In this page, you will get to explore the mind, events and feelings of a Chun Jui... ok, fine, judging from the past 23 years, my life is far from what you call "eventful" (in fact, "dull" might the be more appropriate adjective) but I'll try to keep my entries interesting!
Wednesday, August 20, 2003
The above photos were taken last night at Remy's . As some of you guys may know, Anita came back for a visit and she's leaving on Saturday! We were supposed to have a big group reunion but one by one, certain individuals droppped out, *ahem*. =P Just kidding, I told Anita that you guys really wanted to go but couldn't because of your various excuses, I mean, reasons. =P Anita, you must come back soon-- with a high official?!?! hahaha... And no thanks, you don't need to look for one for me!
Everybody coping well with the conservation of energy? All I know is that it took one huge blackout for me to realize how easy it is to bring our world to a halt. All you have to do is pull the plug and all of a sudden, we don't know how to survive anymore. Not having electricity for 24.5 hours, and having to survive the past few days without air conditioning really made me realize how precious electricity is. I find myself now getting annoyed at those (including my family members) who leave lights on, turn on the TV just for some noise, and leave the computer on. I feel guilty right now, actually, for even having my computer on just to update this website but my dad reassured me that it's ok. =P
One last thing: Happy 29th Wedding Anniversary, Mom and Dad! Dinner's on me, ok? =P
Monday, August 11, 2003
Well, I'm thoroughly confused. Last week's shortened work week due to the Civic Holiday was enough to throw me off-- Tuesday felt like Monday but Thursday felt like Friday, etc. I should have also felt happy that it was only a four-day week-- and I was, until I remembered that I had to work on the weekend too, which meant my work week was really a six-day week! =( I worked at the Toronto Youth Games on the weekend @ Birchmount Stadium for eight hours each day of the weekend.. =( I had an easy job, actually, AND I got to sit under a tent, protected from the sun... heehee.. Anyway, so Saturday and Sunday felt like regular weekdays, and today, because of such a long week, felt like a Friday!!! =/ I'm so confused! AND, by this Friday, I will have worked for 11 days straight!!! *sigh* I have no life...
Anyway, the Toronto Youth Games is an event that was launched in 2000, aimed at giving less privileged kids from 13-16 years of age a chance to be treated as real athletes: free transportation to the venue, competition against other teams from other community centres in various events such as volleyball, and track, free T-shirts, free lanyards, and free lunch for both days. I think it's a wonderful idea, and I think that they all had a good time. Their team spirit was high, and it was just wonderful to see these kids have so much fun. Of course, being the age they are, some of them still weren't satisfied with all that they were getting for free, and that pissed me off but kids are kids, right? I even had to "yell" at a kid who was way taller than me--- and in front of my supervisor (I was allowed to be "authoritative"), who, before this weekend thought that I was too nice to yell at someone. =) The kid was trying to give me attitude but I am proud to say, I gave him attitude right back. =P hahaha...
