Autumn Time

As reckoned, after the Easter weekend, temperatures began to drop noticeably over night. The end of daylight savings, albeit in early April, brought about a sure but shifting psychological change in our individual perceptions of the timing of  dawn and dusk, moon light and day time, coolness and warmth outdoors.  The angle of the natural light seemed to be different, noticeable as sudden light or darkness appeared through blinds, vehicle wind screens and the horizon. New South Wales does not experience the extremes of the midnight sun or the longest day.  Seasonal change here is gradual, unannounced and gentle.  I feel there is slower growth of flora, as if the plants have wound down its hectic pace of summer and showed a hibernation of their own, sowing the seeds of a re-spurt in bloom in only a few more months.

The ocean water temperatures have also taken a turn southwards.  The recent rains are just a continuation of much wetter weather in the past two years. The natural inclination to retreat to a more quiet routine expresses itself most at this time, even if modern society dictates a constancy of activity. When most people reach home, it tends to be to the recesses of inner rooms, cyberspace or the warmth of the kitchen stove. Meals seem to be taken care of earlier and school kids find it more challenging to get ready for the day.  Leaves do drop, depending on where you actually reside - and they do turn brown and dry, acknowledging the circle of life, the turn of the Earth and the moon looking even more  radiant against the dark valleys of autumn.

Each of us longs for sustainable foods, like rich gravies, brewed soups and those that nourish us with the sanctity of baking.  The insects and creatures that we share house with - cockroaches, lizards and spiders in this Australian landscape - seem to have taken sabbatical and are content to be out of sight. Skies can look leaden and grey, but when clear above, accentuate the cold and we feel the wind chill that does not echo the measured figures in thermometers.   As we get less outdoors, is it an opportune time to review arrangements, make plans and conserve for the future?   Yet as we feel physically fresher, we allow our brains to consider potential and possibilities and our inner selves to have the leisure and time to imagine and wonder. We smile when we reflect on the flurry of activity in spring time, when humans gather again more, when Nature celebrates with revitalisation and when time seems to loosen up once more.

There is less to choose from the produce of the Earth. Bare branches promise renewal and hope. Maybe in this season we appreciate better the lack of want and the bounty that we still have. There is an inner grace in being grateful for what we already have when it is not the time of plenty.   And so we conserve - and not just in preserves. Human mobility these days also implies that we can easily cross the Equator and have the pleasure of basking in warmer locales - but if we do this, we are also giving up the unique benefits and challenges of a colder time. We can dress up outwardly in autumn, but our skins also get drier and require more care.   Our biological cycles are truly affected by prolonged hours of the lack of light but our imaginations can also move into new dimensions.   Do we drink better coffee and tea when the cold surrounds us - and the richness of such beverages are better savoured than in more humid times.  Continuing our fitness activities has a different feel but is still as vital.  Colours are appreciated more.  More of the year's achievements , at whatever level, is accomplished in cooler times of the year when compared with summer.

Have a Formula - And Make it Work

Be charismatic plus positively unusual - and break new ground.
Nobody notices convention as much as being startlingly different. I recall Dell Computer's' just on time practise to optimise and minimise the holding of inventory. Running alongside this Dell philosophy was the even more important culture of tailor making concisely to each customer's unique and varied requirements. This can be difficult to deliver in the food business, but again, why not?  Charisma can exude from the service, product or  the people that are the face of the business.  Being positively unusual does have a definite shelf life, when being new gradually is accepted as the expected norm - and then an engaging stirrer asks why not and how not, all over again.  I have taken Dell for granted, but now I am captivated by the young chap from Canberra who has a magic glove that interacts effectively with so much of the Internet and modern electronics - with just a natural wave of the hand.


Build up a sizable number of interested people, especially potential customers.
Social media has been utilised effectively as both the channel and vehicle in the past decade to allow businesses to go forth and multiply returns, impact and growth.  The eternal concept and practise underlying all this have been basically word of mouth.  But be aware and beware - social media tools and means can have a two edge impact. Getting numbers of potential customers can be ideal, but then work on the relationships as if every one of them is unique as well as accumulative. Once you open the proverbial gate, work hard on logistics, personalisation, diversity and more engagement.   Be ready to handle bumps, blocks and threats. Also be ready for options, opportunities and occasions!


