31 days hath march...

31 days ago, a giRaffe never believed it could have such beauty in its life.
It was running away, scared, afraid of hurting, afraid of giving her heart.

But on that day, 31 days ago, giRaffe decided not to be scared any longer, not because it stopped feeling scared, but because it realised that life without at least trying to make its feelings for this being known will be unbearable. giRaffe wanted to have a shot at forever with this being you see.

And 31 days ago, at the stroke of midnight (alright, giRaffe took a bit of poetic license, it wasn't at the stroke of midnight, but near) giRaffe mustered up its courage and its world changed.

giRaffe did not find a perfect being. giRaffe doesn't want a perfect being. But giRaffe found a being it wanted to love for the rest of its life. Not what the being do or does not do; giRaffe wants to love the being, irregardless of what the being does.

31 days isn't a very long time. Things are still honey sweet and rosy coloured in the short span of 31 days. But giRaffe is quite certain, that it did not muster up its courage just for the sake of this short period of honey sweet rose coloured days.

giRaffe had wanted to run away the rest of its life. But giRaffe stopped. Because giRaffe really wanted a lifetime with this special being. Not only the honey sweet and the rose coloured. But every single bit in life, the sweet and the sour, the good and the bad. Because what is more valuable to a giRaffe is the opportunity to grow together with this special being. The opportunity to share moments of their life together. The opportunity to take on the world together.

There will be lots of difficulties, but everything in life worth going for is bound to have difficulties. giRaffe is going to take them on because of the future that giRaffe wants.

And meanwhile, here is to the past 31 days! Cheers!

the rain jinx

giRaffe, having to teach schools which do not have air conditioned classrooms, often tend to explode bucketfuls of sweat every time. Hence giRaffe really does not look forward to bright and sunny weekday afternoons.

At the same time, giRaffe also realised it had a jinx. And that is, it brings the rain along whenever it intends to go sightseeing. For as many holidays as giRaffe could remember, they were all grey and wet.

Finally, giRaffe decided, it shall just pretend it is going to be a tourist, going sightseeing, every time giRaffe has to teach a hot and non-air conditioned school. Since, it tended to rain when giRaffe was going sightseeing.

Well, giRaffe thinks, its hard thoughts paid through.

It finally rained today giRaffe had to teach a hot non-air conditioned school in the middle of the afternoon, and giRaffe got through this afternoon without too much sweats!

From now on, giRaffe is going sightseeing every weekday afternoon, thank you very much.

a giRaffe's heart...

Once upon a time, from within the mists of rain it was so woven, alighted a tiny gem.

Glistening in the sun, she caught a giRaffe's breath and she caught a giRaffe's very scarred, very flawed, very broke and very imperfect little heart.

giRaffe yearned for her, but yet giRaffe dared not. Because a giRaffe isn't a very good giRaffe, not at all. And giRaffe did not want to burden anyone, not especially such a gem-like one, with the horribly imperfect, horribly flawed giRaffe.

giRaffe never ever dreamed, not even in her wildest dreams, that such a gem, would notice a giRaffe. giRaffe never ever imagined, never even dared to hope of such a dream.

And then, this piece of gem, this amazing piece of gem, this lovely wonder, she noticed a giRaffe. A very imperfect, very flawed giRaffe. And she didn't run away, no, she didn't! She wanted a giRaffe! She did, she did!

And she brings a giRaffe out from hiding, she told a giRaffe not to run.
She makes giRaffe smile, she makes giRaffe see the rainbows behind every cloud.
She makes a giRaffe be a better giRaffe than giRaffe ever imagined it could be, because a giRaffe doesn't want to disappoint this amazing gem.
And a giRaffe saw the jewels of the world, all reflected within her beautiful eyes.

She says she is not perfect, but she is to a giRaffe.
She is more than perfect. Because giRaffe doesn't need a saint.
What giRaffe needs is this gem to love, to grow together, yes, and become all the more stronger, for love binds and grows in strength when two grows as one.

She makes giRaffe feel complete, she is giRaffe's most beautiful gem.
And giRaffe wants to do everything to make her gem happy, giRaffe wants to be there for her beautiful gem, giRaffe promises her gem these.

And giRaffe wants to tell her beautiful gem, here is giRaffe's very flawed, very imperfect heart, thank you for accepting it, thank you for loving it, thank you for being giRaffe's beautiful little gem!

giRaffe loves you, Mega!

ugly ugly ugly!!!

This past week of reading the news has made a giRaffe full of very angsty feelings.

At least with Malaysia taking in the shipwrecked survivors, these Myanmar refugees could finally see an end to their long ordeal at sea. But giRaffe couldn't help but be ashamed, extremely ashamed that it calls itself countrymen with these people on this tiny dot of a nation who, with all their hearts, believed that we should not take in these people.

