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Author: Zhiwei

Gaming is Serious Business

Gaming is Serious Business

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This is serious business. He spent 15 minutes (with some inputs from his sister) writing down all the various tower names from Toy defenders (a game in roblox). If only he’s this serious about his schoolwork… 😓 (he emphasised that he’s “more important” under the credits section).

I can only remember a handful of these names. (Yeah. Lao niang has to play this game with him as a chaperone.) My brain just goes into screensaver mode whenever I see these names.

#roblox #xiaoxiaobaobei #playisseriousbusiness

宝贝 and her Medal

宝贝 and her Medal

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baobei and her medal
Baobei and her medal

A medal to commemorate her last year as a table tennis 🏓 player in her primary school. The team emerged as the East Zone Girls’ champ. Perfect score of 5-0 against every school and 3-0 for every match. They could have had a shot for overall national champ. Too bad it was cancelled due to covid.

Well done Kong Hwa Girls’ team! 💪🏼

NOW it’s time to mug for PSLE! Shoo!

psle #nsg #girlpower #konghwa #tabletennis

Ming Ming’s Friendship Band

Ming Ming’s Friendship Band

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Looking very smug with his friendship band

小小宝贝 : Mommy Mommy! See what Sherry made for me??
姐姐 ：Maybe she likes you??
小小宝贝 ：Of course! Or else, why would she make the friendship band for me?!
Someone is very confident siah… 😅

小小宝贝’s First ePTM

小小宝贝’s First ePTM

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The first ePTM (parent teacher meeting) ever since he started primary school. We didn’t have one last year due to covid.

“I can’t believe it! 弟弟‘s teachers said he’s such a well behaved boy in class, very quiet (huh!!!) not a social butterfly (huh!!), very focused and attentive blah blah blah. His Chinese teacher even said he’s the most responsible 小组长 and can be entrusted with everything. When I told them he made friends with the boy standing behind him while queueing for chicken rice, they were totally surprised!”

姐姐-“Erm Mummy, did you remember to write his name as your nick when you joined the zoom meeting?”

“Hmm… I forgot. I used my own name.” “Maybe they thought you were another student’s Mummy and they were not referring to him. 🤷🏻‍♀️”
“Good point there!! There were talking about his classmate and not him!”

弟弟-“I’m a very good boy in school ok!!! 😡”

“Then why are you so naughty at home? I’m going to send your home videos to your teachers so that they can see your true colours!!”
“Nooo….!!!! 😭” #evilmom #siginna #devilathomeangelinschool

That’s his art homework (surrealism – incorporate a vegetable or fruit into drawing). A cucumber boat.

The Kitchen God’s Wife – Amy Tan

The Kitchen God’s Wife – Amy Tan

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I read this book when it first came out (yep, I am one of those readers who keep rereading the same few books that they have read. I have read Harry Potter’s first few books like 5-8 times. I have even read Gone with the Wind for 4 times??). Once I decide that I like a particular author, I typically start stalking the shelves for her books. I started off with Amy Tan’s “The Joy Luck Club” before progressing to other books.

Her books focus on mother-daughter relationships. I can almost see myself in the role of the daughter. Like all children, I sometimes find myself irritated when my mom keeps reminding me or doing certain things over and over again in her own way (not my way… just like any self entitled kid, I want it “my own way”.) We think we know better, we think we are smarter.

I forgot that, long ago, my mother was young once, reckless once, and probably was a wild one. Maybe, I should document her stories (inspired by Amy Tan). *ponder* I spend more time now, listening to her talk (my late father used to be her sounding board and I guess there’s no one to listen to her now), sometimes repeating the same story a few times. I find myself looking forward to hear her chatter about anything under the sun, because it means more to spend present time with her than to spend time regretting not spending enough time.

So Amy Tan’s books serve as a good reminder of that.

The Kitchen God's Wife
The Kitchen God's Wife
Raffles Place – Down Memory Lane

Raffles Place – Down Memory Lane

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I’ve always loved Raffles Place. When I was a little girl, it was a place that I went to every Saturday morning to wait for my late father to knock off from work and we would have lunch at the old hawker centre by the river. There were still bumboats plying the length of the river and the tallest building was OCBC. Raffles Place = Being a big girl and working there like what Daddy did.

The old Boat Quay hawker centre. Found the pic on the internet.
I remember having to go there to chope table during the crowded lunchtime.

