Baby Xavier vs Mini Godzilla (GTR)

Mummy had always been terrified of cockroach and so she wants me to teach Xavier how to catch them. This is so she have two men protecting her from the evil pest. And so, I began Xavier's training today. First mission, to catch the mini Godzilla (Q-Steer GTR).



Xavier shows keen reflexes and I am sure he would be able to catch a real cockroach when he sees one. The next stage of training would be how not to put the mini Godzilla in his mouth when he catches it.

Remembering Michael Jackson...

I'm sure by now the whole world have already known the King of Pop have left us (on Thursday 25 Jun 09) to join the King.

Being the man who revolutionise music video to the way we see it today, inventing dance moves that many try to learn and imitate, and creating songs that soars the billboard charts, its hard to believe he is suddenly gone. Lilian said that although she is not a fan of MJ, she is still sad he is gone. I guess the fact that no prior public news or stories hinting to this ending were available has made his departure even harder to accept.

So what did MJ mean to me? He was my first music idol, that for sure. I still remember my mum bought me my very first cassette tape from a music stall at Midpoint Orchard. It was MJ's 'Bad' album. And my parents bought me to my very first paid concert at National Stadium and it was MJ's 1993 Dangerous Tour. I have also, like many, tried to learn his Moonwalk dance move but unlike other, it looked more like the zombie walking in his Thriller MV.

Rest in Peace Michael, we love you!

Baby Xavier "Zidane"

Mummy has been telling me the new skills Xavier has learned and one of those that astonishes me is his "ball juggling" skill. I sense a soccer protege in the making.



Anyway Xavier is winning all of Mummy's attention and affection, making Daddy feeling left out. I thinking I better go get some Wilkinson blades to give myself a clean shave to win back Mummy's love. Check out the video below.

Britain got Transformer?

Transformer: Revenge of the Fallen opens today in Singapore. I wouldn't call myself a Transformer fan but I grew up watching their cartoon so they have a place in my heart. I would really want to watch this movie so I gonna find a way to deposit Xavier somewhere so I can go watch it with Lilian.

Anyway the newspaper coverage on the movie opening sort of remain me of Diversity's performance at the final of Britains Got Talent 2009. I know many of you have watched it already but a number of you might not have so I decided to put it on today's post.

All we need is a little imagination and a strong will to make it a reality, miracles can really happen. Enjoy.

Sharing is Sexy?

I was surfing around other blogs and I notice many of them had those little cute icons at in the end of their post that enables readers to promote the post in one of the those sites like digg or stumbleupon. So I began to Google on how to do it.

Came across a pretty cool one which I'm trying out on my blog now. Its the "Sharing is Sexy" plug-in for Wordpress that was done by eight7teen. Google further and you would find the instruction on how to add it to Blogger by Naeemnur.

I might fine tune it abit later but it will do for now. Or I might just get sick of it and look for something more simple like Sociable, yet another cool plug-in for Wordpress. For those of you who like to try simulating Sociable on Blogger, can try out the instruction by Forest.

Nasi Lemak @ Amoy Street Food Centre

Insing.com's ad says "if it isn't from Chong Pang it won't do!". Well, I have not tried the Chong Pang Nasi Lemak yet. So where do I get my Nasi Lemak fix from? The friendly stall at Amoy Street Food Centre.

I call the Nasi Lemak stall here my "happy food" stall and this is where I usually have my lunch every last workday of the week. The thought of walking from ORQ (One Raffles Quay) to Amoy Street in the blazing hot weather right about noon will put off many people, but for this Nasi Lemak, I'll DO IT!

So what makes this Nasi Lemak so special? The crispy skin of the chicken wing together with the juicy tender chicken meat underneath the skin is your answer. The fragrance from the coconut milk coated rice is very addictive, so much so that I always find myself finishing every bit of it.

The Ikan Bilis with peanut is also a must have. In fact, the little containers of the Ikan Bilis and peanut which can be bought seperately are hot sellers. They are just so crunchy and tasty. The chilli complements the rest of the Nasi Lemak items well.

The light yellow item you see on my plate is the fried sliced fish. You could also choose the other ingredients like luncheon meat, fish cake, otah, ngoh hiang, fish and white cabbage. Chicken drumstick are usually limited quantity.

While the Nasi Lemak is great, the weekday lunchtime queue is crazy. So crazy that if I forsee I would reach the stall after 11.30am, I would rather not queue for it. Below you can see the queue for the stall at 11.45am on a Friday afternoon. Taken on my hp camera, the queue actually stretch beyond the photo on the left, almost towards to stairs.

