chinkerfly

( Two more )

#1 My roommate and I moved into this apartment at the end of December. Since then we've done absolutely nothing with our shared living space. He brought a futon up from home and a coffee table of sorts. I bought a TV stand from IKEA for the TV he'd talked about bringing up (it looks pretty silly there, still no TV). We put the curtains up that I'd brought over from my last apartment, and that's pretty much it. In March I started picking through our collection of photos and playing with possible arrangements for the walls. But it was not until Yesterday that I finally dragged myself to the photo developing center and then down to Pearl Paint to buy proper matting and frames. It's nice to finally see a little bit of character on those white walls when I enter the apartment and look around. My roommate and I are both so completely anti-stuff that I think it's been preventing either of us from bringing anything else into the apartment that we'll just have to take back out again later.

#2 Accountability. My friend Aline called today and made me feel guilty about a few things I've been slacking off on. Missing yoga for the last... couple months... Never getting around to taking those dance classes... Moping around my apartment when I could be out meeting people. I will go to yoga tonight. And afterward I will feel good about myself. Sometimes everyone needs a big sister or big brother to light a fire under his or her butt.

#3 The ability to keep myself entertained. Between the decorating project, trying out new recipes, reading books and manga, finding a new show to watch on Hulu, and cleaning the apartment, a good ten hours of my day flew by yesterday with barely a thought or worry. I should be thankful that my parents brought me up to be so self-sufficient.

#4 Living alone. I have a roommate, it is almost impossible not to split the costs of living in this city, but thanks to our work schedules, the way he often disappears for the weekend (back home? out to California?), and how when he is here he stays pretty much holed up in his room, it feels like I have this place all to myself. I try to return the favor by making myself scarce when he's home, but I somehow doubt he gets the apartment to himself nearly as much as I do. Living alone is wonderful because you can play your music as loud as you want, sit anywhere you like and not get in anybody's way, not have to wait to use the bathroom or the kitchen, walk around the place in nothing but your birthday suit if you feel so inclined (on a hot summer day, a lot can be said for wearing nothing at all). There's nothing quite like having a place all to yourself.  

#5 Summer rain after nightfall.  This last week has felt like Spring in NYC (note that it is the middle of July). The days have been full of sunshine, and by late afternoon the sun is beating upon the pavement just enough to feel prickly heat on the back of my neck. Yet mild enough that a cool breeze can still be felt weaving in and out of the pedestrian traffic, and the shade from a tall building or the canopy of an occasional tree still brings instant relief. At night, after most people are comfortably settled back into their apartments, a quiet rain starts to fall. Occasional gusts of wind catch the droplets and blow a light mist against my window screens.  The soft, clean scent of rain floats into my open window accompanied by gentle tap tap tapping like fine pebbles falling into soft sand. The rain pools up along the ledges and rushes down to splash against the concrete in the courtyard, an urban babbling brook. And in the morning after the rain, the world is refreshed and ready to start the cycle again. 

I'm excited about having something new to do with all my photostitched panoramas. Hopefully future "planets" will be prettier because I'll compose the panoramas with this in mind. :)

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#1 Maybe it's because for the first time in a long time I've managed to stay single for longer than three months, but I'm getting to experience "being set up" for the first time. My friends will tell me beforehand that there's someone they think I should meet, that we could really hit it off, and as of late my response has become, "Sure, why not? I like meeting people." And bless my dear friends, the guys they have introduced to me have not made me want to run screaming from the room. That's not to say I've been swept off my feet, but I may no longer be sweep-uppable. :) Also the poor guys in question have probably also been told that they were being set up and have their radars set to -- IDENTIFY CRAZY. But friend-filtered guys certainly trigger fewer of my alarm bells than anyone I have managed to pick up on my own.

#2 Being able to roll out of bed after 9am on workdays. My hours at work are weird, but they have never been early. Thanks to a nice and late 10am start time and the place of my employment being located a mere 5-10 minute walk from my apartment, I can actually go out for a drink on a Monday or Wednesday night, stumble to bed by 3am, and still squeeze in a comfortable six hours of sleep. Priceless.

#3 Having friends that make an effort to stay in touch. I am notoriously bad at keeping up with people who I do not see on a regular basis (real life or online... rapid-fire status updating is always a plus in my book). That being said I have a very small group of friends who actually make time to call me every few weeks. They manage to maintain a conversation despite the fact that I have very little to say. Then there's another small group of friends who are very good about commenting here and there on my online ramblings. I, like so many people around me, am living an untethered life where the group of people entering and exiting from my life is in constant flux. These people who make the effort to reach out to me keep me grounded. There is something irreplaceable about knowing that there are people in the world who think of you once in a while, no matter how much time or distance has come between you. It means so much to me, I really ought to return the favor more often.  


