Jun 3

Because I’m juggling 3 books at the moment and haven’t started my book club’s book for June yet, opening my copy of Eat, Pray, Love is not top priority right now. I was catching up on my DVRed Oprahs last week and saw Julia Roberts promoting Eat, Pray, Love the movie. The show has made me inch my copy of the book up a little on my list. During the show, Oprah interviewed the cast members asking them what their eat, pray, and love look like to them. It inspired some reflection and I thought I’d share with you my eat, pray, love.


Eat


Anything my mom makes. I could happily live forever on my mom’s cooking. If I had to narrow it down to just one dish for the rest of my life, I’m going to have to say momma’s bun rieu.

bun rieu
(Link to my food blog about bun rieu).


Pray

My pray is gratitude and being present. It’s when things are calm and happy and I’m present enough to know I’m experiencing a beautiful moment, be it a field of bluebonnets, a shared cackle with friends, or a quiet squeeze of a hand. To appreciate and savour is my pray.


(blog post)


Love

It’s hard to choose from my myriad of personal photos a handful of images that illustrates what love looks like to me. Simply put, it’s time well spent with my family and friends. It’s sharing life.

love looks like..
love looks like..
love looks like..


What are your Eat, Pray, Love?

Apr 2


1.

I thought it was a full week since I’ve updated this blog and it was giving me withdrawal. My happy posting schedule is 5-7 times at the very minimum. (I’ve been slammed in terms of schedule and my food blog’s new layout was giving me an obsession that was sucking my blog posting time.) This got me thinking. I LOVE it when my real life friends start blogs. I love reading about their lives and seeing what they deemed appropiate to share with the world. I noticed though, save for a few select people, the dedication towards posting frequency is usually lacking. This may also fuel my dedication to commenting on a lot of of their blogs as kind of a motivation, that HI, I read your blog. I’m your friend. You OWE ME AN UPDATE. :) Damnit.


2.

Anthony Bourdain is the shit.

I saw Anthony Bourdain with Jamie last night. I knew I always really really really liked him maybe even love. But after last night, I’m more deeply so!! He’s the shit. Curses more in person. Hilarious. Really mean. With a good center. I will post a recap next week on the food blog. This got me thinking though. If I have a type in men, it’s funny mean men with a good center. It really explains a lot.


3.

Speaking of my attraction to funny mean men. I got April Fooled by the boyfriend a couple of nights ago (past midnight so it was totally legit.) Dude woke me up and told me that the last guy’s night he had, he got drunk and made out with a girl and couldn’t tell me til now. I sat right up, shot him dagger eyes, and was about to let him have it when he very just-in-timely shouted out, “APRIL FOOLS” and then laughed his butt off.

Clearly. I have a type.


4.

I had sweetbread for the first time ever. I’ve had haggis, and pig’s intestines, and silkworms, and other odd conceptually unappetizing foods in my life and have enjoyed them. I was still surprised in hindsight that I did not get queasy eating sweetbread. I think perhaps I wasn’t quite sure if I remembered correctly what it was and did not want to scare my eating partner from not trying it. In case you don’t know what sweetbread is, check it on my Friday Food Definition for today.


5.

I love good funny dialogue. Yesterday, an organization on campus chose to remember the Holocaust by handing out 1,000 white roses. I did not know this. I walked down the hallway and saw 3 white roses in a vase at work. That’s the scene for the following dialogue.

Me: OOooh!!! Flowers!!!
My Boss: Don’t get excited, Linda. They’re for the Holocaust.

Cracked me up that, “Don’t get excited.”

Later:

Someone else at work: So they thought today (4/1/2010) is the best day to celebrate the Holocaust?
Yet another person: Celebrate?
Me: Muhahahahahahhahahahahahah

My Boss walks by at this point in the conversation.

Boss: Don’t get excited, Linda

Tickled. I was absolutely tickled. (I don’t think I need to clarify, I’m not making light of the Holocaust. My readers (a few IRL friends mostly) are smart enough to know that.)


6.

The last 6 months or so, I’ve been working on speaking my mind in relationships. It’s a skill everyone should have and I do think at 26, I’m a late bloomer to only start practicing and developing the habit now. Growing up, my parents programmed me (program seems more apt a word than “raise”) that whenever people hurt you, don’t let them know as it’s a sign of weakness. That MAY be true. I’m not sure if it is a sign of weakness, admitting pain, but what I am sure of, and it took me til recently to put together the pieces, is bottling resentment is not conducive to keeping people in your life. Communicating feelings, even when they’re bad, gives people the opportunity to understand where you’re coming from. Gives you the opportunity to maybe hear their perspective and therefore understand them better. Finally, it gives your relationship room to not only grow, but survive.


7.

Jumping from number 6, another lesson that I’m learning is that just because you communicate your feelings, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get the results you want and expect. For instance, I was hurt last year by several people. In efforts to speak my mind more, I tried telling them as clearly as I could what it was that bothered me. I was taken aback when not once did they acknowledge the validity of my feelings and was a little disillusioned by the ‘speaking your mind’ thing. It doesn’t ensure anything! Since then, I’ve learned that though it doesn’t mean you’ll get what you want (seriously ya”ll, apologies and conveying understanding = magic), the ability to communicate your feelings is a reward in itself.

