It’s all about food.

I think about it. I dream about it. I plan for it. I crave for it.

This blog will be a test run for what I should’ve done years ago. I’ve always put off written a food blog, well, because I’m lazy. However, many of my friends have encouraged me to start one over the years. My clients tell me the only time my eyes light up is when I talk about food. So today, instead of trying to finish my gigantic pile of homework, I’ve decided to write my first post.

Welcome.

You’ll find my writing very sporadic and in-cohesive at times. I can explain that with my lifelong malady of ADHD. Basically my mind wanders and flitters about, dipping and dabbling into thoughts that I try to express as quickly as possible, so please don’t mind me as I jump from one thing to another. Please forgive me, and after all, this is how this blog has come to be tonight.

Now tonight, the urgency of this blog is due to my upcoming trip to Mexico City. A city that I am almost 100% sure that I will fall  in love with. The largest city in the Western Hemisphere, Mexico City is supposedly home to an exciting and ever changing food scene. From my past two days of Googling, I expect to find a multitude of street stands, some standing for over 50 years of traditional Mexican cooking. On the other hand, as the city is a giant agglomeration of different cultures and ethnicities, it appears that the contemporary food scene is marriage of old, new and different. Already, I’ve put together a list of over 20 restaurants that I will need to get to in my very short 6 days there, while attempting to do as much sightseeing as I can around the mega city. Last night, as I was in one of my Googling frenzies, I became obsessed with the idea of carnitas. And so, today, that became my after school project.

Carnitas, the quintessential taco filling. Meat slow cooked until tender and falling apart, and then chopped up and fried to a crispy perfection. In Mexico, carnitas can literally refer any body part of the pig, from nose to tail. Unfortunately for me in Canada, being able to purchase all these awesome body parts is more of less a bit of a treasure hunt. It always appals me that North Americans have bastardized what is actually good about food, choosing chicken breast and filet mignon over all the other tasty and textural parts of an animal. I’ll save this whole topic for another rant later on…

Anyways, because I was strapped for time today, I just went and bought some organic pork shoulder, skin attached, for my project. Here’s my pork shoulder cut into chunks, sautéed in lard (always keep lard in your fridge), Mexican oregano, cinnamon, paprika, cumin, bay leaves, onions, lots of garlic, chopping jalapeños, salt and pepper.

Yes I know, I probably should have browned this more, but I was impatient. This was done right in the baking pan. When the onions and garlic were browned, I poured in some homemade chicken broth from last week, and I covered the pan with a double layer of foil to keep the moisture in. Set my oven for 275F and away I went, hoping I could finally do some homework now that I can stop thinking about carnitas.

2 hours later, I pulled off the foil and here I got this steamy, heady goodness staring back at me. Only one problem, not quite fork tender, and too watery. Not a problem, back in the oven for another hour without the foil should do the trick.

The finished product amounted to half the liquid and more porky pungency. I don’t have a picture because, well, I was hungry and I couldn’t wait to fry that baby up. The pork was strained and roughly shredded before tossing in the pan. I spooned in some of that garlicky goodness from the sauce, being careful not to take too much of the lard.

After I got the perfect crust, it was time for assembly. Of course in my haste I had forgotten to buy corn tortillas. Let’s be real, you can’t really get any good ones in town anyways, but if you know of some, please let me know! Thank goodness I had some tortilla chips at home. That’ll work, all I need is a vessel.

Tossed with the normal accompaniments, onion, cilantro and jalapeño, and I was in business. A lovely bowl of carnita nachos.

Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 3 hours
Eat time: 2 mins

Slurp!

Who will challenge you?

All through my life I’ve always had people telling me what to do. Call it Asian upbringing or call it overprotective parents. The ADD child inside of me rebelled although secretly I felt safe with all the structures placed around me. I didn’t have to think for myself, and when I did, I just didn’t follow the plan laid out for me and avoided a good chunk of my late teens, early twenties. At 29 now, I think back and I am astounded at how lost and how aimless I was. What the hell was I thinking? Everything I remember seems like a blur. How did I go about making the decisions that I did? I have no idea…

The lightbulb came on for me sometime last year. It was time to put some aim in my sight. It was time I figured out what I wanted. It was time to stop drifting.

