Blueberry Shorts

2009-01-31T16:39:00.002-06:00

The Waiting Room Cafe

Inside the hospital in Markham, is this little gem of a snack bar. It's simple, cozy and makes the best sandwiches and salads. It offers a reprieve for many people who are...simply put, waiting. A few times, we have, numb from waiting, found comfort in the toasted Western, Garden salad and hot chocolate. Sometimes it seems like our lives are also stuck in 'the waiting room cafe' as we await what path our future will lead us to. "Wait" is a much harder response than yes or no. While incubating in the waiting phase, I feel helpless and out of control. But the virtues learned are patience and trust...and only time will tell what was gained from the wait. Our wait has been long, but while we are waiting, there is reprieve in the comfort in the small things in life we so often take for granted, such as being with friends, family and enjoying the freedom that we currently have. I might as well have a toasted western sandwich while I'm waiting.

2009-01-31T16:21:00.002-06:00

Hanging Out

Lately I've been hanging out a lot at home with Kelvin, just doing nothing. There's something liberating about that. There's something special about being able hang out with someone, and not do anything, and still be comfortable. There are no expectations, just each other's company. Today we hung out on the living room couch- he and I both with our macbooks. I managed to do a lot of stuff and took a short break and even read a book! It's so comfortable being home. It's our little hiding place.

2009-01-02T21:43:00.003-06:00

I've had a bit of writer's block for some time now. It is most certainly the perfectionist in me, wanting to make sure I have something important to say before writing. Well, the truth is, what I have to say is only as important as I believe it to be. I guess that's always been my problem: I have a hard time believing that what I think and say actually means something. Weird, eh? I don't think it's an inferiority complex..I suppose it's just that I've never put much time cultivating my thoughts, and I really don't care enough about too many things to have a strong opinion about anything. Wow, if that doesn't make me sound apathetic, I don't know what does. While I am most definitely not the "debate till you die" type, I'm 100% a reflector. I care more about feelings and relationships than about right and wrong, true or false. I can never remember facts - only how what someone said made me feel. At the same time, I wish I could be more fact oriented - I think it will allow me to have more intelligent discussions without sounding dumb. Today a Bell operator made me feel dumb because I doubted myself, and asked a stupid question. AH! I hate that feeling, and I hate the reaction that it generates in people I converse with. I can suddenly 'feel' them discounting everything I say after the 'dumb' moment, which prompted me to quickly hang up, call back, and hope that another operator picks up the phone! I didn't call back. I just continued to feel dumb, and then proceeded to go shopping.

I'm always fascinated by how eloquent the thoughts and words of those who have taken time to explore, research and then cultivate a well-informed opinion. I really do admire that.

Oh yeah, I remember what I want to say now. I'm going to try to let go a little bit of my perfectionist tendencies, because I think I just need to write. It's like walking, or running, or talking, or eating - you don' think about it - you just do it. So here I am, back and ready to just write it. Is there a point to this? I don't know. Does there always have to be a point to something? I don't know. I guess I can walk to a destination, or walk for the sake of walking. If one has no destination, should one stop walking? I'm going to try to explore the art of writing for the sake of writing. Maybe in so doing, I will find myself somewhere new.

2008-04-20T22:33:00.001-05:00

the heart is a tiger
that cannot be caged
like a predator, it prowls
it goes where it will
master of no one
it yields only to its own will
tame it
touch it
tear it

torn
it continues its journey
no beginning
no end
it goes where it will
alone in the wild
until it finds
You

2008-01-29T20:29:00.000-06:00

Fear

I walk, afraid to run
I watch, afraid to speak
I close my eyes, afraid to know
I'm still, afraid to change

paralyzer
parasite
pest

I get up, You push me down
I speak, You stutter me
I seek to know, You stumble me
I try to change, and You return me
to my ways

Must we duel, always, You and I?
Are you just an Illusion
An enemy of my own hallucinated army?

Fear
Fading away as I reach for You
I want to be on Your side,
Really

But when I reach for You, come close to You
You vanish
Only to creep up on me

Fear
Are You my Shadow
Pinning me to the ground?

Let me take You
Work with You
Run towards You

Let's not fight any more
I will run and not walk
I will speak and not be silenced
I will overcome...

Myself

2008-01-22T18:58:00.001-06:00

Random Thoughts

Hello old friend. I've neglected you for a while, I know. You know I've always had a volatile relationship with you. Sometimes I don't know how to communicate to you, other times I can't stop telling about all of life's events. I know I've been silent for a while. It's not that I haven't thought about blogging. It's not that life has been boring either - it hasn't. It's just that I've been trying so hard to find a message in what I have to say, that I've completely lost sight of the enjoyment of just writing for what it is. Or, perhaps it's the perfectionist in me - always wanting to record everything, to make sure everything is the way it's supposed to be. I suppose you could call me a control freak. Yes, a control freak because I can't control what I want to write. How ironic. What if I were just for once, to violate the norm of writing after my travels, to write for birthdays, New Years...I'm going to skip all of that..and tell you about...now.

How have I been lately? I guess...content would be the appropriate word. I feel content. I feel that I have made some improvements in my life lately that I have been trying to do for some time. For instance...I've started regaining better balance of my life. Definitely setting a schedule and putting aside time to go to the gym and be active has been a positive part. I really enjoyed doing Running Room with Kelvin, even though we didn't successfully complete the program (it got too cold too soon). I loved Pilates - it's helped me to build some ab strength..always a bonus! And I've joined a new gym (bye bye Extreme) where I've begun sharing a personal trainer with Elaine, which has been a lot of fun. On the friendship end, since I've started scheduling Thursdays as "friends night", both Kelvin and I have been able to negotiate time where we devote to our friends. It's given us a healthy space to plan activities with people outside of each other. Work has been good too - I've managed to chunk some work together, and focus on some larger scale activities that has improved the profile of the school library without wearing myself down on a day-to-day basis. I'm also excited that I've been approached by a publisher to write a teacher's guide for a resource book. I'm doing this with a friend at work, so the experience has been fun thus far. Church is great- friendships are growing and drumming is becoming more stable. My greatest accomplishment thus far (though cheesy) has been able to better manage home stuff - grocery shopping, laundry, cooking, lunches - much better than I've ever done in the past. I think preplanning, scheduling and be disciplined about what I do with my time is a huge challenge that I'm making steps to overcome.

On a personal level, I feel the need to continually improve myself. Setting goals, and steps to reach those goals are things I'm learning to do. My greatest obstacle is learning to persevere and stick with something. I often feel like I'm a walking buffet patron..always wanting to sample something, but not really wanting to eat at all.

Friends and family continue to be a very important part of my life. I wish to devote more time to them and yet still be able to manage my own needs, responsibilities, goals and dreams.

I hate to use the word, "settling down"...but I do wonder if that's what's happening. While I want consistency I also want to continue to change...to evolve into a better person.

Let's see what the next few months have in store for me...until then, my dear blogger...I promise I won't be far.

2007-07-23T12:54:00.000-05:00

California Sunshine!

We've been in California for about four days now, and so far our vacation has been amazing. Although we landed and arrived in San Francisco really late on Friday morning (2am SF time, 5am TO time), we managed to get a good night's rest to start off our day right on Friday. We had breakfast in San Francisco (doesn't that sound romantic?), walked around Union Square for a bit. The palm trees against the solid blue sky, the smell of the fresh ocean air, and the sound of the buzzing street with the cable car climbing up Powell street was so refreshingly familiar. It was a great way to start the journey.

When we rented our car, we had a choice to rent a convertible, and so here we are, driving in San Francisco in our Toyota Solara Convertible! Only problem was, we didn't know how to open it, and while crawling through the busy streets of SF, Kelvin decides to fidget with it, and
as we were weaving in and out of traffic, our hood pops open halfway! It was quite a scene, us silly tourists and our convertible car, and the half opened roof. We managed to find the button that properly opened it up all the way, and off we went, driving down Highway 101 towards Milpitas (San Jose) to our favourite Malaysian restaurant- Banana Leaf.

The drive was gorgeous! I've never sat in a convertible before, and if there's a perfect place to ride in one, it's definitely California. The breeze was cool and soft, and the drive was breathtaking as we weaved through the mountains, hills and coastline.

We arrived in Banana Leaf and Kelvin met up with his friend and former colleauge, Christian. They had a great time bonding and catching up while eating Kelvin's favourite dishes. The final dessert - Ice Katchung - an assortment of sweet things blended in ice and sugar syrup - finished off the delicious meal.

We continued our drive south toward Carmel By the Beach, a small coastal town that has quaint shops and houses. We had been here three years ago, and this stop was a stop down Memory Lane.

En route to San Luis Obispo- our stopover for the night- was the most magnificent drive. I've ever experienced. We drove down the infamous Hwy 1, or Pacifical Coastal Hwy (PCH) which hugs along the Pacific Ocean. While the drive was only supposed to be 2.5 hours, it took us 4 hours to reach our destination as we had stopped to take many photos along the way. Kelvin had a blast driving up and down the curvy and windy road along the mountain. Driving in a convertible made it all the more spectacular.

Well, we are now in LA, and will be heading to San Diego soon. I've got to log off now, but I still have to write about the Guadeloupe Dunes, Solvang wine county and meeting up with Michael in Los Angeles! I'll try to write more in SD, as we have free wireless! Until then..it's outlet shopping time!

