give me 4 days, i'll give you 4 countries

....and we're back. it's amazing what not sitting on a couch can do to a blog. sadly, my writing is going to take a bit of a beating in the short-term.
here's why -
a certain retiree got pulled back into active service. yes, the unthinkable has happened - i have a new job. i'll keep the details vague, but you're virtually looking at the new digital marketing director for a small up & coming firm in Macau.
*note - titles are larger than they may career

let's catch up on the rest.
spent last weekend in Singapore with double A. we were very impressed with the city/country as a whole. prior to arrival, we had been warned that the city/country was nothing more than a 'cleaner version of HK'. we disagree. Singapore was a breathe of fresh air (sorry it just came out), with its tree-lined streets, hyper modern infrastructure, mixed with just a dash of colonial architecture. and hot….very hot. not humid, like HK, just hot. we made good use of the pool. i am told though that the allure of the place perhaps diminishes after you stay a while. for now, i'm left with a very pleasant taste in my mouth, likely from the multiple Singapore Slings consumed. btw - if you go to the famous Long Bar for said Sling, expect to pay $25 CAD for the pleasure. it's an expensive city, but worth it in my humble opinion.
*added value item - the free candy as you walk through immigration at the airport.

this is where the fun begins.
Monday evening, the dynamic traveling duo parted ways at the airport. you see, my first assignment as part of the new gig was to attend a conference in Shanghai - the 'real deal' China, folks. as such, i flew directly from the Pore, a 5-hour jaunt, and arrived into Padong Airport around 11pm. customs was a breeze, no iron-clad communism poking and prodding me every step of the way. in fact, the customs officer couldn't have been more pleasant and i even considered using the 'rate me' interface that all entry booths feature. picked up my bag, scurried through the 'friendly' late night crowd at arrivals and jumped into a taxi.

'where to, my man?'
'the Intercontinental, good sir….and step on it, will you?'
'right away, friend.'

unfortunately, that's dialogue you'd be more likely to find in the classic comedy Shanghai Noon, and not my experience at all. no, my best approach was to point at the name of the hotel in an email i had on my phone….as English was not going to happen…not even a little.
the gentlemen seemed agreeable to my passive explanation of the directions, and we were off. fun fact about taxis in Shanghai - the driver is sat in a fiberglass cocoon-like structure, no doubt for his own personal safety. no apologies required to the passengers who feel like they've been arrested. it took about 40-minutes to reach the hotel (and dude was driving FAST). i'll be honest, i was getting a little concerned given i thought it was closer to half that to my destination. i even tried to ask the driver if we were 'close'…to which he responded 'close?' and laughed with hysteric non-understanding. ultimately, all was fine and we made it. no tip.

upon check-in, my company (eager to impress), had left me a couple of goodies to finish up the day with a happy-ending - a new MacBook Pro and a Blackberry Bold. i like these guys already. conference kicked off the next morning, a somewhat lackluster experience - a sentiment shared by many. i did quite enjoy the part where i pretended to be sitting in on a UN junket, given the majority of the speakers were dropping Mandarin, requiring yours truly to rock a translation headset. pretty cool, albeit most of the good bits from the presentations were somewhat lost in translation i fear.
managed to sneak out that night with some colleagues for a dinner at a very cool downtown bar/restaurant and walked around the river-side boardwalk known as the 'Bund'.

day 2 was a snore, and the boss made the call to jet out early. back to HK, where i was looking forward to settle down for a bit. nope, there's work to be done. woke up the next morning (which so happens to be today) and jumped on a ferry for Macau. for those keeping count, that makes 4 countries - Singapore, China, HK, Macau. my passport is starting to get some major international cred.

rollin' my dice in Macau

it has been an interesting last couple of days for the Freedom - a very innocent online encounter set off a chain reaction of events that lead to me attending a private party on the roof of the Grand Hyatt in Macau. let's rewind.

on Wed, i was 'Linkedin' to a local headhunter in HK. typically i'm not one to frequent the networking site, yet i was more than happy to accept the invitation of someone who could actually do something for me (unlike most people who simply treat it like Facebook with business cards). shortly after the virtual introduction, we met in-person and i was fairly impressed with their specialization in the digital marketing space. after a productive chat, i thanked them for their time and hoped i would hear from them in the near future.

