Tongfamily Website

!

Here is the best routing that I found:

* Singapore SQ37. This is an all business class Airbus 340-500. Sounds pretty cool as it is a red eye. Leaves 20:00 from LAX and arrives at 06:05. Takes an amazing 18 hours to get from LAX to SIN. Then you get to spend a cool day in Singapore and take the night flight out to MLE airport at 20:45 arriving at 22:10. 37 elapsed hours later you are at the pool. There is a special fare right now (thanks for the recession!) which is $5500 one way. Not cheap, but it is a heck of a long way in business class.
* The weather there is phenomenal according to their “forecasts”:http://www.meteorology.gov.mv/, it is basically 30C there all the time.
* If you can’t “afford”:http://www.visitmaldives.com/Getting_here/int-airlines.php Singapore, then there are all sorts of other flights. Getting there from Europe might actually be shorter since it is in the middle of the Indian Ocean. I’ve always wanted to fly Emirates via DXB for instance or Qatar via DOH. Just need a reason to get to the Middle East first.
* “Tripadvisor”:http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g293953-Maldives-Vacations.html notes the classic hotels there. While the Banyan Tree (what an amazing brand for just $800 a night) is there as is the Angsana ($400) which is adjacent, Conrad ($1100!), the “eco lodges”:http://www.eco-tropicalresorts.com/indian/maldives.htm sound great too. There are some bargains like “Faru Club”:http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g298571-d611898-r21823174-Club_Faru-Male.html that you get through some charter group called First Choice. They are ungodly expensive at $500-1000 a night, but sounds like honeymooners paradise.

I heard there were some eco resorts out there, but the only one I could find is the “Alilavillas”:http://www.alilavillas.com/hadahaa/ which don’t open until April 2009, so maybe now is the time to book. The other Alila Villas sound amazing though.

“Conde Naste Traveler”:http://www.cntraveller.com/GoldList/2008/Leisure_Facilities/One_and_Only_Reethi_Rah_Maldives/ says teh One and Only Reethi Rah is amazing. At US$920/night it had better be. And judging by the photos, it does deliver!

“Beach House at Manufaru”:http://www.cntraveller.com/Special_Features/The_Hot_List_2008/The_Beach_House_at_Manafaru_Maldives/ is relatively off the beaten track. February and March are the best times to go. Also $1250 a night it had better be nice. And there is a dive center and it is solar powered There do seem to be quite a few promotions that are 20% off.

They said it was coming in November, but no one seems to have it. “PC Magazine”:http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2335490,00.asp claims shipments started Tuesday November 25th. We’ll see

I’ve got my Canon EOS 350D and it has faithfully taken over 18,000 photos in the last three years (!!!), but now the lenses are ready for the 21 megapixel and more importantly all HD movies that this guy can handle.

!

Maybe too much so, but it mainly be long for some of the destinations that they found themselves. In many ways, I love Bourne, Mission Impossible and 007 movies because they are really like travelogues. Who wouldn’t want to go to Goya, Vietnam or Australia after watching these films.

So, is there really a desert like that in Bolivia? Well, according to the “London Times”:http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/holiday_type/breaks/article5106504.ece there really is. They have a great guide to going to some of those amazing locations. Good to clip and see (oh BTW, these are spoilers, but I presume everyone and their mom has seen the movie):

* Bolivia. Well, it wasn’t Bolivia, but the Atacama Desert in Chile where there is an observatory. I’m not personally of a fan of lots of desert, but this looks pretty amazing. Aparently, there is a place called Explora Atacam which is a luxury resort outside of an oasis town. It has its own telescope, four pools, stables, mountain biking, etc. $4K for four days there plus 3 days in Santiago. See joyrneylatinamerica.co.uk
* Haiti. Well, it wasn’t Haiti, but Panama including Panama City (overrun with Americans retirees I’ve heard like Costa Rica’s west coast) and also the beaches of Colon. The San Blas archiepelago is apparently amazing set of 350 islands.

My buddy John says hanging with me is like living with Neo in The Matrix. Oh my goodness, this crash looks like the next depression. Ok buy ever book about the Great Depression and read them in a week.

Need to understand electricity trading. Buy all the books. Read over the weekend.

Need to be fluent in Chinese, buy all top 10 language guides (chinesepod.com, xuezhongwen.net rule!）

As Neo would say, “I know Kung Fu”.

This month the topic is Jungian psychology. Now there are lots if books here. There is a greatest hits list as my buddy Jon says so here are some notes.

Goddess in Every Woman. This reminds me of the Marketing Playbook. That is instead of lots of theory just gives some case studies to look at.

