Happy New Year 2013

Happy New Year

Bye-bye 2012 and welcome 2013. How do I feel? A little sad, as with all goodbyes, saying goodbye to year 2012, makes one feel nostalgic too. Happy to welcome another year. Another year of opportunities to do and be better in all that I do and love to do and that I do not love but have to do. Ha! Ha! Ha! Happy New Year!

Baked Otak Otak

The Otak Otak, a fish dish cooked in a blend of spices, thinly shredded limau purut(kaffir lime)leaves and coconut milk. My mum’s signature dish, I remember how she would fill banana leaves that have been folded into packages with the fish mixture for steaming. The waft of delightful spices and aroma filling the air would not fail to stir our appetites.

I have modified the recipe a little, using only the daun kadok(aromatic wild betel leaves), omitting the banana leaves to simplify the preparation a little. My mum would say, “not bad at all.”

  

Baked Otak Otak Recipe

Ingredients :

300 to 400 gm white fish meat (2 blocks of Red Snapper or Garoupa or other similar fish meat)

8 dried chillies (seeded for a mild flavour)

12 shallots

5 pips garlic

1 inch piece of fresh tumeric (about the size of your distal phalange of middle finger

1 lemon grass

½  inch piece of belachan (I do not like it too strong for this dish)

4 tabsp of fish curry powder, or 3 tabsp of wet curry fish paste(this can be bought from the market)

Some limau perut/kaffir lime leaves (thinly shredded)

Half grated coconut, to get half a cup of coconut milk

3 eggs

Sufficient 'daun kadok' or wild betel leaves(a type of aromatic ground creepers) for lining tray or pan

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation :

1. Grind the chillies, shallots, garlic, tumeric, lemon grass and belachan together.
2. Mix the ground ingredients with the fish curry powder or wet curry fish paste.
3. Add the beaten eggs, and mix well.
4. Add the thinly shredded kaffir lime leaves.
5. Add in the fish meat that has been thinly sliced.
6. Stir well, add salt and pepper seasoning.
7. Line a baking or steaming tray with ‘daun kadok’.
8. Scoop the fish meat and egg mixture into the tray, leave about ¼ cup of the gravy for spreading over the top of the top 'daun kadok'.
9. Cover the fish and egg mixture with a layer of ‘daun kadok’.
10. Pour the remaining gravy onto the ‘daun kadok’ and bake for about 30-35 minutes at at 180 deg. till sides of tray are slightly brown.

NOTES :

·              You could steam the Otak Otak in a plate/tray for about 15-20 minutes instead of baking it.

·              You can estimate the proportion of coconut milk used. It should be approximately 1.5 times the volume of eggs.

·              Some cooks omitted the curry powder and some do add some rice flour to thicken the gravy.

Nature's Canvas 2

When I put up Nature’s Canvas 1 in August 2012, I was not sure that there will be a follow-up.  But, if you ask me now, I would say I would not know how many sequels there will be.

One thing though, as they say, ‘ Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder’, so it might not necessarily appeal to some of you. Yes, you are right, it definitely is not going to deter me. For me these pictures that I put up have their own unique attraction and beauty.

So, enjoy the ride as much as I have and thanks for taking time to do so.

The yellow flowers in the photo above and the red fruit in the photo below are from the same plant. Fasinating, isn't it? No, I do not know the name of the plant. The photos are from my neighbour's plant. I had previously planted this shrub, but not anymore.

This is one of my favourite flowers, partly because my hubby cared so well for it and it blooms so well.It's flowers exude a light, enchanting fragrance. The photo below is from the same plant and that is its ripen fruit. I was happy to be able to snap this before the birds get to it.

Beautiful, purple lily gives me so much pleasure

I enjoy the light reflected on the water and the leaves. The  flower buds standing majestically, basking in the light

The rambutans lend some colour to the dark twined trunks. :-)

These colourful Crotons look their best after the rain in the morning light.

Fresh and beautiful

Another type of Crotons bathing in sunlight and raindrops

Insects love the rain too

 The pink bougainvillea emerging blooms, common to some but gorgeous to me

Interplay of sunlight and raindrops on Palm fronds

What was I thinking when I took this? My fasination with raindrops

For this shadow image, I have to wait for right moment

The fragrant limau purut bud, flowers and fruit

Wild? So green and luscious, isn't it?

