Saturday, October 31, 2009

Online Shopping

My friend has been shopping online a lot. She bought lots of handbags, which she flaunted for all to see. Of course, her tastes were vastly different from mine. I go for the boring and the classics. While, she is sassier, bolder and trendier. One Friday evening, she dyed her hair, using some imported shampoo that she'd acquired online. I was awed at this unique way of buying things through the Internet.

Now, I haven't had much experience with online shopping. Sure, I often purchased my air tickets online. And I once bought my Dell laptop online. Other than that, zilch.

Disappointed with my weekend shopping at the local malls, a bright idea came to my head two nights ago as I was surfing the Net. Hmn. Why don't I try buying clothes online? And there I googled some combinations of words and it brought me to a website which had a considerable stock of nice-looking clothes. The website looked professional enough, and so I decided that I wanted to try to buy something from there.

After browsing for a while, I decided on a black chiffon blouse. I had wanted to buy a similar-looking black chiffon blouse the other day when I was shopping at Boulevard Hypermarket. Unfortunately, the design and price was not right.

From the catalogue

Now, I really dislike buying clothes without trying them on first. So, I had to scrutinize the measurement for a long time before deciding on the size. Upon checking out, an electronic invoice was sent via email. Based on the invoice, customers could choose to pay by credit card, or by crediting into a few bank accounts listed on the website.

I made my payment and emailed them to notify that I had paid. Upon verification, my blouse was sent out. I would be expecting my parcel in 1 or 2 working days. There was also a tracking code provided and I could see the status of my delivery.

My parcel arrived one and a half days later.

My parcel

My blouse wrapped in a plastic bag

The label had Chinese characters on it. Now, I have no idea where the blouse is made. China?

The label

The blouse

Well, so how did I find the blouse? It fitted me, thankfully. However, unlike the picture shown in the catalogue, the neckline was rounded. It's got a rubber band, so you can pull it off the shoulder. However, if you don't, the neckline is really narrow and doesn't look nice at all. So I guess pictures can be deceiving, eh?

Now, I'm probably going to wear this blouse to a school function at the end of the year. Till then I'll have to think of ways to widen the neckline!!! Suggestions, anyone?

Thursday, October 29, 2009

A Meal @ Pizza Hut, Bintang Megamall Miri

"I feel like eating pizza," my colleague, J*, said on the way out of the conference room at about 3.00 p.m today.

"Come on, let's go for pizza," I said impulsively.

"Ok, see you there," J* said.

We did not even say where we'd go for pizza. Somehow, we know that it would be Pizza Hut. There is only one Pizza Hut outlet in Miri. And it is located at Bintang Plaza Megamall.

Although there were only 2 of us, we ordered quite a lot.

We ordered the Crunchy Cheesy Bites Pizza Set for 2. It came with a regular cheesy pizza, 2 soups, a serving of breadstix, and 2 7Up Revive.

Soup : I think it's Cream of Mushroom Soup

4 pieces of breadstix per serving

7UP Revive

The Crunchy Cheesy Bites Pizza was quite a sight. Its crust is made up of cheddar and mozarella fingers, topped with crunchy parmesan-flavoured cornflakes. I was doubtful about the cornflakes initially. However, the crunch actually added more bite to the crust. Quite delightful, really.

Crunchy Cheesy Bites Pizza

The pizza was topped with deep-fried battered prawns, similar to those used in the Hut's Platter. Other than the prawns, I could detect sliced mushrooms, sliced marinated chicken, and green peppers.

For variety's sake, my colleague ordered a personal size Hawaiian Chicken Pizza.

Hawaiian Chicken Pizza

I had Sweet & Spicy Wings, while J* had Deli Wings.

Sweet & Spicy Wings

J* also insisted in ordering a regular Hut's Platter, which consisted of criss cut fries, 2 pieces of tempura-battered calamari rings, and 2 pieces of tempura king prawns. Cool lime mayonnaise was provided for dipping. I liked this item. The prawns and the calamari were both succulent and tasty. Quite yum.

Regular Hut's Platter

J* wanted to try some new items on the menu. He ordered the Honey BBQ wings. In contrast to the oven-roasted wings, these are deep-fried. The coating for the meat is really very crunchy. I can't figure out what those bits of coating are made up of. The barbecue sauce was a bit to thick for my liking. Overall, I did not really like these BBQ wings.

Honey BBQ Wings

What a glutton, right? Well, of course we could not finish all the food we ordered. And thankfully, another colleague, R**** came to join us a while later. Much of the food was also packed and taken away.

After our meal, R**** wanted to buy a netbook. After surveying the various models available, she settled for the Toshiba NB200 which sold for RM1499. She also bought a USB modem to go with her netbook.

