Thank God its Flyyyday!!!

Mini Tarts:
1) To all October Babies...HAPPY BIRTDHAY!
And specially to Al...HAPPY QUARTER of a CENTURY!!
Heaps of kisses...!

2) Been following the developments back home. Good to see Dr Mahathir using the blogosphere to spread his message! Sayyy...how ironic?! And my hero of the moment...Dr Lim Teck Ghee, check out his interview on http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=15882
Memorable quotes...

"Finding another job and leaving the country for me - like for many Malaysians presently abroad - is really the last option. We cherish our country, we are in for the long haul and want to contribute to a better society"

"There is a saying that 'truth and roses have thorns about them.' We must be prepared to be scratched and bloodied to arrive at the truth"

"You know how we like others to consider our country as a successful experiment in multi-racial living. I fear we are like the emperor walking around with no clothes, well, maybe with few clothes. For we are in reality really, really a deeply polarised country with cracks developing everywhere we look, and the situation is getting worse."



There are some cultural differences here that are similar to back home...or of similarities in people or way of life. For instance how some Germans (but mostly the immigrants from Turkey and North Africa) are similar to some Chinese in the sense that they take pride in the oral discharge of internal liquids, not to mention the acoustic accompanying of lungs + stomach air pressure!

But what i would like to highlight in this entry is the professional culture towards FRIDAYs in Germany! We all love Fridays...dont we! We even thank God for it!

For those not in the know, in Malaysia EVERYONE is used to the fact that Friday is nearly the same as working half day! As the majority of the population takes the necessary 3 hour lunch break (lunch,find parking,prayers,hang out,wait for other cars to leave as they re blocking yours,smoking, leaving the car park etc) on top of their morning coffee break and evening tea breaks, its definitely a free and easy day! Knowing full well that of course the nations productivity level still maintains as non malay companies or individuals are working their asses off...after all it is a normal working day to them nevertheless.

So its not unusual to see the city half dead by 4pm onwards, or theres less traffic...and offices empty or half full (being optimistic here) on Friday evenings. After several of this corporate cultures from my working experiences in KL, none ever had the "Friday is half day" mentality...for us its business as usual!

Well, imagine my surprise when this "Friday is half day mentality" is very much alive and well here!! The Tower's inhabitants are ALL gone by 3pm...lunch time you ll see half filled cafeterias, by 2pm if you walk at any of the floors you wont be surprised by eerily dead silence but just the deafening sound of your foot steps and your farts echo! Its as if God created Fridays so that we re able to take it easy after 4 HARDWORKING DAYS...then Saturday to party and Sunday to recupperate for the following week!

One of the many example of the Friday is half day mentality happened today, and its a classic! I was mailing a manager explaining i couldnt call her, hence the mail and its content. Her reply...and i quote, "Thanks for your feedback. It's Friday - sorry for not being reachable."

RESPEK! And heres my reply....
"... Cheers, and have a productive Friday!"

Well, as they say..."When in Rome, do what the Romans do!"
Oh by the way...i hate the fact that i couldnt get things done as many managers are "unreachable" during this day!

Enjoy the weekend!