Yesterday was a really great day!
First, I got some really great news. Unfortunately, I can't write about it on here....yet.
Then, something that I was really worried about at work went really well. Talking about work is boring though, so I'll leave that at that.
And finally, Hung made it through to the second part of the finale on Top Chef!
I seriously am on a TV high this week - all the new episodes of Heroes, SVU, Top Chef, Private Practice, Grey's Anatomy, the Office, Desperate Housewives, Brothers and Sisters... It's all just too much for me! I'm on new TV overload!
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
Moon Cake Madness
Apparently in China, there is a famous festival at this time of year about the moon (today actually). And during this time, everyone eats these special cakes called moon cakes.
During a program that I facilitated at work last Friday, a bunch of my students from China told me about this festival, and since they know that I can cook pretty well, challenged me to make the cakes for next Friday's session.
It seemed easy enough, so I said "sure!"
Well, it turns out that these cakes are incredibly complicated to make, and most people just buy them from the store because they are so complicated! Regardless, I never back down from a challenge! So, I went online and found some recipes, and headed down to the Asian grocery store to buy some special ingredients.
The things I do for my students! Not only did I brave the dangerous streets of Worcester, but I also actually walked into a store and uttered the words: "Excuse me ma'am. Could you please tell me where the sweet red bean paste and salty duck eggs preserved in mud are?" (FYI, the woman's words told me where they were, but her eyes said "silly white boy...the Gap is over there!) haha
Anyway, I tried a test batch tonight to see how they come out before I serve them to people on Friday.
Preserved duck egg (for the center of the moon cake)
Preserved duck egg yolk - looks kind of like an eye ball
Actual moon cake I bought from the store.
And this is the moon cake that I cooked. As you can see, mine came out looking more like a muffin than a cake. But the taste is pretty much the same.
Anyway, I'm going to refine my techniques and try again later in the week. Either way, both versions taste really good!
test results
Well, the lab results from the 11 blood tests I took a few weeks ago for my black eye problem came in the mail today.
Everything is normal, except the doctor thinks that I "may have an allergy to milk." He suggested the I avoid milk and see if it goes away.
Well, I know that I'm allergic to milk. I've been allergic since I was a baby, and I haven't had a glass of milk since I was a child. I'm careful about avoiding dairy products, and I only have a little when I do eat them. And most importantly, I told my doctor all this when I went to see him!
Thus, clearly, my allergy to milk is not the problem!!
Oh well...I guess I may never know what caused it. At least it hasn't happened since.
Everything is normal, except the doctor thinks that I "may have an allergy to milk." He suggested the I avoid milk and see if it goes away.
Well, I know that I'm allergic to milk. I've been allergic since I was a baby, and I haven't had a glass of milk since I was a child. I'm careful about avoiding dairy products, and I only have a little when I do eat them. And most importantly, I told my doctor all this when I went to see him!
Thus, clearly, my allergy to milk is not the problem!!
Oh well...I guess I may never know what caused it. At least it hasn't happened since.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
P-Town
Yesterday, I co-chaperoned a student trip to Provincetown. For those of you that may not know, Provincetown is a resort town on the far tip of Cape Cod, and is home primarily to rich people, gay and lesbian couples, and their dogs.
I’d never been to P-town before, and based on stories I’ve heard and pictures I’ve seen, I was totally expecting to open the van door and be surrounded by thousands of tanned and toned shirtless hedonistic gay men frolicking on the beach. Not so much the case though. Actually, P-town was just this cute little town by the beach with lots of shops, restaurants, bed and breakfast type inns, tons of older gay and lesbian couples, and a handful of foreign tourists that appeared confused and probably got on the wrong tour bus by accident.
I’d never been to P-town before, and based on stories I’ve heard and pictures I’ve seen, I was totally expecting to open the van door and be surrounded by thousands of tanned and toned shirtless hedonistic gay men frolicking on the beach. Not so much the case though. Actually, P-town was just this cute little town by the beach with lots of shops, restaurants, bed and breakfast type inns, tons of older gay and lesbian couples, and a handful of foreign tourists that appeared confused and probably got on the wrong tour bus by accident.
