Mt. Baldy

Yesterday, I climbed to the top of Mount Baldy.  The hike contained a 4,000 ft elevation with a total trek of about 8.5 miles.  I knew that the hike would be tough, but I had no idea what I was actually in for until I was about 9,000 feet above sea level.  I cannot explain how hard this hike was, but it was an amazing experience.  There were some parts of the hike, when I was climbing over rocks, that I felt like I was in the Parent Trap.  It was so much fun!  Too bad the whole hike was not like that; I would have appreciated climbing over rocks or walking on a flat surface.

Here are some pictures from the top of the mountain.

It was surprisingly windy near and at the top of the mountain.  It made the trek getting to and from the very top harder than if there was no wind.

I am thankful that the trek down from the mountain was easier than the trek up.  I was able to appreciate more of the views as I did not have to concentrate as much on where I was going.

The hike took a total of about 8.5 hours, and about 35,000 steps.  As a "reward" we went out for Handel's ice cream.  I got a milkshake: chocolate malt w/ caramel.

I definitely feel the effects on my body today, even after having slept for 13 hours.  It is difficult to sit down and stand up, but once I am walking I am fine.  Hopefully I won't be as, or more, sore tomorrow.

"The greatest feeling of accomplishment for me is the fact that I was an athlete who was somewhat disabled." -Bill Toomey

Quiet, yet busy

The last two days have been quiet, yet busy.  I understand that this is a paradox, yet it is true.  I have read three books cover to cover, enjoying the amount of time I got to spend pleasing myself.  I feel much more relaxed, not that I was ever stressed. 

I started my Sunday in the village, picking up some fresh produce from the farmers market before heading to Starbucks to work on my thesis.  An hour and a half after arriving at Starbucks, I had a complete draft of my introduction.  At the moment, I am working on edits and small additions before my advisor may view it.

I then sat by the pool, unfortunately leaving my favorite (and only) pair of sunglasses behind.  Kate Spade.  Needless to say, when I returned a few hours later they were gone.  This bit of news has been pretty upsetting; I still remember the day that my mother gave them to me in August of 2012.  For the moment, I am sunglass-less.  When I return home this weekend, I will pick up a pair of cheap ones from the stash in my drawer while I search for another perfect pair.

I do not have much of an update on lab, except that I LOVE WORKING IT.  I was nervous that this fellowship would not live up to my expectations, and I would have to figure out a new career path. Thankfully, the fellowship has not only affirmed my love of research and being in a lab, but strengthened my desire to earn my Ph.D. in Biology.

As it is late, I will skip talking about all of the yummy food I have eaten (turkey meatballs and matzo balls) and say goodnight.

"The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams"- Oprah Winfrey

Happy 1st Day of Summer

Today is June 21st.  That can only mean one thing: it's the first day of summer!

I have had a fantastic few days, and am choosing to dedicate this blog post to friends and food!

As many of you may know, my lab mates and I go to Starbucks during lunch on Thursday to chat with the cute Barista. This Thursday, I had a presentation for work (and it went EXTREMELY well) and we went a half hour later than usual.  Unfortunately, our cute Barista was not there.  We felt gypped. Moreover, the Batista who took my order spelled my name wrong.  Overall, we had a very unsatisfying Starbucks trip.

My labs faculty advisor is AMAZING.  On Friday, my lab mates and I were going to hang out and watch a movie after work.  Our advisor decided to give us all similar amounts of work in the lab so that we could leave early, giving us more time to bond.  We were very appreciative, and decided to take her out to lunch.  We ate at Pizza N' Such.  The pizza is amazing.  Per usual, I ate a few slices of meatball pizza!  

After work, we went to the Ontario Mall.  We walked into Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, and they had MINION MARSHMALLOWS and MINION APPLES!  In addition, we found a minion shirt!!!!  I went ballistic.  If you couldn't tell, I currently have an obsession with Minions!

