Last Minute Christmas Meme

Have to rush this one meme before Christmas thanks to Beer Brat and also just in case someone out there reads this post and decides to play Santa Claus (psst … there’s chocolate milk in the fridge and some left over log cake in the fridge…).

1) State who tagged you;
Beer Brat

2) List who you want your Santa Claus to be (the bearer of the gift);
Santa Beer Brat (he he … coz I’ll know he’ll be reading this)

3) State the gift you wish to get;
A kick-ass 8.2 Megapixel Canon EOS 20D

(Hey Santa, don’t forget to include accessories like 18-55mm lens, 55-200mm lens and the speedlite 580EX flash. If you are too busy to walk down to the nearest electrical shop, you can order it online at amazon.com )

Here's a pic of the beauty so you'll recognise it...

BTW, I don’t’ mind a second hand one month old iPod Video either (wink!)

4) Then invite a few friends to join the tag, and inform them by dropping a comment in their blog.
Since it’s running too close to Christmas, will not tag anybody this time round.

*********

Will be heading back to Muar tonight for Christmas. HO HO HO ! Merry Christmas Everyone !!!

The song 'The Cat's in the cradle' was mentioned in Monday's edition of 'Today'. Indeed a timely reminder to all of us to cherish our loved ones this Christmas time.

THE CAT'S IN THE CRADLE

The child was born the other day
He came to the world in the usual way
There were planes to catch and bills to pay
He learned to walk when I was away
And he was talking before I knew it, and as he grew
He said, I'm gonna be like you, Dad, I'm going to be like you

The cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man in the moon
When you're coming home, Dad? - I don't know when
But we'll get together then, Son, we'll have a good time then

My son turned ten the other day
He said, Thanks for the ball, Dad, come on, let's play
Will you teach me to throw? I said, Not today
I've got a lot to do. He said, That's O. K.
As he walked away his smile never dimmed; he said
I'm gonna be like him, I'm going to be like him

Then he came from college the other day
So much like a man that I had to say
Son, I'm proud of you, will you sit for a while?
He shook his head and he said with a smile
What I'd really like, Dad, is to borrow the car keys
See you later, can I have them please?

The cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man in the moon
When you're coming home, Son? - I don't know when
But we'll get together then, Dad, we'll have a good time then"

Now I've retired, my son's moved away
I called him up just the other day
I said, I'd like to see you if you don't mind
He said, I'd love to, Dad, if I could find the time
See, my new job's a hassle, the kids had the flu
But it's sure nice talking to you, Dad
Sure nice talking to you

As I hung up the phone it occurred to me
My boy was just like me
He'd grown up just like me

Words & music Harry Chapin

Ho hum. The songs speaks for itself. Never leave it too late to spend time with people that matters. Peace. And have a great Christmas.

An Unexpected Find

Booya! (Borrowing a phrase from insanesquirrel)

While flipping through the pile of ‘screen-to-tape’ (will just call it that) VCDs last Friday, among the Chicken Littles, Zathuras and Narnias, I found an arthouse flick that didn’t seem quite to make it to our shores.

MirrorMask. This was the joint collaboration of Director Dave McKean and Writer Neil Gaiman, and as IMDB calls it a Alice in Wonderland meets Wizard of Oz movie performed by Cirque de Soleil. The movie read like a Gaiman novel. Eccentric characters that jumped right out of comic books, a human protagonist, helpful strangers turned sidekick, mythical creatures, a dire quest, and a seamless blend of reality and fantasy, all trademarks of Mr.Gaiman. And at the end of the movie, it felt as though I had just finished reading another Gaiman book.

(P.S : Thank goodness they copied the movie from one of the distributor tapes and not another hand held recording from a dark movie theatre.)

Deck the Malls … a weekend in KL

Was up in KL last weekend with Vicky to experience the Christmas shopping and revelry in Malaysia’s capital city. The trip began on Friday morning with a delayed bus ride and two bus changes. The frustrating bus arrangements by Grassland (hey, famous bus company also like this ah ??!!!) left many frayed passengers, especially a group of Chinese aunties who aired their protest and complaints to the helpless bus driver.

We arrived at Pudu about half past four. A short LRT ride took us to PWTC station, where it was a short walk to our hotel.

After a short rest, we took off for the busy shopping belt of Bukit Bintang.

Lot 10 was having a quiet Christmas …

Sungei Wang’s variety and cheap deals drawing the crowd …

The bloke was in town too ...

The next morning, we decided to pay a visit to the grand old dame of KL Malls, who else but the once popular … The Mall. I still remember the days (almost 15 years back) when visiting KL was not complete without paying a visit to ‘The Mall’, the place to be then, with its indoor rides, colourful wares along Medan Hang Tuah, and rows of wonderful shops. Now it is just a collection of printing shops, the obligatory Watsons, the Parkson flagship and a few vacant lots.

