this world is filled with lemons

Do not judge a book by its cover

2008-11-26T18:34:00.007+08:00

It has been almost 2 months ever since I started working in a hospital which specializes in Infectious Diseases and Trauma. Most of the patients are HIV positive patients who walk in to collect their supply of medications. Right now you could already have your own perception towards how a HIV patient should look like. Well, I did visualize them as someone uneducated, skinny, haggard, tired, dirty if they were males and "hooker-looking" if they were females.

These perceptions are just plain prejudice. Hey, we can't judge by the look! First impression deceivesss.. I believe a person portrays itself in a certain manner to convince others to see how they want to be seen. Neat looking doesn't mean healthy neither does oily-face messy-hair means diseased!

So far none of the HIV patients meet all the criteria from my imagination. All of them are well fed, even though lipodystrophy is one of the side effects from the treatment, yet they still look WELL FED!

Some of them have neat luscious hair who speak fluent American English in a highly well-mannered way. Some just look like any ordinary hyperactive hawkers who perhaps have served me my favourite dish ! Some came with their spouse to collect BOTH their supplies; others came with the entire family including children as though they were collecting groceries from the counter.

What saddens me were those patients who came alone, along with their guilt who shy away from all eye contact in the room. Of course there were also "innocent criminals" who got their dreadful death sentence from their most trustable legal life partners.

Who's Ellen?

2008-07-24T16:11:00.007+08:00

Ellen DeGeneres won 21 Daytime Emmy for her show, "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" which started in 2003. That's an achievement!

She wrote two No.1 New York Times Bestsellers books. Some of my favorite lines from one of her book "My point ..and I Do Have One"

"..You have to talk nicely to the flight attendants because they're all arrogant little bitches...And they can afford to have the attitude, because they have the power -- they have the peanuts. Six peanuts. Somebody could offer that to you on the street, and you'd say, " I don't want that shit -- get that away from me. Six peanuts? No-oh..."

A passionate, caring and generous woman who loves animals esp cats and gives away cash like x'mas presents to her audiences. Her sense of humour never fails to fill my days with hysterical laughter.

Watch this clip taken from her show.

What's for dinner

2008-07-22T15:18:00.006+08:00

I know my blog is in a mess. It consists of things, everything that I can think of. That is life. That's why I don't have a specific theme for it. I just called it a life blog.

So today, I'm in the mood for recipes. So I'll write about ingredients and how to cook it right.

Here is a picture of my dinner I had yesterday.

I did the mashed potatoes first.

Ingrediets and methods:
Quantity of ingredients is all up to you. How many person you are preparing for, how soft/salty/mushy/wet you want it, its your choice. While you are adding in the things, you should alwiz taste it and add when neccessary.

Few potatoes - steam it or boil it till soft.
Then mash it with any utensils you can find from the kitchen. (I used a Ramlee burger press and a fork)
Mix it with butter, cream ( I used whipping cream), milk (cow milk) and season with pepper and salt.
Tips: milk and cream is to create the consistency you want.

Next, the minestrone.

Ingredients and methods:
Quantity is again up to you. Not too many because you are making soup, not spaghetti sauce.

First chop some onion, celery sticks, carrots, potatoes, zucchinis and a few cloves of garlic. Then stir fry all the ingredients in a wok with a lil oil before adding in 2 tins of chopped tomatoes. Cover the contents with water. Add in some chicken stock (optional) and leave it to simmer for about an hour (longer if you want the ingredients to be softer). Season with pepper, salt, oregano leaves.

Next, chicken chop.

Ingredients and methods:
Chicken for the chop and spices to marinate. Again, the choice of chicken part and spices are all up to you.

Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper for a few minutes. Cover it with flour before deep frying. Alternatively, roast it! (Tips: Kenny Roger's chicken is marinated and roasted with thyme! dont believe me? go smell some thyme)

Cut some cucumber, lettuce, tomatoes to add in some fibers.

Finally, garlic bread..

Cut baguette (loaf from france) and spread with butter and freshly chopped garlic. Add some italian herbs if you like. Then toast them (as burnt as you like).

Would you like to have some dessert for supper?
Make this.. Green Apple Bread Pudding (recommended by a silai friend of mine)
It's fast and convenient..and requires no special skills!

Go get the recipe from : http://www.asianfoodchannel.com/recipes_details.php?urlname=green_apple_bread_pudding

When it comes to baking, the recipe is the queen, you have to obey it!
So, be good, just follow the recipe carefully and it will turn out to be something like this:

Why are silais fat?

