Digging up Dirt

Another article about flight stewardesses.

This one is apparently a disclosure of a certain Mindy who's been flying with the airline for gawd knows how long. It purportedly paints most stewardesses as gals with eating disorders, chain smokes, dates pilots and pinch company items.

I take a personal umbrage to that! It seems that people working as cabin crew( that includes males as well) are never painted in a good light. How about those who volunteer almost all their days off to the elderly, the intellectually disabled? Then there are those who are training other volunteers to act as ambassadors to the coming IOC delegates? Some are working their way through an MBA, whilst flying around tending to spoilt Singaporeans 40,000 Ft up in the air. I know of many who are very caring parents who bring up their children to be respectful and courteous to others, filial sons/daughters who never fail to bring their parents on holidays using their own money, not to mention those that have the physical attributes to make it as an athlete. Heck, some of them even have to decency to clear their own trays after a meal at fast food restaurants.

Back to Mindy, whom you can read about in TNP Sunday. She says she likes to eat, a lot. Honey, you gotta work off what you put in la. Fine and well if you can wolf down 3 full meals in one sitting, but please, exercise la. For a 24 yr old you still don't realize that exercise and diet is the best way to stay trim? Starve yourself? That's just being plain lazy!

Smoking is still legal here the last time I checked. You don't have to smoke to "click so well" with your colleagues. In fact, if you are a nice person, everyone will click well with you, smoker or not.

Marrying a pilot? You had an abortion once (probably impregnated by a pilot that you seem so smitten with) , had an affair with a married one, and have no qualms with going out with an older guy (most pilots I know average around 35). I'm sorry honey, in their heads you're just another expensive "bicycle".

And please don't tell me all you take off the plane is some cartons of juice. How about cartons of milk, soya bean drink, ice cream, cokes/7-ups, biscuits, cheese, fashion magazines, soft toys meant for children on board that you horde before giving them out? Hey, you like to date pilots, don't they have the dough to shell out a couple of bucks for your juice? Or are they as cheap as you are? In which case, you're not much better off with them than with any average joe, are you?

Just my two cents worth.

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Speaking of dirt, when was the last time you thanked the aunty/uncle who cleans up your table when you sit down in the coffeeshop? Or talked to a toilet attendant like he was a human being? Ever wondered if they have been looked down?

I like to sit at my coffeeshop downstairs to read my papers. The atmosphere is buzzing, I have my favourite cup of 'Teh', and if I get bored I just people watch. The cleaners there are polite, and go about their duties with diligence. I like to flash them a smile, say "kam sia/xie xie" whenever they help to clear up the table that I'm seated at.

Imagine the day, if you will, when they declare that all cleaners get a compulsory holiday throughout the island. It just has to be 24hrs, but I suspect that you can already imagine the amount of dirty dishes, litter, and garbage that'll pile up by the mid of the day. Dammit, we'd have a bio-hazard on our hands if not for them cleaners who work in the background.

So next time someone cleans up after your lazy self, at least smile and say," kam sia hor aunty/uncle." la hor?