In · my · own~

 Okay so its been 4 mths since my last entry. I am not sure if it's because I have started working or because I have more fun updating my tumblr acct then my livejournal one. Heh. 

Anyways. 2010 all in all has been a good year. Although there were so many ups and downs, especially in the first half of the year, I think it has been pretty good still. 

It started out pretty crazy. I almost kinda broke up with Alvin (on our 4th year anniversary!) and it just tore me up inside.  The last remaining month in Beijing was hard cos I missed my family like crazy (not being able to spend Christmas with them), feeling unsure about my relationship with Alvin, cramming for the final exam and of course falling sick on the last week of my stay (major food poisoning man!) to top it off. 

But in the end I was pretty happy with the outcome. I truly felt that my stay in Beijing was worth while as my reading and writing improved a lot from 5 mths before. I made really good friends from all over the world! And of course I got the chance to live by myself in a foreign country (in CHINA no less) for almost half a year. The entire trip made me feel more grateful for everything I had before, and it was a great chance to be independent and experience so many different things just by living in another city. I cant be more thankful to my parents especially my dad who encouraged me to take on this language program. 

When I came back home I had to face a new kind of obstacle - finding a job. My first real job. After enjoying being back for 2 weeks, I got to working on my resume pretty quickly and sent it out to different Advertising, PR and marketing agencies as well as Marketing/Branding positions in numerous MNCs. The toughest choice was to choose btw my dream job and a job I had internship experience in and would most likely feel more comfortable in. Although I am not the biggest fan of this major Japanese Beauty conglomerate, I was thrilled that I was chosen amongst the other candidates for the marketing position.

But something just did not feel right, it was a lot of things I was not sure of - the sudden urgency for me to sign the contract, the very low pay, the 6 mth period in which I may not get chosen to stay on and even so the starting pay was 1.8k. I was torn. I actually cried. I felt as if the whole world did not make any sense. I mean, it was my dream job to work for a Beauty company, especially one of this size and influence in the beauty world. However something just did not sit right with me. So I turned it down. I was still very confused. What was to be my ultimate career goal then? I mean I know I would enjoy working in Acct servicing for a few years and perhaps join the Client side later on but  how would I eventually get there? Would I eventually work for a beauty company? Like Estee or Loreal? Or perhaps a fashion/lifestyle brand  or FMCG like LVMH or Unilever? I was not sure...

In the end I decided that instead of being stuck and keep asking myself these questions which I could not answer at that time, I should pick a job that I know I had an interest in and see how it goes from there. As such I ended up in O&M and worked on of the biggest acct. And boy did it come with a lot of big problems. I will not go into detail of my misery but it was not pleasant and I was made to feel like a complete idiot. The 3 mths were painful and I felt like I had to leave. However of course it was all not gloom and doom. I made friends who provided great support and encouragement and I still learned a thing or 2 about the industry. Unfortunately we did not have the acct after the mth of June and again my job security and future career was at stake. So what now? I threw myself into job interviews both internally and externally. Thankfully, due to a surprising recommendation, my name was circulated amongst the company's other dept and the HR people were busy arranging interviews for me.

Thankfully I managed to get the position at the digital arm of my company and I have been happy there since the last week of June. Sure it may not have been a smooth ride since then but I have made friends along the way and I really love my team. I have learned a lot (especially from my mistakes) and it is great to have constant encouragement and support from my team. It may not be what I though I would be doing but it is a great start to learning more about Digital Advertising (and a little Traditional ATL/BTL advertising) and about the processes, industry practices, pitches and of course - the training programs. I have not started on it yet but one of my goals for 2011 is to be part of the Masterclass program! During my 3 mth probation review - I made it known that I was keen and am very happy that my boss has agreed to support me in it! 

But of course all this work during the weekday makes my weekend more sacred then ever. It is no wonder that Facebook says that my top word used in my status update is WEEKEND! They are mostly spent at the gym, meeting up with family and friends, date night with Alvin, baking and of course church and tennis on Sundays as always. Spare time is sacred and I have so little of it at my disposal to keep with my hobbies and revising my mandarin. Sad to say the standard has dropped since I came back in Feb, but of course it is still better then before I left for Beijing. As such, another of my goals for 2011 is to continue with my mandarin revision! Use my besta more often and practice my 口语, 听力  and 阅读！！！

Another highlight of the year is stating my beauty blog at tumblr. This is to help start me up on gaining experience with sharing my make up looks as well as make up/beauty reviews. I have been pretty constant in updating the looks bit. I just need more practice with the review part! Another goal for 2011! 

And last but not least, my relationship with God. I have been trying my best to attend CG with 1 Peter every Friday night. I know I have not been attending regularly but I have been making it a point to be more consistent. I know my pray life has not been very consistent either. Sometimes I just dont know how to talk to God other then for the usual thanking messages and offerings that I lift up to him. There has been moments where I get really touched my scripture and it really connects with me. I think its God's way of talking to me. But I want a stronger connection.  But I have not been able to experience that and I think it is because I don't let myself get too close. That is something that I need to work on. 

So yea.... It's been a good year. Sure I put on some weight but I am starting a new exercise and diet regime which will only progress further in 2011. It has been a good year. But part of me feels that I have to really experience more pain and hardship to really learn and grow, to see my potential and what I am capable of. It is scary, but necessary. Being in one's comfort zone for too long is never a good thing. And I guess, after 2 holidays to Tokyo and Bangkok and this fantastic 2 weeks of working from home - I should be ready and well-rested enough to face whatever comes my way in 2011.

 And so may it be a good one 2011. I know God will only throw at me what ever I can take and will make me a better person.  

And it's called tumblr....

jadegly.tumblr.com 

Sorry livejournal!!!!!!!!!  

I finally got my internet working again!!!!!   

Turns out the IT guy from 北京语言大学 did something to my firewall settings (duh.l.. great fire wall of china), blocking off my Singtel internet connection!!!!! grrrrrrrrrrrrrr...............

Feels great to be using my own laptop again. 

More picture uploads! yaya~ 

Dessert and Make up~