NO MATTER HOW GOOD YOU ARE, PEOPLE WILL
LET YOU DOWN.
LEARN TO EXPECT LESS FROM PEOPLE. FIND THE STRENGTH TO LET GO THE WAY YOU THOUGHT IT SHOULD BE.
HOWEVER,
TAKE NOTE OF ALL THE THINGS THAT ARE RIGHT.
BE THANKFUL.
~ ALAN IAN ATKINSON
Writer, Author, Storyteller
Early morning drive. Done the “sending to work” duties. Damansara Heights (1)… Heading back to Subang Jaya (2)…
The weather would have two groups of people, one for it; the other against. The group that would be against today’s weather…gloomy…the light grey / white-coloured clouds looked like they were on steroids, big and puffy…looked like it was going to rain…no sun…what a way to start the morning. Now, they don’t have a reason to use / wear their new over-the-top, shades (sunglasses), which they themselves thought they looked good in.
The group that would be in favour of today’s light grey / white-colored clouds would have been happy…a change from the over-bright, hot, humid weather…the sun’s morning bright rays are almost usually as hot as that of midday. Now, with the thick cloud over-cast, the sun’s over-bright rays are blocked. Woohoo! People can spend more time outdoors without having to slap and rub sunblock all over their bodies (though there will still be that tiny percentage of people who would still apply the sunblock for the “just-in-case-if the sun shows up”), exercise, gardening…enjoying the light morning breeze.
As for me, I didn’t think too much of it, except for this article, of course.
While I was on the Federal Highway (2), I got a call from my cousin, Chris, to join him for breakfast. I was able to answer the call, handsfree; as my phone automatically links to the car’s stereo system’s speakers via bluetooth. “Coffee Space” was his choice. The time was 8.45am, The cafe was already opened.
Even though the jam on the highway was causing traffic to move at a slightly faster than “crawl” pace, I got to the cafe by 9.15am. This was not my first visit to this cafe.
The first thing, which I think is one of its greatest strengths is that it is very bright and airy. I get the impression that it was modeled after one of those old colonial bungalows. Built during the days of the British rule in then old Malaya; many of them are still around all over (now) Malaysia.
When you walk in past it’s wide glass door, you will see a long purplish-greyish-coloured cushion benched sofa on the left, with small, round tables placed along it. The same type of round tables are placed all over the rest of the room / hall, spaced out so you don’t have the feeling of being cramped too close to each other. This is important to me, especially when I cut my food with a knife. I tend to have my elbows spread out instead of close to my body, when cutting through food. Do you have the same way of cutting your food?
Of the course the other reason for having tables further apart from each other, is privacy – when I am with people or when I am doing work.
However (this is a big “however”), I do not make a fuss about it. I just think that space between tables is an additional perk if and when available.
Big potted plants or mini trees, adds to the decor. They were placed all round the room, not too many of them which would have over-done the decor. Just nice, to add to the “dining by the porch” feel.
Chris ordered his favourite – Big Breakfast and an americano. He arrived at Coffee Space ahead of me, ordered his breakfast and finished it just as I came in.
I ordered a beef spaghetti and an americano. When my order arrived, I thought it was a bit much for breakfast. Good thing I don’t eat lunch on most days; this was going to be one of them.
Coffee Space is more a restaurant than a café, at least that’s what I think. They have a good selection of breakfast and other choices of mainly western offerings on their menu.
The beef spaghetti was good. The presentation made the meal all the more appetizing. I enjoyed it. I did not feel uncomfortably full. It was just nice.
Chris and I spent some quality family time. The Olympics or the results coming out from it, did not dominate our conversation time. We somehow, seem to have lots of topics to catch up on. One is the new Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 Ultra. Fascinating watch. Discussion about it on another day.
Before we knew it, it was near mid-day. I had a whole lot of writing, picking up from where I left off on some of the articles. I have some articles that I would like to write on which is very niche. There are some that I would like to actually (there I go with that word) put pen to paper. We’ll see. For now, I have more than I can handle. Exciting!
NOTES:
1. Bukit Damansara in Bahasa Malaysia or Damansara Heights in English, is one of the most affluent business and residential addresses in Malaysia. It is located in the capital, Kuala Lumpur.
