Merry Xmas from Changi

Merrry Christmas!! I'm typing from CHangi Airport where we will be for a few hours before flying off to Taiwan for a week long eating and shopping spree!!!

My vision still isn't very good and I can hardly see what I'm typing so please excuse my typo errors! I'm hoping my vision will improve by the time we get to Taiwan but at the moment, at least I'm quite comfortable and there isn't any pain or great discomfort. Now if only I could see things more clearly, how to spot yummy snack foods if I'm half blind??

Ok I'm a bit tired now, happy holidays everyone!
Merry Christmas Jan, Andy, Darren and June! And Happy Birthday to Jan in advance!!

Pro and Cons about Flying Home

In a few hours Jo and I will be boarding a plane to fly home. This time I'm really excited and nervous about going home.

Pros about going home:
1. Seeing Ah ma and Ah pa again
2. Yummy and affordable local food. It will be weird not having to fork out at least AUD$7 for every meal, can't wait to go for RM2.50 auntie lao-deng kolo mee.
3. Playing with the doggies.
4. Seeing Gun-gun and Ma-ma ( I don't know when that became a pro but they seem to grow so much older every time I go back. We bought Ma-ma a little singing Santa, I hope she likes it).

Cons:
1. Meeing the other relatives. I don't mind meeting them, but I dread the ' Ah Di, kak bui kee hor?' comments.
2.Fending off questions about jobs, how much salary I'm getting etc.
3. Accidentally meeting old friends who never have nice things to say.

There should NEVER be any cons about going home.I am 24 going on 25 and yet I still possess a child's mentality about going home. When will I get over the bloody weight issue and feeling so scared of judgment and negative comments? I still haven't managed to grow a thick skin after all this time.

Hopefully the next time I get to go back, I'll grow more skin, be less sensitive and there won't be a con list.

p/s we loved your Christmas parcel Jan! and the Christmas card too. Sometimes I think you have the Japanese 'touch', every card, present and parcel is so personal, pretty and detailed. Hope you and Andy have a wonderful Christmas. Happy Holidays!

Starting 08 with a smile (^__^)

I was awaken by an early morning phonecall. I got the job! This is from the interview where I went 'Er....er......er ........ gosh, I'm so bad at this' midway through a question!! Apparently they said I did really well, hahaha.

Will be starting at the new job (working for the government) when I return from holidays early Jan. I am excited. Y(^______^) Y

At first I immediately wanted to buy a new laptop to replace my slightly wonky old one. But now that the excitement has settled, I think I'm going to wait till April before I make any decisions. Maybe the department will buy me a laptop?? *wishful thinking*

I am now soo looking forward to the holidays and 2008! (* v *)

Purple Trees

I love the purple trees that line the streets of South Perth. At night the flowers let out a lovely fragrance that leaves one slightly heady.

Everyone is going off or home for the Christmas holidays. But this year I'm not so sad or lonely, because I will be going home too.

Sweet Oranges

Haven't blogged for ages so I thought I would put up some random pictures that I took over the month.


Quite some time ago we went to a newly opened Japanese restaurant which was an all-you-can-eat buffet. This was my first plate. Lots of sashimi. Yums. If you all ever come to Perth we will be visiting this place.


Jo and her Northshore (where she works during the weekend) gang, Jason and Gillian. They also joined us during the Japanese dinner. Jo and Gillian have become very close. She's very nice.


For some weird reason, I couldn't get enough of the oranges served at the buffet. They were so sweet and refreshingly cold. And so conveniently cut into such perfect sizes! After the buffet, I went to the fruit market and bought some Australian navel oranges. Ever since then I've been trying to cut them in the same way, but they just don't taste so good. So weird.


This is Gillian's 9 year old dog, Angel. She's very greedy and likes sushi a lot.
We brought her out for a walk along the South Perth riverbank. The weather was really nice, sunny yet windy.

A week and a bit and I'll be home! Can't wait. (^___^)Y

Australian Idol Finale

The supervisor lookalike won.

(T______T)

Sigh. Stupid Australian Idol.

I'm going back to watch Taiwan's Millionstar.

Life without rice isn't nice (T____T)

Yesterday it was Wui Hao's birthday and we went to a Japanese restaurant for dinner. Jo and I both had bento sets but we didn't allow ourselves to touch the rice much. However, we did have a few spoonfuls lah. Then Jo turned to me and said ' Do you notice how nice the rice is?'

Rice is warm, fluffy and yet a little sticky. How do I live without you?


