October - mid November 2022
I’ve moved into the BTO heartland! A real change of pace. Swapped the endless Green Corridor for Punggol’s waterways and the Johor Strait. I spent my last night in Ghim Moh/Buona Vista hanging out with the three cats who live in the area. Glad I got to say a little ‘thank you’ for the community they gave me this past year and a half. Life-saving.
Ashamed to show myself to be this kind of binch but no spin or yoga studios within 30mins of PT has actually required some adjustment. It’s predictably brought me more frequently to the Queer East (aka Greater Katong).
Zero (0) cats seen in Punggol thus far. Tbf it has been hectic and I haven’t spent all that much time here between the work trips (see below) and (eep) dating. But still, where are they?? Look, I’ll defend my new postcode in the SG culture wars to come but to have no cats prowling your streets or lounging in your void decks is absolutely ridiculous and unacceptable. Please. Where are they???
Just came back after a week road-tripping around the Peninsula. My leg of the tour covered JB, Kota Tinggi, Mersing, Gambang, Bentong/Bukit Tinggi, Batu, Bagan Datuk, Ipoh/Tambun, Pulau Pinang, and Permatang Pauh. Incredibly meaningful to be able to get glimpses into local-level concerns and to see how local candidates and their social media teams operate at that level, even if it meant being turned into TikTok campaign content.
This is what no seasoned field researcher will tell you, but as someone who shat themselves at the ripe age of 30 and had to hide in Dakota MRT until rescue arrived with fresh undies and shorts, I was terrified of needing to do an emergency poo in front of colleagues. No coffee and only the blandest foods for me (a hard thing to do in Malaysia). I also would get up 2 hours earlier than needed so I could do morning poos before hitting the road. A gruelling six days.
Recklessly speaking Indo in Malaysia and never knowing if I’ll be understood was a very chaotic way to be, for everyone involved. Very much enjoyed getting my pronunciation corrected into BM. My bad for reinforcing the abang-adik dynamic. Ma’af.
Many cats in Malaysia. Good.
Some real talk. After months of grief counselling, I often still feel nowhere near healed. My birthday and moving houses were especially confronting for that reason. I’m glad to be able to stay in one spot for a while and have some time to myself.
Oh yes, Saigon was nice.























