Peanut Butter Chocolate Chips cookies

Unlike a lot of people I didn't grow up eating peanut butter jelly sandwiches for my school lunch. Frankly, I didn't like peanut butter at all. Crunchy, extra crunchy or creamy, I have a hard time consuming it. However, under this food supplement program I have with my daughter, I get a jar of peanut butter every month. Umar the husband is the only one who eats it for breakfast but the jars keep accumulating faster than he can finish them. So what to do with all these jars of peanut butter?

Make cookies of course! I may not like peanut butter, but I don't mind them in cookies. I found this recipe online, but I made so many of my own modifications that I may as well say I made my own. Needless to say, we love it! They don't last very long in our house. For those interested, the recipe is below (with some of my own personal comments).

don't they look delish?

One batch makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour
1 cup chopped oats
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Cream the butter, both sugars and both peanut butters together until smooth. The amount of peanut butter or the ratio can be changed to your desire. Crunchy peanut butter gives you delicious peanut pieces while creamy gives a stronger flavor and smoother texture that keeps the cookie from falling apart.

3. Beat in egg and vanilla.

4. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl, then add flour mixture to peanut butter mixture.

5. Mix in chopped oats and chocolate chips. I actually took old fashioned oats/rolled oats and chopped them up with a chopper but a blender can be used. What I usually do is chop them so that half of the oats are coarsely chopped and the other half is fine to medium. How chopped up the oats are will change the texture of the cookies.

6. Roll the dough into balls and slightly flatten with palm. Place each about 2-3 inches apart on cookie sheet. They kind of look like begedil (shape-wised).

7. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until edges are a light golden brown. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes before removing from baking sheet. The more creamy peanut butter added the longer it'll take to bake.

8. ENJOY! ENJOY!

Precious GM memories

As I was feeding Ruqaiya this morning and slowly drifting to a sweet slumber, memories upon memories of Gateway Malaysia (or more commonly known as GM by its regular members) assaulted the forefront of my mind.

GM really was one of the most pivotal influences of my life. It caused me to be more actively involved with trying to relearn my homeland's language as well as stimulated some self-confidence. I was always so shy and passive. I barely spoke what was on my mind. I barely let myself be creative and do things out of the box. I was rather guarded. For me, friends were people you got along with at school, connections I had to remake every fall. The few true friends I had at the time were few and they all had moved away with only e-mail to connect us and our memories. Honestly, the people of GM changed me. For the first time, I made friends not because we were in the same class or belonged to Malaysian families attended the local university. For the first time, I made friends on my own based on myself.

At first I was really shy but eventually I managed to open up. I was able to enter the conversations. I was able to contribute to the forum discussions even though the times I was online was when most other were asleep and when I was offline others were online. I remember going on everyday to check the forums. I went on before school and after school. I made serious points, I had crazy stories, I wrote poems and I spammed.

I loved it.

I remember the spam wars that would pop up now and then. When all of the posts consisted of nothing but "hahahahaha" and smileys. I remember when we had wars with smiley icons. I remember the forum discussions would always veer away from the original topics. I remember when we all tried to post in every discussion to increase our post numbers. I remember all of us trying to be "kings and queens" and getting our "titles." I remember having a hard time understanding conversations about the Malaysians way of life and school but finally getting an idea. I still remember going crazy over trying to figure out what the word "poyo" means.

We were always trying to get new members but still those of us that regularly go on were was relatively small. Maybe under 20. For me, this small number made GM special and unlike most other forums. We were able to become close friends, which I don't think would have happened had there been hundreds of members. Not only did we communicate at GM, we swapped ims and chatted via MSN and YM. I still have some of them listed. I've never used them before. Even on my first and only visit back to Malaysia when I was 16, I actually spent an afternoon with them.

I even had my first nickname come from the GMers. Yeah, I've had one or two before but they weren't actually used (except for my beloved late Atuk). Dee became my nickname and dear Asma popularized it.

