A Slice of Heaven by Just Heavenly

I was ecstatic to learn that the famed Just Heavenly recently opened a new outlet at Jaya One in Petaling Jaya. I've wanted to try their cakes for so long and since I was going shopping at Cold Storage, I was bent on killing two birds with one stone. I've since visited A Slice of Heaven a few times because the cakes are so good, we could never get enough of it.

A Slice of Heaven is a cozy little cake boutique painted in sky blue with clouds. So dreamy! There are no chairs or tables, just a take-away counter that showcases the most amazing cakes.

There's even a pretty cookie tree strung with cookies of all shapes and colours.
Did I mention the cakes? Oh.... they are glorious! We tried the Death by Chocolate, Chocolate Durian and also their 3ple Espresso Brownie. Of all the times we've been back, we just keep buying the same types over and over because it's just something we could never get enough of!

The 3ple Espresso Brownie was really good. There were chunks of chocolate pieces and nuts that our little girl really liked. The Chocolate Durian is simply out-of-this-world. Initially I thought the combination of chocolate and durian kind of weird, but all it takes is just one mouthful to win me over. It is by far, the most interesting and most delicious cake I've ever eaten! The explosion of flavours - the pungent durian and the bitter-sweet smoothness of the chocolate is incredible. It is the one cake that we fight over, would you believe?

We also liked the Banana Cream Pie which was filled with custard cream and topped with slices of caramelized bananas. Our little girl loved this so much she finished the whole pie.

A Slice of Heaven is located at Block E, Unit 23, Level B2, Phase 2 (next to Cold Storage).

Why?

I had another one of those conversations recently with someone from the older generation and again, it affirms the wide generation gap that separates us.

Our discussion centred on the fate of women whose husbands-to-be died before their wedding. As with most of my discussions with members of the older generations, it seemed to me that all the blame is simply pinned onto the unfortunate women. And so, I've come to the conclusion that our sisters are suffering simply because it is us women who make it so. Yes, in the past the men might have set the double standards, but it is the women who ensured that such double standards are carried out religiously. How else do you explain that they label the unfortunate bride-to-be as "white foot soles" (a direct translation from Hokkein) which means bad luck? To me that just smacks of absolute insensitivity at a time when all we needed to do was to offer our condolences and where possible, our help.

This isn't the first time a woman is blamed for whatever bad luck that befalls her family. Sometimes, it isn't just women who gets the blame. Would you believe that even newborn babies are blamed? If a woman dies after childbirth, the newborn is deemed to have brought her mother bad luck. How is it that we can simply label an innocent newborn and have her grow up in a society with such a stigma hovering over her head? Could we not give a thought instead to how the poor baby had to grow up without a mother's love?

I'm not sure if those people who so easily label the innocent realize that one day, it just might be them at the other end of the stick. I wonder when it comes to that, would they have even liked it one bit?

I'm aware that the older generation will still steadfastly hold onto such "traditions" because it is a part of their culture. But surely, we don't necessarily have to keep cultures that condemn and hurt, especially when we can all make educated decisions. It is up to us, the younger generation, to effect that change by teaching our children that now is the time to stop the blame.

Rediscovering The King of Pop

For the past few days I have been rediscovering Michael Jackson’s music and with it, revisiting my childhood memories. It is ironic that he missed out on his own childhood and yet enrich ours so much with his music. I realized that his music does indeed transcend time. Just as I grew up with his music, my 8 year old daughter discovered his music in pre-school when the kids performed to “Heal the World” in the school concert. Today she is rediscovering his music along with me, each one of us reminiscing about a part of our lives. The King of Pop may be gone but his music and legacy lives on.