Dear diary (part 2)

OK, now I got your attention. I figured all text and no picture makes a tough read so there you go, a grainy snap of me working out in the gym in the Papua New Guinean camp that I am currently living in. So let's now proceed to what happened during week 2 of my second full rotation here.


03-Dec-2014:
I was informed that both the photo books I bought and spent a lot of time in my last break designing the layout of have arrived. I finally have a book with all the best pictures from my past photo shoots. This is a no-holds-barred publication, with no censorship. Full frontal glory at its best (some shots of me being more than a little aroused even, if you know what I mean). I can't wait to hold the books in my hands and gawk at how amazing I look (hehe)! Workwise, I am still chipping away at getting the documentation in shape to execute all the alarm changes that have been identified so far. It is a massive task especially when those changes have not been identified by me (ie. I lack the proper background) and the way the changes were summarised was done quite haphazardly leaving a lot of loose ends to sort out. That is what you get when things are done by people without the necessary skills. I will still work my eleven or so hour days and re-evaluate this closer to the deadline to see if I need to work overtime. Well at least I can avoid the dreadful meetings for the rest of my rotation, which is a win in my books. Because I cancelled those meetings that I fought so hard to organise, the grumpy old man came over twice in my office to "jokingly" say things like "your credibility is now zero", "hope you've learnt your lesson not to be so dogmatic" and "welcome to how the company works"—I guess he was unhappy how I forced him to change his schedules around those meetings. Whatever. This is just a job buddy, I am not going to stress myself over it. On the gym front, it looks like the faulty treadmill has been fixed. I worked out topless the whole time the cleaner was cleaning the gym so I guess toplessness is not something they object to. I shall continue then to work out topless during off-peak hours when the gym is empty.

04-Dec-2014:
The weather here is getting warmer and less rainy but because of the high elevation, the temperature is still maintained at about 25 degrees. It can get up to 30 or so in the day and down to 20 at night but it is not humid up so high (I am so glad I am not at sea level). PNG is in the Southern Hemisphere and so it should be hottest in the coming month. I had to go on site today to verify that an application bug has been fixed. I hate going on site because I don't drive and I need to depend on the very unreliable shuttle bus. I wasted twenty minutes or so waiting for the bus going to and from site today and that was time that will never be regained. However with the bug now fixed, I don't foresee the need to go on site again and finally I can concentrate on the enormous clean-up task at hand without any more interruptions! Just when I was happily working away in isolation, my boss came into my office and asked if I had enough to do. WTF. He just gave me a massive task and now this question? I think what he really wanted was to find out if I was encountering any obstacles that would prevent the deadline from being met so that he could help remove them. I told him I was fine—he is very concerned with this job as finishing it is his KPI. So I guess by successfully completing it I am making him look good and hopefully that will put me in his good books. But I am starting to get quite worried that I might not be able to meet the deadline so I have decided to wake up an hour earlier to work ie. I will be officially working twelve full hours per day. Hope with gym on top of that, I will still be left standing at the end of the day Wish me luck!

05-Dec-2014:
So there I was in the office, at work and buzzing away like a bee at 5am in the morning, that's a first. Hopefully this will work towards meeting that ambitious deadline. I need something desperately to prove myself and show everyone else that I am valuable enough to consider either retaining for other projects or maybe even hire as an employee of the company. Lots of contractors here hope that they can successfully jump over because of a higher salary, job security (so to speak, compared to say an engineering consultancy firm which I am working for), a good 4-on/4-off roster and perks like shares and bonus pay-outs. Fingers crossed. The day flew past quickly and I was totally in the zone throughout. When I am feeling like that I do not spend time chatting over lunch and I become very anti-social. This is me being productive and efficient so if people have an issue with that—tough! By the way, another of my Jetstar flight itinerary has changed and this is the price to pay for buying budget air tickets and booking flights too early. First the timing was changed for my flights with boo to visit the in-laws and today I was informed that there was a date change for the flight with my mum from Singapore to Melbourne! Seats had to be reconfirmed, which was a hassle. Looks like I will be spending a day more in Singapore in March and my mum will be spending a day less in Melbourne—it's not a huge change when you think of it. The cardio session before dinner tonight really hit the spot in relieving some of the tension built up throughout the day. Even though I was pretty drained by the time I finished work, I was still well enough to hit the gym so I guess I am all cut out for full twelve-hour days after all (we shall see after a few days of this).

06-Dec-2014:
Got called onto site at the end of yesterday to follow up on an action item I created. Well it's better to tie up all these loose ends earlier than later but this meant that the uninterrupted focus on my most important task had to be broken. I got into the swing of things yesterday so I went straight back into it smoothly after the disruption. I just hope that there will be no more of such disturbances! If that's any consolation, the test went largely ok although we missed a few things but for now I am fairly satisfied. I was actually a little surprised they read my action item list and decided to organise the test to close that item out. Looks like the system is finally showing signs of working. Still working away tackling this massive task which is proving to be more arduous than expected. You see there is a limited number of licenses (in fact there is only one) needed to access some applications necessary to  get this work done and people on site have to share this single license with the Brisbane HQ. People from the HQ think they have the sole right to use the license and they become nasty when I log on and kick them out. In actual fact, we have equal right regarding this. That irritating HQ person thinks I can access the applications another way but he doesn't know that that workstation is locked and I will NOT resort to begging people to help me unlock the door in order for me to work. This is getting preposterous. The funny thing is I accidentally pressed "ignore" when this guy's chat message came in most likely to whinge a second time. Maybe I sub-consciously did click that. Well, I am not going to go back and ask him what I missed. Anyway work frustrations aside, there is always dinner to look forward to. It's cocktail prawns night but somehow the locals don't like seafood too much. This is surprising as a lot of them are very poor and even the basic things like rice, stir-fried meat and vegetables served at the mess are luxury to them I was told.

07-Dec-2014:
Just realised I had two new blog comments awaiting moderation. They are from two of my most loyal fans—it's always nice to hear from them. Here's a shout-out to Chris and Michael—keep your comments coming! To make the day even nicer, it is Saturday today and I get to work in the weekend! Sounds strangely positive? It is not. Although you tend to lose track of which day it is and weekends no longer matter, there is a huge advantage of working in the weekends for me right now—I don't have people from the Brisbane HQ fighting with me to use that sole license! Even now in my second rotation, I sometimes forget that these people don't work in the weekends and get unnecessarily upset when they don't respond to emails. Other than work, everything else is pretty much the same. By the way, there is laundry service here that returns your clean clothes by 4pm. They use industrial-grade washing machines that really don't offer much protection to fabric so I use it mainly for uniforms. They also mark clothes with the room number to ensure that they get returned to the right people and they do it on the inside labels. Well I sent in my pyjamas for washing but it had a black label so they wrote my room number on the fabric itself on the inside and I am not happy about that. Also they sometimes lose clothing items. I have lost a company shirt and a pair of socks in my last rotation and just a few days ago, I lost another shirt. They do however turn up several days later sometimes so we shall see if they do, like how they did during my last hitch. Oh, and I met the first person doing weights today at the gym during off-peak hours but I didn't interact much with him as I am extremely anti-social when I am working out.

08-Dec-2014:
Looks like I am flying out of PNG a day earlier but that is because that grumpy old man and I have to meet both our back-to-backs plus some HQ people in the Brisbane office to get alignment on a very important issue (hence the need for a face-to-face meeting where every one is present). This means that I would also have to stay in Brisbane for one night. The date and time I arrive back home remains the same though. It has been more a year since I last stepped foot in Brisbane and I know it wouldn't have changed much—I wonder if I could organise a photo shoot with a photographer for that night... Meanwhile in the office, the work I am doing requires a lot of focus as it involves a lot of spotting and correcting mistakes and inconsistencies left by my back-to-back. Because I am in charge of implementing all the changes identified by him via a computer application, the input has to be perfect with no mistakes and what I got from him to work with was FAR from that. As a result of this focus, I get so drained and mentally exhausted by dinner time. Staring blankly at space while eating alone in a quiet corner in the mess sounds sad and unwholesome but it is actually quite soothing after a long day. Fortunately that tiring work is very solitary which is GREAT (I hate having to interact with people and worse still begging them for help)! Boo told me to cut back on gym so that I don't get too spent but I will never do that. As long I keep up with my vitamin-intake and healthy-eating, I think I will be fine. It is easy to eat well while in camp because there are so many healthy choices available. My favourite is the broccoli salad and fruit cocktail.

