Monday, May 20, 2019

S M Ong - Confusion over 50-cent teh deal at Foodfare

Source Website: https://www.tnp.sg/lifestyle/others/s-m-ong-confusion-over-50-cent-teh-deal-foodfare
By S M Ong, Columnist, The New Paper, 13 May 2019 at 06:00 am


Just half a dollar.
PHOTO: Just half a dollar.
Picture posted by S M Ong, Columnist, The New Paper on 13 May 2019 at 06:00 am
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEganegz47ljYduAJt49PUNpoUgS0IyHXhTOWd_xBQV4udbLuYEE3fbZMTnaoS4CzpEf5pkkvx1mbrxGx-3QfanA_JGrxmwrdyn5HxCWIdlrT9InYU1Xgx4H1T8k7sRki-LTtPZ-iFBgeR8/s1600/NP_20190513_OSCOL13_4835468.jpg
https://www.tnp.sg/sites/default/files/styles/rl780/public/articles/2019/05/13/NP_20190513_OSCOL13_4835468.jpg?itok=CpMUgt2Z
https://www.tnp.sg/lifestyle/others/s-m-ong-confusion-over-50-cent-teh-deal-foodfare


For the whole of this month, when you show your National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) membership card at NTUC Foodfare or Kopitiam, you can buy a cup of hot coffee or tea (or their various c, o, kosong, siew dai, ga dai, po, gau incarnations) for only 50 cents.

I believe it has something to do with May Day, celebrating workers and all that.

At least I don't have to demean myself by wearing a Liverpool jersey to get the special price.

I was delighted to spot the "＄0.50 kopi & teh" sign in my neighbourhood Foodfare coffee shop since I go there to buy a packet of teh for myself and a packet of teh-o for my wife to take home practically every morning.


'$0.50 kopi & teh' for National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) members, Merdeka Generation and Pioneer Generation.
PHOTO: "＄0.50 kopi & teh" for National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) members, Merdeka Generation and Pioneer Generation.
Picture posted by smong.net
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVXjyL3Q5g7MkZSGn27wPs5HeuJPdMztSVnDP8M9AhpZ3To0-QpnBJYPRVvmiuZw4CWf68kOo-oKYKqv-FWx6GYMwe211g6TPgVPPyk3L7uAjdsuQsbgi7QSSfYKRD_tVa9K7Ozh7PTcI/s1600/kopiteh.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilyQvCFk9VCoPMy-K-6IrO747cTZ4GyXfqezIISmX7OtUHQsCTxhfNBde9-wCE5QGIQlIoNXrtEv28T7r-GyWni8kBSoAACg0tntdsXsJuO4oX09mjvncHqMjstg-JPrBSRcLmM4SU3g8/s640/kopiteh.jpg
http://smong.net/2019/05/storm-in-50-cent-tea-cup-confusion-over.html


It usually costs ＄1 for the teh and 90 cents for the teh-o, but this month, I need to pay only ＄1 for both.

It's like Thanos snapped half the price away.

That will save me ＄27.90, which I can spend on watching Avengers: Endgame in Imax 3D again with popcorn.

Or so I thought.

For the first few days of the month, I smiled like I had never smiled before at the drinks auntie as I showed her my NTUC card and paid only ＄1 for my daily beverages.


For the first few days of the month, I smiled like I had never smiled before at the drinks auntie as I showed her my NTUC card and paid only $1 for my daily beverages.
PHOTO: For the first few days of the month, I smiled like I had never smiled before at the drinks auntie as I showed her my NTUC card and paid only ＄1 for my daily beverages.
Picture posted by smong.net - S M Ong Pokemon Run with his daughter
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4pjeQhROsCQ7K_N0vsimSpaSXhmhNGe1KgOhF6GbTc0Lb4DSehLAzFBbNGXGxWGbQU4Cc0gcy4u3rt-IQgfUmzKD_-49MQRWhqyHWO6U7mXUge5OOnO4_zCMtHtIsyvb7hx7pKJHbNTE/s1600/IMG_9037_1.png
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwYYazVxsZEnba8DPqtnRxmMtkWgdZbGU4wRsH1we3w29nV38degJVZC96CiQ0vtVu-NkwQFE6SSEdmgGblzSOUaLeC510o-wFvYnrfW1RkVbNg9qWFGXtblUgVE7pt3ShlfToBUUFlTI/s1600/IMG_9037.JPG
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHQEOajwtk185Kp_NjNNzJgZLjtfUsnFQ-ktGeHV_ke7xKkML3GWEFf51UI9Rf_7ynPLk1CXqMfQ__6AVRBFe0VpEDpVed2FGER9JHvOX5PsdEyv9ws0u0BSbt5c2p0MbiU0zldNdEyfk/s1600/IMG_9066.JPG
http://smong.net/2018/01/caught-my-first-pokemon-run.html


SUDDEN CHANGE
Then last week, things suddenly changed.

