#32

Pretending to be okay is never easy, yet I surprised myself for being able to function today.

My Dad just got back from Guangzhou a few days ago and he brought me a bunch of manicure kit - starting from nail polishes, stamp templates, nail tape, and a whole lot of things that I don't know the name of but know how to use it because I'm a devoted worshiper of Simply Nailogical. A good self-manicure has always give me an extra boost of happiness every now and then, so I spent my last day of September painting my nails and stamping it with my brand new Konad stamping templates. Now, my nails are hella fabulous, plus I get this sense of achievement and satisfaction every time my eyes made contact with either of my fingers.

I don't usually go with soft pastel color, but this sky blue nail polish from Konad is super adorable. I paired it with some white snowflake patterns and it went straight from "cute" to "UHH-KAY CUTIE!!". Yes, that is an Arielle Vandenberg and Matt Cutshall reference because I ship them hard. #ultimatecouplegoals

I always lost my appetite when I'm troubled, but I managed to dig into SNCTRY's Coconute Breeze smoothie bowl and cold-pressed Refresh juice that I got after church. I ordered an extra scoop of chia seed to go with my smoothie bowl and it added a little kick to every spoonful that went into my mouth. 

Despite the fact that the base is made from blended red dragon fruit and banana, which to me seemed like a waste to spend Rp61.000,00 on luxury item that I can actually made by myself for free at home, SNCTRY's smoothie bowl always have a special place in my heart. Loved every topping that the crew used to top my cold dessert with, especially the banana and chia seed. To bad the coconut flakes were rather flaky.  

I also had some coffee with my Dad that only costed us Ro7.000,00 in total. Even though I usually go to Starbucks for my shot of caffeine, it's always nice to have this kind of coffee every now and then. Cheap and simple, yet it has its' own charm and deliciousness in every sips. Mine was Good Day Cappuccino, along with its' drizzle of Coco Granule on top, and Dad had his share of Kopi Kapal Api. 

The thing about being happy is that happiness itself has always been in front of you this whole time. You just have to want to see it to be able to see it. Otherwise, you're just going to dwell with your own monster in a never ending loop of "what if"s and "if only"s. 

For a starter, you might want to practice Zombieland's rule #32 - Enjoy the little things. 

Deep-fried Oreo is Life

Adults make decision. 

I am an adult. 

Therefore, I have the rights to make whatever decision for my well being.

Hence, I made deep-fried Oreos for lunch. 

Yes. 

And a 43-seconds video of me making my deep-fried goodness.

Kedai Khas Palembang: Selera Kito

Located strategically at Kota Wisata, occupying one of the spots at Tenda Resto Fresh Market, Selera Kito has been the number one place me and my boyfriend visit every time we are in the mood for some good Roti Canai. This food tent, owned by a local named Yusuf, serves a variety of Indian-infused Palembang cuisine. Martabak Kari, Roti Canai, Nasi Kebuli, Teh Tarik, you name it! You can have them all here with a reasonable price, good portion, and guaranteed deliciousness. And, no, I'm not exaggerating. 

Our custom, my boyfriend and I, is to order the Roti Canai with different condiments. I usually go with the Roti Canai Susu, which is a plate of Roti Canai with a side of condensed milk, while my boyfriend goes with the Roti Canai + Kari Kentang that comes with a generous bowl of potato curry. We usually dip our share of Roti Canai in each other condiments. So, whenever I feel like I had an okay amount of sweetness from the condensed milk, I would go for the curry, and vice versa, and so on. 

The thing about the Roti Canai at Selera Kito is that it is freshly folded and fried on the spot. The cook would grab a handful of dough, stretch it and spin it around like pizza dough, and fried it until it has this crispy golden brown surface. I am amazed by how thin, yet fulfilling the Roti Canai is. It has a great gummy texture with a hint of glutinous sweetness in every bite, significantly stretchy but not rubbery, has a good level of crispiness, and not oily. It goes best with the condensed milk, in my opinion as I am sweet-toothed as you all may know, but it goes along great as well with the curry. 

I'm never a big fan of thick soup, or curry sauce, or anything that lacks the consistency of liquid, nor solid, but this is an exception. Turns out, I love the potato curry more than I expected. What I love about the curry is that it is not sickening although it may look unappetizing. It tasted savory, very rich, warm as it was served, and it had this bits of mashed potato in it that I could chew in between chewing the Roti Canai. I once found a chunk of lamb meat inside of the curry. But, since I don't like lamb very much, I didn't eat it. The curry is not the least bit spicy if you're curious. 

The other dish that has become my second favorite dish at Selera Kito is the Nasi Kebuli. I love the radiant and flavorful Nasi Kebuli, which comes with a bowl of chicken curry and a side of pickled carrots. Man, I love it so much, especially after a long day out with bae just when we are at the peak of our hunger and exhaustion. 

The dish may look small, but it's fulfilling if you were to eat it by yourself. You can choose which part of the chicken you want for your curry. I usually go with the breast because the breast contains the most meat, and I usually share my meal with my boyfriend. 

