The flow of thought

Stream of consciousness, if you are brave enough to follow it to its often surprising end, is a good thing. Unfortunate circumstances at work had me typing a phrase in an email that caused me to pause and take a mental journey of connected and unrelated thoughts. Here is how it went:

"thought through, though"- This was the phrase I typed in my email. It reminded me of a conversation I had with another expat earlier in the week. We were discussing the difficulty of learning different languages. Those three words demonstrate how utterly ridiculous is the English language. Each of those words differs by a mere letter yet their meanings and their pronunciations vary vastly. How could one expect an outsider to learn our language?

Language is very much a product of our surroundings. I have read that Eskimos, for example, have over one hundred words for "ice". There is the dark ice that, when present on a river, means it is safe to cross. There is the white, flaky ice that is easy to pack and make an igloo. Then there is the floating ice that brings walrus. Most of us only need the term "ice" - frozen water. For them, it has much more meaning.

Over the years of studying various languages, I've developed a few favorites of my own. In Spanish, I've always liked the word "auscutarle" (which, either the Spanish book I had in High School made up, or I did, because I can't confirm it is a word anymore) because it meant "to listen to your heart with a stethoscope". I always liked the efficiency of such a word. In French, I like "petite morts", which, literally translated means "little death" but they use for the word "orgasm". Leave it to the French to make something exquisite, morbid - though maybe the idea is that you leave your body behind for a moment.

With Indonesian, I've learned to appreciate the construct of the language, the concept of quantity, and their unabashed humility in borrowing words from other languages. With Indonesian, I don't have to worry about verb conjugation. The verb has one spelling, one tense, and it applies to all. "Tahu" is "to know". Saya tahu, kau tahu, kita tahu - I know, he/she knows, we know. To say "I already knew" you say "Saya sudah tahu". The verb never changes. Efficient.

Efficiency with numbers and quantity is even more impressive. Most languages I've studied all have their own way of counting from 1 to 10. And from 20 up, they say the ten-based word, or the hundred-based word and add the other numbers "twenty-one" or "one hundred twenty one". But for 11-15, they like to make up words for some reason. The Indonesian language takes its lead from the abacus. Indonesians count from one to nine, and then start over, but they tell you how many of everything they have. Eleven is "sebelah" (one teen), Twelve is "dua belah" (two teen), etc. To say 295 you say "dua ratus sembilan puluh lima" - two hundred(s) nine ten(s) five. For pluralization, why mess with determining if we use an "s", or an "es", or even an "i", like "fungi". It is much simpler to just say the word twice. "Anak" is child. "Anak-anak" is children. "Apel" is "apple". "Apel-apel" is "apples".

Which leads me to the third thing I like about the Indonesian language (and, ties back to the comment about the Eskimos) - their language grew based on their frame of reference. Indonesia doesn't have strawberries or apples. They didn't have taxis or buses or beer or antibiotics. So, when foreign cultures introduced them, instead of defining their own words for them, they just borrowed the word used by the person introducing it to them, and spelled it according to the Indonesian alphabet. So:

Apple = apel
Strawberry = stroberi
Taxi = taksi
Bus = bus
Beer = bir
Antibiotic = antibiotik
Sexy = seksi

Finally, this trail ended with an affirmation of sorts. External influences are a good thing. They provide perspective and introduce new ideas. I am absolutely shocked that Indonesia has a law that says if you learned your medicinal skill outside of Indonesia, you cannot practice it in Indonesia - ever. So, if Indonesia has no brain surgeons, they never will, even if someone licensed to practice medicine here goes abroad for a few years to learn it. Of course, external influences can also be bad - just ask Native Americans what alcohol did for them. Overall, however, it enriches us and helps us better understand, and appreciate, our own culture and belief systems. Here is a brief list of what I've learned to appreciate:

Things I prefer about Jakarta:

1) If you do something stupid, and get hurt, it's your fault. You don't get to sue anyone for not protecting you from your own stupidity. You don't even get the chance to force a company to decide between a settlement and legal fees.

2) The government recognizes the importance of keeping bare necessities - food, basic health care, fuel - accessible to all of its people. Seeing a doctor is a $20 charge - and that's not with the copay. Probably related to #1.

3) Community is more important than self, so everyone is very friendly and accommodating.

4) The corruption is open, obvious and manageable.

5) People are content with their lot in life and aren't always scamming for that extra inch on the ladder.

Things I prefer about the US

1) If a company or person conceals information that would have helped you to prevent injury, or exhibits careless disregard, you can sue them for damages. This keeps them honest, for the most part.

2) Government tries to refrain from interfering with the natural forces of the market so prices are set by supply and demand instead of a government floor or ceiling.

3) We celebrate individual achievement and recognize differences as a positive, not a negative.

4) We hold on to the ideal that an underpaid bureaucrat offered big money by a profitable enterprise will, through dedication to and love for country, decline the big payday. Laughable, admittedly, but still laudable.