I had a really nice time and ate at some really great restaurants (I LOVE lobster!!), went shopping, relaxed on the beach, and even got winked at a few times. But for some reason, as I walked around there, I felt strangely out of place. There are so many stereotypes of gay men, both good and bad: neat, organized, fashionable, etc… And as I spent the day in P-town, I saw all of them. The thing is though, that as a gay or bi or whatever-my-sexual-orientation-du-jour-is man, I don’t really fit into any of them. I’m just this messy, laid back, lazy guy that can barely dress himself and couldn’t dance to save his life. Of course, stereotypes are just stereotypes, and everyone is different. But it was interesting that I felt like such an outsider in a community that I theoretically should have felt right at home in.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Yay! It's fall!
This week really has been filled with some pretty drastic ups and downs. One of the “ups” is super top secret for now, but some definite downs include black eyes and blood tests! One other “up” for the week is definately the beautiful fall weather!
Autumn is by far my favorite season: temperatures in the 70s, the return of sweaters, beautifully colored leaves, Stove Top Stuffing, pumpkin pie, apple pie, sweet potato pie, pie in general… What’s not to love!
But, this newfound fall weather is making me really miss living in Japan. It’s hard to explain why exactly, but there is something really special to me about this time of year, and I remember autumn in Japan most fondly of all:
Riding the train and looking at all the leaves changing color through the windows;
Relaxing in onsens and watching steam rise off the warm water;
Riding my bicycle through the crisp country air;
Hot drinks and pizza man from the convenience stores;
Sitting under my kotatsu and eating soup to warm up after being outside;
Christmas “illuminations” at Nagoya station;
Thinking about these things makes me happy. Even 9 months later, there’s such a huge part of me that still wants to just pack up, flee my hectic schedule, and live a simple life there teaching English. Sigh… Why do I always realize I’m happy after the fact??
Anyway, I was listening to a mix CD that someone I once dated had made for me and I heard a song that I really liked. It’s strange: listening to this CD, it seems that in the one or two months that we dated, this person somehow got to know the real me better than maybe anyone else I’ve ever met. At any rate, the song is by Natasha Bedingfield and is called “Wild Horses.” It's as if the song is written about me: the metaphor she uses describes me so perfectly! Listen:
Autumn is by far my favorite season: temperatures in the 70s, the return of sweaters, beautifully colored leaves, Stove Top Stuffing, pumpkin pie, apple pie, sweet potato pie, pie in general… What’s not to love!
But, this newfound fall weather is making me really miss living in Japan. It’s hard to explain why exactly, but there is something really special to me about this time of year, and I remember autumn in Japan most fondly of all:
Riding the train and looking at all the leaves changing color through the windows;
Relaxing in onsens and watching steam rise off the warm water;
Riding my bicycle through the crisp country air;
Hot drinks and pizza man from the convenience stores;
Sitting under my kotatsu and eating soup to warm up after being outside;
Christmas “illuminations” at Nagoya station;
Thinking about these things makes me happy. Even 9 months later, there’s such a huge part of me that still wants to just pack up, flee my hectic schedule, and live a simple life there teaching English. Sigh… Why do I always realize I’m happy after the fact??
Anyway, I was listening to a mix CD that someone I once dated had made for me and I heard a song that I really liked. It’s strange: listening to this CD, it seems that in the one or two months that we dated, this person somehow got to know the real me better than maybe anyone else I’ve ever met. At any rate, the song is by Natasha Bedingfield and is called “Wild Horses.” It's as if the song is written about me: the metaphor she uses describes me so perfectly! Listen:
Friday, September 14, 2007
Top Chef Scandal!!
