I got out of work late on Friday night. It wouldn't have been so bad, except I was late for a farewell dinner and had left my phone at home. My friends were planning on dinner at 7pm. I said I would probably get there around 8pm. Again, work gets in the way of life. I was still a few exits away when 8:25 rolled around, then 8:30pm. Frustrated and hungry, I thought of a plan just in case I arrived and no one was there...head to the nearest Irish pub! I know where to find my friends (or make new ones, hehe). I parked at a meter and entered the restaurant to find two of my favorite things--friends and food! They said they waited for me and had just ordered. Awww, it warms my heart and my tummy.
I was so excited to have Indian food again. They had ordered before I arrived, so I can only guess at what we ate--garlic naan (white flour leavened bread), roti (whole wheat flour bread), and basmati rice with chicken curry, aloo baigan (eggplant-potato), saag aloo (spinach), matar paneer (green pea), and gulabe jamun (lightly browned cheese cake balls with flavored sauce) for dessert. There may have been more food at the other end of the table. I'm not sure.
Sorry for the lack of pictures. I was too busy eating :P.
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
green
Tonight I went to a St. Patty's Day potluck, yum! The entertainment for the night was the corned beef cook-off. 5 different corned beefs--2 flat cuts and 3 point cuts were prepared by boiling, baking, or slow-cooking. We carefully placed the samples on our plates so they wouldn't get mixed up. It was a tough choice. I had to go to a tie-breaker. I think we all ate a lot of meat tonight. The ballots were tallied by a certified accountant. I voted for the point cut that was baked with a special glaze. However, the prize (an invitation to return next year with the same recipe) went to my second choice, a point cut cooked with carrots and onions. Mmm, gotta love these holidays centered around "traditional" meals.
happy st. patrick's day!
happy st. patrick's day!
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
black and white
Last Saturday, I attended the wedding of one of my college friends. The bride and groom met in college and are forever Bruins. Preceding the ceremony, a string quartet played soft music, including the UCLA alma mater, "Hail to the Hills of Westwood." It was subtle, but one of my friends picked up on it. At the reception, the wedding party entered accompanied by music from the UCLA marching band CD. The school fight song blared while the happy couple made their appearance.
The bride and groom looked amazing and the ceremony was very touching. There was just one hitch. One of the groomsmen fainted on stage. That's right, fainted. Everyone had their eyes on the singers performing a duet. All of a sudden, I hear a thud and look to see the groomsman fall on the ground. He was totally out and was quickly carried to the first pew. The music continued. He revived and was fine. I'm not sure of the cause. It may have been a combination of locking his knees for a long period of time, the heat from the lights and his suit, and low blood sugar (my friend told me afterward that he is diabetic). He was co-MC at the reception and joked that if the couple submitted their wedding video to "America's Funniest Home Videos," he would not ask to split the prize money with them.
From the beginning of the wedding until the end of the post-reception dancing, I was there about 7 hours. I bought new strappy black shoes for the occasion. I already had strappy black shoes, but they have 4 inch heels and I thought that was too high. I showed my friend my new shoes after I had bought them and she said they looked comfortable. "They are," I responded. Two blisters later, I changed my mind. I've learned that 3 inch heels are not to be considered sensible.
The bride and groom looked amazing and the ceremony was very touching. There was just one hitch. One of the groomsmen fainted on stage. That's right, fainted. Everyone had their eyes on the singers performing a duet. All of a sudden, I hear a thud and look to see the groomsman fall on the ground. He was totally out and was quickly carried to the first pew. The music continued. He revived and was fine. I'm not sure of the cause. It may have been a combination of locking his knees for a long period of time, the heat from the lights and his suit, and low blood sugar (my friend told me afterward that he is diabetic). He was co-MC at the reception and joked that if the couple submitted their wedding video to "America's Funniest Home Videos," he would not ask to split the prize money with them.
From the beginning of the wedding until the end of the post-reception dancing, I was there about 7 hours. I bought new strappy black shoes for the occasion. I already had strappy black shoes, but they have 4 inch heels and I thought that was too high. I showed my friend my new shoes after I had bought them and she said they looked comfortable. "They are," I responded. Two blisters later, I changed my mind. I've learned that 3 inch heels are not to be considered sensible.
Monday, March 07, 2005
hiking
Yesterday, in the very early morning, my friends and I left for Palm Springs to participate in the City of Hope's Hike for Hope in Indian Canyons. The proceeds go towards breast cancer research.
