16.8.2025 Saturday - saying no and letting people have their own way

124/80

Today I find out that HP is an only child, and one of the few who traveled out of her hometown to get a university degree. Her school friends are mostly married with children, and still in the hometown. Her parents are also still there, running a small coffee shop that opens at 5:30 a.m. and close after lunch or once all the noodles are sold out. Dad is in his 70s but looks younger - she tells me, her mom is in her fifties. She tells me this while she drove to Impiana Hotel where we have organised a tour for some university students.

  

13.8.2025 Wednesday - egos and insecurities

called up for an impromptu site visit to discuss air-cond locations and ceiling heights; interestingly that the M&E engineer was not present.

A client once asked me what is the most difficult part of a project - 'the construction part' I replied. And went on to explain that it is not the management of the contract which is the most challenging but the management of the various people in the construction team with their various egos and insecurities, their various capabilities and shortfalls.

I used to rail against who are insecure and inaccurate, but nowadays I deal with the matter at hand; and ignore whose fault or responsibility it is. 

Sean tells us that another two floors later and we would have reached the full height of the office block

 

Later that day - we were thanked for showing up on a rainy afternoon to solve a problem with water ingress into the hotel lobby

5th April 2023 Wednesday - thunder and lightning

There is a moment in the middle of the afternoon when I normally get ready to leave the office for tennis or squash. I look out the window at the overcast sky, and there is a rumbling of thunder and a hint of lightning. I ask if anyone knows how to say thunder and lightning in Hokkien - no one does. Except for Jenny. She and I start to talk about the website material and the portraits we need and how to take them. By then we are all milling around and suggesting locations for the 'photo-shoot', and talking about other things as well while Jenny and I continue to discuss the company profile and the new company profile in PAMSC website. No one is working but they are contributing to the office. 

  

model for the wall art in the lobby of a new hotel

Earlier in the day, Sam and I finalise our plans to move folks into the new company; new contracts and a small pay increase. L seems to have recovered and we have a good meeting with the Renna contractor and client; all on the understanding that there will be frank talk and fair play. 

Fabian drops by at 2pm, and seems to have momentum to move site works forward - I hope that Ramadhan does not slow him down too much.

 

21 March 2022 Thursday - some disappointments

the impiana hotel being renovated

 UNIMAS at 930 for Bau masterplan studio, the students seem to be on track though the ones whom we are paying special attention to help do not appear to catch on. The blank stares from one young man was particularly disappointing, I had set my mind to help pull him through this semester, he had repeated Studio 2 before. 

WORK provided another disappointment, when the lift contractor was not forthcoming with information, causing us to lose time and effort. Interestingly, it was his son who met us on site later that day to clarify and promise to resolve matters by next week. They neglected to tell us that they had ordered the lift and was unable to make the changes to suit site conditions - instead they stalled and argued on the phone. 

'I am disappointed that your father was not forthright with us' I said to the son on site at 5pm, after I apologised to him at 4:45pm for raising my voice on the phone with him.

Sketch 8/30 - Billy Joel (Feb 2014)

Life happens in cycles, and one learns to take the good with the bad. I remind myself to enjoy the good stuff when it happens.

Recently, I had to travel out of town for long periods of time (arbitration) and this meant time away from my family and I missed the simple routine of my day; the early morning run to breakfast, designing and the USK sketching excursions.

At the end of another long day, I worked in the hotel lounge instead of returning to my room - trying to find comfort in the company of strangers. The piano player started playing;  familiar tune, I know this one, work was set aside as I tried to recall the tune, I know the words...

"she can kill with her smile,

she can wound with her eyes"

And as I listened and sketched, the evening passed very pleasantly. With a little help from Billy Joel.