Tag Archives: quarantine

Mother of Good Taste

15 Sep

During the pandemic, when we were under lockdown, I learned new recipes to cook our meals to pass the time. I also accumulated a lot of spices to experiment with. When there were no more lockdowns after the pandemic, I cooked less as we went out more often to eat.

Recently, I decided to make Tandoori Chicken with the spices in my pantry instead of using a Tandoori ready-mix. I have most of the ingredients required, and it was effortless, but I did not realize I ran out of chili powder. So, I improvised and ground some dry chili as a replacement.

It did not quite work out, as my effort resulted in a Spiced Chicken instead of a Tandoori Chicken. Taste-wise, it was good, albeit a tad spicy, but the color was off, brown instead of red. It was the chili powder that made all the difference.

Apparently, Kashmiri chili powder is preferred because it gives the red color without the spicy taste. I managed to buy a box online, and I can’t wait to try the recipe again with the correct chili powder!

The correct chili powder to make Tandoori Chicken

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A Special Thirty

26 Jun

I started DIY project number 30 last week. Thirty! That’s how many I have done since the pandemic broke three years ago. The first year, I crafted so many; the second year, lesser; and this third year, I have slowed down so much. Oh well, there is a valid reason for this decline.

During the first year, when we had all those lockdowns and MCO (Movement Control Order), I was speed-building miniatures to pass the time at home. In the second year, when the restrictions were lesser, I was back to playing golf, going out, and traveling, and my hobbies – carving and building miniatures, took a backseat. Hence, not that much craft work to show.

With everything opened and the economy in full swing again this year, I find myself busier than ever and going out more. Staying home is only to avoid the heatwave outside. So spending time on my hobbies is much less this year. Nonetheless, however less it has been, I have arrived at number 30 for my miniatures. What a milestone!

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Oh My Ferragamo!

17 Mar

Recently, at the wedding, I decided to wear heels to match my outfit, but I was in a bind. I didn’t think I could balance on either the black three-inch or the bling-bling four-inch dinner stilettoes. It’s been ages since I wore these!

So I decided to don my Ferragamo shoes instead. It was either the classic Vara pumps or the Artiste block heels. I prefer the Vara over the Artiste, and the ever-reliable Vara pumps have held up after all these years. Perhaps a tad hardened on the insides that I have to grit my teeth when I walk, but what’s a little pain for a night of glam?

However, the other pair of Ferragamo has suffered a terrible fate. With two years upended by the pandemic, traveling and meeting people was out of the question. Furthermore, there have not been many new business opportunity meetings, so wearing good shoes were not required.

Anyway, my Artiste Ferragamo shoes suffered massive hydrolysis on the bottom. It’s like a replay of my Blundstone boots, only this time, it’s my designer label heels. The rubber underside of the shoes exploded to smithereens! The only consolation is that the shoebox contained the mess.

The awful state of the Artiste

I am not upset, but wondering if I bring the shoes to the Ferragamo store, can anything be done to save them? Would I be accorded a solution or a replacement (wishful thinking here) like Blundstone Australia did? Hmm.

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2020 – The Year That Was

30 Dec

Well, another year has come and gone, almost. With another day left for 2022, it’s time to reflect on the year that was.

I have seen on the web that touted 2022 as ‘2020 Too’ and not 2022. Get it? A repeat of the year that upended everything. To a certain extent, it was true. But I think the good things that happened far outweighed the unpleasant, at least for me.

The highlight of the year for us was M2’s graduation, and we had the opportunity to travel to Dublin, Ireland, to attend the Commencement Ceremony. During that time, travelers no longer needed to be quarantined upon arrival, so that was good. It added extra days to our plans, and we added London to the itinerary to stretch the holiday.

The downside of such a long holiday was the weather! It was cold to the core, and at times, the numbness from being in the cold made the experience unpleasant. But we took it in stride, and it was indeed a wonderful time.

2022 was somewhat of a year of new beginnings for us. Regrettably, we gave up our office space and officially worked from home. However, it was a good decision and a blessing in disguise. We no longer have to stress over traveling to/from home/office and have more time and flexibility. And as far as work is concerned, well, there have been ups and downs, but we prevailed. Let’s hope the new year will be better.

2022 was also a year of medical concerns. With Covid cases on the uptrend, people I know were positive at an alarming rate. It was only a matter of time before I contracted it. True enough, I tested positive in June and had the most miserable week of my life battling it. I was in no mood to share my episode then and, as time passed, forgot about my ordeal. However, in the aftermath, I notice I frequently experience brain fog and memory loss! Yikes. And I lost distance when golfing. Double yikes!

Sometimes I say it was the booster jab that compromised my health. But then again, I should say the booster jab saved me from complications or worst. So I should be thankful in this sense. My golfing distance has since returned, but my brain fog is still there. Perhaps this is purely due to age instead? I have to monitor further on this.

