May 17, 2004

"On Raffles Place"

I just had a little chat with Brian, who told me he'd like to work in Raffles Place cos he thinks it's such a dynamic place, and the people there are so well-dressed.

I didn't like working at Raffles Place at all, I still don't. No offence to Mel n Joyce, who have their own reasons for stayin put in their job (and that's more important than anything, I think).

As a workplace, Raffles Place is damn damn stifling. And the fact that the people there are really well-dressed is a big part of the reason why it's so suffocating. At one glance, the men are in shirts n ties. Some even don jackets, like it's 20deg cel all year in Singapore. The women have rebonded hair, slim and clad in well-tailored pants or suits. It's scary in a way. Especially during lunch time. These hordes of 'well dressed' persons walk past you and at one point, I wondered how many of them know what they are working for, and I shuddered.

Brian pointed out that there're also the big-bellied and balding uncles. Yes, there are. These are the people who are being made invisible already, by the exact 'dynamic' that was used to describe the place.

It's sooo easy to first feel alienated there, swimming in a sea of people who seemed like they always know where they are heading. Then, in order to feel that you fit in, it's easy to lose your self-identity if you are not careful there. You start to talk like them, modify your image to be like them, wear the things that they wear... You only need to start thinking 'hey, everyone around me does it too..' and get into the comfort of things, jump onto the bandwagon and lo n behold, sucked right into the core of the capitalist spirit.

Fresh logs of fuel added to the fire that consumes ideals, consumes your thoughts, consumes diversity, and gives off fierce flames of non-differentiation, material consumption, single-minded chase of plastic (what with the new 10-dollar notes), every day.

Ok. Before you get really offended by my vision of Raffles Place... I still like the place. But only as a visitor. It's a great place to exercise detachment and make very interesting observations.

Also, I'm not saying everyone who works there has no purpose. I know of people who works very hard (in and out of Raffles Place) 'cos they got to be practical and bring home the loaf. But, see, some of them grab hold of whatever free time they have left to indulge in their hobbies, their other passions in life. I'm not saying we should all be idealistic, even though I think I probably qualify as one. I'm saying we should all keep a good balance. Don't be zombie-fied by work.

On this note, a girl appears in my mind. This girl hangs a rectangle box around her neck, and every lunch time, she walks around OUB Centre, asking for donations for a charity (was it some old folks home?), with all smiles, regardless of how often she's been shunned, brushed aside or rejected. She's probably in secondary school. She told me she and her friends go by shifts. And she feels disheartened occasionally, and just got scolded and accused by an 'uncle', who insisted she's a cheat, that very day. And, she cried while the uncle (what an arsehole...) accused her. But then, she smiled and told me there are still people who care a lot, like this 'angmoh' who dropped a 50-dollar bill into her box while consoling her, and even asked her if that was enough.

I stopped to talk to her that evening cos I remembered seeing her during tea-break. In fact, I saw her very often and I remember her cos she's not your typical student out to do flag-day every Sat (but who sits in Mac, yakking away with friends). And there was an occasion I went down with exact 10 bucks to buy snacks. I apologised that I didn't have change but when I got my stuff and went back to office, she's still there and I gave her all my coins.

I hope she's still there, with her positive attitude, undaunted spirit and sincere eyes and brightening smile in that 'dynamic' and 'well dressed' place named after Raffles.

Posted by 杏 cy （Jancy） at 00:17