good ol' days

these days my eyes would automatically flicker and shut without my 'consent' in the afternoons while watching DVD..and after a few days of those naps, i had headaches which wouldn't go regardless of what i did. i tried drinking cups of water (thinking i did not get enough oxygen, coz i'm really lazy to drink water), i tried to lie down less than the usual (that's all i do most of the time), and i tried to be outside of the house to get some fresh air and maybe rest my eyes from the telly.

the worse headache was over now, but i'm not taking chances if possible. so i'm trying to at least not fall sleep in the afternoons (failed that one again, today :p). fortunately i just felt uncomfortable, and did not get any headache. then i decided to do some kind of exercise, just to sweat a lil bit.

i raked the dried grass around the compound, well yes i missed some parts :p. but i think i did great, especially since it's been years since i last raked the compound. it was really hot being so close with the burning grass, so i moved closer to the betel nut tree.

i looked up to it and remembered the time when it was not that tall. i used to be able to reach the betel nuts that hung by the bunch, and was really fascinated by the deep red color when they're ripe. it's not that i ate them or anything :p

i recalled that when i was in elementary school, i did a number of miniature gardens by myself. i always picked  (or rather plucked) the flowers that were blooming, those deep red betel nuts, and used whatever small containers i can find to make the ponds and arches (talk about recycling stuff :p). there were also times when me, my siblings and the neighbour's kids had so much fun catching dragonflies..trying to see who's fast enough to catch them. and when i did, i'd pretend that the dragonflies were animals on display..and the miniature gardens will be miniature zoo this time.

i miss those carefree days, and running around like crazy.

pictures googled

get moving

i just got back home the day before yesterday after the tiring-but-awesome trip. imagine sitting down for the whole journey from Melaka to Kelantan, 10-11 hours with a few short stops. felt like i turned 50 overnight :p

we started off around 6.30 in the morning on Tuesday and made our way to the East Coast. the trip was meant for my sister who was called for an interview by USM. a few weeks back she sat for a written test and apparently she was shortlisted for the interview.

my mom was a bit put off by the distance, but she gave in after her colleagues told her to let my sister try her hands in the interview. it was a short notice and thinking that it was on a weekday, i was prepared to go there with my sister if my parents couldn't take any leave from work. i've been dying to go to Kelantan for so long, and would have been there long before if not for the long traveling hours.

we had breakfast at Muadzam shah and continued the journey to Terengganu. i am really not in favor of the roads, and if not for the great things on the other side i'd rather not go on another trip that use those narrow roads. please make a real highway from Segamat throughout the East Coast. but then i guess we couldn't see those awesome views like now, right? owh, and i'd love to have a stop in Besut and enjoy the beach plus the architecture, but we didn't have a lot of time.

after we arrived in KB in the evening, we checked in our room and decided to go around the town. it'd be a waste to stay in the room after the 10 hours we spent in the car.

first, we went to Wakaf Che Yeh but the sellers have just started to set up their stalls. so we decided to try our luck for Bazaar Buluh Kubu. alas, they were already closed when we found the place. we turned back and tried to find Wakaf Che Yeh again using the GPS and the worst thing happened. the GPS led us into a residential area with smaller-than-veins lane. we continued to follow it's instructions thinking probably it's a shortcut or something, while saying it's weird all the time. after some time and a few wrong turns later, my dad asked a couple of teenage boys we saw and thankfully they told us the right way out from there. so much for the help, dear GPS.

then, found Wakaf Che Yeh again and we walked amongst the endless stalls of clothes, shoes and accessories. mom was actually there for food and i was too tired to look at other things. we were content with the Nasi Kerabu, Akok and Pulut Dakap that we finally found :p the Akok and Nasi Kerabu was delicious. i think that the Nasi Kerabu was a bit too pricey though, especially when another stall sells it's Nasi Kerabu for only RM2. we had to pay RM12 for two packets of rice with a piece of chicken, one medium size fish, one solok lada and a bit of Kerabu Sotong.

the next day, we started early again coz my sister's interview was scheduled at 8.30 am. we packed all our belongings coz the initial plan was to head back home on that very day. we arrived around 8 at USM and there were a lot of students, of course they don't have the same semester break like other courses. after the registration, my sister was told that there would be three stages; interview, screen test and quiz. the officer said that the sessions ended around 2 pm, the day before. so we left her there and went to town.

the first stop was Pasar Siti Khadijah. there were a lot of keropok, serunding, budu and everything else. almost every stall was manned by ladies and they'd call out to you the moment they saw you coming their way. of course we had to have breakfast Kelantan style. after walking to and fro coz every stall seems to have yummy food, me and mom opted for Nasi Kerabu, while dad and my brother chose Nasi Dagang. again, they were scrumptious. this time they're cheap, four plates of rice with condiments plus solok lada, salted egg, fish, chicken and chunks of meat was only RM11. we stopped by a stall selling Akok and Baulu. but the one at Wakaf Che Yeh was better. it had more eggs and was more fragrant.

owh one thing i noticed was the green chillies in Kelantan are in a different tone of green than the usual. i wonder why.

with our full tummy, we seek out keropok and other stuff we can find there. then, came Bazaar Buluh Kubu's turn. it was starting to feel hot, lucky mom picked out a place with fans. we spent the longest time at Diana Batik and got somewhat lucky being the first customer of the day. after we were done with shopping, we took some pictures..