2007-05-20T08:17:00.000-05:00

HELLO 32

My birthday, May 19, happens to always fall on the Victoria Day long weekend, which makes the celebrations around it extra special. I woke up to beautiful sunshine and to 32 kisses from hubby. We decided that instead of going to Montreal as we had done in the past two years, that we'd go to.."downtown Toronto"....wooooo....well, it was a good choice, since I've been feeling really exhausted lately. We stayed right in the heart of downtown Toronto, chez Kelvin's mama and papa, and we were pampered to a delicious brunch along with many midday snacks. Thank you mum and dad!

Downtown Toronto is truly a gorgeous place. I love being able to walk downstairs and find restaurants, stores, shopping and transportation. We never really get to enjoy downtown, as we're usually here, and then we rush back home. We took a lot of walks today, along Queen Street, and then towards the St. Lawrence Market, and then back on King Street to end the night with oysters and beer. The best part about this was when we got tired, we could go back up to his parents' condo, and rest, and head out again.

Turning 32 has a bittersweet feeling. Yes, I am no longer considered "young" although I can still probably pass off as 22. I will continue to take advantage of that :) Sweet because I am surrounded by people I love, and I have been blessed with a lot of amazing things in life...bitter though because I know that the clock is ticking, and I feel some sense of urgency to "do more before it's too late." I find myself caught in this struggle of looking forward and looking backwards more and more. I'm not quite sure what to do about these mixed feelings.

And just as I was pondering these thoughts, I walked into a bargain bookstore on Front Street, and there it was, staring at me, a book called "The Best Half of Life: Make your second half your best half"...haha..can you believe it....I am now in (or very close to)..this "second half" of my life! Apparently there are 100 simple secrets - I'll be sure to share them here - well, that's all for now...gonna go out and continue celebrating this weekend!

2007-01-29T21:59:00.000-06:00

Recent Reads:
I'm going to post pictures of books I've just read in case I forget. I've also learned to accept that there are some books I will never finish. But here are my success stories (no pun intended)! I'm proud to have picked up the reading bug again..sometimes when it goes away, it's hard to get it back.

All of the books I've read have been inspiring on different levels. But my favourite book this month is Paulo Coehlo's The Fifth Mountain. Without giving away too much of the book, I am left thinking this: How can doing the right thing cause so much pain?
How can we stand our ground and remain faithful, when everything around us falls apart?

Some food for thought. Will share more about the other books next time.

2007-01-15T22:48:00.000-06:00

January 15, 2007
ANKLE ADVENTURE

Last Monday, I sprained my ankle on the battlefield of the badminton court. It was a close game, and my shining moment came when the birdie came towards me and I jump smashed it and scored the final point, before landing on my ankle and falling ever so heroically on the court as Kelvin rushed to scoop me up.....
Well, okay....it didn't exactly happen that way...but it did sound good didn't it?
Thanks to Joanna (who also rolled on her ankle last term, but in a much more heroic way) I had everything all ready for me - crutches, Myoflex, tensor band and ice! I was quite embarrassed actually to call in sick on the second day back to work, after having already had two weeks off for the holidays. What did I do during my time of solitary confinement on the couch with my foot elevated? Watched 6 hours of HGTV, FoodTV, CityLine and Rachel Ray. These shows really didn't do me any good, as it only made me want to get up and clean!
While I was off though, I did discover an amazing remedy for treating sprains, bones and bruises! It's called ZHENG GU SHUI, literally translated as "fix bone water." It is purchased from the "pharmacy" counter at a Chinese grocery store, which in essence, was a glass cabinet above the cashiers. Both cashiers on duty couldn't reach, and one of the cashiers lured a tall, good-looking guy to get it for her- not knowing that he was with me, she said, "leng gor gor chai" (pretty boy) could you lend some of your muscle power for us? Kelvin once again came to the rescue. I had a good chuckle as I've never heard anyone call him that before (not that he's not a pretty boy to me) but never addressed as such by another lady in my presence..tee hee.

So back to this bone muscle healing remedy- I rubbed it for half an hour (warning: it reeks), and I felt a significant improvement on my mobility and comfort almost immediately. I also learned from my mother-in-law that using a heated slice of ginger and rubbing the oil is also very effective. So, over the course of my ankle injury, I have used:

ice
Myoflex
ice pack
tensor band
Chinese medicated oil (zheng guo shui)
Ginger
water
hard boiled egg (heat therapy)

But my all time favourite treatment so far is still TLC from hubby! Oh, and I forgot to mention that he did scoop me up and carry me to the car. That part is true to the bone!

2007-01-09T18:20:00.000-06:00

2006 Blessings

Thank you Lord for:
- Bringing my mom to accept Jesus Christ as her Saviour. Hallelujah!!!
- Bringing Matthew Chansavang (my baby nephew) into this world on July 6!
- Giving me the opportunity to grow and face new challenges at work
- Opening the door for me to serve on the worship team at church with amazing and talented Christians
- Blessing me with wonderful family and friends
- Bringing Cara, Ho, Brandon and Jocelyn to visit us in the summer
- Giving us the opportunity to travel to new places
- Being able to watch Megan (my little neice) grow into such a loving and gentle girl
- Giving me a beautiful home, and teaching me how to de-clutter and organize!
- Giving us a cleaning lady :)
- Teaching me to be patient, humble and to put others first...ongoing life lessons...

Blessings are a fascinating thing. One does not always see something as a blessing, as they can often come disguised, and they may reveal themselves after a long period of suffering and uncertainty. Reading Paulo Coelho's "The Fifth Mountain" has inspired me to think about this topic in a different perspective.

"From heaven, God smiles contentedly, for it was this that He desired, that each person take into his hands the responsibility for his own life. For, in the final analysis, He had given His children the greatest of all gifts: the capacity to choose and determine their acts.
Only those men and women with the sacred flame in their hearts had the courage to confront Him. And they alone knew the path back to His love, for they understood that tragedy was not punishment but challenge."

So, 2007..whatever challenges come our way, may I have the faith and understanding to rejoice in the Lord and trust Him. Happy 2007!!!

2007-01-09T18:05:00.000-06:00

2006 Reflections

The end and the beginning. New Year celebrations always bring a bittersweet taste.
I guess in a way it's like birthdays. You are thrown into some form of self-reflection and uncertainty: What did I do this year? What is going to happen this year? Where was I this time last year? Where will I be next year? Did 2006 mean anything? What have I accomplished?
Unfortunately, for 2006, I can't say it's one of my more productive years. In fact, on a scale of productivity, it's probably the lowest it's been for a while. For starters, nothing really "new" happened last year. No life changing experiences either. But must one always calculate life's meaning and worth by what one accomplishes? As I am writing this, I feel the need to change my direction. Rather than listing what I have done in 2006 (which is pretty humbling if I must list), I will attempt to list 2006 blessings....readers, don't give up on me. It'll be coming soon.

2006-11-07T16:55:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday Kelvin!
On November 3rd, Kelvin and I celebrated his birthday by doing something we both love: travel. We flew to London, England for our mini getaway trip. Yes, this is a big splurge that we will probably not do again...but was it worth it? Yes! Every minute...

London is a beautiful city. We had gorgeous sunny weather all the way. We stayed at the Charing Cross Thistle hotel, which is right in the heart of Theatreland and right beside Trafalgar square. It is a beautiful hotel, and we were right above the Tube, which made getting around so much easier. During the next few days, we took many pictures with Kelvin's Nikon SLR (his baby) as we walked along the Thames river, visited Canary Wharf and Camden Town, Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and the many bridges of London. We also met up with Simon and Melody, and spent some quality time with them as well. It is nice to see old friends.

I must say, that it was a lot of fun running around, walking, wandering and snapping away. While the sun did set at a ridiculously early time (4:30pm), we were able to make use of our tripod that we borrowed from Michael to take fun night shots. Visiting Camden Town was also an interesting experience: We stepped out onto a street filled with rockers. It was like Queen Street (Tor) + Mong Kok (HK) + Shibuya (Japan) meets Boy George. What a huge contrast to the suits and ties we saw on Friday at St. Paul's. I suppose it is the many faces of London.

We also had a chance to watch Stomp. It was an amazing experience. I will never look at a broom without thinking of how many different ways I can tap it to create a rhythm. The performers were stunning. Kelvin and I had a great time, and we were mesmerized by how communication can occur simply through beats, rhythms and body language.

We were lucky to have landed on the weekend of Guy Fawke's day. Guy Fawkes was a man who had tried many years ago to bomb the parliament in London, but failed. This day celebrates the victory of London over this attempt, I suppose in other words, it celebrates his failure....Remember remember..the fifth of November... Lucky for us, since most of the crowd were out watching the fireworks, we got to walk along the Thames River without too large a crowd, and caught some fireworks along the way. Kelvin took some really outstanding pictures of me standing still in the dark, while everything arond me was in motion. He posted most of his pictures on his flickr site. www.flickr.com/photos/firsttiger

As for me, I had a ball playing around with the long exposure shots and came to produce some funny looking neon pictures. Check them out! Photography is so much fun!

