Blog 05: Welcoming the end of a long year but cheers to next one lined up

My last post of the year, so sad...but I'm so ready to say, "R.I.P. 2008"

Hello, you are all probably wondering what the hell is he doing home on New Year's Eve. Well, I can explain. First of all, it is freezing cold outside. Second, it is freezing cold outside. Third, plans were changed. If those aren't good enough reasons for you guys then forget you. Just kidding. Don't worry I definitely had a back up plan.

For quite some time now, I've been wanting to cook up some cajun style seafood gumbo. I haven't had any for the last two years. Well, the plan was for me to hook it up in the kitchen on new years day as a surprise to my lovely lady Cassie. But since going out on new years eve to welcome in the new year was shot, like Dick Cheney's buddy during their hunting trip. I decided to surprise Cassie tonight. Yes, I went ahead and took on the task of making my very first seafood gumbo.

I bought the ingredients that I needed yesterday, since I like to be prepared and just in case I happen to forget some important ingredient that I didn't pick up (which I did), I can just pick them up right before cooking time and I did. Here's the list of things I needed for my operation gumbo. Shrimp, Crab, flour, vegetable oil, Gumbo file (fee-lay), oregano, bay leaves, chicken broth, celery and onions, Cajun seasoning, cayenne pepper and Louisiana hot sauce, Pot (Stainless big pot not Mary Jane) and some Old Bay seasoning.

I'd keep writing but it is New Years Eve and I can't devote all my time to my new hobby, I got other things to do. I'm going to go serve myself and Cassie a bowl of rice drenched in my seafood gumbo, and get drunk off some champagne next to the fireplace and sing Auld Lang Syne till about 12:02am 1-1-2009 then crash. But don't worry I'm leaving you guys with pictures and as they say, pictures are worth a thousand words... It'll be in chronological order from the time I started and the time I finished operation gumbo. Here you are... enjoy!

Here are the ingredients, no beer in the gumbo. That's for me! Cheers

Preparing the roux! Hardest part! Gotta take your sweet time

Added the rest of the ingredients

Let it simmer and soak on low-medium heat

Served over rice and gumbo file seasoning!

Looks good doesn't it?

Blog 04: New Year's resolution

What's your New Year's resolution?

Every year people always come up with things that they would like to change when the new year begins. I'm not any different. Here are some of my new year's resolution in random order.

Lose weight
Tone up
Take more classes
Get in the best shape ever for basketball
Learn how to swim
Take singing lessons
Visit my birthplace (Hong Kong)
Update blog at least once a week.

I'll be posting every resolution that I will be achieving as the year progresses.

Have a Happy New Year and good luck with the resolutions!

Blog 03: Xmas at Aunt Susie's

Prime rib, Lamb, Juicy Turkey, Collard greens, mashed potatoes w/gravy, stuffing, and about 4 glasses of tangy fruit punch weren't the only thing that I will remember most during the Christmas holiday's.

The gathering of the Davis family (my lady's family) in Tracy at Aunt Susie's house is definitely the defining moment of Xmas. It sure was family time. Aunties, Uncles, Cousins, Nieces, Nephews, and a filipino were all hanging together taking pictures, exchanging jokes and grubbing.

Here are a few pictures of Christmas 2008.

Blog 02: U.F.M. dillema solved!!!

First and foremost, I would like to thank everyone who took time off their busy lives just to check my blog. I am greatly appreciative.

What is frustration? There are many forms of frustration. It can be accumulated from different variations of situations, or life in general, but my most recent episode of frustration happens to be something that everyone have experienced. I call it the dillema of what the hell is that song called? Ok, I'll have to admit that I just made that up. But anyhow, we've all been through this scenario at least once in our lifetime.

Check it out.

Here you are minding your own business, doing your thing whether you are at work surfing the net, or day dreaming while the professor is lecturing about how we evolved from monkeys or whatever your case may be. Then in a split second, a familiar tune just pops into your cerebrum. Not only do you not have any idea where you have heard it from, nor where it came from, you also do not know any of the lyrics pertaining to the particular song. All you have is a melody that is stuck in your head. Sounds familiar? Unfortunately, we have all been there, and I would like to share my experience.

So, my episode of what the hell is that song called starts like this. A few weeks ago, I was pretty much just doing what I just mentioned in the previous paragraph, and BLAM!!! There it is, that U.F.M.(Unidentified Frustrating melody) just made itself comfortable in it's new home, my mind. Most people would have just ignored it, but I'm the type who will do just the opposite. So what's the first thing I did? I called my girlfriend Cassie and like a dumbass tried to hum the melody to her, I even tried to whistle. (For those of you who does not know about my singing capabilities, lets just say that I am tone challenged.) Anyways, I had no luck. Though, she was kind enough to refer me to my own niece and I thought it was a great idea. I was pretty optomistic about asking my niece at first, until I received the answer I didn't want to hear. Bummer! I even asked my friend Zach at work, who we all call CNN, or Zackapedia because the guy just knows everything, props to Google lol j/k. To a shocker, he had no idea. The light at the end of the tunnel was slowly dimming for me. I tried everything, I tried googling it with failing results due to the lack of lyrics involved and to make matters worse, somewhere along day 5 of the investigation, the tune decided to bail out. I could not remember how the tune goes. Good news right? WRONG! I'm much like those hard nosed stubborn detectives who are persistent and investigates a case even if the case is closed. I didn't give up, I knew that it will all come back to me when I least expect it, it always does and it did. I wouldn't be writing this blog if it hadn't right?


Anyways, It happenned on December 23rd around 7 p.m. I was doing some last minute Xmas shopping for my woman at our local Macy's here in Santa Barbara, and to be frank figuring out what that U.F.M. was during the times of desperate shoppers trying to find the perfect gift was nowhere near the vicinity of my thoughts. So believe me when a million other human beings and I say things usually pop up when you're not looking for them. Not only was that stupid U.F.M. that has been bugging the life out of me for the entire week and a half before Xmas was playing in the juniors section of macys, the actual music video was playing. How did I feel? It was a bitter sweet feeling for me, sweet because I figured out the name of the song, the lyrics, who sang it and the whole 9 yards. Bitter because I wasn't trying at the time and I was just at the right place at the right time. It was meant for me to figure it out, but just not when I wanted it to be.

Dillema Solved! Frustation meter is back to 0%

Now I would like to share to all of you the song that almost gave me a few more gray hairs.



Thanks again for reading.

Blog 01: People never forget about their first time...

It is now official, I am no longer a virgin when it comes to blogging. Much like the hit comedy movie, The 40-year-old Virgin, I know very little about blogging like Steve Carell knows very little about how breasts feels. But just like in any case, practice makes perfect. Please bear with me, I assure you it will be smooth like a bag of sand.... NOT!