My colleague's new toy

Well, it was a great get-together with my colleagues. We seldom have the opportunity to hang out together after work. Today is exceptional. I truly enjoyed myself!

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

No Ad Hoc Activities, Please!

I am feeling a bit frustrated at a certain unit at the education department, which does things in a very ad hoc manner. I suppose 101 reasons account for this type of working style, mostly due to the lack of funds and perhaps because there are just too many projects and programmes to oversee.

This year, there is a students' training programme that has yet to be carried out. As we approached the end of the school year, this particular unit is probably clambering, looking for ways and means to pull through this training. However, there isn't much time left. 3 more weeks to go before the end of the school term.

The frustrating thing is that I've made travel plans!!!! So, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, postpone all activities till suitable time and date!!!

My colleague will be attending the meeting for the training programme in the capital tomorrow. For some reason, I am not called for the meeting. It is most probably due to cost-cutting. Or perhaps my contribution of ideas is not valued. Or perhaps I speak too much of my mind that they would rather not have me ;p.

Anyway, I'd worked really hard at the programme in 2007. But somehow, it led me nowhere. Worst, I felt that my effort was not recognised. All I felt was much angst and frustration at certain individuals who run the programme. It did not help that they gave me negative feedback about how I carried myself when in their presence. In 2008, I was again disillusioned. This year, I vowed to do minimal. I wonder all the time when this programme will be scrapped off.

Sitting here in my office now, I am really worried about the outcome of the meeting. I'm worried about not being able to make it for my trip. I'm worried that Fourth Aunt, who will be travelling with me, will be disappointed. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, I really hope whatever it is, it will not affect my travel plans.

Monday, October 26, 2009

Pink Awareness Ribbon

Breast cancer. My paternal grandmother is a survivor. Youngest Aunt is also a survivor. Both had mastectomy. Fourth Aunt discovered a lump, but hers was not malignant.

Breast cancer is very common indeed. October, being the breast cancer awareness month, campaigns the awareness of the disease and to raise funds for the research of this disease.

Yesterday, I visited the Breast Cancer Awareness Booth at Bintang Plaza Megamall, where breast examination pamphlets were given out, and pink ribbons were given out.

Pamphlets

A pink ribbon

There were also souvenirs being sold for fund-raising purposes. The booth was manned by the local Breast Cancer Support Group members.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Thian Ho @ Pujut Corner

I pass by Thian Ho on my way home every day. It is located at Pujut Corner here in Miri, just by the roadside. It is a residence cum hawker stall. There isn't any proper parking, so patrons park along the roadside. This stall operates from 5.30 p.m. onwards till late at night. And, it is packed with people all the time. You can tell just how good business is here, by looking at the number of vehicles that line the road.

Tonight, my friend and I decided to head over there for dinner. We thought we'd go early to avoid the crowd. Why? Because from past experiences, the service is slow. You have to wait quite long for your orders. Mainly because there are many takeaways, and then there is only 1 cook.

Anyway, we ordered a wanton soup tonight. The wanton was typical, with its meagre filling. The soup was a bit bland for my taste.

Wanton soup

A piece of wanton

My friend, who found the seasoned cut chillies tasty, poured at least a spoonful of vinegar into the soup to make it tastier.

Seasoned cut chillies

At Thian Ho, there is an entire jar of pickled chillies in the condiments basket, and you are free to take as much as you like.

The Tomato Fried Kueh Tiaw that I ordered came with fresh prawns, cuttlefish slices, chicken breast meat and mustard greens. Unfortunately, I did not like the dish as I thought the gravy was a tad too sweet. I like my tomato gravy to the slightly tangy.

Tomato Fried Kueh Tiaw

Consequently, I poured a saucer full of seasoned cut chillies into my plate of kueh tiaw, and even then the dish did not suit my palate. And so, dinner left me unsatisfied.

Actually, I really liked the Stir-fried mee suah at Thian Ho. It's a real pity that they no longer sell this item. Sigh.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Lunch@ Banana Leaf Rice Restaurant & Cafe

My colleague recommended me the food at Banana Leaf Rice Restaurant & Cafe at Centrepoint, Miri a few weeks ago. I'm not very familiar with Indian food at all. However, I was keen to try a meal there.

Yesterday, my colleagues and I headed to the restaurant after the rehearsal for our convocation. The menu was quite informative. I had not known that banana leaves has properties that helps with digestion.

Information on the menu


All of us ordered the Briyani rice set.

First, came the banana leaf and the eating utensils.

Banana leaf and utensils

The waiter then came around with a rice basket. Each person is served three scoops of rice. Another waiter came around with metal containers, in which 4 types of vegetables were served from.

