Learning to Live Larger

Of course after an en-bloc sale the first thing that the nouveau riche do is find out how much people will be paying for the new apartments that will be built on the en-bloc site. For me the shock came a lot earlier when I was walking The Son back to The Mother's house from Borders. I crossed the road to the newly en-bloc'd Parisian and as I passed the some-time-ago en-bloc'd Anguilla Heights, I saw something very interesting. A showflat, in the middle of a construction site. There was glass and steel and a gorgeous little fountain, with the promise of very cool air conditioning and some respite from the noon Sunday heat. So I dragged the sweaty grumpy Son in, and let him loose to wander the showflat with his little toy cars.

You know something's up when all the salesmen are in full suits. Also, when you walk in sweaty and in shorts and all heads turn to see who's at the door. Uh oh.

To cut a long story short, I wandered through a 3-room 1400 sq feet showflat that had been tricked out to the max. The finishings and interior design was gorgeous. But it couldn't disguise the fact that:

1. you couldn't fit a full size sofa set into the living room;

2. there is no space for the washer/ dryer in the house;

3. there is no maid's room (unless you are willing to spare 1 of the 3 bedrooms)

4. there is no space for the fridge in the kitchen;

5. you have to buy a plasma tv and hang it on the wall, otherwise there is no space in the living room.

Geez Louise. Maybe I can afford this, I thought. How much is a 2-bedroom apartment on the 16th floor? I asked. S$4.1 million.

And how much are the apartments which are going to be built on my mom's old place - which promise a cantilevered swimming pool on every floor? S$15 - 20 million.

How ironic is it that I can't afford - will never be able to afford - to live in the very street where I grew up?