A Stroll with Jay Jay

I cannot get over the fact that Jay Jay has gentle eyes, but when I look into them, his eyes also reveal a depth of understanding, emotion and communication. 

We were strolling on a street in Baulkham Hills near his abode, and Jay Jay was particularly sensitive and polite to me.  He did not plunge off in a sudden way from his leash, except for one occasion, despite the bark of an occasional neighbourhood canine, or some other diversion - and I quietly appreciated that he took the effort to not cause a disruption to my intent of having a leisurely time with him on a cool winter's day in greater Sydney's north-west. The only exception was when he took an interest in approaching some older teenage girls, who instinctively smiled as they passed by him.

Jay Jay loves the elements and outdoors.  He would enthusiastically sniff off herbs, plants, grass and shrubs along the route we took, as if he was Charles Darwin himself discovering new species in New Holland. Then he would perform what we may think as unsavoury - the urinating - but it was his organic, natural way of placing markers for future reference, instead of building metal towers, drainage holes or radar screens, as modern mankind does. Was Jay Jay also planning a secret garden inventory of Nature's medicine should he need them on a day when he may be feeling under the weather? Maybe it was just a geographical and topographical marker for him.

Jay Jay seemed to be pre-occupied on this walk, but I realised half way that he was also walking truly with me, taking in quietly how I felt, listening to my occasional chat with him, but more importantly soaking in my non-verbal vibes - and then making me feel that it is okay, whatever my thoughts and feelings were then. I was reminded that no matter what, it was just lovely to acknowledge the sunshine, the blue sky, the twitter of the birds and the fifteen degrees in temperature. Jay Jay perhaps just tried to show me to let things be, whether he passed by shouting kids, others doing their sport or the rush of a gentle breeze on a late Sunday afternoon. It was a focused effort addressed to me that particular day, for otherwise he can be active and engaged on previous such walks.

The two of us went up a ridge and then turned around down slope to his home.  Happily he approached the front door and he instinctively knew his job - and mine - was done.  In an unassuming manner, we both basked in the after glow of each other's company.  He did not give me a wink, but his consistent eyes of assurance, when he looked into my eyes, spoke of reliability, on-going friendship and no-fuss approach to what life has to offer.  Think of how many of your human companions can do that to each of us.

Passing Thoughts

Tonight I am blessed with a full moon, with the kind of yellow tinged light and an almost happy celestial look.

The afternoon had been surprisingly warm that made my Kathmandu jacket feel hot, rather than comfortable.
I had tasted a vegetarian risotto first thing for lunch, as the rather unimpressive effects of a cereal breakfast always did not work for me - instead of making me satisfied and defy hunger, they always serve instead as an appetiser to make me look forward to relieve more hunger pangs. The risotto had pumpkin, carrot, peas and things with colours that are meant to be good for health - and was tasty too. Maybe the warm foods preferred during winter time does make one feel truly warm inside. However, at twenty degrees Celsius at teatime, this was definitely not winter.

The pork bites that I had marinated with palm sugar, soy sauce, cooking wine and the lot had turned into a delicious braised serving for dinner. Rain is forecast for tomorrow, otherwise I would have sprayed the weed killers on unwanted leaves already sprouting between the brickwork in the courtyard. The evening before I had managed to get the favourite heritage hand watch going again. Somehow a shopping night out feels better when it is unplanned. Things do get done even if one does not bring the to-do list. I take it as a bright-eyed child goes to a fast food joint as a reward for something well done. The child looks up at the pictures beyond the high counter and realises there are things to aspire for. Nothing else beats that first experience.

