This has happened more than once and I’m not entirely pleased. In fact, I’m miffed.

When you walk into a eatery or restaurant which is relatively empty, you look around for a seat which you like. It can be a seat in the corner, a couch seat, or a seat with a window view.

But before you can invite your rear to sit down, the service staff immediately tells you this seat is reserved. As a couple, you can only take the table with 2 chairs. That seat in the cosy area which you are eyeing for some lovey-dovey, sweet nothings conversation is out of bounds coz it’s for 4 people. And we are only two.

There is no freedom of sitting at all.

When I look at the table for two with 2 seats, I cannot help but shake my head. The table is small and the 2 seats pathetic. For people like me who like to carry big bags, where am I going to put my bag? On the floor?

The table for four looks more inviting, and certainly more comfortable.

Even if we were to sit at the table meant for four, it’s not as if we are not going to hog it till the place closes.

The next time the service staff tells me “this is table for four, not two”, I’m just going to walk out of the eatery.

Enough is enough.

If you want my business, you just got to be nice to me and let me sit where I want.

Comments(1)

I was in the train today when something on someone caught my eye. Standing behind this guy in black, I had an excellent view.

This must be the latest piercing in town I guess. Forget about ear studs, nose rings or belly piercings.

I’m referring to the five metal studs behind his neck. I cannot fathom why anyone would want to embed five balls, albeit small ones into the skin. It sure must hurt like hell. How is he going to sleep at night? I wonder.

Perhaps the five metal studs are connected to the five elements – fire, water, wood, metal and earth? And having these five elements would help him find balance in himself? Just my theory.

It was like a scene coming out from some wuxia serial where the injured pugilist had some poisoned needles embedded inside the body and only a grandmaster with many centuries of internal gungfu strength could expunge them. In his case, it would be five grandmasters seated in a hexagonal formation exerting their inner strength…

If he wanted to attract attention, he sure got mine.

Comments(0)

In all honesty, I haven’t been to a flea market before. I have passed by them seeing the action from behind the bus windows, but never really stepped foot into one proper.

Coupled with this little excitement, we decided to check out two flea markets. The first one at China Square was disappointing. The wares were limited (mostly antiques or replica antiques I would say). Nothing much caught my eye. Perhaps I was just not interested in the wares being paraded.

The second stop at Far East Square fared much better. Being open air, it really gave one the ‘flea market’ feeling. Compare this with the air con flea market at China Square…so so wrong…

The flea market at Far East Square

 
Anything interesting? Just browsing

My eyes lit up when I saw this booth selling books. Being a book lover, I like a good read. When I saw the small yellow handwritten post-it pad stuck on the green mat where the books were arranged, my inner heart leaped for joy. All books were going at 50%. And mind you, they were brand new books, not second-hand nor bootleg versions. It wasn’t difficult to decide which ones to buy. I bought 2 books – “The World Is Flat” and “Rich Dad Poor Dad”.  The final price I paid was $23. This is something I can’t get at the major bookshops.

Show me the money and I’ll give you a 50% discount on all books!

I found many long-lost friends at the flea market. Winnie the Pooh, Tweety Bird, Mickey Mouse, Ronald McDonald, Doraemon, Pokemon, Snoppy, Batman and many more. While some were still in mint condition (with full unopened packaging), others were simply ageing away with faded colours and dusty exteriors.

I found Tweety Bird!

If the books were a good buy, then my next find would be the icing on the cake. Yes, while rummaging through a box of Star Wars toys (all in mint original packaging), I found my hero - Yoda.

Yes, that’s Yoda in my left hand…

Another Yoda figurine to add to my Yoda collection

The price for Yoda? A highly affordable $6.

