Baozi Recipe (Steamed pork buns)

Makes 20 buns

Ingredients:

For the dough: 6 cups All-purpose flour, 1 tbsp Sugar, 2 cups Water, lukewarm, 2 tsp Yeast, ½ tsp oil

For stuffing: 2 lbs Ground pork- (1.5lbs lean), 1 clove garlic, finely chopped, 1 tsp fresh grated ginger, 2 small spring onions (whites), finely chopped, Water, Soy sauce, Sichuan pepper powder, White pepper powder, Salt

Making the dough

  1. Measure out flour into a large bowl.
  2. Mix 2 tsp yeast, 1 tbsp sugar, and 1 cup of lukewarm water into a measuring cup. 
  3. Pour the water into the flour and mix.
  4. Add more lukewarm water gradually if necessary. Generally, the ratio of flour to water is 2:1, but it can vary.
  5. Begin to knead the dough, incorporating the dry flour. If more water is needed to incorporate all the dry flour, add more, but do so sparingly because the dough should not be sticky. The sign of a good dough is a clean bowl and clean hands.
  6. Coat the inside of the big bowl with a small amount of oil, to prevent sticking. Place the dough back in the bowl, cover with a wet towel to preserve moisture, and put the bowl on top of a bowl or pot of hot water. Allow the dough to rise. This may take a few hours, depending on the room’s temperature. (To check if the dough is ready, poke a hole in it with your finger. If the dough bounces back to fill in the hole, it needs to rise more. If the dough deflates, it has risen for too long. If the dough does not move, it is ready.)

Making the stuffing (While waiting for the dough to rise, begin making your stuffing)

  1. Put the ground pork into a bowl.
  2. Put the chopped garlic into 1 cup of warm water to make garlic water. This will distribute the garlic flavor better. Set aside so that the garlic can release more flavor. 
  3. Add the ginger, garlic water (with the garlic), the two pepper powders, salt, soy sauce, and green onion to the pork and stir in one direction.
  4. Add water to the pork and stir.

Wrapping/steaming the baozi

  1. Take the risen dough and knead the air out.
  2. Separate the dough into 20 balls and flatten them slightly by rolling them out with a rolling pin.
  3. Roll the edges thinner. 
  4. Wrap the meat into each one.
  5. Let the baozi rest for around 1 hour, or your baozi will deflate.
  6. Steam the baozi for 15 minutes after steam starts coming out of the steamer. Remove steamer from heat and leave baozi inside the steamer until the initial hot steam is gone. Otherwise, your baozi will also deflate. 
Displaying IMG_9223.jpg
Displaying IMG_9220.jpg
Displaying IMG_9225.jpg
Displaying IMG_9230.jpg

Photo credit: My mom

yes officer i got my licenses 4 days ago

This story talks about how I managed to get pulled over after having my license for four days.

On a tranquil night, I departed from my house at about 11 p.m. on the 15th of September. It was another typical night, and I was going to the gym because one of my friends pressured me even though I was already sleepy and wanted to sleep so I decided to go. Now it was normal at the gym that night, some goofing around since we had the whole place to ourselves. Once we were done my friend who had biked to the gym was about to bike back but I decided to offer him a ride back since it was dark and at 2 a.m. So we decided that it would be a good idea if I drove him back. so we put his bike into the back of my Prius, which was harder than expected. Eventually, we departed into the night expecting this ride to be uneventful and quick, god had other plans. As we took a right onto the main road we drove for about 30 seconds where we passed a cop. we passed him with no issues, and I was so confident to even say, “Nothing suspicious to see the officer ” while driving by the cop. Well, Apparently, he must have heard me say that because about three seconds later while looking in my rearview mirror to make sure he doesn’t follow us he whips THE FASTEST U-Turn I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE. He pulls up right behind me getting very close to my car, and just tailgates me and my friend for what feels like 10 minutes but in reality was 1-minute max, regardless that was still a while and I don’t know if he was trying to scare me into doing something illegal but I eventually take a turn towards my friend’s house and the cop follows, it’s at this point I knew I was getting pulled over. Right on cue, he turns on those lights, and I pull over. Eventually, after waiting for about a minute the cop walked up to my window (which was already down since I didn’t want to anger him by asking to roll it down). He leaned in and said, “Hey just wanted to let you know that your headlight was out nothing else was wrong but you should know and get that fixed” This was definitely one of the better things you can get pulled over for and was quite the refile knowing that I wasn’t smuggling drugs or weaving in and out of the road or something along those lines. The cop noticed that my friend in the car was a little nervous so he popped the question,” can I have your license and regressions please” Now this is a normal question; however, the DMV hasn’t sent me a license yet so I had to hand him this rinky dinky piece of paper and he looks at it and says “is this your license?” and I say “yes officer sorry I recently got my license so they haven’t sent me the card yet” he gives a shrug and says he’s going to run it through his system and heads back to the car. so he comes back and say ” So it says that you got your license 4 days ago so here’s what I could do, I could give you two tickets one for driving someone in your car and one for driving at 2 am but sense your still a new driver I don’t want to screw you over and ruin your driving career.” to cut the story a bit short he eventually lets me go after a few more embarrassing questions like ” it says you got your license on 9/11 is that correct” and I didn’t know so I just said yes and hoped it was correct. but we eventually got home say and on my way back from dropping off my friend, I passed by another cop who turned in my direction but didn’t pull me over maybe the other cop told them I already gotten got. 

