Get Ready for 2012

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS...  Everyone is rushing to get things done in the next 3 remaining days of 2011.  It's like packing up, clearing out, cleaning up, getting rid of the old and making room for the new.

Year 2011 has been good to me.  No, I didn't win the lotto and nothing spectacular happened to me (still hoping though).  But, I have all the simple pleasures in life: my family and friends, happiness, health, the freedom to do whatever for myself, and the satisfaction of accomplishing things that I set out for myself in the beginning of each year.

WHAT HAVE I DONE??

2009: TO GIVE MORE
2010: TO DO MORE
2011: TO SHARE MORE

I don't think I'm perfect but I think I have stayed true to my mission.  I don't now if I have made any difference in any one's life, but I am a happier person because I did what I said I was going to do.

ONWARD TO 2012.  I'm thinking of starting a Project 365 and I would like to focus on my ability to express emotions and feelings through my photos.  My photos may not be too shabby to look at but they don't tell a story.  Why?  What am I missing?  That's what I'll be challenging myself to find out in 2012.

TO FEEL MORE.  Yes, that's what I would like me to do in 2012.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!

Merry Christmas!

Robert and I will host the this year's Christmas Eve dinner at his house.  His family, mine and our dogs will all be together as one big family.

I asked everyone to wear something RED for dinner.  Let's get some color in our pictures, I said. And, I was peppered with questions:

"Can I wear a red bow?"
"Does a red scarf count?"
"How about red underwear?"

I just have to chuckle.  My family. Gotta love them.

Merry Christmas everyone.  The best gift in the world is to share a joyous night with your family.  I count my blessings.

I'm Very Thankful

THANKSGIVING 2011.  Jennifer claims Thanksgiving as her holiday and every year she goes all out in making the turkey and making this day very special for the Wu family.

Another great family holiday came and gone.  Can't believe that it was already a week ago when we gathered at Jason and Jennifer's place for the holiday meal.  It took Jennifer a month to plan and two weeks to put things together, and couple of days to get ready.  And just like that, it was here and gone.

As always, the family started with a toast and a round of Thank You to each one of us.  Yes, we are thankful that the family is always there for one and other providing unconditional love and support.  Yes, we are thankful that in this difficult time, we still have jobs and we still get to splurge a little bit.  Nothing fancy, nothing big but we were able to enjoy things within our means.  And yes, we are thankful that we are all able to celebrate Thanksgiving together.  Nothing is more important than that.  Unfortunately, for some families, that was just not possible due to unpredictable circumstances.

Personally, I'm thankful that life is very good to me.  Things can always be better, but I am thankful for what I have today.  I'm also thankful that I have the ability to do better tomorrow.

Thank you, Jennifer, for making this beautiful 20-pound turkey.  It was yum!

Double Dane for Keng

VICTOR IS OFFICIALLY A KENG!  After staying as a guest for the past two and a half months, he will now call Club JoLin his permanent home.

Victor's mom decided to give Victor up even though she has found a pet-friendly place.  Reason is that it's a condo with no outdoor space and Victor will most likely be crated and stay alone for most of the day during weekdays.  She just couldn't do that to this little happy rumbustious pup especially now he had two months of open space and companion.

So Alica asked if we would like to keep Victor for good.  Robert was, of course, more than willing.  YES-YES-YES!!!  I'll take him!

Dexter and Victor are great buds.  They are like two peas in a pod.  Dexter has grown into the big brother role.  He takes care of Victor and actually tells him what to do.  Victor is like, whatever you say, big bro.  Their canine communication is awesome.  It's just like human's.

We are thrilled to have Victor.  What a wonderful addition to the family!  The only thing is Robert will have to get used to picking up a 50-pound bag of dog food every two weeks.  It's back to double everything (like when we had Max and Dudu).

Let's Play (Meat)ball!

One of my mom's special dishes is "deep fried pork meatballs".  It does not contain lots of spices or ingredients, but, boy, is it tasty!!

Every time when Mom made them, the sizzling frying sound and the hunger-making aroma would attract my brothers and me to the kitchen.  We would hang around her by the stove like hawks eager for a taste test.  When the meatballs were cooked and scooped up from the fryer, we would take them from the plate within seconds. Even Dad would pretend that he was looking for something to drink and pick up a couple before retreating to the TV room.  Mom never could make enough to fill the plate and had to shoo us away or the meatballs would never make it to the dinner table.

