Aquarium Filter vs Pond Filter

I did not know there are two types of filters.  One is for pond and the other for aquarium.  The aquarium filter has a built-in pump.  So no unsightly pump in the tank.  The pond filter need a pump in the pond.  Filters are expensive.  The first one I bought was for pond by Laguna and it is more than $400.  Yesterday, I bought a aquarium pump and it is $220.  The filter has an important function of clearing up the water and processing the waste of the fishes.  I am installing the filter as my tank is outside with strong sunlight and the algae grows and turn the water into green opaque liquid.  I am in the process of make the water clear again. 

Peking Duck Deal in Crystal Jade Taka

I want to check out if Kino expanded section has been opened in Takashimaya.  So I went there and unfortunately, it will only be opened tomorrow.  The bookshelves are better stocked with selection broadened.  So it is more interesting to browse.  I like it when there are lots of books especially new books.  Library gives a different feel.  I was very happy when I first visited Barnes and Noble as well as Borders in US.  The selection was simply amazing.  In Canada, there were only small stores chains.  Then Chapter opens with superstore and have Starbucks in the store with a fireplace.  It was very nice to spend time there.  Then Amazon killed all 3 of the bookstores and now I have no place to visit in US or Canada.  We are lucky Kino is still doing well and expanding.  I loved the bookstore and browsing there is an adventure.  Now with all the shelves reshuffled, it is quite interesting to explore again. 

Exploring bookstore makes me hungry.  So since Tampopo has no deal, we hopped opposite to Crystal Jade.  I was thinking of dim sum but the Peking Duck deal was pretty good at $39.90 per bird.  Add 2 water and two towels plus plus i.e. plus 10 plus 7, total comes to close to $50.  It is nice to enjoy premium food.  I am glad I can enjoy spending my hard earned money.

Peach Garden in Thomson Plaza

We were not too hungry during lunch and so decide to eat dim sum.  The Chinese resturant in Thomson Plaza is now occupied by Peach Garden.  I remember going to Peach Garden in Novena Hotel.  It was very good but also very expensive.  Today, in Thomson Plaza, the price is still high but not exorbitant.  The food quality is also not as good.

I think the dim sum in Hua Ting is still the best.  It is quite expensive but the taste is good.  I loved to eat there.  We have not been there since the Champagne Lunch is not available.  Champagne Lunch is good for my boys who can eat a lot if the food is good.  It is good value.  My wife and I on the other hand have limited stomach space and it is not good value.  So we like to bring our boys together so that they can eat our share!

Shu Vegetarian

Sunset Grill left Jalan Kayu and in its place is Shu Vegetarian.  My father-in-law's birthday meal even though his birthday was a couple days ago.  The food in Shu Vegetarian is not bad.  The Lo Han Zai is raved by my brother-in-law.  He paid for the meal.  So I do not know whether it is a good deal or not.  I read the reviews in the net and many rave it is good value and good taste.  I must say I ate a lot in this restaurant.  So it is pretty good.

Rare Luxury

This morning, I woke up late.  Usually, I send my boys to school or to work.  B2 has duty this morning but I was deep asleep.  So he did not wake me up.  I am glad to sleep till the sun is up.   My mornings are dark, fast and furious.  Then I go to the hawker center for my usual cup of tea or coffee or yin yang i.e. coffee mixed with tea.  I just like to soak into the atmosphere of wet market.  Sitting and just observing the busy activities of the hawkers and people having their breakfast.

I have a lunch appointment with my father-in-law.  So it will be a vegetarian meal just to spend some time with him.  He is undergo radio therapy treatment for a cancerous lump.  He will get well.

Lazy Day

Early in the morning, we have to send B3 to Kallang Practise Track for his competition.  We then go to Old Airport Road Hawker Center for breakfast.  The coffee stall had a long queue.  I think it is the price.  The toast set which is the same as Ah Kun or Toastbox for $5.40 per set cost only $3.  The coffee is pretty good.  The eggs are done well.  We also ate Lor Mee but on the one with long queue.  Last week, we ate that stall and it is not so good especially the gravy is too thick.  This morning, we had the Tiong Bahru Lor Mee. The fish filet is deep fried and cut in large pieces.  Whereas the stall with long queue has only fish flakes.

Since we had heavy breakfast, we were not ready hungry until about half past one.  So I called Nanbantei yakatori if they have seats.  Usually, on Saturday it is hard to get a place there.  This time we get the ok for 2pm but she will only reserve the seats for 5 mins.  The last order is 2:15pm and they closed at 2:30pm.  The meal for 4 cost us $80 which is quite dear considering we took set lunch and add chicken wings and a cheesy something which B2 ordered.

I was lazing around and killing time flipping tv programs.  We warmed up our leftover pasta and then adjourn to AMK Central for Korean Fried Chicken in the coffeeshop next to Djitsun Mall.

This is a good day of rest.

A Busy Friday

My colleague resigned in Jan and only today, it is announced as his replacement has been confirmed.  The new colleague is a Brit based in Dubai.  He will be transferring to Singapore even though our Malaysian office is much bigger. 


We are under cost cutting but then the company does this.  It is obvious cost cutting is for the minions and the elites continues to enjoy their luxurious lifestyle.  This is what happen when the boss is a European.  He is transferring all the expensive heads from Europe to Asia.

Programming is Challenging

Python is supposed to be easy.  I am having trouble.  I can do the simple operations but once I try to copy slightly more advanced instruction, I get into errors.  It is taking much time to figure out why the instructions do not work as stated in the book.

This is where video is superior.  I go to Youtube and the error will pop out and then there will be a fix by the presenter.  Whereas in the book, I have to search high and low in different part of the book to see where go wrong.

But there are some good recommendations in the books on websites to go.  The google search may not get you the same sites.

Learning Programming

B1 told me about his problem with his IT module.  I got interested as the program is free to install on the internet.  It is also Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.  So I am taking baby steps to learn programing again.  It is not easy as I have to figure out how to install into my computer.  I find it is easier with the youtube videos.  It seems like not so easy to program even though I copied exactly as in the video.  So something is not right.


Anyway, this is exciting as I am learning a totally new language and taking steps to learn data mining.  I hope I can sustain interest to learn the basics of Python.

Comfort Place

The wet market is ho hum of daily life.  The butchers are cutting out their pig and sorting out the different cuts.  The poultry stalls are wet and chickens lay out neatly.  Vegetable sellers are bundling out the vegetable so that the price is $1, $2 or $3 making it a quick sale rather the weighing out each purchase.  Beside the wet market is the hawker center.  Cooked food vendors are busy serving.

After sending my boy to school, I like to go to the hawker center and have a cup of tea.  I just sit and absorb in the ongoing scene.  Somehow, I find it comforting to be in a busy, noisy, messy and a little dirty hawker center.  In Canada, the first thing I do when I wake up is to boil water and make myself a cup of tea.  But I do not have the luxury of going to a market.  I have to sit in my own dining room or kitchen and it is me and myself.  Sometimes, I will go to a Tim Hortons which has great coffee at a reasonable price i.e. similar to our kopitiam.  In Canada, no savory breakfast.  Only sweet stuff like donuts or muffins at reasonable price.  Savory breakfast is sandwich at $4 or $5.  Who wants to pay so much for two slices of bread with something in-between?

Hawker/street food is a great Asian invention.  The variety, taste and choice are much better than the Western countries.  I enjoys our simple hawker place where food and price are reasonable.

