Traditional male roles are always changing with society, partly due to roles that females take on, as well as influence of the media. This led to an interesting discussion with my coworkers. I work in an office that is predominantly female, which means the editorial staff is all women and the sales and marketing staff is all women. The balance is slightly offset in a few departments, such as graphic design.

But, as a result, I find myself doing a larger percentage of heavy lifting, even more so since the only male editorial intern goes back to school soon.

Technology has also had a fairly major impact on male roles, which has added more responsibilities to the list.

So far, I have it down to:

1. Move heavy furniture
2. Open jars (pasta sauce, pickles)
3. Reprogram VCRs (now replaced by PVRs, DVRs, etc.)
4. Kill spiders (or, if you like spiders, letting them outside)
   
5. Hunt down buffalo
6. Set up internet connections (we have an IT department for this, so I don't have to, although I was asked how to change the view options on Outlook)
7. Assemble Ikea furniture (instruction manuals optional)
   
   addendums:
   
   
   
8. Clean up a woman's plate (ie: the stuff that's left over from her plate after she's full)
9. Replace objects in the shelves that are harder to reach.
10. Install all electronics (instruction manuals optional).
11. Carry groceries.
    

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Please Eat Tasty Animals.

I've briefly toyed with the idea of going vegetarian, more for environmental reasons (ie: lowering my carbon footprint), although that didn't last too long because tofu burgers don't taste nearly as good as the real thing and I really like to be able to get my vitamin B₁₂ without supplementation. My g.f. is equally glad I'm not a vegetarian, due to the social aspects of eating.

Last weekend, we were over at Memphis Blues, a restaurant that serves a lot of meat products. Pork, chicken, ribs...stuff that would cause the average PETA member to go up in arms. But what amused me the most were the souvenir t-shirts they had for sale. One had the word "vegetarian" with a red circle and slash through it. Another said (words to the effect of), "The best racks in town."

I'm assuming that one only comes in women's petite sizes. Or for really, really fat guys.

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How much do I love my girlfriend? Her dog just puked on the floor and the rug and I just cleaned it up. It smells like skunk spray too.

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At one point, Denise suggested to me that I write a gushing, sappy blog post about how much I love her. I said I would do so when I was in the mood, although she took that to mean when I actually felt that way for her. Considering the tone that my blog usually takes, it's more that it's outside of my regular writing style and subject matter than a reflection of how I feel.

Instead, I will tell you how much I love my girlfriend by talking about the things I do. I took her dog out to the back of her apartment for some fresh air and so she can do her business. Lo and behold, she saw a skunk and decided to chase after it. I have spent the last half hour running around town to find a 24 hour Shoppers Drug Mart to obtain 1L of hydrogen peroxide for the purpose of deodorizing the dog.

As I write this, she is in the bathroom holding the dog down while applying the mixture. In a few minutes, I will be called in to assist.

This is how much I love my girlfriend. If there were any doubts, this should clear all of them.

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While on facebook, I posted a question asking about the largest contributor to the problems of the world. Some gave one-to-two-worded answers ("greed" and "poverty" are two popular choices), although someone did say something about apathy, to which is something I can see.

However, for me, it's more of a source of annoyance than anything else, which is why I posted the left image on two common areas in my building.

It seems that people simply do not know how to read or are just too lazy and expect others to clean up after them. On two occasions, I have spotted two items tossed with reckless abandon in the trash disposal areas. I have a big enough beef with recyclable items such as used clothing and obsolete electronics getting turfed, but even more so when they are placed in random areas in the pretense that someone else will find use for them.

In previous years, some municipalities would hold "clean-up weeks", in which people would put out mass amounts of supposedly reusable items like old televisions and furniture, however, it became abused, as items not allowed (old refrigerators, construction debris) was also put out. This may be another holdover from that mentality, which unfortunately doesn't really work.

When charitable organizations and proper recycling facilities exist, it upsets me when they are not used and the onus is placed on people who are ultimately not the ones responsible for creating the mess in the first place.

But then, it could also argue that this is also a form of apathy.

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30.



(birthday roda at the Fintry campgrounds, July 6, 2007)

Yes, I have hit that purportedly painful milestone in my life, where I am now officially in a different demographic. Certain expectations in life really were supposed to have been fulfilled by now, such as marriage, solidly established career, home ownership, level of education, and the ability to pay off bills that are slightly more advanced than a cell phone bill.

