Water Cube and Bird's Nest

The workshop I attended early last week included a half-day tour to these 2 places.

Pretty flowers along the way and many people from around China were also there to visit their national pride.

The temperature that morning dropped to below 10 degrees and when the wind blew, it felt really cold. I didn't bring along my gloves as I didn't expect the weather to turn cold suddenly. I tried to keep my hands warm by tucking them into my pants' pockets most of the time.

We visited the National Aquatic Centre (aka Water Cube) first. Its transparent membrane reminded me of the bubble pack we usually use to wrap breakable stuff.

Inside the Water Cube, there were more people and also sights

I like the bubble look of the interior. There is a fantasy or dreamlike feel to the place.
Can you spot Singapore's flag?

There was also some fountain/water show to wow the crowd.

It won't be complete without some souvenir shops for visitors to bring some mementos home.
They even have some handphones with the bubble concept for the cover.
I bought a watch for 80RMB (about S$20) and gave it to Sis.

To get to the Bird's Nest, we had to brave through the cold again :) The stadium's exterior looks like a unique mesh of different materials.

The inside of the stadium:

From the outside of the stadium, we could see the torch resting on top.

The plants resembling lallangs presented a picture of wildness in constrast to the clean look of the manmade structures and buildings. There are some sphere-like objects which I guess are lamps since I didn't take a closer look.

Beijing and the cats

I'll be in Beijing tomorrow afternoon to attend a workshop and will be back soon on Wed night. A few friends asked why I didn't extend my trip since it will be my first time in China. Actually I haven't even traveled out of Singapore since Apr last year. It didn't cross my mind to extend especially after Mom and I received bad news from our Town Council officer that he would need to remove Rambo the old community cat due to some complaints. Some residents think Rambo is old and sick and will spread diseases. As the TC officer claimed he can't let me speak to the complainants or they don't want to talk to me, I had to quickly arrange for Rambo to be put at a cattery before the TC culled him.

This afternoon, my family and I visited him and Rambo is not drooling anymore after he responded well to the gingivitis medication. He is also in a cage on his own as he has not been vaccinated. After vaccination, he will be put together with the other cats in a pen. I feel happy to see him safe and looking better. He was vigorously rubbing his head against my familiar hand when I put my hand through the grilles of the cage. I won't be able to see him everyday like in the past at the void deck but I will try to visit him monthly or every 3 weeks.

We visited Bob at another place where I temporarily board Bob there while I'll be away in Beijing. We are worried that he will meow loudly when he is alone in my bedroom and we don't want our upstair neighbour who is working in HDB to complain about us. Poor Bob looked scared in the cage and I let him out for a short while to pet him. I will see him soon on Thurs night and shower him with hugs and kisses.

My life revolves mostly around the cats. Dad thinks it's not good for me to be doing so much for the community cats and little for my personal life. It's a lifestyle and a choice I make. If I don't take care of them with the help of my family, who will do so? No one else will care about their welfare like me and mom. I sterilised them, I have bonded with them. They are like my family too :)

Chasoba and chocolate cake

When I'm in the good mood, I like to keep myself busy and sometimes cook or bake. This afternoon, I decided to do both.

My main ingredients are the above packets of sauce and chasoba I got from the Isetan Scotts' supermarket a few weeks ago. The chasoba needs only a few minutes to cook and I ran it under the cold water tap before mixing in the Japanese codroe cream sauce and sprinkling with some seaweed.

One plate for me and another for sis. We both found it very salty but yummy.

Inspired by the success of my chasoba dish, I went on to try this vegan chocolate cake recipe I found on the net. It doesn't use eggs, milk and butter. Soya milk, vegetable oil (I used olive oil), white vinegar are used together with flour, cocoa powder and brown sugar. The batter tasted a bit like a brownie batter. The recipe indicates a baking time of 30mins but when I poked a skewer in the centre of the cake, it came out wet. So I gave it another 15mins - the skewer came out with some dry crumbs. I quickly took the cake out as it might be overbaked.

There is no strong aroma of chocolate, probably as only 1/3 cup of cocoa powder is used. I cut out a bit of the cake to try and it is quite crumbly. It also tastes more like the traditional Chinese steamed sponge cake. Oh well, I'm used to not getting successful cakes. Sis tried a few crumbs and won't be eating any of it anymore as it's not chocolatey at all. I must admit it's not that sweet too.

I'm trying to promote my cake to my parents and telling them it's like the Chinese Huat kueh. Mom said that kind of kueh is used as offerings for the Chinese gods and not many people actually eat them and birds will peck on them if people place these kueh outdoors. Haha. My cake will be part of my breakfast tomorrow onwards since I can stomach healthy tasting food.