When you have a very long queue, there can be two reason. One, the food you are buying need long preparation time or the staff is slow. Two, the food is really good and many people are queueing for it. Its the case of the second reason for this stall. And do not be surprise if the people standing in front of you orders 10 or 20 packets (I have encountered so many times). Saturday would be a better time if you want to try out the stall.

7 Maxwell Road
#02-81, Amoy Street Food Centre
Singapore 069111
Tel: 6224 0839

Opens Mon - Sat Lunch.
Queue starts from 11.30am on weekdays

Happy Father's Day: Xavier <3 Daddy

I came back home on Friday in a state of happiness (after the Kazu Sumi-Yaki dinner, helped by the two glasses of Asahi) only to find something that made my heart melt. A card the shape of a car "made" by Xavier wishing me a Happy Father's Day.

The card had his little finger paintings on it. Things like this make me feel that all the pee and poo he sabotage me with and all the sleepless nights he gave me were all worth it. Hurray to fatherhood!

Xavier trying to eat the very card he made me.

Kazu Sumi-Yaki Restaurant

Today's posting is on my favourite "no hold-back, eat all you can and talk about the bill later" cozy meat-lovers paradise. I have been craving to eat here for four months, as the last time I came was with Eric just before Xavier was born. This was suppose to be Rick's very belated birthday treat (since he was busy with his own wedding before).

Anyway, Rick and Zhen was late (as usual, :P) so I got myself a Asahi and started on the cabbage and miso paste.
The cabbage drip in miso paste taste great by itself. Fresh, crunchy and so addictive, I finished all my miso and half my Asahi before Rick and Zhen finally came. Excited like a small boy with lollipop, I started to order the usuals as well as some new items from the menu. The first round of orders went like: cheese pork sausage, fatty pork with apple, quail egg, foie gras, large lamb chop, chicken ball, chicken wings, chicken skin, potato puree (baked mashed potato with foie gras butter) and prime pork belly.

This is Cheese Pork Sausage. Marry it with the seeded mustard (behind). Cheese oozing out of the juicy sausage made Rick's eyes open up (like those participants at those food variety show).

From left to right: Fatty Pork with Apple, Chicken Ball and Quail Egg. Good things comes in double.

Rick made a new friend call Foie Gras. Done to perfection, it just melts right in your mouth. You could see the Foie Gras own "oil" dripping above. Cautious, eat too much and a visit to the doctor would be next (for cholesterol check).

One lamb chop each, no need to fight over it. Grilled just right and lightly salted, the chops taste so juicy yet tender.

Johnson came just in time for the second round of orders. Above is his Cha Soba, complete with the quail egg that is usually only available in good Japanese restaurants. And the gang was up for somemore orders: enoki mushroom wrapped with bacon, prime pork with eggplant and miso paste, avocados and more US and AUS wagyu beef. We were even playing "guess where the wagyu beef is from" as it came togther on 1 plate.

Having space only for desert left, we decided to order all the four flavours (different flavours are available on different days) of the "Snow drop" deserts: Caremal with Pomelo, Banana with Pomelo, Mango with Pomelo and Salty Chocolate with Pomelo. Its bascially ice-cream of the above flavours, wrapped in a soft "muah chee" skin. From what we understand, there are even people who came to eat here just for this desert. Below is a closer look at it. So pretty, it looked almost like an art.

After 50 items (including drinks), all of us left happy and satisfied. Quote from Rick: "This is not one of the best Japanese restauarant I have been to, its THE best." While I wouldn't say its the best, but its definitely my favourite. The photo below are the sticks from the items we have eaten. Remember to call and book in advance or you will probably be disappointed as the place is hugely popular and always packed. Rick did suspect the skinny, petite lady sitting on the table beside us is Stephanie Sun. We didn't approach her though.

5 Koek Rd
#04-05 Cuppage Plaza
Singapore 228796
Tel: 67342492

Dinner only, for opening hours, call to confirm.

Xavier's Wonderland by Jason

Hi guys, check out Xavier's blog. This is done up my brother Jason. Thanks bro.

Basically its a blog with more photos and less words. And a few funny captions by Jason.

Not So Great Grapes

What's in my fridge today? No it's not endless wall of Heineken beer. Its the Kyoho grapes I badly missed. I been to Japan for holiday twice and I am dying to go again. I love the food, the babes and the Kyoho grapes.