Waiters serving rice & assortment of vegetables

Then another person came around with the gravy container. Customers have got 3 types of gravy to choose from - chicken, fish or dhal.

Ladling the gravy for the rice

This is what my banana leaf looks like, filled with rice and vegetables, and drenched with gravy.

Briyani rice set

Finally, a piece of papadum is placed on top.

A completed Briyani rice set

We also ordered a serving of mutton curry to go with our briyani. The serving was generous and the meat was tender.

A serving of mutton curry

Well, I enjoyed the meal tremendously. It was something different from my usual fare. Of course I'd eaten Briyani rice before, but I had never eaten it with so many different types of vegetables.

There was cabbage, spinach, bitter gourd and long beans.

Cabbage

Spinach

Bitter gourd

Long beans

I ordered a glass of lassi with my meal. I think I made the wrong choice as it is quite thick and milky, and it made me really bloated when taken with my briyani.

Lassi

My colleague mentioned that it is customary for people to fold over their banana leaf when they had finished eating. We are supposed to fold the leaf towards us if we are happy with the meal. If we are not happy with it, we are supposed to fold it away from you.

My serving wiped clean ;p, and folded inwards ;)

Well, I enjoyed my lunch a lot. I felt the the use of spices was just right in all the dishes, and not too overpowering. I look forward to go back to the restaurant for another meal.


Friday, October 23, 2009

It Is Over!

Convocation is finally over! I can now breathe. Everything was smooth-sailing, which I am thankful for. I know my P was happy with the whole event. He found it inspiring.

Things were alright, I guess, after 2 rehearsals, where my colleagues and I had to remind the students about everything!! Stride confidently to the stage. Do not drag your feet. Receive the certificate with both hands. Remember to say thank you. Lol.

The ceremony was quite grand indeed, with teachers dressed in their regal graduation robes and mortarboard. There were academic processions into and out of the hall with the accompaniment of gamelan music.

At the last minute, many parents and family members of the students signed up for the event, to give their moral support to the graduands. A few parents approached the teachers after the event last night, saying they were really touched by the school's effort to celebrate the outgoing sixth formers.

My feet became really sore by the end of last night. I could not walk properly, and had to take of my heels when I made my way to the parking lot. However, I think that all is worth it. I really thank my kids to help co-ordinate the event - from ushering to emceeing to overseeing gifts and souvenirs to photography, and so on. Thanks kids! I'm so proud of all of you.

My grouses :
We had our ceremony held at a 4-star hotel, but I was terribly disappointed with the food and the service. No doubt, I am glad that the hotel allowed us to do our rehearsals before the event. They were also quite agreeable when we requested for setting up of chairs and so on. Thank you so much!

But I think the hotel needs to make tremendous improvement in the food and the service. The food was bland, and there were not much variety.

My platter

Soup

The only appetiser served to our VIP table was a plate of umai. I asked for another plate of it, but it was never served. Thinking there were more salads at the main banquet, my principal requested for me to just get some from there. I walked over and found that there was no other type of appetiser served apart from a plate of umai & another of rojak buah. Rojak was not even served to the VIP table at first.

The soup of the night was chicken & corn soup, and the mains were fried rice, fried noodles, roasted chicken, lamb, cuttlefish and a vegetable. For dessert, there was a only a type of cake, and fruits.

That was the food. Now, the service for the VIP table was really very disappointing. The table setting was ordinary. The utensils were not up to par. Ordinary-looking plates and even melamine saucers were also used. EVEN my school has got classier utensils which we use for official functions at school.

The service was quite poor too. The waitress served the soup to the other guests on the VIP table first, when in fact, the first person to serve would be the guest of honour. Then she missed out serving my principal. Sigh. There was still a lot of food left in the tray but the waitress cleared it. I don't recall her asking for permission to clear the tray.

Overall, I was not happy at all about the food and the service for the VIP table. It is a marked distinction between the function which I attended at another hotel in town last month. I don't mean that the food was not filling. They were filling alright, but just not satisfying. Lots of room for improvement, if you ask me.

Monday, October 19, 2009

Inaugural Convocation

As the co-ordinator for the Form Six programmes in my school, I am in-charge of the first ever convocation organised by the school this year.

This year, we bought graduation robes, and had a ceremonial mace or cokmar specially designed and made.

Ceremonial mace on display

The event is this Thursday night at a hotel in town. We have invited the Divisional Educational Officer to officiate it.

As the organising chairperson, it is my responsibility to oversee the sub-committees. I will also head the rehearsals on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning.

I feel slightly stressed now.

