banana trees

I grew up with lots of banana trees and bananas. The water engineer likes bananas for breakfast.

In Auckland, I see them but they don't fruit. The weather is too cold for them.

These trees were at my allotment in Singapore. You can use all parts of the tree;

Flower in a Thai salad, or Thai soup.

Fruit as in fruit, or salad, or baked in muffins or cakes.

Trunk in a Burmese soup.

Leaves for wrapping cakes, serving to Indian Gods, in place of plates to eat from.

My friends come and get my banana parts because I don't use them. These banana are baby bananas and are slightly bigger than one's finger. Bits of the peel sticks to the banana fruit. It's not very palatable. My friends say they are very sweet and fragrant.

It is easy to grown banana trees. Once you have one established, you don't need to grow again. You chop off the mature tree, little saplings will grow from the stump. You also don't need to fertilise them.

blue pea flower:clitoria "Ternatea", uses.

 :clitoria "Ternatea",

This is from an article which probably is a sales brochure.  


Item(s):Selling Sun Dried Blue Pea Flower/Bunga Telang-RM4 per 10g
1.Health Benefits of blue pea flower tea:
* Strengthens the hair for healthy hair growth/ prevent hair loss & grey hair
* possess anti cancer properties.
* Slows aging process
* Provides powerful antioxidants
* Keeps skin glowing & healthy
* Treats urinary problems
* Improves eyesight & night vision
* Treats eye infections
* Stimulates blood circulation
* Detoxifies body
* Enhances immune system
* Prevents skin bruising

Brewing blue pea flower tea:
Put 2-3 organic dried butterfly pea flowers to one cup of tea, add boiling water, steep for 5-10 minutes depending on desired flavor and color
For stronger taste, you may add 6 dried flowers to one cup of tea, steep for 15-20 minutes.
You can add wild honey for sweeter taste or fresh squeezed lemon juice to turn the color from blue to purple.
You may chill some butterfly pea flower tea and add some ice cubes for delicious blue ice tea.

2. Natural Food Dye:
Butterfly pea flowers are cooked and squeezed to make blue color natural food dye for desserts, traditional kuih and cookings.
It is widely used in Malaysian cooking such as in Nyonya Kuih, Nasi

clitoria "Ternatea", butterfly pea flower

In Southeast Asia the flowers are used to colour food. In Malay cooking, an aqueous extract is used to colour glutinous rice for kuih ketan (also known as pulut tai tai in Peranakan/Nyonya cooking) and in nonya chang. In Thailand, a syrupy blue drink is made called nam dok anchan (น้ำดอกอัญชัน). In Burma the flowers are used as food, often they are dipped in batter and fried.

The flowers of this vine have the shape of human female pudenda, hence the Latin name of the genus "Clitoria", from "clitoris". (Synonyms: Clitoris principissae.)[3] "Ternatea", the name of the species, comes from Ternate, a location in Indonesia.[citation needed] In some languages (Tamil, Malayalam) it is named after the seashell, which is a euphemism for a woman's external sexual organs.[citation needed]

Owing to its similarity to a human body part, this plant has been ascribed properties affecting the same (a phenomenon also found in connection with the mandrake, among other plants). It was used traditionally to cure sexual ailments, like infertility and gonorrhea, to control menstrual discharge, and also as an aphrodisiac.

These days, people claim that it is good for many things . This is not ingested and I am tempted to try. They reckons that it improves the hair and prevent hair loss or greying of hair.

sweet potatto/kumara

During the World War II, there was an embargo on ships crossing the South China Sea. There was no rice import, an staple of the people. People planted root vegetables like sweet potato/kumara, tapioca and pumpkin as staple.

Dad said when you eat this day in and day out, withour any oil or salt, you soon get very tired of it.

The world has turned around. I like sweet potatoes , and sometimes I steam them on top of the rice.

Rubber tree

some 70,000 seeds being smuggled to Kew in 1875, by Henry Wickham, at the service of the British Empire, from Brazil and stole some rubber seeds aka Hevea brasiliensi.