( Playing cards in China )

#4 Card Games. Spades, Canadian Spit, Uno-on-crack, Gin Rummy, Canasta, Texas Hold'em, Mao, Big Two, Dou Di Zhu (斗地主), Shuang Kou/Tractor (双扣?/拖拉机)  Ever since I was eleven years old and the boy I had a crush on taught me how to play Spades, I've been hooked. My brain is so jam-packed with card game rules and variations that it's a wonder there is space for anything else, and when I need a quick refresher course Pagat.com has been a dream. Whenever I travel I keep two decks of cards in my suitcase, just in case. At every house party I go to I secretly hope that someone will take out a deck and start shuffling. Cards are the ultimate in poor man's distraction. If only more people I knew liked to play!

#5 Being in America for the 4th of July. Holidays were always a tough time to be living in another country, especially one like China that was so far removed from most Western traditions and festivities. Independence Day was mildly depressing the three years I was in China because, well, it passed just like any other ordinary day. Having grown up with fireworks and cookouts and big brass bands, it was hard not to feel like something was missing whenever the 4th rolled around. I guess you can take the Chinese American out of America, but your really can't take the America out. :) July 4th of 2005 basically marked the arrival of my group of Peace Corps volunteers. Three years later I was booted back to the US just a couple days before Independence Day. My first July 4th after coming back was a wonderful reminder of everything I had been missing. After a full day of hot dogs and potato salad, and splashing around in a backyard pool, we settled down on blankets and lawn chairs.  Fireworks lit up the night sky over the low rooftops of suburbia. This year I will spend Independence Day in Washington D.C. Hopefully picnicking on the endless lawn that stretches between the historic monuments that mark our nation's capital and seeing firsthand the fireworks that will be televised all over the country.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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There are so many variations of crème brûlée recipes online, but my recipe ended up being dictated by what I was able to get my hands on. First, I needed to commit to buying a microtorch. Most of the ones I saw were $25 and up, but Bed Bath & Beyond had a 5 piece set that included torch and four crème brûlée dishes. The set was only $20 and the dishes were the traditional shallow oval type (i.e. more brulee!) so it wasn't a tough decision. I couldn't justify spending $12 this time on whole vanilla beans though so I settled with vanilla extract. Maybe next time if I'm making it for someone special. :)

Since most of the recipes I found online were made for 7 to 8 oz custard cups, I did a hybrid several of the recipes I found online and the recipe that came with the crème brûlée set. I particularly like this play by play with photos on About.com. This is what I ended up with:

4 egg yolks, chilled
1/3 cup sugar
2 cups (1 pint) heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract (or 1/4 vanilla bean, split and scraped)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F

Place the cream, vanilla bean* and its pulp into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean and reserve for another use.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and it just starts to lighten in color. Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continually. Pour the liquid into 4 (4-ounce) ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the crème brûlée is set, but still trembling in the center, start checking at 30 to 35 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (ideally overnight) and up to 3 days.

Remove the crème brûlée from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining 1/2 cup vanilla sugar equally among the 6 dishes and spread evenly on top. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Allow the crème brûlée to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.

*if using vanilla extract, add to the egg and sugar instead of to the cream

The amusing part was that if I had really given it much thought I would have realized that this recipe would give me far more custard than can fit in four 4oz crème brûlée dishes. So I ended up using four porcelain rice bowls (it pays to be Chinese) for the rest of the custard and the finished result tasted every bit as delicious as the original. Crème brûlée with Asian flare. Wtb someone to help me eat all this dessert. :)

 

( One more pic )

#1 Vienna Teng is my Joni Mitchell. What does that mean? Her songs speak to me in a way that no other musician does. Her lyrics are intelligent, poetic, and personal. Ever since the first album I have been hooked, and when people ask me who my favorite musicians are, she is the first person that comes to mind. And the range... for someone like me who craves variety like no other, I could listen to her albums every single day and not get sick of them. She was every bit as good live as she is in her studio recordings too. Tonight she played solo, and I brought a friend along who had never heard Vienna Teng before. On more than one occassion when I glanced over at my friend there were tears in her eyes. So it's not just me. I worked up the courage to talk to her after her set and get her autograph and I was completely silly. I'm sure she must have been thinking, greaaaat... another silly fan. Oh well. It's the only time I've ever made the effort to talk to a celebrity, and even if I did seem ridiculous it was worth it. I'm a bigger fan than ever. Thank you.

