There goes the cup noodles. -_-”

I was on sick leave on Thursday (28/05/08) due to diarrhoea. While slacking at home, I flipped through the ‘expired’ (dated Wednesday 27/05/08) pile of newspapers on the table. Never did build up a habit of reading the newspapers early in the morning. Usually my source of news comes from lunch-time web surfing, however given that having to face the computer for the whole day, you know you just won’t want to even give the screen a glance whenever the chance bounces in.

Newspaper issue on 27th May’08

Divide 4.6m by 5000:

Yes, I would love to know who else (besides hardcore accountants and auditors), would actually bring along a calculator whenever he goes. For Ms Chee’s case, i think she should though. If not, she should have at least done her homework. I mean, I suck at maths too. =P

My mommy bought the panda for me when she went Shanghai a week back.

Without a doubt, the recent catastrophe in Sichuan, China, as well as Myanmar, had usurped and manifested both the best and worst in humanity. The entire situation had succumbed to Gaia’s every unpredictable breather. When the news first struck me, it actually brought tears to my eyes uncontrollably. Bet it did for the majority.

Previously over dinner, Brian was telling me he’s going to go for the missionary trip to one of China’s rural villages with his church folks (which had been arranged before the strike of the flood and earthquake) to help with some rebuilding work. You could literally see the eagerness in his eyes as he spoke of how he has been planning and looking forward to it.

Well, yes. Definitely it’s good to hear that our fellow folks who’ve always been living comfortably on our sunny island (preciously situated just out of any natural disasters’ path) and taken-for-granted security (because we as citizens were branded “complacent” due to some fellow Singaporeans’ negligence in their course of work) are willing to step out of their comfort zone to give a helping hand to the needy.

But again,

Why is it that voluntary work overseas compared to locally, seemed to be thriving if we do up a comparison side by side?

I popped questions:

1) What about our own people?

To a greater extent, Singaporeans are indeed living in abundance. Yet still, don’t forget the fact that we need to help our own people too. Say people with disabilities, medical conditions which requires hefty sum of money to maintain, or lonely old folks in homes confined from the rest of the society by cold hard walls.

Do you really have to wait till the broadcast of charity shows like ‘President’s Star Charity’ with your favourite celebrities on air to aid in recalling these? (And oh yes, I’m not exactly pleased that even as a charity event, we’re making ‘commercialized’ donations–paying the operators at the same time)

2) Is it out of the thrill and excitement factors (that volunteering is being done overseas-some place you’ve never been to, or is it truly out of goodwill to help?)

Come on, be honest about it. The initial attraction which lured you into it is somehow directly or indirectly (if you wish to deceive yourself), linked to the fact that it’s overseas. Unless you’re a specialist or a doctor or rescue ranger or a native from the particular place, equipped with the knowledge and expertise to really help those people, the rest I’m pretty biased that the overseas factor was the catch.