy was so sweet that he came and sat beside me on the bathroom floor as I heaved over the toilet. He kept looking up at me with this expression that says, "Are you okay, Mummy?"

I thought that after that I would be okay but boy was I wrong. I kept threwing up for the rest of the night until about 6AM when I thought I don't have anything more to chuck. Since I am the only teller opening I knew I couldn't call in sick so I took my shower and left for work at 7:15AM. I was afraid that I was going to threw up at work, I didn't eat or drink anything except for water all day. I thought that I wasn't going to make it thru work but luckily I got off at 2:30PM... I went home and slept the rest of the day...

So, that was my little adventure with food poisoning....

Frost Nixon

We saw the movie "Frost Nixon" last night and really liked it. It was about the interview former president Richard Nixon (Frank Lagella) did with David Frost (Michael Sheen) after he resigned from the highest office in the US.

The movie mixed in actual footage of the interview and I thought it was very interesting. Of course, when the original interview happened in '77, I was quite young (6 yrs old to be exact) and did not have any interest to know about politics (not that I cared much now either). It was interesting to learn about the back story of the interview, how it came about and what David Frost go thru to get that interview aired. I do recommend you watch this movie....

Happy Birthday Aman

Happy birthday to my nephew Aman (Raja Irfan Asyraaf), who is celebrating his 9th today. Aunty Yin, Uncle Jim, Sammy & Tiger loves you very much!!!

Happy Mother's Day

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL THE MOMS OUT THERE.....

Mummy, there's a giant mouse after me!

I got off from work at 6:15pm this past Thursday. As always, I try to take the shortest and fastest way home so I reached home in about 10 minutes. Tiger was already waiting for me by the back patio sliding door. He jumped up as soon as he saw my head popped up from behind the wooden gate and started meowing. A few seconds later, Sammy came by the door too to greet me home. My feeling of exhaustion always melts away when I see my 2 boys greet me when I get home ;-)

Sammy & Tiger are indoor cats so they are rarely out of the house much less out of the back gate. Once in awhile I will let them go onto the back patio so they can "explore" a little. Tiger normally would go straight to the little patch of grass that we have and start eating them while Sammy will explore the flower bed we have. He normally checks the bird feeder & birdbath we have to see if there is any birds lurking around.

Well, I let them onto the patio when I got home on Thursday. I left the patio door open while I cleaned their litter box and took the trash out to the big garbage bin in the parking lot. As I was walking back from the garbage bin, I noticed that Sammy had ventured out past our gate and was checking out the front of my car. He kept walking along the pebbled boundary of the carport and came up to a car parked 2 spaces away from mine. Up to this point, he was not paying attention to the cars that were parked. He looked up and jumped back really fast and ran back to our gate. He stopped and looked back at the car then to me and gave a loud meow and ran into the house. I was laughing so hard that I almost peed in my pants.

Sammy got scared coz the car that he happened to look up at was a yellow VW bug that the company Truly Nolen uses so it was suped up to look like a mouse. He thought that he was face-to-face with a giant mouse ;-)

Happy Birthday Tiger

Happy birthday to my son, Tiger "Gabby" William Pergo, who celebrated his 4th yesterday (May 1). Mummy, Daddy & Sammy loves you very much!!!

50 Things I Have Learned by Being a Bank Teller

1. I know everyone in the world, so I never need to ask for ID.

2. "I'll be with you in one moment," means "Come right up here into my business and breathe your popcorn breath in my face for a while."

