Zee Avi / KokoKaina

I love her musical style! So jazzy and soothing. A Malaysian with a Youtube success story. Read more about her here.

Enjoy!

The Moroccan Dream

One of my classmates is from Tangier, Morocco, born & bred. She's actually a Berber, and can speak several languages (jeles nya!). Eversince I've known her for 5 years now we have talked about lots of things, especially about our cultures, our homes and our families.

You see, I am an explorer at heart. I love getting to know about all these different cultures and their way of life, especially one that is so foreign from my own. I told her that one of my dreams is to go there for a visit, so that I can see the culture with my very own eyes and experience it, sample their cuisines while breathing the Moroccan air.
Sigh, that would be so lovely, wouldn't it?

Btw, I already have a standing invitation to go there. Tempat tinggal makan minum tak payah nak pikir dah, cuma kena beli sendiri tiket kapalterbang nakgi sana je. Bestnya kalau leh pegi.....


Disclaimer: All the piccas above are not mine. Click at the images to go to the original sites. Thank you.

"What do you mean you cannot drink milk??"

"It's because I have Lactose Intolerance (LI), ok? "

I got asked this a lot. And when I told them why, they automatically assume that I don't drink milk. Actually, it doesn't mean that I cannot take milk at all, in fact I love dairies, but consuming milk or any type of dairy products will eventually cause bloating, flatulence, abdominal cramps, and last but not least, acute diarrhea that could lead to dehydration if proper countermeasures are not taken.

Why me??
Well, thanks to the 1/8 chinese, and the remaining jawa part of me = Genetic predisposition, of course. And plus milk-drinking is never really a Malay culture, isn't it?

When will I have the symptoms??
Whenever I have appeased my cravings for something dairy i.e. milk, yoghurt, cheese, ice-cream.....YUMMM!!

How come??
Basically, we lack the enzyme lactase that breaks down lactose, a form of sugar found in milk & other dairy products. Lactose is a big-moleculed sugar and cannot be absorbed by the small intestinal (ileum) walls.
Therefore;
No lactase --> Lactose passes intact from ileum to colon --> Fermentation of lactose by the normal intestinal bacteria --> Production of a lot of gasses --------> Bloating, Flatulence, Cramps + Diarrhea (by lactose that attracts water into colon)

What to do??
Avoid dairy products (unless they are lactose-free), oral rehydration salt, water, water, water, water, water... + Oral enzyme substitution (never tried this before coz can't seem to get my hands on it yet)

Where??
Check out the prevalence of LI in the world population:

If you are still clueless and don't know what I'm talking about, go watch White Chicks the movie. Pay attention to what happens to one of the agents when he ate cheese. Oh yeah, I soooo know the feeling. Been there done that, sigh....

IMHO, being lactose intolerant ain't fun I tell ya. Especially for a person who loooooves dairy and can't live without them, like moi. And yes, different individuals have different levels and degrees of intolerance. But 'lucky' me, I got stuck with the one-glass-of-milk-will-make-you-have-diarrhea-the-whole-night type of LI. And imagine what would happen if I'd have 1 glass milk+1 slice cheese+1 stick ice-cream, in 1 day. Berkampung kat dalam bilik air ler jawabnya...

A lactose intolerant gal who loves lactose-full dairies. What a bummer, ain't it?

Aching Legs

Went gallivanting around town today:

1. Left home early to go to the Neurosurgery Hospital, but upon reaching there I was told that class was canceled. Haiyaaah... Decided to walk back home and so began the 30 minutes journey up & down the hill back to the house...

2. Reached home, had some snacks, and then went out again for some gift-shopping with Ms JZ to the mall. Went round and round the mall while keeping an eye for the things that we wanted to get and had lunch at the food court there.

3. Left the mall at half past four. Ms JZ went back home while I went to the Paediatrics Hospital (which is just 15 minutes from the mall) on foot, walking uphill, for a garda session with our paeds surgery lecturer.

4. After garda, walked back down the hill with the boys and then walked back home alone...

Mak aih, patut la kaki rasa macam nak tercabut je. Nasib baik pakai sneakers tadi, kalau tak, isk...

And now my feet and legs are aching and it feels like the muscles are being twisted in knots. Can't tell you how much I'm longing for a foot and full body massage now, sigh....


