How I Fuel My Freaking Amazing Brain

Wow. I had no idea my last post would generate such passionate responses. I have to say, I really enjoyed reading each and every of your comments, whether you agreed with me or not. Some made me laugh out loud, some made me nod vigorously in agreement, some made me reconsider what I wrote, some made me think deeper into the subject.

Despite what I said about the blog world reminding me a lot like high school, I think the key thing that distinguishes our blogging community from the high school cliques is the fact that we have an instantaneous, open, and uncensored discussion.

I love that. Because it reminds me that despite the trends and the labels I mentioned, we are all unique with individual, original thoughts and opinions. So thanks, guys! Thanks for contributing and providing such a lively, interesting debate!

However, I’d like to emphasize that I was not condemning anyone in any way. What I wrote on my last post was just an observation. Obviously, I’m not saying that you have to do everything different from everyone else. And I’m not saying that following some of those blog fads are a bad thing, as I specifically mentioned on my last post. Plus, I’m sure some of you liked those things way before it even became “in”.

I also mentioned a few of my own personal “blasphemies” not because I think it’s wrong to like chia seeds or Larabars, but to suggest that it is okay to disagree with them and branch out! I may not like froyo anymore, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna persecute you for loving froyo! I mean, I love kabocha and cheese, but that also doesn’t mean I expect everyone to love them, too.

That said, I’m sorry if I sounded accusing or judgmental. I’ve always been a bit of an extremist, so that shows in my words, too. If you like liquefied kale, that’s okay. We can still be friends.

Okay. Now that we’ve tied up some loose ends, I’ve got exciting news to share: My last final exam is TODAY! In just a few hours, I’ll be done for this semester! This calls for a celebration, so after that, I’m going out for sushi with Mimi and Kathryn! Can’t wait! >.<

Meanwhile, there’s been some random pictures stored in my camera, and they’re in need of a massive clean-up. So these are just some random snacks and eats I’ve been munching on to fuel up during the past week of final exam preparations…Get ready for an influx of pictures!  

Right, let’s see what brain fuel I had…

 Free Chick-fil-a sandwich!
They were handing these out on campus, and I gleefully snagged one home. Hey, when you’re a college student, you take free food wherever you can get!
Hm. I wasn’t impressed. This was one boring sandwich; just a breaded and fried chicken filet between a limpy bun. Blah. I ended up dumping a lot of hot sauce in it.

Oh, and shocking news…I’ve decided I rather like chocolate after all!
But just mild milk chocolate, preferably with something like nuts included. I still can’t really do dark chocolate. And I’m loving the S’mores edition goldfish graham crackers! Anyone tried those yet?

More chocolate:
I think chocolate candy bars may be the best brain fuel ever. It’s instant energy, and during the next couple of hours, I manage to have intense concentration in my work. The problem is, after that two hours, I crash. That’s why I try to avoid excessive sugar if I can.

By the way, this is now currently my favorite sandwich:
 Smoked ham, brie cheese, tomatoes, honey-mustard, salad greens, cottage cheese in whole-wheat pita.
 Grilled like this:
Yum. I never get tired of this combination.

I’ve also been befriending my buddy, Carl’s Jr:
I usually get the Teriyaki burger, but I tried the Western Bacon Cheeseburger for something new:
Charbroiled All-Beef Patty, Two Strips of Bacon, Melted American Cheese, Two Crispy Onion Rings and Tangy BBQ Sauce on a Toasted Sesame Seed Bun.

The problem with this burger is that the bacon is pretty pathetic.
And I’m not sure I understand the onion rings in there. Don’t they know the point of onion rings is for its crispy exterior? These just turned rather soggy in the burger. Ah, well. It was still delicious.

At some point I also had fries:

Because sometimes you just need the grease.

I also finished off the last of my Man Bait lollipops:
 

Maple-Bacon Lollipop! Yes, that’s right! You can actually see the real bits of bacon in it:
It was the best lollipop I ever had. How can you go wrong with bacon?

I also got bored pretending to study so I took some random pictures of myself:
I look so serious. Pretty ridiculous, considering that I’ve got a lollipop stuck in my mouth.
Exam period sucks.

Anyway. Ever since Christina sent me those roasted plantain chips from Trader Joes, I just can’t seem to get enough! But since I don’t have access to Trader Joes, I decided to roast my own:
Just buy some half-ripe plantains, peel and slice them up, spray them with oil, and bake them in a 350 degree oven until nice and crunchy, and then sprinkle with salt:
Not bad! These are too addicting, though. I just can’t stop eating them! But I think they are more nutritious than regular potato chips…am I right?
Okay, is it lunch time yet? Did I mention that I haven’t had sushi in 4 years? I am so freaking excited! Ah, how will I ever concentrate during exams?

Which reminds me, I really need to get going…so until we meet again…exam-free!!!

Question of the day: What is your favorite brain fuel?

[Edited to add] I did not get my sushi fix today. Poor Kathryn had a nasty tummyache! Hope you’re all right now, Kat!

To You

You do the math: Thanksgiving + ridiculously early “dinner” + big-ass turkey + too many desserts + amazing people + big container of leftovers for midnight “snack” = ??

A freaking enjoyable night, but the worst food coma the next day after. I was groggy all day today, and only climbed out of bed when it was 1 pm. Oh well. It was all worth it…t’was the best Thanksgiving dinner I’ve ever had!

Actually, that was my first Thanksgiving, and I’m now a bit miffed that I had been denied a true Thanksgiving dinner for 21 years of my life. You see, I’m Asian (sorry to bring in the race card), and we just don’t celebrate Thanksgiving the way Americans do. For the past Thanksgivings in my life, I’ve been forced to choke down fried rice and chow mein and sweet-and-sour pork. Oh boy.

However, even with the horrible Thanksgiving food, one thing I’ve never ever been denied was wonderful, beautiful company. I’m so blessed…wherever I go, I seem to be constantly surrounded by people whom I really love, people who care about me, and people who I know for certain that God placed in my life. Oh, praise the Lord!

So. This post is dedicated to all the great people who stuck by me throughout all these years, and especially to all the new friends I’ve made in the past 11 months.

To my family: Thank you…for always loving me, no matter how flawed and terrible I’ve been. I would not be who I am without you.

To my church brothers and sisters in Virginia: Thank you…for always praying for me, always having faith in me, and rejoicing with me in my triumphs and joys.

To my church brothers and sisters in Singapore: Thank you…for helping me find laughter again, for encouraging me to challenge myself and eventually watching my daily progress in recovery. The 5 months I’ve spent with you was a turning point in my life.

To my best friends: Thank you…for not forgetting about me, even though I’ve tried to push you away. Thank you for treating me like a normal person, for viewing me and reminding me of who I am, without the ED stigma. Thank you for not forsaking me.

