Morning Walks and Coffee Talks...

Morning walks with two different friends on two different occasions at the same location after over some coffee and hearty breakfast.

 Penang is not at its best when the island is

just a silhouette! (hmm, hadn't I said that before?!)

It was one of those mornings, where the weather was gloomy. I know I've been here countless times yet the nostalgic feelings always set in upon casting my eyes over the horizon. It was different this time though, in fact, every time when I'm with a friend or two or when the whole gang gathered at the same spot!

I was very pleased that day when I lent my ears, and shoulders for a friend to cry on. Our coffee talks ended in quite a cheerful her. I hope. hehehe!

As I drove home, I told myself that the world has not revolved around me alone ... others have their fair share too. Yeah, I know that, I know that!

Oh, with the other friend, it was a 'merapu' time with her whilst sharing a bowl of 'soto'! ;D

No Ordinary....

Driving in slightly drizzled afternoon, (which by now, as I'm sitting in my living room, is already raining heavily) my seemingly smooth journey is somewhat slowed down by many stops at the many traffic lights. Well, nothing new, but I've been a good driver just now; otherwise... psstt... come closer lemme tell you a secret, I selalu beat the red light tau!
Noti kan? 

Fancy this....at every amber light I see, the same image comes to my mind...


...and makes me hungry. Psstt again...I have not eaten anything since breakfast this morning...hikhikhik!

I'm seeing and thinking of telur mata lembu.... on a plate of piping hot rice, douse with kicap k*pas udang. One poke at the mata, the lovely gooey runny yolk oozing like lava is to die for!

Ordinary meal, you might say.

It's ordinary alright but miracle indeed for me! ;-)

pssstt... Don't think you want to know this, but for lunch I already made rendang dinding. Some I have given to a friend who is leaving for Mesir in two day's time and some for my early dinner tonight. Still no telur mata lembu... er...mata lembu ke mata kerbau? Aduh, lapar... gotta go now!

Not My Song!

Clearing the table after Sunday's lunch recently, I hummed a song that once took our music scenes by storm. The singing got a little louder and with such opening verses that has almost a monotony melody, I should say, had caught Mysarah's attention. While doing the dishes, she called out from the kitchen, "euwww gross! Mummy, I haven't heard you sing that song before! Is that your made-for-yourself song?" She laughed cheekily!

I stopped short before the chorus thinking what made me sing that song in the first place, and meekly said, "you think I wrote that song? if that's so, I'm flattered!" And when I continued singing the chorus, MyC Mysarah had second thoughts.... hikhikhik!

And the song follows me in my head all day...

Entry Malas Malasan...

Malas sebenarnya nak menulis ni... Bukan ada apa pong nak cerita. Kalau ada pong, hehe...hanyalah cerita sessi menyoping (if there is ever such a word!)!!

Pagi -pagi Jumaat dah berlarak ke Mik*sa sale tu. Punyalah confident ingatkan kami yang paling awal. Rupa-rupanya dah berderet kereta sepanjang jalan masuk ke kilang Mik*sa ni! Tapi as always, pergi dengan Kak T, nampak aje kereta dia, cepat-cepat pak and mak guard tu buka gate. Kekdahnya, dapatlah kami park kat dalam! I salute ler dengan Kak T ni! ;=D

This time around takde ler buying for myself tapi beli-beli pinggan mangkuk untuk buat present for the upcoming weddings masa tahun baru Cina nanti. Tapi itulah, nama lagi sale....bila yang ini ada, yang itu pulak takde... Dapat yang elok takde pulak dapat 'buy two free one'! Bila ada yang berkenan, cuma ada dinner plates saja...alahai... Tapikan, yang paling best bila tengok barang-barang B*lla. Ini kiranya local version betul! Dah ler gradenya very distasteful, tapi disebabkan harganye murah giler-giler, tak nampak dah chokia chokia sangat! Kat sini you don't have to be careful at all. There is no such thing as "Nice to see, Lovely to hold...Once broken, considered sold" ...kat sini, it is.."once broken...we break some more"!!! Muahahahaha))) Macam takde makne jer....