24 hours 'near' enough? literally within a day, the hunter emailed to let me know they had already found a potential opportunity for me and asked if they could set-up a meeting for Friday. i checked my calendar (don't laugh), and told them to make it happen. turns out this company is HQ'd in Macau, with an office in both HK & mainland China, but requested for me to come to Macau to meet with their directors. it's only an hour ferry from home and they were covering the cost of transportation....basically a win-win for me as i had yet to visit the island in my travels. for those unfamiliar with Macau, it's essentially the Las Vegas of Asia and a former Portuguese colony.

time to put my interview game-face on. as per usual, i do some pre-meeting research on the company, relate my experiences to their core-service offering, and, reluctantly, shave my trademark stubble down to enhance professionalism. done. only thing left is to dust off the suit and i'm out the door.
check that.
on second look, it appears that i'll actually need to vacuum off my suit. apparently, since last wearing the styles, a certain pussycat has left a little fur love from top to bottom. of course, i could never stay mad at my little hairy baby....and after a quick clean-up, i'm good to go.

the ferry terminal for Macau is only a few transit stops away, and the company was nice enough to book me a 'super-class' ticket. this doesn't amount to much, aside from getting served a very simple snack consisting of a sandwich, juice, and some mystery jelly in a plastic container upon boarding, but i'm certainly not complaining. sadly, the day is fairly overcast so there's not much to see as we approach 'Vegas island', but i'm excited to see what this place has to offer. upon arrival, i'm met by someone from the company and quickly whisked away to their office.

i met with Director #1, and i can already tell that this isn't your typical interview. he begins by telling me about his extremely diverse background, a little about the company, and a lot about the changes he wants to make to it. we then take a tour around, and i'm essentially introduced to almost everyone in the place, which covers four floors. i am beginning to feel more like a boss and less like a recruit. my meetings continue with other various senior staff, where again it's less about me and more about the company roadmap and how i can already start to help....honestly, the strangest interview i've ever had, which is about to get stranger.

after chatting for 3ish hours, it's now 6pm. i mention this due to the fact that my return ferry ticket had been booked for 6. "no worries", they say, "we'll book you another one". apparently it's a busy night getting off the island, as the earliest they can get me out is 9pm. this is further complicated by the fact that my main director contacts also have a private black tie dinner they need to attend starting at 7:30pm. it's discussed, and the guys decide that they'll give me a tour of the island, on route to their dinner, and we'll figure out the rest as we go. cool, i got nowhere to be.

the tour is actually quite appreciated; a sort of inside look into the history & development of the island. it reminds me of what it would have been like to drive around the desert in Nevada before they broke ground on the Flamingo. i'm amazed by some of the properties and the sheer size of them, including a place called 'Galaxy' which is set to open this weekend. as we move around, it's clear that Macau is going to blow Vegas out of the water...literally, estimated to eventually be 10-times the size of it. for anyone that's been to LV, the thought of that is utter insanity. we finish our tour by checking out the Venetian floor, and make our way over to their gala event at the Grand Hyatt, which turns out to be an unveiling of a new high-end alcohol beverage. problem is, we still got time until my ferry departs, and my name isn't on the guest list. once again, i feel more like a 5-year partner than a 1st day candidate, as they tell me just to follow them up to the roof.

the event is fairly cool, nothing super lavish or blinged out, but i can tell there are some decent sized players in attendance. i only have about an hour to kill, but that doesn't alleviate some final moments of awkwardness. the guys start introducing me to some of the people in attendance, to which these party-goers naturally ask - "and who are you?".
i quickly wise up and casually/safely offer that "i'm with them". oh, and of course i'm fresh out of business cards. finally, the time comes for me to jet off...somewhat upset that i'll miss out on the first taste of the new booze. we shake hands, thus marking the official end of the 'interview', nearly 6 hours after it began.

back on the ferry towards home, only this time with a plate of rice & chicken feet? in front of me, and i start to wonder how a potential next interview could be topped by this one...? i'm going to go with taking the company Maserati for a spin, saying a few words at a shareholder meeting, and perhaps giving away one of their daughters at her wedding.....sounds reasonable, no?
Only in Macau, folks.

shorty/wannabe a thug

we're going with a very literal title for this one, in that it's going to be a short post. the thug part, well, we'll get to that.

the Spring months in Hong Kong are ripe with long weekends, filled with random holidays such as 'Buddha's Birthday'. as a result, i have been able to spend more & more QT with dubA, though the weather continues to tease us; while it's still sweltering with humidity on a daily basis, the mornings tend to start off overcast which limits our eagerness to venture off to a day spent on a far away beach. i know, tough life we lead.