These are a group of people who did nothing wrong except to be born into a group that is being persecuted in their homeland. They wanted a chance of survival. Nothing else but the most basic of survival. And so they took their chance and escaped from the place they should have a right to call their home, but could not. They did not even intend to run to this tiny dot of a nation. But the fishing boat they were on unfortunately sunk and they had no choice but to put their lives in the hands of those who saved them. And this Vietnamese cargo ship which took these survivors in you see, had no idea they would have to save these refugees. The captain of this Vietnamese cargo ship had a load of cargo to carry, and limited resources and they were supposed to dock on this tiny dot of a nation, with the cargo. giRaffe does not blame the captain at all for heading straight to this tiny dot of a nation instead of detouring somewhere else. After all the captain did what he could, saving the lives of these people. Isn't it expecting a bit too much to have the captain turn to somewhere else to put these people down, before sending the cargo back to this tiny dot of a nation again? Who is going to compensate the captain for his loss in time and fuel and resources? Is the captain having to be punished for being kind and picking up these shipwrecked people?

And there are some of giRaffe's fellow countrymen, who could utter things like, our country have no place for you! Do not come here! No entry! These are people who have not even gone hungry or cold or without a roof over their head for a single moment in their protected lives, who could be so selfish as to refuse these people a refuge because they cannot be generous enough to share a little of what they have.

And giRaffe, right now over here, isn't arguing for whether this tiny dot of a nation should or should not accept refugees. giRaffe is just simply, so pissed off with the attitude of some of its fellow countrymen who are so so so so selfish, with hearts that cannot even have the room to sympathise with any other soul except for themselves. These people are so ugly. So so horrifyingly ugly.

And then today giRaffe reads something that carried on fueling its angst.
At the rate things are going, giRaffe may never ever shake of the angst.

MOM says that workers to inform them of any conflicts or unhappiness. There is no need of strikes because they will look into matters when you tell them there is a problem. Then they make it so difficult because you have to apply for this, apply for that, show them official documentation and things. Yes, official documentation is important, but remember, these are a group of workers who may not be very highly educated, who are trying to eke out a living fair and square. These are a group of people who perhaps cannot even read English (which happens to be our official language, and hence the language of official documents), being from places which uses other languages. But that does not mean that they deserve unfairness. Even after reporting to the MOM, what do you get? Well, you get nothing done! Or in many cases including this one, they are being put off and off, and these poor workers being on S-passes now, are like having a time bomb tied to them, and ticking away. Will their cases be happily swept under the carpet just like nothing ever happened once their S-passes expire and these people are sent back home?

And the now stale news of the unfair wages of the SMRT bus drivers.
What makes a giRaffe even more angsty is that there are those who thinks that unequal pay for equal work is acceptable because these people come from a "cheaper" country. There are those who argue that since these workers have decided to come here to work, they have to accept it if we undercut them, if we give them less when we can get away with it.
Do these not count as exploitation? Just because they come to our country to work, deems them as having to accept all of our whims and fancies and whatever shit we decide to give them? Just because they work for us, and they are on our country makes us gods over them?
Yes, these people might get a much lower pay for the same work back in their country, but that is the rate of that work in that country. Not the rate in our country. We are not in the position, remember we are NOT IN THE POSITION to give a certain person less just because they might get less for the same work in their home country because they are working HERE. They are not working in their home country. It is taking advantage of them, exploiting them, not respecting them if we do such things. If you think that we should favour our own people, then by all means hire our own people first and import less foreign workers. Fair and square. Do not hire less of our own people because they require a higher pay and then get a whole lot of foreign workers and claim that we need them (with parentheses inside your head that they come cheaper cheaper cheaper). Hire foreign workers if there are no locals who can fill the jobs, and not because locals or certain other nationalities who can fill the jobs come at a higher price. If certain workers have certain significantly better skills, by all means, pay them more. If others have less, pay them less. Fair and square. Not lump a whole group of workers together as having the same qualities and give them a certain pay, just because they come from the same country.

But there are those who argues that this is the world of business. This is what doing business is. Doing business is not being nice and being fair. Doing business is trying to reap as much profits as you can. Is it? Is that what doing business is? Then defuq with doing business. May all who do businesses this way rot in hell. May your businesses rot in hell too.

giRaffe does not believe in scolding vulgarities because there are always ways of expressing oneself clearly without vulgarities. But giRaffe has to scold them here, now, because vulgarities are what these people are fit to receive. Yes, that is how much giRaffe hates this sort of ugliness in people.

