Tame Adventures

Dinner tonight was excellent.

2011-11-19T17:05:00.001-08:00

Carnitas
http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/11/homesick-texan-carnitas/

Roasted carrot soup (I added a beet, a healthy bunch of kale and some miso)
http://www.food52.com/recipes/9743_roasted_carrot_soup

For dessert, pumpkin pudding with sour cream
http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/11/baked-pumpkin-and-sour-cream-puddings/

When life gives you lemons...

2011-09-11T16:35:00.000-07:00

I love the produce California's Central Valley, and right now it is raining down on us. But we're leaving for a week-long trip to Minnesota tomorrow, so I've been doing my best to use up all the good stuff in our fridge.

When your husband gives you a huge bag of key limes ("Only a dollar at Pedrick's!"), you go out and buy eggs and milk, if you happen to be out, and make Sara's sponge pudding and two key lime coconut cakes. The pudding got eaten for dessert last night and then with iced coffee this afternoon. The cakes are in the freezer, waiting for an appropriate event when we get home.

When your husband also gives you a nice big bag of sweet cherries, which have been sitting out and are starting to get a little moldy, you make a cherry clafouti. This will be dessert tonight (and breakfast tomorrow).

And when your neighbors give you 20 pounds of luscious tomatoes from their garden, you stock up on jalapenos and serranos and make lots and lots of salsa. We made (and canned) four quarts the first afternoon, which used up just under half the tomatoes. We liked the salsa so much, we made another four quarts the following afternoon. We roasted all the vegetables. WIN.

A big bowl of roasted tomato puree, and two cups of roasted pepper and onion puree.

The fruits of our labor!

Heart & ribs

2011-02-18T21:23:00.000-08:00

I made these ribs the other day. I think they would have been delicious if I'd set the oven at a lower temperature. I did 350... Jack suggested 275 would have been better.

Ingredients:

3 lbs. beef short ribs (grass-finished if you can get ‘em)
Sea Salt & freshly Ground Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Cooking Oil of your choice (we used bacon lard)
1 Cup of Dry White Wine
1 Cup of Strong Brewed Coffee
1 large Yellow Onion, chopped
2 Teaspoons Chili Powder
1 Teaspoon dried Oregano

Instructions:

Season the short ribs with salt and pepper, to taste.
Warm the oil in a large skillet over high heat.
Add the ribs and brown until golden, turning them once, about 2-3 minutes per side.
Transfer the ribs to a paper-towel lined plate.
Pour the wine and coffee into the skillet. Cook over high heat, scraping up the brown bits on the bottom, until the sauce is reduced by one forth, about 2-3 minutes.
Put the ribs, onion, garlic, 2 teaspoons Sea Salt, chili powder, and oregano in a slow cooker. Pour in the wine sauce and cook, covered, on high for 2.5 hours. Transfer the ribs and sauce to a serving dish and serve.

Also, I found the top half of a cow heart in our freezer, so I stewed that up. Briefly:
Sautee diced bacon in a Dutch oven, and add in some veggies (red jalpenos and mushrooms). Remove the bacon & veggies with a slotted spoon, and brown the heart (trimmed of fat and cut into cubes!) in the fat. Add the veggies back in, and enough water to cover everything. Season as you see fit. We put in salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, etc. at first, and then we added some soy sauce, fish sauce and miso later on when it seemed to need a little extra something.

It turned out pretty well, but it was really oily - too much bacon grease? Not enough fat trimmed off the heart? Anyways, the top of the heart muscle seems to be tougher than the bottom, so stewing it was a good way to soften it up. The meat turned out to have great texture!

Simple simple truffles

2011-02-18T21:13:00.000-08:00

I made truffles as a belated Valentine's gift for Scott. Easy & really good!
Inspired by Mark Bittman.

Heat 7/8 c cream on the stove until it's steaming .(I had half-and-half on hand.)
Stir in 8 oz chocolate until it's melted. (I used half unsweetened and half semisweet.)
Stir in whatever flavors you like. (Rind from half an orange, a teaspoon of rum, a little cinnamon.)

Refrigerate until it's solid.

Scoop out truffle-sized amounts, shape into balls, and roll in cocoa powder (mixed with cinnamon) to coat. Store in the fridge.

I love that it's essentially a 2-ingredient recipe (cream + chocolate) with lots of flexibility!

I also want to try this chocolate custard (1 can coconut milk + 1 cup chocolate chips + flavorings) sometime soon.

Pepparkakor - awesomely spiced cookies

2011-01-09T17:01:00.001-08:00

My sister found this recipe and baked up a batch before Christmas. I got my first taste in their car, as she and Ugur and Scott and I drove north to Duluth. They are really, really fantastic.

A note of caution - Google Translator does a pretty good job, but it converts deciliters to cups, when the actually conversion is more like 1 dl = 0.4 cups. The volumes below should be correct.

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
7 oz butter
2/3 cup light syrup (I substituted maple syrup)

Zests from two lemons (I used 1 lemon and 1 orange)
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon orange peel (ground)
1 tablespoon cardamom

3 1/4 cups plain flour
1 tablespoon baking soda

Approximately 1/2 cup almonds (optional but recommended)

Instructions:

Melt the butter in a saucepan with the syrup and sugar.
Remove from heat and let it cool a bit, and stir in all the spices.

Combine the flour and baking soda, and stir into the batter. Stir in almonds.

Shape the dough into two logs and wrap each one in plastic wrap. (If the dough is too warm to shape, just put it in the fridge for a little while, and then try making logs.)

Put the logs in the fridge if you plan to use them within a week - otherwise they can go in the freezer.

Slice the log (half inch slices or less) and bake on a baking sheet at 375 degrees for 7-8 minutes. Cool on a rack.

Heartiest chili EVER

2011-01-02T17:56:00.000-08:00

We purchased an eigth of a grassfed cow in November, and we requested some hearts in our order. We got three! The first one, we just sliced and fried. Not bad, but a little tough, so we decided to slow cook the next one. Chili fit the bill. We made this about a week ago and have been really enjoying leftovers since then.

Instructions:
Saute an onion (diced) with some bacon (about 4 thick-cut pieces, also diced) in a big pot.
Once everything is soft and greasy, throw in cubed meat. We only used about half of the heart - it was 4.5 lbs total!

Chop up some peppers (we used one jalapeno and one serrano) and toast them with spices in a dry (nonstick) skillet. (Cumin, mustard, thyme, sage, rosemary, salt, pepper, and maybe some other stuff that Scott can't remember). When the peppers start to blister, add them to the pot.

Add liquid. We used a big can of diced tomatoes, a little can of tomato paste and a cup or two of water.

Add squash. We peeled and diced half of a blue hokkaido pumpkin that we had lying around.

Add other stuff... a few tablespoons of cornmeal (for thickening), some diced chipotle peppers and adobo sauce, some vegan broth powder (mostly yeast extract) to help add depth, some chopped avocados. I think that's it.

Let it simmer for the afternoon. We were happy with how it thickened up - the squash pretty much dissolved. Like most chilis, it tasted better the next day!

Dessert: homemade pudding with pomegrate seeds

2010-12-16T20:03:00.000-08:00

We had some milk and cream to use up before we left for vacation, so I made pudding, roughly based on a recipe in Bittman's How to Cook Everything.

Sift together:
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 T cornstarch
- pinch of salt

Whisk together:
- 4 tiny eggs
- 1 1/2 cups dairy (We had 1 cup whole milk + 1/2 cup half-and-half)

Whisk in the sugar mixture, and cook over low heat until thick, about 10 minutes, stirring constantly.

Stir in:
- 1 T butter
- Seeds from one pomegranate

Pour into bowls and refrigerate. Yum!