Mom's deep fried meatballs is one of our favorite comfort foods and it's a "family signature" dish.  It's a family recipe that was passed down from Grandma to her kids.  Mom mastered it.  I think some of my cousins also could make them like Grandma.  Mom has now taught me and I hope my cousins have taught their kids too. Wouldn't it be great that every generation knows how to make this signature dish with the same flavor and taste?

So what's so special about this meatball anyway?  Can't really tell you but I know you will love it.  Here's the recipe.  Perhaps you can tell me what so magical about it.
Ingredients:
Ground pork
Lots of finely chopped green onion
Lots of finely chopped garlic
soy sauce
sugar
salt
one egg
some corn starch

That's it.
Oh, in my last attempt, I added tofu since I still have a little bit of it.
Next:

• Combine everything.
• Throw the ground pork against the mixing bowl (sorry, I don't know the technical term) until it hardens a bit.  Mom said you need to do this step to push out the air bubbles otherwise you will have holes in the meatballs.
• Roll into little balls and fry them.
• The meatballs goes well with steaming fluffy white rice.  Yum-yum-yum.

Give it a try, people.  This recipe is at least 60-70 years old yet it still tastes very "modern".

Thank you, grandma for the recipe!!

Remembering the Earthquake

October 17, 1989.  Has it been 22 years? And the bridge is till not finished?

Can you believe there is now a generation of people who wasn't even born when the earth shook on that fateful day?   To them, the Loma Prieta earthquake was just a piece of history - very much like the 1906 quake to me.  Yes, folks, it did happen. I wasn't here for the 1906 but I was here for the 1989.

Funny there was very little mention of it in today's news.  I wonder why.  Perhaps they are saving the big hee-haa for the 25th anniversary.

It was a very scary day for many of us and we will never forget.  Yes, we will be talking about it our whole life! Just like the 1906 quake survivors retelling their stories.

A little shake by Mother Nature and the earthlings flipped up side down.   A reminder from Mother Nature: be prepared; never take things for granted; treasure what you have, and learn from it.

Don't Call Me Rusty!

Niece Crystal asked if I had any tricks for removing rust from cast iron pans.  Not really I said but Google would know.

So a quick google search shows plenty of tips and tricks.  Some pretty interesting like:

1) rubbing with 1/2 potato and baking soda
2) scrubbing with salt and oil

Hmmm... do they really work? I must know!!

I remember Robert has a cast iron grill pan somewhere in the backyard.  He found it at a dump few years ago and brought it back to me like a trophy.  Look what I found, honey!!  It was a pretty ugly pan - rusted, dull and beat up - but I kept it thinking I'll deal with it one day.  I left it outside and forgot all about it.

My perfect experiment!!  I found the pan over the weekend.  It was stashed with bunch of tiles looking pretty pathetic sitting on top of the pool pump.  It was dusty with cobweb and with a thin layer of orange rust.  Sorry, it has been left outside for a few years.  However, it looked like it could still have some life given a chance.

So I followed the potato and baking soda cleaning tip.  I wouldn't 't say that it worked 100% but most of the gritty stuff came off.  After a thorough scrubbing, the grill was squeaky clean and ready for seasoning.

I warmed up the pan on the stove over medium low heat then I oiled it.  The pan sucked up the oil thirstily and it slowly began to shine.  I think it likes it!!!  Hey, I like it too!!

It's exciting to bring a cast iron pan back to life.  Really.  To test, I grilled a steak on it.  Wow! the steak grilled beautifully and it didn't even stick to the pan.  The pan made happy sizzling sounds.  Oh it must be happy being useful again.  Afterward, I washed and oiled it again.  It looked like it could be salvaged.  YES!

There are still some weathered marks on the rim and on the backside but I don't think it's rust anymore.  I'll try the salt and oil cleaning method this weekend to see if I can take them off. If not, I'll just live with it.  It actually adds some characters and a mark of life to the pan.

Love your cast iron pan people.  It did not give up on itself so you shouldn't too.  Cheers!

Me and My Buds

Old Friends are special.  They are the ones who grow up with you and who are there in every stage of your life.  They laugh and cry with you; they share your happiness and sadness; they help celebrate your life milestones.  When you are lucky to have Old Friends.  Hold them tight.  They are precious.

