Sunbeam Orphanage

A few weeks late in writing this up but been a busy old week at the Big D again (when is it not?)

A few months ago an email came out regarding a Supply Chain Christmas Celebration; mindlessly I signed it up for it; basically if it's not in direct relationship with my job or the items I have to do on a daily basis the usual practice is I never have time to read it so I either delete it, archive it (parking it in corporate lingo) or I mindlessly accept / respond and in this case it was the latter.

On Friday 9th December the day was here, the celebration was here and we were booked in the morning for the 2nd Annual Big D Ethics Day - I won't bore you with all the nitty gritty details of this exuberant day but gladly it were only half a day and were scheduled to finish at 12. In the afternoon as part of the Celebrations we were booked to go to a Child’s Orphanage near the Malaysian Border called Sunbeam. I didn’t really do much (any) research on it and when the time came I used the usual excuse of I’ve too much work to take half another half day out but I didn't resist too hard and before I knew it was nearly 1.30pm and we were approaching the location for the day. 

It was a beautiful day in Singapore on Friday 9th December 2011; I jumped off the bus with the others and it was 32 Degrees outside; the sun was bouncing off the pavement and the place we'd been taken too were serene; akin to those really posh Garden Centers you see in the countryside of the UK. The itinerary for the day was basically to help bake cookies with the kids of the orphanage, eat with them, then a balloon artist and a face painting pro were coming in to entertain the kids this was then followed by a Big D only after work drink and mini celebration. Needless to say with my phobia of Children I was dreading it and  running through my head over and over again why I'd accepted the invite as it wasn’t even mandatory.

I was part of Table 5; when we arrived we were all assigned a specific child to sit with for the day. Mine was an 11 year old Indian / Singaporean lad called Gabriel and my first observation with this kid was his energy levels were through the roof and in comparison with some of the other kids close by I felt I was being punished for a conglomeration of past sins by being assigned to this one. He was loud, obnoxious, and rude and oh did I mention energetic? 

We started making the cookies and over time he seemed to rely on me for the complicated things; when I say complicated we had 4 ingredients and it was one of the easiest recipes in the history of mankind but he seemed uneasy with some of the tasks such as rolling out the final mixture for shape cutting etc. We worked together as an epic team and churned out a ridiculous volume of cookies which we sent off for baking to revisit later for the icing competition. I tried to be as friendly as possible so was addressing him as bro to which one particular comment he retorted "I’m not your bro, you're white and I’m brown" I had to struggle not to laugh out loud. So I switched the bro to dude and everything seemed more manageable from them on. The balloon artist came and the face painter and the kids had to queue for both. My kid was desperate for a balloon. So I decided to go queue for him; I asked him what he wanted for a Balloon and as if it was a magic lamp with three wishes these were his requests:

2 x Swords - I Purple and 1 Brown

1 x Train - Red and Blue in Colour with three x passenger cars and a cargo car carrying coal.

1 x Vacuum Cleaner

I managed to get him a train and an awesome one it was...

Thomas the Tank Engine - Or an attempt at it anyway;
this is a basic train and looked more complex that Astro Physics during creation..

On a side note; has anyone recently seen a balloon artist or magician or whatever the sugared job title is for them now? They're AMAZING to watch! It's akin to witchcraft I have to say...

I wanted to get my face painted into something sinister or maybe match the Spider Man T-Shirt I was wearing with some Spidey face paint but the queue was too long and didn't want to take the fun away from the kids.

On the way back from the balloon artists to my table; a few of the girls at the Sunbeam centre wanted me to sit with them and in fact told me I looked like Edward out of Twilight? They complimented me on my handsomeness and also on the fairness of my skin. Then I got very uncomfortable when they started asking me for face book details and to kiss them!! It was strictly communicated by those above beforehand that contact details were not to be given and I would have gone to jail for the kissing! A part of me wanted to say "give me a call in 10 years time" but I thought it wasn't appropriate so kept my mouth closed…I'm learning.

After the balloon artist and face painters it was time for us to decorate the cookies we'd made earlier. We got a selection of M&Ms and coloured Icing and basically just had to go for it to make the craziest shapes and colour combinations possible. Gabriel didn't really like getting his hands dirty so I took care of most of the icing for him (I enjoyed it perhaps a little too much). After the icing was done we gave out gifts to the children and said our goodbyes. 

For me it was a joyous day; a day I've never experienced before and my buddy Gabriel (can officially call him Bro now as by the end of the day there was a definitely a connection) he thanked me for my time and wished me a very merry Christmas and asked me to come back again someday. On my departure he gave me his balloon (pictured above) and one of his cookies.. I had to rush off into a shitty work call with Scotland and missed the actual waving the kids off but I felt extremely touched and in a potentially selfish nutshell felt like I had helped someone and done something worthwhile in my life. Even if it just was for an afternoon.

The epic Christmas Tree Cookie By Gabriel complete with missing M&M

Another lesson I learned this day; was how fortunate I was as a child; never wanting for anything and made me feel a bit ashamed of those tantrums I had thrown when I got the Die Hard Trilogy Game for my Play Station and not the Original Resident Evil game I'd asked for. What a douche I was as a child.

Happy Holidays everyone.

Jack

Doei Nederland, Hello-lah Singapore

It’s been almost a 5 month hiatus since I updated this blog, I’ve been meaning to do it almost every single week since my last update but as they say “time waits for no man” and it certainly doesn’t show me any favoritism. 

So, some big big updates since I last posted on this blog: What can only be described as an online diary; partly for my own entertainment and for those who are bored enough to read it or those unfortunate souls who come across it by accident.  

I guess the biggest change in my life is that I moved, I moved from Diageo Brands BV and I moved from beautiful Amsterdam all the way to South East Asia on the next part of my journey. I’m sitting here typing this blog on the public transport system in my sunny new home town of Singapore. 