From those stolen seeds, they grew to supply the rubber gardens in Malaysia and Borneo.
The original rubber trees were very good, but took too long to reach a productive age. Then the good old scientist developed a smaller tree but produced more and called it high yielding tree.

My plant is a miniature tree. It's a tribute to both sets of my ancestry. It was rubber that brought them to Borneo.In 1907, my Great Grand father was scouted to lead a developing company to grow this important cash crop.

During the World War Two, trading ceased. People stitched up rubber sheets and wore them. The more enterprising ones even made shoes.

Flowers:Amaryllis/bella donna/ naked lady

Every time I see this flower, I think of the late Elaine Turner. When I first arrived back to New Zealand and started to teach ESOL at Mt Albert Baptist church, she was my helper. One year, I went to visit her and she told me why this lily is called naked lady, and she gave me a bunch, She showed me a section of her garden where this Amaryllis lily grew.

I cut my bella donna/naked lady lilies to show my grown up students . One student remarked, you do a lot of preparation to come to teach us. My dad used to say ," one picture is than 1000 words." My students were pleasantly surprised I gave each a stalk.



I am very proud of Kate Sheppard. Her image appears on our ten dollar note. She is mainly responsible for New Zealand to be the first country to give women the vote in modern times.

Katherine Wilson Sheppard (10 March 1847 – 13 July 1934) was the most prominent member of New Zealand's women's suffrage movement, and is the country's most famous suffragette. Because New Zealand was the first country to introduce universal suffrage, Sheppard's work had a considerable impact on women's suffrage movements in other countries. During one of the protest movement, she led a whole group of ladies to lie down on the road and the police couldn't do anything. Elaine Turner,  told the ESOL class about this.

Sheppard played a considerable part in getting the women's suffrage bill was successfully passed, granting women full voting rights. Sheppard herself was widely acknowledged as the leader of the women's suffrage movement.

Elaine  Turner,  told the ESOL class that when she was growing up, the girls wanted to be like Kate.

It was a coincidence that I saw Elsie's daughter-in-law. I told her what Elaine told me. And Sharon from UK knew this family story.

Sheppard is considered to be an important figure in New Zealand's history. A memorial to her exists in Christchurch.

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.co.nz/

some people's breakfast come in a box.

Mum: Breakfast
Kid 1: I want my muesli warm
Kid 2: I want a smoothie
Kid 3: I want it Bircher Muesli.
Dad:   I want it traditionally with milk

Some go out and eat a big breakfast.

 

