Unless you’re a certain pastor, you must be feeling the Sunday evening depression (a.k.a. pre-Monday blues) or… you’re already into your Monday blues, depending on when you’re reading this. Well, you shouldn’t be… remind yourself that you won't be working this coming Tuesday and Wednesday and… you should be have some element of Friday bliss.
But! Yeah, there’s always a but… some of you may have to work. You will probably have your usual it’s-my-peak-period or I-have-some-urgent-work reason. Or maybe, you really have something to do, you genuinely need to finish some stuff that if you don’t, your ass is on the line.
Well, whatever your reason may be, I think you should read this piece of news which was sent to me by my friend last Friday. Oh… being a responsible blogger, I google-d her name and actually found that she is all over the news and is also mentioned in some Romanian blogs. Have a read…
Romanian media debates death of E&Y "exhausted" young manager
Romanian media on Thursday debates the death of Raluca Stroescu, a young manager for Ernst&Young (“EY”) Romania, whose passing was blamed by a newspaper earlier this week on exhaustion at work. Raluca was buried at a cemetery in Ploiesti, north of Bucharest in the presence of the family and hundreds of young people yesterday.
Experts could not provide clear information on the causes of her death on Tuesday and Wednesday and that the necessary data will be available within weeks, but told reporters that she might have died of heart failure.
The Evenimentul Zilei <http://www.evz.ro/> newspaper on Wednesday reported that the background cause of the death was physical exhaustion as she was working too much for a salary of a couple of thousand euro, which is a very good salary in Romania.
Gardianul <http://www.gardianul.ro/> on Thursday quotes Raluca's former colleagues who say that prior to her death she "was looking like a ghost. She was in a hurry. She had to put up a report". According to the newspaper, "Raluca had worked so hard to become somebody until she collapsed. Still, who is to blame?
"Is it worth dying for a salary of 2,000 euro?", Evenimentul Zilei <http://www.evz.ro/> wonders in its edition today. The newspaper reports that Raluca's death has sparked a huge public response about the conditions of work Romanian employees have to cope with and whether is it a good thing to abandon personal life for the sake of money and career.
The issue of career opportunities and what one can do to seize them is very hot in Romania where economy has been booming for years and salaries are still low compared to other countries, prompting major companies abroad to relocate businesses here.
Gandul <http://www.gandul.info/> quotes a doctor who examined the woman's body, according to whom Raluca was underfed as she weighed less than 40 kilos. "She was not eating or she couldn't assimilate food" the doctor said, while others said she also had problem s with her heart and hormones.
Raluca, 31, had been working for EY Romania for two years and a half. She previously worked for Vodafone. E&Y's only manager that could be contacted by Cotidianul <http://www.cotidianul.ro/> yesterday refused to comment the tragedy.
I found this blog and seems like the blogger knows her in person. The blogger has this to say…
“She (the deceased) was a loner, who buried herself in her work, a workaholic if you will. She was ambitious, but ambition is not a sin. She had wishes, which naturally followed from her ambition. She may have had heartaches, quickly smothered, buried beneath files, forgotten in front of the computer or left wandering on the side of the roads she travelled. And in search of what? The desired high social status with everything it entails? A certain happiness? Whatever she was looking for, she paid the price and was way overcharged.” Have you been working so hard till you feel like you’re a loner? Do you find yourself buried beneath work? Are you searching for high social status with everything it entails?
Yes, I know, success has its sacrifice. But do you know what are you sacrificing? In trying to increase your bank account, did you also increase your cholesterol and blood pressure? Ask yourself… is it worth it?
First, I think I owe all of you the answer to this riddle. Well, there are many version to it but I like this answer the most…
RESTARTED RESTATED (remove R) RESTATE (remove D) ESTATE (remove R) STATE (remove E) SATE (remove T) ATE (remove S) AT (you know remove which one right?) A (need I say more?)
Secondly, I check my stats counter and note that there are actually readers coming from kinja.com, under username gracie0709… see below….
No, no, no, don’t get me wrong. I am certainly not complaining. But I just want to thank whoever that’s going it. So… gracie0709… whoever you are… thank you!
