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Incccy Winccccy Spiderrr Climbing Up the wall........

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Yesssa,..the long awaited tanning deck is ready.Lubbin it! Though the weather was moody that day when we took these shots..but I bettcha on a sunny day,Getting yourselv fried till golden brown under the Borneon sun is an absolute understatement. You Italians probably dont stop till your skin is nicely carbonized.- Exactly the same way I like my porkchops!

All we need is some nice cushions and day beds,.Dang I'll have my piece of Ibiza glam.I mean who need beaches when you can sip your Mojitos by they rainforest canopy!If only Banana Boat sold SPF45 infused insect repellant.

The glitz n glam aside,today I've got that weird twitch.The kind you get when you see something wt great potential and worry it may flop..the same kind you get before gorgeous looking Ms Venezuela Trips and rolls down the steps.We're plannin the bbq menus and buying equipment as well..all the browsing at recipe makes me hungry.Grr im such carnivore, the deprevetion of juicy succulent ( i like mine not too bloody ) steak is driving me nuts! GRRRR WRRRr !!

Its going up today

Today is the day! While im typing this in my ohh soo cooling air-conditioned room,Anton and crew is digging in 30+degree hot sun to erect our first signage..if you squint your eyes enough..i think our hornbill aint that shabby!

Man all the painting we've been doing this past 2 weeks hav paid off,I lubb it!I've only got 1 more signage and 2 birds to finish. *Plopps head on the table like a basket ball.*

Here's the all new Lake house. I recconned it look less like a bus stop now.aint it? Ohh btw there's a resident baby python around 3ft long that loves hanging out under this shade,There's been 3 sightings already.Everytime we jab it awake,..it'll leap right into the water and u get a long trail of bubbles..blubb blub blub.. Im calling him/her Boostoot - after a stray dog in my ex company back in Singapore..just cause it bears the resemblance..a mix of whimsical annoyingness that dog had.Wookie cutesifying a snake aside,..lets hope mama dont come hissing about!

Such discoverries are actually the most exciting part of this project.When you start piecing together the entire food chain within this environment together..You get that same hi of a kid in science class again. Add A into B BOOOOMM! I've seen a dead fish on my hill top(I assume the eagle droped it as a welcome pressie.)mini white owl,a red breasted green bird that sings like the ambulance siren and Boostoot the snake.Not forgetting lotsa giant spiders with glowing legs. YESSA show me moree you sexxxy mother natuuaaaarreee thiingggy!

View From Watch Towers

I must admit, the climb up the towers was a lil precarious.We will probably add more structure reinforcement and ladder handles. But the view..OMG.the View!Initially I really didn't like the way these towers stuck out like sore thumbs..and Anton's idea duo level water collection points meant we need a really solid tower.But once I got on top of the towers,the view was absolutely louder than words. Im not in the mood for a lengthy entry.till next time folks!

So this is where they are hiding

We've also been working on our signage,Im not a die - hard craft lover..but i guess,like every designer,I like the mess once in awhile..its actually quite therapuethic.Gives u space to space out,know what i mean?At least this is alot more fun as compared to making 27lamp shades! So we printed out a template and got cracking so instead of getting hi on glue, this time round we both got stiffies! neck lah!

There are certain stigmas to the local foreign community..People always say the "local philipinos" has got the better skills but you'll find them tricky to handle, the Bugis people are bussiness minded but hasn't got the skills.But Chinese are the ones you gotto look out for,they will slit your throat n juice you dry if yer of any use..Im thinking every1 is just trying to find the shortest time and easiest way to make a decent buck. This past year, Anton with a lil help from Uncle Jalil,we've manage to snif out quite a few local hidden talents, From Carpenter to Wood craftsmen,Cement sculpter to Rattan/Bamboo Weaving.So,As a true yellow(blue) chinese,I gotto say I really love working to with these guys..Finding the source,not only help us save cost,We cauld probably build another using them.Gimme a E.X.P.L.O.I...u can fill in the blanks.Muahahaha! I wish!we're such softies we prolly give em the best rates in town!

Anyhow so this old craftman hidden deep within the woods does brilliant floral carvings ..So we tot,great lets get him to carve us a Hornbill,The body came out fine in the first attempt..But the head took 3 evolution before we cauld turn it from a crow to hornbill head.So im really hoping with all the mastik coating and flat single colors going on,..hope our Hornbill aint gonna look like - Heckyl & Jeckyl those friggin annoying talking magpies.

