Roberson Wine

Beauty and the Sleep

2015 - The year of Yummy Feed and new adventures

It's been a while since I last blogged on Blogger and I do apologise. Since my last post, a number of things have happened and changed, for the better.

2015 has ushered in a new time of my life - working adult life! So far so good and I do enjoy my job. But also, I've launched another blog called Yummy Feed. As the name suggest, it's all about food! My other blog Mini Adventures is more about my adventures home and abroad.

So if you have a chance, please click on the link and have a read of my other blogs :)

Timeout intern

For the second month of my internship in Beijing I was lucky enough to work at Timeout Beijing. Already an established and well known brand in London I was pretty happy and excited...minus all the mess with my internship programme. (which is a very long story and required numerous emails and calls).So at Timeout I was an 'editorial assistant' which meant I was helping out the editors with the website, blogs, errands, phone calls (Chinese and English) and transcribing interviews. The people were really nice and friendly. And because it was an international company all of them spoke English which made me super happy, especially after my last placement at IEEPA! So over my 3/4 weeks there was able to work on the website and both the Feb and March edition of the magazine!! Even though it was small, within the February issue I was give the small task to write about the XYZ cocktail. So outlining it's history, ingredients and where to drink it in Beijing my 400 or so words made it to the Food and Drinks section. Likewise for March, I was given another opportunity to put my name in the magazine but this time for the Mind and Body section. For this feature I was able to attend an aerial silks class and write about it. Seriously though, after three days my body ached from just a 90 minute class. It was a full body workout and I didn't even notice it until after. Just to think, this was my first class and all I did was learn to climb and do one move...once you become advanced your body and strength will be undeniably good. If there is a class in London which I can afford I will seriously consider taking part! So overall, my second placement was FAR better than my first. I was lucky to find this job and secure an internship with them. I feel truly blessed to have been able to go to Beijing and work. Not only does it look fantastic on my CV but it's given me an amazing experience, memories and friends!

Hello March

So it's the first week of March. Blossoms are appearing across London yet the weather still seems so erratic. Either way, I hope spring is around the corner...so new season, new start. And motivation to get a job or do something more productive. 

So it's been about two weeks since I've returned from Beijing. I miss it everyday, but I also enjoy being home. Lazing around, relaxing and meeting friends. I've allowed myself that time to also indulge in food. Food I had not eaten in China and I had been craving for a long time. Basically, anything unhealthy...especially a good old fashioned roast dinner!! But now it is time to detox properly and diet. So in comes the 5:2 diet plan. 

5:2 diet plan introduced to me by my sister seems quite possible. It's five days of regular eating and then two days of fasting or a reduced calorie intake of 500 for women and 600 for men. I usually tend to skip lunch or breakfast some days...so I think it is possible!! Just to boost the effects, exercise may be contemplated...or in my language a few spins on wii dance or wii Zumba. I'll keep you updated on how this goes.... Hoping it doesn't turn out like most of my diets. Usually, I start off pretty well but soon my diet becomes the "see food" diet and I just fall into bad habits....and eat whatever I see or crave. Bad. 

This time, I've got some more motivation....a holiday in the sun. More specifically, Thailand with the family!! Supppeeer excited!! I have over three months to send the pounds, wish me luck!!

Confused at how to use Blogger.

It's definitely been a long time since I have posted in Blogger. Looking through, my page needed refreshing and I've given it an autumnal feel, hence the background. HOWEVER, looking through my posts there is one problem - why are they in different fonts???!!

I'm very confused and frustrated. How on earth did that happen? Tis strange and now I get to edit all my blog entries so they can match...can anyone explain to me why this is and how I quickly change it?

I'm a lucky girl. A very special somebody designed and created me a little logo for my blog. However, I have no idea how I can use it as a header..for now until I discover how I'll post up his design :)

I love the little gift and heart...

Will I move to China?

*sigh*

It has been a while since I last blogged. Since I've graduated I haven't really done much but eat, sleep, watch tv and then start again. Perhaps it is the life? No worries, no responsibilities but on the down side I have £0 and money seems to be flying out of my purse..(metaphorically and literally as there is sadly a whole in it =| )

So far in my quest to realise what I want to do in life, I come to realise I still have no idea what to do with my life...the only thing I am sure of is that I hope to work in China for a year and teach English. Luckily enough, after months of persuading and pleading to my parents I think I can finally complete my application with Graduates2China. I just hope it isn't too late to find a great position and location with them. Considering that the academic year has already begun...well let's cross our fingers! Me not putting all my eggs in one basket also applied for the Generation UK programme with the British Council. Missing out on the teaching programme this one will allow me to work in China for 2 months in different industries like NGOs, Media, PR etc. So once I can get my reference from my professor I can finally send it off and head into the interview stage!! I'm praying that i'm lucky with them...if possible and if I am blessed enough I hope to get both! But that's just me being greedy...all I can do is prepare and cross my fingers!

