Big Tony

There is a place in Chewang called the Pink lady. As I have been told pink money and blue business are the call signs for the third sexes.  We drive past it in a taxi and the ladies there look absolutely normal. …………… but that would be wrong. Apparently the way to tell is if they act overly girly.
Don’t get me wrong, I think some of the most attractive females in Thailand are trainees. Rather they are the ideal of what we think females should be. The regular females are quite normal looking, acting, and small, and they are much less aggressive.

I start my pool training for my diving certificate tomorrow in a beautiful pool facing the beach, and set in between 2 large bars. I hear we do drills all day. Let you know more tomorrow.

The feeling of tropic wind. Humid, but bearable. We arrived on this
slightly ghetto but tropical island off the golf of Thailand. KO SAM is
known for it’s coconuts, spa , diving and it’s beaches. 
We have
arrived partially because a long vacation is due, but also because we
been putting our bodies through weekly Frat initiation rituals since we
started living in Shanghai. James, my intrepid comrade has only had 2
years in Shanghai, while I 11, but both of us are in need or what
SpaSamui has to offer. 

The Spa boost a super healthy restaurant and
cafe facing the ocean. Yuppie/ hipsters and baby boomers vacation here
to regain their livers and detoxify all that city living we have stored
up. Like a knot in your muscle that has gone way too long without a
massage, toxins build up in your liver, kidney, stomach, muscles and
are even stored in your fat cells. We take in toxins from the city air,
alcohol, drugs, and many times, we produce our own, from work or life
stress. The spa gives us clay drinks, feed us veg broth, and
supplements. The fast for 7.5 days cleans you out in every way. In the
morning and afternoon everyone retreats to their private bathrooms to
use the colemas. For those of you who don’t know what it is, visit Spa Samui. 

The catalyst for this is surely the bet between James, Mark, Rick ,
Jimmy and I to lose the most amount of weight by end of March. Jimmy is
the clear contender. Tho, from 112kg in Jan, this morning, I am down to
105. 4 more days to go, and we will see if James and I are contenders
by the time we are done. At least we won’t break even. Afterall, my BMI
healthy weight is at 85kg, so I have much that I can afford to shed.

Tho the food on Koh Samui look delicious. And no, not because we are
fasting, because with the clay drinks and supplements there are no
feels of hunger. All urges to eat are strictly emotional, or habitual.
You start to realize how little energy we really need, and how much we
eat to feed our mood.

One of our goals is to try as many spas on the island as possible. The
most recent one we had at the Renaissances was a definite 5 star
pampering. Tho the massage on Chewang beach facing the open sea has
it’s own merits.

Jet Ski and Dive courses. The 2 seater Yamaha JetSki are powerful and
more than a little dangerous with high waves and full throttle.

My push email, wifi and cafe internet keeps me connected and partially working while I am here. Tho the downtime in between is enough to relax. Hard not to, when you are looking at the lapping ocean.

On the second day that we arrived we did see a twister come in from the ocean and reach the island. James has pictures. One of those WOW,.. so that’s what ocean water getting sucked into the sky looks like.

I start
my Padi Dive course today. A 4 day thing while I fast. Blog more when I am done with my training and certification.

Have a great weekend.

So back on the health kick again.
South Beach, higher fiber, no alcohol for 4 weeks- 3 month.
Then detox- poop camp is in the cards.

Still working to get down to 98Kg, with my current workload, and exercise.

Again, the idea is to get involved in a relationship, have effective usage of time during work, do more nature related activities,  and fall asleep naturally after working out.

Dee has a pretty true saying in this day and age. The adopters maybe a bit superficial, but I doubt there is a woman out there who doesn’t think it is a little bit of true.

The Best Man are like Coffee: The best ones are firm, rich, not easy to find, long for him it in the morning and can keep you up all night.

The Best Woman and Man will have attributes that you admire in your parents.

Look at a girl’s mother to see what she will likely be at 50, and see how she treats her husband.

3 recent movies that have had have actually given thought. Click , My Girlfriend is a Superhero and You Me and Dupree.

Disappointing TV shows: The Unit, Alias, Lost, Studio 60 and Gray Anatomy.
Cool TV shows: My name is Earl, Heroes,

Cool father and son flick, Thank you for smoking.
I have been identifying with the father types much more than son characters lately.
I think it’s my loins way of telling me that I may have to find fertile ground to plant seed soon.

How do you urge parents to go on vacation, when one is getting a bit too old for long walks, and the other feels bad about spending money. Since, the elder parent is by far the one that should go on vacation, and as many as possible before he is no longer able to due to looming health issues, it is a high priority. However, the other parent find it hard for her to spend money. The value system she has been brought up with, rewards her emotionally for finding deals and saving money. Money spent is money wasted.

