AAMI What About Me Commercials

I am just loving the What About Me commercials from AAMI.. Classic

hehe -  what about me? "i'm sorry, did u say, wassabi?"

Why I HATE Sarah Sidle from CSI

We are just re-watching the previous seasons of CSI Las Vegas and everytime Sarah the bloody c*cksucker opens her mouth, I can't help myself but bitch. Theres just something about Sarah Sidle that rubs me the wrong way! She think she's ultra superior and that her opinions are gospel. URGHHHHHH... Anyway here are some of the reasons why I JUST CAN'T STAND HER..

• She's an emotional basket case and she thinks that the entire world revolves around her. 
• Pretty much every word that comes out from her bloody annoying mouth is dripping with angst.
• She's got problems with authority and overall she's just a snot who treats everyone like dirt.
• And for god sake, she's no where near beautiful. In the series, they try to potray her as a desirable woman - but for crying out loud! She's a spoiled, competitive tyrant who just whines when she doens't get her way!
• She's a teacher's pet...oh just pissing me off even more thinking about it.
• She thinks she knows it all but really she knows very little.

I can't believe Grissom is now married to her. What on earth does he see in her? She is ONE BIG boring workholic. And now she's back..URGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! To all the anti-sarah fans out there..GET YOUR BARF BAGS READY!

Caramelised Pork Belly with Chilli Vinegar and Saffron Rice

Ingredients

8 garlic cloves, chopped
15 black peppercorns
Peanut oil, for frying
2.6L chicken stock
½ cup shaoxing wine
1 cup cooking caramel (karamel masakan)
1½ cups light soy sauce
½ cup oyster sauce
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp ground star anise
1kg pork belly
300g brown sugar
1/3 cup fish sauce
2 tbs lime juice
3 eschalots, sliced
5cm piece of ginger, cut into thin matchsticks
pinch saffron threads
2 cups jasmine rice, rinsed and drained
1 tbs black sesame seeds
2 long red chillies, thinly sliced
½ cup rice wine vinegar
Coriander leaves, to garnish
Save to Cookbook
Method officially tested

Step 1: In a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic and peppercorns to a paste.  Heat some peanut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and fry the paste until fragrant. Add 2L of the chicken stock, shaoxing wine, cooking caramel, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, cinnamon stick and star anise.  Bring the mixture to the boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Add the pork belly and cook for 1 hour. Remove the pork belly from the stock and set aside to cool before cutting it into bite-sized pieces, reserving braising liquid.


Step 2: Pour enough peanut oil into a saucepan to fill it by one third and heat to 180°C. Deep fry pork pieces until golden brown and then set aside.


Step 3: Preheat oven to 60°C.


Step 4: Add the brown sugar to a saucepan set over medium heat and cook until the sugar starts to caramelise.  Add 1 cup of the reserved braising liquid, fish sauce and lime juice. Increase the heat to medium-high and reduce the sauce by 1/3, then add the pork pieces. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Step 5: Meanwhile, pour enough peanut oil into a small saucepan to fill it by one third. Heat the oil over medium heat and fry the eschalots until golden and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain well on paper towel. Repeat process for the ginger and reserve the oil.

Step 6: Add ½ cup of the eschalot/ginger peanut oil to a heat-proof bowl or dish with the saffron threads and place in the oven for 20 minutes to infuse.

Step 7: Add 2 tablespoons of the saffron oil to a saucepan, then add the rice and stir to coat. Add the remaining chicken stock, cover and cook over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes until the rice is cooked.  Fluff with a fork, spoon into a bowl and sprinkle with sesame seeds.


Step 8: To serve, combine the sliced chilli with the vinegar in a bowl. Garnish the pork with the crispy eschalots, crispy ginger and coriander leaves. Serve with the saffron and sesame rice.


Serves 4-6

Sitting alone...

Recently I have found that sitting alone with no distractions (music, movies, books etc) has been really good for me. I have become more relaxed and have thought greatly about my past and present and how I can use them to improve my future. I am currently trying to set 10-15 mins of alone time a day and so far so good.  

