Somewhere in Thailand. Photo Courtesy of Wilson.
A boy and a girl cheekily posed next to a red Ferrari while their mother took a picture. They were so enthralled by the first take, both insisted to have a couple more. The other adults, who were part of the group, stood a cautious distance from the excitement, probably slightly embarrassed. It was an adorable moment, mostly because they’re only 4-foot tall. No self-respecting adult would submit themselves to such vulnerable situation… especially when the owner was closely watching his prized possession two shops away. I wonder what the kids told their mum when they caught a glimpse of the shiny red sports car, “I want it when I’m big”. Oh, the innocent optimism.
A man and his wife sat next to our table in the Auckland airport business lounge. As a birthday gift (from me to me), I managed to snag a couple of business class tickets on our way back to Melbourne three weeks ago. Unlike most of the patrons there, we were neither rich, holding important job titles or over 30. Through the virtue of anal-retentiveness, I collected enough frequent flyer points to upgrade our cheap internet economy tickets to business class by adding another couple of hundred bucks. Not a bad investment considering the comfort (sleeper seat with massager), free-flowing premium brand alcohol, five-star gourmet food and free chauffeur-driven ride home. But wait, that’s not the most memorable part of the trip.
Back to this man.
Eavesdropping is a skill I’ve developed ever since my classmate whispered the exam answers on my first grade. He mentioned about his business venture in Dubai (we flew with Emirates, my favourite airlines) and his motor-cross hobby. “I want to create my own destiny”, he said to the retired couple with whom he shared the table. “One time I was invited for a motor-cross event and I had to sit in the economy class because that’s what the organizer gave me while my wife sat in the business class.” Well, that’s not the kind of conversation you would overhear in the cattle class.
Despite the snobbish latter comment, I found his first comment compelling, even inspirational. It’s much more compelling than the preach blurted by many rich self-help gurus out there because he didn’t say it to sell any products and I know how expensive international long-haul business class tickets from Emirates are.
In my early 20s, I was an addict to self-help get-rich seminars and programs. I spent thousands of dollars buying their products (while getting into debt as well… how ironic) which helped me to reach a certain point, but not to the point they sell. You know the hype; Ferraris, house on the beach, yacht, super gorgeous yet faithful and supportive partner (ha! Cognitive dissonance, anyone?), etc, etc. It’s amazing how much money these people can make by selling out dreams and inspiration.
Thankfully, I no longer draw inspiration from material riches. Like productivity, it’s a never-ending uphill battle. After you get a BMW, you’ll want Porsche; and then Ferrari, then Bentley, then Maserati (please excuse my lack of knowledge in exclusive cars hierarchy). Where do you stop? Don’t get me wrong, I won’t snub the opportunity to create more wealth, but if the end result is to simply be rich, I would give up easily.
I find passionate people working for meaningful cause to be inspirational. I find cutting-edge artworks by random high school students inspirational. I find the innocent joy of those two kids inspirational (when was the last time you had that?).
Writing a blog has similar condition too. Some people have the talent and skills to write so eloquently every time. My husband is one of them. The rest (myself included) need boost of inspiration, time to develop skills and plenty of courage to keep going. Luckily, I discovered a couple of blogs that would do any writers a great service:
- Theboxcarkids’s Blog: A journey of a single mother living in an RV with her four children. Don’t let that fool you. Her writing is wise and intelligent. I savour each and every sentence.
- Misha Adair on Books: A fellow Melbournian, an avid book reader and a beard-keeping enthusiast. Check out his 10 “rules” for writing a blog. My favourite line is about the type of music you should listen to while writing, “Bach is good, but he’s so good that he makes you lose confidence even in breathing, let alone writing.”
So, now it’s your turn. Where do you draw inspiration?
It’s Saturday here, and there’s nothing more relaxing than reading what my fellow Yakezie members wrote. Being in the group has been an interesting and, at the same time, confusing experience to me. Even more baffling than the hail we just had. It’s just the beginning of autumn here, but we still have 30+ degrees Celsius days.
When you mix a group of skilled and experienced bloggers with the rest (I belong in the latter group), the result would be “colourful”. The disparity in experience, time and skills could create misunderstanding and confusion for the newbies; while for the experienced fellows, having to slow down could become a frustrating experience.
