Of Little Critters and Hot Chillies

I have to hand it to Nature its wonder of replication.

What do I mean?

Flash back 2011:

This is one of the better photos of Bluey - I will forever remember him this way - the mostly loveable rabbit.

An assortment of chillies I bought from the Pyrmont fresh food market.

Zoom forward 2013:

A female lop - I don't know what to make of her at the moment. 

Two types of chillies from my garden - the pyramid-shaped chilli was grown from seeds of one variety of chillies I bought from the Pyrmont fresh food market in 2011. 

I am most happy about my chilli crop, as showcased above. I have three different types of chilli plants, two of which I grew from seeds. 

More than a year later, Summer awards me with the first signs of flowers, then tiny fruits, then green fruits ripening to brilliant red. 

I have sliced them, eaten them raw, pickled them in vinegar, dried them, added them to soups, stir-fries, salads. 

Mmm mmm mmm, I love my chillies. 

Of Little Critters and Hot Chillies

A Wise Man Once Told Me

A wise man once told me what another wise man once told him.

There are three bones you should have in life:

A back bone.

A funny bone.

And a wish bone.

Thanks very much, Mr. C, for everything you told me.

You would always be here for the ones who love you.

A Wise Man Once Told Me

Not Long Now is Here

YSK, I remember as a child, we would stay the night at your house. I remember all the toys kept in the storeroom, how you'd take them out for us to play.

You'd sit in your favourite chair, you'd silently watch television. You'd hardly utter a word, but nod or chuckle in response to conversation.

A quiet, gentle soul.

Mr. C, I have not known you for very long.

But I am honoured to have known you.

I will always remember your dry wit, the twinkle in your eyes, your life stories you regaled me with.

Above all, I will always remember you for your strength.

There are two bright stars more in the sky.

Not Long Now is Here

Good Bye Swea'D 26/03/2010

Good bye girl...

We're sorry we weren't with you...

Thanks for the wonderful 13 years you've had us... it was the wackiest, most exasperating, funniest 13 years... and we wouldn't change one thing...

We will miss you and love you always. You've been the best friend we could ever hope for.

Love always,
The Family.

With a heavy heart I bid you farewell,
I shall always remember you my trusty friend,
When my eyes are swathed in darkness,
And my hearing grows dim,
The memory of you shall be with me until the end...

Good Bye Swea'D 26/03/2010

First Day of 2009 - on life and Swea'D

I'm camera shy!

She came into our lives on 26th April 1997. I was proud to claim to anyone who paid attention that I chose her. True to her nature, she was the nosy puppy that poked her face at us. I knew she was the one. Our very first pet dog.

We fought over what to name her. My father wanted to name her Dolly, as in the film "Hello, Dolly!". We quickly put a stop to that name coming to being. No, if we wanted to name our very first dog, it had to be a cool name. Way cooler than Dolly, the only Dolly I knew then was Dolly Parton.

C quickly decided on the name Sweet D, for Sweet Dog. At that time, we were in the Backstreet Boys craze, remember Howie D? I think he had Sweet D as one of his nicknames. Later on, my father spelt the name Swea'D. Much cooler.

Life doesn't get any better than eating!

Swea'D came to stay.

She was one cute puppy. A nosy parker, but a puppy could be forgiven for this seemingly harmless idiosyncrasy.

She was 6 weeks old when she came to stay.

She's 11 years old now, and she knows she owns the house.

OK, she co-owns it with my father, the only person she's afraid of.

She's slightly slow on the stairs these days, but at the mention of food, "Mam Mam!", her eyes light up and she even has a spring to her steps.

The only thing that gets her excited.

That, and the mention of my father's name, "Papa!". She knows then that something is going to happen (either a bath, or clipping her nails).

Same old Swea'D.

If only life revolves around food and eating, sleeping, and going for the 1's and 2's.

It's 2009, and I know everyone goes about making a list of resolutions for the new year.

I have one, too.

But it gets complicated.

I'm not getting younger, and it seems that there are so many things that I have not achieved in life.

So much so that I feel swamped, overwhelmed, snowed in.

"You know what I'm craving?

A little perspective.

That's it.

I'd like some fresh, clear, well-seasoned perspective."

Some perspective to clear up my addled thoughts.

First Day of 2009 - on life and Swea'D

Congratulations

PY has become an elite member of Registered Pharmacists of NSW. For those who do not know, registration is a grueling ordeal. Nearing the end of 2000 hours of supervised practice, one must pass both the written and oral components of the examination before the Pharmacy Board is satisfied that one may be let loose onto the community. Or the other way around. Into my second year of being let loose, I realise that there are some prized customers out there who derive morbid pleasure out of seeing a pharmacist being put in her / his place. However, this could arguably be my sole opinion; the Board obviously thinks that the community is a herd of meek lambs. :P

We went to Azuma as Chifley Plaza for dinner on Saturday 09/08/2008. KT has been itching to try out this one chef hat Japanese restaurant. We have PY to thank for the golden opportunity!

Pre-dinner entertainment

I would call this an entree: deep-fried prawns with home-made tartar sauce and Ponzu dipping sauce - yummy, but PY and I both agree that the prawns were not too fresh.

Of course, we had more than just the prawns - we then went on to have the yummy Azuma specialty - deep fried flounder fillets with Ponzu dipping sauce - the flounder pieces were like M&M's - they melted in my mouth! :P Don't forget the sushi, soba, and tempura ramen - all very yummy, and I was left wanting more!

