7 Things To Wrap Up 2012!

I know, I know. I've been neglecting this blog, yet again. Sorry guys! 2012 has been an eventful year for me, it made me wonder how I could have left so many things happened unrecorded in this blog! So here's my 2012 in a glance..

1. I Left Nuffnang Malaysia in June 2012

I don't know why, but I still get people calling and asking me about Nuffnang this and Nuffnang that, thinking that I am still with Nuffnang! One time, this blogger even called me and asking me if I would be at an event, 4 months after I left Nuffnang! *bangs head on table* Korang sayang sangat dekat mak eh! ;p So just for the record, I am no longer a Nuffie but Nuffnang will always hold a special place in my heart! As I like to say it, once a Nuffie, always a Nuffie! ;)

2. I Re-joined Exabytes Malaysia

That's right, I am now part of the Exabees again and very much happy with it! If you've been following me since before, you'd know that I used to be part of the team back in 2008. In 2010, I left them for Nuffnang, and here I am again joining Exabytes as the person responsible to manage all their social media channels :)  It will be my 3rd month with Exabytes this month, and hopefully many more months to come!

3. Aydein Is Potty-Trained at 3!

Yes, Aydein is now diaper-free -- well, during the daytime at least! :D There have been a few episodes of "accidents", of course (even now!) but he can now tell us when he's "going" and we'll assist him to the toilet! The funny thing is, he's so used to doing his big business standing that he'll even stand on the toilet bowl whenever he needs to go big! It's pretty worrying, so we've never left him unattended whenever he needs to do his business, big or small. Nevertheless, I'm proud of his big achievement! ;)

4. Aydein Is Now Bottle-Free

The little soldier also just made the bottle-to-cup transition recently -- at the age of 3 1/2 years old! :P It's a little late, but hey, everything's gotta start somewhere right? ;) One thing I noticed as soon as we bottle-wean him though; he doesn't drink as much milk in the cup as he did in the bottle before -- which is fine to us, because we want him to get more nutrition from adult food and drink less of milk like he did before. So that's a yeay to us; about time that we spend less on his milk eh! Save sikit duit papa, nak. ;p

5. Aydein Is Going To School

Everytime I think of this day (the day Aydein will start school), I get all emotional inside. Sigh, my baby's all grown up. In less than a week, the New Year will embrace us, and it will be the start of the new chapter in Aydein's life -- attending a school! His bag is ready, his water bottle is set, and soon, he will be putting on his uniform and begin his journey as a pre-schooler! Words cant describe the way I feel about it now; happy, sad, worried, proud. Oh well, I guess it's a feeling that all first-time moms get. ;(

6. I Am A Proud Owner of an Online Business

I've always wanted to run my own business. I mentioned this in one of my 2010 resolutions and alhamdulillah, together with my elder sister, Pretty Folds is born just a few months back. To be honest, it's really a fun thing to do and business was doing well for Pretty Folds, but the thing I learnt in business is that -- one truly needs to be commited in it in order to be successful! And at this moment, commitment is something that I don't actually have, hence the slowness in stock update lately hehehe. 

7. I Am Pregnant -- Again!

Well, some of you may have already found out about this via my social media networks.. but for those of you who didn't know... I AM VERY PREGNANT! I'm going to be 8 months next week to be exact, so you can imagine how HUGE I am now! :P The best thing is it's going to be a GIRL insyaallah this time, so you can imagine how excited I am! I'm already thinking.. headbands, tutu, pretty floral tops, pink, lavendar, polkadots.. WHEEEEE! ;P I'm going to write about this second pregnancy journey again in a different post, so lookout for it soon! :D

So here's my post to wrap up year 2012.. and I look forward to the wonderful things 2013 holds for me!

Farewell, Robb Chew!

Yesterday was an emotional day for all of us in Nuffnang Malaysia. As some of you might have known, Robb Chew also known as one of the pioneers of Nuffnang, has decided to spread his wings and embark on a departure to take on a new challenge and a different opportunity in life. Yes, Nuffnangers. Robb has decided to leave Nuffnang for the greater good.

picture credit to isaactan.net

For those of you who have been with us for quite a while, you would know that Robb has been the backbone of the company, specifically to the Blogger Relations department ever since Nuffnang was established. He was the one that came up with the Blogger Relations Department, a department that is responsible to take care of the bloggers' welfare to date.

