Cousins In Town

It's always great to have my cousins who I grew up with in town for the weekend. They came up from Singapore recently to attend my aunt and uncle's 40th wedding anniversary celebrations and we had a great time catching up. 

With these cousins of mine, nothing is off limits when it comes to conversations. Having been close since our childhood, it is a level of comfort that is hard to replicate in other relationships. And this is what makes such reunions so enjoyable.

Banter over food is our preferred choice of activity during such short visits, where time constraints are often a hindrance to an otherwise even better experience. Not to worry though, the next extended family celebration is just round the corner!

Breakfast at Grandpa Bak Kut Teh in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Streat Thai

The extended family was invited by my cousin Lye Synn to a New Year's Day dinner and little did we know that the venue, Streat Thai at The School at Jaya One, is his new venture. It came as a pleasant surprise and I am extremely excited for him as he embarks on this new entrepreneurial endeavour.

 

A new venture is always something to be enthusiastic about. It takes courage to take such a leap of faith, emotionally and financially. And the least we can do is to offer words of encouragement and support whenever we can.

 

So all the best Synn and here's to a successful endeavour.

 

 

Streat Thai at The School, Jaya One in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Mooncake Festival At The Wongs

During the recent Mooncake Festival celebra-tion with the extended Wong family, my aunts and uncles invited their former neighbour during their time living at Eberwein Road in Kuala Lumpur in the 1950s, over to dinner. I believe they used to hang out as teenagers and now decades later, it is good to see the rekindling of such a friendship.

As time passes and as we age, we tend to value relationships much more. Be it with loved ones or good friends, we tend to make more of an effort to keep in touch and spend time together.

Perhaps it is because we reminisce more often as we grow older.


Family and friends during dinner in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Friendship Rekindled

Tom, a friend from my days at boarding school at Immanuel College in Adelaide, was in town with his family recently for a holiday. I believe the last time he visited was more than two decades ago. Time flies.

 

Having kept in touch on Facebook and having caught up last year when I headed back to Adelaide, a continuous effort to keep the friendship intact despite the distance has enabled us to keep abreast of developments in our lives from time to time. And the opportunity of a get together as such always acts as a catalyst for rekindling friendships.

 

As in most things in life, effort results in returns. The apathetic will see relationships fade. In fact, they often fall off the invite list to such gatherings, not by intention of the organisers, but by lack of top-of-mind recall. Essentially, those who make the effort will reap the rewards of long-lasting friendships.

 

 

Dinner with the Browns in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Durian

I am not a great fan of durians. I do eat them but normally only do so if friends or family organise a durian 'makan session' or party. For me, the company and fellowship are the incentives, rather than the king of fruits per se.

 

This past year, I've probably only had durian four times. The first and second when Mum and Auntie Anne packed some back from the market and pasar malam respectively. The third when my friends Shirley, Bunny and Nabil suggested we do durian for dinner at Donald's Durian in SS2, and the fourth when Auntie Linda and Uncle Jeff treated the extended family to a durian party of 30 fruits.

 

Whether the durians are of supposed top-notch quality or at a bargain of RM1 each mean little to me, as I always enjoy them as they are, with the people whose companionship make such gatherings memorable occasions.

 

 

Nabil, Bunny and Shirley at Donald's Durian in SS2, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Childhood Memories

For most, childhood holds many wonderful memories that we reminisce whenever we get together with those who we spent much time with growing up. From being an infant to mid-teens, I would spend many a weekend and school holiday with my cousins Siew Yoong, Wui Ken and Kiat Ken. We would spend entire days at Lake Club - swimming, playing imaginative games that we created, reading in the library, watching Sunday movies. We would spend time at our homes playing board games - Fun Fair, Sorry, Monopoly, Cluedo and a host of others that I can no longer remember. At one point, we were crazy over the Decathlon computer game. We would hangout at A&W in PJ State.

 

These memories in a way have played a big part in helping us remain close over the years. The relationship that we enjoy today is testament to the effort that we have put in throughout our adult life, but is certainly amplified by the bonds that we nurtured as children.

