IW: Losing sanity
EW: Freezing
It's 10 to 11pm. We couldn't continue anymore. It was too tough and we had reached a point of absolute frustration. At that moment, a friend suggested going to Tesco NOW. And everybody just went along with the idea because we needed to do something crazy. So, with the temperature at probably around 7 degree celcius, we set out for the 20 minutes journey. It was a nice walk despite the weather.
Shopping at midnight is quite fun too. There were no crowd, no long lines, we can walk wherever we want. It was kinda cool, crazy but cool. The journey back was less pleasant as it was almost 12.30am and the weather had worsen. The walk past the lake was the worst as chilly wind blew past us. Nevertheless, it was a fun night. I couldn't believe that I would actually go along with this idea knowing that I have tonnes of unfinished work. I suppose studying does rob a person of some sanity ;)
Tuesday, 30 October 2007
Monday, 29 October 2007
Country girl in a big city
IW: Need proper rest
EW: Sometimes cold, sometimes just windy
After 2 hectic days, I am finally back in my little countryside. How I miss the comfort of my own room, the privacy of my own space, the peacefulness of the surrounding, the walk without human traffic. What happened, you ask? Well, I need to do a little rewinding.
It began with an innocent plan to surprise a friend on her birthday. It was also a good excuse to see London for the first time. So, I got my bus tickets online, boarded the bus on friday, arrived after 2 1/2 hours. The first view I got from the city was TRAFFIC JAM. Why am I not surprised? The traffic was not only cars but human too! At first, the roads we went into was rather empty (but still not as empty as my university). And then we discovered where the crowd went. They were swamping the shopping area i.e. Oxford Street!
The next human crowd to meet me was in the tube station. It was terrifying. People walking from all directions, left, right, up, down, diagonal...I felt like a sardine. After much pushing, we managed to board the train. Phew! My next horror began when the train was not stopping at the stop I wanted to. It was after going through the trip again that it dawned upon me the train will not stop at that particular station. Luckily, my friend still managed to find me or else I will be lost...sob, sob.
After dining at China China in chinatown, I followed my friend to her hostel (very kind of her to accommodate me. Special thanks!). Given my very busy schedule, I had no choice but to work in her room. At that moment, I felt like being in a movie set in New York. I can hear people talking 9-storeys below us, police sirens were everywhere. It was quite adventurous working in this kind of environment.
The next day was spent on surprising my another friend, wriggling our ways among the shoppers in Primark (these people have too much purchasing power), trying to avoid knocking people on the road. It was tiring. Didn't manage to do much tourist thingy but bought new clothes :)
EW: Sometimes cold, sometimes just windy
After 2 hectic days, I am finally back in my little countryside. How I miss the comfort of my own room, the privacy of my own space, the peacefulness of the surrounding, the walk without human traffic. What happened, you ask? Well, I need to do a little rewinding.
It began with an innocent plan to surprise a friend on her birthday. It was also a good excuse to see London for the first time. So, I got my bus tickets online, boarded the bus on friday, arrived after 2 1/2 hours. The first view I got from the city was TRAFFIC JAM. Why am I not surprised? The traffic was not only cars but human too! At first, the roads we went into was rather empty (but still not as empty as my university). And then we discovered where the crowd went. They were swamping the shopping area i.e. Oxford Street!
The next human crowd to meet me was in the tube station. It was terrifying. People walking from all directions, left, right, up, down, diagonal...I felt like a sardine. After much pushing, we managed to board the train. Phew! My next horror began when the train was not stopping at the stop I wanted to. It was after going through the trip again that it dawned upon me the train will not stop at that particular station. Luckily, my friend still managed to find me or else I will be lost...sob, sob.
After dining at China China in chinatown, I followed my friend to her hostel (very kind of her to accommodate me. Special thanks!). Given my very busy schedule, I had no choice but to work in her room. At that moment, I felt like being in a movie set in New York. I can hear people talking 9-storeys below us, police sirens were everywhere. It was quite adventurous working in this kind of environment.
The next day was spent on surprising my another friend, wriggling our ways among the shoppers in Primark (these people have too much purchasing power), trying to avoid knocking people on the road. It was tiring. Didn't manage to do much tourist thingy but bought new clothes :)
Friday, 26 October 2007
"Nevermind, we have free stuffs"
IW: Tired
EW: Nice
"So, you are just looking for accounting students?"
"Yes..."
