What is in your cup?

[CRussel]

No suggestions for how to manage your baby. I suspect you'll find a way that works for your situation.

Keemun Ho Yah 'A' in my cup. A good quality Keemun, though not up to the Keemun Xing Zhang I got from TeaSpring.

[ProfCrash]

He got his first set of shots today which has made him a bit more fussy and clingy. His appetite is a bit off. Hopefully tomorrow he will back to his normal self. We are trying to avoid using props but he is too young to try any method of self soothing and there are times when he won't sleep on his own. I have a feeling that day care will handle some of these issues for us.

[Stitchawl]

For I marched to the battles of the German trench
In a war that was bound to end all wars
Oh I must have killed a million men
And now they want me back again
But I ain't marchin' anymore

It's always the old to lead us to the war
It's always the young to fall
Now look at all we've won with the saber and the gun
Tell me is it worth it all

For I flew the final mission in the Japanese sky
Set off the mighty mushroom roar
When I saw the cities burning I knew that I was learning
That I ain't marchin' anymore

Now the labor leader's screamin'
when they close the missile plants,
United Fruit screams at the Cuban shore,
Call it "Peace" or call it "Treason,"
Call it "Love" or call it "Reason,"
But I ain't marchin' any more,
No I ain't marchin' any more

( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgAiuHIBlVs )

Boy, I sure got in a whole ration of trouble when I played this at a gig the Officer's Club back in the day.... But that's another story.

Good morning, everyone! Sunny skies and fair winds... Looks as if it will be a good day. It's starting right, with some "Yorkshire" tea from Taylors of Harrowgate, and a plate of babbaganoush, although the garlic in it might melt my keyboard. I 'may' have put in a bit too much... (as if there really could be such a thing as 'too much' garlic! Ha!)

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Maybe next time I am eating oriental food I will attempt to learn the art of chop sticks.

Here's another surprise for you... The food will taste better. The reason being, the chopsticks don't hold as much 'sauces' as a fork or spoon will, so the balance of the ingredients comes through more clearly.

It actually isn't hard to learn to use them if you remember just three things:
1. Only the top stick moves. The bottom one NEVER moves (or shouldn't...) The bottom one is wedged into the webbing of your thumb and against the end of your ring finger, and it just sits there doing nothing. I prefer it to contact the tip of my ring finger while my wife contacts hers on the side near the tip.
2. The upper stick is held sort of like a pencil, using your first two fingers and thumb. That's the stick that moves, and holds the food against the bottom stick. (Do you know the Italian version of 'giving the bird?' Three fingers instead of just the middle finger? THAT is how the upper stick is held!
3. The tips must be even. After you've placed them correctly in your hand, tap the tips against the bottom of the dish to even them up.

Watch this video and you'll see exactly what I mean. Or this one. I keep 'my' thumb a little further back than in this video. I get more control. Hold the sticks closer to the end rather than to the food for better control. If you keep in mind threes three 'bold' ideas, it shouldn't take you more than 2-3 minutes to learn to use chopsticks to pick up larger solid things like a piece of chicken or a chunk of bamboo shoot. After 10 minutes you'll be able to pick up a grain of rice. Do NOT try to pick up soup.

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

Chop sticks are great. We have some metal ones that are awesome.

Traditionally, metal chopsticks, especially long ones, are used in Korean dinning.
Except for....

Originally Posted by CRussel

I have some sterling silver chopsticks that someone gave me years and years ago.

... which were used by the rich and powerful, believing that if the food was poisoned, the silver would tarnish and could save their lives!

Personally, I like lacquered wooden chopsticks that have serrations at the bottom to help hold the food. The plastic Chinese chopsticks are a pain to use with noodles unless you use them the 'traditional' way; holding the bowl right against your chin and just starting the noodles into your mouth so you can hoover them up without the chopsticks. The Chinese in Singapore use their chopsticks to pick up food and load it onto spoons held in the opposite hand, then spoon the food into their mouths.

