Photos

Here are some photos for your visual enjoyment.

This is my friend Erin. She is 24 and works at the homeless shelter I volunteer at. She has two kids, Elliot (age 3) and Kelsey (age 2) and she and her hubby are recently separated. This girl has the gift of gab and can talk to anyone. She's also a lot of fun to hang out with.


Today's Lunch:
Leftover soup (beef vegetable with orzo)
Crust of seeded wheat bread
1 roll

Stocking your home bar

I read this great article about stocking a bar for your home. I found it thanks to the CIA's (that's Culinary Institute of America for all you non-foodies out there) ProChef Smart Brief.

Yes, you can spend less than $300 and still have a fully-stocked bar with really good liquor.

The Basics:
Vodka: Stoli
Gin: Tanqueray
Whisky/bourbon: Maker's Mark
Rum: Flor de Caña Extra Dry 4-Year-Old
Tequila: Sauza Hornitos
Brandy: Laird's Applejack

Mixers:
Sweet Vermouth: Martini & Rossi
Dry Vermouth: Noilly Prat
Angostura bitters
Orange bitters

Liqueurs:
Cointreau
Benedictine

Click here to see the article.

Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich with brie on seeded wheat bread
Banana
Diet Pepsi

Giardia and music

I don't know what to write about today. My weekend was so full that I feel like I'm still recovering from last week.

I am concerned that I have a parasite (Giardia) from the untreated water I drank last week. My mom told me it takes about a week for Giardia to start causing discomfort, and starting last night I've been experiencing nausea. Something ain't right on my insides.

I am so excited about tomorrow night! I'm finally going to see some good reggae, I can just feel it this time. The people at WORT who host Tropical Riddims are having a fundraiser show. I asked this new guy I'm seeing, Kevin, if he'd like to come with. He really likes reggae so he'll probably go for it.

Other than that I feel like poo today. I think I will leave work early.

Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich with brie on seeded wheat bread
Banana

So busy...

My days are consumed with trying to get stuff done but not being able to place a finger on what it is I'm doing. I just know I have a lot of phone calls to make and return, forms to fill out, and stuff to read. I have been putting my Mandarin studying aside to get other things done and I need to catch up.

I guess I'm so busy because I was out of town for the last two weekends. This weekend my schedule is filling up fast:

• Tonight - go fishing with a guy I met (Kevin)
  
• Saturday morning - volunteer at soup kitchen
• Saturday afternoon - kayak instruction needed to go on more trips with outing club
  
• Sunday morning - finally! some free time
• Sunday afternoon - volunteer at homeless shelter, review a dessert

A review of this week:

• Ate pickles soaked in Kool Aid (not too bad)
• Attended a Madison area food bloggers' meeting
  
• Ate a dessert at a local restaurant; still need to write article
• Broke down and bought a Trac Fone (and I was so proud of not having a cell phone)
• Danced to some good reggae music

Today's Lunch:
Cashews and peanuts
Apple

Backpacking

I had a great weekend in the Porcupine Mountains of upper Michigan.

The drive from Madison to Silver City took about 6 hours, so we arrived in mid-afternoon. We stayed at a car-camping campground the first night. The campground was near a rocky Lake Superior shore and the view was magnificent. I especially loved looking at the underwater algae waving its little arms in the waves.


We had a campfire, the most exciting part of which was the stump we burned. It had been hollowed out in the middle (most likely due to rot when the tree was alive), and when we burned it there was a chimney effect. Flames shot out of the hole in the stump and it looked pretty cool.


The next day, friday, we began our expedition. Here's a map of our route. We started at Lake of the Clouds, then took the North Mirror Lake Trail to Mirror Lake. We camped at Mirror Lake, then took the Correction Line Trail and the Big Carp River Trail to the campsites on the escarpment. Then we went back to Lake of the Clouds on the last day.


The hike from Lake of the Clouds to Mirror Lake was somewhat uneventful. There were a lot of other people on the trail and it was muddy. Plus, I was still getting used to my pack. I haven't been backpacking since I was 15, so the weight hit me hard at first. We did encounter a beautiful gorge:


We camped off the trail that night in an undesignated camp area. It was dark, it was wooded, and we were right by a lake. When I walked deeper into the woods I found some beautiful old-growth hemlocks.