Feb 25

From Bob Marley to Boys/Men

“You may not be her first, her last, or her only. She loved before, she may love again. But if she loves you now, what else matters? She’s not perfect- you aren’t either, and the two of you may never be perfect together, but if she can make you laugh, cause you to think twice, and admit to being human and making mistakes, hold onto her and give her the most you can. She may not be thinking about you every second of the day, but she will give you a part of her that she knows you can break- her heart. So don’t hurt her, don’t change her, don’t analyze and don’t expect more than she can give. Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she’s not there”

And other places you can find me: (all links open new windows)

You can ask me anything here and even do it anonymously.

My new food blog

Follow me at new food twitter

Feb 9


Cell phone photo of the batch of cards I sent out today.

I just sent out a batch of Valentine’s Day cards and packages. Every year I pick a handful of single friends and send a little festive note. When I send out any letters or cards I always pick out quotations that are apt to write on the back of the envelopes. I’ve been doing that for years and cannot remember when I started.

I want to share some of the quotations I transcribed this year onto the envelopes.

(It’s all I can do not to inundate this blog entry and all blog entries I’ve written about Valentine’s day with exclamation marks. To do so would sincerely reflect my GLEE!!! The glee that I experience every year around this time.)

Some Valentine Quotations


Age does not protect you from love, but love to some extent protects you from age.
- Jeanne Moreau

If I am not worth the wooing, I am surely not worth the winning.
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Friendship marks a life even more deeply than love. Love risks degenerating into obsession, friendship is never anything but sharing.
- Elie Wiesel

Never to suffer would never to have been blessed.
- Edgar Allen Poe

I am like a falling star who has finally found her place next to another in a lovely constellation, where we will sparkle in the heavens forever.
- Amy Tan

Feb 8

In the spirit of relationships and Valetine’s day on the horizon, I thought I’d repost this blog entry I originally posted in June of 2007. I discussed why men should pay attention if their ladies suddenly seem to have dropped issues they were having with their relationships.

Last weekend I had dinner with 2 boys and a girl. We girls forced the boys into girly-slumber-party-like questions and conversation. We called it game of “Truth or Truth.” Poor boys. We asked them fun questions from last time they cried to weirdest place they had sex. The juvenile game soon morphed into a conversation about gender differences. One guy wondered why females have a tendency to go into this silent psychological warfare where they are grading their significant other silently, going through a “check list.” He likened it to a ticking bomb.

“Tick tick tick.. and all of a sudden they go off and do something drastic, like break up or start a blow out fight.”

The other girl and I nodded knowingly. We’ve done this ‘ticking bomb’ thing. We’re both sticking to our guns that the “ticking bomb” is a fantastic last resort. Often times we find ourselves voicing what we want over and over again. It’s not fun. It could be as small as “You don’t ever ask me how my day is” to something bigger such as, “I’m not going to wait for you to get your shit together another year, it’s already been 6 years.” Eventually, the asker gets tired of hearing her (or his) own voice so she (or he) stops asking.

Cue “Ticking Bomb” phase.

This is the point where they’re deciding on whether to fold and walk away with least amount of damage to themselves. I like calling it the silent tally. Silently counting how many times the party in question is falling short. No more reminders. No more gentle coaxing. No more arguments. So my hint to mainly the men out there. If your significant other has been nagging you about something for a long while and all of a sudden, she’s quiet. Contrary to what my male friend thought it was (“I thought she changed her wants”), you’re probably being silently monitored and about to approach a tipping point in the relationship. :) Beware of silence.

Why I will stand by it? People generally don’t change. Unless the pain of their not changing exceeds the pain of changing.. right? Why fix something that ain’t broke? So if someone doesn’t embody something you think you need in a relationship, the “ticking bomb” helps illustrates the futility of waiting for someone to change… Count the tally marks then fold and walk away with what you have.

Jan 23
I sketched today.
icon1 Linda | icon2 art, love, memory | icon4 01 23rd, 2010| icon33 Comments »


Drawn without training, a no 2. pencil and Crayola colored penciles.

I’d like to formally explore drawing “rules” and techniques one day. You can tell I’m very untrained. Proportions are off. Look at her boots. Sigh, so many things to explore in this life and not enough time.

My dad drew. I remember as a child, I snooped through his letters and paperwork, wishing I knew how to read Vietnamese. I wanted to read the letters he used to write to my maternal grandfather. I liked the stationary and running my fingers over the ridges of imprinted words. (I also like running my fingers over the ridges of completed jigsaw puzzles.) While snooping one day, I found some drawings he drew while in a reeducation camp in Vietnam. They were drawn on pieces of cardboard and they were BEAUTIFUL. I think that’s painfully romantic. Drawing pictures of your wife while imprisioned. I can imagine him admiring his drawings with deep longing every night before bed. I should write myself a reminder to ask him if he’s tucked these drawings anywhere…

Jan 21
Love Harder
icon1 Linda | icon2 love | icon4 01 21st, 2010| icon39 Comments »
Love Harder

It isn’t very often when a group of people blows me away and humbles me with a grand demonstration of generosity, kindness, and empathy. So when these moments come I cherish the reminder that there are handful of good people still left in the world with bleeding hearts. I’ve recently started stalking a few bloggers and on the periphery saw a band of them pull together, gave up their blogs for a day to post a prayer request from Brandy, a blogger whose boyfriend was recently diagnosed with myeloma. Not only did they give up their blogs for a day, Lilu rallied 50 bloggers around the world to make a very cute music video and was in cahoots to start the Love Harder fund raising money for The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.