5) Origin of birth has no bearing on your ability to be a great success. Merit and recognition of opportunity determines your success.

It is very true that you don't know what you have until you don't have it. Being in Indonesia, there is much I miss about the US - and it isn't just food or entertainment or people. I miss relatively smog free skies and acceptable levels of cleanliness everywhere I go. I miss being able to walk into any establishment and not being noticed because I'm the only white face. I miss being able to go somewhere and not see people without worrying about catching malaria or being attacked by a wild jungle animal.

Of course, when I'm in the US, there are things I miss about Indonesia: having a driver, $20 massage, getting a five course meal for $15 including tip.

In the end, I've gained more than I've lost regardless of where I am. I have perspective and experience to draw from, memories that only disease can eliminate, and a deeper appreciation for how I came to be the person I am.

Celebrating my Birthday

A few weeks ago, my wife and I attended a "cultural immersion" session. The company that helped us find a home - Colliers International - provides these sessions and recommends attendance six weeks or more after arrival. We were part of a group of eight, the others being from England and the Netherlands. The "instructor" reviewed the history of Indonesia - presumably for cultural perspective - shared some of the food, and then gave some pointers on being an expat in Indonesia and Jakarta. Some of the key things I took away from the session:

1) The office boy may be the lowest rung of the ladder at work, but in his village he may be the only one with a job and is therefore the most important person there.

2) Indonesians view expats as rich, smart, rich, educated, rich, cultured and rich. Recognize that in all situations.

3) The Indonesian culture is the foundation for all present-day organizational behavior. Margaret Meade did all of her studying on the island of Java.

4) The oldest living human fossil - Java Man - was found in Indonesia.

5) The strong nationalism found in Indonesia is rooted in the same beginnings as the US patriotism - fighting oppressive colonialism to obtain independence.

On Friday, we celebrated my birthday at Hacienda with friends. Having a babysitter for $1.50/hr makes nights out economically feasible. This was their first visit to Hacienda and, to some extent, a first taste of Mexican food. We're discovering that as much as our local friends introduce us to Jakarta, so, too, do we introduce Jakarta to them. It's fun to introduce locals to parts of their city/state/country they've never experienced before. Happens to us in Phoenix, too.

On Saturday, we spent the morning talking to family and friends back in the US and then took the brief one hour drive to Taman Mini Indonesia. We read about Taman Mini in a book published by the American Wives Club. In some respects, it is like any other Indonesian park - crowded, a little dirtier than Western standards, and cheap ($1 to park, $0.40 to enter); in other respects it was better than many Western amusement parks I've been to.

I think the premise of Taman Mini is to represent all aspects of Indonesia, in miniature, in one location. Similar to Epcot's attempt to replicate the world. Our purpose of the visit was to visit the children's palace section which had playgrounds and rides for children our daughter's age. There were many other areas of the park that looked just as interesting, so we'll have to go back sometime - probably when it is is less crowded. Below are a few pictures from our day at Taman Mini.

Busy Week

What a busy week for the family! The week was full of events - summer school, ballet lessons, birthday parties and a visit to an amusement park. It's amazing we're not all exhausted.

First, a quick trip back to our daughter's birthday. We had celebrated with friends the Saturday before her birthday. The day of - which was a Thursday - we did a private celebration at home and gave her our gift. She absolutely loves the movie "The Wizard of Oz". When I arrived home from work, I took her to the park while mom busied herself with laying down the yellow brick road she had created. It was a path around the house, with a visit with each character along the way, all of whom had a small gift to give. Even the wicked witch got in on the action, though she tried to deceive the birthday girl. The end of the yellow brick road was not Oz, but, instead, her gift from us.



The following Saturday was a birthday party for her friend at Kemang Club Villas (KCV). Like all children's birthday parties here, this one was big. There was a candy hunt around the grounds, a water balloon toss, and they had horse-drawn cart to give everyone rides. Unfortunately, we don't have any pictures of the event.

Our daughter has been out of school for just a few weeks and we noticed she was already getting bored. We have trouble keeping her busy enough to keep her mind and body active. When she is not active, she gets fussy. Speaking with some of the mothers at the birthday party, we decided to enroll her in Summer School at Tutor time. Right now she goes twice per week for a half day, though we are likely to increase this to three times a week. One day, when picking her up from school, my wife learned that some of the other girls were taking a ballet class after school. The school usually offers it, but there isn't enough enrollment during the summers. So the teacher offered to teach it at someone's home if they could get at least a few kids involved. We decided to have our daughter try it, though we were unsure what to expect. As you can see from the pictures, she had a great time.