If you been to Japan, you would have find their grape-flavoured gums and chewy sweets taste so different. It is high chance the sweets or gums are made from Kyoho grapes.

These big purple grapes has a very unique texture to it. The center of the grapes taste almost jelly-like and its so sweet that I feel like I could get drunk from eating too much of it. Yesterday I found them being sold at a "reasonable" price in a fresh fruit shop in Chevron House. On closer look, its actually Kyoho grapes from Taiwan, hence the price of SGD9.90 for that pack.

In fact, they do see the Kyoho grapes imported from Japan. The "lower" grade ones are SGD19.90 a bunch and the "premium" boxed grade is SGD75.00 per box. Feeling cheapo yesterday, i decided to buy the Taiwan Kyoho grapes to try. The verdict? Its close, but no cigar.

The center jelly-like portion is not jelly-like enough and the skin is pretty bitter (compared to those I had in Japan). Next time, gonna buy the Japan imported grapes to try and will post my verdict again.

Photography Books for Enthusiastic Beginners

A close friend of mine has recently took the leap into the world of DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) cameras. I too started not long ago, just before CNY (chinese new year) this year. My main reason was to take memorable photos of Xavier.

DSLR made it possible with a number of reasons. First, I am able to take photos in low lighting situations without the use of flash (for fear the flash will damage the fragile young eyes of newborns). Second, the larger sensor of DSLR enables the use of higher ISO without the noise level of compacts (again to enable capturing low light shots). Third, the faster "continuous shot" or "burst" mode enables me to increase the hit rate of successful shots.

Anyway today I want to introduce some photography places where you can find a wealth of information to give you a good start to take control of the exposure you are making.

First off is the library. I am now a frequent visitor to the NLB (National Library Board Singapore) as they have a sea of photography books, some fairly new too. The other service I like is you can borrow from one library branch and return the books to any branch convenient to you. Plus, you can search the catalogue at the comfort of your home then head to the branch which has the book available or simply place a reservation (for a small fee). You can look for the following titles:

• Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson
• Understanding Shutter Speed by Bryan Peterson
• Learning to See Creatively by Bryan Peterson
• The Digital Photography Book 1 & 2 by Scott Kelby
• The Moment It Clicks by Joe McNally

I have read the first 4 books above and bought the 5th but yet to read it yet. I have been a big fan of Bryan Peterson even since I read his "Understanding Exposure". In fact after reading the 3 books of his listed above, I felt it reinforces what was taught during the basic photography course I went to at Objectifs. The three books also have great pictures to illustrate.

The two books by Scott Kelby uses another writing style. It "talks" to you like your photography buddy standing next to you, telling you what settings to get that shot, rather than bored you with the techniques and jargons.

I believe the book by Joe McNally follows similar style to Scott Kelby but will let you know once I read it.

That's all for now. I will add on more books as and when I find good ones. I will also talk about the other avenues and websites where you can get more information in my later blog posts. Anyway, if you are in Singapore, the definite forum to look for information about photography is definitely Clubsnap. Have fun shooting...

Edited on 22 June 09: I'm halfway thru Joe McNally's book and I must say I love it so far. But its probably easier to understand what he is talking about after knowing your camera and playing with the setting and shootings heaps. The book offers shooting tips from Joe McNally. Basically its not really a beginners book but a great read nonetheless.

Adrenaline Rush Friday

Rick call me on Friday afternoon asking excitedly if I received his SMS earlier. Apparently, he got to drive a Porsche Boxster for a day due to a Maybank credit card promotion. So he wondered if I was free to check it out.

We arranged for dinner at Jerry's BBQ and Grill at Jalan Kayu. But somehow the food wasn't as great as had expected (hence not posting any pictures). Maybe we were just too hungry. After dinner, we drove to a quiet new road near my place for some photo session. As I didn't have a tripod, I ask Rick to park the Porsche under one of the street lamps to light up the car. But I did the newbie error of shooting with flash but without the orange gel (I should get some of these soon). So my photos came out white lighting the subjects with the mix of amber from the street lamp. No amount of Photoshop magic can save this. Hence I decided to use black and white to "cover up" my error.

Above is one of the shots of Rick giving Xavier a tour of his ride. Rick gamely gave myself and Lilian a ride (taking turns since its a 2 seater and someone needs to take care of Xavier). I must say its a pretty comfortable ride and it has a pretty good pull when you floor it. And of course the feel-good factor of driving a Porsche with its top down. Thanks for the experience Rick!