GM influenced in other ways as well. I had my first blog as a result of GM. It seemed like everyone had one so I gave it a try. Who knew that I would still blog now and then. Though the real enjoyment was from designing the blog than actually blogging. Every other entry I had was probably about my new layout. I remember spending hours of my weekends working on a new graphic or trying out some codes. hehe. It sparked an interest in media production and graphic design. Although I haven't done any for a long time, I can still remember the techniques that I used and learned. Additionally even the address (windee) was inspired from my GM years when I took the title "Queen of the Winds."

Too bad good things come to and end. As more joined it became harder to keep up. I enter a state of depression that lasted for months. I wanted to disappear and even deleted some of my old posts. Older friends were going to uni and everyone became busier. Soon many of us have stopped visiting. I can no longer remember the username and password that I once entered in everyday.

Yet, even though we've lost contact for years and we have gone our separate ways, I still consider them my precious friends. Emma, Mira, and Maiza were my older sister figures. Asmaa and Shara were my hyper friends, with whom I can be crazy and start singing online with. Qiki was the creative one. Nasha was quirky. Dill was the elusive one to me but well known. Izzat, whom whenever I chat with we would always first talk about the time and the weather. And of course the Sharen brothers, notably Alleem, Haziq and of course Zufar, King of Hearts, founder, and the Lavender Gunslinger (no matter what I can never forget that. It was too funny).

The friendships were wonderful. They gave me self-confidence maintain the friendships I had with my American classmates. I go out with friends. GM gave me the sense of freedom to say weird things. To think poetically. To act quirky and odd. And I love it.

Hopefully I can meet these people again.

Crying Marathon

Today was Ruqaiya's appointment to the doctor. Boy did she cry!! The doctor was asking some questions on her development when she started to whimper before wailing her lungs out. It was so strange. She cried so loudly and for such a long time. I've never even seen her cry this much before. The doctor was having a really hard time doing her check up, especially her lungs, hearts, and eyes. Especially her eyes since they were squinted and filled with tears. My poor daughter! She eventually calmed down after nursing and sleeping. Never before did she cry so much and so loudly. I think the whole office could hear us.

I think part of it is because she doesn't like strangers anymore. She's starting to recognize people and faces by sight now, but so far she's been spending her days with just me and Umar. She even wailed when she saw Hafiz, who hasn't come by in days/weeks and he's her uncle.

What to do?

send for the plumber!

I really hate that my apartment is so old. With old apartments you have drafts, dust, surprise bugs coming from cracks, broken locks, sticky doors, creaky floors, old inefficient kitchen appliances and bad plumbing.

I don't mind the drafts so much because I can just turn up the heat, which is already included as part of the rent. Dust and bugs are no big deal to get rid off. The broken locks and doors are dealable but the creaky floors are super annoying because they're so darn loud. We already got the downstairs neighbor complain about us walking early in the morning for prayer once. Religious duty comes first. Not to mention I would like to complain about them talking and arguing too loud. Honestly, the floors are thinner than the walls. I don't want to eavesdrop into their conversations hough thankfully it's just mumbles. But I don't want Ruqaiya hearing curse words when they're arguing and yelling.

The oven and stove in the apartment is annoying. The stovetop is so small and cramp. It's hard to fit all the pots and pans when cooking multiple things. Not to mention it can't even properly boil water! Our water gets hot enough to start steaming but not the nice rolling boil that would cook pasta and dumplings properly. I'm also annoyed at the oven. The temperatures don't seem right. Normally I would bake my cheesecake for 45 minutes but with this oven it takes twice as long. So does my casseroles and other cakes. Sometimes 1 hour sometimes 75 minutes. It's not consistent.