Wishfull Thinking & Hopefull Dreams

You know, Sometimes I really dont quite understand how our biological clock works when it comes to counting down the months. Its as if we're programmed to feel a certain way in a certain season.

"Febuary" is the unofficial "if somebody dont give me a box of chocalate,I'll dunk my head in a fondue pot." doomed to a bad start month.
"June" is the widely known gimme a break month,You want a break from your boss,you want to break up that "jees how did we last this long" expired Valentine's date.
October's the best,Its the only month the fashion police allow overkilled eye liners,you roam freely in Toy'rus believing its ok to be an oversized kid.
November lets you splurge as if you had a pay raise, Finally December Is the only time of the year when people young n old,big n small celebrate an occasion they cant' be bothered to spell correctly.

Ahhh n then at the struck at 12am,on the final day of every bitchy year,You miraculously gain an invincible surge of energy,hopes and drive for a bettter year ahead..NOT! cuz this January was the worst ever,,..Ali's team decided to throw a mutiny at us right after new year's day.In short,we paid Ali,But Ali didn't pay the rest,and the rest thinks he's kept the money for himself,but we think he's spend it on hookers and new handphones. Since they whole team lived in the same village,technically making them next door neighbours we thought he wouldnt' do something so stupid, but I guess we made the fundamental mistake of T.R.U.S.T. Frankly I dont think Ali is a bad/evil person,He just can't quite manage his finances and he thinks with his willy.

Anyhow luckily we cleared the air and Ali's debts,...as promised he's continued to work for us for more than 2 weeks to repay the debts,we've also got the team back to kickstart other bits,Hopefully we get to open by March for real this time. I feel for Anton,he's now the contractor,the foreman and the worker's head..but then again I've gotto handle exploding sewerage problems at then hotel all the time. Yup guess I'll save the pity points for myself.

2007,a pretty year.

I had to reflect 07' before jotting down my endless list and ever so far new year's resolution. Its been all tooo dam happening for my weak heart ( i can't watch ripley's,..yea its that bad)

Before I got bitten by the reality of life in Sandakan,I was full of hopes,ideals and dreams. Every bit of my pores were oozing with WORLD DOMINATION ARRRGHH!!! I never thought of myself as a big city girl,Im not a big clubber nor do I enjoy being heavily intoxicated by mindless drinking/mindless people and I would count myself an outdoorish person,loved big trees and white beaches.Besides I was getting tired of my jet setting job.As I slurp on my ice cold starbucks latte,I soon develop a serious infatuation with the idea of living in "The Nature City",Sandakan. ...Stones stroll to virgin forests...full of beautifully simple people blah blahh blahhh.NOTT!

First of all..people here are not simple ..and miles away from being beautiful..inside/out.This town is caught with a major identity crisis.Full of migrants,mostly illegal..Filipinos,Indonesians ..every1 here is looking for a better life,a quicker way out of poverty. Scheming to get more by doing less.The middle class have gone so numb with the middle name of cheap labour that they don't seem to react much anymore...even when somebody ram their cars into our walls(My hotel Staff)With the booming palm industry Sandakan is looming with uncultured overnight rags to riches plantation owners. Corruption issues in every single turn..esp in the you know departments.Even the smallest small fry official guy tries to rape its own ppl.And I never understood how the economics works itself out when living standards are 10% higher than the peninsula,but yet wages are 40% lower than given any other states in malaysia.

Heh,i think i conveniently leave out the fact that chinese hardware store owner would'nt even blink an eye when selling super glue to 9yr olds wearing a skin tone thats anything darker than yellow.When these sniffin kids grow up with half a brain left ( im being generous here.),Chinese shop owner like these would go on and on bout how stupid their staff ( now a grown up druggie ) are. Honestly I can't decide which is worst being a total racist,unethically money face or a hypocritical dumb ass?

It was untill while working with a few different contractors,When I saw 12yr old girl in the brick kiln,9 - 11yrs old boy loading up a truck that I saw the uncanny beauty of this rough lil town.Even though, many western societies would be appalled by these working conditions. But sometimes its just a way of life..a natural process for any nations to grow. Once upon a time living conditions in America was bad too.In fact much worse..Desperately in need for a kind delivery of a brutal fact..i decided to take things as it is.And work with what i've got and what I can... Except, life just ain't the same without my nonchalantly market ted ice-cold latte from starbucks. And Moral of the story is simple...

a.) Leave the Africans alone!
b.) Do not go child shopping in Vietnam like Ms Womb Raider!
c.) Dont be ripped off by fair trade labels.

