spring fever

i was proud that i didn't come close to catching a cold throughout the winter.

but thanks to my collegues (haha!) i finally caught a cold yesterday.

my thoart was acting funny on wednesday night
and my thursday morning i lost my voice
after my cooking class
my body just couldn't sustain anymore
my supervisor told me to go home and rest
and so i did.

but my head was so heavy...
i couldn't really fall a sleep and i wasn't awake either
haha...
but i guess my body is glad for it can just sit there and do nothing...
so i was in my futon...half falling asleep
and this morning i woke up feeling fine!!
my fever was gone
and now i am back to work!!
it's only half day today!!YEAH!


今日は１年になった。
あっという間に過ぎました。
一年前の今日　「うん・・・」の返事したから　始まった。
ありがとう～☆

...

'my parents are buried alive somewhere....
i have lost my parents!!! i can't even find their bodies....
what should i do??........'

today as i causally turned on the TV
a young chinese girl with her baby brother sitting next to her was wailing as she spoke

my heart sank
and i turned off the TV

it's scary to turn on the news channel or read the newspaper these days

with the flood and aid delivery problem in Burma
and the horrifying earthquake in Sichun
the death toll just never seems to stop

it's really heart saddening to see those desperated faces

sometimes, i just watched it with denial and with an attitude of watching a movie
but deep down, i know that it's all truly happening in the country just beside where i am now

i can't do anything.
what can i do...

Bamboo shoots (photo version)

here is the fresh bamboo shoot!!


start cutting it!!!

first peel off the outer brown layer until you can see the meat part of the bamboo fresh...

the skin is much harder than you think!!

there are so many layers to it!!

finally seeing the meat part!!!

then...just cut it and make it into a nice prism shape...VOILA!

how to eat it??

i forgot to take the photos of the dishes...

you can: steam it with rice, eat it freshly in salade (personal favourite), cook it with other veges, meat, tofu, anything you like!

YUMMY!

Bamboo shoot

in canada
i don't think ppl eat bamboo shoot...
i wonder if they even know what it is
in asian dishes
you can find bamboo shoot quite often
however, the bamboo shoot i used to eat before is often from can or preserved

you just have to love the country side in japan
it's the bamboo shoot harvest season now
and apparently you can use go to the mountain where the bamboo shoots are
and you can find tons and tons and tons of fresh bamboo shoots
obviously you can't just go and pick the bamboo shoots
because that equals to stealing
they actually have owners

one more good thing about living in the country side is that
people are super super kind
which means i get a lot of free bamboo shoots
some families gave me the fresh bamboo shoots as a whole
some families actually made it into delicious dishes before giving them to me

i am just a fortunate Canadian living in Japan!!
i will post pictures of the bamboo shoots in my next post