2008-07-21T19:57:00.018+08:00

Sometimes you just can't blame silais (general term for sedentary housewives) for being fat. I said this because I got the chance to experience my mom's lifestyle (the silai's style) ever since (or accidentally?) I started nesting at home.

First thing in the morning, do the routine everyone does i.e. brush teeth, wash face. The difference between silais and non-silais is that we (the silais) will read newspaper while waiting for bowel movement instead of eating breakfast because we silais have all the time in the world. We can eat whenever we want, shit whenever we feel best.

Then at 2pm we watch the daytime show on 711 - "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" (a DAYTIME show is created especially for people like us) together with all other silais on the other side of the world.

Later on, we would sit down and think of what to cook for dinner. Sometimes, it can be brain damaging just thinking of what to put in the wok. If our mood is good, we bake!

After the whole process of defrosting, seasoning, wok heating, stir-frying, washing and finally serving, we bath before dinner while we wait for other family members to come home.

Right after dinner, we will again crouch in font of the idiot box (and hide away all the remote controls) to watch WAH LAI TOI (and only WLT is allowed) from 8pm till bedtime (which is ANYTIME up to us). Alternatively, silais sometimes choose to do "youtubing" or for those pro-politic silais they will start having discussions based on the latest, hottest topics from www.malaysiakini.com with other silais (who are youtubing half-way);-)

This routine then repeats itself again and again.. (waking up and sleeping late is the best part.. at least for me).

If you read carefully, exercise is seldom (or should I say never ever was) in our routine but watching tv covers most part of it!

So, you can't blame silais for being fat (they just can't find time going to clubs because its just too far a driving distance for them and talking about those gym machines which many silais have bought home..they just somehow don't seem appetizing anymore). Unless the silais are staying in houses (perhaps in mansions/castles) which have compounds big enough to contain an olympic-sized pool or a park wide enough to play golf, they should not have any excuses to be fat. But then again, silais at that level can just throw cash at the surgeons to cut off whatever they don't want and add on what is not enough and they will end up just looking all fine and richer than before.

Anyway, life is unfair, the rich gets richer and more beautiful in simpler ways. So, live with the fact! Silais will eventually grow fat unless they have 25hours a day or have more than enough cash to throw at the plastic doctors!

Popo's birthday!

2008-04-20T01:45:00.001+08:00

Piece of cake!

Lil wonders of photoshopping

2008-04-17T02:17:00.003+08:00

**click on pic to enlarge and spot the difference!

Helianthus annuus a.k.a Sunflower

2007-11-21T15:09:00.000+08:00

Bought her from one of the Sg.Buloh nurseries near the Hospital. Planted her facing the east, where the sun rises.

She's about to bloom now..

Bloomed.

Approximately 18cm in diameter..

All she needed was just water, some fertilizer and of course plenty of sunlight!

Let's see how this turns out to be...

Helianthus annuuss, they are suitable for all ocassions, reasonable price and long lasting. To order, email me. Flowers guaranteed.

Daredevil crisis

2007-10-15T14:42:00.000+08:00

Accidents due to speeding do not only happen on highways. This freak accident occured at the Sunway Damamsara road heading towards Tropicana late night yesterday. The satria was modified with Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 3 engine with horsepower of 270 bhp. (OK..This info was told by my bro, I didn't go check it out myself.)
These pictures were taken the next morning when my family was on our way home from lunch.

If you were to modify your car, remember to seek lotsa expert opinions and some physics knowledge.

Drive safely than be sorry.
Live life, love life!

American Cocker Spaniel vs English Cocker Spaniel

2007-10-14T14:00:00.000+08:00

The american spaniard is named Bernie while the english is called Brandi.

The most distinctive feature between these two breeds is the size of its snout.English spaniard has longer and sharper muzzle compared to the american where hers is somewhat mesocephaelic. American spaniard has a wide and broad muzzle with a sqaure jaw.

Size of the american is smaller than the english.

Brandi is easier to train compared to Bernie. Simple trick like a hand shake has yet to be mastered by Bernie after years of training!

Both needs regular coat trimming because their coat gets tangle easily.

Both of them enjoy water a lot. Just let off their leash and they will automatically head towards the nearest puddle of water.

Both the spaniels are always in the happy mood. When u have a really bad day, just head home and look at them, all your worries will be gone!

Grapes from Malaysia

2007-09-30T19:08:00.000+08:00

Hey! Who said grapes can only grow in cold climate?
Here are some evidences of grapes grown outside our house garden in Sg.Buloh, Malaysia.

All you need to do is plant the grape seeds after eating the fruit. Make sure there is plenty of room for the plant to creep e.g. on a pergola. Not sure if it can grow nicely on fence.

