This is something that started bothering me a couple weeks ago, mostly because I gave it any thought at all. Here in Singapore, Ketchup is always referred to as "Tomato Ketchup." (Side note, they pronounce tomato toe-mah-toe vs tah-may-toe). Are we making sure that we're not confusing it with other types of ketchup? God forbid you grab eggplant or watermelon ketchup instead. Anyone ever been asked to pass the cabbage ketchup? Sauce for thought.
So most of you may not know this, and why would you, but we have two sets of friends that got pregnant right around the time of our going-away festivities (my guess is that it actually happened AT our going away party, but I couldn't be everywhere at once. Well, these babies are actually going to be born soon, which means, remarkably, that I've been here for just about 9 months. (and yes, I know, I've not blogged at all in their 3rd 3-mesters).
Nine months so far. I wish I could say that it's been easy, that I've acclimated 100%. I still think it's hot, because it is. I still go apeshit when trying to walk through a crowded mall or subway station, because it's the most ridiculous thing. But this is home now, and I'm getting even better at it. I take way more public transportation than I'd like to. I get around the city without consulting maps. I now find cab drivers to actually be coherent AND I can give them directions. Most importantly, we have great friends here, which has been especially important lately.
Frankly, the last few months have been difficult to say the least. Yes, there's been lots of travel (all of which I have to update you on) for both of us, together and Kellie's solo trips for work. There's been countless terrific nights out with friends, BBQs, and seeing F1 Singapore, the only night F1 Race in the world - an event that, including it's concerts, actually had me referring to Singapore as. . . cool.
But I'm still not working.
Four months since I left Questex and this is obviously the single biggest challenge to my otherwise dependable CHEERY MOOD. Long story short? Not only did I count my chickens before they hatched, I had also put all of their hypothetical eggs into just ONE basket. Picking up what I'm putting down? I waited almost 3 months to find out the job I'd been assured was a "go," was a "no go." That almost turned my breaking point into my broken point.
It's been an interesting process, this Southern Hemispheric job hunt. The stuff I can get I don't want, the stuff I want, well I can get and can't have. 2nd Example - last week I find out that the job that I'm in love with, that I'd be PER-freaken-FECT for was to be offered to me, it was mine, right up until this large security software company announced a hiring freeze. Honestly, it's fucking comical - Kellie and I literally laughed when I got that call. Seriously? Twice? Something, anything, has to give, right?
Anyway - keep digging, I keep leaning on poor Kellie, who tirelessly amazes me with her support and patience, and trust that God, either America's God or Singapore's, I don't care, will come up with something for me.
Now - shit ain't all bad, and I don't want you to think that it is. I know my not being in a great place the last few months is why I haven't blogged, but I realized tonight (it's about 1:30am) as I couldn't fall asleep, I realized that writing about the tough parts of this journey will be just as valuable to me down the road as the good stuff. This feeling of just, just floating along (a la the feather in Forrest Gump) - this is important for some reason. I mean it blows, but what do they call this shit? Teachable Moment?
And maybe getting this out there tonight will prevent me from having a complete mental meltdown tomorrow at my landlord and his merry band of AC nitwits when they come back a FOURTH time to try and shore up the endless streams of water cascading gloriously, majestically even, down our walls and all over our floors.
Anyway - like I said it ain't all bad. In fact, it's mostly good, save for the job thing. F1 was amazing, and get this, Capt Danimal will be here a week from Sunday. I'm so excited - and not just because we're planning to A.) Rent Harleys and ride around S'pore and possibly up into Malaysia and 2.) Fly to Phuket for a nice long weekend - I'm thrilled that Kellie and I will get a taste of home and be able to share Singapore with another of our friends. Also, in Phuket, you can really see some crazy stuff. Oh yeah, and did I ALSO mention that the weekend after Phuket is Cambodia (I'm told 10K's don't actually require training?), and the weekend after that is my birthday and the Thursday after that, MY FUCKING DAD IS COMING TO SINGAPORE!!! CEO Phil is coming for 10 days baby. It blows not being home (I mean in Boston) for the holidays, but having my Dad here for Christmas (even though he flies out ON Christmas) will be amazing. Plus he's bringing like an extra suitcase of shirts and shorts and stuff for me BECAUSE NOTHING HERE IS MADE FOR PEOPLE BIGGER THAN I WAS IN FOURTH GRADE! Bus seats = busted knees, train doors = head butts - you feel my pain.
So - I owe the world a finished Bali blog (yup that trip was in May), a Beijing blog (spoiler alert, there will be many references to poop), some ramblings about Langkawi, Malaysia (9 out of 10 stars), and coming in the next 2 months, Thailand, Cambodia and Australia (my 20th country!).
Here are some of my latest observations:
- Want to know what it feels like to lose your mind? Stand somewhere in Singapore and watch Police Cars, Fire Trucks or Ambulances (with the lights flashing) - sitting in traffic or waiting at stop lights.
- You know how in Americaland the "Chinese Food" places give you Fortune Cookies? And you know how those cookies often provide a word for us to learn in Chinese? Yeah well, I should have paid more attention to that shit.
- I've come up with two fashion rules that I've observed among locals here in Singapore that I think the "Make it work" guy Kellie makes me watch would be proud of. 1.) For women, there's no such thing as too short. 2.) For men, there's no such thing as too tight.
Until next time, GMail, GChat, AIM, Facebook, Text, Skype, Facetime, WhatsApp, Visit or Call - I might miss you, so you should check. BTW, since daylight savings, we're 13 hours ahead of the East Coast, 16 for the West Coast, and to my readers in the Ukraine, it seems I'm 6 hours ahead of you.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Just checking in to see how you are all doing
Alright - well hello everyone. How have you all been? I've been good - thought I'd check in and add a blog to see if anyone still wants to keep up with all this.
Where to start? Life in Singapore is still going well - Kellie and I are keeping busy enough - which is actually a lot easier for her, since I've been out of work since just before our US trip in July, about a month. The previous gig, for a number of reasons, just wasn't a good fit and I opted to leave and explore other options. Hopefully I'll be able to update you all in the next couple of weeks on my new job - if not, be prepared for complete and utter ramblings as I'm slowly boring myself to death while Kellie is at work. With respect to that last job - my attitude toward working in Singapore was the following - a job here should A.) provide me with new skills, experiences and skill sets - being here is my chance to do something different or 2.) it should pay me a ton of money (ideally it's both A and 2) - however - the job at Questex unfortunately offered neither. So - we move on. Like I said - the good Lord willing, I'll be back in the Rat Race soon enough and I'll update you all.
We got to go to America in July, which was a treat. I'll be completely honest here - I gained about 7 pounds while we were home (home?, is that home? is this home?). In that respect - I did come up with a new slogan which I'm pretty sure not everyone is sick of hearing me say yet - it is - "Home is where the stuff is." We still have a lot of stuff at home, buried in the Grafton house, but our everyday stuff is here. So, is this home?
Before I forget - Steven Tyler's book is an entertaining read, and Angry Birds is digital cocaine.
Ok - so let's have some fun with numbers:
6 - days - that I will be spending in China starting next Thursday the 25th. Kellie has to go back to Beijing for work and I'm tagging along. We're going to check out this famous "Great Mall of China" that I've heard so much about - they can see it from Space! I guess it has a bunch of Hard Rocks, someone saw an American Eagle and a Coldwater Creek with a bunch of Brookstones, but does not have a Gap. We'll also go to Tienanmen Square which is where China launched it's first space shuttle. They have Olympic Stadiums there too from Super Bowl III.
10 - kilometers - is this distance that my fat ass will attempt to "run" in Cambodia in December. Take a minute to muscle these two facts together in your brains. I'm running 10K, and I'm doing it in Cambodia. Kellie is along for the ride, as are 8 other members of our Singapore crew. Really matches up well with the couple kilos I porked on while stateside. Can you all do a little research on Cambodia? I know nothing about it, I've been boning up on my Chinese history.
1,500 - miles - we put on the rental car in Massachusetts during the 13 days we were home. I swear to Jeebus, we didn't even leave the state. Seriously? It was great to see so many people (if you weren't one of them - I'm sorry - it's far more difficult than I thought), spend time with our families, and spoil the SHIT out of Miss Winnie.
10 - pounds - the amount of steak I think I ate while we were home. I'd stamp a number on this for accompanying Coors Lights but who can count that high.
8 - dudes - were sleeping under the bridge near our house this afternoon when I went to get a haircut. This is sort of a trend here amongst the folks that keep Singapore clean. They work in the morning and then sleep under the bridge from about noon - 3pm. It's creepy in an extra creepy sort of creepdom.
15 - Roller Coaster Rides - accomplished in a less than 2 hours last weekend at Universal Studios Singapore. It's a very small park and it poured ALL morning but listening to locals SCREAM THEIR GUTS OUT on the coasters made it worth it. One woman was crying and hyperventilating after The Mummy.
30 - years - the epic birthday my Kellie celebrated on July 25th. We partied in two countries/continents/hemispheres.
I thought it would be interesting to add a couple things in blogs that the US could learn from Singapore
1.) No Pennies. The smallest currency I've seen in S'pore is S$.05 but most everything here is rounded to tenths of dollars. Brilliant - however, I can postulate that this has cost me about 2 grand in pennies since we've been here due to rounding.
2.) The taxi system here. I've already talked about the train system (MRT - or as I've indoctrinated amongst our crowd here - a new name - the Mr. T) and the buses - both of which are super convenient, efficient, and incredibly overcrowded. All the taxis here have LED signs on the roof (Green means available, red is not) so you know what you're dealing with. THEN, I have an app on my iPhone that finds me on GPS, and sends the request to the 7-8 nearest cabs to bid on my job. Closest Uncle wins - I then get a text with his license plate number (and the extra $3.50 fee).
Want to see some pictures?
Where to start? Life in Singapore is still going well - Kellie and I are keeping busy enough - which is actually a lot easier for her, since I've been out of work since just before our US trip in July, about a month. The previous gig, for a number of reasons, just wasn't a good fit and I opted to leave and explore other options. Hopefully I'll be able to update you all in the next couple of weeks on my new job - if not, be prepared for complete and utter ramblings as I'm slowly boring myself to death while Kellie is at work. With respect to that last job - my attitude toward working in Singapore was the following - a job here should A.) provide me with new skills, experiences and skill sets - being here is my chance to do something different or 2.) it should pay me a ton of money (ideally it's both A and 2) - however - the job at Questex unfortunately offered neither. So - we move on. Like I said - the good Lord willing, I'll be back in the Rat Race soon enough and I'll update you all.
We got to go to America in July, which was a treat. I'll be completely honest here - I gained about 7 pounds while we were home (home?, is that home? is this home?). In that respect - I did come up with a new slogan which I'm pretty sure not everyone is sick of hearing me say yet - it is - "Home is where the stuff is." We still have a lot of stuff at home, buried in the Grafton house, but our everyday stuff is here. So, is this home?
