excuses reasons

Knowledge isn't a good thing.
Say, for example, you know how a certain process is done, like maybe an installment plan or a refund. You tell the customer that it will take two to three weeks subject to approval by the finance department. And the customer shoots you down and compares to every other company which can do it better, faster, easier.

So you explain yourself, but it gets shot down again as 'a lot of excuses'.

How do you help a customer who insists on jumping off the cliff? Do you jump with him?

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

Money

Money.
Some say it is not easily earned;
that it is borne out of sweat and blood;
of toiling in the sun and backbreaking work.

But what if you enjoy your work?
Then, money does not seem to be
that harsh and merciless.

Yet what use if it comes easy
but never enough for stability
and insufficient to chase away insecurity
nor able to induce independency?

It's not whether we dream,
or that we need encouragement to dream.
What we need is your money.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

the marvel of my work and a story idea

The marvel of my work is
the importance of voice.

I have quite a few regular customers
whom look for me when they have billing issues, and I am only too happy to assist. Who would resist unfussy customers?

They just want someone to hear them out, not throw them into another department, and to just settle their issues for them. and offer a (virtual) tissue.

After a few months of verbal interaction, and numerous calls, it can be very soothing to converse with them. No need to worry if they suddenly want to speak to a manager or not. No need to worry if they want to complain. Instead, my only concern is that some other agents mistreat them.

Protective? Yes, I am. Imagine you nurture a toddler since young, pick him up when he falls, watch him take his first steps, help him in his math homework. Then someone else walks by and makes him walk the plank.

To think of it, I am on a first name basis with some of them. And all are females, leading me to wonder, other than my hotline name, perhaps there's psychology involved as well.

I would love to write out a tv show of a budding romance between a call centre agent and a customer who later works in the same company. Now, that would be something to behold.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

communication

I believe communication should be fluid.
The ebb and the flow,
should always be in constant liquidity.
Like water, it should not conform to a fixed shape.
So, why limit to just phone calls and messages?
Expan your horizons.
Live your dreams.
Use whatsapp or skype
prerecord or use a mic
hotmail gmail or facebook chat
or snap a pic to show where ya at

Don't limit your avenues of conversation.
Instead, let them merge, and converge,
never diverge.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

Primeval

Have you ever wondered how dinosaurs look like? Or what would happen if prehistoric beasts existed in the modern concrete jungle?

The Primeval can satisfy your ancestor-ing needs. Set in the modern times, the show revolves around a group of educated personnel who discover a series of anomalies, in essence loopholes in the tapestry of space, making time travel between the past and the present possible.

It's like instead of traveling on the East-West line and then switching to the North-South line, you just take the train on the Circle line.

As the show originates from England, do expect lots of British accents. Don't expect the creatures to be Discovery Channel or National Geographic standard though. Nevertheless, the battle scenes are quite exciting to behold.

Do check it out if you have the chance. Just get it at the usual spot.

blood thicker than water

The plates move apart from each other
A slight trembling within the feet
The heart gets shaken

Blood thicker than water
But anger is the thickest of them all

To apologize for something not of me
negligence
I simply cannot take it further.

To submit, to bow
To grovel
To bury my head in the sand.

Aren't you teaching me the wrong values
of retaining anger and not being forgiving

That which divides thickness
is no deeper than the grave.
That which lies within the grave
dissipates the thickness.

I got threatened yesterday

I got threatened yesterday.
Of course, technically the word threatened might not be appropriate as I was rather bemused by my caller.

She had not been paying her bills for six months, and in what she might have deemed as firm and convincing tone, she told me to get it reconnected as her husband is angry and she does not know what he will do to me.

I did not reconnect.

We can fake orgasms but we can't fake fear. To tell me in a calm and firm voice that your husband is angry and might do something only indicates that either you married a person you do not know, or simply that you're trying to use the power of a threat.

And in your case, ma'am, it failed.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

if

If knowledge is power,
and ignorance is bliss,
therefore we all are faced with the choice
of power or bliss.

Don't forget health is wealth,
and prudence is prosperity.

And all will go smooth in life
because a stitch in time
saves nine.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

click click

click click

computer mouse
camera
pen
finger snapping
high heels walking
rubbing of two toes together
opening of a clamshell phone
two wooden clams struck together as part of a 对话 performance

A friend told me click click
What did you first think of?

