Who's your bet for president?

[Lisafuller]

Now we've got George Goh, and most recently Ng Kok Song.

Been seeing a lot of xenophobic comments online in relation to his wife when they spoke to the media. She speaks with a American/Canadian accent, which netizens didn't take kindly to. I wasn't bothered by that, was more concerned about how she looked like she was going to burst into tears at any moment, but this is not about her.

Personally, I think Ng may give Tharman a run for his money. He speaks well, and doesn't have much affiliation to any party so he's seen as far more neutral than Tharman. I also believe he will secure most of the votes from opposition supporters.

[Lisafuller]

That only applies to new people in their first couple of years. You need to understand — our office is not your typical office… it’s VERY casual, the average tenure of employees is VERY long, and we have genuine trust - we all become like family. It’s the main reason I’m on my 27th year! It’s almost shocking the things that get discussed… from highly personal, even sensitive, marital, criminal, financial, political and religious. Sometimes I think people share a little too much! I’ve yet find a topic that is off limits for most, once they become family.

Fair enough, you definitely know your office better than I do. Perhaps, then, one of the reasons why your office is so close knit is because employees share similar values and opinions. That being said, these opinions might not be representative of the larger local population.

I’d say those who stay long-term are those who are patient in their careers and can appreciate work/life balance, but there are hundreds of employees in our office and over a thousand employees in Singapore, including our other offices. I don’t know everyone, but I have worked in a lot of different divisions over the years and know most who have stuck around. It a wide mix of true blue Singaporeans, converted Singaporeans (mostly Malaysian Chinese, but not all), long term PRs and long term EP holders from just about everywhere. It’s really quite the smorgasbord.

Fair enough. The young people in my workplace are quite outspoken about social causes, especially racism and sexuality issues. Gender, not so much for some reason.

[Lisafuller]

I talk to a lot of the new generation about their views (many in my office) and I haven’t seen a huge moderating of their views. On LGBT it seems to be more about tolerating than advocating. At their core, Singaporeans are a practical bunch. They care about bread and butter issues. LGBT is pretty low on their list of priorities, if it’s even on the list at all.

When I've asked young people (like late teens) about their dreams for the future, they often say "to find a stable job". They are very focused on that, and on meeting family expectations (real or perceived). Social causes don't even get a mention. I was a little surprised at that, but it's exactly how I was at that age too.

Singaporeans are hyper practical. I'm not surprised that stability is high on their list of priorities, but also want to temper the statement with the fact that social issues are probably not what they're going to bring up in a short conversation with a random adult.

[Lisafuller]

I talk to a lot of the new generation about their views (many in my office) and I haven’t seen a huge moderating of their views. On LGBT it seems to be more about tolerating than advocating. At their core, Singaporeans are a practical bunch. They care about bread and butter issues. LGBT is pretty low on their list of priorities, if it’s even on the list at all.

When I've asked young people (like late teens) about their dreams for the future, they often say "to find a stable job". They are very focused on that, and on meeting family expectations (real or perceived). Social causes don't even get a mention. I was a little surprised at that, but it's exactly how I was at that age too.

Sounds like the classic, get in where you fit in.

When I first moved here at age 24, I was renting a room in a Singaporean household and they had a nephew living there, probably age 16 or 17. He was curious why I would move to Singapore and he concluded that I seem to “fit the culture” here better, because I take things more seriously than typical Americans. It was an astute observation.

You do seem to share a lot of values with Singaporeans. My personal view is that it may be due to your religion, so your conservative views are more closely aligned with the large majority of the local population. Very helpful in terms of assimilating.

[Lisafuller]

When I've asked young people (like late teens) about their dreams for the future, they often say "to find a stable job". They are very focused on that, and on meeting family expectations (real or perceived). Social causes don't even get a mention. I was a little surprised at that, but it's exactly how I was at that age too.

Sounds like the classic, get in where you fit in.

When I first moved here at age 24, I was renting a room in a Singaporean household and they had a nephew living there, probably age 16 or 17. He was curious why I would move to Singapore and he concluded that I seem to “fit the culture” here better, because I take things more seriously than typical Americans. It was an astute observation.

hm.. come to think of it, when I first landed (also age 24) I set to job hunting the very next day. Never went clubbing or anything like that. My excitement was (and still is) going to IKEA or to a neighbourhood park.

By the time I arrived, my clubbing days were far behind me. I probably would have been turned away at the door, though in the first place I wouldn't have made it there as I would be in bed

[Lisafuller]

Sounds like the classic, get in where you fit in.

