New day

I took the premium bus today. Its been a very lovely sunshiney day so i wanted to be as close to it as i can. The premium is an 18 seater bus and no one is allowed to stand. It has wide windows so you'll get a beautiful city view together with the sun if you sit in it. Doesn't burn your pocket as much as compared to taking a cab since it only costs $4!
On a regular note, i'd usually take a bus to the interchange, alight 3 stops later, walk 4 mins to the MRT, queue & board the train, alight 9 stops later & walk 5mins to the office. If i'm lucky & get to sit on the 1st bus, that'll be my last chance to sit throughout my 30-40mins journey. I'd usually board at the tail of the train as there's usually some quiet standing space. I cannot imagine standing anywhere near their door for getting squashed is a must.
So comparing both experiences, i must say the latter is a luxury... At an extra cost of $2.21.
I'd say its definitely worth it.
For those curious about this comfort bus, lookup ComfortDelgro online & search for a bus nearest to you. If you happen to board a 523, you'd be lucky to bump into me :)

They're not walking too fast but too slow?
Really? I think not. When you are on a fast lane, everyone around you will seem too slow for your pace. Try getting out earlier to head to work one day & see the difference. Try it on a weekday when you're not working. A variety of ways & you will see the difference. The world around you is your very own perspective. You see what you want to see.. Try it with different moods & energy.
A more apparent sample is with Mondays. One of the most dreaded days to many. Mainly due to the 2 days of rest, most people would drag themselves out of bed. Exception are the ones who are truly springs with excitement with the thought of work.

The 'Break'

Everyone talks about 'breaks'. Big-breaks, taking a break, on a break, break a leg... The list goes on.
As for me, 2011 started with promises of a 'big-break'. I took a long break at the end of Jan & flew to Cambodia for a holiday. That signified January for me. Now, in February, I was making a mental note of taking a break at the end of the month to go on a quick holiday. Somehow, my subconscious mind worked faster than my actions.
It was the 20th of Feb, on a Sunday afternoon. I had absolutely no plans that morning. Not wanting to waste the remainder of my Sunday, I decided to return the Spanish book I borrowed from the National Library. The kids were crying from wanting to follow me & the tension from hearing both their screams and crying was building up. I had to leave as fast as I could.. The sounds were deafening. Run!!!! I recalled telling myself. In that speed of moving around, I walked into my mums' room & in avoiding my mother who was standing on my way, my leg angled to the edge of the king sized teak-wood bed and hit it with a fierce bang! I immediately broke down on tears. The pain was unbearable and looking at my toe, I knew it was broken. I cried in pain while I tip-toed my way to my own room where I laid my head to rest. In that instant, the next 1 week of home rest flashed in my head.
There was no one at home to take me to the doctor for an x-ray so I waited for vj to finish class to take me to the doctor. Waiting for a cab on a Sunday was not even an option. It was 1230pm when he finally called. I was very calm by then as I just lay still on the bed, not moving the broken toe at all.
He arrived 30mins later, took me to Lourdes medical, I had my x-ray done & the doctor advised me to admit myself overnight or come early the next morning to meet the orthopaedics.
Decision.. Decision.. Decision..

They're not walking too fast but too slow?
Really? I think not. When you are on a fast lane, everyone around you will seem too slow for your pace. Try getting out earlier to head to work one day & see the difference. Try it on a weekday when you're not working. A variety of ways & you will see the difference. The world around you is your very own perspective. You see what you want to see.. Try it with different moods & energy.
A more apparent sample is with Mondays. One of the most dreaded days to many. Mainly due to the 2 days of rest, most people would drag themselves out of bed. Exception are the ones who are truly springs with excitement with the thought of work.

Singapore trip

From all my times of travelling to Singapore, I've used a few modes of transport. Drive, train, fly, bus. Among all those modes, driving into Singapore has been most convenient. Of course you'll need to have a place to stay and buy parking coupons if you choose this option. The first time I drove, we stayed in hotel 81 in Chinatown. There was an open parking closeby to the hotel. Parking overnight doesn't require parking coupons but we had to buy some from 7-11 the very next morning to display them in the car. Of course there is a free ERP entrance at least 10 times in 5 years or something (I can't remember the details now).

Flying into Singapore via budget flights are a good option too. Air Asia has a space in Terminal 1 surprisingly but Fireflyz which is the budget arm of our national carier, MAS is in the budget terminal. I find terminal 1 to be an easier exit compared to the budget terminal as one needs to endure a very long walk from the air site to exit.

This time around, I did this differently, flew in via Air Asia and then took a bus back. I was supposed to take a bus to transit from my different locations : Robinson Rd to Orchard Rd (Takashimaya) to Suntec City (Temasek Boulevard). Unfortunately, due to time constraint, I ended up taking taxis instead.

