i've been tagged.....again!

i've been blog-tagged again! blog tag is basically like a game of tag, except you share 5 things about yourself, then tag 5 other bloggers to do the same. this time, i've been tagged by my friend Shimona. i referred her to my last "tag post" but she wouldn't settle for that, saying things change in the space of one year. so i'm obliging her with a new post. hmmmm....so what are 5 things you might not know about me....?

1 i am a self-declared Scramble addict. Scramble, which i play on facebook, is a word puzzle game much like Boggle. my Scramble Word IQ is 170 (not the highest, tho).

2 i have a perpetual fear that my car will get stolen again. my previous car was stolen twice.

3 i'm a new fan of cello metal band Apocalyptica.

4 current favorite TV shows i watch: all the CSI shows, NCIS, Heroes, Knight Rider, The Closer, and Burn Notice.

5 i love doing dishes, but not immediately after having cooked and enjoyed a meal.

okay, there you go, Shimona. now must i tag 5 others? oh, all right...

Tricia
Samuelina
Sten
Andrea
Annette

5 things you might not know about me

i have been blog-tagged by my newest blog contact Jaden. blog-tagging is something rather new to me, and whilst i was reading up on this game of blogosphere, i even came across a Blog Tag Tree first started by Jeff Pulver.

well, here are 5 things about me unknown to most people:

1 i was a vegan for about 10 years in my young adult days. my mother calls me a "back-slidden vegetarian" now.

2 i have done some knitting, too. 2 projects i've managed to complete: a scarf and a dish rag.

3 i was once a college instructor at 三育基督學院, a Christian college in Taiwan. i spent 3 very rewarding school years there teaching music and office administration courses. looking back, i find it really hard myself to believe that i actually lectured in 國語. had to re-learn my Mandarin Chinese very quickly in order to communicate effectively with my students. i had studied Mandarin Chinese as a second language in school but never used it growing up. i can testify that total immersion in a language/culture really facilitates the language learning process!

4 my favorite ice popsicle flavor: tamarind

5 countries i've lived in: Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, England, Taiwan, USA; countries i've visited: Indonesia, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Austria, Sweden, Finland, Canada, Japan, China, Hong Kong; countries i've stopped over: Russia, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates.

now i'm tagging some of my blog friends:

Manisha of Indian Food Rocks

Dr Stonielove

Amy of Blue Lotus

Deb of Smitten Kitchen

Amoret

the GBVC

what's the GBVC, you might ask? it's The Great Big Vegetable Challenge, which the creative Mum of Freddie embarked on to turn him from a vegetable-phobic boy to a vegetable-loving king. they are eating their way through an A-Z tour of vegetables. what a neat idea! interested in joining them in their adventures...?

a guy's nightmare

i found this really cute blog by stickgirl through a friend's blog.

vote for Blue Lotus

Favourite food of 2006
Originally uploaded by Blue Lotus.

Blue Lotus is one of my flickr.com contacts. she's a Canadian living in suburban Tokyo and has a great blog on Japanese food and culture accompanied by great photography. her blog has been nominated by Well Fed Network as 1 of 5 nominees in the Best Food Blog - City category. Visit Blue Lotus and vote here for her.

more good comics

more good comics recommended by my friend Zenheart. This one's by Kazu Kibuishi of Bolt City.

comic artist

this comic is by Erika Moen. i found out about her through my friend Zenheart. interesting sketches...

more fancy mooncake

i liked this collection of mooncakes so much i had to make a mosaic of them and blog it here. these pictures were posted by flickr.com member babe_kl. her blog is here. click on the image above to see links to the original photos.

jelly mooncakes

today, i added masak-masak to my food blogroll. it was thru this blog that i learned about jelly mooncakes. the author made this longan jelly mooncake.

caramel apple cupcakes

Caramel Apple Cupcakes
Originally uploaded by chockylit.

saw this interesting cupcake unlike any other i've seen before. see the recipe here and nicer, how-to pictures here.

Happy BlogDay 2006!

just found out that today is BlogDay!

Indian food rocks

i totally agree!!! found this blog Indian Food Rocks while surveying my blog links, and just had to make mention. great recipes, too! i'm very keen on trying the Spicy Jeera Chicken some time.

Vegan Lunch Box

Slashfood is constantly linking me to great sites, and i had to mention this food blog Vegan Lunch Box, which is now linked to my blog. Jennifer, the author of this blog, features the lunch box meals she packs for her kid using Laptop Lunch Boxes.

Jennifer has also created The Magical Loaf Studio, a very clever vegan loaf generator for those of you who are into making dinner loaves.

i was a vegan for about 12 years, and even though i don't practice veganism "religiously" any more, i still think a meat-free diet is a healthier way of life.

Cooking Cute - Bento Love

i came across this Cooking Cute bento food blog and just had to add it to my links of Food Blogs to Note.



when i was in school, my mom packed our lunches in these tiffin carriers. not as fancy as bento boxes, but they ensured we had wholesome, homecooked food.

Indonesia Restaurant

saw this blog with a review of Indonesia Restaurant in San Francisco:
http://onokinegrindz.typepad.com/ono_kine_grindz/2005/06/indonesia_resta.html

Indonesia Restaurant
678-680 Post Street
San Francisco, California
Telephone: 415.474.4026

must try it out some time.

men style

http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/

cool blogspot

saw this blogspot today....gotta check it out later:

http://sbabycakesx.blogspot.com

dinyahloreng: be a native speaker

check this link out: a blog on language use....how fun!!!

Dinyahloreng: Be a Native Speaker

a new adventure...

i've been wanting to do this for a while... Lilibeth's new blog site at xanga.com inspired me today ;-) but i also remembered Ita's introducing me to blogger.com some time ago. Steve & Eileen Kong's website with their php forum also gave me this idea... i want to document my wonderful life with my sweetheart, Mister Pie, and what's in store for us in the days, months and years to come. i love you, my sweet!!!

let's see if blogger.com lets me do this satisfactorily...

this morning, it was foggy and visibility was poor when i drove my car to W&K for an oil change. but the sun has come out and it's going to be another beautiful autumn day in northern california....