The Theraphy of Mutilating Vegetables
I've resolved to be a little positive in my outlook of life...Theres too much to love and too much to hate for me to expand my energies on simply gloating on the latter so Woo Hoo!

I've been preparing vegetables for the kitchen and its been wonderful, getting myself immersed in the joy of killing/mutilitating a living entity. There's something hypnotic about peeling off the skin that would have clung onto a sweet potato leaf stem, I feel peace at the thought of pulling off the umbilical cord (which is the stem) to a fetal chili padi. There is satisfication from knowing that all the kang kong has been plucked to a uniform length and that the garlic is now naked and is ready for crushing...







Oh the beauty that has been born from the sacrifices of an original form!

Oh and if you were wondering... The restaurant no longer has any vegetables for me to prepare

ARG! I hate it here!
Its been 3 weeks since I've started work at the restaurant and I must say, things between my dad and I have gotten much better. The workers are also having a better time with me as a buffer between them and my dad... The only problem I face now is my step-mother...

I have a great dislike for her work ethics and the manner of which she speaks to her workers (myself included).

The other day we went into a senseless arguement over a chinese word which I had mis-read. She started to kick up a fuss about how she had wasted all that money on my chinese tution when I was a kid, I replied 'well at least I speak good english' She then continued to justify her point on my 'money-wasting' ways as a child and that I spoke good english because of the enviroment I was brought up in...Well it did occur to me that it was a waste of money to have chinese tution..I mean come on, which parent wouldn't spend time teaching their own child..OH OPPS...DEAR ME... I DIDN'T HAVE A MOTHER AS I WAS GROWING UP BECAUSE SOME BITCH WAS THE THIRD PARTY IN MY PARENT'S MARRIAGE! WHICH LED ME TO LIVE MY CHILDHOOD ALONE AS A CHILD, FENDING AND GROWING UP BY WHICHEVER MEANS I WAS EXPOSED TO. AND NOW I DISPITE MY OUTWARD NATURE, HAVE A YEARNING FOR PEOPLE'S RECGONITION AS I GOT NONE FROM MY PARENTS AS THEY WERE TOO BUSY PICKING UP THE PIECES OF THEIR OWN LIVES TO CARE ABOUT MY BROTHER AND ME! THATS RIGHT! I DID WASTE ALL THAT MONEY HAVING CHINESE TUTION! Ok it wasnt as if I yelled that at her but i did come from a dysfunctional family..and well it is apparent that this woman has relinquished all her responsibilities as a 'my' parent to cater to her own family...I was now the third party in her family...

Oh and Yeah!
My dad actually got me a namecard ( which totally shocked me) but anyways only me name apperared on it and when i asked where my mobile number was he only replied 'You want your number there, then you write la' ......What the hell? Anyways I took it a step further and designed a new one and here it is! Do call me if you need someone to design namecards for ya!

Why aren't you yellow too?

Yesterday a Taiwanese lady came to the restaurant yelling about how her crab from the previous day wasn't meaty and one claw was small and she was cheated (honestly if you think about it, the crabs are sold by weight, so if 1 claw was small then it would have been lighter thus the price would have been lower anyway, thus no cheating...stupid cow). She demanded to see my father (who wasn't around) and so I stepped up to the plate, the moment she saw me her first words were "you are such a beautiful boy"...

I was like *WHAT THE HELL?*...

Anyways, she was pretty happy that I was serving her and she selected a couple of crabs and weighed them. I had put the crabs in the basket before putting them on the scale and she asked what the weight was and asked if I was going to deduct the weight of the basket and well I told her the basket didn't weigh much and asked if it was ok if i just charged her 2kg for the crabs..she said ok...

3 minutes later, she came for the bill and asked how heavy the crabs were and I told her 2kg... She started becoming estastic and yelled "2kg? what about the basket"...

"Well mdm, I thought I told you the basket wouldn't weigh too much and you said 2kg was ok" I replied...

"No! you cannot charge me for the basket, you are so DISHONEST just like your father!"

