Making my bed is a bad idea - now science backs me up!

My mother did raise me right. Right up till the time I left home, I would diligently make my bed every morning. I suppose it was meant to signal that I would start the day off well, in a neat and tidy way. But once I was on my own, I happily left my bed as it was, pillows and comforter thrown every which way. Lazy? I suppose, but I didn't really see the point of making my bed only to fall into it again in a matter of hours. Some, upon finding out, have tsk-tsked my tardiness. My son, B, has also taken after me, because I never nagged him about making his bed.

Aye aye brows!

I've always envied those people who could carry off that sardonic look with one raised eyebrow. I even practiced achieving it when I was younger, pushing up one brow with my fingers and hoping it would remain there. There's been a fascination with lush eyebrows lately. I mean, who doesn't want Cara Delevingne's arches? In my day, it was Brooke Shields'. If we're not blessed with them, then we're trying to make do with brow tints and tattoo jobs. Now I read there are even growth-stimulating serums and hair transplant procedures.

Rice is nice!

On a long haul flight recently from Europe to Asia, I was contemplating my options for meals. Airline food generally sucks, but after weeks of dining out on European cuisine, no matter how delicious, I was dying for something that spoke of home. I was intrigued to find out that rice was on the breakfast menu, in the form of chicken congee. That, to me, spells comfort food. Something to soothe and savor when I'm feeling poorly. But wait a minute. Congee on a western airline, from a western destination, prepared in a western airport kitchen? How authentic could it be?

Yummy Yam Cake

This is another taste of home when I was growing up. My mother made all kinds of Hakka dishes with yam, and always insisted that how the dishes turned out all depended on the quality of the yam. I actually learned how to make yam cake in school when they still had domestic science classes, but I haven't made this particular dish in years. So I was quite pleased when I attempted this recently and it turned out really yammy and yummy!