will i am's delayed diary

Once again, mum and I attended the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers' Hari Raya Open House at Sri Perdana. I had no wish to use the park 'n ride facilities, so I put my kiasu mode on and drove there early in the morning. Managed to secure parking at a field close to the entrance. But then, we had two hours to kills before they let people in, and the sun was climbing steadily. Luckily there was a food truck outside serving ice-cold Milo. At 10 AM, all hell broke loose. The earlier queues disintegrated. There was one geilou behind me who kept bitching that Malaysians had no manners and didn't know how to line up, but ironically he ended up far in front of me. What a hypocrite. The bottleneck was the security check. All water bottles, umbrellas, pens ( yes, pens ), knives, and other restricted items were to be left outside. Once we cleared security, it was smooth sailing. Compared to last year, it was much easier to get a place to sit, and there was no m

In a break from routine, mum and I had Sunday lunch at Damansara Kim. Wanted to let her try the 'homecooked' Penang food at Restoran Ho Li Chow . We had quite a feast with asam laksa ( recommended ), bihun Siam, and ABC. I was most disappointed with the bihun Siam because of the lackluster taste and lack of lauk . The ABC contained nutmeg shavings which I'm not a fan of, but it didn't kill it for me. Made a detour to Taman Bukit Indah for the opening of Sunday Coffee and Desserts . The whole place was packed with customers who were mostly family and friends of the owners. Simple interior, mostly concrete with wooden and rattan furniture. Can't seat many though. The flat white was to my liking, and I could accept their carrot cake, although I usually shun it. Also tried the caramel custard which is also well-executed, but I'm not really a fan. I was told that their bread and sandwiches are the stars, so I will try those the next time I come. Parking is

The morning market was abuzz with bakzhangs. The number of bakzhang stalls seems to have sky-rocketed this year. All sorts were on sale~ the usual Hokkien variety, the albino Cantonese variety, the pillow type, and the crystal-like kee zhang . Marketing aside, I also had some chores to run for the Airbnb. An idiot guest had broken the key for the front door, and it's now stuck in the lock. Talked to the St. Guchi customer support representative on FB Messenger, and they advised me on how to fix it. Initially I thought that I had to replace the whole lock set, but I was relieved when I found out that I only needed to replace one of the three components. I gave KH the specifications for the thumbturn and key cylinder profile, and he bought it from the hardware shop that St. Guchi suggested. Things didn't go smoothly. The replacement part actually didn't fit. The 60 mm was too short! I did some comparison and found that it was suited for the room doors, not the

Spring Single Mothers Society organized a special event for children to show appreciation to their mothers in a tea ceremony. I volunteered as crew and photographer, but also registered to participate in the ceremony. Prep work at the Sri Petaling Community Centre involved arranging tables and chairs, syringing up banners and buntings, moving in a whole carload of goody bags, and some general decorating. The goody bags were heavy as they contained groceries like cooking oil, Nestum, flour, and sugar. Right after registration, the event kicked-off with a lunch buffet which pretty decent. Then it was time for the tea ceremony. The emcees outlined the sequence which was easy to follow, plus we had plenty of crew to guide the proceedings. Each batch of mothers would sit on a row of chairs on stage. The children would be kneeling in front of their mothers, and start by cleaning their mother's hands with wet wipes. Next, the children poured a cup of hot tea for their mothers. The c

It was a Saturday afternoon, and Simonlover jio-ed KH and I to meet up with JJ and Bunny at The Bons Cafe , just outside Atria. I parked my car in the mall and walked out. Couldn't find the place, but found an empty post office instead. Took the chance to renew my driving license. Hehe. Unfortunately, the ugly and puffy face from my new identity card has now been transferred to my new driving license. KH and I were the latest to arrive. The early birds had already started eating. I ordered the pasta lemak, basically nasi lemak with the rice replaced by spaghetti. Having said that, the spaghetti ain't cooked in coconut milk. In my opinion, it just didn't jive. The cafe is cosy, with cute-sy decorations. And the owners are also very friendly. A good selection of cakes here. Got SimonLover a slice to celebrate his belated birthday. Attended sunset mass with mum, then drove all the way to Bandar Saujana to join SK's ex-colleague's birthday party. Years ago, we

The circular pendarfluor light at my living room has started blinking, so I went hunting for a replacement. Little did I know that I was going to be a wild goose chase. Giant didnt have stock. Not on the shelves of AEON either. Turned up empty at two branches of Mr DIY. No luck at Mr Hammer too. Went to a light fixture shop at Equine and they shook their head as well. Conclusion, it's obsolete technology. A quick search at Lazada gave me the answer. Online sellers carried what I wanted, but I saw something more interesting~ LED replacement. The idea is to fit a LED board over the original fixture and fasten the thing using magnets onto the base plate. Sounds easy right? I was sold. I put in my order and waited patently for my package to arrive from China. In preparation, I removed the circular light and ballast. And when it came to mounting the LED board... well it just wouldn't fit because there's a big ass bunch of wires coming out in the middle. Everything woul

After months of being bed-ridden due to a stroke, my uncle ( mum's eldest sister's husband ) passed away at his home at Bagan Sungai Burung. Heard that it was due to an infection from a bed sore. Quite a shocker. When we got the news from my cousin, we immediately arranged for a trip to the fishing village. The Tribe went along too. Thanks to my Airbnb Superhost perks, I booked free lodging at Sungai Besar. The place was spacious and could fit 10 adults. When we arrived at the wake, the Taoist rituals were already ongoing. While waiting for the intermission, we ate dinner at the wake. In line with the kampung style, much food was prepared for guests. Right after dinner, hot fish porridge and fried bihun with curry chicken was served, together with steamed bao, kuih, loh mai gai , and siew bao . Many ate and chatted, while some had a boisterous gambling session with dominoes. The rituals were performed in Teochew, and I was surprised to see that they had a LED board