There are many things that giRaffe detests. Violence, cruelty, disrespect, the list goes on. And among them, unfairness and selfishness ranks very very high up on the list. Unfairness to others. Unfairness when you know it, and you still perpetuate it purposely. Selfishness when you see people who need help but you turn a blind eye. Because you think, that does not concern you and in helping you might get a share, of what you should have, less. Selfishness because you are afraid of sharing even a tiny bit of what you have with the less fortunate, the less privileged.

And these few weeks have been so full of ugly ugly selfishness and unfairness taunting giRaffe in the face. Our little dot of a nation has an entire literate population, even one of the highest percentages of those with tertiary qualifications and above. But what sort of education is this when it does nothing to ensure the magnanimity of our hearts! It is so so so so ugly!

another giant *facepalm*

S'pore can't go down 'red vs blue' path: PM Lee

Another facepalm moment reading this that giRaffe just have to share.

giRaffe has to make it clear first, this has got nothing to do with whether giRaffe supports the red or the blue. giRaffe is simply responding to the facepalm-ness of our dear PM's arguments.

"We have tried to make sure that all our constituencies are about the same colour … because we want all the constituencies to share the same interests. Then we can think together and when you represent Singapore, you represent the whole of Singapore."

Ok, the last time giRaffe checked, our pledge was still the same one.

We, the citizens of Singapore,

pledge ourselves as one united people,

regardless of race, language or religion,

to build a democratic society

based on justice and equality

so as to achieve happiness, prosperity and

progress for our nation.

Correct giRaffe if it is wrong, but the fourth line means that we are still a democracy right?
Uh, what happened to democracy here in our dear PM's words?
According to the UN Global Summit of 2005, "democracy is a universal value based on the freely expressed will of people to determine their own political, economic, social and cultural systems and their full participation in all aspects of their lives" (United Nations Official Document of Resolution Adopted by the General Assembly [on the report of the third committee (A/64/439/Add.2 (Part II)), p. 30)
Based on our dear PM's words, it would seem that it is the ruling party who is determining what the political, economic, social and cultural systems should be rather than the other way round? Hmmm, help giRaffe out here, but it sounds terribly like an oligarchy does it not?

It is the PAP's responsibility to help to lead the discussion together with Singaporeans to persuade them to "see things more like the way we do and to be able to see things in a constructive way which makes sense for themselves and for Singapore"

giRaffe reads only one word...brainwashing brainwashing brainwashing.
Are we the citizens really so dense we need the ruling party to help us see things to make sense? Perhaps we are if we believe this statement of the PM. No, they want us to see things "more like the way we do". Ah ha! Caught you here. Words out from the horse's mouth. See things more like the way YOU do eh?

"I think that we have to reflect everybody's aspirations and dreams but if we are just hao hao xian sheng (Mandarin for 'Mr Nice Guy') - whatever people say, we agree with them - I think we will fail."

giRaffe thinks, our dear PM has been barking up the wrong tree all along. Or is it because he is afraid to delve deeply into the correct one?
The citizens (at least giRaffe believes the majority) do not simply want a ruling party who is a Mr Nice Guy. The citizens want a ruling party who cares about the people, who tries to solve the people's problems, who runs the country not like running a factory and trying to make the most profit out if it and then measuring the success based on the profits, but who runs the country with a heart. Yes, having a wonderful GDP is awesome, but that is only one of the many many many many many things in a country, yes?
Our voices, our cries for help, is genuine. It is not simply a spoilt brat wanting everything on the plate.

And whether the Government is able to be decisive depends on whether the population accepts that the Government is doing things for the good of Singapore and Singaporeans, as well as trusts that its "hearts are in the right place", he noted. "If you don't have that, the Government is saying 'Charge!'; nobody is following. I think you have serious trouble," he said.

giRaffe is not sure why the PM is so worried that we cannot choose what is good for us. giRaffe thinks that it is very sad if more than 60% of the people here placed their faith in the last election on a party who doesn't have faith on the citizens.
Please do not worry, PM, if your hearts are in the right place, have faith that the citizens will choose the better candidates. Only worry if your hearts are not in the right place, yes?

" If we didn't have to make choices and tradeoffs, we will just have a menu, I just take out all the things I like - more relaxed life, a higher standard of living, more space, more income, more overseas holidays - and you just tick off and it will be delivered to you. And if you have oil gushing out of the ground like some countries do, you can tick off quite a lot of things and you will get your dinner,"

Every single time giRaffe hears or reads these press statements that these Men In White make, it makes giRaffe think of a teacher setting certain questions for the exam, but this student who writes pages for the answer, but never really answers the question. What can the teacher do but believe that the student has never understood his work all along or cannot grasp the language well enough to understand the question. What can the teacher do but give the student a fail grade?

