Un-inspired

What can I say? The title says it all. It is not because insufficient materials. I have loads, but I am just uninspired or rather more accurate unmotivated to write. It is not a good thing, as it shows my total lack of discipline and at this moment, it's something I can't afford to dwell on.

I hate sounding so pathetic but that is how I am feeling now. I have no wish to wallow in it but it is difficult to pull yourself out of muck.

It's school holidays and whatever rigid schedule there was during the school year has been blown apart!

Whatever it is, it is not easy to write in here. I want to be truthful and honest about myself but is this the right medium? No one can understand even not myself... if you get my meaning. Will you think of me differently...

Not that it matters...

The Lake House.

I love chick flicks. Really love them. Recently we managed to buy a coffee table cum TV table and hooked up the TV borrowed from my friend (Thanks Chique!) to a DVD player. The TV has actually been sitting on the floor for the past five months! We bought a new remote control and also a whatchamacalit cable that makes the visual much-much clearer.

After that my husband went on a DVD/VCD shopping spree. Of course no chick flicks...

So the first chance I get to go to the DVD shop I managed to buy 2 DVDs. 1 is 'The Good Year' (hubby paid for this one) and the other was 'The Lake House' (I paid for this one, it was on sale).

Two nights ago, I gave husband a choice to choose which movie he wanted to watch first and his answer was 'The Good Year' starring Russel Crowe. The reason why he chose that one was because he doesn't want to replace the image of NEO from Matrix with some soppy tear eyed chick flick hero. Hey! I love Russel Crowe, but he just doesn't cut it as a romance hero, especially when the story is told only with his perspective. We'll get into the details in another post.

Yesterday, while he was in JB (husband that is...not Russell!) I watched 'The Lake House'. I was blown away, can't help myself and watched it again this morning! In the Lake house, Keanu Reeves is no longer 'the pretty faced boy'. You can see the wrinkles et al and to me that gives more character to his 'deadpan' delivery. I actually like his 'deadpanness'. It creates a mysterious air about him, inscrutable. Yet in this movie he, as Alex Wyler, shows how much he actually understand his father more than his brother and helps make his brother understand their father better.

I also like Sandra Bullock as Dr Kate Forster. I prefer her better in this movie than all the comedy acting she has done before. I think she acts better when she takes it slow and easy. I think both Keanu and Sandra have good chemistry and it shows.

The plot has its twists, not unexpected but delivery was so well done that it came as a delight. First time watching you do get a little confused with the story and time line but when I watched it again it was not as confusing.

To me, one of the better chick flicks... no full nudity or sex scene required for a good movie and The Lake House proved this!

UPDATE: The Lake House will be screened by HBO (Channel 411) on the 7th October 9 pm. Other screening dates are on the 8,9,11,12,13 and 14th October, time varies,

Can't believe it...

I have been published! Actually this is not the first time I have been published. I wrote to the Sun once and I also did a book review for Flavours...but this is the first time a full length article.

September/October Issue

The Scoop on Rendang


Me sans makeup: au naturale

I would like to thank Julie Wong, Flavours Editor, for making me sound so good and to Yap Chee Hong for making me look good (better than realitylah!). I would also like to thank all my sisters and makciks who helped me with the information (K. Sal,you are a gem!)

There is a writeup on rendang and 10 recipes including 3 serundings. Feel free to try out and send me comments!

Nasi Goreng...Nasi Goreng!

Nasi goreng bukan sebarang nasi goreng! (Fried rice, not just any fried rice!) This is Nasi goreng Ala Man! Once you have it you would want more.

Poor Birthday boy! Instead of loving wife making him dinner for buka puasa, he had to cook! But this is his speciality: Nasi Goreng Ala Man!

Sautee the shallots until fragrant and lightly golden. (I just love men in uniform! *wink*)

The ingredients(from top left to right): Kicap Lemak Manis Cap Kipas Udang, dried shrimps (soaked in hot water, drained, and coarsely pounded), chopped spring onion, slices of lime (for the juice), reserved water from the soaked dried shrimps, pounded fresh chillies (you can use leftover sambal belacan), beef (cut thinly across the grain), shelled fresh shrimps and eggs. You also need yesterday's leftover rice and not to forget the sliced shallots are being sauteed (see 1st photo).

Shallots being sauteed with a little bit of oil in a very hot wok.

