Merry Xmas

Ho Ho Ho, Merry Xmas! Have your Christmas wishes come true this year? If no,  dun fret, there's always next year :) This year I spent my xmas eve exercising and preparing home made brown rice sushi. No gift exchange within the family this year because we all feel that the Christmas feel isnt as much this year as compared to previous years. It seems a bit commercialized this year... Well, it was still nice to spend the day with loved ones. It doesnt matter what we do together because what matters is the companionship.
Anyway this year as xmas gifts, I received 1 skirt, 1 dress and 1 more bag shaped like a bag of popcorn still in the process of being shipped to me... Haha..

 Here's a pic of me in my xmas gift, a blue lace dress! It was just just fitting only loh. So please do not look
at my protruding stomach. I still pretty like it though :) cuz it's the thought that counts. Haha. Anyway I am sporting my new haircut, bob hairstyle it is. I really love short hairstyles because they are easy to maintain. Long haired ladies are a common sight, dun you think so? 

A photo collage of my beloved sisters with me during our recent date at paradise dynasty. I shall post about the food in a separate blog entry. Sister says my face looked really really smooth! She even asked for the brand of foundation I used. Anyway, I use Revlon photoready 2 way foundation. Face appears smooth cuz I dap the sponge lightly in water so as to allow the powder to seep into my pores... But close up my face still looks scary la. With the enlarged pores. There's only a limit as to what make up can do to your face, so still maintain a strict cleansing regime for long term effects.

To quote this fav phrase from lilo and stitch, Ohana means family and family means nobody gets left behind, or forgotten. I am truly blessed to be born in House of Toks. Thanks sisters!  

Merry Xmas once again :) We welcome boxing day tmr !

Rich & Good Cake Shop: The Best Swiss Roll in Singapore?

I have long wanted to head to kampong glam to try this renowned swiss roll, however it always seems a little silly just to travel to somewhere specially just to have swiss rolls. Luckily, I had the chance to taste it even without going to get it myself! Thanks to sis, I get to eat this really nice cake.
I must say: it really lives up to its name of being the best swiss roll in Singapore. I have eaten plenty of swiss rolls, from bengawan solo, polar puffs, neighbourhood bakeries but none taste like the one from Rich and Good Cake Shop..Anyway, probably due to its elevated status and also because of rising costs of ingredients, the price of the swiss roll has increased tremendously from $6 plus plus to $7.50 per roll. Sad leh, increase in price but portion wise it's still the same :( This swiss roll is long and skinny, around 30 cm long and 5 cm in diameter. It is really not that affordable a swiss roll, but it is really worth every penny!

The plainer the box and packaging, the better the contents. Haha.. my personal crappy theory. Notice the side of the box is designed as a name card for you to tear off. Very good idea. Saves the money for printing name cards. Save the earth.

The difference between  this and other swiss rolls is that you really get the whole swiss roll! No cutting away edges or trimming off the excess. I like this because it reduces wastage. Lots of bakeries throw away lots of excess cake! So wasteful ok. It is edible what. Why need to cut away just for aesthetic purposes. It looks like a fluffy pillow to me. Dun you think so? This isnt like other swiss rolls which are too dry or hard to swallow.  You know for some cakes right, the first mouth you put them in your mouth, then e next moment you have to rush to get a drink of water. Absolutely no such problem with this swiss roll. It's moist, fluffy and you will just want to have second or third helpings. It isnt too buttery or cakey like the rest of the swiss rolls I had. The kaya paste isnt the same as those you used to spread on your bread, the consistency of this is somehow like a light kaya cream. So dun expect really strong coconut taste in the kaya. However, I must say, it is definitely fragrant. Anyway, I tried this while it was being brought out of the refrigerator, not sure if it would taste the same if not refrigerated. Anyway you need to keep this refrigerated and consumed by 3 days. So delicious, I think 2 hours it would be gone! Haha..  

Even though this is really really sheer goodness, I wouldnt head down to ulu kampong glam just for it. Because this shop is really hard to locate! Thus, for someone who is extremely bad with directions, going there myself just for this is an absolute no. Unless I have someone who is good with directions then I dun mind la...  must leech on others. Haha.