No wonder I was smiling so much after the flea market trip. You know, I know…:)

One last shot before we leave. Thanks…I’ll be back soon

Comments(0)

没有手机的日子
没有手机的日子
少了通话
少了简讯
没人打扰我的内心

我与世隔绝
觉得一切安宁
好开心

但天黑后
突然发现我无法等待到黎明
对你的一丝丝想念
就像迷上了瘾

我听不到你的甜言蜜语
我收不到你的传情达意

在我想起你后
喔~
但身边又没有手机
只好把浓浓的情意
暂放在心里
等见到了你再仔细说给你听

Comments(0)

If you don’t want to change anything, attribute it to policy. If you cannot change anything, push it to policy. If anything goes wrong, blame it on policy.

Yes, it’s the policy that prevents things from happening, from us progressing forward. But have these policy makers forgotten who came up with these policies in the first place? Men, not dinosaurs.

Policies are formulated by man. They are not cast in iron. They are and should be subject to change.

Take the recent offering of S$1 million dollars bounty for information leading to the capture of the still at large fugitive JI leader Mas Selamat.

The internet forums and coffeeshop talk are abuzz as to why the reward is actually coming from the pockets of two businessmen instead of the government.

In his reply to the Parliament, Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng reminded the House that “the Singapore Police Force, as a policy, does not offer cash rewards for information on fugitives and unsolved crimes, or for assistance from the public.” However, any private corporations and individuals wishing to offer cash rewards will be more than welcome. Such is the irony.

I wonder if this is a case of too much too late. Yes, S$1 million is a lot of money to any ordinary folk. But Mas Selamat may have already left our fair shores eons ago. He may even be enjoying himself in Indonesia now. Will this latest juicy money carrot help make us even more alert and flush him out?

Had the government taken more proactive steps earlier to do damage control and change the ‘policy’, I think the sentiments on the ground would be more forgiving. So what if ‘appropriate action’ had been taken to punish those found responsible for this security lapse? Not all were punished. Some were exonerated…

Policy, policy…such is the irony of policy. Policy is so cold blooded that we forget there is a human element behind each and every policy. Were they not crafted by the hands and brains of mankind? Yet, some treat policy as if it was the be all and end all of it. Changing a policy would cost them a limb or worse, their life. Whatever happened to the innovative spirit Singapore was promoting?

Comments(0)

We made a trip down to the Sony Ericsson (SE) repair centre at Wisma Atria earlier this afternoon as the new handphone’s camera shutter malfunctioned.

Finally it was our turn to be consulted. After explaining our problem to the service staff and handing over the handphone (that means two days without a handphone…eeks), we were prepared to leave.

But we couldn’t leave yet as we had not done our homework. Homework came in the form of two small service cards (roughly the size of a namecard each) which the service staff passed to us.

Actually, I didn’t know how she helped me in the short 8 minutes we spent with her as my role was more of the bodyguard. Well, maybe more than just the bodyguard. I thought I looked like a flower vase sitting there prettily (think Lin Chiling’s 花瓶 role in ‘Red Cliff’…get my drift?) Haha…

There has been much debate in the past that service standards in Singapore trail behind those of Western countries…even those in Japan and Hong Kong. So perhaps, this is yet another new initiative behind the GEMS movement (GEMS = ‘Going The Extra Mile’). Remember GST also means Greet, Smile and Thank?

It’s not uncommon for service providers to hand out feedback forms or service cards to customers they serve. After all, it’s only human to want to know how they have performed in the service encounter and if there is any room for improvement. Did they delight the customer or terrify them? Was the customer pleased or pissed?

As I used to be a service quality manager, such soliciting of feedback came as little surprise to me. In my ex-organisation, we made it mandatory for service staff to hand out feedback forms to customers after every transaction. But the similarity ends here.

Noting my hesitance to fill up the service cards, the SE staff whispered to me.

“Please help me sir. I have a quota to meet. I need to submit 30 service cards in a day.”

I was shocked. This is the first time I’m hearing of a quota set for number of service cards received. I think while it’s healthy to want to know the service level of the staff, setting a quantum on having to submit x number of cards just isn’t going to do the trick. If I were nasty, I would have written a nasty comment on the service card. Imagine her getting 30 nasty comments in a day. Does this imply her service is sorely lacking?