Crimson beauty

Definitely, one of my favourite flowering shrub. This is its bud and so beautiful.

My favourite again, I love the way the bud displays itself, the flower and the young fruit. ......                                               and the fallen petal, so soft and light

Hand Cast Removed

How am I doing? What is the prognosis upon removal of the cast on my hand?

Fortunately, the fracture along my 5^th metacarpal has healed. That means I do not need any further treatment. All I need to do is some simple hand exercises and physiotherapy to recover the full range of functions of my hand, including my wrist. Simple enough, isn’t it?

After being in a cast for exactly 23 days, my hand, particularly my 4^th and 5^th fingers have forgotten some of the motions they have been doing for fifty over years.

There appears to be some venous congestion and tightness. I could not bend and close my fingers tightly to form a clenched fist over the middle of my palm. So there you have me, not only trying to bend my fingers to form a tight fist, but clenching my teeth as I bear with the pain to work those lazy muscles, tendons and ligaments. For the first 20 hrs, the pain was practically unbearable, but fearing the worst, I persevere and finally could see some progress. The full strength and scope of movement has yet to materialize but

I am now confident, that all will be well and soon too.

For the past 23 days I have been cradling my right casted hand like a baby and being very respectful of my left hand. My left hand had stood and still stands in good stead of my right hand, although I could not lift something heavy or that which require enormous dexterity.

I have even been able to write a few legible words and am thankful that my dear left hand has served me well in my hour of need.

Humpty Dumpty had a ……..

Lo and behold, if only I had not hesitated and not turned my back again to feed my dear plants with more water, I could have avoided all this trouble. But alas, the morning rays were screaming, “a very hot day it will be”.

How does it feel to be like a deck of cards tumbling down? It happened so fast that I do not actually remember the sequence of events. Just oh no, and next, I found both knees in the drain, (my garden drains) and my right palm beside the drain. It did not seem to hurt much, and then the pain reared its ugly head warning me not to take it lightly.

With ice packs, Ketoprofen pain relieve gel and two panadols, everything seemed fine and inflammation subsided.

                                                                                                        

However, the two doctors advised otherwise when the inflammation returned with more vengeance and seemed to be more extensive.

My reply then was, “What’s the fuss about, it is just something minor.”

So off to the hospital we went. After seeing the doctors, the prognosis is : A spiral crack on the metacarpal at the base of my little finger. I was informed that I may need either a plaster cast or a wire and a cast. That got me worried, if they need to wire it, I had to be warded. Fortunately, the fracture has not displaced the alignment of the metacarpal and managed to evade the wire but not the cast.

Moral of the day, ‘BE CAREFUL’. Then all these troubles and hassles could have been avoided.

That was a week ago, I still have another two weeks before the cast is removed.

The positive thing is I get to train and manage around on my left hand, an intensive course at that though. Most certainly hope the training will last me a lifetime, as I am not signing up for a sequel. The thing is, your muscles cannot be in high gear mode on such short notice even if it’s only for minor chores. That means I will have to be less ambitious with my training targets.:-(

The heightened use of my left hand has also provided me an opportunity to better understand what stroke victims have to go through to regain function of their limbs.

It is indeed a test of my patience and an alert alarm, a wake up call for my mounting carelessness of late.

 

My iPad Mini that will be

:-D….finally the long wait is nearly over. I have been waiting for iPad Mini since Apple launched iPad in April 2010.

Did I love it that much then, no, not really. But, as I inevitably get to know the iPad and its features, I could not help falling in love with it. As Apple released its iPads, one after another, I held steadfastly to my desire for an iPad Mini. I would occasionally surf the internet for grapevine news of iPad’s little brother, and I would always find something, somewhere or someone who has some little bit of news or rumours to feed my dream.

Why wait for iPad Mini, when we have other Tablets of the smaller size too.

 

It must be my fascination with Apple products and not owing one, the fact that three of my siblings have iPads did further foster my desire for iPads, its user friendly interface, its smooth, responsive touch screen, vivid display and its amazing and numerous apps.  I had on occasions tested out some of the other tablets but they did not succeed in arousing my interest, although I had to admit that was some time back and they have since improved their models and products too. But undeterred, I waited patiently for my iPad Mini, besides the fifth generation is always the best. Another point is its compatibility among Apple’s products.