What I really hate about the apartment is the plumbing. The hot water is too hot. You just turn on the hot water only and it's like boiling water comes out. Seriously, you can see the steam coming off the stream of water. I almost burned myself touching the faucet. Also, the whole plumbing system in all of the apartments are connected. You know what that means. If someone in D1 flushes, the nice warm shower running in D2 turns scalding hot or frigid cold. If I turn on the kitchen sink, the running water temperature in another apartment will change. What am I supposed to do?! Knock on every apartment door and tell them "Don't turn on the water or use the toilet I'm taking a shower?!" So horrible. I almost got burned once or twice in the shower. For Ruqaiya I usually fill a large bucket with warm water and use that to pour over her for her bath. I don't want her to deal with the iffy water temperatures. It's already hard enough to get the right combination to fill the bucket. Don't want it from the faucet and then someone decides to flush. My poor baby!

Can't wait to move out! I want to move to a new city and a new place.

body issues

This may sound vain but I miss the body I had before I became pregnant. Of course there were somethings that I wish to improve on such as my slightly pudgy tummy and my bit too chubby thighs. However my slightly pudgy tummy has become my slightly jiggly belly and my bit too chubby thighs have become my bit too chubbier thighs. :(

Thankfully I lost most of the weight I gained but there is still that last 5-10 lbs that still hasn't gone away yet. However my body has pretty much lost most of its tone and definition. I wish I had the opportunity to really exercise. I miss all of the walking, hiking, and trekking I had to do at RIT. That surely would have gotten me back in shape.

So far my workout these days have been walking around for grocery shopping, walking around the house and picking up and carrying Ruqaiya. At least my arms are getting toned and stronger as Ruqaiya gains weight. And now I started put Ruqaiya on my shins and lifting her as part of a game. hehe...and it gives me some leg workout. Since I spent all my time with Ruqaiya, she sort of becomes my weight and lifting her and playing with her has helped me exercise a bit.

But my biggest issue with my post-pregnancy body is the STRETCH MARKS! They're all over my body and haven't gone away yet. I have this oil that is supposed to be for stretch marks but they haven't even faded yet. T_T

WHO KNOWS OF A MIRACLE CURE FOR STRETCH MARKS?

Hopefully some day I can regain my old body and even improve. hahaha

My lil' koala and her koala

Black Friday koala bear shopping was a success! From the piles of stuffed bears, dogs, monkeys, and other animals, we managed to find a koala!

Actually we found a pair of koala; a mommy and baby combo. It was so cute! The perfect kind of texture, and look too. However, the mommy and baby were sewn together so we snipped the threads that held them together. Harsh...but it makes it easier for Ruqaiya to play with them. The mommy is a little too big (almost the same size as Ruqaiya) but the baby is the perfect size for her. She loves to touch and look at it.

napping with her new toy

As for myself I did not get a new Coach wristlet. Boohoo...but at least I got a chopper to cook with! So much easier to dice onions and veggies with.

Outlet Shopping plans

This Saturday we're planning to go Rochester but on the way we'll be stopping by Waterloo Outlet. Oh shopping! It's been a while since I've done shopping that doesn't include diapers or groceries. Waterloo isn't the greatest outlet in the world but it still has some of the more standard outlet stores such as Banana Republic (Umar's favorite store), Correlle, Old Navy, and Coach.

Umar wants to stop by to buy some jeans because they have this great jeans store. I kind of want to stop in the Coach store and look at some wristlets. I love wristlets. They can carry everything that I really need; cash, cards, key, and my iPhone without being bulky. So convenient when making a short trip for groceries, doctor appointments, and short visits outside to walk in the park. Ruqaiya's diaper bag is so big and cumbersome. It's difficult to dig out things in a bag too big and filled with her diapers, wipes, and extra clothes. Having a wristlet for my things is so much easier.

I bought a turquoise leather Coach wristlet last year and I love using it. These days I'm using it constantly. It's my constant accessory besides my earrings. I would like to have another one. One with some color or some opt art. So hopefully we can stop in the Coach store and there's something I like.

Cute huh? Not planning to get this one though.

Holographic Concert

Ever want to go a concert of your favorite anime character? Check this out!



So cool! All they need are voice and song synthesizers, computers and projectors. Nerdy yet cool.

