Merry Christmas :)

Merry Christmas everybody:) And a very happy new year 2007. It's back to work tomorrow for some of us. After a break of 5 days, I feel rejuvenated ( almost) to face the big bad world. The few days back home was spent wisely. It was luxurious to be pampered and have food brought to you. Plus I watched Elizabeth 1 starring Helen Mirren. No wonder she won an Emmy. She's certainly made the royal queen come to life. I also watched Midsomer Murders. And when I wasn't watching TV, I was in a horizontal position slurping up the REM sleep. I slept so much, standing up made me dizzy. ( Postural hypotension I'm sure of it )I enjoyed Christmas at home.

Met up with an old friend as well. He and I used to take the same bus to kindergarten. I remember being envious of his mini motorbike one morning that I got mum to drive out and buy me the very same thing.

And my old room mate from Ireland sent me a christmas card, ( I didn't send any cards this year which was awful of me really ) updating me.

Friends and family. THat's what christmas is all about. Have a Blessed 2007.

Deja Vu

Deja Vu = deja ( already ) + vu (seen)

Denzel Washinton's latest movie is good. Especially as I had no idea what the movie was about. Sometimes its nicer to watch a movie without any preconceive ideas. He a virtuoso actor. Travelling back in time takes a little persuading. I liked the movie. Two thumbs up from me.

Snap Happy!

I woke up early this morning. A full bladder rather than the alarum clock did the trick. It's now 7:25am..the coffee mug's half empty ( or half full ),there's a nice calm to the early hours and I'm thinking about life. ( Which is something i do quite a bit these days..is this the sign of old age?)

The thing is, I want a new job. Nothing wrong with the present one. I slept with my face ( the right side ) on a magazine. I have the creases to prove it. ( as if you ever need proof of something as trivial as this ) It must be osmosis working its magic. I found myself gravitated to my folder of old pictures...and fantasizing for a minute...the challengers of being a different job description. I slept on the page entitled "Snap Happy". So sleeping over something really does affect your mind. Point proven.

Monday:)

I hate changes. Daily routine is comforting. I don't find it boring. Okay maybe I do sometimes. But generally, I like the predictability of events. When there's an upheavel....it messes up the daily routine. Take for instance the workings of the past week, we've had friends moving back to another state for work. The group we once were...is no more. I hate that. That's depression talking for those of you aspiring psychiatrists. ( let the record show, I've diagnosed myself before you).

On a lighter note, the two books I've ordered came this week....plus Jeffrey Archer's hardcover's on sale for christmas. What I relief I didn't bow down to temptation to buy the book three weeks ago. There's 25% off ....

Ais Krim Goreng

I first heard of "fried ice-cream" a couple of moons ago.You know how it is, someone mentions it..and immediately the brain goes into over-drive with all the possible questions..such as..

1) how do you fry the ice-cream?

2) Won't it melt?

3) Who thought of it?

4) Does it taste good?

5) Can it be home-made or must it be done in a special way only possible in high-tech kitchens??

For lunch ( which was a wet affair seeing as the cyclical rain decided to pour just as we were parked making the manouvre out of car dodgy) We had fried ice-cream.Sharing one single umbrella with 3 other human bodies of various shapes and sizes isn't easy. We made a couple of trips in pairs and just as we sat down for lunch, the sun came out and the rain ( magically ) stopped. Apparently this isn't at all surprising in Kuala Trengganu. How unlike our capital city, where rain once it starts refuses to ease off for hours on end.

I had fried ice-cream for dessert during lunch. It was lovely...brought back childhood memories of chomping down ice-cream before it melts. Memories are triggered by taste as much as the sense of smell.

Bora Ombak restaurant

For good food, some poeple would travel quite a bit. For a free meal ...some people would go to the ends of the earth..almost. I've only just realised, the area surrounding Ampang Point is scattered with restaurants.Ampang is an area alien to me. ( Apart from visiting the RSPCA, a friend, a friend's wedding and the second hand bookstore at Ampang point...I rarely venture this far from home). We had dinner at Bora Ombak restaurant...by virture of its name, one would assume its an Indonesian restaurant. Surprisingly, the menu had steaks and pasta dishes. I opted for the safety of Indonesian food. ( Would you order Pasta in a chinese restaurant??)

