The Ugly Duckling

Chubi – Chubi toys participated in Arts for Grabs at Central Market on 27 & 28 August 2009. The toys welcomed a new friend into their group Nana the Elephant.
Visitors who came over to my store were curious about the toys being made out of socks and gloves. Someone remarked “I hope I won’t be smelling “your” feet.” A college Art Director asked if I would like to run a workshop on creating toys with recycled material.
Another lady from a restaurant asked if she could write or produce a film about my idea of using everyday material and recycling things to create toys. A group of ladies who were old friends and had not seen each other for 10 years, bumped into each other in front of my store. After several photo sessions at my store and knocking over my toys over and over again, they invited me to join their society which promotes local crafts. I took a photo with a happy customer who bought Chiku. There was this little girl of 4, who bought Kuntum, and kept coming over to my store. Each time she came, Kuntum put on a new accessory, 1st a flower pin, then a ski cap, then a large rose pinned to the cap!

I've decided to leave the corporate world. I feel so lucky to be granted a cosy store at the Food Court in PJ Old Town, on Jalan Othman. I've painted my little kitchen a pretty pink/peach and printed with lacey/lady's fingers design. My store is number 52, the cosiest and prettiest. I promise to cook with love.
I am selling a Nasi Lemak combination with spicy food cooked in nyonya style recipe.
You can sample authentic Penang nyonya food at a fraction of what you will pay at a restaurant. I am serving acar-awak, otak-otak, gulai-tumis ikan, sambal udang, chicken curry kapitan and kerabu sayur paku. First 2 days promotion, sample 3 dishes for the price of ONE! OPENING DATE SUNDAY, 18 OCTOBER 2009. My food is MSG free, as all sweetness comes from the food itself. I don't serve pork too.
Location map:
View Larger Map

.




Little Penang is a bazaar of sorts held every last Sunday of the month. It is held at upper Penang Road, opposite the grand E&O hotel.
I participated in the bazaar last August, featuring my creation of soft toys, Chubi-Chubi. They were enthusiastically received by the Penang folk and tourist. My store was set right beside the stage. There was entertainment throughtout the day from Temple of Fine Arts, a Scots lady with a soprano voice who is multi-lingual, a Capoeira performance, a Rap Group and a loud band.
The table beside mine, sold expensive good books and massage equipment and a reasonably cheap price. The lady manning the store turned out to be my ex-colleague. The store behind me is manned by a representative from the Spice Garden, a restaurant and gift shop in Teluk Bahang. She is so resourceful, using a hammer to break her coconut and scraping the coconut. She demonstrated her cooking skills and some recipes. Another interesting store was a costume jewelry store with accessories made out of bra hooks. That is originality! I did not expect to get free sewing tips/classes from my "fairy godmother" mentor. This older lady suddenly approached my store, walked behind it and stood behind me as I sewed. Then she began to correct my less neat stitches. Before I knew it, she was sewing and teaching me different forms of stitching and how to hide the thread.
It was a day of Receiving and Blessings. I got a business proposal for the Chubi-Chubi Toys. Yay!

I encountered Melissa, a 6 year old dutch little girl in the woods in Rotterdam.
I was sitting quietly one summer afternoon under a tree to meditate. Melissa was taking a walk with her parents in the woods as well and simply crept up towards me and sat beside me. When I opened my eyes, I was surprised to see her sitting beside me, watching me. "What are you doing" she asked. "I'm meditating". She did not understand but smiled and went on her way. I walked towards the river bank to do my yoga asanas. Melissa happened to be there as well and once again approached me. "What are you doing now?". "I'm practising yoga." "oh, can I join you?" And together we did several yoga asanas. After that, we got bored and proceeded to the pier. We played for a while together,lying on our bellies on the pier to draw circles in the water, spelling out each other's names. She did several cart wheels and i copied with clumsy somersaults. We were oblivious to the adults drinking beers who sat in a row of tables in a cafe facing the pier. I was just totally myself, playing, carefree with this lovely child. I was present with Melissa and the experience of being present left me with serenity and joy.
Melissa's parents wanted to go home. Before she left, she said "Can you be my friend and may we meet again?" I did not see her again. But, she has left her mark in my heart. I was touched by an angel.

