Party Over

When I was an undergraduate, I ate chap fun (economic rice) everyday, and rode a motorcycle to the campus. I didn’t own a car until after I started to work.

After working for a number of years, I decided to take up MBA. I discovered that many of my younger classmates were full-time students with little or no working experience. All of them drove to the university.

We were required to study between two and five subjects every semester. As a working adult, I could only cope with two at any time. Many of the full-time students took three subjects, but they somehow believed that they had a harder life than me. One of them asked me, “You take two subjects only ah!??” Another said, “You take two subjects only, must be very easy lah…”

“These kids are lucky.” I thought. They grew up in the age of abundance. They did not need to worry about earning money. Well, that’s until June 4, 2008.

On this historic day, June 5, 2008, Malaysian government raised the gasoline price by more than 40%, and the diesel price by more than 60%. The age of abundance has come to an abrupt end. We now enter the age of high inflation.

My younger classmates – if they do not wish to burden their parents – should start to look for a job. Or, if they are not ready to enter the real world, then at least they should complete the study fast. Party time is over!