#2 The two wonderful boys in my life who got me the first two autographed albums. Seriously, I don't know how you did it. But you must have had a real conversation with Vienna Teng when you went to her show and got me those autographed albums. What she wrote on those was so much more personal than what I managed on my own. Ironic. :) I'm eternally grateful.

#3 Being able to see stars. I took it for granted when I lived in Oklahoma, but a starlit sky is really a beautiful thing. In Chongqing and Shanghai we were lucky if we could even make out one or two each night. I remember I used to point them out and say, "Look at that! It must be a clear night, we can see The star." Amazingly, in NYC, gigantic metropolis that it is, there are still plenty of places where you can make out more than a dozen stars on a clear night. hehe

#4 Censor free internet. The Great Firewall was the bane of my existence while I lived in China (and continues to be the bane of many an expat still). This will serve as a reminder to myself how lucky I am to be able to access all the Youtube videos I want, to read any blog on the web, to be able to download bittorrents at lightning speeds, and not have to find workarounds or proxys to post to Twitter and Facebook and any other site. God bless America.

#5 Serendipitous encounters. Tonight at the show a Chinesepod fan recognized Amber (of "Dear Amber" fame) who I had dragged out with me and apparently he's a huge Vienna Teng fan and getting ready to move to Beijing indefinitely. After the show he invited us to join him and his friend at Joe's Shanghai where I've been meaning to go since I arrived here. Joe's Shanghai is famous in NYC as being the best xiaolongbao (小笼包) in the city. We had some delicious crab roe xiaolongbao (蟹粉小笼包). Perfect way to end a perfect Friday night. 

( More pics )

#1 FreshDirect. Much to my chagrin, when we moved into this apartment in December we found out that we were just outside of the FreshDirect delivery area. My previous apartment was in the delivery zone and it is only a 10 minute walk (3 avenues) over from this new place. But this month the grocery gods looked down upon us and smiled, and now we too can partake in the joy of delivered groceries. No more struggling back from the grocery store with gallons of milk and juice. No more standing in mile long express checkout lines to buy two items. No more straining to reach the cereal I want because it's on the top shelf. No more precious time wasted stressing over fresh fruit trying to figure out what is ripe or in season. The delivery man arrived today with our first order, and it was like Christmas. Only thing I can imagine would be better would be Santa Claus paid for the groceries. :)  And that $5 delivery fee? Totally worth it.

#2 People who get ridiculously happy when eating good food. My reward for recommending this place or that is getting to witness the expression of bliss that all lovers of food share when they take that first mind-numbingly satisfying bite. I love being around people whose eyes get big every time the waitstaff walks by the table laden with delicious things. These are the people who make sure everyone orders something different and then joyfully pass their plate around for everyone to try.  These are the people who can't help but exclaim how good something tastes, even if they just expressed the sentiment a few mouthfuls earlier. At the end of the meal, these people scrape their plates spotless or carefully pack every last bit away and save it for later. Those are my kind of people.

#3 Real interaction with Good people, i.e. no more schmoozing. Had the opportunity to finally spend some quality time with a couple people whose paths had crossed mine ever so slightly in a past life. It was great to just be able to get to know them better as regular people (as opposed to potential business partners), and for once not feel like I am in the awkward position of having to sell them something. Being in a completely different industry certainly takes the edge off.

#4 Roommates who keep the dogs. I've been pretty lucky to date, when it comes to having "shared" pets. Never had to deal with any custody battles so to speak. In college, my roommate and I got a pair of dachsunds (she loves dachsunds), and when she moved out she took both of them so they wouldn't have to be separated. Later on I had another puppy with another roommate and when I left for Peace Corps, he kept her since I obviously couldn't bring her with me. I miss them sometimes, but for the most part I'm just glad they have someone who loves them and won't leave them behind. I sure hope that someday when I have kids that I will become slightly more attached. :P

#5 Late Night All-Stars. I've met my match when it comes to staying up all hours. I swear this person is a robot. But it's nice to have company when insomnia strikes. :)

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#1 Weddings. It doesn't matter if the wedding party is twenty or two, if the ceremony is held in a cathedral or City Hall or on a beach, if there's a Western style cocktail or a thirteen course banquet (or both!!)... I love weddings. I'm terribly sentimental about the whole process from the proposal to the getaway car. That's probably why some of my friends in high school and college used to tease me about already having my dream wedding planned out even though I had yet to meet my bridegroom. There are few experiences in this world that move me more than witnessing two people proclaim their love for one another and vow never to part. Even if it only lasts an instant, that one instant is beautiful to me. Call it my last vestige of hopeless romanticism.