NB: Yeah, I know I'm out of shape. I should be used to walking a lot here, but I guess going up and down the hill was a bit too much for my sleep-deprived body today.
Sungguh lah tak fit nya diriku ini, hmmmmm.....

98 DEGREES & Counting

Remember this?

At the time when boybands were sprouting like poisonous mushrooms everywhere, I've gotta say that 98 Degrees is definitely a class above them all. Unlike other boybands that were assembled by the recording/talent companies, these guys actually had formed a group on their own before getting themselves a manager and signing on with a record label.

I love their voices, how they harmonize and blend their voices with each other. And yes, they sound good live too! In fact, personally them singing live is way better than the recorded stuff. And I could still remember my sister telling me "Sedih kan sebenarnya lirik lagu Invisible Man ni? He likes her but she doesn't notice him. Cian kat dia..."
Ingat lagi tak ezra? ;P

They came to Malaysia a couple of years ago (when I was in college) to perform. At the time I was already a fan, and plus the tickets were very very affordable. Buy 1 cassette you get 1 ticket, buy 1 CD you get 2 tickets! Crazy right? It's as if the tickets were free only. Plus you get to keep the CDs/cassettes some more. Since it was a no brainer I went and bought 1 CD and 1 cassette, finally had gotten myself 3 tickets in total: 1 for me and 2 for my (younger) sisters. Bawak la diorang sekali sebab kesian tak penah gi tgk konsert kat mana2 lagi kan. Kakak mithali, chewah... :D

The showcase was at the Sunway Lagoon amphitheater. All through the show, there were lotsa screaming fans (it was mostly girls, go figure) and they were literally shrieking away when they were not singing along with the boys. Saya pun agak teruja lah jugak masa tu, tapi takleh nak lawan dgn adikku si dokter yg memula malu-malu tapi akhirnya terjerit-jerit keseronokan jugak, hehehe... It was really fun because I got to see and hear 98 Degrees live, watch the antics of fanatic fans, and see that my sisters had fun that night too. Well I've never really asked them how it was for them, but by them screaming their heads off and singing along means that they were having a good time then yeah, they might be. As for me, suffice to say that I had a sore throat that lasted for 2 days, a side effect from the sing-a-long cum shrieking session that night, lol...

98 Degrees didn't get as OTT famous as BSB or N'Sync back then although their sound has quality. Hey, I love BSB and N'Sync too ok. Yeah peeps, I was a boyband fan, huhu. But the truth is I like music for its sound and harmony regardless who performs it and from which genre it is. I can listen to any and all kinds of music EXCEPT for dangdut and house/club. Serious tak boleh layan ah lagu-lagu cenggitu, isk...

Eventhough they haven't split up 98 Degrees are now in a hiatus. I hope they will come out with something new soon because I'm sure their fans can't wait for their reappearance in the music scene (termasuk lah saya rasanya)... ^_^

Paediatrics Surgery Test

.....is tomorrow. If we don't pass this test we won't be allowed to sit for the final exam.

Wish me luck!!

Nb: I love doing garda with our paeds surgery lecturer. He's a hoot, and the surgeries are pretty interesting. Will definitely join him again for the next garda.

The Beriyani Experiment

Out of the blue today I got a hankering for some nasi beriyani. And since I have (almost) all of the ingredients in the kitchen, I attempted to cook it myself. Mind you, I've never tried making it ever, but there's always a first time, isn't it?

So I Google-d some recipes online and finally decided to try out the Beriyani Kurma recipe found on mesra.net resepi webpage with some modifications of my own. Instead of using beef I used chicken breast meat since that's all that is available for me here, and I substituted evaporated milk with yoghurt and I also added a handful of raisins.

The verdict:
It turned out well enough, albeit a l'il bit soggy. My bad in over-estimating the water for the rice (as I usually do, lol!). What's more, I didn't use Basmathi rice (mahal lah) and used another type of long grain rice instead. All in all it was edible (and I think it was kinda tasty too, hehe) although it wasn't visually appealing. But hey, everything's gonna go into my tummy in the end right, so what's the biggie? As a side dish I made some spicy tomato-based acar timun (I used pickled cucumber), and VOILA! Dinner is served. Yummmmm

It's usual for me to cook in abundance and finish it in 2-3 days. Why do I do this? It's because food keeps well here due to the weather but actually the main reasons are pure laziness and no time. This way at least I could have something that is cooked and meaty instead of bread and eggs all the time, oh man...

