“Are you kidding? People are THAT lazy that they can’t even boil their own eggs???” I scoffed when the bf brought a bag of this back from Grosvenor Market, the closest grocery store to us.

“Just try one,” he says, shoving an egg in my face. Full of contempt but equally curious, I take it.

It’s dry and rubbery. Definitely no match for fresh, hard-boiled eggs.

***

But later that evening, I find myself creeping over to the fridge to snack on another of those ready-made eggs. And I’m excited to see a new package of these eggs when we’ve eaten up the last packet. They really are very convenient and a filling, low-calorie snack. (Just don’t eat all the yolk if you’re concerned about cholesterol.)

Guess I’ve become a lazy, can’t-even-boil-my-own-eggs person now.

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The first time I heard of soul food in the seven years that I’ve lived in the States was on Disney channel, three years ago. (Yes, my inner kid occasionally enjoys Disney channel.) You know those “filler segments” that air in-between shows? This one I watched  had teen Disney stars talking about their favourite foods. When it was Raven Symone’s turn, she said, “I cook a lot of souul food!”

She made it sound so enchanting that I made it a mental note to try real soul food sometime. Today I had that chance. I’d bought a Trubates deal for $20 worth of food from Oohhs and Aahhs down on U Street in the D.C. months ago and it was set to expire today. On chilly day like this, it made sense to get some grub that would be good for my soul

For anyone who’s never heard of it, soul food is traditional African-American cuisine. You’ll find foods like fried chicken, fried catfish, ham hocks, collard greens, mac and cheese, yams and corn bread, just to name a few. Before I braved the trip on the District’s ever-unreliable Metro service, I wanted to know in advance what to order at a place I’ve never eaten at before. So I looked up Yelp! reviews to see what others recommend at Oohhs and Aahhs. Read more »

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Contrary to popular opinion, pet cats aren’t just for lonely little old ladies who sit on their front porch in a rocking chair all day, sipping iced tea. They are great for just about anyone looking for a laid-back little animal pal.

I never had that pleasure when I was growing up in Malaysia. During the ’90s and early ’00s, pet cats weren’t that common in most households. And my mother, well, she just couldn’t bear the thought of having an animal plant its’ dirty paws on her leather furniture or scratch it to bits. So all I ever had was goldfish.

Now that I’ve had Schubert, (adopted from the Montgomery County Humane Society in Rockville, Maryland) a domestic gray feline living with me for a year and a half, and seen what his personality is like, I’ve realised how many  myths there are about cats. Read more »

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Remember the commercial for Chia Pets with that ridiculously annoying “ch-ch-ch-chia” jingle? While it stayed in my head, it sure didn’t make me wanna rush to my computer and order one. But after the 2008 elections, they came out with a “limited edition” Obama Chia pet that my boyfriend thought was too awesome to pass up. Soon, we were in possession of the chia pet and trying to figure out how to grow it.

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