In the kitchen

A rare sighting in the kitchen

A terrific mess! And this is a non stick pan mind you

The results of the great effort - two sunny side ups, with too much olive oil

Oops, one yolk was broken.

And this is why I'm the head chef at home.

The Squeaks

Gradually, the Squeaks developed more distinct personalities.

Friendly is a BIG girl. As she does nothing but eat and sleep, she has erm...put on a terrible lot of weight. Picking her up is like holding a wriggling potato. See, here she is, guzzling again. Have to let her run in the ball more.

PipSqueak is a ferocious little thing. She'd bite any finger that comes too near her. *CHOMP* Both V and I have scars from her aggression.

Ninja is super turbo. It's the first time I've seen hamsters doing flips, yes, flips on the wheel. She'd run so fast that she flies into the air and makes a perfect 360 degree turn. Terrifies me to see her do it, but apparently, this is repeated safely a hundred times every night.

New Year

This is yet another year to find God's direction for important decisions in my life.

There were times when I felt like Moses in the desert - wondering that's what life's all about. Just when it seemed like things would never change again, lo and behold, the burning bush!

But this isn't such a time. For now, I am following the cloud by day, and the pillar of fire by night, moving and not knowing where the next resting spot is. God! It would be nice to know soon, because there is nothing as unsettling as uncertainty. And this misanthrope has an almost autistic dislike for change.

I might just return to the North Pole, though as Heraclitus says, one can never step into the same river twice. You are not the same you, and the river is not the same river.

Squeaks Playing

This is how you know the TwinSqueaks are best friends.

Squeaks sleeping (2)

Here's how you know the TwinSqueaks are best friends.

Forgiveness

Forgiveness is like peeling an onion, with all its layers of pungency that sting and prick. You can't help shedding tears with every layer of hurt that comes off, leaving behind tightly closed leaves, each more raw and vulnerable than the previous, until you finally reach the heart. Then there is no more to peel, nothing left to make you cry again.

Then you know the forgiveness is complete.

Fair Deal

Would you be willing to work 12-hour long night shifts, 7 days a week, for $2000 a month?

In the coffee shop near my former home, there was an exceptionally friendly waiter who confided in us the terms of his employment. Leaving his wife and daughter behind in China, he toiled here for 2 years, under these conditions. For every $0.80 worth of coffee, he made the trip between the counter and the customer. God knows how many miles he must have walked in that coffee shop every night. One year we invited him to church for a Christmas event, he was so touched that he treated us to coffee the next day, and considered us friends ever since.

Why are we surprised that there is acute shortage of workers for such jobs as these? Singaporeans, fortunate enough to have experienced better living standards, naturally baulk at these harsh jobs. And so bosses turn to foreign workers hungry enough to put up with Dickensian employment. But I can't help thinking that even if there are willing takers, there is something distinctly exploitative in jobs with these conditions. Is it morally acceptable to suppress wages to maximise business profit margins?

Recently I saw a report on the living conditions of some foreigners here, who rent only bed space, not rooms, and share a room with up to 6 people. They remind me of the coolies, aka '猪仔' of my history textbooks.

Offer fairer terms, terms under which a worker can actually have an acceptable quality of life. Perhaps then we could find ourselves less dependent on foreign labour.

Squeaks sleeping

Here's how you know that TwinSqueaks are best friends.

In my hands

It never ceases me to see how trusting these critters are. They simply throw their entire being into your hands and waited to petted and fed. Then they nibble you, and expect you to put up with the nips and not drop them. It's a good thing they are cute, because I don't see how else they can survive.

Here is Ninja, refusing to go back to her cage:



Reflections

 One morning I woke up, looked out of the window and thought, 'what happened to the river!' Why are there white patterns on the water surface?

Then I realised that the water is actually reflecting the clouds in the sky. Wow...what a lovely sight.