In sleepy old pasir ris, where I used to stay, surrounded by jungles and shorelines, there certainly was light pollution. I mean, any attempts to escape that in this island probably wouldnt lead you very far from the wrong side of international borders. Yes, there was light pollution. But there was also something else: darkness.
In sengkang though, and I suspect also in most of the dense hdb heartlands, there is only glow. It does vary in intensity, as the days and nights interchange, but it never truly leaves you. The glow dips, and then it rises, usually in accordance with the sun. But the minimum threshold is always maintained by the wilful collaboration of streetlights, coffeeshops, carparks, school buildings, stadiums, busstops, markets, and voiddecks. It gets quiet, so yes, portions of this city does indeed sleep. But theyve gotten really accustomed to sleeping with the lights on, and I do wonder what sort of long term harm this might pose to the oh so delicate human body.
the benefit is unmistakeable though. gone are the days of dashing up the stairs, after turning off the lights in my living room in pasir ris. midnight runs to the fridge have never been more well lit.
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This one time in an effort to start a conversation, I asked a friend if they had stayed up all night, like I had, to watch the final of the US open. Seconds after I said this, I realised that most people were awake (and thus online) at the hour because it was 7am, and they were going to work. This truly horrified me, and for the first time in a while I was awakened to how far my life had come from abiding to the formalities of society. I decided that the best way to salvage the conversation was by immediately appearing offline and not saying another word.
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In sengkang though, and I suspect also in most of the dense hdb heartlands, there is only glow. It does vary in intensity, as the days and nights interchange, but it never truly leaves you. The glow dips, and then it rises, usually in accordance with the sun. But the minimum threshold is always maintained by the wilful collaboration of streetlights, coffeeshops, carparks, school buildings, stadiums, busstops, markets, and voiddecks. It gets quiet, so yes, portions of this city does indeed sleep. But theyve gotten really accustomed to sleeping with the lights on, and I do wonder what sort of long term harm this might pose to the oh so delicate human body.
the benefit is unmistakeable though. gone are the days of dashing up the stairs, after turning off the lights in my living room in pasir ris. midnight runs to the fridge have never been more well lit.
-----
This one time in an effort to start a conversation, I asked a friend if they had stayed up all night, like I had, to watch the final of the US open. Seconds after I said this, I realised that most people were awake (and thus online) at the hour because it was 7am, and they were going to work. This truly horrified me, and for the first time in a while I was awakened to how far my life had come from abiding to the formalities of society. I decided that the best way to salvage the conversation was by immediately appearing offline and not saying another word.
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