While we used to make it mandatory to hand out feedback forms in my ex-organisation, we didn’t make it compulsory for each and every customer to fill it up. It was on a freewill basis. Usually you would just ask “would you like to help me fill up a service card?” One staff would then be crowned the best service provider for that month and receive a plaque.

As we knew the difficult position the SE service staff was in and being super nice people, we filled up the service cards and handed them back dutifully. As the encounter was a pleasant one, we made sure we gave her positive feedback.

Comments(0)

最近又开始追看电视连续剧了。。。到底是哪一部电视连续剧能有那么大的魅力来吸引我呢？

就是《一切完美》。这部戏剧以整容为贯穿全剧的主要题材。

从戏剧中，我找到很多自己的影子。

从Alex Tan身上，我看到了曾经对完美主义抱着苛求的自己。那时的日子太难过了、对下属太严格了、对自己太苛刻了。现在，我不再追求一切完美。。。只要尽了力，对得起自己就可以了。

从Alex Tan和Kelly Lim身上，我看到了曾经徘徊在内在美与外在美冲突之间的自己。年少的我只在乎外在美的重要。毕竟谁不要娶一个美丽的妻子或嫁一个俊俏的先生？我了解了能在双种美之间找到平衡点才是关键。

从Alex Tan身上， 我看到了曾经过于固执的自己。求学时的我性格孤僻，没有很多要好的朋友。我喜欢我行我素。我总是对的，别人总是错的。我不容易听取他人的意见。到了大学后才恍然大悟，了解了‘一山还有一山高’的道理。

从Kelly Lim身上，我看到了曾经在公司人力资源部门当主管的自己。Kelly和我一样，擅长修复别人内心的问题。别人的问题变成了我们的问题、别人的烦恼变成了我们的烦恼。就像心理医生一样，当时还是人力资源主管的我每天都要医病，对症下药。日子久了，身心疲累了、人也变憔悴了。但人力资源经理也是人！难道我就没有自己的问题烦恼吗？有问题烦恼时，老板却说你是人力资源主管，应该会自我解决。真要命！待了三年半，我决定离开了。

从大姐Emily身上，我看到了曾经在感情生活中一波三则折的自己。看到别人的感情一帆风顺，自己却一次又一次交了爱情白卷。太伤感了！等了又等、盼了又盼，我终于找到了属于自己的幸福。我微笑了，人也变得更帅了！

从Alex Tan的口头禅 “世上没有丑人，只有穷人”，我连想到了自己的口头禅 “世上没有丑人，只有懒人”。要在今天金钱挂帅、以貌取人的社会中一鸣惊人，就要懂得包装自己。包装是很重要。不美可以变得美一点。即使美了也可以更美。更美了也要最美。如果你懒到连基本妆都不化、头发都不梳、衣服都不齐就出了门，就不要怪别人不多看你一眼，不给你机会。了解自己，就会包装自己，把自己最好、最完美的一面显现出来。

不像剧中的女人一样，我从来没想过要去整容。我承认我鼻梁不够高、眼睛不够大，但我对自己的五官还是很满意的。毕竟还是有人会主动上前和我搭讪，证明我还有x-factor!

就像主题曲，我知道‘我变漂亮了’！

过去的批评嘲讽 Let it go Let it go
过去的轻蔑冷落 Let it go Let it go
有些人口不饶人 却忘了瞧瞧自己
又有什么资格

时刻都善良待人 Let’s move on Let’s move on
时刻都做好本分 Let’s move on Let’s move on
有些人心思浅薄 绝不是宽容
自暴自弃的理由

也许 确实也受过言语打击
也许 因此而失去了自信心
但千万别将勇气深锁在阴影里
我们又不会妨碍这世界（的）美丽

我知道我变漂亮了
我知道我被注意了
曾难过 失落
微笑一下就过
外在的美貌容易戳破
内在的美好细水长流

我知道我变漂亮了
我知道我也豁达了
不自卑 不埋怨
就算还差一点点
用内涵弥补一切缺陷
内在的美 迷住每个人的眼

Comments(0)

Imagine seeing traditional Chinese beauties in period dress holding laptops and mobile phones? Yes, there’s an interesting art exhibition in town showcasing just that.