Let me side track for a second by saying highlighting the Singapore Public transport rail system otherwise known as the MRT (Mass Rapid Transport) – try if you can to imagine being a sardine or an anchovy in a tin of the said fish you buy from the supermarket or even better imagine a packet of cigarettes, machine packaged into your little cardboard box, it’s just like that – and it’s like that pretty much every hour of every day. The Singaporeans in my new work team give me the condolences that “it’s better than Hong Kong” and maybe it is but I’m in Singapore and I f**king hate their public transport system. It’s not inefficient, slow, late or expensive – all the usual complaints us Europeans would highlight it’s just the fact it’s so busy all of the time!

Anyway…. enough of my complaints (for now), the Big D as I like to call it in blogs to try and avoid vindicating myself from negative comments I may be inclined to make have had a reorganization or a change of operating model; whatever corporate sugar you want to sprinkle on it. They decentralized their customer operations as part of the Supply Chain from Amsterdam into the respective markets and just my luck; Asia was the first market in scope. I remember hearing rumors back in May this year that this would happen after the first reorganization of the demand side of the business in Amsterdam and on a Sunny day in June we were pulled into a meeting room and given the “bad” news. The reaction as you can expect was mixed but surprised how tolerable the reaction was from those impacted; if it had been a room full of Mackems or Geordies it would have been very different; trust me. 

So not quite sure what I want to do with myself, with my career or my life I decided to apply for the new roles posted in Asia, pot luck really as I’ve made a few big mistakes in the early part of my career and surprised this was not held against me. To cut a long story short (and to remove all the BS) in the end I got the role and was the only person to move from Amsterdam over to Singapore in the first phase. It all happened very quickly and with rather lucky timing to be honest (Claudio my good Italian friend and roommate also moved over a week before me and our living accommodation had expired right on time). At the end of August, on a sunny Friday afternoon I said my goodbyes to my colleagues in Amsterdam (teary eyed as is usual practice for Jack in these types of situations) and on the 29^th August I took my flight from Schipol destined for Singapore.

The Boeing 737 taking me away from Amsty..

 I landed safe and sound on the sun scorched pavements of Singapore (my first time in Asia actually – quite brave / stupid – feel free to decide) happy to see some of the colonialist actions carried out by the British were still evident (driving on the correct side of the road was the first one I have to mention). I pretty much hit the ground running and started working the day after I arrived. The Big D had arranged for a rather nice studio apartment for me on the 27^th floor of a building close to work at a cost of 7,000 SGD (3,500 GBP) per month which I was very glad I didn’t have to pay – especially considering the place was 30m2 if that but my God It had one hell of a view..

View from the 27th Floor of the One North Bridge apartment building

The first month passed extremely quickly and of course; good things never last; the apartment rented for me was only for a month and post this month of holiday feeling I had to find myself a place to stay; obviously in true Jack style I left everything to the last minute and before I knew it found myself homeless in South East Asia. It was this point where I had to rely on the Italian, the tricolore, one of the nicest guys and epic friends any guy would be lucky to have. Claudio put me up for a week in his place him and his girlfriend were living in…unfortunately I had to play Gooseberry for a week but hey beggers’ can’t be choosers can they? 

During this period I was frantically searching for permanent residency, partly to held out Claudio as I didn’t want to impose on him and his girl any longer but mainly for my state of mind. I guess I follow the Maslow hierarchy more than I ever though and I need a permanent place of residence, somewhere to put my books and hang my coat in order to function properly. During this period of uncertainty I just wasn’t myself at work and was feeling pretty down in the dumps.

I eventually found an epic place; what they call a Condo Apartment here in Singapore, it’s basically shared accommodation in a semi-up market style (i.e. non Government buildings or HDB’s they call them here). It was in a place called Kembangang and had an infinity pool on the roof, a Jacuzzi and a BBQ pit for pleasure. The room was only 550 GBP per month and considering Id been paying 100 quid more a month back in the shitty place I was living in Amsterdam this made a fresh and delightful change. 

Unfortunately I lost out to a pair of boobs; trying not to be sexist here for the possibility of a wider audience but it was a single French guy renting out the place and If I was in his shoes I’d probably have done the same thing. Anyway two good things came out of this viewing; one I met a really cool Filipino guy (the guy who was leaving the apartment) called Oryx who has one of the most beautiful English accents I’ve heard for a non native, almost poetic with a twist of South African. The second good thing to come out of this was the fact that he recommended me to his two friends who were looking for a new roommate and alas this is the place I stay now, in other words it was because of this chance meeting that I’m now living in an epic condominium in a place called Paya Lebar (which means White Swamp in Malay), so if you’re reading this Oryx; thanks a million!

The epic Swimming Pool I have to put up with every day :

 I’ve now been living in this Condo for a couple of months now and I have to say I probably wouldn’t still be here in Singapore or at the Big D for that fact if it wasn’t for Oryx and this new place. I live with two American guys, well when I say American it’s in the most general tone possible – both have American accents but in reality one of them is Mexican (Enrique) and the other a French Canadian (Nico) both of whom are working for 3D Effects companies making and rendering special effects and animation for movies, video games, TV etc. One of those really cool jobs we would all love to do if we’d studied hard enough at school or had the dedication to go for. 

Ok so that’s it for now; we have an up and coming positively gonna be epic BBQ this Saturday (3^rd December 2011) at the BBQ Pits in the Condo with about 40 – 50 people coming. It’s going to be a mash up. Will keep you updated ;) oh and another thing – I must try and post more often to minimize the length of these posts – no one likes reading an essay right?

Peace,

Jack

Nisa & Jack - The Second Time Around...

So, I took her to the airport. Walked her to her departure gate and let go of her hand. Off she went through the barriers looking back occasionally over her shoulder, a tear in her eye...me the other side of the barrier tears almost flooding the airport. That was it I told myself and as she passed through security and waved goodbye I turned and headed for the car park. 