An end to an era.

July 3rd 2013

I have officially moved back home to London, leaving behind numerous memories- the good and the bad.
Likewise, I leave a lot of items in the rubbish yet have managed to fill the entire boot and more of my parent's  Nissan Terrano. For those of you who know the sheer size of this car will have their mouth hanging open. BUT I have to admit, there was a freezer in there and also a bicycle. I have no  idea how my parents managed to pack all my things in there but they sure are miracle workers!!

But yes, I am now back home. It feels weird, knowing that I cannot just open my door and cross the hall to speak to my house mates. It feels weird not to be hearing the crazy screaming and conversations of them and it also feels weird that for the first time in 4 years I have to properly unpack, dust and rearrange the room I have not lived in for almost 4 years. Likewise, it is saddening that I know full well that I won't be driving up north in a couple of months :( but I guess it's the end of an era - end of my student life and therefore my entrance into the big working world ( a reminder I must actually apply to the jobs I have looked at).

But for now I want to live in the past, just that little bit longer.

Here's a little snap shot of our last night together at Kelso's a local club/ pub in Loughborough

Dinner with the bestie and bf- potentially the last meal at the best restaurant in Loughborough.

While we waited for the food to be served, we thought the best way to pass time was to take some funny pictures - well I thought it was and managed to spam up his photo gallery with my face 0:)

15 minutes later, this is what we devoured and loved. The food here is amazing, especially the desserts!!! 

Baby steps

Hello fellow bloggers and readers!

It has been far too long since I've lasted written anything for my blogs..it's really bad!

Well, my final year at University has just ended and I have no idea what to do with myself! I'm roaming around my house bored out of my mind, questioning what to do? Should I sleep? Exercise? Work on my CV? Look for jobs? The amount of time I have and the freedom should be making me happy but it isn't. I think in the back of my mind the one question that keeps bugging me is...'What's next then?'

What's next? Honestly, I have no idea! I honestly have no idea what I want to do with my life nor do I know what grades I will get at the end of the summer. I'm soo scared it's unbelievable...life of finalist right?

Final year has been something- full of late nights, lots of energy drinks and lots and lots of library visits. I will miss it. I am already missing it, if i'm truthful. I feel so restless, I feel like I should be revising or reading for an upcoming essay. BUT nope, I have no more essays to write, no more exams to revise for and no more classes to attend...I will strangely miss it. Just a tad.

But now what? What does someone do with a History and English BA?? (That's if I graduate that is..) - I can easily go into teaching I guess, but I do want to do something other than that..but what? I just keep looking on the internet and I feel my head is going to explode..so many options and so many decisions to be made...I kind of just want to restart my Uni life all over again and avoid ever looking for a job..doesn't anyone else? Maybe that's just be being a chicken of entering this so called big bad world of work. All I know is that I've completed my degree it's time to move out of Loughborough and move on with my life...baby steps.

Sunday..

It's currently 17:48 on a Sunday, which means tomorrow is Monday and the last week of term...

I find it so scary how one whole semester has flown by..that is 11 weeks have just disappeared in a flash. I question myself everyday about what I have been doing...I feel like I've done absolutely nothing at all. On a more happier note Christmas is around the corner :) the season to get fat, be jolly and spend time with the family!

Even though this holiday I will be working on my dissertation and essay I can rest in comfort I don't have a flight to catch like I did last year. I still cannot believe that this time last year I was in America, studying for my finals and  now I'm sitting in the  library at Loughborough. I find that the older I get the faster time seems to past...or is that just me being silly?

My goal for tonight is to write at least 1000 words for my chapter which means I have another 750 to go until my target is met.. Why on earth do I never learn, and why on earth do I procrastinate so much? I guess old habits die hard...

...

At the moment, it is what we call “dead week” where all the papers are due. However for me it was last week, where I had around 4 papers due in at the same time. But this also means that the final exams are only a week away, and I hardly feel prepared even with a prep sheet. Hopefully like last semester I will be able to pull through and get good grades! This Sunday will be the last shift I work and when I think about it I feel sad. I honestly cannot believe that my time in Purdue will be over soon. Friday will be the last classes I attend at Purdue and I cannot help but want time to stop. I cannot even pull myself to book my shuttle to the airport because I know once I do, I have to leave and my time here in the Purdue bubble will be over. When I think about my hesitation about Purdue last May I cannot help but laugh. This was the most life changing and valuable thing I could have ever done. The people I have met, the things I have experienced have all been worth it. I know I have made friends for life. Purdue will always be a special place to me.