In my alone time, I think about various things. I think about my career and how I need to improve my skills and experience set to better contribute to my company and continue to grow professionally. I think about John whom I love and care deeply for and how I can further be a better person, be a better wife for him. I think about ideas about how to grow our own company, Knutsson Consulting. 

I am really sort of always like that. Always wanting to improve myself, to grow and excel. I have a handful of friends who I can be really relaxed and comfortable with where we can just talk about the stuff we thinkg about every so often. Of course my father has been providing me with deep conversations like this. Nothing better than to grab a glass of bubbly and talking about the reliability of perception and its impact on the way we see reality, right?

What about you guys, do you also need some alone time in a day? If you do, what do you think about during this time?

Clash Of The Titans Movie Review

In “Clash of the Titans,” the ultimate struggle for power pits men against kings and kings against gods. But the war between the gods themselves could destroy the world.

The movie starts off with baby Perseus (Sam Worthington) being found by a fisherman after he and his mother Danae were thrown into the sea. Danae died, but Perseus survived. The fisherman raised Perseus with his wife. When Perseus is grown, Hades attacked his family while at the same time the kingdom of Argos is declaring war on the gods. Perseus was the only one who survived the attacked leaving his entire family under the ocean. Perseus is told by Hades that Zeus (Liam Neeson) is his father. Up on Olympus, Zeus is apparently finding out for himself that he has a demigod son which makes no sense because Zeus is the creator of Men, he would HAVE to be aware that he has a son.

With nothing left to lose, Perseus volunteers to lead a dangerous mission to defeat Hades before he can seize power from Zeus and unleash hell on earth. Perseus tries to help people of Argos, whose inhabitants offended gods and provoked their anger. Meanwhile, Zeus decides to let his brother Hades go free and do what he wants. Hades declares that he will release the Kraken on them in ten days. They will only be spared by letting Andromeda be sacrificed to the Kraken.

Perseus sets off on a perilous journey deep into forbidden worlds, leading a daring band of warriors, including Draco (Mads Mikkelsen), an experienced soldier who encourages the defiant Perseus to make use of his god-given abilities. Battling unholy demons and fearsome beasts, they will only survive if Perseus can accept his power as a god, defy his fate and create his own destiny.

The journey Perseus and his group have in the film is very engaging – they encounter many strange creatures, the story doesn't have many plot holes and the execution is very pleasing to the eye. Although I hated how the Djinns looked and I think Medusa was incredibly fake, the giant scorpions, Stygian Witches and especially the Kraken were  fantastic. I actually wish I went to see the movie in theater – the special effects in few scenes were really great. At least they seemed great to me and I was impressed.

Perseus then saves Andromeda and then leaves her on a beach to go to some worthless rock in the ocean. Perseus does not fall in love with Andromeda. It wasn't a shock since Andromeda did basically nothing useful except for give bread to children and dangle a hundred feet over the ocean.

Perseus then meets Zeus who suddenly seems pleased with his son though Mankind still hates the gods. He then brings Io back to life so she and Perseus can be together forever.

As for the character of Perseus, he is likeable and believable. I didn't mind Sam Worthington in this movie, but as with “Avatar” any other guy could have played the role and I would not notice the difference. He was just ok. 

The only character I really liked was Io, played by lovely Gemma Arterton, who is one of the very few truly beautiful young actresses nowadays. She is so sweet and likeable, that during the fight scenes I was hoping her character will survive.

My verdict is 8/10

Egg and Meatball Lasagna

Another recipe from our MasterChef collection..