Red Ass Xavier

Just realise this morning Xavier has nappy rash. Damn, what are those "teachers" at the infant care doing?

Sent in less than 1 week kena cough and phlegm, then 2 weeks later nappy rash. Then the medication for the phlegm has side effects of diarrhea. Haiz, poor kid...

Xavier and his 1st Mac visit

I don't know how MacDonald's generate such strong appeal to kids. Its just incredible. Xavier love it so much he even wants to eat the Apple Pie box. ^^

The longest I ever waited to see a doctor...

Little Xavier hasn't been feeling well since the weekend started on Friday. Sun night was the worse as he woke up twice in the night crying like the sky has fallen.

Putting him to sleep with us, I found he seem to have blocked nose. And I pity that little fellow trying to use his mouth to suck for milk and breathe at the same time (try sucking a can of coke with a straw and breathe thru your mouth at the same time). And he seem to have quite a bit of phlegm too judging from his deep humming sound when he breathes.

So after going to work in a zombie state on Monday, we decided to bring him to see his PD (pediatrician) at The Kid's Clinic. They take walk-in patients on Monday evening from 6.30pm onwards. Having reach there at 7pm, we were told the wait would be four hours. FOUR HOURS! Does that mean 11pm?

Well we didn't wait there of course. We went back home, do our stuff and head out at 10.15pm when they called us to say "three more patient then it's Xavier's turn". And true enough by the time Xavier is out of the doctor's room, its 11pm.

I'm not that upset since its quite near our place and we could go back home to do our stuff. And the PD is really good. But it got me thinking what if Xavier was really really sick? I guess KK A&E would be my other option.

Tiong Bahru Wanton Mee

This is my favourite Wanton Mee stall. In fact, it serves the BEST Char Siew in my (humble) opinion. Doing this blog on a Sunday morning before breakfast is making me so hungry. This stall is so popular that the queue for this stall is usually long by 11:45am when the lunch time crowd from the CBD area eats.

The wanton mee comes in two sizes, $2.50 and $3.50. What I usually order is the $3.50 with Kway Teow (not a noodle person). What does the upsize give you? More Kway Teow, more Char Siew, additional Wu Xiang and Fried Dumpling.

Back to the highlight, the Char Siew. Marinated and grilled to perfection, the char siew has just the right texture and are usually lean. Those that love their char siew with the charred burnt edges would be delighted. You can see the colour of the Char Siew, so rich and inviting, unlike those of other wanton mee stalls which are usually pale red and almost pink. The sauce for the wanton mee is also specially created by Desmond, the stall owner.

The stall also served Jing Du Pork Ribs Noodles, Shredded Chicken Noodle and Dumpling Noodle/Soup. The Pork Ribs, a mix of tender meat and soft bones layered with the pork fats, is also a devil on its own. For the ultimate experience, add that to your upsized wanton mee and you would not be sorry. Warning though, it might be too much for you if your stomach is not a bottomless pit like mine.

50 Market Street #02-32 Golden Shoe Carpark Singapore 048940

Mon-Fri: Full Day
Sat: Half Day
Sun/PH: Closed

Hotel Chocolat

Someone went to London for holiday and bought back some chocolates for our team at work. But its not just any chocolate, its THE chocolate from Hotel Chocolat.

Just how good are these? As I open the Tiffany-like baby blue box, the sweet champagne fragrance arose my senses. I picked up one and pop it into my mouth and almost immediately the song "Besame Mucho" comes into my mind. The creamy chocolate begins to melts slowly in my mouth. Suck it slowly and suddenly the outer layer breaks and the Champagne burst out. Man it was heaven. As I swallow the chocolate champagne, a warmth sourrounds me. Its feels like I am suddenly in love, again.

The next time any of you goes on a holiday in London, you know what to get me...

First day at Infant Care

Today mark the first day Xavier goes to Infant Care Center near our place. We wanted him to get use to the place by going on half days for 2 weeks before we put him there fully. Xavier was making noise in the morning, not so much cos we were gonna put him in the center but more cos we didn't have time to feed him before heading out.


So when we hand him over to the teacher in the center, they put him on one of those "rockers". Xavier kept looking around, not sure if he was getting familiar with the place or he was looking at who is going to be feeding him his breakfast...