Sunday, September 28, 2008

Outsmarting the Quack


Alas, the continuation to my Bullet Points entry on Friday.

On Friday morning, I called Mr Designer a few times to hear the story but he didn't pick up. It was already 2.30pm when he finally called me back. He said he had been in a bad mood and didn't want to talk to anybody for fear of snapping at them, hence the delayed call.

Apparently, what happened on Thursday night was really bad, worse than I thought. He agreed to meet his now ex-boss cum my ex-friend at KFC Sunway Pyramid. She turned up with her husband and her secretary. He brought her laptop and car keys. Yeah, she made a big deal about him returning her 'assets', he said it was as if he had her luxury car, house or something, rather than a laptop and an old Proton.

When he arrived, he extended his hand to salam with her husband but the man didn't reciprocate. He also had this strong look of contempt / disgust on his face. I could imagine that as I've met her husband a few times, he is a proud baba, a convert. That and the chaos arising from his ex-boss loud voice attracted the other diners' attention. The tables were close together. He left the laptop battery a bit but when she wanted to check it to ensure that everything was in order, the battery konk out. She yelled that he if had brains, he would have charged it, instead of lazing around at home for two days.

Definitely that infuriated him. Not only he had been working his ass off with very little sleep (on personal projects), he was also staying temporarily at his friends' place. He had been sleeping on the sofa for more than a month, no privacy, no real rest. He was desperate to move out of his rented house as it belongs to his ex-fiance's father, and it is next to their family house. His house-mates were still staying there though.


Moving on, as the icing on top of the cake, his ex-boss refused to pay his 2nd month salary. Note that she only paid a quarter of his 1st month salary. He could get more than that by freelancing, no need to have a permanent job. And he didn't have to be at her beck and call all the time too.

He said he really wanted to punch her husband, but something stopped him. That was unusual as normally, when he loses his temper, he wouldn't be able to control himself. Perhaps it was because everybody was looking at them. He also told himself that her husband didn't know the real story, he was very much under her influence. She might deny it, but being with both of them together was enough for me to see that she 'queen controls' him. I'm glad that he didn't punch the man; he works with the government, it may backfire in the long run. I was surprised that her husband would go down as to 'refuse to salam', people with genuine class won't do that. Mr Designer said that was the first time someone refused to salam with him.

What he did was blast them off with nasty words. He kicked the table hard towards her before leaving. Guess who fetched him? Yeah, his new business partner cum her ex-business partner & her husband's oldest friend. It is ironic that only weeks before she is scheduled to leave the country for her husband 5-year overseas posting, everybody discovered her true colour and turned against her, including me.


He was gravely upset. I could hear it in the tone of his voice. Even after an overnight gap, he sounded as if he had called me immediately after the incidence. I tried to console him. She owed him money, she would have to find him in Akhirat to settle her debts. Thinking that way may help him calm down a bit.

She may have thought that she had won but interestingly, no. The very next day, her secretary called him to ask for the codes of the files in the laptop. Apparently, he had flattened the image files and it would be almost impossible for the other designer to work on them in that format. So, he said he would give it after they release his salary, the full amount. LOL! She later called back and said they will release 50% before he give the code and another 50% after that. I told him no, it's obvious that she couldn't even be trusted. He should ask for 90% before and 10% after.

Though he needs the money, he should not rush it. I asked him to also get a letter of apology from her. With the way things are moving, he may go far in business. We don't want her to return in 5 years and ruin his good name. Remember that her husband works with the government, she rides a lot on his reputation to enhance her credibility. Without him, she is a quack. That is the main finding from my first hand experience of having dealt with her for the last 6 months.

Boy, I’m just glad that she would be out of our lives very soon.

4 comments:

Ms B said...

selamat hari raya hazia.

Lee said...

Wow, Hazia....fantastic experience you had.
Glad no really untoward incident or embarrasing one.
Bet he really had to control himself....and rationality prevailed too.
Anyway, here's wishing you and all at home Selamat hari Raya. Best regards.....Lee.

Hazia said...

Ms B,
Selamat hari raya to you too. Have a meaningful Syawal:)

Hazia said...

U.Lee
Thanks for d Raya wishes. Yeah, it's one drama after another. The good thing is that I'll never be bored. LOL!