Depending on one's scale for "life expectancy" (that is, what one's expected to do in life), I "might" be doing okay, although I'm still renting and I'm not married yet. That, and I don't have a really established career per se, having changed jobs about three times since turning 29, although I really do like the company I'm working with...they even got me a birthday cake when I wasn't there, which we all shared after the fact. They also got me a card which joked about Godzilla being the only one capable of lighting all the candles on the cake.

Turning 30 might not actually be as bad as it seems, as I still don't feel any different than I did when I was 29. Sure, I have more responsibilities and there are certain things that are expected of me. However, the fact that my girlfriend points out the fact that I have more grey hairs sprouting out of my skull than she does is a reminder that I am not "young" anymore. Thankfully, due to the Asian age formula (take the age which you look, add five), I can still pass for mid-20s. Unless I show them my ID.

However, I'm going to fake it as long as I can. Eat properly, no smoking or excessive drinking, exercising regularly, and playing as many video games as my extremely busy schedule will allow.

Easier said than done. I have work to do still!

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"ARE YOU ENTERTAINED?!"


As a result, there's a moratorium on winning anything from The Beat 94.5 for at least three months. If you notice, DJ Flipout is coming up to the karaoke screen to see, if indeed, the "indistinct grunts" are included in the lyrics. Yes, and they're listed as "ARF...ARF-ARF...ARF-ARF...ARF-ARF."

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"Won't someone think of the children?!"

Kneejerk reactions to the perceived anti-social behaviour seems to be the norm these days. Every time there is a horrible event such as the Columbine shootings or the more recent Virginia Tech shooting, there is the long-standing search for answers and reasons and scapegoats.

We all recall the blame heaped on everything from Grand Theft Auto to Marilyn Manson to the breakdown of the family unit whenever stuff like this goes wrong, but this also starts bringing up alarm bells to the point of paranoia.

While I do admit to a certain level of responsibility from the media to inform the general public, all it's doing is promoting fear and ruining lives in the process. For me, it makes me recall a talk that Ian Hanomansing (CBC Newsworld anchor) gave on the portrayal of awful events in the media. As it stands, in the western world, we actually have it pretty good. For the most part, we can walk down the street without fear of gang rape, death by suicide bomb, or attack by Africanized honey bees. But, the news media would tell you otherwise.

The old adage stands true as always: a dog bites a man, that's not news. Man bites dog...

When events like these occur, it's always a national tragedy that reaches the hearts of everyone. It also puts a lot of unnecessary fear into them, and then the people in authority start instituting excessive and ineffective measures, just so it looks like they're doing something important. Racial profiling isn't necessarily new, but somehow nerdy Asian guys are suddenly the object of scrutiny.

With the Virginia Tech shootings, it's in your face and in your homes all the time, unless you make a point of ignoring it altogether. But, when you have a kid that makes a CounterStrike map and modelling it after their school, this somehow indicates that they're a walking, ticking time bomb. There was somebody that did that, and because of somebody's over-reaction, he doesn't get to graduate with his high school class. Oh, yeah...and the kid was Asian, just like the Virginia Tech shooter.

During my teenage years, make-work assignments to fill class time would happen every so often. Sometimes they got creative, though. One involved the story exercise where you write one portion, and pass it to the next. Some of what we wrote depicted some very sick stuff. Somebody else started a story with me as the protagonist, where I was trying to kill the English teacher's cat. I ran with it, as expected.

Writing it back then? We all have a few laughs. Writing it today? I get removed from my school and I don't get to graduate with all my friends.

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The whole universe at her command.


Pfft. Is that a warning or a promise?


"The conveyor belt was moving too fast! What else was I supposed to do?"


"Hey, is this the right way to the men's room?"



"Oh, pleasedon'tdropmepleasedon'tdropmepleasedon'tdropme..."



I promised Denise that I would come back after hours. I sure hope I remembered to disable the security cameras.


After all that chocolate, it was important to check my teeth.


Chillin' outside. It was a really nice day out.

Last Sunday, I went on a geek date. I have found happiness. Maybe for the next date we should go to a comic book convention.

Denise put forth the suggestion to go to ChocoBites: The History of Chocolate, presented at the Telus World of Science. That's where we learned all sorts of interesting factoids and information about chocolate, its preparation, and its varieties. And of course, we got to sample some. Twice.

