The Rental Side of the Aqua Tower

My parents bought a condo, but here's a youtube video showing what the rentals are like.



Also, a video on the amenities:

New Home

Congrats to my parents for signing the papers on a new condo in downtown Chicago! The bought a convertible 1br on the 62nd floor of the Aqua Tower, which has already become a historic landmark even though the building isn't finished yet. Chicago has always been known for having fascinating, and oftentimes daring, architecture, and this is a fact that seems to fly under the radar unless you're an architecture-aficionado or you've actually been to Chicago and paid attention to the varying architectural styles. If you have any plans of going to Chicago, then I HIGHLY recommend going on the Architectural River Tour. It's relaxing, you learn a lot, and you get tons of great photo ops. Anyways, not only is this building very modern and striking, but it's also the tallest building in the world that was designed by a woman.


The amenities at this place are insane. It makes me feel like I'm going to be like royalty once I move there. Really nice gym, indoor pool, outdoor pool, cabanas where you can hook up your own tv by the pool, terraces/park, outdoor grills, theater to play your own dvd's, game room, free shuttle to certain places, washer/dryer in every unit, and heated underground tunnels to the Water Tower Place, and not sure where else. I still can't believe the ridiculously low price my parents got this for. YAY for buyer's market and property being so far less than NYC. It's also across from Millennium Park, and we have a view of the lake, which really looks like the ocean. Just saying. I'm 100% certain that the price of the condos in this building are almost 3 TIMES LESS than an average apartment of the same size in NYC...with no amenities, no view, and no special location.

Anyways, I admit I felt like I had to write this disclaimer on the place because I know that once people see pictures on Facebook and my blog, they're gonna be all, "Wtf, who has this kind of money." It's not like that in Chicago. Property is so affordable there, and you get a lot for what you pay for. Well, that's how it is nowadays since it's a buyer's market. No one is buying.

Alright, that is all.

A Dominican 24th Birthday

As many of you know, I never really celebrate my birthday other than dinner with my family and Gabe. And really, it's always just been more of an excuse to go out to eat. I only recall having two birthday parties with friends when I was a little kid - my 8th birthday party at a bowling alley, and my 9th birthday at the ice skating rink where I took classes my whole childhood. And then I had my 21st birthday party in the Meatpacking District in NYC, for the sake of it being my 21st. So yeah, I'm not a big birthday person, and I really had absolutely no intention of even acknowledging it this year with all the craziness of studying and being away from my family, Gabe, and friends in NYC - these are the people who are my blood.

Before I could even remove my birthday from Facebook (so people here wouldn't find out), Ren, one of my closest friends here, basically gave me no choice but to go out to dinner with our circle of friends in celebration of my 24th. It was probably one of the sweetest offers ever, so I couldn't refuse. Really, no one has ever done something like that for me. I think we had at least 20 people who were originally going to come, and that was just my closest friends. It shrunk down to 16 people, but these are 16 people I really do love. I can't thank everyone enough for making me feel so special and taking me out. And I definitely can't thank Ren enough for making this happen. He is so sweet.

I often times feel a little bit sad because I am constantly missing my friends (for life) back in NYC. I've always known and believed that nothing could match up to the dozens of amazing friendships I made in that city. They are people who I will have for the rest of my life, no matter what city, state, or country I move to next. They're people who know me for who I really am.

It's a little different being in med school in Dominica. I feel like we all just mostly know each other in the med school context. We don't talk about much else besides school. And I'm not gonna lie...I'm way more reserved and awkward here than anywhere else. It's almost like I regressed back to my high school days. While I always knew that I made a few good friends here, the birthday dinner that they threw for me showed me that in spite of the rigors of med school and not having much time for socializing, these people have become like family to me. They truly are among the most genuine and thoughtful people I have ever met, and I really can't thank them enough.

With that, here are pictures of me and my friends at Riverside restaurant.


Me and the ladies.


Me and the guys.

Check out my Filipino rapper med student friend

At Ross University's cultural show last night, one of my closest med school friends, Ren, represented Filipino Union (and Chicago!) and gave a rap performance. He's an unsigned rapper out in Chicago, and he's awesome. Check out the video.

Also, here's his Myspace if you're interested: http://www.myspace.com/renwexl

I know I haven't updated in forever. School has been rough on me, and things have just been so busy.

For now, enjoy the vid.

Project AIDS

On Friday, I participated in an AMSA (American Medical Students Association) event with the Project AIDS committee. We went to the CALLS center in Portsmouth, which is a non-profit community center dedicated to providing tutoring and somewhat of an education to teenagers who had dropped out or were kicked out of their local schools for various reasons. We put on an educational play centered around possible ways to contract HIV, and then we had a Q&A session with the teenagers. It was a really good experience for myself because while I've worked with children and the elderly, I've never actually done anything with teenagers. I kind of forgot how troublesome and sometimes uncooperative teenagers can be.

It was quite interesting to be teaching them about HIV, STD's, and practicing safer sex. It seems like they know a pretty good amount, however I was a little perturbed by some of the bizarre sex questions they were asking. I won't repeat any here, but let's just say that our discussion lost its focus and strayed towards the topic of sex, rather than the initial topic at hand. Regardless, I think we got all of our important messages across, and I hope the teens learned and gained something in return. It's sad to hear that some of these teens don't even know basic math nor how to read because they stopped going to school a long time ago, so hopefully all the contributions Ross students have been providing them (with tutoring and events like these) are helping these kids live better lives.

Next Saturday, I'll be visiting the elderly home in Portsmouth, like what I did last semester when we just entertained the old folks who no longer have family left to take care of them. I really do wish I volunteered more in the community in previous semesters, but I'm glad I'm finally contributing more of my time this semester!

Karla&Jonathan's SYTYCD Week 2 Performance

Here's Karla&Jonathan's AMAZING contemporary piece last night. It was choreographed by Stacey Tookey from SYTYCD Canada, and they danced to the song, "Falling Slowly," by The Frames. It always helps to have a great song to dance to. However, regardless of the great music choice, Karla and Jonathan danced BEAUTIFULLY. I take these reality talent shows quite seriously, so I really do try to hold no bias. And with no bias, I firmly believe that these two were probably the best of last night. The choreography, music, dancing, technique, and emotion were all there. Karla's fluidity and lines were flawless, and Jonathan surprised everyone with his ability to hold his own in this number. It was a moving performance, and I think definitely one that will be among the memorable of Season 5.

So with that said, the results show is in a couple of hours, and I REALLY hope Karla&Jonathan are not in the bottom 3 again because they had quite the performance last night.