Flavor-injected rump roast

2010-12-16T20:00:00.001-08:00

Scott bought a "flavor injector" (a syringe) at Target the other day. I had my doubts, but now that I've seen it in action, I'm a believer. He filled it with a mustard-anchovy paste mixture and pumped it into our (grass-fed) rump roast, along with some garlic slivers. It cooked quicker than we expected, so it got a little dried out, but it tastes fantastic!

Last night we ate it with broccolini, and tonight we roasted some carrots and parsnips to have on the side. I always forget how good roasted root vegetables are.

Beef stew - with Guinness!

2010-12-13T15:15:00.000-08:00

Scott made this for dinner on Saturday, while I was off in Berkeley making cookies with Mavis, Maya and Nia. I came home pretty full (from eating lots of cookies), but I still had space in my belly for this - it's tasty!

Guinness Beef Stew

Serves 6 to 8

Make sure to buy large chunks of stew meat. Trim meat of excess fat, as necessary, and cut into 11/2-inch pieces. Be gentle when stirring in the flour in step 3-the fork-tender beef will fall apart if stirred too aggressively.

4	pounds boneless beef chuck stew meat
2	tablespoons vegetable oil
2	onions , chopped
4	cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2	cups Guinness Draught
1	tablespoon light brown sugar
1	teaspoon dried thyme
1	ounce bittersweet chocolate , chopped
2	bay leaves
5	carrots , peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1	pound parsnips , peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 1/2	pounds baby red potatoes , scrubbed
1/4	cup all-purpose flour
2	tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

1. Pat beef dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Cook half of beef until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer to slow cooker insert and repeat with additional 2 teaspoons oil and remaining beef.

2. Add remaining 2 teaspoons oil, onions, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to skillet and cook until onions are lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add broth, 1 1/4 cups stout, sugar, thyme, chocolate, and bay leaves and bring to boil, using wooden spoon to scrape up browned bits. Transfer to slow cooker insert.

3. Add carrots, parsnips, and potatoes to slow cooker insert. Cover and cook on low until meat is tender, 9 to 10 hours (or cook on high for 6 to 7 hours). Set slow cooker to high. Whisk flour and remaining 1/4 cup beer until smooth, then stir mixture into slow cooker. Cook, covered, until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Stir in parsley, season with salt and pepper, and discard bay leaf. Serve.

Make Ahead: You can prepare the recipe through step 2 the night before the ingredients go into the slow cooker. Refrigerate the browned beef and the onion mixture in separate containers. In the morning, transfer the beef and the onion mixture to the slow cooker and proceed with step 3.

Heads up

2010-12-13T15:11:00.001-08:00

FYI - This blog is about to get more kitchen-y. I'm going to use it as a repository for our dinner recipes/concoctions, and I'm no longer automatically exporting posts to Facebook or Google Buzz.

Update on Mr. Mini

2010-12-13T13:46:00.000-08:00

From my weekly pregnancy email (23 weeks!):

Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

Translation - Mini McNiven loves kipping pull-ups and won't be fazed by the sound of loaded barbells crashing to the floor.

In other news, Scott and I picked out a first name for our little boy, but we're keeping it a secret until he's born. We still need to settle on a middle name, and we should have a girl's name in our back pocket for the slim chance that our ultrasound was misinterpreted!

Cookies!

2010-12-11T15:20:00.000-08:00

Spent the day in Berkeley, at the 5th annual cookie baking party with Mavis, Maya and Nia.

I made Earl Grey cookies, which were pretty good, and someone else made lemon cornmeal black pepper cookies, which were really really good!

Earl Grey Tea Cookies

Yield: Makes 6 dozen

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons Earl Grey tea leaves, from approximately 6 tea bags
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Preparation

Heat oven to 375° F. Pulse together all the dry ingredients in a food processor until the tea leaves are pulverized.

Add the vanilla, 1 teaspoon water, and the butter. Pulse together until a dough is formed. Divide the dough in half. Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap and roll into a 12-inch log, about 2 inches in diameter. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes. Slice each log into disks, 1/3 inch thick. Place on parchment- or foil-lined baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake until the edges are just brown, about 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks.

Nancy Myers, Real Simple, MAY 2005

Lemon-Black Pepper Cornmeal Cookies

Epicurious | May 2001

by Lori Longbotham

Luscious Lemon Desserts

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal

3/4 teaspoon fresh, coarsely ground black pepper (optional)

Pinch of salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup finely grated lemon zest

2 large egg yolks

1. Whisk the flour, cornmeal, black pepper, if using, and salt together in a medium bowl.

2. Beat the butter, sugar, and zest in a medium bowl with an electric mixer, beginning on low speed and increasing to medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks and beat to combine well. Reduce the speed to low, add the flour mixture, and beat on low speed just until blended; the dough will be crumbly.

3. Press the dough together with your hands and divide it in half. Place each half on a sheet of wax paper and form each piece into a 10-by-1 1/4-inch log. Smooth each log with dampened fingers. Chill the logs, wrapped in wax paper, for at least 3 hours, or until firm.

4. At least 25 minutes before baking, position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F. Butter 2 large nonstick baking sheets.

5. Cut each log into 1/4-inch-thick rounds and arrange the rounds 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, for 10 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool.

Black bean & butternut chili... gone Hawaiian.

2010-10-27T16:35:00.001-07:00

I just made a batch of black bean and butternut chili for tonight's potluck party. (Recipe below.) As usual, a few modifications were required.

1. The recipe comes from a vegan cookbook, and I figured I could improve it by adding a pound of bacon ends we got from the meat lab last week. In went the ham with the onions.

2. Replace butternut squash with acorn squash. There aren't any squash chunks, but it gives a nice velvety texture.

3. The recipe calls for apple juice, which we didn't have. We did have a 6 oz. can of pineapple juice that I grabbed from the Safeway-sponsored lane of the half marathon Finisher's Village bonanza. I figured the pineapple juice would be a little sweeter, but otherwise an innocuous substitution.

Turns out that adding pineapple flavor to something with ham instantly reminds me of Hawaiian pizza (which used to be my favorite kind). It's a little odd, but I'm a big fan!

Here's the original recipe, brought to me this week from Lynn Rossetto Casper's Weeknight Kitchen email.

BLACK BEAN AND BUTTERNUT CHILI

Reprinted with[out!] permission from Party Vegan: Fabulous, Fun Food for Every Occasion by Robin Robertson (John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010). Copyright © 2010 by Robin Robertson.
Makes 4 to 6 servings

Halloween colors play out deliciously in this flavorful chili made with black beans and diced butternut squash.

1 small butternut squash, peeled, halved, and seeded
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1 medium orange bell pepper, coarsely chopped (optional)
1 14.5-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 cups cooked or 3 (15.5-ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 chipotle chile in adobo, minced
1 cup apple juice
3 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the squash into 1/4-inch dice and set aside. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the squash, onion, carrot, and bell pepper, if using. Cover and cook until softened, about 10 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, beans, and chipotle. Stir in the apple juice, chili powder, allspice, sugar, and salt and black pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Simmer, covered, until the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Uncover and simmer about 10 minutes longer. Serve immediately. If not using right away, bring to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 weeks, then thaw before reheating.

"On Punctuation" by Elizabeth Austen

2010-10-15T07:10:00.000-07:00

This is from today's Writer's Almanac. I actually really like the formality of good punctuation, but this is a fantastic poem nonetheless!

