Bird’s nest in the Chinese kitchens

http://www.50birds.com/GNest1.htm

I really got to have that bird’s nest soup in the near future as I am even having dreams of it. It’s funny how the thought and crave for the soup come about one evening after dinner and after a cheesecake cone ice-cream. But somehow that soup is more than just a bowl of soup, there are endearing moments when mom would wake us up in the middle of our sleep, all my siblings and I would then each be given a bowl of freshly brewed, carefully picked and cleaned bird’s nest soup. Back in the times when we were not given the luxury to turn on the air-conditioner since global warming wasn’t as bad as it is now, we were actually treated to such expensive taste as a bird’s nest soup every other week if not almost every week. And try imagining drinking the piping hot, rock sugar sweetened soup with the cool air blowing at you, that was indeed an heavenly experience!

Just what is the bird’s nest soup? For those who know little about the Chinese cuisine, it actually comes from the saliva nests of the birds in places such as Indonesia and other Southeast Asian countries. This may sound nauseous to some, but try sipping a tiny spoon of this delicacy and you will be totally taken in by its fragrant and smooth texture. You can actually get these soups or drinks off the shelves of the super markets and many Chinese pharmacies do carry the varied brands of bird’s nest soup. For those who want to pay less to just try it, you can have a bowl of “cheap” bird’s nest soup on the streets of Thailand or some say you can find them also in Hong Kong, only that they may not be “authentic” at all. Then also, you will find the can drinks of bird’s nest which are actually made of what we call the grass jelly and not the real thing. In any case, the bird’s nest’s craze is understandable especially among the ladies since it is believed to have aesthetic values. And in the Chinese classical novel, The Dreams of the Red Mansion, the protagonist Lin Daiyu has enjoyed so much of these in her regular diet to curb her cough and to boost her health or “qi” (energy). Interview or ask any of the Asian female artistes, or even male artistes and you will sure know how the soup does work wonders on them. It may well do more on your looks than the miracle water that claims to work on your complexion when applied on externally.

So bird’s nest soup I definitely must have, and I am going to share it with mom to thank her for all the picking and cleaning of the raw product to make a bowl of one of the most treasured Chinese delicacies.

Pledged innocent

It is interesting how the four books of the gospels are written with different emphasis in some ways though they share the same focus on documenting Lord Jesus’s life, death and resurrection. As I was reading the Bible today, Luke chapters 19 to 24 brought to me a finding I have never once discovered. Somehow, I only realise how much more details the book has on the characters of Herod, Pilate and one of the two criminals who were nailed together with the Lord Himself. What was the one thing these men have in common? I suppose it is indeed the pledge of innocence. Read on the chapters to find out how both Herod and Pilate used to be at loggerheads at each other until their seeing eye to eye to pronouncing Jesus’s innocence. In fact, Pilate in the Book of Luke has not only once told the mob that he cannot nail Jesus to any crime He is not guilty of, but the mob chose to sacrifice the one Messiah they have been waiting for in return for the life of a murderer, Barabbas. And so Pilate has declared himself clear from the blood of the to be crucified Lord. And the same goes to the criminal who was nailed next to Jesus; when one of the two challenged Jesus to prove Himself to be the Son of God, the other has asked that Jesus will remember him when He ascended His throne. How much faith do we have if we were at the assembly of the mob and others? Will we also clench our fists and shout,”Crucify him!” Or will we be weeping at one corner, regretting how we should have stayed awake the night before to pray with the Lord, and instead we have denied Him as Peter the Rock to be did, three times before the cock was to crow twice? As I joined in the fellowship in celebrating our risen Lord, I couldn’t help wondering how I would have reacted if I were there with Him. And I truly pray that I will have the faith of a mustard seed, to save my soul and to proclaim His love for all mankind then and now. May we all have a blessed Easter and remember this wondrous love, instead of the bunnies and the painted eggs.