09-Dec-2014:
I have been dreaming a lot lately and these dreams seem to be unrelated to what happens during the day and I don't know why this is occurring. Last night I was watching a documentary debunking alien abduction and this is what I learnt. You see, our brain switches off motor control during the active-dreaming phase of our sleep so that we won't act on our dreams and hurt ourselves. This "override" is reset when we wake but sometimes this doesn't happen and people find themselves awake but unable to move. That could be why they start to think they are being abducted and controlled by aliens. Call it a coincidence, I woke up the next morning to find the door to my room opened! That never happened before and I remember locking my door before I went to bed!!! It sends a chill down my spine even now when I think about it. On a totally different subject, there is a very hot daddy who practically lives in the gym here. He is in charge of security and used to be in the army. His body is AWESOME! People tell me he used to be fat, which makes his sexy build even more amazing. He offers free personal training sessions to people and I didn't think much of it at first as he could just be really passionate about fitness. But I just heard that he is asking for payment from some and now it all makes sense. He is trying to build up his customer base by giving free sessions at first so that he can eventually charge them. Well he better not let the managers know this because he is using company facilities to moonlight and I am sure that is not acceptable. In the meantime, I will continue to perve at him. Hey there isn't much else to look at in the camp!


So at the end of the second week, I can finally start to look forward to the beginning of the end. Ision and I are going to visit his parents for five days during my upcoming break and I am so looking forward to relaxing and doing absolutely nothing! Watch out for week number three in exactly seven days.

Dear diary (part 1)

Last month I was banned from posting on Facebook for 30 days most likely due to pubic hair in this picture I posted a long time ago. It seems that Facebook's "community standards" on nudity are totally inconsistent because this other picture that was also reported actually passed the censorship test even though it featured BOTH pubic hair and the shadow of my penis. Whatever. It is not worth getting angry over this anymore—you just have to live with it and move on.

This ban means that I have lost Facebook as a diary-writing tool. However there is still my blog and I am going to make full use of that. You see, I have not written daily diary entries since I was in the army and I figured it is fun to relive that experience of documenting my life in this most traditional way, without pictures, videos, likes and links. Being here in Papua New Guinea is very much like living in an army camp anyway so it is the perfect setting for this exercise.

My second full rotation in PNG started on 26th November 2014 and within these four weeks I shall jot down the more eventful things that happen everyday and with that, you will get to see exactly what takes place in the course of my work for an entire rotation. To keep each post to a reasonable length, I shall send one per week ie. each post will contain seven entries. Who says diaries are meant to be kept private?


26-Nov-2014:
Felt rather miserable in the morning when I had to leave my boo. The journey to PNG was smooth and the weather was again kind enough for the transit point to not be at Port Moresby (normally it is at Moro, which is far safer than Port Moresby, contrary to what the locals think). Actually it would be an eye-opener to at least see a little bit of Port Moresby (ie. only the airport). Went straight to gym upon reaching camp before even unpacking, that is my dedication to maintaining good health and keeping in shape. Dinner was as I remembered it and the made-to-order grilled barramundi was excellent as usual. After dinner was unpacking and then it was the routine CNN and BBC news segments before bed. Didn't get to sleep that well even though I was already sleepy at an earlier-than-usual bedtime. This is normal for the first few nights for every rotation.

27-Nov-2014:
Went through my back-to-back's handover list which has become more detailed than his last one. I hope it was because he saw that mine to him was so detailed that he felt the need to up his game. Made a rough work plan for the rest of my rotation (still requires a few phone calls to get things fully-organised). Managed to send a procedure I drafted (sent for review in my last rotation) for approval, which is a good accomplishment. I had no interactions with the grumpy lazy old man sitting in the office next to mine, someone whom I am supposed to be working the most closely with. He didn't come talk to me as well so why do I have to make the first move? I think for now, my decision to interact with him only if work necessitates it is the right one (if you don't already know, he is ultra hard to work with and talk to). My boss on site was super busy as usual and I didn't have a chance to touch base with him properly and I will try again tomorrow. One treadmill was down at gym so I had to use the cross-trainer which I didn't like. All other treadmills were occupied as I went to the gym slightly later than usual (note to self: always be there at 5.30pm to avoid this). Made some new friends over dinner (everyone has different rotation cycles so you are bound to meet new people every time) and chatted till the mess closed. Then I bumped into two really friendly locals and chatted with them for close to an hour. Seems like I am not that anti-social after all. Because of the increased time spent on chatting, bedtime was a bit later than usual but fortunately I slept much better than last night.

28-Nov-2014:
Continued to get things organised for the rest of my rotation and refreshed my memory of the agenda of the upcoming meetings that I am facilitating. My main job here is to facilitate meetings and making sure people attend as well as close-out any action items post-meetings that they have been assigned. The bulk of the work comes from preparing for these meetings (background work, familiarising with the process, preparation of essential documentation, etc) and the bulk of the pain comes from begging unmotivated and lazy-arsed people to attend meetings and ensuring that they do their jobs even though I am not their manager. To make matters worse, everyone has multiple email addresses here (ie. super confusing) and as a result, the meetings I have tried so hard to organise in the last rotation might not be actually sent to the required attendees. I must rectify this problem as soon as possible. On the social front, things are looking better. I had a great chat with the manager of the kitchen and camp services over lunch (it's always important to be in the good books of someone taking care of you) and I also came out to a new-found friend over dinner when he asked about my wedding ring (he really shares a lot of his private life so I felt compelled to share as well eg. he told me after having talked to me only twice that his wife went through psychotherapy recently). It is so much more enjoyable and interesting to talk to people unrelated to your field of work (you don't have to be alert and keep up appearances as much for fear that you might seem to be a professional threat to them).

29-Nov-2014:
Went on site (my first time this rotation) and held a successful meeting and I feel so relieved that I am at least getting somewhere. Every meeting I chair is a challenge and I see every single completed one as a major victory even though this is supposed to be part of my day-to-day job. Had my first lunch on site for this rotation. The packed meals for the operators are always so bad that many people travel all the way back to camp to have lunch in the mess. I have too much to do on site today so I have decided to give the mess lunch a miss. Also received a "nasty" surprise from my site boss when he gave me a very ambitious target for a piece of major work. I used inverted commas for the word nasty because he has endorsed the dedication of my full attention on this work, which will mean that I will not have to deal with unmotivated expats so much. So this is actually a blessing in disguise because I would very much rather do this difficult task than to have to work with these people. Actually from today's meeting, I could see a slight improvement in working relationships so perhaps people just had to get more used to me and my working style and things would be fine. Anyway now with this new work focus, I hope the minutes and hours will just fly by and before you know it I am packing to leave this place.

30-Nov-2014:
Organised a recurring weekly meeting that will take place at a location that needs a plane or helicopter to get to for my next rotation (takes more than 6 hours to travel by car). I need to discuss with my boss if I can just stay there for the required 3 weeks so that I minimise the number of times I get on these chartered flights thereby reducing the chances of getting killed in a metallic casing due to no fault of mine. Although the odds are low but because the consequences of the accident is so severe, I need to take the necessary measures to mitigate the risk. Anyway I am about to embark on a huge task within this project and I need to send out a meeting invite to draft a plan to achieve the Christmas target of this task. I have so much to cover in this meeting that I am going to send out yet another very long email (containing the very wordy meeting agenda). I think people here must be sick of (or at least not used to) my long emails. However these people are also not familiar with the importance of proper documentation and traceability so they don't really have a case if they are irritated by my lengthy emails. Sigh, the agony of being detailed. By the way, people here always lament that the reason why things fall apart on site is because of a lack of attention to details. Oh the irony. Had three pieces of made-to-order grilled tuna steaks for dinner–now I know there is such a thing as fish-overload. Called home for the first time this rotation and it was so nice to speak to boo–I didn't even care that the grumpy old man next door was able to overhear the mushy conversation (the office walls are paper thin)!

