Posts Tagged ‘eating’

365great Day 80: crab legs

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Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 80: crab legsOh crab legs, how delicious they are! And eating them is just not as rewarding if you don’t crack them yourself. I love getting a bucket or platter of steaming legs and cracking my way through them, occasionally dipping in butter. They’re lip-smackingly awesome! I’ll even wear a bib if I have have to. 😉 These tasty fellows are perfect with just a little bit of seasoning. To me, it’s not just about eating them, but it’s about the entire experience that makes you feel like you earned that meat. It can be hard work on your hands and mouth, but then it’s such a treat for your taste buds. I also like how it makes you slow down when eating – you can’t exactly gobble up a ton of crab meat at a time when you’ve got to pick and pull and prod and push your way around those hard shells. The flavor, the labor – it’s great!.

Living it up in LA

laelene Posted in general blog,Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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It’s been a busy two days for my relatives! They spent their first full day in LA out at Universal Studios, with a brief stop in the Hollywood area first, and a visit to Griffith Observatory afterwards. They took pictures of the Hollywood sign, walked around Hollywood & Highland, checked out the Chinese theater, looked at the star walk, and even stopped for some photos with some street walkers dressed as pirates from Pirates of the Caribbean. Then it was off to nearly 8 hours doing every possible thing at Universal Studios! The shows, the rides, the sights… and some of them they even got around to twice. Pretty impressive.

sunset over hollywood hills with hollywood sign on right sideI picked them up at 6:30 yesterday after that full day of adventure and we wrapped up the night by swinging by Griffith Observatory to check out the view of LA and look at all the exhibits inside. They peered into a telescope looking at a giant telescope atop Mount Wilson, learned about tidal waves and seasons and moon phases, played with the giant periodic table, figured out the way the pendulum worked, and tested out their weights on various planets. Oh, and they took a ton of pictures along the way! The sun was setting as we arrived at the observatory, so they went crazy getting some great shots of the natural scenery. We didn’t get home until 9:30 and then it was time to eat up for dinner!

Today it was another full day, first going to the Getty, where we explored nearly all the exhibits (it was actually my first time entering anything other than the West building). Then of course we had to wander around the garden area, where there were a ton of great pictures to be taken and flowers to be admired. Three hours later, we were able to wrap up and get to Santa Monica, where we wandered around Santa Monica Place, Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica beach, and the Pier. There was a stop for lunch so we’d have the strength to continue going and we saw everything ranging from the shopping strip to the ocean and even paused to check out a trapeze lesson on the pier!

panoramic shot of getty garden area view

Before we knew it, it was late afternoon and we rushed off to the Getty Villa since you could park there for free if you go on the same day as visiting the Getty. They close at 5 though, so time was limited. Traffic on the PCH was awful and it took a good 45 minutes to get from Santa Monica to the Getty Villa! Insane. We made it just 10 minutes before closing and they almost didn’t let the car through, but I sweet talked them. 🙂 Once again it was a great time for lovely pictures, with some exploring of the grounds before they started to chase us out for the day. On the ride home, we made a pit stop to get some ingredients for dinner and then another to get the wine that they forgot the first time around. We were going to make our way to some outlets too, but they decided that they can figure that out when they’re in Vegas or on another leg of the trip.

They sure did check out a lot in these two days, and got a pretty good feel of things from the coast all the way inland. There’s of course plenty they missed out on, but I think they covered quite a bit of ground in just two days.

365great Day 46: Graze

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365great challenge day 46: grazeGraze hasn’t been available in the US for long, but it’s quite popular! At the moment it’s invite-only (and each person only gets to invite one other) so it’s tough to get in. Once you do, you get to set up weekly, fortnightly, or monthly deliveries of delicious little snack packets! Each is carefully created to be nutritious and a single serving size. These are great for eating a healthier diet and portion control (which most people probably struggle with). They’re constantly coming up with new recipes and you get to decide which ones you’re willing to try, which ones you like and want more of, which ones you LOVE and want a lot, or which ones you’d like to “trash” and never get again. You can change your ratings for the snacks at any time as your tastes change too. The flexibility, the ease of snacking without worry, and the tasty treats sent to your door make for a really great service!

365great Day 44: pickles

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365great challenge day 44: picklesI’ve always loved pickles. Maybe it’s a genetic thing? My parents seem to like them too, but not in the crazy scarf-them-down way that I do. There’s something about the salty, sour, crisp, juiciness that is delightful to me. I love the way they crunch and add a kick to whatever you eat them with (or without). My favorite is munching on giant kosher dills straight up. I don’t need anything to go with them. However, I do often enjoy a bowl of Top Ramen in chicken flavor with them whenever I need a more filling snack. Depending on my mood, sometimes I crave hamburger slice pickles and other times I crave wedges.

