tuk tuk no good

Why I quit my job

I quit my job because I could. I acknowledge the fact that I was and am in an economic position where I could make the decision to stop doing something that was making me unhappy. I know that I am privileged in this way. Perhaps one day I will no longer be, but I decided that while I can take this liberty, I will. [Read more…]

I don’t give a shit about my career

I don’t give a shit about my career. I tried it for a while, caring about having a career, but I’ve decided it’s not for me.

Why are we told from such a young age that in order to be succeed at life, we should get married and build a career? First off, why do we need to be successful? Anyway, that’s a discussion for another day. I’d say succeeding at being happy is more important than succeeding in your career. Great if you can have both, but too many people I know are chasing career success at the expense of their own happiness. [Read more…]

Thoughts on being Asian

Some white people I know tell me I am too preoccupied with race. What they don’t understand is that it is something I have to deal with every day. When people see me, I am sure the first thing they notice is my race. It is used as the first adjective to describe me. When someone asks me where I am from, I know that ‘Australia’ is not the answer they are expecting or want. Once a drunk guy asked me this question and when I answered ‘I was born in Australia’, his reply was ‘and before that?’ [Read more…]

Being female

I’m currently training for a half marathon but the weather is terrible. Too windy for Tempelhof, meaning I probably can’t jog today. I can’t run in Hasenheide because every time I have ever run in there, I’ve been catcalled by drug dealers. They make comments like ‘oh, I wish I could work out with you’. I’d rather stay inside than endure this. Normally Tempelhof is a safe bet to jog and not be disturbed, but even the other day, a guy stopped me mid run and danced for me. [Read more…]

Village life

I was never a village person before. I remember being in Hobart years ago and thinking, ‘I could never live in such a small place’. How things have changed. I don’t think I’m ready to give up city life full time, but I definitely now appreciate the charms and positive aspects of small town/village living. [Read more…]

A meat-free house

To all our meat eating friends and guests, sorry, but no more meat consumption at Datscha Fröhden.

We came to this decision after we hosted a team event a few months ago, where a lot of meat was brought and left behind. At first I didn’t want to impose any kind of rules at our house, but after this event, I realised that turning the house into a meat-free house is not a very big ask. Most people only stay for a day or two, and surely not eating meat for this short period of time should be easy. [Read more…]