Doh, I totally forgot to take pictures...
This Thanksgiving I got to cook a bunch of food and it actually turned out good. Thursday night at my parents' place, I made stuffing from a box (Trader Joe's) and yams. Unfortunately, my mom, dad, and aunt don't like cinnamon. My uncles liked it though.
For the potluck dinner with Lawrence's brother and cousins, I made those yams again, a prime rib roast, butter pecan ice cream, and Indian rice pudding. All of it was delicious! The only thing I would change is paying more attention to the butter I put into the butter pecan ice cream. I totally did not realize the stick butter I bought from Trader Joe's was salted, making my ice cream extra salty.
These are the recipes I used:
Paula Deen's 'Ol No. 7 Yams
Emeril's Prime Rib Roast
Alton Brown's Indian Rice Pudding*
Ben & Jerry's Butter Pecan Ice Cream
*For the rice pudding, I followed the instructions here to make candied pistachios.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Mobile kitty bed
...is what I've become - not that I'm complaining. Who doesn't want a furry feline master who has deigned to make you her resting place?
I wake up at 6am to the pressure of paws kneading my boobies, non-stop. I don't want to disturb her while she's showering me with such affection so I hold still while I try to fall back asleep. What makes it difficult is the weight of her hind legs digging into my bare stomach, a constant reminder of the claws that may unsheathe at any moment.
If I lie on the couch to watch tv, she trots over with a rare single-minded purpose. After kneading my boobies, tummy, then boobies again, she'll slowly curl up on my torso as she blocks the tv I'm trying to watch. I pet her and scratch her behind the ears. The way she closes her eyes makes me smile, until I remember that she may suddenly decide with a quick bite of my hand that she's had enough petting.
If I sit at my computer desk, she'll hop on over and settle into my lap. This can be dangerous because if my thighs are too far apart and she starts to slip, she could bring out those hind claws for support. Once she has fallen asleep, a gentle nudge will not be enough to convince her to get off. I must gently but quickly swoop my hands under her and lift her to the desk before she decides I need a nip of discouragement.
Thus I am Muffin's mobile kitty bed.
I wake up at 6am to the pressure of paws kneading my boobies, non-stop. I don't want to disturb her while she's showering me with such affection so I hold still while I try to fall back asleep. What makes it difficult is the weight of her hind legs digging into my bare stomach, a constant reminder of the claws that may unsheathe at any moment.
If I lie on the couch to watch tv, she trots over with a rare single-minded purpose. After kneading my boobies, tummy, then boobies again, she'll slowly curl up on my torso as she blocks the tv I'm trying to watch. I pet her and scratch her behind the ears. The way she closes her eyes makes me smile, until I remember that she may suddenly decide with a quick bite of my hand that she's had enough petting.
If I sit at my computer desk, she'll hop on over and settle into my lap. This can be dangerous because if my thighs are too far apart and she starts to slip, she could bring out those hind claws for support. Once she has fallen asleep, a gentle nudge will not be enough to convince her to get off. I must gently but quickly swoop my hands under her and lift her to the desk before she decides I need a nip of discouragement.
Thus I am Muffin's mobile kitty bed.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Chaos is contagious
http://scienceblogs.com/notrocketscience/2008/11/the_spread_of_disorder_can_graffiti_promote_littering_and_th.php
This blog entry is about an experiment conducted by Kees Keizer and his colleagues from the University of Groningen. They set up various pairs of situations - one where rules were not being broken, and one where rules were obviously being broken. The first example is of an alley where bikes were parked. The wall had a prominent No Grafitti sign. Flyers for a fictional sportswear shop were attached to each bike. With no grafitti on the wall, 33% littered. When they repeated the situation but with grafitti on the wall, 69% dumped their flyers on the street.
Anecdotally, I'm sure we can recall situations where we've seen this to be true in our daily lives. If either me or Lawrence starts to leave things lying around the apartment, the other has much less incentive to keep things clean.
This blog entry is about an experiment conducted by Kees Keizer and his colleagues from the University of Groningen. They set up various pairs of situations - one where rules were not being broken, and one where rules were obviously being broken. The first example is of an alley where bikes were parked. The wall had a prominent No Grafitti sign. Flyers for a fictional sportswear shop were attached to each bike. With no grafitti on the wall, 33% littered. When they repeated the situation but with grafitti on the wall, 69% dumped their flyers on the street.
Anecdotally, I'm sure we can recall situations where we've seen this to be true in our daily lives. If either me or Lawrence starts to leave things lying around the apartment, the other has much less incentive to keep things clean.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
The Big Bang Theory
I LOVE this show. I spent some time yesterday looking for the season 2 episodes. For some reason the only place I could find ep 1 was on isohunt. I seriously laughed my way through the entire episode! I never realized I was such a geek until I realized Lawrence didn't find the humor as hilariously funny as I did. :< I love that they're in Pasadena too.
Friday, November 7, 2008
The Story of a White House Butler
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/06/AR2008110603948.html?sub=AR&sid=ST2008110604101
This story just about made me cry at the end. :'<
This story just about made me cry at the end. :'<
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
High hopes!
I'm in my third week of seeing Melody (personal trainer) every Monday and Thursday. Last Monday, my 2nd time with kettlebells, we stopped before the last exercise because I was feeling nauseous and light-headed. My vision got all weird and blurry too. It was rather trippy. Since then I've tried to make sure I get some food at least an hour before sessions.
Last Thursday I used sandbags! Melody likes training with the sandbags because they're non-rigid, like a lot of the things we have to carry in life. How often do you have to lift dumbbell-shaped objects on a regular basis? Sandbags, on the other hand, are floppy and their weight shifts so you need to get a good grip on them - like bags of groceries or little kids. This is good because my grip sucks. It was also very satisfying to be able to just drop the sandbag after each exercise. One of the last exercises Melody had me do was a pushup where I was propped up on the sandbags and after pushing myself up I had to lift a small sandbag with one hand. I was soooo weak, she had to switch out the sandbag for a small kettlebell. Even then, I could barely do a few.
I think that was a big indicator of how weak my chest muscles and my core are so Monday this week, she had me do a few pushup-like exercises. One was with 2 barbells laid parallel, where I did a pushup with my hands rested on each barbell. By having my hands on the barbells, I had to work harder at making sure the barbells didn't roll around each time I went up & down. Then I had to do an exercise where I leaned with both hands on a barbell, rolling it out, and then rolling it back. It's difficult because you have to go as low as you can, but be able to stop at the right point so you can roll yourself back up. Then there were situps while holding up a barbell. The most fun was the last exercise with the balance trainer (like an exercise ball cut in half, with a flat base that it rests on) where I hop on with one foot, switch feet, and then hop off the other side.
I can really feel it in my abs after Monday's workout, which is great! I love feeling sore after workouts because that indicates to me that I put effort into exercising. It may hurt, but it hurts SO good. I feel so optimistic about my body now, like I know I can finally lose weight and get fit. The other day I was thinking about taking up a form of martial arts. I've always wanted to do that, but there were a lot of things that held me back. I'm not into contact sports. My brother and my cousins did judo, and that's full on body contact with all the throws and grabs. I didn't have enough self confidence to pursue it because I was afraid I wouldn't be any good at it. The thought of competitions and sparring scared the shit out of me - what if I fail, screw up, or get my ass whooped? How would I be able to think quick enough and respond fast enough to spar with someone?
