Earth is having a bad day, everyday

I was flipping through Time Magazine last week and came across an article, "Floods, Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Wildfires, Earthquakes...Why We Don't Prepare". It has an interesting map of the so-called American hazardscape. Naturally, I started looking up New Jersey just to see how we measured up.

Source: Time Magazine, August 28, 2006, pp.56-57

Since almost all of the United States is colored with at least one climatic natural disaster, I supposed New Jersey is still a relatively safe place to live. Touch wood! Apart from the occasional flash floods (of which I am accustomed to coming from a country with monsoon season), we don't see any major wildfires, tornadoes or significant earthquakes like those in the mid-west and west coast. Touch wood again!

You can run but you can't hide.

Finding a disaster free place to live in this world is like finding a needle in the haystack. World climate has changed so much thanks to us & our lifestyle; hence we can expect the worst weather catastrophe to happen any time. Tsunamis, typhoons, hurricanes, blah, blah, blah.

Even my hometown in Kuching, Malaysia isn't spared the ever continuing yearly presence of the dreaded haze caused by open burning in Indonesia (yes, our very nice next door neighbor). I don't ever remember seeing beyond hazardous haze until 9 years ago on September 1997. That was the first time a state of emergency was declared. It continued for weeks. People were getting all sorts of respiratory diseases and had to wear masks. At its worst, visibility was so bad that I couldn't even see the car next to me while I was driving. The '97 haze made such an impact in the South East Asian region that CNN aired a news item on it.

Satellite photo courtesy of Wikipedia

While the haze situation this year is not as bad as the one 9 years ago, it is really mind boggling that our next door neighbor still doesn't see the adverse environmental impact of forest fires and open burning. Malaysia's 50th. Jubilee Independence Day celebrations is tomorrow and the haze lingers on. I certainly don't envy those people standing outside breathing in unhealthy air during the parade.

Hazy Kuching City Waterfront, Aug.2006 - photo from Malaysian daily, The Star

Normally, I am not the preachy type. I am also not a hard-core conservationist nor an environmentalist, but I believe we can still help save this planet from an untimely death. Start at home by practising the 3Rs (yup, Reduce, Reuse & Recycle and no, NOT Rest, Relax & Rejuvenate) and conserving water, energy & gas. To the people in South East Asia, stop open-burning and forest fires for earth & our sakes!

If I could think of earth metaphorically, I'd like to think of it as a human stomach having bad diarrhea everyday for the past gadzillion years.

New Orleans style chicken...

Fried chicken is a very likeable food though many people outside the United States may not know that it originated in the rural American south. It's a favorite food among African Americans, who in the past, ate it on special occasions like Sunday dinner & other holidays. Another reason being it was still edible after a few days. The Scottish immigrants here claimed to be the first to fry chicken in lard but it was the African slaves (back in those days) that perfected the recipe by adding in spices and special seasoning.

The other famous fried chicken store (no names, so no offense here) is not that great in New Jersey. Surprise, surprise! I was really disappointed that it didn't live up to it's name like what we've come to know and expect in Malaysia. Instead, I now eat Popeyes chicken. Prepared ala southern Louisiana style with lots of cajun flavor, I have abandoned *** all together ;). Popeyes is spicy, crispier and the marinate is cooked right into the chicken. And, I am not the only one who thinks so too.

Beyonce Knowles is a well-known Popeyes lover and she isn't afraid to say that she loves their fried chicken. I think that's so cool since many singers & actresses in Hollywood are so afraid to eat and turning more anorexic these days*.

*N.B. The latest trend in Hollywood these days is actresses buying children's size clothes. I kid you not!

By the way, Popeyes Chicken didn't get its inspiration from this vegetarian sailor. He's gobbles down too much spinach anyway.

Instead, Popeyes got its name from Gene Hackman's character in the film "The French Connection". Why? I dunno. Maybe he packs a punch just like Popeyes spicy fried chicken.

Isn't that interesting?! You do learn something new each day.