01-Dec-2014:
Had my first weights session in the gym. Because I go to the gym at an off-peak time during office hours (and have a shorter lunch break), I cannot have long sessions ie. I have to spread my two-day workout over four days per week. Looks like this new routine is effective as I seemed to have lost a little weight AND bulked up slightly (a potent combination) based on what I observed in my last rotation. I am careful though not to be seen in gym gear in the camp during office hours (I only change in the gym) although theoretically there is really nothing wrong with what I am doing as I get my work done. The gym is empty during office hours and so I can work out topless which is against the rules but I look too good in the mirror without clothes to not do this (hehe)! Flights have been confirmed for my next rotation. I end my current rotation on Christmas Eve and I end my next rotation on Chinese New Year Eve. How nice. I am going back to Singapore for Chinese New Year next year for two weeks and then bringing my mum back to Melbourne for another two weeks and I am so looking forward to that. It is World AIDS Day today and many people were decked out in a red T-shirt with Pidgin (local language) on it that says something about HIV testing (I think). It's funny that only the locals were wearing it (not the expats). Felt really tired tonight and I think that's because of my workload building up (due to that new task with the impossible Christmas deadline). I finally spoke with my boss today and he is still very adamant that that show must go on. I also managed to convince him that my back-to-back should focus on identifying the changes required (which necessitates those meetings that I hate to organise) and I should concentrate on executing those changes and he bought in to that! I hope that will mean that I don't need to do those dreadful meetings anymore (the boss is so hands-off that he gives me a lot of leeway to plan and direct the project)! He also added that I do a lot of things way better than my back-to-back (and vice versa due to both of us having different skill sets). Interestingly, he said that the lazy expats "must go" and "things must change around here". Hope they all get fired or replaced–one can always hope.

02-Dec-2014:
The procedure I drafted in my last rotation has been sent to be issued for use! This is a major milestone for me. I am also starting to get friendly with the head IT technician here, which is actually one of the most useful things to do. I also discovered a way to fix the faulty treadmill but I will not reveal this to people so that I can conveniently use it when the other two are occupied. In this way, as long as the cat is still in the bag, I will always have a treadmill reserved just for me. Hopefully the maintenance department doesn't put a lock tag around it to say that it is faulty and should not be used. On the work front, I conducted an impressive meeting with attendees from site and the Brisbane HQ. My site boss was really happy with the meeting outcome which means that he was very happy with my performance. I also managed to get my boss' endorsement to cancel all other stupid meetings and focus on this huge task at hand which just got the go-ahead after this successful meeting. Looks like I will be swamped from now all the way to the end of my rotation. Over dinner, I don't know what came over me but I actually went over-chatty with a new female process engineer on site and might also have come across as too negative. I have heard that she's coming on site since a long time ago and finally she is here, I guess I just got too excited. I am still baffled over why I behaved this way as there is really no reason to be so friendly to a stranger. If I see her not initiating future conversations with me when we cross paths, I will know that's because I scared her away. Oh well.


Stay tuned for my next post for more insight into yet another of my "fun-filled" week in PNG!

Musical journey (52)

Sigh. Looks like my short four-week break from a workplace infested with lazy-arsed expats has ended but before I leave tomorrow, I think a musical post is in the order. In fact this is the second part of the clip posted previously, when I just received news that I have been given the Papua New Guinea stint. Actually I really shouldn't be complaining about work as most of my Melbourne colleagues are going to be retrenched in 3 days' time. Also it is becoming increasingly rare to get a job that gives you the time and opportunity to travel so frequently (I have just returned from a week-long Bangkok trip where I did two very different but very fulfilling photo shoots). So I shall not whinge about my job... for now.

This month's musical post features a live clip of me singing along Melbourne's busy Bourke Street while waiting for a friend to arrive for dinner or what I call a preview to how Kim the busker would look and sound like if he were to do that for real. I have not seen the girl playing the guitar (the actual busker I "hijacked") since that night, if not I will record a few more songs and post them here. The joy of singing in front of an audience and experiencing their immediate positive response is something that cannot be described by mere words. However that is a feeling that will most certainly get diluted if I were to perform routinely or as a living and so to a large extent I want to reserve performing as a special occasion, much like doing photo shoots. This will ensure that when I appear in front of people or the camera, I am fresh, energised and in the best position and light to impress the pants off my audience. In this clip, I especially like the end when someone shouted out "one more song" in Mandarin—too bad my friend arrived soon after and I couldn't do that "one more song".

So enjoy my rendition of my idol Faye Wong's "紅豆" and I will see all of you back in the remote Southern Highlands province of Papua New Guinea (*major groan*).

DIY shots fit for a magazine

Recently I started the third installment of "One Kim a Day" on Facebook but one of the pictures got reported which was of no surprise because the moment I posted it I felt that the self-censorship was too "light" (you will see what I mean a little later). To prevent myself from being banned for 30 days yet again, I took down the album after only having put three pictures on it (ie. after three days into the month).

I used to think that it must be the prudes from my friends list who make such complaints but now I think the likelier culprits are other photographers/models (especially when you start to tag other people thereby increasing the pictures' visibility). Since these people cannot post racy pictures themselves (as they have been banned by Facebook before) they are bent on preventing other people from doing the same perhaps out of spite or jealousy. This "vigilantism" on social media has caught me out frequently but recently I have managed to evade the Facebook axe several times. That being said, I still decided to play it safe this time round. In my opinion although Facebook has evolved, its users fail to do likewise at the same pace. Here are the three pictures that I deleted along with the album and tell me if the level of self-censorship in that last picture is adequate or not.

The above series shot at Brisbane's Mt Coot-Tha is quite significant to me as it was featured in a gay online magazine based in UK called The Male Form which showcases only nude men (who are all extremely hot and hence I was incredibly honoured to be in the same publication as them), as well as on DNA online.

While I decide whether to re-edit the the degree of masking to ensure Facebook censors approve of this series or simply post it on my blog as is, let me first share with you another Brisbane set taken by the crappy camera of my previous phone (HTC Desire HD) and self-edited using GIMP (this free program is highly recommended as it easily makes amateur shots look great). These were shot at Coolangatta Beach along the Gold Coast last year and although that is not a nude beach, I couldn't care less. I posted these on Facebook on the last days of winter (and hence the text on the pictures) and they passed the censorship test even though people reported them. Looking at the shadows in some of these pictures, it is evident that Facebook has risen above the prudes and relaxed its definition of nudity. Now the rest of the world just has to keep up.

So enjoy this mini series while I finalise the itinerary of my upcoming Bangkok vacation before I head back to the miserable remote mountains—I have already got a shoot lined up with an excellent Bangkok-based photographer who took these and am currently in the process of arranging for another one with the man behind these amazing shots. Super excited!

Another Facebook-status post

On this last night before I head back home first thing tomorrow morning, let me squeeze in a quick post (I will be with boo shortly—can't wait to kiss him and hug him!).

It used to be company policy here in Papua New Guinea that people connecting to the Internet through the company network were only entitled to Facebook for 30 minutes a day after 7.30pm but I guess like many other pointless rules here in the camp (eg. no caps to be worn and mobile phones to be used in the mess—currently still enforced though), it must have been struck out due to multiple complaints. Anyway in my previous rotation, I found that I could actually get by two whole weeks without even logging on to Facebook a single time. You see, the days in PNG are so long that relaxing time to yourself before bed is such a scarce commodity that you really don't want to spend any effort after dinner to do anything other than to lie in bed with the TV turned on (CNN and BBC are my two favourite channels).