Asian American studies

This semester I’ve been taking a module called “Introduction to Asian American Studies”. I choose this module because I thought it would be helpful to my dissertation and I was not wrong. Not only this, but I feel that it has also taught me more about my heritage and experiences other Asians have undergone. Although I am not personally an Asian American, the themes and issues that we have studied are all too familiar even within the UK. The stereotypes and generalizations that many have of Asians I have seen and been measured against. Even though I cannot expect people not to judge me for my skin colour, eye shape or even height I know they will. However, after learning about other people’s experience I think I can be more proud and confident in who I am. I have to say before coming to Purdue, I was not as interested in learning more about my Asian heritage nor have I felt so Asian in my life. But I feel that because of the people that I met here and courses like ASAM 240 I appreciate and value my Chinese heritage far more than I did in the UK.  For me “Asian America” does not have a specific definition. For me it highlights the umbrella of ethnicities, cultures, languages, experiences and stories that they have. Their stories of immigration, assimilation and more will have similarities to one another but each different and unique in their own right.

“I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.”
― Marilyn Monroe

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”
-Walt Disney

What's in a name?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."

So at Purdue one module I have taken is Asian American studies. I thought it would be highly informative and interesting to take and I was not wrong. Each and every week we're set a weekly reflection and this week I based mine on the film The Grace Lee Project (2005).

I personally found the documentary The Grace Lee Project (2005) humorous yet insightful. Considering the amount of people that share that one very name is astounding and it is understandable that the director would feel that she was not as special or unique as she had previously felt. I found it quite ironic also that all the perceptions of “Grace Lee” were all similar to one another. The Grace’s they knew were all “petite, smart, softly spoken, reserved and quiet” and I agree with the director when she asks if in reality they mean passive? For if she really was all of the above, why have none of them kept in contact with her?
During the discussion, one person asked if anyone disliked their own names...personally I can I don't dislike my names individually but together it is an absolute pain to write. My surname has three components plus my first, second and Chinese name makes six! Trying to learn to write this as a child was absolute torture!! It took me years to learn how to write Tseung. But I think what is more annoying is people miss pronunciation my name. Even though they don't mean to, I can't help but get irritated but its a daily feature of my life...and I know for sure other people experience this.

The question of what is in a name and if it defines your personality to an extent has truth. I personally think names have an influence on a person’s character. Even though my first name is Jessica and my second is Melissa, I personally feel more like a Melissa and have a stronger association/ connection with this name. Likewise in terms of surnames Lee seems to be a highly common name among the Asian community, just like my own. Sometimes I feel a bit too common of a name. I remember once when I told someone my surname was Wong, they’re reaction was literally, ‘Oh another Wong?! What makes you different to any other Wong I know?!’ Even to this day I feel it’s a very good question to ask myself. Out of the all the people with my name, what makes me stand out from the crowd? Will I blend in like Grace Lee and be known as the “petite, smart, softly spoken, reserved and quiet girl that always got good grades?” I would like to think I’m different than all the others who share my name, but who really knows?
Lee. G, (2005) The Grace Lee project, A LeeLee Films Production

"There is creative reading as well as creative writing."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Back to the cornfields

I have to say, it is well over due this post and I'm really sorry! Its been quite hectic since I returned to Purdue for the Spring Semester.

I knew when I went home for Christmas that coming back to Purdue would be different and I wasn't wrong. Firstly, a number of my closest friends were also international exchange students from Canada, Hong Kong, Taiwan and England. Not only did I appreciate the time I spent with them exploring and getting to know West Lafayette I also appreciated the fact I was able to be here for one whole academic year. I think if I didn't have this opportunity my time and experience here would not have been the same. By being here for one more semester I was able to take more amazing modules, meet new people, experience more of the erratic weather and even get a job!

Currently it's the last day of Spring break at Purdue. Although I wasn't able to do the stereotypical American thing and hit Miami or Florida I still managed to have a good break! Staying at Purdue allowed me to get to know the area more, explore and appreciate the "city" where I've been staying for almost a year. Even though it is small, it is a friendly and welcoming place that is easy to roam about. What helped even more is that the weather here has been amazingly HOT at 28 degrees Celsius! For March it is extremely hot and I can only imagine what summer will be like again..most likely 30 degrees or more just like when I arrived last August.

