OK, so you guys know my life is usually filled with the maniacal cases of drama and excitement. Sometimes I don’t even call for this drama; the drama just comes to me, like in the case of my CCAs, or taxi rides even.
And here it is again. This uncalled drama has descended upon my life again, but this time on a much bigger scale.
MY PARENTS’ ESTATE IS BEING PUT EN-BLOC!
Now, I live in Serangoon Gardens, Porchester Avenue, but that piece of property is actually under the name of my grandma (ownership deeds and all) who is currently living in another part of Singapore. My parents own a HUDC under my father’s name proper, and that’s in the nearby Serangoon North Ave 1, which is like a 20 minute walk away, or 7 minutes if on bus (I timed it once, okay?).
AND NOW…
THAT SERANGOON NORTH AVE 1 estate is going to be reclaimed!
Okay, firstly, I have to disclaim: I don’t know how the hell to use the term, “En Bloc.”
Is it like, “The estate is being PUT en-bloc?”
Or is it like, “The estate is en-bloc?”
Or is it, “The estate is going to BE en-bloc?”
I completely have no idea. Will someone with a proper grasp of this very-Singaporean term please tell me (on my tagboard or MSN) HOW to properly use the word!
Anyway…
So my parents are all torn-up over this decision of whether to let the government take back the land or not. The entire up-and-down block of residents are all in a tizzy as well, and everytime we see each other in lifts it’s always the question of “Whether or not to sell?!”
My mother is considering selling, while I am DEADSET against selling it. My father, however, is still un-aligned.
Usually during the weekdays I’ll come back to THIS house (because the 156 bus stop is nearer to access) but during the weekends I’ll go to Serangoon Gardens (which at first sight, makes not much diff really because they’re so close to each other).
But the main difference is, outside Serangoon North Ave 1, there is this most marvelous field ever, which is like, basically a great plot of grass and soil and little bugs and creatures. And when I come home late at night (or even at 8 pm after training), I walk past this field, and it’s really beautiful and calming because here the stars (and an occasional satellite) can be viewed so clearly.
Not like Pulau Ubin or Colorado Rocky Regions that kind of night-sky-amazing, but like ten stars, individual and stunning, holding their own in the black abyss of night. Plus, here I can view the full moon magnificently.
And sometimes, when I come home early (which is VERY rare, by the way), I’ll watch my Ellen DeGeneres show, and then go down to the field and lie down in the middle of it (trust me, it’s huge, exactly like how you see it in indie films) and just look up at the early evening clouds.
I’m quite sure many others have had experienced the wonderful effects of the field too. People have flown remote-controlled aeroplanes there, Indian dudes have played cricket on its grass, kids have played badminton and flown kites, and it is just somehow understood to all of us that the field is a pristine place, so full of good energy, that everyone just keeps it clean naturally.
There is no litter in the field, except on the very outskirts of the field near the bus-stop, where idiot passers-by drop sweet wrappers and plastic bags occasionally. The field can even be used for ge tai and professional photoshoots.
Though the building itself leaves much to be desired (two people have committed suicide here; one WAAAY long ago, the other only two years back) I really enjoy how on the weekends, people are happy, the area is peaceful, and there is no mad rush of traffic or various other nonsense to disturb that tranquility.
I’m going to let my mother read this post, man.
Anyway, hopefully the other residents don’t vote for selling it. I wouldn’t like to throw nice memories away, and lose one of my sources of contemplation and inspiration just like that.
From what I know, there is also a drama currently showing on Channel 5, called “En Bloc” too, and it’s like Growing Up (which I watched when I was very young, starring Lim Kay Tong and Irin Gan) but modernized. Maybe I’ll get around to watching it if I have the time.
Speaking of modern dramas, you know how much gripe I have about local productions, in specifics the quality of Chinese drama, because it is the only type of production constantly around nowadays.
And can I say how GLAD I am that a good show like “Just in Singapore” has been created?
If you haven’t watched it yet, you’d better soon (next week marks the final 5 eps in the series) and it is full of fun!
Compared to the sappy love stories in the past which are forgettable and uninteresting, Just in Singapore is a new and refreshing representation of life in the poorer areas of our country! Plus, the characters are well fleshed out, not one-dimensional at all, and the acting is superb!
Probably the best actress in the whole show (yes, the WHOLE drama) is Lee Yin Zhu, who plays Auntie Automatic (Zi Dong Sao), this barbaric woman who dominates most of her son Saman’s life (played by the late MC King) and abuses her unassertive daughter-in-law Qianqian both physically and psychologically (though it’s more of the latter).
She is probably the best villian to have come on the TV screen for a long time (the only other memorable villian I can think of was Dong Meiyao’s father in The Unbeatables eons ago) and she plays up that role with more horrendous antics like accusing the nice neighbour Mr. Fang of molesting her just because he refuses to accept her advances, and also mass food-poisoning Indian construction workers nearby! She also suspects her daughter-in-law is having an affair with Ma Zhigang (played by Adam Chen), which is completely not true and makes her character even more evil!
Which brings me to say that the 2nd best actress in the whole show is the girl who plays Qianqian! Apple Hong is amazing! She starts out strong, a good, hopeful girl from Vietnam, but over the course of the drama deteriorates until she nearly dies at the end! We also see many of Zi Dong Sao’s concocted assumed scenarios playing out in Zi Dong Sao’s mind, like the non-existent affair, and how Qianqian stole the 4-D ticket (which she did not), and the best part is that the actress who plays Qianqian can do EVERY single one of those scenarios!
3rd best acting in the whole show is a tie between Huang Wen Yong (an ex-star who now drives a taxi) and Fiona Xie (his daughter with the same yearning to sing). Fiona Xie is TERRIBLY pitiful, with her ambition squashed by her mother (Chen Li Ping) who thinks singing won’t get her anywhere and favors her scheming half-sister A LOT more. She also likes a university film undergraduate who, unfortunately, is being hindered by that scheming half-sister who wants to use the undergrad to get her birth father to acknowledge her.
Speaking of which, that guy who plays the undergrad, Kang Chengxi, can’t act. Seriously. I last saw him with Felicia Chin in that drama about the mobile food van, and his acting was so stiff and dreadful I couldn’t stand any of his scenes. It isn’t much better here.
I only wish the ENDING of the whole thing would be good. The writers of the show have set us up for a great finale, and I only hope they don’t let the viewers down like they did with that dreadful ending on The Golden Path.
Anyway, Singapore Drama is picking up! Not just on TV (and that’s a good thing!) but also in my life (which MAY not be a good thing…)!
Time to get the popcorn, sit back and watch the shows unfold!
P.S. Forget to advert for the show. 9 pm, Channel 8! MUST WATCH!
