this is the kind of shit that happened on me
i've been in ultra bad mood since i lost my bag. if ever there is any racial or religious comment EVER, i SWEAR it is NOT on purpose but accidental. help check and i'll edit the parts that are sensitive.
time: approximately 2.30am
date: 6th june 2009 saturday
venue: mint cafe
it was a ROM night for this pair of angmoh regulars.
ENCOUNTER NO.1: i vividly remember how i got scolded when the male patron found meatballs missing from his order of spaghetti bolognese. he wasnt even attempting to ask in a nicer neutral tone like "excuse me, can you check if there's something missing from this order? i thought it's supposed to come with meatballs.." no. he wasnt that mr nice guy. he was like: (rolls eyes) WHAT IS THIS?! (point to menu description) and my meatballs? (with arrogance in his tone). OH WELLS. service=smile. i had to bear with such insult and explain and later compensate him his "royal" meatballs. come to think of it, i still couldnt believe i was behaving like a slave throughout their meal, apologising for the meatballs and stuff. i wonder what i owed him in my pastlife but i threw that thought away as soon as they paid the bill.
ENCOUNTER NO. 2: they were slightly more likeable without the rolling of eyes and sacarstic tone. AT FIRST. soon the nightmare reignited. the bar was booked for a function that night so no walk-ins were allowed. so since the 1-for-1 drinks promotion was exclusive to the bar, practically no one could have it that night. this guy. AGAIN. he saw the promotion from the tentcard on the table and insisted he wants this and that. i returned to his table after asking my manager and APOLOGISED to this ill-bred man. ok. expected. he flared up again and i was the victim ONCE AGAIN. i wasnt noticing too much about the woman since she was like constantly trying to put up a smile to make herself look less demanding than the man.
ENCOUNTER NO. 3: this time, the irritable pair of couple went up to the bar. and asked if they could have their set dinner from the cafe at the bar. MY GAWD. couldnt they just follow the norm for once and stop being so special. as mentioned, it's a set meal.. so i've got to take the lift up countless of times to serve first their salads, then soups, then main course, then dessert.. not to forget mentioning clearing their plates. i doubt they've taken this into consideration. one good thing other than the fact that they recognise me(i couldnt decide if this point was a good or bad thing. you help me decide) is that they did NOT lose their temper! WOW.
LAST (and hopefully the final) ENCOUNTER: the ROM night of this angmoh couple.. the guy was treating the place like his home already. making us cater like his maids or something. he was the one who requested for espresso when WE CLEARLY INDICATED COFFEE OR TEA. NORMAL COFFEE OR TEA. he's really full of shit. then he told us to wire the stereo with his ipod, so he can play music for their dance. WTF. THERE'S NO SPACE TO DANCE. somehow, they still did. you know that kind of clubbing dance. OH. i do not know what's his problem but he seemed to expect everyone to know how to operate an ipod. so i should expect his to use a pair of chopstick when he eats noodles? i should have spilled coffee or something over it. SERIOUSLY. he THINKS he is rich. he THINKS he is the boss. unfortunately, the managers agree with that BECAUSE he is OUR CUSTOMER. FCUK. so anyway, on paper, his party night was to end at 11pm on friday night. but we expected it to end at 12am anyway. like how often do you see angmohs abiding to the rules of the house? in REALITY, they were still moving to the grooves of the music at 12.30am of saturday morning. and if not for the reminder that we were only licensed till 2am to allow them to purchase and consume alcohol in our premises, they'd have partied till 4am. so here's the part i should have focused on: manager, at 2.10am or so, instructed me to prepare to go home. i.e. get changed and stuff. i took my canvas bag(DEH ONE I USED FOR SCHOOLING IN JC.) brought it to the seat in front of the dishwashing area(the area was cleared, table cleaned and arranged, placemats prepared. most importantly, the angmohs were near/at the door, the other end of the cafe) took my shoes to change into slippers(then stuffed my shoes into my bag) and then went to punch out my card. when i returned at about 2.30am, my bag was gone. fast aint it? i alerted my fellow staff and manager who could do nothing more than bugging the groom-gonna-be(aka that above mentioned demanding man) who couldnt even put down his signature on the bill. (by the way, this 30pax group bottled a total of approximately 20 red and white wines.) the manager checked the cctv which could only suggest that someone dressed like the bride in long white dress took a bag like mine from approximately the area i left it.