That being said, I find that Facebook is still the best platform to document one's own life. With the advent of social media, society has evolved and privacy has become less of a concern. People used to keep diaries as one of the most private things but I (along with many others) now use Facebook as an interactive diary-writing tool where thoughts and ideas are broadcast to other people by choice. However there are still things in my life that are too private for social media so I guess in that regard human beings have either not evolved enough or there is still some hope left in our species, depending on how you see it.

Here's a snapshot of my Facebook status updates for the three months before I left for my second rotation in PNG. They really give a very good idea of what has been going on in my life of late, that is if you are patient enough to read them all! See you back in Melbourne in a bit!


"Ooh. Been invited to participate in an MTV shoot with “an ARIA accredited songwriter/performer and a Billboard charting Melbourne-based producer/songwriter”. No face, just shooting my body in swimming trunks. Only 2 male models required in the shoot in July. Hope I am still around in Melbourne to do it!"

"I will be wearing pink all weekend to be with you guys in spirit. I will join you for Pink Dot SG one day. Keep up the fight guys!"

"Cardio... why must we meet again???"

"Wow. Absolutely pouring now. What a rare sight in Melbourne!"

"What are the odds of chancing on the moment when your blog hits reach 88,888?? This must be a good omen!"

"Mushroom and meatball curry and bak choy with caramelised onion. So simple yet so delicious. Thank you booboo."

"Looks like the PNG deal is going to get delayed with the visa-application process going much slower than expected. Estimated time of departure = September. Well, more time with my boo"

"F*#¿ing hell! Car space rent payment late again! A piece of golden advice: if you are renting something out, make sure you have some “late payment penalty” clause in the contract. I have learnt this lesson too late."

"Watched “Transcendence” last night. It is an unexpectedly good movie!"

"Just spent close to an hour saving all my Facebook posts since I started this account. Well worth the time and effort, seeing how postings on Facebook practically document all our lives nowadays."

"Just sent a warning-of-eviction message to the bitch who rented my car space. No reply or no money in my account by Tuesday and she will be locked out with bond forfeited. Some people are just out to cheat other people's money and they should be eradicated from the face of this planet."

"Meeting the model that will co-star with me in my upcoming MTV shoot. Hope he is mega hot!"

"I might as well start getting lean for the MTV shoot. Did 30 minutes on the treadmill and 90 minutes of walking today."

"As expected, no pay rise again for this new financial year (4 out of my 6 years working in Australia saw wage freezes). Someone told me I should count myself lucky that I am still employed in this shrinking local chemical engineering market. But how long can this go on with inflation never halting?"

"I suddenly feel a strong urge to take a long holiday. It's been too long and I think my body is sending me alarms."

"What's with people on Scruff and Grindr with essay-length profiles? Isn't that just another form of narcissism? I better not hear them whinge about how self-indulgent those who put topless pics of themselves are."

"I really want to see this shot of Madonna before Photoshop to marvel at the ease of which technology can help make the decrepit palatable."

"Is there a difference between watching Tour de France and watching paint dry? I struggled with the answer. Then I learnt that people actually stay up at night just to watch it. Out of this world."

"Just finished watching “Snowpiercer”. I must say the movie is a breath of fresh air compared to the mostly rehashed productions coming out of Hollywood these days. Although I needed a little time to digest the show at the end, I still recommend it to everyone especially when it has an Asian director."

"Every time I see Clive Palmer move from one place to another, I can't help but feel that he's going to drop dead in a heart attack or stroke after just a few steps. Imagine how much inheritance I'll get if I were his child."

"Does anyone know if there's a way to configure Facebook so that videos on feeds won't automatically start playing when the page loads up?"

"Hmm... Looks like I might be doing background vocals for a singer next week. That's not a bad start as an entry point into the Aussie music industry. Zero expectations though."

"Thank goodness the World Cup ends in less than a day. Sports broadcasts will then have no chance of coming up during the main section of bulletins to steal air time from news that actually matter."

"Lychee pound cake = this Sunday's afternoon baking exercise with Ision and it starts in 3, 2, 1..."

"It's past 10pm already. Why am I still not sleepy?!?!"

"The MTV shoot is no more... The official reason is that there are just no willing models in Melbourne for sexy male/male videos. I think the real reason is poor co-ordination and a lack of budget and experience. Anyway the singer is such a diva-princess that I am now glad I don't have to work with him."

"Sprained my back at gym and now it hurts like crazy. Looking in the mirror, my entire body is curved towards the right to avoid the pain of being vertical. Has my spine gone into misalignment??? Oh and it doesn't help we are moving at work today from one cubicle to another along with stacks of project documents."

"The weekend is FINALLY here! Time to focus on healing my back a.k.a. veg at home all day."

"Tonight is a great night for composing. But the inspiration department is not in the right gear. Oh well, more downloaded videos it is... while waiting for boo to come home from work so that the weekend can really begin."

"Extreme laziness permeates the apartment on a Sunday winter afternoon—exactly how it is meant to be."

"I'm after what is called a “shredder tank”. I have lived in Australia for more than 6 years and I haven't come across a single store here stocking this kind of cut. WHY? Anyone knows where I can get one? PS: I have tried cutting a normal singlet myself but it didn't work the way I wanted."

"Better bundle up. It will drop to 1ºC tonight."

"Papua New Guinea work permit granted! Now I am that much closer to my new job assignment!"

"OMG. I am hooked on Jason Mraz’s “Everywhere”. Best song on his new album “YES” I reckon."

"It's horror movie night alone at home again and on the menu tonight is “Oculus”. Hope it's up to my standard!"

"With increasing number of air traffic disasters involving established airlines, how safe could my upcoming “chartered flights” from Cairns to Papua New Guinea be?"

"My allergies have been acting up for the past few weeks and it is getting worse. Oh, the things I will sacrifice to rid myself of this life-long nuisance"

"Got intrigued by the trailer and so I am watching “Divergent” tonight to see what's it all about."

"Booboo cooking me dinner despite being sick. Such love!"

"There is going to be more than sparks at work tomorrow.... when two strong personalities will clash in a fiery debate. Luckily the caustic British woman and the stubborn Iranian man are separated in two continents and the meeting is via a teleconference. I hate conflicts but I think I am going to be inevitably caught in the middle of this one... not looking forward to it."

"Woohoo!! Officially reached the 100,000 hit-mark on my blog!!!"

"Snowed in Melbourne today, even in the city! And boo experienced hail on his way to work earlier!"

"In the midst of talks of becoming a column writer on this site [http://www.queerclick.com (NSFW)] and being a beta-tester of the upcoming launch of it's own premium content. Bring it on!"

"Have you used Google AdSense on your Blogger accounts or monetized your Youtube channels and videos before? How did it turn out? Do you think the integrity/aesthetics of your sites and content is compromised in any way as a result? Most importantly, have you earned actual money from the venture?"

"Booboo making yummy buckwheat pancakes with blueberry jam this morning for our breakkie. Warmth on a cold cold morning on all levels."

"Ooh!! Going to pre-order “Dragon Age: Inquisition Deluxe Edition” today to get the bonus items. Didn't know it's going to be released on Xbox 360 as well. Phew! And there I was still fretting over the need to buy the non backwards-compatible Xbox One in order to play it. Contrary to once thought, it's not a next-gen console game..."

"Whoa. It's been a while since I bought clothes and it sure feels strange doing it again. It's like meeting a long-lost kin that I used to know so well."

"The thing I look forward to most on Sundays—movie night all cuddled up with boo (the actual movie is the icing on the cake). The flavour this evening is comic-book action: “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”."

