A Taste of African

I have never had African food. Ever. I don't even know if what we ate was authentic. But the decor sure was nice, and the food was interesting. And it wasn't the cheapest place to have dinner. 

For starters we had MALINDI CROQUETTES : Fresh Cassava Leaves, Ginger, Garlic, Habanero, House spices, Bechamel

Verdict - considering these were basically leaves in bechamel sauce, battered and fried, it was very tasty!

Our main was WEST AFRICAN CHARRED AUBERGINE STEW WITH ANGUS BEEF CHEEK : Roasted Aubergine, Spice Mix, Angus Beef Cheek, Smoked Fish, Liberian Sauce (Served with Basmati White Rice) 

I was a bit disappointed that the rice we got wasn't Basmati, but I was too hungry and excited to care... 

The sprouts and pickled tomatoes (?) really helped to balance out the richness of the stew. The servings here are NOT large, let me tell you, and mid way thru our main I was thinking we actually might not have enough to eat. Now typically when we eat out we order a FULL meal for ONE and then share it and that's usually a good portion for both of us cos #I eat like a myna. This time, however, I got a little bit worried. Still, it isn't over till it's over right? So we moved on to dessert. 

Dessert was MALINDI HALWA - Malindi’s Sultana’s Comfort Food - Swahili Mochi Made with Fresh Dragon Fruit Juice, Hazelnuts & Cashew Nuts, Macadamia, Pistachio with Malindi Spices, Dukkha Filo, Coconut Yogurt

Now the picture on their website led me to believe that it was going to be a lot bigger than it actually was. 

Here's the website pic -

Here's MY pic -

That's not too bad right? Until you realise it was a side plate (ergo, smaller) and that was quite a close up shot. Have a look at the portion size beside a dinner fork.

Now I'm not used to tiny half-a-fish-stick sized desserts. I like waffles remember? And carrot cake... and things that are big enough for sharing. This was a little worrying. 

"I think we might have to go for chocolate cake somewhere else after this," I said to BIKSS. He laughed. 

We started on dessert. And by the end of it there was no more space for anything. I don't know how. But suddenly everything I had eaten seemed to just double in volume in my tummy. 

We paid up and took a walk around the neighbourhood to check out the bars and other eateries in the area... and the more we walked the more full we got! BIKSS was surprised at how such seemingly small portions of grub could fill us up the way it did! 

I felt a little bad that it was quite as expensive at it was, but he was just glad that I enjoyed the food - and I did. It was almost like being on holiday!

After that we drove to get some coffee to re-stock my pantry... and then for want of something exciting / different to do, I looked up night markets on my fone, cos I LOVE NIGHT MARKETS but for some reason we only ever manage to get to them when we travel, and never see any in our own country. 

And I think I know why. Cos there are none. It's horrid. Maybe *that's* why I like night markets so much! 

We did however learn about a vegetable wholesale 'market' nearby enough to where we were so he said let's take a drive over. The trading begins at 11pm proper but when we got there it was only 10 o'clock. I was hoping to catch some early birds setting up, and I wasn't disappointed. But there wasn't a lot of stuff to buy - besides, the website said they mostly sold in bulk to restaurant owners and produce-stallholders. I doubted they would bother selling me just 2 eggplants and a head of cabbage. 

There are 3 such markets that go on every night from 11pm to 7am, and the interesting thing is that while one of them is a known wholesale market pretty far away from residential / city areas, the other two happen in pretty inhabited areas - in carparks no less! 

Here are a couple of pics - that's fresh green and red chillies on the ground!

And yes, there are vehicles parked in the background.

















And that, my friends, was our almost-like-being-on-vacation Friday night date!

Free Bagels

We ended up at the same place near the uppety marina for dinner on Thursday night. It was supposed to be tapas for dinner but a group of office types were having some kind of networking thing there and I wasn't in the mood to jostle with a crowd, so we ended up going to a NY bagel bistro.

It happened to be Taco thursday, so for $15 we got a taco sampler - beef, shrimp and pulled pork! The guac was freshly made, and the chilli was spicy - but delicious!

They didn't have the world's largest tacos but it was good enough. Cos we had dessert coming -

There was way too much ice cream for a little waffle, ok, a regular waffle, but it felt somewhat dwarfed by the 2 mounds of vanilla sitting on top of it. AND whipped cream. 

