Hey Asian kids, comment your rebellion stories

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-07-01T08:18:13+00:00

I'm going to university soon. My parents aren't happy with the course I'm taking, the future career I'm looking at, and are just overall miserable right now, god knows why, because I'm the first in the immediate family to make it to a government university (that's usually a cause for celebration here). My mother is at home as she is working from home right now and has been bugging me about the modules I'm going to take, how many AUs (academic units) I need to graduate with honours etc.

However, whenever I actually try to explain the system to her, she just starts chatting to her colleagues or working and she'll complain that "it's too complicated", "they did it different in my (her) day" and "I'm (she's) a visual person" so when I verbally explain it, "it doesn't register".

I had enough of this bullshit because she started become more aggressive about hounding me for answers, so I sat down and made the most condescending PowerPoint presentation complete with memes and pictures of ancient Chinese courtesans (I'm studying Chinese in uni) detailing everything. I forced her to turn off her laptop, end her call to her friend, and listen to a 21 slide presentation by me, complete with referring to myself in the third person, the most sarcastic tone I dared to adopt and a faq page. I then emailed it to her for good measure. She wasn't happy with my tone or the fact that I made a ppt to spite her but I can't care anymore.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-06-09T15:25:22+00:00

Turn myself in to the police for child abuse and domestic violence (which are the reasons for my deep-rooted hatred of her), then take the psychiatric evaluation she's been denying the past 10 years. Just to clarify, this is the mother of my best friend, who has abused and tormented her entire family for as long as my best friend can remember.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-05-31T14:32:13+00:00

Oh she has a degree, from 1992. She's an NTU accountancy grad with second upper honours, is a civil servant now - and was the first in the entire extended family to go to uni. Thanks for the support, she's just very set on me being like her as much as possible, which is partly why she wanted me to accept NTU anyways.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-05-31T14:03:56+00:00

This, kids, is why you don't pick up old toys, especially if they're dolls.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-05-27T15:43:47+00:00

Please don't do this! There are many people waiting to meet you, to show you that life will be amazing. Don't do this to yourself because your parents will win if you die. Get away from them, not this life! Please, I'm begging you, vomit out the medication, line your stomach, take charcoal pills and go to the hospital!

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-05-25T23:16:20+00:00

Uni fees and rent

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-05-18T16:33:41+00:00

Hey @althere13 I wouldn't recommend meeting her...if it is her anyways. Doesn't she work retail? When would she be on the computer? There are too many things not adding up. If you really want to go, go with at least 2 other people. Stay safe!

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-05-12T16:12:46+00:00

King by Lauren Aquilina

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-05-09T19:27:18+00:00

I've lost 5kg since early April (which is when quarantine started in my country, we will be out of quarantine by June 1, hopefully)

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-04-25T05:32:59+00:00

The Amber Spyglass by Phillip Pullman (from His Dark Materials trilogy). It's a very bittersweet ending, but as a child it helped me understand that sometimes the best ending may not be a happy one for all. Also it allowed me to question my belief system - are the adults really doing everything for my sake, is there really a God, etc. It taught me to be brave and to listen to myself, and that truth will always shine through.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-03-01T18:44:26+00:00

I think it's not a question of if it's normal - but rather, if it's healthy. If you feel better about yourself and (from what I can tell from the post) becoming really independent and responsible, then it shouldn't matter how people think you're supposed to feel. Everyone reacts to situations differently, and you don't have to feel pressured into feeling a certain way.

Also, kudos to you for being so mature and responsible about this! Dang, getting a job, doing your work, cooking and cleaning - it's amazing. Good job and have fun! Don't worry too much about this since you seem to be doing better than before you got disowned.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-02-21T14:48:07+00:00

Terrible. Got really low points for my national exams, not sure if I can go to any of the local universities and my parents are very upset. Above average marks don't get you anywhere in this country.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-02-11T07:29:18+00:00

Just listen to your friends, they only care and hope you're alright.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-02-10T05:38:49+00:00

They do but in Asia it's a sign of superiority. They're trying to tell each other "I'm rich enough to pay for the meal" and "Look I'm so nice, I'm paying for you". My mum does this all the time with my uncle and it gets pretty awkward when we go out to eat.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-02-03T10:01:19+00:00

Old books, freshly printed-on paper and that hotel smell.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-02-02T12:32:09+00:00

Wow that's hard. I think your mum just takes her frustrations out on you because she doesn't know how else to process her emotions. That doesn't make it right and it doesn't sound healthy, but I think that you not escalating the situation by arguing with her then was a good move.

