Thursday, September 30, 2010

Bollywood Booty

Yes, I want a Bollywood Booty! Actually, I rather have a Tollywood booty instead :)

I was on Twitter chatting with a few friends about Bollywood workouts. Since I am a huge Bipasha Basu fan, I haven't had the chance to buy her workout dvd yet. When I wanted to purchase it, it was out of stock!

Then @kamala_chan mentioned Bollywood Booty, she has that workout dvd.

I searched at my local library and was able to find me a copy!



The other night, I tried to workout.

Honestly, it's not about working out your booty, more like your hips!! It was a good timepass.
Wow, seems like I'm reviewing a film, lol!

Some of the moves were cheesy...

For example - "paint the room," "turn the light bulb," "Bollywood vogue"

:D

Food: Tenant Appreciation Day

Since yesterday was the Tenant Appreciation Day, we got food, courtesy of the landlords.

I don't remember the name of the cater but when I find out. I will update. All I know is that it's in the area - Atlanta/Sandy Springs and it's a barbeque place.

Here's my plate.



Yummy shredded bbq pork on a sandwich bun, bbq breast/wing, homemade coleslaw, and baked beans.

Everything was yummy....until....



Yeah, you guessed it. I got an uncooked chicken!!!

I seemed to be the only one at work since the rest of my co-workers got a cooked chicken parts.

So just my bad luck. However, it was yummy....

Updates and random thoughts on my life



I haven't done an update on my blog about me in a while. When I first started the blog, I just wanted to jot down some thoughts I had. Then it became a rant blog. So I just didn't want to sound like an angry Asian bitch on here.

Since then, I haven't blogged much.

Just recently, I have been posting photos of food. I cook almost everyday. I don't cook everyday because sometimes my family and I eat the leftovers from the previous day or I'm really busy and am unable to cook. I hardly go out and eat. And if I do, it will be quick stops to get food.

I'm not a high maintenance girl and don't splurge on myself. The most I've done for myself is spend money on my hair cuts but I have to be frugal because prices on utilities and cost of living are going up but my paycheck isn't.

It's great that I still have a job. I'm thankful for that. Sometimes, I wonder why I don't advance and better myself. It's the comfort zone. Plus, I am afraid of failure...even more so than death lately.

Every time I take one step forward, seems like when I'm down, I tumble down three steps back. I've been really depress and sad in the past few months, hiding it well from a lot of my friends. Only a few close friends know what's going on.

One of my close friends, J, has been there from me from beginning to end of this depression of mine. I have made a decision that will probably hurt me for a few months but I chose that path to do it because it's what's right at this moment. It may seem like a burden but it's only temporary. 2010 started off okay then dipped, and now, I don't want it to end bad.

It's a bit of a stress relief with me even writing this post. I hide behind my entertainment life and laughter but inside, it's rough and hurting.

I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me. We all choose the path we take and make the best of it.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Food: Chicken eggrolls

Location - my kitchen

It's a Tuesday night and I decided to make chicken eggrolls. My son thinks something special is going on since I don't like to cook food that takes too much prep time on weeknights but I am doing that right now!

Here's a pic of half of the eggrolls I made. I use ground chicken instead of the usual Asian meat - pork!

Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk

I finally got the company group picture from the Kaiser Permanente Corporate Run/Walk I did a week and a half ago.

Find me!

 
My third year participating. Technically only two since last year I injured myself and couldn't be in the run. This year, I did 5k in 45 minutes. I'm a bit disappointed in myself cause I had a goal of 40 mins!

Running outside is so different from the gym machines. I do so much on the gym machine! I could do 5 miles in an hour on the elliptical. 5k is equal more or less to 3.1 hours and I couldn't even do that outside.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Happy Birthday Derry!

My youngest brother's girlfriend, Derry, was in town to celebrate her birthday. Since I was unable to go with her to her birthday gathering, I suggested a potluck get together at one of her older sister's house.

I decided to make three dishes. I didn't take a picture of my pigs in the blanket but here are pics of the other two dishes I made.