P.S. How befitting it is to write about a successful New Orleans business on this day, the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Let us hope the Government will put more money into re-building this beloved city & continue to help those who suffered terrible losses in the affected areas.

Pain in the name of INS

Last Friday, Adrian & I had our medical check-up for immigration purposes. INS requires future immigrants to undergo an overall physical examination, blood test for HIV and TB test. Luckily, we had our DT (diphteria & tetanus) and MMR (mumps, measles & rubella) shots a year and a half ago. So, we were spared the agony of multiple shots.

Normally, I have quite a high threshold of pain but the thought of getting poked for 2 tests was a tad eerie and it immediately brought back bad memories of one session I had in Malaysia. A supposedly experienced nurse jabbed the needle into my arm several times and still failed to draw blood. All I got was one pain after another and the agony of hearing air popping out. That is why I don't donate blood.

True enough that Friday was like "Groundhog Day" all over again. The first nurse couldn't locate my veins in spite of doing several fist pumping exercises. Her comment, "Yours are really difficult to see...Yeah, you're a hard one. You have deep veins." U-huh! I have deep veins. I must be abnormal and an alien???


So the first nurse left after the first failed attempt and called in another nurse. I presumed a more experienced one???

Nurse #2: U-huh...let me see this side. Ok, let me see the right side. Pump your fist.

Me: Okkkk..

Nurse #2: Let's see the left side again. Ok...I can see one here.

Me (grimacing & thinking):Please let there be blood...please let there be blood.

Nurse #2: Got it...!

Me (thinking): Hallelujah. I'll give more alms in church on Sunday. I'll be kind and I won't swear at stupid drivers....

This was my arm on Friday - August 25, 2006

This is my arm today, Monday - August 28, 2006.

After 48 hours, we came back to have our TB skin test read and measured. My skin test had ballooned up to 8mm (3mm more than the allowable limit) so the nurse declared that a chest x-ray was needed just to be sure. I'd say it was a sensitive skin reaction plus I had BCG in M'sia before so that may have contributed to the larger mass of redness. Plus, have a nice "blue, black" present from the "small" needle used to draw blood for the HIV test.

The end result? HIV test - negative & chest x-ray - all clear. No more needles, please. Get me outta this doctor's office, quick!

N.B. In spite of the "searching-for-my-veins" brouhaha, the nurses were all professional and kind. I supposed I am just unlucky to be born with deep and small veins.

Urban Lingo

The English vocabulary is constantly expanding and lately two urban lingo or expressions have been used very prominently in the news.

No. 1

If you can't leave your Blackberry alone for less than 10 seconds then you are a ...


"Crackberry" : a person who is addicted to his/her Blackberry, as in a person addicted to cocaine. Like crack addicts, crackberries sufer from withdrawal symptoms (e.g. shaking?, easily agitated and irritated) when you take away their Blackberry from them. Treatment recommended for sufferers is similar to those used to rehabilitate crack addicts. Crackberry also applies to a person who uses the computer obsessively. Oh...oh, does that make us bloggers crackberries too?!

Another similar term used to explain this addiction is "blirting" (from Blackberry flirting) coined by a Democratic politician in Washington D.C.

Totally opposite to crackberries and blirters is the "cellophobo" i.e. a person who is not connected or is wireless e.g. cellphone-less, Blackberry-less or PDA-less.


No. 2

If you go to the tanning salon every week or every 3-4 days, then you are suffering from ...

"Tanorexia" : a person who is addicted to tanning salons; see themselves as being too pale even when they're not.

Hollywood actresses or tanorexics are perfect examples of tanorexia although there's plenty walking about in the mall here at the Garden State.

Charlize Theron

Eva Longoria

I think Eva is already gorgeous but now she is over-baked, well-done, a burnt toast! Pity, pity...I wonder if she's trying to achieve the same shade as her hottie boyfriend, Tony Parker?!

Kinda like bro & sista now don't ya think?!

Let's not digress. Back to the subject matter. So, if you're interested to learn more and start using uber-cool urban lingo, slang, etc. click on Urban Dictionary. Ciao! L8tr...