She told me she could charge me 50 cents for only one drink and I had to pay full price for the other.

Wait, what?

She explained that the rule is actually one cup per card.

So they had been doing it wrong all this time?

I asked, what if I queued up and ordered again?

The auntie said no, she still had to charge me full price for the second drink.

But what if I disguised myself such that she couldn't recognise me?

Josh damn it, I left my Thanos mask at home.


Thicc Thanos (Avengers Infinity War)
Thicc Thanos (Avengers Infinity War)
PHOTO: "Josh damn it, I left my Thanos mask at home."
Thicc Thanos (Avengers Infinity War)
Behemoth (huge biblical beast; Dinosaur, hippopotamus): "Look at Behemoth, which I made along with you and which feeds on grass like an ox. What strength it has in its loins, what power in the muscles of its belly! Its tail sways like a cedar; the sinews of its thighs are lose-knit. Its bones are tubes of bronze, its limbs like rods of iron." (Job 40:15-18).
Picture posted by bussy summers‏ @Conortroversial on 10 May 2018 at 2:43 AM - Thanos (Avengers Infinity)
gif file generated by Animated Images Effects Generator at http://www.webestools.com/animated-images-effect-generator-effects-gif-images-picture-blog-gif-fx-images-animated-effect.html
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm8bmWbPcnczDY0KF5q76s-I2ec0Rq5raucDUwtU-NQoX5Ig3Oh9rP-9Co4Ne8FoGOzEZwdkLgIpCOjEdhrUhd76OwjtQBR0MmeOEnMesNccJGjH1vmBUlTwSwONON1ckUKVyV-qAwcho/s1600/Dc04lqdWkAAGxyM.jpg
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https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dc04lqdWkAAGxyM.jpg
https://twitter.com/conortroversial/status/994513324338565120
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2019/04/selfie-with-cheeky-posing-gorillas.html


If I wanted to pay 50 cents for my wife's teh-o, it seemed my only options were to go to another NTUC Foodfare or Kopitiam, or get someone else to order for me using my NTUC card (since they didn't check who the card belonged to), or wait for the drink stall staff to change shift.

Or pay full price, which was, of course, unthinkable.

That's like 40 cents more!

I looked around the coffee shop and considered asking a stranger to order the teh-o for me, but my skin wasn't thick enough.


I looked around the coffee shop and considered asking a stranger to order the teh-o for me, but my skin wasn't thick enough.
PHOTO: I looked around the coffee shop and considered asking a stranger to order the teh-o for me, but my skin wasn't thick enough.
Picture posted by Tje Makeup Paparazzi - Star Awards 2012 (Constance Song, 宋怡霏 (Sòng yí fēi), Dare To Bare her abbs, in a jiki gown that leaves little to the imagination)
“Defending her pick, Song told The New Paper: ‘My dress had a mesh that revealed skin all the way to my belly button. I was also wearing nipple tape.’”
Picture posted by S M Ong on Sunday, 6 May 2012 - Star Awards 2012
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIm3cMuC6MR7NtQvtuJPtL4ySaI6fAmRhDfLqvFK3Uw9NWBvvwqosYbqR9SkUvFeaExVYszNf-QrJVbTIFqRAaGvpjGZG733HRNYInjyBjpigQdEeXn65fpykvwwBZxBLrxPLKj6Vn_ws/s1600/song.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9pHUbzxq03fxWMwFBYMhREsH2HcbPhYmmRzpRNKwvG0g5S6zFev9CQh9uEsDkFVGE99XUk7qY3whab3MDgdaMTTNPnlUfneQ64Y5sBHSazpce88tdShvUXu7gB-dYQ9EkuUH40J65LskG/s1600/song.jpg
http://smong.net/2012/05/thank-you-constance-song-on-behalf-of.html
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2016/09/eelyn-kok-guo-hui-wen-gives-hope-to.html


I was about to head home teh-o-less, but the fear of disappointing my wife made me turn around and accept the unthinkable - I would pay the full price of 90 cents for her drink.

The drinks auntie sighed when she saw me again. Half exasperated and half taking pity on me, she charged me only 50 cents for the teh-o and said she wasn't supposed to do this.

I smiled at her like I never smiled before.

