"I swallow" controversy

Whoever says Singaporeans are not creative, would probably have to rethink that statement.

To be able to link “I swallow” with sexual meanings, suggestions, connotations and impressions, does require some creativity.

Which I must admit, I lack of.

Zoe Tay recently sparked a controversy over the tagline “I swallow” of her new endorsement with beauty brand.

She was featured in this advertisement of an anti-aging supplement, with a tagline that reads, “My secret to beautiful skin? I swallow.”

Some people find that “I swallow” has some hidden sexual meaning and have slammed this advertisement over the internet.

I was laughing when I read the news. To put it in the colloquial Singlish term, I was thinking, “like that also can?”

I seriously do not see what the whole fuss over “I swallow” was about, and I agree with the view of the two women who are behind the tagline when they said, “Any sexual innuendo is in the mind of the reader.”

But that does not make me an ardent supporter of this ad. Quite the opposite, in fact.

I am not from the advertising industry so I shall not embarrass myself by trying to analyze the advertisement, but I shall talk about it from the point of view of a consumer.

If you have seen the ad, you would hardly have guessed that Zoe Tay is 37 years old and mother of a son. Despite age catching up, Zoe Tay looks gorgeous and appealing. From the visual attraction, the beauty brand had good judgement when it invited Zoe Tay to endorse the products.

Zoe Tay has been featured in numerous advertisements. To make one distinguishable from the other is no mean task.

This time round, they decided to work on the tagline.

As the tagline goes in a Question-&-Answer form, the advertisers could have gone ahead to put the name of the product down after “My secret to beautiful skin?” was written. But that would have been too customary. Not many people would remember after seeing it.

I feel that a good advertisement is one which makes people think and ponder for a while, but brings them back to the product at the end of it, and makes them interested in it.

Zoe Tay’s ad obviously met the first aim. Just look at how the internet forums are buzzing with all sorts of imagination over the tagline.

However, it falls far short of the second (and more important) aim.

Personally, I do not like this ad. Not because I feel that it is done in bad taste, but because I think it does not help to build the brand and the meaning behind the ad is weak. If the ad had not sparked controversy, most consumers would probably not know that this ad is for a beauty product that comes in tablet form. It is also hard to understand the ad, not because the tagline is too difficult, but because it does not really say much.

Perhaps it is because people did not catch the meaning of the ad, which explains the controversy.

Nowadays, creativity is the in thing. While advertisers are trying their very best to think out of the box and instill creativity into their ads, consumers, on the other hand, also use their creativity, in this case, to degrade a supposedly classy brand.

For a good ad, it is not enough to get people talking, it needs to propel people to make the right conversation.

I think both advertisers and consumers should take this as a lesson.

The next time, use creativity in the right places.

Guess where this is?

You would never be able to guess where this place is.

Had I not seen this with my own eyes, I might not believe it too.

Plastic bowls containing yellow-coloured soup, with chopsticks, spoons and forks thrown around. A plate of noodles and a can of soft drink left uncleared on the chair.

Half-eaten plates and bowls of noodles, half-finished sandwiches, empty cans of soft drinks and beer bottles piled high up on tables. And I do not mean just one or two tables, but at least six or more.

Yellow coloured food (or puke?!?) was spilled on the floor and left unmopped.

Yucks.

You might think this is a scene in a dirty hawker centre, which does not have much regard for hygiene, or its customers. You might think this is somewhere away from home.

Wrong.

This place is right here in Singapore.

You might guess this is a food court tucked away in some unknown and unpopular part of Singapore, where not many people frequent and cleanliness is perhaps not of the highest concern.

Wrong again.

This is a place where thousands of Singaporeans and more importantly, foreigners, pass by everyday. More than 100,000 people pass through on weekends.

This is the place which registered a 9.1 per cent growth in passenger movement in the first half of the year, with over 16.8 million people passing through between January and June.

This the place that is often associated with the terms "world class", "first class", "number one" and "best in the world".

This is none other than Singapore's pride--Changi Airport.

Ouch.

These words stung my ears, and they still do.

