Bidding Farewell to Year 2011...in a high note!

Ok, so here we are now 1 day shy away from bidding farewell to year 2011 and, welcoming the end of the world!!! OMG!!! Imagine yourself having only 1 more year to live, and what will you do? Spent all the money? Eat all the food you always wanted to and throw away your diet? Or, just live as if it is just another normal year?

Let's not now debate if this prophecy is going to come true because if it comes, it comes. Anyways we will not be able to foretell the future so why sweat the little things right?

Instead, i think now is a great time for us to bid farewell to year 2011 with a great smile and count all the blessings we achieved. Hm.... let me see what i have been blessed thus far...

- First and foremost, both my best buddies got preggo and has / will have a healthy baby boy! Yippie!!!

- i managed to pass the year without going insane in Algeria (Well done me!)

- Bros finally bought me a present and i am loving it so far!

- Finally managed to meet up with some girls after 2 long years.

- Someone in my family is no longer a singleton and he is madly in love so far..

- Additional family member, a princess, into our family..

- Everyone is in their pink of health and i am really really grateful for this..

- Oh ya not to mention Cofi is still eating, sleeping and shitting well..

- Many many newly weds...Congratulations everyone!

- I got to travel a little bit and added lovely memories for myself..

- Got to know some lovely people in Algeria..

- I am being loved very much by the two cute Japanese girls..

- Learned to cook a fair bit, especially in the Japanese department!

- And the most important one is, I am back in KL for CNY! Isn't life great??? *HUGE SMILE*

So there's my list. I can't deny. I think life really treats me well. May the year 2012 brings me the same good fortunes and blessings! Happy new year everyone and may the year 2012 treats you well too! Remember to count your blessings!

Overdosed?

You know how it is like when you complained that life is too bored and there is nothing much to do? Well i think i am an expert when it comes to this department. After all, life in Algeria is really simple and really nothing much to do, literally.

One of the Malaysian expatriate has decided to go back to KL for good and he decided to make a final trip here in Algeria. This time around, his wife has decided to come along just to verify that Algeria is really a country that has nothing much. I guess she is not all surprised by the fact that it is really nothing much here.

So for the first day of her arrival, there was nothing much to do except to just saying hello and bye. The next day, together with Miho, the girls and her, we had some chatting time that lasted for more than 4 hours. To be honest, chatting for me is good if it is maximum length is within 2 hours. After that, my mind begins to shut off, my lips dried themselves as a protest of talking, and my body also shut down and i feel death tired! So when the chit chat session ended because she had to get ready for dinner later ( secretly i was happy!), i had to quickly prepared dinner and by the time i have time to settle down for myself, it was near to midnight. I was death tired!!!

Today, it was escalated! The moment i opened my eyes, i was told there will be a luncheon at an Italian restaurant in hotel Hilton. Not a really good start for the day ain't it? So i quickly gulp down my morning coffee and headed to the hotel. The thing with the Europeans are that they really know how to take time to savor their food. Unlike us Chineses who will just swallow food within minutes, the luncheon lasted from 130pm to 330pm! That was really looooooooong!!!!!

Then it was bringing them to groceries shopping, meat and vegetables shopping and before we even headed home, the phone rang! It seems that KC had also invited another group of friends for some gaming session. It was 5pm when the phone rang!

So again quickly, i have to prepare for dinner, chick kut teh, for the couple (hence the previous meat and vegetable shopping) and at the same time have to take care of the gaming group too! It was cook, cook, cook, and entertaining the gaming group for their needs of food and etc......

After that it was time to get dinner ready as well as getting the liquor ready too! And finally, now after a good shower, at 10.30pm, i am able to do a little gaming myself and wind down. This is not over yet though because the gaming group is still outside gaming and i still have to clean up later.......

So i guess i am having a "too-much-happenings" overdose now! Just too much! Oh ya did i mention i have to go for a city tour tomorrow follow by a dinner session too since the couple will be leaving the morning after! This is just way too much!!!!

BUT, well it is only normal that when there are grumbling, there is always a BUT. For my case, although it was a day of overdoses, BUT i am glad that KC is having hell a fun time now gaming. I am just glad that he is having lots of fun and laughters in Algiers! Guess all is worth it eh?

