Paint my love…

The other day, I took my daughter to this dental clinic for a thorough check-up before she leaves for New Zealand. I guess it would be better to get that done here just to make sure, as the charges overseas may not be so affordable.

I waited for her in the waiting room and I was captivated by the artistic displays on the walls. This oil painting was very nice…

…and so was this set of pictures of a ballerina…

I thought this one was attractive even though I could not figure out what on earth it was supposed to be or was it just a splash of colours and not supposed to be anything at all?

And now the moment that all of you have been waiting for – the answer to the question I posed in my previous post. So what was the object in the photo? Many thought it was a stool or chair and quite a number of you came quite close with your suggestion that it was a tooth-shaped piece of furniture…

Well, it WAS a tooth – a plastic model of one around six inches high or slightly bigger, complete with a cavity and it was placed on the reception counter. I don’t know about the shape…but it certainly was an odd colour for a tooth. Don’t you think so? LOL!!!

Millennium (2)…

I have not been to this restaurant for quite sometime…

…and yesterday, my friends and I, together with my daughter and one of my friends’ kids, ended up there for lunch – 5 adults and 2 children altogether.

We had the mixed meat platter…

…and the sweet and sour fish fillet…

…as well as the fried bitter gourd with beef…

…and the fried cangkok manis with egg…

…washing all that down with this thick Foochow-style tofu soup…

Inclusive of rice and drinks, it all came up to over RM70.00 – not too cheap, I would think…but it was not too expensive either and the food wasn’t too bad either.

After lunch, I went with my daughter to one place and I saw this…

What do you think it is? I will reveal the answer in my next post. LOL!!! Make a guess, anybody?

Don’t throw it all away (2)…

Looking through the fridge yesterday, I found a carrot and a potato – left overs from the X’mas party. Now what on earth would I be able to cook with those? There was also a bag of tomatoes that I had bought but never got to use. In the end, I decided to use them for a vegetable dish.

I cut the tomatoes on one end and scoop out what was inside each of them…

…and after cutting the carrot and potato into little cubes, I boiled them and drained…

…and mixed them with what was inside the tomatoes. There was a bit of dressing left from my wife’s potato salad that night, so I threw that into the mixing bowl as well…

…and added a bit of chopped cheddar cheese slices and chopped Chinese celery…

After mixing them well, I stuffed the tomatoes.

Now, how would I be able to make the tomatoes stand considering that they were all well-rounded on one end? I had an idea and cut a portion of an egg tray and wrapped that with aluminium foil…

Then I placed the stuffed tomatoes…

…in the “holes”…

…and put the whole thing into the oven to bake. This was the end result…

Perhaps it would be nicer with some chopped ham or bacon or even tuna but I wanted a vegetable dish, so I decided against adding any meat or fish to it. It was nice enough the way it was…

…and we finished all that in one sitting. That certainly spoke volumes, wouldn’t you agree? And the best part was that nothing was wasted. I certainly did not throw anything away…

If I could turn back time…

If I could turn back time, I would be able to go and buy something at this shop at the time when it would reopen for business…

LOL!!! I saw this at the entrance of a bakery in the vicinity of the Sibu Civic Centre…but I’m sure it was just the slip of the fingers, not the thought of mind.

It was Sunday yesterday and after going for the evening service at the cathedral, my family and I went for dinner with my friend, Jimmy, from Bintulu – the one that Kongkay met when he dropped by my house on Christmas night and said that he was the son I never had, owing to the uncanny resemblance and he was not the first one  to say so! LMAO!!!

We had this sizzling venison…

…which looked good and tasted good too, and my daughter’s favourite, their deep-fried bread crumb-coated fish fillet…

…as well as the mixed bean dish (with brinjal) which has been my top preference when it comes to choosing a veg dish – ever since I had that with Diana, my cousin from Miri, when she was in town sometime back…

…and also their sea cucumber soup. Jimmy had the celebrated blended kopi-o-peng…

…while I had the buah kedundong juice…

I’ve eaten the fruit before – pickled or with sambal, but this is the first time I’ve tried the drink. It was not too sour – why, they even added a sour plum in it – and I liked it!

All in all, the total for that meal for four came up to slightly over RM50.00, inclusive of drinks and rice. I would think that wasn’t too bad – pretty reasonable, in fact, for a delightful meal.

