Cups Of Coffee

Oddly, I haven't felt any sort of cravings to have coffee daily. While I can't do without a glass of freshly squeezed juice at some point, caffeine isn't necessary. Not even tea. I still avoid coffee after 3pm or so. It keeps me awake at night. I need to sleep! I always have early morning activities scheduled. Caffeine in the late afternoons just spells bad news.

I honestly think it's because the brains don't need to be greased to operate in tip top condition, so coffee isn't necessary to keep me awake. Now that I'm getting a fantastic 9-hour sleep cycle on a nightly basis, the dark circles have receded. I am awake at any rate, doing the likeable fun things! Oof.

Of late, the flat whites have been a tad disappointing at the cafes around. So at Oriole Cafe, I've followed this girlfriend's preferences and we've taken to ordering the piccolo latte. This is a stronger brew, of course. It always changes in the taste depending on the sort of roast used. Arrrrrgh. Never mind, it's a good strong shot of caffeine anyway. Nice to linger over a cuppa and have a quick chat.

In a flash, the girlfriend has left the previous job, bagged another exciting portfolio, and has gone back to work! Luckily we didn't procrastinate and made weekly dates between then and now. Leisurely swims, easy meals and chilling out. The one thing I couldn't manage to fix up with her is an inline-skating date. I dare not run with this woman. She's very good and I can only manage 3km. Heeeeeee. Still, it's lovely to have spent some quality time with the girlfriend before work swallows her whole again.

My Set Meal At Komala Vilas!

There're many Indian restaurants and eateries in Little India, and we'll simply wander into a random one just to try it. Indian food is our default food for meals, especially if it's just the man and I, or within the tight circle whose food preferences match. Oh those spices. Heavenly. We don't have to cater to anyone else's preferences and can zoom straight to our favorites. Also because of our changes in diet in the recent years, we find that Indian vegetarian food somehow contain more flavors and texture which are really appetizing.

It's such a riot at Komala Vilas along Serangoon Road. It's friggin crowded all the time. Tourists and locals alike throng the eatery. We usually squirm upstairs at 2pm, join the queue to get a table. Meanwhile, the crowds don't seem to stop. Today, we simply wanted to hop in here for a bit of dhaal and sambar.

The food here is mediocre. At about S$10 a person, it's the fast food version of your set meals. Don't expect any sort of quality. If you're looking for a quick fix, this is one eatery of choice, if you can find parking nearby. Otherwise, you eat around wherever you park if you don't fancy walking under the hot sun to an eventual destination. Komala Vilas' mango lassi is pretty good, but overly sweetened.

The one thing I don't appreciate about Indian food is its sweets and desserts. O MY GAWWD. It's so sweet that it can induce an instant toothache. No no no to desserts anyway, flat, regardless of genre. I've no sweet tooth at all.

To Sin Hoi Sai For The Sambal Pomfret

After a bout of nerf gun wars meshed with parkour, sweaty and sticky, the group wanted an easy dinner at the nearby Sin Hoi Sai Eating House at East Coast Road. It's a childhood haunt for many of us. (There's another branch at Tiong Bahru. I keep passing by, but never bothered to go in. ) Knowing that I wouldn't be eating much, I wasn't bothered about the venue. It's the majority's vote. At least the cold barley here is nicely unsweetened.

As a kid I've no choice but to eat wherever the family eats. I detested the peeling lips and thirsty-dry-mouth syndrome after each meal at either a restaurant or a zi char stall that requires me to drink copious amounts of water and get up to pee twice in the night, interrupting my sleep. Nowadays, I usually avoid zi char stalls because the msg-laden food isn't to my liking at all. Everything is too shiny, too oily. They use weird oil which smells odd. I absolutely hate the beef hor fun which is the worst culprit of them all. The slices of beef have been clearly marinated in something weird. When cooked, it doesn't taste like beef anymore. The 'tenderness' always taste fake to me because the stalls use a bad cut of meat. Woe befall me if I should sip soup.

There were many dishes to feed our table of 12. The friends almost ordered the whole menu. Chicken, pork and beef. Plenty of other fried rolls and stuff. In spite of us requesting for less oil for everything, especially the stir-fry vegetables, they still arrived swimming in oil. Quite annoying. Not very pleasant to eat the vegetables which tasted the same.

I've no kind words for this slab of pork. It looked very good. Nicely braised and glistening, it looked absolutely unhealthy. Half on the table swore it was lean meat chunks on ribs. They relished it and polished that off. Okay. Whatever. It clearly didn't join my bowl.

No fish slice hor fun for me. Not intending to eat carbs this late at night, and the gravy has never been light on msg. So I ordered a medium-sized Chinese white pomfret deep fried in sambal to share with 2 others who aren't big on the meat and oil. This is about the only dish I like. At least it didn't soak in oil till I finish the food. The oil, came from that lovely smelling and spicy sambal belachan. 3 spoonfuls of rice to go with the fish. Quite satisfying.

Sin Hoi Sai Eating House

187 East Coast Road, S428893

Tel: +65 6440 6956

55 Tiong Bahru Road

#01-59 S160055

Tel: +65 6223 0810

Feeling A Little Woozy

This is still a perfect menu for meat eaters- Le Bistrot du Sommelier. Unpretentious, casual and relaxed, the restaurant serves up hearty home-style French bistro fare. Good food. Knowing the crowds at the restaurant, we only hopped in at 9.15pm. It was thankfully, a little less busy. Besides the boeuf bourguignon, the table also went crazy over the onglet. The cassoulet was ordered for the specific intention of devouring the hearty contents within- a leg of duck, a slab of pork belly, a lamb shoulder tossed up with cannellini beans.

The generous portion of vegetable soup, cooked in duck stock and chockful of bacon cubes wasn't exactly to my taste. But I understood it was heavenly with the bread, chicken liver pâté and pickles. There was the usual delightful lumps of minced chicken and flour dumpling soaking within the soup. These people clearly love their beef and all manner of meat. The smells, oh the smells. Exhilarating to some, and after a while, very overpowering for me. It was a wise move not to have wine with the meal. It wouldn't have done the headache any good.

Since I knowingly walked into a meat restaurant, I would compromise a little on the food here since the menu only contains about 4 small items for non-meat eaters and if you're vegetarian, don't walk in without prior confirmation of provision of vegetarian items for your party. Even the potatoes would be cooked or fried in duck fat or chicken stock or garnished with brown beef gravy. There'll be absolutely nothing for you to eat and I'm not confident that this kitchen will whip up something for you on the spot.

I had only one miserable choice for my mains- the catch of the day. It was a snapper fillet lightly seared and served with artichoke on a tomato based sauce. The artichokes were tender and tasty. Since this is clearly a meat sort of place, they really had to remind me by over-salting and over-cooking the snapper fillet. They salted the fish like they would do to a piece of steak. It was horrible, and oddly, I wasn't in a cantankerous mood. The fish was fresh, at the least. So it wasn't sent back. I simply poured a little water into the plate. Travesty I know. But it washed the salt off the flesh. The harried look on the servers' faces didn't encourage me to do otherwise.

Meii Sushi

Friday nights are just special nights you want to chill out with the friends. At our various stages of lives, we're just grateful for Friday nights with a semblance of solidarity for civilized activities which don't involve paying homage to any sort of toilet bowl, drain or pillar.

Ivan, M. and I. We're bloody picky about food. But really, we're not as scary as our blogs portray us to be. Okay. Maybe Ivan is. You do not want to cross his path when it comes to beef, steaks and bak kut teh. Put in the right company and situation, we can be rather forgiving about...food. Or adventurous, or to be simply random. I appreciate the equilibrium we have in the shared understanding towards our outings. Quite priceless.