The next day was the longest and hardest day of hiking. We had to fill up our dromedaries (collapsible water containers) and carry them with us. I took a 4-liter dromedary and it added over 8 pounds to my pack. But I pressed on. We walked through a swamp (I love swamps) and through a pine forest with very little understory. I love how the pine needles covered the forest floor and crunched beneath my feet.


Our camp food was pretty good. For breakfast we ate instant flavored oatmeal with dried fruit. For lunch we had nuts (cashews, peanuts, and hickory-smoked almonds) with dried fruit and beef jerky. For dinner we had 1) freeze-dried culinary delights such as chicken a la king, 2) spaghetti with canned pasta sauce, and 3) cheese tortellini mixed with olive oil and dried pesto and topped with fake parmesan cheese.

The best part of the trip was the last day. We had camped on top of a cliff and could see both of the lakes and everything in between. It was a neat way to see just how far we had walked. Plus, on the final hike back, we followed the ridge and had an amazing view the whole way. I also loved the dry land (it reminded me of Grayling, the town in which I grew up). I saw oak trees and Prince's Pine and Indian toilet paper (plants I learned from my dad but whose common names I do not know). I do not see these plants in southern Wisconsin and seeing them brought back memories.


Indian toilet paper:


The trip was a success. The only unfortunate thing that happened was on the last day when I discovered I had been drinking straight, unfiltered/untreated river water. Oops! I experienced some intestinal discomfort (EAS) but it wasn't too bad overall.

Today's Lunch:
Leftover backpacking food (I need to go shopping):

• Cashews, peanuts, hickory smoked almonds
• Dried fruit - raisins, cherries, pineapple
  

R.I.P.

Crikey! This morning I got up, took a shower, drank a bucket of water, fed the cat... and then, after I put my contacts in, I walked into my bedroom and saw something on the floor.


I walked closer to it. It was... a dead bat!


Poor little thing. I have no idea how it died, but hopefully it was peaceful.

My landlord contacted animal control and they were going to test it for rabies. However, I had already thrown it in the trash and since today is trash day, the trash was taken out before my landlord could retrieve it. Oops! And I never took Kitty in for her rabies follow-up, so now she may have to be vaccinated.

Plus animal control is going to call me every 10 days for 6 months to make sure Kitty is doing okay.

Today's Lunch:
Leftover red curry stir-fry - beef, snow peas, red pepper, and carrots (you can see the recipe here)
Basmati rice

Thoughts...

Cultural experiences:

• I saw a band playing roots/reggae/African music last night. The highlight of the night was when a Jamaican man asked me if I were bi-racial because no Caucasian could have a bootie that big. Yeah, baby!
  
• I'm going backpacking in the Porcupine Mountains for Memorial Day weekend. 4 days of pure wilderness. It will be wonderful.
• I want to go back to Chicago and explore the area where the stockyards used to be. I'm obsessed with Upton Sinclair's book The Jungle.
  

Thoughts on China:

• It is more mainstream in China to ask acquaintances personal questions, like how much money they make, how old they are, what size they wear, etc.
  
• People in China make much less money than we do but pay similar prices for goods. Houjiang only makes $16k per year and he's a college professor. I am learning more about why people want to come to the U.S.

Food stuff:

• My kind-of-boss's wife, Marsha, gave me a bunch of cooking stuff that she doesn't use, as well as all her back issues of Cook's Illustrated. Score!
• A week ago my coworker Mike told me he was making me a "culinary surprise" that would take about a week to be ready. Could it be.... pickled eggs? I keep telling people how delicious they are.

Today's Lunch:
Went to Kipp's Down Home Cookin' with Houjiang. I had rotisserie chicken breast with macaroni and cheese and a corn muffin. It was really good.

Reggae

I've really been digging reggae music lately. I like the relaxed beat, quiet baseline, and pedaled guitar riffs. The singing is usually happy and sometimes hypnotic, perfect for just chilling out.

I never really had any exposure to reggae music until now. I listen to WORT on saturday afternoons and my favorite shows are Tropical Riddims and PanAfrica (descriptions below). Now I'd like to go out and see some good, live music.

Tropical Riddims
Saturday noon–2pm
Roots, rock steady, reggae, ska and conscious dancehall. Host F.R.P., the messenjah, teachin’ the youts ’bout roots and kulcha!

