Another day in paradise.
Which is what you would be expecting me to say.
Two things on food; one, vegetarian is everywhere, there are vegetarian restaurants all over the place and every food court has two or three vegetarian stalls, it is so good to be in a Buddhist country! two, eating out is so cheap here, okay, I can dine at some restaurants for a $50 meal, but most places I can dine for a little over $5! And that includes juice!
Yes, last time I took Ivy out it was $26 for two, but most times I am spending less than $6 for a cooked lunch and a drink.
I cannot seem to find a hat! Shops all over the place are selling caps, but where are the hats that will protect my precious brain from the sun? I need a brim to keep the sun off my neck, or risk becoming a redneck. Hee, hee. We all know that politically I am pretty much a redneck anyow.
Wonderful Google Analytics confirms what I always suspected - only one unique visitor - ME! Nobody cares about my rantings, I am not even a blip on the radar screen, more a smudge that has already been wiped off.
Ivy has spoken with a friend that has been in KL and spent the last few days with Jazreel and Iris and confirms that it will take six months for Jaz to get a new passport. Wonderfully efficient Malaysian public bureaucrats. I looked up some sites to see what I needed to get a visa to visit her, on an Australian passport as a member of the Commonwealth of Nations (India and a few other countries excluded) I don't need a visa for any length of stay or for any purpose, but the government site promised new passports processed in two weeks and replacement passports in one month. Obviously not for Chinese Malaysians though, kind of like the government education system - for Malays only. Which is why so many Malaysian Chinese kids are studying in Australia. So, yes, I will see about visiting Jaz in Malaysia.
Today marks three weeks here in SG.
It doesn't feel like it - I really need to get out more, which means that I really need that hat!
Friday, October 31
Monday, October 27
Sleeping In
8:30 before I am up. This is not the first day either; my neighbours in the apartment on the northern side are noisy until about one in the morning and then the neighbours on the southern side were noisy last night from about four in the morning. There is no peace and quiet until after the time at which I want to be up and out!
Looking out my window last night at four in the morning watching the men cleaning up after the flea market, which has been producing humungous amounts of rubbish the last week, I was struck by the thought that these sellers are probably not paying taxes on their cash businesses and I doubt that they are paying fees for placing these makeshift transient 'stalls'. And then they leave an incredible amount of rubbish behind which is cleaned up at the expense of honest rate- and tax- paying people. Not only do 'real' shop owners pay rates and taxes, they also keep their shops clean! Only someone on a freebie will leave so much rubbish behind. So I ask; why does the government permit this to continue? Given that they are spending so much on cleaning after every days flea market (sometimes six men for an hour, sometimes two men for a few hours) they must be aware of both the existence of this non-legitimate market and the cost it puts on legitimate citizens. I have no problem with the continuance of these flea markets, so long as they pay for their effect on the rest of us.
I have noticed that I am blogging much less now that I am in SG than I was in the few weeks leading up to coming here. In a way I have more things on my plate so it is understandable that the less important ones might fall off occasionally. But still, it intrigues me. At the prompting of a friend I have put up photos on my Flickr site (locked to friends and family only) and have put up pictures from four or five days worth of treks - don't think that a huge amount though, I am pushing it to take more than six pictures on a three hour long walk. But I feel that I have been more 'diligent' in this than in blogging.
I wonder if italics is working again?
Doesn't appear to be from this end, it will be interesting to see what that looks like when it is published - I am betting that I get a 'do not publish html' message. Funny, it worked without any problems up to a week or so ago, now CTRL + i just puts cat vomit in my post. Trying to publish now.
No, didn't work, but didn't give me an error message either. I am assuming that since it put up an 'emphasis' and an 'end emphasis' html flag together rather than actually turning italics on and then off on the second CTRL + i that if I manually edit it then it might be good. Trying here and then publishing again now.
There, you see, granted that it is not working either properly or as it used to, but it can be made to work with some manual correction.
Went out with Ivy for dinner on Friday, she said that Jaz and Iris should be back either that day or the next (as in she said "today or tomorrow"), so I waited until end of yesterday (Sunday) and sent Jaz a txt, but no reply. So either was she not yet back from HK or has she gone cold on me?
I'm going to go shopping on Orchard today.
Hey look, just noticed as I viewed this post-publish (as opposed to using Word to spell check) that it is date stamping the post with South Australian time. I thought I changed my profile address to Singapore.
Nope, hadn't changed the time zone to Singapore, but have now.
Looking out my window last night at four in the morning watching the men cleaning up after the flea market, which has been producing humungous amounts of rubbish the last week, I was struck by the thought that these sellers are probably not paying taxes on their cash businesses and I doubt that they are paying fees for placing these makeshift transient 'stalls'. And then they leave an incredible amount of rubbish behind which is cleaned up at the expense of honest rate- and tax- paying people. Not only do 'real' shop owners pay rates and taxes, they also keep their shops clean! Only someone on a freebie will leave so much rubbish behind. So I ask; why does the government permit this to continue? Given that they are spending so much on cleaning after every days flea market (sometimes six men for an hour, sometimes two men for a few hours) they must be aware of both the existence of this non-legitimate market and the cost it puts on legitimate citizens. I have no problem with the continuance of these flea markets, so long as they pay for their effect on the rest of us.
I have noticed that I am blogging much less now that I am in SG than I was in the few weeks leading up to coming here. In a way I have more things on my plate so it is understandable that the less important ones might fall off occasionally. But still, it intrigues me. At the prompting of a friend I have put up photos on my Flickr site (locked to friends and family only) and have put up pictures from four or five days worth of treks - don't think that a huge amount though, I am pushing it to take more than six pictures on a three hour long walk. But I feel that I have been more 'diligent' in this than in blogging.
I wonder if italics is working again?
Doesn't appear to be from this end, it will be interesting to see what that looks like when it is published - I am betting that I get a 'do not publish html' message. Funny, it worked without any problems up to a week or so ago, now CTRL + i just puts cat vomit in my post. Trying to publish now.
No, didn't work, but didn't give me an error message either. I am assuming that since it put up an 'emphasis' and an 'end emphasis' html flag together rather than actually turning italics on and then off on the second CTRL + i that if I manually edit it then it might be good. Trying here and then publishing again now.
There, you see, granted that it is not working either properly or as it used to, but it can be made to work with some manual correction.
Went out with Ivy for dinner on Friday, she said that Jaz and Iris should be back either that day or the next (as in she said "today or tomorrow"), so I waited until end of yesterday (Sunday) and sent Jaz a txt, but no reply. So either was she not yet back from HK or has she gone cold on me?
I'm going to go shopping on Orchard today.
Hey look, just noticed as I viewed this post-publish (as opposed to using Word to spell check) that it is date stamping the post with South Australian time. I thought I changed my profile address to Singapore.
Nope, hadn't changed the time zone to Singapore, but have now.
Thursday, October 23
Look Carefully
Google Analytics confirms again that nobody in the world (except me) reads my blog :)
This is a happy event, one in a series of happy events for me.
It is wet, I am not going to visit a park, I am not going to do anything - and you can't make me :P
I feel good now, in an immature sort of way.