I’m actually pretty picky about my pickles and have very specific requirements – they must be a sort of yellowish green on the inside (not those weird white ones) and they must have maximum crunch (some just don’t have the right crunching feeling). Luckily, the Ralph’s brand offers such pickles, so I can always get them for a decent price. I’ve always loved the pickle slices offered at Quizno’s and sometimes even piled up a small cup’s worth to eat with my sandwich. What can I say? To me, they just taste so great.

On My Mind, episode 4

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Ready for another round of On My Mind? Here goes!

~Ha! I was just thinking about how my blog posts used to be so much more insightful/thoughtful/interesting when I started to get the inspiration bug again and went crazy preparing some draft posts. Tons of goodness to come!

~Sooo I had said I didn’t want to buy any more nail polish until I used up one bottle. Just one! Which shouldn’t be that hard since I rarely buy nail polish anyway, but then I came across a BOGO deal and I couldn’t resist! BAH. I bought it and then promptly spilled one all over my carpet (which took out about a third of that bottle). Karma for going against my word? 🙁 I did manage to mostly get it out (and better than I had hoped at least!).

collage of sally hansen insta-dri nail colors in clearly quick, pronto purple, lively lilac, and blue-away~That nail polish I got? Sally Hansen’s Insta-Dri. I’d never tried it before, but that coupon for buy one, get one meant each bottle was $2. While I may not want to pay $4 for some nail polish, $2 was a deal I couldn’t resist. I know, I’m terrible. But you know what? I discovered an AMAZING brush! Like seriously, why don’t all (or at least more) nail polishes have brushes like this? It applies so well, I just love it. Plus, I really love that these nail polishes dry so quickly, since clumsy old me would usually mess up at least three nails before they managed to dry.

~And if you keep up with the blog, you will see that I’ve decided to exchange some of my old nail polishes for some Zoya ones! At least I’m not accumulating more, right? That’s ok, right?!

~My family went out and got a bunch of Garnier Fructis Hydra Recharge shampoos because of the current deal for them! Only $0.86 in CA if you bring your own reusable bag. Less in other states since our tax is a high 9%, ugh.

collage of broken galileo thermometer

I cleaned the bulbs and put them in a vase.

~About two weeks ago, Missy (one of my cats) broke my Galileo thermometer when she knocked it over – RIP 🙁 – and I learned that the oil they use in it smells naaasty. It smelled like a gas station exploded on my carpet. I guess that’s the only material the bulbs will float in correctly. I cleaned and scrubbed and patted for an hour and the smell didn’t dissipate, so I had to move to another room to sleep. Took about a week of leaving the window open and spraying odor remover on it daily before I could move back. My carpet is forever scarred though – for some reason, it grew a bump that won’t go away.

long raised bump in carpet

It used to be a lot worse but it has since shrunk.

~Panda (the boyfriend) was in town earlier in the month and we got a pretty cool room at the Hilton Garden Inn LAX! I loooved the rocker, which was so smooth and made me feel lighter. Reminded me of the zero gravity chairs they have a Brookstone. The bathroom was rather sweet too, with a jacuzzi/hot tub (what’s the difference?) on one side and an electronically-controlled shower on the other. I got to set the shower water to exactly the temperature I wanted!

panoramic shot of large bathroom in a hilton garden inn lax room

Here I am demonstrating the rocking chair…

awesome smooth leather rocking chair from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

~I had told my cousin about the 1 Second Everyday app, which she was interested in. I’ve been having a blast with it! I was sad, however, that I had redeemed an iTunes gift card for $50 and wasn’t able to split it into two $25 gift codes so she too could get some apps without paying. Then a few days later it dawned on me: gifting an app! I hadn’t thought of it because I never used it (and really wasn’t sure it was even a feature), but I checked and it’s so easy to do it! But by the time I told her, she had already bought the app. Womp, womp… next time!!

~I’ve been doing pretty well with the giveaways I’ve entered and won a couple more, yippee! You’ll see pictures of them after I get them. One in particular I wanted to point out – I actually won another 3-month Conscious Box subscription and this time I got to share an additional one with a friend! I mean, what is more thrilling than winning for you AND a friend of your choice? I picked a super awesome, super supportive friend and she was totally excited. Coincidentally, her birthday was right around then too! Happy birthday!

~I’m so glad I went through that long, long DMV line to get a new picture taken because I am SO much happier with my new picture! The original picture was from when I was in high school and it looks like I have a fake orange tan when in reality I just swam outdoors a lot for our high school team.

driver's license pictures side by side comparison

The old picture looks a lot more orange in person.

~I’m STILL waiting to get my first Goodie box and Graze box. Waaah! I’ve held myself back from buying snacks because they were supposed to replace my snack food shopping and THEY’RE STILL NOT HERE… -___- I, being hugely reliant on snacking to survive/thrive, feel so forlorn… BUT I should be getting my Goodie box today*! *fingers crossed* My Graze box was prepared on the 11th and if I don’t get it by tomorrow I’m going to contact customer service. Yes, you can call me Cookie Monster.

