Mightier is the pen than the sword

With a generous stroke of luck, I just landed myself in a job as an editor.

One of my numerous dream job is to be an editor, amongst many others, like being a fashion designer, a script writer, a film maker, a director, a marketer, an events manager and even running my cafe and tour guides.

I must admit that I've been pretty apprehensive about this -
I'm considerably new to the industry and I still need to hone my customer service skills.

While I may not have the relevant background experience in the publishing industry and am filled with trepidation and anxiety about not being able to do well in the job, I am increasingly excited as days pass into the job because I learn more and more cool aspects about this job.

I viewed the pre-press and press processes and I am never going to look at books or journals the same way again.

A huge load of tedious labour (both manual and automatic) go into the innocent looking book one holds.
From the manuscript which passes through the hands of the editor and editorial assistants many times, to the carefully alligned papers prepared by the type setters, the blue prints where the officers have to breathe in all kinds of chemicals (including ammonia) to the binded copy we hated to read in our university days.

That's a process of almost 9-10 months, almost as good as being pregnant with a foetus.
And I guess all publications are babies to the editors, who see through the job from its conception to the production.
Holding your final copy of the ready-to-publish book is almost like carrying your newborn.
I used "almost" because I don't know how it feels like yet.

As days pass and I slowly learn the technicalities of the job, it really psyches me up to think that I'll have my very first assignment soon.
Imagine having to comb through drafts and of course helping to decide about the book cover design to the thickness of the papers...
Sends tingling through my toes.

=) While it may not be the fashion or lifestyle industry I am hoping to be an editor for in the future, it's a baby step still, isn't it?

Wish me luck! (and lots of wisdom) =)

Scribbling away,
Izzy

Quote of the Day

"Belle,

You could have fallen on your knees and scraped your knees,
But you fell from the plane, standing up.

This is a new opportunity and it's not a bad thing at all.
In fact, it's a brand new start with promising prospects.
I'm very happy for you."

Thank you KJ.
For always being there and offering very sound advice and encouraging words.
Your quote about falling but landing on my knees inspired me a lot. =)

Convocation 2008 pictures

Melvin and Me Daniel, Me and Shawn

Me and the Soci girls

Me and the brilliant Valedictorian :) Apparently touching his hair gave me good luck to get my honours degree in the end.

Me, Jonny and Bianca - The Second Life Project Group

Been a little too lazy uploading these pictures, but these pictures nevertheless mean a lot to me. =)

4 years of undergraduate studies, a day to commemorate in July 2008. =)

Family

Yup, this is me, my mum and my 3 elder sisters. My eldest sister is not inside the picture, regrettably.

We finally got to doing the family portrait plus my graduation pictures at Werkz,

almost 8 months after my convocation.

It was quite an experience, and my family enjoyed every moment of it. The posing, the giggling and the choosing of backdrops...

The closeness of a family that reveals and I'm sure my mum enjoyed seeing her little kids working together cohesively.

I did, as well, knowing how difficult it was to get the whole family to take a picture together.

In total, we took 6 albums, and one included a whole family of 10 people, where it was something that I had wished for the longest time in my life. While regrettably, my eldest sister was not in the picture, it was closest to anything I could ever wish for.

And yes, many friends have commented that I do not look like any of my sisters or my mum...

Leaves me wondering if I was really picked up from a rubbish chute when I was born. =)

What makes us who we are?

Scanned through letters of 5-6 years ago,

familiar yet distant wordings,

brought comfort but now reminiscence of the love long time past,

a precious memory then and now almost chucked away.

Better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved before -

that was what you said.

While I didn't agree with you then, I concur with you now.

It made me who I was, and who I am and who I will be.

While loving and losing seems almost inevitable,

it is a part of our lives,

a phase we go through.

Change is the only thing constant.

And it is with this mentality that life still goes on,

with the hope that better things come along the way,

and the past makes us stronger. =)

And hence, thank you for having loved and lost me.

Finding Love

Some of us look for love.
Some in the wrong places,
some at the wrong time.
Some don't find any at all.

He comes from a torn apart family,
constantly caught between distant parents,
a house; not a home.
His constant search for love -
Or perhaps a nurturing ground to find warmth and care,
once and again broken into shards of glass;
He swore that he'd never have his own family end up like the one he was born in.
Perhaps noone understood what it feels like to be battling alone
Against others,
against himself.
One after another, a serial monogamist?
He thinks not -
just that love came aknocking, one after another.
Truth is, who does he love?
All of them? None of them? Or maybe, just maybe,
Some of them.
Or has love become an emotional crutch,
for him to be able to give and receive love?
An age too young to ponder about the complications of life
Delves deep into the sea without knowing the depth
Cuts himself with broken bottles and stabs himself in the feet with each step on the rocky slabs

Do we find love? Or does love find us?

Colorgenics Test

Name: isabelle
Date: 3/23/2009
Colorgenics Number: 71036254

Enough is enough - you feel frustrated and rejected. You are fighting back and the going is tough. It would be just wonderful if you could be left in peace.
You are experiencing considerable difficulty trying to achieve your goals. As a consequence of this you are becoming more and more irritable. Your friends and acquaintances are finding it increasingly more difficult to appease or to reason with you. You are the cause of your own problems. Don't be so impulsive. It is your vacillation that can lead to problems and uncertainties. Ease up a little.