3. Every bank in the world steals money from its customers, particularly the ones that don't keep a register.

4. I'm always kidding when I tell people a check is not any good. I'm a good kidder.

5. I know the balance of every account at the bank.

6. I am at the bank just because I feel like it; my window isn't actually open when I say, "May I help you?"

7. I know everyone's account number.

8. I know everyone's address.

9. I don't understand how banking works.

10. I have to do whatever the person who gave my customer the check said.

11. I don't know how to count.

12. I don't know how to add.

13. I don't know what the date is.

14. I can read everyone's mind.

15. If I ask for your social, I'm trying to steal your identity.

16. I know when every new coin will be arriving.

17. I know how much everyone's bills are for the month.

18. We DON'T sell stamps.

19. We are just here for fun on most holidays, we're not really open. We love it when you rub it in.

20. When someone asks how you want your cash back, you are supposed to tell them after you get your money back.

21. Apparently people have different definitions of commercial.

22. Your time is more important than mine. I have no life. When you show up 5 minutes before we close to make 10 deposits or open a new account, we don't mind.

23. Everyone with the Bank name tag is related.

24. I am your secretary.

25. We love to place holds on your checks for fun, we are the only bank that does it.

26. 13 hours and 10 minutes is not enough time for people to do their business.

27. I am in charge of the never ending popcorn, smarties, and coffee.

28. It is polite to ignore someone when they say hello.

29. It is my fault when someone cuts you in line. I should have been paying attention to you and not your money.

30. I know what a checkingdepositwithdrawal for savings is.

31. Being rude should make me want to help you more.

32. I am not really human, I should not make mistakes.

33. It is okay to go into someones office when their door is shut.

34. I have a secret collection of driver licenses in my cubby.

35. I can't hear. I need you to ding the bell 5 times in a row.

36. The sign that says Next Window Please is just for decoration.

37. I make people wait on purpose. it is fun to make them mad.

38. I know everyone's pin number to their ATM card.

39. Fraud isn't real, I should give customers exactly what they want.

40. The bank gives out free poinsettias at Christmas, we order them for you, not the bank. Display only means whatever you want it to mean.

41. Please and Thank You are forbidden words at the bank. We hate to hear them.

42. Deposit and Withdrawal slips are EXACTLY the same, we just like the color pin and wanted to make them more colorful. Marking through the word WITHDRAWAL changes the DEPOSIT slip completely!

43. When I tell someone the same thing over and over, I'm just doing it for fun. I like to waste my breath.

44. We will break the rules for anyone as long as you gripe for more than 10 minutes.

45. I am a professional coin counter. Even when the machine is broken, I will count the coin for you by hand!

46. I am psychic; when you call I can recognize your voice and pull up your information. My computer is voice activated. Its that fancy technology we have.

47. You don't have to tell me that you've been with the bank for 50 years...I can tell.

48. Even after 5 years, I am a new teller to anyone who has never seen me before. If I've never met you, I have no idea what I am doing.

49. I make the rules for the banking industry. You can blame everything on me!

50. I'm an idiot.

What should I have done?

I got off from work at about 6:15 pm yesterday and stopped at our neighbourhood Walmart on my way home to get some groceries. Spent about 20 minutes in the store and I have to say that for the amount of stuff that I bought, a US$100.18 bill is not too bad.

Anyways, I was pushing my cart across the pavement to where my car was parked when the wheel of the cart rolled over a piece of paper, folded in half. I almost didn't notice it since I was trying to decide what to make for dinner once I get home. I did a double look at that paper and could not believe my eyes! I looked around the parking lot, there was a few cars but there was no one in sight. I didn't pass anyone coming into Walmart as I was leaving either. I stood over that piece of paper for about 5 minutes trying to decide what I should do.

Figured that even if I take that piece of paper to Walmart's customer service, their employee(s) would probably claim it anyways. So, after much thought I picked up the piece of paper and pocketed it. I still have not decided what I want to do with it. Wanna know what it was? US$100!! If it were you, what would you have done?

P/S: I am contemplating going back to Walmart when I get off work today to see if anyone ask about that money. I don't feel right about keeping it (I could definitely use an extra $100) so if no one claims it, I am going to donate it to charity.

"Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince"

I await July 15 with great anticipation!!!!!

Sammy's 8th Birthday

Happy 8th birthday Sammy! Mummy, Daddy & Tiger loves you very much!

