Monday 23 June 2008

Signs of Hard Times

I was on the 1518 from Liverpool to Euston when I got a call from my husband. He said he was walking back with 10kg of rice from our local grocer when he was stopped by the police. Oh no! I interjected. Then he proceeded to explain. Apparently there had been a fight down the road and police had sealed off the area. People were asked to turn back. A man was so angry with his girlfriend that he doused her with petrol and set her alight.

Thank God, I said, before I could bite my tongue. I thought the police had confiscated our rice!

I repeated the story to our son who met me at the station. He said: What a shame! What a waste of valuable petrol.

Yes, these are certainly signs that times are hard.

33 comments:

Ailin in Aalborg said...

Kak Teh. Missing you. Wanna meet after the 5th of July?

Kak Teh said...

Can, can, can! Are you coming here? Sms, ym or whatever and let me know.

Pi Bani said...

Wait a minute, you were worried your husband got stopped by the police or you were worried your rice got confiscated?? ;)

Kak Teh said...

Rice! :)

Mama Rock said...

kak teh, kak teh..welcome back. yup, rice and petrol...can't live without it. mahal pun kena bayar jugak :(

Anonymous said...

Kak Teh dear,

Finally we "bumped" into each other, as always. Will try to arrange a proper makan2.

Ps: rice is more important than hubby, eh? *winks*

Kak Teh said...

mama rock - i think we must change our diet to roast chicken and potatoes once in a while.

ms istanbul,yes, luckily we did but a pity you couldn't stay long. Oh, my story was meant to show that rice and petrol were more important than that poor burning lady. I wonder what happened to her.

Kak Teh said...

oh and of course husband more important than rice - if not who to crry bag of rice home, geddit?

Mumsgather said...

We're having bad times everywhere. I just hope it doesn't escalate to the point where only the rich can afford to eat rice. We'd be in real trouble then, rice being our staple food.

Kak Teh said...

mumsgather, last night for the first time, we had a non basmati rice for dinner. For the past 28 years, we have always bought basmati rice for its quality/fragrance - but i think it is time we buy rice - any rice. I think it wise too that we stock up on pasta - all kinds of pasta as these are non perishables.

can you imagine how rice can become a luxury item only for the rich? Kita makan ubi kayu ka?

Madam Tai Tai Again said...

Kak Teh, welcome back.

Wah..rice more important than dear hubby, eh? Ingatkan perut dulu iya tak.

The scene of the man dousing his girlfriend with petrol macam similar scene tht would transpire on the daily basis kat Bangladesh. But because fuel is expensive here it is substituted with acid. Whatever the means, the outcome is just as devastating.

Sad when humans behave like animals.

MrsNordin said...

Times are hard too in the UK? You've substitute basmati for cheaper rice? Hmm.. sounds just like us here.

IBU said...

Salam Kak Teh,

Here in Msia pun, rice is fast becoming a scarce resource. And yeah... the hubby comes in handy to carry the rice home, I agree !

And yes, I agree with you son too -what a waste of valuable commodity! But had the man used other inflamable material - open burning pulak! hehehe....

Tunku Halim said...

Kak Teh - So many things in your one post! Escalating food prices. Rocketing petrol price. Domestic violence. And your poor husband having to carry 10kg! :)

wanshana said...

Kak Teh,

I wasn't sure whether to smile or to cringe when I first read your posting ni. Hehehe!

Smile, because everybody seems to be getting their priorities NOT right.

And cringe, when I think of the poor girl!

But, yeah - hubbies, rice, petrol : they're all valuable commodities - in that order. Or, maybe not? ;)

Cheers!

Kak Teh said...

madam tai tai, the bride burning thing happens here as well , but under a different guise; accident in the kitchen etc. But in this case, i think the victim is not asian , more of eastern european.

Mrs N, I love Basmati and am rather spoilt I think where rice is concerned but we cant be choosy. Must train our taste buds to try other brands.

Ibu, yes, a waste of valuable commodity AND - think of the pollution to the environment! (Hish! Am getting worse!)

Kak Teh said...

Tunku, yes, there's the threat to the environment too and of course the apathy in society when times are hard.

wanshana, I have yet to read in the local papers about the fate of the girl. Kesian. No one should be treated that bad, no matter what her faults.

