It is this time in a year that I get to eat extravagantly which later I’d felt a sense of guilt of being gluttonous as if it was a sin to devour each course with full intention to bloat myself without shame because it was Chinese New Year.

All the expensive dishes with special ingredients were exotic to taste. First there was the Yee Sang. It’s a must for starters in Chinese dinner during Chinese New Year. It’s made out of several colorful condiments with seven colors to resemble the rainbow. I would like to name all of the ingredients but I wasn’t paying attention to the details as I was hungry at that time. I know there were shredded pamelo fruit, nutmeg, orange pickle, raw fish, crackers, fried crispy bee hun, cinnamon powder, pepper and some sesame oil plus blackcurrant sauce. There were other unidentified things in it too. I’ve never tasted Yee Sang before. It had filled my mouth with an explosion of flavors. The blackcurrant sauce was the binder for the dish as the pungent sweet and sour taste with pleasant aroma invites you to eat more of it. It was tradition for everyone at the table to stir the dish with their chopsticks together. You have to pick up the shredded ingredients with your chopsticks as high as you can. This symbolic gesture was to welcome increasing wealth, fortune, health, etc.

I’d want continue to describe all the food I had that night but it would not really fit the purpose of the whole event as there were other things going on that night too. The dinner took place in my dad’s restaurant in Bukit Antarabangsa (international hill). It was a gathering for the mualaf (converts) especially Chinese Muslims to celebrate Chinese New Year. My mom and dad are Chinese Muslims who are also members of Chinese Muslim Association. The members would always get together for Hari Raya Aidilfitri and this year for Chinese New Year.

There were about 15 tables with 10 people at each one. Many familiar faces were present. A lot of them I’ve known since I was small. They came in their vibrant colorful Chinese outfits. Everyone looked happy to meet friends. My mom was the pretties that night with her white and soft pink satin Chinese dress. I swore I couldn’t take my eyes off of my mother that night. She shines more with the soft pink veil embedded with glittery pink sequins. She’s a beautiful goddess.

My dad was the busiest that night. He did not have time to sit down to eat properly as he had to attain the guess. I find that he has always been good with people. He has a very good PR with even strangers. I think it came with the experience of being a salesman to managing a factory and now a restaurant. He had met thousands of people and travelled to so many different countries throughout his life. Indeed he is old and wise. I’m glad they married.

It was my first time sitting at a table with my dad’s sons and daughter-in-law. They were really nice people. At the same table as us was a veteran actress named Shariza Mahmod. I don’t really know her but I’ve seen her acting in a few TV series. She’s nice too. My dad said that she is one of the strongest supporters for the Chinese Muslim Association.

Earlier that day, my family and I had gone for a last minute shopping for clothes to wear that night. My parents were busy that we had to do it on the day itself. I’ve got myself a cute Cheongsam! It’s very colorful~ I really like it!

It has always been an interesting part of my life to have diverse culture and celebrations. Although I don’t really get all hyped about it, but I do try to get into it as much as possible. For younger generations, some traditions are followed from the family and it will be much later that they really practice on their own. In a country with so many cultures and traditions we some how intertwine with one another. Having to hear the elders speak and tell stories about traditions is something to treasure. It is like a wrapped up gift which you hand down to someone else that will hopefully open it and tell others after them about the gift. Myths and mythologies. Secrets and folklore. It is what makes them interesting and something to talk about and shared with generations to come.

As we left the restaurant at midnight, we passed a parade of lion dancers going up the hill! Too bad the camera was out of battery~ there were also characters of the Chinese mythology like the Gods and others. It must’ve been an expensive occasion because there were about 20 lions and about 30 big colok (which costs about 100 bucks each according to my dad) plus to hire the characters/actors. But I think it was worth it to them to celebrate this Tiger year with all out grand occasion on top of the hill. The scenery that stretches your eyes through the horizon of the lighted city, added the whole occasion its mystical and Godly atmosphere. Some do spend heaps of money just to recreate what we don’t see everyday that only exists in myths into this modern reality. The firecrackers resonated as the clock stroked twelve to invite the auspicious New Year with a roar.

GON XI FA CHAI XIN YI KUAI LE. ANG POW NAI LE.

