Eh

I got nothing.

Tonight I have to move stuff. And assemble a bookshelf. And see Sicko with some friends.

Today's Lunch:
Ham, salami, lite cheddar sandwich on half mini-baguette with hot yellow peppers, salt and pepper
Brownie leftover from meeting. The frosting obviously came from a can but it was okay.

Lots o' stuff

GirlfriendsCafe

I realized I only have a couple of girlfriends, and I hardly ever get to see them. So I joined this online networking tool called girlfriendscafe.com. You create a profile and meet up with other women in your area. Hopefully I can meet some like-minded ladies who like going out, seeing movies, having adventures, etc.

Work

Super-exciting - working on a new project with my homie Sam G. Tomorrow I get to sit in our mezzanine supply room (where it's something like 100 degrees) and dig around looking for the perfect Pyrex dish. I'll just bring my mp3 player, Nalgene bottle full of water, and ruler (for size measurements) and have a grand ol' time.

Websites

My newest subscriptions - Go Fug Yourself, which makes fun of celebrity fashion, and Hip Candy, which is about fashion trends. Good stuff.

Apartment

I finally found a place last week. It's about 2 blocks from work. (This is good because I don't have to walk far to get there. This is bad because I'll be able to see the building even when I'm not there. Arrgh!) Some details about the place:

It's owned by this little European man who lives in Chicago (can't place the accent). He's not the most personable person I've ever met.

It's a big, old, tudor-style house with hardwood floors and charming little closets and nooks and crannies.

I will be living there with two other people, a man and a woman, but I have only met the woman. She seems okay.

My room is huge and has two enormous closets.

The rent is $200 less than my last place, but I'll have to share the kitchen.

I started moving in last night and will finish it up tonight, hopefully.

I'll take some pictures this time. Overall it reminds me of a fraternity house.

Other Stuff

I'm excited to go back to see my parents in Michigan this weekend. I'll get to see Becky and Alfonso and little baby Christopher, which is way exciting. Plus a lot of my relatives will be there.

I had my 2-month Lasik checkup today. My eyes are dry. Now I have to put drops in them every 2 hours. Grrrr...

Last night I had a gin martini, straight up, with Bombay Sapphire and 2 olives. It was yummy, but now when I think about it my stomach does flip-flops.

I'm listening to a chick lit book called Shoe Addicts Anonymous. It's cute and entertaining.

Today's Lunch:
Taco Bell Chicken Taquito with guacamole
Nachos

My weekend

I had a dream I was at a dinner party and Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton showed up. Paris was actually kind of nice and laughed at my jokes, but Nicole was bitchy and just rolled her eyes. It was really strange.

I went to Africa Fest on saturday. I wore this crazy dress I got for $3 at a sale, but it was bright and scary and I don't think I'll wear it again.



I saw dancers from Nigeria and various bands that played African music. Edi from Atimevu showed us how to dance African, so I learned some new moves. It might look weird if I use my new moves at a party or something, but it was fun to learn how to dance African.



I also made some cakes friday night; a Pacman cake and a polka dot cake. I used a buttermilk cake recipe from the Joy of Cooking, and the cake turned out really light and fluffy. Also, for the Pacman cake I used Grandma's whipped cream frosting recipe, and for the polka dot cake I used cream cheese frosting.





Today's Lunch:
Ham, salami, white cheddar, and hot yellow pepper rings on 1/2 Trader Joe's mini baguette
Apple

Photos for blogger

How do cats see us?

Today my coworker Marshall and I were talking, and he told me about this show (on Animal Planet?) called "The Dog Whisperer." It's about a guy who really understands the behavior of dogs, and he goes to people's homes and helps them with their problem animals.

I wonder - is there such a person as a cat whisperer? And if so, what could they tell me about my cat?

I would generally like to know what cats see humans as, and what my cat in particular thinks of me. Here are my theories:

• I am another cat, albeit a big, hairless cat, but a cat nonetheless. With a really weird way of meowing.
  
• She doesn't know she's a cat and thinks she's a human like me. If Kitty were a human, I think she'd be a crabby old lady who really likes cuddling. Weird.
  
• She doesn't really know what she is and she doesn't really know what I am, but she knows we're different and she's cool with that.
• Maybe she sees me as the "alpha" cat and that's why she doesn't pee on my pillow.
• What if she thinks she lives in a zoo and I am her keeper? Or maybe she just sees me as something to feed her and pet her whenever she wants.
  