As this journey is unfolding, the most difficult part is finding someone that will not take my excuses. Someone that will say to me that they don’t believe in the restrictions that I have placed on myself. Someone that will challenge and believe in me and then hopefully someone to guide me. 

I went out for a drink with my friend last night. A free-thinker, someone who is continually aiming for more and creating dreams. How important is it to have someone like that in your life. How amazing it is to have friends that are inspired and inspire you? I had a great time being asked questions that no one ever asks. It was wonderful to have a couple more lightbulbs come on over the course of the conversation. In my journey of continual growth, I am so looking forward to surrounding myself with more awesome people. How awesome would that be.

I see the light.

So I haven’t posted anything for a long while, been going through the second coming of major negativity. 

I just finished three sessions with the psychiatrist, along with possibly going to school and opening up my window, and loving my studies. I feel like I see a path now, I see some light, I see some sort of hope.

Apparently, I don’t have a mild case of ADD, I have a pretty severe case. I am smart and have supposedly managed my symptoms so well that most people can’t tell. I’ve put myself in a job where it makes my life work as much as I’m not enjoying my job right now. I view myself negatively and have been given the exercise of thinking of how to put my negative traits in a positive way.

This is quite the rambling of incoherence, but I feel so…HAPPY at the moment. I’m really enjoying what I’m doing and so EXCITED to pursue it further….

12 hours of studying at school..I’m out!

Make you feel my love…

Definitely a little late but I finally watched the Glee episode “The Quarterback”. How painfully heart-wrenching to watch and how lovingly the cast performed to the memory of Cory Monteith. 

I remember the night Cory Monteith passed away. I was snuggling up in bed, checking Facebook, emails and Instagrams before calling it a night. Then came all the horrible Facebook statuses. It couldn’t be! The torrid stories of hotel personnel finding his body sickened me. It must’ve been some sort of internet hoax! I knew Cory Monteith had previous drug issues. Coming from the same province, we had mutual acquaintances and I knew he had gone to rehab years ago with some of my colleagues. The fact that he passed away in my home city, just 10 minutes away from where I lived and and the floor above where my friends were partying that night, it made the fact hit me so hard. Not usually one to pay much attention to celebrity deaths and overdoses, I was absolutely gutted by the death of Cory. Hard not to, he’s one of us, he’s a BC boy.

I haven’t watched Glee in a few seasons. When it first aired, it was something that my ex boyfriend watched together considering we were both huge Broadway and musical fans. When we had broken up, watching the show proved to be too painful and I stopped. I’d always loved the combination of Cory and Finn, such a good guy, such a great representation of the boy next door.

It’s been months since he’s passed away but I am still saddened every time I see news of him. I wish that he is resting in peace, his inner demons fought and that Lea Michele is well and carrying on his memory.

RIP Cory Monteith.

Medication

Sorry this one will be a rant. If one more person tells me to stop taking me ADD medication because “it’s bad for me”, I will seriously snap.

First of all, I don’t take my medication all the time, mostly three times a week when I need to focus, so don’t tell me that I’m acting differently. I’ve always been extremely forgetful. It’s called ADD, that is why I’m on meds.  It’s not the meds making forgetful.

Second, how do you know “it’s bad for me?” Unless you’ve done extensive research on it or have taken it and turned into crackwhore, don’t tell me it’s bad for me because I don’t care for facts coming out of your a**hole.

Finally, yes I do need my medication to focus. I do realize there are other elements to dealing with ADD and I am incorporating it into my routine, but Adderall has done wonders for me in aiding with my everyday life, getting things done and keeping me on track.

So eff off and let me be. Opinions are like a**holes, I’ve already got mine, I don’t need yours.

Thank you.

