Kea Farm (Cameron Highlands)

Pink Cotton asked me yesterday night, regarding why I didn't post any photos from Cameron Highlands. Aiks.. Can I post photos taken from the market called Kea Farm? Wanna join me for a quick tour in Kea Farm in Brinchang, Cameron Highlands?

The colourful Cherry Tomatoes (again?) - You can see cherry tomatoes everywhere in Cameron Highlands :P

Sweet Corn/Jagung. The jagung is indeed very sweet and juicy. Yeah, it's juicy.. Even the raw jagung taste sweet. One of the must buy products !!

Honey Sweet Potatoes

Strawberries again, the gigantic tua pui strawberry. (Strawberries and Cherry Tomatoes are two common products in Cameron Highland). Pusing sini, pusing sana, jalan sini, jalan sana.. nampak aje Cherry Tomato dan Strawberi.

Dried Strawberries

Strawberry dipped in sugary syrup. Look at the size of the strawberries.. Manyak besar :D

Strawberry keychains, strawberry balloon, strawberry cushion, strawberry plush toys and other liuliu products..

Fresh Beetroots. Planned to buy some earlier on (since I have never tasted the fresh beetroots. I had eaten the preserved beetroots several times).. But too bad I lupa after my photography tour :(

The colourful cauliflower and cabbage. White and green-coloured cauliflower. I have seen purple coloured cauliflower too in the past but didn't manage to see it this time. And not forgetting the purple carbage. Good to throw at people, kekeke....

Honey oranges and Cameron Apples. The Cameron apples taste like honey dew :)

More Cameron Highland products.. Cameron Apples, Love Fruit/爱情果 (or is it called Lover's Fruit?) and Cherry Tomatoes.

And not forgetting the flowers stalls...Not my cup of tea :) Is this paradise for flower lovers? Flowers here are cheap.

So colourful (dunno what liuliu dye dia orang guna)... See liao also sakit mata :P

Cherry Tomato

Besides strawberries, another product to look out for in Cameron Highlands is the Cherry Tomatoes (my favourite) ..

I love the cherry tomatoes from Cameron Highlands. The little red coloured, ripe cherry tomatoes (in various sizes and shapes) are sweet and delicious, unlike the one found in the local market in "lowland"(which are sour). That's why I only buy cherry tomatoes in Cameron Highlands and not elsewhere :)

Is this the so called "Grape Tomato"? (refering to the elongated, oblong-shaped cherry tomato).

Dried Cherry Tomatoes. This is the first time I see such product. Never thought there are such things called dried or preserved tomato. Hahhahha.... might be I sua ku loh..

Related tomato entry:
Tomatoes, Cameron Highland

Strawberry Attack

I went to Cameron Highlands last weekend and visited the KHM Strawberry Farm. We bought one box of fresh strawberries, few packets of dried strawberries, two bottles of homemade strawberry jam back home and not forgetting to feast ourselves with the yummy babelicious strawberry milkshake :)

Huge juicy red strawberries... Wanna wanna? I like this shot.

Strawberry flower with budding little strawberry..

The "hairy" strawberry.. Do u notice the little tiny "hair" on the strawberry? I never realised strawberry is "hairy" in the past :P

The yummy babelicious pink coloured thick strawberry milk shake.. errr.. pink colour somehow reminds me of someone ;) Who else? You know who you are, right? (Cham loh.. nowadays, whenever I see pink-coloured stuff, I will think of her liao... liuliu)

Dried strawberries (from KHM Strawberries Farm)

Strawberries with fresh cream... (I had this in Starview Restaurant near Kea Farm).

Related strawberry post:
KHM Strawberry Farm, Cameron Highland

Ambulance Ride

My deepest condolence to Dr Norbaizura Yahaya's family. Dr Norbaizura is a young Malaysian doctor who suffered severe injury and succumbed 2 weeks later in ICU after involved in an ambulance accident. She accompanied a patient in an ambulance from Seremban Hospital to Selayang Hospital and on the way, the ambulance she was travelling in burst a tyre and overturned. The news in the STAR paper today mentioned that her family is not eligible for compensation because she was not yet confirmed in her service. For a doctor to be confirmed in service, it takes at least 3 to 4 years or can be longer at times for those "unfortunate" ones.

Usually the most junior doctors (mostly the House Officers) in the medical hierarchy will be the one assigned to escort or accompany patients during transportation from one hospital to another. It is sad to know that prior to confirmation in service, these medical personnels are not eligible for compensation if any mishap occurs while on duty. This is totally unacceptable. Can a junior doctor decline to accompany the patient in the ambulance if he or she is not yet confirmed in service? We all know the answer; That is impossible :(

Escorting patients to another hospital inside an ambulance is definitely not a pleasant experience. In fact it is scary, and at times it is hazardous. I had escorted patients inside an ambulance few times in the past during my early years working as Houseman/Intern and Junior Medical Officer. I really have to pray hard for a safe journey each time prior to sitting inside the ambulance accompanying the patient to another hospital. Some of the ambulance drivers will drive and speed like Mat Rempit on the road. And not all the 4 wheels of the ambulance are touching the ground each time when we were on the road.

