Mon 29 Sep: First Day at Work!

Orientation

STILL jet lagged, getting to work in time was no problem. Even leaving 30min before the event, I was able to make it with 15min to spare. It's that near! Woot!

Without going into details, I must say that American-style sessions are very different from Singapore. I would never think of executing it in the same style in a Singapore company. If it works - and it did here - the gains are great. The message gets delivered without overly investing in fancy technology or activites. Clearly this is something good.

New Job, New Team, New Everything

Working in a new job in a new country with new people can be very disorienting. I struggled to find something familiar: technology, jargons, anything. Even the toilet is designed different. Maybe that's why people seek out Coke while overseas, why I tried so hard to play Singapore's radio stations on my Squeezebox  (to no avail).

Having said that, what I see, I liked. The onus is on me to step up and earn my right of place in the company. It's going to be steep, it's going to be nerve wrecking. I take comfort that I will not be thrown in the deep end. At least that's what they said!

Sun 28 Sep: the Lonely Tourist

Jetlagged Still

Despite my best efforts, I was knocked out at about 6am, waking up at 1pm. It's lunchtime, yet I did not feel hungry. My sleep and dietary rhythms remain a mess.

Chinatown on Foot

With the businesses closed for the weekend, it's time to play tourist. Just for the challenge, I decided to walk down to Chinatown from my residence. I'm not sure about the distance, but since I managed to walk to market, then to town, why not stretch myself for the experience and see how that pans out?

Bear in mind once again, that the business/ main shopping district of Seattle is not very big. It helps a lot that the low humidity and cool temperature makes walking a very comfortable option. There are however two parameters which one needs to consider. 

One, many slopes are involved. Prepare to walk up a down slopes regardless of direction. I suspect it's slightly better closer to the coasts.

Two, tourist attractions attracts the homeless. You will see them at junctions. Some resting against the wall, others actively - but not aggressively - asking for donations. One can't help but be nervous when approaching blacks in hoodies. Too much Hollywood? Better to be paranoids than be sorry.

With my current physique I reached a new level of exhaustion. Not the one that makes you want to lie down and pant your lungs out, but one that retains your strength but none of the energy. Makes sense? With good company I wouldn't mind another go at it. Not too soon I hope!

Chinatown and International District

There's not much to say about this place. Compared to the one at San Francisco it's not exciting enough. Maybe that's why they rolled Chinatown and all other Asian stuff into one place. The main market Uwajimaya stocks Japanese and Chinese stuff (and possibly kimchi and others), but it feels more for locals than a tourist stop.

Sat 27 Sep; Visit beyond the city

The friend of a friend is my friend

Andy my brother in law knows someone working in the same company as me. I contacted him prior to my arrival, and we met up in the morning.

Michael was on time, but I wasn't. At 6am I was overcome by exhaustion from jet lag, and slept through until he called. Sorry!

We had breakfast at a Mexican place outside the city, In a town I cannot remember now. Outside Seattle the mood of the land is immediately more laid back. Time seems to slow down. You'd see older-style houses and shops. Almost a modern version of those shops you see in Wild West movies. It's probably easier to describe with a photo, but I am using an iPad to blog instead of a desktop machine. Transferring photos from my phone into iPad without iTunes is a major workaround. Why Steve Jobs, why?

Michael is a great guy. He obligingly drove me to Fry's to check out he laptops, then to Best Buy to get a better range. I'd say for laptops Best Buy gives a much wider range. We settled my laptop research quickly enough, and he decided to bring me to a scenic spot to view the city. It was a beautiful spot. With a little time left before evening sets in, we went to a nearby grocery store for my groceries. Thanks   Michael!

Residence in Seattle 

The good clean air and wonderful weather are a draw. The thought of living by the lake or with a scenic view of the land is tempting. A decent car can be had for cheap - a fraction of the price in Singapore. It's easy to be dreamy here in Seattle, especially when you're all alone with soft lights on and good music playing in the background.