To my new friends in USC: Thank you…for breathing  life into me again as I live a new, restored life as a normal college student. Thank you for all the joys, laughter, and delight you’ve brought to me. I look forward to many more stories we’ll share together.

To my blog friends: Thank you…for reading, even though at times I’ve been grumpy and bitchy. Thank you for being there for me, always ready with warm words of comfort, advice, and support. Thank you for keeping me on track, for touching me with the wonder that it is possible to form such beautiful relationships even through the faceless communication of the Internet. You guys have restored my faith in humanity…that people really are beautiful.

To God: Dear Lord…You already know deep into the depths of my heart. Tears and words cannot express how much I love and thank you. You are the reason that I live, and I cannot repay you for all the grace you’ve bestowed upon me…except to give my all to you. Dear God, please accept my very being, and shape it into yours.

And lastly: Thanks to Elda, David, Renee, Ben, and Jane for cooking  my first Thanksgiving dinner ever (though they are included in the “new friends in USC” category)!!!

In lieu of the special occasion, I donned my favorite socks:
And boy, oh boy…there was so. much. freaking. food. My head was swimming and I didn’t know which one to dig into first! But first, let me share the decorations they did for the dining room:
Very, very cool. Simple, yet classy and elegant.
  I especially loved how they had little name cards. Makes me feel special to see mine:
Woo-hoo! Sophia!! What a beautiful name!

And now on to food. A pretty table ain’t nothing without good food! Everyone zoomed in…
With their cameras?!! Um, I swear, they are not food bloggers…But what’s great about these people is that they’re total foodies like me!

Anyway, here’s the arrogant dish that thinks it’s centerpiece when it’s actually only good for leftovers:
The 17-lb turkey, plucked, roasted, and exposed for our gastronomical pleasure.

Then ham:
 Home-roasted. Sweet, yet intensely meaty.

Stuffing:
 Apples, French bread, walnuts, cranberries. It was freaking amazing. I went back for seconds and thirds. Hands down, my favorite dish of the night!
 4-Cheese Mac & Cheese:
With Parmesan cheese, white cheddar, gorgonzola, and goat cheese. Say what? All my favorite cheeses in one dish?  I went for seconds and thirds again. Definitely a close favorite!
Candied yams:
Honestly, I did not think I would like this at all because it would be too sweet for me, so I only took a tiny bit. But it turned out pretty good. Good enough for seconds!
 Mashed potatoes:
Damn it, my mashed potatoes never turned out this good!
The most freaking amazing cranberry sauce:
Homemade, with fresh cranberries, orange rind, apple cider, liquer, and…Whatever. I can’t remember, but it sure saved the boring turkey!

Also, fresh-baked cheese and herb biscuits:
Light, buttery, flaky, cheesy. What’s not to love?
 After that superfluous dinner, everyone wobbled to the living room to sing some praise songs together, because who best to thank on Thanksgiving than God, right?
La la la la~
 Tra la la la~
These guys are wondering, “When the heck is dessert time?” I can just read it in their heads!
I know I was!

And then it was dessert time!

Somehow, an Asian dish slipped into the mix:
 Korean rice cakes. But that’s okay, at least it wasn’t fortune cookies.

The quintessential pumpkin pie:
 Pumpkin bread!!
And banana pudding:
Embarrassed to say, but I was most enamored by the banana pudding, which turned out to be the least homemade dessert (pudding mix and Cool Whip). A true Gourmand I am not!

For this pecan pie, we stuck a candle into it:
  And we sang another song, this time a birthday song, because it was this little fella’s first birthday:
  How cool is it that his birthday is on Thanksgiving? The look on his face seems to indicate that he doesn’t know what the hell is going on though. Tee hee!

Eggnog was passed around…
…and we were divided into “Love-it” and “Hate-it” camps. I’m in the “hate-it” camp. Yeck. Too sickening rich…it’s like drinking custard that someone puked out.

It’s amazing how much you can stuff into your stomach if you put your heart into it. Here’s Renee, not afraid to chow down some more:

She is so pretty. And huggable. I love her!

After dessert we settled down, nursing our food babies…
And real babies…
And we talked some more. I loved this group of people. I didn’t know half the people here, but we were an interesting, ecelectic mix from all over the world: Nepal, Kazakhstan, India, Singapore (me), Taiwan, Korea, Romania…
Can you tell who is from where? No matter…we are all beautiful!

The baby started sleeping…
…and thus it was time to leave.

I had the most wonderful, heart-warming night. Thanksgiving rocks. It’s now officially my favorite holiday ever. Hopefully my next Thanksgiving will be “kung-pao chicken”-less as well!

Question of the day: What is your favorite Thanksgiving dish? Do you have a non-traditional Thanksgiving tradition?

Oh, and Egg-nog: Love it or hate it?

The Past I Bear

I surrender. I give up. I resign. I cannot hide from my past. My past defines me; it has shaped me; and it has built the road ahead of me. And now, I have realized that I need to embrace it, or I’ll never have peace with myself.

When I first arrived in USC, I wanted to escape from my past. All 7 years in Virginia—from the moment I started to toy with the idea of dieting, to the slow decline down the slipping slopes of Anorexia, to the horrid hospitalizations, to the pitiful stares of my neighbors and stranger—I wanted to obliterate them all.

I wanted a brand new start. I wanted to create a new image of me, a Sophia Lee that has not the slightest trace of that sickening ED-stigma on my forehead. I envisioned a fresh, blank canvas, where I would create a clean person, someone who is known for her personality, her talents, her opinions and thoughts—and not Sophia the Anorexic. I was tired of having my name on the prayer list under the “mental disorder” category. I was sick of having strangers tell me they were “praying for the ED-devil to depart” from me. I just simply…didn’t want any single soul to ever, ever find out about my ED past.

But…God had a different plan for me.

Somehow, someway, I find myself meeting people who went through similar experiences as me, amazing, beautiful people who tug at my heartstrings. 

Somehow, someway, my friends find out about my blog and discover my past, but don’t judge me in the least.

Somehow, someway, I just cannot ignore the fact that wherever I go, my ED-radar senses evidences of eating disordered people all over my school campus. 

Somehow, someway, I get numbers of emails from fellow ED-sufferers, emails that cut me to the heart and make my eyes tear up with empathy and compassion.

So, I yield. I’m going to throw away my pride, and I’m not going to be ashamed and hide my past. If anyone asks, I will flat-out admit that yes, I am—had—an eating disorder. That doesn’t make me less of a person. Whether I like it or not, my eating disorder is a huge, significant part of my life, and without it, I would not be the person I am now. In fact, I think without my eating disorder, I would have been one insensitive, arrogant, self-righteous, self-glorifying jerk.

Not that I’m such a great person now. No freaking way! I still have much left to work on. I am still riddled with flaws and weaknesses— but heck, at least now I know and acknowledge it, and that’s a critical step towards self-improvement.

