In Continuum.

My Father's Obsession

Mothers rock, that I agree. But I'm not sure if there is a similar saying for fathers because, if there is then I'm sure it is not going to apply to mine. My father is downright funny in a very natural and unpretentious way. The only time when he is pretentious is perhaps when he is at work in front of his employees. As I am typing this post, deep down I am hoping that his employees will not stumble upon this blog and read my post. Because seriously, there is already a certain reputation my father managed to input into them: A strict and serious minded workaholic. Reading this post will only shatter that very image, so I have my fingers crossed while typing this. I wonder if that is even possible?

Lately, my parents have been involved in the buying and selling of stocks, always staring at the Teletext on the television and studying the newspaper for the latest updates. Of course, my net-surfing sessions would be interrupted by my father standing just at the door, half naked and smiling at me with a look of "Please?" in his eyes. There used to be a need to explain what he wanted me to do, but right now there is a common understanding between the both of us. Whenever he appears at the doorway with that smile, I will go to Google and type "DOW", then report the value.

If the value is green, my father is happy and he will dance down the corridor literally to relay the message to my mother, who also invested in the stock. If the value is red, his face will be distorted into a look of sadness and then mumble under his breath "Painful, painful" as he walks back to his bedroom like a defeated warrior, all the while rubbing his eyes and pretending to cry. That is my father, for you.

Last night was no different, only he woke up at 3 a.m. just to ask me for the stock. But last night he lost control when he woke up about five to six times just to ask me for me. I walked out of the room to watch a show briefly with my sister at that hour, and when I returned there he was. Sitting at my computer desk in my room half naked and eager to see a positive value on the screen. I had the shock of my life, and told my mother softly in the dark to tie him to the bed. "Ask him to come back, I will tie him up now", she said.

But that was not the end of the night for my father. It was 3.30, and he started asking me why I wasn't asleep and who I was talking to at that hour. And this is the conversation that ensued after his endless interrogations:

"Who are you talking to at this hour? Doesn't he or she needs to sleep?"
"I am talking to my American friend Dad, time difference."
"Who is your American friend?"
"Kenzie, she lives in Utah."
"Hey, can you ask her about the price of crude oil in New York right now?"
"Dad, even I don't know the crude oil prices in SINGAPORE."
"How old is she?"
"23."
"Maybe she can find out."
"Dad, don't be ridiculous."

So from the bed, my father maneuvered until he was next to me at the computer desk, breathing down my neck. He really wanted to know about his stocks and was anxious to know before it closes at four in half an hour. So throughout the conversation I was having with Kenzie last night, he was there trying to calculate just how much he made and how much he lost. Of course, there came a point when he couldn't take the wait anymore and asked:

"How long are you going to be? It is 3.30am."
"Exactly because it is 3.30am Dad, you should sleep."
"I'm waiting for you to finish so I can check on something."
"Erm, give me five minutes."
"Five minutes! So long!"

With that, he tumbled into my bed like a big boy and started rolling around in bed, throwing a tantrum of sorts about how long five minutes was. Reluctant, I said goodbye to Kenzie and gave the computer to my Dad, which he was happy to have at that hour. However, about ten seconds into checking up the stocks his face turned into that trademark sadness again and walked out of my room rubbing his eyes, bumping into the side of the door while doing so. My sister and I laughed our head off just looking at my father, being devoured by his obsession in an amusing way. Not that we are mocking you Dad, we love you a lot. But you are just too damn funny.

PS. Knowing how to change a website from English to Chinese by an option at the right side of the page doesn't make you 'smart' Dad, it makes you sensible.