Jet lagged

I continue to be drowsy by late afternoon. As much as I tried to avoid I succumbed and slept til midnight. From then on I remained awake until about 6am, where I consequently crashed until 1pm.

Meanwhile, in Singapore

Monday, 29 Sept 2014

So, the hubs has been in Seattle for about 5 days now (including travel time). Things back here have been pretty routine. Fetching the kids to their classes, going to work. We had a lazy weekend, to have more downtime, as the weeks before the hubs left were filled with activity.

 Just before he left, the hubs bought a refurbished iPad2 so that we could FaceTime across the Pacific. Worked out great so far! Previously, whenever he travelled, we would try to use Skype, but we're not always very successful - the video and audio quality were not very smooth.  As he was never away for very long, we gave up and depended on Whatsapp.  This time though, as he would be away for about 6 months, and because of the kids, we thought we would need something more reliable.  So far so good!  The first call was rather bad, because he had to find out where the sweet spot in his apartment was.  Even then, the video would be dropped now and then.  We've since discovered that the best time to FaceTime was around dinner time here, because it would be in the wee hours in the morning for him, and everyone else was still asleep.  This, of course, only works for nowhere he's still adjusting to the time difference.  We won't have this luxury anymore once he starts work.

I've been taking things easy here since he flew off, but I've got to start the ball rolling once again.  I aim to have at least one bag or box leave the place once a day, be it trash, donation, recycling or to be stored at either my Mum's or his.

Ok. The sun is up.  Got to get myself and the kids ready for the day!

Fri 26 Sep: First Impressions

Morning

Woke up to a drizzly morning. In Seattle it does not pour with lightning and thunder as it does in Singapore. Rather it's sunshine interspersed with bouts of light rain.

I did not have a good sleep the whole night. It's jet lag time! That kind of worked out ok as I spent my time Google Mapping the area for amenties like groceries, malls, and public transport. I should have done this earlier when assigned to the residence though. While the apartment is great in terms of being very walk-friendly to work, it's terrible when it comes to groceries and shops - malls are out of the question. Because it's next to the highway amenities on the eastern half are completely inaccessible by foot. North of me is Lake Union. That leaves me with western and southern areas.

Wee morning hours here equates to evenings in Singapore. It was very convenient and enjoyable to use the Apple FaceTime to set up video calls back home. To be able to see my kids - and for them to see me back - is immeasurable! There's nothing like a video call back to mom and dad to give them assurance that all is fine.

Venturing Out

By 7 I was getting impatient to get things done. With only half the research done I was out of the building with a windbreaker that has no hood (it's still drizzling), and a phone that has no local SIM card. What naive bravery!

A Transplant I met was very forthcoming with directions to downtown. I'm not sure about Americans in general, but I have found Seattlelites generally to be happy to provide public information such as directions. Singaporeans are not too far off, but they tend to be brief in delivery. 

The Streetcar

I walked downslope towards Lake Union where there's a streetcar stop. Along the way I had to stop people to confirm the location, as I was not sure what a streetcar stop looked like. Friendly directions from the people all the way. It's nice to know the people are friendly. Makes the place a little more welcome for an Asian betting his next few years in American soil.

The streetcar is a slow moving but clean electric mini train. The route is not very long: it runs from a little beyond SLU to downtown. That's it. For $2.50 you get like 2 hours to use the train. Can I board buses with this ticket? Good question. Will find out.

Later I've been told the main purpose of this train is to ferry Amazonians from downtown to the SLU campus.

Downtown

Downtown Seattle is not very big. Singapore's CBD is a lot more dense with more skyscrapers. Huge shopping malls are mixed with office buildings. One thing I find about downtown is that it's not easy to figure to where everything is. There is a visitor's center, but it's not quite smack in the center. Maybe the train stop where I alighted isn't the center (does look like one though). Bottom line: do a little homework before venturing downtown.

