It’s been a relatively funny year and I've managed to end it
feeling rather pleased with myself. Didn’t win the lottery and my financial
prospects are not startling. However, I found a plan of sorts and stuck to it
reasonably well enough to see results at the end of the year.
Events on the global front gave the blogger in me lots of
talk about. The USA had an election and American voters, thankfully made the
right choice. The world economy is in a mess and they voters decided not to
hand it to someone from the group that was responsible for the mess in the
first place.
Here, at home, in Singapore, the ‘gossip writer’ in me had
lots of fun. This was the year of sex-scandals. It started off with the head of
the Singapore Civil Defense and Central Narcotics Bureau stepping down because
of a sex scandal. At the end of the year, the Speaker of Parliament has
resigned over an extra-marital affair. In between you had a host of senior
civil servants and prominent members of society being arrested for soliciting
sex with underage prostitutes. You could
say that the proverbial worms are coming out of the can. For me, I’d like to
think that these scandals are a sign of the powerful being held to account and
Singapore deciding to be the country it pledges to be rather than the one with
unspoken caveats – i.e. “regardless of race, language or religion (provided you
have lots of money in your bank account)”
On the family front I had to say goodbye to my Dad’s oldest
brother. Uncle Richard was in many ways the original maverick – the uneducated
Chinatown Boy who made good. Unfortunately he forgot that it wasn’t just about
making money – you had to keep the stuff and more worryingly he abused his
body. His passing was a relief in as much as it was the end of his physical
suffering. As much as I regard the passing of a sick old man as a blessing, I
will also miss a much loved uncle.
However, there were some good beginnings too. Max, my
younger brother has started his career in real-estate. He’s become more
studious and both he and Caitlan look like they’re settling down into a very
stable life together. My other siblings are also managing well. Tara has
started her own photography studio in London and Christopher fully integrated
into university life.
There was a big birthday party for me this year. Lee, my
stepfather turned 80 and I made it to Washington State to spend time with him.
He is thankfully healthy and his mind is still buzzing. However, it sometimes
hard to be the decent stepson I’d like to be in as much as, I think it was hard
for him to accept that it was now my turn to buy the good lunches.
It was also good to catch up with my stepsister, Carol and
her family. I’m particularly happy that I got to attend the wedding of my step
nephew, Brennon and his lovely wife, Chava, who is now pregnant. I think they’re
going to make a very beautiful baby……
As for me, there was something of a transition of sorts.
Joyce, the girl who had been such a central part of my life two-years ago left
for China. In a way it was a relief. Although my relationship with her was exceedingly
passionate, it was, as they say, a little too hot for most people to handle.
She couldn't handle “us” and life in Singapore. I hope she’s finding some sense
of balance in China. We still trade the odd email and thankfully she’s gracious
enough to send me photos of Yooga once in a while. This little boy is a gem and
I pray, that somehow, despite the adversities he faces, he’ll grow into a man
that the world will admire, though I have to remember what he once told his
mother at the age of four, “I’m NOT GOD, I DON’T know everything.”
Just as Joyce and Yooga left my life, Thuy, the little girl
who showed me what it was like to live for something greater than myself,
reentered it. The seven-year old girl I knew six-years ago is now a teenager of
13.
It’s taken a bit of getting used to each other again. I got
to remember that she’s almost a grown woman and I have to respect that but at
the same time she’s not quite a grown woman yet and the worries that one has
for a small child remain. She’s also adjusting to me too and in between the
usual teasing, she is acknowledging that I might be a force of good in her
life.
You could say that this is God’s way of making me pay for
all my past nonsense with the opposite sex. However, it’s a task that I take on
with some amount of pride and someone remarked that having Thuy in my life has
brought out the unknown “Responsible” Tang Li.
In terms of work, the highlight will undoubtedly be the
PANIIT Conference, which took place in April, 2012. The conference brought
together a host of some of the most prominent people in Indian industry and it
allowed me to better understand the transformation of a giant country that was
once known as backwater of contentious people.
While the vast majority of Indians live below the poverty line, there is
a vast number who are educated and well to do. The group at IIT is on their way
up and doing so in a hurry. This group is rich with ideas and some of them are
now shifting their attention to giving back to where they came from, something
which can only be good for India. For me, working with them was exhilarating
and I’m grateful to continued friendship of Supriyo Sircar, CEO of Polaris
Asia-Pacific and the new friendships with people like Amrit Barman from SAP,
Dhruv Jain from Energizer and Mr KV Rao from Tata Power. I’m grateful for
having had the chance to meet the likes of Mr R.Gopalakrishnan, Executive
Director of Tata Sons and Arjun Mahlotra, one of the founders of Hindustan
Computers (HCL) and Headstrong.
The other high point came from an industry that my family
seems to be drawn to – the Singapore International Photography Festival (SIPF).
I am grateful to Mr Glenn Lim, Director 20twenty PR for inviting me to work
with him for the three months of launching a festival that brought renown
photographers like Stuart Franklin (he who shot the famous photo of the man
defying the tank at Tiananmen Square) to not just display their works but to
mentor aspiring photographers. There is talent in Singapore and it’s good that
we’re looking to and learning from the world.
I also seem to have found a knack with picking up litigation
support jobs. This year, I found myself supporting Mr PN Balji in a job that
involved a trade mark dispute between the founding members of Ku Te Da. As the
trial is still ongoing (lawyers are currently working on submissions) I won’t
say much other than the fact that Singapore’s court rooms are a source of
stories that are worth telling.
While I remain a media relations consultant, I’m also
putting a foot in what could be a career change or a pension plan. I've been
spending my weekends helping at a restaurant called Bruno’s. It’s an Italian
Restaurant that serves exceedingly good food. I’m currently working as service
staff and while the pay is not great, I am enjoying meeting people. Being part
of the blue collar work force also helps me to better understand issues that I
care about.
On the flip side it’s also good for my health. I've never
been one for the gym so a job that keeps me on my feet has been good form of exercise.
My blood pressure has lowered and I've managed to shed a few kilos.
While I've called Singapore home for the last decade, this is a
year that I've also started to look at the region as an alternative for me.
After many day-trips to Johor, I have now set up a fixed-deposit and savings account
there. Malaysia has issues but it’s the most obvious place for Singaporeans to
expand to. Both Singapore and Malaysia complement each other. I don’t know how things will be but Malaysia
has a certain amount of space that Singapore doesn't have and JB is close
enough to provide one with extra space.
Vietnam is also interesting. Although it is still a third
world country, it is dynamic and filled with a certain type of energy. After
one trip I’d like to go back again and with a plan of sorts.
I don’t know what 2013 will bring. I just hope that I can
grow what little I've managed to gain in 2012. There will undoubtedly be
challenges but as always, I've come to accept that these are things to be relished
and I hope that I remain healthy and able to grab the chances that I get in
2013.
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