"So drained from work today. Can't wait to leave this project and get to PNG for a fresh start!"

"I can't stay up anymore... Feeling sick with muscle aches. It's off to bed for me to rest up.... And it is only 8pm"

"Friday, you shall give me strength to tide me through the day with the rudest and most condescending client I have ever encountered in my life."

"“Police to seek Interpol's help to trace nude foreigners at Penang beach in Malaysia”... Have you heard of a more ridiculous news headline???"

"“Rosemary’s Baby” looks interesting. Downloading in progress..."

"F*** YEAH! Yet another victory against low-life prudes! Incidentally my photos were reported 4 hours ago ie. 4am Australian Eastern Standard Time, or 1am Singapore time, or 11am/2pm USA (West/East coast) time. Now who from my friends list could it be that reported the pictures?"

"Gotta use up my movie vouchers that are expiring soon. This is exactly the genre Ision likes and is what we are watching today [“The White Haired Witch of Lunar Kingdom” (“白发魔女传之明月天国”)], in fact now."

"Woohoo! Picked up by QC Asians once again! Looking forward to working more closely with the site."

"Papua New Guinea visa granted! I am finally good to go! Tentative departure date fixed. Will announce it properly when the flight is booked. SUPER EXCITED!"

"Today is the 27th death anniversary of my father. I can't believe it has been that long (I was only 8 back then). How I wish I could get to know him a little more."

"Looks like 6/6 has been deemed too cruel for my first rotation in PNG, which means that it will now be 2/2 first then the proper 4/4. Having 2 weeks paid leave after just 2 weeks of work will be such an awesome experience! I think I know what I'm going to do for those 2 weeks."

"Movie night at home. Now who am I in the mood for? Chris Pine (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit), Russell Crowe (Noah), Will Smith (After Earth), Jake Gyllenhaal (Enemy), Robert de Niro (The Family), Ashton Kutcher (Jobs) or John Travolta (Killing Season)?"

"I can never get too much of nature on my skin, raw and unadulterated. Naturists rule"

"Before the weather turns, I better go for my topless jog around the park now. There is just no other way to do cardio in the open!"

"OK, my fish and chips lunch is going to negate the effects of my earlier jog (and then some). But that is why I exercise... to be able to eat whatever I want whenever I want."

"There is a drawback to being photographed too many times. For the first time I got rejected by a photographer because my face is not fresh enough. Hmmmphhh~~!"

"Maybe it is time to finally take karma seriously... Worked in my old job with a lazy-arsed colleague which meant a greater workload (and stress) for me back then. Earlier today I had a chance to provide feedback to my boss regarding his performance. Apparently he is (still) out of a job and is looking to join my office. Guess what I told my boss? Hor hor hor! (Stevani, you know this person!)"

"Wow. Praised by my boss (2nd time in a week) and my team lead for 2 different things I did today and they came minutes apart. What is happening???? *feeling scared*"

"Hooked on this song (“Gladiator” by Dami Im) at the moment. So well-written!"

"From a fan: “...I am a fan of your photogenic poise and skill in front of the camera. Your body training must be extensive to maintain such definition, I would love to explore every cm in detail as I enjoy the perfection of the sculptured body it is a thing of beauty. Very few of us look so good naked...”. Little does he know I put on weight too and need to condition my body 1-2 weeks in advance before a shoot. Well it's still a great compliment!"

"Another very well-written song I cannot get enough of recently (“Try” by Colbie Caillat)."

"All flights for my first Papua New Guinea rotation have been confirmed and I am finally almost-100% ready to fly (still need to tie up loose ends at work and at home and also to pack). 3rd September is the big day!"

"Just lodged my income tax for FY 2013/2014. That much poorer within such a short time."

"Got poked on Facebook today. The last time that happened was eons ago. Do people still do that???"

"I am falling in love with Hokkien songs more and more. They are like the oriental version of American country music but much more lyrical and usually more meaningful."

"My Spreadsheet™ is built around “CTRL+F”. A chill goes down my spine whenever I start to imagine life without this function."

"Critics from Rotten Tomatoes are always so strict. Let us be the judge tonight (for the movie “Maleficent”)."

"Surprise hot pot dinner from my bestest boo! So happy! Nomming away now..."

"Wow. Asian Brit as the host of an SBS documentary. Now I've seen everything!"

"I thought I had started to count down at work ie. time to wind down. But why am I still so overworked today? So drained and so ready for bed at 8.30pm."

"Official week-long countdown has started. T minus 7."

"The actual total number let go by my company including “non-overheads” is 4,000. Tsk tsk tsk... so dishonest in reporting. Suffice to say it's not a good time to be working for my company right now. Well at least my job is secure for the next year or so. Still counting down... T minus 6."

"This guy managed to save loads of money but had to live a pretty extreme life by normal standards. I lead a much more reasonable lifestyle (albeit frugally) and manage to save more money than him. Either he is doing something wrong or I am doing something really right. *not impressed*"

"Leaving for my last day at work. It will be a day spent packing up and saying goodbyes. Hope they will let me go on time so my busy weekend of more packing and goodbyes can begin. T minus 5."

"Spring is almost in the air!"

"Packing should start some time today... or not, depending on the power of procrastination. In the meantime, enjoy another “nude” pic from moi. T minus 4."

"Off to buy the necessities for my upcoming trip—raincoat amongst other things (it's pouring every day in PNG right now)."

"Shit! How will this PNG volcanic eruption affect my flight next Wednesday?!?! And why didn't I see it on the news this morning????"

"The last time I had Korean BBQ was in Tokyo in the beginning of the year. I am going to really enjoy tonight's Korean BBQ farewell dinner with my Malaysian friends. Too bad boo's working..."

"Such a perfect almost-spring day in Melbourne. Just done with cardio and now off to lunch with boo. Oh, and I must remember to get some PNG kina today (it is not easy to find!)"

"Ready for spring! But leaving home again soon. Here is my last blog post before I fly off. T minus 3."

"Boo called in to work on his off day... one less night spent with him before I fly."

"It always feels strange to not be on holidays yet not working on a weekday. Off to gym soon (again a weird time for me to gym). Hope the down-for-more-than-a-month steam room and showers are up and running today! T minus 2."

"Got caught jaywalking just now by the police and I only presented my NSW photo ID card and tried my best in not giving them my Melbourne address (my heart was pounding like mad as I had to resort to “creative reasoning”). They gave up after a while after their database did not give them my current address based on the photo ID details and I only got a warning in the end. Luckily I stuck with my line of reasoning and did not waver. And I am so glad I am not living in Singapore anymore—I would have been fined already!"

"Is it weird for me to not feel upset about my pictures being used illegally for gay massage ads in Thailand?"

"Something's cooking in the kitchen!"

"It's time for movie night (“Godzilla”) with boo—the best thing of the week. The movie to me is secondary, it's the time spent cuddled next to boo that counts."

"There's no flight update that is going to affect my flight tomorrow due to the PNG volcanic eruption. Looks like everything is go. T minus 1."

"If only boo didn't need to work tonight..."

"Off to bed now. It's a little strange knowing that you will be sleeping in a totally foreign place tomorrow night"

"OK it's time to go. Flight is in 2.5 hours. Hope I don't get eaten alive by cannibals or mosquitoes. T minus 0."

"Off to Moro!"

"In case you think that I have been eaten by cannibals in Papua New Guinea and gone all quiet on Facebook, here is an update for you guys from my new home away from home."

"Finally back on Facebook proper, and finally caught up with all Facebook posts in my feed (only captures 14-days' worth and so in my next 4-week rotation, I will miss half of them). PNG is a really good way to wean off Facebook."

"Why oh why must the plane be late to take off this afternoon? I could have given my boo a great surprise (he wasn't expecting me to return today). Now he knows and I have to stay up and wait for him to come home from work (I got up at 4.30am today). I think I am past the point of sleepiness and I think I'm going to make it!"

