Chinese-ness
By 7am this morning, I’ve moved back (geographical reference only) to where I was 9 days before, back in the comfort and safety of my home. The past week has been sheer youthful mirth and madness, topped by much-missed Chinese-ness and its culture.
It has been ages since I spoke so much Mandarin and had so much fun teasing in the mother tongue. Thanks to what was newly over, I got to know a great bunch of people in Chinese current affairs. We are so hilarious and noisy, we attracted stares and glares wherever we were, when we happen to be outside of familiar and familial territory ie beyond The Hill and The Hotel.
Uncle Kheng is a scream with his penchant and panache for parodying personalities we come across. He is apparently a very strict and learned and dignified person under newsy circumstances. Still, that side didn’t unravel (yay!) and we just had laughs after laughs at our own impromptu role-playing antics. Nevertheless, what did manifest was a very organised, responsible and knowledgeable, and incredibly likeable nature. If I ever decide again to headbutt (heartbreakingly so) into news, here’s someone I will talk to and an exemplary example of someone I will be eager to work with.
If Uncle Kheng is the leading man, Uncle Tai is the adorable sidekick and foil. Put the two of them together and you get an immensely entertaining segment filler in between the real work.
Uncle Fan is not really an uncle. Actually he looks incredibly well preserved for the whole of 31 years. I just called him that to irritate him and because he is under the happy (for me) illusion I’m very young. He’s another crazy person but morphs into the perfect model news worker when situations call for it. We have discovered we are both huge karaoke fans (His confession: I hog the mike. Me: Great! Me too!) and so emerges the promise to go Lalala Land when we have completed the postmortem of the project.
Sister Su is possibly the person I am most fond of in the core group. She reminds me a lot of my sister though she’s older than me. Generous, kind, funny, honest, frank and smart, and all heart, this natural being (no airs, nothing fakish about her) is the kind of friend I hope to know more of. Su enjoys singing, can talk politics, and wants to go back to academic researching beyond news production. She’s also a high maintenance person (another fine-dining kaki) and thinks nothing of burning 3-digit notes for lunches and dinners. Uncle Kheng’s response to our dining tales: $300 是我一个月的菜钱！
(Incidentally, Su and I brought a troop to Kbox, Cineleisure, spent $30 each - 12midnight to 5am - and didn’t sing a song. We just busied ourselves playing hosts and making sure the 30++ international guests had helluva time. I like Su a lot, lot, as far as first impressions go.)
I’m a bit sad that we have to part, now that the event is over. But keeping in touch is something we will definitely do. I so enjoy my time with the Chinese current affairs people – can it be because we all speak Mandarin really well? And that most punchlines are just better in Chinese? Ha.
At least I can catch up on sleep. I have clocked an average of 3 hours of sleep nightly.
Today’s a day off but I decided that I needed to indulge in retail therapy. So I went to trim my hair (have scaled down from Action Hair, Paragon to Next, Holland Village, and slashed my bill by half) and bought a gorgeous Elle bag (new arrival).
And tomorrow, back to work. Back to the office I haven’t been for 9 days (outstationed in Singapore). Oh well. I’m prepared for the avalanche of emails. Yes, I cheated. Have started clearing from home.
It has been ages since I spoke so much Mandarin and had so much fun teasing in the mother tongue. Thanks to what was newly over, I got to know a great bunch of people in Chinese current affairs. We are so hilarious and noisy, we attracted stares and glares wherever we were, when we happen to be outside of familiar and familial territory ie beyond The Hill and The Hotel.
Uncle Kheng is a scream with his penchant and panache for parodying personalities we come across. He is apparently a very strict and learned and dignified person under newsy circumstances. Still, that side didn’t unravel (yay!) and we just had laughs after laughs at our own impromptu role-playing antics. Nevertheless, what did manifest was a very organised, responsible and knowledgeable, and incredibly likeable nature. If I ever decide again to headbutt (heartbreakingly so) into news, here’s someone I will talk to and an exemplary example of someone I will be eager to work with.
If Uncle Kheng is the leading man, Uncle Tai is the adorable sidekick and foil. Put the two of them together and you get an immensely entertaining segment filler in between the real work.
Uncle Fan is not really an uncle. Actually he looks incredibly well preserved for the whole of 31 years. I just called him that to irritate him and because he is under the happy (for me) illusion I’m very young. He’s another crazy person but morphs into the perfect model news worker when situations call for it. We have discovered we are both huge karaoke fans (His confession: I hog the mike. Me: Great! Me too!) and so emerges the promise to go Lalala Land when we have completed the postmortem of the project.
Sister Su is possibly the person I am most fond of in the core group. She reminds me a lot of my sister though she’s older than me. Generous, kind, funny, honest, frank and smart, and all heart, this natural being (no airs, nothing fakish about her) is the kind of friend I hope to know more of. Su enjoys singing, can talk politics, and wants to go back to academic researching beyond news production. She’s also a high maintenance person (another fine-dining kaki) and thinks nothing of burning 3-digit notes for lunches and dinners. Uncle Kheng’s response to our dining tales: $300 是我一个月的菜钱！
(Incidentally, Su and I brought a troop to Kbox, Cineleisure, spent $30 each - 12midnight to 5am - and didn’t sing a song. We just busied ourselves playing hosts and making sure the 30++ international guests had helluva time. I like Su a lot, lot, as far as first impressions go.)
I’m a bit sad that we have to part, now that the event is over. But keeping in touch is something we will definitely do. I so enjoy my time with the Chinese current affairs people – can it be because we all speak Mandarin really well? And that most punchlines are just better in Chinese? Ha.
At least I can catch up on sleep. I have clocked an average of 3 hours of sleep nightly.
Today’s a day off but I decided that I needed to indulge in retail therapy. So I went to trim my hair (have scaled down from Action Hair, Paragon to Next, Holland Village, and slashed my bill by half) and bought a gorgeous Elle bag (new arrival).
And tomorrow, back to work. Back to the office I haven’t been for 9 days (outstationed in Singapore). Oh well. I’m prepared for the avalanche of emails. Yes, I cheated. Have started clearing from home.
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