Taxis here are very efficient. Unlike in Malaysia, there's little haggling and negotiating. You can just get into the cab you've hailed and request to go where you want to go. They'll turn the meter on and off you go. It's very safe to take the taxis at night too. I still recall my experience of taking a bus down and arriving at about 2 am and having to take a bus from Novena to my friends place at Simei.

After all my set appointments, I jumped into my last cab and asked to go to Golden Mile Complex to catch a bus back. I was just in time as there was one bus leaving for KL in the next 5 mins. The fare was about SD25 (i think). Considering that i've not eaten anything since breakfast at 6, I decided to grab a bite, bought a pau and got onto the bus. Being a weekday, the bus was half full. Only the first 5 seats were filled and the entire back rows were empty. So I could sit wherever I wanted. I lowered my seat and slept throughout the journey. From 2:30pm, we arrived in KL at about 7:30. The bus took us to the TBS terminal at Salak South. It's a transit terminal which connects to the Star LRT, ERL which takes you to KLIA and KTM Komuter which takes you to town.

If you are planning to take a flight upon arriving in KL, this' the best option.

It's quite a long walk to the train station from here though. But once you're in the train, you can relax all the way till you reach your destination. Beware of pickpockets though while you're walking and always be aware of your surroundings.

On the theory of planning and conspiracy

Date: 23rd March 2011. Its my 3rd xray check up at Pantai Medical Centre. While waiting for Vj to arrive at 830, i decided to do a few things. Firstly i cut my long nails, read my bible, chat with Mum. There's a girl who is used to parking her Car right in front Of our house. Usually we never see her & the same happens in the evening wen she returns. However, today, by luck she was still in her car putting on her makeup when I spotted her. I told mum casually that the girl who has bought the parking spot on contract has arrived & she's still in her car! Mum was adamant that I should go & talk to her & so I did! Funny and rather sarcastic conversation I had. Anyway she asked for a contract extension till next Tues. & I said ok & came back in. Shortly after, VJ came over & I hopped into his car. Following that were series of un-meaningful events.. Drop off @ lobby, VJ goes to basement to look for parking while I hop to the x-ray dept to register, VJ joins me, I have my x-ray taken, collect result & hop on to have breakfast before doctors appmt at 10am. Then it was English Muffin, Kapitan chicken pie & mocha @ Starbucks & then we were off to the doctors visit. Very brief xray explanation & I was given another 3 weeks of MC!!! Wow now that totals up to 6 weeks of sitting @ home?? Sheesh... I felt funny, mixed emotions & I wasn't sure why because just minutes before going in for consultation, I was hoping for an MC extension! Why? Coz CSC was where I was supposed to go to report for duty on the 24th (tomorrow). Unfortunately, Muhan SMS me the night before & said that they refused to pay for me to go there. This disappointment is what held me back. But another 3 weeks is tight rope too. What if there is no longer a position in PJ office? My heart was no longer with Subang office to go back there. After speaking to Muhan, we agreed that I will inform him on the 28th whether I can join or otherwise.. On another note, I decided to go over to KL office to meet Mel & speak to her directly about the situation. This needs to be done on Friday (Tom). So after appointment events were surrounding us looking for parking at MidValley. VJ who is usually patient had his patience tested to the limit but still endured it. After a painstaking 20mins or so we finally got one spot. First stop was GSC. It was Wednesday! Half price tics!! Unfortunately no nice shows worth watching was playing so movie plan cancelled. Next was Jusco to redeem his birthday gift vouchers. Oh yes, prior to that, I randomly walked into A Cut Above to enquire on the rate for balding. RM115 for any type of restyle. Then I left to follow VJ to jusco. Along the way, vj kept commenting on my funny balding idea & said that i'll look really sick since i was also limping then. He even said tat he will not see me for 3months after if i do cut my hair.. Funnily, while we were walking back to the car VJ suggested we go bald anyway. I was taken aback since by this point I didnt want to do it. I thought I'll drop by another day & get it done since I was totally cashless the whole day! I gave all the money I had for mum to buy gas that morning & the other balance amount was used to buy groceries when I took mum & the kids to Giant on Tuesday. I was supposed to withdraw from the ATM but smartly I left the card in another bag!! As I felt awful to ask VJ to go eat, I suggested we head home instead. He insisted tat I go cut hair instead & I agreed & went! He walked me in & left to wander around. In between I had to decide on the exact length I wanted & if a little short is enough.. Tough calls to make & with the fact tat VJ wasn't next to me, my gut feel was that this is my decision, I shud make the call myself. True enuf he told me the same thing when we met.. Hair turned out fabulous! I began to grow loving it more & more as we kept walking & talking about it. My crowning Glory was chopped, trimmed & shaved off for a cleaner look. A lot of mixed reactions and comments but it didn't matter at all to me. Today, being the 23rd also counts down to my turning 30!! Wow how momentus this moment is... Thanks to VJ for making today happen since if it wasn't for his insistence & my boldness to agree despite all his stupid remarks, today wouldn't have happened! & finally, after cracking my head for so long on what I should plan or do for my birthday, everything fell into place.. So what's the plan you may ask? Well, read on and the answers will unveil itself to u...

