Somehow, it’s July. Half of 2015 has gone by, speeding around the corner and disappearing out of sight. Somehow, half the summer has vanished, tucked away in the form of wedding photos and hand-written notes. To put it tritely, the past several weeks were a whirlwind. Consecutive weddings, engagement sessions, rehearsal dinners, client consults – everything that excites me yet simultaneously drains me. Finally, this past weekend, we were photo-free: on the weekend of July 4th, possibly one of the most festive, crowd-drawing holidays of the year. However, at the risk of sounding boring , we decided to turn down friends’ invitations to celebrate. It was actually our only free weekend until end of August. Sometimes I just have to take sit back and take a breather. Go to a place where all I can do is sit down, cuddle with my pup, and close my eyes. Most amusingly, though, we found a few friends who were also staying in the city and somehow obtained 3 racks of ribs and made asian-style oven-baked ribs. We threw napkins on the table and just used our hands to dive in. No stress, informal dinner. Perfect for this weekend. I had a lot of fun slow roasting ribs for over 6 hours and doing three versions: a five-spice rub alone, a spicy gochujang sauce, and soy garlic sauce. The sauces were inspired by Bonchon’s chicken flavors 🙂 and worked so well with the tender ribs. Would you be interested in a recipe for that?
I fall into this cycle over and over again. I start collecting stress like I’m foraging wildflowers – inhaling its essence, inspecting each one carefully, keeping them close and hoarding them like a special collection. Except I end up with my mind jumbled. Every incoming to-do or worry or event just hovers around me like a dark cloud. I need to remind myself to step back. To assess. To compartmentalize. To learn to prioritize and make more lists. To relax. I used to wake up early to do yoga, or go for a leisurely run with my dog (despite the fact that she is lazy and ends up slowing me down) and then brew some matcha or drip coffee for myself: a quite morning to cherish. I’m going to start trying to do this again. Mornings recharge me: a moment of peace and silent reflection to organize the rest of the day. They say breakfast is the most important meal, and I believe it is, for me. Not only for energy but also for a mental recharge.
I want to thank each and every one of you. When I initially started blogging, it was just to document my experiments in the kitchen. Somehow, this became… more. When you comment or send me an email to say hello, it truly makes my day. I’m really bad at responding, but please know that I read each word you write. And I smile, because what keeps me blogging is you!!!!!
le jus d'orange | food & photography 