Wild life

Spotted a monkey in the grassy area next to the playground in the flats across from the office.

And I thought the only monkey business in Toa Payoh North took place within the office building.

The business of war

It's interesting that after checking out The Science of War from the library, which is an academic's take on the business of the US armed forces, accompanied by copious statistics down to divorce and suicide rates in the military as compared to civilians (not much difference), I go down to the train station and am confronted by Navy recruitment ads.



It's all glamour, no divorce and suicide rates here, not even a mention of death as a possible job hazard despite some rather challenging missions packed into a day. Don't military personnel in countries that are not at war ever consider that between "launch torpedos" and "prepare to surface", a thousand things could prevent you from surfacing, say a couple of mines or depth charges; and that "dinner under the stars" sometimes means being shot at?

I'm getting the picture that this country is defended by boy scouts who get to go home to mummy every night.

It takes a woman

This is the Christmas tableau at the suburban mall down the road from where I live, the Christmassy scene where parents stand their kids against for a photo. It's the Singapore equivalent of having your kid sit on Santa's lap and getting a pix. I have no idea who this lady is, I don't think she's Mrs Claus since Santa is conspicuously absent. I think she's the Fairy Godmother.

I think I could warm up to this little old lady. This Fairy Godmother isn't all about ball gowns; instead, she's all about books. She's obviously a reader, with a shelf full of books behind her, and more on the floor. Not a single toy in sight. I think she's better for the kids than Santa.

Ready for Christmas

Christmas last year came right after the 100-day mourning period following my father-in-law's sudden passing so the festive season was rather muted -- I put up the dogs' stockings but not the Christmas tree and didn't have a wreath on the door.

This year, all the works are up -- and before Thanksgiving and Hari Raya Haji even. I think what's making things really Christmassy isn't so much the tree and the fairy lights but the dog wearing antlers.

Not all subs are evil

Boo hoo, Neil Gaiman hates subs. From his blog: When I was a journalist, one of the things that stopped me wanting to spend the rest of my life journalisting was sub-editors who made me feel embarrassed by carefully introducing mistakes or slight distortions into things I'd written, or into headlines.

Thank god he liked my Tshirt first.

Things that make me smile, #2,311

Being able to remember the choreography in dance class, and then being able to keep up with the teacher when everyone gave up and stopped following, matching him move for move until we're the last two left standing, err dancing.

It is so nice not to be the class duffer for once

It's not what it seems

A copy of Mein Kampf tossed carelessly onto a taxi dashboard. Like it's telling you that the cabby isn't driving a taxi because he got laid off from his job but he's some PhD candidate or something.

Was he reading it, I asked the cabby as I paid the fare at the end of the ride.

Yes, he said, a little self-consciously. Why, did I find it surprising, he asked.
Well, it's not light reading, I answered. The cabby's reply was that he wanted to know why Hitler did what he did. He's a asshole, said L (Hitler, not the cabby), you don't need a few thousand pages to tell you that.

Guess some people like to find things out the long, hard way.