It wasn't bad waffle, but it wasn't fabulous either. There was enough crisp and *almost* enough chewiness, but the richness of the batter made up for whatever it lacked in texture. It was a good waffle in that it tasted "waffle-y", I said to BIKSS. At that the light bulb went off above his head. "That's it!" he said. 'It', according to BIKSS, is the fact that it was too eggy! Now, I LOVE EGGS. I'd eat eggs all day every day if it were a nutritionally whole and complete food. BIKSS on the other hand, likes his eggs a certain way and in certain proportions to other stuff he's eating them with. 

Which explains, probably, why I had no complaints about this waffle at all despite it not being the most spectacular.

At some point I had heard the waiter saying that they typically throw out their bagel leftovers at the end of the night. Lucky for us, when 'end of the night' came around we were still there, so I asked if he would consider selling them to me for half price, or better yet, if they would consider donating all their unsold stock instead of binning it - so that I might rescue some perfectly good food and find them homes in other people's tummies. 

He suggested I talk to the boss, which I did, and we left with 24 bagels, FOC. 

And thanks to OLIO 15 of those bagels have been redistributed, 5 stayed with me, and 4 went to BIKSS! 

It's a real pity we don't have more cafes / eateries connecting with people to give away unsold food at the end of the night. The issue is that they're afraid people will take advantage I suppose, and wait till the end of the night to get free food, or that if it's not handled appropriately or re-heated properly then people might get sick. So some restaurants prefer working with "legit" organisations who only distribute to actual charities. The problem with this, is that these organisations are reluctant to collect end-of-day food because if anyone in the homes / centres they deliver the food to gets sick then they''' be in trouble. So it ends up being that they only want "fresh" and good food - which these businesses would just sell instead of giving away free. 

The issue here is not so much feeding the needy as it is reducing food waste. And I think sometimes business owners don't think there's anything wrong with that. Food wastage, I mean. 

And now I'm off to do my daughterly duty and feed the parents at the hospital - the father in his bed, and the mother and his bedside. And after that BIKSS is taking me out to have African food! How exciting is that!

I'll update with pics tomorrow. 

Free Flow Tuesday - Food, Sex, Fun

...because I don't really have a plan for today's post. 

We went to have dinner last night. BIKSS had something to do in the morning that had him in a suit so we thought we would go out to a nice place for dinner. 

Turns out it wasn't quite a suit and tie type of place, but since my dress wasn't TOO formal it just looked like I had come from an official-type event and were stopping to get dinner on the way home. 

The yoghurty drink was way too sour. The Shish Platter for Sharing was way too salty. And the Kunefe / Knafeh was way to sweet. 

BUT.

It was absolutely delicious!

After two pieces of fish, a shrimp and a couple of bites of meat, I surrendered and decided to stick to the peppers and side veggies. My mouth was screaming out for some bland vegetable purée. Don't even ask. 

The pastry was good. The sugar was a tasty kind of sweet - you know how some sweetening agents can taste quite artificial? Anyway it was good. The cheese was burnt tho, and BIKSS wasn't happy about that so he's planning on a trip to a different restaurant where they do a proper Kunefe / Knafeh.

After dinner we went to a richer part of town - it's near the marina and also where the most expensive properties are. Secluded as hell, but I suppose if you can afford a place out there you probably have expensive cars to get you to and from your million dollar property. 

There are bars and eateries and we didn't want to waste a good date night, so off we went. He found it really amusing that the waiter winked at me - right in front of BIKSS - as he promised to add some mint leaves to my peppermint tea for a little more oomph, and we had a really good laugh about it as we took our seats. 

Later as I got up to go and smoke BIKSS got up to get the bill too, and deliberately came over to kiss me - I teased  him saying that was his equivalent of a branding iron! Staking claim and all... 

It was really sweet tho :)

Today we managed to get some time together in the afternoon and it felt really good to be able to do all the things we usually do when we hop into the sack! 

He started with some hand spanks, then that turned into some fingering, and some cock-sucking, and gagging and more spanking and choking... 

YUM! 

It almost seems like the actual fucking isn't even the main event during these sessions.

