I'm a poor college student trying to incorporate some of the exotic into the everyday, ordinary life. I've never traveled, but I plan on seeing the world. Cooking is a way for me to branch out and be creative in my own home. Hmm, anything new and interesting! And of course tasty! I prefer healthy and low-calorie recipes, but I also have an insatiable sweet tooth. My dad makes the best chili and spaghetti I've ever had, inspired by my grandmother's cooking. I also love big Thanksgiving, Easter, and Christmas meals with the whole family. Every Sunday my dad gets a big brunch cooking for my mom, my sister, and I when we get home from Church, and for my brother when he wakes up. Even though it just consists of your standard American breakfast foods, I always look forward to it. The first time I made chocolate chip cookies on my own (from scratch), I thought they were a bust because they looked like these weird, brown, flat things instead of the thick and chewy ones I was hoping for. Some even formed sinkholes in the middle, but as they cooled a little, they were so crisp, buttery, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious that I continue to make them the same way, even though I've since learned how to make them "normal." My mom always insists I make them this way. Oh gosh, there have been lots of those... but that's inevitable, and cooking is about more than just good food. My most spiritually defeating tragedy? Probably a pineapple upside-down cake, supposed to be healthy because of whole wheat and honey... not only did it taste really bad, but I baked it in a dish that was too small, so a lot of the juices bubbled up and ran over the side and burned in the oven. When I tried to take it out of the dish, it fell apart. It didn't look at all like dessert. Good thing it was the first pineapple upside-down cake I'd ever tasted, because I didn't know quite how horrible it was until I tried the second attempt. That one tasted just like such a cake should (confirmed by my parents), but it kind of fell apart in places too. It was supposed to be a gift for a friend, but I decided not to tell him.