The very first time I spoke to him, to be honest, I was very intimidated by him. He kept asking me questions about how Nuffnang works even when I was there for barely a week! I thought, man, give me a break, I've been here for barely a week, and you're asking me all sorts of questions already?! But it was not long after that, that I discovered that he memang has this effect on people, especially for those who do not know him. But once you know him, he's really a nice chap after all! :)

Nevertheless, there was something that Robb said on that day that I would remember forever and I hang on to it till this very day. It goes something like this. He said, "Thara, you need to know how things work around here by heart. I don't want you to take this job as just another job because we are all passionate about this company and we want someone who is passionate about this job, who cares for this company, as much as we do," And he has my respect since. :)

Robb has contributed so much not only to the Blogger Relations department, but also to NuffnangMY, that some of us (the girls, of course) even had tears in our eyes when we looked at the projector that displayed all of his pictures at previous events and happenings during his tenancy with NuffnangMY on the special farewell ceremony that we threw for him.

We sang 3 songs for him -- That Thing You Do, Time Of Your Life and Auld Lang Syne led by our in-house guitarist Timothy Teoh. By the third song, I could not hold my tears any longer and I could see the same for some of the girls. Water works like crazy!

After that, one by one, boys and girls went to Robb to share their last hug.

Everyone, except me of course. Nevertheless, I walked up to him still and holding out the little gift I got for him earlier, I said, "I can't hug you, but this is for you," :)

Just before we left the office, Robb sent us all an email, and a personalized message to each and every one of us. Here's what he got to say to me :


I do not know what the future holds for Blogger Relations from now on, but I do have faith in Nuffnang and I trust that Fresh as the new Blogger Relations Team Leader will do just as great! Here's to all of us in Nuffnang!

The backbones of the Blogger Relations Department

Once A Nuffnanger, Now A Nuffie!

I know, I know, I have been disappearing for quite some time now, I know. But the good news is, I am back! Not that anybody cares anyway, but whatever. :P

When I was working with Loveclients, I had the luxury of going to work at 10am, and being chauffeured every bloody day since Aien and I were working in the same office. But since that's no longer the case anymore, after doing a little calculation on the ridiculous parking fee (RM10/day), toll and petrol cost, I have decided to take the train.


Yes, that is what I have to go through everyday. God knows how much I hate the smelly crowd and the stinky trains! Unlike last time, now everyday is an early start for me as I have to leave the house latest by 7.30am and even then I will only reach the office at 9 - 9.30am. Yes, the story of my life! The only good thing about this is the fact that I have lost 4KGS out of walking and err, dieting, so I have trains to thank for, in a way. :P

One of the best things about being a Nuffie is that, I get to meet bloggers everyday! They would either drop by our office to collect their merchandise, or they would simply meet us at events like we held recently ; Burlesque Prrmiere Screening and the TuneTalk briefing.

with Lily (ciklily.com), Eric (eyriqazz.com), Daydeck (daydeck86.com) and Hamzah (terbangtinggitinggi.com)

If I don't get to see them on events, as mentioned earlier, I will still get to meet them when they drop by our office to collect their merchandises. And when they do, they would usually leave their trail behind on the Nuffnang Footprints Wall. Have you left your trail there yet?


Many of our bloggers have made a tour around Nuffnang office. However for those of you who have not, allow me to be your tour guide from this entry! ;)

Like all companies I've worked in so far, Nuffnang too practices an open-concept office. Here's a peek of our office when you step into our orange hut!

The very first time I stepped into Nuffnang office, I thought it was pretty cool. Slightly cluttered, but definitely cool. The office is cozy as you can see, but among all, this is my favorite spot! The chill spot where the Nuffies chill and lepak after a hard day at work! Cool kan!


Another cool thing about Nuffnang that I love is the fact that we are free to browse Facebook, Twitter and IM anyone during office hours as long as we get our work done! Now that's what being an adult is all about -- being in control of our own actions!

Heck, we even have two TVs in the office for everyone to watch while working! Mind you, kitorang tak tengok CNN or BBC channel ok, we watch Starworld, E! or HBO! :D


That's Junior Masterchef on TV! :D Oh and we also have our own little pantry, ...


... that it is always filled with "healthy" junks! Hehe.


