The totally off-topic thread

[beardoc]

Happy new year to everyone who isn't reading this because they're out enjoying NYE!

I'm sitting at work at the moment - fortunately nothing is on, but in a hospital, things have a tendency to happen on NYE.

 

[straitman]

Happy new year to everyone who isn't reading this because they're out enjoying NYE!

I'm sitting at work at the moment - fortunately nothing is on, but in a hospital, things have a tendency to happen on NYE.

beardoc,

Thanks for the prompt.

Happy New Year to all as I sit here with my Coke. I'm on Medevac standby until 0630 tomorrow and hope it's a quiet night though one callout would be good as it would mean I don't have to go in to work tomorrow :!:

 

[Keith009]

I might not be on at midnight, so HAPPY NEW YEAR one and all! May '09 be a great one for y'all and AFF!

Meanwhile that Billecart is sure flowing down real well...

 

[beardoc]

beardoc,

Thanks for the prompt.

Happy New Year to all as I sit here with my Coke. I'm on Medevac standby until 0630 tomorrow and hope it's a quiet night though one callout would be good as it would mean I don't have to go in to work tomorrow :!:

Good luck, straitman. I'll be doing similar work to what you're doing beginning January 2010 when I start working for Careflight.

 

[anat0l]

Sorry if I don't respond for a day or two after this as I'm in Brunei at the moment, but if you did have a budget $$ wise to spend, what would it be? I stayed at a pretty decent hotel for a good price. But then again, it was July this year (2008) so was getting 105Y to 1AUD...

Pass! I can tell you that it's not a lot. It'll be enough for me to get past customs and not make me look like a national freeloader (combine that with my Amex and Visa credit lines). But Kobe beef and fugu are probably not on the menu for the time I'm there.

Was the "decent hotel" you stayed at a "Western" hotel (with private "Western" bathroom)? Did you stay in a smoking or non-smoking room?

There are some hotels which pass for decent although the rooms are rather dated. As I said, I'm not caring much for dated furniture, but a dated smell of the room might be a different matter. Also don't really like smoke smell either, and - horses for courses - when you pay peanuts (relatively) for a room you can't really demand much at all. (Even my "proposed" Sheraton is not completely devoid of the aforementioned faults).

I think I'm leaning towards burning the Amex points for my hotel stays. The SPG Sheraton Osaka is looking attractive for 3 nights stay, then 1 night burn of HH points at Hilton Osaka. Even if I burn Amex points to pay for accommodation for all of my Jan SC Run, KIX and WLG, I should still have enough points for a J oneworld 35000 mi award (through QF), and almost close to an F award.

Enjoy Brunei - I haven't been there and not sure what it has to offer, but I guess that's the most courteous thing to say.

 

[straitman]

Good luck, straitman. I'll be doing similar work to what you're doing beginning January 2010 when I start working for Careflight.

beardoc,

Thanks. No callout so having a wonderful ? day at work. Not too busy fortunately.

Where are you located beardoc :?:

 

[straitman]

Anyone care to guess at what number of posts the AMEX promotion thread will die out :?:

It should be pretty much dead and buried by the end of March but I'm not sure of the post count.

4217 posts in 3.5 months thus far so I'll guess 6500 posts total.

 

[turtlemichael]

Anyone care to guess at what number of posts the AMEX promotion thread will die out :?:

It should be pretty much dead and buried by the end of March but I'm not sure of the post count.

4217 posts in 3.5 months thus far so I'll guess 6500 posts total.

And how many of those 6500 do you guess will say the same thing? :mrgreen:

 

[drron]

6421.
I have just gone on call for the next 4 days.I also hope to have a quiet time.
A great,safe,happy and healthy New Year to everyone.

 

[beardoc]

beardoc,

Thanks. No callout so having a wonderful ? day at work. Not too busy fortunately.

Where are you located beardoc :?:

I'm in Sydney - I'm a anaesthetic registrar and I work in Western Sydney. My night unfortunately was busy - very messy New Year's eve stuff.

 

[beardoc]

Anyone care to guess at what number of posts the AMEX promotion thread will die out :?:

It should be pretty much dead and buried by the end of March but I'm not sure of the post count.

4217 posts in 3.5 months thus far so I'll guess 6500 posts total.

So we're aiming for the post count at midnight on 31st March in the Amex thread?

It depends on if Amex actually pay, as they seem to have started doing. If they do it will die quickly, if they don't, then it will go on and on. So it's hard to guess at this point. I'll say 5500, but that's based on Amex coming to the party and paying up. If they don't, I'll revise my estimate higher later.

 

[JohnK]

My social GC is playing it monthly golf game on that date (15th) - I don't have the fixture with me but it may be DevilBend. You would be welcome to join in.

I did say anywhere in Melbourne! So if I am welcome it is good although Devil Bend is one of the golf courses on the list. I think...

 

[Mal]

Has anyone else noticed the nice bank of Apple computers in the Sydney J Domestic lounge?

