The desire for an Apple ibook waylaid my conscience out of no where and now I can't seem to concentrate for ten minutes without thinking of it. The white plastic machine has put me up to a pillory as if scorning me for not having one. I suppose the easiest thing here to do is just BUY IT! but since I am very careful with money, people have referred me as frugal, a skinflint, a miser, it will be next to impossible for me to part with US$1,000 on something that I really have no urgent need for. Alas, being sensible has its shortcoming.
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And a side note on the news media: They all look alike. Where ever on Earth one may be, heavy downpour and gusty winds bring out the worst in TV reporters. As if an edict has been issued by some deities dictating how news shall be presented, seemingly most TV reporters can't think of any other clever way to cover a storm but to situate oneself (clad in poncho) on a desolate street, street light dangling precariously in the background, while been pummeled willingly by whatever earth elements there might be present. Can it be any more pedestrian, commonplace?

Image taken from Reuters

Much to my chagrin the blissful mild weather in the midst of summer is finally coming to an end. The warm weather makes me feel lazy to step out. I opted to stay home with my landlady's dog, Lemon. On a hot empty day like this I feel there is nothing to blog about. Better get back to reading I, Claudius.

Actually there is something on my mind. Ever since Apple decided to up the RAM on the ibook product line, I have wanted to buy it for my mobile computing needs. My other Acer notebook works just fine, but having to carry around a 15.4 inch screen notebook all day isn't exactly the smartest thing for one's shoulder. If only there is a consumer appetite suppressant pill to take I wouldn't be here agonizing over this trifle (it really is killing me). When I asked Lemon to reflect on this dilemma, she yawned and went back to sleep...

Despite record-high gasoline price, hovering around $2.70 a gallon, my friend M. and I drove North on the Pacific Coast Highway for about 77 miles to the city of Oxnard and Port Hueneme, where we visited the beach and ate a good portion of fried seafood.

The short trip has that inexplicable charm that is so endearing to me, which is why I keep on coming back. The view of the Pacific Ocean along the Pacific Coast Highway entering Oxnard is breathtaking, though one can easily be snarled up in traffic upon entering Malibu. I think the view alone is easily worth the drive. The beach at Port Hueneme is clean, easily-accessible and parking-friendly! We had no trouble finding parking right next to the beach -- on a Saturday at 1 pm! The crowd at the beach is sparse, plenty room to go around for everyone. Children, dogs, surfers and city-dwellers all enjoying the hazy afternoon on the sand and in ocean water.

After two hours of strenuous walking on the sand and plundering sea shells, tired and mildly sun burned, we head over to the nearby pier and ordered some fish & chips and calamari and clam chowder. The portion generous and the price reasonable, probably due to the fact that the pier is also devoid of large number of tourists, which is perfectly fine for us. The $20 we spend on food filled us to the brim, and plenty to take away for the car ride home.

One side-effect of high gasoline price is that we keep vigil throughout our trip for the cheapest gasoline station, it is as if we were enjoying the number game while make fun of those who opted for more expensive gasoline. We saw one Arco on Victoria Ave offering at $2.63; Mobile on the same corner for $2.69; and a Shell few blocks down for $2.66 (On the contrary, in Malibu, the city of the riches, we saw a 76 offering at $2.99).

After filling up at the pump and on our way back to suburbia heaven, we came across a little strawberry stand called Red Barn. We quickly alighted our vehicle and went hunting for the best looking basket of fresh-picked strawberries. While we picked out our bunch, the convivial woman at the shop offered us a slice of their mini watermelon, which was great as well as the strawberry. So we drop down another $18 for two case-full of strawberry and a mini melon. M. was treating the strawberry like a child, shielding it from the sun.

The descending sun signalled for us to go. I took one last picture with the sun in the backdrop to conclude the day.

I was exhausted from the day spent at the San Diego Zoo.

The usually sun-drenched SoCal is unusually cool for the past two weeks, while the rest of the nation is suffering from heat-stroke. My friends and I took the advantage of the mild weather and drove south to San Diego to visit the zoo and the city. Traffic on the freeway was light as we start our journey, but half way through our drive the congestion gathered momentum and I grew impatient at the slow path. On 5 Interstate before entering Oceanside we found a vista point and alighted to gather in the ocean view. The hazy sky, though in turn provided us a cool weather, did not present itself as a picturesque backdrop against the ocean.

The loss of one photo opportunity was soon replaced by another. As we were taking it the view of the ocean and the pale sky, we soon found ourselves surrounded by a large number of squarrel-like creatures prancing around in search of food. We did not at the time have any morsel to spare, but our fellow travelers have plenty and so I took some great shots.

Our spirits were high after our encounter with those cute little creatures. They turn out to be as entertaining as those beautiful animals we were about to pay $21 entrance fee to see.

Much to my surprise we didn't have to pay for parking charge! Paying for parking at major tourist destinations is as given a fact as human existence. Luckily for us the San Diego Zoo provided plenty of free parking for its patrons who are about to infuse large amount of money into souvenir and food buying.

