For all us LOSTies

I made about 45 questionable decisions back in 2006.

Starting to watch LOST was not one of them.

Over the next four years, most of my free time was spent reading LOST forums, hoping that Kate ends up with Jack, wondering what was going on on that island and cursing the producers for creating a show that held my attention despite nothing making sense; ever.

When LOST ended in 2010, I was as relieved as I was disappointed. Relieved because, as religiously as I watched the show, the ambiguity was getting to me. Disappointed because, well what was that ending?

Anyway three years later, on a recent trip to Hawaii, I realized the LOSTie in me wasn’t quite dead yet. So I went on a five-hour tour around Honolulu and Kāne‘ohe stopping at most locations where LOST was filmed. And of course I took about 600 pictures!

John Locke’s dad’s house, where he would slyly go every night.

The monastery Desmond drank his way out of.

Jin & Sun’s wedding venue.

The house where Mr. Eko sold drugs in Nigeria. Also the house Sayid was helping fix when he was requested to go back on the island.

Remember how the survivors said Jack, Kate & Sawyer were being held by the others on another island? Well here are both islands, as one as they could be. 

The jetty beside which Juliet’s sub arrived on the island, when she was told she’s going to Portland.

The hatch where Jack kissed Juliet and Juliet did Sun’s sonogram; not at the same time.

A terrible photo of the others’ camp.

Jughead. Also the spot from which the survivors manage to communicate with Widmore’s rescuers.

Self explanatory.

Sydney Airport aka Honolulu Convention Center.

Richard Alpert’s house.

Gratuitous shot of me killing the smoke monster, aka Jacob’s brother. The things our tour guide made us do!

Our tour guide also gave us a ton of behind the scenes gossip, which I cannot publish in its entirety. But I will say this:

- A character, who was supposed to die early on managed to stay till the end because he became good friends with the creators while filming the first episode.
- Two people, whose storylines abruptly ended, were actually fired for getting a DUI.
- A central character quit in the early seasons because she didn’t like her romantic interest on this show.
- Another character quit the show because he absolutely hated Hawaii. When asked to come back for the last episode of season 6, he demanded an exorbitant fee so the producers had to film without him.
- What you thought was the end, wasn’t really the end. The writers have a different (and disappointing) explanation.

So there you go. If you were ever a fan of LOST, book a trip to Hawaii NOW!

And if you’re a true fan, answer the following questions without using Google (in your head since comments are closed):

- What was the dog’s name?
- What was the name of Charlie’s band?
- What kind of spider bit Nikki and Paolo?
- What color thread did Kate use to stitch Jack’s wound?
- What were Hurley’s lucky/or unlucky numbers?

A Different Age

A friend sent me an email last week with pictures of these old ads. After I lifted my jaw off the floor, I decided I had to share them. 

Part of me is glad that the world isn’t as ignorant and sexist anymore. Part of me knows fully well it still is. 

PS - I received these pictures via email so I haven't been able to mention a source. If you know which website they were taken from, please email me so I can give due credit.

Spicy Tofu Noodle Soup

If there’s one thing Weight Watchers has changed in our house, it is our impromptu runs to fast food joints. No more last minute sandwiches, burritos or sushi.

Our kitchen has become quite busy with me creating low-calorie (NOT low-fat) alternatives to what we used to eat. I made this soup yesterday and it was delicious and filling. The flavors weren’t too bold and it had just the right amount of spice for me.

This is quite a versatile recipe in that you can use any vegetables you want. I’m only keeping the ingredients this specific because I don’t want to alter the WW points for each serving. If you’re not too interested in that aspect, feel free to go nuts and add/subtract whatever you like.

The only issue with this soup is that doesn’t reheat well. The veggies and noodles become too mushy so it is best eaten immediately after cooking. My advice would be to make it when you’re either very hungry or have guests coming over.

Adapted from Weight Watchers.

Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 5 – 6
WW Points per serving: 6

Ingredients

1 tbsp vegetable oil
5 oz (1 packet) Chings Veg Hakka Noodles
3 cups low sodium veg stock
3 cups water
14 oz firm tofu – cubed
1 cup carrots – julienned
2 cups bok choy – chopped
1 cup green onions – chopped
4 Thai chilis – sliced (use more/less depending upon your tolerance)
1 tbsp ground ginger
3 cloves garlic - chopped
1 tbsp Sriracha hot sauce
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp salt
½ cup cilantro - chopped

Method

Marinate tofu cubes in Sriracha sauce. Set aside for 20 minutes. Overnight is even better.

In a large saucepan, combine veg stock, water, Thai chilis and garlic. Bring to a slow simmer. Don’t let it boil. When it starts simmering, add noodles and lower gas. Watch noodles like a hawk as they cook quickly. Shut gas when noodles have cooked.

Meanwhile, in another pan, heat oil. Add ginger paste and tofu cubes. Cook for 5 – 7 mins until the sides brown.

Add green onions, carrots, bok choy and soy sauce and stir fry for 5 mins. Don’t let the veggies overcook.

Mix tofu and veggies with noodles and stock. Add salt and garnish with cilantro. Don’t cook any further.

Serve immediately.

Change

Happy 2013 folks.

Hope this year brings you everything you want and more.

Remember how in my last post I vowed to work hard and run much faster at the Dallas Half Marathon?

Yeah, that didn’t happen.

I spent much of November eating samosas and attending weddings in Mumbai and Delhi. We spent a month in India and only returned to Dallas one day before the race. I still ran because I’d already paid 100 bucks and wanted a medal to show for it.

I ran seven miles before I hit a wall. I then walked six miles and finished my half marathon a minute after my friend finished his full marathon. I was angry, ashamed and heartbroken.

So I got over myself and signed up for two more races this spring.

The $100 medal

I’ve also begun 2013 by becoming the biggest cliché I know and joining Weight Watchers. I dropped 10lbs last year, gained 4 in India and needed something to get back on track. Paying for something that tells me what I already know made sense because it’ll keep me accountable.

In an attempt to start writing more, I’ve decided to permanently disable comments on this blog. I truly admire people who blog regularly, respond to comments, return comments and balance all their ‘real life’ duties.

I am not one of those people. Even though I hardly have the traffic to warrant this, I spent most of last year being overwhelmed by it all and published only 19 posts.

This blog is more of an outlet and not a source of income for me. So as much as I would love to, I can’t devote more than a certain amount of time to it.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and have lots of amazing things to look forward to this year. 

DRC Half Marathon

Want to know what I did on Sunday morning?

I ran my first half marathon.

It took me 2 hours and 36 minutes to finish. I’ve been told that for someone who only started running three months ago and trained with a 2:40 run/walk group, it’s not bad.

That’s code for, “2:36 is way below average and women twice your age can kick your ass.”

I don’t really know how to explain how I feel about running. It makes me very happy but it also leaves me a little frustrated.

I don’t get tired while running, but I can’t go fast either. It’s weird. It happened at the triathlon too. My legs just cannot go fast but when I finish, I still have the energy to run a few more miles.

I’ve tried to do speed work and strength training at the gym. Even then, my average pace just isn’t going down.

I’m going to try training differently for the Dallas half next month and see if anything changes. I plan to run/walk less and run more. I also want to work on core and upper body strength. And I plan to eat more carbs.

Or I’ll just give Carnivore my bib and beg him to run on my behalf. 

If nothing, I'll at least get a blog post out of it.