Unbelievable..

My mum was on board an airplane last night on her way back from Newark to Kuala Lumpur.

She said the aircraft was a little noisy thus she requested for ear plugs. This is the funny part, the stewardess told her that the airline does not carry the item anymore, and gave her 02 cotton balls instead. I am not joking, and this is both amusing and unbelivable as well as shocking!

This is the cotton ball..

Giotto and Hanuta

I am sitting in my office now, and enjoying Giotto and Hanuta.



In case you do not know, Giotto is sphere shaped, with chocolate filling inside and hazelnuts rolled over each sphere on the outside while Hanuta is better known as Hazelnut Sandwich. A thick layer of rich, luscious hazelnut chocolate with bits of hazelnut throughout, sandwiched between two crisp, chocolate wafers.



My colleague says Giotto taste a little like Ferrero Rocher, but I disagree. I think Giotto taste so much better, maybe because it is not available in Malaysia hence I treasure it more.

Anyway, I must really thank Hayashi for buying this back and sharing it. She is a real angel. Thanks!

My LAN cable is missing... again!

In my current cubicle at the workplace, I am always missing something.

Due to the nature of my job, I am not always in my sitting area. And almost everytime when I return after being away for a week, something goes missing.

The first time it was the LAN cable, which we recovered. Next time it was my dustbin, and thereafter it was my chair!

So much so that I have labeled my dustbin although it belongs to the company.. think I will have to do the same with my chair and my LAN cable now. A colleague suggested that I should keep my LAN cable whenever I am away from my desk for more than a day or two.. but it is annoying to do this..

The people who normally take these things are the ones who want to use the meeting room or conference room. I don't mind them borrowing my stuff (since I sit closest to the conference room), but PLEASE RETURN the items after you use it. It is frustrating chasing and hunting for basic work items everytime you step into the office.

So, please be considerate, whoever you are.

Flexible Employment Program

Hmm... this flexible employment program has just been launched, and I am considering taking it.

Previously I didn't think I would have much difficulty deciding which option I want to take, but now I am in a dilemma all over again.

I know I want a validity of 3 months, whether it's the voluntary leave program (VLP) or part time leave. But knowing that I am project based, I will never be able to commit to the part time program. I will be at the losing end unless I put my foot down and said I can't do certain things as I am on leave. But then again it is not as easy when you are project based, you are bound to have ad hoc meetings, last minute changes.. the entire strucutre of project management is very fluid to begin with!

The other problem is there is no 3 months VLP program, I am just trying my luck to ask for it. The normal VLP offered is for 6 months or 12 months. If I am away from my job for 6 months I probably wouldn't want to come back after that.. so that option is out. Assuming that I am able to sustain financially for 3 months AND I get the green light for 3 months VLP, there is still another obstacle. I was just made to understand that the you can either choose the travel benefits or the medical benefits.. sigh.. how to choose?

Hot Hot Hot

Weather for the past few days has been dreadful, with temperature easily rising above the normal 32C.

It is so hot that I can't feel my air con even after turning it on for an hour. Am if I attempt to walk out to the living room, I will sweat within minutes. It is simply too hot. Good time for an ice cream.. hmm..the ice cream parlours/ chains/ sellers must be doing well this week.

Help help, we need rain to cool the temperature down..

Durian Feast.. Oh too much of it..

I have simply been indulging in too much of durian eating of late.

It's all mum's fault. She "dragged" us to eat durians. First it was her friend who recommended her some durians and she brought us to her friend's durian stall in Taman Danau Desa, we ate there and tapau some home.

Then she "tumpang" her friend to buy 10 more durians from a durian orchard in some kampung. We had durian phobia after that, and we told mum that we do not want to eat durians anymore this season. That was a little more than a week ago.