Right direct-ors

How many of us watch a movie because of its director? Many movie buffs would probably go for the cast, mainly the leading men and women and perhaps, the scripts or the big names of the producers and movie companies. I can think of the one man whom most will not think twice to attend any of his works, he is none other than the almost legendary Steven Spielberg. And of course some of us will still remember 杜可風, the photographer and/or camera man of the Wang Kar Fai’s stories. I am however, one of those who trusts and lends support to the directors, such as Wang Kar Fai, Mabel Cheung (with husband/producer Alex Law) and Park Chan Woo from the East, and Tim Burton from the West. If you are scratching your heads and desperately searching your memory at this moment for some of these faces whose names have been above-mentioned, try thinking  In the Mood for Love, The Chungking Express and 2046to represent Wang’s style, the ever frivolous chasing after the wind effects, as well as the lonely souls searching for warmth and meaning, all lost in the speed and lights of this city in Wang’s movies. Then we have the emigrant’s mentality and reflection as depicted in Cheung’s works, such as The City of Glass, Eight Taels of Gold and my personal favourite The Autumn’s Tale,  all shot between the late 80s and 90s. I am hoping to see some more from this formidable duo (couple) and I am sure they will not fail to surprise and delight my thrist for good quality movies. Still there will be more coming our way from the Korean, the ingenious Park who has brought to us his great sense of twisted humour to some, even in the eyes of his fellow countrymen, movies like I am a cyborg but that’s ok, Lady vengeance and Old Boy. To me, his dark humour is not unlike the French wit and fun, such as in the Delicatessen. Social issues and problems are interpreted in a seemingly light and absurd manner, which in turn adds on to the tension and impact of its topics discussed. Likewise the movies made by Tim Burton leave us with an aura of nightmarish magic and charm all in all. Who would forget the magic in his movies like Edward Scissorhand, The nightmare before Christmas, The corpse Bride, Sleepy Hollow and the recent Sweeney Todd. Though many of his movies would not have conquered the hearts of many if not for his favourite leading man, his ability to see things from a different angle or alternative perspective is indeed the winning formula.  I often wonder how can they sustain and maintain and even surpass their achievements over the years. I am never sick of watching their works repeatedly and could still count on them to whet up my appetite. Indeed if not for these great storytellers, the world would be a rather boring place and life would be flowers without the colourful petals, don’t you think so? Now I am looking forward to Park’s movie The Bat which is scheduled to start shooting in April and I just got my hands on Wang’s Blueberry Nights.

화이트데이

그녀, 아직 도 보고싶어

Sober-up

Not that I try to sound nonchalant but the truth is, what is the truth? Things you once think may be true turn out different, you look at the surface and start to imagine what it should be like beneath it and then realize that it has never been what you had imagined it to be. Such as love, such as understanding, such as forever, such as your very own “self”? Who am I? You thought it to be a question for some growing kids, or some passers-by at the threshold of their quarter or mid-life crisis. And then what happened after that mid-life? You totally gave up on the search for your own identity? And was there such an identity to begin with?

Lying at the riverside, gazing at the flying clouds and the shimmering ripples of the river, all was quiet and calm. Like a fleeting dream, ain’t gonna sleep and still couldn’t keep awake. The face of that someone just appear before me, or was there such a face? Too far in time and space, no longer clearly remembered. Who told us that memories are forever? Is there such a thing as forever? For all things human, I have absolutely no doubt it will not last, not even what is going on now in my mind. The one person I thought I am has come to be challenged once again. Now who am I? The one when I am awake or thought I am or the one to succumb to the spirits? Totally lost, not sure what to say or what to do when awake and suddenly, words uttered and the spirits in the high when in this muddled state. Who is to tell us what this is all about? Still in search of myself, still trying to locate the place I am to be. Where am I? But it wasn’t because I am down or depressed or losing hope, I am still very much intact, one piece and soulfully in existence. Just why are there so many questions and the everyday life just doesn’t seem to allow us the time to contemplate.

The Leap Years

It happens every four years and yet we live it as we would every single day. Sometimes I wonder if we should feel anything special about that very day or that we should just treat it like any normal days, after-all, what and why should it be any special than other days?  At other times, I am not sure if it’s only because we are but immune to anything and everything, so much so that we don’t or stop feeling for all things and people.

Am arriving at a phase where I have begun to feel tired about all things and people, even towards myself. Yet, still glad that the awareness has not gone unnoticed and the will to re-ignite the passion for life and love for people is very much alive and lit up. So I question the reasons why we can live like there is no real meaning in life or of life, and yet again, why do we suffer and struggle if not for a meaning in and of life? It’s like we are merely going through lives as we are being transported on a conveyor belt, day after day. We put on our best selves like a mannequin being doll up for the window and pretend to live a full life without any guilt or shame. Time is there or is it not? Listen to my heart beats and the time ticks, I am but totally lost in the hustle and bustle of the day to day routine to feel much for all days present and gone.

29 Feb 2008. Where were you? What did you do? And who were you with, that 24 little hours…well, the difference must be that “you“…