Almost Time for a Getaway

I haven't been updating my blog as often as I like lately, but there will be some updates after our Labor Day Weekend in Montreal. Yipee! This will be the last public holiday weekend before summer ends. Did summer just breeze through like that?! Soon we will be raking leaves and shoveling snow again. On the bright side, there's still a few more weeks of warm weather left so we're making the most of it.

Bonjour Montreal!

Prelude: Feeling a bit musical today. For non-music lovers, time to switch to another blog. Sorry!

Bell's Repertoire

Bell & his Stradivarius

I've been listening to Joshua Bell for a couple of years now. Some classical critics have biased views about classical cross-overs but I'll take cross-overs anytime over pure classical ;). The monotony of classical can be a dread at times. It reminds me of my weekly piano lessons back in the days.

Joshua Bell plays with such passion, it makes you cry. Although he is a trained classical violinist, I prefer to hear his soundtrack collection like "Mi Mancherai", "The Red Violin", "O Mio Babbino Caro", "Fantasy for Violin & Orchestra" and the theme song from Ladies in Lavender; which I can never tire of. On a depressing day, I might make an exception for his classical pieces .

My greatest envy is Bell's 300 year old Antonio Stradivari violin; which he bought for a few million dollars after selling his other Strad ("Tom Taylor" was his/her name). Although I don't play the violin, how I wish I could own one. Wishful thinking, wishful thinking! I suppose I could always ogle at the few collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. *sigh*



This is a clip from You Tube of Bell doing an experiment - incognito at the Washington DC Metro earlier this year. Apparently, only one lady knew who he was. He also collected about $30 dollars. Hah!

When You Wish Upon a Star...



I saw this advertisement at The Borneo Post website yesterday. At the bottom of this ad there was an incentive:

"Tell us your wish for Malaysia and win attractive prizes"

What a ploy. Paying people off to say some airy-fairy, fine & dandy patriotic things just before Independence Day. Anyway, it got me thinking. Should I make these wishes known on public domain? What I am about to wish for might land me in an infamous precinct if I were a blogger in Malaysia. Oh well, for my beloved Malaysia on her golden jubilee on August 31, 2007, my wishes are:

#1.
The end of all race (and religious) based political parties in Malaysia. Stances on social and economic issues should be the platform of political parties instead.

#2.
Reduction and ultimate abolishment of the NEP (a policy that favors only a certain group of people for the past half century). Time to move forward.
"Let's not use the crutches for support all the time, the knee will become weak". Who said this? And..?!

#3. Socio-economic success, educational & employment opportunities based on meritocracy.

#4. Uphold the Federal Constitution and the real meaning of democracy, not "controlled democracy". For Malaysians to know and exercise their rights freely.

I wonder.....If I won, what would my prize be? 2 days/1 night stay at the luxurious Sri Dang Wangi Hotel?

Post note:
Wishes #1, 2, 3 & 4 are Serenity's personal opinion. Readers' views & comments are duly respected but please comment/criticize constructively. I do not expect all thoughts to be amiable but take heed that reviling, nonsensical comments will be thrashed.

Prelude to today's post: Amid all the polarizing, racial, corrupt political she-bang in Malaysia off late, it is nice to read, for once, an intelligible speech from Raja Nazrin, a well-respected and highly-educated Malaysian Prince. His coherent thoughts on the current political situation back home is a breath of fresh air to remind Malaysians the true nature of the Country's Federal Constitution. No doubt he's going to hit a sour note with a certain race based political party but kudos to the Crown Prince for speaking his mind on what ought to be!


Char Kuay Teow

Char kuay teow or massively stir-fried flat rice noodles is a common but popular dish in Malaysia. Last night, Adrian made some for dinner. I normally leave all the quick stir-frying stuff to him. He's naturally better at hawker style cooking and it's nice to be waited-on once in a while ;)

There's no chicken bits or shrimp in the char kuay teow. Just plain soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, eggs & bean sprouts. Sometimes simplicity is what we crave for.

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. ~Leonardo DaVinci

Short talk: We had a very bad thunderstorm late last Friday night. Ferocious non-stop lightning strikes hit one of the pumps at United Water (our source of water supply). As a result of this, we have to boil our water for 1 minute before we could use it for drinking, cooking, etc. The damage must be quite severe since the situation is still unchanged after 2 days. Bergen County restaurants have been hit hard. Without clean water, the food business is a NO-GO. Even the uber popular Starbucks stores are in total darkness since Saturday. *sigh*


Filipino Food

Just before the frightful thunderstorm on Friday, we stopped by our local Filipino restaurant, Pistahan to pick up our dinner. We decided to try something different other than the usual Binagoongan.

Browsing through the menu, I found Kalderetang Baka - chunks of beef & vegetables sauteed in a spicy tomato sauce with raisins, potatoes and pickled olives. It turned out to be quite a hybrid of a dish. To me, it looked and tasted like a cross between stew, though slightly drier, and the Malaysian style 'Masak Hitam' (dark sweet soy sauce). The end result was surprisingly very good! This will be one of my favorites at Pistahan from now onwards.

Kalderetang Baka

Pistahan specializes in pork dishes like lechon kawali and crispy pata, but they do have quite a range of Filipino food. However, we prefer to call for take out because their dine-in service is rather slow (honestly speaking!). I suspect Pistahan strives on their catering side of business since the place is usually more than half-empty. However, this weakness is quickly compensated by their delicious & authentic dishes!

An Update from Christine

I was out late last night attending a professional migrants' cohort launch at lower Manhattan. When I got home, all the network news had already reported the Minneapolis Bridge collapse many times over.

No pun intended but it really didn't dawn on me until early this morning that my friend lives around that area. I quickly sent her an email and found that her blog had been promptly updated. Thanks Christine, for allaying our fears. We're glad that you and your family are safe. This is an excerpt from her blog Too Much Energy.

As Christine pointed out, the mega size Minneapolis Bridge is a link for residents going to and fro the City. Likewise, we would use the Lincoln Tunnel and the George Washington Bridge to get to New York City. We usually don't blink or think twice when we're on our daily commute but honestly, passing through tunnels and bridges always gives me goose bumps. Yet, it is a necessity in life.

Our prayers for those who perished in this tragedy, the injured, families & friends who lost loved ones.