Yes, the Pièce de résistance - the famous Double Bay ice-cream extravaganza - we ate so much ice-cream that night that I couldn't be able to tell the difference between the many different flavours!

PY is worried that she might not get a job - I worried too when I first started out - but I'm sure she'd have no troubles in finding one, and I'm hoping that it would be the "big break" - a wonderful start of a new chapter in her life. Here's to you, my friend. :)

Congratulations

Nam Nam Father, poor Old St. Michael's needs more than dusting!

I know. It's been over a month since I wrote something. It's blogger's block. :P So many things go through my mind every day, I reach for the computer to write them down, and when I begin to, my mind draws a blank.

I suppose I should update on the current happenings in my life. Yes, it has been nearly three months since I moved. So far, it's been good. I love the quietness of the new place, and although I have to make mad dashes to the city for grocery and errands, it's a good change. I do miss Broadway, though. I miss the convenience of being so close to the city. I miss going to Harris Farm and shopping for weird and wonderful foods. Just Saturday KT and I went for a shopping spree at Broadway for groceries and necessities, and we were waiting for a taxi to cart our shopping home, and we happened across a new yum cha place where Mamma's Kitchen used to be at. Yum cha from 10am to 10pm. Imagine that.

Father gave us a tour of "poor old St. Michael's". It seems that since the majority of us has left St. Michael's, it has begun to collapse. Literally-speaking. The engineers came around to assess St. Michael's state of disrepair. The roof has begun to peel off in certain parts of the college, due to the collection of rain water on the rooftop. The room where PY and I have stayed for more than three years smells musty and dank, with water leaking from most parts of the ceiling.

Father showed us each and every room that has been affected, and I felt as if I was on a tour of a delapidated historical building. I almost expected to see a sad ghost around each corner. St. Michael's is too quiet, so very different to when we used to stay there, running up and down the stairs, shouting and jumping around in our room, cooking in the kitchen, singing in the bathroom whilst have a shower, watching the Australian Open in the TV room, playing mahjong.

As Father showed us the tree and bamboo plants he planted thirty years ago, I was overcome with a wave of sadness, so intense that I wanted to cry. Even now, I cannot help feeling nostalgic for the happy days we shared at St. Michael's. Old and rundown though it has been, it was our fleeting home.

Fifteenth Day of Chinese New Year - Chap Goh Mei

The fifteenth day of Chinese New Year is more popularly known in Malaysia as Chap Goh Mei. The celebrations of the fifteenth day is no less splendid; on the night we would make sweet glutinous rice balls (tang yuan) served in a ginger syrup soup as a symbol of unity (round) and the good things in life (sweetness). Chap Goh Mei is also the Chinese version of St. Valentine's day, with unmarried girls throwing mandarin oranges for the man of their dreams to pick up.

I worked on Chap Goh Mei, of course. This Chap Goh Mei turned out to be the most eventful one of my life so far. The pharmacy I worked at was robbed and I was held up by a man holding a sharp knife. Thankfully no one was hurt. I left the pharmacy feeling angry, angry that there are people who feel that they have the right to rob and steal from others just because they feel themselves to be underprivileged. This man is neither physically impaired, and certainly not mentally impaired, considering that he is clever enough to orchestrate a hold-up on two defenceless ladies. Indeed.

I left the scene feeling detached and wary, too. I can't stop these things from happening. One of the things in life. It's a valuable lesson for me to be always vigilant no matter where I am. My rose-tinted glasses have faded now.

To that man: You may escape without being caught this time, count yourself lucky. I do believe in karma. What goes around comes around. It's a valuable lesson for you, too, not just for me.

I saw the full moon on Chap Goh Mei night. I wished that I was carrying a Chinese lattern as when I was young, playing beneath the moonlight, blissfully unaware of the ugly reality of the world.

Sadly, I no longer live in a beautiful world.

Fifteenth Day of Chinese New Year - Chap Goh Mei

In Heaven

Panda, a bristle-nosed catfish I bought over a month ago, small, fidgety, is now playing in the garden with Bluey, Radio, Little Strong One, Bow, Girlie, Sushi, and Sashimi, and few of Sushi's brood.

Cookie, a clown loach, active and always on the go, joined them yesterday, too.

Somewhere in the garden is a beautiful little lamb called Samir... eating grass and frolicking happily, sticking his nose into everything, as if he is the authority of all matters.

I'm very sure that they are happy in the garden of Heaven.

In Heaven

In Memory of The Brave

On 13/08/2007 morning, not long after I woke up at 8:30am, Girlie, the female fighting fish, went away to play. She is the first fighter I've watched breathe until the very end. I watched her gasp her last breath, then fell still. I thought I saw her struggling, and I told her that if she felt that she wanted to go, then go. If she wanted to live on, the fight on.

I finally realised that fighters are true to their name sake: they fight to the end.

I think we both knew that Girlie didn't want to fight any more.

She went away at her most beautiful.

I buried her in a special place: the first teapot that I've bought in Australia; the teapot has been with me for 5 years. I broke the spout yesterday night. In retrospect, I think it was a sign that it was time for Girlie to go. I planted some mint in that teapot.

Girlie had been unwell for some time now. She grew better, but at the same time that I began my first emotional ordeal, she seemed to fade away, yet fought to linger on.

I didn't cry when I watched her go. That was a first for the emotional me.

To Girlie: you've been great. This is for you.

In Memory of The Brave