I am reading some lessons that I downloaded from the ASX site.
Yes, I am an investor geek, I have been reading and studying this for over a year, I am moving into virtual trading to practice and to try out some theories that I have, and I have set up some watch lists to see if some other theories hold up and to check if the 'established' set of truths do in fact stack up against the data because so often these 'theories' are laid down by academics with no real life experience (and you can take that in either of two ways) and don't actually work in the real world.
And I saw this:
"Now if you look carefully something significant has happened."
This is in 'Shares_Course_10.pdf' describing a trend changing from uptrend to downtrend.
But I read it as this:
So, if you didn't look carefully then nothing significant would have happened, and all of these financial woes going on right now are because people just like you keep looking carefully - don't you? Don't deny it! If you all stopped looking at the numbers then everything would be perfectly fine!
Heh, heh, word games are such fun.
There are some things that have been going around in my head for a while and I would like to see if I can get some of them out and into print without losing context or depth.
I did a lot of reading and surfing on Singapore in the year prior to coming here.
In browsing I came across terms like 'SPG' and 'Ang Mo' a lot and at first misunderstood them, then came to understand that lots of people misunderstand, and misuse, them. I came across lots of commentary on girls and boys stuff with heaps of racial overtones leaning one way or the other.
For examples; it seemed so assumed and totally believed by all blogs I read that pretty young girls were throwing themselves at any white guy they could find, and white women were left all alone and no Asian guy could ever get a white girlfriend and no pale Chinese girl would ever be seen dead with a 'black Indian', and so on and so forth.
Well, this is my observation after being here for a very little while:
One; no pretty young Asian girls have thrown themselves at me at all.
Two; discounting the obvious tourist couples then whilst I haven't seen a lot of white women around about half of them, i.e. several of those that I have seen, have been with Asian guys. Almost as many as I have seen of Euro guys with Asian girls.
Three; I have also seen several very pale skinned Chinese girls with very dark skinned Indian guys.
So I am going to go out on a limb here and say that it would appear to me that Singaporeans are more open-minded then they give themselves credit for.
Um, point one doesn't fit into this theory at all, it is just on its own, much like me...
I have to say that this is very different from the impressions that I gathered when I previously stayed here in four/five star hotels and kept myself to 'touristy' sort of places. This time I am living on the edge of Little India in a tiny apartment and shopping and eating with the locals.
There is something else that has been preying on my mind, well, a few things.
I used to have this impression of SG that armed police patrolled the streets ready to shoot anyone smoking in public, and what a great concept! Sadly it is not true - people *do* smoke in public, and it is just as annoying as it is anywhere else! Why should these selfish unclean gangsters be allowed to subject innocent citizens to their lethal pollution? They are assaulting others, they are reducing the lifespan of passers by, they are trying to kill the rest of us purely to fulfil their own corrupt needs.
(I am getting really sick of this Asus laptops keyboard skipping letters on me!)
So, people are smoking in public and blogspots italics are not working today and are forcing me to use '*'.
This next one is rather delicate. I know that SG has less than two generations of working with this democracy thing, whereas I come from a culture with over two millennia of democratic evolution behind us, so there are bound to be lots of little issues where I will just automatically assume something because it is contained in all of that unwritten / unspoken social programming that I received as I grew (which is to say that it is part of my mimetic heritage, as distinct from my genetic heritage). One of those things is about not using (or, as I would say, "misusing") public funds for private political aggrandisement, yet I see this in SG, and have seen it on my previous visits as well.
I am assuming this is public money being (mis)used, since the banners concerned carry logos and reference to local government bodies.
You may think that wishing residents a happy religious festival is innocent enough. Not so! It is pure political advertising. And done (apparently) at public expense.
If this were done in any European or Anglo country then the person concerned would find themselves before a judge; they would have to pay back the public monies misappropriated, and whilst I don't think that they would be gaoled, they would be significantly fined, and they would also be expelled from parliament and, most likely, also from their political party. In short, their political career would be over.
And yet it seems to be the accepted norm in Singapore.
Not that I don't totally believe that SG has a much better record in this area than all of its immediate neighbours, and quite possibly any other Asian nation. But still, difficult as it is to reach, perfection is a goal that we all strive for.
To clarify this, in case you don't get it.
It is okay to fly a banner wishing residents a happy religious festival.
It is okay to fly a banner stating that a local government wishes residents a happy religious festival.
It is not okay to put your name and picture prominently on this banner.
That is crossing a line where it becomes personal.
You can do that at your own expense, you cannot (in most developed democracies) do that at public expense. If there is a local government logo on the banner then it will be inferred that it is funded by that body.
Now I don't know if this is legal or illegal in SG, I do know that is it illegal in European and Anglo nations, and I would say that it is inappropriate anywhere. I find that it diminishes my respect for the political processes here. Generally speaking I believe SG to be a very wisely run country, some reasons for which view I have given in previous blogs. This, rather minor, thing does upset me though.
On the positive side - nobody reads my blog, therefore I am not going to get into any sort of trouble for saying this. Like affecting my application for an entrepass.
So there it is; I am dividing my time between trying to get out early and do some sightseeing, and taking photos to load to my Flickr site (that you can't see because I have locked them all to friends and family only), exploring the suburbs around me and discovering what the shops are like and where I can eat vegetarian, staying in during the day and studying investing, playing Half Life 2 and Unreal 2 (and a couple of suduko games), and then going out again in the evening. All in all though I am getting bored, I want to go out all day long as I did when touristing, but hate the 'getting totally soaked with perspiration and having to take a change of shirt and a towel with me' thing.
I went out and ate at a food court by myself last night. Up to now one of the girls (i.e. Jaz, her sister, or her friends) have been treating me, so I had no idea of the costs. A huge plate of rice noodles, vegies, and gluten things cost me SGD $2.50! and another $2.50 for a papaya milkshake which I am not too sure I really liked that much. I'll try a banana one next, or mango if it is on offer.
I set my phone alarm for 5:30 because I want to get up and out early, and I go to bed around 10 or 11, but the neighbours keep me awake until after midnight, maybe 1-ish, so when the alarm goes I just want to keep sleeping and it's not until 9 or 10 that I have showered, dressed, and eaten. Too late to go out walking without ending up looking, and feeling, like an American tourist :(
Maybe if I got some music playing device and drowned the neighbours out? I could sleep to loud music, Heaven knows I have to sleep with a loud aircon, even if it isn't on it still gurgles loudly from the next aircon down the pipeline.
So the plan isn't working!
And I have ended up staying in today!
And reading up on investing, as you can see from where this blog entry started.
Which seems a good place to bring this to a close.
This is a happy event, one in a series of happy events for me.
It is wet, I am not going to visit a park, I am not going to do anything - and you can't make me :P
I feel good now, in an immature sort of way.
I am reading some lessons that I downloaded from the ASX site.
Yes, I am an investor geek, I have been reading and studying this for over a year, I am moving into virtual trading to practice and to try out some theories that I have, and I have set up some watch lists to see if some other theories hold up and to check if the 'established' set of truths do in fact stack up against the data because so often these 'theories' are laid down by academics with no real life experience (and you can take that in either of two ways) and don't actually work in the real world.