2. The Federal Highway links Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia on one end, to Port Klang (one of Malaysia’s premier ports) in the state of Selangor, which is about 50 kilometers (30 miles) away, on the other end.
Alfresco at a kopitiam
It’s another beautiful morning. The 24 inch computer monitor screen stares brightly at me, waiting to display anything that I command it to. The Logitech MX Mechanical keyboard has its keys eagerly waiting in anticipation to be tapped on and, produce corresponding letters, words, paragraphs and essays, to create an article, which is conceived in my thoughts.
Last night, when we turned in to sleep, we switched off all lights, the darkness in our bedroom quickly brought our heartbeats to a resting pace. The air-conditioning above, was blowing a cooling air; silently. The blowing of the cool air was audible enough to be heard. The silence was loud, something that we have been accustomed to as we closed our eyes and fell off to sleep.
The maintenance team / section of our bodies swung into action, replacing unusable cells, replenishing those that have been used; repairing all those areas that need repairing. All this taking place during our rest, preparing us to meet the next morning, lively with energy and zest. This happens every time we rest. It is the purpose of our rest.
We had a very pleasant trip to and from Kay Al (pronounced this way by locals in general) (1), when Jeannie, the Batik Influencer, and I; dropped our daughter, Laura; at work. As we were getting off the Federal Highway and on to the second ramp into Subang Jaya, the second most common question popped up: “Where shall we have breakfast?” The first most common question is, “What shall we eat?”
Jeannie was quick to answer, “Let’s go to Kaw Kaw Pak Kopi in Taipan”. Good suggestion. We got to the restaurant in no time at all. Getting a carpark slot was fairly easy, too.
We both agreed that we just wanted a drink only. However, as we walked into the restaurant, it had rows or attractive pastries that were calling out to us. They all looked so good. We still wanted to maintain the “drinks only” today. The spirit is willing, but our taste buds are weak.😂
We ordered a coconut tart, yes one only. A former Prime Minister in his late 90s, was asked how he kept so slim, fit and healthy. He said, “When you see food that you like, just eat a little of it, not too much”.
For drinks, Jeannie ordered an iced black tea, no idea what that was; and I, I ordered a “kopi peng” (2). When Jeannie took a sip of her drink, she said that it was very strong. I would presume so. The drink was the blackest shade of black. It seems this drink is one of this kopitiam’s (3) best sellers. Wow!
Jeannie took a first bite of the coconut tart. It tasted not bad (opposite of quite good?😉). The size of the tart does not have room for too many bites, nibbling at it maybe. I took a bite. It was nice. Not too sweet. The crust was firm yet not too hard. It encrusted the coconut fillings well. I savored on the gratings or fibres of the coconut fillings – actual coconut. It was good. The about 3 inch diameter size of the tart was gone before we knew it. Reasonable price of RM2.80 or US$0.60.
My kopi peng was ok. I did not order kaw kaw (4), thinking it would have come kaw kaw as standard, living up to the kopitiam’s name. I should have ordered kaw or kaw kaw to have more taste of the coffee. Many of these coffee shops or kopitiams, have their own blend of coffee. Besides the different coffee beans used, the method of roasting and the length of time the beans are roasted will provide a wider range of “blends” of coffee for the coffee enthusiast.
The atmosphere / mood was very relaxed and quiet. I could get some work done while talking with Jeannie. I like the idea of being in a different locale every time, as it adds to my “chest of experiences” of what I see, hear, feel, think and idea create.
Before we realised it, an hour had gone by. The coconut tart was enjoyable while eating it, not too big, just about the size of eating something that we like, but not too much of it. I was done with my kopi peng. Jeannie took her unfinished Iced black tea with her. It was time (which is all the time) for us to move to the future: the next moment.
NOTES:
1. Kay Al or K.L. is short for Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. It is one of the many cities and places of attractions in Malaysia for tourists.
A new study has revealed that Malaysia was the most visited country in Southeast Asia during 2023 – further indication of the nation’s recovery and meteoric rise since the end of the pandemic era. Malaysia welcomed a total of 29 million tourists last year, outstripping more established neighbours in the process.
panaroma-destination.com
2. (“ko-peeh peh-eng”)”Kopi” means coffee in Bahasa Malaysia. “Peng” is in Hokkien, a Chinese dialect word for “ice”.
