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Tea with AK71: Pillarised.

Saturday, July 31, 2010

What is "pillarised"? I would be surprised if such a word existed. It is just a word that happened to pop into my head as my car had a close encounter with a pillar in the carpark this afternoon in Burlington Square.  That building has to have one of the most badly designed carparks in Singapore! One particular turn near the exit ramp was very tight.  Anyway, that's where my car's passenger door got "pillarised".  Sob.

I usually drive well and I have survived even the most claustrophobic of HDB carparks.  So, this accident was a bit of a shock for me.  Talking to a friend when I reached home, he suggested that my car is too big. Too big? It's a Mazda 6! Imagine if I were driving a Mazda CX-7! Although my car is turning five in less than two months, mechanically, it is still in good condition. Change my car? I admit that it is a tempting thought but it is probably not financially prudent to do so.

However, a customer recently told me that the COE price is probably going to increase month after month because less vehicles are being scrapped.  This would mean that prices of cars would keep climbing. He said if anyone wants to buy a new car, it is now! Where is my chequebook?!

Then, talking to my mom after the "pillarising" experience, she suggested that I wait a couple of days and if I really want to get a new car, do it.  My mom is basically being very rational and hinting to me not to be impulsive, I'm sure. Cool down and think clearly. I just damaged my car. Do I want to damage my chequeing account too?

I took a shower and felt a bit better.  I went downstairs, washed my car and decided that I could live with the damage for another few years. Yes, you guessed it.  I don't think I will fix the dent and scratches although my dad might insist that I do.  Will see.

Usually, I could manage very tight turns but there were too many things on my mind today and I was kind of distracted.  Like I commented in one of my posts lately, work has been stressful. So, what is it about work that is stressful? Workload stress, I can handle but stress due to certain transgressions by people, I don't handle very well. It is the latter that has been bothering me in the last few days. People trying to take advantage of people and people not playing by the rules.


money love Pictures, Images and Photos

We could probably rationalise it in so many ways but it almost always boils down to money.  Radix malorum est cupiditas.  The love of money is the root of all evil.  How true.  Many will do so many things just for money, including creating trouble for other people.  It really gets to me.  Well, they don't say it is a dog eat dog world for no reason, right? Right.

Unfortunately, some of us have the thankless task of policing people. It is worse when we have a conscience! The task is not so distasteful if we were able to punish the transgressors, ensuring they would not do the same things again. It is when we are not able to do anything more than issuing warnings that it gets irksome. Imagine a toothless dog guarding a home. You get the idea.

If we keep doing the same things the same way, things will never change. So, what do we do? Make plans to change the way things are done or make plans to do different things. I know we might not have a choice sometimes but if we have a choice, we should remember that we have only one life to live and we owe it to ourselves to live it well.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Don't know whether you can read Chinese. Just share with you a famous Chinese phrase 不以物喜,不以己悲. Take it easy.

AK71 said...

Hi Anonymous,

I can guess the meaning of the words. Thanks for consoling me. Very nice of you. :)

The car has quite a few knocks here and there already. However, this is probably the worst. I will get over it soon. I am more concerned about my work and what I might have to do next week. Sigh.

Have a good weekend. :)

AK71 said...

This is from a bright young man, Nick, whom I got to know in Bully the Bear's cbox:

"Pillarisation (verzuiling in Dutch) is a term used to describe the denominational segregation of Dutch and Belgian society."

He found it in Wiki. Someone beat me to coining this word! ;p

PanzerGrenadier said...

Hi AK71

I dented my then three month old car when I was also very preoccupied and distracted by issues at home. The car is now 2 years 5 months old and I've long since forgotten about it though it took me about two weeks to get over the "heart pain". :-)

My mother remarked that one should generally drive when one is in a positive or neutral frame of mind. When one is in a negative frame of mind or are distracted, that's when such small accidents happen.

Work sucks typically due to people. I wish you all the best in managing the work situation and just remember that you can only do so much to influence outcomes and not to beat yourself up too much if things don't go well even when you have given your all!

Be well and prosper.

AK71 said...

Hi Panzer,

I am sorry to hear about the accident you had with your brand new car then. Did you repair it?

Your mom's advice is sound and I have read it somewhere else before as well. I must try to remember this. Well, looking on the bright side, at least no one was hurt. :)

Thanks for the advice regarding work. Yes, I know what you are saying but I just can't help it. Only human, right? Will try to be more ZEN about things. Thanks again! :)

jason said...

Hello AK71, i only understand your sentiments and predicaments too well.. office politicians are everywhere! If we continue in the same vein everyday and expect a different result, then we are insane. How i long to punish the transgressors but alas, they are "protected" by a higher being! (or in this case, the powers that be in the office) So, these days i just "see open" (chinese) and let it be. No point getting worked up right? Maybe pray hard for the transgressors to get retribution? hahah
Relax lah fellow pig!

AK71 said...

Hi Jason,

We're the same age? That makes me smile for no particular reason. :)

I experience very little office politics, thankfully. Mostly, I have to deal with politics between customers and how some customers don't play by the rules and keep to agreements. Yup, you guessed it. Our company sells to resellers.

I long for the day when I retire and do not have to deal with people in a work environment anymore.

Anyway, I will have to deal with the issue tomorrow. It has caused me sleepless nights and a badly dented car. I will try not to think about it for what is left of my weekend.

I just bought a new car today and just blogged about it! Makes me happy. :D

Thanks for visiting and the encouragement. Always a pleasure hearing from you. :)

jason said...

hahaha, i was quite surprised when you made such an impetuous decision to buy the car! :P
One really does get irrational when in the showroom after a test drive! I remember the 1st car i bought - 2nd hand, walked right in and within an hour signed the cheque without even test drive!?! How mad is that!?! Its a good thing you don need to deal with office politics daily. Such a pain!
But more importantly, ENJOY the new car!! Woot!

AK71 said...

Hi Jason,

I am always surprising people by making snap decisions in buying stuff. Maybe there is something wrong with me. Haha.. ;)

You bought a car without even test driving? Now, that is amazing! :D

Well, it is not certain that I will have the car. If Mazda is not able to deliver by end of August, I get to cancel the whole deal and get my money back but I would rather have the car. It would be my first "cute" car. ;p


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