Batibou Beach

On Saturday, I joined the Korean Students Association's field trip to Batibou Beach. I think there were only 3 Korean students there, with the rest of the crew consisting of other random people, including myself. Batibou Beach is on the north side of the island, halfway between our campus and the airport. Unfortunately, I got very carsick on the way there. So carsick that my legs were shaking as I was getting off the bus. It was rather unpleasant, but I recovered during the 20 minute hike down to the actual beach. Yeah, this beach is so isolated that we have to hike down, and you don't actually see it until you get down there. It's pretty cool.


This is one of the few beaches on the island that has actual sand as opposed to rocks/pebbles/shells. Not only that, but it's also a rather large beach with lots of open space. AND we were the only ones there, which made it even nicer. Actually, there was a random white naked guy reading almost in the bushes, but he wasn't situated that close to us.

One interesting thing of note is that scene(s) from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest were filmed right on that beach. I still have yet to watch all three movies. I really should since they were filmed here. Anyways, I'm really glad I took the morning off to enjoy a real beach in Dominica. It was beautiful, and I'm not sure how often I'll get an entire beach to myself for free!

Coming back from hiatus and other things

As many of you already know, one of my really good friends from college, Karla Garcia, is in the Top 20 of So You Think You Can Dance! Above is her first performance on the SYTYCD stage with her partner, Jonathan, doing the cha-cha. It was hot, so check it out if you missed it last night! This is very exciting for those of us who are friends with her. While I never got a chance to see her when she was in Hot Feet, Wicked, or the Rockette's Christmas Spectacular, I watched a few of her Tisch recitals and another show she part of in NY in the past, and all I can say is that not only has she grown tremendously as a dancer since she started college, but she's absolutely beautiful and amazing on stage.

I know I've really sucked at blogging. 2nd year got crazy pretty quickly. I had my first exam on Monday, and while it was a hard one that I felt unprepared for, I did better than I thought, so hopefully it only gets better from here.

Anyways, tonight is the results show for SYTYCD, so tune in if you can!

Yoga --> Release of Endorphins

The photo above shows where I took a yoga class this morning. It's on campus (that's right), and it's funded by the school. I'm so glad I finally got the effort to get myself to a yoga class here. There are so many classes on that beach deck throughout the week, and I've been meaning to do it since 1st semester, but for some reason, only got the real will to do it now. While part of me regrets not starting yoga classes here earlier, I'm glad I finally got myself to do it.

And now I AM ADDICTED. With the combination of full body use, inner core training, and the serene surroundings overlooking the Caribbean Sea, I had a pretty huge release of endorphins after 1.5hrs of yoga. Originally, I had the intention of doing yoga purely for the exercise. I find going to the gym to be torture but have always enjoyed yoga every time I did it. Somehow, today was more rewarding than all the other times I've done yoga. I had an overall sense of happiness and well-being right after today's session. Two of my friends felt the same way. So it looks like this is going to be an on-going thing.

Especially with the rigors of med school in what can sometimes be a frustrating environment, there are certain things here that all of a sudden bring us back down and make us realize that life can be good while in medical school in Dominica afterall. I'm hoping to take this positivity and overall sense of well-being that I get from yoga to "real life" and hopefully become one of the few optimistic medical students left around here.

Here's a link with info about the teacher and class I took. As much as I would love to do this 3 times a week, along with classes taught by another teacher here, I'm going to have to realistically only do it once a week. At least for those two weeks leading up to each exam. Hopefully, I can do it twice a week for the other weeks.

Anyways, yoga was incredibly rewarding in every sense today - emotionally and physically, so hopefully I can keep this up!

Latest Dinners

Today, I cooked fish sinigang. The idea started when I found out tamarind was in season here in Dominica. I thought I'd go totally authentic and use real tamarind pulp instead of the Mama Sita's or Knorr's tamarind sinigang powder. I brought some of the powder down just in case. Unfortunately, the Shacks didn't have real tamarind today, so I just ended up using the powder anyways. It turned out to be really good, and it's nice to be able to eat some comfort food down here every now and then. I used trout, but I wish I just bought some frozen fish that didn't have skin or bones in it. My veggies consisted of onions, tomatoes, green beans, and spinach. I'm sure that taro root exists down here because I've had it in local food, but they generally don't sell those at the Shacks. I wasn't sure if I really wanted to use it anyways.


Last week, I used the dried chanterelles I bought at Whole Foods and forgot to use while I was at home. Not really knowing what to do with it down here, I just cooked it in spaghetti with garlic and olive oil, and it was great. It was simple, but it allowed me to appreciate the chanterelles more.

I feel so accomplished every time I cook on this island.

Sinigang is On the Agenda

I decided I'll take a stab at making fish sinigang sometime this week using one of Burnt Lumpia's recipes. I went to Roseau yesterday and bought frozen trout as well as lots of vegetables. I would have bought some kind of fresh fish at the market, but I knew we'd be walking around in the heat for awhile, and I didn't want the bus to stink up on the way back to campus. Also, I knew I wouldn't be making it right away and would have to freeze the fish anyways. Sinigang is comfort food for me, and it seems simple enough to make considering the limitations on this island. Tamarind is in season here in Dominica right now, so that's why I figured I'd try to make it too.

Stay tuned for a post after I try to make it!

Yesterday's Outfit

tshirt - Urban Outfitters
draped vest thingy - Express
jeans - Uniqlo
flats - Boutique 9
necklace - Forever 21

Back on the Island

I've been back on the island since Sunday night, and thankfully, it wasn't as much of a rough start as the beginning of 2nd semester when I had a migraine the entire week and had to do a lot of catching up. So far, we've had 8 hours of lectures everyday. I haven't been able to get myself to wake up early enough for 8am classes, so I've just been watching the lectures online - most of them in 1.5x or doublespeed, which is amazing. Hopefully, by this weekend, I can get into real study mode. This semester is going to be tough with a whole new set of classes and busier schedules.

At least it will be more interesting though. Pathology looks like it'll be really interesting. I know I'm going to hate pharmacology though because I'm just not good at stuff like that. It's nice to see that material learned in 1st semester is already coming back to us and being applied in a more clinical manner. 2nd year is when we start learning more clinical things like talking to patients, physical exams, and things like that. Next Monday, I get to go to the community clinic in the morning. I'm pretty excited. Plus, I get to dress in professional clothing, even with my white coat! I know most of you would love to wear flip flops, shorts, and tshirts everyday like we all do here in the Caribbean, but it's nice to be able to wear something nice for a change.

