(work) travel

01 Jun

Var |  June 1st,2011 | musings, work |  No Comments »

The first time I got an official, on-the-books job was to save money to move out. Since then, my main drive to earn a wage has continued to be to pay the rent. I am not a frivolous spender. Sure I may splash out every now and then on a whim (although I must admit that recently I’m quite generous with cuisine), but generally my main expenses are living: rent, food, necessities.

As such, whilst travel has always been something nice to think about doing one day, I have never really saved to go on a holiday or to see the world. My family has always been quite frugal as well (like mother, like daughter), so there were few opportunities in my younger days. Up until December last year, the only time I had crossed the Australian border was when I was two years old, on a journey to Hong Kong of which I have no recollection, and even within Australia I had only ventured to a few select places – Byron Bay, Sydney, Perth and the Gold Coast.

However, lately, things seem to have turned around. As I described in an earlier post, January saw me in strange territory, fossicking through the markets and hawker stalls of Singapore and Malaysia. While this was certainly an exciting milestone in my life (and hopefully the last time I will find myself looking blankly at an immigration card – I swear I can’t be so obviously lost and tourist-y next time I fly international; must act pro), I can say that I have been doing a lot of other travelling recently.

This is due to the advent of my job. As part of my job, I often have to attend events in a number of different roles. I have managed speakers for a conference program, worked the registration desk marking off names and handing out identification passes, been the photo girl taking company branding and social photos, and sometimes I’m just there to network and find out the latest industry goss.

Luckily for me, these events are not restricted to Melbourne. The first work function I attended was last year when I went to Sydney for a conference and exhibition organised by the company. I felt slightly naughty for skipping tutorials to attend (only slightly) but felt that I could not pass up an opportunity to advance my standing within the company – and to enjoy an all-expense paid trip to not-Melbourne. Later that year I was asked to help out at another company-organised conference and exhibiton for a different product in Coffs Harbour, NSW.

Since my promotion to full-time, the travel has increased A LOT. I have already been to Brisbane twice (just came back from one the other week, which is what spurred this entry), with Darwin and another trip to Sydney scheduled over the next few months. Maybe to some lucky people this might not seem much, but to someone who usually only travels one state over on her birthday if at all each year, four domestic flights within the space of six months is pretty full-on.

So…what can I say about travel now that I have registered as a Frequent Flyer member?

…it can suck pretty bad.

The idea of travelling for work once seemed to glossy and vogue to me. Initially I was jealous of some of my co-workers who always seemed to have a packed suitcase sitting by their desk, as if boasting to everyone that they were about to take off to some new place while we would remain chained to our desks.

However, I have learnt the following things:

- Taxi drivers can be freakin’ scary. Despite the fact that I, of course, have been in a taxi before, this fact has become more obvious to me due to the new frequent nature of my encounters. On my last trip to Brisbane, I made the mistake of sitting in the front passenger seat and making conversation with the driver. He spent the whole trip to the airport with his eyes 50% on the road, 50% on his phone as he searched for videos he had taken during his previous job on a gas rig.

- $50/day travel allowances are less fun when you are so exhausted that all you want to order is room service – and you find that a sandwich costs $30.

- There is absolutely ZERO time to do sight-seeing on a work trip. You are either so busy attending social events that you don’t have the time, or you are so exhausted from a long day that you don’t want to do anything but watch cartoons on cable.

- Work trips are painful when you have not yet received a company credit card and have to fill out the old reimbursement form, with a $700 debt on your credit card statement while you wait for Finance to process it.

- Eventually you miss your own bathroom. So very, very much.

Well, those were just a few words for those who were as disillusioned as me by idea of travelling for work. However, I will admit, it does have some perks:

- C’mon…it’s ALL-EXPENSE PAID. Also cool when the company chooses to fly with an airline that offers complimentary meals and entertainment.

- You get to see places which you might never have intended to visit (or never even heard of!).

