I think it’s due to the scrapbooking class I’m taking next week. Or after Beth’s class on writing, I’ve begun to pay a little more attention to what’s here and now.
When I was chatting to I-Mei last Saturday at her shop, I couldn’t help but admire this young woman’s passion for all things scrapbooking. I flipped through some of the samples she made, one was an album dedicated to each month of the year, with a photo depicting the moments of each month. What caught my eye were photos of regular, everyday things she used in her scrapbooking. She brought the everyday into the foreground.
So today I took a photo of what’s on my desk (well, part of my desk anyway).
As you can see, I have a spider plant with lovely white star-shaped flowers. I killed my last spider plant due to overwatering so I am back with another plant. This one is far more lustrous than the previous one.
Why I love this plant – it gets rid of harmful toxins in the air. Especially if you work in air-conditioned offices with WiFi and PCs and laptops buzzing all day. Plus a plant gives out oxygen in the day, taking our carbon dioxide in exchange. Got this for RM4 at the plant nursery in Green Lane, near my grandmother’s house.
You can see that I’ve got a bottle of skincare lotion too. Anyone who knows me know that I have a thing for lotions. Hand lotion, face lotion. I’ve tried so many brands too – Body Shop, Johnsons & Johnsons, Fruit of the Earth, Himalaya Herbals etc. Right now, I am using Fruit of the Earth – something I just got from Watsons about a month ago. I don’t like the fragrance though.Am waiting to use it all up so I can get another brand!
You can see there’s a card with a funky blue elephant too. That’s a card that I am going to send out to a friend of mine who just became a mom. I got that card from an artist’s shop at Central Market not too long ago. Have you heard of Yusof Gajah? He paints nothing but elephants in all shapes and sizes. I met his son, a young chap who runs his father’s art shop at the annexe of Central Market. His sister paints cats in the naive art form! Now that’s a woman I would love to meet.
My pen holder is a vase all the way from Kuching, Sarawak. Handmade pottery with Sarawak designs are easily the best souvenirs you can buy for anyone if you are going to the Land of the Hornbills. We all use some sort of Sarawak-inspired item on our desks in the office – thanks to the Sarawakian’s insistence!
And of course, I have my bright yellow highlighter marker pen which I love using to highlight important stuff whenever I am reading. This is a spillover from my studying days I am sure. These days I highlight work stuff!
And what would work be without my trusty 5 year old Sony Vaio (that’s the Linksys wifi card sticking out of its side)? I tapped out my 50,000 word thesis on this machine. I tap out my articles and blog posts on this. I have my life stories stored in here. If there’s one thing I cannot live without, it is my Vaio even though I cannot quite close the laptop properly now. Using Nic’s Fujitsu is like a betrayal to the Vaio.
What’s on our desks are truly representative of us. That I believe. I try to keep my desk as neat as I can and this tells you that I abhor messiness. OK, I am a neat freak. Maybe it’s genetic. My mom’s a neat fiend too. Nic’s table on the other hand drives me nuts because it is piled high with everything, from paper to files to gadgets.
So what’s on your desk?
By the way, Selamat Hari Raya to everyone’s who celebrating it tomorrow. The USM campus is very quiet today – every student seems to have hot-trotted back home! (Plus it’s Study Week anyway so it’s even more reason to scoot home.)
If I am back home in Banting, I’ll have many friends’ houses to visit but here in Penang, I don’t seem to know anyone who is having an open house (except maybe some Minister). Oh how I miss eating rendang and lemang!
Anyway, to everyone’s who is reading this: Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri! Maaf zahir & batin ya!
Eh, the green mug nice la. The tea bag matching it some more. LOL
Back in campus, my desk experiences changes from time to time. During the beginning of the semester or right after tests, my desk looks like Krista’s Desk. And during assignment/test/exam season, my desk would most probably look like Nic’s Desk, if not worse. 😉 Hehehe…. But overall, I prefer loads of free space on my desktop (including the one on my computer) while everything else is neatly
stashed away on the shelf.
ya the green mug very nice la. i like the elephant card.
mine is quite similat to vern’s style of desk. but my desk is 75% Nic’s Desk and 20% Krista’s Desk and 5% U-jean’s Desk (super the duper messy!!)
Hi Vern: Haha, ya, I like the green mug too. Forgot to say I am a tea drinker…ok make that copious tea drinker. The tea bag is green coz it’s green tea! I try to reduce the bits of note papers here and there but I do love writing memos and reminders to myself!
U-jean: Yes, the elephant series is a nice set of plain cards which I use to send to just about everyone I know (new babies, birthdays, etc). Support Malaysian artists I say. I wanna see u-jean’s desk! 😉 I read somewhere that someone once said (ha, maybe it’s Nic) that there is order in chaos. Mine is just chaos in chaos.
I have one small stick of lego, a baby bottle, a British Council notebook, a piece of paper which has my British Council login name & password (actually better put that in my wallet!), The Alchemist, a Crayola pen and a remote control for the DVD player. I have no idea what you can read into that…
(Is that the nursery near the traffic lights just before the bridge? I’ve driven past that place a million times but never actually gone in. Which would mean I live near your grandma!)
I am also a freak when it comes to being methodical and neat. Maybe a carry forward from my ISO/TQM days where SYSTEM is the word in anything, everything I do. Unfortunately when I have to research for the design of my training program, my desk would resemble a war-torn country. Pieces of notes, books, post-its, pens and pencils until the culmination. However messy it maybe, I will always endeavour to be tidy. I am after all of the rabbit animal sign. Talking about hand cream, you should really try Eubos Hand Cream. Fantastic product cos you can feel the immediate softness after application. I carry one tube in my handbag for those ‘dry’ hand days.
Hi d: From your desk, it shows you’re a parent! You like watching DVDs and have a relaxing job… haha. I’m psychic!
Hi Kate: Sometimes we are not all we seem to be! It’s surprising really when you discover yourself. I did…especially when I think I am somewhat like my mom….. scary but nice thought all the same. I shall try Eubos when my bottle finishes. Thanks for the tip.