crunch

here is what I have ingested today:

– 4 slices of raison toast w/ margarine

– 2 mugs of coffee

– 1/3 of a chicken wrap

– 1 tall glass of orange juice w/ ginger ale

it’s a miracle i haven’t croaked yet. i’m feeling kind of strange. Tired, but really inspired by a ton of stuff. but i suppose the mountain of work facing me is a bit daunting. i just need to take things step by step. not everything is due now! In fact, save for a term test next week, everything is due in 2 weeks’ time. But i must be prepared – otherwise I won’t be sleeping 6 hours a day like I should be!

UPDATE: it’s half past 11pm. So far I have eaten – half a pineapple (i’m not exaggerating), some fried fish, red peppers, a glass of orange juice.

geeeezer

apologies, apologies, apologies!

I am in hiding here (in the form of that cunning, manipulative beast that is procrastination) from the wrath of my linguistic anthropology paper. The dear thing is due in 2 days and I’ve got its shadow pinned down.  But the trouble is it keeps trying to escape and I’ve having a hard time pining down my final paragraphs…

I have been working myself to the bone lately and i worry for my health. I have been drinking way too much coffee but I don’t know how else to stay afloat. I have to juggle school, work, family (to a very small extend – my parents have been very understanding of my inability to relax) and friends (those bitches who are done with their midterms while I have 2 more and a paper due!).

So the only ting I can sacrifice is from myself: SLEEP

My bank account is suffering too. I’m eating out and buying coffee every single day because I just have no time nor patience to make any at home. In fact, I only have skim milk in the fridge, which when mixed in coffee, tastes like water. Eughh!

But, all in all, I am very happy – which is the most important thing. My life is full of delightful, delightful preoccupations and I’d rather be exhausted and happy than bored and well rested!

I shall resurface soon, i promise~~

 

 

back in the saddle

I had to go to the library to renew my library card this morning. Like a fool, I forgot to bring IC with me, so the kind lady extended it till the end of Sept so I wouldn’t have to waste money on books.

That’s a lie. It’s not a waste, but it’s just money that I can’t spend.

Anyway, i got the RSC edition of Shakespeare’s plays. I am very very excited about that. I wasn’t too excited about it when I had to lug it and the Norton Anthology of Shakespeare (3000+ pages!) home (my right shoulder might still be aching). Ohhh, and i finally tracked down a copy of Laurence Olivier’s autobiography. GAH- cannot contain myself.

I’m doing good with one of my resolutions: be generous with friends. For the past year, I had to work on every single Saturday and this Saturday will be my last (my schedule changed). So I am buying breakfast for everyone. Granted, it’s only McD breakfast (it’s convenient – I’m not about to go anywhere else at 8:30am in the morning), but I think it shows my sincerity anyway.

On Friday, I am meeting up with a dear chum who is normally out of town. I have to teach at 7pm, so after a bit of juggling, we decided to do late lunch (involving more pastries than real food – I’m not sure how I feel about that, but she’s set on going to Pusateri’s).

I think this is a big improvement. I am usually so stingy with my time. I plan things so meticulously so that I don’t have to go out everyday (the travel time sucks). I like to stack things – is this terrible of me? Perhaps. But I am always scrambling from one thing to another.

It’s only a few more days before books and papers take over my life again. To avoid bingeing and being a fatty in general, I though I’d start charting my eating habits again. I’ll be doing this on the MyFitness app, but I’ll detail yesterday’s and today’s to get a head start:

TUESDAY

breakfast: Coffee

lunch: 2 microwave dinners (only like 250g each, so = bird food)

dinner: rice, steamed broccoli, one boiled egg, a slice of ham

WEDNESDAY

breakfast: Coffee

lunch: rice, eggplant and pork stirfry

dinner: ditto

snack: watermelon

I know, I know – it’s a tragedy! But at least the only way is up! And now that I have a somewhat solid schedule, I can return to my workout plan.

just sugar, bread, and potatoes

 

Today I opened a savings account under my own name. After months of deliberating and lazing about, I finally took the step and started earning the beautiful thing that is interest. I used to feel a pane of guilt every time I deposited a paycheque and the teller who ask me “if [I] am interested in opening a saving account.” The amount isn’t extraordinary, for most of it salvaged by my frugal ways. anyway, so now my money is sitting there, modestly and happily.