Know thy enemy

So, why is it so important to know what you eat?

You can tell a healthy perspn from one who is not based on what he / she eats. Try it. observe or ask someone you know about their eating pattern and see if it correlates to their fitness level / physical appearance / health condition.

Now if you'd just google up these information, pull out a food chart, nutrition chart and diet page, all the facts figures and ideas would come flooding your mind. Now, here's a simple straightforward page which gives a basic run down of what are the basics of what you need to know. Taken from About.com Guide.

Updated May 13, 2011

About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by our Medical Review Board

Here's How:

1. Eating breakfast will help you refuel after a long night's sleep and start your day with more energy. Choose some protein and fiber for your breakfast and it's a good time to eat some fresh fruit:
   • one serving of oatmeal
   • one-half cup strawberries
   • a tablespoon or two chopped nuts
   • glass of orange juice
2. A mid-morning snack is totally optional. If you ate a larger breakfast you may not feel hungry until lunchtime. However, if you're feeling a bit hungry and lunch is still two or three hours away, a light mid-morning snack will tide you over without adding a lot of calories:
   • One serving of plain yogurt mixed with one-half cup blueberries and a little honey
   • Water or diet soda
3. Lunch is often something you eat at work or school, so here is an idea for a portable lunch you can pack and take with you:
   • A sandwich made with two slices of 100% whole grain bread, two or three ounces of lean turkey breast, a little mayonnaise or mustard, a tomato slice and lettuce
   • One-half to one cup raw baby carrots
   • One can or bottle of sparkling water
   Or if you eat at a restaurant:
   • Order a vegetable salad with the dressing served on the side
   • cup of soup
4. A mid-afternoon snack is also optional. Keep it low in calories and eat just enough to keep you from feeling too hungry - dinner is just a couple of hours away.
   • One apple and 12 walnuts
   • Glass of milk
5. Dinner is a time when it's easy to over-eat, especially if you haven't eaten much during the day, so watch your portion sizes. Mentally divide your plate into four quarters. One quarter is for your meat or protein source, one quarter is for a starch and the last two quarters are for green and colorful vegetables and/or a green salad:
   • One serving of baked or roasted chicken breast
   • One small baked potato with salsa or low-fat sour cream
   • Large portion of steamed asparagus
   • One small 100% whole-grain roll
   • Small glass of white wine (optional)
6. A light complex carbohydrate-rich evening snack may help you sleep, but avoid heavy, greasy foods or foods high in refined sugars.
   • Six whole grain crackers
   • Two ounces sliced cheese
   • Piece of fresh fruit

Tips:

1. Drink several glasses of water throughout the day.
2. Choose whole-grain breads and cereals.
3. Serve lean meats instead of high fat processed meats.
4. Avoid foods that are high in fats and added sugars.

Gym - Identifying the enemy

After so much soul searching and thinking done on my part, i've decided to put pen onto paper and set my goals.
As it is with any goal setting writing it down is definitely more effective than creating the ideas and goals in our head. So i'm setting it out in a book to document every single progress, inch by inch, exercises done and food taken. Also, you need to know who your enemy is before you step onto the battlefield.

Generally when you starts on a journey to loose weight, you'd naturally hit the gym or the park, start running and exercising, more frequently in the first few weeks and reducing it to once or twice in the next following weeks, reducing it to once a month and then to none while you see yourselves back at square one.

When starting an exercise regime itself, you'll naturally feel more hungry and tend to eat a lot more or the same portions you used to eat before consoling yourself over the fact that you've exercised and thus the food should be digested faster since you're increasing your metabolic rate. Now here's the hard fact or truth - it doesn't work that way.

Sadly, when you start off your exercise regime, be it to loose some obvious love handles, reduce your waist line or even to tone your body or to be healthy overall, food control works hand in hand with your exercise. They co-exist, not stand alone!
So, in order to combat your excess fat, know the source of it - "the enemy"

Read on to what is your enemy all about and how to combat it...

Gym Again Part 3

As mentioned previously, when I first joined the gym, I was motivated by the feel good factor it gave me when I attended the 1 hour classes. And then there was the jet-shower which had good pressure which gives you a good massage feel. Those were my reasons. 


Most of my friends who initially joined the gym did it for these reasons:
1) Check out good looking guys
2) Have something to do after work - to kill time instead of being stuck in a traffic jam
3) Join dance / yoga classes
4) Loose love handles
5) Go together with office colleagues (the more the merrier)


Among the whole lot, one or two stay on for another month or two before terminating their membership. This usually happens under 1 year of joining. Why exactly does this happen? Is the gym not equipped enough? Not enough motivation to keep going? Lost of interest? Gym fees eat into expenses and becomes too expensive?


