Sometimes Papa tries so hard to mean well, but he just comes across as trying too hard, resulting in either epic fail or epic whut.
These days when he returns from (thankfully few) business trips abroad, we expect to get food that customs didn’t confiscate. He’s busy, so it’s understandable when he doesn’t bring back too many interesting things – besides, I think we have enough table runners than we know what to do with.
His weeklong trip to Hanoi, Vietnam, was filled with much lulz. Flying off in the middle of the swine flu meant that I’d get sms-ed along the lines of, “Just landed. Guy next to me sneezed. I think he gave me swine flu.” To which I reply with, “Can I have your GPS navigator?”
On his return last night, I totally did not expect him to buy me a handbag.
No, seriously. My father bought me a handbag. Okay, it’s not designer and if he ever found out exactly how much my Balenciaga cost I may actually be disowned.
Anyway, the bag, purchased from a little shop near his hotel in Hanoi:
My brain’s first reaction was, uh, whut? Because a) Papa bought me a handbag b) Papa ventured into a store to purchase a handbag. It took a while to warm to the shape and look of it – and it’s a well-made bag too. I think I may have been eyeing something like it at the Sunday flea market at Amcorp Mall during my vacation home, and the lady was asking for RM$100 for it.
Papa paid USD$20 for it. Which had me going, okay, at least it’s cheaper than what the lady at Amcorp Mall was offering, but still, USD$20? Secondly, I can’t believe he paid USD$20 for an item in Vietnam. If it were me I’d be bargaining like there was no tomorrow. In Bangkok I was having a go at stall owners who offered bags for THB$200! That’s only about RM$20 or AUD$8, yet in my head it felt like highway robbery.
The only way to think about this is that he tried, and it is quite a nice, functional bag. Good thing I arranged my face to one of gratitude when presented with the bag, because I felt my facial muscles going to the OMGWTF face on autopilot.
