Company Olympics

When I learned that the company Olympics this year were scheduled a month earlier than prior years, I was very happy.  The earlier schedule meant I would still be around to participate.  I really enjoy them, and I'm one of the few (if not the only) expat who participates in anything other than the golf event.  The golf event is typically expats and government relations - the only people who can afford to play golf regularly (GovRel because that's where the government Ministers want to talk).  This year I signed up for Futsal and Bowling.

The first game of Futsal was on a Tuesday night.  I arrived early enough to warm up by running the field.  I also typically need to burn off much of my adrenaline - I am still a competition junky.  Four teams play two, twenty-minute halves.  Teams 1 and 2 play their first half, then teams 3 and 4 play, then back to 1 and 2.  I was glad my team was in the first group.

Futsal is a 5 on 5 game of soccer played on a field roughly the size of a basketball court.  Teams typically field one goalie, two defensemen and two strikers.  Ten years ago, I would have played striker.  Now I'm too slow, but I can still pass and still defend, so I took the position of floating defender - the position that plays distributor on offense, but must also get back quickly on defense.  It requires stamina and age hasn't taken that from me yet.

The first half of our first game was close, finishing 2-1 in our favor.  After our break and some snacks, we took the field for the second half and scored once more to their nil.  The other teams finished the night in a draw, so we finished Round 1 as the first place team.  Our second game did not stay close for long.  We jumped out to an early lead and the opposing team's only score occurred when our goalie and our other defender fell to the ground, the ball squirted out to the other team, and they kicked a shot that ricocheted off my stomach into the goal.  The half finished 3-1; the game finished 7-1.  Heading into the third and final round tomorrow night, the only chance we have of losing the gold medal is if we lose the game by more than five points.

The second event, bowling, was more eventful.  I haven't bowled in nearly a year, and we were on new lanes, so I knew I'd be rusty.  I arrived an hour early to warm up and determine how I was bowling that night.  It's a good thing I did.

My first practice game I bowled a 72.  I think that's the first time I've been under 100 in the last twenty years.  My second practice game was an 85.  I did not have high hopes for the evening, and I'm supposed to be my team's ringer!  Two years ago, the last time I participated, I bowled the highest game in the competition with a 189 - respectable, but not near what you'd expect a first place finish to be in the US.  I was ready to call it a night, but I knew everyone was counting on me.  I tried five more practice frames, and finally started throwing strikes and 9-pin first balls.  My groove was back.

In the first game of the competition, thanks to three spares and a turkey, I bowled a 169.  Of the six lanes playing, no one in the other five lanes came within 30 points of my score.  Unfortunately, I was in the high performer lane.  One guy did not have a single open frame and finished with a 218, my primary competition from two years ago bowled a 183.  The fourth person in my lane bowled a 132.

The second game saw all of us drop.  I fell to 129, which I attribute to drinking a beer without having dinner, and the others were all below 180.  In ten frames, with my first ball I threw seven 9's, two 8's, and one 7.  I kept leaving the number 5 pin.  I finished the night with the 4th highest game and third highest series.  I think that wins me a trophy of some kind, but I don't know.

The highlight of the night, for everyone who witnessed it, was when I became frustrated warming up and declared that, on this throw, I was going to get a strike.  Period.  I took my place on the second dot from the left, with the dot underneath the ball of my right foot.  Stepped forward with my right foot, then my left, then started my swing as I stepped forward with my right.  As I brought my left foot forward for the final step, I unintentionally dragged my toe.  This caused me to fall.  My knees hit first, then my chest, then my face.  My momentum actually carried my body forward enough that my feet lifted into the air and I was momentarily balancing on my face and chest.  Somehow, I had the wherewithal to still throw the ball.  And I got a strike.

The cheering and laughing was thunderous.  I stood up, looked at the result, shrugged my shoulders and sat down.

If I wasn't already, I'm sure I am now the legendary:  "Bule Gila" (Crazy Expat).