The Mall ...

Found Dasher in a part time role at Starlight Express ...

Lunch was at the quaint old Coliseum restaurant along Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman. We had the roast chicken with sambal rice, oxtail soup, and fish in black pepper sauce. The old waiters in their smart uniforms was a throwback to the old colonial style restaurants. Reminds me of the Shashlik restaurant in Singapore, famous for its smartly attired Hainanese waiters and flamboyant Russian fare.

Sambal Chicken at Coliseum ...

After lunch we paid a visit to KLCC. While Vicky was enthralled with the goods in the Gucci boutique, I was busy browsing the book shelves in Kinokuniya.

The decorated KLCC atrium ...

Kino ...

That night, we went down to Petaling Street to check out the wares on sale. For dinner, we dined on the famous Hokkien Mee at the stall outside Hong Leong Bank. Somehow the noodles here did not measure up to its name. Had tasted better at a stall in PJ.

The famous Petaling Street Hokkien Mee ...

The next day, after checking out of the hotel, we headed to Puduraya for lunch. We decided to check out Nandos and its famous peri-peri chicken.

The Peri-Peri Meal ...

Saying our final farewell to KL, we left by bus back to Singapore.

All in all we had a good time exploring the city and enjoying the Christmas decorations. Shopping was not much different from what you can find in Singapore, only you don’t get blatant pedaling of pirated goods on the open streets. Maybe next time we will try somewhere different like Subang or Sunway, or head up to Bangkok for more MBK shopping (heard that it is cool there in Dec).

O Tannenbaum !

Nothing brings the Christmas cheer into homes like old Christmas Carols playing on the radio, a brightly decorated fir tree sitting in the corner while the warm fire wards off the cold.

Ok. Back to reality. Minus the fireplace, I do have a 4 feet tall artificial Christmas Tree and a bunch of complementing ornaments to go with it. So last Saturday, I set about to put up the tree in the living room. Thinking that the tree-dressing process wouldn’t take long since I had done it once last year, everything went smoothly until I started to unravel the Christmas lights. It ended up taking almost 3 hours.

Anyway here are some pics from the Christmas Tree-Dressing process.

1. Getting all the stuff ready

2. Setting up the naked tree

3. Hanging up all the ornaments

4. Finally stringing the lights and hitting the switch

******
O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum,
du kannst mir sehr gefallen.
Wie oft hat nicht zur Weihnachtszeit
Ein Baum von dir mich hoch erfreut.
O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum,
du kannst mir sehr gefallen.

Muar food in the news.

Saturday’s Strait Times’ Life! Section was featuring the new food guide ‘life!eats’ by Wong Ah Yoke and Thng Lay Teen, and among the eateries highlighted was Long Poh Seafood from Muar. Here is the excerpt:

MUAR
Long Poh SeafoodTS
26, Jalan Junid
This Thai eatery is worth traveling all the way to Muar for. Check out its perfectly steamed fish, kangkong in batter paired with a special Thai fresh-milk dip, bite-sized (think samosa) crispy popiah and Thai salads.

I shouldn’t be surprise to see it on a food guide featuring food from JB, Muar, Melaka and KL. It is certainly popular among Muarians and even attracts food lovers from neighbouring states. But better go early if you don’t want to wait for your table, there’s always a crowd during weekends.

Other eateries highlighted in the column were …

JOHOR BAHRU – Kim Long, 74, Jalan Wong Ah Fook (best fish head curry in Johor)

MALACCA – Teo Soon Loong Restaurant, 55, Jalan hang Kasturi (best Teochew eatery in Malacca)

KUALA LUMPUR – Farmland Steamboat & Seafood Restaurant, 362-266 Jalan Pudu (good porridge steamboat)

December

We’re here again in December, in the final pages of 2005. The month that’s a whirlpool of activities and like a whirlpool it sucks you in and, before you know it, spits you out naked and unprepared into a brand new year. Cruel, but every year you’ll unfailingly yearn for the month to come as you hope to taste again the magic and ecstasy that only December can bring.

Can’t put a finger to it? Look no further than the back-to-back celebrations (Christmas and New Year), the global dressing-up with ornamented pine trees and loads of flashing coloured lights, the cold wet nights and equally cool mornings, the sudden compulsion to hand out presents (only matched by the expectations of brightly-wrapped presents of your own), the year-end seasonal sales and exuberant shoppers that throng the malls, choirs belting out songs after songs about White Christmases under occasional tropical showers, the massive street parties to usher in the first day of a new calendar and the quiet reflection on the past year followed by a determined endeavour (crossing fingers) to achieve those daunting resolutions.

It’s the time of the year again and I’m not complaining.