An elderly Singaporean man, Mr. Lim, has been struggling to make ends meet by working three jobs to support his Thai girlfriend’s expensive tastes.
Despite being in his late 50s, Lim works as a construction supervisor, a lorry driver, and a disposer in order to make enough money for his partner’s gifts.
Lim’s girlfriend, who he met seven years ago, often requests for expensive Apple products as gifts, including the latest iPhones, iPads and Macbooks. Lim had no choice but to buy them for her, as he was afraid that she would leave him if he did not comply.
Lim has been feeling increasingly frustrated with the situation, as he suspects that his girlfriend only wants the money and not the products themselves. He explains that Apple products have a high resale value, so it is likely that she is reselling the items to make a profit.
“I feel so cheated,” Lim says. “I work three jobs and sacrifice a lot of my time just so that I can buy her expensive gifts, but then she goes and sells them online. I feel like she’s just taking advantage of me.”
Lim’s friends and family have tried to persuade him to break up with his girlfriend, but he is too afraid to do so. His girlfriend is a foreign national and he is worried that she will be deported if they break up.
“I know that I should just leave her, but I can’t bear the thought of her having to go back to Thailand,” Lim admits.
Lim adds that he is also afraid of being alone and that he will regret his decision if he does break up with her.
“I don’t want to be alone,” he says. “I’m scared that if I do break up with her, I’ll regret it. I just don’t know what to do.”
Lim’s situation is a difficult one, as it seems that he is stuck in a cycle of buying his girlfriend expensive gifts and feeling cheated in return. He is in a vulnerable situation, as his girlfriend’s foreign status means that he is reluctant to break up with her.
At the same time, Lim has to work three jobs just to make ends meet and buy her gifts. His friends and family are concerned about him and hope that he will be able to find a way out of this difficult situation. In the meantime, they will continue to support him in any way that they can.