And because of my weaknesses, I am able to understand other people’s own struggles, and sympathize with them. I know all too well that real and gripping fear of eating a simple plate of spaghetti, or stepping out of a rigid routine. I understand all too much that terrible, perpetual obsession with food, the never-ending cycle of starvation, self-hatred, self-absorption, and control.

Eating disorder…is an incomprehensible, exasperating disease. Who can understand us? We cheat, we lie, we manipulate, we care about nobody and nothing except ourselves and our disordered habits and thoughts. Who can love us? Who can care for us, and bear our outrageous tirades, our irrational fears, our anger, our bitterness?

Even our parents have a limit as to how much they can understand. It takes someone who has walked down the same path, someone who has experienced the same hell-hole, to be able to truly understand.

I don’t know exactly what God has in store for me, but I do know that I will forever be surrounded by people like me. And I don’t believe it is a coincidence that I have a burning desire within me to reach out to these people and help. God, I’m here…will you heal me? Will you…use me?

Wow. Heavy words. For those of you who are just here for the food, it’s okay if you scrolled all the way down all that rambles straight to the pictures. What I said up there, is just a jumble of mixed emotions and thoughts that I just had to express in real words. But I promise there is food. And good food, too!

Now, you all know how much I adore sandwiches. Especially if it’s got good bread, as I delightfully showcased here. Well, the world has come to an end, because I am all out of bread. Tres horror!

Well, what to do? Time to get creative. I stared at an eggplant and an eggplant stared back at me. Hmm…

Stuffed and Grilled French Toast, Eggplant-Style
(Help me think of a better name for this!!)

For the “french toast”:

• eggplant, sliced vertically into two thick slabs
• 1 whole egg
• 2 egg whites
• 1/3 cup cottage cheese
• salt and pepper

For the filling:

• sweet potato, sliced vertically into one thick slab
• cottage cheese
• 2 thick slices of ham
• tomato, sliced

Topping:

• 2 tablespoons salsa (from Leianna)
• 2 tablespoons feta

For the “french toast”, first blend the cottage cheese, eggs, and seasonings together in a blender until smooth:
Next, dip the two eggplant slabs into the egg-cottage cheese mixture:
Let soak and set aside. Start roasting the sweet potato in the oven. About 20 minutes in a 450 degree oven. Twiddle your thumb, or you can start assembling the filling ingredients.

Once the sweet potato is roasted, let it cool for a bit. Meanwhile, grill up both eggplants in your George Foreman, until cooked through. Once cooked, start stacking up!

First, your grilled eggplant “french toast”:
Then layer some cottage cheese, sprinkle on garlic salt, pepper, whatever seasoning you wish…
And then the huge slab of sweet potato:
And then on goes the ham and tomatoes:
Finally, stack the second eggplant “french toast” on top, and top with salsa and feta cheese!

This was like whoa!! (Tee hee, Nicole!)
Have you seen anything like this? I think not! ;-p
Look at that cheese oozing out…
Hefty, big, and tasted glorious! I loved how the eggplant sort of tasted like pancakes, the meatiness of it, and all the chewy and soft textures in there!
Of course I still needed more carbs than that, so I used the remainder of the sweet potato for fries:
There is no better accompaniment than baked sweet potato fries! Sweet and savory, chewy little goodness!
I have to admit, this is quite labor-intensive though. And the eggplant “french toast” was definitely extraordinary, but…there is a reason why french toast is made with bread, because when it boils down to taste…there is nothing like bread!

Sigh. I really need to look for bread, but there is no good bread in the USC vicinity. They are all limpy, fluffy, bread-imitators. This is one instance when I actually miss my past…living walking distance to Great Harvest! T___T;;;
 
But at least it was quite an experience! I did have some of the cottage-cheese/egg batter left, so I made it into a fluffy sort of omelete/pancake:
I was a bit distracted and let it burn, but otherwise it was delicious! But nothing compared to this:
Welcome to Sophia’s Kitchen! Mimi and Kathryn, aren’t you guys glad you go to the same school as me?

Question of the day: What is your secret past? Haha, kidding! Nope, in light of today’s…rather heavy topic, today’s question is gonna be light, but not trivial…Do you freaking love carbs (That’s a rhetorical question)?!!

 

I’m Not Cheap-Quality

I really don’t know what I was expecting. Did I seriously expect to maintain my straight-A status here in USC? After three to four years of academic break? After years of thinking and doing nothing but being obsessed with food and disordered thoughts? Did I really think I would just gracefully leap right onto the academic wagon and have a smooth ride?

My writing professor once asked us to write down what grade we expected from his class. I half-jokingly, half-seriously wrote: “Nothing short of an A. I’m greedy!”

A week later, I got my first C+ from that class. I’ll bet my professor was laughing behind my back. Actually, I’m pretty sure he had a smirk on his face when he handed me the paper.  

I warned my parents about expecting a low grade from me this semester. They replied, “It’s okay, Sophia! A 3.5 GPA isn’t that bad.”

Um. More like, 2.5?!

Not that they’ll still care. My parents don’t give a hoot about my grades, as long as I’m happy and healthy. Well, they might not, but I do. I really, really do care about my grades.

Which leads me to ask myself—Why? Why do I care so much about a stupid number? Perhaps that is just a similar question to the one I asked when I was trying to recover from my eating disorder but couldn’t. Why? Why did I care so much about numbers— calories, weight, etc?

And I have concluded that the answer to both those questions is the same: Because that’s the way I define myself. Because that’s the way I define the quality of my life. I want something concrete, and numbers are reliable and literal. They’re not abstract forms, but rigid figures, which gives me assurance and proof that “I am doing well” or even the deluded sense that “I am happy.”

To hell with that! I’m more than a stupid number. I’m a living, breathing life with real, unique background, personal story, circumstances, and experiences. I am a special creation of God, and I’m surrounded and connected with other beautiful creations of God. 

I won’t be able to bring my bodily flesh, or my GPA, or my money with me when I die. What the heck—beauty and grades are going to be last thing on my mind when I’m on my deathbed!

I want to live a quality life, and not stress myself out in order to create one. I want to enjoy my life, not spending the majority of my life dreaming of enjoying one. I’m so caught up with physical satisfaction that I forget what is truly real and what is truly mine: my soul, my being.

Life…is like a grilled cheese sandwich. It may be simple, it may be plain, it may be modest. But made with good quality ingredients, it sure ain’t cheap crap— instead, it’s just wholesome, genuine, sincere comfort food. And you know what? None of us is made with inferior quality. Hello? We’re creations of the Almighty God!

Haha, you know where I’m going with this, right? Yup, I’ve been having a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches lately. But why not? They taste awesome, you can have fun making different variations of them, and they are fast and easy to make!