A Lesson in Liberalism

I've been wondering if I should blog about this. Covered the ladies' titties and what-nots so that I won't get into trouble with this blog's system administrator. I still wanna be able to sign in and write about other stuff.

Las Vegas Boulevard is a prostitution haven; hence the name Sin City. Everywhere you go, you are handed little cards advertising adult services. They're plastered all over the electricity poles, street lamps, you name it. As long as there's a blank space, it'll be covered with these special "ladies of the evening" although their services are available 24 hours a day; some at a discounted rate. All major credit cards also accepted. Collected these cards in just under a minute. If I had continued, I would have a bag-full by the end of the day. And what would I do with it anyway?! Ha..ha!

People who distribute these cards, mostly Mexican men and women would just shove it into your hands or slap it onto your arms as you walk by. Like wooo, what's this. If you're a man, they tend to make funny rat like sounds just to get your attention and proceed to say something like - hoochie mamas! chicas!

Not to worry if you missed those distributors. You can still find one, two or three hot babes driving up and down the Boulevard. With a very "applicable" phone number too, don't ya think?! From Vegas with lust, I would say ;)

Ding, Dong...It's Dominos 2x Tuesday

We had pizza for dinner tonight. It's been quite a while. I love the 2x Tuesday deal at Dominos. You'll see why soon enough.

I first heard about Dominos Pizza while discussing a business case study in one of my post graduate business classes back in E.C.U. Dominos hadn't made it to Perth yet during my college days there. They had a short-lived "deliver by a certain time or the pizza is on us policy" that caused many accidents (some fatal) amongst its delivery personnel. Good for them but a loss for those free riding customers.

2x Tuesday is all the rage these days for Dominos and pizza lovers. On Tuesdays, when you buy 1 large pizza at regular price, you get another large pizza, a 2 liter soda and one bread side (cinnasticks or cheesy bread sticks) for free.

Our dinner (and my breakfast, lunch and dinner for the next few days!).

Deluxe Feast

Bacon Cheeseburger

Sides of hot buffalo wings (right) and cinnasticks with sweet icing (that's for dessert)

U-huh! I bet some people do return empty boxes and still expect a refund..! Burrrp, I'm so stuffed, I need to go for a walk.

Koreana Experience - Part II

We met up with June today. She is Adrian's friend from his MBA days in Illinois and they haven't seen each other since 2001.

June recently took up a new job with Johnson & Johnson Medical as their Franchise Director for Women's Health in South Korea. She is here for 3 weeks as part of their training program. She had just arrived last week and was fighting fatigue and jet-lag. Poor her! We had a great time showing June around northern New Jersey.

Of course, no meeting is complete without a meal together. All this while, we've been coming to the Lighthouse Seafood & BBQ Restaurant (Myung Ga) at Broad Avenue, Fairview.

This is us: June, Adrian & I by the window of Myung Ga. Enjoying our hearty meal :)

The place is usually crowded during lunch and dinner. Hence, we gather the food must be authentic enough if Koreans were coming by the bus loads to eat.

Lots of Korean tourists, locals ...this photo was taken about 2 weeks ago. Note: There's some more people, outside the door, waiting to get in.

Anyway, we got the confirmation straight from June today. It is GOOD!

For starters - kimchi, anchovies, cuttlefish, pickled cucumber, beansprouts, lettuce with sesame-mayo dressing, etc.. This is your typical complimentary Korean appetizers. I think Chinese restaurants could do better than their measly little plate of peanuts or pickled cabbage.



Suun Dubu or Spicy Tofu Soup is a popular, healthy and tasty choice. Adrian had a mix one with beef and seafood. You can have it cooked from mild to extra spicy. Crack an egg into the bubbling claypot and Bob's your uncle!



Spicy vegetable soup (forgot the Korean name, mianhamnida!) for June.



This is my choice - Bi Bim Bab or rice with a little bit of everything.



