[[image:books.jpg:Book Image taken from the internet:center:0]] Books Read: The Storyteller by Mario Vargas LlosaSnow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa SeeThe Polysyllabic Spree by Nick HornbyLittle Children by Tom PerrottaThe History of Love by Nicole KraussFragile Things by Neil Gaiman (started by not finished by end of July) Books Bought: The Polysyllabic Spree by Nick HornbyFurious Observations of a Blue-Eyed Ojibway: Funny You Don’t Look Like One Two Three by Drew Hayden Taylor This entry was inspired by one of the books I read in July, The Polysyllabic Spree, in which Nick Hornby writes about the books he bought and the books he read on a monthly basis. Hornby, of course, was writing for a magazine and got paid for his efforts. But because of his witty descriptions not only of the books he bought and read, but also the events occurring in his life at the time of […]
Continue readingAuthor Archive: sila
Who, Me?
Well! It’s been a while, and I apologize for being so slow about it, but it’s been a busy July (see? now August oredi..). Since Hijack Queen tagged me, could it be true? Am I? Really? Little ol’ me? Well, shucks! Thanks 🙂 [[image:rockingirl.jpg:I Rock?:center:0]] Thanks, Queen! Let’s party like it’s 1999! So let’s pass it on. I tag you, Rockin’ Girls: 1. LiLiaN who, is rockin’ towards her PhD 2. Athena who is in a rockin’ new grove 3. PreciousKambing on rockin’ Planet Kambing Rock on, girls!! (Sila gives the “rockin’” hand sign and sticks her tongue out a la Gene Simmons, and rocks on to the sunset to the soundtrack from This is Spinal Tap)
Continue readingAnother Opera!
Quick update! So after the disastrous Nixon in China opera, we went to the final opera of the Cincinnati Opera 2007 season, Aida by Giuseppe Verdi. [[image:2webbill_performance.jpg:Aida Graphic, borrowed from the Cincinnati Opera website:center:0]] It was really, really good! The singers were amazing, the sets were huge and fantastic, and Vin and I were very happy with the entire experience. I must get us some opera glasses before next year’s season! See you next year, Cincinnati Opera! 🙂 * I have to say I LOVE all of the graphics they used for the operas, especially the Aida one. Gorgeous, no?
Continue readingFamily Reunion in Belle River – Addendum
Check it out! Whooooosh! [[image:poolslider.jpg:Vin goes splash:center:0]] And please note that at the end of the day, there were reports that the slide was starting to fall apart. We (and I include me in this) did enjoy going down that slide! 🙂
Continue readingFamily Reunion in Belle River
July has been a pretty eventful month for Vin and me, I have all kinds of things to blog about. But it has also been a pretty busy work month, so it hasn’t been too conducive to blogging. But before we finish out the month of July, I wanted to reflect back on our trip up to Belle River, Ontario earlier in the month. A family reunion was held at Vin’s cousin Liz’s house. This is the maternal side of Vin’s family – Vin’s Auntie Vera settled in Canada and we were happy to be included in the gathering. This was my first time meeting everyone other than Joanne, so forgive me if I make any mistakes naming all the family members! On the day itself, luckily we had name tags. 🙂 [[image:bru01.jpg:Auntie Vera on the left, cousin Pam on the right:center:0]] We had a lovely time at Liz’s place […]
Continue readingNixon in China: Minimalist Rant on an Awful Opera
Last summer, Vin and I started going to the Cincinnati Opera where we enjoyed 3 wonderful operas last year. This summer, with great excitement, we subscribed to the entire season (Cincinnati Opera is a summer season, they produce 4 operas each summer). We enjoyed Faust in mid-June, then had to miss Cosi Fan Tutte due to an unexpected death in the family. We gave our tickets to our friends who said they very much enjoyed the performance. The third opera this year was Nixon in China. We went to see it on Saturday night. [[image:nixon_internal.jpg:This graphic pinjamed from the Cincinnati Opera site:center:0]] Now begins the rant. Better not continue reading if you object to profanities because I’m afraid I can’t contain myself on this one. This opera FUCKING SUCKED. IT SUCKED ASS. It was an opera in 3 acts, with intermissions between each act. We stayed for 2 acts and […]
Continue readingChocolate Lemon Bars
