Beautiful Day Without You

So my family and I had a hotpot dinner at home yesterday. Curious people who wonder why we're having a hotpot dinner so late when we can have it during chinese new year's eve, its because of our tradition. I'm of Hainanese descent. So for reunion dinner on CNY eve we normally cook our traditional dishes of stir fry veggies with leek(yuk), roasted pork, chicken, fried mullet and some other stuff that I can't remember. Other people of other dialect descent; the Teochews and Hokkiens if I'm right would have their hotpots and the Hakkas and Nyonyas have their own home cooked food as well. 

My family prepare our hotpot the traditional way. Its not the new aged fangled pot that runs on electricity and has an outer rim for frying your stuff. Instead our hotpot is the type that cooks our food with charcoal for fuel. In case you're thinking omg its gonna be smoky, well you're partially right... Its only smoky when we leave the charcoals to smoulder and burn to gather enough heat. Once it gathers enough heat however its relatively smoke free. But its enough to water my eyes still... 

So we had fish slices (I wanted salmon but mommy doesn't like salmon :<), chicken fillet, pork fillet, sotong balls, cuttlefish slices, veggies(yuk), chikuwa(FTW!), prawns and spinach noodles.

Me: (washing utensils) Imagine the chicken screaming later when we drop it in the boiling soup....

Sisters:(in unison with me in a high pitched voice) Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Me: *sniggers*

Father:(bathing) Oiii!

Me: (watching mother putting in more charcoal to the pot) Can you imagine the charcoal screaming now?

Sisters:( in unison with me again) Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Mother: *smacks me with metal tongs*

Me: Aiyah! (rubs head)

Sisters:( in unison): Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Mother: *glares at sisters*

Sisters: Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh-(shuts up)