Total Damage: $7.50 (per roll)

Overall Ratings: 5/5 stars. (My very first full marks!)
Rich & Good Cake Shop
24 Kandahar Street
Singapore 198887
Tel: 6294 3324

      

Product Review: Sexy Look Blackhead Pore Cleanser Set

I do not usually blog about beauty related stuff, but this time around, I cant help but to do it because the product I am introducing is really awesome! It has been in the market for quite some time but I only managed to try it last month and so far the results are promising each time I use it!
Ok, so excited to talk about this super duper amazing product from Taiwan... Drumrolls**

It's the Sexy Look Blackhead Pore Cleanser Set! It was first featured on this popular Taiwanese beauty talk show Ladies First (女人我最大）a few years back (so it isnt a new product in the Taiwan market but I think still quite new in Singapore?) but that wasnt how I learnt of its existence. I read about it on blogger queen Xiaxue's post on a random day and that got me curious about this product. This product is targeted at anyone who has issues with blackheads, whether male or female, old or young. BLACKHEADS! My long time nemesis. No matter how hard I try to remove them or how diligently I clean my face, they will always go back to my nose and cheeks in a week or two. Anyway, this is a peel off mask similar to Kose mask white (what I was using previously).

So this is how the set looks like. It retails at $29.90 from watsons (I can get it at $20.90, do contact me if interested! The set of three consists of  a deep sebum softener, sebum purifying mask and pore treatment essence.   

Okay so I'll briefly run through the instructions here (the instructions are written in chinese language, so not very user friendly for those who cant read chinese).
1. Apply a small amount of the deep sebum softener on cotton pad and massage it onto the areas you wish to target on (my problem areas are nose n cheeks, but if you have blackheads all over yr face, you can apply it all over yr face). Massage for 2 to 3 mins. This step is essential because the sebum softener softens your blackheads and sebum, making them easier to remove and be stuck onto the mask later on! So make sure you massage diligently. Dun be lazy ok!

2. After 2 to 3 mins when the massage is done, rinse your face with lukewarm water and dry it with a cloth. This is VERY VERY IMPORTANT because some girls forgot to rinse off the softener then later complain that the mask doesnt work.

3. Then apply the sebum purifying mask liberally onto the targeted areas and leave on for 20 to 30 mins till it dries. It smells like strawberry and it smells so good that I almost want to eat my nose. Okay gross. Haha....     
4. After it dries, this is my favourite part! Time to peel :). Slowly peel the mask from bottom to top.
WARNING: The following images may cause some discomfort, viewer's discretion is advised.

Can you see the yellowish stuff standing up ? Yes those are my blackheads or whiteheads or whatever you call it. Anyway, after peeling it off, the feeling is superb and I kept on staring at this. My 战利品... I think I am not the only one who does this. Most girls like to stare at it because they are intrigued by how wonderful this product is, at the same time being in awe by the number of blackheads that thrive on my nose. EEKS. I hate you, blackheads. Anyway, I purposely accumulated by blackheads for two weeks so that I can prove to you this product's effectiveness. Cuz usually I use this product once a week as that's how fast my blackheads "regenerate". If you have no idea whether do you have blackheads or not, just lightly touch your nose, if it's smooth, then congratulations! If not, time to get these dirty guys out of your pores. Another way is to shine a torchlight on your face. If you see tiny black dots, those are blackheads. It's easier to see your blackheads against light. You dun want these blackheads to stay in your pores for long, because the longer they stay, the  more clogged your pores become. Eventually when you remove them, your pores will get enlarged. Then you will need to go for laser treatment to shrink your pores.

Another pic! In case you havent gotten enough of them. I can literally stare at this thing for ages... haha.. Anyone with this fetish? Own up!

 

5. After you have peeled off mask, rinse your face with cold water, dry it and apply pore treatment essence onto a cotton pad and use it on your face. This erves to allow your opened pores to close. At this step, you might find it a little itchy but that's normal because your pores are closing. The itchiness goes away in about 2 to 3 mins.      

Pros: It can remove my stubborn blackheadsand it smells really really nice! Good for you if you love strawberries.

Cons: It can be a little painful to peel it off. My kose mask white wasnt as painful as this. However, kose mask white did not manage to dig out so many blackheads as compared to Sexy Look. Price is a little steep at $29.90. Instructions only in Chinese language.

I am looking forward to Wednesday because it's time to use this mask again :) Weekly ritual. Do give it a try if you have stubborn blackheads. 

