Quote of the Week(s)

I just love this quote, even though I struggle so much with it.

Real charity is not something you give away; it is something that you acquire and make a part of yourself. And when the virtue of charity becomes implanted in your hear, you are never the same again. It makes the thought of being a basher repulsive. 

Perhaps the greatest charity comes when we are kind to each other, when we don't judge or categorize someone else, when we simply give each other the benefit of the doubt or remain quiet. Charity is accepting someone's differences, weaknesses, and shortcomings; having patience with someone who has let us down; or resisting the impulse to become offended when someone doesn't handle something the way we might have hoped. Charity is refusing to take advantage of another's weakness and being willing to forgive someone who has hurt us. Charity is expecting the best of each other.

None of us need one more person bashing or pointing out where we have failed or fallen short. Most of us are already well aware of the areas in which we are weak. What each of us does need is family, friends, employers, and brothers and sisters who support us, who have the patience to teach us, who believe in us, and who believe we're trying to do the best we can, in spite of our weaknesses.

Elder Marvin J. Ashton

May 1992 Ensign "The Tongue Can Be A Sharp Sword" 

Daylight Robbery

That's what ordering graduation pictures are- daylight robbery.

Okay, so professionals do spend a lot of money on equipment and time. And yes, a professional photographer for a wedding day is A MUST. If I had the money, I would love to hire him as my photographer.

But I can't say the same for graduation pictures. Charging $8 for a 5x7 picture that is PRE-TOUCH UP AND DOESN'T EVEN MAKE ME LOOK GOOD is not worth it at all. And their proofs are downright hilarious. Wish I could post them here- you would laugh (and cringe). There is even one with a tiny-bity size Jimmer in the upper right corner. Ha!

In fact, Jay (Su's hubby) took one picture using his camera that I love and will use as my official graduation photo.

Worse of all, is that the professional is charging me an exorbitant amount of money for shipping. Yes, I understand that normal mail might bend the pictures, and that will not do- you have to ensure that the pictures arrive in pristine condition. But charging us the full price for that? Hello? Shouldn't good service at least cover some of the cost? Amazon ships bulkier and more fragile objects for less than that cost.

I ended up grudgingly paying over $30 for 2 pictures, one 5x7 and the other 8x10. I believe wedding pictures don't even cost that much on the average. URGH!!!

It's storming now

I love the smell of rain (from indoors)
Especially when it's at night and close to bedtime. Or even better- during bedtime.
Mmm...

Moving Away from BYU Single Wards

Oops, wrong name since it's not called "BYU Single Wards" anymore. It's "(Place) YSA (#) Ward" now. I used to be in the "Provo YSA 203 Ward" and now I am in the "Granger YSA 1st Ward".

First Impressions:
- The ward boundary is HUGE. If you understand Utah coordinates, the ward goes from 2100 S to 4100 S (200 blocks up to down) and 1000 W to about 4000 W (300 blocks left-right).
- Which means that the ward is huge as well. There are apparently about 400 people currently in the ward (old and new).
- The ward has more people around my age, especially the guys- hooray!
- However, there are also more guys that are... *erhem* I shall not say
- The 3 block meetings were spiritual and uplifting. I especially felt that the teachers did a wonderful job,
- Mingle after church = lasagna, mac-and-cheese, pasta salad, garlic bread, ice-cream... they feed us well here
- Someone told me I looked way younger than my real age. Bwa ha ha ha ha...

I've only made a few friends though, so we shall see. I don't function well in extremely large group settings. But I think I'm off to a good start.

My Dad Will Be So Proud of Me

I've turned into quite a health-food junkie! I only eat wheat pasta now, I can't stand plain white bread (whole grain bread tastes so much more interesting!) or sugary cereals except once in a while, and I eat so much vegetables and fruit now, I feel like a rabbit.

Not that I will ever give up meat unless I have to.

It all started with Sis Brooks, my bishop's wife. Actually, it started with my Mom because she always made us eat healthy, but you don't appreciate all her efforts until you hear it from another authoritative source, right?! Sorry Mom- I appreciate your conscientious cooking even more now.