We decided to check out Meii Sushi. All of 6 months old, it's a tiny little joint with Chef Hong behind the counter. (Read all about the background to Meii on this Makansutra page.) It's been quietly humming along for a couple of months before we're brave enough to step in. I've never been to the Chef's prior eateries or tried his food. I don't do so well trying out eateries by reading most online reviews because tastebuds don't usually match said review's good vibes. So I turned up with no expectations of our dinner.

Of course we opted for omakase. That's the way to go in trying out a supposedly modest restaurant. The fish was alright. But I'm not enamored with the cut. I'm impressed by the generosity of the thickness and length of our sashimi and sushi. Today, we used our fingers to eat the sushi. The dishes of uni in its raw glory and ikura steeped in sake were pleasantly good. I know nothing about the +1 sake we had, but it went well with the food. The restaurant's got a huge selection of sake. Take your pick.

We got Ivan an extra dish of stewed beef. Poor man. Each time he comes out with us, it's like he's on a diet for the evening. This is a man who lives for smoked bacon fat on naan and whatever awesome meat-y divine-ness. Tsk. I like to think that we're the healthy influences on his diet, at least for a couple of meals.

A little disappointed that there weren't any fresh fish heads tonight. So no grilled fish head to be had. Haizzzz. I wanted to watch M. in action again. Heh. What I forgot to ask for, was the miso clam soup. I really wanted to try that. This isn't a restaurant which will blow your mind. It's your unpretentious neighborhood sushi joint (by MY standard) which doesn't serve shite conveyor belt and bluff vinegar rice nonsense. It's not a fancy venue, and please don't expect it to be so. While I think the prices could fall just a little bit for the omakase, I tell myself not to bitch about it because unlike a bento set, one pays for a decent standard of overall presentation and the Chef's personal touch.

Meii Sushi

Blk 7 Tanjong Pagar Plaza (facing Craig Road)

#01-108 Singapore 081007

Tel: +65 6220 3466

Crazy Over Nasi Padang

I could eat nasi padang every day. Sambal and spices are this heady intoxicating combination that's absolutely irresistible to me. It's my default type of food. Love 'em. Nasi padang stalls in town are convenient for me to get to and I've been alternating between them at every opportunity. Too lazy to travel further to Jalan Sultan unless it's on the weekends when the man or the friends are game to try other stalls.

I'm not about to fight with the office crowd, so I either hop in at 11.30am or 1.45pm, avoiding the peak hour crush. So aside from the heat, meals have been pleasant at these stalls. As long as I'm in casual dri-fit togs, I can tolerate heat rather well.

The other day at Sinar Pagi Nasi Padang, I thought the sambal goreng tasted different. There was something 'meaty' about it. I dug around the plate and was mortified to see pieces of chicken liver, gizzards and hearts. These items weren't present for the last couple of times! ARRRRGGGH. Luckily the rest of the food presented themselves like they should. The tauhu telor is really one of the best around. So I tucked in with heaps of fiery sambal tumis.

Caroline & Lymbyc Systym

My days are packed, and so are my nights. I've never seen my social calendar so active. It has suddenly come alive and is taking on an identity of its own. All those years at work, I gave priority to work commitments, and the social calendar took a backseat. Time was allocated to only the intimates and faeriefolk. Recently, I've got alot more time to shift around, and it's been really awesome. There're just so many things I could do or choose to take an interest in.

It's absolutely brilliant that KittyWu Records brought in Lymbyc Systym and Caroline for an evening at Home Club. The bunch of them also had great fun discovering the flavors and foods of Singapore, as well as exploring the rather great range of Indian cuisine and vegan options we have here. We need more of these indie bands to come through Singpaore rather than simply hosting the moolah-making machinery done by the other labels. Ticket prices are relative to the venue (S$500 for a ticket at Indoor Stadium...seriously?), but in that, we need production people to have integrity to make art, for art's sake. :( We shouldn't just be the suckers to pay and pay. The perennial chicken and egg question of 'eating air'. Ah well.

We saw Caroline way back in 2007. She's got a new album out now. Still sweet, if not a tad boring. :P I kinda like my music with some kind of edge and a little bit more layered. It was a nice set. Predictable, earnest and serious.

Lymbyc Systym, as the main act, provided the contrast in the music for the night with their instrumental rock and electronic sounds. Just 2 brothers, their sounds filled the room and left no empty spaces. They use samples, but they don't over-do it. Technology is exactly what it is. The humans control it. There isn't a sacrifice or compromise on the portion of song-writing. Happy sounds, I call it. Pop-ish at times, angry at some points and complex mostly, all good for head-bobbing.

It's Home Club. Limited options for the drinks. So it's either drink sparkling water, or an easy Nikka. I eyed that bottle of Nikka and decided that it wasn't worth the trouble. The friends were pretty happy alternating between beer and whisky. Not I. Beer and whisky don't match my head and stomach. So I took only one glass on the rocks, then stuck to water. All in all, this is what I call a good night out.

Freshness Burger

For a convenient dinner at The Central that doesn't involve lard, along with the friends, we stepped into Freshness Burger for the first time and was quite taken by the food. It wasn't crap and was quite good, well, as good as fast food could be. There're the light bites of chicken nuggets and corn salad and whathaveyous. Quick snacks.

To qualify, meat-lovers and beef eaters won't like this place very much. You'll probably think the patty pathetic, colorless, thin and not as robust as those from Carl's Jr. But for the bunch of us pescetarians and vegetarians, we're very pleased with its real fish fillet burger and the lightly spiced vegetarian tofu burger. They were fairly edible. Quite good, I thought. The orange juice is freshly squeezed, like they promised. Impressive. Not even many cafes offer freshly squeezed juice.

I was mildly curious about Freshness Burger while in Tokyo. But I wasn't about to waste stomach space on non-sushi or sashimi items. Especially not western-influenced Japanese food. So I avoided it, along with MOS Burger. Back in town, there's no reason to since we didn't want McD's or Burger King's. I rather like Freshness Burger. The question is, can it survive the cruel fast food scene and hang around just a little bit more? I hope so.

Fish At Home!

I eat out ALOT. Which is the main factor of why I'm so querulous about what goes into my stomach and my mouth. Fine dining doesn't mean healthy and awesome stuff, and by a lesser degree, cheap food doesn't mean eeeky either, depending on which cafe you hop into. Once or twice a week, I eat at home, not factoring in the meals that the man is wont to cook. These other times, the maid cooks. There's nothing I like better than fish. Steamed or fried. Both yummy.

The maid knows to stock the fridge with plenty of fishes. There're the local fishes, seabass and halibut for us. Cod is currently banned from my diet because of the smell and taste. I used to love that fish, but developed a sudden aversion to it. None of us like cooked salmon, so no salmon at all. A steamed yellowtail head sometimes! If we want any other choices, we'll pick it out ourselves. The kurau, selar and bawal putih (white pomfret) feature quite prominently for an easy lunch. A bigger pomfret (about 350grams) can be shared between Mommy and I. But if it's a tiny palm-sized one about 150 grams, we'll need 2 for both of us, or 3, if the maid feels like fish as well. Kurau is my favorite because when it appears on my plate as a huge chunk, there're very few bones in it. Muahahahah. As much as I love fish, I'm terrible at picking out the bones.

So you know what the man's Mommy does? Each time we sit down to eat either at home or at the (Chinese) restaurants with a whole fish and not a fillet, she'll painstakingly pick out the meat to plonk a pile on the man's plate and mine. We ought to be doing it for her, but she never allows us to do so. She'll monopolize the fish on her end of the table so that none of us can reach it. We're very spoilt. She's been doing this for us, for years, all the time. :D I love Mommy. She spoils me rotten.

