Try Reading This

I found this printed on a bottle. Perhaps you would like to read through.
This enzyme product is actually quite expensive. After reading the English translation, I am not too sure whether the enzyme is actually as good as it was claimed.
oh... now that you have finished reading, do you understand the eatable instruction?

My cactus is blooming again

The cactus in my office is bearing flowers again!
This plant doesn't bear flower all the time. This year, it is rewarding me again. I am waiting for the full bloom next week.

Western Meal at Eastwood Valley

Weekend again! Perhaps it is time to eat out. So, I feature some western food at Eastwood Valley.
Fish and chips. The fish fillet was thin and dry. Can only taste the bread crumbs.
Salad bowl
Burger with egg
Chicken chop with mushroom sauce (a little salty)
Chicken fillet burger with eggSoup... I think this is mushroom soup
I hope I have given you some inspiration on what to eat/cook for the weekend.

Yee started work in SOP

After studying Biotech in Leeds University, he decided to come to Sarawak and work in the "garden". The garden is none other than oil palm plantation which is 40 km from Miri town. Ok, he doesn't really work in the "garden" per se but in the lab. However, he has to go to the plantation to collect samples.
This is Yee... going to be a research scientist in the area of agricultural science... a field he least expected it!

... and I think this is the type of oil palm plantation he is in. You won't see the end of it.
Oh... another thing, after staying in UK for 4 years, he is now staying in the accommodation in the farm. He will sooner or later encounter lots of interesting insects, music of the jungle, birds, lizards, etc. But the air is wonderful!
Oh, by the way, he is a "uni-mate" of my three girls in Leeds.

Cash Deposit Machine "eat our $$"

My son went to the Cash Deposit machine at Maybank just now to deposit some money. However, after putting the money in, the machine display the message "This machine is temporarily out of service".
Many questions flashed across our mind... has the machine "eat" the money? Will the machine open the "door" and let someone take the money out? What should we do? What is meant by "temporarily"?
We look for phone number to call. We found a number 1300 88 6688. Called and waited for customer service to respond but no one pick up the phone. Frustrating! Finally, I realised that I have friends working for the bank. I called them and both of them assured me that the machine will need manual intervention and the money should be safe. However, we must report tomorrow.
But why should the machine displayed the word "temporarily"? I hope the bank understand the meaning of this word. We almost wanted to camp at the bank overnight! Also, why didn't the bank gives clear instruction on what to do? It is so frustrating!

Update: I called the bank at 9:00AM and she assured me that the money is safe. It is not the first time happening. So, remember, it seems that if you got money "eaten" by the machine, don't panic. However, we have to go to the bank to sign one form tomorrow and the fund should be in there.
Update 2: The money has been entered into my son's account after he filled in and signed a form. That evening, cold sweat was all over him because the money was not his!

Love Language

Yesterday we went to a short forum by Pastor Mathew on "Love Language".

What is love?
According to the bible 1 Corinthians 13:
⁴Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

As married couples:
1. We need to keep marriage love tank full
2. To understand the five love languages:

• Words of affirmation - eg. motivated by encouraging and kind words
• Quality Time - giving someone undivided attention; and spending considerable time together, eg, conversation, play together, etc
• Receiving gifts - quality gift, surprise gift, birthday parties, etc, are expression of love. But to some, it's probably a waste of money
• Act of service - doing things you know your spouse would like you to do, eg, acts of caring, helpfulness and love
• Physical Touch - it is a powerful vehicle for communicating love, eg, holding hands, hugging, etc

For each of us, we have different love language. Some will be very excited when they receive gift, or physical touch. So, it is important to find out your primary love language.

To find out your love language, do this easy on-line quiz by clicking here.

Now that you understand your primary love language, the next thing to do is to truly love your spouse. Just read the verses above from the bible and practice it.
We felt that practicing forgiveness and selflessness are two very important factors in a married life. Many marriages broke down because of unforgiveness and selfishness.

To read more, click here to go to Dr. Gary Chapman website. Please note that I don't receive financial or other incentives for the promotion of Dr. Gary Chapman.

