J.Crew Diversifies Summer 2014 Catalog!

When I was browsing through the J.Crew Catalog, I was really surprised to see an Asian male model for the Men's section. It's nice to see J.Crew being more progressive about hiring different races and ethnicities, effectively rejecting the unsexy Asian male stereotype.

look at that little eyebrow raise ;)

I was trying to look up who he was, but couldn't find it. So, who is this man? I guess there is a pretty great incentive for stores such as J.Crew to diversify their catalog. With still mostly white models, the brand extends their consumer base while retaining their original customers. With an awareness of this, I looked at LLBean's catalog and literally everyone was white. I saw one African American in the entire catalog and that was it. As an American brand, I would really think that they would try to at least embrace diversity somewhat.

Fashion often runs the fine line between celebrating different ethnicities and cultural appropriation/reinforcing stereotypes, but I think J.Crew does a good job in this instance. I would like to see more Indian or indigenous models in the near future, as they often get even less coverage in fashion and are more stigmatized in society. 

Super Lean and Green Smoothie

Health Overload

Green everything!

Ingredients

1 Pear (Bartlett)

1/2 Cucumber

1/2 Avocado

1 cup Kale

3 leaves of Mint

1/2 cup Water

1/2 cup Apple Juice (not exactly green)

and blend her up!

For more sweetness, add more pear and apple juice. I would add probably 2 pears next time, just to neutralize the stronger flavor of the cucumber.

What to do with Leftover Almond Pulp (No Dehydrating)

...After making homemade almond milk WITHOUT DEHYDRATING because it is such a waste of energy with that oven usage for little return.

Ah, my mom refuses to make any more almond milk until I can find a good use for the almond pulp that I have accumulated.

So I've gathered a few recipes that I could potentially use, aggregated from easiest to hardest (but they're honestly all pretty easy, I'm just lazy); 

Easiest

• Put a few tablespoons in smoothies and blend, adding to the texture. You can add it in with fruit, or make a Chocolate Banana Smoothie (bananas, almond milk, almond pulp, and cocoa - Credit to The Mama's Girls)

Medium

• Banana Almond Bread: http://the-salty-tomato.com/2014/03/banana-almond-bread.html

• Almond Cake - 1/8 C sliced almonds, 1/2 C margarine or butter, softened to room temperature, 1 1/4 C sugar, 1 egg, 1 1/2 t. almond extract, 2/3 C milk, 3/4 C dry pulp, 1 1/4 C flour, 1/2 t. baking powder. Mix the sugar and butter first, then add in liquid ingredients, then mix the dry ingredients in. Grease and flour the pan, pour in and sprinkle with the sliced almonds. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. (I don't see why the pulp needs to necessarily be dry at the point where you're adding watery ingredients like eggs and milk. Credit to The Mama's Girls)

Hard-ish

• Chocolate Chip Bars - http://thevegan8.com/2014/02/18/almond-pulp-makes-the-best-chocolate-chip-bars/
• Raw Carrot Cake - http://websta.me/p/466449715970575257_297930129#GXttKHliLsYFKGSw.32

Young Che Guevara Portrait

Loved this photo of Che Guevara. He has the most intense eyes at 22.

WIP process, sketch out the most important lines and shadows.

I think the portrait is alright, but doesn't look quite like the original ): Perhaps if I extended his chin it would be better? Onto improvement! 

I should also stop drawing faces. I don't even like faces in art because I find most of them super cliche. It's like humans celebrating themselves! A face can only say so much. Gestures and animals are things I need to work on. 

Architecture Inspiration: Stone

Went on a trip to Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan, China last month.

Sedentary rock pattern good for enhancing texture for exteriors (or if you're daring, interiors!)

Pattern of large and small stone bricks on the little house to the left.

Strawberry Smoothie I

Been experimenting with avocados in smoothies.

Ingredients

2 Cups Strawberries

1 Avocado

1 cup Apple Juice

1/2 Banana

The color is a little funky (since mix of complementary colors red of strawberries and green of avocados), and a little too creamy (1 whole avocado is a little intense, I would probably go with some ice or something next time), but the flavor is quite balanced and good! It's not overly sweet and tones down the sourness of the strawberries. 

How to Make Wontons

My grandma taught me how to make wontons the other day! They're a bit intricate, but also fun to make, especially as a bonding event with someone else.

Aren't they cute?