A few updates

The company Olympics came and went.  My team has won gold medals in over half the competitions, so it appears we are the runaway champions yet again.  I wish I could say I contributed as much this year as I did last year.  I played the same two events:  golf and bowling.  Though I repeated my showing in golf (2nd place), I did not come close to approximating my dominance in bowling.  I bowled a measly 118/133, though the 133 was good enough for 3rd place.  Those scores are a far cry from the 186, 142 I bowled last year.  My bowling this year was not accompanied by cheers, or a first place finish for my team.

Everyone kept asking what was wrong.  My practice throws were strikes and spares.  When they counted, in 22 frames, I bowled one strike and 9 open frames.  I said I just wasn't throwing well.  My ball was just not doing what it normally does.  One of my colleagues who bowls frequently and wins several tournaments a year, however, said it was the lanes.  Watching him bowl a 103, 99, I thought maybe it was for him, but not for me.  Then my mother-in-law bowled the same lanes later in the week.  Most of you probably already know, thanks to a very public Facebook taunting, that my mother-in-law is a good bowler and beat my 171, 179 series when we played a few weeks ago.  On the lanes we bowled the company Olympics, she bowled 97, 119.  Maybe it really is the lanes (though she is blaming the balls).

Next week our daughter returns to school.  The last few weeks have been difficult for her because she is at home all day instead of just a half day.  It really is harder on her that it is on us.  She likes the interaction with the children and the learning.  We've been working with her, though.  She knows how to spell "dog", and several words that rhyme with it (bog, hog, etc.).  She has learned that evaporation is how the sun makes the water disappear and that if you put your feet together on the swings you go faster because of aerodynamics.  She also knows that you ask daddy if you want ice cream and mommy if you want pickles.  Thankfully, she doesn't ask for them both at the same time.

I'm finally loading the pictures from our team building and rafting trip.  I've had them since the Monday after and just haven't made the time to load them.  Anyway, here they are (I'm the goofy looking Caucasian).

Rain, Golfing, and Lifestyle Games

It looks like July 2010 will be my least productive blogging month since our arrival in Jakarta.  I think that is because we're at the "been there, done that" phase.  I've already documented our life, our lifestyle, and what it is like living in Jakarta.  We're doing more of the same.

The rainy season in Jakarta, in theory, starts in November and ends in April.  We had so little rain during the rainy season, I kept asking when it started.  This year, meteorologists announced it officially ended in June, not April.  It's rained nearly every day since they made that announcement.  I think they may have it backwards.

Our company Olympics are underway again.  Last year, I participated in the golfing and bowling events.  I took first place in bowling, helping my team finish first.  My scramble partner and I placed second in the golf scramble, helping my team finish first.  Overall, my team finished in first place.  This year, my new team is expecting the same production from me.  Sunday, we had the golf event.  My scramble partner was our CFO.  I haven't played golf since our event last year, though I did take a lesson and have spent several days at the driving range.  I hit the ball very well.  Probably lowered my handicap by 10 strokes.  My partner and I finished second (I have the trophy to prove it).  The other scramble for our team finished in first, so, once again, my team won the golf event.  Now I just have to bowl well next week and I will cement my legacy.

Our daughter, like myself, is addicted to sweets.  We want to break her from that, but it's difficult when daddy is always eating a chocolate cookie or ice cream after dinner.  She also prefers watching cartoons to doing something active.  Sweets and inactivity are not good health partners.  To help with the situation, we have invented a lifestyle game.  Using a poster board, we made three columns:  Fruits and Veggies, Mental Exercise, Exercise.  Each day she eats fruits and veggies, does a learning activity (or attends school) or exercises (like riding her bike, or playing at the park), she earns a sticker in the appropriate category.  Once she has five in each category, I take her out for ice cream.  It's still early in this experiment, so we don't know yet if it is effective.

