Wish list for 2021

January 4, 2021.Reading time 6 minutes.

I wish 2021 will be nothing like 2020. I miss my life before Covid-19. I want that life back. Practically, I know that’s not going to happen. Sigh. Not for the most part of 2021, and maybe even beyond. At least not in Malaysia. Not yet. According to news reports, the government has secured a […]

Real or fake?

November 2, 2020.Reading time 6 minutes.

Many years ago, my mum used to read a weekly magazine. I forget the name now. It was a Tamil tabloid that carried news on politics, celebrity and lifestyle interspersed with some bizarre short stories. What I remember most is my mum reading, half-believing and relating the whacky snippets to me. The ones that jump […]

Farewell old favourites

October 26, 2020.Reading time 6 minutes.

First it was Sri Melaka. Our favourite Nyonya restaurant. My husband and I spent many evenings there. In fact, not a week went past without us visiting Sri Melaka. The exception was when we were out of town. And, it was Sri Melaka that we visited when we returned from wherever. Quite longingly, I might […]

My mum’s recipe 6: Upma

October 5, 2020.Reading time 7 minutes.

I don’t like Upma. I don’t like its taste, texture or look. My mum likes it. So much that she’d probably have it every Friday, her second vegetarian day in the week, if she could. Monday is her first designated non-meat day. My mum’s vegetarian days go up each month correspondingly with the number of […]

Mothagam

August 31, 2020.Reading time 6 minutes.

August 22 was Vinayagar Chathurti. My mum was fretting leading up to the big day for Lord Ganesha. She usually gets excited when there is a celebration on the horizon, particularly Deepavali. But this time she seemed concerned with her ‘To-do’ list. Shopping, cleaning the altar, sprucing up the condo and especially making ‘Mothagam’ or […]

My mum’s recipe 5 : Agar Agar

August 3, 2020.Reading time 7 minutes.

I like Agar-Agar. Why? The thought of something cold and tasty on a hot day, which is practically every day in Malaysia, is reassuring and refreshing. Oh alright… we have more than a few rainy days in the wet season. But it’s still hot, maybe a little less hot and certainly humid. It is weather […]

Different generation

April 27, 2020.Reading time 6 minutes.

My mum wears sarees. Cotton sarees at home. Nylex or silk for social and important outings. All six yards of fabric, wrapped around the lower body, with the patterned end pleated in the front and lying loosely over the left shoulder. Worn with a matching blouse and under a petticoat or ‘pavada.’ Now, her homewear […]