Quarantine Poem

I cant believe I havent written in so long

Takes a long time to see what is right and wrong

The right thing is to stay safe and stay home 

Stores, restaurants and Costco I dont roam

The wrong thing is to go to the beach

Where Covid likes to expand its reach

The numbers of cases went down in June

We are hoping it would go away soon

Many of my friends I am not able to see

To do things like hang out to eat and have tea

COVID 19 Journal: posting 5: Food I cooked during quarantine

I wanted to cook more and I wanted to expand my mom's tastebuds beyond Chinese cooking. Nathan and I (or just me) try to cook every other day.

 My attempt at making honey garlic chicken wings. There was too much soya sauce. This became more of a soya wings. I found the recipe online.

Also first time making potatoe chips.

 

What to do with ground beef? I made a bacon wrapped meat ball. I used my Ground Beef Recipe book for the recipe.

Something simple but yet delicious. I think I pan fried it with cheese and pepperoni.

    

 Chicken wings - this time Nathan fixed it with way better honey garlic sauce. He found the recipe online.

Bacon wrapped lychee - this was a recipe that I learnt from Dean from Four Willlows. It's so easy to make and so delicious.

Salad made from fresh veggies.

Onion rings made from Nathan. His first time making them and it turned out delicious. He found the recipe online.

Bacon wrapped lychee

Honey garlic wings

 

Mother's Day dinner - Maui ribs from Columbus Meats and grilled veggies - Nathan did all the cooking

 

We found the recipe from a Netflix show. It was so delicious, Grilled bell peppers and onions and bacon in a hot dog with bbq sauce.

    

My attempt at a cream puff. The puff itself has no taste. It only taste good when there is chocolate on it. I melted chocolate chunks. 

Grilled veggies and steak and simple salad

My attempt at making cinnamon buns. There is no yeast in this recipe. It ended up being harder than I expected. I have to try another recipe next time.

I made a taro smoothie. It was so easy to make!. I just put in ice, milk, sugar (or honey) and taro powder and put it in a mixer. Done!
I put in 1.5 teaspoons of sugar and Nathan said it was like 1/2 sugar.

The pearls I just cooked for about 10-15 mins for one person portion. I should add about one teaspoon sugar when I cook the pearls because there is no flavour to it.

This is the first time I made pasta in the Instant Pot. I put it in for 5 mins on high pressure. I added some veggies with the pasta. Some softer veggies, like spinach and tomato, I added it in when the pasta was cooked. It ended up being very delicious! Mom and Nathan approved!

First attempt at making flan. It was so delicious. I used the Amy and Jacky flan Instant Pot recipe.

My first time making these quiche tarts. It was delicious and Nathan wants more!

I diced up veggies and pepperoni. The egg mixture is made from cream cheese, heavy cream and egg.

I put it in the oven for about 15 mins or the top is golden brown. 

      

I marinated this pork in Italian dressing and then grilled it. Nathan not approved!

   

Grilled boar - pan fried - it was good

COVID 19: post 4

COVID 19 Poem


COVID 19 is what it is called
Our normal life has been very stalled

Quarantine, we have been in the past few months till now
This dangerous virus can make someone's life go 'pow'

I am not working, I stay home
The outside streets I don't roam

There has been a lot of home cooked meals
Is this how staying home all day feels?

COVID 19: post 3

So I don’t forget...

Today is Thursday, April 30th, 2020.

- March 16th, 2020 we went into self isolation

- March 23, the PM urged Canadians to do their part by staying home and called on Canadian institutions to offer their expertise to fight the virus

- The world wide confirmed cases of Covid 19 have passed 3 million with over 200, 000 deaths determined to have been caused by the coronavirus

- Canada has reported 48, 500 confirmed cases and 2,707 deaths due to the virus to date

- The US has more confirmed cases than any other country with over 1 million confirmed cases and 56,843 deaths to date

- There has been a shortage of available testing in many countries and the numbers above are expected to be actually much higher

- The CDN dollar is worth $.71 US.

- CERB created to assist people who have lost jobs. $2000 a month being given to everyone that applies. Small businesses are having rent relief aid of 75% per month.

- Gas costs 83.9 cents per liter at most gas stations in the city of Vancouver today and is even cheaper in many communities on the outskirts. Some towns in BC have seen prices as low as 60 cents over the past couple of weeks.

