(Probably) The Last Summer Movie to Watch

28 August, 2007

Have anyone seen Stardust? I have.
This movie is based on Neil Gaiman's novel. According to hubby who read the book, the story of the movie is bit different with the book but it doesn't miss the plot of the story. The story just worked well for me, but for the whole movie including visuals and acting I would say it hit me just right. Magic, humor, adventure, all you could feel for.

Homegrown & Homemade Food

27 August, 2007

It's been raining a lot these past two weeks. What I like to eat during wet weather is bakso (Indonesian meatball soups). Taking green leafy vegetables from my own garden, I am ready to eat bakso..yummie!

Similar Cuisine to Mine

15 August, 2007

That day we took a metro ride from Vienna station heading to DC. Yeah I had to renew my expired passport that I had applied 2 weeks before I took it back from embassy office in person. It’s kind a strange that the embassy office sets the rule that the person who applies for a new passport or a renewal passport has to come and take the passport in person, while some other consulate general in different states enable people to do the process only by mail.

Anyhow, I thought this was a good chance to explore a Malaysian restaurant, named Malaysia Kopitiam, I found in internet that I read it has good customers' reviews on their authentic menu. The restaurant itself doesn't look fancy and the location is not that far from Indonesian embassy office. I know most people are just familiar with Penang restaurant if they'd like to eat Malaysian food, but I'd like to try something different. What a strange thing I've noticed is the restaurant is right 3 stores next to Penang restaurant. Meaning, the restaurant must have a good fair competition with the famous Penang restaurant, although the Penang restaurant looks way better than Malaysia Kopitiam in terms of cozy place.

Without knowing what menu they have the best, I picked the menu randomly, Nasi Lemak for myself and Combo Satay Rice for hubby. Once they served our menu, we couldn't talk no more but enjoyed every single dish that comes with the menu. I was about to have Ice Kachang as a dessert, unfortunately I couldn't fill up my stomach anymore. In the end, I felt it's such a relief we end up with a good food after having a tiring trip and walking under the sizzling heat.

True Idol

I love this song. His voice is superb!

Elliott Yamin,
the second runner-up on the 5th season of AI

Quality and Safety Issues

13 August, 2007

Can you trust Chinese-made products now?


In the late 1950s, Mao Zedong sought to make China an industrial power by encouraging peasants to ignore their farms and build backyard iron smelters. The nationwide project was an abject failure, and a cause of a major famine. Nearly fifty years later, China has become an industrial powerhouse beyond Mao's wildest dreams. But that success is now threatened by an ever-growing list of safety problems with Chinese-made products. First it was pet food contaminated with melamine. Then toothpaste containing diethylene glycol. Two weeks ago: a huge recall on Thomas & Friends toys coated with lead paint. Earlier this week, we learned about unsafe tires that need to be recalled. Can we no longer trust products made in China? (source: ConsumerReports.org)


In spite of any connection between the news above and my experience, this reminds me the trip I made to China years ago. The country is dirty, so as the people itself. I wonder how they survive living around the dirtiness! They might get used to it or they might have some kind of antibody to neutralize uncleanliness.

What bothers me most is why the American corporations that contract to manufacture and purchase these "cheaper" products from China tend to be Chinese characters, called GREED, who put the motto "profit is driving the irresponsibly corporate behavior" beyond any other set-goals. *confused mode*