Arrival at Toji Cultural Centre (토지문화관)

Tue, 2 Apr 2013
4 min read
Add Comment

Farewell, folks.

A post shared by Laremy Lee (@laremylee) on

So I left on a jet plane to Korea on Sun night/Mon morning.

This trip has been in the works for the last three months, so I’ve spent that time prepping for it – buying clothes, handling administrative matters, having a Laremy Lee Farewell Tour, etc.

Which was all fun but super tiring, considering the other two big things I had to juggle consecutively/concurrently: relief teaching and an In-Camp Training.

Spending my 30th birthday the same way I spent my 19th: bearing arms while bedecked in green; serving the nation at the rifle range.
Spending my 30th birthday the same way I spent my 19th: bearing arms while bedecked in green; serving the nation at the rifle range.

I also spent the last three months informing people that I was making this trip, usually in response to having to politely decline meet-ups, wedding invitations, work, etc.

Most times, I managed to stun the people I was talking to into silence by telling them that I was going to Korea for plastic surgery.

Of course I did eventually reveal to them the real reason, which you can read about here.

I got the plastic surgery idea from my friend Yanhe, who – unbeknownst to me and his fiancee – told his fiancee I was going to Korea for an operation to improve my face.

When the three of us met for dinner, I spent a large part of the conversation trying to figure out why Yanhe’s fiancee was trying to avoid talking about Korea – until Yanhe revealed to us his deviousness.

Does not trust him... anymore.
Does not trust him… anymore.

Anyway, I’m finally in Korea.

So far I’ve been updating friends/family about how life is like, recovering from jet lag (and possible Laremy Lee Farewell Tour fatigue) and settling into the routine of breakfast before 10am, lunch at 12pm and dinner at 6pm.

I also made a new friend.

Oh look – I made a new friend.

A post shared by Laremy Lee (@laremylee) on

After reporting this news to the Checkpoint Theatre Whatsapp group, I promptly got scolded by Koh Bee Bee, who said, “We asked you to make friends with Korean ladies, not Korean ladybirds.”

Bee Bee is one of the many who has either encouraged me to bring home a Korean girlfriend (why, Singaporean girls not good enough, is it?) or shag as many Korean girls as possible (why, Singaporean girls not – OK, let’s not go there).

You can see where Singaporeans have their priorities – between making love and making art, they choose making love. Very pragmatic.

Although a friend did point out to me that making love to some people is akin to making art.

For the record, in any case:

  1. Bee Bee falls into the former category i.e. she wants me to bring home a Korean girlfriend;
  2. I’m here to work on one act of a play and about 12 poems.

Some pictures of how Toji Cultural Centre looks like:

The courtyard outside the dining hall.
The courtyard outside the dining hall.
Inside the Cultural Centre.
Inside the Cultural Centre.
What I mistakenly thought was the other housing block of residences.
The other housing block of residences, where the Korean writers are housed.
The block which I'm housed in.
The block which I’m housed in, along with some of the other “foreign” writers.
View of the Centre from my block.
View of the Centre from my block.
A writing bench outside my room (look at the mountains in the background).
A writing bench outside my room (look at the mountains in the background).
The door to my room (No. 505)
The door to my room (No. 505)
My somewhat spartan cupboard.
My somewhat spartan cupboard.
The attached bathroom.
The attached bathroom.
I have a mini-bar fridge as well (nothing in it yet, though).
I have a mini-bar fridge as well (nothing in it yet, though).
My bed and my writing table.
My bed and my writing table.

More (and better-taken) photos over here.

So that’s it for now, folks. I’ll provide more updates on the weather, language, food, activities, etc. in time to come.

Assuming North Korea doesn’t decide to strike first, that is. But that’s a premise for another play.

The advantage of being useless

Sun, 17 Mar 2013
1 min read
Add Comment

山木自寇也，
膏火自煎也。
桂可食，故伐之；
漆可用，故割之。
人皆知有用之用，
而莫知無用之用也。

Mountain trees self-destruct,
Lamp tallow self-immolates.
Cinnamon is edible, so it is cleaved;
Varnish is useful, so it is cut.
All men know the advantage of being useful,
but none know the advantage of being useless.

— 莊子 [Zhuang Zi], Zhuang Zi, “Transactions in the World of Men” (“人間世”).

Losing my religion

Wed, 13 Mar 2013
1 min read
Add Comment

"The lengths that I will go to/The distance in your eyes"

A post shared by Laremy Lee (@laremylee) on

In the song, Michael Stipe sings the lines “That’s me in the corner/That’s me in the spotlight/Losing my religion”. The phrase “losing my religion” is an expression from the southern region of the United States that means losing one’s temper or civility, or “being at the end of one’s rope.” Stipe told The New York Times the song was about romantic expression. He told Q that “Losing My Religion” is about “someone who pines for someone else. It’s unrequited love, what have you.”


(via Wikipedia)

It’s getting quite troublesome to own and maintain a scooter.

The breakdowns are getting more frequent; the roads are getting more dangerous; and to top it off, it’s becoming harder to get spare parts when I need to replace stuff.

I had to travel all the way down to Bukit Batok today to order a front tyre – a front tyre – for Pooters. I have to go back again on Fri to get it fixed on.

Mind you, this is in the context of having failed an annual roadworthiness inspection – Pooters’s first failure – because the front tyre was worn out (unbeknownst to me), and having to return for another inspection after replacing the tyre.

In Singapore, the Certificate of Entitlement (COE) policy effectively endow your vehicles with 10-year lifespans.

Most people sell sell/change their vehicles when their COEs expire, because it’s the most cost-effective thing to do.

COEs can be renewed – at a price pegged to prevailing rates.

That may not be the most sensible thing to do if you look at the numbers alone; the price of a renewed COE may be more than what the machine itself is worth.

This Monday will mark Pooters’s ninth year of existence. It has one more year to go before circumstances dictate whether I hang on to it – or I send it to the knackery.

I’m leaning toward the latter because, frankly, I’m losing my religion.

On one hand, having your own personal transport in Singapore – regardless of how many wheels it has – really makes you more mobile: a boon in a country with a ‘developing’ (for want of a better word) transport network.

On the other hand, what exactly am I conserving when I hang on to Pooters? Memories? Experiences? An out-of-production scooter?

But at what cost? Shouldn’t I save all the trouble and hassle – the lengths I have to go to – by getting a new scooter?

Should I even get a new scooter at all?

I’m still trying to figure that out.