(giving disappointed look)
"...But we have lotsa freebies"
(face brighten again...hehe...that was me)
Such an amazing day for treasure hunting at the career fair. These fairs are definitely one of my look-forward to event. In less than an hour, check out what I have gotten. Spot the things I "found" from the picture below:
To show my gratitude to these kind companies, this is a free advertising for the "sponsors" of my new treasure. Here goes the list in no particular order:
1. A water bottle from Mercer
2. A tin of organic cocoa and dark chocolate from Green and Black's (the chocolate is simple fabulous)
3. One cute doggy keychain from EMB
4. A small notebook from Macquarie
5. A luggage tag from Standard Chartered (good quality tag)
6. A metal cardholder with mints inside (now all my namecards will be mint-scented) and a mini case of stapler, staples, blue highlighter and cellophone tape from Goldman Sachs (really cool. Check out the picture at the bottom)
7. A triangular tri-colored highlighter from Grant Thornton
8. Another triangular tri-colored highlighter from FSA
9. A handphone pouch and lanyard from Merrill Lynch (I needed a pouch for my new handphone and now I don't have to buy one! But it does come with a very visible Merrill Lynch tag. So I will be doing free advertising for a long long time)
10. A notebook and mints from Towers Perrin
11. A transparent plastic pencil case from Deutsche Bank
12. A post-it from KPMG
13. A cute bubble post-it from ABN-AMRO
14. A button pin from Citizen Act (I am not sure why I took it)
15. A nice pen fom ICAP
16. A box of mint from Dresdner Kleinwort
17. A purple rubber duck from OC&C (don't ask why I need a purple duck. It's just cute and matches my sweater today)
18. Jelly beans from RBS (lovely!)
19. A mug from Barclays Capital (I have 2 mugs now)
20. A noteboook from Citigroup, Kingston Smith and Deloitte
21. A pencil recycled from video cassettes from Barclays Wealth
22. A magnetic "Go-Anywhere" Papergrip from CIMA (it is now attached to my shelves)
My stationery set is more than complete now. Lovely ;)
EW: Nice
"So, you are just looking for accounting students?"
"Yes..."
(giving disappointed look)
"...But we have lotsa freebies"
(face brighten again...hehe...that was me)
Such an amazing day for treasure hunting at the career fair. These fairs are definitely one of my look-forward to event. In less than an hour, check out what I have gotten. Spot the things I "found" from the picture below:
To show my gratitude to these kind companies, this is a free advertising for the "sponsors" of my new treasure. Here goes the list in no particular order:
1. A water bottle from Mercer
2. A tin of organic cocoa and dark chocolate from Green and Black's (the chocolate is simple fabulous)
3. One cute doggy keychain from EMB
4. A small notebook from Macquarie
5. A luggage tag from Standard Chartered (good quality tag)
6. A metal cardholder with mints inside (now all my namecards will be mint-scented) and a mini case of stapler, staples, blue highlighter and cellophone tape from Goldman Sachs (really cool. Check out the picture at the bottom)
7. A triangular tri-colored highlighter from Grant Thornton
8. Another triangular tri-colored highlighter from FSA
9. A handphone pouch and lanyard from Merrill Lynch (I needed a pouch for my new handphone and now I don't have to buy one! But it does come with a very visible Merrill Lynch tag. So I will be doing free advertising for a long long time)
10. A notebook and mints from Towers Perrin
11. A transparent plastic pencil case from Deutsche Bank
12. A post-it from KPMG
13. A cute bubble post-it from ABN-AMRO
14. A button pin from Citizen Act (I am not sure why I took it)
15. A nice pen fom ICAP
16. A box of mint from Dresdner Kleinwort
17. A purple rubber duck from OC&C (don't ask why I need a purple duck. It's just cute and matches my sweater today)
18. Jelly beans from RBS (lovely!)
19. A mug from Barclays Capital (I have 2 mugs now)
20. A noteboook from Citigroup, Kingston Smith and Deloitte
21. A pencil recycled from video cassettes from Barclays Wealth
22. A magnetic "Go-Anywhere" Papergrip from CIMA (it is now attached to my shelves)
My stationery set is more than complete now. Lovely ;)
Wednesday, 24 October 2007
Heavenly celebration for an angel
IW: Excitement
EW: It's alright
Today is a very special day for an angel.
At midnight, cake and camera ready but no candle. We didn't want to risk triggering a fire alarm, sending everyone out into the cold and getting fined :p It was such a wonderful surprise that we made our angel cried.
