My Achievements

Only 1 month into 2010, and I must say I've accomplished quite a bit.  I'm so so proud of myself.  *beaming*

I finally completed my beaded lamp, personally designed & handmade by me.  I have dedicated more time for my artwork.  I've started baking, and for a beginner, I must say I'm pretty good.  ;p  I've experimented with many new delicious dishes (home-cooked meals daily), and I now know how to make "mee hun ker" (pan mee) from scratch!  Also, not forgetting that I've started my own blog.

These stuff may seem pretty simple, but if you know me, you wouldn't believe it.  Who would believe that a girl who barely passed her Art subject in school can now be artistic?  Who would think that a girl who doesn't even help her mom in the kitchen now cooks out of love & likes to share her succesful experiments?  This proves I can do anything I put my mind to.

Well, my house has been spring-cleaned, the CNY deco is up, I'm all prepared to welcome the Year of the Golden Tiger.  It's gonna be a fantastic year!  woo hoo!

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New Year...New Beginning...New Hopes

Evidence at the Park

My boyfriend & I, we were taking our dog for a walk at the park. He found a spot, started digging & found a bone – no, not the dog, my boyfriend. Anyway, he gave the bone to the dog, and continued digging. To our surprise, buried in the ground was a pair of sneakers & an empty condom packaging. WTF! Guessing it was evidence to some rape cases, my boyfriend decided to take the sneakers with him.
Suddenly, we saw some gangsters approaching. I told him to bury the shoes & run, but in a calm manner, he walked to a row of shelves at the park & placed the sneakers at one of the top open shelves (apparently to hide it!). The gangsters saw us & came running after us. We ran back to the hostel where we stayed. One of the bad guys caught up with us, but with the help of this HK actor (Power Chan Kwok Bong) who stayed in the same hostel as us (???!!!), we managed to capture the bad guy. Just as in all movies, the gangsters then held one of our people (Power’s momma) as hostage too. Damn!
Just as I was deciding whether or not to break the priceless antique vase to use as a weapon, when suddenly….. RINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then I woke up. This was my dream in the wee hours this morning. They say dreams have hidden meanings, but I won’t bother interpreting this, just like the many other silly dreams I occasionally have.  Why dream of Power?  Don't ask me, I'd rather have Cheng Ka Wing in my dreams anytime.

    Power Chan & Cheng Ka Wing (Image source: www.spcnet.tv)

p/s: Did I tell you my boyfriend had superpowers? He could do things in lighting speed, but nooo….. in this case, he chose to walk instead! Hhmph! That’s why we couldn’t escape. ... Who's my boyfriend? It's Someone, of coz!

Spanish Restaurante @ Bangsar

I was at Cava again yesterday night.  I was just there last Friday for lunch.  It seems a favourite hangout place for some of my banker friends.  For those who are not aware, Cava Restaurant & Bar is a cozy little Spanish restaurant located in Jln Bangkung, Bangsar.

Paella is a must-have here, hence we ordered Paella Valencia, a rice dish with mixed seafood & chicken.  We also had a variety of tapas, salad, pasta & dessert.  Most importantly, if you have a passion for sweet stuff, don't forget to indulge in the Chocolate Dream, a warm moist chocolate cake served with lime custard sauce.  It is delightfully sinful!  A few of my favourites from my previous visits include the mushroom soup & baked cod.  Well, pictures say a thousand words, so here you go!

Alas!  If you noticed, there's no photo of the desserts, which I have totally forgotten to capture, as everyone, including myself, dug their spoons into it the moment it was placed on the table.
Overall, Cava is a nice place to have good food & hangout with friends.

This photo below is dedicated to my beautiful friends, who insisted I capture their photo, instead of just the delicious food!

Foolish Actions

The issue on the use of the word "Allah" has been in the news over the past week or so.  I never bothered getting more details as I thought it would be over in the blink of an eye.  Not until today.  I was having lunch with my friends in Bangsar when I heard that 1 church was burnt, a few others attacked, and a car windscreen smashed.  I was horrified!  My Malay good friend explained the whole hoo-hah to me.

