Made in Malaysia!

With the Merdeka (Independence) Day coming up this Sunday August 31, I'm going to display some patriotism here at MPG by voluntarily joining the Merdeka Meme by Manggis he he! I LOVE the beautiful illo by Manggis! It comes in either colored or sephia and since I already have the colored one over at Mariuca, I'll go for the sephia version here!

I've already tagged some of you at my other blog, so for this meme, I'll leave it open to all my Malaysian readers and friends here. Feel free to join this meme, you don't have to wait to be tagged! Show some LOVE for Malaysia shall we? :)

PS. What are your plans for this coming Merdeka holiday? Care to share with me?

*begin copy*

1. Add your site(s) to the list if you're a proud Malaysian Blogger!
2. Pass this tag to as many Malaysian Blogger as you know, or if you're interested but nobody tags you, just include yourself voluntarily. Show some patriotism!
3. Once you've done posting this tag, leave a comment HERE! and you will be visited by a Malaysian local fruit, Mangosteen by the name of Mango! and added to the Master List.
4. Update list regularly to ensure every Malaysian Blogger gets equal link benefit.

I am a proud Malaysian blogger

1. mangosteenskin - Saya anak Malaysia! 2. Life is too short to be ordinary - Malaysia Tanahair Ku! 3. Sha's Love & Passion - Aku Anak Merdeka 4. A room of crazy scrapper - Merdeka!Merdeka! Merdeka? 5. Fliffy - Aku Patriotik, Sayang Malaysia ! 6. Rizal 7. haniz - Merdeka Forever! 8. Prozak Nation 9. CarolPinky - Proud Malaysian! 10. Mariuca - I HEART Malaysia! 11. Emila’s Illustrated Blog - Saya Anak Malaysia juga 12. Simple Life - Sam - Saya Anak Malaysia 13. Shemah's My Sweet Escape - Live, Enjoy and Love.. MALAYSIA! 14. Mariuca's Perfume Gallery - Made in Malaysia! 15. Yani-Tennitodoku-Proud to be a Malaysian-MERDEKA! 16.Bluecrystaldude from My Little Black Pot - Saya Harap Malaysia Terus Maju! 17. Apples of the eyes 18. Snapshotcap - Freedom of choice is made for you my friend :) 19. Anaheus 20.Confessions Of A Breathing Tote Bag 21. A Great Pleasure - Malaysia is a food paradise ~ simply yummy~licious! 22. Mummy HnH - Harith and Hannah - MERDEKA 51st Celebration!!! 23. Shafie - I'm Here For U Malaysia 24. Nessa - Happy 51st Merdeka, Malaysia! 25. marvic 26. Deasya 27. Asian Mutt International 28. Point Blank - Sokonglah Pelancongan Domestik, Malaysia Cantik Indah Nian! 29. Oyis Baby Journey - Selamat Menyambut Hari Kemerdekaan ke-51, Malaysia! 30. the life of a psychotic weirdo 31. Me,HubbyNKids-Hidup Malaysia !! 32. In Person..Zahiela Online- M.E.R.D.E.K.A!!! 33. Mimi-MERDEKA!MERDEKA!MERDEKA 34. ealyie.vanity strikes. 35. .vanity strikes. i grew up as a Malaysian shopaholic! 36. sweet life of ladyell-Selamatkan keMERDEKAan Malaysia..AllahuAkbar! 37. .~ripples of rasp ~ - Here In My Home, Malaysia 38. IT's ME..Niniess Passion - Proud to Be Anak Malaysia! 39. Dila ~ini duniaku~ - My heart, my soul, my dreams and my life all belong to MALAYSIA...40. YusVogue - I am Anak Malaysia Blogger 41. atune 42. Apa-Apa Jemama adib 43. mama adib 44. Better you Better world- Bangganya menjadi anak Malaysia 45. This is My Life by Osindak 46. Turn-u-Off 47. T.H -Malaysia My Home 48. A glimpse of Moi - Happy Merdeka 49. Home Sweet Home 50. ....... LadyVerde - I am bless to be Malaysian!!!....... 51. Lina's Loft - Anak Merdeka 52. Pourpres - Cubaan Menjadi Patriotik 53. Diahlicious - Buatan Malaysia :) 54. My Very First Blog - Be Thankful You're Malaysian! 55. The Ranting Cynic - I am Malaysian, mah.! 56. Lianny 57. Taf Teh 58. aRa's Official Blog - I was born in Sarawak...I grew up in Labuan...Further Study in Sabah and now i'm in Semenanjung...I'm MALAYSIAN!!! 59. Life's Roller Coaster - Beautiful Malaysia! 60. Carrot Run! – Cherish our land~ 61. Speechless - Zsazsa Project 62. Shopping - Malaysia Selamat Merdeka 63. mrs. ezman 64. My Life Story, something to share.. MERDEKA!! 65. Tekkaus - More WE, less ME! 66. It's a Rat's Life - Malaysian to the core! 67. Hatiku di sini - Berbanggalah kita kerana kita adalah rakyat Malaysia. Semoga keamanan terus bersama kita!! 68. Eiza - Higher than mountain, Deeper than Sea - Selamat hari Merdeka ke 51!! 69. SueGinola- i LOVE u MALAYSIA...!!! 70. Liangmui 38 Zone 71. Echo from Physco 72. you're next!

