Lunch & Shopping at Setia Ecohill Mall, Semenyih

On the 2nd day in Semenyih, we had lunch at Setia Ecohill and also to check out the newly opened Lulu Hypermarket. The whole day was gray and gloomy.

2 giant black ant sculptures.

As we walked further in, there is a beautiful horse sculpture.

I suppose this will be beautifully lit up in the dark.

We were here for a light lunch.

Menu.

2 plates of  Hakka Taro or Yam Abacus Seeds.

The abacus is made with yam and tapioca flour.

Sang Meen.

After lunch, we went to check out the newly opened Lulu Hypermarket.

It was raining heavily but we were able to walk under the covered way.

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From my garden.

I was doing some cutting and trimming and this insect appeared from among the cuttings.

A sunrise at 7:45am from the month of August.

Linking to Skywatch Friday & Saturday's Critters.

You made the moon to mark the seasons,

and the sun knows when to set.

You send the darkness, and it becomes night,

when all the forest animals prowl about.

Then the young lions roar for their prey,

stalking the food provided by God.

At dawn they slink back into their dens to rest.

Then people go off to their work,

where they labor until evening.

(Psalm 104:19-23, The Living Bible-TLB)

Home Grown Vegetables With Porridge

I prefer to eat rice porridge when the weather is hot. When my father-in-law was with us, he will only eat porridge when he was not feeling well and that only for 1 or 2 days. By the 2nd day, he will complain that his legs felt weak and he needed to eat rice. Good thing, hubby doesn't feel that way and he does not mind eating porridge.

Most times, I will cook plain rice porridge. Other times, I will add meat, salted egg and century egg, or whatever is available. There are also times when I will add in rolled oats to the rice porridge if it is available. Here are 2 examples of our recent rice porridge dinners.

Dinner #1

Some home made pickled ginger and green chili.

Canned pickled lettuce.

Rice porridge with pre-marinated pork slices, century egg, salted egg, and ginger strips.

Home grown vegetable - baby choy sum.

Just plain blanched vegetable without any oil or sauce.

These days I use brown rice to boil porridge. I buy brown rice from the rice shop in my area. Recently, I asked a friend to help me buy a packet of brown rice from Sekinchan. 

Dinner #2

Salted duck egg.

Minced pork with sour belimbing buluh (picture below), chilies and onions.

Belimbing buluh fruits from a friend.

Plain brown rice porridge.

Sauteed home grown Green Amaranth with oil, garlic and salt.

Green Amaranth babies.

When I first planted this, I scattered too many seeds within a small plot.

Now I know better and I try to space out the seeds.

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I received the following photos from a friend.

I searched the internet and I think this insect is the Callirhipis Cardwellensis beetle with Flabellate Antennae.

Insect photos credited to Shirley.

This beetle is new to me.

Have you come across this strange looking beetle before.

Linking to Saturday's Critters.

How could he?

For certainly he has never been one to know the Lord's thoughts,

or to discuss them with him, or to move the hands of God by prayer.

But, strange as it seems, we Christians actually do have within us

a portion of the very thoughts and mind of Christ.

(1 Corinthians 2:16, The Living Bible-TLB)

Year End Blessings (Year 2020)

I woke up on the 2nd last day of year 2020 feeling tired because I wasn't sleeping well the whole night. As usual, I went for the morning walk, had a light breakfast, walked home, watered my garden and fed my guppies. Then I sat in front of the computer to prepare the day's blog post. Just as I was shutting down my computer, a friend called. Halfway through the conversation, someone was at my front gate ringing the bell. I ended the call and went to check on the visitor. It was an old friend whom I have not seen for a long time and with her mask on, I almost couldn't recognize her.

She came bringing me the above gift.

She knew I love smoked duck and she brought me a packet of frozen boneless smoked duck. We sat down to exchange updates and halfway through, someone called me on the hand phone. It was a friend wanting to drop by to pass something to me.

A few minutes later, she brought over the above cassava roots grown from the cuttings I gave her. So nice of her to remember and blessed me with some of the produce from her garden. After she left, I continued chatting with my friend and later, we went out for lunch. Just as we were finishing lunch, another friend called to inform that she will be sending over the items I have ordered through her.

