Before next week

where I die, I should show u gals what I've been up with the last 2 weeks.

D has offered to help me sell some notebooks and asked me to create a few. 

And here they are!  I didn't take pics of all the notebooks as there are a total of 9 and I was in a lousy mood on Monday so i didn't take pics of all of them...

Big thanks to Leena for her generosity and I used plenty of Pink Paislee Ephemerals for the 3 notebooks..

Hiatus time

It's that time of year that I go into hiberation and disappear off the face of the net and bury myself in scripts.  This year's load is no better than the last and thanks to some sneaky evil doers with no EQ and common courtesy, I got the worst possible deal ever.  Superbly upset, couldn't sleep on Monday when news broke.  Half wondering why I always find myself in such helpless situations with no possible way out.  It's darn painful.

Not refusing to go down quietly into the night with no fight and attempt to salvage the situation, I voiced out how I felt in all sincerely and honestly to the IC but again, she claimed that she understood my plight, but she had no other solutions to the problem. And so I became the most convenient sacrificial lamb. And the person who would be the solution to the problem.  I am disgruntled and most unhappy.

What would Joanna do in such a situation?

Fight on OR back down?

Those of you who know me already have the answer.

  And said, 'I can't do it'.  Period. I really can't.  I did the Math, I looked at the time given. Not possible. Not within my ability to accomplish. I'm sorry. I'm not lazy. I put effort into my work. But it just can't be done. 

And the boss proposed a solution which I was happy with. At least it's the best one can do in such a sticky situation. 

And for that, I'm grateful to her. 

And this is why...

 

 

 Sin Yao: U make us all very proud of u!

I think I still enjoy teaching and interacting with my students. Today I'm blown away by one of my students' determination to excel and succeed beyond the realm of academia.  I've taught this student for 1.5 years since he's Sec 1 and he's also in my CCA.  National 400m Gold on Thurs and Today's 200m Gold. 

Look at the margin that we won. At the finals.  What a feat! 

I've always emphasised the importance of studying to him (cos obviously that's not his first priority) but today I learnt from him that life is really really more than studying.  And there are other things worth fighting for, worth striving for.  And it's moments like these that we remember for life - not what we learnt in class per se. 

Lesson worth remembering for me.

I remember all my school days of skipping classes, feigning sickness to go sleep in the sick bay, squatting at the drains brushing my teeth after recess with my school given orange mug and days of Bookworm club coming to our school.  And there was the part where we had rosters to wash the toilets and how my friends and me made a mess of the toilets and splashed water all around. And how we would go to the nearby mall after school and loiter.  Everything else that happened in class was a blurr.  What did the Physics teacher teach us?  No idea.  Some electricity thing. Fall Asleep.  Maths?  Don't even get me started.  I skipped so many of those 2xy +4ab +3xy = 4 lessons. 

Today I am humbled that my 14 year old student taught me more than I ever taught him in class.

If you're interested, you can watch this video of his 400m race. Lots of fans out there taking videos of him!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsFOYOXtFqk

Winners announced!

Apologies for the delay.....

Sad to say, no one managed to guess that Book 9 was the one done by Jeanette but but but....

Julia, you're spot on with my choice of favourite book!  Book 7 it is! :)

So please email me with your postal address and I'll get the stuff out to you!

Joanna

Grateful...

Really am. 

As you read this, my heart is filled with immense gratitude for things around me and I really wanna put this down on record (despite having quite a bit of work to do even at 830pm).

For friends who call / sms / msn me almost immediately after reading my rock bottom post.  Chris even wanted to pray for me online and I'm really glad I have friends like him around.  They just make your day better.

For fantastic work colleagues who ask about your missing books today at the office.  And for the nameless good Samaritan who found the books and placed them in my pigeon hole. But he / she still won't tell me who he is despite me sending out an email to the whole staff!  And for Terence / David who go out to get lunch today and remember that Koi is my one true bubble tea love and buy an awesome cup for me. Seeing Koi on my table after lessons is probably the best thing I ever want hope to get after a tried day.  U guys rock!

Other fantastic girls at work -Latifah, Huayi, Siew Yan...I really have to say that working with them rocks!  They are easy going, no one really is very anal and all are helpful and willing to share stuff.  let's just say we are all on the same page and our frequency is in tune!  I've worked with difficult people before (and still do) and it can be really tough and painful. Especially when u don't agree and the other person bull dozes her way through and kind of forces u to accept their view. And just because you're a small fry, u gotta give in. Or if such people go straight to the boss, get their support and then u have no choice.  Your opinion doesn't count. :(  But with these girls, I can only say, they are fantastic!  I hope we get to work again next year!  And then I'm suddenly reminded about my ex colleagues. I miss working with them and I had great bosses like Ed and YM.  I still hold them in great respect and admiration.  Maybe someday I will get the chance to work with them again.


For my family - my sister, parents and H who love me and will always be there for me.  I'm glad we still make concerted effort to meet up despite Bro and me being married and having our own families.  And H who never screams at my scrap mess or says anything about them although i think secretly he loathes my hobby cos it creates much clutter!


