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Love it or hate it, Valentine’s Day is here. 
So, happy VDay, everyone!
I am feeling insanely special at the moment – my boyfriend sent me a dozen roses, and this other guy that’s been chasing me since I met him last summer sent me two dozen! (From different florists – it was a bit of a mix up but who cares, I got 3 dozen roses today!) haha Plus, they were all sent to my office and everyone’s like “What the hell”. haha I love flowers!
Plus, my package from Colin arrived this morning, although it arrived after I’d already left. I wonder what it is…he keeps warning me to have low expectations because it sucks. LoL And then he’d apologize and say he’s gonna make it up on “our” Valentine’s Day. Then he mysteriously tried to improve the present and spent a few hours doing so, so I really have absolutely no idea what he got me. haha So mysterious!
Anyway. Job interview. UGH! I have never felt so completely young, inexperienced, inadequate and totally normal/plain looking. When I told her my current salary, she (the head of HR), was like “Wow, that’s a lot…if I were hiring you I definitely would not pay you that much.” Then she kept saying I was younger than the other candidate (that’s right – I think it’s just down to me and another girl – or should I say, woman). And then she was saying how the ex-Style Editor was telling her that the replacement should be someone who isn’t ugly, but who isn’t “threateningly gorgeous, or too beautiful” – and apparently, I’m neither. I didn’t know whether to feel insulted or pleased – wthell? (Not that I think I’m friggin’ gorgeous, but did she really have to SAY it???) Apparently, my only advantage is that I can speak some Chinese, whereas the other chick can’t at all.
So I am going to email her my updated resume and 2 reference letters today, hopefully that will help me get the job. The ultimate decision is with one guy that I interviewed with last time, and he seemed to like me (or at least, like my ideas…)
AND – I got an email from this other job my dad made me apply to – I’ve been shortlisted and they want me to go in on Saturday the 23rd for some testing (vocab, quantitative, English & Chinese), but I have to work that Saturday! Not sure what to do, will consult the parents on that matter…
Anyway back to the other interview – I still want the job, simply because it’s a great name and I’d have more interesting things to do, plus the location is really near home for me. But I think I would still continue to plan to move to NYC in September since after last night’s interview, I realized that I don’t really want to stay in fashion or magazine writing, and I’d really really like to get into publishing. We’ll see, I suppose…
Ok, I’m going to have to remember that I am currently surrounded by flowers, and even if the HR person doesn’t love me, other people do, and that’s what matters.
Have a lovely day, everyone!!
PS. How do you like the new colour scheme? I actually learned enough Photoshop to edit the colours and everything and then slowly did all the html. So proud of myself! LoL
OhMiGod.
Remember that job interview I had way back when in December? I thought they’d already hired someone to fill that position since I didn’t hear anything after the feedback I got for my ideas (also in December), but yesterday someone from the HR department called me up, and now I have an interview with the head of HR tomorrow after work! I really want this job. Reasons?
- The location – it’ll take me 15 minutes to get to work and back every day, and I’d only have to take one minibus as opposed to 2. Currently it takes me anywhere from 50 minutes to an hour and a half to get home after work (terrible traffic).
- I hear they pay pretty well, which means more money for my move to NY, AND more spending money!
- It’d be great for my resume – it’s a really well known magazine, at least in the UK and around Asia (it’s all English, btw), so if I move it’d be pretty impressive.
- The job responsibilities are much more interesting than what I do now – a LOT more fashion-related things, and I’d be styling photo shoots again like I used to do. This, versus sitting at work wanting to stab myself in the eye writing about wedding traditions or giving advice to grooms on what kind of tux to wear for a daytime wedding.
Eek! Wish me luck…!
Btw, have any of you ever been on an interview with an HR person? What do they ask? My parents and I suspect they’ll be asking about how much salary I want, and also maybe figure out whether I’ll fit in with the people in the company, since I already had an interview with the big bosses about job responsibility and my previous experience, so they must at least think I am capable…
Ugh, speaking of job hunting – I have to start setting up interviews for when I’m in NYC in March – I really really really need to find a job or at least have a few leads! Need to start contacting people as well, although unfortunately I don’t really know anyone who does writing/publishing, or at least not well enough to not feel weird about asking them…but I guess it doesn’t hurt! Really need to get on with that…
Anyway, trip recap: all I did was shop, eat, and lay by the pool. I’ve really gained weight though – noticed in all the pics my mom took. UGHHH need to start watching what I eat. haha But, shopping-wise, I did quite well! Got a brown leather belt from Gap, a tshirt + 2 pairs of footless tights (grey and black) from Topshop, a clubbing dress from Forever 21, and a purple tank from Guess. Plus my parents paid for everything except for the dress, which was nice. haha
So – Valentine’s Day. My friends convinced me to go to this party happening Thursday night, for a charity for kids with AIDS in China. My gay friend is being auctioned off, which is pretty funny. LoL So guess I’ll be doing that, since the boyfriend’s 8000+ miles away!