In other news, my Filipino guy friends and I decided to restart the Filipino club here at Ross. I didn't think I'd be into the whole thing because I thought I was so over it after NYU, but I've realized how important it is to have a positive social circle here at Ross. The clubs in med school are not taken half as seriously as clubs in undergrad, especially NYU. In fact, it's almost kind of BS here compared to undergrad. The clubs here are really just a way to get involved in the community, whether it be medically-related or just socially, but it's not very time-consuming whatsoever. I guess it's because we're all in med school, and we all know that studying comes first and foremost.

Time for American Idol Top 3 :)

Doing Nothing in Miami

I'm spending the night in Miami because I couldn't schedule a flight that gets to Dominica in one day. Is it crazy for me to say that I like this airport hotel and wouldn't even mind staying here an extra day if I had to? The pillows are amazing, and the flatscreen tv is huge! Miami is huge, but it would have been cool to go into at least the nice part of it. Not really worth it though, plus I'm waiting for my friend, who's sharing this room with me, to arrive. My sister is actually in Miami now doing Habitat for Humanity, but it'd be too much of a hassle for us to meet up, considering neither of us know Miami at all.

I'll enjoy a nice bed tonight, but after I wake up, I know I'll just want to be back in my Dominica apt so I can unpack and get settled back in again. As crazy as this sounds, I'm actually kind of excited to start 2nd year. I know it's going to be a lot harder, but it'll at least be more interesting. Hopefully, that alone will motivate me more to study well and get better grades. I did better 2nd semester than I did in 1st, so I'm hoping I can continue this upward trend.

I've been slowly but surely updating my food blog, so keep checking back for more and more updates. I still have to continue recapping my awesome visit to NYC last week. It's already overdue, but I'll still do it anyways.

Until then, wish me safe travels back to the rock!

Favorite Outfit That I Wore Last Weekend

Exaggerated Side Tee - Dirty Violet
Footless Tights - Urban Outfitters
Purse - vintage, bought on eBay for $15 (no shipping!)
Belt - Urban Outfitters (probably my favorite belt ever)
Necklace - vintage, gift from Emily
Shoes - Miz Mooz

Here's a close up on the shoes. Pardon my vein-y lower extremities.

O&X

I got a new pair of O&X glasses yesterday. I change my frames every few years, so I figured it was time for a new pair. I was never one for the plastic frames or black rims, but maybe it was time for a change. What I like most about these are the soft seagreen eyeglass stems. I like to keep things simple when it comes to eyewear, but these add some character. Everyone agreed this was the best pair on my face, so I went for it. Since these were expensive and more fashionable than the glasses I'd normally get, I'm going to try wearing my glasses outside of the house more, at last on occasion.

Last Friday was quite busy. I woke up early to visit my old coworkers. I REALLY loved working at NYUSOM's Center for the Study of Asian-American Health. Working there was a very enjoyable and valuable experience for me, and I can only hope that I can continue to contribute in one way or another when I move back to NYC for the rest of med school.

After my morning visit, I quickly met up with Viv who was kind enough to lend Gabe and I her's and Julian's MoMa membership cards so we wouldn't have to pay a ridiculous $25 entrance fee. Before Gabe and I went to the MoMa, we had lunch at The Modern's Bar Room. I still have yet to blog about that, so stay tuned. It was a wonderful lunch, albeit expensive (for us). But the food was delicious, and everything I ordered was light and spring-y.

The MoMa was great fun and made for a nice Friday afternoon Gabe+Trish date. Going to museums was something I didn't really take advantage of while in college, and the MoMa was one I've always wanted to go to. Since Gabe has more of an appreciation for art than I do, it was a field trip we were both equally into. When one is completely engulfed into the world of medicine, it's easy to fall out of the loop when it comes to the arts and culture. I know that when I (hopefully) come back to NYC for clerkships, I'm probably going to be insanely busy, but I really hope I can make the effort to take advantage of all that NYC has to offer. I think I did a pretty good job at this when I lived there before, but there's still so much more to experience and discover.


Back to Friday. Since the rain decided to come down hard, we decided against going to the Union Sq Greenmarket and made a trip to Agata&Valentina instead to find things to cook with. We got ramps and applewood smoked bacon and decided to make spaghetti with that. Before coming to NYC, I had this plan to cook a big 3-course dinner with Gabe, and it didn't happen. There was just so much going on that weekend, and I didn't want to spend too much time prepping in Gabe's tiny apt. So we settled with pasta, but it turned out to be some DAMN good pasta.

After that, we hurried over to Cheryl's 24th 90's-themed birthday party, which involved Bon Chon, liquor, Ssips, goodie bags with ring pops and push pops, all-90's karaoke, and 90's clothes (which I was unable to participate in). It was a good time, and I was fondly reminded of my middle school years - rather appropriate since those were the years I kept up with music so well. Some of us then hopped over to Rohm where Derick and Asa were spinning for IFA's end of the year party. Didn't mean to crash an undergrad party, but I wanted to say hi/bye to Franny who was unable to make it Saturday night and who will be moving back to Virginia after school ends. It was great to see him...sigh, I missed that guy so much.

Friday was an awesome, yet hectic, day - very New York City. It was a day that reminded me of why I love NYC so much. Good food, culture, and good peoples. :)

New York Craziness

Before heading off to NYC for 4 days, I had the idea in my mind that I would update my blog(s) everyday to recap each day, and obviously that did not happen. It was quite the hectic weekend. I almost felt like I could no longer keep up with the pace of NYC. Has Dominica softened me up and slowed me down too much? Gosh, I hope not. My feet were killing me after Day 1 of NYC, even with the super comfy pair of flats I've been wearing most days since semester 2 started. What's even worse is that I felt like I had issues staying up past 1am. Yes, I am in medical school, and I RARELY ever stay up past midnight. Anyways, here's a bulletpoint recap of Day 1 - Thursday:

- got to Gabe's apt around 11am
- started our snacktime with pork belly buns and cookies at Momofuku Bakery & Milk Bar
- walked over to Baoguette Cafe for a classic bahn mi
- did our usual SoHo window-shopping - mine and Gabe's typical Saturday or Sunday afternoon, but this time a Thursday :)
- scoped out Topshop - thought it was a bit expensive for what it was, but overall, good style
- randomly ran into Ayu (one of my good medical school friends) on Broadway and Broome
- got stopped on Elizabeth St. btwn Prince and Houston by whom I assume was a photographer. She thought my red Marc by Marc Jacobs bag was cute and asked to take pictures of it. Should have asked what blog/website she was shooting for. If you see me somewhere on the web, let me know. I've always secretly wanted to be stopped and photographed for streetstyle photo purposes, and it finally happened after my long hiatus from NY haha.
- dinner with some people at Yakitori - crispy kawa and hotate bacon didn't hit the spot as much as it usually does, darnit.
- had planned on a drink date with Gabe at Death&Co, but ended up at a sports bar to catch the long end to the Bulls vs. Celtics Game 6
- Game 6 was RIDICULOUS RIDICULOUS RIDICULOUS
- Gabe and I were on cloud 9 all the way home on the M15 after the Bulls win during 3OT

Great 1st day in NYC. More to come...