Les Petits Cadeaux Dan La Vie

KC was away for business trip for about 5 days a week ago. I was getting tired of packing and since the weather is cooling, i opted to stay home instead.

Can you imagine being alone in the house for 5 days? 5 long days without any interaction with any other human being except myself? To think of it already freaks me out! Well.....i still did stay home at the end. The only thing i secretly hope was that i will not turn myself into a nut job at the end of the week.

But then again life works in a funny way. It will always brings you something unexpected. Sometimes it is like a cute gift that you will savor but sometimes it will just bring you straight to hell. This time around, i got lucky because life brought me some little boxes of chocolate, at different days. They are small enough for me to be happy but not too much to make me drown.

The few days when KC was not around, i spent my days watching Sex and the City, all from season 1 to 6. I know i am way too long overdue but i never had the excitement to watch it! This time i am glad i did. Watching the drama brought back so much fond memories of myself. Sometimes i could even see myself going through what some of the characters were going through in the drama. It was like "oooh...that was so me!", "oooh..... i been through that!" And i finished all 6 seasons! So one more thing to cross from my to do list.

Let's talk about the "gift" from life. Since the hubbies are not around, we decided to have girls night only by having shabu-shabu + bbq. So 4 girls decided to just bring out whatever we had in the fridge and threw ourselves a very nice dinner.

It was fun for all of us. It was even more fun for Yu-chan. She was 3 when i got the honor to take away here shabu-shabu "virginity"! Hahah it was her very first time to have shabu-shabu and she was thrilled by the whole idea. Her eyes grew big with excitement when she saw the soup boiling together with all the food she loves. As for Sat-chan, she was just so happy with the whole night and so much more in love with me. For the first time, she came to me, gave me a big hug and told me that she loves me! hahaha and i even got a kiss from Yu-chan too. So i guess i was the big winner here.

A simple dinner turned into a good 4 hours spent eating and us (the big girls) chatting. By the time it ended it was already time for bed. So there you go, one day gone meaning one day nearer from the day KC will be back.

The next day i spent my time again watching tv and some times having tea with the girls too. It turn out that the day that the hubbies was due to be back was our very birthday for Yu-chan. So again i got this life "gift" to spend the afternoon with them celebrating her birthday. Nothing fancy. They baked their own fruit cake and i brought some chocolates as add ons. Plus, i get to be the photographer too!

By the time we finished with the birthday celebrations, it was only hours aways when the hubbies came back with goodies. For them, the little ones get to have presents and most importantly japanese tit bits. For us big girls, we got our hubbies, huge hugs and of course some pressies too.

There, my gifts from life.

And i thought I was Through

I had been bugged by friends to post more often. Although i always promised that i will, but somehow i never really like the idea. After a while, i have even forgotten that i have a blog myself.

I never knew why i lost the desire or interest to continue my blog, until today.

Now i know the answer.

It seems that i wanted to run away from the sad incident of loosing something precious. I wanted to stay away from starring at the laptop and reading my last blog again, the blog about Bubu.

I thought i was through with the pain but the reality is that i have not.

Reading the comments from my friends reminded me of Bubu and it teared me again to. And the sorrows in me erupted again. But i knew that this phase will passed. I hope that this will be the last time i am crying over Bubu.

The next time, whenever i revisit the post or am reminded of Bubu again, it will only be a huge smile on my face and nothing else.

Afterall, now i know Bubu will be friends with Cash-san or perhaps Milk too.

Love you Bubu.

被吞没的幸福

曾经， 有人对我说， 他想一口气地把我吞进肚子里， 那样我便会一辈子属于他。 也因为只有那样， 他才能真正地让我知道他对我的爱有多深。

当时的我真的不理解那种感觉， 更别说能接受“想把我吃进肚子里”的想法。年轻的我听到了只觉得这还挺可怕！

然而，如今我终于明白那是一种什么样的想法， 那是一种如何深的爱。

坦白说，我也觉得我对我狗狗的爱已经过分的溺爱。对于狗狗，我已把她当成我的小孩般地去溺爱。看着她，虽然她以经趟在我身旁，我依然有一种“失去”的感觉。而那种感觉唯一能被填补的方法也只有是把狗狗吞进肚子里。感觉就好像只有把她吞了，我才能100％地拥有她。只有那样我才能好好的保护，爱着她。也只有这样我才不会失去她。