I think I would much prefer weapon fighting. I always wanted to learn archery (but not of the modern high-tech sort). Sword fighting would be awesome too (but not fencing, and probably not kendo). I'm also interested in staff fighting...I learned a little when I was in junior high actually. It wasn't real fighting, unfortunately. Because my dad knows the Chinese opera crowd, he knew this lady who was opening up a chinese opera/dance school. This lady gave me lessons in certain Chinese opera techniques - which can include acrobatics and choreographed fighting. I learned how to hold my hands in the position that ladies in Chinese opera do, how you're supposed to move gracefully and position your arms in a graceful way, how to maintain all of that while you walk/run in these quick, graceful little steps.
I also learned how to twirl a staff. I could twirl one staff, two staves (one in each hand at the same time), I could twirl one around switching between hands, and I also learned this method of twirling where you hold the staff closer to one end so the uneven weight balance helps you spin it around. The best part was the choreographed staff fighting routine we learned. "We" consisted of me and this other girl who was the daughter of one of the ladies who sang Chinese opera with my dad. We would attack, block, do sweeps, jump, spin around, it was awesome! Well, that sounds more crazy than it actually was...I don't think we were so energetic, but still...there was potential. :D
I wish I could find some place to learn weapon fighting, but I think you need to learn basic martial arts first.
Last Thursday I used sandbags! Melody likes training with the sandbags because they're non-rigid, like a lot of the things we have to carry in life. How often do you have to lift dumbbell-shaped objects on a regular basis? Sandbags, on the other hand, are floppy and their weight shifts so you need to get a good grip on them - like bags of groceries or little kids. This is good because my grip sucks. It was also very satisfying to be able to just drop the sandbag after each exercise. One of the last exercises Melody had me do was a pushup where I was propped up on the sandbags and after pushing myself up I had to lift a small sandbag with one hand. I was soooo weak, she had to switch out the sandbag for a small kettlebell. Even then, I could barely do a few.
I think that was a big indicator of how weak my chest muscles and my core are so Monday this week, she had me do a few pushup-like exercises. One was with 2 barbells laid parallel, where I did a pushup with my hands rested on each barbell. By having my hands on the barbells, I had to work harder at making sure the barbells didn't roll around each time I went up & down. Then I had to do an exercise where I leaned with both hands on a barbell, rolling it out, and then rolling it back. It's difficult because you have to go as low as you can, but be able to stop at the right point so you can roll yourself back up. Then there were situps while holding up a barbell. The most fun was the last exercise with the balance trainer (like an exercise ball cut in half, with a flat base that it rests on) where I hop on with one foot, switch feet, and then hop off the other side.
I can really feel it in my abs after Monday's workout, which is great! I love feeling sore after workouts because that indicates to me that I put effort into exercising. It may hurt, but it hurts SO good. I feel so optimistic about my body now, like I know I can finally lose weight and get fit. The other day I was thinking about taking up a form of martial arts. I've always wanted to do that, but there were a lot of things that held me back. I'm not into contact sports. My brother and my cousins did judo, and that's full on body contact with all the throws and grabs. I didn't have enough self confidence to pursue it because I was afraid I wouldn't be any good at it. The thought of competitions and sparring scared the shit out of me - what if I fail, screw up, or get my ass whooped? How would I be able to think quick enough and respond fast enough to spar with someone?
I think I would much prefer weapon fighting. I always wanted to learn archery (but not of the modern high-tech sort). Sword fighting would be awesome too (but not fencing, and probably not kendo). I'm also interested in staff fighting...I learned a little when I was in junior high actually. It wasn't real fighting, unfortunately. Because my dad knows the Chinese opera crowd, he knew this lady who was opening up a chinese opera/dance school. This lady gave me lessons in certain Chinese opera techniques - which can include acrobatics and choreographed fighting. I learned how to hold my hands in the position that ladies in Chinese opera do, how you're supposed to move gracefully and position your arms in a graceful way, how to maintain all of that while you walk/run in these quick, graceful little steps.
I also learned how to twirl a staff. I could twirl one staff, two staves (one in each hand at the same time), I could twirl one around switching between hands, and I also learned this method of twirling where you hold the staff closer to one end so the uneven weight balance helps you spin it around. The best part was the choreographed staff fighting routine we learned. "We" consisted of me and this other girl who was the daughter of one of the ladies who sang Chinese opera with my dad. We would attack, block, do sweeps, jump, spin around, it was awesome! Well, that sounds more crazy than it actually was...I don't think we were so energetic, but still...there was potential. :D
I wish I could find some place to learn weapon fighting, but I think you need to learn basic martial arts first.
Friday, October 24, 2008
No on Prop 8
The latest polls are discouraging. I donated $100 to Equality for All today. NO on Prop 8!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Kettlebells
I used kettlebells for the first time yesterday. It took a little bit a coordination effort, but they're pretty fun! Haha, I say that now but I know I'm going to complain about them eventually. I used the 18 lb. weights and mostly swung them around. My forearm is majorly sore today, and I can feel my thighs a bit, but I just tell myself this is nothing compared to that first day of Track & Field practice in my high school freshman year. Now, that was killer. Next session will be Monday at the gym. I feel like I should do some running on my non-training days but so far I've been preoccupied with other things - Tuesday night was knitting night, Wednesday night was dinner with my parents. Perhaps this weekend? It would be good to do something since I don't particularly feel like completely changing my diet right now.
In other news, Lawrence bought me shoes off of Zappos. We finally went to DSW last night to return these 2 shoes I bought that turned out to not fit me. I got store credit for them but we couldn't find anything decent to buy because I've got wide hobbit feet. At home, he wanted me to look at Zappos for shoes but apparently my taste sucks. He decided on this one and promptly ordered it. We'll see how it turns out.
After that I kind of wanted to get cool earrings. I looked for stuff on etsy today. I haven't found something that I really wanted, but I did find some very interesting looking pieces. I'll post them when I get home.
In other news, Lawrence bought me shoes off of Zappos. We finally went to DSW last night to return these 2 shoes I bought that turned out to not fit me. I got store credit for them but we couldn't find anything decent to buy because I've got wide hobbit feet. At home, he wanted me to look at Zappos for shoes but apparently my taste sucks. He decided on this one and promptly ordered it. We'll see how it turns out.
After that I kind of wanted to get cool earrings. I looked for stuff on etsy today. I haven't found something that I really wanted, but I did find some very interesting looking pieces. I'll post them when I get home.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Personal Trainer
A week ago I decided I would suck up the cost and hire a personal trainer. Sarah, who is Lawrence's boss' girlfriend, hired a personal trainer about a month ago and he says that he has definitely noticed a difference. I should have done this 2 months ago, hell probably in January when I saw flyers for personal trainers left in our building's gym. Better late than never, and maybe in a month I'll be able to see enough of a difference to look decently good for Caroline's wedding.
Lawrence helped me look on Yelp, and the girl we found sounded really good - Melody Schoenfeld (her Yelp reviews). I went in on Sunday morning for an assessment, where I let her know what I wanted to work on and where she gauged where my weak areas were. She has a pack of kitties at her house (squee!). The toughest thing she had me do was to see how many pushups I could do. She's also got a ridiculous sense of humor and I collapsed after she made me laugh so much I couldn't lift myself back up. She's a sharp lady, and I could tell her mind moves very quickly - she talks fast. After the assessment I scheduled my first session with her for the next day, Monday. Luckily I had the day off because it was a holiday so I had the entire day to lounge around and get myself mentally ready to get my butt kicked.
