My Happiness includes Food

Spring Break 2009:

• First Greyhound bus ride to visit C and her cooking. Worth it
• Successfully made crispy crust pizza w/ JJ. Woot! ..made me nostalgic for NYC
• Musashi. Trophy Cupcakes. Laughing it up with SY
• My favorite chewy rye bread @ Cheesecake Factory with high school buds
• Talking about God with little J while celebrating big J's bday
• Brother treating me to Cafe Ori :)
• Listening to the quiet crackley crust of a baguette @ Pike Place, with HCC.
• Hanging out w/ YH for the first time. A brief hike & making ice-cream sandwiches

A Season to Read

Spring Quarter started yesterday, but I am not taking any classes. I finally have a butt load of time on my hands to do whatever I please, which is mainly to stuff my mind with books that I actually want to read.

SY gave me the book The Complete Human Body over Christmas. The basal or bottommost layer of skin has the Melanocyte skin cells. These cells produce Melanin: the pigment that absorbs UV and determines skin/hair color. Melanin gets packaged into structures called Melanosomes which travel to the epithelial or uppermost layer (visible to the naked eye) and settle in comfortably. The more Melanosomes & Melanin you have, the darker your skin.

However, if you're fair skinned, you may, evolutionarily speaking have adapted to protect yourself from repeated sun exposure by FRECKLING!

Severely burned patients are threatened by dehydration -> kidney failure, I believe because the lack of skin allows water to evaporate? Scientists take 3cm or less of a patient's healthy tissue and grow it on a sheet of fabric, that'll dissolve when placed over the wound. In T minus 3o days, enough "new" skin is grown to cover the whole body. This is a Cultured epithelial autograft (CEA).

In HCC, PJ brought up a profound point. Evolution is a purposeless set of actions over a long period of time. It has no sense of good or evil. It has selected species based on their genetic predisposition. But where does our sense of purpose...our conscience come from? These things cannot have come from nothing. These things come from our Creator.

PJ is also pushing the limits of our philosophical thinking by engaging us in The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis. I found my copy in the used book-store Magus, on the Ave...almost had a sneezing fit from the musty smells. Climbed on a small stool to reach the uppermost bookshelf, and did not see it. Said a brief prayer, and saw, hidden from direct view, stacked on top of the other books the one I coveted. God is good. :)

Living an Authentic Faith

"When God's cooking, you do not need to stir the pot."

"Honor God and He'll honor you."

Am I reading the Bible for myself? Am I willing to commit, and have a genuine relationship with God, to provide me the strength to withstand all opposition, distress and temptation?

These are the things PL asked us to ponder on this snowy Sunday morning.

I have many distractions in my life. I want to de-clutter, and wean off: People.com, blog surfing and facebook. I want to consistently do Daily Devotions, talk to my family members more, and start walking...because Spring is almost here!

Trust & Obey

I worry, I struggle and I fret about my future. Such are the woes of a college senior.

At the end of the day, getting down and sincerely praying is the only thing that's important, because He rules. Monday morning, as usual, I was doing all of the unneccessary things listed above...I love it when the Daily Bread addresses exactly what's on my mind. "Consecration is not the giving over of the calling in life to God, but the separation from all other callings and giving over of ourselves to God, letting his providence place us where He will." Instead of praying about grad school, I prayed that He would use me as he saw fit.

God is humorous.

I got a call within the hour, telling me I'd been accepted to grad school. Here I was in the clinic, crying tears of joy, scolding myself for crying at the clinic of all places, and I forgot to thank God first...He was third or fourth on the list. I have much to learn, and much to prioritize. However, I am grateful and humbled, and look forward to three more years of school...especially the cadaver's...I have been waiting so long to appreciate the human body in its fullness.

First Day of Winter

Snow Day #4. Cooped up, watching movies, baking sweets, steaming buns, reading books. It's so quiet, everyone is taking it slow. We haven't bought Christmas gifts yet, but the forecast says more snow, so no presents this year. I like it like that.

Senior Year

WOOSH and 3 1/2 years of college life has passed by.
And 4 years of high school.
3 years of middle school.
5 years of elementary school.

Savor every moment: the nights spent cramming for midterms, the bus trips to HCC, Friday Bible Study + frozen yogurt, being inspired by TA's so passionate about their field they are willing to study several more years for it, talking to random people, soaking up UW's beauty, etc.

Today was my dear, gracious, kind, loving mother's birthday. My Tiramisu cake was a flop but the #1 fan of my cooking didn't think so. :)

Missing the Point

Were the Pharisee's "bad guys," "good guys" or "us guys"?

The Pharisee's held the scripture in the highest regard, neglecting the purpose of Biblical principles. God told us to not work, but to seek rest on the Sabbath, for our own good. He is a merciful provider, and understands that even us meek humans need a break once in a blue moon. However, the Pharisees misinterpreted this to mean no work could be done. They were so bound to their own laws and self-righteousness that they didn't see helping others was not work.

