Online Class Notes (Vicki)

Recently, my boss told me to get ready for working during the Spring Festival which made me very confused. It reminds that is work really more important than family? There’re so many examples of how workaholics lost their lives due to the fact that the only thing in their eyes is work and they barely spend time on staying with family members. To be honest, I don’t really agree with them, being with family is more important for me.

Home is the source where are happiness come from, so we should treasure each day spent with family. Being with family can be a happiness that far outweighs any successes achieved at work. Nothing is more pleasing than cooking and dining with parents. Therefore, why don’t we squeeze enough time to do something with them, whether whatever watching TV or drinking pearl milk tea together.

Of course, spending more time with family doesn’t mean working is unimportant. They’re definitely not on the opposite sides. From my perspective, having good relationship with family can help us with on work, since we don’t have to worry about what to eat tonight or how to please your wife to not be mad at you.

Vocabulary

livestream – 直播
i.e. My boss want to do livestream.

comfort food – the kind of food you would when you are sad
i.e. my comfort food is fried chicken.

endure – 忍耐
i.e. We have a long winter to endure.

be tempted to do sth. – have the desire to do sth.
i.e. I am very tempted to eat the entire cake.

tuck – 塞
tuck into – to be completely immersed

palate – your personal taste
i.e. I have a very sweet palate.

texture – feeling and touch 触感质感
i.e. The texture of a hard-boiled egg is soft.

edible – can be eaten 能吃的
i.e. This does not taste good but it’s edible.

blend – no taste
i.e. I don’t like blend soup.

garlic – 蒜
i.e. I really don’t like garlic.

shallot – 葱
i.e. I really don’t like shallot.

ginger – 姜
i.e. I really don’t like ginger.

stinky – 臭的
i.e. I really like stinky tofu.

culinary – 烹饪
i.e. I want to go to culinary school.

carbohydrates – carbs 碳水化合物
i.e. Eating carbs make people happy.

trigger – 引起
i.e. The smell of that cake triggers the “fat-girl” in me.

Warning! This article could be bad for your health! As many of us endure the long, cold winter, we are tempted to tuck into some filling and fattening foods. This is sometimes because it helps us to keep warm and to give us energy, but often it’s because we need something to cheer us up. And, for a short while at least, it makes us feel better – which is why we call it ‘comfort food’.

The type of food that makes us feel good varies from person to person – it depends on your palate and the association you have with particular tastes, textures and smells. But probably the most universally popular edible comforter is the biscuit. It’s thought this go-to snack often brings back happy memories of childhood and family, as well as giving us that all-important sugary pick-me-up.

Moving on from the sweet and sugary snacks, famous chef and food writer Mary Berry knows about the kind of meals that warm us up and give us comfort in the winter. She told BBC Food magazine: “I think it becomes natural to think about comfort food as soon as the weather chills and the nights become darker.” She suggests soup and warming foods as feel-good winter treats.

The other thing about comforting dishes like mac and cheese, noodles or pizza is they don’t require culinary skills in the kitchen; they are easy to make so you can get your fix of feel-good food quickly. However, we often feel so good that we eat too much, and even though we know the ingredients are high in carbohydrates, sugar or salt, we continue to pig out. Psychologist Shira Gabriel told the BBC: “We feel guilty because we don’t realise that what’s happening is our minds [are] finding a way to trigger a really positive emotion and they’re making us eat that food to do so.”

Maybe we should take comfort from the fact that eating certain food just makes us feel happy. But, for some people, eating any kind of food brings joy, warmth, happiness and comfort.