The Visitors in the Dark



Touched down at 1800 hrs, nowhere to be seen at 2100 hrs. "Odd," I remembered thinking. It only takes 20 minutes from Perth Airport to my place. They must have a hell lot of luggage to clear, or got hauled up for bringing too much Bak Kwa or got lost. I wondered if I should lock the door and go to bed. Hmm, perhaps not, it looked cold outside.


Then the lights of a car flashed across my street. "Ah, that must be it," I stood on my homemade pavement to welcome the Singaporean couple. She arrived in a marshmallow jacket, easily mistaken as a bulletproof vest in the dark. Her husband parked inch perfect in front of my car, as if we were in a parallel lot in Singapore. He could have parked 3 metres away from me and no one will hold it against him. But I understand. It will take awhile for them to get used to thing here.  Judy's husband will be here for a week or so, to help her settle. Fortunately I got her a double bed so no one was required to sleep on the floor.


I wondered if I could call her Jude one day. So when I see her I can go, "Heeeey Jude, don't make it bad." 


We'll see.


There's probably no need to. She looks like someone who can take care of a premise better than I do. So I introduced her to her room and the bathroom to be exclusively used by her. She seemed pleased with the arrangement. Good start. Her immediate concern was buying a car. That would be her top priority before her husband returns to Singapore.


They adapted to Perth like fish to water. I was surprised to find out how many friends they had here. When I first moved here, I didn't know a single soul! Luckily Jen had several friends, due to her study stint in Perth. Friends are important so Judy has a good head start. Before long, my guests were moving up and down Perth fist bumping their friends, shopping and eating out on their wedding anniversary like they are on a short honeymoon here. Nice to see they are enjoying their time here. They had done their homework and almost know what to do next. It seemed to be Judy will have no problem settling down here. The only issue if whether her gamble will pay off.


One thing that struck me was the answer I got when I asked them what they would do if the COE of their Toyota Wish in Singapore runs down. Judy quipped, "I asked him not to buy anymore. Want to buy, might as well finance my project here!" If that wasn't a joke, the lady knows the value of time and money as well as the difference between an investment and a firepit. She will go far here.



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