And The World Spins Madly On

I have been totally engrossed with the asian culture as of late. i've been reading everything from old zen myths (i.e. The Ronin) to manga (i.e. Ranma 1/2). I have always liked the ... opposite-ness of the East from the West. Even Eastern medicine, actupuncture to qigong and tai chi. and of course, the anime is no exception. Did you know that since like, 1998, half of all the japanese porductions are animated? Ever since i was little one of my favorite movies of all time was My Nieghbor Totoro, Miyazaki is pure genoius. Really, no other storyteller has ever compared. because who could come up with the ideas to Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away?
I havent forgotten about my personal favorite: the food! Ever since my family has switched to jasmine rice, there was no turning back for us. It is faar superior to and normal long grain or even basmati. when it is hot in my house and i dont want to heat up the kitchen too long, i go for an old staple; stir fry. i'm not sure about it's origins,  for all i know it could have been created in San Francsico, but i will have to find that one out my self, no? i have recently tried out a recipe of "Tea Eggs" (also known as 100 yr old eggs, without the pickling) which would have been much better and added a stronger smoky flavor if i had cracked the boiled eggs more ruthlessly... but i digress. so here is the recipe i used for the eggs. it's tastes better than it sounds okay? As Julia Child would say: "No fear!"

6 eggs
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 tsp. anise
2 tablespoons black tea (or 2 tea bags)
1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorn (optional)
2 strips dried tangerine or mandarin orange peel (optional)

Gently place the eggs in a medium pot and fill with water to cover the eggs by 1-inch. Bring the pot to a boil, lower the heat and let simmer for 3 minutes. Remove the eggs (leaving the water in the pot) and let cool under running cool water. Using the back of the teaspoon, gently tap the eggshell to crack the shell all over. The more you tap, the more intricate the design. Do this with a delicate hand to keep the shell intact. To the same pot with the boiling water, return the eggs and add in the remaining ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil and immediately turn the heat to low. Simmer for 40 minutes, cover with lid and let eggs steep for a few hours to overnight. The longer you steep, the more flavorful and deeply marbled the tea eggs will be.

Also, i have been turned on to the idea of japanese gift wrapping, known as furoshiki. Furoshiki uses the same shapes as in origami, but utilizes cloth to wrap gifts. there are also more fancier forms, like Origata and Tsutsumi, but i found furoshiki to be the easiest to do. it's funny the amount of things i have gift wrapped - mostly for the hell of it.
And, to top all my Asia-crazy off, i have started my own 5*7*5 Society. That's how many syllables are in each line of a haiku btw. I've been writing one for all occaions. i just can't stop myself!
Every summer, i have this sort of tradtion to myself, where i study all i can about one culture and eventually get all obssesed about it. For example, last year i was all about the ancient Greeks. my parents thought i was wierd for wanting steal grape leaves off my friend's vines! 
Is there anything wrong with wanting to be well rounded?

Since i have made it my goal for this coming school year to start maiking lunches for my mom and I, I have been obsessed with Bento Boxes and it's ever-growing subculture here in America. (for more info on bento, i strongly suggest reading Just Bento, by Makiko Itoh or looking up her website)I don't want to get sucked into the "i neeed this useless shit!!" mentality, but i just can't help myself! so here's a few things i want:
These are adorable!! They are minuscule bottles for like salad dressing. they hardly hold a teaspoon of anything, but um, they're carrot shaped! and i love carrots!




Animals shaped food dividers. Recently, i have been using edible dividers, like fruit leather, celery sticks, ect. but they aren't so great if you have enchiladas smooshed next to a cherry flavored fruit bar. What make these particularly cool is that hey are re-usable!
This is a piece of cloth traditionally used for furoshiki, which i will explain in greater detail in a later post. in this one, there's bunnies eating! awww....



These are little food picks for spearing small food like edamame , grapes and meatballs. while they aren't neccesary, they are damn cute!
Sandwich cutter! i would love love LOVE a heart shaped sandwich!!


So there you have it! all the silly little things that make me feel giddy inside! (anyone want to get them for me? haha I'm joking!.... no, I'm not.)
Untill next time!

This week i am watching my aunt's dogs. yes, again. So, i just got back from taking them for their morning walk, and after that, i am making sure the dogs collars are tight so they don't wiggle out of the leashes! as i start down the driveway, i see three men a house or two working on the yard. Usually, this doesn't faze me, unless the men are all shirtless and well toned and ... watching me. Of course i am wreck, with mussed up  hair and candy cane pajama bottoms. the dogs pull me over to their direction and i was having none of it! As awkward as i could possibly be, i entangled myself in the leashes and reversed directions.

This is the corner where i will submit either pictures  with haikus or individual ones! I'm still polishing my skills, so bear with me;P Here's a haiku i did about the fancy china i have in my house! ENJOI

For all da tomatoes that have sprung up in ur garden:
-Tomato tart-
line pan w/ dough top w/ mozzerella & tomatoes. drizzl w/ olive oil & + s&p. bake 4 15-20min

I read in today's paper about an 'amazing race'-like contest going down the first Saturday of August. it's called "Stalk Lake City" (i give them props for the ingenious name). basically, a bunch of teams run around downtown for clues in order to win $1,000 for the charity of their choice. (for more info about this cool little thing going down, visit the website: stalklake5k.blogspot.com) As soon as i read the insert, i was soo stoked to do it. Last year my sister and i were the reining champs at the library's version of "the Amazing Race." Which was the the most fun I'd had that summer. (that probably being only because i won...) Therefore, i would just like to warn the other teams now, i hope you all don't mind the taste of dirt, because YOU ALL ARE GOING TO EAT MY DUST!

