Simply Me

i feel a bit left out because the hubby and the little one has a special day. every friday after school they go and share a meal in mcdonald. ysabelle  got so used to it and proved to be the highlight of her week…mcdonald day! i never remember a day izza and i went out without the hubby. i want to share a special day with her as well. a day where she will look forward to in a week. we picked saturday, a girl’s day out. we’ve been doing it for sometime now.

on a day like these, harbour is the place to be…..

we spotted a shade and took a break…..

thanks to a nice lady who offered to take our picture..

posing in front of an antique shop……….

this time a gentleman sitting on the other bench offered a hand…….

lunch at “real china”, ysa’s favorite. i wanted to try italian gossip but was overruled…ha!ha!ha!this time the hubby joined us as he felt left out.

on the way home… the park at the back of our flat………

daddy’s two lovely girlfriends….ha!ha!ha!……..

we did a bit of shopping on the side.the red one izza picked for me and the other i chose for her. my little girl has better taste than i do…ha!ha!ha!

i haven’t ask her yet if she’s looking forward to our girl’s day out but hey, i know i do. next saturday, weather permits, we will go on a boat/ferry trip. i do get motion sickness but she’s quite keen on it. so, boat trip here we come…….

i was just about to turn a corner on my way home when a thought came to me. it was about finding your way. it wasn’t the longest of walk. the weather is what englang is well known for…cold, dark and damp. i better organize my thoughts before i lost the plot. it does happen to me a lot, you know, a thought or idea strikes me and i got sidetracked by something else…pop! gone in thin air. all i  came up with was a personalized quote.

not much but that will do for a 5 minutes walk.

i called ysabelle to ask her opinion. she read it and said….”it means, when your mum is on the other side and you are trying to find her and go the wrong way then you will be crying the whole day….”

she has a point, you know!

this has been sitting at the back burner for quite sometime now as i cannot moved on further than the first line. it was inspired by an anesthetist, a zimbabwean, who, after coming back from his native land has told us the realities of war that savaged his beloved land.it is only now  that i find a spark of inspiration to see it to the end.

we don’t have to be in the actual battleground to know the pain.listening to him reliving what he saw and feeling powerless to do something about it makes me feel incapacitated by profound feeling of sadness. we don’t have to be in ground zero to feel the devastation, lost and loneliness. war, in whatever shape and form, always creates a big gaping hole in humanity.

i saw an angel cry
amidst a multitude savaged by war
dreams daily lost, hopes forever gone
darkness prevail, lights never come

where fields were erst a golden feast
now turned to place where battle rage
what was once green now blood spills
the cries of innocents gnaws in pain

once where children roams the earth
they filled the air with robust zest
not today, i’m afraid to state
most of them lies in eternal rest

while nights were filled with lullabies
morning brings a lovely time
now all you see are ghostly towns
gnashing teeth and tortured cries

golden sun has lost its rays
majestic moon calls out in vain
when is this madness gonna end
until then….. i’ll weep with him

by eng

after an emotional turmoil the other night, today, i want to lighten up my mood. so against my traditional weekday menu, i decided to cook curry for lunch. i read this recipe on the net few months ago. the hubby and the little one seems to be taking a taste to indian curry. i had indian chicken curry before and believed me, it was a gatronomic experience. mine doesn’t come close to an authentic one, but i am happy with it. what better way to improve the flavor than to cook it once a week,. i usually prepare it weekend (saturday)and hence named the day, curry day…..

as i always says…strikes when the iron is hot. i am in one of my occasional cooking mood.strange, as i am in that mood all week. it doesn’t happened very often, so, i need to give in to the call of the kitchen.its monday afternoon, ysabelle was out with few friends whose daughters of 9 and 5 years olds just came from the philippines. its bank holiday and i am free. i promised the hubby to cook his favorite, palabok, my tour de force…ha!ha!ha! and a leche flan, which still needs working on to get the desirable outcome, a two thumbs up from the hubby.

to friends, whom i haven’t met yet personally, one day i shall prepare these for you. having said that, know that i ache for you company more than i long to serve all these to you….someday my friends, someday……

friends who have known me for the last 10 years can certainly attest i can not cook.i love eating but cooking is an entirely different ballgame. it is something that requires time and attention…both, i am not good at.

it is only later in life that i developed an interest in cooking….when ysabelle hits 2 1/2 years old.i knew then that i had to do something to feed her young body and mind with a warm home-made meals whenever i can. not an easy task, cooking. it was trial and error (and still is), mostly error, for every single dish i do. having a salty and sour inclination in everything i taste doesn’t help either. a friend, once commented, “ang asim naman ng sinigang mo”;i said, that’s why its called sinigang. i eat most of my meals at home with patis on the side (started cutting down on salt as the hubby finds it too salty for his liking). i am still learning. on good days, i got  raving reviews from the the hubby and the little one which gives me an adrenaline rush to concoct something to top that up. some days were not just my days, hence i got two thumbs down. very frustrating!

