Readers Speak: Best Thesis-Writing Food

Thanks to all 15 of you who shared your opinions! I judge this poll a success.

Personally, I prefer cookie dough, but I must weigh that love against my hypochondria. Is the joy of eating raw eggs worth the paralyzing fear that my salmonella-infested insides fall out? I say YES! For posterity, here are your results:

Cookies	4 (26%)
cookie dough (contains raw eggs)	4 (26%)
broccoli & carrots (no ranch dip)	2 (13%)
whisky & cigarettes	5 (33%)

It's Kinda Like the Pickles and Ice Cream Craving

But it's not pregnancy, it's thesis-ancy. Same symptoms, different source. (Bright side: Alcohol is encouraged instead of forbidden.)

I'm really really REALLY stressed. I have about 24 hours to write about 25 pages (or 48 hours if I don't proofread). I'm also exhausted. It's 1 am and I've been up since 6:30 am. That means it's time for thesis food. Obviously, I don't have time to grocery shop. But being a graduate student, I have the intellectual capability to make a few strategic culinary substitutions. Here is the recipe for the snack I just ate (You decide how many gold stars it's worth):

Grad. Student's Mock Chips & Dip
Ingredients:
1 pkge ramen noodles (or any other carb/starch will do)
1 container of sauce (I used Valentina Salsa Picante, but any kind will do)

Directions:
1. Without opening package, crush dry noodles until they are broken up into bite-sized bits
2. Open package
3. Set flavor packet aside for future use in other recipes
4. Pour sauce on noodles
5. Consume

Dry ramen noodles are actually quite good. And I attribute my sour stomach to the hot sauce (ingred: water, chili peppers, vinegar, salt; imported from Guadalajara, Mex.), not the noodles. But at least I have enough carb power to fuel a couple more hours of studying!

THESIS PROGRESS: I'm still awake
*That's only for chapter 3, the full thesis is much longer.

Caramel Macchiwhato?

Since I've been spending so much time in no-internet land (Starbucks), I thought it was worth it to take a little trip to its Web site and find out exactly why my jeans no longer fit. I found my answer in an easy-to-read table format.

My favorite drink is surprisingly not too bad, ... actually, yes it is. 300 calories is a lot for a liquid (even for a "venti"). But on the bright side, 13 grams of protein is about as much as you get in some meats (don't ask me which ones, I'm not a food scientist). And one can always hope that 150 mg of caffeine will speed up the metabolism enough to ward off weight gain (though in my case I have found that to be a vain hope).

PS. The image is the official picture of a caramel macchiato from its Web site, but I've never once seen it served in a real mug like this. Do you have to request that?

Caramel Macchiato

A signature Starbucks® beverage. A creamy mix of vanilla and freshly steamed milk marked with intense Starbucks® espresso, topped with velvety foam and our own proprietary buttery caramel sauce.

		Serving Size 20 fl. oz. Amt Per Serving Calories 300 Fat Calories 70 Saturated Fat (g) 5 Trans Fat (g) 0 Cholesterol (mg) 35 Sodium (mg) 160 Total Carbohydrates (g) 43 Fiber (g) 0 Sugars (g) 39 Protein (g) 13 Vitamin A 15% Vitamin C 0% Calcium 45% Iron Caffeine (mg) 0% 150

THESIS PROGRESS: 21.90 of 40 pages written*
*That's only for chapter 3, the full thesis is much longer.

A Muffin for Your Thoughts

I'm at a coffee shop (independent!) and drinking real coffee (not crap ending in the phrase -ppuccino) from a real glass mug. I just ate a muffin that I knew I shouldn't eat. But it's 1:30 in the morning. I'm actually making thesis progress and I convinced myself it was "brain food" instead of "go straight to my thighs" food.

Soon there is nothing left of the muffin except the burnt part (the downside of buying local) and I start thinking that maybe the coffee was all I really needed to power my brain after all. And as I wonder whether or not I will fit in a graduation gown (those damn unforgiving, formless, black smocks), I realize that I am eating the burnt parts! What is wrong with me?

THESIS PROGRESS: 8.05 of 40 pages written*
*That's only for chapter 3, the full thesis is much longer.

Turning lemons into...

This evening I prevented scurvy the old fashioned way: hand squeezing lemonade. It didn't seem ridiculous when I was doing it, but I guess it is. And it didn't even turn out that good. So here's a little wake-up call for all the annoying people who perpetuate that used-up slogan:

• life better give you more than lemon, cause one measly lemon doesn't make much of anything except lots and lots of seeds
• Lemonade needs so much sugar to make it palatable that you could substitute lemon juice with water and not only save lots of time but also make it healthier
  
• maybe procrastinators would be well-served in investing in one of those juice squeezer things