“I just want basic labor protections for people.  That’s entirely compatible with everything that has been flourishing in Shenzhen…It’s really basic things that we fought for in this country.  It took 100 years of labor struggles to get to a place where that happened for most workers.  Then we exported those jobs overseas and we didn’t send the protections with them. And it’s not right.”

-Mike Daisey on This American Life: Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory

My trip home is already fading into the black hole that is my long-term memory, but if there’s one thing that will never, ever fade away, it’s the taste of my mom’s home cooking.

My mom loves to cook.  Growing up in Wisconsin as a fairly sheltered suburban kid with limited social freedoms, I would say that 97% of all dinners possible were at home, and that of those dinners, 100% were cooked by my mom (although there was the occasional day of leftovers).  For the sake of full disclosure, I will admit that there was a period of 2 years or so where my mom was working out of state where my father and I had to fend for ourselves.  We call these “The Hungry Years.”

Now, I know everyone thinks their mother’s cooking is the bomb diggity, and that the power of perception and self-deception is powerful, but where the rest of you are prisoners of your own minds, I am rooted in objective truth.  My mom’s cooking is the bomb diggity.  One time, she told me stories of how she went to cooking hagwon (extra-curricular classes basically) and how she had a full notebook of recipes and such.  As much as I subscribe to the utility of head-knowledge though, I’m sure that what actually made all the difference was simply years of cooking day-in, day-out.  One time, because I had to catch a flight, she pan-fried a fish and made a sweet and sour sauce FROM WENDY’S SWEET AND SOUR packets…and it was delicious.  The thought that went through my head was, “This woman is a wizard!”

Some personal favorites:

• Sunday morning pancakes, made from Aunt Jemaima’s pancake mix; I still much prefer those flat syrup vessels to the syrup absorbing and disguising buttermilk pancake
• Korea curry rice, ’nuff said; still can’t get my beef as tender as her…have no idea what I’m doing wrong
• Kalbi-jjim with chestnuts; CHESTNUTS ARE SO KEY!
• Squash tempura; apparently her secret is to sprinkle with salt for a half day to draw out the moisture

So this post, dear reader, is dedicated to my mom’s cooking!  (And of course, my mom herself!)  Huzzah to you, beautiful breakfasts, luscious lunches, and delicious dinners,

If you can think of another set of themes, let me know in the comments (like that’ll happen…).

In rough price order (note all prices are MSRP, but most items could be had for less):

1. BRIGHT Red Skinny Jeans – $20-50?

I am talking a noxious amount of saturated redness.  I have been yet unable to find anything suitable.  The closest thing I’ve been able to find is here, but I’m dubious about both quality and sizing.  Eventually though, I will probably pull the trigger.  Alternatively, these orange ones are so ludicrous that it might be a crime to NOT buy them…

2. Villeroy and Boch Black Cascura Highball Glasses – $15 x 4

It’s not so much the black exterior as the purple interiors that draw me to these glasses.  Clearly the next step in the evolution of the Kim bar is higher class glassware.  Seeing as how we make mostly mixed drinks as opposed to cocktails, these seem more appropriate…although that being said, having some clear glasses on hand would definitely be more versatile, since all drinks have a visual component to some extent…

3. Light to Medium Grey Deep V-Neck Cardigan – $40-80?

Every time I explain this to someone, they immediately know exactly what I’m talking about, as if the image I had in my mind got directly transferred to theirs.  Their search, like mine, ends up just as empty-handed.  You would think that J. Crew would have something along these lines, but mysteriously they do not.  Maybe it has fallen so far away from the cutting edge that everyone has decided to stop making it since the supply is perilously high…

4. EliteKeys Tactile Touch Keyboard – $109

I have a super retro keyboard at home that has been put to good, good use for about 8 years now.  It’s survived 3 computer builds and has this wonderful click clack sound that most people find interesting at first, then incredibly grating and annoying.  In continuation of that trend, I present this keyboard, which is middle of the line for high quality keyboard.  It uses full mechanical switches, which allow for faster typing, better tactile response, and greater keyboard longevity.  Like any of my other planned purchases, a depressing amount of research went into this, but now I can tell you all you want to know about brown switches…

5. Filson Original Canvas Briefcase in Tan – $216

For my last birthday, my brother got me the Filson Field Satchel, which is an amazingly hardy and stiff briefcase, although a bit on the heavy side.  Definitely helps on the days where suiting up is a necessity.  That being said, the FFS isn’t really a good substitute for the Timbuk2 bag that I currently use as my workhorse bag.  It’s remarkably small and way too heavy.  Now that I know what the Filson Original Briefcase is, I’ve been seeing them all over the place as a business/casual bag.  Something eminently practical and just a tad bit distinguished that definitely gets better as it ages and develops its own patina.