Keep up the passion, persistence and pleasure.
When I reflect on my own personal top five iconic brands, such businesses manage to persistently balance delivery of both positive consistency and customer excitement.  The leading mobile phone companies seem to literally arouse in each of us an expectation of some innovation in user interface ability every year - and yet at the same time make improvements in reliable features from the past. Or may be not so much anymore. Whether we run a small business, or am just a cog in  huge complex machine, we owe it to ourselves - always - to keep our true selves motivated.  If we sincerely believe in our product or service, every one of us have to take initiative and imagination to continue our interest.  As a customer, do I still believe in the magic and conviction from the main products I use of my top five iconic brands - FIFA World Cup, Singapore Airlines, my favourite local barrista, Langham Hotels and the TLC channel?  On reflection, each of these aforementioned brands have so far provided me with consistency, reliability, feel good experiences and ability to over come issues.

The three Ps indicated above just have one single aim - to make me as a customer want to return to savour and not be disappointed.


Always ask why not and what can be.
The Samsung CEO has had the boldness to destroy huge batches of manufactured equipment when he realised that they were not up to scratch when compared with the leading competition.  Up starts have been able to change the market parameters and not accept the status quo.  I get most suspicious when the parties I deal with strongly stand behind a veil of unquestionable tradition and locked in practice.   I love businesses and parties that find different ways of engaging with the individual.  I am amazed with entities and their people who come up with innovative ways of not just doing things , but in resolving problems and in offering hope.

Scan read through any written piece on the most impressive people and you will find what makes them tick.  Many of such personalities rise to the occasion when confronted with challenges  but at the same time they already have this innate driver within themselves of why not and what can be.  Our grandparents asked us to explore the less trodden path, adventurers have to so call climb the proverbial mountain because it is there and cyberspace and interactive electronics will further  revolutionise the world as we know it.  There are businesses that charge high wealth individuals to do the very things that used to be an individual pleasure - walk the dog or go shopping - but this is only an indication of opportunities emerging in societies with a lack of personal time, an increasing recognition of niche wants and a demand for more meaningful personal interaction.  In a nutshell, these successful entities and people are never long in a comfort zone.


Listen to your core audience, deliver your primary service and offer your difference.
German retailer Aldi came in to the Australian supermarket space already dominated strongly by both Coles and Woolworths.  What Aldi perhaps significantly discerned from the very start, being the relative new kid on the block in the new territory, was that there are so many Moms and Pops out there who love using supermarkets and at the same time look for value priced items to buy.  So Aldi focused on their target market real early and already had the business model and structure to seriously serve them in Europe. There was no confusion in this aim, it is consistently developed and delivered in the several years they have been operating in Australia and Aldi's differentials are more felt today by their core customers.   Aldi added alcohol products, a more than symbolic act that echoes their already expanding range of produce and products and they still labelled their new range at the same value price.  Needless to say, expectations  raised must be fully met and be a reality to customers as ever no matter how big a business gets.


Make your business a habit - for  as many people as possible.
I always admire how certain businesses can prosper when they gently intertwine their product and service, in the mind of their customers, with the routine, lifestyle and regime of individuals.   Customers want to drop by because they perceive the business as a place they see as a one stop, or because they enjoy the benefits that money alone cannot buy ( it is akin to a pub where every body seems to know your name).  It can be part of their therapy or health routine, it is near their work place or it is where they can catch up with mates without making too much fuss.

Amazon offers a virtual market place to navigate, check out and select in a most painless way at any time that suits individuals with relative privacy, no physical transport required and at your own desired pace.  Moving between different screens, a potential customer can interact in cyberspace with friends, obtain updates in various spheres of interest and have no pressure to buy.   Think of cafes or  restaurants that offer weekend or daily habits to be fulfilled, for example yum cha, cycling group hubs, commuter drop-bys and gym enthusiast watering holes.  Walk on in!


Make it simple and effective.
Facebook runs on the premise that each customer wants to instantaneously share information, experiences and sentiments. And it makes it so easy to do so.  Think of instant messaging from parties as varied as Twitter, WeChat and Naver Line.  Organise menus with food and drink combinations that are effectively simple for your customers to decide and efficient for your staff to deliver. Websites must be clearly navigable.  The bottom line for businesses is to bring home the bacon and make it effective to monitor costs and revenues, without owners having to walk through mist and mystery to know how much they are making and what they own. If I want to just feel like going to the gym, I get to do so, on my own terms and without the hassle of time of night or day.