“I believe the recipe for happiness to be just enough money to pay the monthly bills you acquire, a little surplus to give you confidence, a little too much work each day, enthusiasm for your work, a substantial share of good health, a couple of real friends and a wife and children to share life's beauty with you.” -- J. Kenfield Morley

"I am more and more convinced that our happiness or our unhappiness depends far more on the way we meet the events of life than on the nature of those events themselves." -- Karl Wilhelm Von Humboldt

"We could never learn to be brave and patient if there were only joy in the world." -- Helen Keller

"You will find yourself refreshed by the presence of cheerful people. Why not make earnest effort to confer that pleasure on others? Half the battle is gained if you never allow yourself to say anything gloomy." -- Lydia M. Child

"Your hopes, dreams and aspirations are legitimate. They are trying to take you airborne, above the clouds, above the storms, if you only let them." -- William James

“Hope is the companion of power, and mother of success; for who so hopes strongly has within him the gift of miracles.” -- Samuel Smiles

"Expect to have hope rekindled. Expect your prayers to be answered in wondrous ways. The dry seasons in life do not last. The spring rains will come again." -- Sarah Ban Breathnach

"Hope is the feeling we have that the feeling we have is not permanent." -- Mignon McLaughlin

To this day, banana is known for promoting healthy digestion and creating a feeling of youthfulness. They help promote the retention of calcium, phosphorus and nitrogen - all of which then work to build sound and regenerated tissues. Banana also contains invert sugar, which is an aid to youthful growth and metabolism.

Intestinal Disorder

The banana is used as a dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and blandness. It is the only raw fruit which can be eaten without distress in chronic ulcer cases. It neutralizes the over-acidity of the gastric juices and reduces the irritation of the ulcer by coating the lining of the stomach. Ripe banana are highly beneficial in the treatment of ulcerative colitis, being bland, smooth, easily digestible and slightly laxative. They relieve acute symptoms and promote the healing process.

Constipation and Diarrhea
Banana are of great value in constipation and diarrhea as they normalize colonic functions in the large intestine to absorb large amounts of water for proper bowel moments. Their usefulness in constipation is due to their richness in pectin, which is water-absorbent and this gives them a bulk producing ability. They also possess the ability to change the bacteria in the intestines - from the harmful type of bacilli to the beneficial acidophilus bacilli.

Dysentery

Mashed banana together with little salt is a very valuable remedy for dysentery. Ripe bananas are also very useful in dysentery of children, but they should be thoroughly mashed and beaten to cream before use in these cases.

Arthritis and Gout

Bananas are useful in the treatment of arthritis and gout. A diet of bananas only for three or four days is advisable in these conditions. The patient can be given to eat eight or nine bananas daily during this period and nothing else.

Anemia

Being high in iron content, bananas are beneficial in the treatment of anemia. They stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood.

Allergies

The fruit is very useful for those who are allergic to certain foods and who suffer in consequence from skin rashes or digestive disorders or asthma. Unlike other protein foods, many of which contain an amino-acid which these persons cannot tolerate and which causes allergy. bananas contain only benign amino-acids which in most cases are not allergic. The fruit, however, does cause allergic reactions in certain sensitive persons and they should avoid it.

Kidney Disorders

Bananas are valuable in kidney disorders because of their low protein and salt content and high carbohydrate content. They are useful in uremia, a toxic condition of the blood die to kidney congestion and dysfunction. In such cases, a diet of bananas should only be taken for three to four days, consuming eight to nine bananas a day. This diet is suitable for all kidney troubles, including nephritis.

Urinary Disorders

Juice from banana stem is a well-known remedy for urinary disorders. It improves the functional efficiency of kidney and liver thereby alleviating the discomforts and diseased condition in them. It clears the excretion organs in the abdominal region of toxins and helps to eliminate them in the form of urine. It has been found to be of great help in the treatment for the removal of stones in the kidney, gall bladder, and prostate. It is advisable to mix this juice whenever possible with the juice of ash pumpkin.

Slimming

A diet consisting of bananas and skimmed milk is considered an effective remedy for weight reduction. In prescribed course of diet treatment, the daily diet is restricted to six bananas and four glasses of skimmed milk or buttermilk made from skimmed milk for a period of 10 to 15 days. Thereafter green vegetables may be introduced gradually, reducing the intake of bananas from six to four. This regimen or prescribed course of diet treatment can be continued till the desired results are achieved. Bananas are suitable for overweight people as they contain practically no sodium.

Menstrual Disorders

Cooked banana flower eaten with curd is considered an effective medicine for menstrual disorders like painful menstruation and excessive bleeding. Banana flower helps increase progesterone hormone which reduces the bleeding.

Burns and wounds

A plaster is prepared by beating a ripe banana into a fine paste. It can be spread over burns and wounds and supported by a cloth bandage. It gives immediate relief. The young tender leaves of banana tree form a cool dressing for inflammations and blisters.

Shoe Shine

Use the inside of the banana skin and rub on your shoe.