Barang-barang B*lla bawah canopy tu memang banyak tapi nak membelinya ...azab! I just stood outside the tent and scrutinised the frenzied crowd. I was deep in my thoughts when a 'mat salleh' came to join my reverie...just like me, he shook his head a few times watching the chaos at the two narrow counters. I was not ready to meander about the maddening crowd and grab whatever that caught my sight and came my way. But I was ready for one thing - regret it big time later when I'd see those exquisite, hundreds over items at Shima $'s house come Monday!

Betul pong pun....this morning selepas kelas mengaji...berebut kami selongkar lemari Shima! "ooohs, aahhhs" ler memasing! She really made good use of the three-day sale. Sebenarnya, bukan I minat sangat pong dengan barang-barang tu...tapikan tapi geram dengan harganya. Masakan tidak if prices starts at as low as RM2? Moreover, my friend Shima ni very creative, she bought a dozen of cute creamers for a steal...mixed and matched them with dainty saucers of a different design and can be passed off as teacups! 
 Ha ha ha, teacups with pouts!  Tapi I loike!

As for my friends and me, these are our 'bundles of joy' that day!:

Penuh kereta 'mak sedih', wa cakap lu!

Tata! 

Of Crave and Craze....

Well, I'm being a good girl too like Somuffins; save for some emotional outbursts on a momentary impulse basis. Hikhikhik! That, I know is not a good girl!

Not to be outdone by the other good girl, hehehe, I made Apam Butter early this morning. I've been craving for some the other day. I love these kuihs because they're not that sweet and very filling too. Nice to go with nescafe tarik! 

nyum, nyum.... have some will you?

I don't know whether it was plain stupid or not, but I thought it wasn't a good idea (at first) for me to be watching a movie on HBO after breakfast. I cried buckets, you know! But it's good in a way...haha! Mid-way through the movie, I thought to myself it wasn't a bad idea after all for dropping all my chores just to watch this heart-wrenching "My Sister's Keeper". I must have given the novel a miss when it was released a few years back. And now watching the movie makes me want to buy a copy. Trouble is, I am slowly catching up on another book by the same author and God knows when I will be able to finish reading it. Each time I'm about to leaf through the book, my heavy eyes would not compromise with my interest. It ended up, almost always, with the book wide open on a snoozy me!

And of late, my new-found craze and companion while watching tv or reading (or even while writing this entry), has been this old-school snack... Hmm...how ironic, something new for something already old! ngeh18X! It all started when I bought some for my mother last holidays. All these while I know, the pickled fruits are synonymous with Penang, but I often disregard them only because I'm not into that tit-bits habit. But now just one bite and I go gaga!

Jeruk madu campur....I hope it won't become a habit... ;-)

 

Sunday on a Monday?

I've been confining myself at home over the weekends. Something so odd for me. Hikhik! All because, MyC was not feeling well and she stayed in bed most of the time with  books strewn all over her. She is gearing up for exams as early as December last year. Oh dear, was it only last month!?

By yesterday evening she was up and about but would not want to have dinner outside. (Please....mummy is so, so, so bored...say yes please, please....I need to go out!)  Ehem, but being the ibu mithali as I always am...(blueekk!) we had a simple dinner of seafood tomyam, some greens and omelette, at home.  At home.

This morning I thought of 'nak lepas wap' hahahaha....at my Quran class; usually after our recital and all! But as I was getting ready, a friend called to say that this morning class has been cancelled. There goes my 'lepaking'! Hehe! Elok jugak, I masih 'dalam pantang'! ;-)

And here I am.... just got back from the mini-market and am asking myself the same question, "....what to cook?"!

Oh, it's already 11am....I had better start lunch. Will rant later!

By the way, here's my dessert yesterday. Although I'm not a dessert person; but for the family I'd do anything for them....and for my friends too! :))

Bread and butter caramel pudding...

Tata! <3

Lunch, Lunch, Lunch.....

