30th September 2023 Saturday. Kch. KL

To KL for Martin and Hannah's wedding and using the opportunity to travel for work in Penang, and later to see friends who will show us buildings in Singapore.

29th September 2023 Friday - back to school

The young people have been working hard on this project, and since I finalised the model they have completed the drawings detailing the main ideas. 

Just in time for the client to visit our office for a presentation, coincidentally Laila, Kamal and Aysar are visiting as well. I invited the young man who is studying architecture to sit in at the meeting if he wished. Ultimately not only he but his parents attend the meeting as well, his mother giving supportive comments and affirming some of our ideas; the stacking/matchbox ideas for overlaying spaces and usage. Very Aussie, she says - referring to the open-ness of the layouts perhaps

For me, the highlight of the meeting came when he said, I understand your concept now - and proceeded to imagine how the spaces can be used.

28th September 2023 Thursday - Public Holiday (again)

 Today is a public holiday in Malaysia. Since some of the office folks are coming in to do some work, I promised to cook them a nice lunch. Salmon and a warm salad of beans, tomatoes, potatoes with a lemon, olive, caper and anchovy dressing. Sam ended up cooking everything which is good, because the young ones like having her in the office. Suki and husband dropped by to chat and drink some red wine - I like her; open, sincere and warm.

 

27th September 2023 Wednesday - new management

I think that the two boys are in a world of their own, slowly doing their ID work. I invite them to visit Renna job-site with us, taking the opportunity to teach about setting up a set of technical drawings, drawing lists, numbering and cross referencing. 

On-site, we talk about fire routes, car ramps, gabion walls, and door lintels - the site walk ended abruptly when I was 'summoned' to meet the new project director at the technical meeting, where we talked about site safety, work progress and RC kerbs at the M&E floor. 

I took the opportunity to involve the two boys in these houses - they'll need architectural experience to continue their Part 2. And work is a good way for them to interact with our team members, and me. 

Today is Syahidah's last day

26th September 2023 Tuesday - taking the lead

I sent the drawings to the land owner, he texted back and asked for hardcopies; in colour. Ok - where do I send them? - doing my part as a service provider. My office, but you'll have to be quick, I am catching a flight at noon. I looked at watch, in the middle of the job-site checking defects rectification - it is 10 a.m.

I am not in the mood to talk to him about design layouts, unit sizes, and number of shop houses, I'll send HP. She can drive over. 

When I returned to the office, HP hadn't left, and she hadn't rung the man to tell him she was delivering the drawings. Don't worry, I'll call him - taking the lead. It seems that he has left the office and is now having an early lunch. 

Still taking the lead, I went with HP, thinking that I might as well go the whole hog; lead by example, put on a smiley face, go the extra mile. And explain the scheme for the fourth time to the fourth person. Despite a bit of a wild goose chase locating him 9and his wife) finishing their lunch, we sat and chatted about the scheme (he understands it now), he and his wife chatted to HP about schooling, architecture, work, her hometown and about their eldest who might be interested in doing architecture. 

I would like to think that HP suggested that they sent him to shadow us for fortnight, and not me. Maybe she did. The excursion ended well, I am glad I came to see him personally. Good training for me. 

25th September 2023 Monday - project management

 A client once asked me, as we were seated next to each other at a site meeting - what is the most difficult thing about project management? What prompted the question was likely the slightly raised voices across the table - the engineer is unable (or reluctant) to provide a straightforward answer regarding his details to the builder. They are still conversing in English, and seated. When the discussion migrates to Hokkien, (this is in Penang) it is getting serious. Right at that moment, they start arguing in Hokkien, both walk to the white board to continue their argument, supplemented with red and blue markers. 

I turn to her and said 'managing the team'.

24th September 2023 Sunday - day of rest

Sam thinks these compression socks look like ones Japanese school girls wear. They help me with my mobility in the courts, while trying to heal my left heel and middle toe of my right foot. Seeing Kwang certainly helps but I will have to be diligent in doing my own mobility and stretching exercises. 

