Tag Archives: New York City

Summer Days

10 Jul

M1’s first summer is going on well, with classes keeping her busy. Weather-wise it can be hot and sometimes still cold.

Comparing her experience with mine, I came home for my first summer after a year away. Unlike M1, starting as a freshman, I started as a Sophomore, transferring a year’s liberal studies from the local community college. Anyway, Mom and Dad thought I should come home and I did for a whole 16 weeks. Sure I enjoyed the food, friends and family but I felt it was too long. Towards the end of my summer, I was agitated, bored to death and couldn’t wait to get back to college.

So by the time my second summer came around, I decided to continue working at the bookstore and took a summer class. Painting. It was very laid back and fun. Needless to say, I aced it.

And prior to my third summer, I engineered an internship opportunity in New York City. That summer came and I interned with WBMG, Inc. under the watchful eyes of Walter Bernard and Milton Glaser. The exposure and experience were priceless and the best time of my life!

Ahh… Those were the days.

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How You Spell Your Name Again??

15 Jul

Thank goodness I named the my two girls, currently code named, M1 and M2, with sensible sounding names that are easy to pronounce. Yet, we have people pronouncing them wrongly, or worst, spelling wrongly! Horrors.

During my early working years, I encountered many creative minds and with creative names, it was such an eye opener. The one that stands out most after all these years was from my working at a local publishing house. An enthusiastic ad salesman came a calling and introduced himself as Calvin but spelt, ‘Qalvin’, proudly showing me his business card!

Unimpressed, I queried him on this choice of spelling for the name and then, pointed out to him that a ‘u’ technically should follow after the ‘Q’ – typical of the letter ‘Q’.

I then went on teasing him, purposely emphasizing “QUAIL-vin” prominently, and this embarrassed the heck out of him. I guess he wasn’t impressed too for he never dropped by after that incident.

Honestly, I have no objections to one having a creative name, I am just of the opinion that it must be spelt correctly. Remember my ‘English teacher’ calling my mother intended me for? And it would be a bonus if the chosen name goes well with the person’s physical appearance.

Call me old school or whatever but wouldn’t it be more significant if one looks like their name? I often asked my girls if I had switched their names, how would it be like? They’d squint their eyes for a minute before bursting into contagious laughter! Obviously, they cannot imagine one being the other. See my point of one looking like their name?

I’ve come across a sweet lady aptly named Apple (coincidently in New York City), a bridegroom named Cyclops, perfectly healthy and with two eyes unlike what the name conjures up in the mind (only in Hong Kong you get something like this!) and of course, the timid bird-like Qalvin (in Kuala Lumpur)!

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Last week, I was down in Singapore attending an exhibition and met up with a ‘Seaman’ and a ‘Kinus’, from Singapore and Hong Kong respectively. I had to refrain from laughing in front of them as I found their choice of name so totally wrong with their physical appearance and country of origin.

Walking away, I commented to the hubby, “I met a Seaman.”

“Semen?” He asked incredulously.

“Oh stop it! It’s ‘s-e-A-m-A-n’. Got a couple of ‘A’s in between, ok?” I pointed out and in a way, was relieved Seaman did not look like a dick head.

“Aiyoh…. Why choose such a name?” the hubby could not fathom.

Makes me wonder too. Whatever happened to good old safe choices to avoid the embarrassment of correcting someone spelling your name wrongly?

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