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A night in Kampar

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On the eve of Malaysia Day, the night felt unusually warm and gentle. Our conversation began with a simple subject — the newly relocated China Supermarket in Kampar, Happy Family. Yet, as conversations between old friends often do, it soon wandered far beyond the shelves and aisles of a supermarket. We found ourselves talking about China and Malaysia, about the quiet and complicated threads that have connected the two countries for generations — and about the many ways people, cultures, languages, and memories cross borders without ever asking for permission. You tried, somewhat hesitantly, to speak in a mother tongue that had grown unfamiliar with time. A word caught, a tone slipped — small stumbles, but I noticed each one. I listened, still the same fool who could never quite hide a silly smile. Perhaps that was what made the evening so beautiful. Outside, the haze hung heavily in the night air. The sky was dull, the atmosphere slightly oppressive, and even breathing seemed to carry ...
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Snow Kiss Mochi /Mike Lim

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It was a sweltering afternoon when I happened to catch a glimpse of a Strawberry Daifuku on the menu.  Intrigued by its delicate appearance, I stepped into this charming Japanese dessert shop nearby, not quite knowing that I was about to discover one of the most refreshing little treats of the day. After scanning the menu, the Snow Kiss Mochi immediately caught my eye. I simply could not resist ordering it. Inspired by the classic Japanese Strawberry Daifuku, Snow Kiss Mochi takes the familiar idea and gives it a wonderfully contemporary twist. The outer layer is a classic white mochi skin, soft, tender and pleasantly chewy, with that satisfying stretchiness characteristic of Japanese glutinous rice dough.  A delicate dusting of starch keeps it from sticking to the fingers while adding to its understated, traditional character. But the real surprise is what lies within: a cool, tangy Yuzu Sorbet wrapped around a whole fresh strawberry. The yuzu sorbet is an inspired choice. Ja...
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The Little Prince vs Chagee

Of all places, I met #TheLittlePrince here! In #TheLittlePrince, the #Rose is the story's most quietly haunting thread. She appears proud and fussy from the start — four thorns, an imaginary tiger, a cough performed just a little too casually, and all those small vanities that are almost, but not quite, visible. #TheLittlePrince is young and unguarded. He doesn't understand what lies beneath her words. Her behavior unsettles him, and so he leaves. Only later do we understand: her pride, her willfulness, her way of saying one thing while meaning another — these were never anything but the clumsy self-protection of a soul who didn't know how to say "I love you."  #Rose was too young, too inexperienced. She didn't know any way to face her own vulnerability except to feign strength and pretend to be proud. She didn't know that the more someone cares, the more they fear losing it — and the more they long to be close, the less they know how to say so. So she use...
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Protein Meal

With a total calorie content of approximately 660 kcal or less, this meal is an excellent choice for a balanced, nutrient-dense diet.  Its overall composition is particularly well suited to a healthy eating pattern, providing high-quality protein, dietary fiber, and beneficial unsaturated fats while keeping total calories under control. The combination of chicken and a soft-boiled egg provides approximately 28 grams of protein. Once the brown rice and nuts are included, the meal can easily provide more than 30 grams of protein in total.  Japanese teriyaki sauce contributes additional sugar and sodium, so using it in moderation is a practical way to enhance flavor without significantly increasing the overall calorie load or sodium intake. Keeping the brown rice portion to roughly one fist-sized serving typically provides around 160–200 kcal, leaving sufficient room within the calorie budget for protein-rich foods and healthy fats. A small serving of nuts, approximately 15 grams...
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9.9

Today's date—September 9th—carries genuine weight in Chinese culture, and it's worth unpacking why. Nine as the Ultimate Yang Number In the Book of Changes (I Ching), the number nine represents yang at its absolute peak—the outermost, most vigorous point before a cycle turns over and begins again.  This is why emperors were traditionally said to hold "the nine-five position", the most exalted seat in the cosmic order. When Li Bai described a waterfall as looking like "the Milky Way falling from the ninth heaven," he wasn't being poetically loose—"nine heavens" specifically meant the highest, outermost layer of the sky in traditional cosmology. Nine and Long-Lasting: A Play on Sound Here's where it gets personal. In Mandarin, "nine" (九, jiǔ) is a near-homophone of "long-lasting" or "enduring" (久, jiǔ). So doubling the nine—9/9—naturally became shorthand for wishing something chángjiǔ, "long and enduring....
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立秋的槟城

