Cavalock and The Oriole Growing Pains

Been too long since we scored a couple seats at Tori-Tama. Best yakitori in town as far as we are concerned. Every part of the chicken is available if you know who to ask for. If there's another yakitori joint here that's just as good or better, let me know! With more joints opening up and folks heading back to work, I reckon the food scene will get 'livelier', especially Japanese restaurants. So many places the Baker-at-Home and I wanna go but all them waiting lists are at least a month or two.

So couple weeks back, me Dad took a buncha pix of an Oriole nest somewhere in Seletar. He was told that there were originally two nestlings and one fell out of the nest, although there was speculation that he or she could had been pushed out by the sibling. Hey, circle of life and that jazz eh?

Me Dad returned to the location about a week later and the little critter has certainly grown quite a bit. Still as ugly as ever.

Cavalock and The Black Plague Joyride

Well, its been a month since I started on the natto breakfast drill and I'm still on it. There are dozens of different packs that come with different ingredients or condiments like yuzu or mustard. Some I like more than others. I'm discovering new 'flavours' every time. So a normal breakfast now is some carbo or yogurt cereal, a serving of natto and some fruits like cherry tomatoes or bananas. Is it healthy? I dunno, I sure as hell hope so. And yes, the Baker-at-Home baked that little hot-crossed bun.

The first Kickstarter of the year arrived! Yes, There are more coming, last year's lockdown made me do crazy stuff! Don't judge me! Bristol 1350 is a delightful little game set in the town of Bristol in England back in 1350 during the dreaded Black Plague.

You and other players are villagers are racing to get out of town but you don't know if the person or player you are travelling with, has the plague or not. If you both escape and are healthy, you win but if you escape and discover that one of you is a carrier, you both lose. It's a simple and fast racing game with a tractor mechanic thrown in. And best of all, it can be played solo. It's not everyday you see a solo racing game. Yah, it is a pretty topical game and I think most folks will enjoy it. It even comes in a smart little box that's shaped like an old hardcover book. 

Cavalock and The Midweek Artichoke Accomplishment

Yes, we are late to the party and quite possibly the last couple of folks on the island to ever eat a whole artichoke but that's what we finally got to savour at Miznon couple days ago. If you like garlic like I do, you'll like scraping each and every artichoke leaf especially its centre heart. The Baker-at-Home absolutely loved it and finished most of it as I struggled with my massive but satisfying chicken liver pita. Yes, I had me some pastry before heading to Miznon so was a little full when I took me first pita bite. 

Spring cleaning earlier in the week found me some overseas treasures that I had all but forgotten. Check out these cute Snoopy iron-ons I picked up in Tokyo years ago. Hmmm, I don't know I'll ever use them now but they so cute. Gawd knows I'm a huge Snoopy fan since I was a kid.

And just this week, I spotted these on sale over at our local Tokyu Hands. I really had to pry myself away from this new Snoopy and gang display. 

Been way too long since I painted something. Gonna start with the huge Loonshire and it's as big as the giant I painted at the end of last year. When I played the Loonshire in the game, it lets me return my creatures even after they have been killed by my opponent. The challenging part of such a project is always deciding on the colours to use. After all, we are looking at a fantasy genre here, so there is no real rule on how to colour something. Just try to go for something you looks good and that you like. That's kinda the fun of painting for me. End of the day (or week, or month) you get something utterly unique. Definitely looking forward to it. 

Cavalock and That Other Underrated Top Gun Song

Been a couple years since I dropped by Red Eye Smokehouse even though it's only a short walk from our tiny little apartment. Don't ask me why, we just never did until now. The pulled pork was a good choice. It was just a wee bit too dry for my liking but not necessary a problem. Great buttery mashed potatoes that came with a generous tub of gravy. Good to see that they are still around and I really should drop by again soon.

This last couple of weeks have been like that Kenny Loggins song from Top Gun "Playing with the Boys". We got to ride in kinda like a speeding bombard boat for bout half hour, from Keppal Bay to around the Marina Coast, then Sentosa passing St. John's Island and back. Absolutely exhilarating, especially with music blasting from the rear of the boat. I believe we got up to bout 20 knots? The boat skipped and sped over the waves plus it was especially choppy that afternoon too. 

So how do you top that? By spending a memorable afternoon at the Star Wars Identities Exhibition over at the ArtScience Museum with the guys. Really cool display of movie props including storyboards and interactive stations. Its got everything for a Star Wars fan ...... except an X-Wing. Why isn't there an X-Wing model on display? After the Millennium Falcon, it's the most iconic ship in the movies. All the other ships were there, just not an X-Wing. Really?!?

Cavalock and The Eagle's Nest Renovation

Pleasantly surprised to find Flipper's Pancakes without a snaking queue one weekday afternoon at Takashimakya and naturally we made a beeline to the Japanese dessert joint. Wasn't planning on any desserts that day as we still had some Chinese New Year snacks at home to finish but we just couldn't resist an opportunity for some 'real' Japanese treats. 

We shared the seasonal Awayuki strawberry soufflé. Very sweet, the strawberries were fresh and tasty, the whole thing was extremely light. I think the Baker-at-Home and I finished it in less than three minutes. Would we go for it again? Unlikely as it was over $24 for that. Well, at least now we know. 

My 87-year-old Dad spotted this eagle's nest while on a bus a few weeks ago. So the day after that, he went back to the place to set up his camera gear and took these shots of a couple eagles building their nest. He said he'll return to the site a couple months later when or if any baby eagles are around.