Idea

I was watching giant shuttle buses (or is it busses?) crawling by and I thought of a little snippet, perhaps, of a new poem:

"If the road is a giant forest,
Then buses are the beasts of the road,"

which now developed into:

"If the road is a giant forest,
Then buses are the beasts of the road,
The Prius is a panda bear,
And the Jeep is the frowning toad,
The sleek towncar is the waiting shark
In the waters off the shore,
The Hummer is a grizzly with its bulky heavy fur,
And I? I am a hiker--a pedestrian, on tour."

My Opinion on Snail Mail

I'm not sure about you, but I always like to receive personal letters. There's something intriguing about a letter--maybe it's the idea that it came from so far away (as most of my letters originate from), or that it takes more time to write and respond to a letter. When I check the mail I'm always happy about three things:

1.) Letters
2.) Netflix (we just received our new movie!) 
3.) Coupons (I think that using scissors to cut them out holds a certain appeal here, besides saving money)

I get a certain excitement from writing, and receiving, a letter that I don't get with email. It could be the stationery--I do have, after all, a lovely pinkish flowered print paper, and another one that's designed to look like a scroll. (My mom gave them both to me for my birthday, or maybe Christmas.) It's very fun to write longhand when you have interesting paper to write on. [Author's Note: I also have a fairly wide collection of pens that range from your typical ballpoint, to ones I've stolen from hotels, and a cherished few I received as gifts. The latter are the most fancy and the least-used, for the purpose of saving ink.] 

Another thing is that there's more anticipation with letters--you have to actually wait for about a week, sometimes more, sometimes less, for the person to receive the letter, read it and comprehend it, and then send a reply. With emails, you send it one minute, get a reply the next. It's instant gratification, and I don't know if that's always good. If anything, snail mail teaches us a set of very important virtues which are sometimes lost in this 21st Century world of typing emails on cell phones and getting instant responses. Writing and receiving snail mail teaches us patience, composition skills, and the very important skill of how to lick an envelope.

My Great American Road Trip

NBC has recently launched a new reality TV show called "Great American Road Trip." I had a concern about the show--who knows what "reality" is any more on TV? Even if you film every single passing hour, you will probably still edit it down to the most "exciting" bits--which will perhaps not present an accurate view of the subject. For instance, if I filmed the entirety of my recent road trip and shared it with you, you would see much film of my sister and I sleeping; staring at each other meaninglessly; sitting silently; eating cookies at rest stops; and my dad talking about basalt formations and ancient geologic stuff (which would probably be interesting to some people but probably not to all of my audience). Thus what we see on TV is not all there is to see.

Instead of criticizing a road trip on television, however, I should probably talk about my own, which was recently concluded. After my mom and I returned from DC, we packed our bags--actually, we just reviewed the bags we had already packed--and set off. My sister Adrianna was attending piano camp in Eastern Washington, so we drove there to see her concert. From there we drove on, on a steep and winding byway filled with occasionally invisible swarming bugs, to Missoula, Montana. A note on the bugs: we still have (available for viewing, as soon as I take a picture) at least a hundred smashed bugs on our car hood. We thought that it was rain, but we then figured out that, in the words of our dad, we had been "comitting mass insecticide." All I can say is that it was not purposeful, and that the bugs shouldn't have been on a desolate road late in the afternoon anyway. We occasionally saw roadkill, and my sister, who, in my opinion, is rather too squeamish about dead animals, gave a high-pitched yip every time she saw any dead animal--including those on our front window.

We stayed at the La Quinta Inn in Missoula (which I would recommend, as it has a nice pool and a continental (or, as I like to claim, "confidential") breakfast. Adrianna and I went swimming. She lounged around in the hot tub, and I shouted that she was too lazy and then proceeded to splash cold water on her, to which she responded by throwing hot water at me. This went on, until we finally decided to explore a novel form of fun in the water--bringing chairs into the shallow end! Actually, the chairs were fine--we had conveniently chosen the ones made of plastic. And then we set off for Bozeman, where we would be staying. The goal of our trip was to see Yellowstone National Park (which we, miraculously, accomplished).

