Moving On

I'm currently working on a new blog since this blog is reaching 400 posts...I figured it's time for a change.

Here's a sneak peek.

Wanderlust

I never thought I'd love traveling so much - but I really do.

I used to be really attached to home - my bed, my pillow, my towels, my chair, etc. - but I really enjoy traveling.

Here's a list of where I'd like to go:

1. Athens, Greece.
I read The Island by Victoria Hislop. It's a really sad story about the island of Spinalonga, off the coast of Crete which used to be leper colony ages ago. I'd really like to see Greece and its many islands, but not during Summer. I'm not a big fan of the sun and getting sunburnt despite coming from a sunny country.

2. San Francisco, USA.
My boyfriend goes to San Francisco at least once a year for work. He avoids talking about the good stuff there because he doesn't want to make me feel sad.. but sometimes he drops subtle hints about how much fun it is to be in SF and I'd really like to see it myself. The nice thing about USA is the variety I think. There are so many options - for everything. That's one thing I wish there was more in Oslo - more choices for restaurants, shops, entertainment, etc. It will get there, I'm sure. Someday :)

3. New York, USA.
I probably won't be able to shop in New York as I cannot justify splurging on branded goods. Blame it on my bargain shopper genes :) But, I'd love to walk around Manhattan and see Central Park, eat some good food, and enjoy the Big Apple. I'd like to see Autumn in New York too!

4. Spain
I read a lot of blog posts on people's trips to Spain and I am green with envy :) I'd really like to go to Spain and gorge on tapas, churros, but no Sangria. I don't drink, so Sangria is wasted on me. I hear shopping in Barcelona is really fun too.

5. Paris
I have never been to France. My mom and younger sister went there without me and I was quite bummed out about it...so I really want to go to Paris. Just 1 photograph with the Eiffel Tower and I will feel better I think.

What about you? Where'd you like to go? :)

Life Changes...

..and sometimes not exactly how you'd like it to be, I guess.

This is a work related post, sorry if it's boring :/

I'm a bit dumbfounded how to get along with people at work.

I used to work at a really cool software firm where people were mostly my age or just at a similar stage of life as I was - single, free, still figuring out a lot of things about life, etc. It was really easy to talk to these colleagues as I just knew what to say. We talked about movies, music, we had dinner together, made gender-based jokes :) I used to think I was fun and cool at that point - and it helps with the self esteem when people want to hang out with you. You get invites to their parties, to see their new homes, etc.

Now I work with a lot of people who are married or in serious relationships, with kids and such so I have less to talk to them about. What makes it worse is that I don't speak Norwegian - or enough Norwegian for day to day conversations. I only know enough to order food and do online banking with.

It really gets to me some days. Because I'm not really good friends with my former colleagues either - as we have less in common now - I don't work with them anymore and they're mostly guys who aren't really all that big in keeping in touch.

So yeah, I'm a bit down about this... I feel like I'm starting again - except this time I have a boyfriend who still works where I used to work.

It's amazing how a job and company can define your life - and it's even more amazing how when that is gone - you find yourself lost, confused, and trying to stay afloat.

I'll never let a job define my life like that again...once bitten, twice shy.

Please Let It Happen

I'm really hoping to travel this November in exchange for a laidback, lazy summer in Norway. I might go to Bergen - this beautiful city in Norway. I haven't been there yet despite living in Norway for awhile... it's actually pretty embarrassing :) The boyfriend's parents will be visiting in July, so they'll be going there. Me? I'm not sure as it might result in having to take unpaid vacation. My current workload is quite scary and I'm trying really hard not to get stressed otherwise my skin is going to go haywire :/ Taking days off during busy periods might not be a good idea.

I also have to go on a business trip in September. I did try to worm out of it because it involves having to present stuff about the company's products - and I really don't think that's what I want to do but on the bright side, it is good for the CV - so might have to grin and bear it ;)

This blog is getting dry and boring, no? I should take more photographs and write more structured posts rather than my usual brain-dumps :) I can't help it. I have so many thoughts that my mind is so noisy sometimes.

I hope you guys are having a good week...

I'm so looking forward to the weekend. Going to go to the gym, and also try to cook a new dish. Haven't decided on what yet.

P/s - Cas! My Mom sent me the cucur pisang mix as well as a huge packet of gula melaka. Thanks for the tip on the pisang mix ;)

Losing Friends and Going Grey

This time next week, I would have lost 4 friends - two couple friends to be exact. It sucks big time and I know they have very different reasons... but it still feels like you're being dumped. It's nothing personal whatsoever and the mind knows that, but the heart refuses to listen.

