Run Baby Run

I'm finally doing it.

Exercising .... *pant*pant*

I went for my run today, and yesterday, and I really have to try and keep this up. I've been saying I need to keep fit for MONTHS. And I did, well, I went running once every couple of months. What a chore ...

I'm starting again ... hope and pray I'll be more consistent now. I need to make a habit out of this since I can't stand going to a crowded sweaty gym full of men ogling your butt. I don't know why I just grew out of it, I've been gym-ing for YEARS, like 5 years or so and one day I just decided I can't do it anymore, and then I took a looooong break in couch potato land and became anti-gym-social.

So now I've got to make the best of my quiet cosy little condo compound.

Hubby says "I'm so proud of you" ... translates to ...

(a) "yeah she's gonna loose weight!"
(b) "yeah she's gonna stop complaining she looks fat in the pictures I take"
(c) "yeah, no more asking 'do I look fat in this?' when shopping"
(d) "yeah, I'm so proud of her"
(e) all the above

Which is the right answer??? Haha, I don't care, hubby has got to love me even though I am berisi! For richer for poorer, in sickness and health, in size 1 or size 5!

Actually I am proud of me too! * heheh*

Well, it's good for me; need to build some stamina, feel better and of course look better in photos too! Wish me luck!

Run baby run!

Sunday Tea With My Girls

Girlfriends are really special, especially those that you grew up with. Once every couple of months, we make it a point to drop everything in our busy hectic schedules and catch up over food and goss.

Yesterday we tried out a cosy little place called Bijou, the neighbourhood brasserie of the Mont Kiara vicinity . This place has been around since late 2006 but somehow I've never had a reason to try them out. I like the cute unpretentious ambiance (kinda like Ikea in white and pink) and they are not particularly over-crowded. Since it was tea and not a major meal, we only managed to try out some tapas and desserts.

Here are the pretty food shots to make you salivate .....

Nothing quenches the afternoon heat like a tall glass of icy Homemade Ginger Beer.

The Apricot Slice: I will be back for this! Juicy fragrant cake with bits of dried apricot and sweet tangy cream sandwiched between the two layers ... heavenly and sinful at the same time!

They are apparently famous for cupcakes but alas, when we were there, all that's left was "The Morning After" which is actually coffee cupcake. Pretty okay but I wished they had more options *sulk*

The Fish Fingers were fabulous, we loved the herb tartar sauce. We ordered seconds!

Spicy Buffalo Drummets (wings) tasted great, the right balance of piquant spiciness. We ordered seconds too.

This is the small nondescript entrance just outside Damai Sari Condominiums.

This is the door that leads to the alfresco area facing the pool, wonderful on a nice breezy afternoon.

There is even a little playground to keep the little ones entertained.

We ate so much, I had no room for dinner after that ... but you wanna know what was the best part of the tea outing? Girlfriends! But of course!

Getting there; if you know how to get to Coffee Bean Mont Kiara, you would find your way with this map with no sweat at all. Or call them at 03 - 6201 2131. Oh, and Bijou means jewel in French.

Recipe for Filipino Pork Adobo

I would like to share my recipe for Pork Adobo. Of course I did not create this on my own, seeing that it's almost completely foreign in this part of the world. This is actually a popular Filipino meat dish where you can also use chicken to replace the pork. I was inspired to try this out after watching Bobby Chinn, World Asia Cafe on Asian Food Channel. Also, hubby loves the Pork Adobo at Cagayan's, so I know if I got this right, hubby will be super pleased.

This is Shortcake's first Pork Adobo.

What I've done here is based on what Bobby Chinn did plus some googling and a touch of personal taste.

The ingredients, this serves 2 to 3 hearty eaters:

1. Approx 500g pork or chicken, estimate more if using chicken on bones or pork ribs. (I had a combination of pork belly and spare ribs, left over in the freezer, so what the heck)
2. 6 to 8 stalks of lemongrass - cut away top parts and crush the bulbs
3. Half cup of white vinegar (I used white rice vinegar as no one seem to specify what kind of vinegar exactly)
4. Quarter cup of light soy sauce
5. Half a head of garlic - finely chopped
6. An inch of ginger - crushed / minced
7. 2 small onions
8. 1 teaspoon of black peppercorn, crushed - or use coarse ground version
9. 3 to 4 red hot chili padi (bird's eye chilies) - sliced off head and slit sides to remove seeds.
10. 2 to 3 tablespoons of corn starch dissolved in water
11. Cooking oil
12. Pinch of salt & some brown sugar (or any kinda sugar)
13. Water

All the main ingredients at a glance.