Koala

It's a running gag in our families that Ruqaiya's barf is her special brand of perfume. Another on is that she's like a little koala. She loves to be held, especially when she wants to sleep, and her butt is scrunched in a way that it does resemble a koala. She also has this strong grip like a baby koala holding onto its mom. The only difference is she doesn't have a gigantic nose and super big ears.

So I've been searching for a stuffed koala for her to cuddle with but I still haven't settled on one yet.

Here's a few that I like.
All of these are from the website All-Plush. I don't think I'll buy one online until after Black Friday, after seeing what the stores have to offer.

Small Indulgence

Ever since I have Ruqaiya the way I shop is totally different compared to before. I rarely think about buying stuff for myself. My shopping energies are focused on what to get for Ruqaiya in terms of diapers, wipes, and clothes. None of which are cheap by the way. However, there has been one exception. For some reason, I just want handbags. I've never been a handbag person before but now I just want to buy handbags. I guess it's because I've got to carry a lot of stuff around now. Who says I can't carry diapers in something fashionable?

Here's my latest indulgence.





It's a Fossil Keyper large tote.

I really would like to have it. Unfortunately I may not be able to get it right away. Money is tight. Super tight. Hopefully when I get a job I'll be able to make this (or any other handbag of current desire) one of my first purchases for myself. I hope to get something like this to use when I (hopefully) go to Malaysia for the summer.

Birth of Ruqaiya (remembering the day a few months ago)

It's been a looooong time since I updated but I'm sure everyone would understand the reason (HAVING A BABY). I just really don't have a lot of time to myself anymore since I have to take care of Ruqaiya Hana.

(and to exemplify I wrote the above passage nearly an hour ago before Ruqaiya started crying)

The weeks before her birth were all a flurry for me because she was overdue. Her expected date was August 25 but when that rolled by and still no contractions I was in a panic. I already had a few early alerts when I thought I had contractions but still no dilation. I was looking up all these tips on identifying labor and kept calling the childbirth center. I'm sure they were sick of me. Thing is my contractions were not regular. Sometimes they were 13 mins apart, other times 5 mins apart and then 30 mins apart and everyone was telling me they would be in a regular pattern. And when they were regular, they were like minor cramps to me and they told me they would be much stronger. Finally I just went in because I was starting to cry from the pain. Seriously, after praying Maghrib I was on the floor crying.

And when I went in I was 8 cm dilated! And the first thing I said was that I wanted a epidural! Before I thought I would go without medication but after experiencing the pain of the early contractions I know I won't be able to stand transition phase and the birth. Ahhhhh...epidural...how I loved you so.

I was able to sleep (and during the time Umar was able to come from Syracuse to Troy) during the night. I think it was about an hour before Fajr that I woke up and felt the need to push. The delivery took an hour. Several people told me that was a relatively quick delivery. An hour....quick. Nooo...an hour is still too long. Quick would be 5 minutes. I won't give the details but I was crying and yelling and finally Ruqaiya was born on August 31! Anak merdeka!

She was 21 inches long and 7 lbs and 13 oz. Huge for a person my size. No wonder I felt like my skin was going to rip apart.


Isn't she cute?

And now she's 2 months old. She's gained over 4 lbs since born and grew nearly 2 inches. She can't wear any outfit labeled for 0-3 months and her 3-6 months outfits are starting to become tight and small. She's growing so fast.

And now she's crying.

Freckle Face

For some reason I've been getting freckles on my face. I thought I was supposed to be tan enough and have the genetics so that I just tan and NOT get freckles. So far my freckles aren't that numerous or large and they've been primarily on the apples of my cheeks. It's kind of weird though. Wouldn't my Malaysian genes prevent me from getting freckles. It's not like I'm Irish or have any European blood in me. Even my Chinese parts are from southern China (the part that tans). So where are these freckles coming from?!

Baking sheets

Whenever I bake some recipes called for parchment paper and other recipes called for wax paper. I never really knew the difference or how they would affect the cookies. Well, today, making thin mints (yum), we had some cookies laid out on wax paper and some on parchment.

