Words from "The Best Rapper Alive"

"You can go to school but you can't buy class"

The Omnivore's Hundred

Below is a list of 100 things that http://www.verygoodtaste.co.uk/ thinks every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognize everything in the hundred, either; Live Search has the answers.
Here’s what you do:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.

Shannon's Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

I have tried 75 of the 100 listed.

Slang of the Day

"Fabulicious" - Fabulously delicious

As in: "Red velvet cupcakes from Vanilla Bake Shop are fabulicious!"

Sanuk: Conscious Comfort, Sans Ugliness (Crocs)

Sometimes, on a sunny summer weekend, you need a shoe that is causal yet cute. And people, I am not talking about a clunky rubber foot sling with perforated holes. Ever heard of Sanuk brand? Six people comprise the company that crnaks out 135 different styles of sandals (http://www.sanuk.com/).

Sanuk is Thai for "happiness and balance." That sums up the feeling I had/the sandals' structure, after buying a pair from Spyder surfshop yesterday.

Company info/philosophy: "Barefoot untechnology" "It's a sandal not a shoe". Theses shoes pack a one-two punch, the lower construction of a sandal with a (patented) deconstructed shoe type of upper.

Picture: My Sidewalk Surfers are tan w/ silver thread interwoven throughout.

Four Degrees of Seperation

The "small world theory," hypothesizes we are just "six degrees of separation" between any one on Earth. In August 2008, a Microsoft research team concluded that any two people on average are distanced by just 6.6 degrees of separation, meaning that they could be linked by a string of seven or fewer acquaintances. ...A "degree of separation" is a measure of social distance between people. You are one degree away from everyone you know, two degrees away from everyone they know, and so on. (Source)

1. Shannon Hutchinson
2. Alison Adema (Bethany Christian Services)
3. Aaron (Conf Call Technology)
4. Suzy (Language Barrier)
5. My biological mom in South Korea

It turns out, thankfully, that I am less than six degrees from my biological mom. After I worked with my adoption agency to locate my mom's contact information, finding someone to translate a call has proved difficult. Luckily, two of my friends in San Fran & Washington were able to help me last week with the translation and confrence call.

We called 5p.m. PST, which is 9 a.m. in Korea. I was kind of holding my breath when Aaron dialed the number. I felt my stomach flipped when I heard her voice answer and Suzy started talking to her in Korean. I heard her voice get much more excited as she realized who Suzy was translating for. The distance seperating us was suddently relatively small hearing her voice over the phone. Suzy told her I was well, had graduated college, moved to California recently and had a successful job. She was glad because she wanted to ensure I was healthy, doing well and financially comfortable.

She said she really misses me and wants to see me. I am looking forward to traveling to meet her and my two older bros and older sister. There are so many years, questions and memories we both have to talk about. It's a blessing that I was able to find her at all. Many adoptees search and even visit Korea with no luck. Searching and finding is similar to the proverbial needle in the haystack. For me, the whole process was smooth. The last step in closing the loop is actually traveling to my hometown to meet her. We are still figuring out if the October trip is feasible. Suzy’s mom is part of a Seattle org that takes adoptees on trips around Korea. Suzy and her mom would plan a day to go with me by train/bus to visit my mom and translate. What a great early birthday present, being able to coordinate a connection like that through technology.

Local Korean Go-to Spot

Where: Tofu Village in Gardena, CA

When: August 7th



Comments: Tofu Village is located in the Koreatown section of Gardena, in a strip of restaurants and bakeries that also looked worth trying. The service was very efficient and friendly too. The pork bulgogi was ideal level of almost-breaking-a-sweat spicy and the texture was ideal.

Other Dishes We Tried:

Traditional Bibimbap

Spicy Pork Bulgogi

Purple Rice

Traditional side dishes:

Radish, seaweed, bean sprout, potato, fried whole fish

Birthday in the Golden State

08.09.08

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I am about to turn 24 years old! My first birthday in my new state of California.
Two months in, I don't regret my move one bit.
Since it's on a Saturday, I'll get to take the entire day relaxing and celebrating.
I also got a new cut/color to start my year of right...
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