A Family That Eats Together Stays Together

A family that eats together stays together. Most cultures have a belief that families should always eat together. There was a rule in our family that everyone had to be seated before anyone could dig into the food. Before that, the youngest of the young would have to invite everyone who is older than him/her to eat. Then the 2nd youngest and so and so. It was a rule since my grandma days. It is quite a sight to see everyone asking everyone to eat.. hahahhahahaa

When i was little, dining tables used to be smaller. I remember my grandma's dining table which is a round marble top with pretty sturdy wooden legs. I had my first birthday on that table. Grandma was holding me while i was right smack on the table with my siblings and cousins surrounding me and my cake. The antique table is still around. My aunt is having it in her house. They still have their dinners on that small round table.

In our household here, we used to have a rectangle dining table which sits six people or more but we only had six chairs. It is also the same table that my mom used to chase us round and round with a cane when my sisters and i tipped her balance on some days. It was like a game of chase because my mom never got to us *LOL* We are pretty smart and run into the rooms to lock ourselves in any chance we could. But mom being mom never really wanted to whip us with the cane. She only wanted to scare us by chasing us with the cane.

One day our rectangle dining set went away and mom finally got her dream dining set which is a round dining table with matching chairs. The table can be opened in its center and extended to a larger table accommodating more guests in the house. I call it the "James Bond" table because it has a hidden side to it :)

I know that it was her dream set because she wanted it for a very very long time. I remember her face glow with pride when the dining table came into our home. Her needs were always shelved to accomodate our needs first. My mom was most patient to get to her dreams. Her needs were very simple.

Personally i prefer a round dining table. Its the nearness of family members when everyone tries to get themselves stuffed into the tight circle to have a meal that keeps them all together. Families should always try and eat together once in a while. With our current hectic pace of life in the city, meals are never eaten together. People grow more distant and families fall apart.

CSN Stores contacted me recently to host another giveaway for you guys. Everyone loves a giveaway sometimes right? I know i do :)

Here's how you can be in the running for this gift certificate of USD65.00 valid at any of their online stores. To enter to win the gift certificate go to any of the CSN websites and leave me a comment on this post on what you will get if you win!

This giveaway ends this Friday night at 11.11pm (Malaysian time) and I'll announce the winner on Saturday morning.

  

Footnote: There may be international shipping charges in the case of Canadian addresses.

The Loooong Post

Its been a looong time already since we got a chance to blog. So here we are in a longer picture.

Ok.. that don't quite make much sense. Our hooman girl just kept taking long pictures of us. We only have long pictures to show you. She said something about the camera getting longer.

Piper didn't get any longer. He still have the shortest legs. *BOL* I think i look quite the same in length. Maybe my fur got longer and Piper's tail got longer but we sure am just the same.

Guess which one is Anny and which one is me *BOL*

Sorry it has been a looooooong time since we drop by your side. We'll be dropping by soon. Come back again soon as we have another giveaway to giveaway :)

woofs & licks,
Dommy

A Couple of Beeps Later...

Hello peeps. A week away from the computer is pretty stressful *LOL* Not any computer but my own computer. I did meet a couple of other computers who didn't quite meet my "standards". I am pretty lost without my own stuffs the way i tuned them. Guess i am just too set in my ways.

I went to pick my computer up yesterday morning when i came home from a part working holiday in Kuala Lumpur :) With a silly grin (yes.. my computer makes me grin), i plug my system on and what greeted me was BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP. I went NoooooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooo.. kinda like the end of the world thingy in movies *LOL* It wasn't quite hilarious then because some people were waiting for me to send some work to them. On and off and on and off... same beeping sounds. Darn!

Off i went with a very angry face back to the shop. Even my dad and Dom were moving aside when they see me storming out of my room with the CPU under my arm. *LOL* I heard my dad said... drive slowly ah. When i am angry, i usually drive like a crazy fool. Some people would know. Its worse when i have a brown paper bag with me. But that's another story for some other day.