*ahem* anyways... i went to the movies yesterday with my family and saw the film, Inception. so you know what that means! it's time for Maddi's Definite Review!

I saw this movie yesterday, and yet i still cannot wrap my head around it. I cannot begin to try to explain the movie's intertwining complexities without possibly breaking something. This movie made all of the Matrix movies seem like children's stories. scared yet?
Basically, the concept of the whole movie is about a group of people who can go inside of people's dreams and manipulate them. they can change the persons 'dream-scape' and try to learn information. they can also plant an idea into the person's subconscious. but alas, that last part is the most difficult to achieve, or so they say. in the movie they make it look so easy. Leonardo's character has had a difficult past, which rears it's ugly head at inconvenient times to foil the plot. the rest you will just have to figure out for yourself.

I gave this movie 4.5 out of 5 stars because, although this was an enthralling saga, it was a bit too long. there were times towards the end of the film where it was almost painful to watch. at some point i just wanted it to end already!

A big kudos to all of the characters, they played their roles wonderfully and interacted well. hell, there were even some humorous parts in this serious thriller. And seriously, i just adore Joseph Gordon Levitt in everything he does. They made the story at hand believable, even if the idea for the movie was not.

I suggest you take caution when you see this movie; it is not for the young ones, or your exceptionally dumb friends. this movie will make you thin and has layers upon layers upon layers of intricate intertwining confusion. Some will see this movie and just go,"Huh?" Trust me, it took awhile to figure it out. and I'm not sure if i even did.

Roasted Tomatillo Chile Salsa:

• 1 pound tomatillos, husked
• 1 white onion, peeled, sliced, quartered or whole
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 jalapenos
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves
• 1/2 lime, juiced

Enchiladas:

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups chicken stock, storebought
• Chopped cilantro leaves
• about 3lbs. of the carne(that's meat for you gringos) of your choice
• Salt and pepper
  
• 10 CORN tortillas, not flour
  
• 1/2 pound Monterey Jack or havarti cheese, shredded
• 2 cups sour cream
• Chopped tomatoes and black beans for filling
  
• Guacamole, optional

For the salsa:

Enchiladas:

Meanwhile heat a 2 count of olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and caramelized - this should take 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cumin then cook for a further minute. Sprinkle on the flour and stir to ensure the flour doesn't burn then gradually add the chicken stock to make a veloute. Continue stirring over a low simmer until the flour cooks and the liquid thickens. Turn off the heat, add half of the roasted tomatillo chile salsa, some additional fresh chopped cilantro and fold in the shredded chicken meat. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Change the temperature of the oven to 350 degrees F and begin assembling the dish. Take a large baking dish and smear the bottom with some of the reserved tomatillo salsa. Now take the flour tortillas and briefly flash them over the stove-top flame (or put them briefly under the broiler if using an electric stove). Using a shallow bowl, coat each tortilla lightly with the reserved salsa mix. Put a scoop of the shredded chicken-enchilada mix on top of the tortilla followed by a sprinkle of the shredded cheese. Fold the tortilla over the filling and roll like a cigar to enclose it. Using a spatula place the tortillas in the baking dish and continue to do the same with all the tortillas. Finally pour over some more of the salsa and top with the remaining shredded cheese. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes until bubbly and cracked on top.

Yesterday my sister, my aunt and i went to see The Last Airbender in 3D for my aunt's birthday. (even though my aunt's birthday was on the second, but she was sick so... I digress) That means it's time for Maddi's Definite Review!

Word of Advice for those who are going to see it in 3D: don't. the 3D was useless in this movie. nothing pops out at you, and the movie would be so much better in regular, old 2D.

I enjoyed this movie. But i gave it 3.5 stars out of 5 because there were some gaps in the movie that just didn't do this enjoyable epic justice. I'll admit, I'm a devout watcher of the television series on TV. I've watched that from the very beginning. So, coming into the theater, i had a few biases. there have been many a movie adapted from books/comics/etc. that I've read and enjoyed that have fallen flat and left me disgusted. Thankfully, this movie was not one of them. it stayed true to the original, but without being just a live-action remake. although, sadly, i thought some of the relationships and dialogue between the characters was a bit forced. I wished there had been more of the humor that i know so well from Sokka and Aang. but maybe because the movie got the pronunciation of their names wrong, some of that was lost. yes, i understand it was a serious interpretation, but come on!

I also thought the true nature of Prince Zuko was restrained. i respected Dev Patel deeply for the way he portrayed his role, but i just couldn't get Slumdog Millionaire out of my mind. i just couldn't take him seriously. But with a black-belt in taekwondo, both Patel and Noah Ringer (Aang), made the action scenes the most enjoyable parts in the film.

And at the end of the movie, we get an insight: The Last Airbender is to be one in a line of a series. And to this fan of Avatar: the last airbender, i am itching to see more.

(p.s. if you enjoy the Avatar series, then you definitely want to check out the abridged series on YouTube. SO Funny!)