So at the end of Top Chef, it says that the judges consult with the Bravo production team when making decisions. But, check out this tidbit from an interview with CJ (who was kicked off on Wednesday for serving some bad brocolini) from the online blog Grub Street:
So what happened with that broccolini? How could you send something like that out to the judges?
Well, I didn’t blanch it very much. I knew it had to go in those weird ovens and I didn’t want it to get overcooked. But they did, and looked bad, so I didn’t want to send them out. I said, “I’m not sending these out.” But they said, "You have to send them out."
Who did?
I can’t tell you specifically. But it was production. I said, “I lose if I send these out,” and I did. In retrospect I should have said, "Screw you," but I did send it out so it is my fault.
HMMMM....That's dissapointing to hear. I guess it makes for better TV, but it makes my favorite show a lot less credible.
So what happened with that broccolini? How could you send something like that out to the judges?
Well, I didn’t blanch it very much. I knew it had to go in those weird ovens and I didn’t want it to get overcooked. But they did, and looked bad, so I didn’t want to send them out. I said, “I’m not sending these out.” But they said, "You have to send them out."
Who did?
I can’t tell you specifically. But it was production. I said, “I lose if I send these out,” and I did. In retrospect I should have said, "Screw you," but I did send it out so it is my fault.
HMMMM....That's dissapointing to hear. I guess it makes for better TV, but it makes my favorite show a lot less credible.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
trip to the hospital
Today I went to see a specialist at the hospital about the problem I've been having with my random black eyes and other symptoms.
I have to admit that I'm pretty afraid of hospitals for some reason, and I've only actually been once that I can remember. (I spent several months in one as a child I'm told, but I was too young to remember)
At any rate, I went fully expecting to open the doors and step into a scene straight out of ER or Grey's Anatomy: not the case though! It was this quite building with an atrium in the middle and even a food court! If there were a Gap and a Banana Republic, it'd have been like going to the mall!
Anyway, I went to see the doctor and he was really nice and helpful. He couldn't tell me exactly what is causing the problem and admitted that we may never find out. But he gave me some medicine to try to prevent it from happening again and also prescribed an epipen in case the swelling were to move to my tongue or throat somehow.
He also made me do some blood tests. 11 BLOOD TESTS!!!!!! It was just so much blood, and I was so worried that I was going to pass out. Luckily I didn't...but I was feeling pretty light headed for a while towards the end. (they gave me some cookies, which made me happy :)
At any rate, I'll find out the results in about a week (hopefully they will all be good!!). Keep your fingers crossed!
I have to admit that I'm pretty afraid of hospitals for some reason, and I've only actually been once that I can remember. (I spent several months in one as a child I'm told, but I was too young to remember)
At any rate, I went fully expecting to open the doors and step into a scene straight out of ER or Grey's Anatomy: not the case though! It was this quite building with an atrium in the middle and even a food court! If there were a Gap and a Banana Republic, it'd have been like going to the mall!
Anyway, I went to see the doctor and he was really nice and helpful. He couldn't tell me exactly what is causing the problem and admitted that we may never find out. But he gave me some medicine to try to prevent it from happening again and also prescribed an epipen in case the swelling were to move to my tongue or throat somehow.
He also made me do some blood tests. 11 BLOOD TESTS!!!!!! It was just so much blood, and I was so worried that I was going to pass out. Luckily I didn't...but I was feeling pretty light headed for a while towards the end. (they gave me some cookies, which made me happy :)
At any rate, I'll find out the results in about a week (hopefully they will all be good!!). Keep your fingers crossed!
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Boo to TV this week
TV is making me mad this week, and here's why:
1) I'm a super routine oriented person. Almost every weeknight, I am in bed at a certain time, and I've developed a routine of what shows I watch with the sleep timer on while I'm falling asleep. Things were going great all year ...until some idiot on the CW decided to replace the two shows I normally watch with the Family Guy and Everybody Loves Raymond.
Well, frankly: I don't love Raymond. .And I HATE Family Guy! ...And there is absolutely nothing else good on TV at this time slot.