On Punctuation
by Elizabeth Austen

not for me the dogma of the period
preaching order and a sure conclusion
and no not for me the prissy
formality or tight-lipped fence
of the colon and as for the semi-
colon call it what it is
a period slumming
with the commas
a poser at the bar
feigning liberation with one hand
tightening the leash with the other
oh give me the headlong run-on
fragment dangling its feet
over the edge give me the sly
comma with its come-hither
wave teasing all the characters
on either side give me ellipses
not just a gang of periods
a trail of possibilities
or give me the sweet interrupting dash
the running leaping joining dash all the voices
gleeing out over one another
oh if I must
punctuate
give me the YIPPEE
of the exclamation point
give me give me the curling
cupping curve mounting the period
with voluptuous uncertainty

"On Punctuation" by Elizabeth Austen, from The Girl Who Goes Alone. © Floating Bridge Press, 2010.

Good news - I'm healthy!

2010-09-13T16:03:00.000-07:00

Scott and I recently got the results from our blood work. I admit, I was a little nervous to see my cholesterol levels. After all, we eat a very high fat diet - especially saturated fat.

Happily, my cholesterol levels look great. My HDL is actually four points higher than my LDL (74 versus 70 mg/dL), and my total:HDL ratio is 2.2:1. (5:1 is considered good, and 3.5:1 is ideal, so 2.2 is beyond ideal.) Scott's numbers are darn good too.

I know that our diet and exercise regimen isn't for everyone, but it sure seems to be working for us. Here's a quick write-up of how we eat and play.

No grains or sugar. We don't eat any grains at home, and we mostly avoid them when we're out (exceptions being a slice or two of pizza, which I can't resist, and home-cooked meals at friends' houses). We hardly ever eat sugar at home (including agave nectar and honey). We do eat a little dark chocolate most evenings.
Lots of non-starchy produce. We eat a lot of vegetables and try to stick to the less-starchy ones. (More leafy greens, fewer potatoes.) I usually have one serving of fruit each day.
Lots of saturated fat: plenty of fatty cuts of meat (and bacon and sausage) and around two eggs per day. When we sauté things, we use animal fat that we've rendered. Sometimes we use coconut oil & flour, and we enjoy our avocados.
Full-fat dairy (which means yet more saturated fat), mostly its fermented forms: yogurt and cheese. Scott is religious about full-fat dairy, and I'm glad - it's so much tastier. We use whole milk to make our own yogurt and eat about a gallon each week between the two of us.
MUFAs (monounsaturated fatty acids), mostly in the form of almonds, olives and olive oil.
Fish: a can of sardines (or tuna) is one of my favorite snacks. I buy them packed in water, since the oil-packed variety uses soy oil, which is almost all omega-6. We eat seafood once or twice a week for dinner.
Lots of fermented foods: yogurt, kim chi, sauerkraut, kombucha, soy sauce, miso, fermented tofu, fermented anchovy juice... Asian groceries are a great source for these things. I think these foods are really good for gut and immune system health.
A few supplements: 2400 mg of fish oil (omega-3s) and 1000 IUs of vitamin D3 with dinner each night.
CrossFit: We get in a good, hard (not necessarily lengthy) workout at least four times a week. And, of course, since we live in Davis, we mostly bike or walk instead of drive.

Changes ahead. We like our habits, but there's always room for improvement!

Higher quality meat, eggs and dairy. We're going to rely less on the UC Davis meat lab for our meat and eggs and opt for 100% grass fed options. We started buying organic milk instead of the grocery store brand. Not sure yet if we'll go all the way to buying grass-fed milk... it's expensive, but it's healthier.
More intermittent fasting: we weren't fasting very much over the summer, but we're getting back into it now. There are tons of ways to do it. What works for us is an 18-hour fast followed by a 6-hour eating window. For example, I fasted from 8pm last night until 2pm today. I had a snack at 2pm, a big meal at 4:30, and I'll have another small meal around 7:30.
More standing: Scott bought a desk that's high enough for us to stand up at while working. It requires more energy than sitting, but it's definitely better than sitting slumped on the couch for hours each day.

Let me know if you have questions - I'm happy to send you resources, references and more information.

Last missive from the eastern hemisphere

2010-07-07T17:15:00.001-07:00

Saw the Terra cotta warriors in Xi'an. Super awesome. Also saw a tomb
filled with thousands of Tera cotta barnyard animals - goats, sheep,
cows, chickens, dogs, pigs AND piglets. Really cool. Xi'an is also
home to a thriving Muslim population, so we checked out one of the
biggest mosques in China (the minaret is a pagoda) and wandering
through the neighborhood.

Took the night train to Shanghai and spent yesterday afternoon in an
artsy-fartsy gallery neighborhood in the French Concession. Amazing
seafood dinner, with fish, prawns and two completely unidentifiable
sea creatures. Sad to be leaving this country!

Last day in Peking. Smog creeping back.

2010-07-03T02:06:00.001-07:00

Spent the morning at the Summer Palace, which wasn't quite as overrun
with tourists as yesterday's attractions. We're taking a night train
to Xi'an, looking forward to leaving the big city behind.

Realized today that we're missing Potlatch this weekend. A tinge of
regret... Hope everyone is having a great time up there!

Lamb testicles for dinner tonight

2010-07-02T05:39:00.001-07:00

Very tender! Also had pumpkin balls, and fried hawthorne.

Spent the day at Tianamen Square (which is vast) and at the Forbidden
City (which is great, but very hot and crowded today, so it was pretty
draining). Blue sky today! Yay! And no sunburn!

Great Wall, great neighborhood, great dinner

2010-07-01T06:54:00.001-07:00

The wall is as big as everyone says it is. Fairly astounding. Sadly,
we had a rainy day, so the vistas were of pure fog.

We got dropped off in the 798 Art District, which is sort of like
Beijing's SoHo. Not quite as bustling, but a fun, young, hip
neighborhood. We nosed around galleries and drank expensive espresso
for the afternoon, then dined on sea cucumbers, pickled duck, sort of
a savory Jell-O dish, scallion pancake (quesadilla minus cheese) and
dried tofu wrapped around raw veggies dipped in a great black bean
sauce.

The rain cleared up a lot of the smog in the city, so we actually got
a sense of the skyline today! Yesterday it was too hazy to see more
than a few blocks away. This place is huge. Huge! It's about the same
size as Belgium, in fact.

Safe arrival in Beijing

2010-06-30T05:45:00.001-07:00

- We left the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen and arrived the
smoggiest city I'veever seen. But it's good to be here. Phi Phi Island
was ridiculously relaxing, but we pretty much ran out of things to do,
especially when some heavy rain came our way. I read "A Fine Balance"
(it's SO good!), went snorkeling and ate lots of seafood.

- Tonight we ate duck gizzard (or was it goose?), jellyfish, and a
huge pot of mushrooms. Thai food is tasty, but Chinese food is
definitely more interesting and, in my opinion, preferable.

- Great Wall tomorrow, then some sights around town.

Halfway through the honeymoon!

2010-06-24T03:17:00.001-07:00

Stuff we've seen so far...

Shanghai and the World Expo, which is ginormous. Tasty treat: bullfrog soup.

Suzhou, the Venice of the East.

Lijiang, winding cobbled streets and canals. Rode horses, ate dragonflies.

Shangri La: caught the annual horse racing festival (we didn't ride
this time) and experienced how thin the air is 3miles above sea level.
Very, very thin.

Siem Reap: fulfilled Scott's childhood dream of visiting Angkor Wat,
which is truly awesome. Got "Dr. Fish" massages, where you stick your
feet in an aquarium and let tiny fish nibble away the dead skin. It's
fun, and it's fun to see the expressions of the tourists who walk by.
Ate crickets.

Bangkok: vies with Naples for the most hectic city I've visited. We
visited some sites this morning, ate some good street food
(mealworms!), then relaxed near our hotel with Swedish & foot massages
($7/hr) and drinks and free wifi, sans the Great Firewall of China,
which blocks Twitter, Facebook, and Blogger.

