https://www.stomp.sg/trending-now/just-grab-driver-parent-slams-teacher-making-insulting-remark-about-their-job-says-theyre-multiple The issue has since been resolved, but the father took to social media to air his unhappiness that his son’s teacher referred to him as “just a Grab driver”. The befuddling thing was that he expressed indignation at the belittling of his “profession” which he claims to do so “occasionally” before adding that he already owns multiple businesses. If he truly felt he and his son were shamed, then this makes it sound as though he himself felt he needed to prove his worth/status beyond being “just a Grab driver”. So what kind of mixed signal is he sending to his son? “Daddy is outraged as the teacher could have expressed it better, therefore daddy had to redeem himself against this remark… I’m not just a Grab driver…” I think in the process, this protective parent ended up degrading Grab drivers himself. You mean it’s “just a Grab driver” shouldn’t apply since you’re a business owner? Is he standing up for all drivers or just himself? I could be overly critical of this parent, but what do you think? In any case, I’m not siding the teacher either if she really did say that in a condescending manner. But we have no idea of the context, and why he or his son felt embarrassed or distressed. Or maybe we all shouldn’t read too much into the word “just”.

@rinsider said: What compelled you to get married and have babies? Rose-tinted glasses or a genuine feeling to have and grow a family? Although I hardly dated before university, I think I always assumed that I would get married one day, though I was uncertain about having kids (I’ve never been interested in babies!). It just seemed preferable to have someone to share life with. It turned out that I met my husband in our first year in university, started dating, and married a year after graduation. It was 3 yrs later that I finally made up my mind that I wanted kids (my husband said either with/without kids was OK by him), and then it took 4 yrs of infertility treatment plus a couple of years after giving up before I got pregnant. I can’t really explain why I wanted kids - A desire to create something uniquely ours? Having the opportunity to nurture and care for new humans? Biological urge? We have made it clear to our girls that we don’t assume that they will marry, or have kids, and we are fine either way. We don’t believe that either is necessary for happiness, and we only want them to marry and have kids if they actually want them. Having kids “for the sake of society” is too big an idea to cope with! One daughter is now married, and I’m fairly sure she will want to have kids eventually (she’s 26). I think she enjoyed growing up in a family with a sibling, and she is willing to reduce or stop work for a time if need be. I think that the lack of interest in having kids is partly due to the pressure to do well in career, earn more, etc, coupled with the materialism that equates happiness with having more and indulging self. Nurturing and caring for kids, especially in the early years, is costly in time, effort, emotions, opportunity cost, and of course, money. Our govt is trying to fix the problem with money, but really, no amount of money is going to tip the scales from “no kids” to “yes kids”; it may change “1 kid” to “2 kids”. It’s only if our young people consider the sacrifice worth it that they are likely to have kids. How to “fix” that is a tougher issue and has to be dealt with in families, and not by social policy. How many of us raise our kids to do housework and chores, and to put others before self? If kids are used to putting themselves first, then it’s less likely they will willingly have kids that will take precedence in their homes. Just my thoughts.

@sharonkhoo said: As far as I know, only the surviving parent becomes the guardian automatically. Oh! I was not aware, thank you for highlighting this! I’ll update when I have some proper processes in place, and in the meantime, we can share useful info here!

@rinsider I think if we are able to speak basic Mandarin, we don’t really notice it, but increasingly, at cafes and some restaurants, I have noticed that it’s easier to get what we need by speaking Mandarin. But that Grab notice was unacceptable, for sure! Our family is biracial and I don’t think my son is comfortable using Mandarin at shops, or to buy food. My daughter, probably more so, but I’ve hardly heard her say anything in Mandarin. My dad doesn’t really speak Mandarin, so that’s just how I grew up as well. I think my Mandarin is quite adequate for local practical usage, but not to have deep conversations!

I decided to reread Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy yesterday, along with the audiobook (borrowed from Libby). The narration is superb! And it’s still very funny. Has anyone read this? On Goodreads, reviews are mixed. It’s a “love it or hate it” book!

@sharonkhoo Just to update that I found bookbinding quite tricky — requires good eyesight, and precision cutting/crafting skills, which are clearly my gaps haha! No fault of the instructor, it’s more that I don’t have the patience for fiddly things, and tend to wing it! For everyone else sharing any feedback on courses, do feel free to post the link of the course that you did, and also to let us know honestly what you liked and didn’t like regarding the teaching style, schedule, etc.

@rinsider yeah, I would definitely oppose men entering female restrooms… we have enough to worry about as it is but I guess dads caught in these situations would be better equipped to respond!

@thebottomsupblog the board surfing reel was pretty heartwarming! About the below the block community shelves, there’ll always be those bad apples who take things just for the sake of getting something for free and without contributing anything in return. It’s so discouraging for those who start these community initiatives that it almost always fails in the end. Sigh. I read about some used bookstore initiative under a void deck a while back. I wonder if it’s still thriving. Back then, some folks even carted the physical bookshelves away!

@rinsider We are waiting to see if she gets offered a full scholarship for Monash… if not, NUS is her safety option for now, unless her desired engineering course becomes unexpectedly competitive! If money were no object, then she could’ve applied to more schools on her shortlist, such as Stanford. MIT was a stretch option which she tried for, since they also offer full scholarships. But with these schools, the admit rate for international students is as low as 1-2 out of every 100 who apply. For now, I’ve told her to relook her list again, since she’s still on her gap year, and see if there are a few more unis she would like to apply for. Perhaps she might have some fresh thoughts after a year spent thinking about these things… If she doesn’t get overseas experience for the undergrad years, there’s always a shorter postgrad stint!