#self care projects

[travelingbytastebuds]

SOUTH KOREA WHERE: A South Korean restaurant in Williamsburg, Virginia I wish I could remember the name of... On the very cold day of February 10, 2018, when the Winter Olympics were being held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, I decided to try my very first South Korean meal. I was on a bit of a foodie kick since it was only a few months since I first signed up for the Universal Yum Yums monthly country snacks subscription boxes. Back then I had a tradition of experiencing the home country's food on opening night. So that night I had mandu, bulgogi, kimbap for the first time from a little South Korean restaurant in Williamsburg by where my friend lived. It was all yummy!! The mandu were the first of many different dumplings I would try during this project, the bulgogi was soft meat that seemed to melt in my mouth and the kimbap was very similar to sushi.  That night, my belly full of delicious food that was strange and new but delightful. Having just broadened my horizons, I decided I wanted more of it! I sat down that night and went through every single country of the world, searching for restaurants in the area I could go to-- expanding my search, seeking out new recipes to try, making lists and collecting data to chart the brave new worlds of ethnic cuisine. I eventually downloaded an app to stick a pin in all countries I had eaten from (and went over my memories to see which ones I had already accomplished-- I think I was only at about a dozen in total that first night, but now I'm up to 90+). I had goals and I was not going to stop until I somehow had tasted something from every single country in the world! I'm not sure when I landed on the name Traveling By Tastebuds, but I know for certain that South Korea was my entry into the huge world waiting for me and almost 200 different adventures I would eventually partake in. This project has spanned many years and it is still going. There are stops and starts, obstacles like the pandemic making it unsafe to eat out, grief like when I found out many restaurants go out of business within just a few years of opening, pushing past boundaries into new territory like planning trips I wouldn't have taken had I not known of a rare out-of-the-way restaurant, learned how to research better and how to take better notes (the notes in the beginning are not that carefully done), people I've met along the way and all the different flavors of life and food nibbled along my travels.  I won't be able to travel to every single country out there in my lifetime, but I've taken some amazing daytrips to visit restaurants that serve that culture's food.  These trips are pretty fun and eye-opening. I've met immigrants from all over the world who have come to this area to open these showcases of their home's cuisine. A lot of the places have trinkets and museum-worthy pieces from their home, it's like they're trying to build embassies to places they used to live in. As an expat from NY to Virginia myself (after losing my family to several deaths), talking with these people is really amazing, we kind of have a connection of this feeling of losing our families but coming here and starting again. I connect to them in ways I really haven't connected to anyone else around here in a long while. They always have wonderful stories to share if you're willing to listen. For some of the smaller countries that wouldn't have whole restaurants to them, I have started researching and cooking meals from these countries while watching documentaries on YouTube about them. It's getting me to cook a lot more these days and try my hand at creating dishes I never would have made before. Being someone who has dealt with a lot of depression before, these adventures in cuisine are one thing I can live for right now. They've also helped me get over my pandemic fears of eating out again. Can't be so anxiety ridden when there are new worlds to discover, you know...  But this, all of this, came from the night this food tasted so delicious and the experience was so fun that I need more. Thank you, South Korea! ALSO.... WHERE: Universal Yum Yums Subscription Boxes Just a quick note to show off the two South Korean boxes curated by the Universal Yum Yums Subscription Service. One of them even came with chopsticks!

[thepassioncrisis]

The Konmari mind

Okay so I've had an idea in one of my stress fueled writing sprints and I'd like to share. You know how it's possible to declutter a house using the Konmari method? Well, I figure I can do the same thing with my mind, because it's getting so cluttered up right now and needs some emptying. So I've applied the Konmari method to my journey and I plan to enact it in the next couple of days. I might elaborate on some of these or give you updates on how it goes.

P.s. if you don't know what the Konmari method is, just open Netflix. Or read the book. Or, you know, Google it.

