Justin and Tina

Australia Day

2012-01-27T11:55:00.001+11:00

Woke up at 6 and left for my place at 7, then on to Canberra at 8 am. We made good progress -- the roads were pretty quiet. Managed to get down there by 11.30 am with the obligatory stop at the Scottish hamburger chain in Sutton Forest.

At Joan's place we made prawn and mango salad with chili and lime dressing for lunch, then later went and did the supermarket shopping for the week with Roslyn. Back at home we watched some cricket and some tennis and Cam made sausage casserole for dinner, enjoyed by the whole family. In the evening we ended up watching Star Trek The Next Generation, which I remember from when I was a teenager. All these new digital channels have to broadcast something!

Wednesday

2012-01-27T11:52:00.001+11:00

Back at work in the office on Tuesday and Wednesday. It's quite noisy there now with the open plan arrangement.

After work on Wednesday headed to Cam's place. We decided at the last minute to head to Canberra for Australia Day to see Cam's mother.

Death certificate

2012-01-23T15:26:00.001+11:00

Just spoke to Gavin. Adele's death certificate arrived today, and this enables a lot of progress within the estate. There were a bunch of companies that were waiting for the death cert to initiate processing, especially those dealing with money, like the banks and the superannuation funds. He'll send the certificate to his solicitor.

Brenda is fine too, watching the tennis and taking care of the housework up there.

Eyes

2012-01-23T14:44:00.001+11:00

Had my eyes tested this morning, this time it was the field test, trying to see if there is any deterioration in the field of vision. It takes about five minutes per eye and it was quite taxing to concentrate for that length of time during the test. Nevertheless I completed the test and apparently with a minimum of fuss (as the optometrist said that she has old folks who come in and can't do it, or lose concentration, or complain about it). My eyes are fine.

Bondi

2012-01-23T14:41:00.001+11:00

Having bought swimming goggles the day before, on Sunday I ventured to the beach again and tried to swim. This time the waves were more intense so it was a bit up and down, and North Bondi SLSC were having some of their regular Sunday exercises so I tried to stay out of the way. Anyway I had a long swim and felt good afterwards, though it is hard to know how much energy the swim is consuming.

Made grilled fish and salad for Cam for dinner on Sunday and we watched Stepford Wives. It's quite a feminist statement of a movie. I hadn't thought it would venture into that territory but there was lots of subtle commentary on the role of men and the role of women in modern society and what the 'natural' order should be.

LPQ

2012-01-23T14:38:00.004+11:00

Went to Le Pain Quotidien on Saturday to meet George and Chris. Chris is helping out Mardi Gras with getting their internal training function running, so he's been making e-learning modules. LPQ does boiled eggs with bread, as I discovered a few weeks previously with Cam and Conrad, so I had that again. Oh I went to the gym for the first time in ages and walked about 4 km for 250 kcal. Wasn't really in the mood to do much more.

In the afternoon I saw Georgy for my first massage of 2012. I and he thought I would be in terrible shape but the massage was much less painful than I had anticipated. Georgy did good work as always.

After the massage I had a light meal and then headed to the airport to see Warren. He was in transit from Auckland to Brisbane via Sydney, so I headed to the Qantas Club and met him there. The place was very quiet compared to a week day.

Gordon 2

2012-01-23T14:36:00.004+11:00

Another day in Gordon and lunch with Zita and Helen. Cam and I went to the beach after work and had a quick swim. Later, Helen and Dave came round for dinner and Cam made mango and prawn salad and apple tart with caramel sauce.

Gordon

2012-01-23T14:35:00.004+11:00

Spent the day in Gordon helping out with a training course. Never been there before so it was interesting to see. Picked up some great tips about how to configure Outlook for enhanced productivity.

Bondi

2012-01-23T14:35:00.001+11:00

Went to the beach last Wednesday after work and splashed around for a long time in the water. Wasn't really in the mood to go to the gym so the beach was it.

Open

2012-01-21T18:00:00.000+11:00

Went to the office on Tuesday morning. My desk was a bit of a mess, as we've moved to a new floor, temporarily, and it's open plan. I did some unpacking and then tried to work but you know how it is on the first day back, especially when there's a lot of new stuff around, it's quite distracting. Anyhow I made it through the day and worked out how to do most things in the new environment. Also spoke to Brenda at length to get an update from Townsville, all is okay there so far.

Specs

2012-01-21T17:57:00.003+11:00

My specs are better now. My coworker told me to hang on for a day or so as my eyes adjusted to the new lenses and now they are fine.

Glasses

2012-01-16T17:50:00.003+11:00

Picked up my new glasses this morning. They're okay but I've developed a bit of headache this afternoon and I'm not sure if it's related to the glasses or not. Hopefully I will settle down over coming days. Also rescheduled my orthodontist appointment, made a massage appointment, made a podiatrist appointment, cleared my inboxes, postal mail and voice mail, and made a mini-budget for my NZ trip with Cam next month. No rest for the wicked.

Witness

2012-01-16T17:48:00.001+11:00

Woke up at the crack of dawn yesterday and headed to Brookvale for my workshop. Had a massive storm on the way there, with heavy rain and poor visibility. The workshop went off smoothly and though I felt somewhat under-prepared the participants seemed to enjoy the process and the outputs.

Drove home and bumped into the same traffic jam from the day before, on the Harbour Tunnel approach. Made it home and visited Sheila, to witness her will, and also to have a splash of moscato with Karen and Cam and Sheila. Then a long call to my brother and mother in Townsville, then dinner and two episodes of Silent Witness. A little gory but a good plot ...

Virgin

2012-01-16T17:46:00.000+11:00

14 Jan
Woke up early and then headed to the airport. Met up with all the other travellers there and we all headed off in dribs and drabs. Our flight was uneventful although we were the last to board, so the flight attendant very nicely moved us up a few rows to the 'premium' economy cabin where there is a few inches more leg room.

I spent most of the flight reviewing papers for Fighting Chance -- I was engaged to deliver a strategic planning workshop pro bono the following day. Then I had a nap as Cam watched inflight TV.

At home we dumped our bags and drove up to the Oracle office in North Ryde, to pick up supplies for my workshop. I've moved to a new desk, so we found the new desk and surveyed the gentle chaos. The new desk is much smaller than the old one so we'll have to put some items in storage. On the way home we bumped into a traffic jam on the entrance to the Harbour Tunnel, since the bridge was closed for resurfacing.