On top of that, some of the sixth formers are giving a lot of problems, because they are reluctant to comply to the school rules.

I felt very uncomfortable this morning, when a particular teacher came to complain to me about a few of them who were caught flouting school rules. Bad attitude. Disinterested in their studies.

Let me be clear, I will not defend the students. In my opinion, if they have done something wrong then they should be dealt with. However, there is a limit to what I can do apart from demeriting them, counselling them, and calling on their parents.

I really wish those difficult students would stop schooling and explore other options. After all, Form Six is not compulsory.

And so it makes me ponder if it is worth it to organise a convocation for this group of stubborn beings. Do they deserve to graduate at all?

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Excapade Sushi

The weather was great. Armed with our passports and some Brunei dollars, and we decided to go across the border to the little sultanate of Brunei Darussalam.

Brunei currency & passport

It's just a short drive to the Sungai Tujuh Immigration Checkpoint, and across the border is the nearest Brunei city of Kuala Belait.

The Malaysian Immigration Checkpoint

There were many cars going into Brunei at about 12.15 p.m., and we joined in the queue.

Cars ahead of us at the Brunei Immigration Post

Once we cleared the Immigration, it was only a 15-minute drive to Kuala Belait. Our destination today was Excapade Sushi.

Excapade Sushi at Kuala Belait

We'd booked at table at 12.45 p.m., and we made it just in time.

Today we were seated at a booth at the back of the shop. From our table, we could see the food being dished out from the kitchen. It was interesting to see the different orders that people made. However, the booth was narrow and the table was small, and there wasn't much space to move about.

Each table has a jar or wasabi paste and shoyu, and another jar of pickled ginger. You can have as much pickled ginger as you can eat, which was how it should be! This is such a contrast from our last Japanese meal at Sushi King @ Bintang Plaza Megamall, which had us requesting for pickled ginger over and over again. Annoying!

My saucer of pickled ginger

The edamame was served warm. One serving is B$2.00. I was quite awed at the portion of the serving, which was at least 3 times the amount served at Sushi King!

Edamame

Everyone liked the edamame. Then, we had a few types of maki rolls off the conveyer belt.

Mini Konagi Salmon Maki

The Mini Konagi Salmon Maki are rolls of cucumber, avocado, unagi and seaweed, draped with slices of salmon. I also grabbed this plate off the conveyer belt, attracted by the slices of unagi that topped the roll.

Rock and Roll

Now, I haven't much idea what's in the roll. I could only identify the wakame and ebiko. ;p

My friend ordered the unagi sandwich.

Unagi sandwich

At Excapade, the blue saucer is B$3.00 and the red saucer is B$3.80.

I ordered the Unagi Temaki, also at B$3.80 each.

Unagi temaki

We never miss ordering the salmon sashimi whenever we go to Excapade. One serving is B$15.00. As you can see, one serving has got 12 thick slices of salmon sashimi. Yum.

Salmon sashimi


My friends like the grilled salmon head. The fish is doused in sweet teriyaki sauce. I did not fancy cooked salmon, so I only tried a bit of the flesh. It was not was "fishy" as I thought it would be. ;)

Grilled salmon head

My friend, on the other hand, enjoyed the fish head immensely. He polished every bit of it, and did not hesitate to eat the eyeball!!

Would you eat salmon eyeball?

Eeew. It was a bit disgusting to me. I asked him how the texture was like. He said it was slimy. Eeeeeeewwwwww.

Ta-da!!! Salmon head polished clean!!

I preferred Shishamo. My friend called it the pregnant fish as the fishes were full of roe.

Shishamo

We also ordered the Kake Age Tempura, which is mixed vegetable and seafood tempura. The strips of vegetables I could identify include brinjal, green pepper, sweet potato and onions. Seafood? Hmn. Not sure, but there were strips of kamaboko.

Kake Age Tempura

The tempura was served with a dipping sauce.

Tempura Dipping sauce

I ordered a kind of deep-fried chicken and vegetable maki, served with a thick and sweet dipping sauce. We were already too full to eat by the time this order arrived. Maybe that's why nobody really liked it much.

Chicken & vege maki

Carrot, french bean, green pepper strips wrapped in chicken thigh meat

The bill came to B$60.50 for the four of us. It's really value for money.

After a satisfying lunch, we headed to Super Save at Mumong to hunt for imported goods. Hmn. There weren't much choice now, compared to before. Furthermore, I think the prices of the things are now much more expensive now compared to last time. Hence, we did not buy much. Therefore, serious shoppers should head to Gadong, where the bigger Super Save outlet is located.

Half an hour later, we made our way back to Miri. It was about a 45-minute drive back, including the waiting time at the Immigration checkpoints at both sides.


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