Roti Canai

Roti Canai is Malaysian's favorite food. It is more than a snack. People take it in their breakfast, lunch, tea, dinner, supper.. you name it. You can eat it with almost any curry, from plain curry with a dollop of Sambal Ikan Bilis (Anchovies in Fried Chillies) or meat massala or even plain dhal. Small children normally eats Roti Canai with sprinkle of sugar or even treats it with sweetened condensed milk. Perfect drink that goes well with Roti Canai is either Teh Tarik or Kopi O (black coffee). Some who thinks they are on diet will take it with plain tea with no sugar. Isn't it ironic?

Anyways, my whole family simply loves Roti Canai and back home in KL, we used to take the kids at late afternoon after coming home from work (if we have sufficient time) to nearby restaurant to eat Roti Canai. Normally, on Saturdays or Sundays, if Mak Wan does not made breakfast we will eat roti canai at one of our favorite places. Our favorites spots are Alif Raya at Alam Damai or Briyani Johor at Suakasih, Bandar Tun Hussein Onn. We even drive up to Bt. 10 Hulu Langat and simply drop by any interesting restaurant to have Roti Canai. Sometimes, we even took the kids to Pasar Muhibbah Ampang, near our office. (I missed Nasi Lemak Along there. I even had a dream few days ago eating the Nasi Lemak and it feels real!).

Basically, these rituals is sort of family entertainment and quality time spend together in a most enjoyable fashion possible plus the most cheapest too. Everyone will simply enjoy it and the kids will have it with their favorite drink, Teh O Ais Limau (Ice Lime Tea) while we will have it with Teh Tarik. After all, Roti Canai is easily available through out the country as it is our favorite food and most consumed meal by Malaysians after rice. It is available 24-7 especially at Mamak Restaurants. So, everybody loves Roti Canai and you can enjoy eat it anytime you want!

Now, living abroad away from home, my husband has developed a progressive skill in the arts of making Roti Canai. Aqil can eat up to 3 piece in one setting and Aqif can eats 2. Whenever I made curry for lunch or for dinner, the kids will request for Roti Canai and Baba will make them their favorite food. I hopes when we return home later, Baba can keep up the good job of making delicious home made Roti Canai. After all, the Roti Canai price in KL has gone up to RM1 per piece. It will sure save lots of money to make 'em yourself!

Recipe:

Ingredient
1 cup of bleached wheat flour
1 cup of warm water
1 tblspn of sweetened condensed milk
1 tblspn of butter
1 egg
1/2 teaspn of salt
Vegetable oil for cooking

Method:
1. Sift the flour directly to the bowl
2. Pour in the salt, milk,egg and butter and mix well by hand
3. Add warm water little by little and keep on mixing the dough until soft
4. Make a small rounded ball-like dough and lightly coated the dough with oil
5. Leave the dough to softened in room temperature for at least 2 hours
6. Then you can start flatten it
7. Keep remaining dough in the fridge.

Welcoming Student's World

The time now is 6 minutes to 8pm. I was so tired but I guess yesterday was even worst. This week is the most busiest week ever since I officially being a graduate student.

On Sunday night I was struggling to solve the Crop Water Requirement assignment. It was really hard and I thought I have to submit it the next morning. I was going to ask Dr. Oad to give me more time because I hardly can solve the problem. I slept late past midnight. I've been sleeping late these days.. it is kind of a new trend nowadays.

Monday..I woke up earliest possible and after quick cleaning up, I went straight to my desk and started punching my calculator and keyboard trying hard to get it solved. The class start at 11 and there I was so tensed and tried hard to get it done. The time always move super duper fast when you most need it. I had a super quick shower at 10:30 and madly run my bike to class because I don't want to be late. Well, guess what, the assignment was supposed to be turned in by Wednesday. Ha..ha..ha.. very funny eh? But, at least I have more time and Dr. Oad had explained in class on how to solve it and I managed to check with Alicia on what are the data to download. No wonder I have trouble solving it, I had download the monthly summary and I was supposed to download dailies. I like this subject a lot and I am considering to take some more irrigation related classes. The irrigation stuff really fascinates me. You learned on water control and you can apply hydraulics in there and you help people too! You help farmers to irrigate their crop and you help people to have their food supply. I am now considering to work in Irrigation Division when I come back. It will be interesting I guess.