It had a Balinese theme scenery. We arrived around 7pm and opted to sit outside. It proved a tad humid and when the thunder started rumbling ...we moved indoors. The ambience is one of serenity and calm. Our initial waiter was slow.....but the second waiter proved attentive and courteous. The service ....I thought was a little slow considering we were ( at one point in the evening ) the only customers at this restaurant. Looking around, there were ample seats which made me wonder how well they would have cope if they had the entire place filled with customers.

The background music was a peaceful petiticious piece....which proved soothing. Not many customers so we had loads of privacy. And another plus point was the fact the waiters kept a safe distance from our table allowing us time to savour the food and gossip.

Bora Ombak Cafe & Restaurant
Bora Ombak Cafe & Restaurant
G1, Kompleks Sukan Ampang, Persiaran Memanda 1, Taman Dato' Ahmad Razali, Ampang, 6800068000 Selangor, Malaysia
Tel: 03-4251 6303
Fax: 03-4251 6302

Keropok Lekor

This is what Trengganu is famous for. And this is what we bought on our last day there. Its made out of fish paste grounded and mixed with sago. The inferior ones have less fish and taste more of flour. Its long and chewy and dipped in the right chilli dip, its a perfect snack. It also comes in thin slices which are called "keping".

Batik

The word batik describes prints made from the resist-dying method. High quality hand-made Batik is expensive, but there is still considerable market for it.Most batik is done by machines. Trengganu and Kelantan are famous for their Batik where the artistic people go to great pains to produce some of the loveliest liveliest prints you've ever set your eyes on. As you go further down South, the prices of Batik gets higher and the choices more limited. Government servants are encouraged to wear Batik prints on the 1st and the 15th of every month. We nearly almost always forget.

Last weekend, we travelled 6 hours to Kuala Trengganu to visit a dear friend. Not only did I not contribute to the driving, I slept shamelessly throughout the journey. Only waking up at the designated stop for food. There were the usual taunts from the others when we stopped. I woke up in the outskirts of KT with a creaky neck and a numb left third toe.

It was scorching hot the following morning. Unlike KL with its humidity, the minute them beads of sweat start forming, they've wooshed up. I drank three wholesome glasses of water and not a drop of pee came out of that.

Everyday scrunchies!

What are the accepted rules of scrunchies?? Just to be clear...a scrunchie traditionally is an elastic band encased in cloth which may be satin, cotton, patterned or otherwise. Up-market scrunchies are available from Evita Peroni. Be warned...when jazzed up, the prices escalate exponentially. Here's my collection. A meagre one. I don't have all the colours possible...and on bad days ( where depression rules ) I have been seen wearing a pink floral emsemble with a ( shudder) GREEN scrunchie.

Marmite sandwich

Did you know that marmite is made of...

Yeast Extract
Salt
Vegetable Extract
Vitamin: Niacin
Spices
Vitamins: B1, B2, Folic Acid, B12 .

Fancy that! I 've reaquainted myself with the joys of marmite. It's yummy. I dun have a toaster so I've made do with plain ole marmite sandwich every morning. This natural by-product of brewer's yeast taste salty and it gooey when you dig it out of the yellow-lid jar. My secret to getting just the right amount on your bread slice is simple...use a teaspoon...dip it in...and then let it trickle down....until just 3/4 of the spoon is covered in marmite. Then you spread it ...thinly. Here's the dodgy part....too much marmite will leave you thirsty and crabby. Too little and you wonder what the fuss is all about. Just the right amount ...teamed with hot coffee is my idea of a perfect breakfast.

( use a separate utensil for butter/marg and marmite...nothing is more rude than leaving crumbs in the marmite jar. )

We live for coffee breaks

I did a very stoopid thing two days ago. After a carbohydrate laden lunch, I drove home in an extremely sluggish state. Have you ever driven in such a state? Its a horrible feeling. Your eye-lids feel like lead. To counter-act this, I talked to self in the car, looking like a mad woman. ( WHo cares!!! In the name of road safety..I think this is justified)

Anyway, I parked the car at the carpark and walked down a few flight of stairs. I thought the journey shorter than usual. Slept like a baby. Woke up at 5pm with a dry mouth ( ahem) and a nagging right-sided headache which was a great excuse to NOT do any work.

