Bookshopping

Yes!!! Finally I decided to stock up my To-Be –Read books. HAHA. I was in a depression mode since I missed the Big Bad Wolf booksale. I was determined to do some bookshopping soon before i ran out of money.

Yesterday I was looking at BookXcess facebook page and saw that they had  new books for March. So immediately I looked up some of the books in goodreads and determined which books I wanted to buy. I usually spend a good deal of time just choosing books I want to buy.

Usually I would take my sweet time browsing through every book that caught my attention, but today I had my mom with me. I know if there is someone with me I cannot take more than one hour to select my books. So I read up on synopsis of all the books that was new for the month of March to save time.

When I got there, I wanted i picked up the books I wanted quickly and for the other two additional books I did a on-the-location random book browsing. I mean where the fun in pre-determineing which book you want to buy. And even that took so long that my mom was rushing me in the end. I realised then that we were in the store for almost 2 hours plus.

So these are the books I bought and I cannot wait to read them all. I am currently reading two books. So it might take awhile before I finally get to read any of these books. 

MOO COW @ The Gardens Midvalley

I decided to do a separate post because the Thai review was very long.

So after walking out of Absolute Thai with our lips burning and slight tummy ache, we were both craving for something cooling. I was picturing a cold glass of milk when I eyes saw a cow from the corner of my eyes. Yes a cow in the mall LOL

Well Moo Cow actually serve frozen yogurt but hey milk …… yogurt ……..same difference right ? So I practically dragged my sis to the counter. We were both full from our lunch but really my body was shouting for something to cool down the spicy food. So we decided to share a cone.

A plain yogurt in a cone is RM6.90, but if you want to try their additional flavors which is Kiwi or Blueberry then its RM7.90. So, I decided to go for Blueberry yogurt.

Visual Observation: 8+/10

While waiting for the dude to make my cone, I had this notion that it was going to be a small cone that could vanish in about two bites. But when he hand me the cone, I was like ‘OMG-its huge’. I mean there is a good helping of good yogurt. The sharp pointy tip is missing from my picture because I couldn't resist a bite as soon as I had it in my hand. Sorry >.<

Taste evaluation: 8+/10

It tasted soooo good. I might be exaggerating a little bit, but that is probably because my numb mouth was begging for something to cool it down.  For me I did not think the yogurt was too sweet, I think it tasted just right. Some might feel like the taste is overwhelming, but I love yogurt and lassi drinks, so I love anything yogurt.

The yogurt’s texture is just like a well frozen ice cream. The cone was crispy and it tasted good. I loved it.

Reminder, please do not over do your toppings selections. It may ruin the taste of the yogurt.

Overall Conclusion: I will definitely try other flavors and this is going to be one of my favorite healthy snacking. Must try for all yogurt lovers.

Additional: No service charge and No government tax. 

Absolute Thai @ The Gardens Midvalley

After a crowded morning at MCTF’14 (Malaysia’s Career and Training Fair) at Midvalley convention hall, my sister and I decided to go for a late lunch. We had to push our way though the very narrow path in between the company booths just to get around. So many humans …..humans everywhere. Suddenly I had this weird thought, what if there is a zombie outbreak …………how in the world are we to run away if there is so many people to push your way through. Worse yet how can you tell which person is infected, which one got bitten and which one is gonna bash you in the head just to safe themselves…………….omg creepy thought !!! GASP!!!!

OK!!!! Let’s move on from that crazy thought.

So after leaving the MCTF, we decided to head straight to The Gardens for late lunch and we decided on Thai food.

Before I continue let me just clarify that despite being Indian, both my sis and I cannot handle spicy food. I am terrible with spicy food. Coughing, running nose, teary eyes, constant jerking of my head to the side, to ease the tingling sensation in my ears. Yes I’m an ugly sight to behold.

So why did we choose Thai? First off it was affordable and second I was rather hungry and I wanted something heavy and ……..ricey. So we decided to avoid Tom yam to safe us from any embarrassment.

Ambiance: 8/10

I loved it. I mean it does not really portray Thailand theme, but it has very unique and indifference feel to it. It is decorated in a modern classic Thailand theme. It does not touch all about Thai typical theme, rather it has a mixture of both here and there.