Lorac Croc Palette

I've been somewhat on a makeup kick lately, watching beauty tutorials on youtube and what not. I've been in need of new eye shadow forever. I usually only wear eye shadow if it's a special occasion or I'm going out, but I realized that a good everyday shadow can go a long way. I knew I wanted to buy a shadow palette because it's more economical and you don't have to try to figure out what colors go together.

I ended up being woo'ed into buying Lorac's Croc Palette, and this has to be one of my best beauty purchases ever. The photo makes it look more bronze than it really is. In real life, it's has more pinkish undertones. It's a GREAT everyday eye shadow palette that can also be used at night. I still have yet to play around with more looks using this palette, but I think it's pretty versatile. It goes so well with my skin tone, but I think it would suit anyone really well too.

I bought it at Sephora for $36 which isn't too bad at all considering it comes with 4 shadows and a blush. It's very pigmented, so a little goes a long way.

Home Sweet Home

I am finally home in Chicago after endless brutal exams and a long and adventurous trip back home. I have traveled a lot in my lifetime and am used to annoying airport experiences. All I have to say is that Miami's international airport is the worst. If you can avoid it, don't fly through there when you're coming from another country and have a connecting flight with a layover of any less than 2 hours. Again, I've experienced worse, but I just really don't like the airport in Miami.

So the last two weeks were pretty horrible in terms of all these exams, but nothing was more stressful than this past week. It reminded me of 1st semester of junior year at NYU when I had a final every single day for a whole week, and I just got really depressed at the end of it all, thinking that I bombed every single one. This time, I'm finally feeling a bit relaxed aside from the fact that Mini 3 was an awful experience and I can only hope to God I passed 2nd semester. Failure is the harsh reality of med school. You honestly can't go through the journey of becoming a doctor without realizing that failure is possible. It sounds cynical, but it's the truth.

Even though I've only been home for a few days (since last Fri night), I've already had the joy of enjoying good food. So with that said, please stay tuned to updates on my food blog!

1 more week...

As much as I'd love to say that the overfilled 3" binder encompasses all the material for my remaining 4 exams, it is sadly the material JUST for one exam, that being Mini 3 - all the material from the last 5 weeks of classes. I was even better about printing 4 slides per page (and of course, always double-sided) this time. Man. So, I just finished my 5 exam of the last week this morning. The neuro Shelf exam was really kind of ridiculous. I thought that was my strong subject too. It's a good thing it's double-curved and that everyone is pretty much guaranteed to pass...I hope.

Next week is going to be the most killer ever. I have a test every single day from Monday to Thursday, and then I finally get to go home on Friday. Yup, 4 exams left, and I'll be home in exactly one week. Kinda crazy. After the 3 hour anatomy Shelf on Tuesday, I was so completely drained afterwards that I barely got ANYTHING done. Today, I took a short nap after the equally draining (and more difficult) neuroscience Shelf and got right back into studying. It was quite possibly the most efficient and focused studying I've done in the last week. So let's just hope I can keep this up next week and not let myself get so completely drained.

Thank God this is the one and only time in my life I ever have to endure a string of 9 difficult exams in the span of 2 weeks.

In more cheerful news, Gabe and I will officially be going to Degustation before the Pacquiao fight. They don't have a website, but someone posted beautiful photos of the food on Yelp. It should be a unique and enjoyable experience. We intend on doing the $75 10-course meal. That probably sounds all fancy, but this place is counter seating, and the chefs cook right in front of you. It's not typically romantic, but for Gabe and I, it will be since food is sexy to us.

Informal Announcement

NYC - Arrive early morning on Thursday, April 30th.
I will be going to yakitori (our usual spot) that evening, for old times sake. Just like the good old days when we were youthful, poor college students. Come if you can!

I probably won't be doing a happy hour drinks type thing before or afterwards because Gabe and I have a date planned for PDT or Death&Co.

Saturday, May 2nd is fight night. Pacquiao vs. Hatton. I know you all plan on watching it, so I decided to throw a get together for my visit slash fight night. It'll be at Tonic East on 3rd ave and 28th st. It's a big sports bar that supposedly tends to get filled with ibankers, pink polos, and striped button-downs, but this bar is basically the only place that's officially showing the fight without a cover (as of now). We all know how much I don't like Murray Hill and that my heart will always be in Manhattan below approximately 20th st, but what can ya do.

Alright, more official invite will be sent through Facebook by this weekend. Peace out and hope to see you in a few weeks!

Springtime Brunch

Gabe and I were thinking about having brunch somewhere the Sunday I'm in NYC, but honestly, brunch is such a scene in Manhattan that it's hard to find a good place without having to deal with a 1+ hour wait. I came across this recipe, and it sounds delicious! Scrambled eggs with ramps, morels, and asparagus. Spring-time is the best time for foodies and chefs because it's when all the glorious veggies come out. Since ramps are so fleeting, I feel quite lucky that I'll be home during it's very short peak. Maybe I can even find some in my backyard in Lake Forest! Word. Anyways, nothing sounds better than scrambled eggs with the best springtime vegetables, so I think Gabe and I might try that out instead of dealing with brunch dining in Manhattan.

Speaking of brunch, I think eggs, bacon, and toast are in store for dinner tonight. A treat to myself for getting A's on all three of my lab practicals!

Earthquake!

I felt my very first earthquake ever today! Ok, maybe it wasn't a full on earthquake. More like a tremor, but nonetheless, I felt the earth rumble beneath the floor of the library. Hooray!

Chicago Eats: Spring 2009

The day after I get back, my family and I will be celebrating my mom's 50th birthday (belated) and my brother's 22nd birthday at Charlie Trotter's. It was definitely one of the forerunners in tasting menu fine dining in the United States in the 1980's, so Trotter's definitely has a level of prestige. Since the restaurant is so old now, I'm really not sure how it is in comparison to other restaurants at that high end level since foodies don't really write about it nearly as much anymore. Either way, I'm sure it will be an amazing meal, and I'm looking forward to my first big high end dining experience in Chicago!

