when the misoa speaks...

Dublin, 03-05-08

When The Misoa Speaks...

This is the day I've been waiting for quite some time. It is my first ever birthday party that I become the host. I decided to cook. I prepared everything myself. So, here is the story.

Everything was started on 2nd May 2008. I woke up 7.10 am in the morning. Then, I did my routine. I took a shower and go to college for 8.30 am class. Two classes were being held yesterday morning. After the classes, I played football with some Malay guys in the coffee dock. Then, I went to games room and finished my last 3 HBS lectures with Afni. After we had finished my HBS lecture notes, we went to AIB Bank on Grafton Street to lodge my cheque from RCSI. Then, we went to Boots in Stephen's Green Complex. However, I didn't find what I was looking for, so we headed back to Boots on Grafton Street. Finally, I got my stuffs there and then we went out for lunch in Sultan. After the lunch, we went to class. From the class I went to Spice Land to buy 2 bottles of A&W as my back up drinks in case I ran out of passion fruit juice and teh tarik. I then headed back to Nurul's house to take the big stock pot from her. From there, I crossed the road and walked down the street as I waited for the bus to arrive. I could catch a bus when I reached Aungier Street and so I was on the way home. Once I arrived, I started to do all the stuffs I had written on my checklist. So, I started with cleaning my room and kitchen. Then I ironed my shirts, but the time ran very fast and so I have to leave my duty there and headed back to college to play futsal until 10.00 pm. Unfortunately, while I played, I got a knock on my patellar ligament by someone from UCD with his shin. However, I kept playing until the end of time and in the end my thigh ended a little swelling and I walked back to bus stop limping. After I arrived again at home, I couldn't just continue where I left because I couldn't even stand up, so i took a rest for about 1 hour before restarted to my duty. however, after 1 hour left, my thigh got worse and I couldn't even stand up but I pushed myself as I had spread out the invitation and I got no one helping me, so I had to do it myself. I, then, started ironing my clothes again until finish, then I washed some dishes left on the sink. After that, I vacuum the kitchen and so the kitchen is totally CLEAN! Yey! Then, I took my shower and washed my laundry. Everything was done by 1.00 am Friday 3 May 2008. However, it was only the starting point of washing clothes which means I had to wait for it to dry in 3 hours time. I waited and waited but I couldn't make it and so I fell asleep and luckily I woke up at 4.45 am. So, I took my clothes and hung them on the hanger. But, when I wanted to cover my bed with my bed sheet, I realized my bed sheet was not dry, so I had to dry it again using machine and it took me another hour to stay awake and so I could finish before sun shines. I took the sheet from machine by 6.00 am and covered my bed with it. Then, I tried to settle down and took a rest as most cleaning stuffs had been done. In the end, I slept at 7.00 am Friday 3rd May 2008 and I had to wake up and started cooking by 9.30 am.

Dublin, May 3rd 2008, 09.30 am (GMT)

The busiest part started from here. My best friend, Afni, was angry the night before because I didn't allow her to come before 1 pm. I meant if she would like to help, then she should help from the start and if she didn't then just come as the others would. So, I actually by then already decided to start my party an hour earlier. So, from 9.30 am, I started with washing the vegetables. There was 2 kg of green po chai which I was gonna use in the meal. Finish with washing the vegetables, then I continued with the mushrooms. I used 3 packs of golden mushroom which I got from Asia Market. Once vegetables are done, I started with the fishes. I cut fish balls, fish tofus, fish seaweed curd, and fish sandwiches. Each of them I cut into 4 pieces. This is simply to accommodate numbers of people to taste everything. After cutting everything done, eggs were my next destination. I stirred 16 eggs altogether. It was a lot of effort to stir 16 eggs in one small bowl. I stirred the eggs with imported pepper and soy sauce from Indonesia. So, basically the ingredients were done by that time. I looked into my checklist and, yes, a quarter of the job was finished but the time was already 10.15 am. It means I'm running out of time as i had not taken my shower at that time, so I rushed back to my kitchen and started with heating the frying pan. While I'm waiting for the frying oil to be hot, I cut my layer cakes into pieces, so in case I couldn't manage the time, I could at least serve them with some foods. By the time, I finished cutting the cakes the pan was not that hot yet, however I didn't have any choice. I decided to go on with the eggs first. So, I put the stirred eggs into the frying pan and the result was unacceptable, the eggs were not cooked. So I waited quite a while and stirred it slowly after few minutes. While waiting for the eggs to be cooked, I set the layer cake pieces on the plate and to appreciate their religion, I put tissues on the plate as a barrier. I don't know if they can still use my 'haram jadah' plate if I put tissues on it so it won't touch the plate but at least I had already tried to appreciate their duty and they should appreciate mine because I forgot they can't use it and it was just impossible to get new plates on that time. Hehe.

