So we're not sleeping in a tent?

Just over a couple of weeks away from my camping trip...

The excitement builds up...

Turns out we won't be sleeping in tents as well.. but in HAMMOCKS! Hehe I've never slept in a hammock overnight before.. not sure if I'll love it or dislike it.. but I sure am going to do it!

Got myself one of this from Outdoor Dynamics.

I wanted to get the camo hammock with netting at first but then had run outta stock which was good , cos I think I might be a little clautrophobic in it. Got myself the 2 person hammock since I got the man the 1 person hammock for himself. Figured we'd get two different sizes.

6 months and counting...

So it’s been 6 months since I’ve been off antibiotics. This is a HUGE milestone for me. For some, it’s no biggie but for me.. it’s a HUGE accomplishment and I’m proud of myself!

I was so prone before to taking them, at least once or twice a month. It came to a point I would take them at the slightest notion of getting sick just to prevent it. This is a BAD move, don’t ever do it.

But over time, it became toxin and poison to my body as my body grew more and more immune to the antibiotics and I had to take stronger ones or longer courses of them each time. My body also became super heaty, sometimes I would be burning up but with no fever. The effects of the antibiotics stay long in your body.

Now that I’m trying my best to be off it, I’ve realized that I rarely fall sick and even when I do get wet in the rain.. I’m all good. As compared to before when the slightest drop of rain would keep me out for at least 2-3 days.

It’s amazing how antibiotics are supposed to cure you but in my case they work against it and made me weaker.

Well I guess it’s also cos of the dosage and frequency I took them.

Much stronger and healthier now.

Next challenge, cutting down on sugary stuff. Now, that’s a real challenge!!!

Next Waterfall cum Camping Trip

I'm so looking forward to Jerangkang! Friends have gone there a few times and rave about it.

It's located all the way in Kuantan and so we'll need to camp a night there cos it'll make no sense to drive and hike all the way in to only stay a couple of hours at this majestic waterfalls.



I'm really looking the camping experience once again as well. The last camping trip we went to was at Pangkor in Feb 2010. That was by the beach, this would be by the jungle! Hahaha the last I camped in the jungle must have been when I was in high school.

Star-gazing, making smores, chilling in the pool, possible absailing thru the waterfalls, jumping off cliffs... Ooooo EXCITED!!!!

Season for Cooking & Baking

Ina Garten aka Barefoot Contessa is one of my favourite cooks to watch. Prior to her it was Delia Smith but they no longer show her sessions anymore. Barefoot Contessa used to be aired while I was still at work but recently AFC has been showing it at 635pm which is the perfect time for me because I'm back home.

Needless to say that I've not cooked or baked in a LONG time. I think the last time I really prepared a good meal was early this year for my parents and J.

Ina Garten's recipes works! This is crucial as many cooks on TV nowadays don't really reveal their true secret to their meals. Ina Garten however does and she is a fabulous teacher for those who are just starting out.

Watching her shows again recently has inspired me to cook but this time it's going to be an ensemble of appertizers and a dessert. Which one exactly? I'm not sure yet.. Time to research through some of her recipes.

Oh and save up to get her series of books too. Somehow I still like to have my recipe books in hard copy instead of from online.

Part-time Job?

Someone told me last week that I should be a stand-up comedian... Because I'm very expressive when I speak and I guess I'm somewhat funny at times.

Most of the time people are entertain at my expense.. But it tickled to know that I could genuinely be funny at times.. lol

Unplanned

Yesterday was a fun day!

Totally unplanned. Our first haircut together, it was high time that both of us needed a hair cut but funnily enough we both walked out of the shop not really pleased with the result. Oh well, hair will grow back.

Then we went over to a friend's house for Mr. Handyman to fix her light and she then took us out for a yummy Korean meal and Chatime for dessert.

Next was a spontaneous trip to Thai Odessy for a Thai Massage for me and Aromatheraphy Massage for him. This was a treat because we are on a road of saving money and decided to just splurge this one time since our last was in Koh Tao last July. Expensive but was worth it. Next massage probably in 6-12 months time lol.