Dust Storm

Man was it windy yesterday. I worked 7:45am - 6:15pm and around 3:00 pm I noticed the wind started to pick up. By the time I got off, the wind was in a howling capacity and since we live in the desert, dust was everywhere. It took me about 20 minutes to get home when normally I would get home in about 10 minutes. The picture on the right is was I saw as I was driving home.

"Rachel Getting Married" & "Quantum of Solace"

We rented "Rachel Getting Married" & "Quantum of Solace" over the weekend. Saw "Rachel Getting Married" on Sunday. It was about a woman, Kym (Anne Hathaway) who has been in and out of rehab, returned home for the weekend for her sister, Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt) wedding. The home environment was challenging for Rachel since she is a recovering addict. While the sisters are effectionate, there is tension in their relationship. Rachel feels that their father dotes on Kym too much. Their father is genuinely concerned about Kym's well being but does not realize the stress the relationship is causing. The sister aslo has to deal with their mother who is more concern with her own well being rather than her own children.

The movie is very good especially Anne Hathaway. She was nominated for the Oscar last year for this role. Watch it if you can.

We saw "Quantum of Solace" last night and I have to say that of all the James Bond movies that I've seen (and I've seen all of them), this is my least favorite. Seems to me that the movie is more concern about the action rather than the story. Yeah, yeah, most of James Bond movies are action packed but at least there is a story to it that make sense. I wouldn't even bother with this one if I was you

When You Say Nothing At All

I fell in love with this song when I heard it on the movie "Notting Hill".

When You Say Nothing At All (Alison Krauss)

It's amazing how you can speak right to my heart

Without saying a word you can light up the dark

Try as I may I could never explain

What I hear when you don't say a thing

The smile on your face lets me know that you need me

There's a truth in your eyes sayin' you'll never leave me

The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall

You say it best when you say nothing at all

All day long I can hear people talking out loud

But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd

Old Mr. Webster could never define

What's being said between your heart and mine

The smile on your face lets me know that you need me

There's a truth in your eyes sayin' you'll never leave me

The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall

You say it best when you say nothing at all

The smile on your face lets me know that you need me

There's a truth in your eyes sayin' you'll never leave me

The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall

You say it best when you say nothing at all

Time

I received this from my regional manager and thought it was good...

If you had a bank that credited your account each morning with $86400, carried over no balance from day to day, allowing you to keep no cash in your account, cancelling all unused funds at the end of each day, what would you do?

You have such a bank. It's called time.

Every morning, each person's account is credited with 86,400 seconds. Every night, each second not put toward a good purpose is cancelled. Time carries no balance forward. nor does time allow us to borrow against future allocations.

We can only live on today's deposit and invest our time toward the utmost health, happiness, and acquiring new customers to drive our financial success. Each day is important, make it count!!!

100 Truths...(Tag)

This is one freaking looooonnnnnggggg tag...

001.Real name → Raja Norshirin Raja Jalil-Pergo

002.Nickname(s) → Yin, Shirin

004.Male or female → F

005.Kindergarten → St Margaret's

006.Elementary School → SRK Kg Tunku & SRK Damansara Utama

007.High School → MRSM Taiping & The British School in the Netherlands

008.Hair color → Salt & pepper

009.Long or short → Long

010.Loud or Quiet → Depends la with whom ;-)

011.Sweats or Jeans → Jeans

012.Phone or Camera → Camera

013.Health freak → Absolutely NOT

014.Drink or Smoke → Neither

015.Do you have a crush on someone → No

016.Eat or Drink → I love food!

017.Piercings → Ears

018.Tattoos → None

HAVE YOU EVER?

