A Relaxing Saturday

Last Saturday my mood lifted up a bit after visiting my parents. Although dad looked frail, he was in good spirits and the fact that he was back home was a relief to him and all of us.

The week before that, he was warded at the hospital for exactly seven days. The Tuesday when he was there, he experienced bleeding and high fever. After he was attended to, the nurse hooked him up to a machine that monitors blood pressure, pulse rate and oxygen saturation.

This was a normal ward where there is no close monitoring. So it was up to my mum and I to watch the numbers. A few times, the blood pressure reading was not detectable (we had to call the nurse) and as time passed, his blood pressure kept dropping. So we had to alert the nurse to call the doctor. Subsequently dad was transferred back to the CCU (Coronary Care Unit). 

It was particularly stressful that day for mum and I. We were so very worried. But thank God, dad was stabilized at the CCU. We had to leave (with a heavy heart) after that and in the following days, dad's condition improved sufficiently to enable him to be discharged last Friday. 

Those of you who have been or are in a similar situation would know how emotionally draining such an experience can be. For now all seems well but we know that a set back can happen at anytime.

I wake up every morning with a heavy feeling in my chest. It is like being severely depressed all over again. But after I say my prayers, I feel better. I must trust in The Lord for He is ever merciful.

So that Saturday, I walked back to the office with a spring in my step. But first I had to have some stress relief food hah..hah...hah...

Nasi Lemak at Yitcha Kaw Kaw Kopitiam.

With a spot of Kopi C.

I did not pin much hope on the nasi lemak but surprisingly I enjoyed it (because of the curry gravy or maybe because I was in a better mood). The rice had a greenish tinge (supposed to be nasi lemak pandan?) but it had none of the pandan fragrance but was heavier on ginger (which I did not mind). And neither did it have any hint of santan.

The sambal is not Malay sambal for sure but I thought it was pretty decent. The fried chicken was ordinary, nice enough and what I did not expect to enjoy was the curry gravy. But it turned out very good. So I kept scooping the gravy onto my rice and kept digging in. Other mentions - kudos for serving one whole egg and the peanuts were fresh (but alas no crispy ikan bilis).

Next up dessert. This seems to be my modus operandi here. Main meal then pastries.

One Bursting Kaya Puff (which I had on my maiden visit) and one Portuguese Egg Tart. The egg tart was not remarkable. In fact I could detect vanilla essence which came across as very artificial to me (chemical smell). When you are used to natural vanilla extract (I am not trying to be snobbish here) the artificial ones will smell like chemicals. So not having this again.

As for the kaya puff, I enjoyed it and I found that the kaya was of much better quality (in terms of taste and aroma, more santan and lemak) although much sweeter then previously.

This I don't mind having again from time to time.

At The Starling, a national lion dance championship was scheduled to take place for two days. I thought of coming out to watch but then there was so much work to catch up.

Later on my way out for an early dinner, I realized that this championship is for juniors.

The little kiddos were warming up for the later session.

As I walked out in the late afternoon heat, I spotted this plant.

Such lovely Adeniums. They do well in hot weather.

And I ended up here for my early dinner, KBN King's Seremban Beef Noodles.

I had to atone for my carb and sugar fest at lunch. I asked the nice lady boss if I could have the drink (ice lemon tea) without sugar but alas the sugar is already added in. So she suggested adding more ice to thin out the sugar. The drink still tasted pretty good and it was what I needed on such a hot day. 

Beef noodles with no noodles from the side dish menu.

That evening back home, I settled down with my partner to watch a Netflix documentary on Arnold Schwarzenegger (I had to google to spell this LOL!). It was quite enjoyable.

I will be back!