Come dinner time, the angel "surprised" us with a feast. It was a very international spread. There were a two-layer chocolate cake decorated with berries, japanese chawanmushi, italian meatball pasta, british sausages, thai tomyam and chinese stir-fry celery. Such a lavish meal. Now, I have to control my food intake for a week or else I can start getting new clothes.
EW: It's alright
Today is a very special day for an angel.
At midnight, cake and camera ready but no candle. We didn't want to risk triggering a fire alarm, sending everyone out into the cold and getting fined :p It was such a wonderful surprise that we made our angel cried.
Come dinner time, the angel "surprised" us with a feast. It was a very international spread. There were a two-layer chocolate cake decorated with berries, japanese chawanmushi, italian meatball pasta, british sausages, thai tomyam and chinese stir-fry celery. Such a lavish meal. Now, I have to control my food intake for a week or else I can start getting new clothes.
Sunday, 21 October 2007
Horizontal expansion
IW: Bone-cracking
EW: Bone-piercing
4 weeks - that's how long it took me to make my first trip to Birmingham. Some people I know had already been there twice. Well, better late than never. Seriously, it felt just like another city with huge shopping malls and crowds of people, wrestling their way into discounted items. Took some photos, visited the St. Martin in the bull ring, did some shopping, found Chinatown, hanged around Day In Supermarket (stocking a variety of Asian stuffs) and most important of all, had a satusfying lunch.
EW: Bone-piercing
4 weeks - that's how long it took me to make my first trip to Birmingham. Some people I know had already been there twice. Well, better late than never. Seriously, it felt just like another city with huge shopping malls and crowds of people, wrestling their way into discounted items. Took some photos, visited the St. Martin in the bull ring, did some shopping, found Chinatown, hanged around Day In Supermarket (stocking a variety of Asian stuffs) and most important of all, had a satusfying lunch.
Long queues and low prices are highly correlated. Obviously. When I spotted the buffet lunch sign across the street, my curiosity was already rising. And when I saw the attractive pricing of GBP4.99 plus an all you can eat sign, I am positive that I need to go in to check it out. By that time, the crowd was already building. We joined the queue and in less than half an hour, got our seats. Upon seated, we were told that we need to finish by 2pm. It was 5 min to 1pm at that time. Anyway, we went ahead and it'll never be a choice I regret. The food was simply marvellous if not heavenly (I don't think this has anything to do with a lack of chinese food in campus since I have been having constant servings of taiwanese home-cooked meals). We grabbed plates of starters consisting of pork ribs, fried chicken, a variety of fried stuffs like popiah roll, onion ring, spicy and sour soup and I can't remember what else. Then we got hold of some steamed vegetables, tofu, stir-fry dishes and a variety of curry - lamb, fish, chicken etc. This continued with porridges, fishballs, red bean soup, ice-cream, fruits...yes, we mixed everything up. There was no proper selection of meal. We just grabbed stuffs amid the crowd of westerners who seemed to be enjoying the food as much as we do. My personal favourite has to be the porridge, pork ribs and red bean soup. By about 2pm, we were almost done. Not only had the queue doubled in length, we had stuffed ourselves with so much food that I am positive that I may have gained a kg or two.
This is further proven by my lack of appetite by dinner time. In the end, I just had Ben & Jerry and an orange with chinese tea. Such unhealthy meal. But it happens only once in a blue moon. Therefore, I am forgiven.
Sunday, 14 October 2007
"Any bowl for 50 pence"
IW: Fun, fun, fun
EW: Still a good day
For half an hour, I just hanged around a certain stall in the marketplace. Why? Because I discovered that the price of the vegetables and fruits were dropping every other minute! Perhaps, the seller wanted to close her shop early since it was just another 3 hours before they close for the day. Or perhaps, she didn't want to keep the vegetables and fruits on Sunday as it is their holiday. Whatever her reason, it was really fun for me to watch her shouting at the top of her voice "Any bowl for GBP1" which soon changed to "Any bowl for 50 pence!" I had been eyeing some American strawberry which was selling for GBP1 per package. In the end, I got it for the same price but with additional bananas. I also bought a set of asparagus and potatoes for 50 pence. Mind you, I wasn't the only one. My friend wanted to buy some bananas but before she can grabbed a basket, the other more experienced ladies had laid their hands on every 50 pence basket of bananas they could find. It was just crazy. The crowd shadowed the seller to wherever she go as she shouted out the next best offer. I think this is my most fun shopping experience by far...though I don't actually need more vegetables.
