Do you ever notice it?

I was at the Botanical Garden last weekend with a few colleagues. We went there for a recce but I was more interested in enjoying the surrounding, enjoying every bit of nature. My colleagues must be wondering why this crazy and silly gal couldn't stop snapping pictures. Ha, I guess that's probably one of the reasons why I can be such a freak at times :P As I walked on the carpet of crisp fallen leaves, I thought of autumn...As I continued to walk, fell in love with the smell, the sounds...and the little unnoticed secrets of nature...Do you ever notice them?

Go green + seafood

Felt like having lotsa vegetables...decided to fry beehoon with lotsa vegetables for packed lunch on Thursday. Prepared lotsa cabbage coz it should be able to add sweetness, not to forget carrots and shitake mushroom. Well, did not want it to be totally vegetarian so I added fishcake and prawns. Saw broccoli in the supermarket that day and thought I should include them in my packed lunch too. Thank goodness, the beehoon wasn't too dry, had that problem the last time I cooked them :P Well, simple homecooked meal but ha, I was kinda wolfing it down during lunch coz was really hungry :P

What's cooking?!

Used lean meat for this sweet and sour pork. The slice of pineapple I have bought from the fruit stall was so sweet that I couldn't help eating a few small pieces while cutting them into cubes :P Realised that I have forgotten to add green pepper, maybe the next time. Used Woh Hup sweet and sour sauce, thought a little of chilli padi may add some 'excitement' to the dish :P

Stir fry the shimeji mushroom with carrots and oyster sauce. Pour the ingredients and gravy over the steamed tofu. Love the sweetness of the mushroom in the oyster sauce!

Dou miao with lotsa garlic. Walked two rounds at the vegetables section, wondering what to cook, kinda a great variety to choose from. But don't really want to cook the usual that Mummy likes to cook.

Was looking at the stack of work to 'tackle' over this weekend and at the same time, 'battling' the urge to cook. Finally, chose to just spend my Sunday late afternoon preparing dinner for my parents and myself, didn't feel like eating out anyway. My parents were out in the afternoon and would usually be glued to the television set every Sunday evening, watching their favourite Taiwanese drama serial (goodness, wonder when the last episode would come, seem to be endless). Drove to the huge NTUC near Hougang Ave 9 to get what I needed, it was really crowded. Got what I needed and quickly made my way out of the crowd, seem to be developing this phobia of being amidst a crowd, don't really like it. Preparation plus cooking took me about probably one and a half hours. Hee, my father liked the sweet and sour pork, he said that it's nice *blushed* :P My mummy usually eats what I cook, always supportive :) Remembered what my sis and bro said about my cooking. XF said she could easily recognise the style of my cooking (from the taste and the presentation) and Didi said my cooking lacked the 'wok' taste. Sigh, profound indeed. Anyway, just enjoying what I enjoy doing :P Have had a good evening cooking! Hmm, guess what, that stack of work is still staring at me...Hmmm, shall I go make myself a glass of honey drink and maybe with a slice of lemon in it? :P

A mismatch

Kat and Miss Tan had their reflexology session (not really my cup of tea, my soles are too sensitive to be touched :P) at Vivo on Friday, met them for dinner after they had finished pampering their feet. Three real tired and drained ladies on a Friday night, having dinner at their usual Japanese restaurant at Vivo - Shin Kushiya. Ha, I knew Miss Tan would comment on that pink side plate, pink never fails to fascinate her at times :P She added that the little patterned dish for sauce was kinda a mismatch. Hmm, visually yes, it's probably a mismatch. Oh well, but life is full of mismatches, there's no really perfect match, isn't it? I guess there's just uniqueness and character in every one of that plates. I think Japanese usually have mismatched plates and bowls on their table anyway. Have we ever wondered why? I placed the two plates together and took a photograph of them. Not sure why I did that but I thought as I looked at the photograph a few more times, I thought they looked fine.