My first session with Melody was at the gym. It's actually a kickboxing gym, but they have a weight training room that she uses for her training sessions. She recommended I start with half hour sessions because people have a difficult time lasting the entire hour, especially at the first session. I didn't realize how true that would be (sometimes I get a "toughing it out" complex whereI have to do things the hard way to show I can tough it out). She took out a cord and looped it over the top of the Smith machine so the two ends dangled near the ground. At each end were handles. These weight training exercises were much more involved than just lifting weights. They were like, full body weight training but with no weights involved - just gravity and my own body weight. Making the exercise more easy or difficult depended on the angle at which I lean to do the exercise, making it quite easy to adjust the difficulty.
Each exercise was 15 reps if I could make it, and 10 if I absolutely couldn't and man...after 20 minutes I was light headed and feeling ready to throw up! At the end, we had a few minutes left and Melody helped me work out a few kinks in my back. It felt very nice and by the time I left, I felt both tired and energized. Thursday, I'm going back to her house for more!
Edit: The soreness has started to kick in. I may not be able to move by this time tomorrow...luckily knitting only takes wrist motion. I may do some stretches tonight for damage control. I want to be able to get to work tomorrow.
Lawrence helped me look on Yelp, and the girl we found sounded really good - Melody Schoenfeld (her Yelp reviews). I went in on Sunday morning for an assessment, where I let her know what I wanted to work on and where she gauged where my weak areas were. She has a pack of kitties at her house (squee!). The toughest thing she had me do was to see how many pushups I could do. She's also got a ridiculous sense of humor and I collapsed after she made me laugh so much I couldn't lift myself back up. She's a sharp lady, and I could tell her mind moves very quickly - she talks fast. After the assessment I scheduled my first session with her for the next day, Monday. Luckily I had the day off because it was a holiday so I had the entire day to lounge around and get myself mentally ready to get my butt kicked.
My first session with Melody was at the gym. It's actually a kickboxing gym, but they have a weight training room that she uses for her training sessions. She recommended I start with half hour sessions because people have a difficult time lasting the entire hour, especially at the first session. I didn't realize how true that would be (sometimes I get a "toughing it out" complex whereI have to do things the hard way to show I can tough it out). She took out a cord and looped it over the top of the Smith machine so the two ends dangled near the ground. At each end were handles. These weight training exercises were much more involved than just lifting weights. They were like, full body weight training but with no weights involved - just gravity and my own body weight. Making the exercise more easy or difficult depended on the angle at which I lean to do the exercise, making it quite easy to adjust the difficulty.
Each exercise was 15 reps if I could make it, and 10 if I absolutely couldn't and man...after 20 minutes I was light headed and feeling ready to throw up! At the end, we had a few minutes left and Melody helped me work out a few kinks in my back. It felt very nice and by the time I left, I felt both tired and energized. Thursday, I'm going back to her house for more!
Edit: The soreness has started to kick in. I may not be able to move by this time tomorrow...luckily knitting only takes wrist motion. I may do some stretches tonight for damage control. I want to be able to get to work tomorrow.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Butternut Squash Risotto and Bailey's Irish Cream Truffles
Last week I really felt like cooking. I think it was when Lawrence and I went with Ally to the Italian restaurant, Lago, at the Promenade in Santa Monica. They have a dish called "Risotto di Zucca e Capesante," which is risotto with butternut squash with seared scallops and a balsamic glaze.
I wanted to make a butternut squash risotto dish so I Googled it and found this: Butternut Squash Risotto.
With guests coming on Sunday (Lawrence's cousins), I also wanted to make a small dessert item for them. I decided on Bailey's Irish Cream Truffles because I had made them several years ago with the Shoujo Club girls at Berkeley.
I spent Saturday afternoon cooking...and it actually turned out fairly well! Lawrence only had a spoonful but he said it was only "okay." :( I packed some for his lunch on Monday and when he came home he said that it was surprisingly good! I guess he didn't get a good taste the first time, but when he sat down and ate it he was able to enjoy it.
The truffles turned out okay even though I totally screwed up. It was only after I put the truffle ganache in the fridge to harden that I realized I forgot to put in the Bailey's. I was following the truffle recipe on Cooking for Engineers, but that was just a normal truffle recipe. I added cinnamon to the cocoa powder and powdered sugar used to coat the truffles so they would have some additional flavor.
The texture of the risotto after being in the fridge for a few days reminds me of a Chinese dish that I think is literally translated as "vegetable rice". It's been so long since I've had it but I think it had some leafy sort of vegetable mixed with glutinous rice and chunks of yam. I'll have to ask my mom about it. Yesterday night I bought some baby bok choy to add to the risotto leftovers so that there's more veggie content and to break up the thick texture so it won't be so buttery and heavy.
I wanted to make a butternut squash risotto dish so I Googled it and found this: Butternut Squash Risotto.
With guests coming on Sunday (Lawrence's cousins), I also wanted to make a small dessert item for them. I decided on Bailey's Irish Cream Truffles because I had made them several years ago with the Shoujo Club girls at Berkeley.
I spent Saturday afternoon cooking...and it actually turned out fairly well! Lawrence only had a spoonful but he said it was only "okay." :( I packed some for his lunch on Monday and when he came home he said that it was surprisingly good! I guess he didn't get a good taste the first time, but when he sat down and ate it he was able to enjoy it.
The truffles turned out okay even though I totally screwed up. It was only after I put the truffle ganache in the fridge to harden that I realized I forgot to put in the Bailey's. I was following the truffle recipe on Cooking for Engineers, but that was just a normal truffle recipe. I added cinnamon to the cocoa powder and powdered sugar used to coat the truffles so they would have some additional flavor.
The texture of the risotto after being in the fridge for a few days reminds me of a Chinese dish that I think is literally translated as "vegetable rice". It's been so long since I've had it but I think it had some leafy sort of vegetable mixed with glutinous rice and chunks of yam. I'll have to ask my mom about it. Yesterday night I bought some baby bok choy to add to the risotto leftovers so that there's more veggie content and to break up the thick texture so it won't be so buttery and heavy.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Korean BBQ
This weekend we went to not 1, but 2 new Korean BBQ places! The first one we went to on Friday night was Park's BBQ. We went there with Ally and ordered 3 plates of beef...the Kobe beef, the Galbi, and the Bulgogi. It was expensive, but delicious meat. They gave nice side dishes [banchan] too, Ally loved the several types of kimchee, and Lawrence enjoyed the raw crabs. We had to wait a while, but it was not overly smoky. They didn't have all-you-can-eat, and the waitress cooked the meat on your grill for you. The portions were pretty good. We didn't get overly stuffed which is a nice change.