EW: Still a good day
For half an hour, I just hanged around a certain stall in the marketplace. Why? Because I discovered that the price of the vegetables and fruits were dropping every other minute! Perhaps, the seller wanted to close her shop early since it was just another 3 hours before they close for the day. Or perhaps, she didn't want to keep the vegetables and fruits on Sunday as it is their holiday. Whatever her reason, it was really fun for me to watch her shouting at the top of her voice "Any bowl for GBP1" which soon changed to "Any bowl for 50 pence!" I had been eyeing some American strawberry which was selling for GBP1 per package. In the end, I got it for the same price but with additional bananas. I also bought a set of asparagus and potatoes for 50 pence. Mind you, I wasn't the only one. My friend wanted to buy some bananas but before she can grabbed a basket, the other more experienced ladies had laid their hands on every 50 pence basket of bananas they could find. It was just crazy. The crowd shadowed the seller to wherever she go as she shouted out the next best offer. I think this is my most fun shopping experience by far...though I don't actually need more vegetables.
Saturday, 13 October 2007
RRRIIIIINNNGGGGGG......
IW: ???
EW: Breezy...
Early class today. So woke up early, went to kitchen to have breakfast. As I looked out the window, I saw a bunch of people in the courtyard of the residence across the lake. And then I realised they were having fire drill! I went to my room to grab a camera and managed to capture some photos before they dispersed.
Anyway, I continued my breakfast in peace, thinking how lucky I am that the fire drill is not for Heronbank. As I was eating my third slice of bread, a piercing sound broke through an otherwise peaceful morning. For a minute, I just sat frozen there wondering where the sound comes from. IT"S THE FIRE ALARM! I went out of the kitchen with my bread in hand, saw my flatmates coming out in their pajamas and we went down together.
All of us were told to gather in the same courtyard. Saw some people coming out in their interesting nighties. Some in bathrobes. Mostly sleepy faces. There was one with a bowl of cereal in hand. My flatmate thought she should have brought along her laptop cause she was working the whole night on an essay. As for me, I felt rather lucky to wake up early today (actually I wake up early everyday).
Five minutes past eight, we were allowed back into our rooms. I went back to the kitchen and found that my milo is still hot :)
Additional comment: Pasta today tasted real good despite being kept overnight.
EW: Breezy...
Early class today. So woke up early, went to kitchen to have breakfast. As I looked out the window, I saw a bunch of people in the courtyard of the residence across the lake. And then I realised they were having fire drill! I went to my room to grab a camera and managed to capture some photos before they dispersed.
Anyway, I continued my breakfast in peace, thinking how lucky I am that the fire drill is not for Heronbank. As I was eating my third slice of bread, a piercing sound broke through an otherwise peaceful morning. For a minute, I just sat frozen there wondering where the sound comes from. IT"S THE FIRE ALARM! I went out of the kitchen with my bread in hand, saw my flatmates coming out in their pajamas and we went down together.
All of us were told to gather in the same courtyard. Saw some people coming out in their interesting nighties. Some in bathrobes. Mostly sleepy faces. There was one with a bowl of cereal in hand. My flatmate thought she should have brought along her laptop cause she was working the whole night on an essay. As for me, I felt rather lucky to wake up early today (actually I wake up early everyday).
Five minutes past eight, we were allowed back into our rooms. I went back to the kitchen and found that my milo is still hot :)
Additional comment: Pasta today tasted real good despite being kept overnight.
Friday, 12 October 2007
It's a conspiracy
IW: Marathon whole day...tired
EW: Good weather especially for warming clothes
Today is the day! I shall cook my own dinner. Went to kitchen, met my flatmates, cut the vege, took out pasta, put pasta to boil........and then it happened. My flatmate cooked too much noodles and she wanted me to finish it with her! Sigh...I was persuaded to keep my pasta in the fridge to be cooked tomorrow. I hope she didn't bluff me bout the pasta tasting nicer after cooling in the fridge.
I have come to the conclusion that there's a conspiracy to stop me from cooking. It's either there's a fear that I may cause unwanted events or that I have more than one food angel. I shan't ponder further on this. Just need to remind myself to reduce my grocery shopping from now on.
EW: Good weather especially for warming clothes
Today is the day! I shall cook my own dinner. Went to kitchen, met my flatmates, cut the vege, took out pasta, put pasta to boil........and then it happened. My flatmate cooked too much noodles and she wanted me to finish it with her! Sigh...I was persuaded to keep my pasta in the fridge to be cooked tomorrow. I hope she didn't bluff me bout the pasta tasting nicer after cooling in the fridge.