3. Kopitiam: kopi means coffee in Malay, and tiam is the Hokkien word for shop. Hence, Kopitiam translates literally to “coffee shop”.
4. “Kaw” originates from the Chinese dialect, Hokkien; which means “thick”. When you hear “kaw-kaw”, it literally means “very very thick“. Kaw or kaw kaw is normally used when ordering coffee at the local coffee shop.
Malaysians have taken it to a new level to mean “very serious”. He got into trouble with his employer “betul betul kaw kaw” for losing a big clientele account. “Betul betul” is Bahasa Malaysia for “exactly” or “rightly”.
It is dark now. Not totally dark, though. The porch lights of both my neighbours’ houses from across the street, are on.
The skies are rumbling in the near distance like it is having gastric. Hearing the tarp, tap, tip of raindrops hitting the ground at a constant even pace, like they are keeping time with music. But I don’t hear music. The rumbling sounds of the sky are like sounds from coming from a large circular drum – the drummer using big padded mallets (1) and striking on it in a way to create that rumbling, muffled sound. The sky and raindrops must be the ones “performing a musical number”, It must be a deep jazz number. The drums don’t seem to be in time with the sound of the rain drops falling.
It rained in the late morning to mid – afternoon, too This hampered me from going out for my usual 15,000 steps, over 10km walk until the later part of the afternoon. There was still an overcast sky which kept the high warm temperature at bay. However, I managed a decent 10,000 step count with a fairly average speed of 5.2km/h brisk walk. Was done in an hour 25 min, showered and went for my next appointment on my schedule.
Now, while writing this essay; every few minutes, I get up, walk to the fridge to look for something to munch on. Or even to take a sip of coffee. No snacks. Just sliced watermelon or pears. Though this day has generally been a wet / cool day (or is it a cool / wet day?), I still felt like I needed something cooling. My coffee was kept warm in my Hydraflask tumbler, even though I kept in in the fridge. Taking a break from the screen every few minutes gives me a chance to refresh for the moment, and possibly gather my thoughts. Who knows? It may create different perspectives of the same subject.
If knees could talk, what would they say?
The other day, (yes, that day if you are wondering which day this was); the Batik Influencer, my wife; Jeannie, and I; sauntered into a cafe for a bit of a chill out time. We thought it was going to be just the two of us.
The cafe was quite crowded, did not seem like there was a table for us. Then, I spotted one, one of those cafe, small-size tables, but great for the two of us. The table was a low table, which now reminds me of a couple of holidays I had in Hanoi, Vietnam; a few years ago. Most of the tables and chairs there, were low (closer to the ground). Here at this cafe, the chairs were of normal height.
The table could accommodate an order of a couple of drinks and maybe some pastries to go with them. What it could not accommodate were our knees. Our knees were higher than the table top. This meant that he would have to do a bit of a stretch and bend forward slightly, to reach our food and beverages from the table. It was fine…
Jeannie ordered a latte and I, a lemon/orange drink with ice-cream soda (I think).
Just then, my cousin, Chris, and his friend; showed up. The four of us managed to huddle around this small table. Then, our friend, Jino, walked in the door. Now, there were 5 seated at the table for two.😁
From the table’s point of view, it saw 5 pairs of knees, surrounding and staring at it. The table was not shocked or surprised. It was used to knees staring at it.
As the 5 pairs of knees looked at the table, they looked at each other, too. If they could talk, what would they say? “Fancy meeting you here”, my knees would have said to Jino’s. Chris’ knees would have said, “We’re quite tired from this morning’s walk exercise Chris put us through”. My knees would have said, “That’s nothing. We have to put up with 10km brisk walks everyday”. Jeannie’s knees would have lamented, “It’s been a long time since we last went dancing. However, we get exercise from Jeannie’s walks in the neighbourhood, where she meets and exchange plants, flowers and food with neighbours”.
Other topics would have included the weather, new places they have visited and the aches & pains they are going through.
Do knees have minds of their own? Do they have dreams and ambitions? If they had minds of their own, would both the knees of each person be in constant agreement as to what they want to do, or where they want to go?
