0 Of chopsticks and food

Yummier with chopsticks!

I've a love for eating with chopsticks. Not just any chopsticks though. I particularly like the ones made from wood.

Now, while I enjoy using chopsticks, I have never learned to hold it correctly. Boo.

There are times no matter how I twist and turn, the food just slips through. In the privacy of home, desperate measures calls for using the fork instead. In public, I try my best to avoid food that look too challenging to handle.

Other than that, I'm happy with using chopsticks for just about anything - Cinnabon rolls, doughnuts, Famous Amos cookies and even fruits, like the Durian.

The benefits? My hands are clean...but really, I find that food tastes better this way *cross my heart*

0 Feasting on Durians

Tis the season.. for Durians and  I've had my fair share of feasting, in a small way.

I say small because I can't get past more than three pieces per session without starting to feel uncomfortable. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise. My friends have fallen victim to Mr. Sore Throat. I can hear croaks of disapproval whilst I continue my little Durian expedition.

Durian has come a long way, more complicated than how I used to see it back in my kampung (village). You pick one and gobble it all up. That's all there was to it. These days, there's D24, D2, Musang King, Red Prawn and what sort.

"What? ..Any one lar, Uncle. I just want to eat!" ,I explained to one Durian seller years ago. It was then that I was introduced to varieties and the price that came with.

Now, I'm more Durian savvy. So, when close family friends from my hometown ..?? ..my BFF.. stayed over one weekend, hubby and I took the opportunity to introduce them to "Musang King". Like me before, they had never heard of it. 

We baited them with words like "Creamy", "Rich", "Heavenly", "Premium" and "Stanley Ho". 

By the next day, everyone including us, was pumped up for a taste. We landed ourselves in SS2 at Donald's. There was a good haul of Musang King for sale there.

Choosing our Durians

 The nice weather serves only to whet our appetite.

Blue skies and the outdoorsy feel

The feasting began as soon as the Durians were selected from the basket.

Breaking the Durian open

Oh-so-luscious

My, my!

Musang King is well known for its delectable flesh and pricier tag, costing between RM20-RM35 per kilo on average. It's a once in a season treat for us and in great company, it's extra special, very much like the ice-cream ordered on top of Ais Kacang (Malaysian ice dessert).

0 Green Matter

Not kryptonite, not The Hulk..just the greens.

I had to give Putrajaya Floria 2012 a miss because my days were packed to the brim. Aaah, it was just one of the moments where I wish I had more hours in a day.

BUT I was no less inspired to do the right green thing after reading through Autumn Belle's blog posts. The world would be a better place if all of us, the apartment dwellers, played our part in greening it. I think of Mother Earth's sustainability out of a sudden...with sorry realisation that I haven't really done much.

It would be a dream to see tall buildings laden with plants on every floor because everyone is growing something. Chirping birds, butterflies, laughing neighbours. The building would be alive with lovely flowers, vegetables and cheerful banter from happy residents...I think plants make people happy!

This is my haul from Ikea. I'm starting small. My know-how on plant survival isn't very impressive..I know nuts.

Fresh Stash

One of the plants in my Ikea blue bag is the Ficus Ginseng Jade. I bought it because it seemed "solid". Whether this is a logical move is beyond me. I'm shamefully judging the plant by its looks and it looks like a survivor.

Ficus Ginseng Jade (I don't suppose it's edible)

The plants hanging on the wall have been with me for close to seven years. At the advice of my aunt, I've trimmed it "botak" (bald). She says it'll grow out prettier if I do.

Trimmed hanging plants

The common houseplant that's crawling up my wall began from a very small pot some eight years ago. I don't really know what happened. It just gained in size and off-springs. I have another three indoors.

New and old plants

These pretty clay dolls have been added to liven things up a notch. They've been in my storage cabinet for a couple of years. Not a hoarder...ehm. I just knew it'd be of some use one day....

RM5 each from Daiso

I hope I know what I'm doing. I wish I knew how to take care of flowering plants. I am praying that my plants don't wither if I travel for week-long periods.

I ...........should stop spraying my new plants with water every couple of hours or so.

0 Stop! Love is in the air ..

And then there are days when people just touch you with their creativity. I saw these heart-shaped traffic lights in Subang Jaya more than a month back.

Love is in the intersection

I'm not sure if it's still there but it made an impact on how I felt all over. I was smiling inside out. I guess I'm easily entertained.

It was a good stop. I was reminded about love, to drive with care for the sake of loved ones, to be patient with my fellow drivers, to put up my hand in a friendly wave when I wanted to cut in - all that warm fuzzy feeling and happy thoughts in one traffic light.

In the midst of all that mushy-ness, there were questions that plagued my curious nature, unimportant, but keen-to-know.

Was this done in the stealth of night? What were they thinking? Are they rebels of conformity? Can I join the gang ...? ..Kidding.

Black cut-out cardboard

Some people think it's a bad joke. I think if you're going to speed over the red light, it doesn't matter if the traffic lights are round, square or triangle!

A person of good character will always know right from wrong. No shape or size of a warning signboard will change that. The "Do Not Litter, Fine RM$$" signage is perfect example, with bags of rubbish dumped under it, don't you think?