However, the size is smaller than those seen in hypermarkets and it needs some time (approx. 12 months) and luck to fruit. The plant in the pictures was planted 18 months ago.

If you are thinking of plating grapes now, make sure you have lotsa patience!

Flora of Sg.Buloh

2007-09-30T18:41:00.000+08:00

Here are some flowers successfully grown by mom.

From top: "Fu Kwai" flower; Orchid; Bunga Kertas("Dou quin"-in cantonese); Purple flower(mom forgot the name)

SPIDI a.k.a MIN MIN

2007-09-29T20:19:00.000+08:00

Just for min,

Spidi..my most loyal fren
She's now 5 and a half years old
Breed is spitz mix poodle and terrier
Loves human food especially durian--adviced by vet not to give any durian
Afraid of water and hates taking bath
Can't swim
Good jogging companion
Bit human before
More friendly now
Looks into ur eyes when she wants to be pet
Her only enemy is Brandi, my other dog--attacked Brandi once till Brandi was admitted due to maggot wound and mom needed to pay RM300+ for her medical fees.
Spidi..most obedient among my three dogs

Tortilla de Patata

2007-09-16T21:42:00.000+08:00

My friend and I paid RM5 each to attend a workshop by Dr.Ignacio on "How to prepare Tortilla de Patata" in IMU during the 15th Anniversary Carnival.

Ingredients:
cooking oil
french fries
2 Chicken eggs
few pinch of salt
dried thyme/basil leaves

BEAT THE EGGS
1)Beat the eggs together in a bowl.
2)Then, add in the herbs and half teaspoon of salt.

FRY THE FRIES
1) Thaw the french fries at room temperature.
2) Heat up the cooking oil in frying pan and then put in the fries.
3) Add some thyme/basil leaves and a few pinch of salt into the oil. Fry at low flame.

4) Remove the fries from the oil when they are still soft and soggy. (Do not wait until they turn golden brown and crunchy.)

5) Place the fries into another pre-heated frying pan, then, pour in the beaten eggs.

6) Spread the fries and eggs evenly in the pan. Cook for 5 mins.

7) Flip the egg and fries over to cook the other side.Cook for another 5 mins.

8) Then its ready to serve.

MIFC- Malaysia International Fireworks Competition

2007-09-04T01:17:00.000+08:00

Entry to Putrajaya International Convention Center (PICC) was RM 30.80 after discount of 20% discount for Maybankard Holders and Maxis subscribers.

Those who went were Eelin, Chinyee, Minying and family and my family including popo. We went for the finale night only. For other competition nights i.e. by Malaysia, Australia, Italy and Nihon we only watched it from outside of PICC. We stood opposite the firing zone facing PICC, the view was great though!

On the finale night,

I took a camera to photograph the fireworks but too bad there wasn't even one shot which look like a firework (out of 103 shots)!
We got a nice spot for photoshooting but in front of us were other people who were initially sitting and by the time the fireworks started they got up and blocked both my view and the camera view. So, I stood up on the chairs and snapped while holding the camera. So u can guess how bad those photos turned out to be la.

Candid moments:

Dad: raining?
Kirbi: cheezzee..
Robi: (zzzzzzz..)

Looking for better view..open up!

Cy and EeL: Eh, what is this..baby sitting My's sis n cousins??

My and Thoi-wan mui.

EeL: Aiyor, did u see Nihon's work?
Cy: Of course la, I wasn't sleeping?

EeL: Haiyo..so Paria, i thought that they were the World Champ!
Cy: Hmm..think they were forced to celebrate Merdeka countdown which was not their intention in joining this competition.It was not as good as expected..mayb they chose not to win this time.

PICC night view from G floor

Just some laugh

2007-06-27T22:59:00.000+08:00

Thought of sharing some jokes from the email with you:

Teacher: Simon, your composition on "My Dog" is
exactly the same as your brother's. Did you copy his?
Simon: No, teacher. It's the same dog!

Man: How old is your father?
Boy: 1 year older than me
Man: How can that be?
Boy: He became a father only when I was born

A boy came home from school with his exam results.
"What did you get?" asked his father.
"My marks are under water," said the boy.
"What do you mean 'under water'?"
" They are all below 'C' (sea) level!"

Days in IMU

2007-06-25T23:28:00.002+08:00

This year 2007 will be the third year Bpharmers have been together. So, there left one year before we change path and move on.

The "White Coat Ceremony" was as though it happened few months ago. Remember the orientation planned for juniors, the T-shirt designing, banners, etc.? It was two years ago (1/5 of a decade).