~And finally, I was SO off-the-walls (maybe too) happy to get an email from the Pink Panel letting me know I’m in their nail care testing group. I had just signed up and filled out the survey for the latest testing group and it was awesome to get that invitation!! I can’t wait – I remember seeing Julep in the survey URL so I’m pretty sure we get to test some Julep products. I’ve yet to try anything from them, but I’d totally love to. I’m turning into a nail polish/hand care fiend. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that we get a $75 Amazon gift card (code, probably) for participating. I’m getting my cats a fun feeding maze I learned about from an article on Squidoo with those funds!

*Yay the Goodie box arrived! Time to rip through it. 🙂

365great Day 31: freshly baked

laelene Posted in 365great,Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
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Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 31: freshly bakedDon’t you just love the smell of something baking in the oven? Whether it’s bread, cookies, brownies, cake, a pot pie, a pizza, or whatever your favorite may be, a wonderful smell starts wafting up in the air and then you get to pull out a hot, delicious, steaming tray of food to eat. As the food cools down, you can dig in and enjoy the sensory experience of tasting and smelling it, as well as enjoying the lovely soft texture while it’s sill moist. It’s one of the simple things that is oh so satisfying. Totally great!

Panda watching

laelene Posted in video blog,Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
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Panda and I visited the National Zoo not long ago and got a chance to see the pandas! They were stuck indoors for the time being (maybe because it was brisk outside) so it was easy to watch them.

Look at how dexterous those paws are!

panda eating apple from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

This one was eating ever so vigorously behind all that bamboo.

munching panda from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

“Let me ooout!” What a sassy one. 😉

pacing panda from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

So this researcher gets to sit and watch pandas all day. Maybe I should apply for that job.

observing pandas from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

Cat addictions

laelene Posted in video blog,Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
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Even animals can be addicted to bad behaviors. Case in point: Molly loves to lick tape and Missy enjoys chewing plastic.

cat eating tape from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

cat chewing plastic heat pad from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

Cake pops

laelene Posted in general blog,Tags: , , , , ,
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collage of cake pops from bake you happyMy newest obsession (and almost addiction) is cake pops.  They are just SO fantastic!  While cupcakes may dry out, you can count on cake pops to remain moist in that wonderful chocolate shell.  Plus, they’re a great-sized portion just enough to pick you up without weighing you down.  I also like that they’re easily portable and less prone to getting messed up/smushed.  I was able to bring some on a plane with me recently and while one of them got crushed, it still held together decently and I was still able to eat it with no problems.  Meanwhile, cupcakes are so delicate I’m afraid to tilt them or crush them even in their boxes.  Granted, cake pops don’t have frosting, but I actually prefer the hard chocolate shell to the soft and messy frosting of cupcakes.

Seriously, what’s not to love?  One of these days, I’ve got to try making some myself since they’re pricey little fellows.  I don’t even need to bother with the sticks; I just bite straight into them like a piece of chocolate.

Stuffing yourself? Think again.

laelene Posted in general blog,Tags: , , , , , ,
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I wasn’t going to write a Thanksgiving-themed entry since the holiday hardly felt like one and I don’t like holidays dictating my writing, but I happen to want to write about something that is somewhat related.

Can you fit under that?

Can you fit under that?

As I was driving home yesterday (stuck in afternoon traffic that I’d all but forgotten about until right before I was planning on leaving), there were these big rigs that were right next to me (and nicely blocking the sunlight for me!).  I could see under the one directly to my left to the one in the lane next to it and I almost felt as if my car could fit under them.  That got me thinking about whether or not someone can lay down on the ground and fit under the lower parts of the vehicle (particularly where the wheels are and under the head).

I recalled hearing about someone who jumped in front of an oncoming subway and pushed the person down there onto the ground.  The two of them made it out unscathed because the subway car was high enough on the tracks that they could fit underneath.  Or maybe it way just one guy or maybe it was under a train.  Either way, you get the idea, right?  Well, I was thinking of this in terms of those big rigs and it looked shady.  The lowest part looks too far down for anyone to not get caught and dragged along.

Next Thanksgiving, spare a turkey!

Next Thanksgiving, spare a turkey!

Well, it suddenly occurred to me that I was thinking of someone my size.  What of fat people?  I hope that this is not too insensitive, but obese people would definitely not fit under any of these vehicles!  Sooo it goes to reason that if you are extremely overweight and one day need to save your own life by fitting underneath a subway, train, or big rig… well, you’re screwed.  Hence, all those people who stuffed themselves full tonight should think again before fattening themselves.  Who knows, you might just need to save yourself from getting run over and that extra inch around your waist could make the difference.

And there is my Turkey Day entry.  😛

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