Headed to the beach tomorrow (Ko Phi Phi or Railay) for a few days of
lounging, then on to Beijing.

Happy May Day!

2010-05-01T19:19:00.000-07:00

Such a good day.
Quilted for a few hours first thing in the morning, listening to Weekend Edition. Studied for next week's midterm. Ate sardines for lunch. Read Einstein's God for a bit on the hammock, and then dozed (but it's a good book! Not boring!). Tossed with Max, Alex & Bryce in a sunny park. Got a good, hard CrossFit workout in with Maiya, Melinda & company. Just finished a dinner of liver and roasted cabbage & daikon, listening to This American Life. Scott is due home from Santa Cruz in a few hours - my day will be complete.

I love Radiolab

2010-04-30T19:35:00.000-07:00

I've been listening to a bunch of podcasts lately and have become a huge fan of Radiolab, from WNYC. A lot like This American Life, where each show has a theme and an eclectic mix of subtopics.

Here's their homepage: http://www.wnyc.org/shows/radiolab/
So far, my favorite shows are:
The Bus Stop (March 23)
Limits (April 5)
In C (December 14)
And there are a bunch of really neat ones on animal minds as well.
Enjoy!

Salmon (Mackerel) pea (beet green) Quiche

2010-04-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

One of my most prized wedding gifts is a pair of cookbooks: Cooking in Minnesota and More Cooking in Minnesota, published in 1975 and 1983, respectively. They're out of print, so finding good used copies can be a real treasure hunt. And treasured they are: I grew up on these recipes.

Tonight, I opened up MCiM to page 77: Salmon Quiche. It calls for a pie crust, salmon, dill, evaporated milk and frozen peas. We substituted a potato crust, leftover mackerel from last night's dinner, fresh mint, leftover coconut milk, and some wilting beet greens. It's still in the oven, but I think it will be good!

Also, I made this orange and olive oil ice cream for Scott last night, and it was incredible. Highly recommended. I think it would be a great flavor profile for custard as well... I tried baking some of the cream mixture that wouldn't fit into the ice cream ball, but I think it wasn't eggy enough to stabilize. I'll definitely try again!

What I'm drinking

2010-04-19T20:45:00.001-07:00

Thoroughly enjoying tonight's dessert smoothie. It contains:

1 cup of whey (I strained a recent batch of yogurt to make yogurt "cheese" and saved the liquid whey)
4 raw swiss chard leaves (with stalks!) from our miniature chard jungle in the garden
some fresh mint leaves, the big ugly ones from the bottom of the stems
a 3-inch chunk of frozen banana
5 frozen strawberries
cinnamon - maybe a half teaspoon?

It is a lovely smoothie. Bright green. Minty, tangy, velvety, with a hint of strawberry sweetness.

Out of the woods!

2010-03-21T11:10:00.001-07:00

Winter quarter officially ended on Friday at 3pm, when I finished my final final (Animal Biochemistry and Metabolism). The last month has been a little hectic - mostly because I had to learn a lot about vitamins in a short amount of time, but also because of some fun things:

A trip to Portland to visit my parents, brother, his g.f. Bri, and my cousin-once-removed Kay. Beautiful sunny weather, a big family breakfast on Saturday morning Chez Kay, some modern art, a Japanese garden, a delicious Lebanese dinner, a gorgeous service at First Presbyterian, a trip to Oregon City (the western terminus of the Oregon Trail) and plenty of quality time with the fam. Nothing like cramming six adults into a tiny rental car!

Some great performances at the Mondavi Center: Les Ballets Trockadero (hilarious & unexpectedly graceful), Joshua Bell (gorgeous tone & good selections of modern music) and Del McCoury (infectious).

Our semi-anniversary! Six months down. Many, many, many more to go.

Lots of quality study time with my classmates. The work gets stressful, but I've really enjoyed bonding with my classmates this quarter.

Settling into spring break now. Scott's parents are here for a laid-back visit. We'll do some hiking and see some local attractions (like an alpaca farm!) but it's pretty nice to sit around and chat and not have too much of an agenda. We welcomed them in last night with a big batch of fish head soup.

Ingredients
1 enormous fish head (5 pounds?) from the Sac farmers market
Random vegetables - we had onions, cabbage, mustard greens and dried black fungus on hand
Salt, soy sauce, fish sauce, pepper, etc.
Tamarind paste - this is the most important ingredient after the fish head. It adds a nice sourness.
I added a little kim chi to my bowl.

We threw everything in our stock pot and let it boil for an hour or two. Amazing how much meat (and other stuff) came out of the head. The bones all fell apart, and we ended up picking them out of our spoons & mouths - not the most elegant dining, but delicious!

The Surprise Adventure Date recap

2010-02-04T13:52:00.000-08:00

One of Scott's Christmas presents from me this year was a "Surprise Adventure Date." It's reminiscent of the time he gave me the board game version of "Battlestar Galactica" - more appreciated by the giver than the receiver. But he dutifully kept free the weekend of January 30 and gamely helped keep the destination secret. (I'm terrible at secret-keeping, but he kindly refrained from asking me anything about it.) He correctly guessed it, but at least he didn't tell me!

Friday.
I rented snowshoes & bought tire chains between classes. And I made picnic food: hard-boiled eggs seasoned with soy sauce and ginger, and ground-up walnuts and apricots mixed with a little cocoa powder and rum - an excellent alternative to those all-natural energy bars.

Saturday.
We packed up the car in the morning, arrived at Castle Peak, just off I-80, by 10:30. The trail was crowded with several large groups, and the skies were crowded with clouds. We kept thinking of things we'd forgotten, like a compass and a camera. But we forged ahead, left the other groups in the dust, and got to the peak precisely at noon. Winded, given the steep slope and unfamiliar altitude (9100'), and windblown. We hunkered down on the lee side of a rock and ate our eggs and walnut paste. Practically no visibility, so we couldn't enjoy the view, but the fog did lend a nice air of remoteness. We could have been anywhere on Earth.

(Source: http://kevingong.com/Hiking/Images/AndesitePeak/CastleRidge.jpg)
View of Castle Peak

Easy tromp back down the mountain, some meandering through a meadow, then back to the Saab to find our night's lodging... in Nevada! A friend of mine generously offered to let us stay at his family's cabin, which happens to have a superb view of Lake Tahoe. We rolled in around 3pm, stripped off wet layers and promptly made dinner, which we ate while watching the sun set over the lake. (1st course: sausages and brussels sprouts. 2nd course: raclette cheese melted over sliced apples - a dish we coined Swiss Nachos.)

Between courses, we played our favorite card game and idly planned our summer honeymoon by reading the Asia chapter of "1,000 Places to See Before You Die." China? India? Vietnam? Thailand? It's going to be hard to whittle down the options. We went to bed embarrassingly early. Scott is still jet-lagged from Uganda, so at least he has an excuse.

View from the cabin.

Sunday: woke up just in time to see the sun rise. Cleaned up, packed up, dug the Saab out of its parking spot, hit the road. We were planning to hike to some lakes near Big Bend, but we couldn't quite figure out the trailhead, and I was starting to get nervous about a large midterm I had on Monday morning (All About Minerals!), so we just returned to Davis.

Study, study, study... then a lovely study break that involved walking to buy the Lonely Planet China guidebook, stopping for pizza and beer, and then including a frozen yogurt stop as long as we were out and it was still technically a Surprise Adventure Date Weekend.

Well, not a surprise. And not a spine-tingling adventure. But refreshing and romantic all the same, which was the primary purpose.

2010-01-23T10:26:00.000-08:00

Ran across this music and am enjoying it...

Wedding photos!

2010-01-18T21:45:00.000-08:00

It took me a while, but I finally have some wedding photos online!

