new lens!!

I have finally got a new replacement for my broken camera lens! Fortunately I was busy during term time so I didn't have time to buy a new one. Last night I happened to chat with my dad on msn and he told me to check the price of the new lenses. It just happened that Jessops was having a massive online sale and the price for one of the lenses was reduced from 244 pounds to 127 pounds! A very good deal indeed! But it doesn't come with VC which I think doesn't make much difference to me since I have a tripod and a speedlight.

Since guys like to introduce their new gadgets as their 'wife', I shall call new gadget my husband. Say hello to my new husband:

Tamron AF28-300 F/3.5-6.3 XR Di LD Nikon AFD

it came with the flower hood

and I tested it out on Esther:




PS: daddy, what do you think about buying the 3 year warranty from Jessops which costs 30pounds? Should I go for it?

Merry Christmas from all of us!

Specially dedicated to our dear family and friends!

Merry Christmas!



PS:can anyone tell me how to edit MOV file for free? (can't use windows movie maker coz not recognised). I downloaded a free software but it turned up to have the words 'evaluation copy' constantly on the screen which is soo annoying!

Happy birthday Jon!

hello jon.

Happy birthday! This is a very belated post and my poor jon's hair must have grown a few white hairs as this post has been delayed for such a long time.

I remember when we were young, we sisters used to call jon Mr Horsie.

no, not because he looked like a horse, but because he was born in the year of horse.

anyway, this Mr Horse has grown from a small boy colt to a full-grown adult horse. I remember him when he first entered primary school and I used to look down at his class to see him in class (my class is opposite and is one floor higher than his). Sometimes if I did not have any afternoon class, we would wait under that leafless tree (under the scorching sun) for our parents to pick us up. How I miss those primary school days!

Now jon jon has just finished his high school and entering tertiary education. He will not be studying medicine to save lives like us sis but he will be saving computers instead. He is a computer expert and he knows everything about computer, inside and out. Throw him a computer problem and he will diagnose the problem for you.

My brother is not good at studies unlike us sis and he has suffer much as we sis had set a standard in the house for everyone to achieve. Education is not a yardstick to measure success in future although it gives one the upper end in finding jobs. I believe my dear jon will excel and maybe will be better than us in the future.

Happy 18th birthday jon! May God bless you and keep you. Don't play too much and study hard in pre-uni! If not how to see u in UK next time?


ps: btw, to anyone who knows jon and is reading this, please dun call him Mr Horse or else I cannot step into the house when I go back to Miri.

Merry Christmas!

Ho ho ho!

Merry Christmas everybody!

A week ago, someone told me that it feels like yesterday when she celebrated Christmas last year. Yes, it's true. I can't believe that one year has passed so quickly! I was happy to receive cards from my colleagues. Finally when I looked into my pigeon hole at my workplace, it wasn't empty but there stood a card inside, it says 'to Janice Ting (Doctor Ting)' LOL. One of my colleagues gave me a box of maltesers as she used to give me every time I work with her (maybe her idea is that I could eat those maltesers when she isn't around for 2 weeks) and she inserted 20pounds inside the card without me knowing (cheeky I know!!)! But I'm touched. I'm so gonna miss her when I leave RM for good. sigh.

But Christmas is not just about receiving but giving. It was fun shopping and buying presents for some people and see the joy in their face when I gave them. Although it was just a box of chocolates, sometimes the thought of giving something is what matters.

I will be off from work for two days before going back on Saturday! yipee. I'm also back to cleaning at my previous company which I absolutely detest now that I've experienced working in RM. Thank God it's only for 2 weeks.

Anyway, merry Christmas everybody! hope you have a blessed christmas this year!

Third year term 1 is finally over.

*heave a sigh of relief*

Thank God that I managed to survive term 1 even though I was working every weekday evening (except Monday). the result for spot test + portfolio was out today and I passed! Pass is all I need for this module but I expect higher results for both of my SSC coz I spent super duper lot of time in it. I didn't realised that it's gonna be Christmas next week. Everything seemed to pass so fast when I was busy. sigh. 3 months just passed like that. Somehow I have gotten used to the heavy workload involved in term 1 that when I did the Spanish SSC, I thought the workload was alright even though the 2nd years were complaining that it was heavy!

ok. gotta sleep now coz my eyes are super tired as I stayed up late to finish my assignment. adíos!

