Labels

Wednesday 31 July 2013

How To Fold A Shirt In 2 Seconds

How to fold a shirt under 2 seconds. This step by step guide shows you how to fold a shirt very quickly. Works on all short sleeved tops including t-shirts and polo shirts. Great tutorial and easy to learn.





Risk - It's Not Just A Board Game

Grant Williams recent presentation at Mines & Money in Hong Kong in which he discussed risk - focusing on the corruption of traditional price signals by Central Banks' ZIRP policy, financial repression and the possibility that the gold leasing market is about to fall apart.




Silver And Gold - Smoking Comex Gun

For those wondering what the recent drawdown in COMEX and GLD stocks mean - please watch this video recorded in the GoldSilver.com boardroom moments ago. Grant Williams of Vulpes Asset Management joins CEO Michael Maloney to connect the dots on what may be some of the most important events of the last few years. 





Sunday 28 July 2013

Joke - The Jewish Elbow


A Jewish grandmother is giving directions to her grown grandson who is coming to visit with his wife.

"You come to the front door of the apartment. I am in apartment 301. There is a big panel at the front door.

With your elbow, push button 301. I will buzz you in.  Come inside, the elevator is on the right. Get in, and with your elbow push 3. When you get out, I'm on the left.  With your elbow , hit my doorbell."

"Grandma, that sounds easy, but, why am I hitting all these buttons with my elbow?"

"What ... You coming empty handed?"

   

Friday 26 July 2013

Recipe - Baked Eggs With Avocados

One of the healthiest and yummiest breakfast/snacks ever! High inprotein and healthy fats. So good for you! Its delicious 
Ingredients:
-Whole avocado
-2 Eggs
-Cayenne pepper (or any spice of your choice)

Remove the stone from an avocado. Make a base by cutting off a bit of the round shape. Scoop out a little more avocado to increase the size of the stone's crater. Crack an egg into the crater. Sprinkle with Cayenne pepper (cheese too if you desire). Bake in the oven at 180 degrees until egg is cooked to the level you like (about 20 minutes).

Did you know that the avocado has been called the world's most perfect food and has many health benefits? It has achieved this distinction because many nutritionists claim it not only contains everything a person needs to survive — but it has also been found to contribute to the prevention and control of Alzheimer's, cancer, heart disease, diabetes and other health conditions.
     

A 3 minute video showing how to bake the eggs with avocado.



You may also like this Avocado toast with poach egg, 6 minute video

Monday 22 July 2013

What Happens When You Pay 2 Monkeys Unequally ?




What happens when you pay two monkeys unequally? Watch what happens.
An excerpt from the TED Talk: "Frans de Waal: Moral behavior in animals." Watch the whole talk here:http://www.ted.com/talks/frans_de_waa...

Thursday 18 July 2013

Joke - Pecans In The Cemetry


On the outskirts of a small town, there was a big old pecan tree just inside the cemetery fence. One day, two boys filled up a bucketful of nuts and sat down by the tree, out of sight, and began dividing the nuts.

'One for you, one for me, one for you, one for me,' said one boy. Several dropped and rolled down toward the fence.

    

Another boy came riding along the road on his bicycle. As he passed, he thought he heard voices from inside the cemetery, so he slowed down to investigate. 

Sure enough, he heard, 'One for you, one for me, one for you, one for me...'

He just knew what it was. He jumped back on his bike and rode off.
Just around the bend he met an old man with a cane, hobbling along.

'Come here quick,' said the boy, 'you won't believe what I heard!
Satan and the Lord are down at the cemetery dividing up the souls!'

The man said, 'Beat it kid, can't you see it's hard for me to walk.
When the boy insisted though, the man hobbled slowly to the cemetery.

Standing by the fence they heard, 'One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me.'

The old man whispered, 'Boy, you've been telling me the truth. Let's see if we can see the Lord!


Shaking with fear, they peered through the fence, yet were still unable to see anything. The old man and the boy gripped the wrought iron bars of the fence tighter and tighter as they tried to get a glimpse of the Lord.

At last they heard, 'One for you, one for me. That's all. Now let's go get those nuts by the fence and we'll be done...'

They say the old man had the lead for a good half-mile before the kid
on the bike passed him.