I remember jumping in the car driving back to the place where I was living with David and walking the stairs without effort, my body dragging step by step. I opened the door to the apartment and walked into my bedroom where only hours earlier she had been in my arms; there was a postcard on the bed with a picture of some Asian Skyline, on closer inspection it was a postcard of Singapore and when I turned it over I found beautiful words. Nisa had written something like 

"Smitty, So much to say so little time to say it, thank you for a wonderful time, until we meet again"

I knew I liked this girl, but I wasn't sure we'd meet again, no firm commitments were shared by either party after the initial get together but we stayed in close contact and communicated across Messenger and phone / text daily. After a week or two of her return I received a parcel in the mail from her... I'm afraid It's my pleasure to keep the specifics of this item from you but trust me when I tell you i still have them and they bring as much a smile to my face now as the did when I first opened the package ;)

It was late August or early September and I found myself missing her dearly and unfortunately that meant I displayed the green streak I'm assuming (hoping) most men display from time to time and I got jealous of her in photos with other guys and actually gained this complex where I couldn't bring myself to check her facebook page just in case I saw something I didn't like. I know it was all unjustified and feel like an absolute douche when I look back. It obviously (coupled with the distance) made us argue and fall out from time to time and at some points she probably would have been just in telling me not to call again and hanging up, but she never did..

It came to a point in early September when we were talking about Christmas and Nisa was contemplating booking another flight and coming BACK over to see me. She planned to meet some friends in London and we hypothetically discussed me flying from Amsterdam, meeting her in London, spending some time in London then somehow making it back up to Sunderland for Christmas and New Year. She toyed with the idea as I continued to act like a massive douche every now and then and then just as thought I'd ruined it I received an email from her, and it had an attachment. I remember vividly opening the email and seeing a PDF attachment without any text. I double clicked the adobe icon and the PDF opened; it was a booking confirmation email from Emirates. She had done it, she had booked another flight, I was going to spend Christmas with Nisa :)

I worked very hard at work to ensure I got the time I needed off at Christmas and booked all the relevant flights. We planned more specifics about the holiday but mostly I just looked forward to seeing her.

In total..from the moment she went on the airplane back to Singapore to when we would meet again at the back end of December it would be almost 5 months since we were last together. That sort of time can pull on the strongest of relationships, mine and Nisa's was new and maybe that's why it lasted all that time apart. I thought about her almost everyday, I'd never met anyone I'd adored as much in my entire life. 



In between Marnixstraat and The Naussaukade, Amsterdam, December 2010



December soon came and with it came heavy amounts of snow across Europe, but severe amounts in Scotland. As a result work became unbelievably stressful and I couldn't wait for December 18th to arrive so I jump on a plane and go meet Nisa. I worked all the hours God sent to ensure things went as smooth as possible; this coupled with the Discounting L/C project they throw at me every six months..December went quickly and before I knew it the time was upon me to pack my bags and fly to London. 

The weather in the UK got so bad that lots and lots of flights were canceled causing a public outrage and how unprepared the Airports were for the weather. As a direct result of this tomfoolery by the big wig airport execs my flight on the Saturday was canceled. I tried to the call the airline for hours but all the phone lines were continuously blocked. Airport and carrier websites were crashing and I couldn't get any information what so ever. Instead of contacting the airport or carrier I just decided to forget about my canceled flight for the time being and look for an alternative one to get me to London. I managed to get myself a KLM flight on the following evening but this time I was strategic; and decided to pay a little extra to fly into London City Airport. A small new airport on the outskirts of London; right next to the Lyons factory, the company that make Golden Syrup :) 

On top of all my Drama Nisas flight was rerouted from London to Manchester then to Glasgow then back to London but she finally arrived in London on the same scheduled day, the Saturday but thankfully she bumped into a friend at airport and they helped her find the right underground train she needed to get to Euston Station, which is where out Hotel was booked; the Premier Inn right outside the station in pretty much the heart of London.

I got my flight on the Sunday evening and thankfully it wasn't canceled, but the flights at the other two main airports of London were! Thankful I'd been strategic I landed in London City Airport and got the DLR to the Underground and made my way towards Euston station so very excited that I was going to see Nisa again. I finally got to the Hotel and made my way to the room after some deliberation with the counter staff as I hadn't arrived the previous day even though I had called ahead informing them my flight was canceled, the message didn't seem to be relayed amongst the other staff. Never mind...I was finally in the elevator on the way to the Fifth floor where Nisa was. As the elevator reached the floor and the kind lady voice of the elevator informed me we were on Floor 5 I stepped out and became insanely nervous and full of trepidation. Nisa Latifah; all thoughts from what if she doesn't like me anymore? What if she has changed? What if? What if?  Assuming like I always do..

I got to the door of the room, took a lungful of confidence and tried to look through the peephole; not being able to see anything I could hear the just more than silent babble from the television which was on in the room. With one final lungful of confidence I swiped the card down the reader on the side of the door and pushed the door open and walked in.


There she was...looking even more beautiful that I remembered her. Her eyes and her body language rang with nervousness and i quickly understood she was just as nervous and shaky as me. It was so strange to see her again.. no matter how much contact you have with someone it's amazing what physical distance can do, she felt uneasy it was obvious, I felt uneasy It was obvious too. When we slept that night she did the cutest thing and slept with a pillow in between her legs.. I took this as a sign but it wasn't the correct assumption.


We spent time together in London and for me it was magical, not because it was London and not because I was off work but because It was Christmas (I'm a sucker for the festive season) and mostly, mainly, because I was with her. We went shopping, we ate great food, we even went to the London HQ of Diageo while she picked some stuff up for work, I met her Filipino friend Red and he took us to a great Italian Restaurant under a bridge (a bit cramped but the food was great) and I got to wake up next to her every morning. To me, this is what life is simply all about.


When our time in London came to a close it was evident that the weather was still playing havoc with the transport; the train's were all over the place and our train was delayed but eventually we headed off to London Kings Cross to take out train to Sunderland for Christmas. While waiting for the train randomly I saw the British Comedian Justin Lee Collins but I wasn't going to ask for an autograph; I'm not that kind of person - I wanted to touch his bouncy flowing locks however but he was in a bit of a rush or so it seemed. We boarded the train for the 4 hour journey to Durham and I've got to say it was the best train journey of my entire life. We got a few supplies before boarding the train but (and she'll probably kill me for writing this on the internet) we were both extremely err..how do I say this tactfully.. Frisky on the train and we got up to a considerable amount of mischief considering we were on a packed and quite close quartered metal rectangle of public transport...ahhh great memories. We eventually arrived in Durham to be met by my Grandmother but because the Weather was bad the train was delayed and my Nana being my Nana left her phone at home; she'd arrived and waited..waited some more and then waited a little bit more before heading back home. So in the end we took a taxi back to Sunderland and arrived safe and sound, the night of that day was a lot of fun emphasising the words "a lot" as much as I can. She was back, in my bed in my silly quiet hometown..looking back, this fact alone is testament to how much she cared for me at the time.