I can't wait for holiday next week! Can't wait for Christmas to come! can't wait can't wait!!!

Happy birthday Thazin!

We had an early birthday celebration for Thazin ( one of my year 3 batch mates) as most of us would not be around next week when Christmas holiday starts.

we finally got the all the Asian Chinese (well not really 100% chinese coz Thazin is a mixed Burmese + Chinese ) 3rd year medics in a picture!I'm the shortestttttt!!!! argghh.

and with the help of Steph and Melvin, I made a chocolate banana cake ( trying to imitate Secret Recipe's choc banana cake)!





Oh..I used the speedlight to take the pictures and the picture quality is sooo good! me likey =)

recipe:

Chocolate Sponge Cake:
(A)
35 gm. Cocoa powder
70 gm. hot water
1 Tbsp. Chocolate emulco or Paste ( I used 40g of cocoa powder to substitute)
1 tsp. vanilla essence

(B)
125 gm. Cake flour (105gm all purpose flour + 30gm cornstarch to make 130 gm cake flour)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. Bicarbonate of Soda
75 gm. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt

(C)
45 gm. cornoil
80 gm. egg yolks
30 gm. fresh milk

(D)
150 gm. egg white
120 gm. sugar
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

Ganache:

250 gm. dairy whipping cream
210 gm. melted chocolate
42 gm. butter
add sugar according to ur taste

Decoration:
Some Bananas - slice lengthwise, preferably thicker slice

500gm. non-dairy whipping cream
70 gm. cocoa powder

add sugar according to ur taste

Method for the sponge:

(1) Mix cocoa powder, vanilla essence, hot water and chocolate paste together.
(2) Mix all the ingredients (B) together in a mixing bowl then add in (C) and mix to form a smooth batter. Add in the cocoa powder mixture and mix well.
(3) Whisk ingredients (D) until stiff peak and gradually fold into the cocoa powder batter.
(4) Pour into a 9" round cake tin and bake at 177C (gas mark 4) for about 40 to 45 mins. or till cooked. Leave cake to cool completely and then slice into 3 layers.
(5) Mix all the ingredients for Ganache and then microwave it for 20 secs. , stir till evenly combined and smooth. Microwave again if the chocolate has not melted. Leave to set before onto cake. ( I used bain marie method)
(6) Mix the whipped fresh cream with the cocoa powder mixture, spread onto one layer of cake. Top up with sliced banana and continue process till finished.
Cream the whole cake with the balance fresh cream.
(7) Pour Ganache on top and leave the whole cake in the chiller to set before slicing.
(8) Slice and enjoy!!!!

PS: I'm not sure about adding water to the cocoa powder in (A) coz the cocoa ended up clumping together forming snall round granules of cocoa.

mi descripciones

"¡Hola! me llama es Janice, apellido es Ting. Yo tengo veintiuno años. estoy estudiando actualmente el español para mi SSC. Yo hablo 4 lenguas: inglés, mandarín, malayo y un poquito de español. Estoy soltera. Yo soy bastante alta, delgada, rubia, simpática, inteligente y trabajadora. Yo tengo el pelo largo, liso y negro. Mis ojos son marrones. Yo siempre llevo gafas.

En mi familia hay 8 personas: mis padres (mi padre y mi madre), 2 hermanas y 3 hermanos. Yo tengo 2 hermanas mayores y 3 hermanos menores. Mis padres trabajos comos ingenieros. Mis hermanos todavía están estudiando. Mis hermanas están estudiantes de medicina en las universidad de Leeds."

i'm studying Spanish for my SSC at the moment. Somehow I'm the weaker student in the class because I find it really difficult to understand the language. My teacher would suddenly come out with a question in Spanish and she would start asking everyone in the class. Unfortunately I was the 2nd one who got asked and I couldn't understand what she was asking. i was like, 'uh...uh..erm...I don't understand.'

And then she said, 'ok, i will come back to you later.' and she continue asking other students with the same question. Surprisingly everyone could answer. It means I have got to work harder and listen to more Spaniards talking!

finally done!