I ended up also getting Colin some roses as well for VDay – I realized all the presents I got him kinda suck in the sense that he needs me around for them. LoL Nothing was solely just for him to enjoy! Plus, in my opinion, boys don’t get flowers enough. So I sent them to his office (found his business card, which I thought I’d lost, in my wallet!) so it’ll surprise him and make him feel special cause all his colleagues will know he’s loved 
Hope he likes them…we’ll see!
What are everyone’s VDay plans, if any?
I went to the Absolut Disco party last night (launch of their latest bottle, which is apparently already sold out!) and bumped into the guy who interviewed me for that PR job. We chatted a bit and he was friendly (although I found out from my other friend that they’d already hired for that position – I suspect they didn’t hire me cause I’m quite expensive, and it’s an entry-level position!). The weird thing is, he kept coming over to chat to me, and would come and dance with me, at one point even getting down and dirty on the dance floor! I just stood there dancing, and out of the corner of my eye I saw my friend wagging her finger at me (she was a bit drunk, haha) and her boyfriend apparently was like “I thought he was gay!” The thing is – he is! And he had his boyfriend with him as well, this short blond dude, but then ditched him to come dance with me.
It was slightly awkward and kind of embarrassing cause I don’t even know him that well, plus the fact that the last time I saw him, he was interviewing me at his office!
Anyway, aside from that, the evening was pretty fun, though it had to end early because I have to work today (am at work right now, which is lame, because I don’t even have any work to do but have to come in anyway because two Saturdays a month is in my contract!). I danced a lot, and there were some beatboxers and a trio of girls performing some dances (they were so cute!) and saw a bunch of people. Oh, and, of course, the alcohol was free
1. The editor in chief of the magazine I interviewed for last week said my ideas were ‘very good’ and that they’re still interviewing other candidates but would let me know soon. I’m just flattered he liked my ideas! I was so nervous about submitting them. haha
2. Colin gets back in 3 days, and I cannot tell you how excited I am to see him again. At the same time, I swear that boy makes me totally schizo, but that’s another topic for another time.
3. I’ve recently realised that although I totally don’t mind being single, or at least haven’t minded it for a while, I think I’m ready for a relationship now. I actually want to be committed to someone! Shock. haha I think this is partly after seeing my sister with her boyfriend – they are totally cute together, and I kinda miss just having someone to hang out with like that. I’m even willing to be monogamous again! haha But, obviously, one cannot force that so I’ll just have to wait it out and see what happens.
4. My ex-boss got really freaked out that I was taking him to court for the money he owes me, and has already deposited the equivalent of approx. US$1250 in my account…just in time, because I didn’t realise it, but my credit card bill was higher than the money I had in savings, and when it got deducted from my account the cheque had just cleared! Phew, close call! I really have to pay better attention to my money…!
5. Ex-boss also says he’s gonna pay the remaining balance by the 27th, so I’m really hoping he follows through, cause it’s not like I really wanna go to court either. I just want what’s owed me!
6. On top of all that, ex-boss sent me a text after we discussed all this and said that he’ll make sure I get the best recommendations for future employers. I always knew he valued/liked me as an employee! I love that even after I’m involving the court and the labour department and such, he still says he’ll give me good recommendations.
7. In other, totally-not-related-to-me news, I can’t believe Britney’s little 16 year-old sister is PREGNANT! WTF! Not only that, but her mom is SUPPORTING her! Omg my mom would kill me if I were pregnant now, and I’m 23. haha It’s just sad cause lil Jamie Lynn looks so sweet and wholesome and then she goes and gets pregnant at 16…sad.
K, those are all my updates for now…get excited! Only 6 more days till Christmas!!
I went into work at quarter to 9 this morning just so I could leave just before 6 to make my interview at 6.30. I was the first one in the office and had to turn on the lights…didn’t even know where the light switches were, but luckily they weren’t hard to find!
Anyway, at around 5.15 I started getting really nervous, partly about making it over in time, and partly just about the interview itself because I actually really want it. I slipped out of the office at 10 to 6 and went to the handicapped bathroom to change (it’s the only one where you don’t need the bathroom key to have access to, and I get to wear jeans and casual clothes to work, but didn’t want to wear jeans to my interview!), then put some eyeshadow and blush on and freshened up my appearance.