Are there times when our body wants to go in one direction, our knees in the other.
As of now, we have to be happy that our brain is in charge and controls our whole body, including the knees…for most of us at least. There are people who would tell you otherwise, where their knees do as they please. 😂
NOTES:
1. Mallets are sticks that have thick material pieces at the end. This material completely changes how the sticks sound when they strike drums and cymbals. The thicker the material at the end of a mallet, the warmer the sound will be.
Thursday
A morning after the half way mark of the week. I offered to take Jeannie, my wife, the Batik Influencer; to Taipan for her dental appointment.
We decided that we would have breakfast at one of the coffee shops in Taipan, the one that we patronize most often: New Nanking. There are quite a few coffee shops in Taipan, but New Nanking is the most convenient for us, somehow. “Restoran” (Malay for “restaurant”) New Nanking – “stylo milo, (1) dun play play (2)” name is fancy. New Nanking is called a restaurant or kopitiam (3) these days. It would have been referred to as a “coffee shop” as in the old days, before the turn of the century.
We look for convenience, comfort – it has to be comfortable enough for us to have our meal relatively decently, clean, bright, with easy parking (though this is not the case most times, especially during peak hour times. However, we can live with it…at times), and there has to be a good variety and selection of food. I am as some say… quite fussy with my food. However, I tend to look at it as I am quite careful with what I eat.😀
One of the main reasons that drew us to the New Nanking was to have Tai Poh mee for breakfast. This is amongst the best breakfast choices in Subang Jaya.
Tai Poh mee is a very popular meal at New Nanking, so much so that it is usually sold out during lunch. It is delicious. With the noodles comes minced pork, a few slices of char siew, (5) some vegetables, a small bowl of soup, and a little container of their version of chili sambal. Each item in the meal complements the others.
The meal comes in a generous size / portion. What we like about it most is that it does not make you feel bloated after finishing it.
The people who run this Tai Poh mee stall are the Cheang brothers. They have had this business for several years. They take pride in the meals they prepare and serve customers. Their food has been consistently good all the time. When you are next in Taipan USJ Subang Jaya, drop by and visit the Cheang brothers’ Tai Poh meal.
Jeannie ordered a hot tea. It was served in one of those traditional Chinese tea / cup & saucers sets. I ordered a ….oh, this is a toughie, an kopi peng kaw. (4) We were done with breakfast within an hour and headed on to the next item of our planned day.
NOTES:
1. “stylo milo” is a local Malaysian slang for Stylish; fashionable.
2. “dun play play” means seriously; not joking; really.
3. The word “Kopitiam” – kopi means coffee in Malay, and tiam is the Hokkien word for shop. Hence, Kopitiam translates literally to “coffee shop”.
4. Kopi Peng Kaw is iced coffee with condensed milk, strong. This means more coffee is added to make the drink stronger, less sweet.
“Kopi” is coffee in Bahasa Malaysia.
“Peng” is iced
“Kaw” or gau means thick or strong.
5. Char siu originally comes from Cantonese cuisine, and the word chā sīu 叉烧 literally means “pork roasted,” which is a nod to the traditional cooking method of skewering seasoned pork with long forks, and placing them in an oven or over a fire. madewithlau
Today was like any other day. It was International Coffee Day. Like any other day, everyday is International Coffee Day. Can you imagine the horror if coffee was not available. The unthinkable thing to do is to replace it by that “T’ word, yes, that drink or beverage – “tea”. It is definitely the unthinkable. Coffee drinkers would shudder if there was even a hit of a shortage of coffee – any coffee as a matter of fact. And these people are the everyday casual coffee drinkers.
Those hooked on coffee would go into a frenzy. It would mean that they would have to tap in to their unspoken off, personal private supply of coffee which they hoarded for a “just in case” there is a disruption to their regular supply source.
Are we in danger of running out of coffee? It sure doesn’t seem that way. Coffee, from just being a morning and an afternoon beverage; has caught on to becoming a lifestyle. Talking about lifestyle, the big international names with multiple stores available nationwide, are being challenged by local brands and local cafe names, spring up closer and closer to home, dotting the nation with their “style” of coffees or / and cafes.
