exploring the light

with rick sammon's book!
this is what i'm currently reading. to be honest i haven't gotten too far yet. i'm probably on page 26, so i can't give you a good review of it. but perhaps when i am done.. i'll let you know how it helps, or doesn't help, a beginner like myself. and just for fun.... i wanted to say: f-stop! f-stop. f-stop. f-stop!

love of reading

photo by suchitra prints on flickr.

after watching a small snippet of the movie matilda yesterday, i am eager to start reading everything i can. there's no doubt that reading is a wonderful way to open your mind to new ideas/concepts, vocabulary! and to learn about things all around you. but as a child i was like a woodworm, i never liked to read. i was 'too cool' for activity such as reading. instead, i glued myself to a television screen. and although television bestowed upon me the ability to speak perfect english (for english is my second language), it has not taught me too much more. this is probably greatly attributed to the types of shows i chose to watch (i.e. disney channel). and so, because i am at a stage in my life in which i want to learn a bagillion things (will this stage ever pass?), i have decided to dedicate myself to reading more about subjects i want to learn about. for example, photography, buying a home, investing my money, etc etc. and hopefully i'll increase my vocabulary in the process. yay me!

feel good noun: palm trees

this weekend i went to balboa beach with a few of my girl friends. we were actually celebrating a birthday. it was tons of fun. filled with a lot of jumps, and super high ocean waves. although i wasn't able to grab a picture of those crazy things, i was able to take one of the many surrounding palm trees. just seeing a palm tree immediately reminds me of the beach, of summer, and of a cooling breeze. now that summer's nearing it's end, i am trying to take in a much of it as possible. oh me, and not appreciating things while they're here. i need to learn better habits for the future.

the sunrise this morning

today i woke up before the crack of dawn in hopes of capturing some beautiful pictures of the san diego skyline from coronado's ferry landing. but.. damn those clouds! this was the best i could do. nothing but a plain grayish sky was captured. i was utterly disappointed. but there will be other days. other sunrises.

feel good noun: rocks

when i was younger i would hold a rock in my hand to stay calm in situations that made me beyond angry. knowing this habit of mine, one of my close friends had picked up a smoothed-out pebble from the beach one day and drew a beautiful pattern on it, couple with a poem, and gave it to me. absolutely priceless.

what do i find beautiful?

photo by annia316 on flickr

mother nature.

feel good noun: flames.

i really love this picture i took of the flames burning in my candle. something about it realy relaxes me.

tomorrow, it's really off to the sunrise. i've been telling myself i'll go to the sunset soon to take some amazing pictures (hopefully), but i never went. tomorrow morning, no backing out because my friend is picking me up. that's definitely one way to get me motivated!

feel good noun: rammekins

i've been wanting these things since forever! and one day, at one of my random walks through tj maxx, i was lucky enough to find these. a set of 4 teal colored rammekins for $3.99. how lucky was i?! of course i bought them! now i really am tempted to make a souffle. i've never had them and have always wanted to try one. i also got myself an handheld electric mixer. yay me!

sunset.

picture by kevindooley on flickr.

today i am inspired to go and take pictures of the sunset. sometimes, san diego offers such beautiful sunsets. i remember my first visit here when i was 13 or 14 years old. the sun had set on that day, leaving a beautiful hot pink/purple hue in the sky. it seems so random when the sky decides to give us a beautiful color like that. the last time i saw it was perhaps 2 weeks ago, while sitting in class. do you think i'll get lucky and catch it tonight?

1st feel good noun: hot tea

it's so cold in this office. i'm always freezing. i love my job, but i hate that it's in an igloo. i'm just not cut out for the eskimo life.

picture by joakima2 on flickr.

'feel good noun'

I keep up with plenty of blogs on my Google Reader, so much so that I don't even remember the names of the blogs anymore. Whenever there's an update, I simply scroll through it's content for something that catches my eye. One of the things that always catches my eye is on "kind over matter." The blog is managed by two women, Jenn and Amanda. Jenn always has a section that she does, and it's called 'feel good noun.' What it is is basically a simple photo of something that makes her 'feel good.' I thought it was an amazingly simple idea, but a great one! It's very easy to update a blog with a simple picture, but attaching it to the words 'feel good noun' gives you, and even your readers, an almost uplifting feeling. It manages to make my day just a little bit brighter. I think I will copy her idea and try to replicate it here! Of course, my pictures won't be anything as beautiful as hers, but I can always try.