Christmas Day came and so did the abundant Christmas Lunch that only the legend that is my Grandmother can prepare; Soft and doughy Yorkshire Puddings, Creamy smooth mashed potato, perfectly cooked carrots, crispy pork and onion sage stuffing, chipolata sausages wrapped in crispy bacon, slices and slices of slowly cooked British beef, angel white Turkey Breast and lashings and lashings of thick, fragrant home made Onion Gravy. Typing this is making me as hungry as hell but when Nisa was at the table waiting for her very first British Christmas Dinner and the food was served her eyes were like a Japanese Anime character, like a child on Christmas morning being greeted with a barrage of sparkly, shiny and colorfully wrapped boxes... they were Wide open with awe and amazement. God her appetite is awesome for such a small girl, it's one of the things I love about her most...

Me & Nisa @ My Grandmother's house - Christmas 2010

Nisa making Snowball's in the front Garden

After Lunch, we went outside as Nisa was loving the snow! She threw some snowballs at me, threw some snowballs around the Garden oh and fell over in the snow (which was epic) I've got that on video somewhere.. it's epic. She made the worst and smallest Snowman you ever did see... like a Snow Dwarf Man..haha how cute.. I won't put that photo up and embarrass her though :) Not only was it her first time eating Christmas dinner but it was her first time seeing Snow.. whatever happens with his whether we work or not I hope she'll always remember these days and selfishly hope she associates them with me.. 

The Worst but yet the Best Snowman ever made - Sorry Nisa! I posted it :)

After Christmas was over we spent a few extra nights in Sunderland before planning a trip; I realised after a very short period of time my Hometown is boring.. well to me it's normal but to the girl from the bustling bright lights of South East Asia and the growing and partying that is Singapore it would be very very boring. So we decided to go to Scotland.. up to Edinburgh for a few days away. Before that however we went Bowling and it shames me to show this...

Can you see that? No word of a lie... I did not let her win.. Had to swallow the XY pride big style

After the bowling we did a bit of a Photo Night; taking lot's of silly random photos in silly and random poses all but a few of them clearly spoiled my presence.. 

Don't know what's nicer about this photo? The clear love for the Dog or that ass to the right? :)

We then took on the 116 mile journey from Sunderland to Edinburgh but because the MR2 was off the road we had to take another car... the parents needed the Clio so God Forgive me I had to borrow my Grandmothers Citroen Berlingo..... I know I know, tell me about it. 1.6 Litres of French scrap. 

I booked us a small bed and breakfast pretty much in the centre of Edinburgh, set the Sat Nav to on and we went for it. We arrived in Edinburgh a few hours later, myself getting stressed to the Max trying to find the B&B and Nisa the angel calming me down as she always does and eventually we rocked up outside the B&B, slapped on the Disabled Badge :) and parked. 

Nisa @ The Foot of Edinburgh Castle

Our time in Edinburgh was mixed I think both for her and me, we had a few well.. I wouldn't say arguements maybe disagreements and we voiced some things we wanted to say to each other which I guess is healthy. For some reason to me she can't do anything wrong, she's close to perfection for me but I know deep deep down I know there's something not quite right with her.. it's like she can't open up properly or give me the emotion I give her. I know I'm an emotional boy, more emotional than most maybe but I don't know I can't quite put my finger on it. I do know however I love this girl to bits and right now in this moment writing this 6 months after I last saw her face to face I'd probably do anything to be with her again. I'm contemplating moving to Singapore to be with her; I tried for a role in March / April but unfortunately I didn't get it..

On the way back from Edinburgh I tried to do a thing that Men are known not to be able to do; I tried to multi task. Whilst driving I tried to remove my Jacket and during my wriggling around succesfully managed to look like a mentalist trying to escape from his straight jacket and I had a histeric Malay girl sitting to my left pointing and laughing her ass off at me; this may sound trivial to you but she has a beautiful laugh and I'd be more than willing to make a fool of myself every single day just to hear that laugh again.

I won't bore you with anymore fine details; we returned from Edinburgh and before I knew it her stay was over and it was the night before her train back to London to catch her flight back home to Sing. I remember lying there, propped up against my pillow / back of my bed just watching her sleep. I must have sat there for an hour maybe more completely wide awake watching her chest move in and out (not in a pervy way) and listening to her cute little snores. I wanted to just hold her so tightly and tell her how much she meant to me but didn't want to wake her from her dreams. Eventually I too drifted off with the Sandman.

All of a sudden; we were in the car and I was taking her to Durham train station for the return journey. I wrote a silly stupid letter and slipped it into her luggage without her noticing before we set off - hopefully it would be some light reading material for her to help her pass the time while being reassured how much I cared for her - I never did found out what her reaction was. The drive to the train station was bad, like I'd lost a family member or I'd been given some really bad news I was just numb knowing that with each metre the car travelled was part of the countdown before she had to go back; I wish however she'd felt the same obviously I think (hope) she had an OK time with me over the festive period but could see she wanted to be home with her friends and family which is completely understandable. We arrived at the train station and it was absolutely freezing I remember the cold like yesterday, with tears on my cheeks the cold was like being bitten by an insect so raw against my skin helping the memory to be burned into my brain. Just before we left the car she pulled her Monkey face; she actually did it very well and it made me laugh amongst all the emotions she actually made me laugh. What a girl.