My old buds are from my childhood.  We all went to the same high school.  Some of us went to the same elementary and junior high.  We hung out as little girls, and we still hang out as adult women.  Our conversation topics evolved from homework, exams, puppy love, going out, boyfriends, family/parents, college, work, marriage, children/husband (for me, boyfriend still) to the latest: middle age, wrinkles and the unthinkable: menopause!!  Ugh!!

We joked that we will be talking about Social Security, Medicare, high blood pressure medicine and grandchildren soon. I can't imagine us talking about the senior stuff (not just yet).  But, I know that day will come eventually, and I'm glad that I'll have my old buds to share my sunset years with me then.

XXOO to my Old Buds! (I'll add pictures as I find them).

2008



2011

2004

    

Double Dane!

THINGS HAPPEN AT THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME SOMETIMES.  I was browsing through the pet forum on Craigslist yesterday and I came across a posting that asked if someone can temporarily take in a Great Dane because the owner is in the process of moving, starting a new job and looking for a pet-friendly place to rent.

The owner could not bear to give up the dog and was hoping that someone could just keep him for a while.  I thought how heartbroken I would be if I have to give up my Dexter (or my other dogs in the past) so I forwarded the posting to Robert to see if he was interested.

Robert, of course, all excited, wanted to host Victor - that's the dog's name.  He has been wanting to get another Dane to keep Dexter company.  Realistically, I don't think having a second Dane is a good idea.  However, how would I know?  He is the one who would take care of the dogs.  So, this is actually a pretty good arrangement.  We get to check out the idea in real life and we would be helping out another dog parent.

So, I emailed the owner.  It turned out to be a nice girl in Sacramento.  She was thrilled!  She brought Victor over this morning for the two Dane boys to meet.  Robert met them at the doggy park.  The boys like each other.  So, Victor is home now and we are now a two-Dane family, on a temporary basis.

From reading the posting to having Victor staying, it took less than 24 hours.  It was not on the agenda before yesterday but, heck, things happen and we just add a new chapter to our lives.  And, I hope we preserve a chapter for Alica and Victor as well.

Alica is moving from Scramento to SF today and starting her new job next Monday.  Victor, a beautiful blue Great Dane puppy, will call Club JoLin home and Dexter his big brother for the next couple of months.

Something is just meant to be - such as this turn of event - so, just join us for the ride!

How to Make Paella

I LOVE PAELLA! It looks impressive and tastes terrific.  It can be made in individual size pans or in an impressive gigantic pan that serves many.  It's a great rice dish that's perfect as a family meal.  It's also an exciting dish that gets Ooos and Ahhhs at a party.  A versatile dish that anyone can make.  Yes, you can!!

You can put anything in a paella and it will come out great.  Just don't forget the all important key ingredients:  a pinch of saffron and Sofrito, which is a Spanish tomato and onion sauce that's cooked with the rice.  But to be honest, I cheat.  I don't make sofrito.  I substitute with canned diced tomatoes.  I don't even dice fresh tomatoes.  Shhhhh.......

I made a seafood paella last Saturday and it came out surprisingly good.  The flavors were well infused; the rice was nicely cooked, and I even got the Socorrat - the highly prized toasted rice bottom of a paella.  Wow! How that happened??

So to share my experience:

FIGURE OUT WHAT YOU WANT TO PUT IN THE PAELLA.  Plan ahead.  Anything goes.  Create your own combo.  I like seafood paella because of the WOW factor.  I like the colors and the busy-ness of all the ingredients: shrimps, squids/baby octopus, clams, mussels, sausage, chicken meat, red and green bell peppers, peas, parsley and wedges of lemons... It is a very festive dish that keep your eyes busy.

PREPARE EVERYTHING BEFORE YOU EVEN PUT THE PAN ON THE STOVE.  This is important.  There are lots of chopping and dicing and the ingredients take different time to cook.  Best to prepare everything upfront and put them in the order in which you cook them.  This includes scrubbing and cleaning the shellfish and boiling a pot of water to blanch them.  I would do this part first.

THE SECRET IS IN THE POT.  You can keep the water that you use to blanch the shellfish or start a new pot of broth if the shellfish makes the broth too pungent.  I don't mind the clams, but sometime the mussels ruin the broth for me.  So, make sure you have a can of chicken broth handy if you don't want to use the blanching water.  Add a pinch of saffron to the broth and season with salt and pepper.  Keep the broth warm.  You will use it to cook the rice.

