Two Purses, No Money

The balance in my Touch & Go card is 40 cents. There has not been a convenient place and time to top-up the card so this morning has to use the 3rd class lane lor. My boss once said Smart Tag users got the 1st class lane, Touch & Go is second class and you guess lah what the 3rd class is. Luckily this morning I was quite early and the traffic was not so bad. But imagine my shock as I was inching towards the toll booth when I discover I do not have a single note in my purse. Yikes! What am I going to do? What will PLUS do with people who do not have a single cent to pay the toll?

Oh wait! I have some shillings. Earlier, I transferred the content of one purse to another. The cards got transferred; the shillings got transferred but not the notes. Sheeshh! I think the shillings are enough for the toll. And I also have stashed some new and crispy notes somewhere in the purse. It's a habit I got with new notes, I'll keep it in case I have to give ang-pows to friend's kids. I'm a good auntie sometimes heh :) Feeling more relief now. I think I have enough even for parking and the cheapest lunch if I'm too lazy to find an ATM immediately.

A lesson to me, leave some money in all my purses just in case similar incidents happen. Last time I used to keep lot of shillings in my coin purse and leave it in my car but at the new office building, we don't have to pay parking yet so my coin purse is almost empty now. Lucky for me, the toll today is RM2, parking is RM2 (this parking is for another place, not my office) and I just had my brunch, roti canai and tea for RM1.50. I'm content... for now :)

The Very Versatile Sardine

This is a story of the very versatile sardine. Saper yg tak kenal sardin? I think everyone in M'sia knows. Sardines have become the must-have food for students living in hostels, the bachelors who stayed in a place with no refrigerator, campers, families who keep some stock just in case there's no time to do grocery shopping, or anyone on a tight budget. Any more? I can't think of any right now. If sardine is not imported, I think someone should go make sardine a national food or something.

I still remember once (in hostel a very very long time ago) I can't sleep until 3 a.m. and beginning to feel very hungry. Going out at 3 in the wee hours of morning to find food was out of question for many reasons. The only thing available is 1 can of sardine. No rice, no eggs, no onion, no cooking oil or I'm sure I can whip out something. So, sardine it is. I'm sure some people will grimace at that because of the smell. They would squeeze lime juice to mask the smell but some smell will not be a put off especially when you're as famished as I was. Armed with a spoon and a can of sardine, I went slurp slurp at the sauce and chomp chomp on the sardine. Not forgetting to lick inside the thin too hehehe... Lucky the tongue didn't get injured in the process :) I was almost starving then OK.

When I'm more civilized, sardines will turn to delicious dish. Let me list down what you can do with sardines. (The list is not inclusive of other sardine delicacies you can find at mamak stalls or bakery shops like Roti Sardin, Sardine Quiche, etc.) So here goes...

1. Straight from the tin
2. Straight from the tin with some sliced onions, chilli and lime juice
3. Sambal sardin
4. Sardin masak lemak cili api
5. Sardin masak kari
6. Sardin masak kicap
7. Sardin goreng

Hmm... I think the only sardine dish I've not tried is Sardin Sup and Rendang. Oh and maybe Sardin Masak Asam Pedas too :) Any more sardine dishes you have tried?

There is another sibling of sardine that most people I know do not differentiate and that's the mackerel. The sardine is softer than mackerel and both are definitely different kind of fish. The scientific names are:-

1. Sardines - Sardinops sagax
2. Spanish Mackerel - Scomberomorus maculatus

And here are some health facts about the two.

1. Sardines
2. Mackerel

There are some concerns about too much mercury in sardines but heck... it's not as if we had sardine dishes everyday. And it is mentioned here that the mercury level in sardines are negligible. So long live sardines that has become an important food to many Malaysians :)

Cili Padi Super Power

By the power bestowed upon me, anything I touch will become 'pedas'. *evil laugh*

I'm not kidding. Even by touching the tip of my eye lashes, my eye gets watery due to the stinging sensation. If you want to experience this super power, try slicing a handful of cili padi. Not just any cili padi for that matter. Use the littlest cili padi which is hotter than its sibling. I've been slicing some of the littlest cili padi yesterday evening and I can still fill feel the heat.