At this point I would like to talk about a few highlights of the trip:

-The Bozeman Hot Springs

The Bozeman Hot Springs were intensely relaxing. I say intense because I was constantly going from the main pool to the steam room to the sauna to the ice-cold pool to the hot tub back to the cold pool and then to the main pool to do rapid swimming and then hopping out again to complete the cycle. That sentence, by the way, is probably a run-on, and was meant to be read rapidly in order to display the hurriedness of my actions. The entire complex has 19 pools--18 of them indoors, and one outside. Inside, it did smell slightly of sulfur, but otherwise it was a very enjoyable experience indeed. And I would have to get used to sulfur for my next trip--

-Yellowstone National Park

We saw quite a wide variety of things at Yellowstone. We started, of course, with Old Faithful. We were quite lucky and we saw it just a few minutes after we had started watching. Then, we saw a geyser called Giantess erupt. Giantess apparently had not erupted since much earlier in the year, and so it was rather special that we were able to see it. We saw it erupt from the boardwalk, another interesting feature--the raised wooden pathway to keep people from stepping on thermally active and dangerous ground. There was a geyser that was quite active--I am not sure if it was Giantess or something else--and many people on the boardwalk were actually splashed by the water coming down. My sister insisted on "joining the fun." To fully enjoy a large erupting geyser, I think that one must have a generous tolerance of sulfur--which, I am afraid, I lack--and so I felt more than a little sick as a giant sulfurous steam cloud passed over us. Both my sister and I got wet, but surprisingly, the geyser's water was cold, apparently because it had gone through the air. We also saw the Artist's Paint Pots, some mud pots, fumaroles, the Mammoth Hot Springs, an infant geyser, bison and buffalo, and too many other things to remember.

-Museum of the Rockies

I was very glad to be able to visit a museum during this trip--vacations feel more proper to me when I've seen a museum. Museum of the Rockies was a very interesting museum; it contained lots of interesting things regarding dinosaurs, and also the history of the Earth. But my favorite was the living farm. It had chickens and a wide variety of vegetables, and a two-story historically furnished house. One is able to go throughout the house and touch most things (luckily for me!) Also, you can try on clothes in a certain room, and write on slates, play with rag dolls, etc.

-Gingko Petrified Forest

We were driving back home and noticed a state park sign for "Gingko Petrified Forest State Park." My dad figured that we would probably not come that way again, and so we entered the park. Not only did it offer beautiful, scenic views, it also had an interesting interpretive center about the history of the gingko petrified forest, and an explanatory video called "Trees of Stone" about how the trees were petrifid.

-Eating in General

Some of the culinary highlights of my vacation were: eating ice cream at Yellowstone (I particularly enjoyed the raspberry flavor); eating ice cream at the Big Dipper ice cream parlor in Missoula; eating delicious pizza and "pesto lodgepoles" in Bozeman; and finally, eating at The Noodle Boat Thai restaurant in Issaquah before we finally drove back home.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading this epic description. I hope that, with all the dividing, uniting, low points and high points of any extended trip in a car, I have painted an accurate picture of my Great American Road Trip.

Adora's Elluminate Presentation: A Kid's Eye View of an Innovative Classroom

On May 14th, 2009, eleven-year-old published author Adora Svitak presented her program, "A Kid's Eye View of an Innovative Classroom," to over 140 teachers from places as diverse as Amherst, Massachusetts to British Columbia, Canada; London, England; and Brazil and Portugal. Adora's presentation focused on "innovative classroom tools" that teachers could use in their classrooms to get kids interested in reading, writing, and learning. 

Speaking through the online interactive web-conferencing system Elluminate, Adora was able to talk into a microphone headset connected to her computer, highlight important points on the interactive whiteboard, and answer teachers' questions while streaming live video from her house in Washington State. The response was generally positive. One viewer said, "Very engaging and inspiring"; Joseph M. from Pepperdine University said, "Thank you and keep up the good work."

The link for viewing Adora's session is available at: https://sas.elluminate.com/site/external/event/playback.

Just click on Adora's presentation title, "A Kid's Eye View of an Innovative Classroom," at the top. 

Reading Incentive Programs

A free personal pizza…a tub of Whole Foods ice cream…a box of doughnuts…a backpack—if I offered all these items to you for free, you would probably assume that I was kidding. But these are just a few example items that grade-school kids can get by…community service? Charitable donations? Paying money? Nope. Reading.

Many libraries, including my own local Redmond Regional library, offer reading incentive programs, often funded by philanthropic arms of companies such as Pizza Hut. You get a sheet on which “reading coaches”—parents, teachers, or guardians—sign their initials and the date to prove that you have read at least 20 minutes.There’s nothing wrong with the libraries that set up the reading incentive programs; understandably, the libraries want to get more people (especially the new generation) to read. What makes me angry is that kids do need incentives to read. The Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) website listed a few common complaints kids have about reading: “It's boring[…] I don't have the time[…] It's too hard […] It's not important […] It's no fun.” When kids complain about the food on their plates, we tell them that there are starving children in Africa. How are books different? Many people across the world do not have the chance to access reading material. We need to impress upon kids that the ability to read, and the presence of books, is a privilege and a great opportunity for them to learn.