as such, a planned adventure to a distant piece of sand on Saturday instead turned into 'let's go to Ocean Park!' Ocean Park is perhaps the Hong Kong equivalent to Niagara Falls' Marineland - a place that in theory sounds awesome, but ultimately is a bit fishy. i'm not sure what it says about the land i live in that this is again one of those 'must-see' attractions, but hey, they have pandas. it's a quick 20-minute bus ride down the road from us, followed by a gondola up the side of a mountain once you get there....kudos to the urban planner who decided it was a good idea to pop-up an amusement park on the peak.

taking a step back for a sec, Hong Kong (in general) is very organized. everything is well sign-posted, the MTR is ultra modern, and the city is set-up in such a way that you can get around without ever going outside, if you so choose. [begin rant] unfortunately this order does not transcend to the majority of its inhabitants. rules are tossed out the window when foot traffic is involved. try getting anywhere on the streets in the heart of Wanchai. i guarantee it will make you angry. it is chaos - plain and simple, as you battle your way through multiple lanes of pedestrians walking in both directions, not to mention the cars, bikes, and trolleys. even once you've entered an MTR station, there's a painted area with arrows showing you where you should stand to board a train vs. the area where riders wishing to get off are meant to pass. that doesn't seem to matter to a lot of people, as they march right down the middle and expect passengers to climb over top of them [end of rant]

now, back to that part about the thug. we had to queue for the gondola up the mountain from the base of the park, a not-so-awesome 45min wait, but what are you going to do?
how about 'budding' in line?.
3 older ladies (likely from the mainland) slowly but surely slithered there way from somewhere in the back to where we were in line. at first, we assumed that these 'ladies' were with the party in front of us. when said party decided to speak in an aggressive tone to the 'ladies', we realized that they were simply cheating the line, yet continued to remain in front of us. i was more than a little steamed, but given the obvious language barrier we just had to take it for what it was. there's only a few things they make me really pissy, and line budding is one of them. alas we sauntered on, inching closer to our sky carriage when all of a sudden, i get a rub to the right of me, and not the pleasant variety. i didn't even get a good look at the guy, but i could sense and literally feel him trying to get past us from our rear. without really thinking, i give the dude an elbow, box him out, and turn around to get in his face and say "what the hell do you think you're doing??!" i then realize the gentleman is likely in his late 60's, accompanying three little kids,who are no doubt out on a weekend of fun with grandpa. Aline laughed, i turned back to face the front and continue to limp along.
ok, so maybe not thuggish ruggish behaviour, but certainly a bit of a pattern forms when people do me wrong.

the rest of the day was just peachy, with little to no confrontation. my fave ride without a doubt was a 'drop-zone'esque thrill, that takes you up about 30 floors then drops you like a disappointed modeling agency. even better, the name of the ride: "The Abyss - Turbo Drop". even better still, the tagline for the ride below. cute that they added a sea lion to make it appeal to children.

hello, Hong Kong!

i had a long overdue chat with my bro, Nark, this week, catching up on the happenings of Hong Kong vs. Oakville. i told him that it was dripping humidity here, and mostly, my days still consisted of GTL & tuna sandwiches. he told me they were finishing up the final pieces of their powder room remodeling (or just simply 'bathroom', for those who don't partake in the powdery stuff).

the conversation then shifted back to the topic of 'me' and how I should take advantage of all this available time on my hands to truly 'master' something.
i.e. to start something, from scratch perhaps, and work at it until i reach a yet to be determined goal.
alright, i'm game....whatya got?

Nark's first suggestion: training for a marathon.
not a bad option straight out of the gates. it's essentially free, and relies more or less solely on my two feet and a heartbeat. unfortunately, i worry that the latter would give out on me well before i ever hit that 26th mile, and for that reason, next...

my follow-up idea was to train for a decathlon. figure it's the perfect sport for a generalist like me. only problem being that i'm missing a pole vault pit...and a javelin...and many other key elements.

what about a language?
this is something that Aline has been bugging me about as well. there's no doubt that learning Cantonese or Mandarin would help me understand this new home of mine and would look good on the CV.
my concerns - i can make sense of something like French or Spanish, but we're now talking about a script-based alphabet. it's really like a big memory game, flipping over symbols in my head to read a simple street sign.
i also fear that by the time i figure it all out, we likely won't be living in Asia (or Richmond) for it to have much practical use.
next.

cooking?
hmm...i am interested in adding more than stir-fry's & fajitas to our weekly menu.
though, i don't think i could stand the comparisons between my experience in the kitchen to that painfully annoying Amy Adams, and her role as that Julie chick....or was it Julia...?
been done. next.