My parents also want to take me to Kaze for their Tuesday $45 4-course prix-fixe. Sushi for the non-purist. I'm sure Yasuda would have a heart attack at the thought. I've never been there, but my parents have a number of times and absolutely love it. I trust their food opinions, so I'm excited to try it. I'm not sure what the current menu is (not sure if the site is updated), but at least at one point, the soup course was White Asparagus Soup with King Crab Meat, Foie Gras, and Microgreens. No miso soup here! Sounds like a good deal to me.

I also really want to make it a point to go to Hot Doug's this time. I know I've been saying that for my last 2-3 visits in Chicago, but I'll make sure it goes through this time! Now that Bourdain has featured it with great praise on No Reservations, non-foodies and tourists probably now know about the place. Hopefully quality and service keeps up. I don't even know what dog/sausage I'd get, so I'll have to see how I feel when the time comes.

Lastly, I think I want to make it out to The Publican, a beer hall with an amazing beer list and some interesting gastropub fare, headed by Chef Paul Kahan. Check out the menu for yourself. It even says which exact farm, city, and state the product came from. Kahan stresses organic and seasonal ingredients. Quite impressive. My family and I are BIG Paul Kahan fans. We've been to Blackbird Restaurant and Avec multiple times, and both do not fail. Possibly due to hype and high expectations, The Publican doesn't seem to be getting as glowing reviews as what I would expect...but how bad can it really be with pork rinds, sweetbreads, and an incredible collection of beers?

Anyways, that's my list for now. I'm not sure if I'll really be going to The Publican, but I know my dad has been interested in it since before it even opened. The thought of pork, sweetbreads, and Paul Kahan makes us squeal.

No more labs!

I'm finished with all 3 of my practicals! My last one was anatomy, which was on the GI system, abdominal cavity, and pelvic/perineum regions. It really wasn't that bad. I didn't know every answer, but it was a pretty fair, and for the most part, easy practical. Thank God I'm finished with anatomy forever. I like anatomy, but I just don't like being in that formaldehyde-infused lab. Studying the cadavers can be fun and interesting at times, but it gets pretty frustrating when the bodies end up getting all torn up and moldy.


My neuroscience practical was also yesterday. It wasn't easy, but not too bad either. I personally loved neuro and wish I could have dedicated more time to studying it, but I still have less than 2 weeks to learn (and re-learn) as much as I can. I definitely want to do an elective rotation in neurology when the time comes, so there will be PLENTY more neuro to learn further down the road.

My histology practical was also today. I really don't like histology, and looking at histological slides is even worse and more boring. Tissue slides are not interesting AT ALL.


I thought I'd just post this picture up for fun. Head/neck anatomy was probably one of the most frustrating parts of med school so far, and I'm glad I never have to go back to that again (as long as I pass this semester).

Since my practicals are over, I decided I should take a break tonight and not study. I think I'll just take the time to plan out my vacation in Chicago and NY. I have to plan where I'm going to eat! I'll post a rough plan when I figure things out more. Gabe and I will definitely have a fun-filled 4-day date while I'm in NY, so we want to make the most of it. Also, as you probably know, there's a Pacquiao fight on May 2nd. Since that's the weekend I'm in NY, I want to have a get together that night to hopefully watch the fight at a bar. If you know a place that will be showing it, then please let me know! If I can't find a place, then hopefully everyone is willing to meet up with me after the fight. I just want to see everyone since it's been far too long!

Break time, then study time begins again tomorrow morning...

Palm Sunday with real fresh palm!

Since I've spent my entire life in big cities, I'm more accustomed to receiving that single leaf on Palm Sunday. It didn't even occur to me that I'd be getting a real trimmed palm leaf here in Dominica where there's certainly no shortage of palm. I often tell people that the descent towards the airport here is similar to the plane descent in Jurassic Park. It's that green here. The cows that are moo'ing behind my apartment right now may as well be dinosaurs.

Almost home free

Exactly 3 more weeks until I touch down in Chi-town. Approaching O'Hare over the Chicago skyline, especially at night, is always really exciting for me. Especially coming home from Dominica. It's like, wow high-rise buildings!


And now, just a little under 4 weeks until I land in NYC! It's hard to believe that by the time I arrive, it will have been 10 months since I was in NYC and saw all of my friends (except for Gabe and Vadicel, who have both visited me in Chicago after I moved out of NY). I still think about NYC everyday and get very nostalgic about the life I lived back then. I get especially homesick when I have to miss social events that are happening there. This weekend is PCN, Marco's bday, Derick's bday, and the girls are having brunch on Sunday. Instead of going to those things, I'm here, and I will likely be spending the whole weekend in the anatomy lab or looking at my Rohen's colored atlas studying the GI system, abdominal and pelvic cavities, and reproductive organs. The last thing I want to do before I sleep is look at different cuts of the penis. Actually, you'd be surprised at how important the external genitalia are. Anyways, that's besides the point.

I just have to stay really focused on these upcoming practicals, Shelf exams, and Mini 3, and HOPEFULLY I'll be finished with M1 forever!

Avec

Plugging my bro's new website. He has amazing food porn pics from Avec. Mmm.

Iguana Restaurant

A few of my friends and I decided to try Iguana Cafe in Portsmouth last night. It was basically our last hurrah until our last exam is over. With 3 lab practicals, 5 Shelf exams, and Mini 3 all in the last 2 weeks of school, the next 4 weeks are going to be incredibly tiresome, so it was nice to treat ourselves one last time before it's time to go into hiding.

I ordered the Grilled Lobster with a pumpkin and garlic sauce. Even though the portion was a little bit small (it was mostly shell), I thought it was pretty good. I knew the lobsters were very fresh because the meat was incredibly tender. The sauce could have used more seasoning, but I still liked it. So far, I think this might be the best restaurant I've been to in Dominica in terms of food alone, but I may have just ordered the wrong things at other restaurants and the right thing at this restaurant. I was just happy that this place had everything on their menu. Most of the time, restaurants here don't have at least one thing that's on the menu. Sometimes MOST things, which really sucks.

I think I've come to accept the fact that food in Dominica simply isn't up to par with even the most mediocre restaurants in the US and Europe. Still, it's nice to get out of the immediate campus neighborhood and eat food that's not what we would eat on an everyday basis.

P.S. This post should probably go in my food blog, but I think I've come to the habit of posting all Dominica-related things in this personal blog.