Nazrah Leopolis said...

we can feel the pinch in dubai just as well. our regular silver swan beras siam is of poorer quality(walaupun lebih mahal dari dulu), and i can't get my carbo fix from basmati, argh!


i am back in sg for the summer kakteh, and i am feeling like a pauper.everything's so expensive here too! pak lah said we must eat keledek, imagine the uproar if he'd suggested ubi kayu?

take care of u.

hugs

Anonymous said...

Ya, rata-rata kehidupan memang susah dah sekarang, kata kucing ray sambil memegang parang. Saya merasa amat takut kerana rompakan di merata tempat, kata kucing ray yang merempat. (Kelihatan kucing saya yang pandai bercakap sedang mengadu susah dengan parang yang siap diasah).

ray dan kucing miskin

Kak Teh said...

Intan, you are back in Singapura?? wow!!! We cant travel now cos everything is so expensive. eh - give me your singapore landline number; i can skype-skype you.

Kak Teh said...

Ray dan kucing, terima kasih kerana melawat kak teh, kata kucing kak teh yang selalu letih. Beras semua mahal macam harga satin, kata kucings atu lagi yang makan whiskers bertin-tin.
Kita jimat nasi, dia sikit pun tak faham, masih nak whiskers dengan jelly, bagi yang lain dia tengok macam perli!

ZABS said...

Salam KakTeh,
Dah puas berkeliling ke?
Mungkin beras Basmathi lebih murah di London dari di KL kot?
Walau apa pun petrol (RM2.70/ltr) lebih murah dari Evian Mineral Water (RM6.99/ltr) di sini.

[danial][ma] said...

hej! kak teh...hahaha...you should worry of the rice...it is more expensive now...in just three months, a 10 kg basmati rice is now £16 to £20 from £10...pheeewww...

Salt N Turmeric said...

Kak Teh, welcome back fr ur holiday!

Yes, kat mana2 ceruk dunia pun harga barang naik. For us yg berdua ni, taklah terasa sgt but i really pity those w big family and earning just enough.

This was on the news this morning. http://video.yahoo.com/watch/2969285/8515974

What do u think Kak Teh?

Farina

Kak Teh said...

zabs, yes, dah habis round round - had a wonderful time. nanti i blog abt it when i have time. sekarang ni busy sangat. summer is always a busy period for me. Oh yes, you mentioned Evian - we went to Evian and had the water on tap - flowing from the mountains. People were queueing up with bottles to refill. the water is so fresh!

Kak Teh said...

danial ma - yes, i realise that. I cant remember when it used to be £10! in summer, its so easy for rice to go basi - must really be careful.

farina - yes, i watched that clip and yes, times are hard everywhere. I dont know how to tell my son that perhaps he shd forgo his trip to malaysia - the fare is so expensive.

Queen Of The House said...

Welcome back, Kak Teh.

I thought rices prices are up only here ... how wrong I was. If Pak lah were to suggest ubi kayu, I think he really won't last long. Nanti semua orang memberontak! It's such a shame when a staple food feels like it's turning into a luxury item. Tak pa lah, kurangkan makan, bolehlah kuruih sikit kot.

Kak Teh said...

QOTH, imagine if a whole generation sekarang ni makan ubi kayu - imagine the state of the brain in ten or twenty years time.

well - i hope whatever it is , it is temporary.

cindai lela said...

Salam Kak Teh,

Aillin dah tukar nama blog dia ke?

Thanks

Jane Sunshine said...

Ah, you're back. Lovely to have some flicker on your blog. Missing you and summer.

Kak Teh said...

cindai lela, ya, dia dah tukar dah. Look at the first comment in this comment box and click to go there.

jane dearest, i wish you wouldn't put me and summer in the same sentence. Even reading it gave me bouts of sneezing. My hayfever is quite bad. If you're around, I dont think we could do that walk in the park without me wearing a very thick mask, not unlike zorro!

svllee said...

Hi kak, what a hilarious story, (not for the petrol lady though), welcome back!

chinta said...

kak teh, welcome back!

You seems to worry about the rice more than you worry about your husband...heheh

Poor that lady. It is a bad fate for someone to be treated like that..

I also now have change beras mati to a poorer quality. But we don't have any choice to subtsitute petrol, do we?