The Night that Was and the Morning After …

This is not a kiss-and-tell session in case you are wondering. Hahaha

This story is about the night that was my first ... Neighbourhood Watch (NW) … and the morning after. My brain is definitely not functioning normally the morning after. Staying up late watching DVD or reading or partying is definitely different from staying up haunting the hallowed corridors of our beloved condo home.

The Night that Was … 28th December
Personally, I didn’t really know what to expect. When Dad used to go for Rukun Tetangga, I thought it was such a grand adventure. But when you are faced with the thought of keeping your eyes wide open and your mind sharp after a long day at work, the adventure seems to have lost its lustre. But if others could do it, there should not be a reason why I couldn’t.

So there I was, about an hour late (I overslept), dressed in track bottoms, a t-shirt and a pair of running shoes, and wielding my trusty mobile. I was all ready to cause mayhem to anyone who dared disturb the peace of this neighbourhood. Yeah right! The choice of footwear was important as I wanted to be prepared for all eventualities i.e. in case I needed to run after or run from someone. I reckon the most likely scenario would probably be the latter. :p

The Watch wasn’t so bad after all; after I got past the initial “yawning” moments. As we had full attendance that night, we split up and worked on alternate floors ~ ensuring that the fire exits were all locked save for one, and be on the look out for anything strange or out of the ordinary. Luckily, all was quiet on the “western front”.

I had other interesting findings though. Did you know …
* All the 22nd floors had great views and fantastic breeze at night! You get what you paid for eh! : )
* We could run a grill competition. The various types, patterns and colours of grills on display are most fascinating. Puts mine to shame though.
* The number and types of padlocks varies in types and usage. Some locked themselves to the nines. Others not. A few others use bicycle locks. Hmmm …. And yet others have padlocks but did not use them. Either they have forgotten or they have grown tired of locking and unlocking so many locks every day.
* There is no end to the creativity of the residents. We found a feng shui door and several fascinating prints/paintings and lamps at the entrances.

And if that is not enough to pique your interest, I have funny, zany neighbours during my Watch. They kept me on my toes with their antics.

We finished the Watch by 2+ am and returned to our respective units. By then I was truly wide awake. It took me another hour plus to drop off to sleep.

The Morning After …
I was late for work … like really, really late for work. My eyes felt grainy and puffy and I probably needed toothpicks to prop my eyelids open. A colleague offered to draw eyes on my eyelids if I close them for forty winks. How helpful eh. :p I am not sure how some neighbours could still function normally at work the next day. I salute them their energy. Thank God my next two shifts are on Friday nights. Sleeping in sounds great the morning after!

And THAT was what transpired … Pretty easy eh. All in a Night's work. You can do it too.

Neighbourhood Watch anyone? : )