- You get to stay in luxury $400/day hotels which you would probably never step foot in on your own dollar, simply because that is where the event is being held and the convenience justifies the price. Hotels with wonderful king size beds, premium hairdryers and THIS MINIBAR:

Also, it sure beats being in the office all the time.

turmoil

15 May

Var |  May 15th,2011 | real life updates, relationships |  No Comments »

I have been a bit fearful of posting too much about relationships because in the past, I used to have a “secret” personal blog in which I would just spill all the complete truths about everything, thinking that if I never told anyone about it, and selected “No” for “Let search engines find your blog?” then no one could possibly ever find it.

Alas, anything available on the internet is meant to be found. And who should find this blog with all these ugly admissions but my then boyfriend? He didn’t really comment on it (I only found out because he referenced something from one of my posts and when I was saying it was such a coincidence cos I wrote something about that recently and we must be psychic, he said, “Yeah, I read it from your blog”) and when I interrogated him further, he conveniently said he had only read up to the post before the one which featured him. But it was enough to freak me out and I immediately switched all the posts to “draft”.

In this very public blog, I have tried to limit my relationship updates to cryptic, angsty messages, but I feel that recently I have been just so distressed that I have to pen it down.

I have a very unhealthy habit of getting back together with my exes. Usually the situation is that they break up with me, I pervade their lives and they find themselves agreeing to give things another shot. I used to think this meant the dumping me part was just an unhappy accident that was overcome by the strength of our love, but now realise that my persistance makes me kind of difficult to refuse.

The break up tally with my current boyfriend is him: 1, me: 1 and 2 attempts. And one of those attempts occurred last night. I was an incredible mess yesterday; it happened unexpectedly over the phone and then I was so distraught about his silence to my text messages that I found myself going to his place to check on him, barely knowing what I was doing. We made up and discounted that I had ever really broken up with him.

The experience last night really frightened me, because I realised that the relationship means a whole different thing to me than previously. Before this, being in a relationship was something nice on the side, something to smile about on a cold day or knowing that when you’re alone, you’re not really alone.

But this relationship has lasted over 2 years now, the longest I’ve been in. We have lived together for 1.5 of those 2 years, he has met my family, my friends, I am attending a wedding with him in October. As soon as I had “broken up” with him, I felt as if I had just finished raggedly sawing off a limb, gasping from the massive absence left behind. I realise now that somewhere along the way he changed from just being “the boyfriend” to being an integral part of my life, and that I will never be able to leave him unless it is a mutual parting.

The attempt to break up with him last night didn’t even make sense – he had done nothing wrong and I have been very happy with him recently. After thinking about why on earth I tried something so irrational, it occurred to me that I was using the break up as an escape. He has become so intrinsically emeshed with my life that I randomly turned him into a symbol of all the stress and depression that has been building up lately and thought that by breaking up with him, I could just purge myself of those things and be brand new and shiny again.

Which is completely stupid because he is pretty much the only thing which has been keeping that darkness at bay.

While I do truly love my job, it is certainly far more challenging than anything I’ve ever done before, and with more responsibility than I’ve ever had to handle since beginning with the company, and the print date of two of our magazines within the next two weeks, I am pretty much losing it. Now that I have a slightly better understanding of my psychology, though, I will aim to find more logical ways of addressing my issues.

Will keep you posted on how the reigning in of my insanity goes.

Brendan, thank you for always being so incredibly patient and understanding of your complete headcase of a girlfriend. I’ll try not to freak out again while I’m learning how it is to be in a real, serious relationship.

songstresses

14 May

Var |  May 14th,2011 | music |  No Comments »

Damnit! Every time I think, “Hey, maybe Yvette Johannson’s on soon” and go to check the Bennett’s Lane website, I find out I have just missed out on a gig! Worse yet is that Bennett’s Lane can only put up events so far ahead and as Yvette usually performs monthly, I usually can’t find out when her next performance is on. So I decide to leave it, then forget, until the next time I decide to check on the website and find that, yet again, I have just missed her. -_-

However, I have been lucky enough to see one of my other female singing idols recently: Katie Noonan. I went to her concert with her new band, The Captains, at Spiegeltent in February. The Spiegeltent itself was beautiful – it had a haunting, slightly circus-quirky atmosphere with wonderfully ornate stained glass windows set into the tent peak.

