When the cost of Humanity is Prudence

November 30, 2005 at 12:04 am (Uncategorized)

It is a dilemma of personal ethics, compassion and humanity against business management and economic prudence.

A friend lost his business partner through a freak road accident. Overnight, the business lost its business development manager just as the fledgeling company was poised to take off and do really well after two years in the wildnerness.

The ideal candidate to step in his shoes is someone with brilliant credentials but who was also the arch enemy of the deceased. In discussions he had indicated interest in taking over the deceased’s half share of the company.

Understandably the young widow is aghast at the proposition. In fact she happened to be out of a job and is keen on taking over her husband’s old role for herself. Unfortunately she has no knowledge of the software industry and my friend has no confidence in her ability.

So the deceased’s half share in the equity of the company is worth nothing because it is not (currently) profitable even though everyone is taking home a good wage.

Everyone feels tremendous compassion for the young widow and would like to do all they can to soften the blow.

But where do you draw the line when there is a conflict between compassion and economic prudence?

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In pursuit of the whimsical Chiffon

November 29, 2005 at 11:01 pm (Home baked)

Chiffon cake. Angel cake. Texture light as fairy dust, taste subtle and gentle as summer breeze. Chiffon cake is feminine. Woman. Princess.

My earliest memory of chiffon cake is of my dear grandmother’s successful attempt at baking it and inspired by her success, my Ah Sim came over the following week to learn from her. And that was when I learnt that Chiffon cake is notoriously difficult and whimsical. Because when Grandma baked it again to show Ah Sim, horrors, the cake failed to live up to its reputation, much to Grandma’s consternation! Hehe :)

What nostalgia! We were living in our beautiful green-themed terrace house in Taman Mutiara in Cheras then. I was an awkward teenager gripped by the miserable woes of pimple angst, but lemme tell ya, those were some of the best years we had as a family.

Now I just adore eating Pandan chiffon cake. I used to buy them from Suan Sai at his Nana Hot Bake stall at the Central Market but since he stopped selling them, I bought them from the Asian grocery shops instead and found them lacking. Sigh, so now I am left to see where my resourcefulness leads me.

My first Pandan chiffon cake was an absolute disaster. I did not know I had to revert the cake hehehe! And sure enough, the cake collapsed after it cooled. It looked like a deflated balloon, or a new mother’s belly after childbirth (esp after carrying twins :P )

The second time, I used a different recipe from Kuali from which I learnt about reverting. I thought I’d hit the jackpot! “Aha! I’ve nailed it! The secret is the reverting of the cake!

Sigh, speaking of speaking too soon… while it was a definite improvement to the first attempt, it still caved in a little. The structure was not firm enough. Something was still missing. Was it the flour? Was it the under/over beating of the egg white? I had no idea what they meant by “beat until soft peaks form”. Neither did the kids. Each time it was the kids who beat the egg whites. Hehe they just love watching it froth up and go all funny as it goes through all the different stages… foam stage, ribbon stage, soft peak stage, stiff peak stage… errrr… what’s soft peak and stiff peak?

Then yesterday I started surfing through an absolute gem I had recently discovered, Jo’s deli and bakery forum. From there I learnt that I could substitute 2 tablespoons of cornflour for every cup of plain flour, to get “cake flour”. Ding! A bell rang in my head. Yes, that must be the missing link! Oh yeah, and go easy on the beating of the egg whites too.
Putting that hypothesis to the test this afternoon, and using Connie Ang’s recipe, I finally baked a Pandan chiffon cake that looked somewhat respectable though it may look a bit rough at the edges, pun intended hehe.

Here’s the best thing. My disasters tasted just as good. And we had just as much fun. Life indeed is a journey :P

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Spaghetti carbonara, Oriental style

November 27, 2005 at 6:16 pm (Home cooked)

I have never been a fan of carbonara in the cafes because I find it too rich for my taste. But when I saw May’s Spicy No-Cream Carbonara I threw my reservations aside because this is one with a difference. This one is de-creamed and Orientalized hehe. Besides, I had previously tried cooking spaghetti marinara by the same author and it was a resounding success. So yeah, I am a repeat customer lol.

I have modified the original recipe slightly by adding basil, chicken stock powder and diced kabana and sprinkled some parmesan cheese before serving. The kabana gave the pasta a lovely smokey flavour. It turned out really delicious.

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5 star medical center from heaven

November 26, 2005 at 9:19 pm (A day in a sunburned country)

In Asia, ‘village’ is synonymous with poverty and dilapidation. Here in the West, it carries connotations of quaint olde worlde rustic charm. It is in fact fashionable to add ‘village’ to names of shopping centers and local places.

So 5 mins away we have trendy Burnside Village, a shopping center frequented by the fashionable and well heeled. On our doorsteps, we have a small shopping precinct called Norwood Village. Way up North, we have Golden Grove Village.

A short walk up the road on The Parade, there used to stand an old building with a very dated 1970s facade which housed Centrelink, dept of social welfare. It has since been completely revamped and is now home to a glitzy ritzy spanking new medical center, aptly named Norwood Village medical and dental center.

This morning, taking Christopher to the GP, I had my first glimpse of the new medical center just 5 mins walk from home. My, was I impressed! It was better than walking into a 5 star hotel lobby hehehe. It is just two weeks old and a stunner. I tell ya, compared to other doctors’ waiting rooms, this blew me away. Have a lookee…..

