.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

Thursday, December 30, 2004

 

america the tightwad

Editorial: Are We Stingy? Yes

Two things jumped out at me when I read this:

1. The Republican party is planning on spending $30 MILLION for the inauguration festivities next month, but they can only be bothered to send $35 million for aid in Asia after the tsunami.

2. Most Americans believe that the US spends 24% of its budget on foreign aid to poor countries, when the number is is actually less than one quarter of one percent. I can't decide if I'm more appalled that so many Americans think the government is spending so much on foreign aid when it's obvious that so many countries are still in extremely dire straits... or if I'm more appalled that the US actually shares so very little of its vast wealth with people in need. I wonder how private aid from Americans to foreign countries stacks up against the government aid?

Tuesday, December 28, 2004

 

post christmas

We're back from our trip to the coast. It was very pleasant! We watched some DVDs and ate way too much and slept a lot and did some after-christmas shopping at the outlet mall in Seaside. And now we're home and we don't have to go into the office at all this week. So far, I have not really taken advantage of that... meaning I should be doing stuff around the house instead of sitting on my butt in front of this computer.

Oaxacan Potato Soup was strange. I liked it, R* didn't so much. The concept for making a lowfat creamy soup is good, though, and I'd like to try it with different seasonings.

We had some really terrific soups at the Stephanie Inn, like a potato-leek soup that was to DIE for... but it turns out that the key to their fantastic soups is a large quantity of heavy cream. Wouldn't you know it?

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

 

bonjour!

I'm getting ready to take off for 5 days, to spend some quality time alone in a cushy hotel with my husband. So don't expect to see me around for a few days!

When I do get back, I want to respond to Denise's comment from yesterday - sounds like she's having a lot of the same thoughts that I am.

In the meantime, have a great Christmas!

Tuesday, December 21, 2004

 

party down

Today is my company's Christmas party. We're going to stand around uncomfortably in a restaurant and drink and eat. The only reason I can bear to go is because my favorite coworker and my other favorite coworker and his girlfriend are going to be there. R* isn't going - he expressed concern that he might have a couple of drinks and say something that would get me in trouble. Heh. I can see his point. (Hint: neither of us think the bosses are, um, very bright.)

What else? I've just been constantly sleepy for the last couple weeks, presumably because I don't have to deal with school right now. Happily, I heard on the news this morning that this is the shortest day of the year. So it's all better from here on out.

I've been buying perfume samples on eBay, trying to find a perfume that I really love. So far the closest I've come is True Love by Elizabeth Arden. What I really want is something that smells like Lush Silky Underwear powder, but I haven't found it yet. Laura by Laura Biagiati is pretty good, too.

I didn't make soup and salad last night. R* suggested that we pick up chicken teriyaki from the neighborhood place instead, and (see above for sleepiness) that sounded like a good idea to me. I'll make it tomorrow night instead.

And Thursday, we leave for vacation! Not a moment too soon!

Monday, December 20, 2004

 

weekend soup

I had a very nice weekend. I got a lot of stuff done around the house, including stealing an hour of sunny (!) weather to finish planting my bulbs. Yeah, it's really late. Oh well. I also got some cleaning done inside. One of these days I might get everything put away. A miracle in the making.

I also found an old journal that I wrote in when I was really, really depressed in the first couple of years after I moved to Seattle. I was surprised by two things: 1. I'm still upset about some of the same issues in my life, even though my circumstances have changed so much (namely, my weight and physical intimacy with R*) and 2. I am much more sane now. :) When I first started reading through it, I started to cry, thinking, "Oh my god, it's been all these years and I'm still fretting about the exact same things!" But then I read more and realized how much more confident and rational I feel now, and how much better the communication is between me and R*.

Saturday night we, um, had bread pudding for dinner. This is not a good contribution to our goal of eating better. But man, it was tasty. Last night I took another foray into the Moosewood forest: Algerian Tomato Soup with Vermicelli and Bulgar Grape Salad. I think I messed up the soup a little - I neglected to get celery, so I substituted a diced carrot plus celery salt. Also, I didn't have a chance to serve the soup when it was just finished cooking, and the noodles absorbed more liquid than they should have and the soup was too thick as a result. Still tasted good, though.

Tonight is going to be Oaxacan Potato Soup with Tostada Salad. This soup has diced green olives in - I can't decide if I think it's going to be fantastic or just bizarre. I'll report back tomorrow.

Friday, December 17, 2004

 

du jour

I'm sure I'm the only one who cares about this, but I think I'll keep posting my Moosewood Daily Special, more for myself than anything else!

Last night was Mushroom Noodle Goulash served with Five-Herb Salad and sourdough bread from the Tall Grass Bakery. The salad was kind of weird, but the goulash stuff was delicious. And even though I halved the recipe, there was enough for three big servings, so I had the rest for lunch today.

Thursday, December 16, 2004

 

daily special

I can't remember if I've already blogged about this, but I recently acquired a copy of the cookbook Moosewood Daily Special. I checked it out from the library a while ago and thought it seemed like a brilliant way for us to eat more healthfully. The book is designed with a soup section and a salad section. Each soup recipe has several recommendations for salad recipes that would complement it, and vice versa.

Last night I made my first recipes from the book: Butternut Squash Soup with Sizzled Sage and Bulgur & Artichoke Salat. They were both excellent! I'm looking forward to trying more recipes.

Wednesday, December 08, 2004

 

winter break

I called my professor today to see how I did on the last exam and what my overall grade will be... and he told me I got 45/50 on the exam, and that my overall grade was 91% which translates to a 3.8. I made the executive decision that I would be happier by accepting a 3.8 and beginning my winter school break today than I would be if I stressed for another week, took the final, and maybe was able to get a 49 or 50 on it and bump my grade up to a 3.9. Perhaps that shows a lack of go get 'em attitude on my part, but I am TIRED. I really need some down time - which isn't really down time, it's just time when I can accomplish some of the things I've been putting off.

In any event, yay me! I got an A in Anatomy!

 

auntie!

I just found out that one of my friends is pregnant!!! She doesn't want to tell anyone else yet so I won't say anything that might identify her, on the off chance that someone who knows her is reading. So I will just say that I am very excited for her and that I am looking forward to being an auntie to her baby!

Friday, December 03, 2004

 

46!

Got my score from my last lab exam - 46 out of 50!! That's the best I've done on a practical. I'm not at the head of the class or anything - several people got 50/50 or 49/50 - but I'm still very pleased. I've got one more test to study for, and if I do well on it, I may not need to take the final. Which means I would be on vacation from school starting next Tuesday night!

It's really obvious which people in the class work fulltime and go to school at night versus the people who don't work or work only parttime and can spend the majority of their energy on school stuff. One guy in my class has been struggling hard with the lab exams, but studied his ass off for this one. He took digital photos in the lab to bring home for study (which is brilliant, incidentally, why didn't I think of that?!!) and he was one of the 50/50 scores. On the one hand, I'm totally happy for him. On the other hand, how annoying... if I didn't have to work, I would be able to study for hours on end, too. Sigh.

Thursday, December 02, 2004

 

pretty things

Guilty Treasure

I came across this link and thought that this artist's jewelry is really lovely.

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?