I have completed my lifecycle portfolio!!!!! I felt a great sense of relief after I did the final editing to it. I have finally made it through the end after 8 weeks of stress, tears, sweat and blood shedded to complete the 8 weekly presentations, 8 weekly precis, 4 critical evaluations and one reflective commentary to form one portfolio which I will be handing it in by 4pm today!

IT'S DONE FINALLY.


YAY!!!!


PS: holidays are only 2.5 weeks away! can't wait!

爱的感觉

I got this from someone's blog:

爱一个人，
要了解，也要开解；
要道歉，也要道谢；
要认错，也要改错；
要体贴，也要体谅；
是接受，而不是忍受；
是宽容，而不是纵容；
是支持，而不是支配；
是慰问，而不是质问；
是倾诉，而不是控诉；
是难忘，而不是遗忘；
是彼此交流，而不是凡事交代；
是为对方默默祈求， 而不是向对方诸多要求；
可以浪漫，但不要浪费；
可以随时牵手，但不要随便分手。



random note: I recently came across some Christians blog and I find them really encouraging and inspiring.

I wish

I wish...
I could go to a faraway land where I don't have to face all the problems I'm having right now
I could hide myself in the duvet because it's so cold now
I could eat as much as I can without fear of gaining weight.
I could be a little kid back again when people do not expect much from me
I could hold on my principles steadfastly and not compromise them because I feel ashamed of myself
I could have someone to talk to me right now
I could just be myself and not care about what others thing of me
I could have friends who I can pour my feelings to without fear of being judged
I could stop self-pitying myself

My personality and characters are flawed. I fear responsibilities, confrontations, criticisms and letting go when I should be.


It's time to grow up Janice.

加油加油加油!!!

SSC 2455/3000 words. 4 precis and 1 critical analysis left for this week. Going to start with my anatomy revision next week Sunday!

update: 1 precis left and gonna finish my ssc soon!

steph's birthday

we celebrated stephanie's birthday yesterday

we made 3 cakes! clockwise from left: my oreo cheesecake (recipe from Steph's blog), Steph's gateau and Esther's tiramisu

see how much food we got!

the whole group picture!

housemates photo with sharkie

it's running in the family!

see this:

my mum's 'patented' skirt

then see this!

and my sis 'patented' white skirt

hahahahahahaha



note: this post is not intended to laugh or mock at anyone but I find it interesting that my sister has the same fashion sense as my mum's!

sigh....

so stressed =(

my dad posted up an old pic of me in his blog:

taken in 2005 feb

Looks like some person from the 1950's + I look so malnourished! Now I understand why I never got a boyfriend! hahahahaha.

I actually wanted to put up a quote from Steph but better not coz will offend people so I will keep it to myself. :p

at least now better:

fatter and fairer

freezing little toes

why is it that when I wear 2 layers thick of socks (with shoes), my toes are even colder than when I wear only 1 layer thick.

so weird.

my poor little toes need to be protected from the cold but how?

hmm...the middle toe was blanched for abt 20min + I had numbness & tingling pain. toe became lobster red after that. Raynaud's phenomenon? any takes?

this is ridiculous!

This was my workplace for the past 3 months...






and also will be for the next few months to come.... :(


so freaking cold I tell you. Standing outside working for 2.5 hours at 2 degree celcius is enough to make an ice statue of me. I have worn a few layers thick but still I feel so cold! I wana complain!!! Why is it that the machine gets to be inside the building (and have a fan to blow when it overheats) when we humans have to work outside the cold until our face and fingers and toes are so numb and stinging with pain! Why isn't the company building the tent they promised us when winter comes to keep us warm! how can the company expect us to work efficiently when we are feeling so cold! How can the manager expect us to work without break until all the work is done! This is so ridiculous! I protest!!!

birthday

Steph made that cake and it was good!

Sharkie is in the photo! the shadow is visible in the right hand corner of the photo.