019.Been in an airplane→ Yes

020.Been in a relationship → Yes

021.Been in a car accident → No

022.Been in a fight → No

FIRSTS:

023.First piercing → Ears

024.First best friend → Ari, not sure where she is now

025.First award → Can't remember any

026.First crush → A boy named Jeffry while I was in elementary school

027.First pet → A cat named "Kuning"

028.First big vacation → Europe when I was 11

LASTS:

029.Last person you IMed to → Sid Tamrin

030.Last person you texted → My dad about a month ago

031.Last person you watched a movie with → Jim

032.Last food you ate → Waffles

033.Last movie you watched → "Towelhead" - Awesome movie

034.Last song you listened to → Pink's "So What"

035.Last thing you bought → Mexican food from Filiberto's

036.Last person you hugged → Jim

FAVES:

037.Food → Too many to list here

038.Drinks → Tea

039.Hobby → Sleep

040.Books → The Harry Potter series

041.Music → Oldies

042.Flower → Tulips

043.Colors → Used to be black but now Red

044.Movies → NONE of those gory screaming bloody murder stuff

045.Positions → Err?

046.Subjects → Geography

047.Rarely : Swear but when I do, watch out!

048. Started : at my new job last December

049. Met : Nobody worth mentioning

050. Gone : to the bank this morning

051. met : N/A. SAME QUESTION AS NO. 049

052. Learn : to fix (sort of) the refridgerator last night

053. MIA on : Myspace & Friendster

054. always : Sleeps with my bantal busuk ;-)

055. always out : of patience with "stupid" people

056. had too many : miniature houses

057. missed my : Mom

058. think : that ignorance is the downfall of mankind

059. weight : could lose some

060. cut my hair : when it gets pass my boobs

061. worked : too much

062. tried to save for : my old age

063. heard a lot of : bullshit from everyone

064. been very : tired

065. Drink : Tea, mostly

066. Smoke : No

CURRENTLY:

067.Eating → Lays Chips

068.Drinking → Diet Mountain Dew

069.I'm about to → Burp

070.Listening to → The fan whirling, the computer humming, the radio, the dentist's drill & patient screaming (Not!)

071.Plans for today → Grocery shopping & catch on some sleep

072.Waiting for → This tag to end

YOUR FUTURE :

073.Want kids? → Yes but I'm glad I don't have any at the moment

074.Want to get married? → Done

075.Careers in mind → Writer/Author

076.Lips or eyes → What?

077.Shorter or taller → Wish that I'm a little shorter

078.Romantic or spontaneous → Spontaneously romantic?

079.Nice stomach or nice arms → Stomach

080.Sensitive or loud → I guess sensitive

081.Hook-up or relationship → Relationship

082.Trouble-maker or hesitant → Hesitant, I always think of the consequences before I do anything (well most things)...

HAVE YOU EVER:

083.Lost glasses/contacts → Off course

084.Ran away from home → Almost but my sister spilled the beans so had to abandon plans

085.Hold a gun/knife for self defense → No

086.Killed somebody → Hell NO!

087.Broken someone's heart → I think so

088.Been arrested → Almost

089.Cried when someone died → Yes

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:

090.Yourself → I guess so

091.Miracles → Yes

092.Love at first sight → More like Lust at first sight

093.Heaven → Absolutely!!

094.Santa Claus → Isn't it just a fat man with beard in a red suit who like to have kids sit on his lap?

095.Sex on the first date → No

096.Kiss on the first date → No

ANSWER TRUTHFULLY:

097. Is there one person you want to be with right now? → My 3 boys

098. Are you seriously happy with where you are in life? → Contend is more like it but things could be better

099. Do you believe in God → Yes

Post as 100 Truths and tag to 10 people plus the one who tagged you!!! →

March Birthdays & Special Occassions

Wishing the best to my family & friends who are celebrating their birthdays and/or special occasions this month:

- Raja Nor Syazleen & Tarkriz Kamil - March 20 (Anniversary)

- Hairunnida Mansor - March 21 (Birthday)

"Vicky Cristina Barcelona" & "Towelhead"

We rented these two movies yesterday, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" & "Towelhead". We watched 'Vicky Cristina Barcelona" yesterday. It was a movie written & directed by Woody Allen and we thought it was pretty good. Rebecca Hall ("The Prestige") and Scarlett Johansson ("The Horse Whisperer", "Match Point") were 2 American tourists (best friends), Vicky & Cristina, who were spending a couple of months at Vicky's aunt & uncle's house in Barcelona. While attending an art gallery party, they met and fell for a painter, Juan Antonio Gonzalo (Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Man") unaware that his ex-wife, Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz, "Blow") with whom he had a tempestuous relationship would re-entry his life.

