Revival

Time flies. February is nearly gone. 2010, the fastest year on record.

Eight weeks.

Two perfect weddings in two corners of the continent. Official photographs yet to be released.

A perfect honeymoon. Island paradise. The Maldives. Let's figure out how to prevent that miracle from being wiped off the face of the planet. Amazing diving. Certifications for both of us. Repeat. Paradise.

A good bonus in a bad year. Truckloads of work. Difficult. Interesting. Challenging.

Time with the wife. Splendid potage parmentier. Sachin Tendulkar's 200*. Good books. Great movies. A run here and a run there.

Some signs of hope, on the relocation front. Fingers crossed. I hope things work out. For her, and for us.

Sudden end to Hillview Green saga. I can't believe we've stayed there for 33 months, in all combinations. That makes it 55 months since my return to Singapore. Well, I am in the Philippines right now, so that is just a technical return.

Could be homeless in 18 days. Unlikely, right?

A future full of hope. And uncertainty. I am really bad with uncertainty. It takes over my nerves, flows through my blood, and leaves me with no escape from myself. I need to master dealing with uncertainty.

So I can leave a bit of myself for the real things in life. For the book, the photographs, the languages, the outdoors. And, for her.

Scorecard

2009 was about...

The better half, now the only one
Bonds old and bonds new
Two weddings and one more
Half-decent photographs and a really good camera
40 books, a dozen too few
Turkey, Australia, Chiang Mai
Tioman and the Great Barrier Reef
Many a step, and many more miles
Of flatmates come and flatmates gone
The ghost of unemployment
The cholesterol no more
The Economist audio edition
A personal financial milestone
This blog

Not a cent in the stock market rebound
The unwritten book
Too little exercise
Not enough home-cooked food
Going to work, getting nowhere
Family sinews done, undone, redone
A language not learnt
A mountain not climbed
A life without music
An existence without a cause

Continent

Content in Australia

Solitude

It is finally here. Tomorrow. From here on, it will be our shared solitude. You and me, and the universe.

I am so happy we have arrived. Yet, the journey begins now. And, I am thrilled that I get to carry our bags.

I look forward to the beginning of the rest of our lives.

Mi amor.

Down Under

Was excellent. I have had my fill.

2300 km on the road. 7 flights. 65 hours and 4300 km on a train between the two great oceans. Diving in the Great Barrier Reef. Sydney, always special. Beautiful Adelaide of the Don. Rainforests, waterfalls, riversides, beaches, deserts, sheep stations, goldfields, wineries. Hamlets in the middle of nowhere, Cook, Forrest, Broken Hill. Sunrise and sunset. Uluru and Kata Tjuta. Kings Canyon. Backpackers. Daniel Huertas in seat R3. Walkabout. Wallabies and camels.

And, time with my little brother. Not so little any more.

Sunset

Tioman, taken with the good old IXUS.

Prospects

All around me, I see evidence of how an MBA has the remarkable power to positively change the prospects of an individual, without effecting any change in his constitution.

And, I wonder.