will i am's delayed diary

Every year, the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall's Women's Division would either organize a cultural event for the Winter Solstice or the Lunar New Year. The Winter Solstice event didn't happen, so they organized the 11th "Love the Lunar New Year and Reunion" Cultural Carnival  instead. As usual, my mum's society was invited to take part. We had a stall to decorate and a themed dish to prepare. Our chosen dish was a lotus seed and lily bulb tong sui . As with all the other participants, we also made enough for a public tasting. In addition to all the member Chinese associations, several other regulars were also there, namely MySkills Foundation ( representing the Indians ), Malaysian Chinese Muslim Association (MACMA), and IKRAM ( representing the Malays ). Other than food, other important cultural aspects were highlighted, like dance, percussion, Chinese calligraphy, lantern riddles, Chinese paper cutting, origami, flower arrangement, and a d...

Thought about doing a follow up post about  CNY at the morning market , but I decided otherwise when I found this shot of Peachy Patrick . Once in a while he helps out his parents selling biscuits and various snacks. I'm naturally attracted to his arms, but on that day, I noticed that he has quite a cake too! Pretty peachy.

Over the years, I had made several friends on Instagram. Many of them from different countries. Guru B is one of them. He works for a university in Kentucky and shares a lot about his daily life. Reading is very much part of his work, and he takes long walks in his neighbourhood. Often, he would also showcase his beautiful garden and its pretty blooms. In 2019, he asked for my mailing address, and I received two things in the mail. The first was a Christmas card with a handwritten letter, and photos from his past trip to South East Asia. The second was a parcel that contained a Christmas present! A surprise Jack Adams thong all the way from the other side of the world. Thank you for the very first pair of Jack Adams in my collection.

This is Bob, my neighbour's cat. As you can see, he is belled, with a cute polka-dot bow around his neck. For reasons only a feline can appreciate, Bob loves to 'infiltrate' my house. Not like I feed him. Not like I encourage him. When nobody's looking, he would slip in through the front door, and sneak upstairs. But he is usually discovered due to the tinkling of his bell. The moment I confront him, he runs helter-skelter, in and out of rooms. Takes some time, but he eventually figures out how to get out of my house. These days, I never leave the front door open if nobody's sitting at the living room. Even if we were in the living room, Bob would try his luck. LOL. How does one solve a problem like Bob?

Are you familiar with the Japanese term fukubukuro   or lucky bag? During the Japanese New Year, merchants offer a mystery bag filled with unknown contents that's supposed be at a huge discount. Nowadays, the bags are usually not so mysterious anymore. The contents are published, or at least partially. In 2019, I decided to purchase the GX3 Lucky Bag ( Christmas edition ) which cost a little over JPY9,000. Two options were available - boxers or briefs. I went with the briefs because that collection came with a fundoshi ! The bag contained 10 pieces of briefs, with 5 pieces made known upfront. The remaining five would be a surprise. As I am not a regular customer of GX3, it took me some time to decide on the size ( discussed with Tater as he was interested too ). With most Japanese sizing, taking one size larger would be wise. A brown paper bag arrived from Japan in January. Inside was my ten pieces of sexy underwear, and some cool freebies. I really loved the big fleece blank...

A month before, received a wedding invitation from a cousin from my mother's side. My mother was amused that when he came, he didn't bother to call up whether we were home. When we picked up the invitation card from the letter box, mum was amused for a second time because she was addressed directly by her name. Rules, rules, rules. Anyway, the wedding was on a Sunday night, so we planned to go after church, and return on the night itself. SK tagged along. It was good to have another driver on such a journey. Before the long drive, we had lunch at Nyiru Cafe , the new name for Cafe Kesom. Food seemed similar. Nasi Kerabu was as good as I remembered it, but the Nasi Dagang sucks. We made good time, and arrived at Teluk Intan during tea time. Made a stop at Alex Tea House , a random choice. The exterior was made to look like an old village house, with the entrance flanked by a pair of mulberry trees. The interior was very dark, and every time the door opened, a slash of s...

The MCO has made me realize how much I miss going on my weekly morning market visits. This post about the CNY hustle and bustle at the OUG morning market will help tide me over for now. Every year, this lady would sell colourful longevity peaches for the altar. To keep things fresh, she would introduce some new variation as a sales gimmick. Nice to look at, but not for eating. Plants and flowers also sell very well during the CNY season. The Chinese would decorate their homes with plans and flowers to create a 'lively' atmosphere. Among the staples is the coiled bamboo stalks which are called "Guan Yin Bamboo". More elaborate varieties can be found at plant nurseries. These kids are selling Chinese calligraphy with auspicious words. Pretty skilled work if you ask me. Good strategy as well because its by donation and their cost is not high. Customers won't underpay them, and probably some generous people would overpay them a lot! A good way to earn some m...