Korean BBQ ribs marinated in fruity sauce. We all agreed that this is the most delicious of all. Yum!

An nyong hi - ka sye yo, for now.

Koreana Experience - Part I

Mianhamnida, speak no Korean. Sorry!

This happens to me all the time. Getting mistaken by a Korean as a Korean. Ahhh...Winter Sonata. This is the only Korean thing I know before I came to New Jersey. I definitely don't look anything like them so I don't understand how all of this could be. They're so cute & she's so darn fair looking.

Fort Lee & Palisades Park are two Korean towns near my place. In the beginning, I did consider learning more Korean phrases but the language is really hard to grasp; not to mention the intricate and complicated “hanja” characters or rather the now Korean-ized hangul. Their pronunciation is another matter.

"How are you?"

I am hangul illiterate so I see only lots of squares, stick men doing the split, sitting down, hanging upside down, etc. no? Well, that's just me being ignorant. But, I am no bigot. I have a lot of respect for the Korean community here. They work very hard and have blended in successfully into the American society.

"Sorry"

For those who speak and write Chinese/Mandarin, learning Korean should be easier for them since the language has Chinese roots. Unfortunately, the closest thing I speak to Mandarin is Hokkien (my genealogical dialect). So, I’ve resorted to learning simple Korean phrases by ear. It’s going to cause a lot of embarrassment but it’s just simpler for me this way.

To date, my Korean is still zilch, unfit even for conversational purposes. Meanwhile, my identity kerfuffle continues…

A week ago - Han Ah Reum Supermarket

Lady: blah, blah, blah… (Inaudible Korean - asking for some directions on how to cook a bunch of unfamiliar looking vegetables)
Me: Err, sorry, I am not Korean.
Lady: Sorry, sorry! Ha..ha..ha...
Me: Huh?! Funny meh? (Thinking to myself)


Three days ago - Little Ferry Laundromat

Lady: blah, blah, blah… (Inaudible Korean - enthusiastically chatting away, explaining something to me)
Me: Sorry but I am not Korean.
Lady: Oh, sorry!!! You, Chinese?!
Me: Yes.
Lady: Oh, I am the new owner of this place. New management - last Friday. Thank you for coming.
Me: Ok, nice meeting you.

Some Quiet Thoughts

Speak pidgin, anyone?

No, I don't mean speak pigeon. Who wants to speak to a bird anyway? If you still don't know what I am talking about perhaps this movie poster might help.

I am not reviewing this movie either but I am rather fascinated by Captain Jack Sparrow's love-affair with this pidgin word "savvy'. I thought that since Jack Sparrow is such an uber-cool pirate, he should have a suave saying that goes with his persona and "savvy" is close to suave, right?! No, no, no... I am JUST KIDDING. Commonsense will tell you what it meant. Understand, comprehendo?! Ok. Let's move on.

So, I discovered further that the word "savvy" is a mix between English and the Portuguese word "sabe". Hmmm...now does that make Singlish, Manglish and Spanglish pidgin too?! Well, unfortunately they aren't. You see, pidgin is a contact language created by European merchants back in the Middle Ages to communicate with the locals or other foreign traders. It is like a second language. Singlish, Manglish & Spanglish hardly qualify because it maybe incomprehensible to those outside it's own community. Can you imagine if I said, "Don't play-play" (Singlish phrase made popular by Singaporean Phua Chu Kang) when I really meant "Please be serious" to a Caucasian American or British?! Awkward....

However, there's a light at the end of the tunnel for some Chinese originated pidgin words or rather Chinglish. You might be interested to know:

• long time no see (everyone says that so no problem here)
• no can do (like that Cool and the Gang song, I forgot the title ?)
• no-go (we use that all the time in everyday American English)
  

Now, let me thank Wikipedia & Webster for helping me fully understand pidgin...SAVVY?!

From Culture Club to culture shock

"Karma karma karma karma karma chameleon, you come and go, you come and go..."
You are what you sing, George. Now you see him, now you don't. Boy George is not as famous as he used to be in his Culture Club Days. For those of you who grew up in the 80s, like me, we remember him best like this.

