recovery from the infernal virus. *cough*

been coughing my lungs out for the past few days... it aint fun having fever, sore throat, cough and flu all at the same time, i tell ya. near had me bedridden, and the aircon didnt do me no good at all... the first day, thank goodness the jester was around... i'd probably have not recovered as quickly, were it not for him... the second day was spent mostly in bed too, nursing the horrid temperature. (i'm sorry we had to miss red cliff... (><) ... its times like these that i miss mum awfully... the other two'd gone home, so i had to eat in... since i didnt feel like eating noodles, i made myself instant porridge... and was promptly reminded of mum's beautifully cooked porridges from home... sigh... when was the last time i actually had a proper bowl of real, home cooked soup?

in any case, saturday night, i joined my aunt's family for dinner. it was pretty fun to be among kin again, with the usual healthy dose of good natured bickering and friendly pot shots we were shooting at each other. especially with the little girl on the threshold of teenagehood... to hear her stories is to reminisce our own, and i noticed everyone smiling knowingly when she professed extreme disgust for a certain goony classmate. ahh, the times.

speaking of food... this year, i got to partake of the yee sang tradition thrice... first time in Chyna with dad and his friend, second time during our gang lunch get-together (was it on friday? yes, it was), and the third time with my aunt's family. there was supposed to be a fourth round in one of our homes, but it went forgotten, since we were too full to bother. just in case anyone doesnt know what yee sang is, its a lucky dish for CNY, with a an assortment of pickled and dry condiments that the whole table mixes up together, for good luck. you'll find sesame seeds, pomelo pips, pickled ginger, colourful crispy coloured strands (red and green), jellyfish strands, cracker bits, and raw salmon slices seasoned in lemon juice. add sesame oil and plum sauce; voila, ready to lou (mix)!

i noticed one other thing... gambling seems to be a favourite past time for CNY here... as far as i know, my circles back home dont indulge in such a fashion... we favour conversation and small talk more... but here, my gang got into their games at one of our homes right after our luncheon, and i believe someone did walk away a few ringgit richer at the end of the session. lol.

our sunday home-hopping was punctuated with a few sessions too; the first two homes were untouched, merely good clean bluff and heart attack. the real action started in a certain someone's den of iniquity, where alchohol showed up, and money started creeping out of wallets... hahahaha... we ended the day at the jester's, with four of the gang playing rounds of texas poker.

i must confess i dont understand card games, apart from simple ones for the express purpose of merriment. it probably has to do with my nature of not liking to take risks; many games require a cool head and sharp intuition, as well as the daring to take calculated risks. none of these attributes have i. it's a good thing i find neither amusement nor solace in gambling then, or i'd be as poor as could be, indeed.