I have come to the conclusion that there's a conspiracy to stop me from cooking. It's either there's a fear that I may cause unwanted events or that I have more than one food angel. I shan't ponder further on this. Just need to remind myself to reduce my grocery shopping from now on.
Thursday, 11 October 2007
It's always like this...
IW: free...
EW: Another nice day
Today was the second day of my major grocery shopping. Remember my first major shopping where I took along a trolley bag? Well, my chisai friend thought it was pretty embarassing to meet acquaintances on our way back as we struggled with our loads giving the impression that we bought the whole tesco. This time, we repeated the same mistake minus the trolley bag to help us. Halfway through, we couldn't bear it anymore and decided to take a break, sitting under some dark spots, hiding from public eyes. As we were about to continue our way, a friend spotted us and said hi. She said,"The two of you bought a lot of things again." Actually it's just our second time. Before we can finished this conversation, yet another friend saw us and made the same comment. What luck! The sky was already dark and people can still spot us. Amazing. They have good eyes.
EW: Another nice day
Today was the second day of my major grocery shopping. Remember my first major shopping where I took along a trolley bag? Well, my chisai friend thought it was pretty embarassing to meet acquaintances on our way back as we struggled with our loads giving the impression that we bought the whole tesco. This time, we repeated the same mistake minus the trolley bag to help us. Halfway through, we couldn't bear it anymore and decided to take a break, sitting under some dark spots, hiding from public eyes. As we were about to continue our way, a friend spotted us and said hi. She said,"The two of you bought a lot of things again." Actually it's just our second time. Before we can finished this conversation, yet another friend saw us and made the same comment. What luck! The sky was already dark and people can still spot us. Amazing. They have good eyes.
Wednesday, 10 October 2007
Victory!
IW: zzzz...
EW: "Raindrops keep falling on my head..."
My mom must have prayed for a food angel for me. Since I can't really cook, she has been worrying that I won't be eating right. Well, she was certainly right. I am planning to eat stuffs like noodles, pasta that doesn't require much cooking.
BUT luckily, I met victory who loves to cook and has the time to do so plus always overcook the amount of food. Bless her. Just today, I went into the kitchen thinking of cooking instant pasta. And there she was, cooking rice, boiling soup, frying meat. I thought I will just let her finish but she invited me to join her!!! So, I offered her some vege (I don't have that much food stock sadly, that are worthy to be cooked by her) so that I don't just eat free food coz I do feel bad getting free dinners esp since it's not the first time.
To cut a long story short, I had another good, nutritious meal. Although I did become a guinea pig as she experimented with a new dish. Turned out perfect. What more can I ask for in this faraway land where good chinese food is hard to get?
Micro is still a pain...
EW: "Raindrops keep falling on my head..."
My mom must have prayed for a food angel for me. Since I can't really cook, she has been worrying that I won't be eating right. Well, she was certainly right. I am planning to eat stuffs like noodles, pasta that doesn't require much cooking.
BUT luckily, I met victory who loves to cook and has the time to do so plus always overcook the amount of food. Bless her. Just today, I went into the kitchen thinking of cooking instant pasta. And there she was, cooking rice, boiling soup, frying meat. I thought I will just let her finish but she invited me to join her!!! So, I offered her some vege (I don't have that much food stock sadly, that are worthy to be cooked by her) so that I don't just eat free food coz I do feel bad getting free dinners esp since it's not the first time.
To cut a long story short, I had another good, nutritious meal. Although I did become a guinea pig as she experimented with a new dish. Turned out perfect. What more can I ask for in this faraway land where good chinese food is hard to get?
Micro is still a pain...
Tuesday, 9 October 2007
Shrunk, perfect, free
IW: Erm...
EW: "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy,..."
Shrunk - My zara sweater!!! Just one wash and it seemed tighter. The weirdest thing is that the sweater grew longer too. The sleeves are almost covering my fingers!!! I don't really remember it being so long before the wash. I suppose if I wash it often enough, I will get a sweater skirt.
Perfect - That seems to be one of my tutor's favourite phrase. No one thought he was a tutor when he walked in to adjust the pc. Personally, I thought he was the IT guy in his faded jeans. What a shock to find him suddenly addressing the class. But he was a really nice tutor with clear spoken english. Funny too. When some students got confused and asked how he got a certain spreadsheet, he replied,"You just click, click, click". Hehe
Free - A friend told me that eventhough I have no intention to look for a new job, it doesn't hurt to attend some career talks coz at the end of it, they offer free food. So, I took his advice and signed up for my first forum. Not only was the forum a good break from academic stuffs, the food was pretty decent too! Lotsa sandwiches, chicken yakitori and some rolls. Another satisfying meal. Looking forward to the next one... ;)
The day would have been perfect if I could also solve all the micro questions :(
EW: "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy,..."
