Folks, it's been more than 4 years since my last post! As you can imagine, a lot has happened since then and it will take more than a few posts to update you all. For families and close friends - you pretty much know whats been happening, but for the benefit of all, I'll try to summarise over the next few days!

Now this is layoff and a half. It's been almost exactly 5 months since my last entry. Since then, lots has happened! For those who are still checking this site, here's a brief run-down!
February - We found a 4-bedroom (actually 3-bedroom and 1 study) house in Wheelers Hill and decided to buy it. Managed to get a 60-day settlement period so that we would not have to interrupt our US trip.
March - Flew to Tokyo for a day trip. It was cool, cloudy and rainy, so we couldn't say much about the weather, but I guess it was all that we expected it to be. Colourful, bright and very lively. We stayed in Shinjuku and took the local JP train around town. The night we arrived we had these fantastic cuttlefish balls with mayo sauce. Yum! For supper and breakfast the following day, we found a little noodle shop round the corner from the hotel (Shinjuku Prince) which was cheap and excellent. Shopping was expensive so we resorted to buying stuff that was on sale and cheap (but nice) souvenirs. After the short stay in Tokyo we jetted into New York City. Man, what a miserable night it was when we arrived. Snow everywhere and freezing cold. I had stepped in a puddle of slushy ice at the airport and by the time we had taken the shuttle bus to Howard Beach Station, jumped on the train and walked to the hotel from Penn Station, my feet were numb from the cold. It was below freezing pretty much the whole time we were in the US. We took the AMTRAK to Washington DC the next afternoon and watched the Bucks v Wizards that night. The MCI center is right in Chinatown and the area was a bit sleazy if you ask me. Didn't really enjoy walking around at night. The Wiz lost by a couple of points, thanks to some clutch Sam Cassell shooting. Went to Hooters for a drink before heading back to the hotel. The following day we took the AMTRAK to Philly and we had a great time there. The cheesesteaks are for real (had them at Jim's TWICE), the restaurants are great - go and have crabcakes at the original Bookbinders. Fabulous stuff. We also went to the Philly zoo (oldest zoo in the USA), ran up the steps to the Museum of Art like Rocky, rode in the Philly Phlash, did some shopping, and snacked a lot too. We then took the AMTRAK back to DC for our second Wizards game vs Orlando. T-Mac was his usual self scoring a game-high 44 points with consecutive 3pointers late in the game to keep the Magic within 2 or 3, but MJ capped the night with a one-handed dunk and Stack iced the game with clutch freethrows. They won by 1! The atmosphere inside was magic. The center erupted when Oakley dished to MJ for the dunk. Had a walk around DC the next day, looking at some museums at the Smithsonian, and also the monuments at the mall. Quite impressive. The whitehouse wasn't as grand as I thought it would be... the Capitol Building was nice though. The reflecting lake was not reflecting - they'd drained it for some renovation work. That was a bummer, because it would've made a great photo. DC was rainy and gloomy during our stay and we took the next AMTRAK back to NYC the day after. Did our shopping, went to Battery park to have a look at the Statue of Liberty, but it was foggy and couldn't see much... We also took the lift up the Empire State Building... the queue to get there was huge. It was the weekend, so can't complain. The NBA shop was huge and had so much to see... had the famous thin crust pizza and pancakes... Time Square was impressive, but lacked the life that KL has at night! We flew out on a Saturday night there, and got home on Monday morning... it was a tiring but funfilled trip.
April - Can't remember offhand!
May - We moved into our new place - it was a weird feeling at first, but we settled in soon enough. It's a bit further to get to work, but with the highway and leaving at the right time, it's not causing too much grief. For Polly, it's just round the corner!

Apologies for another long layoff. Well, since my last post, we are now full-steam ahead with our US trip plans. We leave on the 5th March and return on the 17th. I've bought tickets for two Wizards game (where Michael Jordan is playing) and one New Jersey Nets game. We will be shuttling in between Washington and New York. I've also tried to book a timeshare apartment in Atlantic City. We'll see whether that pans out. The trip should be a blast! I'm so looking forward to see all those things we drool over on TV and the media. It's the hype of America. We all want to see it.

Just got back from New Zealand too, another business trip. For some strange reason, the weather is always perfect when I'm there. It was a sunny and refreshing 25C - nothing like the ugly 35C we had over the weekend. And it's hotting up again this weekend for the 2nd week of the Aussie Open. Kournikova is OUT! Nothing surprising there. She should just drop all her sponsors and work full time on her game.

The boys are doing well, enjoying each other's company I think. The only problem is that when Rufey (Florence's bitch) comes to visit, they end up digging huge holes all round the garden (despite my sprinkling pepper in the dirt). They are due to be wormed this weekend. Can't forget!

