Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Little hiccups in life
What do you call a person who can be easily influenced by others around him/her?
According to WikiAnswers.com, it's gullible, and according to Dictionary.com, "gullible" is defined as easily deceived or cheated.
However, this does not seem to be what I am trying to imply as a person who can be easily influenced by others. So, what is exactly the word which I am looking for?
I do not know about the rest of the people, but, I, myself, am a person who can be easily influenced by others around me. What I meant is that how-ever the people around me are feeling, they can actually influence me to feel the same way as them. Having said so, I will have to tell you this: "No worries, I know what I am doing.".
Wondered why I said so? This is because I am able to control how I want myself to feel.
Alright, I am sure people must be thinking that I am not making sense around here right now. So, let me explain a little by what I meant by quoting an example. Let us just imagine that I have two friends around me who just stepped out from the examination hall with me. They were discussing about how difficult the paper was and how they could have gotten a lousy grade as a result of the examination. I heard what they were saying, and if I were to remain silence, that would mean that I have been influenced by them. I could have been stepping out from the examination hall feeling confident, but from the comments which they made on the paper, they simply made me think twice on how I actually feel in the first place. But at the end of the day, as the old saying goes, what is done is already done, no point looking back and brood over it.
Right now, you must be thinking that saying is much easier than doing...
I agree with the above statement as it really takes time to condition your thinking and change the way you view certain things in life.
However, recently I have been trapped within my own thoughts and was made confused by three people - who shall not be named. Let me share with you what roughly happened...
I met up with person A on a fine day and we were happily chatting and discussing on a certain topic until A brought out person B into the picture. Since B was now in the picture, we went on to discuss more stuff which were, more or less, centered around B. Suddenly, person C was also brought into the whole picture and even I, myself, was being dragged into it now. Things got complicated, which resulted in me feeling kind of bad as I was sandwiched between A, B and C. In addition, I felt really sad about this whole thing, even up till today.
I would not know if I were right to just classify this as a small matter. However, my world has changed as a matter of fact. The person who once feel that she was really lucky and blessed, is no longer feeling so now. Perhaps A should not have brought out B and C and eventually, me, into the picture. Or perhaps I should take this opportunity to thank A instead?
In one way or another, this matter has made me think about what I seriously need to do about my life. I cannot be living in the world that does not belong to me anymore... I guess, I really have the need to manage my life well. No more relying on people (I promise and I will try...OK?)!
Eventually, I am sure that time will tell the truth and that I will find a route, a new target, and whatever it takes to continue my journey in life...from this moment on.
According to WikiAnswers.com, it's gullible, and according to Dictionary.com, "gullible" is defined as easily deceived or cheated.
However, this does not seem to be what I am trying to imply as a person who can be easily influenced by others. So, what is exactly the word which I am looking for?
I do not know about the rest of the people, but, I, myself, am a person who can be easily influenced by others around me. What I meant is that how-ever the people around me are feeling, they can actually influence me to feel the same way as them. Having said so, I will have to tell you this: "No worries, I know what I am doing.".
Wondered why I said so? This is because I am able to control how I want myself to feel.
Alright, I am sure people must be thinking that I am not making sense around here right now. So, let me explain a little by what I meant by quoting an example. Let us just imagine that I have two friends around me who just stepped out from the examination hall with me. They were discussing about how difficult the paper was and how they could have gotten a lousy grade as a result of the examination. I heard what they were saying, and if I were to remain silence, that would mean that I have been influenced by them. I could have been stepping out from the examination hall feeling confident, but from the comments which they made on the paper, they simply made me think twice on how I actually feel in the first place. But at the end of the day, as the old saying goes, what is done is already done, no point looking back and brood over it.
Right now, you must be thinking that saying is much easier than doing...
I agree with the above statement as it really takes time to condition your thinking and change the way you view certain things in life.
However, recently I have been trapped within my own thoughts and was made confused by three people - who shall not be named. Let me share with you what roughly happened...
I met up with person A on a fine day and we were happily chatting and discussing on a certain topic until A brought out person B into the picture. Since B was now in the picture, we went on to discuss more stuff which were, more or less, centered around B. Suddenly, person C was also brought into the whole picture and even I, myself, was being dragged into it now. Things got complicated, which resulted in me feeling kind of bad as I was sandwiched between A, B and C. In addition, I felt really sad about this whole thing, even up till today.