So anyway, Sis Brooks held a nutrition class last year and introduced us to all the yummy goodness of eating healthy. Since then, my diet and life has changed completely. I used to HATE the grainy texture of wheat pasta, and now that's all the type I buy now. I still eat white rice though... it's hard to give up a staple I grew up on.

But nutrition is a whole other post.

My point in this particular post is to demonstrate how you can take everyday food and turn it into something that is not only healthy but looks extraordinary and tastes phenomenal. Everyday food such as... Jiao Zi/ Dumpling! Well, "everyday food" as in Chinese everyday...

Step 1a: Get Chinese roommates, though this can be skipped if you are very determined.
Step 1b: Make your own dumpling filling, which is basically a mixture of ground pork, chives/ pickled vegetables and all types of Chinese sauces. The longer you marinate, the better (as all meats are).
Step 2: Get ready flour and water.
Step 3: Insist on making your own dumpling skin. This is very important because once you have perfected the art of making it, you won't want to go back. I was quite apprehensive about making our own dumpling skin because we were making over 150 (!) of them but my roommates refused to use store-bought ones, and I am so glad they did!
Step 4: The fun part- EXPERIMENT! We actually weren't quite sure how the different skins would turn out since we did not consult the omniscient machine a.k.a. the internet, but who cares?

And the results...

Verdict- 
Homemade white skin is healthy because there are no preservatives, but nothing special.
Spinach flavored (blend some spinach with water till liquid, and add to mixture... almost like coloring) was great, except after cooking it turned yellow-ish. Note to self: use more spinach but not more water.
The wheat was my favorite, but that's because I love whole wheat. Be careful though because the wheat flour made it less "elastic." 

Step 5: Wrap a meatball with one of the extremely pliant, soft, healthy dumpling skins. Arrange neatly in a row.

Lining in a row, ready to be frozen for future eating... 

With the fruits of our labor

Step 6: Cook
Final Step: ADMIRE BEFORE ENJOYING!!! Oh and no need to feel guilty about eating so many since it's also healthy!

Loving my bag in my freezer :)

Recommendation

If you are looking for a quick and short easy-to-read comprehensive summary of Mormonism and polygamy, this is the book:

Mormons & Polygamy by Jessie L. Embry. It is a very good "reference" go-to book for quick information about this topic. Embry also wrote another scholastic, groundbreaking book (which she referes to quite often in this book) about the same topic. I've read it and it is excellent.  

This book is only slightly over a hundred pages, but the font is large so don't worry- it's like reading any other church book. In fact, this is also not meant to be a scholastic read (go read her other book if you want it to be). Everything in here is explained in simple terms- there is even a section on the Plan of Salvation to help non-members understand our doctrine better.
 
Most of all, I like her explanation for why Mormons practiced polygamy because she articulates my feelings regarding this subject perfectly. She writes, "As a single female historian and member of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have seen people become alarmed when I tell them that the mormon Church's historical practice of polygamy does not bother me. But polygamy for me is a historical fact that I study. I do not think about its possible impact on me. the LDS Church is a much against polygamy now as it was for it in the nineteenth centry. I know that I will not be asked to marry a man who already has a wife. I have no idea what will happen int he next life, and I do not worry about polygamy then. yet I do feel it is essential that both members and nonmembers learn about the history of Mormon polygamy before drawing any conclusions about Joseph Smith and why he and his followers accepted such an unusual practice." (pg. 7)
 

Confession Time

Growing up, I never read Anne of Green Gables.

*Gas* Yes I know- a travesty. It's partly because it was never mandatory reading in school (probably because Anne's imaginative genius is way beyond the comprehension of *erhem* MOE). Well, I should have been locked up and forced to read it.

Because finally, I read finish the book last week, and it is probably one of the best books I've ever read. I laughed and cried and fell in love with Anne. Makes me love redheads even more! And it was a breezy read.

