1st Day of Work in HLNT and a Walk Down Memory Lane

March 15, 2016

1st Day of Work in HLNT and a Walk Down Memory Lane

Ok... as promised, here is a quick update on how my first day of work went. It was pretty quiet in the office yesterday. As Healthy Living NT (HLNT) is involved in training and a lot of out-of-office work, there were only 4 staff (including me) present yesterday.

Interestingly, yesterday was the first day that I experienced a traffic slowdown. It took me about 5 minutes to clear a roundabout at the junction of Lee Point Rd and Vanderlin Drive. I got to work at 8.00 and was greeted by the two ladies at the counter. I know one of them as Ruth. I will find out the name of the other soon. I know you might think I should be good with names being an ex-teacher.

The truth is I used to mess the names of pupils up in my class. Especially when we taught like a dozen classes of PE. I would shout out a random name while pointing at a pupil. This trick worked for the lower primary pupils. They would respond either way (they are usually more visual). As for the upper primary pupils, they would get confused and start looking around. When they realise I had gotten their names wrong, the class would burst out in laughter. As a disclaimer, this usually happened at the start of the year. I remember some years back, I was standing in front of the class in a classroom and explaining some stuff when I suddenly felt something tickling my leg. Initially I ignored it as I was quite focused on giving instructions. However, I eventually looked down in annoyance only to find this P1 boy fiddling with the hair on my legs without a care in the world. I couldn't stop smiling and discreetly took a video. Haha, yeah I do miss teaching.

Anyway, getting back on track... So yes, I will eventually get to master the names of my colleagues. So after walking in, I got to my desk. Soon after, Annette (a colleague) came up to me and offered to show me around the pantry and the office area. Shortly after that, Anne (the CEO) walked in and was soon going me through the computer system. She then began going through an induction kit with me before the both of us met Karina (business solutions provider) and discussed about the course of action for HLNT.

Simply put, this foray into physical activity is a first for HLNT and therefore some strategic planning is required to set the direction right from the onset.

Soon after the meeting, I had lunch and then spent a couple of hours on the computer reading up on various programmes and physical activity arrangements in the NT. Subsequently, Irawan (colleague again) came up to me and ran through some finer details of the computer system before leaving.

That was about it for my first day. A rather quiet one actually. In comparison, my first day in OEPS was very different. I had arrived slightly late as I wasn't expecting a jam down Fidelio street. Nagina, Yvonne and Rashidi were already at the office and waiting for me. Of course I had no idea who they were then. Shortly after, we were invited into the Principal's office and I had my first encounter with Mr. Yap. I can't remember how the conversation went but I am pretty sure there was mention of the three cardinal rules (Safety, Finance, Exams). Throughout the day, the four of us were introduced to various heads who went through the different departmental roles in OEPS. Noraini inducted us on leave matters and general staff issues. Johnny went through IT matters etc. I was introduced to my table which was beside a Mr. Firdaus who had recently joined OEPS as well. I then had a very serious interview with a Mr. Osman. He was in-charge of the PE Department and posed me some dead serious questions with regards to my contribution to the department and my skills and abilities regarding CCAs. Subsequently, Hadi met me at the canteen and walked me through roles and routines for classes, shared with me some videos he had taken on classroom organisation etc. I was also introduced to Azlina who was then my reviewing officer and she highlighted English department duties with me. That was about as much as I can remember from my first day in OEPS. 6 years have passed so quickly and I find myself in a very different time and place now.

I know I will eventually get to know the staff in HLNT better. It took me awhile in OEPS as well. There had been this joke within the PE Department that went on for years. During my first P5 camp in 2010, I was rather quiet while seated with Tasyrif, Helmy, Hadi and Osman. Osman then asked me with a straight face, "Eh, you cannot talk is it? Or you don't like to talk ah?" Fast forward a few months and he has since reminded me on countless occasions about how he dreaded that day he asked the question.

So in time to come, I will get to know my current colleagues better. Hopefully I make a few good friends too. Before I end this post, I must say, I miss the people at OEPS. So here are some images from my time at OEPS to rekindle memories of years gone by.