Happy Birthday My Ma!

Today is my mom's birthday.  I really wish I could have been home for her birthday dinner but I have been really busy that this wasn't a good weekend to go home.  :(  I did call this morning to wish her a happy birthday .. I think she wanted me to make the drive home because I haven't been home since Chinese New Year.

Sigh ... :(  I'll see everyone in a few weeks though.  It will be three months since my last trip to Toronto.

Read more...

Turning my hobby into a side job

After my first photo sale, I was "hired" to photograph a charity badminton tournament this summer.  It's a four day tournament featuring junior and senior players.  I'm so excited!  :) 

I know I never post samples of my work .. but tonight, I photographed the University of Ottawa Team Challenge.  Here are just a few pictures from that tournament.



These pictures are originals - no touching up.  I'm not skilled in Photoshop yet.  :P  There is a red glow in the pics because the vents are painted red and there is a lot of red detailing around the gym.

Read more...

My first sale - Yay!

Today, I made my first picture sale!  Someone bought a photo I took at the last badminton tournament.  :)

Read more...

Life As I Know It: March 6th, 2011

Time flew by so quickly.  Not much to blog about these days.  I have been busy with work and a gazillion other small things.  Like my internet issues.  It has been down for a few days and Rogers technical support is just useless.  I eventually got myself to a Rogers store and traded in my faulty cable modem for a better one.  During my no internet time, I was surfing on my phone and using my data plan (gasp!).

Anyway, I'm looking forward to my next visit home to Toronto.  It looks like I will be back around Good Friday/Easter Monday long weekend.  Too bad there isn't a long weekend in March.  :(

I haven't posted wine picks for a while so here are my latest selections:

Affordable White:
Amaral Cool Climate Sauvignon Blanc 2010 ($14.95).  Sauvignon Blancs are excellent when paired with "lighter" foods like appetizers or salads.  But they also go really well with Thai food.  :)  SBs are light, crisp, and usually very fruity.  New Zealand is best known for producing excellent SBs but this one is from Chile and is quite good.

Affordable Red:
Bodegas Lan Crianza 2006 ($15.00).  This rioja was #44 on Wine Spectator's Top 100 list in 2010.  For $15, this red is a steal.  It's not a heavy wine so best paired with a nice medium rare steak.  I'm hungry just thinking about the combo.

Big Money White:
I got nuthing.  :)

Big Money Red:
J. Lohr Los Osos Merlot 2007 ($19.95).  I think this might be the 2nd time I've recommended this wine but I don't care.  It's a great red!  It came out this weekend and it is outstanding with medium rare prime rib.  Pudgy-tested.  :)

Honorable Mentions:
D'Arenberg The Footbolt Shiraz 2007 ($22.95).  Aging potential and excellent producer.
Terre Di Rubinoro Vino Nobile Di Montepulciano 2006 ($17.95).  Was my 2nd choice for Affordable red.

Really Big Money Red:
Vineyard 29 Cru Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 ($59.95).  It's a California cabernet sauvignon and excellent aging potential.  It's got nice colour, aroma, and a lot of flavour.  Score: 92.

Read more...

Life As I Know It: Feb 1st to Feb 6th.

Drove home last week to spend Chinese New Year's with my family.  It was extra special because Sam, Steph, and the kids (Hong, Seph, and Sienna) also made the drive up.  There was a snow storm warning the day that I left Ottawa.  On the drive out, there was a blowing snow between Ottawa to around Kingston.  On that stretch there were a lot of unmarked police cruisers on the road.  I drove by 2.5 accidents as well.  A half accident?  A full accident is when police, ambulance, or tow truck is present .. and usually more than one vehicle is involved.  A half accident?  This pickup truck managed to drive into the side ditch and was stuck.  It tried to back out but spinning wheels just dug it deeper into the snow bank.

I made it home safely and in time for dinner.  :)  Since it was Chloe's first birthday, I made chocolate cupcakes with pink icing.  Even though she's only 1, her mom gave her a small sample of cake and she liked it.  :)

It snowed overnight and dumped around 10 cms.  It was heavy stuff!  Sam and I shovelled the driveway.  It was good exercise but I certainly paid for it the next day.  My back was so sore but in a good way.  Despite the snow, the IBM Lunch group made it to work and lunch at Diamond Restaurant for dim sum.  Even Vicky who was working from home, made it out for lunch.  It was really nice seeing everyone.  It was the first time I attended a group gathering since ....

I drove back on Saturday afternoon.  It was a perfect drive.  Although I got nervous at one point when I noticed a car speeding up behind me .. it was a Ford.  And then .. uh oh.  It was an unmarked cop car.  I changed over to the next lane and the unmarked Ford drove by me.  I was going 120 at the time but the cop still pushed me out of the way.  Good thing he didn't pull me over.  :)

I promised to cheer my friends on at MG this year.  My friend managed to get me a t-shirt from the organizers!  Awww .. thanks C!!  I will wear it proudly one day. 

Read more...

Windchill of -36C

I dunno about you but it's cold out there.  The good news is .. the canal is going to be nice and solid!  :)  Skating anyone?

Read more...

My First Tournament

Well .. I mentioned in my last blog post that I had signed up to play in my first badminton tournament - OU Smashfest 2011.  It was a lot of fun.  I played mixed doubles with Justin Ngo.  He and I have played together at the badminton club before and we make a good team.

At first, Justin wanted to play pure mixed - me at the front, while he covers the rest of the court.  We lost to a really good team at the start but we had some good shots.  The second game .. I don't know why but I felt a bit more nervous than the first game.  I thought we could have won the second game but unfortunately we lost that too .  Since we were guaranteed three games, I wanted to play doubles' strategy for our third game - just in case it is our last game.  That's when everything started to click.

We started playing better and won the next two games.  We ended up in D finals against a much younger team - they were practically kids.  I really tried my best and it paid off.  We ended up winning 2-0.  I'm a much stronger player than I was a year ago.  I used to not run as much and give away points .. now I actually hustle and I have good shot placement.  My friends were so proud of me - first tournament, first win.  To celebrate, we went out for Korean food.  Yumm.

I'm exhausted but I'm good.  Next is the Mark Grantham team tournament but I won't be around to play or take pictures.  It will be Chinese New Year weekend. 

P.S.  thanks Shirley for giving me a great door prize - Hello Kitty pyjamas!!!  :)

Read more...