After dinner we walked to this nice Malaysian place next door which sells lovely chendols. The silly boys ordered an extra one for us assuming we were going to share. But we were very gwai and refused the drink.
Today we had salad again.
The other day it was salmon with mixed salad.
Grilled lamb chop with mushrooms. After a while all greens start to taste the same, especially since we aren't allowed much ingredients to make salad dressings. It's extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar or lemon juice. Bleah..

Besides missing rice, I really just miss cooking dishes. You know the one meat dish, one vegetable dish and maybe soup with rice kind of cooking. It's weird not using the slow cooker for braising spareribs, or maybe making tamagoyaki, stuff like that.

Jo and I also realised that we're not enjoying food that much anymore, even when we try to allow ourselves to take day offs and have one coffee drink etc. Stuff that used to taste so good just tastes rather bland. We are losing our foodie souls.
Anyway here's a picture that I took of Swan River with Perth city in the background. I am really looking forward to going home!!

Millionstar

Lately I've been watching this Taiwan Idol-ish show with all these young Taiwan kids. I like listening to all the songs and also the host is my favourite host 'Tao Zi' hehe.

Not sure whether Jan will like this show but in case you're interested its called 超级星光大道. I think they're up to season 3 now but I'm starting from season 2. Season 1 was quite funny because there was this guy who kept crying but was the favourite to win till he had to quit because he forged his age to get into the show! Chio si wa. Everyone on the show was crying when he announced that he was quiting but I was laughing so hard.

These Taiwanese have such funny English names, this girl's name is called 'Katsu', katsu??! Isn't that Japanese pork cutlet or something? Maybe she's saying that she's a 'zhu pa' hahaha. But all the girls seem so skinny! Don't they eat in Taiwan?

Ok, back to my show now, bye!

Salad Overload and a little Culture Shock

Grilled mushrooms are actually really nice! It's a new find to add into our salads and more salads. Jo and I have been eating so much salad that leaves will be sprouting out of our ears soon.
Jo's finished her thesis! We brought all 4 copies for binding today and she will be handing it in tomorrow, hurray! We celebrated by eating mixed salad instead of plain lettuce! No lah, just kidding,we had some lovely grilled chicken wings too.

Today when we went swimming, I was putting our bags into the locker and turned towards Jo to ask her something when I saw the expression on her face (0 ~ o). It was such a funny look! As if she accidentally swallowed a frog.

Then this Asian lady breezed past her and walked towards the lockers. She was stark naked. As in can see everything, EVERYTHING kind of naked.

I'm actually quite used to 'openness' of this sort in Australia but obviously it was Jo's first encounter. I had to bite my lip to stop myself from smiling. I threw a look at Jo trying to convey the message of ' it's quite normal, it's ok' but I think Jo was in a state of disbelief.

I hurried into the bathroom to change to stop myself from laughing aloud. After a while, I walked out from the bathroom and lo and behold, there was that lady again! Standing in front of the sinks and mirrors, legs wide open and brushing her long hair, still happily err... bare.

To stop myself from grinning, I rushed to the lockers again when I saw Jo walking out from the bathroom and seeing the same glorious sight. Her face was PRICELESS!

I almost died from not laughing aloud. I pulled Jo away and we went out to the swimming area. The first thing that came out from Jo when she left the showers was ' WHHHY??? whhhhy???'

Chio si wa.

Rabbit Food

We had grilled chicken salad for dinner tonight. Shredded chicken pieces with lots of cos lettuce and a few cherry tomatoes drizzled with a little olive oil.

Midway through our meal, Jo looked at me and said ' We're like rabbits'.

Didn't know whether to laugh or cry but we ended up laughing a lot. (^___^)

In an attempt to reach our daily water intake of 2 - 3 litres, Jo and I have been guzzling plain water all day. We now resemble floatation devices. At least we know we won't drown when swimming!

Health Kick

Jo and I half started our diet today. Sigh... we hate diets. Dinner consisted of grilled salmon (marinated with balsamic vinegar and light soy sauce) on a bed of stir fried cabbage. Jo was a little dismayed because she doesn't like fish but I think in the end she thought it was ok. I think tomorrow we might have grilled/roasted chicken instead.

Swimming tomorrow!

Fish Paste Egg Rolls

I tried a new recipe from Chubby Hubby today, Steamed Fish Paste Egg Rolls and it turned out pretty good. Only problem was I should have served the rolls straight out of the steamer, it was a bit cold when we finally started eating.
For dessert, I made Hong Dou Sha with Lily Bulbs and Lotus Seeds. This time I remembered to take out the bitter seeds inside the lotus seeds ( the last time I forgot to remove the seeds and it was so bitter!). I think I want to make Lek Tao Suan soon, can buy Yew Char Kueh to go with it...only.....Jo and I have to DIET!!!

