jonp31

I heard someone say that when asked, "What do you do?" he will respond, "I am a husband." To which they always reply, "And ... what else?" "I am a father." Usually people are not so impressed, but I think those are excellent answers. So, if you should care to know about me I will begin with a similar boast: I am a husband to a wonderful wife. We met while I was living in China and we now make our home in the States. When I have the time for it, I really do enjoy writing, and have since I was in grade school (which surprises me considering how much I hated back then to read). I don't anticipate adding articles very frequently, but if you'll come back to visit from time to time you may find something new. Anyway, I hope you'll get as much enjoyment (or benefit) from reading these as I've gotten from writing them.

In the Spotlight

How to Make Mu Shu Pork (a.k.a. Mu Xu Pork, or 木须肉)

If you have ever read any of my recipes before it probably won't surprise you that I'm going to once again start off with a paragraph or two of information you care little or nothing about. I would apologize, but considering you can easily skim over...

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  Chinese Cuisine

  How to Make Mu Shu Pork (a.k.a. Mu Xu Pork, or 木须肉)

  6 years ago

  If you have ever read any of my recipes before it probably won't surprise you that I'm going to once again start off with a paragraph or two of information you care little or nothing about. I would apologize, but considering you can easily skim over...

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  4
  Parenting Advice & Tips

  The Difference Between Hypocrisy and Failure in Parenting

  12 years ago

  Not long ago I read a question raised by a parent which I suppose echoes that of many mothers and fathers as they attempt to guide their children through the decisions and temptations they face in life. And the question was basically this: If I tell...

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  Chinese Cuisine

  Stir Fried Tomato and Egg: The Best Kept Secret of Chinese Cuisine

  12 years ago

  Chances are, when you think of Chinese cooking, a dish of stir fried tomato and egg isn’t the first image that pops into your head. For some of you that may simply be because you’ve never seen it at Panda Express … and if they don’t have it...

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  Vegetable Main & Side Dish Recipes

  The Best Way to Cook Eggplant

  11 years ago

  Admittedly, the title above is slightly less than objective and there’s nothing I can do to prove this eggplant dish is truly better than the other 1000+ that all claim to own the spot at the top. But I will say this – I had no idea eggplant...

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  Lesson Plans

  Using Thought Provoking Pictures for a Simple ESL Lesson

  12 years ago

  If you're looking for a simple yet meaningful ESL (English as a Second Language) activity that will inspire some good thought and discussion in your classroom, you've come to the right place. This lesson uses optical illusions and other images to generate conversations that get students to "dig...

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  Religion and Philosophy

  In Search of Truth or Error? -- A brief commentary on our generation

  12 years ago

  The other day while working on another article, a thought quickly ran across my mind. I decided to stop what I was doing and chase it a while to see where it would lead. After following it down a trail of unpredictable twists and turns it finally...

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  Choosing Christmas Gifts

  The Best Gift to Give Your Kids This Christmas

  12 years ago

  At the risk of turning away two thirds of the six people who are going to run across this article, I will let it be known up front that I am writing here to a rather specific audience. The title narrows it down some already – I’m writing to you...

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  Foreign Languages

  Chinese Pronunciation: The First Steps to a Native Accent

  12 years ago

  If you've come here hoping to find a few tips to implement in order to be speaking Chinese with native pronunciation by this time tomorrow I'm afraid you'll be sorely disappointed. I do trust, however, that since you obviously know how to read, you...