However, I did not actually buy Minion items, or chocolate, from Rocky Mountain.  Instead I went to See's Candy.  If you have ever eaten a See's chocolate, then I know you will understand why.  Their chocolates contain a truffle-like mixture in the center to create a perfect taste.  Add in the sprinkles that they put on top of the Mocha and Chocolate Bordeaux, and it is divine.

For dinner last night, we went to Chipotle.  It was pretty good, but a little spicy for me.  I ordered my bowl with the corn salsa, and I find that there is an extra kick in the salsa that I do not enjoy.  That being said, it was nice to eat Mexican food, as I have not had it in months.  We took our food to go, and ate it outside in the village while listening to Dogs (a band) play cover songs.  We saw our lab advisor, and it was great to see her having so much fun!

This morning, my lab mates and I decided to go on a hike to a small peak called Potato Mountain.  To prepare for this semi-gruesome hike, I made chocolate chip pancakes with extra chocolate chips.  This definitely helped us prepare for the 1.7 mile trek to the saddle.  The hike is mostly uphill with very few patches of shade.  When we found shade, we took a break to drink some water and catch our breaths.  I became tired pretty fast, not used to the 1,000-foot elevation climb.  Once we made it to the saddle, we decided not to continue to the peak due to our fear of bees.  The next portion of the hike, which is about a half mile, contained a bee farm.  However, the views were spectacular from where we stood.

I found this hike to be pretty hard, and on Friday Keck Science is going to climb to the top of Mount Baldy.  That consists of a 4,000-foot elevation gain in approximately 7 miles.  Needless to say, I am worried about that hike.  However, I am still going to go because it will be an amazing experience and will definitely teach me my physical limits (which I am hoping allow me to climb to the top).  Don't worry about me however, as I am going to pack loads of water, food, and sunscreen. :)

After we descended Potato Mountain, it was around noon: lunch time!  One of my lab mates decided to teach us how to make wontons!  It is pretty simple:

-wonton wrappers

-pork

-soy sauce

-water

-chicken broth

1. Mix soy sauce, pork, and water together.  I unfortunately don't have quantities for you, but you can always season it to taste!  Make sure you add plenty of water though, as the pork will become dry(er) during the cooking process.

2. Take a wrapper, and put some pork in the middle of the wrapper.  Dab one corner of the inner wrapper with water, and fold over.  Then dab the outer portion of a different corner, and fold over so that they look similar to below.  

       *You can fold the wrapper however you would like as long as the pork does not look like it is not going to fall out

3. Place in a pot of boiling water.  When they begin to float, you can transfer it to a pot with warm chicken broth.

In addition, I decided to bake cookies this afternoon.  I made peanut butter chocolate chip cookie bars with Speculos cookie butter.

-1/2 cup unsalted butter

-3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

-1/2 cup granulated sugar

-1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar

-1 egg

-1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

-3/4 teaspoon baking soda

-1/4 teaspoon salt

-1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

-1 1/2- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

-1/4 cup Speculos Cookie Butter from Trader Joes (optional; may be substituted with Nutella)

Direction:

-Blend butter, peanut butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla together until smooth.

-Add baking soda, salt, and flour in small increments beating well after each addition.

-Add Speculos Cookie Butter, mixing so it is lightly distributed throughout the dough but not fully mixed in.

-Place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

-Add chocolate chips and mix by hand (at this point, I over mixed the Cookie Butter in to the dough and decided to garnish the top of the cookie bars by melting peanut butter and drizzling lightly over the top.  Another good option is to put the chocolate chips on top of the cookie bars).

-Place into a cake pan.

-Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F for about 30-40 minutes.  I baked it until the edges looked crispy and had a darker brown color.

If you would like to make cookies, then roll the dough into balls, and place on a greased cookie sheet.  Using a fork, press down on the balls to create a crisscross pattern and bake for about 7-10 minutes.

*Recipe adapted from jamieanne.

"Laughter is brightest where food is the best." -Irish Proverb