Wedding 090905

Home from beautiful Santa Monica

2010-01-18T18:28:00.000-08:00

Just got home from a quick trip to Santa Monica. Flew down on Friday night (hooray for cheap Southwest tickets!), and Julie picked me up and whisked me home. Leisurely morning with her and Michael and then a nice 30-minute walk to the beach for the ultimate tournament (Lei Out). Perfect weather - t-shirt and skirt weather, not too hot, not too windy. We lost all four games but didn't worry too much about it. I'd forgotten how good it feels to play on soft sand under a warm sun. A few of us jumped in the Pacific afterwards - big waves, setting sun - hard to beat. Went out for amazing kimchi quesadillas for dinner. Spent the night with J&M again. Watched Up in the Air before bed - liked it, especially with the un-perfect ending.

Sunday morning started with oatmeal a la Julie, and some modeling of a vintage dress she's thinking of wearing for her wedding. Walked to the beach, played three games and won one of them! Another jump in the ocean, then off to Melody's parents' house for a very Swiss evening. The highlight was a dinner of raclette - slabs of special cheese, melted on a special grill and served with special sides (boiled potatoes, pickles, radishes, sausage & salami). The wine flowed generously and the traditional mountain music (yodeling!) rang out loud and clear.

Up early this morning to catch a flight home. Tough to come home to a cold, empty apartment. The dreary weather didn't help. I spent the afternoon putting our wedding photos in an album, and I got to go for a nice sunset walk in the afternoon when the skies finally cleared up. And I got to catch up with Scott - he presented some of his research at a conference in Capetown on Saturday and said he got great feedback and generally had a nice time down there. He keeps talking about how beautiful it is there. He's back in Kampala now for one more week. It's going to be a long week for both of us.

2010-01-10T21:35:00.000-08:00

One of my resolutions is to post here more frequently - at least once a week. Here goes.

1. Winter break was awesome.

We spent a week in Florida with Scott's family - lots of old family photos and stories - good stuff. I feel like I have a much better context for Becky's side of the family now. We got to see a bunch of cool animals too, both at the zoo and in the wild!
We spent a week and a half in Duluth with my family - lots of snow! We got a big blizzard that started on Christmas Eve day and continued through the 25th.

2. Winter quarter is off to a solid start... academically speaking.

Once again, I have Animal Biochemistry and Metabolism at eight o'clock in the morning, five days a week. Part of me is really bored of this class, and part of me really likes the routine. Calvert is a fantastic professor.
I haven't made up my mind yet about this quarter's nutrition core course: Vitamins and Minerals. This week we should get some material to sink our teeth into.
I'm pumped for Lipids with Dr. German. His passion for this stuff is palpable and infectious.
News on thesis research (involving gut microbes) coming soon, I hope.
I'm already starting to prepare med school application materials. (I won't actually turn in the application until June 2010, and I won't start school until fall 2011.) A long road, but it feels good to be on it.

3. The January downer is that Scott is off in Uganda. Fortunately:

We get to talk nearly every day.
He'll be back on the 24th. This trip is only three weeks, two weeks shorter than his trip in May.
He's doing well, and it sounds like his research is going as well as can be expected.
He's in Capetown this week for a conference, and he says the place is gorgeous! Glad he gets to have a little fun while he's over there.

4. Recent kitchen adventures:

Last night: fried liver and onions. I soaked the liver slices in milk before frying them, which mitigated their potency a bit. The fried onions were great!
This afternoon: almond flour biscuits. In support of my efforts to eat fewer sugars and cereal grains, Scott gave me almond flour, coconut flour & appropriate cookbooks for Christmas. The biscuits were my first recipe. Not what I was expecting (more scones than biscuits) but not bad. Recipe needs some "jazzing up," as a Minnesotan would say. Ketchup?
Tonight: roast cabbage - very tasty! The recipe called for laying a strip of bacon over each cabbage wedge. Having no bacon, I roasted it with olive oil and then dipped it in my leftover homemade baconnaise. Very delicious.

5. Happy new year!

2009-11-02T19:23:00.001-08:00

For your entertainment, a smattering of photos from the past two months. Canoeing, wedding partying, Eugene-ing.

Fall 2009

Pork snouts, lamb necks, turban squashes

2009-10-03T17:20:00.000-07:00

I don't have quite enough energy right now to do a mega-post about the fantastic past 2 months of my life (I took the MCAT, spent a week in Maine, got married, traversed the Boundary Waters with my family, and started a Master's program. And my sister got married!) In short, it was perfect - couldn't have been better.

Instead, a few notes from the kitchen. I found both liverwurst and braunschweiger at SaveMart the other day. They don't carry this stuff at Safeway, so I was excited to find it and bought both kinds. (Turns out braunschweiger is a particular kind of liverwurst - usually smoked.) I remember having it on sandwiches at the cabin when I was a kid; I don't know why my mom stopped buying it. Maybe I was the only one who liked it? We opened up the liverwurst today. The first four ingredients listed are pork liver, pork, pork snouts, bacon. It's good, but not as good as I remember. Maybe the braunschweiger is where it's at.

Dinner deliberations tonight revolved around how to use the slices of lamb neck that Scott brought home from the Meat Lab on Thursday. We found this recipe for braising them. So far, they smell delicious. And I think there will be a lot of good grease left over for our eggs tomorrow morning.

...unless I decide to make squash waffles for breakfast. Our oven is full of roasting vegetables right now: beets, beet greens, onions and a turban squash (see photo below). I'm thinking we should set aside some squash and use it in this waffle recipe. We got a really neat waffle iron/griddle as a wedding gift. (You can flip the plates over - one side is flat, for pancakes and eggs, and the other side is notched for waffles. Smart design!) We've made pancakes on it, but no waffles so far. 4 October '09 might just be the day...

Crazy, huh?
Source: http://www.friedpaint.com/images/art/photography/turban_squash.jpg

Tonight's dinner

2009-08-04T20:04:00.000-07:00

Tonight's dinner was part funny and part delicious, so I figured I'd better post it. I made a sort of vegan turducken. Acorn squash stuffed with bell pepper stuffed with tomato stuffed with olives. (Too bad we didn't have pimento-stuffed olives!) Topped it all with olive oil and salt and pepper. Not astoundingly tasty, but a fun way to eat one's veggies!

We also had mini squids from the Sacramento farmer's market - sauteed in a little oil, salted at the table. And we had a classic caprese salad - tomatoes (from our garden!!), spinach, basil, mozzarella, olive oil, salt, pepper. So wonderful. And served using the salad tongs Scott brought me from Uganda.

UPDATE:
Hey, Mark Bittman just posted about squid! We'll have to try breading ours next time...

Also, I forgot to mention our dessert: peach blueberry basil ginger pie. There's a little bit of grated apple in there (I heard it helps with texture) and some ground black pepper I added while the basil & ginger were cooking in their sugar solution. Inspired by Mark Bittman's "Foolproof Pie" post. I even have some heavy cream we can whip up to put on top. Yum!

July Recap

2009-07-31T08:02:00.000-07:00

I've neglected this blog for over a month, but I am happy to report that I have just emerged from the other side of organic chemistry alive and kicking! I took the final yesterday morning at 9am - that means I'm done with the o-chem sequence, and done with all of my pre-med coursework! I still have lots of pre-med WORK to do, but it feels really good to have the coursework behind me - that was a big barrier for me for many years.

A recap of the past month.
1st weekend in July: Potlatch, a big huge fun tournament outside of Seattle. I got to play with Paul & Amy and a bunch of other friends from DC, and with Scott and Kristen (a Davis teammate). I was injured so didn't play much until Sunday, but I did get to dress up in a banana costume and dance around as the official team mascot! (We were Team Chiquita.)
(More pictures here.)

