Homemade Whole Wheat Tortilla Chips

Last night I had some friends over for dinner and board games while D was busy out there playing Dungeons & Dragons. As you may all already know, game night is never complete without some good guacamole and tortilla chips! In the past, we used to just pick up some ready-to-eat stuff from the grocery store, but after we have decided to live a bit healthier, I thought: why don't we just make our own? I will forgo the guacamole story, as it's pretty standard. Plus, avocado is so easy to turn dark, and my pictures did not came out pretty...

Napa Cabbage Rolls

Napa cabbage has gain increasing popularity these days -- it is very low in calorie yet highly nutritious. A cup of shredded Napa cabbage contains a mere 20 calories, 0 grams of fat, yet contains 1 gram of protein, provides 26% RDA Vitamin A, 46% RDA Vitamin C, and even 5%  RDA Calcium.

Napa cabbage is also very versatile, as it can be eaten raw or cooked, as a wrapper or the main ingredient, all very delicious! I made these rolls for D's lunch, and here is what to do:

Grocery roundup -- Week 1 a.k.a. last week in August

Alright.

The first grocery shopping done last Friday--8/23, at the summer Farmer's Market behind Woosley Hall at Yale University. There, we got  a peach ($0.5), a nectarine ($0.5), two apples ($1), two pears ($1), three stalks of broccoli ($2.5), a huge bunch of basil ($1, my favorite from this market), a bunch of arugula ($1, so fresh!), a box of mushrooms ($1.5), an eggplant ($1), a green pepper ($0.5), a huge zucchini ($0.5), rainbow chard ($2), but was only charged for $12. I suppose our basil was free then! Too bad this blog idea came to after the fact, otherwise I'd love to show you a picture of all the produce!

We had an eventful weekend -- a meetup game night at the local brew shop (wonderful place, http://luckandlevity.com/), an out-door-play in the park with friends (Julius Caesar, http://www.elmshakespeare.org/), and a Game of Thrones marathon TV watching (8 hours in a day!). All this means quite a few bottles of beer and lots of food, since we like organizing and hosting events and making meals to share.

Plus, our little splurge on the recent grocery trip to Stop & Shop ended up costing us a bit. We are trying to go organic and local whenever possible.

2 life 2 balance

It all started 8 weeks ago. Right before going to a conference, I decided to get a medical check up at the health center, just to be sure--my belly had swollen to a balloon, and we all know that there is a possibility birth control and pregnancy test both fail. Either that, or my one-beer-a-day consumption was giving me a beer belly, somehow.
And everything happened in a flash. Pelvic mass? Cyst? 9 inch? In danger of bursting? Potentially cancerous? Open cut surgery? Full anesthesia? Right ovary in danger? What? Why? How come?
Within a week, I woke up on a surgery bed, and the doctor's words sounded like the most beautiful piece of music. "Everything went well. You are fine now."
Recovery would be a boring story to all. Basic life function became more challenging than a 26-year-old could imagine. Fortunately I was blessed with love. With the love and support that I can never thank enough for, life peddled on.
A better life, I hope.

Life, is such a peculiar thing. Some people strive for success or fame; some live for love or honor; some believing in serving others. I am still searching for its meaning, and how to live a happy one. At the moment, it seems to me balance is the key.

After moving in with my boyfriend recently, I realize each person's life has its own balancing issues. So we'll start small, with two life to balance.

To life, to balance, to happiness.