We arrived at the registration area at 7:30am and were shuttled to the starting point. We had a choice between 9 trails, ranging from easy to strenuous. We chose the moderate trail from Palm Canyons to the stone pools--5.7 miles, 880 ft. gain. There could not have been a better day for the hike. The sun was out and the desert flowers were in bloom. For the first half of the trek, I walked behind a seasoned hiker who told me the names of the flora we encountered. We saw cacti--teddy bear, staghorn, hedgehog, and barrel cholla and flowers--phacilia, mallow, desert lavender, and lupine. The wretched field mustard reminded us of our freshman days in biology class when we had to make trips to the Creek with our lab books.
We got some comedy relief when we stopped at the halfway point, a stream that was filled from the recent rain storms. Two girls had crossed the stream and were trying to get their other friend to cross. She refused. A man said, "Don't do it. If you fall, the water will carry you down." One girl came back to get her, but slipped and fell in the water up to her chest. We were waiting for her to be carried down, but she just got up and was fine. Why they crossed at the deepest part of the stream, I have no idea.
After the hike, we were shuttled back to the celebration area to pick up our t-shirts and goodie bags. The best thing was the bathroom clock radio (battery included). We also got Chapstick, sunblock, hair products, toothpaste, mouthwash, deodorant, foot soap, raisins, and snack bars.
We headed for the Cabazon Outlets on the way home. They have a lot of nice stores, but all I got was a smoothie. Maybe because I was tired and sweaty. Maybe I just wasn't in a shopping mood. Maybe I'm sticking to my minimalist vow. Whatever the reason, it's for the best.
**special thanks to those who allowed me to publish their pictures**
along the Palm Canyons trail
big rocks
Palm Springs
hug this teddy bear and you'll need tweezers
We arrived at the registration area at 7:30am and were shuttled to the starting point. We had a choice between 9 trails, ranging from easy to strenuous. We chose the moderate trail from Palm Canyons to the stone pools--5.7 miles, 880 ft. gain. There could not have been a better day for the hike. The sun was out and the desert flowers were in bloom. For the first half of the trek, I walked behind a seasoned hiker who told me the names of the flora we encountered. We saw cacti--teddy bear, staghorn, hedgehog, and barrel cholla and flowers--phacilia, mallow, desert lavender, and lupine. The wretched field mustard reminded us of our freshman days in biology class when we had to make trips to the Creek with our lab books.
We got some comedy relief when we stopped at the halfway point, a stream that was filled from the recent rain storms. Two girls had crossed the stream and were trying to get their other friend to cross. She refused. A man said, "Don't do it. If you fall, the water will carry you down." One girl came back to get her, but slipped and fell in the water up to her chest. We were waiting for her to be carried down, but she just got up and was fine. Why they crossed at the deepest part of the stream, I have no idea.
After the hike, we were shuttled back to the celebration area to pick up our t-shirts and goodie bags. The best thing was the bathroom clock radio (battery included). We also got Chapstick, sunblock, hair products, toothpaste, mouthwash, deodorant, foot soap, raisins, and snack bars.
We headed for the Cabazon Outlets on the way home. They have a lot of nice stores, but all I got was a smoothie. Maybe because I was tired and sweaty. Maybe I just wasn't in a shopping mood. Maybe I'm sticking to my minimalist vow. Whatever the reason, it's for the best.
**special thanks to those who allowed me to publish their pictures**
along the Palm Canyons trail
big rocks
Palm Springs
hug this teddy bear and you'll need tweezers
exploring bodily performance
(It's late and I couldn't think of a title, so I got that from the website)
I went to the Body Worlds 2 exhibit at the California Science Center. 2 seems to be much more hyped than 1 ever was. A lot of people have mentioned it to me, independent of one another. Most of them had not seen the first. Two of my friends told me about the first part back in July. I had seen something about it on the news when it was touring in Europe, but didn't know about it coming to America. We went to see it and were thoroughly impressed. I can't say Part 2 is better or worse than the first, but the two add to one another.
Gunther von Hagens' plastination technique allows for the best dissections I've ever seen. Some of the displays were repeats form part 1, but they were still amazing. They presented skeletal bones, musculature, nerves, blood vessels, artificial knees and hips, metal rods in the spine, normal vs. abnormal organs--smoker's lung, coalminer's lung, enlarged heart, fatty liver, tumors, and goiters. This time, the full-body plastinates were more dynamic, showing various athletes in action so that some muscles were contracted while others were lengthened. Some of the bodies were a soccer player, javelin thrower, shot-putter, baseball batter, ballerina, yoga lady, skier, skateboarder, ring man, and figure skaters. Last time they had a man on a horse. This time, there was an adult camel and a baby camel. I liked how they described their three stomachs and the process of rumination.