#2 Getting credit where credit is due. We passed the audit that we've I've been slaving away to get our program ready for since basically October of last year. Before I joined, the Harlem program had already failed one audit. We failed the second one too that happened the week after I started my job. It's been an uphill battle all the way trying to get everything together, mostly because one particular person was so resistant to doing anything we needed to do. But as the auditors left, they both patted me on the back (literally) and congratulated me on my work. I also learned today that the same auditors praised me to other branch coordinators and stated how impressed they were with how much the Harlem program has turned around since last time.  My supervisor even admitted to someone in my presence that there's no way she could have passed it without me, and she had already had two chances to prove that. I'm not ashamed to admit that I need positive reinforcement.

#3 Finding I still have a little bit of giddy schoolgirl left in me. For two days I found myself checking my phone every five minutes, and once at home, obsessive compulsively signing in and out of an online messaging app. All to see if a certain boy was online, who never was, even though he asked for my contact info. So, that part isn't fun. But I'm grateful that there's still some part of me that can be moved to that kind of silly desperation. So unlike me!

#4 Having a workout buddy. I have a friend who started the one hundred push-ups plan this week and told me about it. So I started it too. Should be just enough accountability to get me into a routine.

#5 Manga. To fill some of the long hours before I feel drowsy enough to sleep (hours that I had previously been filling with WoW fishing) I have been catching up on hundreds of unread chapters of Naruto. The plot moves so much faster than in the anime that it almost doesn't give you a chance to really understand what's happened! But it's so good. Once I'm done with that I'll catch up with Bleach and then I've been told that I MUST read One Piece. :)

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I said I would do this ages ago when cestovatela posted it, but I'm only getting around to it now. The day that someone actually wants to interview me for the back of Bon Apetit will be the day I died and went to heaven. Hopefully by then I'll have better answers.

What would people be surprised to find in your kitchen?
A bachelor's refrigerator. Almost completely empty except for condiments and beverages. The only thing missing is a six pack of beer. I can't help it, I never leave the grocery store with more than I can carry, which isn't much.

Name three things you always have in your refrigerator.
1. Milk
2. Some sort of frozen dessert
3. Condiments

Describe the perfect snack.
Fresh, homemade guacamole or salsa (preferably with tropical fruit in the mix) with lightly salted tortilla chips

Of all the places you've traveled, where did you have the best food?
In every place I've traveled to, there has been at least one thing served in that place that was unparalleled anywhere else in the world. But if I'm forced to narrow it down to one place that manages to win the best overall, I would have to go with New York City because there's a little bit of everything in NYC and if you don't mind crossing a river, you can find stuff that's pretty darned close to authentic. Wait, does it count as traveling if I live here now? :)

What do you like to eat even though you know you shouldn't?
Every once in a great while, double cheeseburgers from McDonald's. I feel guilty even being seen with them so I stuff them in my mouth as quickly as possible and dispose of the evidence immediately.

What's your drink of choice when you go out?
Water, because it doesn't fill me up and prevent me from eating more. But if the food can handle the pairing, a glass of wine can really take it to the next level.

What's your favorite restaurant and what do you order there?
I must have variety, I could never go to the same restaurant over and over and order the same things. That being said, I could probably eat at an authentic Sichuan restaurant for a week and rotate between all the delicious Sichuanese specialties like 重庆辣子鸡, 回锅肉, 鱼香茄子, 水煮鱼, 芋儿鸡, 糖醋里脊, 糖醋连白, 干煸土豆丝, 干煸四季豆... I could go on and on and on. Not translating here because the translations simply don't do the dishes justice.

What's the most unusual thing you've ever eaten?
Pig brain cooked in a boiling pot of oil and peppers. Tastes like spicy globules of fat. My mother tells me that when I was three my grandfather fed me calf fries. Take your pick for which is more unusual.

What would you never, ever want to eat again?
Lightly fried beetles. The feel of little legs and tentacles on my tongue is just too much for me.

Is there a food that always reminds you of home?
Lasagna. Ironic, isn't it, considering I am Chinese? Nobody makes lasagna the way my mom does.

