Today I turn 24

I remembered writing this meme a year ago and I realized how much I have changed since. As much as I wish to write this year's version as passionate as I did last year, I couldn't. Maybe because I have grown slightly older and well, slightly less emotional. But, here you go :

1. Was being 23 good for you?

I would say it has. I started being 23, securing a permanent position for a job that is paying me more than a decent pay when a lot of young graduates are struggling to get a job. Monetary wise, I was and still am very happy.

But being in the rat race has make me feel like I don't really care about petty things as much as I did last time. Maybe because I don't have time to sit, ponder and be sour over things.

2. What was your favorite moment when you were 23?

I think it was inviting my parents for my convocation. I remembered telling my friend while I was studying that on my convocation, I want to able to pay for my parents, from the transportation, lodging and everything. I wanted it to be like an invitation and I did just that. For me to be able to do that, was very fulfilling and I know at that point of time my parents, was very proud of me.

3. What was your least favorite moment of the year?

I'm the type that will always keep to my promises - the sole reason why I hardly make promises. I promised a friend that once I get a job I would fly to his place and visit him. So, on one very impulse weekend I flew to his place and flew back the next day. It should be a very romantic getaway - i mean it was, but that was also when I know, things are over and that we won't be seeing each other anymore, anytime soon.

4. What are your plans now that you are 24?

I'm looking into some investment and buying a hut for myself. *fingers crossed*

5. What date will remain etched in your memory?

November 11, 2011. I closed not only a chapter in my life but a book. and I'm very very proud of myself :)

6. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

I would say, walking up the stage in front of thousands receiving my scroll.

7. What was your biggest failure?

I've been working for almost a year now and I have yet to go for a real holiday. I promised myself a good beach break next year.

8. Did you suffer any illness or injury?

I remembered I fainted outside a restaurant in June. Other than that, recently I had a terrible allergic reaction to some alien insects and went to see the doctor four times a week. Non of those visits work, not even two jabs. I was then referred to a specialist in Gleanegles and hallelujuah, the amazing doctor give me magic medicine! :D

9. What was the best thing you bought?

My clark's leather loafers. I think that's the best RM 300 i spent on! And definitely my Titanium glassed Ray Ban. Since then I just wish everyday is sunny. Hahah.

10. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?

Human. My job requires me to deal with people from all walk of life and being exposed to these makes me realize how status is just a word. These are the people that really, really give you shits.

11. Where did most of your money go?

I finally realize I'm quite a shopaholic after all. So a lot of my money goes to my shopping trips.

12. What did you get really really really excited about?

Every 25th of the month. That's pay day! :D

13. What songs will always remind you were 23 years old once?

Muse - Unintended

14. Compared to when you were 23, were you :

a) Fatter or thinner? Thinner! :D

b) Happier or sadder? Definitely, happier.

c) Richer or poorer? Richer. ^.^

15. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Patience, and to think more before uttering my thoughts.

16. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Putting a 'closed' sign in my heart. Haha

17. How will you be spending Christmas?

I have not have any plans in particular yet but we'll see how it goes. :)

18. Did you fall in love when you were 23?

I didn't. If you read my last year's version you know that I was head over heels in love with someone. The "deleting" process took much longer than I expected and for a very long time, I was not ready for a new relationship. While I really did move on, I was still very much clinging to the thought of "what if". I was not ready to let anyone in my heart, let alone love someone. But I woke up one day telling myself "enough is enough. cukuplah sampai di sini sahaja episod kita kali ini.". I would say I'm really happy at how things is going and all I wish is for the best.

19. How many one night stands?

I wish I could write like 100. hahhaha! but nah, no. :p

20. What was your favourite TV show?

Bachelor, Bachelorette and Bachelor Pad. And this Singapore soap opera - The inlaws. I remembered sacrificing my sleep just to finish watching the dvds.

21. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate when you were 23?

Nah, I don't hate anyone last year, and I still don't this year.

22. What was/were the best books you read when you were 23?

What I wish I knew when I was 20.