One of the reasons kids may not embrace reading as much any more is that they have many other forms of recreation to distract them, from texting on cell phones to video games and sporting events. However, a big part of life is prioritizing. We need to compare the value of, say, Kung Fu Chaos, an ultra-violent “brawler game” (Xbox.com) to The Grapes of Wrath, an American classic that eloquently depicts the struggles of Depression-era people. Which one do you think sounds better?

Emails from Viewers

Recently, I was one of the kids featured in a documentary on England's Channel 4. I received a giant wave of emails. Some of these contained questions. I decided to answer a few here on my blog.

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1.) Q: Do you agree with the advice that you should always write about what you know?

A: Not really. When you're writing "realistic fiction," it sometimes is best to stick with what you know, because otherwise your story might not ring as true with readers. However, you can always do research--and I have found research immensely helpful. Also, how could authors write fantasy stories if they only stuck to what they knew?

2.) Q: Have you ever read the book Life of Pi by Yann Martel?

A: I have read the book Life of Pi. It was a very interesting book, and I would recommend it to others.

3.) Q: Have you thought about reading more about chinese history / folklore and [then] coming up with an interesting fantasy novel?

A: I do enjoy reading about Chinese history and folklore. So far, I have not written a story about either, but I think it would be a fun idea. Thanks for suggesting!

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I also received many questions not related to the Channel 4 documentary. Here are a few.

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1.) Q: Where are you from?

A: I was born in Springfield, Oregon, but I currently reside in the town of Redmond in Washington State. If you haven't heard of it, don't worry. It's pretty small. Oh, and it is the headquarters of Microsoft.

2.) Q: How do you get started writing a story that will become a good book for people to read?

A: It does depend on your definition, and your reader's definition, of a "good book." To get started, I would advise you to first think about three important things: your story's characters (the people/animals in your stories), your story's setting (the place and time in which your story is set) and your story's conflicts.

3.) Q: Are you in the middle of writing any stories right now?

A: Not really. However, I am in the middle of editing my novella, the Pickpocket Princess.

4.) Q: How many books have you published?

A: So far, I have published two books, Flying Fingers and Dancing Fingers. I will be publishing two more books soon, Yang in Disguise and the Pickpocket Princess.

5.) Q: How many siblings do you have?

A: I have one older sister, Adrianna.

6.) Q: Have you moved a lot?

A: It depends on what you call "a lot!" I was born in Springfield. Pretty soon after that, we moved to an apartment in Bellevue, but that was only for a couple of weeks. By the way, I was really young, so I don't remember any of that part. Then we moved to Renton, and that's when I began remembering things! My dad works for Microsoft and it was sort of a long commute from Renton to Redmond, so we moved to Redmond. And I don't think we're going to move again for a little while.

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I hope that you've enjoyed reading this post. Best wishes to all!

-Adora

Things I've Learned Recently

Alas! I haven't updated the blog for ages. Here's my new post about things I've learned:

In history, I've been learning about the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation. The Reformation refers to the movement that pushed for reforms in the Roman Catholic church. In the 1500s, the Catholic Church needed reforming in many areas.

Firstly, some Renaissance popes lived like kings. Pope Sixtus IV was guilty of nepotism; he gave many important church positions to family members. Julius II was one such family member. Also known as the "Warrior Pope," Julius built himself lavish new palaces after deciding that the papal apartments were not good enough. He was famous for leading papal armies into battle against defiant city-states. The picture shown depicts Julius II.

Of course, there were some "grassroots" problems in the Catholic church as well, starting with nuns and monks. If you came from a noble family, you might live in lavish apartments, with "worldly goods" around you. In fact, the saint and nun Teresa of Avila, who later founded the Discalced Carmelites, at first lived in a spacious suite with its own kitchen in her convent, thanks to her noble birth. This picture of a sculpture by Bernini depicts Teresa of Avila having a vision.

The problems of the church became more apparent when Pope Leo X started actively marketing "indulgences." Basically, if you paid enough money for an "indulgence," you could skip purgatory (where sinners were "purged" of their sins) and go right to heaven. Obviously, this idea appealed to a lot of people. However, one monk and theology teacher, Martin Luther, thought that the sale of indulgences was wrong--and said so. Martin Luther posted what he called his "Ninety-Five Theses" on a church door. The "Ninety-Five Theses" criticized the Catholic Church.