The best thing about getting around is that the dry, cool weather makes one very open to walking. I literally walked back to my apartment from downtown. Partly because I wanted to get some groceries, also I wanted to save on that $2.50. Until I get my first paycheck every dollar counts.

Evenings

The street lighting at least in the SLU area isn't the best. I wouldn't get out of the apartment after 8pm. 

Note to Self

Get a windbreaker with a hood, or get a cap.

Thu 25 Sep: Hello Seattle!

Flight Schedule
I could have taken the shortest flight via Delta, which would be a sweet 17-hour trip. But the departure time is early on the morning. Getting the kids up at those hour may be difficult. So I took Singapore Airlines instead. It's a 24-hour route with transits Incheon and San Francisco.

Seen Off
Sometimes the mind takes a while to accept reality. The fact that I may not be back to see family and friends for a long, long time. The fact that I'm leaving not just a country, but the life, system, and culture that I am so comfortable with.

I am touched to have my parents and siblings for taking time to see me off. All my pillars of strength are there for me on my departure. I am grateful.

The Flight
The leg to Incheon is easy. I barely slept the night before, so catching up on sleep takes much time off the flight. Throw in the meal and the videos. Done.

While there is no need to retrieve the checked-in luggage, we had to bring our carry-ons and be subjected to body and luggage scans. My guess is that since they are putting us on the standard departure lounge we are treated the same as the people who are boarding from Incheon.

The leg to SFO is a little harder. I'm too tired to watch videos, too restless to sit still. Economy seats are only that comfortable, and I had to shift often. We are issued socks but no eye cover. Infants wailed with impatience. There's one nearby who loved to scream when upset. My ears, my head.

Because there's little movement I did not hydrate myself sufficiently despite my conscious effort to do so. Long flights need good hydration! Also, bring a thin sweater. The courtesy blanket is very helpful, but can do with a little more layering.

Transiting in SFO from international to domestic involves physically moving ALL luggages by oneself - including the checked in ones. Fortunately there is a booth not far from the  luggage carousel which helps transport the weighty pieces.

Still, avoid transits as much as possible, especially with children.

Seattle!
By the time I finally arrived and exited the SeaTec airport, it's evening. Not knowing the safety of my residence, I was keen to get to my residence as comfortably and quickly as possible. There's a door-to-door shuttle service which only costs $37 before taxes. The service is made affordable because a few people will be shuttled in the same trip. I was the first to alight, so it's as good as taxi service.

Unlike SFO Seattle charges $5 for the use of trolleys at the airport. That's quite a bit! I had a huge luggage with a broken wheel, a smaller one with a  faulty handle, and a hand carry that has no sling. $5 is a good price to pay.

Residence
Rivet is located at a quiet junction near a construction site. The street lights do not adequately light up the sidewalk. An oncoming person in the distance will be just a silhouette.  I was relieved that someone in the building was on his way out while I was struggling with the luggage lock.

What a memorable trip!

The Day of Departure

If it were just Single Me taking on an overseas career, things will be straightforward - almost a no-brainer.

But it's Family Man with Kids Me. Things are complicated - and they should be. My personal considerations take a back seat. There's a lot of consideration about how the kids will cope, how their education road map will change. Then there's the Wife, extended family needs, and our local financial liabilities.

A career in an unfamiliar land with unfamiliar cultures, physical risks, and psychological hurdles subsisting the entire family. What a challenge. What a leap of faith.

But here we are on the departure date. I will take the first plunge and forge safe grounds for the rest of the family. The Wife will stay behind and wrestle with everything else that's necessary for the final transition. The tasks ahead for her will be gargantuan. It will demand everything of her: time, physical energies, emotional strength. Lisa, I'm sorry I can't bear these with you together.

In a few moments, the wife and kids will be awake and dressed, and we will make our way to the airport to share our final moments together here. There will be tears on my end, be it outward or otherwise.

This is an emotional time.