23. What did you want and get?

iPad. Wish I got it much earlier! It's the awesome!

24. What did you want and not get?

Nothing. I pretty much bought everything I wanted. Yes, I know I'm blessed. :)

25. What was the best gift you received when you were 23?

A seiko watch. It's limited edition and there's only 2000 in this world. This is the 1087th.

26. What did you do on your 23rd Birthday?

Stuffing myself with lots and lots of pork. lol

27. What one thing would have made your year more satisfying?

I think it would be me doing the one day air tour on Cessna.

28. How would you describe your personal fashion concept when you were 23?

Pretty much the same. I really like the retro (or whatever you call it, I'm no fashionista.lol) so I have a number of those GAP and pull and bear's pants that I wear to work with a plain fitted shirt.

29. Who did you miss the most when you were 23?

For the longest time it was TL*, but now, it's someone else.

30. Did you treat somebody badly while you were 23?

I don't think I did. I hope I didn't. ;p

31. Did somebody treat you badly when you were 23?

I don't think so. I so nais one. Lol

32. A valuable life lesson you learned when you were 23.

Money can buy you happiness. It does not opens the door to happiness but it is the key to it.

Today I am 24. I look forward to many more good things that is in store for me this year.

Mr. Ho Fine Food

It usually take a while for me to review a restaurant I visited but I had such awesome time on my birthday that I feel obligated to write it straight away! The initial plan was to have dinner at this Indonesian restaurant that I've been wanting to try but upon arrival, the restaurant was packed, a tad too noisy and the menu was just too disappointing. So we hopped on to the restaurant opposite.

Mr. Ho is a place I really liked but have not visited since I left Kuching for my tertiary education. That was four years ago! The interior didn't change much though and I was keeping my fingers crossed the food will be as good.



For appetizer we had Bruschetta (RM 7.00). Slightly soggy for my liking but taste wise, it was definitely above edible. The price is however on the higher end though. RM 7 for four slices of garlic toasted loaf and some tomatoes on top is not cheap. It was a good thing that the taste does justice for the price. A note of advice though - the garlic taste is really strong so if you're on your first date, this is not recommended. :P



The Spaghetti Aglio Olio (RM 14.90) With Chili Flakes was a very straight forward dish but at the same time very tasty! It has a hint of spiciness and the spaghetti was done al dente. I like! :D



Highlight of the night was the Pork Knuckle (RM47.90). It was orgasmic! Or if you like, ejaculation of flavors! Hehe. It was divine. The skin were oh so crispy and the meat were oh so juicy! It has enough ratio of both fats and lean meat. *high* However, the portion is enough to feed at least five diners and we actually had trouble finishing it!



I almost forgotten the fact that I am not blessed with a good metabolism rate and ordered German Sausage Platter (RM 30.90) even after knowing the large serving of pork knuckle. :p The platter comes with four sausages of different sizes (no pun intended. heh heh heh) and I find the biggest one to be the best. (heh heh heh. lol) I didn't like the accompanying sides of fried cabbage though. Felt like it degrade the whole dish.



Of course, after ordering all the fatty meat we felt a sense of responsibility (Lol) to eat vegetables and ordered Caesar Salad (19.90). The salad was a good complement to the rest of the fat-laden dishes. I love the salami and crushed garlic. Goes really well with the romaine lettuce.

Being a food lover, it was actually very therapeutic to see so much food lay before my eyes! Lol.



I have to give credit to the restaurant on the time frame (no more than 15 minutes!) used on preparing the food. We arrived quite famished - it was a wet night (the rain! *winks*) and everyone were driving so slow the whole night!



After all the food, it was cake time! My friend also made all the hostess and kitchen staff to sing along the birthday song! :D

We then adjourned for a good shisha session (and me being a regular there got it for free with extra nicotine to boot! :D) and of course by then we were so pork overdose that we ended up laughing just about everything! But it was all good, good, good and I couldn't ask for a better birthday night out.

