.....times of refreshing.....

Which one you prefers to go for a nice relaxation moment? A nice, good massage in the caring hands of a skillful masseuse or work it out in the gym? Well, I'm sure most folks will choose the former which I did too.  How nice to lay down on a cool bed with someone applying friction to your muscles all over the body, from head to neck, from neck to shoulders, from shoulders to your upper body and later to your lower back, and all the way to your thighs, hips and feet! It's a relaxation sensation especially when it is applied with aromatic oil, in a dark cool room!

However, all these 'pains' have their reward too .... 

Last Tuesday night after work, I was face with a decision, to go for massage or a run at the treadmill in my company's gym?  I finally gave in to having a massage and it was indeed a good Thai massage. However, I realise that everytime after each massage, I don't get the 'after effect' compared to a good workout where my body and mind are truly relaxed.

Thus, I find that if I want to feel good and less stressful especially on the next working day, it's better to workout. Probably, I go for massage on weekends.:)

Compare to the icy version, the hot one was much sour and squeezing the lemon juice doesn't help either. :) Anyway, I feel refreshed after having a cup of it, probably due to the sour taste and a little bit of caffeine in the beverage.
My favourite tea bite in Lavender - Thin crispy kaya toast. The kaya spread were of the pandan type, which makes the toast tastier. I feel hungry now while blogging this post. :)

One of my intentions in starting this blog is to create a relaxing little corner in the cyberspace and suddenly it dawns on me to write something on peace of mind. Afterall, I want to make my blog a 'feel good' web log.

I love to read self-improvement books and have talk to lots of folks including psychologically trained, folks from higher management to blue-collar folks, religious folks of all kinds of faith, other nationalities and etc. So, here goes- my opinions on how to have peace of mind.....

1. Sleep well
- That's the number one stress buster! Sleep well and you feel refresh and feel good the next day which increase your productivity or enhance your creativy in whatever you do, whether work, play or sports. Deprieve your sleep and you waste another day that God has made for us. You will likely wanted to get home quick and hit the slumber after dinner, when you have lack of sleep. The day is simply lousy and you easily get pissed off and moody the whole day.

2. Exercise
- Exercise hard and rigorously and you feel good after that. There's a study that the body will release a kind of happy or feel good hormones called Endorphins. To me, I simply love the after effect of a good workout.  It made me less stressful and more productive. Anyway, if you have been idle for a while, it's advisable to do a medical checkup before embarking on any exercises.

3. Turn your negative thoughts into positive thoughts
- The power of attraction, negative forces attracts negative stuffs and vice-versa. When you're down, you are actually radiating negative energy to others and in a way, brought the other party down too. Write down your negative thoughts and think of an alternative rational response to it. This is actually called cognitive therapy.

4. Maintains good relationships with friends and family members
- Having good and healthy relationships always yields hapiness and blissfulness. So, try to maintain good relationships with your colleagues, friends, family members ...etc. Of course, not everyone can be buddies with you, thus, it's good to avoid some folks which can hurt your sanity but who knows, he/she could be your best friend someday. :)

5. Be religious
- I always find peace in my religion, especially when stress bogged me down. If God is with us, what can be against us?

6. Eat well and right
-  Eat good food and in moderation will always helps in reducing our blood cholesterol and provides us the immunity from diseases. Drink less liquor and smoke lesser. :)

7. Manage your finances
- This is something which I'm very poor at now but imagine if you're financially stable and strong. This will have cut away most of your daily concerns. It's easy to say this anyway but it's good to have some knowledge on financial planning.I guess can read lots of books and attend some seminars on this topic.

8. Stay healthy
- Visit a doc if you think something's bothering you. I remember I have some chest pains before and quite worry about it and my doc's advice was asked me to part my RM20+ to do an ECG for peace of mind. I did it, all clears and my worries stopped. So, if you have a toothache, see a dentist. In addition, if you need to talk to a psychiatrist, do it and remember you're not insane in doing so!

9. Don't sweat the small stuffs
- It's really not worth our attention on those minor and tiny stuffs in life. It spoils our mood and elevates our blood pressure. Just let go!!

(*disclaimer - These are just my opinions and I'm not trained in healthcare :) See a doc if you are not well!!)

Mee Hoon kuey in hokkien or popular known as 'pan mee' or 'min fan kou' in cantonese can be found almost everywhere in Malaysia but I find that it's especially popular in the south - JB and Singapore. It comes in a variety of noodles - the popular 'no shape' ones or 'tear' noodles, the spinach green type, the long ramen look-alike type and etc. I love the 'tear' ones...where the noodles comes in many big chunks.


Here's one that's cooked with spinach noodles. Overall, I still prefers the JB style where the soup is clearer and lighter.
Check out this newly opened outlet at Permas Jaya, Jalan Permas 10.

I usually likes to end my food posting with a coffee each time but decided to make a change this time- here's Ipoh's famous White Coffee! Anyway, I didn't patronise that famous old town white coffee that almost everyone knows these days but a place that my family used to go for bites.


Overall, the place not too bad with good service and nicely decor. Great to come here for some small bites and chat over coffee. :)

Whenever I went back to Ipoh, I will never failed to eat 'Yim Kuk Kai' or Salted Chicken. And, usually I will drive all the way out to town to buy from the original shop or maybe the oldest in Ipoh -Aun Kheng Lim. Well, though I'm sure salted chicken, which is not just salty but steamed with a variety of chinese herbs like 'tang kwei', were sold all over Malaysia, I think Ipoh's still the best!

I was surprise too, to see so many other shops selling the delicacy in this kopitiam's surroundings, but I still love the original.
Here's how it looks like when the box is opened,the 'treated' steamed chicken is wrapped with a paper and you have to carefully remove it as it's quite slippery and oily. The chicken is not that big as you think, thus, one serving usually caters to three persons only.
Well, seeing this picture while writing this post makes my saliva dropping! I still can't find a place selling this delicacy in JB. The closest is the herbal chicken which is immensed in some herbal soup or gravy. Really feel like having a bite on it... LOL

Well, first time I tried this.... 'hi-fibre' cheesecake. It's real delicious with chunks of nuts and fruits bits in it! That's how the fibre stuffs came.... LOL. I love this!
Here's my 4 year old kid all time favourite, chocolate cheesecake. My wife and I were surprise he can wallop the entire slice of cake. LOL...
And as always, a cuppa of refreshing coffee to usher in the new year. Hope it's not too late to wish you guys a Happy New Year 2010. :)

I didn't really know the chicken 'tauge' hor fun in Ipoh opened in the noon too, as it was all along opened at night during 'my days' in Ipoh. Well, while on the way to get some biscuits and delicacies back to JB and S'pore, I passed by the two famous chicken hor fun in Ipoh City, 'Lou Wong' and 'Onn Kee'. It was WAR!!!
Too bad I already had tea before going to this place else .... I will join in the war!! hahha..... I didn't really tried both when I'm back this time round, though I have had it at other place in Ipoh.

Not far from here, there's also a lot of pastry shops selling tidbits like Ipoh's famous 'heong peh' (fragrance biscuits), coconut sweets, tambun biscuits and etc. Check out this one ... Yee Hup Confectionary.

This is what I have been shopping for - 'Heong Peh'. It's really crispy,sweet and delicious. Anyway, to my ignorance, these packets of biscuit was also sold just opposite my company here in Spore and almost everywhere in JB...hahaha... Anyway, I saved a few RM buying in Ipoh, maybe it's fresher here.
A peep at the outlet, the crowd mostly are tourists I believe except the one in red who's my mum.:)