Last but not least… have to leave you all with another riddle… Ok… it’s not exactly a riddle but just a question….
And the question is… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … Without checking google or refer back to any newspaper… … … … … … …
Can you tell what is the name of the new Agong? Quick... who can say it first... but please don't make fun of the name of our king ya... Have a nice weekend all of you and Daulat Tuanku.
Yes! Tell me why!!! Damn it! Of all things, why must they choose rum? Don’t they know that it’s freaking important? Oh man, I don’t have the answer, I can't tell why is the rum gone…
*Zewt opens google talk and msn and asked around* … Why is the rum gone? Here are some of the reasons why the rum is gone when I asked my gchat-mate and msn-mate….
"What rum?" - all time favourite answer
“It’s gone cos Malaysia stopped giving us as much water, so we decided to drink rum instead” – Singaporean sigh.... opps...
“Because rum's mama ask rum to go away?” – rum got mama? Papa still around?
“It’s here la, but damn long never drink till high d, miss party days, ahahahahha” – I think she is still high from it.
“Must be act of god, or samy velly ran out of todi” – hahahahahahahaha!
“Wat's a rum? The alcohol drink? Rum jungle? U always amuse me” – what has rum gotta do with me amusing you?
“Because nuffnang took it for themselves” – someone knows what is going on…
“My dog (row row) drank it. Here’ why.Please find where the “R”, “U” and “M” is “H”idden. Row-Row ran to ride his ‘bone’, Hid it well beneath a stone, But Row-Row’s ‘bone’ doesn’t hot when its cold, The ‘bone’ grows ‘hore matured when old.” – what kinda answer is this???? And I still dunno why the rum is gone!
“Is it? I didn’t know. Wait, what rum?” – go drink some and you’ll know.
“becos u drank it all la, what else?” – did I? but I am not drunk yet.
“Coz Julia drank it. I’ve been trying to warn you, but do you listen? noooooooooooooo” – Oh shit, she took the rum????
Sigh…no one can give me a good answer. How am I going to answer to these fellas?
Tell… why is the rum gone? Tell me now! And dont tell me you dunno what rum is!
I receive tonnes of videos everyday in my inbox and some of them are really cool. But I try not to post any of the video here. If I do, I will be a "thinking blogger" no more, right Kenny?
Anyway, I find this video very interesting and it is something we should all see. Like what the person is saying... wonder what happen to them inside our tummy.... no, it's nothing gross, but informative.
Happy holiday to those who are off tomorrow... like me! hehe....
P/S: I have taken down my comments on the article from Mr. Wong Chun Wai because I read the article again and thought I may have over-reacted.
I was at the MICCI taxation committee meeting today and all the members were discussing about our proposals on the 2008 National Budget when someone talks about the tax regime in Malaysia as compared with our neighbour known as Sillypore Singapore. Well, some of you may not be paying taxes for now but I think you will find some of the things I have to say useful to a certain extend.
A little background information for those who are not aware, the National Budget is the time when our Pak Lah appear on TV talking about how much money the gomen will spend on this and that and this and that in the following year. It’s also a time when he will probably announce stuff like reduction in road tax or passport renewal fees. If you are a smoker or a drinker, it’s a time when you will find out that your ciggies and alcohol will be more expensive, because taxes on these 2 items always increase. And before that happens (usually in September), all the professional bodies are asked to submit the respective proposed amendments to tax laws or equivalent.
So it was during the discussion on our proposals when the notion about individual taxation here in Malaysia vs Singapore cropped out. So how much taxes are we paying as compared to our neighbour, who we always make fun of? Check out the following tables (please click to enlarge): A quick glance and you will know that the highest rate for Sg is much lower compared to us. Further, you will only be taxed at the highest rate in Sg if you earn above SG$320,000 while in Malaysia, RM250,000 is the top band. Maybe some of us will want to be taxed at such high rate, because that means we are earning so much money. But I think if you are that rich, you won't be spending time reading blogs.
Therefore, we poor souls have to look at the lower ends. In our beloved country, earning RM2,500 a year and you will be subject to tax already (based on the schedule). However, there is an individual rebate of RM350 if you annual chargeable income is RM35,000 and below. In layman terms, it simply means if your chargeable income is RM35,000 and below in a year, your tax will be reduced by RM350.