So sad. (T____T)

Poor girl's version of Fried Sharksfin

Every now and then I get a craving for Ah Ma's specialty Fried Sharksfin which we always have for Chinese New Year. So I substitute sharksfin with tanghoon and it usually comes out pretty tasty.

Except last night my normal poor girl's version was made every poorer because I didn't add any meat or prawns at all, just used crabstick,carrots, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and ham (-____-). It was quite tasty but not salty enough and just lacked a certain oomph. Ok ok, I guess I'll add some chicken or prawns in future.
I've been thinking that I better start writing down the things that I plan to eat during holidays. Pohpiah, ham chim peng, bakkua, pohpiah, char kueh, poh piah, mee pok and did I mention poh piah? We just can't get good pohpiah here lah.

Jo and I are going on a diet starting November! (T_______T) We have to try and slim down before our holidays or we're not going to be able to do any shopping or eating at all.

I finished my last project for company, free from the chains of terror and back to job hunting again. Sigh. Ok, I'm off to watch Law and Order now, bye!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas .....

Still a couple of months to go before Christmas but the Christmas decorations are already up around Perth!


Jo requested teriyaki hambaagu for dinner on Friday.


Jo and I liked this 'baby 1st's Christmas' themed tree in Myers. Ahh...come Christmas time Jo and I will probably be feasting on Taiwan sausages and mango ices in Taiwan..can't wait
\(* v *)/!

Friends have been asking me why I don't stay in Kuching till CNY before going back to Perth. While I would love to relax at home, I can't help thinking ' one month in Kuching equals one month less income/job hunting'. Whatever happens, I'm really really looking forward to a restful holiday and lots of time with the family. And Kuching food!


These pieces of bak kua were on sale during UWA's Spring Feast. The saddest looking things EVER. Thompson's bak kua here I come!!

The Never Meetings

Tuesday morning. Meeting at 8.00 am Perth time, 10.00am Sydney time. I was given a new number to call so was expecting lots of problems. Called the tele conference number and was told that the conference hasn't been initiated yet. Listened to the call waiting songs till 8.30 am. Put down phone and called again. Conference still hasn't been initiated. Gave up at 9.00 am.

Same Tuesday. Marketing conference at 11.30 am Perth time, 1.30pm Sydney time. They are supposed to call me. 20 minutes passed, still no call. Called supervisor and asked ' Aren't we supposed to have a Marketing meeting?' She replies ' Yes ..but the head of marketing isn't here! I'm not sure where she is, but I'll give you a call back when she gets in'

'Ok'.

Not sure whether I should continue on with my work i.e. more phonecalls or wait for their call. Decide to wait for 30 mins. No call. Continue with work.

Received an email on Wednesday, no apologies for missing the meeting, just a new time for another marketing conference for Thursday.

Received another email stating a different time for Thursday conference. Update calendar.

Thursday. Receive another email stating ANOTHER different time for conference. Update calendar.

Come Thursday. Am waiting by the phone for the scheduled 2.15pm Perth time ( 4.15 Sydney time) marketing conference.

It's now 2.55 pmPerth time , 4.55 pm Sydney time, 5 minutes to close of business time for Sydney HQ. Any chance the meeting is still on??

Again, no emails, no apologies, but I will be waiting for the new scheduled time tomorrow.

Celebration Hari Raya in Perth

I'm sure Jo missed her Ayam Masak Merah and Beef Rendangs this year. Her eyes always shine so brightly when she talks about ayam masak merah, unfortunately my Ayam Masah Merak attempts in the past haven't been great so I'll have to try it again some other time.

We were invited to Ars's house for Hari Raya again this year. He cooked two large bowls of Beef Rendang and Chicken Rendang. We also had store bought ketupat and satay sauce. Very yummy. His rendangs were very spicy and tasted great with ketupat, must get his rendang recipe next time.

I didn't cook any meat dishes this year and provided desserts instead.


My first attempt at Kueh Salat. Hehe, a bit messy and badly cut but will do. Everyone seemed to like it and finished everything. We're deprived lah.


Pandan flavoured and coconut milk agaragar. At least two distinct layers showed up. The agar agar was supposed to be green in colour but I didn't have any green food colouring hence it was boring white.


Konnyaku jelly with mixed fruit pieces. I chinchai grabbed a packet of konnyaku jelly powder without realising that it was guava flavoured. Luckily the jelly was quite refreshing especially with the fruit bits.

