Caltech

Rain?

When I flew back to LAX this morning from Denver, I noticed something very strange. Mainly, that it was raining. That’s one of the wildest things I’ve learned about Southern California over the last year and a half. For as much as people talk smack, there actually is changing weather, and a fair bit of it at that. It’s usually very temperate in the winter (around 60) and gets somewhat cold at night. And sometimes it rains. So, I can’t... Read more →

There and Back Again – an Air Force Story

I’m back in Colorado!!!! *record scratch* *freeze frame* You’re probably wondering how I ended up here. It all started with two typewriters, a can of Chinese orange soda, and the inevitable feeling that something wild was going to happen. Well. Maybe not quite that. More like the fencing team had a fencing tournament at Air Force Academy that happened to be literally the week after I’d left Colorado. Air Force Academy isn’t exactly in the fun part of Colorado either:... Read more →

Reflections in a Tapioca Pearl

Break is over. And I’m not exactly sure how I feel about that. If you couldn’t tell by the last few VERY exciting blog posts, I spent my break sleeping, fencing, hanging out with old friends, and eating. Mostly the latter two. And especially on this break I drank a lot of boba. Unfortunately, I was unable to make my own because my dear parents use my tea container as a Christmas tree watering container. Notwithstanding that I left all... Read more →

Tea Time is for the Boys

Hello from the land of the frost! (Seriously! It was 7°F today). Besides dying of cold, I haven’t really been up to too much this week. Besides the fencing tournament and refereeing a different fencing tournament that is. But less on that, today we’re blogging about one of my favorite things: TEA! Except today’s tea was a little bit different: it wasn’t the iced milk tea you normally find me having. It was fancy tea: or, more properly, afternoon tea... Read more →

A Half-Baked Idea

Well. I didn’t spend this last week just sleeping and watching Netflix. I also decided to go on a wee bit of a food adventure. And by food adventure, I mean that it was time for me to rejoin the ranks of the baking elite, this time making everyone’s perennial favorite: fruitcake! Now I know what you’re thinking. You’ve probably had a fruitcake or two in your time. You might’ve thought they were disgusting. Maybe you think that fruitcake is... Read more →

Baked Good Extravaganza Part 2!

If you couldn’t tell by now, the one thing I really miss in college is my parents’ kitchen. Specifically, the ability to make baked goods. Although Caltech has ovens and the majority of cooking utensils one needs for most dinner prep, there’s a distinct lack of baking things. Like cake pans. Or pie tins. Or measuring cups. Or honestly pretty much anything else you need. If you recall my pie escapades, I ended up hand whipping meringues. You don’t exactly... Read more →

Yearly Traditions

Hey people! It’s been a little while. My computer started randomly crashing while I was writing hence a bit of a delay in all of my break posts. I think I’ve gotten it fixed now so it’s time to party! And by party, I mean write about what my family does for the holidays. And most of that, is food. We celebrate Christmas as a family and have some massive cooking adventures that go along with that because one of... Read more →

A Photography Adventure

Hey all, this is actually a post I’ve been thinking of doing for a long time. Why is it happening this week? Well, in all honesty, I’m back for break in Colorado and spent this week doing approximately nothing. Which is to say I’ve done a bit of holiday shopping, a lot of sleeping, and a lot of watching Netflix. Last term and the conference took a lot out of me and so having some recovery time has been very... Read more →

Finals Week (in DC!!!!)

I know in the past we’ve talked about my poor life choices and so it only makes sense that I’d one up all of those by spending finals week in Washington, DC. Actually, more properly I spent it in Edgewater, MD with my ex-roommate’s parents (who by the way are the best and opened their home to a practically complete stranger) and then drove in to DC (they also lent me my ex-roommate’s car? Seriously the kindest people). What was... Read more →

Afterglow – US Capitol/Smithsonian After Dark

Remember how I said we’ll get to Thursday? Well we’re here now. And ready to roll. I kicked the day off by going to the National Botanic Gardens. That was a pretty rad time. They have a lot of cool rare plants and a very extensive greenhouse. Plus, they had a lot of trains there for the holidays. I followed this up with a quick lunch at the Museum of the American Indian. It had changed a lot since the... Read more →