#22 : Barking To A Great Start In The Year of The Earth Dog

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My first day of work in the Year of the Earth Dog definitely began with a loud bark yesterday, all thanks to @howtostartablog!

It had been a maddening week of sorts after I helped out at TeamMalaysia MyJuniors event launch 2 weeks ago, followed by a flurry of activities before I boarded my flight back to my hometown, Penang to celebrate the Chinese New Year festivities with my loved ones.

After taking a couple of days off to gobble down my mom's legendary chicken curry, licking the last drop of my aunt's to-die-for homemade Assam Laksa and emptying the entire jar of @littlenewthing's limited edition pineapple tarts, I finally found myself seated behind the desk back at work to power up for the year ahead.

Imagine my surprise when I logged on to Steemit late yesterday afternoon and discovered 5 SBD was deposited into my Steemit wallet. Hurray! That was when I realised I had won second place in the #angpao2018 competition organised by @howtostartablog!

Yay!

And this was the first time I ever won anything on Steemit!

Double Yay!

I had submitted my last minute entry after I was given a unique Angpao created by AirAsia. I was glad I managed to squeeze in some time amidst all the craziness surrounding the Chinese New Year festivities to submit my entry for the competition. The thing that struck me the most about the Angpao was its uniqueness and the classic feel to it.

_{The Winning Angpao}

I would like to thank @howtostartablog for organising the contest which attracted a total of 60 entries in 8 days. The #angpao2018 contest not only help to spread and promote Chinese culture to people all over the globe, it also foster a better understanding of the significance and meaning behind the giving of Angpaos which would have been lost in today's generation.

So, congratulations to all who submitted your entries for the #angpao2018 contest. All your Angpaos are equally unique and beautiful in its own right.

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On another note, on Monday night I organised a mini Steemit meetup in Penang which attracted a total of 7 people including a Penang based Steemian @epivictus. @tadstrange who was in town to take care of his mother came along with @patlu, her son @joshlu134 and their family friend who had just arrived in Penang from Kuala Lumpur. Meanwhile @orangila the self-confessed OCD came along with his full photography gear ready to capture the epic moments of the gathering. He lived up to his OCD nature when he fished out a few grey hairs on my head, much to my horror. I had conveniently forgotten I even had grey hairs, up till that point at least!

_{Standing from L - R @joshlu134, @tadstrange and @patlu
Seated from L - R @orangila and @karinzdailygrind
(We missed @jieh as he left earlier)}

_{From L - R @karinzdailygrind, @jieh, @patlu's friend, @patlu, @tadstrange and @joshlu134
(Pictures courtesy of @orangila)}

We spoke for hours on Steemit and cryptocurrency over several plates of good ol' Penang hawker food and drinks amidst the sweltering heat. I also enquired on @tadstrange's mother who is currently undergoing chemotherapy at a private hospital. He had put his studies on hold and moved to Penang to cook for his mother and nursed her back to good health.

Do hop over to his blog and show him some love and encouragement if you can.

We finally called it a day and bid each other farewell just before midnight...

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KarinzDailyGrind is back to munching salads and nibbling carrots to prevent herself from growing sideways after overindulging herself in too much Chinese New Year goodies and home cooked food. She wishes everyone a Happy and Blessed Chinese New Year.

If you resonate with her posts, do Upvote | Follow | Comment | Resteem. Or DM her on Discord. She promised to chew, not bite in the Year of the Earth Dog