Chocolates, Dark

This morning, I hauled out the 2 packs of Chocolats Rohr from the thoughtful lady J to do a tasting. She's picked the right brand and types of chocolate. I'm not into truffes, caramels, mendiants, pralines, nougats or coated nuts. Quite alright with ganache and pavé glacé. There're so many boutique chocolate shops in Switzerland that I'll never remember their names. So I've to stick to the known brands that I can get my grubby hands on. Chocolaterie Du Rhône, Philippe Pascoët, Stettler, Schuh, Lindt (dark 99% stuff) and Rohr form my picks of the best representation of the finest Swiss chocolates.

You know my severe lack of sweet tooth. So I only like dark chocolates and I'm fairly particular about the ingredients and the percentage of cacao. Besides sniffing for artificial vanilla and tasting for whether the company uses horrible milk fat or proper cocoa butter, I'm also concerned about levels of sorbitol. These translates into me liking very few brands of chocolate. Note that not all chocolate is vegetarian because of the emulsifier in there, commonly lecithin. Lecithin is garnered from egg yolk in most home baking. But commercial lecithin could be extracted from either plants or animals. Rohr states that it uses lecithin du tournesol, which is sunflower lecithin.

I'm not given to chocolate cravings. Neither do I go crazy over it. Not as a kid, and not now. Once in a while, I like my chocolates to go with whisky, not tea or coffee. A peated single malt is great with char siew, siew yoke, bak kwa, the best Spanish ham, and whatever else your creative imagination can come up with. I like mine with chocolate and a bowl of neutral tasting edamame.

I'm in two minds about the noir framboise (black raspberry). The tinge of sourness is a great touch and contrast to the cacao and the flavors blend winningly. Very refreshing. However, it clashes with aged whisky. It's pretty okay paired with a young Springbank 8 y.o or any unpeated single malt under 10 years. It's best eaten on its own or with a good brew of piccolo latte, methinks. I suspect it would go pretty well with gin and tonic or a fruity vodka martini.

I love the plain dark chocolate. It's most divine. It went beautifully with the peated Bowmore 25 y.o, the Gold and Black Bowmore. It did good with the sherry casks and port matured. It's not so much of discovering what it goes well with. Once I've tasted the dark squares and understood its complexity, in that 3 seconds, I know what sort of whisky it would complement, as far as the extent of my memory, I can tell you which chocolate will complement the exact bottlings from the various distilleries. Beautiful. There's a whisky tasting at the friends' tonight. I'm bringing these chocolates along. :)

Catching Up Over Whisky

The lady J is back in town for a bit and we had to do that overdue whisky date. From the text messages, I surmised that lady J had this idea in her mind that I was going to get her royally tipsy. Hahahah. I wouldn't! People think I drink like a fiend, but really, I don't. Like I said, it would be an utter waste of good single malt if one should end the night in a tenacious hug with the toilet bowl.

So with that assurance and a sprinkling of relief, she sipped her glasses of whisky in peace at The Auld Alliance. You'd have to ask her what she thinks of single malts! She's definitely a wine connoisseur getting started on whisky, keeping an open mind and the tastebuds fluid. In stark contrast, I'm completely unteachable and untrainable when it comes to wines. The interest is amateurish and the knowledge remains basic. Barely. But of course, whisky, I share, with pleasure.

It wasn't all about liquid fuel. We needed some solids too. Something light, soup and the sorts. Stir-fry vegetables with garlic. Dinner was conveniently sorted out next door at Lei Garden. I haven't come to this restaurant for a long time. It's been years. So I wasn't too keen to be experimental with the food. We stuck to the usual fail-proof dishes. The end results appeared on the table as not completely astounding, but presenting fair value.

Lady J, of course, asked for chilli padi with soya sauce. She misses her Asian spices! She has done some fine cooking in Geneva and now back home, she wants nothing more than to kick back and eat well back home without the hassle of food preparation and washing up. I most certainly isn't going to make her bake or cook! The girl's home for a bit and she totally deserves to be pampered.

Tea With Mommy

This would have to be the first time I stepped into any TWG cafe. I've always avoided TWG cafes because there's always a queue and the waiting time is an hour and they don't take reservations. At this corner in Takashimaya on a weekday, it was not at crowded. Besides us, there were only 2 other tables. Nice. I had a filling breakfast after the morning run. So I didn't bother with lunch per se. Having scones at tea was already seriously stomach busting. Luckily these scones weren't sweet and I just chewed on them with the teeniest bit of jam. Pretty decent I'd say.

Walked by Tod's and went straight in to promptly acquire the season's ballet flats in blue, black and red. Basic colors. It was a no brainer. These are shoes I wear all the time. Plus the soles of Tod's ballet flats come rubberized. I don't have to bother adding a sole. I dislike those fancy wooden/leather soles. Pretty but absolutely useless to me. I've worn out 2 pairs of Tod's already. Time to re-stock. Nothing for Mommy because she's not keen on this sort of shoes. She likes her Chanel heels, Cole Haan sandals and scary Blahniks. Also, she thinks that Tod's designs are for young people. Muahahahahah. They've got the 'old people' shoes too in the form of rather stylish loafers! Silly Mommy.

While Mommy is perfectly happy out gallivanting on her own most days, she doesn't mind my company once in a bit. I like going out with her. She is rather fun. She has a good eye for cuts and clothing, picking out those that will suit me. She thinks I should just stop altering clothes and buy a new wardrobe. She's beginning to wonder just how many pieces I'm altering. Well, it's been only like.....25 pieces! But yes, at the rate this goes, I need to pick out more new clothes which fit fine instead of scrambling to the tailor's every few weeks when I discover more clothes that are too baggy.

Nasi Lemak

After an impromptu bloody early morning run with the girlfriend and her 2 very fit dogs, of which I nearly died of exhaustion at the 5km completion point, it was off to Tekka Market for breakfast. My stomach actually growled. I'm NEVER running 5km EVER AGAIN. Sticking to 3km ALWAYS, if I absolutely have to.

We met with the other girlfriends who also decided to schedule their weekly grocery trip today. Naturally I'm the only one who doesn't need to buy groceries unless the man tasks me to grab some stuff. I just tag along for the company and the food. And today, I'm ravenous. Obviously.

The girlfriends eat either before or after their grocery shopping, depending on the mood. We love the awesome food at the food centre. Biryani, naan, thosai, curries, murtabak, appam, whatever spicy! Yummy. Sometimes we tapau the food to someone's home; if it isn't too crowded or stifling hot, we eat at the food centre. Today we opted to eat at Tekka Market after packing in the vegetables, meats and whatnots into the shopping trolleys. A rainy morning it was. Almost cool, with a breeze.

I like this little nasi lemak stall. I can never remember the name, but they do tasty dishes. Traditional flavors abound. I like mine simple- just fish, egg, begedil, anchovies and a slightly sweet-ish sambal. I always ask the the smiley husband-and-wife stall owners to halve my rice, and they never do! I can't finish it, and the Uncle keeps telling me to finish my food. Grrrrrr. Today, they still refused to give me just a small scoop of rice. They whacked on the usual 3 scoops. But...I finished everything. The Uncle took one look at my rather clean plate, "Wah. You very hungry today izzit?" I gave him a cheerful grin. Yah lor, ah-but-then.

Genesis And A Friendship

Lunch with the lovely notabilia took place at the very friendly Genesis Vegetarian Restaurant. It's an eatery that I keep passing by and not walk in because I'm inevitably distracted by Sinar Pagi Nasi Padang just across the street. So glad today that I've a chance to stroll in to satisfy the curiosity.