I have small hands and have too many things in my handbag for something heavier than iPad Mini which is a mere 308 gm. 7.2 mm thin packed into a 7.9” display.  Wow, that’s fantastic. Not to worry, Mr. Tim Cook, for in spite of some critics especially on the price there will many out there, who are like me and who have been waiting patiently for the iPad Mini.

Frankly, I will not be jumping on the bandwagon immediately, after all I have waited so long, what is a few more…months. :-( The iPad Mini is only expected to be released in Malaysia in early 2013. :-(

General rundown on the specs :

Measuring 200 mm (7.9”) x 134.7mm (5.3”) with a ‘thinness’ of 7.2mm(0.28”)

and weighing a mere 308 gm(0.68 lb).

 

When all's said and done, my very personal choice is of course, the iPad Mini.

The best is, I will be getting as a present from…………??   :-D

Watch the video link for a video introduction of the iPad Mini and I am sure you would be bowled over too.
I am sure Steve Jobs is smiling up there too.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57538781-37/apple-shows-off-the-ipad-mini-in-youtube-videos/

For related links : 

iPad Mini Overview : http://www.apple.com/asia/ipad-mini/overview/ 

Technical specifications on iPad Mini : http://www.apple.com/asia/ipad-mini/specs/ 

For a comparision on my favourite small Tablets : http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2411313,00.asp 

Birds Visiting My Garden 1

If you had asked me if I would be spending my time bird watching, my answer would most certainly be a ‘No!’. Never dream that I would enjoy them so much. I don’t actually bird watch, but more like “I SPY, I KNOW, I LOVE”.  I simply could not help finding myself drawn to these feathered friends, although I actually do not know them that well.

Now that I spend so much time in the garden, I watch these birds courting for mates, looking for food and just enjoying themselves in my garden.

I find so much pleasure if I manage to snap a good picture of these birds, although it is not easy as they can be very elusive and they take off into the air to stay safe, the moment they sense something or someone approaching.

But there are some moments, when I am lucky enough to catch them just before they escape. I hope that these pictures will get better and clearer when my photographing skills improved.

My tribute to these small featured friends………………….

Zebra Dove aka Bared Ground Dove

This lovely, couple were sunning themselves after a night of heavy rain

Also known as the ‘Merbok’, to the local community, the Zebra Dove is a peaceful, calm looking bird. It usually forages on short grass for seeds. Home is coconut palm trees or other high trees. Both parent birds have special glands in their crop which will enlarge to secrete a Pigeon’s milk. The young chicks will then feed from their parents throat with their bill(beaks). These Doves call/sing in low melodious coo(s).












 


Another couple,foraging for food but the picture is not very clear

 

Black-Naped Oriole

The Black-naped Oriole is known as the Burung Kunyet Besar to the locals. It has bright yellow and black plumage. With wings and tails in black and yellow, the Black-naped Oriole is an attractive, medium-sized bird of around 27 cm. There is a distinctive black band, going round the head, crossing the eyes from base of the bill.

Its diet consists mainly of fruits and insects. It can be aggressive and frequently raids nests of other birds feeding on eggs and nestlings.

It makes a loud call which to my untrained ears sound like ‘oriole’.

Olive-Backed Sunbird aka Yellow-Bellied Sunbird

This is a small bird, barely 4-5 inches, bill to tail (approximately 12 cm). It flies very fast, getting away from predators or me, unaware that I am just a bird watcher, and definitely not going to cause any harm. Nectar and small insects form its diet. You can easily see them with their long, slender, decurved (curving downward) bill, deep down inside a flower, sucking up the sweet nectar. Plumage on its head, throat and upper breast are dark, metallic olive with bright yellow under part. Both sexes are olive green above and yellow below. Its shrill chirps are often heard, cutting through the morning air around our Malaysian home gardens.

Olive-Backed Sunbird in flight

These are a few links for some very good videos on the Black-Naped Oriole.

Black-naped Oriole Nesting Story Part 1-Incubating
Black-naped Oriole Nesting Story Part 2 - Feeding
Black-naped Oriole Nesting Story Part 3 - Leaving The Nest

A youtube posting of Orioles contributed by my neighbour, Azlina. Hope you like it too.
Recording of Orioles melodious calls

Another good video here, so well taken. 
Black-naped Oriole breeding 黃鸝鳥育

Focaccia Bread

I was looking for something new to bake and chance upon a recipe for the Focaccia Bread.