Of course, it was dangerous to criticize the church. In fact, a monk named Jan Hus who had criticized the sale of indulgences in the 1400s had been burned at the stake. The Catholic Church gave Martin Luther a chance to recant, or take back, his Ninety-Five Theses, summoning him to appear in a city called Worms. Martin Luther met with church officials and refused to recant the Ninety-Five Theses. The meeting was known as "The Diet of Worms." However, as far as I know, no worms were eaten. The picture at the side depicts Martin Luther (in the habit, with the shaved head) at the Diet of Worms.

Martin Luther's ideas spread. Other reformers began spreading their own ideas. John Calvin helped to spread Protestanism, which was created as a protest against the church. Slowly, the Protestants began gaining support.

All of this worried the Church. Between 1545 and 1563, Pope Paul III held a series of meetings, called the Council of Trent, in the small city of Trent. The Council of Trent attempted to answer basic questions about the Church and their policies, and to define what it meant to be Catholic.

As a result of the Council of Trent, some church members were inspired to lead more pious lives. The Archbishop of Milan gave up many of his worldly goods, and, when the plague spread through his city-state, he stayed behind (and later died) in Milan. People like Ignatius of Loyola, who led an order of priests who became the Jesuits, and Teresa of Avila, who encouraged nuns to give up worldly posessions and distractions and live simple lives dedicated to prayer, led the charge.

But the Catholic Church used more macabre methods to intimidate "heretics." They set up courts of Inquisition, which tried people for heresy or blasphemy against the church. If suspected "heretics" did not confess, they could be tortured.

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I hope that you've enjoyed reading my post. Feel free to leave comments!

Essay written about the election

Most of the historical events of my lifetime have occurred while I was watching TV. For instance, on November 4th, Election Day in the U.S., I was bouncing on top of the comfy leather couch in my mom's room, watching the elctoral map closely. When Barack Obama was declared President-Elect of the United States, I was actually checking the time on my computer.



"ADORA!" my mother bellowed. I rushed to the TV. The first thing noticed--"Barack Obama Elected" in the corner of the screen. I shouted loudly and jumped on the couch. I was relieved that Obama had kept the election from John McCain's clutches--and by a glorious amount, too.



At the same time, it was very depressing to hear McCain's concession speech. It would have been easier if he had acted ingracious, angry, and more Bush-like, because then we could have been more joyous about Obama's victory. Unfortunately, McCain was gracious, sad, and resigned to his fate.



Obviously, the outcome of this election was extremely important to me. As a shamelessly partisan Democrat, I did not want to imagine a McCain administration. That was made even more frightening by the idea of Governor Sarah Palin becoming vice president.



Although I can understand why the historical aspect of this race has great importance to many, I believe that this election is historically significant not just for the color of the candidate's skin, but also because of the practical fact that a Democrat will be our next president. At the same time, I believe that this election has shown that we have made large steps on the path toward racial equality. Despite your own political affiliation (and I hope that I have not offended too many people), I think that, in such interesting times, this election is of humongous gravity no matter what.

Fake ad I wrote for a made-up medicine: Protorvia

I’ve been a cell-phone gabber my whole life! I’m a chatterbox sort of girl. But Type 2 musclodesklegenerative disorder, brought on as a result of excessive cell phone use, can make it hard for chatterboxes like me to keep their routine going. That’s why I was excited when my doctor told me about Protorvia. Protorvia is the once-a-month pill that will keep me on my cell phone for a whole month!

Quieter, fast voice while showing distracting images: Do not take Protorvia if you have allergies to peanuts. Do not take Protorvia if you have risk factor for excessive sneezing, as Protorvia may affect your nose and esophagus. Do not take Protorvia if you take statins. Some common side effects of Protorvia are bloating of the stomach, hair loss, migraines, sleep-boxing with amnesia for the event, strep throat, typhoid, tooth loss, mental sluggishness, slowed blood flow, heart attack, and full body paralysis. Death has been reported. Do not drive, walk, or breathe until you are sure of how Protorvia may affect you. Call your doctor immediately if you experience any sudden loss of life.

See how Protorvia can make the one-month difference! Do what I did. Ask your doctor about Protorvia today.

Musical Preferences

When giving presentations via videoconference I am sometimes asked what my favorite kind of music is. At those times I will usually start off by listing the types of music that I dislike. This, for me, is a great deal easier than listing the kinds that I like. I will list for you here some types of music I dislike, in order of most disliked to "I guess it's sometimes okay" position:

1. Rap. I'm not even sure if rap can qualify as music, but anything that a majority of the United States teenage population likes probably isn't intelligent talk radio. I've taken to doing rap parodies to annoy people, namely my older sister. Whenever I come into the room she blasts Soulja Boy on, high-volume, in order to annoy me back.
2. Pop. As in today's pop, like Avril Lavigne and the Jonas Brothers. I would describe it as "high-pitched wails, clashing vibrations of shallow idiocy, and altogether unpleasant." I know that I'm probably offending quite a few people here.
3. Country. Country music may have been okay in the past when the subject matter actually seemed realistic to the time period, but now it's not so great.