The way things are, you feel that you are stuck in a rut and there is not much you can do about it. You feel frustrated and inhibited but if you can find a way to let yourself go, you may find that things aren't quite so bad as perhaps you thought they were. One consolation is that since you are an extremely emotional individual, with the right person you may be able to release some of that frustration and tension with some mutual tender loving care.

For some time now your hopes and expectations have been denied and because of this you are becoming withdrawn and introverted. Continual disappointment has manifested itself in you becoming both suspicious and restrained you have become withdrawn from others and have receded more and more into yourself. You seem to have lost your innate enthusiasm and imaginative nature, for fear that you may be carried away by it only to find that you are wasting your time. You are loath to trust people, as in the past your trust has been misplaced. You seem to be keeping yourself cautiously aloof from others. At this moment in time your attitude is to trust nobody - until they can prove themselves to you.

At this time you don't particularly like yourself. Everything that you have tried to do seems to have gone wrong. This makes you feel that there is no point in trying to start again. Apart from being stressed and tense, you are angry with yourself and have unadmitted self-contempt. Your refusal to admit that you and you alone is the basic cause of your problems leads to you adopting a headstrong and defiant attitude. If you take stock of yourself, smile a little and let go, everything will turn out OK. Have you not heard of the cliche 'smile and the world smiles with you - cry and you cry alone!'?

Credits to: http://www.goldinuniverse.com/

1 day and 1 night in Manchester, United Kingdom

And so my little escapade to my favourite country began on 27th February 2009, when I boarded SQ327, a direct flight at 11.55pm from Changi Airport Terminal 3 from SIN - MAN.

It certainly was a little of a mad rush, from my work that Friday evening, to packing for my trip (including some time to panic here and there...) and prepping myself for the trip.

And then the car trip to the airport just felt like it was just another day, almost as if I was due for another night audit in the transit area.

However, this time it was different.

I was with my good old worn-out pink backpack, which housed my winter essentials (black leather gloves, checked; favourite army-like jacket, checked; camera charger for a shutter happy me, checked, good brown boots which lasted my exchange days in Newcastle in winter 2006, checked...)

Almost the same, but yet different.

I was travelling alone for the first time on a long-haul flight (discounting those adhoc EasyJet flights from Newcastle to Paris, London etc),

Also my first flight to Europe alone and a monumental one at that since it was my second SQ flight to Manchester (my first SQ flight was to Brisbane way back in 2002),

Most importantly, I had never been to Manchester and a normal rational me would never fly alone to a European city, with no inkling of where to go, what to do, where to sleep... at such a short notice.

I decided within.... a day? After hearing my colleague suggest that I might as well use my privilege tix to somewhere I love.

London was fully booked, and Manchester was my next immediate choice.

Knowing fully well I'd depart SIN at 2355 hours local time on 27 February 2009, arriving at 0615 hours local time on 28 February in Manchester and leaving at 0915 hours local time on 29 February 2009, reaching Singapore at 0600 hours local time on 1 March 2009.... taking into consideration the time difference, I would only have about one day and one night on ground in Manchester, and I'd have burnt most of my time onboard the aircraft.

Thank goodness for inflight entertainment. Never the kind to hanker over such inflight service, I found my time well spent onboard the two flights to and fro Manchester.

I watched Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amelie with the Audio-video on demand, and finally I understood the whole plot. For the longest time since I watched this in JC during a lit lesson, I couldnt understand and didnt have time to rewatch this film for years. And now, I am really beginning to feel that several French films are really.. fun and eccentric, many a times unreplicable by other kinda films. They have this twist that keeps the audience just enthralled with the interesting puns and philosophies of life. Think Hors de Prix, 48 Heures Par Jour, Jeux d'enfants... These films never fail to amaze me and the closet film maker wanna-be hopes to find inspiration one day to be able to think of a plot like that... just someday.

I also watched Madagascar 2 and laughed so heartily the other British passengers were looking at me. How can anyone not love Alex and his antics and his illusions of seeing his friends as pork chops, really?

That said, I arrived at Manchester Airport on 28th February at approximately 0615am local time in the blistering cold of 5 degrees.

Ringing in the heart

What makes our lives beautiful?

Is it just the academic achievements and the accolades that one collects?

Is it the fancy car you drive or the numerous presents you receive?

I believe it's the love that we receive.

The ability to find someone,

who loves you, despite being hurt countless times,

despite being taunted by endless memories,

despite being the giver for the upteenth times,

the ability to be loved by this someone.

Watched Marley and Me,

and an apt phrase kept resounding in my head...

"How many of us can find someone who love you,

despite you being rich or poor,

despite you owning a big or small house,

despite you ranting at him/her...

And loves you everyday,

despite everything you do?"

Indeed, who can?

Everything with its own consequence

The first part of my last-minute trip/get-away/rejuvenating measure was pulled off successfully.

I am now in Manchester, backpacking and staying in a youth hostel.

In less than 24 hours, I'll be on a plane back to Singapore again.

That said, it was a real experience travelling to Manchester alone.

Fingers crossed, I need my flight to arrive on time on Monday.

*Crossed extra tightly*