冬至：吃汤圆，好团圆

今天是冬至，也是华人吃汤圆的节日，只可惜好多人都不跟随这习俗了。还好我们家是个传统之家，所以每一年这时期就要帮忙妈妈做汤圆。可是, 今年我却越帮越忙！我把面团弄成全红色，而非以往的一红一白。哈哈。。还好妈妈知道我是一番好心，所以不计较啦。

 

我就是这整盘萝卜色汤圆的罪魁祸首！

 

 妈妈说传统汤圆的汤底应该是红色的，而非白色/透彻。。。
你吃汤圆了没？要吃和今年岁数一样多哦！我吃了25颗小汤圆，足够让我免吃晚餐了！

The Chef In Me

These are some of the dishes I whipped up while Mom was away at sister's house. Yes, I am so proud of myself! I cooked dinner for two days in a week! Here's a look at some of the dishes...

 

Okay, this one is everyone's favourite and the simplest dish to cook yourself! I am sure most of us know how to recreate this dish without much difficulty...

 If you know me well enough, my favourite method of cooking is boiling. Just dump all the ingredients into one big pot and wait for them to be cooked! Hassle free and as easy as ABC. This is a pot of coriander-chikuwa-button mushroom soup. In case you have no idea what chikuwa is, it is a kind of fish cake. You usually eat it in steamboat/hotpot. For your info, my two stalks of coriander cost $1.95 because I couldnt find any in NTUC. It's $1.95 because it's organic and I got it from Cold Storage. Got a thrashing from Mom cuz it's almost triple of the price that she usually gets from the wet market. Oops.. Sorry loh cuz I am still a green horn and I dun go market so often.

 

Another basic dish. Stir fry vegetables with garlic. Lightly salted. I try to go low on salt since it brings out the original taste of the vegetables.  I wouldnt want the seasoning to mask out everything. 

 

Sister grumbled: where got people steam luncheon meat one? Haha.. That's me! I try to avoid using the oil as much as I can because I am afraid of oil spattering on my hands. 

 

This is no simple porridge! It consists of button mushrooms, dried mushrooms, anchovies, batang fish, ginger slices. Seasoning used include oyster sauce and dark soya sauce. It's simple to make because I just simmer it under low heat while the cooker does its job. 

Alright that's all for now! I think I can be a good housewife next time. Hehe. That's if I dun haf a husband who's darn picky about food of course.  

 

    

 

The Marshmallow Tree

I havent got enough of cafe hopping yet, so here I am, introducing yet another new cozy little cafe that's hidden between the HDB blocks, away from the hustle and bustle of the city area. This time around, we set foot to the Telok Blangah district after our second gillman barracks session. Anyway, this is the first time I went to this area! Ulu pandan area...  This hidden gem, The Marshmallow Tree cafe, might be a little hard to find since you have to go between the residential blocks and for someone as bad with directions like me, I might just miss this place totally. Lucky for me, Breadman was with me so I leave the navigation to him. Even if I have a map with me, I might not even get to the place too because my spatial orientation is that BAD. Ha. But last time I still aced my secondary school's geography exam! This is a classic case of not putting what I learnt into practice. Just memorize and regurgitate. Heh.
Once you stepped into the cafe, this huge domo welcomes you with open arms. 

Is he wearing an apron? I think so! Of course la, all cafe kitchen staff must wear aprons. Professionalism checked. I think I want to place one of these huge domos in my house next time.

 

The display cabinet. They serve a myriad of desserts including cakes, waffles, pastries etc. You will hear about this domo cup we had later.

                   Chalkboard style. Fanciful doodles. My kind of thing. 

Photographs adorn the white wall, I especially love the ceiling. It is designed to resemble clouds. Reach out for the sky! One thing that doesnt appeal to me about this place would be its sitting arrangement. It reminds me of my days in the secondary school when we have long benches in canteens. This is just the case, except that they have wooden tables and benches. The table width is too wide, so you cant really hear your companion well if you guys sat opposite each other. So breadman and I sat side by side, thought that might inconvenient others who wish to sit facing each other. But heck la,  I just want to chill out in this cafe. It's really awkward to sit really close to strangers. I cant help but to eavesdrop on this guy's conversation with his girlfren. Unless I treat that as white noise. It would really be better if the cafe can choose shorter benches/chairs that are not meant for sharing. I believe when u visit cafes with yr frens, you want to have some personal space and some nice conversation with your companion. It isnt nice to sit crammed on the benches with unknown strangers.