Awww, ok, so maybe I was exaggerating. But this is one doctor’s rooms with a difference because

  • it is open 365 days a year
  • it bulk bills (that means it is FREE…..the ONLY medical center to do so in this part of town)
  • it has LOOOONNGG opening hours 7am – 10pm weekdays and 8am-10pm weekends (unheard of in Oz)
  • 5 star service from reception staff
  • no waiting times for GP cos we were the only patients this morning at 9.30 am
  • X ray is FREE, within the same medical centre, and no waiting for this either :)
  • the 6 GPs there have an average experience of some 29 years, the minimum had 10 years of practice and listen to this, two of them have FRACP in Pediatrics, no less !!!

OMG, what else can one ask for? This is one medical centre that fell out of Heaven !

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When Santa came to town

November 26, 2005 at 5:30 pm (A day in a sunburned country)

I awoke this morning to a Norwood gaily decked out in Christmas cheer and festivity as Pageant Day dawned.


Adelaide Highland Band

The streets outside our home were lined with children and Mums and Dads and doting grandparents. Neighbours poured out of their homes with stools to sit and watch the procession under a cool November sky.

As Scottish bagpipe music floated into our windows, we came out and enjoyed the colourful scene.

A village atmosphere was in the air as everyone recognized and cheered on friends and famiy in the pageant floats of local schools, community clubs and village shops.

I waved and smiled at a couple of friends, Wendy and Mei, in the Falun Gong float dressed in spectacular Chinese costumes.

The kids recognized kids they knew in the Rose Park Primary float and their former school Pembroke. All around us, people were waving and smiling and greetings of Merry Christmas filled the air. Traditionally, the Pageant Princess float preceded Santa’s float, and in it were seated four beautiful, regal little Princesses all in row.

A big cheer erupted amongst the crowd with the biggest and grandest of all the floats, the Father Christmas float with a very merry Santa seated on top. In all that gear he must be very thankful we have a very mild and cool Summer day today.

Our pageant is nowhere as grand as the Credit Union Christmas Pageant in the city. Our floats are modest buggies, utes and trucks dressed up by Mums and Dads and the kids chipping in.

But we do not have to brave thick crowds 5 heads deep for just a glimpse and peep at majestically fitted out floats. We do not have to wake at dawn to stake out a precious spot and wait under the sun for hours for the pageant to begin.

What we have is our very own home grown pageant, a magnificent show made possible with home made efforts from our own people. It is that personal touch that adds to the family village feel that even the grandeur of the city pageant cannot emulate.

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Nguyen and Australian druggies abroad

November 25, 2005 at 11:42 pm (In the news)

Suddenly it seems the news is full of Australians caught trafficking drugs in neighbouring Asian countries. First was Schapelle Corby in Bali, then some Asian-Australian man in Vietnam, then Michelle Leslie in Bali again, now Nguyen in Singapore.

When the Corby case first came to light, Australia erupted in a frenzy. On the day of her court verdict, Australians at home and at work sat glued to the TV which ran a live telecast. It was like the Melbourne Cup race stretched over half a day. Feelings ran high. 9 out of 10 Australians I spoke to thought she was innocent. In the midst of that, some of us observed wryly that somehow, Australians of Asian ancestry in the same plight overseas did not quite receive as much attention.

Van Nguyen’s death penalty in Singapore is therefore an eye opener. There is a lot more publicity than I would have expected. Unlike Corby, this case did not quite touch the same chord with the people because Nguyen is a self confessed trafficker, all of 400g of heroin.

Nevertheless, what this case demonstrates, as have all the others, is that Australians are extremely protective of their own, like a mother hen guarding her young. Regardless of the severity of the crime committed, what matters to them is that one of their own is in serious trouble away from home. When it happens to one of their own, they would do all they can to try to bring him home. Just as a mother would always support her child in need, no matter how wrong he had been. You cannot reason with a mother’s heart.

My heart goes out to the condemned man’s mother, Kim. In the precious few days leading up to the scheduled execution on Dec 2, she is allowed only 1 hour each day with her son and even then, cannot hug or touch him because of the security glass barrier. Totally heart wrenching.

I am reminded of a similar case when Australians Brian Chambers and Kevin Barlow were hanged in Kuala Lumpur in 1986 for trafficking just 145 grams of heroin. I had been in Australia then for all of 3 years and was absolutely indignant at the condescenscion of remarks about Malaysia’s barbaric system of justice. This time round, my once hardline views have softened, gradually sliding to the left unnoticed. Perhaps it is the outcome of years in a kinder, gentler and more forgiving society. Or the mellowing experience of Motherhood.

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Hot dog buns

November 25, 2005 at 9:19 pm (Home baked)

Saturday mornings often find us on our weekly Asian grocery shopping trip at the Central Market. The highlight of this for the kids would be Nana Hot Bake’s hot dog buns, baked by a retired ex-colleague turned baker, ever affable Suan Sai and his wife.

My sister is famous for her hot dog buns. Our family shall never forget the time when my 9 year old niece, Tiffany, scorned those bought from KL’s bakeries, proudly proclaiming to the whole wide world, “I only like eating those that Mummy bakes.”

So, I’ve had a mind to try my hand at this for a long time, and tonight I did. Boy, did I have fun ! There is something oh so homely and fuzzy wuzzy about home baked bread rolls, isn’t it?


My hot dog buns

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