Monday, January 25, 2010

Helpers' Meeting

What we would do without out huge army of capable helpers, I do not know.

After much reminding by various anxious volunteers, Bridezella finally decreed a time and place and said, everyone please turn up. It was supposed to be at the Hans in Marine Parade. Before V and I arrived, we received calls from our friends. That branch of Hans no longer exists. Oh ok...we need to get our databases updated :P

Never mind, we adjourned to Mac instead, where a larger than expected crowd turned up. We distributed the list of tasks and helpers involved, then friends pointed out all the details we got wrong. I quite think that our helpers are more eager than we are to make sure that everything is fine on the day itself. *sniff sniff* We are very grateful, but as we have only 6 sets of cutlery at home, it looks like we are going to have to do our Helpers' Thanksgiving dinner in several batches :P

I can tell that the Sisters gang will nanny me into having a manicure, pedicure and all other beauty rituals before the event. And they wouldn't even let me eat ice-cream :( I suppose, it is the Bride's fault for being generally lazy and uncooperative about her own wedding :P But I had the last laugh yesterday. On our way home, I made V send me to the provision shop where I had a popsicle. Strictly speaking, it was ice, but not cream :P

While we were at it, we also chose more photos for our slide show. I hadn't realised that we took a staggering 500 pictures at the second photoshoot! wow...I must say that these informal pictures reflect our personalities and relationship much more accurately than the stilted, formal studio ones.

After all the excitement of the meeting, we went to Aussino to buy a marvellous 100% silk quilt for our new home, and immediately forgot to take it with us when we left the shop :P oops...

Friday, January 15, 2010

Logical Fallacy: False Dilemma

At fast food restaurants,

1. Diners clear their tables themselves, and if not
2. Those who want to use the tables after that have to do it for them.

Hence, if you don't want to make others suffer, clean up your table after you have finished your meal.
In a false dilemma, other alternatives are eliminated or hidden, so that one is manipulated to choose the only viable or acceptable choice. The obvious third choice here is the role of cleaners, who will...now have nothing to do, since we are doing their job for them. You can guess whether the restaurants would keep them on charitable grounds. Then, who are the real beneficieries of our kindness?

Call me cynical, but I'm not convinced at all by this latest campaign to get us to help Fast Food Restaurants to clean up their tables for them. If a restaurant is a place of public ownership, then we all have the civic duty to maintain it. But it isn't.

Is it not the duty of any respectable eating place to provide a clean environment for their patrons? And for us patrons, our duty and obligation in this business transaction is to pay and take the goods given. Where does kindness come in? We might as well ask businesses to show us kindness too and...slash their prices, now that we are dealing on humanitarian, and not mercenary terms anymore.

No, I refuse to be indoctrinated. Don't think that I can be misled by the use of civil society jargon. I'm not a good little girl eating in the school canteen now.