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densefog
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Name: Denise
Country: United States
State: California
Metro: San Francisco
Gender: Female
Expertise: I'm not bold enough to admit expertise in any particular area, but you are free to make your own judgements and then inform me. Haha!
Occupation: Education/training
Message: message me
Member Since:
1/20/2005
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Now, I’m not the type of person that’s scared of insects. I won’t play with them or keep one as a pet, as I definitely don’t like them. But I don’t scream in fright when I see one. But last night, I was definitely spooked by one...
Last night, after a full day of meetings, I had a quiet evening at home. It was around 8pm, and I was multi-tasking on the couch--watching TV and writing an email. All of a sudden, I felt something fly through my hair, grazing my head. I looked up, and was thinking, “What the...” but I saw nothing. I glanced to my right, and on my small, white coffee table, right next to a remote control, there was a fat, brown Asian cockroach. It was huge, about the size of two fingers. I literally jumped to my feet, almost dropping my laptop, and completely freaked out. I didn’t scream though. I glanced again, and it had disappeared.
A number of things went through my head in a matter of seconds, and it went a little something like this...
---- Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God!!
----Eeeeeeewwwwwwwww! Gross!
----Eeeeeewwww.... It touched me. It was in my hair. I can still feel it.
----Oh my God, where is it?
----Did it go under the couch?
----How’d it even get in?
----I need some shoes.
----I need to get it out of my house.
----HOW? I can’t even find it.
----Do I even want to find it? What will I do if I find it?
----Okay. I need something to kill it. What should I use? Definitely something hard. A shoe? A magazine?
----Should I kill it? Is it better to cover it with tupperware?
It took me a few minutes, but my heart finally started to settle down a bit. I put on some shoes, and relatively calmly decided what to do, as I knew I had to get rid of it one way or another because I knew I wouldn’t have been able to sleep if it were roaming freely in my apartment. I figured that I wouldn’t be able to use tupperware to catch it since they move so quickly. So, armed with a shoe, I went cockroach hunting. I looked all over, behind the couch, under the bed, in the kitchen. I knew it could have been anywhere. I was sort of kicking myself for not being a little braver or more quick thinking when I first saw it. I could have whacked it with a remote at the initial sighting.
My imagination sort of ran wild during the hunt. “What am I going to do if I don’t find it? I have to pack up all the snacks I have lying around my house. It’s going to have free reign in my apartment.
If I don’t get rid of i, it’s going to lay eggs. Then there will be millions of them all over my apartment. Great!”
After about 20 minutes, I had just about given up. My apartment may be a mere 450 sq ft, but that’s huge for a roach. There are just too many nooks and crannies for a roach to hide. I sat down on the couch, contemplating the consequences of having a roach for a roommate. And after a minute or two, there it was, moseying along near the front door. I didn’t want to lose sight of it again, so I kept my eyes on the roach. I crept towards the door, pulling the shoe off my foot. WHACK! Is it dead? NOOOO!!! It starts to scurry around the entrance. WHACK, WHACK, WHACK. I’m just not fast enough. The roach was running at lightning speed, and I was always a half second too slow. It ran into my shoe closet, and disappeared into a wall of shoes. Well, at least, this time I knew where it was hiding. I weighed my options, and decided it was best to wait a little to see if it would come out on it’s own. And luckily I was right. After a few minutes it emerged from the safety of the shoes, but I was ready. I aimed and smacked it hard. It was dead. But just for good measure, I whacked it a few more times. I got some tissue, picked it up and flushed it down a watery grave. Wheew! Boy, was I glad when it was over.
I never thought I’d be as scared as I was. I mean, I see roaches all the time on the streets of Hong Kong. But up, close and personal like that, I sure was freaked.
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I love writing. I really do. It’s an outlet for all my random thoughts and observations. But over the past 2 years, I haven’t written. Less emails, less letters, less journaling, less blogging... Considering how much I enjoy writing, it’s a bit surprising, yet even more disappointing. It’s not that I don’t have things to write about; I just became “too busy”. I wonder though if I was really too busy to write...
Hong Kong is a big city, fast-paced and exciting. Between working at my new school, hanging out with friends, exploring my new hometown, I didn’t leave myself any time to sit down and write. This, of course, is just my excuse. I think back at all the useless activities that I have indulged myself in, I know that “time” was not the issue. Over the past 2 years, I have watched hours and hours of TV, mostly US shows on dvd, like House MD, Grey’s Anatomy, Friends, Sopranos, Desperate Housewives, and Ugly Betty just to name a few. And there have been countless movies. Due to the ubiquity of cheap, quality, “authentic” DVDs from China, my living room has become a couch potato’s dream, a place to become a vegetable. Aside from the boob tube, I apparently have also had time for video games. Yes, I’ve had enough time to become a Guitar Hero and to race Mario Karts. So, was “time” really the big issue? Nah...
The only question I can ask myself is, “What in the world happened over the 2 years; what changed?” I think the biggest change is this... Hong Kong culture. Moving and living here has resulted in adapting to the Hong Kong way of life. And what is that exactly? For many Hong Kong-ers, I find that for them, most days consist of the 4 Ls: Long hours at work, late night dinners with friends, lengthy commutes, and leisurely down time in front of the TV. And since these 4 Ls tend to take up 95% of people’s time, it really doesn’t leave much time for anything else.. little reading and especially not writing. However, my case is a little different than most HK-ers. I have normal working hours (7:30am to 4:30pm--short by HK standards); I live 15 minutes (walking distance) from my job; I eat out relatively seldom (once a week night, twice at most); and I don’t watch HK television (I find most HK dramas mind-numbingly dull, and all the actors are crap--sorry Rachel). Though my schedule is unlike most HKers, I act like one. Haha!
