LookOut Point On Lowland

CoolTeen had a replacement drums class on Sunday after dinner, so after we dropped him off at the music school, the 3 of us (hubby, PreTeen and I) decided to have some dessert while we wait for him.

We thought we would try the Island Red Cafe at Mahkota Cheras but after we parked and had a look at the menu we realised that they don't serve any kind of dessert at all...just main meals and drinks. So we went over to the newly-opened LookOut Point next door.


They have some ice-cream on the menu so I had 3 scoops of mint ice-cream while hubby and PreTeen shared a banana split. The banana split looked rather strange but PreTeen didn't have any complains about the taste. My mint ice-cream was good and I finished it all before remembering to take a photo of it!


We have been to the LookOut Point up on the hilltop and love that place for its cool air and lovely view of the city.

Here's the view from the outlet in Mahkota Cheras...


Highway view...

And a strange sign in the toilet... shouldn't toilet paper go into the toilet bowl after we wipe ourselves?

About Dogs and Cats

A very closely related blogger, mikokim, had a very enlightening article 'Dog and Cat' on his blog recently. It has been a rather stressful few years dealing with the teenage angst of CoolTeen and keeping a blog has been a great way to de-stress. After reading the article I finally realised why I seem to be banging my forehead against the wall or tearing out my hair in frustration every so often...I have not realised that my once adorable 'little puppy' has turned into an 'old cat' and I have been treating the 'old cat' like a 'dog'...now I finally get the picture...a real flashbulb moment for me! You must read the article to know what I'm talking about!



Now I can start behaving like a cat owner instead...what a relief to finally know what to do and what to expect! I am no longer clueless!

The next thing I'm dreading is that I already have a 'little kitten' (one who always had a mind of her own) who's on the verge of entering her teenage years sooner than I had hoped...will she turn into an 'old cat' too like her older sibling, or (fingers crossed!) into a 'dog'? I don't know how I'm going to handle having 2 'old cats' around the house!

Right now my 'old cat' is sulking in his room because he didn't have his way.

Being a parent is really not an easy task...sigh...but it's not without its rewards! At least it's heartening to know that if I treat the 'old cat' right, he will one day turn back into a loyal 'dog'.

Guess What's This

I took this photo a few days ago...can anyone guess what it is?


Here's another view of it.

CLUE: Not snow, picture taken in Malaysia

New Batch Of Garbage Enzyme

My second batch of garbage enzyme was ready a few days ago. The first time was a trial and I made only litre. I was so impressed by the cleaning power of this enzyme that I made 2 litres this time (I only have 1 litre containers).

I made 2 types, one with vegetables and a little lemon peel, and the other with just fruit peel...pineapple and lemon. I tried using only vegetable odds and ends at first but it ended up producing so much gas that I had to open the bottle every few hours to release the gas so that my plastic container wouldn't explode! In the end I just poured it away.


after 3 months of fermentation the liquid should be brown and have a light pleasant fragrance


strain it with a sieve


...or use a thin piece of cloth


label the bottles so that nobody accidentally drinks them!


my precious bottles of cleaning enzyme :)

15Malaysia Short Films

There was an article in The Star newspaper today about 15Malaysia - 15 short films by local filmmakers, and being a fan of short films I decided to go to the 15Malaysia website to have a look. I haven't finished watching all of them yet (some are funny, others are thought-provoking), but this is one of the first few I watched and it really cracked me up...

Sibling Rivalry

My kids have this sibling rivalry thing going on and it drives me up the wall when they start calling each other names. I always seem to be reminding them to be nice to each other. At times they are like the best of friends and other times they act like worst enemies.

I know I wasn't the nicest sister to my 2 brothers, but we grew up and now we get along fine...but of course, it's hard not to resist a little friendly teasing now and then. So I suppose sibling rivalry never really ends, does it...? :D

Enzyme Drink Gone Mouldy

My apple enzyme drink which is still in the fermentation process has gone mouldy after 1 week. I was really careful to dry all the apples and lemons, as well as the glass bottle, before making the enzyme drink. So sad.

On a brighter note, my cactus plants are doing very well because I have been using my garbage enzyme as fertiliser. This is my first batch of cactus that are still alive after 4 months...! (big grin)

Using Phone While Driving

Have you ever driven behind a car whose driver is holding his handphone to his ear while driving and he's either going very slow or hogging the middle of the road, and driving you nuts because he's paying more attention to his caller than to his driving? I have, almost every day...and I can't understand why people always assume that a phone call is always more important than other motorists on the road. A phone call can be returned but a life can't, true?

