Boy, negative things happen all at once, don't they? just today alone, i've heard/experienced 3 bad things. 2 are inconsequential, one is huge. i'll go from small to big.

first, there was some conflict in final fantasy. someone (not in the guild) was being willfully stupid in a dungeon. like i said a couple of times, i can forgive ignorance if it's acknowledged and remedied...but i can't deal with stupidity. there really are all sorts in the world. at least this isn't very bad, since i'll probably never interact with this person again.

number 2 was a small incident at the supermarket. i had to get an attendant's help for something and maybe i sounded irritated/impatient when she was re-scanning my stuff? whatever it was, she felt strongly enough about it to tell me "don't speak to me that way". i admit, i was taken aback because i don't think i spoke harsher/ruder than normal. but rather than pick a fight, i just let it go. younger me would probably have escalated the situation, so i've grown somewhat! it's also a culture difference, i guess. customer service staff in japan would never dream of confronting a customer in that way. it varies in singapore, i believe. staff in big chains would most probably suck it up, but those in smaller establishments would be more likely to fight back against perceived rudeness.

as you may know, i've been trying to do more reading on libby. one book i borrowed was "how to win friends and influence people". for a book that was first published in 1936, a lot of the advice still holds true today! i'm trying my best to put the lessons within into practice. you know, self-improvement and all. perhaps it's the cynic in me, but i kind of feel that it's a tiny bit doormat-ish. while i am increasingly of the belief it's a good idea to be the bigger person and avoid conflict regardless of who's right, i also know that in today's society especially, kindness or "soft" behaviour is often mistaken for weakness. just look at all the china chinese people who cut in the queue and only back off when someone (or a crowd) yells at them...and sometimes not even then! i guess the trick is to find a balance, assess the stakes of a potential confrontation, and stick up for yourself/others when needed.

the really bad thing is far removed from me, thank goodness. it's been a few months since i've mentioned this group of people, but do you remember the couple with drug issues? the latest development i heard is that the younger guy didn't get clean after all, nor did he even try, apparently. in fact, he got worse. i understand it was to the point where he tried to stab his husband in the neck with a knife when he (the husband) couldn't procure drugs. perhaps it's a good thing that i didn't get too involved with them! the husband is trying his best to secure the guy's freedom or at least get him into an environment where he can get treatment. but it seems that from the way he's saying things, the marriage is beyond salvation - mostly because of this, and also because there seems to be another guy in the picture. so complicated! i respect him for defending his husband (my friend/acquaintance) in court in spite of what went down.

the one thing i found a bit overdone was the way the husband phrased some things. he's got the classic american overconfidence/bravado plus a healthy dose of main character syndrome. not sure if i've mentioned this here, he's always saying "i'm a pilot, i have so many hours in a flight simulator"...which to me is like saying "i'm a soldier, i play call of duty every day". for context, the flight simulator is a home system. don't know how it compares to an actual plane or even a purpose-built simulator for training pilots, but i'm straying off the topic. he's making himself out to be the big self-sacrificial hero and a pro lawyer in this whole thing. i suppose he is the first thing to an extent. as for the second, he's either midway or less through law school now, so it's the exaggeration thing again. the plan for this is just to keep myself updated, maybe drop a message once in a while and see if there's a reply.

something i learnt from thinking fast and slow is that we tend to remember/be affected more by the most recent thing that happened to us. i kind of noticed it in JET; my positive experience was disproportionately brought down by the prefectural government saga. so, i'll do my best to end posts on a positive note from now on! today's plus point is that i decided to broaden my horizons (and loosen my purse strings) a bit more on my grocery run, and got 3 types of cheese! one of them tastes a bit too much like milk for me to eat alone, so i'm going to put it into scrambled eggs or an omelette. the others are a red leicester (which i've had luck with in the past) and a blue cheese. somehow, both the smell and the thought that i'm eating mould doesn't put me off. call me odd, but i kind of like strong-smelling food, even if it's ammonia-ish like from century eggs! speaking of which, i kind of miss century eggs. wonder how easy they'll be to get over here?

-random thought of the day: Got more atas regular eggs too.-