Sunday, 18 December 2011
黃乙玲 台北Sayonara (We may be a red dot; but we don't have to be parochial)
Besides 江蕙, 黃乙玲 is my 2nd twin tower in Hokkien pop. Lots of 黃乙玲's songs resonate with me.
Listening to this 台北Sayonara, it reminded me of the busloads of Malaysian factory workers that vacillate between our customs check-points every day...
How lucky we are as Singaporeans!? We have one major life's decision less to make compared to other citizens from bigger countries.
That is: Which city should we choose to begin our career?
The moment a Malaysian with big dreams has left school, I guess he/she has to decide whether to relocate to KL or Singapore...
Same for a Mainland Chinese - he/she has to agonise over whether it's Beijing, Shanghai, or Shenzhen...
An American who is interested in a career Fashion or Finance will choose New York. Aspire a career in Technology? It will be Silicon Valley! How about making it big in TV and the Movies? Hollywood beckons...
Each year, there will be 2 traffic flows into these cities of dreams: Dreamers flocking in like moths to the flame with fearless passion, and realists flowing out of these cities like leaves returning to their roots...
We Singaporeans are indeed "luckier". But there's a trade-off...
Overtime, we tend to think "defence" and may become parochial in our outlook.
Instead of seeing ourselves as dragon-riders who can overcome the straits of water enclosing our little red-dot - to seek the rainbows of our dreams - we are contented to becoming the biggest python-rider locally. Using the straits of water instead as a "moat"...
Can you imagine New York or Shanghai limiting the flow of talent onto their shores?
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hi, but as the gen x n y grows up, the system in singapore has given us too much spoon feeding that makes alot of us content with a easy life. thus not many are willing to leave the comfort zone to go after their dreams.
ReplyDeletesai8621
That's how PAPAYA stays in POWER "FOREVER" - Social Engineering. Then why do you think the Taiwanese has pronounce Sinkees as the 4Ks people? And like a headless chicken too.
ReplyDeleteHello sai8621 and anon 4:56,
ReplyDeleteIt's about what do we do once we have the "awareness".
ALL countries engage in Social Engineering of some sort.
Countries play survival of the fittest too ;)
I am a cheerleader of looking within and taking personal responsibility - just like my forefathers who took action and emigrated to Singapore (instead of complaining).
To each his own. I merely ringing the bell of my own personal experience :)
I often look at myself these days and reflect on my earlier choices. Another thing I do a lot is look at my older colleagues and observe how unhappy they are.
ReplyDeleteI realise that I won't make it big working under others because of certain flaws in me. And also out of interest, I'm teaching myself to trade.
I got nothing against letting in immigrants, but there's got to be integration. And it takes both sides to want to do this together, the locals and the immigrants.
On a side note, looking forward to return of M-cup next year. Hope it'll bring out the Lion roar again!
Yes sm@ll.fry!
ReplyDeleteLet the Kallang roar be heard again!
I missed the "amateur" football of the 70s! Soccer greats like Quah Kim Song, Rajahgopal, Dollar Kassim, Edmund Wee - that's diversity for you!
We played better when there's nothing but plain old passion and simple love for the game!