Flying Bento Box

This is an essay I wrote for a writing course during my third year at university. Parts of it are truths and parts of it are fictional but that doesn't really matter because the message, the meaning behind this is important.  Women. Strength. Confidence. and Beauty. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~             I was four years old when I first wore makeup. “Look how beautiful you were!” my mother said. She showed me an old, slightly creased photo. In it, a bewildered little Vietnamese girl stood next to an untamed rose bush, holding a giant red rose.  Perplexed, I studied the picture a little longer, a little closer to make sure she was really me. She had a pale, white face tinted with slightly pink blush on her plump round cheeks. Bright red dainty lips completed the image—a true, living doll. “She can’t be me,” I thought.   Growing up, I was quite the tomboy. I ran wild like the wind, laughing ...

I feel like we've lost ourselves. All those products to clear away all the dirt on our skin, then to moisturize  because the last product stripped off the natural oils, and then on top of that, only to layer it with separate oils from a bottle. And what if you got acne? That means you must take extra good care of your skin, spend all your money and effort to get rid of the pimples on top, and obsess over your red bumps: touching it, looking at it, squeezing it, covering it with layers of make up to seem "normal." Because the flawless skin you see on T.V., in the movies, or on YouTube is "normal," right?  Let me tell you, I've been an acne sufferer for 12 years. It started when I was in middle school; my first self conscious moment was when my friend pointed out the gigantic volcano forming on my nose. I went home that day and popped that thing like no tomorrow (still have a scar from it too) and from that day on, I found myself standing in front of the mir...

So I've been a real health nut lately. I once craved chocolate cakes and pies but now, I crave vegetables and cherry tomatoes. Yep... Salads. Lots of salads.  I have gigantic salads 1-2 times per week in order to use up leftover fresh vegetables and fruits in the fridge before they go bad. Here's one with leafy green lettuce, carrots, sugar snap peas, cherry tomatoes, navel oranges, black plums, apple slices, walnuts, gouda cheese, and also baybel cheese. Seriously. The salads are up to 500-600 calories each! I love them... especially with juicy fruits. I've learned that to make spinach and greens less "dry," you just need to add fruits to them, especially fruits with high water content! No salad dressing needed. :) Here's one with lots of black plums from my backyard tree.  Now what is this?? Ever tried a wrap made out of nori, lettuce, red bell pepper and carrots? Extremely high in nutrients and they are so yummy! I eat it with a ...

Protein : Sweet and sour pork stir fry with red and green bell peppers and onion; Vegetables : Stir fried veggies, steamed broccoli, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, steamed snow peas; Rice : Tanuki onigiri (white rice mixed with bits of fried batter, green onion, and soy sauce). Protein : Salmon again! Seriously, I love salmon. This one is honey-soy sauce baked salmon;  Vegetables : Steamed broccoli, cherry tomatoes, cauliflower buffalo bites (yum), pumpkin, edamame, and sliced red bell pepper; Rice : Brown, short grain onigiri and wrapped in nori. Protein : Salmon! Vegetables : Broccoli, Cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, kabocha pumpkin, edamame beans, and potato-carrot salad; Rice : White, short grain mixed with furikake and wrapped in nori. Protein : Salmon;  Vegetables : Baked asparagus and rainbow carrots, heirloom tomatoes, pickled radish, kimchi, and grated daikon radish seasoned with ponzu sauce;  Rice : White, short grained and topped with chia seeds (t...

Well, it's certainly been awhile since I posted. A lot of things happened recently and I've been feeling stressed but that didn't stop me from making bento! I've just not uploaded them yet. Here's tomorrow's bento. I'll be having an outside "picnic" type of hangout with my co-workers; a rare occasion but I always look forward to them.  The other day, we all were invited to the 23rd floor of our workplace building for a small party celebrating the promotion of our department's head. There was a balcony on that floor and oh my gosh, the view!! My co-workers and I spotted what looked like a small garden on top of a car garage building so we decided to have our picnic there! How exciting!! I'm always looking for new spots to enjoy my bento lunches. :D Proteins : Pan fry Salmon Vegetables : Pickled radish, Hijiki and carrot salad with a purple carrot piece carved into the shape of a flower (<3), Mini heirloom tomatoes (red and ...

This time, I used two separate boxes.  The cloth I used to wrap up my bento is really cute, isn't it!? Perfect for summer time~ I love mixed rice! For this bento, I already had pan-fried salmon so I flaked a piece up into tiny bits and then mixed it with cooked rice and nori seasonings. It was delicious! My other favorites include adding soybeans, mixing it up with boiled egg yolks, as well as cooking the rice itself with chopped carrots and peas and part soy sauce-water mixture. There's tons of variations out there; why not try spicing up your own rice in your bento next time with these variations!? That being said, in this bento.... Proteins : Salmon, mayo-tuna mix, kimchi clam stir fry Vegetables : Kabocha pumpkin, cauliflower, broccoli, cherry tomatoes, snap peas Rice : Short grain, brown, mixed with nori seasonings and salmon Dessert : A slice of a ripe plum and sweet simmered beans

Don't know if you could see it but the dried fruit is between the orange slice and the beans. Dried fruit = instant dessert. My dad brought some home from a recent visit to Vietnam. Not very good for your teeth but they are just too yummy! Enjoy~!! Proteins : Pan fried salmon (non-salted), Braised white fish (very salted), Boiled egg with yolk. Vegetables : Steamed Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cherry tomatoes, a Sugar snap pea, Potato salad (cucumbers and carrots), Pickled ginger, Soybeans, Simmered kabocha, Lettuce leaves. Rice : Short grain, brown, mixed with half of a boiled egg yolk and nori furikake seasoning. Dessert : Sweet simmered beans, dried fruits (jackfruit and mandarin), and a navel orange slice.