 

Here's a photo of Siew Yoong, Kiat Ken and our friend Tsu Shien at A&W recently. Both my cousins were visiting and as per normal practice, a visit to A&W is always a must. We got particularly excited when a photo opportunity arose with the A&W mascot. Despite our age, not that we are very old, such an opportunity was met with much enthusiasm and great laughter. Young at heart we shall forever be.

 

 

Photo shot at A&W in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Effort

Visits from my cousins are always something to look forward to. We grew up together as kids in Petaling Jaya - we spent many weekends and school holidays together at the Lake Club, we went on trips, we celebrated birthdays, we went to piano lessons - and we have remained close through the years, despite us living much of our late teenage and adult lives in different parts of the world. The bonds that we formed as children are intact and now with my nephews in tow, we still manage to enjoy our time together

 

We are pretty good at keeping in touch; whether through phone calls, Whatsapp messages or Skype, we update each other on the goings-on in our lives from time to time. We make it a point to attend milestone celebrations, even if it means flying thousands of miles. We plan holidays together as a group, despite it being stressful at times with the kids.

 

At the end of the day, it all boils down to one word ... effort.

 

 

Siew Yoong, Tian, me, San, Jin, Suk Harn and Mum at No.7, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, mid June 2015.

Bin's Birthday

Bin and I have been friends since boarding school in Immanuel College, Adelaide. I then became friends with his other half, Cordelia, at Flinders University of South Australia a year later. I was the best man at their wedding. So we go back a long way.

 

Every year, we get together to celebrate birthdays, be it pre, post or on the actual day itself. Each year is a milestone, for the one celebrating the birthday, and for the rest of us too, as we mark another year of a friendship that has been nurtured for more than two decades.

 

Friendships such as this take effort to maintain but the resulting relationships are worth the while. Our perspectives and priorities may change over time but we will always have a bond that is testament to an enduring friendship.

 

Bin, Cordelia, Brandon and Bryan at The Red Olive, Jaya Shopping Centre, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Belated Birthday Breakfast For Yoke Choo

22 years is a long time. Yoke Choo and I have been friends since our days as colleagues at Resorts World Berhad. Yes, we got to know each other when we were working at Genting Highlands Resort all those years ago. We were colleagues in the Finance Department, I in F&B Cost Control and Yoke Choo in Admin.

 

Working and living up in Genting Highlands meant that our colleagues soon became our friends, and the ones we got along better with became our good friends. Spending so much time together, we became somewhat of a family, often having meals and enjoying social activities as a group. Sadly, most of us who left the highlands and in particular the company, have also lost touch with the many friends that we spent so much time with during our tenure there. As of now, Yoke Choo is the only one whom I am in contact with.

 

Our somewhat busy lives means that we don't often see each other. But every now and then there is the occasional phone call, and we stalk one another from time to time on Facebook. We remember to call and wish each other happy birthday without fail. And when the stars align and our schedules permit, we meet to catch up in person. Although our conversation revolves around the present and the future, there will inadvertently be flashbacks to our time up in Genting, a period of our lives that created an opportunity for us to initiate and subsequently nurture a friendship. Perhaps it is also time for us to try to track down some of the others. All it takes is a willingness and a little effort.

 

 

A belated birthday breakfast for Yoke Choo at Dome Café, The Curve in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Reunion Trip To Bali

In recent years, my close friends from boarding school and university have tried to vacation together once a year. A couple of years ago we were in Kota Kinabalu, last year we returned to Adelaide where we first met, and a few weeks back we were in Bali.

 

Having been friends for more than 25 years, we have become accustomed to our various habits as well as idiosyncrasies and traveling as a group is pretty much a well-coordinated affair. Of course we now have 2 teenagers and 2 kids in the group too, which requires some compromise, but good friends will often make the necessary adjustments.

 

Spending a few days together on holiday always cements the friendships that we have nurtured over the years. It gives us the opportunity to talk and hangout without the distractions of work and our busy daily lives. It is also a testament to the strength of our relationships that individuals from Petaling Jaya, Penang and Hong Kong can commit to time off, converge in Kuala Lumpur and then head to Bali together. Here's to more holidays in the years to come.

 

 

After dinner at Bebek Bengil in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.

