Do You Like Drama?

I see so much drama that I don't need soaps to keep me entertained, for real!

Aiyoh seriously, grow up la sweethearts. There's a whole lot more to this world than what revolves only around you darlings :)

Haha

How do you like your eggs- scrambled, sunny side-up, over-easy, French omelet-ish, poached, slow-poached, boiled, smoked, raw, 5:10?

Whoa these sporadic bursts of bullshit is really getting to me. Haha

Got food?

Let's All Have A Laugh

Sometimes the funkiest of circumstances, be it the most adverse or the complete opposite of it, might get you thinking; wouldn't I be sparing the closest fellas I know some serious bouts of headache if I weren't even conceived in the first place. Haha!

Gets you thinking don't it? Meh I've got you.

I'm hungry. Aren't you?

Got food?

Dumdeedum (:

I'm as chuffed as a fat cow really. Papa brought me to go see the Man Utd match! I'm stoked! (Caught it on Saturday as well with Melvin)

It was rather peculiar. My Dad called me while I was in class asking, "Do you wanna go watch Manchester United taking on Malaysia?"

But really, to be honest, I don't really recall being this happy in a long time. Heck, it's defo one of the best days in my life thus far. He even went to get the tickets. It sounds cliched and all but heck, it's difficult to put into words really just how I feel right now.

You see, thing is my father is absolutely NOT into football. A point to substantiate that fact? He pointed at Man United's No.11 and asked me, "who's that? He's quite slick with the ball eh?"

......0.O"......

How can you not know Ryan Giggs?! Haha. He defended himself by retorting that he could at least single out Rooney from the mass of bodies on the pitch. But really, I'd never expected my Dad, of all persons, to take me to a football match. I'm over the moon, really.

Our very own "Theater of Dreams"

Spot your heroes..

WAYNE ROOOONEY!!

Laters.

Bruschetta of Pan Seared Encrusted Beef Tenderloin OR Open-Faced Sandwich

Thing is, I can't come to terms as to what to call this dish. Bruschetta or an open-faced sandwich? Hmm.

So yes, we all know that a tenderloin of beef is one of the choicest cut of beef available and the cut most often used for filet mignon. Basically what I've done (or tried to do :p) is that I coated the tenderloin in mustard, dijon in this case, gave it a spice crust and seared it very briefly on all sides. This cooks the tenderloin to medium rare. If eating meat a little on the raw side is not your thing, pop the seared tenderloin into a 170-200°C for about 15-20 minutes.

So without further ado or the need for small chatter, let's get down to this recipe:

Bruschetta of Pan Seared Encrusted Tenderloin (Or Opened-Face Sandwich, whichever)
Recipe by Tan Kel Vin

(Serves 4)

- 400g beef tenderloin
- 3-4 heaped tbsp's of Dijon mustard
- Crushed black peppercorns
- Crushed coriander seeds
- Salt, loads of it
- Some olive oil
- Crusty bread like baguette or ciabatta
- Parmesan cheese (no powdered ones, get the real McCoy!)

Start off by rubbing the dijon mustard all over the tenderloin. Lay out the crushed black peppercorns, coriander seeds and salt on a chopping board or a flat surface and mix well. Lay the tenderloin which has been rubbed with the mustard on the spice mixture and coat all sides. Get a frying pan on the stove and let it get screaming hot. Add some olive oil to the pan. When the pan and oil is hot enough, place the tenderloin in the pan and sear for 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from pan, let the meat rest before slicing.

Get your bread, slice into nice semi-thick slices and brush with a little olive oil. Lightly grill the slices of bread. Once the meat has rested (about 7-10 minutes), slice thinly across the grain and at an angle. Assemble; place a slice or more of beef on each slice of bread, drizzle with a little olive oil, shave a little parmesan over the slices and sprinkle with cracked black pepper.
Garnish with dressed greens such as watercress or parsley if you'd like.

Laters.

Yes, Big Boy?

Been feeling a little under the weather the past few days. And to say the least, the past few days were in fact quite a whirlwind, really.

OHH SHITT NOO.

Was about to upload pics from my camera when I discovered the memory card is GONE. I'm staring at the empty slot right now. Omg. Someone must've nicked it from my D90. Shitt.

Ahh.

This was meant to be a proper post, with decent photos and the works but the whole "SD Card-gone-missing" has totally put me off. Ergh.

DUPED!

You know that utterly sinking feeling when you first discovered Santa Claus is as real as flying pigs when you were about 4 or 5?

Well then, imagine then when you discover that that incredibly steamy ultra sultry poster girl you ogle over every night before going to bed is in fact, a man. Or WAS, rather.

Or worse still, imagine you were Shia Labeouf, whom the entire male population thought was an absolutely lucky fella (let's be nice) to have snogged her, the sexiest female alive; probably even bedded her. I really do wonder what went through his mind when he found out. Kai Ming joked, "Who's having the last laugh now, bitch?"

