2:48 am, Lavender Street, Singapore.
I am extremely exhausted. The soles of my feet are aching because of my shoes' poor arch support, and the fact that one does not get around Singapore other than walking extremely fast from one busy point to another hectic destination. The pace here, especially in a conference, is disturbingly accelerated by rigidly constructed timetables and the unfamiliarity of location or landmarks exacerbates our physical conditions. I have bore the brunt effects of urbanity - my back covered in a sheet of sweat and forehead glistening with perspiration. All of this is, of course, hidden by my now very much worn-out and crumpled suit, away from unsuspecting glances.
The fact of the matter remains that high-stress environments do not ally themselves harmoniously with equally high temperatures. The result of that is a climate of stress and sweat that, for me, increases the threshold of happiness - it makes it that much harder to be content and satisfied here. I even find it harder to be happy.
That or you find the nearest air-conditioned place. Maybe I just have excessive sweat glands or I am not well-suited for this weather. Here, my conscience is embattled - the former argument suggests that perhaps my biological composition has to do with my happiness, which is quite erroneous; the latter argument suggests that perhaps I still can not adapt to my home region's climate, which is equally as outrageous.
Anyway my ramble has a point, it is easy to have many trifles, discomforts and trivialities make us angry and frustrated. I, for one, find it hard to concentrate when I am sweating profusely, my feet hurt or a combination of those plus many other things. It is hard to look past those nagging concerns down the road, and I often complain. But sometimes, just sometimes, I remind myself of the opulence I am immersed in daily and the luxuries already enjoy. Who am I to demand more and on what grounds could I justify my partaking of this rather decadent lifestyle?
I am thousands of miles from my current home, in a suit, wasting productivity in committee session (sorry MUN-ers, it is a noble academic exercise but little more than that), meeting new people but forging rather shallow friendships, not having a worry about the world since my wallet is full and here I am whining about my feet and beads of sweat upon my necklaces upon necklaces of affluence. It does not help to hear others complain about these little things that, when harbored in ones mindset, will be magnified into uncompromising leviathans that just irritate and aggravate us.
All of this will not do. I must stop complaining and suggesting how thing's should be. Criticism will not make things better, nor will excessive, self-righteous comments miraculously change things. I will blog more about my experiences in committee session and activities in Singapore quite soon. Do expect several semi-rants slash comparisons between Malaysia and Singapore; and also how 300 plus people in committees just does not work.
Other than that, I am having a wonderful time in Singapore.
I am extremely exhausted. The soles of my feet are aching because of my shoes' poor arch support, and the fact that one does not get around Singapore other than walking extremely fast from one busy point to another hectic destination. The pace here, especially in a conference, is disturbingly accelerated by rigidly constructed timetables and the unfamiliarity of location or landmarks exacerbates our physical conditions. I have bore the brunt effects of urbanity - my back covered in a sheet of sweat and forehead glistening with perspiration. All of this is, of course, hidden by my now very much worn-out and crumpled suit, away from unsuspecting glances.
The fact of the matter remains that high-stress environments do not ally themselves harmoniously with equally high temperatures. The result of that is a climate of stress and sweat that, for me, increases the threshold of happiness - it makes it that much harder to be content and satisfied here. I even find it harder to be happy.
That or you find the nearest air-conditioned place. Maybe I just have excessive sweat glands or I am not well-suited for this weather. Here, my conscience is embattled - the former argument suggests that perhaps my biological composition has to do with my happiness, which is quite erroneous; the latter argument suggests that perhaps I still can not adapt to my home region's climate, which is equally as outrageous.
Anyway my ramble has a point, it is easy to have many trifles, discomforts and trivialities make us angry and frustrated. I, for one, find it hard to concentrate when I am sweating profusely, my feet hurt or a combination of those plus many other things. It is hard to look past those nagging concerns down the road, and I often complain. But sometimes, just sometimes, I remind myself of the opulence I am immersed in daily and the luxuries already enjoy. Who am I to demand more and on what grounds could I justify my partaking of this rather decadent lifestyle?
I am thousands of miles from my current home, in a suit, wasting productivity in committee session (sorry MUN-ers, it is a noble academic exercise but little more than that), meeting new people but forging rather shallow friendships, not having a worry about the world since my wallet is full and here I am whining about my feet and beads of sweat upon my necklaces upon necklaces of affluence. It does not help to hear others complain about these little things that, when harbored in ones mindset, will be magnified into uncompromising leviathans that just irritate and aggravate us.
All of this will not do. I must stop complaining and suggesting how thing's should be. Criticism will not make things better, nor will excessive, self-righteous comments miraculously change things. I will blog more about my experiences in committee session and activities in Singapore quite soon. Do expect several semi-rants slash comparisons between Malaysia and Singapore; and also how 300 plus people in committees just does not work.
Other than that, I am having a wonderful time in Singapore.
Comments
Post a Comment