I am not ready to go home. I don’t think I’ll be ready for a while. And that in itself is kind of frightening. I’ve been having a few internal crises about being here in China. I can feel that I’m already…
"Where are you from?" and other hard questions
“Where are you from?” This is such a simple question — one of the basic questions I’ve been getting from every stranger I’ve met in Shanghai (aside from ‘are you a ginger?’ which I’ve been asked twice — two more…
Frat houses, America, and my downward-facing dog
It feels almost fitting that I will spend my last few days at Yale living in a frat house. So here I am, living out my final two nights in New Haven, sleeping on the fourth floor of ∑AE, which…
My life in two suitcases
I’m going insane trying to pack. When I found out a few weeks ago that United was going to charge me $100 to check in a second bag (seriously, who does that?), I took that as a challenge. Get 22…
maria and macaroni
I miss carbs. Ever since the gastronomical nightmare that was my last trip to China (thinking about all of the unidentifiable things I put into my mouth to appease old Chinese women still makes me cringe), I’ve been trying to…
Growing up
I’ve been thinking a lot about growing up recently. I am preparing to say good-bye to all of my friends, my family, and my life back in New Haven and it’s finally hitting me that I’m leaving in less than…
How not to cause an explosion, and other things about brewing ginger beer
Next time someone tells me home-brewing is easy, I won’t believe them. Home-brewing is hard. Really hard. I sort of want to gouge my eyes out at how hard it is. In theory, it seems like a breeze. Mix ginger, lemon…
Trains, planes, and the M60
Things I learn at 3:30am: I am not invincible. Biking to the train station with my carry on is, as predicted, an insurmountable task. I call a taxi to my apartment. The operator tells me one will arrive momentarily. Ten…
Mastering the art of light jogging
I hate running. I really do. Running is supposed to be so good for you, but if it is, why is it so goddamn boring? There is no feeling I dread more than starting out a run and realizing that…
Maldon Sea Salt and moving out
There’s a box of Maldon Sea Salt flakes on my spice rack. It’s had it out for me for years. It’s been nestled between a box of chana masala and bottle of Japanese sesame oil, starting at me. And…
(not so) Hot Yoga
Some things I’ve learned about doing Yoga over the past year Sometimes I think my yoga teacher thinks I’m a sociopath. I try to stop my face from showing the pain (oh, the pain) by smiling through it (which I…
Thoughts on the prune
I’m both enthralled and disgusted by the word prune. It’s one of those words that you want to have really dirty, secret sex with, and then never call again. Prune. Just saying it is making my face squish in a really…