Tag Archives: Wine

Losing Track of Time

2 Sep

Two days ago, we celebrated our wedding anniversary. When one is married for so long, like me, the tendency to lose track of time is prevalent. I have stopped counting how many years we have been married.

Typically, we would go to our favorite porky restaurant to enjoy a platter each and a bottle of wine. But this year, we opted for something different – going with Chinese food and no wine. No wine?! Yes, for a change. The spread was sumptuous, and the four of us had a delightful dinner as the restaurant was not packed nor noisy.

The sumptuous dinner menu

When the girls were away the past few years, we never considered dining at a Chinese restaurant, especially to celebrate our wedding anniversary. It would be hard to order for the two of us, being small eaters. But now that both girls are back, we can have more options for dinner celebration venues. Isn’t it wonderful?

Here’s wishing us a happy anniversary, good health, and happiness throughout the year!

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It’s a Small World

29 Mar

When we went to Forest City Golf Resort, we thought we had the perfect getaway from it all. Little did we know, we would bump into two golfing friends who were also there for golf. It’s a small world!

The first encounter was a brief one in the pro shop when the friend was heading out as we were walking in. A quick chat was all we had. The second encounter was equally brief, but we made plans to meet up for dinner as the friend had just checked in.

On Friday afternoon after our morning tee-off, M1 and I decided to visit Legoland, located not too far from the resort. Hubby opted out since he had work to do. So the arrangement worked out well.

Both of us spent the hot and humid afternoon wandering through the attractions at Legoland. The Day Pass ticket was not cheap. But we were upgraded to an Annual Pass as the theme park is trying to retain or attract visitors. So would we visit again with the Annual Pass? Perhaps.

No crowd, no queue, it was ideal

The plus side of a semi-post-pandemic situation is no crowds in a theme park. There was no queue at all the rides, not many wailing kids to contend with, and no icky arms close to us because everyone had to maintain the one-meter social distancing. It was perfect save for the humid weather.

The mini wonders at Legoland
Sealife at Legoland

After completing the outdoor attractions and rides, we moved indoors to Sealife aquarium. I think we enjoyed the air-conditioning more than the attractions! The rain came down when we came out from Sealife. It was a short drizzle, and the umbrella came in handy as we headed to the car.

That evening, we had dinner with our friends in the next township from Forest City, followed by a bottle of lovely French wine in the hotel lobby. It was a good getaway for us to rejuvenate and reset to face our daily routine.

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MCO, Day 3

20 Mar

We have been under Movement Control Order (MCO) as instructed by the government and today is Day 3. I must say it has been good so far. I wake up when I am done sleeping. Then I have my tea at a leisurely pace because I don’t have to get ready for work to face the challenges ahead.

The number one worry-free plus point from this experience: no stress over the car next to our reserved parking lot at the office. The lady driver always, without fail, parks her car very close to our lot (and not in the center of hers) whenever she arrives before us, thus giving me very little room to get out of my car. A two weeks’ break from this daily annoyance is certainly welcomed.

We’ve been enjoying the comforts of home as I spent most of my time carving whilst hubby would be out in the garden tending to his plants. In between, I have been preparing meals and doing some light chores around the house. So domesticated. Hahaha…

My daily routine now: carving Whales

After lunch, I carved. And carved and carved. Then I would get dinner ready. The best part, we have been having pre- and post-dinner drinks more often than before. Whiskey, gin, wine and beer… we’re doing it all.

Then it’s Netflix all the way until bedtime. And this routine will be repeated day in, day out until the end of the month.

The downside from this partial lockdown: no golf until the end of the month as well! We contemplated taking walks in the evenings to address the exercise portion of our lives. Hmm… then again, doing house chores is exercising too.

The upcoming weekend may see a break in pattern or most likely not. Everyday feels like a weekend now. And so far so good, we are still sane.

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Beginnings and Endings

3 Jan

The new year started off rather quietly for us. We stayed home that evening and had a fun time cooking together, preparing dinner for a very leisurely paced New Year’s Eve meal. I felt this was better quality time instead of going out and be squashed in the crowds.

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Ushering in 2020 with some wine and cheese!

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Sautéd mushrooms, baked potato wedges, honey-glazed carrots, pork steak, greens and a pasta. Quite a meal!

By midnight after seeing some of the fireworks that we could see from our windows, we continued to watch Netflix, waiting to Skype with M2. After we finally heard from her, we went to bed after that! No revelry beyond as it felt just like any other day.

The new beginning is supposed to bring new excitement. We have not even fully digested the spirit of Christmas, New Year’s mood, suddenly at the turn, Chinese New Year things popped up! Decorations at the mall were updated, along with cookies, clothes especially Cheongsams and all things Chinese New Year related were on full display. I am so not ready yet for the next festive celebration.

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Roaring display of the lion dance at the mall

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The new beginning means an ending for us. The food trail is coming to an end as M1’s time with us is ending soon. It’s not sadness all over again but acceptance.

As we cherish the next two days before she leaves, we hope to spend quality time with her again in the future. It has been truly wonderful. Maybe we will visit her in the US again? Who knows? The year 2020 will be full of surprises.

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Willamette Valley Vineyards

27 Jun

We drove to Willamette Valley Vineyards after having lunch with M1 and joined their 2.00pm daily tour. It was a really small group, just us, our guide and three new employees.