Imaging speeding at the speed of 120 to 160 km/hr inside an ambulance on the road. (Ambulances have no legal speed limit). At this speed, those who were sitting inside the ambulance (either the accompanying doctor, nurse , MA or attendant) will be swinging on the seat while the patient might be thrown here and there on the stretcher inside the ambulance. Luckily the ETT was secured properly. It was not easy to manual ambubag the patient in such condition. The long, nauseating, hair rising, nerve wrecking and lip smacking ambulance ride. Worst still in the rural areas in Sarawak.. with narrow, winding roads and pot holes everywhere. I really have to thank God I have survived all the previous ambulance rides safe and unhurt, except for giddiness, headache or nausea. My friends and colleagues who escort patients in ambulances in the past have similar stories too. And I guess most doctors have their own stories regarding their ambulance ride experiences...

p/s : The above mentioned is not applicable to ALL ambulance drivers. There are some nice ambulance drivers too...

Pulasan

I haven't eat Pulasan for years. I went to Chowrasta market last week and saw few street vendors selling pulasan (RM5 per kilo), next to the roasted chestnut stalls.

Pulasan with bright red to dark red skin and soft spikey "hairs".

White, translucent flesh. Closely allied to the rambutans (I presume they are cousins).

side note : I can consider using Pulasan to piak people in the future. :P

SongsTag

Zeroimpact tagged me not long ago with this Tag of Songs. I have almost forgotten about it till today. Luckily this is a simple tag and not asking me to write an essay or a poem :P I just have to list out seven songs, which can be in any genre; with or without lyrics; that I enjoyed listening to, without getting bored.

Here it goes...
1. 女人心 (Anita Mui 梅艳芳)
2. 你怎麼舍得我难过 (黄品源)
3. 夕陽之歌 (Anita Mui 梅艳芳)
4. 童年 (刘文正)
5. 水中花 (Alan Tam 谭咏麟)
6. 从开始到现在 (Jeff Chang 张信哲)
7. Christian songs by Don Moen

I just realised most of the songs I like are sad songs :P Well, I have to tag seven people now to see what are the songs they like :)
1. Redsponge
2. Cynthia
3. Ah Nel
4. Kenny
5. Mr Goober
6. Carcar
7. Misti

女人心 (Woman's Heart) is my all time favourite. Click "Play" if u are interested :)

女人心 /Woman's Heart (梅艳芳)

看着眼前的人渐散 而在那喧哗过后
只有忽然倦透的 是我的一对手
努力向前谁没有 谁料歇息的借口
是要把抑郁眼泪再流

谁自愿独立于天地 痛了也让人看
你我却须要 在人前被仰望
连造梦亦未敢想像 我会这样硬朗
但是又怎可使你或我失望

看着眼前人睡了 和幸福多接近
等了多年这角色 做你的女人
我没有权来令你 承受太多的情感
但我始终不过是个人

Cute Piglet !!!

I went to Sunshine Farlim yesterday evening and saw these piglets waving their "imaginary hands" at me... I stopped by to have a look. Finally these piglets charmed me to buy them back home. Remember, don't look at the big round eyes creatures for too long.. They can hypnotize you without you realising it. Dangeorus tsk tsk....

Gosh, these lotus-paste "mooncake" are just too cute. So adorable. How to resist them???

Big round eyes.. All things with big round eyes are cute (including Ah Boy (my doggy) and Puss in Boots )

Round piggies, macam bola.. (Big round eyes, round snouts, round bodies).

Look!! They are wagging their little piggy tails :P Gosh...

One sentence to conclude.. Too cute to be eaten. I really feel sayang to eat them.. Mmmm.. Someone out there, please tell me what should I do to the piggies??? Should I give them away? Hahaha...

酒干淌卖无

Anyone remember this old Taiwanese sad movie 搭错车 /Papa, Can You Hear Me Sing (released in 1983), starring the late Taiwanese actor 孙越 (Suen Yuet)? I love the movie theme song 酒干倘卖无 by 苏芮 . This is a popular song in the 80's. Even though some of you might not know the movie, but I guess you have listened to this song in the past. The lyrics of this song is indeed very touching...

