Mismatch in work culture, what should I do?

Hi all, seeking some advice on work. Im a 23F who has just landed my first job in a consulting firm. I have interned in other consulting firms before and have friends and family working in this field so I am generally aware of the normal culture of consulting aka working till late occasionally and possibly networking with clients and prospective clients etc.

My current job, it doesn’t require me to stay till late to finish up with work so far. Which is great. But my bosses expects us to stay and drink/play games, usually till 12am and sometimes up to 3-4am.

They say it’s important that we learn to bond with colleagues after work hours. Whenever I had to leave the office at 9pm or if i decline drinking alcohol, they would make side comments on why I had to leave early and why cant I drink just a little.

I’m just 3 months in this job and I am feeling so exhausted from my work interactions.

I feel that I’m not as close with my other colleagues as everyone always stays up in the office to play and drink with one another while I’m leaving early, their conversation would continue on the next day and no one would bother to fill me in on the details.

Hoping to stay at least a year in this job but not sure how to navigate my life around the office now. Send helpp

Petrol prices had dropped below $3 for the first time at Esso.

Getting a car in Singapore can make a huge impact on our wallet but to some, they need it for daily commuting and hence will look for cheaper petrol to pump.

Petrol prices in Singapore are always high compared to some countries.

According to Straits Times, the price for 92-octane petrol is $2.96 now and after a discount using DBS Esso card that will be $2.43 per litre.

The price for 95-octane petrol is $3.01 now and after a discount using DBS Esso card that will be $2.47 per litre.

The price for 98-octane petrol is $3.48 now and after a discount using DBS Esso card that will be $2.85 per litre.

The shift by Esso might set off a further cheaper rate for another brand in Singapore.

A housekeeping staff of Fairmont Hotel at Bras Basah, 50-year-old Malaysian Saravanan Kannan from Malaysia, pleaded guilty on 13 July to theft and was sentenced to 3 months imprisonment.

He had stolen almost $5,000 in cash that was packed inside red packets ad kept inside a safe box of the guest’s hotel room.

The money was reportedly meant for the victim’s son, who was holding his wedding at the hotel.

What happened?

The victim, 60-year-old Kuo Mei-Yi, flew into Singapore from Taiwan on 24 April to attend her son’s wedding.

She had put about $20,000 of cash in Singapore and Taiwanese dollars inside the safe of the hotel room, inside 4 red packets.

Saravanan had entered the victim’s room on 26 April at about 1pm to clean and tidy up the room, when he noticed that the safe box was unlocked, and he saw the red packets inside.

He looked through the red packets and found the cash inside them, before taking some of the cash, which amounted to almost $5,000.

Saravanan then changed $1,100 of the cash into Malaysian Ringgit and spent it in Malaysia.

When the victim returned to her room, she noticed that her safe box was unlocked but didn’t feel suspicious because she saw that the red packets were still there.

Gave son ang pao of $7,401

She then gave the first red packet to her son during the wedding reception later that night, and her son’s wife then called her later asking why she packed $7,401 inside the red packet, which she (the daughter-in-law) found weird.

The victim then realised that it was not the amount that she had packed inside the red packet, and she then checked the remaining red packets that she kept inside the safe.

She then found about NT$50,000 (or SGD$2340) missing from the 2nd ad 3rd red packets, and she then reported the theft to the hotel’s security, as well as the police.

Saravanan was then questioned and he lasted admitted to stealing the money.

About SGD$1,500 and NT$50,000 was retrieved from him and returned to the victim, with the remaining $1,100 being deducted from the his salary and returned to her from the hotel’s management.

Hi everyone, hope to hear some of ur views. Hope this gets posted.

Tldr – How do I avoid looking like a cheapskate in front of my colleagues?

Some background abt me. I’m a single mum of 1 school-going boy, 2 elderly parents who are not working. In my 30s and I work in the CBD area doing client facing role earning mid 4figure salary. I’m ur typical sandwiched generation – not wealthy but also not starving.

My colleagues would usually go for salad lunches costing $15 per meal, eat together for dinner at those restaurants before going home, talk about the latest fashion (bags, shoes, clothes) during lunchtime.

While they are nice enough to ask me to join them for meals, a part of me feels torn – I understand that lunch sessions are a great way to bond but as compared to the $3.50 cai png (and multiplying it 5 times a wk) I could have saved so much more which would all go towards better use such as for my son or my parents.

Not forgetting my colleagues would buy a nice $4 coffee after lunch too. I do try and join them sometimes, but I’m also running out of excuses to basically say that I cannot afford to eat such “fancy” food that often because I’m the sole breadwinner.

I try not to dress too shabbily as well since we all meet clients but I can’t possibly be buying new branded clothes all the time just like my colleagues just to look nice, I thought being presentable is good enough.

My colleagues would also chip in for monthly office treats (not mandatory but ppl do know if u don’t contribute) and it just looks bad on me if I don’t put in some cash, or sometimes my colleagues would just treat each other to a beverage,

though again I know these all sum up to be quite the usual office expenditure, and I fear I look like the odd one out just because I don’t exactly “behave” like my other colleagues.

I guess my spending habits are rather atypical of an office worker in the CBD, partly because I think every cent I save then goes towards my household – as my kid grows older and parents age definitely expenses at home will rise too.

In a way, Idw to be buying $4 coffee treating my colleagues when that $4 can go towards my son’s pocket money/a bowl of noodles for my parents? Is it wrong to tighten my belts and allocate scarce funds this way?

I know I don’t earn alot and there’re many mouths to feed at home. Despite my shiny office wear actually I’m just a median salaried worker. It’s also not that Idw to find another job that pays more, but my current job on balance allows me the flexibility for my family needs and is paying me a livable wage after all.

So I wonder am I being too cheapo and if yes, how do I overcome this image so that my colleagues do not see me as this weird miser?