I noted that Genesis' menu in hard copy states that it's a "vegan restaurant". I don't think they use eggs in the food at all. I guess there's a slight shift from when they first started out in 2008. I haven't had a chance to ask the owners why and how. The menu does flag out which dishes contain onion and which ones contain onion and garlic. The menu focuses on Asian offerings. It's varied with choices of rice, noodles and lasagna. I spy bak kut teh, claypot rice, lor mee, fish head vermicelli, almond noodles, etc. Those would be rather interesting in terms of flavor. I'm definitely coming back to try out its food.

My pick today was the oat mee sua which was quite tasty with its gravy, tofu and generous sprinkling of vegetables. Even though I didn't mean to, I ate up all the carbs. Loved the freshly squeezed apple juice. We were persuaded to try the dairy-free apple pie for dessert. It was quite good. Generous slices of baked apples perched atop a crust of nuts and grains. However, they could have cut down on the sugar. Notabilia and I agreed it was too sweet for us.

Food was really not the point. The company was. It was a most wonderful conversation that totally confirmed it isn't an advanced bot behind the blog with content that often speaks my thoughts and throw up artsy themes which are perfectly aligned to my keen interests. Yes, it's helmed by a beautiful brilliant intellectual and down-to-earth woman with an acute sense of past and present, then and now, and today. It's a meeting (of minds, somewhat, I daresay) that I've very much looked forward to and kept delaying because I've not been in town consistently for the first half of the year. I need to pick the woman's brains on her views on certain topics which are close to her heart, and solidly sit in her areas of expertise. For pure discussion purposes. What fun!

Genesis Vegetarian Restaurant

1 Lorong Telok (the 'back' of Boat Quay)

Singapore 049014

T: +65 6438 7118

Closed for dinner, on Saturdays and public holidays. Go after 1pm on weekdays. Less crowded.

Their Stories

It's been sitting quietly on the bookshelf. I finally got around to reading Ceriph Issue 3. In the Editor's Note, it is said that Issue 3 pays tribute to the Singaporean's past-time of 'makan', and how it has influenced many Singapore writers in a not-too-odd sort of cultural referencing.

This little book is a tasty morsel in its varied offerings of the different genres of writing. What enthralls me is the window to the thoughts of Singapore writers. It tells me of their experiences and I could perhaps compare it to mine. This is such a small island. We should have similar experiences, but no, life treats us all differently. And through these stories and interpretation, we learn of differences and opportunities that are abound on this island, not all heartbreaking or painful.

Issue 3 closes with the last story by Adrianna Tan- A Drinkable History of My Family. It's peppered with sharp humor and insights. Split into little chapters titled differently, the ending of Bubble Tea about her ah gong's (grandfather) passing. is a little sad, but reflecting the reality of life. The final paragraphs read,

"We searched everywhere for bubble tea, we really did, but did not search fast enough. He could not wait. // And then Michael Jackson died the next day and the whole world forgot about the man who had never had bubble tea. // Sometimes I wish could have been there when he finally gave up on life and on bubble tea. He would have ranted, in Teochew, that tea isn't meant to be this milky, and what the hell are these bloody balls?"

Littered With Books

While I still browse at Kinokuniya for its wide range of titles, I buy less from them and more from an independent bookshop just because the latter is prettier and I'm more inclined to spend time there, linger and soak in the literary vibes.

If the independent bookstores don't carry the titles I want, I use Book Depository and often, I turn to Amazon for e-books. But I still can't quash the need for instant gratification by buying books here and NOW! I can't get rid of the habit of buying books weekly.

Part of the afternoon with the friends was spent at Littered with Books. Lovely. This is what a bookshop should feel like. Surrounded by books and cosy colors, it's so inviting to just thumb through the pages of books that caught my eye. Wondering about the contents and how it would feel to read it and the sort of thoughts and emotions it would evoke, is just awesome.

This bookshops carries a small but pretty alright selection of children's books along with some beautiful illustrations by a number of talented illustrators. I'm not too sure about pricing though. Some friends have commented on the higher-than-average pricing. But for the non-children books, I'm okay with the stated prices. It's not a significant difference. Should they charge a little higher, I'm more than happy to pay because it means the business could sustain in the long-term. I just don't like contributing to the faceless chain stores for mega profits.

Today, I walked into the bookshop in anticipation of the titles that might interest the mind, and I strolled out a very happy customer with 2 paperbacks. Hey, at least I didn't buy the other 3 that were really fairly intriguing. Maybe next week. :D

PS: Is there something about books and cats? Of late, they seem to go hand in hand.

Traipsing Around Town

Friends hopped into town for work and at the last minute we managed to rustle up a weekend date. The touristy thing had to be done. They're fairly amazed by the sort of prep going on for our National Day Parade. Yesterday, after checking out the terracotta warriors and artefacts from the region at Asian Civilizations Museum, we went to perch within an air-conditioned vantage point to watch the fireworks and planes flying by. Then it was off to a serious bout of chi-chi Indian food at Song of India, followed by a peek at the happenings of Heritage Fest at Fort Canning Park and ended the night with drams of good single malts at The Auld Alliance.

This morning, they were keen to check out traditional items for a typical Singapore breakfast, our little bookstores and art spaces. So we went around the areas of Tiong Bahru and Tanjong Pagar. We had good coffee and there were bottles of fruity bitter beer. That threw us into a serious sort of discussion over whether e-books are more environmentally-friendly than hard copies. It's almost funny to discover that all of us in this little group own an iPad and a Kindle, and most major reading is done on the Kindle rather than the iPad. So on vacations, it's quite a tough call on the matter of which gadgets to lug along! With our sort of reading capacity and speed, I'm almost tempted to say that in the long run, e-reading is the way to go. Hmmmm. How do I even begin. The verdict's still out, and it isn't simple to tabulate. I endeavor to earnestly begin using the library.

I really don't mind playing host and tour guide to the friends. It's a bit of effort to do so, but it's rather satisfying to show them a slice of the Singapore I love. My Singapore. And not have the friends experience this island through television and the guide books. Along with the bad, the commercial and the sanitary, the friends should also take home with them happy memories of smells, sights and sounds. There's plenty to do on this island, if you embrace life and living. Who says there's nothing to do in Singapore?

An Afternoon Outing

I was secretly glad that the girlfriend ditched her vintage top and went for a cool mustard yellow jumpsuit. It's a look she hasn't tried before and she's always been wary of pants. She thinks pants would make her look fat. Hey, not if it's a good cut! This particular jumpsuit fits her very well. You should see her full length shots. She looks great in it. All those wonderful photos are in her camera and she'll probably share those later on her blog.

The girlfriend invited me along as her + 1 to an event. We're considerably older than everyone else, so there was no need for us to try so hard to look like we've to fit in. We can't even get into those miniscule pieces of fabric the other girls wore. Since the bruises have faded and there won't be fresh ones till next week, I put aside the usual blacks and pulled on a colorful dress. Colors doth exist in the wardrobe. It's just that each time I pick out a dress, I gravitate towards black. Bleah. So we went to this event where one could be togged out in casual, dressy or whatever. I wanted to wear Havaianas, then decided that since the girlfriend was properly groomed, I shouldn't be embarrassing to wear flip flops all the time. So a pair of heels it was to be.

It was the girlfriend's event. So while she flitted around fulfilling commitments and being busy, I was happy to concentrate on being good as gold. It was very hard work. "Behave, impie, behave," I sternly told myself. I did- sat in a corner to quietly sip sparkling water, didn't schmooze, frowned at offensive portions in a painful skit, sniggered a little (it wasn't at all my scene), laughed really hard along with the pretty good emcee and didn't throw a siew mai at anyone.