And of course, the espresso machine. If I were so jakun when I first saw the espresso machine in Loveclients, now not anymore! Hehe. However, since I am still not a big fan of coffee besides the one and only Java Chip from Starbucks, I hardly ever use it.

Oh and who could ever forget, the aquarium meeting room! This is the very room that I went in for my interview and yes, the very room for who's about to get interviewed in the future too!


So that's all there is to it to Nuffnang office! Sighs. It's funny how life works sometimes, no? Last month I was just a regular Nuffnanger, blogging and sharing my thoughts away with my fellow blogger friends during my free time. Now I am a Nuffie in Nuffnang, and taking blogging/advertising industry very seriously! :)

Whatever it is, I am contented with what I am doing now, and I pray that I can go far in my career this time. For those of you who have yet to meet me, trust me, we will! As long as you're a blogger, and an active one at that, we will meet each other -- sooner or later. And when you do, don't be shy to say hi! :)

Nuffnang, Here I Come!

If you do follow my Twitter updates, you would know that I have been actively seeking for new jobs and attending interviews for the past 1 week.


It saddens me to have to leave Loveclients and the fact that I won't be working under the same company as my husband any longer, but given the company's current circumstances, I believe this is the right move, and that I am clearly better off with a new position in a new company.

I knew that I made the best decision by leaving Loveclients, because less than 24 hours from the point that I was interviewed with this company I've been dreaming about, I got a call from them telling me that I am accepted in their team! I was dizzy with happiness. I landed the job!

Okay, so here comes the news. Some of you may already knew about my new company from my tweets, but as for those of you that don't already know, well, ladies and gentleman, there's no secret there -- as you can see from my blog title, you're looking at the new Blogger Relations Executive at Nuffnang (MY) Sdn Bhd! :) :) :)


Yes lovelies, I will be working with Nuffnang the leading blog advertising company! Basically, my job scope requires me to communicate with bloggers, write anddd plan events! I love writing, I love blogging and I love planning events! So you can imagine the joy that I felt when I actually received the offer! This job and I are like match-made in heaven and I was practically flying without wings! :) :) :)

Today marked my first day working with the team and so far, so good. I love the working environment, the team and the company's policies, but most of all, I love that I was given a personal, brand new laptop to do my work! :) :)


With that said, I can't wait to see what tomorrow and the future has in store for me in Nuffnang! I have successfully achieved resolution #4 and I can't wait to achieve more! Here's to the brand new year, brand new me with the brand new job! Here's to 2011! ;)

A Brand New Start

It's been a while since I last posted anything here. I truly did not mean to leave this blog woefully abandoned, but since I started with my new company, I haven't had the time!

It's been more than a week now since my first day in Loveclients (that's my new company). Believe it or not, when I first told my dad about my new company, he was like, what -- Loveclients? Is it a matchmaking company? And I immediately burst into laughter! Hehe.


NO, it is not, I repeat, IT IS NOT a matchmaking company. In fact, it is nowhere near to it! Loveclients is actually a premier search engine marketing agency, specializing in paid search (pay-per-click) marketing and search engine optimization (SEO). Confused? Let me make it clear to you. What we do is basically make your website rank higher in search engines. That way, your website is more visible to users and you get more traffic to your website! Cool eh?

But why is it Loveclients? I have no bloody idea.

The office's lounge area

Anyway, being a part of Loveclients is really how I imagined it to be. Fun (mostly because I know some of them there) and conducive working environment. My first day as Loveclients's Content Editor was quite memorable though. I am not sure if it was the freezing cold office, or the fact that I had to walk a mile in my heels from the parking lot to the office, or that maybe my heart was still with Exabytes, but by the end of the of the day, I was down with high fever of 38.1 degree celcius!

My new work space, overlooking KLCC!

What a way to remember my brand new start eh? Heh. Other than that, my days sailed away like breeze. I love my new colleagues, my new desktop, the new places to eat, and my new challenging tasks.

The 3 sweethearts I knew even before I stepped into Lc. From left : yours struly, Fareeza & Syikin

Oh and I also love the coffee machine at my new office! Being a coffee-hater that I am, believe it or not, I have never operated a coffee machine before! So when I saw the coffee machine that is able to make just about 7 types of coffee, I was rather amazed! I remember asking Aien, "Yang, does this mean that I can just press on the button and the machine will make the coffee as printed on the menu buttons automatically?!" Haha. Jakun, I know. But since it's coffee, and I don't take coffee, the hype just lasted for about 5 minutes, and I didn't even bother tasting any of the coffee. I'm more of a chocolate person - coffee gives me headache.


