goldenoro

Illy bean's beanie

2011-08-03T15:51:00.001+08:00

I have been knitting:

She likes to take it off quickly so my photos aren't that great.

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Illy agrees with Vegemite

2011-07-30T12:36:00.001+08:00

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Cooking Monster

2011-07-30T12:22:00.001+08:00

Old capsicum and chillies? Make a salsa!

I took out the membranes and seeds because deep down i harbour hopes my daughters will look on my food and want to try some. It won't happen again if it burns the top of their mouths off. So i like to keep the results as open as possible!

Tiny shallots in a pan with salt pepper tumeric and paprika. I had no garlic and usually load the dish up with it. Wouldn't normally use tumeric but today i wantrd that dry yellow warm vibe that i get from it. Sweat'em down.

Chop or slice your veg. I usually have long thin slices but today i thought i would live a little and dice. Add to the pan. Season again.

I always adda chopped tomato seeds and all, and squish it into the pan to get that mushy consistency i so love:)
Cook down with a little liquid. I used soy sauce and have used dashi before. If u think the tomato might be too acidic add a touch of sugar.
Serve thusly:

Or put it in the fridge and keep for a little side on any future dishes.
I love dill and in this combination takes the bite off any residual chilli heat nicely.

Brunchtime!
C
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Success!

2011-07-29T07:46:00.001+08:00

My fourth attempt at macarons and decided to repeat my paprika macs which were the only successful batch. This time around, it was on purpose:)

I took my SIL to the Bagus bakery solution store and dropped her off while i circled the block. 40mins later and slightly flushed, she emerged triumphant and happy:)

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Ok i know it's overkill but it's chocolate!

2011-07-25T23:50:00.001+08:00

Third time and not quite right. It was a little thick, much like the green tea ones - and i think because our largest eggs sorta count as mediums elsewhere. I could have used an extra yolk.

They looked a little granuley waiting to go in the oven - and might i say turdy - but they developed a skin quickly and i put them in after only ten mins standing. They puffed up nicely but certainly lack that gorgeous smooth eggshell top that is so desired in a macaron.

However i often love the idea of still enjoying a homemade delectable despite it not being up to par - my own little rebellion in the kitchen.

It all looks the same if you chew it a couple of times!

I added dark choc to my endless white choc ganache supply, and purposely salted it a little extra to get those tastebuds going.

Wish you could taste them. But then again - NOT!!

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Second attempt

2011-07-24T18:08:00.001+08:00

These turned out super runny in the piping bag and ended up spreading like raw pancakes over the baking sheet.

I realised only after baking that i had put in two extra eggs and ha mentally reminded myself to add a third extra of the dry ingredients - which of course i only remembered to do when they came out of the oven.

First batch: lemon. Delicious. Flat. Lemons in all senses of the word. Might serve them as an eton mess with my leftover white choc ganache.

Second batch: yam. Slightly thicker cos i didnt loosen it with juice like i did the lemon.

The yam ones are baking and puffing up quite a lot, so perhaps if i had left the lemons in longer? They are huge, like small saucers. For those i am mixing a little ginger powder into the ganache.

The whole batch is for CosmicGal, cos i never even saved her a bit first time round heeeee.

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Yep. I did it. I made Macaroons. Macarons. Pantalons. Bloody Good Biscuits.

2011-07-23T00:23:00.001+08:00

I have been watching Season 2 of Aussie Masterchef and was really inspired by Callum's gorgeous bright purple macaron royal crown-inspired dessert which he made for the London challenge.

My sister in law CosmicGal mentioned she would love to try her hand at making them, especially after trying the delicious ones from BabycakeShoppe (located under the stairs to the right of the lobby as you enter the GTower hotel on Jalan Tun Razak, right next to Dayabumi). They are delicious and quite cheap, as they come.

Prior to that I had already tasted the sublime macarons from Nathalie's Gourmet Studio , which I must say are truly divine. Especially the Salted Caramel ones. They are almost double the price of the others, but are also almost double the size.