Here’s one:
 Parmesan, cheddar, and herbed feta cheese with pastrami, tomatoes, pickles, dijon mustard and honey on Nature’s Pride 12-Grain bread.
I made this 4 times, one with apples instead of tomato. It is that good.

Another one:
 Parmesan, cheddar, and herbed feta cheese with pastrami and fried egg on Dave’s Killer PowerSeed bread.
My GF “bled” some yolk while grilling this up, but you can be sure I caught every drop with a plate and mopped it up with the bread!
Yet another one:
 Parmesan, cheddar, and herbed feta cheese with kabocha, tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, and dijon mustard on Dave’s Killer PowerSeed bread.
 Super yum!

By the way, I’m convinced Dave’s Killer bread is the best thing since sliced bread. I’ve had them for awhile, but didn’t get the chance to feature them on my blog because I’ve just been nibbling on them plain, or with nothing but avocadoes, cream cheese, and a sprinkle of salt. It’s so good that I didn’t want to mask it with any other dominating ingredients!

Dave was kind enough to send me some samples:
Again, note: this was a long time ago. I only have a couple slices left, and I am so, so, so devastated.

This was the bread I used for my grilled sandwich:
It’s dense, and chock full of protein-rich seeds!
The Good Seed is already gone in my tummy:
So is the Cracked Wheat:
 
But the Sin Dawg made the fastest disappearing act:
Ingredients: Organic Whole Wheat Flour, Organic Raisins, Water, Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Canola Oil, Organic Sunflower Seeds, Organic Rolled Oats, Organic Molasses, Organic Vital Wheat Gluten, Organic Ground Flax Seeds, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Whole Sesame Seeds, Yeast, Salt, Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Organic Cashews, Vanilla, Organic Brown Rice Extract.
Seriously. The best freaking thing on earth. I finished it within the day. It is so chewy, and sticky, almost like a cinnamon roll but without the cloying sweetness, and with a whole lot more substance and chew from the plentiful raisins, nuts, and seeds.

I totally love Dave’s motto: “Say no to bread on drugs!” LOL!! I’ve never met this guy, but I love him already. In my opinion, if you bake good bread, there is no way you can’t be cool!
Dave, you’re my man!

Okey dokey. Time to check my email. My study partners were supposed to send me their part of the work, but guess who slacked off and the exam is tomorrow? I think I’m just gonna study solo next time. >:-(

Question of the day: Life is like a… Fill in the blank please? “Box of Chocolates” and “grilled cheese sandwich” are taken!

P.S. Notice my repeated use of those three cheeses? My only cheese left! Can’t wait for Biz’s giveaway to arrive soon!

We, the Citizens of the Blog World…

Three major essays for three separate classes, three articles for my school’s newspaper, tons of emails and more writings in preparation for my upcoming mid-term later…I just want to kick back and relax. So what do I do? I hitch up my Macbook and write a blog post.

This is the ultimate sign: I have to be born to be a writer. Writing is in my bones. When I’m  happy, I write. When I’m angry, I write. When I’m sad, I write. I write for school, I write for  the Daily Trojan, I write for personal emails, and I write for this blog. But I have to admit, writing for this blog is the highest form of entertainment for me.

That said, being a blogger comes with tons of responsibilities, both consciously and unconsciously. Here’s my personal list of blogger responsibilities:

Blogger’s Code of Responsibilities

1. Keeping my blog updated: this is critical for any blog. You’ve got readers, and you don’t want to spring them with a random post after two months of hiatus. I no longer post daily, but I try to at least post once every two days. That may even be too much for some of you, but you can always work up a regular schedule, and stick to it.

2. Responding to readers: Sometimes, readers may ask questions, or share something really personal. I don’t want to leave them hanging and disappointed. Obviously I don’t have to respond to every comment that says something simple like “Yummy!” But if they ask specific questions, I answer back in the form of email. I don’t respond in my comment page, though, as not all readers return back to look for it.

3. Being sensitive to readers: Okay, I admit I may have a bit of problem here. I am super-opinionated, and I have a hard time holding back some of my views. Of course this is my blog and I can say whatever I want, but I still have the moral responsibility that people are actually going to read what I say and be affected by it. If the majority of my audience is eating disordered, I’m not going to put anything potentially triggering on my blog. Likewise, even though I’m a devout Christian, I’m not going to scream out, “You’re going to hell, you heathen!” when I talk about my faith.
   
4. Commenting back: This is kind of ambiguous. I personally feel a bit guilty if I don’t at least “return the favor” of commenting back to those who has blogs. Not to say I feel pressured to read your blogs – if I’m a regular commenter, it’s because I like you— but I think it is at least common courtesy to check out the commenter’s blog once.
   
5. Being wise with commenting: This actually pertains to everyone— both the readers and the bloggers. I added this because a large chunk of food bloggers have/had an eating disorder, and this blog started as an eating disorder recovery blog as well. I noticed that sometimes, when a blogger with history of ED starts to slip, nobody says anything.

   For example, signs of obsessive exercise or restriction. Eating salads and yogurts for most meals? That’s not normal, nor is it healthy. I’m not saying you should condemn that person, or embarrass that person by pointing it out loud on the comment page. But commenting something like, “Wow, you eat so healthy, good job”? Not cool. You don’t even have to say anything. You can simply stop commenting, and the blogger may take notice. Or, depending on the circumstance and your relationship with that person, you can send a sincere email with a nice reminder.

   I like to think of bloggers as a community. We may not know each other personally, but we do have a relationship, and we shouldn’t be turning a blind eye to someone who is clearly in need of support or encouragement, or criticize and judge each other.

6. Being truthful in product reviews: Now, this is probably one of the best perks of being a blogger…the free swag! Don’t go crazy and start accepting any random samples, though. If you’re a health blogger, obviously you don’t want to be reviewing Kraft’s fat-free cheese. Also, don’t feel pressured to say a good word just to be nice. There is no Ms. Nice in reviews. There is only Ms. Trust. You’ve got to be true to your readers, because trust, once lost, is hard to gain back.
   

And now, it’s time for my own product review! I haven’t done many of these, but I’ve been receiving some sweet packages lately so I’ve been toiling away, munching on some yummy eats just to do a review for you guys…ah, the pains I go through for my readers!

First off, I got my package of Nature’s Pride Bread as Tastemaker for Foodbuzz:
Whole Wheat, and 12-Grain (Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of them until I ate some up).

I tried them plain at first, just to see how they stand up to the other breads I’ve tried— I liked it! They’re quite substantial, none of that fluffy business, and I love how they have that slight sour aroma…just a bit of that good ol’ artisan sourdough taste. Yum!

