will i am's delayed diary

In anticipation to our Bali pilgrimage tour, mum had to renew her international passport. Photo studios are now few and far in between. Found one in Happy Garden, just half a shop really, but the guy was good. The amount of photo editing he did was impressive. Stray hairs, asymmetrical face, earrings, deep wrinkles, all did not survive his Photoshop selection tool. That night we started a series of makan-makan to celebrate the May Babies-- mum and Little Monster. First it was House of Petai with its 'vomit beans' in every single dish, and its singing chef. Second was a shabu-shabu buffet at Wagyumore because Little Monster liked the spaghetti at the salad bar. Mind-blown. Third was Euro Deli  which was also right up Little Monster's alley. Let the kids try some lager, and they didn't like it!  

On the second day of Year of the Rabbit, we made a trip to Bagan Sungai Burung to visit my maternal cousins. Did the usual visiting at the fishing village. For the first time ever, my cousin brought us to the nearby beach. The mind-blowing thing was that it was just a stone's throw from the old house. Just a short walk. Guess we never went there because it isn't a particularly beautiful beach. The government fortified it with stones to stop erosion. According to my cousin, its popular for wedding photography among the Malay community. That beach is close to the estuary of the Bernam River, so once in a while there would be tourists waving to us on their boats. Being a fresh spot, we took quite a number of photos. Would have taken more if not for the sweltering sun.  With the touristy things out of the way, it was time for a hearty home style seafood hotpot. Anticipating our arrival, my cousin laid crab traps at two in the morning, and brought home loads of flower crabs when the...

2022's All Soul's Day trip happened on the 29th of October. In a departure from past years, we did not have breakfast at Lorong Maharani, but went to Kedai Kopi Ah Wah instead. Lorong Maharani has already declined to a state where there's not much to eat there anymore. But we still go there to buy Nasi Kunyit for dad. Also stopped by the wet market to get flowers.  Years of rain and shine had eroded the gold paint on dad's tombstone, so we had a touch up this year in addition to the regular grave sweeping, incensing, and prayer recitals. The weather was so hot during the end of October that we actually hid in a Starbucks for a couple of hours. Once we had cooled down, we headed to my maternal uncle's place. Big Monster was elated that my uncle had miku in stock. Lastly, we visited my paternal aunt, and by that time, the kids were already depleted. Before leaving Teluk Intan, BIL suggested that we make a stop at Glutton Square for the famous yutiao at Stall 52 ....

Early the next morning, Mei followed KH and I to Church of St. Henry ( St. Henry the Exuberant, Holy Roman Emperor ) for 9:00 AM mass. Her last visit to the Catholic church was during her godmother's funeral. Many years had passed in between. The architecture of the church is really quite unique, with a bell tower rising in the middle. Frankly, reminds me of a surau. The congregation was small and very friendly. Coincidentally, the parish priest was celebrating his 60th birthday, and we were invited to join in the fellowship. As we had plans to eat with Mei's parents, we politely declined. Breakfast was at Sin Tian Tee Food Court , but Mei also bought a packet from dry duck noodles from Restoran Ledang for us to try. Super spicy, and I don't have any recollection on the taste of the famous braised duck.   Our tour of Batu Pahat continued with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, a grand historical building in the middle of town. All white with beautiful balconies and balustrad...

Mum's pilgrimage buddies from East Malaysia planned a trip to Cameron Highlands, and she joined them. KH and I took the opportunity to go on a little road trip of our own. Batu Pahat was our choice I had never been there ( KH went there with some guy years ago ), and it was a great opportunity to visit Mei and MiniMei. Before leaving KL, we had breakfast at Cotta , Bukit Damansara. Perhaps you can guess that their specialty is ricotta cheese. The owner's morning energy was a little painful for me to watch, even with a long black in hand.   The drive to Batu Pahat was pretty smooth, but we were a bit spooked by a route that Google Maps chose for us-- a single lane road with palm oil trees all around. Our timing was pretty good because her class had just ended when we arrived at her doorstep. She gave us a short tour, and she drove us out to lunch at Kampung Segenting, a fishing village nearby. Parked outside, and walked in. The main attraction here is the Lover's Bridge, whi...

Lady Luck smiled on my brother when my neighbour ( the metal detector hobbyist ) passed me lemang and beef rendang on the second day of Hari Raya Puasa. When we split open the bamboo sheath, the fragrant aroma of creamy glutinous rice wafted out. Frankly, I think my brother enjoyed that more than the modern Italian dinner we had at A.zeta Kitchen to celebrate Mother's Day. Not to say the restaurant's mediocre, just that my brother is not lacking for choice of great Italian restaurants in Singapore. But lemang is a different case altogether. Beggars can't be choosy yo! 