I like this painting very much. It looks beautiful, until you notice just how anorexic they actually look.   They remind me of Thailand’s well known creepy and horror movie’s beautiful ghostly girls. J

Starter: Money Bags (RM9.90)

Visual Observation: 5/10

It looks neat, nothing sloppy. Up close the money bags looks like they are soft. But really they are far from it.

Taste evaluation: 5/10

There isn’t much to say here. Was it crispy? Yes very. I liked it but not going to say it has any significant detail or taste that I would highlight. Taste good. Although in my opinion I thought the green beans used was rather dry and tasteless.

Beverages: Chinese Tea (hot – pot serving)  (RM5)

Visual Observation : 6/10

Taste evaluation: 5/10

I love the tiny tea saucer set. So cute! I suddenly had the urge to speak in an English accent LOL. The tea was quite light, I mean unlike the Chinese tea you get at the hawkers, the color of the tea is much lighter and the taste is not so strong. Not saying I don’t like it, but it did go well with our spicy food.

Main Dish: Phad Thai Prawn (RM19.90)

Visual Observation: 5/10

I just wanted to point out that my phad thai did not look like how it was represented in the menu book. So when the food arrived I thought the waiter got me the wrong order. But putting aside that matter, it was served elegantly. I think it looks neat without any smudges on the plate.  

Taste evaluation: 6+/10

The noodle tasted good, I had phad thai before, and I think the taste is much richer here. I think the sweet and tangy taste balances each other out and I think it tasted rather nice. Also I did not mix the dried chili flakes, because I did not want to choke on the spiciness.  I think the noodle itself had a touch of spiciness to it or it could be because I am sensitive to spicy food. Anyhow the noodle was good on its own, no additional condiments needed to boost the taste.

If you mix your noodles with the crushed peanuts, it gives you a little crunch when you eat your soft noodles. Although I wished they had put some chopped chicken meat in there rather than a lot of tofu.

BBQ Chicken with Sticky Rice (RM20.90)

Visual Observation: 7+/10

You get to choose to eat your meal with either coconut rice or sticky rice.

It looks plentiful visually, chicken portion was big and it looks delicious. The salad looks healthy and very Thai like.

Taste evaluation: 6+/10

My sis ordered this dish, so I am going to put her comments in here.

The chicken was slightly salty, but it goes well with the sticky rice and salad. The chicken was cooked thoroughly and was easy to eat. I am guessing they marinated the chicken with some salty sauce and was slow cooked. The chicken was not tender, the outer part is mildly dry but the meat is still juicy. Perfect!!

Sticky rice was warm but my sis had hard time trying to pry the rice out of the tiny dumpling basket. The rice was hard to the touch. Not sure this is how sticky rice is generally served. Taste wise nothing to point out about.

The salad was a big surprise, we were tricked into thinking it was tangy. My sister had a good spoonful of the salad only to start coughing. Thank god it was not so bad or else everyone would have seen our ugly spicy face LOL. We both had a tiny bit and avoid any second helping. I’m sorry it was too spicy for us. The tangy sauce was just shockingly spicy that my lips had burning sensation throughout the lunch.

If you can take the heat, then mixture of the sticky rice, chicken and the spicy salad would have been a great mix.

Overall conclusion: Not bad – will try again.

I think it was unfair to say that the Thai food has burned us. We are both overly sensitive to spicy food. I would absolutely try other dishes. Looking around the restaurant,  I saw many people order variety of awesome food. I would definitely comeback to try other dishes but this time with someone who enjoys spicy food.

Additional: 10% service charge + 6% government tax. 

Long time coming

I’m sorry for not updating my blog lately, I promise load of things got in the way of my time spend writing for this blog. Then again I don’t think anyone cares LOL.

So I’ve officially changed job. I know this thought about moving to a new job has been haunting my thoughts every minutes of the day. I swear it. I guess the desperate time came when I realize that my team was going to go through the same problematic cycle for the 5^th time and I just did not want to be part of it anymore.

