New Discovery @ Starbucks

I discovered a new dish that i love @ Starbucks ....found this out while i was at LCCT a few weeks earlier ...

Chef's Tuna in Pitta Bread ....super super yummy ....the pitta bread was lightly toasted ...the tuna filling was well seasoned ...served with fresh lectucce and tomatoes ...in yummy dressing ....not sure what dressing it was as the dressing were different the second time I ordered this ....I also had Snapple to go with it ....the raspberry and  cranberry flavours ...

a good combination for a quick lunch! It costs about RM 27++ but you can sit as long as you want in the shop while waiting for your flight! LOL

The grass is also greener on your own lawn! Be thankful ...

Just came across these pictures ...taken last year (i think) when we were doing a research in Sabah ....we were interviewing respondents (all girl gang) at one of the cafes ...research related to social ills and social problems ....They are a group of girls from the nearby setinggan ...most of them from breakup families, in dire poverty and all that ...and some of the girls were as young as 11 years old ...had dropped out of schools and so on

Haslina (in red t-shirt), Dr M, Caroline (extreme right - our Research Assistant) and myself with the girls

me and Dr M

looking back, i know how lucky I am to be what I am today, and to have what I have today ...coz there are always the time when I always thought how can people be so rich and I have so little ....how can people afford to buy a new car, while i am still using my Wira ...how can people be going for holiday overseas twice a year etc etc ...like the grass is always greener on someone else's pasture .... this is the time when I realised that my grass is also greener than others ...they are people who are less fortunate than me ...but we often did not see the world that way ....so, what I am trying to say is ...be grateful for what you have ...always bersyukur ...God can give us what we have now, and God can also take it all back ...a note to myself: be thankful for what you have ...ALWAYS!

Bon Voyage to Kiky & Tijot

A special posting to say farewell and all the best to my two friends ...whom I first met as first year students in my class way back when I first started lecturing at the uni ...Kiky and Tijot ....

They are going to further their studies in UKM ...leaving Kuching this coming Sunday ...all the best for your future undertaking, enjoy the experience, explore all possibilities and come back with greater insights, fresh ideas and, of course, your Masters' scroll :-) All the best ...

Yoga - a new hobby

Yes, this exercise-shy, food-loving person is currently trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle ...Elena introduces me to this yoga studio (Maha Yoga @ Jalan Song) ...she said it is not taxing, but a great form of exercise ...i went for a trial session a couple of weeks ago ...and found that i quite like it ....but still I was dilly-dallying a bit till Liz said i need to wrap up my bum (ouch - that still hurts my feeling!), and i made up my mind to join this yoga group on a more regular basis ....

There are a few packages on offer ...i took the RM75 for 8 sessions a month ...meaning, I should be going twice a week ...right? hahahaha ...i missed the first week and a half as i was away in Melaka (enjoying great food which are high in calories - I just had to add that!) ...and now am trying to catch up the lost time by going 3 times a week ...thus far, I managed to do it ...

I kind of like it now ...firstly as it does not involve any running around and jumping or other forms of running ...and secondly, it is a bit flexible ....involve mainly breathing techniques, calming yourself ...and stretches (lots and lots and lots of stretches!) ....i felt great afterward ..and i have decided that I will try to do this at least once a week!

Just a brief insight of what i did in these sessions ....yesterday, we did that half head stand ...hahaha ...fun! trying to stand on your hear while your legs is on the wall ...i find that pose as really challenging LOL

the easy ones are ....

(for illustration purpose only)

(for illustration only)

(for illustration purpose only)

for illustration only

They all look easy ...but trying to stay in position for a period of time is tough ...towel is needed to wipe your sweat! I hate to sweat ...but sweating while doing yoga is refreshing coz I know I am burning my excess fat! hahahaha ....

SCR Jalan Song Outlet - still my prefered choice!