for some reason, i was cool and calm. the cleaners left long ago, unless it's our own staff, i was affirmed that the guests will realise that they had taken my bag by mistaken in a hurry to clear and leave the place. so i cabbed home with a fellow staff. almost immediately after i told my mom once i reached home at 3.20am or so, i broke down. i shouldnt have left it there. especially when no one was keeping a lookout for me. especially when the guests were leaving. but i strongly believe my bag, containing my IC, my HOUSE KEYS, my adult AND student ez-link cards, my NETS card, cash, my red sony mp3 which was a prize from my brother for the marathon, a NLB book, my clothes, my working shoes, my pens, my own book... will be returned the next day at work. uh yes, i still have to work at 12pm on saturday. i couldnt work out a reason why they would want to steal my bag since i have faithfully been following the golden rule of not leaving your valuables in the open. lights out at 4am. but i was waking up at intervals to cry. terrible night. i didnt sleep well at all.
i returned to work with high hopes and red eyes. i was told that the couple would come to pay the bill. but my manager could tell me approximately when. i was lucky because customers were little during the day but that also meant less distraction. there wasnt a minute i wasnt thinking about my bag. when would they return? they wouldnt steal it right? there isnt a thing they could do with my ic, so at least they'll pass my ic to the police? should i call the man and the woman myself? how much cash was in my wallet? how am i to tell my father if i dont get it back by today(saturday)? it didnt helped either with the insensitive head chef telling me about the consequences. and the possibility of my bag being returned. i was heading to the restroom every half an hour during my 6-hour workshift. this is one incident that fumed me during the day. the guy operation manager gave the groom-to-be a ring asking him to 1.pay the bill. 2. check for my bag(WTF. THE BILL IS MORE IMPT THAN MY IC?!) the guy over the phone said he was still trying to reach some of his guests. and my ever-customer-friendly manager told him. "OH. IT'S OK. TAKE YOUR TIME." no matter how much amount of money they have, they cannot pay for the amount of stress i was facing. i was later told that the operation manager was obessessed since the morning for his missing malaysian ringgit rather than being worried for the welfare of his staff. i intended to stay till 9pm before returning home for dinner, but the constant flowing of tears was draining my energy. everytime after i teared, i felt like dropping to the floor and closing my eyes. i felt like i was floating half the time. i really wished everything was just a nightmare. one new friend i met at mint accompanied me home. but we stopped by the police station to make a report of my lost ic. to my horror, lost of ic need not be reported, i'd just have to go to ICA and make a new one with a exploding cost of 100bucks. until now, it's probably the reason why im so reluctant to apply a new ic. it's like a criminal record that my ic has been lost and (choy.) the next time would be an wholesome 300bucks. i thank this friend for her support and advice. but back at home, i faced my mom who was talking to me with the corner of her eye and pointing her index finger at me as she pours out her part of reprimands.
11pm, 11.20pm, 12am.... i was either sitting up in bed, or in the kitchen hydrating myself to recover the amount of fluids i had lost from crying. oh yes. my mom calls me a cry baby. i admit i am. but whatmore can i do under such situation? cut myelf? slam the door? burn myself? run away from home? behave like a delinquent and join some triads? call my manager every hour to keep myself updated and irritate him/her to the core?
