THE WEEKEND PROJECT-CONTINUED

After the very satisfying meal at "Chiengmai", my hubby and I drove to the nurseries in Sungai Buluh. Me, the budding "not-so-green fingers" wanted to buy some flowers for the house.

The first flowers we encountered were "Bougainvilleas" (I hope I spelled this right). I bought four, one white, one chilli red, one orange and one yellow. I also bought one "keladi tebuk" (its a "pokok keladi" with leaves that have holes in it), another plant which I believe belongs to the "helliconia" family and one vietnamese jasmine. I wanted the jasmine to compliment the "pokok kesidang" which I already have at the house. I was also looking for the "Harum Sundal Malam" flower but to no avail...never mind, I am sure we will cross paths one day.

The nursery where we bought our bougainvilleas.

Cantiknya...

I fell in love with these huge, and I mean HUGE bunga raya. Bought a few, bright red, white with red centre, the softest silkiest purple and the little "fire engine red" bunga raya bunched up like little scarlet bells . Then I found the "dahlias". My ibu used to have them. So did her friends but they seem to have disappeared into the woodworks (the dahlias, I mean, not the aunties, they are still around). Maybe the "dahlia", being the "quiet, elegant flower" that it is have taken a backseat to the more spectacular roses and orchids. Nevertheless, I bought two pots of "dahlia" but discovered that I have been blessed as one of the pots actually had two plants of different colours. Alhamdulillah!

Sungai Buloh brought back the nostalgia of my childhood, in several air force bases around Malaysia. My ibu was, and still is, an avid gardener. She loved her flowers. I was taught from an early age that flowers are not for picking, they are there for you to enjoy their beauty. Pick any of my ibu's flowers and all hell will break loose, not to mention a few "cubit-cubitan tak berapa manja".

My hubby and I wandered in a heady daze around the nurseries (can you believe that it was his first time in Sungai Buloh's nurseries?) and of course we bumped into the orchids...eye candy all the way!

There was this nursery which specialises in orchids...I rasa nak berguling-guling atas jalanraya tengok bunga dia!

Ya Allah, dia orang ni pakai baja apa agaknya?

Cantiknya...cantiknya...cantiknya...

Didn't buy any orchids though. I am not really an expert with flowers and as orchids tend to be rather finicky, I think its better that they be left in the hands of my most learned Ibu. So I took my flowers home...and that my friends is another story.

THE WEEKEND PROJECT.

On 27th June, 2009 my husband and I had lunch in "Chiengmai"...and we didn't even have to renew our international pasports. Dangerous? Not really, cause "Chiengmai" is situated in Kampung Melayu Sungai Buloh... My husband has been waxing lyrical about the place since he went there for lunch with a friend and Sunflower has also mentioned that the food is good. Sunflower is a regular. She's been going to "Chiengmai" since it was a mere warung with upside down umbrellas as decoration.

The printed napkin...anyone interested in making reservations?

The view of the entrance from the restaurant...lotsa parking space.

My hubby admiring the decor of the "wakaf" outside the restaurant. Notice the upside down brollies? I guess it's a reminder of their humble beginnings.

The view of the restaurant...and my hubby. Notice the satisfied smile? This photo was taken as we were leaving the restaurant...kenyang perut senang hati.

The food that we ordered, ayam daun pandan, tomyam campur, sayur campur and air longan.

The longan is served in a aluminium bowl with ice. You can then "ceduk" as much as you want into smaller bowls and add the mineral water (which comes with the longan order) to adjust the sweetness.

The smaller bowl of longan.

The ayam pandan...up close and personal.

One of the several portions of the tom yam campur which I thoroughly enjoyed that day. It's different from the usual tom yam, very "pekat" and spicy.

The sayur campur and the "rose" decor.

This area serves as both the counter where you pay your bill and the desert table.

The array of dessert...all very sweeeeeetttttttttt!

The time of reckoning...bill please!

The fish pond...part of the decor outside the restaurant.

Alhamdulillah, thank you Allah for the ability and opportunity to enjoy this meal and for this person I love and for all the people who have made my life more meaningful...my family, my friends.

IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE...

