Sept & October 2009                              
 



Have you seen the play “Number 14”?  I saw that hilarious play about the Vancouver bus line Number 14 back in high school.  It’s a popular play that has traveled all across North America.  It really showcases the diverse crowd and drama that occurs on the bus.  Having been a patron of the Vancouver Public Transit system, and a somewhat philosophical believer in environmentalism, I took pride and joy in taking the bus and had many exciting experiences in the past years.  I once convinced a very nice bus driver to play Santa Claus for a charity family/kids fundraising dinner near Christmas time; hired artists that I’ve seen sketching cartoons on the skytrain; and made other similar requests.

One of the most fun experiences was meeting my friend Rafal on the No. 135 buses from SFU to Metrotown.  Rafal is a fiercely intelligent and witty Polish Canadian whose academic career has led him down the path from culinary to architecture.  We were all cramped in like sardines around 5:30pm when everyone was trying to go home.  He was having a lively conversation with a tall East Indian guy about Japanese animations.  They were vivid in describing some of the “Hot” new female characters in animation and video games.  I couldn’t help myself but jumped in and told them of the social implication this would have on the young male teenagers seeing female cartoon figures with bodies that are completely disproportionate and lacking in personality.  Like movies, in the animation world, females are simply the reason for the rescue and the reward.  Rafal and I had an instant heated debate and became life long friends.

I have been spending some time looking for my life’s calling, a constant challenge, although a fun and exciting one.  Rafal sent me a TED talk link on Ken Robinson, and later gave me the book, “The Element”.  I really enjoyed the wit and honesty in Ken’s talk, and finally just finished reading his book….packed with inspiration and antidotes of how people have found their herd and element, and how that has transformed their lives.

Here are just some of the jewels Ken shares: www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

“The Element is the meeting point between natural aptitude and personal passion. The sequence goes something like this: I get it; I love it; I want it.”
As an educator whose academic career took him all the way to PH. D, Dr.Robinson shares with his readers that all schools were designed in the industrial age to suit the needs of factories, hence even the hierarchy of subjects with Science and Math on top, and Arts and Music at the bottom are designed that way.  All school curriculums are designed for University entrance exams.  Take a look at schedule for school, they’re training children to show up in time, and form assembly line for lunch, class, activities, etc… to suit the industries.  A University degree used to mean that you had a guaranteed good job, with the baby-boomer and more access to education, it’s not worth much.  The content school is delivering is also a bit out of touch with the fast paced info economy, hence high rates of drop outs and lack of post secondary enrollment.  Ken tells us that school is often the first place to kill creativity, be it music, art, dance, etc.  Even members of the Beatles did not shine in their school music class!  Many times, part of the elevation of school system is based on IQ test, and personality test like Myers Briggs, but they don’t show the whole picture.  Harvard psychologist Howard Gardener has argued to wide acclaim that we have not one but multiple intelligences.  They include linguistic, musical, mathematical, spatial kinesthetic, interpersonal (relationship with others), and intra-personal (knowledge and understanding of the self) intelligence.  He argues that all of them are independent of each other, and schools should offer dynamic learning environments so all children have equal opportunity to develop their individual abilities.

Ken told a story about Einstein playing violin to help him work out complex equations in his head, it was imagination and creativity that ultimately pushed him into the genius category.  There are many inspiring stories of famous people and their journey of discovering what they love and are best in the world at doing!  One theme that runs constantly through the book is the idea that “Human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitude of mind….if you change your mind, you can change your life.” By William James, the father of modern psychology.

Being in the element gives you energy, and part of the search is finding your herd.  Finding you among others like yourself. 

I found this book to be very enlightening and it made me feel good.  Finding one’s life purpose is an on-going process, and there is no timeline or deadline for finding your element.  Remember Colonel Sanders didn’t make his first fried chicken recipe until he was in his ‘50s!  So get the book and get off your butt.


At the beginning of September, I spent $180 for a weekly, 3-hour cooking class, running for 6 weeks at John Oliver High School with Chef Helena Grayson of Grayson Catering.  The course was called “ABCs of Cooking”, and it really was.  Chef Helena is a big Jewish Mama who is always full of smiles, encouragement, and helpful tips.  I was never inspired by reading cook books because I don’t know the names of the tools, or the cooking methods or the cutting methods described in the books.  And my pantry definitely was lacking a lot of the spices the books mentioned.  This course was a huge eye-opener of how to safely chop and dice, and all the different ways that food can be prepared.  I’ve learned to cook, from healthy vegetable soup, to sesame-covered salmon, to gelatte pastry that is to die for.  I’m so proud of myself that my friends don’t have to give me the fake “I love it” or the “will I have to run to the bathroom later?” face when they approach my food.  I’ve been making my lunch everyday this week.