Back to the kitchen. I finished with my cakes, then I moved to drinks. I have boiled the water since last night, so I had 1.7 L of water and so I could make my passion fruit juice. Finish with it, I put it in the fridge and back to my eggs. Luckily, it was already cooked, so I put them on a plate (again, with tissues as barrier) then I continued with frying the fishes (tofus, balls, sandwiches, and seaweed curd). One pack of the fishes contains 10 pieces, and 1 piece I cut into 4 pieces. Therefore, I got 160 pieces to fry! It took me more than an hour and 5 times refilling the pan to finish them. Unfortunately, the fishes were not the only I have. I also used shrimp dumplings and it was 40 pieces of them. I almost cried actually but no regret to have my party. Another half an hour and 3 times refilling the pan. However, there was another unfortunate event! I forgot to cook the sauce for mantous. So, while I was frying the dumplings, I cut some onions and stirred another 3 eggs. When I finished with the dumplings, I continued straight away with the sauce. It was an easy job anyway because it took me 5 minutes to finish it. After I finished with frying pan, I started with the stock pot but I forgot to boil the water, so I boiled again and on the same time I put 30 chicken cubes into the pot. Another 1.7 L of water was ready, but it was not enough! I boiled another 1.7 L of water again! Again! It was not enough! So, I boiled again, and it was not enough! Luckily, the fourth time I boiled, it reached the amount of water I needed. So, I put my vermicille which had been dumped when I started frying stuffs and I put 2 kg of vegetables and 3 packs of golden mushrooms into the pot. Then, I used some grinder garlic to make the soup has better taste. I left it until it boiled before putting the fishes, dumplings, and eggs. Then, I came back into my checklist and two third of the job was already done but the biggest job of the morning was cleaning the living room and kitchen. I kept an eye on the watch and guess what? It was nearly 1 o'clock pm! So, while I was waiting for the soup, I cleaned the living room and kitchen and set them. Luckily, I could finish everything before anyone come, then I started my last duty which was steam the mantous but I got a problem. One pack of the mantous was spoiled by fungus. Then, I called Afni and luckily as my sixth sense said the night before that she would arrive at 3 pm, she was still in RCSI by 1 pm, so I asked her to buy another pack of mantous and I decided to take a shower. One more thing I forgot to do the night before was cleaning my bathroom and so I had to do it that afternoon also. So, I shaved, I washed my sink, my toilet bowl, my bathroom floor, and my bathtub, then I took a shower and I finished everything by 2.08 pm. Afni called me on that time and telling me that she was just about to take a bus, so I had still some time to take a rest. That was actually AMAZING. It is amazing not because I just did it alone but also because I was standing using only my left leg which is

Then, at around 3 pm, Afni, Ammar, Khalil and Eleena arrived at my house and then we talked and waited for the rest. Khalil and Ammar stole the start ahead from the rest. Khalil's reason was he needs to take medicine and Ammar's reason was to not making Khalil felt guilty. After that, at around 4 pm, Faris, Yusuf and Arif arrived and not long after was Muhaimin and Zainul with their bikes. Then the last party to arrive in my house was Syazana and Nurul. Then, we started eating and eating. After everyone had enlarged their stomach size from a wine glass up to a mug or even a bowl size, we started the routine as usual in someone's birthday. I'm really sorry that I didn't make much on my speech but I'm gonna pay it on my next blog.

It was a truly happy day for me. I do hope everyone enjoyed themselves there and I'm really sorry if any of the food tasted not good. Complaints are acceptable here. Just drop your comment here. However, it was an EXTRAORDINARY day for me and I knew it since the day started brightly and if you noticed the date was 3, the month was 5, and the year was 8. 3+5=8. 8 means prosperity in Chinese language and it was the day of prosperity because I cooked for 20 people and it could actually feed 30 people! Thank you so much for those who came on the day (in alphabetical order): Abdul Muhaimin Ali, Siti Nor Afni Baharum, Muhammad Zainul Arifin Dzubir, Arif Ezrin, Yusuf Hafizi, Ahmad Khalil Ibrahim, Ammar Muizzudin Manas, Eleena Azizul Rahman, Ahmad Faris Romli, Nurulashikin Rozaini, Syazana Aqilah Zulkifli. I had also packed some foods for those who could not make it for the day: Saniatul Wada Johani by Afni, Rosnal Ruslan by Faris, and Hasnul Hadi Yusuf by Ammar.

Auf Wiedersehen, Mein Freund und Meine Freundin.

With Love,
el dios