the black GT roared into the driveway. it was fully loaded. which is to say that tommy chang (f2fb #102) and his fiancee rachel li (who wasn’t my facebook friend until this morning) had stocked the trunk with basil, fish, pork, oils, spices, woks, knives, spoons, and vegetables. they were quite aware that my refrigerator contains just perfume, diet coke, beer, and smart water.
tommy and rachel agreed that tommy is the better cook–they claim asian girls are not as likely to know how to cook these days because they are more independent. tommy is originally from taiwan, rachel from mainland china where she grew up both in the northeast and in the southwest. when they marry, they will have one ceremony here in the states, one in mainland china, and a small reception in taiwan. they met at motorola where they both work.
they chose a menu that reflected the diversity of the two countries.
i met tommy through my friend dirk (f2fb #103), who showed up unexpectedly at the house. he has a good sense of when somebody’s making dinner. dirk and tommy met through their membership in a networking association for asian professionals. i have to admit i had not known that dirk is asian.
chicken hearts are really good. sort of like tiny sausages.
also at the dinner was bob bergman, a longtime friend both on facebook and in real life. bob was seventeen and working as a house painter when the scaffolding he was on collapsed. he was in a coma for three weeks, not expected to live. and he has a brain injury that has messed with his short term memory. i remember being quite proud when, after months of knowing me, he started to remember my name.
bob’s system for remembering things was developed when he was in his early twenties–he carries a tiny notebook in his back pocket at all times and writes down EVERYTHING. i believe now that he has a better short term memory system than most people our age.
ty ty ty ty to tommy, rachel, bob and, yes, dirk–i have just one question: what time is dinner tonight?
arlynnpresser 
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