Picked up a few items from the supermarket and then headed home to an early-ish night.

Funeral

2012-01-16T17:42:00.004+11:00

13 Jan
Woke up early and checked on my brother then showered and had a light breakfast. Cam and I left around 8 am to head to the funeral home for viewing. We were later joined by Adele's family, who left, and then Gavin and Brenda. Gavin completed his viewing and then went off to find his friends, in town from Toowoomba. Brenda, Cam and I filled the car with diesel and had a morning tea/brunch snack before heading to the crematorium.

We arrived in good time and by 11 am a sizable crowd had gathered. Sadly, Adele's uncle got lost in Townsville and we delayed the start of the service until 11.25 waiting for him to turn up. The service went smoothly and there was a mix of laughter and tears. After the funeral, Cam, Brenda and I headed to the wake to set up the room. We were there for about two hours and had a brief lunch in the bistro next door, then finally headed home. Gavin followed an hour or so later.

In the evening, we were all tired and we had thought of plans to go out for dinner, but ended up doing pizzas at the house. Another early night ...

Rest in peace, Adele.

Arrivals

2012-01-16T17:39:00.000+11:00

12 Jan
Adele's family arrived from South Africa via Perth and Brisbane and Cam arrived from Sydney. Brenda and I ventured to the supermarket and then washed Adele's car. Gavin went off and instructed his solicitor to prepare his own will (no time like the present) and power of attorney and then I went with him later in the afternoon to witness the papers. Big family dinner in the evening and an early night for most ...

Ring ring

2012-01-16T17:37:00.001+11:00

11 Jan
Another big day of ringing around to cover off all the business relationships that Adele had. Covered all of them except the university. It's a tiring and draining task. The bank by the way closed my brother's credit card, so he could not pay for items today. The account was in Adele's name and he was merely a 2nd card holder. He's now applied in his own name.

Brent

2012-01-10T17:24:00.000+11:00

Saw the solicitor this morning with Gavin and Brenda. He was calm and clear and gave us lots of good information. Things will move slowly with the will and with the estate, but I feel we are in good hands. Also had a reading of the service script and made a few changes and updates. Need to finish that and send to the family for final review. The funeral director will visit the house this afternoon so I'll walk her through it then.

Ring

2012-01-09T21:16:00.001+11:00

9 Jan
Another big day of ringing Managed to ring all the folks that were listed except for one, which I'll do tomorrow. It's quite a job. Also confirmed the wake and appointed a solicitor to help with estate arrangements here in QLD. Oh forgot to mention, Adele's body went to the funeral home on Friday morning. Had a call with family members this afternoon so need to update the script with all inputs and then issue a second draft. Will save that for the morning I think.

Script

2012-01-09T21:14:00.000+11:00

8 Jan
Spent most of the day creating and writing the script for the service. Got a good first draft, had Brenda and Gavin and Matt read it, then sent it out to family members. Hot and sticky afternoon ... I earned a tropical headache from it.

Trousers

2012-01-09T21:10:00.002+11:00

7 Jan
Trouser shopping with Gavin + lunch in a small cafe in a shopping centre. I bought a purple striped tie for the funeral.

Gloria

2012-01-09T21:08:00.002+11:00

6 Jan
I've also been hosting regular conference calls with all family members, to keep them updated. So far so good. Brenda and I managed to have coffee at Gloria Jeans and she bought sheets on sale at Adairs. Brenda bought lipstick at Big W.

Rest in Peace 4

2012-01-09T21:06:00.001+11:00

5 Jan
Big day of ringing around notifying people. Oh we met the funeral director too and signed all her paperwork. Had to find a venue for the wake. Brenda arrived in the evening.

Rest in Peace 3

2012-01-09T21:04:00.003+11:00

4 Jan
Tried to clear my work inbox and go through a bunch of logistics with Gavin. Appointed a funeral director and spoke to the coroner a few times. Also was helping with travel plans for the South African family members. Managed to clear the inbox and also prepare some work for a project in China but my mind is not focused on that too much right now.

Rest in Peace 2

2012-01-09T21:03:00.002+11:00

3 Jan
Cleaned Adele's bathroom and tidied up a bit. Matt, Adele's brother arrived later, from Tokyo and Cairns.

Rest In Peace

2012-01-09T21:00:00.001+11:00

My sister-in-law, Adele, took her own life in Townsville on Monday, 2 January 2012. I was scooting in the city when my phone rang. It was my mother calling from South Africa (at 3 am there) relaying the news. I sat down on the pavement with Cam next to me and tried to ring my brother. He could barely squeak out his story. I booked my flight using Cam's iPhone, sitting on that same pavement. We raced home, packed, cancelled a bunch of other things and raced to the airport. By 7 pm I was in Townsville with Gavin ...

Aotearoa

2012-01-02T10:35:00.000+11:00

Well, I spent Saturday morning doing travel bookings for our trip in Feb. For the Friday (3 Feb) I've booked a motel in Otorohanga. For Sunday, I've booked a motel room in Taupo; and for Monday and Tuesday nights I've booked a motel in Taupo. We've had lots of cute suggestions from Grant, Richard and Colin so we'll find things to do as we perambulate about the North Island.

NYD

2012-01-02T10:33:00.003+11:00

Met up with Richard and Colin on NYD at The Spot, Randwick. We had a very slowly served meal at Montparnasse Cafe. The food was okay but the service was slow and to be honest I think the food missed the mark. After the brunch we headed to Coogee Beach and ended up at Wylie's Baths, for a dip and a bit of sun. The ocean was stunningly beautiful and Coogee Beach itself was crowded with revellers. A beautiful day.

NYE

2012-01-02T10:31:00.001+11:00

Went to Christison Park on New Years Eve and watched the 9 pm fireworks there. The view down the harbour is amazing. We sat near the cliff edge to get a good view but we were buffetted by a stiff breeze off the ocean, so I had to retreat after the fireworks. We scooted home and then I made crepes, with cinnamon sugar and stuffed with a lick of ricotta, while we watched Star Trek. We didn't make it to midnight, instead collapsing before then, though I heard the thunder of distant explosions at midnight and thought, oh, it's 2012. Oh, as the fireworks, there was a family speakin Afrikaans, so I caught snatches of it and translated for Cam. It was all boring and mundane -- they weren't discussing state or family secrets that night.