  

Tuesday 16 July 2013

Blanched Kai Lan (Kale) With Oyster Sauce And Sesame Oil

Kai lan or kale is being recognised for its store of nutrients, health benefits and delicious flavour. It has a high concentration of vitamins A, C and K and sulphur containing plant nutrients. It is also a good source of minerals copper, potassium, iron, manganese and phosphorous. Dark green colour vegetables like kai lan, broccoli and spinach are also a good source of calcium.


This recipe is also simple and easy to prepare. I separate the leaves from the stem. As for the stem, I use a fruit peeler to peel off the hard skin of the stem and we are ready to go.

You can cut them into bite size before or after blanching. This makes it easier for eating. 

Adding a few drops of sesame oil to the oyster sauce gives the dish extra flavour. Topping it with crispy garlic gives the dish a lift.

To make the crispy garlic, see my earlier post (link).

Ingredients

200 grams kai lan
kai lan
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
A few drops of sesame oil.

Method

Separate the leaves from the stem
Peel the hard skin of the stem.

In a pot of boiling water, toss in the stems and let them boil for about 3 minutes.
Add in the leaves and bring the water to a boil. They should be done.
(Some chefs add a dash of oil and a dash of salt to make the leaves look radiant)

Place the kai lan on a serving plate.

In a small bowl, add 3 tablespoon of warm water.
Add 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce and a few drops of sesame oil.
Mix well and spoon over the kai lan.
Top with the crispy garlic and serve.

 

This 2 minute video shows how to blanch the kai lan. For my recipe, I added sesame oil to the oyster sauce and top up with crispy garlic.




Another video on cooking kai lan with oyster sauce.



Sunday 14 July 2013

Girl Shot in Head By Taliban Speaks at UN: Malala Yousafzai

Pakistani girl, Malala Yousafzai, celebrates her 16 birthday on the day she speaks to the United Nations' students delegates. 

Her speech.





Friday 12 July 2013

Joke - Bill Gates In A Restaurant



After eating, he gave 5$ to the waiter as a tip. 

The waiter had a strange feeling on his face after the tip.


Gates realized & asked.

What happened?


Waiter: I'm just amazed Bcoz on the same table ur son gave Tip Of... 500$...
& u his Father, richest man in the world Only Gave 5$...?


Gates Smiled & Replied With Meaningful words:
"He is Son of the world's richest man, but i am the son of a wood cutter..."

( Note: His father is an attorney)

Joke - Why China Will Be A Superpower

Scroll down for the reason
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Military in China

.
.
.


















.
.
.
.









.

.
.
.
.









.
.
.
.
.


















.
.
Who will want to fight with them ?
.
.


















.
.
.
.
















.
.
.
.
Astronaut




Wednesday 10 July 2013

How Much Do You Make An Hour - A Touching Story

A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.
SON: "Daddy, may I ask you a question?"
DAD: "Yeah sure, what is it?" replied the man.
SON: "Daddy, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?" the man said angrily.


SON: "I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "If you must know, I make $100 an hour."
SON: "Oh," the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: "Daddy, may I please borrow $50?"
The father was furious, "If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I work hard everyday for such childish behavior."
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.
The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?
After an hour or so, the man had calmed down and started to think: Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $50 and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door. "Are you asleep, son?" He asked.
"No daddy, I'm awake," replied the boy.
"I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier" said the man. "It's been a long day and I took out my frustration on you. Here's the $50 you asked for."
The little boy sat straight up, smiling. "Oh, thank you daddy!" He yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.
"Why do you want more money if you already have some?" the father grumbled.
"Because I didn't have enough, but now I do," the little boy replied.
"Daddy, I have $100 now. Can I buy an hour of your time?
Please come home early tomorrow I would like to have dinner with you"
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he
begged for his forgiveness.
It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts.
Do remember to share that $100 worth of your time with someone you love.
If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days. But the family & friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives. And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than to our family.
Some things are important than others!

Sunday 7 July 2013

Recipe - Teochew Braised Duck (Lor Ark)

Boneless duck with chilli sauce
The Teochew braised duck is a tasty and delicious dish served traditionally on special occasions like Christmas or Chinese New Year.

I grew up in Singapore helping my mother raised ducks for food. It takes about 6 months for a duckling to mature. These are happy free ranging ducks. They got to enjoy the world for 6 months before ending up on the dinner table.

It takes a whole day to prepare a braised duck the traditional way. Slaughtering and plucking the feathers took a whole morning. To take out the feathers, the dead duck has to be blanched in hot water to open the pores of the skin so that it is easier to remove the large feathers. For the fine feathers, you need a pair of twizzers to  remove them one by one. The male duck (drake) has a lot more fine feathers.