I had plans to meet my cousin, Chris; for coffee in the afternoon. We would go to any one of the many cafes available in Subang Jaya. (1) Today, he had to ferry (2) his son to P.J. (3) for an appointment. You don’t hear people often use the phrase “to ferry someone or something” nowadays. Is it old English, I wonder.
So, Chris suggested we meet in SS2 in P.J. for coffee. Suited me (4) fine, as I could proceed from there to pick my wife, Jeannie; from work, which was nearby from there.
We met at “Le Breads Day” cafe. It was my first there. They have a tagline, “a croissant a day, keeps the doctor away“. Which means they are bakers, too. Chris was already more than half way through his “Big Breakfast” lunch which looked so good that I ordered one for myself. It came with sausage, scrambled eggs, their in house baked bread, some mushrooms and baked potato. I didn’t manage to take pictures of the meal I ordered. However, I took a picture of the menuboard.
The big breakfast meal was very good. Confirmed good, as it didn’t get a chance of having its picture taken. I walloped (5) it, without thinking twice. I did take a picture of the coffee I ordered:
My Creme Brulee Latte was ok I guess. It was stronger than usual. however, I could not get the distinct flavour of coffee. The “Creme Brulee” might be a tad strong for the coffee.
It is good to note that from I hear, all their pastries are made in house. I saw a baker bring out a couple of trays of freshly baked pastries. They looked yummy.
I did get a chance to briefly met the owner, Kathy Ang, She said she started this cafe 10 years ago. She was smiling from the time she came into the cafe, right up to the time she left it, which was about half hour later. She seems to look like an “always on the go” sort of person – very active.
Time went by quickly (doesn’t it always, when you are having fun?). Brandon, Chris’ son; came over, and left with Chris after that. I took in a bit of that famous French song (sung in English), before I left a while later. I leave you with a video clip and the French song (in English).
Notes:
1. Subang Jaya is an exciting, thriving city of Selangor, a central southern state of Peninsular Malaysia. It started off as a satellite residential of Petaling Jaya, which had reached its capacity of growth. Now, S.J. is a self-contained, dynamic city, meaning it has everything that you would want. Shopping centres galore, schools – catering from the age of toddlers to post graduate studies, religious places of worship, hospitals, recreational activities…the list goes on.
2. Ferry means to “Transport” or to take someone or something from one place and drop at another.
3. Petaling Jaya in a bustling city, just next to Subang Jaya in the state of Selangor, Malaysia.
4. If something suits someone or something, it is right for that person or thing or situation, or it makes that person or thing look more attractive.
5. “Walloped it” here in this context does not involve physical violence. It is a local way of describing they finished the meal quickly, enjoying it.
It has been quite a while since a visit has been made to an “established” coffee joint. Can I say established? I just did. Should the word be a “branded” coffee joint instead? Here it means a well known name with many outlets. To be more precise, a cafe brand with strong financial backing.
Jeannie and I had some time at mid-evening. I asked Jeannie, “Coffee and cake with icing, the soft, mushy, bakery icing that we used to get at cake shops when we were kids. Don’t know what made me come up with this type of cake. I don’t think I was craving for it. Maybe nostalgia had something to do with it. Most important was the coffee, that was a must.
I suggested getting away from our “work stations” for a while, just to chill. Go some place nearby. We wounded up at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. It was our first time at this outlet in Taipan since it went through a renovation transformation. The renovation was quite a while ago.
I think its new look was more clinical – modern, more chairs and tables in which it meant that everyone was sitting closer to each other. Quite nice. The interior design was quite strange though, with a wall (no, not that wall intended to divide two countries), parallel to the counter, starting from the entrance, dividing the room, and stops mid-way. It was almost full house at that time we were there.
At the counter, they had a nice rectangular screen which was about a metre long and 10 inches wide. It brought the menu to us instead of the usual big menu screen boards at the back of the counter (which they had, too). It’s nice to see the menu up close. Maybe, it’s meant for little kids… little kids with lots of money.
