a keen sense of smell.
It was a tranquil morning up on the mountains of Sapa, Vietnam. The largely natural beauty was left mostly untouched by the hands of modernisation, other than the tourism industry. Rays of sunlight peeked through the morning fog, and a cool(freezing to some) breeze ruffled the leaves and my hair. I took a deep breath of fresh air. Such a moment to enjoy.
The moment was then interrupted by an annoying vibrating sound. I look around before tracing it to my pocket. I had a text message. It said "Urgent. Need you to report for guard duty." About 4 hundreths of a second after the enjoyable moment, I had a foul mood to contend with. Which wasn't a millionth bad as what the person who decided to activate me for duty had to contend with.
An issue with reality.
I say this because at that point in time, my exact location was up on the mountains in a remote place in Northern Vietnam, about 2 hours bus ride from the train station, another 9 hours train ride back to Hanoi, 30 mins coach ride back to the hotel to pack my stuff before a 1 hour coach ride to the airport, which of course precedes the 3hour plane ride I need to even set foot on Singapore. And all this is not inclusive of waiting time, availability of tickets, train timings, plane timings etc. So I really did at that point in time, while seething in a steam marinade of unhappiness, wonder how that guy expected me to report to camp at 8am.
But I digress. My whole point is that guard duty does have a keen sense of smell for me in particular. Going overseas doesn't really seem to help in the slightest bit. In 2 years of my service, I have encountered various problems with guard duty too complicated and frustrating to mention again. Just understand that the feeling is probably less enjoyable than rubbing your scrotum back and forth on a cheese grater. I kid you not. I really wonder what it is that makes me so easily sniffed out. I probably need to take a shower.
justin.
i'd rather sleep.
Sometimes, shit happens. Shit that is so ridiculous, that it makes you lose faith in humanity.
Shit such as bad decisions from people in authority, which lead to unsavoury consequences. Shit such as a flying cockroach, irritating the hell out of you, before you send it on it's way to insect hell with the killer aerosol insect spray. Which has a nasty smell that makes your rebellious brother refuse to eat his food in the living room. And you start to have a shouting match with him late at night, tempers fraying all because of the shit that happened on TV.
All this could have been avoided if you chose to take care of your body and sleep at 10pm instead of watching TV until late at night. Sleep your way to a happy and healthy life.
justin.
just a little question.
What does a person say when he has nothing to say? Nothing. The word nothing or the literal nothing? Or does he say
"What does a person say when he has nothing to say? Nothing. The word nothing or the literal nothing? Or does he say
' "What does a person say when he has nothing to say? Nothing. The word nothing or the literal nothing? Or does he say
..." ' "
This is getting really ridiculous. My command of punctuation is a little bit iffy at best. But the quoting is supposed to go on and on and on and on (only it doesn't) like it never really ends. Only it does. Like my post does I guess. I have an awful lot to say for someone who doesn't really have anything to say.
justin.
the liverpool way.
Today commemorates the 50th anniversary of Bill Shankly taking over as manager of Liverpool Football Club. Just a little quote from the man himself, taken off the official website.
"If I became a bin-man tomorrow" he said to me when I asked him about his politics, "I'd be the greatest bin-man who ever lived. I'd have Liverpool the cleanest city on earth. I'd have everyone working with me, succeeding and sharing out the success. I'd make sure they were paid a decent wage with the best bonuses, and that we all worked hard to achieve our goals. Some people might say, ah but they're only bin-man, why do we need to reward them so well for a job anyone can do, but I'd ask them why they believe they are more important than a bin-man? I'd ask them how proud they'd feel if this city became the cleanest in the world? And who would have made them proud? The bin-man."
That is how he does things.
justin.