The movie was really good. All 4 actors was good in it especially Penelope Cruz. I was not surprised that she was nominated for an Oscar for this role. Watch it if you can.

We watched "Towelhead" earlier today. It was an independent movie so it might be a little hard to get. It also goes with a different title "Nothing is Private" in other countries. It is about a 13 year old Arab-American girl, Jasira (Summer Bishil) dealing with her sexual obsession, a bigoted Army reservist neighbor (Aaron Eckhart, "Thank You for Smoking", "Batman: Dark Knight"), strict dad (Peter MacDissi, "Three Kings") and racism.

The movie was exceptionally made. Towelhead, being a slur against people of the Middle Eastern descent is an explosive word. Summer Bishil who played the 13 yr old girl was really good in it. There are a lot of nudity and slur in the movie so please do not let any youngsters watch the movie. I do highly recommend this movie!!!

Trouble Maker

The first Thursday of every month, Dr K has our staff meeting during our lunch hour. So, during my lunch hour at the bank today I had to run over to the dental office so that I can attend their staff meeting. For those of you who haven't been following my blogs, I work part time (Financial Controller/HR) at the dental office and full time (Senior Teller) at the bank. I missed last month's meeting since I had to cover the floor at the bank coz we were short on staff. I made sure I could attend today's meeting because I had some beef to clear up with my colleagues.

I was really upset with an incident that happened on Thursday last week. Thursdays are usually my long work day since I will be at the dental office from 6:00am - 8:45am then I will be at the bank from 9:00am - 6:00pm so I was a little cranky to begin with. One of our part time Hygienist (lets call her "L") was on vacation so we had a temp came over to help cover her shift. It was just before 8:00am so I was well into my work when the temp Hygienist (we call her "C") knocked on my office door wanting to talk to me. "C" had temped for us several times before and I like working with her. Of course I welcomed her into my office and told her to take a seat. And is what transpired....

C: "Someone just told me that L is upset because I make more than she does."
Me: "Who told you that?"
C: "I don't want to name names but I feel bad that L is upset about it. I don't want her to be upset because I like working here and I don't want her not want me to cover for her when she needs time off."
Me: "Please don't worry, I will deal with this today."

I walked up to the front desk. "A", our other part time hygienist and "M", our office manager was there.

Me: "Did either one of you tell C that L is upset because she's making more than her?"
A: "I don't even know what L is making, and of course C makes more because her rate is set by the temp agency and she has more experience." "A" used to temp so she knows how the temp agency set the rate and what she said was true.
M: "I wouldn't say anything like that since we are not suppose to discuss our pay with anyone but you (that would be me) or Dr K."

While I was talking with "A" & "M", one of our dental assistants, "S" came up to the front desk so I asked her the same question I asked "A" & "M". I immediately knew it was her coz I could see the little wheel turning in her head trying to decide whether to tell me the truth or not. She finally acknowledged that she was the one who told "C" what "L" had said.

Me: "What did "L" said to you?"
S: "She just came up to me 2 days ago in the sterilization room and said that C is making more than her and she seemed very upset by it. I also told her that I don't want to know about it because it is none of my business." The 2nd sentence I know is not true just because I know how she is.
Me: "Thank you for letting L know that she shouldn't be talking to you about her pay but why did you tell C what L had said to you? What is the purpose of that conversation?"

"S" was a little taken aback when I said that to her. She finally apologize for repeating what L had said to her to C. I went back to C and told her that I spoke with S about what happened. I apologize to her on behalf of our office and told her not to feel bad because we all do like working with her and wants her to come back...