We made our orders. We didn’t want anything too heavy as it was close to dinner time. They had a special offer – Iced Mocha with a slice of cake. We decided to have the iced Mocha with whipped cream. We usually don’t have whipped cream to our drinks, but we thought why not “live at the edge” for a change.😉😂 As long as we don’t make it a habit. As for the cake, we went for the cendol cake. Mention “cendol” (spelt “chendol” in the old days), and an image of an Indian uncle with his green (don’t know why but the cendol sellers on tricycles always had their trikes [short for tricycles] in green) tricycle with the manually operated ice-shaving machine. We always asked for more liquid brown sugar.
The cendol slice of cake had the green noodles and red beans, both ingredients for the delicious cold cendol dessert / drink, which is always served cold. That’s the reason for the ice-shaving machine. It had a sort of biscuit as its base and the rest of it kind of cheesy. By the way, the cake served here was about 20% to 30% smaller in size than what you would get at other cafes for the same price.
The Iced Mocha with the whipped cream was quite ordinary.
We were there for the experience. It was quite a pleasant place to hang out, chill and relax.
We definitely will still spend more time with homegrown, entrepreneurial spirit of people who have started up their own cafes like Good Ground Bakery, Bakeyard, Jings, TBX, Contour, Foliage Coffee and many more as they all have their own styles, decor, food and beverage mix – they are less commercial and more people centred. Generally, each of them offer their own unique experience to customers. It’s a nice way of giving reason to why you will be spending more than the coffee shops and mamaks. No doubt that they have their own experiences to share. They, too; are becoming more sophisticated – upscaling the experience for their customers.
We headed home for dinner – one of those rare occasions that we have home cooked dinner. Prepared by the Batik Influencer chef.
The season is hot. The weather is hot. At least that’s what the folks at the weather department want us to believe. We begin to wonder.
The meteorological (met.) department (the ones that stick a finger in their mouths, pull it out of their mouths, then stick that finger in the air to find out the direction of the wind), say the weather is going to be scorching; the next moment all hell breaks loose with some of the fiercest electrical storms lashing over Subang Jaya.
On the other hand, when they say it is going to storm; bring out the camels, as the weather is going to be parched dry.
Just in jest with the met. people. It isn’t true when they say that the met. people have a dry sense of humour.
So, speaking of dry weather spells, it has been a period of very hot, humid weather temperatures over the past couple of months, though it has not been without rain. There are thunderstorms thrown in for good measure. All this takes place during most days. By nightfall, temperatures start to climb. Most Malaysians aren’t used to the very warm nightfalls.
All this talk of weather makes one thirsty. One of the best beverages to have whether it be morning, afternoon or early evening is coffee. It offers an experience if you are in the right place and setting (very important).
Although I drink coffee almost throughout the day on my own; I do visit the various cafes in Subang Jaya and P.J. mainly for a change of scenery, meet friends and new people and to try something new in the coffee world, wherever possible.
Over the last two days, something new in the coffee world, at least to me, was made possible by Joanne. Yesterday, I walked into the coffee shop and said to her, “Make me something that you like with coffee. I want a cold drink.” She said she would think of something.
This is coffee with whipped cream (I think). What I found most unusual was a big cube of ice to keep the drink cold. Looking at the picture below, it looked like coffee with coconut milk and gula melaka. It was not.
The coffee was at the bottom of the glass with the whipped cream on top, latte style. The big cube of ice kept the drink at a constant cool temperature throughout, while the drink, was still in the glass. The meant that I could take my time sipping at the drink, knowing that it’s temperature would be constant. I thought it a novel idea.
The next day, that is today, I got into the cafe just before the rain came pouring down hard. This time, I requested Joanne to create a warm coffee of her liking.
The drink took a tad bit longer to make because she was making the perfect coffee. When the coffee arrived, whoa! It did not just look stunning, it was stunning! It was espresso with cinnamon among other ingredients. I could get the aroma of the cinnamon from afar before the drink arrived. When I had my first sip, the coffee was superb.
The perfect coffee while I got some work done on the Fold. I had the Bose buds to keep me company with some of my favourite music. The noise cancellation on the Bose buds is fantastic. Now, this is an experience.
Like Joanne is to coffee (barista) with her lovely creations; there are many people in their own fields wanting to share their talents with all of us. Invite them. Have fun.
