PNG'd

'You guys are C*mmies?? So why am I seeing rudimentary free markets?'

Continuing with a grand tradition of never using a proper noun where a hedged reference will do, see if you can guess where I am now:

"Hello, I am a completely sterile flowering tree."

Its symbol is a flower called the 'Bauhinia Blakeana' and it is the second system of the 'one country - two systems' concept.

The who;e city is like Manhattan without the architectural self-restraint. With no Brooklyn to expand to or even a Jersey to house the workers it has to go straight up. The population density is incredible and allows for whole streets in which the first three floors are restaurants, shops, and services. Above that are the people and offices. And not just tall buildings. The city goes right up a freaking mountain. Ground level on the North entrance could be six stories below ground level on the South side.

You got vertigo? You, my friend, are fucked. The most fun so far has been on the elevated walkways and escalators. You can step out and be 100' off the ground in three quick strides. It's like living in 'Super Mario Brothers' (that's an antique video game, kids).

I only have three days here and then I'm off. We traveled here to visit her parents for Christmas, which of course made Mom a mite sad (Sorry Mom, but I'm horse trading this for good things, I promise). Her parents are actually living on the mainland in a city I keep getting told 'is just like Cleveland if it had 12,000,000 people'. I spent a solid week looking for a guide book and only found one . The city has more people than some nations and yet the country is so big it's a total after-thought. Let's see how this goes

Posted by pngd at 08:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

You can't PNG me. I quit!

Suggestions were made to me at the beginning of the year that went something like this: "You're going someplace neat. You should write home about it". For the last few months I've been home and back at work so I haven't been writing.

I left in a hurry and finished my last checklist (more goddamn badges) a few hours before sealing my suitcase. There were a few loud noises and some important people made silly decisions but thankfully, nothing big enough to slow my roll. I got to select and train my replacement. I introduced 'em to my colleagues and our contractors. I did a last run through the international ghetto, drank myself into a quick stupor, and hopped on a plane. No goodbyes that I didn't have to. I'd like to come back and besides: I'll see 'em all again. And if I get lucky I'll work with them. The world’s too small not to.

I don't see a lot of hope but as long as my colleagues can keep working, they will. And as long as they keep working there's a chance things could get better. Hell, there's a chance I'll get hit by a bus and wake up looking like Rupert Everett. It could happen.

I came back home to keep doing the same job I'd been doing before I left. This time I knew everyone who called and wrote, I'd been to the places I heard about, and I knew how to fix the problem before even hearing the end of the sentence. The job was easier, I was more productive, and I've never been more bored. So I'm headed back to school to get an MA in 'Shit Done Blowed Up - Whatchu Gonna Do Bout It?' and be yelled at by people who definitely know more than I do. If I'm lucky this means I'll be able to go right back into the same line of work for a little more cash and a lot more blame.

Hopefully I'll get to work and travel during the semester breaks. And if I do, I'll write about it. So on with the show

Posted by pngd at 07:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)