Two Williams

Been a while since I attended mass at St Joseph's. Noticed that the altar was now draped with four depicts of the Doctors of the Church. It used to be plain construction plastic sheets. And Sir Dr Peter Low the Choir master was missing, but the choir didn't breakdown. Glad to see that the choir of the Risen Christ has backup people in leadership positions. The priest talked about Catholic parents who didn't baptise their children or send them to Sunday school but instead let them choose their religion after their majority. He likened it to not sending children to school and letting them choose what education they wanted when they turn 18. At the end of it, he yelled, "Stupid!". Haha.



Right after church I went to Tater's place. I had booked him for brunch that day. Early birthday brunch. He chose the venue, a place called Five & Dime Eatery at River Valley Road. Actually, the taxi driver had dropped us very close to the place but we got confused and walked up and down the street looking for it. Reminded me of flight safety briefings-- the flight attended will now point out the emergency exits to you, bear in mind that the closest exit might be behind you. Tater made reservations so there was a cute sign at our table-- "Reserved for William. 2 pax.". It was so right, Tater is also a William. Secret revealed. Lol. Foursquare recommended their Mentaiko Pasta. I was disappointed. Just a plate of sweet nothing. Coffee was quite good though. And what's a birthday without cake? Tater got the carrot cake while I went for the lava cake. Got back to his place for a swim after that. I jumped into the pool but Tater was more hesitant. Slowly dipped in his feet, then sat at the poolside for a while. After I had finished five laps, he moved into the pool, but his upper body wasn't immersed. If I were him, I would be shivering by then, but he seemed fine.







In the evening, we both had separate dinner appointments. He walked me to Bugis MRT where I continued on the Lavender. His date was waiting for him at the station. I went over to greet him. Think for a moment there he was afraid that I might kacau daun. My company used to hire a lot of Myanmarese contractors. After the project ended, many of them left to pursue jobs in Singapore. Been a few years since I met this ex-colleague of mine. He got married in Singapore, has one son with another on the way. Dinner was arranged at Golden Mile Complex. Think it was my first time there. Like a little piece of Thailand, full of migrant workers. There was a Brahmin shrine at the taxi stand and a wet market inside selling all sorts of Thai ingredients and herbs. Very happening with plenty of clubs, restaurants and electronics kiosks. Ate at Nong Khai, a popular eatery there. Food was good but the service staff seemed disoriented and aloof. Their tomyum was good and so was the salt-grilled Tilapia. But my favourite was the grilled pork intestines, an item not on the menu. Did a lot of catching up with my ex-colleague and mostly talked to him about old times. And it was interesting to hear how about how expensive it was to start a family in Singapore. The next morning, I spent a good half an hour on the porcelain throne. The food must have been too spicy for my delicate tummy. A fantastic purge.