#taken after grocery store sushi with my mom and aunt!

[silicon-katydid]

Randomly took this the other day because I thought my skirt and boots looked neat.

[purplesurveys]

896

Would you ever try Fear Factor for one million dollars? Why or why not? Yes. It would make for hilarious stories for get-togethers and I think that winning a million dollars that I could use up for the rest of my life doing some dumb dares for a few hours would be worth it. If you have a camera, when do you use flash? Only if it’s dim. I don’t like the effect that flash gives. What would you do with eighty-three crazy straws? Find an aunt or uncle with a kid who’s having a birthday party soon so they can use the straws as giveaways or something. If you use hair spray, what brand do you use the most? I don’t.  Is Catcher in the Rye in your library by any chance? It’s probably in another college’s library, most likely our college for the arts and letters. There’s no reason for it to be in a mass communication library.

What if there was no such thing as the word 'one'? Then that would imply that we have/have to have plurals of everything, which just sounds a bit bizarre to me.

What do you have automatic sympathy for? The 11,000 employees of the country’s biggest broadcasting network that was recently officially shut down by our – surprise surprise – government. These are people who weren’t even involved in the network’s franchise renewal status (which was/is the main issue), people who have families, people who relied on these jobs to get by during a worldwide pandemic, people who loved their jobs, people who found family in these jobs, It’s absolutely crazy how people can defend their stance against the network and justify the loss of 11,000 jobs. What is a cool disposable object? I don’t know who looks at disposable objects and thinks they’re ‘cool,’ but the first thing I thought of was my vape pen of choice, which are disposable. It has enough puffs to last several months with me so it’s more convenient for me to keep buying them than spending a large amount on a refillable one. Hilary Duff or Lindsay Lohan? Why? Hilary Duff as Lizzie McGuire is more nostalgic to me; I used to watch it nearly everyday. I never watched Lindsay’s movies other than Herbie. What do you think of the actor Michael Cera? No opinion but I remember the time when he was often used on 9Gag memes. Simpler times lol. Anyway, I haven’t seen any of his movies. What is the best thing about a Barbie doll? I think it’s really fun how they’ve come up with a bazillion outfits for Barbies and Kens. And different versions too – as far as I know there’s been a Filipino Barbie for a while :) What is something you'd say in your will? If I passed any time soon I’d like to include some things about my dogs and how they’re supposed to be taken care of. If we’re talking about what I’m putting in my will if I ever reach like 80, I just wanna make sure every person who’s been in my life and stayed for a bit is mentioned and thanked and I wanna make the list as expansive as I possibly can at that age. Idk, I’ve always been sentimental. Any thoughts on fake abortion clinics? What??? I don’t know what those are and what they do, but they sound awful. What was a username you'd thought wouldn't be taken but was taken? I’ve tried using my full name as a username in a few websites and seen them being taken. My first and last names don’t make a common pair, so I’ve always found it surprising. Cherry or peanut ice cream? Peanut. Not gonna lie, it’s an unusual flavor – but Asians kinda put peanuts on everything heh. What is your dream cellphone? Why? Whatever new phone Apple puts out because unfortunately I buy into toxic consumerist shit like that lol Would you rather be watching The Bachelor or The Bachelorette? Neither. From one to ten, how big of a movie buff are you? I’d give myself an 8. I’ve seen my fair share of movies and I can honestly say that my favorite films are not cliche picks, but I’ve also yet to see a bunch of classics that other ~movie buffs~ hail as being excellent movies like Taxi Driver, Silence of the Lambs, Rocky, American Psycho, etc. I also haven’t been watching movies as much as I used to, which takes down another point for me. Who is a celebrity you think will never get into trouble? The Irwin kids. I wouldn’t call them celebrities per se though; they’re in the spotlight for the most wholesome reasons. I’ve seen every segment Robert Irwin has had on Jimmy Fallon and it’s amazingly precious. What is an important holiday to you? Why? Probably the EDSA Anniversary because without it we’d still be under a dictatorship. Name a catty girl you really dislike. I wouldn’t call anyone I know that. What is a museum you would like to go to? The top 3 museums that I would love to visit are the Anne Frank