Before I forget - Steven Tyler's book is an entertaining read, and Angry Birds is digital cocaine.
Ok - so let's have some fun with numbers:
6 - days - that I will be spending in China starting next Thursday the 25th. Kellie has to go back to Beijing for work and I'm tagging along. We're going to check out this famous "Great Mall of China" that I've heard so much about - they can see it from Space! I guess it has a bunch of Hard Rocks, someone saw an American Eagle and a Coldwater Creek with a bunch of Brookstones, but does not have a Gap. We'll also go to Tienanmen Square which is where China launched it's first space shuttle. They have Olympic Stadiums there too from Super Bowl III.
10 - kilometers - is this distance that my fat ass will attempt to "run" in Cambodia in December. Take a minute to muscle these two facts together in your brains. I'm running 10K, and I'm doing it in Cambodia. Kellie is along for the ride, as are 8 other members of our Singapore crew. Really matches up well with the couple kilos I porked on while stateside. Can you all do a little research on Cambodia? I know nothing about it, I've been boning up on my Chinese history.
1,500 - miles - we put on the rental car in Massachusetts during the 13 days we were home. I swear to Jeebus, we didn't even leave the state. Seriously? It was great to see so many people (if you weren't one of them - I'm sorry - it's far more difficult than I thought), spend time with our families, and spoil the SHIT out of Miss Winnie.
10 - pounds - the amount of steak I think I ate while we were home. I'd stamp a number on this for accompanying Coors Lights but who can count that high.
8 - dudes - were sleeping under the bridge near our house this afternoon when I went to get a haircut. This is sort of a trend here amongst the folks that keep Singapore clean. They work in the morning and then sleep under the bridge from about noon - 3pm. It's creepy in an extra creepy sort of creepdom.
15 - Roller Coaster Rides - accomplished in a less than 2 hours last weekend at Universal Studios Singapore. It's a very small park and it poured ALL morning but listening to locals SCREAM THEIR GUTS OUT on the coasters made it worth it. One woman was crying and hyperventilating after The Mummy.
30 - years - the epic birthday my Kellie celebrated on July 25th. We partied in two countries/continents/hemispheres.
I thought it would be interesting to add a couple things in blogs that the US could learn from Singapore
1.) No Pennies. The smallest currency I've seen in S'pore is S$.05 but most everything here is rounded to tenths of dollars. Brilliant - however, I can postulate that this has cost me about 2 grand in pennies since we've been here due to rounding.
2.) The taxi system here. I've already talked about the train system (MRT - or as I've indoctrinated amongst our crowd here - a new name - the Mr. T) and the buses - both of which are super convenient, efficient, and incredibly overcrowded. All the taxis here have LED signs on the roof (Green means available, red is not) so you know what you're dealing with. THEN, I have an app on my iPhone that finds me on GPS, and sends the request to the 7-8 nearest cabs to bid on my job. Closest Uncle wins - I then get a text with his license plate number (and the extra $3.50 fee).
Want to see some pictures?
 |
| Bar I saw in Singapore - KickButt name, eh? |
 |
| Ha! That's the Ballz |
 |
| Picture I took at dinner the other night of Marina Bay Sands - not a bad view |
 |
| The reason I got a coffee from Smitten the other day - |
 |
| The hard part about leaving Questex is that I miss PT very much. His nickname for me since Day 1 has been Kung Fu Panda - voiced by Jack Black. He believes we're one in the same - and so this shot at Universal was for him. |
I'm out -
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Stuff and Things, and Things and Stuff
At long last, I'm back. You have to give the people what they want, and apparently there are a few Ramblings Junkies out there, so here is your fix.
Truth be told, it has been a while since I've shared my thoughts and experiences (like since May). My only, humble excuse is - we've established a life here. I'll admit to having been resistant for a while. There's work, we have friends, a surprising number actually, of really great friends, and we're busy. One of the things we are busy doing, however, is hemorrhaging money. Singapore is expensive, and Kellie and I are getting to the point where we have to Pump the Breaks a little on the spending. If our only expenses are food and booze, and we run low on money (money being my entire salary) - something's not right. Our group of friends has now started meeting on Friday or Saturday nights at a Hawker Center (outdoor food market/food court type place) for cheap eats. It's amazing that you can eat (well) at a Hawker for S$10 (US$8) but as soon as you add a table and waitstaff (usually with guaranteed crappy service) you pay at least S$25 per meal plus 10% service charge and 7% tax.
Now some of you may still be waiting for the Bali blog, and I'll get to that. Short story - we didn't like it. Dialing back to the good ole days of this blog's launch - here is some stuff to ponder, verbal vomit style.
In Singapore:
- Watching the B's in Game 7 at a bar at 8:00am on a Thursday morning is extra fun because we knew that our friends and family at home were doing the same thing.
- Mayo is an acceptable topping for anything
- The guy at Subway wants you to order a Foot Long, even though you're in a metric country. In fact, if you order a 30.4 Centimeter Long, you get a dirty look. True Story
- Umbrella's are used almost as often when it's sunny as when it's rainy
- White people are almost the only ones that wear sun glasses in Singapore
- Flip flops are perfectly acceptable for riding motorcycles, as are construction site hardhats with a strap
- Tree is not a distribution engine for leaves, it's the thing between two and four
- It is customary for EVERY person waiting for the elevator (lift) to push the button
- On the back of trucks, there's a sticker that says 8 PAX, or 4 PAX. That is the number of people that are allowed to ride around the city in the back of the truck. I'll get a picture, but the best one I saw was 23 PAX.
- There is an exorbitant number of people in Singapore with strange limps. Seriously, I have to imagine that the Limp per Capita is higher here then anywhere else in the world.
- As a sign of respect, older people in Singapore are referred to as Auntie, or Uncle. When you take a cab, you call the driver Uncle. "Thanks Uncle." "Take a right Uncle." "What I pay for rent is none of your business Uncle." "Two coffees please Auntie." It's pretty cool. I'm sure I'm starting to overdue it
- I've definitely taken the spice-intensity level up on the food I eat.
- The Lion King was a great show, but hearing Simba and gang speak with accents was strange
- There are hundreds and hundreds of places in Singapore called KTVs. It stands for Karaoke TV. 14 of us went for our friend Rob's birthday and had a blast. You get your on room for your group, and we had 3 huge plasmas, light shows, tons of music to sing on a great sound system and booze. All very affordable. NOW, this was a "clean" KTV. Most of the KTVs in Singapore, and in Asia from what I hear are not so innocent. Basically, at a dirty KTV, our party would like exactly the same, except all our women (wives, fiancees, girlfriends) would be replaced by "Mama-San's girls". . . .
- We celebrated the 4th of July here in Singapore on the 3rd with a BBQ at our condo. It was a fantastic time with more than 2 dozen guests.
In other news - in the ever-awe-inspiring words of Mr. Neil Diamond: WE'RE COMING TO AMERICA! Couldn't be more excited to Ship Up to Boston. Right now it's Thursday morning at 12:32 which means we leave in less than 24 hours. We'll be home from Friday the 8th until Thursday the 21st.
Highlights of my trip home will be, and in no particular order:
- Seeing friends and family (of course) - you others, you know who you are, don't take up any of my valuable home time
- Not letting Winnie out of my sight from wheels down to wheels up
- DRIVING
- Coors Light
- A LARGE Italian Sub (or 5)
- Steak. Steak Tips, Steak Kabobs, Steak Salads
- Driving
- Playing pool
- Coors Light
- Doing some landscaping at the Grafton House
- Mom's Chicken Parm. Il Forno's Chicken Parm, House of Pizza's Chicken Parm (that's any house of pizza)
- Getting a break from sweating
- Being able to be at K&J's wedding with Kellie
- Shopping at Wrentham
- Here's a strange one. Eating Chinese food. There are no chicken fingers or boneless spare ribs or General Gau's here
If you'd like to feel bad for us, take this into consideration: we leave Singapore at Noon on Thursday (Boston time) and arrive at Logan at 1:30pm Friday Boston time. Yummy
I'll try to send up a post from America. Thanks for tuning in
Truth be told, it has been a while since I've shared my thoughts and experiences (like since May). My only, humble excuse is - we've established a life here. I'll admit to having been resistant for a while. There's work, we have friends, a surprising number actually, of really great friends, and we're busy. One of the things we are busy doing, however, is hemorrhaging money. Singapore is expensive, and Kellie and I are getting to the point where we have to Pump the Breaks a little on the spending. If our only expenses are food and booze, and we run low on money (money being my entire salary) - something's not right. Our group of friends has now started meeting on Friday or Saturday nights at a Hawker Center (outdoor food market/food court type place) for cheap eats. It's amazing that you can eat (well) at a Hawker for S$10 (US$8) but as soon as you add a table and waitstaff (usually with guaranteed crappy service) you pay at least S$25 per meal plus 10% service charge and 7% tax.
Now some of you may still be waiting for the Bali blog, and I'll get to that. Short story - we didn't like it. Dialing back to the good ole days of this blog's launch - here is some stuff to ponder, verbal vomit style.
In Singapore:
- Watching the B's in Game 7 at a bar at 8:00am on a Thursday morning is extra fun because we knew that our friends and family at home were doing the same thing.
- Mayo is an acceptable topping for anything
- The guy at Subway wants you to order a Foot Long, even though you're in a metric country. In fact, if you order a 30.4 Centimeter Long, you get a dirty look. True Story
- Umbrella's are used almost as often when it's sunny as when it's rainy
- White people are almost the only ones that wear sun glasses in Singapore
- Flip flops are perfectly acceptable for riding motorcycles, as are construction site hardhats with a strap
- Tree is not a distribution engine for leaves, it's the thing between two and four
- It is customary for EVERY person waiting for the elevator (lift) to push the button
- On the back of trucks, there's a sticker that says 8 PAX, or 4 PAX. That is the number of people that are allowed to ride around the city in the back of the truck. I'll get a picture, but the best one I saw was 23 PAX.
- There is an exorbitant number of people in Singapore with strange limps. Seriously, I have to imagine that the Limp per Capita is higher here then anywhere else in the world.
- As a sign of respect, older people in Singapore are referred to as Auntie, or Uncle. When you take a cab, you call the driver Uncle. "Thanks Uncle." "Take a right Uncle." "What I pay for rent is none of your business Uncle." "Two coffees please Auntie." It's pretty cool. I'm sure I'm starting to overdue it
- I've definitely taken the spice-intensity level up on the food I eat.