酒干淌卖无 (搭错车主题曲)

酒干倘卖无 酒干倘卖无
酒干倘卖无 酒干倘卖无

多么熟悉的声音 陪我多少年风和雨
从来不需要想起 永远也不会忘记
没有天那有地 没有地那有家
没有家那有你 没有你那有我

假如你不曾养育我 给我温暖的生活
假如你不曾保护我 我的命运将会是什么
是你抚养我长大 陪我说第一句话
是你给我一个家 让我与你共同拥有它

虽然你不能开口说一句话
却更能明白人世间的黑白与真假
虽然你不会表达你的真情
却付出了热忱的生命

远处传来你多么熟悉的声音
让我想起你多么慈祥的心灵
什么时候你再回到我身旁
让我再和你一起唱

酒干倘卖无 酒干倘卖无
酒干倘卖无 酒干倘卖无

《搭错车》剧情简介：

　　一个退役的台湾老兵是个哑巴，人称哑叔，以收购空酒瓶和捡破烂为生。1958年冬天的一个清晨，哑叔在高级住宅区的巷道里捡回一个被遗弃的女婴，取名阿美。为此，妻子与他发生冲突，并离家而去。哑叔又当爹又当娘，父女二人相依为命，在艰辛贫困的日子中挣扎。为使阿美有更多的人生乐趣，哑叔在劳累之余，还为她吹奏美妙的乐曲。阿美高中毕业后，在某餐厅当歌手。后得到青年作曲家时君迈的帮助，提高了演唱的艺术水平，受到听众的称赞。娱乐公司老板余广泰，为了利用阿美赚钱，引诱她签订赴东南亚演出的合约。

阿美与哑叔商量，哑叔十分矛盾，他既希望女儿有一番作为，又怕女儿孤身在外，遇到风险。最后，阿美为了挣钱帮助父亲摆脱贫困，使其晚年得到一些幸福，答应了签约。不想一纸合同，却断送了自己的自由。演出归来，她已成为红歌星，但却身不由己，不能同年迈的父亲见面。哑叔因思念爱女，卧病在床。风雨交加之夜，阿美饱含不能奉养老父的辛酸，在台上唱出了怀念的心声："没有你，哪有我，假如你不曾养育我，给我父爱和温暖的生活，假如你不曾保护我，我的命运会是什么！" 气息奄奄的哑叔，从收音机里听着女儿熟悉的歌声，怀着思念、悲愤的心情，离开了人世。

My primary school - SRB St Anne

Most of my chinese coursemates in university thought I'm from Chinese school since I can read, write and speak Chinese fluently. Despite explaining several times to them 我不是华校生 ... They still kept on forgetting, so I finally give up explaining. I still remember they constantly asked me whether I skipped Remove Class /Kelas Peralihan (for those from Chinese School), cos I am one year younger than them.

I had my primary education (Primary 1 to Primary 6) in SRB Saint Anne, Sarikei. By just looking at the name of the school, you will know that is not a Chinese school, right? I had my secondary education (Form 1 till Form 5) in SMB Saint Anthony, Sarikei and did my Form 6 (Upper six and Lower six) in SMK Meradong.

How I get to learn Chinese? Chinese language was taught as one of the language subject during my primary school days, just as English language and Jawi. Malay Language is used as the teaching medium for all the other subjects. Although I stopped learning chinese after I completed my primary school, but because of my passion and my love for chinese language, I still continue reading chinese novels and story books and even chinese newspaper till today.

I still remember reading 兒童樂園 (er tong le yuan) and 小叮噹 (xiao ding dang) when I was in primary 2 or 3 time, reading the 西遊记(Journey to the West) thick novel when I was in primary 6 and reading 卫斯理系列小说 during my secondary school days. I am glad I didn't neglect Chinese language all these while cos it is indeed a very useful language and communication tool. (Psss.. I prefer reading Chinese novels than English novels. The descriptions in chinese novels are much more lively & interesting, don't u think so?)

I learnt Jawi as well during my primary school day (from primary one till primary six).. Jawi is a compulsory subject :( We had exam too for Jawi and I remembered once I even score 100 marks for Jawi. Hahahha, unbelievable, and I don't know how I did that. I can even write my own name in Jawi during those days. But now what I can remember are only - alif, ba, ta, sa and lam.. that's all.. Nothing more and nothing less. All returned back to my primary school Jawi teacher.

My Books...