I had a stupid appointment with the dentist that I couldn't cancel and I had to leave her at the train station to wait for her train, I guess it was for the best otherwise I'd have had to put her on the train myself and that would have been just too God damn hard. The drive to the dentist I was numb again tears streaming down my face like Niagra falls wondering if I'd ever see her again. I had to go to Singapore, I have to see this girl again.

Merry Christmas Nisa, thank you from the bottom of my squidgy heart.

IMY. Elephant Juice.

Part 3

Coming Soon

The Spy Who Came In From The Cold by John le Carre

About a year ago now I started reading a book by John le Carré that I picked up absolutely randomly at the bookshop in the airport before flying back to England during my time in The Netherlands. It was called "A Most Wanted Man" and was a Spy / Espionage / Terrorist themed book with a fantastic story line and an abrupt non-satisfying ending...which funnily enough I seem to enjoy. A Most Wanted Man was the follow up to the critically acclaimed "Constant Gardener" which I have not yet read..After finishing the book I was again catching an Amsterdam->Newcastle flight and picked up two more le Carré titles for £10. One book called "The Mission Song" and another called "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold".

Let me start by saying this book is possibly one of the greatest books I've read in my life. It gripped me from start to finish; I found myself unable to put the book down, powering through the streets of Amsterdam with the book in my hand; navigating society on autopilot as I was so engrossed in the story and so attached to the characters I just couldn't put it down... A high period of high pressure and stress at work turned the pace of progress on the book back down to low but I've just finished it today; the last few pages keeping me trapped on the spot in the middle of the street, unable to go anywhere until I had finished.

The book is based somewhere in the 60's, in post-WW2 Britain where espionage and spying is still top priority for the governments of Europe. The book follows Alec Leamus, a 50-something year old veteran spy brought back to England after a string of failures in Berlin, on the verge of retirement finds himself with one last mission; probably his most dangerous and high priority mission in his career. Along the way Alex hits a string of unfortunate incidents but finds a flower amongst a graveyard when he meets a young librarian girl called Liz. The story comes together in a big high tensity ultimatum in true le Carré style.

John Le Carré; a former intelligence officer himself working for both MI5 and MI6 sections of British Secret Service which enables him to make this particular story so en-capturing. Le Carré also admits in an epilogue to the book that during the time of writing the book he was in a very dark place within his life and he believes some of these experiences he experienced formed parts of the main character Alec Leamus and you can feel it as you turn the pages.

I don't want to spoil the book for anyone who may be interested so I'm going to wrap up here. If you like James bond style spy, espionage and high tension thriller book's I'm sure you will enjoy this tremendously.

5/5

Queens Day 2011

Or Koninginnedag to the Dutchies. On an annual basis the whole of The Netherlands and it's 16 Million Oranjes celebrate the Birthday of their Queen; Beatrix. The Dutch take it so seriously in fact they have a national holiday it's just unfortunate this year it fell on a Saturday and I didn't get my additional day off! :(

Let me tell you to set the tone, the Dutch do not celebrate this event lightly. They absolutely go all out, 100% and give it their all. All Friday night, all day Saturday and for those sick enough...all day Sunday too!

This year I decided to spend Queens Day with some colleagues in The Jordaan, one of the more affluent and high end areas of Amsterdam. Full of pretty ladies ;)



The Jordaan w/ Queens Day Madness



To start the day I had a hard time with the mongo Italian C Claps. He can be extremely anti-social at times..after some tug and war of pros and cons of going he finally decided to come. After few smokies to start the day we head off at around mid day to meet the guys from work in The Jordaan.

I hooked up with some of the guys from team and the North Asia market service team, who without getting too emotional are some pretty great people..

Myself and the Claps hooked up with Mr. Peters (David), Ulksy (Ulrika) Kat (Katarina) Lidia (Katarina's Sister) and Harrison (Peter J Harrison). We pretty much began drinking straight away at a bar round the corner from the Westerkerk and noticed the Dutch had come up with an ingenious (money making of course) scheme for mass public alcohol consumption by supplying "re-fillable" cups. All vendors sign to the same deal and a company supplies them with plastic cups branded with an Amsterdam City Slogan on it. These cups are 1 Euro each - on top of the price of the drink. You can then carry the cup around with you..walking the city, re-felling at the watering holes along the way with your glass deposit. Or you could act like we did; have one person collect the cups and take turns. It turns out that person gets bored of holding the cups and all four of our appointed cup carriers lost the stash and we had to start from scratch paying the extra one euro per drink. The vendors were sending spare employees throughout the city like science fiction drug runners saerching for these discarded gold leaves to take back to their premise and re-distribute for that additional 1 Euro all over again. Fantastic yet awful at the very same time.

Let me set the tone here; I've never seen a party on this scale before...it wasnt only a street party but a City Party! Every single street, every single bridge in Amsterdam has party go'ers and is full, absolutely jam packed full of people, not far from a carnival. The city literally turns orange. I partied last year on Queens Eve and missed the actual day itself. Queens day was simply absolute madness without even mentioning the public bathroom situation.

We drank, we smoked, we laughed, we danced, and we partied. It was truly a great day; fun was definitely had by all.



Taking a breather - from left to right: Ulrika Quaison, Lidia Bekavac, David Peeters, Claudio Claps, Katarina Bekavac and Peter J Harrison



Looking at this photo now however makes me feel sad. I apologise now If I get philosophical but the company we all work for (except Lidia) is going through a major reorganisation and as a Supply Team - My team Asia will be reduced from 14 people down to 8. Writing this I'm feeling surprisingly emotional and I guess upset is the only way to describe it. The company we work for has a cash flow of almost £1 Billion pounds and is growing at double digit figures and yet somehow, it's not enough...

Peter and Ulrika in the photograph are directly affected and will cease to be my direct colleage as of 1st September this year when the reorganisation goes into full effect. Ulrika has reapplied for one of the new roles posted in Amsterdam however I understand Peter has not. I'll come back to these two individuals in a later post Im sure. They're incredible human beings.