Tonight, she asked us if we want to go seksyen 17 pasar malam to eat durian, I couldn't resist the temptation and said yes (the mind is weak...). So we ended up in seksyen 17 night market, and ate some durians (this was right after our dinner mind you, so you can imagine how full we were before, and after we ate the durians). Discovered something funny though, that abi is not used to eating durians by the "roadside". I am not the least bit concerned about eating durians by the roadside because I'm kinda used to it. Haha.. at least this is one thing he is new to, now he cannot laugh at me for being ulu and not knowing about eating durians and rice as meals during dinner.

Batman vs Hellboy

I went to watch 2 superhero movies back to back last night, Batman (The Dark Knight and Hellboy 2).

We watched Hellboy first, and thought it was pretty entertaining, nothing too complicated, just simple storyline that keeps the spirits high after watching the movie. Then we watched The Dark Knight, and it is kinda depressing.

Almost the entire movie is based on the dark scenes so you have to really concentrate to know what is going on. And there is just too much of fighting, and irritating that the Joker is always gaining the upper hand. Makes Batman look really bad and weak. Then there is Harvey Dent, the supposedly "White Light of Gotham" who turned into "Two Faced" eventually. The message sent across is really wrong because it's saying that the bad will always win, and the good superheroes have to make sacrifices, and they cannot have loved ones and families.

I don't think people will walk out of the cinema feeling "happy". I didn't, neither did my companion. So tell me did you enjoy the movie? And if you watched both The Dark Knight and Hellboy, let me know which one you prefer.

Making the soup based for steamboat

We are going to have steamboat for dinner tonight, and because we wanted to avoid using clear water as soup based for the steamboat, so we bought some chicken "shell" (??) to brew the soup based.

All along, I just assume that you can just throw everything in the cookpot and let it brew for 1-2 hours and voila, your soup will be ready. Little did I know that there are procedures to be followed even for this seemingly easy step.

You have to fry the anchovies first with some oil, cook it a little to get rid of the "sengit" smell, then add water, put to boil, THEN only add the chicken in. Sigh... so much effort for the soup. Then we left it to boil for 1.5 hours. Abi's mum also added corn and carrot to further add taste to the soup.

I am guessing that the soup will be tasty because it smelled great.
But I was ridiculed for not knowing how to do this, not knowing the proper "procedure".. blah blah blah... sigh.. what to do?

Next time, I will leave it to all to him to cook lah, or choose clear water soup as based. Choose!

The restaurant that just wasn't to be

Went to this restaurant called Restaurant Hee Lai Ton in Kajang to have dinner tonight, but it is also the last time. Not coming back ever again.

We ordered a set dinner, all the dishes were ok except for this fish dish. It was overcooked, and tasted really rough. It felt like the fish was not defrosted properly and cooked for a tee wee bit too long. So the texture was not fresh, and tasted lousy. We all took one bite and left the rest untouched.

We complained to the captain, she took a sample of the fish and went to talk to the chef, BUT she never came back. We asked for the bill, and noted that the fish was still counted in the bill. So we called the captain again and ask her about her follow up to the fish dish.

Know what her answer was? The chef said that this 7 Star Fish from Sabah is supposed to be cooked this way and the texture is just as it was supposed to be. We could not believe it! These people are taking us for a ride! It's as if they think that we have not eaten this type of this fish before, this is such an insult to our intelligence!But wait, this is not the best part, then she made the excuse that she was waiting to check with her lady boss how and where did she buy the fish blah blah blah.. and that was why she did not come back to us. The lady boss so happened to have gone out couple of minutes ago and that is why she was waiting for the lady boss to come back in 5 minutes. Sigh.. such lame excuse.

When we try to reason it out with her, she was still trying to use the same lame excuses on us. The captain still did not understand where she went wrong.. she continued with her defense that we are not allowing her time to solve the problem, that she was waiting for her lady boss to come back, that the fish was supposed to cook that way.. We ultimately left without arguing further, but we have emphasised that we will not be returning to this restaurant ever again.

But I plan to go one step further and publish it on my blog so that more people can read about this "wonderful" experience which we encountered today.

