Tuesday, June 30, 2009

The Delayed Inevitable

It has been finalized. My move will be postponed for a couple weeks in lieu of new computers being deployed. The idea is for me to monitor if the new computers will have any problem or not.

This news made me happy. As this also help me finalized my weekend plan to go to ComMart fair. So I will probably buy the 1TB disk, since the price has come down to about 3,200 baht. Which is significantly lower than the 1.5TB one at 5,050 baht. I am slightly worried whether my power supply can handle all these large size harddisks. If it doesn't then it will be a trip to one of the IT mall to buy new power supply. Luckily I have taken leave day next week which will make me have four days off :DDDD. I certainly need that.

Monday, June 29, 2009

The Actual Move

Due to some circumstances, I think my move will be push for a few more days. This is not my doing, since I have finish on my parts, but the IT manager. Not that I mind nor complaining :pp

But it is still inevitable. I would like to know the definite soon though. Since the ComMart fair will be held again from July 2-5. I need to know when will my weekend be. So I will have time to go to that fair and buy new harddisk along with the external box so I can transfer my data after the switch. That way I only have to open my case once and be done with it.

I know that I am just whining now but I need an outlet to whine otherwise I would have gone crazy.

I also went to see Transformer 2 today. It was an ok movie. I sensed some flaws here and there but it was not too glaring. The 'Bay Bang' was numerous and sometimes, in my opinion, excessive. The camera sway too much or move too fast sometimes and focusing on the expensive special effects of the robots. Overall it was worth the money. Next will be Harry Potter 6 :D

Friday, June 26, 2009

No Raise, No How!!

The director of my office sent email to all Thai staff yesterday evening, to inform us that there will be 0% raise in our salary this year...

He cited several reasons but the gist of it are the economic recession, budget cut, and negative inflation. The email ended with a promise to look into providing some alternative package instead. All of which make the salary raise less justifiable, not counting the morale boost issue. Although I still think that even 1% raise would boost the morale of the staff, even if just slightly.

So now it makes me wants that promotion even more, although not by much. It certainly lower my already low mood about my own work situation, reading the force moving to head office. This surely is a sucky situation.

There will be a big meeting next week at the head office between the Thai staff association and the upper management. Hopefully something good would come out of that.

I am still trying to maintain positive thoughts about the move...
a) My new weekend would be Fri-Sat, which I preferred than Sun-Mon.
b) The places to eat in that area has a lot more varieties, it is close to MBK.

It's not a lot but enough for me to concentrate on.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

The Harden Soul

Today my soon to be boss had, again, voiced his frustration on the lateness of my progress on work here and, again, said that he wants to me start working at the head office on first of July.

This times, however, the fact did not shocked me as much as it did before. I guess the repetition dull its effectiveness. It may sound strange but my emotion felt harden by this statement. I suppose I have come to terms with it, slightly, on some level.

While I am feeling stress and upset about my situation, I do not have a lot of people to complain about it to. My online friends who goes online often are not really good to talk with on this issue. Especially when one of them has been unemployed for months now. I know that my situation is not bad in comparison to other possibilities.

I must keep my head on straight and my mood in check. I hope that I will be able to come to terms with it once the move happens. I do have several leave days left after allocate them for my trip. I will start using it them once I moved.

Monday, June 22, 2009

A Tearful Remedy

I have been feeling down for the pass several days. I would usually feels a little better if I gets to cry.

There was a time when I was really upset about something and I feels better after I got to really cry in cinema watching 'Nang Nak'.

So today I decided to watch some videos that I have that would make me cry, I was successful. Then I also got to cry a bit over Oprah's show about puppies mills. And again over something on TV which I forgot.

In total, I cried or shed tears three times since afternoon. I think I now feels slightly better after relieve some tension with crying.

I also buy some Euro money today, finally, as well as complete my sneakers order. That also help too, I think. I do understand how people find spending money feels quite therapeutic. I suppose it gave you a sense of control and power to be able to buy whatever you desire.

I like shopping for groceries, especially when my mom still haven't moved out. I will call her and ask what she would like me to buy and add a few of my own into the list. All of which will be cooked by her later. Nowadays though, I just buy various fruit juice to mix with my protein shakes. Occasional shower gels and shampoo and that's about it...

Anyway, I really needs to go to bed now... This week could be my last week at my current office. I better tries to savior the moment. Although I will be visiting again at least once a week...

Friday, June 19, 2009

Soul Shaker

My soon to be boss that is... Today he gripe about how slow the progress of prepping the new set of computers has been and that I should have been moved already.

This is not good for my morale at all. I feels like I have borderline depression since last week or so. It manifest as the feelings of not wanting to go to work. The sinking feeling and bad mood of having to go to work. I guess it felt like I have been betrayed by the office.

I know that my own boss had tried to keep me but it was beyond his control. I suppose my resentment has been directed to the establishment. Lately I have to reminded myself that I need to have a job, this is a good place to work, and if I wants to return to this branch office, I better remain part of the organization. I am also torn between using my leave day to rest my nerve or coming to work here since it is likely I will be moved very soon. I suppose I can use it soon after I move.

It seems very likely that I will start working in the HQ on first of July. My boss told me in our weekly meeting that his boss said so but he added that it was not what they agreed on. He said he will just let it simmer and see how it goes.

Also, my current boss' contract is coming to an end. So he will leave the office in a couple of months to take a position in another country. Hopefully the next boss will wants to have an IT personal, that he will have enough pull to open the position so I can move back :P It was a really long shot but one can hope. Not that I would pinned all my hopes and dreams on that hypothetical scenario. I do have to concentrate on learning the skills that I needs for the promotion. I can't just let myself feels too down to learn all that. The prospect of getting promotion is, for now, far more realistic than being moved back here.