One thing I learned about cooking is that you have to be prepared.  I like being spontaneous, but you simply can’t when it comes to cooking because you need the ingredients and the right tools!  I tried to cook the gelatte at home last night and without a rolling pin − the dough is still sitting in my fridge waiting for its day in the sun.

I was quite proud when I made Italian tomato spaghetti sauce from scratch and it was delicious.  Normally I like the Alfredo sauce, as the tomato sauce brings up the acid in my stomach, but mine was sweet instead of sour. 

I recently saw the movie, “Julie and Julia”, and it was so true… where food can drop on the ground, and you have emotional outburst cooking live stock.  During my stay in Shanghai, going grocery shopping was a grueling experience where you see heads, feet, tail and live fish being chopped up right in front of your eyes.  I get really queasy when it comes to blood and guts, so never really enjoyed handling meats.  I still remember one high school lunch where a vegetarian girlfriend wore a T-shirt with a cute picture of a cow with the saying, “Don’t eat me”, and she just stared at all of us who had ham sandwiches until we were too ashamed to continue eating. 

There was one class, where Chef Helena was explaining all the meats: Beef, Pork, Lamb & Mutton, and Fish.  She was showing large posters of the animal and then pointing to different parts and telling us what they’re called, and which part is tender and suitable for what type of dish.  I don’t think I learned that much that class, but my stomach turned into a circus act.  I think it’s euphemism at its best, where we don’t call it cow meat, but beef; not pig meat but pork; not baby lamb that is still nursing, but mutton to disassociate our guilty conscious of eating them.  I don’t think I can ever become a vegetarian, but I am eating healthier, and shopping instead at my beloved Safeway, and in smaller local Asian grocery stores where the food is 10%, sometimes 1% of the cost (herbs like cilantro, and dill).  I found Chinatown to be very cheap, but some of the food/fruits might not be as fresh… like the browning mangos I bought. 

I have gained a lot of respect for cooking, and have had friends over to cook together, and it’s really a fun and creative experience.  I’m even falling in love with baking, mainly because it makes the house smell SO wonderful.  I think it’s the cinnamon and sugar. 

In this tough economy, all of us need to become more resourceful.  I read somewhere that if you make lunch for a year, you would save $1,800!  Imagine that… that’s a vacation, or a great shopping spree.  Plus you would shed pounds from eating less salt, sugar and preservatives, and save the environment from trashing doggy bags/plastic take out bags. 

One thing I started doing was bringing my own chopsticks.  At the kitchen store in Metrotown, I found a small metal case with screw together silver chopsticks for $10.99.  It’s easy to carry, and I’m saving trees by not using the one-time usage chopsticks at the Chinese restaurants and Sushi and Korean eateries I frequent.

So tell me your best recipes for the holidays, and what you’re doing to save money and be healthier in your life!  I will share that with Social Butterfly Club members in our December Newsletter!


You might be wondering what I’ve been doing for the last little while.  I’ve been keeping busy with Social Butterfly Club, but I’ve also been working on a contract with a local non-profit called Multicultural Helping House Society.  This organization mainly caters to the needs of Filipino immigrants in the Lower Mainland, but due to the diverse cultural background of the neighborhood in which it exists, it also serves Eastern Europeans, Indo-Canadians, Chinese, Vietnamese, Nepal, and a host of other ethnic groups. 

Here is a Who We Are for MHHS:  We are a team of passionate individuals who are dedicated to educate, empower, and support newcomers, individuals and families in their successful integration into the Canadian society via our employment, settlement, and community programs.  As a registered non-profit and charitable society, our funding comes from the federal and provincial government, supplemented by our own fundraising efforts.

I work specifically for the Bamboo Network Fast Track to Employment, and I’m essentially a matchmaker between the unemployed skilled professions (both Canadians and newcomers) and HR hiring managers.  I have the most caring, lively and hardworking co-workers, and I really enjoy the nonprofit environment, although, it can be difficult as budget is really tight as government has cut funding by 15% to all non profit supports. 