And I also learned that the large hilly area outside of Telus World of Science is made possible through the magic of Styrofoam, which is evidently a legacy of Expo '86.

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After reviewing my blogs, all of them, I have come to the realization that I've become incredibly negligent in my blog posts, outside of posting links to self-indulgent YouTube videos (next up: see how fast it takes me to solve TEN Rubik's Cubes!). Strangely enough, this coincides with me finding a new job. Hence, no posts in the entire month of March.

These past few months have reminded me of how incredibly fortunate I have been. After years upon years of struggling to find myself, I've managed, seemingly through no fault of my own (note the qualifying adverb "seemingly"), to find somewhat fulfilling employment (more on that later) and end up in a very fulfilling relationship with someone who actually "gets" me and supports me in the stuff I do and actually makes me feel good about myself.

About the job. It's been a matter of a fit, which I haven't exactly found even after 6 weeks on the job, for which I'm probably a lot more willing to let slide than I should (refer to blog post on 2007 New Year's Resolutions for more details), although my significant other (Hi, Denise!) agrees that my talents are best suited for a different type of environment. So, lo-and-behold, when I receive the "this-isn't-quite-working-out" speech, the following day, I receive a phone call from an HR manager from a company which employed me last Fall, recommending me for another position.

I interviewed today, and ka-ching, I get it. Sometimes stuff just falls into place.

Life is good. Not as good as some, but better than most. I'm not sure who I'm supposed to thank, though.

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In memoriam:
Victor P.K. Yim
July 5, 1937 - April 16, 2004

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It's been a while since I've posted. But I don't feel like writing right now. So how about I show you this...

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Given my lack of formal training (regardless, I'll give it my all and have no regrets), I was especially shooting for the "Most Entertaining" award. I woulda won too, if it weren't for that walking wardrobe-malfunction-just-waiting-to-happen. She won the top $300 prize, Dre in our group won runner up.

However, I did much better on my improv rendition of "If I Had $1,000,000" with my karaoke cohort Peter. The hostess asked if we knew each other. We played dumb.

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Today, I just had an epiphany: I am incredibly lucky. The fact that I just landed a job and recently met somebody who accepts me for who I am might have something to do with it. So, just to see exactly HOW lucky I am, I decided to go out and buy a lottery ticket.

If I win, first round of drinks is on me.

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It was going great. Up until the very last note. Oops.

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Satay Chicken Stir Fry
By Vince Yim, OP U-Grill Attendant

(submitted to The Other Press for the upcoming issue, to be released around Chinese New Year)

Stir-fry remains one of the simplest dishes to prepare in Chinese cuisine. Consisting of vegetables, meat, seasonings, and a bit of corn starch, one can use a lot of imagination and experiment frequently, providing different meals with a few substitutions. With enough planning and practice, one can easily go from countertop to stove to serving dish in a matter of minutes.

With traditional Chinese cooking, the tools are specialized, although typical North American household appliances make it difficult to accurately duplicate the exact technique of a Chinese restaurant, especially since electric stoves typically have flat electric elements (as opposed to open gas flame) and the range fan will not often be sufficient to handle the grease vapours (this results in a greasy film on your kitchen surfaces). That, and the high heat and metal cooking utensils can destroy the Teflon coating on modern cooking pans. Still, one can come close, with just enough patience.

My dad taught me the basic technique when I was younger and I’ve been experimenting with it ever since. This version in particular uses Satay sauce, available at most Asian food stores (such as T&T Supermarket). Satay is a spicy peanut sauce with shrimp and a touch of coconut. Admittedly, this owes a bit more to Malaysian or Singapore cuisine, but considering the large (if not predominant) Chinese populations of those countries and the alleged Chinese origins of Satay meat skewers, Satay-flavoured dishes do have a place in Chinese cuisine.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 lb chicken meat (I prefer dark thigh meat, although some may prefer white breast meat)
• 1 green pepper, small
• 1/2 can of baby corn
• 1 cup pineapple chunks
• 1 carrot
• 1 small onion
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp Satay sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• Season to taste: soy sauce, black pepper, garlic, salt, ginger

Preparation:

