Ithaca Through the Seasons: Fall 2018

One last fall in Ithaca, and the leaves didn't disappoint. 

Autumn Portraits: Liz

Minutes before class started, I asked glanced over at my buddy, Liz, and asked sheepishly, "Hey Liz, do you want to do a little photoshoot with me? It shouldn't take more than 15 minutes or so..." 

60 minutes of fun and 100+ photos later...

Smitten Kitchen's Oat and Maple Syrup Scones with Maple Almond Butter Drizzle

My mom taught me to never show up empty-handed, so when the Eggleston's invited me over, I knew I needed (and wanted!) to bring something to show my appreciation. 

Sunday Dialogues: On Becoming

Looking into her eyes, I tighten the arms wrapped around my knees. Her hair got longer and the creases on her forehead have deepened, but little else has changed. No... She hasn't changed at all. Seeds of betrayal and disappointment sprout; my heart recoils in disgust. After everything you've been through.

For Your Eyes: Reading List Recommendations

Autumn Portraits: Michelle

 

The winter of my sophomore year, I could barely bring myself to return to Cornell. "Dear God, please send a friend, a real friend." Mom probably prayed more for that than I did. I was too sad, bitter, frustrated to think any solution could make Cornell better. "I'm not going to give you just any friend," God said. "I'm going to bless you with a hilarious, kindhearted friend who will walk all the way to The Space for a lecture about sustainable agriculture (and back up Cascadilla with a backpack full of groceries), accompany you at your first Cornell Cinema movie and Men's Harvard Hockey game, delve into deep discussions about faith and nutrition, keep you accountable, draw out the inner parts you hide, take genuine interest in you, walk with you in nature and in life, share housemate struggles with you, and let you take photos of her." How I wish everyone had a Michelle in their life! 

Autumn Colors at Taughannock

As cliche as "Ithaca is Gorges" is, this shamelessly echoed saying is based on pure, objective fact. 

Pumpkin Streusel Coffeecake (King Arthur Flour)

A little treat I made for my parents when they came to visit in late October.

Ode to Autumn: iPhone Photo Journal

Autumn Portraits: Sean and Emma

Monday October 8: I had the pleasure of spending golden hour at Beebe Lake with my buddy Sean and his girlfriend Emma. These two were a dream to shoot with! Sean and I met through our dietetics class, and we quickly realized we both frequented the gym in the early am hours - seriously, if you need to meet some nice people, go find a transfer nutrition student at the gym! There's more of us than you realize ;-)

XXI: Molly Yeh's Funfetti Cake

All I needed for my 21st was some red dye #1 and strawberry frosting. And no, I didn't eat all of it!

Sunday Dialogues: Gracious and Just

Lately, growing in Christ has felt a lot more painful than I'd like it to be.

Home-brewed Kombucha

I have a thing for fermentation projects.

The Knoll

I warm my hands around my St. Petersburg mug, steaming with tea, and pull to tighten the blanket cocooning me. The early chill of an autumn morning graces us, and I couldn’t be happier to be bundled up in my favorite Princeton sweater. The grey-blue skies tinge the distant forests and mountain ranges blue. Today, Cayuga is still. Acorns crack and ricochet off the roof to the patio...or to my head. Amidst the chirping of a bird and barely-audible hum of cicadas, leaves rustle from the intense chase between squirrels and chipmunks. Just before, a nutbrown deer meandered through our backyard and into the dense woods. Right now, a chubby groundhog furrows his head in our lawn. He stops, notices me spying from the edge of the deck, and dashes away. I’ve been calling him Dale...

Life in the woods. Life at the Knoll. Life in the mountains.  // 9.8.18

Ithaca Through the Seasons: Summer 2018

Our first month of the fall semester proves that life isn't all dreary and grey here, though a lack of air conditioning during a heat wave requires us to pick up a whole new set of survival instincts. Here's to the summer green, too many mosquito bites to count, and maybe a few days foreshadowing the sweater weather to come!

David Leite's Chocolate Chip Cookies

- Hey there! I've posted a new chocolate chip cookie recipe inspired by some of the things I liked from David's. You can find it in The Cookie Chronicles. -

From Levain's mountains of gooey goodness to your mom's homemade cookies afterschool, there are a million and one ways to bake chocolate chip cookies. Each recipe caters to a unique preference! How do you like your chocolate chip cookies? 

My requirements for the perfect chocolate chip cookie are:

1. Slightly crisp at the edges 

2. Gooey at the center when they're right out of the oven/chewy after they've cooled

3. Not cakey or puffy but not completely flattened and crunchy

4. Crackled and textured on the top. 

5. Slightly rimmed around the edges (you know what I mean)

SUMMER IN MY KITCHEN 2018 | a photo journal

Things I've cooked and baked that won't quite make it to having their own recipe post:

Mark Bittman's Bouillabaisse

A no-frills recipe to cap off the summer.

Sunday Dialogues: Ashes to Beauty

There is beauty in the harvest and in the anticipation of rebirth. -autumn

For God to help me feel Him filling up my heart, He has to break the bars I've built to protect it. Each bar that breaks exposes my heart, making it vulnerable to cracking. I am much more aware of the new crack left by a broken bar than the ones that form gradually over time. I wait and watch as He fills it, just like He's done with all the other cracks I've forgotten about. I take notice and feel His sufficient power. While He continues to expose my heart, He also makes it vulnerable enough to soften. 

New York Minute

Sunday morning, en route to Sarabeth's Central Park South.

One day. 

An apartment on the upper east side, near the hospitals - one of which I'll be working at, with pediatric and immigrant populations. The credentials of a registered dietitian and Spanish medical interpreter. Lazy Saturday mornings spent in Central Park, after stopping by a greenmarket. A corgi and an Australian/German shepherd mix I've adopted (it'll all be just for a few years, because the dogs need more space). The peak of day spent lounging at a restaurant with outdoor seating, the perfect spot to fabricate intricate narratives of the people you watch. Running around the city, taking photos of strangers, because there are too many personalities to pass by. Sunset runs over a bridge. Somehow, I'll still end up in bed by midnight...

One day!