Sunday night we went with Phillip to Soot Bull Guirim II. The wait wasn't too long, but the place was smoky as hell! I think it was a combination of their vents not working and the cooking generating massive amounts of smoke, because at Park's we didn't have nearly as much smoke coming off the grill. I liked the style of Korean BBQ there better - they give you salad and rice paper there. In addition to the bean paste, they also gave a spicy sauce. The combination of bbq meat with seasoned lettuce, bean paste, spicy sauce, the sesame oil/salt dip, grilled slices of garlic, all wrapped up in a sheet of rice paper...was so good! The food is all-you-can-eat. You get to order 1 meat per person at a time. They were pretty good about asking us what we wanted as soon as we finished off our plates of meat. After the initial large plateful, the portions got a little smaller. We joked about it but agreed that it was a good idea. We didn't get overly stuffed here either, even for being an AYCE bbq place.
Sunday night we went with Phillip to Soot Bull Guirim II. The wait wasn't too long, but the place was smoky as hell! I think it was a combination of their vents not working and the cooking generating massive amounts of smoke, because at Park's we didn't have nearly as much smoke coming off the grill. I liked the style of Korean BBQ there better - they give you salad and rice paper there. In addition to the bean paste, they also gave a spicy sauce. The combination of bbq meat with seasoned lettuce, bean paste, spicy sauce, the sesame oil/salt dip, grilled slices of garlic, all wrapped up in a sheet of rice paper...was so good! The food is all-you-can-eat. You get to order 1 meat per person at a time. They were pretty good about asking us what we wanted as soon as we finished off our plates of meat. After the initial large plateful, the portions got a little smaller. We joked about it but agreed that it was a good idea. We didn't get overly stuffed here either, even for being an AYCE bbq place.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Inner Turmoil
I feel so conflicted. There are so many things happening at once!
First, I find out I have to give up my cat. Then, I decide to hire a personal trainer to get my butt in shape. Finally, there's a chocolate fair this weekend that I'm excited about!
I hope Xin takes Muffin. I don't think my parents will, and if she goes to a stranger I'll never see her again. :(
First, I find out I have to give up my cat. Then, I decide to hire a personal trainer to get my butt in shape. Finally, there's a chocolate fair this weekend that I'm excited about!
I hope Xin takes Muffin. I don't think my parents will, and if she goes to a stranger I'll never see her again. :(
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Debating against Sarah Palin
Opinion piece: What it's Like to Debate Sarah Palin
The author ran for governor of Alaska as an Independent in 2006, debating Sarah Palin over 2 dozen times. He talks about her style and how she doesn't need to know anything or answer any questions to win the debates. She's a master of redirection and charm without directly answering anything. We've seen this over and over again the few times she has been in the national spotlight. Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric had to repeat their questions for her to clarify things, over and over, and she still never gave satisfactory answers. In the 2nd interview with Katie Couric, her only [repeated] answer to the question of what newspapers and magazines she reads for her news, she replies...ALL of them. When asked about whether or not she supports abortion for rape and incest victims, and then whether or not she supports the morning-after pill...she keeps on dancing around the question. O____o More "WTF..." when you read the transcripts:
Condensed article.
Unedited transcript of the portions broadcast.
The author ran for governor of Alaska as an Independent in 2006, debating Sarah Palin over 2 dozen times. He talks about her style and how she doesn't need to know anything or answer any questions to win the debates. She's a master of redirection and charm without directly answering anything. We've seen this over and over again the few times she has been in the national spotlight. Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric had to repeat their questions for her to clarify things, over and over, and she still never gave satisfactory answers. In the 2nd interview with Katie Couric, her only [repeated] answer to the question of what newspapers and magazines she reads for her news, she replies...ALL of them. When asked about whether or not she supports abortion for rape and incest victims, and then whether or not she supports the morning-after pill...she keeps on dancing around the question. O____o More "WTF..." when you read the transcripts:
Condensed article.
Unedited transcript of the portions broadcast.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
LA Chocolate Salon
http://www.lachocolatesalon.com/
A frickin' gourmet chocolate fair...I need to find someone to go with me!!
OMG, I just looked at where it's being held....HAH, at the Pasadena Convention Center!!! That's across the street from my apartment, literally, physically, across the street from me. MMMMM, chocolate....GOURMET, ARTISAN chocolate!!!
A frickin' gourmet chocolate fair...I need to find someone to go with me!!
OMG, I just looked at where it's being held....HAH, at the Pasadena Convention Center!!! That's across the street from my apartment, literally, physically, across the street from me. MMMMM, chocolate....GOURMET, ARTISAN chocolate!!!
Avatar, the Last Air Bender
In my most elitist voice possible, I told myself I wouldn't watch this cartoon, this American imitation of anime... But I've heard too many good things about it from people to resist. The epic nature of the story and the integration of magic into the world were also very appealing.
It definitely exceeded my expectations and is a very fun anime to watch! I love the background music they use, and it's interesting how they integrate a myriad of Asian cultures into the cultures of the Avatar world. I'm on episode 310 and will probably finish by the end of this week. :) I'll probably end up trying to integrate some of the symbols into my knitting. XD
It definitely exceeded my expectations and is a very fun anime to watch! I love the background music they use, and it's interesting how they integrate a myriad of Asian cultures into the cultures of the Avatar world. I'm on episode 310 and will probably finish by the end of this week. :) I'll probably end up trying to integrate some of the symbols into my knitting. XD
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Figs & Pluots
On Friday, I went to the Farmer's Market in downtown LA with some of my coworkers. I bought some pluots and a basket of figs. Even though we have farmer's markets downtown nearly every day of the week, I rarely actually by produce there. These fruits though...they're soooo good! I should have started buying fruits there a long time ago.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
my kitteh is teh awesome!!11!
She is being much more social now. She'll run around and explore the apartment, jumping up onto things and rubbing everything. She'll rarely run under the bed, and when she does, she comes right back out. Right this moment, she is sprawled on our rug, sitting on a plastic bag, licking herself. Before, she avoided stepping on the rug. It's funny, but she really likes the plastic bag. She deliberately sits on it. It also seems like she has certain modes. Sometimes she's in a very determined "I must mark everything with my scent"-mode where any attempt at engaging is completely ignored. Sometimes she's in a "Oh YEAH, rub me there, that feels sooo good"-mode where she closes her eyes and lets you know where you need to rub her.
Cat!
Cat! Cat! I got a kitty cat!
My aunt's friend was going to get rid of her because after she had a baby the cat would pee on the baby's things. My aunt couldn't bear to let her friend take the less than 1 year old kitten to the pound where it could be put down in a couple days.
Unfortunately my aunt Jennifer already had a cat - a very territorial and aggressive cat who would chase the new kitten until the kitten would constantly hide under the bed. Whenever my aunt left her apartment, she had to keep the kitten in her son Hauson's room so that the other cat would not be able to chase her around. She asked if I would take the kitty so that it could live in a better environment. I was ecstatic but I knew it wasn't only my decision to make. To my surprise, Lawrence agreed! :D Granted, we have her for 2 weeks as a trial period. At the end of 2 weeks, we (Lawrence) may decide not to keep her.
Yesterday we brought her home to our apartment. While we were bringing up her stuff from my aunt's car, we let her loose in the apartment. After we brought everything in, we started looking for her and she was nowhere to be found. We looked in all the closets, under the bed, under the couch, we were seriously starting to get scared. I even walked down the hallway in case she got loose without us noticing. Nowhere. I tried to stay optimistic and decided to clean up stuff a bit in the hopes of finding her behind something. I tried to pick up a plastic bag that had a towel in it...and lo and behold...the kitty was hiding in the bag, underneath the towel. :)
After finding her, she left her bag to find a new hiding place. Eventually she settled on the space underneath our bed, in the process picking up all the dust and hair that had accumulated there. It was impossible to get her to come out from under the bed so Lawrence took a nap and I worked on the computer. Eventually though, she came out on her own....only to run and hide in the closet. Luckily she's easier to reach in the closet than under the bed, so I picked her up and put her in the bathroom. Apparently cats need a safe secluded place when they move to a new place, so I put her travel carrier in the bathroom and urged her into it.
