Today’s weather has been rainy. It’s definitely something when I start talking about the weather. It’s rained since the afternoon, all the way through the evening. As a result, the usually hot Singapore is extremely cool right now. I don’t even need the air conditioning on.
Days like this remind me of Jalan Minyak – my rental spot for three years, about three to four years ago now. We didn’t install any air conditioning, thinking we’d be able to survive the nights. But within two to three days we picked up a portable aircon to survive us through a year or two. It was hot, humid, and I can’t sleep when it’s too hot because I sweat a lot. The portable aircon made things just barely livable, but everything in our living room area would get heated up through the night, because the exhaust from our bedroom went into the living room. We couldn’t face it out the window, because if we left the windows open, cockroaches would most certainly come in. So the bedroom was minimally cool, and the living room area was hot. But at least we could sleep.
But nights like this, the cool ones, were the best. I’d even put on pajamas. Putting on pajamas to sleep in Singapore is like wearing a snow jacket to go to the mall. I’d still put on the pajamas and wake up in sweat. It was worth the fun of it.
The cool air at Jalan Minyak hit different, because it was on the hill for one, and the other was the forest outside our windows. I say forest, because if I were to venture into it, I would either get lost or find a lot of wild animals. Thick vegetation, with lots of trees and leaves rustling in the day or night. There would be birds, monitor lizards, and so many squirrels. Cats too. Just a very crowded, naturally grown spot.
Nights like these at Minyak were rare, but I really enjoyed them. They were moments where Clarice and I embraced our independence as adults, as a married couple. We fought a bunch, but we really grew into each other in many ways. I don’t think I’ve ever understood how much I grew as a person, until I reflect on how the entire stay there changed the way I perceive the world around me. It’s something I would do, over and over again, because life became real then.
Life’s still real now. Unlike then, tonight only my baby is in pajamas. I do feel like putting them on but I’m just a little lazy. I’m happy relaxing, being my chill self as an adult. It’s nice enough to just spend some time on a keyboard writing about it, as I would have before.
What a life we lead, eh?
Leave a Reply