Seriously, right? I’m grateful that I get to be a witness to this act of kindness. Click on the banner above to donate to the fund. Whatever you can. Here’s the cute video.


And finally, the prayer request that started it all.

My name is Brandy. And I have a blog.

And a plea.

I use my blog to showcase the crazy I meet everyday, share the stories of the kids I teach, and document my love for tequila, dairy products and the abdominal muscles of Ryan Reynolds.

Rarely do I talk about personal issues on my blog– as personal as the dude that I adore. But I need your help. And it involves my dude.

He’s a guy who made math comics for my class, so they would love learning about addition. He’s the guy who sends my friends gift cards when they are having hard times, who remembers every story I ever told him, who was the first person I celebrated with when I got a teaching job.

He’s the guy who sent flowers to me at school– dozens of my favourite pink roses just because he loves me. He’s a guy who has spent a year patiently explaining (and re-explaining) everything there is to know about football during the important games when silence is preferred.

He’s made me word puzzles and comics and stayed up late playing Scrabble with me (even though I beat him almost every time). He’s listened to me cry about school and family and jobs. He is everything I never knew I needed and everything I always knew I wanted.

I realize this all sounds dramatic, a Lifetime movie in the making– but this is life. Right now. And I’m throwing away any hint of ego and am humbly asking for you to pray or think kind thoughts. If you are able to pass this on, thank you.

This isn’t a call for sympathy or a plea for pity. It’s just one girl hoping you can think positive thoughts for the person she adores. If my current heartache provides you with anything, let it be the reminder that life is short, love is unbending and no one knows what could happen next.

Thank you for reading this, and if you haven’t already? Please tell someone you love them today.

I did.

Jan 18
Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

It’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. I was surfing around reading MLK quotations to honor his day. I figured reflecting about what he’s done for us was the least I could do out of gratitude for my day off. (I still have my night time job though, so bugger that.) I found this quotation that struck me on a more personal note. The quote suggests that love is the power to transform your enemies into friends. I’m willing to wager that everyone has heard the biblical adage, “Love thy enemies.” I’m also willing to bet that most of us let it go through one ear and the other. I’ve never myself, reflected on the idea of loving my enemies.

Then I read, “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”

I could count the number of people I have beef with on one hand. As I think about them individually, I cannot say I ever want to be friends with any of them. I have eventually in all cases let go of my desire for retaliation or aggression. I’ve even managed friendly waves from afar. But friendship? I just cannot imagine sitting down for coffee or sharing a donut. At best, I may donate a pint of blood or two if they’re dying but only as a last resort.

For now, due to feasibility and lack of desire, I think I’ll carry on carrying on without them in my corner. But the thought of being a friend to those I’m not fond of did strike a chord.

I’m curious. If you stretch your mind a little, can you imagine yourself being friends with your enemies?

Jan 2

I love making resolutions. I think it helps me to progress in life. I had a really good year in 2008 and completed almost ALL of my resolutions. In 2009, namely due to resigning my job as a research coordinator and being unemployed for 5 months, I didn’t do well keeping my resolutions. The only three resolutions I accomplished from my list was have a whole year’s worth of funds saved up as an emergency fund (it ended up being VERY useful during my stint with unemployment), write in my paper journal once a week, I reading 20 books in 2009 (I read between 24-30 books), and continue doing my new things of the week (going on 5 years now!).

I’m feel like I have better footing this year and here are my resolutions for 2010.

Financial

  • Rebuild year’s worth of emergency fund. (5.5K) I just transferred over 500 (1/11).
  • Transfer over my 401K from my previous job to my Roth IRA.
  • Do my own taxes.
  • Keep outings with my little from Big Brothers & Big Sisters of America on a budget.

Leisure/Cultural/Fun

Community

  • Run a 5k for a charity.
  • See my little from Big Brothers & Sisters 2-3 times a month
  • Donate to every sponsorship for charity my friends take part in.

Personal

  • Try at least 3 times to mend a relationship with a family member.
  • Not leave drawers and cabinet doors open. (I don’t know how this bad habit started!)
  • Go to Houston ten times this year to visit friends and family.
  • Be more organized.

What are your New Year’s Resolutions? Do you make them?

Jan 1

I wish everyone a safe, better than 2009, healthy new year in 2010. I had a wonderful time last night and spent today eating good barbecue, seeing Jen T one last time before she goes back to Philly tomorrow, browsing a bookstore, and now I’m doing some cleaning and game planning for 2010. I’m feeling good over here.

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