Noises

Another exercise from this site.

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Make lists of noises that:
(1) remind you of summer

• seaside
• buses
• ice
• refrigerator at the tuck shop on the beach
• birds

(2) remind you on being in church (or temple or mosque or whatever suits)

• choir
• people sitting down and getting up
• books being put into the shelf compartment in front of the seat
• doors being opened and closed

(3) beautiful noises

• water
• marbles
• kitty's bell
• baby's giggle

(4) kitchen noises

• plates touching each other
• pans touching each other
• wok in used
• fire of the stove
• kitchen fan in used
• cutting things on the chopping board

(5) shopping mall noises

• people chatting
• trolleys
• children crying or screaming

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Again, my very lazy version of the exercise.

On a different day

This is not a p test. Not that it matter. I am not sure whether J remembers or not but this is our first anniversary. Adding to other things one should not be doing on the 1st anniversary, it was hard to avoid giving away any hints that I do care about doing something special. But nothing happened and I didn't expected to have burger from a certain fast food restarant as dinner for such special day. Anyway just have no expectation to avoid any disappointment.

Friday workout

At Chaddy on a Friday evening, after going to the gym and work ourselves to our weekday limit. The sales girl at the makeup counter is busy putting products on customer's face. So she doesn't aware that a few other customers are actually trying to make purchase from that counter. Having peri peri chicken for dinner, with garden salad as the side. Heading back home to watch J plays the new racing game for hours while having a glass or two Rosa.

Gap...year

From work. As a wife. One year on. Time to move on.

Sept A to Z

This would be under the letter 'J', as in juice.

Cake fixing: Tiramisu style

I turn the apple cake which was too much of the bitter taste into a sweet and cheesy tiramisu. With the help of a bottle of brandy syrup from last year Christmas hamper, a block of cream cheese from the fridge, 3 cups of icing mixture, 2 tablespoons of caster sugar, 2 tablespoons of custard powder, and 2 cups of milk.

Nice little black top

Found this top which have the same name as mine. I am very tempted to check it out tomorrow when they are having that VIP night again.

Jacqui-E | Australian Women's Fashion

Red balloon

Hi Mr Red balloon, what are you doing on the grass?

I love Melbourne

I found these two books at Borders today.

The Melbourne Book: A History of Now by Maree Coote
This book is very informative. It is not a guidebook for tourists but it shows the reader what kind of a city Melbourne is, from its history to culture to fashion to local famous people.

When We Think about Melbourne: The imagination of a city by Jenny Sinclair
This is a book for somebody who has lived in Melbourne. Again it is not a guidebook. It starts by introducing the Melway reference concept and followed by other iconic locations which every Melburnian would feel familiar with.

Their total price is around $100. I didn't buy either of them. But they are good options for coffee table books. Both of them would put a smile on your face if you have lived in Melbourne for a while.

If it wasn't raining today

If it wasn't raining today
I would go to the supermarket and bought some pork ribs
I would make Hot and Spicy Ribs for dinner tonight

If it wasn't raining today
I would go to the supermarket and bought some cream
I would make a sweet pie for desert this weekend

But it was raining today
so I wash a load of laundry
so I clean Eko's litter tray
so I put away the chicken soup into the freezer
so I stay home and change our phone plan in stead

But what I should really do is to edit my resume
I should really start looking for work
I should really get myself out there
I should go back to work again

The Man and His Cat

Again, this is a writing exercise entry. The topic is from here.

You see an odd-looking man in a bar in a strange town. He has a cat on his lap, and he orders a cup of coffee, slowly spooning sugar into it. He strokes the cat's black fur and says, "This contact is illusory. The cat and I are separated as though by a pane of glass, because man lives in time, in successiveness, while the magical animal lives in the present, in the eternity of the instant." What do you say back to him? And he to you? What does the cat do? What happened to this man before he came into the bar?

As if I could hear its voice.
As if it is telling me the man's life story.
As if it is the man only companion after his wife has passed on.

