Starbucks is my embassy

I am writing this from Southeast Asia. Singapore. My family left about 2 days ago, and honestly I didn't anticipate that would create a vacuum. Because I went from 6 people around me to 0. And the homesickness set in within 20 seconds of them leaving. I think particularly because the brain is kind of used to a certain orientation or cadence, and now it has to pick up the slack of stimulus processing that it outsourced. 

Part of that is deciding where to go, as in where to even move your body. When you are on a trip with 6 other family members, you don't really have to decide for yourself where to go, or you can contribute to the collective decision-making. So your brain is a little bit on autopilot actually with regards to choosing where to put yourself. But in Singapore there are so many infinite stores and restaurants that it is a little bit mind numbing deciding for yourself where to plop yourself down. Especially if you had a drop into it cold turkey. Also I had a cold, and when you are sick obviously it's not that fun to use your brain in ways that might be fun to use your brain normally. 

So yeah. So it's true that multinational American brands like Starbucks are successful in using their branding to be sticky because when my brain is tired it just needs to look for some degree of familiarity so I can rest a minute here. And so I literally plunked myself down into Starbucks rather than look for some cool, authentic, local cafe with wifi, because at least I know how Starbucks works. And also I had some degree of homesickness, so it was like Starbucks was a familiar embassy from which I could retreat momentarily. 

I've spent many hours of my life in Starbucks grinding on work, so it's quite nice because even though I'm on the other side of the world it is like you still get to be around some surroundings that feel like home. Now normally that is something that is derided as the "evil" of corporate branding and interior design, but frankly I am enjoying indulging in it right now.

Prunes

Everyone already knows this, but isn't it remarkable that prunes look so similar to that which you are trying to procure?

Hotel toilet economic analysis

Hotel toilets have a very strong flush compared to residential toilets, for obvious reasons. But has anyone done an economic analysis of the additional cost of water vs. clogs saved? Does it *actually* save money on the labor? 

Now, it's about more than just the labor cost, of course, such as the guest experience of not having your toilet clogged and costing you time and discomfort by ringing up someone to unclog your toilet. And that's a pretty big intangible value. But I am still curious about the cost comparison against the labor 

Foundation and Singapore

Have you ever read the famous sci fi book Foundation? It's a lot like the story of Singapore:

A great empire that spans the entire galaxy has collapsed and as a result there's chaos. So a bunch of really smart people move to this teeny tiny planet on the edge of the galaxy that has zero natural resources and is surrounded by belligerent barbarians. So they have no choice but to use their discipline and education and wits and technology and commerce to scratch together an existence and defend themselves with diplomacy. And it ends up being the most advanced utopian place in the galaxy.

Singapore Day 1

Okay so here I am in Singapore and I am still a little bit jetlagged even though I ran 6 miles this morning for an hour as a way to start to recalibrate my sleep schedule. I am just doing a quick freewrite here to refocus myself because I've been able to get some new inspiration for our freight business. 

Also my family spent a lot of today in the Marina Bay Sands shopping center and it looks quite mind numbingly like just a more opulent version of South Coast Plaza, but the same nonetheless, and the same demographics more or less. And that actually decreased my enthusiasm for Singapore because it felt less interesting or authentic, or like, more boring. That's just the nature of commercial malls I guess. And I am scoping out Singapore as a potential place to live long term. I'll be here another 16 days or so, so i have more time to make an impression of the place, but my friends (and friend who grew up here) say this is a very small place with not much to do, ultimately, and I hope that's not the case. But there's at least 1 point scored in that direction from the mall trip today. I do feel like I fit in a little less here, or that there's not enough breathing room to live here long term, potentially. What I mean is that yeah maybe it is a little bit vanilla. It feels a little bit like a tropical, Asian version of Boston. With a different culture, of course, but in fact with the same smallness and perhaps the same vanillaness. These impressions are still quite early though.

Anyway, still excited to be here! Just a little jetlagged I guess. There's still so much to see and do that we haven't done yet. 

Proposing a trip to India

Yes, my mum did not react well to when I brought up India hahaha

On the positive side, it has made my trip to SEA countries seem much less scary to her

It is very funny because for the last 5 years my mum's reaction has always been the same in response to the inputs. I will propose traveling somewhere and it will be a strong emotional response. It will be a trip to Los Angeles, or to San Francisco, or Boston, or Mexico City

I am never sure what is the most Buddhist way to handle these situations. If I tell my parents about an upcoming trip earlier, then they are reactive for longer. But I am always able to go in the end anyway. They never explicitly say No, but they use the emotional heat to try to dissuade me. This is very interesting because it is like a machine that operates with the same output every time there is the same input. And this is very interesting because in contrast when one is young like myself, every year I have a different perspective, and therefore my mind often gives a different output over time with the same input.

So does the Buddhist, to minimize discomfort to one's parents and oneself, wait to them about the India trip once I'm already in Vietnam by myself, hence am free to do as I please; or does the Buddhist tell their parents early to be truthful? Because, like the machine, the outcome is always the same in the end anyways

So what I do is tell them early, and face the flames, since I can always just practice keeping my inner state calm not attached to the emotion

Or at least try

Getting ready for a trip to Southeast Asia

Yes, ready, set go!!!! I need to pack. Goodness I have so many errands to do before the trip. But I will try to get them done to the best of my ability. Hooray!