The book image is blurry, but this is the copy of Anne of Green Gables that I have. I bought it on my flight back to Provo from DC while laying over at the Chicago airport. Yes, I know, that was ages ago... forgive me- I'm still in the thick of research for my paper.

Anyway, if you have not read this, PLEASE GO READ IT. I can lend you my copy! It's simply delightful!

If You Fail

Try, Try Again

No kidding. My sister didn't receive any word from BYU regarding any scholarships, and she kept trying to reach them over and over again. I already told her to give up since they would have notified her if they did, but did she? No.

And good thing not.

Because after trying countless times, and one explanation email, she finally received word that she was awarded a scholarship after all!!!

O Me of Little Faith. Sigh... I guess I still have lingering resentment toward the BYU administration which isn't too student-friendly.

So excited for her. The Lord has been extremely kind to my family.

A word about my sisters as well- I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THEM IN 2 WEEKS!!!

It's Nice to Have Space

In a previous post, I wrote about moving up to Salt Lake so that I wouldn't have to suffer through horrible traffic. Well, it's almost official. I've started living in my new apartment on the weekdays and commuting back to Provo on the weekends (various reasons). I'm so much happier now.

How's my new place? So far... I like it!

#1: It's only 3 highway exits from my work place, which means the commute is only 15 minutes in total as opposed to 1 hour 15 mins from Provo.

#2: My landlord is very nice, and my other roommate is a good friend of mine.

#3: My landlord and other roommate are very clean people, particularly my landlord. And in order to minimize the amount the clutter, she requests that we use her kitchenware and keep our own set in storage. Sweet!  

#4: It's furnished, so I don't have to get furniture while I'm doing my internship- now that's a real relief.

#5: The furniture is very well-maintained

#6: I have SPACE. Now, I'm not someone who needs a lot of space. I grew up in Singapore where there is anything but space. I shared a room with both my sisters till I was almost 15. I guess that's why I didn't mind moving into my last (dang! that's surreal) BYU apartment after my mission even though it was old and cramp. I don't mind small, it was reasonably priced for its location, I had great roommates, terrific ward... 

However, now that I have space and my apartment is generally clutter free and it's conveniently located, it's really... nice. I miss having a room- roommate, but I feel like I have so much more breathing space as well!

My closet all to myself.
I have more clothes than that (of course)
but just a sample of how spacious it is

My new bed. Yeah, sleepovers!

Why Do People Have So Much Talent?!

Whenever you think Mormon Tabernacle Choir, you don't think organist. I think from now on though, I will!

Sound Financial Principles

The beginning half is J Reuben Clark Jr's classic talk on DEBT. I've never read or heard the talk in its entirety, and it was a treat to listen to this- it is marvelous.

Then keep listening. You will not regret it.

On a Lighter Note...

I LOVE THE IMAGES IN THIS VIDEO!!!

Doesn't even the "freeze frame" (little girl high up on a swing) just make you smile?!

New Mormon Messages Video on Combating Pornography

Very sobering, but I thought it was such a good video.

One thing that stood out to me- notice that both the "good" and "bad" dad turned off the computer screen initially. However only the "good" dad walked away and filled his mind with more wholesome activities. That jumped out to me, and made me think about my own life- how I not only need to stop doing wrong things, but also fill it with other better things.

Neighbors With Benefits

Benefits such as... 3 little cute boys lighting up the apartment complex! Peter (5), Ammon or more commonly called "Hammie" (2+) and Eric (8 months). They are the ones who have been using chalk to draw trains and construction equipment on the pathway outside. My apartment invited their family over for dinner last night - yes we are just cool like that ;) - along with one of my old roommates and her husband. It was a blast, except for the part when the happy-tempered Eric was woken up suddenly by his brother and turned ornery. Oh dear... he was NOT happy at all, but he's still so cute!

We will miss them when they move back to Orderville

This is us enjoying a delicious meal of pasta, steamed vegetables, super delicious baked chicken (supplied by us), sweet grapes (courtesy of Cici and hubby Fory) and homemade brownies, ice-cream, chocolate sauce and strawberries (by the family). Such a great dinner, and even better company!