please note all these quotes are from the author’s memory so they just give a rough idea not an exact

Shopping Addict

If I had a bad addiction it would definitely be shopping. My shopping addiction is getting out of hand. Girl math creates a bigger issue for my shopping problem. Let me explain. Girl math is if a sweater I want is 100 dollars that is like 10 dollars per wear is I wear it 10 times. If I wear it more than it is technically free or has a discount. If I decide to go to erewhon one day and by a Hailey Beiber smoothie they that is worth like 4 starbucks trips so I won’t go to starbucks for 4 days. From experiencing this first hand, I can let you know not this live and think like this. So shopping…. my biggest love in life is my clothes. I just love clothes with everything I have in me. When I step into a shop I really like I get out of hand my brain starts moving at 100 miles an hour and I blackout. By the time I hit the dressing room I start to plan what shirt goes with what pants, what do I need to buy so I can make this shirt I am so obsessed with 10x cuter than it is, and what do I have at home that will perfect this item. My shopping addiction is definitely better than having a full blow addiction because I can control it and set boundaries for myself. That is not so say it is not still an issue. I went shopping probably about a month ago 2 weeks in a row… that is not allowed to happen again. I had to set a limit for my self that I was not allowed to go shopping for 2 months now. And right this second I am thinking I should go shopping before dance to get another pair of lulu dance pants. I have my reasons. Anyways this is just my rant about how I need to stop shopping and get a better hobbie for myself. Love you all bye!

PC: Me

Dust

I try to clean once a week; today was the day I did that cumbersome ritual. I wiped my coffee table and picked up the clothes and paper that propagate atop the carpeted flooring. I grabbed all the trash on my bedside table and desk. I even made my bed (a task not typically high on my to-do list). Yet, there is dust all over my room, no matter how much a clean or wipe it off it never seems to go away.  Every week I fight it and every week it returns, I mean how do you even get rid of it; when you wipe it away half of those pesky particles fly into the air, only to land back where you just cleaned just after you finish. Maybe the dust is why I keep getting sick, full Interstellar mode. The reason I’m thinking about dust though is that today during my incumbent chore the dust was floating through the air really beautifully, it was sparkling in the sunbeams coming through my window and just caught my attention. I wish it wasn’t so dirty, otherwise, I might add more dust to my room. 

Screen Shot 2022-11-13 at 3.29.53 PM
My room pc me

What makes good music 

I’ve always appreciated music, but for most of my life, I never listened to it. I consumed what my parents and friends listened to, there were songs I liked, and artists I didn’t, but never did I voyage to discover “new” music. Even in high school, I was the kid who said “oh I don’t really listen to music”, then, one day, something changed. It came in leu of befriending Adam who I greatly looked up to, he, like the others who have surrounded me, changed me through pointed jokes towards my seemingly ever-lacking personality. The first songs I listened to I played relentlessly and then disposed of when they no longer brought me joy, were decades-old pop songs such as 99 Luftballoons, You Spin Me Right Around, and Kiss. I liked these songs and still do, but they still didn’t feel right for me. These songs have millions of plays on Spotify and thousands may consider them the best of all time—at least in their respective genres—but I still couldn’t connect to them in a way I now knew possible as a result of the passion I saw in Adam for excellent music. I didn’t know it yet but I was in search of the perfect song (something I likely will never find). After old pop, I moved into rap, not the good kind, honestly like bad music, although I do appreciate them for what they are artist like bbno$ and Young Gravy has no place in the search for the best song of all time. It’s not to diss them but they create music not for the soul but for the pleasure of the masses. Now, I think I know what you’re thinking, “this kid just said popular songs can’t be good, twice.” While I do think there is a correlation between production for mass markets and production for emotional expression, many popular songs are that way because they truly tap into a deep human feeling that people can’t turn away from. Latino artists do this incredibly well. I recently played mi gente in the car with Logan and he called it “cringy” still, that song, despite its incredible popularity infuses you with energy in a way most songs could never do. Is Mi Gente the perfect song? No. Is it worth listening to? Absolutely. Another artsiest who accomplishes this emotional feat is Lauryn Hill. I know I’ve already talked about her but she has the infusion into her music that grabs your soul and holds it right in the rhythm and beat of the music. I think this is the beginning of a formula for a perfect song. Though like John Keating with poems, I really don’t think there can be a “formula” to a perfect song, rather, qualitative aspects add up to create something perfect. 





More Opossums

Look at these opossums.

https://imgix.ranker.com/user_node_img/50070/1001387734/original/1-photo-u1

He’s a baby. Shut up, he doesn’t need anyone’s opinions.

