and the verdict

hey i can play a bit of badminton now, thanks to supportive teammates and opposing teams who play even less than i do.  hurrah.

but let me just say:

veteran players--i'm talking about those who make the court their homes twice, thrice a week and probably have been playing for years--are no fun.  why? because they want to really, really win.  us beginners want to 'just play' and learn and have fun while doing it (okay, and also win, but what are the odds, realistically?).  a sportsfest doesn't guarantee you have the same skill level among players, unlike the olympics where everyone goes through some sort of selection process to determine if the player is good enough to play.  oh well, the month-long sportsfest is for sporty people, not happy ones (hahaha).  i was "reunited" with some co-employees who became happy acquaintances and we had fun laughing at ourselves.  sometimes we chuckled over how square-faced the veterans were.  well you can't really tell the veterans to lower down their skill level, right?  so uh, i guess we could just ignore their superpowers and clown out the games--by doing so we'll not only have good fun (and the "spirit of camaraderie") but also we won't feel bad about not having badminton as our primary sport.  on another note, they should even be glad we beginners signed up for them to play with.  and by play i mean like a cat with a mouse.  but it was fun, really.

anyway!  the highlight (for me) of the badminton games was the arrival of the director and assistant director of the human resource department.  i had submitted my resignation letter earlier in the week and they called me to ask about it.  they asked about my reasons (studies) and plans (get my MA, perhaps teach later).  they were okay with it and wished me luck.  they even approved of my suggestion/recommendation for a replacement when i leave.  i mentioned in my letter that i and my officemates know of a fellow sociology graduate who's currently working for another institution's extension program and who would be willing to take up my post.  just like that, i already felt free.

there are just some more projects and tasks i have to finish before i leave.  i want to make sure everything's settled and properly turned over.  by june first i'll officially be a freelancer and graduate student, but for now i'll be smashing all my career frustrations in that bad, bad, badminton court.  lol.