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a wok (or deep frying pan)
2. Sauté garlic, onions, lemongrass stalks, ginger and black pepper till fragrant.
3. Add the meat to the pan and 'brown'.
4. Add chili padi.
5. Add soy sauce, vinegar and 1 cup of water.
6. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes over medium flame.
7. Add cornstarch dissolved in water to thicken the gravy.
8. Add brown sugar, salt and/or pepper to suit your taste.
9. Cover and simmer for an additional 10 minutes over low/medium flame.
10. Taste check; see if you need to thicken the gravy, then adjust corn starch/water, then simmer again.
11. Serve hot with veggies and steamed rice.
    

Sauté sauté sauté!

Almost there, let it simmer and thicken.

Suggestions, hints and tips:

• I added some brown sugar to balance out the vinegar just a little.
• You can adjust the level of saltiness and color by using less soy sauce.
• Of course you can adjust the flavors by modifying the quantities of peppercorn, salt, sugar etc.
• If chili padi is over the top for you, you can use paprika powder, personally I would have added MORE chili padi but hubby will need a fire extinguisher after that!
• Control the gravy's consistency by adjusting the level of water and cornstarch. We like it thick and rich so it coats the rice nicely!

I hope this is helpful to anyone who loves meat dishes with gravy! If you have any pointers to make this dish better do feel free to share!

A Loss For Malaysia

Our country has produced many great talents, but in my heart and mind, only one person uses her talents and resources to bridge the racial and cultural barriers in this country in a way that no others had done.

Yesterday Malaysia lost Yasmin Ahmad, film-maker and storyteller extraordinaire. I think her message to us Malaysians is there are no exclusive race and class among us but we are all God's creation, a colorful society that make up this unique country. Her creativity, wit, humor and film-making style has inspired many and gave us a sense of pride of our fellow Malaysians.

Alas, my limited and inept words will do no justice to her cause, I'll share 3 videos below which are close to my heart and I believe speaks of her dreams and visions.

I think she would like to be remembered for the good and funny times:



A trailer of my favorite Yasmin Ahmad movie:



Beautiful in any color, shape and size, a commercial by Yasmin Ahmad:




Thank you Yasmin for showing us how beautiful we all are, in our individual ways, as a family, as a community and as Malaysians, despite all our cultural quirks.

I never knew Yasmin personally but her films and writings made me feel like I did, I'm sure many would feel the same. Yasmin will always have a place in the hearts of Malaysians.

Al-fatihah and deepest condelences to friends and family of Yasmin Ahmad.

Busy Saturday

Once in a while we have those days that makes us feel thoroughly alive and useful. Today I had such a day.

I woke up early, had my coffee, went through my mails, updated my twitter status, then proceeded to do a batch of laundry in the machine, followed by another batch of laundry by hand. It's really annoying I keep buying clothes that needs to be handwashed! *groan*

Next, I decided to sweep the floor. After that I started to prepare lunch .... chop chop slice slice and made my experimental pork adobo, steamed brocoli and rice.

It's time to wake hubby up for lunch, so I dragged him out of bed, made his tea and served us our Saturday lunch. After that we washed up all the dishes, hubby proceeded to coma in front of the telly and I washed my bathroom, scrubbed it sparkling clean *beam with pride*

Then, we changed the bedsheets together and chilled out in front of the telly. Had a good laugh at an old funny movie and whoooops it's time for hubby to drop me at Bangsar for my facial.

Two hours later, hubby picked me up for dinner, he even agreed to let me have my favorite steamboat *yay*

I ended the day with a long hot shower, removed my nail color, and decided to pen this little entry before I tuck in with my book and thank God for a blessed productive day.

There you go, a glimpse into a day in my weekend! Good night!

Filipino Food @ Cagayan's Bandar Utama

Cagayan's: Tender Ribs & Favorite Filipino Cuisine

Wonder if anyone ever noticed the small inconspicuous Filipino eatery tucked away in an obscure corner in Cenrepoint Bandar Utama? It's right behind Starbucks. This place has been here for quite some time apparently, but somehow we never noticed it much until lately. Hubby and Shortcake have been there twice, once alone and once with a group. Our second time was superb as we managed to try more things on their menu.