Originally Posted by Bilbo1967

Till the child wakes up and finds his/her mother's severed hand on top of them

Oh, I always hated it when that happened!

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I have a feeling that day care will handle some of these issues for us.

I was really strongly opposed to the idea of my son having to go to day care. I was furious. Screaming mad, but there was no other option at the time. But the fact is that daycare really turned my sweet little lump of clay into a functioning human being, and did a fantastic job of teaching him how to both adapt/play on his own and also function as part of the group society. They even potty trained him at an age we never would have thought possible. Of course, now that he's 37 the fact that we all still have to gather around an applaud when he pees into the toilet is a bit of a bother, but hey? It all works out.


Stitchawl

[amward]

I sometimes wonder how my kids survived, they both slept on their stomachs from day one, which is what was in vogue then, both were offered dummies (pacifiers) but only one wanted it. One would only go to sleep in my arms, the other only in his crib... you'll work it out, or rather Noah will teach you what he wants.

Off to make a chai latte.

[ProfCrash]

Hehehehe

I know. I was the first kid in the family to have a car seat, my two older brothers did not. I slept in the back of the station wagon without a seat bel, the seats were folded down so we could sleep comfortably. I didn't own a bike helmet until I was 15 and a summer camp required one. It is a long list of no nos today.

The back thing we take seriously. My Dad was babysitting a neighbors child who died of SIDs with my Dad just across the hall. They were living in an apartment at the time. Dad checked on the baby every 30 minutes. The first time he was comfortable being left with an infant after that was with my son a month ago. It took 45 years and even then the cleaning folks were in the house.

My Mom took a look at the list of what I can and can't eat, medicines that were approved, and other pregnancy instructions and commented on how much things have changed. It is a very different world.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

Hehehehe

I know. I was the first kid in the family to have a car seat, my two older brothers did not. I slept in the back of the station wagon without a seat bel, the seats were folded down so we could sleep comfortably. I didn't own a bike helmet until I was 15 and a summer camp required one. It is a long list of no nos today.

The problem is that low probability events are very hard for us to handle as individuals. The chances of being killed or injured because of not wearing a seat belt, or not wearing a cycle helmet is very, very small for any individual journey, and quite small for any individual.

But when you have tens or hundreds of millions of people, and billions of journeys, that small probability turns into thousands of deaths per year.

The small changes in safety legislation concerning cars and roads in the UK has, over the past 40 years, reduced deaths and total injuries from 7,499 (356,000) in 1970 to 1901 (203,950) in 2011, while motor traffic miles have gone from 124.6 billion miles to 303.8 billion miles.

In total, it has reduced the chance of death from one every 16.6 million miles to one every 159.8 million miles. It's almost ten times safer (in terms of risk of dying) on UK roads now than it was 40 years ago!

Even counting any injury, it's gone from one every 350,000 miles to one every 1.49 million miles. Over four times safer.


Wow. I knew it had got better, but until I looked up these figures I didn't realise how much better it had become.


Coke Zero #1 in my cup.

[Stitchawl]

That's why I always push my motorcycle for the first two miles before I get on and ride. The statistics says that most accidents happen withing two miles of home...

Tea, glorious tea!


Stitchawl

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

That's why I always push my motorcycle for the first two miles before I get on and ride. The statistics says that most accidents happen withing two miles of home...

Nothing in my cup!

I must get another Coke Zero straight away!

[VydorScope]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

That's why I always push my motorcycle for the first two miles before I get on and ride. The statistics says that most accidents happen withing two miles of home...

Tea, glorious tea!


Stitchawl

That is a good plan, except you might want to look up pedestrian death rates, and proximity to home just to be sure

[VydorScope]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Here's another surprise for you... The food will taste better. The reason being, the chopsticks don't hold as much 'sauces' as a fork or spoon will, so the balance of the ingredients comes through more clearly.