Add the dried shrimp and the reserved water. Stir fry and then add the beef and the fresh shrimps. Stir. Add the pounded chillies (or sambal belacan if using) and lime juice. Fry up till fragrant. Finally add the rice (make sure it is clumpless) and the soy sauce. Season to taste with salt and little bit of sugar.

Make a well in the middle and add the eggs. Once it is lightly set on the sides mix the rice to the eggs and continously stir on moderatley high heat. Add the spring onions last. Remove from fire and serve.

Viola! Nasi Goreng Ala Man...a tasty dish from the birthday boy (though he likes to add a dash of Lingham Cili Sauce on the side of a little bit more heat)

Bon Appetit!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to you!
You were born in the zoo!
With the monkeys and kangaroos !
we all do love you!

New wrinkle sighted! Happy 43rd Virgoman... *mwaaaah*

Happy 50th!

We are unique and we are individualistic.
I don't understand the need for a Bangsa Malaysia.
I am a Malay but I never thought my race is better than another.
I am a Muslim but I respect others' right for religion or otherwise.
I don't eat durian but I don't scoff at those who do.

Do we need to be a uni race to be unified?
God made Man and Woman.
Doesn't mean one is better than the other.
We are just different.
Do we need to be unisex to make this world a better place?

There are reasons (whatever they may be) of why we have;
different skin colours
different hair types
different facial characteristics
a hawk nose or a jemput-jemput one.

It makes life a more interesting experience.
Rather than a monochrome, single colour,
single race, single whatever...

We should celebrate our uniqueness
We have to commemorate our differences
We must bask in our harmonious diversity!

I am proud to be Malaysian!

Food glorious food....

Because my husband goes to JB for his work, normally when we go along with him, breakfast is limited to the hotel breakfast buffet or what I happened to pack for the trip and lunch is dependent on my friends who come and visit me. :-)

So I usually look forward to dinner.When we go to JB this is a must place to go for dinner.

IT Roo is located along Jalan Dhoby. Prime real estate area. The buildings are very old but have been refurbished. The only problem with Jalan Dhoby area at night is the transvestites. It's not really safe to walk alone here, at night, due to the unsavoury visitors who come for their 'servicing'. Due to that, most of the shops along this area closes quite early.

This restaurant, however, opens until 10.00pm. It's fully air-conditioned and there are also tables outside for those who smoke. The decor is simple with old family photos, pictures of Johor during the colonial era. There are also some knick knack to remind us of yesteryears.



I love Sirap Bandung! And happy to say that IT Roo's Sirap bandung is fantastic. They use ice-cream soda, which makes it authentic Johorean drink. Reminds me of my wedding feast. My mother brought a cook specially from Muar and they served this drink for the kenduri.








This is the way to drink Hot Milo. The saucer for older teacup sets like this one has a deeper bowl. The larger surface makes cooling the Milo faster. Just make sure that the saucer is clean.






This is my son's favourite meal at IT Roo. The Egg Sandwich. Scrambled eggs on lightly toasted bread.











This is my daughter's favourite meal. My son likes eggs, while my daughter likes chicken. The peas are usually given to the Father. I always wondered what is the secret ingredient in Hainanese Chicken Chop. And I found that out on my first trip to IT Roo. I think the cook made a slight mistake of being a bit heavy handed on the secret ingredient that I could immediately identify it. Husband said he was wondering what it was until I told him and he agreed with me.

Anyway, the first time I went to IT Roo for dinner, due to the fact that the secret ingredient was a bit overwhelming and the chicken wasn't broiled properly, the chicken chop was a bit difficult to finish. However, on our later visits, the taste was properly balanced and the chicken was cooked better. I prefer the mushroom sauce myself, being a mushroom lover, but my daughter prefers the black pepper sauce.

This is the steak served here. Relatively same sauce. The steak is well done but not dry. Just nice, even for me who prefers medium cooked steak.

My husband tests a restaurant via his Nasi Goreng Index. The first thing he orders in a restaurant like this is the nasi goreng. And I am happy to say tha IT Roo has passed the Nasi Goreng Index. The prawns are super fresh, unfortunately the quota for each plate is 2 (edited: husband corrected me, I earlier thought there were 3).

So if you are in JB, do visit IT ROO at 17, Jalan Dhoby, Johor Bharu.

Another place to visit is Gerai Makanan Kacang Pool Haji at Medan Selera dan Bazaar Larkin.