The incumbent Prime Minister of my nation had been sacked by a handful of political power brokers in his own Labour Party. I may have an idealistic notion of democracy, but the caucus approach to electing leaders in this country has illustrated its worst facets and extremes.  Why allow a very minority and select few decide the kind of leader to navigate a nation through its fate and history? What has happened to the notion of one person, one vote? It is time to re-think of only electing a party, for a citizen's birthright is also to help choose the person sitting at the helm of the ship taking the country to the future.  You would have thought it logical to encourage a system which reduces factional power and increase the dominance of majority views of the adult population.  Tonight the new and first female Prime Minister of Australia has been warned to be careful of back stabbers and changing fortunes. I hope that this does not reflect the mentality of the majority of denizens of this nation, at whatever levels, whether in the neighbourhood, community, town or region, at the work place or even in the classroom, where especially young an d impressive minds are shaped.

Do We Really Need To?

I felt much warmed up after finishing the clothes ironing and left over pork curry from last night. No need for a heater, as I prefer au naturale approaches to climate management (okay, except for the thermostat heater tube for the goldfish tank, I must admit). No one talks much of the dryness of skin from electrical or other human induced heating, and the effects of searing summer is only for a few unbearable days in Wollongong.  There is so much push by the media on climate change, but they also overload us with plenty of models of electrical gadgets during advertising breaks.

Passing showers fell after I watered the garden beds last night, with precise timing as if I had invoked it once I took out the garden hose. I felt good to see moisture on the sand coloured pebbles placed to try to prevent or discourage weeds. Water flowed over the small stones like a break of drought over a river bed. Flora never go out of fashion as fast as bath sets, tapheads, vanity cabinets, stoves, ovens and sink models. Human beings are in constant drive to modify, change or innovate. Plants and flowers thrive in consistency and gradual adaptation, not sudden drastic changes.

David Mason maintains an engaging enthusiasm as he works through countless numbers of customers at the coffee and tea outlet he works in.  His dark brown hair rises to a natural vertical over his forehead as if he was supporting Mount Matterhorn in the French Alps. His eyes may reflect fatigue but still exude a natural smile for others.  I ask him if he has found his working experience for the past year useful  and relevant to his future plans and dreams. David says he is glad he embraced the ropes, the people, the network and the reality on the front lines. He seems to have a structured purpose to the role he has chosen for himself. Do we need to throw ourselves, I sometimes ponder, to the whims and fancies of formal syllabuses and course demands, when we can shape and sculpt some part of our own preferences in preparing for our future?

 I have been reminded that some specific individuals are not all that reasonable or civil. Maybe, as a title of a catchy tune alludes to in the South Pacific musical, I have been all along too much a bright-eyed optimist. I naturally think of the best in people when I first meet and interact with them. These individuals with negative intent try to impose their demands and influence beyond their actual impact, and must feel good, in their own perverted reckoning, to seemingly be able to utilise laws meant for the common good to apply to their unique personal advantage.  Do they really need to think and act like that?  In the unsaid laws of the universe, every action does bring forth an equal and logical reaction.

The Art of Making Radish Flavoured Cake

Radish Flavoured cake is not a dessert nor for tea time - it is a much looked forward snack for breakfast or supper in food-obsessed Singapore or Malaysia. Inspired from southern Chinese provincial fare, it is a stir-fried combination that provides reliability to quell hunger, be inspired by aromatic flavours and topped by omelette's pieces.

The wok hei- or heat - is important in dishing up tasty stir-fried with a oomph.

here cousin Susan takes the cooking tot he courtyard on a cool winter's night in a Sydney suburb.

Her freshly plucked chillies from her garden are combined into a paste that essentially gives the otherwise plain looking radish-flavoured cake (known colloquially as Kueh Kak) a kick to the palate.

Chives are washed and cut length-wise for blending with the wok-induced aromas from bean sprouts, dashes of ginger, garlic paste, pre-cooked rice-based cubes and eggs.

The Art of Making Chung

Chung in the Cantonese dialect refers to the bamboo leaf-wrapped steamed/ boiled dumplings of glutinous rice cooked with various ingredients. Comfort food steeped in tradition and history, it is wholesome, tasty and essentially a summer delight. The southern Chinese versions feature mushrooms, pork cuts, beans and more - all doused with flavourful marinades of soy sauce to give colour, preservation and principle.

