Hey kitty-kitty-kitty...

I finally saw the Gold Lion with my own eyes when I visited the old workplace last week. It's really heavy. It's golden (duh), though I couldn't tell if it's really gold-plated. It's made by Arthus-Bertrand in Paris (whoever he may be). And it felt rather strange to hold, even though I should feel some sense of ownership. Well, I was happy about winning this, but maybe I didn't care all that much after all.

My art director on this job said if he could have it his way he'd want me to keep it. But obviously the agency's not about to give away their trophy. And since they're also unwilling to spend a few grand to get a copy for an ex-employee (not that they'll spend the money on anyone anyway), taking pictures with it will have to do.


Ex-boss said he'll make me a paper-mache model when I asked about the trophy. Yea, right. The same ex-boss who told an ex-colleague to 'take us out' (Box and WT were with me) when he saw us in the office. As if we were there to steal company secrets or ideas or something.

If anything, I wonder who's smiling at every press conference holding my Lion. Good thing I managed to snap a few pictures of it before we left. Sheesh.

*meow* *bling*

I was awakened at 4am by an SMS telling me my direct mailer from my previous workplace won a Gold Lion at Cannes. Still swimming in sleep, I thought I was dreaming. Then JD (ex-colleague and art director on this project) called, telling me it wasn't official, but it's a definite Gold (a little bird in Cannes told him). I flopped back into bed. And couldn't sleep for the rest of the night.

I was feeling cautiously optimistic when I went to work all blurry eyed. I wasn't gonna hold my breath until the results were officially out. Then JD called with the confirmation.

GOLD!

Phone calls started coming in from my ex-colleagues. They shared in the happiness and were full of good wishes. Then they told me about the things they were seeing and hearing in their building, and confirmed yet again for me that award shows bring out the worst in people. Sigh. I told myself that I'm not gonna get sucked into a landmine of fragile egos. I believe credit should be given where credit is due. But one person's behaviour was pissing off not just me, but my ex-colleagues as well. I tried to see the humour in the situation, but I couldn't help feeling a little annoyed. Phhhbpptt...

Anyhow, I've decided to let it be. I know this project was my idea and that's good enough for me. And I'm very grateful to the people who have fought, pushed and worked hard for it, even after I left the agency. That's all that matters.

It took 5 years for this idea to see the light of day. And for it to be recognised, I'm thrilled to bits.

But like they say, you're only as good as your last ad. And I've been as dry as a desert for the longest time. Although this is a new 'win', the idea was conceived a long time ago, when I had more drive and passion for this business.

That said, winning does feel very nice.
Crossing my fingers for JH's radio commercial now. It's a Cannes finalist and the results will be out tomorrow. I helped out with that one, but I'm in no hurry to claim ownership, hahaha. The little drama that unfolded late last year thanks to this radio (it won at the Kancils) was quite ugly to watch.

I'm on a little high now, but I know it's temporary. The real challenge is to stay motivated and stay in the radar. Gonna be a tough shot. Especially when there are other things out there I want to do and experience. Things that have little to do with advertising, if at all. Things that don't involve egos bigger than our advertising budgets.

I'll just enjoy this while it lasts.
My previous agency better get me that freaking trophy cos I sure can't afford it! Hahaha! The agency gets one, but duplicates must be paid out of our own pockets. This gold-plated door-stopper lion-head costs £680 and another £105 to courier (about RM5500 in total).


Don't even know if it's real gold or not. Nuts!

*air kisses*

There is this on-going joke between YL, PC and myself about people running up to each other, doing the "Oh, HELLO dah-ling... *muaks muaks* " at the Kancil Awards every year.

Although I didn't see much of that last Friday, the MC made quite a hilarious dig at how pretentious some people can get at the Kancils.

"Kancil Night must be sponsored by Toyogo. Everyone so plastic".

Bwahahahahaha. This, of course, was extra funny for us advertising folk cos DY&R's work for Toyogo, a plastic manufacturer, won big that night. And I could've sworn that in a ballroom of people in t-shirts and jeans (the creative folk), some people appeared in blazing fuchsia gowns, big hair and all.

Sure, some people say it's the advertising equivalent of the Oscars in KL. But really. The glam is all in their heads.

Award shows bring out the worse in a lot of people. Anxiety, insecurities and bitterness simmer in a vat of ego. It has helped my career to some extent (the awards, not the anxiety), but after almost 7 years in the industry, I'm starting to feel a little indifferent. I'd much rather have my self-respect and sanity intact than my name on a certificate.

