Q

I like work.

Not as much as I like freedom, but freedom takes on a whole new dimension now that I’m employed. Granted, I chose a job that was flexible and the most similar to my usual (holiday) routine (walking about, thinking, making strange observations about people), but the days I’m free are wonderful. My productivity level for everything has gone up by at least thrice as much. It’s contrary, I know. But.

Since work started I’ve been borrowing things off public libraries so fast my card can’t take anymore and I’m considering upgrading to Premium. And I have a bunch of books I bought that’s laying there unread because I have to clear off borrowed ones (which will never happen at the constant rate I’m getting and returning them). The only regret is that I can’t finish them in one sitting, which is how I like my reading done. Also I keep intentionally/unintentionally? borrowing sapphic novels I DON’T KNOW WHY but they are really good.

Work requires lots of walking (Celine’s 10km walk around Waterfront when she did roaming shifts) so I’ve abandoned my weekly jogs and will just stick to swimming, which means -> MORE TIME FOR OTHER NONSENSE. Other nonsense being food and criminal minds and art and music and d&d and shopping.

This is the result of having a group of friends who’re as enthusiastic about most every retarded idea as you are.

So after the very, very successful Free Comic Book Day spree (where we wandered to Paradigm Infinitum at Midpoint Orchard, of all outlets – the most obscure tiny shop literally in the middle of everything else, like a hidden away Diagon Alley). It was great because unlike other stores, Pi (yes, 3.142.. obnoxious geekery going on here) actually had a pile (did I say pile? because I mean a MOUNTAIN) of comics and they very subversively ignored the 10 per rule and decided to let us take back as many as we wanted. AS MANY AS WE WANTED (or at least as many as we could carry).

The five of us stood around the table for more than an hour with these few hardcore nerds (they were like the Asian version of Big Bang Theory, I’m serious) playing Comic Book Jenga. All of us lugged home at least 70 comics. I have only read 5 out of them all… ALTHOUGH. Although this is because I’m midway through this bigass Star Trek TOS collection. Which can never be as good as the TV series just saying.

To extend the geekdom, we’ve decided to have Game Night, and the game we’ve chosen is… Dungeons & Dragons! With Celine as DM. I vaguely remember having played this in Primary School, Celine DM-ing. That was back in the days we spent after school hours play-acting EVERY. SINGLE. SCENE. In Harry Potter. VERBATIM. In the school yard in full view of everyone. Wow. I can’t tell if I was brave or just an extreme loser.

Beni, Xin and I, in a bid to be more productive members of the society, raped an arts supply store one day and started this thing where we’d share (and by share we just mean Whatsapp) each other our art pieces and meet up and do art so we don’t ferment and grow into moldy adults. It is KIND OF working out… We’ve yet to actually meet but we’re doing art. And by god are my friends talented. I’m pre-employing them to decorate my room walls in the future. My output is pretty good on free days, one sketch per day SAY WHUUUT. Which. Is something after half a year of nothing.

We’ve also been kind-of-ish doing art at Gloria’s theater workplace. It’s mostly paper mache and sculpting cloaks and glue-gunning and sewing (YES, I CAN SEW. Pretty well at that) life-sized models, but it’s really, really therapeutic. And they have great waffles there.

Rei, Cel and I are also (SOON) (SOMEDAY) (PROMISED) gonna start on our String Trio where we have jamming sessions (proper ones not the half-drugged random choir-uke ensemble in porches) where we will be brilliant and serious business with our harmonizing and shit.

I’m actually pretty proud of us and our productive projects.

And the shopping. Which I justify with the fact that I now have WAGES. WAGES!!! FREE MONEY!!! In a way. So after work I’d go out and spend a bunch on clothes and food and realize I’ve spent more than a day’s worth of salary. And feel sheepish and sign up for more working days and the cycle repeats. I am a joke. Although end-July would be The Great Bangkok Spree with Beni and Cleo so I shall consciously put aside cash for until then.