Glossary: A lab practical involves looking at an microscopic or gross body part (depending on the class) and identifying whatever the pointer/tag is pointing at. Some of the questions are secondary. A Shelf exam is a standardized final exam for every subject in the first year of medical school. I'll have 5 of them - Biochem, Histology, Physiology, Anatomy, and Neuroscience shelves. A Mini is what Ross calls their own exams. We have 3 of them each semester - 1 for all the material learned in each month. So yes, all 5-6 subjects for one Mini.

Linguine Bolognese

Since I JUST realized that one of the groceries in this neighborhood sells frozen meats, I decided it was time to finally buy some and cook something real. By real, I mean not pasta with ready-made bacon, fried rice, scrambled eggs, corned beef, or instant noodles. As I've mentioned a few times before, it's hard to get meat and fish in this immediate area, and equally difficult to get fresh meat and fish anywhere else on this island. Yeah, you'd think it'd be so easy to get fresh fish here, but it seems like it typically goes to people who own restaurants and such. You also have to get up super early on a Saturday morning to get the freshest fish.

Anyways, since many of my friends have gotten the frozen ground beef from this little convenience store near campus, I figured it was safe enough and that I'd make bolognese sauce. Since I've never seen celery on this island, I couldn't incorporate a mirepoix (a term I learned from Gabe, who knows far more culinary vocabulary than I do). So I used my own version and used frozen peas and carrots instead, and of course with fresh onions. After cooking the veggies and ground beef, I added some leftover canned diced tomatoes and a 28oz can of Hunt's mushroom tomato sauce. Using ready-made tomato sauce saved a lot of propane. If that wasn't an issue here, then I would have used fresh or canned tomatoes. I then added maybe about a 3/4 cup of evaporated milk. Again, there's no fresh milk here. Only shelf milk, evaporated milk, condensed milk, etc.

It turned out to be pretty good and close enough to my mom's bolognese sauce. She Filipinoes it up a bit by adding diced Vienna beef hot dogs. Not to be confused with Vienna sausages. Oh, and in case you're wondering if my mom and I add sugar to our spaghetti sauce like how most Filipinos do, then yes, we do, with one caveat. The sugar is purely for balance and to enhance the tomatoes, rather than to actually make the sauce sweet. Sweet spaghetti is still a strange concept to me.

The sauce turned out pretty good. It definitely not ambitious or even worthy of note, but for me, it's pretty exciting to find some protein other than eggs that I can cook on this island. But if only I could find some parmigiano reggiano on this island.

Uhhh

I have a StatCounter for this blog. Why is there at least one person from most, if not all, European countries, a couple of South American, and a couple of Asian countries visiting my blog JUST TODAY? I'm confused. And creep out.

Twitterfied

I'm on Twitter, and I'm not particularly proud of it. Since I'm living abroad, I suppose it's a legitimate excuse to have Twitter. Ugh, but I even downloaded TwitterDeck (pictured above), so I don't have to use the website and can just have a cooler-looking program on my Mac. I'm sure that when I go home and have the Internet re-activated on my Blackberry again for a mere two weeks, I'll download TwitterBerry so I can update on the go.

I'm not gonna lie. I love Internet communication. I barely ever used Friendster or MySpace back in the day, but I won't deny my unending love for Facebook. I'm proud to say that I've been on it since spring of 2004, before the rest of the world caught on. It really is a useful tool.

Clearly, I love blogs too. Reading and writing them. I'm not sure how much I'll love or hate Twitter. I guess it is kinda cool that celebrities and news journalists are on it though. John Mayer Twitters too much though. I'm thinking about un-following him.

Possible Future Projects?

I've been keeping up with Tastespotting, The Kitchn, and a few other food blogs in order to gather some future projects for my next visit home to Chicago and New York. It will be a pretty busy 2 week break of lots of eating in both cities, but I definitely want to get some cooking in. I'd experiment here in Dominica if only fresh meat and seafood were more accessible on my part of the island.


Braised Pork Shoulder. I'd love to cook this with Gabe when I come visit on the night we plan on cooking dinner for ourselves, but I feel as though we'd rather spend 4 hours doing something else in the city. We'll have to cook things that don't use up so much of our precious time together in NYC.


These Pandan Pistachio White Chocolate cookies look appropriately St. Patrick's Day-ish, but who says you can't make bright green cookies in May?!

No picture of this one, but Roasted Loin of Berkshire Grass-fed Veal with Roasted Potatoes, Wild Ramps, and Morel Mushroom Sauce would be the perfect cooking project for end of April slash beginning of May, as it will be ramps and morel season!

That is all for now.

Back from Hiatus

Wow, I completely abandoned this blog for the last few weeks. I had my 2nd exam of the semester on Monday, and it took intense preparation because I didn't perform as well as I should have on the 1st exam. My hard work paid off because I actually did quite well on Mini 2! Instead of going out last night, I decided to watch some movies that I downloaded back in the beginning of the semester.


The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, the tale of a man who "grew" younger rather than older, was amazing. While it can be weird and creepy, I thought it was a beautifully executed movie. I even found myself crying several time throughout the movie, and I rarely ever cry during movies.


I somehow managed to gain the attention span and patience to watch a second movie. Milk, the story of Harvey Milk, was also a great movie. I don't think that every girl who loved Brokeback Mountain will feel equally as comfortable with Milk. But in any case, I also loved this movie, and Sean Penn certainly acted the hell out of his character. He deserved that Oscar. James Franco is quite nice to look at too.

So I have FINALLY watched all the movies I downloaded. The only one that didn't impress me so much was Gran Torino. I guess it just wasn't nearly as moving to me as Benjamin Button, Milk, and Slumdog Millionaire.

A little more than one month left to the semester, so I'm in the homestretch now. I just want to go home now!

The Grange

Carnivale is a really big deal here in Dominica. As much as I wanted to partake in the festivities during this past three day weekend, I wouldn't allow myself to since I had already spent the entire Saturday on a snorkeling trip. However, I did sign up to volunteer at an old folks home, The Grange, through the Physicians for Human Rights club. We sponsored a little Carnivale party with music and food for the old folks who really don't have family or anyone to visit them anymore. All they have is each other in this VERY rundown nursing home of sorts. It's underdeveloped that they may as well be camping because their building isn't fully enclosed.

I was a bit shocked the poor conditions of The Grange, however the residents were all so nice. I particularly became fond of George, an old man with amputated legs. He was a sweetheart and a joy to play Dominos with. Supposedly, he's the king of Dominos and has only lost to one person before. Well, I beat him in our first game, and that was my first time ever playing Dominos. It must have been luck.

