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Showing posts from July, 2020

Bao Down

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The MCO had revealed that frozen bao and dim sum are staple favourites among the Malaysian Chinese community. Factories went into overdrive, and every Tom, Dick, and Harry seemed to be selling frozen char siew bao , sang yuk bao , and siew mai on social media. Wouldn't be surprised if one of your neighbour's was a distributor. Can't deny it's popularity because it's delicious, easy to keep, and easy to prepare. Just stick it in a steamer and you have a hot meal. Great for breakfast or tea time.  Was  bao  and  dim sum part of your MCO diet? 

We Are The Easter People

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For the first time, the Easter Triduum was observed away from Mother Church. The clergy had started jumping into the deep end, leaning about the challenges of live streaming over social media platforms. Some embraced technology pretty well, and emerged as mini online influencers . Stations of the Cross was broadcast live from my church compound using Facebook Live. And through YouTube Live we participated in the Maundy Thursday Mass, Good Friday Liturgy, Easter Vigil Mass, and Easter Sunday Mass. Usually, the Holy Week would be such a busy time as it involves much preparation and involvement from multiple ministries, but the Covid-19 pandemic had turned things on its head, giving a chance for everyone to take a step back and reflect.  "Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song." -- St. Pope John Paul II

Pandemic Pants

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The MCO triggered a huge surge in e-commerce. Those who never bought things online were suddenly forced to embrace the new trend. For me, I somehow found myself a little too click-happy. There were many MCO promotions and I was sucked into it. Well, of course I am talking about underwear shopping ( but not to say I didn't buy some misc. household stuff )! Blame Private Structure for their price slashes. On top of that, I also bought stuff from Shopee, and I must say that I went a little crazy. Here's what I got : Private Structure : Jammers x 1 Jockstrap x 1 Hipster brief x 1 Knee-length Tights x 1 Boxer briefs x 1 Split boxers x 1 Total = 6 pieces. Shopee : Boxer shorts x 2 Lounge shorts x 3 Fundoshi x 2 Long Tights x 1 Total = 8 pieces. Promenstore : Sento briefs x 1 Total = 1 piece. Did I overdo it with 15 pairs? Is sexy underwear a way to cope with being cooped up at home? Now, where to put all this ...

MCO Makan-Makan

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With the Movement Control Order enforced, one can't go out searching for good food, but it does't mean that good food can't come to us. SK found a Malay caterer from Shah Alam who was willing to deliver to our area. However, the delivery charges cost nearly as much as the food. Even so, it was worth it. Good nasi dagang , and sambal sotong , but the I can't the say the same about the nasi kerabu . SK also managed to get a slice of burnt cheesecake from the famous Say Cheese Cafe at Jalil Link. But can you imagine how difficult it is to fully enjoy something so rich after a heavy meal of Malay carbs? And for dinner, it was the continuation of the theme... Sis made nasi lemak with with Hainanese steamed chicken roll. Quite a combination, huh? Talk about a caloric surplus!

Aging UA

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This pair of Under Armour meggings was supposed to be delivered on the 18th of March. Right at the start of the MCO. The delivery guy gave me a call and asked whether it was possible for them to deliver. The delivery address was my office, so it was a big NO. My package ended up sitting at their distribution office for nearly a month. The backlog must have been immense when they finally called me for a delivery redirection. Quite a nice pair of meggings right? Do I look like someone who needs such fitness gear? Hehe.

Sewing Surgical

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   Covid-19 created a surgical mask obsession among the general public. Supply was scarce and the price was obscene. MYR80 was considered cheap. During the haze period, I remember buying a box for just RM7. All that drama inspired mum to start sewing face masks. But first, had to fix the leather treadle belt for her old Singer foot-operated sewing machine. So easy to source for spare parts online. Much easier and cheaper than the brick and mortar shops. Once she got it working again, she started digging out her hoard of cloth remnants from her long career as a seamstress. Mum's cloth masks were double-sided, and featured a lining at both ends. Its designed to be used with a surgical mask, where its inserted into a slit at the side. Talk about making a fashion statement in this pandemic. Most people like her batik and floral variations.    Keep safe, and keep sewing! 

Pandemic Palm Sunday

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For the first time ever, we celebrated Palm Sunday from our living room. Thankfully, we could harvest palm branches from the garden, and use them during the YouTube live Palm Sunday mass. The only thing was that palms couldn't be blessed, unless holy water could magically be sprayed out of the TV! Haha.  Later in the afternoon, mum did some spring cleaning. She pulled out a cloth baby carrier that was given to her when she gave birth to my eldest brother. A tradition from my maternal grandfather's side of the family tree. Mum told me that she never used it.  Also found some crochet pieces that were wedding gifts from my paternal grandmother. Forty nine years later and the thread is still in good condition. Decided to drape the crochet table cloth on the sofa, giving it a vintage feel. P.S. : The teddy bear is wearing something that belonged to me. 