Oh, and to make sure that you don't mistaken this outlet with the rest, I have taken a photo of it to ensure no mistaken identity.. Remember, it's the one at Wisma Metro Kajang, Kajang.

After effects of gym... muscle cramp...

Remember I went to gym over the weekend?
Well, I was very gung ho and I went for Body Pump class. Anyone who has ever been to Body Pump class would know that it is a combination of weights with repeated movements to target your major muscle groups. Good stuff if you want to tone up quick, terrible stuff to suffer the after effect of this class.

Which is what I am feeling, right now.

My entire leg is painful, and I cannot sleep properly at night. My leg muscles are tensed and it pains me to walk up and down the stairs especially.

And you know the best part? I am supposed to have a meeting today, at the office which is at 2nd floor, with no lifts. How wonderful is that experience going to be..............? sigh...

Gym again...

After giving up gy,m for almost a year, I decided to go back to it, after a series of heavy eating for the past few months.

I was there around 4pm the other day, and was surprised at the amount of people at the gym, and most of them are all guys! I secretly thought that perhaps half of them are gay, otherwise why would they be at the gym at 4pm on a weekday?

Ah well... I don't know the answer to that, but I do know mybody is still aching from the gym exercise... Ouch ouch ouch...!

Battle of the Digital Cameras

I have been eyeing the following cameras, Canon Ixus 860IS, Fujifilm f100d and f47. I feel that they are all good cameras but I am still deliberating if I should purchase a new one.

If you have been following my blog, you would know that I normally like to include photos of what I take on a daily basis, to add some zest to my blog. I have not been able to do so after my other half took back the camera. So I have sorta decided that I should get one on my own, but then he asked if having this camera is really necessary, which made me have second thoughts..

Sigh... which one should I choose? Should I buy at all?

Canon Ixus 860IS

Fujifilm f100d

Fujifilm f47

Craving for Donuts

Argghhh.. I cannot get images of donuts out of my mind...

It all started with my colleague Geraldine who asked if I like donuts and we discussed about the different brands of donuts available in Malaysia currently. Apparently Krispy Kreme is about to make an appearance at 1Utama soon. Ooooo... can't wait for that one.

All that talk about donut made me think of donuts and their assorted flavours..

To make matters worse, another colleague Phillip just came back from Australis and we were teasing him about not buying us Krispy Kreme. He gave excuses of why he didn't buy e.g. not enough time and all.. but later admitted that he did have enough time if he wanted to buy..

But all that talking really made me want to eat a donut. I am seriously thinking of heading down to Subang Parade for lunch and buy meself a couple of donuts for lunch... mmmmm...

Should I.......?

Gosh.. I shouldn't have tried to search for pics of donuts to include on my blog, cos it only made me want to have donuts more than before..

So sleepy..

Gosh.. I am so sleepy today, don't know why.. but couldn't get up in the morning.

Last night I fell asleep on the bed with the laptop still on my lap. I must have been drained of my energy when I went on leave 2 days ago. When people go on leave these days, they end up being more tired and drained than if they have not taken leave at all. Weird how annual leave has transform into something that will actually drain more of your energy than working huh..?

Alright, gotta go..

p/s: am still deliberating whether I should get the Fujifilm f100d camera.. argghhh.. it's driving me crazy not having a camera in hand..

Napkin creativeness..

The candle looking napkin was taught to me by my brother during dinner today. Elegant and fairly easy to make. The other one is supposedly an "airplane", made by my other half..





:-)

Crazy Week

Ohhh.... this week is a hectic week, with many important meetings scheduled, and many other report deadlines due.

Aside from work, I also have important appointments, hence, have not been sleeping nor resting enough. Am tired.....! My throat is starting to itch, and have sore throat too.

I am kinda pissed off with one of my colleague actually. I feel that he is always trying to "delegate" paperwork to others when it has been delegated to him in the first place. He is great at talking, and I am just amazed at how convincing he can be whereas I am not half the man he is when is comes to talking and presentations.

Sigh.. I am sleepy now.. good night..
I still need to buy that camera.. met up with a few gal friends today but were not able to take photos as I didn't have the camera with me.

