A mad house

Don't blame me if I sound like a lunatic today. I started the morning with an extra-strong cup of long black from McDonalds. I swear the machine must be faulty because it coughed out a darker and more bitter than usual brew that made me walk on air all morning.

Thanks to the freaky cuppa, I was finally awoken to the fact that I had suffered enough of the sporadic connectivity at home. I wouldn't be so mad if I were paying $50 a month for broadband subscription like the millions of homeowners in Singapore. But no, I am paying 4X as much all because our house lies in the commercial zone. I have brought the case up many times to the internet service provider, but it's no use.

To cut the story short, I brought the modem to the manufacturer (I seem to be visiting service centres alot lately). As luck would have it, my warrantly has already expired. The modem is still working but the technician urged me to put my ear close to the device, saying "Do you hear a hissing sound inside?"

The only hissing sound I hear is coming from me! But being polite, I said, "I think so." He said it's time to get a new modem but as usual, they're out of stock. They're the manufacturer, for goodness sake!

"Where can I find one?" So, off I went, to Challenger computer mart in town.

I got home and began installing the device. At least I asked some important questions before I left the service centre, like "Do I need to reconfigure my computers?" I felt so smart Alecky as I keyed in 192.168.1.1 on the internet browser to begin reconfiguration. After clicking a series of commands, I could hear YK exclaiming loudly from his room, "YAY, the Internet is finally working!"

Yes, we've been so deprived. These past few weeks, the boys and I have been bonding over TV shows and comic books after dinner. So, the downtime was perhaps a blessing in disguise.

Just when I was about to settle down to do some work, my baby niece woke up and started screaming loudly, which startled Ting who was sleeping nearby. And so, we were treated to a cacophony of cries from two wailing babies. My boys got irritated and went out to shush them up, only to add to the noise pollution.

I escaped to the kitchen to cook dinner. As I was lost in my world of frying and braising, I heard Ting crying loudly again. What is it this time? While her nanny was tending to her baby sister, Ting snuck into my mom's room and reached for a bottle of peppermint ointment. Yah, I know, I know. These things should be kept out of reach...

Anyway, some of that nasty stuff got onto her face and she was feeling the heat. I decided to give her a small cup of fruity yoghurt to relieve the pain. After crying for 20 minutes, she finally settled down and ate up the yoghurt.

Her daddy had to walk in just when everything was peaceful again. Seeing her with the cup, he started lecturing, "Why are you eating this? No wonder you can't finish your dinner every night!'

I quickly came to the rescue. "I was the one who gave her the yoghurt. Let me tell you what happened....."