The cute little gal Pink Cotton wanna knows what are the books I have on my bookshelf. Sorry lah, I have to let you down cos all the books on my bookshelves are those boring medical textbooks and handbooks :P Good for those who have insomnia ;)

Hehhee, I curi tulang and dig the photos from my old post (Is it difficult to study medicine). Since I have taken pictures of my bookshelves in the past, so I might as well use back the same photo lah :P Pandai, kan? No need to take out camera & shoot again. Pink Cotton, don't piak me nor scold me, okie? :P

Hahhaha... of course I have other books too, like Dr Slump Comic Books or IQ 博士, Garfield comic, 卫斯理系列小说 (sci-fiction chinese novels) etc etc.. but I don't keep them up on the shelves (cos of limited space) - all these comics and novels are nicely kept inside the boxes. Mmmm... I hope the irritating silverfish didn't eat up my books. Yeah, not forgetting.. I also have my NIV bible on the mini shelf inside my bedroom ;)

Mmmmmm... I malas nak tag orang lah.. Sesiapa yang nak buat tag ini secara sukarela amat dialu-alukan.

Sotong oh sotong

Life is all about Sotong? Sot sot.... All these sotong will come in handy for Angeliu who wants to piak quite a number of us with sotong.

I make the poor sotong giddy by holding the sotong upside down :P (Bully the helpless sotong)

These big round eyes reminds me of.... intracranial hemorrhage.. The black ink inside the eyes looked like blood :P

Whatever it is.. the squid still ends up in the kuali. That's an acceptable ending, right? Food are mean to be eaten. If we don't eat them, they will feel humiliated. Last but not least, is this a Dog-eat-dog world Sotong-eat-sotong world? Life is all about Sotong? You go and figure out :)

Other liuliu sotong entries :)
* Sotong snack
* Sotong egg/Sotong Kangkung
* Sotong again

Betulkah Angel sudah kahwin?

This post is specially dedicated to Angeliu. Lately, one of the hot topic is regarding our dear Angeliuliu getting married, and she has honey with the moon (honeymoon lah) in UK. Angeliu denied. Mmmm.. I guess our dear Angel waktu tu tengah geram, wondering how the rumours come about. And she wanna piak those who congratulated her with the huge gigantic sotong. (hahaha, who gives her the idea to piak innocent people with sotong? *ahem*)

Quote Angel punya suara hati :
"and no, I'm NOT "mooning" with any sort of "honey" here!
I wonder who was the liuliu rumour monger...
*prepares Giant Sotongs to piak that fella*" unquote

I wonder whether she knows how the rumours origin... okie, I will reveal the truth here. Don't piak me, Angel ;) The truth is out there. It all started when Angel gave us the misleading statement, so Angel cannot blame us for misunderstanding her, kakkakkaka. Don't understand what I say? Liak Boh Kiu? Catch no ball? Proceed & you will get what I mean.

** The following comments and statements are arranged in chronological sequences. Text in blue coloured italic fonts are Angel's answers to the comments given to her :)

*Angel said - 4.09.2006 11:46 pm...
i’m at my fren’s place (the place i’m staying) and guess what? there’s broadband here! heh heh… just got the hubby to help me connect it to my notebook… i feel so alive with internet connection! *LOL* terrible, terrible… but how can i get so sleepy now??? it’s not even 11 yet!

*plink said - 6.09.2006 11:53 am...
‘….just got the hubby to help me connect ….'
O.O angel is married?!

*Chen said - 6.09.2006 02:17 pm...
'hubby..?'
angel is married?? o.O
ini angel curi-curi kahwin kat UK, mana boleh.. tak bagi tau kita orang :P

*L B said - 6.09.2006 04:20 pm...
Wai plink ~ Didn’t you know? Angel didn’t say?
Wai Chen ~ I guess C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S are in order then! Now you all know the real reason why angeliuliu is in London.. Her honeymoon!! And you wondered why she was already feeling sleepy so early in the evening. It was all that *ahem.. ahem*

*Chen said - 6.09.2006 05:00 pm...
oooo.. must congrats her liao :P

*L B said - 6.09.2006 05:41 pm...
Wai Chen ~ Hear No Evil.. See No Evil.. Speak No Evil..
Yes, yes! Must!

*L B said - 8/09/2006 12:50:52 PM ...
C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S on your W E D D I N G ! ! !
Sneaky! Ran off for hunnymooncake, never tell us wan!
Darling L B,
*prepares to piak with Giant Sotong* So Y O U were the monger!!!

*butt said - 8/09/2006 02:29:51 PM...
angeliu, u getting married??? waaaaaa..
see you so syiok bercuti.. *jeles*
Darling butty,
Oi! Prease dun listen to the liuliu rumour!
Bercuti of cos syiokkkk! :P

*butt said - 8/09/2006 02:32:02 PM...
*correction*
shud be honeymooning.. kekeke
Darling butty,
*gets ready more Giant Sotongs*

*Chen said - 8/09/2006 05:46:40 PM...
since everyone congratulating Angeliu, how can I tak congrats leh?
I kiasu on & off mah.. :P
CONGRATS ANGEL :D
Darling doktor,
*orders more Giant Sotongs for Piaking Session*
This is gonna be a looooong piak-ing session...

