...of simple things in life

When I was a young woman and naive in the ways of the world, all that I dream of was of luxuries and an easy life. I wanted big cars, big houses, ostentacious jewelery, dinners in luxury hotels...well, basically the life in the fast lane. As a young woman I thought when you have all that it means you would have accomplished a major part in your life.
But then I grew older and wiser... I have childeren... I went through a 'roller coaster' ride in my life... things happened that changed my perspective in life and I began to look at the reality of life in a different light. I began to find solace in the simpler things in life, especially in the beauty that the Al Mighty has lay out for us to enjoy. I began to love the joy of watching sunsets and sunrise with my better half, I enjoy spending time doing my gardening and watching my plants bloom. The sound of the windchimes is a beautiful sonate to my ears. The sound of the birds, the waves, the feel of the breeze are all never taken for granted...all these makes me glad that I am alive and well. We must all take time to enjoy such things lest we forget our purpose in this borrowed world...

...sacrifices in love

Life brings no easy path, but love brings much more complicated route that it sometimes need strength, faith, willpower and patience to endure and persevere the trials and tribulation of a love relationship. There is no such thing as a love relationship that is free of glitches and pinches. It is just a matter of how big and small the glitches and pinches are.

Sometimes we wonder how much are we willing to go through - through that dark and lonely tunnel for someone, how much pain are we willing to endure... If we are willing to go through that deepest and most painful hurt, willing to be lost in a thousand of uncertainties then you know that you have truly given your heart and soul to the person. It is not everyone that wants love in such a manner, most people want it the easy way, that is minus the waiting and love that is pain free. You would rather the other person feel the pain but not you.

For me I believe that if we are willing to bear such difficult moments then I would like to believe that the Al-Mighty will be there for you...

Recipe of the Day: Chicken Rice in a Pot

I'm sure that as mothers we are always on the go especially if we have young ones and that means time is of the utlost importance. If you are a stay home mum you would have tonnes of house chores to do, if you are a working mum time is never enough. Well waht ever type of mum you may be I have a graet recipe that is nutritious yet saves you loads of time in preparation. It is a recipe which I learned from a television cooking program. Its an easy recipe which can be enjoyed by both children and adults.

The recipe is called Claypot Chicken Rice but because it's cooked in the rice cooker I called it Chicken Rice in a Pot. Here's how its done:

Ingredients:

(For 5-6 people)

1/2 a chicken - depending on the size you may cut it between 5 to 6 pieces

3 cups of rice - washed

71/2 cups water - for the rice

Fried salted fish (keep the oil) - tenggiri is nice but sometimes I use whatever I have available

in my fridge

Salted vegetable (lobak asin) - I like to use the mince type, but you can use whatever

kind you like

Carrots - peeled and cut them in chunks

1-2 Chicken cube - as suit your taste (you may make your own chicken stock if you like)

Margerine or butter - 3 tablesp

Soysauce - the lemak manis type is lovely,about 2 tablesp or amount of your preference

Oyster sauce - about 2 tablesp or amount of your preference
Salt to taste

Ingredients for slicing:

1 big onions

3 cloves of garlic

ginger

Method

Firstly , saute the sliced ingredients in either margerine or butter until a nice aromatic frangrant arises. This is done in the rice cooker. Then you put in the rice, stir it awhile until the melted margerine or butter has fully coated the rice. Now you put in the pieces of chicken, soysauce, oyster sauce, water, chicken cube/stock, the chunks of carrots and salt. Stir them up.

Let it cook awhile, when the rice is 3/4 cooked place the salted vegetable on top of the rice. And when the rice is almost done place the fried salted fish on top and pour a little of its oil for a nice flavor. If you are making this dish for children you may omit the salted vegetable and salted fish.

Then let it cook all the way. There you have it a simple but delicious dish cooked in a pot.

Enjoy your meal...

...music of the windchimes

I love windchimes. A winchime has a natural sound that connects your heart to Nature, the environment or to the melody that only your heart hears. On quiet nights when the wind blows ever so lightly and your heart is missing that someone, its sound will pull at your heart strings as your mind wonders to moonlit beaches. And that will bring a twinkle in your eye.

I have 10 windchimes hanging at my tiny bedroom balcony. Each bought from all over the place, some visited by yours truly, some by my better half and one by my son. There are windchimes from Langkawi, Cameron Highlands, Kota Kinabalu, Bali, Perlis, Port Dickson and Malacca.....each is made of different types of material like ceramic, coconut shells, sea shells and wood. And the unique thing is each has a different sound.

Yes, when the wind blows gently on the windchimes, they will 'play their song', and I will just lay and listen to the melancholy sound it makes. But on stormy nights all the windchimes would be janggling about madly in the wind and the sound they make is intense yet it has a calming effect. I guess it's like a calm in the storm.

Yes I love my windchimes...

Recipe of the day: Kueh Cara

This is one of my favorite kueh...it's a simple green kueh with melted sugar in the middle. To be honest I have yet to make it because I don't have the molds to make it. The mold is made of heavy metal (I am not sure what metal but it doesn't rust). I'm figuring out where I have to go to get the molds...maybe in some hidden away rustic shop.

Anyway, this is a recipe that I found which seem simple enough to make.



Kueh Cara

For batter

2 cups multipurpose flour
2 cups water
1 cup coconut milk (1/2 packet coconut powder)
1 egg
1 teasp salt
Grenn cloring/pandan juice

Mix all the igredients and filter to rid of lumps.

Pour the batter into the mold, some say pour the granulated sugar into the batter before putting it on the stove, while others say when the batter is 1/3 cooked then only placed the sugar...well, let's just do a trial and error and see which one we are comfortable with : )



Anyway that's one of my all-time favorite kueh.

...of a mother's heart

Sometimes children don't realize what a mother's love entails. They don't realize that nothing matters more to their mother than the well being of those that they have painfully gone into hours of labor for. That these mothers have laboriously cared for them from the time their umbilical cord was tenderly cut off, separating these tiny beings from the womb that carried them for 9 months.

Sometimes children don't realise that spontaneous words that lashed out from their seemingly innocent mouth hurts deep to the core of a mother's heart. Maybe to them they are just trying to stress a point or express their thoughts but it does not work as easy as that.

But, when a mother express words of anger it is never in malice neither does her love diminish in anyway. However there are times when a son or daughter say bitter words it is with intensity. At the end of the day no matter how hurt a mother's heart maybe she will always be there for her children...always.

...first trip to Langkawi

Sunrise from the ferry to the island.


I have always loved the beauty of natural surroundings especially beaches, islands, sunrise and sunset. I have never been to the Isle of Langkawi until I took a trip with my students back in 2007...and fell in love with the serenity of the island. I guess the laid back lifestyle appealed to me (having always lived in the city).
I remembered looking at the sunrise from the ferry which was taking us to the island. I was mesmerized by the wonder of the Almighty.

At one of the ancient houses found at Makam Mahsuri site















From the ferry taking us back to the mainland
















That's me on the left with some students waiting for our turn to check into our hotel, The Eagle's Bay Hotel


















Say cheese!!! At makam Mahsuri.

























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