The next morning, I beeped the front door of the condo and proceeded to car park. The thing is I couldn't find my car. At the very spot where it should have been....there was this huge empty spot. I had the usual tachycardia and cold sweat and an overwhelming sense of doom. Mentally I ticked off the list of things in car which was precious. I calmed down when i realised..apart from the car itself..I had nothing else of value in it.

For 10 seconds I saw my world spinning around me haphazardly. Let me just say ten seconds is a mighty long time. The thing is, I'd parked my car at an identical carspot ONE FLOOR below. I walked down two flights of stairs to find it sitting where I'd left it yesterday afternoon.

Now isn't that just about the silliest thing to have done?? And the picture above is our coffee mugs...lined up. Usually somebody does the job of pouring them instant two-in-on coffes in before the hot water. Our coffee break ritual. Maybe I should have taken coffee that day. Sure would have saved me a lot of bother.

Vanity thy name is woman

I've finally found some missing ( misplaced) files stashed deep in the hard drive...the same hard drive which died on me about a month back. It's nice to find things which you've misplaced. I'm still enjoying the euphoric mood.

The picture is so obviously not of me. Taken at my previous home ( yes some of us still move houses ). For those of you ignomarous folks out there, this here is TIGGER. the stuffed dog featured in the background is nameless. the white cushion has sentimental value...aged 10 years it was a birthday gift and has helped cushion the ole bum for years.

I've been obsessing over what to wear on Toosday. nothing special happening then, just a weeny viva session whereby you've vulnerable to being humilliated by being exposed as an ignorant person. ( Exams bring out the vulnerability...and crabbiness ) I've decided that black should be the theme. It is subtle if not a trifle boring.

Here's the theme on missing things, I've misplaced the bottom part of my suit. I'm taking this as a sign from higher authorities to wear something else. ( still staying on the black theme naturally ) This afternoon...I have a perfect excuse for going shopping. ...for some sheer black stockings. Yes even in the tropics ...with sweltering temps....bare legs are perhaps not the best thing to expose.

A wedding dinner

We travelled a far bit on Sunday for a wedding dinner. Anticipating a couple of wrong turns, we left a full hour and a half before the due time. This proved to be useful when a wrong turn ( not my fault ) took us all the way to One Utama, when in actual fact we were heading more towards Subang Jaya. It is right that weddings be held on Sundays, that way, friends and relatives from far don't have to wade through endless traffic in an attempt to get to the dinner area.

I stuffed myself into last year's cheong sam, which proved snugger than the last time I wore it. I looked decidedly like a sausage with a thick waist and tapering legs ending in my dainty feet. ( I'm a size 4 folks ).Manouvering the arms to drive, I imagined life in the 1900 with us poor women being stuffed into corsets. No wonder they fainted at every little reason.

As if to taunt my already low self esteem, the crowd turned out to be the leanest bunch of women I've seen in some months. the fat ones ( myself included ) were divided into two major groups, the first was the ones who were comfortable in their hefty portions, and the smaller group consisted of us poor sods, trying hard to suck in the tummy and make conversation whilst having evil thoughts of skinny folks who have higher BMR than us.

The picture is of my beaded hand bag....my one accessory for the evening.

Reading three books....at the one time

When bored, I recommend a quick trip to the nearest mall, whereby upon reaching destination you take a deep breath in and allow yourself the joy of both window shopping as well as actually spending an obscene amount of money. ( Preferably other people's ) Of course what is also high on the list of "how to enjoy self" is a visit to the bookstore. Second-hand bookstores are preferred, failing which TIME, KINOKUNIYA or MPH would substitute just as well and if absolutely desperate the local newsagent would be able to provide some trashy magazines to entertain self.

Two months back, I found a wonderful way to entertain self by reading two books within the same space of time. Last week, I've stretched myself to three books and they are....