How many times must the people scream, we are not asking for the impossible. We are not asking for the sky. All we are asking is the improvement of some basic necessities that while certainly costs something, but isn't impossible. Yes, there are some crazy chaps who whines and every little thing and demands the impossible, but the majority are just reasonable people trying to get by. And for one last time, GDP is great, but it is not everything. Yes? It is not everything. IT IS NOT EVERYTHING YOU USE TO MEASURE HOW WONDERFUL A COUNTRY IS. ok?

This is absolutely not the bashing of any political party. Because any person from any red, blue, green, white, purple, whatever party it is, who spouts such things, ought to get a giant *facepalm* from a giRaffe. And this post is simply a giRaffe explaining to you, what the *facepalm* is all about.

of the 2 weeks where giRaffe ate enough meat to last it a lifetime...

giRaffe isn't one who would rush around all the tourist attractions when it travels. Yes, giRaffe certainly has to visit some of the more famous attractions, but what draws a giRaffe to plod all over the world is not the attractions; they attract a giRaffe only if they tell something about the culture, the society, or the history of the place (just think of the "attractions" of our little dot of a nation - the casino; the fake gardens which houses not even our own flora but flora from other parts of the world; the zoo, the bird park, which are very good constructions in themselves but you can plant them in any other part of the world, they would stand just as well as they would here, doesn't tell you much about our culture or our society, the Universal Studios, which is a wonderful creative construction, but once again, what does it tell you about the culture and the society? You can plant Universal Studios in any part of the world, as long as someone is rich enough to construct it - so blegh to them all). What draws a giRaffe is the people and the real everyday lives of the people living in all the different parts of the world.

So this past 2 weeks that a giRaffe spent on the other side of the world in which it sat cooped up on a tiny seat in the flying machine for more than 24 hours to get to, giRaffe managed to see a grand total of ONE tourist attraction (which unfortunately happened to be a misty day then and giRaffe couldn't even get a decent picture and had to buy postcards instead).

But giRaffe spent these 2 weeks living in the midst of the people in the land of coffee and BBQ meat and giRaffe was more gratified than if it had seen a clear view of the ONE tourist attraction it had been to or visited all the attractions and done all the touristy activities that could be done there.

Because when you get the chance to share a little glimpse of another being's life, you realise that your way of living may be just one in an infinite array of possibilities of living. You realise that what may be highly valued to some individuals may not be the desire of some other individuals at all. You realise that the dreams of some many be so different from the dreams of yet others.

Because when you get the chance to peer a little into someone else's heart, you realise that what you might at first think is unattractive could offer some other lures to another individual, lures which had eluded you all along, until you opened up your mind. You realise that what you thought would be impossible to live in/with/at/as, is in fact not that hard to adapt to because there are things which make it even better than what you were living with.

Because when you get the chance to open up your mind and your heart, you realise that the world is an infinite range of possibilities. You realise that there are so many things that you never ever could imagine, no matter how good an imagination you have. And then, you realise that, in the midst of all these differences, human beings are actually very amazing creatures. Red and yellow, black and white, we all all in fact similar inside, all with dreams and aspirations, with hopes and desires, and with the capacity to love one another.

And so giRaffe loves travelling and sharing bits of other beings lives around the world because every single time, it reminds a giRaffe anew, of humanity.

of the sanctity of life...

Ok, there has been enough arguments on the mandatory death penalty already.

giRaffe isn't going to talk about the rights and wrongs of the death penalty (giRaffe believes no one has the right to take any other person's life, for any reason whatsoever), or the usefulness of the death penalty (there has never been any substantiated evidence that it acts as a more effective deterrent than any other forms of punishment), or if the new changes to the death penalty is a change for the positive or otherwise (it would appear that one who is in the know, but helps the state by providing information will get away with the death penalty whereas one who is totally ignorant, and hence is unable to provide any useful information, will get the death sentence).

No, giRaffe is here to question the other inconsistent thing happening in our legal system.
You see, here on our tiny dot of a nation, it is against the law to commit suicide, and one who has committed suicide will have their corpse handcuffed; one who attempts suicide can be imprisoned for up a one year under the Singapore Penal Code(Cap 224, Rev Ed 2008), section 309.

giRaffe is not here to argue if it is right or wrong to take one's own life. giRaffe has no answer for that. But you see, people who try to take their own lives usually do so because they see their future as way too bleak and they cannot stand the prospect of facing more sadness or hopelessness or helplessness anymore and they are not trying to harm any other living being and if it is against the law to take one's own life, not harming any other living being, what makes it legal for anyone to take another person's life? If we were to be consistent, then won't those judges who have sentenced someone to death have to be imprisoned or something?