NonStick World: Pam Kong's Weblog

Ok. There is no sale. But I am moving.

I have created a blog on my own domain. Please visit me at http://pamkong.com/blog

SO: Mui, put on some socks.

MUI: I am Alice in Wonderland. Call me Alice.

SO: Ok, Alice. Put on some socks.

MUI: Alice doesn't wear socks.

SO: You better put on some socks or both Mui and Alice will get a timeout.

Mui puts on some socks and then comes into my office with the wig still on.

MUI: Mom, Alice doesn't listen very well.

Mui: Daddy, what word starts with "O"?

SO: Orange

Mui: Open

SO: Opposite

Mui: On

Mui: What word starts with "P"?

SO: Pig

Mui: Pink

SO: Pear

Mui: Panda

Mui: What word starts with "Q"?

SO: Queen

Mui: Quilt

SO: Quit

Mui: Are you telling me to quit it?

I never realized what a huge impact Chinese holidays and celebrations had on marking the passage of time until I move to Utah, away from my family. The weeks and months pass, the seasons change and the only thing that marks the passage of years are my husband's, my kid's and my birthdays.

When we lived in California, we would regularly have dinner or dim sum with my parents. But during Chinese Holidays, it was mandatory that the whole family got together; all 17 of us (my parents, me, my 5 siblings, 5 significant others, and 4+ children). Chinese New Year lands in February, bringing candied fruits and cakes. June brings the Dragon Boat Festival and rice dumplings wrapped in leaves. September brings the Mid-Autumn Festival and Moon Cakes. December brings the Winter Solstice Festival and rice balls in soup.

In Utah, 800 miles away from my Chinese self, we anticipate the next Chinese New Year when we make it a point to be in California to celebrate with family and good food.

This past election season I noticed something about my parents. They take being citizens seriously.

On our last visit to them in CA for my brother's wedding, I noticed that they had one of those ballot measure information booklets. Inside, each ballot was marked. They had done their homework and were ready and eager for election day. It was then I realized that they had done this every election since they became naturalized in 1980. They not only voted, they made it a point to understand what they voted for and why.

Thinking on this, I realized they also took jury duty seriously. They never tried to opt out even though they had 6 kids at home and ran their on business. They figured out a way to ensure that they did their duty.

I wish I could say that I never allow inconvenience to hamper my doing my duty as a citizen. Seems at 34, I still have a lot to learn from my parents.

My husband and I have been introducing our 4 year old to Star Wars.

We were apprehensive as she may have been too young for 1) the story line and 2) the violence.

It turns out she is ok with both. She is pretty good at leaving movie and TV events in the make believe realm.

In Empire, when we got to the part where Han was frozen, she got really quiet. She asked what happened to him. We told her that Vader froze him, but that he was still alive. He just couldn't move. She tells us she's really sad.

Then, when Vader reveals to Luke that he was Luke's father, she repeated what Vader said and told us that can't be right, that Vader is the bad guy and couldn't be Luke's father.

We'll be watching Return of the Jedi this weekend. We'll see how she reacts to the twists.

ME: Mui! Be careful. You tripped me and I almost fell on you and killed you.

MUI: Mom, but if you kill me, you can't eat me.

ME: What?

MUI: We're not dinosaurs.

ME: And if we are?

MUI: Then you would eat me and it would be ok.

Or it seems that way.

I received an iTouch a couple of weeks ago. I was still figuring stuff out when my 3 year old picks it up and starts navigating the screens like a pro, finds pictures of herself and starts paging through them. I was awestruck.

It turns out that she had played with my brother's iPhone a couple of times before, but still. Apple has designed the user interface for the iPhone/iTouch that is completely intuitive. So intuitive that my kid is a pro at navigating the screens and finding movies, songs, pictures and games.

I have always been impressed with the thought Apple puts into usability. But this really takes the cake.

The latest in China trying to make Olympic travelers feel more at home involves what Beijing residents should wear (or not wear). 1) No more than 3 colors in one outfit, 2) No pajamas when out visiting neighbors and my favorite, 3) No white socks with black leather shoes.

