Conversation

My boss were out on Friday afternoon to settle some personal stuffs, and asked me to look after the department for a while. Ir. Decamouth came over to look for him, so I asked if there's anything in particular.

Decamouth, "Oh, it is about this Annual Dinner for the IMechE...(Institution of Mechanical Engineering)"
me, "I see..."
"Well, I want to ask if abc (my boss's name) wants to go."
me, "Hmm... that's the annual dinner where I first met him (my boss) last year right? Are you going?"
Decamouth, "Yeah, I will be going. Did you get this invitation letter also?"

Well, I have got it over the email quite a while ago, and it wasn't an invitation, more like a notice. I was thinking of asking my bf if he will be interested to go this year. This was the annual dinner where I first met my current boss last year, a week before my lecturing journey ends -- i.e. a week before my jobless journey starts.

me, "Don't think I got it. Would you mind forwarding me a copy?"
Decamouth, "Oh, aren't you on the mailing list?"
me, "Er... not that I am aware of..." (man, first time I am amazed how much I can pretend...)
Decamouth, "Well, I am the good friend of the xxx (some high ranking post and the person's name; e.g. The President of the USA, Mr. Barack Obama.) of the institution, I told him to add me in the mailing list. I guess you won't know him."
I didn't respond.
"... you should have told me, I will tell him to add you into the mailing list. By the way, have you received this other invitation also? It's for the seminar one..."

me, "Hmm? What's that seminar about?" (Again, I received it quite a while ago, but wasn't interested in that particular seminar.)

Decamouth, "Oh, it is about educated engineers is the way to move forward. I go for every seminars, cause I need to fulfill my Continuous Professional Development* programme (CPD)."

me, "ok, would you mind forward me a copy to have a look?"
Decamouth, "Yeah sure, I need to have your personal email though, cause it is not work related. I will tell the xxx (that high ranking post, and the person's name; e.g. The President of the USA, Mr. Barack Obama.) to add you into the mailing list."
me, "Sure. Oh, by the way, I have not been checking my personal email for a while, let me check if I have received anything..."
Decamouth, "Yeah... check it." (With the look: As if you will get anything.)
me, "Oh! I received it too. It must have been a while since I last checked my email."

Decamouth, "How come you are in the mailing list?"
Actually I was only added into the list since taking part in the speech competition with the IMechE last time. But not many people knew that....
me, "I guess I was added since last year's annual dinner."
Decamouth felt deflated, but quickly switch his gear onto other organisations that he joins, and boast about how good are those annual dinner, and the IMechE one is not as good... bla bla bla...

I so enjoyed seeing him pulling his tricks while knowing fully what the truth is. I am so evil... no wonder my boss calls me Mini Me -- quoted from Dr. Evil from Austin Power.


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*CPD -- Continuous Professional Development. It is a practice for all engineers who obtained their title (globally from IMechE etc; or locally from Institution of Engineers Malaysia [IEM] etc) to continue taking part in the engineering related activities. The concept is rather similar to Chartered Accountants or any other professional bodies for various career.

Decamouth has got his Professional Engineer status from the IEM, that's why he gets the Ir. title. If you obtained the recognition from IMechE, you will be called a CEng -- Chartered Engineer.