THE PAELLA ESSENTIAL.  Saute all the ingredients separately - I saute them with garlic - and season as you go.  Next, saute the chopped red onion and the green and red bell peppers, then add the diced tomato and juice (or the sofrito). Add salt and pepper.  Let it cook for a while before adding the uncooked rice.  Stir and add broth.  Cover, let it simmer.  Add more broth as needed.  You don't want uncooked burnt rice.  When the rice is done, start putting the ingredients on top.  Cover the pan and turn down the heat.  Add frozen peas last.  Then, garnish with parsley and lemon wedges before serving.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT.  I don't think my paella is perfect but I'm getting more comfortable making it.  I hope to ditch my cooking note one of these days when I make this dish.  The trick is to be organized and don't stress out. Cooking is just as enjoyable as eating.  Have a glass of wine while you cook.

Bon Appetit!  Or, should I say, ¡buen provecho!

Goodwill Hunting - III

Ta-Da!  See what else I have found in a Goodwill store! I found this little gadget at the Pinole Goodwill couple years ago and it was one of my best best find!!

What is it?  I was rummaging in a little corner and spotted this little odd shape box.  It was a six-sided box that contained a odd looking gadget.  It had 4 arms and a little window on the body to let you see the mechanism inside.

It had a long screw hidden in the bottom half, so I figured it must be a wine bottle opener. But, why so elaborate?  How does it work?  What the heck!  Since it was only $1.99, I figured I could buy it without feeling like a fool.

It was solidly built and made in Finland.  No instructions.  Are we supposed to just know how to use this thing?  I know, I know... don't bother to drink, if you can't figure out how to use this thing.  Well, it took me about 3 bottles to figure out.  Basically, you have to know the sequence of moving the arms.  Once you get the hang of it, it is too easy to use.  All bottles can be opened in less than 5 seconds even the most stubborn ones.  And, it spits out the cork effortlessly too!!  Wow!!

This is how it works:

1. Make sure all the arms are in upright position.
2. Secure the bottom half to the bottle by pushing it down.   You will hear a click.

3. Push the two short arms down together.

4. Then, push the two long arms down.  When the long arms are pushed down, the short ones go back up by itself.

5. Now, push the long arms back up.  And as you do that, the cork pops out!!

Voila!

Isn't it cool?  I love to show off this toy.  A great conversation piece and makes people work for their drink.  Yap, there is no such thing as an easy drink!!


This time: Suts scores one!

My New Life Started 38 Years Ago

July 21, 1973. That was the date that my brothers and I stepped on the American soil for the very first time.

We were little kids then – younger than Brandon and Carli today. We arrived to a foreign land to start a new life. Looking back, we certainly didn’t know what life would bring us. Just like now, we don’t know where future will take us.

From a kid's perspective, we observed and had to adjust quickly as soon as we stepped out the airport. There were a lot to take in:

Woo! Look at Dad’s big Chevrolet Nova sedan! We were used to seeing smaller cars back in Taiwan. It was so cool that we could all squeeze in the back seat with room to spare. And look at all those yellow taxis!! How come they were not red like in Taiwan??

Wow! Look at that big stretch of highway. Is it called “high-way” because it’s high above the ground?  In Taiwan, cars traveled on narrow surface streets because there was no highway/freeway back then. It was amazing to feel Dad’s car traveled fast on big empty roads.

Wow! Look at that, hills in the city!! We thought it was strange that the streets of San Francisco went up and down. And look at our apartment! It was right on a slanted street!

“We’re home!” said Mom. Our first apartment was on Balboa St. and 16th Ave. It was a fourplex and we had one of the top units. The kids found the house odd. It was all wood! Narrow wood stairs with carpet. Wood floors, wood panels, wood everything... In Taiwan, our house was concrete. Hmmm… there was no ceiling light. Instead, there were floor lamps emitting a warm yellow color light. In Taiwan, we were used to bright white fluorescent ceiling light. We didn’t have floor or table lamps. I remembered that we had fun pulling the light switch repeatedly. Somehow that little dangling metal pull was fascinating.

We also thought the windows in our unit were funny. How come they stuck out and not straight? Now we know that it’s called a “Bay Window”. My brothers and I decided that we each could hog a panel and call it our own “window”.

I recalled that we were able to look out to the ocean from some of the bay windows. That was exciting too. In Taiwan, we had to drive outside the city to see the ocean because Taipei sat in a valley. We were poor city kids trapped by buildings and only got to see the ocean when our parents took us on field trips. It was refreshing even for little kids like us to see the sky meeting a flat sea at the end right from our home!!  Wow!!