I am excited to start! Class is over and I have a lot more free time on my hands to cook, hang out with friends, take pictures of anything, and just lay around and enjoy the summertime (or what's left of it).

my mini bucket list

I believe that usually, a bucket list consists of 100 items you want to do before you 'kick the bucket.' I don't know about sharing all 100 items right now, but I will share 10. I actually put this list together after a friend of mine had requested I do so. I never really knew the meaning of a 'bucket list,' but when I looked it up, the movie, "The Bucket List" popped up almost everywhere. Is this movie where this term came from? It is definitely going to be #1 in my Netflix queue now!

Anyway, I'm not 100% sure my items really fit into the whole bucket list concept.. but I did think long and hard about the 10 things I want to do before I die. Of course, there are more items then just 10, but as of today, these are some of the most important items at the back of my mind. Ready? Go!

1. See all newly-named seven wonders AT LEAST once
2. Own my own business (what type? i'm not sure yet.)
3. At least once, make over $100,000 before I am 30
4. Learn to cook really really well so that i can justify having/wanting a VERY nice, large kitchen in my home, AND so I can always have friends and family over to enjoy themselves
5. Learn to read/write/speak in: vietnamese, mandarin, cantonese, spanish, korean (maybe), and japanese (maybe)
6. Complete a really strenuous hike... perhaps half dome status or more
7. Run a marathon or two... or three
8. Raise my kids well, with strong moral values (they don't have to be perfect, but they should be able to tell between right and wrong, and hopefully choose the 'right' path)
9. Spend 6 months to 1 year traveling anywhere I want; so I have to stay healthy, because that might not happen for awhile
10. Learn to take really beautiful pictures and learn how to play the piano

That's all I came up with for now. Yes, I know that #10 is technically 2 items, but I squished them together anyway! I wonder how many of these items I'll be able to achieve in 3 years time; I guess I will come back to it then and get that answer, won't I? My plan is to cross them off once they have been completed. However, considering that these are relatively large goals, I have a feeling they are going to take quite a bit of time.

Something about it all reminds me of this movie:
I'm sure you know where that's from.

I have to say though, this was a fun little project. It really got me thinking. And being able to see everything written down makes it so much more tangible, and achievable, then having it floating somewhere at the back of my mind.

Until next time,
jenn.

about flying ricecooker

To be completely honest, I've just recently discovered the joys of cooking; especially cooking something wonderfully delicious for the one (or ones) I love, because what brings people together better then food? Almost nothing! Over food, and perhaps a nice glass (or a few glasses) of wine, is where stories of days gone by are shared amongst families and friends, where smiles and whole-hearted laughs are exchanged, and where the feeling of comfort and being truly happy (even if it only lasts for as long as the food does), exists.

I am in every way, a beginner cook (if I can even call myself a cook). You'll notice that plenty of the recipes that I post on here will be taken from other food-bloggers. Of course, I do have some recipes of my own up my sleeves, and I will be sure to post those too! But my hope is to start off by following the recipes of more experienced cooks or bakers, and eventually grow to where I will feel comfortable venturing out on my own. I figured, we all have to start somewhere; right? And this is the route I have chosen to take. And if I can manage to steadily maintain it, this blog will act as sort of a "tracker," if you will, for the progress (or maybe lack of?) that I hope to make in the months (or years, but hopefully not years) ahead.

Just recently, one of my favorite quotes has been:

"Anyone can cook!"

by Chef Gustav in Ratatouille


Why? Because I really hope it's true! If an animated rat can do it, so can I! Uh.. right? Right...!

I love to eat, travel the world, and eat, so this will be a blog of mixed-matched recipes from all over the world! Or what I can find on the blog-o-sphere to mesh together to resemble foods from all over the world (authenticity sometimes not included). In the end, I hope you enjoy what I cook up as much as I do!