God's voice

Couldn't sleep on Saturday night thinking about the imminent 'termination' coming along. Like the words in Cats in the Cradle, there are 'planes to catch and bills to pay'. Despite the Bible telling us that worrying is as big a sin as any (click here to read in context), I couldn't help but worry as I tossed about my bed. Thoughts that went running through my head included (but not restricted to) how to pay our bills, how to buy the air ticket for Estella (our helper) to go back home at the end of the month when her contract ends, how to pay for Vel's school fees next month, am I going to compromise on my tithing again?

I thought, 'Hey no point worrying, maybe I'll get up and surf the employment websites and see if there are any openings'.

Eyes half closed, I dragged myself out of bed at 11.45pm to turn on my PC. For some reason, it didn't work. Sure the CPU came on with lights blinking and all. But the screen was blank. I tried it again for another 3 times. Didn't work.

I joked to myself, 'Heheh, maybe God is telling me to go to sleep 'cos I'm drumming in church tomorrow' which I was SOOOOO looking forward to.

So I turned in and said a little prayer before I slept. I told God to take away all my burdens so I could just stop bloddy thinking and go to sleep! Soon enough I dozed off.

And then it came, a voice which sounded like mine but yet it wasn't. So full and reassuring. So comforting like an old friend you hadn't met in ages. It sounded so close like He was sitting on the bed next to me, talking into my ear.

I can't remember the exact words, but He said something along the lines like, 'Don't worry, everything will be okay. If you trust Me, I will set things right for you. All you have to do is believe'.

Then logic took over and I woke up with a start. I remember thinking, 'What the f**k?! Who was that?! I thought I was sleeping?!' I didn't give it much thought as I was already stoned. A quick glance at my watch revealed that it was already 12.30am, so I just plonked my head back onto my pillow and went back to Snoozeland.

Next day, woke up as usual at 7am all hyped up. Went to church and rocked the house with the worship team (although I screwed up a bit here and there, don't think anyone noticed. Ha!). Headed straight home after service 'cos Mummy was at home with Vel who wasn't feeling well.

After gobbling down my lunch, I remembered the PC and grumbled to Penny 'Computer spoil again, blah, blah... KNN, just had it repaired, blah, blah...'. When I turned it on, it worked just fine. I rebooted it twice just to be sure it wasn't a fluke.

I wanted to cry.

Same s**t, different day...

I've said it once and I'll say it again, office politics suck. A few months back, some colleagues of mine quit when they got wind that their head was on the chopping board by someone higher up eager to cover his own ass (read more about it here). Apparently now the WHOLE FREAKING OFFICE is on the chopping board. Well, not exactly the whole office because the company is still under some cotractual manufacturing agreement so my guess is they'll maintain a skeleton crew till that contract is over.

But this move is, again, the brainchild of that same person. Now the Singapore office is being made the scapegoat of the company's downslide ever since our crisis last year. This move, I reckon, is to restore the shareholders' confidence that the company is indeed making plans to climb out of the red.

Bastards.

Good 'ol days gone by

Came across this old man selling eggs at Boon Keng market. Probably fresh from the farm and still warm! Just a simple set up and his 'stall' was bustling with people. Stalls such as these are reminders to us of days gone by and how simple life used to be. Other treasures at the market are a retro stationery shop (with glass cabinets no less!) and a retro Chinese barber with faded posters of Liu Wen Zheng, New Kids On The Block and other retro pop idols on the walls and that spinning red/blue/white thingie outside the shop. Awesome!

Speaking of retro, we were at Steeples the other day after our usual Saturday swimming session. Nobody does burgers and milkshakes like they do. Had a Teriyaki Burger and a Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake. We had a marvellous Waldorf Salad as well.

For those who are sentimental (like us) and miss the good 'ol juicy, handmade beef patties and milkshakes reminiscent of 1950s American diners, go to Steeples at Tanglin Shopping Centre (they are tucked away in a little corner on the 3rd level). The place is small and the Auntie at the counter may give you the 'take it or leave it' kind of face, but like all good things it's always worth the wait. Even the menu is still written in chalk!