- Schools have been closed since mid March and kids are learning remotely on-line. This will likely continue for the rest of the school year.

- There are lines / tapes inside the stores to keep people 6 feet apart.

- Bars and restaurants only for home delivery & pick-up.

- Parks, lakes, campgrounds, golf courses, recreation centres and walk-in places are not accessible to the public.

- All sports competitions have been cancelled. Even professional sports.

- All festivals and entertainment events have been banned or cancelled
(Music Concerts, Festivals, The PNE, Calgary Stampede, Live Theaters, Movie Theaters, and all smaller Festivals and Fairs)

- Weddings, family celebrations, birthdays and funerals have been cancelled. Gatherings are limited to no more than 10 people.

- People are doing drive-by parades to celebrate birthdays.

- We have to stay away from each other more than a 2 meters (6feet)

- Shortage of masks and gloves (PPE - personal protective equipment) in hospitals.

- Our Prime Minister has been doing daily press conferences from Rideau Cottege. On April 8th he said masks help prevent you from “speaking moistly” to others. He instantly regretted saying it and the phrase went viral immediately.

- People are using their home 3D printers to help make PPE like face shields and clips (to save health care workers ears and hold back mask straps), and even ventilator pieces that are in short supply.

- People are wearing masks, some places even REQUIRE that you wear them to enter! People are making their own masks for sale or donation to medical facilities.

- Toilet paper, yeast, flour, hand sanitizer, antibacterial wipes and anything Lysol or Clorox is in short supply and limited per person.... IF you can even find them!

- Stores are closing early to disinfect everything. (24 hour stores are even closing by 9pm)

- Store check outs, pharmacies and even fast food drive thru windows have added plexiglass between employee and customer. Have to reach around or under to pay!

- Canada has closed the borders to all non-essential travel.

- no visiting inside or outside elder care facilities

- most childcare centres closed but some open for essential care workers children

- On April 19, Canada was devastated by the largest mass shooting in our history. 22 lives lost. A virtual vigil was held April 24 for the victims, as Canada mourned.

COVID 19 Journal: post 2

My new normal:

1 - we play Blokus every night to kill time
- Nathan is the best - Annie plays really ugly but she usually wins too
- we usually only play 3 games a night so we don't get sick of it
- it is a game we started playing at Josh's house in Australia
- it's an easy game to pick up and easy for everyone to play - my mom doesn't need to know English to play this game


2 - I do zumba with my mom everyday.
- now it is at 2pm everyday
- we do about 30-45 mins at a time
- I search various Youtube videos on zumba. We have watched videos with chinese or vietnamese groups dancing.

3 - No going out to restaurants
- we aren't allowed (self - isolation)
- restaurants are closed (delivery and take out only)

4 - I'm not going out unless it's to get food
- the other day I went to get coffee for my dad - that was an adventure - have to be more cautious out there - On Commercial Dr on Sunday at 11am, it was so dead
- I try to avoid Superstore and Costco
- I want to try to go to local mom and pop store if possible

5 - Fresh air is only from our open windows
- I open the window in the kitchen - sometimes a small slit sometimes the whole thing

6 - Nathan is half naked playing video games all day
- sometimes he wears a shirt
- sometimes he plays till 1 or 5 in the morning

7 - 'going out' is a bad term now
- asymptomatic people are everywhere

8 - Zoom meetings every week with my cousins
- Sat night with my cousins on my dad's side - it was cool - last week we had 16 people in the chat, sometimes it was hard to hear everyone but it was fun!
- Sun night with my cousins on my mom's side - we have 'homework' every week - last week was find an old picture and say something about it - this coming week it is something you cooked

Covid 19 Journal: post 1

This COVID 19 pandemic is super scary. It is effecting everyone in the world. It is spreading like wildfire and there is no cure or vaccine for it. We are doing our part in trying to slow the spread. 