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/ae41f703-b7e7-470b-9d25-19bcce86d4d1/scale-to-width/755

He’s so thicc. Look at that face. Give him your soul or else.

https://ridabuginc.com/media/k2/items/cache/f4b6dca0e2911082f0eb6e1df1a0e11d_L.jpg

Happy late Mother’s Day. You’ll never be cuter than this mom. She’s perfect.

https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1577879673880-1f9c0e75b250?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxzZWFyY2h8MXx8cG9zc3VtfGVufDB8fDB8fA%3D%3D&w=1000&q=80

Teefs. That’s all.

https://imgix.ranker.com/user_node_img/50070/1001387782/original/1-photo-u1?auto=format&q=60&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&dpr=2&w=375

https://imgix.ranker.com/list_editor_img/18637/2598637/original/cute-possum-photos-u3

The tiny toes and weird worm tail? Perfection.

https://wl-brightside.cf.tsp.li/resize/728x/jpg/fdb/c05/856c685e69b85730c9f10a6117.jpg

I have to live knowing I’ll never be as happy as this opossum. Shoot me.

https://us.123rf.com/450wm/farinosa/farinosa2008/farinosa200800039/152702311-the-virginia-opossum-in-decorated-room-with-christmass-tree-.jpg?ver=6

He’s so concerned over the oranges being spilled… I’m going to cry.

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/funny-cute-possums-opossums-119-61b9f4db116b7__700.jpg

No one will ever love me as much as I love this opossum. Nothing even matters.

Sorry for getting emo on y’all. Opossums give me so many emotions.

No more high school baseball

My high school baseball career has come to a close.

I recently contracted Covid-19 which caused me to miss our round 2 playoff game, which would ultimately be the final game of our season and final game of my high school career. It was a weird feeling knowing I just my time as a high school athlete ended without being able to do anything about it. I got so many texts and phone calls from people telling me how sorry they were that this happened to me but I didn’t feel sorry for myself nor did I feel any emotion at all. I was just focused on making sure the people around me didn’t get sick while everyone else was focused on the fact I can no longer play high school baseball.

The funny thing is I am content with my career coming to end the way it did. For instance, in the last game I played in we won, our school got its first-ever playoff win in school history, and I balled out. So there’s no bad taste in my mouth about how my high career came to an end. I am also playing baseball in college so that makes this ending not too bad.

However, there are a few things I miss about high school ball. I’ll miss the road trips to away games, the inside jokes with the guys, getting yelled at by my head coach, and getting out of class early on gamedays. I’ll miss the early morning lifts, the post-game workouts, the late nights hitting off the tee, the extra work after practices, the sprints, batting practice, catching bullpens the day after catching a whole game because we don’t have a backup catcher. But the one thing I’ll miss the most the memories I’ve made with all my teammates.

pc: mlb.com

Tik Tok Roundup: Tweak Season

Tweak of the Week. Tweak Playoffs. Free the Commish. A mysterious New Yorker patrols the sidewalks, parks, elevators, and doorways of the city, a vigilante not too dissimilar from Batman. Except instead of protecting the people and stopping criminals, he is heckling normal individuals and acting as “commissioner” of New York City.

Here he is heckling a woman who is trying to spot Mayor Eric Adams (who the commish HATES) from the top of a car.

VC:Tweak Season

He asserts his masterful advice, stating that the woman shouldn’t care that much about the mayor, a belief close to the commish’s heart.

He also inserts his masterful skills in his many passions: here is an example of the Tweak Referee’s architecture masterclass.

VC: Tweak Season

He never fails to update the citizens of NYC of the happenings: relaying celebrity lookalike sightings.

VC: Tweak Season

Shockingly, there are also social justice causes close to the commish’s heart: when he sees an injustice, he doesn’t hold back his feelings about it.

VC: Tweak Season

Overall, The Commish’s lack of care for what others think about him and undying desire to share the stories of the city, and his opinions, make his content must watch. #FREETHECOMMISH

Here are some other great ones for your enjoyment.

Here he just heckles a family gathering.

VC: Tweak Season

Here he just closes someones car door for them without asking.

VC: Tweak Season

This is surely the best one, he recommends a free pile of garbage with good books, dropping the location for citizens to pick up the books.

VC: Tweak Season

Drake bet on Drake

On Thursday, April, 28th the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft took place.

Months prior NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell read off the words, “With the first overall pick…” rapper Drake bet 100k that USC standout wide receiver Drake London would be the first receiver to be drafted. Drake posted a screenshot of his bet on his Instagram, captioning the story post, “Drake betting on Drake just feels right” And Drake was right, London was the first receiver taken off the board going 8th overall to Atlanta.

pc: @champagnepapi Instgram

Drake’s bet earned the rapper $335,000.00. London got a kick out of it but he was definitely more excited than he is about joining the NFL

Here is London’s reaction to Drake’s bet

More poetry

I get money

I like my Bunches of Oats with Honey

My eggs need ’em runny

The weather, it’s sunny

I drink Dasani and got one knee

Easter time, bunny

I am funny

I like candy, yummy

Dead people, mummy

All y’all my sonny

pc: readthinkwrite