We picked up Phillip and went out for dinner. We also stopped by Petco to get some things for the cat - a poop scooper, some canned cat food, some cat treats, and some catnip. When we got home, we all crowded into the bathroom to play with the kitty but none of those things had any effect. She ignored everything! Maybe she still needed to settle in? By the end of the night however, she seemed much more at home. She would still try to get under the bed (we blocked it off) and into the closet (we closed the closet door). She would jump up onto the bed and she even sat on Lawrence's chest.
Early in the morning, I grogily woke to see her sleeping with us on the bed. When I actually got up to get ready for work, she was gone. I found that part of our barricade to the space under the bed was disturbed and I could hear her little bell tinkling under the bed. I wonder if she's running under there because she still feels insecure in our apartment, or does she just need a safe dark place? Is she still traumatized from the other cat chasing her around? I hope she will eventually stay out in the open and we will not need the barricades.
My aunt's friend was going to get rid of her because after she had a baby the cat would pee on the baby's things. My aunt couldn't bear to let her friend take the less than 1 year old kitten to the pound where it could be put down in a couple days.Unfortunately my aunt Jennifer already had a cat - a very territorial and aggressive cat who would chase the new kitten until the kitten would constantly hide under the bed. Whenever my aunt left her apartment, she had to keep the kitten in her son Hauson's room so that the other cat would not be able to chase her around. She asked if I would take the kitty so that it could live in a better environment. I was ecstatic but I knew it wasn't only my decision to make. To my surprise, Lawrence agreed! :D Granted, we have her for 2 weeks as a trial period. At the end of 2 weeks, we (Lawrence) may decide not to keep her.
Yesterday we brought her home to our apartment. While we were bringing up her stuff from my aunt's car, we let her loose in the apartment. After we brought everything in, we started looking for her and she was nowhere to be found. We looked in all the closets, under the bed, under the couch, we were seriously starting to get scared. I even walked down the hallway in case she got loose without us noticing. Nowhere. I tried to stay optimistic and decided to clean up stuff a bit in the hopes of finding her behind something. I tried to pick up a plastic bag that had a towel in it...and lo and behold...the kitty was hiding in the bag, underneath the towel. :)
After finding her, she left her bag to find a new hiding place. Eventually she settled on the space underneath our bed, in the process picking up all the dust and hair that had accumulated there. It was impossible to get her to come out from under the bed so Lawrence took a nap and I worked on the computer. Eventually though, she came out on her own....only to run and hide in the closet. Luckily she's easier to reach in the closet than under the bed, so I picked her up and put her in the bathroom. Apparently cats need a safe secluded place when they move to a new place, so I put her travel carrier in the bathroom and urged her into it.
We picked up Phillip and went out for dinner. We also stopped by Petco to get some things for the cat - a poop scooper, some canned cat food, some cat treats, and some catnip. When we got home, we all crowded into the bathroom to play with the kitty but none of those things had any effect. She ignored everything! Maybe she still needed to settle in? By the end of the night however, she seemed much more at home. She would still try to get under the bed (we blocked it off) and into the closet (we closed the closet door). She would jump up onto the bed and she even sat on Lawrence's chest.
Early in the morning, I grogily woke to see her sleeping with us on the bed. When I actually got up to get ready for work, she was gone. I found that part of our barricade to the space under the bed was disturbed and I could hear her little bell tinkling under the bed. I wonder if she's running under there because she still feels insecure in our apartment, or does she just need a safe dark place? Is she still traumatized from the other cat chasing her around? I hope she will eventually stay out in the open and we will not need the barricades.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
DDR
Caroline & Carmel's wedding is going to be in November. I need to lose weight because she asked me to be a bridesmaid and I don't want to be embarrassed standing up there in front of Lawrence's entire family. O_o
Part of my exercising regimen will be playing DDR. I work up a really good sweat and get super tired playing for 1 hr. It's perfect as cardio because each song is roughly 2-3 minutes long, and you get a short break in between to catch your breath (or you can play nonstop mode and play through 3-8 songs with NO break in between). If you get better at the songs, you can increase your intensity by playing harder songs, or playing the songs on "Heavy" instead of "Standard". If even heavy gets too easy for you, Stepmania lets you choose a setting that will automatically insert additional steps to make it SUPER hard for you.
Playing DDR also involves a lot of different skills. You need to concentrate, for one thing. Every time my mind wanders, I know instantly because I start missing steps. On the hard songs, it is essential that you read ahead so you know what's coming up, even while your feet are pressing arrows for the current steps. You need to be able to strategize and plan which foot to use so that further down your feet will be in the proper position to press a different series of arrows. Some songs require you to focus on a complicated beat. Some songs have a lot of back and forth footwork that really tires your calves. Some songs have a lot of jumping for the double-arrow-presses, and that can really tire your thighs.
I love the dance and trance/techno songs. In fact, looking up some of the artists led me to find more songs to put in my mp3 collection. Here are the trance songs I play as a nonstop course (Trancendence from DDR Max 2 for PS2):
i feel... [Akira Yamaoka]
Tomorrow Perfume [DJ Taka]
The Shining Polaris [L.E.D. feat. Sana]
Drifting Away [Lange feat. Skye]
Will I [Ian Van Dahl]
Heaven [DJ Sammy]
Ghosts (Vincent de Moor Original Mix) [Tenth Planet]
Take Me Away (Into the Night) [4 Strings]
So Deep (Perfect Sphere Remix) [Silvertear]
Lovin' You (Rob Searle Club Mix) [Vinyl Baby]
Part of my exercising regimen will be playing DDR. I work up a really good sweat and get super tired playing for 1 hr. It's perfect as cardio because each song is roughly 2-3 minutes long, and you get a short break in between to catch your breath (or you can play nonstop mode and play through 3-8 songs with NO break in between). If you get better at the songs, you can increase your intensity by playing harder songs, or playing the songs on "Heavy" instead of "Standard". If even heavy gets too easy for you, Stepmania lets you choose a setting that will automatically insert additional steps to make it SUPER hard for you.
Playing DDR also involves a lot of different skills. You need to concentrate, for one thing. Every time my mind wanders, I know instantly because I start missing steps. On the hard songs, it is essential that you read ahead so you know what's coming up, even while your feet are pressing arrows for the current steps. You need to be able to strategize and plan which foot to use so that further down your feet will be in the proper position to press a different series of arrows. Some songs require you to focus on a complicated beat. Some songs have a lot of back and forth footwork that really tires your calves. Some songs have a lot of jumping for the double-arrow-presses, and that can really tire your thighs.