"Switched over to Optus. This new pay-per-usage prepaid plan that never practically expires is GREAT for light users like me. Highly recommended."

"It can get a little frustrating playing a remake of an old game when you are more used to the better graphics of the newer games (however I have to try the remake after hearing so many good things about it, not to mention the innocuous-looking game is actually rated 18+). At least this will make me appreciate “DragonAge: Inquisition” more."

"Blueberry/raspberry ricotta cheese pancakes in the making for a very late breakkie. Anticipation building..."

"Ricotta cheese pancakes with yoghurt-berry compote a huge success! And super yummy! Thank you boo!"

"OK, let's get gym over with and then it is Xbox 360 for the rest of the day. Ah... it sure feels good to reap the benefits of the FIFO assignment after putting in the hard labour!"

"What an early rise on a Sunday... but at least this very late mid-autumn festival potluck at Melvin's means I can introduce Ision to one more friend. And I also need to take a little breather from Xbox."

"Break from Xbox is officially over. Onwards and upwards."

"It feels so decadent to stay up late, have supper and play Xbox on a Sunday night! Better cherish this while it lasts. And having boo next to me is the massive icing on the cake!"

"Urgh... was planning to finish “Fable Anniversary” before I go back to PNG but seeing that Ision wants to have equal time on it as me, I think I might have to come back to the game when my next rotation ends."

"Simple dinner whipped up by boo on the fly. Satisfying and yummy nonetheless."

"What perfect timing! Ision having 4 days off-work while I am on my break from PNG."

"Another decadent night of staying up and suppering with boo on a weekday. This is the life! (Have to watch my weight though)"

"How do you solve the problem of gym getting in the way of Xbox?"

"Ooh. The spring weather is just right now to be naked at home. Ah it sure feels nice."

"Believe it or not, I haven't really done much gym selfies so this is a trial run so be kind! (and pardon the low resolution)."

"Plitter platter on my window. What a soothing sound to lull me to sleep tonight."

"I feel like clubbing one of these nights before my break ends. Too bad I am always left without dancing buddies that really dance instead of posing around the floor."

"Back issues of the magazine I was on the cover of last year are now on sale. I wonder if they are still given out to gay tourists free of charge in Thailand. I already hold a copy and it sure feels nice to see yourself on a magazine!"

"Ooh. Booked us in for Peninsula Hot Springs this coming Monday. Finally something we can do together outdoors that Ision can truly enjoy!"

"Is it strange that I pick protein powder based on its flavour instead of nutritional value?"

"$8.95 displayed as the sale price but was greeted by $10 as the price “in the system”. By default, sales people try to get away with charging the higher amount by saying the display price is wrong. But this is nothing “the displayed price is xxx so you'd have to charge me that” can't fix!"

"A 3-kg tub of protein powder is about the maximum I'll ever purchase (and did). But then again what's that compared to sacks of 20-kg supplements I have seen in Sydney."

"In order to enjoy the finished product, you'll need to put in the effort and that is what I am doing now—post-recording editing in progress."

 "Even with GPS, I think it's prudent to research the way to Peninsular Hot Springs in Mornington. My sense of direction is appalling!"

"Thought of the day: If you want to be famous and loved by many, you better be talented to the max and/or good-looking to the max. When you are not quite there at the max, your life is just going to get stuck somewhere between boring and mundane." 

 "Leaving for Mornington's Peninsular Hot Spring now. It's the first time we've rented a car in Melbourne for a day trip (since we've moved to it almost 3 years ago—it's a long time coming indeed). Looking forward to a relaxing time with boo!"

 "The perfect end to a perfect day with boo. Homemade chicken rice!"

"It's an early night tonight for an early flight tomorrow. Work has already started entering my mind—I didn't sleep well last night. I hope tonight will be different."

"OK, time to go. Melbourne I will see you in 28 days' time. I will miss you boo..."

Musical journey (51)

Here is a quick update of how I am coping work-wise in Papua New Guinea. I would like to think I am doing well especially when that is what my boss told me. He said if I don't hear a lot from him it means that I don't need his supervision and that in his books is the measure of good performance. He did ask others I work with for feedback though and I guess these people feel the same too. One thing to note is that there are many expatriate employees here who are not working as hard as they should be. They would find whatever means to get out of a job (eg. postponing it so that it becomes the problem of the back-to-back, jumping to conclusions quickly so as not to spend the time investigating, cooking up some excuse why the job need not be done, or simply ignoring messages from people asking for their help).

Case in point is the process engineering superintendent and I have such ill luck to have to work closely with him (he gets to the office in the morning every day close to one hour later than all of us). I however cannot slack off like that as I want to have some kind of longevity in this secondment seeing that 60% of my colleagues back in the Melbourne process engineering office have been retrenched (effective end of November) which will make competition in the already-weak job market super fierce. I dodged a bullet on that one as it could have been me. That being said, the pace of working life here is far more relaxed compared to the hectic rat race back in Australia. Also I have been given verbal assurance that my contract here will be extended till at least the end of next year due to the massive amount of work yet to be done.

OK, update over and now on to this month's musical sharing. Back in February I shared a song I wrote for an online forum I was very active in when I was living in America. I also wrote another up-tempo one for that community during the peak of my involvement. It was very well-received back then because I wrote in the lyrics a few of the main members of the group and what I thought of them. If you look closely at the lyrics, you can also see something that further associates it with that website. From the words of the song, I can relive the warmth I got from those characters, none of them whom I have actually met in real life (bar one—the leader of the group). That site has recently become inaccessible and I wonder how all of them are doing right now...

In case you find the backing track familiar that is because it is from this song. Originality is often frowned upon in the pop arena and that is why the same few chords are used over and over again. This composition of mine is no different although it is in the rock genre which is something I seldom dabble in (it hurting my vocal cords being the lesser of evils). Lastly I used the geekiest video I could find to suit the theme of this song and voila I have myself yet another music video.


["Jimmy's Forum" Theme Song]

It came out of nowhere
From "Episode Heaven"
How it has grown
No one could have envisioned
If you like to watch TV
Sit down and have a listen
This is a song written for "Jimmy's Forum"

It's a place where we share all things from A to Z
It's a place to laugh and cry and act all silly
It's a place beyond all of your wildest dreams
It's a place where you can be you and I can be me

Just another website that the geeks all like
It's like a drug, we all need it to survive
Man! It's gonna be such an amazing ride
Maybe it's a feeling that just cannot be described
You and I, a family connecting right
Say! It's the world's most wonderful site

Cyber with "The Simpsons"
On the dot every time
Count on Helix to link you to any porn site
Moderator PB Gal's the first girl in sight
We all love to hate and hate to love Solo, that's right

Courage is our mother hen, his love warms the cold
Pabelo dexing on, spinning out of control
Our Forum police, Kimbal is on the patrol
If I have left out anyone, that's 'cos I'm getting old

Musical journey (50)

Well it took two days for me to adjust from PNG to Melbourne but I suspect it will take a longer time to get back up to speed the other way round (especially after such a relaxing day trip yesterday with my boo to the Peninsular Hot Springs in Mornington). The real test will come when I have to resume rotation work after a 4-week break. Some say the first few days back at work after such a long rest would be extremely unproductive while others purport that depression could possibly set in. There is only one way to find out and I will report my findings when the time comes.

Before I leave for PNG tomorrow, let me share with my rendition of a very well-written song and one that I really like. As human beings, we are susceptible to making the same mistakes in love over and over again as if it's written in our genes to err without learning from our mistakes. Perhaps only through Darwinism can the human race escape this ill fate and finally rid itself of the pain and suffering from lost love. There is this I-am-alone-yet-not-melancholic vibe to the video that goes so well with the lyrics of the song as well as its arrangement. With such a soothing and inwardly-reflective melody, this song is a breath of fresh air compared to the many others filled with ever-rising registers and unnecessary vocal pyrotechnics.

