My Best Friend

My best friend

28th March 2006
They say 10 fingers are too many if you count the number of true friends you've got when you reach your 30s..
Well, I couldn't agree more
And she (see picture) is definitely a friend finer than most human i have known and befriended.

Apologies to all my human friends.

Cheers.

So much, so little

21st March 2006

So much to do
so little time to do it

So many headaches
On one head

Maybe that's why they say
Two heads are better than one.

Cheers

Stormed

Stormed

13th March 2006

Flooded, stormed,
In the wake of a string of disasters

Torrential wind flung in different directions,
Rain gushed down

Fear,
and anxiety...

Destruction,
then rebuilding.

Anger and resentment
Questions...

Run

Run

9th March 2006

He ran as fast as he could, up the slope
His tiny blue sandals flapped as he sprinted on the green grass
Pushing himself, he reached the trees at the horizon
Heart thumping fast, gasping for breath..

The triumph of being first
The wait for the rest of his cousins to catch up
Praises of how fast and agile he was rang through his ears
The smiles on the face of the adults..

These are my memories...

Horizon

Horizon

2nd March 2006

Maybe the time is near,
Horizon is clear

Traffic below is manic,
Rise above the panic

The winding road, hard and dry
below the light blue sky

Is it really time to shovel
or really to throw the towel ?

Dead minds shrink alike...

Lion Dance

Lion Dance

6th February 2006
The lion roared into our office today, bobbing its head to the rhythm of drums and cymbals aloud.

Albeit 2 hours late, it still created quite a ruckus among us.
We still welcomed the Lion with much spirit and happiness!

Cheers!

Happy Dog (Y)Ear

Happy Dog (Y)ear

"May the dog ears flap merrily this year"

The dogs are barking at the dead of the night...
The neighbour is quarelling over some issues...

Its going to be one of those worrying time again,
How to be happy, enjoy the moment, live the now,etc..
Life...

Anyway, since its Chinese Lunar New Year;
the year of the dog,
let the doggone past be gone;
and try, at least try, ok - - to celebrate.

Happy Lunar New Year to all, and the dogs too.

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

Do you remember, Ravi ?

17th January 2006

It was the year 1976.
My first experience of school.
My first found friend, best of friend.
A curly-haired, dark and skinny boy -- straw in his mouth, sipping 'coca-cola' from a plastic bag.

30 years later.

It was 12:03 pm, a hot afternoon.
A tall chap in his bright red shirt stood across the street looking at me.
Off we went for lunch -- just as we did together in the school canteen.

Cheers.

Karmic Knot

6th Jan 2006
An important, week-long holiday loomed in the corner without a single plan. Decisions, decisions.

Extended karmic learnings from 2005
When you fail to resolve a karmic-knot within tolerable time;
and no matter how many knots you get in a year,
You patiently face it till the knots' time is up;
because like you, each karmic-knot has its lifespan too.

If you still cannot wait that long,
Then the knot waits till your time is up.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Last weekend was spent in a vegetable-like manner. Drowsy most of the time.
Soul was distinctly felt alienated from the body; creeping into the heart to hide away.
Feels good , though slightly melancholic.

Happy Contemplating.

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Some of you stumbled upon this blog while looking for chicken rice recipes. (not surprising)
So I thought I should at least have my favourite Hainanese Chicken Rice recipe here.

Hainanese chicken rice recipe, adapted to my personal preference.

Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:

Chicken:1 whole chicken, about 3 pounds
1 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, peeled
4 slices fresh ginger, peeled
4 scallions, trimmed
about 12 cups water
2 tablespoons sesame oil
sliced tomatoes (garnish)
sliced cucumbers (garnish)
cilantro sprigs/coriander (garnish)

Chicken Rice:
2 cups long-grain rice
2 tablespoons peanut oil
5 shallots, peeled and minced
5 cloves garlic, minced
3-1/2 cups reserved stock from cooking chicken
1/2 teaspoon salt

PREPARATION:
Wash chicken and remove excess fat. Rub the inside of the cavity with salt.
Smash garlic and ginger slightly with the flat of a knife. Tie scallions into a knot.
Place garlic, ginger, and scallions inside the chicken cavity.
Bring the water to a boil in a pot large enough to hold the chicken.
Add the chicken, breast-side down.
Simmer, covered, 30-40 minutes, turning chicken halfway through the cooking process, until chicken is done (juices from thigh should run clear when pricked with a fork).
Carefully remove chicken, draining liquid from body cavity back into the pot.
Reserve the stock to make chicken rice.
Plunge the chicken into ice water for 5 minutes to stop the cooking process and tighten the skin. Drain, rub with sesame oil, and let cool to room temperature.
To serve, chop chicken into bite-size pieces (the Chinese do this bone and all) and arrange on a platter.
Garnish with sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, and cilantro sprigs.

To make the chicken rice, wash the rice and drain in a colander. Let stand 1/2 hour to dry.
Heat oil in a wok. Add the shallots and garlic. Stir-fry until fragrant. Add rice grains and stir-fry 3-4 minutes, until glossy and fragrant.
Transfer to a saucepan.
Add the chicken broth and salt.
Bring to a boil over high heat and boil until the liquid level evaporates to the level of the rice and steam holes appear.
Turn heat to low.
Cover and simmer 40 minutes. Serve with Hainanese chicken.

