so crowded

Singapore is a crowded city. It's getting so crowded now that I can look out my window and see people straight across from me... and I live on the 7th floor. Of course these people are the construction workers building the new condo adjacent to my building which has little by little been increasingly blocking my view each and every day over the last 5 months though. The progress has now reached a new height equal to my floor giving me the unique opportunity, at least for a few weeks, to look out my window and look at them looking back at me looking at them.

To compare, or contrast depending on your inclination, here is the view I used to have out the same window in the fist picture above. The new view is not as nice in my opinon... but soon it will be worse- a wall only I think.

shortest way to do 100K

BikeAsia 2008 was in Singapore a few weeks ago and as part of it, there was a 100K mountain bike race. I entered with one of my coworkers, of course not expecting to even come close to winning. ... and actually we didn't! But it was a lot of fun. 100K race, 10 laps on the course, and a time limit of 9 hours. So it's definitely possible to do- it's just really long, and we were splittin it between the two of us. There was also a solo category but needless to say we weren't interested in that.The Course: 1 lap. It looks a little crazy, and it is. It's about a 1 square km area, but with all the twists and turns it made a 10K lap. 10 laps to finish the race.

The race started at 8am, and after 4 hours we had finished 6 laps but just then storm clouds rolled in and a lightning storm started up very fast. The organizers were forced to call the race on account of the lightning (I was told they are very particular about lighting since it's so common here and people do get struck by lightning here, I've heard a couple people a year get stuck). So the race got canceled but they rulled that every team that had finished 5 laps would be considered finishers.... so we got finisher's medals. I have no idea where we placed overall but we didn't win any money.
The course was very muddy and it really got everywhere. about half the couse was exposed and the other half was riding through jungle trails...full of all the mud
After the race, with our bikes and our clothes sprayed clean

Solana Beach shark attack

A man was attacked and killed by what's believed to be a great white shark about a mile from where I used to live in Solana Beach, CA (city's website). The man was swimming just off the coast, training for a triathlon, when the attack occurred. Though it's very rare for this kind of shark attack- or any shark attack- in San Diego, it's still scary to think about. I've been swimming at that same location and with the ocean you just never know what's under you in the water below.

Logically, I know the chances of being attacked by a shark are very low. Lower than a car accident for sure (despite all the 90+ year old cab drivers here half asleep at the wheel) or lower than being struck by lightning(although Singapore does has the most lightning strikes every day than anywhere else in the world). But neither of those ideas bother me as much as actually being eaten alive, especially in the water since it feels you're out of your natural element and can't escape as easily; I'm much less afraid of being eaten by a bear or a tiger than by a shark for some reason (The last wild tiger in Singapore was shot and killed in the 1930s but there are still wild tigers in Malaysia). I still go swimming in the ocean though.

So this will give me something to think about the next time I'm in the water... which will be in 4 days when I'm scuba diving off Lombok, Indonesia, in the Gili Islands. I guess the alternative is always to stay out of the water and head a few islands over to Komodo... you know, the same one that's full of Komodo Dragons. I wonder which has the higher probability- eaten by a shark or eaten by a Komodo dragon.

Fixed Gear

I picked up my new bike from the shop today. Actually it's not exactly new- I had found an old '76 Raleigh Team Profesional racing frame from a small local shop and had them build it out as a fixed gear. The frame's finish is pretty worn and scratched but it has some character vs a new frame. I wanted to keep a retro look to match the frame so I got gold wheels and chain, drop handle bar, white tires and leather seat. Now I just have to learn how to ride a fixed gear bike.

change is the only constant

Being away from Singapore for three weeks was a long time, and it seems longer than I expected it would. I never really thought about it before but change can happen very quickly- and sometimes unless you're away and comeback you might not even notice it. Besides seeing a few new floors completed on the condo being built next door I noticed some other changes as well. Also the price of cabs surprised me as well even though the fares had increased before I left- having arrived after midnight, I had to pay the 50% surcharge and the $3 airport surcharge. The total taxi bill came out to $24 which seems very expensive, but then again it's very cheap compared to most other cities. Walking around town yesterday I saw a lot more graffiti than I ever remember and it was mostly right out in the open. I also saw two apparently homeless bums sleeping on the side walks, also something that I recall seeing maybe once over the last year I’ve been here. Is Singapore really changing or am I just being more observant of things around me?

And then, some things stayed the same. The noise from those two construction sites next door to my apartment is still very loud. The taxi driver from the airport thought I was from Italy or France and couldn't believe I was from California. For some reason this happens a lot- people think I'm German, Swiss, French and god forbid even Australian. I don't know why. one person even thought my accent sounded South African! no one else agreed with that though. Also, the conniving taxi drivers have not changed here either. The one I took yesterday ripped me off, taking me though a separate toll area for no reason as it wasn't a short cut and it was not even the route I told him. Its times like that when their English skills suddenly deteriorate very quickly...I guess it's the best way to disarm a verbal conflict. The escaped terrorist Mas Selamat bin Kastari has still not been captured after having escaped from prison before I left for San Diego. There's really not much news about it anymore. I guess people will forget about it soon. An official report being carried out on how the escape happened, estimated to take one month, should be out soon though I doubt it will actually be released.

