"Great Summary and great memory too :)"

This confirms that most of my RAM is taken up by work-related information.

OT symdrome

There's a saying that when you point your (index) finger at people, you are actually pointing three fingers at yourself. Yes, so let's pick some mistakes I made in the last couple of days.

OT symdrome: I worked about 26 hours in the last two days. The lack of rest made me not very sane since. I had little patience at work. My conversation with others became blunt. I got too focused on the problem I was solving that the idea of having lunch slipped my mind yesterday until the cafeteria was closed. These short-term issues drew my attention away from the long-term planning I should be doing. And I tended to forget about my own well-being. Because of the tiredness resulted from the long work hours, my body made its own choice to cut back on everything but rest. My focus today therefore is not to work long hours but to put my life back on priority. There are definitely things more important than just work!

五週年

在公司裡打滾已有五年。今天中午我的老細和幾位同事在鄰近的西餐廳為我慶祝。老細巡例送上公司的賀卡和五週年的記念擺設。座上的都是和我一同拚搏了多年的同事。老實說，平日除了在工作方面，我與他們沒有很多對話。說到尾在各方面我都不是一個傾談的好對象。說會話，有很多口語及日用的字眼我聽不懂。說生活，他們都已經有妻有兒有樓，平日說的，不是兒女的事，就是妻子的事。說嗜好，我並不好動，卻碰著攀山好手長途單車手和專業泳將。說文化，多年來我仍未能容入本地人的活動中。說信仰，他們都沒有信甚麼。有一次我穿一件福音性的外衣上班，被我那個穿著South Park外衣的老細說crazy。我想過放慢一點，看多一點，學多一點，下點決心去接觸本地的一切。本來這晚刻打算回家，卻被我找著了一位舊同事。原本約好八時食個晚飯，卻改至八時半。現在是時候起行了。願天父為我開路去認識去接受去關心身邊的人。阿門。

Update: 很高興能與舊同事邊吃邊傾了兩個鐘。他還有興趣與我一同去看看那個香港藝人佈道會。現在才醒起我已經認承了當該晚的陪談員。看來要找別人替我了。

ESL employee

(ESL = English as second language)

After all, English is not my first language and I do tend to think more in my Cantonese mind than anything. During today's meeting, my second-level boss mentioned dates involving the words like "August" and "September". I had to stop listening for a short while to translate those into something that my mind could process. Nope, I ain't saying I didn't know what those words mean. It's just one of those times that takes me a fraction of a second to interpret English words into something I can paste onto my mental canvas.

My employer has revamped the way how it evaluates employee performance. It is now less comparative among peers but more focused on setting reasonable commitments and achieving them. During the speech, I couldn't help but thinking of each "successful" coworkers I know and about their mindset in achieving their successes. It immediately came to me that they shared something common—they were really excited in what they did at work. I admit that I have problem recognizing the positive impact my job has on others. Maybe that makes me not as excited when I come to work each day. Does that mean I do a crappy job? Not so. I am still very diligent at what I do. But maybe I have not got a "sacred" vision in the works I performed. Without vision, we end up working for just our own integrity and interests. The end result is not hard to figure out: losing out on agility and competitiveness over time. And it's not hard for the management to sense that one lacks the enthusiasm to push his/her service to the next level. What does all these means? With the change to the evaluation system, peer pressure has been lessened to an unprecedented level. It should not take more time for one to show his/her true work attitude. Let's hope that I can climb up from the ruins. In fact, I pray to my Lord to see His will on me at work. Pay attention to how He wants to use my gifts to serve others.

落花

走在停車場的一段路，櫻花四處飄揚。想伸手去找，卻找不住。一塊又一塊的花瓣落在地上，沉悶的街道反而顯出生機。中學時代所諗過的一句話蕩入腦海：「落紅不是無情物，化作污泥更護花。」真的，遍地落花，就連車篷上花槽內草叢裡也滿是紛紅的色彩。花在空中起舞，風也不愁寂寞了。

My company store's policy

If you are interested in purchasing discounted software from my company's store through me, read this.

Q: May I purchase software for my neighbor if he or she reimburses me the amount I paid for software at the Company Store?

A: Yes—as long as it is for the neighbor's personal use, is within your annual Company Store software-purchase limit, and you receive in exchange no more than the amount that you paid at the Company Store for the software or hardware. No—if the recipient intends to use the software for business purposes or for resale, or if the recipient pays you more than you paid for the software or hardware at the Company Store. It’s your responsibility to inquire how the intended recipient will use the software or hardware, to refrain from giving the person the software or hardware if the intended use is contrary to company policy, and to inform the person about the limitations that apply to the use of the software or hardware.

Q: What should I do if someone externally approaches me about purchasing software for them through the Company Store?

A: If the person is not someone you know and trust, do not purchase the software, and consider the request as suspicious. Corporate Security investigators are aware of external people reselling Company Store software at or near market value, using sophisticated techniques and fabricating elaborate stories about their need for software to take away from the legitimate sales channel. Some even drive around the Redmond area with signs on the back of their vehicle offering cash for [my company's] software. Others offer to trade goods—such as computer equipment, electronics, and plasma televisions —for the software. Bartering or trading with software and hardware purchased at the Company Store is prohibited.

Q: I bought a copy of [software] last year at the Company Store, and the new version is out. Can I sell the old copy on eBay or on [...] ads?

A: No—reselling used software is a violation of policy subject to discipline, up to and including termination of employment.

Q: What is [my company]’s approach to abuse of the Company Store benefit?

A: Suspected violations of the Company Store policy are investigated, and those substantiated lead to serious consequences for the employee involved, as detailed in the Company Store policy. Employees who use the Company Store purchase benefit are expected to understand their responsibilities to the company and act accordingly.

佢都係揾兩餐晏仔嗟

今天中午的天氣和温、陽光普照，便和一位同事在露天之處共進午餐。好久沒有和他...不對。應該說，好久沒有和同事一同進膳。當然一邊吃一邊談談近況和其他瑣碎事。談話之間，有一隻蜜蜂飛至，在我們的食物上徘徊不去。我以為那是蜜蜂，但那同事說是wasp。於是他拿起一張紙巾，見機大力按下去。那昆蟲立時被分成兩半，短暫的掙扎後，斷了氣。我的同事笑着說：「Don't mess with me! No one messes with me! 」然後的是一串粗口...

今天的你、我、他或牠都係揾兩餐晏仔嗟。