My friend helped me buy the above fresh seafood from a fishing village. 2 tubs of fresh prawns, 2 packets of mantis prawns (lai lui har in Cantonese) and 2 tubs of vegetable acar. What I thought to be a boring day turned out to be a busy day.

Later in the afternoon, my neighbour returned from a day trip to Cameron Highlands and gifted us with the above - corns, sweet potatoes and strawberries.

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Year end dinner at Jimm's Cafe, a treat from our friend.

Our friend ordered this spaghetti pork chop @ RM15.90

The 3 of us ordered the above chicken chop set which includes a scoop of ice cream @ RM13.90.

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The following photos are credited to AshleyJ/Nyappy.

Insect found on the okra plant.

Google Lens identified this insect or pest as Dysdercus cingulatus, commonly known as red cotton stainer. It is a serious pest of cotton crops, which feed on the emerging bolls and the cotton seeds, transmitting cotton-staining fungi as it does so.

These pests were found mating in the photographer's backyard.

The adult females lay eggs in chambers they dug in the soil. The eggs will hatch after about 5 days and will take about 30 or more days to mature into adults.

 Thanks to my friend who gifted me the smoked duck for sharing the above photos with me.

Linking to Saturday's Critters.

Do you remember what the Scriptures say about this?

"He that gathered much had nothing left over,

and he that gathered little had enough."

So you also should share with those in need.

(2 Corinthians 8:15, The Living Bible-TLB)

Herbal Chicken Soup, Omelette & Mixed Veggie For Dinner

Yesterday morning was a cloudy day. We walked to our regular coffee shop with me carrying an umbrella just in case it rains. We each had a cup of unsweetened coffee and then we walked back again. It didn't rain but remained cloudy for most part of the day.

 Cloudy morning at 8:05 am.

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Home cooked dinner

Younger son took leave to come home for the weekend. He has been depending on food delivery for his meals and was looking forward to some simple home cooked food.

 Onions and eggs omelette.

It's been a long time we had this.

 Mixed vegetables

(broccoli, carrot, fresh mushrooms, and prawns)

  Herbal soup with free range chicken.

Even though the skin was removed, there is still oil floating on the soup. Before drinking, I will skim the oil from the soup.

 I found this insect inside my house. It was cold and raining outside. It was probably trying to get some warm inside my house.

Found this insect on one of my morning walk.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO ALL FATHERS

Linking to Saturday's Critters.

Show me the path where I should go, O Lord;

point out the right road for me to walk.

Lead me; teach me; for you are the God who gives me salvation.

I have no hope except in you.

(Psalm 25:4-5, The Living Bible-TLB)

What We Eat For Breakfast

First, here are some snapshots I took one morning at the recreational park. One of the things I enjoy at the park besides walking is taking snapshots of sunrises and sunsets. I also check out if there is anything to buy from the temporary stalls such as vegetables, fruits, and whatever I need, all to my convenience.

 6:45 am

 6:50 am

 7:05 am

 7:15 am - This is my favourite snapshot.

*     *     *     *     *

In this post, I am sharing some of the food we eat for breakfast. These are just a few because there are many, many more choices out there. These food can also be eaten for lunch, dinner or in between according to individual's preference.

 Curry noodle

 Roti chapati (Indian flat bread) with spicy sambal.

 Dim sum items.

 Steamed glutinous rice with sweet grated coconut.

 Beef soup on its own or with noodles.

 Pan Mee or noodles either in soup or dry version.

 Wonton noodle or noodle with dumplings with stewed pork ribs.

Last but not least, steamed flat rice noodle (chee cheong fun), with or without sauce.

 One evening I found this little insect on the floor in my living room. I scooped it up with a piece of floor and flipped it out of the window to set it free.

 This dog was ready to pose for my camera when suddenly it got distracted by an itch in its leg. It is a very friendly dog. Once it nudged me gently with its nose when I walked past.

Linking to Saturday's Critters.

But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God

- the free life! - even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it,

is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action.

That person will find delight and affirmation in the action.

(James 1:25, The Message-MSG)