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Joshua Hoong
06.09.92
Audiophile
Self-Proclaimed-Certified-iPod-Evangelist

Saturday, January 31, 2009 Farewell

HI Bearies,

I just wanna say a really big THANK YOU to all of you during my time in Providend. Thank you for being so nice and approachable to me, treating me with the equal respect as you would with other colleagues. I feel most honoured to be here. And I hope I have added value into your lives during my stay, making you feel like a teenager again.

I have gleaned something I previously lacked: Confidence. Initially, when I came face to face with strangers, a weak “hi” would be as much as I can manage before I would shrink back into my shell, kicking myself for not saying more. When Moon went through the jobscope with me, I almost freaked and told myself I wouldn’t be able to take this especially when it involved speaking to complete strangers; high netwoth clients; prospects. But I told myself I had to start somewhere and took it up after talking to God about it. And I haven’t looked back since.

My biggest appreciation would go to the Finance Department: Sylvia, Moon and Hedy. Thank you for always being there for me, yielding to my demands in the midst of your work. I think I disturbed Hedy the most, asking so many questions. Thank you, Hedy for being ever so gracious. I think if I were in her position, I’d be pretty annoyed with that tall, handsome, dark man sitting next to me. (Not you Chiu Weng)

Random thanking:

· Thank you Chiu Weng for teaching me how to make coffee I think I’ll go work in Starbucks next. I enjoyed chatting with you and thanks a lot for imparting your sage wisdom to me and guiding me to the right path after the Os.

· Chin Huah, thanks your sage wisdom too in paving the way to my future, helping me understand what lies in front of me and arming me advice.

· Nicholas and Daryl, thank you so much for teaching me how to play basketball properly. Thanks dudes!

· Sandy thanks for your in-depth research on Visual Communications and I enjoyed chatting with you A LOT. 5 bucks says you’re the only one who knows my Chinese name apart from my mom. Let’s grab a Stella together when I turn 18.

· Cherie thanks for making the first step and coaching me into unleashing that deep, sincere voice I never knew I had hahaha.

· Yin Fong thanks for organizing games day which was the main activity I look forward to most apart from lunch.

Thank you everyone else for playing a part in making my stay here super-duper fun!

Yesterday when Christopher presented the red envelope to me, I half-hoped it to be a dollar bill which fit the size of that A5 envelope. But when I ripped it open, I found something even better, something priceless. I was surprised that the envelope could contain such awesomness without bursting open! You guys took the time to write down your sincere wishes and blessings and I was so touched by this that I scanned it and uploaded it on my blog.

So when you guys own the entire Duxton Hill in the near future, do remember me (:

Oh yeah: Text message from Ministry of Education: HOONG HSIEN RUI JOSHUA RUSSELL, you are posted to TEMASEK POLY VISUAL COMMUNICATION under 2009 JAE. My first choice! Praise the Lord!

Cheerios,
Joshua

Administrator (17^th December 2008 to 30^th January 2009)

Providend Ltd
Independent Private Wealth & Investment Manager



Wednesday, January 28, 2009 In the car I close my eyes to better shield it from the glare of the sun. A red veil envelopes my vision and lightning flashes, a kaleidoscope full of mystery, a disco ball of an eye.

Nausea hits me and my eyelids part as quickly as the lips of a couple caught making-out. Everything seems tungsten, desaturated, dead. The headlights swing by at lightspeed and another bout of nausea hits me. I grab my stomach and place my head in between my thighs. Blood rushes back to my head and cousin complains I'm turning red. I say that I am fine. Everything looks normal again, the soft glow in the atmosphere is swept away by the wind and I notice my throat is parched like paper. Your face fills my head and i replay your scent, your laughter, your touch, ad nauseam like a rosary.


Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Went for a swim with the cousins today. I've never been very good at this form of exercise and lost interest after a few laps choosing to instead retire to the benches for a suntanning session after i was motivated by lin's lobster-red skin. I might even consider wearing an orange blouse to complete the look hahaha. I never realized suntanning was so comfortable, the morning breeze, an inviting addition which somehow felt foreign under the warm sun.
Sis almost drowned today because she forgot how to swim. I dove in to her rescue with a mixture of Baywatch scenes and a heart full of brotherly love. Dammit she wasn't the paperweight she looked to be. The water was above me, she was pinning me down and i was swallowing mouthfuls all in an effort of hefting her head above the water and trying to move towards the shore. My shouts of help was received by Stefan who came to OUR rescue.
I replayed the scene a few times, telling myself such an incident like could repeat itself again, and much worse if it happened to you and you matter more than anything to me and I'd gladly drown in place of you if it meant that you'd carry on living. And I could be the only person there. Note to self: Swimming lessons! Physically, submerging myself in the pool, lifting my head towards the shimmering surface, the regions beyond mutated by the behaviour of light. So this was what drowning looked like from above.

Watched Bride wars later in the afternoon with the cousins. I really love the show. Hathaway is so pretty. Hudson looked really fat at certain scenes, but what i learned from the movie apart from the intended Friendship Comes Out Stronger Through Difficulties was how crucial the period between engagement and marriage was; a world of change could take place in a matter of 3 weeks, like how Emma (Hathaway) found out that Fletcher (Chris Pratt) wasn't for her and vice versa, because they had different expectations of each other, and how they could not sit through the period where Liz (Hudson) was just tearing at Emma (which was pretty much the whole movie) and chose to end their relationship right on the D-day. It's so amazing that they've been together for 10 years and such a decision could still arise. I'm content now but at the back of my head, I worry for us.


Monday, January 26, 2009


Chinese New Year 2009 was not as eventful as the previous years' but still, what really caught me was the ecstasy and high I felt during the inevitable blackjack game. The shouts, the triumphant punches in the air, the 5-inch hops off the seats, the anguish from losing 50 cents, the split-second sad faces before the smiles turned right side up again eager to win it back. These emotions flooded through me, a light happy feeling. I love you guys!


Monday, January 5, 2009 I'll tattoo it in the clouds above you



I just found out that Flickr! allows you to post images at such big sizes! I like them large(((((: Edited with Adobe Lightroom 2.2 and taken with Canon EOS 40D mounted with 10-22mm USM!!!

Camera-talk aside, it's dreadful when the day is slow, when it inches ever so slowly and still stumbles, making you want the day to end soon. As most of you are aware, I've taken on a part-time job at my mom's office as an Administrator. It's fun only when you have something to do; a mountain to conquer. If not, life will pass slowly no matter how hard you try, like you're walking through water and it pushes you back, regardless of how hard you try, you will never be as fast.

And it sucks to do live through the 9-6 life away from detection, surreptitiously enjoying my vices until "joy" is replaced by a warped sense of accomplishment of having got away with it. iIt's freaking scary because my in-charge sits in a room behind me (entrance facing my open-cubicle and another colleague sitting a cubicle away) plus my cubicle is next to the door so anyone coming in will find me on Facebook or reading reviews and blogs! Plus, every time I try to work with 2 programs: Adobe Lightroom 2.2 and Microsoft Excel, Lightroom HANGS on me. I think the computer wants me to work argh!

P.S. I wrote this post in in secret. SUCCESS! and I feel very good about myself now! HEEHEE