We drove up to Canada for a site visit. Of all the countries I visited, I have hardest time adjusting to Canada because of its similarity to the U.S. and dissimilarity at the same time. Perhaps it's the same language (except the frequent use of eh?) or same store logos such as Sleep Country (Canada instead of USA) or simply the convenience of proximity. I often forget that I crossed the border until the reality hits me.

I had to reimburse the vendor for lunch fee, but all I had in my pocket was USD. Not even the Canadians want USD now; the last time CAD exceeded USD was 50-60 years ago -- they said. So I had to scramble to withdraw some CAD from ATM.

On the drive back, everyone wanted a boost of caffeine so we stopped by Starbucks. For lousy CAD 3.75 per cup, I was short couple of cents and ended up paying by credit card -- what waste on foreign exchange fee!

I should look at the bright side... the Canadians drive on the right side of the road. Thank God for that!

My friend moved to a small town - 3 and half hours East from where I live. Her town is composed of a convenience store, post office, pizza restaurant, and 2 coffee drive-through. Everyone knows one another here. This sounds humanistic and normal, but having grown up in the city most of my life (and particularly big & dangerous city), it sounds too intimate for comfort to me.

My friend purchased a home with 3 acre land after much wrestling for mortgage. The loan amount was too small for most banks to invest. This is ironical given that the economy is suffering from sub-prime mortgage fall out these days. Anyway, everything worked out finally, and she is finishing up her move. She sent me a photo of this tumbleweed that flew into her 3 acre yard.

The weather has been harsh lately. It rained day after day. If not rain, it was windy. Today was sunny but cold... 39°-54°F. My poor spider man (outside my office window) is surviving all of this. I am impressed and even proud that he's holding on so well. If you ask him, it's not the weather that he's worried about. Rather it's the bird that's been eyeing him from a naked tree, a stone throw away. In fact, that crazy bird flew straight in, banged right into my window (scared me!), left behind a feather and then flew away. It was after my spider man... but he was quick enough to do an instant free-fall, hanging on to his dear life on a single thread. It's a "survival of the fittest" out there!

There is something about driving a lonely highway, straight ahead to a seemingly endless road, absorbing the nature around me -- long sandy beaches, cascade mountain ranges, or desolate, dry desert. And I used to love the solitude of long drives in early morning or late evening, keeping consistent speed -- not too fast, not too slow, in perfect control of the vehicle and the road. Unfortunately, I don't do much of this aimless driving now that I'm preoccupied with more important life matters (who said?) and time is precious. 

My most memorable road trip was "Conquer the Northwest" trip in the late 90s. My two college friends and I just began working, so we had little money to travel in style. Our goal was to cover Washington, Oregon, and Northern California by car, alternating motel and camping for 4 nights/5 days. I was the planner & driver, HJ was the navigator (didn't know of GPS then), and LP was the spiritual leader, keeping our moral up when we were lost in Sierra Nevada mountain ranges or when my car reeked of burnt rubber after driving downhill for 4 hours (didn't know how to use low gear then). In retrospect it was a daring trip for three girls, but we survived it! We talk about it to this day whenever I bring up the subject of road trip. We probably won't have another, but we love the fact that we had the opportunity.

Some fascinating natural wonders we visited include Crater Lake in Oregon, Lake Tahoe (Nevada North side is cleaner & quieter), and Bay Area in California (bridge view of the bay during sunset is breathtaking).

With GPS and mobile phone, road trip is much more convenient these days. I am thinking about taking one in Southern California, along the coast covering San Diego and Tijuana.

"Oh P-P-Pooh, It's a b-b-blustery day outside...", said Piglet.

Indeed! With winds gusting at 60 mph, my neighborhood lost power for 3 hours. My family gathered around a candle light and talked about last year's snow storm. How horrible it was but afterwards, what unforgettable memory it left.

It happened last December. Since Noon that day, I was watching out for snow-storm warning online. When I read that it is imminent, I looked out the office window. Too late... snow started piling up on the street already. I warned my colleagues and left for home. Thankfully I got home just fine - in an hour. I cuddled up near the fireplace, wrapped up with a blanket head-to-toe, and watched the news... proud that I beat the traffic (and the poor souls that are still out there).