After 2 visits, here are our favorites:

• Pork Adobo - saw Bobby Chinn do this and I'm dying to try it at home too!
• Piggy Pork Ribs - tender and yummy
• Pinakbet aka Mixed Fried Veggie - very interesting
• Bottomless Green Tea - good deal @ only RM2.90!

Other popular dishes we're dying to try next:

• Enoki Bacon
• Pancit Noodles
• Lamb Stew
• Roti Babi

Here are some pictures to make you salivate *drool* .....

Cagayan is pretty good with the authentic Filipino stuff, we did not quite fancy the Fish & Chips though; our friends ordered it for the children, well, they had no complains. We won't attempt the Bangus (fish) again as there were just waaaaaaay too many bones, but the taste is interesting if you're a big fish fan and won't mind the bones!

They also have 'economical' options for lunch and tea on weekdays, see below snapshots of their bunting taken over a week ago, I'm sure the deals are still on:

Curry Pork Ribs sounds good, no??? *licklips*

I'd love to try out more Filipino cuisine, sadly, I don't think they are all that popular in Malaysia. Would anyone know of anymore Filipino restaurants in KL/PJ, care to share? Preferably got babi lahhhh.

Visit this link for complete menu and prices on Cagayan's.

Getting to Cagayan:
G107-108 Centrepoint, Jalan Leboh Bandar Utama,
Bandar Utama 47800, Selangor, Malaysia
(near Kolej Bandar Utama and the McD Drive Thru)
Open : 11.30am-10pm

Shortcake: the new TV star!

Shortcake would like to introduce two new friends and a new ride ... presenting the first Shortcake pilot video clip.

Starring:
Shortcake - the krazy koala in the lead
Mozzie - the new addition from 'ozzie', a gift from a friend
Mumbles - new 'souvenir' from S'pore Night safari

Direction, script and vocals by Shortcake's dear hubby. Shot with my phone, so don't complain about the quality *haha*

I don't think the audio is very clear here, you may want to disable the iPod thingy for a second there.

This, dear reader, is how hubby entertains me when he feels like it. We actually shot this a few months back by 'accident', just for kicks. Imagine the terror on his face when I told him I am posting this video on the blog! He is now pressured to come up with more. Poor baby.

Terrific Turquoise Tips

Once in a while I deviate from my usual nail colors and go for something that shocks the system. I enjoy making people go "wah" *gasp*

One of my favorite nail colors, unfortunately, is not very wearable for day to day ..... presenting OPI Teal the Cows Come Home. This is actually a past seasonal shade, when I discovered it many moons ago, it was actually one of the last piece so I decided to make it mine. I had good reason to wear this yesterday as I had to match a Turquoise dress for a wedding dinner.

OPI Teal the Cows Come Home on me digits.

OPI Teal the Cows Come Home on me toes, methinks the manicurist did a good job. Credit to Colour Culture Bangsar Village II for a job well done!

There is one thing I'd like to highlight though; the shade name! It's abit the tak betul. Technically this is not TEAL, it's TURQUOISE, no? See below chart, I got the shade swatches off Google Images and placed them side by side for comparison. Please feel free to enlighten me if I'm wrong. I love both shades and I think they go so well together. I guess it doesn't really matter what they call it, as long as it's gorgeous.

Teal vs Turquoise.

What Happened to the Cat?

Somebody asked what became of the cat we rescued last December. I think it's only fair to Momo that we update a little about her since she made an appearance on Shortcaketales.

We gave Momo away to a cat-lovin cousin about 3 months after we got her. We discovered we can't cope with Momo much, with both of us working late and the little condo lacks room to romp around in, it's not exactly the best environment for a growing kitten. Plus, she meows alot during the day, which probably led to the 'official notices' on walls in the elevators stating that "residence are forbidden to have domestic animals in the condos bla bla bla" They did not contact us directly, I guess they were being discreet so we'll eventually get the hint. We did. We are, after all, law abiding, considerate residences. Sigh. So goodbye Momo. It's a cruel place for cute helpless creatures.

Anyway, here are some pics of Momo, see how she has grown:

Momo resting on her favorite rocking chair.

"I'm going to the loo, can't you leave me alone for a minute???"

"What does a cat need to do to get some privacy around here huh? Go away or I'll scratch your eyeballs out .... grrrrr"

Once in a while we miss Momo, especially her cute manja face and the adorable meows she makes ... and her stony look when she just woke up .. and her grateful eyes when you feeed her our stroke her. However, it's also really nice to come home late after work and NOT have to clean kitty litter and clean up various other mess.

