crab rangoons are, like, my favorite chinese food EVER

I have had a hankering for some good Chinese food ever since reading this column from Andy Heller, a Flint Journal columnist whose work I continue to follow. I think it has to do with the 5th grade regional spelling bee. Following his column, that is. Not my hankering for Chinese food. Anyway, Andy Heller was the moderator of the 5th grade regional bee, and I asked him to autograph my program. He did - "To Sara - A Heckuva great speller". I've been a devoted fan of his column ever since.

For the record, yes, I believe that is the correct spelling of "heckuva".

And because I know you are all waiting with bated breath to find out, no, I did not win. I came in 5th, and for my trouble I received a rather nice dictionary and thesaurus set - hardcover - which I still use.

To answer your other burning question, I was spelled out on the word "dumbbell". I forgot the second "b". (If you ask me, I still think it's superfluous.) And, yes, I appreciate the irony. For the record, I won the county bee - the qualifier for regional - with "inadvertence". So there. 

Phew. I'd better stop talking about the spelling bee. It's making my post-traumatic stress disorder kick back in. 

Oh, but one last spelling thing, since we're on the topic. Here's the Brian Regan spelling bee routine. It's great.

Anyway, getting back to the Chinese food: Andy's column lists various "bests" from Genesee county. (Yes, there are "bests" in Genesee county. No, they are not things like "best place to get shot" or "best abandoned building". ) For "best Chinese food", he named the Empress of China. Now, here's the thing about the Empress. It's located on Dort Highway, a particularly Flint-tastic part of town. One time, during a GM strike, someone threw a rock through the window of my parents' car and stole their cell phone while they were eating there. But the restaurant itself looks very nice, is wonderful inside, and has amazing food. I am a particular fan of the sizzling rice soup. And so ever since reading that column, I have wanted good Chinese food in the worst way.

Enter today.

After our last class of the day, I went with a few fellow students to Chinatown. Talk about good Chinese food... We went to Lao Shanghai, and it was SO YUMMY. Best crab rangoons of my life!!! I could've just eaten those all night. 

And that is just another reason why going to school in Chicago is spectacular.