2nd weekend in July: Our friend Nathan from DC was in town, so we got to hang out with him. We also played in a 1-day tournament in Sacramento. The team was put together in celebration of 4 people's birthdays (including Kristen), and the requested that we all wear pink, and that the men wear dresses or skirts. Lots of silliness ensued, as well as some well-played ultimate - we won the tournament!

3rd weekend in July: A sad one. My maternal grandmother died somewhat unexpectedly, so I went home to Minnesota for her funeral. A very teary weekend, but it was wonderful to be among such a big, strong family (Grandma had 6 children, 18 grandchildren and many many nieces and nephews) and to see the outpouring of support from the community - tables piled with food, the church decked out with flowers. Lots more to say... but this isn't the space for it.

4th weekend in July: Kristen threw me a surprise bachelorette party! Scott purported to take me on a date to Bistro 33, but in fact delivered me into the hands of my ultimate teammates - all gussied up and ready for a night on the town. After dinner and girly cocktails, they gave me a list of tasks I had to complete before the night was over. A daunting list, not suitable for publication here, but I'm happy to report that I finished it. One of the items was to beat a man in a push-up contest, which I did by resorting to clapping push-ups. Cheating? All's fair when you're wearing a 5'-long pink sparkly veil, I say. Another item was to find a guy to do push-ups with me on top of him, but I decided it would be better to reverse things.
I had a great time.

And speaking of bachelorettes...
1. Nia is marrying Mark tomorrow in San Francisco! I'm really excited to go celebrate with them.
2. My sister is now engaged to Ugur! A very unexpected and wonderful announcement. I'll see the two of them in just over a month (when we're all in Minnesota for my wedding), and I'm pretty impatient!

Speaking of my wedding...
All the planning is going really well. Still plenty of odds and ends to do, but I rest assured that everything will be wonderful. Scott and I have the first draft of our vows written, and a good idea of the shape of the rest of the ceremony. RSVPs are trickling in. Menus are mostly set.

Speaking of menus...
We've had some good cooking adventures lately! We bought a big chunk of skate (sort of like a stingray) at the farmer's market last weekend. Scott cooked it up, but it turns out that it doesn't taste very good on its own. It sort of tastes like something that eats dirt (which it might, I'm not sure.) We finished our portions but were not looking forward to downing the leftovers. Happily, Scott transformed them into a tasty "thai coconut skate bisque" with enough curry & vegetable flavors to mask the skatiness of the skate. The texture became stringy, very much like crab. Fun!
Also, we've been going on lots of picnics lately. My cousins gave Scott and I a picnic basket as a wedding shower gift, and picnicing has become my new favorite date-night activity. The most beautiful picnic food I've made so far is marbled hard-boiled eggs.

Speaking of eggs...
Just because I'm done with o-chem, doesn't mean I'm done being an egghead for the summer. I'm taking the MCAT on August 21, so I'll be cramming for that for the next 3 weeks. Uf da. Not particularly excited about the studying or the test taking, but I really can't complain - I'm having a darn good summer so far.

At long last, Art Experiment II!

2009-06-23T22:48:00.000-07:00

My sister sent me a sequel art experiment way back in March, and it's been sitting on my desk ever since, waiting to adorn a pair of awfully boring closet doors. Tonight, at last, it sprang into being! I didn't think it was going to be so similar to the first one. I guess that's just how my mind works.

Here's the first one again...

Successful arrival in MN

2009-06-12T08:55:00.000-07:00

Studied hard on Monday and Tuesday, took my two finals on Wednesday, packed, played ultimate, slept a little, and then took off for Minnesota! I arrived on Thursday afternoon and went straight to a pedicure appointment with my mom and her sister Kathy. I got magenta, to match my dress. Hung out Chez Aunt Kathy for a few hours before heading over to Aunt Mary's house for my wedding shower. It was wonderful - my aunts did a beautiful job - and it was great to see everyone - Abby & Alissa, Eli, Lisa and Anna, Mary Ellen, Sarah, Eva. Big thanks to everyone - I had such a good time!

Lisa & I:

Aunt Mary Alice (my godmother), Eva & Mary Ellen (Mom's cousins), Aunt Kathy (Mom's sister):

Me, my two fabulous Bundt pans, Abby and Alissa!

Mom, Aunt Mary, me, Aunt Kathy:

Photos from the past week (hiking & quilting)

2009-05-29T22:09:00.000-07:00

We'd planned on doing some hiking in the Sierras over Memorial Day weekend (just Sunday - Monday), but arrived to find that it was still too snowy. Even the road to the campground we wanted to stay at was impassable. We hiked across a little snow to get to the top of a ridge, and then hiked to the top of a different hill where there was a fire watchtower.

We drove into the foothills and found a great campsite on a lake. We ate some chocolate-covered coffee beans and then set off on a hike around the lake. No trail, just scrambling over boulders and picking our way along tree roots. It was warm enough for me to take a dip! (Only the dogs joined me though, none of my human companions.)

Lentils, TVP, coconut milk and veggies for dinner - yum.

We took a 6.8 mile hike along the South Yuba River on Monday. I was diappointed that so much of the trail was so high above the river, but it was definitely nice to be out. We got to have lunch on the beach, so I got to take another swim. The water was cold (as cold as Lake Superior), so I didn't stay in long.

Yay Memorial Day!

Tuesday and Wednesday were spent studying for an orgo test that turned out to be not as hard as I had anticipated. Spent Wednesday afternoon giving my apartment a much-needed cleaning, then went out and played ultimate.

On Thursday and Friday, I made a quilt for Lindsay's baby! Pure coincidence that it matches the lilies so nicely.

Uganda update

2009-05-21T13:27:00.001-07:00

I got to talk to Scott this morning! It was a really terrible connection, though, and we couldn't understand a lot of what the other person was saying. Still, it was great to hear his voice. We've been chatting online quite a bit, which helps a lot. He says the people he's working with are wonderful, and yesterday he got to go out and test his survey questions - apparently they learned a ton from visiting just three families, which was good since the supervisor he was with has malaria and the medication he was on meant he wasn't feeling very well. Tomorrow he's off to a field day, where farmers and agricultural extention agents get together to share knowledge. These events don't happen very often, so he feels pretty lucky that one's happening while he's there.

(Scott - I hope this is mostly accurate... you can post corrections in the comments section!)

Aside: In Scott's absence, I've learned just how much I depend on him to do dishes. I don't mind cooking OR cleaning up afterwards, but it's such a chore to have to do both!

Bachelorette Days

2009-05-20T16:06:00.000-07:00

Lots going on, mostly good!

Last Friday, Kelly hosted a bachelorette party for Katie and I. The drink of the night was the O Fizz (O because it was in Oprah's magazine), which went down very easy. We played one silly bachelorette game and ate Myra's beautiful strawberry rhubarb pie and then went out dancing! Excellent night - many thanks to the hostess!

On Saturday, Scott left for his bachelor camping trip, and I left for a birthday party on a ranch. The trip out was longer than expected (because at 5am that morning, a FedEx truck carrying a load of fertilizer had overturned and exploded... amazing to see the charred asphalt and the skeleton of the truck, and even more amazing that the driver wasn't injured! Anyways, the highway was down to one lane... long drive). So the first thing we did upon arrival was jump into the swimming pond. We didn't really leave the vicinity for the rest of the weekend. We played croquet, and then jumped in the pond, and then got a tour of the ranch, and then jumped in the pond, and then grilled dinner, and then jumped in the pond. When it got dark, we had a pond-side fire complete with s'mores, and then we went to sleep there. I jumped in the pond before breakfast on Sunday morning. Many, many thanks to Tyler for hosting!

