The Lent has arrived!

And guess what? I did not have any idea that yesterday was the Ash Wednesday. I skipped the mass, and I bought enjoyed KFC for dinner. And felt guilty about it. Catholics tend to feel guilty about things.

As a result, I made a compromise to really abstain from something this year (usually it fails). I used to abstain from meat, but since 2 years ago, I decided that it’s just too easy to abstain from meat (no need for self-control whatsoever)

So maybe I told Him that I shall try to abstain from shopping unnecessary stuffs. Which is too heavy a cross to carry, honestly, although it will do a good fix on my leaking bank account.

But of course, it’s best to start from the simpler stuff. What about abstaining from excessive daily internet consumption? Oh no, I can’t abstain from internet. And it’s very difficult to define ‘excessive’.

Let me try abstaining from snacks. Another impossible thing to do, lol. Anyway, I have been snacking on yoghurt, which is rather healthy, so there’s no point abstaining from something that benefits my body.

I really can’t decide. But one thing for sure, I can’t even abstain from meat now because, hm well, I’ve turned carnivorous since the beginning of the year (it’s all chicken and chicken and chicken). And it’s very difficult to find a substitute for meat here. The hostel caterer does not usually serve fish (and even if fish is served, I can’t even stand the sight of it, let alone eat it), which I eat as a substitute to meat.

OH HELP ME!!!

Inflation is damaging my health

I’ve always thought that it’s expensive to be healthy. A trip to nearby supermarket today only confirm that thought. I planned to stock up food in my room since school is starting again soon, and I won’t have that much time to go to supermarket during schooldays. So I thought I should opt for healthier choice instead of transfats-stuffed chips. But guess what, my favorite Red Globe grapes are more expensive by $2. So I look for longan, less healthy choice, but it’s also more expensive by $1 per punnet. ARGGH. Maybe I should buy apples, but all the apples there are such a sore sight. Urgh. So I ended up buying nothing (although the relatively cheap $3 Ruffles was definitely tempting, but wow, I didn’t buy it).

School starts again tomorrow!!! I don’t want to face my exam results!!!

The wonder (and curse) of a small town

Ah, I’ve been wanting to write about this a long, long time ago. You see, I came from a small town passed by the equator line on the third biggest island in the world. Only the town is small, by the way, everything else is big. We dream big, we have big house on a big land, even our mouths are big. That brings me to the first curse of a small town: everybody knows everybody, and words travel fast. My parents practically recognise at least one person on the obituaries on the newspaper everyday (oh-kay, so that’s a rather gloomy example). And when you do something wrong, the WHOLE town, believe me, the WHOLE town knows it (a little bit of hyperbole won’t hurt here). I’m reminded of that song “Secret” by The Pierces: …coz two can keep a secret if one of them is dead… Yeah, I guess that applies to people of my town.

Ever heard of this saying “You can take a girl out of a small town, but you can’t take a small town out of a girl” or sooomeeething along that line? Well, I think it’s true. You can’t really change the small-town ambition to prosper and to wander everywhere to achieve the Big City Dreams (another favorite song of mine by NeverShoutNever!). Well, this is the wonder of a small town in my opinion.

Another curse of a small town, I guess this applies to people of my town only, their greetings when they see you, is not hi-great-to-see-you or hello-how-are-you, but more of “Hi, how stuck-up you are for not contacting me” Oh-kay, so they mean it in a friendly way, but it’s getting irritating. Come on, if you’re dying to contact me to the point that I become a no-good stuck-up loser once you see me, why didn’t you contact me first?

Finally, the wonder of my lovely small town is the FOOD. Duh. Even after many generations of those who have migrated to other places, they will still retain their food culture and they will always come back to my town for the food! As one of the folksongs of my town muses “Once you drink the water of Kapuas River (that’s the famous river in my province, now you can guess where I’m from ), you’ll never forget this place” And you the excellent food vendors in my town have also run for generations. There’s something called the rich-people noodles vendor which apparently closes most of the time, so you’re really lucky if you get to eat the noodles, or something called the cock-and-hen kway teow because the vendor is run by this lovey-dovey old couple (if I’m not wrong, one of them has passed away recently, that’s so sad), and there is the forever-waiting noodles, coz it just takes forever for the vendor to cook the noodles but many people love them anyway (I LOVE THEM TOO!). Here’s a picture of one of my favorite dish, called “yam mee” which is definitely very yummy

OHHHH, my eyes have grown misty. I wanna go hoommeeee, let me go homeeee….