*plink said - 8/09/2006 07:00:51 PM...
:D Congratulations to angel!
Tengok fotos of the blushing bride/groom?
Darling plink,
My previous comment to doktor, ditto to you *blekkkk*

*mistipurple said - 9/09/2006 02:35:25 AM ...
hahaha *conpused whether to congrats or not* scared kena piak by sotong. but sotong nice to eat mah.. so Congrats!!! :D
*runs far far*
Darling mistiliu,
Oiii!!! Liu oso so bad follow the bad liulius!!! *bawls*
*rings for more Giant Sotongs*

*consuela said - 9/09/2006 08:21:12 AM...
wedding? wedding? honeymoon? any truth to this? if so...
C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S !!!
*hugs hugs hugs*
Darling c o n s u e l a,
Of course there's absolutely NO TRUTH to that rumour! If it were my honeymoon, I wanna do Hawaiiiiii!!!! Yeah! Aloha!!! :D
*hugzzzzzzzz*

See? The truth is out there. Hahhaah... Angel, don't piak me :P

***Awaiting the upcoming Sotong Piak-ing Session***

Colourful Pills

While clearing my things a couple of weeks ago, I noticed few packets of expired pills.. Too sayang to throw away the pills just lidat without taking any nice shots of them. Pills in various sizes, shapes and colours are excellent still objects for photography session. I can add these photos into my photo collections which were categorized under objects with subcategory medicine :) Over the past few years, I categorize all the photos I took into different folders - with different categories and subcategories. Up to date, I have 900++ folders just for the photos I took :)

Do you recognise what are these pills? To treat which medical conditions?

Another Crab ( or Crap? ) Post

Crabs and Craps are "close relatives", aren't they??

The angry and unfriendly looking crab. Of course lah.. How to expect the crabs to be happy when both the claws/pinchers were being tied up?

Protruding eyes.. (Ini ketam mengamuk sampai mata pun terbeliak keluar). The crab was constantly staring at me, but who cares ? I tempted to tell the crab "Tengok apa tengok ?! Stare some more lah you! I'm not afraid of you. Later I will cook you and eat you, then you know.. " Anyway I didn't say that out aloud cos I scared the crabs might cry :P

See? I didn't bluff the crabs. I really went & cooked them. They were all being steamed nicely to perfection ;)

16th September 1963

Today is September 16th, and it seems like just another ordinary day in Penang. Anyone remember the significant of this date 43 years ago (16th September 1963)? Today is Malaysia Day, this day marks our beloved nation's 43th birthday. The day whereby Malaysia was formed 43 years ago. Seems like not many realised or remembered this day, unlike 31th August 1957.

16th September 1963 marked the milestone for Sarawakians and Sabahans as this was the day the British colonies of Sarawak and Sabah joined Malaya to form Malaysia. I will fly the Sarawak flag together with the Malaysia flag/Jalur Gemilang on this day, cos today is the "real" Independence Day for us, folks from the Land of Hornbills and the Land below the Wind.

p/s: Anyone here realised today is Malaysia Day? ;)

Happy 43th Birthday, Malaysia

Cute Dog in Action

Suara hati my dog, the cute Min Pin aka Ah Boy : "I know I'm cute. U don't have to mention that so many times. All I want is yummy food ..... I don't want to eat bread. What I want is Roasted Pork, Siu Kai Yek (chicken wing), Char Siew, Siew Yok etc etc ..... Can I?? Please, pleaseeeeee "

French Toast

French Toast is one of the simple & easy to prepare, yet delicious meal (for simple people like me).

Step #1 : Cut cut cut.. ( or should I use Chop chop chop?) Potong ini, potong itu dan buang itu, buang ini.. Apa tu? Cut the slices of Gardenia bread into triangular shape.

Step # 2 : The tired and exhausted bread deserves a warm bath. Dip & soak the poor bread into the mixture of beatened eggs with milk, salt & pepper.. After that, don't forget to give the bread "a good shoulder massage" by flipping them inside the mixture so that both sides are evenly coated. Mesti adil dan saksama, or else the bread will merajuk.

Step # 3 : Since these are angmoh bread, they need sunbath. So, what to do next? Easy lah.. Place the egg-coated breads on the frying pan and cooked until both sides are browned (give the bread chance to enjoy the heat) :P

Step # 4 : The happy & satisfied French Toast...
And a happy me too .... cos this is my simple meal for the day. Hope you all enjoy the crappy cooking session for the day :)

Rempeyek Kacang & Peanut Day

I never know the existence of Peanut Day till I read Mr Goober's post and get to know that today, 13th September, is Peanut Day. So, let's eat more kacang today and let's go nuts. Remember the makan bola, minum bola, tidur bola during the World Cup Season? How about makan kacang, minum kacang, tidur kacang today to celebrate the Peanut Day? I wonder whether the nutty Mr Goober will sponsor us some kacang or not to commemorate Peanut Day.

