Time to get serious!

Seriously. I've been on academic cruise control for the last three and a half months. I think this kat needs to whip herself into shape for the home stretch. I may have to push myself to the point of exhaustion, like so:

[Biding time in Hong Kong's main airport]
I don't think I'll push myself that hard, so I'll probably go into all of it more like this:
[Happy little things from Nakhon Sawan]
That looks more reasonable...

...

Balls to you, Alex. This ranks highly in Cute Explosion.

Pie Nirvana

I took a crack at making my first pie crusts yesterday evening and now, I think I've discovered a new, latent addiction: pie making (as opposed to pie buying and pie eating- addictions I haven't completed all 12 Steps against).

I never realized how much butter is actually in pie crusts (shh!) until I made a few shells. Nonetheless, I churned out four pumpkin pies (someone, stop me!). After I got tired of that, I decided to make miniature blueberry and sweet potato pies using my muffin tin.

[Thank you, Kamille's iPhone]
Baking baking! As you can see, one of my pies burst in the oven. A violent sight it was...
Mini sweet potato pie! *Note the holiday saucer*
I'm such a sucker for tiny things. The slices didn't end up this deflated, but taking a picture of this slice was super difficult; it lost its innards in the process.

Are the days of muffins and cookies numbered?!

Yowza!

Folks, this hasn't happened in a long, long while. Fletcher/Riverside in Los Angeles.

I was still donning hideous amounts of eye liner, t-shirts with cats on them, brown corduroys, and poo-colored Vans when gas was priced like this. Eep!

My dad's such a baller

After years of searching, my mom unearthed the scrapbook she had made for my dad during their time together in the Philippines. I briefly skimmed the newspaper clippings and found an article by Carmen Estipona (October 1970) from The Paulinian entitled "The teacher is a Botany chief."

There's a photo of my dad in the article, and he looks so dashing! I asked my mom if she had met him when he looked like that, and she regurgitated, "No!" Ah, my parents' shared ambivalence is, for lack of a better word, charming.

Anyway, in the article, my dad was asked about his thoughts on marriage. He responded, "Because of my career at present, I have not yet considered the matter seriously, although I am looking forward to that day when I will have a family of my own." He was 37 at the time. [The apple really doesn't fall that far from the tree..] He then quoted the poet, Allen Tate:

"Tomorrow let loveless, let lover tomorrow make love;
O spring, singing spring, spring of the world renew!
In spring lovers consent and the birds marry
When the grove receives in her hair the nuptial dew."

Man, how was my dad ever so fresh and coquettish?
--
My mom also found my 4th grade in-class journal. Here's my August 26, 1997 entry:

"Dear Diary,

Your choice! Okay since it is my choice I will tell about my pets. I have three pets a rat, a fish, and a bunny. People say my pets are strange mostly because of the rat. My bunny is named Castoff because I got my bunny on the day I got my cast off. The rat's name is Modem because my brother loves computers and called him Modem. Now the fishes name is Bob, but we don't know how we got that name. So I told about my pets because it was my choice."

GO CHOICE! hahah

Glad to be home..

Thankful for: KOST 103.5 and the incessant holiday music (old skool, please... none of this new synthed stuff!)
Ate some: turon, tilapia + steamed rice + garlic-vinegar dip, Hershey's Symphony bar (the obsession begins..)
Drank: a really awkward iced green tea latte from Elysee, a cafe in Westwood. It tasted like the milk left in a bowl after Lucky Charms consumption. Blegck.
Thinking of: Team Kickass buddies, travel, food, the new move, and family an ocean away:

When Mike and I got to Marungko, we had to make a round of all the Cruz homes. This was just one household! A return is imminent..

I'm using this short break for a baking EXTRAVANGAZALISHITIONIZAWOAH!

In case you've never heard...

angry asian man: my daily dose of ire and esteem.

=D

I'm so excited to go back down to L.A. Great food, off-the-wall family, holiday decor up the wazoo! I'm hitting the 5 around 7:00pm tonight and then... FILIPINO/HOLIDAY/CARB-FILLED FOOD GLORY!

Who wants HONEY?

When Mike and I were on Koh Samui, we decided to do some "BIG GAME fishing." Mike is of the fisherman breed- he was inclined to do anything fishing related. After about two hours of moving back and forth on semi-still waters, Mike caught this fella:It looked really weird. I mean, really. Really weird.

I, too, caught fish of comparable size.
In fact, I caught ones just like this guy three times.

wait for it...
VICTORY!

For Team Kickass..

"We Only Come Out At Night" and "1979" by Smashing Pumpkins. It's a Mellon Collie sort of evening anyway. hmmm :)

Having a wonderful time

I stepped out of work on Friday evening to this beautiful sight:

I wanted to catch it on camera, but I don't know if I did the scene justice.
Sunset. Oakland. Fall-ish weather. Mmm!

After I got back from work, I hauled booty over to Safeway and Whole Foods for turkey ingredients and any other yummies I could find. The house had planned to go to SF for dinner, but I was so exhausted, I just plopped myself in front of the TV for some good Food Networkin'. This didn't last long. I fell asleep at about 8:30pm. I.am.so.hardcore.