Claudio shares the same job role as Ulrika however it's his heart that has carrier him away from the business; ironically it was the busienss that helped capture his heart. He met a woman, through work, a daily contact of his based in Singapore. She flew to Amsterdam for work related purposes as she'd just had a promotion that put her into more direct contact with Amsterdam. She stayed for two weeks and by the time she left his mind was made up. He was resigning from Diageo and going after her. Without a bead of sweat shedded in hesitation or contemplation. He is away. I will lose a roomate, a colleague and worst of all; A friend. I'll come back to Claudio at some point too, I'd put him in my top 10 human beings of all time.

With inevitable change as this, I fully understand it is human nature to fear change. Comfort and stability are two of a human beings most important conscious and subsconcious needs. However I will truely miss my colleagues; not just Ulrika, Peter and Claudio but my fellow team members certain to soon leave our team; Rianne, Chris and Kitty. With this post I wish you all the best of luck with your future endeavours; "Follow your heart if not your dreams".

Anyway, let's brighten up this post, it was about 9pm and we were all very tired and quite hungry. We decided to go to a Chinese Restaurant after much deliberation with Ulrika almost insisting we find her vegetarian suriname food as she hadn't really eaten any of the greasy delights on offer on the streets of Amsterdam during Queens Day celebrations. Not quite sure on the name of the restaurant but it's the one at the bottom of the Red Light District; if you head along past Madam Tusards at Dam Square to your right and keep walking for about 300 metres you're there. We dined, drank some more, chatted, made rude and subversive comments about one and other in jest and once again had a great time.

We took a coffee in the restaurant paid the bill and took off into the darkness. With everyone full of rice and exhausted from a days dancing, walking, pushing through crowds of people and drinking copious amounts of alcohol we decided home was the best direction. We stopped at a Coffeeshop near the Westermaarkt and sat together for a final 30 minutes before parting ways. Me, Claudio and David walked to an Avondwinkel or an evening shop and filled up on munchy food, when we walked outside arms full of junk to meet Peter as he was served before us we found that he had fucked off and gone home without us. Literally jumped on the tram without telling any of us. With that note on Irishmen I sign off and thank anyone who has read for reading. Hope I didnt bore you too much.

Last but not least; Me and Claudio stayed up until 5am smoking huge joints. I really need to grow up soon.

Peace

The Man from Beijing by Henning Mankell

My first novel from the world renowned Swedish Crime Writer Henning Mankell and I have to say in a quick summary; I loved it. I was in Amsterdam Centraal Station after recently moving location to a small town on the outskirts of Amsterdam called Amersfoort. The regular twice daily trains had now become a part of my life and to pass the time I thought I’d treat myself to a new book. On reflection I love to read but don’t really get the chance to so I will be sad when these train journeys come to an end. 

I browsed the section of English books for about 10 minutes briefly reading some summaries on the back and breaking the first rule on reading, judging books by their covers. The book caught my eye and I quickly read the summary on the back before purchasing at the till for 9 Euros.

The book covers several main stories spanning the globe and stretching over almost two centuries. The book starts up in the northern and coldest parts of Sweden when a small town exclusively of pensioners are brutally murdered. A local district judge realises she was distantly related to the old people in the village after the surnames of the victims are released by Police in a press conference. The local judge, who has been signed off work for a fortnight due to high blood pressure, decides to visit the area of Hesjovallen where the murders took place to seek confirmation she was indeed related to those killed. Her legislative experience and exposure to crimes in her daily job help her discover information which leads her across to the other side of the world; the middle Kingdom, the colossus that is China. 

In China the book takes us back 150 years to the last dynasty of China and follows the story of San and his brothers Guo Si and Wan. They’re desperate struggle to find a better life took them across the globe constantly facing death and turmoil in the face. The book reaches us in Modern Day China just after the communist "emperor's" Mao and Deng. The book goes deep into Chinese politics and their economical struggles throughout their reign. 

We are then transported to London, England where the book meets its eventful and surprising conclusion. This book is a wonderful fictitious crime novel with revenge at heart influenced by politics and family honour. An awesome read from start to finish, another one of those where suspense increases with each turn of the page.

The book covers several main stories spanning the globe and stretching over almost two centuries. The book starts up in the northern and coldest parts of Sweden when a small town exclusivey of pensioners are brutally murdered. A local district judge realises she was distantly related to the old people in the village after the surnames of the victims are released by Police in a press conference. The local judge, who has been signed off work for a fortnight due to high blood pressure decides to visit the area of Hesjovallen where the murders took place to seek confirmation she was indeed related to those killed. Her legislative experience and exposure to crimes in her daily job help her discover information which leads her across to the other side of the world; the middle Kingdom, the colossas that is China. 

In China the book takes us back 150 years to the last dynasty of China and follows the story of San and his brothers Guo Si and Wan. Theyre desperate struggle to find a better life took them across the globe constantly facing death and turmoil in the face. The book reaches us in Modern Day China just after the communist "emperor's" Mao and Deng. The book goes deep into Chinese politics and their economical struggles throughout their reign. 

We are then transported to London, England where the book meets its eventful and surprising conclusion. This book is a wonderful ficticious crime novel with revenge at heart influenced by politics and family honour. An awesome read from start to finish, another one of those where suspense increases with each turn of the page.

4/5

A Weekend In Maastricht

Saturday 5th / Sunday 6th Feb

We started planning this back in December, well...when I say we...Jeroen organised the entire thing and all we had to do was show up. He arranged for us to go see The Red Bull Crashed Ice Event in Valkenberg just outside of Maastricht in the South of the Netherlands.

Jeroen arranged a Hotel for us in Maastricht Randwyck just outside the City Centre in a surreal medical district full of hospitals, care centres and medical technology labs. The hotel was smart, really smart especially considering it cost us only 40 Euros per person and we didn’t have to check out until 5pm on the Sunday! 

The adventure started for me at 8:00am Saturday morning when my phone alarm woke me, quick shower and ready to be out of the house by 9:00am...well 9:20am is Ok too :)

Got to Central Station in the heart of Amsterdam and had 5 minutes to spare, had myself a Tall Vanilla Latte from Starbucks and a quick cig outside before walking to the train platform to meet Jeroen and Arien. We boarded the train on time and sat back for our 1 Hour train journey to Utrecht where Jeroen's friend Wouter picked us up. We also met Claudio at the train station in Utrecht, Claudio works with me at Diageo. Claudio is such a character, a very clever guy but best summed up as a Crazy Italian.

