goodbye bain.. for now.

"yejie last day".. was about as uneventful as uneventful can get. although this day held great significance for me, it was just another day for the busy people of the monster company.

that was fine with me.

it feels as if i've just finished running a marathon. not that i've ever run one, but i'd imagine that's how it would feel. i stayed back till 7pm struggling through expenses today, and that's pretty much how life has been like.

that's fine with me. i'm the sort who yearns for a peaceful life; but once i get it, my butt starts to itch and i look for some excitement. the old saying goes, "never trouble trouble until trouble troubles you", but i think i am trouble.. itself.

and a new phase of life begins.

but before that, a short recap on The Old Life, or the post-ORD life. i will forever remember these 9 months of my life with great fondness, for i believe i have found the most happiness here thus far. (i hope things still get better, though.)

i started work at bain on 13 nov 2009, and i distinctly remember how i got the job.

it was right after the Terrific Thousand Laps attempt and a sumptuous jap buffet. i was trying to get chawanmushi out of my system when The Call came.

"hi yejie, this is ______. would you like to work for bain and company..?"

"i'm sorry, what company is it again?"

"bain and company"

"oh okay. what am i supposed to do?"

"you'll be an accounts assistant"

"okay, when do i start?"

"this friday" (it was already wednesday, and i didn't intend to work till december)

"uhh.. okay. what's the hours like?"

"9am to 6pm, with OT on some days but we'll tell you in advance"

"that's great. how much will i be paid?"

"$10 an hour"

the chawanmushi came out immediately. i accepted the job on the spot.

so no, i suppose you didn't see the date wrongly, it was 2009 all right (!!). i'm a fan of big sounding statistics that don't prove much but sound really cool.. so 9 insane months, 108 laborious days, 862 painstaking hours, approximately 4319 documents and 115314 lines later..

I END WORK. (PANG KANG LOH!)

unlike ORD which was an ecstatic affair (i remember how jz and the rest of us dumped all our coins to the bukit timah busker), it was a bittersweet moment to leave bain. the environment, the welfare and the job was too good.

generally, the nine months passed more quickly and pleasantly with bain.

moving on to The New Life, most of us are probably filled with apprehension for the days ahead. weinian said uni was A levels x 8, and that is not a very welcoming thought. as of now i am all revved up for some serious studying, but who doesn't know that talk is cheap.

hello, i actually did my tutorials for two weeks in jc. two weeks, mind you. but that's about how long it lasted before i got uh, distracted.

the initial excitement has now turned into fear, and i don't want to move on. there are countless people saying that progress is made from venturing out of your comfort zone, but if you are outside your comfort zone your whole life, it's a life hardly worth living.

unfortunately, coming out of my comfort zone for uni is not a choice. it is a must.

and for that i must be strong.

so goodbye bain, goodbye to good old freedom, and goodbye to msn.

"Adapt or perish, now as ever, is nature's inexorable imperative."
- H. G. Wells

who dares wins.

on a side note, it's completely unbelievable how i am still not 21. (somehow i keep thinking i am.) i can't even sign my own NUS indemnity form. sh*t!