The next day, we walked around some more, and did some shopping at Harrods (we didn't buy anything there) and at Hotel Chocolat, where we purchased most of our souvenirs. We fell in love with the apple brandy chocolate, and found some awesome creations such as chili almond crunch...can you imagine what that one might taste like?

What a crazy and amazing weekend we had. We felt so relaxed and rejuvenated to be able to spend quality time together and celebrate. Kelvin is truly my best friend and my soul mate. I love travelling with him, and spending time with him. He is open to new experiences and we have so much fun exploring a new place together. He is even open to my crazy bargain saving routes that usually end up taking us farther than where we started. This trip was also a discovery trip for him as well - we visited new places and learned new tricks with our camera. I am proud of Kelvin and all the hard work he has put in to be where he is today. He puts his heart and soul into his work and his growth as a person, leader, manager, friend and husband. I admire his leadership, and his ability to remain focussed and determined even when things are tough. He helps me to be a better and stronger person, and for this reason, and many more, I love you, Kelvin and always will!

(Pictures above: Wellington Arch/ The London Eye at night)

2006-10-10T22:17:00.000-05:00

lake on the mountain, ontario

2006-10-10T21:47:00.000-05:00

Half

It's been a while since I've written, I know.
Sometimes life is like that. Things just happen, and you don't want to think.
I suppose that was September for me. I just kind of rolled.
Work has been busy, but not so much that I should really complain. I was a little bit obsessed about a situation at work for a while; and when I could find no solution for it, I just blocked it out of my mind, but the stress continued to build. Maybe that's why I got sick last week.

When people ask me, How's it going? I don't really know how to answer. Hmmm..the same.
New is not exciting; old is not new. The glass is not half full; it's not half empty either. It's just what it is. Half.

I guess I could keep writing and list the things I've been doing, places I've been, people I've seen. It would be great to remember these things. But I don't want to do that. I just want to unleash my thoughts in no particular order; perhaps without a particular point. Just thoughts.

God has a strange way of revealing Himself. I often wander into this mode, and then it forces me to think about the meaning of life, my life. I think about who I am, and why I am who I am. I wonder if I am here on earth for a reason; if I have found that reason; and whether or not I will ever know.

In my earlier blog, I wrote about clearing clutter (I believe it was in March) and letting things go. In trying to sort out my thoughts, I find that I have a lot of mental clutter. I bought a book last week and it's called, "Just Give me Jesus." It talks about focussing our lives to the things that are important, and trusting God to take care of our worries.

This is probably what I need right now. It reminds me of a song that I love, and everytime I sing that song, it makes my half-ness full.

Lead me on..I want to see Jesus...just to worship Him will make it all worthwhile.

2006-09-11T22:13:00.000-05:00

New floors!

I can't believe how big of a change it's been since we got our bamboo floors installed. The installation took about 2 days, and it was pretty hassle-free. We got two really good contractors, and I must say, Kelvin and I are really pleased with their work. Immediately after our floors were put in, our family room looked way too yellow - yellow walls and yellow floors don't really work too well. We decided that (as chaotic as it was) it was the best time to paint the house, seeing everything was pushed aside. After much debate and wavering of the mind, we chose a deep red and a moccha brown for the family room. It's a bit of a daring move for us, but I must say it has definitely given our home an instant update. It was a pain to paint the red - dunno if I'll ever do it again. Perhaps I'll actually pay someone to do it next time (but then, where's all the joy in making mistakes)?

We are loving our new floors, and I am being slightly obsessive compulsive at the moment..I see every crumb and fallen hair. I can only imagine what it was like when we had the carpet and we couldn't see the crumbs or the hair even if we had wanted to. But it sure darn feels good to know that we are walking on squeaky clean!

2006-08-22T22:59:00.000-05:00

The Best of New York City 2006

Please excuse me. This is going to be a long one. I suppose it's because there's so much going on in this place, and so much to absorb, I don't know where to logically begin. Perhaps it's best to have my post reflect my feelings, rather than to chronologically spill out the events of each day (which I have actually done in my flickr site - www.flickr.com/photos/ipkang ). Hopefully you can follow me.

Walk til you drop
If you don' t have good shoes, you'll drop fast. We walked everywhere. And everywhere you go, there's always something to see. Coming out of a new subway stop was always like opening a wrapped present. I'm always amazed to see how much character each area has. My most memorable walks -

- Walking with Kenny (this guy has probably walked enough steps to land him on the moon) is so fast-paced you can literally see half of new york in a hour (ok, maybe 4 hours..)! We walked from South Street Seaport to Chinatown, and then from Chinatown to Greenwich Village (approximately 5K -or at least it felt like it). The next day, our entire bodies ached.

- Walking to the ABC studio on 67th & Columbus -Kelvin and I were crazy enough to wake up at 5am to walk to the ABC studio so we can join the standby line to be on the Regis and Kelly show. The walk was about 10 blocks from our hotel, and it was an amazing experience to watch the city "wake up." You see people rushing to work, shops opening, smell coffee and pastry and hear the sound of construction drilling in the background. It was absolutely and ironically peaceful.

- "Big Onion's" Revolutionary New York walk - we did the tourist thing and joined a walking tour conducted by a company called Big Onion. We walked along City Hall and down south towards Wall street. As we walked, we learned about the significance of specific places and sites in lower Manhattan. It was fabulous.

- Times Square walk - After watching the show "Hairspray" it was fun to walk towards Times Square. The city lights up at night and it is such a lively place. The Times Square walk was a great follow up to a funky and cute broadway show!

Sleep
There is no such thing here in nyc. 24 hour restaurants, bars, shops and grocery stores don't allow you to sleep. You can be out until 2am and it'll still feel as alive as it were at 9pm. We went to Roses' Turn with Kenny for a few nights until way past 1am. It was fun. This is a piano bar where Broadway singers sing and bartend when they are not performing. The whole audience often sings along and it's a great little pub with amazing atmosphere. We enjoyed hanging out with Kenny here. My other fav place was Cafe Lalo, on 83rd and Amsterdam, in the Upper West. This was the cafe where Tom Hanks stood up Meg Ryan in "You've Got Mail." It is an absolutely gorgeous cafe and at night time, the windows were all open and there was a nice cool breeze. They play jazz music in the background, so it was a cozy desert hang out place. We stayed there until 1:30am.. what a breaking record for Kelvin (who usually turns himself off around 9pm)!

Food
- GREAT food...fabulous restaurants...and at times, very expensive. We had to hunt hard for good cheap eats. For the most part, our dining experiences have been very positive. Momafoku was probably the most memorable restaurant. We had a seats with a great kitchen view, and watched the chefs cook. The ramen noodle was cooked to perfection. We also had some great food at the Blue Water Grill and Republic, both in Union Square. But I absolutely fell in love with the Manhattan Diner, a 24 hour diner across the street from our hotel, where they served breakfasts for $5.95 that includes freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee. Our favourite was their challah french toast...I'd eat that any day!

MTA
- Grundgy, dirty, gated and efficient. While the system (with express and local trains) is very efficient, the subway itself lacks ventilation which makes the wait for a train to be sometimes unbearable. What a relief when it does come, and let's hope it's an express train that can take us home in 5 minutes. There are interesting people in the subway. Sometimes someone would come in and yell something about selling candy bars to raise money and they'd just canvas around the train. For the most part, everyone is really friendly, and people are extremely willing to give up their seat for you to let families and groups sit together. One thing I did wonder...are the subways in nyc wheelchair accessible? I did not see any elevators at all.

New York City is such an amazing place, with so much to see and do all the time. I'd definitely love to go back there again. Oh, and by the way, the Hotel Belleclaire is a great place to stay. It is clean and comfortable, and in a great section of new york (77th & Broadway). We had the family suite which had 2 double beds + queen bed and a washroom, seperated by a half wall (hence 2 rooms). There are other types of rooms as well, and the prices are very reasonable. We got the sale price, so for 5 people for 7 nights it came up to about $50 per person, per night. I'd definitely consider staying there again next time.

Cheers to the Big Apple!

2006-08-17T08:07:00.000-05:00

New York City - Live with Regis and Kelly!!!!

We made it on the Regis and Kelly show!! What a crazy day! We got up at 5:30 this morning, and walked to 67th and Columbus, and found the ABC studio and joined the line that had already begun. It was 6:40am. It started out as a small line, and over the hour it began to grow. There were people who had tickets to the show (apparently you send a postcard and request to be on it) and then there was the standby line. After what seemed to be eternity, they gave us each a number (Kelvin and I were numbers 24 and 25) and told us to go have breakfast and to return at 8:30am - no guarantees.

We walked a short block and found some tables and chairs outside the subway station. It was still pretty early in the morning, but already the city was buzzing with energy. I love sitting in the park and enjoying calmness while the world continues around us. I wrote a little bit in my notebook and Kelvin read the paper. Sitting in the middle of this chaos was ironically the most relaxing feeling I've felt all week.

