Is it life or the rat race?

I read an interesting article today about someone seeking to break away from the rat race that his predecessors have been doing the past two generations.

This also set me thinking about my children's generation and what will they b doing with their lives. Baby boomers like myself n husband have worked hard all these years n managed to build reserves for our old age. My children are therefore lucky unlike others as they do not need to provide for their aging parents in future.

So how many youngsters are like them ? Many have to struggle for a living for themselves, their future n current families. They must work hard to build their warm nest!

At least I told my children that they have the chance to live the lives that they want without being too caught up with the rat race. They can afford to drop out n pursue simple pleasures in life without starving . Isn't life about simple pleasures ? Being happy n contented should b the key.

Material wants n needs won't bring happiness to the soul ! It's all in the minds so as long as u do not have the endless n mindless need to "ape the jones" life a simple n unfettered life.

Hope my children will enjoy the process of living fully without all the stresses.

Have fun girls!

Retirement

Recently I read many articles about many singaporeans not having enough savings for their retirement etc. There are also articles about the sandwiched class n the middle income group who are suffering in this high cost country .

Personally I empathize with all these n agree that certain circumstances may cause certain groups of people to be disadvantaged in society . But I still believe that whether u are a high , middle or low wage earner, living within your own means is the singular most important criteria to determine your personal wealth .

Therefore prudent financial management of whatever wealth u have or may not have will determine your future personal life style. If u do not have the capabilities then don't live beyond your means like buying that expensive car , that private condo n that luxurious bags or suits. Sad to say that many young couples are caught pursuing these material needs n do not practise prudent savings.

I remembered our initial married years, when we kept a financial legend detailing our income n expenses n monitored our savings throughout. Lucky for us , we both belonged to the thrifty kind n we seldom indulge in expensive tastes material wants. So after nurturing two grown up ladies n years of good financial management, we have accumulated enough for our old age. Only now then we pamper ourselves with holidays abroad n occasional spending on good food n luxurious items.

We are also lucky to be blessed with relatively good health unlike some who are burdened by huge medical expenses. On the other hand I also believe that health is in our hands and we should learn to live a healthy lifestyle so as to protect our most important wealth - HEALTH.

To all my fellow singaporeans,it is still not too late to start your financial planning and do make sure that your children are taught good money from that young age.

Stop Loss

Have just returned from a cruise trip to phuket n Penang.

After a few days on the cruise with all the free meals, I've piled on some kilos but unfortunately lost some money on the casino table.

Since the start of the dragon year my money luck has not been so good n according to my Chinese zodiac I should b more careful with my finances this year. So better b safe than sorry so I must mind my financial matters strongly this year.

Having said that I stopped playing at the ship casino immediately when I lost money n told myself that losing less is like winning since I get to keep my money .

However my observation on the cruise is that there are many aunties n uncles who lost their entire cash during the trip n even ended up having to tear open their ang pow money to place a stake. This is what I called compulsive addiction to gambling. Unfortunately the temptation is high n that's why the likes of mbs n genting r reaping obscene profits from these people.

Gambling should just remain as a form of entertainment n not to b indulged in. There must be a stop loss just like investing when u tell yourself that it's time to stop gambling when u have lost certain set amount.

U must b in control of your senses n faculty n know when to retreat. Heard that some old aunties n uncles have lost their homes n its a pity that they become depressed n desolate due to such addiction .

Its fine to entertain ourselves with a bit of harmless gambling at home during the festive season but don't fall into the trap of excessive gambling.

Have fun but learn to stop loss when it's time.

My life's Goals

It's the beginning of the new year whereby people make new resolutions n set goals for the new year .

As I sit down to ponder over my personal life goals , I realize that I never set life goals all these years . Why? I have no life goals ?, I don't know what I want? Are these true?

The only time I really sat down n listed the things I wanted to accomplish was when I found myself becoming a full time mom after working for over twenty years! No more corporate power suits , corporate cat fights, excessive traveling n entertaining, life became mundane n routine. After an inertia few months of rest n relax I told myself I need to get involved in some sort of business to keep my mind going. So I went n planned the types of biz I wanted to do n how to accomplish it.