Jai Thai At Clover Way

Besides the tiny eateries at Golden Mile Complex and Orchard Towers, the next casual Thai eatery we frequent is Jai Thai. We braved the crazy crowd of parents and children when it was at Thomson Plaza, a place where there're never any parking spaces, and tracked its move to its current location at Clover Way. Still tight on parking spaces, but much better. There're 2 other outlets in East Coast and Purvis Street which we've never bothered trying.

This is one of our perfect spots for late lunches since it closes at 3pm. Lots of easy street food hit a spot. Phad Thai is done in about a thousand different ways, and I kinda like how Jai Thai does it. Easy omelettes, vegetables and fishcakes are the usual accompanying dishes to a meal. There're plenty of other dishes done in a non-pretentious home-cooked style. The friends love their minced basil chicken or beef with rice.

It was a day when everyone played truant at work (took leave, rather) to hang out for a meal. Jai Thai was an easy destination for everyone coming from all over the island. On this day, the eatery was three quarters filled with alot of uniformed kids from a nearby junior college and secondary school. We laughed. Three quarters of our table are their alumnus. What an apt lunch venue.

Fishhead Curry

What a piece of luck to have cool rains on the day we made a date for fishhead curry! The smirks that went around the screens of our phones were indescribably loony happy. It was such an obvious choice- onward to Banana Leaf Apolo for fish head curry and spices!

It was an extra happy day because nobody had issues with parking spaces, and easily found available lots right in front of the restaurant. However, the restaurant, as usual, was packed to the brim. Apparently the whole world had the same idea to come here for lunch. The restaurant does pretty alright food. Instead of one big fishhead, they ordered 2 medium ones. They also ordered a whole host of dishes and rice. Wahh. Hungry people. I was very much wanting to have the kashmiri pulao and got that craving totally satisfied.

Some of us finally took that walk through Mustafa Centre, partly out of curiosity to see the renovated aisles, and mostly driven by the need to walk off some calories before going our separate ways. The others went back to work with silly grins and shirts not soaked in perspiration! Luckily it was such a day when stars aligned and nobody had afternoon meetings, and could just space out at their desks.

Bread & Cheese

The girlfriend is in town for a short visit and had her husband pack a block of heavy cheese into his luggage for us. So the precious package I picked up the other night is the Eke Geitost (or Eke Gjetost) from Tine, and a prized homemade loaf of dense beer-spiced raisin bread that smelt heavenly. "Best eaten fresh," she instructed.

In honor of the girlfriend's gifts, we decided to have bread and cheese with soup for dinner. These gifts would be best complemented with additional flavors. The man would be stuck in the office till 9pm, so it was up to me to prep the food. Clearly, I wasn't going to cook. So take-out it had to be. In addition to these, I bought a wedge of Gruyère, another loaf of pumpkin bread, pâté, a tub of basil pesto hummus, 2 soups of curried pumpkin and wild mushroom.

Eke Gjetost is a firm, nutty and almost sweet brown cheese made from goat's milk. It's got a slight caramel hint that suggests people eat this at breakfast. Anyway, we ate it at dinner! It went beautifully with both loaves of bread. Awesome. The extra items only lent the excitement to the tasting. The focus was the beer-spiced raisin bread. So everything should complement it, even the hummus. The soups were pretty good and gave a hearty note to the meal. We finished the pumpkin bread. It took alot of discipline not to gobble up the bread the girlfriend had made. We left a quarter to savor the next day. She has indeed made some tasty bread!

Light yet filling, it was an absolutely gorgeous dinner. The man was most pleased. Soup, cheese and bread. Totally right up my list of favorite meal items. LOVES. Tusen takk!! Now, we owe her and husband (and boys?) a dinner after they're back from vacation. The man's wondering about menu items and dates. Let me see how we should do this, or potluck over. Woooohooo.

Shipwrecked: Tang Treasures and Monsoon Winds

We debated long and hard whether to go to the The ArtScience Museum. It markets itself as a premier arts space for travelling exhibitions. It has no permanent exhibition of its own. Among the friends and I, we're just not very supportive of a museum that doesn't possess the soul of art. Doing it for the sake of appearances doesn't quite cut it.

I'm not too pleased with the S$30 adult admission fee, not when this museum is owned by a casino. One can argue that they run on separate accounts, but in reality, you and I know, it's not quite that. I've yet to criticize their 'single admission' policy which does not put children's needs into consideration. 2 mothers were trying their best to persuade museum staff to let them out to feed the children and be let back in after. But no. Each time you get out, you pay another S$30 to be re-admitted. Honestly, the blanket admission policy sucks. MBS can jolly well get its money from the casino to supplement the museum. That would draw it a truckload of goodwill. But no. It has chosen not to do that.

But curiosity won, so we went for the sole purpose of viewing Shipwrecked: Tang Treasures and Monsoon Winds. A Singapore government-linked company has bought the collection from a private salvage company. That itself, raises eyebrows. But you know what, Singapore is all about commercialism and capitalism. This collection is RIGHT AT HOME at The ArtScience Museum. Hey, nobody asked the taxpayers if we would like to spend USD$32 million to own these Tang treasures. (Not rightly so, as BeanBean has pointed out, but I'm just prejudiced.) The least this museum could do is to offer free admission to school children and to be greedier, Singaporeans. But no, charge everyone S$30 for admission. At least today we had a 20% off admission fees on an OCBC credit card and free parking for spending more than S$20 at MBS.

The Belitung shipwreck and its treasures. In spite of it being of the most important archeological finds of the century, the collection is embroiled in a fierce debate over supposed unprofessional and unethical retrieval of the wrecks which resulted in the Smithsonian Institution postponing the planned 2012 exhibition to perhaps 2013. The friends and I, we've our opinions on this matter. I leave you to form yours.

This bowl was fired in China's Hunan, Changsha kilns, circa 825-50. It's described as "glazed stoneware with underglaze iron-brown and copper-green pigments." Within the bowl, the potter (I assume, since the wordings aren't particularly poignant or poetic in the style of Tang poems) had inscribed, “孤鹰南天远，寒风切切惊，妾思江外客，早晚到边停。” The English translation of the poem is close, but indicated that it's a "lonely goose", which puzzles me. GOOSE? Yes, geese fly south. BUT..... I'm fairly sure that '鹰' means 'eagle'. Am I missing something....like a poetic affectation of sorts?

Also, many of the Chinese translations don't match the English version. When describing pachisi (parcheesi), randomly, they put into the Chinese description "印度". Nowhere in the English description contained the word "Indian". When it comes to translations and worse, to have to read them, I'm a purist.

I've alot of issues with the descriptions of the items. They're properly and accurately dated, of course. But the descriptions are weak, and vague. It's almost as though they rushed through the cataloguing and decided to put everything as 'big jar', 'medium jar', 'small bottle'. Otherwise it's 'big ewer', 'medium ewer', 'small ewer'. Seriously. There're some half-hearted attempts at trying to decipher what could have been the items meant for trade and what could been used for daily storage on board the ship. There're so many different types of birds drawn on the Changsha bowls and they're just generally identified as BIRDS. Right. There're many different kinds of birds you know. It's just a feeling that the treasures haven't received the right treatment from the professionals who know how to write an interesting, factual and informative lines for them.