And I saw this:
"Now if you look carefully something significant has happened."
This is in 'Shares_Course_10.pdf' describing a trend changing from uptrend to downtrend.
But I read it as this:
So, if you didn't look carefully then nothing significant would have happened, and all of these financial woes going on right now are because people just like you keep looking carefully - don't you? Don't deny it! If you all stopped looking at the numbers then everything would be perfectly fine!
Heh, heh, word games are such fun.
There are some things that have been going around in my head for a while and I would like to see if I can get some of them out and into print without losing context or depth.
I did a lot of reading and surfing on Singapore in the year prior to coming here.
In browsing I came across terms like 'SPG' and 'Ang Mo' a lot and at first misunderstood them, then came to understand that lots of people misunderstand, and misuse, them. I came across lots of commentary on girls and boys stuff with heaps of racial overtones leaning one way or the other.
For examples; it seemed so assumed and totally believed by all blogs I read that pretty young girls were throwing themselves at any white guy they could find, and white women were left all alone and no Asian guy could ever get a white girlfriend and no pale Chinese girl would ever be seen dead with a 'black Indian', and so on and so forth.
Well, this is my observation after being here for a very little while:
One; no pretty young Asian girls have thrown themselves at me at all.
Two; discounting the obvious tourist couples then whilst I haven't seen a lot of white women around about half of them, i.e. several of those that I have seen, have been with Asian guys. Almost as many as I have seen of Euro guys with Asian girls.
Three; I have also seen several very pale skinned Chinese girls with very dark skinned Indian guys.
So I am going to go out on a limb here and say that it would appear to me that Singaporeans are more open-minded then they give themselves credit for.
Um, point one doesn't fit into this theory at all, it is just on its own, much like me...
I have to say that this is very different from the impressions that I gathered when I previously stayed here in four/five star hotels and kept myself to 'touristy' sort of places. This time I am living on the edge of Little India in a tiny apartment and shopping and eating with the locals.
There is something else that has been preying on my mind, well, a few things.
I used to have this impression of SG that armed police patrolled the streets ready to shoot anyone smoking in public, and what a great concept! Sadly it is not true - people *do* smoke in public, and it is just as annoying as it is anywhere else! Why should these selfish unclean gangsters be allowed to subject innocent citizens to their lethal pollution? They are assaulting others, they are reducing the lifespan of passers by, they are trying to kill the rest of us purely to fulfil their own corrupt needs.
(I am getting really sick of this Asus laptops keyboard skipping letters on me!)
So, people are smoking in public and blogspots italics are not working today and are forcing me to use '*'.
This next one is rather delicate. I know that SG has less than two generations of working with this democracy thing, whereas I come from a culture with over two millennia of democratic evolution behind us, so there are bound to be lots of little issues where I will just automatically assume something because it is contained in all of that unwritten / unspoken social programming that I received as I grew (which is to say that it is part of my mimetic heritage, as distinct from my genetic heritage). One of those things is about not using (or, as I would say, "misusing") public funds for private political aggrandisement, yet I see this in SG, and have seen it on my previous visits as well.
I am assuming this is public money being (mis)used, since the banners concerned carry logos and reference to local government bodies.
You may think that wishing residents a happy religious festival is innocent enough. Not so! It is pure political advertising. And done (apparently) at public expense.
If this were done in any European or Anglo country then the person concerned would find themselves before a judge; they would have to pay back the public monies misappropriated, and whilst I don't think that they would be gaoled, they would be significantly fined, and they would also be expelled from parliament and, most likely, also from their political party. In short, their political career would be over.
And yet it seems to be the accepted norm in Singapore.
Not that I don't totally believe that SG has a much better record in this area than all of its immediate neighbours, and quite possibly any other Asian nation. But still, difficult as it is to reach, perfection is a goal that we all strive for.
To clarify this, in case you don't get it.
It is okay to fly a banner wishing residents a happy religious festival.
It is okay to fly a banner stating that a local government wishes residents a happy religious festival.
It is not okay to put your name and picture prominently on this banner.
That is crossing a line where it becomes personal.
You can do that at your own expense, you cannot (in most developed democracies) do that at public expense. If there is a local government logo on the banner then it will be inferred that it is funded by that body.
Now I don't know if this is legal or illegal in SG, I do know that is it illegal in European and Anglo nations, and I would say that it is inappropriate anywhere. I find that it diminishes my respect for the political processes here. Generally speaking I believe SG to be a very wisely run country, some reasons for which view I have given in previous blogs. This, rather minor, thing does upset me though.
On the positive side - nobody reads my blog, therefore I am not going to get into any sort of trouble for saying this. Like affecting my application for an entrepass.
So there it is; I am dividing my time between trying to get out early and do some sightseeing, and taking photos to load to my Flickr site (that you can't see because I have locked them all to friends and family only), exploring the suburbs around me and discovering what the shops are like and where I can eat vegetarian, staying in during the day and studying investing, playing Half Life 2 and Unreal 2 (and a couple of suduko games), and then going out again in the evening. All in all though I am getting bored, I want to go out all day long as I did when touristing, but hate the 'getting totally soaked with perspiration and having to take a change of shirt and a towel with me' thing.
I went out and ate at a food court by myself last night. Up to now one of the girls (i.e. Jaz, her sister, or her friends) have been treating me, so I had no idea of the costs. A huge plate of rice noodles, vegies, and gluten things cost me SGD $2.50! and another $2.50 for a papaya milkshake which I am not too sure I really liked that much. I'll try a banana one next, or mango if it is on offer.
I set my phone alarm for 5:30 because I want to get up and out early, and I go to bed around 10 or 11, but the neighbours keep me awake until after midnight, maybe 1-ish, so when the alarm goes I just want to keep sleeping and it's not until 9 or 10 that I have showered, dressed, and eaten. Too late to go out walking without ending up looking, and feeling, like an American tourist :(
Maybe if I got some music playing device and drowned the neighbours out? I could sleep to loud music, Heaven knows I have to sleep with a loud aircon, even if it isn't on it still gurgles loudly from the next aircon down the pipeline.
So the plan isn't working!
And I have ended up staying in today!
And reading up on investing, as you can see from where this blog entry started.
Which seems a good place to bring this to a close.
Tuesday, October 21
Another Tuesday
I'm bored.
On the plus side I went for a walk this morning and found the 'Chinatown' that Jaz took me to last week telling me it was close to where I lived. It is in fact just the other side of OG alongside Bencoolen. So that was good, although I set out about 7am so nothing was open, but I took some photos of the Chinese temple with swaztikas on it.
The plan was to then walk back to Canal or Ophir roads, cross the canal and back 'home', but somehow I kept wandering after interesting looking things and ended up on Beach Road. So I walked passed Little Arabia and then back along the canal.
I definitely needed a shower when I got back.
Ahhh, forgot I had laundry in the drier.
Just back from getting laundry and running up the stairs barefoot. Someone had moved my laundry into the other drier and set the first one running again empty. Uh?