When I got there, I filled out an application form and then waited for about 10 minutes, getting seriously nervous (and slightly bored, since I was sitting around in a conference room by myself). At one point I randomly choked on my saliva and turned around to cough it out and my face was getting hot and my eyes were tearing and I was thinking “Shit, I really hope no one walks in now!” haha.
They come in and then start chatting about the job responsibilities and asking whether I’ve got experience doing those things, which are namely:
- overlooking the entire style section
- putting together and styling photo shoots
- coming up with ideas for and writing articles relating to fashion
- helping out with the society pages
- interview people
- selecting monthly ‘it’ items/objects of desire to feature
…all of which I’ve more or less done at my old job! I think they were quite impressed with the articles I’d written before (which I’d emailed to them in PDF form prior to the interview), especially when they heard that I was the one who came up with the ideas. (If you’re interested, the 3 articles I sent were on eco-fashion, fashion capitals and how they came to be fashion capitals (which was REALLY hard to research, btw), and Audrey Hepburn and her lasting impact on fashion thanks to her films.) Plus, the two photographers I last worked with on photo shoots (one from Paris and one from New York) they knew as well, and we kinda laughed about how sleazy this one guy is, even though he takes great pictures, and how the other one is an ok photographer but weird in his own way (he’d shot for Nylon before).
After the interview I left feeling really happy, just because I knew I’d done the best that I could do, and if I don’t get it, then at least I gave it my best shot. Plus, they were both really nice, and I really appreciated that even though I was seriously nervous beforehand, during the interview I was as at ease as you really can be during a job interview.
We’ll see what happens…I hear they pay a lot for a magazine, as generally you really don’t make any money working at them, so that’s a giant plus! Plus, like I said in a previous entry, they have the biggest name for an English publication in Asia, and will be known internationally as well which would be great for my resume, especially if I move to New York.
Yay! heehee
I went to my new company’s Christmas party last night. It was fun, even though at the beginning when we were waiting around for our ride I just wanted to melt into a puddle and/or die, because I was feeling so uncomfortable. There’s only one other native English speaker in the office, and she was out sick, and all the other girls assumed I only spoke English so I guess they were slightly intimidated since their English is about as good as my Cantonese (read: not good!), and I obviously was both the new girl and “the one that doesn’t speak Chinese”, at least at first.
Once we got ’round to setting up the names and bowling and stuff though I started chatting to a few chicas, and I quite like two of them in particular, Ella and Joy. I sat with them at dinner as well and was actually managing to carry on a conversation in Cantonese, and I was glad I had a chance to use it.
This morning my alarm went off at 8.10, and I instantly snoozed it, but my room line rang a few minutes later and I knew it had to be Colin. He was calling to wake me and to wish me luck on my first day – so sweet! He said he was just sitting around the office till 7pm so he could call me at the right time 
See why I love him? Thanks to him, my day started off quite well!
I was seriously sleepy in the morning, yawning like 10 times in 15 minutes. haha I had lunch with my co-workers outdoors on the podium, and it was a gorgeous sunny day, and I was actually getting hot!
Work-wise, I already have 4 assignments, so I’m getting on with that…
The most ironic thing to happen today is that another magazine called me this afternoon for an interview this week, and it’s a mag that I actually kinda want to work for! (Whereas this one I didn’t really care that much about…) The position would be the same title as at my last job, and doing pretty much the same thing. And, this magazine is international, so I think it would help to have it on my resume if I were ever to move to New York, just to have the name there. Plus, according to my makeup artist girlfriend, they pay pretty well, probably better than what I’m getting now!
The only thing is I’m gonna have to either leave work early or get in later on this week to be able to do it, and I have no idea what lie I’m gonna come up with, especially since I’m only essentially working a week this month! (Booked time off already between Christmas and New Year’s.) Argh.
Anyway…I really want this (I think) so wish me luck!!!
That’s right, I am finally, finally employed again!
I had my second interview Saturday morning, with the Managing Director and the Head of Marketing, and they basically wanted me to sign a contract right then and there. They changed the title from Assistant Fashion Editor to Project Editor though, just cause they said they want me to be involved with all the departments, not just fashion. Fine with me!
I start Tuesday, but am going to their Christmas party Monday afternoon. (I couldn’t start Monday cause I have to meet with the woman I’m freelancing for – the new job doesn’t allow for freelancing so I have to either wrap it up super quick, or I’ll just let her have what I’ve already done for free.)