Only issue I see with them is that the monitors are huge (17", maybe more???) and quite clear, so people sitting meters away can read exactly what you're writing!

Not an Apple fan at all, so don't know the particular pc's, but they are all new, bright and shiny bling.

 

[Mal]

I might not be on at midnight, so HAPPY NEW YEAR one and all! May '09 be a great one for y'all and AFF!

Yep, a belated Happy New Year. Mine was spent in bed unfortunately (and not for good reasons ). Picked up some form of bacterial or food poisoning from a hawker stall (or the airport bar [cough beer served with ice in ice frosted glasses]) in KUL airport. So most of the 31st Dec was spent in my hotel room getting over it. Luckily it was only a mild case though. All part of travelling and enjoying the sights. If in KUL and wanting a Carlesburg, the coffee shop is a much better place...

 

[Keith009]

Yep, a belated Happy New Year. Mine was spent in bed unfortunately (and not for good reasons ). Picked up some form of bacterial or food poisoning from a hawker stall (or the airport bar [cough beer served with ice in ice frosted glasses]) in KUL airport. So most of the 31st Dec was spent in my hotel room getting over it. Luckily it was only a mild case though. All part of travelling and enjoying the sights. If in KUL and wanting a Carlesburg, the coffee shop is a much better place...

Sorry to hear. I'm glad it's not serious.

I hope everyone else enjoyed the NYE festivities.

The boyf and I had a house party at his place in the People's Republic of Brunswick (where I'm moving to in a week's time :shock: ... a bit jarring to be moving north of the Yarra). We did the countdown with other revellers at a hill outside his place where we enjoyed spectacular 360 degree views of fireworks going off all over Melbourne. Alas I was too drunk to take any pics...

 

[Flashback]

Pass! I can tell you that it's not a lot. It'll be enough for me to get past customs and not make me look like a national freeloader (combine that with my Amex and Visa credit lines). But Kobe beef and fugu are probably not on the menu for the time I'm there.

Was the "decent hotel" you stayed at a "Western" hotel (with private "Western" bathroom)? Did you stay in a smoking or non-smoking room?

There are some hotels which pass for decent although the rooms are rather dated. As I said, I'm not caring much for dated furniture, but a dated smell of the room might be a different matter. Also don't really like smoke smell either, and - horses for courses - when you pay peanuts (relatively) for a room you can't really demand much at all. (Even my "proposed" Sheraton is not completely devoid of the aforementioned faults).

I think I'm leaning towards burning the Amex points for my hotel stays. The SPG Sheraton Osaka is looking attractive for 3 nights stay, then 1 night burn of HH points at Hilton Osaka. Even if I burn Amex points to pay for accommodation for all of my Jan SC Run, KIX and WLG, I should still have enough points for a J oneworld 35000 mi award (through QF), and almost close to an F award.

Enjoy Brunei - I haven't been there and not sure what it has to offer, but I guess that's the most courteous thing to say.

Yep, was a western hotel. In most hotels, the bathrooms all appear to be the same. It's almost as if there is a "hotel bathroom" company, that make these demountable looking bathrooms and just drop them on the side of the room.

I do have some pics if you're interested to see. Not sure what the likes of the Hilton or Sheraton would have, though.

Well..... Brunei is an interesting place. I must have been one of the few drunk people on NYE as it's a dry country. Luckily, being a foreigner that entitles me to bring in 2L of spirits and 12 cans of beer; so a good night was had :mrgreen:

There's some cool places to see around here, including Mosques, the Sultan's palace and things like Kampong Ayer, the water village.

I've decided I will write my first ever TR, so look out for that to come....

I'm off to Miri in Malaysia today, my first ever border crossing that has not been made in a plane!

Edit: oh, and non smoking. No dated smoke smell.

 

[Mal]

Sorry to hear. I'm glad it's not serious.

When I first started feeling ill, I pretty much knew straight away what it would be. Lots of charcoal tablets later, rehydration powder, rest and letting nature run it's course seems to have done the trick.

If it lingered any longer than it did or I got more 'serious', then I would have been straight to a doc. As it is, I may see my doc sometime later this week just to discuss what happened.

 

[straitman]

Mal,

Glad to hear that you are getting over it.

 

[Flashback]

Mal,

Glad to hear that you are getting over it.

Mal, I second straitman's words. I will be in Malaysia later today, but unfortunately the South China Sea is between us as I'm on the Borneo side; so pretend I'm sitting with you at the bar and do have a Carlsberg for me please:!:

 

[Mal]

Mal, I second straitman's words. I will be in Malaysia later today, but unfortunately the South China Sea is between us as I'm on the Borneo side; so pretend I'm sitting with you at the bar and do have a Carlsberg for me please:!:

Back in Australia now. I think I spotted an AFF'er at BNE airport collecting his massive family sized luggage (QF5xx from Syd ring any bells to anyone? ), but didn't say Hi as I was too tired/worn out and basically wanting my own bed!

May have a beer or two later, but it won't be Carlesberg, or Tiger or Arrow or Heineken Have fun in Malaysia.