'SNAP' something in my brain went off...This bitch had the audacity to call me a dishonest person! I was PISSED! VERY VERY PISSED! WAH! Woman you have no idea who you are speaking to!

But I withheld my anger and went on my normal business..so for the entire time the bitch was there she kept complaining about everything...'What the hell? If you always have bad experiences eating here then why the hell do you keep coming back?'

The only thing that kept me going was the pharse Yung used 'Aiyah They're just too cheap to pay more' ...O words of wisdom I thank thee! Yes the appropriate word in this situation is indeed CHEAP! I mean just to let you know...the cost price for the crabs are $24 and we sell them at $30, our profit margin is only 6 dollars so if I charge you 100g more for the basket ($3 more) just 'suck thumb' and be a generous person...Coz the restuarant doesn't charge the 10% service and 5%gst...perhaps due to the trauma my staff are put through I should implement a 10% service charge...

Well anyways, to relieve the situation I offered the taiwanese lady a small dish of preserved chili, black bean and green papaya. I told her it was something I had just brought back from China...She looked at the dish and said 'take it back, we don't eat things from China'

What the hell? bloody snob!...You reject my kindness and insult the people of my ancestors?...I couldn't take another moment of taiwanese shit this bitch was dishing out of her mouth...

Throughout the entire time she was there she had called my father stupid, scholded all my workers, insulted me...wah can die!

Oh the shame!

That evening I told my step-mom about the 'si gui san ba' (dead ghost 38) and all she said to me was..dont say that about other people..she has been eating here for years, she brings business... What the hell! She insulted my father and me! I would'nt stoop that low to earn that kind of money, we are dignified people and I will never grovel at the feet of others...especially not for money that I can earn honestly! I am very disappointed...

Wedding Bells

Today's Yu Jin & Ivy's wedding! Attending another church wedding is kinda drag, not that I've got anything against it but I already have some problems with attending church (pretending that everything is good and being smiley to everyone)... A church wedding definitely amplifies the already stressful weekly church attendance.

Well furthermore this is my second church wedding this year and well...I'm getting tired of sitting alone on the pew whilst everyone is declaring and/or reminancing(remembering) their love for each other...not knowing if I'll ever be married!

I suck...

It's almost over!

Ahhh (sigh of relief)... My 2 week vacation shall draw to a close today and man I can't wait to head home... Vietnam has killed me...twice...Well before I came to Vietnam I had my fears and uneasy thoughts but now I'm plain 'o pissed scared...

I doubt I'll ever return to Vietnam for a holiday, the people at Thuy Lam Hotel have been nice, but everywhere else has been a wicked experience...Well being cheated at every corner from the 70,000 vnd taxi ride into the town from You Yi Guan, to the Mango lady with her overpriced mangoes... I knew I needed a good sense of humour to get by, but after a while things can't seem funny anymore.

It was a daily struggle to cross the street and put off the motorbike touters... I naively thought that since it was Vietnam (a country which fought for what it believed in and stood aganist oppressors) the people would be dignified, humble and honest... sigh.. oh well I suppose its the same everywhere huh? (although China was fantastic)

The People I've Met (Credits)

Well this trip wouldn't have been the same if I've not met the following people

Mr Mahn (Mike) the Cab Driver from the airport
Theng (tank)
Moon
Tihn
Tao
Bao Lian
Sheng Jie
Gui Ying
Chui Ling
Hui Hong
The Lady Boss of Long Chuan
The 2 girls at the 9th floor of Long Chuan
Kim
Angela
Jia Ling

These are all blessings that God has provided and I am thankful for His providence.

I'm flying off at 1610hrs

Hurhurhur...people still ask why I'm going to Vietnam dispite the Bird flu... I aint got a good answer... but wish me well. Oh if i do die on this trip, do remember that I would like to have a christian funeral and whatever money i have goes to my mom...

Yeah I say this everytime I go overseas... but i don't see how it could be more different..I mean the chances to die in singapore compared to overseas is the same i suppose...