After my A Levels, I got to intern with JP Morgan on the now defunct Simex floor. It was a very heady feeling as I watched the traders shouting at the top of their voices in the trading pit and I ran to and fro to collect tickets to enter into the system. It was a place where insane amounts of money exchanged hands. My mentors called it Singapore’s largest gambling floor. I was there when the Japanese PM Hosokawa resigned and the Nikkei index crashed within minutes and the phones on the floor rang instantaneously like the siren. Traders sprinted back to the trading floor from half eaten lunches and the entire place simply went nuts. Hey, I even sat next to the notorious Nick Leeson! Ok lar. He was sitting at the next booth and his house colour was a reddish maroon colour. AND, I got to have lunch with Daddy every week as a big girl!

When I grew up, my dream came true! I finally worked at the heart of Raffles Place for 14 years. It was all hustle and bustle. Everyone who worked here probably were sprinters when they were in school, they walked faster in high (very high) heels faster than anyone else in fit flops in the heartlands. My friend once said that her heart beat like 2x faster whenever she came to have lunch with me at Raffles Place.

Towards the end of the my working years at Raffles Place, I wondered, “Don’t all these people ever get tired? Rushing from point to point. Always da-baoing the food from the kiosks and then eating and working at the computers (well, that was what I did).”Or maybe, it was just me. I was work weary of the numbing busyness, office politicking (why kill my brain cells over people who don’t matter?), dumb decisions made by management, and well, everything.

After that, I only went back to Raffles Place once a week for my Yoga classes (bo bian, I signed on a 2 year contract while I was still working there and I liked the Yoga teachers…. so….) I was practically looking at the Raffles Place workers from the other side of the fish tank. While everyone was dressed up to the nines in suits and dresses, I was strolling around at 1/4 of the walking speed in yoga getup and flip flops. I enjoyed the feeling that I had the choice of walking at that tortoise speed. I liked sitting at the cafeteria with my book and SLOWLY (haha this is the crux) chewing my food while people around me were eating at thrice my speed and then rushing back to the office.

And then, covid struck. The yoga place closed due to lockdown. Eventually when it reopened, I had a shoulder injury and I couldn’t even lift my arm beyond 45 degrees (ya, very difficult to wear my bra!). I put off seeing the doctor as the pain was bearable until it became a major inconvenience (cannot wear bra lah!). Then when I was finally fixed by the TCM doctor, (that’s another story full of pain), inertia and procrastination set in. I had dinner with my friend who went on and on about the amount of money I was losing (paying for the membership and not using it) until it became a major OUCH! and I booked a yoga class the next day.

So, here I am. Back at Raffles Place after being away for so long. I have never seen Raffles Place so empty before. All the suits are probably working from home. Even the sardines at the MRT station have disappeared. Check out how empty the station is and I could even get a seat on the MRT to read my book!

Raffles Place has changed over the years, so have I. But I wish that I could turn back the clock and be the little girl who was waiting for her father to knock off work to have lunch with her, because it meant that he was still around. I miss you, Daddy!

Half a Man

Half a Man

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Ever since I discovered Michael Morpurgo, I have been borrowing his books from the library. BUT, til now, I have still yet to find his award-winning book “War Horse”. I shall endeavour in my search for it! Meanwhile, I am reading any of his books that I can get my hands on, from the National library.

There are just some books, that once you have read them, they stay in your mind for a long time. “Half a Man” is one of them. It’s short and thin (which makes it a short read, and therefore it’s very ideal for a busy day), but it packs a punch. It’s thought-provoking and invokes feelings that I seldom feel in my busy, everyday life. I admit that I wasn’t particularly impressed with the book cover, which showed a man in a fishing boat. Ok, I admit, I’m a shallow book reader. I sometimes borrow a book if I like the book cover. Hehe. But, it was a Michael Morpurgo book. So, ya, I borrowed it. And that was one of the best book decisions I have made.

Michael’s grandfather was a man scarred physically and mentally during the war. Whenever he visited, everyone would not dare to look at him in the face. It was only when Michael spent a summer with him that he was truly able to see the man behind the burns. Grandfather told the whole story to someone for the first time.

“It was years before I discovered why he never smiled. It was because he couldn’t. It was too painful. The skin simply wouldn’t stretch. When he laughed, which wasn’t often, it was always with a straight face. And when he smiled, it was with his eyes only.”

