3 months later, and there was still no regrets coming to this place. It is as good as staying in a foreign country. People speak in different languages, Chinese + Malay get along well, the townsfolk can't drive... Yes I was not living the KL party life, hangin' out with chicks and all, but still, I'm getting paid more to work less. Along the way, I also scaled Kinabalu, nearly peaking. Despite everybody's objections, I still don't think peaking was such a great deal, considering I was just 100m away from it. Just enjoying the sublimely beautiful sunrise, having the clouds gather below you, surrounded by people you love, to me that will always be more memorable than gungho-ing myself and reach the peak, to enjoy the view alone. Poor Feng.
By the time September came around, the frustration has started to build up. I missed a Jiuzhaigou family trip because of offshore commitments (which were changed in the end). My colleague had planned to utilise his offshore leave to visit Bali, Cambodia, Thailand + Singapore. I have planned to do nothing in those 2-week breaks. I have missed a good deal of friends' birthdays and starting to feel tired. Tired of letting people know I'm back. Tired to be the one to always contact people. My spiritual life was falling apart, with the lack of Sunday missals and involvement in youth activities. My bunch of best church friends attended a 12-day course spread across 4-mths. And I was at home all those times. Deep down, I knew life was good, I had great friends in Miri, work was more change management, less tedious work that most analysts are doing. And I earned more and spent less. Why do I have to compare myself with KL folks? They spend their weekdays working till 10pm anyways. ARGH! quarter life crisis struck.
Insya-allah, then came the amazingly refreshing CHOICE camp, had a calm + insightful time, recharged my batteries. Even managed to know some wonderful karaoke kakis. My 2nd platform assignment was hugely fulfilling, because of the great people onboard, and that I actually could suggest improvements for my dear team. My contributions were being recognised and I was seeing things from a bigger picture. Returned to KL mid-December and had a thoroughly enjoyable Christmas in Kulai orchid farm. By the time I was on the 30th floor of the lavish apartment, staring at KLCC, and fireworks bloom beautifully in front of Trader's, I realised, it was a good year after all. Different, transitional, plenty of learnings, discovering lost loves.
Like 2006 was my movie madness run, I enjoyed a reading renaissance in 2007. Traveling time is best spent with a book in hand. Read some thoroughly enjoyable and insightful literature. Bhagavad Gita, 逍遥游, classics like Swift & Dostoevsky, plenty of Murakami... also caught up with many artists' biographies from Dad's collection, and have new-found love for French artists (which I previously despised) Monet, Toulouse-Lautrec, Rousseau etc. Thanks to IU forums, I also managed to download a large amount of Asian movies, forcing myself to buy a 160 GB external HDD, and I still have 40+ outstanding movies!! Not much new music in 2007, except for múm, rediscovering classic Pink Floyd & Beatles, and karaoke faves 侧田 & 曹格。
What does 2008 hold? I really am not sure, project is ending in May and there is no telling where I could go, even though I know for sure Miri would have a place for me. The thing I'm sure I need/must do - go Incubus concert in S'pore (bought tickets liao), go Cambodia, and hopefully can make it for World Youth Day @ Sydney. Cheerios , 2007, you've been good to my pig year, time to get the rat running and spinning its wheels!!
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