A Time of Celebration and Feasting

when i was little, chinese new year was something i looked forward to, not just because of the food that were prepared once a year (you might not believe it, but back then i wasn't so crazy about food as i am now :D), but also the fact that i get to meet up with everyone in the extended family. the school holidays, the cny music wherever you go, the tangerines, and the red packet (angpao) of course, firecrackers, lion dances, family gathering & gambling, marathon of cny movies like the classic wong few hong series, and jackie chan's police story series. my fav part would be - the boisterous family gathering peppered with laughter and little kids' cries (both accounts without correlation though); and of course, uncle tony's palm-reading sessions. ;) only during this time of the year you get to eat like a glutton (not that i did that when i was a kid -- really! :P) without being frowned upon by the adults - sweets, soda, and all the fried stuff, plus the cny cookies. new clothes too! back then my brothers and i get to buy new clothes only during cny. once a year that's it, unless it's emergency or absolutely necessary. all these came in a package - and it has only all the good things with nothing horrible that entails. who wouldn't love it, right? today though, i don't think kids appreciate it as much as i, or my generation of kids, did. particularly in the US. to them, i guess every day is like cny. :D these days kids get everything they want whenever they want it, it's almost like a matter-of-fact thing. and if they don't get whatever they want, it's WRONG. -__- we live in a time of nimiety and profligacy, yet there are certain parts of the world that lack the most fundamental resources to survive. such is the paradox of the world we live in.

anyhow. i digress. as i grew up and dislocate myself from my nest, the meaning of Chinese new year diminishes each year when i'm not with the nuclear and extended family (yeah the whole clan both on dad and mom's side), and friends - but mainly it's the family. this year though, i'm not gonna sing the same old song bout being depressed and homesick etc., because, well. quite frankly i've gotten over it. it's like taking steroids for a prolonged period of time, or drinking too much coffee that you're immune to the effect of caffeine. having any stimulus for an extended span of time and this is what you get - hyper-excited sensory system that increased its threshold of stimulation. and so now i'm at this plateau stage where i feel just okay. *mehhhh* is an informal but accurate way of expressing it.

despite being 7000 miles away from home, i did have my fair share of fun. ;) on cny eve, i went to a family friend's relative's house for dinner, and they had an abundance of food, no kidding! :)))  ahh it was a temporary heaven for me hehehe. no steamboat like what i'd have back home, but they're all good food: roast duck, roast pork, yee sang, shitake mushroom with seaweed, poh piah (Chinese burrito haha), stir-fried shark fin, scallops with asparagus, homemade chow mein, deep-fried meatballs, fishball soup, deep-fried shrimp. :)  for dessert, there's homemade cendol with the choice of adding frozen durian. oh and i almost forgot - there's moscato and ice wine too. i wish i had some pictures to share, but it'd be kinda rude to whip out my DSLR in an almost-stranger's house, so. [note to self: getting a small digital cam is essential and this is why! :P]

and so, on this special day, though i'm far away from home, i wanna wish all my family and friends back home a happy and prosperous Chinese New Year, may all good things happen to all of you. i'm sorry i overslept and missed the chance to talk to everyone when you were all at the family gathering (/sadface), and though i said i don't feel much anymore, i need to clarify that i still miss everyone and everything back home. i have no idea when i'll be back for cny, hopefully next year. :) but i do hope you guys didn't forget me just because i'm thousands of miles away. i'm still the same old me (except perhaps.. chubbier). :D

much love, from LA.