This is Mr PC’s aunt, 73, from Ipoh. We visited last weekend, bringing the usual pile of chocolate (her favourite) and good appetites as the city is famous for food, especially chicken and rice (my favourite). Amidst the shameless gorging our trips to Ipoh always involve us persuading her to tell some family stories. Sometimes she would rather sit in front of the telly with the sound operating louder than a jet plane. Other times she is on form and we get some good snippets.

This last visit I taped her talking. As well as stories of her old dad keeping a lime tree and what it was like when her grandma came to stay was the story of her recent resignation from the legal company that had hired her for the past 16 years, for little pay and not much thanks.

Last November she decided she’d finally had enough. She waited until her salary had cleared, then put in a phone call from the local YMCA to check for the all-clear. The tape is a lovely memento, with our aunt’s slow nasal drawl, bursts of background laughter and a polite factual reminder of the correct year at one point, but this written account, slightly edited for fluency, will do:

‘I asked the girls “What time is the boss back?” and they said “Not until two o’clock,” so I went and got some iced Milo to hand out and rushed back in to the office with the ice creams and my leaving letter, which I left for them to give.’

She goes on to recount the letter that we would all love to have penned:

“I, Madam Tan Mei Ling, at my utmost happiness, hereby tender my resignation as from today 30 November 2012.”

Usually, she agrees, you would end such a letter yours sincerely…

‘But I didn’t, I just put: GOODBYE!’