But! On Saturday morning, Mike and I went to Oakland's Chinatown for comfort food!
[Woops! Not green onions!] Eat eat eat.

After this edible extravaganza, I made a semi-impromptu trip out to Sacramento to meet up with my brother and our good friend for a Prop 8 rally.

Dahlia, Kimler, Blobdizzle.
Such a brilliant flag to carry... look at his equally brilliant expression!
All the speakers were awesome. [Sen. Darrell Steinberg and Margaret Cho, to name a few]
Alas, the excitement led to breaking my camera. If I remember correctly, a person from some APIA coalition was coming up to speak and in my excited frenzy, I somehow ended up throwing my camera right at the concrete. Yes, wtf?

I'll have to rely on my stock of other photos before I can return to my "Plogs in the Life" motion. New camera eventually!
---

The weekend was capped off with a Thanksgiving meal with the taiko fam bam. I love them all to pieces and love seeing them well-fed.

Things that made the week that much yummier

After an amazing weekend with some of the best people in the world, my body had to recover from extreme dancing, extreme taiko-ing, and extreme extreming. I got certain comfort foods that kept me rowing through the muddy water that is post-midterm, pre-finals college. [You may find a unifying theme!]

Whenever I felt a little groggy, I had Starbucks's chocolate croissant!Pain au chocolat that's just so reliably good!

Cheeseboard's Chocolate Thing! I got it when Tom and I stopped by on Wednesday afternoon for some slices (four-cheese, onion, herb).
It had what I like to call "chocolate turds" folded into it. I didn't get around to eating them because they were too bitter. The bread part, however, was satisfyingly chewy and moist. =)
On Thursday, I had Starbucks's whole wheat bun with a tall Peppermint Mocha Twist. They really go all out with the peppermint in their holiday mocha- not bad, but when the mocha gets cold, it's more difficult to consume. I got the bun because it looked pretty and shiny (the things that win me over...). Again, just enough of the chew/moisture factor that would lead me to get it again.
Finally, for an end-of-the-week treat, I got my usual half peanut butter and half chocolate chip gelato from the cafe by my work. I say "usual" because I always get this combination whenever I'm in the mood for gelato [mood = perpetual, undying need].
I wasn't super pleased with today's outcome, though. Their peanut butter batch was kinda off? Unsure. BUT, I am proud of this photo! I hardly ever take anything this detailed with my dinky camera... I did get a few stares for stopping on the sidewalk and snapping shots of this cup of yummy.

AND NOW, the weekend!

Wowzers

Recursion.

I am sleepy.

Bye bye, Hanoi (..grueling bus ride, no doubt)

Hello, Saigon (HCMC).
Hello, fancy pho and mango shake.
Hello, gigantic banh xeo.

Laughter's all ya need sometimes..

O rly?
This was from a random blog I found. I should give the guy some credit... this cat made me laugh pretty hard.
What an attitude!

Oy

I have some temporary baggage.

(in Luang Prabang, Laos)

From Jay..

Shepard Fairey, the artist behind the Barack Obama "HOPE" poster, has created a new poster, “DEFEND EQUALITY, LOVE UNITES” to raise awareness and funds for the movement to overturn CA Proposition 8.

Print and share.

A weekend of wonders

Memorable dialogue:

"I don't really like french toast or yams."
"What?! Toni, it's like I don't know you anymore."

Funniest line:

"Trinity, you've got like, a metal pole through you!"- Alex, as Keanu Reeves in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure as Neo in The Matrix.

Most relieving comment:

"Let's just dance it off, Dance MagIK!" - practically everyone, but most notably Derek

Life is amazing.

Sex and candy

Oscar Wilde once wrote, "To have sex and candy in a weekend is more than that which could be normally enjoyed by the lay man."

No, he didn't write that.

BUT TONI DID!

Turzday

or the less popular Turds' Day.

As I was walking to PH150D, I was debating whether or not I should get Starbucks's Pumpkin Spice Latte. I know, I know... Gotta kick the habit... but they're just so good! Needless to say..

I love it when people spell kat with a "K"! This made my 10:00am hour mighty enjoyable. I tried to take a picture of my cup inconspicuously while I was in class.. I didn't want to seem like an odd person who takes pictures of her food all the time. ::averts eyes::

After class, I walked over to the BART station for my ride over to 12th Street/City Center [ye, ye!]. Then, I noticed something that made me appreciate living in the Bay Area:

What health conscious vigilantes on the BART we have!
Oh, Burger King- preaching to a murderous mob!

On to work I went, feeling mighty empowered by this random act.

I woke up this morning to a text from Mike; he said he had made me a sandwich and left it in the fridge. I thought, "Mmm, no need to buy lunch!" I ran out the door taking little notice of the actual sandwich when I tossed it into my bag. Around 3:00pm, I hankered for that sammich and to my surprise

Mike had made me a ham and cheese and chili sandwich. I know he had good intentions.. in fact, I think it's one of the most thoughtful (albeit, confusing) sandwiches he's ever made for me.