Happy new year!

I'm finally back at work. Things are good. Except that I had to wake up early to go to work this morning, and the dogs' dirty paws smudged my white shirt.

X'mas eve was fun - we had a few people over for a little dinner party. As usual we went for the boxing day sales in the city. Bought some house things which were quite cheap. This is a change from before when I used to go pick up some nice clothes, etc. I guess I'm getting more domesticated. We had a couple of friends over for a ham dinner (left over from the X'mas eve party) which was fun too. It was rather warm the weekend after Christmas, and we just didn't feel like doing much except laze around at home! On Monday we went to play golf at the Dunes, supposedly one of the best public courses in Australia. It's a links course which is a bitch to play in. It was incredibly windy and it was near impossible to find balls hit into the rough. Just like those in Ireland. It looks easy because there are no trees or water hazards, but once you're off the fairway, you can pretty much forget it. And the bunkers, man, are they huge and they have lips which overhang the sand, making it more difficult to get out. The fairways were beautiful, soft and even. Greens were quite fast, which is not suited for my game. Consequently I shot an embarrasing 61 at the front and 53 at the back (after warming up!).

Spent new years eve at dinner with Polly's family, then went home to watch the fireworks on TV! We tried to look at them from outside the house, but they didn't get shot up very high so the view was very limited. It was pretty warm on new years day so we decided to potter around the house and play with the dogs. I think they are getting more used to each other - the playing is still a little too voilent for my liking but nothing much I can do there (especially when we are not looking or not home). Tiger had his stitches off the following day. The wound healed pretty well, but the hair is still growing back - it's been quite slow.

Last Friday I went to see "The Ring" with Polly and her sisters. Spooky is the word. Hated the part where Samara crawled out of the well and out of the TV. Doesn't sound like much but there was something about it that made it creepy. Good thing the movie didn't end after the body was found, otherwise it would've been a bad ending. I'm now very curious about what the Japanese version was like. Might get a copy and watch it in broad daylight.

As for now, maybe I should get back to work (or the lack of it).

It's day 3 since we got Sam and he's already had a piece of Tiger. It was my fault, really, I was trying to make them 'stay' while feeding them their breakfast and they got a bit too close. Suddenly they were onto each other and after a few seconds of us shouting, it was over and Tiger had a bite mark on his left cheek. Took him to the vet and got him stitched up for $239!! I was lucky I'm with Australian Unity, and they're paying for it. Phew. I hope Tiger and Sam are not psychologically affected by this melee. Actually Sam looked remorseful when he had realised what he'd done. Both dogs forgot about their food, until I reminded them to eat. Anyway I've learned my lesson and I know now what not to do. Or suffer the consequences.

Merry Christmas!

Have had the gate replaced, most of the weeds de-rooted at the back of the garden, and only the doggy door is outstanding in my list of to-do items before Sam arrives. I'm picking him up from North Balwyn after my round of golf on Saturday morning. It's going to be a scorcher that day - 40degrees forecast. Might go to the beach with the doggies again. That'll tire them out... Found out last weekend that Sam is not a pure beagle - he's a beagle x cocker spaniel hence the funny hair around the ears the the brown dots around the muzzle. I guess that makes him a bit more immune to hereditary diseases. Polly says spaniels are dumb. Let's see. He seems more friendly than Tiger and much more sociable.

I've been getting a lot of negative feedback from Polly's mum and some 'friends' about getting Sam. They think I've got my priorities all mixed up. The Asian mentality... sigh. A dog to them is, well, just another animal or pet. "Don't have another one - you'll have to spend double the amount, pay double the attention, scoop up twice the amount of shit, etc. etc." They just cannot appreciate the good that comes with it - companionship. The dog does not discriminate, and the attention it gives you is pure and unadulterated. It is impossible to give the same kind of companionship in return. The best I can do is to give back as much as I can, and also give them another 4-legged companion. Tiger is by himself all day, and it was only fair to him that I find him a companion. I really really do not see why it is a big deal and why everyone thinks I've got my priorities wrong and being irresponsible for getting another dog. Can anyone explain to me? I sure as hell can't figure it out.

We are one step away from acquiring Sam, the 9-month old beagle. I got the owners to take him to Elgar Road Vet, the vet who fixed up Tiger when he had Parvo. I'll wait for their call to see the verdict. If all goes well, we should be able to get the dog next week sometime. Which means I have to fix up the gate this weekend and any possible opening both dogs could escape from. It's all so exciting. But at the same time, I've promised my wife that I'll spend more time with her and not focus all my attention to the dogs. Hey, nothing comes for free. I'll just have to cope. Sometimes in life, we should take the opportunity to do what we want regardless of the consequences. Wish me luck!