Top 10 things that irk me to no end

1. People who STILL refuse to turn off their handphones during a movie. The audience at a movie should all just gang up and throw a handful of popcorn (since we won't be able to finish it in one sitting anyway) at the next guy whose mobile rings during the movie.


2. Road hoggers doing 70km/h in the extreme right lane on expressways.


3. Aunties driving Maseratis, BMW M5s, Mecerdes SLKs and other fierce, exotic cars doing 70km/h in the extreme right lane on expressways (this one not sour grapes, I'm fine with a cool looking uncle driving a Mercedes S600 Turbo).


4. People whose hands are too heavy to flick their signals on when they want to turn. Either that or their cars are too cheap and didn't come with indicators installed.


5. Cars with HID / Xenon headlights. Regardless whether it's factory fitted, it's still damn bloody glaring to look at in the rear view mirror. Whoever allowed it on the roads (LTA?!) should be strapped to a chair, with toothpicks holding his/her eyelids open and two super-duper, Ah Beng WRX-esque Xenon headlights shining straight into their face.


6. 'Interviewers' on Orchard Road asking me 'Hello? Are you Singaporean? Would you like to...' Arrrrgh! Talk to the hand.


7. Companies calling 'on behalf of XX Bank' to offer me credit cards, 'special interest rate' personal term loans and other different manner of financial bondages attempting to burden me for some good years of my life.


8. Insurance companies calling me to introduce their 'new policies' to me. Hello? Even if I really needed ANOTHER policy on top of the numerous I already have, would I talk about it to a stranger over the phone?


9. Bank tellers who are ALSO selling insurance policies over the counter, which probably explains why the queues are always so damn long! I just want to replace my bloody passbook, so just replace it so that I can get out (x-refer #7 for MY policy on insurance policies).


10. Companies making sucky toys and ripping all the poor kids (or parents??) off. Some examples of bad toys: Transformers, G.I. Joes (Hasbro should be shot for both). Some examples of good toys: anything from McFarlane, Ben 10 (some of them retail for $9.95 but are such good fun to play with!).

So long, dumbass!

My nap on a lazy Sunday afternoon was disrupted by my vibrating phone with an incoming SMS. It read: 'Rennie, u seem to be busy so i decided 2 change tutor. Cd u do last tuition 2moro? I will pay. Sorry.'

Without giving it much thought, I just replied my acknowledgement and went back to sleep. I guess my student's mum was finally tired of my constant rescheduling of the lessons and what not. Honestly, I don't blame her. I would be pissed too if I were her because the boy ain't gonna sit around all day waiting for me to turn up!

Funny thing is, I was just asking God the other day how would I be able to cope with all these extra tuition jobs if and when a new job opportunes itself? If I had to travel, would the parents be so kind as to let me off as and when I wanted? How do I break it to the parents that I would not be able to teach their kids anymore? But that's the amazing part about the awesome God that we serve, He sees your heart and answers your innermost prayers.

It's been a gruelling but satisfying 6 months. Since the first lesson when I turned up clothed in my reservist gear (and probably freaking the parents out in the process) to the time when he came back with the astonishing results for his mid-term, I must say it's been a blessing and a joy to have imparted some of my knowledge to someone else. I just hope and pray that this knowledge I shared has made a difference in his life, which he will put into practical use somewhere down the road.

I can't take all the credit, though. Kevin is a smart boy with a good brain in his head, although sometimes he chooses to channel that intelligence elsewhere. Like cooking up stories as to why he never did his homework, bargaining for an extra 10 mins to finish up his Ben 10, etc. He has taken well to my teachings and though he has idiosyncracies which make me want to strangle him sometimes (like cutting me off halfway to ask me really bo liao questions), I have to admit he has come a long way from when we first started.

Like the song goes:

'It's closing time, a new beginning always comes from some other beginning's end'.

This chapter of my life has ended and it's time to move on. So long, dumbass. You will be missed...