aGentX says goodbye to holland : Jul to Nov 2005

the view from my office in the hague has changed from the sunny and green trees to yellow autumn skies...it was time for me to leave the hague and holland.



yes, i am going to miss all the life experiences there but the work got to continue and be completed in kuala lumpur and singapore.

then, it will be back to the beautiful dutch low lands...(again..i hope).

aGentX is also taking a rest from blogging, life has found many new meanings suddenly...until then, take care you all...

cheers and farewell.

:: blogging seems to be the hardest word::

it took me quite a while to realise it that i am really in the hague, holland.

and it really happened when i was helping a friend to move to his new home...while carrying stacks of boxes, fixing up bookshelves and mending doors.

while driving up to his place with other friends, i realised that there are so many things in holland which i have not ventured at all. i guess you could see it from my lack of photographs in my blog and the lack of posts to writewhat i did, saw and experience.

yes..there have been incidents - such as a colleague who discovered a dead man's body at her hotel room balcony, my bicycle accident which has left a bruise on my right knee, the weird noises at my hotel room, the fashionable frenzy when the weather gets cold, the dutch cheer until my throat went silly while watching a soccer match at a bar...etc

but i realised that i am not really into blogging those things.

it's simply because : i'm living the moment.

right now, these moments are dear to my heart and memory...i will recollect them in my thoughts and blog about them someday...but until now, it's off to living them.

yes, there will be pictures...of my dozens of new found friends, the street, my bicycle and the house that i am staying right now.

but bear with me with the lack of post, again!

as i will be back home for good shortly..by end of this month and will be in time for deepavali and hari raya puasa...in singapore.

Happy Ramadhan

It's refreshing to realise that almost everyone in Holland know that today is the beginning of the Muslim Holy Month of Ramadhan.

The Dutch reported it in the news, newspapers and even TV documentary.

Its also a good feeling to see fellow Muslim 'break-fast' together at the company's cafeteria, sorry for the small pic, it was taken using my mobile cam.



Selamat Berpuasa...

:: dating the hague ::

sorry for the long overdue post, i have been taking things the dutch way and i must say that i have changed quite a bit :D

i am taking things slow right now, no more weekend plans to paris, london or amsterdam...but i think i love it best when i am just enjoying the city that i am right now, that is, the hague.

i'm getting in love with this city, everyday means more new people to know and new experiences to discover. whatever stereotypes and prejudices that i have towards the dutch have disappeared.

now, i am even thinking of finding longer term projects so that i could stay here longer.

2 nights ago, i was watching the world-cup qualifier soccer - rooting for holland of course. since it was just at a cafe just opposite my hotel (yeah, i've shifted..no more opposite the nudist beach anymore)... it was fun...considering that i have known about 50 new people...people that i have no association at all from work.

i am cycling to work (no more trams for me), went to friend's birthday party, getting invites to people's home...friendships are very warm here, something which i have missed much in asia. we do not hug and kiss enough, i think..but then again, we are after all..easterners.

this is fun, its getting ever more fun everyday. sadly, i do not miss singapore that much now...except for my loved ones back home...including my cat.

where shall i end?...i can't see to be enjoying this life when i am eventually posted to kuala lumpur to work...once this beautiful dream has ended.

XxxX


:: indian summer at the hague ::

:: back again...::

here i am...at MAS lounge in KLIA...waiting for my connection flight to Amsterdam.

the deal is, if i go direct using SIA from Singapore, it will be on economy.

and since the project that i am working on is a malaysian deal, so everything has to be from KL if i want to fly business class.

so discriminatory....sigh! 2 more hours in this boring lounge.

see you, in the netherlands...again!

:Coolest Real Job Description::

I came across this...which I think is the kind of firm that I want to be a part of...
This is a real post, you can apply if you so wish to...good luck ;)

Company name: StrawberryFrog B.V.

Company Description:
StrawberryFrog is a dynamic full-service advertising agency, catering to global brands. We're small, we're fun, and we do great work for awesome clients. Come join the frogs and the revolution.

Job Category:IT

Job Title:Cool IT Geek

Job Description:

• support 50 frogs and their beloved Macs in our Amsterdam office, but it
  wouldn't be PC to neglect our finance frogs with their PC's
• rescue frogs who, although renowned for their great intelligence, sometimes
  can't make the printer work or turn off auto spell, please help
• set up a projector at 8:00 in the morning for an important client
  presentation, but don't worry there's coffee and we'll be extra nice to you
  all
  day
• set up a wiki site in the afternoon and a font server in the evening
• research the goods and the bads of Ethernet over leased lines
• be a Mac zealot, but not an MS basher
• help the Amsterdam Art Director find his lost power cord for the umpteenth
  time (we know Jon took it…)
• help the New York Account Executive use VPN for the first time (yes, she's a
  VPN-virgin)
• be small, be big
• know the pro's and con's of a Proxy Server
• believe that 5 years from now e-mail is dead, and collaboration is the next
  big thing
• dot all the i's, cross all the t's
• be the webmaster
• manage the wires so we can be wireless
• be able to argue why Oracle is a way better RDBMS than MySQL
• know how to find answers to any problem on internet fora
• be a 2-frog team together with our IT Director, be a 1-frog team when he's
  away
• help with lots of miscellaneous things that have nothing to do with your
  job

Requirements:

Sound like fun and a challenge? If you have strong IT skills with 3-5 years of IT and support experience (preferably in an international environment), a good sense of humor, and non-IT people can understand you when you talk about computers, please get in touch with us.

Applicants must already be in possession of valid work permit for the EU/Netherlands.

Please send intro letter and CV in English by the 24th of August to: sonja@strawberryfrog.com

Salary Indication:t.b.d.
Location:Amsterdam
Country:Netherlands - Amsterdam
Agency name:StrawberryFrog B.V.
Description of the agencyCheck us out at: http://www.strawberryfrog.com/

Submission
Deadline:Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Contact name:Sonja Beentjes
Contact phone:+31 (0)20 5300421
Contact Email:sonja@strawberryfrog.com

:: weekends overload::

i had the craziest weekends schedule in my life, evar!

3 weekends ago, i was in amsterdam - looking at 'diana ross' at a queer pride parade...



2 weekends ago, in paris...again! but this time with better view from the hotel room....



1 weekend...well, i was home...


but now, i am in KL...


this weekend, back home to my beloved singapore....

and then, in the hague again...


so how? you tell me....can i ignore my blogging again, for a while...especially to miss mumbles :P

pleaze....

:: getting lazier to blog ::

sorry lah, miss mumbles for not updating too frequently.

it's ironical that i am not blogging as much as i thought i would be, as being away in a foreign land often means less hanging out with friends and being in the hotel room most of the time.

it's not.

in fact, i have spent so much time out of the hotel room and reaching home late every night from work, drinks and dinner.

it's maybe that it's better to do something than nothing at all that i am occupied MOST of the time..especialy when its the weekend.

but i'm afraid to be another 'tell-all' blogger..with lots of pics and stuff....but then again, what the heck! it's national day today in singapore and i just wanna share with you some pictures from last weekend...

it was amsterdam's gaypride 2005...and how could i not go when there were posters everywhere in the office asking for support in attendance since there was a 'contingent' from my client's office....



and ps: did i forget to tell you that i will be away in paris again, this weekend?

and forgive me from being away from blogging in the next few days...you would understand it if you are in my shoes...i'm sure ;)

see y'all...

and OH YEAH.. Happy National Day Singapore...Majullah Singapura!