Then we made our way to Robinsons in Gardens to collect our redemption vouchers which were expiring soon and utilize our birthday vouchers that we got. All in all we had RM170 to finish up and thank God it was SALE season!! The sale in Robinsons is truly a sale. Prices literally slashed down to 70% and we got quite a bit for our vouchers.

The only planned item for the day was a family birthday at night which we then proceeded to.

We should have more of these unplanned dates out cos it was totally fun!

Deeper

I had the most interesting conversation over dinner last Saturday with J and three others. Made me realise that there's still so much I dont know about him, so much to still learn, so much to compromise and definitely so much to look forward to.

I pray that in time his heart's desires will be mine and mine his.

Cheaper alternative to Nespresso

Long ago I use to see this small pot in the malls and had no idea what it was for. Now I own 2 of them  - 6 cups and 3 cups.

I'm not a big coffee drinker, in fact I probably only take like 1 cup every 2 weeks.. With the hype of everyone getting their own coffee machine, I wanted to get one as well. But that was probably the silliest thing to do since I don't drink so much coffee. The most I'd probably do often is to make my own Affogato.

Picture taken at KLIA Cafe Barbera while waiting to board our flight to Kuching

So I searched for alternative espresso makers and came across this. They are so ridiculously expensive here in Malaysia. I regret not getting them when I was in Europe, it was dirt cheap there. But thank God for a friend who introduced my cousin to a shop in Aus where she got it for me much cheaper. The 6 cup only cost me AUD12 and the 3 cup AUD9. Here in KL the 6 cup sells for RM160 - RM250.

I then got myself a small packet of Lavazza coffee powder and tested it out. It worked marvelously and my parents and J love it!

So for coffee lovers who are looking for a cheaper alternative that works just the same as those big coffee machines, try this.

PMC

PMC starts today. 1st of 7 weeks. Not sure what to expect but quite excited and looking forward to it.

Monday Blues?... Not

This Monday was unlike any other.. I didn't feel the notion of having Monday blues at all.. Throughout the day I was just showered with blessings in the form of CNY angpaos from the company, bosses and colleagues..

It was truly unexpected but indeed very pleasant.. and the fact that it kept flowing in at different hours of the day, made it all the more sweeter.

Sing, Dance, Fun, Business

We had our first staff meeting today.

Verdict : Unexpected but interesting events took place.

At first I thought they were joking, but they weren't! There were songs with ACTIONS involved! It was also my first time where we had to sing our national anthem before we start. So patriotic. Reminds me of school assembly once again.

It was quite entertaining seeing the uncles dance to the songs with such enthusiasm.

The first of many more.

Church Etiquette

As in love as you may be with your partner, I think there should be some sort of etiquette when you’re in church.

Just last weekend I was sitting two rows behind a young youth couple. Not sure if they’re newly dating but they were so distracting!

The constant whispers and giggles, lying on each other’s shoulder, kissing the forehead, playing with the hair was just unacceptable to me. They even had to hold hands the entire praise and worship session. I mean, seriously?? How are you to raise your hands in worship when your fingers are wrapped around each other? Before one were to go to the toilet or wherever she was going, they had to have a brief hug.. and another when she returned.

There was even a friend of theirs who was sitting next to them and the poor girl felt so uncomfortable. At least it looked like she was from where I was sitting.

It really irked me a lot. I mean, someone should really sit this couple down and speak to them because their actions are very distracting and to a point slightly disrespectful as well.

New Year, New Job

So it’s been 3 weeks since I started my new job. Been meaning to write about it but just haven’t found the time to.

No complaints so far, everything’s good. Looks promising.

Colleagues are ok, though I’ve not met all of them yet. The one thing that I miss about my old place are my friends. I miss the ‘snack’ and ‘ular’ periods that we had, I miss our lunches, I miss their jokes, I miss them.. Two of them were so nice to drive all the way to this side of town to meet me for lunch last week. Was supposed to meet up with four of them 2 days ago for dinner but decided to stay home and rest instead as I was still recovering.

What I love most about the new place – they RECYCLE! I’m big on recycling and it’s so fresh to be in a place that believes and practices the same.

They’re pretty cool too to give out half day Festive Season holidays. I’m choosing to use mine during the Christmas period and work through CNY.