I asked him if he noticed that when he's fucking me the pinching of my nipples or his biting on them is usually the thing that drives him over the edge! 

He laughed at that. It's true tho. We'll be having a ball of a fucking time and then he'll do some Dom thing and drive himself over the cliff and explode all over. 

We finally got him to admit that he's a sadist. He hates describing himself with that word btw. LOL.

I think he's also allowing himself to enjoy the notion that he has power over me. At least sexually. FINALLY.  For some reason I believe he's always thought of that as a dirty word. It's not though. Not when seen through the right lenses. Responsible lenses. 

Anyway, that's all the rambling I'm going to do for now. Here's a pic for you to enjoy this Tuesday!

Been Too Long

since I knelt between his legs and put my face in his crotch

since I inhaled his scent and felt the soft velvety skin of his cock on my cheek

since I slid my naked body along his thigh

since I ran my hands along his hips and across his stomach

since I felt his balls in my mouth

since I licked his shaft as he moans his approval

since I winced in pain as he pinches my nipples

since I gagged on his cock as he tells me to take all of him in my mouth

since I dripped pussy juice on my own ankles while sucking on Roger

since I only had to look at him for him to know I needed to be fucked

since I wet the bed with my cum

More Dim Sum and Updates on BIKSS and the Father's Situation - Plus a Bonus

First - the father didn't get transferred to the nursing home cos his O2 levels dropped and stayed below 90% for 48 hours and so they've shipped him back to the hospital. He had some water in his lungs but they tell me it's gotten better, so they're stopping the diuretics to see if his sodium levels will normalise. Yup. Sodium high. There's also the issue of his not eating well. He doesn't seem to be interested in food. This sucks. The on-call doctor was useless. He basically asked ME how my father was and decided that he would let the team doctors from the ward investigate further today. So far I haven't heard anything from anyone, except the speech therapist who rang to tell me she's recommending that he be on blended food at least till he becomes a little more alert and responsive and can be trusted to chew his food. 

Then there's BIKSS. He's been helping me with ferrying things from the community hospital to the main hospital, and getting mum home and me here and there, cos he's been on sick leave this week. The summary of it - Soccer on Sunday. Busted his knee. Swelling on Monday. Emergency room on Monday night cos #PAIN. XRay showed nothing broken. Specialist on Wednesday. MRI today. And back to the specialist tomorrow. 

Yup. That's his busted knee. We suspect an MCL injury. It's not the first time he's hurt it.

BUT this meant that he could come and meet me for lunch 3 days in a row. Hurray!

This also meant MORE DIM SUM cos there's a pretty good restaurant near where-I-work. Now in the last post I mentioned that he loved the crispy BBQ pork buns. This other place near my office has something similar but for some reason every time we've gone there, and sometimes when he's gone without me, it's always sold out!

So yesterday I asked the nice lady how we could get some and she suggested we call ahead and reserve some. So since he was going to be available for lunch again today, we decided to do just that. 

SCORE! I also got some to take home and distributed a bunch to the staff at the comm hospital when I went to collect the father's stuff.

"It looks like a nipple" I told him. He had noticed it too. I picked up the one that was nipple-less, and he took the nipply one LOL

The third came home with me in a doggie bag.

Here's some of the other stuff we had today -

Side note to ROZ - did you know that Won Ton or "yun tun" literally translates to "cloud swallow"? And I don't mean the bird. 

• Left - steamed bean curd rolls again cos #Favourite, 
• Top - pan friend turnip cake (aka radish cake) - theirs has bits of chinese sausage - adds a distinct chinese flavour to the dish!
• Right - deep fried shrimp (and meat) dumplings - mayo for dipping.

That's the turnip / radish cake. OH SO GOOD!

Oh and I did mention we ate there yesterday too right? Yep. We're crazy. The great thing about it is one can order different things every time. So it isn't as boring as it sounds. Coming up - yesterday's lunch.

Char siu sou (pronounced "so") - The filling is the same as a "bao" but where the latter is a bread-type bun, a "sou" is a pastry with a slightly sweet glaze. 

More rice noodle rolls - with prawns instead of pork filling this time.

