@ehBeth,
Yes, I'd certainly like a bowl of the pork broth soup. Oh, and a platter for all of us of the wonderful potstickers. And some ice cold (sorry!) Tsing Tao.
On beauty, monetary value is far down on my own criteria. Even for antiques, I can feel attachment for scarred furniture, and items like the silver platter my mother ruined by putting it in a hot oven. Ordinary material stuff can have its own beauty to me. I've gone on about patina before - I like worn leather wallets, and so on. In fact I find all new stuff - an outfit someone is wearing, a newly planted garden sans surprises, home decor in Architectural Digest, on the boring side of the aisle of style.
