You Can Get Your Fill of Ramen at Home

If you are into ramen and need a quick fix, then this is good news for you.

For your convenience, noodle makers, such as Nissin, offer a value proposition of packaged ramen which you can cook in the comfort of home over a pot of boiling water for the required 4 minutes or so.

Having tried the following Hokkaido miso ramen (a bundle of 5 packets for just under SGD 4.00), I am pleased to say that the stock is flavourful and the ramen is springy, making for a slurping and heartening meal.



Itadakimasu! (or Bon Appetit!)

You may wish to top-up with some meat, egg or vegetables. If you are not accustomed to shopping for fresh produce, then just open a can of sardine and/or sweet corn and you can have a sumptuous bowl of ramen without having to make a trip to your favourite ramen restaurant and still satisfy your craving 24/7.

To the uninitiated, ramen was first served in 1910 when Chinese noodles were combined with Japanese broth. Since then this signature dish has evolved into a quintessential Japanese dish that has been spreading steadily into many parts of the world.

The 4 basic types of ramen are as follows:

1. Shio Ramen (salt ramen) where the broth is clear and derives from a combination of salt, chicken, fish, vegetables and seaweed;

2. Shoyu Ramen (soy sauce ramen) with a clear brown broth by cooking chicken or vegetable in soya sauce;

3. Tonkotsu Ramen (pork bone ramen) where the broth is thick, creamy and milky white as a result of pork marrow bones which have been simmered for hours;and

4. Miso Ramen (fermented soybeans paste ramen) which has a robust and tangy broth based on copious amount of miso blended with chicken or fish stock.

And, if you are sold on it, you may wanna click here to see how you are supposed to eat your ramen like a pro.



  

The Little Girl Who Dared To Wish by Alan D. Shultz

While reading "Chicken Soup for the Soul - Unlocking the Secrets to Living Your Dreams", I came across this eye-cleansing story of Amy Jo Hagadorn who suffers from cerebral palsy and was often teased for her physical challenge.

When a Christmas wish contest came around, she took part and wrote:

"Dear Santa Claus,

 My name is Amy. I am nine years old. I have a problem at school. Can you help me, Santa? Kids laugh at me because of the way I walk and run and talk. I have cerebral palsy. I just want one day where no one laughs at me or makes fun of me.

Love,
Amy "


Click here to read the full story.

Much Ado About a Gate Signage

When passing by a construction side I can well understand the logic of the words for a signage such as the following:-

From the aforesaid wordings it would imply that the gate is to be closed whenever the workers are inside or outside of the secured area. I am sure it did not mean that the gate cannot be opened at certain times or under certain circumstances.

This brings me to the next sign which could well prove to be a strong contender for greater conciseness to say what was meant to be conveyed all along when saying that 'gates must be closed at all times' :-

It is refreshing to have read this different take on the gate signage.


Related posts on words in public places:

* No Letting Up On Words

Oil Paintings by Leonid Afremov

You can relax over a cuppa and view some brilliant oil paintings by Leonid Afremov at his online gallery by clicking here.

For your quick refreshing, please enjoy a handful of his works shown below:-
 

WHEN DREAMS COME TRUE — PALETTE KNIFE Oil Painting On Canvas By Leonid Afremov - Size 30"x40" 













FAREWELL TO AUTUMN— PALETTE KNIFE Oil Painting On Canvas By Leonid Afremov - Size 36"x30"

ITALY, LAKE COMO - VILLA BALBIANELLO — PALETTE KNIFE Oil Painting On Canvas By Leonid Afremov - Size 30"X36"                           

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

       

GERMANY - CLOUDS ABOVE THE RHINE — PALETTE KNIFE Oil Painting On Canvas By Leonid Afremov - Size 54"x40"                                                                                                            

Related post on oil paintings:

* Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)
 

Going Gaga Over Bananas

Bananas never featured much in my diet until recently. It must have been due to a confluence of factors such as the relative ease of peeling a banana over other fruits such as an orange or a papaya, the potential boost of energy from eating a banana (think of Michael Chang munching on bananas during breaks at the French Open) and the filling up of the stomach without having to resort to additional fattening carbohydrates.

Click here to read up on “25 Powerful Reasons to Eat Bananas”, some of which are highlighted below:

*High in potassium and low in salt, bananas are officially recognized by the FDA as being able to lower blood pressure and protect against heart attack and stroke.

*Eating bananas will help prevent kidney cancer, protects the eyes against macular degeneration and builds strong bones by increasing calcium absorption.

*Bananas make you smarter and help with learning by making you more alert. Eat a banana before an exam to benefit from the high levels of potassium.

*Bananas are high in antioxidants, providing protection from free radicals and chronic disease.