I have dealt with a wide range of professions from medical, health-care, law, IT, engineering, construction, accounting, finance, banking, academia, business and retail.  Most of the people I meet have achieve middle management or higher in their career.  It sometimes makes me take a step back when I realize that my Nepalese client has a Masters degree from Cambridge University. He taught Executive Summer Programs on cost/benefit analysis at Queens University to foreign bureaucrats from Dubai and around the world, and who worked for the ministry of energy or hydro.  I really admire the guts and gusto that new immigrants display, and their resilience.  Nobody ever gives up and nobody really complains.  University professors, banking CEOs, medical doctors for 15 years − all of them are willing to take minimum wage jobs to support their families while looking for ways to upgrade or get certified in their field.

I see a lot of injustice, as sometimes, simple procedure like a criminal check from the Vancouver Police Department can turn into a long drama if the applicant has a middle name of “Singh”.  Or when I hear from clients that high-end retail shops like Holt Renfrew rarely have Asian faces, whereas you’ll never see a Caucasian face working at the dollar store.  Everyday, our clients go out there with their brave face, they are told that “they don’t have Canadian experience”, which if you ask anybody, a lot of it is protectionist tendencies more so than anything else.

I have discussed this issue with some of my professional friends in development and engineering, and they tell me that there are differences with working with immigrants.  They might not know the building code system, or communication, or having team spirit.  One friend told me that some of his immigrant co-workers horded all the information, and used it as a tool for climbing the corporate ladder, leading to those employees alienating themselves from his department.  Also the pace and way of doing business is different in various countries, as well as interpersonal communication when it comes to conflict.

A lot of what I do is actually cheer-leading and pep talks.  Of course, I conduct mock interviews, and give thorough feedback on their cover letter, resume, and interview skills (THANK GOD for my TOASTMASTERS training).  And I am actively calling companies in their field to find them suitable jobs, as well as organizing networking events to help educate my client about various industries and connect them with hiring managers.  We had a very successful "Tourism Networking Event" with 4 speakers, and close to 100 turnout at Kentizen Restaurant on Oct 6th. 

If your organization is hiring, we're a free recruitment service to you!  So PLEASE call me.  Also, we're always looking for mentors ( very minimum commitment: 6 hours over 3 months over phone, email or in person with your mentee).  One thing we're very excited is our upcoming event in January 2010, we're looking for a very talented HR professional to be our guest speaker, and 15 hiring companies to put up their booth, as well to have their HR hiring manager participate in our "SPEED INTERVIEW".  If you're interested please contact me at:



I have learned a lot about the new immigrant experience, and it brought out a lot more respect for my mother.  In 1990, when I immigrated here, she was working two minimum wage jobs, going to night school for accounting and taking care of me as a single mom.  Because she was still learning English at the time, she had a lot of difficulties at work with clients, co-workers, etc.  There were times when she was let go from a “Good Office Job” because of her English comprehension or her lack of computer skills.  It made me appreciate my own education and how lucky we are in our generation to have so much technology readily available to us.  This past Friday, I conducted a mock interview with an Ethiopian refugee who came from Kenya to Canada in December 2008. He is married with two wives, has a sick mother and seven children.  He is eager to obtain any job. Back in Ethiopia, he was a farmer with his own land; in Kenya, he had a wholesale food business.  He was polite, well dressed and professional, yet he could barely understand the basic questions I was asking him. 

As Remembrance Day rolls around again this year, my heart aches when I think about the meaning of being Canadian because I am forever proud to tell others that I’m Chinese Canadian.  But for many newcomers to this great country of ours, all they face is rejection with the statement that “You don’t have Canadian experience”.  I sincerely hope one day, the world will align its education system, especially for professionals like Accounting, Banking, Medicine, Engineering, Business, etc., so that when one professional decides to immigrate, it does not end his career.  MHHS is in the Georgia Straight this week, check out us, and if you want to help, give me a call!  We can always use donation, volunteer, or in-kind sponsorship as we're always short on office supplies.

I’m in the process of looking for a job/career in Marketing, Events, and Public Relations.  If you know of an opportunity that suits me, please let me know.  Thank you in advance.  


