success is freedom

 freedom

so sweet

so taken for granted by those who have it

so chased after by those still trapped in their jobs, their family circumstances etc

When do you know you have freedom?

Do anything you want? sure

But when? how would you know?

When I wake up in a safe place, breathing well, no pain in body, able to go wash up with clean water, nice toothpaste and toothbrush, able to just open my fridge and find fresh fruits to cut up to eat, nice milk to drink, clean water. And then having 15 minutes to slowly stretch my body, do some push ups

And then prepare breakfast for my loved ones, ensuring they have their best breakfast

And then maybe I'll drink some coffee, but not before taking my fish oil and multiV supplements that are so good and just costs less than $0.50

Then two fresh soft boil eggs, that costs $0.50

Now that is freedom that is success

OMG, what a life

Then, watch YouTube, read some news, check out the stock market, maybe sell or buy some shares to manage my portfolio

Then maybe learn a new language with all the free resources on web

Then go clean my nice condo, or maybe go for a drive in my nice car

Then relax for the day

Look for nice food to indulge for lunch

or find some friends for kopi session in the afternoon

Live life with happiness, with joy with intent to savour things slowly. Smell the coffee, chew the food, feel the nice cotton on your body, caress the nice leather wrapped steering wheel of your clean car

You are free to do all these 

Or I am

hehe

Success 

wealth is ?

 Yes, health is wealth, and wealth is health as the saying goes I think

But let's be pragmatic....

what is wealth?

Is the guy you see driving a Porsche 911 ?

Or the lady showing off her first class SIA air ticket to NYC?

Or whoever is buying the latest GCB in Singapore?

Those are visible wealth or at least, visible showing off of image of wealth. 

Trust me, many people driving flashy cars or staying in nice condos, and then showing them off whenever they get the chance to, aren't wealthy. They are just in debt, and bad ones too.

Someone who lives in a nicely/tastefully furnished HDB flat that's fully paid up, driving a decent mid tier car in SG (costs around $200k), and having no worries whatsoever about employment income or being retrenched as he or she has sufficient cash and cashflow to sustain themselves and their dependents lives...that's wealth. 

They will only get into trouble if they raise their lifestyle beyond their means. 

So they are technically in control of most things in life. 

but of course, with that said, they must also pay attention to their health. And TBH, with the wealth they have, they have sufficient mental bandwidth and real time to do so, so that's not an excuse anymore. 

And I hope you can recognise when you are in that situation, vs trying to get envy on others when you see what car they drove, what address they live at, what holiday destinations they go on vacation and so on. You are only seeing what they want to show you, and you also will only show your best outwards right? They won't show you their debts, their stress, their mental anguish at what they are comparing themselves with and so on. 

So, look at your own situation and assess for yourself what is wealth to you and go for it. Don't let others define it for you. Don't compare, and don't show off. Be humble but be proud of what you have achieved. And don't let anyone deny you that sense. 

Just do it

Certain things in life, you just do it. 

There’s no other way around it, so it’s better to immediately know this and go ahead and do it vs delaying the inevitable and then regretting for being too late.

Our parents are old, their time on this world is finishing up, it’s part and parcel of life. We will too.

Want to chat with them, do it.

Want to take them to their medical appointments, do it.

Want to bring them for a meal, do it.

Help them as they become too frail, do it.

The purpose of life

 Why must have purpose?

I didn’t choose to be born. 

However, it’s a gift

Gift of life

Now that I am financially secured, and retired, I have time

But not time to waste. 

So purpose isn’t actually required. But it also doesn’t mean I float around like a ghost

Do what I like, but still I should be selective. Do the right things at the right time.

That’s all.

Stay sharp, stay curious, stay engaged. Stay loving

Dare to hope

I used to be rather positive person, thinking things will always be ok as long as we deal with them logically and with maturity.

Even after several setbacks? I cling on to hopes that it will become better over time. 

Yet time and time again, I was caught off guard, and each time the hurt is harder than the last. Why? I think it’s precisely due to the fact that I still have hopes. But with that mindset, the hurt is much more when setbacks happen.

So, perhaps it’s better to be less optimistic? So that I can be pleasantly surprised if things do work out, or conversely, I will be neutral if they don’t, since that would be inline with what I expect. 

But choosing such a path is horrible to me. It means there’s no more hope. There’s no motivate to do the best. It’s just dragging my feet to move along life. 

It’s like in perpetual self preservation mode, vs what I want, which is perpetually working towards a brighter outcome with hope and confidence and vigor.

So, do I still dare to hope?

Maybe. 

After this recent episode, I realized I did my duty. Those efforts were not in vain. But at same time, I felt shortchanged. 

Why?

Like I am less important. Like I am taken for granted. 

Like my feelings are not important. Like I am ok with any treatment. Like rubbish. 

Respect must be mutual. 

Resentment is brewing nonstop and getting worse. It’s scary.

But to suppress and swallow it quietly is also not the way. 

So much to lose but so much pain too.

Sigh. 

Care giving

Care giving duties are no joke.

It’s not just the physical demands or financial outlay. 

It’s the mental load especially if it’s your close ones.

All these can add up to a distressing strain on your life, your routines and mental state.