Saturday was quite the busy day. We had a birthday party to attend in the late afternoon, my wife and I had plans to have dinner with another couple in the evening (without the kids), and we decided to have some family time before the evening activities. We all went to a local miniature golf course. Our daughter started out enthusiastic but got bored after just three holes and from then on asked if the next hole was the last one. At the end she was able to enjoy riding a motorized bike around a little track.





After mini-golf, we prepared for the birthday party. This time it was for a classmate of our daughter's when she attended the Montessori school. Like all parties, this one was lavish. The front yard had a jumper with balls and a slide as well as a portable mini-bowling. They had built the backyard into a spa and all the 3-year-old girls (and the mom's) who were interested received a pedicure and manicure (the father, a Frenchman, works for a cosmetic company). Our daughter enjoyed the pampering very much and, when the therapist was finishing her hands, our daughter made sure she knew to "do my feet next". Finally, the cake was probably the largest we've seen so far.








In the evening, our pembantu came for a rare Saturday work schedule to babysit while my wife and I went to dinner. We didn't go far - just to Toscano's, the small, Italian restaurant near our home. We chuckled to ourselves when we heard they had made reservations. The two times we had been there we either had the place to ourselves or were one of three tables. This time, the place was packed with not a free seat anywhere. We were glad they had the wisdom to make reservations. We met this couple through our kids - they went to the same school. He is a pharmaceuticals distributor. They are both from Geneva, the she is originally from the Ukraine. We have a very global group of friends these days. The meal was good, the conversation was great, and we had a wonderful time. After our last dinner out with our daughter, we decided we would start having nights out alone and with other couples from now on.

For Father's Day, I decided I wanted to take the family to Indonesia's Sea World. Yes, that is the name. No, it has no affiliation. It also isn't nearly as entertaining, though we had a good time. Sea World Indonesia is really just a bunch of aquariums and a few petting pools where you can interact with turtles, rays a few sharks and some eels. It does have a water tunnel to walk through, and the tanks are impressive. There are no shows like one would think of with SeaWorld in the US. Below are two pictures. The first is my daughter and I standing by the largest fresh water ray in the world. My halo is the result of the shiny white cap I received for Father's Day reflecting the light. The second is my wife and daughter by the shark tank.





We finished the day by going to one of the local malls for lunch. I've mentioned before how enormous the malls here are. Below are pictures of two malls. The first is Senayan City, which is one of the newer malls. I believe it has 9 floors with about 40 shops per floor. The bottom two floors are a number of restaurants and a grocery store. It even has a spa with "fish treatment" - the one where little fish eat the dead skin off your feet. The second picture is where we at for Father's Day - Pacific Place. They have decorated the sixth floor like a mini harbor complete with boats, a lighthouse and a sea.

Adaptions

Human adaptability never ceases to amaze me. Global climate changes compel modifications in habitat and food consumption. Geologic events create disasters and destruction that test the mettle of anyone within the damage zone. Political upheavals change the composition of daily life. We adapt to it all. On a smaller scale, each day bombards us with change - subtle, like a road closure; and dramatic, like the death of a loved one. We accept each change as a natural part of living and move on.

After ninety days in Indonesia, I have adapted. I have a long way to go before I have assimilated, but I have adapted. The rented house owned by an anonymous stranger and cared for by a team of under-skilled and underpaid maintenance workers feels like home. I get the same sense of belonging when I walk in my front door that I would when I arrived home at my house in Arizona. Thinking of our home in Arizona creates a feeling of strangeness not unlike that when you return to your childhood home for a visit - familiar, yet, somehow, unfamiliar.

I have adapted, but rest assured I do not view Jakarta as my "home". The feeling is more like a vacationer who enjoys the homeyness of the hotel room after spending a day at the beach or hiking or at an amusement park. Something about being away from the crowds, apart from the noise, in a confined space that, however fleeting, you can call your own just sets the mind at ease. I feel that way about my home, my neighborhood, in Jakarta.

I have adapted and I've even begun to at least appreciate, if not enjoy, the idiosyncrasies of Jakarta life. The absence of strip malls; the fact that large grocery stores are often part of much larger mega-malls; the pungent aroma of durian that, until you have imprinted its unique odor on your olfactory senses, has you asking yourself "why does it smell like garbage in here"?; even the traffic. It all blends symbiotically into what I will remember as my "Jakarta Experience".

I have adapted to the concept that everyone I meet immediately thinks that I am rich, educated, intelligent and rich...okay, so, with the exception of "rich", this wasn't a stretch for me.

I have adapted to the fact that I will interact on a daily basis, in a professional capacity, with people who earn in a month what I often will spend on a single meal. I welcome the opportunity to play the game of haggle with someone who wants my money more than I want their product until we agree on a mutually satisfying price. By proxy and association I feel the proverbial "white man's burden" of employing staff whose family's survival is now dependent solely on my generosity. We know people for whom this is directly true, and as a bule, we feel this implicitly. I also feel the righteous and somewhat sanctimonious acrimony towards those who exploit the economic disparity to their advantage.

