Spoil sport at Northshore Plaza

“What do you wanna be when you…” Before I could finish, Pangzi quickly interjected, “Thought we’ve gone through that already? An aviator!”

Okay, I just want to confirm again that you don’t mean an AV actor.

“Here’s another important question for you,” I said. “What sportsman do you wanna be when you go to your new school?”

“Hmmm I haven’t thought about that,” he said.

“Well, you’d better. Because your school term starts like in a few days?” I said, and suggested we visit the new Northshore Plaza to help him make up his mind.

“What’s there at Northshore Plaza?” he started to protest. “Heard it’s so far away in Punggol.”

“That’s what we’re going to find out,” I said. “But I do know there’s a big Decathlon sports store there.”

As it turned out, Northshore Plaza was nothing more than a neighbourhood mall integrated with HDB flats above. An extension that promised more shops and eateries across the bridge was not ready yet.

The two-storey sports store, however, was the saving grace.

“Okay, why don’t you try out all the sporting options here and tell me what you like,” I urged.

“Can I? Thought the stations are for display only,” he said gingerly.

“Just do it when the storekeepers are not looking.”

“What if I break something?”

What else? You run.

“Think I’d go for table tennis,” he said. “I like the sound of it.”

“That’s too fast for you,” I reasoned. “Too much ping pong makes you mad like King Kong.”

“How about badminton? I can handle the speed.”

“But you’ll never beat LKY. Choose something you can master.”

“I know, I know. I can learn goof!”

“Are you even using the right club to putt?”

“Basketball? I can shoot like Curry.”

“Curry fish? Curry chicken? Too hot for you.”

“Archery? A target sport.”

“That’s for wimps. You don’t even sweat shooting arrows. Do you call that a sport?”

“Okay, rugby? Very physical and macho.”

“Your opponents will drag you to the ground and suffocate you. Are you trying to get killed?”

“Rock climbing? Toward greater heights!”

“How useful is this? No mountains to climb in this flat country.”

Pangzi came to a cycling simulator. Before he could say anything, I declared, “Don’t even think about it. You know I hate cyclists on the road. They are a traffic hazard.”

“What should I choose then?” he asked, exasperated.

How should I know?

I only wanted to check out Northshore Plaza.

 

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