Makes no cents...

Everyone love$ money. Some people feel that money cannot buy happiness but I think the same people cannot deny that money is a means to attain a basic level of security and freedom. But to what extent is money so important, so much so that intrinsic values (no pun intended) and morals are forsaken? I do not know if there is an answer to this but I do know it does not feel right when money trumps common sense, integrity or mutual respect for one another.

A little personal anecdote (or maybe two or three, haha!). The other day, I walked past a hair salon and I saw a leaflet. The leaflet clearly stated that the usual price of $28 for a haircut was now a mere $5. I took the leaflet home and decided to call the salon to double confirm this. They confirmed it, and I made an appointment for both my mother and I to go for a haircut. On the day itself, I even brought the leaflet to show the lady why I was there. Long story short - we had the haircuts and the lady told us it was $11. I thought to myself, "oh, ok, $1 more. That's fine", and I prepared to pay. She then corrected me and said that it was $11 per haircut and therefore, $22 in total. That was odd. After clarifying, it was then made known to me that the $5 promotion was for "members" only or for men. I searched high and low for this condition on the leaflet. It simply did not exist. I also asked why I was not informed about this when I called earlier to confirm the price or when I showed her the actual leaflet before we sat down for the haircuts. The lady said that she assumed I was a "member" and therefore, I would be entitled to the $5 haircut. After I read what was on the leaflet to the lady and said that there was no indication of this "for members" or "for men" condition, she subsequently changed the tune to, "oh, this is for a store opening promotion which has now expired". I was even more puzzled. So... why was this leaflet made available (and there were even more outside when we were having this exact conversation) and why was this expired "promotion" not mentioned at any point in time? Anyway, I had to explain over and over and over again (maybe for a total of 10 minutes) for them to honour what was indicated on the leaflet. At the end of it, I felt sooo... embarrassed, like I was at fault and being a "Karen". And then, I was reminded... Someone told me that this was not the first time that I was being "scammed"!

I have been to so many hawker centres where I was asked to pay a certain price for economical rice and the price fluctuates. One time, I paid $3.60 for a portion of vegetables and meat. But... the meat was only flour!! There was almost 0% meat!! It was... again, odd! Another time, I bought soya bean milk (again, at a hawker centre) for a grand total of $2.50. And no, it was not from a "reputable" brand like Selegie or Whampoa. It did not even occur to me to question why. And there was a time when someone I have known for a long time decided to sell me a story to make me loan him/her a significant amount of money (and tried it twice). The list goes on...

There is nothing wrong with the pursuit of wealth but when it is done at the expense of someone else, when it undermines ethical behaviour or relationships, when it makes you feel entitled to act a certain way (especially to people you think are weak or more privileged than you), then maybe we need to change (pun intended). Maybe we should also keep a check and balance (pun intended) so this is not a norm. It is an anomaly and illegality. Cause... it really is an aberration and against the law to cheat, lie and exploit clients and customers. Or maybe... I'm just getting older and being a "Karen"... ARGHHHHHHH!!