My Longkang

I was invited out by friends last night for a drink. Instead of the usual Rest and Relax ( R&R ) or Green Pub we met at a coffee shop near Dewan Suarah and had some Chinese tea.

It was husbands and fathers night. Every body was married and had children and was deeply worried. They were worried about balancing the cash account every month. Every body was wondering where to cut the fats and luxuries from their lives. With housing loans and car loans to cover, the task was daunting. Two wheelers are dangerous when ferrying around more than one child. It doesn’t help that one of my friend’s wife is pregnant.

Everything is expected to go up across the board. The latest being the bus sekolah fees. People living in the rural areas are even harder hit. Generator usage has been cut down. Children have less hours to study at night. Even a boat journey to school has now become an expense not to be trifled with and the prices at the rural areas are going up, up and up. It is no wonder many people are worried.

Don lamented the fact no local politician has even made a token protest against the government for the hike in petrol prices. This brought gales of laughter when Andy told him politicians can afford higher prices so why should they protest? He suggested ( Don ) run for election then :)

Mr Wong sighed and said he is considering stopping tuition classes for his kids. This caused a momentary lull in the conversation. Mr Wong is a first degree kiasu fellow. He would do anything for his kids’ education. We knew he had scraped bottom. He was speaking from somewhere deep in his heart. He had given up.

Travel, vacations etc were never part of our lives nor were fancy meals at fancy restaurants. Newspaper subscriptions were out too. A luxury. New clothing and anything beyond the three basic meals per day was considered a luxury. One person commented he would not buy any more work books recommended by the school. He would photostat them from somewhere for his kids.

Retail outlets are noticeably quiet after the Gawai holidays and shops are experiencing a drop in demand for luxury goods. There are still some people window shopping but they are looking for bargains before the prices rise again.

Meanwhile crowds are rushing to Sing Kwong to buy this cooking oil. It is sold at a discount and is limited to one bottle per unit family.

I cooked this meal for the whole day but Benghui finished it all even before Mrs BB has had her lunch. I need to cook more for every meal now that he is growing and this means more expenses at the market place Any body wants to give me a food subsidy?