the daily male

In my end-of-year reflective mood - 2007 has been busy, a big jumble of things falling together, ups and downs - but yet, uneventful.
Positive developments: I got promoted, I spent months working in the middle east - where I had always wanted to be, i passed the first bit of my CFA, i racked up lots of hotel and airline miles ...

but somehow life feels more empty than ever. I'm beginning to understand what preachers mean when they talk about that void in our lives - though I'm not sure if religion is going to be the answer

and i don't know if love is either ...

2007 is the year when i realised how meaningless transient pleasures can be - this is the year I "discovered" saunas - but how quickly the novelty wears off into disappointment, and how it has accellerated my desensatization to casual sexual pursuits.

anyway I'm going to pray for love in 2008

Continued my journey to entirely pointless destinations in the region - Doha this weekend. Not too bad actually, quite well laid out and not quite as crazyhecticbuilding as Dubai... the Asian Games site was also quite impressive

... and surely only Las Vegas can beat this Venetian themed mall for kitsch...

Looking forward to going home to KL soon... though there are troubles on the home-front once again. sigh. Nothing's ever perfect is it ...

'Mamak' in Bahrain backlane

An unrelated story - ever heard of the "couple's police"? Yeah, the nasty bouncers who stand at the entrance to every club in the Gulf and bar you from entering unless you have a woman with you. Makes clubbing a real hassle, and reached a slightly ludicrious point last week when a few of us wanted to checkout this allegedly gay/mixed bar in Dubai and were turned away cos it was "couple's only"!!

Having said that a bunch of old white men ahead of us got in. Sigh, nothing like going out in Asia. Nothing plays like home turf.

Caught this pic on a roadtrip to the mountains in the south of the country... camels wandering on the road divider

Seems an appropriate photo to frame a philosophical statement about my life... but can't think of one

Parents are here visiting me this weekend, which is very pleasant. But still longing to go home.

Been thinking about it (as far as such things lend themselves to being thought about) - I do miss having a bf. Someone I can kinda rely on, plan things with, go on night drives with. And at the end of the day, someone I can bring home to meet the folks...

793 hours to go.

That's what the countdown on my colleague's screen says. To the end of this project.

Am feeling stiff all over, in all the wrong places - subserviently seated at my desk in the office waiting to be summoned by the nazi manager. Granted it's *just* 930pm but there's only that much time you can sit around googling and pulling numbers out of your arse. No wonder all my slides stink. I crave to do something with an intellectual core, or meaning, or purpose. But apparently those jobs don't let you save for your childrens' education (or alcohol and holidays in this case).

It's just like war. 90% boredom and 10% fear.

Sandstorms around today. Thunderstorms predicted all over the country this weekend. Just when I was planning a trip to the coast ...

... would really love a massage tonight. But somehow the particular 'male-only' spa in my hotel doesn't appeal to me. Not quite the 'male-only' sort of experience I am used to ... but who knows they may have Indonesian boys here too ...

Long absense but not so much has changed.

No more Jakarta but Dubai now instead - don't thikn the city lives up to all its hype though - my idea of a glamorous city is not one where there's dust and speeding taxis everywhere.

Looking forward to going home. Need to sit down and sort out what I want from my life... funny skimming through the stuff I've written down here. The glossy layer's definitely been taken off my enthusiasm - just age? Nah, don't think so. Just lack of direction.

But that's going to change :-)

heh.. sunday evening AGAIN so soon!!!... sitting sulking in my hotel room now in Jakarta, there was the longest queue at the airport; SIA having just spat out a bellyload of babbling passengers...

This weekend was good though. Was crazily stressed at work on Friday, but got off the plane at 930pm, showered at 1030pm, and was in the therapeutic chambers of Frangi by 1130pm! ... hadn't been there since May but didn't feel that way :) ... familiar faces, and a couple of nice friendly new ones too... yes, the truth is I did miss hanging out with the boys! ... Sat night was lured to LQ, but I'd never seen it as quiet before!! Was nice just sitting and chatting though, not having to grind up agst anyone... hehe

Could the crowds have gone to La Queen?!?! That name seems to be the buzzword amongst KL's handbag cognescetti ... though WHY anyone would name a place like that beats me... 'CockKing' or something wld have been SO much more pleasant (and auspicious)

... yeah it seems like i've gotten over my break-up really quickly huh? guess am just trying to look forward to the future ...

so here's to the coming week!