Sunday, March 30, 2025
Thursday, March 27, 2025
Wednesday, March 26, 2025
26.3.2025 Wednesday - another nice lunch
MWAA meet to talk about the possibility of hiring the new guy; who seems polite and determined in equal measures. We talked about reducing shares and hiring him to improve our BIM capability.
I meet with the Binapuri people at 130pm, this time I get a better vibe from them. I really hope this one moves along - we need new clients. I have a long lunch and return to the office after a good work-out.
Monday, March 24, 2025
Saturday, March 22, 2025
Thursday, March 20, 2025
21.3.2025 Friday - rubbing their noses in it.
This morning after posting yet another project feature in the Borneo Architecture Journal website, I thought that although the few of us who do, do it as a matter of course. And that many more of our peers struggle to put a project forward. They simply do not have anything to publish. So what do they do all day?
SY and I chat over lunch - about what folks do; they complain about client changing design, they complain about low fees, they complain about not enough work, they like complain. But ultimately, they are doing less of what they studied and trained to do - and have nothing to show for it. SO when we keep asking for them to publish articles, we are also rubbing their noses in it. Because they have nothing to show for all these years of working and working.
20.3.2025 Thursday - team spirit
George is in town and works with PH and me to sort out our housing type for the Precinct One design pitch. Our scheme borrows from the ramp house; the garden steps, the ramp ascending to the living spaces. It is unusual and for that, I am fond of it. They work late and submit it in the late evening. I am very fortunate to have a team like this, and also to have work partners to collaborate on the other housing type; Leong and LH designed the semi - detached units.
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| The school project, I hope they appoint us soon |
Wednesday, March 19, 2025
16.3.2025 Sunday - a run, then a good run towards the finish
The good run is for the report, I'm happy with it. Jenny suggested I structured my words around my tenets about Shade, Thresholds, Permeability, and Sufficiency. And it works. It helps to frame my thoughts about my words, she has more confidence in me than myself.
15.3.2025 Saturday - Awards
I work for the whole day on the awards submission; writing, composing the report and reviewing the panels. Jenny is there, luckily for me while George works from KL. He's doing the panels, Fiona reviews our panels and give constructive comments.
I'm tired by the end of the day. More so because I have not exercised today.
Friday, March 14, 2025
14.3.2025 Friday - Toni
Toni rings to say he is coming to Kuching next week. He is the person in charge of a school expansion we are designing in Kalimantan, he will give us their comments when we meet. I offer him and his colleagues a place to stay. We previously designed their Primary School expansion, and their Bible College Extension in Solo (Suratkarta), Java. So I can say that they are repeat clients.
13.3.2025 Thursday - Christy
Daniel from Shiangly ring up to ask about view points and sun angles for his drone photos of our hospital. His phone number registers as 'Christy Khaw' in my phone - I tell him that this was one of the admin staff at the hospital years ago.
Daniel does a good job with the photos, the hospital looks good in the morning sun.
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
Sunday, March 9, 2025
8.3.2025 Saturday - a long run on a whim
I thought I would try a zone 2 training run, only to realise that it only works if I go for a long run. Longer than my usual 3-5K. So I continue down Rock Road until I loop past The Spring up the highway and then to the office. It felt good, I think I got the breathing right, but my thighs were sore from the extra distance: 9km. I will continue with the longer run from now on, twice a week - Sunday and Wednesday
Sam is still ill, and unable to keep anything down. Sean and I work late and eat at the corner kopitiam at Hui Sing. Though I would have preferred to have Sam there, I enjoy the time alone with Sean. (Judy is away at Sematan).
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| if there were trails like this nearby, I would be running more frequently. (Cataract Gorge) |
Thursday, March 6, 2025
6.3.2025 Thursday - back at work
6am to the gym to push some weight around, have not done this for a week plus, then a quick walk to the office to see GB and AS about final accounts matters. Then Freddie drops by to brief me about work done while I was away - looks like we have a little too much on our plate at the moment. But this is a good thing, provided we continue to communicate regularly and for me to handle the deadlines, and accountability to client without stressing the team.
10am I thought it would be nice to have a quiet chat with Fi downstairs to hear her opinion about the Precinct 1 housing presentation - she thinks we can do better, and she think that we were one of the 2 already selected by the client prior to the 'pitch'.
11am the chat with the glazing specialist confirms the way forward, I let him lead the conversation, just as we thought he would like it. Ultimately we got the confirmation needed, and that is the main thing. FL and I decide to ask the client to consider the central AC system (who agreed to re-visit the selection).
12noon - small lunch (2 eggs) with SY later joined by the LEK group. They seem to be doing well, just not as sharp on some matters (as we two oldies are) - we are impulsive while they are careful. This is not a bad thing.
130pm - I leave for a meeting with the 49 project team, they have many questions; the team answer most well enough for a 'I can see that you guys are on top of matters regarding this project' from the senior man.
430pm - squash for the first time in ten days; and with a proper warm up; whack the ball around, stretching - the good doctor finds it hard to keep up.
The end of a long day - first day back from holidays; folks express surprise expecting me to rest for a day or so before resuming activities. I don't have that luxury - there is much to do.
5.3.2025 Wednesday - Melbourne. Singapore. Kuching
Sam wakes early to cook up a few days of breakfast for amah; stuff she finds in the fridge is cooked into a Korean style Bachan (small dishes) for her breakfast in the coming days. Kim-Louie (amah) has been living on her own for 21 years since her husband David died. She is Penang-Chinese from BM, but in the years spent here she has adapted herself well in the local culture. She eats her rice with a fork (much to the dismay of Lena) and says 'yea' with a slight Aussie accent. She is mobile for 82 years, she drives to the local supermarket and takes part in weekly trips to the 'Crown' for pokies, outing with her local community group for lunches in the country, to flower shows and farmers' markets. She attends the local Catholic church and solves jigsaw puzzles on her iPad (addicted like a teenager to computer games).