When your hand finds itself anywhere near heat source like the steam from cooking or hot steering wheel and gear stick, you'll go Ow! Ow! Ow! Today, this cili padi super power lady goes around with unevenly swollen lips too due to eating crabs. But my bee stung lips is nowhere near sexy. Looks kinda sumbing to me so I won't go out till the swelling is gone. My seafood rule… Crabs will get to my lips. I can feel my throat/esophagus swollen too. Prawns will get to my eyes. It will also cause non-stop sneezing. Sigh! And I do love seafood.

Brothers

Yesterday evening, I was initially too lazy to cook anything. But the thought of eating Quaker Oats did not excite me in any way. So I finally decided to throw in what's available in the pot for a quick chicken soup. Accompanying it is the 'sambal belacan'. Yummy...

I left some for my younger brother, who is asleep at around 9 p.m. He has very odd sleeping hours. Once, his friend remarked to another friend, 'dia ni ikut time India' (he followed Indian time), when explaining his sleeping pattern hehehe...

Anyway, when I was about to go to sleep around 1 p.m. last night, I informed him that he can finish up the food or keep the leftover in the fridge if there is any. This morning, I saw the pots in the sink. No sign of leftovers in the fridge :) If you ask why I'm smiling, my brother did not eat much. So when he finishes the food and all the rice in the rice cooker, he must have liked my cooking hehehe...

I'm reminded of many years ago when we're still young. Brothers exist to make life hell for their sister. Their nickname for me is 'badak air' (hippopotamus). Back then there's no cute TMNet Bluehyppo to remind us of hippopotamus. Hippopotamus is the hippopotamus we see in National Geographic, fat and unattractive. At 164 cm and 52-54kg, I was not fat by any standard but the hippopotamus image stayed with me that I'd only look for L, XL and XXL size clothes even when much later I weighed 47-48kg. It took me some time to realize I'm only size S or M. That was then by the way. Nowadays I find myself slowly growing back to L size and this time it's for real.

When I'm back from the hostel, I'd try cooking with the good intention of helping my mom. But brothers being brothers, would complain about my cooking until mom feels I better not cook as long as she can do it. But, they never complain when it comes to cookies. Once, my experiment with cookies renders the dough flat and all the pieces joint together to become a flat cookie pancake in the baking tray. They took the tray, use spoon and knife to peel the flat cookies off the tray to eat it.

In another instance, they gang up and chase their big sister with a big snail. The big brother holds the shell and directs the soft gelifying part towards me. The little brothers cheers their big brother up. I managed to outrun and locked them out of the house heh :)

I also have to become the referee whenever they fight. This is the time my younger brother practises his wrestling techniques on his younger brothers. The referee needs some wrestling techniques too to keep them apart. My youngest brother always have the advantage, being little and cute. He'll cry the loudest to gain big sister's sympathy and the other brothers will get the scolding of their lifetime.

They've grown up to become mature, responsible and reliable men. Last time my younger brother prefers not to eat heated food from the day before saying it smells different. Now, he never complains about the food anymore. Rarely say it's good or not either. The sure way to tell is when he took second or third helpings. My youngest brother has also become more diplomatic though he rarely has the chance to sample my cooking. No more naughty little brothers to test my patience now.

*This post was meant for yesterday but I've no time to blog about it.

Wrong SMS to Boss

Die! Die! This morning, while deleting old SMSes in my handphone's Sent box, discovered I accidentally send an SMS meant for a friend to my boss. Aiyyoohhh... how could this happen? Why? Why? I've been working for him for 5 years and this has never happen before.

That message was sent several days ago, sometime past midnight. He never said a word about it though. It is my habit to read the messages before I delete them or I'd never discover my blunder. I'm not sure whether it is better for me to know or not to know I wrongly send the sms to my boss. But now that I know, don't know where to hide my face... Help! Help!

Here's part of the message with all the incriminating evidence against me. Nothing specific but still, die lah...

Dah tido ek. Sori i call ingatkn belum tido lagi........... Nnt dia ingat dgn sape lah i b'gayut mlm2 & repot kat mak :)

Are You Too Lazy To Cook Many Dishes?