I have adapted to the humidity and even enjoy the refreshing coolness of the rain. I learned quickly that being this close the equator makes frequent usage of a high SPF suntan lotion compulsory. I've experienced first hand the flooding that comes with an extended downpour of torrential rain - and I can look forward to the excitement of the experience occurring again.

I have adapted to the pace of Jakarta. I've learned to get up early, work more deliberately, focus more on relationships, and get home before traffic is unbearable. I've found more time for reading (having a driver helps this), exercise, and taking my daughter swimming and to the park. We've all learned to plan on trips to the store requiring hours, and to take advantage of all the services there are to be had at fractions of the US price - dance lessons, massage, personal trainers, tennis lessons, party organizers and even medical care.

I have adapted to reading incomprehensible English. Enjoying the turn of a phrase, the erudition of well written prose, I struggled with accepting less than properly structured English....until I started writing in Bahasa Indonesia and people said my sentence structure made them dizzy. The content of the message is more important than the method of delivery. Clarity supersedes structure.

I have adapted, reluctantly, methodically, slowly to the resort lifestyle....ah, who am I kidding. This was easy! Having clothes washed and pressed the day after I wear them. A house cleaned spotless every day. Walking out my door to tennis courts, playgrounds, cafes, pools, a gym and a spa is more luxury than I typically have when I take a vacation. They really know how to accommodate expats living so far from their family, their comfort zones, the life they knew.

I like it here - great people, interesting culture, exquisite cuisine, tremendous opportunities - but it isn't home.

Jakarta Heartbeat

Cities are the heart of our civilization. Nothing makes this more clear than the words we use to describe them: cities have a pulse; large streets are referred to as "major arteries"; major industries are called the "lifeblood".

If cities are hearts, they must also have a beat. The underlying, percussive force that drives the pace of a city. New York City's heart beat is frenetic, like a hummingbird on speed. People are rushing everywhere. Miami's beat is definitely salsa - quick, loud, and somehow, spicy, but quickly over, too. Then there's Jakarta. Jakarta's heartbeat is slow, rhythmic and constant.

Like an orchestra's bass drum playing adagio legato, Jakarta's heartbeat sets the pace for the whole city - slow, steady, consistent. You feel it most on the streets. When I leave for work in the morning, long before most of my colleagues - or even the sun - are awake, Jakarta's streets are already alive. Vendors are preparing their stands for the breakfast rush, drivers are riding their motorcycles to pick up their boss, and kids are preparing for school. I often see kids meandering to school if I leave the house at 6 AM. Nighttime is no different. The only thing that changes is the food at the stands, the direction of the traffic, and the outfits on the children who are no longer in their school uniform. Action on the streets is slow, steady, constant.

It's almost as if the city takes a long, deep inhale in the morning, breathing in all of the workers to their jobs in office buildings downtown, at factories by the sea, or shops along the way then at night, it exhales, sending everyone scurrying home - except the shopkeepers who are trying to catch the flow in the other direction.

Like most countries, the small businesses, the shop keepers, set the pace in this city. They are patient - working long hours, follow the same routine each day, and are always around. They are the fishermen silently and ritualistically casting their aromatic nets of brewing coffee, nasi goreng (a rice dish), and morning pastries to catch the school of motorists and pedestrians on their slow migration to work. They do it slowly and patiently, knowing that the quantity of transactions is more important than the size of any one individual.

One would expect a city of 18 million people to have the pace of an animal on the hunt, the drive of a collection of major corporations in constant pursuit of ever increasing profits, not the pace of a patient fisherman. In most other large cities - Tokyo, New York, Hong Kong - people are rushing everywhere. They cram into subways, eat fast food and drink faster coffee. A wasted second is a wasted opportunity.

Not so in Jakarta. I guess when there is no money to chase, there's no need to rush.

Trends

Humor me in a brief departure from the normal topic of my blog.

Much has been said about the state of the global economy. Every industry has felt the impact. I know people who have lost their jobs, I know people who are worried about their current job, and I've had to inform people that their role on my team was no longer available. Layoffs even delayed my overseas assignment (rough day).

The economy is a favorite topic for many I meet. It's at the forefront of decisions we make every day at my company - what projects do we do, is it safe to spend more money, should we renegotiate contracts. As the resident American, I'm often asked for my opinion on the banking crisis. Everyone is curious.

Let me go on record with a few things:

1) The recession is over
2) The media caused it
3) We will not "recover", we will "rebuild"

To borrow a technical term, the economy has reset to "last known good". Purchasing, market values, housing prices have declined and will not rebound to the heights of 2007. They have dropped to their true value, and will begin to grow at a standard rate of return from here.

I'm sure you're asking: How do you know? What do you know that economists don't? Well, nothing, really. Many economists are saying the same thing. In fact, at the Society for Information Management meeting I attended in November of 2008, our speaker for the evening more or less said what I am echoing here: media caused the recession, we were in it then, it would recover by summer of 2009 and growth would be normal by 2010. It's more about who I listen to.