 

23rd September 2023 Saturday - Strata

 

22nd September 2023 Friday -

 

21st September 2023 Thursday - sleepy and rainy

partly scolding, partly grumbling and partly rationalising the plans, to my surprise we ended with a viable scheme after 15 minutes.

 Someone has been sleepy in the office, and not being very productive - I have spoken to him earlier this month but not much improvement. He hides behind his screen too much. Today he came in late, 'phone died and the alarm did not go off' - then waited for his mom to drive him here. Last straw - I decide to switch him to manual drawing, and making cardboard models each day to describe his ideas. If he does not improve his design skill, at least the hand skills will improve by the time he returns to uni next year.

Someone else is returning to university soon, to do her Masters - she has asked if she can continue with her work projects and use the office as her studio. I encouraged her to do that, and agreed to continue paying her for part time work provided she keep university ass her first priority. 

20th September 2023 Wednesday - cake

We have mom over for dinner on Wednesdays, she eats dinner while commenting on unfolded laundry, folded laundry that haven't been put away, interior decor, and numerous unrelated topics. Today is 2 days away from her birthday, so there's a cake, and a candle for her to blow out. She blew out the candle after we sang happy birthday, after which she turns to Sean and asks 'ha mang seh jit?' 

Whose birthday is it? 

19th September 2023 Tuesday - Mint

I thought I'd have a nice quiet morning to sketch and design, but phone calls came - for us to brief Mint, the Thai landscape architect about our mixed development project. It screws up my lunch plans, especially when they arrive late and invites me for a meat-y lunch downstairs - I ask Sean to join us. He is reluctant as well, his lunch plans are screwed up but his mood lifted when we brief the team in the office - especially when we use the new website to introduce our team and projects. 

I felt energised after that and decide to stop work for a early hit of tennis. 

18th September 2023 Monday - on the job training

Our of my clients has a strange habit of sending me google earth images of plots of land, for me to carry out design feasibility studies. He sends them at odd hours; late at night, on weekends - without an accompanying text message or brief. On the following day, I 'll contact him and he tells me the background and I set about working out a schematic design - some of these are land he intends to buy, others are owned by him already while others still are joint-venture opportunities for development with the land owners.

Some of my friends think that he is taking advantage of us, I see this differently. 

I see this as an opportunity to have an on-going conversation (and relationship) with my clients, and also a way to hone our design skills, to be quicker to see a solution, and a way to train the young ones in the office (so that we have an on-going conversation about design in the office). And get paid for it. True, some of these projects remain as 'lines on paper' - they do not proceed for a number of reasons; commercial viability, JV partners cannot conclude the deal, planning restrictions, and so forth. These go to our website as a part of our portfolio. 

And I enjoy doing these feasibility studies. 

17th September 2023 Sunday

 I wanted EH's input on the school layout and thought that the best way would be for him to comment on a physical model of the scheme. So this morning, I arrive at the office bright and early to start on the task, and fluff about until 530p.m. to start work on it. Luckily Jenny is here to help, so that I can start cooking dinner. 

16th September 2023 Saturday - Malaysia Day

 

15th September 2023 Friday

 

14th September 2023 Thursday - setting up house (again)

the upstairs garden which one exits to use the outside bathroom

Sam has been working very hard on the renovation of No. 40 - I have deliberately stayed away for the past few months. I did it because I thought she should have ownership of the finer design details, and also because I have been busy, but mostly because I want to be surprised by the end results when we take possession of the space.

There will be much to do before I can fully occupy the house, and more money to be spent. Maybe not a lot of money as I relocate some of my present possessions into this house. The ovel table, the solid chunky bench which Jenny sits on now, more of those stools which I made for Ivy, my books, the CDs and their player. I am quite excited, it is a bit like university life again - setting up house.

13th September 2023 Wednesday - return of the native

Sean and the Barbie gang

Sam returns from KL at lunch time, just in time to miss Sean who was out with the office folks to celebrate Declan's birthday. I was at RENNA but mentally working on the school masterplan while Leong conducted the meeting. There were very few issues to deal with - YKC are a good contractor who seems intent on doing a good job, and on time. 