I would not know if I were right to just classify this as a small matter. However, my world has changed as a matter of fact. The person who once feel that she was really lucky and blessed, is no longer feeling so now. Perhaps A should not have brought out B and C and eventually, me, into the picture. Or perhaps I should take this opportunity to thank A instead?
In one way or another, this matter has made me think about what I seriously need to do about my life. I cannot be living in the world that does not belong to me anymore... I guess, I really have the need to manage my life well. No more relying on people (I promise and I will try...OK?)!
Eventually, I am sure that time will tell the truth and that I will find a route, a new target, and whatever it takes to continue my journey in life...from this moment on.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Food for thought
It's finally the holiday! I have been waiting and looking forward to my May to August holiday since last December. Time sure flies, I have really been hoping for this holiday as I have a lot of things which I would like to accomplish. Just to quote a few, I would like to read a few books, try out a few recipes, take some photos around Singapore, and of course, my list runs on.
It has already been two weeks since my holiday started. No doubt, I have been traveling out almost everyday. Movies, inline skating, primary school gathering. Yes, primary school gathering! What's more is that we had had a great laugh by sharing what happened back then when we were being "tortured" by our "beloved" class mentor. When was the last time I saw these few friends of mine? I guess it has already been 10 years since I last saw them physically. Virtually? No big issue, with today's advance technology, we could easily stay in contact via SMS, MSN, Facebook and etc. We will be having a bigger scale gathering in July, I hope that most of the students from then 5N/6N will be able to make it for this upcoming gathering.
Just to give a sneak preview, alfa 8 will be having their first ever chalet at Pasir Ris from the 22 May to 24 May 2009. I am sure that it will be of so much fun and laughter and of course, not forgetting the great bonding which we will be having over that three days. I sure am looking forward to that!
Anyway, what I just want to say is that good friends are hard to come by.
Friends are the best companion in the world. You do not get to speak to your friends on every other day or meet one another that often. However, when you just think about your friends and the little silly things that you all did together in the past... That's good enough to brighten up your day. The little actions of care and concern from friends cannot be compared to that which come from your family members (as friends were not seen as those who will keep nagging at you on every single day). Treasure your friends as they are meant to be there to fill your life with colours and sunshine. Friends will always be there to lend you a shoulder and help by giving support to one another. Definitely, one will surely feel good to have more friends around. You decide what's best for yourself and always remember to cherish them (your friends) dear!
****************************
Up next, I would like to share this recipe with everyone:
Klepon
Klepon makanan khas dari Jawa Timur, Indonesia. Klepon rasa manis sekali dan asin sedikit. Makanan itu enak sekali.
Oops! There I go again... My apologies, for the sake of the general public, I shall translate what I wrote above in Bahasa Indonesia roughly back to English.
"Klepon is a traditional Indonesian rice cake from Java. The taste of Klepon is very sweet (because of the filling) and a little salty (due to the salt mixed with the granted coconut). Klepon is delicious."
OK, I got rather interested in this dish after I attended the LAB1201 (Bahasa Indonesia 1) Project Day. I was presented with a few specialty dishes from Indonesia prepared by the students, ourselves. I find that it will be interesting if I were to make some kue-kue during this holiday. As a result, I went on to source for the recipe for this dish. At first, I thought that this was simply the Malays "onde onde" which looked almost exactly the same, but after searching on both the dishes on the web, I realised that there wasn't any sweet potatoes in Klepon. Also, I must comment that this dish might look simple, but it sure takes a lot of determination and time in wrapping the dark brown sugar into the flour dough. It took me the whole day to complete a 1.2KG worth of glutinous flour of Klepon!
Anyway, here's the recipe:
Klepon (Sweet Coconut Rice Ball)
Ingredients:
1. 1.5 cups glutinous powder
2. 3/4 cup lukewarm water (*water at room temperature doesn't work)
3. 2-3 drops green food colouring
4. 8 tsp. grated Java dark brown sugar
5. 1 cup fresh-grated coconut, mixed with 1/2 tsp. salt (salt helps preserve the coconut from turning bad)
6. Pandan leaves (Optional, but highly recommended by my mother)
Instructions:
1. Mix the glutinous powder with the lukewarm water and green food colouring into a firm but flexible dough.
2. Pull off one full teaspoon of the dough and shape it into a ball with approx. 1-inch in diameter.
3. Push a finger into the center of the ball to make a hole, and put in approx 1/2 tsp. of the grated sugar.
4. Seal, and roll it back into the ball shape with the palms of your hands.
Prepare all the balls and set them aside.