怎么看，这种痴情与爱也还是挺可怕。幸好我还不到为爱而犯罪的心态。也还好我的溺爱也只限于对我的狗狗。

但回想曾近有人对我痴爱与溺爱到想把我吞进肚子里的程度，这也让我觉得很骄傲。必竟那是一份100%狂热以及望我的爱呀！而这份爱的特别之处，并非产生与对方曾给予你的付出或能回馈与你的爱， 这份狂热的爱是在你不发觉的情况下，悄悄的滋生并蔓延， 并没有道理及原因。而当你反觉时，那份爱已边的一发不可收拾。

原来，一生中能过分的被溺爱，是一种幸福。

原来，用华语写微博，也只有笨蛋才会做的至我折磨方法！＊擦汗， 还真辛苦＊

Reasons for Skipping Blogging

Not going to lie, hasn't been blogging since i came back from Dubai and the reasons that keep me from blogging are????

- still fighting my fatigues from the Dubai Trip, i guess i am getting old!

- been sleeping more than 12 hours ever since and i even went to bed early!

- been suffering from lightheadedness, i think i am low in sugar and need to take in more chocolates.

- dad is here

- dad is requesting feast with his colleagues and the cookings and cleaning begins

- not really in the mood because i am tired (oops, had i mentioned that already?)

- lazy

- lazy

- and just plain lazy!

There, i blogged!

Land of the Gold...

Am leaving to Dubai in less than 12 hours. Isn't that exciting???

I want to do so much things there, especially camping under the million stars in Sahara desert! I could picture myself riding a camel, sand boarding, lying under the darkest night with the brightest start, and how cold and windy the night is, a night where one goes back to the arms of mother nature and and night to dealt yourself into the many tales of the Arabian nights! Isn't tat exciting?

Well too bad i could only imagine all those. KC will be working and he thinks that it will not be safe for me to follow an overnight trip to the Sahara on my own and i have to agree on that with him. So i guess there will be another time?!

Anyways, i heard that Dubai is the land of gold, the real ones and the fake ones ( the glittering sands) too. Chance to visit the only 7 stars hotel in the world and also the tallest building in the world too! Plus, shopping is aplenty there. The only thing worries me is that i do not have the money to shop. Haha. Anyways, since everything is tax free there, i will be going bag shopping! Yeah, but not for me, just for my friends. So i guess that is me having the experience and the thrills without spending. Sounds great huh?

One thing i am still contemplating if i should bring my lappy along. Will be staying in Hyatt Dubai. It states in their website that there is wired internet but i wonder if it will be free?

Help me out folk! Please!!!!!

Gone For Good?!

Today is the last day of Yasso-san employment with ALJ in Algeria.

He has been here for the last 2 years and all these while that he was here, he never really get used to Algeria. Yasso-san is an Egyptian with a Canadian passport. He has a lovely wife with 2 2 beautiful kids waiting for him in Toronto. Hence ever now and then, he will return to Toronto to spend some good quality family time.

It is true that i have never spoken to a foreigner who really like Algeria, not even Yasso-san. Come to think of it, if someone with almost similar culture could not take Algeria, what about Asians? One thing though, it is ok to grumble sometimes about something but it is not ok when the grumbling is constant. Yasso-san dislike Algeria so much that he even said that if the world is coming to an end and Algeria is the only safe place in the planet earth, he would rather go back to Egypt or Canada and bet his chances on it! Hahahah that extreme.

For me, i have mentioned earlier, when life throws you a lemon, the best way out is to use it to make lemonade. I enjoyed having Yasso-san around sometimes but not all the time. Because whenever i begin to take in what Algeria is offering me, there i would have Yasso-san complaining how bad life is here; reminding me that life is always better some where else. And when that happens too often, life in Algeria becomes unbearable and then you will sink yourself into depression.

In fact, Algeria might not be the best place on earth to be in but it is not the worst place too. For one, it is so near to EU countries that we are able to travel to over the weekend. Algerians might not be as sophisticated as the "city people", but they are always friendly and helpful. When was the last time you had a stranger greeting you with a bright smile on their face while you are buying something from a groceries shop?