Beached whale

This is Sis' new nickname for Bob. When we let him out this afternoon after keeping Angel in Sis' bedroom, Bob would occasionally lie down on his side. He looked so out of shape and cute :)

Clean Angel

Sis and I worked together to bath Angel this morning. We closed ourselves and Angel in the bathroom and while I tried to hold Angel to keep him still, Sis tried to lather the concoction of warm water, cat shampoo and neem oil (I prepared) into Angel's coat. Angel protested a little and we talked to him, praised him for being a good boy and tried to keep his bathing experience as short as possible. After we towel-dried his fur and his coat still felt a bit damp, we let him out. Angel preferred to groom himself again :)

Half an hour later, Angel actually pooed and dropped one of his poo out of the litter tray and made a bit of mess. Sis cleaned his bum while I cleaned up the mess he made on the floor. Both of us were in a good mood today and as a team, we managed to keep Angel and the house clean while Mom and Dad were out :)

Bai Guo Yi Mi

This dessert is made of barley, bean curd skin and ginko nuts. It's one of my favorite hot dessert and Mom and I had a bowl each at Tiong Bahru Food Centre after our porridge dinner last night.

Ah Chiang's Porridge

I brought my family to this porridge stall (@ Blk 65, Tiong Poh Road - a street away from Tiong Bahru Market) last evening after my friend brought me there a week ago.

We shared this raw fish appetiser.

Sis and I had sliced fish with pork and egg porridge

while Mom had the mixed pork (minced meat, liver, intestine and egg)

and Dad had minced pork porridge.

Although my family agree with me that this is a good place to have a quick meal without any crowd, they don't think the porridge is that great. They think it's not hot enough. Mom thinks her porridge is better and has more ingredients. I still think this place is nice because the porridge reminds me of a home-cooked meal, in a nice clean quiet coffeeshop environment. I know how to make nice porridge too but it's not often, so I think this stall is a good alternative when I feel like having porridge :)

"Shark's fin" soup

Mom made this mock sharkfin soup using some gourd. The flesh of the gourd will become some soft shreds after being cooked and steamed. After adding some corn flour, coriander, minced pork and crabstick, this soup tasted yummy.

I just realised our dinner on Thurs is like a seafood meal, even though there were no sharks' fins.

Sleeping Angel

Sis took a shot of Angel sleeping at his favorite spot on a mat under the living room's window.

Angel's love for big plastic bags

Angel is fascinated by big plastic bags and likes to crawl in, like what he did this morning when Mom was packing the old newspapers to be brought down to the recycling bin at the void deck.

Goodbye, Bony

Bony was the gangster cat at the carpark and feared by the community cats there as he would pounce on them.

After being sterilised, he didn't put up much weight like the other community cats and he didn't eat much too. Hence I have named him "Bony".

For the past week, my parents and I haven't seen him but one of the feeders messaged me yesterday afternoon that she saw him hiding under a lorry, looking sick. When she washed his face, he didn't seem to be able to open his mouth. We didn't see him last night.

This morning, a sweeper told my mom that he saw a cat of Bony's description lying at the study area of the void deck of the block near the carpark. He thought that the cat was sleeping soundly but when he walked near, he detected a strong stench and realised the cat was dead.

Poor Bony must be sick and suffering all this while. At least he is no longer suffering.

Lemon ginger cake

The stuff I baked usually don't turn out the way they should be but I'm happy if my family like it or I will have to eat them myself or throw them away if I myself don't even like it.

This afternoon, I tried to make a lemon ginger cake following this recipe on 3-tier Lemon-Ginger Cake.

I didn't follow exactly the instructions and I don't care for any frosting too. I didn't use the mixer to cream the butter and sugar together so the batter didn't rise or turn out light and fluffy. After I added the egg and lemon to the mixture, there was no way my arm power could turn the mixture into a smooth batter. So I had to use the mixer.

The cake mixture didn't rise in the baking dish while baking in the oven. Haha. Instead of a 3-tier cake, I have created a flat dense sponge cake. It's quite yummy as I could taste the lemon and it's not too sweet. Mom and Dad like it too :) Strangely we can't taste the ginger. I will have to consume electricity by using the mixer if I want to have a fluffy lemon ginger cake the next time.

Dinner @ East Coast Road

Yesterday, I wanted to treat my parents to Rose Apple Deli that I read on Sunday Times' Life last Sun. Their yam cake and other dishes sounded yummy. However, when we reach the place around 6pm, the deli had a sign, saying they would be opened at 6.30pm. So we walked around Katong Shopping Centre and the shops along the East Coast Road. Some of the food look yummy but we wanted to save our stomach for yam cake.

When we went back to the deli at 6.30pm, one of the staff amended the time on the sign to 7pm and apologised that they still needed more time to prepare. We were really disappointed and decided not to wait and proceeded to a nearby coffeeshop for dinner.

I had this tau kwa pau (fried bean curd with egg, chicken, fish, cucumber fillings)
while Mom and Dad has some fried kuay teow/bee hoon.
Mom wasn't very satisfied with the meal abut I was quite glad to have something to fill my stomach.

When we walked past the deli after 7pm, we saw couples and families enjoying little plates of yam cakes. We just didn't feel like trying the yam cakes anymore. Mom said I could try making on my own. Oh well, I guess yesterday is not my day to eat yam cakes but lots of tau kwa pau. Hee. Maybe one of these days, we can also make our version of tau kwa pau at home.