Anyway, YAY! I have a job again! I’ll have money coming in at the end of the month! Woooo! haha It’ll be nice to not be seriously poor anymore. The pay isn’t bad, although what sucks is that I’ll have to work 2 full Saturdays a month. So there goes my weekends…:(
On the other hand, I managed to get the dates between Christmas and New Year’s off as well, since that’s when Colin’s back and I just want to be able to spend all my time with him…or as much as our schedules allow, anyway. And there are 2 more vacation days than I got before, so that’s nice. Ah, how precious vacation days are…!
On a totally different note, how cute is my new layout?? haha It’s from Suck My Lolly’s Free Blogger Designs, although I customized the header a bit and made some minor changes myself (it took SO long, but it was so worth it), such as the favicon, order of the side content, font/post title color, etc.
OMG, nearly forgot to mention – Colin was telling me that a Bvlgari store opened across the street from him, and that he was gonna ‘check it out’, hinting at my Christmas present! I fully don’t expect anything though, especially once he finds out how much everything is, even though he CAN afford it. haha Well, we’ll see…another reason to be excited for Christmas!
I had to get up at 7.15 this morning, so I could shower, eat breakfast and then haul ass over to the Labour Tribunal for a meeting with a “Tribunal Officer” at 9.15. It went all right, but I was tired as all hell since I was unable to fall asleep until sometime past 2.30am, and my eyelids literally kept drooping.
Anyway, the officer went through some more papers I had to fill out, helped calculate how much I was claiming, and helped book a court date to go before a judge and get a judgment (Jan. 3rd, fyi). I then got home and was so exhausted took a half hour nap – one of those ones where you’re dreaming, but half-conscious of noises and things.
After that I had to gather up a ton of info – the papers I filled out “Statement by Claimant”, and another email I found from my ex-boss that is relevant to the case, and had to fax it over to the officer and then copy everything that I had filed to mail to my ex-boss.
Ugh, it was so annoying. But, the good news is, I found out I could “exercise my right to terminate employment in lieu of wages“, which basically means since my boss never officially let me go but didn’t pay me in over a month (it’s really been 4), I get to try and claim one month’s salary since he didn’t give me notice (ie fire me and give me a month’s time from that point on to find another job or whatever).
So if I win this case, he has to pay me roughly US$5000, which also includes the salary that he owes me. I’m down to under US$600 left in my account, and because this court date isn’t till January and even after then who KNOWS when I’ll be paid next, I better fucking win.
On another note, I have a 2nd interview tomorrow with that magazine, at 11.30am. I’m slightly annoyed since that means I can’t get drunk and stay out till the sun comes up tonight, but oh well…I should probably detox after last weekend anyway!
Wish me luck
I’m feeling rather unsettled today. I just realized that I’ve been pretty much just hanging out for the last 4 months, and I’m getting seriously bored, and worse, I fear, lazy.
I have a job interview tomorrow and I’m not even all that sure I want the job, which is ridiculous because I do want a job, and I definitely want an income, but my attitude is more lackluster than anything else. My parents just barged into my room and got on my case about being less than enthusiastic, but the thing is, most of the interviews I’ve had lately have been for jobs I don’t even really want, but I always amp it up for the actual day.
I’m just afraid that it’s been so long that now my energy is just drained and I feel like I can’t be bothered anymore. Which gets me more agitated cause I know I want a job, and hate feeling useless and totally unproductive.
I mean, lately my schedule’s been pretty much getting up at around 10-11, having brunch, late lunch, hanging around the house and going online or pulling one of the hundreds of books I own down and reading it right through, maybe (although rarely) going out to meet a friend (since most of my friends have jobs!), then hanging around some more and looking up random crap on the internet, then dinner, shower, and more hanging out in my bed (like I’m doing now). It’s so boring! I’m so sick of it! And quite honestly, it’s kinda sad, how pathetic my life is right now. (Although on the weekend I always go out at least once, or if not go out, get at least a little drunk!)
It’s almost like the non-activity is draining me just because I’m so bored all the time…there’s no purpose to my day anymore, and hence, at the moment, there almost isn’t a purpose to my life.
So. Kevin and I made up, AND they found my camera, so all is well in my world, again. (Aside from the no job no money thing, but oh well…)
Anyway, all that’s really changed is I’m gonna try and be a little more distant w/Kevin…like, I still love hanging out with him and everything, but I’m gonna take the ’sweet’ things he says with a grain of salt, and just let things be.
Phew. So glad that drama’s over…
I’ve got an interview on Wednesday for an Assistant Fashion Editor at a magazine…let’s hope I ace it!
In the meantime, I’m staying away from the whiskey…seems to always get me into trouble!
