earthlings coffee workshop

earthlings coffee workshop, the latest addition to the coffee scene in town. today is their grand opening, but we were there last night after our not-so-impressive-yet-expensive dinner at sidewalk, in green heights area.

we were greeted by a friendly young chap with strong australian accent, so we presumed that was the owner. he was also the barista in the house.

the atmosphere of the place is relaxing and cosy, with the right kind of soothing music being played. a bit pity that the place is actually not big, i saw 4 tables and a counter where you can have your coffee hand-brewed in front of you. they will talk/discuss/negotiate with the management to put tables outside their workshop in the future. there were no cakes or pastries served last night, however, we were told that they will have those from today onwards. keep my fingers crossed that the cakes and pastries will be good! 

the barista was busy making drinks when we were there, therefore did not have a chance to talk to him. i would want to ask him about the origin of their earthlings name, the reason for using workshop and not cafe; the origin of their coffee beans etc. when i first heard of the name, i thought they would offer some kind of courses in coffee appreciation or coffee art, and that made my heart skipped a beat! hahahaha! there is this very sophisticated looking equipment, and we were told it is used to roast the coffee bean. 

we ordered 3 latte (rm11) for the younger ones and 2 hot chocolate (rm10) for uncles who cannot sleep after drinking coffee at night. hahahaha! the barista was quite stressed and nervous when he did the coffee art because i was standing in front admiring, that the art did not turn out well. hehehehe.... however, the art on hot chocolate was better.

while we were cuppa'ing, we were wondering why had they opened the cafe in a mall. you have to follow the operating time of the mall, the size of the shoplot might be restricted, and the parking fee too! anyway, i hope this little humble cafe will last as long as they could and keep improving to provide us with good coffee (and cakes too!) hahahaha! it is situated at the ground floor of the mall with a messy basement carpark, cityone! at the moment, they are opened from 10am until 10pm. they will call out foe the last round of ordering by 9.30pm before the equipment is shut down for cleaning. you can visit their facebook page earthlings coffee workshop

so, which 2 do you think are the hot chocolate uncles? 

keep calm and drink coffee 

;-p

gim's burger

last night, i went to gim's burger in stutong with my brother, sister, brother-in-law, cousin sister, niece and uncle. this place has just started business mid of february, so it is still considered as a "new toilet" for most people.

it is situated in stutong parade commercial centre, next to family clinic, opposite the police flat in tabuan jaya. it has a big and bright signboard which is visible from the main road and you will not miss it! when we arrived there about 7.30pm, the place was practically full house, with every possible seats being occupied. the place is not too big. there are 2 slightly longer tables that can sit 10 people each, 2 higher tables with higher stools with 6 people each, and a long stretch of window seats by the side. the long table gives you the opportunity to sit with strangers, to look at what they are having, to have someone ever ready to help taking group photos and best of all, to listen to funny conversations! hahahaha!

while waiting for our seats, we checked out the menu and made our decisions. at the moment, they have chicken and beef burgers, with more varieties to come in the future. it is more worthwhile to go for the so-called combo meal where the burger comes with a medium-size drink, coleslaw and fries. all types of burger come in soft bun, unless you opt for charcoal bun and that will be rm0.50 each.

after you have placed your orders and paid for it, you will be given a number. next, you can find a place to sit down and yak until the cows come home! hahahaha! the kitchen and the griller is small to cater for the big demand at the moment. therefore, the waiting time can be long. we waited for slightly below 60 minutes for the burgers to be delivered to us! hahahaha! they are not even 1-month old, so we hope that they will improve along the way, and not just vanish after some time. 

there is still a lot of room for improvement, speed is definitely the main one. either they get a bigger griller in the future or with more experience in the future, they can speed things up. otherwise, this board has to be taken down! hehehe.... "good food served fast" ;-)

there was a guy walking up and down in the eating area, making sure everyone was okay. i am not sure if he was the boss, but i think that was quite a good service. the young customers sitting next to us had their orders came very late and they were given a 50% refund by that guy! come to think of that, he might be the boss after all since he could make that decision!

