As I returned my employee badge and walked out of the Bloomberg office for the last time, I felt a deep sense of lostness and relief. My decision to pursue an MBA this fall received mixed responses since my announcement, mostly positive and encouraging. There was one repeated reaction, however, that perplexed me a little:…
Welcome Home
In August 2009 when I landed in Vancouver for the first time, I was struck by the way each officer greeted citizens with “Welcome home.” Their voices are so gentle and it must feel so nice for those coming back, I thought. During my trips to many countries and continents in the next decade, I…
Life | That’s a Wrap, 2021
A few weeks ago, a colourful calendar landed in my Whatsapp. It was viral, funny and too accurate for yet another December overshadowed by the pandemic. Now here I am, entering the last few hours of 2021 and scrambling to piece together all the memories aka iPhone photos. I invite you to join me for…
Quarantine Diary Part 2: the Cost of Freedom
Being trapped in a hotel room for two weeks would’ve been my worst nightmare pre-Covid. Well, it still kind of is, except this is now the only path to freedom in China (ha). I always wondered what I’d be like during quarantine and was convinced that I’d be extremely bored, anxious and restless. Thanks to…
Quarantine Diary Part 1: the Communist Hospitality
After 18 months of ancitipation to a free border between Hong Kong and mainland China, I finally gave up on the cheerful speculations and decided to take up a trendy experience lately: quarantine. Many friends had shared their quarantine stories in Canada, Singapore, Taiwan and the horrifying-sounding government facilities in Hong Kong, but I knew…
Life | Year of the Ox: Bullishly Clear or Clearly Bullish?
My 2021 SMILE (Small Incision Lenticule Extraction) experience wasn’t all that smiley. Throughout the two-day pre-operation check-up plus surgery period, I couldn’t stop having flashbacks of 2020 in my head, which, ironically consistent with my vision, felt like a blur. The whole procedure took so short yet so long, like Covid, including the months I…
A Right or a Privilege
The second and final presidential debate ended on a note about leadership, or rather, politicians pumping soundbites of promises that may or may not ever be held accountable. I was indulged in drawing imaginary strikes for both candidates as they spoke, until neither of the answers was convincing enough for me to consider them great…
Brave New World
I started this blog years ago when I first stumbled upon a sense of conflict in trying to moralize a series of personal encounters.. I was hoping that by articulating this feeling of conflicts I could find a way to make peace with it, although years later I realized I hardly succeeded. To blame the…
If There Could be a Quarter of Life without Crisis
I’ve always used the term “quarter-life crisis” in a teasing way until I looked it up recently. Thanks to Wikipedia, today I am officially entering “a period of insecurity, doubt and disappointment surrounding your career, relationships and financial situation.” Never have I ever seen such an accurate description of my life thus far. In all…
Society | 2018 Spotlight City: Diplomacy, Entertainment and A Heartfelt Farewell
Two years ago, I landed at Changi Airport for the first time from New York, except no first class, no rich boyfriend, just four oversized suitcases, a worn-out NYU sweatshirt and a pair of K-mart flip-flops. I remember alighting my first-ever Singapore Airline flight and thinking, oh, that was pretty good. Had I known that…
Life | If you receive the first phone call from Heaven
Recently I finished reading Mitch Albom’s The First Phone Call from Heaven. The story happened in Coldwater, Michigan – a fictional town that appears to be exactly like what the name suggests – where residents suddenly started receiving phone calls from “heaven,” made by their loved ones. As you have probably guessed, the whole thing…
People | Be My “Valentine”
Originated from Christianity, St. Valentines Day is now widely celebrated around the world to flaunt gestures of love. In Asian cities, the commerciality of it prevails as flowers, presents and couples (ha) engulf clamorous urban streets. To me, Valentine’s Day has always meant more than romance. The most recent example is when I found out…
Global Citizen 