Singapore Haze
With all the news in South East Asia and the Haze, I think my experience in Singapore would never be complete without a mention on this issue.
The air outside is operating at the moment of around 251 PSI, which will be understandable for many Singaporeans or other South East Asians being affected by the haze. Anything above 300 and school will be cancelled for the day (yay!).
I'm not going to say that "oh the haze is not as bad as Jakarta!" In reality it is worse, and although I am personally used to breathing in bad air for the past four years, I should not say that it should be something that we should tolerate (as the Indonesian government would have us believe). Many of my friends not used to this are suffering from migraines, sore or dry throats. Many don't even turn up in school at all! The streets kept empty whenever possible and all classes in school have been converted into 'indoor canteens' to try and buffer the effects of being outside.
I feel that no matter what, humans should be given two things: fresh water and clean air. These two are crucial to our survival. These two are needed in the short term, and we have to consume in either one no matter what. If our water and air is polluted, essentially we are poisoning ourselves for the sake of survival, which sounds antithetical. Even food has only to be consumed every few hours, heck, we can last a day without it (and I doubt someone would purposely poison it)! But water and air are both crucial in the short term, for our long term survival.
I think this so especially when it starts to rain. Because of the severity of the haze, the Singaporean government has decided to make it rain artificially through cloud seeding, and it is unnatural for rain to be present in the driest time of the year in Singapore. Even so, the water stinks! Not to mention full of chemicals. At the moment I'm living in a world where nothing is natural. The buildings are man made, the bad air quality human caused and the rain made artificially. In a world where nothing is natural anymore, I feel like I'm living in hell.
But in the haze there is light. At night, the haze becomes fog, and I imagine walking through another town, in another life at a different age, at a different time. At night when the air becomes slightly more humid, the smog cannot be smelt, and I try to pretend that I'm in another world for as long as I can. In hindsight, this daydreaming, melodramatic and surrealist image should not be something I should be painting, especially with the exams coming around the corner.
An example of the state of the haze in Singapore. This is around 250+ PSI
And recently, things are changing in my life, and I find myself being more happy and happy. I'm meeting new people, meeting new sides of people, and I only wish I had this feeling a year ago, when I had the time to enjoy a bit more. I play less games, and I find more joys in going out and meeting people and seeing new things. I hope to talk about this more in the future.
Nevertheless, ranting on and daydreaming again has got me straying away from my work.
So a memory on paper today, and I start with a new canvas to fill up another week of memories.
Cheers,
Matthew Tan
The air outside is operating at the moment of around 251 PSI, which will be understandable for many Singaporeans or other South East Asians being affected by the haze. Anything above 300 and school will be cancelled for the day (yay!).
I'm not going to say that "oh the haze is not as bad as Jakarta!" In reality it is worse, and although I am personally used to breathing in bad air for the past four years, I should not say that it should be something that we should tolerate (as the Indonesian government would have us believe). Many of my friends not used to this are suffering from migraines, sore or dry throats. Many don't even turn up in school at all! The streets kept empty whenever possible and all classes in school have been converted into 'indoor canteens' to try and buffer the effects of being outside.
I feel that no matter what, humans should be given two things: fresh water and clean air. These two are crucial to our survival. These two are needed in the short term, and we have to consume in either one no matter what. If our water and air is polluted, essentially we are poisoning ourselves for the sake of survival, which sounds antithetical. Even food has only to be consumed every few hours, heck, we can last a day without it (and I doubt someone would purposely poison it)! But water and air are both crucial in the short term, for our long term survival.
I think this so especially when it starts to rain. Because of the severity of the haze, the Singaporean government has decided to make it rain artificially through cloud seeding, and it is unnatural for rain to be present in the driest time of the year in Singapore. Even so, the water stinks! Not to mention full of chemicals. At the moment I'm living in a world where nothing is natural. The buildings are man made, the bad air quality human caused and the rain made artificially. In a world where nothing is natural anymore, I feel like I'm living in hell.
But in the haze there is light. At night, the haze becomes fog, and I imagine walking through another town, in another life at a different age, at a different time. At night when the air becomes slightly more humid, the smog cannot be smelt, and I try to pretend that I'm in another world for as long as I can. In hindsight, this daydreaming, melodramatic and surrealist image should not be something I should be painting, especially with the exams coming around the corner.
An example of the state of the haze in Singapore. This is around 250+ PSI
And recently, things are changing in my life, and I find myself being more happy and happy. I'm meeting new people, meeting new sides of people, and I only wish I had this feeling a year ago, when I had the time to enjoy a bit more. I play less games, and I find more joys in going out and meeting people and seeing new things. I hope to talk about this more in the future.
Nevertheless, ranting on and daydreaming again has got me straying away from my work.
So a memory on paper today, and I start with a new canvas to fill up another week of memories.
Cheers,
Matthew Tan
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