I am sure many is asking what is chargeable income. On normal circumstances, chargeable income means “all” your income minus your individual relief of RM8,000 and minus all your other deductions like EPF, medical insurance, parents medical, life insurance, purchase of books, etc. It is your net income. By the way, your money earned from your Adsense and PPP, chances are you may have to report it. Those of you who happily and proudly declaring all your income in your blog… one day those fellas from the gomen see your blog and realised you never reported them… then… good luck!
Back to our taxes… with the rebate of RM350, effectively, we are only paying tax if our chargeable income is RM20,000 and above. From this aspect, we are on par with Sg, as they only start to pay tax when their chargeable income is above SD$20,000. But, look at the schedule… if our chargeable income is at RM35,000, our tax rate is already 7%, while in Sg, it’s only at 5.5% at a chargeable income of SG$40,000. If I continue, I might just confuse some of you so I leave it to your intelligence to analyse the 2 schedules.
One thing to ponder, our maximum deduction available for EPF contribution is RM6,000, and life insurance is included in it. This means if we more than RM6,000 of EPF is deducted from our salary in a year, and we have life insurance, we still only be able to claim RM6,000. Sucks right? Well, tell ya’ what… in Sg… understand that full deduction on their CBF (equivalent to our EPF) is allowed. This means… lower chargeable income for them… higher chargeable income for us.
Now, most of you will know that slaves workers in Malaysia are paid lower as compared to our equivalent Singapore counterparts. This simply means we are underpaid and over-taxed. It’s as simple as that.
Right, I hear some of you saying, Sg has got GST. First, I’ve blogged before, GST may also happen in Malaysia. Secondly, taking GST consideration… how much are Singaporeans paying for their goods and services. Let’s take the so ever famous you-and-I-must-have-one-if-not-you-and-I-are-not-cool… and i-Pod. Many of my friends travel to Sg just to get one… they said it’s cheap, even after conversion. This simply means, if i-Pod is sold at RM1,000 in Malaysia, it’s being sold for less than SG$440 in Sg.
What does this mean? A person earning RM here and a kiasu-ian earning SD$ there… with a dollar to dollar comparison… it means we are not only underpaid and over-taxed… we are also paying almost double for our goods.
You know we always we are one of the cheapest country around?... Particularly our petrol. Well, you know what is truly cheap?.... us.
P/S: I got the “how much your blog is worth” thing up at my sidebar… wow… really worth so much? Yay!! I am rich!
Today marks the exact one month since mom was cremated. As I pause to remember mom, I suddenly recalled how mom will look at me and say wrinkles are slowly building around my eyes. To my mom, I was getting old, to which I always disagree, and sometimes, a small argument will break out. But as I see my days when I can still tell people I am in my 20s slowly diminishing, I can't help but say… age is indeed catching up…
Remember those times when you opened a forwarded mail and it talks about things in the 80s and 90s and you laugh at them, and how you can really relate to them. And at the end of the e-mail, you feel you’re really old? Well, let me present you with my version of those I-feel-old situation. It’s so true to me and I wonder if it will be true to you. For those who were born in the 80s and 90s… well… you will only feel this in about 10 years time.
I remember those times when I was a die-hard Real-Time-Strategy (RTS) games. It all started with Dune II, Command & Conquer, Red Alert and my all time favourite… Starcraft. Do you used to play them? I love them and would spend my time in front of the PC religiously jus to crack my head on how to get pass a level. I still love playing computer games, but I just couldn’t find the energy to play RTS game anymore. Now, I just want to play something that shoot and shoot and kill and kill and “bang bang bang”… all die. Ok… game over. Too lazy to think, just want to shoot something.
I remember those times when I can really eat. You know the leng-jai colleague who hails from UK whom I mentioned earlier? Man! He can really eat! We once went to a nice chicken rice and siew-yok store and after all of us have tamed the glutton in us, he raised his hands and ordered an additional plate of char-siew rice just for himself. I used to be like that… where buffet operators fear the sight of me. Those who are close to me will know… Zewt is always hungry… and if Zewt is not hungry… something is wrong. But you know what, that’s no longer the case… I just can't eat that much anymore and I can't help but relate that to … age. It’s true you know.