So, this other 'Chinatown' I shall henceforth call mini-Chinatown, or maybe Micro China, or maybe even Baby Peking? It is only one lane parallel to Bencoolen, has the one Chinese temple, an Indian temple, and the Good Fortune Centre - a shopping centre or tower with a lot of vegetarian and/or organic sort of stuff.
Also so, I was trying to find this 'Chinatown' and thinking maybe Jaz meant Little India. I quartered the area around me; one quarter being Little India, another being between the canal and Little Araby, another being along the canal on this side, and then one along Bencoolen and turn right up Middle then back along Serangoon, and then the fifth 'quarter' (okay, this map is not perfectly square) being to the left of Bencoolen. This last was the last I explored and naturally the one I was actually after. I feel that I now know my immediate neighbourhood reasonably well.
Little India has a lot of vegetarian restaurants, also a lot that say 'veg and non-veg', but there is a chain of vegetarian Indian version of maccas, which will be interesting to try.
On the plus side I went for a walk this morning and found the 'Chinatown' that Jaz took me to last week telling me it was close to where I lived. It is in fact just the other side of OG alongside Bencoolen. So that was good, although I set out about 7am so nothing was open, but I took some photos of the Chinese temple with swaztikas on it.
The plan was to then walk back to Canal or Ophir roads, cross the canal and back 'home', but somehow I kept wandering after interesting looking things and ended up on Beach Road. So I walked passed Little Arabia and then back along the canal.
I definitely needed a shower when I got back.
Ahhh, forgot I had laundry in the drier.
Just back from getting laundry and running up the stairs barefoot. Someone had moved my laundry into the other drier and set the first one running again empty. Uh?
So, this other 'Chinatown' I shall henceforth call mini-Chinatown, or maybe Micro China, or maybe even Baby Peking? It is only one lane parallel to Bencoolen, has the one Chinese temple, an Indian temple, and the Good Fortune Centre - a shopping centre or tower with a lot of vegetarian and/or organic sort of stuff.
Also so, I was trying to find this 'Chinatown' and thinking maybe Jaz meant Little India. I quartered the area around me; one quarter being Little India, another being between the canal and Little Araby, another being along the canal on this side, and then one along Bencoolen and turn right up Middle then back along Serangoon, and then the fifth 'quarter' (okay, this map is not perfectly square) being to the left of Bencoolen. This last was the last I explored and naturally the one I was actually after. I feel that I now know my immediate neighbourhood reasonably well.
Little India has a lot of vegetarian restaurants, also a lot that say 'veg and non-veg', but there is a chain of vegetarian Indian version of maccas, which will be interesting to try.
Thursday, October 16
Stats, Beautiful Stats
Yaayyy!
My Goole Analytics is working, it just needed some time to get comfortable in its new home. On the down side; stats = ZERO!!!
Now that wasn't a surprise was it?
Also the assistant manager from the Stamford Plaza phoned and apologised profusely and promised me a free upgrade the next time I stay there.
So two good things have happened today.
And there is still half the day to go...
My Goole Analytics is working, it just needed some time to get comfortable in its new home. On the down side; stats = ZERO!!!
Now that wasn't a surprise was it?
Also the assistant manager from the Stamford Plaza phoned and apologised profusely and promised me a free upgrade the next time I stay there.
So two good things have happened today.
And there is still half the day to go...
Wasting my Time
Yes, definitely.
Today is Thursday, I spent all of yesterday thinking it was Tuesday :(
Planning to spend a day totally slacking off - I slacked off so much I spent TWO days slacking off!
Okay, a bit of shopping, a little walking around, a fair bit of emailing and texting, and a lot of Unreal 2. Did I say earlier that I had got my Steam account working on my new Asus laptop? And have started re-installing games that I had bought whilst in Australia? Well I have, and so I am working my way through Unreal 2 again. I have a few favourite levels in it that I keep the saves at the start of so I can play that map.
And look! I have just wasted half of this morning as well - the plan had been to go to the local Shop n Save for some basics first thing, i.e. 7am! It's now quarter passed nine!
Hey look! An email just in from the Stamford Plaza in Adelaide apologising for their awful service levels.
Anyhow, I have just spent maybe an hour browsing stat trackers for this blog. I tried the Google Analytics, as in it is currently installed on the home page, but it doesn't seem to be working - their site keeps saying it can't find the code. Funny! I copied it straight from their page and to mine just before the '/body' tag as specified. Mind you, when I first tried to check it their 'can't find' page told me to copy this code and place it blah, blah, but the code was slightly different! There was one line that wasn't in the first bit of code they had said to use. So I tried this, still no can see. I will give it a day or two to settle down and feel at home, then if the Google Analytics site still can't find its own code I will delete it and move on to try something / someone else. Just didn't want to put one of those tacky counters on the bottom of the page - especially when it is likely to only show "3" - and that will be me checking the format after each post. (Yes, you can preview, but it isn't quite the same, I also copy each post into Word to spell check it, but in the end I just want to see the real thing, and yes, I do sometimes then log back on and change something.)
Tuesday evening I used the clothes washer for the second time and it flooded the flat. I rang the agent and he promised someone would come and fix it first thing yesterday morning. Given that I spent the day sleeping, webbing, playing Unreal 2, and only went out to shop at OG for an hour after 7pm and no-one interrupted my siestas I kind of figure that the washer is not yet fixed, I will phone the agent again to check, but will need to do another load tomorrow. It was kind of fun shopping when none of the checkout chicks seemed to speak any English. Still, at least my VISA credit card is still working as a credit card, even if it doesn't work as an ATM card as well as it used to. That, incidentally, is still an unresolved issue.
Also spent some time websearching some stuff. For example; every year Australia applies for membership in ASEAN and gets refused, the reason given is the AU is a developed nation and ASEAN is a group of countries aspiring to be there. Doesn't sound too realistic, but if this is true then why hasn't Singapore been expelled? After all, it can only be described as a developed nation. It is far more likely that there is some quite explicit racism going on here, and I have my opinion as to who it is coming from as well. This was triggered by the references to "ASEAN + 3" on the news last night. Yes, I am watching SG TV. This is something I haven't done in my previous stays here, nor when I was in other countries, but since this time I am trying to live in SG I thought it apt. Of course the main thing that caught my eye was the temp feed from OKTO, my first impression was "YYEEAAHHHHH!!!!" animal docs, sci-fi and action movies, and LOTS of anime!!! How happy could I be? But over the last two days I have gotten the impression that the main focus is on kids. When will people realise that anime is for adults??? Why waste it on children? This is kind of like how offal (OFL - Office of Film and Literature, the little old ladies that censor the media in AU) is totally convinced that computer games are for children (after all, what else would little old ladies think?) and so don't allow any R18+ games into Oz - despite the overwhelming stats that show two thirds of games are played by men between 30 and 50, and most games are either bought by them, or bought by women for them. Kids are outside playing real games!
Hey look! It's 10am! Another hour wasted - I really need to go shop before the heat gets lethal.
Today is Thursday, I spent all of yesterday thinking it was Tuesday :(
Planning to spend a day totally slacking off - I slacked off so much I spent TWO days slacking off!