In a way, I may have gotten lost in the sea of ideas, tools and competition. For someone who still has little idea of what she actually wants, this can be off-putting. But then I just have keep reminding myself why I do this; to write, get my ideas out and to connect with other people. The rest is optional.
Is it just me or is there anyone out there feeling the same way? Please do chime in.
The most important thing is all of us have learned a lot from each other (heck, I just opened my first twitter account two days ago, let alone using other tools). Let’s just hope that this project will bring positive experience for everyone in it.
… or is it?
For those of you curious how we start the week here in Australia, you’re in luck!
This is how we do it!
Spencer Tunick visits Australia for the 2010 Mardi Gras and took photos of 5200 naked people in front of the iconic Opera House. Check out the photos here*.
No, you’re not gonna find me there.
I just feel sorry that it was unusually cold this morning.
*Warning: some readers might find it offensive, so brace yourself.
We're all born alone.
If you're lucky, you find someone to love, be loved and with whom annoy people with PDA.
Some people call it "miracle"... or is it a little alien growing inside?
Growing up being the chubby, awkward and weird one amongst the cool kids. And the cycle continues...
Special thanks to public members of City of Darebin for the inspiring “art installation”.
Seriously folks, return the bloody trolleys already!!
When we bought our house a couple of years ago, we already had credit card debt, two car loans and a margin loan (shares investment loan). We estimated that it would take 10 years to pay off the mortgage and other debts. However, with aggressive lifestyle adjustments we have been doing in the past 1.5 years, we found out recently that we could pay ALL of our debts off within the next 2-3 years.
I’m not going to preach another ’spend less than you earn’ sermon (I know that you know) but here’s a few of “mind hacks” that are working for us:
1. Don’t listen to real estate agents or mortgage brokers about how much you can afford.
When we bought out house, the market was booming and most auctions we attended would end up 35% (or more) higher than the reserved price. It was ridiculous and borderline misleading.
One mortgage broker told me that if I found a house I like, it pays to bid more since $10,000 extra only translates to $15/week extra payment . I found the advice reckless. First of all, it’s not his money, so he didn’t care. Second, $15/week will add up to $19,500 after 25 years. Imagine if you get emotional during the bid war and end up paying $50,000 more than your budgeted price. Trouble?
2. Never use the maximum borrowing amount allowed by the bank.
A good rule of thumb is to never borrow more than twice your gross annual income (or combined income if married or de facto). This is a conservative formula and is probably hard to apply in some areas. In that case, you can either:
a. Save more money for the deposit
b. Rent in the area you wish to live and buy an investment property in the area you can afford.
c. Move to a cheaper area altogether.
You can still borrow slightly higher than twice your annual income and live comfortably, but you won’t be able to anticipate too many interest rate rises or emergency expenses. Mortgage stress kicks in when your repayment is more than 30% of your net income. If the interest rate is 7.5%, that means you will be in trouble if you borrow four times your net income (30%/7.5% = 4).
We borrowed only less than half of the maximum borrowing amount or about twice our combined gross annual income at that time. Since then, we’ve had pay rises and scaled back our expenses significantly which results in exponential growth of savings channeled to our mortgage account.
3. Putting money in mortgage account vs. online high interest account.
We choose the first one. Why? First, mortgage rate is always higher than the interest rate in online savings account. Second, the interest saved in mortgage account, while invisible, will not be taxed. Your savings account interest will be.
Before you move your money around, be warned! You should only do this if you have a flexible mortgage account which allows you to withdraw any excess payment any time free of charge. You definitely don’t want to lock your money away or be penalised when you make a withdrawal.
4. Find out your “mortgage payoff factor”.
Okay, that’s a term I invented after reading a great mind hack idea in a savings forum. To find out your mortgage payoff factor, go to lump sum repayment calculator here and enter your numbers. Divide the interest saved amount by the lump sum amount then you find your mortgage factor.
For example in our case:
Loan amount: $240,000
Interest rate: 7%
Loan term: 25 years
Lump sum amount: $1000
Lump sum payment made after: 2 years
Time saved: 3 months
Interest saved: $3,951.70
Mortgage payoff factor: 3.95 ($3,951.70/$1,000)
So, what to do with that number then? Well, here’s the fun part.