Thomson Plaza

We did not go to Thomson Plaza for a long time.  We use to frequent Thomson Plaza as we have our boys there for tuition.  So I decide to go there for lunch.  Plenty of changes.  Now, there are more F&B outlets like other shopping malls.  Popular, NTUC Fairprice, Sushi Tei are still there.  There are new shops and the tuition centers were moved to a corner.  Coriander Cafe which is a zhichar cafetaria is still there and quite popular.  There is a new Japanese sushi resturant that is very popular with a super long queue. 

The watch shop beside Popular is gone and now it is a Chinese Medicine shop.  So Thomson Plaza is pretty lively during lunch time.  I think it is pretty good place to visit once in a while.

All Clear!

I went to see my classmate.  It is all clear.  I was having UTI.  This recurring UTI is after my kidney stone blasting using ESWL.  The bacteria is drug resistant and requires Bactrium at high dose and for 2 weeks instead of the usual 1 week.  Now the bacteria may be dormant and may come back anytime.  I am glad antibiotics works!


It is dangerous to have kidney infections as it is liable to shutdown. However, as we grow older, it is much harder to treat. So I am glad I have friends whom I can talk to.

A Week without Blogging

It is hard to write.  I have a boring life.  I also do not know what topic or specialty to blog about.  Many blog on food or places to go.  I like to just talk about my books or work.  Now I do not read as much as before.  It is so much easier to whatsapp and youtube.  My attention span is short and getting shorter.


Writing take thinking and thinking is so much effort compared to searching for videos to watch.  Better still, youtube recommends more similar videos.  No efforts needed to expand your interest.  To get some momentum back, I start to read newspapers again.  I read the analysis and guest writers.  Newspaper articles are easy read.  It is short.  Books are much harder to sustain interest.  So reading fiction is the way to go. 


What did I do for the week?  I look back and try to recall.  It was just routine - work, meals and exercise.  Today, I swam.  Most of the time, cycling is norm.  I enjoys the PCN and Punggol seaside.  I noticed Malay families still do picnic  But other races don't. 


Many fishermen have abandon fishing in Punggol Jetty.  The catch was dismal.  Using net, I am able to catch enough fishes for my arowana.  Otherwise, I will have problem as the small fishes have also diminish.


A week has gone quickly and I am looking to writing regularly.

Cure for Backaches - Amazing Result!!

I just do a couple of the basic Pilates exercise.  My backaches disappears just like magic,  I must have discipline to keep a regular schedule and make it a habit.  My problem is once my backache disappear, after a while I stop exercising and then the backache will come back to haunt me.

One of the basic exercise is lay flat on the floor like planking.  Stretch out your hands and lift your head and legs up like Superman flying and hold for as long as possible.  Once I can hold for more than 30 seconds, backache is gone!!

Random Rambling

Sometimes I ponder over this profound question. What is the meaning of life?


I was fairly happy stock market is going back up although not to the level where I can recover my losses but today it just went down.  It may go down some more. 


Why do we need money to live?  How nice if we can just go on without money, power or fame.  It is quite easy for some to make money and difficult for others.  Some make a pittance and a few make millions or even billions.  I am not depressed nor desperate.  But I do get into a philosophical mood and have questions that cannot be answered easily.


My philosophy in living is spends less than I earn.  Have simple needs.  No branded stuff or expensive wheels.  Be happy with what I have.  Live well and enjoy my food!  That is live to eat! 

Snowstorm in Toronto

I was watching the news on the snowstorm in New England, US and decide to call mum to check if Toronto has snowstorm as well.  She confirmed that the snow is piled up high there as well.  I remember that every time heavy snow in eastern US, it affects TO as well.  I will be most happy to enjoy snowstorm if I am not working.  It will be a huge challenge to go to work in snowstorm.  I did that before and it was exhausting.


First have to shovel snow before the car can come out of the garage.  Then the highway will be extremely slow and full of stalled cars and accidents galore.  Then on returning home have to shovel the snow again before entering the garage.  If you don't shovel, it will be very difficult to shovel.  Usually, snow will stay for a few weeks at this time of year.

Suntec City

Suntec City has changed a lot since the last revamp.  There are more resturants and less shopping.  There are no big stores anymore.  Harvey Norman, Carrefour used to occupy huge floor space.  Now, all the stores are a fraction of the size of yesteryear.  Giant is the anchor tenant instead of Carefour and occupy only half of what Carrefour had. 


Restaurant choices are so much better.  Food Republic is the expensive foodcourt left.  So after dining, it is hard to spend more time there as the shopping is not like before.  The crowd is not as big as before too.  I guess there are too many competition and the economy is not doing well.  Also more and more are buying through internet.  The savings after delivery charge can be substantial.  All from the convenience of clicking.

Pilates

My appointment with neurologist today is to help eliminate pain at my right joint.  The weakness of my right leg is gone now.  It is much stronger as I cycle everyday.  The surgeon cannot offer me any better treatment other than cutting me up.  I definitely do not wish to have any of my nerves touched. 


So he recommends Pilates.  Once I can hold the position for 5 mins, then the core muscles will be strong enough and I will solve my backaches.


I will try it out.

One of my schoolmate post this on RI Group Chat, Please Enjoy.

Chinese New Year is winding down

More and more are getting back to work especially in China where most start work only today.  We have a few more days.  Birthday for all is over, praying to Heavenly God was on Saturday night.  I am counting down to Chap Goh Mei.  It will be celebration and feasting.  Then back to routine ho-hum.


I am getting lazy in writing.  I vowed to write every evening but nowadays, I am quite erratic.  It is easy to miss writing during holiday season.  I think I am no longer working like crazy unlike before.  I need not check endlessly for emails and think about strategy all the time.  So in a way I am on the road to retirement.

Many Visitors

I have not been blogging last week.  Busy hosting visitors and also visiting my in-laws and eldest sister.  My boys are much better at being a host.  They can entertain their cousins while the adults talk.  We will have to prepare adhoc meal for out guests.  It is quite a challenge as we were not prepared to cook.  Somehow my wife managed to whip up good nutritious meals for our visitors.

All Well's Now

Early in the morning, the tow truck came to pick up my car.  Then we go to Borneo Motors in Sin Ming.  They do a diagnostic and found it is the ignition coils.  Two coils are out.  However, the coils are replaced in a set.  Each coil costs $250.  So one thousand bucks just for parts and labour cost is separate.  I have a service contract, so get 30% discount for parts and 10% discount for labour.  Also I have 9980 points and 10,000 points equals to $100.  So in total the bill comes to $743 for the morning repair. 


The great news is we now have our car for the New Year.  Then at night, we went to AMK Ave 3 hawker center for last minute CNY shopping and there is a huge crowd of cars and one empty season carpark.  So I decided to risk it.  We hurriedly get our stuff and when we returned there is a slip on the windscreen.  $50!


Anyway, it is still a good day.

Car Giving Problem

This evening, the car engine is vibrating and shaking violently.  Three years ago, the battery conked out on the 1st Day of CNY.  So we did not have the use of our car for 1 week as Borneo Motors is closed for Spring Festival.


I am starting to worry that it is giving problems during Chinese New Year period.  Is this an omen or just my car aging.  It still has 2 years to go.

Raining Non-Stop

Last night, it rained all night until late morning.  This afternoon we had a breather and I continue to work on my drainage.  Then at 7pm, the rain starts and it just continues on and on, sometimes reducing to a drizzle.


I like the cool evening.  It is like winter in Canada.  Warm and cosy inside my home watching and listening to the rains.  It is very nice to watch snow.  Just not so nice to shovel the driveaway in the morning before going to work.