Overall it feels good to be back in Singapore, in my own apartment and sleeping in my own bed again. I just need to get some food for the fridge because I’m starving.

This made me try to think about what had been different in San Diego since it had been 6 months since the last time I was there. Actually nothing really jumped out at me as different which is strange. A lot of the construction on the highways that plagued my morning and evening commutes was finished and one of the bars I liked that made really good cocktails has deteriorated in quality- the Old-Fashioned I used to like there was now horrible (actually the same thing had happened in Singapore at a new bar that had opened just around the corner from my place. When it opened, the bartenders were great and they made really nice cocktails, they really knew what they were doing which I think is extra nice here in Singapore since you’re paying about $10USD for a drink. I've almost giving up on ordering mixed drinks anywhere here because either the carbonation is flat in the mixer or it's some super sweet juice mixed in with the carefully measured amt of liquor. The last time I went there, the bar staff had been replaced literally by idiots, a conclusion I based on an experience while ordering a drink. I had ordered and easy drink which was even on their bar list- Cuba Libre- nothing fancy right, and he didn’t know how to make it. After asking the other bartender who told him to look it up since he was bartender too. I ended up having to tell him how to make it and he still messed it up, dumping in an outrageous amount of lime juice instead of just a dash.) I don't know, maybe it's hard to say since the time went so fast there and I didn't really see much of the city. I’m not sure this paragraph makes much sense either. In conclusion, In San Diego it was great to see old friends and catch up.

Anyway, don't get me wrong, it's not a big rant I'm on about Singapore or change on about how things were 'back in the day.' Besides, I read The Secret while in Sedona and now I'm only thinking positive thoughts so only positive outcomes will be attracted to me. Sure, it sounds crazy but it's working. I experienced several otherwise improbable occurrences which I'm attributing to my positive thinking. I won't get in to all of them but here's just one example- when I flew from Phoenix to Portland it was a late flight scheduled to arrive around 11pm and I didn't want to be wasting a lot of time at the airport. So I was really trying to imagine my luggage being off the belt first so I could get out to the rental car and on the road. You know, ‘using the secret.’ I was also hoping for a Mustang convertible for the car but actually not so much for the convertible since I knew it would be cold in Oregon and I probably wouldn't get to put the top down. So what do you know? once the baggage starts up, mine is the third bag on it which has never happened. Thanks very much. Picked it and went out to get my rental car which had been assigned as a Mercury Grand Marquee. Obviously that wasn’t going to work. So I walked back to the desk and the guy there said I could have a Mustang (hardtop) for the same rate. One of the most important parts to the Secret is being thankful for everything you have and really spending time to acknowledge that thanks. Regardless of all the other talk about the Secret or Law of Attraction I think this is important just for living a happy and fulfilled life.

jetlag or lazy

I'm having the hardest time adjusting to the time on this trip for whatever reason. I can sleep at night with no problem and have no problems like waking up in the middle of the night (when it's afternoon in Singapore). The problem is I can't wake up in the morning... I've been oversleeping my alarm and not waking until like 8 or 8:30am. And then I'm way too tired. The other morning one of my co workers here asked if I was going for ‘the vampire look’… very pale with blood shot eyes. I assumed it wasn’t a compliment though you never know with some people and I have been out of the US for a while now. Later in the afternoon she said I looked much better so I guess I finally woke up- Despite the folklore recommending garlic, crosses or sunlight, I've found the best cure for vampirism is about three large coffees. Tomorrow I need to be up at like 6am to get to the airport in time for a flight to Phoenix. I’m not sure how that’s going to work out…. I don’t know if the TSA is letting vampires on the planes these days

grande nonfat latte

I went to Starbucks this morning to use a gift card I still had from before moving to Singapore. The Starbucks here seem to take themselves a little more seriously they in Singapore. A manager was training a new employee (the manager looked to be in her mid 40’s and the new employee looked to be in her mid 50’s). She was quizzing the employee on how to enter drinks into the register: “what if they want a grande nonfat latte?”, “what about a skinny vanilla?” “stop pressing the ‘grande’ button- it defaults to grande size, you’re wasting time”. Where could I start. I would die if I had to be trained to enter coffee orders like that when I’m 50 years old, it’s kind of sad. Plus, the size defaults to grande. Grand means medium size actually, and it’s like the large size in Singapore. The sizes of everything are so much larger here.

Starbuck's has really done a great job in creating this entire market for expensive coffee drinks that no one would have been ordering 10 years ago. They've created a culture that makes people feel special for they short time they're in the store and placing their order which is why the must come back and pay so much. People seem to take pride in the custom drinks they order, but I tend to cringe whenever I order and refuse to specify the size as 'tall', 'grande', or 'vente'. I just say medium or small... and they still know what I mean. I think they must think it's kind of a joke too...