No matter what happen, I will still be back here once a week anyway.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Harddisk Blues

After a little more than a year since the last time I buy new harddisk, I have manage to almost filled it. Although I did not feels like it's been that long, good thing that I did blog about it so I know when I bought it last year.

The price of 1TB (TB=Terrabyte which means 1,000 GB :d) harddisk became more attractive but I would love to buy the 1.5 TB one instead. However, the 1TB one is still about 1,300 baht cheaper than the 1.5TB one. The price which I do not wants to pay just yet. But it became harder and harder to make space for my downloads, especially in this series heavy season. The Closer and So You Think You Can Dance are running weekly now. Soon Leverage will began it's second season in July and then Dexter's fourth season in September :O.

I could not possibly housed all those files with my current 14GB space left on my biggest harddisk. Despite my wish that I wants to hold off buying new harddisk until the price of 1.5TB one reduce to about 4,000 baht. I don't think that I can wait that long.

Monday, June 15, 2009

My Funny Man is Going Home And That Sinking Feeling.

I spend today with my friend 'Funny Man'. He told me that he is going home to New Zealand in two months time and ending his four years of traveling around the world. The news shocked me quite a bit. It makes me feels like I lost a friend.

Although, in truth, we will still keep in touch so we will still be friend. Except that it will be quite a while before I see him in person again.

I also help him located the washing hose so he can buy one for his apartment back in Wellington. He really love it as the way to clean up after the deed was done. I hope he will be able to install it easily back home.

I am going to miss him. He is very funny, fun to hang out with and fun to talk with. He did invited me to visit him in his hometown and that I can stay at his place. I think I will take him up on that in a couple of years time.

Lately I have been plagued by the 'Don't Want to Go to Work' feelings. Which I think, was triggered because of my soon to be boss. He reminded me over the phone, when we were discussing other issues, that he wants me to start working at the HQ next month.

My heart and mood sank when he said that. While I knew that this is inevitable, it still hitting me harder than I though it would. I guess I am mentally not still want this to happen. I did not expect the sinking feeling to occurred. It seems that I was put this out of my mind until it hit me again.

When I tell my current boss of this, he said that it wasn't the IT manager's decision to make but rather the higher level manager. So we will see when will that happen. But we both agreed that it would not be for our best interests to prolong this more than it should.

I suppose it will be ok once the move happen since then I will accept that it actually happen and not just looming around the corner, making me worried like this.

I know that I am lucky that I still have a job, a decent paying one in fact. One that it allows me both financially and enough free time to start traveling. Yet my feeling is not in the best of mood to appreciate that. I will tough it out and see what happens.

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Weather Foiled Plan

I decided to pay up and spend a bit of money to buy a snack from the coffee shop near my office to get their WEP code for their WiFi. Lo and behold it works!! I could open my WebGUI page on my Nokia 5800 :D

I tested it a bit and found that WebGUI page works nicely on my phone and everything works, albeit, slower than on actual computer :D

Too bad that by the time the TV show I wants to download, The Closer, became available online, there was a power cut at my home :ppp There was a brief heavy rain just when I walk back to office from my lunch break. And by the time I found that the show is available for download, I could not open my WebGUI page anymore. I thought that there could be a power cut at my home due to the heavy rain and my younger bro confirmed it. Bugger...

So now I have to wait until I got home and do it manually anyway :pp I suppose I will try this again on Friday for So You Think You Dance Season 5.

Monday, June 08, 2009

Experimenting With Remote BitTorrent

After realizing that many of the TV shows I want to see is being shown again in US summer season.

Since I sometimes would not be home when the shows would be uploaded to the BitTorrent, I would like to know how to remotely add the one I wants to download when I am not home. I figured I could use my phone to access internet and did what I wants from it.

I use utorrent as my BitTorrent client. It has WebGUI function which allow you to remotely access your client through internet with an addon and a bit of know-how. It was pretty easy actually. Here is the instruction I use to do it.

http://lifehacker.com/software/hack-attack/remote-control-your-torrents-with-utorrents-webui-260393.php

I also learn how to create domain name since my ISP will disconnect my connection every 24 hours, thus, shifting my IP address.

It was all pretty simple and easy really. The difficult part is to find a free WiFi spot that I can use near my office. There is one WiFi spot but you have ot pay to get their WEP code.

I am looking forward to test this and see if I can work it when I am on my trip as well :)

Friday, June 05, 2009

The Museum Run, The 2nd Times

About a week ago I went to see "Night at The Museum 2: Escape From The Smithsonian", it was quite a fun movie but not totally.

It was still a very fun notion to have the *reviving* scenario taking place in the biggest Museum of all, the Smithsonian. The art showroom sequence looks fantastic while the air and space looks surreal (er, more than usual). The villains were practically stereotyped in their personalities which feels a bit flat at times.

Overall, it is a fun movie, but I do not appreciate the fact that it was more than 30 minutes before the movie begin after I enter the theater. Although I like to watch the trailers, the ads were too much for my taste. The fact that I had not eat anything substantial before the cinema that day worsen the matter even more.

All in all, I think it is no wondered why people do not go to cinema much anymore.

Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Chapped Ass Hot Sauce

When I saw this one, I thought of Torn :)


Chapped Ass Hot Sauce by `ursulav on deviantART

It is Ursula Vernon's latest piece, of which she lamented how it looks homoerotic relatively by accident :P But then we are all homos here so...

I think Torn would love this and get a good chuckle ;)