Lady Of The Night

They haven't bloomed in a while but they're doing really great these past couple of days leading up to Chinese New Year. Mum asked me to take a few photos of them - Lady Of The Night - my dad's favourite plant. Lai Lin more eloquently describes the plant in her comment to my post Eulogy To Dad. All I know is that they emit a wonderful fragrance when night falls and a whiff of it often reminds us of my dad. Auntie Helen would concur.

I suppose the blooms come at a good time. We celebrate Chinese New Year without dad's physical presence this year but somehow I feel he is with us - through memories, through the little occurrences that remind us of him.

Tomorrow night we will go ahead with the reunion dinner that my dad had planned with 2 of his siblings, Auntie Anne and Uncle Chee Peng. Pretty apt I think. Life goes on, celebrating family ties, as my dad would have wanted.

Photo of Lady Of The Night in our little garden at home.

TSO Pre-CNY Lunch

A pre-Chinese New Year lunch is an annual tradition for our small team at That Special Occasion @ Desa Sri Hartamas. This year is no exception and I booked a table at Fong Lye Restaurant in our vicinity.

It is a time to welcome the new year and also a time to reflect on the year past. Most importantly, it is an opportunity to think good thoughts and set goals for the year ahead. A new start as they say.

So the year of the Ox has come to a close and the year of the Tiger beckons. We shall look forward to good health, wonderful encounters, interesting travels, cementing of relationships, fulfillment of aspirations and success in business endeavours.

Photo of Abolone Yee Sang at Fong Lye Restaurant in Desa Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Helen's Take

For as long as I can remember, since childhood actually, Auntie Helen has been part of the Wong extended family. She and my Auntie Anne have been friends for decades and she is regarded as part of the family. In fact my dad often referred to Auntie Helen as his defacto sister. She is on the list for every family gathering, every celebration.

Here are some of Auntie Helen's thoughts on my dad, in response to some of the comments that my post Eulogy To Dad generated ..........

Reading Lai Lin's words brought a huge lump to my throat. Yes. Your dad was not only a good gardener, he was a very generous man too. He freely gave away his treasured plants to all who asked. When I moved back to the city to live, I had to leave behind the basil plant, the pandan leaves and the fragrant lady-of-the-night. A whiff of the scent and memories will come flooding back. A lot of people out there are not aware that your dad was a very good singer. I will miss him, his smile, his jokes ..............

Photo of Auntie Helen shot at Passion Road during Auntie Mary's 70th birthday celebration in October 2009.

Childhood Saturdays

I very recently went back to Bangkok Bank after not having visited for more than a decade. I went with my mum to sort out some of her personal matters following my dad's passing.

I remember it being a stopover as we went about our Saturdays when I was a kid. My father's one and only job throughout his life was with Bangkok Bank. He started out as an office boy and rose through the ranks to become the CEO of the Kuala Lumpur branch during 4 decades of service.

My mum, sister and I would often go down town on Saturdays - have brunch at one of the coffeeshops, hit Petaling Street for some shopping and later meet up with my dad. One of the coffeeshops was Lai Foong. When I visited last week, some of the hawker stalls that I loved had closed but the Milo was just as good as I recalled. These old haunts bring back good memories and though some may have undergone changes, they still bring a smile to my face when the opportunity to re-visit arises.

Photo of a cup of Milo at Lai Foong in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Childhood Snacks

I am a sentimental person. When I come across someone or something that triggers a good memory, I often try to re-live the moment, if possible. Even something as frivolous as a satay-fish snack!

I was in a snack food shop in Ipoh on Sunday and out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of the satay-fish snack, the ones that I lined up to buy at the canteen during my primary school days. It may not be wholesome food but it is what it is, a delightful and fond reminder of the good times of childhood. A time when we snacked on whatever caught our fancy. No thoughts of calories, no thoughts of cholesterol, no concern of whether the ingredients were healthy. We like, we eat.

So, I bought a whole pack. That was last Sunday. I kept it like treasure and only finally brought it out to savour last evening. The entire pack was almost gone in less than 10 minutes. Need I say more!

Photo shot in Ipoh, Malaysia.

It's Back

Migraine is hereditary in my family and I am the poster-boy of migraine in my generation. I pay close attention to the warning signs and take measures to minimise the likelihood of a migraine coming on. Different sufferers have different triggers. For me, it is usually the weather, how much sleep I get or rather the lack of and stress levels.

Thing is, I had been migraine-free for a few years. But alas, it's back. I gather it must be due to the events of the past week and a half as well as the extremely hot and humid conditions that often characterise pre-Chinese New Year weather.

So, I once again travel everywhere with a supply of prescribed Cafergot tablets, my saviour when the pounding headaches strike. I also once again make it a point to watch what I eat and drink, try to go to bed a bit earlier, with much difficulty try not to get too stressed out at work and with much pleasure get more reflexology and massage sessions booked. A silver lining? It will soon pass, perhaps in a week or so.

Which spa is this again Leticia?

Ipoh

My mum suggested that we all go to Ipoh for a day trip yesterday, just to get away for a bit. So off we went with my aunts and uncles, all 7 of us - mum, Suk Harn and I, Auntie Anne, Auntie Mary, Uncle Chee Peng and Uncle KC; my dad's 2 sisters, brother and brother-in-law.

On the agenda, eating our way through town and shopping for goodies to bring home too. Most of all, the intention was to get our minds off the melancholy of the past week. We succeeded somewhat, so that's progress.

We all piled into Auntie Mary and Uncle KC's MPV bright and early, actually early but not bright yet, considering we left home at 6.30am! And we got back at about 5.00pm, after much food and drink, much more food-shopping and some sing-a-longs in the car. Thank God for family!

Photo of me and Auntie Anne, and some who were impatient to get at the food.