So, what else to cook next week? I'm craving for fish but the fish here is so not very the fresh. Tuna/sardin dalam tin pulak dah naik harga skang ni. Telur lagi lah nampaknya, hmmmmm

Selamat Hari Buruh

Yup, Labour Day is celebrated here too. It's celebrated globally in fact. Saya baru lah tau ari tu, hehe...

So, it's an off day today. No classes. Cuti, woohooooo!!

But it's Laundry Day for me today lah, sigh...

Oh, and I am currently on a Star Trek Voyager marathon, again. Makes me realize how much I love and miss this show. And Battlestar Galactica. And Stargate SG-1.
Huhu...gimme more please!

Swine Flu - The H1N1 Influenza A Virus

With the outbreak of the H1N1 influenza viral infections in several countries, and also several reported deaths in Mexico and the US, are we going to be facing a global spread anytime soon? Will there be a phenomena like the Spanish flu pandemic in 1918? Is there a reason to panic?

Well, maybe not yet. Although it's not imprudent for us to take extra precaution to prevent further spread of the disease as announced by WHO. For now, we should practice good hygiene (i.e. hand washing, masks), cover your mouth and nose when sneezing/coughing, and avoid public places if you're down with flu to avoid infecting other people. And make sure that you have a healthy immune system, because our immune system plays a vital role in combating viral infections. And no, antibiotics DO NOT work against viral infections and flu. Unless you have a secondary bacterial infection, only then you should be taking antibiotics. This is important because if antibiotics are used too often generally then there will be a bacterial resistance phenomena, which we definitely do not want to happen.

What's interesting is it's the same etiological agent for both the Spanish flu back then and the swine flu now which is the H1N1 influenza virus. Moreover, there were six genes from American swine flu that have been identified; they are a mixture of swine flu, bird flu, and human flu viruses, and it is also a virulent strain. And because of this the WHO has increased their alertness level to level 4 (on a scale of 6) to prevent transmission and a possible pandemic situation.

Should we be scared and paranoid? I don't think so. But it doesn't hurt to err on the side of caution, don't you think?

Prevention is definitely better than cure in this case.

UPDATE: The WHO has advised against the use of the 'Swine flu' term and instead we should be referring it as H1N1 Influenza A Viral Infection.

The Day When The Earth Shook

I've been here for almost 5 years now, and have experienced earthquakes TWICE. Thankfully though, it wasn't the earth-shattering ground-splitting type. It was more of a rumble and shake, thank God...

The first one was on September 27th 2004. It was exactly after 1 month we landed in Romania. At the time I was staying in an apartment on the 6th floor, couldn't really feel the first shake. But when it shook again a few seconds after that, my roommates and I grabbed our passports and jackets and ran downstairs! It was at night, and it was rather eerie coz the streets were filled with people and steam. At the time it felt surreal but we then met up with some of our friends a few blocks away and waited for things to calm down before going back to the house. Cuaklah jugak masa tu, isk...

The second time that I've experienced an earthquake was just yesterday, April 25th 2009. This time around even though the earthquake originated from Romania, we only felt a minor shake. At the time both Ms JZ and me were in the hallway having a lively conversation (i.e.mengumpat session, lol) when we suddenly felt the doors shaking. I was stunned, but thought that I had somehow experienced vertigo (ala-ala nak pitam gitu), while Ms JZ thought that someone had slammed the entrance door downstairs until our doors shook. Well, this was rather an acceptable explanation because we live in the first floor and my room is just above the entrance of the building (memang boleh sekodeng orang kuar masuk from my room's balcony, hehe). But out of curiosity I took a peek out of the kitchen window and saw people running out of the opposite block like as if there was a fire or something. It was only then that it had occured to us that it was an earthquake! Talk about clueless, lol...

So, having had the honour of experiencing 2 earthquakes in my 5 years here, and being the paranoid freak that I am, can anyone blame me for having a pre-packed bag containing several essential items in case of emergencies?

And no Erin, not only expecting mothers have the emergency bag, I do too!!

Yup, confirm. Your friend is a paranoid freak... ^_^