My English Blog is on The Track Again!

Yes, after months of long pause I eventually come up with a decision that I have to make my English blog roll again. I had to leave temporarily my English blog because I was so occupied that it was impossible for me to maintain two blogs simultaneously.

Now.... with new spirit.... with more determination..... and after examining some people who maintain multiple blogs.... it feels like my energy is restored doubly and I can feel that this English blog will flourish like the one I have in Bahasa Indonesia, Insha Allah!

Tahu Gejrot (an Indonesian dish)

This is Tahu Gejrot, one of my fave dishes. It is a simple dish, as simple as how it is prepared! You do not need to burn up your money to squander on the luxurious ingredients. Because the dearest ingredients in this dish are the beancurds! Yes, the main ingredients of this dish are beancurds. Ok so let's how do you prepare it and what are the ingredients?

(Beware!, This dish is extremely hot, but you can always reduce the hot ingredients thereof)

We will need:

16 cubes of beancurds, divided into 2 parts

4 bulbs of garlics

2 pieces of red peppers

4 pieces of Thai peppers

5 shallots

2 pieces of green peppers

3 tablespoon of soured/acidic water (air asam), a solution of water, tamarind and some other constituents

1 tablespoon of sweet soysauce (Kechap Manis)

1 tablespoon of palm sugar

half a teaspoon of salt

1 tablespoon of fried shallot

now how it is preared:

Grind all (the ingredients excluding the beancurds and the fried shallot) the garlics, shallots, red peppers, Thai peppers, green peppers, palm sugar and salt.

Add water, soured water, and sweet soysauce into the ground ingredients, and stir it until it's finely mixed.

Then boil the mixture and voila it is ready for use as the sauce or the topping of the beancurds.

Put the beancurds on a saucer (traditionally it is served on a stoneware saucer) then pour the sauce gently onto the beancurds and the last thing is to sprinkle the fried shallot onto the dish!

Your Tahu Gejrot is ready to serve 4 persons! :)

Square One TV

I suppose to post these video clips at my Indonesian blog, but have I difficulties in embedding it on a WordPress' blog, I post them here. These clips are about Square One TV, one of my fave shows on TV. Ok, let's get down to the core: The first one is "The Mathematics of Love", a very nice skit, after all these years I can still sing along and swing my body to the song, ok here it is:




Next is also a piece from a Square One TV's serial: It's an all-rap clip featuring the Fat Boys. So if you get a kick out of a rap song, this one might be the one for you:

Coloured

When I born, I am black
When I grow up, I am black
When I go in sun, I am black
When I scared, I am black
When I sick, I am black
and when I die, I am still black

and you White fella
When you born, you're pink
When you grow up, you're white
When you go in sun, you're red
When you cold, you're blue
When you scared, you're yellow
When you sick, you're green
and when you die, you're grey

and you calling me coloured??

--------
This poem was nominated for the best poem of 2005,
written by an African kid. What an amazing thought from a little kid!
Thanks for sis sebeningdoamalam who has communicated this poem to me.

Ozone layer and Ozone hole

Largest Ever Ozone Layer (Picture courtesy of NASA)

In recent decades, media tell about a 'hole' in the ozone layer have appeared with regularity. And each year the 'hole' is getting bigger and bigger until it reaches the biggest ever like the one displayed in the photo above. The true fact is maybe around 75% of the ozone over the South Pole (the picture above shows the ozone hole over the South Pole) disappears in the south polar spring when the hole develops but it returns to near normal levels in the autumn.

Now what is exactly ozone? Ozone (O₃) is toxic to all life forms at high concentrations, but it is an unavoidable fact that this Oh-Three gas is important in the atmosphere because it acts as a shield to protect the earth from relentless solar radiation. If more ozone layer was depleted, more solar radiation will batter the earth causing a dramatic increase in the incidence of various skin tumours and eye cataracts.

The most contributors of the ozone depletion is the excessive use of chemicals like chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs, this is familiar to many as the Freons used widely in (old) air-conditioners and (old) fridges. Why those CFCs are very popular in use? The asnwer is simple: because they are inexpensive and very stable, yet not toxic, flammable nor corrosive. CFCs are ideal for many applications. They are used in aerosol cans as propellants, as solvents, as refrigerants (like the ones used in old air-conditioners and old fridges), as fire extinguishers and even they are ideal for blowing bubbles into fomaed plastic insulation.

But alas, the stability of the CFCs itself that takes the toll! CFCs do persist in the environment or in the atmosphere, it makes the chemical to slowly find the way to the upper atmosphere where they go through a series of reactions that eventually result in ozone depletion. These series of reactions involve ultraviolet light from the sun which strikes a CFC moelcule. The carbon-chlorine bond is broken, producing a very reactive free radical Cl^.. The chlorine free radical then reacts with ozone to produce oxygen and ClO. The chemical reactions that take place is depicted below:

UV light
CFCl₃ ---------------> CFCl₂ + Cl^.

Cl^. + O₃ -----------> ClO^. + O₂

Recognition of the problem led governments in the world to take action before it's gone too late. And worldwide efforts to reduce the use of CFC began with an international agreement reached in 1987. A total ban of CFCs was reached in 1996 worldwide including in our country, Indonesia.

(Written by Yari NK, simplified from various sources)

A Taliban soldier and his commander (jocular posting)

A Taliban soldier with a rocket launcher and his commander were in full alert. They were ordered to shoot down any unidentified foreign planes. Minutes later, came an America's F-16 overhead. The Taliban commander ordered the soldier to shoot down the plane. In no time a rocket was launched from the launcher and hit the American plane asunder. After they shot down the American plane, minutes later came a Russia's Sukhoi in the sky. Again, the commander ordered the soldier to shoot down the plane. The soldier aimed the launcher at the plane and successfully shoot the Russian plane down. After a few minutes came France's Rafale fighter overhead, like in the previous cases, the commander ordered the soldier to bring it down. Again, the soldier did the task very well in shooting down the plane. After finishing off the French plane, soon after came Indonesia's CN-235 in the sky, but unlike in the previous cases, the commander now remained silent and did not give any orders to the soldier. The soldier was amazed and eventually he asked his commander:

"Sir, shall we shoot down that plane too?" asked the soldier
"Save the rocket for the next plane son!" replied the commander
"But why??" wondered the soldier
"Don't worry son! The plane will hit the ground sooner or later without having to be shot down!" replied the commander calmly.

Retold in English by Yari NK

Indonesia 1, Saudi Arabia 2 aaaargh!

INDONESIA 1 SAUDI ARABIA 2

This is not about political stuff, this is not about war whatsoever. It is just about soccer or football. It is in AFC Asian Cup 2007, the Saudis beat us in our own homeland! A goal from a header in injury time is really a cruel especially if you've been playing a draw for 90 minutes! The goal resulted from a free kick just outside a penalty box. The high ball landed on a Saudi player's (I forgot his name, instead heck who cares??) head whose will net it to make a score! What a disastrous result! Ok enough! I can't say anything more!