as i was eating a fiendish salad at hi-rise this afternoon i thought how much the quality of life would be improved if salad was eaten with chopsticks. i really should get chopsticks soon. simple lacquer chopsticks, in one colour, and long, chinese not japanese, that is, square top and round ends and not round tops tapering into pointed ends. six pairs of chopsticks to begin with should be sufficient for two people. what else should i get? i suppose plates in two sizes and probably low bowls for soup for western meals. cereal bowls. water goblets. and maybe salad bowl? then rice bowls - i was going to get japanese rice bowls, but i've now decided it makes more sense to get chinese rice bowls because they can double as soup bowls and treble as dessert bowls (sorry, too much goon show. i shall make cheng tung and red bean soup.) so eight of those. then a very large bowl for soup (well i don't know if we're going to do the communal bowl thing but even not being cantonese i can't help thinking it's very untraditional not to have a soup bowl at the centre of the table. and i don't even like soup.) plates with higher, curved sides, for the main dishes. oh yes, the western dinner plates will double for rice plates if we're eating singapore style. medium bowls for mixing food, and for noodles. have i forgotten anything? i hardly ever mess about in the kitchen. oh, maybe a platter? for guests. if we have fruit. perhaps small dessert plates. either western or japanese plates would do. oh! i forgot something really important - chinese soup spoons! i think that's it. is that it? remind me.