Cynthia is out of town. And it seems that the entire Universe has conspired not letting me to succumb to the typical fate of a “7-year Itch” like some of my friends so playfully pointed out. When I left the office this evening, my new colleague – a gentleman in his 50s – reminded me, “Cynthia’s not in town, don’t be a naughty boy ah!”. Over one meal, another new colleague of mine – a lovely lady new to Singapore – kept talking about loyalty as an important attribute of a relationship. Even my new blogger friend EastCoastLife in replying one of my comments mentioned that … go and make some babies, boost the population of Singapore, but wait till Cynthia is back!
The truth is, it doesn’t seem like it has been that long since Cynthia and I have dated. There are always lots of things to learn with Cynthia, lots of man-made challenging scenarios to tackle, lots of opportunities to play the hero role, and lots of surprises that are beyond my imagination.
The moment I returned home tonight, I have received a text message from Cynthia’s mother’s phone. It said …
Honey, please call Bandung now. Thanks.
I was puzzled. Why did Cynthia message me via her mother’s phone? Her phone is out of battery? She has forgotten to bring the charger? She needs me to DHL the charger to her? I was tired. Feeling sticky and badly in need for a good bath.
Or is it one of the test to see what my “response time” is like? Man, I surely don’t want to go into the complication of explaining myself why I take 27 minutes and 45 seconds to return her call. Defied the temptation of a nice hot bath, I called Bandung.
Her – Honey!
Me – Uh-huh?
Her – I can’t hear you.
Me – CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?
Her – I $%^#*((@) my phone!
Me – You what?
Her – I $%^#*((@) my phone!
Somehow my imagination ran wild. And the connection was bad somehow.
Me – You LOST your phone?
Her – No, I $%^#*((@) my phone! I was at a shop ($&*()_)&#&^)@&) … and I …
Me – I am really confused. How did you lose your phone?
Okay. Cynthia did not lose her phone. But rather she locked her phone after putting in a new prepaid card she obtained from a shop in Bandung.
Me – Can’t you unlock your phone using a PIN?
Her – I can’t. I need the PUK code.
What the PUK?!
Me – What is a PUK?
Her – It is a code. I was paranoid when I first bought the phone (erm … I was the one who bought the phone … or she was trying to say “got the phone” instead?) so I did something to the phone.
Me – I know. But where can I find the PUK? Isn’t it in your head somewhere?
Her – Read the phone manual. Perhaps the code is inside!
Me – But the PIN is inside your head, no?
Her – No, no! It is the default code of 1234!
Me – Uh-huh … can I bath first?
Her – It is urgent! It is an emergency!
Me – But it is like 11pm in the evening … no?
Seriously, how urgent can that be? Unless she is expecting some calls … or messages … not from me! Perhaps those who seem obviously the itchy type are not exactly itchy (me!) but those who don’t seem like the itchy type …
Anyway, I did a quick read of the manual and like the TV series of CSI, I attempted to reconstruct the “crime scene”. I had no clue what PUK was and now I know.
On the day Cynthia got her brand new phone, she set the option of having the phone locked if an unauthorized SIM card is inserted without a valid PIN code. She was given the option to change her pin but she stuck with the default PIN code of 12345 (now, why would someone chooses that option without changing the default PIN code?!). Today, she slotted in the new SIM card and was prompted for the PIN code. She entered 1234 – which is the wrong one – and the phone was automatically locked, could not be used. And since her phone was locked, she needed the Personal Unlocking Key (a.k.a. PUK) from the operator to unlock the phone in order for her to set a new PIN code.
The good thing is that Cynthia’s mobile number is under my account. I own both SIM cards. I called up SingTel and chose the option of PUK retrieval, punched in Cynthia’s mobile number, punched in my NRIC … and I was asked for the 15-digit number that is printed on the SIM card. For obvious reason I didn’t have the SIM card. So I called Cynthia using my fixed line and put my mobile phone on loudspeaker while talking to a human operator this time.
At the end of the call, she thanked me for saving the day … once again. And she asked, “Who’s the guy on the phone? How did you know him? He is really helpful ya?”
Seriously, with a girl like Cynthia, how to get bored?
9 replies on “What The PUK?”
hahaha… 7-yrs-itch, I wonder who defines that it has to be at the 7th year? weird.
Yeah…. so Wilfrid, u gave the advice, family and kids is the way to go… How abt yourself? If cynthia give birth to a baby…. your dream of becoming a househusband might become closer 🙂
*Gambatte!*
By the way, this is off topic. I remember u mentioning u hv a fren who’s single n avail in 1 of yr entry, can’t rem which, I’m looking out for my fren, trying to matchmake her..haha! drop me a mail
Lani! Ya lor … who came out with this 7-year-itch thingie? Must be some sort of ancient wisdom.
Erm … I did give that advice that kids is the way to go? Hmmm … if baby comes, baby comes lor. Not sure if my dream would come true as my “employer” does not exactly satisfy my expensive lifestyle should I quit my job .. lol.
Okay, I will drop you an email soon. This could be fun … set aside the exciting blogs we both will write!
hehehe…. mention me for wat lah. You have a good wife, Cynthia and you are a good guy. From your posts and comment on my blog, I trust you that you would be a good husband to Cynthia. 🙂
I got this problem of being locked out of my hp too. hehehe…. hubby helped me to settle it too.
Cynthia’s from Bandung? Nice place. I won’t mind living there. 🙂
oh, bro~! I am not being superstitious, but don’t underestimate this kind of old Chinese saying… (I suppose this is from Chinese, right?)
In my historical 9-yr relationship, (of course, challenges appeared from time to time) unexpected and unexplanable frictions did come up at the 7th year! After getting through the 7th year, the ‘funny’ feeling would not be there… This is no joke and this is also agreed among some of my friends who have also gone through a long relationship… Dun ask me why but it did happen. 😛
As shared by my friend recently, baby may not help the marriage as it will pose more challenges for the couples instead. However, provided love exists in the family and if you can overcome the problems, the baby will bring your marriage to the next level. This is what my friend always told me, ‘No matter how frustrating and tiring I was at work, when I see the baby smiles and greets me at the door, it will make me smile and forget my problems at work. She is a precious gift…’ 🙂
ECL – Don’t we all need our companions to help out here and there? Yes, Bandung is a nice place. Got the hill top, got the volcano and nature … and the Sundanese food is nice! A cultural place I read and it is the second biggest city in Indonesia after Jakarta!
Lora – Hence the wise saying … 7-year itch! Gasp! On a separate note … if baby comes, we will count as blessing. It is God’s plan and His wisdom is way beyond us 🙂
Yes, the baby is a blessing and God’s plan and wisdom is beyond our imagination… May God bless your family. 🙂
Erm … sis …
[…] of Living With Cynthia Chapter Mission Impossible comes the next installment as a follow-up to What The PUK?!. One morning, Cynthia had an outbreak of desperation: Do you know how frustrated it is?! And she […]