Zen and the art of choosing toilet paper

The other day when I was at a hypermarket, I was asked to grab a pack of toilet rolls. Instinctively, I reach for the 4-ply with blue dolphins embossed on them. I think there were even seashells and sea-horses. Very pretty.

I received a very dirty look followed by, "Your backside made of gold ar?"

I quickly hid the pack of sanitary pad in my other hand - that costs an extra 30% from other brands because of flower imprints.

I shared this with Dailytoe who agreed that the nether area is our kingdom - shouldn't anyhow use generic supplies on them. What is a couple extra few dollars for aesthetic beauty? It's not going to break the bank and it makes you that slightly happier looking at it - it's a good deal, no?

Realistically, it is not.

Dailytoe talks about the Middle-Class Syndrome. Whilst we are definitely not born with silver spoons in our mouths or gold dripping from our pockets but neither are we living hand to mouth. We make a decent honest living and survive within our means. We do not have materialistic wants (I am happy with Vincci, no need Jimmy Choo - both also from Malaysian right?) but will not hesitate to buy a dozen rounds of drinks at Zouk or book a weekend getaway at whim. I would hardly call it luxurious living but we do enjoy simple comfort like oil massages and embossed toilet paper.

Sometimes though, it comes with a price. Buddha said that 'to live is to suffer'. Because this class do not need to worry about the basic living necessities, most of them have a tendency to inflict other types of suffering upon themselves. Heard of the poor little rich girl? The princess who have everything in life but is unhappy because she feels unfulfilled and trapped. A classic example, Britney Spears.

A more inspirational example is Siddhartha Gautama (who later become known as Buddha). Siddhartha was born into royalty and riches. His father, the King, kept him within the palace grounds and ordered that he shall never see the unpleasantness of the world during his courtly life. Whenever he leaves the palace grounds, the King will order runners to clear the roads of the old, the diseased and the dead. One day, Siddhartha escaped from the palace on his own to roam the street. To his horror, he came face to face with images of illness and poverty. Stirred by what he saw, he left his life of luxury to seek the cause of human sufferings which eventually led him down the path to his Enlightenment.

According to Buddha, the origin of suffering is our attachment to transient (temporary) objects. "The reasons for suffering are desire, passion, ardor, pursuit of wealth and prestige, striving for fame and popularity, or in short: craving and clinging. Because the objects of our attachment are transient, their loss is inevitable, thus suffering will necessarily follow."

What I am trying to say is, we should not cling on to what we may lose tomorrow. Money, as with feelings, is always transient. The future is important but every respectable sociologist will tell you the present (and what you make of it) is what matters the most.

And at present, I kind of feel like wiping my ass with embossed toilet paper......

Here's something that will keep Dailytoe in her toilet seat for hours....