Manchester

2012-01-02T10:28:00.000+11:00

Saw Grant and Michael at Centennial Park on Friday afternoon. We talked about New Zealand, and Grant shared some great ideas for our trip in Feb. Also met up briefly with Ian and Jack to sign Jack's passport application.

Eyes

2012-01-02T10:25:00.006+11:00

Went back for my eye test on Thursday. The optometrist is good but I always feel I am being pressured to spend more money. My eyes are okay and there is a slight deterioration since last time. So I've ordered new reading glasses. They should arrive next week some time.

Boiled

2011-12-29T13:00:00.001+11:00

Cam had a day off on Wednesday so I headed to the gym first, then he picked me up so I could go to my eye test. There, we discovered I was day too early so we headed back to Westfield to pick up a few goodies and then to Ruth's apartment to see her kittens. She's babysitting five kittens over Christmas. From Ruth's we drove past Conrad's place and found him upon his scoot about to set forth to Westfield. So we followed him there (yes, twice in one day) and had lunch (boiled eggs and bread, fantastic). Then a spot of shopping ensued ... I ended up buying an Australian touring atlas, to keep my USA and South African ones company. In the evening Cam made dinner and we watched Contagion which turned out to be quite fascinating. I liked the science and the viral epidemiology aspects of it. And also the shots of Hong Kong and San Francisco too.

Tuesday

2011-12-29T12:56:00.001+11:00

After dropping Cam at work I headed to the gym and then home. Had a chat to Warren at home and did all the ironing that had been backing up, while watching Wil Anderson on iView. Then picked Cam up and made dinner ...

Boxing Day

2011-12-29T12:54:00.002+11:00

After dropping Cam at work I headed to the gym and was joined by a few guilty souls working off their Christmas lunches. Then to the beach to have a run and a swim, where I met Karen and her family. She asked me to visit her later, which I did, to help her switch her SIM card from her old mobile phone to her new one.

Then I jumped on the scoot and went up to Watson's Bay. The traffic was heavy and there were police roadblocks along the way, but they were universally friendly to me on my scoot and waved me on. I parked and found my customary rock platform and was later joined by Ian, Jack and their overseas guests, to watch the start of the Sydney to Hobart. We had a lovely lunch on the rock platform after the crowds had gone. Ian and company departed via ferry and I scooted home.

Christmas Day

2011-12-29T12:51:00.000+11:00

Cam woke up with hayfever so we did a morning Christmas dash to the local supermarket to see if they had any remedies and then Cam remembered he had some medication he bought in Hong Kong, so we returned to the house and he took that. Cam's father arrived and then they exchanged gifts. I stayed out of it, as per usual. For lunch we had prawns and several varieties of chicken kebabs -- delicious!

Suitably stuffed we visited Val and Jason and their kids and then drove home. Stopped at Marulan to find that the place was deserted and the food options were limited, so we drove on to Sutton Forest and had an early dinner there. And then made it back home in good time to Skype Brenda and talk about the events of the day.

Oh, Gavin rang me (we were having a text exchange) and we talked, though I had to cut him short as I was being summoned to the luncheon table.

Christmas Eve

2011-12-29T12:48:00.000+11:00

I picked up Cam from work around 12 noon and we drove down to Canberra. The drive was okay and we stopped at Pheasants Nest to use the loo and then at Berrima for lunch and a spot of antique shopping. Then onwards to the Wheatley rest stop where they had a driver reviver station and I had a splash of tea and a biscuit.

In Canberra we conducted customary greetings and then later Val came round for dinner. I sort-of helped with a recipe for rissoles but it's not my strong point. Then to bed, though Cam stayed up until midnight (maybe waiting for Santa?)

Liz

2011-12-24T11:08:00.000+11:00

Went to Cam's place after work on Friday. He made sausage casserole for dinner and we watched 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' ... oh, I wrapped all the Christmas gifts too. I'm not a gift giver nor receiver, but I don't mind wrapping.

Head

2011-12-24T11:06:00.001+11:00

Worked at home on Thursday. Did a half-hearted workout at the gym before work. In the evening I ended up with a massive headache. The only explanation I can find is that our cleaner seems to have used a very stinky polish when cleaning and so the whole building was suffused with the pungent fragrance, and that gave me a headache.

Golper

2011-12-24T11:05:00.002+11:00

Had dinner at the Gollan Perry's on Wednesday evening. I made lemon cake for dessert; Dave made salad and pork and chicken, it was delicious!

China Visa 2

2011-12-21T08:47:00.001+11:00

Went to back to the China visa place on Tuesday morning and managed to get my passport. They are a marvel of efficiency.

On the way home I had a few stops: Officeworks for magazine holders; Woolworths for plastic crates; and Caltex for petrol, then to the gym for a light workout (though I must say I was not feeling very motivated at all).

China visa 1

2011-12-21T08:46:00.001+11:00

Went to the China Visa Application Service on Monday, to pick up my passport, only to be told that I was a day too early! Doh! Had to turn around and head home.

A Whitby Christmas

2011-12-21T08:43:00.000+11:00

On Sunday we drove to Winmalee to Cam's mother's side's annual Christmas function. The drive was fine and we arrived in about an hour and 15 minutes. I was the newbie (along with James, the latest grandchild) so I had to be introduced to all. I think I made good progress. Lunch seemed to go well and we left after 3 pm.

At home, Karen had invited us and Sheila for Christmas drinks, so we went over there and drank champagne, ate baby quiches and delicious mince pies.

Study 2

2011-12-21T08:41:00.000+11:00

Cam and I tackled the study on Saturday. He built the bookshelves and then we moved them into the study, then moved the contents back. I have acres of shelf space now! So there is plenty of room to grow.

Went to Officeworks in the afternoon to look at magazine holders and document boxes. They cost more than the bookshelves! Anyway I'll use them to get more organised with loose papers and such.

Had my last massage with Georgy on Saturday afternoon. He did particularly brilliant work on my back and shoulders.

After the massage we ended up at Guzman y Gomez for a quick dinner and then to the cinema to see the new Mission Impossible. My first time to go the Bondi Junction cinema! The movie was great but there were a few scary moments where I clutched Cam a bit too tightly.