Again they showed fetuses at different ages, with the youngest being 4 weeks old. What was new was the pregnant woman standing upright with the baby in her belly. Another display showed a cross section of an obese person next to a cross section of a skinny person to show how obesity overworks the organs and bones. I think they could have better shown the contrast with labels or pointed out specific items. It was towards the end of the exhibit and I didn't want to spend too much time on that display.
If you're in Los Angeles, I highly recommend seeing Body Worlds. It is both educational and artistic. Part 2 will be at the Science Center until March 27. My friend recently saw Part 1 in Chicago.
I went to the Body Worlds 2 exhibit at the California Science Center. 2 seems to be much more hyped than 1 ever was. A lot of people have mentioned it to me, independent of one another. Most of them had not seen the first. Two of my friends told me about the first part back in July. I had seen something about it on the news when it was touring in Europe, but didn't know about it coming to America. We went to see it and were thoroughly impressed. I can't say Part 2 is better or worse than the first, but the two add to one another.
Gunther von Hagens' plastination technique allows for the best dissections I've ever seen. Some of the displays were repeats form part 1, but they were still amazing. They presented skeletal bones, musculature, nerves, blood vessels, artificial knees and hips, metal rods in the spine, normal vs. abnormal organs--smoker's lung, coalminer's lung, enlarged heart, fatty liver, tumors, and goiters. This time, the full-body plastinates were more dynamic, showing various athletes in action so that some muscles were contracted while others were lengthened. Some of the bodies were a soccer player, javelin thrower, shot-putter, baseball batter, ballerina, yoga lady, skier, skateboarder, ring man, and figure skaters. Last time they had a man on a horse. This time, there was an adult camel and a baby camel. I liked how they described their three stomachs and the process of rumination.
Again they showed fetuses at different ages, with the youngest being 4 weeks old. What was new was the pregnant woman standing upright with the baby in her belly. Another display showed a cross section of an obese person next to a cross section of a skinny person to show how obesity overworks the organs and bones. I think they could have better shown the contrast with labels or pointed out specific items. It was towards the end of the exhibit and I didn't want to spend too much time on that display.
If you're in Los Angeles, I highly recommend seeing Body Worlds. It is both educational and artistic. Part 2 will be at the Science Center until March 27. My friend recently saw Part 1 in Chicago.
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
picking the winners
Last night, some friends and I gathered together for our second annual Academy Awards Potluck. I don't usually watch the Oscars, but this year it was the most fun I've ever had watching the 3+ hours long show (I was unable to make the potluck last year). The time flew by--partly because I missed the beginning of the show, but mostly because we ate and chatted the entire time. Each person brought a dish or two and tied it in with an Oscar-nominated film. We had Million Dollar Baby back ribs, Super-Size Me fries, nuggets, and Big Macs, House of Frying Wontons, The Incredibles Wonder(bread)ful BLT finger sandwiches, The Aviator's (buffalo) wings, Shrek 2co (taco) Salad, Johnny (guacamole and salsa) Dipp, Mary Full of Grapes, Ray-sinettes, and Lemony Snicket Bars. I thought this was our best food assortment yet.
Our hostess printed up ballots and we filled in our picks for each category. The winner selected 17 out of 24 correctly, second got 15, and we had a 3-way tie for third with 12 correct. This year, we had 5 fabulous prizes, courtesy of Universal Home Video: DVDs--"Scarface" Anniversary edition, "Seabiscuit," "Meet the Parents," "Bruce Almighty," and a VHS of "Animal House." This was a significant upgrade from last year's prize of "Bring It On Again" on DVD.
Oscar
Our hostess printed up ballots and we filled in our picks for each category. The winner selected 17 out of 24 correctly, second got 15, and we had a 3-way tie for third with 12 correct. This year, we had 5 fabulous prizes, courtesy of Universal Home Video: DVDs--"Scarface" Anniversary edition, "Seabiscuit," "Meet the Parents," "Bruce Almighty," and a VHS of "Animal House." This was a significant upgrade from last year's prize of "Bring It On Again" on DVD.
Oscar
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)