In just a few weeks I'll be 61. Lord ... 61! I'll ask the same question millions have asked — where the hell did the time go?
It's true, you know, that time telescopes as we grow older. I think that proves Einstein was right ... or perhaps just that he was old and grey ... how would I know, I'm into words, not science. I mean, I clearly remember being a kid in kindy and going to primary school in East Victoria Park in the 1950s (stop sniggering down the back). But that seems a respectable time ago.
What does seem obscene, however, is that I remember working in the Goldfields as an adult some, oh, 10 or so years ago ... but when I work it out, it's over 30 years ago. Thirty years! I jumped on Google maps last night and "drove" down Boulder Road to the District Education Office (the old EGSHS) where I used to run the Resource Centre. There was where I parked my car; the steps I climbed every day; the windows in the workroom; the doors to the office; the Camp School ... frozen in an instant of time. Not my time, certainly, but frozen nevertheless. Just like my life seems to have frozen from then.
I've got married since then; bought two houses; had a step-daughter and another daughter AND now two grandkids. I've quit teaching; become a senior public servant; quit and run my own business; run a music company; gone back to educational publishing. Dearly Beloved and I have travelled the world ... some places several times. Discovered motorcycling; I've gone white and then bald; gained weight and three or four "chins" I never had; slowed down. Had a triple bypass; get daily arthritis aches and pains ... and, damnit, that time has passed in a flash and I still felt 30 — until the other day.
I went down to the local mall for a haircut. These days, they only charge me $5 for a haircut and beard trim ... and $25 search fee. Anyway, the young lass cutting my hair was chatting about the weather. She asked me how I liked the heat. (We've been having a continuing heatwave here in Perth.) Not for me, I explained, I actually prefer colder weather ... bit of rain, bit of snow ... I'm in heaven.
Her response stopped me in my tracks. Without missing a beat on the scissors, she said, "You crazy bitch".
"WTF?" I said to myself. "Did she really just say that to a customer?"
"You really like cold?" she asked, before I could think further.
"Yes", I said, and opened my mouth to explain, only to get, "You crazy bitch" again.
I looked at her face in the mirror ... and suddenly realised she was totally unaware of how I might perceive what she had said. To her, it was just another saying, one that the people she worked and lived with used. There was no malice, no sense of impropriety (because none was intended) and no realisation of the effect it might have on we "oldies".
And I suddenly felt a bit older as she brushed the hair off my collar and took my money. Not because I was offended — I wasn't — but because I realised with a jolt how far removed I'd become from anything that is "young" and "new".
So I came home and had a glass of white wine and sat on the computer ... not really looking at anything ... just fiddling while I thought about the incident.
I thought perhaps I should look up a porn site, or a YouTube thrash video, and to hell with being "old".
But in the end I logged into the Ulysses Club and joined a conversation about ... "spirited" ... motorcycle riding.
And I didn't feel so old for a couple of hours.
02 February 2011
Some random thoughts on Malaysia
Dearly Beloved and I have just returned from 10 days in Malaysia. This was partly work-related and partly a holiday. We worked in KL and then in Terengganu state in the north-east. Our holiday was taken in Kuching.
Thought 1: Why aren't all airports as well designed and as user-friendly as KLIA? Yes, it's huge ... but its signposting is so easy to follow — and so logical — that you never feel daunted by it. We stayed overnight at the Pan-Pacific Hotel in the airport and were both pleasantly surprised. For an airport that must take a considerable hiding, it was in an excellent state of repair and our room was ultra-clean and comfortable. As for the staff ... it's one of my pet hobbyhorses that Australian service staff aren't. At the Pan-Pac, I actually felt like a guest, not an imposition on the staff.
Thought 2: Driving — I've come to some conclusions about driving in Malaysia:
(a) Road markings are guides only and not meant to be taken seriously ... take one lane ... or the other ... or straddle both ... it doesn't matter.
(b) Indicators have a limited number of flashes in them and hence must be conserved by using them only in dire emergencies. Other than that, they are superfluous.
(c) Stop signs are advisory only. The decision rests with the driver as to whether or not they are obeyed.
(d) In the event traffic is stalled in your lane, it's perfectly OK to use the lane on the other side of the road. Or if you're on a scooter, the breakdown lane ... on either side of the road.
(e) Turning off all the lights on your scooter at night, particularly in semi-lit rural areas, is a safety measure.