We walked back to the standby line at 8:30am, and got into our number order. By this time we were becoming quite familiar with the people around us, and we started chatting. It was kind of fun, being so close to the front of the line, and not knowing what was going on. Finally, after much waiting, and much speculating, the security guards let us in the lobby, where we waited for another hour and a half. I did almost feel like I was lining up for some American Idol competition, with a number and all. But it was all worth it - it so happened that they were doing 2 tapings on Wednesday, and we made it in to the 2nd show! At 10:30, we strolled into the studio and the set was stunning. Lights and cameras were everywhere- and when you watch the show you feel that it is definitely much bigger than it actually is. I would say it can hold about 160 people in total. Regis and Kelly came out and everyone cheered! It was hilarious to watch what you normally see on tv done as a live show. Guest starts were Michael Bolton and The Cheetah Girls. Kelvin and I had such a great time. It was definitely an experience of a lifetime -tune in on September 4 Labour Day Monday to watch the show! You might actually catch a glimpse of us in the audience!

2006-08-12T23:09:00.000-05:00

New York City Day 1 - Departure from Toronto Pearson airport, Terminal 2

Call it our luck. Is it good luck or bad luck, I don't know which. We always seem to travel the day after some terrorist attempt (or, in this case, blotched attempt). Perhaps it makes the flight experience more terrifying, thus more gratifying when you land and finally arrive to destination. Gratefulness training, I call it. But seeing that we always travel the day after some type of chaos, we always end up getting inflated security which, on the one hand, is more time consuming, but on the other, is definitely a lot safer than say, the day before. Last year, we travelled to London on July 8, one day after the July 7 tube and bus bombings. This year, once again, we woke up to similar news, the day before our scheduled flight to New York City. Only this time, it is of a blotched terrorist attempt (thank goodness). While we originally planned to be at the airport 2 hours before departure, we changed it to four hours earlier.

The traffic at Pearson was definitely heavy. The line up to get through security stretched and looped around extensively. However, I must say that Pearson handled the volume quite well. We moved fairly quickly through both security check-in points, and found ourselves checked in and ready to board more than two hours early. Kelvin, Jo, Michael, Camille and I hung around and goofed around. Jo missed her hand cream (as it was a banned substance as a carry on), and we joked that the next time we fly, we would probably be banned from wearing clothes. The flight to New York was nice. I was surprised the plane was so empty. Perhaps people got scared and canceled? We arrived at 9:35pm, but did not get off until 10:10pm. The plane couldn't find a parking spot, which was a bit annoying, but normal I suppose. We finally got off and took a cab to The Vincci Avalon, a small boutique hotel where we had booked a double bed and sofabed room for the night. New York City is beautiful, especially at night when everything lights up. I forget how grand this city is, and how much life and energy there is in this place. The weather was next to perfect. It was around 25 degrees, with a nice breeze. I enjoyed the cab ride.

The Vincci Avalon is located in midtown, pretty close to the Empire State Building (Michael will now tease me for pronoucing it the "Umpire" state building). At first glance, this hotel looks pretty sharp- marble trims and a beautiful lobby. We went inside our unit and saw gleaming laminate floors, beautiful crown mouldings and a marble bathroom with two vanities. We ooed and ahhed for a few minutes, and then left to find dinner.

Dinner was at a Korean restaurant a few steps away. Kelvin had beef short ribs while I had a bowl of noodles. (I will write some more food reviews later on). It was really nice to see so many people out and running about at 11:30pm!

After dinner, the Vincci Avalon began to fall apart. First, it was the sofabed. Michael pulled it out, and there were no sheets and some nasty yellow stains on the mattress - yuck. Next we noticed there were only 3 towels (there are 5 of us). The stepper in the garbage can also didn't work. The dryer was very flaky. Worst of all, when we called housekeeping for extra pillows and blankets, they told us they didn't have any left. We resorted to asking for lots of sheets to make up for waht they didn't have. Only we didn't do it in one call. We made our calls as we "discovered" what they didn't have. For example, Michael had no sheets on his sofabed. Without pillows, he resorted to using the couch cushion as his head rest, and thus needed more sheets to wrap around it for hygiene reasons. More sheets were also needed to use as extra blankets for Jo. When housekeeping delivered sheets to our room for the 3rd time, he asked Camille, "Is that enough sheets for you today, sir?" He was probablying thinking, what the heck are these crazy chinese people doing with those sheets?!?

While the hotel appeared nice and grand on the outside, it was actually falling apart in the inside. While fiddlign with the hand held shower held, I pulled off a nob (no, I know what you are thinking, I did not break it - it was broken already)! Thank goodness we were only staying for one night and not more than that. As we crossed our fingers and hoped that the Belleclaire would be better, we fell asleep, wondering what the next day would bring...

Spending time with the kids

2006-08-07T08:00:00.000-05:00

Today we went to a park in Oakville called "Lakeside Park." it is truly beautiful there. There were heritage museums along the lakefront that was open and free! There was also a lighthouse and lots of sailboats, not to mention abundant trees for shade and a gorgeous view of the lake! I would definitely go back there again.

2006-08-01T21:42:00.001-05:00

No Fridge Day

Attention Sears Home Delivery Services:

You made me cry today. I trusted you, and did what you told me to, and emptied all the contents in my fridge last night. You promised me my new stainless steel side by side fridge would arrive today, between 7am-1pm. Kelvin even stopped making ice, thinking that by today, the ice maker would do the job.

I woke up at 6:00am this morning, and continued to empty my fridge. I cancelled all my precious plans to wait for you, my heart and soul ready to receive my new fridge. Why, oh why did you stand me up? Why did you tell me, yes yes, you are coming when I called you last night at 6pm, only to stand me up this morning? I thought you were reliable and trustworthy. Why did you call me today at 8am and make up a lame excuse, that you couldn't locate my fridge, oh no, that it is not in the warehouse and that it is not coming today - after raising all my hopes up?

Perhaps you could have told me the truth - that you gave my fridge to someone else, or even better yet, that you had lied to me all along, and deceived me into believing that my fridge, my precious fridge, was in stock, when it was never there to begin with....

Sears, I don't trust you anymore. Have you lied to anyone else, and pulled the same phoney joke? Is this what you mean, when you say that your offer "shipping and delivery designed with you in mind?"

I cried as I re-stocked my old fridge. My old, leaking fridge.

Goodbye Sears.
I will not use you or trust you again.

Sincerely disgruntled,
II

2006-07-21T13:34:00.000-05:00

Flooring auction madness

We did it. We bought our floors! I can't believe it.
I never realized how strategic you need to be in order to get what you want for the price you want. Sometimes I question whether the effort is worth the savings. I suppose if it's a matter of a few dollars difference, it really doesn't matter. But if you're talking about saving a thousand dollars and more, it's worth investigating.

We went to an auction in Brampton and saw the floors that we want - bamboo, light, natural vertical grain! I registered and got a bid number, and returned with Kelvin at 7pm, when the auction began.

The warehouse was packed. It was pretty obvious that we are going to encounter some serious bidders - I mean, the sheer volume of people was overwhelming.

Here's where I give myself a pat on the back for prior experience- I had actually gone to two auctions prior to this one, and knew that auctioneers had a certain "language." They sing. No, they chant, they mumble, they rant and they slur. They start with a high bid (i.e. $5) and sing the price down, repeating the same price rapidly until someone bids. If no one bids, they eventually jump down, and then jump back up again. But in the middle of all the chanting, they would throw in taunting phrases, such as looking at drooling buyers and saying, "do it, do it, do it, do it" before they jump back to two and a quarter, two and a quarter, two and half, three, two and three quarters...etc."

So when the auctioneer "began" his auctioning, the whole crowd gasped in shock. I could feel the confusion in people as they begin to try to figure out what the heck was going on. I have to say, the first time I went, it took me about 15 minutes (with assistance of Victor) to follow where the bid was going. My theory is that a lot of the people who came that evening are first time auction goers, since Brampton is pretty urban, and most of these types of auctions usually take place in the outskirts of Toronto.

Our lucky moment came when he started auctioning the bamboo (as it was the 2nd item to be auctioned off that evening, the majority of the people were still in shock). We got it just like that, for $2.60/ sq ft! (The retail price is between $4.5-6.50).

After the bid, Kelvin and I looked at each other, and both said, "Now what?"

2006-07-19T14:13:00.000-05:00

Summer with the Kids

Last Friday, my neice and nephew (Jocelyn, 4 and Brandon, 6) arrived from Hong Kong to spend the summer here in Canada. I was so excited to see them. The last time I saw them, Brandon was 4 and Jocelyn was only 2. I was really nervous because I didn't know if they remembered us, and if they would open up to us. They arrived on Friday evening, and when Jocelyn saw Kelvin, she immediately flashed her mischievious smile, and attempted to climb through the barrier to get to him. Well, I suppose they don't change that much! Jocelyn, at the age of two, was known for her fearless ways and persistence to barge through doors, gates, people, anything that stood in the way between her and her object of desire. Good to know some things are still the same. Brandon ran down to greet us, and gave his grandma, myself and Kelvin a hug. He is now wearing glasses! He looks so mature and "gwai" (chinese word that means well behaved). He is simply adorable. I was so excited to have them here. I am sure the next month will be a month of fun.

After an evening of restlessness, the kids woke up at 4am, and began to jump up and down the stairs. I woke up shortly after that, and we had a morning walk to the park and played for a bit. By the time 12 o'clock rolled around, I was pooped! We drove the kids to see Megan, who was dying to see her cousins. The cousins got along right away -though there was an obvious language barrier. But the beauty of kids is that nothing really ever truly get in the way of playing. Language is never really an issue. They somehow manage to find a way to communicate, even if what they say makes absolutely no sense.

