Joseph's Journey to Midlife Crisis

I started blogging 6 years ago at a crucial juncture of my life. 2005 was the year that I started fulfiling my dream of a master's degree, got my apartment and charted my own career. So, here is a lookback to the last 6 years in TLA (Three Letter Acronyms)



Five Year Itch
"Best of luck in the future and thanks for your contribution"
John Coyne ( Current CEO of Western Digital Corp )

"Joseph,
It has been wonderful working with somebody as dedicated and intelligence as you. I'm sure you will do well in your new company and your other future endeavors, just make sure you be "good". Temptations are aplenty in your new company....
We suppose to have some farewell for you during our HR meeting today. Unfortunately, the meeting was cancelled due to the evacuation drill and many are either away on work or leave. Sorry about that...I will see you before you leave today. take care." Fauzi ( HR Director )


You, Beauty Line?



2006
Fruitful Celebrity Hunts


Biennial Family Holidays

Questionable Cuisines
Travel Bug

Au Revoir, friends

2007
Work by Beach




Time for Youth

Digital Photography Frenzy

Old Man=Wine?

Teaching Aboringines

2008
Rural Sarawak Works

Serving National Service

Civil Society Activism

Finally, graduated again

2009
Flood Relief

Near Death Experience

London Outpost Experience

Anybody out there?

It was an eventful 2009 in terms of job; where I felt that for the first time in many years, it was a fruitless pursuit. Imagine having all the fun working in London yet longing to be something more. And having a good life there just make the sense stronger.

I wanted to quit and do something else.

As it turns out, I moved to a new job and things seemed to have a turn for the better. Was volunteered to facilitate a high level meeting in Miri and took the opportunity to extend my weekend by visiting middle Baram again.

In summary, the villagers are still suffering with little help from anybody else but their faith /themselves ... I hope. It was a fruitful discussion, yet i know that the stake are high and am not sure how to move forward.

Basically, giving fish is easier than teaching people how to fish.. esp. when one is not a fisherman. I was able to engage some Oxford chap about developing localized technology that uses river power. Have also got some link from loving Christians whose South African root is in agriculture and technology. And recently, was linked to a landlady who implements micro credit and knows another person from Indonesia who concorted a super fertilizer formula. But none of this is concrete ... till just now.

In short, there is donation available to help this village (Long Ikang) in Middle Baram. They suffer 2-3 times of flooding per year and is now affected by drought. Any rice produce is for self sustenance.

Here is the strategy:-
1. Rework on the irrigation channel by building 2 ponds and irrigation ways.
2. This includes a supply of water pump to draw out water during flood and to draw water in during drought. The pump will be shared with another village nearby.
3. Explore the feasibility of pig farming with the eye on diversification of income. Planting of food vegetation and usage of pig manure as fertilizer to complete the chain. Possibily under micro credit scheme for motivation.
4. Work out the distribution channel to ensure that products can be shipped to the 2 nearby towns.

So, all we need now is a person whom can help to monitor and ensure that the project can be carried out. This person can be a volunteer or even have his time paid in allowance in ensuring that the project are developed and tracked. We need a local, a Sarawakian man ( for safety reason) who can devote time in visiting and tracking the progress. And till now, we can't find that person yet. So, if you have any desire or knows someone who is willing to do a short term help, please drop us a note.

Even as we speak, this village was flooded last week by the water from the mountains compounded by the lack of vegetation cover.

Back to bLogs - 2010

3 cute dogs in Omotesando
Celebrating 2010 new year in Himeji temple, Harajuku

Imperial Palace in Tokyo

Freezing in Iceland

Snow and hails .... !!!

I have practically disappeared over the blog horizon.

Since the Misinformed Minister Rais Yatim said that social networks are bad for Malaysian culture, decide that I should be back to the blogsphere again.

So, what is there to talk about?

Country - 11 churches, 1 gudhwara and 1 mosque attacked. Debates are emotional and irrational. Some reports are saying that our international standing has fallen and even some dared to suggest economic sanction from the big brother.

Life- am now an uncle!! Ok, i am already called an uncle before that but this is a real biological uncle status.

Still need to get married and seemed to be rather impossible

Started my new job in the same company and going thru the process of knowing people, business and the lingering feeling of incompetence.

Still like my church and the many activities there and beyond. I reckon that one day, I (and others ) will be caught and imprisoned for doing something that we were doing last time due to laws that were created arbitarily. May Allah's grace be upon us.

Let me share some photos that was taken from last months or so...

Racist official newsletter from the top Malaysian University

Translation from Malay Language to English

Therefore, I as the Head of Graduates of University of Malaya would like to advice all our fellow graduates of University of Malaya to combine forces and prepare ourselves together with all the necessary knowledge and preparation before we continue our fight in the actual battle field. This advice implies mainly to our Malay Graduates.

We must treasure the sacrifices made by our ancestors which tried so hard to ensure that Tanah Melayu ( Malay Land ) is free from the intrusion of alien races. We must not fall into the category of those who forgets their roots until they will be taken over by other races. Graduates must prove themselves that we are capable and the best choice to take over the throne of governing the country in the future. This implies with the theme of MPMUM Progressive, Dynamic, Professional. There is nothing more important that can compared to our always-sensitive and improving Graduates. I also would like to advice all Malay Graduates to prepare ourselves to face all eventualities in near future, seeing that most of the issues are raised by the non-Malay races. Don't let ourselves to slack and allow our 'enemies under the blankets to attack us' (direct translation from the Malay idiom). Don't allow 'our'(Malay) Malaysia to fall into the hands of those who are who are not entitled to it.

I hope this is not a call for people to 'prepare' to physically fight those nasty 'other' race. It is always the other races that is weaker, more terrible, evil , lousy than your race.

I wonder why this gentlemen thinks that he is greater than others, since he is the 'head' of the political system in University Malaya. Maybe he feels that he has reached the pinnacle of power. I hope he does not forget that the 'real' world nowadays are borderless and what he does in the power tower will be documented and available for his potential employers. For those in Malaysia, you would note that his name (and his father) sounded Indonesian. If we can accept Indonesia and morphed them as Malays, I hope he can accept others as well.

With UM raising back to the top 200 universities of the world ( 180 ranked) , I wonder if the committee would be interested to know if the university is able to create real quality graduates. Really shameful.