28 February 2011

The Birthday Cake

After the great lunch, we went to play bowling @ Flamingo, Ampang. Honestly, bowling has never been my interest. And my daughter, Marsya is using my birthday to get her to play bowling. Instead of doing something I like on my birthday, I'm actually giving ways to her - all in the name of love.



My SIL & her 3 daughters joined us too. The original plan is to go to Time Square but thinking of the traffic & limited time we had, Flamingo is definitely a better option. For an amateur bowler like me, any place will be just fine. And to be frank, the less crowded the place is, the better.

Noriah & The Gang


Among 7 of us, I am of course, the worst. I really dont have a thing for bowling. Out of 10 games, I could only hit the pins twice - and I'm not talking about dropping all the pins here - this is just to HIT the pins. The rest are just to simply clean the drains at both sides of the alley.

Gaya aje gempaq !


After the bowling, we headed home. Noriah & CT who were in a separate car reached home later - with a cake in their hands. That was totally a surprise for me. It doesnt occurred to me that they would stop on the way to get the birthday cake for me.


Happy Birthday Yummy Mummy !


The cake was a moist chocolate cake & was not bad after all. Thanks to Noriah & her 3 angels for their thoughtfulness. You guys really make my birthday a special one indeed !

My Birthday Lunch

CT took me out for lunch at Santai as my birthday treat. She knew I love that place & taking me there wouldnt be a mistake at all. I really like the food there being their ABC as the top of the list. So far, I still couldnt find any other place that can make an ABC as good as them - let alone better ! Theirs are superbly good - not too sweet, not too milky & the stuff they put in the ABC are all to my likings - they dont have nutmegs in it !


The table was too small that we need to put our drinks on the chair


However, I didnt order the ABC this time since the food itself has occupied most of the space in my tummy already. We had white rice with Steamed Fish, Seafood Tom Yam, Chilli Squids, Kankong Belacan & Fried Taugeh.


As expected, the food were really good - especially the steamed fish. All the three taste of saltiness, sweet & sour were very well blended. There's only one word I need to describe the dish : PERFECTO !!!

With my 2 lovely daughters.......mummy loves you !


To CT : what more can I say but thanks from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for letting us to be a part of your life & sharing a portion of your heart with us.



26 February 2011

Surprise !!!



It's my birthday today ...... Happy Birthday to me - another year older yet another year hotter ....... wooooo hoooooo !!

As any other Saturdays, my day starts with my power-walking at Ampang Hilir Lake. Morning walk is simply the best - it refreshes your body while at the same time boost up your metabolism to kick start your day. Inhaling the fresh morning air gives you such a wonderful feeling.

Coming back from the lake I was greeted by such a pleasant surprise. Waiting in front of my house is a guy holding a bouquet of roses in his hand. There he is waiting patiently for me with the sweetest smile carved on his face. Immediately my eyes sparkled looking at him ( or perhaps the roses? ). I wish I could just fly to him that instant moment.

It would have been super romantic if the guy is somebody I loved or at least knew....hehehe. Unfortunately he's just a delivery boy who came to deliver this lovely roses for my birthday :




To my sister in law, Ila - thanks so much for the flowers. They are such a lovely roses - as lovely as you !


25 February 2011

My Pre-Birthday Lunch


Carol & Ija are so kind to treat me a pre-birthday lunch today. Actually it's not only them but Lin & Ain too but both simply cant make it. Ain is too sick ( poor girl ) while Lin is bz with her studies. Too bad.

It was Carol's idea to go to The Apartment @ KLCC for the lunch - based on good reviews given few people. Since I've never set my foot there yet, so off we went.


The place was okay - I mean, the look of it. It's like other restaurants along the same stretch where you can choose to sit either in or out of the building. Since it's quite hot these days, we opt to be inside. But then, it doesnt really make that big of a difference since it's still warm & humid inside - that we need to move to a another table a bit further from the door.



This is what we choose from the Tapas menu which would act as the appetizer :



My rating : 1 over 5. The chicken is a bit too dry & it's salty too. The sauce on the chicken is too garlic-ish & while the sauce on the side is a bit too cheesy for me (but Carol loves it ).

For our main dish, I ordered Lamb Rack (RM 38.90), Ija ordered the Sirloin Steak ( RM 45.90 ) & Carol chose the Chicken & Mushroom Pasta ( RM 24.90 ).


I can only comment on my own dish which is the Lamb Rack. It was ok, I would say. The meat is tender & quite juicy. But then, one thing with me is that I cant eat this kind of thing on its own. So, I asked for a black pepper sauce which turns out to be okay. So, I'll give 3 out of 5 for my Lamb Rack.

I thought of skipping the desert since I cant even finish my lambs but those 2 clowns still insisted that I should complete the course since it;s my birthday lunch. So, not to disappoint them I proceed with the desert :



Mine choice of desert was Mocha Panna Cotta ( RM 12.90) while Carol took the Caramel Custard Tartlet ( RM 10.90 ) and Ija went for Baked Chocolate Pudding ( RM 16.90 ) which took about 20 minutes to prepare.

Turns out Ija's desert was the best among three others. At least it's worth waiting for. Mine was okay except for the sourish strawberry sauce which I dont feel it's good combi with the mocha Panna Cotta. A chocolate sauce would be better.

All & all it was an okay lunch - it could have been better if the restaurant invested on a few sets of new powerful air conditioner. Service was really good. Thumbs up to the waiters.

Last but not least, again thanks to my buddies - Carol & Ija for the wonderful lunch. Not forgetting Ain & Lin (plus Ija & Carol too) for the birthday ang pow. Love y'all ! Muahhhhhh !!!!


