Friday, August 21, 2009
THEN and NOW
Hello, hello,
Three scores and six years ago, I went about barefooted. I climbed trees; I plucked and I ate guava. I poked a cassava stem into the earth and I planted it; I pulled out a mature one and I ate tapioca. I went out onto the seabed at low tide; I hunted crabs and fish and I ate seafood. I dug near the sea shores; I picked clams and the like and I enjoyed eating tuathaus. I had fighting fish and fighting spiders; I played spinning tops and I sport fighting kites, and space was free.
I had fruits and vegetables from the land, I had seafood from the sea, I had my skin toughened by the sun and I quenched my thirst with the rain. And I played freely.
We went freely to Johore Bahru; we ate chilly crabs at the HongKong restaurant; and we strolled about their Merdeka Park. We fetched foreign guests to visit the Haw Par Villas, the Botanic Gardens and the Kranji Memorial Cemetery. We searched for favourite hawker stalls and we ate C&G meals. C&G means cheap and good. We had open air satay and we had roadside steamboats. We just parked our cars and we ate thereby.
We can camp and sleep by the seaside provided we have obtained a permit. We can fish at the Bedok Jetty, but we cannot use nets nor boats. We cannot play badminton outdoors, because the grounds are in mounds and troughs. We have fruit trees in all the estates, but it is an offence to pluck the fruits.
We can visit neighbours, but we would not want to disturb them. We have companions close by, but we would rather talk on the handphone. We have high-earning childen, but they do not have time for us.
We have our Sentosa Island; we will have the Integrated Resorts; and we will have the Marina Sands. We can visit these places and enjoy their attractions. And we can gamble at the casinos, provided we pay a S$100 entrance fee. We have this and we have that, and we pay dearly to be there.
We have the Durians, we can enjoy operas, concerts and other performances. We have the CTE and the PIE, the KJE and the KPE, the AYE and the ECP, and we have the Circle and the PAP.
What ain't we got, we have got G S T .
WATMOU1
Ron
NotaBene: GST = Generous Surviving Tax = to help the poor !
Nostalgia: South Pacific = movie, Seasons in the Sun = song.
If we cannot remember, never mind.
If we do remember, maybe no good.Three scores and six years ago, I went about barefooted. I climbed trees; I plucked and I ate guava. I poked a cassava stem into the earth and I planted it; I pulled out a mature one and I ate tapioca. I went out onto the seabed at low tide; I hunted crabs and fish and I ate seafood. I dug near the sea shores; I picked clams and the like and I enjoyed eating tuathaus. I had fighting fish and fighting spiders; I played spinning tops and I sport fighting kites, and space was free.
I had fruits and vegetables from the land, I had seafood from the sea, I had my skin toughened by the sun and I quenched my thirst with the rain. And I played freely.
What hadn't I got, I hadn't got MONEY !
Two scores and four years ago, I was gainfully employed. I drove a Fiat 600D. I paid income tax. I contributed a dollar for a brick monthly to build the Singapore General Hospital, likewise the National Library. A dollar could buy quite a number of bricks then.We went freely to Johore Bahru; we ate chilly crabs at the HongKong restaurant; and we strolled about their Merdeka Park. We fetched foreign guests to visit the Haw Par Villas, the Botanic Gardens and the Kranji Memorial Cemetery. We searched for favourite hawker stalls and we ate C&G meals. C&G means cheap and good. We had open air satay and we had roadside steamboats. We just parked our cars and we ate thereby.
We dropped by and we chatted, we gathered and we had barbecue, we had booze and we used to toast; we had Auld Lang Syne.
We had company, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun. We had the means, we had the style and we had cheers. We spent and we had our savings.
What hadn't we got, we hadn't got WEALTH.
Today, we have fully matured and we are not pecuniarily employed. We live on our savings and we watch our budget. We have our Senior Citizen concession pass; and we can travel on any MRT and SBS transport for less than 70 cents per trip, from start to stop. We pay to visit places of education and interest. We pay to pass the expressways and roads. We have to be very careful of the start and stop times of the ERP gantries.We had company, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun. We had the means, we had the style and we had cheers. We spent and we had our savings.
What hadn't we got, we hadn't got WEALTH.
We can camp and sleep by the seaside provided we have obtained a permit. We can fish at the Bedok Jetty, but we cannot use nets nor boats. We cannot play badminton outdoors, because the grounds are in mounds and troughs. We have fruit trees in all the estates, but it is an offence to pluck the fruits.
We can visit neighbours, but we would not want to disturb them. We have companions close by, but we would rather talk on the handphone. We have high-earning childen, but they do not have time for us.
We have our Sentosa Island; we will have the Integrated Resorts; and we will have the Marina Sands. We can visit these places and enjoy their attractions. And we can gamble at the casinos, provided we pay a S$100 entrance fee. We have this and we have that, and we pay dearly to be there.
We have the Durians, we can enjoy operas, concerts and other performances. We have the CTE and the PIE, the KJE and the KPE, the AYE and the ECP, and we have the Circle and the PAP.
What ain't we got, we have got G S T .
WATMOU1
Ron
NotaBene: GST = Generous Surviving Tax = to help the poor !
Nostalgia: South Pacific = movie, Seasons in the Sun = song.
# posted by chunmu @ 6:24 PM 