Packed lunch on Thursday

My packed lunch on Thursday...fried rice and braised chicken. Not too satisfied with the rice, had too much water in it, from the vegetables I guess. I thought the braised chicken was still not as good as Mummy's. Mummy said just having the superior dark soya sauce, star aniseed, cinnamon and cloves will be sufficient to spice up the dish. Not to forget, garlic and ginger. I will try again another time but well, I think my braised chicken kinda still looked a little better than XF's :P But anyway, nice or not nice, finished my whole box of packed lunch that Thursday afternoon, was such a satisfying lunch to me :)

Daydreaming...

Got this package of a sumptuous breakfast from Mark at the beginning of the week, on a Monday. There were two scones and a bottle of fruit juice from Cedele. Love to enjoy Celede's food during my free time away from work or when I am in a lazy and real relax mode away from the hustle and bustle of life... Heated up the scones in the microwave, had a cup of tea to go with the soft and warm scones...imagining myself sitting in front of a big field in a farm early in the morning. A few horses were running free in that field, so full of zest and poise in that moment of freedom. Just at the corner, there were cows grazing in the grass. The morning rays brought much warmth and delight to the field as well as the lady who's enjoying her breakfast...

This is a nose

Photograph sent by XF on 18 July, 9.09pm. This is a nose, this is a big fat nose that I kinda miss...

It's cooking time!

Missed cooking but was kinda too busy and tired to do so for the past two weeks, was thinking of how I had cooked numerous times at XF's place in Basel, miss those times too. Well, I was certainly in the mood to cook and prepare packed lunch to work on Thursday, was determined to do that. From buying of all the necessary ingredients at the supermarket, preparing the ingredients and cooking, I must say I have always enjoyed the process. Hmm, nothing to brag about my simple homecooked meal but I know there's joy and pride in savouring my own homecooked packed lunch and there's certainly joy in sharing the food :)

Rune Rune Rune!

Photograph sent by XF...15 July 2010, 2.03am. Miss squeezing this Swedish Moose and hugging him to sleep :P Didn't realise Rune has got a sweet smile too :)

I usually have two alarm set in the morning during the weekdays, well, nowadays I seem to have three, would receive occasional texts from XF in the wee hours of the morning, supposed to wake up and get ready for work. It's night time over in Basel and it's bedtime for her (kinda wish it's still bedtime for me when I receive those texts from her, wish I could just sleep a little longer, lazy piggy :P)

Sunny baby's toys

Photograph sent by Mark...13 July 2010, 6.03am

Barely a month and sunny baby has already spolit the toy that I have bought for him for his birthday :( Well, thanks to his really powerful teeth and not to forget, his great determination :P What an achievement, the rope which I thought was able to withstand Sunny baby's chewing and gnawing finally gave way. The toy that I gave him was used to encourage focused play, I guess he was really too engrossed in chewing it. I have always seemed to underestimate baby's power :P ...That day, Adeline commented that I shouldn't have sewn a few of Sunny baby's toys that were torn and that we could have just thrown them away. Hmm, I don't know, I just thought I couldn't bear to do that, seemed to have some kinda sentimental value. Wonder if Sunny baby shares the same sentiments. To this day, he still has his little blue spidey, has been around since he was months old I think. You know, it's just like our old PJ, old and sometimes a little tear could be spotted after many washes but just simply love to wear it to sleep, you just feel so comfortable and safe in it. Well, never mind about the ugly stitches on it, they don't seem to matter much at all :)

How GREAT the little things are

The Little Things

It really is the little things

That mean the most of all...

The "let me help you with that" things

That may seem very small

The "I'll be glad to do it" things

That makes your cares much lighter,

The "laugh with me, it's funny" things

That makes your outlook brighter...

The "never mind the trouble" things,

The "yes, I understand,"

The interest and encouragement

In everything you have planned

It really is the little things,

The friendly word or smile,

That add such happiness to life

And make it more worth while.

~ Mary Dawson Hughes

Dear Kat, this is especially for you...thank you for all the little things, you never know how GREAT they have meant to me. To the rest of you who are reading this, I just want you to know how all your little things have made my life a little happier, bearable and memorable :)

Catching up, chilling out

How much depth do you see?