It's Sunday night now and the weekend is officially over. It went by too fast I think. Tons of work due tomorrow so I'm doing some last minute work and hopefully things will go well tomorrow. Will need to have the quit job talk with my supervisor tomorrow. I still can't believe that she beat me to the chase and resigned before I did!

Quitting feels very scary. A bit like falling off the edge of the world and not knowing what's going to happen next. I can't decide whether I'm considered a failure or whether I should think of quitting as letting go and moving on.

The stress and worry from this job completely consumed my life these past 4 months. What happens after you fall off the edge of the world?

Cabbage soup and a little story

Jo has been complaining that she misses drinking soup and tong sui so I cooked cabbage soup with fishballs, crabstick, baby sweet corn, carrots and the works for dinner tonight. Good way to use up the free chicken carcass that I get from the Chinese butcher shops.
We also had her favourite oyster sauce chicken with onions. Jo asked ' how many onions did you put in?!' I answered ' Err two, I thought you love onions?' Mark who came for dinner laughed and said ' Good for pang pui' (-_____-)"

He then proceeded to tell us this horrible story about his teacher who had some kind of operation. When the operation was over, the doctor told her ' when you fart, it means you have recovered liaw'. So Mark's teacher was waiting and waiting anxiously for her farts to come. 2 days later she farted and was very happy.

Thanks for the story Mark. Sure made dinner more appetizing. (-____-)

Phad Thai

Haven't cooked phad thai for almost two years! I had to get the recipe off Ah Ma and cooked it for dinner tonight. My rice noodles were too hard even though I soaked it for 10 minutes, I forgot what I used to do with it to get the right consistency. 20 minutes instead? Still love the sweet and sour taste though, very 'kai wei'.
We had dinner while watching the latest results for Aus Idol. Our favourites are still in but the ones I don't like are still in as well! There's that supervisor look alike girl which Jo quite likes but I hate. It's unfortunate that she looks just like the younger version of my supervisor whom I now really despise. I have to close my eyes when she's on TV. And there's also this 'surfer' dude who never combs his hair who Jo has affectionately dubbed 'the dog'. He even has a doggy name ' Marty'. He has a really broad rounded Aussie accent as in 'I' is pronounce ' Oo..i'.

Monday's finally over but Friday feels like miles away. I'm hoping we can watch Hairspray tomorrow, apparently it's a really feel good movie which is what I need right now.

Spaghetti for Dinner

Jo and I went swimming today! We usually go to this leisure club near our place which has an indoor and outdoor pool. The pool reeks of chlorine and we usually stink for about two days after swimming.

We had spaghetti bolognese for dinner, I've stopped buying bottles of premade sauce and prefer making my own sauce. I like lots of shredded basil leaves on mine while Jo doesn't like any herbs at all, she hates coriander, parsley, basil etc. which is too bad because I love them!

Tomorrow we'll be eating out because UWA's having their annual Spring Feast, I hope the stalls are good this year, I am hoping to eat Chwee Kueh and Mua Chee. Then Curtin Uni is having their Pasar Malam on Friday which we're definitely going to coz Jo is going to meet up with some of her colleagues. Die loh, all plans of dieting before going home not really working.

Ok, that's all for now! Two days and counting to the weekend.

Perth Royal Show 2007

I had a much needed and lovely long weekend.


Even though we had light showers throughout the day, Perth Royal Show 07 was really fun. I've been to the show almost 4 years in a row and I'm still not tired of it ( goes to show how boring Perth can be). It was especially fun going with Jo this year even though I had to stop her from buying miscellanous ugly soft toys!


I think the stall owners loved her because they don't usually get such a joyful reaction from their ripoff teeny weeny prizes. ' Soooooooo cute !!!!' (-____-)"


I was hoping to steer her away from the dreaded area but .... she found the coin machines!! She first fell in love with those cash sucking machinese back in London and has been feeding coins into them ever since she discovered them in Perth arcades.


My favourite buy of the day, the cute squidgy balls necklaces which light up when squeezed , Jo got a orange squidgy and we bought one for Jan too.


The fireworks show at 9pm was spectacular.

Sigh.. it's back to work tomorrow. (T______T). I feel sick in the stomach. Jo and I had dinner in front of the tv watching Australian Idol, it's the only Aus tv show that we're hooked on. There's a girl who sings pretty well but I don't like her coz she looks like my supervisor.

Most of the time I can't be bothered to watch Australian tv after working, it's like I don't want to be reminded of the people I have to talk to and work with everyday. Instead, I keep Chibimarukochan in the background, she's so cute and cheerful.

Ok, first official post for this blog! Good night!