The weather was lovely to be outside too as we toured the grounds. When we were indoors, we saw all the facilities, from the lab, bottling and packaging sections to the cellars.

After our tour, we stayed on for wine tasting. We tried the two choices on their Tasting Flights menu which consisted of the Daily Tasting and the Reserve Tasting. Basically the difference being the former had more whites and the latter, more reds.

Both choices had very nice flavors, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. So much so, we bought two bottles from the list – the 2016 Pinot Blanc and the 2017 Tualatin Estate Semi-Sparkling Muscat; and we will drink them this evening.

Willamette Valley Vineyards is a must-visit if one ever visits Oregon. They get my thumbs up.

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Win-Win-Win-Win Situation

11 Apr

This 16/8 diet seems to be really good for me. So far, coupled with my activities, it’s been effective – I feel good and there’s more to this. That’s why I call it a win-win-win-win situation.

The 16/8 is strictly on weekdays but I have lost weight. Win number one.

On weekends, I play golf. Win number two. And after golf, a nice lunch where I would eat and basically don’t restrict myself. I only avoid food that can cause discomfort due to my Endometriosis. But as I now eat at a 16/8 time frame, my tummy has shrunk and no matter what nice food are on the table, I don’t eat a lot.

The best part, I also drink during lunch. Win number three. A couple of whiskey shots, not necessarily excessive but enough to feel good. Sometimes at home at night, a glass of wine to relax. Alcohol, I must admit is one thing I can’t give up. I should stay away from beer though because unlike, wine and whiskey, I tend to drink more and that’s not good.

And I wouldn’t say I eliminated sugar totally as I do find myself snacking on some candies and cookies occasionally during the window to eat. Win number three and a half?

For the final win number four? Carving of course! I have turned to balsa for now because the existing stock pile of Meranti wood are not the right sizes for carving any Whales or even Gnomes. Basically a lot more work is needed to cut them to size and I avoided this to preserve the wrist prior to the Iron Challenge golf tournament.

But now that the tournament is done and over, I am in a good place to go back to carving, first with balsa to increase the population count of my Citizens of Gigglesville and eventually back on Meranti. What a win-win-win-win situation indeed.

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On Track, Part 3

22 Mar

It’s Friday and the weigh-in day to gauge my progress. It’s Week Four of the weight loss challenge and I am thrilled to say, being on track and staying disciplined is actually quite a fun and uplifting thing to do when you see the results!

I thought I wouldn’t fare too good this week because mid-week, I met up with friends at the bar for dinner and drinks. Two drinks to be exact, a glass of white wine and half a pint of Kronenbourg 1664 beer. I even snacked in the office this whole week, and had one Kisses chocolate yesterday without guilt though.

I do notice it doesn’t matter what I ate, just as long as I don’t go overboard, but when I ate that was critical. This is the essence of the 16/8 diet after all. The next day after that bar visit, I maintained the 16 hours window with a later lunch than usual. And this morning, standing on the bathroom scale, it’s a number to be proud of. Officially, from 25 February until today, I have lost 4.1lbs! Woo hoo…

I am now 1.6lbs away from my set goal weight. Although it’s not 15lbs that I had mentioned that got me started on this challenge, losing 4.1lbs in total is quite an achievement by itself within a month. So proud of myself. Of course, if I stuck to the three months time frame, and knowing now this works, 15lbs is not impossible.

But perhaps once I do get to shedding the balance (1.6lbs), I will take a break and decide later if I want to embark on the second phase to lose more weight because I like how I feel now. We shall see.

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Back to School

11 Sep

M1 has officially completed her internship at the end of August and it was an excellent two months of learning and exposure to the seafood industry. Hubby and I are very proud of her and this experience will indeed be useful for her in the future.

Looking at what she has been doing, it looks like this Food Science student is leaning more towards seafood than cheese, wine or beer. Shucks. I would gladly be her guinea pig for wine or beer experiments if she ever needs my input!

She is now back on campus to the start Fall classes as a Junior. How time flies…

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Fat Bird, Part 3

21 Aug

While we appreciate Fat Bird and the pair of birds visiting our home, there’s another Fat Bird that we appreciate more. Specifically, it’s a Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region in New Zealand.

Lovely wine. Highly recommended!
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Satisfying a Craving 

21 Aug

I hardly have cravings, I just indulge. A glass of wine, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, some chocolate, you know… the usual decadent stuff once in a while. Last Friday I suddenly find myself craving durian, the King of fruits.

It’s been said when you crave something, most likely you are pregnant. The last time I had a strong craving, I was pregnant with M1 and I specifically remembered a strong craving for satay. Hubby had to oblige me. This time, while I am certainly and definitely not pregnant, it’s rather unexplainable that a sudden craving developed. And for durian!

We didn’t have to go far in search of it as my golf buddies came to the rescue! They were kind enough to go buy for me. I just had to pick it up after work: a tub worth at least 4kg of durian. Yum…

The minute we walked into the house, M2 groaned. The smell! It’s just too pungent for words. She opted to sit in the terrace away from the smell and played with Rooney, official pet number one. Between us and the maid, we polished off the tub.

No words can describe the smell. To say it smelly is an injustice. Then again to label it fragrant is equally incorrect. I guess one has to savor to appreciate as it’s an acquired taste. I was definitely a happy camper with my craving satisfied after the feast. Burp…

  

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