It was a 2 hour car journey from Utrecht to our hotel in the outskirts of Maastricht but we needed a pit-stop en route so we pulled over at a service station for some food and to stretch our legs, I needed the bathroom which brings me onto my next rant... Toilets in The Netherlands, you have to pay 50 cents almost everywhere you go, it’s an absolute sham, if the taxes here aren’t high enough already! This time the 50 cents was worth it because in my Toilet Cubicle someone had wrote "To Enter the Matrix Press the Flush Button" which briefly amused me.

We arrived at the hotel, checked in, dropped our bags off and immediately jumped onto the train to head to the Red Bull Event. It took about 15 minutes on the train and we where there surprised by the amount of people who were actually there. I was expecting maybe 5,000 and 20,000 turned up to the event. I believe so many people turned up because the event was free entry and we are talking about Dutch People here, the tightest people on the planet. 

We were at the event a good three hours early and had a lot of time to kill so we did as all self respecting young men would do; ate hamburgers and drank a lot of beer. The beer speeded things up a bit and before we knew it the event was starting; the best way for me to describe this Red Bull Crashed Ice event would be to say it's simply Urban Ices king / Racing. A track built in an urban environment where the object is to ice skate through the track as quickly as possible. Lots of tricky corners and jumps to encourage countless crowd pleasing falls and crashes repeated in slow motion on the big screens for all to gorge. Unfortunately the views were extremely restricted and I would say like Formula 1 in that respect you stand and all you see is an Ice Skater or two go past ever few minutes, and after 1 hour of the event we all got bored and left.



From left to right; Wouter, Jeroen, Claudio, Arien and Me



 

We decided to go back to the hotel, freshen up [in mine and Claudio's case - Get even more wasted] and hit Maastricht City Centre for a mega session.

We jumped on the bus and headed to the city centre after our fresh time in the hotel (still absolutely smashed) and get some food in the city before starting with the real drinking. Grilled Pork Tenderloin wrapped in ham was my choice as the entire Menu of this Dutch Restaurant was horrid; there was literally not one thing that I liked. Thankfully it was absolutely stunning and the chips they brought us were superb like my Mother’s Home made chips of yester year. 

With food in our bellies we hit Maastricht and started with the beers, it’s not really done drinking Pints in The Netherlands, they are either 270 - 330ml servings but because they are so small you drink them so quick and lose count very quickly. I think drinking this way makes you less bloated, when drinking beer anyway and gets you drunk at a better pace.

First club we went into sucked ass, really bad music; Gloria Gainer and George Michael. We had 2 beers there and made a quick exit. Next place we went to was just round the corner and it was awesome, much better music and was a bit more up market without sounding snobbish.

All the guys, except Jeroen were trying their luck for a member of the opposite sex, optimistic in their attempts. Myself, I wasn’t trying..; I just wanted to have a good weekend with the boys away from Amsterdam. It was after 1am and I bumped into a blonde girl and as is the randomness of life (especially after 15 beers), we started talking. The other boys had got themselves into a group of in my opinion annoying ladies; a Cypriote, a Bulgarian and a Serb. Neither being my cup of tea. We went to another club, famous in Maastricht for being one of the few open after 2am, it was absolutely packed. Impossible to move so I kept talking to the girl I met and even though I was severely intoxicated at this point I couldn’t think about anything else but Nisa... all the way in Singapore, how much I missed her, how much I love her. 

The blonde left at 3am and we kept going for a few more hours accompanied by the eastern European Brady bunch; well until Claudio put an end to the night around 5.30am. He got removed from the last club we were in for shouting and starting trouble with the door staff; funny these guys were twice his height and four times his width but he showed no fear; a combination of his state of intoxication and his Italian blood. 

We got ourselves a taxi driver who drove like Lewis Hamilton and within 15 minutes we were back at the hotel; me and Claudio taking an early morning puff puff pass pass before getting some rest. The next day we jumped back into the car and hit the road, it seemed to take much longer on the way back but the good news was even after 25 beers and a few hours sleep I had no hangover and felt right as rain. Wouter dropped us off at Utrecht station as he was off to meet a lady for a bit of bunga bunga, Claudio made his own way back to Amersfoort and Me Jeroen and Arien got the train back to Amsterdam. 

I said by goodbyes to Jeroen and Arien and made my way back to The Blues Brothers for a catch up with the lads and a couple of cheeky ones before heading home for the evening. The weekend spent, my wallet, my liver and my lungs all took a battering. Great fun, here's to the next one!

Nisa & Jack - The Story So Far...

As I've just started my blogging life and I dont really get on here as much as I'd like.. this next post is basically a "catch up" of events so far up until current day, the best thing in my life right now; Miss Nisa.

I'll sum this up as quick as I can but let's start from the beginning..

How we got to know one another

Work,...Work got me into this...

I started at Diageo in Amsterdam in September 2009 and started by supporting a Dutch / Indonesian woman called Maria. She had alot of work on her hands and it was decided I'd support her and eventually take some of her workload. After 2 months I got my permanent contract and began working "on my own" with my first markets. Diageo Indochina [now Diageo Vietnam], Riche Monde Malaysia [now MHD Malaysia], MHD Singapore, VOK Asia and Image Pillar Sdn Bhd. A good mix of In-market Diageo owned subsidiaries and a handful of 3rd Parties to spice things up a bit. To cut a long story short; I began working with a woman based in Diageo Singapore called Phui Har Lim; a Malaysian woman married to an English guy. In her early 30's, Phui Har Lim or PH as I used to call her worked in finance and provided me costing info for my daily job. Eventually I added her to facebook and one night, inquisitive and bored I decided to go through her photo albums on her profile. Nothing out of the ordinary; lots of photos of her and her young child, her husband, friends and travel shots...you know the usual, and then somehow I came across a photo she had commented on, this photo:



The Photo That Caught Jack Smith



My first reaction was quite literally "WOW" out loud, the Doctor Martins are cool no? Then..there are those legs...I'm a 25 year old white blooded male from Sunderland (where proper men come from) but I'll be as subtle as possible..shit, they are amazing.