Mug Cake Success!

My second attempt at making Mug Cake was a success, by my standards at least! Thanks to Sushi, for such an easy recipe, I can now make and enjoy yummy, moist and fluffy chocolate cake, anytime I want! The best part of this recipe is that I do not need an oven to bake the cake in as you only need to have a microwave oven! Awesome right?

The first time I made Mug Cake, it turned out a tad too dry and not as fluffy or moist as I'd like it to be. This time around, I made sure I followed the measurements carefully and added slightly more oil to my mixture. I also remembered to use the tip LadyJava gave me - place a cup of water inside the microwave oven while the mug cake is cooking. This adds a little moisture and avoids the dryness that comes with microwave cooking.

My Mug Cake turned out really well and YUMMY so I was pretty proud of myself LOL! It was moist on the inside and on the outside too, and when I tipped it over, there was even a little chocolate topping on top so I didn't even have to add chocolate sauce or anything on it! It was so yummy and B gave me 4.5 stars for my Mug Cake! :)

And like I mentioned earlier, the recipe works with a microwave oven, so for people like me who do not own an oven, this is your answer to having instant chocolate cake any time of the day or night! Don't forget to eat it while it's warm!

Mug Cake

-Ingredients:
* 1 small egg
* 4 tbsp milk
* 4 tbsp vegetable oil
* 2 level tbsp cocoa powder
* 4 level tbsp sugar
* 4 level tbsp flour
* 1/2 level tsp baking powder

1. First "sift" the egg through a sieve and into a 300ml mug. Beat well with a fork.
2. Add oil, milk, sugar and cocoa powder and beat more until blended.
3. Add flour, baking powder and beat gently until fully incorporated.
4. Microwave on full power for 3 minutes and you're done!

Making chocolate cake has never been easier with this simple recipe. Thanks again Sushi! Now I can indulge in sinfully rich, sweet chocolate dessert, any time I get a choc attack! :)

Sensuous Samsara

A perfume can either enhance your natural scent with its own unique fragrance OR go the complete opposite and turn you into Stinkor! Unfortunately for a college friend of mine (let's call her J), the latter was what happened to her! ;)

From what I observed back in college, J had naturally oily skin and complexion. Add to this, the B.O. problem she had, whatever perfume she wore just didn't come off right! There was one particular perfume, which she wore almost daily - Samsara it was called. I thought it had a very pretty name, but the way it smelled on her was simply nauseating! At the risk of sounding cruel or bitchy, I tell you no lies when I say that every time she walked past me, it took all my willpower to stop breathing, while keeping a straight face! :(

It was only years after college, when we had separated ways and I hardly see J anymore, that one fine day...while shopping in a mall, I chanced upon Samsara again. Until today I'm not sure what made me stop at the Guerlain counter to ask the saleslady for a spray on my wrist. I was expecting Samsara to smell as terrible on me as it did on J, but to my utter amazement, it was the exact opposite! Samsara smelled absolutely divine on me (if I do say so myself!) and it was love at first scent for Mariuca!