Thought 3: Food — Malaysian people love their food and love for you to love it too. I'm a fan … as my "waste"line will attest … but even I struggled with five hot meals a day! (Breakfast, morning tea, lunch, "high tea" and dinner) I have one reservation, however — keropok lekor, which is a kind of fish sausage made with fish, sago and salt, ground together and formed into "sausages" which are boiled or deep-fried. I tried them, but I'm terribly sorry, I just don't like them. Nasi lemak, nasi dagang (spicier), rendang (beef or chicken), roti canai, whole fish tom yam — now you're talking. I've been told there is a genuine Malaysian restaurant in Perth — must look it up.
Thought 4: Kuching — loved it. It's very clean, very green and very open in its design. The people are friendly (as indeed they are in Terengganu) and just seem genuinely happy to see you. In parts of the city, Europeans are still enough of a rarity for people to give each other a nudge and twitch a head in our direction. Some of the Western Australian town planners might like to take a visit and see the riverwalk they have there (and the use it gets) and compare it with the desert that is Riverside Drive in Perth.
Thought 5: Shopping — Generally, 10.00 am to 10.00 pm — and yes, people did shop during those hours. One day we'll drag ourselves into the 21st century I guess. It was the lead-up to Chinese New Year while we were there and the sales were in full swing. Try genuine Pierre Cardin shirts for MYR50 — about $16AUD at the then exchange rate. Or women's shoes — in a range which had Dearly Beloved salivating — also from about $15 a pair.
We'll be back.
 |
| Infinity pool, dawn, Sutra Beach resort, Terengganu |
Thought 1: Why aren't all airports as well designed and as user-friendly as KLIA? Yes, it's huge ... but its signposting is so easy to follow — and so logical — that you never feel daunted by it. We stayed overnight at the Pan-Pacific Hotel in the airport and were both pleasantly surprised. For an airport that must take a considerable hiding, it was in an excellent state of repair and our room was ultra-clean and comfortable. As for the staff ... it's one of my pet hobbyhorses that Australian service staff aren't. At the Pan-Pac, I actually felt like a guest, not an imposition on the staff.
Thought 2: Driving — I've come to some conclusions about driving in Malaysia:
(a) Road markings are guides only and not meant to be taken seriously ... take one lane ... or the other ... or straddle both ... it doesn't matter.
(b) Indicators have a limited number of flashes in them and hence must be conserved by using them only in dire emergencies. Other than that, they are superfluous.
(c) Stop signs are advisory only. The decision rests with the driver as to whether or not they are obeyed.
(d) In the event traffic is stalled in your lane, it's perfectly OK to use the lane on the other side of the road. Or if you're on a scooter, the breakdown lane ... on either side of the road.
(e) Turning off all the lights on your scooter at night, particularly in semi-lit rural areas, is a safety measure.
Thought 3: Food — Malaysian people love their food and love for you to love it too. I'm a fan … as my "waste"line will attest … but even I struggled with five hot meals a day! (Breakfast, morning tea, lunch, "high tea" and dinner) I have one reservation, however — keropok lekor, which is a kind of fish sausage made with fish, sago and salt, ground together and formed into "sausages" which are boiled or deep-fried. I tried them, but I'm terribly sorry, I just don't like them. Nasi lemak, nasi dagang (spicier), rendang (beef or chicken), roti canai, whole fish tom yam — now you're talking. I've been told there is a genuine Malaysian restaurant in Perth — must look it up.
Thought 4: Kuching — loved it. It's very clean, very green and very open in its design. The people are friendly (as indeed they are in Terengganu) and just seem genuinely happy to see you. In parts of the city, Europeans are still enough of a rarity for people to give each other a nudge and twitch a head in our direction. Some of the Western Australian town planners might like to take a visit and see the riverwalk they have there (and the use it gets) and compare it with the desert that is Riverside Drive in Perth.
 | |||||
| The riverwalk, Kuching |
 |
| The river and city skyline, Kuching |
Thought 5: Shopping — Generally, 10.00 am to 10.00 pm — and yes, people did shop during those hours. One day we'll drag ourselves into the 21st century I guess. It was the lead-up to Chinese New Year while we were there and the sales were in full swing. Try genuine Pierre Cardin shirts for MYR50 — about $16AUD at the then exchange rate. Or women's shoes — in a range which had Dearly Beloved salivating — also from about $15 a pair.
We'll be back.
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