Shrunk - My zara sweater!!! Just one wash and it seemed tighter. The weirdest thing is that the sweater grew longer too. The sleeves are almost covering my fingers!!! I don't really remember it being so long before the wash. I suppose if I wash it often enough, I will get a sweater skirt.
Perfect - That seems to be one of my tutor's favourite phrase. No one thought he was a tutor when he walked in to adjust the pc. Personally, I thought he was the IT guy in his faded jeans. What a shock to find him suddenly addressing the class. But he was a really nice tutor with clear spoken english. Funny too. When some students got confused and asked how he got a certain spreadsheet, he replied,"You just click, click, click". Hehe
Free - A friend told me that eventhough I have no intention to look for a new job, it doesn't hurt to attend some career talks coz at the end of it, they offer free food. So, I took his advice and signed up for my first forum. Not only was the forum a good break from academic stuffs, the food was pretty decent too! Lotsa sandwiches, chicken yakitori and some rolls. Another satisfying meal. Looking forward to the next one... ;)
The day would have been perfect if I could also solve all the micro questions :(
Monday, 8 October 2007
5 dishes + 1 soup
IW: zzz...
EW: Breezy
Dinner last night was the most perfect meal for me in more than a week. Initially, it was supposed to be a potluck dinner but when Chef came along, he just took over the kitchen. The guys in the group were just amazing cook. Having said that, the girls (except yours truly) are similarly impressive. There were stir-fried broccoli with mushrooms, fried egg with onions, prawn and ham, ginger chicken, steamed pork, "marn" (cantonese) pork plus my flatmate's delicious meatball soup. Initially, I was supposed to contribute the egg dish but the Chef seemed to be programmed for cooking and he just did it automatically. Amazing. So, I got to eat good chinese food without actually having to cook. Perfect.
Result: Everything was just so delicious and heavenly.
The soups are in small bowls. Ginger chicken is in the big black bowl. Broccoli is right in front and behind it is the steamed pork. Fried egg is the dish on the bottom right. Last but not least, "marn" pork is on the top right hand corner.
The reason why I am only writing this after midnight is because I just spent 3 hours trying to solve a micro question with my studymates. Such a torture and we are not even halfway when we ended the session. To be continued tomorrow :(
EW: Breezy
Dinner last night was the most perfect meal for me in more than a week. Initially, it was supposed to be a potluck dinner but when Chef came along, he just took over the kitchen. The guys in the group were just amazing cook. Having said that, the girls (except yours truly) are similarly impressive. There were stir-fried broccoli with mushrooms, fried egg with onions, prawn and ham, ginger chicken, steamed pork, "marn" (cantonese) pork plus my flatmate's delicious meatball soup. Initially, I was supposed to contribute the egg dish but the Chef seemed to be programmed for cooking and he just did it automatically. Amazing. So, I got to eat good chinese food without actually having to cook. Perfect.
Result: Everything was just so delicious and heavenly.
The soups are in small bowls. Ginger chicken is in the big black bowl. Broccoli is right in front and behind it is the steamed pork. Fried egg is the dish on the bottom right. Last but not least, "marn" pork is on the top right hand corner.
The reason why I am only writing this after midnight is because I just spent 3 hours trying to solve a micro question with my studymates. Such a torture and we are not even halfway when we ended the session. To be continued tomorrow :(
Saturday, 6 October 2007
"I believe you can fit into the kid's size"
IW: Nice
EW: Nice
Went to Leamington Spa today for shopping!!! Not a bad town at all eventhough it's not as big as London. There's plenty of interesting shops. Was adviced by a friend to get a windbreaker because the rain in UK can be very harsh. So, went into a nice sports shop and saw some stuffs on discount. Knowing me, I will always go for discounted items. Unfortunately, they ran out of my size. Then the lady in the shop suggested I try the kid's jacket cause I am quite small!!! I didn't think that I lost so much weight when I came here. Anyway, the kids sasparilla jacket fit me perfectly and I like the violet colour of the jacket plus it comes with a shocking pink fleece jacket.