Study 2

2011-12-17T06:46:00.000+11:00

On Friday, I managed to clear the study inbetween tea breaks while working. In fact it was a good way to refresh the mind: have a cup of tea and carry some books out of the study into the lounge.

I also saw Kerry in the morning. He replaced both the upper arch wire and the lower arch wire and now my teeth hurt again!

In the evening Cam and I walked up to Bondi Junction and I bought some painkillers, then we met Helen for dinner. We went to the delicious Ichi Ban Boshi and had noodles. Cam talked about our trip to Hong Kong: what a story!

After dinner we stopped in at Woolworths and then walked back. It was a little chilly for a summer evening but not too bad.

Train

2011-12-17T06:43:00.001+11:00

Scooted to Newtown on Thursday evening for dinner and a catch-up with Andrew. I parked up near the Newtown Hotel and then forgot how long King Street is -- I met Andrew at Hum which is much closer to the station. At Hum, I was motivated to find a Whitney Houston CD, since Ikea had been playing her stuff while we were there the previous evening.

For dinner we ended up at Sushi Train and had a long chat about work, blogs, managers, travel, Christmas, families, mothers, brothers, sisters, boyfriends, study and careers.

Study 1

2011-12-17T06:41:00.000+11:00

Went to Ikea on Wednesday evening, the new one in Tempe. It's huge. We had dinner and I had the impression that people just came there to eat. Some families had vast mounds of food on little trolleys, specially designed to carry cafetaria trays.

We wandered around the store (though not the full path) and I ended up buying two Billy bookcases plus the height extension. Cam is going to build them this weekend and we're going to re-organise the study so it can be a place of productive work and not as messy as it is currently. I think with all the studying, I've accumulated many books and folders and paper, so the study needs a makeover.

Golper

2011-12-13T20:54:00.002+11:00

After work on Monday I headed to Cam's place and then we both went to the Gollan Perrys for dinner. Nice shepherd's pie! And then home to collapse. My weekend had two late nights in a row and I need a bit of rest.

Oh oh oh, lots of mail arrived on Monday. My textbook for 2012 arrived, which was good. And later, the postie turned up with registered mail: it was my chop (stamp) from Hong Kong (also Cam's chop). And, curiously, my driver licence from Singapore via the Australian High Commission there. It was the one that I lost in my wallet in January. It seems to have been handed to the Singapore Police Force around May and then forwarded to the Australian High Commission, who neatly posted it to me. Meanwhile, I've had to replace my driver licence twice since I lost my wallet in January!

Ironing

2011-12-13T20:51:00.002+11:00

Well, Sunday was the day of NO ironing. Took Cam to work, went to the gym on the way home, then decided to go to see Ian, Matt and Jack. When I arrived Ian and Matt and Rosie were at Bunnings so I talked to Jack for while, then to Ian then to Matt. A southerly change rolled in, spectacularly, as we watched from Ian's balcony, followed by intense rain. I waited for the rain to subside a little before leaving.

In the evening Cam and I watched Requiem for Detroit? on ABC iView -- it's worth watching to see a great city ruined ...

Time flies

2011-12-13T20:49:00.001+11:00

Wow, time flies so quickly here in Sydney ...

So: Saturday. Took Cam to work, wafted around the gym, then wafted home. Did some laundry and then more wafting and didn't achieve much I think ... in the evening Cam cam round and then we had a walk to Bondi Beach, then back again, and Richard and Colin came round for dessert and Cam showed them the Hong Kong photos and we talked about ideas for our trip to NZ in February.

The End Is Naai

2011-12-07T22:12:00.001+11:00

Just finished watching Pieter-Dirk Uys's The End Is Naai. Man, he's such a brilliant actor, satirist and savager of political egos. I must look and see if I can find some of his more recent stuff.

CX139

2011-12-07T08:58:00.001+11:00

We flew home yesterday (Tuesday) on CX139. An uneventful flight. The airport at HK is vast and huge and airy and a marvel of modern architecture, and also of quiet efficiency. I had congee for breakfast; Cam has bacon and eggs. On the flight I watched several movies as did Cam and the time seemed to pass quickly enough. We landed from the west at Sydney which I've never done before (well, not that I can remember).

Cam and I used the SmartGate to enter Australia (Cam was impressed) and our baggage came through pretty quickly and we were off in a taxi within about 25 minutes. I dropped Cam at his place then headed to my place, where nothing much had changed. Couldn't sleep right away so ended up watching Pieter Dirk Uys on DVD ...

Steamy

2011-12-07T08:55:00.003+11:00

5 Dec

Our last day in HK ... more to come soon.

Peak

2011-12-07T08:55:00.001+11:00

4 Dec

We spent the day exploring the Hong Kong side ... more to come soon.

Lantau

2011-12-07T08:54:00.001+11:00

3 Dec

We spent the day exploring Lantau ... more to come soon.

Arrival

2011-12-07T08:53:00.001+11:00

2 Dec

Second day of my event. Cam arrived at about 3 pm and made his way from HK airport via the train and and taxi to the hotel. After my event finished, I packed up and passed all the shipping over to the business centre for processing then went to see Cam. We decided to head to the tailor on the Hong Kong side to get that going.

Cam was amazed by the efficiency of the MTR as we travelled to Admiralty. It was crowded but smooth. At the tailors, we spent a long time looking at fabrics and choosing fabrics. I'd stained my pink shirt so I had to have another one made; I also wanted a plain black shirt for going out purposes; and I wanted a deep mid-blue plain shirt to complement the other choices in my wardrobe. And I also ordered trousers, with a wider cut than last time. Cam had two shirts made, one black for work; and another in a red and blue on white check.

From there we had a long walk around Wan Chai and ended up eating in a HK-style café, before heading home. This is plain yet wholesome food and Cam was amazed at the stunningly low prices (by Australian standards).

Event 1

2011-12-07T08:49:00.001+11:00

1 Dec

This was the first day of our event. Had a good morning prepping, then started the event around noon. All went well. In the evening I took the whole group to dinner across the harbour at Causeway Bay. It had been a long day but they did not seem to want to sit down and eat, instead they were chatting away ...

Meets

2011-12-07T08:48:00.001+11:00

30 Nov

This was a prep day, so we had lots of meetings within the hotel. I had my briefing with Tiffany, our events manager, then a briefing much later with our VP. All seemed to go well. Most of them went off to dinner but I demurred and had a room service dinner and called Cam.