(unfinished)

Colourful flowers

At Chadstone they put some flowers in those big pots which usually only have leafy plants. They are pretty. And have that welcoming effect as the added colours had brighten up the place.

Pierced Ears

3/9 Finally I have my ears pierced. I have been thinking about it for years already so I am not only doing it just for someone's wedding. And this is September so maybe I could ask J to buy me new earrings for our anniversary.

Sing birdie sing

It's Spring time.

Spider, cat, and smelly thing

This entry was inspired by this post at 52 Weeks of Wordage.

I never expect to find a spider from a branch of broccoli when preparing for dinner. But that was what I found the other day, and it was not a small one, an easy 2 inches measure from the ends of leg to leg. I was tempted to hit that eight legged creature on the chopping board with the knife I was holding at that time. But years of training, a.k.a. being in Australia, made me control myself and opts to capture it in stead.


This used to be a candle holder. For years it has long been the insects transportation device of our house, to have them captured if found indoor and move them to the outside.

Besides spiders, the usual passengers are moths and flies during summer. Eko, our resident cat is normally the first on scene when any of these visitors began to make themselves noticeable. Although to him it was just a game of catch and play, he does help us to locate these uninvited guests around the house efficiently.

Living with cat also has its downside. Eko being an active individual would wake me up at 5:30am asking for breakfast. Or occasionally when he was not satisfied with the status of his litter tray and decided to do his business on the tiled floor next to the tray. This was what happen last night and to avoid further disaster I had to pull myself out of bed and clean it up. After that was done I did wash my hands but I still felt dirty. Maybe because it was late and I didn't want to wake J. I just didn't slept well last night.

Roasted lamb for dinner

Yummy!

Movie Il ne faut jurer de rien

Watch this movie on SBS today.

It was based on a French play Il Ne Faut Jurer De Rien by Alfred De Musset.

Its Aus TV title is Never Say Never.

This is the plot summary from the imdb site:
Paris, 1830. Valentin loses himself in alcohol, gambling and women. He does not believe in life and especially not in love. His uncle Van Buck believes only in the virtues of money and trade. Everything separates them until the day when Van Buck, to improve his public image, wants to make Valentin marry the young and impoverished Baroness Cécile. Valentin, who has absolutely no desire to get married, bets that he can easily seduce her in 24 hours and thus prove that she, like all the others, is not worth loving... But Cécile, who believes in true love, will prove much more difficult to woo than envisaged and Valentin will have to use all possible stratagems to try and win his bet. The game of cat and mouse starts... But who is the cat?

Home

Saturday blue

Unlike the drizzle in the morning, it was sunny and relatively warm during the afternoon. If we do not have to go to T and A's place this evening it would be a good opportunity to do some window shopping and enjoy a cup of coffee with J.

J's birthday is coming up and he has been working so hard for the part few weeks. With the stress and workload increasing and he can't see a way out, it would be better if he could find a new job and have a fresh start somewhere else. I feel sad when seeing him came home after a twelve hours day 3 to 4 days a week. I feel guilty of staying home for too long. Thus my little secret target is to get back to work by our first anniversary, which is only less than a month away.

Here end my rumbling on a tired Saturday night, still waiting for J to finish his customed build computer service so we could go home and rest.

Books around me

I have finished reading these. But I still need to make some notes on each of them before taking them back to the library.

Original Sin by Allison Brennan

Casting Spells by Barbara Brerron

Laced with Magic by Barbara Brerron

Book of Shadows by Cate Tiernan

The Eternal Kiss edited by Trisha Telep

A curtain? A face?

Isn't it scary?

Telephone

This entry is a trial for doing some writing exercise. The topic is from here.

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Clotho does not use her phone that often. She got herself a camera phone last time when she upgraded her mobile phone. Since then it was mainly being used as her alarm clock in the morning. She also uses it to take occasional snapshots of things around her. That was the only reason of why she picked that specific model anyway.