Where was your most memorable meal?
It may sound cliche, but hands down, zero competition... French Laundry. It was a combination of so many things that night. The anticipation of reservations made months in advance and finding myself unexpectedly back in the US and able to go, the drive out from San Francisco into the rolling green vineyards of Napa Valley, the giddiness of my dinner companions, the coup of having dinner companions who could not only speak French fluently, but could also ingratiate themselves to all the waitstaff, the exquisitely orchestrated parade of flavors, the delight of finding myself standing in the kitchen at the end of a whirlwind of a meal and face to face with the chef, and the overall glimpse of a lifestyle much richer than I could ever have dreamed of partaking in... Cinderella at the Prince's ball comes to mind. It was that magical.

Do you have a favorite comfort food?
Pancakes, waffles, French Toast. Breakfast for dinner.

What are you having for dinner tonight?
Had some friends in town, so took them to have Gray's Papaya. Must have hot dogs in NYC. All beef hot dogs dressed up with heaping spoonfuls of kraut and marinated onions, and crowned with mustard. Washed down with a frothy papaya drink. Recession special ftw!

Snatched from cestovatela

Rules:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions into Flickr Search.
b. Using ONLY the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into Mosaic Maker. Change rows to 3 and columns to 3.
d. Save the image and post it on this note.

Questions:
1. What is your first name? (Thalia)
2. What is your favorite color? (Fuchsia)
3. What is your favorite food? (Sushi)
4. Favorite drink? (Coke)
5. Dream vacation? (Phu Quoc, Vietnam)
6. Favorite hobby? (Taking pics of Food)
7. What you want to be when you grow up? (Happy)
8. What do you love most in life? (Exploration)
9. Best self-description? (Reflective)

I had to cheat a bit because I don't have pictures that come up for most of these search terms. And #9 was hard.

#1 Intervention. I admit it, I'm an addict. The first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. It started over the winter holidays, I let myself get pulled in against my better judgment. He said, "Don't worry, you only have to do it when I am, and I won't let you get too involved," and, "It'll only be for a little while, I promise," and, "This one isn't nearly as addictive as that last one, you'll be fine." And it actually was fine... for the first four and a half months. I exercised self control and avoided the temptation of doing "just a little more." But in month five I dropped my defenses and let my brother drag me into a group of other addicts. That was the beginning of the end of my having a life outside of WoW. Suddenly I was logging in the moment I woke up, or the moment I got home from work. I started missing phone calls and skipping meals (back down to under 110lbs for the first time since freshman year of college *gasp*) and the worst of it I was losing so much sleep. Staying up till the crack of dawn hunting achievements is not healthy. The most addictive part of all was that I was finally connecting with other people and my aimless roaming around suddenly acquired the thrill of friendly competition. Luckily for me, my brother is suddenly taking his job hunt seriously and decided to take a break and offered to suspend my account at the same time. Now if I can just find a way to translate in game competition to real life ambition I might just make something of myself.  

#2 Horse treks along mountain ridges. The last one I went on was in western China, in the mountains around Songpan, Sichuan. I loved it so much I did it again and wrote two long posts about it here and here. Just came across this picture today that one of my companions took while we were there and it brought back some of my favorite memories.

#3 My dad. I know it's not Father's Day yet (coming up quick though!), but I was reminded again recently how lucky I am to still have my father in my life. I am not the sentimental type, and I am not particularly close to my parents. All communication between my father and I tends to occur through the medium of my mother. The few times a year I make it a point to see my parents, things quickly escalate into heated, emotional arguments. Despite how even keel I am in all other social situations, I cannot help but be provoked by him. Having said all that, I know that he loves us. I know that he is a kind-hearted, gentle sort of man whose only aspiration seems to be to provide a comfortable life for his family. When I step back away from my relationship with him I can see his funny, personable side. I am reminded that I am lucky because so many of the people I am close to have lost their fathers when they were young, or had fathers who were never present and or disappeared and never took on the responsibilities that belonged to them as dads. I have seen the effect that loss has had on my friends, and I think that perhaps the reason they were drawn to me in the first place was because over the years my father has imparted something to me that is missing in their lives. Paltry substitution that my affection is, perhaps I play a small part in filling in the gaps.

#4 Popsicles!  I recently rediscovered my love for these frozen treats. Not that I ever stopped liking them, I just forgot about the joy of being able to go to a grocery store and buy an entire box of them to store in your freezer. One of the wonderful things about China was the easy availability of popsicles around every corner. There were little one room convenience stores on every block, and the tiny newstands found on every corner often had frozen carts as well. The frozen snack carts contained ice cream and frozen fruit bars in a rotating myriad of flavors, so any time you were walking down the street and you suddenly fancied a cool snack you could stop and get something for the equivalent of 25 cents or less. 