Serves: 6

Preparation: 40 mins

Cooking: 1 1/2 hours

500g each minced pork and veal

105g (11/2 cups) fresh breadcrumbs

1 bu,b garlic, cloves separated, peeled

12 eschalots, peeled

415ml olive oil

2 onions, finely chopped

4 roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded or 400g can whole, peeled tomatoes, drained

2 x 400mk bottles passata (sieved pureed tomatoes)

2 tsp chopped rosemary

1 1/2 tbs chopped thyme

12 slices prosciutto

8 hard boiled eggs, sliced

300g buffalo mozzarella or bocconcini, torn

100g (1 1/2 cups) finely grated parmesan or pecorino

Rocket / lettuce salad, to serve

1. To make meatballs, combone minces, breadcrumbs and 1 tsp salt in the bowl, then, using damp hands, roll half teaspoons of mixture into balls. Place meatballs on an oven tray lined with baking paper, cover and refrigerate for 15 mins to firm.
2. To make conflict garlic and eschalots, place garlic and eschalots in a saucepan and add 375ml (1 1/2 cups) oil to cover. Place pan over low heat and cook for 30 minutes or until tender. Drain, reserving the oil. Cut eschaots and any large garlic cloves in half. Heat 2 tbs reserved infused oil in a frying pan over high heat and cook eschalots and garlic for 3 minutes or until golden. (Remaining infused oil can be refrigerated for up to 1 month and used for cooking or dressings).
3. Meanwhile, heat remaining 2 tbs olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook for 10 minutes or until soft. Roughly chop tomatoes and add with passata to the saucepan. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat and bring to simmer, then add meatballs, cover with a lid and cook for 20 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through. Stir in rosemary and thyme.
4. Preheat oven to 200C. Grease a 3.5L (14cup) ovenproof dish, then spread a spoonful of tomato sauce (without meatballs) over the base. Top with a layer of lasagna sheets, then add half the meatballs and tomato sauce. Tuck half the confit mixture in between the meatballs, then top with 6 proscuitto slices, half the eggs and half the mozzarella. Add another layer of lasagna sheets, then the remaining meatballs and sauce. Tuck the reamining confit mixture between meatballs and top with the remaining 6 proscuitto slices, egg and mozzarella. Finish with a layer of lasagna sheets. Scatter parmesan over and lightly sprinkle with water. Cover dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes, then remove foil and bake for a further 10 minutes or until the top is golden.
5. Stand lasagna for 15 minutes before slicing and serving with salad.

  

The Human Centipede Movie Review

Two beautiful young Americans Lindsay (Ashley C. Williams) and Jenny (Ashlynn Yennie) were having a European vacation, driving though the countryside when their tire suddenly blows out, leaving them both stranded in the middle of nowhere. With no cell phone service and bad weather fast approaching, the girls decide to try their luck on foot through the woods (like WHY??). They eventually stumbled across a modern house inhabited by a crazy pyscho surgeon, Dr. Heiter (Dieter Laser). 

Dr. Heither is a retired surgoen who specialised in the separation of conjoined twins. He has recently begun experimenting with a radical new form of surgery in his basement operating room. And when Lindsay and Jenny show up on his doorstep, Dr. Heiter begins prepping for surgery.
 

After the loss of his precious “3 Dog,” Heiter’s mental state begins to deteriorate further and he decides to begin work on his greatest creation, a twisted creation that transforms separate individuals into one cohesive unit, one writhing mass sharing both form and function, The Human Centipede.

I certainly can’t complain about the acting, it was all well above average, especially from the insanely talented actor Dieter Laser; his character was flat out scary. The human centipede actors, made up of newcomers Akihiro Kitamura, Ashlynn Yennie and Ashley C. Williams, should also be congratulated on their brave performances as well. I mean it’s one thing to act under pressure, it’s another entirely to act while semi-nude, on your knees and attached to a co-star’s posterior! The very thought would make most people cringe but to do it for hours on end for a horror film, well that’s just plain ballsy. 

OK, so what is this "Human Centipede" and why has it caused so many viewers to gag? Well, before I thoroughly explain, as the famous saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words, so here's a picture...

Still don't get it? Well, the human centipede connects the three people by (and once again I'm being totally serious here) stitching together their mouths and anuses and the main idea is that their digestive track will be connected meaning that when one of them shits, it will go into the next person's mouth. This is one of those rare torture films that isn't even actually torture in the sense that most viewers consider it. There is not really much in terms of "blood" (You see more brown fluids than you do red) when you compare it to other gore-fests.
 

