William Chong

So I finished a week. After hours work so far has been pretty much zoning out, relaxing – by the time I’ve prepared dinner and taken a shower, it’s usually 9pm and not much time to do anything more than a little bit of a wander.

The news about Sir Ed came to Sydney pretty quickly. That was pretty sad, made me wish I could be in NZ if just for more solidarity. Also they have tourism ads for NZ here (100% Pure New Zealand). Feel a bit homesick pondering these things, but I’ll see how I feel after 2 more weeks.
I’ve also been navigating the Sydney public transport system. Took a train and a bus to get from work out to St. Josephs College near Tarban Creek Reserve. Sydney actually has suburbs! Orienteering is really cool here, their rules are slightly different and make you think more strategically (you choose your own route and get different points for different controls).  Feels like the Amazing Race a little bit, which I’d love to do someday.  Richard and I sometimes joke about it, considering some of the contestants in the Asia Edition really look like fish out of water!

On the way home on the bus, started chatting with a Nirish (Northern Irish, lol) guy called David. He’s been OE’ing and seeing the world for 3 months now on a round-the-world ticket. Amazing stuff, what freedom. But we had some company, which aside from work people is hard to find at the moment (though a relative of mine will be in Sydney on Sunday, so will see what happens from there).

Anyways, if I can navigate properly again, tomorrow I should be able to attend church at a place where John recommended.

But as for today… I’m doing the BridgeClimb.

Take care everyone!

——————-

Sydney is bigger than Auckland.

It has good city views, balmier weather, and from the looks of the banners and flags on my street, a very outspoken and active gay and lesbian community. It has rich people and trying-to-be-rich people. I have a nice apartment, it’s better furnishings than my house for the most part. It lacks a rice cooker. There’s a small supermarket opposite my apartment building. There is a pool, and I’m on the 12th floor. It’s a pain to carry groceries and swipe the card-door thing at the same time. Airconditioning helps. Trying not to use so much clothing, will see how I go.

TV presenters here have different accents. Barack Obama vs Hillary Clinton is in the news forefront. Lots of TV, they have satellite TV here. And there is a Yoshinoya across the road – aren’t they an Asian thing?

First real day of work starts tomorrow. Wonder what I should bring. Scary.

—————

This year I’ve found many things.

I’ve found that living at home this year has really tested and challenged me. Who I am, who I want to be. Who are important to me.

I’ve found that people make time for others only if they really mean it, and there’s no sense in routine for the sake of it. I’ve found that if you seek to satisfy yourself, your friends won’t tell you about it but you will still see that you are left behind. I’ve discovered my love for music currently exists not as a passionless career but a careerless passion.

I like it that way – there is no expectation of fitting a marketable mould and castrating your sound for the sake of selling it. I write music when I can, and I enjoy it. I can record a tune that no one but myself enjoys, and that is my prerogative. This year I’ve had more time to pursue other challenges in my music – ATCL, CCM, other acronyms that translate to metaphor and melody, a tapestry of love and care.

This year I chose to be more of a pragmatist. My dreams are not rock-star fashion, not even town hero. I want a house and a family, to lead and to serve. I tell myself my fantasies are frivolous, and that these are things worth working for, earning a salary for.

This year I learned Chinese. I may not remember my vocabulary, but I remember my heritage.

This year I enjoyed building up friends and family. This year I churned through house and life-work, trying to balance keeping a fractured family reasonably together yet holding firm to who I was and who I stood for. This was hard and sometimes I wished I had more strength and resolve to challenge those around me.  But slow and steady wins the race, and when others fall by the wayside, perhaps you accept they alone chose that path.  So this year I was sad to watch them go.

This year there was great fun in cooking. Gastronomic awareness is a life-long journey, and there are no limits save your wallet and appetite. I am happy to say that I can cook and I would have loved to have cooked my mother dinner.

If you read this, I would encourage you to make one meal. Just one. For your parents, your mother, your father, your step-parents, your bio-parents, your sister, brother. Try it. When you cook for someone else you think of who they are, what they would like. Do they like pepper? What about those tomatoes? You craft a personal serving of humility and servitude for another.

I would have love to have cooked her something today.

As others have pointed out, Jesus is the reason for the season. That’s my Christian plug.

This year I have grown to love the life ahead of me. I like my friends. My family. Writing and singing. Cooking and cleaning. Working, phasing between social circles. People love to be listened to. We all need each other.

This year I have lived.

————————-

Sitting in my room. It’s a gradual transformation, moving from the bunkroom of my youth to a new beginning, a new space.  During the three weeks of internet-free living, I have:

reorganised my wardrobe
moved furniture around
set up my own office/studio space
earnt half a grand in transcriptions
sorted through CDs and DVDs
started and finished Christmas shopping
completed a medal test
uploaded 2 songs
gone to Mangawhai on holiday

———————–

Yep. Life is pretty good so far.

It was so windy today that the awning area out the front of the restaurant was rattling and shuddering from gale-force winds.  Pretty grateful our power has stayed on so far.

Nathan you are pretty lucky in Samoa right now.  (He got married)  Oh, and some pics of Jared and Cheryl looking cool.  Both of them have now undergone a fantastic glasses upgrade!

Oh, Dad and Kim returned from their holiday in the summery conditions of Brisbane and the Gold Coast.  Exceedingly envious.  They got clear skies every single day.

—————————–

Last couple of days at work have also been pretty fun-filled.  On Friday I did a random chef’s shift, which gave me a good idea of how to do certain bits and pieces like our tapas menu, and a couple of entrees.  I’m very good with ovens and deep friers now, haha.

I’ve been really slacking off on the violin practice, to the point that I think my exam proficiency from practising before has gone back a whole month, it seems.  Perhaps it’s the runs and arpeggios at 11pm at night, but I should ideally be able to play at any time of day all my pieces well.  Urgh.

Anyways, stay at home if you are in Auckland.  Not worth driving in these stupid conditions.  See ya!

———-