For the past few days, I have been quite busy and couldn't find the time to cook lunch. Only yesterday I started cooking again. Having sent Mysarah to school at 6.45am, in the dark of January mornings (it usually is dark at this hour in January, no?...), I headed straight to the market. If you're looking for fresh seafood, this is the time when the fishmongers start unloading the best catch for the day.

Well, it has been awhile too I have not blogged about my cooking. So, let's see what Lili has cooked...

I had these yesterday:

 Masak Lemak Udang bernenas...

hmm...lama dah tak masak atau makan ni...

Punyalah sedap, makan sambil menangis!
Siapa suka masakan ni sila angkat tangan, ye...

Wahaha!

 

 

  ...and the complete lunch set...

sambal ikan and stir-fried string beans and cabbage

Today's lunch is a bit elaborate. I wanted to use up a little leftover of basmati rice that I bought during the last Raya Haji, so masaklah nasi tomato....favourite Mysarah. Beras basmati campur sikit dengan beras siam... hehe! So, tak dapat texture sebutir-butir panjang-panjang ....tapi percayalah, sedap all the same! Hikhik)))

    

 Dalca udang....walaupong kan, I tak makan udang

 Ayam Ros...apsal nama ayam tu Ros, hah?

Recipenya main campak-campak...

Ayam digoreng masak tapi jangan garing...

Rempah tumisnya: Cili giling, rempah kari daging sikit, rempah korma

sikit, serbuk jintan manis, bawang merah, bwg putih n halia. 
Add tomato paste, H*inz tomato soup,

and susu cair...seasoned with salt and sugar... 

Onion rings and fresh mints to finish off...

 Salad timun and tauhu with sambal kacang sauce...

eee, rasa lapor balik!

My pinggan of nasi tomato letak shredded carrots lagi!

Apsal tak nampak carrot nya?

Actually, dah tergigit sikit tauhu tu baru tingat nak amik gambar... :-)

Okay, that's about all for now....

Have a nice weekend, y'all!

Lots of love,
Lili
 

"Mee Kasar"!!!

Another title of betul-betul tak boleh blah!  Sorry ye, kena tukar nama brand tu sikit...bagi ada bunyinya aje. Yalah, these days, bila orang google for so and so, selalu gak terbabas ke blog sunyi I ni! Bukan tak suka tapi I kan ke femalu... hikhik! Bunyi jer gah blog ni, nanti dah masuk harus ada yang menyesal.
Bear with me, ye.... 

Amacam? Dah cer teka ke I pergi mana semalam? From the comments, 'kimeng' Ja yang rasa-rasanya boleh menang best 'buat cerita' award! walaupong kan you dah tahu I pi mana semalam...

Anyway, yesterday was the girls' day out for the four of us -  my friends kak T, Sha and Ros, and of course, yours truly. We were traveling to a crockery plant in K*lim to have a 'sneak peek' at the items that will go on sale very soon. Kak T is a regular at this 'made in Malaysia but not for sale in Malaysia' tableware and what-not. She was informed earlier in the week by the outlet manager to view some of the first grade items. How excited we were when she chose the three of us to accompany her!  My visits to this plant is not as often as kak T does. I come during sales and itu pong boleh terlepas a few.

Actually, I ni takut-takut verani nak tayang gambar-gambar yang dah ambil semalam. Yalah, dah la terpampang sign "no camera'. Moreover the showroom manager is one temperamental lady with an acid tongue. She gets so testy easily and snaps at anyone - even the customers. But she is very different with kak T. Hmmm....tang ni I ada sikit musykil....apsal dia tak verani dengan kak T....  Tapikan tapi, according to kak T, pompuan tu pernah kena warning dari orang atas, sebab dapat banyak komplen daripada customers yang dia ni sombong, moody dan suka bentak-bentak. Kesian ler pulok, kan? 

But I digress.

Okay, no more storylah.... let's just enjoy the show! La la la la la la.... oohh, I want my money back!