Making the Filling

Ingredients 

Ground Pork

Rice Wine

Salt

Ground Pepper

Sugar

萁菜 （Qi Cai）or Bok Choy

Mix the Ground Pork and Rice Wine together and let it sit for a while. Then add Salt, Ground Pepper, and Sugar for taste, mixing it all together. Chop the vegetable in miniscule pieces (as small as possible) and mix it in with the Ground Pork.

Wonton Folding

Ingredients

Pork Mixture

Wonton Skins (Store bought, but I'm sure there are some recipes online)

Water bowl

Put about a 2 teaspoons of the Pork Mixture in the middle of the Wonton Skin. Fold Wonton skin from bottom to top (hiding the Pork Mixture), leaving a little gap between the edges (bottom edge should be about 1/2 centimeter lower than the top. Fold the top edge down to the bottom again and join the bottom corners, using the water as a "paste" to glue the corners together.

Making the Soup

After freezing the wontons for a while, and then boiling them in water, add them to this soup mixture: 

Ingredients

Premium Soy Sauce

Sesame Oil

Salt

Ground Pepper

Zha Cai (Preserved Mustard Tuber?) 

Hot Water

Joseph Bueys Portrait

Joseph Bueys.

German.

Fluxus.

One of the most unique faces I've ever seen.

Work in Progress.

More progress.

Final Product. Photo Enhanced and Sharpened.

Reference Image Here.

4B Graphite Pencil on Paper.

One Hour Fifteen Minutes

I haven't drawn in a long time, but through this experience, I realized that I like the act of drawing in itself, another addition to my intrinsically motivated activities. Hopefully this will let me know what I want to do in the future.

Architecture Inspiration: Alvar Aalto

Finnish.

Romantic Functionalism.

Aalto.

Curved ceiling design for acoustics. Municipal Library in Viipuri, Russia.

Aalto's own studio in his home. I love exploring how architects design their own houses. 

Aalto's self-designed living room.

Villa Mairea in Noormarkku, Finland. Simple design that is just so appealing. Love the black accents.

Baker Building in MIT. Actually got to live in here when I came to visit! I love the curves of the building, which create ample study/social space. The rooftop views at night are also gorgeous.

Experimental House. Interesting how they actually took the resources to make an experiment. Super avant-garde, but very beautiful. 

Municipal Library in Viipuri, Russia. These door handles are so beautiful! 

Photos taken from book "Aalto" by Louna Lahti. 

Homemade Almond Milk

After reading the article "Lay Off the Almond Milk, You Ignorant Hipsters" by Tom Philpott (See the article here), I realized that I was also drawn to these supposed magical properties of almond milk, shelling out a good amount of money for a jug. I am partly lactose intolerant (being Asian...it's probably more unlikely that you're NOT lactose intolerant), so when my friend introduced me to almond milk, I was literally overjoyed to see its high calcium and low fat content.

I guess the main takeaway I got from the article is that I was paying too much for literally just crushed almonds and water (with some chemicals). So, I decided to try my hand at making almond milk myself.

soaked almonds

The milk is ready!

almond milk and some almond meal on the side (after straining)

Ingredients

1 cup almonds

5 cups water (1 for soaking, the rest for the milk)

I let to almonds soak for about 12 hours (but in other recipes, I saw that only about 4 hours is needed). I put the almonds into a soy milk maker (an oddly specific device, I know) and let her rip with additional water. It was all ready in about 15 minutes! I then poured the milk through a strainer which separated the milk from the crushed almond meal. The result is a slightly cleaner tasting version of almond milk (which my family finished within a day!).

There aren't any stabilizers in this homemade version, so the almond milk tends to separate really easily. I'm not completely sure what I want to do with the almond meal yet, but I'll probably find some recipes online.

Another takeaway from the article was the water wasting properties of producing almonds. Although it's good for me to be aware of its ecological harms, I don't think it's effective for me to give up almonds or something in protest. With these things, it's better for some government intervention to help curb California's forever impending drought.

I've become really interested in making super basic ingredients/foods at home! My friend really inspired me the other day by making homemade butter, which I have yet to try. The idea of being able to control all parts of the process appeals to me greatly. Off to obtaining some heavy cream!

