Sunday was a very culinary day. ;) After doing my chores and my laundry, I decided that a potluck lunch was in order, and I called up Andrew and Mike. They were glad to come even though they had just half an hour's notice. (Heh.) Mike didn't answer his phone the first few times I called, so I couldn't borrow his teriyaki stirfry sauce. Instead, I prepared sesame and ginger chicken stirfry from scratch. I also contributed jasmine rice (no ginger this time). Andrew brought homemade wonton and garlic string beans, and Mike brought a sack of fruits. Much fun was had by all, especially by Andrew, who turned out to be a closet food stylist.

Barbecue for dinner was absolutely fantastic, too. Bill joined us, bringing these totally awesome homemade(!!) jalapeno sausages and other wonderful things. Andrew brought vegetable skewers, Mike brought potatoes and turkey sausages, and I brought fruits (my canteloupe, oranges and apples, plus Mike's mango).

This segued naturally into coffee time and a nice long chat with Bill, Chloe, and Stefan. Chloe's even perkier than I am. She's _so_ cool. And so British, too... =)

On Technorati: cooking, food, friends, potluck

Random Japanese sentence: 彼はネコにトムとジェリーとなづけた。 They named their cats Tom and Jerry.

The dips Bill brought deserve their own entry. He brought taramosalata, a Greek dip of... umm... carp egg caviar. =) But it was really nice, particularly with the chips. He also brought this totally awesome cheese dip with hints of curry, and I have to steal that recipe from him.

And he makes his own sausages. Isn't that just mind-boggling?

On Technorati: cooking, food, friends

Random Japanese sentence: あなたが不在の間、誰があなたの猫の世話をするのか。 Who will look after your cat while you are away?

I had tons of fun at the Toronto Rails pub night. Met some really cool people. =) Pictures to follow. Finally got to listen to Joey de Villa (The Accordion Guy) play, and his stories about the perks of accordion-playing were absolutely hilarious. Also greatly enjoyed chatting with the other Rails geeks there... =) Totally, totally cool.

I love going to events like these because I not only get to meet interesting people, but I also understand more about the social and technological space we work in.

From the experiences of others, I also learn a little bit more about what _I_ want to do. I'm starting to realize that my ideal life isn't one of teaching within the four walls of the classroom or the four/five months of a term. I want to be out there, teaching really diverse groups of people: schoolkids, seniors, entrepreneurs, volunteers. I want to help people discover how to make the most of technology. It isn't just about teaching, either. In the process of helping people discover something, I learn more about their needs and opportunities for technologies to adapt to people (instead of just the other way around!). That's what I love about the stuff I'm doing at IBM. It's not just data crunching and visualization. I'm there because I'm excited about trying new things _and_ bridging the gap for other people. That requires speaking and writing skills, yes, but that also requires deep listening skills, and I hope to learn all of those really well. =)

If I'm going to go down this path, then - training, teaching, mentoring, coaching, what-have-you - I'll need more experience in order to have more things in common with the people I want to teach. For example, I care deeply about encouraging people in developing countries to make their own opportunities, start their own business, build interesting and useful things. If I'm going to help people create opportunities, then I should immerse myself in the culture and experience here so that I can share those things with them.

That sounds like a plan...

On Technorati: purpose, future

Random Japanese sentence: すると、ねこが一匹もいなくなっていました。 They could not see a single cat! Suru to, neko ga ippiki mo inaku natte imashita.