#5 Chess in the park. Playing chess or a quick game of Scrabble in Central Park on a sunny day in Spring. The sun is shining bright and warm, and we're enjoying our game under the dappled shade of the oak trees lining the path. It doesn't get much better than that. 

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( Beaded ponytails )

Yesterday I had an extremely whiny post I wanted to write. I could still write it but I don't think it does anything for my mood other than exacerbate it. So instead here is a long overdue "Attitude of Gratitude" post.

#1 Two little girls swishing the beads in their hair. The smaller one especially seemed to be getting a huge kick out of making the beads swing from side to side as high as they would go as she hurried along beside her mom. Both girls smiled as brightly as the tiny plastic pieces twinkling in the afternoon sun.

#2 The artist that hangs his paintings out on the fence bordering the park on my way to the subway. At the end of the line of his collection he sets out three gigantic mirrors with gilded frames. They tilt up to the sky and reflect back Nature's brushstrokes for passerbys on the sidewalk.

#3 Pork for $1.99 a pound. With the swine flu scare apparently lots of people jumped to the conclusion that eating pork could give you the flu. I suppose since handling poultry in certain conditions (specifically, playing with dead chickens) could have led to Avian influenza that the general shying away from pork was to be expected. I took advantage of the misconception and loaded up on the other white meat which is now happily sitting in my freezer waiting to become dinner. 

#4 Not being a Spring time allergy sufferer. I am surrounded by people who look like they are in so much pollen induced misery, and no amount of medication or anti-histamine blocking seems to be helping them. My allergies are confined to disturbed clouds of dust, cigarette smoke in places with poor ventilation, and cats.

#5 Having a friend who is willing to drop over a hundred dollars to take me out for a belated birthday dinner. For the record, I am still annoyed that you wouldn't let me pay for the wine. Jerk.

Thanks to sanosuke77 for the Pictobrowser tip!

If you want to see the rest of the pics from Italy, just hop over to Flicker --> Italy

An hour before I catch the overnight train to Rome. Thought I'd give you a sneak peak of what's to come in my Flickr stream. :) Lots of gorgeous scenery and pics of delicious Italian food hehe

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#1 Some airports require you to wander around far from your gate before you can find an outlet to charge your electronic toys. Not so today. There were several outlets by the gate, and as an additional cherry on top they were situated under a sunny window ledge so I could sit and have warm sunshine on my back. Lovely.
 
#2 Rolling a suitcase over smooth tiles. After dragging a suitcase all over crumbling asphalt or uneven pavement, it always feels satisfying to transition to smooth, even surfaces where the wheels hum happily as they glide along.
 
#3 People who aren't ashamed to quietly practice their religion in public. Today I passed a couple men who had found a quiet corner facing East(?) and were saying their afternoon prayers. They had placed what looked like tissues on the ground where their foreheads touched at the bottom of the movement. Having sufficiently distanced myself from the ways of the Bible Belt I'm not religious anymore, but it makes me happy to see people who embrace their beliefs without forcing them on others.
 
#4 Not being afraid to fly. My brother and I were lucky when it came to travelling as children. I took my first airplane ride before I was old enough to have anything but a fuzzy memory of it. I flew by myself for the first time when I was 7 or 8. My ex didn't have a chance to board his first plane until he was 27. Flying is no longer my favorite way of travelling, but since it's still the fastest, I'm glad I have the option. :)
 
#5 The feeling of anticipation that rises during the final days and hours before embarking on a journey to places hitherto beyond the boundaries of my experience. There's so much world out there to explore!

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Dipped the chicken breast in melted butter then set it down in a plate Sylvia's Sizzlin' Hot Spice (made here in Harlem!) till both sides were covered with a nice layer of spice. Dropped it in my wok once the it was nice and hot, seared each side and then left it covered over low heat for about 15 minutes. Took it out of the wok and while it was resting I popped two slices of bread with provolone on top into the oven to toast and melt the cheese--quick solution to keeping the chicken juices from making the bread soggy and anyway melty cheese always takes a sandwich to the next level. ;) I piled the chicken slices on high, and it was scrumptious if I might say so myself.

Posted via email from chinkerfly's posterous

#1 It's been dreary and rainy the last couple days, but today as I was walking home from work I looked up from under my umbrella as I passed a schoolbus. A little Latino girl with a dark bob of hair framing her small face peered out the window and caught my eye. She flashed me the brightest smile so that I couldn't help smiling back, and as I walked on by she put her tiny hand up to her mouth and innocently blew a kiss goodbye. 