So, in the staff meeting today, I let everyone have it. I was so pissed off because they should know better. For one thing, they were all given the policy manual when they were hired and they signed the back of the manual stating that they have read and understood the manual. Even if it was not in the policy manual, it is common sense that you don't discuss your pay with your colleagues!!!

The other thing that got me so po'ed was that "S" told "C" what "L" had said to her. What good does that do? It will just create animosity in the office. But then at the same time, I was not surprise that she did that because she's just that kind of person who like to see people get upset with each other. There are just times when I feel like knocking on her head and see if there is any brain in there......

The Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger

I just finished reading "The Catcher in the Rye" by JD Salinger. I've always wanted to read the book but haven't had the chance until recently. I always hear that serial killers like that book and if you check it out of the library or buy it, then the FBI will trace you. I know it must be a myth coz then all school kids will be traced since they read it in English literature class ;-)

Anyways, I was at Walmart doing my grocery shopping about 2 weeks ago and saw that the book was on sale for US$4.97 so I bought it. The book was about this high school student named Holden Cauldfield who was kicked out of his broading school. It was written in the first person and Holden was telling us what happened to him the next few days after he left the school.

The book is considered by many as one of the best novel ever written. I think the book was good but it gets a little too rambly for me. The author, JD Salinger, never wrote another novel after this and maybe it's a good thing....

February Birthdays

Here are my family & friends celebrating their birthdays & special events in February:

James W Pergo - February 1
Antoinette Pergo - February 5
Raja Zaharira Raja Hj Hussein - February 7
Raja Lyon Ariff Raja Jalil - February 8
Frank Cattelino - February 23
Raja Lyon Ariff & Tengku Aisyarah's 9th anniversary - February 28

How Old are You?

I just had a customer came in to deposit her social security check into her account. She wanted to deposit US$30 into her personal account and US$30 into her husband account with the rest of the cash back. I asked her if she's on her husband's account and she said no. Due to the privacy policy, I told her that I cannot look up her husband's account number for her if she's not on the account with him. She told me that her husband is in the car so he can come in after I'm done with her to deposit that US$30 into his account.

I ran her transaction and withheld the $30. She left and a few seconds later her husband came in. Mine you he's about 80 (I believe she's about 65). The first thing he said to me was, "Why do I have to come in to deposit money into my account? Don't you know she's my wife? We've been married over 40 years." I explained to him that because of the privacy policy I cannot look up his account for his wife no matter how long they've been married. He swiped his debit card and when I pulled up the account, I noticed that his wife is on the account with him. I told him that she is on the account but when I asked, she said she wasn't. He said, "She's stupid!" and totally went off about how women are stupid and all kind of bull shit.

I got annoyed with him and said, "Sir, please keep your voice down. If you keep talking with like that I will need you to leave." Then he said to me, "Why? Do I look like I'm 23?" and gave me his driver's license. I glanced at his DL and said, "It doens't matter how old you are, if you keep talking like that I will need you to leave". I finished his transaction and gave him his receipt. I could hear him talking under his breathe about how women are such and such (I'm not repeating what he said coz it's going to make me madder).

I just don't understand people sometimes. What makes them think that they are better than anyone else, more specifically over other gender or race or whatever. Those people are the stupid ones....

To Kill A Mockingbird

I just finished reading the book "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. I've always been curious about the book and wanted to ready it. Of course, the first time I heard about the book was the movie by the same name staring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch.

It was one of the best book I've ever read and I am mad with myself that I didn't read the book sooner. It was about a lawyer named Atticus Finch who lived & worked in a small Alabama town called Maycomb. He was appointed to be the defense lawyer for an African American who was accused of raping a white woman. Though there was a lot of evidence pointing to his innocence, the jury still convicted him of the crime. The book, unlike the movie, did not just concentrate on the trial but life in southern Alabama during that time. The book, like the movie, was told from the point of view of Atticus' 9 year old daughter.

I really love the book and really recommend it. If you are not a reader than I suggest you rent the movie....