Did I mention my mother-in-law is visiting?  Yep.  One month.  This marks the third visit in 17 months.  The eighth family member visit in 17 months.  Doing the math:  17 months away from Phoenix, subtract one month for Europe and two months for living in Singapore = 14 months.  Eight visits for roughly one month each, means we've been on our own in Jakarta for a total of six months.  So why do we still miss home?

The Good, The Bad, The Worse

Things are back to normal in Jakarta. Security is still a little more diligent inspecting cars than they were before the bombings. The hotels have reopened for guests, though I have not driven by to see what they now look like. Work continues to plod on like a slow moving train and we continue to improve with each passing week.

On the home front, several events occurred this week: some good, some bad, some worse.

The Good

The company Olympics finally had an event that required my involvement - bowling. I've never been a frequent bowler. I don't have the spin on the ball that professionals and avid amateurs do. Over the years, I have developed an approach that allows me to bowl competently whenever I bowl. Stand one and a half dots right of center, aim for the arrow right of center. If I hit the head pin, nine times out of ten I will get a strike. If I miss the head pin, I'm left with four or five pins, but I'm setup for an easy spare. My typical score is 125 - 140. Good, but not great.

The competition started at 6:30. I arrived at 4 PM to get a few practice games in prior to the event. I played two games and bowled 130 in each. The high score from last year was 152 - a score I felt I could beat. We took up ten lanes, with four people, one from each team, in each lane.

At 6:30, the game began and we started to bowl. I started with a spare, then an open frame. My next two frames were spares, with only a 4 pin first ball in the fourth frame. My lane was pretty competitive. The bowler in the first position was following spares with strikes, and had only one open frame after 6. Going into the 7th frame, he was leading me by twenty points and looking at a finish somewhere in the high 150's. The quality of bowlers this year was higher than last year.

I had told everyone that I was going to win this event. I looked at the high scores across all ten lanes and realized I had some work to do. I told my lane I was going to throw a strike this frame so I could catch up. I did. I had a spare in both the eighth and ninth. Looking around, I knew I needed to finish strong if I was going to win.

Tenth frame comes and I increase my concentration. Standing on my preferred dot, I focus intently on the first arrow right of center. I concentrate on my arm motion and never lift my eyes from my target. STRIKE. Tenth frame, so I get two more balls. I go through the same motions - STRIKE. One more ball, same approach, same result - STRIKE.

The entire crowd around me erupting in cheers. I'm jumping madly crossing my arms in front of me. Who knew bowling could be this exciting? The computer shows its cartoon turkey and then calculates my final score - 186. This proves to be enough to win the first round. The next highest score is a 181, which was surprisingly high. My Olympic team and members from my staff on other teams all come by and give me congratulations. The event organizer announces that I had the high score, and that my team is leading the event.

Now it's time for round two. The team managers are reviewing the list of those who have arrived and those who have played. The plan is to keep those who scored high, and replace those who scored low with other members of the team. Over thirty minutes elapse between the end of the first round and the start of the second. I spend my time guarding my lucky ball (I was using a 12lb ball with damaged finger holes), and playing with my daughter.

I start the second game with a strike, making four strikes in a row. I follow it with a 2-6 open frame. By this point, I've bowled 2 games to warm up, another 2 games (unscored) warming up with everyone else, and a game in the competition. That's 100 throws. My hand is starting to hurt. The third frame I get another strike, which I follow with another open frame. I'm not setting a good trend. This lane is not as competitive as my first lane, and I think I lost my focus as a result. I do best when I am challenged. I finish the game with a respectable 142 which is good enough for fourth place. The person who bowled 181 in the first game bowls a 180 in the second. I have high game, he finishes with high series. My team wins the event and takes the gold medal.