Weld that number into your brain.
Every time you go out and think about buying an item, multiply the item price to that number. If you are tempted to buy a $100 dress, think that you can either waste $100 or put that money into your mortgage and save $395 in interest! If this doesn’t put you off from spending, I don’t know what else could.
Feel free to apply that to all non-essential purchases… or any purchase, really.
Please note that this practice only works 100% in Australia, disregarding property tax, tax rebate and any policy surrounding mortgage in your home country.
However, math principle works the same everywhere. So, give it a go.
New Zealand has a lot to offer to the rest of the world. However, being a small country in a middle of Pacific Ocean means some people only knew about its existence after watching Lord of the Rings movies.
I’m not going to talk much about its culture, people, lifestyle because I find them quite similar to what we have in Australia (or any Western country really); except with the Maori culture of course.
The most amazing thing about New Zealand is its diverse landscapes and topography on both islands. Glaciers, volcanic plateau, geysers, thermal areas, beaches, fiords, all of them packed into this land smaller than Italy. Oh yes, and more than 40 million sheep!
Straddled over the Pacific and Indo-Australia tectonic plates and sitting on the Pacific ring of fire, New Zealand has its fair share of volcanoes, earthquakes and other natural hazards. But don’t be discouraged, most of the earthquakes are hardly felt. In fact, the last big earthquake with human casualty happened in 1968.
So, here is the New Zealand natural hit list that I visited and hope to visit in the future:
It is located on the North Island, only 2-hour drive from Auckland. There are around 300 limestone cave systems in the area but only a few that can be accessed and operated for tourism. We visited Glowworm Cave and Ruakuri Cave which took around 3 – 4 hours. The glowworms live on the cave’s ceiling with 20-30 sticky follicles function to trap the insects flying towards their light. Inside the main cave, hundreds of glowworms attached to the cathedral-like ceiling. It’s so gorgeous that they have famous singers performing the Christmas carols underneath the glow.
Ruakuri Cave has a spiral entrance that reminds me of an old nuclear bunker from the Cold War era. Apart from the beautiful yet fragile stalactites and stalagmites (we’re not allowed to touch them at all or you’ll get NZ$10k fine), the highlight of this journey is the opportunity to touch a 28 million year old fossil of a bird. Normally something this rare and precious would be guarded in a museum, but there it sits on an altar-like rock formation. And yes, it’s hard.
2. Rotorua
Champagne Pool
The small town is famous for its thermal spring, volcanoes and … its sulphur smell. After a two-hour drive from Waitomo, the first thing I said to my beloved was “Is it you?”. Some people say it will only last an hour and then your nose will get used to it. Guess what, I couldn’t get over the lingering smell until we left the town.
Still, if you could visit the beautiful Champagne Pool, geyser and mud pool (which is sold for hundreds of dollars in boutique spas), you will bear it for a day or two.
3. Fiordland – Milford Sound
Located in the South Island is this spectacular sunken mountains or fiords (or fjords as they call it in Norway… where the trolls hide). Unfortunately, our trip didn’t go this far but we’ll sure do it in the future.
Check out their photos here.
4. Glaciers
Fox and Franz Josef glaciers are also located on the South Island. They are one of the few glaciers left on earth above the sea level making them precious relics of the last Ice Age. Winter or summer, you can have your guided walk across the glacier.
Check out their photos here. You’ll be crazy not wanting to go there.
If you know other natural wonder in New Zealand worth visiting, please let me know, cos I’m going back there for sure.
On the second day, we marked the hilly areas as the no-go zones for the sake of my husband’s sanity. No, it was me who whinged a lot.
If there was a painful part of holiday, that would be the obligatory souvenir acquisition for people at home. You can’t buy another cheap looking key ring without the risk of being called tight-arse, so you’re trying to be more creative or thoughtful. But that cool hand-made wooden tribal mask (used solely to scare off the neighbourhood children) could cost as much as your plane ticket and customs would most likely confiscate it. In general, I despise the vague “oh, it’s up to you, dear” answer because I know I would end up running around town looking for something pretty and be thanked with sour face.
After a stressful morning of trying to read my family’s mind, I settled on a few jars of manuka honey which is healthy, “reasonably priced” (compared to the tribal mask), made locally and it lasts until the apocalypse. It ticked all boxes. Perfect!