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立秋，槟城新街附近的深夜食堂。 角落一隅，坐着一对情侣。男人来自中国，说着一口流利听起来又让人舒服的英语；身旁的英国姑娘，一头长发柔顺地垂在肩头，握筷的姿态娴熟自然，仿佛早已习惯了这样东方的饮食方式，完全融入于爱人所出生的那个世界。 我默默品尝美食。耳际断断续续传来他们低声的交谈，时而相视而笑，时而侧耳静听。那些絮絮流淌的话语，不曾刻意追求浪漫，却似涓涓细流,静静漫过彼此心田。仿佛这一夜太短，而他们要说的话太长——总有讲不完的故事，也总有道不尽的琐碎日常。 桌上的肉骨茶腾着热气，香气氤氲弥漫。可忽然间，我竟觉得，美食动人之处，从不只在于果腹。 人与人之间，愿意倾听、愿意回应，愿意把一天的悲喜，细细讲与对方听——那份心与心的靠近，远比任何珍馐佳肴更耐人咀嚼，更值得回味。 原来，最好的晚餐，从来不是舌尖上的滋味而已，而是在这灯火温柔的夜色里，恰好有一个人，愿意陪你，把寻常烟火，说成一首悠长而温暖的诗。 #Mike人间烟火 08.08.2026
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杨植麟的故事

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当小说的人物穿越到现实世界：《月之暗面与冷酷仙境》                      缘起：翻阅报道，我是被“月之暗面”这词汇所吸引而开始关注Moonshot AI 创始人兼 CEO——杨植麟。他乃是目前全球人工智能领域最瞩目的青年学者与创业者之一。 果然有村上春树的“影子”。真正热爱村上春树之书写的人，不是我，是我的一位中学朋友。这些年以来一直很遗憾，因为通俗与畅销，他喜欢的作家未能获得世界级的文学大奖，但他创作的故事却那么深深地影响了读者的思维，包括我那位获得奖学金在海外深造回国继续留在本地大学教书的朋友。 ******  村上春树写过一座小镇。镇子被高墙围住，进城的人必须交出自己的影子，从此心不再痛，也不再爱，只剩下永恒的、干净的宁静。那是《世界尽头》里的隐喻——一个人如果把自己活成一套完美运转的程序，代价是要先杀死内心那个聒噪的、不听话的自己。 1992 年出生在广东省汕头的那个男孩，很长一段时间里，是不打算交出影子的。 他在金山中学，喜欢平克·弗洛伊德胜过喜欢课本。他梦想过做摇滚明星、做浪人诗人。这是他的影子——嘈杂、感性、拒绝被规训。 可是命运给他开了一个近乎荒诞的玩笑：这个没什么编程基础的少年，只用了一年时间训练，就拿下了中国信息学奥赛一等奖，保送清华；随后又在高考里考出汕头理科状元的成绩。 理性和感性，从一开始就没有分出胜负。它们只是学会了在他身体里同时生活。 到了清华，他没有收起吉他。他在计算机系组了一支乐队，取名 Splay——一种数据结构的名字。鼓手、主唱、写词人，是他在"系统"之外为自己保留的一小片"世界尽头"。 而白天的他，是另一个身份：一个把自己的大脑当作运算装置的人。这像极了《冷酷仙境》里那个被植入"洗牌"程序的计算士——用潜意识加密数据，再在需要的时候解密还原。 杨植麟去了卡内基梅隆，用 Transformer-XL 和 XLNet 两篇论文，把自己的名字加密进了 NLP 领域的历史坐标里。图灵奖得主是他的合作者，苹果、DeepMind 的科学家愿意做他的导师。他成了那个系统里运转得最精密的计算士之一。 如果故事到此为止，这会是一个再典型不过的"天才留美、功成身退"的剧本。硅谷张开双臂，斯坦福递出橄榄枝，一份足...
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