Sauerkraut Fish 酸菜魚

I really like the "foreign" name for this Chinese dish 酸菜魚 - Sauerkraut Fish! Sauerkraut... it's German, but many people here who really only learnt English as a second language wouldn't know what it is... and then they are all scratching their heads, "what's that?"

I went out with my bestie yesterday to try this famous "Sauerkraut Fish" restaurant chain from China,  太二酸菜魚 Taier Suan Cai Yu (Taier Sauerkraut Fish). They have a... host? bouncer? Host!... that is hugging a fish plushie (my first WTF? moment LOL). And then going into the restaurant, after the host announces "table for 2", a server leads us to our table, but as he does that, ALL the servers start chanting something. Maaaajjjjooorrr WTF?????? LOL! Maybe it's a Northern Chinese Restaurant thing? Because I remember some 20 years ago, there was a specialty northern chinese tribal restaurant in town and they had a similar walk-in experience as well.

So we get this box to try to draw out "fortune sticks" by shaking it. Again, must be some new "cool" slang but of northern China or mandarin variety, even my friend didn't understand what it meant.

Century egg, but with quail egg instead of duck egg, so it's mini! and it's more yellow than black? Ah, I actually saw a documentary about this - it's just the egg wasn't left to ferment long enough. There's less... I don't know what, carbon? sulphate? whatever, or something, so that's why it's not black. Despite the very red oil and the red past on top, it wasn't all that spicy, I was able to eat it. As for the "Sauerkraut fish", it's a sliced fish in a soup base cooked with preserved cabbage (thus, sauerkraut) and again, although there's quite a bit of chilli and ALOT of peppercorns, it wasn't overwhelmingly hot. It was nice.

After lunch, we went to one of the crystal shops I like to shop at, and the girl offered to read my friend's 五行 5 elements. For a detailed reading, she's gonna charge of course, so she only gave some very basic reading... saying my friend has "wealth" but she has no "store", so she can't really save up money. Also some pointers about her being not good with Fire and Water.

I asked for a read as well, and for me, I have no "wealth" but I have a lot of "stores" (in fact, I have 3 "stores")... but I can't save up money because, I have no money LOL.

I told my friend to give me all her money LOL.

Apparently I'm not good with Fire and Wood... pity, I have such a pretty red garnet bracelet. But this little insight tells me I need more yellow (to attract wealth) and white (metal), blue (water) are good for me.

Of course, I can always just say, "I don't believe in this kind of thing!" and wear all my red stones (fire) all the same LOL LOL LOL. But I am indeed now in the market for something yellow. But next month only. Because I saw a very pretty flourite bracelet (it's purple! and gradually turns to green or aquamarin on one side!) so I need pace my spending!

Pettiness level: 100

Sorry for all the negativity on Easter of all days. Happy Easter, Feliz Páscoa, Frohe Ostern and all that. 

But I have just got to rant!

So, once again, on this festive day, we had to have this grand family lunch. Who else had to make calls restaurant by restaurant to check prices and availability? None other than yours truly. So I get it done, I get it booked. Come the day, today, we go to the restaurant, because the elders can't walk much, I drop them off at the hotel entrance that's the nearest to the restaurant location (the hotel has like, 4 entrances to different wings and all that), then I drive the car down to the underground car park.

By the time I reach the restaurant, the elders have, supposedly, gotten the table. But apparently, they didn't like the table, and were complaining, and asking for this, and asking for that. Internally, I did roll my eyes, but by now I know how my Mom is, so I kept my mouth shut, and just went to the new table. She comes by and starts "don't you start now, that table was terrible!" I had a huge question mark over my head. "Don't I start what?" I asked. "Your damned attitude!" She replies.

My attitude? What attitude? I didn't sneer, I didn't say anything, geez! My attitude! Okay. In all honesty, I don't mind being chastised, if there's some truth to it. But if you're just accusing me of shit? Riiiight, I'll show you attitude. I most certainly did not participate in any conversation today over lunch, except for talking with the cousins. Mom asked me where Dad is? I just waved the approximate direction he went to. As I was the one to make the reservation, I paid for the group as well, and I made all the calculations of how much it was per family group. 

Gone home, walked the dogs, and it was time for mass. So they all prepare to go to mass, I not. Mom asks me if I'm going to mass. I say no. "Why not? It's Easter!" 

"Just nah."

You know what I hate the most? Being a fake and good old hypocrisy. You can be a goody-goody two shoes and go to all the mass services and all the novenas and prayer groups, but if you are just a bitch in your every day life, you can't convince me that you are "God's faithful servant" or some other shit like that, sorry. Even if you're Mom. So I don't go to church and mass, you consider me a heathen, that's fine. Because I have a clear conscience of what I've done and I've done no harm whatsoever.

I mentioned the other time, a nun I visited was berating me for skipping mass and all that as well and preaching that "you need the faith!". Well. Guess what. I have faith. I live by my faith. But I have no time and patience for all that "prettify the front for people to see", because that's all fake. You want to tell me you are a good person? It's not by going to mass every week and putting 10 bucks into the offering box, that's not convincing to me. Want to convince me? Show me in your bloody daily actions. How you treat others. How you treat people lower than your station. How you treat people of a different cultural or social background. 

Going to mass every week but every day backbiting people, gossiping about things not related to you, passing judgement on things you don't know about, picking fights about the littlest things? Don't kid me. No wait, I don't really care. Don't kid yourself.