If History Was Taught in Cookies (President's Day)

Anne of Flour Box Bakery invited 40 talented cookiers to help her commemorate President's Day in a collaborative cookie project. Each person would cookify a President of the United States in celebration of Presidents Day 2013.

Click on the links below and enjoy their creations!

1) George Washington by Sarah of Sweet Surrender Cookie Co.
2)  John Adams  by Nicole of Life’s a Batch

3)  Thomas Jefferson by Sarah of Songbird Sweets
4)  James Madison by  Georganne of LilaLoa
5)  James Monroe by Anne of Flour Box Bakery  
6)  John Quincy Adams by Liz of Arty McGoo

7. Andrew Jackson by Tiffany of TheRedCooky 
8) Martin Van Buren by Jill of Jill FCS – Funky Cookie Studio

9)  William Henry Harrison by Christina of Sweet C’s Bake Shop 
10)  John Tyler by Kim of The Cookie Puzzle
11) James Polk  by Debbie of D&T Designs
12) Zachery Taylor by Stephanie of Ellies Bites
13) Millard Fillmore by Melissa of Simply Sweets by Honeybee
14) Franklin Pierce by Kris of So Cute Cookies

15)  James Buchanan by Lene of Not Your Everyday Cookie
16) Abraham Lincoln by Debbie of Sweet Creations by Debbie

17) Andrew Johnson by Liz of CookiesToGo 
18) Ulysses S. Grant  by Rebekah of Love at First Bite
19) Rutherford B. Hayes  by Heather of Twins Plus One Goodies
20) James A. Garfield by Teresa of Sugar T's Cookies
21)  Chester Arthur by Alyse of B.E. Sweet Treats
22) Grover Cleveland  by Kimberly of Barefoot N Baking
23)  Benjamin Harrison by Laurie of Cookie Bliss

Laurie cookified several interesting facts about Benjamin Harrison

1. Six states Entered into the union while President Harrison was in office:
•Montana (1889)
•Washington (1889)
•South Dakota (1889)
•North Dakota (1889)
•Wyoming (1890)
•Idaho (1890) [Hey! That’s MY state! ]

2. Benjamin Harrison’s signature

3. President Harrison was a Republican

4. Harrison was the first president to use electricity in the White House. However he and his wife would not touch the light switches for fear of electrocution and often went to bed with the lights on as he required the staff to operate all light switches!

5. President Harrison was a “big talker”. He once gave 140 completely different speeches in 30 days!

24) Grover Cleveland  by Kimberly of Barefoot N Baking

25)  William McKinley by Susan of Sweet Williams Cookies
26)  Theodore Roosevelt by Heather of SugarNosh Treats
27) William Howard Taft by Sarah of Sarah’s Sweet Shoppe 
28)  Woodrow Wilson by Cheryl of The Sugared Apron
29)  Warren G. Harding  by Shannon of Artfully Delicious Cookies 
30) Calvin Coolidge by Stephanie of Ice My Biscuit
31)   Herbert Hover by Fumie of A+Kake sweets
32) Franklin D. Roosevelt by Christine of Chris’ Creative Confections

33)  Harry S Truman by Kim of Sugar Rush Custom Cookies
34)  Dwight Eisenhower  by Monica of Cookie Cowgirl
35)   John F. Kennedy by CeCe of The Tactical Bakery
36) Lyndon B. Johnson by Jennifer of One Kookie Cookie
37)  Richard Nixon by Jackie of iBakery
38)   Gerald Ford by Georgeanne of LilaLoa

39)  Jimmy Carter by Jennifer of One Kookie Cookie
40)  Ronald Reagan by Melissa of The Baked Equation
41) George Bush Sr. by Penny of Lucky Penny Cookies
42)  Bill Clinton by Laurie of Cookie Bliss

Cookified facts about President Bill Clinton!

