Happy Thanksgiving 2023 (and Happy Birthday)

Yesterday was my sis’s birthday and I’m going out of town for a long weekend and I think a well-deserved vacation, so I had her and a friend over for a pre-Thanksgiving Dinner and to celebrate her birthday.

I wasn’t planning on cooking this year, anyway. I originally wanted to order Lao food to be delivered, but they’re not open (no biggie). I found a Thai restaurant that has some Lao dishes on their menu, so I pre-ordered the day before in case I was too busy or forgot to order in time. I got a cancellation email the morning of, and I was thinking, now what am I going to do for dinner!

So, anyway, I looked for another Thai restaurant I had ordered from before and found some comparable dishes. About 45 minutes before ETA, I still had not received any confirmation. I’m thinking, great! At least dessert (from another Thai restaurant) was confirmed.

I contacted the delivery platform, and they called the restaurant. Apparently the restaurant had started preparing the food but never updated the progress in the system. Whew!

Anti-clockwise from lower right:

Tod Mun (authentic fish cake served with cucumber salad)
Sai Oua (Northern Thai Sausage) (Homemade sausage with ground pork, curry paste and Thai herbs served with cucumber)
Sai Krog Le-Sarn (Northeastern Thai style sausage served with peanuts & sliced ginger)
Som Tum (Spicy green salad with green papaya, string beans, tomatoes, carrots, peanuts & lime juice)
Pad Woonsen with tofu

Clockwise from left:

Mango Sticky Rice

Pearls in Coconut Milk

Thai Custard

Thought on Conservatives vs Liberals

Don’t come for blood because you don’t agree with me. These are my thoughts and I am entitled to them. If you demand a retraction then you’re showing your lack of tolerance and I have no desire to engage with you any further.

I feel sad for conservatives. I understand where they’re coming from. They want people to be self-reliant and responsible. Those are realistic expectations. What is sad is instead of using data and empirical evidence, they choose to lie. And the sadder part is, they appeal to the uninformed with their lies. They spread hate to further their own agenda. They are not able to accept that other people don’t always agree with them. They consider themselves the moral police and want to control things that don’t concern them.

The liberals are just as much to blame. They make demands without offering solutions. They engage in cancel culture if they don’t agree. They want bigger government involvement, which is counter to many immigrants’ experience. Immigrants and refugees don’t want the government to control their lives.

Sharing the wealth is a noble idea, but it is inherently flawed and unfair. There is nothing wrong with rewarding achievement. Giving the same recognition without the individual having put in the same effort sends the wrong message. Not being rewarded is not a punishment. It is an incentive to do better. Life does not have to be one major competition, but it also doesn’t have to be a free-for-all.

So, reader, what are your thoughts?

As always, please keep it civil and relevant. I promise I will refrain from commenting on your experience, but I might be curious enough to ask questions to better understand your perspective.

Carb on Carb

Carb on Carb seems like an oxymoron, but some combinations are so good you’d be crazy not to try them. Here is my growing list as I discover delicious carb overload (not in any particular order).

 Mother-in-Law Sandwich (Chicago)

Tamale topped with chili, served in a hot dog bun

Vada Pav (Mumbai)

Deep fried potato dumpling placed inside a bread bun

Chip Butty (UK)

Sandwich filled with chips

Aloo Paratha (Punjab)

Paratha stuffed with potato

Spaghetti Sandwich (Australia)

Cooked spaghetti with sauce and bread

Aloo Biryani (Kolkata)

Basmati rice, potatoes, spices, yogurt, onions, and herbs

Potato Pierogi (Eastern Europe)

Pierogi stuffed with mashed potato

Pizza con Patate (Italy)

Potato Pizza

Tacos de Papa (Mexico)

Potato Tacos

French Fry Sandwich (Chicago)

Shoestring fries piled on an Italian beef bun, dipped in the gravy, smothered with precisely two ladles of nacho cheese sauce (or a mozzarella option), and finally topped with hot giardiniera

Armenian-style Rice Pilaf (Armenian diaspora)

Rice and pasta toasted in butter and then simmered in chicken stock

Potato Burrito (California)

Flour tortilla filled with pan fried potatoes, black beans, rice, cheese and sour cream

Popping Popcorn

Yeah, it probably seems silly to shoot a video of popping popcorn, but because it was done in an electric wok with a glass lid, there was no shaking involved, and it was actually quite mesmerizing. 

This is similar to videos I have of a fireplace and a tropical aquarium. They’re just very calming.

Thoughts on Manicures

I know this is a weird observation.

I don’t know about you. Whenever I see photos of people’s hands, the first thing I look at is how well they’ve maintained their nails. I can’t stand ugly nails.

I get a manicure every week. I get just a regular manicure. Although no-chip lasts much longer, I don’t like seeing the gap when the nail grows out, plus I get to do a different color every time. I also don’t think regular no-chip is good for the nails. I might do one for a special occasion, but it’s definitely not my thing.

I get Vinylux, which lasts much longer than regular nail polish without the need for UV light. The only thing is, Vinylux doesn’t have as many colors as OPI or essie :-(

Anyway, I can’t stand long nails. It’s all the rage right now. I see people struggling with doing simple things because their nails are so long. I look at my manicure and my nails are a decent length even though they’re barely beyond my fingertips. A long nail bed is a blessing!

Gender Wage Gap

In 2022, women earned an average of 82% of what men earned. This was about the same as in 2002.

Can we break it down to more than just sound bites? Is starting wage/salary different? For everything equal (education, experience, position, length of employment), are female employees actually being offered less pay?

What are some of the mitigating factors? Just an overall summary (we know how data can be interpreted based on bias)? Gap in employment, e.g., due to raising a family (still mainly a woman’s responsibility) and re-entering the workforce, thus forfeiting the opportunity for raises during the absence from the workforce? Are raises for women less?

If women can do the same job for less, why aren’t employers hiring more women, since they can get the same productivity for less money?

Just thinking out loud.

Happy 186th Birthday, Chicago

These were all shot at Navy Pier on March 4, 2023

Thoughts about Life

I just got the news that a friend’s child, whom I had known since they were a little kid about 35 years ago, recently passed away, I believe suddenly. I don’t have any details, and it is not my place to write more about it.

I’m trying to process my personal feelings, because I was close to the family but had not been in touch for a very long time. I had thought of reconnecting with my friend and her kids but I just never made the time or the effort for various reasons.

I realize I’m really not very good at keeping in touch with people. I guess being a loner has something to do with it.