If you can, pray with me for God's direction for 2012.  I'm still seeking his will and doing the sums in the meanwhile..

Rock Bottom...

Feeling very very down this past week. It's probably been the worse week in the whole year.  Monday and tuesdays were totally crazy and mind boggling. I literally had 20+ items on my 'to do' list each day and was just going mad trying to juggle everything on my plate.  I like to attribute it to the fact that 2 subjects had tests this week (please remind me never ever to do this again!) plus exams are looming so extra lessons / consultations are a must. 

I finish one remedial on tues, bring the worksheets back to my desk, take a 5 min break..rush off for remedial #2 with my stack of stuff and the worksheets go a sunder.  Great. 7 min walk back to find them.  At 4pm. They disappear. I JUST HAD THEM 10 MINS AGO! WHERE ARE THEY???  Check email, hoping to find a softcopy in my inbox. DON"T HAVE!  I am going bonkers.  Students are waiting for me, I am late. And there are no worksheets.  Great.  And the next day they show up in my box for students' projects.  FANTASTIC! WHERE WERE THEY WHEN I NEEDED THEM???

By Friday, I'd hit rock bottom.  My whole friday was jam packed and ironically, I only had 1 teaching period that day but all the other periods went to meetings and discussions. And remedials. And preparing worksheets.  At 5pm I decided I'd had enough and H got off earlier than expected and was on his way to get me.  And so I decided to leave. Barang in my hand, all packed to go.  Pleased that I'd helped Bro and Dad buy 2 story books at a cheap price and tucked them in a grummy orange plastic bag and clutched it in my hand as I walked away from my desk.  2 mins walk to the car park. Stopped by the washroom.  Got into the car and went for dinner. 

And then...I realised...the books were missing.  Not in the car.  H suggested we go back to look for them and I agreed.  Scoured my whole desk at 7pm on Friday, checked the washrooms. Nowhere to be found.  I wish I could start swearing. I really do.

This is what happens when you are too stressed out.  Temporary amnesia sets in.  I absolutely do not remember where I placed them so I like to think they grew wings and literally flew out of my hands.  Since I had amnesia, I obviously cannot recall them taking flight. I am really getting frustrated at my lack of ability to remember and recall things.  It's upsetting and threating to bring chaos in my life.

I was so down yesterday I didn't even want to read the papers or surf blogs cos I figured if I read more stuff, it'll take up space in my brain and that means I will forget stuff that previously happened.  I can't believe I've reached this stage.

Pray along with me if you can. I really need a lot of prayer. And God's help.  I am totally burnt out. Very tired. Very listless.  Struggling to survive.

Today I worked on this notebook to give myself a break. I think I need it to stay sane.  Thank God for inspiration even though I have 100001 things on my mind for the upcoming week.

Thanks for dropping by..hope next week will be a good one for  you and me!

Papertrey Ink Fun!

Got these uber cute stamps last week and decided to play with them this morning before setting off for church..

Don't you think they are so cute?  I've no regrets purchasing them and will probably buy tag#3 when it is released this month!  The possibilities are endless and so much fun to work on them!

I used them as a gift tag for this pressie I made..and here's what's inside the box:



2 banners for my 2 most favourite people in the world!  Inspired by Echo Park's Little Girl collection and when I saw them, I knew I had to buy them to make this.  Apologies that I can't photogaph the whole banner cos it's quite hard to do so...

I hope the 2 girls will like it in time to come when they get older!

This week will be busy..got heaps of stuff going on..competitions and class tests..so not fun! I hope week 5 will be better!!

Give away time!

Hi Ladies,
Thanks for sticking with me thus far on 13 Meivid books.  I think some of the entries may be picture heavy and I hope it was not an overload!  Esp on BG Capella.  As you know I seldom post my work on online galleries or enter them for challenges so I'm grateful for those of you who know me and bother to stop by and leave your comments.

For this giveaway, here's what you stand to win:

 

6 sheets of patterned paper + one 12 x 12 brand new Prima Madelaine collection chipboard, some Maya Road frames, some charms and Retrospection tags.

To be entered into this drawing:  you'll need to have looked through my previous entries and guess which book is done by Jeanette, my dearest sister. :)  

Hint: look for something 'different' from my usual style!

And a bonus prize will be given to anyone who manages to guess which of the 13 books is my favourite.  I really like all of them, some more than others but I have finally picked a favourite so let's see if you are spot on!

Contest closes on 20/4/2011 so keep those guesses coming!

Have a great week!

This is it!

Presenting Book 16:

Websters Country Estate (oh how I love these papers!) inspired and decked with my handmade faux pearls and the usual flower toppings.  I cannot get enough of these lovely flowers Fern bought from Bangkok!

Here's a sneak..

And the book itself!

Yes! You'll notice I've not got the Meivid in...cos I can't find any thickers to match the book but I will pilfer some from Jean or HY soon..They've both volunteered to give me some thickers!

Thanks for dropping by..I'll be back soon with a giveaway as promised!