In general, they are expensive, yes. It's a delicate art or craft. Try whipping stiff peaks into your egg whites in this humidity.

But with all the macarons in my life, I decided perhaps I should try making them too. I went to my local complete baking goods store which I love just browsing (heck, who needs to shop with all that eye candy?) in Jalan Negara, Taman Melawati. Got me some ground almonds and a variety of food colour pastes, chocolates and sugar sprinkles and flavours.

Tonight after the baby had slept, I got to mixing a double batch of all the recipe I decided to use, which I found in two sources, here and here. The former seems to originate from MArtha Stewart's site, and while I followed the ingredients measurements from that one (much prefer cups and spoons to measuring by weight!), I found the instructions to the latter recipe much simpler.

I still had to read and re-read the recipe to understand it. I knew that my performance with the egg whites could be the deal-breaker, and I wanted to fully understand what I was getting myself into.

I had to read up on what aged egg-whites were (whites separated from yolks out of the fridge but allowed to stand, covered in cling film, for at least a day at room temperature. They lose moisture and therefore whisk better).

I was also concocting all sorts of flavours for both the macarons outers and the fillings. At the very last moment I decided on green tea macarons with a white chocolate ganache filling (am toying with making half of them with ginger added to the white chocolate).

I also did paprika macarons, which were surprisingly delicious.

These I will fill with the white chocolate but if I were more inventive, I would go with something less garishly sweet and more mellow. Perhaps a sort of cottage cheese flavoured filling? Something to complement the bite of the paprika.

As I was mixing up the batches, I ended up having too little egg white for the green tea dry mix and they ended up being very dry and heavy in the piping bag, and wouldn't form a skin when resting. Still, I went ahead and baked them because it was my first try and I think I would have been prepared to eat them all raw, it looked so good. They formed "feet" (the little bubbly underlayer you see on all well-made macs) very quickly, and then kind of slid off themselves sideways. They were too heavy and didn't cook in the middle. I kept them in as long as possible but they were starting to turn brown, which is a no-no apparently.

The paprika ones piped beautifully, formed a skin beautifully, and baked beautifully. You could almost see the feet form in a span of 5 seconds.

Both batches have that nutty, herby, almost bittery malty taste, except the green tea is dry on the tongue and the paprika is perky in the throat - ALL GOOD.

Waiting for them to cool and for the chocolate to thicken up. Will post more pics when the product is finished!

Hmmm. Is this something I should ask my peeps to taste-test? Or something I can do on my own?

*munchesthoughtfully*

Lovey,
C

PS Macarons VS Macaroons? I always thought Macaroons are coconut chewy biscuits - and I was right! However I am not sure if the two names are interchangeable for the egg-shell biscuits I refer to here. If you're shy about frenchifying your words, then fine. I know what you mean!

PPS i awoke to a set white choc filling but i reckon had too little choc in it cos it is too runny. Once i sandwiched the macarons together with the filling, surprisingly, the paprika macs worked out better than the green tea ones, which seem overly sweet despite the matte green tea taste. Must say the paprika are quite good. When you take the first bite, the aroma in my mouth reminds me of barbeque twisties, but then when i continue chewing it becomes this mellow smokey sweet with a kick of heat at the end.
The promised pics:

Despite the drippy choc, Baby Two in typical fashion let it drip all over her hands do she could spend that extra moment savouring it. The mac lasted about 5mins, she took that long to eat it.

Blessings

2011-06-27T07:47:00.001+08:00

Early mornings getting ready for school when there are no fights, only quiet and preparation, these are lovely moments for me.
Getting the girls ready for school is hard for me. I am not a morning person, but i do think early birds get the best part of the day. It's hard to instil that in them and be disciplined when in the back of my mind all i want to do is slide under the sheets and snooze.

Baby One and Two are settling into new school very well despite a few bumps here and there with new friends and new curriculum. Baby Two has surged ahead (she was carried forward a year) and received recommendations for her performance. Baby One is finding her performing skin, and for one so clumsy and awkward physically, she blooms when "on".