离开家这么久,我发现人都是很现实的. 自己也慢慢也变的很现实. 也会backstab and badmouth人家了. 可是我最讨厌的还是那些身为leader (不管在教堂,学会或工作)的人, 喜欢在手下面前讲某某人的坏话. 更惨的是, 身为一个leader,you are supposed to be confidential and be a good example to your people, 可是如果一个leader 做不到, 他/她的手下会很难信任他的. 咳.

to me, if that person doesn't have such characteristics, you dun deserve my respect and I do not see you as my leader.

sth wrong with my camera :(

did you see that inside the camera lens? Can anyone tell me what can I do with it?

Presenting complaint:
Black shadow noticed when I looked through the viewfinder of the camera at around 9pm at the right lumbar region (using abdomen anatomical terms). On extension of the lens to 200mm, the shadow disappeared. The camera is found to have problems focusing a few hours before when I was taking close-up pictures of an object. Pictures can still be taken but 60% of them turned out to be blur. I thought it was my own poor photo-taking technique that I dismissed the thought that the camera could be faulty. On physical examination of the camera, I found an unknown object (as shown in the pic above and it's not insect! i'm pretty sure!) which was mobile and disappeared whenever I extend the lens. However, the object seemed to be more persistent now and stays at where it is even when I extend the lens to the maximum. The camera is now completely unable to focus and not a single picture can be taken. Some form of progressive disease is indicated.

possible causes:
trauma, old age (it's more than a year old), malignancy

investigations:
take a past medical history of the camera to identify previous break-down or knocks which might have predisposed the lens to the sudden mishap.

management:
A referral to a Nikon specialist is needed to further investigate the problem. If found to be of terminal illness, palliative care and support may be offered to the camera and its owner. In the meantime, a replacement lens from the Nikon D70 may be used temporarily until the problem is solved or until the owner gets a new one.


Disclaimer: this haphazardly written case presentation of the camera does not reflect the real medical report done by health professionals.

I have been worrying too much until I'm just too stressed and I can't relax. Every minute to me is gold. I agonized over every minute which was lost and forgot to appreciate the things happening in the present time.

I have got 4 critical analysis, 4 precis (left), 1 reflective commentary, 4 more group presentations, 1 grand SSC presentation, 1 3000 words ethics SSC and a spot test all ending on the 3rd of dec (except that SSC grand presentation which is on the 11th Dec i think). on top of that, I have got my 20 hours part-time work which take up 4/5 of my week days evening and Saturdays and a full-blown hectic uni timetable.

I hope people would understand how stressed I am. Very sorry if I have snapped at you. Future apologies to those I'm yet to snap at too. -.-"

my new addiction

I have an addiction. Hahaha.

Ever since the electronic weighing machine came into the house, I have been using it every now and then to weigh myself.

Even before and after I go to the toilet.

hahahaha.



I like to know how many grams of urine I have just passed out and when I realised how much I've lost, my heart would squeal in delight because I'm less heavier! Hahaha. I know I am cheating myself coz it's the fat which I need to lose and not the water! I dunno why am I telling you this. Now everyone is going to look at me with that stare which implies, 'Janice is crazy'.



PS: the weather is getting cold now! brrrrr...

keeping my fingers crossed

Pray that I get that weekend shift. I want my normal weekdays when I can finally socialise with people and join university activities! I dun wanna end up doing nothing but work during my university years! I wanna to be able to concentrate on my studies during the weekdays and not too be exhausted and sleep deprived by the end of the week!

please please pleaseeeeeee gimme that weekend shift!


PS: 2 people managed to get their shift changed to weekend shift. Argh. I wrote to the manager earlier than them but I did it on the wrong time when the shifts were being reviewed. I initially wanted to follow the manager's advice to write back in mid-Nov when everything has been sorted out (but actually it's already been sorted out 2 weeks ago) but seeing that 2 people have got their shift changed, I'd better do something quick before it's too late!


update! I have got the reply from the manager and she said those two got the weekend duty because they were down to a flexibility working application that was submitted and not a change of hours due to a university schedule. Sigh. Seems like I'm stuck with this duty for the time being until Dec. I must persevere!!

my new year 3 mates

The middle three are the new students who entered third year directly from IMU. Arthika is from Sri Lanka, Thazin from S'pore and Yau from M'sia. Great to have new people coming in to add into our small international students community in the year 3 medical students batch.

dinner with sub-dean

It can be good having mondays off as it means I can attend events which normally takes place on weekdays evening.

