Not-so-okay Pocky

I am eating strawberry flavored Pocky sticks that Dailytoe gave me after our yoga class.

They’re really good – yums! I am surprised at how good they taste. I think this is the first time I am having strawberry Pocky. In fact, this is the first few times I am eating strawberry flavored anything.

At first I couldn’t figure out why but the answer came to me when I was chatting with my 2nd Sis online. I told her that I had strawberry Pocky and she said she only eats the chocolate ones.

It suddenly struck me that I don’t eat the chocolate ones either. And since Pocky only comes in chocolate or strawberry back then, I hardly ate any when I was young.

And then I realized my sisters were to be blamed for that!

My sisters and I were 2 years apart, meaning when my 1st Sis was 10 yrs old, my 2nd Sis was 8 and I, 6. Growing up with two older sisters has been, well, rather interesting but horribly tedious. It must have been the “female thing” that caused us to be extremely jealous of one another. We fight a lot to be the centre of attention in the family and to be the trendier or cooler one amongst us three. And because the older sibling gets exposure to the world (i.e. school) faster, the younger ones tend to copy her. Naturally, me being the youngest, was the worst copycat.

To put us in our place, 1st Sis established a hierarchical ranking amongst us. She decreed that for everything that the three of us do, she gets first pick. 2nd Sis gets to go next, and I’ll take whatever is left. The rule is, you must not like or indulge in whatever that your older sibling has chosen.

And why do we follow her rule? Because she is (then) the biggest in size among us and will beat us up to pulp otherwise.

And such bureaucracy extends to hobby, interest, likes, dislikes…everything. Even when choosing a movie star to idolize, like all young girls like to do, 1st Sis gets to pick first. So with respect to the 4 famous Heavenly Kings, she chose Leon Lai and my 2nd Sis chose Andy Lau – I was pretty much stuck with Aaron Kwok or Jacky Cheung.

Similarly with flavors…….

Now can you understand why I never ate strawberry or chocolate Pocky? And trust me, I don’t even like vanilla all that much.

Frou: My goodness! Now I know why I am so screwed up at 29. It was the bureaucratic environment I grew up in with you two!!

2nd Sis: So sour. Get OVER it!

(Ok fine, I chose Aaron Kwok. Floppy fringe was cool)