Megan quickly grew very fond of her cousins. Jocelyn and Brandon are both very gentle towards Megan, who is slightly younger but a lot tinier than they are. Brandon also grew very fond of baby Matthew, and is definitely fascinated by the soft baby skin and chubby cheeks.

My sister Cara will be arriving in two weeks time. As for now, the kids are here with my brother-in-law, Ho. As Ah Ho is really athletic, this is a great opportunity for the kids to do outdoor things with their dad. So far, we have played soccer, basketball, biked and swam in the indoor play pool. Kelvin received a few gadgets from Hong Kong via Ah Ho, and he is quite excited as well.

I'm looking forward to the rest of the summer, to seeing my sister, and to having some quality time playing with my neices and nephew. Times like these don't come too frequently for me..who knows..the next time I see them, they may not remember much of who I am...but I hope that they will associate Canada with a positive feeling. Regardless of how busy, tired and pooped I get, I know that this summer will definitely be a special and memorable one!

2006-07-13T10:14:00.000-05:00

Introducing Matthew Chansavang!

This little bundle came rolling into the world last Thursday July 6th at 8:15am. When they say they're ready to come out, they really are. 15 minutes of labour and he was out screaming and looking for food. Oh, and did I mention he's 9 pounds!?! My sister Leslie is recovering well. She
was quite surprised he came out so quickly. He is now happy and resting at home. The whole family (Leslie, Sipa, Megan and baby Matthew) are enjoying some quality time and rest at home together. Tomorrow night my other neice and nephew (Jocelyn and Brandon) will be arriving from Hong Kong to spend the summer here. Yup, it'll be a busy summer!

We'll be taking a full "family portrait" in two weeks time. When the photographer asked me how many people will be in the photo, I had to pause and count...um...12! Hopefully we'll all fit in the studio....!

More photos of baby Matthew-
www.flickr.com/photos/ipkang and
www.chansavangfamily.blogspot.com

2006-07-11T14:56:00.000-05:00

Happy 5th Anniversary - July 7, 2006

It's hard to believe that it has been five years since Kelvin and I tied the knot. We celebrated by going to The Old Mill for dinner - the very place where we got married. It was summerlicious time, and the Old Mill had a special. Perfect timing! These five years have been very magical. Though there have been ups and downs (mostly ups) I don't think there is one thing that I would change. But through it all, God has been there for us, and has time and time again proved that He will take care of us. What were the challenges and the joys? Hmmm...let me count them...

Challenges...
Learning to live together - Two revelations: 1) I am messier than I thought myself to be (all these years of my mom cleaning up after me has put me into some kind of denial) and 2) I have discovered that sometimes it is more pleasurable to join the mess than to beat it. Instant stress/ pressure lifter. Besides, Kelvin doesn't seem to mind :)

Learning to live seperated - During the past five years, Kelvin had to frequently travel to the States, and sometimes to India for weeks at a time. His stay in California was the longest, where he adopted the red-eye lifestyle - fly to CA on Sunday evening, fly home on Thursday all night, arrive Friday morning, work, rest, and repeat. This wore on us both emotionally and physically as Kelvin was constantly readjusting his time. One big perk though -I got to go to San Francisco 3 times on company expense!

Learning to share our time - me time, his time, our time, family time, friends time, church time, work time. What little time we had left, we often had to juggle priorities and make decisions about where to invest our time. It's very hard for us as we both "want it all" With my job, I am often able to find time to catch up with myself, and my friends whereas whatever time off Kelvin has, I am always off as well. I had to learn to consciously allow him to have his "me time" and give him his much needed space to relax and rejuvenate. All in all, I think we've managed to find a balance..but not without lots of effort and hard work!

Joys...
There are so many things to be thankful for, and it is impossible to list them all..but mostly we are thankful for..

each other- for who we are, and for the love, friendship and trust that we share
wonderful home
loving family and friends
a great place to worship and learn about God
stable jobs
opportunities to travel and see the world- Asia, Europe, California
peace at home

For those newlyweds, or those contemplating marriage...here are a few tips that worked for us!

Never stop being affectionate with each other, even if it's in small and silly ways

Find humour in things that bother you. For example, I used to get mad when I saw socks lying on the carpet next to Kelvin's side of the bed (sorry honey, didn't mean to rat on you!) One day, I consciously decided I was going to love him, not change him, so I picked up the socks and laughed. Then, I decided to turn the bed around (so I don't see his side) and now every time I see those socks, it makes me laugh!

Never stop "dating" each other. We have set aside Friday nights as our date nights. We don't make any plans with other people unless we talk to each other first, and we always try to do something special. It makes me look forward to the end of the week.

Learn to let go. This is my biggest lesson. I am so used to being in control, and letting little things bother me. Kelvin has taught me that I need to pick my battles. Instead of addressing blame, accept things for what they are, and try to find a solution or make the best out of the situation. This Kelvin showed me, by being patient with me when I made mistakes, which I really appreciated.

Lastly - Kelvin's advice: Buy a dishwasher. Enough said!

Cheers!

2006-05-22T15:10:00.000-05:00

Rain

I don't know any other word that would best describe our weekend trip to Kingston/ Montreal other than Rain. If this word sends unpleasant chills up your sleeves, mix it with the words damp, cold, and grey. But did we have a bad time, no way! Montreal once again, despite the bad and nasty weather, has hit a home run in our list of best places to visit. Photos at www.flickr.com/photos/ipkang

I'll begin by describing Kingston - our stopover city. We had dinner there at a really nice restaruant called Chez Piggy. We splurged in terms of time and money because it was my birthday. So the choice to take time to spend a pleasant meal together even though we were rushing to get to Montreal was really special to me. While waiting for our table, Kelvin and I walked towards the harbour and took played aroudn with our cameras. My favourite picture is the one he took with the tulips and the government building in the background. His favourite pic is the one of me taking a photo of him. Our dinner was delicious. We had a three course meal topped with a yummy dessert.

We arrived in Montreal at 12:30am. I took over driving shortly after we left Kingston because Kelvin was too tired. I drove in the dark but it didn't get scary until it started to rain, then pour and then it was slippery, wet and dark. Well, we made it anyway, and jumped right to bed.

The next day was wet, but we stuck it out and went to Eggspectations, my absolute favourite restaurant in Montreal. It was my good friend Jen K who brought me to this restaruant when we visited Montreal during our Kingston days. At the time, I was mesmerized by the high ceilings and bright sunshine and the amazing breakfast. I know Eggspectations has now spread to Toronto, but at the time Eggspectations was a unique experience, and everytime I go to Montreal, I'd always start my visit by going there. After a yummy breakfast, we walked in the drizzle to Old Montreal, and started taking photos. We went to the Underground - a series of shops and stores connected underground so we can have shelter from the rain. I bought a sweater from Roots cuz I was too cold. We kept walking, talking, exploring and taking pictures until around 4:30pm, when we stopped to have a BeaverTail. The highlight of the day was the discovery of Rue St. Denis- a street lined with interesting restaurants and shops. We went back to the hotel, had a rest and then walked back out to St. Denis again at night.

The best part of the day is definitely the food: We went to a fondue restaurant called Fondue Mentale. It looks like a house turned restaurant - with a fireplace and a very cozy and warm atmosphere. We had cheese fondue for appetizer, miso fondue broth with a selection of meats for main course, and then chocolate fondue with fruits for dessert. The dinner experience was almost four hours, but absolutely delicious! You must check it out: www.fonduementale.com if you ever go to Montreal. Make sure you reserve a table. Kelvin's inspiration for his upcoming blog is based on this dining experience.

We took a cab ride back to the hotel and the driver talked about all the accidents that were happening in Montreal - how pedestrians were being hit and cars were slamming onto concrete. At some point during our ride, he said he didn't know where he was going...hmmmm..needless to say, we got slightly nervous.

The next day we walked back to St. Denis and had breakfast at a cafe. It's neat how casual and cozy Montreal cafes are...and you don't need to spend a lot of money on food to get a good experience. The rain started to drop and we headed back to the hotel, checked out, and then did some serious shopping - Costco (yes, we are such freaks...who goes to Costco on a vacation..?), a furniture store (we bought two lamps) and then to a place to pick up a camera for Michael. En route to the camera store, we stopped at Shwartz's Deli- THE best place for Montreal Smoked meat. The line up was insane. But the atmosphere was so casual - like the nostalgic 70's diner feeling. Every seat in the diner was occupied. There's not such thing has having our own table. If you want to eat, you sit where there's a spot. It's a very interesting experience and the fries, smoked meat and pickle were to die for.

As we left Montreal around 4:30pm, it started to pour...and to continue to splatter throughout our ride home. However, since we left a day ahead of Victoria Day, the traffic was amazing. Kelvin drove all the way home and we had good conversations throughout the ride.

I love Montreal. It's one of the best places to visit, especially if you only have a short time. Everytime I go there, I always learn something new about the city. Despite the rain, we had a n awesome time. I hope to go back again and experience Montreal in the sunshine. If you have any recommendations for great restaurants, jazz lounges or just places to visit in Montreal, please comment.