PanAfrica
Saturday 2–4pm
Popular and traditional music of Africa and the Caribbean with hosts Laurie Mlatawou and DJ Trini. New releases from throughout Africa are featured in an effort to bring African music into the American mainstream.

Today's Lunch:
Ham and provolone sandwich on seeded boule with yellow mustard

Weekend in Chicago

I went to the National Restaurant Association (NRA) Restaurant, Hotel and Motel Show. The show lasted from saturday until tuesday, but I just went to it on sunday.

I arrived in Chicago around 3pm on saturday. It was my intention to attend the show for 2 hours, but I hopped on the wrong bus and ended up getting a tour of south Chicago. It was fun. I think a great way to see a city is to ride the bus for a long time. I saw emaciated neighborhoods, houses that all looked the same, and beautiful trees. By the time I got back to downtown Chicago, it was time to get ready for my date.

Yes, I had a date. I had gone salsa dancing a couple weekends ago in Madison and met this guy, Jamal. He is from Iran originally but went to grad school at UW and now lives in Rockford, IL. I told him I'd be in Chicago, so he came down and we hung out. Jamal proved to be a great tour guide. We walked along the "Magnificent Mile," rode the elevator to the top floor of the John Hancock building, visited Navy Pier, and had some delicious Persian food. We walked everywhere. Although I had a nice time, I'm not sure Jamal is someone I'd like to see again. He's a little too serious and Type A for my taste; however, I really did enjoy hanging out with him.

On sunday I finally made it to the food show. It was insane. There were so many people there, so many booths set up. It took me over 5 hours just to see all the exhibitioners' booths. They were promoting everything a restaurateur could ever need, from kitchen equipment and utensils to building supplies. And the food! My god, I couldn't believe it. There were samples of every food you can think of, from breads to salmon and alligator to fruits and cheeses. There were big companies I've heard of, like Coca Cola, Clabber Girl and Angostura, and other companies that only sell to restaurants or distribution centers but whose food I've most likely eaten.

I decided to try as many desserts as possible and mention a few in my article. And by "trying" I mean tasting, as in one or two bites and that's it. But even so, by the last hour of the show, I was so stuffed from trying desserts that every time I approached a dessert booth I had to force myself to actually eat something. I was SO stuffed.

The strangest dessert I tried looked like a piece of falafel. It was a dark brown cube-shaped thing with a lumpy exterior. It was actually a deep-fried brownie bite. It was pretty nasty.

Some pictures:


Believe it or not, these people were promoting sausage. I guess they knew that people would eat sausage if it were on pizza.


Check out the beautiful marbling on this piece of Japanese beef!


This woman is taking notes on some china.


I especially loved the food art:




Today's Lunch:
Ham and provolone sandwich on seeded boule bread with yellow mustard
Pretzel sticks
Apple

Oops!

I don't know how this happened, but I slept until 2:00 today.

I went to bed at 10:00 and heard my alarm go off at 7:00. Then I remember Kitty poking me with her paw, as she does every morning when I don't get up right away. Then.... I woke up, thinking it was 9:00 or so, and had a heart attack when I looked at my alarm clock. 2:10? I did a double take. I really couldn't believe I slept in so late.

I felt really bad. Irresponsible. Unreliable. My mom always tells me that I'm too hard on myself. But still... I can't believe I slept in 7 hours.

Today's Lunch:
Lunch? What lunch? I was still sleeping!

Good Karma

I met someone, a guy named Karma. I am blogging about him because he called and we've seen each other twice - sunday and tuesday - and are planning to hang out again.

Yes, his name is really Karma, and no, his parents are not hippies. He's Tibetan, but grew up in India. His family moved to Wisconsin 10 years ago and resides in the Madison area. He's 27, works at a hospital, and we met at Woodman's (the grocery store). I was approaching the checkout line and he and his friend were in front of me. They were talking very animatedly to the cashier, and I was trying to figure out what language they were speaking. I noticed his shoulder length, straight black hair and his bright smile. I checked out and walked to my car, then went back into the store to get alcohol (you have to buy alcohol and groceries separate at Woodman's). He approached me as I was perusing boxed wine. I heard him say, "excuse me," and my first thought was that a store employee was going to ask for my ID. But then I looked at him and recognized him, and then he asked me out.