CX110

2011-12-07T08:46:00.001+11:00

29 Nov

Flew to Hong Kong, Cam dropped me off at the airport. I had too much luggage (carrying training materials and such) so they were going to charge me excess baggage. No biggie. But then the check in woman said she had a message and trooped off to the main counter, then came back to inform me I had been upgraded to business class (!) and that the baggage charge was waived. Lovely.

Had a nice flight and watched movies. I lost my cap somewhere between Hong Kong airport and my hotel room and never found it again, but that's okay, I'm ready for a new cap.

Hotel room was lovely as always, with a view to the east.

MBA

2011-12-07T08:43:00.001+11:00

28 Nov

Well I decided to apply for the MBA and see what happens. I have one unit left to go on my HR Masters so will finish by June next year and graduate in October, then a few more units (six, to be precise) to finish the MBA.

It's time

2011-11-28T11:05:00.001+11:00

I was listening to a marriage equality debate on the radio while driving home from work last week. One of the panel was in favour; two were opposed, for completely spurious reasons. It made me angry to hear them say that marriage should be exclusively reserved for people of opposite gender. And I'm not an angry person, generally. It's time for change.

Our friends at GetUp have made a brilliant ad for marriage equality:

Don't get caught on the wrong side of history, dear reader. Write to your MP, or even Julia (she needs an attitude adjustment, I feel), and get this through.

Exam 2

2011-11-27T13:41:00.001+11:00

Woke up at a reasonable time this morning and had tea and a muffin (home-made by Cam) for breakfast and set to work on my exam. The first question was to evaluate each of three academic papers for faddishness, so that proceeded quite well. Later I took Cam to work then stopped at the gym on the way home. At home I finished part 2 which was all about power, politics, decision making and a personal case study. I've dashed it off and now submitted, so that is the last academic work for 2011!!! I can hardly believe it!

More tasks to do, though not as bad as an assignment: order text books for next year, enrol for next year, apply for the MBA, and get my study plan organised so I can finish the HR Masters and then move on to the MBA.

I can't believe I'm finished!!

Exam 1

2011-11-27T13:37:00.001+11:00

Spent the day yesterday (Saturday) fluffing around and avoiding my exam. Took Cam to work in the morning, went to the gym and had a brief and strenuous session there and then home to get my nose in the books. I made Blanche's eastern chicken for lunch and enjoyed that and a spot of ironing (I couldn't quite sit down and churn out my exam as soon as I got back from the gym.)

In the afternoon I had a terrible slump and had to retire to bed for a nap. But felt a bit better after that. At least I opened the Word document for the exam, and gave it a new file name and read a few things on the forums and listened to the lecturer's podcast about the exam.

In the evening I picked up Cam at work and then we headed to Erskineville to Andrew G's birthday party at Delhi O Delhi. I eschewed vino all evening for fear of becoming very tired very quickly and I stuck to soda water all night. We left after 10 pm and drove home.

Shipping

2011-11-26T06:37:00.001+11:00

Cam came to work on Friday and we did a big shipment up to Hong Kong. It wasn't as big as my usual shipments for my other workshops but there were a few items to go up, nevertheless. Cam also did a photo gallery for me, which helped me a bit. At lunch we headed to Cam's place but I left my work mobile at work, so I had to ask a co-worker to pop the mobile on a bike (with a messenger) and have it rushed to Cam's place so I was not phone-less.

In the evening we went to Dave and Conrad as it was Dave's birthday. (Also Andrew G's birthday and Mario V's birthday too!) We played Uno and listened to fab 80s music. Then to Club Rose Bay for fish, I was in the mood for seafood for some reason ...

Hong Kong 2

2011-11-26T06:36:00.001+11:00

Big stationery shopping day. I managed to source silver gift bags from a commercial retail supplier, and they had reams of white tissue paper as well; and I found some red tissue paper at the newsagent in Westfield. (Had a long chat to Ian during this expedition.) Oh, I also caved in and had the car washed at Westfield, it was so dirty and needed it and I hadn't had the time to take it to self-service car wash. I also had to find Moleskin notebooks and found a supplier in Melbourne who was able to get them up to me via Express Post. My head was spinning after all that.

Hong Kong

2011-11-26T06:33:00.001+11:00

I'm going to Hong Kong next week and it's been quite stressful. There've been a lot of last minute things happening. I had to go up to Westfield on Wednesday (met Cam for lunch) and find gift bags, but I needed 40 of the things, in plain red, white or silver, and most places only had a few. I found nice ones from Hallmark but they were $10 each. Eventually I gave up and returned home to do some conference calls.

Met Conrad with Cam at Thada Thai in Darlinghurst for dinner ...

Storytelling

2011-11-26T06:30:00.001+11:00

After work on Tuesday I had my AHRI L&D group. We had a very interesting talk about storytelling and the role that storytelling and storymaking play in contemporary learning and development. Fascinating stuff. We are all storytelling (it's the essence of gossip, after all) but we don't think of it enough for corporate environments, and yet, what is a corporation but a collection of stories?

After that session, I raced home to do my final group conference call for my Processes of Management unit. We have a take home exam: this was emailed to us on Monday morning and we have seven days to complete it. (It's 2500 words.) I read the paper and then did the conference call but need to catch up a bit on the readings and get across all the material that is required for the paper.

Assignment 4

2011-11-26T06:28:00.001+11:00

Well, Monday morning dawned and I did one last read of my assignment and then submitted it. No point in having it hang around. I feel good about it though I only managed a D for the last one, so I hope that this one scores at least the same or higher, not lower.

Assignment 3

2011-11-26T06:27:00.001+11:00

Managed to get a good start and finish up the first draft of my assignment by noon on Sunday. Then to polishing and refining. I'm never very good at reducing word count although I think I am good at polishing and editing the words. In the afternoon I wandered up to Bondi Junction for my massage with Georgy and then back home for dinner with Cam.

Assignment 2

2011-11-26T06:24:00.001+11:00

Spent most of Saturday between the washing machine and the laptop. I wrote heaps and forced myself to continue writing as hard as possible, to get as much word count down on the page as I could. I realised I had some good materials on my work laptop to do with Asia Pacific strategy and balanced scorecard, so I used that and I think that was the spurt that did it for me. Felt a bit relieved that I'd managed to get through so much. Cam came round in the evening and made dinner.