It had just started to rain as I went out of the house this evening. Yes, I'm finally moved to Shah Alam! Today ada jamming session with The Pips at Sunway. Some thing interesting caught my eyes as I walked pass the field, I saw about a dozen cows! They were chewing away the grass while some kids played football on the basketball court near them. It was a really funny sight..

A friend who lives here called this part of Shah Alam as the ghetto. Migrants, factory workers, run down flats, crowded streets. I like it. It gives the place its signature compared to the lonely quiet middle class suburbs. There are "guerilla" gardens everywhere. I think I kind of get it when my friend said he's proud of this place. Haha.

Wahh.. dah lama tak join jamming. Cem taught me my first drum lesson. I have an unresponsive leg. My motor system needs practice to synchronize with movements of my hands. Nasib baik ada cikgu! They practiced a new song. Wait for it at the next gig on 19th at Noisy Studio, Ampang. Best!

After the session was over, we had a quick chat about how it's uncool to held a collective convergence during CNY. Some of us wanted to go but couldn't due to the celebration and the poor public transportation condition there. I wanted to go but i celebrate CNY! Both my parents are Chinese now... Used to be half. Don't know lah...

Hujan je baru baru ni.. It’s a good thing.. for my room doesn’t have a fan yet. I sleep on the floor. Not so good to go out coz I don’t own an umbrella. I’m cool with using just plastic to cover my head for now although I hate the water for soaking my sox+shoe and being splash by cars/buses as they drove by gila laju through the puddle! Another thing I like is when it’s an excuse to search for nice hot soup….. Nyumm.

Okaylah enough for tonight. Nak tidur. zzzzzzzzzz

2009 MOMENTS OF IDLENESS
the moment i started to not express and be active. that's when everything stood still. nothing interests me. i didn't care about anything. friends and family seemed to be out of reach. felt like not needing any connection. maybe i needed to pause. a break.

part of OCDness/bi-polar, self fulfilling soul cleansing, reflecting subconcious mind, deteriorating self motivaton, lack of sense of direction. everything felt like it was falling apart! slipping away. even the meaning of love faded.

2010 WILL BE DIFFERENT
everything is ever changing. every day will be different. getting a job and continue to study, starting new projects, cycling, gobble more information, getting excited again, making new friends, get closer to existing friends, go to events, read more, bake more, knit more, more sharing, writting more letters, gardening, helping more, buy more records, download more movies n music, make crafts, share stories, laugh more,love more, understand more, more get togethers, more bondings, more trips!,and to make them special i'll shall write about them. making each moments special and exciting for me to remember and share with friends to read and get to know bits and parts of me.

OTHERS........
change of attitude and outlook on life and living. fresh perspective encumbers old bad habits. cherishing memories, participating, staying awake, resisting together or in my own small ways, breathing, dressing costumes, goofying around, rehydrate, self healing, go for organics, less snacking more vegies and fruits, less oil more raw food, learn to fix bicycle, stencil for joy, collect articles, photos, art, threads, thrash.

TRADE!
i wonder if we ever trade stuff amongst us these days. lets do it!! i've got loads of stuff laying around that has been collecting dusts. from earings to clothes to weird funny funky ornament.

Me and my friends got togetha for ALL GRRRLS PANIC PICNIC at Shah Alam. We just chilled, played games, shared ghost stories, eat eat eat a lot! The day before, I managed to bake an almost burned cake. Haha.
The cake was kind of dry after that. It's a long story lah. But it turned out ok becoz i had covered it with chocolate topping. So everything looked yummy. (most ended up at the event at Noisy by a travelling cyclist - Stania from Italy). We also cooked mash potato and the sauce. That was really yummy!

On New Year’s Eve, I met a new friend. Her name is Pik Svoon. She's nice and funny. And.. She’s FR's girlfriend. I'm not allowed to say the full name. :P
Well she called and wanted to chill with us. Comel and gila2 that girl!

We played charade. It was crazy.. i don't need to elaborate. Then we got a point where we shared ghost stories. Pik Svoon lah mula. She was like, "hey you all have ghost stories ah?"