Serve with Chili Sauce

Chili Sauce recipe
INGREDIENTS:
About 2 ounces fresh red chilies, seeded1 ounce garlic, peeled1 ounce fresh ginger, peeled3 to 4 teaspoons lime juice1/2 teaspoon salt

PREPARATION:Combine chilies, shallots, garlic, and ginger in a food processor or blender and process to a paste.

Enjoy!

True essence of your existence

True essence of your existence

When you are really sick or suffering, when you feel you are at the edge of your life, remember..

"Your body is not the true essence of your existence;
Think of the snow flakes falling freely, its temporary form..
.. is ever changing." - I read this 25 years ago without understanding what it meant.

"The true essence of this life that you are living is the soul." I now think I understand what it meant but still do NOT see or own the knowledge like it's mine - even though I am closer to this body than anyone else I know.

Blessed may we be.

(My) Lady in Red

My Lady in Red

"Is this ok ?", she quipped as she stood facing me.

She wore a fitting bright red jacket, unbuttoned.
Under it was a sweet, cream dress with miniature flower imprints.
The bright red, the fit at her waist, the flower buds on the soft cream... So sweet, so nice.

"So sweet , so nice. If I have a camera..", I said.

Cheers.

Horrendous weekend work schedule

8th November 2005

Horrendous weekend work schedule

Two more horrendous, continuous weekend work schedule..
..that's what I need to spice up my life.

We need healthier lives. We do.

Inner wants, outer wants

21st October 2005.

Inner wants, outer wants.

Desires can be categorised widely into two categories.

Those we can understand and hence more openly discussed (eg desire to own a bigger house) and those we cannot easily understand or discuss (desire for enlightenment, psychological freedom, sexual desires, etc).

Desires, however are not so clear-cut all the time - many lie somewhere in between "easily understood" and "totally out of our mental grasp".

We shall call materialistic and easily understood desires ''Outer desires" and inner and less easily understood desires ''Inner desires'' for ease of further reading.

Inner desires tend to pile-up in our minds more so than outer desires because we mentally slip them under the mental carpet when we have difficulty dealing with them.

Under the mental carpet (or we call the subconscious mind), complex layering of these desires creates a mesh of mental pattern. When the pile-up is not slowed down, a mental mess of desires produces frustrations, emotions, ego and various other side effects.

Cravings for material items and materialistic actions can be symptoms of unfulfillment of outer, materialistic desires. Such unfulfilled can be the result of deeper, unfulfilled inner desires.

. . .

Enough of mental knotting for today,
Cheers.

Dead Rat

18th Oct 2005

Rat dead.
A bloody incident.
1 hour.
A stick in hand within an enclosed room.
Occassional spraying of insecticide.
Dead.
Bloody dead.

It deserved it, that bloody rat.

Rat-faced boy

17th August 2005

Rat-faced boy.

The rat faced boy was asking for trouble again last week.

My level of tolerance rose again that day. I have gained a new level of patience for that rat-faced french when he started hurtling offensive and abusive words at me.

After a continuous bombardment of offensive words, I decided to cut that rodent off its trail of offensive biting and chewing of facts right off his stinking and foul mouth. I roared at it, leaving the jutted teethed rodent squirming '.. you don't have to shout at me...'

I guess he seriously need to chew on some warfarin.
That rotten rat !

16th Sept 2005

16th Sept 2005

Hare Krishna!
Dear Lord Krishna, the Lord of the Universe
Please be merciful on this tiny soul trapped in this body i call mine

I sense some peace
after 11 hours of tense headache
since 8 in the morning today
And it will all start over again, next monday

Dear Lord Krishna
My blue Krishna boy
I seek only your protection from the mess,
the stress..

Hare Krishna.

Being human beings.. frustrated, dissatisfied lot

FDL - Frustrated, dissatisfied lot

The internet line had been pretty slow and congested all day long.
Contacted the local ISP (Internet Service Provider) but they took time to solve.

My boss came stomping to our department and started lashing his tongue like a green eyed monster gone beserk.

When things went smoothly, nobody bothers.
Once a speck of dust gets into their way, hell break loose.

The frustrated and dissatisfied lot...
Being human beings, its simply understandable...

Goose in Hand

A new idiom for my dear wife.

"A wild goose in hand is worth a flock chased around the bush".

Adapted from the wild goose chase and bird in the bush idioms, inspired by the Wild Goose Qigong.

Please guide us, Lord Krishna

Please guide us, Lord Krishna

Dear Lord Krishna

My humble obeisances unto You, the Lord, the Begining and End of Everything,
The One and Only Who Controls and Orchestrates everything;
Words and expressions cannot measure up to the awe and respect my tiny soul has for You.
My utmost respect and obeisances unto You, My dear Lord Krishna.

Again,
My Lord, i thank You for all your care, comfort and special attention you have showered,
i know that i do not deserve it, though i need and beg You for it,
Thank You my dear Lord Krishna.

My dear Lord, again, i am begging You
to guide and shower me with Your will, Your care, comfort and your so special attention,
As You already know, i feel pressurized by the future, which is in Your total control,
against so many comments and opinions and i only hope to thrive in the comfort of You,
Therefore my dear Lord Krishna,
Please do guide me within Your flawless plans which is sanctioned by You,
Through me and my wife as Your instruments may we receive, nuture, love and be loved in the coming of a baby boy this year.

Hare Krishna