It is an Italian bread. There are various variants, slight variations to the olive oil content and to the flavourings or toppings. You could use Focaccia Bread as a pizza base, eat it on its own or use it for sandwiches. You can top it with cheese too.

The recipe that I am using is oily but with the heavy use of the olive oil you do get a very tasty crust. I did some amendments to the amount of olive oil and to the herbs that I use, as we practically could not find these fresh herbs here in Malaysia, especially in Alor Setar.

Focaccia Bread Recipe

Ingredients

300 gm bread flour

1tsp salt

1 tsp yeast

½ tabsp  sugar

2 tabsp extra virgin olive oil plus 1 tabsp herb oil (instead of 3 tabsp olive oil)

200 ml water

Olive oil for greasing your tray

Herb Oil  

2 ½ tabsp extra virgin olive oil (1 ½ for spreading on top of the dough before baking)

2 tsp dried herbs (plump the herbs in a little hot water)

(I used mixed dried herbs which consisted of mixture of Oregano, Rosemary, Sage,      

Thyme, Basil, Savory and Majoram, bought all packed in a bottle from the supermarket)

2 tsp freshly ground/pressed garlic

 

Preparation

1.   As usual I prepare a yeast starter dough, using 50 ml warm water, 1 tsp yeast and ½

      tabsp sugar. Let the yeast mixture rise for 10-20 mins.

2.   Mix together the bread flour and salt.

3.   Mix together the herb oil (heated to 100 deg. C) and add 1 tabsp to the flour.

4.   Add another 2 tabsp of extra virgin olive oil to the flour mixture.

5.   Add starter dough to the flour mixture.

6.   Add the balance of water. Leave some and check that it is pliable and of the right consistency.

7.   Knead well for about 10 mins.

8.   Cover the dough and let rise in a warm place for 1 hr. or double tin size. 

9.   Liberally oil a baking tray with olive oil (about 1 tabsp)

10. Punch down the dough to knock down the air and spread it out on the baking tray.
      Press out but do not pull too much.

 

11. Cover and let rise again till double in size.

12. Preheat the oven to 425 deg. Depending on your oven, or tray(s) and if

      you prefer something really crispy, you could even try for 450 deg. This would

      also depend on the thickness of your dough. I prefer mine, crisp on the outside and

      soft on the inside, besides with my tray of diameter 9 inches, the dough is not spread

      thin. Just the way I like it.

13. While preheating the oven, use your finger to poke the dough to make regular, little holes.

14. Liberally spread herb oil on the dough.

15. Bake for 20 to 25 mins. till golden brown. (depending on your tray and oven too).

      Turn your baking tray 180 deg around half time.

16. Cool your Focaccia bread before cutting.

I used a round stainless steel plate, which does not brown as fast as a baking tray, thus calling for some additional time. I like to eat the bread as it is, and it is fabulous.I love it. You could use a 10” x 13” tray. Normally, a rectangular baking tray is used for Focaccia Bread.

Recipe adapted from Michelle, The Brown Eyed Baker

Private Retirement Scheme (PRS)

Unless you belong to the super rich, most of us would welcome an opportunity to further increase their retirement funds.

The Private Retirement Scheme, for any individual was recently launched. It is good for individuals who do not have EPF contributions for their retirement or do not have sufficient funds for their retirement.

The scheme comes under the purview of the Securities Commission. The Capital Market Services Act 2007 (CMSA), the Capital Market Services(Private Retirement Scheme Industry) Regulations 2012 and the PRS Guidelines form the framework governing the PRS Industry in Malaysia.

It is a voluntary investment/savings scheme that would allow employees and the self-employed to save and contribute more toward their retirement nest egg. This is supplementary and additional to the statutory EPF contributions, and will help in enlarging the retirement nest egg, particularly in view of the longer life expectancy and rising cost of living.

The PRS will be available to the public by end of the year.(how about Sept/Oct?)

Contributors/Members

It is available for Malaysians and foreigners 18 years and above.

It is something that employers could use as an incentive to attract and retain talent. Contributions to the PRS are in addition to EPF contributions and tax deductions can be above the 19% tax deductible EPF contributions.

For employees, persuade your kind and understanding bosses to contribute to the scheme…It would work to their benefit too in the longer term besides, they can lay claim to being one of the first to offer such incentives to their employees….