I'd really like to know why she used to jump on me and attack me while I was laying in bed. She's only done it once since we moved back to Madison, but in Evansville she used to do it all the time. Also, she really seems to dig it when I talk to her and tell her how cute she is.

The time has come

My blog is back to being public. Hell-lo, random strangers!

Today's Lunch:
Peanut butter sandwich
Apple

Latest obsessions

I'm obsessed with:

• Trader Joe's bread (any kind, as long as it's artisan) with Smart Balance. I could eat it all day.
• Yahtzee on my cell phone. When there's down time, you can bet I'm rollin' the dice. My highest score is 356.

Yeah, that's it. I thought I had more but can't think of anything else.

Today's Lunch:
Peanut butter sandwich
Apple

Beijing birthday treat

My coworker Houjiang had a little birthday gathering last weekend. He made a special noodle dish that is original to Beijing. Here's how it goes:

2 scallions
fresh ginger
1/2 lb ground pork
1 packet special Beijing sauce (kind of like miso paste)
1 head Napa cabbage, chopped coarsely
2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped coarsely
Noodles

Cut up the scallions and ginger. Toss them in a heated wok with oil and stir fry for a few seconds. Add ground pork and cook.

Next, add a special sauce, a little water, and some dried chicken broth. Allow to simmer for about 1/2 hour or until thickened and reduced. Remove from heat.



Boil some water and cook Napa cabbage for about 3 minutes. Remove from water with strainer. Add noodles and cook until soft.

To serve, place noodles in individual bowls and add cabbage, some sauce, and cucumbers. Mix thoroughly. The coolest part - after you take a bite of noodles, take a small nibble of a piece of raw garlic. It's awesome!





Today's Lunch:
Trader Joe's lentil-and-vegetable soup
Saltine crackers (8)
Piece of cheddar cheese
M&Ms

Random stuff

• Today at work we were going to have a pizza party for our summer students before they go back home. It was really strange - we waited for an hour for the pizza people to deliver our food, and they never came. We called them repeatedly, letting the phone ring for a long time, but it was never answered. We wondered if they went out of business (since yesterday, when we ordered the food??) or perhaps they had caller ID and were ignoring us. Starving, we gave up on waiting for them and ordered some sandwiches from Jimmy John's. Later my coworker got a phone call from the pizza place. It turns out they got robbed last night and the opening worker spent the morning outside talking to the cops. Whoa.
• Last night was my last day of French class. My instructor brought in some crepes with currant jam and Nutella and I totally indulged. Then we played French Pictionary and French Scrabble. French Scrabble was really tough - take a limited vocabulary plus a bunch of vowels and you spell a whole lot of "eau."
  
• I'm scrambling to find a place to live. My lease expires in just over a week and so far I haven't had any luck finding a new apartment/room for just fall semester. Today I scoured craigslist and emailed about 15 people. Wish me luck!
• I'm hot, sweaty, and tired.
• I am finally getting my chaco sandals re-soled. I've worn them continually every summer for the past four years and the soles are completely flat and are even starting to bubble on the bottom.
  
• Tonight is my last night of Mandarin class. Zai jian!
• Am looking for a new pair of workhorse black heels. I have strict criteria so I'm having trouble finding the perfect pair.. but that's okay. Like deer hunting, the fun is in the hunt.

Today's Lunch:
Roast beef sandwich from Jimmy John's
Tortilla chips with salsa
Mint chocolate chip ice cream
Coke Zero

Dinner and a movie

I went to KFC yesterday, only because I wasn't in the mood for Noodles and Delitalia was closed.

I haven't really been to KFC in years. I didn't notice anything "healthy" on the menu (like oven-roasted or skinless chicken), so I just went for the 2-piece drumstick and thigh meal with the Colonel's original recipe. For sides I chose a corn muffin, barbeque baked beans, and coleslaw. Here's what I thought:

• The chicken rocked. The meat was hot, tender, and moist and practically fell off the bone. The breading was flavorful, but nothing new or unusual. In an attempt to be healthy, I only ate the skin/breading on the drumstick. However, I noticed the thigh meat without the breading and skin still had a ton of delicious flavor. Overall, I'd say the chicken exceeded my expectations. Very delicious, indeed!
• The barbeque baked beans weren't so great. They were nice and hot, but a bit too sweet/syrupy for my taste.
• Coleslaw was okay. Not bad, but nothing out of the ordinary.
• Corn muffin was okay, too. Nice and moist but a bit too sweet. However, it had enough flavor on its own where I didn't need to put any butter on it.