The highlight of our day was discovering a cute little lane called the Vulcan Lane. Being true sci-fi nerds, we instantly declared it our favourite lane in Auckland. Not only does it bear my favourite humanoid race in Star Trek (surprise, surprise! Earthling comes fourth), the lane also offers a decent range of cafes and restaurants. We had a delicious tapas dinner there. After that the night went downhill as we watched the Kardashians’ antics back at the hotel.
We thanked the Lord for not having cable TV.
After four months of careful planning, my beloved and I went on our New Zealand holiday last Saturday. Atypically I didn’t feel much excitement for the trip. Maybe it’s partly due to my excessive reading on travel books about this beautiful country prior to the trip. It felt like I already accomplished it in my mind.
Auckland is famously known as City of Sail. Although for me, the most distinctive feature of this city is not its marinas, but rather its hilly terrain. We spent the first day walking uphill for a couple of kilometers and not finding a decent restaurant. Forget about bootcamp trip, try staying in Auckland CBD for a week and run errands all over the city, you’ll end up losing 20 kg with particularly firm gluteus maximus.
Suffice to say, the first day was rather underwhelming. It made me think about the purpose of this trip and the one year long round the world trip we’re going to have in a few months. Why do we want spend so much money for holiday if the result is below expectation? What’s the point of travelling? And more importantly, how do we set a realistic expectation from travelling without downgrading the element of excitement?
I’m going to address these questions in the next few days. In the meantime, I need to unwind. The trip didn’t turn out so bad after all.
Where to look when a naked man lies on the floor? Where not to look?
Ron Mueck Born Australia 1958 - Dead Dad 1996–97 (detail) silicone, polyurethane, styrene, synthetic hair, ed. 1/1 20.0 x 38.0 x 102.0 cm Stefan T. Edlis Collection, Chicago © Ron Mueck courtesy Anthony d’Offay, London Photo : Michael Tropea
Flat on his back, his head points toward the entrance, so the approaching, fully-clothed, onlookers arrive from above. Look at his grey hair, flowing backwards under gravity’s direction, a hint of nose, and bare, pale grey shoulders.
But how close to look? The man is not only naked, but clearly devoid of life.
Every part of the body, each fiber of hair, acquiesces to the gentle pull of the earth. The hands, slightly curled and betraying the muscle memory passed down since men were monkeys, are open and offer no resistance to fate. The penis has flopped to the side, never to be used again, the nudity perhaps showing there is no shame in this lifeless state. The stomach seems the most vulnerable part, and examining it from above feels more invasive, weirdly.
Here lies the perverse beauty of Ron Mueck’s art. The National Gallery of Victoria is exhibiting his work, promoting the show with billboards and posters, and after paying, entering and seeing the first sculpture, the natural instinct is to look away. Because of Dead Dad’s beauty and careful execution, even though he is a miniature construction of silicone and polyurethane the desire is to preserve the dead man’s dignity.
That thought assumes nudity is undignified, perhaps even that death is shameful. Mueck challenges those thoughts, but we look down on the body, placed on a slightly raised platform. The crowd stands in judgment.
Recoiling from death may be natural for someone young, but after pivoting to head to the next room, a greater shock awaits.
Ron Mueck Born Australia 1958 - A girl 2006 polyester resin, fibreglass, silicone, synthetic hair, synthetic polymer paint, second edition, artist’s proof 110.0 x 501.0 x 134.5 cm Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh Purchased with assistance from The Art Fund, 2007 © Ron Mueck courtesy Anthony d’Offay, London Photo: Antonia Reeve
Writhing with life, A Girl is a confronting portrait of a newborn, complete with tortured expression, flecks of blood and other fluids that are clearly visible from a distance. Her head is also pointed towards the entrance, but in this case she is facing us, and the fact part of her umbilical cord is attached is not instantly noticeable. She seems about to take her first scream.
Just as Dead Dad’s diminutive form is briefly unsettling as the mind adjusts, so too is A Girl’s enormity, stretching all of 501 centimetres from her sticky hair to wrinkled feet. Her volume, as though inflated by the promise of a life yet to be lived, is in the order of 100 times that of Mueck’s father figure.