The Bad

Several weeks ago I went to the doctor complaining of a sore throat that had lasted several weeks. I thought it was from a post nasal drip. They did a thorough examination and, not able to pinpoint the exact cause, gave me three kinds of medicine with instructions on how to use them. Try one for two days. If symptoms don't subside, try the next. The one that finally worked for me was Nexxium, which is used for acid reflux. I had 11 pills, and felt great for those 11 days. Two days after I stopped taking them, my sore throat was still gone - and has not returned - but I can tell the acid reflux is still a problem.

I first tried altering my diet. I minimized the spicy food - no more gado gado or sapi lada hitam - and ate more bananas, apples and bread. I even minimized my dairy, which meant dealing with my ice cream addiction. I could still feel my stomach churning in the evening and I still have mild stomach upset throughout the day.

Tuesday, I finally decide to see a doctor and get more pills. I relay the history of the recent weeks and tell them that Nexxium did the trick. I also tell them that 7 years ago I had an endoscopy that diagnosed me with GERD. We treated it with Nexxium for six months and it did not come back for seven years, until six weeks ago. I was hoping to get on the Nexxium again.

In the US, the doctor would have been happy to write me a prescription and send me on my way. Maybe they would have prescribed more tests, but they still would have given me a prescription. This doctor wants me to have another endoscopy. My insurance does not allow invasive procedures to occur in Indonesia, so I have to go to Singapore for the test. We were already planning a trip to Singapore the first weekend in September to move my wife and daughter their until the arrival of our son, so I've scheduled my appointment to occur on that trip. I already know the end result, so I hope they'll finally give me medicine upon my return.

The Worse

Our beloved dog Guapo, champion and protector of all Earth's little creatures, and the first dog I ever owned in Arizona, has died. In September of last year, when we were preparing for a December departure, the vet found he had a tumor on his stomach and predicted he would live just until October. He seemed perfectly healthy to me, and was still loving life, so I decided to let him have his fun as long as he could. His fun stopped on Monday. His life stopped on Wednesday.

Monday, my father-in-law noticed he was an unhappy dog. He wasn't eating, he was sluggish, and just wasn't his feisty self. He took him to the vet who told him that the tumor had ruptured and was bleeding. His gums were completely white. My father-in-law asked if we wanted to do the $1,000 surgery or euthanize. I got Guapo from the Humane Society in 1997. He was a full grown dog and estimated at 2 years old when I got him. I did not think it wise to spend $1,000 on a 14 year old dog who was now completely deaf. I gave him the go ahead to euthanize.

Wednesday morning, on the morning of the appointment, Guapo was nowhere to be found. After much looking around the backyard, he finally found him laying peacefully, breathing laboriously, under the trailer parked at the side of our house. When dogs know the end is near, instinct tells them to leave the pack and find a peaceful place to die, alone. Guapo had found his place to die.

Guapo passed on Wednesday morning sleeping on the pillow he used at night, not on the ground underneath a mobile home. I will remember him for his fearlessness and his loving protection of creatures smaller than him.

I knew I had a special dog the day two Rottweilers were inspecting him too aggressively and he made his dislike known by charging them both. Those two dogs had no idea what had happened and took off running the other direction rather than deal with the fury of my 30lb terrier. The biggest foe he ever took on was a full grown cow in the middle of the desert north of Lake Pleasant. We brought all the dogs to the lake for the day. The north part of the lake is open territory where people will camp and off-road drive. You need a four-wheel drive vehicle to get around. It's pretty wild. Cattle also roam freely in the area. We happened to be there on a day when the cows were eating the long grass around the river feeding the lake. One of them did something Guapo didn't like, and he went after it. The cow took off running and Guapo took off after it. He was running full speed underneath the cow, jumping up and nipping the cow's stomach. I was afraid he would be trampled by the hooves. Instead, he was finally stopped when he ran face first into a cactus. His normally distinguished manner was greatly humbled as he moped back to us to remove the quills embedded in his face.