It has become our routine - when we were not busy - to have our lunch off campus ...one of our fav place is at Singapore Chicken Rice @ Jalan Song ...despite its distance, we still prefer this SCR outlet than any other outlet ...there is one SCR outlet in Samarahan but I felt that (i) the food does not taste the same, and (ii) the menu is also different!

and, by the way, we have a new gang-member now ...LOL ...meet Mr Chris ..hehehehe ...my former student, who is now a tutor at the faculty ...

and as always, I had mushroom and chicken noodles for lunch ...yumm yumm ...

but this one also looks tempting ...Haslina's order of fried kuey teow ...and i think the portion is also reasonable ...perhaps when I am bored with my noodles I can try this dish :-)

and these are my lunch buddies ....Bemen, Chris and Haslina ....we are looking forward to these lunches but, during term time in particular, we seldom had lunches together ...most of us had to just grab a quick lunch from the uni's canteen ...so, we are enjoying this brief student-free period ....emmm am wondering where we will be going for our lunch tomorrow ...especially since tomorrow is Friday - with its extra long lunch hour LOL .....

First Christmas ...

I am being nostalgic today ...well, you can't blame me ...it is a very common characteristic of people born in September (that's what I was told!) ...we Virgos are melancholic bunch ...a tad too sensitive ..and nostalgic! Hahahaha ....

when i wrote the previous blog posting about Xmas decoration, i was thinking that this year will be the 3rd time we celebrated Xmas in my humble abode ....and it is also Alistair's third Xmas :-) Yup, i bought the house the year Alistair was born ..in fact my loan was approved on his birthday!

 (Al and nenek - after coming back from the Christmas service)

Al's first Christmas was a great one ....i think 95% of the presents under our tree that year were gifts for him! Well, he was the first nephew ....the first son ...the first grandchild ...it was a special occasion, and all of us managed to be under the same roof to celebrate together! 

 Al with his very chubby cheeks! He was 5 months old at the time this photo was taken 

This Christmas will be celebrated at our cottage ...dad's rural hideaway (his pride and joy!) ...and my sister will be the only one missing this year - she had just started at her new job and couldnt get extra day leaves ...but Matun, fear not - we will email and mms our photos of Adik and Abang to you ...

December it here already!

How time flies! It is already mid-way through December ...and about 16 days before we usher in 2011 ...and 10 days to Christmas!!! As I have been very busy lately, i am very disorganised ...my Christmas cards are yet to be sent (ouchhhh - my dear friends will surely receive their cards after Christmas!), haven't done most of my Xmas gifts, and yet to think about the Xmas menu (which is my mom's task actually, but most of us tend to chip in with our own ideas)

I guess I am not feeling all that xmas spirits as i have not been going out to the malls ....where, i bet!, the decorations are all set up wonderfully and most shops are playing Xmas songs ....this is when I really miss Newcastle ...the Xmas shopping atmosphere ...the late night shopping ....the non-stop xmas party invitations, pre-xmas gathering ...and of course, the wintery scenes ..with its absolutely freezing weather ...aaahhhh, i miss those moments!!!!

(10-foot hight snowman made of re-cycled plastic bottles - in one of Melaka's shopping mall)

Last week when I was in Melaka, i did snap a few photos of the xmas decoration - around the hotel which I stayed in ...it does, to some extend, brings back lots of my childhood memories of Xmas ....and the xmas movies, songs and scenes ....

reindeer and a snowman @ Equatorial Hotel ...but my foster dad was saying that it was the first time he saw a snowman with a carrot's pointy end sticking into the snowman ...according to Cam, it should be the other way round hehehe ....well, what can I say ...maybe it's the style of an Asian snowman LOL ...

and a really nice fake fireplace at the entrance to the hotel's coffeehouse ....reminded me of my winter holiday in Scotland with my parents a couple of years ago!

So far i have yet to venture into the malls in Kuching ....am thinking of going this weekend with my nephews ...to soak in the atmosphere and start thinking about the gifts for the boys and for my parents :-)

Roti Pisang at Mamak's ...

At long last ...i got my wish .... to eat roti pisang at mamak's hehehehe ...maybe it is very common for those who live in KL but from where I am - that is quite impossible to get! Or if it is on offered, the taste has lots to be desired ...

during my last trip to KL, i spent some times melepak at mamak's not far from my sister's place ...after spending a few hours shopping, we stopped by for a bite to eat ....

the roti pisang was yummy ...sweet and nice! Mind you - it was hot! LOL ...we found out the hard way ...

(the pratha was too hot!)

we have something similar here, which I like as well ...roti kaya ...so instead of banana slices, it has kaya preserves in it ..yumm yumm ...