Baby Three decided one day that she was going to walk, and after a few days' practise on the bed of a step or two, suddenly walked seven or eight steps under the encouragement of Baby Two. Such decidedly different characters, all growing and maturing so quickly and so slowly at the same time.

Ten years after my first kid, caring for another infant is definitely a whole other story. I am much more willing to be Baby's slave. Ok, i'll read you stories til you're bored. Not til I'm bored. Yes, you can scratch me. Uhuh, i'll escort you up and down the stairs five or six times. You want me to sing all the way to our destination? My vocal cords were made to sing for you.

When i get time alone, when everyone is sleeping, i have so many things to catch up on, but i don't want to start for fear interruption will leave them hanging and undone. So i do very little. The mental challenge of dealing with two arguing pre-teens and a baby is simply exhausting, because i am so mental! I mean because i pride myself on my mental acuity- which means nothing when it comes to children. You can't use only logic. You can't be intellectual or even rational sometimes. It is so much harder to explain simple concepts than conplex ones. How do you explain why tomatoes taste the way they do? Or why Baby Three insists on scratching Baby Two but not Baby One?

A very unpleasant situation for someone who likes to have all the answers.

But it's ok. I like having the one purpose of caring during the day, and then having the quiet night to myself. Wreaks havoc on the sleeping habits though :)

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The Importance of The Wedding

2011-04-29T08:01:00.001+08:00

I have been avoiding and pooh-poohing the hype about the royal wedding, even the tv docs that have been showing. The enormous fuss about the dress Kate will wear, the hair on William's head, the fact that his mother Diana's absence is overshadowing the whole event is a bit too much.

But then last night I caught a doc on tv about the Queen, and about the long 60 years she has reigned. It suddenly struck me that, despite her role being more or less a title, she has had to go through the most drastic and revolutionary changes any of her kind have gone through. I wonder how Henry 8 or Richard the Lionheart would have coped. So much of the change was social, by the people for the people. Would those others before have been able to accept such change, or move with it?

Anyway, the whole hoohah about the royal wedding has been putting me off. More so, the American fascination with them - and their seeming lack of understanding about the weight of royal ancestry and tradition. It's like a reality show for them.

But I thought of my own experience of this, during Diana and Charles' wedding. I think I was in London just after the time, travelling with my parents, as a 7 year-old, I think. The coins, mugs and plates we came across seemed so joyously important to everyone at the time. I was most taken with how pretty the princess was, and how english storybook-like a character Charles was. My reaction to Diana's passing took me by surprise - I was quite affected, in most part because she had become such a figurehead of compassion for the needy, and was caught in between her obligations to a family she didn't belong to anymore, and her need to be normal, I guess.

In a sense, my memory of Diana was all the more poignant because I had been somehow involved in the hoohah that had been her own wedding. We had a history, even if it was only my own!

I also do not want my kids to take my disregard of the Wedding Hoohah as a disregard for matrimony in general. Although I got married without any doubts in my mind, with hindsight, I realise that getting married is a huge and courageous undertaking. Firstly, it is about trust, and secondly, it is about claiming each other and declaring that you will both "make it work". Married couples who work hard at their marriage are everyday heroes, as far as I am concerned.

And although I feel disconnected to William and Kate, I do feel the burden that the public places on them, even if they might not feel it themselves, having practically grown up with it.

I wish them all the luck and love and happiness... and maybe we'll watch the whole day-long coverage today. After all, it's raining, and it's tv.

:)

C

Another option for donation

2011-03-23T23:29:00.002+08:00

How the Conversation Has Changed (no more baby talk, mama!)

2011-03-09T08:27:00.001+08:00

Me: Baby1, did you make a smell?
Baby1: Me? No! Why do you always think it's me? (grumblemumble)
Me: Oh, sorry. Baby2, was it you?
Baby2: Who knows?