Then my mom called at 5:00pm. Her friend will drop her off at a park-n-ride and asked me to pick her up. Well... the moment I drove out to the big street, it was a parking lot. Cars moved an inch per minute. At first, I thought there was an accident and blamed myself for taking the wrong road. Then I realized that small cars were spinning and swerving. With the temperature dropping rapidly and snow coming down non-stop for hours, the road iced up quickly. I tried calling my mom but couldn't reach her. I began to worry that she might be out in the cold, waiting for me. It took me 4 hours to get to the park-n-ride (normally, it takes 15 minutes). A group of people were gathered together across the street at a gas station/convenience store. Apparently their car froze, so they were waiting for it to thaw. I couldn't find my mom... she called me finally and said she and her friend have been stuck in the freeway traffic for hours. It wasn't until 2 hours later did she arrive. It was 11pm. I was cold, hungry, and tired (you don't want to mess with me then). We began driving for home. There was little traffic by then. Everyone reached home somehow; many ditched their cars and walked home. But the road was firmly iced up at 17F°. Though I had a pretty good SUV with snow tires, it took careful maneuvering around the abandoned cars and icy patches. I didn't get home until 2am the next day. It was a long, long journey.

I have a new office-mate. Actually, he resides outside my office window. It's a spider the size of my toe nail. He's been there for weeks now. I wonder whether he needs help in finding a home before the winter hits.

Apparently, email and instant messenger are things of old already. Most of my pals would rather exchange hello's through a social networking site. So I joined one to learn what the fuss is about. I got some interesting remarks from all around.

[nephew] auntie, you feel'n young?

[colleague] are you being loved? (meaning, are people accepting my invite, giving gifts, leaving messages, etc.)

[cousin] no matter what you do, don't write on yours; it's not hip

[colleague not using social network] i'm married; i don't need to be on it ^^

Now I am thinking twice about my membership...

the older the better. I found a picture with these words on a friend's blog.

Just what constitutes a better wine? Higher price? Rare and hard to find? Really aged wine? Not necessarily.

I learned a lot about wine in the past weeks while reorganizing my cellar. Wines are indeed like your friends. You pick and choose. My taste of friends may not be your taste of friends, for example. You just have to try a variety and come to decision on what works for you. Through vertical and horizontal tasting, I learned that I like my Cabernet tangy (or spicy as wine connoisseur would describe) and my Merlot, mature and velvety with sweet aroma. And I've decided that white wine just doesn't work for me - no matter how expensive and rare.

My recommendation for you? Read the label on the back of the bottle. If the description appeals to you, try it. And if you like it, try the same kind from another vineyard of the same year (horizontal tasting) or the same kind from different year (vertical tasting). And go for the bottle $10 and up.

Cult, Corked, Fake

Cult wine originated from California winery. They're produced by small, private wineries in or near the Napa Valley in extremely limited quantities, and they're supposed to be very good. They are not advertised nor are they sold in stores. You purchase it through auction or membership (expect to be on the waiting list for years). Cult wines are expensive due to the economics of supply and demand. However, it is not necessarily the best quality wine. There are other wines in the store that are as good or better in quality. ref: NY Times on Cult Wine

Corked wine refers to unopened bottle of wine that's spoiled. This is usually caused by cork contaminated with TCA (2,4,6-Trichloroanisole) or improper storage. Regular people usually can't tell. If you sense musty aroma or flavor, return the bottle to the store from where you purchased it.

I began this series on wine with my search for "Exceptional Hard to Find Wines". As with all pricey collections of any kind (art, antiques, wine...), there is bound to be counterfeit. A colleague kindly referred me to this New Yorker article on the famed lawsuit over Thomas Jefferson wine bottles.

I am told that decanting brings theatrical moment to fine dining, and it's actually recommended for old wines (5+ years). With the holiday parties coming up and excess old wines to get rid of, I've been searching online for a nice decanter. Like most things, there were many choices with varying prices. My... why don't they keep it simple? (the utilitarian side of me speaks)

I find that decanters (and most glassware) are quite pleasing to look at. Some are elegant. Some are sassy... even sexy.

