Monday, November 17, 2008

PTK

A day after I came back from my one-week PTK, I read in my favourite newspaper that Cuepacs plans to boycott the Competency Level Assessment (PTK) examination. Why? It was mentioned, among others, that "the examination had not achieved its intended objectives" as "there is no guarantee that those who had passed the examination will be promoted as it would depend on the availability of posts". For you dummies out there, the PTK is a compulsory assessment that civil servants are subjected to for promotions purposes.

Is the PTK that bad? I guess it depends on who you ask. Me? I've never liked exams. Come to think of it, I'm not crazy of interviews and presentations either ... He! He! But I would say that my PTK experience was pretty inspiring. Apart from revisiting concepts like Falsafah Pendidikan Negara, Wawasan 2020 and God-knows-what, I met so many amazing people. I really admire the speakers for their experience, teaching spirit and professionalisme. There's this one Dr. Hamdan from UTM whose "theaterical" presentation was jaw-dropping and saliva-dripping ("expression" baru! He! He!). Then, there's Hajah Norbi who blogs and had written books on her teaching and admin experience. My mom should write one too! (Will be helping her to set up her own blog, for a start).

On a separate issue, I am not too sure, really, why I had to attend the course because I'm not in the DG scheme ... hmm ... Anyway, I went, enjoyed myself (despite the presentations and exam), and made some wonderful friends.




K. Dah yang baik hati . Thanks for taking us (me & K. Yus) out to makan-makan at Larkin. First time ate the Singaporean-Arabian cuisine, Kacang Pool!








K. Zu yang simple & humble. I tau you ada "M***" berderet kat rumah ...






Sharizan yang "ayu jelita" (he! he!), soft-spoken and penyayang.








Haslina yang friendly & computer-savvy.







Ana. Hang ni cute tapi ada sket ... garang! He! He! Kesian kat Tuan Hj. kita tu ...






Oh..er.. did I mention that I came back 1 or 2 kilos heavier? Thanks (or rather, no thanks!) to the delicious food served by the friendly chef at Tropical Inn, JB. I knew this was coming, so I actually fasted for about a week before I went for the course. However, tak berjaya maintain my weight! Ha! Ha! Looks like I'll have to work extra hard on the cardio machine this weekend. True Fitness, here I come!

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Obama - black or coloured?

The news is out.

"Obama - America's first black President"
"The first African-American President of the United States"

Er ... yeah his skin is black.
His father was an Economist from Kenya. He looks African-American alright, but his mother is "white", right? So, what's all this hoo hah about him being "the first black US President" and all? Doesn't the white side count? (Btw mommy had Cherokee blood, too)

.
Folks, he's in the same boat as Halle Berry, Mariah Carey, and Tony Parker - "COLOURED" (co-incidently, first heard this term used by Ms. Berry on satelite TV).

... Just my 2-cents worth of opinion ... (riding on Obama-mania ... he! he!).

Saturday, November 1, 2008

My Halloween Scare

Yesterday, had one helluva Halloween. Nope, there were no kids dressed in fancy clothes going around the neighbourhood asking for "trick or treat" (We Malaysians somehow did not suck-up to this "celebration" as we did Valentine's Day). The kiddos and hubby did not pull a prank on me, either. But what happenned yesterday was really "scary", at least to me (the only other scare I got was "Kekasih Ku Seru" the night before... Ha! Ha!).

My XPS screen just went BLANK.

It was horrible. Hubby, the computer expert couldn't fix the problem even after several restarts.

I was actually sweating (and I was not even in the gym!). I have not progressed much in my 20-page PTK assignment not to mention the non-existent powerpoint presentation. And now, I have to figure out whose computer I would be taking to JB for my PTK next weekend (Hubby's taking his to Aceh, my old LT is also problematic, that leaves Abah's gleamingly new LT that we gave him for his birthday. Berguna jugak hadiah tu...He! He!).

Hubby was cool as usual (that's why God gave me him, I guess). Told me we'd get the Dell Support by Monday and hopefully get the LT fixed before Friday. How optimistic ... Didn't really sleep last night.

This morning, the moment I openned my eyes, I switched on the LT hoping for a miracle. After several false starts, I actually managed to "up" the system and ... and here I am, sharing with you guys my scary Halloween.

Moral of the incident: NEVER install any pirated software in your precious LT (I noticed that my CS3 had completely disappeared from the desktop). Secondly, er ... never do work last minute (though it's during the last few days before deadline that you'll get the creative juices flowing). Thirdly, be patient when faced with difficulties. Who knows there'll be some kind of "divine intervention" (got this from hubby). Er ... wasn't that scary, eh?