celebrated mass at st.mary this week. the singing was totally messy - new organist, guest priest, new mics, new song. even a whole bunch of terrific vocalists won't do much without a decent organist - except by singing a capella; not too mention a group that's obviously nowhere near terrific :) I could tell that it was quite frustrating for the congregation too.

then we had easter potluck at the parish residence. we brought potato salad. there were also garden salad, indian rojak, roasted lamb, roasted chicken, seasoned rice, biscuits, cheesecake jelly, fried bee hoon, fried bee hoon and fried bee hoon - 3 different types of bee hoon brought by different people.

stopped by at yew tee station on the way home. wow, how that place has changed in the past 2 years! when we stayed in the vicinity, there were only one foodcourt, one McDonald's, ntuc, and a few neighbourhood shops. now the whole area is called yew tee square with fresh looking shops and 2 McDonald's outlets. there is also a new shopping mall called yew tee point, a new condo and another food court just beside the mrt station. I almost couldn't recognize the old yew tee..

to celebrate friday, we went to xiao xuan feng to have dimsum for dinner. we had xiao long bao (again), crispy onion pancake, spring rolls, siewmai, and its signature durian puffs.

I ordered the fried durian puffs because it was the recommended dish based on various reviews. too bad that it didn't live up to its name. or maybe again it's the problem with my ever-so-high expectation. the skin was crispy and nicely done, although they didn't use enough breadcrumbs to cover the whole skin, but the durian paste filling was disappointing. it was orange in color, smelt like durian but didn't really taste like one. I polished off two puffs.. so sinful!

organized a potluck gathering today at our house for the same group of friends from last month's potluck. today's theme was japanese food. I made gyoza and prepared steamed japanese rice that went well with my friend's beef curry and chicken katsu. another friend brought chicken yakitori, and then there were also chicken teriyaki pizza and seafood wasabi pizza. for dessert we had longan jelly, tiramisu cake and champagne. dinner was soon followed by a movie and game sessions 'till midnight..

had lunch at xiao xuan feng, a chinese restaurant at hougang mall. ordered their signature dishes – la mian and xiao long bao. their dan dan mian and wanton la mian were so-so, quite nice but nothing to shout about. the xiao long bao was great. chunks of meaty ball wrapped in smooth, soft white skin. ate it the recommended way – bite the top to let the steam ooze out before savoring the whole bao.. yummy!

and there’s currently a promotion of 50% off total bill for 2 diners. not bad at all. might be back for their durian puff..

some random stuff from the past few days..

# celebrated holy thursday mass at SVDP church, followed by supper at xin wang hk cafe at kovan - spaghetti pork chop, baked pasta and shanghai fried rice. sinful indeed, especially eaten at 11 plus at night.

# tried a new recipe yesterday - banana cheesecake. it turned out quite nice, but a little bit burnt on the top, since I left it in the oven for too long :p

# spent today eating and playing wii at house of a friend's friend. he's currently taking cooking lessons full time, and loves to cook for his friends, I guess.. or you may say make use of his friends as guinea pigs, hahaha.. for lunch today the theme was pasta, and he prepared seafood linguine and meatball spaghetti. we just came knocking at his door bringing our rumbling stomach, haha... no, we're not that bad, we brought bottled drinks, wine and some snacks. but the perfect item on the menu was the dessert - lemon cheesecake served with strawberry slices and dark chocolate.. yum!

# am currently a fan of the settlers of catan boardgame..

finally bought the original taboo game - singapore version.. yay! I shall organize a gathering one day when the mood strikes :)

had a very fulfilling home-cooked dinner tonight: gado-gado, opor ayam, teh sosro, and fresh-from-the-oven autumn cheesecake. followed by uno stacko game, yes man the movie, and durian for supper.. yummy!

went to batam centre just for fun: grabbed some yummy food, bought a couple of shirts, watched a movie and did grocery shopping. if I didn’t think about how troublesome it’d be to hand carry them back home, I would’ve bought a lot more!

amazing photos around the world taken during earth hour 2009.

it's a shame that I didn't participate in the event this year, despite its increasing popularity. I spent the first 30 mins on train and walking home, and the last 30 mins in the cab from home to office to attend to emergency matters.