Happy Thought For The Day

Just something I read on an A&W flyer.

"Imagine your happy place. Now, imagine it with bacon".

I feel better already.

Its About Time

If the news is to be believed Paul Watson has finally been arrested in  Germany and is awaiting extradition to Costa Rica for attempted murder. One can only hope that no bail will be allowed and that the wheels of justice turn slowly.  For years now Watson and his thugs has been roaming the seas assaulting sailors and endangering  ships. People came close to getting killed a few years back when one his boats collided with whaling vessel in the south pacific. If this group is allowed to continue its reckless activities it will only be a matter of time before someone is killed. When that happens I wonder how the Hollywood dilettantes and holier-than-thou animal rights activists who support Sea Sheppard's criminal activities will wash their hands of them.

And then there was one

 A couple of years ago we found three orphaned dogs at the side of the road and decided to adopt them. One ran off not long after we had him neutered. I lost the second one today.He had been hit by a car and terribly injured. The vet said he was in a lot of pain and that he might never recover so I asked that he be put down. Its a sad thing. Bobi loved to chew on patio funiture, and sandals were never safe left outdoors in his company. A terror to cats and frogs he would try to catch the former and dig up half the garden pursuing the latter. He could always tell the sound of my bike and tended to race alongside whenever I approached the house. He would rarely bark and always let my tukangs daughter pull his ears with never a yelp nor growl. He liked to stay clean unlike my other dog who,in spite of our best efforts, remains something of a tick factory. He wasn't the smartest of dogs but he knew how to take a snack from my hand without snatching it.  I'm going to miss him. If there is such a thing as doggie afterlife I hope its filled with neckermans and sun beds - Bobi will appreciate it.

On Tire Cleavage

Its rare that an election campaign runs without the odd hiccup. Pity no one noticed this before the paint job. The bus is apparently being repainted.

Photo taken from the CBC

A brief update

Bali  has a new bus system. It appears to be working in spite of  its many problems. A  critique can be found here. Despite the pessimism a working bus system is inevitable if the Island is to avoid choking on its own success.

Property prices in Bali are going up up up. Its unbelievable what people are willing to pay for a chunk of swamp without sewage, electricity or water. 300 million rupiah /are now seems to be the going rate in some parts of semminyak. Some very average villas here are now going for 15 million rupiah/month. At these prices its tempting to move and rent out my house but the next question would be to move where?

The beachfront in Kuta is finally resembling something other than a collection of abandoned buildings. There are a lot of new shiny hotels all across the street from the beach. Access to Kuta is still hopelessly snarled amidst the narrow convoluted streets, the surfeit of taxis and the  interminable "proyek galian" (excavations) tearing up the roadways.

The massive developments in south Bali (and they are massive) are serviced by a tiny 2-lane road from Jimbaran to Bukit. Traffic along here can only get worse as these developments fill in. As it is now you are totally screwed going uphill at 4:30 pm and downhill at 7:00 PM (tour buses to Uluwatu).

I'm not sure of the reasoning but the developers in Pecatu placed a large water park in the middle of a luxury housing development and golf course. Perhaps they should have sold the houses first but I find it difficult to imagine some wealthy pensioner buying a house with 100 decibel bass pumping out some techno beat at 10:00  AM overdubbed with some idiot presenter screaming into a microphone. Just what I like with my morning coffee and porridge.

The little golf driving range in Tuban is gone - victim to the ever expanding Ngurah Rai Airport. I think that it has been gone for some time but I'm only now getting around to mentioning it. Pity. It was the cheapest and best kept secret in Bali.

Finally I have to say that I lost one dog while I was away and a new one seems to be hanging around in its place. The lost one was a bit touched from the day we found him so I'm not totally surprised. The new dog is a friendly type with an unfortunate habit of digging up the lawn. Not sure how to cure him of that.

Having a heck of a time organising my next work trip abroad. More on that later.