Tuesday.. well, we had Water Colloquium at Hilton and I did not know that Dr Julien went to class, I thought he cancelled it. I missed the class. Morning, rushed to Hilton for awhile and rushed back to Engineering building for GIS class at 11-1. Dr Labadie had gave some review on the coming Mid-term exam on next Tuesday and it's going to be a closed book exam with all topics for the past 3 months. After the class I rushed back to Hilton and it was past lunch time there already and my tummy was rumbling so I went back home to eat. I'm starving! I wanted to go back to Hilton but then I stayed home and try to finish up Dr. Oad's assignment. It was a very tedious computations in Excel and very time consuming. That was Penman equations.

Wednesday.. I'd raised early and had some quick review on Water Control Structures. I have to re-sit the test because my paper was missing. The class dismissed at 12 and the test will be at 2pm. I went to Hydrology Days at Lory's and stayed there until 10 minutes to 2 and went to Dr. Oad's office for the test. It was pretty easy but pretty confusing too. After the test, I spend the rest of the afternoon in GIS lab working on the assignments. The assignments was not GIS it was hydrology. We have to solve this Green Ampt problem and it was very confusing with this whole infiltration things and the use of logical function and what not. We also have to use Solver which I never used it before. The tools was very easy of course but the assignment was not. I went back home around 10 minutes to 6 and arrived home 7 minutes later. I'm glad I bought a bike, it really helps me get around campus. Came home still struggling until midnight.

Thursday.. There was a quick snow shower in the morning and it made me a bit reluctance to go to Hydrology Days. So, I linger for a while. I hate the idea of biking in a wet day. The shower stopped around 8:20. I leaved the house around 9 and went to the conference room to listen for a while. At 11, I started to do my unsolved Green Ampt equations and had been working on it until 4. I was almost cried because I was so done with repeating the same bloody things and don't get the right answer. I am so thankful to Maia, my Russian friend who had helped me identified what was wrong with my formula. Apparently, I did not changed any units so that's why I kept getting bigger values. Ohh how I hate units conversion. It always play tricks on you. So, finally, I managed to sent the assignment on time. The deadline was 5pm. I went home and feel so relieved. A burden finally lifted up although there are many more waiting.

So, tomorrow, I will leave home early for the Hydrology Days. Tonight, I will prepare my Program of Study which I was supposed to submit to JPA within the first 3 months and apparently I failed to do that. I'm going to tell Dr Julien that I will not do any Independent Study this Summer because I simply don't have any idea what to do. I will do it on the next Summer.

Well, I really feel like student again. I am so thankful my husband has been a GREAT HELP on this and I am not sure what will I do without him. I also had spent less time with the kids and luckily they understand that Mama have lots of works to do. I'm glad this is only Master's program. So, next time when I want to do any doctorate program, I better re-consider it. It takes a long time to get and old engine running well!

My travel wish list

Travel.. everybody loves travel and ever since we're here, we did not travel anywhere further than Denver. Gosh.. how I hate that. I missed all the beaches and the streams in Malaysia. I missed all the good foods and good outing in Malaysia. Anyways, we are planning to do some travel here but I really don't have time and of course the money. Although, relatively, foods, gas and bed is rather cheap compare to hotels in Malaysia but still if you're going to use your own pocket money than it means triple the cost and it is not so cheap anymore. Ohh, I how wish Hubby can get a work permit here. It's not like we're going to stay here forever, we're going to be here for only 2 years! I hope I don't have to take any class at all this Summer. Can I find a way of an escapade? Hmmm....

These are my wish list and right now since Aqif, my lil' boy still small maybe by the end of this year we'll be able to get a rough ride to the Wild Wild West..yee harrr...

My wish list...

1. Rocky Mountain National Park

Individual Entrance Fees:

Automobile: $20 - Valid for seven consecutive days, including date of purchase.

2. Grand Canyon National Park

The entrance fee to Grand Canyon National Park is $25 per private vehicle. The fee for an individual entering by foot, bicycle, motorcycle, or non-commercial group is $12.00 per person. Admission is for seven days and includes both the North Rim and South Rim. No refunds are given due to inclement weather.

So, make sure you plan well, huh?

3. Niagara Falls, NY

This is simply marvellous! I've been dreaming to go here since I was a kid. Remember the TV series about that girl who had this power and she's working at Niagara? What a pleasure to work there even for just Sales Assistant!. Isn't it wonderful to see the gush of water flowing down, the hydraulic jumps will simply amaze you how unbelievable it is. Coming here means we have to spend a night here, I don't want to miss seeing the Falls at night. Please.. let me go here..


4. Disneyland, CA

This is for the kids of course. My dream of coming here has long been buried. I don't care that much if I can't go here but I'm sure the kids will curse me if I don't bring them here when we already in US. This place is sure costly and I need extra planning to make sure we can have the best possible for the kids. I know of course I will be delighted as the kids will but this one is a must visit place before we go back to KL. It will be so colorful and so lively with all those familiar Disney's cartoons character and I know the kids will enjoy it very much.


