And so I sit here…

It’s 3:02AM EST time and I’m sitting here watching tv marathons and movies on iTunes and Netflix.  I just finished off a bowl of homemade nachos and guacamole and I’m about to go warm up some more spicy pulled pork I made earlier.  Has this become my life?  This could be the wine talking, or the wandering mind thinking… but this is definitely not where I thought I would be… a year ago, two, three, five, ten? What has happened?

It’s funny how things work. Weight gain made me sad. But I gained weight cuz I’ve been happy. But the weight gain makes me not want to move… so while I eat less, I move less. I’m still not happy with my body. But that could just be my eating disorder talking.  Always in recovery, never fully recovered.

You guys have been with me through so many ups and downs and yet you remain loyal.  So much gratitude.  Love, lust, heartbreaks. Breakdowns and highs. Parties and mournings.

The past year I have been basically mostly living in Taiwan and I’ve forgotten my love for cooking, almost.  I stopped caring a lot about things I used to be so passionate about and I have no real explanation for it… but it’s recently sparked up again.

I cooked duck the other day. And today I had a pulled pork burrito/taco night with pomegranate guacamole, spicy mango pico de gallo with roasted garlic and corn and an extremely spicy salsa verde… along with some yummy gooey blue corn chip nachos.  I started to feel alive again.  I started a cooking idea journal/notebook again…. mainly b/c I was planning to cook for C on his birthday… and while things got in the way, I still got MAD IDEAS to play on.

SO…. I have ideas of doing supper parties.  [And have talked with a chef friend or two about doing pop ups] – I want to, once I move out, host supper/dinner parties, first once a month, and then possibly once a week.  People can BYOB and tell me their diets…. or just leave it up to me.  Hopefully soon after team, up with chefs and cool wine people.

I have so many ambitions and ideas… I want to write, I want to travel, I want to cook, I want to go back to school…. and I want to film it all. I have a secret thing about wanting to be in front of a camera.

So maybe this is how this blog is evolving.  It went from food diary to healthy eating and recipes to eating out and traveling extravagantly …. and then just personal…. me finding my inner peace…. healing and now this.  My lifestyle. Ever evolving.

This blog is now: Finding the real Miss Tiffie.

Please join me in my journey.

Best Vegas Trip Ever… the Day of Britney!!! [Day 2 – Part Day]

WTF we woke up at like 8am!!!!!  Probably the one and only time we did the entire trip. Probably because we slept so much the day before…….. I guess normal for me since it’s 11 on my East Coast.. but Kelly?! I guess for work?!  We got pretty  and decided to go out for some FOOD.

Yeah I’m dressed as a 12 year old in a ballet skirt and sneakers… and BRITNEY tank!!! YAYYYYYYYYY

UM….. Lobsicle sounds gross… I bet it’s delicious… like a lobster corn dog… but the name sounds disgusting…. deep fried happiness. I love lobster.

We decided on La Salsa Cantina… cuz margaritas for breakfast is BOMB.

It was early so we didn’t want breakfast so we had to wait like 20 minutes before they served NON-breakfast menu… I seriously thought it was already noon but it was still 10am so we ordered the margaritas and had to wait til 11 so we could order lunch.  We got our margaritas and I made friends with Zoltar the fortune teller…. who told me to stop talking so much hahahaha…

I got a watermelon, Kelly got a strawberry, both super sweet amd super non-boozey..so I got us more tequila shots. OBVIOUSLY.

Margaritas for breakfast?! It’s how we do!

We wait we wait we wait….. amd them FINALLY WE GOT TO ORDER. STARRRRRRRVED!!!!

FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD

Nachos with extra cheese.. why didn’t get get nix the sour cream? We both don’t like sour cream….

Kelly’s Enchiladas – which she finished later in the night after Britney & Light while I was passed out hahaha…

My “Spicy” Shrimp Taco Salad which was TOTALLY NOT spicy at all.  I even asked the waitress what their spiciest food on the menu was and they said THEY DIDN’T HAVE ANY! WTF?!?!?!… But it was fresh and yummy…

And then I realized we were right next to the Club Tattoo SO OBVIOUSLY… I had to go….