It’s really quiet in the office now because 70% of them have gone on leave for CNY and will be back only in early Feb. But I’ve got quite a bit of work to complete for next week so that’s going to keep me busy.

Countdown, it’s 2 hours to the loooonnggg weekend!

Fraser’s Hill – Dec 2011

The Lees planned to go to Fraser’s Hill for a week after Christmas and Uncle Edward had invited my family to join. Fraser’s has been their holiday getaway for many years, since the Lee boys were young. The family decided to go ahead with the trip.

After a tough week, the family decided to head over to Fraser’s for a shorter period. I thought it was a good move to go ahead with the short getaway. As tough as it was at times, as memories of Uncle Edward flood back and the overwhelming feeling of how much we missed him, I think the trip was somewhat relaxing for the family, or at least I hope it was.

This was my only 2nd time to FH. The first was in Sept 2007 for our very first YA Retreat.

But this trip made me fall in love with FH all over again. The Lees boys showed me different parts of FH that I’ve not seen before.

This is where we stayed. It was absolutely gorgeous! I really hope that the Lees will be able to book this house again in future. Sadly I didn’t take pictures of the interior, but it was the residence of the Sultan of Selangor’s home many years before. High ceiling, fully carpeted flooring, 2 long dining tables, beautiful window panes with old fashioned hinges and so much more.

 

Just one side of the lavish garden.

We were also served scrumptious food at each meal with appetizers, main course and desserts. And to top that, waking up to the sounds of birds chirping, cool crisp air is just wonderful.

I really hope that we will be able to return here this year.

Demise of Uncle Edward Lee

1 March 1949 – 20 Dec 2011

To many he was YB Edward Lee, but to me he was Uncle Edward. 20th December 2011 marked a very sad day for me. I lost Uncle Edward to a battle of cancer that he has been fighting with for 2 years.

It pains me so much that I didn’t get a chance to spend more time with him, to go out on more trips together, to ever call him ‘dad’ or the fact that he will never be able to play and spoil his grandchildren.

But the one thing that I’m truly grateful for is the assurance of his salvation and the fact that we do not grieve without a hope but cling on to a time that we will see him once again in heaven.

Uncle Edward was truly one of a kind. On many occasions he would share different stories with me and I was in such awe to meet a man of such integrity. He fought for good. He fought for justice. He fought for the people. This is far more than I can say about many other politicians.

A side that some of you may not know about Uncle Edward.

His Official Blog

Remembering Edward Lee

29 years

That's how long my parents have been married. It was their wedding anniversary two Sundays ago and I decided to cook them a special meal.

One of my favourite chef is Ina Garten also known as Barefoot Contessa. Researched up some of her recipes and looked through my new cookbook "Reader's Digest - Everyday Light Meals". (which mum got at a steal from Groupon)

The 1st appetizer was a Four Cheese Stuffed Mushroom. I learnt this from a different chef during my Pasta & Pizza classes a few years back. Never fails to please a hungry stomach.

2nd appetizer was Crostini with Thyme-Roasted Plum Tomatoes.

 This was what it looked like before it went into the oven for 1.5 hours. 

Voila!

For the main course : Fillet of Beef Bourguinon with Roasted Asparagus. While in the midst of making sure the beef cooked well, I overdid the asparagus. They became so crispy that they literally had a crunchy sound when biting into it. lol.

Dinner was washed down with a bottle of Chianti wine from Italy. 

For dessert, I made a fresh lemon-lime sorbet. Sadly I forgot to take a pic of this. Always a next time for that.

Overall I was pleased with how dinner turned out except that everything was a tad too salty and there wasn't enough gravy for the steak.

But encouragement from parents and J surely motivates me to cook these kinda meals more often.

Chris Botti

Chris Botti.. ahhh I'm officially now a fan!

Nearly 4 months ago I purchased Chris Botti World Tour 2011 tickets for J's birthday present. I didn't know of Chris Botti and have not heard of his pieces before. But I knew that J really wanted to go see him live at the MPO so thought I'd surprise him with it.

And he was pleasantly surprised.