Honestly, after this experience, I realise one thing, I'm really still a dog lover at heart. I do love cats, but I always look forward to going home to mom's place so I can get crazy with Cuddles, the crazy Jack Russel Chihuahua bitch.

Hubby says, well at least we have experienced both CAT and DOG. Wonderful animals created by a God who knows that deep down we're all fuzzy furry creatures.

Vintage Cars for Beauty?

I was at Bangsar Village this morning and I came across this .... a vintage car dressed up for the sun!

It appears to be a marketing gimmic by Lancome, promoting their UV Expert skincare. They had promoter girls going around passing out samples on the street in return for database. The car was part of the entourage.

I was asking my hubby what make of car this was and he was like "Oh man I really suck in the vintage car department" So here you go, I really have no idea what manner of car this is. But it's a really cute concept. Vintage cars signifies a cult passion and a touch of eccentric class ... representative of the brand personality perhaps? I guess they are also probably trying to say you'll be safe from the sun even in a top-down convertible, UV expert = sun block! Clever clever hoh? *applause*

I bet they paid the owner alot of money to sticker up his precious vintage car like this!

If you're curious what Lancome is launching, check out So Loverly, they have a Lancome contest thingy going on as well.

Will you let brands sticker up your car for money? What kind of brands would you allow to pimp up your car? Or what kind of brands / products would you NOT want on your car? I know some guys will gladly let Durex have a go with theirs!

Support Local Artists!

I stumbled upon some sites which led to visit the Pipit Wonderful Market which I've never heard of previously. Strange name, what on earth is 'pipit'? Burung pipit ke? This was at Berjaya Times Square a few Saturdays back, on 4th July. What enticed me to make my way through the crazy traffic there was actually the local art and craft designers; I came across a few of them at Urbanscapes last month ... inquisitive me wanted MORE ...

So what did we see here? The pic below shows how it looks like overall, like a market indeed, the artists were selling their wares on the floor on a mat. So kesian you know, at least have a table la. But I suppose they were going for an authentic concept of sorts. Truth be told I was slightly dissapointed as I expected more 'stalls' and more designers / artists. But it was cool I guess, totally more enlightening and interesting than your average window shopping.

I snapped up a few goodies, I just had to, I visited most of their blogs prior to the market and I was seriously impressed at how creative they are. The effort and thought they put into their creations and their blogs are highly commendable. A strange sensation of patriotism overtook me by surprise. Malaysia Boleh!

So anyway.... these are what I got .... ta-daaaa!

Let's start with hand-made jewelry ... these trinkets were the first things that caught my eye, I got the dovey-dangly earrings for my sis-in-law and I got me some kupu-kupu to adorn me pretty ears. Gorgeous butterflies with pearls, and unbelievably affordable. For something hand-made and unique, it's a precious find. Want some of these? Check out http://allkinds-of-everything.blogspot.com/.

Then hubby got all excited as he saw something apparently ... anyway the poor soul kindly drove me there and kept me company.

Hubby: baby baby, I saw a sniper t-shirt damn happening ...
Shortcake: What sniper t-shirt? (silent thought: err ... sniper and t-shirt should not be in the same sentence)

Hubby: come come, see the sniper t-shirt ... (he drags me by the hand to another stall)

So this was what he wanted:

And this is how much hubby loves the Sniper tee ... See what I told you, snipper t shirt! No kidding. RM50 for a work of art, not too bad. Anyway, Sniper tee is by the geniuses from http://www.genesisculture.com/v2/ .

Next, I pun jeles la and decide to buy a tee for me too .... they say the best way to appreciate art is to wear it, no? Snippers and guns are alas not my cuppa. But I am a sucker for cute and I found cute ....

This tee is by Wonderkitten and the strange comic characters skewed to the right of the shirt actually tells a story of them 'leaving' the tee for a newer one. Bizarre brilliance.

You would imagine that a local independent online designer shirt may not be so happening ... you would be happy to be wrong, the quality was great and it even came with a nice pouch. Even the size label was pretty premium looking. The only exception was that the sizes were pretty strange, I wear an MNG / Esprit SMALL but I wear a Wonderkitten LARGE, so if you want to order a Wonderkitten online, take note of this. Oh I just love the round 'blob' which is the silhoutte of the cat which is actually the logo. To bad no tee in that design. I would love to have Wonderkitten makeup pouch, key chains, phone pouch .... that would be cute!