The type of paper that you put it on does make a difference!

The ones on the parchment paper were the crisp hard cookies that thin are usually like. However, the ones with the wax paper were more cake-like.

Both sets of cookies were from the same batch of dough and baked together, yet the results were quite different. So when baking, if the desired texture is to have a crunchy cookies, it would be useful to use parchment paper, and for softer ones use wax paper.

However, I only tested this with one kind of cookie so I'm not sure if this would apply for all. If anyone else would like to try, don't forget to tell me.

Inception reaction

Just watch Inception and for those of you that are curious, it's a really good movie. I would recommend for the people who like Sci-fi/Action movies. I do warn you it's a long movie and it's not a movie to relax to. Your mind has to be kind of sharp because it definitely gets confusing at times if you miss some parts of it. I love the special effects of it, especially the anti-gravity fighting (very Matrix-like). Sometimes I feel like going to movie theater isn't worth the $10 in order to see a movie except if it's on 3-D. Well, Inception isn't in 3-D (thank goodness) but it was definitely worth the movie I spent going to see it in theaters.

New Camera

I can't wait to get my new camera. I still have the Nikon D80 but I don't have a hand-held point and shoot. I'm not exactly the kind of person to bring a big camera with me everywhere unless I'm on trips or at scenic places. Plus ever since I got pregnant and my stomach is getting bigger, it's harder to carry it around. So we decided to get a small point and shoot that I can put in my purse and take out for impromptu pictures. I'm currently waiting to get it in the mail.

This is the one I'm waiting for. It's the Sony Cyber-shot H55. The reviews for it are pretty good. It averages around 4.5 out of 5 stars. It has 10x optical zoom, which is higher than most *hearts*. And the new sweep panorama function which was so much fun to play around with at the store. It also has this anti-blink function which gives a warning when someone's eyes are closed, which is perfect for Umar. In half of the pictures that we take Umar's eyes are somehow always closed >_<. He seems to have this uncanny habit of blinking when he hears the shutter I guess, and we don't realize his eyes are closed until we upload the pics.

I can't wait to get in the mail so I can start taking pics with it.

Sport Season

Watching the world cup and enjoying it! I realized that for some reason I don't seem to have many (if any) girlfriends that are really into sports and watching sports like I am. Kind of sad because I'll be all alone when watching sport games. Or I'll be surrounded by primarily guys.

Most of the girls I know prefer watching dramas and reality shows. Now don't get me wrong, sometimes I like watching them. But when the the Olympics or World Cup is broadcasting, those other shows can all take a backseat. There is something called Hulu for them. For sport games....watching replays online is...well...boring because you can easily know the results. Watching live is so much more exciting.

I love my husband so much since he's really into sports among other things. Many wives would complain about their husbands watching NBA playoffs and FIFA world cup soccer matches but I don't mind. I'll gladly join Umar in watching the games. Plus it gives us something else that we have in common and can talk to each other about. Can you imagine a conversation about America's Next Top Model between us?

The only sports I won't watch are football (well sometimes but I don't find it too exciting) and baseball/softball because face it....it's BORING. I'm serious. If I had married someone who wasn't into sports, I would be the "guy" and he would be the "girl." I guess it's because I was somewhat a tomboy while growing up.

Too bad the Celtics lost the finals last night. :(

Graduation!

It's been a long time since I posted on this blog but please understand that I've been busy. There were so many papers and projects to do last quarter. I was done with all my work quarter to midnight on Thursday night. And guess what....this year is my year to graduate and graduation was on Friday and Saturday! (Convocation on Friday and Commencement when I actually graduate on Saturday) hahahaha! Shows that I was busy till the day I graduate.



Now, I'm "free!"


I also got 2 diplomas because one is for my BS and one is for my MS. Yes, I graduated for both at the same time. That's why I have the golden cords/ropes (for Highest Honors in my BS) and the hood, to represent my MS.


