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Sunday, July 23, 2006
[59 years and counting...]
My Dad turned 59 today, and we went out for dinner at Crystal Jade's. We don't usually eat at restaurants, because my parents grew up in the era where a bowl of noodles cost 30-cents and allowance was 10-cents a day. Even food-court prices of $4 to $5 for a meal seems expensive to them.
On our way down, I spotted some CCTV cameras on the bus. Oooh....I feel so safe now. I think this is a waste of money. In the first place, who would want to bomb a bus? It makes more sense to plant them at crowded train stations. And even if some bozo did decide to blow up a bus, you think three lousy CCTV cameras are going to stop them?
After dinner at Crystal Jade's, we went to NYDC @ Wheelock for dessert. I wanted to take a picture of the lights in Wheelock, because this was the first time I was there after dark and they've turned on the lights in the glass ceiling. I was stopped by a security guard, who said we weren't supposed to take pictures inside. Well, I already did, so he can go bang his balls for all I care. Why can't we take photos inside?
A rather embarrassing incident happened at NYDC's. We ordered 2 different mud-pies (my sister was right, all the mud-pies taste the same), and it came to S$22.98. Here's the exchange between me, my sister, and the very cute waitress by the name of Carmen. Waitress: Here's the check.
Me: (taking it, saw the amount, gave her $23) Keep the change. (I didn't want her to return with two 1-cent coins)
Waitress: (big smile) Thanks. (leaves)
Sister: (silently) What did you say?
Me: I told her to keep the change.
Sister: (rolls eyes)
Me: What? It's just 2-cents.
Sister: If it's not an even sum, (it slipped my mind that there were no 1-cent coins in circulation anymore, smallest denomination being 5-cents) they'd round it up and that's it. So basically at this point I felt like a jackass. I shouldn't have said anything, even if we still had 1-cent coins in circulation. What the hell was I thinking? A 2-cent tip? Oh yes, I'm the big man now. Aragh....
I did feel slightly better later when I realised they weren't supposed to round up. They were only supposed to round down. This means I gave her a 5-cent tip. I told my sister, and she agreed sarcastically that yes, a 5-cent tip was so much better. Don't feel bad for Carmen or think that I'm cheap though, since there was already a 10% service charge on what we ordered.
I snapped the picture above on the bus on our way home. A mother was trying to hold up her sons' heads while the two of them were asleep (they were actually in the process of nodding off). Was that really necessary? Talk about over-pampering your kids. My sister and I had the same thought: Are they local? I mean, parents from the PRC are well known for over-pampering their kids (especially their sons), and we do have a lot of them running loose in Singapore right now (an unwelcome by-product of trying to turn Singapore into the regional education hub which the Government did not anticipate).
Eventually the boys decided to "put their heads together" and her hand was sandwiched in-between. How effective. All this time, she was leaning forward, so I'm sure her back must be uncomfortable the whole time (take it from a guy who's had back pains, that "leaning forward" position isn't a bed of roses). Pretty pointless if you ask me.
^^^ by Locksley @ 10:09 PM.
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