There're plenty of beautiful art pieces on display. I'm happy to have a chance to admire them. A sizeable haul, I'd say. They don't just ooze history. They speak of a life back then, and bear witness to shipping routes and trading trends, habits and lifestyles of the society of the era. However, imho, I opine that the sociological and anthropological aspects of the wreck haven't been thoroughly analyzed. The videos and graphic displays have been done well and provide substantial information of trade routes in the 9th century. Attempts at audience interaction are obvious in a simple board game, cut-outs to take home, spot the patterns of ceramic ware, machines to emboss ceramic patterns, etc. It's a very good effort. More can be done, of course. But it's a good curation pertaining layout and display.

Still it's the ultimate irony. This collection belongs to ultimately, the Singapore government, and by virtue of the meritocracy that it pushes for, everyone, including Singaporeans will have to pay to view this collection. Why is this not hosted at the National Museum. Scheduling conflicts aside, if this is a collection we can be proud of, then it ought to be placed in our national heritage venues and be open to the public for a nominal sum of admission fees. It's quite stunning, yes. But the question of purchase, while legal, is dubitable, and methods of retrieval are now marred in deep controversy. It calls into question of not just why the (to the world) Singapore government has to acquire this collection (actually, it's not difficult to guess), it also makes the world question what Singapore views as historical and how sincere is the subsequent value placed on it, especially when it seems that we don't consider a host of other environmental and ethical issues, not much different from how we tear down buildings and clear land to build new ones in the name of shiny progressive urban development.

Van Gogh Alive

They could have titled this better, really. No physical paintings. Presented by the Grande Exhibitions and VisionsCom, "Van Gogh Alive - The Exhibition" is a "fusion of art and audio-visual technology, showcasing more than 3000 Van Gogh images to tell his story" by projecting it onto the spaces.

The signs outside the entrance stated 'no photography'. I was disrespectful and sneaked a shot anyway. It's a little lame, but okay, it's kinda interesting. But I got bored pretty soon. The gallery doesn't quite make me want to linger. The accompanying music is someone else's interpretation of how it would complement each art piece. The end result, I feel, is disjointed. Too many things going on. Perhaps it's intended to mimic Van Gogh's tortured mental state before his eventual death.

I like staring at paintings, not projections. The combination of music, space and wooden floor made me feel like waltzing through the spaces. Which I did, and made the girlfriend's eyes roll. A solo Japanese-butoh performance by Kae Ishimoto is planned for September where she'll dance a contemporary interpretation of 'The Courtesan (after Eisen)'. That would be rather interesting.

Dalí: Mind Of A Genius

Honestly, we had earlier wanted to view the widely touted largest collection of Dalí ever exhibited in Singapore. But we were not moved till today, powered by the sole inclination to see where our supposed tax dollars (if any) went into.

As promised, Dalí: Mind of A Genius is a breathtaking exhibition of 250 pieces of his work with the central themes of Femininity and Sensuality, Religion and Mythology, and Dreams and Fantasy. While I admire Dalí's whimsical works of surrealistic art, I'm not a huge fan. I can only admire his works on a superficial level, while the friends could go on and on about his (in)sanity within the compositions.

Who can forget the dream sequence in Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound? I wasn't quite into the show, but Dalí's designs are still cool today. Spellbound is put up as a painting in this exhibition, a very different treatment from what I saw at Tate Modern a couple of years ago where the dream sequence was looped.

It was a quite a mesmerizing stroll through the sculptures and paintings. I'll honestly say that this exhibition alone is worth the S$30 admission fees, not that much different from what the Met charges, except that New York City owns the museum and contributes to its upkeep, aside from private donations. A fine line there. Some might say, a very clear line.

We'd have lingered longer, except we were freezing just a little in the strong air-conditioning. They really didn't have to put it so cold. The museum isn't linked to the shoppes at MBS. Stepping out of the 18 degrees celsius air-conditioning into the strong blazing humidity is quite a jolt to the body. For some, it guarantees an instant headache.

A Bit Of Prata

A drive to pick up a precious package lovingly prepared by the girlfriend saw us make a detour to this stretch of brightly lit shops before we went home.

Stopped by the prata shop for nostalgia. It doesn't have to be this exact shop. Any other prata shop will do. The man and I have fond memories of the time with friends over roti prata and milo dinosaur. Has it been that long? Really?

With a bright turquoise short crop, my darling WR426 and I were regular fixtures at all the prata shops around the island. Heh. Those were young and heady days. I knew enough not to drink (alcohol) and ride, so it was always iced milo! Pubs were a bad idea because inevitably, someone in the group would get into some sort of stupid drunk trouble. Not cool. The man remembered jamming sessions that would always end with prata and milo sessions before everybody went home. Instead of bikes, they piled up guitars and assorted gear in a heap. It was like the cushion before the adrenalin rush ended. Hanging out, they called it.

Supper was quite the norm then- raging hormones, high metabolism, active lifestyle, all-nighters and whatnots. We didn't seem to need very much sleep. We could eat anything laden with carbs, ghee and fats at any hour of the day and it wouldn't matter a single bit. Flab didn't set in till much later. Nowadays, we eye supper with a great amount of caution. Heh. There's no way anyone could sleep at 4am and still turn up bright and cheery in the office 5 hours later. So yeah, tonight, while I didn't bother finishing the prata, that milo dinosaur was quite satisfying.

Light Lunch With Mommy!

The seamstress made us wait for an hour and she still wasn't done. I grew impatient. I was getting hungry. Most of the clothes were ready, a couple of pieces weren't. On a technicality, the tailor promised and should deliver the altered clothes. But while she's a good seamstress, she's quite a kalang-kabut because she's got quite a sizeable pool of customers and she doesn't know how to apportion her time. So I let it go and said I'd return the following week to collect the rest, with no more excuses. To manage this with less angst, I'd have to call her thrice- a day before I'm due to turn up, 1.5 hours before I actually appear, and another call 30 minutes prior. Then I'll be assured of getting my stuff in order. This one time I didn't do the SOP thingy resulted in such a mess. Haizzzz.

Mommy and I zoomed in at 2.30pm right on the dot, in time for the last order at Crystal Jade Paragon. We don't need a huge spread at lunch. Something light when there isn't much physical exertion for the day. What works for us, is to share food. When the men aren't around, she's fairly happy to skip the meats and won't make me eat more than I intend to.

I think we always give the servers a headache because we anyhow-anyhow change their menu. If it says boiled rice, I'll ask for noodles. If it says porridge in the Teochew style, I'll ask for the Cantonese version. But the restaurant has been very pleasant so far in accommodating our requests. The food's good, but their 'appetizer' of boiled nuts or whatever that is, sucks big time. It's never been moist and soft. It's always hard and chewy. Yucks. I keep having to argue with them to stop charging me for crap nuts and they've never bothered to improve on it. TSK.

Today, we went for the the (local) lobster noodles. Added a bowl of abalone and conpoy congee and another light stir-fry dish of crab meat and mustard greens, we were sorted. I forgot to ask them not to put Chinese wine or ginger in the lobster noodles, and only remembered the slip when the dish was served. I was pleasantly surprised to discover no lurking ginger slices or Chinese wine in there. I could taste just a teeny bit of Shaoxing-something, but not overpowering. In fact, it's probably just a couple of drops and would have missed most people's notice except that I hate it and could taste even just a bit immediately.

I'm superbly boring when it comes to Chinese food. I eat the same few items. Not quite interested in the other dishes. Most of all, I dislike my food to be cooked with lard, goose fat or duck fat. After a while, fries with duck fat aren't tasty anymore. But since the cuisine is not my favoritest thing, these few items will suffice. Quite a bit of creativity can be done to make it yummy the way some of us like it. I'm even picky about which Crystal Jade outlet to eat at. So I like how Crystal Jade Paragon does it.

