Life of a Young Engineer

I never realised how stressful it is to move from one job to another.... Instead of crossing bridges from one end of the river bank to another, we are walking on tightrope. It is that kind of hesitation, procrastination and frightening thoughts that I am immersing myself in now, when I have yet to cross the bridge. At the same time the exhilaration of being so scared kept me in this job for the last 1 year and counting..... Jilei mentioned awhile back that she doesn't see me complaining about my job, unlike most of my friends. (THIS IS MINUS THE INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE VERY DIFFICULT TO WORK WITH S.O.B SUP) Yup, the struggles that I meet in my career is very much my own struggle. It is the kind of struggle that only I can deal with... Nothing to do with people or things around me.... hahaha... I have received a call from boss. Looks like, I am heading off for another project. Something bigger and scarier, with people starting to expect me to perform... James is on the same boat again... hahaha... it's quite a shiver down my spine when I heard what we have to do....

this career is good in a sense that it constantly reminds me how young I am and how far a road I have to go to be RICH one day....HAHAHAH....

hahaha.... more shit brewing.....

Cheers to our Future!!!

I never realised what they mean by high networth individuals until Friday night... hahaha....

CHEERS TO OUR FUTURE!!!!

Our security pass to the dream home at "The Berth"....

Our "towkay" chauffeur for the night....

what a day...

PS: A few remarks made.... might be offensive to some people...

I totally lost my cool today. Nope, it was still good that I didn't shout at anyone. But I knew I totally lost it. I was shivering with so much anger...

S.O.B sup made me go on a wild goose chase 3 times this morning. Two of which wasn't part of my job at all. The 3rd one was the ultimate. The day before, the barge engineer and I have gone through a list of equipment that we need for the next operations 'cos we were unloading equipment off the ship. Rig manager was there and he saw those stuff as well...It was okay-ed.

Then S.O.B sup decided to go for a walk around the rig this morning and he started checking the equipment that we need for the next operations as well. Normally, a float collar is made up to a joint. HOwever, this time, it isn't. It's just a 0.5 m long float collar. He opened the box and cannot f**king hell tell the difference whether it was a float collar and a drop-down plug. Then he totally went bersek. He called me on the phone, started questioning me about it and totally DOUBTED the fact that I have checked the equipment can? He came up to office, demanded the manifest from me and I showed him that there were really 2 float collars manifested and I have checked it. Then he told me to go look into the wooden box and open my eyes big.

B**TARD. I went to look and the float collars are lying down there!!!! I told him that he could come and look at it for himself again. While I was doing that, he called the logistic guy in town to check if they were delivered at all. Even the logistics guy can tell him that the 2 float collars are there and were not made up to a joint at all.

F*king hell. My respect for him was down to nil since the whole incident. This is not the first time he panicked and went around like a headless chicken already loh.....

I swear I will never EVER be like this when I get up to the position of a drilling supervisor. People who aren't trained in drilling from the start of their career, should never be allow into this rank at all. They think they know the world but actually, they don't at all. All they know very well was a small part of their portfolio that they have worked before.... This is very very true....It's because drilling engineering is all about experience. One can totally see the difference between someone who started out drilling and someone who didn't. My drilling manager, my SW boss and the other 2 drilling sups that I know all have drilling backgrounds and they are very zai people....

but looking at my 2 sups onboard now... things can just go haywire anytime man...

Some shit brewing in my pot...

