Redesign

I decided to redesign my blog during 15 min break I took from studying for finals. I'm not completely finished but it's good enough until my summer begins!

Today's breakfast consisted of toast, fresh fruit and a spinach egg scramble...



For lunch I reheated some of last night's leftovers paired with some Oreos and strawberry cream cheese.

I FINALLY finished my Oeos! Now I don't have anything sugary (my biggest vice) in my pantry to spoil my diet.



A couple hours later I made a salad with some strawberries...



After studying and a hard workout, I showered and made a very bountiful dinner. Oatmeal (with a side bowl of oatmeal for "dessert") and a bowl of gochujang chicken, spinach, and egg soup. 




It was SO good! Guess what I'll be having for the rest of the week...?

Booking It

Today started off like any other day...



Studied in the library, had a snack...



Hungry again but hit the wrong button on the vending machine :(



There was also a LA County Festival of Books on campus. By the time I came out of the library, the it was almost over but there were still a lot of people.









I have to say, I'm excited to actually walk around and check it out tomorrow. (They were giving away free Ben and Jerry's!)

For dinner, I met up with CR and TL at La Barca. It's literally the best Mexican food around USC that doesn't drain your wallets. Delicious chips and salsa, wonderful margaritas, and huge portions.



I decided to try something new and go with the flauntas. I guess wikipedia puts it under taquitos but to me, it was like a Mexican spring roll. So good!

Something New

Alright, so I've had USC sushi before...

But today's selection was extra fresh. The ginger was fully hydrated and the salmon tasted actually tasted like real salmon.

I complimented my lunch with King Henry's Gourmet dried fruit pack which contained mangos, papaya, pineapples, and figs...

I've never had dried (or fresh) figs before and it was definitely interesting...

For dinner I heated what's left of my fijita leftovers...

And satisfied my sweet tooth with a yogurt parfait with granola, raisin, and walnuts.

Concert Devo

Before I headed to the library, I went downstairs to pick up a care package filled with fabulous jewelry and native Taiwanese treats from my parents.



The treat on the left is a traditional Taiwanese cookie-cake, called Fen Li Su, filled with pineapple jam. The treat on the right is a Taiwanese candy which was basically peanut clustered together in delicious nougat.



After spending a few hours in the library, all of the hard work and research left me aching for something to eat. Thus, I went to Tutor Hall Cafe and bought something light in anticipation for the Concert Committee Devo Dinner tonight at Casita Del Campo tonight. Since it was close to closing time (5 pm on Fridays), the best choice they had was chicken noodle soup.



Topped with some saltine crackers...



I only ate half since 1) it was wayyyyy to salty and 2) it was all broth! I really don't think I'll be buying soup from Tutor Hall again...

Luckily, my taste buds were saved a couple hours later with delicious Mexican food from Casita Del Campo in Silverlake.

After knocking back a margarita at AR's house (which was about an mile away form the restaurant), we loaded up three cars and headed over to the restaurants for our long awaited dinner.

Both the exterior and the interior were extremely adorable. I'm not able to go into too much detail about the exterior since it was night time, but the interior was FABULOUS. Colorful-- even in the dimly lit restaurant-- with paper flowers and paintings everywhere. Their tortilla chips were like pita chips-- thick, crunchy and fresh.

From Google Images

I didn't get a chance to take a picture of my meal at the restaurant but the portions were so huge (not to mention stuffing myself with chips and side salad prior to the entree) I was able to carry home at least two days worth of leftover fijita with spanish rice, refried beans, vegetables, shrimp, chicken, and beef.

For dessert, we order four plates of flan for the table. I've never had flan before but when I tasted this custardy-eggy-pudding dessert...



I realized I definitely had this before! I have to say I wasn't too much of a fan... but something about it made me kept eating more and more... :)

Productivity

Woah. I don't think I've ever been this energized in my life  considering I got up at 6:30 am. Good thing I channeled all that energy into studying today-- very productive indeed.


In the midst of all that productivity, I also got a little bored in between so I called up MT to join me at the library. Right around early afternoon, I started to get hungry so I made a quick trip to the vending machine and grabbed the healthiest choice in there-- no sugar, unsalted added trail mix.





Let me tell you, I love MT but there is no way we can study together because all we end up doing is chatting away (much to the dismay of the students around us). So after a few hours, we bid adieu in hopes of becoming more productive elsewhere.


A few hours later, I ended back at home, called my parents (who were finally back in the States after a few weeks in China) and made dinner: sunny-side up on dark toast with cheese and mustard, spring salad with Asian sesame dressing, and some cajun rice.





Of course no dinner would be complete without some dessert: pitted dates, dried apricot, walnuts, natural peanut butter, and strawberry cream cheese.





As I munched away, AP and I discovered the best movie in the world was on tv: TWILIGHT! Okay, not the best movie by far.... but it's one of those guilty pleasures that everyone has (CC can attest to that!)

