Employees' Canteen

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I try to see positive light in every situation I am in. It helps me protect my psyche from dwelling in the darkness of what most people are passionate about, complaining. Complaining sucks out all the light from a person who indulges in it. It makes him blind of the beauty from every situation he’s in.

Is there too much positivity? Is there a problem with too much light? I think there is.

Just as too much darkness is blinding, so is too much light. You won’t be able to see the different shades of things if you only choose to see everything in the light.

After spending time at the employees’ canteen as an auditor, I realized I have been blind about the canteen’s true shades.

“At least you have something to eat!” I would always tell myself. “Many people out there have nothing to eat, so you have to be thankful of what you have!”

Then it got me thinking… Do I have to accept the unsatisfactory situation just because a lot of people out there have nothing to eat? If I accept the situation, will it help those people? No and no.

We have a system in dealing with everything. But I guess we sometimes hide behind the trappings of what we call “system” to delay what really needs to be done. There is always a reason to delay the implementation of the right actions.

If the fume hood, air-con, or exhaust fan was broke, the only correct way of fixing it is to F-I-X it. Wow! That was a brilliant idea. But no! There is a system for that. Okay, we need to have it fixed by the system. But according to the system, 

1. there is no unit available
2. there is no manpower to fix the broken unit
3. to purchase the replacement will take forever
4. there is no budget
5. it is too expensive
6. it needs to be approved by the bosses
7. it takes months to have a budget approved
8. the approvers are not around
9. it is not at the top priority right now
10. and the list goes on and on


Wait! What is a system again? Is it a person who decides all these? Is it a divine entity that controls what needs to be done first? Is it supposed to be that difficult to make the system work? Or are we just imagining the existence of a system that works?

Okay, let’s go back a little bit with a simple scenario.

The fume hood broke 2 years ago. Then, there was a storm. Everyone poured his heart and soul to fixing the major wreckage of the storm. 2 years passed and the major fixes were almost complete. How was the fume hood? Still intact in its junk form! And why was it not fixed yet? I don’t know! Maybe because there is another major project that everyone was pouring his heart and soul to, again?

What am I trying to drive here, anyway?


I don’t know! Maybe I was just having a delusion that sometime in the future, an employees’ canteen will exist where I can eat my lunch without being soaked by my own sweat? And maybe a tidy place where I could eat with confidence that what I am eating won’t eat me back. And maybe a well-lighted place would be nice, too. I mean, is that too idealistic to ask?

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