- The Lion King was a great show, but hearing Simba and gang speak with accents was strange
- There are hundreds and hundreds of places in Singapore called KTVs. It stands for Karaoke TV. 14 of us went for our friend Rob's birthday and had a blast. You get your on room for your group, and we had 3 huge plasmas, light shows, tons of music to sing on a great sound system and booze. All very affordable. NOW, this was a "clean" KTV. Most of the KTVs in Singapore, and in Asia from what I hear are not so innocent. Basically, at a dirty KTV, our party would like exactly the same, except all our women (wives, fiancees, girlfriends) would be replaced by "Mama-San's girls". . . .
- We celebrated the 4th of July here in Singapore on the 3rd with a BBQ at our condo. It was a fantastic time with more than 2 dozen guests.
In other news - in the ever-awe-inspiring words of Mr. Neil Diamond: WE'RE COMING TO AMERICA! Couldn't be more excited to Ship Up to Boston. Right now it's Thursday morning at 12:32 which means we leave in less than 24 hours. We'll be home from Friday the 8th until Thursday the 21st.
Highlights of my trip home will be, and in no particular order:
- Seeing friends and family (of course) - you others, you know who you are, don't take up any of my valuable home time
- Not letting Winnie out of my sight from wheels down to wheels up
- DRIVING
- Coors Light
- A LARGE Italian Sub (or 5)
- Steak. Steak Tips, Steak Kabobs, Steak Salads
- Driving
- Playing pool
- Coors Light
- Doing some landscaping at the Grafton House
- Mom's Chicken Parm. Il Forno's Chicken Parm, House of Pizza's Chicken Parm (that's any house of pizza)
- Getting a break from sweating
- Being able to be at K&J's wedding with Kellie
- Shopping at Wrentham
- Here's a strange one. Eating Chinese food. There are no chicken fingers or boneless spare ribs or General Gau's here
If you'd like to feel bad for us, take this into consideration: we leave Singapore at Noon on Thursday (Boston time) and arrive at Logan at 1:30pm Friday Boston time. Yummy
I'll try to send up a post from America. Thanks for tuning in
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Freckles in a Foreign Land - Kellie's Guest Blog 1
We at Ledga's Ramblings strive to bring you, our valued audience, the best in entertainment. We've decided that from time to time we'll enlist the services of a free-lancer, or GUEST blogger to fill these pages, and your hearts, with merriment.
So without further distraction - here is our first such entry, from one Ms. Kellie:
Chris has been asking me to write a guest blog since the beginning of this journey, but I have to say it’s a little intimidating. I often hear from friends, and friends of friends, how much they enjoy reading Chris’ blog and how funny he is. How can I compete with that? But now that we have been living in Singapore for 3 months (Crazy, right?!?), I have finally agreed to write my experience down.
It’s true. Timing could have been a little better. If it has just been a few months earlier we wouldn’t have bought the house or booked a venue for the wedding… but I didn’t think of those things as “deal breakers.” At least I hadn’t bought new curtains or invitations! I remember how nervous I was to call Chris to ask him if he wanted to move to Singapore. I was right to feel nervous. His first answer was a flat out NO, but each conversation after that got much better. It was a little easier to tell my family. The conversation went more like this: “So, Mom, Dad and Steve, I have a great new work opportunity, but it is in Singapore.” Everyone looks at me with a blank face and says “WHAT!”, Kellie: “I know it’s a lot to take in, but it’s something we are really thinking about”, Mom: “You should absolutely do it, but where the heck is Singapore?” That’s how it all started for me, and I can’t believe how far we have come and all the things I have learned.
Today I looked back on my 90 Day Plan that I wrote for work before coming to Singapore. I have made a lot a progress, but the whole section I had about changing the world hasn’t worked out yet. I have been humbled with how much I still have to learn, but excited about the changes I can bring to the region. The office here is bright and clean. My new desk is small and the main decoration is my framed sheet of 4 Basic Revenue Recognition Criteria that made the shipping cut… Go Rev Rec!!! Here the break room has a great view of the city, and when I think about looking out over the parking lot in Hopkinton, I realize it’s definitely an upgrade.
Since coming to Singapore I have been racking up the airline miles. I traveled to Ireland, Manila and Bali. After our trip home in July, I will be a platinum flyer! I never understood why Chris was always concerned with his “status” with an airline, but I am starting to get it. I long for the day when I have enough points to book a first class ticket on one of these long flights.
Here are a few other things I have learned:
· Flights under 10 hours now feel like a quick trip. However, I don’t know how people made it without the mini tv’s on the back of the seats. I have watched more movies in the past 3 months then I ever imagined.
· I used to complain about always having Winnie Duty on Saturday mornings, but I now realize how much I loved my and Winnie’s routine. How did I not appreciate a little puppy kissing my feet as I started to walk out the door?
· People here do not like it when you try to cross the street when the walk sign is not lit… and I am not talking about drivers, I am talking about the other people trying to cross the street… but sometimes my inner-Bostonian gets the best of me and I can’t help but go for it.
· The friends we have made here already feel like they have been in our lives for years. We are all in the same boat, and I didn’t realize how strong a connection could be created with new friends.
· A budget? I don’t remember what a budget is? We are constantly spending money on food and beer….. and we need to start saving since we have added a few people to that already too long wedding list.
· Instead of planning my commute based on where I want to get my coffee (Dunkin vs. Honey Dew), I now have to plan it based on what I need to carry and how much sweat I can handle… Not fun!
· I didn’t think I would ever say this, but I actually miss being able to drive to the grocery store.
· I am getting better with trying out new food. Quite frankly I don’t have much of a choice; for some reason the hawker centers don’t have a lot of baked chicken on the menu…
I am excited for our trip in July. I find it funny that 2 things on the top of my list are Il Forno Chicken Parm and a beer at the Elks. How did a small town girl from Clinton end up 10,000 miles away in a huge city in Asia?? It’s been a very eventful year for us. I am still not sure how all of this has happened, but I can say I am enjoying the ride. I am incredibly thankful and lucky that Chris agreed to take this Singapore adventure with me. He is my home in this new place. He always keeps me laughing, and I am amazed at his ability to make friends anywhere. I am glad that he was willing to write this blog to keep our friends and family laughing too. In the words of my father, “Good Luck”
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Take a picture (or 28) - it'll last longer
This actually turned out to be both challenging and fun. I picked a day that was not just an ordinary day in the office because you'd be as bored as I am. The pictures are from May 5th, the Thursday before we left for Manila. I attended a conference during the afternoon and then an American Chamber of Commerce, Singapore Chapter (AmCham), Cinco de Mayo event. If you don't know who PT is, best go get caught up on previous rambling.
5th May, 2011 - every 37 Minutes. Enjoy.
Hang in there people - you're only half way there - it'll be worth it -
5th May, 2011 - every 37 Minutes. Enjoy.
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| 7:30 AM - Wake up Kellie - Big day in Singapore |
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| 8:07AM - Bus sucks, am I right homes? |
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| 8:44 AM - that's where I spend my day. Swanky right? PS - see ANYONE else there? |
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| 9:21 AM - this is the view from PT's cube. Well, his BACK faces the view. They know how to just lather us up in luxury |
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| 9:58 AM - My coffee spot. 2 complaints - first, even though it's called "2Go" - they still ask if I want "take away" and second, their American Breakfast - it has BAKED BEANS. That's an ENGLISH breakfast. GOD |
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| 10:35 AM - Just LIVING the dream |
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| 11:12 AM - you asked for it, you got it. One pink mouse |
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| 11:49 AM - Train station - again - they try to get people to board and "alight" in an orderly fashion. Ain't happenin |
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| 12:26 PM - Somebody say buffet? |
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| 1:03 PM - Sup ladies. Oh this old thing? Had my tailor whip it up |
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| 1:40 PM - Sup ladies. Oh this old thing? Need a lift? |
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| 2:17 PM - This is the uber long bridge from the train to the office. It's basically my Green Mile |
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| That's Winnie - I think I was in the restroom (delightfully referred to simply as "the toilet" in Singapore) at 2:54 PM |
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| 3:31 PM - it's not the size of your building. . . . |
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| 4:08 PM - Oh Hi, didn't see you there |
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| 4:45 PM - So yeah, when the Lambo's in the shop. . . |
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| 5:22 PM - No PT, it's not time for beers yet |
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| 5:59 PM - Only gangstas bust out of work early and slam beers |
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| 6:36 PM - KELLIE? Good thing SHE can always see me |
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| 7:13 PM - What dirty promo on the TV? |
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| 7:50 PM - Us with Sam & Lauren - pre-Gaming Cinco de Mayo event. Oh yeah, the little guy? He's the manager. He thought he "understood American Sarcasm" until he met me and Sam |
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| 8:27 PM - NO ONE in Singapore had a clue about Cinco de Mayo - cept the Americans. Hey, where DO the Mexicans hang out in Singapore? |
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| 9:04 PM - Things starting to pick up. Met some interesting people. Food stunk, but the beers were cheap |
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| 9:41 PM - they did trivia that MEXICANS couldn't win. AmCham - more like AmChumps |
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| 10:18 PM - no picture for this slot. That's the house we just bought at home. Cute huh? Anyway - my suspicion is that there might have been some drinking going on 'round this time? |
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| 10:55 PM - I mean, awesome, right? Engagement picture? |
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| 11:32 PM - Guess who won the door prize. BOO - YAH. Maybe it's time to head home. |
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| 12:09 AM - BUS SUCKS - but isn't my Kellie adorable? Just another Thirsty Thursday in S'Pore OK, I'm catching up, I've got a Bali blog in the works, and an "Insights and Incidents" piece as well |
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Chocolate, Strawberry or Manila
There's lots to do, I'm so far behind. This traveling and working shit is really getting in the way of my spewing nonsense into cyberspace. My day in pictures is coming, already did my picture per 37 minute day. There will be an entire post about annoyances at work and I'd like to start adding restaurant reviews.
Oh, and I'll write about Bali - we just got done with that too!
But this, this is my Manila blog. I spent a long time noodling over this piece. I usually log in with a rough sketch of the blog in my head, but this one was particularly difficult.
I left the Philippines (eventually) with some very strong opinions - both positive and negative - but I was only there for (not in the airport or a cheap hotel) 36 hours. I landed, slept twice, and left for the airport in 36 hours. How can you make a fair assessment of a country, a culture, even a city in that amount of time. Would we all not be outraged if someone came out of a trip to the US and said the place sucked, only having seen Newark for 36 hours? So I have to be fair, separate the people from the economics, the culture from the crime rate, and the Philippines from the Philippine Airlines.
Read in - it was not smooth sailing home.
The number one thing I took away from The Philippines - Filipinos are an extremely warm, friendly, welcoming people. In a country so overwhelmed with poverty, crime, gross overpopulation, when you talk to a random person out and about, they are just plain nice. This is NOT something you get in Singapore. I also appreciated the Filipino's ability to walk within a large group or confined space or both. Again - they got S'pore beat by a kilometer. They also speak English better than any other population we've encountered - course they were ours for 46 years. This may explain the recent surge in US companies outsourcing so much to the Philippines. That and the economics - see below.