my head was heavy on sunday morning. my breaths were small and difficult to inhale. my eyes were drained of tears. my stomach was churning and i either felt like puking or having dirreahre. i had to stop crying i know. it was all quite calm until my mom revealed the incident to my dad in my presence. *sigh. i should get my tear glands removed one day. that was went things get out of hand. i was complaining. I WAS COMPLAINING myself. cause my head hurt even more. and the process of blowing my nose was torturous. my dad was like some commander. he started to call his buddies to check on the manager in case he was up to no good, instruct my brother and sister to go down with me to mint blah blah blah. that very day, i made a police report stating lost instead of stolen. stolen would have made things ugly and bad. like police rummaging through the angmohs's house, interrogation and stuff like that. plus, they can sue me if things are not found to be in their hands. i kinda regretted not reporting it as stolen. at night, i got my new sim card and officially lost all previous contacts i had. SO STOP ASKING IF I LOST MY HP WHEN YOU SEND ME AN SMS. also the same day, the guy angmoh replied my sister's sms. he wrote that no one in his party had taken my bag. and he would compensate for my bag. and was sorry for the hassle he caused. now, he wouldnt even reply MY sms. he and his wife ingeniously forwarded all the messages i sent to the operation manager. I SEE. BIG FAT LIAR. "compensation" is just an adjective for consoling to him.
i returned to work on monday still in hope of my bag. the couple finally came to pay their bill. however, the manager told me the bad news once again. that no one had taken my bag. even the bride said she didnt. she claimed to have only taken home a bag of presents(the size and shape of my bag? hell no.) after seeing the cctv. then again, the cctv was captured far, with a bloody statue creating loads of blindspots. i should have spoken to them myself. in fact until right now, i've never seen or spoke to them since i lost my bag. but then again, i knew i wasnt in the right mind and behaviour to be speaking to them. oh. i think by then i fell ill. super bad flu or something.
i waited a week. in my own wishing thinking that the managers would do some procedure. i waited and waited. then one day. i realised that the BIG BOSS doesnt know about my bag. and the managers were... like behaving nothing happened. there was no consolation. they never spoke to me. i was left there. alone sulking. and sulking even more when people from the office come to find fault with us. only when customers come i put up my best mask to serve and welcome customers.
finally i could wait no more. i need my ic for university applications, student ez-link application and all sorts of things. things must be rushed even more at this moment. who's gonna compensate for me the 100bucks for my ic? the angmoh couple is unreliable. so asking them for $ is pointless when they even had to split their approximately $1600 bill and pay with 2 cards. and it's only a ROM night i fear for their wedding night. then the NLB book. who's gonna paid for the book? a cost of approximately 20 bucks for a book that was in my bag that was stolen? I AM A VICTIM. and yet, i seemed to be made the scapegoat of everything.
below are the messages i typed word by word. make the judgement yourself. and tell me what i've done wrong. because i really have no idea. really.
11th june i sms-ed the groom: hello. i apologised if im against an innocent party. but if you or your friends ever find my canvas bag, contact me asap. especially my ic's in it. please. (my name) -------------------------NO REPLY.
in an attempt to get my manager to do something on 12th june i smsed my operation manager: hello. still no news of my bag and belongings? can you suggest what else to do other than pasting a primitive note of missing bag in front of mint? --------------------NO REPLY.
13th june to the bride: hello i really need my ic and the NLB book which are in my bag back. you will not want to pay for them if you have got the chance to return. because it's costing a bomb. (i wrote this with the mindset that they said they'd pay. ok. re-reading it sounds like i insist that she took it. but i swear i didnt want to make it sound this way. NOW IM GLAD I DIDNT TALK TO HER DIRECTLY.) REPLY: who is this? ME: my name is ( ). i work at mint cafe and lost my bag. i believe it is not stolen but taken by mistake. and hence i seek your help. thank you. ( of course i seek her help. SHE'S THE HOSTESS RIGHT.)----------------- NO REPLY.
14th june to the bride at 3AM AFTER CRYING.: i know everyone was drunk. so my canvas bag must have been mistakenly taken by someone in your party. and perhaps still lying untouched somewhere since that night. please help to check thoroughly. i hope you understand my anxiety to get my bag of clothes, books and other valuables back and hence i become irritating. (ok. read on you'll realise she is NOT understanding my last sentence.)------anyway, NO REPLY.
