A dream come true for Jet and Kaly

Hannah and I went to the local supermarket, Countdown for our grocery shopping today, and we were pleasantly surprise to find a HUGE bag of chicken frame for sale at $6.99! We had to double check the price with one of the salesperson because we cannot believe what we saw - why nobody was picking up this bag?!

When we reached home, Jet and Kaly must have thought they were dreaming because there was this
HUGE bag of chicken frame right in front of their kennel! This bag of chicken frames would probably last them for a month!.. Now we just have to skilfully stack the chicken frames in our small refrigerator.

Great bargain!

Finally....

It's here, FINALLY!

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Talk with Davy

Today I had a skype session with Dr. Simon Davy, my co-supervisor. He is the only coral biologist in NZ and one of the top coral biologist studying coral zooxanthelle classification in the world. I am glad I live in a world where I can have instant communication across the country and world. Dr. Davy teaches in University of Wellington and without total's technology, it means we can only talk face-to-face or via letter!

The one-hour long conversation gave me more insights to the biology of coral reefs which my primary supervisor is unable to provide because he is a hydrologist. Dr. Davy is interested to know how my PhD will turn out because according to him, it is already a challenge to just work on the biology aspect of corals, now, I am adding a hydrodynamic aspect to it...he called it a "left field" project!

Before we ended the conversation, we came to a conclusion of yet another working title for my PhD  -
"Interactive effects between environmental factors and microbial communities in coral reef colonies; implications on the holobiont health."

Meaning of "left field"  (from Wikipedia) -

As in "that insult really came out of left field". Unusual, unexpected, or irrational. AHDI dates this idiom back to the mid-20th century; it also states that the precise allusion is disputed, but a number of theories exist. Rumored to originally describe fans who came toYankee Stadium to see Babe Ruth (a right fielder, and also a left-handed hitter whose home runs most frequently went to right field) but who bought tickets for the wrong side of the field. Another legend is that the phrase originates from the location of the Neuropsychiatric Institute building of the University of Illinois College of Medicine, which was built on land that was once part of left field at West Side Park, the former home of the Chicago Cubs.

"Depp's performance came out of left field in The Curse of the Black Pearl; nobody had ever thought of channeling Keith Richards and Pepé Le Pew before". — Kent Williams, Isthmus: The Daily Page. 

In search for the perfect soup dumpling

Hannah and I visited NYC in March 2009 and one of the most memorable things is the delicious soup dumplings in Chinatown. It was a small, non-attractive Chinese shop with a long queue outside the shop throughout the day. I had known about the shop when I was working in NYC couple of years prior. We queue for half and hour before we got our seats, and when we went into the shop we had to share the table with two other parties. However, it was all worth it because it was the best soup dumpling we ever had. The dumplings were served in a streamed bamboo basket, and the skin was so thin that it would break if you pick it up with your chopsticks.

Ever since then, we have been on this quest for best soup dumplings in Auckland. The results have been disappointing. However, Hannah had heard about this place call Jolin Shanghai Chinese Restaurant in Mt. Eden and it was rumored to have great soup dumplings... Can you imagine our excitement!? We decided to go and try out the dumplings today. It is a small restaurant with less than 12 tables, and nice little Chinese decorations.

Verdict:
It was the best soup dumpling we ever had in Auckland, but it is still not comparable to the ones in NYC. The skin is a bit too thick and tough. Furthermore, I think the meat in the dumpling are not as well seasoned. However, the shop has another signature dish - Braised Pork and it is delicious! Very fatty and very tasty! The meat are cooked slowly to allow the spices to mix into the flavors of the pork, and connective tissues turn into this gluey, tasty gel. It was served in a nice Chinese-design pot with hot water at the base to keep the dish nice and warm.

The food is good, and the price is reasonable. The two dishes are large enough for both of us as a full meal, and the total cost is about $25.

Braised pork

Soup dumpling

Hannah trying the dumpling

Hmmm... verdict?

Hannah's birthday cake

In the midst of all the excitement about the treasure hunting and the dinner, I forgot all about Hannah's birthday cake! All this time, it was in the refrigerator. I made Hannah not to look at it until I get out of work today. Again, happy birthday. Small double cheesecake, with dinosaur candles :)

Where the magic happens

Not a big fan of inspirational speeches and talks, but I saw this picture on facebook today, and I think I should share it.

Most of us, if not all like to live in the comfort zone. And this is NOT wrong! You don't want to wake up everyday and get ready to challenge the world. Some of the days, you just need to relax and do the things you are best in. However, in the long run, in order to create magic, you need to move to the other circle... move to where the magic happens!

Today, I heard a meaningful sentence on my audio book. Technically, you are not the same person you are 6 months ago. Your whole body, each and every cell had been replaced! On a philosophical sense, if you are different now, why would you want stay in the same place? You should challenge yourself, do something different, do some scary and create some magic.

Now, go out today and create some magic.

Hannah's birthday

Ribs with mashed potatoes and vegetables

Today is the day we ended our 1-month vegetarian meal plan, and it is also Hannah's birthday. So what else is better than celebrating her 26th with pork ribs. Hannah was in school, while I came home early. Prepared the ribs, put in the oven for slow cooking over 4 hours. Cooked some mashed potatoes, cherry tomatoes and beans to go with the delicious ribs.

Hannah hunting for her present

Also, I bought Hannah a gift voucher from one of the shoe stores on Queen street. She always been staring at those shoes at display in the store. Not that I think she doesn't have enough shoes, but she is Hannah..the shoe lover! :) However, she has to work for it ... she had to hunt down the note for her birthday gift which I stuck in one of the balloons among 100 balloons.

Happy birthday, love.

Provisional PhD

Microbes could be the key to coral death

I had my first meeting with my primary adviser, Dr. Paul Kench last Friday. I have 8 provisional goals to reach within these 6 months in order to be a confirmed PhD candidate. These are the goals:

1. Full thesis proposal
2. Production of one substantial piece of written work
3. Presentation of research progress to a departmental seminar
4. Approval of the full thesis proposal by the department/ faculty committee
5. Attendance at one of the Doctoral Skills Program Induction Days
6. Undertake Diagnostic English Language Needs Assessment (DELNA) online screening
7. Undertake preliminary trip to field site to obtain baseline ecological, geomorphic and hydrodynamic data
8. Learn and demonstrate competence in field and laboratory skills necessary to undertake microbial analysis of coral tissue.

The working title for my PhD research is "the effects of water flow on the microbial community structure in coral reef colonies and its implication to coral diseases.

Most, if not all field and lab work will be performed in Taiwan, collaboratiing with Dr. S L Tang from Academia Sinica. Therefore, I will be doing some travelling between New Zealand and Taiwan during the next few years. Although Dr. Tang had agreed to help me with funds for my field work as well as some lab work, I am still eagerly searching for more funds. I approached the University of Auckland scholarship committee a couple of days ago, and unfortunately, the qualification for PhD scholarship is purely based on GPA, without any consideration for the prospect of the research!...This is quite disappointing given that the school has always prided itself as one of the leading research institute. Anyway, onwards to search for more funds!

During our meeting last Friday, Paul mentioned that I should attend the International Coral Reef Symposium (ICRS) 2012 which would be held in Cairns, Australia between July 9th - 13th. He mentioned that although it is expensive (entry fee approx. NZD1200!), it is the biggest gathering of the world coral experts under one roof, and the next symposium will not be until 4 years later. It will be a great opportunity to get to know leading scientists, make new contacts and tap these brilliant brains for my research. Sigh.. need to look for more money :(