Physical Work

This afternoon, I spent a couple of hours digging up a small drain in my backyard.   Water ponding during downpour is usual and I am working on getting the water drain into a drain hole that was built when I first moved in. 


I am always reluctant to work on the house to keep it in tiptop condition.  I have this idea to improve the drainage for a couple of years now.  I even have a pipe which I left is the backyard.  Finally, today I dug out the drain and cut a slot on the side of the drain hole.  However, the slot is still high as there is a subsoil pipe buried there.  Still I think my solution is better than before.


I feel so much more accomplished when the work is done.  I still need to figure out how to make it work consistently.  I noticed over time the soil level will increase as rainwater bring silt cause the ground to rise slowly.

CNY Goodies

I am eating a lot of CNY goodies.  So my weight is gaining.  I love loveletters, almond cookies, cashew nut cookies, kueh bangkit and bak kwa.  I am happy to eat them when they are fresher.  By Chinese New Year I will be tired of eating those high cal tidbits. 


My favorite goodies stall is in AMK Ave 3 and Ave 10 hawker centre.  The bakeshop has a makeshift canvas shelter built to cater for New Year Sale.  The price is quite reasonable.  The quality is acceptable.  I no longer buy Bengawan Solo as the price is 3X more than those I bought from this stall but it does not taste 3X better.  I am happy to have a reasonable Chinese New Year Celebration.

Gardening

My wife is a houseproud person.  Since Chinese New Year is around the corner, she is busy cleaning up the house and today tackle my garden both roof and front.  I fixed the grass cutter with a new battery.  Then it is so easy to cut the grass.  Raking the cut grass is quite strenous.  I am all hot and sweaty helping her out.  In the front garden, she worked mostly alone even though technically the maintenance of outdoor is my responsibility.   She cleared the old leaves and trim the overgrown bushes.

We have a huge clay pot that our mountain fire is in splits into 3.  So we have to remove the claypot by breaking it with a hammer.  The roots are now exposed.  But the tree is standing tall as the roots have gone below the pot and into the soil.

Right now my garden look really neat and cool.

Speakers Systems

There is a bewildering number of different speakers.  I always thought the sound from MP3 players or those from internet are terrible because of the encoding.  Now with Nakamichi it sound much better.  Recently, I try out Jawbone, the sound is so fabulous.  My family loved it so much.  They thought it is comparable to French brand that was on demo in Tangs a couple weeks ago.

The French speaker was impressive.  The shape is like a comma with a straight tail.  It is interesting to see the speaker moving in and out.  Sound is quite good, actually very good.  Whole family went into the demo room to listen.  Then they hear the Jawbone and is very impressed!  They felt the Jawbone sound quality is comparable.  I love the sound as well.  The bass is solid.  So when it plays the MP3 music or Youtube, it actually sound heavenly.  No need for expensive high fidelity recordings and players.  The speakers alone do the heavy lifting.

Outing with MIL

Mother-in-law is not allowed to go to office.  So she asked her girls to accompany her for CNY shopping.  She was looking for new Polo shirts for my FIL or father-in-law.  His Polo Tees must have pockets.  He needed the pocket to put his glasses and cash.  He is very old style, always carry a wad of cash.

MIL is happy to have her baby girl and 2nd daughter to keep her company for shopping.  I left them and went to buy a battery for my grass cutter.  It works well.  I am very happy to spend $20 to fix it.  I also spend $135 for a cctv camera.  I feel quite productive to fix up 2 things in the house and cut the grass on my roof garden.

I have not been fishing for some time.  It is fine as my arowana gets big meal each time I go.  Sometimes too much food.

Westgate Mall

We send B3 to Choa Chu Kang Stadium for his competition.  Then go to Westgate Mall to pass time.  B1 and my wife tried the Mak's Wanton noodle.  They think it is ok.  It is one of the most expensive noodle but today we just order one noodle each and so cost only $27.  But an hour later we have to eat again.  This time in Crystal Jade for time dim sum.

Westgate is a pretty good mall to past time.  Also B3 is done at about 2pm and so it worked out well.  Isetan Supermart also offers different variety of groceries.  We have a good day of outing.

London Fat Duck in Waterway Point

Today is a busy day for my boys.  B1 went to camp to build the props for a school play.  B3 has to collect newspapers around Bishan estate in their annual old newspaper drive.  B2 was sleeping to recover from his night duty.  He is not performing to his optimum recently due to lack of sleep.  Motherr-in-law was bored and asked her daughter to go mall crawling with her.

We were in Waterway Point.  I fell in with London Fat Duck when I first tried during the first week of opening in Scott.  Since I am waiting alone, I decided to wait and have some light snacks.  I ordered the black pepper duck bun and pork belly char siew.  The black pepper duck was so spicy.  I cannot take the duck at all.  The meat could be anything.  The char siew standard is terrible too.  No wonder now there is no queue.

After eating, the waitress asked for my feedback and I gave her my honest opinion.  I also told her my wife think it is terrible.  Now I agree with her.  Although I fell in love with the resturant in Scott, I am not coming back to this resturant.

Enjoyable But Tiring Day

I have a good day!  My morning starts with a filtered coffee.  Then I drop B1 and Mummy off in Bishan at about 9am and head to office.  I worked in the office and then off to a meeting with customer.  We had lunch in a canteen in Penjuru Close.  The food is surprising good.  It is easy, just follow the longest queue.  Malay food stall.  Deep fried chicken in red sauce.  It is tomato and not chilli.  I had cucumber pickle salad and brinjal.  The meal cost me $5.  A little pricey in a canteen but good value.  I will go back there to eat again.


In the afternoon, I go to Orchard to pick my wife up.  She enjoyed herself shopping for her flip flop slippers with 20% discount from Metro.  I enjoys encouraging her to buy.  She loves to shop.  I on the other hand want to save the Earth and have a small footprint.


We had a break in the basement of Tang's.  Ah Kun tea with Penang Fried Kway Teow.  It is nice to have a break with my companion.

New Tool New Skill Dramatic Productivity Increased

I have been using a scoop net for many years.  It is getting more and more challenging to catch the small fishes I used to catch.  Maybe the fishes are less.  I feel my reflexes are slowing down as well.  I could not move fast enough and the fishes escape.  With the scoop net, I have to spend sometimes an hour as I have to wait for the school to swim near me to within reach of my net.

Now I have the new tool, cast net, I have to acquire new skill.  The skill of throwing the net so that it opens up.  It is so much easier to learn new skills nowaday.  Before, I would have gone to the library or Kinokuniya and get a few books with how-to instructions and practise.  Many mistakes and futile efforts with re-reading the instructions over and over again until I learn the skill of throwing the cast net.  Today, it is different.  Go to Youtube and lots of different way of throwing the cast net for beginners.  Each video is only two to three minutes and I can try right away.

This morning after a few throws with nothing, I had one that caught the fishes.  One cast is enough more than 10 good size fishes are in the net.  Shake them off and then pull or push out those stuck in the net and my mission is completed.  So much faster, easier and more productive.

All have I have to do is acquire new tool and new skill to use the tool properly.  This sounds like what Manpower Minister preach to us.

Making Good Soup

I think I know the secret of good soup.  First, must clean the bones with salt.  Then boil the bones for 10 mins and washed the pot and bones with cold water.  Add filtered water and boil for many hours.  I boiled the bones over a two day period with rest at night as I do not wish to watch the heat and the pot.