1. A place called here. By Cecelia Ahern
2. The Yummy Mummies
3. Fanny and the monsters. By Penelope Lively.

It's all a little muddled and I especially enjoy reintroducing self to the respective characters in each book. Better than sudoku.

Do you have green fingers?

Cameron Highlands is located 150km north of Kuala Lumpur. It is named after a British surveyor,William Cameron who discovered this place during a mapping expedition in 1885. It is Malaysia's largest tea-producing area.

This picture is an old picture. I don't mean ancient-old but probably about 3 years old. Taken during my first-ever trip to Cameron Highlands. For Malaysians, the cooler climate where the temperature never rises above 25 degrees is too much to resist. And so, despite the winding journey up ....Cameron Highlands will remain a a popular holiday spot.

Amanda Brookfield

The Simple Rules of Love. A beautifully written and heart-warming book.Imagine the rush of joy when you start reading a book, only to find the words describing things and allowing you to imagine and get absorb with the characters. Brookfield has this uncanny ability to keep you interested. I've only just finished this book and already I'm sorry I don't have a replacement. Such emptiness. A short trip to the bookstore tomorrow after work...definitely.

Thursday already?

Char Kuey Teow! The best ones are sold by hawkers at the road-side-stalls. They are a dying breed. If you're one of those namby-pamby ones with delicate stomachs but still insist on a good char kuey teow, I can recommended two places. the first ( nearer home ) is this Indonesian restaurant at Hartamas Shopping center. The second is at this nyonya restaurant ( its all the RAGE now ...but less fashionable 20 years ago ) Ah tuan Ee either at Berjaya Times Square or at the Curve.

This Char Kuey Teow was yummy. And I ate it at the side of the road with no immediate tummy-complications. So Live dangerously and you'ld be amazed by the good food out there. Its yours for the taking.

Oyster omelet

This is known as oh chien. ( It's hokkien for fried oyster ...I'm sure of it ) I'm not sure how or where it originated from but its something which tastes heavenly and depending on where you eat it...may cost an arm. ( your left one only ) It has to be teamed with the correct chilli sauce. Something which is garlicky. I'm going to stop here and look for decent food for dinner.

How to be a writer...

I suppose, you'ld have to write quite a bit before you get anything worth shouting about. Its a little bit like riding a bicycle, you have to persevere until by sheer determination you actually hang on. ( minus the trainer wheelies I mean ) When I learnt how to cycle, I wore my shoes throughout the process. But in this case of writing...I'll take my chances and do it bare-footed and dressed down.

And so here I am..writing about food. Only because I obscess over it quite a bit and it's always pleasant to brag about what you've eaten. This is crabs in coconut milk.

Is this worth the money?

Jeffrey Archer was born in England in 1940 and he grew up in Somerset. He became the 4th youngest member of the house of commons at the age of 29. His first novel "not a penny more, not a penny less" was inspired by his own misfortunes at that time. Interestingly, he studied PE and represented Britain as a sprinter before becoming famous as a writer.

He is however more famous for having spent time in jail. This is his second novel since being released. False Impression was a fast and furious read. I wonder whether this new book is worth 90 ringgit......

Balik Kampung

Two evenings back, after a long day at work, I had the misfortune of being caught literally off guard and spent two and a half long hours in the car negotiating my way back home. I arrived home with two numb toes, a significantly flattened left bum and a crabby mood. Happy holidays!!

Deepavali

Once again, we're right smack in the midst of the holiday mood. Malaysia has the most public holidays. Or at least it feels like it sometimes. We're celebrating Deepavali and Raya Puasa all in the one. The festival of lights is celebrated by Hindus...it starts with the ganga snanam, a cleansing ritual. A visit to the temple follows....with ceremonial rites and prayers to mark the auspicious day. The festival of light brings hope..for a better world and a better life. Happy Deepavali:)

What I'm reading...

This is an everyday tale of rich people. Enjoyable. At Page 53....keep you posted once I finish this book.