my aussie rules burger finally arrived! hahaha! it was a beef burger with lettuce, tomato, pineapple slice, beetroot and fried egg on top. i opted for charcoal bun as i have a soft spot for it. the beef patty was juicy and quite flavorful. i think the patty was freshly made by themselves as i could find beef tendon in the patty. it was quite a mess eating this burger as it was quite a big burger and the egg yolk just oozed out when i took the first bite! like what my brother has said, that's the fun of eating a burger messy!

this is gim's classic burger, also a beef burger. the fried egg, beetroot and pineapple slice were substituted by caramelized and peppered onion. my brother wanted a satay burger, but they did not have it yet, even though it was written on the menu board! my sister had toriniku burger, a chicken burger while my niece had tropico burger, the beetroot-less aussie rules burger ;-)

overall, it was a good nightout, everyone enjoyed their burgers, even my 81-year-old uncle! the place was bright and clean, the aircons were powerful, probably they were all still new. the ventilation was quite good as we did not smell much after the meal. from my observation, they could have installed a numbering system, where number is being displayed after the burgers are ready and customers could pick up their own orders. at the moment, they are sending over the burgers and i saw them struggling a bit, trying to look for the numbers. 

at the moment, they are only opened for dinner from 6.30pm onwards. i saw a coffee machine behind the counter, but i doubt they have the manpower to serve coffee yet. you can also visit their facebook page under "gim's burger"

clean-as-you-go might be a good practice? see you next time!

cheers, 
the cunning one ;-)

19 june 2010

vicky left us peacefully on 19 june 2010 after been in our family for 11 years. we are truly blessed to have such a wonderful and loyal dog in our family. he was like a family member to us.

he came to our family in 1999 when he was still a young puppy. i remember i have just came back from my studies in kl and when I got home, i saw this young chap sleeping near the shoes rack. my mom told me that his name was Vicky though he was a male dog! hahaha! they also told me that he was a quiet dog. man! they were wrong! he eventually grew up and became one of the fiercest dogs we ever had!

i am closest to him among all the family members. i was the one giving him his weekly bath that he disliked. when he was sick, i was the one who went to the vet, to talk to the doctor, explained his symptoms and conditions and eventually got the medicine for him. vicky was the only dog in our family that did not visit to the vet but could get his sickness treated!

he was a very loyal dog. at first we did not notice this. when a stranger was outside the house, he would bark but he wouldn't attack if the stranger remains outside the house. however, if he ever steps foot in our house compound, vicky would attack because his territory had been invaded!

vicky liked to have his stomach scratched. when he was lying on the floor and when i told him to "lie down", he would roll over lying on his back and wanted me to scratch his belly! i enjoyed doing that and he enjoyed being pampered.

vicky was not picky when it comes to food, just like his master, me! occasionally, i would give him hard boiled egg or make him some fresh milk which he would finish in no time!

when he came to our house in 1999, a stray cat which we call him meow meow also came about the same time. they eventually became good friend. meow meow sometimes would sit in between his legs and scratch his neck! it was so rare to see cat and dog sitting together, without any fight! every morning when we let vicky out to do his business, meow meow would follow him and wait for him outside the gate. after things were done, both of them would walk back to the house together and wait for their breakfast! that was so cute!

towards the last part of vicky's life, he was suffering from arthritis. his right hind leg became weak and he had difficulty in getting up and walking around. i think he must have felt painful too when he had to get up, that's why sometimes he would just sit down and pee. it really broke my heart and saddened me to see him that way. i went to see the vet and got him glucosamine, the supplement for joints. the vet also told me that it would not cured his arthritis, but would improve his quality of life. that was good enough! i did not want to see my dear old dog to suffer at his old age. the supplement indeed worked on him and i could see a stronger and a more lively vicky, sometimes he would even run! according to mom, on the last few days of vicky's life, he has had no appetite and was weak.

on that fateful day, i was travelling from hoi an to hue (i was holidaying in vietnam that time) and strange enough, i kept thinking about vicky. memories of vicky just flashed through! after i have checked in to the hotel and settled down, i received that message from mom....

i just burst out....

it has been a wonderful and eventful and amazing 11 years that we have spent together as a family. he always has a special place deep down in our hearts.