References: Let it breathe, When to decant

There are skilled people, and there are talented people. To me, they're quite different. Talent comes naturally; it's second nature. I appreciate running into talented people in every day life.

This weekend, I continued my hunt for good wines. I was pleasantly surprised to find that my neighborhood's QFC had its own wine cellar separate from wine resale area. In the cellar was cache of high-end, top quality wines from Bordeaux, Napa Valley, Sonoma County, and Northwest. I asked the wine lady (that's what I'll call her) to recommend good ageing wines. She selected a few and explained gregariously each region's terroir and vineyard history. She was very knowledgeable and made me feel excited to partake in such good quality wine. I could tell that she appreciated good wine and enjoyed talking to people about it. To me, there is no doubt that she is the talented wine lady!

Awhile ago my company was suffering from lack of parking space, so it hired valet parking service. Every morning I drove into the corporate campus, I saw a middle aged man (employee of the valet service) waving at every driver and instructing them which garage to drive to with graceful hand motion. I felt awkward at first, but gradually, I began waving back. One time I carpooled with a colleague who saw him and said, "what a sucky job he has". I wondered... One winter morning, it was raining cats and dogs. I drove into the campus wondering how the valet service will work when its people cannot stand out in the rain. I was surprised and impressed to find the same middle aged man holding a red umbrella in one hand and waving and instructing with the other. He had the same smile as he had on sunny days. I waved and smiled at him... he deserves more than that, I am sure. To me, this man is truly talented at what he does.

With renewed interest in wine, I've been studying up on ageing wine.  According to Wine.com's Know When a Wine is Peaking article, age worthy wines are red Bordeaux, white Riesling from Germany, and vintage port from Portugal. 

It turns out that most of my collection shouldn't be aged beyond 5 or 6 years from release date.  This is a bummer because my main purpose of wine collection is to let it age and then put it on resale.  Some of my wines are 10 years old.  Should I open them up and see if the taste deteriorated?  What if they are fine, and I just ruined its chance of resale?  Hmm... suddenly I can visualize a festive holiday party this year with all those wines I need to get rid of.

additional ref. cellarnotes.net

My adventure of spirits collection began with a math error.  In 2000, I was on a business trip to Seoul for 2 weeks.  By the time I had to return to States, I was fluent in converting Korea Won to U.S. Dollar (1000:1).  On my return flight I had to connect in Tokyo with 3 hours layover.  I decided to browse the duty free shops when a small friendly lady approached me and told me that she has a 'distinguished gift for a distinguished traveler like me'.  I wasn't sure how she determined that I was 'distinguished' but I was curious... The lady showed me 1965 Rèmy Martin Rare Edition and told me it's exceptionally priced at 45,000 yen.  Now I wasn't a cognac expert at the time but I knew rare and aged spirits are costly.  Having stayed in Seoul too long, however, I used wrong conversion ratio and assumed it costs only $45-$65.  This is a steal! so I thought until a month later when I received my credit card statement.  I tucked the bottle away (for fear that someone will drink it without knowing its true value) and didn't forgive myself for many months.  As I told and retold this blunder of mine to friends and family, I learned that these fine and rare spirits become good investments.  Since then I've been adding to my collection... most recent one being a Royal Salute - The Hundred Cask Selection.  I hope in the next few decades, my collection will make Forbes' list of World's Most Expensive Spirits. 

Today my collection extends to wine...  In fact, I spent the weekend in search of good wines.  I couldn't find any of those mentioned in Forbes' Exceptional Hard-To-Find Wines (they're indeed hard to find), but I found a very good bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon.  I must thank the lady at the store for recommending it to me!  BTW, if you don't know about wines and want to try, ask for a recommendation from savvy wine drinkers.  Wines can be hit or miss... and high price tag doesn't always yield guaranteed satisfaction.

