Making Money

The early part of 2008 has been an emotional roller coaster for me. I have since recovered from it. One of the main issues that I face this year is how to make more and more money. Money or wealth is synonymous to the good life (a 2-seater BMW and a large mansion on a hill). But the main motivation for generating and retaining wealth is more practical than that. It is to get out of the poverty cycle. Heard of it? I'm sure you have. Poverty is prevalent in society. It is the feeling of not having enough and constantly worrying about unpaid debts and bills.

I consider myself an expert in the subject of poverty. I work for a pretty decent company in Kota Kinabalu which pays me a decent amount of salary. The bulk of my spending goes to paying my car loan, house tax (read: mom and dad monthly allowance), Streamyx bills, and etc. My daily expenses includes food and etc. I also have to go to work everyday (who doesn't?) which adds the cost for paying fuel. I get paid on the 25th of each month and sometimes run out of cash on the 10th of the following month. Recently, a friend mentioned to me that this poverty streak is a curse that must be broken off. If this is true then I guess the majority of the Malaysian citizens are cursed.

I recently got a Streamyx connection which means that i'll be online more frequently than usual. I plan to capitalize on this. I need to figure out how to make money from the internet. I have already discounted non-computer related income avenues such as rearing sheep, or planting vanilla tree (or whatever you call it). One blog that caught my eye is http://www.sabahan.com/ owned by a person with the nickname gaman. Apparently, he hails from Tambunan which is 2 hours drive from my house. I'll be reading a lot from his blog from now on. So, lets just see what will happen next. I'll keep you updated..

Bitter Wine

People say that writing can help express pain and hurt. I guess I myself have chosen this outlet to express whatever feelings that I have. I admit that I am going through a phase that is not particularly pleasant. But all is not bad. I received several good news today. The most happiest news is regarding the status of my masters research. I am finally waiting for my viva! Pheww, after such a long wait, finally, I am able go through to the next level..presenting the results of my dissertation to the examination panel and ultimately obtain my masters degree. I am so happy because it took me 4 long years to come to this point. All the sweat, all the effort, all the tears..it was not in vain. That was the best news I received today. This year started quite good. At least it helps alleviate some of the burden I have been carrying these while. Life is surely getting interesting. It is like wine, bitter to the taste bud but sweet to the drinker.

Long December

The title of this post accurately describes what I am going through now. It is also the title of the song by Counting Crows. The month of December year 2007 was surely a long month. If I can sum up the emotional roller coaster that I am going through, then the lyrics of this song does a really good job conveying it:

Long December by Counting Crows

A long December and there’s reason to believe
Maybe this year will be better than the last
I can’t remember the last thing you said as you were leavin’
Now the days go by so fast


And it’s one more day up in the canyons
And it’s one more night in Hollywood
If you think that I could be forgiven... I wish you would


The smell of hospitals in winter
And the feeling that it’s all a lot of oysters, but no pearls
All at once you look across a crowded room
To see the way that light attaches to a girl


And it’s one more day up in the canyons
And it’s one more night in Hollywood
If you think you might come to California... I think you should


Drove up to the Hillside Manor sometime after two a.m.
And talked a little while about the year
I guess the winter makes you laugh a little slower,
Makes you talk a little lower about the things you could not show her


And it’s been a long December and there’s no reason to believe
Maybe this year will be better that the last
I can’t remember all the times I tried to tell myself
To hold on to these moments as they pass


And it’s one more day up in the canyon
And it’s one more night in Hollywood
It’s been so long since I’ve seen the ocean... I guess I should