I am feeling rather melancholic today. The sky is overcast, they bury Michael Jackson (one of the greatest entertainers that had ever lived) today and I had just had an argument with my husband. It's not exactly the happiest of days. And I am wondering, what exactly is this thing they call love? What is this madness that makes men and women want to pledge their live to each other, to be together till death to us part. And why is it that some of us don't make it and yet some strike gold and stay together...forever...

My Mak Long passed away nearly a decade ago, and her husband followed suit about two years later. They were a simple malay couple, he didn't shower her with roses every other day and some may have doubted their love for each other. Maybe they just stayed together out of necessity, maybe because they were already advanced in years and they had no one else to turn to. Did anyone ever thought that it could have been just plain, pure, unconditional love?

What could make make a man, a healthy, fine looking man, still in his prime, dedicate his life to taking care of his wife who was diabetic and had lost a leg due to it, suffered a stroke and lost the control of one side of her body and was wheelchair bound. He cleaned her, fed her, generally took care of her... for years. And when she went away, you can see the life and happiness slowly drain out of him.

He smiled but it never reached his eyes. Then he went away, a mere shadow, both physically and emotionally, of the man I used to know. I believe it wasn't so much the problem with his lungs that took him... it was his broken heart. Slowly but surely, he started dying the day he buried his wife. One day my cousin, her only daughter, showed me a photo of my Mak Long, it was already brown with age and must have been handled quite a bit. Behind the photo were words which went something like this "Isteri ku yang tercinta, kembali ke rahmatullah pada ...". It was my Mak Long's photo which my Pak Long kept with him until the day he went away. What do you think he felt for my Mak Long? It must, must, must have been love...

And my parents? Let's not go there. I am not able to write about them without crying. I wonder what will happen to either one if the other is no longer around for such is their bond that one cannot survive without the other. So it must be love...or something greater than that.

And me...well, I have only been married for 3 plus years, still trying to get "the groove" of being a married woman, still getting into arguments...still...still...still...still learning what "love" is all about and still making blunders and mistakes. But such is life...

KALI PERTAMA...MASAK DI PUNCAK ALAM

This happened about one (1) month ago. Rumah masih tak kemas.....tapi dah tak sanggup nak makan kat luar. So akhirnya, kemas jer dapur mana yang terdaya. Dok cari pinggan mangkuk yang sepatutnya banyak tuh tapi jumpa a few jer. Sian my hubby, dah kempis perut dia, tak lama lagi he will probably be able to wear seluar saiz 28.

So selepas hampir 6 bulan tak berjumpa dengan dapur, I pun menyinsing lengan dan dengan penuh semangat melangkah ke belakang rumah yang sudah di tile dan di atapkan, re-arranged the cabinets, pasang bateri kat stove baru, dan mula lah memasak.

Unfortunately, as I ni "terrorist" sangat bab memasak nih ("terrorist" sebab I always strike terror into my brother's heart, not to mention stomach, when I say "I'm cooking") and I was unable to locate my "little book of magic", the little writing pad which contains ibu's recipes, I was at a lost. So at lastnya...."Kringgg...Kringggg...Ibu....camana nak masak lemak cili api sardin?".

Alhamdulillah, siap jugak la akhirnya masak lemak cili api sardin, goreng telur dadar dengan sayur campur. TAAAAA-DAAAAAA!!!!! Nothing great but this is the first meal cooked in Puncak Alam. Kita orang masih makan bersila kat atas lantai sebab meja makan penuh barang. Tapi raser cam sedddaaaaapppppnnyaaaaaa...yelah, dah 6 bulan makan kat kedai.

Makan kat atas lantai alas newspaper, macam masa baru-baru nikah dulu, masa belum ader apa-apa furniture. Tak jumpa mangkuk gulai sampai terpaksa bawa periuk ke tempat makan. kalau Ibu MARtua ku tahu nangis dier sebab kesian kat anak dia... kan, kan, kan.

Suamiku menyuarakan "appreciation" nya di atas hasil usaha ku...thanks yayang!

Sian hubby I...dapat makan sardin masak lemak cili api pun dah gumbira (sebab dah tak larat makan kat warung!).

Sekarang I cook nearly on a daily basis...and my hubby has steadily gained his little pouch..yieeehaaaaa!!!!!