House, the Met, and the Art Institute of Chicago. And wherever Monet’s paintings are, because he’s my favorite artist. Personally, do you look better with short hair or long hair? Short. Long, frizzy hair does not look good on me and on anyone else. What was the reason why you last blocked a person from your IM? He was a stranger who hit on me. I added him back only because we had a considerable amount of mutual friends and I thought that maybe he used to be a classmate or something, but he messaged me some shit that he had probably copy-pasted to 700 other girls saying like ‘hey do you mind if you and I talk? I find you really pretty’ like six seconds after adding him back. It was so fucking creepy and I never blocked someone so quickly. I was already in a foul mood that night so I also showed the brief interaction to Gab and I gave her freedom to curse the shit out of the guy if she wanted to. What is a cliche thing that happens a lot in anime? I don’t like anime and have never watched it. What are your views on the cartoon show Invader Zim? I’ve never seen that either. If you have some, what is tonight's homework about? I don’t have homework anymore. If you have one, what is your favorite sushi flavour? Cream cheese salmon rolls from a local place called Torch. What is the first thing you think of when I say 'Jack'? Rose. Do you understand JavaScript coding? A teeny bit, thanks to the theme customizations I used to do on Tumblr when I was 14. What would you do if you found a gun in your best friend's bedroom? Confront them, and maybe even scold them. I definitely would be angry. Not even just because it could mean they’re suicidal, but because I don’t believe in guns. What do you call your grandparents? I call both sets Lolo and Lola. When I say 'Go', you say: I just remember the song Green Light by Beyoncé because the chorus on that is her screaming ‘Go.’ What colour do you usually paint your nails? I never paint them. They’re pretty, but I never saw them as a necessity. What would be a cool earring design? People come up with cool designs all the time now though. I’m completely sure there are a million versions of this now but I would love sriracha sauce earrings haha. What do you think of raccoons? No opinion as I’ve never encountered them. Any thoughts on the actor Paul Rudd? NEVER AGES Who is the better liar: your mother or your best friend? Mom. Gab will lie to me sometimes but I can always tell. Are breast implants something you'd consider? Why or why not? I considered it when I was a teenager because people used to pick on me for being flat-chested, as if I had a choice as to what size my body would end up being. Also, flat chests were the butt of so many jokes in the early 2010s so it made me insecure for a very long time. Nowadays the environment is a lot nicer and I’m seeing many flat-chest positivity posts (if that’s even a thing) so I’ve changed my mind about implants.  Besides nightmares, what is the scariest thing about sleeping? Sleep paralysis. You can wake up from nightmares. Do you find the phrase 'nom nom nom' annoying? Not as much as ‘rawr’ annoys me. Do you look better with red lipstick or black lipstick? I look good in neither but I would go with red. When was the last time you had chocolate milk? Oooooh it’s been a while :( I feel like that’s something people have to start selling more, honestly. I don’t see chocolate milk being sold other than at the grocery or convenience stores and ugh, I just want more restaurants to add it on their menus lol. That being said, the last time I had it was in January, during a journalism workshop that we hosted in a school in Marikina. The teachers offered us that and a Fudgee Bar as thank-you snacks :)

[renegadesepiida]

This weekend I snapped back into the realization that, hey, I like to cook. I haven’t been cooking or eating healthy food for a while just cause I’ve been lazy, which is, of course, not good neither for me nor my wallet. So yesterday I went back to the grocery store and only bought food that I need to make into a meal. There, now, I can’t be as lazy anymore.

This train of thought about food makes me reminisce about meals that I have had in other countries, where people can be a bit more adventurous, or where the diets have evolved differently than ours. While some people will find this a bit shocking and maybe even disgusting I would recommend at least trying any of these tasty “meat” treats. *List in order of least to most odd, according to responses from people when I tell them. And I am not taking fish/sushi or shellfish because, one I’d be here all day [a lot of people don’t really like any seafood :( ] and two, because that’s been a staple of the American diet for a while and I only want to count the meat dishes that I thought were strange when I first tried them.

