ramblin' cath

Well, I've had a busy week. Thought I'd update you.

Monday and Tuesday were normal days, but since I had stuff to do in the evenings, (i.e., dishes, laundry, writing a letter of recommendation for one of my former teaching assistants,) I was running about the apartment like a crazy person.

Wednesday night I had choir rehearsal. Everyone raved about my "new hair." It doesn't feel very new to me any more, but whatever. (I have had more compliments on this haircut! Sheesh.)

Thursday night we had a "big" staff meeting, which lasted until about 7:00. By the time I got home, made a couple of phone calls, and got ready for work the next day, it was time for bed.

Friday, I didn't get out of work on time, so I then had to rush home during rush-hour traffic, (a near impossibility,) to turn around and head off to babysit in Saint Louis Park by 6:00. The evening was . . . interesting, and not very good. But I made fifty bucks, so I'm not complaining.

Saturday, my coworker Kara picked me up at 7:30 a.m. and we drove with her friend Amanda to the Middle of Nowhere, Minnesota for an early childhood environmental education conference, which lasted all day. The conference was terrible. They showed us how to make bird feeders with pinecones, peanut butter, and birdseed. Sheesh. (I didn't have the heart to mention that I work at a peanut-free school.) When I returned from the conference, I quickly showered and got ready to go out. Ann, Christine, and I had dinner at Brit's. Yum. They just have the best fries EVER. And they make a mean grilled cheese sandwich, which they serve with a cup of cream of tomato soup. (Our plan was actually to go to Salsa a la Salsa, but alas, there was an hour wait for a table. We were hungry and abandoned ship for Brit's.) Then we came back to my place, met up with Michelle, and watched "Supersize Me." Wow. I don't think I'll ever be able to eat fast food again, after watching that movie. Then we went to the Fineline to see a couple of bands play, including Epic Hero. Um, that was interesting. The crowd was a bit strange for the Fineline, and I think I'm getting burned out on Epic Hero lately. We did have free cover coupons, however, which was nice. (Oh, we walked to the Fineline, by the way.) On the way home we came up with an alternate name for First Ave. -- "Puke Pl." Boy, being out around bar close downtown is sure entertaining! We headed over a few blocks to Nicollet Mall, which was very nearly puke free, and much less crowded.

Yesterday, I went to church, then met up with Christine. We went Target-ing, (I bought a new coffee maker -- wahoo!) and then stopped at Wilde Roast Cafe in Northeast. I had a fantastic roasted red pepper and artichoke fritatta, and really good organic, fair-trade coffee. Oh, and they serve their toast with a little tub of homemade strawberry jam. Double-yum. Then we went to Whole Foods. I got a bunch of produce -- yay! However, either I got a crummy piece, or I just don't care for it, because frankly, fresh papaya is kind of icky in my book. Will have to stick with the dried version, which I could eat a bagfull at a time. I also watched "Gosford Park" last night. I remember being really confused the first time I watched that movie, and not enjoying it much. This time, I was about ten minutes into it and felt similarly. So I turned on the closed captioning. MUCH better. The movie moved so quickly and everyone's accents were so different, I had a hard time following the dialogue. I enjoyed it more the second time around.

Today, I have been working on little things here and there around the apartment. I'm having dinner later with Ann and Janelle at Cafe Brenda. I sure have been eating out a lot the past few days. Hmm . . . . !!

And an update on the cookbook -- work has continued, albeit more slowly than during Christmas break. I have been ruthlessly testing recipes, and have found many winners. I made an awesome soy-sesame-honey tofu stir fry for dinner last night. (I've discovered my issue with tofu -- I don't care for extra-firm tofu. It's too chewy. Firm tofu, on the other hand, is nice and soft and welcomes the flavors you marinade it in.) It was full of peppers, onions, and carrots, and I dumped it over some brown basmati rice. Mmmmm!

I'll close with a quote, since we're observing MLK Jr's birthday today:

"Many persons fear nothing more terribly than to take a position which stands out sharply and clearly from the prevailing opinion. The tendency of most is to adopt a view that is so ambiguous that is will include everything and so popular that it will include everybody." ~ Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.