5. Prepare a pot half filled with water (add in the pandan leaves) and bring it to boil.
6. Drop the balls into the boiling water.
7. Remove the balls with a spoon once they float to the surface of the water and then roll the balls in the grated coconut.
8. Serve at room temperature.
Enjoy~
*Do note that...
It will be best to consume the klepon which you have made within the day itself. Otherwise, once refrigerated, the skin (glutinous flour dough) will harden and spoil the overall chewiness of the klepon.
It has already been two weeks since my holiday started. No doubt, I have been traveling out almost everyday. Movies, inline skating, primary school gathering. Yes, primary school gathering! What's more is that we had had a great laugh by sharing what happened back then when we were being "tortured" by our "beloved" class mentor. When was the last time I saw these few friends of mine? I guess it has already been 10 years since I last saw them physically. Virtually? No big issue, with today's advance technology, we could easily stay in contact via SMS, MSN, Facebook and etc. We will be having a bigger scale gathering in July, I hope that most of the students from then 5N/6N will be able to make it for this upcoming gathering.
Just to give a sneak preview, alfa 8 will be having their first ever chalet at Pasir Ris from the 22 May to 24 May 2009. I am sure that it will be of so much fun and laughter and of course, not forgetting the great bonding which we will be having over that three days. I sure am looking forward to that!
Anyway, what I just want to say is that good friends are hard to come by.
Friends are the best companion in the world. You do not get to speak to your friends on every other day or meet one another that often. However, when you just think about your friends and the little silly things that you all did together in the past... That's good enough to brighten up your day. The little actions of care and concern from friends cannot be compared to that which come from your family members (as friends were not seen as those who will keep nagging at you on every single day). Treasure your friends as they are meant to be there to fill your life with colours and sunshine. Friends will always be there to lend you a shoulder and help by giving support to one another. Definitely, one will surely feel good to have more friends around. You decide what's best for yourself and always remember to cherish them (your friends) dear!
****************************
Up next, I would like to share this recipe with everyone:
Klepon
Klepon makanan khas dari Jawa Timur, Indonesia. Klepon rasa manis sekali dan asin sedikit. Makanan itu enak sekali.
Oops! There I go again... My apologies, for the sake of the general public, I shall translate what I wrote above in Bahasa Indonesia roughly back to English.
"Klepon is a traditional Indonesian rice cake from Java. The taste of Klepon is very sweet (because of the filling) and a little salty (due to the salt mixed with the granted coconut). Klepon is delicious."
OK, I got rather interested in this dish after I attended the LAB1201 (Bahasa Indonesia 1) Project Day. I was presented with a few specialty dishes from Indonesia prepared by the students, ourselves. I find that it will be interesting if I were to make some kue-kue during this holiday. As a result, I went on to source for the recipe for this dish. At first, I thought that this was simply the Malays "onde onde" which looked almost exactly the same, but after searching on both the dishes on the web, I realised that there wasn't any sweet potatoes in Klepon. Also, I must comment that this dish might look simple, but it sure takes a lot of determination and time in wrapping the dark brown sugar into the flour dough. It took me the whole day to complete a 1.2KG worth of glutinous flour of Klepon!
Anyway, here's the recipe:
Klepon (Sweet Coconut Rice Ball)
Ingredients:
1. 1.5 cups glutinous powder
2. 3/4 cup lukewarm water (*water at room temperature doesn't work)
3. 2-3 drops green food colouring
4. 8 tsp. grated Java dark brown sugar
5. 1 cup fresh-grated coconut, mixed with 1/2 tsp. salt (salt helps preserve the coconut from turning bad)
6. Pandan leaves (Optional, but highly recommended by my mother)
Instructions:
1. Mix the glutinous powder with the lukewarm water and green food colouring into a firm but flexible dough.
2. Pull off one full teaspoon of the dough and shape it into a ball with approx. 1-inch in diameter.
3. Push a finger into the center of the ball to make a hole, and put in approx 1/2 tsp. of the grated sugar.
4. Seal, and roll it back into the ball shape with the palms of your hands.
Prepare all the balls and set them aside.
5. Prepare a pot half filled with water (add in the pandan leaves) and bring it to boil.
6. Drop the balls into the boiling water.
7. Remove the balls with a spoon once they float to the surface of the water and then roll the balls in the grated coconut.
8. Serve at room temperature.
Enjoy~
*Do note that...
It will be best to consume the klepon which you have made within the day itself. Otherwise, once refrigerated, the skin (glutinous flour dough) will harden and spoil the overall chewiness of the klepon.
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