PM asked the congregation what group we'd put the Pharisee's in. "Us guys," I think. Sometimes I do judge people for not following the "unwritten" rules, forgetting it is God's graciousness that has provided me with a safe & loving community, and kept me from floating away. As PM puts it: a relationship with Jesus Christ, not religion is what brings salvation.

In other news, school has been coming along like choppy waters. I feel like a little sailboat that's just survived a storm, only to have to brace some more. But in the calm times, it has been quite nice. HCC took a long hike to Lake Serene, celebrated 4 consecutive birthdays, and braved the scary haunted corn maze. The corn fields were lovely during daylight! Also, I learned to make nutella (http://www.sugoodsweets.com/blog/2005/12/nutella/), to function on 4 hours of sleep, and to appreciate the greatness of super glue.

Love

I like it when PJ tells us about his conversations with atheists. A lady asked him why being unequally yoked was so viewed so unfavorably...love was what counted right?

Those types of answers catch me off-guard...I have no reply to them...or lame replys at best. PJ went on to explain that love can mean many things and be expressed in different ways. You don't have to do physical things to love someone. There are many ways to show love...you can love someone without having to marry them. In Blue like Jazz, Donald writes "we learn that we are lovable or unlovable from other people. That's why God tells us so many times to love each other." Love, in the marriage sense parallels Gods love for us, and it should be held with utmost care, and the command should be obeyed.

In other news, school starts tomorrow. I am gonna have to juggle like none other this quarter.

Home Sweet Home (part trois)

On Thursday, my middle school friend Robyn was ever the gracious host and took us to a cheap falafal place, Washington Square Park, an NYU library and up to see the New York skyline.

Selina is the best traveling buddy because of her easy going nature...and her I-Phone. We went to Westville Bakery but they did not have my s'mores pie. By grace, we found the original Magnolia Bakery in Greenwich Village, where I got their pumpkin cheesecake. Then it was off to go bag hunting. Selina kept her eye out since the beginning of the trip for a specific bag, but couldn't get a reasonable price for it. We went to Chinatown, and she scored not one, but two bags for a decent price. I suck at haggling but managed to save $5 when I got my bag. I got a mafia hat for Alvin.

Triumphant, we went to Coney Island. The F (?) train took us on the Manhattan Bridge and I think we were the only two who really enjoyed the views. There is something special about appreciating the sights each and every time. Crossing the 520 Bridge on sunny days is still an awesome sight. Coney Island closed 4 days early, so my cowardly butt had an excuse for not riding the Cyclone. We ate our dinner on the Subway...it's like the Washington Dinner Train, but cheaper. :)

Friday was our last and final day exploring this great frontier. The Union Square Greenmarket was smaller than I expected, and the people weren't very chatty, but it was still nice to witness the ec0-friendly interactions between farmers and their regular customers. There were baked goods and fresh fruits and veggies, but I had to find food of some sustenance...so I went to Gray's Papaya for their $1.25 HOTDOG.

I met up with Selina and we went to Central Park...it was nice in the rain...much quieter. We walked 26 blocks worth, then headed to Zabar's for their creamy, thick frozen yogurt. Paul's is still the best though. We caught a few late Yankee fans on the B/D train to Yankee stadium. The game was unofficially cancelled b/c of the rain, and Selina suggested we hurry to catch the train back to get a picture of some mad fans.

Back at home, we watched Pretty Woman, ate a mediocre NY cheesecake, cleaned, packed, and decided to head home early. New York had a positive, lasting impression on me. I can picture myself here for the long term.

Home Sweet Home (part deux)

Connie would be so proud. On Tuesday, we had soul food-fried chicken, collard greens, candied yams, cornbread, and mashed potatoes at Mamie's Spoonbread Too in Harlem. Finger lickin' good.






At the Museum of Natural History, I was relieved to know I could view the dinosaurs with such close proximity and not fear being eaten alive. The fossils were SO COOL and my favorite exhibit. This museum was impressive because of their dedicated efforts to display animals in a painted natural-like habitat.

Angela flew out on Wednesday, Selina slept in, and I resumed my quest to spot a celebrity. The Upper East Side probably hid a celebrity inside one of their expensive stores, but I was too intimidated by the store bodyguards to try my luck. I crossed Central Park and saw boys in their collared shirts and pressed pants playing baseball. Only in New York. On the Upper West Side, still no luck.
I went to the Columbia University PT Open House, learned about their program, spoke with the program director, and was sold. I hurried home, and we went to the most legendary jazz club in the world, the Village Vanguard to listen to jazz music. At first, I couldn't get into it...but like Donald Miller said, sometimes you have to watch someone enjoy something before you can yourself. The lady behind us was clearly loving it, whisteling and clapping after each song. I closed my eyes, and loved every minute of it. The entrance fee included a $10 drink, so being the sophisticated drinkers we are, we ordered a cranberry vodka and a margharita. I couldn't fool my amateur drinking self.