Actually, the REAL reason behind it is their own self. Going to the gym is seen as a social activity with friends from work. And friends do fall out. Even if you're best of buddies, it's very uncommon to find a common ground in exercise. We're all built differently and just as our bodies respond differently to different medication, the same goes to exercise. Something I do is not necessarily sufficient for the one next to me, in many ways. 
The fall out usually happens when these expectations we have inside is not met at the gym. 

Gym Again Part 2

Notice that I didn't think twice when terminating my gym membership the first time? It was easy because there was no real motivation in the first place. Nothing that I could relate to, I didn't see any "real" physical changes except for the feel-good factor after a good 1 hour dance workout. The feel-good feeling was not strong enough to keep me going to the gym.
By this time, I concluded this few mistakes I must never repeat:


1) Never join the gym just because 
a)  your friends are asking you to 
b)  the whole office had a group discount and you get a cheap membership 
c)  your friend who "needs" to lose weight pulls you in with her to buddy and go together


WHY? Because the above reasons are not values you hold close to you. They are others' motivation. Not yours. 


Do YOU feel fat and ugly? 
Do YOU feel unhealthy or facing health problems such as difficulty in breathing or walking caused by overweight?
Were YOU advised by the doctor to lose some weight to keep your heart from getting clogged by fat?
Any reasons which relates to YOU are the only reasons you should use to join a gym. The decision to join a gym should be only about you, not about your friends / neighbours / siblings.


The only exception to this rule is NONE. Do it only when you have a REAL need to either keep fit or lose weight or tone your body. Only then will your efforts pay off.


I have REAL reasons to why I'm claiming the above. Read on to know why..

Gym exposure

The first gym I enrolled in was California Fitness (CF). This was in 2005 and I joined because the dude who signed us up was good looking. Actually the main reason was also to accompany my friend Roc who then was very determined to start working out. Notice that it wasn't purely "MY OWN" intention. They were intentions of my friend and a cute guy who was a total bore anyway and none of those were concrete enough reasons to keep me grounded to stay on.


CF then was in Midvalley and I used to work at Central Plaza along Jalan Sultan Ismail. My routine was to be up by 7am, take a commuter train from Sentul to Mid Valley to attend their 8am yoga class. I did this religiously for at least 3 times a week. Work starts at 11am then (Middle East timing) so I had ample of time to continue this schedule. After workout, I would take a bus to KL city centre near Central Market and switch to another bus which heads to Jalan Raja Chulan where i'd get off and walk to office. Looking back, I'm surprised at my own perseverance to endure the waiting time (public transport services back then wasn't so great as the waiting time was usually between 20-30 minutes and can go up to an hour sometimes).


I still think that a bulk of my keeping fit was contributed by my walking stint. Eventually, CF moved to Menara Standard Chartered which was right next to my office building! What a great timing it was. Roc and I used to meet a few times in a month (the number of times can be counted by hand) at the gym to attend a yoga or pilates lesson together. I used to hate the machines so we'll attend a class, sit in the sauna room while chit chatting and then shower and head home. So gym activity for us was a social meeting. Sometimes we'll walk to secret Recipe for dinner and at other times we'd head home. The routine of going to the gym in the mornings before work continued on for me and i'd go in the evenings when i'm meeting Roc.


Eventually I started getting more busy at work and gym took a back seat. Therefore gym sessions were reduced from 12 times a month to 4 times a month! I didn't see any more reason to go there to do a 1-hour dance class since I also started taking up salsa lessons outside.  Salsa was a long pending plan so I took it up in fear that my knee will be too weak to dance as I grow older. So I dropped out of gym and terminated my membership without second thoughts thinking my money was being wasted. Sigh.. this only marks the beginning of an even longer ordeal.. Read on.

My exercise history

I'm not exactly a very health-or exercise concerned person. Even in school, my only "active" involvement in sports is during PE when we used to play hand ball, did some warm up, long jump, sprint and such. I was very interested in playing badminton so I joined this club and went through intense training with the team coach who was hired by the school. So my Friday noon activities revolved around badminton practise and then i'd head home.

The more important point to note here is the non existant motivation from anywhere to pursue such an interest so young. Even form 6 was the mundane racquet games and running sessions to contribute marks for our sports group. A proper coach was never there to guide, unleash and polish our talents. Be it a talent or a non existant one.

Nearing school sports day even, my stamina is so low that I usually can't run all the way without panting half way. Emphasis in sports was never really given to me. No one at home were actively involved and in turn it wasn't exactly became a habit for me to keep up. The fact that my parents were small framed, never too fat but just right, and we were always walking from anywhere to everywhere kept us in our shapes. We never had an urgency to keep fit or get into shape because we always were in shape.