((*the brackets talk about the step in relation to the original Konmari process))

Attitudes and values ((clothes))

It's good to start with finding out what you most value in life and get a better understanding of who you are, before you can work out what adds value to your mind. Do you value creativity? Honesty? Friendship? Write down your three key values to carry through the rest of the process

Personal projects ((books))

For me, I always have a lot of personal projects going on in my life. Novels I'm writing, embroidery projects, language learning (why else do they call me thepassioncrisis?) Sometimes they can get a little overwhelming though, and it's good to take stock of what you've got ongoing and whether it adds value to your life. If it doesn't, finish it to the point you feel you need to then thank the project for the journey it's taken you on.

One of my favourite books Big Magic talked about how to control the amount of project you've got ongoing in a similar way. If you don't have the space or energy to take on an idea that comes up and probably never will, or it doesn't add value to your life, then you can't enter into a creative contract with it. You must thank the idea for asking your time and then send it on its way to find someone new. I strongly recommend you read the book, especially if you are a creative too.

School/work ((papers))

This one can take up a whole lot of space in your mind, especially if you're preparing for exams. There's an awful lot of content you're going to have to remember, and sometimes that's exhausting.

Obviously, there's not much you can do about it if you need this knowledge, however you can make it easier to manage. By working out what you need to know exactly and for how long, you can gain a lot of insight into how to make the problem smaller. You don't even have to memorize the information yet to do this, just make the amount a little less overwhelming. It's a great feeling to know you won't have to keep the information forever.

Komono ((komono))

As it is in home curating, this section is for the miscellaneous items. Birthdays, memos, lists of ideas for gifts and balloon animals alike. Set a timer for 10 minutes and jot down everything that comes into your mind, then organise it into your planner, to do lists, bullet journal, whatever you need to.

Memories ((sentimental))

If you're anything like me, your head is bursting from memories of childhood, and you're constantly afraid to forget them all. I keep a collection of memories in a concept I call my memory jar. Some of it's in song form in a Spotify playlist, some in my journal. At the end of my process I plan to spend a lot of time writing out all the memories I can think of and organising them into some kind of system to keep, perhaps in its own personal notebook. Perhaps I'll share some here. I think it would be super cleansing to get all of that onto paper.

...

So anyway, that's my Konmari mind, I'll keep some updates coming about how that's going. Feel free to take part in it yourself, be sure to tag me if you do! Go spark some joy!

[barryallhen]

hey guys !! I’m looking for people who would like to create a sort of group where we can support each other on different projects, like eating healthier, exercising, starting to read again or anything else. Sometimes it’s easier to realize these kind of projects when you have someone else to do it with you ! If you are interested, please send me a message so we can work something out ! Also don’t hesitate to share this post 😊

[chthonic-cassandra]

Here's to setting goals for how much I am going to write each day and actually stopping when I reach them, instead of pushing through and working late into the night and burning myself out. (Especially when the things I'm writing about are intensely emotionally taxing.) I really hate that culture in academia/college where everyone boasts about how many all-nighters they pull and how much they overwork themselves, it is absolutely horrid.

[chthonic-cassandra]

Cooking Experiment for Today: Coconut Bread

Coconut bread/loaf cake from this recipe. This has turned out marvelously - gently sweet, delicate, and perfectly textured. It would be probably be yet another perfect afternoon tea recipe. Lighter in consistency and easier to eat than zucchini or banana bread, but also filling. Definitely, definitely recommended.

[chthonic-cassandra]

Cooking Experiment for Today: Cucumber Sandwiches

While I can cook fairly elaborate meals with some planning, I don't do very well at managing consistent, everyday meals, and am always looking for things I can easily make and encourage myself to eat. To that end - cucumber sandwiches. I followed the recipe in the Alice's Tea Cup cookbook, which adds a handful of watercress to the cucumber and asks that you cream your butter with chive and lemon zest. This worked wonderfully - the resulting sandwiches are light and flavorful. Though this isn't an ideal meal for me (no protein), it's delicious and easy to make and I will definitely be trying to make cucumber sandwiches a regular part of my diet. Eating them also makes me feel quite Victorian - between these and my unending scone baking, I am just endlessly preparing for hosting an afternoon tea.