Dim Sum Diaries
The Good Napkins

My mother taught me to read when I was four years old (her first mistake).
One day, I was in the bathroom and noticed one of the cabinet doors was
ajar. I read the box in the cabinet. I then asked my mother why she was
keeping 'napkins' in the bathroom. Didn't they belong in the kitchen? Not
wanting to burden me with unnecessary facts, she told me that those were for
"special occasions" (her second mistake).

Now fast forward a few months.... It's Thanksgiving Day, and my folks were
leaving to pick up my uncle and his wife for dinner... Mom had assignments
for all of us while they were gone. Mine was to set the table. When they
returned, my uncle came in first and immediately burst into laughter. Next
came his wife who gasped, then began giggling. Next came my father, who
roared with laughter. Then came Mom, who almost died of embarrassment when she saw each place setting on the table with a "special occasion" napkin at each plate, with the fork carefully arranged on top. I had even tucked in the tails so they didn't hang off the edge!!

My mother asked me why I used these and, of course, my response sent the
other adults into further fits of laughter. "But, Mom, you SAID they were
for special occasions!!!"

Libimax
Originally uploaded by miriyaparino.
I was shopping at this Chinese mini-mall in Los Angeles and I saw this ad. Couldn't resist taking a picture of it. I'd been feeling rather down lately, who knew that I all had to do was take Libimax to make everything better! ;)

Visiting the 'rents this weekend, stopped by Williams-Sonoma to buy some stuff for Thanksgiving. Busy...very busy...

Bloody Funny--How To Tell When A Relationship Is Over


I've been listening to quite a bit of Natalie McMaster lately. She plays Irish (Canadian) music (lots of violin, woo hoo!), and I find her absolutely delightful. So, I'm thinking of indulging and buying her Live CD. As a matter of fact, I'm listening to Cape Breton Live, an internet radio show she launched showcasing various Irish/Scottish artists.

I can't believe Thanksgiving is only a few days away. I know the rest of this year will fly by, and while its been quite a rough year, there is a certain rythym to my life now which I've become accustomed to. Next year brings new changes and uncertainties (omg I have to start looking for a job!), things I'm not sure I want to face quite just yet.
Kinda cool, kinda weird, but site traffic has skyrocketed in recent days/weeks. In the beginning it was a steady 19 and I was like...wow cool! Then the average grew to about 29, but recently its been like 32-50ish. I don't know if its because I'm the top return when someone searches lesbian spank inferno, or the rumor that there is a cache of naughty pics or its the stellar writing. Or the wacky humor. Or that one post back in 2003 that comes up when I blogged about Elizabeth Bennett from P&P and the movie is now out, etc etc etc. Weird.

Kinda strange because I blog so much less about personal stuff now. I don't know why. Its mostly about my obsession with Aaron Sorkin, pervy humor and the odd post about cooking.

*Sighs
I know I've blogged about prefering Colin Firth as my one and only Darcy forever and ever, but after watching the trailer for the new Pride & Prejudice, I have to admit I am quite eager to see it. Not only is there a cool cast, but there is enough angst and bosom-heaving drama to make any romance addict (e.g., me) nearly swoon and sigh. Not that I do that. *cough* Of course not.

Yes, it's always the scene in the end where the hero and heroine run up to each other, breathless and stare intently into each others eyes.

"I love you!" he declares passionately, realizing that he has found his one true love.

"I love you!" she replies, knowing that this is the man for her and that she is going to get the snog (and hopefully some mind blowing sex) of her life.

Moving on...

Another one I'd like to see and completely opposite this one is Jarhead, because I loved the book so much.

Daughter had her piano recital this weekend, and while it was exciting and a proud moment to see her play...the 2.5 hour concert was quite mind-numbing. The piano teacher, H, had 27 students, and they each played 2-3 songs. I think I'll have to talk to her about maybe trying to trim for time next concert. She's a great piano teacher, one of the best in the region.

However, she is a tad ethnocentric. She pulled me aside one day.

"Your daughter is very talented and good at piano. Luckily she got the CHINESE genes from your side. I know this other mixed couple, the mom is white and the dad is Chinese. I don't think their kid got the CHINESE gene because the piano playing...not so good...you are lucky!!!"

Its so blatantly elitist, its funny.

As soon as it turned to fall, I've transmorgophied into a WoW playing, brownie baking mom-ish type person recently. Have been cooking up a storm, and am making massive plans for Thanksgiving.

A few cool things have popped on the horizon tho. For example my Le Creuset dutch oven has been my best friend recently. That thing totally rocks, so much so that I am completely excited that this dutch oven themed Glorious Pot Meal Recipe book is gonna be available soon. The Olive & Sun-Dried Tomato Halibut w/Cous Cous sounds like a good one to try.

In other news, it seems that God has a new television series coming out on NBC for Fall 2006, called Studio Seven on the Sunset Strip, and looks to be a Sports Night-esque type show. I can't wait. I love him so much. If you want to find out more, you really should read The Bible.

*evil laugh