We were so excited about this picnic that we really organize everything from what tea cups to bring to the color of the mat. It was chaos! We've learned that we will always be colorful and not drabby with ALL BLACK. Not that black isn't nice and elegant but it has that vibe.. That dullness. machoness. stereotyping. too anarchistic. Maybe we should tone down and flash colors instead! Yay gay life must be! Err I was wearing black shirt that night. Damn.

The streets were wild! Families, motorcyclist, car racers, cyclists!, couples, kids, cops were everywhere! It didn’t really bother us as we were in our own little world in the field on our small mats. It had rained earlier that day. So the grass was a bit squishy. That’s why not many people got on the field like they usually would. There was also a football match going on the other field. Music from cars was loud. Everyone was excited for the countdown to start. It was not as crazy packed and wild like KL I might say. That’s why we chose to get together at Shah Alam. A friend said she once had to spend 3 hours in the car during New Year’s Eve and countdown. That’s crazy! So many people in one place at one time. Even cars flooded the city. I'm glad i was in Shah Alam!

WE HAD SO MUCH FUN HANGING OUT WITH EACH OTHER!

A cat that's smart and cute. Solar followed me and my friends one day at Brickfields. It was so strange. It was at a dark alley, he heard noises from us laughing and he followed us right up the stairs of the LRT! He was like crying out for us to take him home. So we did! We snug him into one of our bag. The funny and amazing thing about Solar is that he follows people around like a dog. He likes to walk with us around the park. Whenever we go out of the house he would follow us. He also knows his own name when we call him. Anyways, a friend just emailed me this photo. I've always loved cats! They're so furry and fluffy. Solar you're getting heavy and spoiled lah!

What a day! Me and my two buddies went to Broga Hill near my house last Saturday. The place was awesome! It was like ~*magic*~ We were rubbing our eyes and wondered whether we were dreaming because the heavy mist that surrounded the hill had given it some kind of dreamy/anime scene. It was surreal and it was definitely worth it to climb that hill. My two friends Hana and Marr came cycling all the way from Puchong. They wanted to have this all GRRRLS CYCLING trip and had been planning to go to Broga for quite awhile now. So we did!

I can’t believe that this place is like just at the back of my house. I mean yeah sure my house is surrounded by hills but who would’ve thought a place this beautiful is just around the corner. The hill is approx. 20km from my house. The monsoon season was cherry on top. It was raining lightly and cloudy all day. I didn’t get burned as bad as I did back in March (Penang trip) I’m still recovering from it. I have sensitive skin. Well that goes along with the package of doing outdoor activities here in this hot and humid country. The scorching heat from the sun will roast you like barbeque! Ahhh and the critiques especially from concern parents and siblings. About skin cancer and safety. The usuals for girls. I’m sure for some boys too.

PHO-TOES


We're writing some thing about this trip for Massa Kritikal blog. A blog for cyclist in Malaysia (mostly in Klang Valley) who have things to share from their trips, plans, activities, adventures, celebration, and support. Here's the link FAIRYTALE OF DREAMLAND

Tomorrow me and friends are going to cycle to Broga. I'm planning to make them a special treat. Yep, pies seemed to be awesome for energy booster. Easy to make and carry. Me and sister made this and we had a great time munchin' away this pies! I'm going to share this recipe which we had found in a magazine. Enjoy!~

The ingredients are:

Topping
-2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped roughly
-1 tbsp butter
-1/4 cup milk



Filling
-2 cups finely chopped cooked roast lamb (or use 400g finely diced lamb, or mince lamb, plus olive oil
-1 onion, peeled and diced
-1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
-4 tbsp tomato sauce (ketchup)
-1/4 cup beef or vegetable stock
-salt and cracked black pepper (i used extra of pepper coz i like it to be pepperish)
-green beans, to serve (i skipped this - for the cycling trip )

STEP 1
Preheat oven 180 deg, (160 deg fan forced)

STEP 2
Make topping - boil potatoes in saucepan of water until tender (about 10 mins) Drain and mash with butter and milk.

STEP 3
Make filling - mix roast lamb with onion, parsley, tomato sauce, stock, salt and pepper (alternate method : fry diced lamb or lamb mince in a little oild for about 10 mins until nicely browned, then add other ingredients)



STEP 4
Assemble - spoon mixture into ramekins and top with mashed potato. Place in oven and cook for 20 mins until top is browned. Serve immediately. Yummmy with green beans.