It's been a little over a month since I got myself a laptop and broadband connection at home (can you believe it that I didn't before?).  Since then I've been spending a good chunk of time online - perusing news, UCC videos, blogs and even managing this space. 

This is a surprise to me because I didn't think I'd spend this much time online.  I cannot believe how much content there are from commercial to private, professional to amateur, insightful to near jabber (like mine?). 

This experience is like flipping through 300 channels on your cable TV.  After awhile you settle with few channels that you repeatedly watch and hardly ever look at others.  I think I've reached that point now.  This satisfies my need for gestalt :-) 

Moderation is the key... even moderation itself.

They just can't see the problem. 

My dad asked me to change his doctor's appointment.  I called the hospital.  The receptionist asked me what procedure he was scheduled for.  My mind went blank upon hearing this unanticipated question.  I just want to change the appointment time.  I was ready to give his full name, DoB, address, phone number, original appointment time... not this however!

[me]  Uhh.. I am not sure.  Can you just look up his name, address, or original appointment time?

[hospital]  No, ma'am.  You see, the appointments are stacked by procedure.  Unless you tell me the procedure name, I cannot help you.

[me]  -_-

Today is Thanksgiving in Korea - 8/15 Lunar Calendar, when the moon is fullest.  It's a major holiday, and Koreans take 4 days off (that's a lot in Korea). 

My memory of Korean Thanksgiving is from childhood days.  I was dressed in Hanbok 한복 (韓服), a traditional Korean dress, and took 2 buses to visit great uncle's home where all of my extended family gathered.  Women gathered in the kitchen to cook and chat.  Men gathered in the rooms to chat, drink, or play chess.  Children gathered in the yard to play or sometimes fight :-) There were lots of people, food & drinks, music, laughter...

 ref: Naver.com Images

I don't have those days anymore in America.  At best, Korean Americans would buy traditional food from supermarket and share it with neighbors. 

I heard that not many families celebrate Thanksgiving in this grand fashion anymore in Korea.  Its cumbersome and not economic.  That's too bad.  As a child, it was pleasant to see extended families together and even get along.

Global warming wasn't real to me until I witnessed it at Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska.  My cruise ship stopped nearby 22 foot glacier wall, and I heard creaking sound as 4x5 ice chunk cracked and fell in the sea.  I was told that the glacier loses about 8 foot per day.  

In the future (perhaps not my lifetime), will we all claim a land underneath the ocean as Russia claims North Pole?

After sharing office space with a colleague for some time, I finally got my own (with a window!)  My office mate was jealous at the time, but I heard he is getting his own soon.  Now we're competing for who gets a better view  :-D

Amongst high rise buildings in Shinjuku Tokyo, I found this 70+ years old single family tucked in between two tall buildings.  Imagine walking out to pick up morning paper only to find hundreds of salary men and women in black suits hurrying to work.

"すみません. that's my newspaper..."

Have you been asked this before?  Not by your nurse but by a mere acquaintance?  This is pretty common in East Asia.  Asking your blood type is equivalent to asking, "what are you like?".  East Asians believe blood type is related to personality.

I found this ironic cartoon strip. It's in Korean, so I added English translation as best as I could.

ref: Japanese Blood Type Theory

If this were true, my blood type would be ABO+AB... I am in trouble if I ever need a blood transfusion.

Apparently it's one of the hippest hotel in central London - St Martins Lane.  And you're considered cool to stay there.  After 4-5 business trip to London, I had a chance to stay over at this hotel to find out what the fuss was all about.

Well for starters, it's the giant vase and seven dwarfs that greet you in the lobby... and no, Snow white is no where to be found.

More amusing is the famous mood light in the bedroom.  Hmm... what am I in the mood for after 9 hours of flight?

If you have enough energy, try the bar.  Interestingly, bar is worth a visit when it's closed.  There is an overhead projector that reflects natural images off the closed door.

It's an experience!  Would I go there again for dwarfs, mood lights, and fancy bar door?  No, but I will go for its location.  It's nearby restaurants and major attractions.  The utilitarian side of me would give St Martins Lane a thumbs up.

 www.stmartinslane.com