ME: “Do you think they do walk-ins?”
KELLY: “It’s Vegas.. they bank on bad decisions”

Thanks but the butt shot Kelly…

I finally got my champagne heart bubbles tatt I wanted… and it came out EXACTLY the way I wanted it to look YAY.

And was photobombed by the cute tatt artist I wanted to tatt me…… but couldn’t cuz they go by order… but I got the cute asian chick :] YAY And he chatted with me the whole time.

TWICE!!!! He was adorable and told me that this was a horrible tatt to get for when I go to Rehab. THANKS DUDE. Hahaha… Photoooooobombbbbb

And then after…. I found this… HUMP HUMP

And more HUMP… so we got 42oz dildo drinks with extra shots… [ DUH ]

Walking back I saw a guy dressed as Britney Spears… at the Britney Spears place… YEP. A GUY.

NAP TIME

Ok done with Nap. Time to get pretty……. while we order dinner…. burgers and fries for both of us….

I already picked out my Britney and Light Night Club dress…spiked ballerina dress :]

Almost ready….

Time for more bubbles.. not even sure how many bottles I ended up buying this trip…. just bubbles for FOREVER… We went thru at least TWO a day…. at LEAST

Me and my Asian Doll Twinsie

And then after room service… I think we got Burgers… we went to Brit Brit.. ended up pretty much in the front….

Continue to read about Britney Spears: Piece of Me Vegas Show

Delicious Mandu with the Boys

W and I met up at Mandu with B for a nice chat and dinner the other night…

Yogurt Sojutini

We got some pork and chicken tacos to start. YUM

Despite the hot weather, for my dinner I got the:

yookge jang
thick spicy soup w/ beef, scallions, egg and bean sprouts

W got the spicy pork —
dwejee bulgogi
grilled marinated and spiced pork, served w/ rice and mixed vegetables

Both were delicious and we devoured instantly.

We were given a lot of ice cream mochis in four flavors for our desserts.  Red Bean, Green Tea, Mango and Black Sesame. YUMMMMMM

After we headed to a wayyyy over-crowded party at American Ice… so after staying for a drink we were off to Brixton’s rooftop. A lot more relaxing and a few buddies dropped by. YAY. FUN NIGHT.

MixTec… mexican for dinner.. why? Cuz I’m lazy

Stomach still sick from the day before. Although Pho helped…

Quite a story.. it all started with making clam chowder the day before. Or wanting to. So today I said let’s cook. W wanted pizza earlier after batman so I said let’s make it. aking pizza fresh turned into buying frozen pizza.. turned into buying roast chicken and clam chowder to buying Roast chicken from … and then maybe Gyro.. to MEXICAN! Cuz I love soup, and I’m lazy.

Sopa Azteca

tortilla soup made with tortilla strips in tomato base chicken broth with cheese and fresh avocado.

Vegetarian soup with chunks of avocado, melted cheese in a tomato broth with tortillas melted in.  I’m pretty sure the black soft rings were Pasilla peppers. MMM. – which is common ingredient in this soup.  It was delicious but the tortilla and the heavy amounts of oil from the cheese made it a bit greasy and too much for me.  I actually don’t like tortilla and bread softened and melted into my soups so I’ll probably just stick to the yummy Consomme Ranchero – freshly chopped onions, cilantro, shredded chicken and rice in a light chicken broth and ranchero salsa – that I’ve gotten a few times.

My lone Grilled Fish Taco
Came with a light mango salsa… scallions, cilantro, tomatoes.. but the fish itself was bland and a bit too fishy… def not fresh.. and I swear it wasn’t grilled.. def lightly breaded and pan fried… meh – Lime, guac and hot sauce didn’t help it.. good thing W ordered a lot.

Chicken Quesadila

Beef Quesadilla

Both served with Pico De Gallo, Guacamole, And Sour Cream :] BOTH were bigger than the size of my head – just one piece filled us up.  I was a trooper and tried to eat more too… #BURST.