Grey's anatomy

I've been glued to the pc...since purchasing the entire season two of Grey's Anatomy. Woohooo,
okay before you people think it's the Mcdreamy pull, it isn't. Althought Demsy is really a dream isn't he? It airs on NTV7 or something every Monday. But I'm too impatient to wait weekly for each episode. As a result, I've completed the entire viewing and now feel.....like I should really get a life:)

Take a PCM and sleep it off

Health is wealth. Following a bout of food poisoning ( chicken foldover to be avoided for a long long time to come ) I have found self weak and listless. Of course it doesn't help when you have to also THINK and write string of words convincing self and others you actually know what you're babbling about.

I'm a firm believer in avoiding medicine when ill. Unless of course you're a patient in which case you are to follow the doctor's order to the letter. Because they've studied long and hard hours to earn the power to do just that.

Feeling under the weather

What I will buy

This power house voice is something to listen to. She's Sabahan...part filipino and I've heard her life before. Just got an email re Mia's new single.

I have been staring at the PC screen since 9:48am this morning. It's been a trying and tedious time for me. I sometimes feel like I'm masquerading as a person who should know her way around the pc. Have you ever, typed midway only to have your fat ( optional ) fingers hit some blasted key....and then ( get this ) the entire page realigns itself in some weird gawd-forsaken way?

Just a few minutes ago...the unthinkable happen. I now know....toes can be devious appendages too. ( Listen up and take note those of you with wiggly toes ). My left toe hit the off button which is strategically placed way way below the pc....and just for a moment ( where I thought my life had ended ) the screen suddenly went blank. And all I could do was hyperventilate for a good 10 seconds before switching the damm machine on again.

And so here I am ( a survivor ) picking up the bits and pieces and getting along with life as best she can. I'm midway through the corrections I'm meant to be doing. All them ticks and annotations to take note. I haven't showered ( which shows some dedication to getting down to work ) and I haven't been out of the house today.

A glimpse of the future

Life is to be fortified by many frienships. To love, and to be loved is the greatest happiness.

Here's to a lifetime of happiness. Congratulations to two friends...who will be joined in matrimony by the end of 2006.

A relief?

Japanese princess gives birth to heir. The question is which Japanese princess. Here are two women with different destinies. Harvard graduate Masako gave up public life when she failed to produce an heir to the Japanese throne. She's a proud mother of 4 year old Princess Aiko but despite producing a healthy baby girl , having failed to produce an obligatory son and heir, she is seen as a failure. What we forget to see is a brilliant woman, who gave up a promising diplomatic career to marry her prince.

Princess kiko , married to the second son has managed to resolve the succession issue in Japan by producing a son. Does this take the pressure off Masako? Will she finally be rid of her guilt? Only time will tell.

Congatulations Princess Kiko.

What I'm reading...

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We celebrated a wedding of a dear friend on Sunday.The theme was blue and from afar, as we walked towards the canopies, I spotted the blue and white theme. The wedding group was also appropriately decked up in the same colour theme. They wore similar batik pattern clothes . After the obligatory smiles and nods to unfamilliar faces, we were edged towards a sweet-looking girl, who introduced herself as the groom's sister.What a relief, we cheerfully relieved ourself of the wedding gift which at this time had started to feel heavier by the minute. No time was wasted as we made a bee-line for the food section. Impeccable timing, the wedding couple arrived as we finished our lunch. The emcee announced the arrival and we were then greeted with the deafening ( yet strangely soothing ) sound of the kompang. Congratulations:) 

YUMMY!

Just because your breath will reek of petai for hours after the meal doesn't mean you should deprive self of this wonderful concoction here. Delicious, simple ( one would presume ) and on the table in 30 minutes. Its so easy to impress family and friends. Provided you've ascertain their preference to petai a week before. Otherwise dare to be different and convert those NON-believers out there.

What Price Vice?

Low fat, reduced calorie and sugar free. Because you like to live a boringly safe life.

Delicious by Ms Read

Ms Read 's "Delicious" is simply that....delicious. As you walk into its warm interior you feel welcomed. There is an abundance of the "feel-good" factor.