Commercially farmed ducks have a much shorter lifespan. It is also a common practice to dip the duck in hot wax in order to remove the fine feathers.

The traditional way of braising duck is also time consuming. It takes 2 to 3 hours to braise a duck. Typically, the duck is braised in a wok and the braising liquid is filled up to half the duck. The duck is braised in low heat and baste constantly for even cooking. Water has to be topped up every few minutes. That is a very time consuming way of braising duck.

For a family of 5, half a duck is enough.

So, for my recipe, I use half a duck, bought from the supermarket. I separate the wing and the thigh and cut the half duck into quarters. You can ask the vendor to do this for you.

Before braising the duck, I put the duck in boiling water for 5 minutes. This helps to get rid of the fat, to get rid of the duck smell and more importantly, to get rid of any residual wax on the duck.

I also use a pot with flat bottom for braising and the braising liquid must be enough to cover the duck. This way, there is no need to baste the duck and the cooking time is reduced by half.

Recipe

Half a duck, cut into large pieces (1.1 kg).
Half duck before deboning

Spices

1 cinnamon stick
2 star anise
5 pcs cloves
1 lemon grass, cut into smaller pieces
1 inch galangal (blue ginger) or ginger, cut into slices
5 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon of white peppercorn

(Note: These spices serve to give a woody and minty flavour. You will not miss a heartbeat if there are more or less spices)

Braising Sauce

3 tablespoon dark soy
2 tablespoon black vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
(Note: I like to add black vinegar for braising to give it a hint of sour taste)

2 tablespoon of sesame oil.

Method

Before braising, boil the duck parts in boiling water to get rid of fat, smell and any residual wax.

In a flat bottom pot or pan, heat the sesame oil.
Add in the sugar and let it caramelize (not burn)
Toss in all the other ingredients.
Add enough water to cover the duck.
Bring the liquid to a boil and reduce to low heat and let it simmer for 1 hour.
Do a taste test after 15 minutes.
Adjust if necessary. If the colour is not dark enough, add more dark soy.

It is done after 1 hour.
Take out the duck and let it cool.
Carve out the breast meat and thigh meat and cut into thin slices.
Lay out the boneless duck on a serving plate and spoon some braising liquid over the meat.
Garnish with coriander leaves.
Enjoy your platter of boneless braised duck, knowing that you do not have to look out for bones !
 



In this 30 seconds clip, spices used are galangal, cloves, star anise, cinnamon, garlic, pepper and coriander seed. It is in Teochew, probably a grandmother sharing her secret formula.



In this 5 minute clip, the grandmother is showing how to braise ducks in the traditional way, braising and basting the ducks for 2 hours. This is a back breaking endeavour. Take note that she uses charcoal.



In this 2 minute video, the process of braising duck is shown in slides format. She cut up the duck before braising.




Another way to enjoy duck ...smoked duck with steam buns.









Saturday 6 July 2013

Joshua At The Battle Of Jericho

A nice 1 hour video on Joshua and the battle of Jericho.

This story is based on The Book Of Joshua (link)




 An animated version of the same story


 


Joke - Who Broke Down The Walls Of Jericho

20120826-161910.jpg


A newly-appointed school inspector was assigned to a class in one of the local kindergartens and was introduced to the class by the teacher.
She told the class, “Let’s show the inspector just how clever you are by allowing him to ask you a question.”
The inspector reasoned that since this is a kindergarten started by a church, so he asked a biblical question: “Class, who broke down the wall of Jericho?”
For a full minute there was absolute silence. The children all just stared at him blankly. Eventually, little Alec raised his hand and was asked to speak.
Little Alec stood up and said: “Sir, I do not know who broke down the wall of Jericho, but I can assure you that it wasn’t me.”
Of course the inspector was shocked by the answer and the lack of knowledge of the famous Bible story and he looked at the teacher for an explanation.
Realizing that he was perturbed, the teacher said: “Well, I’ve known Alec since the beginning of the year, and I believe that if he says that he didn’t do it, then he didn’t do it.”
The inspector was even more shocked at this and stormed down to the principal’s office and told him what happened, to which the principal replied: “I don’t know the boy, but I socialize every now and then with his teacher, and I believe her. If she feels that the boy is innocent, then he must be innocent.”
The inspector could not believe what he was hearing. He grabbed the phone on the principal’s desk and in a rage, wanted to dial PM’s office, but he paused and decided this could be a bit of an overreaction. So instead he phoned his old childhood friend – Minister of Education. The inspector rattled off the entire occurrence to him and asked him what he thought of the state of education in kindergartens.
Education Minister sighed heavily and replied: “I don’t know the boy, the teacher or the principal, but just get three quotations and get the wall fixed lah!"
20120826-161957.jpg