Thanks to the birthday presents from Lilian, I have had some more fun experiments in the kitchen. One of the recipe books contains the recipe for Lemon Bars, which is a sugar cookie-esque base topped with a tangy lemon custard. I decided to up the ante and top the custard with a layer of melted chocolate. Well. Who can blame me for wanting to add chocolate, right? 😉 First, make the bottom cookie layer. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and press the dough into a thin layer at the bottom of the pan. Bake until this layer is golden brown and let it cool. Make the lemon custard and then top the cookie like so: [[image:lb1.jpg:Topped with Lemon Custard:center:0]] There is no coloring in the custard – that lovely yellow is a combination of egg, lemon zest and freshly squeezed lemon juice. Melt a combination of bittersweet chocolate, […]
Continue readingFantastic Four: A Meme
Since Selena (my preciousssssss pearl from PlanetKambing) tagged me for this, I figured I should get to it before I start procrasssstinating! Before any Silver Surfers start rising, here goes: Four Jobs I’ve Had in my life: 1. Student Tour Guide for the Information Center at my college 2. Circulations Assistant at the Gazette 3. Operations Analyst/Technical Writer 4. Consultant (a.k.a. enterprise modeler a.k.a. really, don’t ask me what i do because it’s a long explanation) Four (of the Five) Places I Have Lived: 1. Sitiawan, Malaysia (but of course!) 2. Seremban, Malaysia (boarding school, bah humbug) 3. Greater Boston Area, Massachusetts 4. Southern Ohio (Four points to whoever can name the missing fifth place that I lived in!) Four Places* I Have Been on Vacation: 1. Malaga & Jaen, Spain 2. England 3. Hawaii 4. Pulau Redang * For more vacation spots, just trawl this site. 😉 Four** of […]
Continue readingBread 2006 – Sprouted Wheat Bread, 2nd Try
So last year, I tried making Sprouted Wheat Bread with whole wheat flour and it turned out like this: [[image:bread125.jpg:Sprouted Wheat Bread, 1st Try:center:0]] Remember this bread? The one that required me to be part gardener, part baker. I thought the first time that I made it, that the whole wheat flour hid the wheat berries and the sprouts. So I tried the bread again, this time with white whole wheat flour. We begin with the ingredients: [[image:bread177.jpg:Wheat Berries, cheesecloth, jar:center:0]] So here we go with the gardening. Place a cup of the wheat berries in the jar, rinse with warm water and tie the cheesecloth over the top of the jar. This time I learned from before, and laid the jar on the side for optimal wheat berry sproutage. For the next three days, Vin had to remind me to water the berries twice a day. They were kept […]
Continue readingHawaii Day 10 – Last Day and Home to Lily
I know, it’s been two months since the trip and I’m finally getting around to putting up the final installment of the Hawaii pictures. But, in my defense, I am slow. Just a few days ago I finally emptied my suitcase of stuff from the trip. Yes, just my stuff since Vin unpacked his suitcase almost immediately while I stalled and stalled. That’s me. Procrastinator all the way. 🙂 So to remind you, in Day 9, remember we met with some interesting cats wishing us goodnight at the Volcano Inn? [[image:hi153.jpg:Scary Guard kitties?:center:0]] They apparently patrol the inn and keep out the riff raff :). In case you’re lazy to click on the link to the previous day’s blog entry, here’s a reminder of what they look like: [[image:hi144.jpg:Kitties!!:center:0]] Here’s what the outside of our room looked like in the light of day: [[image:hi151.jpg:The door to our room and the […]
Continue readingHawaii Day 9 – Finishing our trip around the Big Island
Another beautiful morning in Hawaii. We woke up to this gorgeous view: [[image:hi126.jpg:View from the Marriott lanai:center:0]] But it was our final morning on the sunny side of the Big Island. We were driving back to Hilo via the Volcano this afternoon. Before we left, we decided to enjoy the pool: [[image:hi127.jpg:Swim in the Infinity Pool:center:0]] [[image:hi133.jpg:Pool with slide and waterfall:center:0]] And go back to Anaehoomalu Beach: [[image:hi128.jpg:Vin by the signboard:center:0]] [[image:hi129.jpg:The beach:center:0]] [[image:hi130.jpg:Catamaran:center:0]] [[image:hi131.jpg:Vin reading under the coconut trees:center:0]] [[image:hi132.jpg:Memories of home, lambaian pokok nyiur:center:0]] After a morning spent swimming in the pool and in the sea (for me) and reading and enjoying the sun (for Vin), we packed up and said goodbye to the Kona side. For the first time ever, we were going to drive 360 degrees around the Big Island, and go back to Hilo. We passed through a lot of lava vistas: [[image:hi134.jpg:Lava rocks and […]
Continue readingBread 2006 (September through December)