So i am sort of glad that Yasso-san is going back for good. I am sure he misses his family a lot. So today, as a token of appreciation for his help during the time we spent, i am throwing him a farewell dinner. I wanted to cook spagetti but KC insisted on bak kut teh again!

Duh! I am not sure what is it with guys and bak kut teh. I am getting so bored even by the idea. Anyways, to amuse myself, i am throwing in some fry bean with ikan bilis and cuttlefish with chili padi. Hope all turns well!

When It Speaks to You

Was listening to this song some time ago while i was training my cuisine skill. I think it was more than half a year or more.

The moment i heard the song, i thought it was speaking to me. The lyrics is very well written painting a very vivid picture. It speak to me because i could simply put myself into it. Somehow, something in the lyric sounded very familiar...i guess somehow something similar would have happend to us in reality..

I however forgot to take note of the name of the song....until one day, during a singing session in KL, i heard of this song again. Coming from the singer then, it added even more meaning to it.... it was surreal....but the song becomes my new love ever since.

繁忙的工作加一把劲来过渡
无聊的交际只管把笑容制造
回家打开一副电脑
模拟找到模拟倾诉模拟很好
从来不知道怎么竟各行各路
从前的一套今天仔细仍照做
夜深粉紫色这外套
模拟起舞模拟拥抱模拟得到

*仍然能拥有梦想跟前途
仍然能拥有自尊跟自豪
仍然明知许多女伴一转身会遇到
为何感到这不算最好
明明从不信天荒跟地老
明明从不会后悔得不到
明明从新掌握去做我总可以做到
为何今晚我不懂如何告别烦恼

浮华掌声里只想一个人赞慕
从难关出发心境可向谁透露
是否悲欢早有定数
何时得到何时失去谁能猜到

Je suis fatiguee beaucoupe!

I am death tired.

Earlier i mentioned that one of KC's colleague will be leaving Algeria for good and his apartment at the 1st floor will be vacant soon.

At the same time, Yokouchi's family is currently staying in a rather run down apartment away from us. The tenancy laws in Algeria is that once the apartment is rented out, the owner will have no say in anything to be done in the apartment. At such, Yokouchi has been having problems in getting the owner to help him fixes repaires and even registering the internet line.

Yuki-chan (age 4) focusing on watching The Little Mermaid.

So this week, i have been inviting Yohouchi's wife and the 2 kids to our house for luncheons. They are so happy with here that they thought of moving over and taking over the 1st floor. The few times that the kids were here, the youngest one even cried and refused to leave because she loves it here so much. At the end, we had to bride her with ice-cream.

Miho-san (mother) with her elder daughter, Satsuki-chan (age 6)

Tonight, together with another Malaysian family (who has 2 daughters the same age as Yokouchi's), we went over to Yokouchi's house for dinner so that they could get to know each other and the kids can have new friends to play with. So in a word, i have been throwing luncheons and dinners non-stop for this whole week.

Mr and Mrs Yong, who owns a travel company in Algeria.

Tonight, during the car ride back to Yong's apartment, i was happily seated with the 2 kids. They were happy to have me and were fighting for attentions during the whole ride. When the elder one wanted to sing for me, so did the younger one. They played with me, tickled me, sung for me, told me stories and they were fighting so hard that eventually one of them cried. Ohhh.... i feel so bad for her.

May-An (age 8), a very pretty and smart girl. Speaks excellent English for her age, as well as Arabic and French too.

Even when we reached their house, the elder one was pulling me aside to show me her homework and test results. Of course at the same time the younger one wanted to get involved and spoke and pulled me at the same time too. So i was sandwiched and did tried my best to please them both. When it was time for me to leave, May-An kept hold of my arm and refused to let me go. It took her mother to persuade her and spoke to her for some time. She even told May-An that KC would be very sad without me! hahah reluctantly, she let go before telling me that she likes me a lot.

Mischievous Ci-An (age 4) who loves to mimic her elder sister and pushes her button all the time!

Phew! By the time i reached home, i was so exhausted. It was as though i had spent a day doing hard physical work! I think all my brain juices had been drained out in that short 2 hours! Boy! I thought babies are though but it is the same with kids too! Especially when they speak at the same time and you do not know who to focus at, or even to respond to first!

