will i am's delayed diary

On the second day of CNY, we made a trip to Perak to visit relatives. Supposed to start our journey bright and early, but we were delayed by an hour because mum overslept! A very rare occurrence. In usual cases, she would be so worked up over the trip that she would hardly get any sleep. The whole night long she would be going up and down, packing this and that. Our first stop was at my maternal uncle's place in Pekan Baru, Teluk Intan. Had my breakfast there of yummy Anson CCF. And as luck would have it, my maternal cousin from Bagan Sungai Burung came in an Estima filled to the brim with my boisterous nephews and nieces. Definitely livened things up. My aunt prepared lunch, and we ate before leaving to visit my mum's younger sister. I don't remember ever going to her house. By that time, the heat was so unforgiving that we nearly melted. The third house we in our list was my dad's sister-in-law. Whenever we visit her, it's usually in the morning, but this

Bright and early on the first day of the Lunar New Year, I put on my new red Private Structure briefs, red gingham shirt, and a pair of black slacks. Went downstairs to greet my mum and brother with Chinese New Year greetings, and got first few packets of ang pao . We got to church a bit earlier than usual to help out. Mum was with the liturgy group preparing for the Rite of Commemoration of Ancestors, while I was with the hospitality group, getting ready for the distribution of mandarin oranges. The turnout was huge too, so we added many chairs outside of the church. With the cooperation and coordination of all the ministries, the mass went smoothly, and it ended with a lion dance at the entrance of the church. We went looking for lunch at Midvalley Megamall because most of its shops are usually open, even on the first day of Chinese New Year. As it was already late, and we just chose the first restaurant that looked decent-- Enoshima , along the boulevard. Not expensive

The Year of the Dog in 2018 was celebrated with much feasting as tradition dictates. And to feast, one must make preparations. Since the morning of the eve Chinese New Year, mum, Bro, and I were out of the house sourcing for the freshest ingredients. Mum showed me a picture of a cute dog-themed lou sang that she received via What's App, so we decided to recreate that for reunion dinner. Drew up a list of ingredients and went shopping at AEON Taman Equine. Got all we wanted, and then proceeded to the nearby Fun and Cheer to complete our CNY decorations. Dog-themed stuff were already going for 50% off. Back home, mum started on the cooking, and I figured out how to assemble the lou sang . As usual, we had 3 dishes per person: Snoopy Lou Sang Stewed sea cucumber with shiitake mushrooms, pig tendon, and pig stomach Pak cham kai Fried Threadfin Salad Pan-fried prawns Steamed pomfret Stir-fried garlic chives Lotus root soup Just a little bite from every dish would

At the last minute, mum and I went hunting for CNY flowers near OUG. The weather was absurdly hot, making the visit to the flower nursery a real enjoyable one. I had no qualms getting out of the car with my hoodie on. For the benefit of the CNY shoppers, the nursery 'augmented the assets' of the plants to ensure a maximum 'prosperity attraction' index. Baby pineapples with gold wrapping; bamboo pyramids topped with choi san ; flower pots with all sorts of lucky charm embellishments... You get the picture. Although there were a whole lot of varieties there, we left with the classic chrysanthemums. That short trip for flowers nearly melted the scalp off our heads. so mum suggested that we go for some cendol . Found a decent food truck under a tree, and we got our hit of ice shavings in syrupy santan soup. Couldn't resist ordering a plate of rojak as well. Ah, bliss.

The 9th day of CNY was packed day for me. Started off with Sunday mass, followed by a lunch gathering at my ex-director's home. This year, his wife made nasi lemak with mutton curry. Interestingly, the coconut milk in the recipe was replaced with organic coconut oil. Tasted the same to me. Amazing. As usual, there was plenty of whisky to go around, but my throat was a little scratchy, so I just stuck to beer and cider. Didn't stay long at the party. As I drove out of Taman Esplanad, I called KH on a whim. Luckily for me, he was free to meet up, so I swung over to his place. We went to yumcha at Take Eat Easy Modern Bakery and Cafe , Pearl Shopping Gallery. The place has a cool interior with lots of wooden ribs, and comfortable armchairs. Each table lining the side has its own lamp and power sockets, expecting customers to 'camp in'. One can get a cup of coffee there and share a thick toast with ice cream without breaking the bank. That wasn't the end

Recently heard that one of my Form 6 classmates had moved back to KL from Singapore. She had been working there for a decade. It had been years since I met her, so together with Peng ( another Form Six classmate ) we planned a CNY get together. We met up at Peng's condo in Bukit Jalil. The security was more stringent than usual. Visitors register at the gate AND at the lift lobby. But that does not gain you access. The host must personally bring the guests up. Leceh . Anyway, the gathering didn't materialize as planned. The friend that we were supposed to meet had to cancel because her mother-in-law was suddenly warded for pneumonia. Whatever the case, we got to catch up with Peng. Basically had our lunch there munching on the biscuits and snacks. In the evening, had a movie and dinner date with The Tribe. Customary to watch a crappy CNY production. This year we chose "The Fortune Handbook" , a horrible export from Singapore starring Mark Lee and Christopher Lee

The end of the long CNY weekend was Federal Territories Day. Celebrated the occasion by going shopping at the Gardens Mall. Once again, the mall's decoration wow-ed us. The whole length of the mall was dotted with classy displays of oriental design. Different areas had a different dominant colour which made it necessary to take photos at all the spots! SK bought a backpack at Robinsons so we conveniently put our shopping items in there. The durability of the backpack was truly amazing because it didn't even survive the short journey from the Gardens Mall to Midvalley Megamall. One strap just came off. How cool is that? Promptly got a replacement from the department store. We lunched at An Viet , a new addition to the Gardens Mall. When ordering noodles there, one can choose a bigger portion at no extra cost. I preferred the Pho Ga over the Pho Bo. The Bun Cha was also good with fragrant grilled mini pork patties. In the evening, Khatijah called for a BFF  lou sang di

By the third day of CNY, The Tribe would be back from my BIL's hometown of Melaka. First stop would be at my house to pai nien . All of us had breakfast together-- a mix of wantan noodles, nasi lemak , and keropok lekor . Usually, mum would cook lunch but this year, Apollo's mum invited us over for lunch. She prepared roast chicken, braised chicken feet with sea cucumber, fish maw soup, stir-fried vegetables, soy sauce tofu, and sweet and sour fish. Mum supplemented with curry chicken. Apollo grew mushrooms for three days at home, so he was thrilled when we said, "Let's go for coffee!". Unfortunately, it took us a while to find a place that was open. Gave Coffee Smith a try, a cafe from Taiwan. The interior was a mix of different textures-- wood, zinc, brick, and chipboard. And most of the furniture was mismatched. Guess they couldn't make up their minds. We sat at the large timber table near the entrance, and the automatic door kept opening at the sli