April 2020

Hello everyone, I'm still writing from the comfortable confines of home. 

        The Movement Restriction order (MCO) has been extended to the 14th of April, and may be prolonged as the peak hit of the Virus outbreak is predicted to happen in the next two weeks. As I am able to stay safe and well fed during this time, I'm also forced to think about those to whom home is not a safe place and those who cannot afford not to be working or those who have no proper homes to shelter themselves. The government has given out aid in the form of money to individuals who fit certain criteria (see pics) and while this was met with joy by some, other parties, particularly business owners who were above the income category but faced zero revenue during the MCO, and could not afford to pay their employees were not too thrilled by the latest gov announcement. I believe there are some strategic plans available to provide some assistance to struggling businesses, however I am unable to explain them in detail. Here are the posters for the aid provided for the masses.

  












On a more personal scale, I have been spending a lot of quality time at home. I stress on the word quality because I feel that within this period, I have acquired new knowledge, and had meaningful conversations with my family members and just been more present in everything that I did. I'm glad to be participating in the family routines like helping to cook or to clean or do the grocery shopping. Bear in mind, I don't do these things like clockwork every day. It's normally motivated by a crazy plan to try a new recipe or buy necessary ingredients for said recipe. We have sat down as a family to play board games and have much needed family times. It's not always smiles and laughter though. Weeks of being cooped up together also mean that there is a higher risk of  getting annoyed or riled up at little things...familiarity busy breeding contempt and all that. Here are some of the experimental dishes that I've tried so far. 

Ayam masak lemak cili api. Was creamy enough but lacked the chillie factor

Random rasam. It's an easy dish to make if you throw in the right ingredients.

A random potato and brinjal thingy. I'm sure there was a recipe involved, but I remember it turning out to be too mushy. 

My taugeh (sprouts) that were lanky and greening. We made a really crunchy green vege dish out of it. 

Terung sambal that was wayyyyy to oily and not spicy enough. But it was alright. 

Wanted to try the Dalgona Coffee challenge. It was yummy but just not worth the trouble honestly. 

thairu, cucumbers, onions and chillies to complement a spicy chicken curry cooked by mum

A chicken recipe that I had gotten from somewhere. The chicken was really tender, and fresh. It was good. 

An attempt at cakoi. It was not as airy or salty as I would have liked so we sprinkled on cinnamon and sugar to convert into a random fried doughy desert. 

First attempt at thosai. Used a ready made mix. With a proper non stick pan, I think we'd have seen better results. 

Loved this tomato chutney recipe. No coconut was required! and it tasted so good in my opinion. 

We managed to eat together (all seven of us) video calling Marlene too. 

Loved learning how to make bread and experimenting with the types of flour and kneading time. Hot bread is always delicious though

Pat joined us for some board games as a family

In Money matters, the MCO has reduced mindless spending by A LOT (for me). I have ceased scrolling through online shopping sites like Lazada, Shopee and Zalora. I feel like I haven't spent much on anything unnecessary since coming home. Petrol is so cheap but we haven't been travelling much anyway. Looking at the way the economy is suffering (very basic knowledge of this), I've read a few financial bloggers who have predicted a huge economic crash that will affect our lives if we don't start saving up now, which includes NOT falling for the "sales" from websites encouraging us to splurge. CONTROL YOURSELF! 

Well, that's all from me folks. If you've stayed this far, congratulations, you're probably 1 of 5 people that have. Have a great day.