we will meet again, vicky! :o)

妈咪 。 母亲节 。 爱

哇！好久没有写东西了。一句话， 懒惰~

昨天在上班的途中，电台开启了母亲节的话题，也播放了有关母亲，妈妈，阿娘的歌曲，突然间，心里感触很多，也可以感觉到泪水在眼里打滚。。。

二零零八年可说是个难忘之年，不是因为北京奥运，而是因为母亲加入了癌症勇士的行列！在那两年里，陪妈妈到医院去见医生，去复诊，去做电疗化疗，帮妈妈从网上搜寻有关资料，给妈妈买有机食品，鼓励她，开导她。。。 心里最开心时是当我听到母亲自己致电告诉好友她在抗癌！因为我知道妈妈已经接受了，而且有着正面的思维去看待它。

今年会送一台洗衣机给妈妈当作母亲节礼物，旧的已经残旧了。 明年会带他们两佬去台湾， 这是我对他们的承诺！



母亲节的心愿是愿全天下的母亲，妈妈，阿娘，妈咪们，特别是我至亲的妈妈，身体健康平安，天天幸福快乐！

:-)

* happy *

yesterday, i was supposed to help out at the charity sale in blessed sacrament church. however, there was no pre-arrangement been done, so i ended up went there with my parents to buy food!

it was a beautiful breezy cooling morning! the breeze has made the "shopping" so much pleasant! we had rm100 worth of coupons, so we bought quite a lot :o) we bought chicken rice, bamboo chicken, braised pork leg, barbecue pork rice, grilled fish, fruits and i also got bookmarks for the sunday school kids.

while we were there, we bumped into cousins, aunties, nieces, mom's friends, dad's friends, the uncle who swims on saturdays, the guy who used to jog in the same place, the couple whose son is attending my old primary school :o)

i found a rm10 coupon in my pocket when we were back at the car. we did not want to walk all the way back to the charity sale, so i gave it to a stranger who was on her way there :-) hehehe.... and i felt good!

i ended up running for an hour on the treadmill machine in the gym!

it was indeed a beautiful happy sunday morning spent with mom and dad :o)

傻瓜

相信付出会有代价 ...代价只是一句傻瓜 ..." 好真实哦!

conquered

for the first time in 34 years, i completed 1 full lap of breaststroke swimming in the olympic size pool! what a big achievement for me!

hahahaha....

yesterday, since there was no sunday school, i went to the pool early for my sunday swim. the weather was beautiful with blue blue sky and the pool was not crowded at all. there were only 2 uncles at the deeper end of the smaller family pool while some kids were playing in the shallow part.

i swam for about 20 laps in the family pool, then i left. then, there was this inner voice asking me to go to the olympic size pool and i actually went! no one was swimming there except another uncle doing lapping in lane 4. so i took the first lane where i could grab hold to the side should i suddenly panic half way! hahahaha...

i took a big gulp of air then i started my virgin voyage in the olympic size pool! i swam for 300 metres before calling it a day off, and got out the pool, walked away with a big grin inside :o)

what a beautiful sunday!

rejoice! rejoice!

today, for the first time, i celebrated easter with a bunch of kids from the sunday school!

parents were asked to prepare a simple dish for the simple easter celebration. we had fried noodle, fried beehoon, chicken curry, sandwiches, sausages, chicken nuggets, cakes, puffs, fries, biscuits, crackers, and the cannot-be-missed easter eggs!

it was real fun to celebrate easter with a bunch of noisy kids. when i took out my camera, they all shunned me! however, i still managed to snap a few photos of them :o)



happy easter, everyone! may His resurrection bring peace, love and hope to all!

i listen

i listen to all kinds of songs, as long as they are nice, be it pop rock, sentimental, jazz, slow rock, trance music and many more! at the moment, these songs (not in particular order) are in my mp3 player, wish it was a red ipod nano :o)