Escargot

Snails – of course, this dish isn’t uncommon here in the states, in fact, Northern California is where I first sampled it around the age of, maybe, 16(?). Escargot is much more common in France when I was visiting Paris for a week in 2014 with my friend Catherine we would always split the appetizer of 6 snails. The only reason that this makes the list is because a lot of people still look at me funny when I say that I’ve had the dish. While the squishier texture may turn some people off (I enjoy it), c’mon, guys it just tastes like garlic butter.

Goose Liver Pâté

This is another common dish for those rich folks, and while I was in France I wanted to try it, just once. I am not personally in favor of stuffing the life out of the geese or duck or any other bird people choose to do this too, and I even now I don’t know if it makes any of it taste better since I’ve still never had a normal goose or duck liver. Or, really, liver of any kind.

Reindeer/Venison

While deer or venison can be pretty normal with people who hunt, it wasn’t something that I grew up with, so when I tried a piece of deer sausage around the age of 12, without releasing what it was, I enjoyed it. After I found out I was a bit sad, but soon after I didn’t really care. Now, though you can get venison at certain burger places, and it’s good don’t get me wrong, but it’s not quite the same. Reindeer on the other side of the world, Norway is where I had it as a delicious lean steak in a traditional restaurant in Bergen. Reindeer tend to be smaller that other deer, and is less gamey, probably because they have been more or less domesticated.

Moose

Yummy Norwegian moose is the only kind of moose I’ve had. It is tougher and a bit gamier than venison, but still good. I got the purest taste, but I enjoyed it most when it was a meat option on the top of a breakfast “sandwich”. Even wanted to bring some home, but customs doesn’t allow any meat to be brought from Norway, even when it’s store bought and still package sealed.

  Emu

If anyone has ever had ostrich I assume it tastes like that, but I couldn’t say because I haven’t had ostrich. I just know that emu is good; it tasted like beef to me but was stringier. In the Australia of 2010, I had it on a pizza (and picked it off for the single flavor) at a restaurant called The Australian Heritage Hotel.

http://www.gourmantic.com/2011/03/01/australian-heritage-hotel-kangaroo-crocodile-the-rocks/

Never did try crocodile.

Pinnkjøtt

            The traditional Christmas dish, sheep ribs, which my uncle and aunt’s dad once got in the newspaper for is one of the best dishes in the world. While sheep or lamb ribs are common in the US, they aren’t prepared this way. After the main meat has been taken off the leftovers are frozen and then unfrozen and cooked in a big pot for the Christmas dinner feast. While each rib does not have an enormous quantity of meat on each, each bite is well worth it. Melt in your mouth delicious. Pair with mashed turnips (and/or potatoes) and sauerkraut (red and/or white pickled cabbage) or whatever else you want.

http://mylittlenorway.com/2009/12/pinnekjott/

    Armadillo and Coatimundi

Most people know armadillos from the southwestern US and Mexico, but they also are so common in Guatemala that they are eaten there, unlike the countries further north. The white-nosed coati is another mammal species from Guatemala. Every day we would see dozens of these animals sniffing around the forest ground searching for bugs to eat. With their tails in the air, they looked like backward brachiosauruses, adorable. One night when we stayed overnight in the city of Flores, on the island in Lake Petén Itza, during the Guatemalan independence celebration. While celebrations were happening all over the island our group of five went out for dinner. The plan was to follow our professor and guide because they told us that they were going to their favorite restaurant, which has exciting food we should try. After some wandering and hoping we found the right place, we walked through a closed door at the opening of an alley and found that we were in the restaurant the professor mentioned, due to the fact that we could see them sitting and drinking at a table. They informed us which of the dishes we should get. And the five of us ended up splitting a few orders of both. I tasted the armadillo first, and while it wasn’t bad, especially with the sauce, there were so many tiny bones, like a fish and it was gamier than I’d like. That was annoying to me, plus the meat didn’t taste good enough to put up with the bone issue. Moving to the coatis’ meat, wow, that meat was good. Light and tender, with a great sauce and no bones. Perfection.

