Prata

On Saturday after running some errands, we went to our regular prata shop 'the Prata Cafe' on Evans Rd. We like its good variety of pratas, thosai and indian dishes at reasonable prices.

For our late afternoon tea, we ordered Milo Godzilla (ice milo drink, topped with lots of thick milo powder and vanilla ice-cream), Teh Halia (hot ginger tea), Indian Rojak (fish cakes, fried prawn fritters, eggs covered with flour which has been deep-fried, all served with special peanut sauce) and plain pratas (with curry sauces and sugar).

The best part about this place are its proximity to home and the 'easy' road-side parking :p

Honked

It all happened yesterday. My colleagues had a whale of a time doing up an artwork for the spare tyre cover at the back of my car. Some also left the office with me in a convoy and took lots of pictures in excitement. They mentioned that the luminious orange sign and glittery flying streamers can be sported from afar! Of course I was oblivious to the prank and drove from the west to central of SG!


There were sporting drivers who honked at me along the way. There was also this car load of people that drove alongside on the highway with their windows wound down screaming and waving hysterically at me. I glanced at them and thought: "Do I know these people??" After picking Sam up, I drove home and parked head in only to realise the gaudy artwork behind the car. Gosh!

We had a good laugh today, but not before I replaced the artwork with 'Go back to work' and kept cool when I got to the office. They thought that I was still unaware of the prank and went to check on the car. I was told that if I had not discovered the sign, they would have replaced it with 'It's my birthday today' instead of 'tomorrow'. Phew! :p

Well, this is a revenge of the prankster, cause we had a similar prank on one of the colleagues 2 years back, though the decor was not so gaudy and elaborated! This reminded me of those IJ days when we used to have lots of tricks up our sleeves.

They ordered in pizza for lunch, had home-made banana shake and raspberry cheesecake today. And they surprised me with a bouquet of flowers too! They had obviously put in much effort into this day. Thank God for fun and thoughtful colleagues! :)

Fine Dining

Last night, we had a nice European-Asian dinner at Ember Restaurant located in boutique Hotel 1929 at Keong Saik Rd. We had to make reservations one day in advance as it is usually full house.

For appetizer, we ordered crispy tofu with mushroom and foie gras sauce, and pan roasted scallops with vegetable. Love the tofu! Our main course were marinated cod with black miso and herbed potatoes, and roasted lambloin with sauteed baby spinach, fleur de sel. I had the cod which was very nicely marinated and pan fried on the outside. Dessert was a warm banana tart with homemade lavender ice cream. The ice-cream was exquisite. It's a MUST TRY!

The price is considered to be reasonable for such fine cuisine. The dinner was delicious and perfect for special occasion :)

Beetle

We visited the new VW showroom the other day. Saw the new open top Cabriolet Beetle in pastel yellow on display.

Like the Mini, the Beetle has been regarded as something of a "cult" car since the 60s due to its association with the hippie movement and surf/pop culture. Like its peers, it has the attributes of a unique and quirky design, and has made numerous appearance in films.

These are exactly the reasons why I like both the Beetle and the Mini. :)

Basil Plant

We bought a Basil Plant today from Cold Storage. A check on the web says that Mediterranean and Indochinese cuisines frequently use basil, the former frequently combining it with tomato.

Basil is one of the main ingredients in pesto (a green Italian oil-and-herb sauce). Chinese also use basils in soups and other foods.

Although basil will grow best outdoors, it can be grown indoors in a pot and should be kept away from extremely cold drafts. Let's see how long it will last :)

Alaskan Crab

Had a department dinner on Friday with my colleagues at Ah Yat Hunan Restaurant at Turf City. We had seafood dinner and my colleagues ordered one huge Alaskan Crab costing $500 on top of the set menu. It's so expensive that we have to take pictures of it. We also had Geoduck Clam, another expensive dish.

It was a nice treat which I don't think I will order if on my own...

Chiropractor Visit – Fri 23 Mar 07

I had a pretty nasty neck/back pain since 2 days back and had to visit the Chiropractor on Friday after work.

Had made a call to the one recommended by Wendy but the appointment was full. I decided to call Rev Ho’s son at the Health Club and rushed down to Ngee Ann City after work. It was raining and as usual was caught in the peak hour traffic but managed to get there – not too late.

It was my first visit to a Chiropractor. Luke has absolutely no recollection that we have met at VOP rehearsals. He introduced himself formally, started interviewing me on the symptoms and jotting them down diligently. How did I end up with a sprained neck/back? I have no idea! It could possibly be my sleeping posture and the way I position myself when using the Notebook at work and in bed. Sigh…

After a detailed explanation on how the bone and joints work while twisting and bending the plastic skeleton in the clinic, Luke sat me down on another chair and tested my reflexes with a small hammer. Then he pressed my head with his elbow, and told me to turn my neck left and then right. The pain ran down my upper back each time I turned to face left.

Next, he propped me on a special bench made for Chiropractic use. I lied face down, and he rubbed with strength certain nerve points on my back and neck to help release toxins. Then he operated the bench like a machine and there came all sorts of pumping action from the bench. I guess it was an interesting experience.

When we were done, he remarked that I looked familiar! Well, it finally clicked that I sing in the same choir as his parents. And he knew from the beginning of the interview that I am related to Sam who is also part of choir. Duh!

Anyway, his parting advice to me was to start using the Cold Pack for the next few days, and I have to get an x-ray on my neck after I return from my trip. And the damage came up to a warping $120! :(