I manage the internship program at my job. We have six and twelve month internships. This post is about a woman (22) in the program, I’ll call her Hester.

I noticed Hester hugged her colleagues a lot. It was something I brought up in our One on Ones because it seemed excessive. She didn’t seem to like that feedback but didn’t say anything.

Around December she tried to hug me at a company function. Her review was the next day so I brought it up again.

Saying she needed to keep her hands to herself, that this was a work place and not a social club, and reminded her that a lot of people, including myself, do not like being hugged.

She argued with me and said it was how she greeted people and shared a connection with them. I told her she needed to find another way of doing so.

She got sulky and I don’t feel like we came to much of an understanding, despite my efforts to talk through it. I told her that this would be the last time I would be willing to have this conversation with her.

A new intern program joined us a couple weeks ago. On Monday, two of them came into my office and wanted to talk about Hester.

Apparently, she had been constantly hugging on them, despite them both telling her to stop. I apologized to them and also had some conversations with the teams the interns worked with and this had been an ongoing problem.

Wednesday I brought Hester into my office and told her that she could no longer be part of the program. I explained that we had talked about this twice before, that she was making people uncomfortable, and she appeared to not be picking up on work place norms.

She was not happy about this and ended up needing to be escorted out. Yesterday and today I’ve been getting calls from her parents saying she needs this internship and that they don’t think it’s a big deal and I shouldn’t have fired her for it.

Literally always broke. I get paid, it goes to bills, then I have about $50 bucks in my account. Is this how it’ll be in the adult life? (19m)

I work at a call center but it doesn’t matter where I work. I’m not gonna lie, I’m always ordering food but it’s because I hardly have food at my home but this is in general.

Once I get paid, always around $1.2k after CPF. It goes to bills and saving account. then out of nowhere there’s debt that just shows up.

I wanna move out of my parent’s place and move in with a roommate in the future but I don’t even know how I’d even pay $900 in rent monthly.

I wanna move out so bad but I can’t afford to even sustain myself, how to survive?

Netizens’ comments

• You need to make a budget and stop ordering take out, to start.
• No. You’ll get older. You’ll gain experience. You’ll save money. Learn how to use that money and you’ll do fine.
• Start making small changes. Even if you just opt to eat one more cheap meal at home in lieu of takeout each week, you can use that extra money to pay down credit card debt.
  Also, start saving just to get in the habit. Even if it’s only $1 per paycheck, you need to get used to having savings as part of your budget. Over time, as your income grows and your debt shrinks, you’ll be able to save more.
• Everyone is giving good advice on budgets and jobs and what not but I think the bigger issue is that you don’t know how to do things for yourself. Like a learned helplessness. So regardless of your budget, learn how to money manage. Learn how to cook. How to rely on yourself and not others. It’s easier said than done and it’ll take time but you have time. 20 year old rarely if ever have it all figured out.
  You could make 100/ hour or 100/ month, if you don’t know how to live within your means, it’ll never be enough.

I have a best friend (20f) thats been with me through hell and back for a long time. She’s my girl. She’s my rock. She’s my writing star. We plan to be famous authors one day.

But last night? All we wanted was to be drunk. We drank. I poured my heart out and began crying and laughing. She held me.

Eventually, she dared me to take a double shot and I slammed them both. I immediately ran to the toilet and threw up. Then proceeded to get in the shower and just lay on the tub floor while she sat on the toilet lid.

She interrupted me mid rant and asked me, “what would you do if I said I wanted to kiss you right now?”

God.

I never stood a chance.

We took it downstairs and dear lord was it amazing. I hated how amazing it was.

Afterwards we proceeded to just laugh and talk and cuddle in the bed together. The next morning (now) it really dawned on me what I just did. Oh my God. That’s supposed to be my best friend.

Why am I gripped with so much anxiety right now?

I want to never mention it again and let it float in the air.

Netizens’ comments

1. As much as you want to just pretend it didn’t happen, it did and y’all need to talk about it after you’ve had some time to think it through. It sounds like this friendship is very important to you and worth going through an uncomfortable conversation to figure out where to go from here. It can definitely be confusing to have a friendship turn romantic overnight like that but it doesn’t make it wrong, unless you feel like she took advantage of you.
2. Just go with the flow.
   If there is chemistry there, explore it and enjoy each other. But also be clear about expectations, boundaries, and overall feelings.
   Is it general lust or true love for each other? Can you see yourself living and thriving with this person?
   If so, then all the best to ya
3. You might just have anxiety/guilt because of the hangover. It’s a common feeling after a night of drinking. Wait for it to pass and enjoy yourself!