I can’t say where the restaurant was or what it was even called. So for one of the best meals you may ever have, I wish you and myself (when I can get back) all the luck in the world.

http://www.enjoyguatemala.com/guatemala-lakes/

  Hamam Mahshi

When I mention that I ate pigeon in Egypt, people in the US tend to tilt their head and ask me if that was such a good idea. Of course, it was a great idea, the culture, including around food is different, but the ideas are the same. Unlike in the US pigeons in Egypt are not ‘rats with wings’ as we see them here, in many countries just like in Egypt, pigeons are raised like any other free-range farm animal. The one to two-year-old birds are killed for their meat, while the older ones continue mating, just like we raise cattle or poultry in the US. Except better because they are not fed hormones and such and have large cages outside where they can fly around on the roofs of buildings in the city. The main way to enjoy pigeon is to have it in a soup or get the full bird that has been stuffed with rice after the inside had been cleaned out. I say, at any time you could, try this meal. Not only is it nice to eat, but tearing it apart the correct way is also a fun challenge.

http://www.internationalcuisine.com/egypt-squab/

Kangaroo

Another delicious meat, which I first had at the Australian Heritage Hotel in 2010 on a pizza. Seriously, this was the best meat I have EVER had. It didn’t taste like anything I’ve tried before and then I get asked, “Oh, then, does it taste like chicken?” NO! It’s WAY BETTER than chicken. And I miss it a lot… Most people probably stare at me because of my over the top reaction, but I also get some people trying to guilt me, cause “kangaroos are so cute”. No friends, well yes, but no. In Australia, they are hunted regularly by “Roo Shooters” because of serious overpopulation issues with a few, if any, natural predators that are not extinct. So don’t feel too bad, plus the used the entire animal for other materials (for example a leather hat).

https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/wildlife-trade/publications/kangaroo-shooting-code-compliance/kangaroos#poi

http://blogs.reuters.com/photographers-blog/2013/04/03/a-necessary-evil-the-kangaroo-cull/

  Lutefisk

Literally translated, ‘lye fish’ is a fermented fish dish from Scandinavian countries like Norway and Sweden. It is typically made from cod or another plain white fish that is easy to fish up in the North. When I say the name, listeners usually ask, “What is that?” And then when I respond with “fermented fish” I get ewwwws and grosses. It is a very good meal if made properly (like pretty much everything). If the fish isn’t unfrozen properly the meat will turn gelatinous, which is what most people find disgusting. I have found that with food, texture is seriously everything. Even though my aunt and younger cousin both hate lutefisk, even when my aunt’s dad prepares it. My older Norwegian cousin, uncle (mom’s brother), mom, sister, and I all love it but only get to have it up at the hytta (cabin). It is so good, especially with the bacon sauce to put on top (and I don’t even like bacon!) and I eat it with turnips, but potatoes are also an option.

https://whatscookingamerica.net/History/LutefiskHistory.htm

Grasshoppers, Ant larva, and Grubs

While traveling around the various states of Mexico we tasted maybe different kinds of food. The most apprehensive I ever was, was the second year, in central Mexico eating bugs. Yes, when I was a little kid I accidently ate an ant, but these were on purpose, all of them prepared by the cooks in the kitchen especially for us. The grubs were the introduction. Lightly fried and tossed in a bowl. They were the appetizers; both Kat (another girl on the trip) and I were the first to try them. And surprisingly, but unsurprisingly, the grubs seemed to taste good, but actually, they didn’t really taste like much of anything. A little vegetable oil and some salt made each one a savory cloud with a slight crunch. The ant larva was the next dish I tried; in the dish, mixed with a white sauce and probably different vegetables, the tiny balls of larva looked like couscous or quinoa. Because I was not apprehensive about trying this one I took between a quarter and a half of a teaspoon, it was not good. In fact, I wanted to spit it out it was so bad. Don’t let this discourage you, though, when I took the ant larva off the plate alone and ate it, it was much better. So whatever the ant larva was mixed with was what I disliked and not the bugs themselves. The last dish of insects, on a different day, in a different restaurant, in a different state, was little bowls of baby grasshoppers served to us with chips, salsa, and lime. The combination of chips, bug, and lime tasted just like salted lime and vinegar chips. Nothing wrong with that at all, and I definitely ate quite a few before my main dish arrived.