To sum up, I basically feign busy-ness. Now that I realize this... I hope to kick my lazy butt into gear and finally start writing again. Will this newfound enthusiasm stick? Only time will tell I guess... Or perhaps your comments will keep me motivated. *Hint Hint. | | |
| Have you ever heard of olfactory overload? If not, you definitely need to visit HK, as there is an abundance of scents for your smelling pleasure. Some GOOD--freshly baked buns (aka baos), Beard Papa's Cream Puffs, Eggettes, just to name a few. And definitely some BAD--Fermented Tofu, Bitter Tea Shops, Wet Markets; there are plenty more, believe me. Though these pungent fragrances are omnipresent, I have amazingly adapted to them. There is however one smell that I have yet to accustom myself too, and I'm pretty sure I never will..... and that is.....DURIAN. Apparently, it's considered the "King of Fruit." Don't ask me why...
 (Just in case you don't know what DURIAN looks like.)
I had an unfortunate encounter with durian today...on the KCR (train). Everything was normal until I reached the Shatin Station...in fact, the ride had actually been quite nice up until that point. I had a seat, as the train was mostly empty, and I was enjoying some tunes on my Ipod. At this stop, a woman hopped on, carrying along some of the groceries she had bought at New Town Plaza. She glanced around the train and then plopped herself in the seat next to me. I thought it was sort of strange especially since the other half of the train was completely empty. Why in the world is she sitting right next to me? I didn't really think too much about it...that is, until the train doors closed. A smell was beginning to emanate from the bags around her feet. It started off like a fart and slowly evolved into that of a sewer line explosion. Without looking into the bag I knew exactly what she had bought at the store... DURIAN. I glanced anyway, just to confirm my suspicions. And there it was, the flesh of the fruit wrapped in plastic wrap. After all these years, one would think that supermarkets would be sensible enough to wrap the fruit in airtight containers, so that the buyers could enjoy the smell all to themselves.
Anyways, the story gets worse... as if it wasn't bad enough that I'm sitting next to something that smells like a week's worth of sweaty gym clothes and dirty socks. Ms. Durian decided that the air-conditioned train was a little too hot for her. So guess what? She took out a fan, and started fanning herself, sending pockets of durian-scented air in my direction. What in the world did I do to you, lady? Why are you torturing me? I should have gotten up and moved to another part of the train. But I was too polite... I merely turned my head in the other direction, attempting to hold my breath until the next stop when the train doors would open and I could breath again, all the while praying that the next stop was her stop. I was not so lucky though. And we shared the next 6 stops together, an excruciating 25 minutes.
Oh by the way... I have actually tried durian...twice. Once because I was curious... I was young and was trying to figure out it's appeal. I ate about half a spoonful, swallowed quickly, and then commented on how it tasted exactly the way it smelled, only creamier. haha! The second time because I was tricked... I was in Thailand and was offered a slice of mooncake at a relative's house. I took a bite only to realize that it wasn't the "normal" mooncake, but one that was infused with durian. I wanted to throw it away, but the relatives were intent on watching me "enjoy" the little treat.
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| Whoa!!!! It's been over a year since my last post. Guess it's time to join the masses and resume blogging, especially since I'm unemployed at the moment and as a result have tons of free time. 
I'm currently celebrating this "unemployed" status by vacationing in HK, my favorite destination.  And why wouldn't it be? HK=Family, Friends, and Food. What more could a girl ask for? Haha! Anyways, I literally packed my bags and came here on a whim, making my travel arrangements 2 days before the flight. Technically, I'm not just vacationing - as my purpose in visiting is more job related. I needed to check on my job status here as a NET (Native English Teacher). The meeting with the Dept. of Education (aka the EMB) went well enough, but writing about it would constitute an entirely new post.
I'm only in town for about a week, which probably means that I should make the best of my time here. And that really doesn't include spending time on the computer...blogging. Haha! Alirighty, I'm off to get myself a "deep-fried" apple pie from Mickey Ds. I'll update again soon; I promise.
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| Sugar Burns!
After I took my morning shower, I noticed something on my arms. I
have 3 little, brown welts. Two on the right arm, one on the
left. What in the world! Where did those come from?
Because I have a tendency to be overly curious, I started picking one
of them. Lo and behold, the skin peels off. WHAT are these
things? 
Then it occurs to me...OOOHHH.....I know what they are. I got
burned by exploding sugar the other day. Yep... I made creme
brulee for dessert on Monday night. As I am torching the
custards, a good friend decides that she wants to try. Usually,
she rises to the occasion, 
as she excels in most everything she does. But perhaps,
this is not her forte. Well, as the sugar starts to bubble under
the flame, she doesn't remove the heat, but leaves it there a second
longer. POP! The sugar explodes. It splatters all
over the table, as well as my arms.
Sugar heats to a pretty high temperature, so it was pretty
HOT. Anyways, it was a few small drops on my arms, no big
deal. It didn't hurt too much, Besides, it cooled off
really quickly and hardened on my skin. But then, I tried to pick
off this little lump of sugar...the stinkin' stuff is stuck to my arm
hair. How gross! I'm already self-conscious enough about my
long arm hair, but now I find that little sugar bits can get stuck
to them. Haha! I, not so subtly, licked it off... it's
okay, I was amongst friends. 
I didn't really think much of it after it happened. But now I have these little welts. I just hope it doesn't scar! | | |
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