Grrr.... So frustrating...
2) The judges on Top Chef are crizazy! For the second week in a row, they've eliminated people for really lame reasons, when others were more deserving of going home. This week, the judges eliminated CJ because he served some bad brocolini (not really even sure what that is). Okay...I get how serving a bad side dish could be grounds for getting kicked off. But, Dale forgot to cook enough food for everyone and didn't even serve one of his guests! How is some bad brocolini worse than forgetting to feed someone? Sigh...
It's starting to get good though: only 5 left. (Hung, Sarah, Casey, Dale, and Brian) I still think Hung is going to win, but I'm predicting that Casey and Brian will also make it to the finale. We'll see... On October 3!!!
3) The new season of TV shows seems to start later and later every year! There is such garbage on TV lately and I can't wait for my shows to finally start up again!
Heroes: September 24th
Grey's Anatomy: September 27th
I can't wait!!!!
1) I'm a super routine oriented person. Almost every weeknight, I am in bed at a certain time, and I've developed a routine of what shows I watch with the sleep timer on while I'm falling asleep. Things were going great all year ...until some idiot on the CW decided to replace the two shows I normally watch with the Family Guy and Everybody Loves Raymond.
Well, frankly: I don't love Raymond. .And I HATE Family Guy! ...And there is absolutely nothing else good on TV at this time slot.
Grrr.... So frustrating...
2) The judges on Top Chef are crizazy! For the second week in a row, they've eliminated people for really lame reasons, when others were more deserving of going home. This week, the judges eliminated CJ because he served some bad brocolini (not really even sure what that is). Okay...I get how serving a bad side dish could be grounds for getting kicked off. But, Dale forgot to cook enough food for everyone and didn't even serve one of his guests! How is some bad brocolini worse than forgetting to feed someone? Sigh...
It's starting to get good though: only 5 left. (Hung, Sarah, Casey, Dale, and Brian) I still think Hung is going to win, but I'm predicting that Casey and Brian will also make it to the finale. We'll see... On October 3!!!
3) The new season of TV shows seems to start later and later every year! There is such garbage on TV lately and I can't wait for my shows to finally start up again!
Heroes: September 24th
Grey's Anatomy: September 27th
I can't wait!!!!
Monday, September 10, 2007
My black eye came back... :(
So what the **** is wrong with my eye? For the 7th time in less than 3 months, I've woken up and had a black eye!!! I didn't even go to class this morning because it was so embarassing!
This is literally the worst picture of me ever, but look at how bad my eye looks! I'm going to the doctor tomorrow, so hopefully he can fix whatever is wrong. Sigh...
This is literally the worst picture of me ever, but look at how bad my eye looks! I'm going to the doctor tomorrow, so hopefully he can fix whatever is wrong. Sigh...
Monday, September 3, 2007
Goals Update
Just over a month ago, I posted a blog about some goals that I have for the rest of the year. So, in the spirit of accountability and progress, here are some updates:
Be able to carry on a basic conversation in American Sign Language - I have my first class on Wednesday after work!
See another cast of Rodin’s Le Penseur (the Thinker) sculpture - eh, decided to buy a new iPod instead. *o*
Get into better shape - Bought a home gym and have been working out 3-4 times a week ever since. I can already see some results! (now if only I stopped eating everything in sight!)
Double my circle of friends - Workin' on it. A plan has been put into motion.... (Details to come)
Learn how to prepare sushi - Not yet, but I'm having it for dinner tomorrow.
Introduce someone as my boyfriend or girlfriend - Not yet, but I'm working on it tomorrow over dinner ;)
Learn how to play늦게 핀 사랑 on the violin - gave up on this one. Seriously...who has time?!
Continue Learning Japanese - I started taking classes three times a week before work last week!
Design and get my next tattoo - I've almost settled on a design and location. It's going to be much bigger than my others though, so I'm taking longer to decide on this one. Look for a picture of it in a couple of weeks! It's gonna be hot!