EW: Nice
Went to Leamington Spa today for shopping!!! Not a bad town at all eventhough it's not as big as London. There's plenty of interesting shops. Was adviced by a friend to get a windbreaker because the rain in UK can be very harsh. So, went into a nice sports shop and saw some stuffs on discount. Knowing me, I will always go for discounted items. Unfortunately, they ran out of my size. Then the lady in the shop suggested I try the kid's jacket cause I am quite small!!! I didn't think that I lost so much weight when I came here. Anyway, the kids sasparilla jacket fit me perfectly and I like the violet colour of the jacket plus it comes with a shocking pink fleece jacket.
Friday, 5 October 2007
Onion + mushroom + egg
IW: Breezy
EW: Still nice
My first attempt at cooking one of my favourite egg dish - fried onion and egg. BUT my friend thought it might be blend and suggested putting some mushrooms. Ended up putting in chestnut mushrooms - new kind of mushroom to me. Here's the recipe...
Fried onion, mushroom and egg
Ingredients:
1. One big onion sliced
2. Mushrooms of any kind (sliced)
3. Eggs (depend on how much onion & mushrooms are put in) - beaten and mixed with some salt for taste
Steps: First, heat up pan. Pour in oil. Heat oil. Put in slices of onions. Fry till half-cooked. Add mushrooms. Continue frying till almost cooked. Pour in eggs. Fry together for awhile till eggs are cooked. Dish ready to be served.
Was in the kitchen from 6.30pm till 10pm, chatting while dining. A friend love the dish. I hope she meant it.
Embarassing moment of the day: Went into the wrong class during toilet break!!! For a second, the place looked slightly strange. And then, it became clear that this wasn't the class I was in before toilet break. Oops. Hope no one saw that.
EW: Still nice
My first attempt at cooking one of my favourite egg dish - fried onion and egg. BUT my friend thought it might be blend and suggested putting some mushrooms. Ended up putting in chestnut mushrooms - new kind of mushroom to me. Here's the recipe...
Fried onion, mushroom and egg
Ingredients:
1. One big onion sliced
2. Mushrooms of any kind (sliced)
3. Eggs (depend on how much onion & mushrooms are put in) - beaten and mixed with some salt for taste
Steps: First, heat up pan. Pour in oil. Heat oil. Put in slices of onions. Fry till half-cooked. Add mushrooms. Continue frying till almost cooked. Pour in eggs. Fry together for awhile till eggs are cooked. Dish ready to be served.
Was in the kitchen from 6.30pm till 10pm, chatting while dining. A friend love the dish. I hope she meant it.
Embarassing moment of the day: Went into the wrong class during toilet break!!! For a second, the place looked slightly strange. And then, it became clear that this wasn't the class I was in before toilet break. Oops. Hope no one saw that.
Thursday, 4 October 2007
The day of firsts
IW: Good
EW: Reminds me of home
20 minutes - that's how far Tesco is from my place. The first time I walked there and came back with my grocery, I was totally exhausted. This time, I came up with a solution - taking my small luggage with me so that I can just dump everything inside and push it around. It was indeed a good idea till me and my friends bought too much. We ended having a lot of stuffs to carry. Luckily a kind soul noticed our pain and offered his assistance. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
3 hours - that's the length of time me and my friends took to cook and finish our dinner. It was my first time attempting to cook for them. For the past few dinners, I had been relying on others for some home-cooked meals. Today, I decided to let them try my cooking. To cut a long story short, I managed to boil an ABC soup only (not enough salt but still taste good due to the 3 pieces of chicken drumstick dumped inside) while my friends fried minced pork mixed with eggs. We canceled some vege dishes because we ended up being too tired. Result: Meal was good and filling :)
Recipe for ABC soup
Ingredients:
Tomato, potato, carrot, onion, chicken (any parts will do)
Cut the vege into chunks and dumped into a pot of water together with chicken. Boil for 1 1/2 hours. Add salt for taste. Soup is ready to be served.
Some updates on "losing melody" - Today my friend "lost" her handphone. Well, not exactly lost. She just left it in my room without realising :)
EW: Reminds me of home
20 minutes - that's how far Tesco is from my place. The first time I walked there and came back with my grocery, I was totally exhausted. This time, I came up with a solution - taking my small luggage with me so that I can just dump everything inside and push it around. It was indeed a good idea till me and my friends bought too much. We ended having a lot of stuffs to carry. Luckily a kind soul noticed our pain and offered his assistance. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
3 hours - that's the length of time me and my friends took to cook and finish our dinner. It was my first time attempting to cook for them. For the past few dinners, I had been relying on others for some home-cooked meals. Today, I decided to let them try my cooking. To cut a long story short, I managed to boil an ABC soup only (not enough salt but still taste good due to the 3 pieces of chicken drumstick dumped inside) while my friends fried minced pork mixed with eggs. We canceled some vege dishes because we ended up being too tired. Result: Meal was good and filling :)
Recipe for ABC soup
Ingredients:
Tomato, potato, carrot, onion, chicken (any parts will do)
Cut the vege into chunks and dumped into a pot of water together with chicken. Boil for 1 1/2 hours. Add salt for taste. Soup is ready to be served.