Here's an example of their warmth. It's a beautiful Saturday afternoon, you are standing outside your country's cathedral having just been married and you're taking your wedding pictures. Between you and your photographer stops a van. Out of said van, spills MY ass sightseeing. Shorts and flops, camera, Patriots hat, I mean, I really assholed it up. You brides out there - think of the names and objects you would have heaved in my direction. What happened? Groom looks at me, and yells "You're late! It's about time - I hope you brought a nice present!" We're in one of their pictures. I can't make this up, the next wedding in the church had already started and Kellie and I *LITERALLY* walked into the church after the maid of honor and before the bride. She seriously let us sneak in, whole room looking at us. Hand to God. That. Happened. Welcome to our country, welcome to our church.
The Philippines is overcrowded, there's really no other way to frame what's happening there. 70% of the population is poor. Flash forward: I'm trying to get home and I'm stuck in the airport and no one takes credit cards, there's no banks, and I only have 42 pesos, I can't even buy a coke because it's 50 pesos (US$1.16). Minimum wage in the Philippines is 426 pesos (US$9.30) a day. 8 Cokes. Of the other 30% - 5% are insanely wealthy. Of that 25% that's considered middle class, 19% is LOWER middle-class.
Wanna know why?
San Francisco, CA (City and County) is 231 square miles and has a population of roughly 825K people
Singapore - 253 sq miles - population is 2 Boeing 747 loads short of 5M people
Metro Manila - 246 sq miles - population, we're told, is around 15M. 15,000,000. One metro area. Jobs? Come on.
The Philippines has another ~9,000,000 nationals living and working in other countries. Wanna know why? V, our housekeeper, is from The Philippines. We pay her S$50 (US$40.20) for 4 hours of work every week. That's over 17,000 Pesos, or 4.25 DAYS at minimum wage in the Philippines. In 4 days in 4 hours. THAT is why she sees her kids twice a year. That is why she thanks me when she comes.
Public transportation in Philippines is by Jeepney. Could talk all day, but pictures say it all. Google Image search Jeepney or check this out: http://www.stuartxchange.org/Jeepney.html
Some things you should be prepared for if you go to Manila:
- Dogs: They are at the front of every hotel, some office buildings and malls. They are working. However, if you give them some attention, they are absolute cupcakes
- Guns: They are in front of every hotel, office building, malls and stores. The man who opened the door for us at Starbucks held a shotgun. Dogs and guns are both a security measure, but also a status symbol for establishments. It deters some crime, but also reduces unemployment.
- Traffic - TONS of traffic. They drive on the right hand side of the road. They also drive big vehicles, saw some good ole Ford trucks. Rule of the road is "fill in the blank" - meaning - they can turn 3 lanes into 7.
- Go when Manny Pacquiao has a fight, it's quieter, no crime, no traffic. He was fighting while I was leaving (at first) and he won (thank God). He's a national hero, everyone in the country is so proud of him. If you have a chance, read up on him, pretty remarkable dude, er, congressman.
We did take a tour, and we did get to see some really great places. There's a United States War Cemetery in Manila. It's the second largest United States Military Cemetery in the World after Arlington. 17,000 victims of WWII are buried there, Filipino and American, side by side, a white marble cross for each one. Names listed in the monument, pretty powerful stuff. We also saw some of the older parts of Manila. The challenge, again, is that it's a poor city and it's overcrowded - so tours sit in traffic, finding places you want to show people, isn't that easy. I can honestly say, I had a hard time with it - but Anthony, our Guide, was PROUD of his city, proud of their heroes, I saw HIS Manila, and it was rich with history.
But their airline is a FREAKING disaster. Would I go back to the Philippines? Hmm - if I could get out of the city, see the "country?" Maybe. But my ass is going SINGAPORE AIRLINES.
Kellie and I also got to see my Uncle who happened to be in Manila, AT the same hotel for dinner while we were there. Our first real taste of home, it was great. Thank you Uncle Donald! Come back soon!
How did Boston Rob win Survivor? Holy crap
Oh, and I'll write about Bali - we just got done with that too!
But this, this is my Manila blog. I spent a long time noodling over this piece. I usually log in with a rough sketch of the blog in my head, but this one was particularly difficult.
I left the Philippines (eventually) with some very strong opinions - both positive and negative - but I was only there for (not in the airport or a cheap hotel) 36 hours. I landed, slept twice, and left for the airport in 36 hours. How can you make a fair assessment of a country, a culture, even a city in that amount of time. Would we all not be outraged if someone came out of a trip to the US and said the place sucked, only having seen Newark for 36 hours? So I have to be fair, separate the people from the economics, the culture from the crime rate, and the Philippines from the Philippine Airlines.
Read in - it was not smooth sailing home.
The number one thing I took away from The Philippines - Filipinos are an extremely warm, friendly, welcoming people. In a country so overwhelmed with poverty, crime, gross overpopulation, when you talk to a random person out and about, they are just plain nice. This is NOT something you get in Singapore. I also appreciated the Filipino's ability to walk within a large group or confined space or both. Again - they got S'pore beat by a kilometer. They also speak English better than any other population we've encountered - course they were ours for 46 years. This may explain the recent surge in US companies outsourcing so much to the Philippines. That and the economics - see below.
Here's an example of their warmth. It's a beautiful Saturday afternoon, you are standing outside your country's cathedral having just been married and you're taking your wedding pictures. Between you and your photographer stops a van. Out of said van, spills MY ass sightseeing. Shorts and flops, camera, Patriots hat, I mean, I really assholed it up. You brides out there - think of the names and objects you would have heaved in my direction. What happened? Groom looks at me, and yells "You're late! It's about time - I hope you brought a nice present!" We're in one of their pictures. I can't make this up, the next wedding in the church had already started and Kellie and I *LITERALLY* walked into the church after the maid of honor and before the bride. She seriously let us sneak in, whole room looking at us. Hand to God. That. Happened. Welcome to our country, welcome to our church.
The Philippines is overcrowded, there's really no other way to frame what's happening there. 70% of the population is poor. Flash forward: I'm trying to get home and I'm stuck in the airport and no one takes credit cards, there's no banks, and I only have 42 pesos, I can't even buy a coke because it's 50 pesos (US$1.16). Minimum wage in the Philippines is 426 pesos (US$9.30) a day. 8 Cokes. Of the other 30% - 5% are insanely wealthy. Of that 25% that's considered middle class, 19% is LOWER middle-class.
Wanna know why?
San Francisco, CA (City and County) is 231 square miles and has a population of roughly 825K people
Singapore - 253 sq miles - population is 2 Boeing 747 loads short of 5M people
Metro Manila - 246 sq miles - population, we're told, is around 15M. 15,000,000. One metro area. Jobs? Come on.
The Philippines has another ~9,000,000 nationals living and working in other countries. Wanna know why? V, our housekeeper, is from The Philippines. We pay her S$50 (US$40.20) for 4 hours of work every week. That's over 17,000 Pesos, or 4.25 DAYS at minimum wage in the Philippines. In 4 days in 4 hours. THAT is why she sees her kids twice a year. That is why she thanks me when she comes.
Public transportation in Philippines is by Jeepney. Could talk all day, but pictures say it all. Google Image search Jeepney or check this out: http://www.stuartxchange.org/Jeepney.html
Some things you should be prepared for if you go to Manila:
- Dogs: They are at the front of every hotel, some office buildings and malls. They are working. However, if you give them some attention, they are absolute cupcakes
- Guns: They are in front of every hotel, office building, malls and stores. The man who opened the door for us at Starbucks held a shotgun. Dogs and guns are both a security measure, but also a status symbol for establishments. It deters some crime, but also reduces unemployment.
- Traffic - TONS of traffic. They drive on the right hand side of the road. They also drive big vehicles, saw some good ole Ford trucks. Rule of the road is "fill in the blank" - meaning - they can turn 3 lanes into 7.
- Go when Manny Pacquiao has a fight, it's quieter, no crime, no traffic. He was fighting while I was leaving (at first) and he won (thank God). He's a national hero, everyone in the country is so proud of him. If you have a chance, read up on him, pretty remarkable dude, er, congressman.
We did take a tour, and we did get to see some really great places. There's a United States War Cemetery in Manila. It's the second largest United States Military Cemetery in the World after Arlington. 17,000 victims of WWII are buried there, Filipino and American, side by side, a white marble cross for each one. Names listed in the monument, pretty powerful stuff. We also saw some of the older parts of Manila. The challenge, again, is that it's a poor city and it's overcrowded - so tours sit in traffic, finding places you want to show people, isn't that easy. I can honestly say, I had a hard time with it - but Anthony, our Guide, was PROUD of his city, proud of their heroes, I saw HIS Manila, and it was rich with history.
But their airline is a FREAKING disaster. Would I go back to the Philippines? Hmm - if I could get out of the city, see the "country?" Maybe. But my ass is going SINGAPORE AIRLINES.
Kellie and I also got to see my Uncle who happened to be in Manila, AT the same hotel for dinner while we were there. Our first real taste of home, it was great. Thank you Uncle Donald! Come back soon!
How did Boston Rob win Survivor? Holy crap
Thursday, April 28, 2011
This Blog Will Save Your Life
Blogs will do a lot of things, but they will not save your life. However, since I'm going over some housekeeping items herein, I wanted to make sure everyone reads it. V, our housekeeper, is a life saver though.
Comments: I've been told by countless avid readers that commenting is difficult. I have changed the settings so that everyone should be able to leave comments even if you are an anonymous reader BUT decency and general decorum should propel you to leave some clue as to who is leaving said comment. Fair?
Notifications: Another bone of contention with blogspot is that there's no way for me to broadcast out to the Ramblophiles that a new treasure awaits them. If you would like to receive notification that there is a new post (and not wait till you see it on Facebook) - please email me at chrisleger79@gmail.com with "Blog Add" in the subject line, and something clever in the text. I'll try to include a new fun picture in the email notifications as incentive to get on board.
Engagement: As every marketer tells me when I'm at work, it's about engagement - so I'm going to start making the blog INTERACTIVE. Scroll to the bottom of the page and you'll see the reaction bar (go ahead, I'll wait). You can now choose an answer of 1-5 to questions posed by yours truly.
Here is our first engagement question (remember, answer below and only choose one!)
In what format would you like the next blog post?
1.) Photo Journal - I will take a picture of what I'm doing wherever I am in Singapore every 37 minutes for a whole day - no commentary
2.) Chris Leger's day - third person account of how this remarkable individual spent his day, from the perspective of the poor slob following him around for a day
3.) Guest Blog from Kellie
4.) Guest Blog from Kellie but written by Chris
5.) None of the above, I hate this blog
We'll all be able to see the voting and early next week I'll give the people what they want.