He was also a protector of the smaller creatures. When I first got China, Guapo took it upon himself to be the role model for how dogs should act, and to take China under his guardianship. One Saturday, while I was getting ready to go out, Guapo came rushing into my room and spun in circles excitedly until I noticed him. I said something to him and he took off running. I laughed at his playfulness and went back to my preparations. Soon, Guapo was back and spinning in circles again. This time, when I said something to him, he started to run, but made sure I was following him before he continued.

He led me to the kitchen and stopped at the refrigerator. He pointed with his nose at the grill underneath and began scratching at it. I wondered what he was doing, so I looked. Much to my surprise, I discovered that China, who was still a very small puppy, was trapped underneath the fridge. I had to figure out how to get her out without killing her and without damaging the fridge. I finally decided the easiest thing to do would be to tilt it back and let her crawl out.

I tilted the fridge back and called to her, but she wouldn't come. I couldn't bend down and pull her out and hold the fridge at the same time, so I told Guapo: "Get her". He grabbed her collar with his teeth and pulled and yanked until he had pulled her out from underneath the fridge.

Guapo was a great dog and will be truly missed by all he knew him.

I see dead people....and eat mexican food

I think if you live long enough, have enough adventures, and really just leave your house on a regular basis in a large city, you will, eventually, see something you wish you hadn't. For me this happened Friday morning on the way to work. The lane my driver normally uses to take me to work in the early mornings (I'm on the road before 6 AM) - the Bus Way - was blocked. They weren't even letting motorcycles on it. A few minutes later we learned why - there was a dead body in the road. Fresh, too. When we drove by there were no police, no medical response unit, and a large pool of blood draining from the body's head. The body itself was twitching in what I can only describe as the gasping I've seen from fish when you are cutting their heads off. Gruesome, graphic, macabre - I know. That's how I started my morning. The day did improve from there, thankfully.

Today (Saturday) we met my admin for dinner at the only Mexican restaurant in all of Jakarta. And, I can thankfully say it is truly a Mexican restaurant. My wife says she can always tell by the salsa they serve with the free chips when you first sit down. Hacienda is located in the Arcadia building of the Plaza Senaya mall (which is across the street from Senayan City, where we had looked for it last weekend). Between the four of us, we ate the Mexican food equivalent of "hitting the cycle" - tacos, burrito, enchiladas and quesadillas. We went to Cold Stone for the obligatory ice cream dessert.

Plaza Senaya also has a bowling alley on the top floor. We all tried our hand at bowling. I did okay with a 133 - 4 spares and one strike. My daughter - who refused help and did not have bumpers - bowled a 16. My wife, who trailed my daughters after 2 frames, bowled the lowest score I've ever seen her bowl, so I won't repeat it here (though she averaged less than 6 per frame). We're blaming it on the extra real-estate her arm needs to navigate (her bump) when she swings the ball.

Earthquakes? and Team Building

I woke up around 2 AM this morning to what felt like a rolling wave in the building. It happened two quick times in succession, and then stopped. I remember laying there thinking – did we just have an earthquake? – before falling back asleep. At work, I Googled “Indonesia Earthquakes”. Apparently we have had three earthquakes since I have been here – though not last night. So, the one night I actually felt an earthquake was the one night Indonesia did not have one. I’m sure my wife would have an explanation for the rumbling that woke me from my sleep, but that’s a different story….for a different audience.

Today was a big day on many fronts. First, I met with the team and presented my vision for the team over the next 1-2 years, explained a little about my background and my management style, and provided a detailed explanation of my expectations of everyone on the team. It’s tough to tell how they are receiving the message. I tried to be light-hearted. The title of my presentation was “I have a bule for a manager….what does this mean for me?” “Bule”, is the Indonesian word for “White-faced foreigner”. Usually, “bule” is deferential. Most companies don’t send their imbecile workers on foreign assignments, so the locals have only really worked with people who would be successful in any environment. “Bule” can also represent what they dislike about the white-faced foreigners – privilege, arrogance, and aggressiveness. My title got a good laugh.

