A supervision meeting scheduled on Friday was postponed to next week. I’ve been spending this week attending seminars and outlining Chapter 4 and my conference paper at quite a slow pace. When waiting for feedback on my draft from supervisors, I always have mixed feelings, with nervousness, excitement, a bit of relaxation after writing it up, and a hint of the storm!
I feel as if any perspective I have has been getting narrower regarding the topic, arguments, writing style, and lifestyle in general. Some people gave me this advice:
‘Expose yourself to a wide variety of context, not just academic! Watch TV programmes or listen to the radio.’
‘Do whatever you like in your spare time and avoid feeling stressed out!’
‘Join a society at uni!’
I will take this advice. Today I made a quiche while listening to Hawaiian radio (makes me feel so loose) and spoke to a colleague to arrange to meet for drinks next week.
I am also thinking that, in my blog, I would like to share not just my PhD diary but also a quick and helpful tips series for communication skills. This is my field of studies and is something I learnt mostly in Tokyo and Switzerland throughout my business career. Sometimes I am asked for tips for communicating with Japanese people in business. It is certainly a great pleasure for me to pass my experience on to others, which does not happen so frequently in my PhD life.
Spinach and Onion Quiche with Sweet Potato Crust
A quiche with a creamy and silky filling is certainly not diet food, unfortunately. But I love the savoury pie and was looking for healthier quiche recipes for daily meals. I found this recipe, Spinach and Feta Quiche with Sweet Potato Crust, and made it! I reduced the amount of egg mixture and used skimmed milk.
It turned out that using sweet potato can be much quicker than making regular pie crust; the whole process took me just one hour. The sweet potato is so tender, a good combination with spinach, onion, mushroom and shrimp. The quiche tastes very light and delicious! I will definitely make this again, trying different combinations of ingredients. (If you use a quiche tin, don’t forget to line baking sheet.)

My achievements in week 97
- Enjoyed making the quiche.
Goals for week 98
- Work on Chapter 4 and conference paper.
- Have a meaningful supervision day with my supervisors.
- Enjoy drinks with my colleagues.