It was a reasonably good night for me though.
Mostly because I went without expecting anything. I didn't see any of my stuff (apart from the Hard Rock iPod spoof campaign, which was all my partner YK's work really) in the Finalists exhibition outside. So I got myself a beer and allowed a few seconds to wallow in disappoinment before I forgot about it.

That was until JD, my ex-colleague from LB told me that our TREES photocopy sticker was up for something. I missed it at the exhibition cos it was displayed in a little corner. Anyway, it picked up a Merit. Not metal, but I was thrilled because I'd been trying to get that idea bought and executed since 2002. I only managed to get it done right before I left LB last year. It felt good.

The Hard Rock posters picked up Bronzes for single and campaign. Yay! (my partner so terror).

JH picked up a few Silvers for a Traxx.fm radio campaign. Although my name's on the cert for helping out, I didn't think it was right to go upstage for something that's not really 'mine', so I cheered them on from the floor. It's been some time since JH enjoyed the limelight, so she should bask in it, and not jostle for space on stage with so many people.

YL and NK's Petronas Chinese New Year TVC picked up a Silver too. It's the one with Hokkien speaking ladies in an old folk's home. I think it's one of the nicest Petronas commercials ever done. And that's not because they're both such wonderful friends of mine. Hehe.

So that was Friday night, which ended for me with some tea. SW, YL and I had a nice time catching up at the hotel coffeehouse. Much rather have tea than go drink and party with the rest. Must be getting old. Hahaha.

Don't laugh.

Please don't smile. Or yawn. Or wink. And if you're even thinking about raising an eyebrow, stop right now!

"Do you know that facial expressions can cause wrinkles?"
(Snapshots of Claudia Schiffer laughing, smiling, winking, making faces, pouting, grinning and so on.)

From the reaffirming "Because you're worth it" of yesteryear, L'oreal's recent advertising stoops low to manipulate our insecurities (wait a minute, few ad campaigns don't these days. Sheesh!). It's gone as far as to say you can't live a normal happy life because it'll give you fine lines and crow's feet. Of course there's Botox. But needle-fearing and modest-bank-account folk may redeem their youth and beauty with L'Oreal products.

If women out there are stupid enough to stop laughing, or worse, buy the damn creams, so be it. Bring on the wrinkles I say. Facial lines ooze with character and tell you lots about someone. I personally find people with laugh lines very attractive. Emotional constipation for the sake of taut, perfect skin? Now, THAT, makes me laugh.

Turning point.

Last Wednesday, 27th October, marked my last day in DDB International. It didn't quite hit me until the farewell party. My last day and my place still looked like I could be hanging around for another few years. Talk about denial! My colleagues were soooo sweet. They made me a video of my years in Naga and DDBi. And a card and a gift. Cried buckets. Guess that was the whole point. They wanted to see me cry.

I miss them so much already. Still refer to them as my colleagues. Still refer to DDBi as my office. Only to be kindly (or unkindly) reminded that they’re not my colleagues anymore. Okay, at least I know they’re still my friends. Good ones too. Went back to the office on Friday (2 days ago) and Prem (my replacement) had done so much to my room (ok, ok, it’s not my room anymore!). Aargh.

I start at Leo Burnett tomorrow. Wonder what it's gonna be like?


The jetsetting life.

Well, for the past week or so I’ve been ‘unemployed’. Went to Bali with my colleagues… er, ex colleagues. It was quite a fun trip… tanned by the pool and at the beach. Went shopping and got myself bruised up at a spa (don’t ask). It was fun. And although the tour was quite badly organised, it was the people that mattered. My last few days as part of the ‘family’.

After flying back from Bali, Li Yen and I flew to Langkawi. The Andaman for 3 days, 2 nights. It was fabulous. The room, the service, the little extras. She gets a few nights free every year (the perks of working with a property company) and 50% off the F&B. Such bliss... We had beer and fries by the beach, a lovely Japanese dinner, an amazing buffet breakfast spread, a dinner at the famous Gulai House… and spent the nights lounging at the… er, lounge. The Solianos were performing. Great music too. Only got to know who they were the night before we left. Got to meddle with Daniel’s keyboard for awhile too. Fun! Some gwailo wanted to buy us drinks but we declined… so much for being sociable. We WERE on our ‘lesbo’ holiday after all . Great fun on the beach and poolside, although the sun was a bit shy while we were there. Watched Hindi and girlie movies on VCD, drank our BLOJ – Bacardi Limon Orange Juice. Cried at the sappy endings. Hahaha.