The year also saw a decline in my miniature crafting. Weirdly, I have so much time, yet no time at all. We played golf often and ate out more, yet no progress for my miniatures. DIY project #25 has stopped for the longest time! Maybe 2023 will see a revival of my interest? We will find out.

So what do I envision for the new year? Well, nothing too extreme, better health would be good, after all, I am a year older. In short, let there be peace, harmony, and good health. Here’s wishing all my readers a very Happy New Year!

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The Struggle Continues, Part 2

6 Dec

Besides my golf game struggle, my DIY miniature crafting has also struggled over the past few months. I have not sat down at my little workstation for so long, and my last project has stalled to the moon and never came back! Hahaha.

It would be nice to finish it up and not leave the set incomplete and collecting dust. I have gone so far with crafting miniatures for the past three years already. And this being DIY project #25, it would be great to wrap it up before the year ends.

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Growing the Fig Family

17 Oct

If there’s one thing besides patience I discovered during the pandemic when we were under lockdown, it was online shopping. One can buy just about whatever we fancied at the click of the mouse.

In the last two years, during the lockdowns, my favorite item to buy from my go-to online shopping site was DIY miniature kits. But hubby is different in his purchasing choices. He buys plants!

Although he has bought plants in the past, they are mostly air plants, nothing heavy. These days, he continues to buy plants online instead of from the nursery, even though there are no more lockdowns. The last two purchases were fig plants, which are far heavier than air plants! The most recent one was rather large trees, in my opinion.

So now, we have nine fig trees and growing the fig family. It should be interesting.

The latest five fig plants!

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Battle of the Weeds, Part 3

14 Oct

I have not ventured out to the garden lately. There is just too much to do inside the house besides my being out for golf. Separately, the monsoon season has started, and it has been raining quite a bit, so there’s no reason to go to the garden.

Yesterday morning, I went out to the garden because it was nice and cloudy. To my horror, the place was a mess with leaves scattered everywhere caused by strong gusts of winds. Leaves aside, I see the Creeping Charlie growing everywhere too! It has sprouted in places that they’re not supposed to be.

Be gone you creepies!

So I had a field day, battling with the weeds. When we were under the MCO (Movement Control Order) last year, external helpers like gardeners and domestic cleaners were not allowed to come into the estate. But now, with no more lockdowns in place and our gardener coming regularly, I don’t understand why we still have the Creeping Charlie growing in abundance. Sigh.

It will be quite a chore to get rid of them because I cannot wait for the gardener to sort this out. I hope I will win this round of the battle.

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Dinky, Meet Snoopy!

9 Sep

Wednesday was an eventful day because I was finally getting my tattoo. Although I anticipated pain after my last experience with Dinky, I didn’t feel any during this inking session.

It was only after the session that I felt a tad painful, but the sensation lasted for just two hours. I must laud the tattoo artist, for she was very gentle and good, putting me at ease. The health and hygiene measures were very impeccable to feel assured and safe.

I’m very impressed with the work. I guess there’s no explanation required on my choice this time nor introduction, except perhaps only to say, “Dinky, meet Snoopy!”

My latest!

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Big Day Tomorrow

6 Sep

The time has come for me to get my tattoo finally! After waiting almost a month for my appointment, tomorrow is the big day. Woohoo!

The procedure is rather stringent, although we are now in an endemic stage. The tattoo parlor requires me to take a Covid antigen test before the session. I will be doing this at home with a doctor looking on via Zoom, and they are covering the cost of the doctor, which is nice.

This extra step of having a doctor ensures that the test process is proper and the result is mine, not someone else’s. This particular parlor imposes this added requirement (of a doctor’s presence), unlike other parlors that only require one to test on your own before the tattoo session. Oh well.

So what am I getting this third time? Hah! I will reveal it later, not now. Be patient. I’m ready for the test shortly but psyching my mind for the pain tomorrow. I have to remember, no pain, no gain, or in this case, no pain, no tattoo!

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Hot and Bothered, Part 2

25 Jul

The heat and humidity, my goodness, how do we deal with it? I feel hot and bothered and am profusely sweating every time I move. Maybe it’s a good thing for all my body’s water retention has reduced tremendously.

Ever since the beginning of the pandemic and the various lockdowns we went through, my weight fluctuated but did not increase. We stopped our Intermittent Fasting because there was no need to continue with it, being lockdown at home. Life went on, and my weight was manageable.

But recently, with the unbearable heat, I find myself having no appetite at all. Besides sweating more than a round of golf, the heat is also helping me burn all my body fat! Perhaps this is turning out to be a good weight loss advantage.

As a result, my weight has been on a downtrend. I am now at my ideal weight, thanks to the heat. For this, I am certainly not hot and bothered by it!

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