Owls Of The Swamp At TAB

If we made a pitstop for dinner, we were almost certain to be late. We reluctantly gave up awesome Thai food next door and decided to go straight to TAB so that we could still be in time for the first set by Owls of the Swamp. Music first. Hunger can be sorted out later anyway. The Thai stalls don't close till midnight. Woohooo.

While we've all tried the pretty awesome sweet potato chips at TAB, we haven't eaten here properly. Tonight the table picked either the mushroom swiss burger or the prawn aglio e olio with linguine or angel hair. The burger people liked it. The pasta people didn't mind ours too, except they could have gone lighter on the salt and oil. TAB has surprisingly decent pub grub. Good to know. At least the next time we rush in, we won't go hungry.

We watched Pete Uhlenbruch strum lilting melodies of dream folk. It's not as if I've heard of him prior. I did some quick googling this afternoon to check him out. Australia and New Zealand (with full government support) are both aggressively promoting their indie artists overseas. So many are passing through Singapore on their way to Europe and America. The musician we're fortunate to hear tonight is doing exactly that- stopping by at TAB for an evening.

Sitting down to listen to a really good singer-songwriter or a band makes for a much more pleasant night out compared a loud session at the clubs. Okay, to be very brutally honest, I don't want to sit at certain clubs with (bad) live bands belting out Top 40s music at 100 decibels. Not all cover bands can do covers well okay. I can only think of 3 whom I don't mind. It's quite a pain to sit down to the horrifying ones, especially those smack in the middle of the tourist belts. Can die, literally.

To round up the first set, Pete did quite a lovely cover of Iron and Wine's Naked As We Came. I was all dreamy by then. Perhaps some day, our government funding agencies will see the true value of our talented Singapore bands who have been selected to play on the exhilarating stage of South by Southwest. That's the ultimate international newbie indie recognition, the equivalent of jazz and classical festivals of Montreal Jazz, Ojai, Kuhmo, Aldeburgh, Lake District Summer Music, Bregenz, Verbier, Lucerne and Schwarzenberg. I'm not even talking about Glastonbury, Coachella or Big Day Out, yet.

We can boast of a beautiful Esplanade Theatre and Concert Hall to rival the best venues in the world. Perhaps one day soon, our line-up and fringe events for Baybeats will be the foci of Asian indie bands, unless Jakarta gets there first. The city's already neck-to-neck with us in terms of having notable artists stop over in the city, and a little more ahead in terms of rock and indie music festivals. Yes, I'm still sore that Ben Folds went to Jakarta in June, and not here.

Textures

Today's day out at the shops saw me eye plenty of items with texture and detailing. Part shopping for 'work' and part adding to my mental catalogue of 'to-buys'. Next time. I don't need the pretty stuff now anyway. Clothes seldom get my attention in the way bags do. I'm not here to look pulchritudinous. I want to look competent, presentable and be left alone to do my job. End.of.the.story. My current wardrobe is quite formidable, in spite of its mainly black, blue and grey monotones. It will suffice.

Some friends think I'm fairly free nowadays. I'm not! They're amazed when they ask to meet and I've to reply like....how about the week after or in 3 weeks? While I'm making a conscious effort to get lean, mean and toned, my mind is occupied as well. By that, I'm not referring to being glued online all day. Well, I kinda am, but, it's not quite so. Then, there're the errands to run. Oh my. There're always plenty of little things to do. Like...buying postage stamps, step-down transformers, nail clippers and tubes of superglue. Heheheh. Can you believe that I haven't found time to go for a facial or a haircut that's been overdue by 2 months?

Planning and wrapping up 2 charity projects are keeping me busy for most of July. I've agreed to take over the planning of 2 socials which will fill up August. The emails indicate intriguing stuff for September and October. I'm trying very hard to ignore those. Quite fun doing these, but man....the logistics and protocol demands are no less meticulous than those required of my previous jobs. ARRRRGH. Less stringent, yes, but there can't be a discernible drop in terms of quality and delivery since the audience is more or less similar. Humans can be so annoying at times. No one can pay me enough of anything to be a peon, okay. But yes, I get plenty of perks to soften it. The previous job gave a generous clothing allowance and luckily, didn't ask me to return it when I bailed out after confirmation. :P Planning for these socials has also given me the luxury of managing a shopping budget for the necessities, and in the same tone, received a surprise personal angpow by way of thanks. :)

The Little Girl Who Was Little Miss Contrary

Today I met Bubbles who turned into a Little Miss Contrary who bordered on tantrum-throwing. No pasta, she stated. Biscuits only. The pasta her Mommy had painstakingly cooked remained untouched. Poor worried Mommy.

A nap and hugs from the plushies put Little Miss Contrary in a better mood. Still, no pasta, she said. Yoghurt only. Then Auntie Imp scooped her pasta and licked the spoon clean. I did plan to eat it all. There was a little frown. Okay, I eat pasta now, she decided. Ha! Mommy smiled at her. Mommy's smiling, she said. Yes, keep Mommy smiling, I made a face at her.

The usual seedless grapes with skin appeared. Little Miss Contrary has always eaten the skin. I don't want skin. I don't want grapes, she said. Auntie Imp popped a grape into the mouth. Skin is good, Mommy said. She was unmoved. I sighed and peeled a grape. She deigned to eat that. Then another, and another. I peeled all the grapes in the bowl. She ate them all up. Grrrrr. I think I've set a bad precedent. Now her Mommy has got to peel her grapes....oops. Sorry, Corsage!

I want to wear my Crocs, she demanded. The shoes are too big, you won't be able to walk. Mommy said. I can walk! She insisted. She toddled to the car and to the lift lobby of destination, flapping about in her slightly-bigger-than-feet Mary-Janes. Then she grinned at me. Auntie Imp, 抱抱! She wheedled. SIGH. OKAAAY, CHEEKY MONKEY.

Little Miss Contrary is quite contrary indeed.

Stories Nearer Home

I probably read more foreign writers than Singaporeans, probably because of the nature of the latter's material. I can identify with some, I disagree with the others, and often, I don't want to be reminded of themes and topics that I rail against as a teenager, and as an adult. Still, I pick up many titles by Singapore writers because, they are good. Prose, poetry and drama form my favorites.

Reading plays requires a greater concentration than usual. Reading a volume of plays results in separating them into 2 sittings simply because I need the breadth of imagination to flesh out those words into a virtual play. 'In the Company of Heroes' is Verena Tay's second volume of plays featuring 3 main plays of The Car, The Lunar Interviews and Bumiputra Cina. Then there're 4 more others in the volume, Right and Left, One More Chance, Queen Sophia and That Dog Buster and Imperfect Family Recipes. Verena's writing style has evolved since her first volume of plays titled "In The Company of Women". In this second volume, the writer tries to brings out the multiple everyday heroes in the characters that most of us would be able to identify with.

I didn't read Verena's semi-autobiographical The Car then, but watched it a couple of years back when it was brought to life on stage, directed by Samantha Scott-Blackhall. Today, skipping through the pages, I'm reminded of the emotions it could still stir as we recall incidents when we were young and pushed boundaries and tested our parents' limits. Did I regret some of those actions? Naaah. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat.

I had (and still have) a very warped idea of Chinese mythology. The mythical figures are confusing and come in various configurations bent to suit the requirements of each scriptwriter, actor, etc. While I've a pretty clear picture of historical origins, the evolution floors me. The Lunar Interviews were utterly confusing. I confess I didn't like it very much. Till today, I can't seem to get beyond the surface storytelling to look at the themes. An excerpt,

"Urrrggghhh! What did I do to deserve such a fate? It was all The Pig's fault! Me grow old and ugly in this backwater, surrounded by idiots? No way! Not if I could help it."