The shower was a new experience for us too. In Taiwan, people took bath not shower. Bathtubs were made of concrete and usually built along with the house. You would fill the tub with water, soap and rinse outside the tub then jump in for a soak. We did not use showers. We used a bucket to splash ourselves with. For our first bath in the US, mom had to teach us to turn on the shower and stand in the tub. DON’T GET THE FLOOR WET!! I have to tell you, it was very hard for little kids to do. Taking a shower was equivalent to playing in the rain.

The biggest thing for the kids to get used to was “no running in the house”. We had to be light with our footsteps because we did not want to disturb the downstairs neighbors. We were used to live in a one-story house with concrete floors and where everything was solid and sturdy. The American house seemed so fragile!

First night in the U.S. Our first home in the US was a one-bed room apartment. So Mom and Dad converted the formal dining room to our bedroom. They got us three single beds. Wow! Our own beds!! In Taiwan, we three kids had shared one huge custom-built bed that took half of the bedroom. Yes, we were able to roll, jump and play on that bed, but we did not have our own space. This was such a treat. Our own beds!! Since I was the oldest, I got the bed next to the bay window. And following the pecking order, Jason, the youngest one, got the bed next to the kitchen door.

First morning in the U.S. I remembered I woke up and I made my bed. First time ever in my life too! No one taught me how. I just did it and I told myself, this is my new life.

Vacation: Luxury in Your Hand

Everyone looks forward to taking a vacation.  Some hide at a land/beach far away, some visit families and friends, some go do the outdoor stuff, some play tourists, etc... Heck, whatever suits your fancy.

People get excited about vacations because it means you can do whatever you want with the time at hand.  You can sleep late, pretend you don't have to work for a living, eat, play, be a couch potato... it's so nice that you can dictate how you want to spend your days.  Time is at your disposal.  You can even waste it away (ouch though).

My vacations used to be trips here and there taking my parents to places big and small.  Unfortunately, not anymore after mom's stroke.  Nowadays, vacation means I have more time to catch up on things that I don't usually have time to do.  Little things such as doing recycling, ironing, washing windows.. Oh yeah, talk about those windows.... I washed them this past Sunday and all the neighbors went woo-and-ahh. They said they didn't have time to do windows.  Yes, you need time to do them. It was very time consuming especially when my windows were double layers- not just double panel - that meant double cleaning!!  But what a great feeling when you see your windows so shiny and spotless.  Time well spent!!

Vacation means I can sleep as late as I want and wake up as late as I want (how about waking up at 8am instead of 6am?)   It's so wonderful when you don't have to be on guard with the alarm clock.

Vacation also means catching up with friends.  Catching up over a meal is one of the best use of time.  Quality time with buddies is not something that we always have time to do.  You just have to make it happen.

I would love to take my parents to far away places again.  Although mom can't travel long distance anymore, she is able to take longer (and longer) short trips now.  We went to Monterey last year.  We were not able to schedule another short excursion this year, but the family did spend a day in Calistoga.  Short but sweet and a memory for us to keep.

How you use your vacation time is the beauty of being off from work.  It doesn't matter whether you're away or home.  Having that free time on your hand is a luxury in itself.  So, make it count.

Dexter: Guardian of Little Goldfish

Ever since our lily pond was destroyed by "something" and most of the goldfish got eaten, Dexter has become concerned of the fish.  Every time he gets outside, he goes check on the fish - by the way, we put 20 new fish in last week - I wonder if he counts them too??? 

Great Danes are not known to be guard dogs.  Heck, Dexter, true to his breed, is afraid of his own shadow sometimes.  He hates being chased by his leash.  Ever seen a big dog trying to run away from his leash that's dragging behind him?  He can't understand why he can't outrun it.  The faster he runs, the faster and the louder the leash goes.  The look on his face is pretty hilarious.  If you ever see a mantel Great Dane being chased by a red leash, that's Dexter.

Sorry, I digress. .. so Robert told me that he found out who the fish killer was.  Dexter started barking at 2am this morning.  That's unusual because he is usually soundly asleep (and snores too).  Robert looked out - he thought the burglars were back - and he saw not one but TWO raccoons by the pond checking out the fish.  HA!!  I told you it must have been raccoons!!  He said they were fat and had big black eyes like bandits.  So he ran to open the door and Dexter took off after the raccoons.  Robert said Dexter chased them across the yard and made them climb the fence to escape.  Wow... my fearless dog!! 