Add freshly ground pepper while the soup is simmering.  It will remove the porky smell.  After the bone marrow has been thoroughly extracted, off heat and wait for the soup to cool.  Remove the bones and filter the soup.  Store the soup base in the fridge.  The soup will jell up and it is quite solid. 

To make the soup, just dilute the jelly with equal portion of water and bring to a boil.  Add any ingredient you like.  I love tau pok, fish balls, fried tau kee stuffed with fish meat or abalone, fresh prawn, cuttlefish and sliced fish fillet. 

I am still a little boy preferring fishball rather than real fish fillet which my wife prefers.

Water is Really Cleaner

Today, the water in Punggol Point is much cleaner now.  It is still oily and I have to wash my feet with soap a couple of times.  I still manage to catch some small fishes and even baby fishes.  So the sea life is back.  No fishermen around except for one staunch and hardy guy.  He is also someone I talk to as well.  It is good that we can recover quickly.

The NEA guy is there as well.  Probably to evaluate the water and beach condition.

Busy Day

Our friends whom we go together to KL came for dinner today.  He brought his grass fed ribeye steaks.  I thawed, seasoned and bbq them for him.


Early in the morning, I brought B2 to work.  Then go to Chong Pang for groceries.  I bought jackfruits, lala and 1 kg of small squids.  The 2 color corns were on sale for $1 each and I bought 3 for bbq.  Then I called my in-laws to breakfast with them.  They had one grandson with them.  Now Po Po and Gong Gong have company on the weekends.

So Much Fun with Cast Net

Now with my cast net, I can catch many fishes at one go.  So it is pretty fun.  I enjoy the fact in one throw it is sufficient for me and my arowana.  My arowana now can eat alot.  At one go, more than 3 fairly big fishes.  It is quite amazing to see its appetite.  I think it can grow to the size in River Safari.  Although I did not go to River Safari, B1 and B3 told me their experience and the size of the arowana and alligator gar.  So it will be amazing size in time to come.

Mid Valley Mall for New Year's Eve

B1 and B3 was with us in Mid Valley Mall over the new year.  We drove on Saturday morning at 5:30am and cross the border slightly past 7am.  Drove to somewhere in Johore for Bak Kut Teh and drove all the way to Mid Valley Mall.  This is the first time I drove to KL.  We reached Mid Valley about 1pm.

Lunch was at Little Penang.  We had fried kway teow, otah and Penang Rojak.  Penang Rojak is too sweet and no more crispy cuttlefish bits.

I always wanted my family to be in Mid Valley so that we can spend time together.  This is the 2nd time we are there.  First time was about 10 years ago and the boys were very young at that time.  This time around, they go on their own to shop and play games.

On Sunday, New Year's Day, I went with B1 and B3 to downtown KL.  It was fun to explore Bukit Bintang, Sentral Market, Chinatown in Petaling Street and Bejaya Times Square.  We bought 1 dozen Krispy Kreme and free 6 for RM24.  Price is more affordable in KL.  For this price, we can only get 2 and half donuts!!

I like to drive up again.  It is so much fun just to spend time and buy things and food at much reasonable price.  I love downtown as well.  It is great just to walk about.

2016 Coming to a Close

This year is soon over.  I am hopeful for the next year to be a better year.  I love my Almanac for next year.  Things are looking up for my classmates and me.  A lot of my classmates are enjoying their lives.  Most of them have kids at the same age as mine.  It is the year of Change.  The year of poor economy for many countries.  Then Britain exit EU and Trump won by American First.  The pendulum is now swinging back from Globalisation.


China is very assertive.  I read Lobsang Rampa many many years ago.  He says the Eagle and the Bear will cooperate to deal with the Dragon.  So maybe in a few years this will happen as China is getting from assertive to aggressive.


I hope the new year brings new hope and new joys.  I wish our home, Singapore will get better.

Many are on Holiday

Many of my colleagues are on holiday.  They are enjoying themselves oversea.  The Europe side has plant shutdown.  So it is difficult here as many orders need to be delivered before Dec 31st.  We have our challenges.  However, it is still holiday mood.  Unfortunately most of the mall and supermarts are switching over the Chinese New Year.  I missed Christmas Spirit.  I like it to last until new year.  But it seems not.  It is not so fun when CNY and Christmas are close.  Then the switchover happens right after Christmas and we cannot get the festive mood longer. 


CNY is also festive but very different in feel.  I like to enjoy both cultures and savor for as long as possible.

Bone-in Ham Celebration

We celebration Christmas Eve with a Bone-in Ham from Cold Storage.  It is 6 kgs and cost $99.  The ham was put in 3 bags and when we reached home, all 3 bags have a hole!  We cooked the ham and ate a wee bit for dinner and then carved the rest out in chunks and save them in the freezer.  We always had a Turkey or Ham in Canada for Christmas.  My company always gave employees a choice and the most senior executive will be giving them out.  Yes, executive means top management and not clerk in Singapore Malaysia context.


Lunch is ham porridge and dinner will be ham pasta.

Akashi Japanese Resturant Paragon

B1 always intrigued by Akashi every time we go to Tambuah Mas for meals.  Tambuah is reasonable in price and Akashi is exobitant in contrast.  It seems popular, so today when he suggested wee decided to try.  He had sashimi, mummy ordered tempura set and I go for unagi don.  I also ordered grilled mutton.  Mummy feels the food is better than Tampopo.  B1 likes the food as well.  I think it is ok.  I prefers Tampopo.  But I only eat cooked food.  So do not know the freshness level of the serving.

My unagi don cost $24.  Then after the meal, we walk past the gyoza resturant which is also by Akashi, there is a big banner that pronouned Unagi Don $14.  I feel a little cheated.

Ipoh Hor Fun - Compass One

At level 1 there is a stall that sell Ipoh hor fun and other Ipoh dishes.  It is right beside Encik Tan.  The price is quite high at $6 to $7 per bowl and you can get additional hot coffee or tea for 80cents.  The food is quite good.  Dinner for 4 is $35 plus change.  I thought it is pretty expensive especially since it is self service.  Gurney Drive is better value for slightly higher price we get service.


It is back to school time.  Popular is so busy.  Lots of kids with their parents buying supplies.  It is good to eat dinner in a mall especially since it was pouring outside.

Christmas Mood

Everyone is sending out emails for Christmas.  I am glad to have the long weekend after a long week.  So will go for good dinner tonight.  Maybe walk around Orchard for Christmas feel.  I love Christmas.  But this year we do not have the Christmas tree as we threw away the tree we brought from Canada.  The feel at home is quite regular.


The movies channels in Singtel is free again.  But all old movies.  I like internet movies as they are newer and the serials are also interesting.


Fishing has not been good, so I need to look for a net to help land some fishes.

Drinking Plenty of Water

After getting so sick during the time when my kidney stones were blasted in oblivion, I am now drinking plenty of water.  I used to be proud that I do not drink water.  Only tea or soda pops.  Now I learn my lesson.  However, my urine tests still show presence of microcrystals.  This is no good.  It mean a matter of time that kidney stones will form again.  Anyway, I will keep myself well hydrated and hopefully it will take longer time for the stones to form.


Drinking water makes me wake up in the middle of the night.  It is a bother. 

Voracious Eaters

I had more than 10 bettas in my pond as most fishes did not survive.  So bettas or fighting fish as they are better known as are far tougher and tolerant of poor water condition like dissolved oxygen or toxic water. 


