dcarch

There are digital active noise canceling hearing aids, and earphones, which may be useful in a noisy environment. dcarch

Real estate! When rent is expensive, you need to pack tables as close as possible. Every time the distance is cut in half to the sound source, intensity quadruples (inverse square law). The noisier it is, the louder you talk, the louder everyone talks ----well, there, it gets noisier! Maintenance. Flat hard surfaces are easier to clean. Flat surfaces reflect sound and cannot dissipate acoustic power. dcarch

Do they tell you what pressure it develops? dcarch

They do make printers which can print directly on a flat and hard DVD disc. How about a 3-D printer? they are not that expensive. dcarch

Just use adhesive backed paper. Any printer can be used. dcarch

Many thanks to liuzhou for the epic Chinese vegetables documentary. It inspires me to try more new ideas. dcarch SV chicken on bitter melon.

I think until recently almost all food are cooked in China. dcarch

Nori (sushi seaweed). dcarch

Leftover various odds and ends meats from the freezer: Leftover tamales dcarch

Chinese tea leaf smoked duck! dcarch

When I was in China, I had that in restaurants many times. I would say they tasted like asparagus both in flavor and texture, somewhat milder and more tender. I was told that in China, they are purposefully infected with the organism so that the stems would swell. As was mentioned above, they are banned in the US because of the infection. However, I was able to find frozen ones sometime ago in Chinese stores. They were labels as Bamboo shoots. dcarch

It does not matter how cold it gets, as long as the water is deep enough, it can't ever get colder than 32F. dcarch

I was studying the science of non-sticky-ness, and came across the scientific term "the lotus effect". Basically the water repellent property of some materials is similar to the waterlily (lotus) leaves. You will notice that in Buddhism, deities often sit on lotus leaves.because lotus symbolizes purity. It rises in muddy waters and in dirt and can still remain elegant, pure and clean, Lotus is high respected. Lotus seeds can be viable for hundreds of years. Some one grew a lotus plant from a 1,400 year old seed. I had grown an old seed in a bucket and it germinated and gave me a nice beautiful flower. dcrch

A lot of corn's sweetness is dependent on when the corn is picked. Young corn eaten right after picking can be sweeter than the same corn eaten much later after picking. dcarch

I understand that in China (it used to be) sweet potatoes and corn were low class food, mostly fed to pigs. So was truffle (the mushroom) were fed to pigs. BTW, everything, every vegetable eaten in China is for medicinal purposes. Every mother is a herbal doctor. dcarch

When I happen to be near Chinatown, I like to get a couple of scoops of taro ice cream. Mott Street? dcarch

Tentacle Spectacle, (not the musical) Liuzhou posted chayote in the amazing Chinese vegetable post "--Perhaps less well known is that the leaves and young shoots of the chayote vine are also edible and a popular vegetable in southern China. Often described as 龙须菜/龍須菜" By coincidence, I harvested a bunch of chayote greens from my garden, and made some squids with them for dinner. Squid and veggie, both with tentacles. dcarch

I grown both the green and the purple in my garden They taste the same. Very decorative plant. Every year, they self-seed. dcarch

As I remember, sweet potato belongs to the Morning Glory family botanically. They taste pleasantly interesting. Mild and with a hint of fragrance. Always tender and not fiber-y. I grow them in my garden. A creeper and a climber. Massive supply of greens for stir fries. Can't eat them fast enough. dcarch

Speaking of spinach, the Chinese stores here in NYC has Malabar spinach. I also enjoy sweet potato greens ans snow pea shoots. These three vegetables are not that cheap. dcarch

Puff The Magic Calvatia Gigantea I was doing some work in the garden, found this giant puffball. It seemed to have magically appeared. It wasn't there a day ago. Made SV beef tenderloin on sauteed giant puffball steaks. dcarch

Sorry, steam is liquid water. Water vapor (moisture in air) is invisible. If you can see cloud (steam), it is water vapor already condensed into liquid water droplets. Haha! I am in a nitpicking mood. dcarch

That is a very small sink. Is that the only sink? Is this considered normal size sink in your area? Interesting picture. What kind of lens/camera? Doesn't look like a fish eye lens. dcarch

This is what I do. I also work from the stem end, but I dump the cabbage in boiling water first to soften the leaves first. This way they will not crack. Or, I use napa cabbage, much much easier. dcarch

Pawpaw can survive to zone 8. I am growing two in my garden. You need at least two for pollination. dcarch