I love the dance and trance/techno songs. In fact, looking up some of the artists led me to find more songs to put in my mp3 collection. Here are the trance songs I play as a nonstop course (Trancendence from DDR Max 2 for PS2):
i feel... [Akira Yamaoka]
Tomorrow Perfume [DJ Taka]
The Shining Polaris [L.E.D. feat. Sana]
Drifting Away [Lange feat. Skye]
Will I [Ian Van Dahl]
Heaven [DJ Sammy]
Ghosts (Vincent de Moor Original Mix) [Tenth Planet]
Take Me Away (Into the Night) [4 Strings]
So Deep (Perfect Sphere Remix) [Silvertear]
Lovin' You (Rob Searle Club Mix) [Vinyl Baby]
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
attencion deficit
I'm beginning to feel disappointed in myself. I've read about others noticing the phenomenon as well. I feel like I've got an inability to pay attention to just one thing for large amounts of time. I try to read articles, and if they're too long I feel like I shouldn't bother. I need to force myself to read to the end. I want to pick up some good science fiction or fantasy books to read, but the thought of spending all that time reading when I could be knitting or on the internet makes me avoid books. I haven't even read the last Harry Potter book yet! I haven't read the 6th of Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel books either! Is this a result of my knitting obsession, or is it the internet? Perhaps it started with World of Warcraft. Maybe I'm just not in a reading mood, and I'll just have to wait until my interests cycle back to reading again.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
filming
The interesting thing about working in downtown LA is that they're always filming something. On my way back from lunch today, I watched for a few minutes as they filmed a CSI:NY scene outside my building. I don't watch CSI, so to me it would have been way more cool if they were filming something like Law & Order SVU, but it's still neat.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Busy weekend
Saturday my aunt came over to Pasadena and although I thought her purpose was for me to teach her how to crochet so we could finally get started on that Hawaiian Motif Purse from Nexstitch, apparently she wanted to get some errands out of the way too. We went to the bank, we had lunch, she took a shower at my apartment, and then we had less than an hour for me to teach her the basics of crochet.
I didn't even get to start her on the purse before we had to leave to get her son a haircut. I was going to teach her more while we waited, but then I had to mention how much I've been wanting that sweet Vietnamese dessert concoction known as che. So we drove to this great Vietnamese bakery that had che. By the time we got back to the hair salon, the haircutting was done and it was time to drive to Covina so she could go to her mah jong game and I could take her son to the movies. After the movie I went to my parents' house. My aunt and uncle were there too, and after we went out for dinner, I spent the night helping my uncle proofread his resume.
Sunday we had to go to the Rose Hills Memorial Park. This weekend was apparently an Asian grave-cleaning holiday. We brought food to my grandparents' grave, then had our own little picnic lunch there (as did SO many other Asian people there that day). Then the Buddhist Hsi-Lai temple held a service at Sky Rose Chapel. It lasted from 1-6pm, but luckily we left after the first third of the session. There's only so much incense and chanting of "na mo ah mi to fo" I can take.
Afterwards, Lawrence picked me up and we went to the Arcadia mall with his cousin Phillip. We walked around a bit and then we watched the movie, 21. It was an interesting movie, not bad. The next day was my RDO, and Lawrence was supposed to have the day off but he had to go in to work because one of his clients was coming in. Luckily he got to leave early. We then went to Arcadia again with Phillip. We had lunch at Genki Living, this interesting little Japanese dessert shop that looks like the sidewalk of a busy street in Japan. Yeah, you gotta see it. They serve Japanese crepes and okonomiyaki! The okonomiyaki was the one reason I HAD to go.
We then went to the Au 79 cafe with cousins Carmel and Caroline for some Big 2 action. They played till 10:30pm, and then it was time for us to go home. Next weekend is going to be busy too. Saturday afternoon is my cousin Audrey's marriage celebration in Malibu. Sunday is Hauson's birthday.
OMGZ I need to get my taxes done.
I didn't even get to start her on the purse before we had to leave to get her son a haircut. I was going to teach her more while we waited, but then I had to mention how much I've been wanting that sweet Vietnamese dessert concoction known as che. So we drove to this great Vietnamese bakery that had che. By the time we got back to the hair salon, the haircutting was done and it was time to drive to Covina so she could go to her mah jong game and I could take her son to the movies. After the movie I went to my parents' house. My aunt and uncle were there too, and after we went out for dinner, I spent the night helping my uncle proofread his resume.
Sunday we had to go to the Rose Hills Memorial Park. This weekend was apparently an Asian grave-cleaning holiday. We brought food to my grandparents' grave, then had our own little picnic lunch there (as did SO many other Asian people there that day). Then the Buddhist Hsi-Lai temple held a service at Sky Rose Chapel. It lasted from 1-6pm, but luckily we left after the first third of the session. There's only so much incense and chanting of "na mo ah mi to fo" I can take.
Afterwards, Lawrence picked me up and we went to the Arcadia mall with his cousin Phillip. We walked around a bit and then we watched the movie, 21. It was an interesting movie, not bad. The next day was my RDO, and Lawrence was supposed to have the day off but he had to go in to work because one of his clients was coming in. Luckily he got to leave early. We then went to Arcadia again with Phillip. We had lunch at Genki Living, this interesting little Japanese dessert shop that looks like the sidewalk of a busy street in Japan. Yeah, you gotta see it. They serve Japanese crepes and okonomiyaki! The okonomiyaki was the one reason I HAD to go.
We then went to the Au 79 cafe with cousins Carmel and Caroline for some Big 2 action. They played till 10:30pm, and then it was time for us to go home. Next weekend is going to be busy too. Saturday afternoon is my cousin Audrey's marriage celebration in Malibu. Sunday is Hauson's birthday.
OMGZ I need to get my taxes done.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Little Tokyo Farmer's Market
It's not really in Little Tokyo. It's in the grassy area in front of the City Hall, which is almost at the border between the Civic Center and Little Tokyo. Close enough for those who name these things, I guess. I've been wanting to go here for lunch. We always pass through when on Thursdays we go to Little Tokyo for lunch. The aroma of the food as we walked through was always so tantalizingly good!
Last Friday I looked up LA area Farmer's Markets and saw that there was one at 7th & Figueroa on Fridays. My coworker and I go there, and we find that it's only 1-2 stalls selling kettle corn and nuts. I was very disappointed. :x Today, I made sure to not bring my lunch and we went to the Little Tokyo Farmer's Market. Now this was a Farmer's Market! They put out tables and chairs for people to eat at. There was live jazz music, lots of fresh fruit & vegetable stalls, and lots of ready to eat food.
Today we tried the Salvadorean stall, with their fresh-made papusas. I had a cheese & pork papusa, and a cheese, beef, and potato papusa. The combo came with grilled plantain slices and horchata. Yumm! I didn't pay attention to their preparation when giving me the papusa, but I have a feeling it wasn't freshly off the grill. :( The line gets really long so I'm guessing they have them pre-made and just heat them up before they serve them to you, at least at the beginning. Next time, it may be worth going to when the line is really long to get a really fresh papusa!
There's also Hawaiian grilled meat, Meditteranean style grilled kabobs, gourmet sausage/hot dogs, grilled corn and potatoes, kettle corn, cobblers, honey, honeyed nuts, cookies, baked goods.
Last Friday I looked up LA area Farmer's Markets and saw that there was one at 7th & Figueroa on Fridays. My coworker and I go there, and we find that it's only 1-2 stalls selling kettle corn and nuts. I was very disappointed. :x Today, I made sure to not bring my lunch and we went to the Little Tokyo Farmer's Market. Now this was a Farmer's Market! They put out tables and chairs for people to eat at. There was live jazz music, lots of fresh fruit & vegetable stalls, and lots of ready to eat food.