That will be all for now. There are many more but I need to get back to work and don't want to spend my afternoon dreaming about this trip...

Let's do Asian groceries

Yesterday was Maulidur Rasul day. Prophet Muhammad SAW birthday. Well, there was a ceremony held at Fort Collins Islamic Center buy we did not join them. Why? Because we don't want to. You will be surrounded by Arabs and you will feel like alien because they will only talk to themselves. OK, so we went to Post Office at Boardwalk Drive because I had received a note which I did not understand. It turned out that the postman had paid 17 cents to a mail sent to me with insufficient stamp. You know what, the Americans can do their passport at the post office. How convenient!

Anyways, we went straight to Aurora because I really wanted to find the Zaytoon International Market. We got lost on the last attempt which I found out later that I had mistakenly mark the place on my map at the wrong location. It was very far and I started to feel that it was not worth it. We found the place eventually and I was very glad indeed. The owner has greeted me with "Assalamualaykum, sister and how are you doing?" when I opened up the door. She was a very sweet looking lady and there were several young Arabs having lunch on the corner of the store. The store is very clean and the deli offers looks very delicious. I noticed that the prices for sandwiches with fries started from 7.99. I would love to try it but we're just on a very tight budget. If we had lunch there I had calculated that we might spend at least $30 or more and I can't afford it. Not until the next allowance because we're just moved in here and we've been spending a lot of money to start a living. Of course I can always use my salary but I don't want to use it. Anyways, I bought a smoked whitefish for $6.99 and lots of beef from stew style to shanks and ribs. I also bought a box of Maggie Beef Stock in a cube for $5.55. Well, I like this store a lot but it is too far from my place. The owner is a very nice Muslim American lady. Anyhow, I will go there again to try out her food. It looks very inviting.

After that we went to search another store, World Bazaar at Havana Street at the back of Kia Motors Office. The store is owned by an American from Pakistan and it have lots of spices and herbs for curry ingredients. They also sells very huge pots like the one you use for kenduri kahwin. I bought chicken and more meats here and it is halal too. You can also buy Quran, brooches and scarf from here. They have that too. I bought more Shan's brand spices and garam masala. I like the Shan Korma Curry and I don't mind if you can't have Adabi or Alagappas. This one is good too. It have many types from Masala to White Korma. I use Plain Yogurt instead of Santan and saved on Asam Jawa (tamarind). So, if you're looking for curry powder, I recommend the Shan brand. It's good.

Next stop is of course the Asian groceries. I went to Viet Hoa Supermarket at Alameda Avenue. Wow, from East to West just for the sake of tekak (throat), huh? This store is clean and have varieties of choices from fresh veges to fresh ulam like pegaga and ulam raja. It also have keladi (yam), taugeh, durian, coconut and you named it. The fish looks fresh and nice and they have live frog and frozen snails too! Hello, this is Vietnamese store OK? I bought another stock of kuey tiaw and fresh noodles. We also bought Jasmine rice (50lb pack) for only $22.50. They also have Milo in tin (3.3 lb) for $10.80. I loves this store and it's very similar to Pacific Ocean Market at Broomfield but I prefer Viet Hoa better. So, this will be my favorite store from now on.

Last snow before Spring?

Well, it was Sunday and I was reading my third book, Rebecca. I started read the book before I went to sleep and I slept at 2.30 a.m. and end up to overslept on Sunday morning. The weather looks fine but cloudy. I told my hubby that we can go to Denver tomorrow because I have to finish my reading or else I could not have some peace of mind. I made Ayam Masak Lemak for lunch and after cleaned up the dishes it's reading time. It started to snow around 4p.m. and I instantly knew that tomorrow trip's to Denver had to be postponed. Anyway, I finished read the book just before dinner and spent the night watching movies.

I'm not going to review the book but I'm going to tell you that hey, we have snow in March? I always fond of snow. I loves snow and watching it falling at night gives you a peace of mind and considering that I had finished all the books and no class tomorrow, it even more peaceful. The kids loves the snow too. I would like to go to Breckenridge once and maybe during the next Christmas break will be a good time then. Well, maybe....



The next day, Monday, was the grocery day where we're supposed to go to Denver to buy all the Asian supply and Halal meat. But we did not feel like it. We spent the morning having fun playing with the snow. Aqif were busy scooping the snow to his orange bucket. He even ate those snow when nobody is looking and when I caught him doing that he simply said, "Ice mama.. ice..." and smiles. Yeah, right!