A*na Griff*n by L*nox

 Am eyeing for this "mee kasar" platter.... I already imagined

a whole roast leg of lamb on it!

Pray it'll go for 'buy one free one'... hikhik!

 If this is your pick or the one below, try buying the reject pieces...

sold normally under a huge tent outside the godown.

It'll cost you half of the original price!

 

 Assorted bowls of exquisite designs....

hmm..I'll pass

The ones with yellow tag will be 10% less

These are the first grade Meekasar! 

Want to know what I bought?
Tunggu.... to be continued

 Bye for now....nak boom boom dah... nite nite puppy everybody! ;-)

Cer Teka...Cer Teka....

.... kat mana I berada sepanjang pagi ni? Cer teka tau! Huahuahuahuahua))))

Hik hik hik hik....I sexcited kekdahnya! Hik hik hik hik..... cer tenangkan I... cer tenangkan I!

....bersambung....

 

A Birthday

Today is my niece's birthday. She is so excited about her birthday, that she made it a point that everyone in our family to write a birthday message on her facebook wall! Since I was in Ipoh recently, I already wished her in advance and gave her what little I have to celebrate in advance. Mmmm....talk about in advance, I too have received many wishes in one go! Har, har, har, har)))

Farihah, my niece who turned fifteen today, was elated when I woke Sunday morning that day in Ipoh just to prepare her rendang dinding for her 'ration' to take back to school. She too, was busy doing her last minute packing before she leaves for her boarding school in Gerik, Perak. Yes, that funny name they coined....Merang, something, something...es em....hehehehe....MRSMlah senang ko! But, I'd always go Geriks Gediks.... :))

 "bye-bye, baby...see you next time! Ateh loves you so much. :'("

(oops, same baju at profile pic? hihik!)

Oops, it's bye-bye the second time when we met at 

the traffic light!

 

Once again, here's Ateh wishing:  Happy Birthday, kak yong Farihah!

Entry Mengade...

Morning!

Saje jer nak start ada posting baru for January 2011 ni.

Pagi-pagi lagi dah start bersilat, pong pang pong pang...macam ler ada anak lapan nak ke sekolah ni. Padahal, Mysarah releks je buat bekfes seniri, pastu siap tolong warm-upkan engine kereta. Dah kiss-kiss hug-hug, dia babai dan pergi tinggal mummy dia sorang-sorang. Macam tak bese...

Actually, I dah tulis berkajang-kajang posting baru semalam. Cerita hal-hal di Ipoh masa balik weekend sempena New Year ni. Tapikan, bila I baca balik....gelak sensorang...baca, gelak, baca, gelak... I knew something is not right. Bukan I ye yang 'not right' tu. From my past experience, kalau kita tulis something yang kita rasa kelako, kita gelak reading our own posting, fat chance that would be the worst posting ever. E V E R. So, I'll let it sit in the draft for now, or foreverlah. 

Pagi ni, I dah plan tau, nak buat apa dulu. Definitely, not this posting. Not even pegang laptop is in my agenda this morning. I dah pasang niat (tak nak guna azam) nak bereskan kain baju yang bawak balik dari Ipoh semalam. Tapikan, bila on aje mesin pagi ni, instead of filling up the tub, the water kept draining out. How now? Salah I ke kalau I bertukar arah mengadap laptop? Hubby kata, nanti dia tengok...sekarang nak tidur sekejap. Oh ye, lupa habaq, hubby cuti lagi. Lepas hantar apple of his eyes tu ke sekolah, dia booomm balik. So, I masih ada harapan buat-buat sibuk just before he wakes up karang. 

Dah....I tak boleh terus tulis lagi. Bukan sebab apa pun. Not that the idea tetiba hanging. Tapikan, I tak biasa tulis begini. I selalu tulis macam I cakap. Dan, kalau siapa-siapa perasan, what is missing from my usual write-ups, sila teka. Kalau siapa-siapa among the bloggers lah, yang pernah telefon I....dan pernah dengar cara I cakap, tentu tau apa yang lainnya....


Till then...