Yes... James Franco

I got up  later than expected this morning so I made myself a filling brunch instead of the usual smoothie. This consisted of a fresh spring mix salad with pitted dates, walnuts, and Asian sesame dressing with a side of whole wheat English muffin and poached egg.





It was so filling that it lasted me almost 5 hours! After I got home, I made another salad with broiled tofu and kale on a bed of Romain lettuce. Wanting some carbs, I paired this with half of an English muffin and a spread of fresh avocado.





To satisfy my sweet tooth, I made a plate of dried mango, pitted dates, and a Clementine orange.





After lunch I just wanted to sprawl out on my bed and watch a movie. Today's pick? 127 Hours starring none other than the fabulous James Franco.

 


Seriously... can someone tell me why he's so gorgeous?!

Okay, I have to say I'm a little biased since I'm basically in love with James Franco but this movie was indeed very good! The amputation was really hard to watch (actually I turned away for most of it) but every other time I couldn't keep my eyes off the screen. I would definitely recommend this movie for those not faint of heart...

Despite some of the semi-gruelsome scenes, I encountered a nibbling attack during the movie so I fixed another plate with dried apricots, natural peanut butter, walnuts, wheat thins and a slice of cheese.





Now if I can get myself to concentrate on OChem after staring at His Hotness for two hours...

Habits Die Hard

I've started a bad habit of wanting to eat in cinema while the week's movie is playing. So today, I stopped at Seed's and grabbed a Salmon Sushi roll before going to class.

After class, I met up with AS and discussed our fall class schedule...which basically meant we grabbed dinner at Chipotle and chilled. I tried to stay healthy so I ordered a vegeterian salad with corn salsa, tomato salsa, and guacamole.

Afterwards, KE borrowed her friend's car and wanted me to go to Target with her. 4 hours and $50 later, we came back and I'm ready to call it a night!

Revelation

I was really glad today when TL wanted Lemonade for lunch. Although there are many healthy options on campus, Lemonade by far was the most nutritious and best tasting.


As always, they had a huge selection of market fresh salads, braises, and sandwiches...





I decided to have:
orrechietta, tomato, perlini mozzarella, red pepper vinaigrette

cauliflower, golden raisins, almonds, curry

israeli couscous, wild mushrooms, parmesan, lemon truffle
avocado, cherry tomatoes, pine nuts, lime


Everything was SO fresh and good! I was feeling really happy and energized until...


the thought of ice cream sandwich overtook my brain...







Of course I just HAD to get one...(it also doesn't help that TL was an instigator). I ordered espresso chip ice cream to be sandwiched between a peanut butter cookie and a white chocolate macadamian nut cookie.


All during OChem, I was basically in a sugary catatonic state. Ironically, today's lesson was on carbohydrates and lipids. Why is it ironic?


"Class, it's often a misconception that fats make you fat. Of course it depends on the type of fat...but generally, fats don't make you fat...sugar does."-- Hogan-Tisch


Even my 70-something professor knows that!
From now on, I'll definitely try to stop eating sugar...................[so much]
Cause let me tell you, the crash later is NOT worth it............[all the time...maybe sometimes, but not all the time]

Going Green

After I got back from class, I couldn't help myself but to have an early dinner. I broiled a white fish fillet with oregano, salt and pepper, and topped it on a slice of whole wheat bread with mustard. I paired this with some cajun rice and spring mix salad with granola and Asian dressing.



I also couldn't help myself but to indulge in some Oreos and granola with strawberry cream cheese and natural peanut butter.



I almost died and gone to heaven when I covered my spoon in peanut butter and dipped it in granola...

Seriously, why are Oreos so good?? I knew I couldn't keep eating them on a daily basis so I threw the rest in the freezer. Hopefully this will slow down the rate at which I was down them.

For dinner, I wanted something green...literally. So I made another smoothie but this time, I threw in some spinach with oatmeal, orange, and orange juice.



The result? It just tasted like an orange smoothie. Very good and wholesome but next time, I'm going to add water instead so I can really taste the spinach!

Stocking Up

Finally going grocery shopping for the first time CC and KO left, I came home with lots of fresh vegetables and fruits in preparation to get back into a healthy lifestyle.


When I opened the fridge to unload my groceries, I noticed I still had half of my El Tarasco's leftover. I certainly wasn't going to let this burrito go to waste, so I heated it up for lunch with a side of some Whole Wheat Wheat Thins and natural peanut butter.





To healthify this meal, I finished it with an apple.





However, it wasn't too long that my sugar craving kicked in and I shamefully gave in to some Oreos with peanut butter and wheat thins with strawberry cream cheese.





However, by 5, I started to suffer from a sugar crash and drifted off into a 30 min nap. When I woke up, I had a sudden urge for a banana and made a oatmeal, orange, strawberry and yogurt smoothie topped off with some granola.





Fully energized form my nap, I am ready to WORK!