These dumplings tell a story of holding upright principles in feudal China and are linked to the annual celebrations of the Dragon Boat races in most of eastern Asia.

Each bamboo leaf has to be culled and thoroughly washed with warm water and scrubbed. The aromatic infusion of these leaves add to the cooked flavour, and they are not merely used for wrapping.

Glutinous rice is pre-cooked even before being used as fillers in bamboo leaf wraps.

The various ingredients are set out before filling in the triangle shaped delights. Time is of the essence, as there are various stages of preparation, patience and cooking time required. In 2010, the Dragon Boat Festival of the lunar calendar falls on 15 June. This event recalls how a high-ranking minister, disillusioned with the corrupt conduct and politics of his day, threw himself into a raging river and how his loyal subjects tried to divert the fish from eating his drowned body. This was how dragon boat racing and the chungs came into being.

Mushrooms galore, a much valued ingredient in Chinese cuisine.

The steamer, kept snugly down by a stone cap, especially effective during the process.

The Straits Chinese or Peranakan version of the chung offers a more dessert sweet dimension in taste, compared to its original mainland China roots. They offer nutty flavours instead of savoury, and include fanciful blue natural colouring of the rice to reflect integrated cultural influences of the Malaysian peninsular.

(Kindly Yours acknowledge the making of the chung process above to Mrs Ellen Moay and Mrs Charmaine Wan of Sydney)

Sydney in May

A bottle of champagne, albeit Australian, awaited me from my host. It is  a gesture much appreciated, that echoes personal mindfulness and care, actual  implementation of all the otherwise often empty promises of advertising and customer services in commercial services. The unexpected Falung Gong protest had blocked
my usual road path and I had to take a convoluted route instead, but here I was with my bags at my residence for the next few days, with an opportunity to refresh and recover from my usual regime.

I looked forward to the paucity of the variety of food from different cultures and cuisines near my host's residence. Away from the lamb roast expected at one committed event, I could not wait to savour something different from the Illawarra base. I enjoyed a homely ambiance at the Yakuzano Japanese cafe run by a family. The Glasgow Arms was a solid heritage establishment which retained a very English setting and offered a bulwark to the demographics of its changed neighbourhood.  Homok and pad see ew were my appreciated dishes taken at a fav Thai cafe,the former being fish fillet cooked in a spicy custard-like steamed concoction wrapped in banana leaves and the latter being broad rice noodles stir-fried with a savoury gravy, also recognised as sar hor fun in Malaysia and Singapore.

In this sojourn, I came across a friendly family of five, a typical Aussie bloke with a mainland Chinese wife and three strapling sons. They  looked  a picture of comfort to the father, who must have been an adventurous type in his youth, or maybe not. Whatever my imaginary speculation, I was impressed with his achievements in having such a family.  The mother looked having settled well in this country of various cultures so far from her childhood. The sons had a sparky glint in their eyes having to straddle two different cultures -and seemed to relish in this unique position.

On another occasion, whilst strolling, I stumbled across a young man called Nathan, who was one of those who sat forlornly on the pavement and waited on the generosity of passers-by.. It was a coolish evening and this was Australia at the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century.  He had the look of inner fear and a cry for help. He was able-bodied but his soul and heart looked distraught. Nathan still spoke gently. Whether under the influence of drugs, or just struggling on after being battered with the unfairness of life and an uncaring community, he spoke affectionately of his father and how he hoped to be reunited with him back in country New South Wales.  Nathan did not ask for money - maybe he just yearned for some caring.

Euan at Myers was enthusiastic and helpful - he manned the Rhodes and Beckitt section handling Boston Brothers shirts. Hailing from Brittany, he articulated in a captivating manner of spoken English that added positively to the shopping experience.  Whilst watching Wicked the musical, the fellow audience members to my right were a couple from Margaret River in Western Australia, having flown in five hours by air to spend some days in Sydney.