By the way, I am aware that I'm probably offending quite a few people here, just in case you were wondering.

Menu for my Imaginary Country

The Promenade
Restaurant and Winery
188 Orient Avenue
Penthouse, the Crimson Building

Appetizers

The Promenade Special: Gourmet cheeses accented by wine of the day and organic apples with salad. $10.92

A Rustic Flair: Biscuits and smoked salmon. $6.38

Summer Delight: Sliced orange garnished by goat cheese and sun dried tomatoes. $6.00

Verandah Crunch: Mixed nuts with plain yogurt. $6.00

The Alleyway: Pumpernickel bread with honey-brie cheese. $9.99

Entrees

Catch of the Day: Halibut, salmon, mackerel, or tilapia, grilled to perfection. $32.60

The Clam Shack: Fresh clams lightly breaded with honey-coated multi-grain. $28.00

Pasta Canasta: A variety of noodles with ravioli and tortellini, complimented by basil tomato sauce and Shiitake mushrooms. Salmon on request. $29.95

Countryside Platter: Organic veal, pork, and lamb, with parmesan cheese and rigatoni. $36.34

Wind of the Sea: Salmon teriyaki with clams, oysters, mussels, and dulse. $29.99

Vegetarian Variety: Platter of fake meats and breads with one salad of your choice. We do not use cows’ milk, eggs, or other animal products. $23.98

Three-cheese pizza: Our pizza features goat cheese, mozzarella, and gorgonzola, with sun-dried tomatoes. Our cheeses use vegetable rennet. All of our pizzas are baked in our traditional wood ovens. $34.99

Vegetable pizza: A variety of vegetables with mozzarella cheese and deep-dish crust. $38.99

Side Dishes

Potato slices: Accented by rosemary, basil, paprika, thyme, dill, and oregano, our potato slices are baked a golden brown. $11.99

Rice Variety: Black, brown, white, and purple rice. $11.00

Small breads: Multi-grain, white, potato, and cornbread in miniature size. $12.30

Soups and Salads

Farmer's Pride: Butternut Squash soup with cilantro. $18.22

Fisherman's Best: Genuine clam chowder with vegetables and breadsticks. $19.99

Mushroom Lovers: Cream of mushroom soup with herbs. $16.00

Sweet Salad: Mixed fruits and vegetables garnished by grass. $17.99

Multitask Salad: Meat, seafood, fake meats, fruit, and vegetables. $37.00

Keep it Simple: Lettuce and cabbage garnished by grass. $10.00

Desserts

Dark chocolate and mocha ice cream bar $27.00

Island Sorbet (orange, lemon, lime, and coconut flavored sorbets) $30.00

Fudge squares with chocolate chip ice cream, garnished by assorted candies $29.99

Chocolate cheesecake slice $23.00

Tiramisu cake slice $23.99

Chocolate hazelnut cake slice $23.00

Coffee cake $22.76

Assorted fruit with whipped cream $18.67

Plain sponge cake slice topped by fresh fruit and sugar glaze (gelatin-free) $23.00

Variety ice cream (chocolate-chip, fudge chocolate, vanilla, vanilla-chocolate, raspberry cheesecake, dark chocolate, huckleberry, blackberry, strawberry)

Beverages

Cognac (aged 12 years) $210.00

Chardonnay (8 years) $156.99

Cranberry cocktail $52.99

(For full list of our wine selections, ask your server)

Non-alcoholic: Fresh orange/grapefruit juice, iced cranberry juice, any of the former with carbonated water, bottled water, mineral/vitamin water.

Vietnamese Cuisine

As I will be going on an Asia tour this November through Hong Kong, Beijing, and Vietnam, I am doing some research on Vietnamese cuisine--just in case some if its not-so-savory sounding foods (dog meat, for instance) disturb my semi-vegetarian diet during my stay.

According to http://www.geocities.com/vietnamrp/french_influence.htm, a website I would strongly recommend for research on Vietnam, the French had a large influence on Vietnamese food because of their colonization of Vietnam. One obvious influence is French bread.

According to www.reference.com, one popular dish, with noticeable French roots, is the "Vietnamese baguette, French bread containing paté, Vietnamese mayo, different selections of Vietnamese cold cuts and deli (a large variety, most commonly with ham, head cheese, and a Vietnamese bologna), pickled daikon and carrot, cucumber slices. Often garnished with coriander, black pepper."