The project team talked about our project next door, the model of which is in the lobby of our client's office.

sketch of the school master plan

 

12th September 2023 Tuesday - defects and drainage

home-grown bitter gourd with onions and Sam's chilli oil; slightly burnt and bit oily (as it should be, Sam approves)

 A long day which started at 630 a.m. - Sam is away in KL for mom's check-up - so I left the house earlier to get some work in before the 9 a.m. site visit for defects inspection. In the afternoon, we had an extended discussion discussion about drainage, roading, and platform levels for a landed housing project. This is the first time working with them, and their thinking took me a while to get used to - there was not a clear engineering logic to some of their proposed ideas. 

After squash, I asked for a lift back to the office, the good Doctor tried to dissuade me - stop working la - I told I was going back to cook my dinner (with Sean and Jenny). It made him flinch even more, he does not like cooking. Which is why I sent him this photo after I finished cooking. 

11th September 2023 Monday - I have forgotten the outrage

an axonometric sketch for our discussion with the engineers

 Black Monday for some, and since we have not been following the news (from the US esp) - I have forgotten the outrage which marked this day more than a decade ago. As much as I feel for the people who died, I grief for the two buildings that were destroyed as well. 

Today was a good day for the office, we met with the Lot 49 client and his engineers and it seems that we are able to solve the flood level issues - by lifting the overall level of the development while maintaining all the level changes, ramps and landings for lower car park floors. It is also a good day because I see the good work put in by the two team members; she is able to engage in design discussions with him. They even made a model.

The funnel is a volume to house the facilities which will be distributed on various floors, and accessed in a manner  like 'snakes and ladders'

10th September 2023 Sunday - planting the back yard

basil off-cuts spiked to become new plants (hopefully) the container is a simple poly-bag and the planting medium is compost from our vegetable cuttings

 Sam thinks that I should plant the edibles, as she has a 'black thumb' - so I did. Later that morning, after being sent to the office to work on a Sunday did I realise how devious her plan was. Compliment him for his 'green thumb' and he does the work happily.

9th September 2023 Saturday - designing schools

He leaned over and said, it looks like we have a school to design. It seems that the original idea of 3 architect to pitch for this project has been abandoned. A contractor who was consulted knew us and told him that we're a good bet and that we just want to do a good job. Nice to hear that, wonder who the contractor is. 

Another highlight was overhearing the conversation amongst our young people on the next table - especially of Sara laughing, at the two young men from Antwerp and Guangzhou. The former is the son of Ivy's uni friends visiting Borneo, the latter is Johnson's student, both men to learn about local culture and practice languages, flirting, drinking etc. Luke had never travelled outside China, seen the sea, flown in a plane. He was taking videos of everything, Sara making cocktails, folks opening durian... he's quite loveable. 

 

8th September 2023 Friday - dry needling

 

7th September 2023 Thursday

 

6th September 2023 Wednesday - doors and windows

View of No. 40 from the road

Energised despite the two days away and the late flight-squash date yesterday - it is because I can see things moving and falling into place for several projects. There is work to be done still but I know what to do, and how to do it. Putting in the time is the easy part. 

I sent out the formal invites to the PDF 2023 speakers, and immediately felt better. I have been putting it off, and now that we have 5 speakers confirmed - we have an event. More good news as SY informed that the contingent from Kalimantan are coming, and a coach-full of Brendan's university students are attending as well. 

So, after lunch and my physio - I took the afternoon 'off' and worked from the club, waiting for a swim and the PAMSC meeting/dinner tonight.

Front windows and main door - Sam is worried about rain getting in through the gap in the roof; I thought plants there would benefit from a splash of rain now and again.

Upstairs bedroom doors and windows - I always pair these two together; ventilation even on raining days

I drew several options for the main door; Sam and Sean picked the same design

Met Angela from the gym again after 10 years, she seems happier and we are happy for her.