I love how the rice is warm when it is served and release this appetizing fragrant. The texture reminds me a lot of how the rice in Doha, Qatar, are like: slightly longish and firm. Each spoonful of the rice itself is already delicious, let alone it being eating with some pickled carrots, chicken meat, and a spoonful of curry. Perfect!

As for the drink, I always ordered myself a glass of warm Teh Tarik. Basically, Teh Tarik is just like milk tea, with extra sweetness on the side. Too bad I didn't have a picture of the warm drink, but I do recommend you guys to get this lovely beverage when you have the chance. 

Selera Kito

Fresh Market, Kota Wisata

Cibubur

Opening Hours:

Everyday, except Monday and Thursday: 04.30 PM - 11.00 PM

Contact:

+62 21 9856 6827

+62 857 1177 0670

Bits of KLIA2

My trip to Malaysia got me searching the web on how to forget bad memories. It may not be the worst memory I can recall, but it definitely is one of them. I found an article on WikiHow that made me feel somewhat supported by its' step-by-step ways on how to banish the unwanted bad memories and reducing the anxiety I'm having every time it knocks on my door. One of the ways says, "Focus on happier memories" so that's what I'm doing now.

It was last week when I went to Malaysia, departed on the 7th and got back to Indonesian on the 11th. I wasn't on a vacation, instead a full day of SEP Training and a set of ZFTT simulator that started in the middle of the night and lasted for four hours straight. To be honest, I enjoy the new experiences, but it was dreadful to say the least. I managed to survive and found bits and bobs that flicker a light inside this my black void of mine. So emo, I can't handle myself.

I stayed at Tune Hotel, accompanied by my Mom, and didn't travel far for food. We ate mostly at KLIA2, depending on the chains of fast food restaurants and groceries that provide food that we were familiar with. It varied from Burger King's crispy fried chicken, Paparich's Nasi Hainam with Ayam Goreng, Aunty Anne's Cheese Pretzel Dog, to imported grocery snacks such as Pop Tarts, Cheetos, Arizona, and Milo Cubes.

I bought a couple bag of Milo Cubes at Jaya Grocery for less than RM10. Each bag is filled with fifty cubes of compressed Milo powder, which confuse me on why this snack is highly demanded in Jakarta when it's just a regular Milo with different shape.



I was exited when I stumbled upon Arizona Green Tea on the beverage aisle. I am used of seeing this fancy canned drink on Tumblr posts and could only imagine how the drink taste like, until last week.

A can of Arizona Green Tea costed approximately RM5.50 and I finally bought one on my second day after contemplating on how expensive it was. It was an okay deal though because the can was large, 600-something mL in volume.

I was in doubt about the flavor of the green tea as it contains ginseng and honey. The honey was fine, but it was the ginseng that I wasn't sure of. I don't think I have tried ginseng before, hence I'm not familiar with the flavor at all. I had my expectation regarding the taste of the beverage, but as I open the can and took a sip of it, turns out it didn't taste like how I thought it would be. Not in a bad way, but somewhat good, a bit in the middle, and rather okay. It tasted odd at first, but then it became good after the next few gulps. I ended up finishing the whole thing on the next day.



On my last day, Mom took me on a train ride to Putrajaya to meet some friends of our family. We met up at the train station, where we got picked up and drove to this dining place near their house that serves Roti Canai. I was full at that moment, as I had my share of Aunty Anne's Cheese Pretzel Dog earlier, but I ended up digging most of Mom's plate of Roti Canai. It was thin and savory, filled with eggs and cheese, and accompanied with a not-so-generous portion of spicy chicken curry. I usually prefer my Roti Canai with sweet condensed milk, or sugar, but this one was exceptionally good.

A couple of the last few things I had on my last day was a Baskin Robbin's Junior Double Scoop ice cream, that consisted of Maui Brownies and Caramel Turtle Truffle, and a small bag full of Garrett's butter popcorn. I used to think that there is nothing an ice cream can't fix, but I stand corrected. Ice cream may not be able to fix everything, but it sure can give us a wee bit of happiness in our hearts during hard times. 

And that's the end of it. 

Good Morning, Reality

I had a good start for today. Even though I slept a bit late last night, I woke up today at six without any extra grunt and rant. Class starts at 9 and I was lucky enough that my chauffeur was able to drive me from Bekasi to M1. I put on a forgotten flannel that I had for years, it's dark blue in color and it has a rather comfy texture of fabric, and I look exceptionally well. Not girly, nor beautiful, but well.

I had me a bottle of Fresha Juicery's Hunny Bunny as we drove passed Tanjung Priok harbor. The combination of apple, carrot, and honey were super fresh and energizing, very suitable to consume to boost your mood. The carrot didn't overpower the whole flavor as the juice had a strong hint of apple in it. I assume the sweetness of the cold-pressed mana came from the honey.

For once, I finally enjoy my morning. Too bad I forgot that happiness doesn't last long.