Last Sunday (6th August), I went to the Changi Airport with my family. We were scheduled to board a plane at 6 plus in the morning. We had checked in at around 5 am, entered the terminal, and wanted to get a cup of coffee and grab some food while we wait for the plane.

We decided to patronise this 24-hour food gallery on the second floor.

We made our way up the escalator but stopped short as we walked in. Needless to say, what we saw came as a shock. That was totally unimaginable and beyond comprehension.

The 24-hour food gallery is styled like a high-class food court, and as the name suggests, is still in service when we arrived.

Stall vendors were around, and I am sure cleaners were still at work too. But no one came forward to clear the mess and the eyesore. And we are not just talking about any hawker centre or foodcourt, this is Changi Airport!

As a food gallery within the airport premises which provides exclusive service to passengers, both locals and foreigners, who are waiting to board the aircrafts, such a dirty sight is certainly beyond acceptance.

You might argue that 5 am in the morning is the off peak period and since there would not be a surge of customers, the filthy tables need not be cleaned that "quickly". This might have acceptable in other places, but in Changi Airport, which boasts of world-class standard and has a reputation and image to uphold, this is beyond the question.

And the fact that this is happening right under the nose of Changi Airport, which recently proudly announced its growth in passenger movement, comes across as a big joke. I wonder how many of the foreigners who have seen this sight will be laughing at us?

When my family and I arrived at the food gallery, there was just two or three customers. My guess is that more had left when they entered the food gallery and were greeted with this ugly sight.

We waited for a while to see if any cleaner or vendor would take the initiative to clear the tables. No one came. We left then without getting anything.

We had completely lost our appetite.

国庆随想

亲爱的国家体育场：　　　　

今年是您最后一次为国家效劳，之后您将永远消失在新加坡的地图上。
一位老婆婆听说您将被夷为平地时，苦苦哀求：“别拆！我不想失去我回忆的根据！”。
一位年轻人则淡淡地说：“拆就拆吧”。　　
您可别因为年轻人表现得冷漠而生气，只是她生长在发展迅速的岛国，习惯了一个又一个旧建筑物被拆除的生活方式。她从周围看不到历史的痕迹，她不懂您是需要保护的财富，更不知道回忆对老婆婆来说就是生命。　　
一句“拆就拆吧”究竟是无情的表现，还是习惯成自然的认命？　　
今天您唱的生日歌，歌声中似乎有种难以承受的重和痛。　　
我好想知道，这最后的一夜，您献上了什么祝福？　　　　　　　

亲爱的新加坡：　　　　

今年是您最后一次听老朋友唱生日歌，当欢呼声沉静下来、夜空璀璨的烟花消失后，您将失去这位老友。　　
从1966年开始伴随您的老友，在每年的这一天，几乎都风雨不改带数万人来为您庆生。　　
您的风景线每天都在蜕变，今天这座建筑被拆，明天另一座建筑轻易地取代；就连您的老友也逃不过这个命运。　　
国庆日这一天，您回顾过去走过的41年岁月，时时刻刻叮咛国人要保留回忆、珍惜历史和憧憬未来。　　
看着铲泥机对着老友虎视眈眈，您似乎做不到“保”和“留”，那叫国人如何“珍惜”和“憧憬”呢？　　
我好想知道，这最后的一夜，您许了什么生日愿望？

困惑的年轻国人上

Such a Good Boy

Johnny is such a good boy, he turned up on time for the reading session and he remembered what we read together the last time!

Remember the slip of paper I gave him last week? He told me he stuck it on the refrigerator door at home and he kept the ultraman picture frame in his room.

(Yippee!)

Just hearing that brightened up my day.

We read two stories on chameleons and magpies, and talked about lizards and eggs. An hour flew by so quickly.

When I told him there would be no reading for two weeks (according to the schedule previously set), I thought I caught a glimpse of his disappointment. Perhaps it was mine.

We walked out to the school gate together and parted ways. He went right while I went left. After walking a couple of steps, I turned my head back. And was it by coincidence? He turned as well. I smiled and we both continued our way.

When people engage in volunteering work, the term "help" is often used. Sometimes I wonder, who actually receives more?

I look forward to our next session.