When I put in a bag of goldfishes, all my bettas died.  I checked with the aquarium shop and he says they should be tolerant of each other.  I also noticed they co-exist well.  So I think it must be goldfishes are voracious eaters and my bettas died of hunger after a few days as the goldfishes must have eaten up all the food.


I can see the goldfish are always foraging for food whereas the bettas are quiet.

Poisonous Pond

I have been buying a lot of small fishes to put in my pond and all disappeared after a couple of days.  Finally, I decided the drain the water.  I forgot that I pull out the drain outlet and left home for office.  So the water is almost completely drain.  My poor arowana was very uncomfortable for a few hours as the water was only 3 or 4 cm high.  Luckily, my family noticed and B1 fixed back the outlet and added tap water.  So now the recent batch of goldfishes are surviving well.


I put in a some fighting fishes and they are quite hardy surviving the poisonous water.  I suspect the water in the pond is contaminated by flogging done regularly in my estate.  The arowana is going blind and I always thought it is the sunlight.  Now I suspect it may be the insecticide use by our pest control.

New Staff

I am glad our new staff is here.  I am busy training him and doing a lot of work with him.  He is quite good at looking for things and figuring out what to do.  I am glad my first choice came to work for us.  My other colleagues prefer another candidate who is more mature and senior in position.  To ease talking about my new colleague, I will call him "Steve" (not his real name).  I like Steve's can-do attitude.  He is willing to learn and easy to coach.  I have him for two days now.  Tomorrow he will be on his own and I have given him the list of things to do.  I am glad he just pick up stuff and work on them.  He has initiative and will be a good asset.

Hillman Resturant

I had wanted to lunch with my eldest sister for some time now.  Initially was set for my birthday in July.  Then B2 was on duty.  After that I had kidney stones removal which makes me sick for almost 6 weeks.  Now that I am clear, fit and healthy, it is good to catch up with her again.  She brought along her eldest daughter and granddaughter.  I am glad to see my niece and grandniece.  We had a wonderful meal. 


After lunch, we went to Fairprice and B3 bought pumpkins, carrots and celery to make soup.  My sister commented that the ingredient cost is more than eating out!  I told her it ok to eat organic.  Other family in the opposite aisle bought loads of organic veg as well.  The raw materials cost more than $20!


My wife went to buy vegetarian food for her father who is still in the hospital.  Lohan stir fry.  It took a long time.  My father-in-law enjoys his dinner very much.


Our dinner was homemade pumpkin soup by B3.  It is quite good.  He is a good cook indeed!

Beautiful Saturday

Early in the morning, customer was calling.  I have to go to office to check on stock and wait for the customer to come and pick up the goods.  Luckily, we have stock.  So customer is very happy to pay cash upfront to collect the goods.  I am very happy to make them happy.  I get a kick out of this.  Then I called my colleague and give him the good news.  He thought I was asking him to work.  I just want to make him happy.  He is too engrossed about his next meeting.


After sending the goods, I went to SGH to visit my father-in-law.  He is so much better and hungry.  He is very picky yet his choices are limited as he can eat only vegetarian.  We had lunch in Chinatown.  Braised chicken with gizzard, dumpling soup and boiled vegetable in oyster sauce...  After lunch, we stroll the main Chinatown and bought veg lunch for my mother-in-law.  B1 and B3 is very happy to try out ice-cream cone.  Durian and Vanilla flavor.  We have a good day.  Dinner is the braised meat, intestines and hard boiled eggs at AMK Ave 1.  We bought a pack of goldfishes and guppies for our pond.  Guppies are food for the alligator gar.

Father-in-Law Cyst Removal

My father-in-law is in SGH for removal of a gigantic cyst on his right shoulder this morning.  SGH is fairly good in making sure he gets a bed and check on his pacemaker before he go for his operations.  He is quite lucid and worry about his only son when he wakes up.  His son is in the mid-forties and works in the same company.  He worries the company will not last a year if he is gone.  I told him not to worry.  There is jobs like Uber driver.  I doubt he understand.  A father will never stop worrying for a son that he did not teach independence.


Father-in-law is a tough man.  He has slogged his whole life raising 6 kids.  He loved his only son very much.  He is in twilight years and still worry for his son.  It is so sad.  He should be enjoying the golden years and let his son take care of himself.

Alligator Gar

B3 is very fascinated by Alligator Gar which is an ancient looking freshwater fish.  It eats live fishes and can grow to very big size.  We had a few before and they all died after a few days.  This time, we put in corals to stabilise the water.  Today, we bought small feeder guppies.  The alligator gar at 4 right away.  B3 is very happy believing this time he will be successful in growing his alligator gar.  It will be competing with the arowana for live seafood in future.

Feeling Good

I had a busy week under lots of pressure.  It is office requiring lots and lots of attention.  Good thing is we are making progress.  I am very happy to report we are getting people in and soon the pressure will be spread around.


My wife is my PA or personal assistant.  So it is good.  She is very detailed and make sure all the "t"s are crossed and "i" dotted.  With her help I can conquer any crisis.

Sea Cucumbers from Korea

My wife asked me to buy sea cucumber.  I asked the concierge and guess what! Namdemoon is walking distance from the hotel.  So I wander about to check it out.  There is a Chinese grocery store and indeed the boss was weighing and packing the dried sea cucumbers.  The price was pretty good.  So I bought 2 packs of 600gms which is one catty in the old measurement.  The sea cucumbers are huge when they re-hydrates.  So The Wife is pretty happy with the purchase.  Today, we ate some for dinner.  It is very tough.  So she need to braise them instead of quick boil.

Lucky to Enjoy Snow for a Couple of Hours

I was very very lucky indeed.  On Saturday morning, there were a few furries.  By afternoon, it became full fledge snow.  Large globes of snow flakes clump together and fall from the sky.  I walk about the outdoor mall in Myeondong.  It is not so cold.  Maybe it is because my breakfast was Ginseng Chicken Soup. 


Some kids just outside the hotel are having so much fun just seeing the snow falls.  It is probably their first time.  Even for me who had experience bad snow storm, like this snow as it is quite nice.  The floor is wet but not slippery or icy.  So it is very enjoyable to walk about and no worrying about slipping.


Yes, I experience Real Christmas!

Its so Christmasy!

The Mighty Chinese Tsunami

Everywhere I walked, the vendors call out in Chinese.  The tourists are all speaking Chinese.  Once in a while, I can hear Cantonese and once I hear Thai.  The Chinese are everywhere and buying up the whole town of Myeongdong street, the no 1 tourist street of Korea.  All the vendors it seems speak Chinese.  During dinner, there are two Chinese girls chatting and they work in the cosmetic retail. 


Japanese use to go everywhere to buy branded goods in Europe and now the Chinese is doing the same.  It is the power of Chinese Yuan.  When you are rich and spending, everyone bow to you.  Hong Kongers used to look down on people speaking mandarin.  Today, they speak mandarin and did not bat an eyelid.

Tomorrow is The Protest

Huge line of Police buses.  Thousands of Uniformed Police on the streets.  They are all getting ready for the protest tomorrow.  It is freezing and the expected turnout is 1.5 million.  An incredible amount of people on the street.  I will be able to watch live.

More Seoul Street Food

Great Street Food of Seoul

Freezing

It is Seoul cold here.  Below freezing.  I am staying right beside Lotte Department Store.  Have not gone to Lotte but the street opposite is for tourists.  Plenty of street food at high price.  I was hungry as SQ has only one meal for 6 hours flight.  No light snack at all.  The service is getting worse.  I enjoys the walk and seeing the different type of street food.  Pomegranate is in season and several stalls selling the juice.  Bbq squids and meats on skewers, deep fried potato in a spiral, sweet and spicy fried chicken, rice cakes in spicy sauce and a few others which I cannot recall now.