Another influence on Vietnam's cuisine was neighboring China. There are many similarities between Chinese food and Vietnamese; rice is a staple part of diet, there are a lot of vegetables, and many people eat meats like chicken and pork. China's "baozi" inspired the Vietnamese Banh bao.

Some of Vietnam's more "exotic" meats include fertilized duck eggs (eating a nearly-developed embryo), snake, soft-shell turtle, and goat. Some of these are, however, according to www.reference.com,

"cocktail delicacies" with alcohol, and are not considered typical everyday
fare."

According to Wikipedia, "Its [Vietnam's] characteristic flavors are sweet (sugar), spicy (Serrano peppers), sour (lime), nuoc mam (fish sauce), and flavored by a variety of mint and basil."

Vietnam is also famous for its noodle dishes, which are acclaimed around the world.

And although dog meat and fertilized duck eggs may sound strange, keep in mind that American monstrosities like hot dogs and French fries probably seem weird to a lot of people!

Phrases of my Imaginary Country

Phrase: One hobbling crook is better than ninety-two strong monks.

Definition: One "bad" person who is too weak to do anything is better than ninety-two "good" people who are strong and zealous.

Origins: After the reign of Voledads' first duarchy, a religiously devout sister and brother pair, the Trinansitic archbishop took control of the country and installed harsh rules against those opposed to the Trinansitic faith. Monks were the new "bad guys" in their violent searches, secret surveillance systems, and total control of the legal system.

Phrase: Hag's Revenge

Definition: Hag's Revenge means a medicine that does more harm than good.

Origins: Alternative medicines became popular in the 1970s with the rise in buying of foreign goods and "exotic" objects. Alternative medicines, which were also known as "Hagfood" for the alternative apothecary stereotype (generally old women in the popular imagination), were soon at the center of a nationwide scandal, due to toxic elements found in some alternative medicines.

Phrase: Cutting cupboards

Definition: Conserving space

Origins: As cramped immigrant tenements, stylish condominiums, and massive villas sprouted up across Voledads, conserving space became a neccessary part of life. Cupboards, the traditional Voledadian storage unit, were usually heavy wood pieces of furniture, with such ornate decorations and add-ons that took up a great deal of space. The cupboards often stored less than they weighed, so many households in urbanized areas began "cutting cupboards."

A Trip to Whole Foods

The familiarly large "Whole Foods Market" sign in green loomed ahead of us. How an unobtrusive, material green sign could remind me of an hour's worth of delicious samples and galloping wild through the aisles of delicious everything! We walked less-than-demurely inside to be greeted by large bouquets of flowers. My sister Adrianna and I snooped about the samples. There was something rather sneaky about eating samples.

Eating ice cream from Whole Foods seemed somehow more justified than from some other store. Perhaps it was because most were boldly emblazoned with "Organic." Perhaps it was because of Whole Foods' reputation as a healthy store gave ice cream this reputation as well. Perhaps it was because Whole Foods ice cream was most often very good. Simply looking at ice cream made me giddy with anticipation, thinking of mouthfuls of chocolate chocolate-chip...being in the ice cream section melted away all the day's worries, temporarily at least.

After all our shopping was done, I hopped back in the car, weighed down with all the bags to carry, but feeling as though I could levitate off the ground with satisfaction.

Focus of Expertise: Chinese History

Imagine yourself in a land of red-tiled buildings with sweeping roofs and gardens at every turn, your footsteps pressing the ground where the Emperor might have walked. Who could resist entering the Forbidden City of Chinese history? As my new "Focus of Expertise," I will be studying Chinese history and posting updates on my blog.

My topic will span some of the country's development through the years. I chose Chinese history because I (most ashamedly) know little about it, because China is a large and growing world power today, and because, of course, I am half-Chinese.

From various biographical and historical fiction readings, I have some understanding of Chairman Mao and the Cultural Revolution, as well as (less so, however) Ancient China.

The following questions are some that I hope to answer and that I hope possibly that some of my readers will be able to answer.

How and when was China settled by humans? How did the first emperor come to be the first emperor, and who was he? What was the Chinese people's attitude to different rulers over time?

Third-person perspective of my day

It was a day much like any other, except that it was a weekend day and Adora and Adrianna were anxious to line up in the kitchen, should they just barely miss the introduction to 60 Minutes. Adora ate very little but did cram a grape leaf most rudely into her mouth. She also took a fearsome swig of cranberry-raspberry juice before departing to lounge on the carpet.

