Quick Update

I survived my first PhD year. Many things happened. I have many unpublished blog posts, but I'm told those don't actually count, so we'll see what happens there.

Back at Barakel for the summer. It's warm, delightful, and I haven't had any ticks yet. The summer staff workshop starts this Tuesday, so people are beginning to trickle in and settle into their prep work. Zipline training is underway, and the rest of the leadership team arrives tomorrow.

It will undoubtedly be a busy summer. I'm excited, and looking forward to seeing what happens.

A brief update . . .

The winter of soups is still ongoing. I've moved away from following recipes, because that currently requires too much forethought. The good news is that I'm apparently quite good at throwing random things into a pot and having soup come out. The other good news is that B has gifted me chili deliciousness for after my cold walk home tonight.

I don't know if you've heard, but it's winter, and that means that it is a mite chilly outside. I am surviving it. Every day I'm grateful that I do not have to pay the heating bill for my apartment. Most days I'm grateful for a warm, purring beast curled up next to me while I grade.

Grading has been ongoing, and is finally completed for the first unit. It's now time to turn my attention to all of the writing I'm supposed to be doing. There is a week and a half until spring break (and the next round of grading), and I need to make decisions, write abstracts, and finally finish reading that Agatha Christie book I started in December.

My schedule is on the insane side this semester (as you know, if you've tried to reach me at any time). Staying busy is good, right?

Merry Christmas!

Christmas break has come and gone. I enjoyed working at Zingerman's. It's odd to get a paycheck with hours on it. It's very different to go home from a job and not have to think about it any more. There are some definite perks to working in a non-academic setting.

After my bakery time was over, I spent time with my family, had the flu, and visited my fairy godchildren. Amanda and I froze in Rochester, looking at the lights. Good times. 

But, I'm back in Milwaukee, and the first week has gone well.

This post is neither lengthy, nor very informative. Apologies. Perhaps the next one will contain a bit more verve.

A Winter of Soups #3

The latest soup is a smashing success. I cannot take any credit for this one. I followed a recipe (despite having claimed to learn that recipes are evil after the parsnip soup disaster). I found the recipe on a site called Molly's Soup Blog (http://mollyssoupblog.com/?p=92) and it is now solidly a cataloged as one of my winter go-to dishes. 

I had some doubts as I began to prepare this soup - African Sweet Potato and Black Bean. It seemed to be entirely composed of things I didn't much like (sweet potato and black beans being among those things). However, the smell was delicious. The taste was even better. I'm on day three of eating this soup - it made quite a bit for one person - and not tired of it yet (which is good, because I still have a lot). I gave some to my partner in crime, as a thank you for the loan of his pot (which I still have not returned), and he has given his stamp of approval as well.

Classes continue to stampede forward. It's the time of the semester when I'm trying desperately to motivate myself to write and get some drafts finished early enough to actually make them good before the deadline.

The latest minor triumph is that I have successfully had my section changed from its location in the Gym to a new location in an actual classroom building. This is more convenient for me, for my students, and for actual teaching.

Two weeks until Thanksgiving.

A Winter of Soups #2

Parsnips are an underrated vegetable.

I actually used a recipe this time.

It was . . . not great.

Lesson learned? Don't bother with recipes?

A Winter of Soups #1

Those of you who know me well may be aware of my distant relationship with soup. I've never been able to quite convince myself that I love soup, even though I've eaten several delicious soups. This winter, I have determined to give soup a fighting chance to win me over. Of course, I promptly undermined soup by not using an actual recipe.

Curried Carrot and Chicken Soup

Carrots (un pound-ish)
Chicken broth (2 cups? 3?)
Curry spice blend (tablespoonish)
Chicken (two bits)

Basically, I simmered the carrots in the broth until they were squishtaculent. Then I blended in the blender (a bit at a time) until mushdelicisauce. This is where the broth number gets lost, because I added more at this point to help with the blend process.

Once I had the base finedandy, I plunked in the chicken, let it simmer a smidge. Then I added the curry powder and some carrot chunks for texturelation. Simmer till awesome.

Still delicious. Earned the JB stamp of approval. Next time, I'm dreaming of something with parsnips.

And a real blog post, for those who are interested

October flashes by quickly. My favorite month, here and gone.

I got to pet goats this week. And pick out a pumpkin. And buy lollipops shaped like roasted chickens to give to my class tomorrow.

My classes this semester are extra challenging. Well, not all of them. One section of the two sections I am teaching is stuffed with the distracted, distracting, obstreperous freshmen that resent any time spent learning and would much rather talk about anything else. I've never before had a student keep an earbud in while I was teaching. Now I've spotted a couple. Not cool, chillens, not cool.

I'm reading Peter Pan for my children's lit. class. It led to JB and I having what I called a fight and he called an intellectual discussion about Peter Pan. I'm pretty sure I won. He hasn't read it, so it's difficult for him to argue with any credibility.

My apartment and I are reaching a peaceful stability, though the bathroom sink is beginning to show an alarming propensity for slow drainage. Beocat spends his days lounging on one piece of furniture or another - because I have furniture now! Well, I have a futon left by the previous tenant, and I have Amanda's double papasan. That's almost exactly like having my own furniture.

This weekend is stuffed with Halloween festivities. I might go to a friend's house tomorrow night, if I'm feeling social. Or, games might happen. On Saturday, I'm hosting a live-action Clue party. Embracing the geek-atmosphere is part of my current ethos. Plus, nothing about live-action Clue sounds unfun - especially when I'm running it, so I basically get to sit back and watch everyone else.

I'll write more as I can. I always tend to blog more when I have papers due. Blogging is the purest form of procrastination.