NZ... I am coming soon!

In another eight days, I will be on the plane to Christchurch…

Itinerary is still being refined at this moment, but we are more or less there… accommodation should also be firmed up over the next few days …

The plan is to self drive to comb the south coastal area from Christchurch and visit key spots like Mt Cook, Milford Sound, Queenstown and Franz Josef… and try activities like paragliding, skiing, white water rafting, jet boating, quad biking and horse riding… Itinerary is as packed as anything except for the last few days which is open at this point in time. 2 weeks is not enough! Arrgh.

I bought most of my necessities over the last few months and have packed many of my things into my luggage already. Intending to pack light but due to the cold weather there, it may be a wiser choice to pack more than less… but redundant stuff ought to be thrown out… luggage can’t fit in so much stuff!

Bad thing is Kiwi dollar has appreciated so much since 3-4 months ago… from S$0.85 to S$1.03 now! More than 15% appreciation! $#&*$^%?! I should have exchanged my Kiwi dollars a few months back instead of hesitating! Lugi!

Counting down to my holidays… Am getting excited even just by thinking about it… (minus the big hole burnt in the pocket after this trip of course…) Yippee!

'Hijacked' recipes?

OMG, have you read the absurd news about Malaysia Tourism minister claiming rights for food like laksa, bak kut teh, Hainanese Chinese rice and chilli crabs?!? So we have an infringement of copyrights in this instance and all of us have been eating pirated food all along huh?!

What more can I say? What craps...
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Malaysia crabby over right to 'hijacked' recipes
AP - Friday, September 18

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysia is starting a food fight with other countries to win bragging rights for producing some of Southeast Asia's most beloved recipes, including chili crabs and coconut cream rice, a news report said Thursday.

"We cannot continue to let other countries hijack our food," The Star newspaper quoted Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen as saying while launching a campaign to promote the country's cuisine.

The ministry is identifying signature recipes that it will declare as Malaysian, Ng said. She did not reveal how the government might counter others who claim ownership of those dishes, but added that details of its strategy will be announced later.

"Chili crab is Malaysian. Hainanese chicken rice is Malaysian. We have to lay claim to our food," Ng said. She mentioned other favorites such as "nasi lemak," which is rice soaked with coconut cream, "laksa," a spicy noodle soup, and "bak kut teh," an ethnic Chinese pork rib stew.

Tourism ministry officials familiar with the campaign could not immediately be contacted.

Variations of the dishes Ng listed are available in several other Asian nations, particularly Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei, Thailand and China.

Some creations, such as chicken rice, were introduced to Malaysia and Singapore by ethnic Chinese workers who settled here after leaving China a century ago.

Chili crab -a recipe of crabs stir-fried in tomato and chili-based sauces - could become a bone of contention. It is often associated with Singapore and is considered the city-state's unofficial national dish.

Malaysia was recently embroiled in another cultural spat with a neighbor.

Indonesians held protests earlier this month accusing Malaysia of stealing a Balinese dance for a TV promotional campaign about Malaysia. It later turned out that Malaysia had nothing to do with the video, which had mistakenly described the dance as Malaysian. The video was broadcast on the Discovery Channel cable network, which apologized for the mistake.

Thots around love

Love isn’t love when it becomes suffocating, I believe.

I supposed it is the space an individual is operating from. I remembered very clearly this example given by someone about his aunt and uncle. This aunt always cooks for them and make sure that they are well fed during every meal… but no matter what, all the kids try to avoid being in her presence for she is always rattling about how much she cares and loves them, how much she make sure they are well and good. The answer is obvious in this instance – the aunt’s actions stem out from her neediness for appreciation and acknowledgement from others, and people feel stifling to be around her.

Yet, he has this uncle that is always stern and will always sit them down to question what they want in life or what’s next for them. Although it is tough to pull a quick one around the uncle, he is always well-like for others know that he does have their interests at heart… He operates from an abundance of love, always willing to give and contribute in every way he could.

See, human beings are somehow very smart. Words just don’t exactly count, for love can be felt… and it is dependent on how you give and how the other person feel about it. If you are always lamenting about your unappreciated love from friends, family or partner, it is high time you relook into the space you are operating from and how you have been giving your so-called love.

My thoughts around it:

• Love is allowing enough room for each other to grow and develop- no stickiness please. Personal space should be respected and it allows one to appreciate the time spent together with the other party.
• Love is genuinely caring and supporting the other party such that he gets to where he wants to be. It doesn’t have to look a certain way - it doesn’t have to be nice words or sweet actions… it could be challenging and provoking questions with honest and authentic feedback…
• Love is like flying a kite – one needs to know when to let loose and when to tighten the string. Holding it too tightly mean it can never fly high or it may snap off; holding it too loosely may mean one may lose it to the wind or it spins out of control. It is an art and it calls for different actions on the same issue in different situations.
• Too much of anything is bad, so no extreme expression of love too. Subtlety is indeed very much appreciated and persistency in the wrong way is repulsive.
  

Learning how to fly a kite well should be in everyone’s to-do list… Maybe one will get more enlightenment as one practices to be better at it. *raised eyebrows*

《走唱陈伟联》

陈伟联 finally got his 3rd album 《走唱陈伟联》released after 2 long years... Already 2 of his songs are a hit... How not to really? He has such a vocal that will somehow touch a corner of your heart and the lyrics of his songs will make you resonate with it...

Here is one of the songs that I like....《分手的情书》