Worse still is texting while driving...take a look at this video of a girl who thinks that it is cool to do so. Dr. Phil (has his own talk show in the US, and is known for being honest and frank) really put things into perspective at the end of the video.



For those of us who own a handphone and drive a car, here is a VERY graphic video produced by the Gwent Police Department in Britain which will make us think twice when that phone rings while we are driving (video not recommended for kids).

I'm Not So Brave

I have always thought of myself as brave. Whenever there's a lizard or cockroach in the house and my kids are on the sofa with their feet up, they can always rely on mom to get rid of the pest. I have gone through labour twice without any painkillers, I have changed the smelliest diapers that would make anyone throw up their lunch or dinner, and guess who hubby calls out to when he discovers a half-eaten rat on the porch courtesy of the neighbourhood cat? But I must admit, the only thing that scares me is being on a roller-coaster ride...that is until my kids start to drive!

Went to Nando's with my lunch buddy MK and her little daughter last Thursday. I seldom go to Nando's because my kids don't enjoy the food there...they find it rather spicy, even the mildest flavour. For a meal of chicken they would rather go to Kenny Rodger's.

I decided to not to try anything too spicy and guess what I was labelled for not being very adventurous with my choice of chicken...

ouch!

The meal was good and I enjoyed my grilled vegetables and salad. I wanted some warm water but they only served room temperature mineral water...minus points for that!



Perhaps I would be 'a little braver' the next time I eat at Nando's...or maybe I would just set my mouth on fire with the extra hot Peri-Peri...just maybe... (trying to soothe my bruised ego)

My Cake So Ugly

My friend MK bought this book Easy Stir 'n Bake Cakes by Kevin Chai from Popular Bookstore and in her kitchen we tried one of the recipes, the Sweet Potato Cake, which turned out quite well. The pictures in the book look really good and on the cover it is printed 100% Success, so a few days ago I tried the Finger Treacle Cake.

Here is the picture from the book...looks pretty yummy, right?



Here is my version...




....ugly but doesn't taste too bad...!

Needless to say, my cake wasn't very popular...because of its appearance. Hubby and PreTeen only tried one slice each and I had to finish the cake all by myself...sigh.

Got Us Some 'Crocs'

Miss PreTeen loves to have thosai for breakfast at her favourite Mamak shop and we have been going out for breakfast for the past 3 days before school started again. On Sunday morning after breakfast we went to the roadside market to buy some pork ribs. Miss PreTeen saw a stall selling colourful Crocs sandals, and being a loyal fan of imitation Crocs (I don't buy her the original ones because her feet grow so quickly!), she wanted to have a look at them.


There was a small crowd at the stall and I heard people asking whether those were original Crocs sandals as they had the words CROCS on them and each pair came with a genuine-looking tag. The seller insisted that they were original but he was selling them cheap at RM30 a pair, 2 pairs for RM55...hmm, makes me wonder whether he's being truthful.


Miss PreTeen said that her pair of Crocs were getting a wee bit tight...hint,hint! Hubby tried on a few pairs, PreTeen tried on a few pairs...I tried on 1 pair and decided that they make my feet look like Donald Duck's. I like my footwear to fit snugly and I really hate for my feet to slide around in my shoes/slippers. Hubby decided to get a pair for himself and since it was cheaper to buy 2 pairs, Miss PreTeen got a new pair too...much to her delight!


hubby wanted brown ones, but they didn't have them in his size, so he settled for a gray pair



PreTeen's new pair of Crocs

When we reached home, I asked Miss PreTeen what she was going to do with her old, dirty but still wearable pair of Crocs...and she decided to let me have them.



Hubby cleaned them up with...of all things...dashboard cleaner, and they were a good as new.




So now I have a pair of clean pink imitation Crocs...minus all the little decorative pieces, of course! I still haven't worn them yet though...but people tell me they are really comfortable...

P.S. Besides going around looking at imitation Crocs, my latest hobby is selling handmade semi-precious stone jewelry. Do drop by my blog store to have a look :) http://trinket-boxjewelry.blogspot.com/