The main one being of course, it's disgusting-ness (If that's even a word). Watching the three poor unfortunate souls stuck together mouth-to-anus is rather sickening and disgusting. There's one scene in particular where one of the girls is trying to vomit but her mouth is stitched up, and her vomit spills from the cracks of her stitches. 

But really what was the point of this film? It just feels like the director's masturbation material, rather than an actual horror film. Anyway, however, I still can't really decide whether The Human Centipede is TRULY bad or not. 

There's a thin line between being gory to actually make your film scary and being disgusting just for the sake of being disgusting. Well, that pretty much sums up my thoughts of The Human Centipede directed by Tom Six. If you have the stomach for it, a barf bag, a grasp of the concept of dark humor, or a sick fetish with watching people's anuses no matter what they're stitched onto, then there is probably something in here worth your time. For everyone else, it's just exploitative, shameless, disgusting, and...did I mention "disgusting" for the bajillionth time?

Chicken, Ricotta and Lemon Pie

Serves: 6

Preparation: 15 mins

Cooking: 30 mins

250g baby spinach

650g chicken breast, thickly sliced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tsp chopped rosemary leaves

80 ml (1/3 cup) extra virgin olive oil

7 sheets filo pastry

1 lemon, zested

6 eggs

1 1/2 tbs plain flour

200g ricotta

1. Preheat oven to 220C. Place spinach in a bowl, pour over boiling water and stand for 1 minute or until spinach has wilted. Drain, then refresh under cold water. Squeeze dry and chop finely.
2. Place chicken in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add garlic, rosemary and 2 tbs oil, and combine.
3. Heat an ovenproof or regular frying pan over high heat. Cook chicken, in 2 batches, for 1 minute each side or until browned. Transfer to a bowl and reserve pan if using an ovenproof one.
4. Brush reserved pan or springform cake pan with 1 tbs oil. Working quickly, fold 6 sheets of filo pastry in half, then arrange in the pan so they overlap, covering the base and extending 2 cm beyond the rim. Drizzle with the remaining 1 tbs oil. Cut the remaining sheet of filo pastry into shreds and scatter over the base (this helps to keep the base dry). Add the chicken, reserving juices in the bowl.
5. Add lemon zest to chicken juices, then add eggs and flour. Whisk to combine. Pour over chicken. Scatter with spinach and ricotta. Scrunch overhanging pastey to form a rim.
6. If using an ovenproof pan, place over medium  heat and cook for 3 minutes, then transfer to oven and bake on the lowest shelf for 20 minutes or until pastry is golden brown. If using a cake pan, bake for 20 minutes on a heavy-based oven tray. Serve straight from the pan.

  

Is there anything wrong being nostalgic?

I don't think there is anything wrong being nostalgic. Every now and then I love going nostalgic. I often remember the times when I was happy (sometimes the sadder moments). I like analysing my past faults as well as my achievements. Remembering them gives me a lot of strength.

According to Wikipedia, nostalgic is defined as a yearning for the past, often in idealized form. Nostalgia is often triggered by something reminding the individual of an event or item from their past. The resulting emotion can vary from happiness to sorrow. The term of "feeling nostalgic" is more commonly used to describe pleasurable emotions associated with and/or a longing to go back to a particular period of time.

Nostalgia is comprised of several mixed emotions! We cry, we smile, and we cherish our past moments. We cry remembering the unfortunate or bad moments we have passed through; we cry even remembering the extreme joyous, buoyant moments of our past life. Some live in past, some go ahead in life keeping nostalgic moments in the deepest core of their heart. Even hard-nosed, pragmatic persons can’t help remembering their past moments of love, joy or celebration. Nostalgic moments and moods are indispensable in everyone’s life unless one is suffering from amnesia!

Honestly, I think we should all take time off to remember the small happy moments. We are always in a hurry today, running around ignoring the wonderfu things in life. 

