Take Notes...

I attended a HR seminar today (oh, past midnight, so yesterday) learning how to make business cases for HR projects. It was a very informative session but the biggest take away for me was a quote from Peter Druker.

"Long range planning does not deal with future decisions... but with the future of present decisions."

Simple yet so precise and clear. It helped me frame my thought process and see straight. I just have to share with you.

Want more Peter Drucker? Check this out: Peter Drucker Quotes

NYC: The Good,The Bad & The Ugly

THE UGLY. Hot. Steamy. Sticky. Stuffy. Cloudy and Rainy. Not a very good combo for summer. The humidity is just too much for me. Want a different summer? Come visit San Francisco!

Ladies were all in sun dresses baring shoulders and legs. Funny how everyone (yes, even the guys) was wearing flip-flaps - not the nice ones too. I looked out of place in my loafers.

THE BAD. I had a horrible hotel experience this time. The AC broke down. It would ice up and block the air flow. So, the AC man said to turn it to warm to melt the ice. WHAT? Then from Wednesday night on, there was no hot water - just luke warm - for shower. So, I was cold in the shower, and hot in the room. Well! That was one heck of a way to experience the NY summer.

THE GOOD. I countered the worst with the best. I got to see cousin Ching-Huey and her husband. It has been so long since I last saw her - and this is the first time I met Mr. Chang (and they've been married over 20 years). They drove over from New Jersey last night fighting traffic all the way. I booked a table for dinner at City Crab & Seafood Company. It was a pretty nice restaurant. It happened to be the New York Restaurant Week so we all went for the pre-fix menu. Three of us shared 3 appetizers, 3 main courses and 3 desserts. Oh, yes, we had a oyster platter too. It was heaven!

Seeing my dear cousin made this week all good.

韭菜盒子 (Chive Pockets)

Be Brave. Be Very Brave. I saw a Chinese cooking show on making 韭菜盒子 and it inspired me to give it a try. Of course cooking shows always made cooking look easy and led me to believe that I can cook anything. So I did this morning. Mom and Dad were my food critics. I think they rated me 7 out of 10.

Practice makes perfect. This is what I've learned...

#1. When making dough, need to remember it's STICKY. Make sure to dust flour on hands and the counter first. You don't want to know what happened to me.

#2. Don't chop the chives too finely. Need the texture. Need to be able to taste and smell it.

#3. The filling needs less ground pork and more chive. Oh, don't forget the cellophane noodles! The recipe also called for dried shrimps but I skipped it.

#4. Roll out the dough in a way so it's not too thick and not too thin. Also, should crimp the edge nicely. This is the hardest part for me.

#5. When cooking, the easiest way is to cook them like pot stickers so the outside doesn't dry out. Some oil and water will semi-fry and steam at the same time. Clever!

#6. Voila, my finished product. Looks pretty good huh? Still plenty of room for improvement but I'm happy with my first try.

Note to Self: If fail miserably, there are pre-made ones in the store. Never fear!

I Think Kermit is in My Pond

What Is This? RK called and said he saw a monster in our lilly pond (ok - a 100 gallon plastic tub). It's a 3" something with a tail and 2 legs. It's big and it's ugly!

RK sent over a picture of this monster. He couldn't believe it's a tadpole. It's too big and where did it come from?

I think it's a chubby tadpole becoming a frog. But RK is right, where did it come from? Our tub is tucked away at a corner against the fence. There is not even a tree around. Yes, the swimming pool is near by but it won't bring on frogs let along tadpoles. A tree frog? A toad?? A monster??? By the way, why only one? Aren't tadpoles groupies?

In Our Lilly Pond: We have 20+ some odd happy goldfish, and 4 -6 crawfish that escaped from becoming food (I hope they're still there), but that's about it. Hmmm... just don't eat my fish, ok?

Can someone explain how it might have ended up here?

... and can I kiss the frog?

Hold That Coffee!

THE BEST SMELLING STATION! The smell of freshly brewed coffee permeated the terminal as I ascended from the BART platform. What a wonderful smell especially so early in the morning. The riders are greeted by the great coffee aroma and eyes just open(well, mine anyway). Wow! I thank whoever came up with the idea and I thank whoever approved the idea. This is the best thing that happens to the transit system.

SIP NOT SPILLS. Of course the biggest worry is coffee spills in the trains. Do not fear. A non-spill cap is provided with each cup of coffee according to BART. I am curious to see how it differs from the regular cap. I'll post a picture when I get a chance to buy from the underground Peet's.