This is a kacang related post. I hope Mr Goober will enjoy this post, which is specially dedicated to him, commemorating Peanut Day :)

I guess most of us are familiar with Rempeyek - one of the popular traditional crispy Malay snacks which is widely available in the market. Most rempeyek have embedded peanuts and anchovies.

I have eaten several rempeyek in the past but normally there are only few limited numbers of peanuts per rempeyek, unlike this one; the Rempeyek Kacang from Kelantan - with generous serving of peanuts :)

HAPPY PEANUT DAY

Rainforest Kayaking Adventure (3)

After a good & refreshing dip in the Sg Sarawak Kanan, it was time to get moving and continue on with the second half of the journey down the river..

Interesting rock design due to longstanding erosions..

View from beneath the rocks as we were now paddling beneath the rocks.

Fallen trees trunks in the river ..

Another breath taking, calm and serene scene of the rainforest..

Another interesting rock design which looks like a rhinocerous to me. Well, it all depends on your vivid imagination. Whatever it is, all these are fantastic rocks that rock !!

So fast time flies.. we had been paddling in the river for almost 3 hours.. and the kayaking trip had finally came to an end. And yeah... my kayak didn't capsize :P

Approaching the final destination..

None other than the Wind Caves in Bau district...

We unloaded our paddles, water proof containers or dry box, mineral water bottles etc from our kayak.... And not forgetting, we need to carry up the colourful bright orange and yellow tandem kayak all the way from the riverbank up the staircase to the CRV. This was tiring especially after paddling for almost 3 hours ... My arm sores, but I managed to complete the task. This was indeed an interesting, unique, fulfilling and unforgettable experience :)

Drying our safety jackets, paddles, parang and kayak under the hot afternoon sun.. Anyone noticed the durian inside the kayak in the last photo? That was the leftover free durian which we picked up from the riverbank earlier on in the beginning of the kayaking journey. We changed our wet attires prior to leaving back home.

Related entries :
1) Rainforest Kayaking Adventure (1);
2) Rainforest Kayaking Adventure (2).

9/11

Time really flies.. 5 years have passed since the terrorists attack in New York on 11th September 2001... whereby two American Airlines planes crashed into the World Trade Centre towers causing both the WTC towers to collapse. So many innocent lives were killed.... :(

I still remember what I did on that particular day. I might not remember what I did last month, but the event that took place on 11th September 2001 was still "fresh" in my memories... I came back home quite late that day (11th September 2001), helping out my colleagues who were on call in the emergency theatre. My theatre finished around 6 pm but since there was a major emergency case coming in soon, so most of us stayed back to lend our helping hands. The emergency case was leaking or ?ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm which we normally referred to as Triple A or AAA. This sort of case has bad prognosis with very high mortality rate.

I still remember my colleague giving the drugs during induction time and I was looking at the monitor, monitoring the vital signs. Upon seeing the heart rate coming down and the arterial blood pressure decreasing in trend, I quickly alerted my other colleagues. But just within seconds, the patient went into almost asystole on table. CPR and chest compression was commenced immediately. I can't remember how many ampoules of adrenaline & atrophine were given during CPR. The patient went into ventricle fibrillation (VF) several times and defibrillation performed. CPR was commenced back again after defibrillation. We all took turn to do the chest compression (it was exhausting to perform chest compression alone, and those who had experience doing real life CPR will know what I mean). We performed CPR for quite a while before we finally gave up & pronounced death on table. We had done our best and there was no mismanagement. The death was inevitable cos this was a high risk case and the prognosis was very poor in the first place with very high mortality rates. After the surge of adrenaline event, I went home around 8 pm, exhausted and tired.

I reached home around 8:30 pm and checked my email (still using dial-up during those days), and the news regarding 9/11 came up on tv. I didn't really pay attention at first cos I thought that was some sort of staged documentaries. Only a while later, I realised that was a real life event... Although I didn't know anyone personally who involved in the tragedy, but the pain and the anger that I felt was real. Since then, things were NEVER be the same again. But I really hope 明天会更好 (A Better Tomorrow) as the title of the song that I posted earlier on. I didn't realise today was 11th September when I posted that post near midnight. What were you doing or where were you on 11th September 2001?

明天会更好 (A Better Tomorrow)

I played the mp3 songs from the 80's last weekend and I came across this Chinese song 明天会更好 (A Better Tomorrow) . That was one fantastic song which I haven't listen to for ages . 明天会更好 was one of the popular songs in the 80's, sang by a group of 60 singers (from Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore) in 1985. This song was produced in the same year as "We Are The World".