1. gives you hell - the all-american rejects
2. right now (na na na) - akon
3. rehab - amy winehouse
4. halo - beyonce
5. if i were a boy - beyonce
6. womanizer - britney spears
7. without you - hinder
8. hot 'n cold - katy perry
9. my life would suck without you - kelly clarkson
10. just dance - lady gaga
11. poker face - lady gaga
12. better in time - leona lewis
13. gotta be somebody - nickleback
14. that's what you get - paramore
15. i hate this part - pussycat dolls
16. rehab - rihanna
17. fall for you - secondhand serenade
18. love story - taylor swift

come! let's shake your bum bum! :o)

三一八

today, i took a day off and went to the hospital with mom. she was scheduled to do her first chemotherapy today. the night before, somehow, i felt nervous even though i was not the one who was going to have the treatment. i guessed it was because she is my mom and i was afraid that chemotherapy might be very taxing on her.

we were already sitting outside the blood-test department at 7am. mom needs to do blood test first to make sure she has enough white blood cells before she can start her chemotherapy. while mom was doing her blood test, i saw a few kids wearing masks over their mouths. i knew they were all young cancer patients. one of them was a young girl, think she was only 5 or 6 years old. suddenly i felt like crying looking at the small kids, imagining the pain and agony that they have to suffer at such young age!

when we were at the radiotherapy unit waiting for mom's turn to see the doctor, she met a few of her friends she knew from the unit! those women really were fighters. they were all so positive and cheerful! they changed my expectation of a radiotherapy unit where i expect to see dull, sad, crying faces! one of the friends, ah hua was like a counsellor offering encouragement to the new patients there.

mom was mentally, physically and emotionally prepared for the treatment. she told me she has made herself 3 head scarves. i told her i would want to take photos of her and my dad with nephew juston when she has lost all her hair! :o) mom brought along water, sandwiches, prayer book and a reading book along, it was like a small outing for both of us, minus the river, the chirping birds, the trees and the green green grass.

mom started her first chemotherapy at 12.45 noon. as i was not allowed in the room, so i went home first. i stood outside looking when she walked into the room. it was like the scene of parents seeing their kids to school, except this time, i was the parents and mom was the kid.

her chemotherapy took about 2 hours and 15 minutes. when dad drove her back, she didn't look tired or exhausted. i asked her how she was feeling, she felt okay and still energetic and cheerful as she always was! she told us her first experience, shared with us the people she met in the chemotherapy room, etc....

i am glad that mom is a fighter, stronger and braver than i thought she was!

三一八 is sure a day to remember :o)

me! me! me!

okay, i always see people writing things like "20 facts about myself" or "10 things about me" and etc.... so now, i am giving it a try, to write something about myself, some known facts and if i know myself well, some dark secrets too! hehehe....

1. i am a dreamy piscean who likes to daydream and have wild imagination.
2. being a piscean, i am quite a perfectionist. i would use liquid paper to erase the not-so-fine-looking handwriting because the "a" is too thin or the "s" is out-of-shape!
3. i liked a girl when i was in primary 1! to be with her, i joined the after-school drawing class that she joined, i asked for permission from her aunt to go together with her, ended up i was known in her whole family! she is now married, yet she is still my best-est girlfriend! right, bayi? :o)
4. i was a class monitor for 6 years in primary school :o) and the head prefect too!
5. i was in the best class for 6 years in high school but never the best student in class!
6. i speak 3 languages and 5 dialects, but only fluent in 2 of them.
7. i passed my grade 6 piano practical exam with a credit, so anyone wants to learn piano?
8. i am not an optimist, tend to worry and to think negatively, but learning to be as positive as possible.
9. i have light acrophobia, so i must hold on to the handrail at all times!
10. i am very observant, sometimes can be scary to other people.
11. i can be very sarcastic to people who get on my nerves, so be careful huh :-p
12. i am an introvert. i don't mix well with strangers.
13. i don't give a good first impression to most people. most of them think i look arrogant!
14. i may look fierce and serious, but i am quite a friendly guy who likes to smile and laugh :o)
15. i was 95 kgs heavy with 42 inches waistline during college time, now, i am 72kgs with 34 inches waistline!
16. i did not take any slimming products though. it was all hard work of doing exercises and controlling diets.
17. i used to jog 1 hour non-stop, play badminton 3 times each week and go to gym everyday.
18. i had a back surgery in 2006, hence i cannot lift/carry heavy things or do strenuous exercises now. i only swim and do light exercises in the gym.
19. i swim freestyle without knowing the breathing technique :o) recently started my yet-to-be-perfected breaststroke! hahahaha...
20. i was always mistaken as malay/native! hahaha....
21. i am a dog person, especially medium size dogs like golden or labrador retrievers.
22. i love photography, started in 2007, especially love food photography and taking photos of non-moving objects!
23. i like traveling, hope to visit at least one country each year! care to join me? :o)
24. i am not a born christian, and i was baptized in 2003 in a catholic church :-)
25. i can cook quite well. don't believe? can always ask my mom or my colleagues! hahaha..... grandma used to say i would become a good wife if i were a girl! hahaha.....