It felt really good to entertain the old folks at this home, and I definitely want to volunteer there again.

Dominica has redeemed itself

Since we had a three day weekend for Carnaval, I decided to go on a snorkeling trip with a few of my friends on Saturday. I've been terribly behind in classes and studying since I put off all my other classes for my head and neck practical on Friday, but I knew that this was probably the best weekend to do something recreational. The trip started out by a roughly hour long drive to Champagne Beach, which is about 15 minutes past Roseau. I was mildly carsick from the twists and turns, but thankfully, I felt fine as soon as the ride ended.

As corny as this may sound, out of all the times I've gone snorkeling in the Caribbean and in Hawaii, I've always had to wear a lifevest because it was required by the companies we were snorkeling through. This time, all I got was the snorkel mask/tube and flippers. I didn't even end up using the latter. The beach was beautiful and quite secluded. There were only a couple of other people there besides our group. Since it was in the Caribbean Sea, the waves weren't high, yet they were STRONG. I love jumping waves, but these little strong ones provided quite a challenge to many of us because they really kept knocking us down. It was rather unpleasant with all the rocks and pebbles too.

However, once I finally braved the waves and got passed the surf, it was amazing. I saw so many tropical colorful fish and lots of beautiful coral. In all of the times I've gone snorkeling, I think this is the most tropical fish I've ever seen. What makes Champagne Beach particularly unique is that there are volcanic fissures under the sea floor not far from shore, so there are bubbles coming up from below. It looks just like champagne. It was really cool and made for a great snorkeling experience. I seriously can't wait to go back there, hopefully when the waters are calmer.


Afterwards, we went to Scott's Head, about 15 minutes away. It's where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Caribbean Sea, only separated by a narrow strip of rocks and sand. It's pretty cool because the Atlantic Ocean has huge waves while the Caribbean Sea LOOKS calm, but again, still manages to knock everyone over. I got a good workout just from dodging the waves at both Champagne and Scott's Head. However, I didn't even really end up snorkeling at Scott's Head because it was a lot colder there, and my snorkel mask decided to not cooperate. I kept getting water in my mask, so I eventually gave up. Hopefully I'll make it out there again.


For lunch, we went to Roseau and ate at The Garage, which is a pretty decent bar with pub grub. I got chicken wings with a pretty good Caribbean sort of barbeque sauce. The only thing that sucked about that place was that they took forever to bring our food out since we were a fairly large group of 12. However, it's still a good place with decent food as well as flatscreen tv's to watch soccer.

On the way back home, we stopped at an ice cream place. I got coconut cream and strawberry cheesecake, both of which were pretty awesome. Unfortunately, I got really carsick on the way home. Thankfully, I didn't vomit, but I came pretty close. I need to remember to take non-drowsy Dramamine every time I go anywhere further than Portsmouth.

Even though this trip took way longer than I thought it would and set me back on my plans to study Saturday night, I'm really glad I came. Most of us really don't like this island, but I honestly think it's not that bad as long as you go out and do things and make the most of what's presented to you. Dominica is one of the better snorkel/diving destinations in the Caribbean, so there was no way I wasn't going to come here and never do any of that.

Overall, I'm really glad I went snorkeling on Saturday because it allowed Dominica to redeem itself and prove to me that it's kinda beautiful afterall.

Other Fashion Week Dresses I Want

Valentino

Salvatore Ferragamo


Monique Lhuillier


Aquilano e Rimondi

It's quite likely I'm going to have a satin wedding dress.

Naeem Khan

I'm rarely ever attracted to the color "orange" in clothing, but this dress is absolutely stunning.

Naeem Khan, from NYC Fashion Week Spring 2009.

Happy 6th Valentine's Day, Gabe!

Happy 6th Valentine's Day, Gabe!

I think normally, I wouldn't be the type of person to care about Valentine's Day. Gabe and I probably aren't like most other couples in many ways. However, Valentine's Day 2004 happens to be the first time we ever hung out alone...like kind of on a date. He took me out to Sotto Cinque in the UES, then we had ice cream at Cold Stone (when it first opened in NY), and then watched tv at his Water St dorm. So Valentine's Day has a rather special place in my heart, mainly because that's really the only sort of anniversary we have. We've spent Valentine's Day together every year, so it was kind of weird to not be able to spend it together this year, but we tried our best. We both cooked dinner, then Skyped while eating dinner. I know, it's lame and corny, but we had to do something. And since we both love to cook, it was a good reason to do so.

I made the usual amatriciana using some of the guanciale Gabe gave me for Christmas. Instead of bucatini, I used linguine because those are the only long noodles I have. It wasn't my best batch of amatriciana pasta because the canned tomatoes didn't have much juice. I probably should have added some water, but oh well. It still turned out decently well.


Gabe, however, made something WAAAAY more impressive. He made ricotta (not potato) gnocchi with tomato sauce and pancetta (his guanciale went moldy). Yes, he made the gnocchi from SCRATCH! I think that's incredibly impressive, and I'm very proud of him. It makes me feel so lucky to have a man who can cook. I have no doubt in my mind that he put a lot of love into making the gnocchi. Mmm. Don't these soft pillows of love look delicious in that picture?

KFC and Rituals

KFC and Rituals have opened up in our campus area! As mentioned in a previous post, Rituals is basically like Starbucks but with way more stuff - more drinks, smoothies, pastries, sandwiches, and salads. I'll be spending more money when I get food there, but it'll be a nice change from the usual Shacks food.

A few of my friends and I went to KFC for lunch today, and surprisingly the wait wasn't that long. However, their chicken wasn't quite as good as I remember it being in the States. I'll have to test out the popcorn chicken since that's what I would usually get.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! (Another Valentine's post coming later. Stay tuned.)

When will this end?

I generally hate it when people put up stupid Skype/videochat pictures of them and their significant others online, but I just wanted to post this one because I was quite jealous last night that Gabe cooked a browned/poached arctic char and potato and zucchini fritters for dinner last night. I really miss cooking together. I simply can't wait until I'm (hopefully) back in NY in a year and a half or so.

Yes, my walls are green, but they're really more pale than what it looks like through Skype.

Oh yeah, and Gabe's middle finger is sprained from breakdancing. He's not giving me the finger.

Recent outfits and my overfilled 3" binder

Gold leaf tshirt - don't even know the label because my mom cut the tag off, but it was bought from Untitled in Evanston, IL
Jeans - Uniqlo
Kicks - Air Jordan Retro 1 GS Dream Team pack - they're mids in a white/copper/metallic colorway.