HUGE plate of fries, tasted kinda different from the usual fries. This plate of fries was the main culprit for our unfinished mains.

What happens when a group of ladies come together? Well, I think you have gotten it right :P

Told Miss Tan that I must find time to have lunch or tea here one of the weekdays, she looked at me in disbelief. Well, you just wait my dear gal, once target set, I will make sure I do that :P

It was time to really catch up and chill out! Kat made a reservation for five of us at PS Cafe at Dempsey. It was still bright when we arrived at the cafe in the early evening. Simply enjoyed looking at the trees which were surrounding the cafe. A good day for outdoor dining too!

Sleeping Tammy

That day, while buying lunch at the coffeeshop near my workplace, Angeline came to me quickly after buying her daily 'dosage' of bubble tea. She pulled me to the other end of the coffeeshop, wanting to show me something. Hee, I had a strong feeling it's Tammy and indeed it was. Tammy was lying right in the middle of the walkway, simply oblivious to those people walking past, its body stretching comfortably on the ground. When I went near it, well, it couldn't even be bothered, seemed indifferent. Hmm, at times, kinda like this attitude that cats have. Took a picture of Tammy, Angeline shook her head and smiled, an old man turned around, looked at me and smiled. Ha, to them, I must have been acting crazy, fussing over a stray cat and even taking a picture of it. Hmm, well, kinda didn't bother about what others were thinking at all at that point of time, just loved to watch Tammy. Sent a picture of Tammy to XF and she asked how I knew the cat's name. Well, I don't, I just love to call it Tammy. Silly gal!

Slept like Tammy this Saturday morning, totally ignored the alarm that sounded at 9.30am, pulled the blanklet over my head, hugged my pillow tightly and was enjoying the comfort of my bed. What a nice Saturday morning to be sleeping, felt so luxurious :P It was kinda time for lunch when I finally got out of bed reluctantly (I felt I could sleep the whole day :P). My dear Tammy, we seem to be alike to a certain extent. Oh well, maybe you are kinda luckier coz you get to sleep like that everyday :P

Who are you?

"It takes courage to grow up and turn out to be who you really are." ~ E.E. Cummings

His little hoof

The previous week must have been one of the longest weeks I have ever gone through. It seemed like a month that went past. At times, not even sure how I went through those days and what I did. Glad that the past weekend is a little longer, have had hardly much rest since I was back from Switzerland, still crave for and miss those idling moments while on holiday...you know, the art of just doing nothing :P Being so carefree, walking along the streets, nobody knows you, nobody cares how silly or crazy you are, ha, that's a pretty good feeling too! Anyway, it's back to work, life must go on and I guess I will just do what I can or must, well, not ever forgetting the little joys and simple miracles that come along... Wanted XF to send me a pic of Rune (kinda miss him) but received a pic of his soft little hoof instead (see above) :P Maybe Rune should come home this December?

Happy Sunny Day!

I have not walked Sunny baby for a long time, so much so that I had almost forgotten how to put on his harness today. When I was in Switzerland, saw many people walking their dogs along rivers, near lakes, in the park, along the streets and dogs could even be spotted shopping in malls with their owners. Well, wished I had a dog to walk too. But hey, Sunny baby could be a real challenging dog to walk :P When I walk him, I kinda wish that no human beings, dogs, cats, birds or any moving living things would cross our path. If not, our dear Sunny baby would be barking at them, kinda like all ready to pounce on them :P Hmm, dun misunderstand and dun worry, this baby certainly means no harm. He probably just has his own way of showing affection. We would always walk past this household with a huge Labrador. Guess what, Sunny baby never barks whenever he sees that Labrador. He would go near the huge dog and both of them would start sniffing each other's noses, that Labrador would start wagging its tail, always giving me a look, so affectionate that it simply melts my heart :) Hmm, but it's always alone in the house though, no one seems to be home all the time. Well, I guess it's the same for baby too :P ...Challenging or not, I think it's a good walk with Sunny baby today. Was wondering if he knows it's his birthday today, he's three this year :P Happy Sunny Day! Muack!