Assignment 1

2011-11-26T06:22:00.003+11:00

Well I started my superlarge (6000 word) assignment last Friday after work. Tried to look over all the materials and then spent most of the day looking over web sites, public videos by executives, internal videos, that sort of thing, to find a way to finding something to write. Of course I wrote nothing! But I did managed to get my headings in the Word document and that is always a good place to be, at the beginning. In the evening I went off to the supermarket. Cam had gone off to Canberra for a night with Conrad and Dave, so I was alone.

Jet lag aftermath

2011-11-26T06:22:00.001+11:00

Well, you'll be pleased to know that I managed to get rid of my jet lag quickly, after those first two days of waking up early. Back into the rhythm.

Totes

2011-11-16T06:23:00.001+11:00

Woke up at 3 am on Tuesday and forced myself to remain in bed, dozing, until 5.45 am. Getting up early and doing stuff really messes things up. Made my way to work and managed to get through my day, though I feel quite weighed down and tired, and I don't have as much patience and tolerance as in my normal state.

I got my assignment result for my Process of Management assignment #2 -- HD again. Good result. I also wrote to the lecturer for Strategic Management and later spoke to him on the telephone about that subject's assignment #1. I wasn't really happy with the result so he's agreed to take a look at it and come back with feedback.

I'm a bit behind on readings and things and it's stressful. I need to catch up on Strategic Management readings and then start formulating my assignment. I have to write 5500 words this weekend so it's going to be a big one.

Nod

2011-11-16T06:22:00.001+11:00

After my early start on Monday, I had to have a lie down in the afternoon -- my jet lag became too much. In the evening I made some soupy stew and had that for dinner and I was off to bed at 7-ish.

I saw Kerry in the morning and he redid the wire in the lower arch. The upper arch looked fine. I don't have to wear bands any more. He wants to see how the teeth settle. I'll see him again the week before Christmas for more work.

Float

2011-11-14T05:02:00.001+11:00

Managed to get through immigration really easily at Sydney airport on arrival yesterday and then had to wait a while for baggage. On the way out, Customs and Quarantine had dogs (black labradors) instead of x-ray -- this is the first time I've seen them do that. My bags passed the sniff test!

Cam drove us to Myer and then I drove home. I started some laundry and then spoke to Steven and Warren, who are in town, so we agreed to meet at Bondi Junction for lunch. Had a nice lunch at Gari in Westfield and I was starving. The food on the plane was okay but of course it is at odd times compared to what your body is expecting or not expecting.

From there I went for a float and massage. The float went well though I found it difficult to calm my mind and a little difficult to breathe slowly. I guess that's the trick of meditation (it takes training and practise) and of floating. I also found that most of my body relaxed, but my neck and shoulders just refused to give up. I thought I'd never make the end of the float, but then the 'wake up' music came along and I was able to have my shower. Then to Georgy for massage and he did his usual magic around my neck, shoulders and pecs (though pecs hurt far more than you'd think they would!).

I picked Cam up from work and headed home. Cam made a quick and simple dinner and we ate that, then tried to watch something on the computer, but my brain was dead. So I headed to bed and Cam headed home. This morning I woke up at 3-ish so I hope that improves over time, though I think I probably have a few early mornings ahead of me here, until I click back into Sydney time.

Sydney by the way is beautiful. The sizzle is back, the sizzle of summer, and sparkling water, and a touch of humidity, and boardshorts and singlets and sunscreen and thongs. I can't wait for the official start of summer on 1 December (though actually I'll be in Hong Kong on that day).

863

2011-11-14T04:54:00.001+11:00

My flight actually went quite well. I thought I'd sleep right away as I was so tired, but managed to stay up and watch most of Larry Crowne. But then I fell asleep. I'd say I slept for 9 hours all up, though as you know on the plane, the sleep is not high quality, nor entirely refreshing. But I was so tired that I was quite dead to the world for a good few hours there. The trick I think is earplugs and an eye mask. With earplugs, George taught me the trick of dampening the ear a bit, to allow the moisture to lubricate the ear plug a bit as it slides in -- then you can get it quite deep and you get a good seal, thereby cutting down on incoming noise. And I have an eye mask that I bought years ago at Walgreens -- it has 1 cm thick foam sponge cut in a raccoon shape, with a sheet of non-transparent flexible black plastic over the top. It does two things: the sponge moulds a bit to the contours of my face, thus eliminating any chinks that allow incoming light; and the depth of the sponge removes all pressure on the eyelid and eyeball and allows me to open my eyes yet see complete and utter blackness, thus reinforcing to the brain that it's dark and I should sleep ...

Viernes

2011-11-14T04:51:00.001+11:00

Mmmm, Friday, feeling the strain. The long week of meetings, trying to keep up with email in the evenings, and having dinners every night was definitely catching up with me. We had a very interesting session in the morning about social network analysis. A professor came to speak to us about a tool he is using to map social networks and then compare them to the org chart -- naturally they are quite different. He uses the tool to diagnose organisations and leaders and help them to understand how to become more successful. Fascinating stuff.

In the afternoon I went off to have lunch and then pack up my room. I took a taxi to the airport and checked in and then BART to the city to Mario's place. We went for a brief dinner in Cow Hollow and then discovered that Tony and Gap (old friends) were having dinner South of Market, so we raced over there on the way to the airport to exchange hellos ... then to the airport and on to my flight.

Jueves

2011-11-14T04:48:00.001+11:00

Thursday was a full-day training course, so no more meetings. There were about 20 people in the classroom, all from a training background of one sort or another, and they were a difficult bunch to control. The facilitator did her best but as I observed it, it would have killed me to work with us as a group. We learnt some basic business acumen skills, esp. interpreting that balance sheet, income statement and cash flow.

In the evening, Randy came to pick me up and we went to Palo Alto for dinner. I haven't seen him since last July and there's been plenty of change in that time: he has a new job, some of his family are staying at his house ... it was good to catch up. I also managed to find some Dermalogica in Palo Alto, which was good.

Miercoles

2011-11-14T04:46:00.001+11:00

Wednesday was a half-day of formal meetings (in the afternoon) so I spent the morning talking to co-workers on my old team. Around lunch I had to teach another web cast (also long pre-arranged before I knew that I was coming to San Francisco) but luckily, for this web cast, several participants were based at HQ, so I contacted them and then went to meet them and delivered the web cast from a nearby meeting room.