My Jordan's are NOT Dunks, by the way. Dunks, I believe, were modeled/inspired after Jordan 1's. I hate it when people compliment me on my "Dunks" because I'm anti-Dunks. And they're JORDANS. They're different.


My 3" binder for my first Mini (midterm) is overfilled. That's not even everything. I can't believe I've had to learn that much stuff in the last 4 weeks and that I have to study all that for one 125 question exam. Oh well, that's medical school. Oh btw, all of my powerpoint slides are double-sided. Most are 2 slides per page, but some are 4 slides per page.

In other news, Anthony Bourdain FINALLY featured Chicago on his Travel Channel show, No Reservations, on Monday. FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY. It's nice to see a true New Yorker paying his respect to Chicago. Bourdain didn't have a superiority complex over Chicago either. I'll write up a critique of his episode at some point. I recommend you all watch it. The next time they're replaying it in the evening is on February 16 8pm ET, 2 hours before the PHILIPPINES episode.

God, I LOVE Anthony Bourdain.

The Bacon Explosion

The Bacon Explosion. It's all over the web now, but WOW, I WANT THAT. I can't even begin to imagine all the sorts of cardiovascular diseases and impending surgeries I'd probably get from that, but I'd really love to try it.

I feel like such a hypocrite. I spent two years doing community outreach, trying to get Filipinos-Americans with hypertension to really watch out what they eat. And as difficult as the field is, I am considering cardiology as a specialty. Yet I can't get away from bacon. It's just too good. Well, according to my most recent blood tests, I do have really good levels of HDL and low levels of LDL. I like to use this as my excuse as to why it's ok for me to eat lots of bacon.

Um, no.

New pair of Keds Champions WMNS

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the cardiovascular system, and there's nothing that fascinates me more than the human heart. I could point out every little part of the external and internal heart as well as its vasculature. But I don't want to see it on my toes. I find it interesting that they show the posterior view of the heart, which isn't the correct anatomical position. Just seems kind of weird for an image that's not in Netter's or some other gross anatomy textbook. Those are some ugly shoes.

This was today's dinner: Penne with Haricot Verts, Bacon, and Red Chili Flakes (obviously salt, pepper, garlic, and olive oil too). Haricot verts really does sound much nicer than green beans.

Trip to Roseau

This morning, a few of my friends and I went to Roseau. Every Saturday morning, Ross provides free shuttle service from campus to the main "city" in Dominica, which is an hour away. We left at 8:30am, got there at 9:30, and had to leave at noon. It doesn't sound like much time for a place that's an hour away, but there's really not much else to do and see in Roseau besides the grocery stores, Saturday morning market, and KFC. There probably are more things to see that I just don't know about.

I should have taken pictures of the scene, but my hands were constantly occupied with groceries. Our first stop was Rituals Coffee House, which is basically a bootleg Starbucks, but I actually feel like it's an upgraded version. They have smoothies, more pastries, and a decent selection of hot and cold sandwiches. It's actually a pretty nice place. I got an apple fritter, which was twice as good as the apple fritters at Starbucks. We ended up going back there after all our groceries, so that's when I got an egg, cheese, and bacon bagel sandwich - yes!!! Definitely not as good as a New York one though, but it'll pass. I also got a pineapple-coconut smoothie which was delicious.

We also went to the grocery store, IGA. It's not bad for Dominica standards. They sell a lot of American products that are surprisingly not TOO marked up. Everything there was definitely cheaper than the little "grocery stores" around here. By the way, for you Filipinos, the grocery stores around campus are about the equivalent of a Filipino grocery store back in the States, except they sell very little refrigerated/frozen goods. So I bought a small tuna filet. I really wanted to get some ground beef but didn't see any. I also picked up some other random things, like Hunt's diced tomatoes for my amatriciana that I'll be making for Valentine's Day, white rice, Pringles, etc.

After that, we went to the Saturday morning market. Everything there is so cheap and really fresh. I got some small onions which are really dirty, so I hope they're ok. I haven't cut one open yet to see how they are. I'm kind of mad though because after I bought those, I saw a ton more stands that had much bigger and better-looking onions. Next time I go to the market, I have to buy more "exotic" things rather than bananas, onions, and haricot verts.

Anyways, I'm hoping to go back to Roseau at least one more time before the semester ends. I want to try to spend less on food and cook more at home. Another goal for the semester is to do at least one island thing. There actually are a lot of places to visit and things to do on this island. You just have to go out of your way to do it. Not to mention, it's kinda hard to find people to do fun things with around here. Hopefully, people will come through this semester.

Happy 25th Birthday, Gabe!

Every year, I get really excited for Gabe's birthday, possibly because I've basically treated him every year since I met him. When he turned 20, I got him a chocolate cake from Jubilee the night he threw a party at Water St, which was on the eve of his birthday. It wasn't even a birthday party. In fact, none of us even knew it was his birthday except for one person who convinced me that it was and that I should buy Gabe a cake. Turned out he was right. When Gabe turned 21, I took him to Sushi Park. I know, so lame and so cheapy cheapy of me, but I just wanted to be low key and figured I'd pay wherever we decided to eat this one night when we hung out a few days before his birthday. The following year, I finally stepped it up and took him to a quality dinner he deserved at Babbo. When he turned 23, we went to Po. 24, I dropped mad money for a gluttonous omakase meal at Sushi Yasuda.

Today, Gabe turns 25, and I'm sad I cannot be in NY to celebrate with him. However, in honor of his birthday, I decided to cook a nice dinner (by Dominica standards) for myself tonight. It's hard to get a lot of ingredients in my area here, so I had to work with what I've got. I meant to buy a couple of veggies at the Shacks today but didn't see any that I wanted to use to make pasta, so I decided to just deal with what I have at home.

I used fully cooked Tyson chicken - the type of chicken that typically comes in cans to make chicken salad, except I bought bagged ones - it's much lighter and more packable than cans. I also used a strip of fully cooked bacon (thank God for fully cooked bacon!), and packaged pesto mix that I just had to mix with water and olive oil over the stove. All these ingredients made a pretty good pasta meal even though no components were made from scratch.

Anyways, I'm happy I cooked a worthy dinner in honor of Gabe's birthday even though we could not spend the day together. The next celebration apart will be Valentine's Day, and I'm even sadder to not be able to spend that day together. In honor of that, I plan on making some amatriciana (the guanciale pasta) - so excited!

HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY, B!