Art of Ruining a Mango Part II

I bought a mango again!!! One for $0.77 hoho! And now, I got a very sweet one *sobs* I’m so happy that by the time I finish cutting the mango, nothing is left. Haha, greedy me!

Bad news: my cutting skills obviously need some refining. I tried the tips on WikiHow, and it really doesn’t work. I should have cut it like how I saw my parents cut it, that’s how I did it last week, and believe me, it works much better.

But oh well, it’s all about eating (I’m still HUNGRY!!!)

Feeding your hair

This is another random post (I have nothing much to post these days, exam is coming and I’m feeling dull these days).

I’m dying for healthy hair. I have curly hair, which is dry (so it’s not nice), and I think I’ll be a ravishing beauty if only my hair is smoother, shinier and more manageable, hehe… Anyway, so I googled ‘healthy hair’ and I got this:

Top 10 Foods for Healthy Hair: salmon, dark green vegetables, beans, nuts, poultry, eggs, whole grains, oysters, low-fat dairy products, carrots

What I eat everyday: dark green vegetables, poultry (chicken!!), eggs, and low-fat Anlene

Does it work? I don’t know, how long should I wait for the results?

A hungry bolstalova is an angry bolstalova

I want my Ruffles!!!! ROARRR!!!

Anyway, I have this new disease since July. How should I put it? Well, I’m constantly hungry.

Go on, laugh all you want. But I’m really, terribly, pathetically hungry even at this very moment. Problem is, I have three complete meals everyday, and snacks in between! I even have supper, fgs! I’m so very hungry that I have troubles falling asleep (refer to Things that Keep Me Awake At Night)

Possible explanations for my persistent hunger:

- I’m growing up. Sure, I’m growing some 3-4cm of fats layer (don’t take this too seriously, it’s a hyperbole )

- I have diabetes. Probably…

- I have some meanie creatures inside my stomach waiting to be fed. Ew. Science fiction meets bad horror.

- I don’t get enough nutrients. I like this one best.

So, over the weekend I bought some food supplies to ensure I have something to chomp whenever I’m hungry (I should jog more!!!). And one thing that I’ve been craving for is MANGO!!

Problem is, I’ve never cut a mango in my entire life. Take a look at my cute little mango just before the extreme makeover:

And here’s one after the extreme makeover (a really extreme one):

And it’s not even sweet.

ROARRRR. I was even hungrier and I got gastric pain. Sobs.

Ruffles and I

I chanced upon this article on time.com: 9 Kid Foods to Avoid

I had a very bad feeling, I wouldn’t want to find my beloved Ruffles Cheddar on the list. But curiousity conquered, I clicked the Next button each time with my heart pounding. Number 7 on the list, no Ruffles. Number 8 on the list, still no Ruffles. And finally, the last on the list…still no Ruffles.

MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I shouldn’t feel bad about chomping down those potato chips “with ridges” after all! It’s not on the list of food kids should avoid. Let me celebrate with a pack of Ruffles then

But, wait. I realise something.

All the food listed by time.com appear to have claimed that they have various health benefits (which were rejected by time.com). And you know what, Ruffles or any Frito Lay’s product have never boasted about healthy benefits (like for example: “Ruffles Cheddar! Now fats free!” or “Nothing satisfy your vitamin needs like Dorritos”), so it’s perfectly understandable that they won’t be put on the list. After all, who are not aware of the high fats amount per serving in those delectable bags of chips?

Frankly, I have been detaching myself from Ruffles quite successfully, but whenever moody-blues (that’s my idiolect, let’s call it bolstalovan, for mood swings) kick in, I succumb to Ruffles. Or Mr Potato. Or Chachos. Or Dorritos. Or Cheetos. Or any cheesy, salty chips in vicinity.

http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1824402_1824398,00.html

Things that stir up my very special memories

I have a very good memory of what happened in the past, complete with all the sensation and the graphic details. I seriously think I might get a serious case of forgetfulness when I grow older, coz my memory is stuffed with all these things in the past.

