I stole this from my other blog...

Yeah I know, I know, but after writing such a lengthy entry for one blog, I just get tired to have to write a completely new one for another blog, but it's got a meaning to it - "Lub Your Girlfliends"


The greatest thing about having a female crew is the hodgepodge of talent and creativity that each girl puts in and the party that naturally happens afterwards. While each girl is different, what she contributes to the group. Think about it everytime you get dressed to got out - dont you always look better when your friends are there to lend a pair of earrings, do your eye makeup or just plain ol' put their foot down about your level of sluttiness? Well this past Tuesday, a group of us got together and decided to have a ladies night/barbecue/cocktail dinner party. Being the food snob that I am, I requested that everyone bring something original if not homemade. Here are the results:


Raspberry and strawberry infused mojitos, made by Has and Kate.


They even smashed the mint with a real pestle (albeit a Laotian one). Dont get it twisted, Has and Kate are expert bartenders, perhaps thats their secret to tearin up the dance floors with drinks in hand. Me, I am not that advanced - if I have more than 4 drinks, I get paranoid about whether or not I am too slizzered to dance on beat, and then I get paranoid about being that drunk Asian girl who cant dance on beat, so then I just sit in a slump. You would too if you had an entire race of (that constitutes 70% of the worlds population) riding on whether or not you could do what my mom calls "pop rock and jlop it". Now what was I talking about? Oh right, food.


Tina made bulgogi chicken wings. Bulgogi is Korean and tastes similar to Japanese teriyaki. But Tina is Vietnamese, and her Myspace name is Beandip which is often associated with Mexican cusine. I'm confused again.


Oh yeah, she also makes a killer cucumber-tomato salad with dressing from lemons and herbs in our fridge. I call it "Everything-in-the-bottom-bin Salad".


Sok made a salad too, a Thai beef salad called Yum Salad. This is what it looked like before the beef was put on but trust me that shit was straight up was yum, salad.


This here is an Oreo cake baked by our dear friend Sok again, whom we've affectionately re-named "Betty Sokker". You can see here she got more skills in confectionary concoctions than your grandmom and Martha Stewart on a sugar rush.


Ok I take that back. Maybe Sok is better than Martha Stewart for obvious reasons, but my friend Asmaa's grandmom is the shit! This little lady whipped up some authentic Morrocan dishes. Just look at the the couscous, it came in this clay tagine complete with a dome cover piece, if you saw it you woulda never thought to eat it because it was so freakin pretty. That there was more Morrocan stuff (I cant remember the names of them right now) but I got so hungry I forgot to take pictures of them. Afterwards we all bumrushed Asmaa about how couscous is really made and to stop being greedy with her Grandma and give us some Morrocan cooking lessons. We're still waiting on an answer.


Here's my contribution: mac and 4 cheeses. Normally I make it with 5 cheese but I had to pay some bills so I could only afford 4. I know you're thinking how anyone could not put in 5 more bucks for a block of Cracker Barrel, but they dont sell the special melty Fontina at Pathmark, sorry. I felt bad for lack of cheesiness flavor so I threw in some lobster and truffle oil. Did I tell you I was food snob?


I also made some corn with chili lime butter and queso fresco. I dont know the originality of this dish, I only had it at a Cuban restaurant but I've seen it on the menu at Mexican places. I also heard that the real deal Mexican street thug way is instead of butter they use mayo. I think when I get really old, and I am no longer able to take care of myself and become "Asian-shamed" with making my children/grandchildren look after me, or even worse they become so Americanized that they may wanna put me in a nursing home, I will commit suicide by heart attack through cholesterol overload - with both mayo and butter on my corn. At least I'll be happy when I go.