... it left me flatulent for a good couple of hours, too.

From Denise's album

Sake and George... by my brown pants... in my kitchen.

(circa March '08?)

They had an ambivalent relationship that ended in abuse and foul mouthing. Oh, what the world is coming to these days..

Youth and Youth Movements

I will forever be a believer in youth. I love the growth, naivete, creativity, idealism, realism, passion, and exploration that youth encounter and endure. This leads me to recommend a few great youth-driven and youth-centered organizations:

Advocates for Youth
...and their related site MySistahs
East Bay Asian Youth Center

"Forever Young" by Youth Group is playing as I blog this. No, I can't be more redundant. ^_^

FamilyPACT

If any of you are familiar with the amazing teal card, this might be of interest to you.

"[FamilyPACT] provides services to women and men who earn less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Participants can receive birth control, reproductive health services and education about sexually transmitted diseases. The program does not provide abortion counseling."

These services are provided free of charge and in California, everyone is eligible for the FPACT program - documented and undocumented citizen alike. Given how hard the California state budget is being hit, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is now requiring the hire of over 1,300 new employees to verify (immigration status) eligibility for FPACT and threatening an end to major funding if it isn't carried through. Even the governor is fighting back!

Courtesy of Snowflake

This must be true.

Gettin' over the hump of the week

After getting some bedding for the rats, Mike and I headed over to Target to look at all the holiday regalia. As soon as we hit the wreaths and Christmas CDs, I started getting gushy and teared up like a mother! I get so reminiscent and limerent around the holiday season... I'm looking forward to my 75 degree Christmas in LA. ^_^

Mike got me this mini muffin pan ::glee:: and mini muffin papers from Target, too! Of course, I employed the pan as soon as I got home.

Pumpkin Muffin Army! (I made 60...jeebus)
I also made a pot of ground turkey chili. Kidney beans + ground turkey + diced tomatoes + McCormick chili seasoning (Now with 30% Less Sodium!) = a bloated Mike

Here's a mike

from Manila (well, more like China?), drinking San Miguel like a pro.

Here's a monkey

from Siem Reap, eating lotus seeds like a pro.

Upright Citizens Brigade

Let's protect the sanctity of marriage, folks!

More on that ridiculous proposition

This was passed on to me by Jay Benoit, a perennial mentor of mine.

"So I be written in the Book of Love; I do not care about that Book above."

Groceries

I should be restocking. Mike and I bought a few things from Safeway yesterday. The essentials: bananas, eggs, yogurt, bread, juice, ground turkey, beans, salad stuff. We need to make our way to Costco before we become hermits for finals.

We went grocery shopping in Cambodia, and the markets there had these baby carts along with baby aisles. Mike's so animated. =)

Making brownies to pass the time..

Here are a few tasty treats I've had in the last few days...

(I didn't know how to take a more flattering picture of this)

This is Cheeseboard's feta cheese and walnut bun with a fig glaze.
After the taiko performance in Oakland, the group decided to hit up a few pastry shops in Oakland's Chinatown. I found this baby waiting to be bought! It was nearly the size of my face.. feeding frenzy! [There's Ryan, looking devilishly handsome.. haha]
For 20 cents, I know I'll be getting more of these (as greasy as it was).
I will be a lifelong sucker for red beans. The one on the left is a dense coconut jelly with red beans, while the one on the right is a deep fried sesame ball with red bean filling. [~$1]
_____ [memory = bad] salad from FSM. Again, not so flattering of a picture. It had way more meat than I had expected and even though they put dressing on it, it wasn't overpowering.
I didn't eat these people, but they sure look edible.

Monday Blues

or pinks, reds, and yellows. For a Monday picker-upper, check out the sexy lighting on this muffin:

I didn't realize my lens was foggy.
Bran muffin and a small chai latte from Cafe Milano.. sexy, indeed.

I think it's time

to buy holiday kitsch.

A nice week

it was. With the exception of my sickly body, it consisted of interesting happenings and yummy foods. My weeks are generally planned around whatever is in my Almighty Organizer. I've switched brands from year to year, but I think I've finally settled on the Moleskine 18-month weekly notebook. [A great holiday gift for any meticulous and/or neurotic friend ;)]This poor thing has had to deal with bottled water, rain water, fish sauce, and gunfire.. okay, not gunfire. This week had appreciably more stuff written for it- mostly just motivational "Get Better!" notes.

For breakfast this morning, Mike, Tina, and I decided to go to Filippo's on College/Ashby to pay the best waiter in the world (hah!) a visit.

teehee
"It looked like a grizzly bear was giving me a light show."
He also makes a good cup o' coffee and warm chocolate.
I forgot to take a photo of this before digging in! It's Filippo's French toast, which they reserve for their weekend brunch.
Sweetened ricotta + strawberries + perfectly textured french toast = tummy love.
Tina thought it was so good, she ate the napkin, too.