Why be a parent?

There has been some debate recently in my social circle on whether or not to have a baby or how many babies to have. The hardcore DINKS see no reason to spoil their weekends or their lives by welcoming little monsters. They are perfectly happy playing with friends' or relatives' babies and then return them before night falls or diapers get soiled, which ever comes first.

I always tell people they should have one if they are not too squimish about them. Babies, I mean. Why? Because not being a parent is like missing out on a huge part of the human experience. It's like eating pancake without maple syrup or having bakut teh without bakut. Or riding a roller coaster without the twists. You get my drift. Life is a lot more interesting and 'multi-layered' with a child. Seriously, some times I wonder what I would do with all the free time I would have, without children. I wouldn't know what to do with myself. Ya, pathetic. I know I could hang out with friends, go shopping, pick up golf and watch obscene amount of TV but I think I will tire of these after a while. You see, a child is different. A child will keep me on my toes with his witty remarks and mischief and feed me with a tornado of emotions. No one can evoke joy, anger and hit that little soft spot in your heart that makes you all teary, all in the same day like your child can.

I recall an incident which reminded me the real reason I want to be a parent. I was walking home one day and bumped into a neighbour's pre-teen daughter at the lift. She was a pretty little thing and she smiled so sweetly at me that my heart skipped a beat. Then I went home and cried. Stupid woman! What was that all about? Then it dawned on me that I was grieving because I knew I would never own that smile. I would never have a daughter. Even though I already have 2 beautiful smart boys, my heart was broken at that point. So for those who have made up their minds not be a parent, I hope they never have to experience this painful regret and if they do, I hope they find a darn good way to cope.

I don't watch TV. Why? Because it's a waste of time. I get nothing out of that box which many deem indispensable. Besides, I hate the trouble of having to remember the timings of the shows and remembering to watch them. My brain is already overloaded with data.

But my princes and my Hubby lurve the tube, so I do sit down with them once in a while to catch up on the latest stuff. So far, the only TV series that impresses me is the animated Avatar, the Last Air Bender. Well, considering I don't watch much TV and most of these times were to supervise the princes, I'm more familiar with the yellow sponge and the cute monk with the arrowhead tatoo on his head and limbs. Avatar has many interesting characters and is really funny. My favourite character is Toph, the blind earth-bender with a big attitude. If I had a girl, she would be like Toph.

Before I go down in histroy as the only adult woman in Singapore who watches nothing on TV except kids' shows, I would like to qualify that I do appreciate adult TV shows like The Mentalist, Lost and most recently Glee. Among these adult shows, I must say Glee gives me the most 'high'. Set at a Midwest high school, this award-winning comedy features a Spanish teacher who takes the glee club, populated by teenage misfits, and manages to turn it around. Each episode features four musical performances. All the songs featured in Glee make me warm and fuzzy inside, maybe because they are so familiar. The dysfunctional characters, especially the teachers, are eerily real to me, although some of the characters, like Sue, are blown out of proportion. I like her infamous quote: 'I'm going to ask you to smell your armpits. That's the smell of failure and it's stinking up my office.' To a certain extent, I'm also dysfunctional and these characters voiced out and acted out these 'dysfunctional-ness' and make them seem almost normal.

Questions: Are there really such musical clubs in the American schools? Why can't Singapore have one as hip? And why can't all music teachers be this hot and cool at the same time?

Glee trivia:

• All of the singing and dancing on the show is genuinely performed by the actors.


• After releasing a remake of Journey's hit song "Don't Stop Believin'" in May (2009), the song skyrocketed to #1 on the iTunes charts.


• Confident that the series would be a huge success, Fox and Columbia Records decided to record a soundtrack for the show.


• Series stars Jayma Mays (Emma) and Jessalyn Gilsig (Terri) have both appeared in vital guest starring roles on NBC's Heroes as Charlie and Meredith (Claire's biological mother) respectively.

This ain't a love song

I thought I'm more of a ballad person but I recently realised that what really excites me is soft rock such as this one by Scouting for Girls. When I first heard it over the radio, the lyrics made me smiled.

And I’m a little bit lost without you

And I’m a bloody big mess inside

And I’m a little bit lost without you

This ain’t a love song this is goodbye

I'm glad that music is one of the ways I connect with my pre-teen prince. I'm not a sporty or outdoor person and constant talking can be boring at times. But when he hears a new song, he will share it with me. We happen to like the same kind of songs, for now. I guess my teenage angst is still buried underneath the thick layer of cellulite.