Okay, that's all.
Be able to carry on a basic conversation in American Sign Language - I have my first class on Wednesday after work!
See another cast of Rodin’s Le Penseur (the Thinker) sculpture - eh, decided to buy a new iPod instead. *o*
Get into better shape - Bought a home gym and have been working out 3-4 times a week ever since. I can already see some results! (now if only I stopped eating everything in sight!)
Double my circle of friends - Workin' on it. A plan has been put into motion.... (Details to come)
Learn how to prepare sushi - Not yet, but I'm having it for dinner tomorrow.
Introduce someone as my boyfriend or girlfriend - Not yet, but I'm working on it tomorrow over dinner ;)
Learn how to play늦게 핀 사랑 on the violin - gave up on this one. Seriously...who has time?!
Continue Learning Japanese - I started taking classes three times a week before work last week!
Design and get my next tattoo - I've almost settled on a design and location. It's going to be much bigger than my others though, so I'm taking longer to decide on this one. Look for a picture of it in a couple of weeks! It's gonna be hot!
Okay, that's all.
Why do weekends have to end??
So, after a very long 33 day stretch, I finally had a weekend off! Who knew that simply not going to work could feel so darn good?!
And how sad for me: most people get excited to go on vacation or go to parties and special events. I on the other hand get excited to simply have a 24 hour period in which I don't have to work or be on-call. Sigh...
Anyway... Only 2 more days until the new iPods are released!
And how sad for me: most people get excited to go on vacation or go to parties and special events. I on the other hand get excited to simply have a 24 hour period in which I don't have to work or be on-call. Sigh...
Anyway... Only 2 more days until the new iPods are released!
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Whale Watching
So yesterday, instead of going to work (aka what would have been day 33), our supervisor took us all on surprise road trip to show her appreciation for everything that we've done.
We weren't entirely sure where we were going. All we knew was that we had to be there by 10am. So, we all hopped into the cars around 8am and headed east towards Boston.
At about 9:45, we arrived at our destination, which turned out to be a dock where a really big boat was waiting to take us on a whale watching trip! Now, I had never been whale watching before, so I was pretty excited. But, I was also a little nervous to go out on the boat because I tend to get sea sick pretty easily.
Luckily, one of my coworkers had some Dramamine, so I took some, and didn't ever feel too bad. (though there were a few tense moments) And the snack bar had the BEST hot dogs and soft pretzels!
We travelled really fast out to sea for about an hour and then stopped somewhere in the middle of a whale feeding ground. Almost as soon as we stopped, the guide pointed out a whale named Valley, on the left side of the boat. Soon after, we saw a second humpback whale, which turned out to be Valley's child. We watched them for about a half hour, before heading back. It was really cool, and they are sooo huge up close. I tried to take some good pictures, but they all kinda suck.
We weren't entirely sure where we were going. All we knew was that we had to be there by 10am. So, we all hopped into the cars around 8am and headed east towards Boston.
At about 9:45, we arrived at our destination, which turned out to be a dock where a really big boat was waiting to take us on a whale watching trip! Now, I had never been whale watching before, so I was pretty excited. But, I was also a little nervous to go out on the boat because I tend to get sea sick pretty easily.
Luckily, one of my coworkers had some Dramamine, so I took some, and didn't ever feel too bad. (though there were a few tense moments) And the snack bar had the BEST hot dogs and soft pretzels!
We travelled really fast out to sea for about an hour and then stopped somewhere in the middle of a whale feeding ground. Almost as soon as we stopped, the guide pointed out a whale named Valley, on the left side of the boat. Soon after, we saw a second humpback whale, which turned out to be Valley's child. We watched them for about a half hour, before heading back. It was really cool, and they are sooo huge up close. I tried to take some good pictures, but they all kinda suck.
The whole time we were whale watching, I kept thinking about Margaret Cho's stand up bit about whale watching, so I posted it below. She's freaken hillarious, so check it out.
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