Some updates on "losing melody" - Today my friend "lost" her handphone. Well, not exactly lost. She just left it in my room without realising :)
Wednesday, 3 October 2007
Losing melody
IW: Good
EW: Good to the extent of some warmth :)
Following my friend's streak of losing her stuffs, I have decided to dedicate this to her...
List of things lost (and found) since 25 Sep 2007:
1. Passport!!! How can anyone lost her passport? And not even realising it till someone told her? Amazing...
2. Room key...more misplacing than losing but still...
3. Course handbook since yesterday. Hasn't been found yet. I don't think there is any hope.
3 importants things in a week. I think this is a growing list. Will update this constantly or whenever I have nothing better to say ;)
EW: Good to the extent of some warmth :)
Following my friend's streak of losing her stuffs, I have decided to dedicate this to her...
List of things lost (and found) since 25 Sep 2007:
1. Passport!!! How can anyone lost her passport? And not even realising it till someone told her? Amazing...
2. Room key...more misplacing than losing but still...
3. Course handbook since yesterday. Hasn't been found yet. I don't think there is any hope.
3 importants things in a week. I think this is a growing list. Will update this constantly or whenever I have nothing better to say ;)
Monday, 1 October 2007
First cooking experience
IW: Perfect
EW: Perfect
Today is my first time cooking pasta. My friend bought a huge bag from tesco. Can probably last him for a month. I was put in charge of cooking the fussili and heating the instant sauce. Alright, I admit that I didn't actually need cooking skill for this but still...Anyway, my friends decided to prepare other chinese dishes - fried ham with potato, fried tofu and fried leftover vermicelli with a kind of plastic vege coz the pasta sauce wasn't enough to feed 4 persons.
As we were cooking, we realised there weren't enough cooking utensils and used the utensils around the kitchen (some of which were borrowed with permission from a Thai flatmate). Some time later, a flatmate came in to cook his lunch and he started looking at what we were doing. Actually, he was looking at the utensils we were using as some of it belongs to him! When he pointed out that this and that utensils belong to him, we really felt bad and my friend started apologising and cleaning his utensils. But he was very nice and said it's ok THIS TIME. So, in order to compensate, we invited him to join us and he spent the rest of the hour watching us demonstrating our cooking skill. And, he shared his japanese rice with us, which he cooked using the microwave and ended up being soggy.
Comments...
I think I have a very different taste bud from the chinese. While I thought that the pasta was a bit too sour, they thought it was bland. And the fried vermicelli too salty, they thought it was just nice. Difficult...It horrified me to see the amount of salt they pour over the dishes.
EW: Perfect
Today is my first time cooking pasta. My friend bought a huge bag from tesco. Can probably last him for a month. I was put in charge of cooking the fussili and heating the instant sauce. Alright, I admit that I didn't actually need cooking skill for this but still...Anyway, my friends decided to prepare other chinese dishes - fried ham with potato, fried tofu and fried leftover vermicelli with a kind of plastic vege coz the pasta sauce wasn't enough to feed 4 persons.
As we were cooking, we realised there weren't enough cooking utensils and used the utensils around the kitchen (some of which were borrowed with permission from a Thai flatmate). Some time later, a flatmate came in to cook his lunch and he started looking at what we were doing. Actually, he was looking at the utensils we were using as some of it belongs to him! When he pointed out that this and that utensils belong to him, we really felt bad and my friend started apologising and cleaning his utensils. But he was very nice and said it's ok THIS TIME. So, in order to compensate, we invited him to join us and he spent the rest of the hour watching us demonstrating our cooking skill. And, he shared his japanese rice with us, which he cooked using the microwave and ended up being soggy.
Comments...
I think I have a very different taste bud from the chinese. While I thought that the pasta was a bit too sour, they thought it was bland. And the fried vermicelli too salty, they thought it was just nice. Difficult...It horrified me to see the amount of salt they pour over the dishes.
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