Capers Pizza Corrimal NSW

Coming out of Queensland, Capers seemed to me initially as the new player on the competitive and already established pizza fast food delivery market in Australia.  However it commenced operations in 1996 in Kenmore in the greater Brisbane area - which I was not aware of.  So I had expectations of what makes Capers different, to distinguish themselves in this space. What is their target demographic? May be this can be discerned from the location of their stores in new areas.  My first encounter with Capers was in Corrimal, which lies at the northern end of the Illawarra region south of greater Sydney.  This store opens only at noon, is manned minimally but is sited strategically opposite the Woolworths car park and within walking distance from the main intersection of the shopping strip.  The Corrimal store is part of at least a 120 outlet network, still mainly located in Queensland State and mostly in regional areas outside capital cities.

The Corrimal store is designed with Gen Y in mind, with colourful murals and eye catching fonts.  I also loved the design of the take away boxes.  The pricing can appear to be higher than some of its competitors for almost comparable products, but at the same time I acknowledge its unique recipes and toppings.  You can also obtain gelato in various flavours from its refrigerated help your selves.  My favourite flavour is salted caramel. Most pizza businesses thrive on take-aways but there is also seating at Capers outlets. Capers describes its products as handcrafted - it also embraces the Internet in providing a blog, on-line orders and club memberships.

I have an affinity for the fresh garnishing used for Capers items.  I have not sampled the full range of the available menu (which has dips, salads and pasta as well) but some people do tell me about the smaller serves of some of its pizzas. What has caught my eye are the so called Black label choices, although I  get traditional ones like the Margherita and the Capricciosa.  I also like the crust served.  Currently it looks like a suburban and country strategy for Capers and it shall be on my watch on their expansion locations.

Tea Time in South-east Asia

This following entry marks seven years today for Kindly Yours.

The Huat Kueh, a steamed light delicacy served in  various colours to mark a celebration or festive occasion. Ubiquitous in Georgetown, Penang Island.

The colonial legacy has provided the pork and chicken pies, served on fine china. The pictured versions were bought from Bankstown in NSW.

Singapore orchids and Cambodian bananas grace the table at teatime with a south-east Asian theme.
Setting captured in Balgownie, NSW.

Cookies with a twist - clockwise, from left to right, with flavours as unusual like pandanus and curry leaf.  Available from the Cookie Museum of Singapore.

Straits Chinese layer cake, with variations in Indo-China, Indonesia and the Phillippines.  Based on coconut milk, a flair for presentation and at times garnished with red beans.  It is served as a delicacy in both fancy hotels in Singapore and by the roadside in Thailand.

Nothing like a ready edible harvest from Nature, the jackfruit, peeled out from beneath its hard dark green exterior.  The yellow fruit is luscious on the mouth, hides a seed which is further battered and deep fried in South-east Asian street markets and homes and is full of nutrition.

Hong Kong styled Tarn Tart, the egg custard filled pastries so prevalently available at yum cha sessions around the world and based on the Portuguese caramel infused tarts from Europe.

Pork based ham with a spicy touch, a staple of Vietnam, ideal for either noodles or breads, or just simply eaten as a quick snack.