Ever since my best SME left, I feel quite detached. Trust me I love what I do, in fact I can swear that I learn a lot from it. But truth be told, I don’t think I can handle other unwanted issues that come with this job. It was time to leave after almost 80% of my existing team had gone away or moved to a different team. I just lost my motivation to continue. I assure you that if I stayed this long, meaning I tried my best and when it came to a point where I just don’t feel “useful” in a team anymore, and that my contribution is not going to make any difference or that any of my ‘request’ is not taken into consideration. I think that is the best time for me to move on.

New job equals to new challenges. Yes it’s very different from what I used to do. This does not demotivate me nor does it make sluggish. It does make me nervous (a whole lot) but the eagerness to learn is clearly there. One week of not getting the whole ‘idea’ of how to do this new job was rather intensifying for my anxiety. To a point I think I have truly disturbed some of my friends at their work. I’m sorry you guys!!!! I just needed some comfort and cheering up. So, I apologies for one week of uncontrollable whining from me. Truly sorry about that. 

My top 10 Bad Book Habits

Ah sweet sweet guilty pleasure that comes with reading a book. I’m sure every bookworm have this problem. And of course I’m no different. But I notice a lot of them tend to be ashamed of this bad habits. I on the other hand think this is one way to define me. Does that even make sense? LOL

1.       I snap at people

Yes it’s true, I snap at people who interrupt me when I’m reading a book. Usually when I’m reading, I like to be left alone, so I usually lock myself in the room or sit away from people. It’s my way of telling people I’m in my zone don’t disturb me or I’ll bite.  So when you see me in that zone, it’s a big NO NO for you to nudge me, call my name or try to grab my book. If I’m in public place I put on my earphones and pretend to listen to song while I read my book.  I also hate it when my phone vibrates nonstop when I’m reading. I snap at it too.

2.       I have to finish a chapter

I have to finish a chapter before I put the book away and do something else. It’s very rare for me to stop halfway in the middle. If I really have to, for instance having to chase a train. I can, but the moment I find a seat I will finish the whole chapter before checking to see if I have all my belongings. 

If I'm at home and reading at night, I’ll be like “um one more chapter” and an hour later “just one more chapter” and this keeps going on until its 3.30am and I am frantically trying to get to bed. And I wake up at 5am. Yes ….stupid I know!

3.       I MUST have my books back

When I borrow my books, I’m very particular to whom I give them to. If they share their book collection with me, I know for sure they have the same fear of not getting the books back in a good condition. That way I know my books are in good hands. If you borrow my books, you are borrowing my babies, please remember to give them back. I really take care of my books. It’s my OCD, I can’t help it. I get edgy if the books gone missing for more than 4 months. Same goes to books I borrow, I will ensure I return them back even if I don’t get to finish the other book.

4.       I have to reread some pages

I don’t know if you have this habit. I mean you read a whole chapter and when you get to next chapter, you’re like “Wait, what the?” your mind goes completely blank and you can’t understand what you are reading. I always do that, this happens a lot in public places because I’m constantly getting distracted over people talking and loud noises. I hate that, because I have to read it so many times.

5.       Flip ahead to check

Before you shoot me, yes I do that, but only to check if my favourite character’s name is still around in the latter chapters. When I spot it, I quickly go back to reading. It’s just sometimes I can’t help it. I don’t read ahead or read the last chapter or anything bad like that. I usually just search for the character’s name I adore. HAHAHA Bite me!!

6.       Buying random books (not really a bad habit)

When it comes to book shopping, I tend to buy books purely base on the synopsis. I don’t really have a specific title I look for, unless of course I spot my favourite author then yes I will get them. When I go to a bookstore or a book sale, I just pick random books with interesting synopsis. Very rarely look up books I want to buy or prepare a list. I just free pick. I believe there are many authors whose stories are great but are not very well published and it gets trampled by famous authors that keeps getting recognition over and over again. I swear I read so many unknown authors and I love it.

So why is it bad? Because sometimes 8 out of 10 books are really bad and that makes me horribly sad.  

7.       Must finish

Yes, it’s a thing. I must finish my books. No matter how bad the writing is. It’s like some sort of unavoidable obligation to all the books I’ve bought. I’ve read some books that was so bad I wanted to throw the books across the room and scream. But I kept reading, as long as it takes. The moment I finish it, I lash out my frustration in goodreads.