How to dry your shoe on a rainy day?

I used to dry my shoes in the oven which was set to a very low heat. This is now history! I can't remember who taught me a better way to do it, but must be a church sister!
My fridge is now 28 years old. Yes, 28! And it is still running fine. It has an external heating/cooling grill. As the compressor is switched on (for cooling), heat is generated. So, all I need to do is to hang all the shoes on the grill. Overnight, the shoes are all dry! Perfect! Unfortunately, most new fridge has concealed cooling grill. So this method may not work.
Do you have a better idea/way to share?

Citrus

As promised in my previous blog entry, here is the second and final part of photos taken at Citrus Restaurant.
Seafood Pasta RM16.90. The serving portion is a little small. If you are hungry, you need two plates.
Citrus Breaded Chicken RM15.90
Chicken Chop RM15.90
Chicken Baked Rice RM9.90
Doggie Bolog RM11.90
Salmon Raita RM28.00
I think this is Granny Cutlet RM7.90
Fruit Chocolate Fondue RM20.00
Special Cold Coffee (Iced Mocha) RM7.90
All prices subjected to 10% service charges.

Citrus Restaurant

After much pestering by the kids, we went to Citrus to have a meal last night.
Citrus is quite new. Food served is quite nice and preparation is quite fast.
The children had some desert after the meal... oh, special guest is Chan Yee...
... ice cream chocolate mountain (Honey mudslide) after being attacked by the big and small kids!
Banana fritter & ice cream (Banilla).
... more photos of food will be posted later. Watch this space!

Eastwood Valley Golf & Country Club

We visited Eastwood Valley Golf & Country Club with a friend from Langkawi...
I took the opportunity to take some night scene and also to "exercise" my camera.
By the lake.. clear and beautiful reflection. ISO3200 1/2 Sec F/2.8
Under the sodium street light. ISO 3200 F/2.8, 1/8 Sec. White Balance: "programmed on the spot"
The main building is in the background. ISO 3200, 1/10 sec F/2.8
The chalets. ISO 3200 1/10 sec f/2.8
The front view of a chalet. ISO3200 1/8 Sec f/2.8
The bedroom costing RM125 (US$35) per night. ISO 3200 1/20 sec f/2.8

Sizes of balls

Someone sent me this interesting observation. I don't play ball and therefore I don't know whether this is true. However, I do know that it is true for golf!
1. The sport of choice for the urban poor is basketball
2. The sport of choice for maintenance level employees is bowling.
3. The sport of choice for front-line workers is football.
4. The sport of choice for supervisors is baseball.
5. The sport of choice for middle management is tennis... and...
6. The sport of choice for corporate executives and officers is golf.


The amazing conclusion:
The higher you go in the corporate structure, the smaller your balls become.
Your comment is welcomed.

Training your child #2

Proverbs 22:6, “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”

A Child
Using the bible as reference, a child can be from infancy until the age he leaves home to marry. Looking at ourselves as parents, don't you think this is true? We still keep on advising and caring for our children well into adulthood.

In the way he should go

1. Literally means “in keeping with child’s way” or “in accordance to the way he was designed by God.”
2. Parents must discover child’s way and adjust their training to it.
3. The child’s way may refer to his temperament, characteristics or personalities. Examples:

• Sanguine - optimistic and happy, extrovert
• Phlegmatic - unexcitable, cool and steady, introvert
• Choleric - hot, quick, active, practical strong-willed, very independent, extrovert
• Melancholic - analytical, perfectionist, gifted and introvert

He must be trained in the way that God has designed for him.

... to be continued ... (from the original sermon by Pastor law.)

Training your child

Proverbs 22:6, “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”

The Hebrew word for "train" has to do with the inside of the mouth – the gums, palate, or the roof of the mouth, and it refers to the use of a bit or bridle that is placed in the mouth of an untamed horse. This is used to make a wild horse into submission.

James 3:3 gives further explanation of the use of the bit. It says, “When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal.”