Today I attended a dinner organized by the international students sub dean in leeds university. All the medics in my house (5 of us) attended the dinner and we went there and back by taxi (reimbursed by the university)!

The meal was so-so. Buffet style. I'm not a real fan of Indian food. But since we paid so much for our tuition fees, we must make use of whatever free meals/services they provide us right?

From left, me, Yau, Steph, the professor, Esther, Man Hon (my s'porean batchmate) and Cindy

my new housemate

It's been a few weeks since my new housemate came. But anyway, here's a little informal introduction of him so that in the future when you see photos of him you will recognise him as my housemate. He's a direct entry student to year 3 from IMU. So he's also my batchmate.

First time I saw him, I was like, 'whoa, this guy is soooo tall'

so tall that whenever I talk to him, I have to cock my head to look at him like this:

his name is Yau CC. or CC Yau if you wana do it English style.

HAHAHAHAH. No lah. where got so 夸张 (it's an exaggeration)


This is the real height but I still look short!




PS: the new girl who transferred from IMU is also very tall! 1.72m!! Now I look like a dwarf among them already.

This was me before I was back in uni:




This is me after 1.5 weeks in uni:
I'm struggling to keep my eyes open.

I can't believe i've just put up this pic. >.<

Sorry for the lack of update people. Uni is and going to be even more hectic now that my SSC tutor has finally replied me giving me a few tasks to do before I see him on Wed next week. 好忙啊! (so busy!)

remember I wanted to apply for a weekend shift to accommodate my university studies? well, I don't know whether I wrote about it in my blog but I told people about it.

Anyway, I've got a reply from the acting manager.


Just in case the photo isn't clear, the manager can't offer me a weekend duty at the moment. Instead she gave me another duty which is Mon-Sat 1800-2200 (on Sat, 1400-1800).

It's better than nothing I guess at least the duty is fixed and I can plan ahead of time. Besides, the duty is bag-tipping which is the duty I like most. The disadvantages of hvg that duty is that I have to sacrifice my Saturdays and I reach home only at 10.30 every weekday night (except Monday of course).

This, is the major 'happening' in week after class started. Otherwise life this week was bland and monotonous. Class has started and I'm doing reproduction module this term. Come January and I will start my clinicals.

finally an update..haha

Sorry for the blog hiatus and yes Phil, my mould has grown mouldy and i can smell that whiff of mould from faraway.

Anyway, I have been quite busy lately.

1. I was at a friend's wedding last Saturday and it was really good! Will post up photos soon if I have time.

2. my bike front wheel got stolen! I am super duper angry to whoever who stole it! I wonder how much it will cost to have it replaced but I reckon it will be around 70 pounds. I've found some wheels for sell on ebay but they dun come with the disc brake. sigh.....

3. Classes are starting next week! I am so. not. looking. forward to it. I can't imagine the thought of having presentations every week, writing a report every week and reading lots of research papers and meeting my project supervisor for discussion which ( I heard) will last for 4 hours! oh nooooo...I wonder how am I going to cope with my work and uni

okie dokie. I think that's all for me now. Will post up pictures soooooooooooon I hope.

work again

"Ting, Ting, I can't finish my fruits, so I left them all for you."



these little small acts of kindness...

make me feel work in RM enjoyable =)

partners-in-'crime'

This is a picture of the toilet cubicle at my workplace.




why the toilet cubicle picture you may ask? Well, the story goes.....


**********

Colleague 1: Ting, Ting, now it's your turn to go toilet or walk around.

Colleague 2 (imagine the Yorkshire accent): Yeah. I've already gone just now. He's already gone for a walk. Now it's your turn.

me: ermmm....oooook (rather hestitant)

Colleague 1: Just sit outside at the bench there, hold your handphone to your head, pretending you are making a call.

Colleague 2: yeah yeah, now it's the right time coz all the managers are at their meeting (nodding head and looking at me intensely)





Finally I gave in to their persuasion and took my bottle with me (as an excuse to fill my water).