Something I too don’t understand. It seems so much these days we hear how we aren’t supposed to be nostalgic because it means we are living in the past instead of the present and that we are “attached” to times long past. I don’t understand this. I’m still living here and now. Visiting with the past to me isn’t something “wrong”, even when I visit some of the sadder places. Which sort of brings me to an interesting thought…it seems to me more and more people are trying so hard to find ways not to feel…even if you were feeling kind of sad in your nostalgia over the week, what’s wrong with that?

Anyway this my thoughts, let me know what you think - do you think there's anything wrong being nostalgic?

Recipe: Choc Chip Banana Muffins

So I didn't just stop at making scones, I decided to try another recipe from MasterChef - yummy choc chip banana muffins.

Makes: 12 muffins

Preparation: 10 mins

Cooking: 20 mins

300g (2 cups) self-raising flour

150g brown sugar

200g milk choc chipa

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 large ripe bananas, mashed

125g unsalted butter, melted

125ml (1/2 cup) milk

1. Preheat oven to 200C. Cut out 12 x 15cm square of baking paper and use to line a 12-hole (80ml 1/3 cup) muffin pan.
2. Combine flour, sugar and choc chips in a large bowl.
3. Whisk together eggs, bananas, butter and milk in a large jug. Add to flour mixture and stir until just combined.
4. Divide batter among paper cases and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch. Stand muffins in pan for 5 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack to cool.

Recipe: Scones

I woke up this morning (OK..afternoon) and had this urge to have freshly baked scones. So I decided to make some..and this is the recipe I tried. Trust me, its to die for!

Makes: 12 scones

3 cups Self Raising Flour

1 tbsp caster sugar

80g butter, chopped

1 cup milk

jam & thick cream to serve

Five simple steps...

1. Preheat oven 200C, sprinkle self raising flour over a flat baking tray.
2. Sift self raising flour into a medium bowl. Add sugar. Using your fingertips, rub butter into the self raising flour mixture until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
3. Add milk. Use a flat bladed knife to mix until dough begins to come together. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently until dough comes together.
4. Flatten dough with palm of your hand until 2cm thick. Use a 5cm cutter to cut out scones. Place onto baking tray 1cm apart. Bake for 14-16 minutes or until golden and cooked through.
5. Serve warm with jam and cream.

Ahh.. it was lovely. Sitting out in the winter sun with our outdoor heater is a perfect way to spend our Sunday afternoon.

Hello God

I have been thinking about this post for some time. It's a Sunday afternoon, so I thought it would be a good time to blog.

I wasn't really brought up in a Christian home. My mother sent me to Sunday school every week which was where my faith was based. But I only really started to know God a few years ago when I was studying in Auckland. In my time in New Zealand I have learnt to trust God with all my heart and I held him close to my heart. I learned that if I "put my life in his hands" everything will happen as it's supposed to. 

Unfortunately when my grandfather passed away, I allowed my faith to slip away. I felt like it was the worst thing that ever happened to me (oh boy, was I wrong!). My heart was broken. I was mad. I was furious. I remember asking God to show me the lesson. What was I supposed to learn from this? Why did it happen?

Someone then told me that God has a plan and I wanted to belive that God was leading me, was guiding me. Whatever I was telling myself to feel, I knew then that my faith in Christ died.

Even when times were rough, I still feel like I could rely on God and that he would take care of us. A few years has passed since my grandfather was put to rest. I have learned that in life we face the ups and downs.

Recently my life has taken another turn. Losing Mike and the problems at work changed my perception in life. I am trying, very slowly to re-invet myself. As time goes on and when I think about my life more, I have come to realise some things. I will write more about that in my coming posts.

What I am trying to say is that I know God loves me and that is my biggest blessing. He knew was he was doing. He knew then, and he knows now.

Beautiful Sydney

One thing I love about Sydney is that almost anywhere I go, it's beautiful. Almost every walking path, every trail, every sidewalk in the city is beautiful to walk on.

The beauty of this place has inspired me to get outside more. My office is smack centre in Sydney CBD and I enjoy going out for short walks during my lunch time. I have visited a few parks around the city and explored areas through  walking and all of it has been fun because SYDNEY IS SO BEAUTIFUL!