We both got some Jarritos, Mexican Soda.. but they don’t have my favorite, Guava, so I got lime and W got Fruit Punch. YUM

Bunny Cooks Piggie for Grumpy Bear

After a yummy filling Korean Brunch and going to the grocery store to complete my shopping list of things to make the yummy pork we got…. I started prepping making my salsa verde, roasting and of course braising the pork.  We didn’t get pork shoulder so I used a ham hock and a pork loin.  Which was nice since one was leaner and one was fatter MMMM – I started pretty early… cuz I’m super paranoid, but then again we didn’t get to eat til about 9pm anyways.  Which is fine, cuz inbetween I watched Friends with Benefits, some teevee [W got me hooked on Big Bang Theory SO FUNNY] ANNNNNND I got two new piercings :D WEEEEE

Piggie a la Bunny

The beginning….

I used Red Stripe for the beer element, also drank some :] TEEHEE

ALLLL DONE and ready to shred!!!

Dinner is served.  I made a Habanero Corn Mango Jicama Salsa, my spicy Salsa Verde and W made a yummy Guacamole.

Bring on the piggie!

Me being a ninja and taking a picture of W taking a picture of the food.. again.. I’m a creeper

Taco #1

Great Night, Great Food, Great Company……

And then there was the tequila… which led to midnight shopping at CVS… which led to this….

BWAHHAHAAHHAHA…

CHEERS to being a Tourist, the Aquarium and Sharks game!

After a long crazy night of Teenybopper Party cooking, lap-dancing and partying….

The next day we headed into town for a day of being a tourist with Kelly :]  First stop?! Faneuil Hall…. and why not be SUPER touristy and eat at Cheers!!! Hahaha…

So much flashes…

Kate ended up giving me a caffeine pill which I chased down with Dunkies’ Iced Coffee SOOOOOOO… on an empty stomach?! By the time we got INTO town I felt like I was on CRACK. I couldn’t stop moving, shaking and I wanted to puke.  Hence, NEED FOOD ASAP.

1/2 off Mozzarella Sticks thanks to FourSquare WOOHOO!

Kelly’s everyday face! We were good and drank water… hahaha no booze cuz of too much from last nite lol

My Grilled Chicken Taco Salad

Grilled chicken, fresh lettuce, tomato, peppers, cheese, guacamole, salsa and sour cream served in a crisp taco bowl.

WEEEEE soooo much chicken…. I asked for not sour cream and extra extra salsa YUM!  TONS of fresh crispy veggies!!! Needed more lettuce tho… and chunkier guac.. I don’t like super smooth guacamole, it freaks me out…

Kelly’s  Cheeseburger

Fresh ground sirloin topped with lettuce, tomato, Bermuda  onions and American cheese on a toasted bun

Where do I even begin to say that Kelly inhaled this with 10lbs of ketchup on her ketchup on her food :] She loves ketchup.. you’ll learn more about that later on…

Mike’s *Special of the Day* Chicken Parm Sandwich

He claimed it was delicious and sandwichy and chickeny and parm-y… he hated it so much he licked the plate clean ;]

Kate’s Classic Caesar Salad Wrap

Crisp Romaine lettuce tossed with Melville’s secret  Caesar dressing, garlic croutons & Parmesan cheese.

She’s also pickle hoarding on her plate hehehe…. but she shared :] YUM! They tasted like fresh made.

Kelly loves her ketchup!!!! … on her ketchup!!!

We are dorks :]

We shopped around and then decided to gooooo tooooo….

Aquarium Time!!!

“OHMAHGAHHHHHH…SOOO CUUUTE”

Touch Tank – Manta Rays & Sharks

POOPING PENGUINS

Which one are you?

WEEEE SEA LIONS

SOOOO CUTE AND FUZZY

I iz big fish?!

“I want to eat you”

Lady next to me said “I agree, dried and salted” hahahahaha…. creepy

WEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Why you no call me back the next day?

SHARK!!!!!!

CHOMP

Walking like an old asian man :]

WEEEEEEEEEEEEE

We both have pink Tacos :] hahahaha…

And then off to Worcester for the Sharks game!!!!

FIGHT FIGHT

Another FIGHT FIGHT, 13 vs 13 hahaha

EATING HOT DOGS!!!! NOM

I bought all the girls scary clown pops

MOOOOON!!! Kelly’s Hubby #1 – she has 3 on the team!

and then I got Pretzel envy.. so CHOMP

Why you no love me Kelly?!