Boiled prawn reminds me of this terrible nightmare about my mom turning into a prawn queen ^^; I was having this tiring nap in my hot bedroom, and I remembered crawling under the cupboard to hide from the prawn queen. I was in primary 1 then.

Yo Te Amo (song by Chayane and F4) reminds me of a street to my tuition place in my hometown . I was in junior high school then. One day, I saw a full rainbow (that is, full half circle) at the end of the street. That was the first time I saw such a beautiful rainbow. The song also reminds me of quick dinner inside the white Honda sedan (KB 291) because my tuition started at 6pm.

Love of My Life (song by Queen) and Stay (song by Chris Cayzer) are both wonderful break-up songs, LOL! They remind me of my silliness and total lack of maturity then, and contrary to the past, they make me laugh now. (I know, how can I possibly laugh to Freddie’s heart-wrenching song!)

The smell of the Multipurpose Hall in my junior college reminds me of the smell of the impossible Physics paper.

Spaghetti reminds me of sleepovers at my childhood best friend’s house, about playing organ in her house and playing SimCity (the very first version) and Aladdin games on her computer, and the swing at her backyard, and her ballet dancer neighbour, and her car, and going to English tuition together. And of course, eating homemade spaghetti cooked by her mom.

A song album Car Stereo (with red cover picturing a red sedan) reminds me of this long road to a peaceful town 3-hour-drive from my hometown. It reminds me of the hilly roads to Bethesda (a leprosy treatment centre) and of a narrow road surrounded by sea. It reminds me of a porcelain pottery centre. And a long, long road with paddy fields on the sides. Aw, it’s making me sentimental now. Anyway, the album is always in my papa’s car dashboard and my mama pointed out to me and my sisters on how the songs in this album will make us cry when both my parents pass away in the future.

Quein Sera (song by Trio Los Panchos) reminds me of lazy holiday and waking up late on a quiet morning. It reminds me of my old house, and of my bolsta of course (tee-hee).

Every Morning (song by Sugar Ray) and Stay The Same (song by Joey McIntyre) remind me of a terribly fierce teacher and my first love <3 I was in primary 4 then.

I realise songs are very powerful in helping us reminiscing our past. I have a longer list to share, but I can’t remember now. One thing for sure, in the future, KFC’s Zinger and the Taiwanese Shihlin Chicken will be among things that remind me of the present

How to gain 3kg* in 3 days –a meal plan a la bolstalova

Day 1

Breakfast: A bowl of Koko Krunch in Milo and a chocolate bread (made in Malaysia)

Brunch: A pack of Oreo

Lunch: Yong tao foo, with the following ingredients: beehoon, chicken, japanese tofu, veggie, sausage, and shrimp tofu and soya bean drinks and a piece of pineapple

Tea time: Get a bag of Cheetos at 7/11 and finish half of it

Dinner: Rice, veggie, chicken wings, tofu and watermelon

Pre-supper: Finish the other half of Cheetos bag

Supper: Cookie Crispie in Milo

 

Day 2

Breakfast: Milo and peanut butter bread (made in Malaysia)

Brunch: Lychees

Lunch: Hokkien prawn noodles with soya bean milk and rock melon

Tea time: Hokkaido ice cream (strawberry and blueberry) and that cheesy-meaty-wrap thing from 7/11

Dinner: rice, veggie, pork in soy sauce (much better than the steroid filled chicken) and egg tofu and papaya

Supper: Honey Star in Milo

 

Day 3

Breakfast: Milo and red bean bread (made in Singapore)

Brunch: Box burger

Lunch: Malay dish –rice, fish covered with chilli sauce, potato cutlet, veggie and some gravy with coconut oil, soya bean drink, pineapple

Tea time: Lasagna

Dinner: Shihlin Crispy Chicken and some Mexican Red Globe Grapes

Pre-supper: Mr Potato Cheese (half the tube)

Supper: Corn flakes in Milo

 

Author is not responsible for any potential stomach upset and/or possible depression over extreme weight gain.

* Full 3kg is not guaranteed. Increase the size of the meal for maximum satisfaction.

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