Chinese New Year Dinner: January 22nd, 2011

These are about two weeks late since Chinese New Year was on January 23rd but we celebrated it on January 22nd since it was a Sunday. I left the camera at home and forgot to stuff it hastily in my bag without my dad noticing bring it with me. The camera is basically divided between my Dad and I, usually dependent on our flip-flop interest in photography. Since I need it more for blogging fun / product reviews, I get it for the next few months.

Yay!

So this is the middle section, it all looks very sterile actually. We had more meats on opposing sides but this part was basically all veggies. There are some beef balls (excellent) and fish balls (blaugh) on the left hand side. The lotus slices (1o points if you can spot it!) were really yummy and had a nice sticky / crispy consistency. We also had a few plates of mussels (not my fav but popular amongst adults), some seaweed and squid. I was seated to the right side of the table so many of these veggies were lost to me. I ended up with more meat-y things.

Om nom nom.

Sauces!

Usually, my mom buys 2-3 flavors. The blue one is the plain seasoning and the red one is for spicy seasoning. We also had some peanut butter dipping (which you can mix with the sauces, it tastes amazing) but I couldn't find it at the time. I can't deal with spice so my side was the plain seasoning. I ended up getting a little -_- at the end because everyone deviated to the hot side and I was salvaging goods for the plain side. T_T

#foreveralone

Ah scooping.

We ran into the slight issue of accidentally using the same scoop for both side (why -_- WHY) and my side (on the right of the silver divider) ended up being spicy anyway.

Searching searching.

The most "tedious" part of hot pot would be finding the object you want and trying not to ruin it (the meat slices are thin and sometimes stick together) on the way to your plate.

Aha! Target acquired!

I really enjoyed a lot of the veggies on the "hot" side, actually. It doesn't soak in (so to speak), it just coats it lightly so you get a bit of flavoring but it doesn't cause me to hack up a lung.

--------

All in all, I had a really nice Chinese New Year weekend. The only downside was that I had so many things due that Monday that I was flailing everywhere. I also left my glasses on campus so I had to complete everything before my eyes started shutting down on me.

I'm very happy that I have ~ my ~ camera back. I haven't shot anything in months. Shall start practice again!

3 Things I've been liking recently

Ah yes. It's time for a List Post.

Also known as "Posts Angela does when she has done nothing but watch The Mentalist all day and inhale watermelon for lunch. God damn it, she misses her internship (or in particular, the Winners across the street) and wants to be busy again"

1) Pita Break One Bun Hamburger Bread

Yes, that is a picture of the Hot Dog version. I found the Hamburger packaging online but it looked a bit uncouth from afar (the pickles stick out in an unsightly manner) and this appeared to be more refined.

Anyway. I've been toasting these in olive oil for breakfast and letting it sit in the pan for a good 5 minutes on medium heat. The real magic is when you slide a sunny-side up egg in there and let the yolk disperse over the surface.

They're whole wheat and only 90 calories so if you're super health conscious (I'm getting up there), you can imagine that they're going to prolong your life. One day, you can tell your grand grand grand children that you've trumped mortality by eating mini whole-wheat hamburger buns.

I enjoy my time with these because as soon as September hits, I know I'm going to be too lazy to boil water.

2) Sunrise Original Tofu Desert

I found these at T&T (Asian supa-maaaket haven) the other day while looking for a can of quail eggs.

It caught my eye for two reasons:

1) It's the exact shade of Pink that I like (I hate Mattel Pink)

2) There were blueberries on the packaging (I love fruit more than life itself)

So I threw it in the cart and decided that nothing can go bad when the packaging displays two of your favorite things. Besides, you know you're super asian when you eat sweetened Tofu for dessert.

These have an interesting consistency and a nice velvety texture. I like that the syrup is super light and doesn't make you feel like your tongue will be sutured to the roof of your mouth.

3) Dior Lip balm

Well, being Angela I need to throw some kind cosmetic item in there (I am forever buying things from different brands that make me look the exact same). I saw this a while ago but always wrote it off as gimmicky. It's a clear lip balm that reacts to the natural chemistry of your lips so it's a different color on everyone.

Righhhtttt.

I'm always on a rampant search for a color that darkens my lips just slightly so I dabbed a bit of this on and it turned into this "your lips but better" color (to quote all the Allures I have read in high school) that looked really pretty against pale skin.

Win!

But lose because Dior charges an absurd amount for their make-up.

Pensive

Source

Lately, my mood can only be described as Vanilla

Bland and nondescript by itself but a nice addition to a social recipe

Picture Post: What's in my bag?

A friend of mine emailed me yesterday and prompted a "What's in your bag?" post.

I thought I would comply since:

1) My objects are aesthetically adorable
2) I'm running out of ideas but enjoy blogging

Only after I finished taking the pictures did I realize that all my things look like cartoon caricatures and that I had forgotten to take a picture of my actual bag.

Oops.

In my defense, it is a "What's in your bag meme"



1) My iphone

Known to many of my friends as my most beloved object and my heart and soul. Back off, get your own sammich.

2) My "loose" objects

I usually dump these in the front of my pocket so I can easily reapply or smell when I'm freaking out. This is Korres' Pommegranate lip glaze (such a pretty color, it's like the color of your lips after you've been kissed) and Clean's Shower Fresh rollerball (because I'm too cheap to spent $100 on the actual bottle), which I roll on every morning on the Go train because it's some kind of a cathartic experience.



3) My stack of keychains with one key on it

I'm a hoarder of cute keychains. I collect them like a crazy cat lady. I have two Coach ones that I've collected through the years (and the reason why I get those annoying emails), a little crystal dude and a stack of silver bunnies purchased by my mom in Beijing. The emblems of London were given to me from my lovely Nida when she visited there last year.