Today we tried the Salvadorean stall, with their fresh-made papusas. I had a cheese & pork papusa, and a cheese, beef, and potato papusa. The combo came with grilled plantain slices and horchata. Yumm! I didn't pay attention to their preparation when giving me the papusa, but I have a feeling it wasn't freshly off the grill. :( The line gets really long so I'm guessing they have them pre-made and just heat them up before they serve them to you, at least at the beginning. Next time, it may be worth going to when the line is really long to get a really fresh papusa!
There's also Hawaiian grilled meat, Meditteranean style grilled kabobs, gourmet sausage/hot dogs, grilled corn and potatoes, kettle corn, cobblers, honey, honeyed nuts, cookies, baked goods.
Maison Akira
I've been wanting to go to Maison Akira for several weeks now. I read about them on Yelp and various other places, and it sounded like a very unique place. The chef is Japanese and specializes in French food. I think they serve mostly French-style food with a Japanese touch. They've also got a Sunday brunch buffet that's supposed to be very good quality food.
Well, after going to Gyu-Kaku last Saturday night (where upon talking about Maison Akira, our server piped up with his enthusiastic recommendation of the food there), we went to Maison Akira Sunday morning for the brunch buffet.
The restaurant is located off the main street of Colorado. It's not in the middle of the street action, being that it's on Green St., maybe halfway between my apartment and Lake Ave. The area is very nice...brick buildings and shady trees line the street. Entering the restaurant, I was struck by the unique layout. The dining area(s) were split up into little room-like sections. Curtains hung up on the walls, and some walls were mirrors, giving the place the feel a French parlor.
The buffet itself was placed in a long narrow section at the 'front' of the restaurant. The corridor would have been rather uncomfortably small if more than a handful of people went up to the buffet at a time. At one end of the buffet were desserts. At the other end was a carving station where at times the chef himself would carve you meat. They served prime rib and lamb, each with their own sauces. There were creamy potatoes au gratin, a corn potage kind of soup, deviled eggs, a selection of cheeses and crackers...also pieces of nigiri sushi, some rolls, cold soba, salmon, steamed egg with crab meat, and various small bite-sized finger foods that were delish!
When you first see the buffet, you may be rather underwhelmed by the quantities. "I'm paying $36 for this?!" Then you try the food, and you realize it's about quality rather than quantity. "Do I really need to stuff myself to the point of falling over?" You realize that this is Good Food. Fresh ingredients, prepared well, and beautifully presented (okay, maybe not the food in the buffet trays). You try a little of each dish - and luckily they come in small sizes! Perhaps you go back for seconds of the dishes that really stood out to you. You try a slice of both the prime rib and the lamb. Take your time and savor the flavors while conversing with your companions. Before you know it...you feel satisfied and ready for dessert. There. Was that so bad?
Do you really need 500 different food options to feel like a buffet was worth it?
I definitely want to go back during their regular dining.
Well, after going to Gyu-Kaku last Saturday night (where upon talking about Maison Akira, our server piped up with his enthusiastic recommendation of the food there), we went to Maison Akira Sunday morning for the brunch buffet.
The restaurant is located off the main street of Colorado. It's not in the middle of the street action, being that it's on Green St., maybe halfway between my apartment and Lake Ave. The area is very nice...brick buildings and shady trees line the street. Entering the restaurant, I was struck by the unique layout. The dining area(s) were split up into little room-like sections. Curtains hung up on the walls, and some walls were mirrors, giving the place the feel a French parlor.
The buffet itself was placed in a long narrow section at the 'front' of the restaurant. The corridor would have been rather uncomfortably small if more than a handful of people went up to the buffet at a time. At one end of the buffet were desserts. At the other end was a carving station where at times the chef himself would carve you meat. They served prime rib and lamb, each with their own sauces. There were creamy potatoes au gratin, a corn potage kind of soup, deviled eggs, a selection of cheeses and crackers...also pieces of nigiri sushi, some rolls, cold soba, salmon, steamed egg with crab meat, and various small bite-sized finger foods that were delish!
When you first see the buffet, you may be rather underwhelmed by the quantities. "I'm paying $36 for this?!" Then you try the food, and you realize it's about quality rather than quantity. "Do I really need to stuff myself to the point of falling over?" You realize that this is Good Food. Fresh ingredients, prepared well, and beautifully presented (okay, maybe not the food in the buffet trays). You try a little of each dish - and luckily they come in small sizes! Perhaps you go back for seconds of the dishes that really stood out to you. You try a slice of both the prime rib and the lamb. Take your time and savor the flavors while conversing with your companions. Before you know it...you feel satisfied and ready for dessert. There. Was that so bad?
Do you really need 500 different food options to feel like a buffet was worth it?
I definitely want to go back during their regular dining.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Apotheosis
I was going to respond to a thread on Ravelry, but then I did some research and got too caught up in my findings.
When I was a kid I read a lot of fantasy. I also listened to a lot of classical music and I had an overactive imagination. For some reason, I had this image of how I wanted my wedding to be. Think: large beautiful cathedral with sunlight streaming in from high windows. Fresh flowers and vines in baskets lining the aisles and the sides of the room. Screw traditional white gowns, I'd be wearing a jewel-toned medieval (think Renaissance Fair) style dress with wildflowers in my fine fluffy blonde- er I mean straght flat black hair. Han Solo would be standing there waiting for me, a la the final throne room scene in the first Star Wars movie. I knew THE song to be played for the procession too. It would be the Apotheosis from Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty ballet. While listening to it, I would play out the procession in my head, timing the steps of the flower girl and the bridesmaids, through the procession of the bride myself.
It has the feeling of a regal court procession, and according to various dictionaries, "apotheosis" means "elevation to the status of a god". Wikipedia says the Apotheosis was when the characters would take their final bows, so I suppose when the actor-dancers were transformed to the status of gods of ballet. From this thread on a ballet forum, I learned that the melody used by Tchaikovsky is not actually unique! It was used by Rossini 15 years before Tchaikovsky wrote his ballet. Even more interesting is that this tune is actually an unofficial anthem of France, "Vive Henry IV". Liszt produced a piano arrangement of this tune, and you can listen to a sample of it here on Amazon. No doubt about it, this is the tune. It was used as the national anthem of France after the monarchy was reintroduced in the early 1800s. Apparently Russia has been greatly influenced by France, so it's natural that Tchaikovsky would probably have known of Vive Henry IV.
One of the posters on the previously linked thread hints at political motivations in using the melody: "Given the rather tepid history of the Bourbon Restoration, I wonder if using this music to represent the restoration of the monarchy after 100 years sleep at the end of Sleeping Beauty was as reassuring to the ruling classes at the premiere as it was allegedly meant to be."
SO, while a mere online streaming sample can not do justice to this piece, you can listen to one here (#11).
