Reflections and Images

A list of vegetarian Chinese dishes I cook (more to be added later on!): 1. Shiitake mushrooms and bok choy with vegetarian oyster sauce  2. Cubed tofu and soy sauce with Lao Gan Ma chili oil  3. Diced green beans with Lao Gan Ma chili oil  4. Cauliflower and soy sauce  5. Bitter melon and egg omelet 6. Snow pea and carrots with vegetarian oyster sauce  7. Persian cucumbers and scrambled eggs  8. Sliced Chinese yam  9. Stir-fried mung bean sprouts (light, sprinkle with salt)  10. Edamame and diced dougan 11. Tomatoes and eggs (scallions optional)  12. Lotus root and soy sauce with sugar  13. Zucchini, tomato, and eggs (alternative squash)  14. Celery and dougan 15. Diced potatoes and carrots (alternative slices)  16. Chives and egg omelet 17. Chinese broccoli and vegetarian oyster sauce  18. Sliced eggplant and Lao Gan Ma chili oil 19. Bell pepper and dougan 20. Okra and egg omelet  21. Sliced potato and green bell pe...

I probably said something similar to this on my previous blogs, but it is crazy how the school year is already over. My first year in college was very eventful, so much that I feel like the number of new things I experienced in this academic year was more than all of what I experienced in high school. I have changed a lot as a person in ways I never expected myself to change. Here is a list of random things I learned from my first year of college: 1. Buying 3M noise-reducing headphones is an excellent idea. Also buy a sleep mask!  2. Seek resources and help as early as possible. I regret not finding a therapist until mid-October.  3. You cannot keep repeating what you did in high school, which is studying the day before and still expecting to do well. It doesn't really work like that in college.  4. Save money because it will be beneficial in the long run. Walk or bike instead of taking the bus/subway. Cook instead of buying food from shops. Scour free or discounted oppor...

 I can't believe that today is the last day of classes and my first year of college is coming to an end. The school year was pretty eventful and there were many firsts in my life: first time traveling to NYC alone, first time attending BSO, first time trying a cannoli, etc. I am glad that I was very serious about ticking off as many of the items on the 101 Things to Do Before Graduation list that I received during orientation, though I still have some regrets.  My first regret is that last semester I got the BSO college card (MIT students pay $5 for the ENTIRE season) but I had issues with the website. The website interface kind of sucks and they don't recognize that you are a college cardholder until you log out and then log in. I gave up going to BSO since I couldn't figure out what the problem was until I attempted again during February and went to as many concerts ever since. Because I didn't go to BSO last semester, I missed out on a lot of performances that were p...

Sometimes, I want to just crawl into a metaphorical cave and not leave the cave. A situation like a coma that lasts for a few months and I wake up in a new world. I know that staying inside this cave won't solve anything. I will have the ever-growing pile of problem sets, midterms, and other assignments. I will still have a lot of knowledge hanging over my head like a cloud. I just want to escape from this constant cycle of misery in which everything seems to be out of control. It is hard to understand this situation until one lives through the situation. I mean the situation in which no matter how hard you try to pay attention in lecture and recitation, you still don't get anything that is happening in class. I mean how you stare at the problem set blankly for a long time and still not know what to do. I know that I don't have to struggle alone. There are resources out there like tutoring centers, office hours, and my peers. But I don't ask for help so I don't look...