The last I saw my brother was CNY 2020 before the borders were closed due to COVID-19. With the borders open, lots of annual, and an expired passport, he returned home. Good timing because it was my mother's birthday and it was Raya Puasa ( lemang season ). KH helped me organize a joint ( Little Monster's birthday as well ) birthday lunch at OUG Jade Restaurant . The minimum order for a private room was RM1,000 but it was worth it because the whole place was swamped with people celebrating mother's day. Although we were so full from lunch, and the non-halal Tiramisu birthday cake from Say Cheese Cafe , we still went to Mikaa Cafe for coffee. Very spacious, but the acoustics were horrid. Just one table of makcik bawang was enough to give us a headache. In the evening, we had a very light dinner at aboutyu , a new family-owned cafe in Happy Garden. Their mascot is a lizard named Tofu who 'greets' customers at the counter, together with no less than a hundred Bettas ...

As usual, Reunion 2.0 was organized at my place after The Tribe was back from BIL's hometown of Melaka. Both KH and SK were also invited to the lunch. Plenty of food to go around. Little Monster was in a foul mood because he was trying to mimic a hamster's sleep cycle. Angpau's all around and even Henry the hamster was not left out. And of course we went out hunting for a cafe ( we don't gamble, and not like we watch much TV anymore ) because the weather was to oppressive to stay in.  Torte by Linda proved to an excellent place to chill on a sweltering CNY afternoon. Amazing drinks at great prices. When it's CNY, go visit the Malay-owned joints, when its Raya, go look for the Chinese. Haha.  In the evening, we were out again. This time for some Hokkien Mee at Damansara Uptown Hokkien Noodles . Well, not like we were craving for it, just that there weren't many shops doing business during the holiday period. My nephews didn't like the choice, so they were sa...

The pandemic was still in full swing, so my brother was still stuck in Singapore. 2022's reunion dinner was just my mum and I. Even so, we had a table full of food. Mum downgraded the menu a littttleeeeee bit. On KH's end, he arranged dinner with some relatives at Copper Mansion. For some years now he had been hoping that we can join our reunion dinners, but my mother still prefers it to be a 'family' thing. A quiet affair, but we still enjoyed dinner and drinks. Even took a short video to share with the Tribe. A little later, KH came over to spend some time. Mum dug out the Monsters' old stash of firecrackers, and we got started on the King Cats, Small Bees, and Pop-Pops, I even set up a tripod for some light painting. Took some photos together, and KH chose one of the more lovey-dovey shots to send out as his WhatsApp CNY greeting. *sweat* 

Once inter-state travel was allowed, we made a trip to Teluk Intan on the weekend of All Soul's Day. KH hitched a ride but it was kind of a mistake because I miscalculated how many people could fit comfortably into my BIL's Serena. So it was kind of a squeeze for a couple of hours since my nephews are now the opposite of scrawny. Our routine is always to have breakfast at the food stalls at Lorong Maharani, and then hop over to the wet market for flowers. Sad that we couldn't find anyone selling Liew Kee CCF. This year, I had Little Monster recite the rosary at dad's grave. He nearly made it through the whole decade before he started to complain. Made a short stop at St. Anthony's Church too. The construction of the community center was finally completed. Before leaving Teluk Intan, we raided Sin Joo Heong for some heong peah and kaya puffs.   Our next destination was Ipoh. Stopped by at Asow Eatery Station for lunch. The cafe is actually located beside a large pla...

My father had only one elder brother. Perhaps if my grandfather didn't 'vanish' during the Japanese occupation, they would have had more siblings. While growing up, spending Chinese New Year with my cousins in Teluk Intan was a highlight of the year. Once a year, we would make the 8-hour journey from Kuantan ( no highway back then ). In the family, I was the youngest, so I would tag along my elder cousins for fun and games. Back then, it was a whole lot of fun with Moon Travelers, Thunder King, King Cat, and other fireworks. When indoors, it would be hide and seek, and perhaps a game of carom. Sometimes they would bring me a long for a bowl of lai fun or the famous chu cheong fun . Among my cousin brothers, the second eldest was called Starry. He was the most artistic of the lot, and eventually started his own business dealing with events and advertising with his wife. They had two beautiful daughters, but somewhere down the road, their marriage failed, and his business su...

Commercial Mother's Day was always marked with restaurants running at full capacity, flowers, cakes, and massage chairs. With no shopping and no dine-in, sales of flowers and cakes should still be decent. At OUG morning market, someone was selling bouquets by the roadside, but business was very slow.   My sister and BIL got my mum a combination-- flowers on a cake. A butter cake was topped with waxy paper. A thick layer of rose-lychee fresh cream was smoothed over it, providing a bed for an arrangement of carnations.  And since a fancy dinner was out of the question, SK came over and we had a yakiniku dinner at home. Fresh ingredients with simple seasonings. Hope you had a memorable Mother's Day too. 