“No one wants half a man, and that’s what I was, Michael, half a man. That’s what I still am.”

Half a Man by Michael Morpurgo
Fermenting Eco-enzyme

Fermenting Eco-enzyme

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Why did I start fermenting eco-enzyme? Ever since I read about zero waste lifestyle, we have been trying to practise it. But I can tell you, that it is EXTREMELY difficult. Hehe. Although I wouldn’t say that we can totally do it now, but we have cut a lot of waste by changing some of our living habits. So better than nothing lah… every little bit of effort counts, IMHO.

One of the initiatives we had started quite a long while back (I kept wanting to post about it but had been procrastinating…. as usual…) was fermenting eco-enzyme (EE) aka garbage enzyme. It makes use of food waste that would otherwise be thrown away, so why not, just put it to good use? It’s natural, healthy and organic (everyone uses this word, so ya… must follow the crowd.)

EE has multiple uses. It can be used as cleaning detergent, laundry cleaner (especially for people with sensitive skin like my DD), floor cleaner, stain remover, vegetable cleaner,  plant fertiliser and pesticide.Not only that, it is extremely easy to do. Everyone who knows me, knows that I’m extremely lazy… can only do the easy stuff. So if I can do it, most people can, it’s a matter of whether you want to make the effort or not. So here goes….

What do you need for Eco-Enzyme (EE) :

  • Fruit peels (I don’t use vegetable ends because I don’t like the smell…) I like to use a mixture of fruits, since we eat all kinds of fruits everyday. So that’s not a feat for me. Citrus peels give it a nice fragrant.
  • leftover herbs (i like the smell…)
  • Sugar – I use the cheapest white sugar for economical reasons. I’m not going to drink it anyway and the bacteria aren’t picky.
  • Plastic container – I use a 3L container (those used to contain CNY goodies). Some people use super huge ones. But I find it more manageable to use smaller ones. You will get about 2L of EE at the end of the day
  • Waterproof marker
  • Measuring cup

Have you got them? You are set to go!

Steps to fermenting eco-enzyme (EE)

Proportion of Ingredients

Sugar : Peel : Water = 1 : 3 : 10

1. Make markings on the container

There are lots of ways to do this. Some people go by weight; some people mark down on paper and divide it out accordingly. I use the volume of water. It’s not like an extra ml more or less will make a huge lot of difference. That’s me lah. So, using a measuring cup, I measure out the water (about 2150ml for a 3L container), pour it into the container, make a marking on the water level using my waterproof marker. Then sugar (about 210ml) and finally peel (640ml).

2. Pour out the water until it reaches the water mark.

3. Scoop in the sugar until it reaches the sugar mark.

4. Put in the peels until it reaches the peel mark. I usually start a new container with just water and sugar and add the peels along the way. Once it reaches the peel mark, I will start another container.

Fermenting Eco-enzyme

5. Cover the container loosely so that the gas created during fermentation process can escape through the gap. We want to produce vinegar, not alcohol, at the end of the day. Label the production date so that you will know the age of the EE.

Fermenting Eco-enzyme

6. Stir everyday for the first few weeks. Some fruit peels tend to produce kahm yeast, so stirring helps the buildup.

7. After 3 months, your EE is ready for harvesting. Usually the mush will sink to the bottom after a while. I filter the EE and separate the mush and the liquid. I bottle the liquid in the 2L milk bottles and label them. I have 2 containers here. The one on the left is fresh and the peels are floating, whereas the one on the right has been around for 3 months. As you can see, the peels have broken down and have sunk to the bottom of the container.

Fermenting Eco-enzyme

One 3L container can yield about 2L EE. I reuse the milk containers for this purpose.

Fermenting Eco-enzyme

What can we do with the mush?

  • add it into the composting bin (if you have one.) It is extremely effective as the bacteria in it helps to break up the food waste in the bin faster.
  • put it on stubborn stains and clean them away
  • put it in the toilet bowls for a few hours, then flush them away. Don’t worry, these won’t choke up the toilet bowl and they are broken down food waste. Use the toilet brush to brush away the ones that stuck to the toilet bowl (common sense, right…)

Fermenting Eco-enzyme

Eco-enzyme (EE) Usage Proportion

  • Dish washing – (EE : detergent ) 1 : 1
  • Laundry – 200ml EE (I use this amount and my clothes have a nice “citrusy” fragrance.
  • Floor cleaner – (EE : water) 1 : 800
  • Veggie / fruit soak – (EE : water) 1 : 50. To get rid of the pesticide on the fruit skins. Soak about 30 mins.
  • Fertiliser – (EE : water) 1: 1000
  • Pesticide – (EE : water) 1 : 300

The information here have been researched from the internet and from my experience in my EE learning journey. Credits to JC Cheng and her Eco Enzyme Facebook group which gave me a lot of ideas and inspiration to start off on this EE journey.