*Bananas are high in antioxidants, providing protection from free radicals and chronic disease.

However, as in all things, moderation is the key. Some studies show that eating bananas in excess may cause headaches due to the amino acids in them (more so in overripe bananas) that dilate blood vessels. Also, when bananas are taken in excess, the high tryptophan found in them can cause sleepiness. Moreover, bananas contain sugar which may cause tooth decay in the absence of proper oral hygiene.   

Just for fun, bananas do not grow on trees and the ‘trunk’ of a banana plant is a pseudo-stem. Truth be told, the banana plant is the largest herbaceous flowering plant and bananas are botanically a berry. By the way, the word “banana” comes from the Arab word “banan,” which means finger. No wonder, a bunch of bananas is correctly known as a hand!

Now, take a finger of banana and figure out the word by removing six letters from SBIAXNLEATNTAESRS. (Hint: We are still on the topic of bananas.)


For Related Posts on Health Food, please click on the following:

* Zest Up Your Life With Lemon 

* Manuka Honey

Live Your Dreams by Les Brown

When I think of Les Brown, what comes to mind is "Live You Dreams", a book written by him, which I had read some two decades ago.

Thanks to technology, it has been refreshing to reconnect with Mr Brown's teachings through YouTube after having just watched a Tony Robbins clip.
 
Click here to hear out what he spoke so passionately about at a "Woodstock of the Mind" gathering.

For those of you who are hard pressed for time, this is a mishmash digest, with adaptation, of what I have managed to jot down while listening to him:

"Live Full, Die Empty.

Set some goals: 1) Personal Goals; 2) Professional Goals; and 3) Social Contribution Goals.

Do not take your Dreams, Ideas, Talents and Abilities to your grave.

Shoot for the moon and if you miss you will still land among the stars. 

Tell yourself:

A) It's Possible to live your dreams.

It is the enemy within which hinder us; the enemy outside can do us no harm. Get your dream out of your mind into your greatness. Live great; how you do anything is how you do everything.

B) It's Necessary to believe in your dreams and have a plan.

 I expect to reach my goal.

Recognize the importance of Only Quality People (OQP). Associate with OQPs.

I will fail my way to success. When things go wrong, don't go with them. Look for the lessons, learn from them and move on.

C) It's Me (It's all up to me)

Live full, die empty. I can do more. There is a calling on my life.

D) It's Hard (It's not going to be easy)

When you mess up, hold your head up (and move on).
You gotta be hungry; be persistent (like how he prepared and waited patiently and expectantly for an opportunity to 'break-in' as a disc jockey).

When life knocks you down, try to land on your back. Because if you can look up, you can get up. Let your reason get you back up.

Provide more service than you get paid for.

Impact drives income.

Build relationships."

Get going and set some goals, if not already done so. May the following quote from "Live Your Dreams" propel you to set goals and take charge of your life:

"Your goals are the road maps that guide you and show you what is possible for your life. Life takes on meaning when you become motivated, set goals and charge after them in an unstoppable manner. Goals help you channel your energy into action. They place you in charge of your life."

If you are interested, you may wish to look up Amazon.com for "Live Your Dreams" by Les Brown by clicking here.

I Am Saying Nothing By Saying Something

I enjoy watching The Voice with my family as with millions of others the world over. It’s a singing competition which is famous for its Blind Auditions where the judges are seated with their backs facing the aspirant singer. (The other no less distinctive stages of this competition are the Battle Rounds, the Knockouts, the Live Playoffs and, finally, the Live Performance Shows.)

If any of the judges thinks you have potential to progress and grow as a singer on the basis of your voice alone, he or she will hit a button and the chair will turn around with “I WANT YOU” lighted up at the base of the chair. 

It gets more interesting when more than one of the judges want you. When this happens, they will start to engage in mental gymnastics or semantics to ‘fight’ for you to join their team and be your coach -- which has evolved into a show by itself; a la show within a show.

In this current season of The Voice, the four judges are: Adam Levine, Gwen Stefani, Pharrell Williams and Blake Shelton. It is such fun to watch them exchange banter and draw from their arsenal of resourcefulness to persuade and (hopefully) secure whom they believe could be transformed into an eventual champion.

Well, I would love to hear from one of the sterling stallions’ mouths something along these lines to a prized contestant in a future episode and pull it off with a deadpan expression:

“We are all equal, but one of us is a tad more equal than the others. Now, I am not saying that I am better than the other three judges although they may disagree with me on my saying what I have just said --which is no problem for me, either way. What I am saying is that I am saying nothing by saying something so that you can make an independent and informed choice. So, who would choose to be your coach?”

Click here to start getting into The Voice and be inspired to pursue your dreams.