These days the only calls Clotho makes are to her sister and cousin when the girls are free for a mini gathering. And sometimes to her husband if he ever has a night out, which only happens once in a blue moon.

A girl at work once told Clotho to always keep a smile when talking to customer over the phone. She said it is because the person on the other side of the line could hear if you are smiling. This is how Clotho answers her phone these days. Always with a smile, as least whenever she remember to do so.

When people asks for her phone number Clotho normally would give her mobile number rather than her home number. She has this habit ever since she owned her first mobile phone. The theory is when people call to her cell she could check their caller id. And most likely those are people she knows. Unlike the home phone, cause only telemarketer will call to the home phone in Clotho's household, especially during day time. Therefore she normally just let the machine takes the calls. If the callers want to reach her in person, they would know her mobile number anyway.

So the phone bills are just there to keep the lines active. Clotho keeps her mobile on a prepaid plan but she does not even make enough calls to use up those free credits which come with every recharge. Phone company really cannot earn much from such a user like Clotho.

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Eko vs Snap

Snap paid us a visit this morning. Unlike all previous occasion Eko seem quite contented for the first time. This is a suprise. Wondering how long would this last. Or does Eko finally accept Snap to be a regular and doesn't border to fright with the frequent visitor anymore?

Chocolate partie and coffee

Got my chocolate fix today again. With a cup of cappuccino for $9.50.

However, I like the hazelnut pastie much better. But it was not available on this day. So maybe next time.

Coffee cake

For some unknown reasons my cake of this week came out to an interesting shape. Not knowing why it only rise around the side but not in the middle, and the overall texture is still rising evenly.

The other side of the window

Snap came to visit Eko again.

Gym, movie, and voting for the first time

I hate doing things at the last minute. So it was not a good idea to visit the gym late Saturday afternoon cause it closes at six.

We finally watch the movie Inception. I can't remember when was the last time the two of us went to the cinema together.

Today is also the election day. The votes for the two major parties are very close but we still don't have the final confirmation yet. It may take a few days for all the votes to be counted.

Cheese and tomato sandwich

When I was still working in the City, I usually ordered a ham, cheese and tomato sandwich for lunch.

This is a light lovely treat and it is quick and easy to make. I am planning to make this as breakfast for J this weekend.

Morning workout

J woke me up and said it might rain heavyly in the afternoon and we might not be going to the gym in that case. Well since I didn't sleep well last night and there is no point going back to sleep, I head out for a morning session workout. It was great as there are not that many people up there during such hour. And I bump into Helen downstairs and had a quick catch up chat. Went home just in time before the rain came.

Sleepless night

I know I should try to sleep. But my brain is running away again. Feeling bloat in the stomache. I need a thought capturing machine to catch what are running through my mind. Tired. Got to will myself to sleep. Wish me luck.

Coconut butter cake

Made this cake again.

Going to Boxhill

Snapshot from bus 903 on the way to Boxhill. At the Homesglen station corner. Listening to Haken Lee songs on my ipod.

Words: Family

Still thinking of asking my parents to host a blog together. Just to tell their stories in their own words.

Chicken soup

My lunch today. A rare treat.

Heels

Wondering whether I could wear these again in November for T and A wedding. A says black shoes. These are black. And I have only wore them twice. Maybe I could bring them along on Saturday. If they fit well with that red dress then I don't have to worry about finding a new pair of shoes.

Present from my sister

She made this doll in just one night.

Our Brunch on a Sunday Afternoon

These pancakes are very easy to make.

Cutie Wife Cake

I used to love eating these sweet flaky Chinese pastry with lotus seed paste filling. I still like them and thanks Aunt C for bringing us a box of these mini cakes.

Hazelnut pastie and iced coffee

At a local cafe having some me time writing and people watching.

Brunch with colours

They are yellow(cheese), red(tomato) and purple(cranberries). I still need something in green!

Books around me

These are the books that I am reading right now.