perplexed

there's nothing more annoying than buying a packet of BEE HOON with NO 'LIAO' for $1.70, and then feeling full after two mouths.

i have come to the conclusion that lunch on tuesdays is a waste of money. in future i will stick to the usual no breakfast but having a late lunch-dinner...think it's more worthwhile that way. and there's no way i can store this packet of noodles for dinner later. sigh.

Anyway, i've read with much hilarity about this lady bitching in the straits times forum about how no one gave up their seat to her because she was carrying a child while she was on the 95 bus, and she criticised undergraduates for their lack of civic mindedness or something like that. even funnier, the following week, some stupid idiot who identified himself AS an undergraduate gave a damn kok sure-kanna-hang kind of reply, saying that giving up of the seat is out of "goodwill" and that students are tired after "late night projects" and that if she really needed a seat she could always "ask" for one, though totally missing out on what the lady was trying to say in the first place.

What she meant to say was, that being higher educated, what use is it if you lack the "niceties" that make society more livable. hmm. anyway, the stupid guy is really shooting himself in the foot. must be engineer. hehehe!

ANYWAYS

the lady also abit bohliao. this kinda thing, also wanna complain? seriously, singaporeans should just quit it. everything also wanna com-prain. just because u are on bus 95, doesnt mean all on board are undergraduates ok. so the majority is, but u can never know for sure can you? so many poly and sim students plague make use of our campus libraries, so why cant it be them? NOT FORGETTING that the school constantly holds conferences, seminars and what not for outsiders to attend. the school adopts an open campus concept what, so are you so sure that everyone on the bus is FROM the school? also, bus 95 is always spectacularly packed - very much like that old insurance advertisement where u see pple plastered on the door. It's packed like a can of smelly sardines! sometimes it's just damn difficult to stand up and give up your seat even if you want to, because all standing room is already occupied! pls lor, might as well complain that SBS make travelling unsafe cuz buses too packed.

in any case, some singaporeans seem to loveeee focusing on the negative aspects...i think by and large, good things happen daily. i've heard of how those same undergrads have helped the young/blind/elderly up the bus, even during the peak hour packing, and find seats for them by requesting that others give up their seats, and helping the young/blind/elderly into their seats. in fact, it happens all the time. not just on bus 95, not just by undergraduates, but the rest of the human population (apparently, undergrads are mutant ninja turtles. outcasts eh.). almost everytime i see someone in need of a seat on the train, there is someone who immediately stands up and offers the seat to that person. it happens, dare i say, all the time, such that incidences where people pretend to sleep and ignore someone who needs the seat more, are a minority. the actual offering of seat is a out-on-a-limb action becuase the person might reject your offer when u;ve already stood up. malu-fication man.

Once when i was on a train, this young indian lady stood up immediately to offer her seat to a pregnant lady on the train. she looked spry and healthy, it was out of goodwill, because standing with a bag of liquid resting on your spine all day for the 9months makes standing tiring, gives veiny legs, and also, it's dangerous lah, wait train stop suddenly then she fall down how? it's all about safety what. then this stupid guy, who had earlier pushed and shoved his way into the train (f**************g kiasu bugger that one) immediately cut infront of the pregnant lady as she was sitting down, and stole her seat!! wah lao, i was damn pissed off, and also because at that time i was still working as a waiter, i had no qualms about talking to a stranger with a loud "EXCUSE ME! SIR! THAT SEAT WAS MEANT FOR HER!!" and he gave me a blur "sorry sorry" and gave up his seat to the lady. So pls lor, i WAS scared that he would shout back at me or even worse, hurt me for confronting him like that, but it's the right thing to do no? so don't generalise people based on what they study!!!!

if i don't scold him, someone else will. it was just so unbelieavable that he did that?!? it's just that he pushed and shoved his way past me on the train that i took this as an opportunity to scold him and make him pai seh infront of people.

Anyway back to my story, i simply CANNOT STAND that this stupid lady in the forum:
1 - enforced a negative sterotype that ALL undergraduates are "like that". pls lah, don't be so small minded, can?
2 - one day event, is highlighted in the papers. u mean EVERYTIME SHE TOOK THE BUS/TRAIN NO ONE GAVE UP THEIR SEAT TO HER? i tell u ah, where will people write in to say "oh that day, so nice u know, got this lovely lady give up her seat to me because i needed it!" just these small sporadic occurances overshadow what i feel is a more accurate - that people are, in general, really nice, and would give up their seats to someone who needs it more. it's just what the media chooses to print.
3 - sometimes several other external factors also play a role as to weather people can be "NICE" or not. crowded bus, for example. or maybe the person who in the manual-of-civic-things-to-do don't really look like she needed the seat that badly.

aiyah. the forum page is ridiculous on sundays.