2007: The year in review

In another 8 days, 2007 will come to an end and we will be welcoming in 2008. For me on a personal level, 2007 has been unforgettable and filled with many memories. To start off, this was the year that I finally stepped into the realm of working life, no more a carefree student who had all the time in the world to goof around and while away time with buddies. This is a whole new world where time management, work ethics n discipline rule the day. Yeah I can proudly say that I'm a working-class Joe now.

It all started in January when I began employment as a Junior Network Engineer in Viewqwest Pte Ltd. The company was based in Singapore but has business interests in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Australia. Being a newbie to working life was quite difficult to cope at first but as time went on I began to get the hang of it. I had another 2 guys joining in with me, Mak and Charles. It was difficult at first as I had to leave home in Cheras early (around 6.30am) and take 3 buses to get to Damansara Utama for work that starts at 9am. You can say it was very taxing and the painful part was after work at 6pm when I had to do the same routine again (take 3 buses). The time I reach home would be almost 9pm and I'd be dead tired, having just enough to shower, have dinner and hit the pillows.

Come February I was beginning to get used to the routine and find myself becoming a zombie. As things were going okay, I was floored by Chicken Pox and was unable to work for 2 weeks. Falling sick is really irritating but on the flip side, you get treated well by everyone and become more like a king when all your whims and fancies are taken care of. All in all, life was going quite smooth and it was a new experience to 'makan gaji' as you work and wait for the salary at the end of each month.

In March, there was shock as Mak and Charles decided to quit the job leaving me all alone to man the ship but luckily the load was divided among the NOC team thus not burdening me too much. Come end of March, there was a big surprise in store for me, I was called by my chief and he asked me if I would consider the opportunity to move to Singapore and work full time there. For a moment I thought that I was dreaming because during the interview process, it was mentioned that there would be chances to go to Singapore for work related training but not a total migration. Feeling the urge, I grasped the opportunity to move and experience a new way of live.

The whole of April I was still in Malaysia as I could not find accommodation in Singapore yet but luckily at the last moment I found a savior in my old school mate Jason who told me that I could stay at his place in Singapore. With that settled, I prepared to move as I had to report in Singapore on 2nd May. During that period in April, I came to know that my dear friend Wafi was being treated in HUKM for suspected cancer. I say suspected because doctors hadn't confirmed it yet as they needed to run some tests. I spoke to him before leaving and he sounded his cheerful self as usual.

Come May, I was living in Singapore and it was a new experience. Life here is almost similar to Malaysia but for a few things like there aren't many 24-hour mamak joints or the fact that the public transportation here is so good and punctual as compared to the horrendous public transportation in KL. It was in May that I got news that doctors had confirmed Wafi had lung cancer that was at an advanced stage and he had only 9 months to live. All of our gang were shocked to hear of this. I returned home to visit him and what I saw was really sad, he was a pale shadow of his normal self. You could see it in his eyes that he was suffering.

In June, Wafi was no more. He lost his battle against cancer and has left us. It was really shocking as initially doctors gave him 9 months but this was way to soon. Well as usual fate had other plans for him or God must have loved him so much that He couldn't wait longer for Him to have His son. Everyone who had known or lived with Wafi were really devastated by his loss. Until today I can't believe that he's gone.

July, August and September passed without anything noteworthy but in October there was something. I bought my 1st car, a Perodua Viva 1.0 (M) Premium Edition which I named as Christine (inspired by Stephen King). She was the new love in my life and I adored her and was hell-bent on making sure that it was me who completed the first 1000km in order for her to be sent for the 1st service and inspection. This I managed to do in the long road trip that I went on my way home to KL for Deepavali. The sad thing for me now is that I'm unable to see her as she sits currently at home while I'm here in Singapore.

Now is December and the year ends in 8 days time. The main things that stand out for me are Wafi's passing, my move to Singapore and me buying my 1st car. All in all 2007 has been quite an eventful year for me, I lost a dear friend (God bless your soul Wafi), moved to a foreign land and also began to understand the term purchasing power.

Until my next post on New Year's Eve, take care.