AU REVOIR

French Kiss by Huebucket

I wish you bluebirds in the spring

To give your heart a song to sing

And then a kiss, but more than this

I wish you love

FRESHLY BAKED

Nothing beats the smell of fresh bread in the morning.  

Last night, I made the dough and placed it in the fridge for the final proof.  

I got out of bed at around 7:30 this morning to do the baking but Mum sent me on an errand.  Before I headed out, I removed the pan (with the already shaped dough) from the fridge and set it on the dining table to thaw.

Shoved the pan inside a pre-heated 200 degrees C oven at around 8:30AM.  

Got to eat hot, buttery homemade tear-apart butter buns before 9.  How cool is that?

Mum says she really likes the flavour.  Not surprising because the low temperature slows down the fermentation process, increasing the flavour of bread.   Here's how the science is explained in Cook's Illustrated:

Yeast left out at room temperature consumes sugars and leavens the batter rapidly. But then it’s spent; it stops producing not just gas but also compounds that give bread flavor. At cool temperatures, yeast produces carbon dioxide more slowly, so refrigerating the batter allows yeast to leaven at a slow and steady pace, providing more time for a more complex-tasting combination of flavor compounds to develop. The net result? A more flavorful dough.

Bread dough: 250 grams Casarine flour, 1 packet (5 grams) Shirakami Kodama Koubo, 25 grams caster sugar, 2.5 grams salt, 110 grams milk, 70 grams water, 25 grams butter

Filling: 45 grams butter (5 grams x 9)

Check chillicrabkitchen out on Instagram!

SEEING DAD AFTER CIRCUIT BREAKER

Finally saw Dad this afternoon!  No one in the family hasn’t seen him in person since the first week of April due to Covid-19. The Nursing Home introduced very strict new rules: 

o Dad is in Ward 3 (an odd number) so we can see him once a week on either Monday, Wednesday or Friday. 

o Visits are by appointment only. We get to choose from 3 time slots in a day. 

o Only 1 visitor is allowed per visit. The visitor has to be pre-registered in the Home’s database. This means only either Mum or I can visit. The rest of the family will have to wait until further notice. 

o Each visit cannot last more than 30 minutes. 

o Visitors are not allowed to bring wet foods into the ward. 

Today, I wasn’t allowed to stroll into the recreation area as per normal. Instead, Dad and I were placed a metre away from the front door. Two “X”s were marked on the floor, a metre apart. I sat in a chair on one “X”, Dad in his wheelchair on the other “X”. 

Dad was excited to see me, “I’m very comforted to see my youngest daughter!” I said, “I’m your only daughter!” For some reason, Dad burst into tears. I leaned over and managed to clutch his fingers. He calmed down right away. 

Then came an outpour questions: “Why did you set my bank passbook on fire?” "Everyone gets to eat dinner at 3:30pm.  Only I eat at 5:30pm.  Why is that?"

And for finale: “Why does your mother walk around without her pants on?  She is an embarrassment.”

SEEING CLEARLY

 The things that I've discovered after my cataract surgeries are:

1. All colours are richer and more vivid.

2. The pigmentation on my skin is worse than I thought!

3. My black backpack is actually quite dusty!

CATARACT SURGERY II

Had cataract surgery performed on my left eye this morning.  Unlike the last one, I was awake throughout the entire procedure today.  It wasn't scary at all but I'm glad it's all over for both my eyes.  Hurray for ultra HD vision!

I've been relying on my friend and coworker, Donna, to help me out with work while I'm on medical leave.  She is holding the fort marvellously.  Truly cannot ask for a more fantastic colleague.  

Gotta rest my eye.  See you back here in a few days.

CATARACT SURGERY I

During a Team Lunch at the start of 2020, everyone took turns to share their New Year’s Resolution. When it came to my turn, I announced, “I’ve spent a great deal of time taking care of other people - both in my job and my personal life. This year I want to take care of myself.” 

At that point, I had signed up for gym membership and had already completed 8 sessions with a personal trainer. The next thing I did was started the process of having cataract surgery done. My right eye was in bad shape. Surgery was originally scheduled for the Apr 21 but postponed to Jun 9 due to Covid-19.

When I went in for pre-op assessment on the morning Mar 19, my blood pressure reading was 140/xx (cannot remember the lower number). The nurse said gently that it would be good if we can bring the upper number down to 130. I tried to relax and the reading reluctantly snailed to 138, then 135. 

I’d be crazy to let a set digits hold me back from surgery so I went on a diet. On the morning of the surgery, the reading was 128/xx. Still couldn’t figure out the lower number ‘cos I wasn’t wearing my glasses. The two nurses who had been staring intently at the monitor cried out in unison, “VERY GOOD!” and I mentally petted myself on the back. 

A day before surgery, I told Krishnan, “I suppose they’ll need to clamp my right eye open throughout the 20-min surgery. The question is: Do I keep my left eye open, or close?” I needn’t have been concerned because I was given a sedative “to calm down” and I ended up being asleep the entire time. 

