My mundane marketing musings

When I was a bit younger, maybe during my singlehood days, I was arrogant to think that the wet market is not for me. I would be the one doing marketing at the airconditioned, non-smelly, well-categorised supermarket just like the Hollywood movies, lugging groceries in brown bags.

Or so I think.

But this morning, I was at the new Geylang Serai market for one of my routine marketing trips of late with my domestic helper lugging the metal grocery bag on rollers. Of now, I will not be caught dead lugging that metal grocery bag. Eversince Afzal was in daily school, and having a domestic helper since 27 days ago, we've been having home-cooked meals more so than ever.

I'm pampered in Singapore. As food is so easily accessible. Every corner I turned, there is always stalls, shops, eateries, restaurants. There is always food and more food, not to mention the halal international kind.

When I work, I don't cook. When I'm lazy, I don't cook. And if I just don't feel like cooking, I don't cook. My kitchen(s) are out there, from local to international cuisines, from fast food to gourmet restaurants, from kampong to western delights, and not forgetting the ever delicious mum's and mil's meals.

But eversince Afzal is in daily school and the availability of the domestic helper to do all the hard work for me like cutting, peeling, chopping, blending and washing and scrubbing the pots after that, cooking has been almost a daily affair. So my dear Afzal will get Mum's warm home-cooked meals after school and Hubby will sometimes tapao for work as well.

Back in Alabama, I would cry my eyes out and I still had to cook. Of course, at times, when hubby was kind enough to grant me an off day, we would eat maggie mee. Occasionally we may hit a restaurant for their expensive seafood dishes. I turned every corner, and there is no halal food. Life was "hard" as I had to cook everyday, having to do all the cutting, peeling, chopping, blending, washing, scrubbing by myself. But where are the brown grocery bags? It remains in Hollywood movies, it seemed, because in Alabama, we still used plastic bags and in Melbourne, they encourage you to bring your own recycle bags.

With the frailties of human beings and our insatiable desires, we tend to think that the grass is always greener on the other side. We just don't know when we've got something good going until we do not have access to it. Mundane it might seem, but it has become an issue of survival. And surviving is one trait that cannot be learned, but only experience. For something that we desire, something else have to be given up. Unless that's ok with you, then it's a viable option. Otherwise, it will become a burden and you will think why you ever do it in the first place. Hmmm, what have these ramblings got to do with my going to the market?