Introduced by Jean-Paul Guerlain back in 1989, Samsara was created at the request of his beloved muse, Decia de Powell*, whose two favourite scents were sandalwood and jasmine. Samsara is also a Sanskrit mantra, which means "the eternal search for unattainable perfection". Classified as a refined, oriental, woody fragrance, Samsara is an ultra-feminine and sensual scent that combines bergamot, rose, narcissus, amber, violet and ylang ylang with a touch of vanilla and tonka bean. Beautifully captured in an equally hot red bottle, Samsara has the beauty and the power to evoke a sense of sensuality and serenity from deep within, bringing you to a heightened sense of tantalizing bliss, bordering on your very own state of Nirvana!

Recommended for evening wear, Samsara is suitable for all star signs with the exception of Gemini, Libra and Aquarius*.

Samsara on display at Mariuca's Perfume Gallery

* All About Perfume, John Oakes

Meme Time!

All work and no play makes Mariuca a boring blogger! That's why I decided to take some time out from my busy schedule to have some fun with some of the many tags and memes I've been tagged with. I'm so sorry if I can't remember everybody kind enough to tag me but thanks so much for thinking of me. Right now, I am going to have some fun with a couple of the more recent memes I've been tagged with, so let's start with this very cute tag I received today from Nick and Mrs. Ezman.

MEME 1

According to the rules, I am to list down the household chores I hate and why I hate them. Then copy the image provided and tag as many people as you want. Add your blogs link to the domesticated divas linky love and leave a comment at Stripe and Yellow to be added to the master list. Seems pretty simple enough and of course, there are plenty of household chores to choose from but I'll limit myself to 3! ;)