By the time i reached the shop... i have cooled down. Slowly i told the shop manager... it is beeping again. He was apologetic and said he will test it again. Off i went on home and informed my office that i am computerless again. I probably would be fired soon if this is beginning to be a norm. It is a good thing i work with another colleague on things. Both of us sort of support each other when one is down. So the whole workload went off to her side. Poor woman was up to her nose in work. She kept asking me... when is your computer coming back. *LOL*

Bright and early today, i called the shop again. The manager said, when we tested your system yesterday, there was no BEEP at all. He tried everything and there was still no BEEP. He explained he cannot change the motherboard if its not faulty as its company policy to only replace things that are problematic. I turn a bit yellow and green.. and pale. Then i ask him.. what now? He said.. you got to wait until the next time it beeps.. then you call support from your home and let them listen to the beep. If they cannot solve it online, then they will change it for you. Meaning problem not solved.

I went to pick up my un-BEEP CPU which was probably rolling on the floor laughing at me. I swear it was grinning at me for pulling such a joke on me. But the shop manager was sweet. He still carried my CPU for me to my car both times. Such a gentleman. He was apologetic. He was just doing his job. I can't be mad at him.

Well... this is a few hours of un-BEEPness :) I don't know if my computer will decide to BEEP or un-BEEP on me tomorrow. But hopefully we'll get a beep to get it sorted out soon. Intermittent BEEPs are pretty annoying.

It Could Have Been Divine Intervention

This week's been a wee bit crummy. The internet's been down the whole of Tuesday... which got my work stuck. No internet means no work gets done. *LOL* We are too dependent on the internet for our work these days... it is almost scary when its down. Almost.

Internet went up after a few hours of downtime... and we sorted some stuffs out.

And today... *BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP*

Oh oh... the dreadful beeping sound is back. When i had the beeping sound few weeks ago, i manage to fire it up again after many many tries. Today.. it refused to start up. This desktop is only almost 2 years old. Pretty new system which i've configured to do all my bidding. Yes.. it does most of my work. Its running on heavy.

My offsite IT support guy asks me how many beeps was it beeping. We both listen hard. He on the phone listening and me holding the phone close to the heart of my pc. We were like some doctors.. seriously... it was quite funny at that moment. He said.. sounds like 3 beeps. Then i said.. 4 beeps. We both listen hard again. I didn't know that when the computer beeps in a series of beeps, its a signal for the IT support to decipher the problem. 1 beep means something and 2 beeps means something else. There is a site that tells you what those beeps meant. I learn something new today.

Off i went to the service center to drop it off. Since it was under warranty for another year, i get to fix it for free. But i will probably be computerless till next week.

The guy says its probably a mother board issue and hopefully i don't get my data wiped out completely. Its hard when you have fine tune some things and it is going to be a chore to get it all tuned again.

But.. i call this divine intervention. I am not exactly jumping and dancing here very happy when the computer is down and in the hospital. But I take this opportunity to take a break and take my dad, Dom and Piper for a holiday. We are going on the road tomorrow :)

My dad was quite happy.. and am jumping in glee as he can go for a break. He's been wanting to visit his other daughters for weeks. I have been busy lately to take him. Well.. he got mom to help and the BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP sent my computer to the hospital and i am free to move.

I am supposed to go down to Kuala Lumpur to work. To do the knowledge transfer with my colleague. Bummer! Do you seriously think my bosses will let me go off so easily without work :) Naw!

Sometimes it is nice to be away from the electronics and gadgets for a while to smell them roses. I won't be dropping by to your blogs to visit these few days. But we'll come a visiting again when the computer is back. It will be juat family time.. and some work :)

And how am i writing this post now? hahhahahaha.. I got to steal a computer to post and i'll give it back to the owner soon :) Take care folks.. and if you are going on the road... drive safe. Its a long weekend. Loads of cars on the roads.

We wills be thinkings of  yous. Urmms... but we won'ts be missings you. Ops! Them doxie girl Puddles is prettys contagious. Go visits hers and gets yourselfs infecteds :)

The Private Investigator and The Inspector

How should i start this posty. Bummer. I thinks i have been "abouts" to starts a post and i got sidelined again and again and went off to play at another playground. It has been daysssssssssssssssssssssssss... And strangely, i am beginnings to talk like some doxie i've met lately. A very strange doxie mind you. With an even strange name. Puddles is her names. Before i becomes a doxie, i should quit talkings urmmms.. writings like one. *LOL*

I love this Puddles. She is so funny. You should go check her out if you need a good laugh or if yous am a wantings to talks funny. Ops! Quit quit talking.. urms.. writing like a doxie.