The next day at work I was having an MSN conversation with PH, my work pal at Diageo and after we'd discussed business of course I light heartidly asked her.."Hey PH, who's that girl in the photo you commented on yesterday" and she replied with "Ahhhh..you mean Nisa?"

Within a minute someone else was invited into the conversation with me and PH, a girl called Nisa. Apprehension to say the least. PH then typed the words "Jack think's your cute"..I went red and blushed even thought we were 13,000 miles apart. I then got comfortable in the conversation and started flirting with Nisa a little and it was reciprocated, shly but reciprocated none the less.

We added each other on FB, and chatted pretty much everyday at work, we got on like a house on fire.... *Hollywood Slow Mo-Fade Out*

Nisa in Europe: Round 1

One day in a conversation with Nisa she mentioned she was thinking about a trip but couldnt think where to go..Europe or another location, can't remember the other place she wanted to visit. I obviously cheekly pushed and pushed in conversations for her to come to Europe flirting every second of it..then an awesome day arrived; she told me she had booked a flight to Amsterdam to come and visit me. Euphoria would be an understatement, by now we'd developed quite a relationship and I reallly wanted to meet her.

I remember distinctly waiting at Schipol Aiport in Amsterdam, standing at gate 3 waiting for her arrival. Her plane had landed and according to the array of LCD Monitors above me her bags had been delivered to the final emotional obstacle in air travel; the baggage collection conveyor belt of death. I waited and waited until eventually Nisa physically entered my life and I just remember being so happy to finally see her, to be completely honest she looked rough after her flight but anyone would after the long haul air journey she had just taken but she was still absolutely stunning.

We had about 10 wonderful days in Amsterdam together, went out and ate alot, enjoyed the sites, sounds and culture the city has to offer..and consequently as each day went by I liked her more and more...We then decided to mak an epic 10 hour trip by car to England and she would stay with me and my family in Sunderland for the remainder of her holiday and then we'd take the ferry back to Amsterdam so she could catch her flight home.

Created by God



She adored England and said it was her new favourite place in the world, which made me smile quite alot, either at the ridiculousness of her statement or by some previously undisclosed sense of patriotism. Our time in England was bliss, we did nothing but eat, sleep, shop, sleep and eat...well the saucey details Im keeping to myself Im afraid :)

 As the saying goes "all good things come to an end" and our time together quickly passed, before I knew it, it was time to take the ferry back to Amsterdam and then once again as if someone had pressed FF on my life; I was in the car with her on the way to the airport. 

To Be Continued

Part 2 Coming Soon

The YouTube Challenge

 The Best Drum And Bass

The story is a basic one but a one I wanted to share, as a Drum And Bass fan and YouTube user I obviously linked the two and found many DnB delights on YouTube including UKDrumAndBass and Liquicity. At several times dissapointed by their lack of uploading, shameful dubstep and commercialisation I decided to start my own channel featuring just good drum and bass songs, mainly Liquid / Funk and Breakbeat DnB I began compiling a list of songs and uploading them to YouTube with only one purpose, so people can hear good music! If they like what they hear there are links inside each tracks description linking the listener to the record label or artists website for more information, this YouTube channel Ive made is of no commercial gain or profit to anyone involved. 

After being the first to upload the Full Vocal Remix of E-Z Rollers "Tough At The Top" tune I quickly gained 50,000 views and have continued to approx 81,000 views as of today. 

My goal is simple; to share great music with those in need! - Keep the music coming, keep adveritisng the channel and by the end of 2011 have 500,000 combined views on all videos. Im not bothered about specific channel visits, subscribers or likes etc just to achieve half a million cumulative views on my music videos.

339 days to go.

Click here to enjoy some 1st Class Drum & Bass Anthems

Peace,

TGM

Do You Like Indian Food? Are You A Man Or A Mouse?

Over the festive period I had my wonderful visitor from Singapore over again, Miss Latifah. Her appetite for food in General is astonishing for a tiny tiny Asian girl, the Girl can really eat!


Her favourite foods include Full English Breakfasts, Sushi, Pizza's, Fish And Chips, Bacon Sandwiches and last but by no means least, Indian Food, spicy Indian Food.


We went to 3 different places in my hometown of Sunderland, UK and at each one she ordered the spiciest curry on the menu, Vindaloo. Each time the waiter / serving staff looked at her with a look of disbelief that this tiny girl was ordering the hottest thing on the menu.. and subsequently, each time she ate the curry was hot but not hot enough..


During the Christmas period we took a short trip to the lovely city of Edinburgh and we decided to dabble in some Punjabi Cuisine....


The place was called Khushi, and the waiter was one of the nicest guys ever!

Located @ 32 B Broughten Street, Edinburgh City Centre this restaurant really is a gem.


I ordered my usual, Chicken Madras and Nisa ordered herself a Lamb Jalfrezi but "Vindaloo" hot. My Madras came first and holy shit it was hot, no word of a lie, it was well and truly the spiciest thing I have ever eaten in my entire 25 years on this planet. Although it was destroying my taste buds and making me knock back the Cobra Lager like it was water just to cool my mouth it was incredibly moreish and I couldn't help but going back for more.


Nisa's Jalfrezi on the other hand was out of this world, it made me Madras taste like a Chicken Korma. Seriously hot, too hot for her although she probably won't admit it :)


After our delicious food, the waiter explained to us that my Madras had 1/2 tablespoon of special Chili powder, where Nisa's Vindaloo Hot Jalfrezi had 2 FULL TABLESPOONS!


The purpose of this post is two fold, one to emphasize the fantastic Punjabi cuisine available from Kushi in Edinburgh but mainly to emphasize how awesome my Nisa is :)


So if you are ever in Edinburgh, and you consider yourself a curry fan, you need to put your dedication to the test and visit Khushi!


Peace
TGM