Never mind the Avengers - she's my hero.

Confounded by the "one cup per card" rule, I looked it up online and found an April 25 Straits Times report that said: "There is no limit to the number of cups… customers can order in one day. They can order one discounted drink for each card presented at the counter and have to queue again to order each subsequent cup."


Coffee, tea at 50 cents for seniors and workers
PHOTO: Coffee, tea at 50 cents for seniors and workers
The discount will be available at close to 100 coffee shops and foodcourts run by NTUC Foodfare and Kopitiam.
Singaporeans of the Pioneer and Merdeka generations as well as NTUC union members can enjoy coffee and tea at 50 cents a cup at close to 100 coffee shops and foodcourts run by NTUC Foodfare and Kopitiam.
“There is no limit to the number of cups of discounted kopi, kopi-o, kopi-c, teh, teh-o and teh-c - including sugarless varieties – customers can order in one day. They can order one discounted drink for each card presented at the counter and have to queue again to order each subsequent cup.” [2]
ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
Picture posted by Joanna Seow, Manpower Correspondent on 25 April 2019 at 5:00 am SGT
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vs3XuGXhSkzDsBhlx7NfEqZ7_8tYWDsT20EBX2WTP6zmmWhtdNL37-d7uGrai9hHuAo_C5NDrrKhi6khTJDqfDCacjBLptSpGZRJsMSPbzpg2ixODtdRl9xK2cK8_GHQSsS10IjQmBE/s1600/ST_20190425_VNNTUC_4796178.jpg
https://www.straitstimes.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_pictrure_780x520_/public/articles/2019/04/25/ST_20190425_VNNTUC_4796178.jpg?itok=fVspjw2U&timestamp=1556125806
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/coffee-tea-at-50-cents-for-seniors-and-workers?utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=STFB&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1556153251


Which contradicts what the drinks auntie told me.

Was my hero mistaken or should ST be prosecuted under the new Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act?

But even if ST is right, it seems kind of silly to force people to queue up each time for a 50-cent beverage.

What if there's no queue?

Can I just order multiple 50-cent cups? Or must I go through the motion of ordering one at a time?

And why was it different for the first few days of the month?

It appears NTUC hasn't quite thought this through.

Oh yah, and do I need to bring my Thanos mask?

The things I do to save 40 cents.


Thicc Thanos (Avengers Infinity War)
PHOTO: "Oh yah, and do I need to bring my Thanos mask?"
Thicc Thanos (Avengers Infinity War)
Leviathan (the sea-monster): "Nothing on earth is its equal - a creature without fear. It looks down on all that are haughty; it is king over all that are proud." (Job 41:33-34). It is futile to question God, who alone has created these beings and who alone can capture them.
Picture posted by thanos_fanclub
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https://scontent-gig2-1.cdninstagram.com/vp/02254556d7305f036b700834095420ee/5D5A41C7/t51.2885-15/e35/50574482_117808319339250_557155336985321560_n.jpg?_nc_ht=scontent-dus1-1.cdninstagram.com&se=7&ig_cache_key=MTk3OTc0NDA0NjUzNzg0ODcwNg%3D%3D.2
https://pikstagram.com/thanos_fanclub
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2019/04/selfie-with-cheeky-posing-gorillas.html
 

The things I do to save 40 cents. I smiled at her like I never smiled before.
PHOTO: The things I do to save 40 cents. I smiled at her like I never smiled before.
"‘Well done, you good and faithful servant!’ said his master. ‘You have been faithful in managing small amounts, so I will put you in charge of large amounts. Come on in and share my happiness!’" (Matthew 25:23 GNT).
Picture posted by PHONEKY - In the eyes of the tiger
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http://img.jetbitts.com/screensavers/down/animals/tigeranmat_h9uzu8fa.gif
http://in.phoneky.com/iphone-live-wallpapers/?id=s3s188372

By S M Ong, Columnist, The New Paper, 13 May 2019 at 06:00 am
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S M Ong: ERP, auto-lock jokes and a ‘hostage’ situation, posted on Monday, 25 February 2019
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Reference
[1] S M Ong, Columnist, The New Paper, S M Ong - Confusion over 50-cent teh deal at Foodfare, posted on 13 May 2019 at 06:00 am, https://www.tnp.sg/lifestyle/others/s-m-ong-confusion-over-50-cent-teh-deal-foodfare

[2] S M Ong, Storm in a 50-cent tea cup? Confusion over May deal at NTUC Foodfare, posted on Monday, 13 May 2019, http://smong.net/2019/05/storm-in-50-cent-tea-cup-confusion-over.html


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