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Morning

2011-02-23T07:48:00.001+08:00

Most mornings are very difficult for me. If it's not me struggling to wake, it's one of the Babies.

I can't blame them. Mornings are the best for sleeping. It's harder on me because if I move I might wake my little bedmate:

When we finally struggle out into the car we are usually late, but mostly not too late.

Traffic going to school is okay but coming back is a chore. I have to sit through city-bound traffic to make it back home. At least i have this sleepy critter keeping me company.

When i get home i can go back to sleep if i want to, but it really depends on my little cohort.

Today she felt like casting an eye over my bookshelf organising.

Every now and then she finds something that simply doesn't work and just pulls it out.

I take the opportunity to indulge in my favourite pastimes:

Like my little snowman under all that coffee? Me too. Sometimes Illy joins me.

Other times all the hard work gets to her and we soon have a lie down, because she needs her sleep, the little tyke.

Be nice. Smell nice.

:)

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Cheesy Goodness in A Jiffy!

2011-02-05T17:07:00.001+08:00

I had some of Pea's wonderful cheese scones at Jobby's baby shower. I brought some home. I ran out of jam before I could finish them :(

This was a few weeks ago. Today I had a tub of already grated cheddar thanks to my dear mum who thought I could use it when cooking for the girls. Little did she know I had more selfish designs in mind muaahahaaaa.

So I looked up Delectable Pea's recipe and had it prepped in a quickie:

Unfortunately I rushed them out of the oven thinking I had burnt them. I had not. But they are a little underdone.

And mostly sitting in my belly now.

Did it again

2011-02-02T17:59:00.001+08:00

Found more gorgeous jpanese cottons at kamdar. Been making baby blankets, including the following which was for my friend Jobby's baby shower:

I patched on an elephant with a flappy ear. Homemade and handmade and something that will come in handy:)

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Books Versus Television - is it moot?

2011-01-14T11:05:00.000+08:00

i have always loved reading. I have also always loved the telly.

When I started school in Oz, many kids were amazed at how much tv I got to watch. I think I got free reign as a child - as long as I had homework done and it was kiddy friendly tv, I could watch anytime, anything.

I remember having the groundwork of my philosophy of life being laid by concepts I came across in tv documentaries. Despite my current despair about the state of local television, I remember seeing amazing documentaries on local tv when I was a child. I learnt about surgery, the mind / body relationship, how to conserve and economise in the home when using electricity and water, and how germs and drugs kind of worked the same way - you had to keep clean and stay away from danger zones.

I also remember being engrossed in our Encyclopaedia Brittanica, which came in a set of about 24 volumes of alphabetically listed subjects (I think Q and R were in one volume, as well as X, Y and Z). I read every single volume over and over again and would read it from page one to the end. We also had a wonderful children's encyclopaedia which was split into volumes by subject - like home activities (with a scientific slant) and animal, etc. Volume 11 was my fave out of the 15. It was dark blue. There was also a popular psychology set which described things like cognitive psychology, sexual, social psychology, mental illness and ageing and so on.

Somehow as I progressed through school and uni i think I got a little snooty about reading being a higher pursuit than television watching - and today it occurred to me that maybe my attitude is a little, well, closed-minded.

I have been worrying about my kids not being big readers, and thinking there is so much to be said for learning through reading, especially about life experience, vicarious though the process may be. I mean, you do not have to go through a bad experience, say, to understand how bad it could be (for example, the death of a relative), but reading about it, whether fact or fiction, would definitely give you a more compassionate understanding of it, simply because you would have a wider, deeper knowledge of that experience, even if you hadn't experienced it at all.

But there is also much to be said about real life teaching that can come from family and peers. I could definitely teach my kids about how to deal with that currently fictional death of a relative and how they might be affected, or how they could behave around others who might be affected.

I always pooh-poohed the idea of relying on the television, especially in cases when parents leave the tv to babysit their children constantly.