Here is why I believe it is over and we are now moving forward:

1) In March, I sent an email to several of you indicating the economy was recovering because the Baltic Dry Index was climbing again. The below chart indicates that trend has continued.

2) Several other stocks - key stocks in our economy - are showing the same trend (note the upward trend starting in March). Look at nearly any major stock and you will see the same trend line (I reviewed about 40).

3) The media believes it. The media caused the recession by reporting doom and gloom and convincing shoppers to stop shopping. The media is now reporting "signs of recovery", which is increasing consumer confidence.

4) Companies are hiring. I've received several emails this week from recruiters I know asking if I know anyone who would fit the positions they are seeking. This hasn't happened to me in nearly a year. Contract labor is the first to go (expendable expense) and the first to return (companies are shy to make a commitment until they know it is sustainable).

The economy has recovered.

One last thing. I recently have bet heavily on several stocks- some as recently as this week. Here are the key things I looked for:

1) Trending upwards
2) Giants in their industry
3) Current price less than half of their 52 week high

For those interested, here is where I have heavily invested my money:

Alcoa (AA)
Conoco Phillips (COP)
Monsanto (MON)
Suncor Energy (SU)
Weatherford International (WFT
Bunge Limited (BG)
Builders First (BLDR)
General Electric (GE)
Freeport McMoRan(FCX) - this one I wish I had bought at $15 in Dec. instead of $40 in Apr. (price at this writing is $60)
American International (AIG) - a gamble, I'm aware, but they are dirt cheap
Wells Fargo (WFC)

Jakarta Life

The rain has returned and is a welcome reminder of what life would be like had a large metropolis not replaced a tropical rain forest. Afternoon skies quickly darken and change from an amber haze to a charcoal overcast that cleans the city of particulate matter and washes away the grime. It never stays long and the air always smells cleaner, crisper, and more refreshing when it's over.

A few weeks ago, my wife and I both read a book about Jakarta (she read it first and insisted I read it). To my amusement, it alerted me to the fact that Jakartan's love to stage protests. In fact, protests have become as essential to Indonesian national politics as attack ads are in the U.S. I've seen two protests since reading that book. In the first protest, about two dozen people dressed in white T-shirts protested outside a government agency building. A person dressed in a grim reaper costume waved menacingly at passing cars. I never did learn what the protest was about.

Earlier this week I saw yet another protest. This time, everyone was dressed in red and grey camouflage - the only place I think that would provide ample cloaking opportunities is Sedona or the Grand Canyon, but I digress. This time, I did learn the nature of the protest, and American soap operas would be jealous. The protesters were standing outside the gates of the Malaysian embassy about half a mile up the street from my office. For those of you who don't know much about Malaysia, it is a devoutly Muslim nation ruled by a monarch. Recently, a local woman married one of the sons of the king - a Malaysian Prince. About a week ago, as they enjoyed conjugal relations, the prince suffered a heart attack. They rushed him, accompanied by his wife, to medical facilities in Singapore (the Mayo-clinic of Southeast Asia). Once in Singapore, the woman decided this was an excellent opportunity to escape her marriage and return to Indonesia. International scandal ignited! The protesters were picketing the embassy in support of her decision to flee the marriage.

If that wasn't enough social and cultural intrigue for the week, there was an interesting article in the Jakarta Post over the weekend. A 32 year old woman didn't enjoy her treatment at a hospital and sent an email to her friends to complain. Her friends then forwarded the email, who then forwarded the email like a viral chain letter or one of those silly "send this to 30 people or you will die" messages we've all received. Apparently, that was enough to trigger a libel lawsuit under an Electronic Information Act passed in 2008. She actually went to jail for sharing her experience with her friends! With friends like those, who needs enemies?

I also learned this week that customs did not open or confiscate anything from my shipment; DHL did. They take complete responsibility for anything we receive, so they inspect anything and remove contraband. Alcohol is one of the items considered verboten, and they will not ship it. Good for Indonesia, bad for my Seagram's craving.

I did, however, find a new liquor store. Much like the Kemang Duty Free near my house, this Duty Free is also in a nondescript building with no windows and only accepts cash payments. Before selling to me they wanted to see my KITAS, which is my local ID. I was extremely pleased with the pricing. A bottle of Smirnoff vanilla vodka was $15 - cheaper than in the U.S. I shared the location with a colleague who advised I should stock up while we can still buy alcohol. With the presidential elections looming, this window of opportunity may exist for a very short time before the new officials shut everything down until they've arranged the proper under the table and over the table compensations.