The Hindu calendar had declared a rare auspicious day on May 16, 2010, a day suitable for doing anything significant in the journey of life. I came to know of this important day while listening to Radio National  driving form Wollongong to Sydney. Marriages and other contracts were locked in, especially in theUnited Kingdom and the Indian sub-continent, to savour the good luck and vibes of this special day. I even bought some miniature sucker catfish and golden snails to grace my small aquarium tank.  Whilst I appreciated the cosmic significance of events like this, I also realised that it is fun - and important - that we make the effort to do something special each day. Time we have is the most important luxury each of us possess, and something special can be small - like being grateful for what we have - or bigger - like interacting with individuals, friends or strangers, who can teach us a thing or two.

Wollongong Fare

Aussie lamb cutlets with rocket and ricotta salad - appetising.

Ceaser Salad - always easy and balanced.

Fettucine with one of the may variations of sauce and garnishings, a staple in a town influenced by Italian traditions.

Angel hair pasta, this one with bits of blue swimmer crab and barramundi, a reflection of the harvest of the Illawarra coast and beyond.

Wollongong in Winter

Just outside a bay window.

View on the first morning of June.

Blooms from succulent despite a wet and windy week.

Breakfast fare from Lee & Me Cafe, Crown Street in the CBD - mushrooms and tomatoes to balance with the bacon and the omelettes.

The owners still cannot decide on a name.

Settling in with a cosy sofa and reading, where's the cuppa?

Contentment

When does a viewing of an episode of the US television series Ugly Betty and the Rick Stein sojourn through Asia, Far Eastern Odyssey, become especially relaxing? It is the evening in early June after a hiatus from the Reserve Bank Australia in edging up the interbank rate after four months, a welcome relief as the Bank seemed to be utilising the rate as apparently the only tool to affect monetary policy for the nation. The dishwasher was running a cycle, also especially appreciated as it was not properly working not too long ago. I realised having  arrived at such simple but not to be taken for granted pleasures, which offer personal happiness beyond expectations and which one need not contrive for - the positive feelings just emerged, as unplanned as pottering in a garage on a rainy weekend afternoon or from strolling amongst well placed displays in a shop with no obligation to get or buy anything.  Sensations which increasingly we do not get at work, if we join a bad employee environment.

One evening, a feeling of contentment also beamed down from a full golden moon smiling over my bedroom window and the outer courtyard. It was 28 May,  the fifteenth night of the fifth lunar month, an anniversary held dear by Buddhists all over the world to commemorate the birth, enlightenment and death of the Buddha in northern India so many years ago.  Cold was the night  air but warm was my heart, even if a coolish spell marked the close of autumn in the southern hemisphere. The moon light showed the path to greater heights, I reckoned, and the possibility of hopeful sights. Good vibes have arrived as the distracting evils, from some people who blatantly stirred up trouble, subsided.

We may be instinctively dissatisfied with routine chores, but in the end, they provide a purpose, rhythm and structure.  Whether they be gardening, cleaning the shower tiles, vacuuming, adjusting the solar powered garden lights, doing the laundry, getting the essential groceries or collecting the mail, such tasks may provide little achievements by themselves but remind us that we are at least in step with the on-going requirements of daily life, in making our abode cleansed and orderly.

People who do not matter may distract and challenge us on the wayside, but what they do are so dubious and obviously not on our side. Such acts committed by them dissolve easily in impact on us, when compared to the solid little things we continually achieve in making the world a better place, by sharing big things, by communicating important things, by appreciating what others take for granted, by exercising some measure of sacrifice at times and by letting go of rather small matters in the long run.  Negative individuals may think they are so clever in scheming acts and verbalising words to try to hurt us, but we let them sink and wallow in their own little worlds of delusion, narrow hearts and falsity.

Happiness may seem elusive, but it does emerge when we least expect it. Therein may lie the secret to achieving contentment, and from contentment, back to that subtle feeling of happiness. Let it be, let others be themselves, and we also observe ourselves from afar - as to how content we can naturally be, without expecting or working too hard about it.