when my little one gives me two thumbs up, i am thrilled!! this week i got few thumbs up and that gets me going.

we had this for dinner today. i got two thumbs up, two big toes up and a protruding tummy from ysabelle. the hubby, he prefers last night’s dinner, fish in black beans sauce(tausi). yes, its all fish this week. if there’s something we all agreed on when it comes to “ulam”….fish tops the list!!!

i was at friend’s house a couple of weeks ago and in the course of exchanging views on different matters, an issue of abortion came up.

i am pro-life.i consider it sacred and honor its sanctity.i do not pass judgement on those who favors it for whatever reason.it is a matter of choice.i respect it as i hope they do mine.

i am also a person of science.it is my professional and ethical obligation to see to it that i treated patients under my care equally.i see past beyond the color of skin, religious or political affiliation and sexual orientation and yes, a choice one’s made for themselves which may differ from mine.i do not excused myself of that duty unless it go against my moral/personal conviction, abortion is one of those.i made it known at work that i wont take any part in the process of terminating a pregnancy,in any shape and form.i am obliged as a professional member of staff to make sure that the place is safe for such procedure, that’s how far or close i can go.the moment a patient get inside the theatre/operating room i go out of it.

i was 36 when i got pregnant with ysabelle, an elderly primigravida (first pregnancy) by any standard.due to my age,i was offered an amniocentesis (extraction by centesis of amniotic fluid from a pregnant woman  to aid in the diagnosis of fetal abnormalities), a risky diagnostic procedure as it might cause a miscarriage.i was told to think it over.i didn’t have to think it over, i refused it point blank.what good will it do if the test proved that my unborn child has chromosomal defect, a down syndrome. will i opt for abortion? NO. i told the midwife i do not see any point at all.

at the end of the day,it is a decision one has to make.we are only given one life to live and a chance to lived it and the choice is in your hand.

it was 4:30 in the afternoon….i was in the middle of watching nicholas cage’s “knowing” when i suddenly realized i haven’t prepared anything yet for dinner.i took a fillet of salmon out this morning to thaw but haven’t decided yet what to make of it.there’s a programme at 5:00 pm that i don’t want to miss either.i only got few minutes to spare.then, i remembered seeing a salmon and soba noodles on tes’ blog this morning ( thanks girlfriend for that inspirational blog and the dish of course) and hurrah!hurrah! problem solved.it doesn’t looked and maybe taste as good but it will do for dinner;after all salmon and singaporean noodles are izza’s favorite.

my own version of honey mustard baked salmon on singaporean noodles..

2 tbs mustard
1 tbs honey
1 lemon zest and juice
salt
pepper
1 tbs of butter
fillets of salmon

***mix all ingredients in a bowl and marinate the salmon.set aside for 10-15 minutes(preferrably longer) for flavor to infuse. baked for 20-30 minutes or until to your liking

227 mg. pancit bihon(soaked in hot water for 10 minutes)
1 med sized onion
1 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
2-3 tbs of roasted sesame oil
salt
pepper
spring onion(garnish)

***cook it as you normally cooked pancit but add the turmeric powder after you sautee the onion.since the noodles is almost cooked, it only takes 5 minutes for the entire cooking process.

i was comfortably seated on the sofa facing the bay window; watching the birds and feasting my sight upon new blooms on my neighbor’s garden when a thought hits me yet again.yes, it is the title of scorpio’s hit “wind of change”. so, instead of passing my time coughing and sneezing all day and night i needed that much refreshing break from it all….

literally, it is as simple as changes of wind…figuratively, well, it is  open to everyone’s interpretation of  your “wind of change”…………………….

a gentle breeze and soft caress
western wind has touch my face
it encircles me with warm embrace
nurtures me with joys ahead

i feel the grass strokes my feet
wild flowers sways just to be kissed
i lift my arms and swirl around
me and those leaves in rhythm this time

i was jarred by a sudden gust
the graceful wind becomes wild
the leaves shiver upon its touch
flowers cringe shaken by its sight

dark clouds looms and obscure the light
upon the horizon the tempest sweeping fast
on its path were debris of once a lovely sight
i shudder at the scene unfolding before my eyes

i run and run and try to hide
from the ghastly fingers of stormy night
i need a shroud from its lightning whip
shelter from wrath of its thunderous screech

how can it be the wind so velvety
all of a sudden becomes monstrosity
just this morning you sang me a lullaby
by nightfall you turn to an ugly malady

i knew that wind are known to shift
should have known the fury it will unleash
i  summon the courage to boldly face
after the storm a brand new  day will break