Before Bali and Langkawi, I managed to squeeze in Singapore to watch Mama Mia! Fantastic musical. So beautifully done… simple set and the songs really got people tapping their feet. Wished I could be part of something like that. So wonderful... Bumped into Soon Yoon and Danny on my way out of the show. And we were all gushing… musicals! Musicals! Musicals… sigh!


Oh, and there’s him…

This has to be one of the weirdest things to happen to me in a long time. Right now, I'm still wondering "What's going on?". But like Li Yen said, maybe I’m going through denial. Can’t blame me though... I haven’t dated anyone for the past 2 years. And even when I was interested in someone, there’s always the small matter of bad timing or circumstance. But well, funny things happen when you least expect them to.

About a month ago, this guy I hadn’t seen in many years found me online. Didn't know him very well back then, but it's always nice to meet an old friend. So we chatted online, did some catching up and boy, was he outrageous! Absolutely shameless, funny as hell, cocky and laser-mouthed. Every conversation was a battle of wits. I actually looked forward to chatting with him when I went to work (fortunately it was the final 2-3 weeks at work for me). He was so full of himself I wondered if he even knew the meaning of modesty. We laughed and laughed, and kept score of our sarcastic comebacks. It was the same with SMS and geez, was he a flirt! So I played along and it became a ‘who-can-keep-this-up’ game.

We finally met up a few days before I left for Bali. He was even worse in person. Thick-faced. But so funny! We actually had fun. Played pool. Both kiasu like hell. We did manage to have some real conversation after, and… beneath that smart ass facade was actually a very sweet guy.

To cut a long story short, I left for Bali, and came back. Then we saw each other before I left for Langkawi. And when I got back, we hung out again. I thought I sensed something between us but thought nothing of it. Wasn’t sure if it was still a game we were playing. Besides, it was much too weird for many reasons. Along the way, many silly conversations later, we found the line between the 'game' and reality blurring... And the fact that he was getting serious about this took me by surprise.

For now, I’m taking it one day at a time. But I do know I’m very happy with him around. Making me laugh. Being silly.Taking long walks. Talking about everything. Maybe, one of these days, I’ll have the guts to stop thinking too much and let my heart take over. Maybe soon.

Empty hands, full stomach

Friday, 1 Oct. The Kancil Awards 04.

The ad industry annual award show. This year was quite a sad year for DDBi cos we didn't win anything. The finalists were displayed outside the ballroom before the dinner and ceremony started. So a quick tour of the exhibition told us we won't be running on stage that night. Saw old friends and ex colleagues. Was very happy for them who picked up a few. Like Alvin's Korean War TVC Bronze and Ivan's Gold in Copywriting.

It was also interesting to see how consistent Leo Burnett was across all categories. They've got really good people over there. So nervous about joining them soon. What if I don't measure up? What if I'm not good enough? Gulp. Gulp. Gulp.

After the night was over, we went over to Flams in Pyramid. SookWai hung out with us too so that was really nice. Kinda like a little reunion for everybody. We went a little crazy. Guess we were really trying not to let our no-win bother us.

Rollerblading and a yummy dinner...

I could finally rollerblade!! It wasn't that hard after all. Tried on Kay Li's blades on Saturday which were slower than the pair Clare lent me. They were much easier to balance and once I got over the fear of falling, it was actually quite fun!

After rehearsals, I had dinner with my family and family friends at Gold Dragon City in Paramount, PJ. Kinda like a 'welcome home' dinner ("sai chan", or wash dust, as we would say in Chinese) for my brother. It was also mom's birthday.

The food was great... opened with the 4 Season Starter which had almond crusted crab claws, scallops and snow peas, some really nice fish cake and seafood balls. Then it was the Superior Seafood Soup which tasted like sharks fin, minus the fin of course. I would never order a shark killed. Then we had Pat Poh Duck, which was a braised herbal stuffed duck. My dad and the older folks loved it. We also had Mar Lat Chicken which was steamed chicken with a spicy sesame, chili and spring onion crumble on top.



Then there's the special Pomfret Rolls with Crunchy Bones. They deboned the fish, rolled the fish fillets and steamed them while the bones were deep fried till crunchy. Followed by Braised Sea Cucumber, Mushrooms and Broccoli as well as birthday noodles. For dessert it was warm Soy Bean with Hasma (frogs stomach apparently).

Li Yen brought a huge carrot cake with candles for mom and between 12 people, we finished 2 bottles of wine (which is not alot, considering I had to hustle the uncles to drink). It was fun. Everyone had a good laugh. They loved the food. And I was quite contented by my 3rd glass of wine.

It was nice to see my parents having a good time. Haven't seen them so contented, ever. These occasions are rare and few. Who knows how many more there will be.