Is this Royal (PITA) Wedding happening in the states too? It's all over the tube here. Is that where the term Pomp & Circumstance comes from?
How was everyone's Easter? I got all of your cards and peeps in the mail - so thoughtful. We actually had a busy Easter weekend. We went to a BBQ on Friday night and met some great new people. I spent the better part of Saturday recovering from said BBQ however, as I might have gone a little overboard. Saturday night, and I must pause here to thank Mark for yet again introducing us to a "favorite place" in Singapore - he's now introduced us to 4-5 of these, so when you all come visit, we may just send you out with Mark, so Saturday night Kellie and I met Mark at Chijmes - pronounced "Chimes," and not Chidgems as this donkey found out. Had some dinner and watched the Manchester United game outside on the big screens drinking Budweiser (pronounced BUTT-why-zuh).
Today Microsoft Outlook corrected colorful with colourful in an email I was writing.
PITA = Pain In The Ass, BTW (which means By The Way)
We spent Easter Sunday in an area called Sembawang, which is at the northern point of Singapore on the border of Malaysia. Kellie's colleague resides with her husband and 4 (four) labs in an absolutely amazing home build in the early 1900's for a British hot shot. We had such a fantastic time playing with dogs, being in a yard, sweating our Easter Eggs off and chatting about life in Singapore.
This might come as good news for those of you who don't like me, or Kellie, or both of us, but 'tween Friday and Sunday, we met so many people who've been here north of 10 years, having come on a 2 year deal like us. I'm sure you could appreciate my skepticism but they all said it takes 3-6 months to get the "Swing of Sing." We'll see. And they didn't say Swing of Sing - I just coined that. (c)
Alright - time for some American Idol action. Don't forget to email me the "add" and vote for your next blog format.
Oh - one more thing - we have Monday off for some holiday thing here. :)
Comments: I've been told by countless avid readers that commenting is difficult. I have changed the settings so that everyone should be able to leave comments even if you are an anonymous reader BUT decency and general decorum should propel you to leave some clue as to who is leaving said comment. Fair?
Notifications: Another bone of contention with blogspot is that there's no way for me to broadcast out to the Ramblophiles that a new treasure awaits them. If you would like to receive notification that there is a new post (and not wait till you see it on Facebook) - please email me at chrisleger79@gmail.com with "Blog Add" in the subject line, and something clever in the text. I'll try to include a new fun picture in the email notifications as incentive to get on board.
Engagement: As every marketer tells me when I'm at work, it's about engagement - so I'm going to start making the blog INTERACTIVE. Scroll to the bottom of the page and you'll see the reaction bar (go ahead, I'll wait). You can now choose an answer of 1-5 to questions posed by yours truly.
Here is our first engagement question (remember, answer below and only choose one!)
In what format would you like the next blog post?
1.) Photo Journal - I will take a picture of what I'm doing wherever I am in Singapore every 37 minutes for a whole day - no commentary
2.) Chris Leger's day - third person account of how this remarkable individual spent his day, from the perspective of the poor slob following him around for a day
3.) Guest Blog from Kellie
4.) Guest Blog from Kellie but written by Chris
5.) None of the above, I hate this blog
We'll all be able to see the voting and early next week I'll give the people what they want.
Is this Royal (PITA) Wedding happening in the states too? It's all over the tube here. Is that where the term Pomp & Circumstance comes from?
How was everyone's Easter? I got all of your cards and peeps in the mail - so thoughtful. We actually had a busy Easter weekend. We went to a BBQ on Friday night and met some great new people. I spent the better part of Saturday recovering from said BBQ however, as I might have gone a little overboard. Saturday night, and I must pause here to thank Mark for yet again introducing us to a "favorite place" in Singapore - he's now introduced us to 4-5 of these, so when you all come visit, we may just send you out with Mark, so Saturday night Kellie and I met Mark at Chijmes - pronounced "Chimes," and not Chidgems as this donkey found out. Had some dinner and watched the Manchester United game outside on the big screens drinking Budweiser (pronounced BUTT-why-zuh).
Today Microsoft Outlook corrected colorful with colourful in an email I was writing.
PITA = Pain In The Ass, BTW (which means By The Way)
We spent Easter Sunday in an area called Sembawang, which is at the northern point of Singapore on the border of Malaysia. Kellie's colleague resides with her husband and 4 (four) labs in an absolutely amazing home build in the early 1900's for a British hot shot. We had such a fantastic time playing with dogs, being in a yard, sweating our Easter Eggs off and chatting about life in Singapore.
This might come as good news for those of you who don't like me, or Kellie, or both of us, but 'tween Friday and Sunday, we met so many people who've been here north of 10 years, having come on a 2 year deal like us. I'm sure you could appreciate my skepticism but they all said it takes 3-6 months to get the "Swing of Sing." We'll see. And they didn't say Swing of Sing - I just coined that. (c)
Alright - time for some American Idol action. Don't forget to email me the "add" and vote for your next blog format.
Oh - one more thing - we have Monday off for some holiday thing here. :)
Friday, April 22, 2011
This is your captain, we're going down. . . . or up
Singaporeans take automated movement freakin seriously. It's like being surrounded by 5.4 million Nascar drivers who don't have cars, but have buses, trains, escalators and elevators and fat white-boy be damned should he be in the way. Remember Talladaga Nights? "If you're not first, you're last" - ? It's like "Jimmy's commute to work, sponsored by Doritos." Remember in grammar school - "No cutting." Yeah they didn't have that. Folks gotta be the first one on the train, first one off the train, gotta make the elevator, will push onto the escalator - I mean, maybe I don't like my job as much or something - but I'm just never in that big a hurry. Which brings me to (surprise) a point:
Every elevator ride has a "Captain." This is not a position that's voted upon or discussed - the captain just assumes the duties of "Elevator Ride Captain," or ERC. The ERC has two primary jobs throughout their portion of the elevator journey, which I'll get to - but, in the unforeseen case where the ERC gets off the elevator before the end of the journey, a new ERC must immediately take over, and they do.
ERC Duty #1: Upon arrival to a floor, kindly hold the "Door Open" button until everyone has alighted and boarded the elevator
ERC Duty #2: HIT THE DOOR CLOSE BUTTON AS FAST AS FREAKIN POSSIBLE, ideally clipping the shin of the last person getting on or off. Any time spent with the door open and no one moving through is time wasted.
Got to watch the Red Sox game (b/c it was in LA and went extra innings) today while eating a cheese burger with a fried egg on it (don't knock it till you try it) at a place called Fatboys Burgers. Nuff Sed.
Now my less than law-abiding friends will appreciate this one: while 4:20pm on 4/20 is, for some, celebrated back in less civilized countries - in Singapore, that's just 16:20 on 20/4. Huh?
Kellie and I have booked our first trip! Bali? Phuket? Dubai? Sydney? Oh hell no - Manila baby - yup - the Philippines (I say it Fill-Ip-In-Eez). Should be interesting, and it's a tick off the country list. Kel has to go for work so I'll tag along and chill for the weekend - maybe I'll feel adventurous and sky dive, or scuba dive, or maybe go apeshit and brush my teeth with the tap water! I don't know - let's just get nutty.
Oh and our first visitor is scheduled to come see us - Uncle Donald due into Singapore for a quick 2 night 1 day visit late May! We're excited to entertain now that our apartment is outfitted properly.
This is the only place I've ever been in the shower and run out of Cold Water.
Had a client meeting last week and told her that we would produce a small event for her "Soup to Nuts." Trying explaining what that means, fine, but why it means that? Any ideas? My arsenal of cliche's and sayings and "quips" are useless here. It's like locals have a force field to protect against humor. Maybe it IS just my humor.
So Matt from EMC arrived, Kellie's colleague who's setting up another group here for EMC, and he compared this neighborhood to a Quincy Market with a river running through it. I liked that, read it on his blog this afternoon, and I'm giving him credit for what he said. .. . ANYWHO - within this area there are a number of restaurants and we now have TWO favorite Italian Places, which I actually find troubling. For lunch today, we found a third and I just couldn't bring myself to try another one. For people who DO come visit, you might spend your whole time here NOT eating Asian food.
One thing that's really neat about Singapore TV is that when you watch a show, it notes very clearly what SEASON you are watching, which I find to be fantastic. House 4, CSI 7, American Idol 10, etc. I think this is something that TV stations back in the states could learn something from. Makes your TV inhaling more organized, more efficient. In that same light, Modern Family 2 is on here. Now, I make no secret that I believe this is the funniest show in the history of broadcast television - HOW EVER - as per usual the Republic of Singapore takes there scissors to the programs and would like you to believe that Cam and Mitch are friends, just friends. Any reference to their relationship or orientation is edited out of the show. It's frustrating now because I've seen the episodes and know what's missing, but what about if I end up watching NEW shows - it's a gonna be lame! It's a sad state of affairs.
Alright - well I suppose I should finish my Jack & Coke, put some pants on, and head over to the BBQ I'm already 30 minutes late for. Thanks for tuning in (especially you new folks in Poland), and have a super duper Easter - and if you find yourself in church - please let God know where I am and tell I said "hi"
Every elevator ride has a "Captain." This is not a position that's voted upon or discussed - the captain just assumes the duties of "Elevator Ride Captain," or ERC. The ERC has two primary jobs throughout their portion of the elevator journey, which I'll get to - but, in the unforeseen case where the ERC gets off the elevator before the end of the journey, a new ERC must immediately take over, and they do.
ERC Duty #1: Upon arrival to a floor, kindly hold the "Door Open" button until everyone has alighted and boarded the elevator
ERC Duty #2: HIT THE DOOR CLOSE BUTTON AS FAST AS FREAKIN POSSIBLE, ideally clipping the shin of the last person getting on or off. Any time spent with the door open and no one moving through is time wasted.
Got to watch the Red Sox game (b/c it was in LA and went extra innings) today while eating a cheese burger with a fried egg on it (don't knock it till you try it) at a place called Fatboys Burgers. Nuff Sed.
Now my less than law-abiding friends will appreciate this one: while 4:20pm on 4/20 is, for some, celebrated back in less civilized countries - in Singapore, that's just 16:20 on 20/4. Huh?
Kellie and I have booked our first trip! Bali? Phuket? Dubai? Sydney? Oh hell no - Manila baby - yup - the Philippines (I say it Fill-Ip-In-Eez). Should be interesting, and it's a tick off the country list. Kel has to go for work so I'll tag along and chill for the weekend - maybe I'll feel adventurous and sky dive, or scuba dive, or maybe go apeshit and brush my teeth with the tap water! I don't know - let's just get nutty.
