"I Was Distraught!"

I woke up yesterday’s morning feeling fresh though maybe a little nervous. I had a big day coming up. I had an ISO program for Senior Management staff and I was expected to MC and oversee the whole program. My boss was on a one-week vacation so I was supposed to shoulder all the responsibilities alone in this ‘all-important’ event.

But that was not the part that made me all uptight. Much of my anxieties are due to our YBhg Dato’ present in the program. I felt a little jittery.

So I came early in the morning. I prepared my opening speech, made sure the table tags and notes were properly in place, refreshments must be ready on cue and checked all the machinery. Everything looked perfect from the get go. I was pleased.

“This thing needs to be running smoothly”. I chanted.

But, O well what do I know?

Just minutes before Dato’ arrival, the white screen turned green on me. O uh! My alarm went off. I tried hopelessly tweaking here and there but it was not improved. At this very moment, there was no amount of "Greatest Love of All" can save my a** , only, gasp! God. So I just dismissed it as another ‘stupid machine acting up’ and hoped my audience can live up with it for half a day and never really notice it.

WRONG!

Then Dato’ took his seat and my worst nightmare realized in front of my own eyes and I shall know now the meaning of ‘stupid machine acting up’. The whole system bailed out on me – on cue of Dato’ arrival – Dammit!.

A thousand and one thoughts were coursing through my mind, and none of them pleasant. Akin walking on the death row, I called the tech support staff to help me out with situation ASAP. ("Right now!, or I killed your entire family!")

So, they came, they looked, touched it here and there and finally had an audacity to say this to me “ The projector is old and can’t be used anymore”. NOW YOU ARE TELLING ME THIS?!!

And after 15 agonizing minutes they brought me another supposedly new projector.

I thought the nightmare was over. NOPE. Still it didn’t work out.

During that split second, I had experienced an inexplicable skip of heartbeat and the only other sound I heard was Dato’ tapping his fingers on the table. I felt like my career here was numbered.

“O, I think it wasn’t the projector, maybe it's the cable” MAYBE?!!

Another sponger who wanted to take advantage of my easy-going nature? Was my life one big cosmic joke or what?

“ Can you give us a minute, we have to bring a new cable up here”

“Sure, take all the time you want and O, while you are at it, bring me an arsenic, will ya?”

I wish I were dead. I thought I was.



“I was totally distraught”