I wish they had a bit more chew and density to them, though, but I guess these were made to be used as sandwich bread, not to eat plain. So I blasted out my George Foreman for some sweet-ass grilled sammies:

Melon, Brie, and Smoked Ham Grilled Sandwiches

• 2 slices Nature’s Pride 12-Grain bread
• dijon mustard
• thin slices of melon
• 4 slices of smoked ham
• thick slices of brie
• thin slices of red onion

Slather one side of each bread with dijon mustard. Pile in all the other ingredients and snap them shut between the bread. Grill in the hot arms of Mr. GF.
Here’s where my “strong opinion” budges in: This sandwich is the freaking bomb!! Heavenly, mind-blowing combination!
Don’t be afraid of the melon— it’s good stuff hot with melted, creamy brie!
If I had prosciutto, I would have used that, but you know with my pitiful budget and all…I had to make do with good ol’ 50%-off deli ham.
Come on, I know you want a bite, don’t ya?
Now, stop moaning and wake yourself up for another review: Chobani Greek Yogurt.
I think by now all of you already know what Chobani is, and for good reason, because this stuff is rather awesome. I have to be honest— I was rather skeptical of this brand, because it is cheaper than its competitors.
But I enjoyed them tremendously, even though I don’t really like flavored yogurt— they actually stayed creamy, without being overly artificially-flavored or sweet. Just perfect!
My favorite was blueberry, pineapple, and of course good ol’ plain. I didn’t like the Pomegranate much, though. Something about that gritty seeds.
See how thick it is?
And the little pineapple chunks…
Perfect light snack!

And here’s yet another review: Nature’s Path!
(From left) Crunchy Maple Sunrise cereal, Pumpkin Flaxplus Granola, Optimum Strawberry & Yogurt cereal
 Optimum energy bar (blueberry, flax & soy) and HempPlus Raisin granola bars

First up, the Optimum energy bar:
I’m not a big fan of bars in general, but these weren’t bad. They tasted a bit like blueberry coffeecake, but a very, very, very healthy cake, if you know what I mean. I liked them okay, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy them.
Next, HempPlus Raisin granola bar:
Pretty sweet! Chewy, sticky, with bits of crunch. Tastewise, I wouldn’t say they’re much different from your regular Quaker granola bar…but nutrition-wise, they’re stellar with the added omega-3 fats.

Now that the less-enthusiastic review are out of the way, I feel ready to rave about the next three…

 Crunchy Maple Sunrise cereal:
This is amazing!!! Holy-freaking yummilicious!Tons of different textures, not too sweet, lovely maple flavor…I think I’m addicted, because I could not stop munching and crunching on these! Oh noooooo!! What about my budget?!
They were awesome in my Chobani though.

Pumpkin Flaxplus Granola
These are perfect. They’re already gone. The whole bag, in my tummy, now thoroughly digested. Enough said.

Optimum Strawberry & Yogurt cereal:
I’m trying to restrain myself away from this, because I want my roommate to taste this— she’ll kiss her Special K goodbye, because this is incomparably good.
I did dig through and just had to fish out the crunchy yogurt bites…urgh, bad habit. Stop it, Sophia, stop it!

I can’t believe I used to be so cold towards cereal. Now I dread the day I reach my last handful of these wonderful cereal.

Well, that’s all, folks. Tomorrow I’ve got another blogger meeting planned…stay tuned!

Question of the day: What do you think of my Blogger’s Code of Responsibilities? Is there anything you disagree on, or want to add on? Please share! I’m still a newbie, so I’m still learning!

I Laugh In Your Face

I’m glad you all agree with me: My dad is freaking sweet! Funny how I used to think he was Hitler’s spawn. It’s enormous how a little maturity can change the relationship between you and a parent. I’d like to say we’re *almost* like equals now…we discuss more, and instead of my dad being just an authoritative figure, I truly think of him as one of my best friends as well.

But sometimes, my dad ain’t so sweet. And thank God that he knows exactly when to use the reverse psychology on me.

You see, a few days ago, I received the greatest shock of my life: I got a C+ on my essay on the evolution debates.

Why? Not for stylistic issues, or mechanics, but because my opinion was too strong. It’s more like a screed than an academic paper, my professor scribbled in bright red ink. But I thought strong arguments was the purpose of an argumentative essay!

Don’t worry, I did not charge up at my professor screaming and kicking. In fact, I was too stunned to say or do anything. I staggered out in a daze, almost certain that this was all a horrible nightmare.

I, Sophia Lee, got a C+. And not just in any subject; it was in my best freaking subject, writing. I, who have never gotten less than an A in any essays, who wrote up 90-page papers when I was just a freshman, whose essays were read out loud during class as model essays numerous times…I got a freaking C+?!!

This wasn’t just a slap in the face. It was a total bulldoze, crush, trample, smash, squash, crush, mow-down, rip-apart…Okay, you get the idea. Anyway, that was how I felt that hideous, outrageous C+ did to my flabbergasted face. I didn’t even have the mental coherence to go grocery-shopping (Okay, that was a lie).

But that night, my dad happened to call. I didn’t feel like talking to anyone, so I refused to answer the call. Five seconds later, I felt bad and called back.

“Sophia, darling!” My dad boomed in his joyful, jolly voice.

I instantly regretted calling. “Hi,” I moaned glumly, thinking, I hate happy people.

My dad immediately caught notice of my deflated tone. “What’s wrong?”

I couldn’t help it. I started crying. “I got a C+ on my evolution essay~” I wailed.

And you know what my dad did? He laughed. Laughed. Yes, he dared laugh outright into my face! “Hahaha,” he guffawed. Then his voice got muffled as he told my mom really loudly that his daughter got her first C.

“Hahaha!” my mother chortled.

And here’s the strangest thing. I couldn’t help bursting out in laughter, too! I tried to pretend to be pissed off, but inside, I felt as if all the distress inside of me were blown away with their laughter. How silly I was! My parents were absolutely right to be laughing, because I was seriously being ridiculous with one single grade.

“Finally you’ve found a professor that won’t pump your ego but whip you good!” my dad exclaimed gleefully. 

Ummm…Okay, daddy, you can stop now, I get your point.

Anyway. Sometimes, when life hits you in the face with a splash of salty water, you just need to spit it back out and laugh. There are so many freaking things we worry about that in the larger and deeper context, is so frivolous. How foolish and pathetic it would be to waste all our precious emotions and time over such meaningless things!

Besides, another thing I realized: you don’t learn anything if life is all sooth course and calm waves. It’s during a storm that you are alert, that you experience and learn something new.

So what did I learn from this C+?

1) I need to tone down a little in my opinions when writing an academic paper. 

2) I won’t waste more than 5 minutes on anything that isn’t worthy of time and emotions.

3) When being laughed at, laugh together.

Likewise, with food, it’s best not to get too serious. Flavors and ingredients are there for us to play around, to have fun, to experiment with.