I also walked across the stage twice! It was funny because as soon as I walked across the stage got my BS and stepped off from the stage, I had to run right in front of everyone to the other side to walk across the stage again! There were some other people that went up twice as well but they were in fairly large majors so that they had time to saunter for their second time. My major is very small and the number of people graduating was only 6 for both BS and MS degrees. I had to run because there was only like 4 to 5 people between each of my turn and usually there's about 4 people on stage at the same time. >_< Imagine how fast I had to run.


The second time, instead of just the usually congratulations and good luck. I got comments from all the deans and advisers and higher-ups about my running skills. hahahahah


With my roomie of 2 years and two "diplomas!" Hehe...yeah, just the case and they'll mail the real stuff later.

However, I'm still busy.....got to finish up more research for my Masters. At least I don't have to worry about class and just work on my thesis. ^_^ And the best thing about that is that I only need to go to lab 1-2 days a week and the rest of the time I can spend at home. Which means I can leave with my beloved husband and future daughter!


More pictures on my Facebook. :)

Happy B-Day to U

One of my hidden talents: baking chocolate chip oatmeal cookies.

Making me wish even more that I can live with him right now so we can cherish all the special days and special moments together.

It's a......

GIRL!!!!!

:) I get to dress her up and play with her hair. And we already picked out the name. :)

I think my more feminine/wifely side is trying to peek out. I keep checking out cooking websites and blogs. Cooking blogs are way more fun to read btw.

We also already looked at apartments and picked out the one where we'll be moving into. It's really nice. The size of the living room and bedroom is generous for 2 (soon to be 3) people, but the kitchen is rather puny. >_< Honestly, my current closet might be bigger than the kitchen. But oh well, just got to make due with it. I'm excited to move in, decorate, learn to cook and just start being a wife and mother!

Popularity's Lacky

I'm not talking about the top of the peak of the high school social pyramid. I'm talking about about being popular even at the smallest scale in a circle of friends. Popularity is about feeling good about yourself, about other people liking you, but it does tend to bring out some negative aspects. One of those aspects is feeling that you're better. Not necessarily better than everyone else but better than someone. People tend to collect other people. They want other people to like them. They'll be friends with as many as they can, however, they still want to feel they're better than someone. Usually, of all the people they collect, the person that is least like them is the target. Sometimes it's just the popular person but it can also permeate through most of the group. That person becomes singled out. Included in some ways but overall left out. That person is there to stroke egos at the expense of their own self-esteem. Once that person has gone away, another one, at the bottom of the ladder of similarity will be chosen to be alienated. It doesn't matter if occurs at high school or at a Trekkie convention. Even those alienated in other groups may come together and form their own. However, there will still be one in that misfit group that still won't fit in with the other misfits. In any group of people, there will always be that one person that will never fit in, no matter how hard they try.

Crash!

Man, today is not my day. I feel so completely exhausted right now. I thought my energy streak would last the whole quarter. Guess I was wrong. But I have soooo much to do! I'm currently at "work" and I still have another hour or so of work. Then I have to the department office because the registrar website is being stupid. Arrrgh! And when will I have a chance to go to ISS to tell them of my situation? Not to mention I have class is about 2 hours for 2 hours and then I have to spend tonight studying and preping for the lecture I have to give tomorrow. So much to do. So little time. It's only 2 and only Tuesday and only the second week of the quarter!

Alice in Wonderland

I can't wait to see it! I have a feeling that it combines aspects from both Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There since the White Queen is in the movie for those who wonder who Anne Hathaway is playing. The movie definitely isn't based on the original story so no cringing from my novel-faithful side hehe. :) And it's directed by Tim Burton! So it is a little on the creepy side but most of his movies have been really good and I have no doubts that this one will be near the top too. And Johnny Depp is in it so that's a winning combination in itself!

Best of all, it premiers on my birthday! And Umar told me that he'll take me out to watch it. Yay! Yay! *hearts*

Online Window Shopping

Waaaah! I haven't gone shopping in such a long time except for food! And though grocery shopping is essential, it hasn't satisfied that inner shopping queen in me. There are just some things that I'm itching to go out and buy.