Wait, what about her fiance?

Oh why, oh why?

................

MEGAN FOX IS A MAN. NO SHIT.

Malaysia's 1st iBand!

The first ever of its kind in Malaysia which of whom yours truly is incredibly proud to be of. Def explains why I was so stoked about the whole Apple iPhone 3G launch by local telco/carrier Maxis.

From left to right: Kieran, Myself, Michael, Siew Haur.

Feel free to comment and rate. Thanks and enjoy!

Laters.

PS: A big shout out to voiceaway for posting this video up on youtube!

iBand Extravaganza

Heard about Maxis' iPhone Launch over at KL Convention Center this weekend?

Yes, loads of people have been complaining about the iPhone plan rates.

But, any good reason to be there? Or at least half a decent reason?

I Found The Remedy!

Sorry had to steal this, Sean!

Never knew a guy who showed up in relaxed khakis, a white V-neck tee and his trademark trilby could be such a musical genius! And make so many women (and men) swoon. Heck. I actually envy Jason Mraz. The fella is so unbelievably talented that it actually makes him sexy. Quote The Girlfriend; "He's schhooo damn sexy!" And I could only (unfortunately) agree. *Ego/SelfEsteemHurtsLikeHellDammit*

His stage setup is once of the simplest and most straightforward I've ever seen. It was dead simple. NO need for all those uncalled for AV shiznit and all. All he needed to captivate every audience was himself and his little ensemble. And man did it work.

Armed with a Taylor, he sang, crooned, beatboxed, danced and jigged his way into the hearts of everyone. Okay that was cheesy but that was how it felt like, really.

And there's this bit where he merged Remedy with Wonderwall. Ingenious.

Mr.A-Z was simply damn freaking incredulously amazing. To be honest, these words don't do his performance justice. It was that good.

Please do come again Mr Mraz!

Laters.

Bull, Ox, Cow, Kerbau, Buffalo.. Wtf..

Gong Hei Fatt Choy!

Have an abso Bullish year ahead fellas ;0)

J'ai Dix Hui Ans?

The first text I got when the clock stroke 0000 hours today was this: 

"Hey kel! Happy Birthday:). Haha. 

Youre a legal drinker and smoker now:D.

Haha.

Anyways. Happybirthday wei."

Got that from my dear friend Naren. Thanks mate! Save for the fact I don't smoke.

And thanks Keane and Melissa for a night of fine food, wine and killer company! Well, it's a pity The Girlfriend couldn't join us though. But that's a whole different story altogether. Pictures will be up soon.

Laters.

A New Year, A New Wish List.

Happy New Year, fellas! 

It's 0430 hours, I've just completed yet another set of push-ups and I'm as bored as can be. I wanna get ripped. That's if I can be persistently consistent and bloody dilligent. Okay, this blog needs some much- neglected attention. Haha.

With the prospect of hauling my considerable behind to get a job/ become a temp, I've amassed and compiled a pretty list of material indulgences I can acquire and splurge on with my resulting paycheck. This is defo an initiative for me to get a job during the vacant months leading up to college which for me, starts in April. 

Firstly, I want a REALLY, REALLY good kochmesser; chef's knife in English. Those which can last you a pretty damn long time and which can also double as a means to scare away and intimidate any threatening deejays (inside joke). Then I'd be as happy as a fat cow grazing on a lush meadow cos I already have a pretty decent serrated carving knife and small paring knife. But this lil' baby(Kai ShunC Chef's Knife DM0707) here will set me back a cool 592 bucks. *Whistles* So for now I'll take delight in my Ikea(Haha!) chef's knife which really, is quite for an amateur(aspiring?) foodie like me. 

I still vividly remember the time I picked up my first guitar, a baby Taylor. It was and still is a sweet-sounding guitar. As time passed, I started dreaming of being a rock star so I sorta bugged my parents for an electric guitar. But alas, I've to admit I had a very immature, limited and well slightly raw taste of musical genres then. So I got myself an Ibanez RG which I've to say has served me well for the past 4 years and has been my go-to axe of choice. But as genre preferences develop and change, so do guitar preferences. And what I'd absolutely REALLY wanna get my hands on now is.. a Gretsch Duo Jet. AWESOME guitar; 'nuff said. Killer finish and superb tone. Any other reason? Well cos The Edge(U2) utilizes a Duo Jet from time to time as well. Even Bono has been spotted playing one.

What a Beeauooty.

Close-up.