This is probably glaringly obvious to anyone that actually reads my rants, but now just, it occurred to me that I don’t do stories. And by that, I mean, I don’t report on my life, not in a narrative manner, at least. All of my entries are slim slices of my day – how I react, my thought process, what ticks me off, etc. That must be pretty dull, not to mention nonsensical to you most of the time.

Oops. I know I tend to ramble. I see this blog as my place to expound on the issues that plague my mind, issues that aren’t anecdotal enough to bug people about in real life.

Could this be an unintentional, misguided attempt at self psychotherapy? I have no clue.

I am really grateful for all of you for following the meanderings of my brain. It goes a long way in assuring me that I am not singular in my woes, my dilemmas, and my joys.

Cheers~

 

ugly

cramps.

I ran out of my prescribed pills and have to settle for Midol.

I didn’t end up doing 3 hours on my readings last night – more like 90min. But I’ve got a good grasp of the middle section of Meno, and I’ll make some notes tonight – after I drown myself in soup.

UPDATE: no soup at home. had steamed salmon instead. feeling like shit

WISH LIST [UPDATED]

Because my birthday is in less than a month and I am a selfish human being. And save for two people, no one I care about in reality knows of this blog’s existence anyway.

-earbuds! sport ones w/out wings. mine broke, again.

-them delicious Hanover pretzel bits (honey mustard and onion!)

-giftcards of the food, coffee, apple/itunes variety

-the annotated sherlock holmes by william baring-gould

-dotted / grid large notebooks

-magazine subscriptions (interview/ new yorker/ etc)

-late harvest ice wine

-snailmail. pleaseee

food experiments

I’ve been meaning to write-up an entry on my recent cooking experiments. So here:

BBQ Baked Chicken Ribs

These little darlings are delicious! I didn’t people ate chicken ribs – it simply isn’t offered at restaurants (except KFC, but they call it differently). I like to foil line my pans so I don’t have to scrub them to death later. I drizzle some EVO on the bottom, season the ribs, cover pan with foil and bake for 15min … and DONE!

SO EASY! I made a simply cucumber and tomato salad to balance out the protein.

all juicy and whatnot

a little veg never goes wrong

complete!

Salt and Pepper Rub Pork Sirloin

My Dad loves meat – so whenever he sees it on sale, he buys it and packs it in our freezer. I, of course, am handed the task of thinking up ways to cook the damn things. The problem is they are never pre-cut. In this case, I’m left with this giant slab of pork sirloin:

massive – i think it was 7lbs at least

Anyway, I left it to thaw for a couple hours and then rubbed a bunch of spices all over it (I’m always highly suspicious of “seasoned” raw meat) and left it to sit for a while more. I lined the pan as is my usual practice but didn’t use any EVO – pork is pretty fatty as a meat, so I didn’t see the need to make it any worse.

Making sure to turn the meat over at the half way point so it cooks evenly:

still pink – but nearly done

then:

all natural pork juicy goodness

next up: Simple Guacamole and Very Berry Pineapple Fro-Yo Shake

*All of the above images are my own.

attributive compounds

MUST SHARE THIS. It’s an astonishingly candid interview with the great Jeremy Brett (who I should mention, was gorgeous and talented and thus, very accordingly stolen my unyielding affections. Hey! Another dead old guy to add to my list of obsessions ~ whatdoyaknow?) I believe this interview took place during his last years, when he was addled with both physical and emotional distress – some people believe that’s the reason why his words don’t conceal but reveal, unlike most actors’ speeches.

