Black & White

The battle between logic and sentimentality, between privacy and openness, between ambition and contentment, and between man and woman. Intriguing yet frustrating.

I would think I am a sentimentally logical, privately open, and contentedly ambitious woman.

Never mind if none of these makes sense. You are your own man (or woman for that matter).

Potato Me

What a let-down. The consequence of not referencing from some tried-and-tested recipes when attempting a dish for the first time. Oh well, as a faithful fan of several cooking shows while over here, I guess I must have momentarily imagined myself to be a Masterchef. Had initially wanted to make mini potato mince patties (with potato - of course, pork mince, peas, carrots, corn, onion, breadcrumbs), only to have it turn out as one big potato mince cake. Floppy and soft, even when the surface had been pan-fried till golden brown. The seasoning was right on the mark but the texture was way off. Sighz, I guess I should have thrown in an egg and some tens of grams of flour... And now, to clean up the oily stove top and then eat up my potato cake. =(

Update

Had wanted to create an original entry for this update, but heck, the grey matter decides to go on strike, so here's an extract from an email that I just sent out:

"Coming to the end of my 3rd week in Canberra, some kind of routine has been established. We’d be up by abt 7am every morning, and be in bed latest by 11pm – at least 8hrs of sleep everyday. Strolls by the lake and in the parks, and visits to fresh food markets would usually happen during the weekends, as with the checking out of depot/factory outlet stores.

Weekday meals would be prepared by myself and on weekends, we would both be in the kitchen whipping up dishes. Breakfast is quick, fuss-free and nutritious, usually cereals with milk and/or multi-grain bread with jam, washed down with coffee. Lunch and dinner are usually 2 to 3 dishes affairs, with veggies, meat and potato/carrot/egg/seafood, accompanied with steaming hot jasmine rice. Sometimes, we’d do western spaghetti and grill, and almost once a week, we’d head out to the pizza parlours and take-out thin-crusted yummy pizzas to munch in front of the tv. Our cabinets are stocked with spices, sauces and pre-mixes (Chinese and Indian), and there will always be fruits and milk in the fridge.

Daily commute to and fro JM’s workplace takes between 20-45min, depending on how dreadful traffic conditions are. But driving here is definitely less stressful than in Spore as drivers are generally more polite, less likely to speed, and much more willing to give way even though there are no yellow boxes. Add to that, the vast greenland alongside most of the roads makes driving (especially on quiet afternoons) a joy for both the eye and the mind.

Weather here has become more rainy, with drizzles that sometimes last the whole day. Leaves are starting to turn a shade golden, signalling our entry into the autumn season. Last weekend, together with thousands of others, we caught a 20min display of ‘Skyfire’ (aka fireworks) by the lake – a yearly Canberra affair, and also hosted some friends to a BBQ at our place , bonding over grilled chicken, sausages, sambal-marinated seafood, corn, sweet potatoes, salads, apple crumble, beers and wine. This week, I’d need to start exercising, or at least begin to think about exercising. The last I checked (2min ago), my weight hasn’t changed since the day I left Spore, but feedback from Skype conversations with relatives has been consistent – my face somehow looks visibly rounder now. Oh well."

Till the next update.

Of my first week in Canberra

One week into new phase of life in Aust, the feeling is almost surreal. I mean, the transition has been generally smooth, probably because I’ve already started my no-pay while in Spore, so it’s a matter of changing the location where I’m spending time. But of course, not everything is the same, for now, a lot more time is spent on really housewifey stuff e.g. cleaning, laundry, meal preparation, chauffeuring, gardening, reading, grocery-shopping etc; and a lot more time is spent in close proximity with ‘the chosen one’ – a vast difference from our LDR days.

In the past week, we had acquired a new car (Honda Jazz), cleaned our rented house (3 bedroom in peaceful suburb), done gardening (lawn mowing & weed-pulling), shopped several supermarts (asian and western), visited Sunday markets, walked a park and clocked several tens of kilometres on our trusty little Honda (driving here is definitely much less stressful than back in Spore, except for the many roundabouts they have here).

Weather here is generally cool, hovering between 8 to 28deg during this current autumn season. Occasional showers aside, the sky is usually blue and fluffed with soft, white clouds. In the evenings when the sun is almost setting, one can also spot some kangeroos while driving alongside vast grasslands.

Safely cloistered up in our suburban home, we catch up on news (yes, we are currently following updates of that really unfortunate, massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan), and keep in touch with family and friends through the net. Bless the people who advanced telecommunications, for without them we would be as distant as 10hrs of flight time away (yes, that’s the approximate air-time, including transit, btw Spore and Canberra).

Feel free to write me if you like (btw, we are 3hrs ahead of Spore). Otherwise, just watch for updates on this blog then. =)