I remember the time I used to hate dislike playing badminton with uncles. They are so slow and always fail to pose any challenge. Badminton games are bored with them. Now on the other hand… playing with uncles made me feel good. It’s the only time I can win… ok la.. maybe not that bad. But you get the flow… and soon, playing with me will not be “challenging” anymore. Also remember those days when pain is not in my vocab in a game of football. Now, I can remain contact-less in the entire game and yet the next day… some parts somewhere will hurt.
There has also been a change in my figure of speech. I will naturally refer to a person in their teens as kids (no offence). And of course, the ever dreaded situation of your friends asking their children (yes, my friends have children) to call me uncle instead of ‘go-go’. Well, there are still people who calls me young, ya’ know… those people in their 40s. And oh… those young college girls used to be hot chicks. Now… well… let’s just not go there.
I remember the time when I can't wait to finish school and have a taste of college life. But now, every Sunday when I go back to school for my football game… I never fail to feel a little… nostalgic. Those days when I used to wear the white and green are so so so long ago. Meeting up with former school mates is getting increasingly difficult. And strange enough… every single time that we meet up… we will talk about the exact same old thing, and we never fail to laugh silly to it… to the exact same old thing.
Those forwarded mails did mention about this and while I am trying to stay original, I just have to bring this point in. A few years ago, the comment that I gave to my peers who are getting married is “so soon?”. Now… it’s “when is your turn?”. Yup, marriage is a common thing now and if you’re not married, something is wrong with you. If you’re still single and available… well… let’s just not go there too.
And yes… a pick from those e-mails… my friends will panic if they tell me their girl is pregnant. An abrupt wedding dinner will soon follows. Now on the other hand… I will usually have to wish my peers congratulations when they blow up their girl’s tummy.
Last but not least… I remember when life was simple and I don’t have to deal with those painful facts of life… death. While I have always been independent, mom’s passing made me apply E=mc2 into my maturity velocity. I have to force myself to grow up. I have to see many things from a very different perspective. And ya’ know, while it has been painful, it has also been rather fulfilling.
Some years ago, when me and my friends met up, and we asked about so and so… the answer goes something like “Oh that guy… graduated already lor”….
Some years passed, we met up, we asked about so and so… the answer goes something like “Oh that guy… become boss already lor”…
Now, when we meet up, we ask about so and so… the answer usually goes something like “Oh that guy… married already lor”…
Add a few more years into the future, the answer probably goes something like “Oh that guy… become father already lor”…
And don’t be surprise if the answer that follows a few years later goes like this… “Oh that guy… die already lor”….
Yup… that day will come…
P/S: Mom, a month has passed but there has never been a day where I ceased to think about you…
Gee! Can you believe it? It’s going to be Monday tomorrow! (or already Monday depending on when you read this) Like a flash, the weekend is over. And for those of us who are in the slavery working world, we know what that means… Sunday night depression with imminent Monday blues. But hey… look at the calendar, besides being Monday tomorrow, it also shows that we are already in mid of April. Soon, half of the year will be gone and some of us will actually have to sit down and reflect on what we have achieved in the first half of the year.
Are you one of many who thinks time seems to pass quickly as we journey longer and longer in life? Did the last few years sort of run past you without you knowing it? Do you still remember your younger days? When a day seems to have lots to offer, a week is rather eventful, a month is a long journey and a year… seems like eternity… well… almost eternity.
But things have changed isn’t it? Living in this modern era, 24 hours is certainly not enough to make up a day. Ahjohn left a comment in one of my entry saying how he fails to find the 25th hour in a day. But honestly, when we have that 25th hour, will it be enough? We always seem to run out of time now, always fail to find time to do anything. Weekdays are too short t complete our assignments and weekends are too short to take a breather. Time… seems to just keep accelerating.