Okay, a bit of shopping, a little walking around, a fair bit of emailing and texting, and a lot of Unreal 2. Did I say earlier that I had got my Steam account working on my new Asus laptop? And have started re-installing games that I had bought whilst in Australia? Well I have, and so I am working my way through Unreal 2 again. I have a few favourite levels in it that I keep the saves at the start of so I can play that map.
And look! I have just wasted half of this morning as well - the plan had been to go to the local Shop n Save for some basics first thing, i.e. 7am! It's now quarter passed nine!
Hey look! An email just in from the Stamford Plaza in Adelaide apologising for their awful service levels.
Anyhow, I have just spent maybe an hour browsing stat trackers for this blog. I tried the Google Analytics, as in it is currently installed on the home page, but it doesn't seem to be working - their site keeps saying it can't find the code. Funny! I copied it straight from their page and to mine just before the '/body' tag as specified. Mind you, when I first tried to check it their 'can't find' page told me to copy this code and place it blah, blah, but the code was slightly different! There was one line that wasn't in the first bit of code they had said to use. So I tried this, still no can see. I will give it a day or two to settle down and feel at home, then if the Google Analytics site still can't find its own code I will delete it and move on to try something / someone else. Just didn't want to put one of those tacky counters on the bottom of the page - especially when it is likely to only show "3" - and that will be me checking the format after each post. (Yes, you can preview, but it isn't quite the same, I also copy each post into Word to spell check it, but in the end I just want to see the real thing, and yes, I do sometimes then log back on and change something.)
Tuesday evening I used the clothes washer for the second time and it flooded the flat. I rang the agent and he promised someone would come and fix it first thing yesterday morning. Given that I spent the day sleeping, webbing, playing Unreal 2, and only went out to shop at OG for an hour after 7pm and no-one interrupted my siestas I kind of figure that the washer is not yet fixed, I will phone the agent again to check, but will need to do another load tomorrow. It was kind of fun shopping when none of the checkout chicks seemed to speak any English. Still, at least my VISA credit card is still working as a credit card, even if it doesn't work as an ATM card as well as it used to. That, incidentally, is still an unresolved issue.
Also spent some time websearching some stuff. For example; every year Australia applies for membership in ASEAN and gets refused, the reason given is the AU is a developed nation and ASEAN is a group of countries aspiring to be there. Doesn't sound too realistic, but if this is true then why hasn't Singapore been expelled? After all, it can only be described as a developed nation. It is far more likely that there is some quite explicit racism going on here, and I have my opinion as to who it is coming from as well. This was triggered by the references to "ASEAN + 3" on the news last night. Yes, I am watching SG TV. This is something I haven't done in my previous stays here, nor when I was in other countries, but since this time I am trying to live in SG I thought it apt. Of course the main thing that caught my eye was the temp feed from OKTO, my first impression was "YYEEAAHHHHH!!!!" animal docs, sci-fi and action movies, and LOTS of anime!!! How happy could I be? But over the last two days I have gotten the impression that the main focus is on kids. When will people realise that anime is for adults??? Why waste it on children? This is kind of like how offal (OFL - Office of Film and Literature, the little old ladies that censor the media in AU) is totally convinced that computer games are for children (after all, what else would little old ladies think?) and so don't allow any R18+ games into Oz - despite the overwhelming stats that show two thirds of games are played by men between 30 and 50, and most games are either bought by them, or bought by women for them. Kids are outside playing real games!
Hey look! It's 10am! Another hour wasted - I really need to go shop before the heat gets lethal.
Monday, October 13
Damned Banks
Having a major problem with my bank, the National Australia Bank, two of my cards won't let me take out significant money, the other is imposing a $1,000 a day limit on me when it is supposed to be $5,000 a day. One of my cards is the same one I used the last few times I was here without any problems, but now that the account behind it has been 'upgraded' I am getting nothing but grief - major embarrassment and loss of face, and in an Asian culture where it matters.
I went to the NAB office here in SG, but they are not a 'branch' and don't provide customer service or support. I phoned the NAB international help number and got an Indian call centre where people read things at me but did not provide any service or support. And my last internet banking message got a reply saying that it was not the correct channel for that type of support, signed with an Indian name.
I assume that the NAB has outsourced all support functions to India.
I also assume that the NAB doesn't care about losing customers.
I don't think that I can open a bank account here until I have a working visa. I wonder if I can get a bank that operates in both SG and AU to open an account in 'Australia' for me if I take in the 100 points of ID needed in Australia? But even if they did, what would I put in it? I can't transfer without an SMS code, and my Australian phone is offline! And I am betting that neither the internet banking people nor the call centre people are permitted to actually change it to my Singaporean number.
Maybe I can remotely open an account in Liechtenstein?
Other than that; the girls took me to the bank office then to collect the copy of Office that came with the laptop, then I spent the day following them around shopping and they bought me lunch and a few drinks along the way. And they left me for a while in a huge bookshop in Ngee Ann City tower where I bought a few comics (all Dr Doom), a manga (Burst Angel, loved the anime, assume that I will love the manga as well), and a tarot book since I found when doing a couple of readings lately that I couldn't remember what some cards meant, especially when reversed.
Here's an interesting one; when I came out of something or other yesterday the girls had a hot chocolate waiting for me - they had phoned their sister in Australia to find out what I liked!
They have left to visit family in Malaysia now, and after that they are visiting Hong Kong for a week, so I am on my own for a while.
I went to the NAB office here in SG, but they are not a 'branch' and don't provide customer service or support. I phoned the NAB international help number and got an Indian call centre where people read things at me but did not provide any service or support. And my last internet banking message got a reply saying that it was not the correct channel for that type of support, signed with an Indian name.
I assume that the NAB has outsourced all support functions to India.
I also assume that the NAB doesn't care about losing customers.
I don't think that I can open a bank account here until I have a working visa. I wonder if I can get a bank that operates in both SG and AU to open an account in 'Australia' for me if I take in the 100 points of ID needed in Australia? But even if they did, what would I put in it? I can't transfer without an SMS code, and my Australian phone is offline! And I am betting that neither the internet banking people nor the call centre people are permitted to actually change it to my Singaporean number.
Maybe I can remotely open an account in Liechtenstein?
Other than that; the girls took me to the bank office then to collect the copy of Office that came with the laptop, then I spent the day following them around shopping and they bought me lunch and a few drinks along the way. And they left me for a while in a huge bookshop in Ngee Ann City tower where I bought a few comics (all Dr Doom), a manga (Burst Angel, loved the anime, assume that I will love the manga as well), and a tarot book since I found when doing a couple of readings lately that I couldn't remember what some cards meant, especially when reversed.
Here's an interesting one; when I came out of something or other yesterday the girls had a hot chocolate waiting for me - they had phoned their sister in Australia to find out what I liked!
They have left to visit family in Malaysia now, and after that they are visiting Hong Kong for a week, so I am on my own for a while.
Saturday, October 11
Second Day in SG
I am wasted, I just want a shower and to crash.