Are you too lazy to cook many dishes? Imagine this; if you're like me, you come back from work too hungry to prepare and wait for all the dishes to cook. And most of the time, I'll be eating alone anyway. My solution, mix everything for a well balanced meal. This is my current favorite mix-it-all recipe. It's easy to prepare and delicious too hehehe...(Masuk bakul angkat sendiri tu).

If you ask me the name of this dish, really I can't think of any. I'm never good at coming up with names for anything and I'm said to be creative. Once on a Family Day, we're the only group with no name. Isn't it unbelievable? 8-10 people in a group and none can come up with a cool name.

Back to the dish, what's good about it is you can eat with hot rice or add rice in it to make fried rice. Normally I would eat it with hot rice and keep the leftover in the fridge. The next morning, I would fry some onion and more chilli/chilli paste in a wok, add 1-2 eggs and stir. Add the cold dish, stir for a while, add a little bit more salt and finally add rice for yummy fried rice.

INGREDIENTS:
1-2 piece of chicken breast, cut into cubes
You can substitute with meat or seafood

Some potatoes cut into cubes

Red and green chillies
If you like it hot like me, add some cili padi

Chilli paste
Have I mentioned that I like it hot hehe...

Red onion
Actually you can use whatever onion is available in the kitchen. I'm not picky.

Vegetables
I used choy sum but cabbage, long beans or French beans can also be used

Oil for frying

Salt, ajinomoto and/or maggi chicken paste for taste

A cup of hot water

METHODS:
Heat oil in wok
Fry the potatoes first as it takes longer for potatoes to soften.
After awhile, add chicken and stir
Add chili paste, red and green chilli, cili padi, onion and fry. If it begins to burn, add some hot water. How much, depending on whether you prefer your dish dry or wet.
Add some salt, ajinomoto and/or maggi chicken paste.
Lastly add your veggies.

Wallah... your dish is done.

As you can see, I did not put any measurement. I'm the kind who just throws things into the wok but it turns out alright most of the time. Because of that, I'm not a good cook. A good cook has the correct amount of everything even without measuring it and the taste of the dish will be consistent. I just throw what's available and substitute things that are not available, as long as I can come up with something edible.

Hey, I was awarded the 'Best Cook' award once you know :) It was during the scout camping at our school field when I was in standard 5. My primary school is too small to have a Girl Guide group so the girls joined the scout.

On an unrelated note, I'm feeling miserable right now. I'm down with flu and sore throat. I hope it will not get worse. Don't want to spend my weekend being sick.

To Delete, or Not

A friend wants to read my blog. Though my blog is not really a secret anymore as some friends has found their way here or I told some of them about it myself, I'm still not sure about revealing it to all. When this particular friend insists on reading my blog, I finally relented... with some doubt.

A part of me said "why not?" This is one way for them to get to know me, through my thoughts and feelings I put down in writing. But another part of me was wondering whether I should delete some entries that can be misinterpreted. I was also wondering how they would see me through my blog. Teckiee and Aiz also blog on this issue while I was contemplating on it.

If there are many entries on my negative thoughts, would they see me as a negative person? If there are entries about my insecurities, would they see me as an insecure person who doesn't have a clear direction in life? If there are male bashing entries, would they see me as a man hater? I still remember someone did call me that and I never really forgive him.

What hurts is to have someone whom I regard as a friend labels me over something insignificant like a joke. I still have a few things to say about this but not really in the mood to put them into words. He did apologize in the end but I'm still trying to forgive and will never forget it either. Anyway, I've digress a bit.

My final decision, I've decided not to delete any of the entries or this blog won't be me anymore. Lilian and Doc are right (see comment for this entry). Even when I have tried not to reveal too much about myself, this blog is still very much a part of me. People will not be able to see the whole me from reading this blog. But for those who knew me, this is another part of me that I sometimes did not reveal to them so they're able to know me better. I hope they don't make the mistake of judging me or making assumptions based on few entries. But even if they did, there is nothing I can do.

I'm glad I think this over and have finally come to a decision that I'm able to stand by my written words and let it be. And you (you know who you are); this entry came about because of you. Nak baca sangat, haa.. bacalah :)

Feeling Out of Sort

No! I've not gone jiwang. Just feeling out of sort today. Anyway, decided to brush up my pantun making skill.