DOMESTICATED DIVAS: Living the Healthy Life / Stripe&Yellow / Vanity Kit / Mind Bubbles / Something Purple / Em's Detour / Deviously Creative / Doll Me Up / Me,Myself+2 / Kidd Designs / FunFierceFabulous / Ozzy's Mom / Insights from the Grocery Cart / Living A' La Mode / God's Best Gift / MommyAllehs Up-Close And Personal / My Precious Niche / Just Me.. Eds / Eds Mommy Life / Aggie Shoots Aggie Scraps / All Kinds of Me Stuff / The Salad Caper / Winding Creek Circle / InkBabyStudios / Joys in Life / Me and Mine / Little Peanut / Creative in Me/ Pea in a Pod / Sugarmagnolias / Notable Bistro / Around the World / I am Mommy / All About The Memories / Enchanted Play / In Depth / A Housewife's Journal / Life Together Starts / As We Face Forever / My Happy Place /Iam Dzoi / Suburban Sass / To the Moon and Back / Raising Sandy / Walk on Red / All Things Me / Because Life Is Fun / Feels Like Home / Growing up with Bea / My life... my own piece of heaven / Around the World / Hobbies and Such / My life in this Wonderful World /My Online World / / My Virtual Closet / My Views On My So Called Life / The Real Deal The Real Me / Changing Lanes/ Pit Stop/ Around the World / The Fountain Of Happiness / The Joy Of Life Forever / Love Is / Phtographic Memories / My Colorful World / Strawberry Gurl / Quicker8 / Mommy's Little Corner / The Dawn That Shines / Journey to Prosperity / Homelife / Sheng's Simple Thoughts / Coriander Dreams / Gorgeous Traveller / A Traveller's Domain / Lemon Iced Tea / It's My Party / My Wonderful Life / Simple Life, Simply Me / Sassy Finds / All things Yummy / Shangrila Journey / My Charmed Life / Mommyhood and Me / Crissy's Zone / Crissy's Library / Vis Vires /Crissy's Haven / My Daily Thoughts / Abby's Way of Life / Princess Bela / Women Xplore / Our Journey to Life / My Planet Purple / And so I am / Arlene's Random Ramblings / Life's All About / Lourdes' Mia / Faery Dancing / Me, the islands and the world / Pinay heart wanderings and musings / Juls Random Thots / In The Spirit of Dance / Princess Vien / Quicker8 / Anything and Everything in Between / Designs By Vhiel / Vhiel's Corner / Can of Thoughts / A Mother's Stuff / housewifeatwork / Kuting’s Place / My Daily Thoughts / Pinay heart wanderings and musings / Watchamacallit! / Nellypie's Chatterbox/ Purpled Sky / Almanac Queen / Caramel Corn / Sunny Side Up Foodie / Mamakshop / Alamakoioi / JoZe's Crap / My Sweet Escape / Our Little Princess Gwen / Chen Xi and Mama's Blog / A Kiss Of An Angel / Modern Life Today / Anything Goes! / Her Name is N.O.Y. / Mariuca's Perfume Gallery/All About Kawaii / One Hundred and Eighty Degrees / Me, Myself and I / Mixed Cultures Mama's Blog / Apples of The Eyes/ Perfect Gift From Above / Her Name is N.O.Y. / / Irresistible Fascinations / The Treasure Chest / Complex Life / periphrastic-prolix / Chen Xi and Mama's Blog / A Muse Man / restnrileks / laketrees / Little Prince / Writing 50% in jest / Designated Hermitage / Mixed Cultures Mama’s Blog/ Cicak Berbunyi / YOUR BLOG HERE

~~~END COPY~~~

1. Ironing - This is my number 1 enemy when it comes to household chores. Who needs the additional stress and fatigue of standing up and ironing? It's a hot, sweaty job, which I avoid by sending most of our clothes to the laundromat for ironing. It's not that expensive and they always do a much better job than me anyway! ;)

2. Mopping - Yeah! I can also do without this because mopping takes its toll on my poor back, which hurts like hell after mopping my entire condo! :(

3. Washing the bathroom - There's absolutely no fun in scrubbing dirty floors, sinks and toilet bowls so nuff said! :(

He he, that was fun, thanks Nick and Mrs. Ezman! :)

Meme 2

This 6 Layers meme I received from Jean, thanks sweetie!

RULES:

1. Add your blog/s to the list. Feel free to add all your other blogs. It’s okay if you only post this questions in one blog as long as you answer them.
2. Get back to Me {YEN} and I’ll add your blogs to the master’s list HERE! Note that you are not ALLOWED to change the link of the here.
3. Copy from Start to End.
4. Tag as many friends online you know. But you don’t need to be tag in order to join. Copy these Participants.