Dinner is yaki soba.  It is not bad but cost 20,000 won and not filling.  I had Toffee Nuts Coffee with heart shaped cookies for dessert.

Headache

I am nursing a headache today.  So I took two fast relief Tyernols and it works!  I was surprised as the pills were round and red in color.  Tyernol usually comes in white caplets.  Although the headache is gone but I can feel something not right in my head.


I had been very busy at work these days.  So did not have much chance for cycling.  So my arowana has not been fed for a few days.  It will be a week before it can eat again as I will be going to Korea for the weekend.  My distributor and friend's daughter is getting married and he invited me to go.  It will be my first Korean wedding.

Happy Ending

I start the day early.  Picking up my colleague from the hotel and then going from one office to another.  The day ends well at about 5pm when he left via Uber to the airport.  I had the evening off!  I had great Indian veg meal as my colleague is an Indian vegetarian.  We had plenty of discussion on work matters.


I am happy that the day come to a wonderful end with my distributor positive about our relationship.  It is a nice way to end the workweek except I am working on today.  We are short staff and we need to clear up backlog.  Back to the grind again.

Monkey Planet

No Moon Luck

I just peek out and met with cloudy sky.  The moon is trying to shine through the clouds.  It is blurry bright shadow.  Our weather is unfriendly to celestial events.  I wish I am in Reno where the clear is very clear every night!  Beautiful sight to see all the stars.  No wonder many people in US can spot UFO.  There are no tall buildings to obstruct the views.  Any moving object can be followed by naked eyes for a long time.  In Singapore, we have so many tall buildings it is impossible as any flying objects will disappear from view in fraction of a second.

Bright Bigger Moon?

We have no luck at our home.  The moon is always shrouded by the clouds.  It is exciting to see the pictures on the internet.  Maybe it is special effects.  It looks too big to be true.  Likely to be from a telescope.  I look up a number of times but unable to see it.  It is not bright enough to shine through the clouds.  Now that it is high up in the horizon, it is difficult to see if it is really bigger.

Maids Can Hurt Your Child

I was cycling to Punggol Point as usual.  Sometimes, cycling back the long way through Punggol New Town.  Along the canal, a toddler girl wanted to do something and the maid taking care of her refuses and toddler sat on the floor.  The maid was angry and jerk the little girl up by grabbing her 2 forearms and yanking them up violently.  The poor girl started to cry.


I told the maid off loudly to stop hurting the little girl.  She just pretended not to hear and tell the girl loudly she will bring her back to her mum.  The maid walk off with the crying girl.  I glare at her for a few seconds and continue to ride home

Peach Garden T2

My colleague is flying home, so we have lunch in airport.  I like Penang food but he chose Peach Garden instead.  The oolong tea is fabulous.  The food is above average but not even close compared to Hua Ting.  We had char siew soh, siew mai, XO fried carrot cake, chicken feet and bean curd roll in soup.  The meal is pretty good.  The bill comes to $80.

The place is not so crowded as it is pretty pricey for tim sum.  I think Imperial Treasure is better value as the price is slightly lower and food quality is good.

Chillis Clarke Quay Central

My colleague is staying in Holiday Inn Express.  So after work, we went to Chillis for dinner.  The service crews are mostly Indian.  Maybe they are short staffed.  But the attitude of the service crews is horrible.  I do not like to waste food.  So I asked for them to take away my leftovers and he gave me a nasty look.  I will not go back to this Chilis again even though I love their food.

I may go to the one in Tanglin mall as I have not had a bad experience in there yet.  Now I know why the Chilis resturant in Central is always not full unlike Tanglin Mall.

Gyu Kaku in Velocity

Gyu Kaku is our favorite Japanese resturant as I loved bbq meat.  We usually go to UE Square.  It is quite pricey.  However, lunch set menu is more reasonable.  We saw a branch in Velocity yesterday and went there for lunch today.  The food is the same quality as in UE Square.  The whole lunch cost $109 for 4 of us.  We had two bbq sets, two bento sets and one pork belly don.  B2 and B3 enjoys the meal very much and they finish off with Baskins Robbins for dessert.  It is like we are on holiday in a different country.

Bak Chor Mee Moonstone Road

We went to Kallang Bahru for lunch but the hawker center is under renovation.  So on the way back, we decided to try the Bak Chor Mee at Moonstone Road.  We ate and I thought it is not bad and bought two more home for B2 and B3.  B2 did not think too highly of the ingredients.  He feel they do not taste good.  Unfortunately, the noodle had chilli even though I request no chilli.

Kian Seng Seafood AMK Ind Pk 1

We eat out most of the time, so B1 check out good eating place and found Kian Seng recommended.  So we go there to try.  The food is quite good except too salty.  The price is also reasonable.  We had pork collar, chai po tofu, dry fried french bean and salt baked kampong chicken.  B1 likes the food.  I like them too except for the salt level.  It is a canteen and very well patronised.  Many people eat there.

The speciality is roast piglet.

Going After My CPF

After my morning adventure, I was quite happy there is a young woman who want to make friend with me and told the story to my colleague whom I was meeting for lunch.  He says she is after my CPF.  I think he deduce correctly that she may be after my money but CPF is impossible nowadays.  Every month after 65, you can draw a few hundred dollars only.

Divorcee Making Friend with Me!

I was at the Punggol Point in the morning catching fishes as usual last Friday.  A female cyclist saw and later start talking to me.  I am a friendly guy and loves to talk to strangers.  I decided to go and she wanted to cycle back together.  I told her I have to go toilet to wash up.  She said you can leave your bicycle here.  No, I need to wash the bicycle as well and left.  After I finished washing up, she was waiting for me outside the toilet and we cycle back together.  Along the way, we started talking.  She asked if my wife is working and I told her no.  We talked about other things like her kid...she has a girl 8 years old.  Then I realized when someone asked about something, it means that the  people wants you to ask back.  So I ask about her husband and  she told me he is a sales engineer selling PCBs.  Then she says they don't  live together.  That is where I found out she is divorced and I ask if she has boyfriend.  Her response is sometime it is good to be single.


So we chat all the way until we reached Sengkang CC where we split and she goes to gym there and I go home.

Amazing Tui Na

I fell from the bicycle  a week ago and has been nursing backache since then.  Today I have to go to office for lunch.  My office is near to Jurong East.  My wife queue for me and I managed to get treated.  The relief is immediate.  I do not know if the relief is temporary or not, it sure feels good to be pain-free.


After tui na, we had lunch at the Teochew Porridge coffeeshop.  The food is good but quite expensive.  At night, I also ate Teochew porridge in Whampo.  Now Teochew is so expensive, it used to be poor man's meal.  For a stewed cabbage, minced pork, braised pork and chaipo egg together with a bowl of porridge for One person, the cost is $6.50.  The food is salty but tasty.  I love teochew porridge as it is what I ate for lunch growing up.  Dinner is rice.

TCM

Today, I go to TCM for followup.  Doctor wants to prescribe me 14 days worth of medicine and I was reluctant.  So finally he compromised on 10 days and asked me to take 3 days and 1 day off.  He understand I do not like to take the herbal medicine.  It tastes terrible.