Buffet Dinner at Grand Millenium, KL

We just came back from having buffet dinner at Grand Millenium Kuala Lumpur, and I must say that I am very full now..

Food spread is alright, although we thought that the spread was skewed towards Northern Indian style. I loved the sushi spread as the sushis and sashimis were fresh, coupled with the oysters, scallops and crayfish.. yum..!

Then I moved on to try other food e.g. pasta, grilled fish, salmon and prawns. Next up was the Indian spread.

I couldn't stomach anything else after that and decided to move on to desserts. I couldn't decide between the strawberry and lemon mousse, but chose the strawberry mousse in the end. Nice...! And also tried the in house ice cream which I thought was a little too sweet. And no dessert round is complete without a dip in the chocolate fountain. I went for a total of 3 rounds, dipping my marshmallows, strawberries and grapes into the chocolate fountain. Have always loved playing with the chocolate fountain...

Then I ended the buffet session with sweet Sarawak pineapples and a cup of tea. That was quite a meal, but mum said that I didn't eat too much, and probably didn't get my money's worth.

But.. 3 hours after my buffet dinner, I am still feeling the fullness of my food. In fact, none of it seems like it has been digested. I feel so full, to the point of feeling sick actually... This feeling is no fun.. I feel kinda ill.. and I can't sleep because I feel so bloated.

I will try to remember to keep to my stomach's limit the next time I go for buffet dinner. Hopefully I will feel better in half an hour or so...

Good night..

Will I be so tired that I give up trying?

Have you ever had the feeling of knowing that you cannot communicate with someone?


No matter how you try, what angle you pursue, what tactics, what method of communications they still don't work. Whatever you are trying to get at just does not get through. Period.

I am not sure if it was because of the way things were said, or was it selective hearing from the other party, but before I could even get to my point, I will often be forced to fend off defensive remarks and protect my "story". The conversation then takes a 180 degree turn, instead of me making my point, the other party will make his point, and I will often be left speechless.

Speechless to the point not knowing what to say in my defense. Although valid points and arguments crosses my mind but I am unable to put my thoughts into strong points and throw it back. Am I that useless? Or am I just tired of saying what I want to say, knowing that nothing I say will be taken seriously. When somebody starts a conversation with self denial and defense mechanism barriers up, is there room for new lights to shine through? Will the person listen, and admits that there is a possibility of new light to things?


The real question is: Will I get tired of trying to talk and explain things and just give up altogether, shutting down whenever I encounter resistance? Rather than trying to explain my stand and view points, I choose to remain silent instead?


It's already happening.. do you know..?

Mood: Do not feel like talking.. Pondering the "what-ifs" and wondering if my decision was ever justified.

Makan Mandi

You may or may not have heard of Makan Mandi, but I certainly have not, until I was in Dubai recently and my colleagues brought me to try out Makan Mandi.


There are two area for dining; the common living room style, and in room dining. Apparently, if you are female and especially if you are not dining with males or with family members, you are not allowed to sit at the common living room area. Females are to dine in the rooms. As there were 8 of us, out of which 6 were females, we took the in room dining option.



It is an interesting concept where everyone sits on the floor (ok, with cushioned pads), and your food will be placed on the floor. You have the option of either eating with your hands (the traditional way), or asking for the plate and cutleries. Since we were sharing the food, we thought we should stick with the plate and cutleries.



I have to say that the fish was excellently fresh and tender, and the rice fragrant and nice. We definitely had an enjoyable time, and we ordered mint tea after the meal. The mint tea was delicious, and it helped digest the food.



Only thing was, we had a bit of trouble getting up after the meal, as our legs were numb from sitting down too long! Word of caution: Change your sitting positions often to avoid pins and needles afterwards.. :-)


Mood: As usual, Monday blues... :-(

Writer's Block

I am having writer's block..! Sigh...

I guess without the camera I have less inspiration to write, and certainly less stories to tell..