PP's been around here for the past 2 weeks. He's having a ball of a time sweating and running at super sonic speed in the garden. Trust me. For a fat fella.. urmm.. i mean for a well framed doggie, he sure can run fast. Sometimes his feet don't even touch the ground *LOL*

The first few days he came, he has been giving me disrupted sleep. On one particular night, he woke me up 3 times between 12 to 6am to take a leak. And all three were big leaks *LOL* He sure have a very small tank. Or probably he was cold from sleeping on the floor. His bed is a on the thinning side. Walking around with panda eyes for days, it suddenly hit me to put a thick towel under his bed. Walla! No more midnight leaks for the little one. He slept through till morning. Finally.

contentment

I live among a private investigator and an inspector. Both of them are quite serious when they are on the job.

Each time i come back from somewhere, i get questioned by the private investigator for a few minutes before i can put my things down. I am not even suppose to move while i am being interrogated.

The Private Investigator

First i get scolded for leaving the house without him. Even before i can open the door, there will be a lot of yelling.. urmm i mean barkings. Then i fumbled and drop my keys and stuffs... that will probably induced more scoldings.

I get sniffed from toe to toe and my bags and gears have to be checked too. *LOL* Sometimes when he's not fully satisfied with his interrogation, he'll run to the room after i have changed and still check on the clothings again. Even the car tires get checked.

The PI and his yellow sidekick

When he's not throughly happy, he will start complaining to his yellow sidekick. His yellow sidekick has been through good times and bad times with him. He knows he can trust his yellow sidekick. He complains for quite a while grumbling away to his ever faithful yellow. Its funny to see a furry fella grumbling away.

sometimes he smiles

When he's happy, he's quite a darling. For a small little fella, he's quite a clean freak. He doesn't like to walk on the grass. But lately he does... to poo only and quickly run back to the cement floorings. *LOL* Have you ever encountered a doggie that don't like grass?

Now he has become quite a scruffy fella. *LOL* Quite like his brother Dom and me. When you can't beat them, join them. He's happy. Really he is. You should see him run. He flies like the wind.

Today dad and i have a new name for him. Batu. Batu means rock in our language. When you called out to him, he doesn't come to you. He's a urmmm.. a shitzu after all. *LOL* They are supposed to be arrogant else they cannot live up to their name. But if you wave a treat in his direction, he'll come flying to your side in less than a second.

This small fella's been in my life off and on for many years now. He is usually with my sister and sometimes he stays with me for weeks. I've always enjoyed his antics and company. A shitzu and a poodle make quite a weird combination but they are good friends. They don't talk much but i guess both of them speak a different language. But they do look out for each other.

Its getting a bit late now. I probably have to get to The Inspector tomorrow or probably some other day :) I do not know what i have written up there. *LOL* My mind's a bit tired lately and quite a lot of projects to finish before September comes. Goodnites folks :)

Please don't mind my ramblings :p

blissful creature

Inu to Watashi no 10 no Yakusoku

1. Listen patiently to what I have to say.
2. Trust me, for I am always on your side.
3. Play with me a lot.
4. Don’t forget that I have feelings too.
5. Let’s never fight, Cause someday, I’ll be big enough to win.
6. If I don’t obey you, I have a good reason.
7. You have school, and friends. But as for me, I only have you.
8. Stay and be my best friend even when I’m old.
9. I’ll only live about ten years, so let’s make every moment count.
10. I’ll never forget our life together. So when my time comes, please be by my side.

The above are the 10 promises you should make to your dog or dogs.

Today my neighbour brought over an old movie for my dad to see. Yesterday, he told me he saw a very good movie which brought him to tears. He said he'll bring it over today. Bright and early today, it was already in my house.

The movie is called 10 Promises to My Dog (Inu to Watashi no 10 no Yakusoku). Its a Japanese movie which is dubbed in English. Its a pretty good movie which every dog lover would enjoy. Simple script but very touching. With the likes of Hachi: A Dog's Tale... & Marley and Me. These movies are very heartwarming.

Both dad and i watched the movie this afternoon. Both of us were reduced to cloudy eyes. It carries a deeper meaning closer to home. I won't tell you too much about the movie here. You go find it and watch it.. (its on youtube too.. shhhh)

Sometimes some of us do take our furfriends for granted. Some of us locked them up in toilets for hours because they were soiling the house or misbehaving. But did we try and understand them for a change.