then i get this message from the operations manager: hi. i've been forwarded your sms. please stop this, otherwise she might report you for harrassment, defamation. you should not have left it in public area. regards. and so i replied, ME: i did not state that she or he took my bag, yes i admit it was my fault that i left it there. but ask yourself if you've really been helping me. even your malaysian RM is of greater importance than my ic. that's why i thought of taking things to my hand. especially when you intend to let matters rest just like that. (the matter can rest. IF the manager did something to show that they CARE.)
next, because i couldnt make it for work due to personal affairs, and so i smsed the f&b manager : hey (her name). are you planning the schedule or (asst manager)?. if you havent finish planning la, can change my schedule for tomorrow to 12pm onwards? ------------NO REPLY.
i called mint. and got shocked that my schedule was not planned. i thought maybe the operations manager instructed her not to schedule me for work and so i smsed the f&b manager again: hey. am i not scheduled to work for this coming week? (WHICH WOULD BE THE 3RD WEEK SINCE MY BAG WAS LOST. now you see why im sms-ing so much?) whatever la. anyway tomorrow i off. i dont know if (operations manager) told you anything but i hope my work is not cause of him. i hope la. SHE REPLY:when you free, you just come down, we need to talk. you need to change you aggressive attitude. ME: ok. so im not working there anymore la. say so. aggressive? lol. not yet. best yall are pushing me to the limits cause i didnt like the way things are managed. (should have used the word "handled" instead of "managed". but anyway, certainly it's poor handling of my bag issue right? wrong?) and then SHE replies: everybody is wrong and you are the only one who is right? ME: seems like (operation manager) didnt showcase my message to everyone. i dont know if to laugh or cry when i read that i think im the one right. if i didnt call mint, i wouldnt known your plan. (*pardon the grammar. it's sms anyway.* plan= to stop me from working.)
yup. that's it. i asked my sister. and i was told to forget about talking to both managers. im just an employee they're trying to get rid of to resolve the issue and to keep their customer. i kept doing reflections. like. could i have been wrong? maybe the f&b manager really havent had the time to schedule me in not that she did it on purpose? i dont know. i talked to blossom and she helped me to pray. providing me with advice and telling me not to think for them. afterall, i am their employee and it is their job to make a balance between protecting the rights of customers and employees. which they have failed awfully in the latter. was supposed to head down to mint cafe last night. but we didnt. we didnt have the time. afterall, i heard last night was pretty busy, so it was a good choice i guess? i dont know. but i constantly put myself in f&b manager's shoes. then again. someone once told me, dont accept "put yourself in my shoes" as an excuse for failing to fufill your responsibility. if you apply for a position as a teacher, you should have the knowledge to teach, the paitence to teach students and the willingness to afford time our of class to teach students who need your help. if you apply for a position as a policeman, you should have the courage to fight for the weak against the strong, the bravery to protect the victim whether verbally, emotionally or physically. you should also be righteous in order to maintain law and order anywhere you go. most importantly, in any occupation, there must be responsibility, once a ___, always a ___. there isnt really a thing as off-day in any job. like wise, as managers, you should have already been equipped with the ability to MANAGE instead of behaving as if you're too busy to even eat. else, you'd might as well come back down to be a trainee manager instead. the word "manager" brings out superiority. and so, to be able to lead the way and act what you preach. even more, make swift and yet smart decisions for everyone, the company, the customer, your staff and even yourself. alright. here i am blabbering and blabbering. pointing at someone else and analysing too much. dont worry. i'll make criticisms against myself too. but do take my words seriously.
the aftermath (for now): i find, unfortunately, to put my trust in every non-asian human beings. i find their laughter insincere. their talks an act. i dont know. they are just so not part of my life now. also, im unemployed. and now, the nightmare has re-ignited. my mom is picking on me. like how much time i spent on the bed even though i told her i wasnt feeling well and was having a bad headache.. a few days after 6th june. then she picked on my hair, telling me how nice looking other people's hair is yet mine looks weedy. she's gonna come into my room and comment on it's tidiness. and then she'll bring up my IC issue against. BLAH BLAH BLAH. I HATE IT. thus i need to do something when i get out of the house. else i never know when i'll commit a crime when im desperate of something.
All the sleepless nights;
and the tears you cry
at 2:45 PM