However, in growing up and being exposed to the real world and outside food, realisation hits. It's not all rosy and healthy food outside where control in salt, MSG overuse and sugar content is out of our hands. When exposed to these, having been accustomed to home cooked food all my life, the stomach had to adjust readjust and also rebel.
Once the turmoil was over, I could mouth and digest anything I wanted including spicy food with loads of ice water and tissue at hand. And then comes the exercise conscience since bad fat keeps adding up and as the age adds a year getting rid or back to shape gets even harder and requires more effort.

In my case, it's literally starting from scratch considering my zero exposure to exercise since birth. I'm going to dedicate the next few pages to my getting back to shape ordeal. This is no easy task as I'm struggling just as every normal individual would to get rid of fat without the aid of steroids or medication.

Keep following.

Back on the roll again

After a long series of silence, I am coming back to this site. It's not good to leave something dormant for too long. Like a garden. When you leave it dormant for too long weeds grow longer than your own hair and getting rid of it will be one hell of a mess!

The same applies to relationships. Leave it without effort or work and see it crumble and fall right before your own eyes. So what has happened in life surrounding for the past 1.5 months that i've been missing?

Well, to start with, I've resigned from the job I held since 2009. Well this transition is rather weird considering that I was based in Subang office for 1 year, was offered to move to KL office in beginning of 2011, plans changed before I moved, offered to be transferred to PJ office instead, I ended up breaking my toe and held on MC for 2 months. Thank God that I went for my Cambodia trip before the incident. Chronologically, the timeline goes something like this:
End of Jan 2011 - Cambodia Trip with Nim & Esther
End of Feb 2011 - Break Toe from kicking bed post
Entire Mar 2011 - Bed rest and home based doing absolutely nothing but catching up on reading & watching movies
End of Apr 2011 - Back to work at PJ office
End of May 2011 - Tendered resignation and served 1 month notice
End of June 2011 - Jobless (current)

In between changes were some new habits introduced: Gym activity. I started going back to workout to get rid of excess fat accumulated throughout the period of being dormant since the only activities done then was eat-sleep-watch movie.

The next series of post will be about the gym workout, the whole work of it. Some mind-boggling revelation and also self awareness. Stay tuned!

30 years of existence

Finally the long awaited big 30 has arrived. In another 1 month that is.

I have been cracking my head over this matter as I must do something to truly remember this day. Started off with throwing a salsa party bash then came down to travel to some island, COVERING my South East Asia trip before I move on to Europe, hang on, that plan is not due until Mar 2012 anyway. And finally finally finally, today I realised that there is something I have not done in my life before - that is to travel on my own!
Okay i've been to Singapore on my own before but that is a "safe" city. Doesn't count. The reason for my feeling this way is to achieve some self satisfaction.
I've not laid out a 30-year plan in my entire life. All that I have achieved and done thus far has resulted from a decent amount of rebelling and efforts with God given strength. Although it is Easter Eve on that day, the 23rd of April, I have decided that I will be at another beautiful church this Easter for sure. I was thinking of Medan. But I'm not too sure. Well let's see what happens.
Anyways comparing myself to me, some of the things that I have come to hold in my life are as follows:
1) Career.
2) House
3) CC
4) BF
5) Family
6) No kids. Not that I wanted any but I do have another 5 years to go before I decide to have any.
If it's any later than that, there are too many risks - down syndrom, and other unavoidable issues.

Well, that is some stability there and I think I have done okay. That is what the one and only audience we had during the workshop told me. I think your slides were okay. Not that great, not that bad.

I guess my life has been just that, not that great, not that bad. There are many things to be grateful for. And maybe i should plan something for the next 30 years for a change. If my plans are in line with HIS plans, then good and well. Otherwise, the Lord will eventually work out a way for me. Which will be for my own good too.

So let me log on to AirAsia and try to lock in my next trip (considering finances of course) and after which I shall update this here again. 

A trip down history lane

a long awaited trip has always been.. Cambodia.

The idea came up 3 years ago or so. The group of friends I was supposed to go with backed out due to the political issues that were ongoing then. And then the idea kept lingering around in my mind. Come 2011 I thought I must make this trip no matter what, even if it meant travelling alone.

During one of our weekly breakfast routine with the duo, Esther and Nim, the discussion came up again. And this time, it was yes, go ahead, look for the good deals and book. It was at the edge of being cancelled again due to various issues. Initially the plan was in December and then I realised that my passport was expiring in Nov and i am yet to renew it. But they kept watch and the budget travellers as we were, the deals came up again and prego! We booked it. Thanks to the watchful eyes of Nim and easy accesss to the Internet Esther had, we confirmed the flights at RM260 (to and fro)!

Thanking God and lucky stars for the wonderful deal, the dates we had were end of January.

The long awaited months became weeks, then days then hours and finally at 5am on Jan 24th, we all met at the KL Sentral to board our bus to LCCT.

I had less than 4 hours of sleep that morning. Met up with Sumi at about 3smtg and went to McDonalds for breakfast. Unfortunately, since breakfast is only served at 4, I had a fish fillet instead.