Another observation I made this week is how quickly people seek out others just like themselves. When I lived in Arizona, some of my friends and colleagues came from other countries - India, Pakistan, Armenia, Russia, Argentina. When they would invite me to a party, I would meet several other people from India, Pakistan, Armenia, etc. I never knew there were such large communities of these various nationalities living in Phoenix. I also thought it a bit odd that, instead of making friends locally, they sought friends who came from their home country.

At my daughter's birthday party I looked around the room. We had a few of my colleagues - locals - and we had invited a few more who were unable to attend for one reason or another, but white faces definitely dominated the room. We even had guests who originally come from the next block over from our house in Mesa!

Now that I have lived abroad, I have a better appreciation for why people seek their own. We immediately have something in common, we have many shared values that are unique to our culture, and it allows us to feel closer to home. One other quick note - a westerner definitely learns what it is like to be a minority. We feel discrimination for being unlike the locals. Luckily, we're at the top of the economic food chain, so the discrimination is we are charged higher prices. If we were at the bottom of the economic food chain, I'm not sure I would be so willing to endure the obvious double standard.

Tomorrow I'll talk about the trends I alluded to in my last post. I need to download a few more graphics first. For now, just enjoy these pictures that remind me of actual Indonesian experiences (though none, to my knowledge, are actually from Indonesia)


Who says there's no such thing as a free ride?




Something tells me this one is from Singapore.




This is what happens when you don't have OSHA, can't sue your employer, and MUST get something done TODAY!




I wonder how it relieves pain?




Now that's a pot hole!!

Many Packages Arrive

I had other things I wanted to discuss today - how similar people find each other, people being jailed for defamation, interesting trends, capacity of humans to adapt. The arrival of a large, 40lb box of gifts and food from the US compels me to delay those discussions to a later date.

The long awaited care package and birthday gifts arrived today with much excitement. I finally have cinnamon gum and no longer need to languish with such flavors as "blueberry mint", "sweet mint", "strawberry" and "orange". To my disappointment, my wife informed me she, too, wanted cinnamon gum, so I think we have enough to last us through the end of July. We also now have an abundance of Mexican food and bagels - enough to last us through the end of June, anyway.

More importantly, we also received many gifts for our daughter, who was absolutely delighted to open as many gifts today as she had received at her party on Saturday - and she still hasn't received the gifts from us! We decided we are not giving her anything for Christmas - she has too much already.

With every package she opened, she became more and more thrilled. "Look mom, another train set!" "Ooooh, dress up!" She loved it all, and she immediately recognized Thomas the Train. As I had feared, she also now has three different types of trains - Lego (normal and Thomas), wooden (that I bought) and the plastic version of Thomas the Train. We have more track than space, and we've already dedicated a room to her trains. She loves them all, though, so we'll have to figure something out.

The biggest gain for all of us in the gifts are the ones that will keep her entertained in the car in the packed Jakarta traffic. Her mind needs constant activity or she whines and fidgets, basically making the life of all other passengers (and restaurant guests) miserable. She's not quite old enough for "20 Questions" or to read quietly, and "I spy with my little eye" only entertains her for about ten minutes, so the water-based, reusable coloring books, magnetic dress-up books and etch-a-sketch like toys should work wonders in the car. If none of those work, we'll have to resort to the portable DVD player that we've been trying to avoid.

One other item to note for future shipments - every single item had been opened. All of the wrapped gifts had been opened - but not unwrapped - inspected, and put back in the box. All of the food had been opened and inspected. What I need to find out tomorrow is if that was done by my company, or by customs in Indonesia - or possibly both. I have learned, however, that packages sent with an itemized, detailed shipping invoice - especially if it is direct from the supplier - both breeze through customs and tend to be left alone.

Thanks to everyone who sent the food and gifts. They are a much appreciated reminder of home. (Pictures of our daughter enjoying the gifts will be posted later this week).

The Birthday Party

Today was the big event. A day that required weeks of preparation, hours of investigation, a night of consternation, and a morning of concerned frustration, so we could enjoy 2 hours of joyous celebration. From 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM, our house transformed from an oasis of uncluttered quietude, to a raucous, frenzied chaos of little humans running amok. Today was my daughter's 3rd birthday party.

After much debate and review, we settled on hosting it at our house, and hiring Gymboree to coordinate activities and entertain the children. My wife informed me they would need space to setup. I was not expecting them to bring the entire facility with them.



The kids started pouring in right at 10:30, with the last arrival making his appearance 30 minutes before everything finished. People came from all over the city - North Jakarta, CBD, Kemang, Pondok Indah - to attend the party. We gave invitations to everyone in her class, all her friends from the neighborhood, and a few of my colleagues from work who also had children. Personally, I had spoken to about 3 of the 40 people who showed up prior to today.

The kids had a blast, the parents were glad to have someone else watch the kids. One gentleman dropped of his kid, asked when he had to be back, and walked out the door! Others asked if their kid could stay for a few more hours. Regrettably, our daughter's "boyfriend" had already left for Singapore and was unable to attend.