The band was even better. I had no idea what I was in for as I have only followed Katie through her former band, George, and then heard only a handful of her solo music. But WOW - I guess I was right in thinking that if Katie is singing, it’s bound to be good. I was all over the CD-buying and signature-getting. I recommend it to anyone – Emperor’s Box by Katie Noonan and The Captains.

I am also really excited because I have a new idol to add to these other two! I recently fell in love with Kimbra’s Cameo Lover and downloaded a few of her other songs. Now I am completely obsessed with Settle Down. Check out the YouTube music video below. It is so wonderfully odd!

After trying to find out more, I discovered she is performing live in Melbourne this month! So I immediately bought some tickets, and what excites me even more is that she is performing jazz standards at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival!! I love jazz standards!

Anyway, I’ll let you know how she is live, but I have no doubt she will be amazing.

Very proud of our amazing Australian talent! (Also neglected to mention Adelaide-born Sia, who is just as amazing. Note that I have many other favourite female artists, but these ones are the ones who I know for sure are good live – something I appreciate far more than studio-magicked recorded tracks.)

the long, long days

03 May

Var |  May 3rd,2011 | real life updates, updates, work |  No Comments »

I have been working ten-hour days, every day, for the past three weeks.

It is quite stressful and completely exhausting.

Each night as I am wearily stumbling up the hill back home in the dark, I tell myself, I love my job.

And there’s nothing insincere about it.

nails

09 Apr

Var |  April 9th,2011 | random |  No Comments »

I am definitely going try to this.

Since having started a job where I have to type everyday, I’ve been keeping my nails short to keep them from skittering crazily across the keyboard, which is lame cos I love painting my nails. But for some reason, this time I’ve been able to manage it, so we’ll see how long I can grow them.

Maybe I’ll end up like the guy from Mr Vampire:

Watch from 5:14. This movie is great fun and I recommend you watch the whole thing.

maybe she’s, maybe it’s

07 Apr

Var |  April 7th,2011 | plug |  No Comments »

It seems I am in the mood to plug things, so apologies to those people who are not reading this blog to be advertised to. However, in a world where you can’t trust a forum, review or testimonial online because it is possibly paid for, I just like sharing the things I like with people who might like it too.

So. Today I am going to plug Maybelline. More specifically, I am going to plug their MNY Club.

Now, I have signed up to a lot of newsletters and clubs with the allure of discounts which I usually never end up using anyway. However, this is probably the only one which I have really gained any benefit from.

The member features I love:

- MNY TV: This is really cool. Their main make-up artist, Nigel Stanislaus, does videos demonstrating how to create certain looks. This is also particularly useful because they show you which products they use so you can replicate the technique.

- The competitions!: With a simple click entry (none of this annoying “25 words or less” bullshit) you go into the draw for free cosmetics – and I can vouch that it’s not rigged. I have not one just once but twice! And they have these quite regularly for their new products.

- Events: Okay, so I have only been to one of these but it was awesome and I hope they have more! They held a free make-up masterclass with Nigel in their L’Oreal headquarters on St Kilda Rd. I thought that it was going to be packed and didn’t think there was any way that I would get a place, but when I arrived, there was only about 5 or 6 other girls, which allowed for a really personal and customised experience. Some of the other Maybelline staff were also present and they were so friendly and fun that I left the class wishing I had a job at Maybelline!

