Category Archives: Personal

Posts that relate to the author who wrote them.

CollectionOfAwesome.com

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Finally decided on a new blog name; CollectionOfAwesome.com

I am super excited for 3 reasons:

  1. It is a .com address.
  2. It is a similar, yet more generic name.
  3. I have been able to set up an official Twitter and official Facebook page using the same name!

Author’s & Contributors wanted!

Ever wanted to blog but not sure how to start? find similar awesome stuff and want to share it somewhere awesome? then consider becoming an author of this blog.

I am currently looking for a few people to help me post content on this blog. All you have to do is comment on this post, or tweet to @C_O_Awesome and I’ll get in touch with you.

Why join?

  • You’ll be joining an established blog with over 1 million views and a daily audience of over 1,000 readers per day.
  • You can publish content as much or as little as possible. Don’t stress – I’m not fussed about how much stuff you write.
  • I can assist you with any questions or comments about your posts.

New blog design/layout

I have wanted to update the look of the blog for a while, but didn’t have a good reason to. I haven’t decided on this particular theme, but I will be updating it along with other areas of the blog.

Suggestions

Please comment on this page or tweet at @C_O_Awesome to let me know if you want to see more of something or anything really.

What should I rename the blog?

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“I have decided that I am going to rebrand the blog, read why below”

Why change the name?

I feel like it’s time for this blog to evolve into something more. I occasionally feel a bit stupid telling people what the URL is and yeah it’s a little bit cocky. I’m not certain about the fate of the blog in the future due to what Google has done.

Suggest a new name!

That’s the point of this post – I want a new / clever name and I’m open to suggestions. I was thinking along the lines of “The Chive” or something like that. I don’t want it to focus on the writers, but the content. I dunno. Who ever suggests the best thing will have the glory of picking the next name and usher in the next generation of this blog. I’ll think about designing a specific logo and motto etc afterwards.

What did Google do?

You haven’t heard about Google Reader being shut down? Well in short, they have screwed over a lot of users (including yours truly) who love and still actively use the service.

What does that have to do with the blog?

Well I gather all the stuff I want to post via Google Reader and RSS feeds. I have a great system of saving ‘potential content’ (over 9,000 items at last count – epic DBZ reference unintentional). I would go through, decide on the best stuff/stuff I liked and post it. Now Google are killing the service, the future of all that work is in question.

New writers / Authors…

One of my better ideas was to enslave recruit some new people to help me run the blog. If it is just me by myself; the blog may eventually shut down or not be updated daily. I don’t want that, but I am also finding it hard to devote the time to do it (doubly so if Google make my life hell).

I have some people in mind, and I’m contacting them about it – but please feel free to volunteer (just post a comment and I’ll get back to you).

Happy New Year! 2013

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“Sorry for the slight delay in posting this, but I’ve been pretty busy and I had to go back to work today” – Ben

nye2013

Amazing photo taken by my fiancé (more about that next)

Check out my video of the Sydney New Years 2013 fireworks finale;

“So in keeping with last years post, I’ll discuss my resolutions” – Ben

New Years Resolutions for 2012:

  1. Lose weight – Success! I managed to lose 18kg, and reach my first personal weight loss goal of being under 100kg.
  2. Catch up with old friends – Semi-Success, I’m still pretty shocking at keeping in touch with old friends; but I did manage to see quite a few people in 2012.
  3. Find some direction with my life – Failure, I found a job though I’m not certain it will be my career. I am still keen to find something awesome.
  4. Do some photography / art – Success. I completed the 365 project for 2012 (though I missed a few days).
  5. Learn a new life skill – Neutral, I kinda learnt a new language. I studied Korean throughout 2012, and while I feel like I only know 5%, I’m still happy I can read and say a few basic phrases. I want to learn more.

Bonus 2012 events:

  1. Engaged – I got engaged to my beautiful girlfriend whilst we were in Korea visiting her family. Very excited/Happy!
  2. Blog reached 1 Million views! – Still very excited about finally having that view count click over to a million; thanks everyone!
  3. Getting to be a part of one of my best friends weddings – I was really honoured and touched to be asked to be the MC at Wongsters wedding. I loved being part of it, though I was very nervous because I didn’t want to ruin their big day.

New Years Resolutions for 2013:

  1. Lose MORE weight – Now that I’ve reached my first goal (getting under 100kg), I want to reach 90kg – which I think will be a healthy weight for me. From there I can think about doing another few/5.
  2. Prepare & Plan for the wedding – This will probably be a 2013-2014 goal, but from now on I will be seriously focusing on this (obviously!)
  3. Get control of my finances – I have a few things I need to work on, and one of them is being less casual with my spending. 2012 wasn’t a good year for me money-wise, and I’m going to fix that in 2013.
  4. Do 365 Project for 2013 – Due to popular demand I will be doing the 365 project for 2013. Get excited! (you can follow me on instagram: @benjamin_lewis)
  5. Improve my Korean – So I’ve done the basics, I’ve been to Korea… now I need to practise so I can actually participate in conversations and not sit there like a goon.