  Hvalbiff

Whale – specifically Minke whale from Norway. A highly controversial topic, which I would direct anyone to read a few articles for more information. I am in no sense of the word, an expert on the subject, but I do know a bit about whaling. And while I can never defend overfishing, like what Japan hunters do illegally with any whale they see, I can see the merits of Norway for greatly reducing the intake over the past several years and only hunting species that are not at risk of being endangered. In fact, these whales are of least concern, and just like their ancestors: Norwegians, Icelanders, etc. all use the entire animal. And let me just say, it also tastes similar to a lean steak, with less fat. My cousin and I bought one box from the grocery store and cooked it up for dinner; one box was more than enough for the both of us.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minke_whale

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/03/160331-norway-minke-whaling-fur-farms/

http://us.whales.org/issues/whaling-in-norway

  Around the world, you’ll find food that you may not have considered ever trying. But I always like to immerse myself in any culture I visit, not only is it respectful, but you’ll get a whole new experience and widen all horizons. Where ever you go the people living there have been there much longer, years, generations, centuries, and they know what they’re doing. I trust that they want to share the best of their lives with me as I would with them.

GO FORTH AND EAT FOOD!

Meet Some New Meat This weekend I snapped back into the realization that, hey, I like to cook. I haven’t been cooking or eating healthy food for a while just cause I’ve been lazy, which is, of course, not good neither for me nor my wallet.

[dancingingold]

a month to remember

January 4, 2017: During the month of January, I’m doing a cleanse. This is a cleanse of any processed or unhealthy foods and drinks, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter. I’m taking this month to be as healthy as I can and to see where I stand and who I am once I rid myself of some of the toxic things we as the world can be overpowered by. I want to see what my relationship with God is like, how my mood changes, how my views are different. So far, I’ve been on this little adventure 3 days. I want to write the things I learn about myself or thoughts I have.

 Thought: You are your own strength. And when you realize that is when you access it. When you access it is when you become your strongest.

 Thought: When you’re left alone, without people, your phone, internet, music, television, books, or even the scenery around you, do you like who you are? Do you accept the kind of person you are fully and support your thoughts and actions. And if you aren’t, that should be your goal. Be who you want to be.

 Thought: It really is sad how often I get on my phone habitually. I keep picking it up to look on social media and realize I have deleted it. Three days ago, I felt “disconnected” from everyone else. Today, it feels kind of freeing, like I now have lost responsibility over something I didn’t know I felt responsible for.

 January 23, 2017: It is crazy how I feel like a completely different person in one month’s time. I’m currently on Day 22. I just wanted to share some things I’ve learned so far.

 1.     My mom once shared this little handy bit of information with me. She said, “The definition of stupidity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting to get different results. If you’re tired of having guys treat you like you’re not worth anything, then quit dating or talking to or going for those kind of “men”. If you’re tired of not losing weight or not getting your body goals, quit eating the same foods and doing the same exercise or choosing to have a lack of exercise day after day. If you’re not happy with who you are, change your thoughts and actions.

