Kitab Atok: tuturan alambina

bila george bersurah lagi...

minggu lepas di parlimen.

posted by Atok @ 4:39:00 pm (0) comments

"it's a wrap"

Today was the final day for Kakak and the children on 'The Golden Compass' set at the Shepperton Studios... the place they've been on and off since late October last year. Well done to all the children who worked hard on the battle scene, with the Tartars and Gyptians.

We were supposed to be in Livorno, near Pisa, Italy since yesterday morning, but the day before, Kakak's agent informed that the originally scheduled final shooting next Monday had been brought forward to Thursday and Friday. So, early yesterday morning, Mummy, Sofea, NZ & W departed to Pisa as scheduled without Daddy and Kakak. She wasn't happy but accepted the fact that Livorno/Pisa will always be there, but not this shooting.

Luckily, we were on Ryanair 1p tickets. Next time lah gi... (we've been to Pisa years ago, when Kakak was a little girl).

----------------------
update
txt msg from NZ (Mummy's phone dah kong) petang tadi, when they were in Florence:

Kat Armani ni, just came out from Ferragamo! Dah mental!

mmm... expecting loads of Ferragamo (the only brand Mummy put her feet into and sling on her shoulder) to arrive back soon, adding to half a dozen of those still-in-their-maroon-boxes at home.

Labels: TGC

posted by Atok @ 9:52:00 pm (0) comments

at last...

finally, it came.... last night.
snow snow everywhere.....

it doesn't snow that often here in the south, especially around where we are, i.e. deep down in the Thames Valley: a stone-throw away from the great river in fact. it was only a couple of inches or so, but enough to give excitement to all here.

whilst i was scrapping the soft fluffy snow from my car this morning, i could hear laughter from kids playing with this whiteness... as early as 7:20am. yes, we are so snow jakun here in the warmer south....

... and starting my (commuting) day with white undulating english countryside landscape was a bliss.

posted by Atok @ 10:07:00 am (0) comments

I had been on cold turkey for quite sometime; my dosage of daily ganja had long gone… many months ago in fact. I've been through the kitchen store many times, with hope that there would be even a half pack hidden somewhere. Similarly, I've rumbled through all the compartments in the fridge a few times. Nothing... zilch, nada, habuk, not even a slice.

Yesterday, it rained most of the day… as in my homeland of Tanah Serendah Sekebun Bunga. During my younger years, puyae boh like this, we lived on ubi kayu, sardin, telur masin, ikan kering, ikan jeruk aka ikan budu, and telur…. well stocked weeks before the anticipated annual monsoon. What more could be refreshing than enjoying hot food or snack on the veranda whilst the sky kept pouring day in and night. No running around the compound playing Combat, nor kicking ball.... though the sight of Tempe Asuka & friends on the tele brought much joy.

So, yesterday afternoon I rushed to our local oriental supermarket and got all the necessary ingredients to free myself from this long enough deprivation of my staple food.

It took a good hour of de-boning, blanding, mixing, rolling, boiling and finally frying, before I could see the result….

Eureka, I did it !!!



... and it tasted as good.

My two girls who are similarly addicted to this, came to help with the rolling in the kitchen.

"Does it need to be the same shape, Daddy?", asked Kakak.
"No, you can make it whatever shape you like", I said.

So, they did....



and I've found my new weekend routine.
___________________________________

Note:
Kelantanese named this delicacy whilst rolling the dough, hence khepok gotae, whilst Tganungfolks named it much later in the process, when they were curled in the round woven basket, hence lekor.


Kelantanspeak glossary
puyae = musim
boh = bah = banjir
gotae = gentel

Tganungspeak glossary
lekor = lingkar

posted by Atok @ 10:22:00 pm (0) comments

It's 2007 !

Yes I know... it has been three days since.

But hey! It's the Visit Malaysia 2007 year, and what is more appropriate to boldly announce it to the world, especially by the far reaching airwaves of the BBC, loud and clear.

At about 5:50pm earlier today, whilst I was driving home on my normal dark and winding rural road of South Oxfordshire, BBC Radio 4's PM programme talked about Malaysia and its visit year. I listened to it with much regret; if you've missed it, you can read it here.

I've also read reports of some other chaotic scenes as the first wave of tourists arrived; incomplete new extra check-in counters at Penang International Airport, long delays of the newly introduced Hop-On-Hop-Off tour bus in KL, poor communication/language skills of our tour bus drivers, etc etc.

Welcome to Malaysia !
... soon you'll learn how to say "tak apa lah", or even better "doh nok wak guano".

posted by Atok @ 8:43:00 pm (0) comments