the list is however not exhaustive and will be updated from time to time :o) comments from friends and relatives are welcome too! hehehehe.... so that i can know myself more too!

cheers!

excuse me, sir....

this morning, my colleague, jenny and i went to the epf (employee providence fund) office to pay the monthly epf contribution as our despatch staff was on leave. while waiting for our turn, we sat down and chatting.

one guy caught my attention when he got up from his chair. his fly was opened! hehehe.... i told jenny and we both had a good laugh.

after we have made our payment and before leaving the office, jenny went over to tell that guy. his face turned red immediately and he thanked us! hahaha....

oh well, we have done a good deed today!

:o)

农历正月十四

农历正月十四 is a day before chap goh meh, it is also my lunar birthday :o)

at home, we celebrate birthdays according to the chinese calendar. since mine is a day before the last day of chinese new year celebration, it is always a 2-in-1 kind of celebration.

this year, we went to the oldest and the most famous chinese restaurant in kuching, lok thian (乐天酒楼) for dinner. it is special this year because my younger brother is back for chinese new year and there is a new addition to the family, my nephew, juston.



for chinese, we definitely have noodle for birthdays, to symbolise longevity. however, this dish was not up to my standard, not as good as the one i had in the heritage (喜临门) :-p



other dishes that we had that night were roasted piglet, thai-style fish, chicken and ham, celery and lotus roots with roasted almonds and my favorite, the oyster rice :o)

my siblings bought me a birthday cake and my nephew was so much attracted by the candle light! hahaha....



so cute! so adorable! :o)

牛转乾坤

it is chinese new year eve today. this year, we will have our reunion dinner at a restaurant, a bit different from past years where we would normally cook new year dishes at home. this year, it will also be merrier as my brother came back from perth for chinese new year and there is a new addition to our family, my nephew, juston or fondly known as "ton ton" :o)



wishing all my friends prosperity and abundance of love and blessing in the year of ox!

牛年快乐，幸福安康

with love,
leslie

4 Plus 5

okay, i went to the church early, just to prepare myself for the day. i wanted to pray for wisdom before i went, but i forgot! hahahaha.... i knew beforehand that there would be no teaching that day, it would just be the registration session and getting-to-know-you session, so that relaxed me a bit.

the turnout for the day was not bad. some kids came with the parents while some were brave enough to come alone. after the registration, each teacher led their own students to their class. i was put in the class of primary 4 as aunty veronica's assistant.

there were 9 kids in my class, 4 boys and 5 girls; marvin 凯全, aaron 国忠, joshua 顺源, alex 奕威, kelly 可仪, amelia 巧柔, caroline 珊珊, jenny 婉玲 and jessy 巧柔.

i did not know if aunty veronica did it purposely, but i was left with the kids alone as soon as we entered the classroom! in my head, i was panicking for a while. how am i going to deal with this bunch of kids, all by myself?! well, i started by asking them to introduce themselves, telling me their names, which school were they from and when was their birthday. they did it well and some of them were so noisy that they did not stop asking questions! the first day ended very fast without any major issues! hahahaha.... i did not even notice the time was up until aunty veronica walked in the class.

i think aunty veronica did it on purpose!

i walked out the church with a big grin on my face. it was a beautiful sunday morning....