In the book, “How to easily handle difficult people handbook” by Murray Oxman, he suggests not reacting to the temper tantrums or negative outbursts from difficult people as it will add fuel to their anger.  Just don’t react and it’ll blow over when the difficult person realizes how childish they’re behaving.  He says every difficult person is a misbehaving scared child in an adult body.  He lists 20 types of difficult people:
1.    The Gloom and Doomer
2.    The Intimidator
3.    The Energy Thief
4.    Mr. Obnoxious
5.    The Criticizer
6.    The Judge
7.    The Trash Man
8.    The Persister
9.    The Moaner and Groaner
10.    The Moocher
11.    The Demander
12.    Touchy Touchy
13.    The Know-It-All
14.    Mr. Bossy
15.    Mr. Inward
16.    The Blabber
17.    The Activist
18.    The Excuse Machine
19.    The Kibitzer
20.    The Most Difficult Person of All

Most of Murray’s solutions to dealing with difficult people is to face them straight on, and set up your boundaries.  When others try to dump their problems on you, stealing your time and energy, just say no.  When they are hurling insults or being emotionally sensitive to what you say, leave them alone.  Murray wrote that we, ourselves are the most difficult people of all.  Don’t try to change others, change ourselves instead, because at one point or another, we have been all of these difficult people to others.  He also wrote, “There is no greater hell than wanting people to like you.  Wanting people to like you makes you weak.  Nobody likes a weak person.  Don’t be afraid of people not liking you.”


My husband hates going to cocktail parties with me. Why? Because, when we meet new people inevitably the question is asked: “what do you do for a living”. When I say “dietitian”, 99% of the time the person immediately launches into asking me a steady stream of questions about current diets, what’s healthy and what’s not, etc. While my husband has an interest in food and health, he would prefer that it not be the sole topic of conversation of his evening.
When people ask me if such-and-such a food is healthy or whether this-and-that diet works, I always return to the same 2 general rules:
1)    Foods closest to the way Mother Nature made them are always the healthiest choices. The more that we human mess with the food (i.e. process it), the less healthy it tends to be. Take orange juice for example. If your choice is between orange juice and an orange, the orange is closer than juice to the way that Nature made it, so the orange is the healthier choice. However, if your choice is between orange juice and orange pop or orange flavoured drink, the orange juice is closer to the way Nature made it so it’s the healthier choice.
 
2)    Humans are omnivores. We evolved eating a wide variety of foods. If something is a traditional food somewhere, it’s a good bet that it is pretty good for us.  An example is tropical fruit. I’ve had people say to me: “tropical fruit is really bad for you because it’s really high in sugar”. This seems strange to me because people from the tropics have eaten fruit for generation after generation. If it was so bad for us, how have people in the tropics flourished for so long while eating it? But, we should also look to how the foods were used traditionally. For example, pasta is served as a side-dish in Italy – not as a giant heaping plateful. So perhaps the pasta is not the problem – the serving size is.  

A way that I summarize these two rules is if someone’s great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize the food/ drink, it’s a pretty safe bet that it isn’t good for us. (And yes, I did say it first. I think Michael Pollan has been sneaking onto the back of my workshops).
So, in an effort to encourage my husband to attend cocktail parties with me, I’ll finish with a little quiz. That way when we meet, we can discuss other topics, like the weather, or the Canucks...
•    Is cheese healthy? Would someone’s great-grandmother recognize it?
•    Are Fruit Loops healthy? Would someone’s great-grandmother recognize it? But the box says “Made with Whole Grains”...   
  
            

This article is written by our Social Butterfly’s newest lovely Food-Loving Health Reporter Kristen Yarker-Edgar.  We're also looking for writers in many other categories such as Food & Beverage, Fashion, Exercise, etc..... just email us and we'll get you on the blog and into the newsletter!

Bio:

My vision is for all people to ENJOY healthy eating. Healthy eating is a celebration. It nourishes our bodies, tastes great, connects us to our friends, families, history, culture, and the earth. But, many smart, successful people today were not taught the skills we need to cook healthy, yummy food on a daily basis in our busy lives. Even I graduated without really knowing how to cook. We are inundated with nutrition information, watch amazing chefs whip up beautiful food, but are eating take-out or frozen dinners. My life’s goal is to change this. Known for my intuitive understanding of role that food and eating has in our lives, I get to the heart of the matter, help people understand their current habits, and come up with practical, do-able strategies to make enjoying healthy eating a day-to-day reality. I have been interested in nutrition since I was a teenager and have been a registered dietitian for 6 years. Having worked with non-profits and the provincial government in the past, this summer I did what I’ve always wanted to do – launched my own practice to work with individuals and Moms!

Kristen Yarker-Edgar, MSc, Registered Dietitian
Vitamin K Nutrition Consulting
kristen@vitaminKconsulting.com
604-506-0399
www.vitaminKconsulting.com
Twitter: vitKnutrition
E-Newsletter: signup at: http://www.vitaminkconsulting.com/services/
Are you a parent who is struggling with a picky eater? Take this Initial Assessment and receive FREE personalized feedback from Kristen: www.vitaminKconsulting.com