Robert, having artfully caught a disc, jumps into the pond:

In one of the barns:

Scott left for Uganda first thing on Monday morning. I dropped him off at the train station at 5:30 am and tried not to mope too much the rest of the day. I'm pretty sure this is the longest I've ever lived alone, and it felt really empty around here at first. Fortunately, I've got lots of stuff to keep me busy and happy:

1. Lots of friends, and plenty of "call me if you get lonely and want to hang out" invitations. (I get to have dinner with Lindsay & Nathan on Friday!)

2. MCAT studying. I'm going to take the sucker in August, so I'm trying to get myself to study for a few hours each day. Good thing the book starts with physics - I always like doing physics problems.

3. CrossFit. As the "fitness coordinator" for Night Train this year, it's my job to get my teammates in shape for the ultimate season. Now that there's a CrossFit gym in Davis (hooray!), I figured it would be cool to organize a group to train there together. And it turns out my teammates think it would be cool too! We'll start up next week, and it looks like we'll have about 10 people. I'm super psyched - this is going to be fun.

4. Scott's good-bye gifts. They include coconut sorbet and dark chocolate. But I think my favorite item is the bouquet of lilies. They were mostly closed up when he gave them to me, but every day a few more burst open - they're bright pink and glamorous and they smell amazing. Lilies are my favorite flowers, and these are some of the nicest I've ever seen.

5. Good food. I bought quail eggs from the meat lab last week, because they were out of chicken eggs. Quail eggs are adorable. They're kind of a pain to crack, and they don't taste any different than chicken eggs, but once you get them fried up and served on toast, there's nothing cuter. My favorite snack (and dessert) these days is homemade yogurt + homemade rhubarb sauce + granola. Now that yogurt is so cheap to make, I feel like I don't have to ration my consumption. The rhubarb sauce includes bluberries, ginger and a little sugar and lemon juice, and I bet it would taste good over coconut sorbet.

6. Tickets to Seattle. Potlatch, one of the biggest, coolest ultimate tournaments in the world, is just six weeks away, and last night I bought Scott's and my plane tickets!

Odds & Ends

2009-05-10T20:54:00.001-07:00

I finally found a yogurt recipe that works! Heat your milk to 180-190F, let it cool to 115-120F, stir in some yogurt, wrap everything up in a towel to insulate it, and let it sit for a few hours. (The recipe says 4 hours should do it, but I let mine go all night.) It's tasty and definitely cheaper than store-bought. Next time, I'm going to strain it (so that it gets even thicker) and use the protein-rich whey to make bread.

Speaking of bread, I have a loaf of whole wheat beer bread in the oven right now. We bought some "barley wine style" beer that was a little too sweet for our palattes, but I'm guessing it will be fantastic in bread. (In the recipe above, I delete the sugar and add random spices. Black pepper and rosemary tonight.)

Other stuff...
This weekend was the Whole Earth Festival at UC Davis, which means a whole bunch of hippies come and hang out. There are a bunch of booths selling arts and crafts, good vegetarian food, and six different stages offering all kinds of music and perfomances. It's a wonderful atmosphere - peace, love, sustainability, sunshine. Some highlights:
1. Scott and I talked to a potter from Eugene, OR who's going to make our wedding dinnerware for us! His work is gorgeous, and we're really excited. (We tried shopping for dinnerware at the big box stores, and it was completely boring and uninspiring. Not sure what we'll do for flatware... let me know if you have suggestions.)
2. This morning we got to watch the UCD gamelan orchestra perform. It's this neat music from West Java, and the entire orchestra (various gongs and xylophone sorts of things) is created as a set, and tuned to the rest of the orchestra. (You can't take a gong from my set and play it with your set, because it would be completely out of tune.) I had no idea UCD had an orchestra! Neat to see it live.
3. Last night, we saw LYNX & Janover, who do hip-hop music with lots of odd bits - turns out Janover is an excellent hammered dulcimer plaer, and it turns out that hammered dulcimer sounds really cool in hip-hop!

Scott and I finally planted our garden yesterday morning. Corn, beans and squash (planted all together), 10 tomato plants, 2 eggplants, 2 peppers, 1 strawberry, some basil, some potatoes (they were sprouting under our sink, so we threw them in the ground to see what happens), some carrots and some flowers. Our little patio herb garden is starting to show some signs of life, but I think it needs a bunch of compost and more sun. If we can get a few flowers or a little basil out there, it will be worth it.

Scott bought his ticket to Uganda - he's leaving in a week and will be gone for about a month. I'll finish the quarter, spend a week in MN and thencome back and start summer session in that time. Hopefully that will be enough stuff to keep me from pining too much.

A CrossFit gym just opened in Davis, and I went to my first class last week. It's totally addictive, and I can't wait to go back!

That's enough for now. The bread is starting to smell good...

Scott's 10,000th birthday celebration (+ some aftermath)

2009-04-29T15:17:00.000-07:00

We hosted a birthday potluck for Scott on Saturday. He turned 32, which is an okay age, but it gets more exciting when you remember that 32 = 2x2x2x2x2 = 2^5, which is 10,000 in binary. I bought him a binary clock, and I told people to dress in black and white, or to bring black and white food. (You know, binary... a dichotomous system... black and white... it sort of makes sense, right?)

It was a very good opportunity for me to try out a "zebra cake" recipe I'd discovered. Here it is before going into the oven...
...and here they are on the cooling rack - still looking nice and stripe-y!

The true test, of course, is what the inside looks like. Success!

OK, I lied. The true test is how it tastes, and on that front I was disappointed. The chocolate layers weren't all that interesting, and the whole thing was too dense. (Maybe because I ran out of oil and had to fill in with some yogurt? Or maybe because I didn't measure my ingredients very well?) In any case, it was fun to look at, and Ivona brought some tiramisu, and Mel brought brownies, so we were well taken care of in the dessert department.

I also made 4 loaves of Mark Bittman's flatbread (easy and tasty), some hummus and some beet-ginger-cream cheese-yogurt puree - a recipe I made up a few weeks ago and love because it's bright pink and gingery.

All in all, a good party - fun mix of guests, good food, good cheer!

The aftermath came on Sunday night, when Scott and I got sick with a stomach bug. A few of our guests were struck by a similar fate, so we assume something nasty transpired at the potluck. (Apologies to our sick friends.) After a sleepless Sunday night, we were exhausted and dehydrated on Monday, so we laid very, very low. Poor Scott had it much worse than me. I managed to go to lecture and lab, but besides that we napped and sipped Gatorade. Tuesday was better - on to solid foods, cramming for an o-chem midterm even my daily ration of push-ups and pull-ups. My stomach is much less gurgly today, but I bet half of that is due to the fact that my midterm is over (took it at 1pm today), so there's no chemistry-related queasiness left.

Looking forward to two more recovery days, and then we're off to Ashland, Oregon for an ultimate tournament!

Friday afternoon in my backyard

2009-04-24T15:22:00.000-07:00

The herbs we planted last weekend are starting to sprout! Kids are running around in swimsuits (except for one girl who's running around in a fairy costume). They're laying out beach towels, leaping off the picnic table and playing with a gigantic beach ball that's connected to the hose and sprays water out. (It looks pretty fun!) Summer is definitely around the quarter.

Meanwhile, back in Davis...

2009-04-19T19:23:00.000-07:00

Classes
I'm a good three weeks into spring quarter now, and so far it's promising to be much more relaxed than winter quarter. I'm taking just two classes instead of four: biochemistry and organic chemistry. As the names indicate, there's a lot of overlap between the two classes, which I really like. Biochem, which is in the biology department, starts at the cellular level and breaks things down into their chemical components. O. chem (chem department) does exactly the opposite. They're both upper level classes, which means less busy work and more engaged classmates. Good stuff.