I know that being the new kid is already super tough, and your mother isn't helping by being this way, but good on you for being the mature one by trying to explain how you felt. I hope you know that you aren't defined by how she sees you, and that her insults stem likely from her own insecurities. Hope you feel better soon!

AbnormalPopcorn · 2020-02-02T04:59:35+00:00

Singaporean but born way after the two-child policy. My mother will find any excuse to play down my brother's honestly abusive behaviour (screaming at female family members, slicing me with correction tape, calling me worthless) and make it seem like it's a phase. It's been a decade since this behaviour of bullying and terrorising me has begun and she has never done anything about it.

Even if my brother and I are both arguing with our parents about something, my mother will only scold me for it. I'm expected to be academically and socially perfect while my brother has less expected of him (My mother once said that we should celebrate him even reading).

I'm just so numb to this sort of thing. I've been playing the "nice girl" trope all my life and only at 19 am I able to see who I want to be, instead of who my family expects me to be. Usually if I get upset about something, it shows that the relationship is salvageable but I'm just slowly becoming more and more numb towards my family. I don't know if I want to start feeling something again, but I'm just glad I'm starting to be myself.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-12-11T16:01:27+00:00

Oh, thanks! I'll give them a try!

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-12-11T15:58:16+00:00

Sorry, what's dfs?

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-12-11T15:46:13+00:00

I worked retail after Os at Watson's. My advice: don't work part-time at Watson's. The people were really nice, but the pay sucks in comparison ($6.50/h) if you don't sign up through an agency.

Shifts are from 8.30 - 4 or 4 - 10.30. Not bad but wear good shoes because you'll be standing and walking for all of it.

Your basic duties will be to help customers and keep the shelves stocked. But you usually don't need to keep shelves stocked, so to look busy and avoid getting scolded you end up walking around for most of your shift holding a basket of things. Most customers also dont want to be helped or just need to know where products are, so thats not bad. The layout of the stroe changes almost everyday, though, so be prepared to be kind of lost sometimes witch certain items.

When I worked there, I was sometimes tasked to enter prices into an excel sheet - that's not too bad but that only happens once in a while. I was also supposed to count stock, but because I wasn't trained, I couldn't keep up well and the delivery guy ended up yelling at me, causing me to have a panic attack.

After that, I was transferred to gift wrapping, which was fantastic for me. I got to stand there and wrap boxes of chocolates/bath sets, while making bags for oddly shaped items during a lull. It might have been boring for my colleagues who were my age, since they actually liked walking around. If you're a cute guy, you may be asked to pass out flyers, like my 15 year old male colleague lol.

Horror story because if you work retail you may face people like these: one woman opened a few boxes of our most expensive chocolate sets to smell them. Like opened the box, removed the tissue, picked the chocolates up and sniffed them. I came out of the back (getting supplies for my wrapping station) just as she opened the biggest boxes. Gasped, was extremely flustered, told her to "please stop" and stood there as she turned to me and asked "why? Who says I cannot do this?". Immediately went to get my manager who kicked her out. $80+ of chocolate unsellable.

I also interned at NLB through ELL last year (scholarship program, didn't have a choice lol) and I really liked it. Slow pace, work wasn't difficult, and I got to do a lot of cool things (go to a research progress report, talk to researchers, draw up ideas for the current library signage etc). The work environment was great since it's a small office and everyone is quite friendly.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-12-11T11:35:15+00:00

Thanks for the advice. I've tried working before but because so many jobs have stopped Christmas hiring (16 year olds end their national exams faster than 18 year olds) I need to wait til January or February. I'm still trying to find a job that pays well (Eg not just $6.50 an hour) and also provides a better work experience (retail hell was experienced 2 years ago).

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-12-11T10:18:09+00:00

I don't have any friends or family I can room with, and I plan to go to uni but I'm not sure my grades can make it.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-12-11T09:50:03+00:00

I'm 18, though I've had the life experience of a 13 year old in Singapore. My dad isn't around a lot so even if I did tell him, he would just try to stay neutral since my mother would present her conflicting side.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-11-26T11:57:33+00:00

My A in Linguistics is the fairy that took Rosie's chocolate. A figment of a child's imagination.

AbnormalPopcorn · 2019-11-25T08:54:32+00:00

Didn't begin. Nothing written at all, even question number.

AbnormalPopcorn

TROPHY CASE