Seems Like...Everyone's Working!

picture by Stephan Geyer

The minute I got home after STPM, I came home and..

Pop! Pop! Not firecrackers but some friends started chatting with me after we've fasted from Facebook for a month (seemed like ages though). First thing they asked was "what you going to do after this?"

Honestly, I have no idea at all.

The only things I know for sure after exam was getting my hair done, going for youth camp (great and chilly time there btw, it was the misty Fraser's Hill!) and Christmas. Precisely after that, I have no idea.

So I poked my nose into other's business - not something I always do but hey, exams are over! - and there's only one conclusion that I found out: Almost everyone's going to work. Some have already started the day after exams while some are going to start next year.

For every school leaver it seems like working is the most viable next option, unless your parents are the kind that enroll you in the next college in January.

I wonder what's so fun about working besides the money, sometimes. There are people who say that their bosses are mean, their colleagues gossip and the customers are fussy. Some people even say that they have been harassed at work (being female does make me more liable...oh no!). When hearing these tales I don't really look forward to working.

And then there's those who say the exact opposite: The boss is friendly and treats them out for tea, they've made tons of new buddies (who were mostly also school leavers!), and they got good pay along with valuable experiences. When I hear that I think "Hey, that ain't so bad'.

These tales were the experiences of others - it is not experienced first hand. I'd never really know what work life is like until I actually start working.

My mom and dad do encourage me to work all right - a taste of the real world, they say, and the most productive way to spend 8 months with no serious commitments coming up.

What about that piano teaching thing on the weekends? It did give me experiences with certain areas that are work related such as commitments, customers, and relating to my boss aka my piano teacher, but still it's not yet 'the wide, wide world out there' that is really going to test my patience (which I tend to have a serious lack of).

Some people have said "lucky you - you didn't have to really work all this while". But that's why I'm afraid - of the unknown. How do you expect a "blurry-eyed and fresh out of school" kid to suddenly act all adult-like and professional? I really wonder...out loud. I escaped after SPM through driving lessons but there's no escaping this time 'round.

Then there's this thing that I learned at youth camp. Surprisingly (not to brag) whenever I go to camps I expect to learn from what someone else says (which I have and everyone has) but the statement that struck me so profoundly was a Bible verse that due to the drama that I did with the girls in camp, came out of my own mouth:

"..."My [God's] grace is sufficient for you, for my [God's] power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I [this was Paul] will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." (2 Corinthians 12:9, context brackets added)

Boasting about how afraid I am to work doesn't make sense to me on the surface - won't that make people take advantage of me? However, I want to hold on to God's promise that His power will work through my weaknesses so that I can do my best at work.

Ah, that beings me to the next question: Work as what? I'd prefer a clerical job in a legal firm to see first hand what working in the legal field is all about, and if it suits me, but the job I'd actually end up in depends on the opportunities that present themselves (and a lot of asking around.)

Until then, I'll ask...and wait...hope, and pray.

Merry 3-days-until Christmas! :)

Au revoir, STPM!

Before anything else, I've got a confession to make. I kinda forgot the specific way that I used to blog stuff before the exam, so I'll just type my heart out today :)

picture taken from Meredith's in Brasilia (blog)

December 13th, 2011.
3:59:59pm.
It was the last ever moment of school life for myself and some 30 plus schoolmates that had endured one and a half years of sweet and sour together for the past one and a half year (plus minus).

After that, we were emancipated. Faster than I can turn my head, actually; almost everybody left school within 5 minutes of passing up the last paper with quick hand waves. They disappeared so fast...and I actually had a good chat with the security guard before leaving school.

So long, school. So long, school uniform - in the cupboard you go, for sale at a future date. Same goes for the textbooks in the bookshelf. The workbooks and notes are going back to school next month to be used by my juniors (if they want to that is, and whatever salvageable). As for the black shoes...my sister's still in school.

How were the remaining 4 papers, you ask? Here's the breakdown:

Makro: Somewhat manageable for me, but Mikro was easier for me. From personal experience, STPM economy students can be classed into those who fare better in Mikro (all the details and graphs) or Makro (seeing the big picture and concepts that influence country and international economy). As a detail freak, I fall in the former category. I like Makro too though :)

PP2: There was that 'belanjawan tunai' question...I didn't read it but I did remember doing it with my teammate last year in our actual business plan (mulling over all those numbers did take a considerable amount of days) so I can do it...only later found out that I 'salah istilah'. Right concept, different words - whether it gets any marks depends on what says the examiner. Overall it was doable.

Sejarah 2: Was hard. Normally the other paper (Sejarah 1) is considered the harder paper because of its stricter marking scheme and wider syllabus but this time there's only one question that I remembered the scheme answers due to a presentation last year...the rest I 'vomited' out whatever facts I knew. I really don't know what to expect from this paper.

PA1: Did I redeem myself for the suckish PA2 paper? In a sense, this paper was easier than I expected. Still, there were tricky questions in the first few pages...Have to keep my fingers crossed for this one.

picture by Bob Cotter

Next question. How to spend the next few months of freedom? Here's what I will/might do:

• Learn/refresh driving. My word on driving myself to collect the STPM results in February 2012 still stands.
• Go shopping (when needed and by taking advantage of year end sales)
• Find a part time job -I actually am scared at the idea; I've heard the tales (more on that in a later post) of working. Oh well, life's full of new experiences right?
• Volunteer - for any group/ministry/project that needs help. Worth the experience, too.
• Do (a lot of) research on legal studies - read law books (my dad go and download quite a few on our Kindle, so I do owe myself reading time)
• Research and write short stories and articles (this is besides Remag - I've always wanted to do that. One step closer to the dream of writing and publishing a fiction book (more if possible) in my lifetime, heehee)
• Join the youth/YA groups of other churches. I'm not planning to change churches or whatever, and I still can help the youth group in my home church but if possible at a different time, I want to learn about fellowship and God in an unfamiliar setting to avoid being complacent and lazy in matters of faith and following God (which does describe me now...sigh), and also to get to know more people in the same age/slightly elder age group, which is really few in my church now.
• Travel whenever there's the time and money for it...even if it's nearby :)
• Assist my sister in SPM (whatever I can remember that is)
• Skills courses (e.g public speaking, business skills, perhaps even self-taught typing. Not to mention drum and guitar, and taking my piano classes seriously ARGH!)
• Sports! For getting fit and getting out of phobias such as fear of water. I so wanna swim argh! No nearby pool though so it's inconvenient for the time being.

Well that's all I can think of now...in the next 9 months let's see how this goes...