Currently exhibited at the Wheelock Art Gallery (which is between the Marriott and Grand Hyatt hotels)  is Justin Lee’s “East Meets West Series: I Love Shopping”.

There are seven white fibreglass figurines standing on floating clouds. Take a closer look and you will recognise the figurine as Hua Mulan, the legendary woman warrior who cross-dressed as a man to enlist in the army.

Hua Mulan. The legendary woman warrior

Female power perhaps? Yes…reminds me of the Powerpuff Girls and the Spice Girls…both modern symbols of girl power.

Lee wishes to use the exhibition to celebrate the marriage of the old and the modern. This marriage is the result of women becoming empowered over the years. Women now have a say both at home and in society. Needless to say, with an increasing purchasing power, these women are no longer dependent on men. They can well afford luxury goods and pamper themselves whenever the occasion calls for one (read shopping, shopping and more shopping). Handphones? No problem. Laptops? No problem. LV bags? No problem.

Yet, many women hold onto traditional values. That’s where we see the iconic Ms Hua in action. She is reminder that as much as we continue to embrace consumerism as the new god, deep within us still lies a consciousness that we are Asians.

I could not help but marvel at Lee’s satirical take on modern society. Enjoy the exhibition while it’s still on till 17 Aug 08. Admission is free

The modern Hua Mulan must surf the net, check her emails, hook up on facebook etc…

Hua Mulan with her branded bag. Is it LV, Gucci or Burberry? Ask Mulan…

The modern Hua Mulan must be contactable 24/7.

Hua Mulan with a big red ribbon. Reminds me of Hello Kitty…Pop culture

The modern Hua Mulan, like the old, understands the need to exercise regularly. Game for a round of badminton?

Comments(0)

Some tug at the heartstrings. They are written by supposedly nine year olds. These nine year olds have been cheated of their vast fortune because some wicked uncle ran away with the money in the trust fund left by their late father. And they have sought me out as the hero to help them get back the money. When that happens, I will be handsomely paid for my valiant efforts by having a share from the coffers.

Some are congratulatory in nature. I have won my millions from a lucky draw which I have no idea I entered at all. Did a good Samaritan enter my name for me and brought me good luck? The address looks legitimate. Yahoo Pay Day, Google Systems, Lotto Headquarters. Branding certainly goes a long way.

Some say I am the next of kin or beneficiary of a deceased client in Africa or Nigeria. I didn’t know I had a black father or a Negro dad. My approval is required to release the amount of said funds to me. They then direct me to a URL to check out the legitimate claim. The URL is a bootleg copy of a real website.

Some suggest co-sharing an investment scheme which will reap millions. All I need is to invest a small sum and provide my bank account number. It’s so paltry that it sounds a shame to mention it. Yes, just US$25 and I will reap US$25 million.

All these mails require my urgent attention and immediate action.

But because I’m slow and not getting off my duff, I will NOT be receiving my millions within weeks and thus I have missed out being the next newly minted millionaire in Singapore. What a pity.

The reality is these are all scams which have been flooding my email boxes of late.

Comments(0)

在七彩缤纷的世界
我是耀眼主角
我是你的天
你爱的那张脸

当灯光熄灭之后
像打入了凡间
我不再特别
我失去一切

我看不到天的辽阔
我听不到鸟的歌唱
我闻不到花的芬芳
我摸不到你的手腕

多希望世界能留一盏灯
为我温暖心中空洞
为我照亮眼前路程
多希望看到绚丽彩虹

明天醒来又是新的一天
听到掌声响起的时候
看到羡慕目光身边闪过
我知道你又再次想起我

Lionel L
(18 Jul 08)

Comments(0)