My husband, a foodie himself, was raving about this stall and wanted me to have a taste. Kacang Pool has arabic origins. The dish is made from beans ( I will up date on the type of bean, later) cooked with tomatoes, onions and spices, until the beans are very soft. The beans is then mashed. Some cooks add minced beef or lamb in it, otherwise it could be a vegetarian dish.

Kacang Pool is usually garnished with a slice of lime, minced onion and green chillies. You can have an egg with it. Normally the egg is fried sunny side up ( the egg is cooked one side only and not flipped) with the yolk still runny. The yummy part is when you break the yolk and mix it with the kacang pool. Delish!

At Warung Makanan Kacang Pool Haji, the set of RM4.00 is served with a hunk of bread as shown. The bread is lightly toasted on both sides. You can either tear the bread and dunk in the bowl or place it in the bowl and eaten with the fork and spoon. Whichever choice you make don't forget to squeeze the lime. The lime juice brings the dish to another level of deliciousness.

The Kacang Pool served here is mild and not overly spicy. The serving is not too big and just nice for a snack. Just don't have this dish if you plan to go elsewhere as the gas you emit may kill someone!

The cendol I had was nice. Th cendol itself was soft and spongy but lacked the strong pandan taste. My cendol had kidney beans in it and with the kacang pool, it did make a explosive impact ;-). The santan was fresh and the gula melaka was authentic. A definite repeat order next time.

So if you are somewhere near Larkin, it's worth the visit. You can't miss the stall as it is the only one serving Kacang Pool at the Medan Selera and Baazar Larkin. It opens early and closes late at night.

Johor Bharu

On the 19th August 2007, my family and I went to Johor Bharu. Husband had to go for his usual weekly work trip and because it was the school holidays, we decided to join him. This time round, with Dr. Nur's advice we decided to stay at the Hyatt Regency Johor Bharu. The top photo is the Clock tower in front of the Hotel. Husband says that is the largest working clock tower in South East Asia. Don't know where he got that information from. Following are some photos from our hotel room. We had a sea-view room. The main reason for choosing Hyatt was because of the pool. It had a larger pool and the pool had shady trees, compared to Puteri Pacific, the water at Hyatt's pool kept cool even at noon.

The next photo above is Hospital Besar Sultanah Aminah. As we arrived late evening, I didn't realize that we were so close to the hospital. All night there were traffic noises. If you drive pass the hospital at night it looks like Kingdom Hospital... I am sure there are stories to be told as the hospital is one of the oldest and probably one of the biggest in Malaysian.

The last photo is the scenery right in front of the hotel. I haven't had a chance to research about the site, but as I may be going to JB later during the longer school holidays, I will gather more information.

Staying in Hyatt Regency was a nice experience. The room was spacious and the air conditioning was not freezing. We could simply spread out the bedpread on the carpet and accomodate the 2 kids. As the hotel was fully booked we couldn't get spare beds, but it was alright. However, the problem was always breakfast. The coffee house where breakfast was served is beautiful but cramped. There is always not enough tables and I had to always wait for a place. The buffet area was way too tight. You can't help bumping into someone else when you are going around plating and choosing what you want for breakfast. The selection is also quite limited and with little variety daily. However, the wait staff are friendly and they do try to accomodate your requests.

The hotel, location wise, is not so favourable if you don't have a car. Unlike Puteri Pacific, where it is adjoining to Kota Raya, staying in Hyatt means that you are dependent on others to have lunch or dinner outside if you are without a car. Good thing I had Dr. Nur to help me out on that. Of course there are some food stalls and restaurants at a walking distance, but it is not conducive when you are with 2 small children.

This is Dr. Nur. She's my school mate and was my class mate for Form 1-3. She has her own clinic in JB and I have been visiting her during my trips to JB. Normally she will bring her 4 children to the hotel and swim with my 2 children. This time round, she took me to her clinic for a visit.

Redza playing patient and Doctor with Dr. Nur.

All the walls were covered with family photos or artwork by her children or by herself. The photo above, you can see the pencil drawing of her youngest child in the corner. She drew that. WOW! An Artist trapped in a Doctor's body! ;-)

I had fun of course, apart from the stress of Nur's hubby waiting for the roast chicken to cook. Next visit I'll make sure more info of JB and also maybe a trip to Singapore!

Kaab El Ghzal

For my friend Chique:
Kaab el ghzal : Gazelle's horn. A middle eastern pastry filled with almond paste, sugar and orange essence. Divine! Eat some for me!

Diamonds Are Forever...