Oh and our first visitor is scheduled to come see us - Uncle Donald due into Singapore for a quick 2 night 1 day visit late May! We're excited to entertain now that our apartment is outfitted properly.
This is the only place I've ever been in the shower and run out of Cold Water.
Had a client meeting last week and told her that we would produce a small event for her "Soup to Nuts." Trying explaining what that means, fine, but why it means that? Any ideas? My arsenal of cliche's and sayings and "quips" are useless here. It's like locals have a force field to protect against humor. Maybe it IS just my humor.
So Matt from EMC arrived, Kellie's colleague who's setting up another group here for EMC, and he compared this neighborhood to a Quincy Market with a river running through it. I liked that, read it on his blog this afternoon, and I'm giving him credit for what he said. .. . ANYWHO - within this area there are a number of restaurants and we now have TWO favorite Italian Places, which I actually find troubling. For lunch today, we found a third and I just couldn't bring myself to try another one. For people who DO come visit, you might spend your whole time here NOT eating Asian food.
One thing that's really neat about Singapore TV is that when you watch a show, it notes very clearly what SEASON you are watching, which I find to be fantastic. House 4, CSI 7, American Idol 10, etc. I think this is something that TV stations back in the states could learn something from. Makes your TV inhaling more organized, more efficient. In that same light, Modern Family 2 is on here. Now, I make no secret that I believe this is the funniest show in the history of broadcast television - HOW EVER - as per usual the Republic of Singapore takes there scissors to the programs and would like you to believe that Cam and Mitch are friends, just friends. Any reference to their relationship or orientation is edited out of the show. It's frustrating now because I've seen the episodes and know what's missing, but what about if I end up watching NEW shows - it's a gonna be lame! It's a sad state of affairs.
Alright - well I suppose I should finish my Jack & Coke, put some pants on, and head over to the BBQ I'm already 30 minutes late for. Thanks for tuning in (especially you new folks in Poland), and have a super duper Easter - and if you find yourself in church - please let God know where I am and tell I said "hi"
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Pink Mouse Farts
The bus sucks. I don't care where or who you are, unless it's a tour bus loaded with groupies and contraband, the bus sucks. I love our new apartment, I'm gonna love it even more tomorrow when I get home and our 1400 lbs of North Graftony goodness is here, but commuting is for the birds and Kellie won't let me take cabs to work everyday, something about saving or something. Yeah, I know, it's Wednesday night which means I've suffered this humiliation for a staggering 3 days. I think the problem with our commute (I'm one stop on the train farther than Kellie) is that we have options.
Option 1 (Kellie's preference) - No walk, take the bus 5 stops to Dhoby Ghaut (I call it Doobie Goat) and take the train 4 stops. About 30 minutes unless you JUST miss the bus.
Option 2 - 10 Minute walk to Clarke Quay (Clarkey) train station, one stop to the Goat, switch trains, 4 stops to work. 30 Minutes and a nice sweaty lather, but no bus.
In other big news, something I've been excited about since we came here in December, I officially indentured my servant tonight. Let me put that into terms that are more acceptable. I hired a domestic helper today to clean our place for us once a week along with some laundry and ironing. She came tonight so she could meet us and brought a friend so she could get a good cleaning in while here. She was FANTASTIC (thank you so much Sally) - Matt and Sam - race is on to book some time with V as her dance card is filling up. You'd think we were sophisticates tonight though, so freakin funny - at 9:30pm we had 2 domestics cleaning and 2 contractors servicing our air conditioners b/c one started leaking on the floor permanently interrupting my American Chopper viewing on Discovery Turbo.
Oh, we disgusted the guy from the cable company because the plan we wanted cost us enough to earn a free 32 inch Panasonic LCD. Mind you - it's half of what I paid at home. Nice guy, though he too asked how much we paid in rent. . . PT, my new boss, told me to tell people to stop being "kay-poh" which is slang for "nosy" when they ask. We're getting along great b/c I can ask him about the things that confuse me here. Like why if you're on a motorcycle, it's customary to wear your jacket backwards, and on public transportation, you wear your backpack backwards. It's like dyslexic dressing.
So you ALL know - Winnie has gained 2 lbs (that's almost 1 kg) since we left, Mom. . . . .
Because my readership has expanded rather intensely in this region of the country - again I must make comment without judgement: my health plan at work covers me for Dental + Optical in the amount of S$200 per year. YEAR (not visit), unless you visit once a - you know what, I'm judgementing. In Singapore, in order to get paid for a sick day, you must have a Doctor's note. Office hours at my job are 9am - 6pm, with a grace period until 9:30 which everyone takes advantage of. However, should you arrive after 10:00am, it's reported on the daily attendance kicked back to the home office.
Ah yes work - I thought you'd want to inquire about my maiden 3 days. It's off to an interesting start, and again as anyone can find this ramblings, I'll keep my comments rather general but happy to Skype out the scandalous details should you so desire. It's an extremely difficult task to start a job on the same day as your boss. PT is great, he has a great sense of humour (Auntie, I'm purposely writing in Old English, these aren't spell check corrections - it's just fun) and he puts up with my shenanigans, but he can't answer my questions. He did, however, hand me ALL of the largest clients in Asia. I mean, I'm handling all of the blue chip tech advertisers - I mean, try these acronyms on for $ize - MS, EMC, IBM, HP, SFDC, RSA, ORCLE (ha!), BT, SAS, SAP, etc. I have my hands way full, and I was always taught that more than a handful was a waste. Went to my first conference in Asia for a few hours yesterday, and tomorrow I go meet a client in person. I won't brag about who it is, let's just say It's Big Money.
Now, unless someone is on the phone, and I get to play "GUESS THAT ACCENT," the office is deathly quiet, I mean there's only 20 people there. I went over to PT and said, "What's with this place, you can hear a mouse fart?" - And by mouse, I mean the animal, not the PINK thing they gave me that's attached to my work computer. Pink mouse farts - you knew I'd connect the dots for you even though it's late. I promise I'll get a picture up.
Lastly - I got my knew pimp-ass, tailored suit on Saturday, and got it soaked in a monsoon yesterday, but I digress - when I went to get it, Tewsie (or something like that), my guy wasn't there. So I asked someone else where he was and she let me know that he'd been in the hospital for a couple days (that's why I was missing one of my shirts). I said, "is he ok? Is it serious?" I mean, the suit is awesome. She said "He's fine, I think he just drinks too much."
PS - that picture is SO completely not a Singapore bus - you should still consider visiting. . .
Option 1 (Kellie's preference) - No walk, take the bus 5 stops to Dhoby Ghaut (I call it Doobie Goat) and take the train 4 stops. About 30 minutes unless you JUST miss the bus.
Option 2 - 10 Minute walk to Clarke Quay (Clarkey) train station, one stop to the Goat, switch trains, 4 stops to work. 30 Minutes and a nice sweaty lather, but no bus.
In other big news, something I've been excited about since we came here in December, I officially indentured my servant tonight. Let me put that into terms that are more acceptable. I hired a domestic helper today to clean our place for us once a week along with some laundry and ironing. She came tonight so she could meet us and brought a friend so she could get a good cleaning in while here. She was FANTASTIC (thank you so much Sally) - Matt and Sam - race is on to book some time with V as her dance card is filling up. You'd think we were sophisticates tonight though, so freakin funny - at 9:30pm we had 2 domestics cleaning and 2 contractors servicing our air conditioners b/c one started leaking on the floor permanently interrupting my American Chopper viewing on Discovery Turbo.
Oh, we disgusted the guy from the cable company because the plan we wanted cost us enough to earn a free 32 inch Panasonic LCD. Mind you - it's half of what I paid at home. Nice guy, though he too asked how much we paid in rent. . . PT, my new boss, told me to tell people to stop being "kay-poh" which is slang for "nosy" when they ask. We're getting along great b/c I can ask him about the things that confuse me here. Like why if you're on a motorcycle, it's customary to wear your jacket backwards, and on public transportation, you wear your backpack backwards. It's like dyslexic dressing.
So you ALL know - Winnie has gained 2 lbs (that's almost 1 kg) since we left, Mom. . . . .
Because my readership has expanded rather intensely in this region of the country - again I must make comment without judgement: my health plan at work covers me for Dental + Optical in the amount of S$200 per year. YEAR (not visit), unless you visit once a - you know what, I'm judgementing. In Singapore, in order to get paid for a sick day, you must have a Doctor's note. Office hours at my job are 9am - 6pm, with a grace period until 9:30 which everyone takes advantage of. However, should you arrive after 10:00am, it's reported on the daily attendance kicked back to the home office.
Ah yes work - I thought you'd want to inquire about my maiden 3 days. It's off to an interesting start, and again as anyone can find this ramblings, I'll keep my comments rather general but happy to Skype out the scandalous details should you so desire. It's an extremely difficult task to start a job on the same day as your boss. PT is great, he has a great sense of humour (Auntie, I'm purposely writing in Old English, these aren't spell check corrections - it's just fun) and he puts up with my shenanigans, but he can't answer my questions. He did, however, hand me ALL of the largest clients in Asia. I mean, I'm handling all of the blue chip tech advertisers - I mean, try these acronyms on for $ize - MS, EMC, IBM, HP, SFDC, RSA, ORCLE (ha!), BT, SAS, SAP, etc. I have my hands way full, and I was always taught that more than a handful was a waste. Went to my first conference in Asia for a few hours yesterday, and tomorrow I go meet a client in person. I won't brag about who it is, let's just say It's Big Money.
Now, unless someone is on the phone, and I get to play "GUESS THAT ACCENT," the office is deathly quiet, I mean there's only 20 people there. I went over to PT and said, "What's with this place, you can hear a mouse fart?" - And by mouse, I mean the animal, not the PINK thing they gave me that's attached to my work computer. Pink mouse farts - you knew I'd connect the dots for you even though it's late. I promise I'll get a picture up.
Lastly - I got my knew pimp-ass, tailored suit on Saturday, and got it soaked in a monsoon yesterday, but I digress - when I went to get it, Tewsie (or something like that), my guy wasn't there. So I asked someone else where he was and she let me know that he'd been in the hospital for a couple days (that's why I was missing one of my shirts). I said, "is he ok? Is it serious?" I mean, the suit is awesome. She said "He's fine, I think he just drinks too much."
PS - that picture is SO completely not a Singapore bus - you should still consider visiting. . .