Gracias much for the great time! You know who you are :D

Today I Turn 23.

Yes, it's my birthday today! ... and I'm doing a birthday meme on my blog to celebrate it! Haha. Well, I thought this will be a great way to share with you a little of my emotional side - or the me, when I'm not a glutton. :P This is also possibly the longest non-food related post I've ever written! :D

1. Was being 22 good for you?
I would say it's a balance of good and bad. I completed a number of things. I graduated, I fulfilled one of my wish of being in a flight simulator, I effortlessly(no diet shit) lose 10 kg, discovered the goodness of shisha (God sent! lol) and I met a guy that left a huge impact in my life.

The bad part? Screwing up an interview, met a bitchy boss, put on 2kg after losing 10 kg (haha!) and I bid goodbye to the same guy that impacted me.

2. What was your favorite moment when you were 22?
It was my four months in Penang. I can still recall how happy I was. Not that I don't love Kuching (I do, very much!) but Penang gave me a feeling i couldn't explain in words. I did not live lavishly - just a medium sized apartment without air condition, no car and was constantly short of cash. But for once, I felt my mind and soul were entirely at ease. It was as though as I have lived in Penang my whole life.

3. What was your least favorite moment of the year?
Bidding goodbye to a friend I really, really care. It was bitter but somewhat a relieve because it was at a point where the only thing more unthinkable than leaving was staying; the only thing more impossible than staying was leaving (Elizabeth Gilbert, 2006). However, that doesn't mean I stopped to care. I still care, I always have and I always will.

4. What are your plans now that you are 23?
Drawing a clearer career path for myself, play less safe and living my life to the fullest!

5. What date will remain etched in your memory?
19 October. It was when I realized sometimes solutions aren't so simple. Sometimes goodbye's the only way.

6. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Completing my degree.

7. What was your biggest failure?
Embarrassingly screwing up an interview with Malaysia's top 10 company. (based on year 2010's list) I was sleepless for three nights prior to the interview (had other commitments) and by the time I reached the office I was breathless, tired and brain dead.

8. Did you suffer any illness or injury?
I did! I got stung by a huge ant while working for a trade fair. My feet was swollen to two size for about a week and it was crazy itchy. I don't think I actually fell ill though. The funny thing was during the first month of my internship, I was really depressed. I hated the job and I wanted to be sick so I could escape. I walloped all sorts of "heaty food" including this really yucky thick peanut cream but still never got sick!

9. What was the best thing you bought?
There were a few : Lois Jeans, Hush Puppies Slack and Roxy Leather Belt.

10. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
My ex director! haha! She totally redefine the meaning of wicked.

11. Where did most of your money go?
My gastronomic food adventures and clothes. P/s : I'm 10 kg fatter when pictured side ways. Lol.

12. What did you get really really really excited about?
Meeting TL* , having him picked me up from the airport and spending time with him. Of course this does not mean when it happened, it was as good as the excitement was. :p

13. What songs will always remind you were 22 years old once?
Just A Dream (Nelly), Teriffied (Katherine McPhee), Teenage Dream (Katy Perry), This Kiss (Faithhill) and this old Malay song, Isabella (Amy Search).

14. Compared to when you were 22, were you :
a) Fatter or thinner? Thinner! :D

b) Happier or sadder? I would say, still the same.

c) Richer or poorer? Poorer. Haha

15. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Socializing.

16. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Thinking too much and taking unnecessary precautions. Playing safe is not exactly the answer to everything. This bad habit of mine made me lose a lot of things that should have been mine easily.

17. How will you be spending Christmas?
I've always believed that Christmas is reserved for family. So yes, like always I will be spending my Christmas in Kuching with my family.

18. Did you fall in love when you were 22?

*** This is quite lengthy but this is a part I owe me. I promised myself once I am fully recovered, this will be on my blog. I initially planned to dedicate a whole single post for it but decided not to as a lot of details will be too personal but here's a brief one.