Importance of Vitamin K - Functions & Sources

Vitamin K basically helps in:
- Overall bone health
- Blood clotting
- Fighting calcification
- Promoting brain function

It's also a good antioxidant and anti-inflammatory.











































Read more ...(Link)

Thursday 4 July 2013

Joke - To All My Smart Friends


I am sending this only to my smart friends. I could not figure it out. My first thought was wrong and I had to look at the answer. See if you can figure out what these seven words all have in common!

1. Banana
2. Dresser
3. Grammar
4. Potato
5. Revive
6. Uneven
7. Assess

Are you peeking or have you already given up? Give it another try....
Look at each word carefully. You'll kick yourself when you discover the answer. This is so good .....

No, it is not that they all have at least 2 double letters.
Answer is below!

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Answer:
In all of the words listed, if you take the first letter, place it at the end of the word, and then spell the word backwards, it will be the same word. Did you figure it out? No? Then send this to more people and stump them as well. Then, you'll feel better too.

Wednesday 3 July 2013

5 Foods For Pancreas Health



1. Kale and Spinach
- Kale is a good source of kaempferol, a dietary flavonoid that has been linked to lowering the risk of pancreatic cancer.
- Spinach is loaded with vitamin B and iron, which are essential to the pancreas.

2. Oatmeal and Brown Rice
- Whole grains such as oatmeal and brown rice are among the best foods for pancreatitis patients. They are rich in B-complex vitamins, which helps improve the condition of pancreatitis.
- Pancreatitis patients are supposed to avoid refined foods including white breads, sugar and pasta.

3. Blueberries and Red Grapes
- As reported by Reuters in April 2008, a laboratory study has indicated that skin of red grapes can destroy pancreatic cancer cells. Researchers attribited this to polyphenolic compounds in red grape skin called resveratrol.
- Blueberries are packed with pterostilbenes, which are antioxidant phytochemicals to prevent various cancers including pancreatic cancer.

4. Broccoli and Cabbage
- Glucosinolates that are highly contained in cruciferous vegetables -- including broccoli and cabbage -- can be converted into isothiocyanates, which are potent anti-carcinogens to help prevent pancreatic cancer and other types of malignancy.

5. Reishi Mushrooms
- A report has been published by The American Journal of Chinese Medicine in 2011, in which the reishi mushroom has shown its ability to inhibit the growth of cancer cells.
- On the website of The University of Maryland Medical Center, reishi mushrooms have been suggested for the use of pancreatitis treatment. Reishi mushrooms are considered an alternative medicine. You should talk to your doctor before using.

Tuesday 2 July 2013

Joke - Types Of people On Facebook



Below are the 12 categories of people on Facebook. 
Just a little bit of fun between you and your friends. Enjoy.

1) The "Rooster" – Feels that it is their job to tell Facebook "Good Morning" every day !!


2) The "Lurker" – Never posts or comments on your post, but reads everything, 
and might make reference to your status if they see you in public.


3) The "Hyena" – Doesn't ever really say anything, just LOLs and LMAOs at everything.

4) "Mr/Ms Popular" – Has 4,367 friends for NO reason

5) The "Gamer" – Plays Words With Friends, Mafia Wars, Bakes
virtual cakes and stuff, etc., ALL DAY

6) The "Cynic" – Hates their life, and everything in it, as evidenced by the somber tone 
in ALL of their status updates.

7) The "Collector" – Never posts anything either, but joins every group and becomes 
fans of the most random stuff.

8) The "Promoter" – Always sends event invitations to things that you ultimately delete 
or ignore.

9) The "Liker" – Never actually says anything, but always clicks the "like" button

10) "Drama Queen/ King" – This person always posts stuff like "Ican't believe this!", 
or "They gonna make me snap today!", in the hopes that you will ask what happened, 
or what's wrong but then they never finish telling the story.

11) The "News" – Always updates you on what they are doing and who they are doing 
it with, no matter how arbitrary, and Lastly

12) The "Thief" – Steals status updates... and will probably steal this one