And with a great base like POM Wonderful juice, the canvas is wide and open to anything! I really, really like this stuff! I don’t like to drink it straight up because I’m not a huge juice fan, but I am loving how versatile it is in cooking!

Poor college students that we are, Mimi and I decide to cook instead of eat out. But just because we were saving up on cash doesn’t mean we had to save up on flavor! I had another great experiment with POM Wonderful juice, and this is the masterpiece I came up with!

Monte Cristo with POM-fruit compote

Monte Cristo:

• 4 slices Cinnamon-Raisin bread
• dijon mustard
• 6 slices smoked ham
• brie
• mixed greens
• 1 whole egg
• 1/4 cup egg whites
• milk
• vanilla
• cinnamon
• salt

POM-fruit compote:

• 1 peach, stoned and chopped
• 1/2 apple, chopped
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/2 bottle POM Wonderful juice
• honey
• drizzle balsamic vinegar
• water
• pinch dried rosemary, crushed
• grated lime zest

For the sandwich, just divide up the fillings between two slices of bread. Beat the egg, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt together. Dip the sandwiches into the egg-batter and let them soak up the liquid.

Meanwhile, heat up a small saucepan. Toss in all the fruits, juice, and honey. Drizzle in balsamic vinegar and honey to taste. Add a bit of water to thin it out if you like. Sprinkle in the rosemary.

Bring to a boil, then let simmer until thick and reduced. Grate in the lime zest, set aside.

Heat up a giant skillet. Spray it with vegetable oil, or use butter if you’ve got it. Place the sandwiches gently on top and cook both sides until nice and crispy, and the cheese inside is melted and gooey.

Serve each sandwich up topped with the POM-fruit compote.
Ooh la la~ Apparently the Monte Cristo was popularized in Southern California. How appropriate!
I think the pictures say it all. I’m sorry I didn’t take much pictures, but I was starving and this thing smelled so. freaking. good. And it tasted even better!
Perfect sweet and savory combo! The thick, melted, creamy brie cheese, the smokiness of the ham, the sweetness of the cinnamon-raisin bread, topped with the sweet-and-sour POM-fruit compote…Totally hit the spot!
In the words of Mimi: “Mmm! Mmm! MmmMmm…” And nothing else, because that just about sums it up, folks!

Note: To make the perfect french toast, do a mix of whole eggs and egg whites. The egg whites make it crispy, while the bit of yolk adds a touch of richness and creaminess and fluffiness. The best of both worlds!

Question of the day: What are some of the more “frivolous” things you care too much about? School? Other people’s opinions? Popularity? Your car? And even – gasp—food?

All Thanks to Love, Friends, and Party-Poopers

Goodness! Just when I was planning a big depressive “Woe is me” party, you guys have to butt in with all these sweet and wonderful words. You just won’t let me wallow in peace, will you? Hee hee hee! But seriously, thank you, all of you, for your touching words of encouragement and comfort. They certainly lifted me out of my dark pit!

You know how sometimes, when you’re feeling really down…your masochistic side kicks in and you just feel like making yourself feel worse and worse? You replay every hurtful word in your mind, letting your tears flow and flow, curling up by yourself in the corner and basically just throwing a big dramatic self-pity fiesta.

Well, I was about to do that, but reading all of your comments made me realize that I would be one big fat hypocrite if I were to indulge to my pessimistic side. Haven’t I been professing about how important it is to stay positive in no matter what circumstances? At times like this, I’ll just have to pick myself up, dust my pants, and force myself to smile and look at the bright side.

Since the source of my little rant came from my parents, I decided to actively list out some of the signs of love and care they have showered upon me all these years:

• When I was first born, my father didn’t sleep for days out of excitement, while my mother slept for days out of exhaustion
• As a child, my dad always told me proudly that I was the most beautiful girl in the world. I was shocked to find out that wasn’t the truth a few years later, but realized that to my dad, it is the truth
• When I was hospitalized for anorexia, and being a total bitch to everybody, my parents still came to see me several times each day, painting on goofy grins on their faces just to make me smile
• When I checked myself out of the hospital, my parents supported my decision, while everyone else pointed fingers at them and called them “Stupid”, “irresponsible”, and any other negative adjective you can find under the sun
• When I was at my lowest weight, my parents crept in each night while I was asleep, checking to see if I was still alive
  
• The first time I ever saw my father break down into heart-breaking sobs was when he discovered me secretly trying to throw my food away…I will never ever forget that moment
• When I called home after my second hospitalization in Northwestern, my mom cried the whole day, while my dad put on a brave front to comfort both her and me
• When I fell and hurt myself several times because of lack of muscles, my parents freaked out even more than me. For months, my mom tenderly dressed and cleaned my wounds even though blood makes her squeamish

Okay. I can’t go on now. I’ve got tears running down my cheeks again, but it’s not because I’m feeling bad for myself or pissed off. It’s because I’m shaken to the core by my parents’ persistent and fierce love and support for me all throughout these years. From the moment I was born, to this day, they never failed to love me. They are humans, with human flaws and weaknesses, but their unconditional love for me? It’s superhuman. It’s…freaking amazing, for the lack of a better word.

My parents once told me that unless I am a parent myself, I will never understand the level and deepness of a parent’s love for the child. I guess they’re right. I can never fully understand, but I sure as heck am grateful and appreciative towards them.

Another person I am really grateful towards is one of my best friends, Joyce. Joyce is— well, honestly, someone completely different from me. She is sweet, gentle, patient, and kind, great characteristics that I do not possess. She is one of the friends whom I will be eternally thankful for, because even though we are so different, we connect in a level that is really spiritual and deep.

Even when I isolating myself like a bitter, cranky hermit, she still called me whenever she came back from college, and occasional sent me sweet and encouraging letters. Even when I looked inhumane and pitiful, she never once looked down on me, but treated me as her equal, her dearest friend.

Well, it was her birthday Sunday, and I decided to treat her to a good  lunch this afternoon. Her boyfriend Allen came along, because they’re rather inseparable and he’s cool enough to hang out with us .

I took her to Chef Geoff’s at Tysons:
Of course, the first thing I noticed was that there was good lighting. The interior decoration was sleek, simple, and sophisticated. I felt a bit out of place though, because I was dressed in jeans and flip-flops, while everybody else were dressed in business suits and touted Gucci purses.
Our waiter was a tall, blond guy who looked like he was a college student. He served us this amazing bread at once:
Warm, chewy black olive bread with roasted red pepper hummus! Oh wow, I usually don’t eat from the bread basket they serve, but this was quite good. Really intense and flavorful from the salty olives.

Joyce ordered a Pomegranate Lemonade to start:
This was non-alcoholic, but just a sip of it was like a jolt to the taste buds! Extremely puckish, in a good way, because that guaranteed that it was freshly-squeezed.