I was reading the budget statement on Channel News Asia. If I was still schooling, my immediate remark would be "Wow! $300 again!!" and be happy like freak over it. hahaha... after all which government in the world gives money to its citizen every year one. But this year, it's slightly different. There's only 1 fundamental statement behind it all. The rich is only going to get richer and the poor would only get poorer. Poorer not meaning that they are earning less. Poorer in the quality of life. The pay jump for people in the higher income bracket is between 20% to 50%. Wah seh... don't who are those market spoilers who has got 50%.. basket.. I thought my pay jump was quite decent liao.. haha.. Anyway, there was a strong emphasis in increase in inflation, all thanks to oil prices....hahaha... =P Frankly, I am really thankful that oil prices are so high now. When oil prices are high, there would be a lot of drilling activities, which means I get a job. It's a very selfish thought as there are a lot of people suffering out there because of the high oil prices. On other matters, I was really quite upset yesterday... There was a big hoo-ha amongst my colleagues and the management lately. Statements made in a matter of jokes were TOTALLY blown out of proportion. If you don't want to be part of the joke, then keep yourself out of it. Frankly, I am quite demoralised about how things turned out yesterday. It left me with a bitter taste...Why must people always think the worst of other people and start making statements that hurt? If I have enough sense to be objective, why can't others be just as objective as well? It's good being offshore. Politics are usually kept aside and the people don't usually try to stir shit... probably it's because it is a male thing. Females just talk too much sometimes... I am not blasting my own kind but I have to admit that this is a very true fact. I am female myself and I know very well how shitty this can get. Like what Paul said before... If you 1 or 2 girls on the rig, it's okie. 3 maybe still alright. But 4.. that's it.... all hell breaks loose... hahaahha...

Being Objective

I think as a only female on the rig, I have to be as objective and in-control of my feelings all the times. Objective meaning, I should not get swayed over by my feelings as easily as most girls do. Seriously, I think I am quite biased sometimes. Or at other times, get fustrated too easily. I can really be quite girly in a lot of sense. And I seriously don't think that this is going to help me in my workplace at all. Somehow, I seemed to have lost a lot of those toughness that I had when I was in junior college in particular. That kind of feministic views where a girl can do everything that a guy can do and even better... hahaha.. I think I have grown out of that phase. Less tomboy, slightly less clumsy, long hair, quit drinking and I DO try to speak softer. All these doesn't really help in my job at all... *sigh* then what? am I supposed to keep 2 different personalities onshore and offshore? Not that anyone has complained about me being too girly or something but I was just thinking about a lot of things lately. If only I had 3/4 of what I had in the past now, I think I would have been less of a pushover and get people to do things my way. Okie, I think too much sometimes.. =P going to sleep... *muakz*

Are you lonesome tonight?

aiya.. it's Valentine's Day today. Some guys on the rig actually wished me Happy Valentines Day. hahaha.. quite good lah.. Then there's this guy (NOT INDIAN!!) who looks like zai zai minus the height, for me to beo every day. wahahaha... eye candy siah.... Then don't know why. HOW COME EVERYONE IS NOT ONLINE TODAY?!?!? All trying to act like they have a date.... zzzz... hahaha... then I went to put those kinky nic "Are you lonesome tonight? Do you miss me tonight?" hahaahhaa.... end up got boo-ed by some of my friends... hahahaa... in better mood, after 1 day of blasting "Offspring" into my ears... hahaha.. punk rock never fails to cheer me up siah.. hahaha....

I HATE MY SUP!!!!

oh. It's 14 Feb tomorrow....

Wah damn heng, I am not in Sg. It's the day where I never like, even when I was attached....

As a couple, I certainly think that it was overhyped and I don't believe that a guy should do sweet things for a girl on that day.... It has to be at least a weekly thing... =P

As a single, it reminds me how LONELY I am on this day... sianz...

But good thing is I am working tomorrow away from ALL couples... ahhaha. =P

Actually, I have been feeling a bit down lately. I don't think it's my fault or I think too much.... but I really hate working for my current sup. Think only James would understand. This South American has a very very bad temper. He's always shouting at people which I feel he doesn' t have any right to. I, myself, got screamt by him a few times as well. But those were because I was at fault lah...

Anyway, yesterday, things were not going smoothly and this occurred at about 4pm. He went up to the drillfloor to investigate, while I stayed in office. I stayed behind because that incident had a lot of people running to the floor as well... there isn't much technically that I can contribute so I stayed behind..... Then my night sup woke up and told me to stay behind in the office to answer any phone calls... he came back after awhile, explained to me what was happening. Since THERE ISN'T ANYTHING I can help, I went to bathe.