But I don't have any money. :((

For now she must be content with online window shopping. Oh the tops, dresses, bags, shoes, coats and etc!

Plushenko

I've been spending the past few days watching the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Although there isn't as many sports as the summer ones there's still enough for interest. Of course like most girls I follow figure skating. I'm currently rooting for Plushenko from Russia to win the gold for men's tonight. *Plushenko* *Plushenko* *Plushenko*

The other sport that I'm really following is short track speed skating. All I have to say is GOOOOOO KOREAAAAAAAA!!!!

Stupid Laundry Pervert!

I'm so mad! Someone took my clothes out of the washing machine when I went to move them to the dryer. I understand (a bit) if there are no available washing machines left but the whole ROW of machines were EMPTY. What's so stupid is that they didn't even use the machine!

They took out all of my clothes and let the machine EMPTY. They just wanted to empty the machine for no reason.

Bodoh! Pervert! Benchi! Keji! Retard! Leave my clothes alone stupid pervert!

I also have a feeling that something(s) is missing. If I find out....a tornado would leave behind less destruction. I wish I caught the person in the act so I can punch him in the face.

*&%^&^$^%$(*&^(*&^&^%$#% $#^%$(*&^%%#%$@%$#$&^%*&^(*&^(*&^&^%^% #^%$#*&%$(*^)(*&(*^&^$^%#^%&^ %(*&^(^$%$#@%$@^%$&(%*& (%*(&%&^$^R&^%*&^

Bag Wishlist

It sucks when my bookbag is getting all ripped up and my purse is starting to become all flimsy and broken. I can't help but want to do some online shopping on Amazon. I love Amazon. There's so many options and so easy to do "window shopping." I've recently started browsing through Nvie Designs collections on Amazon and I love the bags. They're so cute but AFFORDABLE.



I love this tote bag. It's very simple but the embroidery on the side makes it interesting. And only $15 on Amazon.



I think this one is adorable. It's like a mini backpack for a small day trip and I think it's perfect as a diaper bag for when I have a baby. hahaha...once married the next step is thinking about motherhood. Although I'm still a little young. >_< The nice thing about this bag is that it looks like a Vera Bradley but less than half the cost! By Nvie Design.



And for those that know how much I love butterflies...I adore this bag. Unfortunately it's above my price range; at $78 and made by Fossil. I guess that's still affordable, but I doubt the husband would buy it for me. At least I'm not one of those crazy girls that go gaga over an $800 Prada or Luis Vuitton.


It's nice to look at expensive stuff but it gets difficult when you start yearning to own it. I try to minimize it by only looking at stuff that I know I can afford. That's why I love Amazon's price range options. hahahaha

Hey Soul Sister

For some reason I love this song and I can't help but listen to it over and over and over again. The melody is so happy and I love the lyrics. It's such a feel-good song and gives me that innocent love feeling.



And I think I've annoyed my roommate by constantly listening to it. Better find my headphones!

Sick

Ugh....I'm sick again.

It's so annoying and makes everything hard or too tiring to do. I want to be my normal bundle of energy. Yet, I feel uncomfortably warm. However the doctor said that they won't do anything unless my temperature is above 100 degrees. Therefore, I'm in the graduate student office typing my paper for my 6pm class while having a thermometer in my mouth.

Stop Annoying Me!

I just feel so annoyed right now.

I'm ready to snap at anyone who says the wrong thing to me.

My personal bubble has increased 10x.

Some just think they're all so wonderful, but sometimes I can't stand them. Give me a nice loooooooong break.

I don't feel like being around anyone right now.

Please Shower!

There are some people that should really shower everyday. No, every MORNING. Before they expose themselves to public. Actually before the public becomes exposed to them. You know who these people are?

Guys. Fat people. Particularly fat guys.