Yes, I still cook….

… and HE actually cooks for me too :D

Before the Valentine’s Ball we were going to eat Chicken Sashimi at Tori Shin… but then changed to Lure FishBar after some drinks there with Z’s coworkers… but the matre’d was kind of an ass to us [which sucks cuz I was craving their oysters I saw all over the resto] — first he promised us a table immediately than a half hour later we had to wait another hour for a table….. SO LAME.. but I did get a free deviled egg [CAVIAR deviled egg, super oniony] out of it while waiting for drinks at the bar. I said really loudly that I didn’t like deviled eggs so this guy offered me his… hahahaha and yes, it was TASTY :D But yeah… we craved raw seafood.. but decided to go search for other raw bars elsewhere……

We WERE going to go somewhere else… but then we passed by Dean & Deluca. <3

DONE and DONE.

Bone Marrow

Fresh Foie Gras

Gorgeous HUGE Bone-In Aged Rib-Eye [altho we got the bone cut out.. #cheaper hahahaa]

Champagne <3 Funny cork.. hahahaha…

HOT HOT HOT GRIDDLE

Seared quickly on both sides.. black&blue baby

Foie Gras…

Basically you cook foie gras like scallops [treat them as so] they just need a quick sear on both sides, they cook REALLY fast.. really easily.. SOOOO GOOOOD]

Whoops, so fatty <3

Dinner fit for two wolf babies :D

Peanut Butter Dean & Deluca brownie.. warmed in the oven and with BarkEater [toffee bark and vanilla] Ice Cream
It sounds better than it tasted… hahahaha but you know me I needed a little sweet in my life…..

SO that is how he won my stomach [I mean heart] over

And this is how I made sure he keeps me around…. ;D

So after some meh brunches… I decided to make it a taco night!!!!… so off to Whole Foods after brunch @ Public….

I made a buddy

Super cute VDAY cupcakes <3

BUT they weren’t as awesome as my VDAY donuts <3

Go Taiwan Beer <3

I’ve been promising him tacos for awhile now and he was sooo excited for them.. so I braised 4bs of pork shoulder, made spicy pom guac, spicy tomato/mango salsa and super garlicky salsa verde… he invited his sister over and we drank good red wine and Estrella Inedit [while watching the Grammys] all night long….

Taco #1 of many…. looks pretty now but got fun and messy… the jicama added a nice brunch in the taco and while we debated between whole wheat and corn tortillas [we ended up getting both kinds] my ww ones tasted SOOO much better with the tacos [I WIN!]

He liked taco night :D Score!!! I got a couple of more tricks [recipes] up my sleeve so hopefully it’ll make him stick around for awhile ;D

Z made me brownies… :D From the box, but FAT WITCH bakery brownies from the box :D… plus we added preserves in it…. He wouldn’t let me touch any of it… hahahah except help him melt the butter.. what a sweetie hahaha too cute – anyways after brownie fail from the other night [the PB blehtasphrobe] I craaaaaaved some GOOOOD GOOEY chocolatey brownies [we almost opted for blondies, but once you go chocolate……. yeah I duno I still like vanilla… and strawberry and banana… what DON’T I like?]

Me and his sis wanted it extra goopy…. so we got it EXTRA undercooked…

We ended up picking and nibbling and licking at the whole thing and adding this delicious mint chocolate chip ice cream with it :D NOMS!

Side EMO Note: To be honest… I really don’t like sharing a kitchen with somebody… I always heard that cooking with a sig other or a friend is fun, but I just get mad anxiety… This is probably one of the first times since college that I felt completely comfortable just us two in and out of the kitchen…. it was the same way when we were drunk and making pasta. I like to take charge and push everyone out but *sappy* Yea yea yea… :D I had lots of fun :] TEEEHEEEEEE*

Ok enough sappy talk :D Onwards to mooooooore writing

[btw if you can’t tell, I’m way behind in posts… but I’m really sick in bed…. so I’m just posting away all day…. Next up is some more NYC stuff and MIAMIIIIIIIII SOBEWFF’11 :D]