A very talented Singaporean song-writer Tanya Chua (蔡健雅) wrote and sang this song titled "达尔文" or "Darwin" and now it is my turn to cover it.

Comforts from the remote mountains

Just so you know I have not been eaten by cannibals in Papua New Guinea, here is an update from me with pictures of my new home away from home.

 

The chartered flight operated by Air Niugini. I was the last one to board even after trying my best to make the transit in the shortest possible time–it will always be like that due to the Qantas schedule for flights out of Melbourne. The sky was clear when I left Cairns but I was greeted by a gloomy rainy scene when the plane landed in Moro, where it kept raining for days.
 

 

 We are apparently coming to the end of the monsoon season so we should be seeing more clear days but most of the time it is still this misty within the camp (it can get quite cold at night sometimes). These are pictures of the newer accomodation blocks where I stay. It is really quiet at this end of the camp (which is great). There is just this occasional annoying tapping sound coming from upstairs but it's still bearable. When I move into my permanent room in the next rotation, I will be situated upstairs–a hassle in itself but hopefully the tapping will be gone. Also females live in separate blocks and all female toilets have number-combination locks on them. Sexual relations between males and females are not allowed in the camp (even for couples) so I don't know how well they take to gay sex (a not-so-cute local told me he was going to visit me in my room but he didn't show up in the end). HIV is apparently a serious problem here and I had to prove I was HIV-free before I was given my visa. To avoid complication, I will try not to be out whilst on this assignment ("try" being the operative word).
 

 

 This is the temporary room I have been staying in (as I am currently overlapping with my back-to-back). In the next rotation I will be sharing the same room with him which explains the two locked sections of the wardrobes. We get Australian as well as cable TV in the room with the essential channels (CNN, BBC, Discovery, National Geographic, Cinemax, Star World and HBO) and an ensuite toilet. Laundry services are provided (we send stuff to be washed in the morning and we get it by the time we come back from work). Except for the air-conditioning unit being pretty noisy, I am very satisfied with the living conditions.
 

 

 Pidgin is the language all locals know (English still being one of the official languages–apparently there are over 850 different languages in PNG). Pidgin is basically broken English/German and is a legacy from colonial times. I find it fun reading Pidgin and noticing how similar it is to English. Expats here try to learn Pidgin so as to strike a bond with the locals in an attempt to level the inequality (not sure how successful that endeavour is). Villagers earn royalties for the land the company uses and they get really aggressive (think guns) when they don't get their share (and if you run over their valuable pigs on the road).
 

 

 I was quite impressed with the gym as I was expecting a small one like those found in hotels. There is not a lot of people using it so it never gets too crowded even during peak hours. On and off I do see some hot guys (both locals and expats) working out there but there is nothing I can do about it (see only and no touch). I do weights and cardio 4 and 3 times a week respectively (ie. I use the gym every day). Because of the very restricted meal times, I always have to plan my gym sessions around it. I also grab every free time slot I can find to squeeze in a quick workout. This is also why my after-work weight sessions (work ends at 6pm) have to be halved in length as I don't really want to gym after dinner (dinner ends at 7.30pm). As a result I do only two body parts per session instead of four.
 

 

This is the stadium (called Iagidome as the camp is called the Iagifu Ridge Camp) where people play indoor games like tennis, badminton, basketball, volleyball, cricket and soccer. It is also used for conducting group circuit training sessions and tai bo. In addition the Iagidome is the main muster point for the camp. Seeing that there is a disco ball, I reckon the stadium is used for other social events as well.
 

 

 For the first time in my working life I have my own office! Right now I share it with my back-to-back but come next rotation I will have it all to myself. One very big issue here is stationery or the lack thereof and you need to wait very long for stationery orders to come in (I am still living without a pencil, highlighters and binding clips which are so abundant in the Melbourne office). One solution is to bring in your own stuff, which is what I will be doing.
 

 

I will not bore you with the other major issue here (ie. work-related) but suffice to say they recently found a use for the gas they were extracting from the wells and had to upgrade the facilities to ensure that the plants continue to run for at least another 20 to 30 years (they were left to rot along with the operating systems and philosophies as they were about to close them down). Because of this we are constantly faced with systems that are not working with no one knowing exactly why that is so or how to fix it. An indication is the huge flare that is constantly burning (pictured). In other normally-running plants, this would be totally unacceptable. But then again people and rules are very lax here and it is accepted culture that things do not work (I am slowly getting immune to WTF moments). As long as I continue to be paid and get my days off, I couldn't care less.
 

 

In my opinion the only area that really works is the catering department. Food is so good (a little red-meat especially beef-heavy) and plentiful (buffet-style) and the mess (where meals are served) is clean and spacious. Food variety is great as well (the menu repeats weekly but I do see new side dishes that don't follow that cyclical menu). Every Sunday there is a BBQ and I have been to one on site so far (I am not sure how the BBQ is run in the camp). There are 2 strange rules that are strictly enforced in the mess though–washing of hands before entering (for disease-control but many people end up going through the motion) and no usage of mobile phones in the mess (to encourage more face-to-face communication ie. a bullshit rule).
  

 

I was surprised to find ice-cream and popcorn machines in the mess. The desserts-to-mains ratio served in this camp is very skewed towards desserts but surprisingly I don't see a lot of obese locals here (only expats). People take little bags of popcorn into their rooms after dinner as they watch movies on TV.
 

 

This is a sample of what we get in the camp. The cocktail prawns (top right) are impressive and I heard they serve raw oysters in another camp. If you are willing to wait, you can order steak or fish cooked the way you want. The barramundi (bottom right) is excellent and is definitely worth the 5- to 10-minute wait. The bottom left picture shows the typical breakfast I have. My only gripe is that food tends to be on the oily and salty side (the locals salt their food like nobody's business). I tend to only have the fresh fruit cocktail as dessert and not the other sweet treats that are available (eg. cakes, pudding, cookies, éclairs and tarts). Perhaps good food is used by the company as a way to keep the morale up as it knows everything else is in shambles.
 

 

 As mentioned above, the Iagidome is also used occasionally for various functions. This is a fund-raising event where locals bring their crafts to sell to the rich expats. At 100 kina per bag (AUD$40-50), it is really expensive. The choice is limited so I did not buy anything.
 

You don't really need to spend any money living in the camp if you don't buy snacks, soft drinks and cigarettes from the gift shop (they call it canteen). All I have spent so far in my first rotation is a local micro SIM card (which I had to cut into a nano SIM for my Android phone) and data credit. As reception is so poor in the remote mountains (with network connectivity cutting out very often), you don't really get to use much data. I was greedy and topped up too much (the credit apparently doesn't expire despite having an expiry date). The canteen as pictured is where you can also buy soft drinks and hygiene products and the recreation room is just in front of the canteen.

As you can see, I am living pretty well in PNG (every non-work aspect here is above my expectations which were purposely kept low) so there is really nothing to worry about (in case you are). One huge pain about living in a camp is you can never get to switch from "work mode" to "off-work mode" as your colleagues are there all the time and by the time work and dinner ends you have very little alone time as you will be almost ready for bed. As an anti-social person who hates small talk, I find the constant need to engage in endless chit-chat (ie. the inability to switch to "off-work mode") really stressful. I think one way to relieve that pain is to call boo more often (it will be much easier when I have the office all to myself) as I can then act all silly and talk in our own special language. Hopefully these little respites from "work mode" can get me through entire rotations.

And in 3 days, I will have a 2-week paid vacation (ie. the biggest plus of fly-in/fly-out assignments) when I can hug and kiss my boo anytime I want! I really really miss him so I can't wait for that to happen!

Leaving home again

Bags almost packed and almost ready to go, in two days that is. This is going to be such an adventure.