Dinner @ Portugeuse Square, Melaka

Had a really scrumptious dinner in Melaka last week ...well, we were supposed to go to Yogya but with the Merapi eruption and all that, it had to be canceled ...we went to Melaka instead ....it is not the same, but we had fun there ...

the first night was spent strolling along the pier at Portuguese Square ...it is the Portuguese Settlement, somewhere in Ujong Pasir (I think!) ..we drove there around 5.30pm from the  hotel coz the plan was to have dinner and watch the sunset ...i read in a blog that the view was beautiful ..they were not wrong!

Since we arrived early and the weather was still hot, we had our dinner first - we were starving coz our lunch was at noon in Air Keroh earlier ...and the seafood was abundant!

 fresh clam (or kepah as the locals called it)

With that fresh seafood in mind, we ordered .....

prawns in garlic butter

sweet and sour crab (2kg worth) and costs RM 80 ..plenty of leftovers, which we took back with us to the hotel ..for our midnight feast!

baked fish (Kurau) Portuguese style ...it's nice, a bit spicy but with refreshing lemony tang ...

we also order otak-otak (fish rolls - i think) in sambal sauce ...spicy! but no photos ...my hands were too messy from the crabs by the time otak-otak arrived at the table ....

and the drinks to sooth away the spiciness ..My GOd the drinks were sour! hahahaha but the food was great! and it is cheap compared to prices in KL ...hehehehe ...

After dinner, we went for a stroll along the pier ...check my other posting for details ...the view, needless to say, are awesome!

Lollypop

Al's first lollypop (i think) ....he requested for one when we were queuing to pay for something at a supermarket ...he saw lollypops and asked me "mama, Al want ...please" hehehe, and me, being a sucker, got him one! Much to the disaproval of my mum ....

he didn't finish it actually ...i think it was wayyyyy too sweet ...and he asked dad to put it in the fridge for him ..but mum threw it away the next morning before Al woke up ...if only he knew LOL

and i have a confession to make ...i bought him another lollypop just now ...hehehehe ..this time it is strawberry- flavoured! Nenek doesn't know about it yet :-)

Driver and passenger ...a road trip to nowhere

This is what happenned when kids emulate what you are doing ...when i go to work one day, I saw Al and adik rushing towards the car ...al said he wanted to work ...like mama ....but to them, work means going out from the house ...even aki going grocery shopping is classified as working!

to stop them from following me, daddy put them inside mummy's kancil ...and they were so happy! the pictures say it all .....

the passenger ...very undemanding LOL ...and both are still in their pyjamas

love this expression! this was when i left them to go to my own car ...before they even had time to cry for me LOL ...tactics that worked most of the time ....

it has been a long time ...

The title says it all ...a very long time since this blog is updated .....i got friends asking whether I am ok hehehe guess, it means that i have some readers :-) thanks for asking all ....well,  i am back now ...

 (while waiting for his Pead at Pantai Hospital)

lots of stories to tell but dont know where to start :-) let's start with my nephews ...Adik is now 2 years old ...and getting really active ....Al turns 3 last July ...we had a scare a few month ago when nurses are concerned with his lack of speech ...when he was in KL, Jane took him to see his pead, who then referred him to a pead consultant in Kuching ...apparently he has delayed speech problem, and was not able to string sentences together ...but all the 3 doctors he saw said this is not associated with learning difficulties ...and had another follow up check in 6 months time ....now, i am haapy to announce that he can string sentences together like ...Al want drink ...Al want some more ...or Al want shower ...His speech is improving :-)

sending Al and mummy to KL - this was at Kuching Airport - adik can walk now :-)

Lots of progress on the kids development ...will update soon!

bath time ...

These pictures were taken by my brother ...he was testing his new camera ..and the subjects are mostly his sons ....i simply love the shots ..very clear ...

Adik is not so fond of playing in the "mini-pool" ...unlike the brother ...but mummy insisted that he play there once in a while ...hehehe ...and so as not to waste the water, mummy also insisted that they have their bath there ...

normally adik loves his shower and bath time ...if it is inside the bathroom...he'll have his own pail of water to play with ....

adik is such a drama queen ...he will scream like there is no tomorrow, but will immediately be quiet once he is out from the mini-pool ...or once my dad is nearby to cuddle him!

the blue bicycle

this was taken over one and half year ago ....when adik was staying with me, and Al and mummy coming to visit him ...even before Al arrived here, we already had this bicycle ready ..and waiting for him! the joy and advantage of being the first grandchild hehehehe ....

see, that bicycle ..it is too high for Al then ...but he loves riding it ...inside and outside the house!

