Jan. 輕乳酪蛋糕

輕乳酪蛋糕  -  6吋Spring-form 

To my dear, Yang, 眾多的甜點中，乳酪蛋糕無非是你的最愛！

在屬於你的月份連番烤了好幾回這個輕乳酪蛋糕給你，這回換了食譜，使用了隔水加熱的作法（又稱：水浴法），減緩烤蛋糕過程中升溫太快的問題，降低了cheese cake中間塌陷的狀況，外觀儘管還是有些許的龜裂，但外型的完整度已經可以見客了，你說是嗎？

Utah 4 National Park Itinerary - 2014 Xmas

臨時起義的聖誕旅行，是我與楊第一次在美國的旅行，有別於以往在歐洲當背包客，這回要讓我們不滿一歲的小白試試身手，走一趟名符其實的Road trip。

-- Arches National Park --

由於這回想去的四個猶他州的國家都是楊兩年前曾與朋友一塊去過得，因此他對行程的安排已經頗有想法，在那幾個點要停留多久的節奏都還記憶猶新，一兩晚的十間我們便把五天的行程安排出來，迅速的上網找旅館，訂出最後拉車的time table，可說是計劃旅行最有效率的ㄧ次。沿途經過五個猶他州的國家公園：Bryce Canyon NP，Capitol Reef NP，Arches NP，Canyonlands NP＆Zion NP，從洛杉磯出法，總里程長達1636英哩（約2632公里）

----行程摘要 Travel Itinerary----

Day 1: Los Angles --> Panguitch (night)
Day 2: Bryce Canyon NP --> Capitol Reef NP-->Moab (night)
Day 3: Arches NP --> Moab (night)

Day 4: Canyonlands NP --> Hurricane (night)

Day 5: Zion NP --> Los Angeles

-- Canyonlands National Park --

五天的旅行，光車程全程就要26個小時的，說不趕是騙人的，但是這樣周遊一圈讓人意猶未盡的感覺很值得！適逢聖誕假期又是冰天雪地的冬天，遊客算是非常少；加上我們又遇到了大風雪，前面兩個國家公園部份關閉因此免費進入。唯一可惜的是在大風雪中很多看來驚心動魄的trail我們都沒機會走到，真的冷起來的時候連羽絨衣也不管用，全身縮在一塊，下車五分鐘就已經感覺不到腳趾頭@@實在難以盡興。

-- Bryce Canyon National Park --

冬天裡不乖乖待在陽光加州，就該預見這類不可抗拒的天候因素，寫在這裡也好讓未來想走這個行程的朋友參考一下。好在接下來的行程就少有大雪，只是滑溜的icy數度讓我們打滑，也是驚險萬分。原本最期待的Arches拱門國家公園在我進入Canyonland峽谷島國家公園走進地一個trail之後馬上就輸了！峽谷島的景致實在太震懾人，完全擄獲了我，是我與楊在這幾個國家公園中的最愛。回程路上受不住誘惑繞道重返Zion錫恩國家公園，沒有時間再次挑戰Angeles Landing（天使降落），然仍時分享受了走完一條較少人選擇的谷地小徑，好好的舒展了雙腳，為接下來的塞車回落城做了最佳的準備......

Wanting a long walk/工作一周/Zumba

周六尚早，自知事還沒有睡足卻醒了。過了立冬的洛杉磯溫差大，白天裡還是熱，最舒服的莫過於早晨與傍晚，最適合賴床不過。沒有再夢到打訂單的事，醒著只知道自己好想要take a long long walk。

無由的，我想念起荷蘭的平坦與荷蘭的涼，想要走入一片林子，遵循簡單的路線就是一直走一直走。地勢沒有太多起伏變化，一條路，樹木或枯或綠，一瓶水一個三明治一個蘋果，十點到四五點，讓自然的冷與平沉澱心緒。