I really salut mothers out there. Like the Chinese saying, "having a kid is a 100 years job where mothers have to worry for them for at least 99 years."

No wonder motherhood is the toughest job of all! R-E-S-P-E-C-T!!

Blabbing..Blah,blah,blah, blah, blah!

I woke up today with a really stiffed neck, as though i was beaten up numerous times during my beauty sleep. Last year, i was having trouble sleeping on the hard-like-rock pillows. After 2 times of back forward to KL, KC managed to bring me 2 pillows from our bedroom.

And i thought i have solved the problem. Well, this is Algeria and life could be ever so unpredictable. Last year, we had to use 2 single beds and combined them together to use as a king size bed. While i was gone, the company finally bought us a king size bed (that was after a request put up for 1 year). So now we have a king size bed which is as hard as rock!

The other day i happily sat my big ass on it, waiting for the "bouncing" of my ass. Instead, my ass yelled in pain because i had simply "bounced" them on rock!

So now each night, i have to sleep on rock instead of bed. If so why bother having a bed? I might as well sleep on floor! Hiss!!!!

Cofi's v/o: I have this soft like feather bed and you stupid human don't! Neh neh neh!

Anyways i am just blabbing rubbish here.

We went to visit Yokouchi and his family over lunch yesterday. Both his 2 daughters Sasuki and Yuki are just adorable. Especially Yuki. I finally understood the expression of "lighting up the whole room with her smile". Didnt manage to snap any pics but they are coming over for dinner soon so let's see then.

Enough for now i think.... Oh ya KC told me that we were invited by the Malaysia embassy to dine with Mahatir's son on tues. Did i mention i hate entertaining? (as if i i got the chance to speak to him even! Thick face me!)

And... I am back!

Yep! I am back to blogging after a really really long hiatus of more than 3 months!

And what "motivates" me to start blogging again? Hahha nothing! Just simply because i am back to this remote land of the world. I am back to Algeria! A land where i have all the time in the world to do anything i wish.... well not anything because there are so much things that i could not do here. Things like shopping, movies going or even fancy dining are impossible here because there are simply unavailable.

Well to flip the coin, it's kind of a good chance for one to really take things slowly and try to enjoy ones life rather than being eaten up by all the seduces in a modern world. What best is for me, it is the best time to learn to be patience and tame my temper.

I have been listening to someone here complaining about how bad and suck life in Algeria is and i am getting really irritated being with him. There are times when i wished to tell him to just shut up and try to at least look at the bright side of everything. When life throws lemon at you, would you just suck them up and whine or make lemonade out of them? Hiss!

I guess i could come to terms with whatever changes in my life. One thing though, i still cant believe i did not bring over Cofi with me this time. Having her with us the last time makes it rather difficult to not have her here with us now. It is like something is missing. Somehow i still think that she is lying on the floor, hiding in some corner of the room. Sigh... i missed her so badly! Have been dreaming about her a lot too!

So.... the next best thing to do is to arrange for her to come over. Working in progress now! Wish us luck!

The Love of Our Lives -Jeff Chang In Action 2

One more, before i call it a day - 過火，Overboard.

The Love of Our Lives -Jeff Chang In Action 1

And the best way to be reminisce again is to listen to Jeff's beautiful voice via one of my favorite songs “不要對他說”

The Love of Our Lives

It's no one but the great Jeff Chang!

I was introduced to Jeff Chang by Jess  during our primary or perhaps, secondary school days. It was a time when music tapes were still in use and very much savored. It was a time when i will saved money just so that i could buy one of my many favorite Jeff Chang's tapes at one time. Sometimes, i got lucky if my father decided to venture into a music store. There i will have the chance to pick out and buy another album of him that i would really want to have. It was also a time when Jess and i would listened to his songs in either mine or her room and then we carefully read into the lyrics. It was also a time when we had daydreams of him. haha

And this year, lucky us because we got to see him in person in Genting. So before i even came back from Algeria, Jess had already bought his tickets. We were thrilled and cant wait to go to his concert. And of course there are many others like us who listened to his songs while growing up and love him as much as we do. The tickets were all sold out within days!

So on 2nd October, we dressed up in our best and took a taxi up to Genting 4 hours before the show because we didnt want to be stuck in the jam later. For me, i was a little nervous as well. What if the concert didnt turn out as good as i expected? What if his voice is not as lovely as his album when he sings live? What if there are a lot of empty seats in the stadium? That will truly breaks his heart! 

