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My Friends Can Cook, Part 2

21 Dec

Friends are the best thing next to family. Friends who can cook for you are even better! It was a simple Moroccan Chicken Stew, home-cooked that was just heavenly. Coupled with the wine I brought, catching up with friends in the comforts of the home is good for the heart and soul. There were fruits after the meal to sweeten the chatter and laughter.

I could get used to this – more catch up sessions with girlfriends from yesteryears. Perhaps the coming new year will be apt to continue this.

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A sweet combination of longan, strawberries and persimmons

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Cab choice blended well with the chicken!

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My Friends Can Cook

20 Dec

Recently a girlfriend cooked Chicken and Lamb Briyani Rice for us, complete with side dishes and lovely garnishing. Hubby and I really enjoyed the meal and the company. It has been awhile since we had this dish, what more home-cooked. And this brought back memories of my first encounter with Basmathi rice when I was at college, the rice being the trigger here.

Over the Summer during the dinosaur era, I had a Pakistani housemate who took over the room from my previous housemates. It was a tad complicated as we were in between housemates but eventually, the living arrangements worked out.

Now during that time, the grad student would cook the one and only thing he knew, Basmathi rice and Curry Chicken. He had great skills cooking the Basmathi rice in a pot over the stove, with the rice always coming out fluffy and not burnt, and very yummy after tossing it in butter. But it’s the preparation of the chicken that I can still remember vividly until today.

He would cut the whole chicken to just eight pieces, no more no less. I asked why and he reasoned that it has to last him four days because he simply does not have the time to cook daily with his busy Summer schedule. With the chunky pieces rationed to one piece per meal for two meals a day, I thought it was the most convenient planning ever!

Compare that method to the preparation taken by the girlfriend on the meal she cooked for us, everything was bite size, flavored with exotic spices and very detailed in presentation. I’m not complaining but just marvelling at the efforts taken by her to ensure that the end results are perfect.

Whether the meal was cooked in simplicity for a hectic Summer schedule or meticulously for an afternoon leisurely lunch, both methods resulted in awesome tastes and I feel privileged to have friends who can cook for me.

Tonight another girlfriend will be cooking for me and I am so looking forward to the occasion and catching up with her on life.

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The final presentation complete with raisins, nuts and quail eggs

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Vege side dish

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Raita side dish

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Papadum side dish

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Dhal with lamb side dish

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A Lovely Morning

15 Dec

It was indeed a lovely morning after breakfast. The sun was bright and hot and I got toasted a wee bit while working on Codewords on the book instead of the phone, my dying iPhone5S.

An occasional dip in the sea then the pool, we couldn’t ask for more. By lunchtime, automatically our tummies were rumbling and we opted for sandwiches and a Tandoori pizza by the poolside.

Unfortunately, the beer that I intended to drink did not materialized as the mocktail Margarita concoction on the menu sounded very tempting, so we had a jug of it. It was very good and refreshing.

Feeling contented and with a light breeze blowing, the setup was perfect for a snooze! And we almost did but decided to go for another dip in the sea after resting long enough for the food to digest.

Soon after, our Penang friends dropped by the resort to catch up with us and it was nice to see them again. Amidst our chatter, the sky turned dark and cloudy again. Yes it rained.

Thank goodness I managed to work on my tan earlier in the morning. Let’s hope tomorrow, being our last day (how quickly time went by), I can still catch a bit more sun in the morning before we check out and leave for home.

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Whale of a Time

19 Nov

Sometimes doing the same thing over and over again can be quite mundane. I am not saying Citizens, Monuments and Gnomes are getting boring but once in a while, I’d like to do something different for variety.

That’s why there are Superheroes, Dinky the dinosaur, Halloween Owl, giant Citizens, a couple of Gnome Homes, an Apeach and whales in the collection. My latest challenge was carving another whale but a much larger one than the four that I have carved.

Larger because it will double up as a smart phone holder as well. The idea came about after a dim sum meal with a girlfriend. I totally had a whale of a time (pun intended) carving this new baby on a glued two-piece Meranti. So much so, I started another one in between some other efforts.

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Hubby’s Samsung A6+ sitting on the whale

 

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Is Golf Really Healthy? Part 2

30 Oct

My earlier assumption of burning 200-400 calories during a round of golf was off by a whole lot! I used to be able to hit such numbers but these days, it’s not even close.

Two weekends ago, during the Saturday morning golf game, I clocked 5.9km with 9,993 steps but burned only 127 calories. This was according to my Xiaomi MiBand2. Hmm… has my metabolism slowed down?

Anyway true to my earlier take on the after game plans, the four of us (plus a friend) had lunch but skipped the alcohol. The spread may not look or feel heavy but I believe the calories tipped over what I burned. Oh well…

I shouldn’t be too nit-picky with such things if I want to enjoy the company of friends during a round of golf. Do note these days, it’s more the company than the game for me because of the nagging pain on the left hand.