"The Express"

We saw the movie "The Express" at my in laws yesterday. It was about Ernie Davis, the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy in 1961. For those of you who don't know what a Heisman Trophy is, it's an award given to the best college football (American football) of that year.

It was a pretty interesting movie. To see what it was like for him to grow up in that era where African Americans are still considered 2nd class and how he dealt with it. He was drafted to play with the Cleveland Browns but he was not able to play when he found out that he had leukemia and died from the cancer when he was only 23.

I definitely recommend this movie. Rob Brown played Ernie Davis and Dennis Quaid was his University of Syracuse football coach.

Something Funny...

Something funny happened a few moment ago at work. Since we were bought out by another bank last year, some of the branches are being consolidated. Our branch is one of those that will close mid next month so we are trying to go thru tons of stuff in the branch. Sensitive materials are being shredded and collected by the shredding company while the rest are put in a big dumpster in the back of the bank. And let me tell you...this dumpster is HUGE!

So, the phone rang and I answered it. Turned out it was our RM (Regional Manager) wanting to talk to my BM (Branch Manager). Asked him if he wouldn't mind being put on hold while I get my BM, he said no. So I put him on hold and dialed the extension to my BM's desk. There was no answer so I went looking for her in the back office. The back door was open so I know she was just outside dumping stuff into the dumpster.

The sight that greeted me when I walked out was to die for. Mind you, my BM is short, maybe about 5'1" and with the shoes that she's wearing, she's probably be at about 5'4". The dumpster is maybe about 7 feet high. Here was my BM doing this frog leap thing trying to throw stuff into the dumpster. It was a little comical coz she reminded me of how a little kid would do this little jump while throwing their ball into a hoop.

Anyways, I took pity on her so I told her to hold the back door open for me while I dump the stuff. I am 6 foot tall and with my shoes on, I'm about 6'2" so it was just a matter of me tip toeing and hauled the stuff over the dumpster. Here's the syncher...as I turned around to get back into the bank, I noticed there was a cop car parked a few yards away from us. The policeman was laughing his head off so I gave him a big smile, saluted, did a little bow and walked back into the bank.

Weird Day

What a weird day today is starting to be... First of all, I kept waking up every hour on the hour all night last night so I am a little sleep deprive at the moment.

My first customer today told me that he wanted to cash his check so I proceed to my transaction menu on my computer to do so. When I asked him how he want his cash (what denomination) he said he wanted to deposit US$200 of it into his account. So, I cancelled the original transaction and proceed to fill the deposit slip for him and ran the transaction. Again at the end, I asked him again how he wants his cash broken down and he decided that instead of depositing that US$200 into his account, he wanted to get all the cash. So, again I cancelled that transaction and proceed to the first one and guess what... he decided to change his mind again. Luckily this time he didn't change his mind again... coz I would have smacked him he he he

The other customer I had was an old lady. She handed me her checkbook and said that she wanted copies of the checks she had written this month. I asked her for her ID and she said, "You can't look me up from the checkbook?". I told her that I can look up her account from the checkbook but I need to make sure that she's the one on the account. She pointed to the name on the checkbook and said that's her. I was trying really hard not to laugh but I told her that I need to see her ID so that I can verify that that is her. So she grumbily walked back to her car to get her ID. After verifying that it was indeed her, I pulled up her account on my computer. I asked her if she just wanted me to print the statement which shows all the checks that had gone thru her account but she said that she wanted to get the copies of the check. I also indicated to her that if she has internet, she can get the copies for free but she said that she doesn't have a computer. Since there were about 8 checks that had gone thru I brought her over to the PFR (personal financial rep) along with her statement that I had printed listing the checks so that he can help her print the checks and I can go back to running transactions at the teller line. Not 5 seconds later she left so I asked he PFR if he was able to help her. He said that she said to him that she can look up the checks at home and left the bank with the statement that I printed... What the F---? I asked her if all she wanted was the statement & she said no... Another undecided customer I guess...