modeling?
ha. although, i do give my agency credit, they are certainly persistent with the casting calls. i just had another 'potential' gig floated my way, this time for jeans. think i'll need to channel a little Brett Favre for this one, wrist watch and all. as always, i will keep you posted, but let's be honest, looks are not really something i can 'master'. just like Gaga, i was born this way.
next.

we could have kept going for hours on this, but we hung up our Skype call agreeing to put my future escapades on hold. however, later that same day, i read a local CNNGo article that has given me an itch that i think needs to be scratched.....
i wanna be a star! well, to be more specific, i want to try to write some material for an open-mic routine. although, even thinking about going through with it scares the hell outta me. it's one thing to give a toast at a wedding, in front of friends/family, but another thing to come up with 'bits' for an audience of strangers, who are probably drunk and likely funnier than i am. and it's true, i can't really do much about the funny part, but i can certainly try to take the edge off myself a little with some pre-show binge drinking.

and so i write....
nothing all that novel about me writing...but with this, I have a clear focus of making people laugh. i really don't have any idea how my blog posts are received, and for me to get up on stage and perform more or less my blog material will now offer me some real-time insight into my ramblings.

and so i write....
but first, i need to set a goal. sadly i think it'll be atleast a month or so to workout some decent material for a 5-minute set. let's say, on the record, that before Freedom 32 turns Freedom 33 in July, i will get up on stage.
in more immediate baby-step terms, i'm also going to build up my confidence at a poetry-reading night down at a local bar. i figure i already have 2 poems in the can, and can bang one or two more out pretty quick (plus there's a free drink for every poet). i'll even commit to debuting these before the month is out. i figure the poetry crowd should go a little easier on me, should i bomb, with heckles coming back at me like sweet limericks on a breezy summer day.
you've been a terrific audience, drive safely.

wet & wild weekend

yes, i may be all the way over here in Hong Kong, but that didn't prevent me from following along with everyone else on this turbulent long weekend of highs and lows. where do i even begin?

i suppose the emotional roller coaster tipped off with the royale wedding of Prince Will.i.am to the lovely HRH Kate (she's still not a Princess in my books). i may lose my British citizenship by confessing that i really had no interest in any of it. was it magical? sure, i suppose....just not really my thing. sorry to be such a disappointment to you both, mother & father.

next, how bout that Obama, flat out killing it this weekend! first with his roasting of all things Trump & red state at the White House correspondents' dinner (it's nearly 20-minutes but definitely worth a view). he then proceeded to get comfy in his favourite chair, popped some corn, and was treated to a little video on demand presentation of Get Osama. do i think the World is better off without the man around? definitely. did news of his death warrant a national street party, reminiscent of (fill in the sports team) winning the (fill in the big game)? probably not.

finally, some content most relevant to the Canadian Freedom contingent, Election 2011 is now in the books. given my change of address and resident status, i was unable to partake in the vote and missed out on a lot of the usual campaignisms that were tossed around this go. as the snow settles, it appears that things couldn't have gone any better for the Conservatives, moving from a minority government to a majority government in an election they really didn't want (oops, Ignatieff). as well, the NDP party have to feel good about where they netted out, yet the question remains as to whether they'll be able to make an impact given the aforementioned straight sets victory? let's hope so.

how was my weekend on a personal level? let's be honest, there's very little i could do or say to hope to engage you all in some witty Freedom banter. i will try though, with a simple dialogue between myself and Aline. a little preface to set the scene -

Aline and Freedom 32 walk into their apartment after a lovely brunch & flower market excursion. Upon opening the front door, the two look at each other with surprise and trepidation.

AA: "Oh my god! I think we've been robbed!"
F32: "I don't know.....you think?"
AA: "Our rug is gone, and the air conditioning is cranked....it wasn't even on when we left."
F32: "Hmmm...yes, true, but our TV, laptop and everything else of any value appears to be untouched..."
AA: "What about the rug!!?"
F32: "Well, i'm not quite sure yet, but wasn't it nice of the robber to cool down the place for us?"

to be fair, i was also confused as to what the hell was going on. turns out that it was not a case of theft...simply a case of tomfoolery. the management of our building would soon alert us that "someone" had turned on the emergency fire hose in our hallway, essentially creating an indoor water slide throughout our entire apartment. fortunately, they got to it fairly quickly, and were able to soak up much of the water. the lone casualty appears to have been our living room rug, found to be rolled up in the bathtub similar in appearance to how i would imagine you'd try to hide a dead body. admittedly, i didn't immediately consider how/where Romo netted out during this ordeal but was pleased to see him more or less undisturbed from his afternoon nap in our bedroom closet.

....and Freedom reigns.