^_^

good morning sir!

a couple months ago, i received a call from mom's friend, aunty veronica. she asked if i was interested in teaching sunday school. normally when i was asked about such queestion, my mind would start digging for all the answers to reject the offer or request. however, this time, i did not do that. i listened and i asked and i agreed!

i am not a born christian. when i was a small boy, i did follow my neighbour to bible class during school holiday and attended sunday service occassionally. that was all i can remember about my journey with God. then, i was baptised in a catholic church in 2003. when i was first baptised, i thought i would want to be active in church activities like joining the church choir, but i never did. i am just like most people, the only activity that i have been participating in the church is the weekly mass.

last night i went for the meeting for sunday school teachers. i will be assisting aunty veronica in primary 4 class, 10-year-old kids who are preparing to receive thier first holy communion. i was really amazed with the teachers that i have met last night. they have so much passion and enthusiasm in teaching the word of God to the young ones and they are not as old as i have imagined! the youngest one is only 17 years old and she is in-charge of the pre-school kids. they shared their experience and i could see achievement in their eyes. there are 2 new assistant teachers this year, a lady and myself. i expressed my doubts and nervous in teaching, especially i am not a big fan of noisy small kids :o)



anyway, i see this as God's calling and i want to give it a try.

tomorrow will be the first day of the sunday school, for registration and no teaching. i will see how it goes tomorrow :o)

have a blessed and peaceful weekend, everyone!

a warm start

this morning while i was having my morning coffee in the office, our manufacturing manager, mr tay (but we all address him fondly as ah tay), came to my workstation and asked me about mom, how she is doing now, is she feeling alright etc....

that simple gesture simply warmed my heart and put a smile on my face.

thank you :o)

squeeze me

we had a gift exchange on the last day of 2008 in the office. anyone who was interested to join would need to buy an unisex gift not less than rm10. all the gifts were marked with numbers, and each number comes with a question that needs to be answered in order to get the gift. besides, there was a small treasure hunt, to locate the numbers.

my number was 4 and guess what i got?

a toothpaste squeezer!

oh yeah! babe, squeeze me!

:o)

wishes from the merlion

2 days before the new year, i walked into my bedroom and saw this card on my table. a card with a singapore stamp on it, i knew immediately where it came from.

it was from chong in singapore. a simple christmas card with christmas wishes and greetings that never failed to put smile on my face. i did not know why, but i felt very happy to have received the card. simple things make me smile and laugh (most of the time).

thank you, chong, for the lovely card and warm wishes.

:o)

looking back, looking forward

it is the time of the year again where we look back and try to reminisce on the past events and also a time for us to make a new year resolution. it took me quite a while to actually sit down and write this entry. sometimes when i write, i need that feeling and mood. once it is there, i can write non-stop.

this year, i have grown up, not much but a bit more.

my only sister gave birth to juston on 17 september 2008. that was such a happy moment in both families. he brings so much joy and happiness to the families. my parents' first grandchild and my first nephew. i am officially an uncle 大舅. he has grown up so much in 3 months' time and we have heard much of his laughter and crying too!

in that very same month, mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. it was such a life-changing event in the family. being the eldest son and the only son at home (my younger brother is in perth), i suddenly felt so stressful and so much burden was placed on me. to be honest, i was scared and in fear. i had to show my support to mom and could not even showed a single negativity at home. from mom's condition, i started reading up on materials and articles about breast cancer, i learn about breast cancer together with mom, i give her encouragement, i show her my support, i go with her to see doctors and the oncologist, i listen to doctors' explanation for her, i ask questions for her, everything i do, i do it for her.

there was one time when we met up with an oncologist, i was sitting in front of the doctor's table. i almost burst into tears when the oncologist examined mom's mastectomy wound. sitting there was the woman who had breast-fed me when i was a baby; now she has lost one of her breasts, the proud poccession of women. she suddenly looked so fragile and small to me.

i can personally feel that my relationship with mom is closer than before. i am always closer with her compared to dad, but this event has made us even closer. i see this as a blessing in disguise. everything must have happened for a reason, and most of the time, we do not know or understand the reason, at all.

in the new year to come, my hope and wish is for the good health and love and peace in the family. may God's love and blessings be with our family, now and always.

to all my friends who are reading this entry, wishing you all a blessed and healthy new year, and be blessed with God's love and wisdom always.

with love,
leslie