Unlike J, I still was no where near excited to see him.. until the day, 6th Dec arrived. The excitement built up slowly during the day with C posting different renditions and clips of him on FB.

When we reached MPO, we got word that his entire band was here to perform along with him. This was a real treat as we only expected it to be him and our MPO. But to have the whole band.. wow!

Billy Kilson, probably one of the best drummers I've ever seen played.

Image taken from here

I was at the edge of my seats for a few of his numbers and he even brought along 2 guest artist, one of which was Lisa Fischer. She toured with Rolling Stones for 17 years and has been with Chris Botti for the past 1 year. She's one amazing talent!

 Image taken from here

He also brought along Caroline Campbell. This stunning lady has such a wonderful presence when she performs.

Image taken from here

Since S&C had quite a few of Chris Botti's dvd and cds, we decided not to buy any. But paid quite a good sum for a poster of him and then lined up to meet with him face to face and get it autographed. 

Twas a very good night out and I hear that he may be coming to Asia next June again.

Casual Fridays

Got this from a colleague (yes it's ironic I know) but is there is some truth to it? Judge for yourself. Enjoy!

The HR department is well known for their many notes to employees. Here is one below
Casual Fridays:

First week

Effective this week, the company is adopting Fridays as Casual Day. Employees are free to dress in the casual attire of their choice.

3 weeks later

Spandex and leather micro-miniskirts are not appropriate attire for Casual Day. Neither are string ties, rodeo belt buckles or slippers.

6 weeks later

Casual Day refers to dress only, not attitude. When planning Friday's wardrobe, remember image is a key to our success.

8 weeks later

A seminar on how to dress for Casual Day will be held at 4 p.m. Friday in the cafeteria. A fashion show will follow. Attendance is mandatory.

9 weeks later

As an outgrowth of Friday's seminar, a 14-member Casual Day Task Force has been appointed to prepare guidelines for proper casual-day dress.

14 weeks later

The Casual Day Task Force has now completed a 30-page manual entitled "Relaxing Dress Without Relaxing Company Standards." A copy has been distributed to every employee. Please review the chapter "You Are What You Wear" and consult the "home casual" versus "business casual" checklist before leaving for work each Friday. If you have doubts about the appropriateness of an item of clothing, contact your CDTF representative before 7 a.m. on Friday.

18 weeks later

Our Employee Assistant Plan (EAP) has now been expanded to provide support for psychological counseling for employees who may be having difficulty adjusting to Casual Day.

20 weeks later

Due to budget cuts in the HR Department we are no longer able to effectively support or manage Casual Day. Casual Day will be discontinued, effective immediately.

20 days to Christmas

Christmas is probably one of the best seasons for most people.

It definitely is for me. I love every inch of Christmas!

Christmas tree : Checked!
Tags : Checked!
Fruit Cakes : Checked!
Dessert Wine : Checked!
Cards : This weekend and post them out on Monday
Gifts : 2 more and I'm done
Wrapping : Halfway through
Cookies :  Baking start on 21 Dec

Makan sessions are slowly filling up as well.

Christmas Eve Luncheon : Checked!
Christmas Eve Dinner : Checked!
Christmas Brunch : still free!
Christmas Lunch : still free!
Christmas Tea : still free!
Christmas Dinner : Checked!

I'm off the entire week after Christmas but will probably be away in Ipoh to visit mum's side of the family and head up to Fraser's Hill for a couple of nights with J's family.

Ahhh Christmas....

Hand-over

Countdown is now 15 days.

I was asked to start my hand-over and train the person who's going to take over about 60% of my roles at the end of Nov 2011. I've only taught her about 10% so far and have not handed anything over to her yet. Every 2 days I would ask if she has time to learn or when a new request for reports come in, I would ask if she'd like to do it alongside with me so that she could learn hands on. But each time she would either not reply my emails, ask me to do it first and she'll do the next round or keep silent. There aren't many other 'next rounds' coming up. Only 15 days left and there's lot to learn, some of which are quite complicated.

So yesterday I told her to come to me when she is ready to learn. I've done my part.

It kinda annoys me that she's not wanting to learn and there's not much time left. And knowing people here, the rumor would probably be that I just left without doing a proper hand-over.