Ahh but it doesnt matter to me if i die, i know where im going...

well guys see you when i get back on the 22nd Nov 05

Agape
Tobias

Land of a Million dead Chickens (and ducks)

It's utterly amazing that I am still going to Vietnam after all thats happened with the bird flu epedemic. But hey a $4.89 ticket is a $4.89 ticket...

Well at least my family was supportive of the idea...(having give me some money for the trip) and some sound advice 'Don't eat chicken' NOW what more do I need? ahh yes more money I suppose...*sigh...money*

This being my 5th trip abroad (alone) I have honed my skills of being an 'ameture cheepo', advancing to the 'novice cheepo' status.

Do note that the 'grandmaster cheepo' status is reserved soley for singaporean uncles and aunties who queue up (and camp) the night before a grand-opening sale, or travel all the way into JB just to buy soft drinks (for the soft drink prices in singapore are unbelivable).

Anyways...yes I'm a 'novice cheepo' a sign of such is that I can say the phrase 'This is too expensive, can I have it cheaper" in Thai, Vietnamese, French, German and Swede...(you'll never know when you'll need it). So i'll be staying in the usual guesthouses and travelling by public transport, namely the bus and man it can get very cheap.

Yeah... A phrase book, a buide book, some money and a bible...I'm all set...

Well here's something you guys should know about me... I'm pretty naive. I'm also very clueless about the society we live in...

Ponder...ponder...ponder
Ask yourself this simple question... What is the first thought that runs through your mind when this statement is made... 'At 21, no one is a virgin'

Some would say...'21? I thought it should be 18?'
Others...'21? Hhmmn I did IT when I was in secondary 3'
A minority (sadly) would say...'Fur-jean? Hah? Fur-jean is what har? Aawww have sex har? Have sex then say have sex lah! What Fur-jean?

I would say...'What the hell? Shouldn't everyone only have sex after one gets married?
*Cheng, cheng, cheng* (dramatic sounds)


My view on things?
I believe in the sacred institution of marriage and remaining chaste for your soulmate. Well as old fashioned as it may seem, remaining faithful to your future spouse may sound stupid to some but I know that it's alright...

Having mutiple partners or engaging in numerous sexual activites cheapens the intamacy value of sex, and thus would weaken the already fragile institution of marriage.

Strangely enough, the talk of not having pre-maritial sex has become an echo to the call for safe sex. Therefore the message now is no longer abstainence from sex but rather the control of sexually transmitted dieseases.

MTV Generation
This is a message MTV likes to publicisise with it's 'use a condom' campagin... It's the glorification of a cause which I personally find not worth fighting for... from the advertisments it depicts students talking about their relationships and how 'If he loves me enough he will use it'...oh please kids... ..."If he really loves you he will marry you then you two can go about it like bunnies for all I care"

Remember to use your own yardstick!
I had 3 christian friends who were having a conversation about pre-maritial sex (which they have all engaged in). 2 of them had broken up with their sex partners and had revelations about their past actions, they were guilty about it and had regrets. The third friend said 'yes, i've had sex with my girlfriend. But I know that I'm gonna marry her! Unlike you 2 sinners'... ... ... Duh!
How stupid can you be? Bloody fool!

*BTW this dude always claims that I'm self-righteous and that I always judge him...after being made to feel guilty for my actions, I have been taught that it was not I who judged him, but rather it was his guilt of being lacking in his own comparision to my moral standards that led him to believe that I was judging his actions...Hmmmn*

Oh Chinese values! Where art thou?
Where are our chinese values? Our ancestors treasured their chasity for each other...hmmnn wait a minute... In the past if a couple was found to be sexually intimate before they were married, the couple would have been locked inside 'pig cages' and thrown into the sea and drowned...erm... where are our chinese values?

Eh so how now brown cow?
I don't know... This is my blog and I can pretty much write about anything I want, so its up to you to reflect on the things I have given thought to...Remember its all up to you...I am not accountable for the way you live your life...But do remember that as much as it is your life...I (and many others who care about you) am involved in it as well...So what you do to yourself affects those who care for you... And you cannot stop people from caring...