Therefore a 5 star hotel will be downgraded to a 4 star hotel,  and vacations will be planned like a cattle cart just to save 1500 rmb.

As a dutiful son, the only solution is to lie to the parent, and doctor the receipts.
Send them on a delux vacation and tell them that it was won in a lottery by someone who wanted cash and sold to us for 40% of the actual value. Anything less would be too obvious.

So, our projects are moving forward, and its a great thing.

Happy - and moving.

Been moving Gray Anatomy.

I swear, I have never seen a bunch of more self-involved, nausestic, sluts.  At times, they make me sick.  Alley McBeal, I can understand, you don’t expect much from Lawyers, but doctors?

No wonder healthcare in the US suck.

Moving new furniture in.

How are things going with everyone?

Cool Shit Review from friend / friend.

http://www.salling.com/

http://www.salling.com. developed for macs initially but looks like they have a windows app now too. lots of cool little features and can download different shareware functions users have designed. My friend primarily use it to control iTunes on his computer while sitting in the backyard and to control power point or keynote (the mac version of power point) when giving presentations. also pulls up the contact in your address book on your computer when you get a call and can also log incoming/outgoing calls in your calendar. basic geek goodness…

as to wireless music in office and at home, pick up an "airport express" from apple. $119. a basic wifi node with the advantage of being the size of a bar of soap (therefore, take with me when going on trip so can get wireless in hotel, etc) and has an audio out plug. 
just plug into you stereo and iTunes will automatically recognize. 
therefore, can sit at my desk at the office and control the stereo across the studio. can also "bridge" them to create wireless in every room with only one being plugged into an adsl box. has the side advantage of then being able control music from one pc for multiple rooms in house or office. pretty slick.

Contributed by Grant Prigge

Not to be mistaken to be "making it about me".

So I am involved in this organization that helps me
build self awareness and help me to build my startup companies. It’s called YEO
or EO. One of the core elements of EO is the forum experience where Gestalt
language protocol is used for discussion in confidential forum groups of 8-10
ppl. Gestalt allows members to speak of only our own experiences which forces
members to look inward while in a group setting, share experience among 8-10
ppl, and allow discussion based on the experience sharing instead of advice
giving. This allows each person to perceive and take away from the information
what they will, and develop it into their own conclusions therefore fostering
self growth.

Obviously experience sharing among 8-10 seasoned
entrepreneurs in a structured environment on specific subjects will allow for
much insight so often lacking in stand alone entrepreneur’s lives.

It’s all a very deep, almost religious bonding
experience for entrepreneurs. So, no surprise that I have adopted experience
sharing and non-judging language communication patterns in my daily life.

So it was weird that watching Joey (2X15) (Joey as in
Tribbane from "Friends", sort of the Frasier to Cheers, type of TV
show) which is not known for it’s deep content, provided non too subtle prospective
on what others may think of all of this.

Prospective on what non-YEO forum members who have
never heard of Gestalt might think of the "I", story telling,
experience sharing type of communication.

In the episode:

Joey and her sister kept on ragging on their neighbor
about her propensity to "talk about herself by telling about her own
experience in less than 3 seconds of a conversation". Actually, Joey
referred to it as "making it about you". Which prompted me to
remember the one or 2 times,  I received weird looks from ppl, when I chimed in on conversations with my
experience sharing stories.

Most of the time, conversations are about emotional
pats, self masturbation, boosting, seeking approval, validation, making people
laugh, charming, all the while still giving each other updates and information
about each other.  All mixed in to satisfy informational and emotional exchange.

 
While in forum, we automatically go in to experience
sharing as the only way to communicate. But I am sure outside of forum many people are not
use to this, and actually may think story telling is a way to make it about
"yourself".

Especially on an emotional patting level. People who
want to talk about themselves actually resent listening about others. They
prefer the masturbation speech pattern.

Anyways, it strikes me as funny that a simple ha ha TV
comedy like Joey would actually give prospective about EO forum language
protocol in daily conversation. Nothing like peer pressure to give  prospective. Even if it was from Joey on TV.

Guess the solution, is to actually preface "story
telling" with a disclaimer of "take away from this what you will"
and give the “anecdote" while omitting I or me and focus on the event & case
study. 

 
Or just to listen to the ones who only want to discuss
about themselves and give them the 1 & 2 pats, they need. 

Anyways, can’t say I never learned nothing from Joey.