My favourite dish would have to be the duck spaghettini with a sprinking of garlic. It's light and as you chew the garlicky flavour starts to come in. The duck pieces must be marinated in some sweet sauce because it tastes heavenly sweet. Whoever thought a sweetish tasting duck would enhance pasta so well. For straightfoward good food, you can't go wrong. Forget your usual cream-laden carbonara sauce. I'll give it 4 stars ( let's just assume for 2 minutes I'm a famous food critic .)

DUCK SPAGHETTINI

*serves 2 ( small eaters)
1.Smile as you walk into the restaurant
2 Don't mull over the menu, zoom right in and order
3.Team it with hot lemon tea or coke ( the choice is yours )
4 Sit back and enjoy the wait
5.When the dish arrives....take a moment to inhale before you dig in


*TIP
Its important not to have had anything heavy 4 hours prior .

DELICIOUS BY MS READ G1A Ground Floor Bangsar Village Bangsar Kuala Lumpur Reservations: 03-22881770
F315 First Floor One Utama Phase 2 Bandar Utama Petaling Jaya Reservations: 03-77241086
Pork-free

I have a theory. Most things costs more than they would say 5 years ago. And the clothing industry has cut back on cloth and tried to fob us off with smaller sizes. Why else would I have gone up 3 sizes and am now a blubbery "L" and an occasional ( roll eyes twice ) XL. It's enough to make me both anorexic and bulimic cyclically. But just to be sure, I've unrolled the yoga mat daily last week ( not daily strictly speaking but it sounds nice when I write it down) and have been saluting the sun....and folding over numerous times. Apparently ( tell me this is true ) a simple "sun salutation" uses all 140 something muscles. So it must be doing some good to my body.

Oh dear.

This was taken some months back. I don't think the tilt is /was intentional. Yet I can't figure why would it grow in such an odd way. Was it ( unlike other trees ) aiming for the ground?

Monday again. Time flies and I'm still recovering from last weekend. What a lag. The weekend was nice. Midterm break, ie less cars on the road cos folks with children have flocked to smaller towns leaving us working folks with clear roads and even tempers.

Today Siti Nurhaliza got married. What's the big deal you ask yourself? Well in all honesty, it's not that great a deal. Only Malaysia's number one pop princess getting married to her own prince charming. ( Older then expected..a divorcee with 4 children...and a messy divorce behind him ) But as they say, "LOVE IS BLIND". And occasionally love is dumb as well. I wish her well. Congratulations SITI!! And I wish for you, a very happy and successful marriage.

A challenge indeed.

I've been tagged by Anna..... ( thanks very much ...I 'll take up the challeneg and am still waiting for a photoblog of Oxford :)

4 jobs I've had in my life:
1.Librarian ( in college)
2.Organist for mass ( transient post..I got bored )
3. .........( I'm basically lazy...no point lying..)
4.overworked and underpaid government servant. ( current job description )

4 places I've lived in
1.Malaysia
2.Singapore ( if you string together them annual holidays to visit relos...it'll add up at least 1 whole year )
3.Galway
4.Back to Malaysia again

4 TV series I enjoy watching
1.Me and My girl
2.Lost
3.Desperate housewives
4.House / Grey's anatomy. ( I know I'm only allowed four...but it doesn't count if it's in one line)

4 places I've been on vacation
1. Singapore
2.Melbourne
3.Paris ( took us ages to hunt down eurodisney )
4.Batam ( an island off Singapore which technically belongs to indonesia )

4 places I'ld like to visit
1.Giant's causeway
2.Vatican City for easter mass please
3.Bali...( only if I can return alive and well )
4.Venice ( That episode in Bold and Beautiful had some lovely scenes )

4 places I'ld rather be right now
1.Shop Street Galway...in winter admiring the shop fronts.
2.Home in Raub...in my own bed preferably with the rain beating down.
3.The Alps...interlaken ( and pretend I'm a chalet school girl )
4.Having tea with Maeve Binchey ( I'm sure the invitation will come..some day ..fingers crossed )

4 websites I visit daily
1.Aunty Marianne
2.Tan Lucy Pez
3. Gnightgirl
4.Jimbo

4 favourite foods.
1.Nasi Goreng Kampung with petai ( Plaza Damas )
2.Keropok lekor ( only the original ones from Kuala Trengganu will do don't fob me off with any other)
3.Ms Read's Duck Spaggethini
4. Dome's spicy olio with beef bacon bits

4 places I feel at home
1.Raub Pahang
2.No 5 newcastle road Galway
3.Upper thomson singapore
4.my present address ( hush hush )

4 things I wish for
1. A painless viva ( thesis session ) in Nov 2006
2.To play the violin like an angel and be less tone deaf
3. Failing which..to play the piano better
4. To own a whole series of out-of-print books by Elinor M Brent Dyer...and Ruby Ferguson books.