Then I had kids. And I rediscovered my faith in the tv. yes, I have let the tv babysit my kids on occasion (while I have been writing or simply zoning out), and there have been times when it would happen over an extended period. But, being very conscious of the effect on my kids of any outside influence (i.e. not me or hubby), I have always closely monitored their attitudes and react almost immediately when something crops up which I get suspicious of.

This is as any conscientious parent would do. Kids pick up habits and behaviours from people, why wouldn't they pick them up from the tv or also from their books (if they were readers)? So my kids understood from a young age that any questionable behaviour, language or attitudes would be questioned, and they learned that there were certain programmes they could not watch. And now that they are bigger and craftier, they know there are certain programmes they shouldn't tell me they have watched (Grrr).

Today I was watching BBC Knowledge on our new cable tv package, and I suddenly thought, when tv is good, it is so effing brilliant, and I would plonk my kids down to watch hours of great, spine-tingling, toe-curlingly good tv anytime. Especially television done in the great tradition of conscientious, ethical reporting or education, as the british tend to have been. Nowadays some great stuff is coming out of Canada, and if you can look past some of the hype of Amercian tv, some if it is pretty good too ( though i think their film docs are better).

The writing on british and australian children's television is exemplary, and doesn't just fulfil the entertainment goal, but also seems to take into account the personal and social growth of the child watching. For older kids, the shows can get incredibly complex, not only having a single arcs of narrative, but also smaller, inter-related arcs of sub-plot, or concepts, following on the one theme.

Life now is so incredibly different from just 20 years ago. The mobile phone changed everything. The internet changed everything. And just 5 years ago, we still had to go home to check our mail. Now, life is about getting connected.

I can't be unrealistic about my kids and keep pushing them to read. I could stifle their natural curiosity. whereas, right now, if they want to know something, I can easily encourage them to look it up on the net, and if they want to know more, guide them to other resources such as books and magazines and the tv, for more info.

They already will be expected to do proper research in the next few years at school, so, why push so much?

I guess now the real issue is if the whole business of being constantly connected might create future adults who might not really know how to focus deeply on the one thing. Well, I can no longer do that - what mother / professional can nowadays? Unless you want a career in scientific research and analysis, are those skills really necessary?

Perhaps not at work. But I think personal relations might suffer. Ever tried to hold a conversation with someone who won't look up from their phone? It's annoying, but they usually stop if you punch the table to get their attention :)

C

Learned something today

2010-12-29T10:05:00.001+08:00

This morning I was sitting with my mum in her living room with Illy bouncing on the sofa beside her, when mum said in Greek, "kathe katergaros sto spiti tou" and then proceeded to explain.

My sister and I have visited for Christmas and she has left and today I will leave. The saying means something aling the lines of "everyone returns to their place". But the word "katergaros" is the vernacular for a small brown fish, like a trout, which, when you put a cigarette in its mouth, will smoke it.

I love these little sayings and i love how their literal meanings inform the figurative meaning.

Happy new year all! I hope it is a profitable and wonderful one.

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Today Illy let me sew...

2010-12-12T21:47:00.001+08:00

... So i covered my cushions with some of the lush fabric i have been hoarding.

That picture in the background is not of anyone in our family - it came with the room divider frame thingy and we never took it out.

It kind of reflects how our house has come together over ten years: bits and pieces that don't match (no, not even on purpose) which haven't found their full potential as part of a cohesive whole.
It's not like we are in an interim house - we are here to stay. I guess I have never placed any importance on the design or beauty of the house and have always opted for utilitarian choices. Having finally realised that i get affected by my surroundings, now that i have been spending so much time at home, i really want to make our home a place with clean lines, but luxurious in textures. Calming but not numbingly void of character.
The kitchen has a poo-yellow tile from floor to head height whilst the cabinets, though lovely, are dark dark dark. I am thinking they need a pale, blue-grey colour. And those tiles need to go!

So I indulged my urge to hange things up by changing my cushions. And lovely Illy let me do it but after about half an hour she insisted I needed to carry her evrywhere I went for the rest of the afternoon.

After that she let me feed her in her bumbo next to the new white tree with the Ikea critters on it:)

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Merry merry!