 
FYI: Below are excerpts from YEO forum training
documents to give more understanding of the EO forum experience.

YEO’s 

Mission

 is to support, educate and encourage young entrepreneurs to succeed in building companies and themselves.

Forum is a group of 8-10 peers who meet on a regular basis to discuss life’s issues in a structured and safe environment.

I
will speak from my own experience rather than give advice.

I
will use “I” statements and avoid
saying “one” or “you.”

I will not ask attacking questions.

When members share their experience
the resulting discussion battery of facts, truths and a database of qualified
experiences from which we can learn.

Babblings:

Usually by this time, APNC would be full of workaholic blood pissing coffee drinking drones by now. This year, all the original EAC folks have taken a step back to smell the roses. It’s a good thing for health and sanity of mind I am sure, but getting use to this relaxed lifestyle maybe a road down to addiction for chilling.

In good health, in good spirits, and fairly low stress.

Still need to get back on board for food, smokes, and spirits (the black and soda type), but all in all, not too bad.

It is time to get back to work tho. I can feel the wheels turning a bit faster, even tho we are all getting used to the relaxed lifestyle of only 7-8 hours a day.

I use to sniff @ home office, but really with my internet phone, msn messenger, email, ppt, websites, online collaboration office and 6 email address, I seem to spend a shit load of time in front of my laptop.

When the Dell got hit with a virus, my entire life came to a stand still.

I felt like Josh Lyman from West Wing season 7, when his assistant took his black berry away. electronic withdraw.

Chased by chain smoking, and bouts of KTV fits.

Finally, upon recovering my dell, and slowly but carefully re-installing all the software did I feel slightly recovered.

Birthdays, engagement parties, house warming, and kids being born. Turning 30 something is no joke. One can’t even pretend to be a young adult anymore, all the maturing around us drags us along like a rip tide. If you fight the wave, you will tumble in the surf. It’s much better to try to body surf gracefully for the beach. Afterall, ppl have been saying that 40 is now the new 30.

Tho I doubt they would mean that in a soothing fashion for those who are fighting aging and bolding. It is more of a commentary to increased cost of living, and higher marriage age. People are making families and buying houses later in life, because of the things depicted in Sex and the City and Friends. Typically, you don’t find your calling (second job) until early 30s unless you went to med/grad/mba. Even then, by the time, you get back out to the corporate working world after higher education, you are usually 28-29. By then, you are just starting to save up enough money for the downpayment to the first house, and the woman of your dreams is coming back down to reality and just starting to realize that Sex and the City is only a TV show.

Settling down in the early 30s is more of a result of increased time to reach financial stability, then it is about generation differences.

Buy lottery tickets, save money at Walmart, drive less, getting interest only mortgages, pool 2 incomes for one house, these are all results of increased cost of housing, and increased education time needed to reach income level for the increased cost of housing.

Because housing to male is the same as nesting to females.

Don’t even get me started on cost of wedding ring or wedding in this day and age.

So, like I said, time to get back to work, to make sure that 40s don’t feel like the 30s financially, and get healthier so that 40s do feel like the 30s physically.

…………………………………………………

Thinking about what to write, I keep on wanting to make coffee. Coffee my friend just brought back from Columbia. I don’t know if it would have made a difference on focus, but I have a feeling that this entry is going to be all over the place.

So, my new virtual office is up. BasecampHQ accessed through www.paiholdings.com
Everything is so convenient now a days, that only when you lack ADSL, do you feel frustrated. Red pill, blue pill. which one will you choose Neo?

Simon told me about the 100 USD laptop, and sat linked wireless syndicater in a 40 feet container developed by google that hooks third world countries up to the net. The topic, brought on by the conversation we had with the Kenyan folks who are talking about rep ping our ModuFab customized flatpack houses to the South Sudanese. Rebuilding 3rd world countries. (Sudan  N & S) have been having their internal war due to disputes over oil resources.  The nice Kenyan dude just spent 9 years in Texas studying @ TU and then KPMG. I think there is potential there. He talks to the 7 feel Sudan warriers, and we deal with the Chinese manufactures. Hopefully, I won’t have to go try to collect money in Africa. Lord of War, seem a bit too exciting for my sensibilites.

This week, I will be flying down to Hainan for the YEO retreat. Friday night, and back Sunday afternoon. My friend just told me about hot springs in Sanya. I am looking forward to checking out potential spa locations overlooking the beach or mountains which can support a SPA built from sustainable ModuFab designs for tourists. 3 hours from Shanghai.  Maybe prices per square meter won’t be so bad.