Go Gynae

Eighteen days into the MCO, mum suddenly remembered about her quarterly gynaecology follow-up at Bandar Puteri Puchong. I quickly called up the clinic, and they sent me a doctor's letter via What's App. And luckily, her appointment card was scribbled with the exact date-- the 4th of April. During those early stages, police roadblocks were all over the place, and vehicles should not have passengers. But we had a good justification when we were stopped below the BK5 LRT station. The policeman gave my What's App letter a cursory glance, but decided to scrutinize the appointment card instead. He waved us through a couple of minutes later. At the clinic, it was business as usual, just that the nurses wore face shields over surgical masks. You Noodles House which was our usual breakfast spot every time we visited the area was not open. Anyway, it was a little exciting to be able to get out of the house, although it was just to visit the doctor's office. 

Network Cooking

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Many hidden cooks and bakers were born during the MCO period. Eating out had been removed from the equation, so people had begun to re-enter the kitchen, willingly or unwillingly. From BIL's Unit Tindak Kinrara (UTK) network, we often had home-cooked goodies on a daily basis. Someone would could bakzhang on Saturday, and it would be distributed to the other households. On the next day, it might be dongpo meat, charsiew , chiffon cake, or egg tarts. People would take turns showing off their culinary skills. Mum had contributed deep-friend niangao , while BIL whipped up his mother's chicken rice recipe. It was really fun getting a surprise dish nearly every day. 

Shielding Each Other

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During the MCO, my sister and BIL's  factory was closed down. Both of them were camped at home. Although they couldn't run their usual production line, it didn't mean that their hands were idle. Through my BIL's contacts in Unit Tindak Kinrara (UTK), he volunteered to produce face shields for Hospital Serdang. The government hospital was desperate for supplies because supply from overseas was disrupted and their stock was running low. The face shield was easy to assemble. All that was needed was clear plastic sheets, strips of foam, glue, and elastic bands. Even my mother joined in when she wasn't busy cooking. Unfortunately, I was too pre-occupied with work. In just a week, they churned out a couple thousand face shields. 

Pasar Pagi Pandemic

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On the first Saturday after the MCO was declared, mum and I risked a quick visit to the OUG morning market to restock. Cars and crowds were absent from the usually boisterous market. Parking was easy to find. We gave each other wide berth and turned our faces. Like playing a childhood game. All of the open air stalls were not operating. The Marketplace OUG was open, as well as some of the shop lots. Once we saw the crowding at the entrance, we shook our heads and left. Not gonna risk it. Went to tapau breakfast at one of the less popular adjacent roads, then left. So what did I do on the first weekend of the MCO? My taxes. Zzz.

William Works From Home

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On the 16th of June, Muhyiddin Y. declared that Malaysia would undergo a Movement Control Order (MCO) starting on the 18th of June March. The purpose of the partial lock down was to flatten the Covid-19 infection curve. In response to that, my company directed that all staff would be working from home. Hardly a few days before, my office in Petaling Jaya had scheduled a round of disinfection because a colleague was related to a someone in the Patient 26 cluster. Later it was revealed that no local transmission took place. Working from home quite refreshing experience. Things were pretty normal for me because my development source code is on AWS CodeCommit anyway, and we use Microsoft Teams to collaborate. Everything was online. Could sleep more, have a leisurely breakfast, and then start work in skimpy lounge shorts. The second half or the day would be spent at my sister's place because that's where mum cooks lunch and dinner. During the early stages, people went into a cookin

Pre-MCO Binge

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  Before the Tabligh Covid-19 cluster exploded into the media in March, not many people knew what Tabligh was about. For years, I had been seen their members take the LRT to Bukit Jalil station, but I never knew what group they belonged to. Often see in long white robes and turbans, the members were mostly from out of town judging from the bags they carried. When the news came out, mum was actually curious about Masjid Jamek Sri Petaling, the headquarters of the Malaysian Tabligh chapter. From Kuchai Avenue, we drove to Bandar Baru Sri Petaling to take a look ( after my last haircut before the commencement of the MCO ). The usually busy Jalan Radin was actually quiet, and no cars were parked along it. When we turned into the commercial area, the roads were also abnormally clear. We actually parked to go buy egg tarts at Tong Kee . After we had done our shopping, we spotted a Tabligh member heading in our general direction.  Jumped into the car as fast as we could. Haha.  Also had the