 After TCM, we bought satay from Chomp Chomp and AMK Ave 5.  I like side by side tasting.  Both are ok.  I thought the AMK sauce is good although diluted.  The Chomp Chomp satay sauce is more robust and sweeter.  It has more peanuts as well.

Fried Kway Teow in AMK Ave 5 is pretty good and the quantity is substantial for the $3.50 pack.  My boys like it.

Massive Traffic and BLK 473 Fernvale Coffeeshop

I was going to the market for my usual tea but massive traffic jams on Yio Chu Kang Road on both directions changed my mind and I go to look for the coffeeshop Boh Tong blogged about in Fernvale.  This time I found it!  It is quite convenient as there is a multi-storey carpark right beside.  I also like the fact the season lots can be parked during the day.  I find it inconvenient as we park up a few level up in the visitors parking lots.  Now we can park at ground or level 1 before 7pm.

The Western stall is not open in the morning.  The breakfast set is $2.50 with two soft boiled eggs and a kaya toast together with tea or coffee.  Tea is acceptable but the soft boiled eggs are cold.  The kaya is just sugar paste.  There is a fried beehoon stall, the price is competitive.  I bought two packs for my family but did not eat it, so have no idea if it is good value (meaning taste quality is good).

I will have to try out the western that my friend rave about one day.

Meeting Classmates

It is amazing to meet up with all our old classmates.  It is hard to recall who is who.  I am very happy to catch up with them.  One lives in Thailand, One in Melbourne.  A number have regional jobs and travel a lot.  We have a few doctors.  Most of our kids are in the early twenties.  A couple have kids below 10.  The range is pretty wide.  Two have passed on.  We had a minute of silence observed.


Only the female classmates looked young.  Most of us did not do up our hair except for one.  He still look very neat like before. 


Many of my classmates are senior in their jobs.  Managing Director, Partner, Director, Urologist, Dentist, Specialist in Dentistry, Cardiologist, Consultant or Business Owners.  They are all doing well in life.  Some have remarried, one remained divorced.


It is a wonderful experience.  Our host is very warm and he sponsored the whole dinner.  He is a Partner in big 4.  He did not go to university like me.  He studied while working.  He did ACCA.  It is an amazing climb.

Only New Mall is Exciting

Before Compass One was opened, Seletar is always so busy and the cars have a long queue to get into the carpark.  Nowadays, no more queue.  In fact, Seletar has to entice customers with free 2 hours parking for $30 spend.  Although I usually forgets about this "benefit", I queue up for my free carpark as another customer asked the cashier where to go.  I hate queuing but it is fine for me nowadays as I am more relax about time and not in a rush.  Rushing about is bad for the heart.


So no queue for carpark, no queue for Song He bak kut the, only queue for free carpark.  The time has change when competition heats up.

Credit Card Compromised

One of our credit cards was compromised!  A number of transactions had gone through.  But a large one notify us.  So we called the card center.  There were a number of transaction that went through at $1.40 which is US$1 before the big transaction.  So the syndicate must have tested the card to make sure it is live and transactions can go through before making big purchases.  The purchases were all done on the internet.  One puzzling thing is the transactions went through without an sms to put in security code.  So far, every time when we buy stuff via internet there is a requirement to enter a code send through SMS.  So the security system of the credit card may be compromised as well.

So please watch out when you get unusual transaction on your credit cards.

Solar Water Heater

At 70% heating capacity, the solar water heater works fairly well.  It just take longer time for the hot water to reach the shower head.  The water pressure is also low as it just gravity feed.  My boys are getting used to it as they still forget and tried to switch on the electric heater.  I will see how much electricity we will save using solar.  Only two bathrooms.  I am quite happy that my dream of saving the earth or least reducing my carbon footprint has another dimension other than my green car.

B2 is Home!

At 9pm, the doctor come and see B2 to check that he is ok to go home.  The endoscope showed that he has bleeding in the esophagus and he as esophagitis.  Tissue samples were removed for testing.  So he will have to go back to the doctor for followup.


All 3 boys are using water from the solar water heater. The pressure is lower but the water is much hotter tonight.  This time I did not drain out the hot water for testing.  I am glad the solar water system is getting up to speed.

B2 Warded in Khoo Teck Puat

B2 was on night shift and he vomited at midnight with fresh blood.  So he went to hospital and was there for observation.  I woke up at 4 plus to pee and saw the whatsapp message B1 left and called B2 right away.  Then I left for KTPH.  The doctor brief me on his condition.  He had 12 leads ECG done and it showed depressed ST segment which is an indication of MI.  So he ward him for telemetry ECG.  But when he get to the ward, a different test was order.  He needs to do endoscopy to check on his stomach.  At night, when we visited, the endoscopy was abandon as he still have food in his stomach.


Beside B2's bed is an Indian who kept insisting someone tied him up.  He is a crackpot. Then further away is 3rd where a Chinese man was warded for more than 20 days.  I chat with him a bit and learn he had a brain surgery and his leg cannot walk anymore.  He is a 36 years old daughter who is single and a son 32 years old who is married by no kids.  Both his kids refuses to visit him.  Daughter did not give him allowance either.  He is quite sad and upset.

Solar System Completed

Finally, my solar water system is completed.  I have turned off my electric heater.  The water is completed only this evening.  So two toilets do not have hot water right now.  Hopefully, the sun is out tomorrow and my water will get heated up.  This project is so stressful because the house is messy and dirty for a few days and I have to do major cleanup i.e. mop the floors and the staircase twice.  It is back breaking work.


Since 6 tubes are broken, I have only 70% heating capacity.  I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Small Shrimps are Back!

This morning fishermen and other visitors informed me that the sea was red with the tiny shrimps.  I caught some for my arowana.  It has a good feast of all the fishes.  I caught a different fish and should have separated it because it died when I reached home.  I think the shrimps overwhelm it by absorbing all the oxygen in the water.  I notice most fishes do not survive when I put in a lot of shrimps.  So I will have to separate them if there are a lot of shrimps.


It is so good to live near the sea where fishing is available.  This hobby brings me back to kampong times.  We can catch some bugs or fish from nature and play wholesome games instead of watching Youtube or TV.

Good Plumber

It is important to get a good plumber.  My plumber while fixing up the level 3 toilet damaged the valve.  It was late, he has a wedding dinner.  So he abandon the job and now my level 3 toilet is unserviceable.  I have to wait till Tuesday or Wednesday if he is available to come back to fix it. 


Like any project, many obstacles to overcome.  First the broken glass tubes, the level 1 connection was abandon as he was unable to drill through.  Now level 3.  It is important to get someone who is really good but unfortunately, so far when it come to plumbers, we do not have much luck.

Connecting the Tank

Today my plumber is coming to fix up the tank to my hot water system in the bathrooms.  The sky is gloomy, I hope he can still do some work to connect up the tank.  At least he can work inside the house and leave the external work if it rains.

My wife on the other hand is quite concerned with the dust the work will cause.  Plaster and concrete dust are next to impossible to clean.  It will take a few days of intensive cleaning to get our place in liveable condition again.

No. 1 Nasi Lemak

B1 has lesson at 12noon, so we go to Adam Road Hawker Center for lunch.  Our favorite No. 1 nasi lemak has only 2 persons in the queue.  So I was happy.  Then I notice on the menu board there are two prices.  One 50cents more.  I did not ask and just order my usual "Special" which has everything in it.  This time I noticed the serving is less and ikan bilis is missing.  First the achar went missing and now ikan bilis.  Serving looked sparse for the biggest and most expensive set.  The taste is still ok but I am disappointed.  This looked like another of my favorite stall will have to drop to eat if choice is limited stall. 