 (such as serius face!)

 now, that bicycle is gathering dust in my bedroom ...he is not interested in riding this anymore ....eksyen punya budak!

photo moments

Found this in the album just now ..i sort of forgotten about this ...taken in March this year ..during weewyn's birthday ...I was going to make a posting but I was too busy traveling at that time ...remember, March was the month where I went for a conference in Penang, followed by my trip to Bau, Santubong and what not ...

Anyway, i love this picture ...adik and 4 of his neneks, well 5 if we count nenek Uban (who is not looking at the camera!)...the one of the extreme right (i.e.my mum's left side) is Nenek Bayu (she lives in Taman Bayu hehehehe) ..who used to be our neighbour when we were little ...and also my brother's adopted mum ...and on my mum's immediate right is my dad's cousin ...nenek stapok (she lives in Jalan Stapok) ..and the last one in the row is my fav aunty ...her husband is my dad's cousin ...we called her nenek tupai ....see all these nickname, coz it is sort of a tradition that we dont call our elders by their name ...

adik was crying coz it took so long to take the picture...these ladies are just too talkatives ,...keep on talking and ignoring the camera ...until adik started to cry, that was it ...adik was no longer in the mood to take photos with anymore ...hehehehe ...

top 5 dessert choices

I have been watching Channel 703 for the last few hours ..and i sort of regretted that now ...coz, i am famished now ..and it is nearly midnight ...

so, instead of eating or  foraging the fridge, i will do a posting on my fav food ....

on the top of the list for dessert is - tiramisu!

I learned how to make this from my Swedish friend, Melinda ...but the last time I made it myself was in 2005 hahaha ..5 years ago! the one in the above photo was bought in the bakery opposite Wisma Sanyan in Sibu - nice and creamy!

My second fav is chocolate mousse - made by Mrs Blackhall - yummy! chocolately, melt in the mouth type of dessert. Angela knows i love this so much that everytime I went to their place, she will made this for me ...yumm yumm ...i still have a recipe somewhere, perhaps I'll do it during Ramadan ...

the third fav is bread & butter puddings, with delicious home made custard ....at least this one is available here ..Hilton's bread and butter is nice, and so does the one in Mega Inn, Miri ....


No 4 goes to .... bonaffee pie ...my fav when I was in the UK - especially when I went to this restaurant (i forgotten the name already!), it is a must ordered dessert :-)

 and No 5 is key lime pie - from Marks & Spencer ...a bit tangy, a bit creamy ...and a must for our office picnic ....i miss this one!!!


and my other favourite desserts are:

pavlova - especially raspberry pavlova
rice pudding
apple crumble
apple pie
strawberry cheesecake ......

I am craving for desserts right now!!!

sharing ideas and experiences

i attended a seminar last week ...on development experiences between Ghana and Malaysia ...as academician, it is something very common ...attending seminars, listening to people talking about their research and findings ...a platform for idea sharing ...

last week's seminar was quite interesting ...the speaker is a Ghanian, studying in USA ...he is talking about the development progress  - the differences between Ghana's and Malaysia's achievement ...a good talk indeed, making me appreciate our country's progress and political stability more ...

and the talk was attended by academicians from Nigeria, USA, UK and so on ...they are our contract lecturers, visiting lectures and post-doc students ...

A visit to Serian

last Sunday, we were invited to a thanksgiving dinner ...my uncle (who is younger than me!) was involved in a really bad car accident early this year ...he and his family had a thanksgiving dinner with close families and relative ...

Adik, as usual was shy ...didn't want to go and sit with all his aunties there ..aunty Shasha was very disappointed when she cannot get adik to sit with her....and since he was the only kid at the dinner, of course all the attention was on him! Instead, adik brought me to the kitchen and we sat there most of time ...being an anti-social hehehe

adik playing by himself at the back room

while the others were chatting, eating and drinking in the living room ...

the food was great - i love the mixed vege with cashew nuts! But, am afraid that i didn't snap any photos of the food - too busy trying to get adik to settle down ...