Harder and harder!

One day until I flight back to Shanghai! 😆 So excited!!! I go back every 4-5 months and I don’t usually get so excited about it. But this time maybe because I’m really tired (this semester was intense) or because I can’t wait to show the gifts to my loved ones, or for whatever reason, I really am! 😀 This also means, 1) trying to focus on work is getting harder and harder. (yes, unfortunately I need to work until the last minute or even on the flight 😦 ); with an 99% empty fridge, 2) figuring out what to eat also gets harder. But… whatever… I’m leaving in 24hs!!! 😆 Hace you noticed my excitement and happiness??? 😆

Remember J&J challenge? Well… I’ve been slack… sorry 😦 Work has been my life lately… culinary adventures had to be put on the side. But yesterday in order to find something to eat and use whatever I had… I made

J&J #20 @Eat Clean Cookbook: corn pudding

modified version. Ingredients:

• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• 1 egg (last one)
• 1/4 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 cup cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup soy milk
• 1/2 leek sliced and cooked with 1 tbsp olive oil
• S+P+Nutmeg

Bake at 350 F for 30 min and broil the last 5 min.

For dinner I made tofu burgers

and a stir-fry of romaine, bamboo and onions. (fridge 100% empty)

Okay. Need to get ready for the last 24 hrs:

• packing
• manicure/pedicure
• go to school
• meet with advisor
• meet with a friend
• figuring out what to eat with 100% empty fridge 😯

A fun day ahead! 😉

Q: Can you sleep on flight? If you do, any trick? My flight is a long one, 14 hrs (one of them) and I usually can’t sleep on flight, which is sooo annoying!!!

A life experience!

This post is self-served! Not a foodie post.

There are too many things/people/ideas/theories/discussions to “digest”!!! I’m overwhelmed.

Our Presentation went EXTREMELY well, discussants and the rest of the audience received it very well and were really nice to us. In a normal conference, there is at least one ugly or unfriendly question about the presenter’s work to show off, but we got none! Although the presentation part was short, just 20 min, split between my co-author and I, that 10 min was a life experience for me. I had the biggest figures in Economics, both in policy and academia like Robert Hall, Kiyotaki, Daron Acemoglu, Mark Watson, John Taylor, Gregory Mankiw, Julio Rotemberg, Robert Barro, Robert Gordon, Lawrence Christiano, Frederic Mishkin, Jordi Gali, Michael Woodford in my audience. I had them listen to me for 10 min, an opportunity that I’d never had (and maybe probably won’t never have again) if it was not because of my co-authors Carmen and Ken. I wasn’t nervous at first, but just a minute before it was time for Ken to pass the microphone to me, I was shocked, I finally realized what I was about to do. 😯 But I didn’t give myself time to react,  I suppressed the feeling for that 10 min, said what I had to say and it was over. The second challenge was the last minute of the presentation, when two discussants discussed our paper for 20 min each and then 30 min for Q&A. While Carmen was answering questions/comments, Ken passed me a paper saying “I think you should say something too, it’s good for your image”. My first reaction was NO, I can’t handle it more. But I replied “OK!”. I gathered the remaining courage and did the conclusion at the end! I was feeling UP-in the AIR! 😀

Unique life experience indeed. Even if in the future I end up doing something not related to economics, I can proudly say my career as an economist had a glorious peak! 🙂

My speaker look at 8AM

And exhausted at 3PM!

I laid down for an hour before reunited with my co-authors for post-presentation discussion and then the formal dinner event! 😀

It has been a long day but certainly a DAY TO BE REMEMBERED! 😀

J&J #19, first 10k & destiny

Okay, it’s official! I’ve completed the first 10k in my life!!! 😆 Here’s the route map (I saw it in someone’s blog, can’t remember who was), it’s cool, isn’t it?

okay. before you ask, am I training for a race? NO!!! Am I running everyday or so? NO! I just run for fun, mostly spontaneous decision to have a mental giveaway, to enjoy the weather, to be more outdoor. 🙂 I am really enjoying this! oh… and I think I’m doing well too. The last time I talked to my guy friends (one of them run races), I told him that I’d do 8 km in 40 min, he was amazed! Yesterday, I did 10k in 50 min. Not bad right? I might actually run for a race, again JUST FOR FUN! 😆

Destiny? Yes, yesterday two things happened.

#1 remember my car accident last year? yesterday the agent called me to let me know that she’ll send me a check with additional $1500 as compensation for …. (I can’t even remember). A normal person would get excited for the extra $$. But I wasn’t excited at all, not for a second! 😯 $$ seems to be just a number for me. I know that it can “buy” some happiness, but.. no excitement was my first natural reaction.

#2 I went to a conference and when the speaker showed puzzles (about the economy)? I was illuminated!!! My blood flew faster, my HR got up, I could felt excitement in me, EVERYWHERE!

So, my destiny is to do RESEARCH and NOT BUSINESS! 😉

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J&J #19 @Eat Clean Cookbook: egg strata

Ingredients: mustard, S+P, italian seasoning, soy sauce, olive oil, minced garlic

mozzarella, chicken breast (grounded), egg white, onion, soy milk, egg, bread

Method:

• cook grounded chicken with olive oil, garlic and italian seasoning, S+P
• in a bowl mix: 1/2 cup egg white + 1 whole egg + 1/2 cup soy milk + soy sauce + mustard
• bread as the bottom later, cooked chicken second and top with chopped onion and the cheese. Pour the liquid, cover with foil and freeze overnight.
• next day: bake for 1 hour at 350F.

It’s a protein powerhouse, and tasty too! 🙂

Q1: Have you found your (professional) destiny?

Q2: If you’re a runner, why you started running?

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Chobani @The Candid RD