The other nasi lemak stall next door still have a good queue.  I wonder if I have crazing, I should switch to the other stall.  Changi Village popular stall, International Nasi Lemak has long queue.  Price is only $3.50!

Gurney Drive at Compass One

I like Gurney Drive on level 3 in Compass One.  It is Penang food.  The chendol is delicious and enjoyable.  It is also sweet and matches my sweet tooth.  I tried the rojak.  It is good but not as good as in Penang.  B3 at the Thai Apple Chicken and he has stomach upset after the meal.  B1 ordered Kungpo Mantis Shrimp.  The mantis shrimp tastes good.


Gurney Drive has become my "Approved Supplier" as the food quality is good and price is reasonable equating to good value.

Feeling Like Crap! Or FLC

No joke.  This is actual medical term!  I was up at 4am.  So I turn on the TV as usual.  Usually I watched the NHK World or Bloomberg.  Nothing interesting, so I switch to Channel 5 and get what...
Dr. Oz is on.  The subject is "gluten-free" which people pays huge premium for.  There is gluten-intolerance and wheat allergy.  If at eat bread or noodle and you feel like crap, it is gluten intolerance.  Now, I know the correct term.  Although I don't think I am suffering from gluten intolerance.  More on just my kidneys are not doing well.

The other reason I think may be the antibiotics and painkillers.  It is also possible that it may be the aftereffects of propofol or general anesthesia I was injected weekly.

Anyway, I believe I am recovering and feeling better everyday.  Soon, I will be back to normal.

Solar Water Heater Progress

My two boys helped lift the water tank to the frame.  I am happy I can set up it by ourselves.  It takes trial and error to get the assembly right.  Now it is ready for hook up to my water system.  I called the plumber this evening as he promised to come this week but have forgotten to give me a date.  Now he promised to come on Thursday or Friday.  This is how it look like...

Appetite is Back!

Finally, I am beginning to feel normal.  For the past 3 weeks, after every meal, I felt bad.  My head hurts but it is not headache.  I cannot concentrate.  Look sleepy although I am not sleepy.  It is general malaise.  Now I understand the importance of well functioning kidneys.  When one is swollen, the feeling of being unwell and yet not knowing why.  When driving, the pressure on the back is quite clear but do not know.  Always guessing it may be backache.  It is nagging feeling.


Now that I went through ESWL and double J catheterization and enormous discomfort and pain, I learn more about kidney treatment and recovery.  I belong to the "stone club" as the wife of my urologist puts it.  My urologist get his stones blasted every 5 years.  I may have to do the same in future.

Solar Water Heater Frame

I managed to set up the solar water heater frame.  It seems a little flimsy to support the water tank as the water tank is 100 kg empty.  It is 250 litres capacity, so this means the total weight will be 350 kgs excluding the solar tubes.  I will be tightening all the bolts and nuts and then mount the tank.  After that I have to wait for my plumber to come and hookup the water.  Then I can hook up the solar tubes.  I am looking forward to commissioning my solar water heater soon.

Solar Water Heater

I bought a solar water heater from China and it arrived last Friday.  The water tank is heavy, 100kg.  Luckily, our estate is painting and I ask the supervisor for help.  So he assigned two men to carry the water tank up.  I asked for one additional man as it is quite heavy.  But actually two men is easier as I found the third man was more off a hindrance than help. 


Anyway, now the water tank is up and I am ready to fix up the unit.  Unfortunately, some of the solar tubes are broken on the way here.  So I am asking for replacements.  The water heater is actually quite cheap, about US$600 and shipping cost $200.  Fixing up the plumbing to my bathrooms cost $2,800.  So the total cost is approximately $4,000.  Then I will be able to use "free" hot water for my boys' toilets.  Unfortunately, it will cost too much to bring the hot water to my master bedroom toilet as well.

Dinner with Veggie In-Laws

The Wifey has to help her parents to do banking stuff.  So she asked them to come to the Waterpoint Mall.  There are banks and resturants in this rather big neighbourhood mall.  My in-laws as you know are vegetarians.  Luckily, Din Tai Fung which is a Taiwanese restaurant chain has good understanding of the requirements of Chinese vegetarian.  My in-laws are converted to this form of Taiwanese religion.  There are some peculiar idiosyncrasies.  Garlic and onions are not allowed but eggs are fine.  Certain greens are considered non-veg.  The logic totally befuddles my scientific mindset. 


To me, plants are veg and animals are non-veg.  To this Taiwanese religious sect, some plants are non-veg but eggs are ok.  The belief is strong and their rationale and reasoning is peculiar.  Onions and garlic are considered toxic to their vegetarian diet.  No scientific study.  Just some explanations which the followers just blindly obey.

Happy as a Lark!

I am still feeling the effects of propofol.  However, very very happy that the catheter is out.  It is actually quite hard.  It seems like many people have no problem with this catheter in them.  I am definitely not one of them.


So after the removal, I went to Chili's to give myself a treat!  Now Chili's has set lunch at a more reasonable price. I went there about 1 pm and the place is well occupied although there are some empty tables. 


I always like American style restaurant.  The food is substantial and taste is good.

Removal of JJ-Stent

I am looking forward to this morning.  I went to see my urologist yesterday and he ultrasounded and found my right kidney's swelling is gone.  It is back to normal and I can get my JJ stent removed today.  Hip hip hurray!

The stent is a real bother.  It hurts a lot.  My brain is zapped and I am in constant pain.

Happy days will be back again soon.

Galaxy S7

I was waiting for the Note 7 relaunch but the news yesterday and this morning dash my hope of getting Note 7.  So I get a Galaxy S7 to replace the Note 4 that was damaged by sea water.  The S7 comes with free VR or virtual reality goggles and 128G memory chip.  The phone is also smaller and easier to handle.  Only missing is the pen function which I like.

Happy Coffee Shop at Blk 432 Fernvale

Mummy wants a break.  So we eat out for dinner.  I decided to explore the new coffeeshops that sprout out in the new estates since Boh Tong rave about some of them.  I am not sure the address so we go to the first one we see and that is Happy Coffeeshop in Fernvale.  I think it is Blk 432.  Anyway, we had fish and chips for $6 which has 2 tiny slice of deep fried fish filet, some French fries and a small dollop of vegetable salad.  B3 ordered soup with plain rice, one of his favorite meal.  The soup is full of lotus roots and some bones and tiny weeny bits of meat.  I had bak chor mee, "Malaysian Style".  It comes with two meatballs, two slices of lean meat and some minced meat.  It is not so appealing as in the picture of Boh Tong's blog.  Mummy bought fish soup and she is not so happy with the yellow color flour coat of the deep fried fish slice. 


So the meal is alright but we are not likely to go back to Happy again.

Laksa Yong Tau Foo

This morning, mummy woke up early to buy fresh groceries to cook.  At first we thought we will go to Chinatown but change our mind and exit at AMK Ave 1 instead and go to the wet market in Ave 1 and Ave 10.  The yong tau foo is quite good there.  We bought $14 worth of yong tau foo and a complete pack of long tau pok for $3, beansprout 50cents and 1kg of thick beehoon for $1.80.  Using the Laksa kit from Prima Deli, she cooked up a big pot of laksa gravy with fishballs, taupok, beancurd and ngoh hiang. 


The laksa was delicious and we have it for lunch and dinner.  Yummy and excellent value!!