My dad and the boy are missing from my memoirs. I suggest they get on it.

:p



4) My cupcake "coin purse" and my Hello Kitty wallet

I don't use it the coin purse for coins. I use it for stuff like ID card, debits cards and Go Transit passes (I have a 10 ride for McMaster and a monthly for Union). My big Hello Kitty envelope wallet is heavy with unused pennies so I leave it in the office and venture out with the coin purse for lunch.

4) My make-up bag

I have a love for all things "bear like". In my past life, I was probably a Carebear.




5) My make-up

Face: No foundation lately because I'm too lazy and have good skin. I usually just blend Benefit's Boi-ing #1 (light) and #2 (medium) and swipe it over any uneven areas.

Eyes: I don't wear eye make-up but if I look tired, I use Benefit's Eye Bright. Works like a light-diffusing charm!

Cheeks: I've been favoring Tarte's Amazonian Clay blush in Tipsy lately. If you're a make-up aficionado, you can click on the last picture and see how pretty the color is. It's a beautiful coral color that brightens up your face.

I swipe it on with a Mac travel sized angle brush. Usually there's no need for reapplication but I bring it along anyway.

Moisturizer: Clarin's Beauty Flash. I've been using this for years because it's awesome and makes me look like I've actually slept well.

After reading over this list, I've deduced that I need to stop wasting my life in Sephora.

5 Materialistic items that I love

1. Starbucks Green Tea Lemonade



Glorifed nestea with some ice in it buuut I love it anyway

2. Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush

luxx.com

A bright punch of color on a gloomy day. It lasts through 12 hours of Go train slumping, feverish exhaustion and the occasional pigeon fight. It comes in about 8 different colors and I plan to catch'em all one day,


3. Iphone 4


Dear Iphone 4:

I don't care how frequently the Anti-Apple brigade insults you. You quench my boredom during my commute, save my ass when I'm lost and I consider you a genetically perfected 5th limb.

4. Stila One Step complexion brush



1 pea sized drop of foundation and this brush can get you polished and blended in about 5 minutes flat. I have 20 minutes to get ready before I leave for the Go train station so anything that saves time is worth the money.

5. Nikon D60




I still want a Canon Rebel but the D60 is a good starter DSLR to practice with. I'm getting a good handle of coordinating the lighting with the camera settings.

Next up, practice customized settings!

What stimulates you?

Every one has a thing

You know, a fixation, an obsession, something that excites you, sends you to your happy place and causes damage to your bank account.

For a lucky few, it's something economical like collecting seashells or rare pennies. I mean, 5 pennies on a 100 % inflation rate/decade and you might be able to exchange it for a Trenta sized drink from Starbucks.

My mother, for example, loves dolls and figurines. I can't blame her since she was a teenager in the 1970's and still likes wearing her pants up to her waist to this day. However, buying those creepy little dolls with the fluttery eyelids, the enhanced Megan Fox eyelashes and the bejeweled eyeballs makes her really happy.

Fact: Everyone is a consumer

This isn't negotiable (unless you're on Extreme Couponing) - we all buy things. The one piece of information I retained from Economics (besides how much I hate economics) is the principle of Utility.

Utility, as defined by wikipedia (please, like I could actually pull the definition of Utility off the top of my head) is "the measure of relative satisfaction". In layman's terms, economic behavior is determined by our attempts to stay in our happy place.

Or as Liz Lemon says, I want to go to there.

For me, it's blush. A new blush makes my eyes round and sparkly like Sailor Moon when she sees Tuxedo Mask. This, for example is my newest acquisition. It's Makeupforever's HD blush in Nipslip. (Please forgive the tiny black stripe on the left hand corner that throws the picture off)


It's all about perception. My mother stared at it and said. "Oh, it's pink"

No, Mother. It's not pink. It's a delicate peachy color that blends beautifully for that glow from within look. It's perfect for summer and makes me feel like I can wear a white dress and run through meadows, stopping only to feast on a picnic of honeydew and fresh pears.

Our personal fixations usually stem from a function. This is then followed by a positive emotion that reinforces the function and justifies our fixation. In some weird situations, this is what turns people into hoarders and collectors of lint.

If you really want to go deeper, I believe there is an emotional connection buried within our fixations. Sometimes it's elicited from childhood memories, sometimes it works to soothes our insecurities and boost our confidence.

The point is, we're on the pursuit of happiness and at some point or another, we've done it through purchasing things. Everyone has a fixation, you have to. The economy is dependent on what you like, how much you like it and how much more of it you want.

As long as you're not hoarding tin cans, buying $160 worth of blush at the same time and collecting used gum, I think its safe to like something if its function is to make you happy.

And no, that's not an excuse so I can buy Mac's blushcreme in Posey.

I love Nerds

Bought this today during my lunch hour. God, I'm such a stereotype.

I wish Queen Street was less fun (and expensive) to explore

Favorite things: The secret unlisted Asian girl happy Drink

Williams doesn't list this on the menu but they offer a Green Tea chiller that they'll make for you if you ask nicely.

I usually ask for this once or twice a year because asking for it involves massive side eying from the cashier, especially when I request soy milk at the end because my body is almost incapable of processing a large amount of lactose.

/end Mundane Angela facts.

Love: Chanel Details Spring Summer 2010

Loneliness in a perfect world

Love: Alice in Wonderland collection by Locketship

These are gorgeous!

Want: Chocolate Trench Coat

I already have one in the color of freshly baked biscuits.

This color is lovely.

Almost obsidian.

I would like food more if I didn't love clothing so much