We are so proud of him!!   I guess we wouldn't have been surprised if Dexter went hiding but he didn't.  Like a responsible guardian that he appointed himself to be, he defended his little friends.  What a trooper!  What a raccoon chaser!  What a fish protector!  What a dog!

Remember, Great Danes were bred to hunt wild boars in ancient times.  I guess Dexter still has that DNA in him.  Just don't drag a raccoon back.  I don't want it.  Fish Killer.

Good Boy, Dexter!

A Chain of Events

So, Robert told me that something got to the water lilies in our little pond (OK, a 100-gallon tub) and the goldfish.  He told me to brace myself when I go over because it looked pretty bad.

Ugh!  Who?  What?  This has never happened before since we adopted the water lilies from cousin Su-Ming four years ago.  The 20 some odd goldfish has lived there since the first week. They thrive in the pond and always come up to the surface for food and play.  I never thought they would be in danger.

The Crime Scene: Yap, the water lilies looked pretty bad.  Bent, broken, shredded... some of them were blooming too.  The water was still and quiet.  No sign of any goldfish... Wait, I saw two, but they were too scared to come up.  They tried to hide beneath the torn lilies.  I think they are the only two survivors...  My poor fish!!

Robert and I think a raccoon might have done it. Haven't seen one around but what else? Cat?  Hawk?  Couldn't be a possum (although I do see them)... but why now?

Here's what I think: A raccoon wandered in because there was no threat of being discovered.  Normally Dexter would be sunbathing outside or playing in the yard but he has been locked inside the house lately.

Why? Well, Robert's house was burglarized two weeks go.  The burglars came through the open sliding door and took three of his guitars and a amplifier.

Where was Dexter then?  Well, he was taking a nap in the bedroom with Robert.  The door was closed.  So the burglars got away.

But fortunately, Robert and Dexter were OK and there was no damage to the house.

But unfortunately, the goldfish paid the price.  This chain of events led to their demise.  It's so unfair!!

What to do?  Robert and I got some chicken wire to make a protective netting for the pond.  We also installed security lights to deter future burglars and the raccoon (sorry, we really think it's you).

I hope the two goldfish will feel better about coming up again.  It must have been a traumatic event having your little world disturbed.  Very much like how the burglars invaded Robert's house and violated his space.

Can't bring back the poor fish just like Robert will most likely not be able to recover his guitars.  The only thing that we can do is to secure the place to minimize risks.

Scary how one thing leads to another.  We will never know how people's action will impact the next event which will in turn impacts some other people's (or animals) lives.  Some may turn out good, some bad.  This time: bad. 

RIP, little goldfish...

It's June! Don't Tell Me So.

Ugh, can't believe May is over.  What happened?


We didn't even have Spring. It seems to have rained on and off since October/November... we are still in winter.  Will Summer ever come?


Besides this strange weather, what happened to TIME?  Didn't we just start the new year?  It's almost half over. Before long, holidays will be here (and the rain season) AGAIN!!

When Things Get Tough, Tough Get Going

So yesterday was supposed to be our big CAJUN CRAWFISH BOIL PARTY.  20 people were showing up.  Yes, words get around about our annual crawfish party and we get more people showing up every year.  Heck, more the merrier... so the table set; potatoes and corns piled up; water simmering.  We were ready!!

Where Are Them? The crawfish is usually delivered by 10:30am but there seemed to be a delay this year.  FedEx shipment tracking showed that the package was scheduled to be delivered by 12 noon.  However, the status still showed as "in transit".  It looked odd but I let it go.

By 11:30am, a little birdie told me that something wasn't going right so I called up FedEx.  After the round and round of talking to the computer, I got a live person.  She first reiterated what I read on the website.  I told her to check real-time.  Lo and Behold, my crawfish was still in Memphis!!

UGH!!!!  WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY CRAWFISH IS STILL IN MEMPHIS?

Urrrr.... memory of that Turducken, our Christmas Eve dinner getting stuck in Memphis due to severe snowstorm few years ago, came rushing back.  Not again!!  Don't tell me so!!!

While dealing with FedEx and emailing the shipper to inform them of the situation, I told James that we need to have PLAN B now.  Our brains spinning fast and we both thought of a SEAFOOD BOIL instead.  We came out with a complete new menu on the spot: live Maine lobsters (for show), frozen lobster tails (to feed), clams and mussels (for variety), prawns and squid (for color).  So he headed out to the New England Lobster Company and I headed out to the Chinese supermarket to get new food.  It was 12:30pm.