2010-12-09T13:18:00.001+08:00

Must say Aeon Jusco has the best Xmas setup this year. Simple, pristine and all about great lights in calming chases. No psychotic multicoloured epileptic fit-inducing flashes!

Happy Merries and New Year!!

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Improv Delights!! Actorlympics is baaaack!

2010-11-10T18:07:00.000+08:00

Actorlympics is on again next week!

Vision Works brings you the Actorlympics Tigerrr Show, live improvisational comedy theatre straight from the perspiring loins of our dramatic corps of artistes – and we can guarantee THEY ARE ALL PROS!

Featuring Afdlin Shauki, Douglas Lim, Adibah Noor, Joanna Bessey, Nell Ng, Reza Zainal Abidin, Patrick Teoh, Fish Fazil, Na'a Murad and Jenhan. This is Malaysian sketch comedy at its best – a bigger troupe of Pros you’ll never see the like of except in our show!

And because we care, we are bringing you a show with a tongue-in-cheek theme that draws attention to the plight of our beleaguered Malayan Tiger, in this, our Year of the Tiger. Could it have gotten any worse for the poor Tiger in its own year? First, it’s already in danger, then some humans pimp it out for money. Well, we figure two can play at THAT game!

We have hooked up with WWF-Malaysia to bring more information and understanding to the theatregoing public – as well as the opportunity to find out how you can have a hand in doubling the current population of the Malayan Tiger!

So come on out for a night of fun and maybe you’ll learn something new about the Tiger and perhaps about us humans as well.

Find out more on our Facebook Page (search for “Actorlympics”) or go tohttp://actorlympics.blogspot.com/ or visit www.pjla.com.my.

For more info on Malayan Tigers and WWF-Malaysia, go to www.tx2.my.

Please check with the Box Office for nightly lineup of actors when making your booking.

Venue: PJ Live Arts
2A-3, Block K, Jaya One,
Section 13, No.72A, Jalan Universiti,
46200, Petaling Jaya, Selangor D.E, Malaysia
Dates: Tues 16 – Sun 21, November 2010
Time: 8.30pm ALL SHOWS
Tickets: Adults RM60, Seniors RM45, Students 12 yrs and above RM30
We recommend this show is not suitable for children under 8 years.

Bookings: 603.7960.0439 or 6012.683.2099

EXCITING PROMOS FOR TICKET HOLDERS!

At Frontera Sol of Mexico, ticket holders can enjoy a 3 course set dinner for RM45++ or RM60++ with a glass of wine prior to the show (please order at least an hour prior to the start of the show), as well as a 1-for-1 drinks special (buy one get one free deal for margarita, wine, beer, orange juice or coke).

Audience members will also receive a slice of cake and regular coffee with every main course order from The Bee upon presentation of their ticket.

Fun for all the family!

2010-11-10T12:09:00.001+08:00

Or: the importance of understanding english especially if you are a reporter for a national newspaper.

Check out the headline here (eng trans: dr jism, electrostatic therapy):

The best part is the caption beneath the pic of the modestly wholesome male and female:

(eng trans: dr jism... Giving pleasure to its users)

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Foot In Mouth Disease

2010-11-09T22:11:00.000+08:00

Came across this article about how the Def Min thinks that a possible reason why there are less than 1% non-Malays in the armed forces is : LACK OF PATRIOTISM.

To quote:

"KUALA LUMPUR: A lack of patriotism was one of the possible reasons for the small number of non-Malays in the armed forces, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told Parliament Tuesday."

Ohoho!

So by implication, Malay = Patriot. Non-Malay = Non-patriot.

The article then goes on to list other more likely and more pragmatic reasons than that rather up-in-the-air presumption, with:

"Dr Ahmad Zahid said the small number of non-Malays could also be due to various other factors, such as concern over the strict discipline imposed, lower returns compared to jobs in the private sector, lack of encouragement from families and negative perceptions towards the army."