The zoo is huge and well-kept. The giant panda is the largest attraction for the zoo. We had to stand in line for 15 minutes just to catch a glimpse of the giant bear chewing and savoring his favorite bamboo. I recall having read in a magazine that these giant pandas subscribe $1,000,000 from the zoo to the Chinese government. Judging from the crowd these giant panda garnered it seems very much worth it.

We couldn't help but to anthropomorphize the animals we were seeing. One gorilla listlessly squatted with a melancholy countenance atop the mountain, and another, looking a bit aged, sat stolid on the dusty ground with a protruding, portly belly. I can't help but to feel sorry for them.

The majestic giraffe stood 15 feet ground high. For some unknown reason he couldn't keep his viscous and long tongue away from the lighting pole, like it was a popsicle. The polar bear slept much of the afternoon, occationally teasing us spectators by tilting her head high for a few seconds. The deer, of what kind I can't recall, gave us plenty reasons to click our shutters.

At 6:50 pm we couldn't take any more walking. We call it a quit and abandoned our plans to visit downtown. The drive back home was more pleasant for lack of traffic on the north bound.

On the way home I grabbed a quick bit at a hamburger stand and soundly asleep by the time I hit home. There concludes my Saturday. I am sure to grow more morose at the impending of Monday.

Late Friday afternoon, right after work is put away till next week, my hunger announced its arrival by making funny noise. My stomach yearns for something filling with grease. After much internal reflection and debate I've decided to let loose and devour a California treasure, IN-N-OUT hamburger! As of late I have been mollycoddling of my eating habit by staying away from junk food for as long a period as possible. That was successful for about a week. Amidst that time frame I couldn't help but to prefigure my physical being enjoying cheeseburger and fries that IN-N-OUT is so famous for.

Here in suburban hinterland IN-N-OUT serves as my oasis, my sanctuary where I found tentative comfort so as to prevent my total insanity outburst. Oftentimes I would bring my Taiwanese friends who are visiting SoCal to taste what a true American hamburger should taste like, for, not surprisingly, their cognition of hamburger are those of McDonald's or Burger King's.

Granted, there are many outstanding hamburgers served throughout SoCal, such as Island's, Johnny Rockets and many other I can't recall , but given the factors of price, accessibility and preparation speed IN-N-OUT is by far the best there is. One is always greeted by friendly staff members(I am not exaggerating, literally, every time), and they always take the trouble to inquire whether onion is preferred on or off the hamburger (one can ask for it to be grilled also).

Unlike many other fast-food chain, the menu at IN-N-OUT is pleasantly simple to follow. Hamburger, Cheeseburger, Double-Double, french fries and drinks. You always know what to expect and no nasty surprises (I found one chain selling a concomitant of burgers-teriyaki bowls-tacos-pita sandwiches). Price is comparable to any other burger chain.

But most importantly, what makes the hamburger here so special and tasty? After much reconnoitering, surreptiously, of course, I think I know the secrets are the followings:

1. Fresh ground beef (not frozen). Hand-pressed on the grill.
   
2. A mixture of spice and herb splashed (the concoction is thus unknown) generously on the beef patty at the start of grill to add flavor.
3. The grilling of bread with butter, to make it crispy.
4. 1000 island dressing.
   

P.S. If only I could bring IN-N-OUT formula to Taiwan...I am a moron, my shot of the hamburger is out of focus!!! I was too hungry to be cautious to take additional shots of the burger and fries that this is the only shot I have.

At Souplantation I see ranch dressing covering green lettuce on most plate. At Johnny Rockets ranch dipping is a must for eating onion rings. At McDonald's teenagers can't get enough of ranch with their french fries. At grocery stores the variety of ranch outnumbers any other salad dressing. Just as I got really curious with this ranch madness in the U.S., and knowing that many other countries around the globe don't even have ranch, Slate.com has an explainer on the phenomenon of ranch dressing.

Having just finished reading John Keay's India: a History, I have finally gathered a rough outline of histories of India and its relations to Pakistan and Bangladesh. Finally will I no longer read newspaper articles concerning India with great zest yet with ignorance as to its historical implications. Just the other day my friend asked me where did I gather such intense interest in the affairs of India, I could come up with not an obvious answer (I have no connections whatsoever with the region, except I like the food). Certainly it has to do with novels I'd read in the past, whether it be E. M. Forster's The Passage to India (the British Raj), Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance and Such a Long Journey (the untold human tragedies caused by sectarian madness and government-declared emergency), Khushwant Singh's Train to Pakistan (the tragedy of the partition of 1947), or Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things, each novel presented itself as a microscopic phase of history during the tumultuous period. And to be able to gather up the dribs and drabs of each history as told in the novels in a streamline fashion I gain an even more profound understanding and appreciation as looking at the big picture.

A bright sunny Saturday provided a chance to visit the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. The price isn't cheap. $18.95 adult ticket plus $6 parking and a $3 pepsi. But I did get to touch various sharks and sting rays -- that's right, touch! The addition of bird garden was perplexing to me.




The Saturday family crowd was unrelenting. Pushing and elbowing and more pushing, just to catch a better view of clownfish or, as Disney like to call it, Nemo.