In a way I am fortunate that my work takes me places and provides new experiences but still it is always difficult to leave home where your loved ones are. Luckily things are not that bad this time round due to the fly-in/fly-out (FIFO) nature of this assignment though I have heard of depression cases especially around the time one is about to depart for the next rotation. As a fairly independent and strong-willed person, I don't think FIFO will get to me like that but I guess you can never be sure of something you haven't been through.

As I was setting up my roster in my spreadsheet, I started thinking about what I should do during my 4-week R & Rs. This is really a rare opportunity as not many full-time workers can get to enjoy such regular long  breaks and I feel that I should not waste them. But going on holidays means spending more time away from boo after being away for so long not to mention spending more money. I think we must somehow achieve a compromise by vacationing together for short nearby trips and not making the solo trips too long.

The roster for FIFO rotations is never cast in stone due to uncertain project requirements and on top of that I have to co-ordinate all plans with my back-to-back (the person I take over when he goes on his break who will do the same for me) so a 4-week on/4-week off rotation can become 5/3, 6/4, 3/2, or any other permutation one can think of. This makes the booking of air tickets and lining up holiday plans and accommodation very challenging (and expensive as nothing can really be booked in advance).

That being said, I know I will somehow successfully manage my 6 (at least) breaks. From the list of things I can do during those 4 weeks, you can see that there is no shortage of ideas. I really hope I don't just let procrastination win out and waste my precious breaks. To date my R & R plans include:


1. Spending some time back in Singapore (Chinese New Year with family and Pink Dot with my gay friends).

2. Short trips to nearby Asian destinations (Bangkok during Songkran for an long-overdue fashion pilgrimage where I stock up on cheap apparel and Bali where I have always wanted to visit, hopefully with someone familiar with that place).

3. A trip to Japan with boo (FINALLY!) and I am thinking of spending more time in Hokkaido instead of Tokyo this time.

4. Vegetating at home with boo completing new (the much-anticipated Dragon Age: Inquisition) and yet-to-be-finished Xbox 360 games.

5. Hosting my mum in Melbourne and taking her to every single attraction here, including the more interesting suburbs (I have not really spent full non-working weeks with her in Australia before and I finally have the chance to now).

6. Getting re-acquainted with Manhattan (I used to go there almost every weekend when I was working in New Jersey 10 years ago). I am thinking of spending 3 to 4 weeks just living there and re-exploring the island in much more detail (I would need to find a local willing to put me up though).

7. Keeping vacation spots to within Australia (going back to Ashby with boo to visit the in-laws, accompanying him to Sydney when he is there to attend a friend's wedding and 2-day trips with him to the hot springs in Mornington Peninsula or bed & breakfast in Yarra Valley).

8. I am also thinking of visiting Europe although it is quite unlikely at this point as I don't really want to explore Europe alone.


It is spring tomorrow and the weather in Melbourne today is perfect but I will not get to enjoy that much as it is constantly-pouring in Papua New Guinea (monsoon season perhaps—PNG weather seems to be very uncertain). And to make things worse, the volcanic eruption from Mount Tavurvur yesterday has a potential of affecting my flights next week (I really hope I will be promptly-informed if that's the case).

Seeing that I will be working and living in the remote highlands, I don't foresee any chance of a photo shoot (amongst other things typical in the developed world) but there is a gym in the camp and I will keep my routine up in order to maintain my body in a shoot-ready condition. I actually hope to use this time to bulk up a little more as there is really not much to do other than work, eat, gym and sleep. I might also have more time to compose, that is if I don't exhaust all my energy after 12-hour work days (7 days a week) and gym.

As I said, it is going to be an adventure and I am so looking forward to it. I will provide a pictorial update when I am settled in but till then happy spring!

Musical journey (49)

I am pleased to announce that I am a proud holder of the Papua New Guinea work visa! Props to myself for enduring the 4-month long application process and I am now a little more than a fortnight away from the day I fly. Seeing that I must sync my work cycle with my counterpart, they could either put me on a 6-week on/6-week off or a 2-week on/2-week off first rotation (followed by the normal 4-on/4-off for the rest of my stint). Fortunately they agree with me that doing 12-hour days for 42 days straight might be a little much for a first rotation especially when I have not been on that site or lived in that remote camp before.

So for my first rotation, I will only be working 2 weeks and then I will have a 2-week paid vacation (my colleagues are so envious of me right now)! Since it is only going to be a relatively-short break, I think I will just be spending time with my boo at home (finishing an Xbox 360 game that I always wanted to play in the process) and maybe squeeze in a weekend getaway to the hot springs in Mornington (I know Ision has been dying to go). I am so looking forward to leaving the wretched project that I am doing right now at work and embarking on this whole new adventure!

OK, life update over and now on to this month's musical offering, which is a composition documenting how one tortures himself in his pursuit of love. There is a variety of ways a person can knowingly (or otherwise) fall into this pattern of self-harm and these are just ten examples that quickly come to mind:


1) Having a crush on someone who has no feelings for you and expecting the love to be requited someday.

2) Forgiving someone repeatedly for cheating on you because you feel that you can't find someone better.

3) Hiding the pain of loneliness by telling others that you are perfectly fine being alone.

4) Finding excuses for not being able to settle down yet loathing your superficial promiscuous lifestyle.

5) Being in a loveless marriage for the sake of kids.

6) Diving into a relationship too fast not knowing what you want exactly.

7) Convincing yourself as a heterosexual that your gay partner will successfully change (or already has).

8) Failing to realise that you are to blame for always being dumped (or being chronically-single).

9) Claiming that you are in a monogamous relationship but constantly sleeping around with other people.

10) Hating someone who broke your heart and not being able to move on or trust another person again.


Some might disagree with item 9 being a form of self-torture but if you believe in karma, what you do to hurt others will come back eventually to damage you in some way. Although there are many forms this unhealthy behaviour can take, the common thing is that you made the conscious choice to engage in such acts. In my opinion only when you admit that to yourself can the healing process begin, much like in AA groups where every one introduces themselves with "Hi, I am XXX and I am an alcoholic".

And with this concept of self-harm in the search of love, I wrote this song. The story in the piece is not a personal one but I can relate to it all too well—I used to purposely make myself feel worse when I was alone or heartbroken by being around happy couples. I believed back then that even if I had nothing, I still had the ability to feel pain. This is a classic manifestation of self-torture and we should snap out of it as soon as possible—that is only if we are made aware of it and I hope this month's musical journey can play a little part in making the self-awareness process easier.



[自虐]

词 / 曲 : 锦泉
 
这世上有一些人不应该去爱
偏偏厄运我挡不来
染上了一身的无奈

不知道爱与恨到底哪个实在
孤注一掷后悔不来
背负一身感情的债

爱情谜底我解不开
答案原来迷失一片恨海
我与时间忙着比赛
看最后谁放弃得比较快

自虐的心态控制不来
流出眼泪才算痛快
我竟然能够置身事外
若命运赐我最坏的安排
没有人能让我责怪
也只好一个人继续把我的肉体出卖

自虐的心态控制不来
我与自己互相伤害
噩梦循环看不见未来
只因没有人能把你取代
有你给的冷漠依赖
你锋利得像一把刀
我却喜欢把你拥入怀



[Self-Torture]

There are certain kinds of people in this world we should not love
But I was unable to avoid bad luck
And got myself knee-deep in helplessness

I don't really know whether love or hate is more real
But I cannot regret now that I placed my bet with everything I have
Now that I am burdened with the debt of heartbreak

I cannot solve the mystery of love
Because the answers are lost in a sea of hate
I am busy competing with time
Because I want to find out who will give up faster

I cannot control the desire to torture myself
I can only feel better when tears actually fall
If my destiny has arranged for the worst
I have no one else to blame
And all I can do is to continue betraying my flesh

I cannot control the desire to torture myself
Me and myself are constantly hurting each other
Nightmares in a vicious cycle blocking the future from my view
Simply because there is no one who can replace you
And there is your cold shoulder to lean on
You are like a blade but still I enjoy holding you tightly in an embrace