So are you a snob? I like to believe that I am not, and here’s why.
Food
I can eat at hawker centres or coffeeshops. I love “tai pai” stalls (roadside stalls). I love local hawker fare as much as I love the fine french cuisine of Le Jardin.
Fashion
I don’t believe in a full designer wardrobe or couture, and neither can I afford to. Instead, I prefer high street brands like Zara, Mango, Bebe, Topshop and Dorothy Perkins; and the quirky labels from one off shops in Bangkok and Hong Kong. However I do have an incurable weakness for designer bags and shoes, particularly leather totes and three inch killers. I love Cartier and Omega watches, preferably with diamonds. And I do so love diamonds. Am wildly allergic to zirconia. It’s a dirty word in my dictionary.
Friends
As for friends, I only have a handful. No, I can count them on one hand, that’s pushing it already. Clearly I believe in quality and not quantity. Sometimes I think I am a little anti-social, preferring to be alone most of the times. And I have a very wide personal space; I hate crowds and people touching me on public transport, especially when there is ample space to move. I am fiercely loyal to my friends and I expect the same in return. Only two things I cannot forgive and that is; tittering behind my back (that means you CAN bitch to my face, I’d appreciate that more) and betrayal.
None of that Ms Popularity for me where you have friends everywhere and everyone’s your best friend. No sirree. Life’s too short for such nonsense.
I had a best friend of twelve years (since age 4!) and she threw it all away for a man. She stole my very first boyfriend, can you believe it. Needless to say, I axed both dead weights out of my life. Goodness if you have friends like that, who needs enemies? I don’t forgive. Yes, that’s a sin, but whatever. And the sweetest thing in this mini saga was that I met him again when I was flying and looking the most fabulous ever (read: size 8 and young, hah!) and he was wriggling back into my life. Be it suffice to say that I milked him nicely of expensive fancy dinners, designer bags and shoes, ridiculously expensive concert tickets, then told him “it’s not working out darling”. Ah, revenge is evil… but sweet. As for said ex best friend, the last I heard was she was rapidly being known as someone who can be had for a song. A note, rather. Not that I care.
Books
As for reading material, I really prefer writers like Murakami, Philip Roth, Naomi Wolf and Zadie Smith to the likes of Nora Roberts and Victoria Holt. You get the drift. I do so not like romance or girly novels. But having said that, I did vastly enjoy Lauren Weisberger’s The Devil Wears Prada but only because it centres mainly on fashion.. I tried the Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella. No offense to her fans, but I was extremely irritated by the unbelievably bimbotic ways and stupidity of her protagonist. So, I guess I am a little of a book snob. Well, life’s really too short for bad books…
Character
Crass people do so get on my nerves. Just the other day at the Wheelock Nokia care centre where I brought my N70 to be diagnosed, there was this Indian man who looked very pleasant and educated. That is, until he opened his mouth. And oh boy, was it foul. The poor customer service girl was berated with the harshest words which she definitely did not deserve. The air was thick with sentences like “Your two hours are not the same worth of my two hours”, “Why do I have to come at least once a week to see your face” and the clincher, “You are not in charge of Nokia. You are only working for them and at a minion level too. Get your manager to see me now!”
And he had the cheek to turn to me and smile! The nerve! What, did he think that I would be impressed by his fluent outburst? I shot him a glacier stare, and it was too good for him.
Yes, I could be a snob to such people. And speaking of a foul mouth, I am reminded by this person I know. Actually I was warned by several friends that she “has a stinking mouth”. But I always believe in making my own decisions and in not pre-judging people before giving a chance to disprove any rumour, so I did go out with her on a group social occasion. And foul mouth she has. The entire evening had her sniping, gossiping snarkily and making negative remarks about all and sundry. Don’t get me wrong, I am not against the occasional bitching and sniping that is soooo good for the soul. But, to deliberately suss out others’ faults and gloat over them, and to constantly harp on negatives… That’s really too off putting for me. Didn’t your mum teach you?
IF YOU HAVE NOTHING GOOD TO SAY, SOMETIMES IT’S BETTER TO JUST ZIP IT.
Education
I think I am a bit of a snob when it comes to education. I believe that Ivy League colleges are somewhat superior to our local university – though not because of the ‘overseas’ factor. Getting an education overseas that nurtures forces you to think is simply more superior to the moddly spoonfeeding “only one answer is correct” style of teaching here. I also found that 9 out of 10 of every NUS graduate that I have met in the course of my work for the past twelve years are unresourceful, uninspired and sadly dependent creatures. So, if you are that 1 person, don’t get too fidgety ok? You should be very proud, as all 9 of your fellow cohort are idiots.
Lifestyle
I cannot stand sad stupid people who feel the need to assert their superiority in pouring liquor down their throats. What, very gung ho and macho is it? Why waste good liquor and pollute the air further with your cigarette smoke and the nonsense you sprout when dead drunk? Slow poisoning is boring, and you burden the people around you when you get liver cancer and start begging for charity. Best to buy a bottle of bleach and get it over and done with. But don’t die in inconvenient places, like MRT stations, bus stops or what nots ok? Go to some quiet corner where you will not be missed.
Don’t get me wrong again, I love my Irish cream, champagne, vodka and red wine. But I do so like to enjoy the taste and the relaxation, as opposed to raucously downing said liquor and announcing to the whole world “Hey, I am drinking! I am doing a bottoms-up!” *rolls eyes* (think of the ah bengs shouting, “tah ah!!!” *shudder*)
Same goes for sad sad men who feel emasculated without a trophy model on their arms or a trophy car in the parking lot. Why, feel like a wimp without a sports car to validate your worth is it? It’s so sad! No, it’s not sad, it’s amusing.
Same for braggarts who love to brag about their culinary/ whatever/ insert boring activity skills or riches to people like me who really really don’t care.
Having said all that, I am not and can never be, a snob to others who are not on par in terms of economic comfort. In my last trip to Bangkok, I was very deeply affected by women begging by the roadside with their young daughters. One in particular, looked as young as Geanyne and my heart really went out to her. And she was so obedient too, just standing patiently beside her mother on the road. The first thing I thought of was, why is the mother not working?! But the very next second, it struck me that not everyone is as blessed as I am to have received an education, or even have the “luxury” of a job. The little girl may not, and most probably will not have the luxury of an education and may have to walk in the path of her mother’s life, or much worse. Then I felt the futility of it all and couldn’t help but tear up. I still do, every now and then when I think of that little girl standing by the road, it’s like her small self against the whole world.
Anyway, I hate talking and no action, so we’ve agreed that for our next trip back there, we are going to buy some stuff for her, that is, if she’s still there. You can’t save them all, but at least you can make a difference, no matter how small, in one little life.