What did I do for New Years Eve (2012/2013)?

  • I was fortunate this year to have access to one of the best views in Sydney – though I was very limited in the number of people I could invite.
  • I planned a very chilled NYE party which included a bathtub full of drinks:
Refreshing

Refreshing

  • I also managed to avoid the crazy amount of people in the public areas;
nye_4

The chaos that was McMahon’s Point

  • My photo #365 was a pretty cool selection of the 9pm Fireworks in Sydney;
#365

#365 – 9pm Fireworks

  • …and my sister’s photo was pretty cool too:

nye_3

Top 10 posts for 2012:

  1. Doodle God Walkthrough / Guide
  2. Boba Fett doesn’t give a fuck (gif)
  3. Cinnamon Challenge Gifs
  4. Jimmy Fallon & Justin Timberlake – History of Rap (Parts 1, 2 and 3)
  5. Facebook – Happy Birthday Meme-Style
  6. Jessica Biel’s ass (Gif)
  7. Zahia Dehar’s Ass Shake Gif
  8. Here is where I would put a fuck, if I gave one
  9. Fuck yo couch! gif
  10. Cameron Diaz from The Mask

‘Twas the Night Before Christmas in Australia

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“This came from the ‘shit Aussies say’ page on Facebook” – Ben

'Twas the night before Christmas; there wasn't a sound.
Not a possum was stirring; no-one was around.
We'd left on the table some tucker and beer,
Hoping that Santa Claus soon would be here;

We children were snuggled up safe in our beds,
While dreams of pavlova danced 'round in our heads;
And Mum in her nightie, and Dad in his shorts,
Had just settled down to watch TV sports.

When outside the house a mad ruckus arose;
Loud squeaking and banging woke us from our doze.
We ran to the screen door, peeked cautiously out,
Snuck onto the deck, then let out a shout.

Guess what had woken us up from our snooze,
But a rusty old Ute pulled by eight mighty 'roos.
The cheerful man driving was giggling with glee,
And we both knew at once who this plump bloke must be.

Now, I'm telling the truth it's all dinki-di,
Those eight kangaroos fairly soared through the sky.
Santa leaned out the window to pull at the reins,
And encouraged the 'roos, by calling their names.

'Now, Kylie! Now, Kirsty! Now, Shazza and Shane!
On Kipper! On, Skipper! On, Bazza and Wayne!
Park up on that water tank. Grab a quick drink,
I'll scoot down the gum tree. Be back in a wink!'

So up to the tank those eight kangaroos flew,
With the Ute full of toys, and Santa Claus too.
He slid down the gum tree and jumped to the ground,
Then in through the window he sprang with a bound.

He had bright sunburned cheeks and a milky white beard.
A jolly old joker was how he appeared.
He wore red stubby shorts and old thongs on his feet,
And a hat of deep crimson as shade from the heat.

His eyes – bright as opals – Oh! How they twinkled!
And, like a goanna, his skin was quite wrinkled!
His shirt was stretched over a round bulging belly
Which shook when he moved, like a plate full of jelly.

A fat stack of prezzies he flung from his back,
And he looked like a swaggie unfastening his pack.
He spoke not a word, but bent down on one knee,
To position our goodies beneath the yule tree.

Surfboard and footy-ball shapes for us two.
And for Dad, tongs to use on the new barbeque.
A mysterious package he left for our Mum,
Then he turned and he winked and he held up his thumb;

He strolled out on deck and his 'roos came on cue;
Flung his sack in the back and prepared to shoot through.
He bellowed out loud as they swooped past the gates-
MERRY CHRISTMAS to all, and goodonya, MATES!'

Yes, Comments are Moderated.

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“I understand and appreciate that people have differing views on things, and as far as I’m concerned you are allowed to have your opinion as long as it makes sense, isn’t overtly mean or derogatory and I’m in a good mood. I occasionally get troll comments which I take some joy in editing into whatever I feel like. The perks of running the blog. Here is an example of one such occurance” – Ben

Orignal Comment - Full of rage and poor grammar.

 

Updated Comment - Note the differences. Next time, please write a clear and logical comment.

Sharon’s Szechuan Eggplant Recipe

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“This awesome tasty dish is something Sharon put us onto. It’s isn’t too difficult, besides making the sauce. The recipe was originally based off this site, but I’ve modified it slightly to make it easier and how I tend to cook it” – Ben

Sharon's Szechuan Eggplant

“I divided up the ingredients to make it easier to follow” – Ben

Ingredients (Meat):

  • 500g Pork Mince
  • 1/4 TSP Salt
  • 1/4 TSP Black Pepper
  • 1/2 TSP Cornstarch/Cornflower

Ingredients (Sauce):

  • 1 Cup Chicken Stock
  • 3 TBS Soy Sauce
  • 1 TSP Balsamic Vinegar
  • 1 TSP Brown Sugar (Granulated)
  • 2 TSP Cornstarch/Cornflower

Ingredients (Misc):

  • 1 Eggplant (Large)
  • 1 TBS Garlic (minced)
  • 1 TBS “Hot Bean Sauce”
  • 1/2 TSP Chili Paste
  • 1 TSP Sesame Oil