When I was a kid I read a lot of fantasy. I also listened to a lot of classical music and I had an overactive imagination. For some reason, I had this image of how I wanted my wedding to be. Think: large beautiful cathedral with sunlight streaming in from high windows. Fresh flowers and vines in baskets lining the aisles and the sides of the room. Screw traditional white gowns, I'd be wearing a jewel-toned medieval (think Renaissance Fair) style dress with wildflowers in my fine fluffy blonde- er I mean straght flat black hair. Han Solo would be standing there waiting for me, a la the final throne room scene in the first Star Wars movie. I knew THE song to be played for the procession too. It would be the Apotheosis from Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty ballet. While listening to it, I would play out the procession in my head, timing the steps of the flower girl and the bridesmaids, through the procession of the bride myself.
It has the feeling of a regal court procession, and according to various dictionaries, "apotheosis" means "elevation to the status of a god". Wikipedia says the Apotheosis was when the characters would take their final bows, so I suppose when the actor-dancers were transformed to the status of gods of ballet. From this thread on a ballet forum, I learned that the melody used by Tchaikovsky is not actually unique! It was used by Rossini 15 years before Tchaikovsky wrote his ballet. Even more interesting is that this tune is actually an unofficial anthem of France, "Vive Henry IV". Liszt produced a piano arrangement of this tune, and you can listen to a sample of it here on Amazon. No doubt about it, this is the tune. It was used as the national anthem of France after the monarchy was reintroduced in the early 1800s. Apparently Russia has been greatly influenced by France, so it's natural that Tchaikovsky would probably have known of Vive Henry IV.
One of the posters on the previously linked thread hints at political motivations in using the melody: "Given the rather tepid history of the Bourbon Restoration, I wonder if using this music to represent the restoration of the monarchy after 100 years sleep at the end of Sleeping Beauty was as reassuring to the ruling classes at the premiere as it was allegedly meant to be."
SO, while a mere online streaming sample can not do justice to this piece, you can listen to one here (#11).
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Alan Rickman
A funny thing I've noticed on the knitting forums (although probably not limited to them) is an obsession with Alan Rickman (Snape from the Harry Potter movies). Although already in several famous movies before the Harry Potter series, I personally never noticed him until then. And then when I saw Love Actually in 2003. And then I watched him in Sense and Sensibility and listened to him in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
Notable Alan Rickman avatars on Ravelry (ravatars) include one of him as Snape holding a knitting magazine to his chest, and another one of his naked upper body holding onto a bust (of Apollo I think).
I don't know what it is about him...he's definitely not your stereotypical ladies' man. Perhaps it's that dry, cynical sense of humor combined with the hint of inner warmth his characters tend to portray that makes women swoon. I can't help but feel giddy thinking of him in Sense and Sensibility. heh heh.
Notable Alan Rickman avatars on Ravelry (ravatars) include one of him as Snape holding a knitting magazine to his chest, and another one of his naked upper body holding onto a bust (of Apollo I think).
I don't know what it is about him...he's definitely not your stereotypical ladies' man. Perhaps it's that dry, cynical sense of humor combined with the hint of inner warmth his characters tend to portray that makes women swoon. I can't help but feel giddy thinking of him in Sense and Sensibility. heh heh.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Back in the game
So I've still been playing WoW for the past couple of months. I just haven't been playing my Stormscale characters. I made a hunter on Draenor for the Ravelry guild. Level 70! I also have a 16 warrior and 24 mage there. However, recently I've started playing on Stormscale again. Why? Well, Lawrence decided to play again. I may even have a group to PVP with. Not so much raid because that's too much of a continuous time commitment...and needs too many people. However, for Arenas, my gear is seriously outdated and not suitable. In the mean time I'm PVPing in the Battlegrounds to get enough honor so I can buy the gear from Arena Season 1. I've been doing Alterac Valley, as it's the best BG for honor farming. With people who know what they're doing (both horde and alliance), it goes very quickly and can actually be rather fun!
Thursday, January 10, 2008
work
I feel uncomfortable if I don't have stuff to do at work. For some reason I don't count the long-term open-ended projects as work because they have no due date. Lately it seems I've been assigned all the random jobs...learn FlowCharter 2007 (flow chart making software) and train this group of people how to use it; meet with this group and tell them about automated QA testing; plan this co-worker's retirement banquet! I may even get to help with some SQL training.
All in all, I don't mind. I find some of this fun, educational, and a good overall experience. I just wish I didn't feel so damn expendable. I was rather proud of myself for actually calling the hotels about catering with only a modicum of hesitation, but I don't think that's anything my bosses would be excited about. :P I'm trying to get myself to create an informational webpage for the banquet but it's hard to focus on it. I should just buckle down and do it! I need more experiences like this in design, where I get full freedom to design it how I want and I don't have to follow any sort of predefined standard.
All in all, I don't mind. I find some of this fun, educational, and a good overall experience. I just wish I didn't feel so damn expendable. I was rather proud of myself for actually calling the hotels about catering with only a modicum of hesitation, but I don't think that's anything my bosses would be excited about. :P I'm trying to get myself to create an informational webpage for the banquet but it's hard to focus on it. I should just buckle down and do it! I need more experiences like this in design, where I get full freedom to design it how I want and I don't have to follow any sort of predefined standard.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Aiyaaa
I stayed up till 5am last night watching "The Magicians of Love". That is so not good...
www.aznv.tv has a really cool feature where you can mark which episodes you've watched. :D This is an awesome way to keep track of which episode you're on! It can get confusing if you're simultaneously watching several different series. I'm currently on ep 14 of "The Magicians of Love", ep 2 of the Japanese "Hana Kimi", and ep 9 of the Taiwanese "Hana Kimi". They can do that because they actually require you to register for an account before you can stream the videos.
www.aznv.tv has a really cool feature where you can mark which episodes you've watched. :D This is an awesome way to keep track of which episode you're on! It can get confusing if you're simultaneously watching several different series. I'm currently on ep 14 of "The Magicians of Love", ep 2 of the Japanese "Hana Kimi", and ep 9 of the Taiwanese "Hana Kimi". They can do that because they actually require you to register for an account before you can stream the videos.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Dramas
My interests often cycle, and recently I have once again started to watch Asian TV dramas. It started when I went to Lawrence's cousin's apartment. His cousin's wife, Caroline, put a current Taiwanese drama on the TV for me to watch while they played mahjong. It was hilarious, and when I went home I found a website that streams Asian dramas so I continued watching it.
It's called "The Magicians of Love" and it's about a hair salon opened by 3 internationally renowned hairdressers. They claim to be able to give anyone a new image, transforming them into someone beautiful. Antics ensue and love triangles develop as they compete with a headstrong young girl who works at (and who's father is the owner of) the local neighborhood hair salon.
Browsing around I also found out that this year, Hana Kimi was made into a TV series in Japan! Yay! I already enjoyed watching the Taiwanese-produced Hana Kimi. Although I haven't finished watching it yet, I think I now have more of an incentive.
The 2 sites I found are:
www.aznv.tv
www.mysoju.com
It's called "The Magicians of Love" and it's about a hair salon opened by 3 internationally renowned hairdressers. They claim to be able to give anyone a new image, transforming them into someone beautiful. Antics ensue and love triangles develop as they compete with a headstrong young girl who works at (and who's father is the owner of) the local neighborhood hair salon.
Browsing around I also found out that this year, Hana Kimi was made into a TV series in Japan! Yay! I already enjoyed watching the Taiwanese-produced Hana Kimi. Although I haven't finished watching it yet, I think I now have more of an incentive.
The 2 sites I found are:
www.aznv.tv
www.mysoju.com
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