Happy Birthday To All

Making a small effort of ordering a cake for the 7th day of Chinese New Year created an even more festive atmos-phere when the extended family got together for a dinner to celebrate 'the people's birthday'. Indeed, we even sang ourselves a birthday song.  

 

Sometimes, a little gesture as such is what makes a celebration that more memorable. Having worked in the wedding industry for 15 years, I have learnt to appreciate the personal touch. The little things that one ought to appreciate and be grateful for.

 

Most of the time, we go through our days at a blurry speed, trying to accomplish all that needs to be done in the vastly stretched amount of time we have. Perhaps we ought to make a conscious effort to stop and smell the roses sometimes and to do a little good deed every now and then.

 

 

Dinner on the 7th day of Chinese New Year in Sea Park, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Chinese New Year Together

After having been friends for 27 years, it may come as a surprise that lunch on the 4th day of Chinese New Year this year was the first time all of us have spent the celebration together. This would not have been possible had Ken Lin and Sally not come down to KL from Penang. We then managed to convince our Hong Kong friend Elsie to fly in for the weekend from Kota Kinabalu where she was having a holiday.

 

As this was only decided in the week leading up to Chinese New Year, thanks also has to go to my friend Emily who secured us a table at Oriental Pavilion, Jaya 33. Suffice to say, the restaurant was extremely packed but that made the festive atmosphere even more enjoyable. Most importantly, it gave us all the opportunity to embark on the Year of the Goat together, carrying with us the aspirations that we hope to attain individually and as friends.

 

It is pretty rare for a friendship to have survived almost 3 decades. Much effort has been put in to nurture the relationships that we all share as a group, and while we may have gone our separate ways somewhat after completing our studies, the dedication and commitment to keep in touch have enabled us to remain good friends. And this one ought to appreciate.

 

 

Group shot at Oriental Pavilion, Jaya 33 in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Chinese New Year - 1st Day Movie With The Thoos

My extended family on my Mum's side is a sporting one. When a cousin suggested we head to the movies on the evening of the 1st day of Chinese New Year, all gladly accepted the invite. Tickets were pre-bought the evening before and eighteen of us gathered at the just-opened TGV at Jaya Shopping Centre.

 

I am not an avid TVB serial fan but some of my aunts, uncles and cousins are. So they chose 'Triumph In The Skies', a movie based on the same TVB series. Four love stories that end well, what's there not to like about the movie, especially when we wish for all good things in life during this festive season.

 

The last time we went to the movies as group was five years ago, also during Chinese New Year. There may be more such regular movie nights just yet haha.

 

 

With the Thoos at TGV, Jaya Shopping Centre in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Chinese New Year - 1st Day At The Wongs

We always start the first day of Chinese New Year with a gathering at the Wong family home serving tea to our elders, exchanging auspicious greetings and sitting down to a vegetarian breakfast. It is a familiar practice but no less enjoyable year after year.

 

This year's celebration is made extra special with the return of my cousin Suk Leng from Sheffield, England, for the festivities. She has been away on studies and work for a number of years but made it a point to come back at an opportune time to join us in the celebrations.

 

There has always been talk of getting our other cousins who are scattered in Singapore, Australia and the United States to return en masse for a Chinese New Year gathering in the years to come. When that eventuates, it will indeed be a celebration to be reckoned with. Here's to that happening sooner, rather than later.

 

 

Wong extended family in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Pre-CNY Dinner

Shirley, Bunny and Nabil have been friends of mine for a long time, particular the former two, who were my colleagues when I first started my career in advertising. Through the years, our friendships have become stronger and more personal. We have each other's back and no topic is off limits.

 

We make it a point to meet as often as we can, a meal at least once a month or at the worst once every two months. Other times, we keep ourselves updated on each other's lives via a Whatsapp group. And with Chinese New Year just round the corner, a dinner was of course a must before we went our separate ways to celebrate with our own extended families.

As always good food was the perfect complement to great company.


Photo shot at Noble Mansion in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Godparents' Visit

My godparents from Adelaide were in town recently for a visit. As they both love Malaysian food immense-ly, scrumptious breakfasts and dinners were in order on a daily basis. We started each day and ended each evening enjoying each other's company over wonderful meals that our country is so well-known for.