After the quick scrambling, we did it!  People start coming at 2pm and were treated to a wonderful seafood boil.  I don't think they even remembered they were supposed to be here for crawfish!

Yes, once again, a twist to make my day interesting.  Like keeping me on my toe, my dear God??

Just One of Those Days

Ever have one of those days when you just tripped right and left?  Well, I have plenty of those days -- like I said before an eternal dark cloud is forever over my head - and I had one of those days yesterday.

I stayed at Robert's on Friday night to keep Dexter company since Robert was back in Taiwan.  I decided to tackle his backyard which was a weed forest after breakfast on Saturday morning.  And this was how my day went:

• First, all his garden gloves had holes.  Ugh! Bad start!
• Then, I can't find an extension cord long enough for the electric saw.  Yes, I used the saw because his weed trimmer was missing a part.
• After I sawed/chopped the tall weeds and tried to rake the weeds, his rake fell apart.  Ugh again!
• So I duct-taped the rake back together and had to use my hands - wearing the holly gloves - to pile the weeds up.
• I then accidentally severed the extension cord.  Oops! Just great!
• I finally found another extension cord but not a heavy duty one.
• I gave it a try anyway but the plug couldn't fit the socket on the saw. Urrrr...
• After looking high and low, I found an adapter so it finally fit.
• I was close to complete cutting the tall weeds down when the saw died.  And I could only laughed.  The other option was to roll in the weeds.
• I decided to call it quit.  Cleaned up, put things away and wanted a beer.
• Then when I opened the refrigerator, I discovered the light was out.  Worse, the refrigerator seemed to have died.
• There was still electricity to part of the house, so I was hoping it was just a tripped circuit.  But where the heck was the circuit breaker box?
• Who can I call?  It was about 5am Taiwan time.  Robert must have been asleep and besides, I didn't have his phone number.
• What should I do?  I saw Sheila, Robert's sister, still online on Facebook so I FB her asking how I could get hold of Robert?  One point for me for being resourceful!
• Sheila said she had to walk over to the apartmet where Robert was staying to wake him up because Robert did not have a phone.
• Sheila FB me back 10 minutes later to say no one answered the door. Robert was probably in deep sleep.  She asked me to wait for couple of more hours.
• I decided that I couldn't wait because I didn't know what was wrong with the refrigerator and I didn't want the food to start going bad.  That breaker box must be somewhere.  I searched inside and outside of the house opening up every box that looked like a breaker box.
• Two hours later, I finally found it.  Of course it was on the game room wall well camouflaged with the wood paneling.  Who would have guessed?
• At a switch, the refrigerator and some part of the house came back to life.  At that moment I saw fireworks!!

And I, finally, was able to have my beer.  Yes, the best part of the day!

(p.s. Later, Robert called.  He said he wasn't sleeping on the 11th floor of their building.  He moved down to the 3rd floor apartment but Sheila didn't know.  Ugh!  A small but important detail, won't you say?)

The Freezer Game - Home Stretch!

Wow!  Can't believe I last this long on this freezer food challenge.  Mom and Dad are great too!  Unconditional love and support for my cooking.  Whatever I cook, they always have positive things to say.  I notice that they have started drinking lychee sake every meal.  I wonder if that's to make food go down easier?  Hmmmm...

At any rate, good progress still.  It's like treasure hunting.  How about 2 boxes of soft shell crabs? I deep fried them in batter last night.  Tasted great but the batter was kind of thin. 

Note to self: follow the recipe next time!!

Tonight my challenge was frozen grounded chicken meat.  Can't remember why I got it.  Must have been on sale or meant for a particular dish.  So, I decided to try making this Elephant-Bar-like "Wok-Fried Chicken and Lettuce Wrap."  Pretty simple ingredients.  Again, see what you have in the refrigerator and in the pantry first.  I chopped up mushrooms and water chestnuts.  Sauted everything with finely chopped ginger and seasoning.  I made my own sauce with oyster sauce + sugar + balsamic vingar + sesame oil. 

Another note to self: check out plum sauce next time.  No need to mix own sauce.

Two more days left to the challenge.  I don't think I'll be able to empty out the freezer  in time but I think I have done a pretty good job thus far.