Copy this Participants List: Me and Mine | Creative in Me | For the LOVE of Food | Little Peanut | Pea in a Pod | It’s Where the HEART Is | Around the World | SugarMagnolias | I Am Mommy | All About The Memories | Enchanted Play | Just My Scrap | Whats Up | Simply Me | Kitchen Deelite | A Mothers Horizon | In Depth | A Life in Bloom | Because Life is a Blessing | Digiscraptology | Joys iN life | Life is What we Make it | Photo Blog | Dancing in Midlife Tune | Mommy Talks | Aggie Shoots. Aggie Scraps | All Kinds of Me Stuff | The Salad Caper | Winding Creek Circle | InkBabyStudios | | All Things Me | Feels Like Home | Because Life Is Fun | Blessings and Beyond | Mommy Earns Money Online | Pinay Mommy Online| Clark & Butchay’s Blog | Butchay’s World | Simply Jen | Jenny Said So | My Online World | My Life in this Wonderful World | Biz-N-Honey | Aeirin’s Collections | My Precious Niche |Eds Mommy Life |Just Me.. Eds | My BIG Picture | Merger Guru | Quicker8 | Insights from the Grocery Cart | MindBubbles| LivingtheHealthyLife | VanityKit | Stripe&Yellow | SomethingPurple| Em’s Detour | Joys iN life | Life is What we Make it | Photo Blog | Dancing in Midlife Tune | Ozzy’s Mom | Me,Myself+2 | Kidd Designs | Fun.Fierce.Fabulous | Tints of My Heart | Morphed | when mom speaks | walk on red | kathycot | buhay misis | kathycot cooks | Posh Post Reviews | Flowersbythewayside |The Fab and The Furious | Blog In to Space | Dancing With Butterflies | Twisted Angel | Pieces of Me | Just Let Go | Blessed Chic | Hobbies and Such | My World in My Own Word | Colorful World of Shiela| The Shopaholic Nightingale | Day to Day Miracles | Can of Thoughts | Designs By Vhiel | Anything and Everything in Between | Vhiel’s Corner | Lovin’ Life | BigMoneyList | Crissy’s Library | Crissy’s Zone | Crissy’s Haven | Vis Vires | Amazingly Me | Jenn Was Here | Shutter Happenings | Le Kulitszie Familie | Embracing Myself | BLOGSILOG |Digiscrapz: Captured Memories |Cherry’s Comfort Zone |Thinking Out Loud |Buzzy Me |Wishing and Hoping |My Blog Portfolio |Get Paid to Blog! |PRC Board Exam Results | Teacher’s Corner | Pinay WAHM | Random Thoughts | Explore Manila | My Colorful World | Bermuda or L.A. | celebrating life | my life is peachy | belly, body and beyond |Woman Style | Scribbles of My Life | In This Game of Life | The Shopaholic in Me | The Callalily Space | Juliana’s Site | A Simple life | Mommy’s Little Corner | Life’s Sweets and Spices | Moms… Check Nyo | Simple Delights | Motherhood in a Nutshell | marshimallows | A Great Pleasure | Ramblings of The Phat | when mom speaks | walk on red | kathycot | buhay misis kathycot cooks | My Random Thoughts | My World | Mom Knows Everything | Tailgaternetwork | Zook Light | Melinda Zook | Me, Myself and I | Stranded Life | iHeartREVIEWS | Lady Banana | A Great Pleasure | Mariuca’s Perfume Gallery | BEING WOMAN | See N Read | The Real Deal, The Real Me | My Virtual Closet | My Views On My So Called Life | Her Name is NOY| No Place Like Home | Digital Life Scraps | Tickled Pink Digiscrap | Angelika | Angelika’s Other Blog | In The Life Of…Mne | Everything Has A Reason | In My Kitchen | Confessions Of A Breathing Tote Bag | My Basic Fashion Folder |restnrileks | STUDENTS BLOG | KWENTONG PINAS | KWENTO NI ENDAY | BlogHop | Otwarte | Wilstop | Let’s Travel Philippines | Caffeinated Muse | Faery Dancing | Confessions Of A Breathing Tote Bag | My Basic Fashion Folder | Diane | Anything Goes! | Shae- Shae Blog | It’s a woman’s world! | The Music of My Heart | A Handful of Surprises | My Paper Scraps | Digitally Diane | Somewhere Over the Rainbow | I am a Nikon Girl | Piece o’ Kaje | and so I am Women Xplore | My Sweet Bratinella | Our Journey to Life | My Planet Purple | Kaycee’s Bubble | Juls Random Thoughts | Icelog | This is a Miracle… | Women with Extraordinary | Women with Extraordinary Life | SuPerCaLifRaGiLisTiC ExpiALiDoCiOuS | Food for the Hungry Mind | Enterntain You | (Mis)Adventures of Rona | Rona’s Nook |YOUR BLOGS

LAYER ONE:
– Name: Marzie a.k.a. Mariuca
– Birth date: August 29
– Birthplace: Malaysia
– Current Location: Malaysia
– Eye Color:Dark Brown
– Hair Color: Black
– Righty or Lefty: Righty

LAYER TWO:
– Your heritage: Malaysian
– The shoes you wore today: Hmmm comfy house slippers
– Your weakness: Fickle