I am not a Christian, in fact, I consider myself a so called free-thinker, and I respect all religions.  Hence in this issue, I'm not favouring any side.  I'm not in the position to give any views regarding the usage of the word "Allah", what I'm more concerned are the foolish actions of some people.  Are these not the actions of uncivilized people?!  What happened to 1Malaysia?!  What happened to racial unity, which we as Malaysians, are so proud of?!  Aren't religious teachings about peacefulness & goodness as a person?!  Am I so innocent to think that no Malaysians will act like hooligans when it comes to racial disagreements, which is a thing of the past?!  I guess I was wrong.  Don't they know, which any civilized & level-headed person can tell you, that violence is only making it worse?  Don't they believe in peaceful resolution?  I do hope that all other Malaysians understand that these are acts of only a few foolish people, and they do NOT represent the entire community.

Today, I understood the meaning of "Assalamualaikum" from an article I read.  It means 'peace be upon you'.  It is really meaningful.  I hope the next time these people utter this word, they really mean it & walk-the-talk.

Whatever faith you believe in, let's pray that this will be ending peacefully soon.

Related articles:
What Are You Fighting For?
Have Faith

Chinese Taboos

Went for my class today and met some new friends.  In the 3 hours we spent together, all our conversation topics seem to involve food.  Be it pregnancy, travelling, festivals, weddings, deaths or gifts, food was somehow part of it.  Why?  You guessed it... 4 out of 5 in the group were Chinese.

Talking about Chinese, we seem to be the race with the most superstitions, some of which are even new to me.  Not sure whether you believe, but for me, better be paranoid than sorry.  These are some of the superstitions I learned today:

• Do not sweep the house or wash your hair on the 1st day of CNY.
• Do not give clocks and books (during CNY) as gifts.
• Do not buy shoes for your other half, as it means they will run away with another man/woman.
• Do not meet your husband/wife-to-be on the eve of the wedding day.
• Do not place anything sharp (scissors, blades, knives) on the bed if you're pregnant.
• Do not renovate the house when you're pregnant.
• Do not watch someone using the hammer if you're pregnant.
• Do not praise a newborn, or the baby will turn out to be the opposite of the praise.
• Do not open umbrellas inside the house, as the spirit (which stays in the umbrella) will be freed and wandering in your house.
• If (touch wood) you ever meet a ghost, you can either pray or scold foul words to make them go away.  errmmm..... not sure whether it works only with Chinese ghosts.
• Do not cut your fingernails at night, or you will see spirits.
• Do not point at the moon, or your ears may fall off!

In view that CNY is just around the corner, you may want to learn more to ensure the good luck keeps coming & the bad luck keeps away.  Attached are some links which may be useful.
CNY superstitions
CNY taboos

Remember, no harm saying #*$&@%! sometimes. ;p

The Enchanted World

I watched Avatar yesterday, and needless to say, I was mesmerized, so much so that I wanted to be one of the Na'vi.....  Lo & behold, this is my own Avatar!  The scar across my left eye was a due to a catfight between Neytiri and I, fighting over Jake.  Meowww!

 

This movie brought me back to the long forgotten enchanted world I used to know as a kid.  The fairies, goblins, elves, gnomes - I knew they existed, in a far far away untouched forest.  I just never imagined it to be so breathtaking.  Thanks, James Cameron, for giving me an insight into their world.  And when you're filming Avatar 2, do consider Mermie, the Avatar shown above.  She may be petite, but she's a real cili padi!

I see you.
http://www.avatarmovie.com/

P/S: You can have your own Avatar too.  Just click here.

New Year... New Beginning... New Hopes

2010 - I believe it's a great beginning... for me, anyway.  After weeks of planning, I finally started a blog, on the 1st day of the year.  Something so simple, and yet.....
There has been many changes in my life in preparation for this year.  So drastic the change, that 1 month into it, and friends are still asking the same question.  Sometimes I give different answers to different groups of friends, as I find it difficult to make them comprehend the reasons.  Don't get me wrong, it's not because of different IQ level or anything, it's just that not everyone had been through what I had, hence they won't understand.  And to some others, moolah plays a bigger role in their lives.

I've been given a 2nd chance in life, and this is what I have to do, for 2010.  It's a new beginning, bringing it new hopes...