Anyway, my new tasks at my new company require me to write still, only at broader subjects. If previously my writeup were all concentrated on webhosting-related articles and issues, now, I get to write about MORE things, from fashion to supermodels to healthy eating to business empire and more!

Syikin & I at the open-concept office

And did I tell you that besides learning new things, my English also got corrected for the first time in my two years of writing? Heehe. And the thing is, although it really did suck to get corrected by your own boss, but somehow a part of me actually felt glad that somehow someone finally is teaching me something! Mistakes are bound to happen, and if you don't get corrected, how are you supposed to learn, no? So yeah, I have nothing to complain for the time being. :P

Besides, why would I want to complain, when I have this VIP who, carries my bag, drives me to office as well as back home and accompanies me everywhere I go, in the same office? :)

Loveclients's Head of CSS Developer aka The Husband

Life indeed cannot get any better than this. :)

The End of Journey

My journey with Exabytes, that is.

If you are an avid reader of my blog, you would know from my previous post that I have been serving as the sole Creative Writer of Exabytes since April 2008. And today exactly marks my two-year anniversary working with Exabytes with all its glory.

February 2010 Annual Dinner.

Serving for Exabytes for almost 2 years has been very rewarding. However, my career goal has taken a different direction and I feel that it is time to move onto new opportunities and challenges.

You see, I have always had a passion for writing and recently been offered to work with international writers from all over the world. I realize that this offer does not come knocking on my door every day, and with my potential in writing, I knew this is a golden opportunity for me to improve myself, whilst further expanding my wings in this field and gaining a lot of new knowledge along the way.

January 2009 Annual Dinner

It's been a wonderful journey with Exabytes, however. I have met a lot of wonderful people here throughout my two years of service in Exabytes. I have found those of whom I can really trust and rely on, some of whom I promise to keep myself in touch with even when I am no longer an Exa.

Earth Day celebration 2008. (notice we were all greens & browns! and I was still slim & kecik!)

It saddens me to have to make this decision, especially when Exabytes has been far too kind to me. I was given a few privileges that not many get, all thanks to the understanding CEO Chan Kee Siak, a young visionary leader with a kind heart to match. To Mr Chan, if you're reading this, again thank you for the opportunity, the professional and personal development Exabytes has assisted me with over the past 2 years. You have been very kind to me and I am so proud I had the privilege to work with you. You're one amazing boss anyone could ever ask for and I wish you nothing but the best of continued success that lasts a lifetime.

With CEO Chan Kee Siak (and Aydein in my belly) at Malaysia HR Awards 2009. We won!

To all my friends whom I have learnt to love dearly, you know who you are. Thank you for putting up with my silly jokes and crazy craps. I wish you all the best in your future undertaking and I hope that our paths will cross again in the future.

Team building at Pulau Jerejak, 2008. Oh I miss, I miss!

So, so long Exabytes Blog, Exabytes Newsletter, Exabytes Press Releases, Exabytes Website Content and Exabytes work related. I will miss all of you dearly (especially my oh so faithful HP Notebook!).

My access tag & HP notebook which are no longer mine :(

I have come to the end of the my journey and hopefully today will be a new beautiful start for me.

Whooppy!

guess what people? i was just doing my usual things in the office when suddenly, my boss dropped me an online message through MSN!

here’s the snippet of the conversation :

Mr Chan says : just to let u know I have passed ur probation period
Mr Chan says : u shall receive a letter shortly from KY
Mr Chan says : Congratulations and Excellent, Good Job for the past 3 months
Thara says : oh, thank you mr chan!
Thara says : this is great news! :D
Mr Chan says : I will raise ur salary to XXXX
Thara says : oh! thank u!
Thara says : i am actually rather overwhelmed, i dont know what to say! haha
Mr Chan says : those who work hard deserved to be rewarded well :)
Thara says : thanks again mr chan. i will double my effort, i promise! :)
Mr Chan says : good to hear that :)

and a few minutes later . . .

vooish! i am officially confirmed!

and confirmed = raise in salary. and raise in salary = more income. and more income = shopping time!

hahaha. the joy, the joy! oh Queensbay Mall, here i come! ;)