Halfway on my way to the water dispenser, I heard,

'TING!! TING!!'

I looked back and saw two of my colleagues, both with that mischievous grin on their face (y'know the kind of wide smile with teeth baring and all, yeah, you get the picture), both wide-eyed, both with their hands held up, both with their 10 fingers opened up to me.

'10 MINUTES...10 MINUTES!!!'

************

That's how I ended up in the toilet cubicle not knowing where to go.


Welcome, my friend, to the world of skiving.




PS: it's finally FRIDAY!!! I'm finally coming home tonight after being on OT for 4 consecutive nights! You know what, this week, RM was very understaffed in the night shift as a total of 24 people (!!! just night shift alone) decided to fall sick. Well, it's up to you to decide whether the sudden adversity was intentional or not. But, next Monday is a bank holiday (hint hint *wink*).

long term contract

A continuation from this post.

I received my long-term contract from RM!

I'm thinking of changing my blog appearance. I'm starting to become sick of my blog banner.

I was going through a few templates last night but in the end decided to stick with my current one till I have 'inspiration and motivation' to change the appearance.

But who knows one day I might impulsively make a major revamp on the blog.

For better or for worse. We shall see.

about book again!

I got this book as a Christmas present in 2006. A very good book I would say especially for married women. It contains insights to which a woman can do regarding her relationship with God, her husband, her personal life and her children.

Reading this book has made me learned several things and helped me understand why some things go wrong in a family.

Leading a family is like leading a ship. One end of the ship is the man and the other end is the woman. If one end doesn't sail along together with the other end, the ship will break into half. Both man and woman have responsibilities in a family but who decides the final decision in the direction of the ship?

This book has given me the answer. It's not a book which belittles the importance of a woman in a family but rather gives guidance on how to act and respond in a family. It's a book which gives woman a chance to ponder and reflect on her actions which would be unpleasing to God. Most importantly, it's a book which would empower a woman to be after God's own heart. It's worth a read =)

hint hint: daddy should get one for mummy. It's well-worth the money spent for :)

time to update!

It's Wednesday again.

In a blink of an eye, it's mid-week again.

Again in the early hours of the morning I'm writing this entry. I guess it's the best time when I have less distractions and I just got back from work. I wonder how my colleagues could sleep as soon as they got back from work. As I have to wait for about 2 hours or so before my eyes start to get watery and droopy.

I have just finished reading the book titled 'the diving bell and the butterfly'.



A rather short book I would say yet with vivid description of what the author's gone through when all he could do was blink his left eyelid to convey his message. It makes me appreciate things I have taken for granted, helped me realise how devastating it could be to be trapped in an immobilised body but with an active, still-functioning mind. This book is definitely a good read and it's now in a major motion film. But it's strange that I've never heard of the movie before. Hope to watch it someday.

Somehow this book is a bit related to another book which I'm reading now: 'When God doesn't make sense' by Dr James Dobson.


In this book it says, 'when one's expectations are reduced to zero, one really appreciates everything one does have.' How true isn't it? Isn't it better to be content with what we have than believing that life owes us a free ride and be dissatisfied with what it has to offer?

Anyway, I'm starting to enjoy cycling back from work in the early hours of the morning when the air is fresh and cooling. Last week's overtime work wasn't as daunting and dreadful as before as I was working with people I knew. Great time listening and talking to these people. But this week, I'm back with the group of people who only talk among themselves :(. Not that I bother as I find it very difficult to understand the strong Yorkshire accent they were using but talking to people makes 7.5 hours overtime feel like a breeze.

ok. time to sleep now. I'm planning to go swimming on Friday as my sisters and I managed to collect some free swimming vouchers from the frankfurters we bought. Miss swimming so much.

Ciaoz.

weather

You know there's a saying that when you have nothing to talk to an Englishman, talk about the weather.

Well, I have nothing to blog about so I shall blog about the weather!

wahahahahaha

The weather these days have been bad. It has been cloudy and rainy. Worse still, it rains when I go and come back from work.

no D200. Taken using camera phone at 5.47am on my way back home.

I couldn't be bothered bringing a spare to change my wet pants and thought no one would notice. But I didn't know that people did notice.