Dipped Dark and White Strawberries


Chicken wraps (didn't take the pic of the sauce I made)


I didn't make the following two dishes but they were yummy...

broiled chicken
Made by Kayla


Lo Mein
Shelly says she bought this from a local Chinese restaurant, lol



There were more dishes but didn't take a pic of all of them.
Last but not least, the birthday cake for my youngest bro's girlfriend, Derry. I hope she becomes my sister-in-law soon! I <3 her



Sunday, September 26, 2010

Korean Festival

 
My daughter and I went to the 2nd annual Korean festival. It was a bit disappointing cause I was wanting to buy Taeyang cds/posters but instead I see mobile and insurance vendors instead. 

Maybe it's the Thai, Laos, Hmong events that I go to because I want to see more pop culture merchandises.

Some vendors...


Tae Kwon Do show


Drum girls
they were good!!!


Fan girls
interesting but like the drum girls more :D


Fashion parade


Thursday, September 23, 2010

Gwinnett County Fair

I promised the kids that I'll take them to the Gwinnett County Fair this year. Last year, we did plan to go but it was raining a lot and even flooded Atlanta!

I decided to go on Monday night. I know, it's a school night but the weekend was going to be extra packed and besides, the kids got coupons for school for that night :)

Here are some pics from the fair.

Our first ride! Roller coaster, baby!


Games and Prizes that we didn't play :D





Roller coaster #2


View from top of the ferris wheel


ferris wheel :D

Nazi sign similar to the Swastika sign

My daughter loves the Hindu god, Ganesh. A friend sent a wonderful Ganesh picture, such a sweet gesture from her.

My daughter has several other Ganesh statues. When we go to the Hindu temple, she always donates to Ganesh and prays to him.

Well, after a few days, my daughter came up to me telling me that there's a Nazi sign on the picture.



It didn't hit me at first but yeah, there's a sign similar to the Nazi sign.

I did some research to find out that the Nazis stole the Swastika sign and changed it up a bit to represent the Nazi. This is really sad! Many Westerners will still think that it's a Nazi sign!

Upon doing some research, I found this very interesting post about learning the differences.

Nazi Swastika or Ancient Symbol?
Time to Learn the Difference

During a religious holiday of mine, my mother and I went to the store, Staples, to make color copies of a few Gods to give to our temple. On one of the pictures, there was a very religious Hindu symbol, resembling a Nazi swastika, yet the arms faced the opposite direction.

When we went on line to pay for the copies, the people behind us, not noticing the differentiation between the two signs, starting talking to each other, saying that my mother and I were Nazis. Quite appalled, my mother turned around and calmly explained to them that it was not a Nazi symbol, that the symbol first belonged to many different cultures before the Nazis adopted it. She explained the religious meaning and the people behind us said they were sorry and stated, "Oh, I never knew that."

I have realized that many people, not only in this country, but in the entire world, do not know about the meaning of the swastika and that it was not only the symbol of Nazi Germany.

The swastika is an equilateral cross with arms bent at right angles, all in the same direction, usually the right, or clockwise. The swastika is a symbol of prosperity and good fortune and is widely dispersed in both the ancient and modern world. It originally represented the revolving sun, fire, or life. The word swastika is derived from the Sanskrit swastika which means, "conducive to well- being". The swastika was widely utilized in ancient Mesopotamian coinage as well as appearing in early Christian and Byzantium art, where it was known as the gammadion cross. The swastika also appeared in South and Central America, widely used in Mayan art during that time period.

In North America, the swastika was a symbol used by the Navajos. The swastika still continues today to be an extensively used sign in Buddhism, Jainism, and Hinduism. In Buddhism, a swastika represents resignation. In Jainism, it delineates their seventh saint, and the four arms are also used to remind the worshiper of the four possible places of rebirth; the animal or plant world, in Hell, on Earth, or in the spirit world. To Hindus, the swastika with the arms bent to the left is called the sathio or sauvastika, which symbolizes night, magic, purity, and the destructive goddess Kali. In both Hinduism and Jainism, the swastika or sathio is used to mark the opening pages or their account books, thresholds, doors, and offerings.

The swastika was a symbol for the Aryan people, a name which, in Sanskrit means "noble". The Aryans were a group of people who settled in Iran and Northern India. They believed themselves to be a pure race, superior to the other surrounding cultures. When the Germans looked for a symbol, they looked for a symbol which represented the purity which they believed they contained. The Nazis regarded themselves as "Aryans" and tried to steal the accomplishments of these pre-historic people.

