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When I'm not here, you may find me wandering the pages below. (If I'm a regular visitor to your site and I've left your link off or mislinked to you, please let me know! And likewise, if you've blogrolled me, please check that my link is updated: thisroamanticlife.blogspot.com. The extra (a) makes all the difference!)

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Body: in sickness and in health

I won't lie; this body and I have had our issues with each other for many years. Body image -- sure. Physical and mental overextension -- comes with being a Type A kind of girl. I still struggle with these things, so they show up from time to time in my writing.

More recently, illness, pure but not simple, has added itself to the mix in a multi-system sort of way. And the challenges in figuring out exactly what's gone wrong are many. As problems have revealed themselves in the last few years, beginning with reactive hypoglycemia in late 2008, I've documented them here, partly to gain a little clarity on managing complex conditions but mostly to give voice to vulnerabilities I feel but don't normally share with anyone face to face. Better out than in, they say, right? (Oh yes, humor is one way I deal.)

The links below cover the different angles I've examined (and from which I've been examined) within that experience.

Travel: neither here nor there

When the person you're married to lives two time zones away, you log a fair number of frequent flier miles. And if you blog about commuter relationships, you log quite a few posts en route too.

Since we're no longer in separate places, I blog less often from airports. But we do travel -- together now! -- which is much more fun to write about. So in addition to thoughts on our years of commuting, the links below cover the places we've been as a pair and, in some cases, the adventures that have happened on the way.

Writing: the long and short of it

Why do I do it? Good question. Maybe it's not so much that I like to write but that I have to write, even when the words refuse to stick to the page. Believe me, I've tried doing other things like majoring in biochemistry (freshman fall, many semesters ago). Within a year, I'd switched to English with a concentration in creative writing and wasn't looking back.

After graduating, I taught English for a few years and then worked as an editor, which I still do freelance. In 2007, I applied and got into an MFA program at a place I like to call Little U. on the Prairie. I finished my degree in 2011 and have been balancing tutoring and writing on my own ever since.

The following links cover the writing I've done about writing: process, content, obstacles, you name it. It's not always pretty. But some part of me loves it, even when it's hard. And this is the result.

Heart: family and friends

I'd have a hard time explaining who I am without being able to talk about the family I grew up in as well as the people I've met beyond its bounds. But even with such context, it's not easy! In the simplest terms, I'm a first-generation Asian-American who has spent most of this life caught between cultures. That, of course, doesn't even begin to describe what I mean to, but there's my first stab at the heart of it all.

That's what this group of posts is reserved for -- heart. The essential parts of my life whose influences I carry with me, for better or worse. The links below cover what I've written as I've learned how these forces work within me, for me, against me, in spite of me. They anchor me even as they change me, and they keep life interesting.

Recommended reading

What do I do when there's too much on my mind and my words won't stick to the page? I escape into someone else's thoughts. Below is a collection of books and articles that have been sources of information, inspiration, and occasional insight for my own work.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Buried

... but still here. Things have been hectic leading up to this month's trip to Almost Dr. Sis's campus. I finally flew out yesterday and am properly moved in for the next two weeks. It's cold and snowy (check out the crazy icicles outside the kitchen window!) but it is good to be with my sister.

The plan for the week: consult tomorrow afternoon, pancreatic function test Thursday morning. And then we wait for the results to determine how next week will go.

Meanwhile, Almost Dr. Sis and I are experimenting with new recipes. This one is amazing. It makes cauliflower taste like crab cakes -- but it's way less expensive to make! Note: the recipe at the link above does not include the capers you see below, but they are essential. Just throw in a few spoonfuls.


More to come. There's a backlog of stuff with photos to go with it, so you can be sure I'll get to it, even if it's in shorter-than-usual posts.

7 comments:

Good Enough Woman said...

I'll be thinking of you, CT!

This Ro(a)mantic Life said...

Thanks, GEW!

Anonymous said...

Good luck with the appts and tests. Recipe looks fantastic -- gonna give that one a try soon!!

This Ro(a)mantic Life said...

Thanks, Sherlock -- and we liked the recipe so much, we bought another cauliflower today :)

French Fancy... said...

Oh, you've got your test today - fingers crossed. I am glad you will be with your sister though.

Please tell us the cauli recipe,

Thinking of you

xx

French Fancy... said...

p.s. and now I know you are the one in the middle :)

This Ro(a)mantic Life said...

Thanks, FF! The link to the cauliflower recipe is in the text (should be green). Enjoy, if you try it!

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Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Buried

... but still here. Things have been hectic leading up to this month's trip to Almost Dr. Sis's campus. I finally flew out yesterday and am properly moved in for the next two weeks. It's cold and snowy (check out the crazy icicles outside the kitchen window!) but it is good to be with my sister.

The plan for the week: consult tomorrow afternoon, pancreatic function test Thursday morning. And then we wait for the results to determine how next week will go.

Meanwhile, Almost Dr. Sis and I are experimenting with new recipes. This one is amazing. It makes cauliflower taste like crab cakes -- but it's way less expensive to make! Note: the recipe at the link above does not include the capers you see below, but they are essential. Just throw in a few spoonfuls.


More to come. There's a backlog of stuff with photos to go with it, so you can be sure I'll get to it, even if it's in shorter-than-usual posts.

7 comments:

Good Enough Woman said...

I'll be thinking of you, CT!

This Ro(a)mantic Life said...

Thanks, GEW!

Anonymous said...

Good luck with the appts and tests. Recipe looks fantastic -- gonna give that one a try soon!!

This Ro(a)mantic Life said...

Thanks, Sherlock -- and we liked the recipe so much, we bought another cauliflower today :)

French Fancy... said...

Oh, you've got your test today - fingers crossed. I am glad you will be with your sister though.

Please tell us the cauli recipe,

Thinking of you

xx

French Fancy... said...

p.s. and now I know you are the one in the middle :)

This Ro(a)mantic Life said...

Thanks, FF! The link to the cauliflower recipe is in the text (should be green). Enjoy, if you try it!