It's only 8pm, but I have spent the whole day on the go, being taken all around SG by two beautiful women who along the way have been spoiling me wrotten, shouting lunch and dinner, driving me everywhere, showing me all the local shops that I will need.
Yesteday they and a friend were at the airport to meet me and drive me here to my apartment (which they had found and paid the deposit and rent in advance on). They took me to dinner and even put new sheets and towels and other odds and ends in the apartment.
Seriously, seriously spoiling me.
Shower and sleep.
It's only 8pm, but I have spent the whole day on the go, being taken all around SG by two beautiful women who along the way have been spoiling me wrotten, shouting lunch and dinner, driving me everywhere, showing me all the local shops that I will need.
Yesteday they and a friend were at the airport to meet me and drive me here to my apartment (which they had found and paid the deposit and rent in advance on). They took me to dinner and even put new sheets and towels and other odds and ends in the apartment.
Seriously, seriously spoiling me.
Shower and sleep.
Wednesday, October 8
Out
Well, I am out!
I finally moved out yesterday and spent last night in a hotel. My sister and ex provided lots of help on the final day, I didn't actually think that it could all be done that day, but it was all over by 4pm and I had returned the keys.
Since then I have had nothing but disasters though.
Booked into the Stamford Plaza on North Terrace, Adelaide just wanting to order dinner in my room whilst I rested my feet then a long soak in a hot bath and bed.
An hour after ordering dinner I come out of a doze and call dining and get no answer so ring reception. My order had been forgotten, so they promise to rush it to me as fast as possible, it comes over half an hour later - WRONG!!! Open the lid and the room fills with the stench of dead animal! And you know that I didn't order that! They even added a complimentary bottle of beer - which I don't drink!
Out in to the hall so it doesn't stink out my room and on to the phone. They apologise, as if that actually does anything - how about something to actually try and redress the lost goodwill after two monumental screw ups?
Oh, by the way, no soak in the bath since there is a big yellow stain in the middle of it which I don't trust, so a shower only. The sheets were stained as well, looks like rust stains from an old washer, so upper class.
This morning I set off to take my laptop to the Adelaide HP office since I have not heard from them yet on fixing my brand new laptop. I get a call whilst I am walking up North Terrace; it's a shop in Murray Bridge saying that they have received the part and want to arrange to fix the laptop. Murray Bridge! Even if I was still in Mount Barker that is not closer than Adelaide.
I still go to the HP office because I am tired of these games. The girl at reception tells me that they don't provide service, they only sell. I get the feeling that HP as a whole doesn't provide service. I say that I have had enough and I am not interested in whatever she is saying since she is keeping up a constant stream of white noise and I turn to leave. She closes the door behind her and stands at her desk and shouts abuse at me as I walk out the front door.
Well done HP!
The guy from Murray Bridge had given me the name of the shop in Adelaide that serviced HP laptops and was sending the drive to them. I phone this shop and arrange for them to collect from the hotel since the laptop is still under warranty (it's only a couple of months old!), but guess what - they don't expect to be able to fix it until Friday, the day I fly out!!!
At this point you can understand that I am getting totally sick of the Australian concept of service.
I always try to look on the bright side, so here it is; at least I won't be loading a heavy laptop into my luggage so will have a little more leeway than I thought.
And I have learnt two things; never stay at anything called "Stamford" and never buy HP.
I finally moved out yesterday and spent last night in a hotel. My sister and ex provided lots of help on the final day, I didn't actually think that it could all be done that day, but it was all over by 4pm and I had returned the keys.
Since then I have had nothing but disasters though.
Booked into the Stamford Plaza on North Terrace, Adelaide just wanting to order dinner in my room whilst I rested my feet then a long soak in a hot bath and bed.
An hour after ordering dinner I come out of a doze and call dining and get no answer so ring reception. My order had been forgotten, so they promise to rush it to me as fast as possible, it comes over half an hour later - WRONG!!! Open the lid and the room fills with the stench of dead animal! And you know that I didn't order that! They even added a complimentary bottle of beer - which I don't drink!
Out in to the hall so it doesn't stink out my room and on to the phone. They apologise, as if that actually does anything - how about something to actually try and redress the lost goodwill after two monumental screw ups?
Oh, by the way, no soak in the bath since there is a big yellow stain in the middle of it which I don't trust, so a shower only. The sheets were stained as well, looks like rust stains from an old washer, so upper class.
This morning I set off to take my laptop to the Adelaide HP office since I have not heard from them yet on fixing my brand new laptop. I get a call whilst I am walking up North Terrace; it's a shop in Murray Bridge saying that they have received the part and want to arrange to fix the laptop. Murray Bridge! Even if I was still in Mount Barker that is not closer than Adelaide.
I still go to the HP office because I am tired of these games. The girl at reception tells me that they don't provide service, they only sell. I get the feeling that HP as a whole doesn't provide service. I say that I have had enough and I am not interested in whatever she is saying since she is keeping up a constant stream of white noise and I turn to leave. She closes the door behind her and stands at her desk and shouts abuse at me as I walk out the front door.
Well done HP!
The guy from Murray Bridge had given me the name of the shop in Adelaide that serviced HP laptops and was sending the drive to them. I phone this shop and arrange for them to collect from the hotel since the laptop is still under warranty (it's only a couple of months old!), but guess what - they don't expect to be able to fix it until Friday, the day I fly out!!!
At this point you can understand that I am getting totally sick of the Australian concept of service.
I always try to look on the bright side, so here it is; at least I won't be loading a heavy laptop into my luggage so will have a little more leeway than I thought.
And I have learnt two things; never stay at anything called "Stamford" and never buy HP.
Saturday, October 4
Not Blogging
I am not blogging today.
Well, that's what I feel like. I feel like I have to say something when I don't want to say anything.
I am feeling anxious again. The house is not empty again. Yet again I can say "it will all be empty tomorrow", but I will believe it when I see it. Today I did two dump runs, one purely recyclables, the other the recycling people took more than half the load anyhow. Hence second time I drove straight into their area, don't have to pay $30 that way. Still, half the house IS empty, there's some stuff in the kitchen, not much, and some stuff in the front two rooms, should make one trailer load.
My sister's stuff in the shed is another trailer load, a very big trailer load! Fortunately tomorrow Mum and Noel are bringing a very big trailer to take it away with. I will take the now dismantled gym set to my ex's first thing, then another run of recyclables.
Mum and Noel loaded their 4x4 with boxes and stuff (lots of tools) and towed my camper trailer away today. And mum went through the pile of dump destined boxes and 'liberated' a lot of stuff.
I am sounding disjointed, I know.
Also I filled in the paper work tonight to transfer my old government superannuation into my corporate account. Used to be that you weren't allowed to move South Australian government super out of the government's hands, but it seems that they have liberalised it a bit. And I printed the invoice for the two weeks work I just did. I really shouldn't have taken the time out from getting my own personal life in order to help out a friend/client, but there you go. And it was $6,000 I suppose. Which can't hurt.