Some other notable foods that were not photgraphed fantatically but well appreciated in our pants size, you might see here on the table: Olivia's dumplings with soy-vinegar-sesame sauce (love love love the sauce), Kate's grilled chicken spinach salad (it was so special that Kate decided to tell me all about how she made it over the phone while getting lost in West Philly), Niki's overstuffed spring rolls (you should have seen how fat she rolled them, they were bursting at the skins), and my Laotian lemongrass pork sausages. Unfortunately Has and Asmaa couldnt have any because they dont eat pork. One day though, I will hope to find a woman who makes these sausages and ask her if it was possible to make them with turkey or lamb. Or even more ambitious, make them myself.

Its moments like these that make me appreciate my friendships, and how much fun it is to be around each other even if one of them almost made us cancel everything or shows up mad late and is too engrossed in gossip she forgets the other dish she was supposed to make (you know you are and we love you just the same). It makes worth grating cheese until 2 am (with a fresh airbursh manicure, no doubt) or getting grandmom up early to cook for a whole afternoon all worth it. And even if I spend my last overdrafted dollars on fancy cheese, I know I can count on one of my girls to borrow the negative difference and realize that in fact I live a very rich life.


Hopefully your Memorial Day is as delicious and fun, enjoy your day off and appreciate your friends all the same.

Lady C

Happy Mother's Day!

Someone I work with sent this to me, so I thought I'd put it up to honor all the wonderful mothers out there doing their thing--this is my big hug to you.

-Michelle


Mothers

This is for the mothers who have sat up all night with sick toddlers in
their arms, wiping up barf laced with Oscar Mayer wieners and cherry
Kool-Aid saying, "It's okay honey, Mommy's here."

Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end soothing crying babies
who can't be comforted.

This is for all the mothers who show up at work with spit-up in their
hair and milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their purse.

For all the mothers who run carpools and make cookies and sew Halloween
costumes. And all the mothers who DON'T.

This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll never see. And
the mothers who took those babies and gave them homes.

This is for the mothers whose priceless art collections are hanging on
their refrigerator doors.

And for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at
football or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their
cars.

And that when their kids asked, "Did you see me, Mom?" they could say,
"Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the world," and mean it.

This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store
and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet and scream for ice
cream before dinner. And for all the mothers who count to ten instead,
but realize how child abuse happens.

This is for all the mothers who sat down with their children and
explained all about making babies. And for all the (grand)mothers who
wanted to, but just couldn't find the words.

This is for all the mothers who go hungry, so their children can eat.

For all the mothers who read "Goodnight, Moon" twice a night for a year.
And then read it again. "Just one more time."

This is for all the mothers who taught their children to tie their
shoelaces before they started school. And for all the mothers who opted
for Velcro instead.

This is for all the mothers who teach their sons to cook and their
daughters to sink a jump shot.

This is for every mother whose head turns automatically when a little
voice calls "Mom?" in a crowd, even though they know their own offspring
are at home -- or even away at college ~or have their own families.

This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to school with stomach
aches, assuring them they'd be just FINE once they got there, only to
get calls from the school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick
them up. Right away.

This is for mothers whose children have gone astray, who can't find the
words to reach them.

For all the mothers who bite their lips until they bleed when their 14
year olds dye their hair green.

For all the mothers of the victims of recent school shootings, and the
mothers of those who did the shooting.

For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of
their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school,
safely.

This is for all the mothers who taught their children to be peaceful,
and now pray they come home safely from a war.

What makes a good Mother anyway? Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips?

The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and sew a button on a shirt,
all at the same time?

Or is it in her heart?

Is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear
down the street, walking to school alone for the very first time?

The jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M.
to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby?

The panic, years later, that comes again at 2 A.M. when you just want to
hear their key in the door and know they are safe again in your home?

Or the need to flee from wherever you are and hug your child when you
hear news of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?

The emotions of motherhood are universal and so our thoughts are for
young mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep deprivation...
And mature mothers learning to let go.

For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers.

Single mothers and married mothers.

Mothers with money, mothers without.

This is for you all. For all of us...

Hang in there. In the end we can only do the best we can. Tell them
every day that we love them. And pray and never stop being a mom..

Please pass along to all the Moms in your life.

"Home is what catches you when you fall - and we all fall."

Please pass this to a wonderful mother you know.