Mumbai calling

Indian wedding time!

I’m loving this saree business. I think I might start collecting them, such gorgeous colors and intricate details. LOVE.

Exhaustion and disappointment

My day job is a hairstylist and I’ve been working at one of the top salons in the city for the last 9 years.  I have a clientele that I absolutely adore.  They are the nicest, sweetest and most wonderful people.  But sometimes, it’s time to move on.  I’ve spent all of my twenties in a job that I just “fell into”.   My body is tired, I cannot picture standing for another year.  I can’t move after work, I’m so exhausted. 

I recently just applied for a hotel sales job.  Granted I didn’t put a whole lot of effort in the resume and not sure I even meet the qualifications and I was just applying for fun, but damn I’d forgotten what rejection feels like.  I’m so used to clients coming in and being happy with my services and tipping me and listening to my stories.  Maybe that’s as good as it’s going to get?  The day the job opening closed I received the rejection email. I quickly deleted it, not wanting to stare at the rejection any longer.   

I remember my promise to quit my job before my 30th birthday and I am going to stick with it.  This saving money thing is proving to be very difficult especially in a city like this, but it will happen and be possible…

“if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again”

I will try.

Leap…and the net will find you

My gosh, I think I’m going to do it!

I am reading The Art of Non-Conformity by Chris Guillebeau right now and feeling just so inspired.  I’m going to do it, I’m going to set out and do what I really want to do.  I want to travel, I want to try all the foods of the world, I want to see the world.  I turn 30 on August 24, 2014. 

I am promising myself right now, I will save enough money up until that point and take off on my adventure.  My ADD has never boded well with the “normal” life and now I will suck it up, do whatever I can to make that dream come true.  How long have I been talking about this for?  I will make this happen!

It’s true, there’s never a better time than now.  Once I settle everything and sell everything I own, I will embark on this journey.  I am also going to Chris Guillebeau’s World Domination Summit next July so that will be the perfect last kick and boost I need.

I’ve always believed that everything works itself out one way or another.  I just need to apply that faith to my life NOW.

Goal = have $20,000 in my bank account before I leave and that includes selling my car.  

No more mini travel trips.  No more designer bags.  No more stupid silly money spending, like buying lunch and dinner everyday.  

Please support me, root for me, and cheer me on.  

Thank you.

Another weekend away

Wine country in the beautiful British Columbia.

Just another weekend jaunt, a little getaway, a minuscule escape turned into a work nightmare.  As serene and spectacular as this photo depicts, the weekend was anything but.  A 5 hour drive turned close to 9 hrs.  My lack of focus and direction had me driving north by accident before I realized I was supposed to be going northeast.  Then my irrational stress had me speeding at 115 kms at a 60 km zone to try to reach Penticton quickly and make up for lost time.  I was extremely lucky the officer didn’t seize our car.  Another $200 poorer thanks to my new ticket.

The weekend started off with a mad rush and the feeling continued til we finally threw our hands up and took off to Burrowing Owl for spectacular mid afternoon patio jaunt.  Fantastic wine, wonderful food and great company.  This photo is everything I love about the Okanagan.  The gorgeous peacefulness is hard to come by in the city.  It was once again summer in my world and all was well and wonderful.

We continued to our night’s functions feeling refreshed and relaxed.

Perfect afternoon

This is the afternoon I went biking by the lakeshore of Chicago.

What a perfect afternoon.

What a beautiful city.

What a spectacular view.

Did you know exercising is very beneficial to those with ADD? All of a sudden, the voices stopped in my head and my mind was crystal clear.   Of course the effects didn’t last forever, but for a moment, I felt wonderful.  Amazing what an hour on a bicycle will do.  This is will be an incentive for me to get back into shape!

*BTW, Chicago’s Divvy bike share program is amazing. They have Divvy stations everywhere and it’s super convenient to pick one up and drop it off at any location.  Fabulous, easy, cheap and so very advanced!  I can’t stop gushing about this city!