I’ve been a curvy girl my whole life, but in the past few years, my curves have become more noticeable, particularly my chest.

Growing up, I was always insecure about my body—I felt like I was too big and too noticeable, and I was constantly conscious of the way people were looking at me. But when I started to develop curves, I felt like I was so much more visible, especially when I was out in public.

For the past year, I’ve been taking the MRT to get to where I need to go, but I’ve been really uncomfortable with the number of men who seem to be constantly staring at me.

It’s not that I don’t like attention, but it just feels like these guys are looking at me for the wrong reasons. I can’t help but think that it’s because of my chest size that’s bigger than average, and it makes me feel very exposed.

So I decided to take a Grab ride instead. It’s more expensive than the MRT, but it’s worth it for the peace of mind it gives me. Now I don’t have to worry about people staring at me and I can travel in comfort and privacy. I also like that I can control the music I’m listening to and the temperature of the ride.

I’m not the only one who’s uncomfortable with the way people look at curvy girls on the MRT. A lot of my friends have the same problem, and some of them have even stopped taking the MRT altogether. We’ve talked about it and come to the conclusion that it’s not just us—it’s a problem that affects women of all sizes, especially those who are more curvy than average.

I’m not trying to say that all men are looking at curvy girls on the MRT with ill intentions, but it’s definitely uncomfortable when it happens. And it’s not just about feeling exposed—it can also be intimidating. I don’t want to live in fear of being judged or harassed, and I’m sure other women don’t either.

I know that it’s not just curvy girls who are affected by this, but it’s definitely something that needs to be addressed. Women of all sizes should be able to take the MRT without feeling uncomfortable or judged. We shouldn’t have to feel like we are on display for the entertainment of others.

For now, I’m sticking with Grab ride. It’s more expensive, but it’s worth it for the peace of mind it gives me. No more staring, no more feeling exposed. I’m in control of my own ride and I can focus on getting to where I need to go without worrying about what other people are thinking. That’s worth the extra cost.

Hi Singapore. Does everyone here drink water from the tap or are you using filters and purifiers?

I ve been in SG for little over 6 months now and have been drinking water from the tap. A colleague said that I shouldn’t do that. Looking for your opinion.

Also would be great of you can suggest any budget water filters or purifiers

Netizens’ comments

• drank water from the tap since i was a kid. still alive.
• No it’s already safe to drink. Why waste money
• Some water filter companies have been pushing out a myth that local tap water is not drinkable but it is not. Unless you live in a very old estate, then maybe do a water test. Else just drink from the tap.
  Water purifiers are in most cases redundant, or worse, dangerous. See CNA documentary about water filters and why it’s best not to get one if you are not maintaining it regularly.
• Almost all tap water in SG is suitable to drink – you’ll get a big fat warning if it’s not (obviously don’t try to guzzle the water in a public bathroom).
  Personally tho, I boil the water then store it in the fridge to drink cold. I ain’t drinkin warm water when it’s already warm outside lol
• Our water is safe to drink from tap. Most households will boil the water before drinking (out of habit from the old generations).
  Filters/purifiers are just gimmicks or ppl trying to sell those MLM products
• SG tap water is very clean – issue only comes about if your pipes are dirty. Worth getting it checked to see if you should spend the cash, IMO.
• You can drink it. It’s just a mindset thing. For example, boiling water just makes me feel that the water gets cleaner that way lol. Also, Filter does make the water cleaner as some pipes might be rusty but as the others say, if you don’t change the filter and do regular maintenance, the water might end up being dirtier than the actual tap water.
• I prefer the taste of boiled water so I boil it and leave it to cook before drinking it. I don’t use any filters
• tap water is safe in SG, and water purifiers typically wont do much unless you’re immunocompromised and the purifier helps removes more bacteria (but even normal tap water has a low enough bacteria count for most people)
• singapore’s tap water is clean and drinkable but the problem is with our own taps and filter that we don’t change so there’s mould and bacteria build up
• I read before that SG tap is cleaner than UK but still depends on the pipes though especially if you’re staying in an older building. You can buy Brita filter with pitcher from the mall, just replace the filter accordingly.