Well, while I was with the old lady, another customer came into the branch wanting to run transaction and he got my Assistant Manager. He was trying to deposit cash into someone else's account. A restraint came up on the account so my AM was trying to ask him some questions. Unfortunately, the guy doesn't speak anything but Chinese so here they were, my AM speaking in English to him and he jabbering away in Chinese. My branch manager came over to try and help them but since she doesn't speak a lick of Chinese, there was little that she could do. They kept looking over to me hoping that I understood what the guy was talking about but I only know a couple of bad words so I was no help...

So, I don't know if there is a full moon out tonight or what but I hope the "weirdness" ends soon

January 20, 2009

What a day it was yesterday, something that I will not forget anytime soon. Almost 2 million people gathered at the Mall in Washington DC to watch Barack Hussein Obama sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America. I had to work yesterday so I set my VCR to tape the proceedings (no, we don't have Tivo), though I did catch some snipets of it on the internet while at work (shhh I'm not suppose to do that while at work). It was amazing to see all those people braving the cold weather to be at the ceremony. What is more amazing to me is to see an African American sworn in to the highest position in this country. Here is to a better future....

Superbowl 2009

VS

This year's Superbowl will be between the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The game will be held in Tampa Bay on February 1st. This will be the Cardinals first time at the Superbowl since they were in Chicago 61 years ago...

GO CARDINALS!!!!

Selsema

Ick... it's that time of the year again for the flu/cold season. I was successful in fending it off for the first few months but now my defenses are down and I finally caught the sniffles. I've been taking lots of vitamin C so the cold isn't full blown, just the snuffy nose and feeling conjested. I am just glad that today is Friday and I only have to work half a day tomorrow so I can rest over the weekend.

16 Years Ago

16 years ago tomorrow I embarked on a life long journey. 16 years ago I left my family and life behind in Malaysia and came to the US. When I came, I had expected to just be in the US for about 2 years. Just enough time for me to earn my BSc as well as some life experience. I had fully expected to return to Malaysia after I graduate and spend the rest of my life there. Little that I know that 16 years later I am still in the US.

I bet you wonder what happened, right? How did 2 years ended up being 16 years? Well love happened... See just before I left for the US, my heart was broken. And this was not any kind of broken, it was not just cracked in 2 but smashed to smitherens. So I left hoping that it will mend eventually and I also had a little revenge planned. I was going to get my degree and go back to Malaysia, get a great job where my ex is working and maybe be his boss. Obviously that was a stupid plan...the revenge part anyways.

Anyways, the first part of my 2nd year in the US, I met this wonderful guy. I wasn't expecting to meet anyone, much less falling in love. We hit it off immediately and have been together since. We dated for about 2 1/2 years and just a little over a month ago celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary.

So, that is why I am still here 16 years later. I wouldn't trade my guy for anything in the world and I am hoping for many years to come with him...

January Birthdays

Here are my family & friends celebrating their birthdays in January:

Wan Nor Diana (Dina) - January 4
Raja Nor Izma (arwah) - January 13
Raja Norshirin (yours truly ;-) - January 14
Aubree Stephens - January 15
Christine Cattelino - January 20
James J Pergo - January 29

Happy Birthday every one!!

"Iron Man"

We rented "Iron Man" yesterday and I thought the movie was okay. It was a movie based on Stan Lee's Marvel comic "Iron Man" about a weapons manufacturer named Tony Stark whom after being captured in Afghanistan decided to make an iron suit for himself.

Robert Downey Jr was Tony Stark/Iron Man and Jeff Bridges was his company's, Stark Industries, business partner. Gweyneth Paltrow was Tony Stark's assistant/love interest. Downey Jr was pretty good as Iron Man though I thought the movie itself is okay. When I first heard that he was going to be Iron Man, I didn't think that he would make a good superhero. I was pleasantly surprised that he actually made a good one...at least a very convincing one.

If you like Marvel comics than this movie is for you...