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Reunion Dinner 2024

9 Feb

Today is the eve of the Lunar New Year, and the Chinese community will gather with their loved ones for the ever-important Reunion Dinner. This year, we are not traveling North to hubby’s hometown. So, no long six hours or more drive to endure along the Plus Highway. Phew.

Instead, we are staying in town to celebrate the occasion with my brother’s family and Mom with a home-cooked sumptuous spread. Sometimes, families eat at a restaurant if they don’t want to cook up a storm. We tried this before but did not like the time restriction imposed.

As restaurants find this a lucrative business opportunity, Reunion Dinners with set menus are often allotted a two-hour session. Typically, there are two slots – an early session at 5.30 pm or a later session at 7.30 pm. And diners have to rush through the meal in a noisy atmosphere. You can’t eat at a leisurely pace with the clock ticking!

So eating at home is best. The family will gather this evening for our Reunion Dinner 2024. Here’s a toast to usher in the Year of the Dragon to bring peace and bless us with prosperity, good health, and much happiness.

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

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Countdown to the Year of the Dragon

6 Feb

The new Lunar New Year, or Chinese New Year, is three days away! This year, the Year of the Dragon falls on Saturday. I thought I had time to prepare for it since it’s in February this year, but nope. I wait until the last minute to get my act together.

Getting ready to toss the Yee Sang

Somehow, the New Year feeling is not there. I’m not feeling the festive vibes, and I’ve done only two tossing of the Yee Sang so far. Businesses everywhere are thriving, selling Chinese New Year-related items, yet I find myself uninterested. One can also find temporary tents along the roads and street parking lots selling firecrackers and mandarin oranges.

Street vendors selling firecrackers

We used to buy a fair bit of mandarin oranges but never the firecrackers. There is no need for this purchase because we will experience firecracker shows (and noise) from the neighbors and beyond!

So, as we count down to the New Year, with the Reunion Dinner first this Friday, I take this opportunity to count my blessings for the past year. While health-wise, it was challenging – I am thankful to have come out of it without further complications.

Who knows what lies ahead for the Year of the Dragon, but let’s take it in stride. Here’s wishing everyone a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous Year of the Dragon!

Kung Hey Fatt Choy / Kiong Hee Huat Chye / Gong Xi Fa Cai / Happy New Year!!!

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Slow Recovery

30 Jan

After all that medical calamity last week, I’m facing a slow recovery to get back on my feet. But I should not wallow at home in my misery. Instead, I decided to play some golf and get some sun. A little bit of Vitamin D might do me wonders. And wonder I certainly did.

I could not tee off because my rhythm was off. After nine holes, I managed to score a pathetic seven Stableford points! Never have I been so out of synch in my game. When an illness takes so long to overcome, all the muscle memory is gone, and the body is too weak to play decent.

I wondered if I made the right decision to return to golf so soon. Oh well, with another nine holes to go, I might as well plow on. After all, I had good company this morning.

Suddenly, things clicked, and before I knew it, I went from scoring zeroes to birdie, bogey, and birdie! Wow. What just happened? The birdies were on Hole 1, a Par 4, and Hole 3, a Par 5! Woohoo. I have never had two birdies in a game before. And it sure felt nice this morning!

The tonsillitis is gone, but there’s still some throat irritation, causing tiredness. It is a slow recovery indeed. With the weather getting hotter these days–gone are the continuous rainy days–I better be mindful more than ever to stay hydrated to take care of myself regardless of activities. Staying healthy is a number one priority for me these days.

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First Game of the Year

9 Jan

After a two-week break from golf to recover from the nasty cough, I played my first game of the year this morning. The cough is at the tail-end, and I might as well go ahead and play to get some exercise. So, how did I fare?

It was more of an outing to catch up with friends and get some sun, but the sun was not even out! The morning was gloomy, peppered with light rain now and then. And when the sun did peak out, it was darn hot! Sigh.

A two-week break causes a lot of muscle memory loss. I could not swing my clubs well because my rhythm was way off. The tee-off was erratic, the long game was short, and the short game was off the mark. And the putting, I won’t elaborate further. Oh well, I expected this outcome. I take heart that although the rhythm was out, I did not lose a single ball, a small positive consolation.