The seasons, they are a-changing

I find I no longer drop by certain shops, specific businesses and particular trades. Not out of malice, but by sheer evolving selection and replacement by other options. When the weekend arrives, it was a pleasure to drop by the news agent after a morning run and a cuppa. Or even having the newspapers delivered. Today I don't even miss newsprint, unless I have to cover part of the floor during a house painting session. Oh yes, the newspaper, the physical version used to wrap traditional fish and chips, has even shrunk in size to A4 tabloid. In Asian countries, you can still get paid, by the weight, when you sell your old and read newspapers to the recycling guy. In Australia, no one comes with cash to take away your discarded paper - in fact, you pay to unload your hoarded stuff at the local dump, sited usually in a remote place after an hour's drive away from home. The daily ritual of reading newsprint of course has been replaced by another addiction - that of logging into and navigating the whole wide world of cyberspace. It is not over stating the situation when I say one can almost go through much of life in this virtual dimension. We still require electricity, petrol, air and water - but not far behind is the all significant wi-fi connection. We require less personal and family storage space in the future as enablers of human life are transferred and transposed to an invisible but still real other world. Whilst we can be an observer, read with quiet relaxation on what the internet offers us, we must also acknowledge that this new looking glass is essentially a two way street - each of us are also relentlessly being tracked, monitored and recorded as well. Accessibility to the rest of the world has never been so easy - even without leaving the proverbial hamlet, nook or village of our birth or preference - but so is the invasion of personal privacy and when each of us are just statistics to an analytical monster gobbling up trends and patterns. This increasing personal empowerment also means eventual greater expectations and reality of self management by individuals - and the slow but sure reallocation of human endeavour, effort and preoccupation to other possibilities and tasks not seen in the past five thousand years. Our biological bodies and clocks are still trapped with a cave person's routine, but our human brains and potential have jumped into a totally different environment and requirement. How does one handle this increasing gap, as both an individual and as a community? Together with this exciting frontier, we also realise millions on this planet still have not attained fulfilment of basic human needs. The creature residing in Mission Bay San Francisco can be so ahead of those living still foot to mouth in impoverished neighbourhoods in Kolkata, though we recognise that we are all human. When artificiality predominates our human society, we shall miss things natural, untampered and unmodified. Relentless commercial exploitation of opportunities, opened up by burgeoning populations, ease of access and ever rising benefits of the economies of scale, can not necessarily be a good thing. Human history has always been the constant tension and dynamics between the haves and have nots, the exploited and the exploiters, the privileged and the masses. New technology, new thinking and new social dynamics may have changed the landscape, but competitiveness, selfishness and preservation still rule the world and our inner consciousness. Has modern society become more civilised and more humane? Is it still a question of relativity. The greater inter mingling of racial groups is underlined by the continuing practice of exclusion and discrimination, even if subtle and covert, at different levels of existence. The rise of nations and cultural pride may not be over, but may always be present. The persistent risk is the primary predominance and consequence of what mankind decides and does on this shared planet in the future. Yes, we have seen the glory and demise of the dinosaurs. Human beings are but only a very recent phenomenon in the timeline and scheme of things, appearing just before midnight in the history of the universe, but may be that is not the point. More significant is the ability of this type of creature - human beings - to shape the universe. Or maybe not. I ponder on the way modern human society has chosen its dietary requirements and supplies. Do humans make the right decisions in the long run? The impact of profitable but not necessarily beneficial nutrients on populations transiting from poor but healthy to rich but obese societies is a good case in point. Is purchasing from city and suburban supermarkets any better than eating off your own home gardens and staple crop farms? To transfer our livelihoods away from farming to commerce and trade, as when populations urbanise, may just mean exchanging one form of economic dependency to another. Many have given up natural and organic produce to rely daily more on processed food. Look at your fridge. Reflect on why some city dwellers, who can afford the higher prices, return to more naturally produced supplies. The push for extreme consumerism can be illustrated by the changing of mobile phones, smart devices and kitchen gadgets in more regular and closer cycles. Manufactured items are not made to last, but for the consumer to change often. Such consumption patterns debase the value of heritage and always churn the mind to seek temporary pleasures in fleeting models. Consumers can be like puppets in the obsessive drive for greater turnover. Turnover may be the magic word that enables greater wealth - for example, for those banks, for those big conglomerates and for their staff who literally just want to make a quick buck. It is the simple spinning wheel in country fairs or circuses - it does not matter where the spin goes, as long as there is movement and as long as someone else pays for every turn of the wheel. We may be observed to be like guinea pigs riding involuntarily or voluntarily on miniature wheels in school labs. And so some businesses can disappear from our village, suburban corner of city hub in this grinding movement of the spinning wheel. They will be replaced by others, many without store fronts, obviously with those having a website as their door. If we find that there is no physical venue to go to for interacting and we can do much already huddled in our homes or offices, will this mean less communication, less personal interaction and reduced talking? May be not. I reckon we still have an urge to go to the village square - whether you call it a cafe, the sports oval or local pub. Oh yes, they can be in virtual forms as well. If wi-fi rules, then human kind is back to the cave - and that is where it started after all. In the end, I remember this - nothing is as good to the human psyche as feeling your face being caressed by the ocean wind, or feeling the body work out pounding in exercise, or just sharing a common bond in relaxing with mates, face to face.