I know it is a form of courtesy to give up your seat for the needy, especially the elders and the pregnant ladies. Before you jumps the gun and start dissing me for doing a Xiaxue and not giving up my seat, i would like to state that i do so most of the time.

However a problem arises when you offer your seat to someone whom you think is pregnant but actually turns out she just loves her food. Take this instance as an illustration:


tyw was happily reading his Get Fuzzy in the Life section when he chanced upon a lady with a noticable bulge at her midriff.

tyw: Eh, i think i'm giving up my seat for the pregnant lady there.

mrt khaki (mk) : Eh wait, what if she's not pregnant leh? Later paiseh leh...

tyw: Herm...true hor. But what if she pregnant leh..Like that quite bad leh.


Alas, someone else got off the train and the lady settled down on the empty seat which was a few seats away from us. With a couple of glances, i was able to ascertain that the bulge was no more than an accumulation of natural heat insinuation. Imagine the akwardness that would ensue if i stood up and offered my seat......

If i am to use a term to sum up this situation, it would be Lam Pa Pa Lan*, or LPPL in short. If the lady is pregnant contrary to your belief, it would be bad to let her stand for the train journey. On the other hand, give up your seat to a rotund lady would result in an awkward siutation. Someone ought start a program to hand out some form of identification accessories,ala those Livestrong bands, to pregnant ladies so that members of public can render the necessary assistance to them.

*Lam Pa Pa Lan is a Hokkien derogatory term for dilemma. It literally means a situation whereby the either the left or the right testicle bangs against the penis, resulting in pain and discomfort in either situation.

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