Sunday, March 16, 2008

August Rush for the Seasons.


I guess everyone has a bad movie they somehow like. And I say bad in the context that the people themselves know how bad the movie was, only that they didn’t care. August Rush was one of those movies. For me, at least.


I like it. Most of all I like the music. And I guess that’s all that matter.


I was heading home on Tuesday and many interesting things happened.


The first one was hearing my name being called loudly and enthusiastically, the sort of name-calling you register to people you haven’t seen in a very long time and would very likely turn your day that day. I started, halfway up the stairs, and found a college classmate who somehow managed to delve herself in the world of sales and marketing. Her Maxis Broadband booth was there at the LRT station for the day.


(Perhaps it’s safe for me to point out that this particular ex-classmate was the same person who pounced on me online trying to sell me an internet package. The world is too small sometimes.)


She was all smiles, but the worst part was the she was all hopeful. No escape, her look says. You’re buying.


Fuck it, I’m not buying shit, I tried to say. But you know you don’t ever say that.


So I listened and nodded and tried to look interested, and in the end I took her number and promised that I’ll tell my uncle at least. She didn’t sound too happy. But hey, that’s sales and marketing for ya.


Then she introduced me to her boss, which is a tall Indian dude that I reckon to Russell Peters gone to London for a few years to get a degree, minus the humour and wit. This dude runs a sales & marketing company training ‘young hopefuls’ in the arts of the trade, and soon I’m there under some well rehearsed recruitment speech.


“I was an engineer once, doing about 3K a year,” he said at one point, and you can tell where he’s going. “Then I went into sales and marketing. And you know the way sales work… you do know, right? And soon I was getting about, say, 6K a month. And then the company tells me, ‘you better get out of here and start one yourself.’”


And then he chuckled. You can smell the condescension and overwhelming pride.


“So, whenever you feel like taking sales and marketing up, give me a ring,” he said, in all the conviction a man who knew that a few years down the road I’d call him or someone like him.


“I’m thinking I’ll more likely go into my interests first, if not something closer,” I said. I had I hate sales and marketing I hate sales and marketing repeated in the mind hoping he will pick it up telepathically.


He cocked an eyebrow. “You can never tell, really.”


At this point Pauline tapped me on the shoulder and whisked me away before I can give a retort of some sort.


After that it was some sort of game Coincidence was playing, maybe for some laughs over popcorn night.


Meeting Pauline is coincidence enough. I was then introduced to Yi Liang (the closest I can spell his name by ear), who strikes me of as a sci-fi fantasy fan so big as to having his own parody songs.


He advised me that the next time I get bothered by people trying to sell me something, I should tell them that my religion is against their products. He also said that if they persisted, I should start chanting.


Charming.


And then I got a call from a familiar number, which my Bluetooth earpiece failed to register its owner’s voice clearly to me. My first thought was that someone from the other company was calling me over the political blog, so I went, “I’m sorry, who’s this?”


And the voice in the other end said, “You really can’t remember my number ah??
*interrobang*”


Then the line went dead. I was like, “Shit.”


Then Amanda showed up.


I was the most sorry that I’ve ever been, but I don’t think people noticed.


Argh.


And then Mekz and Mr. Foo (Kevin?) appeared. I swear it was like a sitcom situation not unlike the moment the lead lands himself in some embarrassing troubles.


Well, nothing like that really happened, but the feeling was there enough.


Seeing Amanda for the first time in just about half a year now is quite something. For one, she never seem to have changed. She said I’m still same old me either. And we talked a bit on the way back. She sounds alright, and I’m glad for that.


For a moment there it felt like it was back in college (when I was somewhat thinner with less nonsense).


****************

I am going into a decline.

1 comments:

Ithildin Galad said...

Thats right, actually. Yi Liang.

And it was like a anime scene, i think. XD