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what time is it ?

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Bet On It - REMIX

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I don't dance

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you are the music in me

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when you're gone

I Can Do It
No matter how wonderful the present moment is, the future can be even more fulfilling and joyous. The Universe always waits in smiling repose for us to align our thinking with its laws. When we are in alignment, everything flows. It is possible. You can do it. I can do it. We all can do it. Make the effort. You will be so pleased. Your whole world will change for the better.

I CAN DO IT !
YOU CAN DO IT !
Source:
*I can do it *
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TO SHARE

Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.
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This is where you will win the battle – in the playhouse of your mind.
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In love the paradox occurs that two beings become one and yet remain two.
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Everybody can be great. You only need a heart full of grace and a soul generated by love.
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We need four hugs a day for survival, eight hugs a day for maintenance, and twelve hugs a day for growth.
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The truth simply is, that’s all. It doesn’t need reasons;it doesn’t have to be right:
It’s just the truth.

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Death is a challenge. It tells us not to waste time. It tell us to tell each other right now that we love each other.
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To try is all. It matters not if one succeeds or fails outwardly.
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Faith is the evidence of things not seen.
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Love is all there is!
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Two men look out through the same bars:
One sees the mud,
And one the stars.
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The greatest power that a person possesses is the power to choose.
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The quieter you become, the more you can hear.
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..."Yesteyrday is history

Tomorrow is a mystery
Today is a gift , which is why we call
it the Present of life."...

VIET NAM - Culture

Lotus (Hoa Sen)
Lotus is a soft plant living mainly in water. This pink or white flower belongs to a species of plant called hollyhock. Another species of lotus with a very small trunk, leaves, and flowers is named little lotus. It can be planted in a vase of water or in an ornamental pond.

Lotus flowers have been growing for millions of years. In Vietnam, the lotus is classified as one the four gentlemanly flowers along with pine, bamboo, and chrysanthemum. The lotus is also classified as one in the four qui (four seasons), which also includes orchid, chrysanthemum, and apricot. Lotus is the symbol of summer because it blossoms in summer when there is a lot of sunlight and its scent lightly perfumes the air all around the pond.

Lotus flowers are used in different ways: the flowers are offered to deities, the seeds are used for tea, and the leaves are used to wrap green rice. Lotus seeds can also be made into a tonic medicine and anesthetic and into an ingredient for sweet soup and other recipes.

Lotus flowers generally bloom during the summer since they require plenty of light.

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Tet food in Viet Nam

Banh Chung and banh Tet (Boiled rice and pork cakes)

Boiled rice and pork cakes are usually cooked 2-3 days before Tet. Both can be kept for about two weeks in cool temperature. However, after this time they become hard and must be re-boiled.

Soak some green beans overnight in water to soften. Drain, rub and clean to remove the skin, and leave to dry. Next, cook the beans in a steamer and grind. Form into balls the size of tennis balls.

Soak some glutinous rice overnight. Clean and rinse. Mix with a little salt. Cut fresh pork meat (lean or fat, according to personal taste) into 2cm strips. Mix with salt, fish sauce and pepper, and leave for about one hour.

Clean dong leaves (leaves from arrowroot) and place them over each other to form a cross. Place an amount of rice in the centre of the leaves. Shape into a square (the southern version is in a circle). Press a "ball" of green bean on top. Then, add 1-2 pieces of marinated pork, then more green bean, and finally rice. Press firmly into a compact square and wrap the leaves over to cover the cake completely. Tie with bamboo strings. Place in a large pot of boiling water and boil overnight. Squeeze the moisture out by placing it in a colander with a heavy object on top.

To serve, untie and open the leaves. Invert on a plate and cut into pieces using the bamboo strings, not a knife. Serve cold.

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Vietnam - country & people - folk-games

The game of squares (O an quan)
Either boys or girls, usually age’s seven to ten, play the two-person game of O an quan (literally "Mandarin's Box"). They draw a rectangle on the ground and divide it into ten small squares called "rice fields" or "fish ponds.

"They also draw two additional semi-circular boxes at the two ends of the rectangle, which are called"mandarin's boxes," hence the game's name. Each person has 25 small pebbles and a bigger stone.

Each player places the stone in one of the mandarin's boxes and five small pebbles in each of the other squares (see diagram above). Then the game begins. The first player takes up the contents of one square on his or her side of the board (but not a mandarin's box) and distributes the pebbles one by one, starting with the next square in either direction. (Since each square contains five pebbles at the beginning, the first move will distribute five pebbles to the left or right).

After the last pebble is distributed, the player takes the contents of the following square and repeats the distribution process. But if the following square is one of the mandarin's boxes, the turn ends and passes to the other player.

If the last pebble falls into a square that precedes one empty square, the player wins all the contents of the square following the empty square and removes these pebbles from the board. If this square is followed by another empty square, the player wins the contents of the square after that, and so on. However, if there are two or more empty squares in a row, the player loses his or her turn.

Once a player has taken pebbles from the board, the turn is handed to the other player. If all five squares on one player's side of the board are emptied at any time, that player must place one pebble he or she has aside back in each of the five squares so that the game can resume.

The game continues until the two mandarins' boxes have both been taken. At the end of the game, the player with more pebbles wins, with each of the large stones counting as ten points. If each player retrieves an equal number of points, then the game is a tie. O an quan remains deservedly popular among older children since it requires good counting skills and forethought in order to win.

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