Sigh. I'm lousy at being friends with girls. Most my friends used to be guys but since I started working in a very male dominated field, I actually yearn for female friends. It's just way more fun to discuss fashion, movies, and hair :)

Oh well, friends come and go I guess.

On a more sad note, I have grey hair. Found two strands in the span of two months. Time to contemplate hair dye :/

It's Just Food...

That's what I tell myself every time I crave Malaysian food. Having lived away from home for the past 5 years or so.. I would be lying if I said I didn't crave Malaysian food. My mother is a housewife and she cooks wonderful dishes such that friends and family usually cater from her for small functions, etc.

The food that I cook is not even 1/10th near what she makes. Ironically I always wanted McDonald's, Ramlee burger, Black pepper fried rice, chappatis with lentil curry, etc. when I lived at home. I was not keen to eat home food. Now that I live away from home, I dream of the dishes she cooks. For example, there's this lamb parcel she used to make (little pieces of lamb cooked in a curry and then baked in small foil packets). In Oslo, supermarkets don't sell lamb. The only way to get it is to go to a butcher - something I don't really prioritize because they close at 6pm weekdays, but I probably should.

Sigh, butter prawns, fish curry (my fish curry is not as thick as the one my mom makes), fried beehoon (only managed to make that recently, and it's edible but doesn't taste like my mom's at all), etc. I'm such a foodie. In fact, that's how I started hanging out with the boyfriend. We used to cook together because he likes Indian food (way more than me) and you can't get South Indian food here easily.

You know, the wonderful part about living in Malaysia is that you can get food anywhere, anytime, any type ... you just take it for granted. Recently I was thinking about soup noodles - you know that Japanese type? My Mom doesn't make Japanese food, but my point is that it is so easy to get it in Malaysia right? Any Japanese restaurant would have like 5 different kinds of soups with udon noodles or soba noodles. But guess what? I haven't found any Japanese restaurant in Oslo with dishes like these.

So, I thought 'How hard can it be? I'll make it!'

I found a wonderful recipe here. This is what my dish looked like:



It's actually really easy to make this dish. Once you marinate the chicken and put it into the oven, the rest is really quick. I made extra chicken and refrigerated it.. then boiled new soup + noodles the next day for a second meal.

I should probably go to the _one_ Japanese grocery shop in Oslo to stock up on Japanese cooking stuff.

I Want More..

from Tamil movies.

I've been watching Indian (Tamil + Hindi) movies for decades now and I have to say, Tamil movies lately are a bit disappointing. No, not all of them, there are still some good ones that I have watched - but some of them really leave you feeling a bit silly for having watched the movie.

There's this formula that they have for some Tamil movies these days:

1. Hero is either a cop or a one man army.
2. Hero comes across baddie when he least expects it and gets into baddie's bad books.
3. The war begins with baddie and hero trying to outdo each other.
4. [Insert parallel romance storyline here]
5. Hero wins baddie and they live happily ever after.

Now this formula has been going on for at least 20 movies so far - and I am so tired of this. I wish people will make better movies and stop using this formula. I'm sure there are a lot of filmmakers out there with better ideas, right?

Disclaimer: This is just my personal opinion. I'm no movie critic, but I do watch a lot of movies :)

Chili Prawn Linguine

No, this blog is definitely not turning into a food blog - otherwise I'm going to be eating way too much :)

I just figured I'll share what I cook more often since I keep taking recipes from other people - time to give back.

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This is a really quick recipe, I got it from the Internet a long time ago. Can't really remember which site now. Serves 2 very hungry people ;)

Ingredients:

Prawns, approximately 500 grams
About 200 grams of linguine (I usually estimate half a packet)
Zest of half a lemon (according to taste)
1 or 2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2-3 red chillies sliced (according to taste)
Salt, pepper, and parsley (according to taste)
Garnish with grated Parmesan (optional)

Method:

Boil linguine according to instructions on the packet.
In a separate frying pan, heat olive oil and fry garlic.
When the garlic is fragrant, add in prawns.
As the prawns start to go opaque and curl in, stir in chili slices for a minute or two. (Prawns cook very quickly so you'll have to watch closely.)
Once the prawns are done, switch off the stove.
Stir in the lemon rind.
Toss with linguine.
Season with salt, pepper, and parsley.
Top with grated Parmesan.