Sumi volunteered to drop me off at the bus terminal. At that hour, it took us less than 10 mins to reach. I bought us a return ticket since we were all going to have our pick up from the terminal. On the bus, I chatterred away with Esther, boring her to death. Next to our seat was a well dressed guy who looked like he was the captain. (Our thoughts on the same were confirmed when we heard him on board the flight when he made the announcements and we saw him get off the flight.)
We reached just in time to board the plane and there was very little checking done at the exit. Nim managed to grab some coffee and sandwich while I used the wash room and prep for the 1.5 hour flight.

We were one of the last few to enter the flight. Took our seats and prepared to doze off.

We arrived at Siem Reap to beautiful weather at 23 degrees. After clearing the immigration, we went on the lookout for a cardboard with Nim' name on it. We found none and there were quite a number of tuk tuk drivers who were offering us their services. We ignored them all and sat at a small closed cafe to wait for our own driver. His name was Bora. A very hospitable bora.

He found us within minutes after we sat down. Introducing ourselves, he hurried to load our bags onto his tuk tuk. A tuk tuk is a motorcycle that pulls a wagon-like seater. This seater can handle at least 6 small frame people at any one time and in our case, it was 3 of us seated in one row and our luggage loaded in front of us.

Finally! I'm virtually connected!

The date is 15th Feb 2011. A day that goes down in history for me... My plans to get an iPhone had been sped up by my beau... This goes down the list of the sweetest things he does ... So finally I can relate to his obsession of looking for wifi enabled areas, downloading apps, keeping a keen eye on new apps, comparing notes and a lot more that comes in a package.. Thank u VJ..

Cherating trip

10-10-10 (Sunday)

Planned to do something different on this particular day since I missed out on the McDonalds Olympic run and a few others. The plan was to launch phase 1 of a long over-due road trip. Okay not exactly that. Road trip is supposedly with my GF Sumi. This is supposed to be a relaxed break away from the city husle..

Decided to drive instead of take the bus and hassle around. Had an itinerary planned out. Looks something like this but didn't follow through much of it.
(for some unknown reasons i can't seem to upload the file after much effort of converting the pdf file to an image.)

Anyway, ended up doing the following:
Day 1:
4pm Arrived at Holiday Villa & checked in
Couldn't locate the Restoran Kamar and decided to try again the next day.
Popped by the beach to check out the area
Drove out to look for food. Unfortunately, out of the many list of places recommended online which i took down, not all were to be found. We ended up in a restaurant where the mosquitos and flies were more than the people there. (They arrived after we ordered our food.)

Definitely not recommeding this place to anyone. One commendable dish must be their grilled sting ray. The fish was undoubtedly nice, edible but not good enough to counter the part where the flies ended up crowding the place more than humans.

Wine session followed.

Day 2:
Supposed to be up in time for sunrise at Teluk Chempedak but arrived at around 8 something, just in time for breakfast at McDonalds :)
The McDs here has a nice view of the sea with seats outside. Although the place could use some face lift, the area was clean in general. Do expect the staff to be a little slower in responding to you though. I'm not sure if this is the effect of the sea giving it a holiday mood or the fact that it was too early in the morning.
Following breakfast, we walked up the ever famous hanging bridge to the other side of the beach. The view there was AWESOME! It's like a private beach where the water was clear, clean and plenty of shady areas to chill. We went crazy with photos!
Supposed to go hiking up the hill but since we weren't well equipped, we didn't even attempt it. We walked back to the other side and got ourselves ice-cream (actually I got myself an ice cream). There were some shops opposite the parking where there were souvenier stuff and clothes on sale. Shortly after, although we weren't hungry, we thought we would buy back some food for lunch since getting good food in the hotel vicinity was not possible.
We were craving for some good chinese food and curry mee in particular for me. Just a few shops up from there was this chinese restaurant where there were even Malays eating there! We were surprised as this is not a common view in KL.
We had a drink while waiting for out curry mee - to be ta pau-ed. Food came up to about RM7-smtg with loads of fish ball and chicken slices. (We ate this back in our room)
We left the restaurant (can't remember the name but they have 2 stalls at the front of the shop - selling chicked rice, wan tan mee and mee curry - dry and soup.
On our way back I noticed the Batik Village signboard on the other side of the road. We turned in here and walked around for about an hour or so. The Batik Village is a tourist attraction where one can see batik prints being made - the traditional boil & wax method. We captured a few girls in action. They must be used to visitors as they continued to work as usual despite us going around their work station and sniffing over their art work.
Some pictures to follow here.

There were a few other souvenier shops in the same compound but they mainly were stuff from other parts of the country like Sarawak and Sabah which has become a common sight in any part of the Peninsular. If you've been to Sabah or Sarawak, you'd understand why I wouldn't buy these stuff from over here and would rather get them from the place of origin.