Milk and cookies…

…I’ve got to do just what I’m told
’cause Santa Claus is gonna be dropping in on me
Now is there something I might have missed
I had quite a few things on my list
I hope he can fit it all under that Christmas tree.
Now I know what he likes for a late night snack
For years now it’s been bringing him back
Milk and cookies…

Actually, I was pleasantly surprised to find this  song by country singer, Clint Black on youtube that goes by this title. I never knew that such a song existed. Well, that was exactly what I got from kongkay when he dropped by my house on Christmas night. I had asked him to join the dinner I was having that same evening but he had to go to the airport and could only come by pretty late at around 9 something. Obviously he had read my post on butter cookies and bought me a tin – Kjeldsens’ no less…and two cartons of Devondale’s milk. Milk and cookies – exactly what kids would leave by the chimney or the Christmas tree for Santa! Ho ho ho ho ho!!!

Alex, formerly of jienster.com, is back home in Sibu for the Christmas holidays from Melbourne, Australia. He and his siblings came for dinner and they brought me these Jaffa cakes…

Actually, they were discussing these on Facebook like they’re something really really nice…and of course, I shamelessly asked for some. They’re o.k. but I would not say that I’m crazy over them. My daughter said that my brother had brought home some once from New Zealand…but I could not recall that. Just about shows the impression they left on me…or the lack of it. I love these Australian nuts though…

They’re coated macadamians, I think…slightly sweet, just nice.

Gerard, also back from Melbourne, Australia, brought these…

They’re a different kind of Ferrero Rocher, not the usual kind that we can get here…or on board an MAS flight, called Ferrero Garden. I have not tried them yet, so I cannot make any comment at the moment.

Then, of course, there was the turkey that Xavier brought (Heard that the mum got it all the way from Miri!)…and the blueberry cake from my sis.

Gee! They do love feeding me, don’t they? LOL!!!

Get the party started…

Well, it had started…and ended, and I sure am glad that everything went well. The company was great and there was more than enough food for everybody…

My sister brought a cake – blueberry…

…and intechfly, formerly known as housefly, gave some turkey. He also has a post on the party in his blog.

My daughter cooked pasta…

…while I made coleslaw. My wife prepared a whole lot of  other dishes, such as these lamb shanks…

…the baked cheese and bread crumb coated chicken wings…

…some grilled prawns…

…and kebabs…

…and lots more, together with the chicken and shepherd pies that I had made a day earlier.

It certainly was a delightful evening, for me at least, filled with the joy of Christmas. Thanks to all for coming…

Waiting for tonight…

Well, it’s Christmas morning…

…and we’ll be going for the church service later and after that, we’ll have to drop by my parents’ house for a while to wish them a Happy Christmas and then, I guess we’ll have to rush home to get ready for tonight.

My missus has called her family over for dinner – my outlaws…oops. I mean, my in-laws, and my sister will join us as well as a few of my friends. Actually, I’ve done my bit already. I’ve baked my Christmas chicken pie…

…which, unfortunately, got a bit burnt at the edges because my missus was using the oven to heat up something earlier and it was a bit too hot when I put the pie in. Then, I made these mini-pies for my mother…

She’s bed-ridden and will not be able to join us, so I decided to make a few small ones for her…

I also made a shepherd pie…

…and when the time comes, I will just heat them up and serve. I had to get my things ready beforehand…so that I’ll be out of the kitchen once my missus starts to prepare her dishes. You can bet that the place will look like it had survived the two world wars and a third one thrown in for good measure! She’s the type who will mess up the whole place and clean up when she’s done – not like me. I will clean up every step of the way so that when I’ve finished, I will not need to go through the chore of cleaning, wiping, drying and putting everything away.

Well, since I have contributed my bit, all that I have to do for the time being is to sit back and relax…and wait for tonight! Yum! Yum!