When I first moved here at age 24, I was renting a room in a Singaporean household and they had a nephew living there, probably age 16 or 17. He was curious why I would move to Singapore and he concluded that I seem to “fit the culture” here better, because I take things more seriously than typical Americans. It was an astute observation.

hm.. come to think of it, when I first landed (also age 24) I set to job hunting the very next day. Never went clubbing or anything like that. My excitement was (and still is) going to IKEA or to a neighbourhood park.

Wow, the very next day? Between the jet lag (which I’d never experienced before) and the newness of everything, it was all I could do drag myself down, take a public bus for the first time in my life, and have some chicken rice (washed down with some barley water).

I remember going to Orchard, inside Wisma… it was the most crowded place I’d ever experienced. Eaton Center in Toronto was probably second most - before we moved to SG, I used to smuggle my SO into Canada without a visa, as there was no passport check.

I didn’t send my first resume until the next weekend (I had to get passport photos made to include with my resume). Back then, most job listings were found in the Saturday edition of the Straits Times. I found that sending first thing on Monday tended to get the best response. And, back then you had to have pager, that was how prospective employers would contact you to call them.

I was surprised how easy it was to get called for an interview at the time, things were booming in 1996/97, until the Asian crisis hit.

No way! My first meal was chicken rice and barley as well. I had a shock when I bit into the little pieces of barley at the bottom of the drink. Chicken rice seemed the least foreign to me and it's one of my favorites to this day.

Also, I always thought you were American.

[Lisafuller]

My dad had a business years ago and met George Goh once at a meeting. My dad only said he’s chatty & polite, not enough to know someone personally.

He definitely seems like a nice guy, and from what I hear from my daughter, he's actively promoting himself on social media, probably to connect with the younger generation. Not sure he'll get the effect he intends to though, as I'm not sure many voters use TikTok.

[malcontent]

hm.. come to think of it, when I first landed (also age 24) I set to job hunting the very next day. Never went clubbing or anything like that. My excitement was (and still is) going to IKEA or to a neighbourhood park.

Wow, the very next day? Between the jet lag (which I’d never experienced before) and the newness of everything, it was all I could do drag myself down, take a public bus for the first time in my life, and have some chicken rice (washed down with some barley water).

I remember going to Orchard, inside Wisma… it was the most crowded place I’d ever experienced. Eaton Center in Toronto was probably second most - before we moved to SG, I used to smuggle my SO into Canada without a visa, as there was no passport check.

I didn’t send my first resume until the next weekend (I had to get passport photos made to include with my resume). Back then, most job listings were found in the Saturday edition of the Straits Times. I found that sending first thing on Monday tended to get the best response. And, back then you had to have pager, that was how prospective employers would contact you to call them.

I was surprised how easy it was to get called for an interview at the time, things were booming in 1996/97, until the Asian crisis hit.

No way! My first meal was chicken rice and barley as well. I had a shock when I bit into the little pieces of barley at the bottom of the drink. Chicken rice seemed the least foreign to me and it's one of my favorites to this day.

Also, I always thought you were American.

I am, but lived just a couple of hours from the Canadian border, and had always enjoyed crossing it. I’ve always been drawn to the idea of foreign travel and living. That is probably why I was so open to the idea of moving to SG. But after 27 years, Singapore is very much domestic to me now. There is so much of the US and the Americas that I have yet to explore, and that will be a priority in the coming years.

[Lisafuller]

Wow, the very next day? Between the jet lag (which I’d never experienced before) and the newness of everything, it was all I could do drag myself down, take a public bus for the first time in my life, and have some chicken rice (washed down with some barley water).

I remember going to Orchard, inside Wisma… it was the most crowded place I’d ever experienced. Eaton Center in Toronto was probably second most - before we moved to SG, I used to smuggle my SO into Canada without a visa, as there was no passport check.

I didn’t send my first resume until the next weekend (I had to get passport photos made to include with my resume). Back then, most job listings were found in the Saturday edition of the Straits Times. I found that sending first thing on Monday tended to get the best response. And, back then you had to have pager, that was how prospective employers would contact you to call them.

I was surprised how easy it was to get called for an interview at the time, things were booming in 1996/97, until the Asian crisis hit.

No way! My first meal was chicken rice and barley as well. I had a shock when I bit into the little pieces of barley at the bottom of the drink. Chicken rice seemed the least foreign to me and it's one of my favorites to this day.

Also, I always thought you were American.

I am, but lived just a couple of hours from the Canadian border, and had always enjoyed crossing it. I’ve always been drawn to the idea of foreign travel and living. That is probably why I was so open to the idea of moving to SG. But after 27 years, Singapore is very much domestic to me now. There is so much of the US and the Americas that I have yet to explore, and that will be a priority in the coming years.

Funnily enough, I've never crossed the border. I've been to Canada a handful of times, but always by plane.