Facebook Newsfeed Eradicator

About a month ago, I decided to get rid of my Facebook newsfeed. I was inspired by a friend who had done so by "unsubscribing" to each one of his friends manually. I looked at my list of 990 "friends" and realized that it was an impossible process. Instead, I decided to google "how to get rid of facebook newsfeed" and this chrome extension came up called Facebook Newsfeed Eradicator. Not only does it wipe out the newsfeed, it also gives you a productivity quote to keep you going! It looks like this; 

Why did I decide to get rid of my Facebook newsfeed? Well, I realized that all I was doing was wasting time and experiencing a ridiculous amount of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). Facebook is for socializing, but all I was doing was looking at other people's lives, a placebo for real connections that I could maintain through technology.

Stephen Fry once said that "Technology is a mirror." for the skills and interests you have in real life and that only the intelligent can actually use technology to enhance their lives. For the rest of us, it actually has a negative impact on our ability to develop. I see this as mostly true, and I literally don't have the ability to not scroll through my newsfeed when it is offered to me. Subconsciously, I just fall into it and waste a lot of time. Now that I don't have it, I can focus on real communication on Facebook such as messaging or wall posts - I still get notifications that pertain to me, but don't have to look at things that have nothing to do with me at all.

I feel like there is a slight tradeoff because sometimes you don't know when a friend is in town, or miss a good opportunity to join an organization, but this literally happens so infrequently that it the time I save from not mindlessly scrolling through pictures completely outweighs, at least so far.

Getting rid of Facebook Newsfeed is I guess a "radical decision" nowadays, but it one that has really worked out for me. Now when I realize something is bothering me or making me waste time, instead of curbing the habit, it is better for me to completely eradicate it instead.

College Majors

I still haven't chosen my college major yet, but I keep reading articles that basically discourage anything that I have interest in majoring in...which is anything related to the arts and humanities.

I originally went in to college thinking I'd to an International Politics and Economics major with Studio Art as a minor, but now I'm considering Philosophy, Sociology and Architecture.

And then I see this...

Like, how are you supposed to randomly be able to switch over from being good at/enjoying photographic arts to accounting? I would think that there may be a small portion of the population equally happy in both, so they should probably default to perhaps a more lucrative major, but for the most part, all these articles keep recommending is like either Computer Science or Accounting and I hate those things.

I feel like I'm frustrated by these articles because I feel a bit stressed out about deciding what I want to do. I always keep wondering if I actually have an inherent interest in what I am considering (Philosophy, Architecture, etc.) or I simply like an isolated class that I have taken. It also seems like if I take any of these majors, I won't have a job or something, which, rationally is untrue. But even if it were, I would rather do something that I like than do something in pursuit of a job.

At least that's what my naive, yet to join the workforce, and idealistic brain thinks.

Watermelon Smoothie

Summer is so great for refreshing watermelon smoothies! It's often hard to finish a whole watermelon, but this will make them go surprisingly fast.

Luckily they're so easy to make.

Ingredients: 

1/4 medium sized watermelon

1 cup water

Cut the watermelon into little squares (try to get a little bit of the light green part of the peel!) and refrigerate for an hour. Take out and add water & watermelon slices into blender and go for about 30 seconds on medium~

Foodspiration: Pample Mousse

I just passed my driving test in Redwood City, California yesterday, so I've been around the downtown area a lot. There is one cafe that my mom and I keep going to...and it's delicious! It's called PampleMousse and serves some really gourmet soups, sandwiches, coffees, and cakes.

 

Turkey Brie sandwich - with a touch of arugula and cranberry sauce for some healthy and delicious lunch fare. 

Fig and Almond Cheesecake - another unexpected and inspirational combination! My mom ordered the blackberry chocolate cake (one the side) but we both agreed that the cheesecake was better (even though she doesn't even like cheesecake!). It's lighter than most cheesecakes, so it makes it much easier to eat!

I also tried the salmon sandwich and potato leek soup, which were both very good, although I liked the turkey sandwich a little more (the dash of cranberry and generous slabs of brie cheese made it pop!). I love the mix of everyday ingredients in creative ways - makes me want to experiment! The price is also quite affordable - my mom and I usually share 1 sandwich and soup which adds up to around $15 for both of us. Cakes are around $6 a piece.

Turn Off Pageview Stats!

I've finally found a perfect place in my life for blogging. It is for those moments in between what belongs in my personal journal (which I write by hand every few days) and formal essay writing. It documents experiences and things to remember, but doesn't include the clutter of specific names and ongoing internal struggles. The ideas here are more complete than my journal, but less formally written than essays.