But, whenever BG is in the news, he must be doing something outrageously worth commenting, like when he tried to revive his musical career on Broadway with this freaky "wet-paint-drippin'-over-the-face" look. The show - Taboo, closed less than 3 months after opening. Would you waste your $60 just to see this?! I didn't think so either.

And finally, we woke up to this photo on the internet, newspaper and television. U-huh! BG sweeping the sidewalks of lower east side Manhattan. Poor BG was ordered by the court to 5 days of community work for falsely reporting a burglary in his apartment earlier this year. Why, why, why??? The police found drugs instead. Oh..oh!!! (I thought BG would be smart enough to chuck them out before the cops came).

Yup, he IS wearing capri pants. You have to give him A+ for humility though. Hey George, while you're at it could you mop my apartment too? It's smaller than the Depot, really.

Fort Lee Historic Park


I should have written about this event last November but I hadn't started blogging yet at that time.

Remember what it was like to learn history in school? Yes, all those torturously thick history books containing unattractive black & white texts and photos of dead historical figures. And, not to mention the memorizing we had to endure just to pass some pop-quiz or public exam.

Wouldn't it be great to be able to go outdoors and see with our own eyes how past people lived and what soldiers do during times of war?

Here's some interesting stuff I gathered from the Retreat Weekend at Fort Lee.

We learned about keeping cannons clean and prepping it for fire. Cannons were strategically placed here, at this spot, in the 18th. Century to defend New York and the Hudson Valley from the British during the Revolutionary War.

Ka-boom! An extremely loud explosion which left my ears ringing and my heart thumping vigorously for a few seconds. Poor Adrian took this photo while I had my two Peter Pointers in my ears. Haha!

Ladies sitting by the camp. Yes, they helped out during the War by doing sewing, cooking and tending to wounded soldiers.

P.S. Just pretend you didn't see the yellow pick-up in the foreground. Photo spoiler! :(

A Hessian soldier and a lady. Hessians were German soldiers loyal to King George III. King George was of course of German descend from Hanover. About 30,000 of them fought in this war against the New World (American) soldiers led by George Washington.

American Continental army.

Militia in the Revolutionary War. Just like Heath Ledger in "The Patriot". Hee..hee!

Lovers taking a break from the hussle and bussle of war. Awwww....!

The anti-climax at Fort Lee is that eventhough it was a stronghold for George Washington's army, it never saw any serious battle at the site. The area had arsenals of military weapons but Washington was forced to abandon the Fort and retreat through New Jersey in the winter of 1776-1777; whereby they eventually defeated some intoxicated Hessian soldiers on Christmas Day. Prost! or Zum Whol! Hic...hic!

N.B. If history lessons in Malaysia were that interesting, I would have passed my exams with flying colors. I would probably have appreciated it a lot better too (*sigh*).

Wonderful Wondee's

Adrian has been coming to this Thai restaurant to eat since he moved to New Jersey in 2001. It is located at Main Street, Hackensack - about 15 minutes from our apartment. I am not a big fan of Thai food although I like their green curries and desserts.

Anyway, the food at Wondees is great and reasonably priced. I have some favorites now :) We were there last night and ordered...


Pla Lard Prig; deep fried whole fish (sea bass is our preferred choice) with sweet and sour chili sauce. We always ask for extra sauce because it goes very well with white rice.

Our new discovery; Kar-Na-Moo Grob (stir fried crispy pork belly with Chinese broccoli). Noh, our favorite Wondee's staff recommended it to us.

And,

Thai ice-tea; just like Kuching's three layer teh-si-peng (milk tea).

Other superb dishes from Wondee's:

• som thum (green papaya salad with lemon juice, chili, peanuts, green beans, tomatoes and dried ground shrimp);
• hoi jaw (fried shrimp, crabmeat and pork roll - just like ngor hiang)
• pad thai
• pad see iew (similar to M'sian char kway tiau)