Alright, on with the food!

 According to online reviews, this is the cafe's specialty. A pity that the latte art of this Rose Latte ($4.50) doesnt appear existent. I still have yet to find a place with nice latte art! The bandung smell of this drink was pretty strong. It was average and not impressionable. 

The cafe offers you one roasted marshmallow on the house with every drink you order. We ordered the Rose Latte and Double Espresso with extra shot so we have two lovely marshmallows! Thumbs up for this little act of kindness/generosity as it makes customers remember the name of this cafe easily. I will probably say: Neh, the marshmallow cafe, the one with free roasted marshmallows, you can remember a not? That's how I will refer to this place to my frens. Haha. 

 

Frankly speaking, immediately when I saw its name, I know its a must order! So i dun care what it is. However, Domo Cup ($4.80) does not even have any association or resemblance to my beloved domokun :( I expected something brown, furry, probably with milo powder or cocoa or a cake in the shape of domokun. This was far from it. It consists of roasted marshmallows lying atop a mixture of biscuits and cream cheese, drizzled with strawberry or chocolate sauce (your choice). Breadman says its nice cuz he is a sucker for cheese. I only ate one mouth and all i tasted was the cheese. So I couldnt comment much.   

 

I had Waffles with Maple Syrup ($4.50) because I havent had lunch yet and this was the most filling item they serve. This was bad :( No fragrance, no sweetness, no crispiness. Not the kind that I like. My kind of waffles would be gelare or prima deli ones. Not that hard to please right? I heard from Miss Tamchiak that Wimbly Lu serves the best waffles! I shall check it out soon :) I do not blame the cafe for the substandard waffles because the cafe was only a few weeks old when we visited it, so I dun think their culinary skills are that polished yet. I shall visit it once more later on to see if they have improved! A good thing is their pocket friendly prices! Waffles priced at $4.50 would be hard to find in cafes. Gelare waffles are so much more expensive!   

This adorable marshmallow tree! I like the theme of the restaurant, but it would be better if they can inject more marshmallow "feel" into this place. For me, marshmallow means anything soft and fluffy and pastel colours.   

I wanted to stay in this place and chill for a longer time but due to space constraints, we were pressured to leave (not by the staff, but by customers who purposely linger around the benches). That's what happens when u only have long benches and not individual tables. So very sian! We only stayed for 45 mins. 

 Should have asked someone to help us take a photo while we were on the swing chair. Too bad sunday's crowd doesnt look that friendly :( most of them were students with stacks of notes, mugging for exams. So we didnt want to bother them. 

Took a selfie instead. Cant see the swing at all but we were really swinging on this bench. Haha. 

 I would go back to this place for its ambience and swing chair but not so for the food. 

Total damage: $18.60 for 2 pax

Overall Ratings: 3/5 stars

The Marshmallow Tree

46 Telok Blangah Drive

#01-85

Singapore 100046

Tel: 98521210

11/12/13

Did you check out today's date? It is 11/12/13! I love these dates with consecutive numbers. A pity that this only occurs once in a century! Such a good day to get married! Next time I shall have my wedding on such similar dates! Easy for wedding anniversaries cuz it's effortless to remember it. Happy 26th birthday breadman! Today is really a very special day!

No more riot free Singapore

If my memory does not fail me, I believe I wrote a similar title for a blog post a while back, when the Chinese bus drivers went on a strike. This time around, it is a more serious issue that resulted in many policemen and medical personnel being injured. A riot took place last night at 9.23pm at Little India. Never in my life would I imagine a riot to take place in present day Singapore.

Our brave policemen sustained injuries such as lacerations on their faces as well as cuts on their hands while carrying out their duties. Furthermore, police cars and an ambulance were overturned. The previous riots that Singapore had experienced were the racial riots that took place close to 40 years ago in 1969 (44 years to be exact). So, the 44 year riot free streak was broken yesterday by a few black sheep who started the ruckus. The source of all this? A 33 year old Indian National was run over by a private bus and had died from the accident.

