will i am's delayed diary

SimonLover jio-ed me to have dinner with him and TummyFull at Puchong Yong Tau Fu . No problem for me as I was clearing my leave. TummyFull and I actually went to the wrong YTF shop. Luckily we waited for SimonLover's confirmation before getting a table. Over the years, the YTF there had shrunk a bit and the price increased. Most obvious was the fried fu zuk . It used to be huge. Now it looks very modest. Took us some time to find a nearby cafe to go to after dinner. The only decent option was Mancave Cafe and Collectibles . In Europe, that name would probably be for a sex shop with dark rooms at the back. Sounds so wrong. The cafe has a whole lot of high quality figurines of comic book heroes. After we ordered our coffee, SimonLover spoiled us with a tin of Jenny's butter cookies from Hong Kong. He always shares the good stuff! I tried their Honolulu cake, but it really sucked. Cheesecake meets pineapple tart. A fail. P.S. : SimonLover gave my camo underwear ...

Recently I've taken a liking to getting stuff in camo. Even Simonlover et al helps me keep an eye out. Will post the progress of my collection here. Here's to more shopping!

Christmas eve Mandarin cantata. Baby Jesus preparing to make His big entrance into the church's nativity scene. Thai food at Pim's and the RAMA after mass. Yummy grilled pork neck with Kronenbourg Blanc. This year's stash of Christmas presents. Unopened, awaiting the return of the Monsters. Korean lunch after Christmas mass. Been a long time since we visited Restoran Seoul Korea . Still as good. Beef ribs soup. I prefer spicy tofu soup. Grilled pork shoulder. Order two mains to maximize the variety of banchan ! A hot, hot Christmas.... ice cream to the rescue! Tutti-Frutti ice cream with bananas, popcorn, and strawberries.

When I heard that the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall was having a Winter Solstice event, I just expected that several of their participating member associations would set up some decorated stalls, and there would be tang yuan to sample. When I arrived there ( lugging pots, pans, tang yuan, sweet ginger soup, decorative knick-knacks, bowls, and plates ), I was shocked to find the main hall conquered droves of school children. Turns out that the major event for the day was "Zhang Yuan : 19th Assessment of Classics Recitation". Zhang yuan translates to scholar, and the event mirrors the public examinations of ancient China. They even had a giant banner of Confucious up on stage. Some very young kids were also taking part. They clung to their mothers, and they would whisper recitations of Chinese classics into the ears of examiners ( recognizable from their bright vests ). A voting was supposed to take place for the best decorated stall and most delicious ...

On Winter Solstice, some stalls sold the the colourful glutinous rice dough required to make tang yuan . Sold by weight, mum says that its pretty profitable because its mostly water weight. That day we ventured to Taman Desa for a fish head noodles breakfast at Woo Pin . Still love their fragrant and moist fried fish head, but the price is getting higher and higher. Lunch was just Marks and Spencers Rich Tea biscuits with a cup of hot Chek Hup coffee. Did some shopping at SuperSave and it was funny to see that Santa Claus and Frost the Snowman were already feeling the heat from the Year of the Pig although Christmas wasn't even over yet. We had our second lunch at Restoran Joylnn, Taman Damai Utama~ wat tan hor with kopi c ping . Really difficult to predict whether my mother is hungry or not at times. Our Winter Solstice dinner was at Banh Mi Cafe , Puchong Jaya with my sister and the Monsters. At night, we started making tang yuan for the Winter Solstice event at K...

School was set to reopen in a couple of weeks, so the Malaysian  Spring Single Mothers' Society organized a Back To School event for their members and needy families from PPR Muhibbah. Arrived at the community hall in Kuchai Lama early to help set up. I was also the official photographer. Lunch was served, and a little later there was a ceremony to give out school supplies. The kids received uniforms, school bags, school shoes, water bottles, and stationery. Some monetary gifts were also distributed to kids with good academic performance.

On the third Saturday on December 2018, the Young KL Singers put on a performance entitled "Sing Noel!", a mixture of seasonal jingles and carols in several languages. Mum and I, with the Monsters in tow attended the event at the Wicked Pancake Parlour after sunset mass. KH was there ahead of us to collect tickets and pre-order dinner at Ben's General Food Store . After shoveling down the food ( no problem since the kids really like the Meat Lover's pizza there ), we rushed to the venue to grab some seats. Truly a good mix of vocals, but the content selection was pretty uncommon, so its not easy to relate. Not your usual caroling. Not sure if the Monsters knew how to appreciate it, but at least they sat still and paid attention. Good job Janvier and SimonSays! When the performance was over, we headed down to Yellow Brick Road for a supper of pancakes. Little Monster adored the Chocoholic's Anonymous~ two chocolate pancakes were layered with Nutella sauce,...

Ever since the church gotong-royong fiasco several years back, I shunned the activity for fear of a repeat. This year, due to lack of response from the other members of my BEC (quiter than a grave when looking for volunteers), I registered. Mum didn't join as she had her hands full with the monsters. At 7:30 AM, we were treated to a simple breakfast of nasi lemak bungkus and hot beverages. An elderly man in front of me took a sip of the tea and declared, "longkang water". Lol. With a pail and a rag in hand, we started work. Work was segregated by ministries. My group was tasked with cleaning the many wall fans situated in and around the church. Once that was done, we moved on to cleaning chairs, and de-mossing the drains. Towards the end, we cleaned the adhesive stains from the front steps. We were so lacking of the proper tools that we went out to buy Clorox and Jiff, or those that lived nearby just went home to get it. Finished up everything slightly after noon. Cle...

Every year during Christmas time, Nu Skin in collaboration with Institut Jantung Negara (IJN) organizes the Nu Skin Wish List Project where needy kids with congenital heart defects are given Christmas presents by Nu Skin distributors and supporters. Bicycles were the most sought after items in the 500 plus wishes fulfilled. The partnership had lasted for a decade and would hopefully continue for many more. Most importantly, Nu Skin distributors continue to be a force for good and donate 1% of their commissions towards the South East Asia Children's Heart Fund . To date, more than 10,000 life-saving surgeries had been performed. After the gift presentation ceremony, we were allowed to visit the wards in small batches. Managed to meet a couple of kids  who were recuperating after their surgery. One mother described that her child had improving levels of blood oxygen, and that her son couldn't wait to get back to school. Meaningful to be able to meet the actual people w...