that's a child molester's mandoline! okay, maybe that's in poor taste, but who still remembers the frugal gourmet on PBS between 1988 to 1997? jeff smith was his name. and who remembers what happened to him afterwards, when several men came out accusing smith of molesting them when they were teenagers? PBS dropped his show and he pretty much disappeared after that, passing away in 2004. a quick search of ebay shows nobody selling one of these online - wonder how much i could get for it? my aunt lili gave it to my father, who in turn gave it to me because my parents didn't need it. too bad the growing season is over, i would've had all sorts of fun slicing tomatoes and cucumbers (and no, using a knife just wouldn't be the same). i just like having another cooking gadget to add to my ever expanding collection of kitchen tools.

want to hear about the weird dream i had last night?

for some reason i had to relocate from my bedroom into a dorm room shared by celtics basketball player kevin garnett. this dorm room looked exactly like the one i had when i was in college, a long skinny room with a bed on each side and a desk below a window at the far end (south hall representing!). kevin welcomed me as his new roommate but had to step out, maybe to play in a game. even though he's supposed to be a basketball player, he didn't seem particularly tall, maybe 5'10". somebody called on the telephone which turned out to be a wrong number. while i was answering it, i looked out the window and saw a shuttle bus bringing people dressed up in costumes. it must be halloween, i thought, october 22nd. there was a man below making a lot of noises wearing a borat-style man-thong. i suddenly noticed how warm it was in the room and took a peek at the thermostat: 78°! i started to turn down the heat, afraid kevin would make me share his utility bill. what am i thinking? he can afford it, he's a millionaire. in my dream i was sort of confused why an NBA star would still need to live in a dorm and share it with somebody else, but since i needed a place to stay, i didn't ask too many questions. i noticed a pair of pants in a laundry basket and i was tempted to try them on, just to see how long they'd be. on one of the walls hung several framed scenic photos, a testament to kevin's classy taste (no dorm posters for him). i left to go to the cafeteria, but since i didn't get a key yet, i took all my stuff with me.

i spent the afternoon watching football games, naturally. i was rooting against the colts and the cowboys, the two teams that could potentially topple the new england patriots in the post-season. unfortunately both teams won their respective games: the cowboys won by a narrow margin on one last drive in the final minute, while the colts completely demolished their opponents (the baltimore ravens, the same team that almost beat the pats on monday).

i made it to my parents' place earlier than usually, because i didn't want to leave in the middle of the patriots-steelers game starting around 4pm. i got a ride to the cafe where i then drove one of the cars back to belmont. going into the game, i was worried. the patriots had just finished 3 consecutive night games, the last one this past monday, with barely enough time to get some rest and practice before today's matchup. of the 4 remaining games left in the regular season, the steelers seemed to be the team that could end the win streak, on paper at least. the game didn't start so well for the pats, who couldn't capitalize on their opening drive. the steelers managed to get 3 points on their turn. but then the pats' offense started rolling, scoring 2 quick touchdowns to bring the score to 14-3. it didn't take long for the steelers to make an offensive push of their own, scoring a touchdown to come within 14-10. a steelers' field goal brought the score to 14-13 but the pats managed to get a field goal of their own to end the half, with the score at 17-13. after the halftime, new england opened it wide up, the highlight being the trick play where brady threw the ball to randy moss, who them fumbled the ball before throwing it back to brady, who threw it down the field to jabar gaffney waiting in the end zone. the steelers - so effective in the first half - couldn't do anything in the second half. besides being demoralized by trick plays, pittsburgh also had difficulty converting 4th downs, turning the ball over to new england on several drives. when the dust settled, the steelers didn't score a single point in the second half while the patriots won the game 34-13. now that the game is over, i'm not even sure what i was so worried about. the pats might see the steelers again in the playoffs, provided the steelers made it into the post-season - although there are bigger fish to fry in january, like the colts. can't wait until next sunday, the slaughtering of the jets!

for dinner we had some fried salted fish. afterwards my mother searched for some gemstone beads on my MBP while my father looked up ways of putting a motorcycle inside of a honda element (a collapsible ramp is required). i got a ride back to cambridge later in the evening.

when i got home i finally opened up the care package from alex that arrived on my doorstep today (i didn't see it because i didn't leave the house until much later - although it probably arrived sometime saturday). inside was a tin container of tokyo disney halloween cookies (these must be the most well-traveled cookies i have ever received), as well as a trio of plush onsen manju AKA japanese hotspring sweetened bean paste buns. at first i didn't know what they were, thought maybe they were cute japanese versions of body fluids (brown and green i get, but pink?). alex actually logged online briefly to explain the gifts. i also got a present from suhan's girlfriend, a photo book about africa (was this a christmas present? woops).

i finished out the evening watching some local late night sports talk shows, then went online searching for pittsburgh steelers blogs, just so i could read on the opposition's take to tonight's game.