2006-05-14T22:11:00.000-05:00

Small Talk, Big City

Toronto is quite a beautiful city. You know those old movies where the person you end up falling in love with is the one who had been standing right front of you all along but you just never "saw" him/her? I feel that way about Toronto. I've lived here practically all my life, and never really thought much of it. I mean, yeah...the CN tower. Did I mention I hate going up there. It's the worst way to spend your money. Go to Queen Street instead, stand by Much Music and take a photo there with the CN tower in your background and you'll get your CN experience. (I better stop here before I digress too much).

I love strolling the streets of Toronto on a warm day. Every neighbourhood has a distinct flavour, and the more I pay attention to the details and our ethnic diversity, the more eccentric Toronto becomes. And I love it. I didn't realize until I attended last year's Doors Open that Toronto has a lot of history and a lot of stories to tell. Doors Open is an annual event where Toronto basically "opens its doors" to the public so we can visit historic, contemporary and architecturally interesting buildings to learn about our city and our culture. This year Doors Open will be on the May 27-28 weekend. If interested, check it out: www.doorsopen.org

On Saturday, my neighbourhood walk was the Eglinton and Bayview area. It turned out to be a beautiful afternoon, and Kelvin and I decided to stop there for lunch. It has a very quaint, yet modern and family neighbourhood feeling. We went to a restaurant called "Small Talk" lunch, brunch & dinner for brunch. The service was great, and the food was delicious! I especially loved the way they served the milk that came with the coffee in a small mini jar. I used to drink milk from a jar when I was young, and that part of the meal gave me a really strong nostalgic feel.

I am learning the art of seeing the old and familiar in a new light. It is my goal this year to explore different neighbourhoods, and to hopefully learn something new about them - since I love food- perhaps I'll use finding a good restaurant as an excuse to explore!

2006-05-02T22:27:00.000-05:00

Photography

Help. I think I'm being converted...my automatic point and shoot world is slowly being buried by the new SLR craze...I smell the birth of a new hobby. Uh oh.

Photography meant different things to me at different stages of my life. My first experience with photography was in grade 7, when I took a photography class in the summer with Susan and Winnie C. It was all film at the time, and we learned how to use the darkroom to develop photos. Though the idea was to take photos, I often got people to take photos of me (please excuse the vanity of my youth) and then I developed them. When I was in grade 12, my high school at the time (Kipling Collegiate) had a brand new photography lab. Well, since I was in the photography club with only a handful of others, we had unlimited access to the dark room. I went ballistic. I took coloured negatives and developed them into black and white prints. Of course, negatives from photos I didn't take (thank you Simon)...I just had a ball developing them. At that time I had a lot of negatives from my trip to Japan, so I developed a lot of the pictures into 8x10 black and white prints. This early experience with photography would later explain my fascination with B&W and Sepia tones. When we got our first digital camera in 2000, I was so excited I could take coloured, black and white and sepia photos without having to change the film or adjust anything. Our 2nd camera gave us the option to zoom in really close and take photos of people when they are not looking (it is very much like spying). And then I discoverd the macro shots, where I can close-ups of things like flowers. So that's my brief history. Until now, that is.

Here's how the SLR story began: Kelvin got a great deal for a Nikon D70S digital SLR. I had no idea what that meant. I was very happy with my digital P&S camera, and I thought I was taking some awesome shots with it. When he brought that massive box home, I was frankly quite uninterested, if not slightly intimidated by the size and complexity of the camera. I tried it out and my pictures were either too bright, too dark or completely black. Needless to say, I didn't touch it for a month, and at that point, probably decided that I wasn't going to ever use it.

Once in a while, it's nice not to have to be the organizer or event planner. Last Sunday was one of those days. Kelvin planned a month ahead and signed us up for a Photography workshop (free, hence advance sign up & limited participants), and I had in my mind that it would be a nice way to walk around and learn some tricks to take photos. To be fair, he did tell me it was an intro to Digital SLR, but what did I know? I thought it would be nice and relaxing.

This workshop was organized by the Toronto Photography Meet Up Group - a group of people who got together because of their an interest and passion in photography- and this intro session was a great way to network. We met at Ken (one of the organizer's) apartment on King Street, and headed downstairs in his condo to a party room that was actually a "movie theatre" with a big screen and comfy chairs. There were about 35 participants, eagerly holding our SLRs, unsure of what to expect.

It ended up being a four hour lecture. Wow. And you know what, it was the most informative and amazing learning experience for me. I don't think I would have ever wanted to learn how to use a digital SLR without having had this background knowledge.

I cannot possibly in one paragraph describe all that I've learned (maybe I'll attempt to do that in my next blog). But I have come out if it with one analogy that can help me to think about this - For those who were as clueless as me - Digital SLR simply means Single Lens Reflex camera. It is a digital camera in that we don't use film, but manual in the sense that you can control the settings. The analogy goes like this: Consider the camera to be a big bucket which you want to fill with water. The hose with which you use is the size of the Aperture (F). If your hose has a wide diameter, then more water (light) will flow in. If the hose has a narrow diameter, less water (light) will flow in. The tap that controls how fast water flows into the bucket is your shutter speed. The faster the shutter speed, the faster the water pours in. So generally speaking, you would want a faster shutter speed when your hose is narrow; and a slower shutter speed when your hose is wide. The relationship between aperture and shutter speed is therefore inversely proportionate. Of course, this also depends on what you want to do, and the effect you want to achieve, as well as the conditions that you are in (i.e. bright sunny day or dim room).

There were other useful and practical information as well. I won't elaborate on them here and bore you.

After our intense workshop, Kelvin, Elaine C. and I walked to Queen Street, took photos and had Korean BBQ for dinner with Ben & Jerry's ice cream for dessert. We played around with our cameras and tried to apply what we learned. I'm excited to have learned something new. So if you see me lugging around a camera that looks bigger than my head, please don't laugh.

2006-04-26T22:32:00.000-05:00

Four

Okay...I cave in...here's my list of fours...

Four Jobs That I've Had
I can technically probably list fourteen. I was kind of crazy when it came to looking for jobs. I was the bargain hunter for cheap jobs. Talk about being a jobaholic...but wasn't able to really keep any of them for long, mind you. I'll try to condense the "experiences" into four categories...

1. Fast Food Girl (McDonalds, Taco Bell, KFC, Mrs. Field's Cookies). You get the idea.
2. Popcorn Girl (Cineplex Odeon, Fairview Mall).
3. Typist (dermatologist's office, speech language pathology dept. (UT) and Entech Engineering, Hong Kong).
4. Teacher - Grade 1, Grade 1/2, Kindergarten Music, ESL and my current job as the Library Dragon

Four Movies I Could Watch Over and Over Again
1. Chinese series: Legend of the Condor Heroes- Part 1, 2 and 3 (1980's version...yes, I know my age is revealing)
2. Joy Luck Club
3. Fight Club
4. Mulan (Disney)

Four TV Shows That I Love To Watch
1. 24
2. Veronica Mars (Elaine, it's all your fault that I'm hooked!)
3. How I Met Your Mother
4. American Idol

Four Places I've Lived (if it's over 4 weeks, I'm counting it!)
1. Hong Kong
2. Toronto, Ontario
3. Kingston, Ontario
4. Victoria, B.C.

Four Places I've Vacationed
Though I've been to more than four places, these places each carry a special significance
1. San Francisco, California - one of the most romantic cities I've ever been to
2. Tokyo & Kyoto, Japan - age 17 and 28
3. Europe Cruise (Spain, France, Italy) - our honeymoon, four years later
4. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - where Kelvin proposed

Four Websites I Visit Daily
Do you really want to know this? Oh dear...
1. PC Financial.ca
2. Pulse 24
3. CIBC
4. my blog, which links me to Kelvin's blog

Four Of My Favourite Foods
1. Salmon Benedict from Eggspectation or Cora's
2. My mom's sai yeung choi (watercress) soup
3. Shrimp cocktail
4. Steamed fish with ginger and green onion

Four Places I'd Rather Be Right Now
1. San Francisco, riding a cable car or eating at Yuet Lee's
2. Hong Kong, shopping and playing with Brandon and Jocelyn (nephew & neice)
3. Kyoto with Kelvin, visiting shrines and castles
4. Malaysia, eating satay chelop & kangkong (tung choi) veggie at a hocker stall (outdoor food court)

2006-04-18T21:25:00.000-05:00

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

I just finished reading a great book, and I'm bawling. I'm bawling not because anything unbelievably tragic happens in this book, but because it is such a beautifully crafted tale of romance and love. This book is about a man, Henry, who time-travels and meets and falls in love with his wife, Clare. The irony is that when Clare meets Henry, she is only six, meeting him from the future, and Henry is 36, knowing that he has, and will marry Clare. In real time, they are eight years apart, and when Henry meets Clare for the first time (she is 20, he is 28) he has no clue who she is, although she has known him all her life. And so the story unfolds, flip flopping between time and space, telling the tale and journey of their love.

"Our love has been the thread through the labyrinth, the net under the high-wire walker, the only real thing in this strange life of mine that I could ever trust. Tonight I feel that my love for you has more density in this world than I do, myself: as though it could linger on after me and surround you, keep you, hold you...We will see each other again...until then, live fully, present in the world, which is so beautiful...I love you always. Time is nothing."
- An exerpt from The Time Traveler's Wife

It's been a while since I've read a really good book. This is a really really good book. It's been even longer since I read a novel about quality relationship - relationships that are not purely based on lust and infidelity, but based purely on love. It's so innoncent, so pure, so simple at times, we have forgotten the power of love - a love that begins with curiosity, blossoms into trust and grows into a solid flame that does not extinguish.