#2 Squeeze bottle mustard. There's something intrinsically joyous about squeezing out curlicues and squiggles of condiments on a sandwich. I may dread having to make myself another sandwich for lunch, but after squeezing that last drop of mustard on top, I relish a childish sense of accomplishment at what I've created. I should have taken a photo for this post, but I was hungry.

#3 Time off. I may not love my job, but all the more reason why I do love the fact that I am only "allowed" to work 35 hours a week and I have 5 weeks of (unpaid) vacation each year. I make just enough to live comfortably by my standards, and I can set aside $50 a month for travelling. These days when I'm not at work I feel pretty satisfied with life as a whole. That's something.

#4 Going to the grocery store. As I stood in the checkout line yesterday with my armful of groceries that I'd carefully selected by merit of yellow sale tags, it struck me as being so grown-up. Granted, at my age I ought to be able to take care of myself, but it's still nice to have a little confirmation via grown-up responsibilities like getting more milk and bread for the apartment.

#5 Jin Yong Wuxia novels turned Chinese TV series. My grandfather who passed away when I was 3, had the entire 83 series of Legend of the Condor Heroes (射雕英雄传）and Return of the Condor Heroes (神雕侠侣) on VHS. I watched them from beginning to end almost every summer. The former is my favorite, and they recently (2008) remade it in China to include some of my favorite modern day Chinese actors like 黄秋生 and 胡歌 -- they don't even belong in the same class of actor though, I know that. I finished downloading them all, and they've been keeping me up late at night. :)

Posted via email from chinkerfly's posterous

#1 There was an abundance of positive energy all over today. Everyone seemed like they were pleased and content with life, and even the whiniest people laughed their own complaints away. The world leaders who finished the G-20 meetings today came out with smiles on their faces and optimistic soundbites for the media. And back here in Harlem people came out of their apartments and lingered on the sidewalks. I heard laughter everywhere I went, and not the mocking sarcastic kind either. 

#2 The ice cream truck. In the city, Mister Softee trucks are out in full force. There's something magnetic about watching kids drawn in by the familiar song and walking away with colorful soft-serve ice cream cones in their hands and a look of intense concentration on their faces. Can't let a single drop of ice cream melt down the sides of the cone after all. 

#3 Longer days. The sun is still streaming through the windows of my apartment now until nearly 7. Not too long ago I was going back out to my late shift and it was already pitch black outside, but today I looked at my clock and was shocked to find it was already 5:45 and time to go because judging by the amount of daylight still left in the living room I would have thought it was closer to three or four o'clock. 

#4 No longer having to stay late at work on my long days. Previously one of the teachers would dawdle and take her time getting everything together and it would be half an hour after all the students had left before we could lock up and go home. Somehow she's turned over a new leaf and is now ready to go the second the figurative bell strikes 9.

#5 Coke. I'm a hopeless devotee. To the makers of the fizzy, carbonated beverage, of course, not the other coke that people become addicted to. I prefer anything that is under the Coke umbrella over it's so-called competitors. Usually I prefer them before I even know that they are owned by Coca-cola. Prime examples: Powerade, Dasani, and Glaceau vitamin water. Maybe all that means is that the people in charge of acquisitions over at Coca-cola have my sense of taste. I've admitted to others before that my devotion started the first time I set foot in a Coke World and witnessed a dancing coca-cola fountain. After that how could I resist?

Posted via email from chinkerfly's posterous

#1 BBC World Service online. It's one of those things I can put on in the background while I'm doing other mindless things on the internet and it helps me feel less bad about the mindless things I'm doing.

#2 The new West Side Story on Broadway. It opened in February, and it was featured on BBC tonight. I like that in this new version the Puerto Ricans all sing and speak in Spanish. I think most of us are familiar enough with the original that even without subtitles we can hear the Spanish and still get the meaning. At least in my head it's like having two language tracks playing at the same time in stereo and if I tune in to the left I'll pick up Spanish only and if I tune to the right I'll only hear English. Either way, having the characters speak in the language they were meant to speak in gives it more depth.  It's not a secret, I prefer movies in their original languages, and can't watch things that have been dubbed.

#3 Living just a 25 minutes subway ride away from the theater district of NYC. Now going to see a show is no longer a matter of whether or not the tour will stop through the town I live in, but instead it's just a matter of whether or not I can afford tickets.