To keep my new year's resolution short - 1) WORLD DOMINATION!

LINE EM UP!

Im hitting KL on thursday...arrghhh lights! lights! civilisation!!grr i feel like a bug flying towards the lights...oooohhhh aaahhh preeeddy lighttts~

anyhow before all that,here's whats happening... I've been dealing with bad town planning and major sewerage n flash flood problems in Sandakan town, honestly I cant' seem to bitch enough about how they should just stop resurfacing the roads and move on the sewage problems!.. Jees some people's livelihood actually depends on em! And to think that I'm at the expense such dodos is really not hot ,..not hott at all!

so,back to our bunch of joy, today I'll like to exhibit what we call "A MASS ORGIE OF LINEWORK"! ahhhh what gives the eye and mind great pleasure. Everywhere I turn,I see distinctive lines/patterns/joineries (is there sucha word?) and it was a great day to take some wicked snaps,.loada sun,loada shadow,loada contrast. Considering we are in an era where Man lil pea brain conveniently roll out from their ear,hence easily lead on by the Media whom is doing a great job promoting adrogynous stick-insect woman as sexy...I guess PD is ohh soo soo sexy too..

Knitting aint' only for grannies!

That's actually Ali's son slicing the bamboo.. he doesn't look too happy bout his job! Ha,.. anyways it was really interesting watching them knitting these bamboo thatch, I can't illustrate the full process cuz i wasn't there but I can assure you its honestly 100% hardwork..never as easy as they make it seem like. Wish I had taken more pix.

These mats will be put up as walls within each duplex. We'v tried out a few,and it looks ab fab!cept for the fact that you can actually peep thru the lil gaps into the bathroom..otherwise it's good to go hehe..will upload more pics this weekend.

2008 - "YII FATT" Cantonese tongue. yii - 2, fatt - 8. In a pretty force fed and purpposeful slang it literally translates to ( easy way to prosperity) sometimes some chinese cultures are just beyong pre-historic times. People keep asking if we had delibrately delayed the launching of this project so that we hit the YII FATT year..Even though, i guess it makes perfect sense to any other chinese bussiness man.It would prolly mean a strategic move to em. Dont get me wrong,I am excited about the new year,just dread the fact that we got thrown this far off our schedule.

Dont judge a log by its bark

I must say, Uncle Jalil is like a lil Jackal sometimes..A mix of crafty fox and dorkish mongrels.This time the scavenger sniffed out a huge dead tree lying in Rudy's foster parent's home.. he's very old look almost look like Bilbo Baggins from LOTR ,whoose got a very old alchoholic wife,legend has it she's the drunken flasher in the village..haah!

Many came,and many left, most decided this was a risk not worth taking.On the outside ,The log looked thoroughly raped (yes rape not wrap!) by the the strangling fig plant,completely overwhelmed and possesed the log. There was the burnt bits all along the log hence it was priced at a very cheap price as unidentifiable timber.

But anton and his eagle eye decided to take a plunge at the irrisistable offer,We got rudy to cut it up and true enough it was a beatifull pc of Selangan Batu under the fig and burn surface..just when we thought the celebration was too soon,The owner jacked the price to twice as much. It's really annoying that we live in a integrityless world...but we had to take the price cuz he cauld easily sell it to sm1else anyways.. we even bribed the old lady some TUAK ( locally made coconut liquor - taste nothin like malibu )

We thought all will be well till Rudy got beaten up by the owner's son for introducing us..Anton had to gather the A' team to meet the "negotiate'' with the owners again,..twe they got there'.. All that old woman wanted was some Guiness ..hahhaah so anyways we got some1 else to cut the stuff up and get the hell outta there as soon as possible just incase she decides to flash.

Random Rants

I've been day dreaming a lot at work,its that wretched absolutely fuked neck i've got lah..Can't sit still for more than 10mins.Jalil has got some new chicks (the cute fuzzy 1s not booties u fools)Unknowingly it set my mind on a long patient course...a long wait till the day when dad finally makes the effort to pop by. Yeah, bloody chickadees and the bitter-sweet moments.Pfftt!

Its Showoff Sundays