Number 1, V.I.P., Special Journal Entry! Best of Internet!

So here I am, at work, again. Ugh. I had an okay weekend. Well, not that great. Thursday I sat around on my fat ass and avoided going to Costco by watching t.v., playing Sims, and petting the cat. Oh yeah, and I went for a run.

Friday I thought E and I would go hiking or biking or something, but we didn't. We went to Costco. Oh, and the library. Then we did go to our friend's house for dinner, where I had an abysmal martini (note to K: get something else besides vodka to go in your martinis. Vodka + olive juice = vodka + olive juice, not a martini). I had a little too much to drink, but E ended up feeling bad for most of the day yesterday.

Then yesterday, I layed around a lot. We tried to drive down to the Saturday market, but could not find a parking place, so we ended up going to The Panda for lunch. And that was pretty much it.

The Panda cracks me up. First of all, most of the Chinese/Japanese places in Anchorage are actually owned by Koreans, which I find amusing. Second, they had a sign on the door announcing that they are now open late and this is what it said:

Great News!

I am now opening to 3AM Fridays and weekends!

All dinning, takeout and delivery 20% off!

Come eat at The Panda (Chinese food).

Best of Town in Anchorage!

E and I like to joke about Asian restaurant names, because they are frequently named things like "Number 1 Chinese" (seriously, that was a name of a restaurant at my college). We have a Korean restaurant in town that's called V.I.P. Korean restaurant. My Chinese friend explained to me that this was pretty common because it's viewed as a good, attention getting name. I guess it's just a cultural difference--I always think that the restaurant shouldn't have to tell me how good it is. Of course, not that The Panda is Asian haute cuisine. It's pretty Americanized. And I guess, really, that's what I find most funny about it, or any similar restaurant. All the fake Chinese art, the zodiac placemats, the stock Chinese dishes--it's all so obviously rigged to cater to American taste. And the irony is, most Americans think that's what eating in China is really like--moo goo gai pan, garishly painted pictures of ladies with umbrellas, and fortune cookies.

It would be cool to go to China and see what it's really like.