left home with a whole lot of barang barang and with dearest eileen and suzette's help, set up a stall in SUNGEI ROAD!! super hot can!!! every gust of wind was like heavenly to eileen and i!
look like ghost like that...anyway i shall put down my whole journalism article draft based on sungei road here (kill 2 birds with a boulder) :
Lugging a heavy bag of stuff with 2 comrades, we set off to Sungei Road under the scorching weather to set up a measly stall to sell off some old artifacts of the house. It was free to set up a stall there, so in the name of Fun, we quickly asked the elderly vendors around whether we could take up space.Seeing it was only the second day into the Hari Raya Celebrations, we were advised to take up that space which belonged to a Malay occupant.
My previous worries were that we would be seen as the enemy who invade their territory and may be ostracized. However, it was only the contrary as us 3 ladies found our stall being surrounded by a bunch of curious elderly men even when the goods have not been fully displayed yet. 15 minutes into our arrival, we sold 2 skirts at $1, and 2 kitschy miniature plastic cactuses for 20cents. An old uncle came and chatted with us and even treated us with cold drinks while another auntie told us to be aware of the sun, "Must bring umbrella! Tanned ladies are not pretty! I don't have to worry since I am married already!" Generally we were met with friendly and receptive by-passers and it was a very interesting experience indeed!
As told to us by a vendor, Mr Huang Hong Da (a.k.a Honda), the vendors here are generally old and retired people who sell things as a means of earning extra keep. He has been a regular vendor for 8 years and transports his goods on a motorcycle that has a side passenger extension. "Earning a keep here can get very difficult most of the time. If you plan to bring up a family with an income here, it will be a tough struggle. Most people work alone here… Having partners means that it will be difficult to divide the money."
Another elderly woman into her 80s has also been a regular vendor with her son for 20 odd years. "Sometimes good days can earn $20 to $30, bad days can earn $5 to $6", she explains as if reminscing.
What you need to know about setting up a stall:
Not that "free"-
ask before you open a stall. Some old-timers consider their space as their own territory and would quarrel if you were to occupy their space. Ask before you do!
Unbearable weather-
The vendors are all tanned for a reason. The rays of the sun beat down strongly upon that area. Bring an umbrella because it will be your rain or shine best friend!
New things not allowed-
there is a law that governs the place that does not allow vendors to sell "new" products. So, bring only the secondhand things!
my measly stall on a small piece of mahjong paper!
spot your grandfather here
"ahh.. my name is Honda".... "WHAT?!"
the uncle who treated us drinks!AND OMG!!! I SAW ONE OF THE SAJC SOCCER PLAYERS-- so embarrassing! he must have thought that i am reduced to the state of selling my things at sungei road!
not included in my assignment was what i bought!
one pair of very pretty authentic melissa flats for $3!how fabulous right!
got it from the auntie in picture below:
very cute lady who told us to call her "ah ma" instead of "auntie"and i bought a toy kitchen stove set for $1! gave the kind auntie $1.50 anyway. the microwave oven and baking oven and the right cabinet (which is actually a fridge) can all be opened! plus it is battery-operated: the stove and the lights above are actually powered and can apparently be switched on, but i have yet to test it!
now you must be wondering what i am going to do with a barbie doll kitchen set! well, i intend to use it as a jewelry mantle piece and display/ store all my accessories! in the oven, on the basket, above the stove, everything! :)then it was off to a CASKET company for eileen's assignment!!! seriously, the weirdest place i ever been to with my friends. what greeted us was this really grand taoist golden truck with a very young lady's photo frame below the window screen. i was like, ooh this girl so young and pretty. then we walked in and a coffin was right before us. i thought there might be unoccupied but it's not...!!!! then eileen's interviewee, aloysius, told us that the coffin contains the yishun woman who jumped to her death?! wah biangs! felt like i had incidentally send this infamous celebrity off on her last journey.
one thing he said that really strike me was that "my job is a very dignified job". how many of us can say that of our careers right? he is probably doing the dirtiest job of all- having to clean up and embalm the bodies even if 3am in the night all alone, and massaging dead people's breasts or cleaning up their "last shit" (as quoted by him). any 9 to 5 office workers can never describe their job as "dignified" or meaning to say, "noble" or "having dignity", much less an embalmer.it was very interesting really and he's a very humourous man who was a dear. he's so helpful! he even offered us a chance to watch him embalm a body (!) needless to say, we rejected him quickly!! HAHAHHAHA. i was kinda scared to shake his hands actually. he could tell that i was rather freaked out and was rather amused.
then off to eat and see mr birthday boy with zack! hahaha. i cant stand how boys can tahan low-key birthdays!
after typing the assignment in school, it was off to riverwalk for the pageant try-out~! woooooot! haha i think i did fairly well because i was not THAT scared (like i was in SIA air stewardess interview) and didnt expect too much. after that, there were alot reflection-moments that i kicked myself for not saying this and that! i have braces, small breasts, bad posture, ugly side view, so i daresay that i dont think that i am pageant material. i was probably the only contestant who went in with flats and without makeup! but it was all for fun's sake! i learnt that sometimes if you dont try too hard, you'll enjoy the process more.
then met with yifan, a friend that my family got acquainted with, on the trip to beijing 2 years ago. we were in the same tour group! it was a nice supper. :)
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