In the evening I met up with Ken and we went to Divino on Ralston ... good conversation about men, boyfriends, Buddhism, Christianity, home ownership, work, not working, co-workers, managers and colleagues.

Martes

2011-11-14T04:43:00.001+11:00

Tuesday was another full day of meetings, though in a different location. Another amusing coincidence: one of the fellows that I know over email was teaching a brand-new Solaris course in the room next door to us. The world is a small place, even at Oracle.

In the evening I excused myself as I had to teach a webcast from 8 pm to 10 pm. It had been planned for a convenient Sydney time, before I knew I was coming to California. All went well, though I had to go home, have a small bite to eat, and then walk back to campus to use a co-worker's office for the call, then walk home again. I shouldn't complain about the walking: there was abundant food in our meetings all week and I ate far too much, and I didn't make it to the gym once, so the walking was a small measure of exercise to keep me fit ...

Lunes

2011-11-14T04:42:00.001+11:00

Had a full day of meetings and work dinner on Monday. Amusingly, my old team was meeting in the room next door to my current team, so as I sat munching my breakfast muffin, most of them turned up and I was quickly caught up in a round of meeting and greeting. For the evening affair, they had brought in a salsa teacher, so several of the group did salsa dancing before dispersing into the night.

Domingo

2011-11-14T04:34:00.001+11:00

Had to get up early and head to my co-workers' hotel for breakfast at 8 am (hence I had to leave at 7.45 am and walk over). The European folks were bright and chirpy of course; the Asians less so, because of jet lag. My jet lag prevention of waking up earlier and earlier in Sydney worked well and I did not feel very tired or laggy on Sunday.

After breakfast we had a meeting that went on until 1.30 pm ... there was a lot to talk about! Eventually we called a halt and dispersed. I had lunch at the hotel and then jumped on their shuttle to the airport, to pick up BART to the city. (A highly convenient way of getting from Redwood Shores up to the city, actually.)

In the city I had a mad shopping spree. With the strong Aussie dollar and the generally cheap prices in California, there was plenty to buy. I sent a postcard to Cam (using my favourite post office tucked away in the basement of Macy's -- they're open seven days). Then I bought some skincare for Holly and then over to the men's store to buy underwear and jeans. Since I spent over $100, Macy's gave me 25% off; and I bought jeans which were buy-one-get-second-at-half-price. For all my non-Australian readers, Levi jeans cost around $120 in Australia but I managed to get my two pairs (well, one for me and one for Cam) for $41 each.

I refreshed myself with some Peet's hot cocoa (love that stuff), passed by the queue at the Apple store (still queueing for the iPhone 4S?) and then slipped into Walgreens for a few personal items and then to Nordstrom to complete the shopping for Holly.

After all that I was laden with bags, so Mario picked me up and we went over to his place, then out to dinner at Chow on Church Street. Then Mario drove me home, bless him. San Francisco is still much the same as it ever was, though my video store has shut down and been replaced with a medical marijuana dispensary (how very San Francisco!).

DL

2011-11-14T04:27:00.001+11:00

Well, I had a bit of a shock when I arrived at the Hertz counter at San Francisco. I fumbled for my driver licence and then realised that I did not have it with me. Therefore: no car rental. Therefore: stuck at the airport. I rang my boss and Cam and then Mario. I did not feel a sense of panic but more a sense of being trapped. I really wasn't sure what to do. Mario, bless him, was out and about doing errands, so he offered to pick me up at SFO and drop me at my hotel.

At my hotel, I was relieved to realise that it was within walking distance of campus, so not having a car would not be a disadvantage there. I had to walk to the supermarket to get a few things and that was 20 minutes in the other direction. It threatened to rain but there were only a few drops. Mario said I should get an umbrella as it was going to get heavier in the afternoon. Luckily I heeded his advice because indeed it was worse later.

After the strain of the missing driver licence, I joined my co-workers for drinks/dinner at their hotel at 7 pm. I had to walk there in the rain which wasn't too bad but I was a bit damp and cold when I arrived. To take care of my nerves, I had two pours of Johnnie Walker, and felt much better.

By the time it was time for me to leave, the rain had intensified so I was not going to be walking home and cabs were few and far between. Luckily the very nice concierge at the hotel agreed to drop me back at my hotel, using the hotel van. Very nice gesture.

870

2011-11-12T13:34:00.001+11:00

Flew to San Francisco on Saturday afternoon, Cam dropped me off ... flight went okay but they have an overhead television screen, not personal seat-back television screens. As a result: lots of flickering light all through the night making it hard to sleep and get rest. The food was good though, and those hosties were lightning fast dishing food out down the aisles, much faster than Qantas.

Honkers

2011-11-05T04:25:00.000+11:00

Saw Cam after work yesterday and we booked for Hong Kong. I'm going up on 29 Nov and then Cam will come up on Friday 2 Dec. We'll stay for three days and fly home on Tues 6 Dec.

Honolulu

2011-11-05T04:20:00.000+11:00

Day 3 of setting my body clock forward ... today: Honolulu time. It's 4.19 am in Sydney and 7.19 am (yesterday) in Honolulu ... so today's theme is Hawaiian everything. I've checked in and have a load of laundry going ... we'll see how I feel later.

Jet lag

2011-11-04T05:15:00.003+11:00

Oh, yesterday I had to get up at 5 am, to go to the office and teach a webcast starting from 6.30 am. So I thought: since I'm on this early rising track, I might as well set my body clock forward a tiny bit and get over some of the jet lag in Sydney. So today I'm up at 4 am, and tomorrow my goal is to get up at 3 am. That covers off 3 hours of time zone difference, so I'll only have a 2 hour adjustment upon landing in California. They are also ending summer time overnight on Saturday, when I arrive, so I get an hour bonus of timezone adjustment, with no effort on my part. I'll let you know if this trick works, though last time I tried this, it worked beautifully and I felt quite good in California with minimal jet lag.

Fit

2011-11-04T05:13:00.001+11:00

Managed to get back to the gym yesterday afternoon after a four day absence. Brenda had asked for red Tiger Balm, which is not procurable in South Africa, so I found it at the local pharmacy in Bellevue Hill, then ran to the post office to post it, and then back to the gym for a run, then home.