Back to the question: Yes, I almost fell in love. He's extremely handsome, a pilot to be, romantic at heart and has a killer smile. However! He had nothing I would look for in a guy and was not someone I would actually date. You see, I'm a realist. Whenever I am with someone who I don't foresee a future, I waste my time no more. But with him, it was very different. It was almost similar to how I first fell in love eight years ago and I didn't wanna stop.

It could be that I was too engrossed in the fairytale he gave but everything felt so damn right! No, we didn't do anything out of the ordinary or too exciting. It was as simple as giving him a morning call or just watching him falling asleep on my lap. As cliche as this may sound, he made me feel like the whole world stopped spinning. It was like a dream - one that I don't wanna wake up.

Unfortunately, the clock ruled us. He was three years my junior and while age was never a question for me, I felt like the gap was too huge and I was already a stage ahead in life. For him, he was at a position where he had two roads diverged in the yellow woods and could not travel both. We finally decided that it's a better choice for him to walk the other path and parted ways. It was mutual. No knifes, No fights, No blood. Just a lot of tears when we finally hugged and kissed goodbye.

While I did not feel very strongly for him, it stung more than I thought it would be. Maybe because it was unlike any other goodbyes, this particular one has nothing wrong at all. We were two friends happen to have feelings for each other at the wrong time. It has been more than a month. I have since fallen out of the love that I almost fell and him walking far along the road chosen. A huge part of me felt like I was the blame of to why we never progressed more than friends. I was too slow, I was too scared. I let it slip, and I saw it slipped.

Of course, I would be in denial if I said I didn't miss him. I do. I miss his company, I miss his voice, I miss our morning breakfast with his mother and how his mother would tell me stories about him, I miss his 8 a.m morning messages, I miss his smile and I miss the butterflies he gave. But it doesn't mean anything anymore. I have moved on and this is a story of yesterday! :)

19. How many one night stands?
If zero is a number than zero it is. One Night Stand is not my kind of thing. (I do many nights! :P )This kinda reminds me of something : 22 is the age where I have many people telling me I will be a good wife! Lol

20. What was your favourite TV show?

I'm a TV Buff! The Big Bang Theory, The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, Gossip Girls, The Amazing Race Asia, The Biggest Loser and for a while, Glee.

21. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate when you were 22?
Nah.. I might not like a person but it never get to a point where I hate them.

22. What was/were the best books you read when you were 22?

I really like Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat, Pray, Love and I find Losing My Virginity by Richard Branson to be extremely inspiring. My real favorite is this book by a local writer. It was a great hindsight of what we do not see as a passenger on board.

23. What did you want and get?
A chronograph watch with black leather strap.

Sorry lah, I blurred the car logo. I drive lousy car ma :P

24. What did you want and not get?
Sony NEX-5!

25. What was the best gift you received when you were 22?
It was this wing pilots get when they completed their first solo flight. Priceless.

26. What did you do on your 22nd Birthday?
I celebrated it with some close friends in Hilton. My all time favorite coffee place.

27. What one thing would have made your year more satisfying?
Getting my dream job!

28. How would you describe your personal fashion concept when you were 22?
Slightly better. Haha. I think towards the middle of the year, I bought a lot of new clothes cause I no longer fit into my old clothes.

29. Who did you miss the most when you were 22?
I think it was when I was still (friends) with TL*. It was insane! I would wake up, heart pumping as fast as a Ferrari car on the track missing him like crazy. I loved waking up to his bed voice. Having said this, please note the past tense. :)

30. Did you treat somebody badly while you were 22?
I would say I didn't but who am I to judge myself? So whoever I did mistreat, I'm sorry.

31. Did somebody treat you badly when you were 22?
Yes, my ex boss. But thanks to her, I had an eye opening view of how working life is.

32. A valuable life lesson you learned when you were 22.
That when you truly care for someone, just seeing them happy means more than anything in the world - even when you're not physically there with them. :)

Yesterday was the last day of me being 22. I'm 23 today and I look forward to exploring and discovering many more great things ahead for the next 365 days. :D

Birthday Greetings!