 

My godparents have been friends with my parents since I was a kid. And when I was studying in Adelaide, they opened their home to me during holidays and took me out for meals so very often. I am glad that we make the effort to nurture a relationship that has evolved over many decades of our lives.

 

There are one or two more visits planned for the year. Having retired from their jobs, they spend their time travelling the world and make Malaysia a pit-stop if routes permit. And when they do drop by, there will be more feasting in store.

 

 

Dinner at Double Happiness Restaurant in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Primary School Buddies At A&W

It is pretty rare for childhood friends from primary school to still keep in touch regularly. Although social media has made it much easier to locate and re-establish contact with those whom we grew up with, some effort is still necessary to maintain those links. Still greater effort is required if we were to arrange to meet up for either a drink or meal.

 

On occasions where we do get together, it is always a pleasure to re-live the memories of our school days, more so if some who we may not have seen for a while happen to join us. The usual suspects, in a good way, always turn up most times. They are the 'backbone' of such gatherings so to speak, catalysts that drive the enthusiasm to meet.

 

We recently made plans to have an evening out at the iconic A&W in PJ State. Due to be closed for major redevelopment by the end of the year, we made it a point to meet there, a venue that we have fond memories of. Seeing each other in person is always much more rewarding that what social media has to offer, and we had a great time catching up as always. Here's to the next one.

 

Shamsul, Azlina, Airini, yours truly, Ranjit, Shahurain and Meng Cho at A&W, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Kiat Ken And His Food

My cousin Kiat Ken was back in town from London for our cousin Honn Ken's wedding recently. Having grown up in Malaysia, he makes it a priority to enjoy as much local food as possible whenever he visits. A creature of habit, Kiat Ken often wants to head to places he frequented as a kid. We always plan ahead, and try to pack in as much eating as possible into his itinerary.

 

His trip this time was for a mere three days. Apart from the wedding festivities, pre-wedding dinner, lunch reception after the wedding ceremony and celebratory banquet, we managed to also sample fishball meehoon soup, steamed chicken, durian, roti canai, sweet meat, Famous Amos cookies, sago gula Melaka and teh tarik, not bad for a less than 72-hour visit. The only stop we missed was bak-kut-teh, so that's something to look forward to the next time he returns.

 

There is no shortage of Asian food in London, but I guess there is nothing like the food we have here in Malaysia. I for one, never take that for granted.

 

 

Kiat Ken and I at Prosperity Bowl in SS2, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Mun Yee & Honn Ken

My cousin Honn Ken tied-the-knot with my then cousin-to-be Mun Yee on Saturday, 28 June 2014. As with such milestones and occasions of such magnitude, the entire extended family was on hand to celebrate. My cousins even came from as far as London and from across the causeway, Singapore.

 

The days and months leading up to the big day saw family members chip in to assist in whatever way possible, when requested by the couple. There is a fine line between helping and meddling, and all who were involved were reminded of this often, sometimes by yours truly. Managing a large family is never an easy task, and much effort has to be made by each and everyone of us. A close knit family should be able to handle this with aplomb, and this we did.

 

And so, we now officially welcome Mun Yee into the Thoo family. Congrats to the newlyweds.

 

 

The Thoo family, shot at Glad Tidings in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

2 May 2014

I am thankful for the birthday greetings that have flooded my phone and Facebook wall today, plus the phone and Skype calls too. I've tried to respond to each one individually but if I have missed anyone out, do know that I appreciate your well wishes and kind thoughts immensely.

 

As I reflect on the past year, I have learnt much. To live life to the fullest, to always be in a positive frame of mind, to appreciate the good in life. The most important lesson of all, to value oneself. Ever so often, we try to accommodate others and put them first, whether in our personal or professional lives. Sometimes this is warranted, but at other times, not. We, well I, need to be more discerning. This I will be conscious of as I begin a new chapter in life.

 

As I embark on a new year, I will take all your well-wishes with me. To appreciate good health, to be grateful for family and friends, to experience joy and happiness, to love and be loved, to embrace work and career, to travel the world and much, much more. Cheers to all of you!

 

 

Birthday lunch at Oriental Pavilion in Jaya 33, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.