So far I like him. I don't want anything serious, just a fun and light summer romance. :)

Today's Lunch:
Leftover curried pork stir-fry with red peppers, potatoes, green beans, carrots and onions
Basmati rice

Mandatory HPV shots

I just read an article in this month's Hispanic Magazine about the new HPV vaccine, Gardasil.

According to Hispanic, Gardasil is a vaccine that's given in three injections over a period of 6 months. It is currently approved for females ages 9-26 (its effectiveness for older women and for men is still under consideration). It targets four types of HPV that together cause 70% of cervical cancer cases, and 90% of genital warts cases. However, it does not protect us from diseases caused by other types of HPV (there are approximately 40 types in total). I think hitting the four major types of HPV is good enough for now, and we should do whatever we can to protect our female population from getting cervical cancer.

There is some controversy over making the vaccine mandatory for 11- and 12-year-old girls. The aim is to give them the vaccine before they become sexually active. However, opponents claim that giving girls the shot will encourage them to become sexually active, and that instead we should be encouraging them to abstain from sex, period. While I agree that kids shouldn't be having sex until they're mentally ready for it, they're not going to refrain from it just because we tell them to. And, if they choose to have sex anyway, we should do everything in our power to prevent them from contracting a possibly life-threatening STD (such as HPV).

Today's Lunch:
Homemade Italian sub - salami and provolone on a chewy baguette with a dash of red wine vinegar and olive oil, topped with roasted red and yellow peppers.
Kiwi fruit

Latest food obsession

Lately I can't get enough Italian subs. I don't care where it comes from, I just need to taste salami and vinaigrette and lettuce and tomato on a really fresh roll of bread. If there are decent hot peppers nearby, I'll throw those on, too.

I ate one for lunch and now I want one for dinner. Vive Italia!

Crystal's dating rules

I've had an epiphany.

I'm still new at this whole "dating" thing. God knows everything's a little different in college, not excluding the art of romance. I remember when I liked someone in college I could just meet up with them at a party or the bar, and always have the security of my friends to keep it informal. If I got bored I could always excuse myself and find someone else to talk to. However, things are different out here in the real world. Dates seem to involve more money, more time, and more agonizing over what to wear. And if the guy isn't interested, he's too cowardly to tell you and deals with it by not calling. In college, if a guy wasn't interested, he could still be cowardly about it, but at least you got the point when you saw him making out with someone across the room.

I was feeling desperate last week. I had gone on a date with the restaurant guy, and I thought it went well. Yeah, so what if at the end he gave me a 1-armed "brotherly" hug and said, "we should do this again sometime"? It seemed like we'd go out again. It seemed like he dug me. But he never called. After moping about it for a while, I got my act together and went to the library, where I picked up the book, "He's Just Not That Into You." After reading that book, my attitude about dating changed. It's sad that we have to play these little games, but here are my rules for dating:

• Never call the guy back right away. It makes you look too interested and/or desperate. Wait at least 4 hours.
  
• If you're meeting somewhere, show up a little late. You don't want to be the one waiting for him.
• Wear makeup, but don't go overboard. Don't wear perfume if it clashes with your deodorant (that's my own personal rule and I have no background for it, so you don't have to follow it). And for pete's sake, do not dress like a hoochie.
  
• While on the date, consume no more than two alcoholic beverages. I find it ladylike and dignified to not get wasted on the first date.
• If you're doing a lot of talking, make sure to discreetly wipe your mouth on occasion to avoid saliva build-up in the corners. Keep your mouth dry by swallowing to avoid spraying spittle. If you are drinking beer and you burp, turn away because beer burps stink.
  

And, the most important rule of all:

• Never assume the guy likes you until he calls again, preferably within 7 days. If he calls after that time period, make up an excuse to never see his sorry ass again. If he doesn't have the time to call you within a week, he's just not that into you and you're wasting your time.

Okay, that concludes Crystal's Rules of Dating for today. Hope it helps!

Today's Lunch:
6" BMT sub from Subway, with tomato, green pepper, onion, and oregano toasted, then lettuce, pepper, and vinegar/oil afterwards. MMmm....
BBQ Baked Lays
Diet Coke