At 10 am Lena drives us to the airport, we think one of our bags is over the weight limit, but Sam is good at solving this. My backpack gets heavier..I want a meat pie before we depart Australia, but no luck, and no food until we reach Kuching. It has been raining heavily and everything is a little gloomy, a bit of a let down from the past 9 days - but it is expected. I am looking forward to work tomorrow and have a early night (probably due to the the time difference in Australia).
4.3.2025 Tuesday - what a long day
630 a.m. The day starts with a walk down to the river, there is a park that runs along it. We know because we have seen it, but for some unknown reason we have not wondered down there. SO while the others are preparing their breakfasts, I go for a look. 'Go - go and have a look' was the encouragement. I am glad I did; this is what can be done - to boost the quality of lives for the local community; it is a shortcut - I see some people walking briskly dressed for work, a man who nodded to me on the way there and returned with a newspaper and a carton of milk, cyclists, runners, and dog-walkers use this linear park as part of their routine.
10am - we leave for the airport and buy gifts for FL and JY. Freddo text to say afternoon tea will be 4pm instead of 3pm. After landing at Tullamarine, we send 'amah' home and settle her in before going to the supermarket for last minute gift/food shopping. Then it is off to Melbourne to see if I can recognise any part of Oakleigh (where I spent one year in 1983 while studying Year 12). No, it is all new to me. But the conversation with Freddo seem a continuation of the ones we had at uni, slotted in comfortably despite the 35 year hiatus.
And the day goes on, we leave Freddo at Melbourne Central he felt a little spare when I hug him; he needs to eat more. We walk slowly to Carlton to tempt ourselves with another milk stout at The Lincon; we succumbed and sit down for a pot each. Then onwards to see Edina - she is such good dinner table company; frank, thoughtful and ambitious. The conversation continue after dinner to a gelato on the pavement outside PIDAPIPO, and in the car ride home to Point Cook. What a long day, and a lovely one.
3.3.2025 Monday - Port Arthur and a walk into town
An early morning drive to Port Arthur; a former penal colony and prison, now a UNESCO World Heritage site (2010). The drive takes about an hour on quite small roads, on two occasions the Tasman Highway is a single carriage-way across the ocean.
I am more fond of landscapes when there are buildings on it, and if these buildings are historic, decayed, slightly falling down I like it even more. Port Arthur has all this; the buildings set on the hilly terrain means that you can see almost all of them from a distance, the site is at the water's edge making it very romantic (though I am sure the prisoners then did not think so, as it was likely used as a sewer and rubbish tip). The buildings which were restored are open for viewing, showing traces of life then; Sam and I listened in on several of the guided tours, while the ruins are well preserved with well designed interventions for access and view platforms, as well as structures to reinforce the damaged and free standing walls.
At 130pm - we meet Brenda and her husband Andy at the Port Arthur Lavender Farm. They have a place at Eaglehawk Neck. Brenda has her own practice, do small projects. Andy grew up in Malaysia, in Penang as one of the RAF families in Butterworth. I won't mind spending more time with them over a meal next time.
After returning to Hobart, I convince Sam and Lena to walk in town for drink. They have not seen much of the city, and it is a warm day. We use the HOPE and ANCHOR; the oldest pub in Hobart as a destination, stopping here and there to shop for dinner ingredients. The pub was not a favourite, the bar staff are all not locals and do not seem to know their drinks.
Saturday, February 22, 2025
Friday, February 21, 2025
20.2.2025 Thursday - Nuked
Work is all about networking these days - I used to think that I was slow to learn this only to realise that what we have been practising as a collective is all about networking. Today a friend from the West drops in for a chat and to follow up on how he and BES can collaborate on upcoming events. He is curious to know how we work locally - I explain about MWAA.SML and he seems to have difficulty grasping the notion. SY drops in and offers a partnership in May, pro-bono - and again he has some difficulty understanding. I told perhaps he should not analyse but simply take up the offer.
Today is a better day physically and I am happy with squash although I have a early night; tired from all the games.
19.2.2025 Wednesday - resort design well received
At 10am, I see another client, (you can only do this in a small town like Kuching, where travel distances are short) We have a good meeting, but my companion is not his usual self; a bit more impatient than usual, distracted and generally not helpful. After our 11am nursery visit to confirm plant species and tree sizes, I have a coffee with Freddie, who has an interesting suggestion - that I speak to the other partner about their plans for their partnership.
Coincidentally, I meet her at lunch and I suggest a chat; she and I about future plans, she likes the idea.
Tuesday, February 18, 2025
18.2.2025 Tuesday - we have a school project but no fees
I spend the morning from 5:00 until 7:30 at home, and then from 8:00 until 11:00 designing and drawing up the floor plans for the school in Balai Karangan; a pro-bono project working with Toni and Craig. I show the plans to Leong and the others, Leong makes some comments and offer some suggestions - the others are too busy with their own deadlines to comment or look closely. I will compile this with the 3Ds and send to Toni this week, it has taken too long. When I walk to work, I think about whether the young intern helped with this project or not, since I have to re-draw everything. I decide fairly quickly (by the time I took to walk from home to work) that she helped; in her explorations helped to congeal the structure, our discussions helped with the building sections (and later the 3D). And she will continue to help, after the scheme is packaged and sent off, she will continue to CAD my sketches for construction and submission drawings.
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