New Survey Reveals Kiwis Fast Food Breakfast Habits  By Fleur Revell 16 March 2016 Kiwis are either skipping breakfast or choosing poor options including reheated fish & chips, cold pizza and beer according to new research. The Sanitarium Better Brekkie study investigated the attitudes and habits of Kiwis and found that when it came to breakfast, despite 93% of us saying it’s an important meal many either skip it or choose something unhealthy. The study revealed that a tenth (10%) of us start our day with breakfast from a fast food outlet at least once a week or more often. This figure was highest among young adults (18-24) with almost a quarter (23%) of them admitting to regularly chowing down on fast food for breakfast. Along with choosing unhealthy options, many Kiwis said they often don’t bother to eat breakfast with eight percent of those surveyed saying they skipped the meal every day. A further fifth of all Kiwis (19%) said they miss breakfast at least twice a week. Young millennials were the most likely to go without a healthy breakfast with almost half (46%) of those aged 18-24 saying they usually forego the meal most days of the week. The survey also found that of those who skip breakfast every morning of the week, seven out of ten (71%) often opt for just a hot beverage for breakfast. More than a sixth (17%) of Kiwi adults said that they choose tea, hot chocolate or coffee in lieu of breakfast. This number is higher for those in the Generation X age group with more than a fifth (21%) choosing hot drinks. Those surveyed said some of their most guilty breakfast choices were cold pizza (24%), chocolate (13%) pie or biscuits at (12%).  Other options included; ice cream, reheated fish and chips, pavlova, leftover party food from the night before, and beer and cold chips. Only a quarter (24%) of us said that we only ever eat healthy breakfasts. The survey not only revealed what we’re eating for breakfast but how we are eating it. It found the age-old tradition of sitting down to eat breakfast with our family appears to have been significantly eroded over time. Only an eighth (13%) of those surveyed have breakfast every morning of the week with family, and more than a third (36%) of those adults aged under 25 said they never have breakfast with family. Parents of preschool-aged children were more likely to spend time around the kitchen table with their children,  just over a third saying they sat down with their family for breakfast 2-6 mornings a week; and three in ten (29%) of those with school-aged children sit down with their family for breakfast 2-6 mornings a week. The study also revealed that Kiwis are creatures of habit when it comes to the choice of breakfast with more than two thirds (67%) of us eating the same breakfast for at least half of the week. Of those who eat the same breakfast every morning of the week, 85% describe their breakfast meal choices as just “OK”. A fifth (20%) of us would describe our regular breakfast choices as boring with young adults the most dissatisfied with their options at 40%. Sanitarium nutritionist Susan Buxton says it’s disappointing to see how many of us are still not eating a nutritious breakfast. “Most fast food breakfasts are not ideal as they are generally energy dense and nutrient poor meaning that they are high kilojoules and usually also high in fat and sugar and low in fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals,” says Buxton. She says while many fast food outlets are trying to provide better options, those going to eat at these outlets may not choose the healthier choice. The research was commissioned in conjunction with the Weet-Bix Better Brekkie Programme a partnership between the popular breakfast brand and celebrity chef Michael Van De Elzen. Van de Elzen has created a selection of recipes which are designed to inspire Kiwis and their families to make better choices at breakfast time.  See all recipes at www.betterbrekkie.co.nz

Download Media Files Download media relating to this story using the links below: Images Video For more information contact: Mark Devlin mark@impactpr.co.nz +64 21 509 060 Fleur Revell fleur@impactpr.co.nz +64 21 509 600

Written on behalf of Sanitarium by Impact PR

 

Yellow Polar fleece blankets.

Polar fleece blankets cause babies to overheat: Midwives

By Melissa Nightingale

2:05 PM Friday Mar 11, 2016 2 comments

Angela Adam (left) holds a stitched blanket made out of plastic supermarket bags. Lucy Pettit holds a polar fleece blanket. They say wrapping your baby in either has the same effect: Overheating. Photo / Stuart Munro

Whanganui midwives are working to educate people about the dangers of wrapping babies in polar fleece blankets.
"We know polar fleece blankets are made from the likes of recycled bags and bottles," midwife Angela Adam said.
Mrs Adam, who is Whanganui's maternity community quality co-ordinator, said polar fleece blankets were made from plastic-based fibre which meant the materials did not breathe.

Mrs Adam said babies who were wrapped in polar fleece had no circulation of air around their bodies.
While there was no confirmation that polar fleece blankets contributed to sudden unexpected death in infancy, "it's actually the overheating that can contribute to SUDI or cot death, but polar fleece blankets contribute to overheating."
She said babies looked like "little beetroots" when they had been wrapped up in polar fleece.
At Children's Day on Sunday, the midwives set up a stall to educate Whanganui people about the blankets. Mrs Adam had a blanket stitched out of plastic supermarket bags which she used to demonstrate what polar fleeces were like.
She said a polar fleece blanket could be bunched up with some water poured inside, and they would not leak, because of the non-breathable material.
Mrs Pettit said she would be surprised if there wasn't a polar fleece blanket in every household that had a baby. Raising awareness about their dangers was all part of encouraging safe sleeping, she said.