Appreciating Birthdays


People react differently to their birthdays - some would throw a big party for themselves, some would starts counting wrinkles on their faces and there are those that really care less & treat it as a day like any other.

What does birthday really means (beside being the day you were born to this world). When we mention the word "birthday", all that comes to our minds are parties where friends & relatives are invited, gifts are unwrapped & delicious birthday cake is served. Birthday has always been greeted as a of celebration where fun is the top priority.

Often the real meaning of birthday is forgotten behind all these celebrations - which is ultimately celebrating your life. You being alive is something to be celebrated for - regardless of how bad your life currently is. It is a day where one should thank God for making who you are today. If it wasn't for Him you wouldnt be able to be here in this world. A non-existent you would be. Instead, here you are breathing, living and celebrating yet another year of your life with all the great things that come along.

People often don't realize the things they have until they are gone. Life is no exception. Nobody knows how much time we have left ? For all we know, we could die tomorrow. So not only should you appreciate each of your birthdays to the fullest, but you should also appreciate each DAY to the fullest. Be grateful for all your accomplishments, for having friends and family, health and for having the luxury of living each day.

Appreciating your birthday means appreciating your life and nothing has any value in life unless you give them a meaning. Make your birthday special by appreciating it and wishing to live your life to these fullest.

Tomorrow I am celebrating my 41st year being in this world. To those who are celebrating it too, my best wishes & happy birthday.

Celebrate life !


Happy Friday


Loving yourself is a journey. There will always be good days and bad days. It's the ability to give yourself another chance after you screw up. It's the ability to forgive yourself after you unintentionally hurt somebody else. You can't love someone else until you love yourself.

Focus on yourself before looking out for love. Making yourself happy should be you number one top priority. If you dont, no one else will.

Happy Friday to all & let's make this weekend the happiest ever !



23 February 2011

Dead Bored


It has been ages since the last time I updated my blog. A few of my frens start querying about my well-being. To those who cares, I am not sick. Neither am I in any kind of shit that stops me from writing. I'm just too tied up with my work......blahhhh. I lied !

I was even busier before but I could still write. The truth is I'm just plain lazy. Too lazy to get these fat fingers to punch the laptop's keyboard. And too lazy to squeeze out ideas out of this idle, lethargic brain of mine. Do you think this might be an aging factor since my 41st birthday is just around the corner? Could be, isnt it?

So, what makes me decided to write today then? Honestly I dont really have anything interesting to share here (apart from men bashing which has always been a pleasure to me). The thing is I am dead bored - all of my accomplices are not in the office today.

My right hand accomplice is on leave ( Carol, how could you do this to me??? ). The other one is on medical leave ( Ija, I've told you to take the Vit. C supplement to ease that sinus of yours.... degillll !!! ). And the last one is on half day leave ( Lin, after all the free food I've fed you with, how could you have the heart to leave me all by myself here...huhuhu ).

I dont know how many times I've knocked my head on the desk out of sleepiness. I've downloaded all the scrapbook freebies for the day. I've checked out all my favourite cooking website for new recipes. Gone to all the necessary sites for the latest celebrity gossips. Done them all. Gotten all my daily fix to start the day with.

But then with all that done & dusted, I still couldnt get the engine running. Urrrgghhhhh !!! I've been staring at the same datasheet for the past half an hour and yet nothing happen. And that's how I end up writing this entry. I just need to do something to boost that dying energy in me. I need the motivation to kick start the day since my regular dose of inspiration are absence.

Besides helping me getting out from this very, very sticky situation, maybe at the same time I'll get back all the inspirations to update my blog as regularly as it used to be. May the silver lining be there for me on those thick gray clouds up above.


14 February 2011

It's That Time Of The Year Again


Today seems to be a special day for some of us. It's a day many been waiting and look forward for. To those who are celebrating Valentines Day, I hope you've made today as one of the moments you'd cherish all your life. To those who are not celebrating it, you dont have to wait for one special day to say the word of love - dont wait, express it when it's due.

Concurrently with the V-Day, my annual performance appraisal is also being carried out today. I hate appraisals & I'm sure most of you feels the same way too. Performance appraisal to me is just one big, fat waste of time. There you are trying your ass out to list down all of your contributions to the company for the past 12 months while to your supervisor, it is just a mere fault-finding session.

No one says what they really think. The process is not designed to encourage honest exchanges between employees and managers. It’s a time to struggle against the normal rating our manager gives you and the desire to get our raise for that year. While we tried very hard to obtain a better rating, our manager would try as hard to bring it down.

In my case it's even worse as my manager didnt even know whether the appraisal is actually related to the annual salary increment ! So, even if I did excellent in my appraisal by scoring 5 points flat, it doesnt mean I'd get a fat increment as well. So, tell me watta heck are we doing this appraisal for then? How I'd wish I could ask her that question. But then knowing the fact that I have a mouth to feed, I'd better just keep my mouth shut.

So, how was my appraisal then? Frankly, I dont really give it a shit. What goes around comes around. We get back what we give. And for the amount of effort I've put on my work everyday, I am lucky I still got my job. But dont get me wrong here. It's not I came to work everyday just shaking my legs doing nothing. I still get all my tasks done but up to what I am supposed to do only. Nothing more. No extra effort. No extra hours. And most importantly, no ass licking.

Anyway, I'm still grateful I am not on the other side of the coin i.e. at the managerial position. Reviewing one's performance is twice harder than being reviewed itself. To deliver a negative feedback to somebody by telling them they are not good enough is one thing I am totally not good at. I'm quite sure I wont be able to sleep for at least 3 nights if I were to do that.

One man's cure is another man's poison !