In all, 400 people were involved in the riots. That's really a scary number! Kudos to the Singapore Police Force for their efforts in bringing the situation at Little India under control within a few hours. It must have been difficult for all the policemen, negotiators etc. It is disheartening to see some Singaporeans still spreading vicious rumours like wildfire via the social media. These people went on to say that the spf did not swiftly intervene, did not take action, did not do this, did not do that. My message to these people: if you arent there doing the crowd control yourself, please kindly keep your opinions to yourself. I seriously cant stand unappreciative fellow countrymen who love to find fault with everything; the transport system, the government, 6.9 million saga and now the riot at Little India. Isnt now the time that all Singaporeans should stand together, united as one? Excuse me, the police force has tried their best to contain the situation by acting swiftly, they did not use violence on the perpetrators when they easily could. No tear gas bombs were thrown, no water hoses were used. No taser guns. No firearms. If you think it is an easy job, please do it yourself, instead of typing insensitive and senseless comments on your keyboards and mobile phones.

 I know I shouldnt be saying this, but this saga has made me more xenophobic. I was already xenophobic when the bus strike occurred, now this incident is 10 times worse than that. I love my country and I cant tolerate it when there are people here trying to disrupt the peace and harmony that we have over the years. We took so long to attain what we have in our country, please do not rob us of that in just one night. Please respect our country. Bear in mind our culture, our way of living, our rules and legislation. When in Rome, live like the Romans do. Period.  

  

Our brave men at the forefront, unfazed. I am thankful for their emergency preparedness. Thanks spf for managing everything so that all of us can still sleep soundly in our beds.

The aftermath. Litter strewn all over. I am still in shock that this has happened to Singapore... the once peaceful Singapore :( give me my peace pretty please?         

Rest In Peace

Learnt of a neighbour's passing on yesterday and I was pretty shaken by it. Mom is very much devastated too as that was her very close fren. I was shocked because she was just at our house last week. She came to look for mom, who was not around as she went to sis's place to stay. Mom couldnt accept the news and she was hoping it was somebody else. It was tragic for mom because she only learnt about this when she went to the market on Saturday morning. To learn of your best fren's death through the gossipmongers isnt the best feeling ever. The last time mom saw her was on Friday morning, at the market. Later on at night, she passed on at the age of 66 years old. A rupture in the blood vessel was the cause. Her fav food was Mcdonalds... which we suspect to clog up her arteries. She wasnt fat at all, skinny frame. There should be a total ban on unhealthy food.  

She was this bubbly and petite auntie who lived on the third floor, who always observe the things that go around in the neighbourhood through her kitchen windows. Yes, she loved to peek out at her window, many hours a day. She knew the time we went out and when we returned, just by observing through the windows. Due to her petite frame, she earned a nickname: shorty kim (kim was her name). She was this really nice auntie, very friendly and she loved flowers. There were two things that she was fond of: buying 4D and flowers. Whenever she dropped by our house, she would never fail to comment about the flowers we have. My mom loves flowers and will regularly buy pots of orchids. The ironic thing was that before her death, she purchased a whole pot of flowers but they were not delivered to her house yet. It seems really sad that she never lived to see the flowers being placed at her house. I feel quite upset because I see her regularly, too frequent and we would always chit chat a little along the way. More often than not, her first question or comment was about my mom: is your mom back home? Is she working today? Do inform her about the 4D number I gave you. Yes, all about my mom. My mom was her best fren. I will always be grateful to her for helping and encouraging me during my lowest point in life. She brought me to her temple in which her son worked as a medium in the hope of making me recover quickly. She told me not to be scared, to have faith that I will be well one day. I will always remember her words. I will always remember those who treat me well. Her life is short, but I believe she is in a better place right now, in heaven, surrounded by angels. Yes, I believe the existence of a heaven and all good people will end up there, afterlife. It seems too surreal, too sudden. Referring to her using past tense makes me feel down because she is so full of life, so friendly.

Hey Auntie Kim, I walked past your funeral yesterday and I silently prayed in my heart that you would be relieved of your suffering while in the heavens. I am sorry that my dad and I are unable to send you off, but you are in our hearts. Thanks for being all concerned about me. I will get better. Thank you so much for all you have done, for my mom and me.... Mom lost you, but those memories would be etched in her mind. As of now, mom is still pretty upset but I guess she will be better... after all you are in a better place.       

Sigh. Life is really unpredictable, do treasure the loved ones around you. Quit the quarrels, embrace each other.