Rather than going thru the elements of Jungian psychology. Shinoda uses Greek myths to illustrate personality types or fragments. Reading it all is a bit scary and eerie as I’m sure we can all recognize bits and pieces from real life.

Athena. The goddess of pure reason. Everything has to make sense. Every I dotted and every T crossed. Busy and productive.

Hera. Wife of Zeus. Marriage us the ultimate goal as she seeks a man and believes in pure partnership. Doesn’t matter than Zeus has lots of faults.

Aphrodite. She just cares about pure love. That is the most vital and important thing. Each person in her life is special at the moment. Always excited and thrilled for the moment. She lives entirely in the heart.

And of course there is also the same book for guys called. The Gods in Everyman. Same idea. Who hasn’t met

Zeus. The head Olympian. Rules from afar. If angry sends a lightening bolt to strike down his opponent. With woman will appear in whatever form they desire. Lives in his head. Always planning.

Hermes. The messenger god. Travels to and fro. Never resting. Also known as the clever god or trickster. Will tell people what they want to hear. He’s what we’d call a multitasker or ADD kid today.

Poseidon. The lord of the sea. A place of deep emotion. In many ways the opposite of Zeus.

Apollo. The son of Zeus. Always the good son but never quite happy. But never quite assertive to lead. A golden boy with a perfect resume in our modern world.

Of course no one is ever pure. You can gave someone start out as Aphrodite and then realize she wants to be Hera. You can have a Zeus discover love and become a Posiedon. Or a Hermes put aside his tricks when he meets an Aphrodite.

As I read some of these deeper books. Getting through Iron John now and the ultraheavy new theory of Narcissism. But this Greek god stuff is fun to play with.

This Wordpress for the iPhone is so amazing. You can blog from your iPhone so now I can take hours to compose a long note.

Or I can share the amazing things I see in ordinary life. While a 2mp camera is truly lousy. Remember the first Leicas were designed with 1 megapixel resolution in mind. So while not tack sharp, the beauty is there.

In the old days I’d just send a photo or two to a dear friend or two but now it’s the world’s turn to see.

So what do we have?

Here we have just an ordinary fall day but then the light breaks just so in front my parked car.

Then we have the way the light just catches a city bus at 7am.

Or, semilegally is a look of a wave of clouds as they march across the sky. Finally we have a view of Seattle looking down on final approach after an exhausting 18 hour journey from Australia.

While they will never be huge prints. They are the life that is out there. You just sometimes have to pay attention

One confused friend once asked over and over why have a blog. Who is going to read it? Another dear friend said it like talking to me, isn’t it?. One colleague said it is like looking into Rich’s mind and it is *scary!?*.

On this day after Thanksgiving Day, I think the answer is. Who cares who reads it, I have to express it. Ironically a random post is far truer to my basic nature than an off hand “Good Day”. And yes every mind is complicated and contradictory. Both filled with good, bad and the dark. It is only a question I whether you known it.

Everyone has a different kind of Thanksgiving I’m sure. Some spent it in good cheer. Others hiding under a bed in Mumbai. Others wondering how they would make the mortgage payment this month.

But I had a chance to visit three different families yesterday. Each different and unique. I was honored that each family welcomed me. And overwhelmed by the love in each house. Surely not every home was perfect but each had and expressed love in it’s own way. Whether it was watching YouTube videos together of Barack parodies. Or the sweet smells of onions and wine on their way to a great meal. Or the excitement of midnight shopping on Black Friday.

Finally I’ve had a long running argument about whether business colleagues can be true friends. One dear friend thinks it is impossible. There is a line that cannot be crossed. But I’ve found quite the opposite. It is tricky and dangerous. But knowing someone has stood the true test of fire and stayed true to him or herself and the team is pretty fundamental to my definition of true friend.

They say in the military that you can never tell how people really will react under fire. In business I agree with that. Someone who seems honorable and a good person can crack at the first stress. Whereas the biggest blow hard person can actually be the most amazing under fire. You just can never tell.

While this is complicated in a traditional corporation, in a business partnership of equals, things are even more complicated. There is no hierarchy. There is no boss. So then each person has to live up to vague standards of honor and “doing the right thing.” Certainly, it is very hard to make these things work. Trying to make it work with 4 people is really tough. I don’t know how people make it work with 100 people.

Reflecting on Thanksgiving, I’m really lucky that there are so many true partners in my life. The last eight years have been difficult, not to mention the last two, not to mention the last two months. Many business partnerships and many friendships are going to crack I think over the next year as the stresses grow both personally and professionally. But I know that the ones I’ve formed and the families I’ve seen won’t.

And on this day free Thanksgiving I can say knowing that there are so many good families and good partners in the world is truly a blessing.