My other fermentation projects

Gluten Free Pork Floss aka Bak Hu

Gluten Free Pork Floss aka Bak Hu

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I have been eating Pork Floss (Bak Hu) all my life since I was a kid. It’s very versatile and goes with almost everything! I ate it with bread, porridge, soup, anything and everything. And it is easily bought in Singapore – we have at least 4 or 5 Bak Kwa chain stores that sell it.

But, for 宝贝, being a kid who is allergic to wheat, she has never tasted it in all her life. Because, the sauce that goes into making it is not gluten free. If you have food allergies or a mom of one, you will totally understand how I feel.

As someone who has failed home economics in school, I can’t make over complicated dishes and neither do I have the patience to. So if I can make this, anyone can!

I attempted different recipes and finally got it right on the third try! My first attempt resulted in a block like meatloaf that resembled spam. (Ya, maybe I can try to recreate gluten free spam when I’m free. lol). The 2nd time, it was kind of overcooked to almost being burnt. You get the picture…

I like this recipe, because it makes use of the meat from the soup bones. The spare ribs that were used for cooking soup usually have very soft and tender meat. I fish them out from the soup and shred the meat from the bones and keep them in the fridge so that I can use them for making pork floss. I always love the idea of reuse, upcycling etc. And it’s fuss free because I use the breadmaker to make it. Yes, you have heard it right… BREADMAKER.

So here goes!

Ingredients for Gluten Free Pork Floss

– 300g meat (I use the shredded meat from spare ribs used in soup)

– 4 Tbsp sugar

– 2 Tbsp fish sauce

– 1 Tbsp gluten free light soy sauce

– 1 Tbsp water

Easy Peasy Method

1. Put everything into the breadmaker. Choose the Jam function. At the beginning of the cycle, use a spatula to push the meat in from the sides of the container so that they get mixed in nicely.

2. For my breadmaker, I need about 1 and a half cycles. After 1 cycle, I restarted a 2nd cycle for 50 mins. My full Jam cycle runs for 1h 25 mins. This timing varies for different brands of breadmaker. Like all kinds of cooking, for the first time, use the taste and sight tests between intervals to see if it’s done. It should look crispy and flaky and taste like the commercial ones.

Recipe for gluten free pork floss

Gluten Free Sourdough Cinnamon Sugar Flatbread

Gluten Free Sourdough Cinnamon Sugar Flatbread

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I came across this recipe on the internet quite a while back. I saved it, meaning to try it out but forgot all about it until recently. The original recipe was heavy on sugar!! One would develop serious diabetes just looking at the amount of sugar in it. So I reduced the amount of sugar by 50% and found it still too sweet for my liking. I further reduce the sugar amount so that I don’t get hyperactive kids after they consume it…. The flatbread got a thumbs up from the kids. Then again, they love anything with even a tinge of sugar in it, with the exception of honey meatballs (they prefer savoury ones).

Feel free to reduce the amount of sugar even further, to your liking.

Ingredients for Gluten Free Sourdough Cinnamon Sugar Flatbread

1st bake

– 1/2-1tbsp veg oil or butter (for brushing on the sheet or tray)

– 2 Tbsp cinnamon (I use ceylon cinnamon. The difference between Cassia and Ceylon Cinnamon)

– 1/4 cup sugar

– 2 cups sourdough starter or discard.

2nd bake

– 2tbsp butter

– 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

– 2 tbsp sugar

Method for Gluten Free Sourdough Cinnamon Sugar Flatbread

1. Preheat oven to 250 deg C

2. Brush oil on baking paper on tray.

3. Mix ingredients for 1st bake. Pour it evenly on the baking tray. Bake for 10 mins.

4. Mix ingredients for 2nd bake. Spread it evenly over the top of the bread.

5. Bake for 7 mins.

6. Rest for 10 mins. Serve.

Gluten Free Sourdough Cinnamon Sugar Flatbread

Other sourdough projects