Hmmm. I would suggest that fear of racism, gangsterism, ostracism, bullying, poor reception and poor perception of other races could also be reasons, but then I would be making an outrageous presumption about all parties involved.

There are so many levels of why going on here that this simplistic remark is offensive because it writes off real problems faced by the whole nation as "the other's lack".

Basically, unless you are mainstream Malay, you are the "other", and it is your "lack" that is the source of the mainstream's problems. This is simplistic and unrealistic, and unnecessarily provocative and closed-minded. It is the view of (a collective) ego so weak in self-esteem it must bring others down in order to justify its actions and words.

Surely we are beyond this?!

Malaysia, the best way to get mature behaviour from our leaders is to EXPECT it and to express our disappointment when it doesn't happen. Funnily, it's the same way you teach kids to grow up too.

PBFBBFFRFFFFTTTTTT!!!

Before the Return To Oz

2010-11-07T23:43:00.002+08:00

Before I get to posting about my recent, long-awaited trip to Australia, I want to show off the little blankets I made before I left.

Knowing I would need at least 6 gifts for new baby mummies who were old friends of mine and my sister's, I spent a whole lot of time roaming shops before I suddenly hit on the now obvious idea of making something for them all with all the fabulous fabric I have amassed over the last year or two.

I thought of making quilts but knew that unless I could churn out a few every week, it wasn't going to get done. I came across a fabulous idea for a baby receiving blanket in a gorgeous book I had bought earlier last year: Joelle Hoverson's Last Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts. It was a square piece of cotton flannel bordered with double-folded bias binding, which I thought was super cute and easy on the eye.

I had also been thinking about the coasters I had been making earlier this year. So I thought, why not make cute baby blankets with all my lovely material and instead of a single layer with gorgeous hemming, make them like I made my coasters?

Brilliant!

I used my Japanese Miyaki cotton prints, got myself about ten metres of cotton flannel in cream, grey, powder blue and pastel pink, sewed squares of them right-sides-in, leaving a small hole through which I inverted the blankets inside-out. Then I sewed the edges down and quilted the two sides together with a few interlocking squares, to keep the two pieces from shifting around like a billowing pillow case.

For one of them I had forgotten to sew the print right-side-in, and of course, hating unpicking as much as I do, I decided making my own double-folded bias binding would be far more desirable! Then Icould just cover the edges with a lovely contrasting print and ta-daaa! All those pieces of material leftover are suddenly put to full use :)

So I had gifts for two new babies and two brother-sister sets, six in all. The pleasure of giving them was unsurpassed. I think I should make baby blankets forever. I'll be the baby blanket making queen. It's great because I only need to sew in a straight line and cut the material straight. Plus if takes so little time! Right up my alley.

I so adore my pictures I have to put them all here. Sorry!

This one ended up going to Claire's little Tessa.

This blue stripe went to Dawne's little man Zac.

This one came back to KL ungiven and was claimed by Baby Two.

This one is one of my favourites and also came back.

This yellow and purple was the one that started as a mistake (I forgot to sew right sides together) and ended up being rather lovely. This went to Chris' little Lilly.

This olive-y green went to Claire's little fighter, Finlay.

This grey-green stripe went to Megan's gorgeous blue-eyed boy Leo.

This is a bunch of prints and flannels I paried together which have yet to be assembled.

The check you see on top went to Chris's Jack - who is a cutie.

You might remember the olive-green print here, which I used as edging for the dresses I made for the girls. Here it has been sliced into bias-cut strips to be folded over twice to make edging. This particular print combo is now lining Illy Bean's cot.

Speaking of, this is detail of the quilt I made for Illy before she was born.

Oooooo. I can't help myself, they are like candy. Boiled sweets.

It's How You Look At It

2010-10-22T21:48:00.000+08:00

Being a mummy can be really tedious, frustrating, repetitive, boring, tiring, and frankly, it can feel like you are losing your mind. I find I lose perspective about what is really important. I mean, I want my kids to be socially adaptable, responsible, savvy and kind. But they are kids and they are clumsy, inept, oafish, unkind and rude sometimes. They are also kind, generous, fun, clever, charming and very perceptive.