1. Bill Clinton’s signature.

2. Wife, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.

3. President Clinton LOVES to play the saxophone.

4. His first band was a jazz trio in high school named Three Blind Mice.

5. President Clinton is a Democrat.

43)  George W. Bush by Sarah of Sarah’s Sweet Shoppe
44)  Barack Obama by Teresa of Sugar T's Cookies

Straits Quay

"Turn left, recalculating distance... turn right...", the unrelenting, annoying GPS lady directed us straight to a pond on the right. The classic scenario - we had been driving past the same petrol station 4 times in the last hour but we were still no closer to the quay. The boys were getting restless and my patience was wearing thin but despite our pleas, Hubby refused to stop and ask for directions. And it wasn't some unfamiliar territory we were in - we were in his hometown and we visit his folks regularly. If it wasn't for the need to fill our growling stomachs and an urgent toilet stop, I was sure he was going to drive aimlessly down the same stretch of road another 10 times, cursing and swearing at every vehicle in front of us that was going either too fast or too slow.
At the coffee shop where we stopped to dine, I asked the waiter for directions to the quay, to which Hubby grudgingly noted. Yep, we found the place right away and the waiter's instructions were spot-on but it was already dark when we arrived at our destination and the mall at the quay was near closing time. What's with men and asking for directions? Grrrrrr!!!

Straits Quay is located in Sri Tanjung on the Malaysian island of Penang. It is Penang's first sea-fronting marina.

The brand new marina has 40 pontoon berths with a breath-taking view of the Andaman Sea

Millionaires' Row
Mediterranean-style waterfront villas and luxury condominiums - The most sought-after residential addresses on the Penang island.

The main foyer of the Straits Quay Mall

Interestingly, a new study finds that the average male driver drives 276 miles lost every year! That's a big carbon footprint for time badly spent!

Lego Riddles

Celebrating its 55th anniversary, LEGO challenges you with 55 riddles in the form of minimalistic posters that put your pop-culture knowledge to the test.

Mouse over each image for the answer.

More @ http://gizmodo.com/5980384/these-55-lego-riddles-will-push-your-brain-to-the-limit

How many did you guess right?

Chinese New Year Break

This blog is taking a break as we will be back to our hometown to spend the new year with our folks.

Oreo, our pet guinea pig

Happy Chinese New Year to all my bloggy buddies! And may this year of the snake bring you great health and an abundance of joy and prosperity.

The Old Lady And Her Cat

You've probably seen these heartwarming pics as they have gone viral for some time now. They are from a collection of photographs by Miyoko Ihara chronicling the ordinary daily life of her elderly grandmother and her beloved odd-eyed cat Fukumaru.

An inseparable duo

Miyoko Ihara began snapping pictures of the extraordinary relationship between her now 89-year-old grandmother, Misa, and her feline companion fourteen years ago.

These charming pics have now been published in a book and the pair  has struck a chord with people all over Japan.

Misa found the cat abandoned in a shed

Source - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2232894/Misa-Fukumaru-Friendship-pensioner-cat.html#axzz2K6uYbV5y

The Colour Red

I've always thought that the Chinese wore red clothes on Chinese New Year merely for good luck but I didn't know that there was a legend behind this practice until my Malay friend told me the story! Shame on me!!! Tsk! Tsk!

Long ago, in ancient China, Nian, a man eating beast, would visit villages on the first day of the Chinese lunar year to devour livestock, crops and especially children. During one of the attacks, the Nian freaked out at the sight of a child wearing red and slinked away. For some reason, the beast was scared of the colour red.

From then on, the villages would hang red banners and lanterns, wear red clothes and set off red firecrackers every year in anticipation of the Nian's annual visit but the beast was never seen again. After many years, the Nian was eventually captured by an ancient Taoist monk, Hongjun Laozu and turned into his mount.

This explains why the Chinese New Year is referred as Guo Nian in Chinese which translates as the passing of Nian.

Every year, red lanterns are strung around our condo during the Chinese New Year for a festive vibe.

Calf Trying To Wake Its Dead Mom

I wept for both the mother and baby elephant when I saw this heart wrenching image in our local newspaper yesterday. Notice the tears in the baby's eyes. Click on image.

It is suspected that the mother elephant along with several others have been poisoned. I hope that whoever did this will be brought to justice. May they rot in hell.

source - http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2013/1/30/nation/12642008&sec=nation

Chinatown

These pics were taken at Petaling Street aka Malaysia's Chinatown. With the Chinese Lunar Year just several weeks away, the place comes alive with shoppers haggling for Chinese New Year goodies at the myriad stalls and shops that line the street.

Shops selling Chinese New Year decorations

The pineapple is a popular traditional feng shui symbol of wealth

Chinese New Year Cookies

Asian-style Pork Jerky - a popular Chinese New Year gift

Waxed Duck - A Chinese New Year Staple. Not for me though!

Pussy Willows -  A favourite flower for the Chinese New Year. The fluffy white blossoms of the pussy willow resemble silk, and they soon give forth young shoots the color of green jade. The Chinese enjoy such signs of growth, which represent the coming of prosperity