Butchering chasoba

Haha. That's what Sis said when she saw the dish I created a few Sunday evenings ago.

I cooked dry chasoba to go with some veggie soup and mixed the Japanese sesame dressing into the soba. I'm the kind of person who like to use whatever ingredients I can find in the fridge. Alright, I'm just lazy :)

Lunch @ Tampopo

I had lunch @ Tampopo, Liang Court with Sis and Mom on Sep 9 (Tues). I was on leave to spend time with them.

Sis and I each ordered a ramen. I had mini miso ramen

and she shoyu ramen.

We found the ramen oily and quite salty but still quite yummy. Mom had the black pork tonkatsu set.

We also had teriyaki ika.

I'm glad Mom enjoyed the food at Tampopo as so far she likes the food at Sun with Moon (it's still number 1 for her) and the few other eateries I brought her to aren't up to her standards.

After walking around Meida-ya the supermarket, I decided to treat myself to Haato's lavender honey ice cream. The server did warn me about the lavender taste. I found it quite nice when I tasted a sample. But strangely the lavender taste was quite overwhelming and had a bitter aftertaste as I ate it on the cone. It's kind of medicinal and if you are not a fan of lavender, you will hate it. I like lavender but it was still a bit too much for me.

Passion for our job and life

I have been on course since last Wed with 40 over people from different organisations. 3 others were from my organisation. It was quite an interesting course as the lecturers engaged us with topics that affect us, our work or people around us. We also have the opportunities to interact with our course mates through discussion, tea breaks and lunches.

A few course mates exhibit strong passion for their jobs. One of them, from my organisation, shared with us about his experiences, was keen to use what he learnt from this course to create possible ideas for his work programmes. I, on the other hand, am quite jaded about the work I do even though he and I are from the same organisation. Perhaps, the difference is that he is working at the grassroots level and he can see the impact of the various programmes he has helped to implement. For me, some of my customers are the foreign agencies who visit us to learn about our experience. Some are really serious to learn while for others, it may be just to fill up their travel itinerary and most of the time, I have no idea whether they do implement what they learnt back in their countries.

Sometimes, bits of my work or new assignments do make me feel a bit hopeful in getting my passion back for my job but nowadays such incidents are happening less and less often. But I do treasure my colleagues whom I work well together, the fact that my job is considered meaningful (as compared to harming people, animals and the environment) and also my comfortable pay that allow me to lead this lifestyle and feed my cats.

Hmm. Perhaps, I should look at passion for my life. I think i have always tried my best in executing my duties at work, serving my bosses, helping fellow colleagues and making sure the foreign visitors achieve their objectives of their visit to our organisation. I also try to be a good daughter, sister and friend as well as a responsible cat owner and caregivers by giving them my time, attention and love. The attempts to improve my character, trying to be compassionate in my actions, searching for meaning in my work and life may just be a kind of passion. Am I making sense? :)

Itchy, itchy

That's how the skin on my face and neck had been feeling for the past week. I'm not sure what I have applied on my face to get rashes/hives/flares, as I like to try new stuff on my face. I thought I could afford to do so as so far my skin could take organic, natural products to other kinds (non-natural) of treatments for anti-ageing, etc. I guess I was wrong.

I visited the GP who gave me anti-itchy pills and some aqueous cream to soothe my skin. My friend also gave me some cream prescribed by her dermatologists for her eczema. Perhaps the pills over time help plus the powers of my friend's cream - my skin is almost back to normal. This morning, I can use 2 of the organic sunblock and light moisturiser with no itchy rash.

I must remember to do a patch test when using new products. It's really terrible to develop a skin allergy and having to face the world. Hee. Luckily, it wasn't that serious and I could cover a bit with my usual organic loose powder.

Putting Bob up for adoption

After much consideration, I'm putting Bob up for adoption again on CWS online adoption board. Angel seems less stressed, now that he knows that Bob is always confined to my bedroom or there is always a door barrier when Angel is in the other rooms or balcony. However, sometimes I feel bad that Bob couldn't have more time out of my room. If Angel is happily resting in the living room, we have no heart to try to force him to the other rooms. Poor Bob will be meowing loudly in my room, wanting to be out. I will try to pacify him at times by going into my room and playing with him. Sometimes he will lick my leg or hand and try to bite but I can cope now by touching his neck and distract him with some toy.

I try to imagine if this is the kind of life I want Bob to have. He's like a second class citizen sometimes because he doesn't want to be in my room most of the time. He probably wants to be like Angel to be roaming around the house and see what we do, rest at wherever he likes, ie. freedom to move around the house. But this is something we can't give him as long as he and Angel can't be put together.

I don't put much hope that I may find a suitable adopter for Bob as there are so many cute kittens out there looking for a home. But I need to try for Bob's sake.

Losing Bush forever?

Bush hasn't appeared in the park, like we hope he would. Sigh. Mom and I really miss him. He will roll on the back of his body happily and rub his face against our legs to greet us. He will slap our hands when he has enough of our strokes and massage or when we disturb his eating. He will talk to us in cat language at times. I really hope he's either well/safe or died peacefully without suffering.