Maybe once I’m back to playing more regularly, my golf mojo will return to normal. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for this to happen sooner rather than later. I play my next game on Thursday, and we will find out the performance then.

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Limping, Not Leaping into 2024

2 Jan

Several days before ushering in the New Year, I was out with a nasty cough and flu. It was most depressing. Even the New Year fireworks at midnight could not lift my spirits.

You could say I limped, not leaped into 2024. I have been sapped to the core, nursing a watery nose and teary eyes. The sneeze just cannot come out! Ugh. What a weak start to face the new year. I’m just hoping for a speedy recovery.

The good thing about this misfortune is the sudden weight loss. I have been trying so hard to shed some pounds towards the fourth quarter of last year but have failed miserably. With so many occasions and birthday dinners, it was hard.

But with my current situation, I have no appetite, and going out is too much of an ordeal. And the pounds are gone! It’s nice to know there is light at the end of the tunnel. I will recover and face 2024 head-on.

Happy New Year everyone!

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Goodbye 2023

29 Dec

We have two days left of 2023 before we bid the year goodbye. It has been another eventful year for me. As we count down to the New Year, I reflect upon the past 12 months, and here are some highlights of the good times and not-so-good moments.

The biggest highlight would be the two weddings in the family! My only sibling’s twins got hitched within three months of each other. It was a very happy occasion for the family.

Before the weddings, I started 2023 with a bang, getting myself hospitalized for kidney stones. I thought I pulled a back muscle from gardening, but it was more than that. I can laugh about it now!

After that scare, my diet changed to one that is low-oxalate. It took a while to adjust, but I have gotten used to it now. It is always best to stay healthy than to have a recurrence.

The year also saw me having a constant battle with putting. I suffered putting yips every so often with the many rounds of golf I played this year. The musical chair with my Peanut Putter, Scotty Cameron Squareback, and TaylorMade Spider Mini putter choices was a regular practice. Towards the end of the year, I had to retire my Peanut Putter because the grip was disintegrating. Boo hoo hoo. For now, the Mini is in the bag.

There were no family holidays this year as both girls are working, but I’m okay with this. Instead, hubby and I made several golfing trips with friends, locally and abroad. As a result of the constant golfing, my craft work suffered. I slowed down building miniatures, and the latest DIY project, number #32, is incomplete and collecting dust at my workstation. Sigh. Perhaps I can revive it at the beginning of the new year. We shall see.

2023 was not all fun and happy or frustrating. There have been scary moments that I wish not to be repeated. We experienced two spine-chilling episodes with friends after golf, but quick thinking and action saved them. However, no amount of action could save the loss of others due to other issues. Unexpected and untimely, this is the cycle of life, and we have to accept it. I avoid elaborating much on these occasions because I feel it’s best to remember these people in happier times than upon their deaths. Peace be upon their souls.

What will the new year bring for me? It would be materialistic to wish for this and that. I will be practical and say better health more than anything else. With each year passing, the body cannot take the strain regardless of what I do. This dinosaur is getting old!

Well, 2023 has been happy and sad all rolled into one, to sum it up in one sentence. Goodbye 2023, thanks for the memories, and a toast to the year, now stored away as I await the New Year with an open mind.

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Merry Christmas 2023

26 Dec

Merry Christmas, everyone! It has been a low-key festive time for us because of the wet rainy season. When it rains constantly, the mood is not there to do anything! Luckily, we did most of our Christmas shopping online, capitalizing on the 11.11 and 12.12 online sales blitz, and there was no need to go to the mall at all.

As usual, the family had our Christmas dinner on the Eve, and it was a good spread of choices. I baked a pork tenderloin and called it a ‘Pork Log’ because of its sheer size to feed 16 people!

The Pork Log process. I cut off a portion to fit the Pyrex!

Initially, I was fickle-minded about what to make, as recipe ideas kept popping up on my Facebook news feed. The final dish was my third choice after two earlier attempts at something different.

Here’s wishing everyone a wonderful time, and let there be peace. Merry Christmas once again!

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Chinese Winter Solstice Festival

22 Dec

The Chinese Winter Solstice Festival, or Dongzhi Festival, is today, and the family will celebrate the occasion with a meal together. Typically, the highlight of the occasion is the Tang Yuan, the glutinous rice balls dessert, and not the dinner, which is usually nothing too extravagant.

