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To all my friends who like rice (or who I think like rice),

Have you noticed those dessicant you see in the food packages, especially in the rice products? A desiccant is a hygroscopic substance that induces or sustains a state of dryness (desiccation) in its container. For many products like rice snacks and others, dessicants are useful in that it can lengthen its expiration dates up to 13 months (AFS statistics).

However, dessicants are extremely harmful substances to our body. It can severely damage our digestive system and damage our immune systems if consumed by human. Its effects can be fatal. The companies that sell products with dessicants are required by the law to clearly label it as dessicants and that they are not to be consumed.

Seems like a very reasonable precautions, right? Well, I have some objection to it. I'm not saying that I have the perfect solutions but I have some conflicting ideas about this labelling.

There are lots of things in the world that I don't understand why this is happening. And this is one of them. I has seen this dessicant pack since I was young. I always thought it was a kind reminders but as I grew older, I started to question its effectiveness. And now it has become one of my (but maybe not for you) world's greatest mysteries. My problem is this:

IF YOU ARE ABLE TO READ THE LABEL "DO NOT EAT," YOU ARE SMART ENOUGH NOT TO EAT IT IN THE FIRST PLACE.



Does that make sense? If you are old enough or if you are smart enough to read English (or whatever your language), you already know you shouldn't eat those dodgy looking chemicals in the food product you have just purchased!

Some packs have pictures on it. They are better than words, but are still on the boarder line. I think if you are smart enough to understand what the picture is trying to say, you already are smart enough to understand that "hazardous" looking white powder in the little pack is dangerous and not good your body. You'll be suprised: lots of kids actually practice common sense.

So I want to suggest to hundreds and thousands of production managers out there: Do something about this. I sure don't have a solution for it but I sure do know that we have a problem. Instead of making sure people who are old enough to read the label not to eat the dessicant, you should focus on more vulnerable infants who can't read and who doesnt understand the pictures. Sure the parents can teach their children not to eat those dessicants, but what kind of security, as the offerers of those products, can you promise??? I'll be excited to know your creative ideas.

To my friends that are tall (or who I remember being tall),

This morning I wake up at usual time 6:30am.

I get out of the bed, do some stretches and head to my bathroom sink for my daily sink ritual: brush my teeth and shave my face. I turn on the water. While I wait for the hot water to come out, I stare at the mirror and think:

"What should I eat for breakfast?"
"Today, I need to do this and that"
"I need a haircut"
"That was a fun dream"

I mean who want a sink that doesn't even fit a cat??

The water is now hot. I grab my shaving cream. I lean over to wash my face. Then I hear a pop on my lower back. It hurts. What kind of pain is this?? Why does this hurt so much?

Luckily the pain goes away after several seconds. Then I become upset; upset that everything in life is so small and not built for tall people.


Am I the only one thinking this? I'm 196cm, about 6'5''. I'm flipping not normal. I know that (especially for an Asian guy) but can't they build sink a little taller and higher? And not just the sinks in the bathroom but also in the kitchen?? What the heck is the problem with the interior designers? Why do they have to make these sinks so low? And now that I come to think of it, all the kitchen and bathroom sinks that I ever had run into during my life, whether it be in Japan, Switzerland, Singapore, England, US, etc, THEY ARE ALL LOW!!!

I mean think about it. If the sink were extra foot taller than all of our current sinks, would the shorter people complain? Yes, the kids has to use taller stools but how about adults? Would they complain? I doubt it. If I stand up straight, I have to bend down 2 to 3 foot depending on the design of the sinks; the sink is at the height of my zippers! How uncomfortable my bending!! How ungraceful my bending!!!!

You may say well "what about the shorter people?" well, alright smarties. Calm down. Let me explain.

If we are suffering 2 to 3 feet, the shorter people can surely suffer 1 more foot!

Another thing. When you wash your face, do you dump your face in the sink, get your face out, and dump your face again until your face becomes clean? I hardly doubt that you do. We wash our face by making a cup shape with both of our hands and fill it will water and apply water to our face, right? Well, won't that make water spill on your sink? won't it make a mess?



Don't you hate wiping the sink or the sink tables especially when you are also wiping shaving creams (with shaved hair), soaps, hair dyes, etc? And you just used the towel to wipe the sink. You don't want to use it to dry our hands so you throw it to your laundry bag. More and more laundries everytime you wash your face. What a mess.

Wouldn't making the sink higher solve that problem? I mean I know the shortest friend I know in college still has to bend over to fash his face and he still makes a mess on his sink table. The less you have to bend, the less mess you make because you are not far frmo the sink. This makes absolute sense. Also, if you make sink higher, aren't you able to store more things underneath the sink like more towels, more hair products, make up products, detergents for bathrooms, etc.



Am I being really dumb, or am I offering a revolutionary, 4 million dollar marketing idea?

It solves prevailing lower back problems in adults, less mess on the sink, and offers more storage room underneath the sink. (Or deeper sink for kitchen which allows people to procastinate washing their dishes because they can pile up higher). Anyone who wants to buy this marketing idea for free???