4 concerts I've been to
1. Scenario's concert in Tawau. ( Embarrasing but true )
2....................the plan to watch an MPO fell through
3................missed the pussy cat dolls concert recently. That's right I LIKE them
4....................

4 person's I want to challenge
1. Jimbo
2.Gnightgirl
3.Lasez
4.Misdina


The blanks were unintentional. I certainly hope you enjoyed reading this bit. I'm off to bed now. Good night

Ais Kacang

S-l-u-r-p! Malaysia is very humid. But occasionally it storms. We had thunderstorm yesterday afternoon. The roads were wet and driving through the rain made me strain my eyes to avoid driving through red-lights or hitting inanimate objects at the side of the road. I hate driving in the rain. ( But I love sleeping when it rains..) When I reached home I napped shamelessly and woke up after 6pm feeling ( like a baby ) grouchy and a tad disorientated.

The sky looks gloomy once again this afternoon so it doesn't have to take a claivoryant to predict a huge thunderstorm any time now. Dun leave home without an umbrella. 

Go figure

 

It's arrived

If you've ever waited for something eagerly...you'll be able understand how happy I was/am when I got a call this Wednesday ...."your book has arrived".

Chicken soup

What would you call this meal? Back to basics. None of your fancy swanzy stuff. Oh no, what we have before us is good old plain chicken soup, with a smattering of pepper ....and you get to dunk your bread ( nice and chewy ) into it. 

Jelly courtesy of M2 nurses.
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Grandfather's teeth,
are stuck in the Jello.






 

Chicken Little....

Today being Monday, you can expect low mood and crabby faces. But, in addition to this, we had a busy day. Loads of leg work and that's when I found my shoes squeak quite a bit. A friend pointed this out to me ....when the squeak became too regular to ignore on a quiet corridoor. I tied the hair up vigorously in a feeble attempt to look neater...only to have this backfire with a nagging one-sided tension headache after lunch. And so, I walked about the remaining part of the afternoon looking like I'd just woken up from sleep.

The stuff of dreams!

Hello, in this life, it is well known you should try everything ( almost! ) once.Last weekend I tried lobster in tepid soupy buttery sauce. ( refer self to picture ) The verdict...a resounding "yes please may I have seconds"

What is this?

A return to elegance....

Figure 1. A view from the front.
Figure2. Sarkies corner.
Figure 3. Natural sunlight is so appealing.
Figure4. Nice old banisters
Figure 5. The main foyer .
I have only ever been to Penang twice. Once at the age of 5...where as the story goes, I vomited quite a bit and quite spoilt the trip for everybody else present. The second visit was less eventful, a school trip ....only memory of which is " Right here waiting for you" by Richard Marx playing in the background at the road side stall in the night.

This trip ( over the weekend ) was definitely better. No vomiting..and no Richard Marx music. It was hot. Scorching hot in fact. The whole do was held at Eastern and Oriental Hotel Penang, ( E&O for short ) Built in 1885 its one of the remaining colonial buildings in Penang. Its actually a combination of two hotels Eastern and Oriental. The eastern hotel was founded by the Armenian Sarkies brothers. ( Noe the picture of Sarkies corner...where you get your meals ) The hotel has changed hands many times and has had some famous guests ie...Rudyard Kipling and Somerset Maugham. Interesting yes?

The frightening thing was, on the first night in Penang, it stormed and the winds blew madly. The waves hit the wall and went up as high as the coconut tree and the E&O pool was flooded with sea water as was the ground floor. All hushed hushed now. Was it a mini Tsunami?