In addition to this, they also gave me freebies, including products which had not even been publically launched yet. They also loaded me with more freebies after I completed some feedback on the class – and apparently hand-delivered it! (This is the main reason why I am posting this, because I received the gifts in the mail today and was so charmed by their personal touch; it was just a little gift bag with my name and address on a post-it – no stamp!)

- Vouchers: So this is more common among member clubs, but it’s still a good thing. Also, I feel that make-up is something I always need and buy, so they are more useful than, say, clothing vouchers, which I rarely ever use.

Most of my make-up is Maybelline, not only because it is the only brand I’m really educated about (through their newsletter), but also because it suits my average salary. Of course, I have had a few bad experiences with their products as well, but different things suit different people.

I must confess I am pretty much a full Maybelline convert now: they really seem to care about their demographic, they are cheap enough to allow for lots of product experimentation, and they give you free stuff! =D!!

If you are looking to try a new brand, I would highly recommend Maybelline. And even if you don’t usually use their stuff, definitely sign up to their club anyway.

By the way, I was definitely not born with it. =P

Freebies I have received from Maybelline since joining in 2008:

Online competition
- Lash Stiletto Mascara
- Eye Studio Quad Eye Shadow (Pink Persuasion)

Masterclass
- 2 x Falsies Mascara
- 2 x Color Sensational Pearls Lipcolor (Champagne Shimmer and Sugared Almond)
- 2 x Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner

Masterclass feedback (received today!)
- Colossom Volum’ Express Mascara
- Eye Studio Quad Eye Shadow (Mad for Mauve)
- Shine Sensational Lip Gloss (Berry Bella)

(There may be more, but I have forgotten!)

*kiss*

07 Apr

Var |  April 7th,2011 | uncategorized |  No Comments »

Cos I don’t know how to re-tweet blog postanything.

And cos this is just too sweet: click here.

card plug

06 Apr

Var |  April 6th,2011 | random |  No Comments »

By the way, I thought I should plug my friend Linda’s new business/hobby.

Last year, we went to a school fete on a whim. After having some 80c teacups (a marshmallow on a tick tock biscuit with a half-a-musk-ring handle – so cuoute!! ^.^), we wandered over to an area full of hampers. It was for a silent auction and one of the hampers included a bunch of scrapbooking material. Linda made a successful bid and soon became obsessed with card-making.

So now she has a website to sell them: www.thepaperkid.com. I have also listed a link to her website under “Friends”.

Seeing her make the cards is fascinating, and I can vouch for the amount of love and hardwork which goes into each of them.

The wonderful thing is that they are all completely unique – she never makes two of the same card. Even better is the fact that her prices are comparable to regular, store-bought cards, which are generic and not special in any way. She can also be commissioned to make custom cards (she has already been commissioned a number of times and has always received positive feedback from her clients).

So if you want to make a bit more of an impact with a gift (or if you’re like me and are guiltily giving the card instead of a gift and want an extra awesome card to compensate), be sure to check out the range at her website.

a real person

06 Apr

Var |  April 6th,2011 | development, real life updates, updates, work |  No Comments »

The main reason why I have not been updating much recently and incidentally the main reason for my recent life change is because I am now working full time. Yes, I have finally entered the corporate ranks and have gotten myself, as a friend of mine calls it, a “real person job”.

Which is funny because I was always so sure that I would never end up working in an office. Maybe in a home office as an author, but never an office office, one of those vast rooms denoted only by a smattering of tiny windows along the face of a sky-high building.

Now I find the majority of my wardrobe is corporate wear – expensive corporate wear at that – and that I’m a 9-5 woman of handbags and heels. I am one of those unidentifiable many who stare absently out the window of a crush-packed tram at 8am as the sun begins to stretch across the city, a silent commuter disconnected from the world by a pair of earphones.

I guess I’m making it sound tedious, but I am actually loving it. Not the peak hour traffic and the hours, but the job that I started full time work in. In June last year, I applied for a job at a publishing company. This was actually the second time I had applied for the same job after a complete non-response the last time it was advertised, so I was hopeful but not optimistic. However, this time my resume had the words “freelance writer” in bold at the top of my past employment and a brand-spanking new referee for my professional writing.