Respect to those who have care giving duties.

I hope AI powered robots can help us within next 20-30 years. 

We all have longer lives now, and it doesn’t make sense to burden our younger folks with such long terms of care giving duties. 

Mood swings

Maybe I am having mid life crisis. No, not buy that white 911. It’s too pretty and I’ll also go bankrupt 

It’s my mood swings. One omelette moment, I am delighted and positive, next moment I feel like shit

Maybe I just need to watch more YouTube weedios 

Encounters on roads

I don’t think it unique to SG but it’s being amplified due to our narrow roads and heavy traffic.

Many times when I am just chilling and driving, especially during peak, there will be tailgaters.

Today, for no reason, a mini cooper that looks modified started to tailgate me on lane one when there’s a line of cars in front and beside me. Where the hell was I supposed to go?

I put a safe distance between me and the front car while just ignoring his tailgating. Soon, the cars in front filtered out and the road cleared up. I sped up a little to 100 but this joker continued to tailgate.

This really pissed me off. My exit is just a few hundred meters out so I just kept him behind for a short distance before filtering out, but the child in me decided to also accelerate while I filter so that he doesn’t pass me on my side. 

But now that I think about it, I think I can be a better person. I should just filter and continue my way without the acceleration. There is nothing I need to prove. My car is likely faster but so what if it wasn’t. Nothing to prove.

I should just chill and move on. Such ass exist and I don’t need to be bothered 

Material possessions

We live in a material world in SG. It’s a fact. It’s a modern urban city environment. Many things are manufactured and consumed. 

We chase after material possessions. 

However, after 50yrs, my view is slowly changing. 

No, I don’t mean I am now a monk, devoid of materialism.

More like, I think my desires are more selective, and considered. Instead of chasing something, which is simply the enjoyment of researching the item I want and then reaching the climax of owning it, my intent now is the lifespan of the ownership.

Let’s say a watch. Before owning it, I could spent countless hours watching YouTube, scouring forums for reviews and user experiences, salivating over hi-res photos of it, reading about the design motivations and so on. It was truly enjoyable process. Then when I pull the trigger to buy it, it was the climax. Guess what happens after that? Yeah, turn the sheets and go to bed after climax lol. The watch sits at home most of time collecting dust. It rarely occupies my mental bandwidth anymore. Occasionally I will wear it, but even while doing that, I hardly spend time to appreciate it intentionally. Yeah, no ownership joy and pride as I had fantasized before buying it. Then the stupid cycle repeats, not just watches, but other things. Cars, shoes, headphones, gadgets etc.

These leads to problems 

One, a lot of stuff. They take up physical space, they need to be serviced/cleaned, they also take up some mental space (at least I have to remember I have them in my possession and where they were stored right?). So there is a real cost.

Two, it escalates. I will always be yearning for the better and likely, more pricey version of what I already have (and barely uses or hardly appreciate anymore). This can costs too, especially if I act on it. Even if I don’t, the costs is time spent fantasizing, reading reviews, time lost that would be used more meaningfully

So, before I bring home the next possession, my reviews and thoughts of getting it includes now, how I will use it, store it, upkeep it, and also, what’s the exit plan like. For sure sometimes I will make mistake and bought something useless, so an exit plan must be there. Either sell or give away. Don’t accumulate. 

What about those already in my hands?

Take good care of them, use them, appreciate them. Sell or donate or give away if I don’t want them. Free up my own mind space and time.

Less is more. Don’t be a miser, but get things you like and can sustain. It’s also better for environment. Don’t buy and throw, it’s disgusting. 

Hospital

Damn, I have been going to SGH campus so many times recently. Not for myself, but my wife and my in-law. 

I am definitely getting familiar with the layout there lol.

Hospital especially public ones in SG, always involves a lot of walking and waiting. It’s how they operate at scale. Don’t get me wrong, I am totally impressed and appreciative of our public healthcare institutions. It’s how we avoid going bankrupt as we age hehe.

Introspection always happen when you spend time in hospital, even if it’s just visiting and not being a patient yourself. At least that’s what happens to me.

It’s a place where people hope, anticipate, felt relieved, felt sad, or grieved. It’s a melting pot of full range of human emotions. 

I am pretty sure I will become a patient here as I grow old. 

Sometimes being here too much can make my heart heavy. But I have learned to take things light. And look positive.

I am much more appreciative of what I have, my own health and my freedom. Staying healthy is my top priority as it allows me to fully enjoy my freedom during retirement. 

Many things that bothers me are actually trivial compared to what sick folks face while in hospital. There’s so much more that life can offer for your attention and enjoyment vs the little things that you hang on to make yourself unhappy, while the clock of life continues its steady ticking. Don’t waste life this way. 

Don’t wait until you are lying in hospital bed, chained to a drip, wearing patient clothes, and just staring out of the windows hoping you can be discharge asap

We will all have that chance no matter what. So meanwhile, don’t worry over things too much. Stay healthy, eat well, take good care of yourself, enjoy the food you like in moderation, go see the world, go sit in a park by beach and enjoy the air, with a nice cuppa in hand, listening to nice jazz music from your Bluetooth speaker.

Hospital, thank you for the lessons, see you but not so soon.