Cowboy Caleb the liberal arts, grown-up stuff & random mischief

The Midnight Salarymen’s Club

It used to be that when I came home with that little white ball of frustration in the pit of my stomache, I would stoke it with whiskey. If that didn’t work, I would visit my favourite bar for some oblivion in a canter. Of course that was when I used to be a bachelor and lived on my own. These day, such behavior would probably earn me a trip to the a night on the couch.

So these days, to chase the white ball away, I slip out at night and get into my car. And then I hit that little stretch of marvelously deserted and dark highway that is the final stretch of desolation between the 2nd Link Causeway that connects Malaysia to Singapore.

Riding in a three grand Deutche car
A to B is often very far
Home is near, but such a long way
Legs and heads all feel the wrong way
Then I realised my Deutche car
Is only there to get me somewhere
Even so I really do care
Would you like to ride my Deutche car

- Paper Plane by Status Quo -

When you’re cruising in the dark at 190kmph with the stereo blasting away with one of those songs that celebrate impending self-destruct, any and all worries simply melt away.

Then I realized that I wasn’t alone. There were others, also testing the limits of their engines with me on that lonely stretch of highway - only their headlights were not lit. My eyes inspected the convoy before me. These were not street punks because all their cars were executive-class luxury sedans like Audi A6’s, Lexus’s, BMW 5 series and a lone Toyota Mark X. I searched and found no signs of modifications. These were standard machines, made to cruise at such speeds with ease.

The lead car, a white Audi pulled up next to me and looked sideways at me. I nodded to him, and he nodded back in approval. It seemed like the correct thing to do at that moment, so I switched off my headlights and joined the convoy at the end of its tail. As I slid back to enter the back of the snake, I noted that all the drivers looked like me. Early 30’s, short hair, eye-bags and dressed in a polo tee.

Good golly, I had found a fellowship of frustrated salarymen like myself in the strangest of places - this was the Midnight Salarymen’s Club.

very soon you will be making soapbars from aminal fats

Strange stuff Cowboy… Time to make some changes in your work life if that is what is causing the “little white ball of frustration”! Take care of yourself!

[…] actually empathised with this entry. of course i don’t speed like them. coz i don’t own a car that’s capable of that […]

i don’t know why..but this sounds a little scary.

Are your marriage life in trouble? or your marriage in danger of an affair??

Frustration is a normal phenomenon in a closed social environment like work. It is unavoidable. Ongoing triggers like office politics, long hours, an unrelenting boss, bureaucratic system, inefficient coworkers and strict deadlines make workplace a hotbed for stress. Whether it affects your efficiency in the long run or not depends on how well you handle it.

If it’s night, u made a good choice. Safety in numbers. Unless they are some suits in voodoo gay cult.

Ah.. how quaint.

Sheesh only you come across such things.

That’s a nice picture you have there. My dad does this speeding thing too to rid stress. He does it on the bike though.

I found your blog via something on Steven Lim. *wry smile*

I’ve been out of Singapore too long man. Been in Sweden for the past 5 years.
Cheryl Marie Cordeiro

Hey, how do you get those cool yi, er, san, si, wu icons by the left side of the bar?
/Cheryl

cheryl> for chinese number lists, checkout http://www.w3schools.com/css/pr_list-style-type.asp

eh… so stressed mehhh…. nairmind lah. one of those nites, tell the woman you travelling, i bring u go destress…

that’s there is a fight club

You finally join a gay club ah?

omg ms. codeiro !! ure dad was my principal and u took my class when i was in skool as a relief teacher !! hehe didnt noe u read cowboycaleb too!

Hi Cowboy Caleb

I was wondering if you had seen the online petition to the PM to repeal the law criminalising sex between men. If you haven’t, do check it out! It’s at http://www.repeal377a.com and the petition closes on October 19.

I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that having this law on the statute books forces gay men to live in fear simply for loving whom they love; is a tangible symbol of their inferiority in society; intrudes on private acts between adults; and blocks effective sex education and HIV/AIDS outreach because gay sex can’t be frankly discussed or recognised as normal and acceptable by the government bureaucracy. This state of affairs needs to change!

It would be great if you could sign the petition, and also if you could publicise the URL on your blog. I know you must get requests of this sort all the time, but this is for an important cause. Your wide readership will help greatly - every single signature will aid in demonstrating to the government (and the public) that Singapore is not a country of people opposed to tolerance, equality and dignity for gays.

Please consider helping. Anything at all would be appreciated. It will cost you only a few moments, and could make a real difference.

apparently, you dont read my blog. I’m a closet homophobic. Let me think about your request.

obviously he sensed that u r a closet gay instead, caleb.

*whistles*

You’re right, I don’t read your blog; I just know it’s reasonably popular. Superficially speaking though, you seem at least potentially liberal-minded. And if you’re politically liberal, even if you’re homophobic, even if you’re a religious fundamentalist, you don’t have to support Section 377A. Personally, I hate adultery, and I hate serial cheating; but I don’t think it should be illegal, because it’s not an appropriate subject for state intervention. QED.