6. Galaxy Nexus vs. Droid 4 – $300

I don’t really consider this a Christmas gift, since I would upgrade regardless of the season, but the timing fit, so I decided to add it.  Currently, I remain very undecided about which phone to get.  I heavily prefer having a keyboard to not having a keyboard, but constantly having access to the latest build of Android is a HARD perk to give up.  The Nexus has been pretty much reviewed to death, but nothing’s come out about the Droid 4.  The release date of the Droid 4 is currently unknown, so I may end up getting impatient and just pull the trigger on the Nexus, but only time will tell.

7. Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II Lens – $439

The only lens I own for my Canon t3i is a great 35mm f/2.0 prime lens that has largely served me well, although perhaps a bit on the tight end.  I decided that my next lens would be something of the zoom variety with a constant aperture to allow for some zoom flexibility while shooting video.  As the Canon 17-55mm EF-S lens is a bit too steep for my current lifestyle and interest level, I’ve settled on this largely well-received third party lens.  No VC here, all about sharpness.

8. Dell U2410 IPS Monitor – $549

Although this monitor is already a few years old, it still stands as one of the best entries in the true IPS (8-bit) market.  As I’ve gotten more involved in taking photos and editing/color correcting, it’s been something that has been on my radar.  It would replace a crappy 23″ Asus monitor that is nothing special anyways, and would be supplemented by a 23″ Acer TN panel that would remain in use as a gaming panel.

9. Yamaha HS80M Studio Monitors – $350 x2

I tend to like my music to have an incredibly flat frequency response, which means studio monitors here we come!  I may regret it when playing games or watching movies/youtube, but I have been lusting over something a bit more substantial in the sound department.  The striking white cones don’t hurt one bit.

10. Nomos Tangente Datum Gangreserve – €2100

What a beautiful watch.  German bauhaus engineering at its finest.  Those blue hands, they slay me.

On my long, hungry walk toward work, I shot up a small prayer for the recovery of the lost.  I would like to say that I had full peace and confidence, but that would not be 100% true…let’s just say it definitely helped.

I sent out a few emails to the worship team and spent most of the morning IMing various members of the clean-up crew, trying to see if anybody had picked them up and put them in a safe place.  I repeated to myself that I knew exactly where I left them, as if somehow that knowledge could be passed backwards through time into the minds of those that were there.  Alas, nobody had grabbed them, and my mind’s desperate leap towards hope seemed to be coming up short.

I decided to take a long shot and call the college that our church meets in.  I thought maybe there was a chance somebody had turned them into a lost and found or maybe even that they were still there.  I got transferred through a bunch of receptionists and security guards until I finally got connected with the kindest librarian ever.  The library is on the same floor as the lecture room our church meets in and the librarian volunteered to take a look in the room for my headphones.  WHO DOES THAT?!

The joy of recovering something which was lost, even though it is something as easy to replace as a mass-market pair of headphones, was stunning.  The smile was uncontrollable.  Not to belabor the point, but the whole leave the flock of 99 to recover the 1 lost sheep seems to make a little more sense.

Just sub out shoulders for ears and sheep with earphones.  You get the idea I’m sure!

“And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’”

- Luke 15:5-6

That being said, it’s hard to continue to shout into the void, so I do ask those who frequent this blog to toss me a comment every once in a while!  I think we’ve covered my emotional neediness and innate extroversion–feedback of all sorts is welcome.  Can’t be critical and not be able to take criticism.

Specifically for this blog post, I would love if you, dear reader, would leave a comment on a topic you’d like me to write about.  Sky’s the limit!