I noticed something was amissed when I was about to have dinner. So I went back up to office to find out what happened. My S.O.B sup was there. Then I asked him for updates. He started to say things like if I wanted to learn, I should have been up there. Come on lah.. if I was up there, I would only be taking up space in that dog house can? There were already like 6 people in there at that time and many more outside can...then he went on to say things like "this is not a 9-to-5 job. If I expect to start and end work on time, I should stay in Singapore instead."

WAH SEH... that was the ultimate liao.... my night sup said that I should go bathe and have dinner one can....I was so DU LAN with him till I decided to stay up to work with my night sup till midnight....

In my past hitches, with my other sup, I NEVER have problems working for him one can.... and I frequently had to work past dinner and there were a lot of work to do (which I don't complain about), so I wake up at like 4+ and start work at 5am kind... BUT with this sup, I am free like a bird can... he claims that he wants to be in control and he doesn't trust anyone. Even when he assigns me work, he will do the same piece of spreadsheet himself to double check my work and at the end, use his own work instead... IT'S A COMPLETE WASTE OF TIME WORKING FOR HIM ONE.....

Even though he apologised for what he said this morning, I am really still very angry with him.... but I knew very well that he felt bad for making that sort of UNTRUE statements just because he was in a BAD MOOD.....

It's ending soon....

Happy Chinese New Year to all... Wah seh, the homesickness is literally terrible when I am away from my comfort zone on festive seasons. It certainly didn't help when my mum's birthday was on the 1st day of CNY. I couldn't get either of my parents on their mobile at all. Thanks to the very competent XX country telcom. Luckily, I have found a way to get a temporary relief from those down moments. Drinking a bowl of hot soup. It certainly reminds me how chinese I am. A bowl piping hot soup after a meal. =) For the first time today, my sup and I had the longest conversation of 15 mins. Hmm... I will save the story of why we rarely speak at length for another day. Anyhow, he has a job waiting for him now but he's quite reluctant to join him 'cos it is an office job. He was telling me that he's quite surprised that we actually have a bond to my current company for 3 long years, especially in such a robust job industry. Actually, he has more or less disturbed my "equilibrium of thoughts" with his words....It hit a raw nerve. There's always a limitation to how much a small company can do for me. And it is definitely true that sometimes in this job I wished that I could go for more training courses to learn more things. See how an MNC function etc....It didn't help when I have a 3 year bond tagged to my head. On a positive side, my boss has been good to me lah...pay not very high only...Even my current drilling manager has always told me that I should not worry too much because he feels that this co can provide me with the correct environment to grow up in before I go out and join the "big boys". If there's one person I totally looked up to.. it would be this drilling manager. He can be really harsh in his words to me sometimes. However, he's definitely the wisest guy I ever knew, not just in drilling technicalities... Lately, I have been thinking real hard how to chart my career path upwards...aiya, sometimes I just totally hate it when people's words disturb the equilibrium that I have found for myself... zzz.... This is almost officially my last hitch in XX country. hahaha... =PpPp actually, I am quite glad this is ending faster than expected. I am really burnt out from all the shuttling around between 2 countries and the less than 8 days break per month schedule. I am so looking forward to hanging out and doing nothing in Singapore when I get home!!! Just the coffee, the book and me..... =)

Happy Lunar New Year!!!

Alright. Took out that freaking old and huge song. Shall just keep my simple like when I started out. Chinese new year tomorrow and here I am, heading off to work in Bangladesh.... kns... By recent forecast, this is going to be my last hitch in Bangladesh. LALALALALALLA.... so quite happy lah... but then again, this is dependent on what takes place in the next few days. =) OooPpps... confidential wor...=) Spain's plan is going all well. Flights and acccomodations are all booked liao. Quite excited about it... okay lah. Shall promise to revive my totten blog when I get onto the rig. =PpPp