#4 The colorful, compact reusable bags C and I bought for our future grocery shopping excursions. (I need to mail hers since she accidently left it with me)   I always cringe at the number of plastic bags they use at the grocery stores here in the States. That one year in China where grocery bags were 'done away with' really seems to have changed my perspective. (You can still get plastic bags in China, you just have to pay the equivalent of 20 cents/bag)

#5 Having an entire morning at work without -------. I got so much accomplished today before the time I was scheduled to leave. It was completely refreshing. No one there to question my every move, like why I chose to print from this printer instead of that one. No one to yell at me for not reminding people to do something again thirty minutes after they had just been reminded. No one shifting blame around so that I get to bear the brunt of their shortcomings. If only I could work alone everyday. 

Posted via email from chinkerfly's posterous

#1 Evernote. Thanks to Evernote you can check out all my notes for the Italy trip here.  I have not planned this much for a vacation since 2005 when I went on a cross-country road trip with my brother. Oklahoma to LA counts as cross-country, right? That was a fun trip, he let me plan the whole thing around food. Best way to plan a vacation, I say.

#2 Friends who have lived all over the world. Nothing like insider tips from people who have lived in the places you're planning to travel to. I'm quite sure I would not have known to go try Baby Yogurt in Florence (Italy's answer to Red Mango and Pinkberry?) otherwise.

#3 Spending the whole day in my PJs and my favorite zip-front hoodie. They don't make the one I have anymore, but the one I linked is made from the same material--it's so soft it's like being hugged by the softest teddy bear ever made. One of the best impulse buys I ever made.

#4 Kick-in-the-Face Lime chips. Or as Tostitos likes to call them "hint of lime." I can't get enough of them. And since they're tortilla chips I can pretend that they're good for me.

#5 Gchat's SMS feature. If it weren't for this feature I would probably be forking over an extra $25-30 each month on texting overages on my iPhone. I already pay an extra $5 a month just to send and receive 200 messages, but I get nearly that many with incoming texts alone. Doesn't leave me much wiggle room for emergencies. I'm hoping I can convince all my friends to just text me through Gchat unless it really is an emergency. When will AT&T just give us iPhone users unlimited texting? Don't we pay enough as it is for the data plan? Or for people like me, offer a different plan with less minutes and more txts? I have thousands of rollover minutes that mock me each month.

Posted via email from chinkerfly's posterous

#1 Twitter. There's lots of hype about it, I know. But believe it or not I still have friends who ask me to explain Twitter to them. The usual question is how is it different from Facebook. For me the primary difference is audience. On Facebook I won't connect to you unless I know you personally or we have quite a few mutual friends. On Twitter it's a free for all. I can follow people all over the place who share my interests and communicate with them in a really easy, direct way, without all the hassles of propriety. On Twitter, I have no qualms about sending a message to larger than life people like Guy Kawasaki or Dave Matthews (that's not to say they would ever actually respond to my messages, but that's understandable considering the sheer volume they must sift through each moment of the day). It's not possible to just jump into a conversation with people like that in Facebook because you have to jump through the hoops of self-introduction and basically screening before you can see what's on their minds. Thanks to Twitter, I've actually met people (in real life) where it takes every ounce of will power to keep from grovelling in their presence--I assume you know who you are, I won't name drop since you don't need the extra publicity from a peon like myself. :) And the final selling point for me is the sheer number of third-party applications and websites that have been created to answer every twitter need you could possibly think of.  Name any problem you might have with Twitter and I can almost guarantee there's a free application out there that has the solution.

#2 Being a lightweight. Just think about all the money saved on alcohol! While most people are still forking over hard-earned cash for their second or third drink, I'm already tipsy after half a beer. It makes good financial sense. :)

#3 Experiencing my first ever gigantic company meeting. The YMCA of Greater NYC is the biggest in the world (at least I think that's what they said today) and so the "All Staff" meeting was quite the event. Highlight was the keynote speaker dressed from head to toe as Batman and giving a hilarious speech about personality types and how they work together (as referenced earlier today in my Posterous). They even fed us breakfast AND lunch, and we were getting paid for the hours. So this is what it must be like to work for a mammoth corporation.

#4 My brand new, bright fuchsia umbrella. I have three broken umbrellas already since living in NYC, and today it was pouring rain, so I was very happy that I bought a new umbrella last week.

#5 Aluminum foil. There must be a bajillion and one uses for foil.  Will have to try that tip about using it to make your soap last longer, and start carrying around a mini-portrait reflector for my food photography. I'll test that radiator trick too and see how it goes, our living room is so cold!! It's really quite a wonderful invention. Plus it's shiny. I like shiny things.