Obsessions

Last week, I picked up the Twilight Saga from a friend, and devoured all 4 books in 5 short days. I surprised myself- shocked(!) that the hysteria that swept all readers of Stephenie Meyer's series applied to me too. So several thoughts, as I pondered why....

1. Romance: the books centered around this passionate, deep, intense, impossible love story that rings true and relates to a profound desire that most women have- to be wanted and loved completely (shown between Edward and Bella). Apparently, I am one of those women. It's fantasy, true, but is it a crime to wish, and long to be known in that way?

2. Hobby: reading used to be one of my favorite pastimes. Ever since I was little, I'd go through volumes of books, magazines, journals in my free time, escaping and dreaming, sneaking books to bed, reading late into the night by the hallway's light so my mom would not know that I'm still awake. I remember, in college, people who visited my bookshelf would ask if I'm a lit/English major. Medical school and residency interrupted that and other hobbies, replacing it with medical journal reading and studying. I'd feel guilty if I pick up a nonfiction instead of JAMA (Journal of American Medical Association). So there was a hiatus of 7 or so years- how did I do that? Hmph! Therefore, I assume when I picked up this series, I was making up for lost time.

3. Obsessions: I never thought of myself as the obsessive type; however, I must have some OCD trait to be (and survive) in my profession. Because I read continually with such..er.. ferocity last week, the characters were very real to me. I thought about them as real persons (props to Meyer for excellent character development), and continued to analyze about their reactions if such and such was to happen. Was it just this series? No...it happened before, in a subtler way. I remember reading all of John Irving books starting with A Prayer for Owen Meany to The Fourth Hand in a span of a few months. And there was my first favorites- The Bronte sisters, and Shakespeare plays and Hemingway's complete work. Hm... there is a pattern! Are all obsessions bad? Should I allow myself this one OCD trait? Until the next book... I'm taking suggestions :)

On another note, we are moving forward with buying a house in Washington. If every goes smoothly, we will be in the new house before Christmas! Will post pictures when we move in.

New endeavours

Today, I went to New Heights Clinic for orientation. It's been 3 years since I worked here last. Then, as a resident, and now, as the nurses say, a real doctor! The clinic is sponsored by New Heights church and staffed with Christian volunteers. And I'm proud to say that I'm their newest member. It serves the uninsured of Clark County and even Portlanders as well. I'll be spending Tuesday mornings there- excited to see how God will work through me.

A pot of Bun Bo Hue (Hue-Style Spicy Beef Noodles) is simmering downstairs, but I don't think we'll be eating it tonight, since I started it too late. Instead we'll be eating leftovers from my Ca Ri Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Curry) and Tom Rang Muoi (Shrimp fried with salt) that I made earlier today, which was excellent, btw. See picture below.


On another note, I met the instructor of my Spin class today. She called me "kiddo". Really? Hmph... don't really want to start wearing makeup to the gym! Guess I should enjoy it while it lasts.

Angel's Rest and Oregon's Fall

On Saturday, the sun was out, and it was dry all day. We took that opportunity to try a new hike. Angel's Rest is so close to town, and had amazing colors. It's now one of my favorite hike. It was so pretty that I hardly noticed that it was uphill all the way!

Leaves-lined path
Creek & mini waterfall
Shiny/sweating on the way up. The mighty Columbia in the background.

Crock-pot #2

Chicken tortilla soup (sans tortilla) was excellent today. This is giving me great hope that this crock pot thing is going to work out! Maybe I just had bad recipes in the years before. Forgot to take a picture before dinner so there's none to post. Sorry. It tasted really authentic even without cilantro (ran out and the ones in the herb garden died/burned when it was too hot last month), avocado (left out on the counter too long) or sour cream (didn't buy) or tortilla (cutting down on carbs). Imagine what it could be with all the fixings! Thanks Sherri for the recipe.

Tried spinning (gym resistance biking) today and it was a great work out! Note to Julie- this will be something I'm doing for exercising in the winter. I'm embarrassed to say that at one point, I even got slightly light-headed. Maybe because I didn't eat much for breakfast. Will change that next time. I'm just excited to find something active that I'll enjoy throughout the gray season.

My goal this week is James 3:9-10. It seems like I need a daily reminder. Until next time.

Tuesday once more

The weather suddenly got cold and rainy almost over night. We pulled out our down comforter, sweaters and wool socks (I know, I go a bit overboard sometimes). Fall always remind me of stew or something simmering all day. So, braving that world once again, I took out the crock pot. Now you may think that crock pot-ing is easy, cheater way to cook. But for me, I've always managed to burn, ruin and destroy all recipes tried, no matter how fool-proofed the authors/reviews say. Well, I really only tried twice but failed both times. Got discouraged and stowed the crock pot away for good. Now what possessed me to try it again? Maybe the thought of cooking after a long 8 hours of work is tiring or just wanting fall comfort food. I'm trying my hands at pulled pork! 4 out of 8 hours into the process and no burnt smell yet. I'm crossing my fingers. If it works, I may try to chicken tortilla soup next time. In the meantime, I made Vietnamese Lotus Stem Salad with Chicken to hold myself over. Plus, it's pretty to look at and yummy to eat!

Today's Dinner

Tortilla Espanola with aioli. Easy and delicious!

Tuesdays in the Kitchen

As you may know, I have Tuesdays off. In the past month or so, I've used this time to catch up on sleep, run errands, go to the dentists, etc. Now that all major chores that require daytime, working hour presence are done, I find myself looking for a meaningful project. And since we're selling the house, I can make too big of a mess on crafts, etc. Two weeks ago, I wandered onto a Holy Basil food blog and now am hooked. Christine (the author) is a brilliant cook (chef? I'm not sure if she is a chef by profession). I'm overjoyed to find recipes such as Bo Kho (Vietnamese beef stew), Ca Kho To (catfish in caramel stew sauce), Bun Bo Hue, and various goi (Vietnamese salads). For so long, I've tried to replicate my mom's cooking but never could. You see, my mom, like most moms, don't measure. Tough luck for me.

So the project: to make something yummy every Tuesday, preferably Vietnamese food- to get back to my roots, to get to know and cook the food of my childhood, of which my husband craves for. No doubt, there will probably be an occasional Italian or American dish because to me, they're easier to make. And I will try to post pictures of the dishes. So far, I've made Pho and Ca Kho To in the last two Tuesdays. (No pictures, sorry. The project wasn't realized at the time.) And today, I made this- Cucumber Salad with Shrimp and Shredded Chicken.

Yum!