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

Green sheets rises.

Green leaves swaying in the wind
Powerful gust
Orange leaf falls.

Heartbeats amidst pulsating bodies
Sheets
The curtain falls.

Raindrops upon attap roofs
Warmth
The sun rises.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

computers ftw

My neighbor wanted to use my computer a few days ago, or so my mum told me. My mum told my neighbor she didn't know how to use the computer so she couldn't agree.

The first thought that came to me was 'no way was I going to let a stranger use my computer'. And so it struck me how protective I was about a piece of metal.

The computer has evolved from simple machines tasked to think, and crunch up numbers, and form the c in computer, to a personal assistant and life balancer. We depend on it on a daily basis. Not only does it control and grant access to our online personas, it holds our physical life intact as well.

I can't imagine the damage a stranger can do to my computer. The various accounts holding my most private data, like credit cards or addresses etc. It actually frightens me.

Furthermore, imagine if through misconduct or ignorance, a stranger introduces a virus or a hacking tool into my computer.

Who will bear the cost?

Certainly not the stranger.

Computers ftw.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

cards n such

the future is all about cards and such.
Or so we're led to believe.

Ez link cards. debit cards. credit cards. membership cards. prepaid cards. top up cards. name cards. and the list goes on.

It's like we'll never get tired of owning plastic. Which is ironic, cause we're trying to save the earth and reduce the amount of paper used by increasing the amount of plastic.

But I don't think the future is in cards. I think the next step is for shops or restaurants who has membership cards to virtualize it. Show an app or scan it in to get your member discounts. Or even simply key in the member's IC number.

The problem with apps is that no one knows which OS to create it for. Apple, android, windows, RIM or symbian? Why not just make em all? After all, there won't be any new OS coming out soon. and even if there were, it wouldn't survive long. Unless it's open-source. But that would bring about security issues.

So. an app would be nice. Or perhaps a gadget that can absorb all such membership information. Imagine a small device like a dongle. It has a usb chip on it, that can be accessed at shops and restaurants. Companies upload its information onto it. You simply scan some unique barcode on it and the restaurant or shop will automatically tag in the discount for you. Like a universal card reader, only we are not talking about memory cards.

What do ya think?

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

where do you sit when you board the bus?

I've been thinking.
Our personality is expressed through mannerisms, like where we sit when we board the bus.

Imagine it's night, and you board the bus.
There's you, the driver and two other passengers who are sitting on separate seats on the right side of the bus.

Do you

a) sit at the back of the left side?
b) sit at the front of the left side?
c) sit at the front of the right side?
d) sit between the two passengers on the right side?
e) sit at the back of the right side?
f) stand?


a) You want to stick out from the majority, but you rather be a following of the minority than a leader. You might have a slight sense of wanting to be separate from the pack. You have no qualms about being by yourself, and solitude is your refuge.

b) You are a leader of the minority, though size of the group may not be an issue. You aren't afraid to stand out from the rise, and have enough charisma to attract followers. On the other hand, you might bail out at the first sight of trouble, and this might be an issue for you in the future. You might be in it for fame and glory, but your shoddy foundation might break you down in strong winds.

c) You are a leader of the majority. You keep your followers close, but your exits even closer and only trial will tell if you are made of steel or cheap wood.

d) You prefer to be in the midst of people, but lingering within them and not standing out. If need be, you rather be in the shadows, though that is not of utmost importance for you. Rather, you want to be insignificant and unseen to the non-observant people.

e) You live in the shadows and dwell in solitude. You secretly admire the leaders and aspire to be them. However, you need to move out of your comfort zone to achieve that ambition. Dare you take the risk?

f) You have a fear of everything around you. You are independent, and self-reliant, but this spurns people away from you. You also are always in a rush and can never seem to relax or not be stressed. You need help!

In retrospect, this looks like some Aunt Agony from Teenage magazine or some astrological sign page of newspapers eh.

did you ever imagine

Soprano and a bass
did you ever hear such a pair
A duet of such a difference
on such a large scale.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.8

What's in a name?

What's in a name?

Ridicule, shame, embarrassment.
Pride, anger, satisfaction.
Quality, productivity, efficiency.
Laziness, sluggish, deprived.
Talented, mysterious, intrigued.

What's in your name?