Next on my little list here, is a Nikon D90. Keane, need I say more? Haha. Keane and Brian played around with Darren's D90 a while ago; comparing their respective D80's and.. let's just say they both felt like throwing away their babies after doing so and getting themselves a D90 too. So yea, I got the chance to tinker with one as well and all I can say now is it's a damn good camera. It's like a "D300 crammed into a smaller body, say a D80", quote Keane. And besides, it's the first SLR with a HD video mode; but only with a limit of 5 minutes. Well, good enough for me! And unlike the D80 (which it is based on), the D90 sports oodles more kick-ass features like built-in stereo speakers and also the necessary cabling for a full Dolby 5.1 surround sound setup. Oh, the ISO? 100-6400! I'm sure by now I'm talking gibberish so go check out the reviews yourself.

They say you're either a watch, belt or shoes person. I love shoes but hey, it def won't hurt to own a kick-ass timepiece. I do already own a few watches and I'd be receiving a Longines for my birthday but what I really really wanna own is a Tag Heuer Carrera. I was immediately stoked the first time I  laid eyes on it. It's so effortlessly stylish and versatile; it won't look out of place at a cocktail reception, makes you stand out at a party, pair it with slacks and a polo tee to shed a few years if you're in your 30's, adds a touch of class when paired with straight-cut jeans, a fitted tee and my Lacoste sneakers, and it def won't look out of place when you're signing that million dollar deal.

Oh $$$$, where art thou? 

I def wouldn't be able to afford the Tag Carrera with my paycheck! But I'm pretty sure the rest of the things listed above won't be labelled under my "wish list" anymore cos hey, I'll be turning 18 soon baby; which means presents, Mum and Dad! Haha.

Laters.

A Prom(pt) Update.

Hello folks!

Just a quick update and sort of reminder.Loads of people have been asking me about the availability of prom tickets. So to those who're interested, here's a little update.

Prom tickets (SMKTS Prom Night '08, obviously) are selling really fast. To those who're still interested in purchasing a ticket or tickets, please, if possible do, make your purchase by this month of October to avoid disappointment. Availability of tickets cannot be guaranteed after the month of October.

Thank you and all the best in preparing for the upcoming SPM examinations.

Laters.

Reason or Rhyme.

I wish I'd be able to come up with a recipe everyday to blog about and share with you guys but alas, time constraint and the fast approaching SPM examinations have kept me from doing so. And also because I'm still a student, not a practicing chef as some readers would've thought. Haha.

Okay before I go on, here's a little disclaimer: the following is NOT in any way an advertisement or a means of free publicity.


So here's the gist of it. Or rather to put it simply. My guitar mentor, Adrian Chew, is in a band called Crimson Epiphany. Yeap, the guy who owns the Gretsch Duo Jet. You might or might not have heard of them and if you haven't, here's a little peek into their music.

Anyways, they've been making waves on the local charts and they're within a whisper of claiming top spot in the Malaysian Top 10 chart show, Met 10, on hitz.fm. They've come a long way and have worked ever so hard, so i believe that they deserve to claim pole position this week. To vote for their song, click HERE. The song's called Reason or Rhyme, by the way.

Support your local music industry. Who knows, one day you might be standing in line to purchase a Re-Pulse CD ? *Wishful thinking* Haha.

Laters.

Razor Clam Pasta (Spaghettini).

This post has been a long delayed one.

This is merely a serving suggestion; and also one for the album ;)

Check out the size of those clams; massive eh?

Yea it's time for another recipe. I've tried this pasta a little over thrice and tweaked and played with the ingredients and flavours along the way.

The freshest produce and ingredients are always a joy to work with. Get the freshest seafood for this dish, not necessarily still swimming but as fresh as you can get, it really makes a difference. But if you're hard up on time and you've got to get some chow on the table, defrosting your seafood is fine too, just that you'd lose a bit of its sweetness and 'seafood-y' flavour. But don't despair, all is not lost.

This pasta dish is sort of like a cross between an aglio olio and a pasta con vongole, garlic olive oil and clam pasta respectively. But I've added a rather peculiar and unconventional mix, using Chinese Cooking Wine (Shao Hsing Hua Tiao Chiew) instead of white wine. Reasons being that I actually the heady taste of it and there were no white wines around my house at the time of cooking. Yes the latter is pretty sad. Cos my parents are pretty devoted fans of red and I'm well not of legal age. (Hmm..?). Back to the Chinese Cooking Wine; if you don't like it, you can leave it out, no problem. This recipe also doesn't require the use of cream.

The prawns; I coked them separately and later added them to the clams and pasta. But you can cook them together with the clams as well. Spaghettini is a thinner version of spaghetti, often referred to as 'angel hair pasta'. Fret not, spaghetti or linguine can be used as well.

Okay enough talk, here it is.

Razor Clam Spaghettini
Recipe by Tan Kel Vin.