1: Dice chicken and mix with 1 tbsp of Satay sauce (the remaining amount will be used later) and whatever seasoning you wish to use.
2: Cut vegetables into small, bite-sized pieces. Cut onion into smaller pieces.
3: Heat wok over medium to medium/high heat. When wok is sufficiently heated (test by flicking drops of water on pan), add 1 tsp of cooking oil. Add onions (and diced garlic and ginger, if desired).
4: Add chicken. Stir meat in wok until sufficiently seared on all sides. Remove from pan and into separate bowl. This is done to prevent overcooking chicken, as vegetables typically take longer to cook.
5: Add vegetables and stir. Depending on how tender you like your vegetables, you may wish to pour about 1/4 cup of water, then cover the wok. The vegetables will be sufficiently cooked once steam rises from the lid.
6: Add cooked chicken to the mix.
7: While mixing the contents, prepare the sauce. Take the remaining tablespoon of satay, cornstarch, and 1/4 cup of water and mix in a separate bowl. Add to the mix.
8: Continue to stir ingredients thoroughly, until all ingredients are coated with sauce mixture and sauce turns clear.
9: Serve with rice.

Serves 1-3.

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47.43 seconds. I have way too much free time.

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Some days, I have a hard time fitting in.


Welcome to the fun house.

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The Most Important Meal of the Day

It's been stated by many nutritionists and other experts that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. This makes sense in a lot of respects...people generally stop eating at around 8PM (although it's 10:30PM when I write this and I'm snacking on chips and salsa), which means by the time we wake up, we will have gone without food for up to 12 hours.

Of course, when you consider that you're expending significantly less energy when sleeping, this might not be such a big deal, but constant food energy is important for maintaining a specific body weight. I don't dig on the idea of skipping breakfast, although I must admit that I'm generally not that hungry when I wake up. I usually keep it simple, although I do like waffles made from scratch (I make 'em with banana and chocolate chips, with whole wheat flour, a scoop full of protein powder, and oatmeal).

Cereal and milk is the quickest and easiest. I used to stick to one cereal and have nothing but that, although that may have been due to parents being responsible for grocery shopping. I never could eat that fast when I was a kid, which is why I now make a point of not eating Corn Flakes, because they get soggy in a matter of seconds.

About halfway through childhood, the transition was made to Rice Krispies and then Cheerios. As I grew older, we would mix it up a bit and would have different things, and even mix them together. Plain Cheerios mixed with Honey Nut Cheerios is good for toning down the sweetness that makes you bounce off the walls.

Since I started getting my own groceries, I just buy what's on sale. Cereal is cereal, although I will definitely avoid anything where sugar is the first or second ingredient (eg: Frosted Flakes, Froot Loops, Lucky Charms).

On my last grocery trip I picked up a box of Kellogg's Vector and a thing of Frosted Mini-Wheats. Yes, cereal is great because it's quick, easy, and it's simple.

Or, so I thought. "Directions for use"? How much more complicated can it get other than "Add milk to cereal"? When I was a kid, on occasion, I would pour the milk in first (which is generally a bad idea because cereal floats), but come on!

Since when do we need instructions on how to eat cereal? Perhaps this is intended for countries where dairy consumption isn't a regular thing. Or, perhaps it's for people who are obsessive as to their exact caloric intake.

What I'm curious to know is who generally has the time in the morning to painstakingly measure exactly 300mL or 1 1/4 cups (which is actually inaccurate...1 1/4 cups really converts to 312.5mL in metric) of cereal, and then 200mL or 3/4 cup (which converts to 187.5 mL in metric) of milk?

I guess the same type of people who have the time to calculate how inaccurate the conversion from imperial to metric is when written on the box.


I got bored, so I compared my usual helping (left) with the one dictated by the instructions (I'm using imperial measurements, so it's exactly 1 1/4 cups). I guess this would mean I'm getting a little bit more of my RDI (recommended daily intake) of all the goodness that Vector provides. An eyeball estimate (no, I did not take the contents out of the bowl and measure them) would suggest I'm eating 40% more than the suggested serving.

I suppose this might be a good thing that they go into that much detail when it comes to how much you're supposed to be eating at any given time, especially given the controversy over serving sizes in fast food restaurants. You may argue that this isn't really the same thing, considering that cereal and milk is better for you. But then, you take a closer look at the ingredients list, and the third ingredient is sugar/glucose-fructose.

Y'know, screw the USDA. Screw the FDA. I'm gonna eat it the way I want.

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Half-way to achieving at least ONE goal for 2007.

To be continued!

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