The first time I got to know about this song was during my primary school days, in 1985. Even though that was more than 2 decades ago, I can still remember the song lyrics till today. How time flies... Come to think about it, in 1985, Pink Cotton was only a 2 year old naughty little girl (Errr.. she is still naughty even up to today, oops... and still curi makan ice cream even though she hasn't recovered fully from her cough, hahaha ) and Ah Ben was even better - not yet existed in this beautiful world :P



Click the play button if you wanna bring back the good old memories :)

明天会更好

轻轻敲醒沉睡的心灵 慢慢张开你的眼睛
看看忙碌的世界 是否依然孤独的转个不停
春风不解风情 吹动少年的心
让昨日脸上的泪痕 随记忆风干了

抬头寻找天空的翅膀 候鸟出现它的影迹
带来远处的饥荒 无情的战火依然存在的消息
玉山白雪飘零 燃烧少年的心
使真情溶化成音符 倾诉遥远的祝福

唱出你的热情 伸出你的双手
让我拥抱着你的梦
让我拥有你真心的面孔
让我们的笑容 充满着青春的骄傲
为明天献出虔诚的祈祷
(让我们期待着明天会更好)

谁能不顾自己的家园 抛开记忆中的童年
谁能忍心看那昨日的忧愁 带走我们的笑容
青春不解红尘 胭脂沾染了灰
让久违不见的泪水 滋润了你的面容

轻轻敲醒沉睡的心灵 慢慢张开你的眼睛
看看忙碌的世界 是否依然孤独的转个不停
日出唤醒清晨 大地光彩重生
让和风拂出的音响 谱成生命的乐章

You dare ?

Something interesting to share with you all. Mmmmm.... I'm just wondering.. Anyone dare to take the following traditional chinese medicine?

I came across this from the MMR forum - Wu Ling Zhi (Flying Squirrel Feces) or Feces Trogopterori Seu Pteromi. My first response when I read this was... My goodness... Flying Squirrel droppings or faeces?? I can't imagine someone eating & swallowing shit !! Yucks. Disgusting, I wanna puke..

Wu Ling Zhi (Flying Squirrel Feces)

Properties:
Bitter, Sweet, Warm

Actions:
* Invigorates the Blood, Relieves Pain- For amenorrhea, menses pain, postpartum abdominal pain, epigastric pain, chest pain
* Dispels Blood Stasis, Stops Bleeding- For dark purple uterine bleeding with clots, retained lochia due to stasis
* Treats childhood nutritional impairment, Eliminates Toxins- For a variety of insect and snake bites, topically and internally

p/s : I quoted this as well from the original website for the product : This herb is considered as toxic or illegal in the United States.

** I strongly DO NOT recommend anyone to try the above product. Those who are interested can proceed at their own risks.

Simple Dinner

I chatted with Carcar this evening and she told me she had no idea what to have for dinner. I told her I will be eating bread for dinner, with peanut butter. And she decided to join me eating bread for dinner tonight !! Yeah !!

These were my dinner for the night. Firstly, one slice of white Gardenia Bread with peanut butter (with chunks). I prefer the chunky peanut butter than the creamy smooth peanut butter.

Followed by another 2 slices of Gardenia bread with chunky peanut butter & strawberry jam. Simple yet delicious dinner, for simple people like us. What did you have for dinner tonight?

Related entry : Carcar's Simple Dinner Too

Sotong again...

Pink Cotton baru saja asked me whether I posted any new post today... I malas nak tulis, so I pergi post one photo of the nasi lemak with sotong sambal, anchovy and brinjal I had two days ago.. Since Red Sponge asked me yesterday night "U dowan sotong anymore?". This is the evidence that I still love Sotong, and I won't give up on Sotong, hahahah.. Sotong Rocks & Sotong Rules ;)

Any nasi lemak lover here?

*Sotong Related Entries :
- Sotong Snacks
- Sotong Eggs & Sotong Kangkung

Jagung

Anyone remember this riddle?

Buka sarung, nampak bulu.
Buka bulu, nampak biji.
Buka biji, nampak batang..

This is not a notti riddle, but a riddle describing Jagung aka Corn/Maize in its own creative way.

Raw Jagung

Steamed Jagung

BBQ Corn with Honey

or do u prefer Popcorn?

Sarawak Chess Set

These are some of the shots taken in Sarakraf Pavilion in Kuching, Sarawak - Gasing, Congkak, Batu Seremban, Catur/Chess etc. I still remember the good old days playing batu seremban together with classmates during recess time during my primary school days. And not forgetting the congkak too...