That being said, I would like to develop an intrinsically motivated blogging habit, and I find my stats of pageviews very distracting! I realized that many bloggers become successful not because they wanted to become famous as a goal, but because they simply enjoyed the act of blogging. I find that this constant pageview stat blocks me from enjoying the act of blogging in itself and I should at least have the option to not look at it if I don't want to. I blog for myself, not for pageviews or others.

Like, obviously, people can say, "Just don't pay attention to it." "Stop looking at it." But it's always this huge image of it every time I try to write a new post on my blog! How am I supposed to not look at it at all? Feed into my counterproductive interests, present in human nature?

So, I have asked a question on Google Product Forums about a way to turn pageviews off and you can find the link here: https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!category-topic/blogger/how-do-i/c1Wt4RHQ_2A

I would really appreciate your support if you can help make turning off these stats possible in any way!

Green Smoothie Variation I

I thought I ran out of apples for my #greensmoothie, so instead of an apple, I put a nectarine in the blender instead.

and a more stylish/hipster glass
why are mason jars so versatile?

The result was a slightly tangier and sweeter smoothie (less thick too!), not too big of a deal. My mom hated the peach-apple flavor, but my grandma preferred it, so I guess it's up to your taste buds. 

Next stop...pears probably.

Art Inspiration: Satire

I think the best art induces a strong reaction from the viewer. Although most pieces in the Triton Art Museum event were good or fun to look at, they lacked a "shock factor" that drew me in. 

The few works that made me stop and laugh inspired me and made me think of the deeper message behind the image. Although silly, I think these pictures raise larger societal issues that we have.

This is a part of a larger piece by David Canavese (who is awesome and super friendly, by the way) compares the media to a circus. I love the juxtaposition of Osama Bin Laden and blatant sex appeal, as Mother Theresa looks on in the background. Genius. 

Aphrodite and the barbie doll. I keep wondering what caused me to laugh at this image. I guess the absurdity of the contrast between the supposedly epic/culturally significant/historic painting and the everyday awkwardness/cheapness of a naked Barbie was quite amusing. It's funny how our minds react and pick up so much information at the same time, yet we don't even consciously process much of these things. 

I've actually never made satirical art before. Perhaps now it's time to give it a shot?

Triton Night at the Museum

Yesterday, I went to Santa Clara's Triton Museum's event, Night at the Museum. There were pieces by local artists, live drawing/painting, as well as slam poetry readings. I had a really good time at the event because I felt like it really exhibited the best of the community. Artists had a time to show their pieces while residents had an opportunity to appreciate the talent all around us! This event really inspired me to pick up art again.

In high school, I did art very intensively, especially the last two years under the IB Art program. I feel like that really burnt me out for a while because it was so high pressure to just keep dishing out pieces in shorter and shorter amounts of time. Now, I think I'm ready to do some work just for pleasure. I'm also really getting into art that serves a greater purpose such as poster designing and architecture with a fine arts inspiration.

Some really detailed charcoal work

Portrait Drawing

Free expression wall! (Look bottom left for my geometric design!)

Live metalworking - They gave the cutest metal fortune cookies as business cards! Didn't take one - gotta be a good aspiring minimalist (: 

Me! Doing a dramatic reading of an excerpt from "The Land" by Mildred D. Taylor - I was a bit nervous but the audience seemed to enjoy it at the end. I did the same piece for a competition a year earlier, so I was able to practice a little beforehand. 

 

My watercolor quick sketch - complementary colors? My fave!

I would like to get to know these artists more. How did they decide to pick fine arts as a career? Why do they choose ____ style? 

It also opened up more philosophical questions about my art - whether sticking to one style is better than trying to break out of your shell and trying very different things...or if the message behind the art is more important or the aesthetic quality of it...what makes art significant...among other thoughts...

Green Smoothie

I've gotten addicted to making #greensmoothies! I think I freak out about half my friends by drinking this, but they actually are super healthy and taste delicious too. 

This is the current recipe I use: 

1.5 cups Kale

Half an Avocado

1.5 cups Apple Juice (Fresh Pressed - Don't use the fake stuff!)

1 Apple (sliced)

A Dash of Lemon

Put all these ingredients into a blender, and leave it in for about 1.5 minutes at the highest power. (If you don't do it for long enough, there will be a lot of yucky fibers, so your smoothie will be chewy). The end result will taste mostly like apple juice, with the texture of a smoothie. I find that the lemon really brings out the light flavor of the kale, making the smoothie taste much more complex. 

I want to explore more green smoothie recipes - do you know any good ones?