greatest parents in the world!

i know a lot of us say that about our own parents, even when we grumble and complain about them... A LOT! but read on and u'll see that my parents are the greatest! :P

u see, i've been giving my mom a monthly "allowance" ever since i started working nearly 10 years ago. it's not much, just about 10% of my starting pay. this sum was determined by me and was readily accepted by my mom. without question.

i didn't give my dad any money, because he earned more than mom and by the time i started working, all the housing and car loans have been paid off. so there weren't not much expenses for dad other than the water and electricity bills, which are not really that much compared to mom's grocery bills. furthermore, i think my brother took care of those utility bills (not sure and didn't ask). the only money i gave my dad was for him to help me pay my ptptn (study loan) and car loan! :P

also, when my dad retired, he gets a government servant's pension every month. he's always joking that my brother and i are useless, only giving money to mom and not to him too, to which i'll always reply that there's no need for us to coz he's being taken care of by the "gomen". hehehe...

over the years, every time i switched to a higher paying job or gotten a promotion/pay raise, i'll ask mom if she wants an "allowance raise" too. but mom always declined, saying that she doesn't need any more money and just hoped that i'll have some savings of my own. and me being the spendthrift that i am where money was never enough, i just happily stuck to the same amount i've been giving her all these years.

then when i came over here to sandland, seeing that i have less expenses coz most of the major things are being provided for in my package, i thought maybe it's high time to start giving my parents a bigger allowance. so after getting my first full salary end of last month, i promptly transfered some money home and informed my dad on the amount that he's to withdraw from my account (my atm card is with him).

me: dad, B amount for yourself and C amount for mom, totaling to A amount.

dad: ok, so B amount is for X month to Y month. mom's C amount will also be for the same months.

me: no, no! i'm giving you both a total of A amount every month!

dad: wah, why so much??

see? best parents in the world, i tell u! most parents will just accept happily, so proud of their children for being so filial. and there are even some who DEMAND money from their children. i found out that a few of my colleagues here have been sending nearly ALL their earnings home, and STILL their families are always trying to squeeze more out from them!

there's this colleague who disclosed that her basic salary is 2100 dirhams per month, and she has to send home 2000 dirhams! that was why she's never joined us for any departmental gatherings or outings, coz she just can't afford it with only 100 dirhams (about RM85) of spending money per month. eating out can easily come up to 100 dirhams per person, or more if there's drinking involved. heck, the amount i spend on taxi rides alone are more than 100 dirhams per month!

there's also another colleague who sends ALL her basic salary home, and only survives on her tips (she works in F&B), service charges and allowances alone. and sometimes, even those would need to be sent home as well, when her family wrote to her about the family car having broken down, an old computer that needs replacing etc.

but not my parents. they've never asked my brother and i for any money before. not even once! not when they wanna go on vacations, or when they wanna renovate the house, or even when mom underwent a ballooning procedure recently, which her medical card doesn't cover and cost a bomb (even when i offered to bear part of the medical fees).

of course, i'll always give my mom double allowances during chinese new year, to buy all those additional food and delicacies, which tend to be more expensive during festive seasons. not forgetting all those ang-pao (red money packets) that need to be given out, which tend to be getting more by the year as her status in the extended family rose ever higher (she's a great grand aunt now!). but no matter how much extra i give her, she'll always give me back the same amount in the form of ang-pao! haiz... so i'll always buy some cookies, bak-kua (meat jerky) and other goodies home as well, coz i know it's useless giving money!

not only that. every time we go out shopping and i'm lining up to pay for our joint purchases, mom would always give me back the money for her stuff. also, when we eat out, dad will be the one paying. even when i wanna pay, he'll always be the one paying in the end. and when i said that i'll give them a treat to some special food that they've not tried before, such as korean food, dad would be so reluctant to go, saying that it's very expensive lar, better to just eat at home lar, mom's cooking is the best lar, bla bla bla... it's only after much cajoling, persuading, reasoning, pouting, lying and scolding (yes, really have to scold him!) that he finally agreed. that also, with much grumblings... they're so reluctant to use their own children's money! :D

when i insisted that they withdraw a total of A amount from my account every month, my mom finally agreed, only to add: "ok, i'll put it into a savings account for you".

where to find such parents, i ask u?