I noticed on the super forms I was filling in that if you are leaving Australia permanently then you can get your super completely paid out. Which is good because the Australian super rules and funds are pretty crappy. The rules do not ensure that you will have a liveable income after retirement, and the funds perform pretty badly as well, also ensuring that you won't have a liveable income after retirement. About all you can do is take it as a lump sum and pay off your mortgage then go on the pension. I had always kind of viewed my Australian super deductions as money wasted. Be good if I can actually get it in three months or so and put it to better use. Although there is probably not much since both of my super funds have been experiencing 'negative growth'. As have so many.
I feel better for having blogged. It has kind of relieved the stress a bit. Put things into perspective.
My sister was asking me today (she came up as well for a while) for my definite plans for the next few days, as if I could say with certainty when each step would be finished. It shouldn't be so hard, but there it is.
I had dinner with dad and his family yesterday. It's my birthday on Monday so they wanted to catch up. And the property manager phoned yesterday to see when she could collect the keys (Tuesday, when she does her final inspection.)
And that's about everything for now.
Well, that's what I feel like. I feel like I have to say something when I don't want to say anything.
I am feeling anxious again. The house is not empty again. Yet again I can say "it will all be empty tomorrow", but I will believe it when I see it. Today I did two dump runs, one purely recyclables, the other the recycling people took more than half the load anyhow. Hence second time I drove straight into their area, don't have to pay $30 that way. Still, half the house IS empty, there's some stuff in the kitchen, not much, and some stuff in the front two rooms, should make one trailer load.
My sister's stuff in the shed is another trailer load, a very big trailer load! Fortunately tomorrow Mum and Noel are bringing a very big trailer to take it away with. I will take the now dismantled gym set to my ex's first thing, then another run of recyclables.
Mum and Noel loaded their 4x4 with boxes and stuff (lots of tools) and towed my camper trailer away today. And mum went through the pile of dump destined boxes and 'liberated' a lot of stuff.
I am sounding disjointed, I know.
Also I filled in the paper work tonight to transfer my old government superannuation into my corporate account. Used to be that you weren't allowed to move South Australian government super out of the government's hands, but it seems that they have liberalised it a bit. And I printed the invoice for the two weeks work I just did. I really shouldn't have taken the time out from getting my own personal life in order to help out a friend/client, but there you go. And it was $6,000 I suppose. Which can't hurt.
I noticed on the super forms I was filling in that if you are leaving Australia permanently then you can get your super completely paid out. Which is good because the Australian super rules and funds are pretty crappy. The rules do not ensure that you will have a liveable income after retirement, and the funds perform pretty badly as well, also ensuring that you won't have a liveable income after retirement. About all you can do is take it as a lump sum and pay off your mortgage then go on the pension. I had always kind of viewed my Australian super deductions as money wasted. Be good if I can actually get it in three months or so and put it to better use. Although there is probably not much since both of my super funds have been experiencing 'negative growth'. As have so many.
I feel better for having blogged. It has kind of relieved the stress a bit. Put things into perspective.
My sister was asking me today (she came up as well for a while) for my definite plans for the next few days, as if I could say with certainty when each step would be finished. It shouldn't be so hard, but there it is.
I had dinner with dad and his family yesterday. It's my birthday on Monday so they wanted to catch up. And the property manager phoned yesterday to see when she could collect the keys (Tuesday, when she does her final inspection.)
And that's about everything for now.
Thursday, October 2
Layout
I've just noticed something; this blog site leads each post with the date, but it was showing in Jewish format (MMM DD YYYY) not European (which includes English and is DD MMM YYYY). I tried altering it, but the only options are Jewish or Asian (YYYY MM DD) there was no proper English style dating with a month name. So stuck with Jewish which is what all Americans use these days (since their information systems are all owned and controlled by Jews). Wouldn't mind using the Asian style, which is eminently sensible, but it only has number format, not text i.e. "2008.10.02" not "2008 October 2". You will notice that both European and Asian flow, either biggest to smallest or smallest to biggest measure, but Jewish is just stupid; month day year, middle small big.
No, on second thoughts I will change it to "2008.10.02" style, just can't stand the stupid mmm dd yyyy thing.
No, on third thoughts I will use "Thursday, October 02" format because it has the day name, and you can just realise that it is "Thursday, (2008) October 02"! I will leave the year unwritten but implied.
No, on second thoughts I will change it to "2008.10.02" style, just can't stand the stupid mmm dd yyyy thing.
No, on third thoughts I will use "Thursday, October 02" format because it has the day name, and you can just realise that it is "Thursday, (2008) October 02"! I will leave the year unwritten but implied.
A Special Day
YAAYYYY!!!!
The shipping container is now down at my mum's!!!
Okay, there is still some room in it and there are still a few things that I would like to put into it, but time and inexperience in loading properly worked against this, and in the end it was just get the last stuff that HAD to go in and lock the door.
Yes, there are still about half a dozen boxes and the sound system (mostly a bunch of speakers) and two telescopes (that will get boxed as well) and the three drawer sets that go with my desk. But that's not really a big deal, they will all fit into my trailer and go down on Saturday or Sunday.
Final inspection and key return for this house on Tuesday late morning. She won't come Monday because it's a public holiday! Yeah, I get a holiday for my birthday, isn't that sweet of the government? So I have an extra day to get the place cleaned up, but four days is more than enough for a house that is basically clean and empty anyhow. And the cleaner is still coming tomorrow (Monday and Fridays have been her days).
The 'cleaner' is my ex, I did mention that a few posts back didn't I? It kind of works well, we get along okay and she knows me and my likes etc., doesn't mind folding my washing (undies and all) and if I ask her to do some shopping for me then she know what I eat.
With this step now done I feel a lot more at ease. I think that as long as it was here, even though it was full and the house nearly empty, I still felt some anxiety at not 'being out', but now I don't. The rest should be clear sailing.
Eight days to go.
The shipping container is now down at my mum's!!!
Okay, there is still some room in it and there are still a few things that I would like to put into it, but time and inexperience in loading properly worked against this, and in the end it was just get the last stuff that HAD to go in and lock the door.
Yes, there are still about half a dozen boxes and the sound system (mostly a bunch of speakers) and two telescopes (that will get boxed as well) and the three drawer sets that go with my desk. But that's not really a big deal, they will all fit into my trailer and go down on Saturday or Sunday.
Final inspection and key return for this house on Tuesday late morning. She won't come Monday because it's a public holiday! Yeah, I get a holiday for my birthday, isn't that sweet of the government? So I have an extra day to get the place cleaned up, but four days is more than enough for a house that is basically clean and empty anyhow. And the cleaner is still coming tomorrow (Monday and Fridays have been her days).
The 'cleaner' is my ex, I did mention that a few posts back didn't I? It kind of works well, we get along okay and she knows me and my likes etc., doesn't mind folding my washing (undies and all) and if I ask her to do some shopping for me then she know what I eat.
With this step now done I feel a lot more at ease. I think that as long as it was here, even though it was full and the house nearly empty, I still felt some anxiety at not 'being out', but now I don't. The rest should be clear sailing.
Eight days to go.