- Wanganui Chronicle

By Melissa Nightingale

The midwives spoke of knitted wool blankets. Here's me, knitting yellow woolen baby blankets for the hospital.

http://mondaymellowyellows.blogspot.com.au/

Floral : Fatsia japonica

 Fatsia japonica (fatsi or Japanese aralia; 

 The name "fatsi" is an approximation of the old Japanese word for 'eight' (hachi in modern Japanese), referring to the eight lobes. In Japan it is known as yatsude, meaning "eight fingers"

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.co.nz/

Florals: pomegranate

I took these pix along St Lukes Road.Just enjoy.

 drawf pomegranate plant. They are usually grown in the pots, in Malaysia. 

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.co.nz/

Our world/Red: Life in Myanmar

Nang Kham Set This pic was taken at the occasion when my little nephew entering into novice and at the same time ear piercing ceremony of my daughter and nieces was performed

Sai Kaung Set Yan Paing is Nang Kham Set's son  .Sai is our Shan family name that means Mr. This is Kaung Set Yan Paing and her  nephews entering Monkhood ceremony and daughter and nieces ear piercing ceremony.

I have been very privileged to have lived in many countries and made wonderful friends from all over the world. In Singapore, I have amazing friends from Myanmar, Daniel Lwin and Grace Lwin. 

With Facebook, I made a wonderful friend who made me feel proud when she called me sister.
Nang Kham Set, Lecturer & Head at University of Medicine,Taunggyi. I asked her to educate me the Myanmar culture.

From today on Myanmar will be well known among people as a respected and confident leader is nominated as president today. U Htin Kyaw, old friend and trusted person of Daw Aung San Su Kyi, our national leader.

When Dad studied in Singapore after the World War II, he made some very good friends from Myanmar.

http://rubytuesdaytoo.blogspot.co.nz/

http://ourworldtuesdaymeme.blogspot.co.nz/

ABC Wed: Letter I for International Women’s Day

Today is the 105th anniversary of International Women’s Day, 1911-2016 , 8 March 2016.
Make a Pledge For Parity

Women's Day events honour and celebrate the achievements of women all around the world, ranging from small random informal gatherings to large highly organised events.






The Mt Roskill War Memorial Park was a sea of beautiful people in their beautiful clothes.


I am very proud of Kate Sheppard. Her image appears on our ten dollar note. She is mainly responsible for New Zealand to be the first country to give women the vote in modern times.

Katherine Wilson Sheppard (10 March 1847 – 13 July 1934) was the most prominent member of New Zealand's women's suffrage movement, and is the country's most famous suffragette. Because New Zealand was the first country to introduce universal suffrage, Sheppard's work had a considerable impact on women's suffrage movements in other countries. During one of the protest movement, she led a whole group of ladies to lie down on the road and the police couldn't do anything.

Sheppard played a considerable part in getting the women's suffrage bill was successfully passed, granting women full voting rights. Sheppard herself was widely acknowledged as the leader of the women's suffrage movement.

An elderly friend in her 80s told me that when she was growing up, the girls wanted to be like Kate.

Sheppard is considered to be an important figure in New Zealand's history. A memorial to her exists in Christchurch.




In 1975, I was a young impressionable 20 year old when I went to Canada and heard Helen Reddy sing. This song was chosen by United Nations as the anthem for the International year of women. Together with my girls friends in the Laurier Hall, the hostel for women only in Windsor University, we sang this song with gusto. That year, I became aware of women's rights and women's lib. I became a champion for this cause. Some of the boys accused us to be lesbians.