After close to ten years , my one person consulting biz is still me n me alone n just rolling by year after year without much growth. So did i achieve my goals! Not really according to what I set!
But wait , did I not feel happy all these years (albeit occasional unhappiness)?
Much so, great satisfaction from being a stayathome mom n part time worker!

So now I have adjusted my life goals. B happy n make my family happy! That's all I need. Easy right? N no need to adjust my goals annually.

So to all of u out there don't harp over what your life should b n will b. Think of yourself n whether u r enjoying life !

Be happy n smile!

Roaring in the Year of the Dragon

Today is the first day of Chinese New Year, the year of the magnificent dragon..So why am I blogging here? I should be out visiting right?

Yea, the reason am blogging is this morning is this is the quietest moments of my time since the family is still asleep. We will be getting ready to go to my in law's house for lunch followed by the whole day of yakking among the grandma, sisters in laws, brothers, nephews, nieces, grand children etc until dinner time..

It has been an annual ritual for us to spend the first day of CNY at his mom's house the whole day followed by the second day at my mom's house with the same routine of eating and visiting.. Do we find this boring n so habitual? Ya, u bet! The children find this a chore.. But we told them this is the only time u get to meet all the relatives together at one place and get to "socialise" with them once in a year.

I know that they complain because it robbed them of the chance to go out with their friends during this break.. However, am sure that in their heart of hearts, they realise that this is the strong chinese tradition that signifies the "family unity" and culture. These values will stand them in good stead in the future as they realise that you can have many friends in life but you only have one family for ever.
Families will stay with u in good n bad times, in happiness n in sorrow and help tide each other over difficult circumstances with unfailing n uncondiitional love. The days of CNY socialising does "deepen" the understanding annually and gets better as they grow older.

There are many predictions for this Water Dragon year, some good n some bad for the different signs.. My hubby is a dragon n he "fan tai sui" so it will be a difficult year for him.. But I believe that destiny is in your own hands so u can always turn a dangerous position into an opportunistic one.So, for those "dragons" out there, all will be well if you continue to persevere in your right path and believe in what you do.

As for the rest of the zodiac signs, I hope you will all continue to enjoy the blessings and get what u worked for ...

Gong Xi Fa Cai once again.

Huat ah...

Chinese New Year reunion dinner

Families of the Soh descendants gathered at Sakura for the reunion dinner yesterday. This was the second year that we managed to pull in the 8 extended families to participate in this group reunion dinner.

The intent of having the dinner was great as it allows the younger generation to get acquainted with all the aunties n uncles n the oldies to reconnect.

Unfortunately the food n venue leave much to be desired. Look,we had to reinvent the laksa with great additions to make it the authentic local dish with all the flavors. The venue is too crowded n noise level was horrendous with lots of shouting conversations. Some of the food variety went dry with slow refill. Must say the service staff tried their very best but just cannot cope with the crowd.

Even though it was a great gathering with all the families,it would have been great if there is a better venue to house the gathering. We need a kind soul to volunteer to organize this massive gathering at a more congenial location m hopefully we can have an improved version next year.

Anyway, the company did make the difference and it reminded us to cherish family ties n relationship. It also taught the gen y to appreciate kinship ties so that they have a wider network of relations to fallback on .
My wish for this dragon year is for world peace, least natural disasters n more love n kindness going around.

Gong xi fa cai to all for a fantastic dragon year

Never a dull moment on a subway train

Recently , due to the rampant breakdown of our trains n the resignation of their CEO, much debates have being ongoing about the service n how crowded the trains are.

This reminds me of the contrast I see in my recent experience in Paris metro. During our brief stay there n short internal travel experience, I was able to witness a puppet show n other performances on the trains.

The culture of basking n performances on the train is in sharp contrast to how mundane n serious pp r on our own trains. The mood of travelers r often lightened up when such impromptu performance took place. Well, this kind of event will never happen in Singapore ! All the travelers r only interested in getting from one point to another with the least crowding n arm jostling. Of course there is really nothing to break this monotony.

Mayb we as a whole must learn to relax
N enjoy life n break up our lives ' monotony once in a while. Can u do that?

How about doing something unusual n uncharacteristic of yourself today? U will b surprised by the reaction. Try it n share. Have a great week