We got really tired from walking around and decided to call it a day. We went back to the room, took a shower, ate our curry mee (it tasted really really good!)  and took a short nap.

When we got up, we got ready and drove to Kuantan Town which was about 30mins drive from where we were. The roads are actually very very narrow and some don't even have street lights. One has to be very careful in driving down these roads especially at night.

We arrived in town at about late 6pm. It was getting dark really fast in the past 2 nights we were there. Our first stop was the Berjaya Megamall. Looks pretty run down with mainly eateries in the ground floor and some IT gadget shops in the upper floors. There is also an IT hypermart at the back of this mall.

We left shortly after getting some famous amos cookies for the road. The next hard task was to find some chinese food. GPS wasn't much help. Eventually we came around to the East Coast Mall (EC) and spotted some stalls at a food garden a stone throw away from the EC mall. The way I like my food - a lot of options. We had tom yam soup with mee hoon, ais kacang and chinese style ried rice. Food was decent. Nothing to shout about though. Following dinner, we walked across to EC to look around. Ended up getting another bottle of wine for the night at the Carrefour and left after.
Another round of wine session and we were all totally zonked out after till the next morning.

Day 3:
Slept in till late. Woke up, packed and walked out to the beach since we haven't been there yet. We played by the shores for a bit, lied on the hammock, took more pictures and waved goodbye to the beach.
We checked out and left by about 12 (if I remember clearly). Upon reaching KL, we went for lunch at Stevens Corner, washed the car and then got home. Time well spent. I must admit this was one different holiday we will be trying again.
But for Kuantan, I'd want to try to trace my steps back to Club Med Cherating the same way we went the last time so that we can locate the famous and super nice beriyani restaurant we ate at the previous time.. Till then..

summary of the week

Well, it's been a painful, agonizing week to conclude. Finally the weekend is here to stay. Sometimes, I wish weekends will stay on and long... Sigh.

It's been agonizing having to wait all week to blog as well. Don't seem to have the time nor motivation to start with. Finally, it's a quiet day. I got it back. Not too sure if it's a result of an early day or McDs breakfast or working out wit Handsome chap..

The days gone were pretty much boring. Some or should I say the only interesting details were my studies application - last minute run around & venturing new places - wit Sumi & VJ

Firstly, Sumi & I were supposed to meet for dinner as usual after her class. I was inspired to try out the nasi lemak goreng in Jalan Ipoh - apparently famous for that and their shake drinks.
Finally set it on Wednesday to go. It was at Jalan Kolam Air. A shop by the road side - all painted in yellow. It's called Kawan Lama Corner (KLC). Parking isn't all a breeze as we had to park along the road side but we managed to find 2 slots some few feet from the shop. It was drizzling when we got in. The owner was very very friendly to us. Extremely in fact. He gave this all too familiar feel to us, makes you feel all welcome and comfy with his warm gestures. There is a TV fixed with Astro! We ordered their famous dish. Now for the verdict - it must've been the time we ate because I was literally struggling through my meal. It was about 11pm then.

The food? Well, I'm not that big a rice-fan to begin with but it was nice. Something different. A lil' too spicy for me. As Sumi said, if they loose the peanuts, it'll taste better.
As for me, wen I order the next time, I need to ask them to reduce the ikan bilis, peanuts & onions. At the end of my meal, quarter part of my plate was filled with those 3 stuff. It was overwhelming for me.
The drink? Milo shake was a bomb! Sumi found it too sweet but I thought it was nice. Thick milo that is. However, at the end of the eating ordeal, I ended up flushing down the spiciness with my drink that I was thoroughly full to the brim in the end.

We left shortly after. The nasi lemak goreng cost us about RM5.50 per plate. I think the drink came up to about RM2.50 or so. Decent meal. Something I will try again the next time when i'm famished perhaps?

Now, the event prior to this eating session was something dramatic. My preparation to submit an application for masters. Most of my certificates were missing. Including the original files. I was going bonkers at this stage. I left for home early that day to look for these. Bearing in mind that the application deadline was on the 30th Sept. At the back of my mind, I was thinking that it is on the coming Friday. The rude awakening call came the next day - when Sumi called to inform me that the deadline was that same evening!

Anyway, my timeline was to be done by 9pm since my date was at 930pm. I picked up an empty box, and started getting rid of all unwanted papers- mainly brochures, papers from events i've been to. At the same time, I was also scaling through my memory, recalling the pink file in which my certs were. Just a few days prior to that, I saw my degree cert lying on the table and I kept it safely in a file but I couldn't find even that.
My degree of stress and anger was increasing. I kept the kids at bay by warning them not to bug me. Of course it didn't quite work but I kept insisting that I was busy, to leave me alone.

The fact that none of the other aunts were not at home didn't help either. Beings kids, they will always demand the attention they want.