8.       Must carry a book at all time!

This is something I always done. I carry a book or a reading material at all time. I even throw in a small book for my vacation, even if I know I won’t have time to read it. I always carry one, and I also carry a second book when I about to finish my first. So basically you can always find me with at least one book in my bag.

9.       Bookshop, Book sale or Book Thrifting

These places are a curse. I just have to walk in a bookshop if I happened to spot one. I feel agitated if I can’t make it to a booksale, especially if it sells books dirt cheap. I can’t help it. I’m so addicted, when I walk in the mall and happen to spot a bookshop, I will march right in there (I also drag anyone who is with me at that time). I may not get anything, but I just have to walk in. I don’t know why. Even if it’s a magazine shop I will still stride it. This tend to irritate my friends and family a lot.

10.   Must use bookmark!!

If you borrow my book and you do a dog ear on my pages. God help me before I do something to you. Use a bookmark, it’s a must! I don’t care if you don’t have one. You can use your ATM card or a pen or even your hair. Please use a bookmark. I hate when people place their opened book facing down! Like people!!! It damages the spine and it leaves an awful aftermath gap in your books. I hate THAT! Why why !!!

Clubbing @ Havana Bar & Grill

This is probably one of my very rarest post you will ever find in this blog. LOL

This is my first ever clubbing experience. I only ever had “clubbing” at home or at someone’s party. Never a real clubbing experience with shit loads of strangers, in a bar or club.

Around 11pm, eight of us left the Renaissance Hotel and headed for a night of clubbing. We took a cab from the hotel to Changkat, Bukit Bintang. The cab charged us RM8 (probably the best you can get for a short distance ride in KL). Right after we got off, the first thing that caught my eyes is amount of foreigners walking about. I thought for a moment that the taxi driver drove us to New York or something. When I say a lot I mean I hardly see locals around LOL.

We waited for the other four to turn up and then we headed straight for Havana, the place was packed with foreigners (from all around the world, I dare say) and a handful of locals. People were dining and enjoying each other’s company. You know it felt like the two floors is filled with different sets of people. The ground floor calm and dining. Upstairs is naughty and loud.

 So of course we headed upstairs, the narrow staircase was rather hard to see in the dimmed area and please be mindful of where you are walking because there are people walking up and down, some even hangout at the narrow stairs (like seriously).

I mean don’t go stepping on to some poor dude’s hands with your killer heels.

I admit I was kinda disappointed (at least a tiny bit), I had this impression that the club would look something like from The Mindy Project show. Where Mindy walks in and have mesmerised moment until the bouncer asked her to get over it LOL. But no it was just a regular bar and very crammed. Maybe, because there are a lot of people around trying to dance and drink and smoke and something censored. But really it was difficult to move about.

So we got our first drink (tequila shot RM15) at the balcony bar. There were some place to seat at the balcony and chill out or take a break for a bit before you get back to your twerking. The balcony overlooks another bar “ciccio pasticcio” and other bar along the streets.

We headed back into the crowd of people dancing at the stage. It was cute to see people doing all kinda silly dance. The DJ was right at the stage corner, which is a shame because it takes a lot of space and limits people movements to dance. I knocked my arm a few times while dancing. And seriously the song selection was pretty lame at times.  

Here is some tips about dancing with your girlfriends

Dance in a group (circular), if you do not want strangers barging in or unwanted drunk making a pass at you. I notice this technique is very safe as you have eyes (your friends including) to watch your back for perverts and of course CNN-ing which cutie is checking you out. Also it’s always nice to dance in a group of girls while we make silly faces and tease each other.

There is nothing much to say besides having the time of my life “cuci-ing mata” and dancing with my gals. I decided not to take any pictures because the dancing stage was packed with people and I don’t want to drop my phone and break it. But I do regret for not taking any while we took our shots.  

It was 2.30am by the time we left. It was a great experience but it got me wondering if this is how club/clubbing looks/feels like? Or there are other better clubs around that I missed.

http://havanakl.com/

Ratings:

Place: 4/10

Environment: 5/10

People (cuties and hotties): 9/10

Price: Moderate

Overall: 5/10 (was not bad, not awesome but not bad)

Life thoughts and Coffee updates

Being the coffee lover I am, I can’t resist a coffee temptations especially if offers good gourmet coffee for a good price.  I’m not saying just because I love coffee I will only drink all the fancy and branded coffees. I love trying any coffee really, even Mamak’s coffee also I don’t mind. As long as I’m feeling good and satisfied.