Anak merpati terbang rendah,
Turun minum di tepi kolah;
Resah gelisah keluh gundah,
Duduk salah berdiri pun salah.

Pahit hempedu pahit peria,
Walau dimakan hanya secamca;
Kenapa gusar tidak ceria,
Di mana silap, di mana punca?

Antara pohon dengan pangkal,
Belah yang mana hendak dibawa;
Hendak tersenyum terasa janggal,
Apatah lagi hendak ketawa.

I found one good pantun website here.

My Weekend

I had a great weekend with great companies. The after effect, my arms and legs are groaning in pain. Every time I have to carry my notebook bag, my left arm will scream in pain. Every time I have to climb the stairs to my third floor apartment and third floor office, my legs cries with every torturous step. Oh for God's sake, I only played several bowling games over the weekend. It just shows how long I haven't bowl and even longer that I haven't had any exercise. Every inch of my muscles are screaming murder at me for putting them through the grueling torture. But I told the muscles I wouldn't trade anything for those times so they better endure the pain and shut up heh :)

The great companies I spent time with happen to be two successful single moms. This is the first time both of them meet so it is only natural for them to share horror stories of their marriage. I can only listen in awe when they recall what they have gone through. Men can be such a cruel beast… with no balls. I ran out of curse words. All I can think of is beating them to pulp for what they did to my friends. Some lessons learnt and very valuable to the ladies are as follows:-

1. Keep your friends. If your potential husband did not respect your friends and tries not to let you spend time with them, you better think twice. Your husband may leave you anytime but your friends will stick with you through thick and thin.

2. If you smell trouble in your marriage, never thought another baby will bind him. You'll end up with another mouth to feed while going through the procedures to claim child support from your husband.

3. Trust your instinct. If something doesn't sound right, doesn’t' feel right, something IS terribly wrong and you better find out what.

4. Your spouse is your other half but if your other half is trying to kill you or drive you insane, you just have to get rid of them. Trust me. You've found a wrong other half for yourself.

5. Learn to drive. If something happens, you must know how to drive so you can get help.

6. Make decisions for yourself. Don't even think about what your relatives might say. They're not the one suffering.

There are more lessons learnt but I think the above should suffice for now. Just thinking about it is making me mad. But I should also highlight that I now see my friends in a new light. They have gone through hell and came back stronger.

Bathroom Manners

It's a beautiful morning and you're having a nice breakfast. The sky is blue, the birds are chirping and you can feel the morning breeze caressing your face. It feels so refreshing.

Suddenly, the serene morning is broken by...

"khaaakkk... khhaaakk.. ptuih.. ptuih... uweeiikk"

...disgusting sound of your neighbour clearing up phlegms or whatever in their bathroom.

Or maybe a rendition of some song, so bad that simon cowell vows to never be a judge in american idol show again. This however, is still better than that sound.

There goes your beautiful morning and you don't feel like continuing with your breakfast anymore.

I really can't stand people with this loud bathroom habit. So geli lah. Why can't they do whatever their business is, quietly and politely.

You can do whatever you want if you're living in a big mansion and the nearest occupant is staying at another wing hundreds of feet away.

Average malaysians however live in terrace houses, apartments, flats, or squatter houses, close enough to hear whatever noises the neighbours make.

I'm OK with banging pots and pans when the neighbour is cooking, or the sound of the pounding stone or crying babies and toddlers. I even tolerate bad karaoke singing or even loud music from my neighbours. But that bathroom habit... really cannot tahan.

If you're guilty of this habit, please tone it down next time. If you're married to somebody with this habit, you have all my pity.

The Phone! The Phone!

The Phone! The Phone!
must mimic 'The plane! The plane!' from Fantasy Island (for whoever remembers the show.)

Finally, after more than 8 months of applying for a phone line, it is installed yesterday. Now the next step is applying for internet broadband. Now, what options do I have?

Someone told me, "Streamyx, streamyx and streamyx."

Oh great... I have so many choices.

I wonder how long it'll take before I finally got it.

My Humble Abode