Ben!

First thing first! I'm sorry I couldn't find a cheesecake without base, but this is still cheesecake - better still, with your name written on! =D I've already blew the candles and eaten the cake on your behalf tho. But.. but, I made a wish for you also! Something that you wanted, Something that you told me. Try guessing! :p



Just to show you that this was not from my pictures collection. But it obviously is not lah, since it has your name on it. :P



I hope the "bomb" arrives tomorrow.. and that the "chemical" I mixed works out.. Then I can get your insurance! haha! Call me before you open k? In case .. the chemical really worked and I don't get to listen to your voice anymore! hahaha!

Happy Birthday, handsome.

xoxo
Mel

Birthday Greetings

Happy Birthday, Jess! Thanks for always helping me with itu dan ini. :D Play safe (with or without the thunder beads) on your birthday night. Lol.

She also share the birth date with someone very special in my life, Misha. :D



Say happy birthday to both of them!

Birthday Greetings!

It's funny how we've known each other for so many years now, have date and dated - yet the one thing we both never did was to be there for each other during our birthdays.

Well, the blame's definitely not on me. You're always in the other part of the world. :P



I made this for you. I've eaten it on your behalf but I'll made it up to you when I see you again.

...and just like every other years, I wish you nothing but the best of all the good things in the world.

Happy birthday.

Love,
Mel.

Birthday Greetings!

Beng!

Not gonna write all those sappy-pretentious birthday messages cause that's for pretentious people, and we're far from that. ;)

Heineken on me the next time I see you. (Upgrade already, no more Tsingtao! :P )

Have a great birthday, my friend!

The blog is officially three years old!

Three years ago, i started this blog with a pure intention to share my passion for food and also to improve my English. It wasn't initially meant to be an all food blog but rather a mixture of food post and my personal life.



As time pass by, I realized the cyberspace is no longer a safe place to do your "mental voumit" and I decided to stop writing about my personal life. Plus, I don't actually lead an exciting life. Lol.



I guess my writing style has changed quite a bit as compared to the entries three years ago. To be honest, i felt quite embarrassed with my back logs but I decided to still keep them. There are some personal entries that I deleted tho. ;p



My readers have definitely tripled (not to mention that I am also earning a bit from the blog!) from when I first started and I thank each one of you for reading. I promise all of you with more slurpilicious post ahead! :P

My blog is officially three years old three days ago. And I celebrated it with three tubs of frozen cheesecake sponsored by a loyal reader. *cough cough*. ;P

Birthday Greetings!

Today is my dad's birthday and I went to get my dad two slices of cake from Hilton.I wanted to get a whole cake but since my dad is not very much into cakes and I'm not exactly blessed with a body to binge on fattening creamy cakes at the moment, i decided to just get two slices.

I think it's quite safe for me to say that Hilton is the only place in Kuching that serve quality cakes. It's a pity that the drinks in Caffe Cino sucks and the service is not up to par with their 5 star image.

Anyway, Happy birthday, father bear. :)

Chefmel turns 22 today!

Today is my birthday. :)



I got myself a book as a birthday gift to myself. Richard Branson's : Losing My virginity. Such a quirky title right? Hehe.

I am also quite broke , so if you're feeling guilty not buying me any birthday present, or if you're feeling rich today, please kindly donate to :

Melanie Ong Ai Wui
CIMB 1102-0002278-20-6

Thank You in advance :)

Anthon Berg (Since 1984)

It's the mother bear's birthday today. I got her a set of cocktail chocolates in KL International Airport (At the junction of the walkway to MAS Golden Lounge, baggage collection and terminals) earlier this month and sent it to her a week later.

It's a set danish dark chocolate with 8 different types of liquor. I've never try it but according to my mum it was good. And unlike Jack Daniel's chocolate, the liquor actually ooze out rather than crystallized inside the chocolate.

Anyway, Happy Birthday mum! <3