It actually isn't hard to learn to use them if you remember just three things:
1. Only the top stick moves. The bottom one NEVER moves (or shouldn't...) The bottom one is wedged into the webbing of your thumb and against the end of your ring finger, and it just sits there doing nothing. I prefer it to contact the tip of my ring finger while my wife contacts hers on the side near the tip.
2. The upper stick is held sort of like a pencil, using your first two fingers and thumb. That's the stick that moves, and holds the food against the bottom stick. (Do you know the Italian version of 'giving the bird?' Three fingers instead of just the middle finger? THAT is how the upper stick is held!
3. The tips must be even. After you've placed them correctly in your hand, tap the tips against the bottom of the dish to even them up.

Watch this video and you'll see exactly what I mean. Or this one. I keep 'my' thumb a little further back than in this video. I get more control. Hold the sticks closer to the end rather than to the food for better control. If you keep in mind threes three 'bold' ideas, it shouldn't take you more than 2-3 minutes to learn to use chopsticks to pick up larger solid things like a piece of chicken or a chunk of bamboo shoot. After 10 minutes you'll be able to pick up a grain of rice. Do NOT try to pick up soup.



Traditionally, metal chopsticks, especially long ones, are used in Korean dinning.
Except for....



... which were used by the rich and powerful, believing that if the food was poisoned, the silver would tarnish and could save their lives!

Personally, I like lacquered wooden chopsticks that have serrations at the bottom to help hold the food. The plastic Chinese chopsticks are a pain to use with noodles unless you use them the 'traditional' way; holding the bowl right against your chin and just starting the noodles into your mouth so you can hoover them up without the chopsticks. The Chinese in Singapore use their chopsticks to pick up food and load it onto spoons held in the opposite hand, then spoon the food into their mouths.


Stitchawl

Thanks!!

Err... if they have spoons, why use chopsticks?

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by VydorScope

That is a good plan, except you might want to look up pedestrian death rates, and proximity to home just to be sure

That's right... Just strip away the last shreds of sense of self-protection I may have had, and force me... nay.... drag me kicking and screaming into reality. Nice... real nice...

I think I'll go eat some worms. (They're not fattening, are they?)



Stitchawl

[VydorScope]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

That's right... Just strip away the last shreds of sense of self-protection I may have had, and force me... nay.... drag me kicking and screaming into reality. Nice... real nice...

I think I'll go eat some worms. (They're not fattening, are they?)



Stitchawl

Nobody likes me, everybody hates me,
Guess I'll go eat worms,
Long, thin, slimy ones; Short, fat, juicy ones,
Itsy, bitsy, fuzzy wuzzy worms.

Down goes the first one, down goes the second one,
Oh how they wiggle and squirm.
Up comes the first one, up comes the second one,
Oh how they wiggle and squirm.

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Thanks!!

Err... if they have spoons, why use chopsticks?

You ever try picking up noodles with a spoon?
Spoons are pretty common all over Asia but knives and forks are not. One of the important parts of food prep in most Asian cooking is cutting everything into bite-sized pieces that can either be picked up with chopsticks or spoons. Singaporeans usually eat with chopsticks in one hand and a spoon in the other (these are the big-bowled Chinese style spoons.) Malaysians eat most of their food using large western-style soup spoons as the main tool, but use chopsticks in the other hand as a secondary. Japanese use their chopsticks for just about everything, loudly slurping long noodles, but use large bowl Chinese spoons for 2-3 dishes such as 'curryrice' and 'ma pwo tofu.' These two are ALWAYS eaten with a spoon! Chopsticks for everything else and 'usually' drinking miso soup by picking up the bowl. Ramen soup, however, is drunk using a spoon! This holds true for the Chinese too.


Stitchawl

[VydorScope]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

You ever try picking up noodles with a spoon?
Stitchawl

They should import sporks!

[Quake1028]

Then: Large Iced Coffee
Now: Water

Stll a bit sick.