Am looking forward to set a date to have surgery on my left eye so I can have UHD vision!

TODAY'S SKIES

End of Circuit Breaker.  It's been a beautiful day.

A YEAR OLDER

My boss sent me the most gorgeous bouquet today!  Happy birthday to me.

THE BEST WAY TO SAY IT 2020

Always exciting to hear the doorbell and be presented with gifts, especially during WFH days.  I'm not big on flowers and I don't even own a vase but a bouquet at 9:30am is a welcomed surprise.

It is very sweet of the folks in HR to remember this important day.  All bubble tea shops are closed during the Circuit Breaker so Joycelyn sent Miss Bubble Tea along with the bouquet.  简直甜死我了 :)

A FRIEND TO REMEMBER

After Tammy passed away, her collection of quirky fabrics went to Cindy, who commissioned an adorable patchwork bunny for me.  Something to remember Tammy by, she said.  Thanks so much, Cindy!  Tammy would have loved the idea.

ALL IS OK WITH THE WORLD

COVID-19 brings fear, anxiety, uncertainty and disruption but with a batch of muffins in the oven all is OK with the world.

Chocolate chip and candied orange peel make great combination.  I've now used up the all the Ghirardelli chocolate chips from my fridge!

CIRCUIT BREAKER

Today, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong addressed the nation to say that the government is introducing new 'circuit breaker' measures in order to slow the community spread of Covid-19. This means that we must stay at home and leave only for essential services.

At least there's still food.

IN LOVING MEMORY

Tammy passed away in the early morning of Christmas Day, after losing battle with cancer. I think about her often.    

I miss her most when I’m baking lemon yogurt cake because we once baked one together in my home.  

Coming across persimmons, dried figs and whole grain mustard at the supermarket reminds me how much she loved them.  Eating hor fun and lor mee reminds me how much she detested thick gravies.  “Like mucus!” she’d declare.   Lamb chops, sashimi, cold soba, naan and bbq stingray will now forever hold a special place in my heart. When a friend mentioned a bagel shop in Novena recently, Tammy sprung to mind immediately.  But we won't be able to eat together anymore!

Tammy and I travelled together several times. She would take a flight out from Hong Kong, and I would choose a flight that lands at around the same time so we can meet at the airport. 

Here we are in Jim Thompson House, Bangkok. The top I'm wearing in the photo is something I bought while we were in Melaka.

Having a jolly great time with pelicans at The Entrance, NSW, Australia.

And then, of course, there’s Taiwan.  It was Tammy who introduced me to beautiful Taipei in 2009 and I’ve fallen in love with it since. During that first trip, we shopped for shoes in Shingkong Mitsukoshi and went absolutely crazy.  I bought 6 pairs!  (I think she bought 8!!) I’ve revisited the city by myself a number of times since but I never bought that many pairs of shoes again.  Shoe fitting just isn’t that much fun without Tammy. (Might I add that she was a very encouraging friend.)

It was also through Tammy that I got to know her two amazing friends - Anna Chin and Anna Au.  I'm proud to say that our friendship is still intact after so many years.

Tammy was very talented in sewing. When she was Singapore last I took her to shop for fabrics in Chinatown. I chose this fabric myself. 

Tammy turned it into a lovely drawstring bag and added the matching accessories.   

Tammy tried to keep her illness from me until Cindy phoned me.  It was Cindy who reached out and pulled me to Hong Kong just in time and I’ll be forever grateful to her for it. 

On December 12th we celebrated Tammy’s 55th birthday in the hospital.  On December 25th early morning, Tammy passed away with her family by her side. 

Cindy and I chose this birthday cake because its name was "HOPE". 

Last night I had switched off my bedroom lights and crawled into bed before realising that my mobile phone screen was still lit up.  If Tammy was in the room with me, she would’ve nagged me out of bed to turn it off.  My mind then drifted to the time I was in Hong Kong and Tammy cooked a super delicious pasta with clams. Having food on one’s mind doesn’t really help at bedtime because I woke up this morning craving for pasta.  And then I suddenly got downright pissed off at Tammy for dying.

I still keep the letters and cards that Tammy, Cindy and Anna (Chin) sent to me years ago - long before we had email.

Memories are meant to be cherished forever.  I'd like to think that Tammy is now an angel and is keeping a watchful eye over us.

SMALL BUT DEFINITELY HAPPINESS

Small but Definite Happiness (小确幸) can be as simple as making only four muffins. :-)

Sally gave me 2 packets of Japanese pancake mix some time ago.  I checked on them yesterday and found them close to expiry.  Used to make muffins.

The muffin ingredients are simple - butter, 2 eggs, 80 ml milk, 160 grams pancake mix and a handful of dried fruits.  Just mix everything together into a lumpy batter.  Bake 220 degrees C for 18 minutes.

I firmly believe that a muffin that rises well is a good muffin.  These babies are destined for greatness.