In theory I have a sabbatical coming up in Autumn 2008. I know it’s more than a year and a half off, but one has to make plans. It’s a 3 month study leave, which I can take anywhere in the world, provided I come up with some credible research during that period. Of course, there is only one thing I want to do: play football until I drop.
Then get up and play more football.
I suppose in the grander picture of things, I can fit this into the whole sabbatical plan, provided I spend the daytime working on the research, and find a research topic relevant to Malaysia. A comparative corporate governance study looks possible. But I may have to scout some co-authors or a host or something like that.
I don’t really want to use the three months to go and base myself in a university and work from there. After years of going to work in a pair of cargos and a t-shirt, I am so not reverting to the tudung pusing and baju kurung thing again. But I need a base, and an internet connection. And access to a printer, maybe. Or perhaps I should do the legwork in the meanwhile, and just use that three months to write.
One of the guys in our department did some environmental work in Brazil when he took his study leave, or something like that. Maybe I can go work at a Starbucks for three months and write a paper the management control system there. Like a case study. Embedded reporter, hoho. But I might have to pull night shifts and there goes the football. Plus my thing is capital market based corporate governance research. Not quite management control.
One of my friends suggested that I open a futsal center, and just tend the counter. It’s not that busy, most of the time, so I can write and read and stuff. Great idea, I thought, but my research funds top out at £2,000 per year. Plus I am saving to pay off some ‘debts’ too. Unless I get a backer. And someone to see to the futsal center while I’m abroad.
Oh, grandiose ideas. Methinks I will probably end up in a cubby hole in some remote location writing inane blog entries for three months. Congrats you, though. You get to read them.
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Ini Amran tadi pagi. Aku ingat, aku sudah tergoreng dia dalam nasi goreng, tapi tidak.. dia masih hidup. Amran terbang sikit tadi. Malangnya dia macam tak reti nak simpan sayap dia. Aku macam tergerak nak tolong. Tapi aku tak reti pulak nak tolong macam mana. Aku cuba kuis-kuis sayap dia, mana tahu boleh masuk ke. Tak jugak. Dia macam gelisah pulak. Jadi aku biarkan sahaja dia cuba, cuba dan terus mencuba. Sangat rajin dan tekun dia berusaha. Tapi aku tengok saja. Sebab kadang kadang macam tu lah kita. Kita mampu tengok saja.
If you love something, set it free. If it flies back, then its yours. If there’s a red squish on your carpet, probably means you killed it