I love the chess pieces.. Very authentic... A the Chess Board too.. Indeed very "Sarawak"

你怎麼舍得我难过

你怎麼舍得我难过 is a sad love song in the older days (in 1990), by 黄品源 .
Listening to this song occasionally reminds me of the old days...
This was one of the songs we used to listening together in the past.
All these now remained as sweet but insignificant memories.
初恋是一段甜美的回忆, 初恋是最难忘的吧?
Apa jua pun, semua itu sudah berlalu..
Cinta pertama kini sudah menjadi kisah lapuk.

你怎麼舍得我难过 ( 黄品源)

对你的思念 是一天又一天　
孤单的我还是没有改变
美丽的梦 何时才能出现　
亲爱的你 好想再见你一面
秋天的风 一阵阵的吹过　
想起了去年的这个时候
你的心 到底在想些什麼　
为什麼留下 这个结局让我承受

最爱你的人是我　
你怎麼舍得我难过
在我最需要你的时候　
没有说一句话就走
最爱你的人是我　
你怎麼舍得我难过
对你付出了这麼多　
你却没有感动过

White Creature

While I was looking out of the window yesterday, enjoying the scenery of blue sky and white cloud.. suddenly I noticed something "pitter patter" on the window...

A white moth on the window (or issit Butterfly?) , with the blue sky & white cloud as background)

So I took this opportunity to add few more photos to my album :)

It is better to be "pre-occupied" with this beautiful white creature than the yucky katak :P Hahhaa, at least it's still alright if the insect decided to fly & land on my head (in comparison with katak). Betul tak, Pink Cotton?)

Cake, cake & cake ?

Today is my little nephew one year old birthday. The little boy has grow up already. His birthday is just one day different from his aunty's birthday. I remembered all my 3 nephews birthday, cos the dates are easy to remember. I have only seen my little nephew once and that was when he was still a little baby, at the age of 2 months old (during my previous trip to Bintulu in November last year). I really wonder how he looks like now. Kids really grow up fast.

Well, we can't separate birthday celebrations from cakes. These are some of the cakes I had yesterday :) The Black Forest Cake & Walnut Cake. It's something sinful, but it's xin fu/hang fook (幸福) to indulge in these once in a while, right? It all depends on how you view things, or is this what we called as... playing with words ???

Black Forest Cake

I still prefer the "original" black forest cake which I had in Lake Titisee (nearby Black Forest) in Germany few years back. I was sua ku previously.. Never knew the existence of a real place called Black Forest till I visited Germany :D

Walnut Cake

Birthday dinner

Cute or not this big head doggy? Pink Cotton , thanks for the nice birthday pressie. Muacks... I sayang u :P Hehehhe, my dog received the parcel today on my behalf as I was working :) He loves and adores the toy but he won't touch it cos it's not his. Clever dog, huh? And Pink Cotton, thanks for the nice moo-moo cake too :P

We went to Fishing Village Restaurant in Teluk Bahang for a simple seafood dinner tonight. Food wise was okay with reasonable price. The place was pretty packed with people and full house by 8 pm. Luckily we arrived early when the place was still quite empty :)

Cheese baked oyster

Fried prawn with salted egg yolk.
I love this.. Too bad they don't have salted egg crabs :(

Stir fried asparagus with sambal

Fried "yau mak" green vegetable

Batter fried crispy squids/sotong.

Black pepper fried soft shell crab. This one ah... not nice

Fried noodle

This is not the end of the makan-ing episode yet..

Followed by double scoop sundae (rum & raisin with strawberry) in Baskin Robbin :P
*Burp*

**update**
And not forgetting, thanks to ah ben for the lovely english & chinese version of birthday song at 12 midnight :D

When Things are Broken....

When things are broken,
No matter how hard you try to fix or mend it,
Things will no longer be perfect...
And it won't be the same again..
The scar(s) will remain..

Yes, we can forgive and forget..
No doubt the scar will fade with time...
But with "continuous" breaking & hurting..
Just like a viscious cycle?
What's the point?
What can you expect in return?
There is something called Learning From Mistakes..
For goodness sake, Don't Repeat it over & over again!!
Evaluate yourself before you point finger at others !!!

Remember, before you start pointing your finger at other,
There are three other fingers pointing back at you...
And "What goes around comes around"...
Do not take things for granted.

Do not judge, or you too will be judged
For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged.
And with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye,
and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? (NIV Matthew 7: 1-3)

God has given us a wonderful gift of language.
However, this wonderful gift is often being misused..
People tends to forget the damage they can do with words..
And too often we are too concerned about ourselves..

I know nothing is perfect in this world..
But I'm pretty tired...
I get fed up with all these...
There is a limitation for everything.
Anyway, whatever it is..
Life still goes on..
So, why be bothered???
This is still a beautiful world.
Smile and the World will smile with you :)