Right after graduation(which was about 7 years ago), I was sent for my industry placement or internship as how we call it here in Malaysia. Internship would usually last only about 3 months as required by the university to complete the bachelor's course that I was in, a Bachelor's Degree in 3D Animation.

At that time, I was pretty upset with where my university was sending me because it was an advertising agency. I was expecting to follow my other coursemates who were all being given a job at huge game/animation studios and these companies were also quite well known in Malaysia. Little did I know, God had His plans for me and this internship was the best working time of my entire career journey.

Why?

Because my bosses and colleagues were amazing. The bosses treated us like friends and because it was a small company, we were all pretty close together. It was not only the relationship aspect that was good, but the working environment was really good for any interns who have just started their career in this 24/7 creative working industry. In the company, they allowed me into important meetings which gave me a voice in the creative and projects that I was doing, they allowed enough room for me to develop myself and they taught me many soft skills that were considered survival skills if you want to survive in this creative industry.

The photo above is all of us 8 years later celebrating my ex-art director's house warming. He just moved in and we were all invited to gather again. This isn't the only time but these are good people. Bosses and colleagues. I'm really grateful that I hadn't gone straight into the 3D industry like my other friends did because most of them left this industry after being thrown into the furnace of burning the midnight oil. I call it modern factory workers and it's true! They get micromanaged by their supervisors, neverending tasks, countless retakes and critiques that prolongs your already unfinished tasks and many other absurd working lifestyles we have in the creative industry.

After so many years, all of us who were once in the same company would still take the time and effort to meetup every once in awhile. I'm so grateful to have good friends like them in my life because it makes life more worthwhile. I'm a guy that can't stand drama and would avoid them most of the time, so people/friends who usually bring along drama would usually not gel well with me. I just think life is too short to have drama complaining about someone/something when I can be out enjoying life with good food and good people.

It was also a great time catching up with one another, listening to their life stories, ups, and downs. Usually, we would laugh at each other's misfortune because that is what real friends do ey? And they would always like to matchmake me with some random girl just because I'm the single guy there.

And then we had durian. We sat around the living room and watch a movie. It was showing 'Bohemian Rhapsody', one of the really good movie which I enjoyed watching the third time there.

I can never feel any less blessed with these bunch around. I really treasure friendships like these and I hope and I think that friendships like these would last.

I hope you are having a wonderful time now that we're nearing the weekend. I know I need the rest and I just can't wait to be able to enjoy myself then. Till then, Stay healthy among the midst of the coronavirus and take care!