Let’s take a short break from the vacation for some bread. These are breads that I baked the final 4 months of last year. I know, I should have really written this entry a long time ago. But here goes. This first bread is called Onion Caraway Bread. My second try at this bread. [[image:bread194.jpg:Onion Caraway dough:center:0]] Let it rise: [[image:bread195.jpg:Onion Caraway, risen:center:0]] Then bake: [[image:bread196.jpg:Onion Caraway Bread, baked:center:0]] It was a nice, oniony bread, with not too strong a caraway taste (I’m not too fond of caraway seeds, to be honest). Next we turn to the brioche again. I first tried brioche earlier in the year, and using the same basic brioche dough, I made a couple other variations on the bread. The first is called Raisin Brioche: After the dough has been kneaded, but before being rested in the fridge overnight, divide into 2 parts. Add raisins to […]
Continue readingHawaii Day 8 – Hotel Hopping and Sunset
We requested late checkout so we could enjoy ourselves on our final morning at the Hilton Waikoloa Village. It was a beautiful sunny morning, and we wanted to go snorkeling in the lagoon. Look at the difference in the pictures between yesterday and today, due to the sun: [[image:hi104.jpg:Fantastic hammock location:center:0]] So until 2 PM Hawaiian time, we enjoyed ourselves to the fullest, starting with a bout of putt-putt golf (my first time and it was rather embarrassing, so no pictures OK?). Time to snorkel! I took a bunch more pictures on the way to the lagoon: [[image:hi100.jpg:Canal:center:0]] [[image:hi102.jpg:Passenger boat on the canal:center:0]] The hotel grounds covers pretty much this whole bay. You can walk from end to end in a big curve, or take the train like we did on our first day here, or you can also catch one of the frequent passenger boats that pass by and […]
Continue readingShepherd’s Pie
For some reason today I’m a bit rajin to write and publish entries on the blog. Must be the prospect of the 3-day weekend coming up! Woohoooo! I’m a bit backlogged, but here’s a quick review of Shepherd’s Pie which I made earlier this year. First, cook the beef and tomato mixture on the stovetop (with peas, and other veggies too). Make sure you cook it in an oven-safe pan. [[image:sh-pie1.jpg:Meat mixture bubbling on the stovetop:center:0]] Make some mashed potato (this I made from scratch), spread it over the meat mixture, and pop it in the oven until the potatoes are crusty and a bit golden brown: [[image:sh-pie2.jpg:Baked shepherd’s pie:center:0]] Then you can section it off and serve: [[image:sh-pie3.jpg:Pretty slice:center:0]] It’s not really too pretty because the slice didn’t stay together too nicely when I lifted it off the pan. Seen here, it’s served with Buttermilk Bread (which I’ll get […]
Continue readingHawaii Day 7 – Lazy Day at the hotel
Day 7 dawned beautiful and sunny. We decided to have ourselves a lazy day. I believe there was some post-breakfast napping, some reading on the lanai (balcony). We can see this statue from the lanai: [[image:hi85.jpg:Meditating Buddha:center:0]] In the afternoon, we decided to veg out by the pool with our books. It was a little bit cloudy so the water seemed a little too cold so we didn’t do too much swimming. Here’s what some of the grounds of the hotel looked like: [[image:hi86.jpg:Lagoon:center:0]] [[image:hi87.jpg:Bridge over the lagoon:center:0]] [[image:hi88.jpg:Hammock by a coconut tree:center:0]] [[image:hi89.jpg:Sea turtles sign!:center:0]] [[image:hi90.jpg:The Ocean Tower from the other side of the lagoon:center:0]] The sea turtles sign – we’ll talk more about sea turtles in the next entry on Hawaii (Day 8). Here’s some of the view of the ocean: [[image:hi91.jpg:See? It’s cloudy:center:0]] [[image:hi92.jpg:But still quite beautiful:center:0]] We walked by the Dolphin Quest while they were doing […]
Continue readingHawaii Day 6 – Journey to the Kona Side
We actually didn’t get to walk around Hilo too much, because neither Vin nor I was in the mood for a walk in the rain. It rained the morning we left Hilo: [[image:hi64.jpg:Rain, rain, go away:center:0]] So we hit the road, to the other side of the island where the mountains block the rain. Going up the coast, it was still pretty rainy until we were pretty close to Waimea. [[image:hi65.jpg:Blue skies, yayyyyy:center:0]] There is the obligatory stop for malasadas (a portuguese donut, VERY yummy!! ono kine!). [[image:hi66.jpg:Locals say only this place’s malasadas are excellent:center:0]] Waimea is pretty elevated. It’s where the Hawaiian Cowboys are. You can see pine trees along the road here: [[image:hi67.jpg:On the road at Waimea:center:0]] There are plenty of pastures and meadows with cows, and horses. [[image:hi68.jpg:Pasture with Kohala mountain in the background:center:0]] Strangely enough, even this high up, there’s some cacti: [[image:hi69.jpg:Teddy bear cactus along […]
Continue reading