I got the call. I bombed the interview. I meekly sent a ‘thank you’ note saying that I had been nervous on the day but that I was sure my experience would shine through. And I got another call – plus a trial. Went in, did the work, got the job. =D (The publishing company is smallish, but growing rapidly, and provides both print and online publications as well as organising events for trade industries.)

So I was working casually as a journalist at this publishing company when the next major thing in my life happened – I graduated! So very, very long I had been waiting for this moment. I managed to scrape through the last subject despite minimal lecture and tutorial attendence, wore the gown and finally farewelled the campus with ne’er a backward glance.

Following this was a random overseas trip. A close friend of mine had recently broken up with her boyfriend – but not before paying for accommodation and flights for a trip they had been planning together. So I became the substitute boyfriend and went around meeting my friend’s relatives in Malaysia and Singapore. This was the first time I had ventured past the Australian border (the trip to Hong Kong when I was 2 doesn’t count) and was definitely an eye-opening experience, despite the fact that most of my time was spent in shopping malls rather than at cultural/historical attractions.

Returning to work with numerous “free size” market purchases and 7 pairs of shoes (yes, I may have gone a bit overboard here…) I was accosted by my boss for a sudden meeting, upon which I was offered a full-time position! To my delight, I was not just offered a role as a full-time journalist, but as Assistant Editor of one our main product areas – pipelines.

So yes, I am ecstatic that I have somehow wormed my way into a full-time job which involves words, writing, books, magazines and reading! LOVING IT.

Actually I applied for two publishing companies at the same time, one very large one, which publishes educational material, and this one. Despite the fact that I thought I was far better prepared and much smoother in the interview for the larger company, I was rejected. But I am now very glad that I did not have to make the decision between the two as I may have chosen incorrectly. I now realise that being in a smaller company has many advantages. I am learning much more than I think I would have been permitted at the larger one; I’m allowed to see and be involved in the whole process from planning to print.

Regarding the content (because everyone’s reaction is always, “…guh? Pipelines??”), I was also a bit skeptical at first. However, I was determined to be involved in publishing and I was willing to learn or write about whatever I had to in order to get in – and it paid off. I can now honestly say that I actually find pipelines interesting and enjoy writing about them, unlikely as it may seem.

So as I said at the begining of this post, this is the main reason why I have had a life change. I am no longer just working to pay rent in some shitty part-time job. I am working towards a career as an editor, learning about the process of publication and improving my writing along the way with the ultimate goal of becoming a ficton author.

My life finally seems to have some kind of meaning and direction.

overdue for an update

28 Feb

Var |  February 28th,2011 | musings |  No Comments »

Hi there. As per the subject, it’s been a while.

I feel bad for mooching off Wicked for no good reason so, as I do on an apparently cyclical basis, I will once again attempt to reconnect with this blog and start posting more often.

I really hate when I come back from these periods of silence because essentially, none of my feelings and thoughts from that period are documented. Sure, there are memories, but I what I enjoy about blogging is being able to look back over old posts and read a snapshot of how I felt right in that moment.

For example, reading the past five posts elicits an amused smile because now, I am so far from where I was back then. I have achieved so much in the past three months. I feel much better about myself – proud, I would even venture, which is something I have not felt since my high school days.

I have made a deliberate effort to re-focus my life; no longer am I just letting things occur as they wish – now I am directing things. I am in control and I can decide exactly how happy or unhappy I am.

In truth, everyone possesses – and has always possessed – this control. But it can be very difficult to see that it’s within reach, and sometimes you are simply not motivated because it is not completely clear how amazing the benefits can be. Even if you do realise the possibility, the process of taking that control is daunting and usually by no means easy.

But I promise you, the rewards are certainly sweet.

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