• Left bottom - gyozas or pot stickers - aka 'guo tie' in Chinese. They were probably the best ones I've ever had. BIKSS doesn't particularly like guo tie, but even HE was impressed at the flavour and the generous amount of filling in these ones. He admitted that "They ARE pretty good, and I'm not even a fan in the first place."

• Top right - we decided to try something new - a traditional fried Hakka style yong-tau-fu which literally translates to "stuffed bean curd". In the pic below you'll see a piece on the left, with the brown bean sauce smothered over it. 

BIKSS loves his sauces.

When I dismantled mine I found a surprise shrimp under the fish-paste cap covering the block of tofu. That amused me quite a bit.

And of course, dumpling soup. Different from Won-Tons in that dumplings generally have shrimp and some sort of green garnish in them, and wontons don't - just minced pork. 

After lunch we hopped over to a coffee place that serves decent coffee. AND had decaf versions of everything on the menu. I'm really annoyed at how many places claim to be coffee joints but don't serve decaf. Some of us just CAN'T handle our caffeine but that doesn't mean we don't want coffee right? 

Anyway I had a mocha and BIKSS had his cappuccino, and we shared a slice of chocolate cake for dessert - 

EEYORE! And good cake. Good enough that we popped in there again today after lunch for a latte for me and a cold drip coffee for him. And a carrot cake that surpassed BOTH our expectations. This was a keeper of a cafe. It was our first times there and I suspect it won't be our last :)

Finally after way too long we managed to get some play time today after finishing up all the errands. 

... But it's dinner time now so maybe I'll write about that bonus tomorrow. ;)

DIM SUM Friday

I like dim sum. BIKSS likes dim sum. We have favourites at this popular Hong Kong chain. He likes number 4. I like number 1. WE ALWAYS HAVE THOSE. Actually we always end up eating the same things. I told him we needed a plan or else we'd never get to try new things. So he says we'll have ONE favourite each and then order new things to add to those. I think that is a great idea.

Here's a tour round our dim sum table.

Number 1 - Steamed beancurd rolls. These can be deep fried too. But I prefer the steamed version.

Inside you'll find mince meat, bamboo shoots, chives or spring onions.

Number 2 - Dumpling Soup. "Jiao Zi" generally refers to ALL kinds of dumplings. Dumplings in soup (aka boiled dumplings) are known as "Shui Jiao" or 'water dumplings'.

Number 3 - Taro Dumplings - minced pork wrapped in mashed yam and fried to a crisp!

That's what it looks like on the inside. This one has shitake mushrooms and spring onions too.

Number 4 is a house specialty - It's a crispy BBQ pork bun that's made with a slightly crisp / sweet baked dough instead of the usual savoury version.

Number 5 is my NEW must-have item on the menu - it's battered and fried custard. It. Is. So. Good. BIKSS isn't a fan. MORE FOR ME! What better way to have dessert at a dim sum place than... sweet dim sum!

Number 6 -Rice noodle rolls. This isn't my favourite thing. And this shop uses cilantro (aka chinese parsley aka coriander aka smelly leaf *yuck*) in their 'cheungfan' so I ended up not having any. BIKSS was happy to swish the sauce around the plate to try and get it through the rice-noodle tubes tho. I think he has more fun playing with it than actually eating it.

Here's a video of the founder of the chain explaining what Dim Sum making means to him - and yes, it's a Michelin star restaurant. Probably the only one we can afford to dine at on a regular-ish basis. 

Let me know if you like Dim Sum too!

Fun Sunday After A Long Week

Here are some pics, because I could do with some light humour and reprieve from life in general. And I couldn't wait till Tuesday.

The siblings will be away (out of town, that is) on the day the father moves into his nursing home. We finally got a place, and it's not too far away, plus it's a pretty good one from what I hear. Still, we don't really get to pick and choose because beds are limited and we're asking for subsidies so unless someone can fork out 3 to 4 grand a month (I can't) we're at the mercy of the state. 

So all things considered, this is good. 

Part of me is sad. I can't help but wonder if that fall didn't happen in June would he still have deteriorated so quickly... And could that fall have been prevented if the caregiver had been there... 

As my friends (and BIKSS) has said many times to me, maybe we don't think about that cos it's not something I can answer. Moving forward is probably the best thing for all of us right now. 

The move will happen on Wednesday. Amid some stressful back and forth with the brother we've managed to finally sort out the payment arrangements. 