Next stop, more interesting art one can wear ... these hand-made felt trinkets are by Uri-Craft.

The multi-colored 4-discs thingy is actually a brooch. I don't know how to wear it yet, nothing I have now seems to go with it, but it's so lurvely I'm just happy starring at it!

Lastly I bought me a beautiful powder blue lace and fabric dove necklace ... from a designer who goes by the name of Miss Ireen. Again, I really don't know how to wear this yet but it's just soooo pweetttty I can't help myself.

So there you have it, my haul at Pipit, and I am really pleased I went for it. I am also very proud of fellow Malaysians who are so creative and enterprising. Shortcake applaud all efforts to promote and support independent local designers and artists.

NEW BOOK!

Dan Brown is launching a new book ... "The Lost Symbol" ... Robert Langdon is back! Dan Brown’s new novel, the eagerly awaited follow-up to The Da Vinci Code, will be released by15th September 2009.

The Cover.

Was totally into 'Angels & Demons' (favorite!) and Da Vinci Code (loved both movies too). Can't wait to get hold of this newbie. The bookstores have been a total bore lately.

Pre-order available on MPH Online. I'm definitely gonna book this. Looks like we're gonna have us a Dan Brown trilogy-movie soon ...

Don't Call Me Babe

There are girlfriends and there are friends who are girls. Big difference ok. Girlfriends can call me 'babe'. Friends or rather acquaintances are NOT allowed to call me 'babe' ... simply because I am NOT your babe.

Also, I cannot tahan people telling me to "CHILL" ..... the worse combination: "Chill la babe" from someone who is not your girlfriend, or someone you barely know, maybe met a few times. Telling somene to 'chill' is very condescending. It puts the person who is saying it on a higher moral ground and thus puts down the other person who is supposedly 'losing it' and hence needs to be told to 'chill'.

One should have enough common sense to think it over before one goes aroud calling everyone 'babe' and telling people who are upset to "chill la babe".

*restraining myself from saying further things that might get my blog banned .... aaarghhh"

I Will Do Anything for 'Laughs'

Taadaa .. here is the second super bodoh and hilarious 'literal' music video ...



Meat Loaf: Literal Video Version (Anything For Love) ... have a good laugh everyone :)

See the first vid I posted, which is #1 in my list: Total Eclipse On Humor

Total Eclipse on Humor!

Hubby showed me this some weeks back and I can't get over how hilarious it is. Read the lyrics and listen to the song properly :P



I still laugh to myself whenever I think about it... *giggle* WTF???

The Meatloaf one is just as good, I'll post that up another day.

My Catty Obsession

I came across an announcement on Tongue In Chic that Hello Kitty is going online and I was like ... "huh, wow, really???" so naturally I went to check it out lah.... and lo and behold, it's an online community! You can have your own email, blog, videos, forums, games, etc.

Go to the South East Asia Sanriotown site (screenshot below) at this link.

Watch the trailer below, it's a whole new virtual world, kinda like Second Life but a whole lot more "cute" ...



This traler explains everything about the theme ' Massively multiplayer online role-playing game' (commonly abbreviated MMORPG)

The online game is currently not quite ready, check here. They are currently in beta testing, but once ready, the game allows players to create and customize characters, then use them to battle monsters, socialize with one another, mine for ore, do domestic chores like farming or cooking, and participate in quests. So while waiting, go check out the Game Centre.

This is my current favorite game and it's bloody addictive:

Kitty Blocks: my latest obsession. Stand aside Neopets!

This truly brings back all the girly childhood memories of the Sanrio gang ... didn't we all at one point or other have at least ONE Sanrio thingy in our lives??? Hey, as for me I still have these Kitty things; Hello Kitty original bath towel, Hello Kitty fork and spoon set (bought at Daiso haha), Hello Kitty face towel (Daiso too), MAC Hello Kitty Lipstick, Eye Shadow, Makeup Pouch :)

Well, eventhough most of us have outgrown the stoic, flat faced Kitty, but I'm waiting eagerly to jump into SanrioTown to for a second childhood!

Super Shoes Sales!

Super Shoes Sales! Tongue twister? No. Apparently Charles & Keith are on seasonal clearance .... yay! Damn it I just bought 2 pairs within the past 2 weeks; at regular prices .... sob sob. Maybe I'll get a new pair of shades this round ... anyway one can never have TOO many shoes right?

See below e-flyer for sales details.

Charles & Keith in Malaysia are at One Utama, Mid Valley and Pavilion KL.