Sunday, April 10, 2011
New Home, New Job, New Haircut
There's a stink afoot, and I'm not speaking of the breakfast splatter near the elevator this morning - it's the stink of an early morning wake-up tomorrow for work. It should come as no surprise that it's been relatively easy for me to be lulled into a sense of "this is vacation." Tropical climate, eating out every meal, and the sleep - it's been "all you can sleep" around here. Well, party's over. Tomorrow morning I'll shave and put on my big boy clothes and join my fellow rats in our race. BTW - here, all you can eat is often called "Free Flow" - like at dinner the other night Sam had "Free Flow French Fries." I recommend that link - it's Sam and Lauren's blog and they have a great one about the domestic helpers here. It's a good read - just so that you can find out what "headaches services" means.
I am fortunate to have had a brief orientation to my new company last week. Thursday night I met my new manager for drinks in an area here called Clarke Quay, which I call Clarkey. Nice to meet him, he seems like a really good guy and as he's local, he has some hook-ups for me with respect to tattoos and electronics, which is solid. Not so solid - he's a smoker. Heading into new stress levels, on the tail end of my patch supply, with this uber temptation. The bar he chose is called "The Pump Room." Whack name - really good Summer Ale microbrew.
Friday I visited the office to be introduced to the Singapore and Hong Kong teams during the quarterly staff meeting. Mind you, I've worked for small companies, but this office is small. I feel for them, really I do - they don't know what they are in for spending a day in that confined space with me.
Kellie and I are roughing it for another week. The day AFTER we said good bye to Eleanor, we found out that our stuff was going to be a week late arriving in S'pore. Our shipment is supposed to be arriving tomorrow, it then has to clear customs so God (and the port-authority) willing I'll be able to drink out of a cup, wear a different damn pair of shorts, sleep on my pillow, and play my XBox by week's end.
Adventure-wise, I think the most interesting time was spent yesterday (Saturday) afternoon in Chinatown. It might surprise you to learn that there's a part of an Asian country called Chinatown, but - it's true. I finally, after more than a month here, got LEGIT noodles. Made to order noodles. They were awesome. They were $3.50 (that's $2.70 US). Kellie then treated me to my very first foot massage. Holy pain - he hurt parts of my feet I didn't know had nerves. Yeah - "he" - also a new experience for me.
Oh, ha ha, so this afternoon I pop over to one of the 11 malls within walking distance of our new place to get a haircut and 5 minutes into my trim he (yup "he") asks "at what age did you start dropping hair?" The people of Singapore are very direct. "When did you start losing your hair? How much do you pay in rent? How much money do you make?" It's such an adjustment - every time we get picked up by a taxi from our place the driver asks how much our rent is.
Alright - sorry - I know this isn't my best work, I owe you more than this. I'll get my shit together and get back to killin it soon. Off to bed, and then off to work!
I am fortunate to have had a brief orientation to my new company last week. Thursday night I met my new manager for drinks in an area here called Clarke Quay, which I call Clarkey. Nice to meet him, he seems like a really good guy and as he's local, he has some hook-ups for me with respect to tattoos and electronics, which is solid. Not so solid - he's a smoker. Heading into new stress levels, on the tail end of my patch supply, with this uber temptation. The bar he chose is called "The Pump Room." Whack name - really good Summer Ale microbrew.
Friday I visited the office to be introduced to the Singapore and Hong Kong teams during the quarterly staff meeting. Mind you, I've worked for small companies, but this office is small. I feel for them, really I do - they don't know what they are in for spending a day in that confined space with me.
Kellie and I are roughing it for another week. The day AFTER we said good bye to Eleanor, we found out that our stuff was going to be a week late arriving in S'pore. Our shipment is supposed to be arriving tomorrow, it then has to clear customs so God (and the port-authority) willing I'll be able to drink out of a cup, wear a different damn pair of shorts, sleep on my pillow, and play my XBox by week's end.
Adventure-wise, I think the most interesting time was spent yesterday (Saturday) afternoon in Chinatown. It might surprise you to learn that there's a part of an Asian country called Chinatown, but - it's true. I finally, after more than a month here, got LEGIT noodles. Made to order noodles. They were awesome. They were $3.50 (that's $2.70 US). Kellie then treated me to my very first foot massage. Holy pain - he hurt parts of my feet I didn't know had nerves. Yeah - "he" - also a new experience for me.
Oh, ha ha, so this afternoon I pop over to one of the 11 malls within walking distance of our new place to get a haircut and 5 minutes into my trim he (yup "he") asks "at what age did you start dropping hair?" The people of Singapore are very direct. "When did you start losing your hair? How much do you pay in rent? How much money do you make?" It's such an adjustment - every time we get picked up by a taxi from our place the driver asks how much our rent is.
Alright - sorry - I know this isn't my best work, I owe you more than this. I'll get my shit together and get back to killin it soon. Off to bed, and then off to work!
Monday, April 4, 2011
Bye Bye Eleanor
It's no secret, I'm guilty of having been a little down on Singapore at times over the 4+ weeks we've been here. There's been a lot of ups and downs, - but I think I'm coming around. I had a great weekend. Part of this, I'm sure, is the realization that I start work a week from tomorrow, so I'm living it up because work sucks no matter where you live.
My Friday afternoon was pure, unmitigated selfishness and it was freakin great. Went to StarHub (that's cable TV) store and got the information on what channels will escort us through our less-eventful Singapore evenings. On my way home I was lured into a tailor's shop. I use the term "lured" haphazardly as I've been WANTING to go to a tailor. I'm proud to say that by next weekend I will own my own custom tailored suit - along with 2 shirts and two ties. All of this, magically conformed to my physicality for about $440 USD. If all goes well, my ass will be styling when I get back stateside. I have found my Singapore tailor, which is exciting, no, seriously.
Those of you who I've mocked for the last couple years for your iPhone-a-philia - I'm one of you now. Kellie took me down to the cell phone store and replaced my ridiculous pay-as-you-go phone, which is a better flashlight than phone, with the iPhone 4. Getting a job has some upsides. I've been busy filling it with essential survival tools, like Kings of Leon and Angry Birds - Be Prepared!
After a couple beers with Kellie and iPhone, the three of us met up with a group of friends for a fantastic dinner - mine, rack of lamb over a crispy potato rusti and beet root along with a salad in a rich grainy mustard dressing - finished with sweet and sour lemon pie. Bangin
Saturday morning after breakfast Capt. Adventure (Kellie) talked me into heading out to find a "furniture warehouse" which I'm sure they could have made harder to find but it would have involved hedges and false doors and shit. In the end though, it was worth it, we're planning to head back with some cash. One day when we again get to live in our house, we'll have some great new pieces to showcase - I mean, it's not like we're gonna ship Ikea stuff home.
Saturday night - 10 of us had another great dinner with at least 2 bottles of wine a person. Best part? This place is a 4 minute boogy from our new pad - INTO WHICH I'll be moving us tomorrow morning. Kellie has no idea how to get home from work tomorrow! Smoked salmon pasta, I'm sure you were curious. Then to the Australian bar (also close to home) called Boomerang to watch India win the Cricket World Cup. I think I'm starting to understand the game.
Today, a great breakfast sandwich, 3 solid hours of Angry Birds, played squash and discovered what those crazies on Biggest Loser feel like, had some pad thai, got to see Mom and Winnie on Skype, and I'll turn in shortly for our last night in the Pan Pacific. I'll miss Eleanor, the never ending supply of bottled water in the fridge, and the breakfast - but I'm anxious to get OUR stuff into OUR place and settle in a little more.
I've been in country for 30 days. I think I'm getting the hang of it,. The adventure is just starting and I'm thankful I get to do something this crazy. So - who's visiting? Bring me an iPhone case.
PS - those wondering, Eleanor is the cleaning lady.
My Friday afternoon was pure, unmitigated selfishness and it was freakin great. Went to StarHub (that's cable TV) store and got the information on what channels will escort us through our less-eventful Singapore evenings. On my way home I was lured into a tailor's shop. I use the term "lured" haphazardly as I've been WANTING to go to a tailor. I'm proud to say that by next weekend I will own my own custom tailored suit - along with 2 shirts and two ties. All of this, magically conformed to my physicality for about $440 USD. If all goes well, my ass will be styling when I get back stateside. I have found my Singapore tailor, which is exciting, no, seriously.
Those of you who I've mocked for the last couple years for your iPhone-a-philia - I'm one of you now. Kellie took me down to the cell phone store and replaced my ridiculous pay-as-you-go phone, which is a better flashlight than phone, with the iPhone 4. Getting a job has some upsides. I've been busy filling it with essential survival tools, like Kings of Leon and Angry Birds - Be Prepared!
After a couple beers with Kellie and iPhone, the three of us met up with a group of friends for a fantastic dinner - mine, rack of lamb over a crispy potato rusti and beet root along with a salad in a rich grainy mustard dressing - finished with sweet and sour lemon pie. Bangin
Saturday morning after breakfast Capt. Adventure (Kellie) talked me into heading out to find a "furniture warehouse" which I'm sure they could have made harder to find but it would have involved hedges and false doors and shit. In the end though, it was worth it, we're planning to head back with some cash. One day when we again get to live in our house, we'll have some great new pieces to showcase - I mean, it's not like we're gonna ship Ikea stuff home.
Saturday night - 10 of us had another great dinner with at least 2 bottles of wine a person. Best part? This place is a 4 minute boogy from our new pad - INTO WHICH I'll be moving us tomorrow morning. Kellie has no idea how to get home from work tomorrow! Smoked salmon pasta, I'm sure you were curious. Then to the Australian bar (also close to home) called Boomerang to watch India win the Cricket World Cup. I think I'm starting to understand the game.
Today, a great breakfast sandwich, 3 solid hours of Angry Birds, played squash and discovered what those crazies on Biggest Loser feel like, had some pad thai, got to see Mom and Winnie on Skype, and I'll turn in shortly for our last night in the Pan Pacific. I'll miss Eleanor, the never ending supply of bottled water in the fridge, and the breakfast - but I'm anxious to get OUR stuff into OUR place and settle in a little more.
I've been in country for 30 days. I think I'm getting the hang of it,. The adventure is just starting and I'm thankful I get to do something this crazy. So - who's visiting? Bring me an iPhone case.
PS - those wondering, Eleanor is the cleaning lady.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
My days of Kept-hood are over
Mr. Leger - reporting for duty. This morning I accepted the role of Sales Manager for Questex Media's Enterprise Innovation publication here in Asia. Enterprise Innovation is like Computerworld (in fact, the company publishes CW in Hong Kong). I'll be selling print and online advertising, event sponsorships and custom publishing projects with "Asia" as my territory. I start the 11th. - It's been 11 months since I've had to go to work in an "office." Hopefully I can re-acquaint myself with the office environment, otherwise it's going to be pretty damn interesting. What do you mean sweatpants aren't business casual? You were serious about that 9-6 thing? EVERYday? What do you mean I can't play videogames here? But 11:00am is when I watch Price is Right - reschedule that meeting!
