Wishing Everyone...

A wonderful glorious Holiday Season! 

Cheers!

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Bite Your Bacon Brunch Sandwiches

 Hi everyone,
I'm a little sick girl just barely getting out of the woodwork. I celebrated my 10th anniversary on the 21st with a nasty three day sore throat which bloomed into a cold by the end of the night. I've been living off of soup since Tuesday and I'm getting a little tired of it. So since I can walk around now I got up and made what goes best with Orange Juice: Breakfast! I'd like to say these are brunch, but I made these about an hour ago so these were Breakfast/Dinner. Also lets face it... giving guys a good meal with bacon makes up for everything, sort of like flowers and jewelry for us ladies. Eugene's been such a good sport with me being sick on our day and all...

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If you're wondering about the name, I steamed the scrambled eggs with Horseradish White Cheddar. If you never tried the stuff I highly recommend it. It also goes great with some freshly sliced apples. Also, if my spatula looks a little funny its because it's a Japanese Okonomiyaki Spatula (Basically Japanese Pizza). To get my eggs soft I pour a little water in the pan and I mix it with a whisk while it starts to heat.

 The meat is center cut bacon with hamburger patties. I just cut the patties into 4 and the bacon strips into 3. Again, these were cooked with a little water in the pan on high heat. I drained the rest of the fat.

 The bread is just two common dinner rolls toasted and pressed flat. This was literally a whatever was in the kitchen type of meal. So happy that it came out so nicely! Just a splash of ketchup; the horseradish picked up the sweetness out of it.

 There it is! Glad I took out my Nikkon for these unlike the Matcha Krispies. I really love shooting Food Porn if you haven't noticed. ;) Feels good to blog again, but sadly I must rest if I'm going to have any fun tommorow.

Happy Holidays!

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Thoughts: A Raging Hurt Fatty

Be warned: 

This is a rant with grown up language (yes, profanity). If my personal life doesn't interest you please skip this post.

I'm not one to talk about my issues with people, but this has been the very bane of my existence as of lately that I'm tired of looking like I've got it all together and I'm not affected by these actions. I've grown a supportive and fairly descent following from not only strangers that share my interest, but family and friends as well: I think that lying to you that I am ok would be the wrong thing to do.

So this month is NOTHING as I expected: things that I thought could be finished in a week may well drag into the New Year, everyday has felt like a wild card, and this season has become the month of global PMS. Seriously? Being the fat chick in public automatically makes me an easy target, but the things that come out of peoples mouth's these days be it stranger or friends is simply repulsive.  I don't even want to recount the reckless nonsense that people's motives have been.

FOR THE RECORD: I find that fat people, especially women, do their best just to break their stereotypes everyday. We've not lazy, we are not glutinous pigs, and we are not all about the easy way out. If you ask me after being in category and culture of 'fat', we are the toughest most honest of people. On top of the criticism and society pressures: we go out of our way to be who we are just so we can continue a satisfying life beyond what's expected of us. I've been fat for a majority of my life and I've found true love, been a leader, and done things that I never thought I could. I've been featured on television, been a produced playwright FOUR TIMES AND COUNTING, guest spoke in one of the largest convention centers in the world... you guessed it, FAT! I'm not about to stop my life just because of the way I look displeases people.  I'm more than that, and I guarentee you that other fat people you see are so much more than there appearance.

Don't get me wrong, this post has nothing to do with denying a healthy lifestyle. This is about that time of the year when people get insecure about just about anything as the year closes and they are brought with a new year that will come with more opportunity and regrets. It's easy to feel down, pressured to be something else. Many, unfortunately, don't know how to handle these changes. Whether you do or don't, everyone is feeling the pressure of change upon them, and the best thing to do is be honest with yourself and understand where you stand about it.

For me, I'm scared. I feel like I'm not ready for the responsibilities that have been trusted on me. I'm stressed, cooped up, and hard up; believe me the blatant bullying has not made me a happy camper. Today I snapped, I cried, and I'm upset. I'm sure that I'll be pretty upset about all of this incessive harassment and behavior until the beginning of the next year when things usually die down. Hence why my mood is seeping into my blog; the beautiful album of my growing life that I can share with the world. I want this post to tell everyone that it's absolutely fine to be mad;  just let it go responsibly. Letting go has a lot to do with letting people around you know how you feel.

For those 'people': Come at me about my weight, money, or my relationship if you must but here's the truth about it: You're too fucking scared to deal with your own problems. I am starting to lose faith in you and the rest of the world because of this very reason. I may not call you out in person, or look like I didn't notice what you meant by 'it' but I'm just too nice and mature to stoop to your level. I'm just as stressed as you are, and my willingness to tell you about these things or my rare chances to go out are my few releases from my issues. Don't go ruining it for me, or try to be greedy and take that little bit of happiness out of my day. Don't try to piggy back on my efforts either as I busted my back working for these things that I treasure and made myself the person I am today. I'm nice, but every nice person has a limit. If your offended by this post I'm happy: Come and chat with me about it!

Wow, you made it through the whole thing. Thank you for listening, I meant it.

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Christmas at Tea Rose Garden: Winter Garden Tea Blend

 There's something magical about the holidays combined with tea. It seems to keep the whimsy of traditions past and brings the smells, glow, and dreamy ideals all into one. No other place I know gives me this feeling more than The Tea Rose Garden; a hidden jewel in Old Town Pasadena. 

I've grown to love this little shop; first as a customer and later as part of the shop family. Tea Rose Garden was my celebration after finals, where my first solo gallery was featured, and my first job after college early this year. My history now runs along with this shop. I am so blessed to have it in my life; the shop and people behind it.

In the city where the Rose Parade runs through every beginning of the year, and the town is decked with utmost splendor, Tea Rose replaces the fountain in the center of the tea room with a huge tree that graces the ceiling. Large poinsettias cover the base and the walls are decked with lights and garlands. Many families in the area make their Christmas Tea a yearly tradition. Every time I go in for a visit I'm so happy to see the friends and family sharing tea and conversations. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy to somehow be a part of this. 

Seasonal; treats come out this time of the year. The newest addition is the Chocolate Peppermint Cupcake. Finally! A holiday treat for chocolate lovers!

The famous treat that people look forward to is the Eggnog Mousse Cake. It's so light and delicate, much like a traditional Coconut Cake without the coconut shavings but replaced with thick eggnog custard. 

Another thing that comes out this time of the year is the Christmas Tea Blend. I love the bits of peppermint leaves with citrus and spices. There's also a little bit of rose in it, which is a trait with most of the mixed blends and the Tea Rose Garden.

Something new this year, which is my doing, is a new Tea Blend! Grace, the owner, asked me to try my hand at selling some of my tea blends at the shop. My debut flavor is the Winter Garden. I wanted this tea to reflect the frosty cooler side to the season. To keep with the Tea Rose Garden themes I wanted it to feel like you were walking into a garden in winter. The high notes that I chose were Cranberry, Clove and Sage. After notes I added were the light taste of Plum, Lavender, and Bergamot. Its been a hit so far, something I've been really proud of.

Helping out at Tea Rose has been taking up most of my afternoons these days. I'm glad I got to share this with those of you that have been supporting and reading this blog. Hope you're holiday doings are wonderful. 

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