Then I went to Sundance 608 to see Golden Door, an Italian film about immigrants coming to the U.S. It was kind of artsy with good cinematography. The plot became boring at times, but overall I enjoyed it.

New t-shirt

I was wandering aimlessly around the mall yesterday and found this shirt for $10:



Except mine's in a gray color, not purple.

Other purchases include a tank top, black slip dress, and a camouflage t-shirt (from the boys' department at Target, ha).

Today's Lunch:
Out with former secretary, Rachel. Not sure where we're going but it will be delicious.

Crazy Ghanaian Food

I had some crazy food last night with some friends. We were gathered at my friend Mia's house, it was like 2:00 in the morning, and I sampled some Ghanaian food.

There was this soup made with chicken in a really spicy broth. The broth was red and greasy, and the chicken pieces were just tossed into it without being removed from the bone or de-skinned or anything. I remember picking up a big piece of skin with my spoon. Everything I had been taught about eating chicken skin came flooding back to me - it's really fattening, it should always be removed and discarded, etc. But I had to eat it. If they eat it in Ghana, I can eat it in Wisconsin (when in Rome, do what the Romans do, right?). So I ate it. And it had so much delicious chicken flavor! I was amazed.

Nothing is left uneaten, so I followed suit and chewed on the bones. They were good. You take the bone from a drumstick (after you've eaten every little piece of meat and gristle), bite off the end and chew and swallow it, then suck out the marrow in the bone. My Ghanaian friend continued to chew up the rest of the bone, but being an amateur I was left with a mouthful of bone shards and had to spit them out into my napkin.

Then we had fish. It tasted pretty much like any other deep-fried fish fillets, but the cool part was this spread that we ate with it. It's made from fish and hot peppers and is pureed together to make a spread (I think it's called shito). It had a nice, smoky flavor and tasted really yummy.

I also noticed a box of fufu mix, which my coworker Mike told me about (he went to Western Africa for the Peace Corps). It's a porridge made from the cassava root and I read somewhere it's the mashed potato of Western Africa. There was also some corn on the cob, but I can't remember how it was prepared.

Today's Lunch:
Tuna sandwich (with light Miracle Whip) on ciabatta
Doritos
Popcorn

Trip to Marquette

As promised, photos from my trip.

Mom!


Joey!


Mary!


Hay Zeus!


Big mushroom...


I couldn't resist squishing it...


Splat!


My bro and me.


We helped mom order a new computer online (notice the credit card by her hand).


Monday night we went to check out a waterfall.

I saw thimbleberry bushes, but no good thimbleberries.


It was a pretty steep walk uphill...


...then we were in this beautiful forest.


Does your fifty-something mom jump around on logs and cliffs? I didn't think so!


I like this picture. Something for you to remember me by when I'm in Africa.


Joe being all Backstreet Boyz.


I dug these patterns the tannins made in the water.


It was so hot, I just wanted to jump into this beautiful pool of water.




Another picture to remember me by.


Mom and Mary




Other activities included walking to Jilbert's Dairy and getting ice cream, visiting the Marquette Co-Op, and lots of catching up. We thought about playing Euchre, watching Sicko, and getting pedicures, but it didn't work out. Maybe next time.

Today's Lunch:
Peanut butter sandwich on ciabatta bread
Carrots and celery with yogurt dip

Friendly reminder...

This summer I've paid more attention to my looks than I had the last couple of years and have noticed some things that are easy to forget. Ladies, a couple of small reminders for you (and gentlemen, if you roll that way):

• Don't forget to pluck/shave the hair on your big toes. I saw a pretty girl with bushy, long toe hair and was inspired to run home and pluck my own.
• When walking in heels, flex your quads and try to keep your legs as straight as possible. Nothing looks more amateurish than a woman walking in heels with bent knees. See this article on ehow for more info.
• When wearing eye makeup, blend, blend, blend!
• Take your measurements and read the book The Science of Sexy to determine what clothes look best on your figure. It is so cool!

I am officially obsessed. How did I become such a girly-girl?

Today's Lunch:
Leftover leek-tortellini soup (made by Mary and utterly delicious)
Smoked turkey, salami and muenster sandwich on white with light mayo and mustard