Classic P-Scan story. For a previous biz, I was asked throught the grape vine to transfer shares to another shareholder without being offered compensation. It’s the strangest thing, I guess they must be waiting for a counter offer. On top of that, we been told rumors upon rumors, upon rumors that this particular shareholder had been pushed out of her previous company from taking kick backs. Typically, shares in a consulting company  really are not worth very much if  the consulting partners  and clients  do not stay with the company. So in all reality, the transfer is probably not worth much now, but it’s strange that nothing was offered. 

In anycase, I think a test I will run next time, is to see if someone will give up money for their principles, and to see if they will rationize their principles.

I will put 20 rmb on the table and ask the person to order food, without giving them the money.
1. see if I get change back.
2. see if they pay, and ask me to compensate.
3. see if I am paying for their food.
4. see if they don’t ask for money at all.
5. see if they just take the money.
6. see if they make a pt to ask if the 20 is for the food.
7. see if they take the 20 without asking.

Note: Just learned about Google Adsense today. Strange little biz, but definitely don’t mind getting some revenue from it to supplement marketing cost/site.  Guess it’s the easiest way to track and monitize SEO per site.

BTW: I have been strangly attracted to reading my online horoscope made up of truisms and encouragement over the last 8 month. It’s a strange batch of double talk that seem to try to encourage a certain direction, thought process, action or provide warning. Irregardless of how illogical it may seem, I am still strangely attracted to the hallow encouragement it provides. Maybe  I am online way too much.

Still I think about getting a Sat card for my laptop, so I can be on anywhere.

Tech: I’ve realized that the next movement for html is toward wml. WAP enabled sites won’t be the future, but it will provide that slight edge to allow for word of mouth to help spread about a site. So, one of the few things I want to do, is to make sure that our intranet, and e-commerce sites are converted to wml. Wouldn’t mind setting up a server just to test this inhouse.

Love life: Have met several nice young ladies (all under 30, and one about 19) the last 6 month. I feel validated that I did not resort to using Game PUA tactics nor try to use thug life/ triade / fat cat / abc or boss personal to meet them. Something about post 30 life, you worry that ppl aren’t seeing the real you, and you keep on trying to bare your soul, expose your insides, and even joke about your faults. All in the name of true and real interaction. Anything that could be misconstrued as false pretenses eats @ you, you feel you have to disown hype and exhibit humbleness, or is it a manifistation of insecurity embedded in your 30s resulting from a lowering of testastrone, and realization about the realities of life.

For once, I feel like I can be in a real relationship. Tho, I still have problems picturing someone telling me what to do. Perhaps that will always be the case, but wanting a better half is beginning to out weigh the resistence to being nagged.

Life: I was just asked again during conversation, what my number was to retire.

Originally, I used to say a total worth of 10 mil USD, but now I am beginning to realize that if I was to stop working, I must have liquid assets of 10 mil USD. Half of that being managed by one of the large asset management groups that provide 8-10% guaranteed returns, and the other half used as Angel and seed investments and regular investments.

Reason being is that it’s too easy to be comfortable with owning a business worth 5 mil, thinking that it’s convertible some time in the future and spend all your cash. The truth is that most SMEs have a hard time being converted to cash. Unless, the business is  not time intensive, not labor intensive,  and realitively recession proof and stable,  it smaybe differcult to run after one retires. (speaking from someone who is deciding on what to do with the family biz for the next 3-10 years.)
Best is still to convert into cash when possible, rather than having your bet constantly riding.

I’ve been pondering about the difference between dating and seeing someone lately. I use to think that the distinction really is like switching gears for an automatic transmission, or like deciding to have desert after a good meal, but in reality,  it’s really like studying for the SATs.  You would really like to already be in accepted to Harvard, without having to study, party like a mad man, and earn bookoo bucks even before graduating. No stress, all fun.

However, coming back down to earth, really @ this pt, you are really only about to take the SATs and you still have to apply for admissions, and then in a blink of an eye, one day you will look around you, and you will’ve been out of school and working for 5 years.  It was an okay school, you make okay money, you partied more after school then in school, and there was always lots of stress.

So, in a nut shell. should I be cramming for my relationships? or just enjoy the moment, because I may miss it, if I looked too hard?

I think perhaps I will opt to take my own brand of SAT this time. My terms.

And choose a school and career of my own liking, rather than one to appease the family.

Or am I just rationalizing? After school did not turn out so bad.

Although I was 17 at the time, and now I am turning 32.

anyways, I am determined to have more fun and enjoy the moment this time. But I am not against working @ it. (I think that is a well adjusted attitude about relationships, don’t you)