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Friday, August 24
"If you cannot learn to love real art at least learn to hate sham art." – William Morris
Feeding Frenzy
In Kel's own words, getting a table is also part and parcel of the "food court experience". Too true. It takes considerable skill to spot a table whose occupants are just finishing up the dregs of their meal; to hover around like a vulture until they're done; to get your tissue packet on the table before anyone else does. Here's a blow-by-blow analysis on top-class Table-Scouting, for the timid and the inexperienced:
Step 1a: Zoom in on the kill. (Tip: Look out for fruit platters/desserts - always a sign of the end of a meal). Step 1b: If you have reinforcements, spread out to cover more ground. Step 2: Hover and maintain a close enough distance to let other Table-Scouters know you've got your territory marked, but not so close as to cause (too much) discomfort for the table's current occupants. Step 3: Let them know you're waiting. Occasional eye contact, tapping of the foot, gathering of reinforcements are suggested. (Note: For those who seem to derive a perverse pleasure out of making people wait, be direct and ask if you can clear their tables for them - 97% effective). Step 4: You've probably got the table by now, but if you haven't, go to a restaurant and wait to be seated, noob.
Whatsup next?
A little pre-advertisement, if you will; trust me, you don't wanna miss this two-part program - games, tasks, quests, storyline and all. I won't leak the details, but seriously - you do wanna save Kel don't you? Kaching!
Funnel
All the bottled up anger, gripes and feelings of dissent which would only cause harm if actually taken and blown up to full proportions in real life can only present themselves here, I suppose, because as you know - sticks and stones can break your bones but words can never hurt you.
So here I am, trying to master the art of channeling the screams in my head into a more tastefully-put paragraph; while the final effect may be somewhat marred by the excessive filtering, at least it's down somewhere, and I can leave it be.
Is it worth getting worked up over a bag of chips? A bag of chips that was promised to you in grateful appreciation of something nice you did for someone, and then finished the next moment by the exact same person, whose only form of remorse was a brash "Sorry lah!". And evidently, this is not about that bag of chips in itself. But as the spate of anger fades away, I am reminded again that forgiveness is key - and that Marks & Spencer will eventually stock more potato sticks again.
Sounds anti-climatic even as I type it, but please do take note to catch the subtle undercurrent and of course, most definitely read between the lines.