I also had heard that many of them said I resembled Chandler, from the TV show “Friends” (Matthew Perry for those inclined to look him up). My first slide was titled “First Impressions”, and I debunked the myth that I was on the TV show, related to Matthew Perry in any way, or channeling his persona. This, too, got a good laugh. So, hopefully they are feeling more comfortable with the strange “bule” coming to manage them.

Tonight was also the big team-building event – bowling. When they told me about it last week, they said there would be a prize for high individual score and high team score. Of course, my competitive juices started flowing. I asked what the average score would be. When they said in the 90’s, I knew I could win this event. I asked my superintendents how the team would perceive their manager winning the event (thinking I may have to bowl left handed). They said that last time they did it, the management group had the top 4 scores. Game on!

The bowling alley is in the middle of a two story strip mall that housed a university, restaurants, and furniture sold in the middle of the hallway like the sunglass kiosks in the US. We were all wearing our work clothes, including one brave woman in a skirt, so I was curious how the bowling would turn out. I never expect bowling shoes to be the pinnacle of fashion. In fact, they intentionally make them as ugly as possible so no one will steal them. Mine made me feel like Michael Jackson in the Billy Jean video – bright white loafers.

The lanes themselves looked like the polished, hardwood floor lanes in the US. That is, until you looked at them at an angle. Then you could see they were planks of warped wood laminate, probably laid on top of sheet metal or, worse, barely leveled concrete. When I threw my first ball, and it landed softly, I thought I was in for a long game – and we were only playing one each. We each got one warm-up frame and then the game began.

Each team had five players, and I had worked on projects with all but one of the other members of my team. My first frame I went 7-1, just barely missing the headpin on my first ball. Then I found my groove and followed with 3 consecutive strikes and two spares. I had 104 points after 6 frames. I walked the floor and saw I had double what everyone else did, so I did 4—on the 7th frame. Then I noticed that our team score was not very far ahead of the next team, so I picked it back up and threw two more spares and then a 7-1 on the 10th. I finished with a 154, not too bad for someone who bowls 2-3 times per year.

My team finished with 513, just over 100 average for the group, so you can see we needed my score to be high if we were to be in the running for team high score if most were going to score in the 90’s. There were 9 teams total, and 40 players. My 154 took first place by 13 pins. The team 513 took 2nd place; short by 32 pins. The 1st place team had the 2nd place individual, and four others who scored over 100. Next time, I’ll have to bowl over 180, just to be safe.

The prize I won was a wireless keyboard and mouse – a productivity enhancer. Someone in the crowd yelled “work harder bule!”, to much laughter. I don’t need a wireless keyboard and mouse since I primarily use a laptop. So, I gave it to the person with the lowest score, because she is obviously spending all of her time at work while everyone else is out bowling, so she should have the tools to make her as productive as possible.

After bowling we had dinner at, of all places, Pizza Hut. If you are thinking of the greasy, pepperoni and cheese pizza you see in the US, think again. These pizzas had baked potatoes, fish, chicken, and some odd looking fruit on them…except mine. Well aware of my food allergies – and, apparently, monitoring their watch and me for a few minutes after my first bites – they ordered a pizza they knew I could eat, though it was not a favorite of the rest of the group. When the waitress brought it to the table, she put it right next to me and said “American Favorite”. It was, and I enjoyed it.

One other observation I made today, and it’s not groundbreaking by any means. The more people do for you, the less you are able to do for yourself. I notice that having a driver, I have no sense of direction in the city. I can look at a map, and then go outside and have no idea what I’m doing. Same thing for calling my driver. Our department admin handles communicating with my driver when I’m at work, the hotel handles it when I’m there, and he walks with me if I venture outside of those two locations – like tonight when he walked me to the bowling alley. I’d be lost without these people! Sometimes, when you get the things you always envied, you realize you were better for not having them….but you still don’t want to give them up!

Should be an interesting two years.