It makes me think about the meaning of time - it's fleeting nature, and yet the ability of time to leave a deep permanent imprint on your memory. What is then, what is now, what is to come? The minute I grasp onto the here, it is already in the past. Yet I can always awaken and recreate the past in my memory. The past is here, the future is here and the present is gone.

Time is nothing. It is our mind, our souls, our hearts. It passes, and then it is here.

Of coure, a love story is not complete without me putting myself and Kelvin in the shoes of the two people in love. But understanding a lot of you probably don't want sugar overkill (diabetes alert) I will spare you the details of how this story makes me think of my husband. Thank you Karen, my wonderful sis-in-law (I prefer just sis), who recommended this great read to me. I can always trust Karen for great fashion, food and book tips. She's got great taste!

2006-04-14T23:28:00.000-05:00

Potluck Pizazz

Last weekend, I was very sad to see that our couples group (BPOM) had come to a final end after one year of gathering together for dinners and discussions about marriage from a Christian perspective. During this time, Kelvin and I met a lot of great people, and made some awesome friends. We had a lot of fun sharing our marriage stories and learning and laughing together.

When it comes to cooking, I typically see myself as a practical cook. Put the meal on the table and eat. My only real audience is Kelvin, and he usually tells me that everything I cook is good (it's kind of an automatic response from him, since I might as well have asked, would you like food for the next 10 years?). I never really have too much motivation to razzle and dazzle my meals.

It was Kelvin's idea not to do spring rolls in the oven again. He said, let's cook something nice. I honestly don't know what got into me - I guess as small as it was, it was our way of saying thank you, of doing something with a bit more heart and a bit more effort to show how much we enjoyed and appreciated the people in the group. So there it is - our wonderful snowpea and scallops in mini potato shells (thanks to Elaine, for taking the photo!). The potato shells/ birds nest inspiration came from one of my favourite Food shows called Party Dish.

The potluck last week was the best one we've ever had. Everyone brought awesome food! There's something magical about potlucks. Sharing food you make is like sharing a part of who you are. And that's exactly what happened over the past year - our lives, like our food, slowly came together in one plate. And the plate of friendship is delicious!

2006-04-11T20:28:00.000-05:00

TDSB Today
is a monthly publication by the Toronto District School Board that highlights the special things that are going on throughout the school board. It's a cross between a magazine and a newspaper - I haven't quite figured out what exactly to call it- magpaper or newsmag?

From time to time, it's great to look through the special happenings in the board, and to see what other schools and teachers are doing. Sometimes it features articles that talk about teaching. And there are the times when my brain would already be too saturated with information, that I glaze through it without knowing what I've read.

March was one of those months. So it didn't phase me too much when I didn't receive my monthly copy of the TDSB Today in my mailbox. Ah well, my egocentric self said. Got too much on my mind already. So that was March.

April 11 I walked in to the school office, and my secretary shows me this picture and asks me to identify the students. I looked twice and realized it was a picture of a student but he looked much younger. He was my student from last year! And hey, those flowers on their heads...I made them with my students!

So that's how I found out that the photos that were taken last spring at a performance where my grade one kiddies sang a spring song at Centerpoint Mall (yes, a mall) came to the public eye on the March issue of TDSB today, one year later.

All the kids look so cute and cuddly! Aw, those sweet memories. What can I say? I'm one proud teacher, one year later!

Photographs taken with permission/ media consent.
Reference: TDSB Today, March 2006, page 24.

2006-04-04T22:02:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday. It was a busy day for all of us, so I wasn't able to spend any time with her. However she did come by this morning to our place to drop of keys to my cousin's place so I can park there (long story) so I did see her briefly. We'll do the celebration thing on Saturday, when the family can come together and have dinner & cake time.

My earliest "momeries" (my new word - memories of my mom) tell a lot about the kind of kid that I was. I remember always feeling homesick even when I was home. It was that icky, squiggly feeling in your tummy. I would feel it most when we had our relatives over at my home, and everyone was busy either cooking or playing mahjong, and I felt extremely displaced. I didn't really play with my sisters when my cousins were over, cuz they played this game called Crocodile where it's basically tag in the bedroom. Except the tagger is in the middle (croc in the swamp) and everyone else runs around the room by jumping on TOP of the furniture only. So my sisters would jump from the bunk bed to the table, to the top of the dresser, then to my bed, then climb to the top of tall dresser, then a 3 feet jump back to the bunk bed, aroudn and around until they got "tagged". It was the cool game and I was scared pantless. Naturally before long, I was labeled the scaredy cat of the family. Well, whatever. So I would hang around and not know what to do with myself since everyone else was busy. The tingles would come and later turn into goosebumps, and then I would cry for my mom. I just needed my mom. I remember vividly being at home, and just before dinner was served, I ran vehemently to the kitchen in search of my mom. Of course, she would be there, scooping out rice. I mean, where did I think she could have disappeared to in 3 minutes? Then there would be the dreadful school days. I wasn't a big fan of school in Hong Kong, though I was the typical obedient grade one student. There was always that damp cold and stiff atmosphere. No one talked. No one socialized. No one moved. It was from 7am-12pm, so we sat the whole time, maybe had a bite for snack. When my mom didn't show up to pick me up at 12:01pm, I would bawl. My teacher had to always comfort me. It's a good thing mom always showed up at 11:59 :) I know. I sound like such a wimp - but that was me- I needed mom.

Though I've grown out of the clinginess (well, Kelvin would argue that it has only transferred towards him) I am still a scaredy cat. Okay, you can officially tease me now.

Over the years, my relationship with my mom continued to grow stronger. There were some difficult moments with my family growing up; but my mom was always there for us (me and my sisters Leslie & Cara). Even when we were not together, mom would meet us every Saturday to run errands, shop for groceries and have dinner with us. We always had good quality time. It was during those dinners that my mom would talk to us, encourage us and give us "life lessons." I didn't think much of it at the time, but I really do believe that it was those "life lessons" over dinner that helped shape who we are today. Mom empowered us to seek to be independent, to have dignity and respect for ourselves and for others. Mom encouraged us to make our own decisions, and to seek the right path for ourselves.

I believe that God has a reason for everything that happens in life. During those days when I had a job and started going to university, God brought us to a greater understanding and appreciation of my mom. She was always supportive. She does everything in her ability to give us the best. Even though I never asked her to, she would always go out of her way so she can make things that much easier for me. She never complained, and always gave generously and lovingly.

When they say that you will not truly understand love until you become a mother, I believe it.
My mom is the best mom ever. I am who I am today because of my mom. So mom, if you're reading this, know that I love you.

Happy Birthday Mom!

2006-03-29T06:13:00.000-06:00

Husband On Strike!

No silly, I'm not talking about Kelvin. I woke up this morning to the funniest thing on 680 News. There is a husband who has decided to strike. Yes, that's correct, a man very disatisfied with his wife, has decidedto sit on his rooftop with a sign, "Husband on Strike". Ever feel this way, Kelvin? ;) :) We had a good laugh. If you want to hear him out, check out his blog: www.husbandonstrike.com Here is a caption:

Husband On Strike
All I want my wife to do is stop spoiling our children and allowing them to wreck our love life! Husbands have feelings too! Husbandonstrike.com is home of the National Association of Desperate Husbands, and I'm not only the CEO and Director, but I'm also a card carrying member!

Another posting on his blog reads: "Man prefers jail time over wife nagging."

What's our world turning to?

2006-03-28T20:28:00.000-06:00

ENJOYABLE READS: Pillsbury DoughBoy

I usually don't do forwards, but I got this from someone and I thought it was hilariously funny. I never knew how much our everyday language refers to baking terms! Just a side note... I totally dig Pillsbury garlic loaves!

" Please join me in remembering a great icon of the entertainment community. The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of a yeast infection and trauma complications from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 71. Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin. Dozens of celebrities turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth, Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies, and Captain Crunch. The grave site was piled high with flours. Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly described Doughboy as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded.

Doughboy rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes. Despite being a little flaky at times he still was a crusty old man and was considered a roll model for millions. Doughboy is survived by his wife Play Dough, two children, John Dough and Jane Dough, plus they had one in the oven. He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart. The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes. If this made you smile for even a brief second, please rise to the occasion and take time to pass it on and share that smile with someone else who kneads it." - Annonymous -

2006-03-26T12:06:00.000-06:00

V for Vendetta ****

Natalie Portman rocks in this movie! For those who haven't seen it, do. I won't give away the plot, but this is what the movie has inspired me to think about -
What is fear? What is empowerment? How far are we willing to go to fight for change?

A few quotes from the movie (or what I remember anyway):
"The face behind this mask is not who I am."
"He (V) is my mother, my father, my brother and my friend. He is you, he is me. He is all of us."

Fear is only as great as we allow it to become. We are free when we choose to conquer fear. The power to change begins with the power of an idea for change. Words have the power to create fear, and they also have the power to encourage, strengthen and conquer. We are who we choose to become. The question is, do we choose to fear, or do we choose to fight?