Before this, the morning was bright and cheery and fresh. Sunlight streamed through the two windows in the bathroom/bedroom. Adora had slept here for the last two nights. The bed was of dark and creaky wood that gathered dust with its infrequent use. It groaned and squeaked as she rose sluggishly off of it to dress and put her hairpins in order atop her much mussed hair.

The family sat down to a large Sunday breakfast of waffles with sugar-powdered raspberries. Despite the splendor of the day outside, the house remained an inferno of papers and pants strewn all about, sharpener-shavings embedded in the carpet, pine cones littered about the downstairs floor...

All of this, of course, needed to be changed, and what a better day to ruin with the loud and droning Vroom-vroom-vroom of the vacuum than a beautiful weekend?

This is a parent's point of view.

The children begged to differ.

PART II OF THE DAY

After a long time spent in cleaning--or, as the case might be, hiding from those who were doing the cleaning--the family set off (most exhaustedly) ambling away in the pill-buggish minivan for the week's shopping. Among some of the items bought:

Almond cheese

Jarlsberg cheese (much to the children's chagrin)

Monterey Jack cheese

Bread

Bagels

Potatoes

Laundry detergent

Tissue paper

And so on.

Comfortably propped up in bed against a blue faux-fur monster of a pillow lay a girl preparing to turn off her computer...

A Trip Crabbing

Last weekend we went crabbing with our aunt and uncle near the Canadian-Washingtonian border. We started out in our aunt and uncle's golden car, which always reminds me distinctly of a fat pill-bug. We piled our things in the car haphazardly--my backpack rolled around at my feet in front of a keyboard-print pillow and a large green cooler, while our uncle bombarded us with math questions pertaining to the number of days it would take to drive so many miles, etc. These questions were successfully answered, and we soon settled into a long discussion about various types of food.

Ah...food! Our first stop was at the Bellingham's Farmer's Market, a large and busy place, smelling of kettle corn, herbs, and cheese sticks. Some of the booths were more homogeneous, lined up in much the same way with the same white canopies stretched over the poles. Others were more conspicuous, shading some creative artisan behind hat-stands or sculptures or jewelry. We purchased some fruit and vegetables (not to mention a temptingly sweet bag of sugar-coated pecans, and a cheese stick). The sugar-coated pecans had the texture of an obstinately hard vitamin, the crunchiness and crispness of an overbaked cookie, and had the same filling taste as a gulpful of sweet lemonade.

Our next stop was to start crabbing. Our other aunt and uncle were there, as well as our maternal grandparents. The crab-nets were heavy and bothersome. I watched (entranced) as our gloved aunt put a raw chicken leg into a small cage inside the nets as bait for the hungry crabs. Our other uncle threw the net, like a frisbee, into the murky water, where it splashed like a skipping stone. We waited expenctantly over a delicious lunch.

My aunt was at the epicenter of this lunch, chopping tomatoes and cucumbers while talking loudly in Chinese, watching the lines of our crab nets until she determined they were ready to pull, and laying out tasks for her minions (our uncle and me) to complete. Namely, putting cheese and/or ham into the sandwiches. Our grandmother's lunch seemed to be made up entirely of peanuts and watermelon, although I could be wrong.

We caught a great deal of small crabs, one of whom seemed to be in raw-chicken-leg paradise, having managed to get halfway into the cage and feast upon his reward. We threw him back. My sister's official role was to prod the little crabs who got stuck on a bit of the dock that protruded out beyond our reach, with a chopstick or popsicle stick or whatever struck her fancy. I helped, and felt a feeling of satisfaction afterwards, as though I had saved the world. (It is a simliar feeling when one gives an ant struggling with a bread-crumb a lift in your palm back to its home.)

Every so often I would observe the number of crabs lounging in the tepid water inside my aunt's hat-shaded bucket. I thought it was over six, although I never would know for sure.

Thrice-Told Tales of the Big Apple

Having sadly neglected my blogging duty, I again take keyboard in hand and proceed to tell this audience of today's events.

I was invited to the "Big Idea" program on CNBC recently. Today we boarded the plane at a pitiful seven AM to charge through the clouds at New York City. This is my fourth time in the Big Apple and I must admit, I hope to no offense, that I did not anticipate the plane journey with much happiness. Neither did I feel particularly reasured when we took off, leaving bloomingly bright Seattle-Tacoma Airport behind us.

It is currently, I believe, seventy something degrees in the humid weather, but no hot weather is pleasant with the sound of a suburb sprinkler replaced by honking horns, the smell of a summer's freshly cut grass forfeited for the exhaust of a limo. And, of course, overshadowing all of these petty complaints, no summer day, not even one bedecked in cookies and cream, silks and satins, could be as pleasant without my sister, and my dad alongside us.