We still go to Denver though.. we were so bored that we just get the coat and head to I-25 and straight to Broomfield to find a new found Asian stores. It was half past 4 when we leave the house. After missed the store and made a U-turn several miles ahead, we found the Pacific Ocean Market. It was big and they have varieties of Asian foods. I bought Squid brand fish sauce, taugeh and black soy sauce which is not thick enough but sufficient enough considering it's very hard to find.

Eventually, I prefer shopping my groceries at Vietnam stores in Federal Boulevard so we head South to those stores. I was afraid the stores will close as it was already half past 5. Luckily, we made it and so I bought some more lemongrass (serai), fresh kuey tiaw, bihun, sawi and some other sauces. We tried to find Zaytoon International Market to buy halal meats but somehow we got lost and it was already 8pm and so we headed home. It was silly though, I know. We had tapau Fish Sandwich at Arby's on the way home. It was OK but I prefer Wendy's fish fillet. It's more delicious! So, that was that. Snow and Denver. We had both although the kids not enjoy the ride to Denver.

Spring Break Part I - reading

Today is the beginning of my 1 week Spring Break and yet I just don't have any idea where to hit to.. Well, to be honest, I was actually trying to finish up reading the classic story book that I had borrowed from CSU library. I had borrowed three books with a goal to finish it up before the class resume.I always hooked up with the book until I finish reading it. It was sinful when you have so much of works to do but you just can't let it go.

I had finish read the first book- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen before the break. I borrowed the book because I had watched the film last Sunday and was so moved by it. It was my second time, the first time I watch it on Astro HBOs and the recent one was aired on OH! I read the book because I found Mr Darcy and Lizzie was simply romantic. I love the film better because the book was rather dull and boring. Plus, the illustration in the book would make Mr Darcy looks so plain it was not worth pursuing. However it was worth reading it so you could understand a lot more than just watching the movie alone. The book I read was in plain hard cover with the classic floral prints.

I always loves Keira Knightley especially her acts in Pirates of the Carribean. Although she is so terribly skinny she is so beautiful. I wish I could tell her right in her face that she should put up some weight. It will be a blessing if I could transfer some of my fat to her. Mr Darcy on the other hand is a very new face to me. Matthew McFadyen might be infamous in Britain but he looks dashingly handsome in the movie. This is quite and old movie, release in Nov. 2005 so I shouldn't put lots of review here. One thing I am sure of is I simply loves the ending in the movie than the ending in the book. I think I will have to watch Atonement too. Yeah, I know, I always late on these sort of things. Oh, credit to allmoviephoto.com for the above pix. Thanks!

I just finished my second book today. It was Anne of Green Gables. This was a re-read after so many years ago which I myself couldn't even remember when I last read the book. I remember I was so happy when they aired it as TV series back then. I found Anne of Green Gables website and was so thrill to see those faces again. Anne's as most known is always a wonderful book you simply loves to read over and over again. I wish they will air the series on TV again. I loves to have a pleasure of watching it again. I'm sure many of us does. Problem is, after you finished it, you simply wanting more. There are 8 series for the Anne story. While searching for the picture in Amazon, I saw the offer for the whole series in a box for a mere $29.04, this is irressistable! I will do some cost benefits analysis on whether or not to make a purchase.

The third book have to wait. I also had read it before. It started with the famous line of "Last night I dreamt I went to Menderley again" Yes, it is Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. This classic book was published in 1938. I vividly remember I had cried reading this book. In fact, I always cried when reading something sad and touchy. What a sensitive soul, heh? I know if I start read the book tonight I will not go anywhere until I finish reading it all. My mind will not put to rest until I know the ending. So, I will stop for now until I finish my GIS homework and Dr. Oad's assignments on Crop Water Requirement. Until then, I don't know how long I can resist the book.

I will resolve the purchase of Anne series later because I was thinking to buy the DVD Platinum edition of Lord of The Rings trilogy at Amazon. I had finished reading the first two series, The Ring and The Two Towers just before I came to US and my plan was to finish the third, The Return of The King in here. Unfortunately, the bloody Pos Malaysia had messed up my stuff and I had left with nothing. I also lost my treasured Hydrology textbook too. I had tried not to talk about the "tragedy" because it will boiled me with so much anger.

Now, let's type something nice like Anne would say, "something with a scope of imagination". I just love reading because it brings so much youth into you. I always fancy reading with an exclusion of textbooks and journals. How terribly sad I must be. I should be like Anne who really diligent in her study. OK, time now quarter past 10 and Aqif had sleep already. I need to plan for tomorrow's trip. We'll go to Denver of course to buy some supplies but I was thinking to make a longer trip. Hubby wanted to go to Vegas but I guess I'm not ready yet. Well, we'll see.