– Your fears: Losing my loved ones
– Your perfect pizza: Margharita
– Goal you’d like to achieve in life: Become a millionaire!

LAYER THREE:
– Your most overused phrase on AIM: -
– Your first waking thoughts: Coffee and work!
– Your best physical feature: Nada!
– Your most missed memory: Being a teenager

LAYER FOUR:
– Pepsi or Coke: Coke!
– McDonald’s or Burger King: Despite their terrible home delivery service, I gotta go with Mc D's!
– Single or group dates: Both
– Adidas or Nike: Adidas
– Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea: Nestea
– Chocolate or vanilla: Chocolate
– Cappuccino or coffee: Both

LAYER FIVE:
– A famous person, dead or alive, would you interview: William Shakespeare
– Movie can you watch and say the lines along with the actors: Probably Titanic since that's the only one I watched thrice!
– Name two of your passions in life : Writing & Travelling
– Least favorite time of day: Morning

LAYER SIX:
– Use hairspray or gel: Neither
– Your favorite meal: Rojak, Japanese food, Nasi Lemak, T.G.I.F. etc
– Color is the inside of your head when you close your eyes: White
– Listen to classical music: Sometimes
– Ever said LOL in real life without thinking about it: YES! ;)

::END::

MEME 3

And last but not least, this adorable and very simple meme came from AikoAiko, thanks so much!

Rules:

1. Copy the text from Start Copy Here
2. Post it in your blog. Make sure you copy it in compose mode (blogger) or visual mode for the others. This will enable you to copy all your friend's link as well. Have fun doing it.
3. In the next number, add your blog url and link it
4. Add the greetings that you use frequently or one that is in your traditional language.

Konichiwa Meme by AikoAiko

1. All About Kawaii says Konichiwa
2. Mariuca's Perfume Gallery says HOLA!
3. Yenzz's SeeNRead says Hi!
4. laketrees says G'day
5. A Great Pleasure says Aloha!
6. restnrileks says Apa Khabar?
7. Fida Abbot says Hello!
8. My Pooch Life says Oi!
9. Your blog says

And now, here comes my victims LOL! Feel free to do which meme takes your fancy!

Nessa, LJ, Roxy, Emila, Janice, Jean, Mrs. Ezman, Rozella, Kim, Ruby, Trinity, Fida, Tina, Adrian, Bobby, Sushi, Jamy, Angel, Metz, Jackie, Rizal, Erisha, Tammy, NAFASg, Farah, Yenzz, Bokjae, Debbie, Nick, Shemah, MT, Jesse, Uncle Sam & AikoAiko! :)

When It Rains...

It is a wet Thursday afternoon and when it rains, a sense of unspoken serenity washes over me; shielding me from the worldly pains and heartaches I know. Today is no exception. As I am listening to the soft pitter-patter of the rain outside, I am sipping a comforting hot mug of coffee, basking in the calmness that rarely comes.

A song is playing in my mind over and over and it is one that holds endless bittersweet memories. A love song if you will, that although in no way relates to my current state of a happily-married woman, is one that never fails to bring me back to a particular moment in time, when everything was almost perfect.

A song that lingers whenever everything seems to be falling apart and all I really want to do is crawl into my little corner and hide from the rest of the world. A song with heartfelt words so hauntingly beautiful, it leaves me in awe every time I hear it. A song that makes me believe that hope and true love prevails over any other, no matter how terrible the situation.

I'd like to share this song with you today, especially for my new friend Metz. I hope u will find this version by Malaysia's Sweetheart Number 1 singer Datuk Siti Nurhaliza, just as haunting as the original one by Dewa at my other blog. Siti sings two different Dewa songs here and though I love them both, I am currently feeling the first one. :)

Cinta Kan Membawamu Kembali (DEWA)

Tiba saat mengerti jerit suara hati
Letih meski mencoba melagukan rasa yang ada

Mohon tinggal sejenak, lupakanlah waktu
Temani air mataku, teteskan lara, merajut rasa
Menjalin mimpi, endapkan sepi-sepi….

Cinta ‘kan membawamu, kembali di sini
Menuai rindu, membasuh perih
Bawa serta dirimu, dirimu yang dulu
Mencintaiku, apa adanya

Saat kista mengalir, jujurkanlah hati
Tenangkan batin jiwamu, benamkan cinta seperti dulu
Saat bersama, tak ada keraguan…

Cinta ‘kan membawamu, kembali di sini
Menuai rindu, membasuh perih…