Speaking of Adrianna, my older sister, I came up with this the other day (believe it was Monday)--

"The woodpecker is to tree as Adrianna is to me."

This quite accurately represents sibling rivalry, although how do you like this one:

"The woodpecker is to tree as Republicans are to democracy."

Okay, a little bit offensive, and probably not true (in some cases.) But what else rhymes with "tree"?

In any case, back to business. Speaking of which, we're in the business room in our "cosmopolitan and contemporary" NYC hotel, Flatotel. My mom pronounces it "Flotel". While it's seven nineteen PM right now, it's four nineteen in Seattle, I think.

More updates later.

ADORA

I do love "dw" words immensely, though, at the moment, I can only think of two, "dwelling" and "dwindling", both of which I use quite a bit. The word "dwelling" seems to conjure in mind an image of a a moss-covered cottage, hidden by the thorns of long-long ago, and "dwindling"--well, dwindling food supplies, perhaps, and a warehouse riddled by a trillionaire's greed. Speaking of conjured images, today we did a project in class focusing on writing about a time in which we imagined ourseves as something else when we looked at something. I looked at a map and immediately imagined myself as a cartographer shut up in a tower drawing with a feather pen on a sheet of vellum. (As a cartographer, this is rather heavy on animal products. Adrianna would cringe.) I copied and pasted mine into here (by the way, it's third person. "She" is myself):
She looked at the map inquisitively and an image came into her mind, a sage of sorts bent over a sheet of fine vellum like that of the days of the lore of gods, a sheet like that from the days when maps were drawn by hand by sages in sepulchers. She was the sage, in a robe crinkled with the use of an eon, layered in a film of dust like sand on a mussel’s shell. She wielded a pen of ink from a river of thought, thoughts so sharp that a sword of Hephaestus’s make could not compare. Slowly the Mongols crept across the wrinkled vellum border; slowly the ink filtered through so Luxembourg, Andorra, lived; the blue Danube waltzed its way across in ink of blue jay-blue; the pilgrims inched across to Plymouth Rock, and slowly, Lewis and Clark made their way past the prairie dogs. New Lands of centuries; deserts of millenniums; names upon the sepia vellum in a spidery script. The map was spread across the table, the table’s wood fine but insignificant to the wise, with jaded minds; all the lands and all the men that maps had turned to mimes. The map progressed like a sage’s action, not so quick as thought, and, quick as a sage’s action, the sage turned to face a weather-beaten table marked by a day of scratches, faces she knew to be of no recent renown, and the map upon the wall that had conjured the magic.

We forced our teacher to write one as well. Hers was quite funny; the image sprouted from a flawless flower planter, exploring a world of TV microwaved popcorn dinners and stark banality. In class, I won the Review Quiz for the third time in the row. At the moment we are studying the Civil War and its many characters. My favorite, so far, is General Winfield Scott, otherwise known (my preferred title for the man) as Fuss n' Feathers. His name is of much debate in our classroom. We are unsure of whether it is spelled Winifred or Winfield, having seen it spelled both ways. We went on a walk today after dinner, with our mom, dad, and Adrianna, and played a merry game of Tag in the "safer" boundaries of Nike Park (namely, the playground). Adrianna, disobedient soul she is, brought her bike despite protests, and was forced to lug it back down (mostly rocky terrain, and too dark for pleasant riding). It was sunset, beautiful in its piercing red (though as we trudged back, grinning soldiers from a warfield looking forward to rewards, it was much later, dusk), red like the strawberry popsicles we licked triumphantly back home. Sadly, the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train, a slow journey through picteresque landscape on train, will soon be closed down ("why doesn't King County buy it and make it a commuter train?" our dad says, pounding his fist upon the table in a fit of intellectual rage), to make way for a highway. In any case, it's ten thirty seven PM.

The Larabar

Ah--the blanket of paradise-like plastic adorned beautifully with anticipation falls to the "oohs" and "aaaahs" of the assembled audience, followed by awed silence like that in a cathedral. The Holy Grail of sweet tooths, the treasure chest of health advocates, the gourmet chef's dream. The snack for the sweaty commute across inner city, the outdoor lunch on a backyard equestrian dream. Play-doh for the babies not yet graduated from incoherent goos and gahs; wholesome broth for the graybeards.

LARABAR.

Go to www.larabar.com to see more of my reviews and info about Larabar.
To learn more about the nine-year-old author of this review, go to www.adorasvitak.com .