I went to visit Channelnewsasia's website today, and saw that a new gigantic shopping mall called "VivoCity" is now open in Singapore. It boasts over a million square feet of shopping space and over 300 stores. When I was back in Singapore early this year, there was not even a hint of a mall. 8 months down the road, the mall is fully operational, and a million shoppers has treaded into the air-conditioned atmosphere of the great edifice.
Nearly 2 years ago, when I came to Perth for studies, the block of land beside the Esplanade Busport was an empty land with construction signs all around it. Today, it has a few extra metal beams, as well as dozens of "ang-moh" construction workers sporting Oakley shades, walking around and taking smoke breaks in general. Progress? The South Street Train Station was slated to be completed this coming November, i.e. next month. However, it still does not look as if it is nearing completion anytime soon. Efficiency? I will take this opportunity to quote a well-known economist, who offered on this topic the golden word, "Pantat!" (M. Taid, 2006), which is translated as "My ass!".
And this brings me back to my initial point. If an angmoh worker gets paid an estimated AUD$25, or SGD$30, while a bangla worker gets paid SGD$6 per hour, economic theory suggests that an angmoh worker should be at least 3 times as efficient. But reality proves that if bangla workers had been hired to work in Australia, I would have found out what exactly they are building beside the Esplanade Busport, and would have been taking the train to Murdoch instead of waiting around for the crummy bus that always comes late and makes me unable to catch the next bus.
And I bet the bangla can finish it with time to spare, perhaps even knock off a prata or two.
In conclusion, I am beginning to feel that perhaps I am in the wrong course. Damn...
Routine matters:
Went early to school today for my dreaded project group meeting. After the discussion, I had to let my partner know that I am disappointed with her for her repeated late submissions, as well as her sub-standard work. She admitted that she didn't perform well at all, before talking about her own problems, etc etc... Then she started to cry.
I froze.
No idea how to react, or even whether I should hang around etc. I just grabbed a couple of serviettes, put it down on the table and beat a hasty retreat. After leaving, I wondered if I was too heartless. But then again, she caused me a substantial amount of problems, especially last week when I myself was feeling depressed, and yet had to do the essay all by myself. Sigh...
Been thinking about this thing all day long, and it's kinda depressing me. Hmm... No idea what I should have done, taking into account everything. Sigh... Feel like a moron...
Teach me what to think