So after a really quick dinner, finally it was time for the concert we have been anticipating for such a long time. Silly me! All me previous worries were just unnessary, the stadium was full and people were cheering and shouting for the concert to start! And from where we were seated, we were pretty close to the stage and had a fantastic view of the stage. Well done Jess for picking such great seats.

And the concert started! The crowd went crazy! Jeff Chang looked amazing for his age! In fact, we thought he didnt age that much really. Jeff didnt do anything fancy but just did what he did best. His voice is still as soothing as ever. His live performance was effortless and errorless. He just filled the stadium with his famous songs continuously. And while he was singing all his famous songs, i was almost tearing. His songs actually brought me walking down my memory lane again. There was a sense of fulfillment in my heart. 

After so many years, Jess and I are still his huge fans. We could still sing his songs loudly from all the embedded lyrics in our hearts. I was telling Jess that his songs still melts my heart so much that i would have do anything for him! There would be nothing that i will not do for him. Hahah

It was truly a night that i will remember for the rest of my life.

House of Loves!

Yep, finally i am back in action to my blogging world. Well had been really really lazy for the past weeks and although i have things that i wanted to blog, there was not enough inspirations or motivations in me. Hahah, anyways i was just plain lazy.

Last saturday, the church where my mum goes to every weekend had a jumble sales. She had been busy with this event for a couple of weeks now asking for people to donate anything that are no longer useful to them, just anything...clothes, shoes, books, magazines, electronic stuff...... Then she was busy going around to hand out flyers regarding the jumbo sales. Poor mum had to walk up stories of the apartments near the church in order to hand out the flyers.

She had also told us so many times to make sure that we will be there to support her mentally but most importantly, to help her buy some stuff secretly. Now the church "forbids" their members to buy anything from the jumbo sales because the intention was to sell those cheap things to the public that need them more.

However, the church also managed to get factories to donate soya sauce, herbs soup packets and etc that are really good and selling them at a really cheap price. Being a cook in the kitchen sometimes, my mum could not pass this golden opportunity to buy all those ingredients she will be needing in the kitchen. Hence i became the important person under this circumstance. I was asked to go there, pretend to be interested in the jumbo sales, but instead is a spy in disguised and my main job will be buying what my mum needs. And so i went.

So after my job was done and safely placed in the car, i went venturing the sales to satisfy my curiosity. The first floor was where the "real" sales was. There were just everything you could think of. Clothing for women, men and kids, shoes, magazines, books, toys, electronic stuff and even kitchen utensils. While my mum was busy showing her friends the clothes that she thought was a must-buy, i went around snapping photos just for fun.

My mum's friend brought along her grandson and was too tied up by him that she had no time to look into the clothes. So in order to divert his attention, my mum decided to bring him tour the toys section which his grandmother had been avoiding ever since they arrived. So i saw them walking into the room, and within 30 seconds they were out!

And he was happily holding a box of new toy he found. Boy, isnt that fast!? And you think the kid will stay quietly and wait for his grandmother to finish shopping?? Nay! Wrong! He grew even more impatient and wanted to go home asap so he could play with his new toys! So strategy diverting-kid's-attention-with-new-toy failed miserably! hahaha

While i was walking around snapping pictures, i saw these and they sure do look familiar! I totally forgotten i have given them to the church some time ago. The old home to my fishes and hamsters! hahah... well too bad i heard that they were left untouched and unsold at the end of the day. I guessed they have priced them too high.

Of course, how could i not take photos of the sisters and brothers of the church who have enriched my mum with a plenty of laughters and made her life more colorful and joyous right?

As for me, at the end of the day, besides being the personal shopper and photographer to my mum, i didnt get myself anything. However, just before i decided to leave, i came across a cute white kitty and fell in love with her. So i decided to adopt her placed her with my mum because she adores the kitty too. And in return, the kitty decided that she will guard mu mum's room while she is away during the day....

Haha i am just kidding! Miss Cofi Chen would have bully the kitty and turn the house into a mess if that was true. All i bought was a kitty door-stopper.

But hey, it sure does look like a kitty is waiting by the door aint it?