Back in mid-June, I entered a contest (in college..and I think it was in the middle of a boring class. shh..and I was using a friend's laptop LOL) one hour just before the contest was closed. So the contest was to answer 2 questions and the tiebreaker was to answer a slogan in less than 30 words. So I began brainstorming. I took 10 minutes to brainstorm so that I could submit on time. No rhymes, no puns and I don't think it's even creative. I just felt I should just hit straight to the point and be honest. So I just typed whatever that comes into mind and tried to keep it in 30 words. 30 words is challenging. 

Anyway, one week later, right after another boring class in college, I received a call. I held up my phone. An office number! I gasp in excitement and quickly picked up the call. I actually love to receive calls from office number (because 70% it would be from contest organizer. Heh). So the person on the other line told me she was calling from a company (which I didn't get at that point of time) and that I won their contest. But wait, I wasn't sure which contest she was referring to. Given that the number of contest I've entered whether cincai or not is quite a number.. But then, after some "aha" from me, she mentioned the prize - SEIKO! I gasp. SERIOUS?! I hadn't expect to win their contest. OH-AM-GEE. A new watch! 

So after a few congratulatory emails and notifications, the prize giving ceremony is here!

Mum looks so happy. Lol.

My mum told me that the person-in-charge (I remember her name, but I shall not reveal it here LOL) from Thong Sia Sdn. Bhd. said there were about 500 entries for the contest. And I'm so thankful that I am part of the 3 that won T_T. Thank YOU, GOD and also thank you, Thong Sia. :D 

So after about..I think..2 weeks, someone from MSN called me up to ask me about the prize, they didn't know much about the ceremony and stuff I think. She asked me how was it and what was the inspiration behind my winning slogan. Read the article by MSN below or here (link)

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A prize-giving ceremony was held at the office of Thong Sia Sdn. Bhd., where the three winners attended to receive their prizes. Out of the hundreds of entries compiled, Yap Chean Hou, 23; Tang Ruxyn, 19; and Lee Keat Yen, 32 were announced as winners.

Yap Chean Hou shared with us the inspiration behind his winning slogan: 'When I was growing up, I didn't really talk much with my father; he's always working and was like your typical Chinaman. Whatever that my dad needs to tell me, he passes the message to my mum, who then relays it to me. But during my graduation, both of my parents attended and I hugged my dad for the first time and we both had tears in our eyes.' We asked him how his father reacted when Yap gave him the watch, to which he said: 'I haven't seen him yet. I'll give it to him this weekend! But I've told him over the phone and he is very, very happy. He already has one SEIKO watch, and now he has two, so yes, he's very happy!'

Tang Ruxyn's slogan touched the hearts of the judges and we asked her to share the story about her father with us. 'My slogan is based on my true experience. My dad was undergoing an operation and it was a rough time; I was trying to find the perfect moment with him.' Tang and her father both attended the prize-giving ceremony and Tang said she is happy that she won.

Winner Lee Keat Yen, 32, who attended the ceremony with her mother, told us this: 'My father was not feeling very well, so I brought my mum. The inspiration behind my slogan was that, my father was diagnosed with prostate cancer in the late 2008 and this was the first incident that happened in our family. Dad is doing alright now. We had to overcome the obstacle and gone through it as a family by adjusting to a new lifestyle and eating habits to make things smoother for him. So the perfect moment with my dad was when I got married end of 2009, and it was the first marriage in the family. I hired a photographer and he was trying to get us to pose and he asked me to hug my dad, which I did. It was awkward at first, but then after, I felt warm and strange at the same time. We cried, talked a bit and then I realized I should do it more often now.' Lee's dad was happy to receive the watch from his daughter and he treasured the prize so much that he still has it kept in the box.' Aww!

Congrats to all winners from us at MSN Malaysia and Thong Sia Sdn. Bhd.!


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By the way, MSN kinda paraphrased a lot from what I told them XD. I said something like it's based on my true experience and that it was based on that, I appreciated the time I have with my father and that was why every moment is a perfect moment together. And I didn't attend the prize-giving ceremony. My sister did on behalf of me. LOL. Coz I was having classes you see :1 I'm still a good student. I attend classes almost all the time (though my mind may wonder away sometimes. LALALA)



Mum, sister and dad. That must have been Thong Sia's chairman or something :X


Here's a close up of the prize. SEIKO Solar Chronograph SSC003P1. 

:)

This is a prize worth remembering. Because there's a prize giving ceremony. And half the family gets to attend the ceremony. And my dad gets to keep the watch as his Father's Day present. LOL. I've done my job for this year. :P