For those unfamiliar with Gymboree, they are a global organization - franchised - that focuses on edutainment - educational entertainment. They do music, art, and fun activities - often all combined. For us, Gymboree sang songs, created rides, and kept the kids active and busy with several, 5-minute activities.

The day finished with the presentation and consumption of the birthday cake. Our daughter insisted on having a Princess cake to go with her Princess dress. We found a cakery in Kemang to create exactly what we needed. After everyone had a piece, we had only eaten 1/4 of the cake. We had to give half of it to our maid and driver so it wouldn't go to waste.

Sorry, no video of this event. We also had the entire upstairs setup with trains, including a fairly elaborate multi-table track with loops and tunnels. Somehow, we didn't get a picture of it before we took it down.

A need to feel productive

I spent only three hours in the office this morning before returning home sick. I've been sick with a head cold for a little over two weeks. My wife and daughter have both caught it, fought it, and moved on while I'm still fighting it. Struggling to speak finally did it for me. After three solid hours of meetings: 6 AM - 9 AM, I called it a day. When I arrived home I took a single Benadryl, and then slept for 5 hours straight. I'm updating my blog so I feel productive.

JOB

I'm two months into the job and I already feel like I've accomplished 80% of what I need to in my two year assignment. The remaining 20% requires repetition and time. Recognizing that I may be overly optimistic on the progress, I'm still pleased with what the team has accomplished in the last three months (I officially took over one month before my arrival). I knew this team was better than they were performing.

The big question that usually follows such a statement is: "what did you change?" The honest answer is: "Not much". To borrow terminology from the book "From Good To Great", we already had the right people on the bus, we just needed to point the bus in the right direction. I made three changes:

1) I modified the roles and responsibilities of the three section leaders. We were too matrixed in how we managed resource assignments and we were underutilizing one of the best analytical minds on the team. I made each section lead responsible and accountable for the resourced in their area of focus, and I put the person who was managing that effort in charge of solving our production support issues. The net result - less resource churn, higher productivity, and a 20% reduction in production support backlog.

2) I changed the focus. Demand management is one of the most difficult jobs a technology manager faces. We support every department in the business, who all report to a different VP, so negotiating which projects take priority often falls to the IT department - and at least one VP is always upset that they are not considered a priority. When I arrived, we had 35 people working on 30 projects. We were trying to do everything and really accomplishing nothing. Something needed to change. As we began finishing projects and starting new ones, we allocating two to five resources per project, instead of one. Over a 6 month period, we'll complete the same number of projects, but we will complete each individual project faster, so the illusion is higher productivity, and the team feels like they are accomplishing more. Delaying the lower value projects will provide the additional benefit of them dropping off the list as people find other ways to accomplish their objectives without technology.

3) I changed the measurements. We were very focused on delivery and schedules. The end result was releasing non-functioning product on time and creating a mess for the production support team to clean up. There was talk of implementing a "project warranty" - a period of time that the project team would support any issues. Instead, I borrowed from Deming and built quality into the process - better estimates, better design, better testing - and started holding people accountable for the quality of the product, not how fast they completed it. At this point, we are delivering a few weeks late (our estimates haven't included the learning curve associated with better quality), but our applications do not generate production support issues after they release. I'm willing to face my management, and my customers, with delays if I can guarantee a quality product at the end.

FAMILY

This is my daughter's final week of school. End of school in Jakarta, for expats, means return to the home country. For us, it means everyone we met has already or is planning to disappear for the next two months. Per my contract, I don't get a vacation for my first six months, so we won't be going anywhere. It will almost be like our first day here all over again where we didn't know a soul.

Next week is my daughter's birthday, and we've been concerned that there would not be anyone around to attend her party. My daughter even expressed this concern quite poignantly the other night when she lamented "I'll be in my princess dress and there will be no one here to see it." Hoping to avoid that emotionally scarring trauma, we decided to celebrate her birthday this Saturday, betting that her classmates would not be leaving the day immediately following the last day in school.

Our bet paid off - larger than we had anticipated. We went from thinking we'd have no one, to an event that looks like we'll have over 40 people including about 25 kids. We still have not received the majority of our belongings (though I did receive word they are in Indonesia's customs), so we're a little concerned we won't have enough in our house to keep everyone entertained. We have hired Gymboree to host the party, so hopefully that will be enough.

JAKARTA LIFE

In 2000, I had my first job that allowed me to connect to the company network from home. In order to do so, I had to contact the host computer and provide my credentials and a security token. The token was a randomly generated number that changed every 30 seconds. I had to carry a small, pager-like device that would provide me the appropriate number to use based on the time I was attempting to gain access. Today, technology has advanced to a degree that instead of randomly generated tokens, we use SSL or VPN or a reverse-proxy server. Well, except for here in Jakarta.