我好想要去走走，卻不知道去哪裡找這樣一片林子，或是一條古色古香的老街來迷路。在天天曬著太陽的加州，我已經感到厭膩了；面對豔陽，跟在一年只有兩三周好天氣的荷蘭是兩種心情。話說回來，抱怨天氣大約也是荷蘭留給我的遺毒之一。

周末了，可以賴床時我確醒了，隱約中已經養成了上班族的作息？平日與周末的區隔是給上班族與學生的，接下這份兼職的工作，總算終結了我長達10個月的無業生活。少了做研究時的彈性，深感時間被綁架之感。

黃金年代

驚見昨天錯過電影"黃金年代"的海報，又讀"梁文道：餓成死物（餓相之一）" 突然好想讀蕭紅，讀張愛玲，魯迅等作家的作品。

喜愛那個年代的作家，樸實又或華麗，轉瞬的霓虹燈火，讀起來比一千零一夜更異國更鮮明。筆下的世界或灰或艷都是極飽和的色調，好像活在那個年代的人的樸實都充滿了用力的活下來的生命力。


蕭紅《生死場》好讀網站　http://www.haodoo.net/?M=book&P=1135
梁文道：餓成死物　http://www.commentshk.com/2014/09/hunger.html

秋賞 Inyo 國家森林

跟著玩的旅行時常在歸來之後才發現搞不清楚自己去過哪裡，好在旅途中仍睜大了眼，除了欣賞沿途的風景也好好follow了是開了哪條高速高路才抵達目的地的，要不可真是糊里糊塗的玩了一回。話說也才剛從北加南下不到一個月，我們又老遠的拉車四五個小時北上，就是為了抓住秋天的尾巴，看不到美東秋天的楓紅，我們去賞美西的那一片金黃。

抵達Inyo National Park這個區域之前，我們在途經的二戰時期日本人集中營紀念碑停留Manzanar War Relocation Center，一旁的博物館解說這段歷史。二戰期間，美國國內的日本人不為美國社會所接納，害怕他們是敵方的間諜，政府以保護這群美籍的日本人在美國的安全為由，強迫他們遷居到這個集中營般的社區生活。

許多原本在美國混得很不錯的日本人在大環境極度不安定的狀態下，倉促的拋售了房產住近了極度沒有隱私與擁擠的集中營，在物資貧濟的土地上，她們發揮創意把集中營弄得更像一個家，直到戰爭結束才重返都市生活。儘管並非納粹式的種族屠殺，這個戰時強迫收容所的遺跡也近乎在地表上消失，這段黑暗的歷史沒有被忘記。離開簡陋的收容所，我們重返繼續馳騁在加州的陽光的road trip上，八點從LA出發抵達第一站Bishop city時已經一點了。我與楊在車上吃了前一晚沒機會吃的便當，省了一頓只在Jr.點了一杯可樂窮開心。

面試日，我

有楊的支持，對於求職真的少了許多壓力，年初以來也較能習慣新的生活步調，從原本快速的節奏中慢下來。然而面對畢業即失業的狀態仍讓我多少覺得不安，儘管家人都說不急，也不要亂找然後做了之後反覺得不合適又浪費時間。然而對於就想要試試看職場生活增近歷練的我來說，實在很難有效利用時間做一些進修，大多數的時候還是不知不覺的閒散的把時間消磨過去了。

這次透過朋友的介紹，很快的在CV投出去之後就得到回應面試的機會，預料中但仍感欣喜，至少是一個機會。聽起來是一個文書方面的工作。在沒有得到更多工作所需技能與要求的情況下，這才發現要準備一個適切的投其所好的自我介紹滿困難的。我想了許久但遲遲無法有一個完整的故事。除了把自己的經歷在回想一遍找出一些亮點，並把論文摘要在看一看，想想如何用一兩句話把大意給講出來之外，最重要的工作似乎是說出想要這份工作的動機！雖說出發點可能真的是"想要一份工作"，但在了解到這個公司的主要業務就是做貿易之後，我便就此發揮，畢竟這幾年來我的研究主軸一直都是圍繞著國際貿易方面的議題出發的。過去我一直都是看數據做分析，想來，我滿希望有機會接觸並了解進出口業務實際進行的流程。這大約就是我最後想到最能發揮的切入點。