I say a little prayer

Christmas trees, tinsel and lights aglow
It’s Christmas time once more
Gaily-wrapped presents under the tree
Faces full of smiles and glee

Christmas turkey, pudding and pies
A feast to behold before our eyes
Clinking glasses, filled to the brim
Friends and kin in candlelight dim

But in the gaiety, let us remember
Somewhere in this month of December
In tattered clothes, those hungry souls
Nowhere to go, homeless and cold

The desolate ones, clinging to his or her own life
In countries torn by war and ripped by strife
For them, there may not be a tomorrow
For them, there can only be deep sorrow

The victims of natural disasters, far and near
Loss of homes and loved ones, ever so dear
In the midst of all the carols and rhymes
Do spare a thought for them this Christmas time

For the promise of hope, Christmas does bring
As bells throughout the world ring and the choirs sing
Jesus Christ, our Saviour, on this very day was born
In a manger in Bethlehem on this very morn

In our festivities, let us stop and ponder awhile
Upon the coming of the Most Holy Child
For ourselves and for others, let’s say a little prayer
That God will bless us all on this very special day

A Blessed Christmas to all my loyal readers, and all my relatives and friends wherever you may be.

*Image shows the Christmas Crib at the Church of Christ the King in Sungai Petani, Kedah (2008)

Mouse loves rice…

Well, this is some sort of unsung hero…as one hardly hears anybody mentioning it unlike the celebrated kampua noodles in Sibu. If I’m not mistaken, it is made from rice flour…and is shaped something like cendol except that it is white in colour and not green. Owing to its resemblance, it is called ngiau chu boi in Hokkien or ekor tikus in Malay. which can literally be translated as “mouse tail”.

It is prepared and served the same way as kampua noodles but personally, I am not really crazy about it and would probably have it once in a blue moon perhaps when I want something different for a change. But I guess it has its own following as it is sold at almost every kampua noodle stall in town. If nobody is eating it, I am sure they would not have bothered at all.

Now, if anybody is wondering about the strange sounding post title, it is actually the name of a very popular Chinese song. You can click and watch the video below if you have never heard it before…

Moving away from our topic of discussion, my missus bought this the other day from a supermarket in town…

Other than Scottish shortbread, I do love Danish cookies as well…but my favourite brand, Kjeldsens, is getting a bit too expensive – over RM28.00 a tin. No, thank you, and Arnotts’ do not come close, not at all. These are not as nice but with the expiry date coming up fast, they’re selling them at only RM8.50 per tin. There are two types, one with cinnamon which gives it a somewhat peculiar taste and is cheaper (RM6.50)…and the normal Danish butter cookies…

…and some chocolate chip cookies as well. When I went yesterday, there are a few tins left, but I did not bother to buy any as they only have the other type left – the ones with the cinnamon taste which I do not really fancy.

Somehow or other, it seems that they have never had Kjeldsens on offer or at least, not that I can remember. I guess all the stock would have been sold out long before the expiry date draws near. Hiaz! Come to think of it, I should have posted this earlier, then maybe I’ll be lucky enough to get a tin or two for Christmas. LOL!!!

You spin me round (like a record)…

When I was young, we would have open houses twice a year – once for Christmas and another time for Chinese New Year…and I would be stuck in the kitchen with my mum helping her with the preparation of the ingredients for the cakes and cookies or the chicken curry that we would serve to relatives and friends dropping by. These days, we would just let the festivals go by like any other day. Maybe, we would go out for dinner at some posh hotel and some years, we would take off to some place just to get away from it all.

Well, Christmas is just a few days away…and my daughter will be leaving for NZ early next year and will not be around for Chinese New Year. She doesn’t want to go somewhere for the festive season and prefers to spend it at home, so I am thinking of having a small gathering – a simple dinner on Christmas night…but that is where the dilemma begins!

Now, what would I cook? Well, curry is out! My missus was planning to cook that but I don’t think that’s a very good idea. These days, with the A1 Mountain Globe curry mix, every Tom, Dick or Harry would be able to enjoy some reasonably nice curry any time of year – it is no longer something special to look forward to.

Maybe I would make a pie – a chicken pie, so the filling will be different from the one I made the other day…

*recycled image

Or perhaps I should make some shepherd pie or both, and my daughter can cook some pasta to go with them…

*recycled image

She wants my missus to make some baked chicken wings with breadcrumbs and cheese. We had those a long, time ago…and she has not made them since goodness knows when. Hopefully, she gets down to doing that…before our little girl leaves home to go far, far away.

We will need to have some salads, so perhaps, we can have a bit of coleslaw and some potato salad…or maybe I can make this macaroni fruit salad that I saw in ladyviral’s blog. Looks nice and really easy to prepare!

SIGH!!! Decisions! Decisions! And my head is spinning round and round like a record…

Now I remember why we would always eat out…or run off somewhere everytime a festival came around! LOL!!!