I'm in pain!!

I’m in pain! Excruciating pain! Yet again I had forgotten the terrible after-effects of cutting chilli padi without gloves, and now I am suffering.

Dinner tonight was a nicely baked/grilled sutchi fillet with dill and butter for me, and tomatoes, paprika and chilli for Kimmy. It was pretty tasty until the end when it started to become a bit fishy. And strangely enough, the sting of the chilli padi only came after one hour, and despite bathing, washing and moisturising, it still feels like hell.

I wish I had aloe vera to soothe the pain, I should get myself a tube. Am trying to numb the pain with ice cubes now, but it works only momentarily. ☹

Happy to see the bags

It’s such joy to actually see a mass of bags at my office door. This month, I’ve had more orders completed than in the past few months combined, so it has been heartening. Funnily enough, the revenue and balance sheets turned out the same as previous months. I’ve had to cut my salary but pay more to the suppliers, ending up with the same low figures as before. Oh well, hope it gets better soon!

Bento Sarada

Bento lunch for me and F in office today. Rocket salad with olives, pine nuts, tomatoes, garlic prawns and Hokkaido okaki (rice crackers).

Fried Rice unlike any other

This fried rice doesn't taste or look like any I've ever eaten, but I was quite happy with the outcome. I've never fried rice before, thinking it might be difficult, troublesome, messy....but I was pleasantly surprised by this non-oily (although a bit dry), version with bacon, fishcake, cabbage and egg. I won't bother with a "recipe" here, since it was cooked based on estimation!


Whilst on the topic of food, check out these garlic prawns I made for salad lunch tomorrow. They smell great hot, but alas, packing lunch to office means having to chill the food or reheat in the morning, and I think these prawns might shrink to inedible sizes in the microwave. :P

Why do we always make the same mistakes?

Why is it that we humans sometimes keep making the same mistakes?

A friend of mine insists her recent breakup was due to her high demands of attention and affection, and it's something that she has been grappling with for some time. She knows that this is something she has to work on to ensure smoother relationships in future but nevertheless, she falls into the same pattern every time.

Another friend asks why she always falls for the "bad boys" when she knows they won't work out, and then she dates the "good guys" only to end up feeling frustrated because they aren't up to "par" with her standards.

As for me, why do I cook things that Kimmy obviously doesn't like to eat. Why do I resort to hysterics whenever we have an argument instead of speaking calmly like a sane person. And why do I always throw away the bread packaging when there's obviously a freebie promotion that I know of?

A google on the question above brought up an interesting page from wikihow.com. (I never knew there was a wiki to how-tos) Here's an excerpt on how to avoid repeating mistakes:

1. Make sure that the mistakes you are making are all that bad in the first place. It might be that you just think poorly of yourself.
2. Write it down. Physically making a note of things and leaving it where you can see it will make a difference. It is like making a contract with yourself.
3. Find a replacement. When you feel like you are about to do something stupid find something else to do instead.
4. Think things out. Always think "why am I doing this?", or "what is my purpose?".
5. Come to acceptance. Some people will just never change and you might be one of them. Sorry about your luck.
6. YOU CAN ALWAYS CHANGE!!!
7. "SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO LET GO OF WHO YOU WERE TO BECOME WHO YOU WILL BE"

Read full article here.

Perhaps it's in our DNA to fail, fail and fail again, or that God created us so weak so that we can rely on Him. In any case, if you are one who suffers from this syndrome as well, the best thing to do is probably to post stickies everywhere around you to remind yourself to not make the same mistakes again. I think I should start now, with one that reminds me not to go to bed so late and end up not being able to wake up early for a jog. :\

I love my fried ebi!

Kawaii! My colleague got me an ebi fry a few days ago. Non-edible, it's fluffy, furry and useful. It's currently used as a wrist rest for the mouse in office, and can also be used as a monitor cleaner, but I think I'd skip that so it won't get grey and become a chao-ta (charred) prawn.

Cheeky Chocolates

I finally made it down to Cheeky Chocolates, a whole year after my cousin opened his first outlet at Thomson. Because that was a little out of way, I was pleased that he expanded his stores to one at the new Illuma mall, on the 4th level.


Great location, I thought, when I first saw the shop. I brought boss Aaron a card too, handmade by yours truly. I then proceeded to indulge in some decadent desserts with Kimmy, my bro and his girlfriend. In my haste and hunger, I didn't get a photo of the chocolate waffles I was eating. :( But here are some shots of the caramalised banana waffles and chocolate pralines.


Caramalised banana crepes were really worth its value at $8.90. Delish~


Chocolates (from front to back) - lemon, passionfruit, hazelnut and mint. I really like the passionfruit one, it's unique.

Cheeky Chocolates
Illuma 4th floor
Bugis area, Victoria Street

Grapefruit Smoothie

I am embarrassed to say that I am such a "suaku" (local speak for country bumpkin or ill-informed) that I did not know ruby (or pink) grapefruits are delightfully red on the inside whilst being bright yellow on the outside. I found that out today when I made a grapefruit and celery smoothie. It wasn't as sweet as pineapples or oranges, but its wonderful fresh tangy taste, filled with the goodness of Vitamin C, was refreshing and enjoyable.

Enjoy pink grapefruits now whilst it's in season! =)

Bakerzin: a less than satisfactory experience

I thought I was going to have a good time last Tuesday night. Alas, bad service left a bitter aftertaste in my mouth. Not literally, since I still had fairly delicious tiramisu and chocolate cake.

I haven't been to Bakerzin for at least a year. Being a Lee Hwa privilege card holder, I was given a free warm chocolate cake for my birthday. So Kimmy and I trotted down to the United Square outlet for dessert.

We arrived at about 8pm and after some ten minutes of trying to get a server's attention, we made our order for a slice of cake, a drink and the free chocolate cake. The outlet was not crowded, with a smattering of couples and families. There was ample staff but all seemed to be very busy walking up and down. Nobody actually sat us down at a table, nobody handed us the menu, instead I had to find a seat myself and grab the menu off the rack. Also, I must mention that the long sofa seats had crumbs and the floor was in fact, a little dirty.

After 5mins, the waiter brought over my Lee Hwa voucher and requested I write my name and IC number on the back of it. It took some effort on his part to search for a marker that could write on laminated card. However, even as my tiramisu and drink were served rather quickly, my warm chocolate cake was nowhere in sight in the next 20mins.

At around 835pm, i noticed a warm chocolate cake on its way out of the kitchen and it headed straight to an adjacent table. Eh? I was surprised it would take so long for a simple dish, I'm sure the cakes were all done and just needed to be heated up in a microwave or oven and then plated nicely. I asked a waitress named Serene to check on my order.

Off she went, hollering loudly about the warm chocolate cake for table xx, whether it was ready or not. It felt a bit hawker centre style. Needless to say I overhead the staff saying that my order was missed and there wasn't anymore warm chocolate cake orders in the kitchen. I gathered most of my info from there, because dear Serene did not come back to me to tell me what happened. I guess she presumed I overheard her talking loudly.

I had to wait another 20mins after that and I "bugged" the wait staff 3 times for them to hurry. Kimmy was suitably pissed and so was I. We thought it would be a fun and quick dessert stop before heading home, but it took an hour.

I will not be visiting Bakerzin anytime soon, especially the United Square outlet.