Today being the last day of break means its back to reality and the last hurdle of the academic year,  plus work! (I managed to get a job at one of the student restaurants and work night shifts which is only last 4-5 hours so it isn't as horrible as it sounds) I have to say, it was one of the best decisions I made here. Not only do I get to make some extra cash, the people that I work with are also students and they are amazing. The working environment is fun and friendly, so friendly that we even teach our supervisor (also a student) English Slang words and play pranks on one another. The people who work with me are mostly students and are in the exact same position as me. But what I find amazing is that many of them hold more than one job and yet still have time to study! I guess I have more to learn about time management ^^' !

Spring break also marks the middle of the spring semester which means my time here is almost over and dead week plus finals are fast approaching  :( I calculated that I have just under 7 weeks until I wave goodbye to Purdue. I honestly cannot believe how fast time has flown, I still remember the day I registered as a student and soon I will have to leave...but first I must survive the next few weeks before I even contemplate packing and booking flights to tour North America.

Luckily I finish my last exams early on the 3.05.2012, which means I have almost a month to explore America before I return home. I cannot wait to visit places like the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, LA, Washington DC, NY and Canada even though it will inevitably cost a bomb one thing an exchange student must do is T.R.A.V.E.L and E.X.P.L.O.R.E . I think those extra shifts and penny saving will be of use and totally worth it!

Weather in West Lala land!

Coming from the UK I'm pretty much used to the temperamental weather. One minute its sunny the next its grey and just about to bucket down with rain. I never leave the house without an umbrella no matter the season! However being here in West Lafayette or what has now become known as West Lala land, weather here is far more extreme and shifting than that of home. One person once told me that within one day, you can experience all four seasons!

14th November 2011, I experienced my first tornado! Here at Purdue if you hear a alarm sound outside you need to go in and head to the basement, if you hear the alarm from inside a building you head outside, pretty simple right? Well when I heard the alarm from outside me and my friend remained in our room believing it to be only a false alarm or  a test run =|  At this point in time I was preparing for my next class at 4:30 and looking outside the window it was ridicously windy, black clouds were apporaching and it had just started to rain! I did not want to leave my room at all!! It was only through Facebook I found out there was a tornado warning in West Lala land! Luckily enough my class was cancelled and I could watch the tornado pass within the comfort of my room :) (I should have really been in the basement though...)
15th November 2011, the day after my first tornado and the weather is sunny with blue skies yet a bit "nippy". Weather in this state and country is so confusing!

29th November 2011, SNOW!! Through the whole night all I could hear is the rain hit the windows...I thought great its going to be horrible tomorrow. When I woke up after 4 hours of sleep at 8am  it was still raining! After lunch me and my friend noticed it was raining hail!! How cold was it for that to happen? Within 20minutes it began to snow! I love it when snow falls and creates a white blanket on everything but I thought it was too warm for it to set....after my 1:30 class (about 2hours after lunch) it was still snowing and to my amazement it had set!! :) For many of my international friends this was the first time they had seen snow...some were happy others were not quite so pleased especially with their soggy shoes or boots! One thing for sure is that West Lala land is far more prepared for the snow that the UK..even though this is good, it means no more cancelled classes for a long time or if there is a mountain of snow, which is apparently a possibility!

30th November 2011, Can you believe that today is the last day of November? There are only 17 days left this semester - counting finals week! 4 months have literally flown by and thanksgiving break is a absolute 'tease'! It's just so close to Christmas I've become lazy and unmotivated yet this is the most important time of the year. The last push is always the hardest! Looking at the weather is a must here before leaving the room! What greeted me this morning on msn weather was 'Flood warning'. My face literally dropped =| but looking outside I see no signs of flooding...just yet.....

PISA

Since I've been here..I've joined this one group that I absolutely L.O.V.E!! It's called PISA (Purdue's international student alliance)
So what is PISA about...well according to them its about bringing people of different cultures together and teaching one another about each others culture and so forth...!

All the people in this group are amazing..so nice and so so friendly! I recently went away with them for a MT (membership training) weekend to a beach house in Michigan!! Can you believe it! AMAAAZING...it was here I was able to get to know these PISA lovelies better through games and of course parties with alcohol! Let me tell you..these people know how to party and drink :P But what I loved is that the weekend wasn't solely based on alcohol and parties...we went there to get to know one another and that is what we did. Seperated into two teams, Blue and White...we competed against one another in various taks such as tug of war, ball games..and blind mans bluff..! Oh and the best time won....Go white team ;)

With 42 people in one house..it was going to be from the outset a tight squeeze...3 to each bed!! But even though people  weren't going to get much sleep it didn't matter...the amount of fun memories that came to pass in this house was worth the sleepless nights!