So what is my January favourite beverage? Any coffee from PRONTO.  If you have been following my blog, you may have notice I’ve visited Pronto quite often last month. Even though I complained about their cup size, I suddenly find myself not bothered by it. Honestly I’ve been too willing to get a good cuppa coffee from them anytime. It’s because of the friendly and helpful barista.

Seriously people, there is a reason why people who work with customers’ needs to learn how  to be polite and friendly. Because believe it or not, it’s a very big turn off for customers to want to buy something for you when you keep giving them the cold shoulder all the time. This goes for the lady at the GJS (Bangsar South), gosh lady learn how to smile and be patient. Because of you, a lot of times people tend to not want to get anything whenever you are at the counter!!!

Collecting coffee go-cups and splash sticks

I know, most of my likings are mostly or somewhat closely related to coffee. Hence my blog name.

So when I say go-cups, I’m actually referring to paper cups. Not the personal stainless steel go cups. Ok, I know this is going to sound weird beyond anything. But I honestly adore cute coffee go-cups. Even if it’s not fancy looking, I’ll still keep it.

It’s like this. If I drank a coffee and I enjoyed every sip of it. I will keep the paper go cup. It’s like some sort of a souvenir to remind myself of the good times. Is that weird? I even collect the splash sticks. You know those plastic coffee stirrers that is plugged into the hole of a go cup lids. Those are so cute, you can recycle them into a bookmark J

Also am I the only one always staring at coffee mugs at a big grocery stores? Like actually stand there and admire the coffee cups designs and shapes.

 Um no? Just me? Ok ok ………MOVING ON !!

Death in Paradise

If you don’t know what show this is, you sir, are LAME! (Talking to you my Maine snowman). Like seriously, I adore this show so much. I love a good detective show anytime especially if it has Sherlock Holmes theme to it. I actually discovered this show by accident. The thing is, I’ve always prefer watching British show rather than American, and since the latter is more widely advertised, I have to google for British shows. So one day I was just browsing through the internet, and walla !!!!

If you like Ben Miller, then you will enjoy this show. I loved it from the first episode itself. Season 3 was already aired starting January, but I was late on catching up.  Didn’t bother to read any updates for this season, and decided to just go ahead and watch the first episode, last night.

And boy was I in for a shock!!!

******Spoiler ALERT******

Detective Inspector Richard Poole (Ben Miller) dies in the first episode of season 3! I was like NOOOOOOOOOOO it can’t be, no way!! I was half expecting him to jump up and say “ah hah, I knew it was you!! Murderer!” But he didn't, he stayed dead and a new Detective Humphrey Goodman (Kris Marshall) came to replace him. I was disappointed that Ben will not be in the show. Mostly because the show started with him, I mean he was the MAIN character.

But as I watched Kris, I thought he played the detective rather well. I mean Humphrey is everything Richard is not. He is a complete opposite to him. And I liked it. Very refreshing actually.

First time I've watched Kris on screen, he played a young horny English guy who travels to America to get chics (Love Actually). In that movie, I thought he was rather annoying and he does have the “ugly duckling” look. He also had the “forever-extra-characters-in-movies” stamped on his forehead (yes I know I sound harsh). But the older version of him in this show suits the eccentric DI just fine. I was impressed, I mean he still have that dorky look, but really it works for him. I actually find him amusing.

You know how it is, about main characters being replaced, it puts a damped on the show, and viewers such as myself sometimes accept this sudden changes and sometimes we don’t.

If you have watched Misfits (also a Brit show) the first and second season that is, I was so hooked. But in season 3 everything changed, all the 5 main characters got replaced, some didn't even turn up in the show. I was severely disappointed with the new cast. I didn't bother to continue after the second episode. I think that show will eventually fail. I hope DIP will stay on, because despite killing off DI Richard, the whole theme and plotting style has not, it still have that “umph” that I've always liked in the show.  For that sake, I really hope DIP will continue on for another 4 more seasons.