I'm excited and nervous - this is a job that I know I can do, and do well. . . . at home. It's a mystery as to how effective I'll be as a salesman in Singapore - this we'll find out quick - and I'm excited about the challenge. While my humor and general degree of disrespect, sarcasm and verbal debauchery is tolerated at home, CELEBRATED on this blog, and a source of great pride for me personally, well, there's a smurfin' good chance it ain't gonna work as good up in here. Oh and - Questex Media's WW HQ is in. . . . Newton, MA. Boom goes the dynamite.
But - you know what this means - I get to start planning a Bali trip!
This afternoon I took a quick SMRT ride to see where the office is. Turns out it's only one stop beyond Kellie's office. The office is in a very interesting area just outside of Little India. My building appears to be the ONLY office type building in the neighborhood. Good news is that there are tons of places to get lunch, and even more places to get fabric. SWEET. It actually seems like it'll be a fun place to explore on lunch breaks, it's just a lot different from where we are and where Kellie works. Oh come on, what's to worry about, it's not like I will be working near Baghdad Street.
I'm excited and nervous - this is a job that I know I can do, and do well. . . . at home. It's a mystery as to how effective I'll be as a salesman in Singapore - this we'll find out quick - and I'm excited about the challenge. While my humor and general degree of disrespect, sarcasm and verbal debauchery is tolerated at home, CELEBRATED on this blog, and a source of great pride for me personally, well, there's a smurfin' good chance it ain't gonna work as good up in here. Oh and - Questex Media's WW HQ is in. . . . Newton, MA. Boom goes the dynamite.
But - you know what this means - I get to start planning a Bali trip!
This afternoon I took a quick SMRT ride to see where the office is. Turns out it's only one stop beyond Kellie's office. The office is in a very interesting area just outside of Little India. My building appears to be the ONLY office type building in the neighborhood. Good news is that there are tons of places to get lunch, and even more places to get fabric. SWEET. It actually seems like it'll be a fun place to explore on lunch breaks, it's just a lot different from where we are and where Kellie works. Oh come on, what's to worry about, it's not like I will be working near Baghdad Street.
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| Street near my new office. |
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
A horse is a horse, or course of course. . . .
Let's get right to the fun stuff - this blog is a reverse mullet, party in the front and business in the rear (a cut I've seen here).
Boys are like Sherpas here. It's genuinely accepted that men often carry their lady's pocketbook. Also, many men here carry the European Handbag (ManPurse or Murse). It's not uncommon to see dual handbags. I'm just sayin.
A horse is a horse, of course of course,
And no one can talk to a horse of course,
That is of course
Unless the horse. . .
Has a lamp upon it's head. . . .
Here's some other stuff:
So this last one is the door to enter or "alight" the subway, or MRT. In good taste, you don't "get off" in Singapore - you alight :) Now because it's so busy in Singapore, these markings are in front of every door so people will stay out of the way of the alighting passengers before they board. FYI, this was a waste of paint.
When we last met, I was anxiously awaiting the return of Ms. Kellie from Ireland. She has in fact returned and we've been busy since her arrival Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon was spent recovering from the flight for her, and recovering from Friday nights Indian cuisine for me. We then spent a fantastic evening enjoying some friends, some drinks and some sights from rooftop bars just outside of Chinatown. Any of you adverturous enough to come visit will have to see Chinatown.
Sunday we went to Ikea - which no one told us beforehand, was a monumental mistake. Mobscene - we did get some ideas for things we'll need for the apartment WHICH Kellie saw yesterday and APPROVED. I picked the apartment and Kellie liked it. Whoop-Whoop. But - tis OH-fishal - we signed a two year lease - in it to win it now.
And lastly - I was offered a job late yesterday afternoon - to which I have yet to reply as I'm awaiting some additional information (like availability of "wiggle-room" in the money). So once I make the call, I'll give more detail.
Boys are like Sherpas here. It's genuinely accepted that men often carry their lady's pocketbook. Also, many men here carry the European Handbag (ManPurse or Murse). It's not uncommon to see dual handbags. I'm just sayin.
A horse is a horse, of course of course,
And no one can talk to a horse of course,
That is of course
Unless the horse. . .
Has a lamp upon it's head. . . .
 |
| This guy lives on the 11th floor of our hotel, which is where the coffee and pool table are. He scares the shit out of me everytime I go up there |
 |
| It's a spa, but, it's called Buff & Rubz. |
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| Sign on the wall in the subway. I got nothing - just enjoy. |
When we last met, I was anxiously awaiting the return of Ms. Kellie from Ireland. She has in fact returned and we've been busy since her arrival Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon was spent recovering from the flight for her, and recovering from Friday nights Indian cuisine for me. We then spent a fantastic evening enjoying some friends, some drinks and some sights from rooftop bars just outside of Chinatown. Any of you adverturous enough to come visit will have to see Chinatown.
Sunday we went to Ikea - which no one told us beforehand, was a monumental mistake. Mobscene - we did get some ideas for things we'll need for the apartment WHICH Kellie saw yesterday and APPROVED. I picked the apartment and Kellie liked it. Whoop-Whoop. But - tis OH-fishal - we signed a two year lease - in it to win it now.
And lastly - I was offered a job late yesterday afternoon - to which I have yet to reply as I'm awaiting some additional information (like availability of "wiggle-room" in the money). So once I make the call, I'll give more detail.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Squash, not just a vegetable!
My week of flying solo in Singapore comes to end tomorrow morning when Kellie gets back from Ireland - more accurate - it ends when she wakes up from the nap she'll need after returning from Ireland. I'm jealous of her for three reasons: 1.) She has a job and something to do 2.) With this trip she's now Platinum on American and 3.) She got to enjoy some cool weather for a week. It's freakin hot here.
One thing I'll say about my experience so far here, is that once you find people from Europe and the States to chat with, there's an almost instant understanding that takes place. We're all adjusting to the cultural differences in Singapore from our homes. It's great to find out that things like walking in a mall, waiting for a train or elevator, having people walk into you - that I'm not alone in my severe frustration. It's on us to become accustomed to how things work here - we're sure as shit not changing the 5M other folks in Singapore. But while trying to adjust - it's a fantastic feeling to sit down to some overpriced high-octane beer and commiserate. Commiserate is the same as bitching about it, right?
On the job hunt side, there have been just a couple developments. I finally spoke with a recruiter who explained that the reason her compatriots have been ignoring me is that I have no regional experience. Recruiters in Asia, I guess, will only work with you if they anticipate an immediate return. It's basically human trafficking. I have, however, had a couple interviews with a media company here and think there may be an offer coming early next week. That said, we're worlds apart on the compensation package. I'll see how it plays out as it's an "ok" opportunity. I'm worried that I'm going to just take the first thing that comes along as a defense against the unbearable boredom that accompanies NOT having a job. However, if it doesn't build a new skill set for me to bring home, or pay me gobs of money, then what's the point?
Played squash last night with some friends - and yes, it probably was as funny to watch as you think it was. It's like racquetball only the ball has very little bounce to it. I used to love racquetball, however that was about 9 years and 60 lbs ago. Felt good to get out of the house for a while, get a good work-out, and sweat something fierce. I'm hoping for a routine whereby I can get out there and play once a week. Judging by how much my ass hurts today, it was solid exercise.
Tonight a big group us are going for Indian food (cue funny looks and concerns for my digestive system). Place is supposed to be exceptional and I've never had Indian food so how could I say no. Besides, as with most of the food here, it works best when I test-drive things so I can make recommendations for stuff Kel would like.
So I'm staying busy. Many have asked how I'm doing on the non-smoking thing. I'd love to say it's been easy, but anyone who's been down this road knows it isn't. I'm proud to say, though, that I'm wearing my first Step 2 patch today, which means I've been quit now for a month. So far so good. It helps that spending time outside results in a required t-shirt change, and that since booze is so expensive, you tend to drink less often.
One thing I know I have to get better at is staying connected to the news at home. I'm oblivious to life outside of this hotel room. My realtor last weekend was the first to inform me that we were in fact bombing Libya. I've got to get better about that. Also since it's rare I get to talk to ya'll at home, facebook is clutch.
Now is about the time of day when I make myself scarce for an hour so Eleanor can clean the room. (Mind you, I have no idea what her name is, but she calls me Mr. Chris, so I needed something)
One thing I'll say about my experience so far here, is that once you find people from Europe and the States to chat with, there's an almost instant understanding that takes place. We're all adjusting to the cultural differences in Singapore from our homes. It's great to find out that things like walking in a mall, waiting for a train or elevator, having people walk into you - that I'm not alone in my severe frustration. It's on us to become accustomed to how things work here - we're sure as shit not changing the 5M other folks in Singapore. But while trying to adjust - it's a fantastic feeling to sit down to some overpriced high-octane beer and commiserate. Commiserate is the same as bitching about it, right?
On the job hunt side, there have been just a couple developments. I finally spoke with a recruiter who explained that the reason her compatriots have been ignoring me is that I have no regional experience. Recruiters in Asia, I guess, will only work with you if they anticipate an immediate return. It's basically human trafficking. I have, however, had a couple interviews with a media company here and think there may be an offer coming early next week. That said, we're worlds apart on the compensation package. I'll see how it plays out as it's an "ok" opportunity. I'm worried that I'm going to just take the first thing that comes along as a defense against the unbearable boredom that accompanies NOT having a job. However, if it doesn't build a new skill set for me to bring home, or pay me gobs of money, then what's the point?
Played squash last night with some friends - and yes, it probably was as funny to watch as you think it was. It's like racquetball only the ball has very little bounce to it. I used to love racquetball, however that was about 9 years and 60 lbs ago. Felt good to get out of the house for a while, get a good work-out, and sweat something fierce. I'm hoping for a routine whereby I can get out there and play once a week. Judging by how much my ass hurts today, it was solid exercise.
Tonight a big group us are going for Indian food (cue funny looks and concerns for my digestive system). Place is supposed to be exceptional and I've never had Indian food so how could I say no. Besides, as with most of the food here, it works best when I test-drive things so I can make recommendations for stuff Kel would like.
So I'm staying busy. Many have asked how I'm doing on the non-smoking thing. I'd love to say it's been easy, but anyone who's been down this road knows it isn't. I'm proud to say, though, that I'm wearing my first Step 2 patch today, which means I've been quit now for a month. So far so good. It helps that spending time outside results in a required t-shirt change, and that since booze is so expensive, you tend to drink less often.
One thing I know I have to get better at is staying connected to the news at home. I'm oblivious to life outside of this hotel room. My realtor last weekend was the first to inform me that we were in fact bombing Libya. I've got to get better about that. Also since it's rare I get to talk to ya'll at home, facebook is clutch.
Now is about the time of day when I make myself scarce for an hour so Eleanor can clean the room. (Mind you, I have no idea what her name is, but she calls me Mr. Chris, so I needed something)
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