What started out making sense, Don't spit everywhere, because it's just common sense hygiene, has become ridiculous of late. I thought the whole point of have the Olympics in different countries is for people to visit countries they otherwise would not have. Can you call the experience genuine when exotic menu items are removed or people don't dress like they normally would? I say no.

So, if you are traveling to China for the Olympics, be sure to venture outside Beijing. You can't say you saw China, unless you see China. There are things that make your heart skip a beat, because it is beautiful (view from Northern section of Great Wall) or because it freaks you out (cars going wrong way, toward you, on highway). There are things that make you sad (a lot of poor people) and things that make you smile (Grandpas and Grandmas playing with their grandkids).

I know that the Chinese government wants to show China's best side and I can't help but feel that the experience will be less than Chinese.

ME: Where does Gung Gung, Po Po work?

MUI: Cache Creek.

ME: What is Cache Creek?

MUI: It's a workshop...for old people.

My kid and I were at the Miller Motorsports Park to support my brother in his quest for a professional drifting license (who knew THOSE existed).

After a long and hot day, as we head toward the car, my kid needs to go to the bathroom. We search for one but I only see the men's room. I am exasperated."Where's the freaking bathroom?"

We finally find the women's room and when we're done, my kid asks me where we were going now. "We're going to find the car and head home."

Without missing a beat, she asks "Where's the freaking car?"

My husband, 3 year-old, and I visited Disneyland in May. It's the second time she's been there. The first time, she was 2. She was definitely more able to appreciate it this time.

Below are some tips on how to get the best experience for you and your pre-schooler.

1) Get a stroller first thing - Disneyland has these jogging type strollers with awesome maneuverability and it fit our big 3 year-old. We would have stolen it if they didn't have guards everywhere. You can also prepay for multiple days, which we did. On the morning of the second day, we just showed them our receipt and breezed away with a stroller while others waited in line.

2) Use Fast Passes - Many of the popular attractions have Fast Passes. Machines at the specific attraction will scan your admission ticket and give you tickets that show when you can return to skip through the line. There are limits to how frequently you can get the tickets. Many times, the timeframe they give you is way longer than waiting in line. Where we could have used it was on Splash Mountain. We waited 60mins - a lifetime for a 3 year-old.

3) Meals with Disney Characters - We did both the Minnie and Friends Breakfast and Princess Dinner. We called a month ahead to reserve a space. If they don't have room, you are S.O.L., whether you paid or not. Our kid loved both. She is really into Princesses right now. My husband and I enjoyed the Minnie breakfast more. If you have to choose, pick the Minnie breakfast and bring your kid to the Princess Fantasy Faire to meet the Princesses.

4) Tickets - We got park hopper tickets as we were there two days and the price was the same as Disneyland only tickets. The Princess Dinner is in California Adventures, so we needed it anyway. But if you are only visiting Disneyland and only for one day, the Disneyland only ticket is way cheaper than the park hopper.

5) Accomodations - We stayed at the Sheraton Anaheim, on the other side of I-5 from Disneyland. They charge $10/night for parking and have a free shuttle. When we return with my family and nephews and nieces, we will likely stay on Disneyland Hotel, but for just the 3 of us, it was not cost effective.

My kid has been complaining about her foot hurting whenever we ask her to do something she doesn't want to do. Since I, by default, got a medical degree when I birthed her I tried to diagnose the problem. Here is today's Chinglish word.

gum-ing
- verb
steadily applying weight or force
"My foot hurts where you are gum-ing."

Today's Chinglish word is inspired by Melanie's comment on another entry.

So
- verb
to list or name numerals in order
My sister - "Mui, that's 1."
Mui - "You're not my mommy. You can't so me."

Tweeters were challenged yesterday to write a story using 6 words a la Hemingway: "For Sale: Baby shoes, never used."

@editweapon won a @zappos contest where the prizes were a Van Halen towel and a $100 gift certificate to zappos.com. @editweapon decided to pass on some of his spoils by presenting the $100 gift certificate as the reward for the best 6 word story.

Here is my submission: Parents dial 011-86 to call home.

I don't know who won or if they have chosen a winner yet. But I loved the opportunity to flex my creative writing muscle.