I’ve seen every one of the 42 ACD stories and I whole hearted agree with the general online consensus that Brett was the authentic Holmes as ACD had written and envisioned him, down to the barking laugh, the persian cigar slipper, the aquiline nose and impeccable wit.

FRIDAY: Hawaiian pizza, mexican fries, juice

SATURDAY: chicken strips, coffee, preserved egg congee, egg and tomatoes with rice

SUNDAY: congee, mango juice, baked salmon, stir-fried broccoli, egg and tomatoes with rice

MONDAY: 2 buttered honey oats bagels with strawberry jam, disguising coffee I made (I only had 1% at home!), chicken strips…

Tenacity

A friend and I were conversing over our eating habits lately and we both noticed how shoddily we nourish ourselves during this time of year. She’s been dining on a combination of sugar pastries and espresso drinks whereas I…

Where do I begin? My appetite has lessened considerably since my teens and I find myself more or less confused as what I want to eat. I think a huge part of this is due to my budget. Good food that’s easily prepared just doesn’t come cheap – no matter what the frugal gurus out there proclaim. Also, I simply don’t have the time to scoot for bargains… anyway, here’s what I’ve eat in the past week:

MONDAY it all began so well~

Breakfast: scrambled eggs (3), bacon (2 strips), toast (with whipped butter and jam), coffee (3-4 cups with cream and sugar) Lunch: Chicken caesar salad (300g with bacon bits and ranch dressing) Dinner: steamed broccoli (2 cups), orange juice (1 glass)

TUESDAY damn those chicken strips, they were on sale at the store so I bought a bunch and now I can’t stop eating them because they’re so easy to prepare! but gahhh-MUST STOP!

Breafast: Coffee (3 cups) Lunch: Chicken Caesar Salad (with bacon bits and ranch dressing) Dinner: Chicken tenders (4 small strips)

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast: Coffee (2 cups with cream and sugar) Lunch: BK Whopper, orange juice, Dinner: Chicken tenders, octopus stir fry with cabbage

THURSDAY

Breakfast: NOTHING Lunch: Korean Pork Bone Soup w/ rice and salad, lemon tea Dinner: NOTHING

FRIDAY

Breakfast: soft boiled eggs (2), ham Lunch: Chicken strips, broccoli, rice, orange juice Dinner: NOTHING

SATURDAY

Breakfast: Coffee (2 cups), chocolate cookie Lunch: naan, chilli chicken Dinner: naan, chili chicken, radish soup

SUNDAY

Breakfast: orange juice Lunch: naan, lamb curry, orange juice Dinner: NOT THERE YET!

slothing

Had a thoroughly enjoyable breakfast with a chum and am feeling strangely hungry. Granted, I was too busy talking to finish my food but most days I don’t touch edibles until late noon so WHY THE SUDDEN CRAVING? Crikey, can I hold on for 2 more hours and then get my chicken salad?

Anyway, I managed to catch some shut eye on Sunday and am as ready to face the week as I ever will be. The weather’s wisely decided to behave normally and I get to get away with not waxing my legs for another two weeks~ (The only reason I feel unashamed of this fact is because, well, you’re all strangers who probably don’t get a toss.)

I definitely need a real good slothing day though. A day when I can de-clutter my flat, light them candles and sort out my closet (now that spring’s upon us). It’s be nice, I’ll get up at a nice, comfortable 9am, make a smoothy (NO COFFEE ON NON-EARLY DAYS!!), maybe have soft-boiled eggs. Vaccum and do laundry, blast some music and just lounge.

But to do that would seem sinful when I have so much left on my TO-DO LIST.

Le sigh, maybe one day soon.

PS. Got them salads. They don’t come with salad dressing though, only lemon juice, bacon bits, cheese and croutons. What gives?

PPS. I was an idiot and forgot to pick up the complimentary dressing packets. I chose sweet onion and buttermilk ranch. HENCE, am munching delightfully on my salad. It’s advertised to serve 3-5 people, but yesterday, I finished mine in one sitting. I didn’t feel a bit bad about it as it’s 3/5 greens.