(Serves 4)

- 2 heaped tablespoonfuls of finely chopped garlic
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1-2 fresh chillies, finely chopped
- A large handful of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

- 1/2 a lemon
- Some olive oil
- 500g good-quality dried spaghettini or spaghetti
- 800g-1kg of razor clams, preferably the large ones,
cleaned and debearded
- 8-10 large king prawns, peeled, heads removed and deveined
(save the heads to make seafood or fish stock, very flavourful)
- 1/2 a cup of Chinese Cooking Wine; alternatively a large
wineglass of white wine.
- Salt and black pepper

First of all, soak clams in salted water for a few minutes. Drain and pick through the clams, removing any impurities and barnacles. Discard the bad and nasty-smelling ones, obviously.

Cook the spaghetti or whatever pasta you'd be using according to packet instructions in a large pan of salted boiling water. When cooked al dente, drain the pasta in a colander. To cook pasta al dente, simply cook pasta 1 minute less than packet instructions. And using salted water to cook pasta is a MUST.

While the pasta is cooking, heat a splash of olive oil in a large saucepan and cook the onions. Then add the garlic. Once the onions have turned a little translucent, throw in the clams and prawns with the white wine or Chinese Cooking Wine. Cover with a lid and give it a good shake. Cook for a couple of minutes until all the clams have opened. Discard the ones that remain closed. Toss in your cooked pasta and stir around, adding a little more olive oil if necessary. Squeeze some lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper while tossing the pasta around. Serve immediately.

To garnish and add a little more flavour to the pasta, sprinkle the chopped chilli and parsley all around and over the pasta.

It's that simple.

Laters.

Love & Beauty.

Sorry had to steal this, Keane!

I still can't get over how they managed to squeeze and compact an abstract focal point into one hour. Many were left dazed and slightly gaping . Some thought it was riveting. I thought it was riveting. Kudos Chee Pang and Ollie! And also espesh Chris Ling.

The cool thing about this play is that the director, Chris Ling, told the cast to add their own flair and individualistic styles to the whole thing. So the lighthearted scenes were typically and entrancingly familiar, they had "CHEE PANG" written all over it. Haha. And the sex scene was disturbingly realistic too. Like wow. Like devout Jais officers would sooo flip at the sight.

I can even imagine my moral teacher gasping "Astagafirullahazzzim..!!". Or exclaiming it, more like.

Anyways, I'm no critic so I'll say no more. But I enjoyed it.

Laters.

I'm Hungry for Home.

Well err, I actually feel kinda shy talking about this.

So for full story, check out the missus' blog.

I can't believe I'm actually shy to talk about this. Haha.

Laters.

Your Blissful Ignorance.

Yea, look what that has gotten you into. Oh wait, perhaps you don't even notice. Gosh, wake up dear boy. It ain't doing you any good. IN fact, you're digging your social outcast hole a little deeper. Don't go wondering at the end of the day as to why you'd be at the receiving end of seemingly nonchalant cold shoulders. You're not living alone; you can't just do as you please, pissing everyone off. You've been bloody warned.

On a lighter(if I may call it) note, SPM trials have begun. Oh, the joy. More like agony and unabashed nail-biting nervousness.


The crunch papers have yet to come, the science subjects. Haha. This is what a seventeen year old Malaysian goes through.

Laters.

Illuminate.

Above is the invite to Shirts4Real's 'Illuminate' range launch.

When? 12th September o8', 3PM
Where? Positive Cafe, Subang.

Be there. They aren't just another T-shirt label; the designers create each piece with one reason in mind; which is to impact the lives of others. For more details and a more accurate account of Shirts4Real's origins, click on their blog.

For full details on the launch, go visit their website.

See you there.

Laters.

Sulking No More.

Dimitar Berbatov, more affectionately known by fans as 'Berba' or Berby' has finally put to bed his supposedly unending transfer saga (albeit after months of speculation and unrest) and penned a four-year deal for £30.75million.

He's actually smiling!!

I can't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Why? Cos' Manchester City made an uncharacteristic and superbly late bid for Berba too. And also cos' the Red Devils are really looking like toothless piranhas up front. Which is pretty paradoxical considering the stupendous amount of goals racked up last season. Oh yea, that was when that boy Ronaldo was in sensational form; experiencing a seemingly infinite purple patch and ruthlessness in front of goal.

But we've got Berby now!

As always, there was a mad rush before the transfer window closed. A plethora of last ditch signings were made and at the centre of all that drama was (believe it or not, I can't actually), Manchester City. Oh yes, Thaksin did finally leave; only to be snapped up by Abu Dhabi United Group. And City's new owner, Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim, was quoted saying' "I'm the new Abramovich." Hello mister, just about every owner of BPL clubs have been quoting that. But well, at least Dr Sulaiman's a realistic man, appearing to acknowledege that the real hunt will begin nest season though the club has had a promising start to the season.

Loads more happened before the close, though.

For the complete lowdown, click here.

Laters.