Honkers

2011-11-04T05:11:00.003+11:00

Just got confirmation yesterday that I'll be going to Hong Kong on 29 November for about one week. We are launching a women's leadership group -- but the event is in the hotel we've used on prior occasions, so I'm going for my hotel knowledge and to make sure that all hotel arrangements go smoothly, so that the event is flawless. I'm looking to see if Cam can come over for the weekend after the event and spend some time in Hong Kong.

75

2011-11-04T05:09:00.003+11:00

I got 75% for my assignment that I wrote in Canberra. The marker said my strategic analysis was sound but that my corporation was too big and that I should have somehow known this and should have chosen a smaller segment or business unit within the corporation, for my assignment. I think that's a bit unfair. I'm happy to take feedback (and loss of marks) for poor or faulty analysis, but not on the nature of the question. So I need to ring up the lecturer and see if I can have anything done. It may end up that I get the same mark but I guess if you don't ask you won't get.

Gottman

2011-11-04T05:07:00.004+11:00

I received my copy of Gottman's book, Trust, today. I'd ordered from The Book Depository and made the mistake of reading the user reviews after ordering, where very un-satisfied customers expressed their displeasure with parcels that never arrived and refunds that never were processed. Luckily my book arrived with a minimum of fuss.

In the afternoon I saw Cam and we looked over some of his training materials. He has to deliver training next week on some new products that Bose has launched.

From there, home and and an early night, though I did flip through Trust -- there are some very interesting insights. Gottman has been studying relationships for over 30 years so he has a clear picture about what works and what doesn't, and also what the signals of a declining relationship are. More reading to follow.

Tuesday

2011-11-04T05:04:00.001+11:00

Back to work on Tuesday ... my study group was supposed to meet in the evening but everybody cancelled through the day, so I had a break. But I had a webcast rehearsal after that, so was up until quite late with that.

Sick 2

2011-11-04T05:03:00.002+11:00

Took Monday as a sick day and spent most of the day in bed. It was one of those days where you think, "I'll just lie down for a few minutes," and then you wake up hours later (like 6 pm in my case!) At least the rest was good for me and helped my body to recover from the cold.

Sick 1

2011-11-04T05:02:00.000+11:00

Dropped Cam at work on Sunday and felt a bit strange. I went to the gym and worked out and then came home and tried to read my textbooks, but gave up after a while. I didn't feel good at all. It seemed like I had a cold of some sort, so I rested in bed until 4 pm, then Skyped Brenda and Gavin and then returned to bed. Cam came round in the evening to make dinner (lovely chicken stew with risoni).

Anniversary

2011-11-04T05:00:00.001+11:00

Cam and I celebrated our one year anniversary on Saturday. We went to La Tavola in Darlinghurst. I've been there once before. They do very good made-on-premises pasta dishes. We had a lovely meal and then waddled home, very slowly, to collapse in bed.

Fit

2011-10-29T14:25:00.003+11:00

Dropped Cam at work this morning and then headed to the gym, to do some cardio. I get a bit flustered when there are too many people in the gym and I am wanting to do weights, though with cardio it's easier. I bought the new Erasure album off iTunes and have been listening to that on the iPod. There are some thumping tracks that are good for cardio, and then the usual sprinkling of ballad-y type numbers that are less good for cardio.

West Point

2011-10-29T14:24:00.001+11:00

Went to Cam's place via the gym, after work on Friday. Oh, the gym has put in new equipment and they are starting to refresh the place a bit. Some days it is really crowded and other days it is quiet. I think they've sold a fair few memberships so there are now obvious peak times. I keep on leaving my trousers there after working out (if I come from work and change into my workout shorts at the gym). So twice now I've had to go back early in the morning, on the way to work, to pick up the trousers and retrieve my belt.

At Cam's place I helped him clean and do filing and sell his Myer stock and we also chose seats for our New Zealand flights.

Te Hononga o Amerika

2011-10-29T14:21:00.002+11:00

I had a call from my manager late on Thursday that I was approved to travel to headquarters in California for a global meeting from 7 to 10 November. I booked my travel on Friday so will be there from 5 November to 11 November, staying in Belmont (just near the Oracle campus). Many of the hotels around campus, listed in our corporate directly, were fully booked so I just chose the one that seemed ok. My only concern is that it is right near Highway 101 so it may be a tad noisy. You may also be interested in the flight prices. Qantas did not feature, sitting at about $2400 return via Los Angeles; I ended up on the only direct flight which is with United, for about $1500 return. I did look at options via Auckland with Air New Zealand and via Honolulu but the pricing wasn't good.

The only other element I have to figure out is keeping up to date with my study. I have a major assignment to submit on 21 November and I had sort-of planned to use the preceding weekends to get a head start. But now, I will be in the air during those preceding weekends!

Oh, the Aussie dollar is now at 1.07 to the US dollar, so there will be some shopping activity happening, I can assure you.

Aotearoa

2011-10-29T14:13:00.001+11:00

Cam and I have booked for New Zealand for the first weekend next February. It's the Jenkinson/Woodward wedding and Qantas was having a special on, so we decided to leap in and book. (I checked the ticket prices the following day and they'd risen substantially, from $199 one way to $289 one way. They're the same seats on the same plane.)

Next, we'll book cars and hotels.

Speed

2011-10-29T14:12:00.000+11:00

Went to bed early on Monday evening as I had a very early start on Tuesday. I woke up at 4.30 am to race to work to teach a 6.30 am virtual web cast. The roads were brilliant at 5.20 in the morning! I got to work really quickly -- I wish it was like that more often. There was a surprising amount of citybound traffic on the M2 though, well before 6 am.

The session went well and the local director took the whole team to breakfast afterwards, which I thought was a very nice touch.

Assignment 4

2011-10-29T14:10:00.001+11:00

Well, Monday came and went and I submitted my assignment just before 7 pm. Overall I think I did a good job but you never know until you get the result back. Should be about 3 weeks before the paper is returned.

Oh, my lecturer asked me to send my first assignment to two people, did I tell you? She had a few people who had struggled with Assignment 1 and correct writing style and referencing, so my paper has become the standard to aim for. I know I struggled on my first assignment of my first unit, so I can see how others might struggle. Sadly there are not samples of good papers available, before you start writing. You just have to muddle along and hope that things come out right. Since my first paper though, I've brushed up my game considerably, he he.