How so? Have you ever sat down and think why time seems to be going faster and faster? Quite some time ago, someone told me that time to a child seems slower. This is because they have no deadlines to meet, lesser things to accomplish. We, as adults or coming into adulthood, have so much in our hands, that we always need time to accomplish them. So it’s a case of having too much to do… is it true?
I spoke to a few children to find out more, and I found out that the child-finds-time-slower notion is nothing but a myth. A few of those who are under the age of 10 told me that they don’t have enough time to finish off their homework. After homework, there’re piano classes and tuition classes. Having done all that, children nowadays needs more time to complete a particular computer games. Some of them wish for more time so that they can complete more ‘levels’ in a game. They may not have deadlines, but they certainly have a lot to accomplish. Time to them is still short, just in a different perspective.
I recalled someone telling me about this book called “McWorld”. No idea who wrote it but it’s about how we are trying to beat time in almost everything. It talks about how we are trying to make the world goes faster by applying the “fast food” methodology of McD in our lives… turning our globe into McWorld. To a certain extend, it’s true. Don’t you agree?
Day after day, we are striving to make cars go faster, planes fly faster, computers function faster, banking transactions faster, internet connection faster, make our first million faster, retire faster, be a ‘tai-tai’ faster (for girls), etc. With the exception of orgasm for the male species, we want everything to happen fast, don’t we? We just want to get things done fast so that we can move on to the next agenda. Having moved to the next agenda, we rush ourselves to the next and the vicious cycle continues.
Having said that, I do believe that in the midst of this fast moving world, there are some occasions when we do find time crawling. It’s something that’s very rare nowadays. Do you know what it is? Such phenomena can happen anytime, anywhere. It is called… “WAITING”. When one is waiting for something, time seems to take forever, no?
Having said that, when was the last time we have to “wait” for the day to be over? I can’t recall really, we have so much to do… TV, internet, sms-es, shopping malls, blogs, our jobs and many other things. If all things fail… there’s sleep! Almost every single human being lacks sleep nowadays and therefore, sleeping seems to make time accelerates. As soon as you shut your eyes last night, you’re already at your snooze-until-the-cow-comes-home act right?
Anyway, back to waiting… when was the last time you have to wait for your day to be over? First, we don’t want our days to be over, because we want to do so many things. And if we really have to wait… we can always find something to fill our time. The ever convenient sms is a very good way to kill time. Watch a dvd perhaps? Or maybe, drop by As Zewt As It Gets. If you have to wait for your bus or LRT, there are MP3 players and of course, sms again. All these things take away the agony of waiting, and thus takes away the opportunity for us to taste time.
You may say you always have to wait for your next salary. But if the month is shorter, do you think you have enough time to finish off our work? How many late nights do you have to put up?
As the chance of us waiting for stuff slowly depreciating, so goes our opportunity to appreciate the motion of time. Of course, nobody wants to wait for things to happen. Patience is virtue that not many people possess. But ya’ know, the waiting game is the only door out of this fast moving world, so to speak. It is the only opportunity for us to feel the presence of a minute, an hour, a day, a week, a month, a year… time basically. Don’t let it slip away from our grasp because time… is in a way… our life! If time keeps going faster, life as they say… will indeed be short.
Is the world going faster? Well, I think it is, simply because we made it faster.
(I posted this to TheStar blog and it was published on 28 July 2006. But they shorten it a lot, and I thought I should share the full version here, and took the liberty to enhance it)
Unless you’re a certain pastor, you must be feeling the Sunday evening depression (a.k.a. pre-Monday blues) or… you’re already into your Monday blues, depending on when you’re reading this. Well, you shouldn’t be… remind yourself that you won't be working this coming Tuesday and Wednesday and… you should be have some element of Friday bliss.
Have you been working so hard till you feel like you’re a loner? Do you find yourself buried beneath work? Are you searching for high social status with everything it entails?
A quick glance and you will know that the highest rate for Sg is much lower compared to us. Further, you will only be taxed at the highest rate in Sg if you earn above SG$320,000 while in Malaysia, RM250,000 is the top band. Maybe some of us will want to be taxed at such high rate, because that means we are earning so much money. But I think if you are that rich, you won't be spending time reading blogs.