This is our life now:

• Gas prices at a record low (about 90 cents a litre)
• Self-distancing measures on a rise.
• Tape on the floors at grocery stores and others to help distance shoppers 2m (6ft) from each other.
  Limited number of people inside stores, therefore lineups outside the store doors.
  Non-essential stores and businesses mandated closed
• Limited number of people inside stores, therefore lineups outside the store doors.
• Non-essential stores and businesses mandated closed
• Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled.
• Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled.
• No masses, churches are closed.
• No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 5 or more.
• Don't socialize with anyone outside of your home.
• We are to distance from each other.
• Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers.
• Shortage of respirators for the critically ill.
• Panic buying sets in and we have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towel no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer.
• Shelves are bare.
• Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE.
• Government closes the border to all non essential travel, calls Canadians home and makes it mandatory to self isolate for 14 days.
• Fines are established for breaking the rules.
• fines for those price-gauging others.
• Press conferences daily from both Prime Minister Trudeau and Premier of BC.
• Barely anyone in the street or on the roads.
• People wearing masks and gloves outside.
• Essential service workers are terrified to go to work.
• Medical field workers are afraid to go home to their families.
• 1,000,000 applications for Employment Insurance as people go without work
• Limited number of people inside stores, therefore lineups outside the store doors
• Non-essential stores and businesses mandated closed
• Entire sports seasons cancelled
• Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled
• Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled
• No masses, churches are closed
• No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 5 or more
• Don't socialize with anyone outside of your home
• We are to distance from each other
• Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers
• Shortage of respirators for the critically ill
• Panic buying sets in and we have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towel no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer
• Shelves are bare
• Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE
• Government closes the border to all non essential travel, calls Canadians home and makes it mandatory to self isolate for 14 days
• Fines are established for breaking the rules
• fines for those price-gauging others
• Press conferences daily from both Prime Minister Trudeau and Premier of BC
• Barely anyone in the street or on the roads
• People wearing masks and gloves outside
• Essential service workers are terrified to go to work
• Medical field workers are afraid to go home to their families
• 1,000,000 applications for Employment Insurance as people go without work.

They say it started in Wuhan, China at a seafood market. Hundreds of thousands affected, dead, dying, critically ill.
Many recovered.

This is the Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic, declared March 11th, 2020.

Timeline

March 20, 2020 - Vancouver declares a state of emergency

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/these-are-the-metro-vancouver-cities-that-have-declared-states-of-emergency-1.4861896

March 20 - Parks and playgrounds closed (https://vancouver.ca/news-calendar/park-board-closes-playgrounds-reminds-community-to-adhere-to-social-distancing.aspx)

March 19, 2020 - BC declares a state of emergency

https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/b-c-declared-a-state-of-emergency-amid-spread-of-covid-19-what-does-that-mean-1.4860269

March 17 - Schools all close (https://bc.ctvnews.ca/all-b-c-public-schools-will-be-closed-for-now-over-covid-19-concerns-1.4856680)

March 12 - Entire sports seasons cancelled (https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/nhl-suspends-season-due-to-covid-19-pandemic-an-appropriate-course-of-action-1.4850356)

IP Cooking: Chicken Noodle soup

My poor husband is sick today. I thought the best solution is to make him chicken noodle soup.

There are carrots and celery in the soup. He requested them to be soft. 

The soup calls for egg noodles. I didnt have any. I used macaroni instead. 

It calls for 6 cups of chicken stock. I had only 2 cans so that is only about 4 cups.

Overall it turned out pretty good.

IP Cooking: Teriyaki Chicken

This is the first recipe I tried from my new IP Recipe Book.

It called for chicken stock. My mom had homemade chicken stock at home.

It called for chicken skinless/boneless breast. I had bone in chicken but my mom cut out the bone.

I added pineapples for more colour and flavour.

Overall it was tasty. But I would make the following changes:

- add more teriyaki sauce, maybe 50% more

- instead of 1/2 cup of chicken stock, used water 

IP Cooking: Pasta

Yesterday (Jan 26, 2019) was my first time making pasta in my InstaPot. I made shells with alfredo sauce.

Ingredients:
1 bag of 500 grams of shell pasta
1 can of 410 mL alfredo sauce
4.5 cups of water (or a bit more to cover the top of the pasta)
pinch of salt and pepper
1 tbsp of butter
Parmesan cheese

1. pour all items in the instant pot
2. stir
3. set to Manual/Pressure cooker for 4 mins, NR for 9 mins then release
4. pour some parmesan cheese on and stir

It came out too soggy / mushy.

What I can do next time:
- use less water
- NR for less time
- use more alfredo sauce