Anyhow, if you have spoken to me some time in the recent weeks, you probably have had to go through my rambling/venting about my co-workers. To make a really long story short, let's just say I've got the laziest co-ordinator in the world, and that in reality, I'm more of a co-ordinator than he is. This guy was late every single day of last week, left early on of those days, AND didn't bother to show up last Friday---- and it was a 4-day week!!! He was supposed to work at the Youth Games too but of course, "something" came up, and he couldn't go. Then, just when I thought he couldn't get any worse, the guy didn't show for work today either!! He called and he said he'd be in for the afternoon but I knew he wasn't going to bother to show at all--- I was right. I've had to work SOLO a couple of times already this summer, when I was supposed to work with two other people, I'm there on time 99% of the time, I've covered my co-ordinator's butt so many times, I leave when we're supposed to, and yet, I get paid $1 less than him per hour, AND I haven't been allowed to have any time off! This guy has NO preschool experience, doesn't know how to deal with kids, cannot communicate properly with the parents, lies outlandishly (does he think we're complete idiots like him?? You should hear one of his many excuses/lies!! It's unbelievable!), and is basically lazy. I know my supervisor is kicking herself now for choosing to hire him as a co-ordinator over me... she won't admit it out loud though, of course. I had begged for some time off before this camp started because I desperately needed some time off after school ended and before I started working full-time this summer and the only day I got off was my convocation day! I had begged to get my birthday off, didn't get it, and I was the only one out of the three of us to show up for work that day!!!! argghhhhhhhh..... ANYWAY, one of the ladies who works at the community centre, advised me to take a couple of days off, and demand that my co-ordinator and my co-worker cover for ME for once, instead of the other way around. I have something called "lieu time", which is pay for overtime work I've done. This past weekend was banked as lieu time, which means I can get that pay whenever I take time off from work. And that means, I technically get two paid days off. I have the right to take time off, and I think I'm gonna take them off. I'm thoroughly fed up with this crap, I've worked hard all year long, and have only taken about three days off from work since January this year (twice because I was sick, and once was for convocation)-- I think I deserve it, don't you??
Friday, August 8, 2003
Happy Belated Birthday, May! Thanks for being one of my very best friends for so long! Thanks for being there whenever I needed you, and for putting up with my crap all these years! =D
Wow, it's August again--- in four months, Christmas will be upon us again! (I remember thinking the exact same thing last year around this time, too!). Time really goes by too quickly-- sometimes, so quickly that it makes me feel a little sad. I always feel bad that I haven't lived each day to the fullest, that I haven't done everything I wanted to each day. I keep on putting things off for tomorrow, and when tomorrow comes, I always find myself too tired, too busy to do whatever it was that I wanted to do the day before. Do any of you guys feel that way sometimes? Or is it just me, thinking too much again??
Some of you may know/remember that one of my passions is writing. In high school, I had always excelled in my English classes, especially that OAC Writer's Craft class. Even when I was little, I would always find some time to write creatively, be it story books, short stories or simple essays/reflections on whatever was on my mind. However, ever since going into university and working during my spare time, I've pretty much abandoned creative writing. I've even slowed down my writing in my diary. So this eJournal is something I really value because it is my own space to write down my thoughts in a quick and neat way. Even though I don't record my most deep down, most personal thoughts here (hey, I still need some privacy! =P), this space really lets me express myself. I am not, by any means, claiming that I am a good writer--- all I'm saying is that I really enjoy the process of expressing myself through ink and paper, or, in this case, cyberspace... Anyway, since I realized that summer is almost over and I haven't really done much of anything except to go to work, I thought I would try to write again. I was in one of my thoughtful moods one day, thinking about a conversation I had with my co-worker, and the following is something I jotted down (please don't laugh):
"Happiness"
Happiness:
Is happiness something only others can give us
Can happiness be a million dollars
Sometimes I don't know what happiness is
It must be the feeling I get in my heart
I have a new Chevrolet Cavalier 2003 to drive! I feel extremely lucky... if only I liked driving more! But now, at least it's more convenient especially in the coming school year, where I have to drive all over the place just to go to my practicum schools and OISE/UT. Thank you to the "man upstairs" for blessing me with the luxury of driving a new car.
<-- A portrait of me, painted by one of my preschoolers! =P 
<--The preschool rooms--aren't the murals on the walls just beautiful?? --> 
Is happiness when all of your dreams have come true
Or is it when you feel satisfied
Even if reality has turned out to be quite
Different from your dreams?
Or is it something that is found
Deep within your soul?
Or is it the feeling you get when you see
A baby smile
Or hear the words
"I love you"?
Not because I don't have any
But because I don't know how to
Define it.
Whenever I see my parents quickly peck each other on the lips
Or when I hear the peals of laughter from my preschool students
Or the thought of drawing close to realizing my childhood dream of becoming a teacher.
It must also be why I smile whenever
I think of you and our time together,
And the realization that our memories are ours and only
Ours;
Nobody can take them away from me.
Home