I have utilities to pay in Jakarta - cable, electricity, water, cell phone. I don't have checks, the utilities don't do auto-deduct, and none have the ability to pay online. Thankfully, much like my bank back home, I can do online bill pay through my bank. I registered with my bank - BCA - to have this feature (which cost me 10,000 Rupiah - $1) and they gave me....a token generator. Yep, in order to pay bills online I now have to use a randomly generated token like I did over 9 years ago to access a network. I guess SSL was too difficult to implement on their website.

Online banking isn't the only financial service that required me to take a few steps back in time. I'm finding that for many of my transactions, cash is the only acceptable form of payment. This is especially true of services - the Gymboree party, tennis lessons, many restaurants. Often, business that do accept credit cards pass on the 3% transaction fee to the consumer - so, cash is the cheaper way to buy goods. I prefer the US approach of including the 3% fee in the list price and charging the dinosaurs that use cash more so that I can have the convenience of my fraud protected credit card.

Finally, while service levels in general are superior to those in the US (or any western country, for that matter), repeat service is not. I like to be a regular. When I find a restaurant, a barber, a mechanic, a brand, even a car dealership, that I like, I give them all my business and am very reluctant to change - my econ professor would say I'm a 'sticky' consumer. In exchange for my loyalty, I expect them to recognize me, throw me a freebie now and then - basically, reward my loyalty. In the US, businesses do that. One place I frequented for lunch ended up buying every 3rd meal for me - so I went there a lot (until my wife said I was not allowed to be a regular at Hooters).

We've been to the Hacienda restaurant every Saturday for dinner since we found it - the last 5 Saturdays in a row. We arrive before most people have dinner (around 5 PM), so we're often the only people in the restaurant. I would think by this point they would be saying "welcome back", or at least know that we always like extra chips (that they charge us for). Nope - we're like any other bule to them. It's the only place in the city to get our Mexican fix, so I don't see our habits changing anytime soon. For now, I'll just have to live with my disappointment.

Proud Parent

Somewhere I'm sure someone has compiled a list of parental milestones. I have an idea it looks something like this:

1) Having a child
2) Changing diapers
3) Getting vomit on you
4) Dealing with late-night crying
5) Having someone else watch them
6) Enrolling them in school (may coincide with #5)
7) Attending a school program
8) Parent-teacher conferences
9) Summer camp
10) Losing them to friends
11) Losing them to the opposite gender
12) Child starts puberty
13) Child loses mind and impulse control
14) Child attends college (if they have lived through #13)

As of this Saturday, we have made it to step 7. For the last several weeks, our daughter has come home and regaled us with her singing of the song "A better you, a better me" that she was learning in school as part of their year-end performance. We finally got to see the completed product.

I must say, I was extremely impressed. This is a school for kids from about 2 years of age until around 7 or 8. The program started at 8:30 on Saturday morning and the auditorium - as it were (really just the school's large entryway) - was full by 8:15 with parents, digital recording devices locked and loaded.

Shortly after 8:30, all levels of students marched down the aisle in their costumes, clambered up on the stage and sang a musical number - and it was intelligible! Not only did they all sing, it was choreographed! So far, this is what I was expecting. I remember the school recitals I participated in during grade school, and this was similar. Then, it got interesting.

Each of the grades had their own numbers to perform. What amazed me is that, other than the youngest group - which included my daughter - these other groups had costume changes! The oldest group - 7/8 year olds, learned a poem in Chinese, a song in Indonesian, and played TWO musical instruments while dancing. Many also had to recite platitudes about character, manners, self-respect, and thankfulness. Rodgers and Hammerstein have nothing to worry about, but Leonard Bernstein could learn a thing or two!

My daughter participated in three separate numbers - two with the whole group, and one just for her age group. She appeared to be the only one in her age group who knew all the words to the songs in which she participated. For the age-group specific number, the kids all walked down the aisle with different cleaning supplies. The theme was "Helping Around the House". My daughter was center stage with two other children who had mops and pretended to mop the stage. At the end of the final, all-school number, my daughter's age group turned back-to-back with the person next to them, leaned back, and folded their arms.

Seeing my daughter participate in such an event made my wife and I both beam with pride. She is a remarkable little child and is growing up very fast. We both eagerly anticipate who she will become over the next year of her life.

The good news for those of you for whom the above, somewhat rambling description is insufficient - I have everything with my daughter in it on tape. The bad news, my new computer's operating system is not compatible with my camera. My work laptop should be compatible, so I'm going to try that this week and see if I can get a copy to upload to this site.

One other thing of note - falling asleep one night my mind went off on a rant against unions. I don't know if it is a result of the fact that one of my initiatives is delayed because we are currently negotiating the Collective Labor Agreement, or because I'm tired of all the unions whining about the demise of the auto industry. In any event, if you are interested, you can read my rant here: http://nuclearfather.blogspot.com/