Hiccups

What I'm talking about is not the usual hiccup babies or us get sometime, is the hiccups we face in life at times. One moment I was happily planning for my no pay leave, overjoyed that it was approved, the next moment I was devastated that my dept was going to be CLOSED DOWN!

Heard of some rumor about it but it turn into fact overnight! What a joke they had cracked on me. I was even happily planning to move nearer to my working place and was thinking that if I could settle down, maybe I may cut short my no pay leave! Ha! people is coming to view my house this weekend and I even sign the contract to buy over my friend place. What is happening now is really what we say in mandarin "人算不如甜算"My partner and I was called for a short meeting with the administrative head to break the news to us. Luckily our HR manager did sound us off the night before and we was quite composed during the meeting. But I broke down and cried when they mention the fate of our precious equipment if nobody adopt it, CONDEMN ! She is still in great condition even though she is not that young, is not that she is not working and no one is using her! For 10 LONG YEARS, she (we always refer our dear machine as a "she" as "she" was quite temperamental like a woman) I'm sad to leave my colleagues who has accompany me for the past 13 ++ years, but this machine has accompany us hours and hours for the past 10 years from the first day she was send to us, she is a baby to us both.

We have our hay days and of course frustrating moment with her. I almost felt that she would cry if she is with us now...it seems like the composition we used to write in our younger day, the" biography of something". The composition would start with either "I am a book "or a doll or even pets.. it would be well love and care when they first came, and when they are old, it would be dispose as a piece of old rubbish... I almost can hear my machine whimpering in silent... behind the buzz and hum...

Is not that the machine is not functioning well, is not that no one from the company is using it and in actual fact, it has been churning some income to cover the overhead and maintenance cost. The reason of closing sound kind of lamed, "keeping it is not feasible".???? Till date we can only make some wild guesses what is the real reason.

Our poor HR manager was so upset, I don't blamed her, she is really hand tied, there is really nothing she can do actually. Fighting for better benefit for us is out of question. Actually quitting was in mind before I took my no pay leave, is her who had suggested to take no pay leave first to keep my position. Permanent staff in the market is as rare as White tiger now. When the opportunity came that my colleague Mr Sleepy want to sell his place, I felt that maybe is really a way out for taking no pay leave, I could stay nearer to my in law place and could go back to work. I can settle my move during my no pay leave and try to go back to work if things work out. What a wonderful plan. Too bad, this is not going to take place but still, I will move back, this time the reason will be a good school for my sons ;).

That same evening both of us received the official letter to tell us the machine will be close in 1 month time. Our fate? My partner, Tonic, who work in this company for 14-15 year will have 1 month to transfer out of this company to other "branches" . My fate? I will have to call them 1 month in advance before my no pay leave end to ask if they have a post for me if not...... what do u think? Ha! No compensation was being mention in the letter. We did suggest to the management about retrenchment but was turn down. We start to wonder what is the use of us being the permanent staff? what rights do we have as an employee? Who can protect us as an employee? The most ironical thing on this whole event is that the decision maker for this closure and our fate came from a person where his own country always cried out for HUMAN RIGHTS ! What a great joke.

All our colleagues are shock over the harsh treatment, some mention we should seek higher authority...After some soul searching and brain storming.. we knew is going to be fruitless fight. Even the highest authority of the country could not do anything about it. Why? It will be too big a trouble if they sided us, they are also in a difficult position. Well, I'll leave some imagination over this matter, I may get into trouble if I go into further detail. I am almost out of job now, I won't want to have more trouble. Anyway the option of quitting was in mind if my no pay leave was rejected, so it does not matter now. That is how a typical person would react if they face this kind of problem in my country. Complain to friend and family about it, weep a bit and cool off. Now I am withdrawing my no pay leave, why wait for a year to face the same fate, I may as will face it now. 长痛不如短痛。Well, I'll closed down the dept together with my partner for my past 13++ years, is the dept we set up together and is time for us to close it together. Maybe it will be the last time we work as a team...if she took up a new post found by our very concern colleague.

To Tonic if she read my blog: Thanks for being such a great partner for the past 13 + + years, there are time we quarrels and don't see thing eye to eye but I soon realized that you are the greatest partner I ever had. We shared so much happy moment as compare to those downtime: our first skiing trip...the ohs and Ahs at keukenof garden.. the bazaar days..shopping trip....ZZZZ time and many many more. I'll keep those fond memories in my heart. Thanks for everything.

That's the realistic side of the working world... so the solution? BE MY OWN BOSS! :)

This is a fiction, all names and places are cooked up. I am learning to cook as well as cooking up stories! Maybe I want to be a writer one day. Thanks to all who read my story today.