Zen of Tofu

No not, “co-depleted”, it’s “Code-pleted”.

The ideas flowing through my mind, the syntax flowing through the keys; nothing could apprehend the will to change ideas to algorithm and finally to code. Red Chinese tea flows through my veins cooling my yang and enriching my blood. Obeying the “laws”, making safeguards, and being conscious of my actions I pragmatically conjured the characters to do my bidding. Braces, brackets, and quotes were carefully paired and placed to not only divide, but conquer. Semi-colons appear where ideas distinguish themselves. With some careful placement and creativity, modularity meets sequentiality; and with a touch of declaration the pieces obey to benefit the greater cause. Essentially it is the greater cause I am after, despite what it takes of the smaller elements to meet the requirements of the bigger picture. Treat the elements with a touch of insincerity or ignorance and they will not hesitate to betray you with little evidence. The mystery is discovering the evidence, the challenge is preventing the crime. Once all is solved and order is in place, only then can the greater cause be realized — or can it? If that cause has flaws within itself then the solution cannot be blamed. The one pursuing the cause is to be blamed. May it be that the cause can be invented with accurate precision so a solution is truthfully a solution.

That’s the story of my latest programming assignment.
Time to complete: approx. 3 days (sadly)
From typing out the code, drawing diagrams, and debugging with gdb, it has all concluded to a working (and probably buggy) program.
Let’s hope for the best. But meanwhile bring on more tea!

written by tofu

Well it’s that day of the year again. One of a business owner’s best days of the year– Valentine’s Day/V-Day/<3 Day. I was out yesterday and saw many people in the card shops and chocolate boutiques trying to find the perfect gift for their special someone. (How cliche!) It was amazing how many woman I saw out yesterday since I’m used to seeing mostly men struggling to get their gifts. (Maybe woman are one day early in buying but men will mostly buy today!) Today is the day guys either make it or break it with their lady, provided of course that they remember the occasion!

Every major news program (with an opinion) all gave their “best gifts” list and surprisingly a survey said woman mostly want better communication and some spontaneity. Two things I believe are essential for a good relationship. Spontaneity is not always easy in today’s busy lifestyle but we just have to be creative and alert. It’s not as difficult as it sounds. Of course having some freedom in your schedule makes it easier, but the small things you do won’t go unnoticed. So while you’re with your special someone today, be alert, be creative, and don’t be shy to do the small things that could spark much bigger things today. (Watch out for flying arrows!)

written by tofu

Black as death. Hot as hell. Sweet as love.
-Turkish proverb

Coffee. An immensely popular and celebrated beverage with many variations and compositions. So popular has coffee become, that Japan dedicates a whole day to celebrate coffee in all its glory. Whether you like it bitter or sweet, coffee appeals to almost everyone. Some enjoy the popular Columbian blend while others prefer more exotic blends like Brazilian.

I first tried coffee around my early teens and I tried it the way my father enjoys it best — black. No sugar, no cream, no milk. Just plain and black. I sipped that cup of coffee without any expectations or fears and after the first sip, I was immediately taken back at how diverse and complex the flavours were despite being bitter. Immediately I was hooked. Now, I grew up in a traditional Chinese family so I’m used to the bitter herbal teas. Some may call me bitter, but I beg to differ. I have tried coffee with milk, sugar, and cream and I find they hide the true flavour of the coffee to the extent that it isn’t as enjoyable anymore. It is what it is.

Quite a while ago (like 3 years ago) I was hooked on the generic Columbian blend, and decided to try some other drinks from places like Second Cup or Starbucks. I started off with the French vanilla beverage. Not too sweet, not bitter at all, and pretty gentle. Not bad in my books but I see it as a pure pleasure drink and not something to wake you up for 8:30AM lectures! Then I tried apple cider. Very sweet, lots of cinnamon flavour, and easy to burn your tongue on. I doubt I’ll go back to that, but it was good for a change. After all that, I went back to the trusted Columbian black coffee for a long time. Not too long ago I decided to try some Brazilian coffee. I’m a believer. It was like switching from Windows to a Mac; you are willing to ~settle~ for Windows but at any given time you’d ~prefer~ working on a Mac. Now, anytime I get a chance to choose the blend I want, I’ll surely be taking the sweet and gentle Brazilian blend.

As a side note, in the realm of all instant coffees, Nescafe makes the best super fine blend of instant coffee. Unfortunately this variation is not found anywhere in North America and can only be found in old British colonies like the Caribbean or in Europe. When I first tried it, it was like chocolate water. It was “on a whole ‘notha level”. The sweetest and most pure instant coffee I’ve ever tried. I recommend anyone to try that stuff if you can get your hands on a bottle. And if anyone can still get their hands on a case, I’d be interested in buying a few bottles off of you.

P.S. I just noticed Nescafe changed their lineup and I can’t find the variation anymore! A sad day indeed…

written by tofu

Sudoku
Originally uploaded by zentofu.

Sudoku. You just have to love it. I know a lot of you have tried these puzzles and some of you are hooked. I know I’m hooked. I’ve been hooked for over three years. I’m almost ashamed to pick up the daily newspaper just to do the puzzles and read the comics, but it’s the truth! Nothing starts the day off better than a cup of java and completion of a sudoku puzzle. I’ve tried playing it online and in electronic form but nothing beats the feel of the newspaper version. Even the ones in puzzle books are fine, but only writing the numbers can give you the full experience.
If you haven’t tried out a sudoku puzzle yet, I highly recommend it! If you don’t want to go searching through a newspaper to find them then may I suggest Web Sudoku, which isn’t bad for an online version. Try finishing one in under three minutes!

written by tofu

blackBook surface

Originally uploaded by zentofu.

My blackBook in all its glory. Yes it is now named the “blackBook”! Do you like the name?! I’ve thought about calling it the cowBook, mooBook, and a number of other not-so-catchy names but blackBook sounds much simpler and yet sophisticated. I wonder what other small treasures my destiny will throw my way.

written by tofu