Diamonds are forever was the theme for this year's OGA dinner. I wanted to wear what Jill St John wore in the James Bond movie but then we were forewarned of the dress code : nothing revealing. So I had to leave my diamond encrusted bikini at home and be happy wearing the Abayyah (sp?) Chique sent me from Doha. Unfortunately because beloved hubby bought batteries not suitable for my P&S camera, I only managed to capture a few photos before the camera decided to lose all power

Anyway, the menu was as follows; Cream of asparagus with croutons, Fish ( I forget what, but I think it was Bass) on a bed of oven baked pepper with some sauce (again I forget) and walnut parfait with banana chocolate roll with chocolate sauce followed by coffee or tea.


Above is the dessert. Totally forgot about taking photo of the courses before. Was too hungry. I had an extra bowl of soup, courtesy of Hawk who couldn't make it. Frankly, the food was ok, only that it was standing too long and what is supposed to be hot or at least warm was cold and the dessert was already room temperature. Anyway, still managed to eat everything and served myself some tea after that.

I sat with Awatif, Gie, Ina, Lila (Happy Anniversary!), Donie, Hawk (absent), Amalina, Fiddie and Sura at table 61, one table behind the Royal table.


Madame Awatif sat besides me and I managed to capture her beauty (and the size of that bracelet) on my camera. :-)

Dr Gieto was my next victim. She was sitting besides Madame Awatif. As usual her sweet smile was glittery enough.

Dr Ina was another story. Look at that necklace! Humbly she says it's her mother's. Yeah and my lips look like Amber Chia's!

Ni dia Madame Fiddie and Madame Didie. Both looking resplendent. Yes, Fiddie I still remember I owe you a cake! ;-)

Last but not the least is our own DIVA....DIVA ZURA with Julita Ilhani our Lawyer from Kuantan. Diva Zura stole the limelight from all the glittery diamonds with her beautiful rendition of 'Diamonds are Forever' ala Shirley Bassey. Bravo Zura! Semua lagu you nyanyi sedap-sedap and you looked fantastic. I rasa I yang jerit paling kuat kot...

And, unfortunately, after that my camera went kaput. Couldn't capture proof of Sarah, Filzah, Mok, and Julit's lepas gian!

It was a good night and hope to go again for next years dinner!

Encounter of the Yellow Kind

It's unfortunate that Yellow is my favourite colour. Yellow has superseeded brown which was my favourite colour when I was a girl. So when DiGi came up with the campaign of the Yellow Thingies, I was aghast!

Those yellow beings, with near undress state (due to the body suit), bellies and buttocks that are quite obscene following you around if you were a DiGi subscriber. Thank GOD, I am not a subscriber! Have been a loyal CELCOM subscriber since I don't remember when. Not that the service is fantastic especially at my housing area, but I am too a lazy to have to inform people that I have changed numbers if I did.

On Sunday at One-Utama, DiGi was having a promotion somewhere near the Luxury Section on the ground floor. I made the mistake of going there to have a closer look at the Yellow Thingies. And...when I told them that I am a CELCOM subscriber, one of it decided to follow me around, rubbing his belly on my back! Talk about EWWWWW!

My son who is not afraid of anything! I hope they didn't follow him home!

P/S I had the Portobello Mushroom Burger at my favourite Burger Joint (see previous post), and looking at the pair, I better re-start my work out, unless I want to see something like that in my bathroom!

It's gonna get messy!

My favourite burger joint is back in town! I still remember when they used to have Carl's Jr at the bird park. I used to make a monthly trip on Friday lunch break to have the BBQ Chicken sandwich!

I was so happy that they have opened in 1-Utama! My beloved husband bought me the sandwich yesterday and I was in heaven. Eat your hearts out BK and McD! It IS gonna get messy!

Memories rekindled

Those from my batch who came:

Dr. Zuri & Daughter
Dr. Norizzati
Awatif (PM's Dept) & Daughter
Dr. Nik Mazlina & Daughter
Dr. Rozita, Uzrita(Hot Shot Entreprenuer) and Dr. Nur (all the way from JB!)
Dr. Rozita & Daughters (yang tengah tu dah book anak I!)
Norafilzah (Hot Shot Lawyer) & Daughter
Mokhrazinim PhD and Nur MD
Dr. Mokrazimim & Khairulbariah (Hot Shot Entreprenuer)


Photos of the school, when I remembered to take out my camera:


Last Entrance to the Dining Hall


Dining Hall


Block C


Block B


It was fun. Wished I took more photos of the place.