Method:

  1. Combine Pork, Salt, Pepper and Cornstarch (all the “Meat Ingredient” section) and allow that to marinate for 15 minutes.
  2. In a small bowl, add 1/2 cup of Chicken Stock, Soy, Vinegar, Sugar and whisk in cornstarch (remember to whisk before adding this mixture to anything!) [See Photo Gallery #3]
  3. Cut Eggplant into 1-2cm cube pieces [Photo #4]
  4. Over a medium-hot heat, brown eggplant with a some oil (~2 TBS) until softened. Takes ~5 minutes. Remove, drain and rest on a paper towel.
  5. Over a hot pan, add garlic and bean sauce. Stir-fry this for a minute or two until it becomes aromatic (careful that the garlic + oil mixture doesn’t spit up onto you). Add Pork and stir-fry until it changes colour. You will need to spend some time breaking up the pork mince mixture into small amounts and not ‘clumps’. [Photo #5]
  6. Push cooked pork up to one side of the pan, add sauce and bring to boil. Stir this mixture as it is on the heat to thicken. Add eggplant, Chili Paste (to taste) and sesame oil. Cook for a few minutes more. [Photo #6-7]
  7. Serve with rice.

Photo Gallery:

Beer Battered Onion Rings

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“My sister made these onion rings the other night from scratch. We recently got her a small deep fryer and the only issue with making these is that we can only 4 rings at a time. A lot of people have been asking for the recipe so I decided I should post it.” – Ben

Photo: my Instagram account

Recipe (source):

Ingredients:

  • 3 Cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 Eggs, Seperated
  • 1 bottle of Beer (we used 1 bottle of Corona).
  • 4 Cups Butter, Melted
  • Salt, to taste
  • 3 Large Onions, sliced into rings
  • Oil, enough for deep-frying

Directions:

  1. Sift flour into a large bowl. In another large bowl, whisk egg yolks. Mix in beer, butter and salt. Set aside 1 cup of flour for dipping the onion rings. Slowly stir the egg yolk mixture into the remaining flour and mix well. Allow the mixture to stand for 30-60 minutes.
  2. Heat deep-fryer to 190 degrees C (375 F)
  3. In a smaller bowl, stiffly beat the egg whites. Gently combine the egg whites with the batter.
  4. Coat each onion ring with flour and dip into batter.
  5. Deep fry the battered rings, several at a time (without over-crowding), until golden-brown. Drain on paper towels and serve.
  6. Suggested Sauces: Garlic Aioli or Ranch dressing.

Benisawesome.net – 2011 in review

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“I am back from my overseas trip and back to blogging. To celebrate, here is a summary of the blog over 2011 that WordPress generated.” – Ben

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

London Olympic Stadium holds 80,000 people. This blog was viewed about 390,000 times in 2011. If it were competing at London Olympic Stadium, it would take about 5 sold-out events for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

Welcome 2012!

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“Happy New Years everyone!” – Ben

2012, the year the world will end… unlikely. Even though right now I’m on a tropical paradise in Fiji I’m going to go over my 2011 resolutions from Jan 1st 2011.

New Years Resolutions for 2011:

  1. Lose weight – SUCCESS < I have been exercising, running and losing weight since July 2011.
  2. Catch up with old friends – SUCCESS < I have worked hard on making sure I’m keeping in touch with my friends and making new ones.
  3. Find some direction with my life – SUCCESS < I have decided that I really want to do medicine and have been studying hard for the GAMSAT exam in 2012.
  4. Do some photography / art – FAILURE < Whilst I love being creative, I have failed at actually forcing myself to do artistic pursuits. The best I’ve done is use instagram on twitter a bit.
  5. Learn a new life skill – SUCCESS < I have started updating my Lifesaving awards and very very very slowly learning Korean.

New Years Resolutions for 2012:

  1. Continue to lose weight – I’ve started on a path of weight loss and need to make sure I keep it up.
  2. Study like a demon for GAMSAT.
  3. Get into Medicine – how is that for a target… bam!
  4. Travel domestically and internationally with my gf – I hope to travel to Somoa and Korea in the near future, I also would like to visit Melbourne, Tasmania and some other places within Aus.
  5. Learn a basic level of Korean – Learning a language, not easy, but possible.
  6. Be more organised – Stop double/triple/quadruple booking events.

The Top 10 Posts of 2011.

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“As a way of finishing up 2011. I’m going to list the top 10 posts for 2011.” – Ben

  1. Misty Cosplay: Win and Fail
  2. Facebook – Boil Water
  3. Doodle God Walkthrough/Guide
  4. Random Hot Asian Women, Part 2
  5. Jarah Mariano post
  6. Christina Hendricks has huge boobs
  7. Baxter, you’re so wise!
  8. Random selection of Hot Asian Women
  9. Jessica Biel’s Ass (Gif)
  10. Hot Women: Natalie Portman

“We are just going to ignore how many of those posts would be filed under Hot Women, hmm” – Ben

and on that note, farewell 2011.