Hangover

Make a banana milkshake mix wt. honey. It eases the stomach.

Mosquito bite

Try rubbing the bite area with the inside of the banana skin.

Kicking off Smoking

Bananas contain vitamin B6, B12, potassium and magnesium which can help smokers overcome nicotine withdrawal symptoms.

Warts

Take a piece of banana skin, the outside (yellow) part, and plaster it on the wart for several days.

I recently spilled a bottle of fountain pen ink on our terrazo floor. I searched and found some useful tips to remove the stain. I managed to remove 50% of the ink. The floor is still partially gray/blue.

• For permanent marker stains on hard surfaces like tile and concrete, try nail polish remover. Be sure to use it judiciously on treated tile (like terrazzo flooring) or you may mar the finish.
• Use hairspray to remove ballpoint pen marks from clothing. Simply spray it on the stain and wash in cold water. The garment may need to be washed a couple of times so check to see that the ink spot is gone before putting the item in the dryer where the heat will set it permanently. If you don't have hairspray handy, try rubbing alcohol.
• Magic Eraser is a lifesaver for many ink stains. I once successfully removed ink spots from a black Sharpie permanent marker after one of my son's demonstrated his artistic inspiration on a solid wood table.
• Bug spray removes stubborn ink stains from walls and other painted surfaces.
• For ink stains on leather furniture and clothing, spray a paper towel or soft cloth with some WD-40 and wipe the stain lightly. Repeat several times until the ink is gone.
• If you've accidentally gotten ink on an LCD or flat-panel monitor screen, try rubbing carefully with a pencil eraser. This trick seems to be particularly effective on mishaps with a Sharpie or other permanent marker.



Source:http://www.diylife.com/2007/09/03/how-to-get-ink-out-of-almost-anything/

My father has been talking about having a dog for the past 3 months. He wanted a pedigree, with MKA certificate, microchip and the commercial works.
It became a family project and in April, my brother, dad, mum and I went to a pet shop to check out 3 beagle puppies. My brother played with a puppy on his lap. After leaving the pet shop, his hands broke out with rashes. So we decided it's better that he did not have a dog. But Pa was keen in having one and did his research on several breeds, beagle and jack russell.
My partner and I were against his buying and encouraged him to adopt from the SPCA. We almost adopted a pure breed black English Labrador from a pet rescuer. But she gave the dog to a man while we were on vacation. We were so disappointed. Then we went to the SPCA and PAWS. I adopted a terrier/jack russell about 10 days ago and named him Milo. He was attacked by our first dog Buffy last Sunday. Both dogs wanted my attention and when Milo came too close, Buffy pounced on him. Since then, he has taken second place in the household and avoids being in the same room with Buffy. I think I made a mistake in not explaining to Buffy about Milo's presence, thus it invaded her space. It was like sibling rivalry between Buffy and Milo.


He had a traumatic first week in his new home. I overlooked and was not told by PAWS that he was recently castrated. Upon collecting him on the first day, I took him to a pet groomer. The pet groomer injured his right eye. When he came home, our dog Buffy confronted him. I subjected him to daily long walks and climbs on stairs. He must have been in so much pain. Poor lil' fellow. He has recovered and I am experiencing this lovely dog emerging.

Milo has beautiful, almond shape eyes, like a doe. He looks like a cross between a mogwai/teddy bear. He has very large, pointed ears, which are like antennas, popping up when he hears the familiar sounds of food and my voice. He likes to run in wide fields. He behaves like a feline and likes to rub against me. He follows me like a duckling around the house. He sits with his back and butt toward Buffy. I bathed him for the first time today. He furiously rubbed off the shampoo against the wall. When I towel dried him, he rolled against the towel and became a doggy springroll. He is a delight to have around and I hope he will give my father much pleasure.
Pa, a dog for you on Fathers Day

I am enjoying our new house. The location is more conducive to living, within the suburds, cleaner and quiet. There are a row of shoplots opposite our house but luckily no kopitiam. (hawkers center). The only activity is a gas tank distributer, where you'll hear the daily loading of gas tanks onto the lorry.

My partner and I hosted a housewarming party for close friends. I made some local dishes, Penang style and the recipe borrowed from my mom. I made nasi lemak, sambal ikan bilis (anchovies chilli curry), sambal telur (hard boiled egg with chilli sauce), sayur paku salad. My brother bought a roast duck. We bought kurma chicken and fried vermicelli.

The dress code for everyone was to come in a sarong and some friends did. I realized how westernize we have become with friends bringing bottles of wine as gifts. Since when did Malaysians do that?
I think what makes a home are the people, especially having it filled with the laughter of friends and family!