Wait! Before you stamp "discrimination" on my head. This opinion has comes from years of experience of riding a crowded bus in close proximate with 'large' people.

First of all, riding in crowded bus is claustrophobic enough. I can barely move around. Being seated is advantageous because you actually get more personal space than when you stand, in which you're sometimes side to side or even chest to chest with the next person. Not only personal space is an issue but breathing space is just as important? 60 bodies in a crowded bus with the windows closed - no way are you breathing any fresh air.

Can you picture scenario above? If you can, good.

Now, add to that someone with REALLY REALLY strong body odor. Yuck!

Add to that the person hasn't showered yet (because at 9am in the morning who has time to shower? - MOST PEOPLE DO). Gross!

Add to that the BO person is standing up and has to hold onto the railings overhead and exposing armpit stench to everyone else. *Cue gagging noises.*

And to top it off, imagine someone like me at a mere 5' having to stand near BO person and my nose is completely level with his armpit. *Vomits and faints*

Now do you understand this horrible position? Well, not everyone has very bad BO. Only a few do. And I only experience this heinous event at certain times of the day. So let's break it down.

It always happen in the morning. Particularly the bus for the 8am and 9am classes. Sometimes it's understandable if a person wakes up late and doesn't have enough time to shower. That's why some people shower at night. There's also a problem with that. You SWEAT when you sleep! Your body still metabolizes the foods that you eat during the day and releases overnight as sweat and gases. Think about it, morning breath even after brushing your teeth before bed, well you also have morning BO. Now, for some people, the BO isn't so bad, but it depends on what you EAT. Some foods like, you guess it, fatty stuff, will give off more/worse smelling BO than if you've been munching on fruits the night before. However, just eating the right foods may not reduce your natural BO. Soooooo, for those of you who know that they have pretty strong morning BO, TAKE A SHOWER IN THE MORNING. You may all nice and sweet after your evening shower when you go to bed, but you sure are not waking up smelling like a rose.

Actually, people not showering is the biggest issues. The other things are characteristics that typically relate to people with strong BO. One thing is that the source is usually guys. That's right. GUYS! Maybe it's part of the male ego to think that they always smell 'good'. I know of one person. haha. Maybe it's biological as that women are more attracted to pheromones so guys typically give out more. Or maybe it's just guys are more lazy and do not care about showering in the morning. Come on, face it, a girl will usually make the attempts to shower and freshen up more than a guy will. Even if the shower has to be skipped at least a girl will spray on some body mist or perfume to smell nice. I say male BO is a combination of those 3 things.

Lastly, being 'large' or fat, you really should shower in the morning or take more care of your BO. I'm not taking about being a little chubby. I'm talking about those that are seriously overweight and may be obese. People who when they jump, their bellies would jiggly after landing, like there was a mini earthquake there. Everyone knows that fat people sweat more than people of healthy weight. Well, you back up there and remember that you sweat while sleeping? Yup, fat people will sweat more and give a stronger odor than most other people. Plus the kind of food too, remember that?

So let's combine those things now. Not showering in the morning. Being male. Being fat. So putting it together-----equals to fat guys should really shower in the morning. Or please spray on some nice cologne. Or even febreeze yourself if you have to. Spare the rest of us who make the effort.

Pain

Pain is painful. My pelvic area has been hurting for the past couple of weeks. First it was all my left and now it has spread. So far I went to the hospital 3 times for the pain.

3 TIMES!

And all they told me was to take Tylenol. They still haven't figured out what's wrong. And the pain has been getting worse. It hurts to even cough. How much am I paying these doctors?

One more visit to the doctor on Friday.

Find out what's wrong with me fast!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy 2010!

Is everyone enjoying their new year? Happy New Year everyone! Yes I know it's a little late. I am currently enjoying married life. It is however hard with Umar in Syracuse and I'm at RIT most of the time. But we are trying to make it work out. The past 2 weeks of winter break was nice though. I got to spent time with Umar 24/7. It's been more than a month of marriage! And still in love ^_^