All individuals who invest in a PRS product are entitled to a tax relief of up to RM3, 000 per year. (this will be for 10 years).

Individuals have the option to contribute any amount (although providers may specify a minimum amount) and contributions do not have to be on a fixed basis. No fixed amount, no fixed time interval. However, it is advisable to follow a Ringgit-cost-averaging to smooth out price fluctuations. (meaning, best to contribute on a regular basis).

Members will have to open a PRS account. The account could be opened through your PRS Provider or with PPA. (Private Pension Administrator). You can choose more than one PRS Provider and contribute to more than one fund. The account structure is split into:

 i)                  PRS Account A

with 70% of contributions made and 

The amount accumulated in PRS Account A have to be kept till retirement age or if the member leaves the country permanently

ii)                   PRS Account B

With 30 % of contributions made.

You can only withdraw once a year from PRS Account B and your first withdrawal has to be a year from your first contribution.  How much can you withdraw? Any amount but you will have to pay a penalty tax of 8% on your withdrawals and a fee of RM25 for each withdrawal.

PRS Providers

PRS Providers (Fund management companies) need to get their approval from the Securities Commission to launch their schemes.

AmInvestment Management Sdn Bhd American International Assurance Bhd CIMB-Principal Asset Management Bhd Hwang Investment Management Bhd          ING Funds Bhd                                    Manulife Unit Trust Bhd Public Mutual Bhd RHB Investment Management Sdn Bhd

these are the 8 currently approved PRS Providers

  

As a start, employees or individuals have a choice of selection of at least 24 conventional/core funds provided by the approved 8 PRS Providers, (investment fund managers) and these would be available to the public from September 2012. These fund providers are licensed and approved by the Securities Commission.

Each PRS provider will provide a range of investment funds for individuals to choose according to their risk appetite, retirement needs and time line.

Each PRS provider will have a minimum 3 core funds catering for growth, moderate and conservative risk profiles.

For feasible reasons and to be pragmatic, PRS providers are permitted under the Securities Commission guidelines, to channel contributions to their existing feeder funds (unit trust funds or investment-linked funds) in the early years. This is during the early stage of development as the fund’s size will take some time to grow to a size where they are able to invest directly in the asset classes.

If a person opens and contributes to a PRS account and has selected his/her PRS provider without indicating his/her investment choice, the default investment choice will be selected for the individual as indicated below:

	Growth Fund	Moderate Fund	Conservative Fund
Age Group	Below 40 years of age	40 – 50 years of age	Above 50 years of Age
Parameters	Maximum 70% Equities Investment outside Malaysia is permitted	Maximum 60% Equities Investment outside Malaysia is permitted	80% in debentures/fixed income instruments of which 20% must be in money market instruments and a maximum of 20% in equity Investment outside Malaysia is not permitted

Source : Private Pension Administrator

The returns from contributions made to PRS are not guaranteed and will depend on the performance of the PRS funds. There are always risks to investments and returns almost always commensurate with risks.

Investment policies of the funds are guided by the PRS Guidelines consistent with prudent spread of risks and to develop a retirement fund. PRS funds can invest directly in real estate, this is unlike unit trusts.

All income received are tax exempted. Switching funds within a PRS Provider is permitted. Change of PRS Provider is subject to terms imposed by the Provider, but experts advise to stay with a provider for a minimum of three years.

The upfront fee for PRS funds is capped at a maximum 3%.

Members’ assets are protected under the controls of an independent trustee company

PRS distributors require approval of the SC to operate and will be subject to on-going regulatory requirements and supervision

 

Private Pension Administrator (PPA)

The Private Pension Administrator (PPA), regulated by the Securities Commission will oversee the PRS providers or fund managers. Its administrative functions would include, taking care of the database, essentially keeping records of all transactions by contributors. Contributors can extend their queries to PPA.

Happy Retirement

I am sure the people at large, are appreciative of this scheme. To ensure the scheme is a success, the interests of members are to be safeguarded. Regulations, adequate guidelines and supervision would ensure the goals and objectives of members are realized. More importantly, those charged with the requisite mandate must always bear in mind the long term objective of members.

To find out more on Private Retirement Scheme (PRS) kindly click on the following links:
 

http://sc.com.my/       or            http://www.ppa.my/