Wednesday, October 1
Another Day, Not Another Dollar
First day not working. Finished the contract yesterday - must remember to bill them. Dental appointment today, my hygienist was so tall! She was in three inch heels, I have never seen her in heels before. Visited a recruitment agency I have worked with / through for nearly ten years and collected a work statement from them, now I have two from clients and one from an agency, there is still one outstanding from another agency. These are to accompany my visa application. Then to the place I bought my Suzuki from because the remote key has been playing up since they serviced the car last week. Then home and I have tied in the last of the furniture and the fridge. I packed the clothes drier and the two mobile air conditioners, but not the clothes washer, and put all into the container, but not tied in yet - must do this at first light!!! The container is being collected tomorrow and trucked to my mum's farm to settle into the super shed (the shed for superphosphate, not being used now that no farmers in the area can afford fertiliser due to the drought, said drought mostly being caused by government drainage projects emptying the water table). So close to an empty house, and so much wiser - next time I pack boxes but pay men to pack container! Much quicker, much more effective stacking and tying.
Side story! Today I suffered the worst abo begging story I have ever heard!
Whilst the Suzi was being fixed I went to have a (belated) bite to eat, bought a roll and was biting away in the park when an aboriginal woman comes up and asks me if she can talk to me for a minute. Okay, I think, we all know that this will turn into a request for money, as if living off the taxes that I pay isn't enough! But maybe it could be amusing, and maybe it will be original enough to encourage me to give her ten dollars and send her on her way. So this is what I got:
"I have just travelled down from Broken Hill to meet my lawyer. He will meet me in one hour to give me my compensation payments. He phoned me and told me to meet him at that seat there." (Points to park bench about ten metres away.) "He will pay me my compensation money. I will get $25,000 in compensation. He won't give it to me all in cash, he will give me about $4,000 in cash in an envelope and the rest in cheques. Can you help me out in the meantime and lend me some money to feed me and my kids. " (Who are not in sight anywhere.) "I promise to pay you back in one hour."
How many holes to you see in that story?
Your lawyer is meeting you in a park? What happened to his office?
He is paying you some cash and some cheques? What happened to the protocol to pay one cheque payable only into a bank account?
You are getting $25,000 in one hour and yet you are begging for ten dollars now?
And where are these 'kids'?
Does she seriously think that anyone would fall for that???
It has been a long time since I have been hassled by begging abos in the parks in Adelaide. I thought that the cops had cleaned them all out. Or more likely Social Services has given them all brand new four bedroom houses to live in and new holdens to drive - all at tax payers expense - and they are mostly satisfied. Forget for the moment that begging is illegal in South Australia, or at least it used to be, maybe the Socialist government decriminalised it, along with prostitution and minor drug use.
Many years ago I totalled up all of the government handouts to aboriginals and divided it by the number of abos in the country. It worked out at about $40,000 annually for every man, woman, and child of them. With all of that money how come most of them are still living in poverty with bad health services and little education?
On another point (apart from the comment that goes through my head about making lots of typos because I am sitting cross-legged on the lounge room floor because I have no computer desk or any sort of table in the house) I closed my Russian internet bride accounts this morning. Done! Another chapter in my life finished. No, there had been nothing back from the incredibly beautiful eighteen year old blue-eyed blonde from Kharkov. She was the only one that I was still writing to, but her letters had been getting vaguer and thinner and somewhat tardy. But no response to the three dozen pink roses, so therefore she misses out on the life of romance with this being. 'Cos if I did have a total young babe like her then you can be guaranteed that I would be showering her with flowers and gifts and dining out etc., etc., etc. Kind of a hopeless romantic, which never meant much with the Australian women. Maybe it doesn't with any women?
Four days until I have to be out of this house, ten days until I am flying out of this country.
I am starting to get more concerned, worried, anxious I think is the best description. How will I find Singapore as more than a place to visit or pass through? Will I actually enjoy living there? Will it be a bad move? Will it turn into just a long holiday? Or will it be the best thing that I have ever done? Will it be the start of a totally wonderful new phase in this incarnation? Will I find physical, emotional, intellectual, economic, and spiritual fulfilment there - or will I find that same emotional and intellectual emptiness that I have found here?
Side story! Today I suffered the worst abo begging story I have ever heard!
Whilst the Suzi was being fixed I went to have a (belated) bite to eat, bought a roll and was biting away in the park when an aboriginal woman comes up and asks me if she can talk to me for a minute. Okay, I think, we all know that this will turn into a request for money, as if living off the taxes that I pay isn't enough! But maybe it could be amusing, and maybe it will be original enough to encourage me to give her ten dollars and send her on her way. So this is what I got:
"I have just travelled down from Broken Hill to meet my lawyer. He will meet me in one hour to give me my compensation payments. He phoned me and told me to meet him at that seat there." (Points to park bench about ten metres away.) "He will pay me my compensation money. I will get $25,000 in compensation. He won't give it to me all in cash, he will give me about $4,000 in cash in an envelope and the rest in cheques. Can you help me out in the meantime and lend me some money to feed me and my kids. " (Who are not in sight anywhere.) "I promise to pay you back in one hour."
How many holes to you see in that story?
Your lawyer is meeting you in a park? What happened to his office?
He is paying you some cash and some cheques? What happened to the protocol to pay one cheque payable only into a bank account?
You are getting $25,000 in one hour and yet you are begging for ten dollars now?
And where are these 'kids'?
Does she seriously think that anyone would fall for that???
It has been a long time since I have been hassled by begging abos in the parks in Adelaide. I thought that the cops had cleaned them all out. Or more likely Social Services has given them all brand new four bedroom houses to live in and new holdens to drive - all at tax payers expense - and they are mostly satisfied. Forget for the moment that begging is illegal in South Australia, or at least it used to be, maybe the Socialist government decriminalised it, along with prostitution and minor drug use.
Many years ago I totalled up all of the government handouts to aboriginals and divided it by the number of abos in the country. It worked out at about $40,000 annually for every man, woman, and child of them. With all of that money how come most of them are still living in poverty with bad health services and little education?
On another point (apart from the comment that goes through my head about making lots of typos because I am sitting cross-legged on the lounge room floor because I have no computer desk or any sort of table in the house) I closed my Russian internet bride accounts this morning. Done! Another chapter in my life finished. No, there had been nothing back from the incredibly beautiful eighteen year old blue-eyed blonde from Kharkov. She was the only one that I was still writing to, but her letters had been getting vaguer and thinner and somewhat tardy. But no response to the three dozen pink roses, so therefore she misses out on the life of romance with this being. 'Cos if I did have a total young babe like her then you can be guaranteed that I would be showering her with flowers and gifts and dining out etc., etc., etc. Kind of a hopeless romantic, which never meant much with the Australian women. Maybe it doesn't with any women?
Four days until I have to be out of this house, ten days until I am flying out of this country.
I am starting to get more concerned, worried, anxious I think is the best description. How will I find Singapore as more than a place to visit or pass through? Will I actually enjoy living there? Will it be a bad move? Will it turn into just a long holiday? Or will it be the best thing that I have ever done? Will it be the start of a totally wonderful new phase in this incarnation? Will I find physical, emotional, intellectual, economic, and spiritual fulfilment there - or will I find that same emotional and intellectual emptiness that I have found here?
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