'Have you been cycling?' Someone asked me.

'yea.'

'I've noticed that you looked wet. Very wet.'

ooook..So someone did take notice of me being drenched.

Anyway, on another note, daylight is getting shorter now. The sky is already dark by 10pm and only gets bright at about 5am. Compared to last time when the sky was bright by 4am and dark only after 10-ish.

Oh...how I miss those days when daylight is soo long. :(

ba zhang (肉粽)

*crap mode on*

粽子 aka ba zhang aka rice dumpling is a well-known delicacy among the Chinese. It's particularly eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival on the 5th day of the 5th month on the Chinese calendar...bla bla bla

*crap mode off*

I finally had the opportunity to make ba zhang after eating the 2 attempts of my housemates in making it.

Making ba zhang is a very tedious process and also very expensive esp in the UK

The preparation alone which involves cutting the garlic and shallots into small pieces, cutting the mushrooms, dicing the pork, chinese sausage and duck egg yoke and frying all the stuff takes more than 4 hours. Poor Stephanie had to all those.



So it's no wonder before we could even start wrapping the ba zhang, her face had the grumpy look:


This is the mouse. She was supposed to smile in this pic but I dunno why she didn't. Never mind, let's make her smile

oops. I think it's overdone ;p

wahahahaha...Esther is gonna kill me for this.

After the preparation, it's time to wrap the ba zhang! Wrapping ba zhang is a skill. Some can master it immediately some cannot. My first (actually second coz the first was wrapped wrongly) correctly wrapped ba zhang was horrible!

the lower pic, the ba zhang on the left is mine. The one beside was wrapped by Esther.

this was how it looked like after a few more practices

Steph wrapping

Finally after almost 3 hours with finished wrapping over 40+ ba zhang. Cindy and Melvin joined to help us wrap. Esther was MIA halfway during the wrapping.

photo credit to Melvin

The ba zhang carefully aligned on the table from small to big.

"好好, 大家排队好, 准备去sauna" - ba zhang queing up to be steamed

me and the ba zhang. "this is all mine!!! wahahahaha"

I'm still waiting for the ba zhang to finish steaming while writing this blog entry. Others have gone to sleep. It takes 1-2 hours (ideally 2 hours) for it to cook. Heard from Steph and Melvin that the texture of the glutinous rice is much better than last time. Hope it's good.


btw, just these few days, I've been eating nothing but ba zhang. What I ate these few days is definitely more than the total amount of ba zhang I ate when I was in M'sia ;p. I can feel the waistline getting bigger.

PS: Updated. I jz realised that I was really in a rush to update my blog that i forgot to blog upload some photos and blog about my trip to Edinburgh.

it's really weird that the only time I update my blog is in the early hours of the morning.

Anyway, updates, updates, updates!! haha

I went to Alton Tower last week:


and guess what? We brought back a friend!

introducing u my friend.... *drum roll*


SHARKIE!!!

wahahahaha...it was difficult carrying sharkie back home on the bus then train then bicycle. But thank God sharkie arrived home safe and sound

just in case you still don't have a clear picture of how big sharkie is, hopefully this pic would be suffice to clear your doubts.

it's even taller and fatter than me!

2nd update:

I went to Edinburgh with WeeLeon, Yee and my sisters. This trip back to Edinburgh is different from the one before. We went to different places. Saw different things.

pic credits to Steph. She can take good photos too.

the hotel we stayed in is the one in white on the right. 65pounds for a room. Reasonably priced. Background is Arthur Seat. We didn't manage to climb it during the trip this time.



Did u notice anything wrong with this pic? The statue head is covered with bird's poo. Poor guy :p.

Compare it to this statue here:

lucky statue

3rd update:

We celebrated Esther's birthday! It was nice to have people coming and having fellowship together.

the people who came

and the 3 sisters with Steph's homemade cake:

this is the happy mouse with her presents


Kyle took a video of us without us noticing and it was very funny coz it was badly dubbed! hahahaha. So this is how we look like in the eyes of a ang moh.

Scene: my house

part 1:



part 2:


PS: just in case you don't know, the later song is a birthday song sung in cantones :P