Imperfect Family Recipes is just depressing. I work with old folks and sometimes, their families. I can compartmentalize the related emotions quite well. But I prefer not to be immersed in it all week. So even reading a short play about it made the thought of "I don't need to see this" zoom across the mind's eye. Before the page is turned, I could already predict the next few lines. Ah well.

I really enjoyed Right and Left. It's hilarious. The play comprises of the conversation between the right foot and the left foot. Set in a gym and present time, Verena stated that the plot was "inspired by [my] her efforts to get fit and lose weight." The interpretation of the play is entirely up to the reader. You could take it any way you prefer. Rather lighthearted, no matter how.

Potluck & Movies

Met the girls for to chill out over wine and whisky for the evening. Movie night!

Everyone brought something- either food, dessert or alcohol. As usual, it was a load of edibles! Sweet potato bhajis, asparagus and pumpkin risotto, Pita bread and hummus of avocado and roasted bell peppers, and plum clafoutis and Damson cobbler! Made for good nibbles throughout the movie as we didn't bother to sit at the dining table, but perched and slouched wherever.

There was plenty of time to do 2 movies. We've been dying (pardon the not-very-apt pun) to catch these Sundance 2011 releases. Tonight, by a quick vote over email, the selections were Diego Ramirez's 'All Your Dead Ones' (Todos tus muertos) and the heavier Jarreth Merz's 'An African Election'. We could go on forever about about the filming, angles, music, sounds, treatment, etc. It was a very difficult discussion to 'control' and 'moderate'! But we managed to move the excited chatter to another point and focus on our various interpretation of the movies.

While they belong to the genre of docu-films, these are only as objective as their writers, directors and producers. While we know never to take a film's message wholesale, there'll be times when we're swayed by it. In these, the messages are powerfully clear. What captured our rapt attention is how similar these movies are in terms of its message and content. Not too surprising though. These two stories are set in different continents, but the plot development, the political machinery, the corruption, the pain and the struggles are so similar and poignant.

As we get older, I begin to hold these friends even closer. It's amazing how far we've come together. It was a sterling evening of conversation and food for both the body and mind.

Long Bus Rides

As a school kid, if there wasn't a school bus available, the parentals ferried me to and fro school and whatever additional classes, sleepovers and afternoon playtime at the friends'. As a teen, I had to fight to get the right of taking the buses and trains to ummm.....go to the nearby library to 'study', when often, I snucked off to Orchard Road to roam the streets and check out the scenes. Those were fun days. After I got older, cabs became de rigueur, then all those frequent jaunts out of Singapore and spending months away reduced the desire to get a Class 3 driving licence. The parentals were disapproving and sought to dangle carrots for me to get that licence. I didn't bother. The Class 2A sufficed.

I must have forgotten how horrible bus rides are and thought it'd be rather exciting to be taking buses now that I have time to kill. This would be a great time to get that licence and start driving a car. But I'm not inclined to. Bottomline, I dislike driving and I transform into a total ogre on the road. After the last time somebody stole my girlfriend's parking lot and showed her the third finger with a whole lot of colorful words, and I took a screwdriver to the offender's metal body and windscreen, most friends decided that I should take up anger management lessons before even thinking about getting a driving licence. HEEEEEEEEE. I can get around on public transport, no problem. I'll whine and complain like any other Singaporean, but I'm quite okay about it. Cabs work fine. I prefer buses to the trains. The trains are full of horrible inconsiderate human beings with no sense of cleanliness and personal space. Buses are a little better during off-peak hours.

The long ride on Number 32 to its final destination in the east of the island was supposed to have taken 1.5 hours. The girlfriend had warned me the horror of the painfully extended trip through peak hour traffic. I was supposed to hop off midway to change to a train, a route that would have halved the travelling time. But it was a rainy day. The air-conditioned bus was cool and comfortable. It wasn't too crowded. I was lazy to get off. Slouched in my seat, I decided to take a chance and see just how long this ride would take.

Accompanied by the likes of Noughts & Exes, Iron & Wine on the playlist, time flew by. The passing scenery was almost romantic, a result of the falling rain on the windows. The trains don't allow the luxury of spacing out like that. Tiny as this country is, the east is not somewhere I'm familiar with. I stared out of the window and saw many little things that I otherwise wouldn't have normally noticed. I finally got my bearings and learnt the location of Old Airport Road Food Centre. Kekekekekek. After Tanjong Katong Road where everyone disembarked, there was nobody else who got up the bus. What luck!!! The bus merrily sped all the way to Bedok Bus Interchange within an hour. It was a very pleasant ride.

Chwee Kueh Chwee Kueh I Love You

The puny sticks provided by most chwee kueh stalls are simply impossible to be of any real use. Each time I stab at the food, it runs away. Or perhaps I should say that my 'chopsticks skills' aren't good enough to pick up slippery steamed rice cake and the tiny pieces of preserved radish.

Now, aside from the chwee kueh, people usually order other food items, resulting in practical cutlery that comes along with them. So a proper spoon and fork could be utilized for the chwee kueh as well. However, when I come to the sprawling food centre next to the Bedok Bus Interchange and MRT station, I only eat the chwee kueh and nothing else. It's a meal for me. 6 to 10 pieces provide enough carbs and calories at either lunch or dinner. Having had enough of being frustrated by teeny sticks, I've started to bring my cutlery here. The usual silverware if I'm not heading out elsewhere after. Disposables will have to do for the other times.

It's very odd that I keep coming back here for its chwee kueh. It's almost like an obsession. Some will rave about how tender the steamed rice cake is.....okay....but I don't really care about that. Somehow, to the tastebuds, no other stalls can replicate the Bedok stall's peculiar mix of flavors in the preserved radish and spiciness of the chilli. It's just...special.

On a cool rainy day, I merrily took a long bus ride across the island to the east just to satisfy a craving. The girlfriend indulged me and sat down for an over-salted lunch of the familiar taste of preserved radish and chilli. Me likey.

A Morning Run

A glass of apple juice and a banana, then it was off to the Botanics for an early morning run with the girlfriend and her 2 big dogs.

I haven't owned a pair of running shoes for years. Neither have I run in almost 2 decades since I was 15. Those school mainstream PE classes were boring and stupid. I skipped all and got a permanent medical certificate to excuse myself from all physical activities in school all the way through junior college. Best. While I carried on with my other more fun external options like figure skating and gymnastics. HA.

Parkour made me realize that I'm seriously weak in my running. Executing the jumps isn't difficult, but I lack the pick-up and sometimes, the height because the fitness level for the speed doesn't seem to be there. I probably need to do short spurts weekly. Nothing marathon-y. Just a 3km to 5km puke-all-collapse-after on a weekly basis for 3 months should suffice. I don't like running very much.

Girlfriend runs in Vibrams. I did too. Muzzled, the dogs clearly liked running and definitely looked more enthusiastic about it than a poker-faced me. Actually, they paced me all the way, but decided to sit with me when I stopped at the 3-km mark. My heart was ready to jump out of the ribcage. Burning. Thighs itched crazily. First run in decades, yo! The girlfriend couldn't convince me to run 5km. I was adamant that I would die from exhaustion.

3km is enough. 18 minutes 23 seconds. I think it's quite decent.

The dogs obviously didn't think the timing was that fabulous. I could have sworn that they grinned at my slow-poke pace. Faster faster, they seemed to have said when they ran alongside. Grrrrrrr. I guess they're pretty used to a 5-km run on a daily basis.

Then it was back to the girlfriend's house for a light breakfast of thosai and vadai, followed by a good brew of flat white.