A place I want to live in

Weeks ago, me and my husband was still living in the southern Bay area. We took a night walk in the seemingly safe residential area. Suddenly when a car made a turn into the street we were on and pulled over for a street parking space a few steps before us, both of us later confirmed with each other that a thought fleshed through our mind, a thought that a person may came out from the car with a gun and start shooting at us. What a scary thing to have imagined.

World Cafe, friend of my own

Today I finally get myself to attend the World Cafe event hosted by the Dashew center, ie. the international student center of UCLA. Even before I got myself a first cup of coffee, I met someone that clicked! Though arriving late, we chatted even after the event ended and promise we'll definitely hangout sometime.

---photo from Dashew website---

After coming here for ten month now, most of the people I know are of my husband's friend, who are mainly engineers. With no negative feeling or prejudice about engineers, as my husband is one of them, I feel they see me as "the wife of xx", instead of an individual person. This is a new feeling to me. Although me and my husband dated for almost 10 years, we were in a long distance relationship and did not have much common friends.

Over the years, we tried to visit each other and get to know each others' friends. However, it's difficult to become friends with them as we'll have very weak link to stay connected. Still, it is an interesting experience when I finally meet his friends after hearing stories about the parties and outings they have been out together. Though the stories he told me, I often try to imagine how they look like based on the personality, the then my boyfriend, had described. After finally being able to meet them, I often said to my husband, "oh, he looks nothing like what I have imagined". My husband would laughed and teased me thinking, so how "should" he/she look like. Ha, yes, how should he look like what I had imagined him to be?

FRONTLINE "Hunting Nightmare Bacteria"

For a very long time, I have considered that virus is much more deadly to get in contact with as compared to bacteria, or say bugs. Such understanding perhaps steam from the fact that we have antibiotics to fight against bacteria, but not for virus. Virus, such as HIV seems to be incurable and deadly. From the Frontline "Hunting Nightmare Bacteria" report, I came to acknowledge that this is not the case. Even though human have learn to develop all sorts of antibiotics, the battle with bacteria did not come to an end. Actually, we had entered a different battle field where we face a rise of superbugs that modern antibiotics are powerless to stop. In Frontline's report, they followed 2 young people who desperately fought the battle to survive infection in the USA.

The report also reveal a striking trend that many drugs companies have abandoned investing in developing new antibiotics, for simple economic reason. These drug companies are responsible for their investors not for the health of the population. So, should it have been the government's responsibility to invest in the development of the drugs?  Government officials in the interview clearly shows the lack of dedicated institution dealing with this problem and the issue is way down in the 70th of the public health concerns. As individuals, I feel venerable knowing how little the government is prepared for such epidemic.

10件事, 讓你變得更聰明一點

沒有工作重心的生活已經好幾個月了，儘管仍盡量讓自己忙碌，但是悠哉沒有挑戰的生活，我知道是會讓人過份怠惰喪失自信的。今天看到這樣一篇文章列出"讓你變得更聰明-每天都可以做的10件事，值得練習練習。

節錄以下重點：

1. 聰明的利用你上網時間 (不要只上臉書, 看看有意義的資訊:course/TED)
2. 寫下你學到的東西 (寫一篇400字的短文紀錄下來)
3. 列一份 "已完成" 清單 (建立自信與快樂是智慧重要來源!)
4. 完益智的桌遊
5. 結交聰明的朋友
6. 閱讀！
7. 解釋給別人聽
8. randomly學一些新東西
9. 學一個新的語言
10. 給自己一點安靜的時間靜思(運動時/搭公車時)

source: http://time.com/3032117/get-smarter-every-day/