Everything on the menu looked good, so we took about half an hour to decide. The waiter was really nice about it though, and answered all our questions. I also had fun teaching my friends what mascarpone, prosciutto, queso, EVOO, and arugula was (Joyce thought it was cheese!).

Allen finally ordered one of the Pizza Pies:
 Chicken, Queso Oaxaca, Smoked Corn Relish

Damn pretty!
The flavor combination was amazing, but the only problem was that there was too much juice or something, which made for a soggy crust. Well, if you close your eyes and dig in with a fork, it would be a very tasty casserole!

Joyce ordered the best dishes out of ours, the Day Boat Scallops:
 Mushroom-asparagus risotto, truffle mascarpone, white balsamic reduction with seared scallops
Holy freaking yum! Hers was the most expensive, but certainly worth every single penny!
Really flavorful, and the rice had a nice texture to it, unlike the risotto I got at Brio’s on Monday.

I, unfortunately, ordered the worst dish ever, the Country Ham & Gruyere Melt:
 On “baguette” with sweet onion relish, dijon, baby lettuces. It was supposed to be on a brioche bun, but because I don’t like soft airy rolls like brioche, I substituted the “baguette” instead. I put “baguette” in quotation marks because it was hardly the good, crusty French baguette. More like the imitation, holey baguette you buy in cheap grocery stores. GAH!!

And what the hell is with this sandwich? It was ALL bread and no filling. Which I didn’t miss much anyway because the ham was SO freaking salty to the point of nastiness.
And where the hell is my sweet onion relish? More like a sliver of white onion chopped up. I was so disappointed, because one of the reasons I ordered this dish was in anticipation of the sweet onion relish it promised. 
The baby lettuces turned out to be just salad drenched with some kind of sour dressing. If I had known it was salad, I would have asked for dressing on the side because I abhor salad dressings.

The waiter saw my disgruntled face and asked whether he could switch up the dish for me, but I decided to just choke it down because it was kind of my fault for messing with the dish, anyway. Also, I didn’t want to make a big fuss when we were celebrating Joyce’s birthday. I ended up eating the sandwich open-faced, and dipping the bread into the leftover hummus.

Ah, well. At least Joyce’s dish was stellar! She was the guest of honor, the birthday girl, after all, so I was happy that she really enjoyed her dish.
Despite my stupid bready sandwich, I’m back to a pretty chipper mood today. A positive perception, a little initial forced smile, and great friends will do that to you! (The above picture is JOYCE! Not me! I’m not that pretty!)

Another reason why I’m happy? I received my new camera which I ordered in ebay today!

A Canon Powershot SX-200 IS! Yahoo!
I was actually debating between a SD880 and a SD1200, but after reviewing several more reviews, I finally settled on this to replace my crappy Sony Cybershot T-5. I have yet to tinker around with it (the battery is recharging right now) but I hope I’ll be able to produce better pictures with this!

One day though…I dream of getting a proper DSLR…Gotta start saving my pennies and nickels from now on!

Question of the day: Do you have a close friend who is surprisingly different from you? How so?

A Date with a Special Someone

I had a date today…

…with my dearest mommy, that is! I know a lot of daughters who can’t stand to be caught in public with their mothers, but I don’t care. I love to hang out with my mom! When I was young I would trail behind her, clutching to her skirts. Now that I’m grown up and 2 inches taller than her, I just slip my arm into hers and cuddle up to her.

My mom and I decided to have lunch out together on the way back home from Costco, and also hit the mall for a short mother-daughter shopping trip. I led her to the one restaurant I knew would not disappoint: Clyde’s of Tysons Corner! Remember when I went there once with my friend Jane?
 
This time when we went the place was packed…and we were seated next to this lovely wall painting:
  (I blurred out the x-rated parts)

Oh, man. Talk about awkward. At least it was my mom, not my pastor-dad! Ha ha! I wonder what his expression would be like having lunch next to frolicking naked youth!

Anyway, the waiter immediately served us a whole loaf of hot crusty bread with butter:
My mom ordered the Roast Turkey Sandwich with coleslaw:
 Grilled red onions, avocado puree, tomatoes, cheddar cheese, bacon and chipotle aioli on an onion-poppy roll
I just knew my mom was gonna order this, because she loves avocadoes. She’s the only one in my family who does (I’m starting to warm up to it, but not yet to her level).

I ordered the Hot Ham And Brie Sandwich with a house salad:

Baby arugula, red onion, tomato and dijonnaise on an onion-poppy roll
Heaven in a bun! Oh my! My mouth is still watering as I type this out…This just about has to be my most favorite sandwich filling ever…hot, smoky ham and creamy, melted brie!
The bun itself was so soft and flavorful, and was slathered with both butter and dijonnaise for a really buttery and tangy flavor. I liked that the sandwich didn’t skimp on the vegetables, either. Don’t you just hate when sandwiches come with limp and anorexic veggies?

As we sat there munching, carefully keeping our heads turned away from the nudity so flamboyantly displayed in our faces, I was suddenly filled with a warm, velvety sensation of love and gratefulness for my mom.

I can’t express it. I was just…swelled with affection and appreciation for every single big and little thing that she has done for me, the smallest act of care and love she has shown me, and all the grief she endured because of me. I love my mom…so, so much.

And I confirmed another silver lining to my eating disorder. Before I moved away to college, I got to spend four extra bonus years with my parents. Sure, those four years weren’t all sunshine and lollipops, but they significantly affected my relationship with them.

We got to know each other better, and I came to appreciate them more. And as witnesses to my battles, my parents stopped viewing me as a child, but as a real adult. They started sharing more and more with me about all the things that are going on in church, the details of their work, and their testimonies of their daily struggle in their ministry.

I’ll be flying off all the way across the country in a month. From then on, I won’t be able to have much of these precious and private moments with either of my parents. I’ll be busy with my school in the west coast, and my parents will be busy with their ministry in the east coast. When I graduate, who knows where I might be? And who knows where my parents will be? For all I know, they definitely have plans to move to China soon.

Today was such a fun day, and my heart is warm now with two emotions: searing gratefulness for all the blessings God has poured upon me through my parents, and tearful melancholy that these moments with my parents will become rarer. I’ll be cherishing each moment I spend with my parents now.

Question of the day: Do you like spending time with your parents? And what is your favorite sandwich filling?

Prejudices

My brother surprised me today.

I’d always thought he was sort of a wandering soul, aimless and directionless, being satisfied with whatever life throws at him and just…you know, going with the flow. Maybe I even looked down on him a bit, for being happy in a mediocre school, with mediocre grades, always striving for nothing more than average.

But boy, was I mistaken.

We had our weekly college prayer group today, and today we all shared about what we thought our “calling” was. What did we want to achieve in life? What was God’s purpose for us?