The weekend came and went in all fury. It was so fast, that we did not even feel it. Feel may not be the right word. I think a better word is “experience” it.
So, if the word “experience” is a better choice, “Why don’t you edit (is a better word for “making a correction”(?)) it?” you may ask.
Too much work to do so. If I change that word, I would possibly be swayed (by myself) into editing the sentences or paragraphs or even changing the whole meaning in this paragraph, which may in turn cause a mood swing. Haha.
It was one of those (now) infamous sweltering afternoons that we are (I dare say) getting used to. Or are we? The sun is blazing hot. A while (long while) later, the rain and thunderstorms come pouring down on us to the extent that certain parts of the Federal Highway begin to flood with a few inches of water.
On this afternoon, however; it was dry. Jeannie, my wife and I; did a few errands in the morning, had brunch and thought we’d go to our common (more like my) hangout: Good Ground Bakery (GGB).
We were greeted as usual, by Joanne and Monique. I told Jeannie that we had to try their fantastically refreshing drink: Calamansi Cooler. And Joanne makes it super nice. We both ordered a calamansi cooler. I opted for this drink instead of my usual coffee order (It is usually an americano though of late, I go for the flat white, too – both great drinks from here, at the GGB).
I don’t know how they get this drink to this level, but it is an awesome thirst quencher. It was a good drink to keep Jeannie and I company as we chillax, something that we enjoy and is quite rare to us because of our hectic daily schedules.
GGB is famous for it’s…you’ve guessed it: bakery. It makes great breads and pastries, never fails to delight. It’s testimony is by its constant flow of customers, both dine in and takeaway.
People come to establishments like this for the experience. They have the space to do their own thing. You will see many people of all ages come and read books, real books i.e. at a leisurely, calm pace. Or, work on their computer with whatever they are doing and you will notice that they are not stressed out as otherwise would be a common sight. Or they meet with family or friends over a mugga (as in “cuppa” for tea) coffee.
It is mainly an experience each time I visit a cafe or an establishment like Good Ground. I like observing people mainly because everyone is different. And I could be looking for that unique characteristic someone might display that I can use for my book that I am writing (work-in-progress). I find it absolutely intriguing that everyone seems different.
We ordered a slice of Pecan Chocolate cake to go with our drinks. We shared this cake as it was too much for either of us to finish a whole slice each, by ourselves. It was delicious. Sarah, the owner of GGB, is a fantastic pastry chef. You will see that she, together with all her staff; are dedicated to providing the very best in all they offer, to their customers.
It was a nice hour and a half or so that Jeannie and I had. We left, somewhat refreshed, to continue the rest of the day. As we left GGB, we felt some rain drops falling. Dark rain clouds were forming, readying for a thunderstorm. A cool evening, perhaps?
NOTES:
1. Meaning of “swagger” : walk or behave in a very confident or self-important way.
If you see me write, “I will take you somewhere swagger”, it means I will take you or show you
somewhere smart or fashionable in my writing, like here, at Good Ground Bakery.
2. There is an attempt here, sometimes as usual, to challenge subtly, the written English language to past
its boundaries to add “colour”.
Sunday morning, 9.45am. Just after mass at St. Thomas More.
In the car, on the way home and to every restaurant, cafe coffee shop, eatery…in that direction. I ask my wife, Jeannie, “Breakfast? What do you want to eat?”
She throws a curve ball back at me, “What do you want to eat?” “We could go to Always Your Choice or better known as AYC, Chinese food, western or go home.
Definitely not stall food, I thought. We weren’t dressed for stall food. I thought maybe, T23 chup fun (mixed rice, meaning rice with a wide variety of dishes to choose from), however, they don’t serve coffee.
We both agreed on the Scottish restaurant. We got to the restaurant in about ten minutes.
Not crowded, we went to the counter first, to see the menu displayed on the screens behind the counter.
We then, went to the up, down, left, right and “back” – that is the order screen scrolling up, down, left, right and we did not do a “back” step as we got our order right.
We got to a table and waited for our order to be called. Did not have to wait very long. The restaurant was playing a nice choice of songs over their P.A. system, which set the mood right. The weather outside was bright and sunny, not too hot and humid.
Have an awe-inspiring Sunday, folks.