TGIF

Hurray for Friday! So happy I could bink. *bink*

Had Pete and Tina over for dinner on Wednesday. They brought a tasty red from Hawaii - Ulupalakua Red, a blend of Cab and Syrah. I whipped out the claypot, the wok, even the Szechuan peppercorn... fancy fancy. We talked about work, felines, marriage, their new house, and a great deal of other random things. E touted my azuki ice cream for dessert - not as curious as basil ice cream but they enjoyed it.

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Out of the blue, I received an e-mail from an old friend in Singapore. Some letters later, she revealed that she's currently working for her dad in Vietnam, jetting around giving presentations, learning the language and doing all kinds of fun expat things. I've always wondered what I would do if I had chosen to work back home - there'll only be so much time before claustrophobia sets in and drives even the meekest islander to wing it somewhere else, and count on not much more than their Pictionary skills to survive. But I have little faith in my tenacity (I'm soft as tofu); even more, I wonder if I'd find a job at all. Can't rely on working for my parents, who refuse to let me have it easy; don't have a thick enough hide to compete in a region teeming with college grads who are probably much smarter and more enterprising than me. Okay, that may be a little harsh on myself, but you never know with these things. If there's anything I've learned, there is no such thing as being entitled to anything - like a cushy job, or a nice car, just because you've a shiny piece of paper and edumacation.

Old Friend also told me of several friends who are ready to tie the knot - that sent me to hyper nostalgia overdrive. Can't believe we're so old! It's been over 10 years since we were first classmates. Once upon a time, we followed crushes and peed in our pants over Bart Simpson's Guide to Life. Now, we're thousands of miles apart, grown-up women with grown-up jobs and so many grown-up stories to tell. I couldn't picture the brides-to-be and their beaus, because my memories of them hadn't aged with time. I can't help but wonder what it's like for me to get engaged at home. The obsessive person that I am, I started checking out the Singapore wedding scene... whatever I could find on the web, anyway. So far, I'm glad things happened the way they did. I may elaborate more in future posts.

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Some time ago, Business Week asked E for his comment on Sony's (incredibly dumb) decision to discontinue the production of AIBOs. Mum called to console him, but I think the international upset caused by Sony's counterintuitive business sense is beyond consolation. Anyway, I wonder which issue the article will appear in - I'd love to see what other people have to say about it. I wish this were just tongue-clucking, but it's going to affect us in a real, tangible way. Sigh. :(

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No grand plans for the weekend, just a lot of lazing around. I love it. :)

Baaack - 3-month recap

I have risen from the dead.

[Okay - so blogging isn't exactly like showering, I don't feel the need to make it a daily ritual, unless the Blogging Gods haunt me in my sleep. I had to shake the dust off this baby. NK is active again... for now.]

Life has been... fair. Turkey Day was good. Christmas was good. New Year was good. E gave me memory again - a 1GB card for my Drebel. (He got me 512MB extra RAM for my laptop on our first Valentine's Day. Points for originality?) Chinese New Year sucked - I missed home like crazy. Emilie's back in France, Le came and went, C threw several fab parties, I did my part and hosted a fondue & martini night for January's installment of Girl's Night. Pittsburgh won the Superbowl, drunk shirtless high school kids frolicked on the streets. Got ballsy in the kitchen and experimented with a bunch of food - Peking duck, sushi, claypot rice, Hainanese Chicken Rice, dofu fa, sweet and savory French crepes, etc. Took a road trip to Niagara Falls for Valentine's Day, and did the Niagara Wine Trail by Lake Ontario. Kitty grew fat.

I ended up getting the book about Herge, Tintin's creator, from a woman at work. E suffered from momentary insanity and bought me a jingly trinket (Chococat) for my cell phone. BSG resumed its season on SciFi and I'm hopelessly hooked on Jamie Griffith (hubba hubba!). My latest vice, sadly, is HGTV.

That was exciting. And now, the recap in pictures:


Pretty bird: Tweety, E's object of torture since childhood, turned 21 last Christmas (nobody believes he's still alive)


Stone Villa in the winter: Our favorite local winery's vineyard covered in snow and ice, sparkling in the setting sun


Orchid Fantasy: The conservatory had an orchid exhibition; we got up close and personal


Chocolate fondue: Our little test run


Pittsburgh Steelers won the Superbowl, mayhem ensues


Niagara Falls: Thousands of gallons per second less powerful than during the peak summer season, but still impressive