A Crabby Day

I woke up yesterday (Sunday) with mild to high fever. I Felt like a ton of bricks fell on my head and my throat felt like sand paper rubbing against each other. Swallowing felt like a feat, it had to be slow and not too sudden otherwise it would rip apart and I would be a likely candidate for a Columbian neck tie. I wasn't a happy camper.

My wife was kind enough to leave me for dead in bed and she left me a plate of noodles and some coffee for me to crawl my way to it. As I sat up on bed my head started throbbing. I was a little hesitant to have any food but as I rummaged the fridge I found some paracetamols and it should be taken after a meal. Great. It was like insult to injury. So I forcefully ate the plate of noodles and gulp down drugs with some coffee. In my drowsy state of mind I managed to channel surf and landed on the Asian Food Channel (AFC). It was a documentary on Chili Crab in Singapore.

I could practically smell the crabs being cooked on telly. I kid you not! Apparently the best crabs for this dish are the Sri Lankan crabs. Their shells are less thick and which means pound for pound you get more meat from a Sri Lankan crab compared to an Australian crab. * A Malaysian Mud Crab
However most crab afficionados would agree that since the crab is going to be fried and soaked in chili sauce there isn't much difference to the type of crab used for this dish. So any mud crab would do. Here's a recipe for Chili crab:

Ingredients :
2 1/2 cup 1/4 cup 1 medium 5 cm 4 cloves 5 2 cups 1 cup 2 tablespoons 2 tablespoons 1 tablespoon 2 tablespoons	Fresh crabs approximately 500 g each Plain flour Cooking oil Finely chopped onion Fresh ginger finely grated Finely chopped garlic Red chilies, finely chopped Bottled tomato pasta sauce Water Soy sauce Sweet chili sauce Rice vinegar Soft brown sugar
Method : Wash the crabs well and scrub the shell. Using a large cleaver, cut the crabs in half and rinse well under cold water, carefully removing the yellow gills or spongy parts. Hit the legs and larger front nippers with the flat side of the cleaver to crack the shell. This is to make the eating process easier. Lightly and carefully coat the shells with a little flour. Heat about 2 tablespoons cooking oil in a large wok and cook 1 1/2 crab at a time, carefully turning and holding the crab in the hot oil until the shell just turns red. Repeat with the remaining crab halves. Add the remaining oil to the wok and cook the onion, ginger, garlic and chili for 5 minutes over medium heat and stirring regularly. Add the tomato sauce, water, soy sauce, chili sauce, vinegar and sugar. Bring to boil and cook for 15 minutes. Return the crab to the wok and simmer, turning carefully in the sauce for 10 minutes or until the crab meat turns white. Do not overcook. Serve with steamed rice.

* Source

After the show ended I was back at being miserable and slept half the day away until I couldn't take the pain in my throat and drove to a nearby pharmacy for some medicine. Today the fever has dissipated but my throat still feels sore.

Here's another link to the chili crab recipe.

Some old school Joe for Jojo

Don't you worry about a thing Jo if you're listening...



Here's for you kiddo


This last video is entitled, "Made of Tears."

Another Online Test To Freak You Out

This is truly bizarre. Follow the instructions!

NO PEEKING AHEAD!

Free will or synaptic wiring? You be the judge. Do the following exercise and prepare yourself to freak out.

Just follow these instructions, and answer the questions one at a time and as quickly as you can!

Again, as quickly as you can but don't advance until you've done each of them ... really.

Now, arrow down (but not too fast, you might miss something).



Think of a number from 1 to 10.























Multiply that number by 9.























If the number is a 2-digit number, add the digits together.























Now subtract 5.























Determine which letter in the alphabet corresponds to the number you ended up with (example: 1=a, 2=b, 3=c, etc.)























Think of a country that starts with that letter.























Remember the last letter in the name of that country.























Think of the name of an animal that starts with that letter.























Remember the last letter in the name of that animal.























Think of the name of a fruit that starts with that letter.

Are you thinking of a Kangaroo in Denmark eating an Orange?

If not, you're among the 2% of the population whose minds are different enough to think of something else. 98% of people will answer with kangaroos in Denmark when given this exercise.

Freaky, huh?

Just a slight case of Coulrophobia

I'm not sure how, why or when my eldest daughter feared clowns. Her first ever confrontation with clowns was at a furniture store and to tell you the truth there was nothing creepy about the clown who was busy making balloon animals. It reminded me of the world's most notorious clown, Pogo.

This is how serial killer John Wayne Gacy lured his victims. He often read his victims verses from the Bible before strangling them to death. He has killed about 60 people and maybe more that has been unaccounted. Even his eerie clown paintings are said to be haunted by Gacy's evil spirit, and Hollywood notable Johnny Depp once owned his painting and was so 'creeped' out by it that he eventually sold it away. Then there's the Hollywood B-movie, "Killer Clowns from Outer Space."
I've never watched the movie but by the looks of this movie poster it sure is what the title says it is. The movie director probably got his idea from Gacy somehow. Perhaps the most creepiest rendition of Batman's Joker is the one portrayed by the recently deceased Heath Ledger.
If you regard the Joker as a clown. It would fall in the "Creepy Clowns" category. The Joker would make a great Halloween costume though. Finally, I stumbled upon the eerie costume of Bert from Sesame Street. It'll give anyone nightmares for weeks!

It's quite troubling! I'm not sure if my daughter will get over the fear of clowns but she has no problems watching Jojo's Circus. I guess that's a little consolation to killer clowns on the prowl.

Another Blogthing Quiz

Just because it's Friday and I felt the need to reassess myself.

You Are 20% Evil

You are good. So good, that you make evil people squirm. Just remember, you may need to turn to the dark side to get what you want!

How Evil Are You?

Gadget Lust

Let's face it, it's barely two weeks into the new year and like most tech savvy people I know you're depressed at how 'old' your appliances are compared to other models out in the market. Here's my comprehensive list of gadget lust:

1. The trendy yet versatile Motorola Razr2 V9. Forget your PC. Internet at the touch of a button.
2. Sony PS3. Drool, drool, drool.
3. The Ogawa, Smart 10 massage chair. Available in Olive Green, Ebony Black, Khaki Beige and Classic Brown. You need something for your tush to rest on while you savor your gaming experience on your PS3
4. Let's just throw in that 50 inch High Definition TV from Pioneer. Clarity is in the house!
5. Was that a whimper or was that Godzilla stomping through your living room? Meet the masters of home audio, Panasonic model SC-PT750. Ah, I can hear nature calling...
6. What better way to capture life's precious moments than with the Canon PowerShot A570
7. You gotta have wheels to test out your latest camera. What better way to get around than the Hummer H3
8. What's that? Where do I park it? In my 66, 000 square foot hi-tech house of course.
9. Did I forget a yacht anchored next to it. Meet the 37m Sunseeker

Dream on...

Remember when...

I was uploading pictures of my mom's 60th birthday earlier on when I felt the sudden need to post this picture of my youngest daughter Tasha. Babies make the best subjects when photographed. There's nothing more innocent and pure. Can't help but fall head over heels when you look into her adorable eyes. Just makes you feel or squirmish inside. She's been quite a stunner since birth. The nurses at her maternity clinic couldn't keep their hands off of her. Everywhere we go people can help but notice how pretty and fair she is.