for your love of portobello mushrooms...



thanks again for visiting and i hope you had fun!
can't wait to make you the stir-fried udon that you love again!

♥

by request of the best friend, i offer up a few photos from Valete while on a short break from the 3,500 words between me and the arrival of the Muddership in 36 hours. should i really be taking this break?






so, i emerged briefly from this smog of panic attacks and too much school-work to dress up, doll up and go out. the theme of Valete was Vanity Fair. after contemplating outfit options, i decided that i wasn't going to join them, so would instead confuse them! my personal theme then: space alien with red eyebrows! people were calling me punk and flashing me the Rock handsign (confused them much?), but i think they just got too focused on Rumperstiltskin, my stompin' purple goth Doc Marts. i would have worn silver calf boots instead if i had them. at least the red eyebrows got a small reception. they raised a couple of eyebrows but generally, i think i am managing to stay one small step ahead of myself. What Will Amanda Show Up In/With?

okay, enough self-indulgence.

Parliament House is gorgeous at dusk. for $30, the food was ridiculously mediocre, even though i enjoyed the traces of roasted capsicum in the vego filo pastry mains. many residents were later seen at the 24hours Maccas nearer to school, and i am ashamed to admit that i too adjourned there after the event. why doesn't Maccas have a veggie burger?! i had a soft-serve cone, an apple pie and probably too many fries. the rest of Valete went by surprisingly quickly, and even poignantly, as i realized that three years in this hall has yielded so many memories, achievements and even some regrets. it's all coming together now, as this chapter draws to a close. too much deja vu for one evening.

my favourite way to end any social event of this nature is to dance myself senseless. objective was surely achieved. i often say, "all nights end in Cube" but that night was an exception. at 4am, i crawled my way out from the sticky-floors and cheesy music of always-too-bright ICBM, flicked off the sweat and grime from random people grinding up against me, and stumbled home.

Planet Earth 0, Space Alien 1.

term breaks are never enough time for anything much. two weeks is just not enough for a 'proper' holiday, not enough time (or motivation) to complete much studying or assignments, not enough time to see all the people i want, not enough time to catch up on my sleep debt... yes, the list does go on.

nevertheless, i managed to start a second job at an organic food shop in Griffith! i've been plenty excited ever since Enrique started gushing about my interest in raw veganism to his boss and how i'd be such a good fit in the shop. on my first day, i was tasked to pack orders along with at least five other people. i had to learn which vegetables or fruit can be combined and what should go into paper or plastic bags. even being a fan of the Greens, i was humbled when i had to ask the difference between Italian and Russian garlic, had to learn to distinguish between four different kinds of potatoes, had to learn how to properly pack the kale and the silverbeet or the shallots and the beetroots. all the produce looked so fresh and beautiful and i really wanted to take everything home! the boss lady made a raw chocolate pie and it was undoubtedly the best confection my mouth has ever tasted. raw desserts FTW.

i did manage to take a brief holiday to Sydney for a whole... 17 hours with Enrique and Narae! i was in great need of a haircut, and we managed to fit in some bubble tea drinking (Enrique's first time!), Uighur food eating (from an area between Mongolia and Kazakhstan; the eggplant was absolutely to die for. i'll be going back just for it!) and the Trance rave, Godskitchen. i didn't expect very much from it, to be honest, even though its headlining acts were big names like Cosmic Gate, Blank and Jones, John 00 Fleming and Jes (Tiesto's singer). what ensued was the effin' best rave night i have ever had. the visuals were stunning (missing a few lasers, but that can be forgiven), the deejay sets got more and more amazing as the night progressed and the three of us got into some trouble and a half... but all was more than good in the end ;-)



at 6am, we limped out of the Hordern Pavilion, caught a cab to Central station and then got on our 7am bus back to Canberra. it was truly a hectic night; one i'll never hesitate to relive anyday!












^ the best eggplant dish i've tasted in ages!

Singapore Community Day happened not too long ago. i signed up to be one of the volunteers. it was anticipated that a good 700 people would turn up to makan and mingle at the Singapore High Commission. unfortunately, it turned out to be the coldest, windiest, wettest day in more than 40 years! poor people visiting from Perth, Gold Coast and Sydney were shivering their socks off and their food from the stalls in the open quickly turned cold before they could be fully appreciated. it was a good day though- made some new friends from ADFA (the Australian Defence Force Academy), went around taking 'official' photos, chatted to many aunties and uncles who seemed to love my hair, and even won a cook book in the lucky draw.


^ group photo of all the volunteers. brrrr- we were freeeeezing!

dearest Poops is visiting in just 16 days and i am EXCITED! can't wait till she gets here to show her around, show her off, and more importantly, share so much of my life here with her.

before i go, two photos of my recent meals:

here's a rice pasta (organic, gluten free) salad with way too many greens that i can keep count of! the rice pasta is in the shape of animals, which is cute, although i don't eat meat anymore. the greens: leek, kelp, baby spinach, mesclun, celery, asparagus, basil leaves + raw garlic and onions!



i love eating local from the farmers markets. i feel responsible knowing that my food has not incurred large carbon footprints to get to me. this wood-fired panini, fresh rockets leaves and lovely portobello mushrooms are all from local businesses!



just 3 weeks to the end of my degree! godspeed!

i know i've been naughty and haven't updated here in ages. i've been out and about and a lot's been stewing but i just haven't felt like writing about them. i really should though, considering how days fly by and its easy to forget what's been happening and what i've done.

for now, here's a photo i took TODAY for an interview in a magazine in Singapore. more details when it goes to print!



yes, i've ditched the flaming locks for a little more subtle ash-blond hair. i like the change! i wanted to wear my ANU hoodie for the picture but thought it might end up too cheesy, especially in front of the ANU sign.

going around the campus for photos made me realize that i don't have many photos of the ANU campus. i'll miss this place when i'm gone, so i really should be more trigger-happy with my camera from now!

how do i even begin to describe the best experience of my year thus far?

Defqon is the first ever Q-dance import from the Netherlands into Australia. this is a one-day music festival for people with a love for the music of the harder styles- hardstyle, hardcore, hardtrance and old school/industrial. there were 5 stages with different djs spinning from 11am to 10pm. i've been anticipating it so impatiently since we secured our tickets in June! tickets sold out, as expected, to an estimated 15,000 people who thronged the Sydney Regatta Stadium in Penrith, at the base of the Blue Mountains. the weather was perfect and the vibe was simply amazing.

some photos of the daytime revelry. i love my Mother Hen and the brood!









after all that fun, it's now back to regular programming: essays, reading, work and a fair extent of some socialness that i will somehow find the time to compile and put up on here soon.