2.     Another thing I learned this month after the loss of two very good friends of mine that my mom also shared with me (yes, I talk to her too much) is that grief has no shortcut. Over the course of my 27 years, I have lost my Grandmother, my Meme (my aunt), my Papaw, my cousin Emily and my cousin Ben. Those times gave me some of the toughest days of my life. They challenged me, and they were each so difficult to overcome. And when I was faced with people my own age dying, it is a whole new kind of grief I hadn’t yet experienced. On December 13, I lost my sweet, good-hearted, hilarious, smart friend Matthew. My person who has been there almost my entire life. My favorite sushi date. My guy who always brought a smile to my face. Almost an exact month later this month, on January 14, I lost Wes. The only guy I’ve ever called my boyfriend. The only guy I’ve ever been able to spend more than two hours with without being annoyed. The only guy who I’ve taken around my family. The only guy who’s ever told me he loved me. The only guy who’s ever treated me like he meant that. It is easier almost to just be mad at God and blame Him for allowing us to even experience a sadness such as loss. But I found myself being thankful. Thankful for mine and Matthew’s many bestie date nights. Thankful for his being able to make me laugh even if I wasn’t in the mood. Thankful for his friendship. I was thankful that God allowed me to be close to Wes, since we were never good friends in high school and that I was able to see how much of a sweet soul he really was, and that I was able to experience a relationship with someone who appreciated me for who I was and what I stood for. How rare is that? Rare enough to where I’ve had no one else even come close to that since then. Thankful for the Holy Spirit urging me, even though I hadn’t talked to Wes in months, to call him on December 16 when we ended up having a 40-minute conversation. Thankful for the Holy Spirit again urging me to text him the night before he left this earth to remind him I’m always here if he needs me. I literally prayed that God would let me see Wes in my dreams, just so I could see him one more time… that’s never happened before, by the way. I never get to dream of people I really want to see and ask for. In my dream, I was in the grocery store for some reason. I saw him and smiled really big. He came up to me and hugged me in my dream. He was happy, content, and seemed like he had no care in the world. I had never seen him that way before. After I started walking, I looked back, and he had disappeared. But in my mind in the dream, I didn’t look for him because I knew he was gone and that I wouldn’t see him for a while. But I also had this overwhelming sense that he was happy and okay wherever he was. Tell me that isn’t God speaking right to me. I’ve learned, that through grief, we as Christians have the greatest hope. We have hope in knowing we will see our loved ones that are saved again, standing in His glory and without fault, blame, sadness, guilt, or sin. That is the only thing that gets me through loss. I honestly don’t know how people who don’t believe in the Savior of the world go on after loss. I am forever, literally, grateful for that hope in the midst of darkness. God also kept revealing this verse to me in different ways: Matthew 11:28-30 – “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Amazing how He knows my heart and what it needs. I needed that verse. When we put ourselves in isolation and silence (without your phone, your kids, or even music) and allow our hearts to hear Him, He speaks. Listen to Him.

3.     Be caring. Not just to people you like or who are nice to you. This month, I started caring substantially less about what other people thought of me. I think that had to do with the distance from social media and its constant cry that we need approval from EVERYONE and we need it NOW. No, you don’t. Who cares if some person talked behind your back? Who cares if someone completely judged you on something based off of nothing but a picture or hearing something from someone else. Let go of the little things like that. They only bring you down and make you less of a person, I promise. With having more free time away from my phone, I really thought about all the people over this past year who I let get to me. Their opinions weighed on me. It really hurt me and eventually angered me that other people had mean things to say about me or made a judgement when they have literally had two conversations with me ever, and the conversations were probably about the weather. But you know, I have to remember that the Redeemer of the world knows my heart, loves and accepts me completely, and He’s crazy about me. What else matters? Love His people, and love those who are not yet His people. They have a great heart, too. You just may not know them very well, either. You’ll be happier, and they’ll have less to talk about ;)

4.     Love yourself always. If you have been redeemed by Jesus, you are already perfect.

 January 30 – one more day. Looking back to the beginning of this month, I know it sounds crazy to say, but I feel like a different person. You learn a lot about yourself when you’re disconnected from all the distractions. My question I stated at the beginning of January still stands: When you are left alone, without people, jobs, goals, the gym, your family, friends, phone, or even scenery, when you close your eyes and are left alone with just you and the Lord, do you love yourself? Do you like who you are, what you’ve become, what you’ve accomplished? If you met the Lord today, would you feel like you’ve truly lived for Him? If the answer is no or I don’t know, which is what my answer was, you need to start at the bottom and make the changes. In the end, He is all of the reason for why we are here. We are here to love and serve. Is that what your life is like? 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

“But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength…” 2 Timothy 4:17

This next verse is one that I should have memorized by now. When I was young, maybe 12 at the time, I had a really hard time dealing with death for the first time in my life. My mom gave me this on a note card, and I would pray it over and over again whenever I felt overcome by what the world gives us. I pray you can use it in the same way.

“The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.” Psalm 27:1-3

 May the Lord speak to you while you listen and may you grow in abundance of His love. I pray you always know it fully and know that you are made beautiful.

Chrissy