Then we had hospitals visits during our first year which I didn't understand what the purpose was but to answer the questions in log-book.

Followed by Industrial Visits.. totally got bored with the machines and the gowning procedures. Later on was two weeks attachment at pharmaceutical companies..didn't it just got more interesting?

"Watson de-stress Workshop" at Armada Hotel was interesting though.

Semester 4, we started Malaysian Studies. We got a very enthusiastic lecturer, Mrs.Phoong, who told us stories about Malaysia politics, economy, history and current affairs. What mattered was how she presented the stories to us and not what she had presented. It was then I realised history and politics can be interesting.

Also not forgetting "CULTURAL NITE" which wrapped up our Semester 4 all together. N my junk-band too!

Remember we also had a visitor from Japan? Keiko-kun, Dr.Hiro's student.

"IMU OPEN DAY" where each of us were paid for helping!

Semester 6 we organized the "BLIND DATE SHOW", where we manage to squeeze some money from IMU's "rich and famous". The game was based on voting system where the top three male contestants of highest votes wins a date with the girl candidate also of the highest vote. After the three dates the girl will then decide who will she bring along to the IMU BALL. All votes are price-tagged of course! Votes are in the form of chocolates. More expensive chocolates get more votes. 50% of the profit goes to charity and the rest is for B104 convocation magazine.

Time flies isn't it?

"Nodame Cantabile"or のだめカンタービレ

2007-06-17T21:36:00.000+08:00

Have you ever wish to become a musician but didn't have enough talent? Ever dreamt of being part of Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra? Enjoy classical music? Wonder what assignments music student have in uni?

Well, I shall recommend you "Nodame Cantabile", a Japanese drama series based on a comic by Tomoko Ninomiya. Megumi Noda, or “Nodame” is a sloppy, untidy girl who bath every other day and steals friend's lunch boxes. She's an extremely talented pianist whose ambition is to be a kindergarten teacher, she prefers playing by ear rather than reading the music score. Shinichi Chiaki, an arrogant multi-lingual perfectionist who is talented in piano and violin and has a secret ambition of becoming a conductor.

Well, the synopsis might sound boring huh? I thought so too before I started watching. However, it's unlike those Japanese soap drama normally seen on tv which the plot is so slow that you will be able to pick up the story immediately after missing a few episodes.

"Nodame" uses special effect to exaggerate certain movements and actions so that it becomes more comical. Together with the characters' sarcasm and wackiness you can really laugh your head off, even if you are watching alone in the middle of the night!

Besides the comedy, you can get to listen to many beautiful classical symphony, classical piano/violin pieces and concerto. My favourite: Mozart's piano duet. wow! It also reminds people that pieces are better appreciated when one is allowed to express freely.

Worth the time watching. *pssssstt*...Im not a big fan of Japanese stuff but Im recommending this to you. So, go watch!

I give a 9 out of 10.

Take a peak into "Nodame" below (a performance of S.Rachmaninoff Concerto No.2):

Lead actor: The pianist, Tamaki Hiroshi
Lead actress: The mascot, Ueno Juri

Sarawak+Sabah trip '06

2007-06-15T20:08:00.000+08:00

Malaysia has got two places which are considered as the World's Heritage. One is situated in Sabah - Mount Kinabalu and the other is in Sarawak - Mulu Caves & Pinnacles.

I have been to Sabah a number of times, but had yet to step foot on Mt.Kinabalu:(

Also been to Mulu but did not get to climb the Pinnacles:'(

However, the seafood in Sabah is incomparable else where in terms of price, freshness, quality, and variability.mmm...

Holiday in Singapura '07

2007-06-15T19:47:00.000+08:00

When I was there, one thing that kept distracting me was that I miss Malaysian food so muchhHH!

Nonetheless....

Singapore ONE train system, MRT, is soooo much more efficient compared to Malaysia which is conjointly operated by KTM, PUTRA LRT, STAR, MONORAIL, KLIA EXPRESS...walau!

Why need so many operators when ONE is enough. If MRT can link whole of singapore together, from town to airport, west to east and south to north, why can't KL alone be linked by one operator too?

One example is getting from Berjaya Times Square to KLCC. First, we need the MONORAIL to bring us to the "interchange", then from there we need to walk 500m to reach PUTRA LRT station in order to get to KLCC, while the distance between TIMES SQ and KLCC is merely 8km!

birth of a new blog

2007-06-15T01:49:00.000+08:00

Isn't it facinating to see human coming out from another human. JUst like a factory producing its products.