Over the years, our family’s version of Tang Yuan has evolved in taste and color. It used to be just the traditional white and pink balls, but more colorful ones have appeared over the last few years. In terms of taste, besides serving the balls with piping hot sweet ginger syrup, we have crushed peanuts with sugar sprinkled over the colorful balls. However, we hardly make them with sweet fillings, such as black sesame or red bean, because it’s too much work.

Another thing about this festival is the occasion being everybody’s birthday. When one eats a glutinous ball, you are officially a year older. When I was a kid dinosaur years ago, eating one was never enough. And I worried about eating a dozen glutinous balls because I would have to add a dozen years to my age. Hahahaha.

Here’s wishing everyone good health and happiness during this Dongzhi Festival!

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Almost a Brilliant Idea

19 Dec

Recently, we bought some round magnets with the numbers zero to nine on them. Hubby thought they would make excellent ball markers on the green when we play golf. With so many available, we will not run out of them! Add in its magnetic feature – it’s the perfect golf accessory.

The perfect golf accessory?

Although I planned to cut down my games for the remaining days of 2023, I played one game last Sunday and brought three magnets with me, numbering three to five. I figured they would make excellent markers for the Par 4s and 5s when I placed the correct number to indicate my strokes upon reaching the green. Brilliant, right?

Then, as an afterthought, I added the number one and two magnets to account for the Par 3s. But things didn’t go as planned!

The fairways were soggy, and it was hard to stand firm. Even the roughs were soggy. We were only at the third hole, a Par 5 when the game went downhill; I could not get my ball out of the rough. Put it this way – I was not hitting my ball but chopping grass and splattering mud on soggy grounds.

It took seven strokes to land on the green, and I did not have a number seven marker. My flightmates had a good laugh over this! It never crossed my mind that the remaining magnets, numbering six to nine, are equally necessary! Hahahahaha. After that hole, several more holes also required a higher-numbered magnet than the ones I had in the pocket.

That morning, the golf game was more of a laugh fest with friends. It wasn’t even a decent round for the four of us – clearly, the course condition was unplayable, with the constant rain making the grounds soft and soggy. Sigh.

The numbered magnet is almost a brilliant idea for now. But it is only possible to use magnets number one to five when the course condition improves. Until then, perhaps it’s best to wait out the rainy season and enjoy the golf downtime.

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A Touring Pro?

5 Dec

Over the weekend, hubby and I attempted to do the unthinkable – playing four rounds of golf like a touring pro! Did we succeed? Well, almost.

The drive in one car with our friends to Sri Menanti Golf Club was pleasant, as there was hardly any traffic. The weather was cooling, and although our one flight teed off at almost 9.30 am, we did not feel any heat.

At 9.00am, the temperature was cool with the low hanging clouds at the clubhouse

The golf course was a gem of a discovery. Narrow, undulating, and unexpected, it was an enjoyable golf course. The best part – buggies were allowed on the fairways. Nice.

After the game, we had a hearty local lunch near the course before heading to Malacca for the night.

Come Sunday, the rest of the group arrived, and our second game was together with them at Ayer Keroh Country Club. Yet another round with the buggy on course, I didn’t feel the pain of walking because I didn’t walk that much! Such conditions help the body not to exert too much and be able to go on pain-free the next game.

The third game at Tiara Malacca Golf & Country Club was a taxing one despite being buggy on the course as well. The fairways were dry, the roughs were nasty, and the sun was a scorcher. Everyone felt the heat to the core.

I was constantly going into the bunkers, and it annoyed me to no end. Adding to my frustration was my erratic putting with the Spider after doing so well with it for the past few games. Sigh.

The three-day schedule pales in comparison to a touring pro’s. I hardly felt like one anyway when we had buggy on-course games. Despite this advantage, the will to go on was there, but the body and mind could not. We gave up the last game. Sigh. On a brighter note, we had good food each time and plenty of friendship bonding time.

Professional men and women golfers are remarkable athletes. While I aspire to be like them, playing several games in a stretch, if I cannot even handle three days of buggy on-course games, what more walking long golf courses for four days in a row? Hats off to them!

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