you can't make this stuff up

Last night, my neighbors (who happen to be a frat, judging by all their wooden Greek letters nailed onto their wall) had a HUGE party that was also SUPER loud. Their drunken singing woke me up in the middle of the night, and after unsuccessfully trying to go back to sleep for 10 minutes, I decided to wake up and tell them to shut up. I pounded on the wall a few times, only to hear a "knock knock, who's there" mockery chant back at me. Christine was awake, too, upset at their volume level (which was a reoccuring problem last semester, too). My hand hurt from pounding, so I kicked the wall instead. I could hear one guy trying to tell people to be a bit quieter, or maybe I was only pretending I heard that. Either way, we decided not to call the cops, and I went back to sleep with their loud drunken voices as my background.

When I woke up this morning, I went to the bathroom only to see the door closed and this sign posted on the door:

STOP. DO NOT use the sink. Our neighbor's VOMIT-filled sink flooded into ours @ 2AM. Called Stuy and they sent a handy man who couldn't do anything. The stuff from the sink is on the tub.

Nancy or Jane, can one of you call Stuy to send a plumber ASAP? I'm not sure when I will wake up (stayed up until 4AM disinfecting after he came by).

Btw, if you see Wesley in the AM, it's b/c I called him (in case trouble started next door).

Thanks,

CKim

AGGHHHHHHH. WHAT THE FREAK!!!!!!!!

I didn't dare open the door to see or smell what monstrosity lay in that sink, so I went the morning without peeing, brushing my teeth, washing my face, or putting in my contacts, only to rush to school in the middle of a blizzard. At school, Jane had informed me that Stuy couldn't get us a Plumber b/c of the weather, and she actually ended up cleaning it herself!! She took paper towels and scooped out the vomit into a bag and threw it away. "It was probably the grossest thing I had to do" - Jane.

Wow. My roommates are heroes. Cleaning the bathroom at 2AM, emptying out a vomit-filled sink. They're really taking one for the team!

After coming home, I looked into the sink and the sink had actually filled up again with water and remnants of the vomit because every time our neighbors turned on the water, it would come into ours and clog. I went over next door, knocked on the door, told them the situation about their stupid party and stupid vomit, and demanded that they clean the bathroom and pay for the plumber. They felt sorry (ha.) and came over and scooped out the water+vomit remnants into the toilet....but Jane had already done all the dirty stuff!

But seriously. Lessons of the day?

1. DO NOT VOMIT INTO YOUR SINK. Throw your junk up into the toilet so you can at least flush it down!

2. If your neighbors are punks, just call the cops. Maybe if the party had been broken up earlier, that person wouldn't have been throwing up all night and we could have all gotten a bit more sleep and a little less trauma.

3. Jane and Christine are my heroes.

my kind of wedding cake....NOT

Allow me to introduce you to the "Croquembouche" (literally meaning 'crunch in the mouth'), a very classic French dessert that is used as the centerpiece for weddings, banquets, first communions, etc. It's basically a tower of cream puffs that have been filled with pastry cream and coated with caramel and lots of other goodies. You serve it by breaking off the cream puffs to give to the guests. We coated ours in cocoa nibs, pearl sugar, coconut, and ground pistachio. It's glued together with caramel and decorated with more crazy stuff, usually nougatine (almonds in caramel) or like in ours above, some piped choux decoration. We literally spent most of the day assembling this thing as a team. As you can see, my partner and I are psyched. . . . haha.

Yeah... Kinda ridiculous? I think so.

anyone order for delivery?

I'm glad there was a box of leftover pizza for Dan to take home...

"There's absolutely no way I can hold this without looking like a delivery boy!"

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

not our own

For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

Romans 14:7-8

心想事成

Yay for snow day! Not only did I get to take a break from classes and take a breather, but I finally got a chance to call my chef from Taiwan and catch up with him. (yay for cheap Skype calls!) He had tried calling me before, but because of the 13-hr time difference, he always ended up calling while I was in class.

Although class was superrrr fun and exciting when I first started, this past weeks' classes have been a lot tougher. Maybe it's because God really is trying to humble me, maybe it's because we move at a much faster pace now, or maybe it's because the "honeymoon" feeling of culinary school has worn off and I now realize that this is still school with grades, pressure, deadlines, etc. In any case, it's been a rough start to the week.

Talking to my chef was really good. He told me, "It's okay if you don't always do well all the time. Just take things slow. Make sure you have a plan of what you have to do before you actually start anything, otherwise you won't succeed. Remember to keep a happy attitude at class or work. Be more joyful. This way, your work won't feel like such a burden. And as for the hours you have to put in every day and the strain that it might put on your friends and family -- you get used to it. You and your family. It'll all be okay in the end. Don't worry so much! Don't be so nervous. Just stay happy and remember to take things slow. You're in no rush for anything. Put your mind to it, and I know you'll succeed.

"Also, most importantly, don't be afraid of suffering or hardships."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Just don't be afraid of it!"

And finally, it made sense to me. Why should I be so afraid of going through hardships? As I think about class, work, life..., I guess I realize that hardships are and will be part of the whole package. God tells us to endure hardship, to rejoice in suffering (Heb 12:7, Rom 5:3), and for a good reason. It does build discipline, character, perseverance -- all things that are good to have. So for me, the (constructive) criticism I receive or mistakes I make will only help me learn what it takes and how to get to that point where I can be a better chef, student, person... Without making those mistakes, how would I ever learn and improve?

He ended the conversation wishing me a happy new year and "心想事成" which, badly translated means "may what you think about in your heart come true", which though may just be another line you tell people after 'happy new year', is a challenge and an encouragement for me to keep persevering, through hardship and all.