It's a damn hassle trying to buy this gold bar. I went to this
UOB branch in Bendemeer and tell the counter girl I want to buy
gold bar. She went "huh"?
It took me 30 mins just to make the branch manager understand that
I want to buy the gold bar and take it home.
And no thank you, I do not want to buy the gold coins nor gold
certificates nor any other gold security thingies.
I want something solid in exchange for my money !!
Maybe it's not a good idea to wear SAF PT Kit when you buy gold
bars. People do not to believe that you can afford gold bars when
you are in grey T-shirt with the word "Army", black shorts and
worn-out N322 sneakers.
(I have RT in the afternoon mah. Too lazy to change my attire...
Hey, if I'm not slack, I will not have failed IPPT in the first
place.)
When the branch manager got the message, she said they do not keep
1-kg gold bars in their tiny little branch. I've two options:
1) Go to their HQ @ Raffle Place and buy the gold bar there.
2) Wait for the HQ to send the gold bar down to the branch and I
can pick it up in a few days' time. But first, I would have to pay
$22,xxx.xx. in cash.
It does not matter that I have a cheque account with UOB. They do
not want my cheque. They want the $22k in cash in advance! Neither
do they accept NETS lor.
(Something new I learnt. Banks do not
accept NETS payment!)
So LPPL, queue up to withdraw $23k at the same damn branch. Then
drive down to Raffles Place with 23 pcs of $1k notes for 1-kg gold
bar @ HQ UOB.
Initially, it was a thrill to have the gold bar at home. 1-kg of
gold bar looks very small actually but it is very heavy. Hold it in
your hands and it feels very "substantial". Just can't describe
that sense of satisfaction and security...
I do not have a safe so it just kinda sit in my drawer until my
baby nephew found it and started playing with it. Now the damn gold
bar is dented in many places. And there's teeth indentations,
marker stains and play dough residues on the gold bar.
(See in the movies when the actors bite the gold nuggets to check
its purity. So I try also... hehehe... Only 1 tooth mark is mine
lah, the rest belongs to my baby nephew. It's really true! Pure
gold is malleable!)
There was also some cuts on the gold bar. They resulted from my
desperate attempt to slash open the plastic cover. The gold bar
came wrapped tightly in a thick plastic sheet. You have no idea how
tough these plastics are.
My gold bar does not "glitter". It has a dull, matt gloss to its
texture but very cool to the touch.