mom watching a lady painting batik

as the temperature was sizzling, and my brother wanted to spend the rest of the time waiting for my sister in some place cooler we headed to KB Mall. for those who can recall, it was the place where the tragedy of a car which crashed from the rooftop of the mall and killed two Masterskills' students. the area was closed and there were still repair works going on.

my sister was done by 1 pm and we decided to head back to Kuantan. we arrived there and went straight to have dinner. i was so happy i could eat at Sara Thai Kitchen again :) we ordered Tomyam, the Squid Tempura, Kerabu kangkung, Chicken with cashew nuts and other dishes. i think the Tomyam that i had on the first visit was better tho.

that was the end of the really short trip to Kelantan. i'd like extra time when i go there next time around.

vying for the prizes

the media should do something about the programs shown on the telly these days. those that entertain are becoming scarce and the stuff worth watching are mostly reruns of the yesteryears. it's hard to keep my attention on the lackluster performance of the actors and actresses, mainly local..and you'd find me flipping through the channels endlessly. and how long do you expect me to be satisfied with just reruns? it's like hooking me up with a life support machine when you already killed me with all the bore accumulated from watching those monotonous actings.

the same goes with reality TV shows like AF, the longer they are around the less quality they have. and by now, the worth watching seasons have long since gone. pardon me, but i'm never a big fan of reality TV shows. be it Survivors, American Idol, or even The Biggest Loser..they failed to attract me. I agree that American Idol can discover a lot of new talents, but i'd rather wait after they win the contest than have constant headaches choosing who's better than others :p

for me, game show like Who Wants to be a Millionaire is much, much better than those reality TV shows. we can concentrate on their skills, capabilities or maybe luck..rather than their antics that sometimes are just a front. a facade to attract us into liking them or maybe put sympathy in the picture and make us vote for them, like with the reality TV shows. i disagree with the voting system, because i think talents should be judged by professionals and not by audiences or fans which could be biased.

and i still remember one of my favorite game shows, Supermarket Sweep. well, i couldn't even recall the name actually..it's been years since i last watched it. but i did recall the fact that i've always wanted to play in the game show. for those who have no idea about the game show, there would be teams of two..competing in a supermarket. they would first guess the retail price of a grocery item and then have a shopping spree, putting everything possible in their cart during the allocated time. and, they get to keep the stuff they picked up during the game..cool. there were even bonus rounds, and one i remembered was when they had to assemble sandwiches on tables with checkered tablecloths.

what can possibly be better than getting paid for doing what you love best, right? anyone needs a personal shopper? ;)

picture taken from here

more than what i imagined

the weekend came and ended swiftly that it left me breathless. i was hoping that i could stay and revel in that period of time forever, but great moments always left you in a hurry. who can explain that? and the uneventful ones seem to drag on forever..*sigh*

i agreed to go meet my friend in KL last saturday, to spend some time together. we are always busy (what else?), and she's one of my most treasured friends among the whole load i've gained throughout my life. the last time we met, i was still studying in the Shah Alam campus..which was like centuries ago :p both of us were not from there, but it seems that it would be our meet-up point from then on. and i'm totally glad we did that, coz she's one of those people that i'll be glad to compare notes with.

she picked me up at KL Sentral and we headed on to Midvalley. both of us weren't too keen on going to places packed with people, so we ended up having lunch at The Gardens' food court. i was thinking of having ayam penyet, but since we didn't know how it would turn out both of us had fried rice from the Thai station. then we went around - i saw Thomas Sabo's outlet, it was closed from view and wished it was already open..is it new? - to look for her nephew's Ben10 action figure.

then we went to Miss Selfridge and while my friend was trying on clothes, i took some photos ;p

after we've had enough of the crowds, we decided to go elsewhere and chose One Utama coz it's near to her place. we had a great time in Forever 21, and even tried on the rings displayed. then we stopped by Coach coz she had her eyes on the new Poppy collection, which had just arrived that day. there was this guy who approached us, but i was not in favor of his manners even if he's kinda cute. imagine talking with your clients or customers, anybody at all..while munching. he was enjoying his food that he didn't stop to swallow quickly or made himself presentable before us. he was wearing a suit and groomed to perfection, but the munching part..made him failed, big time. some points for the time spent for us though..

we stopped by a few other places before willing to submit to our aching legs and tired bodies. we decided to hang out at a coffee place and have a rest, before we saw a group of people transporting a load of Milo goodie bags. thanks to my friend who insisted that we go and check it out. we saw some registration counters and lined up.

apparently it was some kind of event that has Nestle as one of the sponsors. we just had to use our Mykad to register and get a form for stamp pads. then we can go around the booths and taste everything from cereals, yogurts, mashed potatoes to beverages. it was really fun and yummy, and when we went to collect our goodie bag, we were full to the brim and decided to skip the coffee place.

the goodie bag

then we went back to her place. we even watched the movie Paranormal Activity before sleep, and it was really scarry. i even imagined the door that moved by itself and the footsteps..everything. fortunately i was exhausted and didn't take long to sleep.

the next morning we went to Giant near her house for groceries, getting some stuff in bulk for her sister who's away from the country. then we went to get an Italian B.M.T each and decided to hang out at Pappa Rich coz the staff at the Subway outlet were gossipping and we didn't feel like eating there. i had White Coffee at Pappa Rich and it was so nice, i couldn't really decide if Old town's or Pappa's version is better. we also shared Roti bakar susu there, and it was yummy..it was too sweet though.

us with shiny faces :p

after lunch, she sent me to KL sentral and i went on to Pudu from there. it was too soon though, i wanted more time with her..huhu. we have some thing in mind and hopefully we could make it come true ;)