Speaking of left hand, I have decided to go get an x-ray done to assess the situation and see where do I go from here. I am so not looking forward to this I must say…

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Noodles, vege, fruit vege, more vege, anchovies & onions plus a fish porridge, nothing too heavy…

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Is Golf Really Healthy?

26 Oct

Many will think that golf is a good and healthy activity as a form of exercise but I don’t think so. Think about it for a minute.

You may exert a lot of energy and probably burn 200-400 calories from the four and a half hours outing but along the way, old sports injury – if there are any, are subjected to more stress. Such is the situation with my left wrist and obviously, this is not healthy. Or you may unfortunately pick up new injuries.

And usually after the game, a hearty meal ensues whether it is a morning or afternoon game. On top of that, the alcohol intake, be it beer or whiskey… goodness! All that hard work gone in a jiffy.

A pint of beer is about 180-208 calories (depending on brew type and brand) while a shot of whiskey is about 64 calories and more, depending on proof percentage. No one stops at just a pint or a shot, let me tell you. I know I don’t. This probably explains why I have gained some weight recently despite the limited diet due to my Endometriosis – the meals and drinks that follow after each and every game.

You may feel good thinking you managed to burn 200-400 calories initially but six hours later, if not careful or disciplined, you end up putting back more calories than what was burnt in the first place!

Imagine week in, week out, the once a week or more games with this routine. One may argue that consumption of food and drinks was in moderation or very little but mind you, every little bit counts.

In conclusion, golf may be a good and healthy sports by itself, it is the after-game indiscipline that will just void all that form of exercise and render it ineffective.

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Weekend of Champions

30 Jul

I have amazing girlfriends and they inspire me with their grit, mental strength and focus. Over the weekend, three amazing women came out tops in their respective activities, two in golf and one in an ultra-trail race.

Girlfriend #1 defended her Champion title in the Women’s category in her golf club’s Annual Championship, Girlfriend #2 was the Nett Champion amongst men in a golf Invitational tournament while Girlfriend #3 romped to fourth placing in her category in the 100km race. A weekend of champions indeed! Well done, girlfriends, you ladies are simply amazing.

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So Embarrassing

3 Jul

The inevitable has happened. In my haste to reply to an SMS from hubby, I inadvertently sent my reply to a different channel, a WhatsApp chatgroup instead! Unbelievable.

I have heard several stories of friends sending their replies to the wrong channel and I never thought I would do the same. Usually I am very careful about it but this time, sigh… It was a case of being too efficient and too fast that the error occurred.

Thankfully the chatgroup was just the family (Mom, my sibling and his family) before I realised the error and quickly deleted it. It could have been worse and much more embarrassing.

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Forever 38 Again

27 Apr

Birthdays are joyous occasions because friends and family will send you fuzzy warm birthday wishes on all social media platforms that you are active in, throw you nice dinners or gift you with surprises. Even the games you play will send you wishes, a gift and unlimited play for a week! It’s nice and truly appreciated.

However, birthdays are also annual reminders to us that we are getting older with each year going by so fast. I am a dinosaur, remember? Seriously, I think the clock needs to slow down!

But like every other year for the past several years, I am forever 38 especially in the eyes of my girls. Each year with my birthday approaching, M2 will playfully ask me, “How old are you, Mommy?”

And of course, the answer is Forever 38. Again.

Bottom line, age is just a number and I am very thankful for the life that I have, surrounded by family and friends, and showered with constant support and flowing love. With such strong pillars behind me, I am certainly ready to face the year ahead. And staying forever 38…

A call from M1 across the ocean melted my heart to begin the day, and Hubby and M2 will be treating me to a fancy dinner this evening. Looking forward to the lovely evening ahead!

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A Cough and a Cold Putter

24 Apr

After almost three weeks of R&R, I actually went off to play my first golf game last Friday. Taking time off from work because it’s slow anyway, I decided to go swing my clubs despite having a cough and nasal congestion. In honesty, when the nasal congestion struck, I didn’t want to cancel because I wanted to see my golf buddies more than to actually play golf.

This aside, I saw my O&G doctor twice already, two weeks ago to remove the bandages and last week, a follow-up to ensure the wounds are healing well which they are by the way. The doctor said if I don’t feel any pain in the abdomen while turning my body, I should be okay to play golf.

Having said that, she did advised to be careful to avoid gym routines that focuses on the abdomen area. So my trainer needs to tweak the exercise program when we resume our gym session.

So how did I fare on the fairways? Well with a cough and a cold putter, let’s just say I need to recover from the cough first and then, try to play more to get back into the groove.

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