The initial plan was to celebrate mum's 75th birthday, and Little Monster's 9th birthday at The Narra on the weekend. Those plans were scrapped with the announcement that MCO 3.0 would commence on the 6th of May. Made last minute plans to celebrate on Wednesday. And to avoid unnecessary work day traffic jams, we ate at Restoran MSL which is close by. Thankfully KH, SK, and Apollo could come. Apollo's mum had to give the dinner a miss because of babysitting duties. The restaurant was pretty quiet. Only three tables were occupied. We didn't order their signature crab dishes, but we did go for the out-of-the-ordinary cheese prawns. KH brought a gianduja chocolate cake which we finished at the restaurant.  Recently, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf asserted its presence in Bukit Jalil with a new branch at The Link 2. Its really a very rare sight because I am more used to seeing Starbucks. After dinner, we swung over there to have a few drinks. Nice place, but kind of noisy. The...

I cut my hair on the last day of February. The 17th day of the lunar calendar. Yes, I went through CNY with an unkempt bush! My hairstylist reminded me to come more often if I want to see him stay in business! Got it! In the evening, my sister organized a please-help-me-clear-the-glut-of-frozen-food-in-my-freezer party. Recruited SK, and KH, to help with the grill and the steamboat. In the end, there was still a lot left over. We weren't ravenous enough. Probably need a few more parties.

Malaysia was still in the tight grip of the pandemic, so the international borders were still closed. For the first time, my brother was not home for reunion dinner. He was stuck in Singapore, ordering take out for dinner with his flat-mates, Although my brother couldn't make it, we were joined by SK. The Tribe organized their own reunion hotpot dinner, and KH ate with his parents. Since last year. he had wanted us to have a joint reunion dinner. I didn't agree in 2020, and this year, the SOPs answered on my behalf. On the eve of the Chinese New Year, I was busy outside washing the cars, cleaning the carpets, and vacuuming the interiors, while mum was busy in the kitchen preparing dish after dish of yummy food. By the time I was done, I felt that the sun had nearly fried my brains.  Although there was only three of us, that never stopped mum from cooking up a feast. Here's what we had on the table: Pepper pig stomach soup Fried Threadfin Steamed Cod Pan-fried scallops and p...

Covid-19 really did throw a damper on Christmas. No joyful caroling. No Christmas Vigil mass where the Baby Jesus is placed into the manger. No Christmas morning mass. Be that as it may, we didn't forgo the Christmas tradition of opening gifts on Christmas morning. Still managed to pile the gifts high this year, and generate a whole lot of waste paper from the wrapping. Recycled and reclaimed whatever we could. Although we couldn't physically be at church, there were still online masses, and the church compiled a video of Christmas caroling and greetings, contributed by the various church ministries and groups.   The Tribe stayed on till lunch. Deciding on a lunch venue is never easy. Sis would look at me. And I would look back at her. But I suddenly remembered Super Ramen , a ramen restaurant in Sri Petaling that KH recently mentioned. When we arrived, they had no tables for us. No problem, we loitered at the nearby huge-ass Family Mart. Unlike the usual Family Marts, this br...

Every year during the pre-Covid days, the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Chamber of Commerce's  (KLSCAH) Women's Chapter would organize a cultural event during the Winter Solstice. This year, we didn't have to make pots and pots of tang yuan , and there was no need to join the competition for best stall decoration. Must admit that it was tiring, but it was fun. With all activities shelved, winter solstice becomes a family-only affair. On Sunday night, mum kneaded the glutinous rice flour. Did the original white and also some other varieties with added Clitoria flower extract, Screwpine leaf extract, and purple sweet potato. The steamed and mashed sweet potato results in a dough that's less chewy, and actually easier to eat. According to mum, it's better to roll up the tang yuan and let it sit overnight before boiling as the texture will be better. On Monday morning, she boiled the tang yuan ( once it floats, it means its ready to eat ), and put them in a sweet g...

SimonLover offered me a bunch of entrance tickets to Aquaria KLCC. He had bought the ticket from Klook in 2019 for his brother's family in Singapore, but they never got around to using it. With the ticket expiry looming, he offered me the tickets for free rather than letting go to waste. As part of the SOP, I had to register my visit on their website first to get a confirmation. I guess the logic is to avoid overcrowding. Having said that, they didn't check whether I had a confirmation before letting us in. Go figure. A tip for visitors : online tickets allow you to clear the gantry by scanning a QR code which is much quicker than the manual tickets. Truth be told, I don't there was much social distancing in Aquaria KLCC. The crew could control the crowd in the underwater tunnel, but at the other sections, it was pretty much a free for all. My last visit to the aquarium was in 2008 . Can't be sure, but I think the jellyfish lab is new.  Not sure about the other addition...