In Nazi Germany, the swastika with its arms turned clockwise became the national symbol. In 1910, a poet and nationalist Guido von List suggested that the swastika as a symbol for all anti-Semitic organizations. When the National Socialist Party was formed in 1919, it adopted the ancient symbol, the swastika, giving it the worst meaning possible, destroying the good symbolism which the swastika had held for thousands of years prior.

In 1935, the black swastika on a white circle with a crimson background became the national symbol of Germany. The major difference between the Nazi swastika and the ancient symbol of many different cultures, is that the Nazi swastika is at a slant, while the ancient swastika is rested flat.

Today, whenever the ancient symbol is used, it is automatically assumed by most people that it is a Nazi symbol and that the people who use it are Nazis. When the Nazis took the ancient symbol, they erased the good meaning of the swastika, the symbol of purity and of life. The racist people of today further degrade the meaning of the ancient symbol by spray painting the swastika on people houses, cars, and even schools.

In my eighth grade World of Difference class, we watched a video about a high school art student who painted the swastika and displayed it in his school's art gallery. We then had a debate on whether the painting should come down or not. Because most people are ignorant to the fact that the swastika was not only a Nazi symbol, symbolizing death and destruction, the class decided to take the painting down and in actuality, the boy was forced to take it down. This is a prime example of how the world delineates the swastika as a bad symbol, and how the Nazis destroyed the meaning of the symbol by adopting it as their own.

The swastika symbolizes so much more than what the Nazis planned. The swastika existed as a symbol of good fortune thousands of years before the Nazis even existed. The symbol is to many cultures an important one, representing their history and beliefs. The Nazis, by taking the swastika, annihilated the significance of the ancient symbol. Today, the swastika is to most people a symbol of evil, a symbol of demise, and a symbol of ruination. It is extremely depressing to find that although the swastika is a symbol of life, and symbol of joy, it has been made a symbol of evil, something the people of the ancient world never intended it to be.

Source

Monday, September 20, 2010

Food: Bánh Mi

I don't each much pork but I make an exception.

I was craving for some Bánh Mi, aka Viet subs. Since I was running errands all Saturday morning, I thought...why not stop by my fave Viet sub shops for a bite?



Quoc Huong is hands down the BEST place for Bánh Mi. In addition, very few places even sells the bbq pork flavor. It is marinated grilled/roast pork with a slabs of sweetish mayo topped with pickled daikon and carrots, alongside sliced cucumbers and topped with cilantro and jalepenos.

My mouth if watering again. I want another one! The bread used is french bread.

Location -
Quoc Huong
5150 Buford Hwy NE
Doraville, GA 30340
(770) 936-0605

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Another blog????

08/25/2010

Yes, I am really thinking about it....

A blog on food. Just mainly pictures. Not recipes but the final dish. Or from restaurants.

Just a thought.

Food blogs are my latest obsession....

09/15/2010

As you can see now, I have updated the blog with pictures of foods!

Again, I'm not making this a recipe blog :D

Food: Curry Coconut Bamboo Chicken soup

Curry Coconut Bamboo Chicken soup



I don't know if this dish even has an English name but that's what I'm calling it! It's called "kapoon" in the Hmong/Lao/Thai community.

One of my all-time favorite dishes. The main ingredients consist of shredded chicken, shredded bamboo, curry, & coconut milk. Of course, the noodles. I am very picky about what type of noodles I use for my dish. Even my family is. I use Japanese style noodles.

Location -
My kitchen

Food: Korean cake

Korean cake 2
I bought this for my sis's birthday this year



Location -
White Windmill Bakery
3250 Steve Reynolds Blvd, Duluth, GA 30096
(678) 584-0000

Food: @Aja

These pictures are old but from my birthday bash earlier this year!

Location -
Aja
3500 Lenox Rd NE
Atlanta, GA 30326
(404) 231-0001

I do not remember the names of all the dishes as they were not listed on the regular menu. We had the chef's special with a 3-course meal. Took pictures of all the dishes and the choices.