Ron Mueck Born Australia 1958 - Wild man 2005 polyester resin, fibreglass, silicone, aluminium, wood, horse hair, synthetic hair, ed. 1/1 285.0 x 162.0 x 108.0 cm McClelland Gallery + Sculpture Park, Langwarrin Purchased by the Elisabeth Murdoch Sculpture Foundation and The Balnaves Foundation, 2008 © Ron Mueck courtesy Anthony d’Offay, London Photo Mark Ashkanasy
That surprise is nothing compared to the mystified and frightened expression writ large on Wild Man, the oversized, hairy figure sitting stiffly on a stool. And his back, arms and shoulders are stiff, rather than anything else.
The pimples and spots on his back invite close scrutiny, again the reflex is to avert the eyes from his penis.
Any discomfort about his nudity quickly passes. He is clearly terrified of us.
The eyes give the fear away most, and they are the most engaging part of the figure, giving the piece a focus. The same can be said for Two Women, small and clothed old ladies who have vulture-like features and because of their placement in the gallery are staring at Wild Man’s lap with suspicion.
Of the four new figures in the show, Woman with Sticks (2008) is the first. There is something joyous in her back-bending, painful task of lugging the sticks around.
One of the sticks is tangled in her hair. Others got tangled in mine while looking at it although it’s perhaps not best to admit such interference with work by an internationally-acclaimed artist.
Inadvertent stick tangles aside, the temptation is strong to touch many of the statues. To stroke the hair, or is it fur, on Wild Man, to bathe the baby, bury the old man, scoop up the fragile Old Woman in Bed. Maybe even to baste the six-foot chicken, Still Life, and put it in an oven.
The chicken, like all the work, is a statement about the human condition. What, exactly, will be up to the viewer to figure out.
Youth, a boy with Barack Obama-like features with a stab wound, could be interpreted as a fresh-faced political force suffering the cuts and bruises of inexperience. Or, as someone else thought, it could reflect Jesus’ wounds on the cross.
Size does not matter after moments, they are so real.
Reach out and touch. Go on. I dare you. Nobody will notice.
Resist this temptation, but be prepared to be touched.
After a month of philosophising, I decided to get off the chair and do the hard stuff, the real work, the hard yakka! Now, I’m not going to give up the luxury of being an armchair life commentator completely, I just need to do something outside my comfort zone and see some real results.
Thinking is the seed of progress; but without action, it is like a revving machine that stays stationary because the driver refuses to let the brakes go. The brakes can be your mental block; fear, niggling doubt, laziness, you name it.
Therefore, without further adieu, I introduce you to The February Purge Challenge. The idea is to get rid of 100 items in the house that have resale value and are still useful (at least for other people). They can be sold, donated, given away or trashed. In most households, 100 items are insignificant; heck, I think I have half of that in my handbags already. The point of this exercise is get the ball rolling and make some money along the way.
You are more than welcome to join the challenge. If you are unsure, here’s a few guidelines:
Which items are eligible?
If someone would pay a dime for it, then yes. But then again, most people would think your second-hand pyjamas are worth nothing. Worry not, if they are in good condition and will be useful for someone else, it counts. In a nutshell, clothes? Yes. Books? Yep. Used toothbrush? No, no.
Why February, the shortest month of the year, and we already missed out by six days?
Why not? My new mantra these days is “tomorrow is not a good day”. Do it now, do it today, no matter how small.
What if I don’t reach the target of 100 items?
Then you’ll be punished in an eternal damnation of watching Neighbours and other mind-numbing soap operas over and over again. Nah, kidding… you’ll live to fight another day. Finish it next month, or make a bold move by selling big ticket items (car, house, spouse?:)) to make up the shortfall.
To keep myself accountable, I will put a tally count on the side bar to track the number of items gone and the amount of money made out of it. Ideally, you shouldn’t spend a dime on stuff while the cleansing is in progress.
What are the benefits of this purge challenge?
It will save time, save money, make money, create a zen-like environment, keep you calm, open up the next level of consciousness, make you realise how much you have, etc etc. Sell it to yourself any way you like. Just make it happen.
Finally, that’s it. I gotta go and pack up the unworn dresses I bought two years ago. Good luck and wish me luck!