In the meantime these are the things that amuse me - 

I need this tee.

No amount of lavender will help me

Maybe a Pierre might comfort me. Especially since I use a bolster when I sleep anyway.

What do you see... what what ?

I laughed. This is a little bit true. But just a little bit.

Tuesday Map Things

Everyone needs a hero!!

I assume it's "court" but the word preceeding the abbreviation makes me automatically think of a pussy-related 4 letter word that starts and ends with C and T 

Ah. There we are. We have arrived!

YOU CAN ALL THANK BIKSS :)

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Where did the Week go?

I blinked and now it's almost Sunday. 

It was a whirlwind of a week for me. For some reason I was more tired than usual, so I changed up my schedule a little. Instead of popping in to see the father right after work I've been coming straight home to work on my course, then I nap for a quick half hour, and once I'm rested I grab dinner for the mum and head down to the hospital.

I hadn't been spending enough time on studying, thinking I've got ages to go before the deadline, until I took a closer look and realised the assignment was due on the 17th. That got me panicked enough to spend a few hours on it everyday from Tues to Thur, and maybe a little more than "a few" hours on Thursday, seeing as how I sat in my chair from lunch time all the way to supper! (The sister was on hospital duty.) But it's done, I've handed in the assignment, and I have officially gotten enough marks on the whole course to pass! WHOOHOO!!!

I have one more test to do at the end of the last chapter, which will determine my final mark, but I can relax a little knowing that I've cleared the requirement for passing.

But that hasn't come without its consequences - I woke up on Friday to the nastiest stiff neck of all time. Ok, second nastiest. The nastiest was this morning. I caved and made a call to this massage place I know about 15 mins away from me. She doesn't do oil massages with soft spa music. Oh no, she's all business. Drapes a towel over your back as you lie face down, and then gets into those muscles with her elbows!! 

It's not the place I go to when I want an hour of relaxation and de-stressing. This is where I go when I'm in serious pain and I need someone to get right into those knots! 

I'm feeling better now, altho it's still rather sore. Just not as bad as it was when I woke up this morning. I've stuck a ketoprofen plaster on it now. I don't know how some people can swear by those things - it doesn't seem to offer much relief. Maybe my skin's just too thick!

BIKSS has been away this week too. He left on Tuesday, which I suppose was pretty good timing, seeing as how I had studying to do! He was supposed to come back next Thursday but it turns out he's coming home on the red-eye tonight. HURRAY!

Just in time to celebrate my Pass! 

And all this happened while I was nursing a low-grade stomach bug. It started on Monday, around lunch time. I was pooping every 6 hours. Not enough to call it the runs, but way more "regular" than normal. I gave up trying to fight it on my own and popped some activated carbon tabs on Wednesday night. Things got a lot better by Thursday. 

Which was great timing cos I managed to track down an old neighbour via her nephew on Facebook, and she rang me on Thursday night. Mum got news from a mutual friend that she currently works at a nursing home near me. We thought it might be a good idea to take a look and ask her about it, in case it became one of the options presented to us by our social worker. So we made arrangements and I took the mother with me to visit her on Friday arvo. It looks good! So I've asked our social worker if we can apply there. He told me that another home was reviewing our application but if that doesn't work out then we can proceed with this application. It's all very complicated as we're applying through a government agency so that we can qualify for subsidised rates. This also means there are steps we have to follow. But if the big guy in the sky wants the papa to be here, then I'm sure He'll be able to work that out for us :)

So yes. That's been my week. 

How have all of you been?

Tuesday Fun Pics - The (Mostly) Cock Edition

Here we are. I've kept these in my folder way too long. I'd clear forgotten about it till now. Enjoy!

I'm not even sure what this is about!

 This isn't a particularly good pun, but here it is anyway.

This one is supposed to be a colouring book with a naughty title.

This oe is just a naughty colouring book.

Don't even joke about this. Hilarious tho.

For those boring nights in.

Another innocent item with a naughty name.

I don't even know why they allowed this design on the playground.

Too true, this one.

Oops. Expectations are a dangerous thing.

For fellow Seuss fans.

They really ought to name them something else.

And if anyone wants some serious literature... The Penis Book is a real thing.