However, it can be like living in a goldfish bowl and sometimes I find myself insisting on things that are seemingly super-important, only to think later that they don't matter at all. I feel like I am losing my grip on reality sometimes.

But every once in a while I take a gander outside my little world and I realise, it's not me that's lost my mind, but my country!

Here we are, trying so desperately to catch up with the rest of the world, and not seeing that the rest of the world is dealing with regrettable mistakes and actually aren't that much better off. Instead of feeding off the debris they have left behind, we should be learning from their mistakes and taking a lateral step thinking-wise.

So, we have a budget which includes two building mega-projects that to me are a slap in the face to the people of our country.

What about forgoing that extra 100 floors of commercial floor space (of which we apparently have a glut in the Klang Valley) and using those billions to, oh I dunno, feed every orphan in the nation for the next hundred years? I'm sure that money would not only pay for the food supplies, but the machinery and personnel required to transport and prepare it too.

Or maybe, to rehabilitate all the damaged ecosystems left behind from other commercial enterprises.

Or, maybe to clean up the clogged river and drainage systems from all the bad planning and maintenance in our city.

Or maybe, to pay for all those highways we are forced to pay toll on so that they are actually paid for with tax payers' money after they have paid their tax, rather than before they give it to the government.

Or maybe, to provide regular assistance subsidies to small subsistence industries.

Or proper maintenance of roads.

Or subsidising fuel and making millions so happy they'll forgive you for taking their money.

Or paying Sabahans and Sarawakians the real worth of all the resources you have stripped from them in building your Malaysian dream.

Or building more hospitals, or free H1N1 vaccinations for everyone.

COME ON GUYS! Surely there are hundreds of ideas better than a hundred storey building?!?!

But then, maybe it's just that I am looking at it the wrong way. Maybe I should put aside my silly notions of healthcare for all, clean and safe streets, personal and collective rights, freedom of speech and freedom to choose and practise my religion, accountability of those put in power by their rakyat, and quality education for children in which they are taught, nay, expected to question the status quo.

There are many out there who would say, yes, you are looking at it the wrong way - if you don't like it, you can leave.

I say, I only dislike what is unjust, foolish and plain criminal. What would those people say to that?

C

Keep looking at me funny when i say no to NUGGETS

2010-10-04T17:18:00.000+08:00

Jamie Oliver made up a version of this to show kids what nuggets were made of. Even what he made looked more palatable. (Via @Rockerina on Twitter)

In Malaysia I reckon the awareness of how bad plain old junk food is for you is really low, let alone the knowledge of what is in it.

Next time you eat a burger, take a closer look at the meat pattie. It might as well be playdough, it hardly looks like meat at all.

If you are eating junk food regularly, thinking it is convenient / cheap, you are the bottomfeeder that major, billion-dollar multinationals have built their empires on. Are you happy to be willingly duped like this?

C

Call for information!!

2010-09-29T07:38:00.000+08:00

I was thinking long and hard about the film stock thing and decided I could at least see if anyone out there has some information they could help me with. So here goes:

Do you have knowledge of people who would be able to safely destroy or recycle about 40 boxes of film stock?

There is one important condition to be met from our company's point of view: the film itself needs to be destroyed or cut up to protect our copyright.

Each box has a set of 4-6 film reels / cans which I think are aluminium. The film itself is plastic coated with photographic chemicals, the composition of which I am not sure.

Would you know of any company who could do some or all of the following:

Destroy the negatives safely or cut them up prior to repurposing

Recycle or repurpose the film cans

Recycle or repurpose the boxes.

Would they collect the film and would they charge?

Apparently development labs can handle old film stock - but it seems they simply throw the cans out! The effort of emptying the reels must be too much - because even they could re-use the old film cans. I suppose they must be cheaper to buy new than to employ someone to empty!

Hope someone can help!