I always have a weakness for Goldens. I haven't got to my golden yet :) But i do have a Curly Boo here. He is just as golden when the sun shines on him.

This is the trailer to the movie. Do watch it with your furry best friends :)



Remember this from our furfriends...

You have your world but i only have you.

The Salty Experience

Here's a recipe to share with you guys... from my best buddy :) The dish has a special name to remind me of my own folly with this dish.

Ikan Tauchu ala Jab

Ingredients you need:

1. 3 mackerels (ikan kembung)
   One tablespoon tumeric powder + half tablespoon salt. Mix them and rub a dub them fishes. Don't forget to make vertical cuts in the fish so that the tumeric can get in.
2.  Four tablespoon tauchu (fermented soybeans)
3. One tablespoon sweet soya sauce
4. One big onion cut into rings
5. One half cucumber, cut into long quarters
6. Two cloves garlic, chopped
7. Four shallots chopped
8. Three red chillies cut into large pieces
9. One inch ginger cut into matchsticks
10. One level tablespoon sugar
11. Half cup water
12. Half teaspoon tamarind paste to soak in a small bowl of water
13. One teaspoon cornflour mixed with three tablespoon water

Instructions:

• Deep fry fish until its crispy (to prevent the hot oil from dancing and jumping on to you, put some slices of onions in oil first). Set aside.
• In a pan, put some oil and fry the shallot, chillies, ginger and garlic.
• Put in the tauchu, water, cucumber, sugar, sweet soya sauce (no need salt as the tauchu is already salty). Put in the tamarind paste water. Then put in the large onion slices.
• Let the cucumber be soft To thicken the sauce, put in the cornflour mix if u want.
• Pour the sauce on the ikan and eat with lots of hot rice.

If you follow the instructions and ingredients closely, you will get something like this.

If you do not read instructions before you cook and leave out some key ingredients, you will get something like this... (don't laugh so loud la)

Do you see the vast difference and the follies you will get them fishes into if you don't read instructions BEFORE you cook. And not WHILE you are cooking :)

Anyways.. the darkkkkkkkkkkkk one was mine. It was pretty salty because i didn't add the cucumbers and i didn't follow the measurements properly. (I won't make a good baker). Tauchu and tamarind paste are salties, so cucumbers are important here to soak up them saltiness a little. We forgot about them cucumbers.

While dad and i were having that with rice, i had to hang my head in shame and told dad... urmm urmm.. you might need to go easy with the sauce.. scrape the sauce aside and just eat the fish *LOL*

Well... my dad loves to have his food pretty salty. Sometimes he will even have a small bowl of light soya sauce and chillies to dip his chicken or meat. His sodium intake is no good for someone his age. I am not quite helping much for coming up with such saltiness for dinner.

I bet his BP and his PSA levels went sky rocket high that night.

For the sake of my dad's health... i think its best that i stick to steaming fish or chicken for dinner :) Steaming dishes are the safest :)

Thanks to my buddy for the lovely recipe. If you are adventurous enough, you might want to try this dish. Its pretty good :) Just follow them ingredients and instructions. Its a tried and tested dish. Not by me because i don't do instructions well :)

As for dinner tonight, i'm just going to go to the Pasar Ramadhan stalls and get some real delicious food :) Its the fasting month for our muslim friends. Every evening, we have quite a big selection of things to buy to eat. I am gonna get some mini murtabaks :D I'll catch some pictures for you if it doesn't rain this evening.

We might be going on the road this weekend :) I promised someone i'll check out her exhibition before it ends... and its gonna end soon. The little one above misses home too. Probably we'll be away.

Now we got to go back to looking at some crummie codes. I am not even a programmer. I do not understand basic logic for codes. *LOL* Some people do ask for the moon.

You Don't Know Me

You don't know me ~ Ray Charles & Diana Krall

Something on a lighter note for wednesday :)

We have been busy looking at some weird codes the whole day. Them codes makes no sense at all *LOL* Just pains the eyes and makes your hair grey.

We did have a pretty salty disaster in the kitchen today. When will i ever learn to follow instructions *LOL* We'll tell you more about this tomorrow. The bed seems more inviting now. Its been raining for hours and them doggies have not gone out for a leak yet. Both of them have been snoozing since 9pm.

Guess they do know better. Goodnight peeps and furry friends. Enjoy the song.