The Freezer Food Quest

Week 4 of my "Eat Only Freezer Food" game and I'm proud of myself for sticking to the rules.  I have not bought anything for the freezer since February 28th.  Yes, I still buy fresh veggies and fruits, but I did not buy any meat or fish.

After four weeks of digging and looking deep the freezer, I've made good progress in reducing inventory.  Let's see in the last week or so: I've baked a tray of stuffed clams, broiled Japanese Saba fish, and made Cajun jambalaya using frozen green/red peppers, frozen peas, ham and chicken.  I did buy a package of Cajun sausage to kick it up a notch.  Nothing wrong with that, right?

Tonight, I made two more freezer food dishes:

First: What more ways to use the julienned pork? How about stir-frying it with Shiitake mushrooms and wooden ears and half of a can of julienned bamboo.  Add a sauce made of black bean paste, vinegar, rice wine and sugar to incorporate the flavors at the end, and I made my version of 魚香肉絲.  Yes, it was good!!

Second: What to do with bags of frozen veggies ready for steaming?  I thought steaming would be boring.  So, I stir-fried a bag of green beans with garlic, fresh crimini mushroom and half a can of baby corns.  I got a healthy dish and I got to clean out the canned food too.  BONUS POINT!








Mommy notes that I'm getting creative.  I accept the compliment shamelessly because I think I do deserve a pat on the back.  :o)

Bon appetit!

We Are the World

This has been a heart wrenching week watching the events of the disaster in Japan. There is absolutely nothing we can ever plan and prepare for events like this.

When disasters happen, especially the natural ones, it reminds us that it’s not THEY who are suffering; it’s US – all living things on this planet – suffering from something that’s so non-preventable and non-stoppable.

People from around the world are helping out to the extent of their capability. Some donate money and goods; some donate time and expertise, and some put themselves in danger to save others.

The little dog that stood by his injured canine friend shows that all creatures have compassion, loyalty and love for each other. So, treasure our lives, treasure the friendships and treasure the time that we share with each other in this world.


Couple of Ways to Help:

To help humans: www.redcross.org
To help animals: www.hsi.org

The Freezer Find: 榨菜湯麵

I found some pork in the freezer.  I decide to julienne, marinate, and saute it for various use.  You can make many dishes out of the julienned pork.  Julienning is the time consuming part.

As I was julienning the pork, the first thing that came to my mind was to make Pickled Cabbage Noodle Soup (榨菜湯麵).  It's a classic northern Chinese noodle dish. Flavorful topping in a bowl of noodle soup.  Drizzle sesame oil - add a little bit of chili sauce if you like - and you will be on top of the world!!

It's pretty easy to prepare the topping.  Saute ginger, garlic and the pickled cabbage with a little bit dried red pepper.  Season with salt and white pepper.  Add pork, adjust seasoning and let the flavors incorporate.  You can make in bulk and put them in refrigerator for few days.  Just have the broth and noodle handy and you can feed an army.  Bon appetit!

Easy Freezy

Another great freezer food meal tonight!  Today's dishes were either steamed or baked.  Easy to make and easy to clean up.

Steamed vegetable soup.  Napa cabbage, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and ham.  Very simple to make and looked elegant.

I tried out a new recipe for steamed pork with  black "wooden ears".  Definitely a dish that I would make again.  The pork was seasoned with "sa-tay" sauce which was not usually associated with steamed food.  Yeah!  I learn something new everyday!

While two dishes were being steamed on the stove top, two more were being baked in the oven: bacon wrapped scallops and garlic butter escargot.  Yes, they were in the freezer.  Man, why haven't I eaten them earlier?

The giant scallops were from Trader Joe's.  I just wrapped them with bacons and they tasted like a million bucks!  I did not stuff the escargot in the shells.  Instead, I used the two stainless escargot pans that I found at Goodwill last year.  I put the garlic butter on the bottom, add the snails and top with bread crumbs.  Oven at 400.  The scallops in first and 20 minutes later, I popped in the escargot.

There we had it.  Easy and delicious.  I did good again!  :o)

The Freezer Food Combo

Frozen Chicken Breast + Frozen Vegetables + Frozen Pie Shell = Piping Hot Pot Pies. 

Chicken Pot Pies + Salad + Wonton Soup (yes, I found some wontons in the freezer too) = Tonight's Dinner.

Dad and Mom gave me the thumbs up.  Dad asked if I can make one with scallops and shrimps next time. OK, Dad.  I'll check if I have frozen mixed seafood in the freezer.