triggering Action Potential

Trivial problems in Life

After watching Hotel Rwanda this past weekend, somethings just fell into perspective. I realized that most of my problems are trivial compared to what other people are suffering. Particularly we tend to think the world is turned upside when a relationship doesn't work out. In reality, the world still turns and the sun still shines. How ever exaggerated we think the outcome of a bad relationship is, it's all in our mind.

I think it's important that one doesn't dwell on it too long. Get a move on it and start anew. There is no second chance at life itself.

read an article online just now, which I find rather strange. It's about how to avoid emotional infidelity... and author of the book stated the following rules:

10 Rules for Avoiding Emotional Infidelity

1. Keep it all business in the office.
2. Avoid meetings with members of the opposite sex outside the workplace.
3. Meet in groups.
4. Find polite ways of ending personal conversations.
5. Take particular care not to have regular (perhaps daily or even weekly)conversations about your life outside work.
6. Don't share your personal feelings.
7. Be unflinchingly honest with yourself.
8. Avoid cordial kisses and hugs, or dancing with members of the opposite sex.
9. Don't drink around the opposite sex.
10. Show your commitment to your spouse daily.

In other words, you can kiss good-bye the chance of making new friends outside of your marriage or any committed relationships. Might as well castrate yourself and then bound/gag yourself at the same time. I wonder if America is getting more right winged--increase in conservative views.

Trust and communication. Work environment can be so much more enjoyable if colleagues connect at similar wavelengths. Are we all just robots at work? Emotional attachment is bound to happen in any form of relationship. I'm surprised that the rules of emotional infidelity do not mention homosexuals... it only applies to sharing with the "opposite sex."

food for thought

why is it that we nickname the people we love in terms of food? sweet food, in particular. Honey, sweetheart (never had a sweet heart, but it probably tastes good), honeybun, and etc. As if we just want to eat up our loved one... hmmm.. Freudian!!

Beyond naming our loved one, we also tend to call other folks in terms of food as well, ie sour grape, bad apple, beef cake, chicken shit, and etc.

Maybe we like to associate with good food because it makes you feel good, whereas eating chicken shit will make you sick to your stomach.

Authenticity

Is food less authentic if the chef/cook is not of the same ethnic as the food? In other words, is a Chinese dish less authentically Chinese if the person who cooked it is German?

What makes a dish authentic? Is it the ingredients? the method of cooking/preparation? or the person who's cooking it?

If everything about the dish is ethnically authentic and genuine, does it matter who's doing the cooking?

Holy WTF?!!!

As I was walking on Madison from the Citicorp building in Chicago last night, my eyes caught a glimpse of a silver car. No, wait. It was not just a car. It was the Mercedes McLaren SLR! I had to make sure that I wasn't dreaming or had my eyes deceive me. And yes, I had an eye-witness as well.

A half-million dollar sports car rolling down a Chicago street. It was a sweet sight. An unbelievable one as well.

Sometimes, seeing it up close (seeing anything up close) makes it more dramatic and memorable.

By far, that Mercedes is the most expensive car in action I've witnessed with my naked eyes.

Is it worth the money to own the car? and to non-enthusiasts, do they even know about it? Obviously, to drive a car like McLaren SLR, you want to show it off. But what's to show if no one knows about the car??

A fine life

starting to enjoy some of what life has to offer; music, nature, fine food/wine, great friends, and freedom of sorts.

Picked up a bottle of Champagne today, Veuve Cliqout Demi-sec. I'm not a wine aficionado nor a connoisseur, but I would like to be. Since I do enjoy cooking, I would probably enjoy pairing my food with the right drink. Wine is a sophisticated drink, requiring body of knowledge regarding the wine and the makes. Maybe seeing the movie, Sideways, triggered my curiosity about the different wines available. It just seems like an intriguing science.

Ironically, wine makes me drunk faster than any other alcoholic drinks besides a Long Island Ice Tea (potent stuff... knocks you right out!!!).

I digress. I guess I would like to learn a bit about wine and to have some understanding so that when I dine at 4 star restaurants, I can have the best dining experience I can afford. As of now, I use wine a lot in my cooking, if it's applicable. When I make risotto, I add white wine. When I make spaghetti, I prefer Chianti. I like to experiment with my food, I mean, you never know what's going to pair well together.

Maybe the message is that: why wait for something good to happen when you control part of your destiny as well? Perhaps I indulge my scientist-self with discoveries and challenges. Then again, maybe I am just a sucker for the bubblies!!

New Cream of the Crop.. (rice to the top?)

What's happening to the K-12 students today? more work just to get into a good college?
Is it worth all that pressure when you are 16? as if life wasn't complicated enough as a teenager, now you've got to work 15 hours a day in school?

It sounds a bit ridiculous. but I feel that demands placed upon academics are not well-thought out. Sure we would like students to learn, but at what cost? The US is so focused on raising those math/science test scores that basic reading/analytical skills are compromised.

Kids should enjoy their time. There are plenty of opportunities to work (as much as you want) in the future. But classes starting at 7am? Extracurricular activities until 9pm? When do you get to spend time with your family? or to take a break?

It's truly insane in the brain!!