2006-03-25T08:55:00.000-06:00

Towards Material Simplicity: Letting Go

I've been trying to clean out my house for some time now. Actually, it's a constant battle. I really don't know how things accumulate so quickly, but they do.

I like to keep things not for what they are but because of who gave them to me. I also cannot re-gift - I feel too guilty - I can't give to someone sincerely something that I don't personally want. This wasn't a problem before, when I would only receive three or four gifts a year, and then eventually these gifts morphed into money inside red envelopes, which of course, I knew what to do with. But once I started teaching, I had to re-think my gift saving strategy.

One of the most rewarding things about teaching is the gifts. It seems superficial to say, but in reality the gesture of giving, whether it be from the parents of the students, affirms the importance of your job. The gift tells me, "Thank you for teaching me, and for caring about me." So it really doesn't matter to me if I get something big or something small, if I get a purchased gift, something handmade, or a written letter, I keep it. So by the end of my first year of teaching, I had a fabulous collection of colourful vases, angel and animal figurines, picture frames and from some, a set of dark pantyhose and a gold plastic carousel shaped air freshener for my car. Now that I am in my seventh year of teaching, you can imagine my collection.

How does one keep a clutter free life, when so many objects that we keep hold so much memories? And it seems that the longer we hold onto something, the harder it is to give it away. But I've had it since I was five! But maybe it will come in handy in the future! It doesn't take up too much space...I'll find a corner for it! When I was young and had very little, I held on to everything that meant something to me. I would get a toy and that was what I played with for the next three years. A birthday present from a friend using her allowance was something I cherished immensely. But at that time those objects were not stored away in a box - they were on my desk, things I used. I don't have room for that now - what do I do with the continuous influx of materials, both gifts and things I accumulate on my own? Has my wish list and material belongings grown out of control? Do I even know what I have and what I want to do with all of these things?

I never realized that the growing clutter was really a symptom of a greater battle I was fighting: My internal guilt vs. what I really needed or wanted. In reality, I do not *need* the things that I have chosen to keep. But I cannot give them up because I felt that in doing so, I would be letting go or forgetting the very person who gave them to me. As a teacher, I want to remember every student I have taught. If I give away the one thing that a child has given me, I would feel that I am letting go of the memory of him or her. It is a lot harder to give away something from someone who is no longer in your life. It is an internal choice to let go, and it is hard.

It is when you least expect the lightbulb to turn on, that it turns on. My lightbulb flickered one lazy Sunday afternoon, when I flipped channels and began watching Clean Sweep. This show focusses on people who have too much stuff and too little room. A team of people from "Clean Sweep" would then come to the rescue and help people to organize and control clutter. One of the tasks people have to go through is to decide which items they can Keep, Toss or Sell. It's interesting to watch that it is not the most expensive item that people have difficulty letting go - it is the item that holds the best memory, as tacky or old that item might be. On that particular episode, a woman cannot let go of a horse figurine that her father (who is not longer with her) gave to her as a birthday present. The "Clean Sweep" woman then said, "It's not the object that makes the memory. The memory is in your heart. You don't have to keep the object to keep the memory of the person that you love." You know, as simple as that sounds, I have never heard it put that way before. She nailed my struggle, and addressed it on TV.

After that "inspiring" tv moment, I began to change. I was able to give away things without feeling guilty. In fact, it made me feel good to know that what I don't need may help someone who does. I still do "keep" all the gifts that I receive. Except instead of storing them in a box in a corner, I store them in my heart.

2006-03-20T22:07:00.000-06:00

Megan
She's so cute!

2006-03-20T20:39:00.000-06:00

To write or not to write?

This is the question I debated for the last few days. Sometimes I really feel like I have nothing to say. I am generally pretty agreeable. I am open to most things, and not particularly passionate about any. I like listening more than talking (well, Kelvin will tell you otherwise)! I do wonder at times if I have no voice because I have not taken time to think about where I stand on issues. So perhaps blogging for me is not really a platform to vent, debate or inform, but rather it is a place for me to reflect and develop my thinking about stuff- big stuff, small stuff, insignificant stuff.

I have always had a rollercoaster relationship with writing. In grade 6 I attempted to write a chapter book (it only went to chapter 2, and then I got bored with reading what I wrote). It was NOT successful. Then in grade 8, I started writing in my calendar, detailed descriptions of my eye contact encounters with my "crushes". It certainly helped fuel the fantasy that something was going on, until one day my "crush" showed up to school with glasses. Well, that pretty much killed all thoughts of our eye relationship. Of course, that was the beginning of my diary writing. There was not enough space in the daily squares of the calendar, so I started writing on scraps. In Grade 10 I discovered poetry was a surprising outlet. I could condense my emotions into words, verbs, nouns, phrases, without elaborating. In the condensed form, my writing revealed the intensity of what I was feeling. It was also my secret code: only I knew the true meaning beneath my poetry. It was my little secret, and I could share it with others without really sharing it. I am sad to say that my writing became very sporadic during the past 10 years. I could go by months without writing, or I would suddenly want to write, and that could be on anything: scrap paper, receipts, corners of pages, napkins. Writing is my release, my way of sorting out my thoughts without having to bother anyone else. It was my way of sulking, venting and rejoicing. It was my way of being absolutely true and honest to myself, without any consequence.

Having known writing in this context, I do feel a slight dilemma with blogging. In a way, this feels like a diary, yet it is not. Although I know my private voice really well, I have yet to learn what my private-public voice is. Or, maybe I'm just a shower singer (I mean, writer). I know I am ultimately writing for myself (as I believe we all should), but the awareness of a possible audience adds both another level of anxiety as well as a layer of excitement. Perhaps as time goes on, I will eventually find and develop a relationship with blogging. Or maybe I'll say, what the heck, and just write all sorts of stuff here. Well, I don't know what it'll be for the next little while- write or no write...but I'm sure time will tell. Until then, I will continue to ponder on another realm of my life: hair management of an uncommited blowdryer!

2006-03-17T08:10:00.001-06:00

Knowledge seeker
Easygoing, understanding
Loving all the time
Vroom vroom, Mazda driver
Integrity rules
Never gives up

My husband, my friend.

2006-03-16T19:47:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday Leslie!

Today is my sister Leslie's birthday. My sister is very special to me. Although she is only 2 years older, she has always taken care of me, i.e. when I was 3 and she 5 she would feed me and lift me up from my high chair. When I was 5, Leslie would create games and "challenges" for me to play. I remember our favourite game was the obstacle course, where we would climb under a chair, jump over a hoola hoop, walk on one foot, spin five times and then pick up a ping pong ball with a spoon and then drop it off and run back. Of course, I'd always lose but I never remember losing. When I was 6, Leslie started creating "tests" and "quizzes" for me and I would willingly take on the challenge. Of course, for her, the best part of this was marking it - and for me, the best part was seeing my mark (which of course, was perfect all the time)! Such was the story of our childhood, and she is and always is my sister and my friend.

Today, Leslie is happily married with Sipa and they have a beautiful daughter, Megan. Megan is the most adorable, gentle, curious and fun-loving little girl. She calls herself Chinese Dora and knows that the real Dora speaks Spanish. She also knows her daddy is Mandarin, her mommy is Cantonese and her Uncle Kelvin is "Laysian" (malaysian). She laughs whenever I change the lyrics to a song and we can play this changing lyrics game for hours and hours. We love her dearly. Megan is a reflection of all the good things that her parents are.

Happy Birthday Leslie!

2006-03-16T08:48:00.000-06:00

Why Blueberry Shorts?

Blueberry was a simple choice: I love that fruit! It's small, sweet and extremely healthy for you. I can nibble each berry as a snack, or I can gobble a handful of berries all at once (with the same amount of pleasure). It tastes great fresh, frozen and baked. What more can I want from a fruit? :)

Okay so why "Shorts"? No...I'm not that crazy about blueberries that I would parade around in a pair of blueberry printed shorts..no sad childhood love affair with one either. My inspiration for this came from I story I read called "Zen Shorts" by John Muth. No, you won't find it in the adult thriller, fiction, fantasy or non-fiction section. Nah, not in the self-help either. Yup...it's a children's picture book (my favourite kind of book)! Zen Shorts is about a wise panda (named Zen) who teaches three young children about how to make good decisions in life. He does this through telling three seperate stories with a moral in each story. Although Zen is a panda, he wears a pair of shorts and bounces up and down in the story. He's really cute! Zen Panda reminds me of me...I love stories that help me to think, reflect and show gratitude towards the simple things that we often take for granted. I also like to bounce around too!

So blueberry shorts is a simple story of my life, and my musings. Of course, since my life involves my beloved husband, you will find stories about the two of us. Hence, IpKang Inkling is a part of who I am - Ip (me) Kang (hubby) and our quest for the small adventures of life.

2006-03-16T08:38:00.000-06:00

Still

Sitting here
I see the beauty
Of the Lord's Creation

Take time
To stop

The trees are Still
Rooted to the ground
The sunlight peeks through
The glistening leaves

Up close and afar
They are Still
Silent
Waiting
and Listening

For a moment
I blend with the trees
Still
Silent
Waiting
and Listening
to my Lord...

Written on August 3rd, 2003 San Jose, California