It is necessary to train or bring a child into submission, so that he will obey us and therefore turn about his whole direction.

In the practical sense, it is generally accepted that to "train up" is meant the careful nurturing, instructing and disciplining of the child in an attempt to inculcate a wise and moral character.


.... to be continued.

Sunday School Sunday 2009

The Sunday School Sunday was on 15-Feb-2009 this year. This was the Sunday whereby all Methodist churches in Sarawak celebrated the event.

The team of dedicated Sunday School Teachers with Pastor Law. Phyllis, back row 2nd left, is the longest serving Sunday School teacher. She was my partner teacher teaching pre-school since 1986. I stopped teaching in 2000 because I was transferred. Mary Tam (front row white) is the current superintendent.

All the students gave a presentation. Later, all the teachers went for a meeting, followed by lunch cooked by Mary and Jessie.

Delicious french bean with ikan bilis (anchovies) ...

Taufu with broccoli and cauliflower...

... and chicken cooked with red rice wine and black fungus.
Our pastor gave a sermon on "Training that teaches the total child".

Unconscious Willing Victim

This post is a little long... but I hope that you will finish reading it, so that you can benefit from lessons learned. All examples below are true.

Examples:
Case 1: A secondhand car dealer offered my mum RM125 for our old Honda Accord (I think it was CA5). He sold us a reconditioned Toyota Ipsum for RM70K. He gave all kind of excuses why my car was worth only RM125! Later, he saw his car driven by a friend and he paid RM30,000 for it.
Case 2: My nephew trade-in his old car in exchange for a new Kancil (a mini car). He paid RM40,000 for the Kancil whereas the actual cost was around RM23,000. He wanted to take back his old car but was told that it was sold. He lost his old car and paid almost double for the new car.
Case 3: My brother-in-law saw a 5-years old Toyota twin-cab. He liked it very much and trade-in his own car and bought this 5-year old twin-cab for RM75,000. New price was RM77K. Later, the car was full of problems.
Have you been “conned” as what my friend called it? I found something interesting. Many times, it was our eyes which had caused us to desire something so badly that we forgot good advices and was too willing to accept things as it appear, even to the extent that it may be defective.
Now, I just wanted to make some parallel with the fall of man since creation time:
Genesis 3: 1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" (Creating doubt)
2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' " (Eve wasn't sure... added extra "knowledge", eg, "not touch it"!)
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Make wrong sounds like a good thing!)
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. (Her eye - "pleasing to the eye"!)
Parallel with the salesperson:
1: Crafty and create doubt to things you already knew is wrong
2: You added in extra wording to the command, or thing we already know is true. Eve said “you must not touch it” – extra which God never said.
3: Crafty salesperson counter with more lies or things that you like to hear(verse 6)
4: Your eye is the window to your soul and it is our weakest point. Eve found the fruit “pleasing to the eye”.
How many times do we fall simply because it pleases our eye?

The price of City Status

Since Miri became city status in May 2005, we have two new flyovers. One in Pujut (between Boulevard and SESCO) and another one in town in front of St. Joseph Primary School . They are supposed to relieve traffic jam. Unfortunately...

... the one in town is causing the jam (during peak time) from the bridge all the way to the traffic light at Bintang Plaza which is about half a km long. What is the reason?
I am only suspecting this:

1. With city status, we must have city status highway. So exits must be closed so that traffic flow can be smooth;
2. Cars trying to enter Bintang Plaza queued up to two or sometimes three lanes spilling into our "highway", thus causing "constipation".
   
3. Slow drivers who take their sweet time to cross the traffic light.

Any more other thoughts? You may comment.

Miri "old man" street

I called this the "old man" street of Miri. I hope I don't offend anyone. Some years back, the local authority decided to cover up this street.

This street used to be the "open market" in the early 80s. Then they all moved to Tamu Muhibah.

... beside relaxing yourself with a game of chess, there are refreshing food being served. This little bowl of chendol costs RM2.00.

... see what Joshua was doing... will he suffer from indigestion, reading while eating?

I am told that this store serves nice chendol, rojak, etc.