I am woman, hear me roar
In numbers too big to ignore
And I know too much to go back an' pretend
'cause I've heard it all before
And I've been down there on the floor
No one's ever gonna keep me down again

CHORUS
Oh yes I am wise
But it's wisdom born of pain
Yes, I've paid the price
But look how much I gained
If I have to, I can do anything
I am strong (strong)
I am invincible (invincible)
I am woman

You can bend but never break me
'cause it only serves to make me
More determined to achieve my final goal
And I come back even stronger
Not a novice any longer
'cause you've deepened the conviction in my soul

CHORUS

I am woman watch me grow
See me standing toe to toe
As I spread my lovin' arms across the land
But I'm still an embryo
With a long long way to go
Until I make my brother understand

Oh yes I am wise
But it's wisdom born of pain
Yes, I've paid the price
But look how much I gained
If I have to I can face anything
I am strong (strong)
I am invincible (invincible)
I am woman
Oh, I am woman
I am invincible
I am strong

I am woman
I am invincible
I am strong
I am woman

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUBnxqEVKlk


Today, I am no longer the young naive girl. I write books, and some of them are about women and oppression.

Women face many kinds of oppression through the centuries. The author takes you to a journey of modern day oppression.

This story traces the life of Nadine, a girl born to Indian parents. It embodies the issues of a Kiwi girl, Nadine, growing up in conflicting cultures and getting lost in her environment.

Nadine grows up to overcome her problems to help women who suffered from physical and mental violence, domestic violence, rape, pornography, swinging, incest, bullying, sex with minors, sex slavery and human trafficking.

Traces the lives of 2 girls. The poor girl is sold to the rich girl as a slave aka mui zai to serve her for ever. Different Chinese Tradition are explained, and tragedy brings them to the South Seas. The Japanese invasion, the slave protects her mistress and is sent to a brothel as a comfort women.

http://abcwednesday-mrsnesbitt.blogspot.co.nz/  

Yellow/red: A tiny ferris wheel

 

so tiny, no wonder few kids want to ride on it.


http://rubytuesdaytoo.blogspot.co.nz/




http://mondaymellowyellows.blogspot.com.au/

Friday flowers: Lantana and memories.

The name is Lantana. originally from Mexico. In Malaysia and Singapore, the common name is Bunga Tahi Ayam or in Cantonese, KAI SEE FA, both meaning Chicken Shit Flower.

I remember this with fond memories of my flatmate of two years, G. from Penang.

One summer, her parents and sister came to visit her. The sister went to pluck this pretty flower outside the garden to put as a centre piece on the dining table. We were have a big feast cooked by Grace's mum.

Then she said," CHOW! CHOW!" meaning smelly. She had to take a shower because she felt smelly all over. Even then, she still felt smelly.

As for the bunch of flowers, needless to say, it was thrown as far as we possibly could.

And the food, we waited for the bad smell to dissipate before we ate them.

When I was living on the campus of Nanyang University, I was the secretary of the gardening club and had a online gardening journal. I wrote about why people would want to plant this KAI SEE FA. There was a bush in NTU.

In Australia, Lantana is a obnoxious weed, and there is a lot of studies devoted to this plant. 

Billy Ung

Blackbird having Lantana camara berry for breakfast. These berries are toxic to humans and animals but not to birds. They turn deep blue or black when ripe. Green Lantana camara berries are known to have killed children and sickened adults.

The edibility of Lantana berries is contested. Some experts claim Lantana berries are edible when ripe^[7][8][9] though like many fruit are mildly poisonous if eaten while still green. Other experts claim that experimental research indicates that both unripe and ripe Lantana berries are potentially lethal, despite claims by others that ripe berries are not poisonous.<sup>[10]

Now I really wonder why people plant lantanas.</sup>
http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.co.nz/

friday flowers.

http://floralfridayfoto.blogspot.com/

Rare disease Day

Rain in the afternoon,
Rain in the evening,
Rain in the night.

Feeling poignant,
I look at the rain,
and feel that they are tears inside me.

Today is rare disease day.
My Son Andrew had Campomelic displasia.  

My thoughts for our angels who had rare disease.



http://www.rarediseaseday.org/article/what-is-rare-disease-day 

The main objective of Rare Disease Day is to raise awareness amongst the general public and decision-makers about rare diseases and their impact on patients' lives.
The campaign targets primarily the general public and also seeks to raise awareness amongst policy makers, public authorities, industry representatives, researchers, health professionals and anyone who has a genuine interest in rare diseases.