My good friend, Richard told me a great story:

If u can’t see light at the end of the tunnel. Remember there is a Buddhist exercise. Stand in a large totally dark room and start walking. U will learn that eventually u will take small steps and it doesn’t matter if u can’t see and are not headed anywhere. It is the journey that matters.

A dear friend taught me that I’m not the only one who listens to all kinds of music and cares about it. I also learned that the lyrics are the poetry of the day and even more important than the melody sometimes. To this day, when I listen to a song, it puts me back in a specific place in time and a specific mood. For instance (thanks Nutsie for the links

* Fort Minor’s “Where’d You Go”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/where%27d+You+Go+feat.Holly+Brook+%26Jonan+Matranga/75635?artist_id=2906670&album_id=1107003. Melbourne for a run along the Yarra River feeling super sad, but enjoying the cold on my back, the Nike Free runners and the pounding music.
* Flo Rida’s “Low”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Low/7196059?artist_id=7130028&album_id=7196050. Flying down I-5 with the radio at max coming back from the airport and through the rain for a pickup.
* Cyndi Lauper’s “Time after Time”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Time+After+Time/4635709?artist_id=2920544&album_id=4635700. On the floor, in pain, wondering what the future would bring. Acoustic with Sarah McLachlan.
* Dixie Chick’s “Not Ready to Make Nice”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Not+Ready+To+Make+Nice/23351?artist_id=1001607&album_id=1102868. Doing 150kph in Wyoming just trying to get out of there. Radar detector chirping, Tetons to my right, Buffalo everywhere. Mazda’s 2.4 liter screaming in sixth gear.
* Cassie’s “Me & U”:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBiGFbd5icM. Seat 3A on United flight 858 coming back from Shanghai
* Nickelback’s “Far Away”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Far+Away/4631603?artist_id=1000361&album_id=4631592. Taking Calvin to school, seeing him sing the words, knowing he enjoys music as much as his dad
* Pussycat Doll’s “Stickwitu”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Stickwitu/4635457?artist_id=4635478&album_id=4635450. First video on my blackberry showing off to everyone how cool it is in China.
* Sarah McLachlan’s “Angel”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Angel/82125?artist_id=1000385&album_id=1107535. Teaching the lullaby to every small one that I know

But the amazing thing is that there are songs that I haven’t listened to in years that bring back memories too:

* Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Born+to+Run/4800906?artist_id=2906228&album_id=4800897. The poetry class for 7th graders featured this tune. Heck, it was New Jersey in the 70s
* Jerry Jeff Walker’s “London Homesick Blues”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/London+Homesick+Blues/2145179?artist_id=2903090&album_id=2815704. Huge reel to reel tape in Mark’s loft space. Banging out shotgun rounds, shredding trees in chippers
* Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Stairway+to+Heaven/4638958?artist_id=1000330&album_id=4638933. 16 years old, bought those EPI-100s in Holmdel. Blasting at 120 decibels. Hearing the crackle of the phonograph and the hiss of the tape.
* Blondie’s “Rapture”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Rapture/4762053?artist_id=1000695&album_id=4762040. First time I really hard rap. 4th floor Pyne Hall on a spring day
* REO Speedwagon’s “Can’t Fight This Feeling”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Can%27t+Fight+This+Feeling/7054100?artist_id=1000296&album_id=7054089. Trapped in a tiny rented basement room with moldy laundry in sophomore year trying to setup an Apple II in Chicago.
* Eagle’s “Hotel California”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Hotel+California/7034658?artist_id=4634583&album_id=7034657. 8-track tapes if you can believe it in a big huge red Oldsmobile 98 bouncing down a country lane.
* Jackson Browne’s “Here Come Those Tears Again”:http://www.nutsie.com/song/Here+Come+Those+Tears+Again/2013210?artist_id=2900149&album_id=2801419. A very, very, very sad summer in Los Altos Hills staring out the 3rd floor.

Isn’t music great the way it can anchor your life

OMG, there is actually somewhere where you can get food at 2AM in the morning! Let’s pretend we are in France CAFÉ PRESSE SEATTLE

Café Presse is now open and serving South Capitol Hill in the Seattle University neighborhood. The second collaboration of Le Pichet owners Joanne Herron and Jim Drohman offers full coffee service featuring Caffe Vita coffee and house-made pastries; affordable wines from the French countryside; a full bar open until 2am everyday; and a menu of casual Parisian café classics.

Thank goodness, watching its stock price fall has been scary, but now this will prevent financial meltdown

U.S. agrees to bail out Citigroup – MarketWatch

The U.S. government agreed Sunday night to rescue Citigroup Inc. with a huge bailout plan that includes a $20 billion capital infusion, guarantees for up to $306 billion of Citi’s troubled assets – and control of executive bonuses.