Finally! I found the pink folder with all my certs in it, original ones including the photo copied ones, certified. :)

The search ends. I compiled the whole lot after a quick checklist and kept it away in a bag to bring along to work the following day. After shower, clad in my most comfy outfit, I left to meet Sumi. Timing was perfect. And then the story above follows.

The rush

Came Thursday, it was work as usual for me. I went with my bag of certs and all other docs. Everything was slow and easy going until I received a call from Sumi. She started with - do you know what is the date today?
Me- 30th
She- Do u know when is the deadline for submission?
Me - Friday
She - Babe, it's the 30th - TODAY!!

Thank God she called during my lunch time & I was done with my meal by then. Rushed through the remaining 30 minutes to prepare all my online documentation, arrangement and was done by 2pm. Left the office and reached main campus at about 245 or so. Submitted the 2 envelopes by hand to the officer in charge and left. The place was crowded with international applicants.

Went to do my threading after that in Bangsar and left for home. A certain sense of accomplishment came over me. Not sure if it was the thrill of running on a tight deadline or that the application has gone to the right hands. Now, nothing to worry about for the next 1 month ;)

Follow up

SATURDAY

Wen to the Brothers in Ampang. Earmarked a few accessories i wanted to get for my car. This included a stabiliser and new mats. Another accessory would be new head-lights. Of course my trust-worthy consultant was with me to explain everything I wanted to know.

Went to SPCA after that. A long pending thing to-do. We walked around the kennels. Most of them were adult dogs. Some of the older ones who were not for adoption were left to roam around freely as they were harmless.

While we were on our rounds, suddenly there was a commotion. Every single canine was on full alert and was barking away. We were surprised and looked at the direction they were looking at. I noticed a man carrying one of the dogs out of his kennel. All the others were barking at him - the man and the dog he was carrying. He kept him in a cage at the back of his van and was getting ready to go. We approached the man and asked him what was going on, where the doggie was being taken to. He said that he is sending her back to where she came from - the Batu Caves neighbourhood. They usually pick up the stray females, spay them and send them back to their habitat so they do not continue multiplying.
All the other dogs were aware of this practise and were barking - in acknowledgement or distress or simply sending off. The guy in the cage was silent... And looked sad...



SUNDAY
Supposed to go for the Walk of Hope on the 26th of Sept at 630am! Confirmed with frens, Sunan and Sumi. Even called to check if they were both up and ready. unfortunately both took a rain check. I wasn't exactly looking forward to going there alone, given that the place was very new to me. I didn't feel good. I followed my gut feel and continued sleeping.

Woke up at around 9-ish and decided to go workout at the gym. A very good decision made as it was fruitful in the end. I started with a few warm-up rounds of yoga. Continued to running.

Completion: 30minutes + 230 KCal + 3.5KM on an average of 8.0km/h

I pushed myself on this one as a self-punishment for not making it for the 5km walk. It worked. I continued on despite a slight pain on my left. It went away after that. It felt awesome after that. A pleasant sense of achievement.

This was on Sunday morning.

Domestication era is here again - part 2

I've told myself tht I was going to spend my Saturdays cooking alongside mum to learn some basic culinary skills. Although I can cook to save myself, I am still a copy cat. I replicate recipes I find from the net, from AFC from friends etc etc. Never really tried to tweak recipes that much except to replace certain ingredients if the exact one is not avail.

An aunt who came over the other day told me something that got me thinking - or should i say - woke me up coz I still remember her words till today whenever I think of a recipe tryout. She said - the recipe is just a guideline. You should experiment with your own ingredients, adding and subtracting to create your own taste. Not all tastes are the same. A lil bit of chemistry there.. Add and mix and have fun! After all, cooking is a lot to do with chemistry lesson. The soda bicarbonate which gives rise and sodium which gives taste..
(Of course I added my own version into the line above)

It made a lot more sense and tracing back to my own cooking when I was younger, I think I was more daring to experiment compared to as I was growing older... It awaken some nerve in me which was the inquisitive, always trying to do something in the kitchen persona. Never someone who liked to watch and learn, I always wanted to do things my way. So much so that whenever I am going to cook that day, mum will stay out of the kitchen to let me do my own stuff. Of course she was always there as my go-to person when i've messed up.

Today, Saturday, mum made crab curry. I started to be the helper. After having my roti canai breakfast, I busy-bodied my way through the kitchen. Since the meat and stuff was still being cleaned, I was told to bathe the 2 babies. Had a good splashing time with the 2 and once done, I was back in the kitchen again. I observed all the ingredients she added into the curry. I asked her questions, tried to understand.

WHilst doing all this, we shared stories. It was bonding time for us. That was special. A time that is irreplacable. I should do this more regularly I thought. And above all that, mum was very sparing with her knowledge. And more than eager to share all that she knew... I think my love for her has grown so much more in the recent years. I think the thick that we go through is making us closer.

I will try to post the recipe in my next post. Didn't take any pictures this time. I sure will when i try the recipe again ... soon!