When it came to my brother’s turn, I kind of expected him to just do his usual shrug and say, “I dunno.” But instead, he began giving a detailed sharing about how much he learned through his major of hospitality management in college, and that he really had a feeling that God would use him in this direction. He said that though he wanted to work in this business field, his ultimate dream was to fund for mission trips to all around the world, to support my dad’s ministry, and to build orphanages in China. He said it so sincerely and solemnly that I totally believed it would come true.

I’d always complained about how my brother has no vision in his life and how he is always wasting his time on meaningless things. But one day, a friend of mine who is also friends with my brother told me that she felt I didn’t give my brother enough credit. She suggested that my brother had more potential and wisdom in him than I thought and that the reason he did not open up to me was because I already had a prejudice against him and did not give him the opportunity. At that time I got rather upset, but now…I admit that perhaps…she was right.

This realization just made me question once again the way I view other people: Do I have an iron-wall of prejudice in my perception of others? Am I blind to the goodness and potential of other people? And why…oh why do I view other people this way? What gave me the right and privilege of criticizing other people? Am I so great to pinpoint the flaws of others, much more my own younger brother’s?

Yeah, so I totally repented today.

I’m so sorry, little bro! From now on I shall never look upon you that way again. I’m sure there is much more wisdom and potential in you than I gave you credit for! (After all, you are my brother, haha)

And speaking of prejudices…I used to hate peppermint. I thought it tasted like toothpaste. But I repented for that also today when I put on my oven mitts to bake this wonderful, aromatic cake this morning:

It’s Double-Chocolate Peppermint Cake!!!

Two different batters: one dark chocolate batter, one peppermint-infused white chocolate, both studded with more chocolate chips, baked together into one glorious cake!! Intense? Yup. But yet so…light in a sense because of the moistness and the refreshing peppermint!

I got the recipe here from Baking Bites. Try it, you’ll think it’s Christmas already!

And you know what prejudice I’ll never get rid off? That anything with blueberries is gooooood. That my blueberry-walnut pesto is freaking versatile and amaaaaaaazing (Yes, it needs that many “a”s). Of course, today’s highlight meal of the day needed another good dollop of that pesto:

Blueberry-burst Chicken Flatbread Pizza

• whole wheat flatbread
• 2 tablespoons blueberry-walnut pesto, mixed with a bit of Greek yogurt
• bunch of fresh salad greens
• grilled chicken, chopped
• deli ham, torn into pieces
• handful fresh blueberries
• handful crumbled feta cheese
• handful shredded cheddar cheese

Smear the pesto mixture all over the flatbread, pile on the rest of the ingredients, bake at 375 degree oven for about 15 minutes.

Helloooooo, baby!

It’s so simple, yet the flavors are so intense and complex.

Juicy bursts of the acidic-sweet blueberries, the intricate flavors of the pesto, the smokiness from the chicken and ham, and of course the pungency of the feta and sharpness of the cheddar!

I found Organic Valley feta cheese on sale at Whole Foods, so cheese-whore that I am of course I had to grab it (who cares if I already have five different kinds of cheese in my fridge!)

Oh, and I made one for my brother, too. That’s my way of apology. Others may buy flowers, but I cook/bake. He gobbled it up

Okay, now. I’m off to stretch out and relax. Actually, I’ve been sedentary all day, but these skinny, much-abused feet need a break:

They’re going to be busy soon in the future, running all around the world, so they need their rest! Tee hee.

Question of the day: Care to share a prejudice you have against someone/something? Or if that’s too personal…What is your way of apologizing?

When I remember…

I was rummaging through an old box stored in our storage room when I came across my old baby photographs. I sat down and flipped through each one of them, and before I knew it, an hour had flipped by.

What kind of feelings do you get when you look at your old pictures?

As I thumbed through each picture, my face unconsciously morphed into all sorts of mixed expressions: a smile, a giggle, a frown, and even an occasional cringe (why do parents like to take pictures of naked babies?!). But mostly, thoughtful and nostalgic.

Looking at these pictures, I feel like it was so distant, as if it was from the ancient times, yet so…familiar, as if I was back to a little pacifier-sucking baby clinging on to my mother’s skirts. What a strange feeling. I can almost remember the little doll I used to drag around, the rocking horse I rode imagining that I was on an adventure, the pictures books I pored through that were bigger in size than me.

But as I stare into the face of my past, I can’t tell what I was thinking then. A picture of me crying:

Why was I unhappy then?

Another of me scowling:
 
What was I thinking then?

Another of me staring at my new baby brother:

Is that a piercing glare of sibling-jealousy?

Time pass. Things change. My body change, my mind change, my emotions change. We are always changing. What we care about now may not bother us as much in the future. The problems we have not may seem to trivial in the future. The worry or pain or shame we feel now may end up being a good story, a funny story, or even a great testimony.

In the light of eternity, in the face of my entire lifetime, a lot of things I obsess about is so meaningless. At most, I’ll probably live till 70 years old, 80 if I’m extra-healthy, 90 if I’m super-healthy. And when I look back at my life, I don’t want to regret wasting all those precious time and energy of temporary and ephemeral matters.

What I want to remember is the whatever little celebrations or events of joy I had…

(My first birthday)

I want to remember the time I shared with my loved ones…

Facing everything with a little humor…

(My evil dad drew on my face! Meow!)

Living life outrageously and bravely…

Loving and taking care of others…

And loving and treasuring myself…

What do you want to remember most from your life?

For some reason, all these nostalgia left me craving comfort food. And to me, comfort food is brunchy, breakfasty foods…And I had the perfect item in mind!

Purple Eggs and Ham on Waffles!!

Remember the blueberry-walnut pesto I made yesterday? I thought it would be so perfect on top of eggs with waffles, and I was right! So here’s what I did…

Toast a waffle (ready-frozen) and slather on some cream cheese…

Top with some greens and two pieces of fried deli ham…

And then top it with a poached egg and drizzle the pesto all over! (I thinned out the pesto with a bit of milk first)!

Fast, simple, and SO impressive-looking! It looks quite spectacular, don’t you think? Well, I think so. x]

It was so freaking good. I forgot how much I missed brunchy food! And runny yolk…Ooh la la~

Don’t worry, none of the golden nectar of the egg went to waste. I mopped up every last bit with the waffle!

I know waffles aren’t the norm for these kind of dishes, but I thought it made a really perfect base for the eggs, because it just soaked up all the liquid, and the blueberry pesto was brilliant with it!

If you haven’t tried this pesto yet, please do! I still have a lot left, so you’ll be seeing more of this amazing pesto…

I was so sad when they were gone. I could easily have eaten two more! (and burst, but it would be a happy death)

Burp~ Excuse me! ^___^

Question of the day: I already asked! What do you want to remember most from your life? And also, I tag everyone reading who wants to participate: Please share your baby pictures! I’d love to see the adorable little you!