Casmin Bui Week 15: Cravings...

At the moment that I am writing this blog, my current craving for the day is seared salmon sake topped with miso cream cheese.

How often do you get cravings? I feel like I crave something every day, and it always varies between drinks, snacks, candies, entrees, and everything else. Eating in general is really relaxing for me especially after a long day of working. Just like in the daily survey, I’m intrigued to know how other people spend their personal time and take care of themselves.

Today, I finally decided to rummage through the thousands of photos that I kept buried within my gallery. When I scrolled through 12,928 photos to get to the top, the first date was marked September 24, 2015 of a photo that I had not even taken. It was a picture of me taken by my sister, me wearing a red Christmas sweater thinking it was a good decision. I scrolled for a while. 2021, 2022, 2023… wow. Little Casmin was so naive. She just kept a big (sometimes evil) smile on her face, unaware of the horrors and joys in life that she would get to experience (and would continue to).


Casmin (6 years old)

Sometimes when we get caught up in the future, it’s hard to look back on the milestones we’ve achieved. Ever since I was 10, my first ever dream was to get a license, to have the freedom to go wherever I wanted. I even told myself every night that once I was able to drive a car, the first thing I would do was go to McDonalds and buy myself an Oreo Mcflurry and some fries all by myself. But once I was actually able to fulfill my childhood dream a few weeks ago, it didn’t feel as exhilarating as I thought it would. Don’t get me wrong, it still felt quite fun going by myself to buy whatever I wanted, but something was missing. What happened? Am I losing that spark? I still don’t understand why I don’t feel excited about the things that I was looking forward to all my life, or maybe it’s just me growing up to prioritize other things. But I’m curious to know if any of you have felt the same way about another dream that you have worked towards.

Hopefully someday in the summer I can enjoy the perks of getting a new license, but right now, it just seems like an extra 20 dollars to spend on parking.

What’s your craving at the moment?

Comments

  1. Disha MurugupandiyanApril 17, 2026 at 11:47 PM

    My craving at the moment is either a big fat pint of ice cream or a large nacho fries (the nacho cheese swapped out with the chipotle sauce) and a baja blast from Taco Bell. I’ll be honest, that’s what I crave almost all the time when I’m hungry: fries and a nice, cold, carbonated drink to water it down. Absolutely nothing is better than feeling carbonated soda absolutely fry the inside of your throat because of how fizzy it is. I get cravings pretty often, and they range from specific desserts to specific drink. I definitely agree that eating in general is relaxing, especially because I’m a slow eater and I like to take my time to eat and enjoy my food. I like to eat food that I like to eat rather than eating as a chore, since that takes all the fun out of it. I like to think that eating is one more part of your day that you can make better and choose to enjoy rather than making it a simple necessity to live. There’s a reason why there’s so many different foods and cuisines out there. You mentioned scrolling back to the first photo on your phone, so I decided to do the same. Rather than a picture, I found a video of me and my older sister. I’m probably a year old, so that would make my sister five or six years old. In the video, my sister is talking to me like a baby, trying to get my attention, which I grudgingly give to her. Just as she thinks I’m the best sister ever, I bite her nose (my bad). Her face immediately falls and she gets off the couch to complain to our dad about what I did. I would do anything to go back to this period of time where my biggest worry was probably about which toy I wanted to play with the most. Nostalgia is one of the greatest but also one of the toughest feelings to deal with, since you not only remember memories from your childhood but the hopes and dreams you had as a child. Some still stay strong today, like owning an expensive sports car and getting a motorcycle license. Some don’t, like becoming a really good soccer player or whatever I wanted to be as a kid.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jaycee SnelsonApril 22, 2026 at 2:41 PM

    Hi Casmin! Right now I am craving a piece of chocolate. Well honestly, maybe more than just a piece. Although, after reading your blog salmon sounds really good right now too. Like you, food also relaxes me. I always reward myself with some sort of snack, usually boba, after work or a hard day at school. I can also relate to going back through old photos and trying to remember the context in which they took place.

    I thought the inclusion of the multitude of questions throughout your blog were really compelling. They kept me engaged with your post and I found myself looking into my life and past along with you. In a way the questions made your blog feel like more of a conversation between friends where the topics blended together.

    I can't wait to see what you write next! And congratulations on getting your drivers licence!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Acintya ShenoyApril 22, 2026 at 7:16 PM

    I could really use another bagel right now…toasted with sesame seeds…and chive & onion spread…with avocado slices in between…give me a few minutes.

    Alright, I’m back. My mom said no bagels :(. But I did make a bagel this morning, since my dad had surgery early in the morning and my mom had to come with him, so she couldn’t make me breakfast as she usually does. I toasted two slices, one with chive & onion spread and the other with regular cream cheese. They were warm and heavenly, especially since my only encounters with bagels in years have ever been the school ones. But, no offense to our cafeteria workers, that’s not really saying much.

    I’ve dreamed of living independently for a very long time, probably since 7th grade. I watch “day in the life” videos religiously, almost every single day, and I sigh wistfully as I daydream about the many very adult-y things I’ll do when I go to college and start living on my own at some point—making my own breakfast, driving to classes and work, making plans whenever I want to, cooking my own dinner, you get the point. Even small things I do right now, like logging my hours at the end of a shift, tapping on my paycheck notifications, and taking BART all feel like small steps toward independence. But I’ve never been able to make my own breakfast before.

    It actually felt quite nice, getting up earlier and doing the whole thing myself. I was weirdly relaxed the whole time, which I never am in the mornings since I always wake up late and end up arriving at the carpool meetup spot just in time, usually with parts of my breakfast in my hand or backpack. But when I made breakfast this morning, I sat down at the dining table with no distractions and just ate the whole thing. And then made it to carpool perfectly on time. Looking back on it, I realize I should’ve made some instant coffee too, for some extra adult points. Nevertheless, this small step towards my dream of living independently definitely gave me a spark of motivation to keep working towards it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Annie ZhuApril 22, 2026 at 10:48 PM

      Brilliant blog, Casmin! Food is humanity’s greatest love (at least, it’s my greatest love). Alas, I have just finished my dinner, so I am not craving anything as of right now. On a normal afternoon, my cravings are confined to foods which I know are sitting in my house. My pantry this week is quite full: yogurt, 包子，汤圆，Doritos, kiwis, strawberries, and Costco crackers (a family staple). I had a queenly feast today after getting off the bus—like you, I use meals to destress and unwind after a long day.
      To answer your question about losing a dream, my most notable example is wanting to stay at a really nice hotel like the Ritz-Carlton. I used to delight in staying at hotels/motels because of the freshly made beds, widescreen TV, and cute soaps. I have never been to luxury hotels though, and I would dream about the fluffy quilts of a 5-star mansion when I was younger. Now, my zest for this goal has shrunk because I realized that I only really get a good night’s sleep in my own bed. Plus, most hotels dry-out my skin and get uncomfortably hot in the evening. Still, I don’t think that being less excited about our former aspirations means that something is “missing.” This is all a part of growing up: our values change, and so do the things we care about. You might not care about Oreo Mcflurries anymore, but there are definitely other things which can make you feel excited. Your past and present are equally worth cherishing.
      BTW, 6-year-old Casmin Bui is adorable!

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