More Academics
I finally found out that I've officially been accepted into UC Davis's Nutritional Biology Master's program! I'll start in the fall, and I'll get to do research on the genetics of obesity. This program has a great reputation, and I'm sure I'm going to learn a lot. I can't wait!

Fun Classes
1. I'm taking a beginning stained glass class at the Craft Center. I've been interested in learning how to make stained glass pieces since I got into quilting and started thinking about how neat some of the quilt patterns would look in glass. I've only had one class so far, so not much to show for it, but I'll post project pictures along the way!

2. Scott and I signed up for an AcroYoga class through the Experimental College. Last week (our first class), we learned how to do "folded leaf" and a few variations, like this one:

The class is held outdoors, on a lawn in the Arboretum. It's really nice to practice yoga outside.

Ultimate
Coaching is over for now, and playing is just starting up!

This weekend I coached the UCD women's B team at Sectionals, and it was an honor. Despite starting off with a small roster that grew ever smaller over the weekend (1 concussion, 1 case of heat exhaustion, 1 case of heat exhaustion + flu-like virus complete with a fever), the Pleides played with great physical and mental intensity all weekend. They were still running strong through the last point of the last game on Sunday, with high spirits. It was obvious to everyone how hard they've worked this year. Bravi Pleides!

My team isn't practicing yet, but we're getting together once a week to scrimmage, and we're starting to get in shape after the winter hibernation. I get to be the team's "Fitness Coordinator" this season, which means coming up with workouts for people to do outside of practice. A new role, and one that I'm pretty excited about.

Dancing!
Last weekend, Scott's department held the first ever "Epsilon Ball" - an econ term morphed into a silly semi-formal. We got dressed up, slightly liquored up, and danced the night away. And, like any good semi-formal, there were posed photos in front of a cheesy backdrop.

The spring break quartet: Kelly (pretending to climb), Flynn (belaying), me (in awe of Kelly's awesomeness?) and Scott (conquering viking)

Scott and I were inspired to do push-ups:

Lisa definitely gets the prize for best dress.

Nathan and Lindsay get cutest couple.

Scott gets best necktie. He was wearing a cool wooden one he inherited from his grandfather.

Fools Fest 2009

2009-04-19T18:38:00.000-07:00

I got back from spring break camping, spent a few days doing all those life chores that got pushed aside during the end of winter quarter, and then started spring quarter on Monday! By Thursday night I was off again, this time to the East Coast for a fantastic tournament in Fredericksburg, VA: Fools Fest.

"It is currently the longest consectutive running tournament in Ultimate (30 years and still going strong) and plays host to roughly 1,000 players and spectators each year."

I got to hang out with tons of friends from DC and from college.

Here's my team, the Wellesley Whiptails:

We are talented in many ways.

Fools is great because there's competitive ultimate and tons of spirit. For example, here's someone dressed up as a Campbell's soup can. I think she's wearing pink bunny ears too.

There's a beer garden, where someone convinced me to take a shot of honey - straight from the bear.

Not recommended.

Overly-dramatic defense:

Jess kindly helped out with my daily dose of push-ups.

We didn't win any games, but I'm definitely glad I went - that many fantastic people concentrated in one place at one time is not to be missed!

(And, just for fun, here's one from Fool's Fest 2006!)

Spring break recap

2009-04-19T16:59:00.001-07:00

Man, last time I blogged here was during finals week of winter quarter, which feels like about a million years ago now. Here are some updates!

First things first - finals went just fine, and on Saturday night I finally got to celebrate my birthday with a romantic dinner out with Scott. On Sunday, we left for our spring break camping trip!

Flynn and Kelly (above) very generously let Scott and I glom on to their trip, and they made excellent traveling companions! We had the most gourmet meals in the entire campground, and they were good at the alphabet game ("OK, let's do insects this time! Ant, butterfly, cockroach...")

Sunday was mostly a packing, traveling and setting-up-camp day. We arrived in Big Basin in the afternoon and parked our stuff at a campsite, but we still had time for a short hike through the redwoods before it got dark out. It felt so nice to be out in the woods.

Monday we went on a longer hike (12 miles?) and saw some really gorgeous waterfalls. Our guidebook said it's one of the nicest hikes in the Bay Area, and we were not disappointed. We were even inspired to do push-ups at Berry Falls.

Tuesday we got to go see the Ano Nuevo elephant seals in the morning. The breeding season is over, so the males were gone, but we did see some young pups ("weaners") learning to swim in a little tidal river, and we saw some adult females up on the beach molting.

We learned that elephant seals' closest relatives are grizzly bears. Here are the two skulls (bear on the left, seal on the right... I think).

Ano Nuevo happens to straddle a fault line between two major plates (North American and Pacific). Scott generously held the two plates together so that we could safely cross.

In the afternoon, we went to Castle Rock, a park very close to Big Basin, and did a little bit of bouldering.

Wednesday we went back to Castle Rock and set up top ropes for some longer climbs. There's an observation deck conveniently located at the top of a waterfall, so the climber could just rapelle to the bottom and then climb up right next to the water. Here's Flynn belaying Kelly:

We bouldered some more, found a sombrero and got a little bit lost.

Thursday was another beautiful long-ish hike. Flynn had to leave to go to a wedding, so she dropped us off at the beach on her way out and we hiked back to Big Basin HQ (where Kelly's car was parked). We saw tons of wildflowers and wildlife (salamanders, lizards, banana slugs, birds).

Good weather, good food, and I couldn't have asked for nicer traveling companions!

What I really want for my birthday...

2009-03-15T19:53:00.000-07:00

...is a parallel universe, so that I have time to go out for romantic dinners with Scott. We got some "treat yourself to something nice" cash for Valentine's Day and still haven't had an unscheduled night to go out for dinner together!

If you get me a parallel universe, I'd also use it for frisbee tournaments... especially ones with Scott (but I'd let you be on my team too!). (Scott got to play today, but I had to stay home and do homework. The weekend of Fool's Fest, there are at least three teams that I'd like to play with... one in DC with Wellesley alums, one in CA with Scott & Night Train, and another one in CA with fun ladies.)

I'd probably use it for cooking desserts too, which I'd be happy to share with anyone who chipped in for said parallel universe. Seems like a win-win situation, right?

Happi Pi Day!

2009-03-14T07:40:00.000-07:00

I'm off to a one-day tournament today! I'm excited to see my Night Train teammates again, and I'm excited to get outside and run around a bunch. And I'm excited that I get to wear my Pi jersey! (I used to play for a frisbee team called Pi.)

Last week was good and busy. I spent Wednesday through Friday being recruited by the Nutrition Department. Nothing is 100% settled yet, so I'm hesitant to say too much about it, but I'm pretty sure that I'll be starting as a Master's student next fall! I'm glad I got to attend recruitment - it clarified my thinking about what I want to get out of this program, and I got to meet some very nice faculty members and students. Plus they took us out to dinner at Bistro 33, which is one of my favorite places in Davis. (Not as romantic without Scott there, but still nice!)

Last week was made even busier because it was the last week of the quarter. Despite a full two days of homework last weekend, and being diligent about getting HW done during gaps in my schedule this week, I'm still feeling behind and a little stressed for finals.

Fortunately, they're spaced out well:
Monday - last day of class
Tuesday - studystudystudy
Wednesday - general chem final
Thursday (my birthday!) - bio final
Friday - organic chemistry final
Saturday (6-8pm) - genetics final

I'm glad I've only got one final per day, but I'm pretty impatient for 8pm next Saturday to roll around! On Sunday, we'll be heading south on a camping trip. One day at a time... it will be over before I know it, right? In any case, I'm celebrating Pi Day by thinking about coursework as little as possible and about flying discs as much as possible. 3.14159...!!!

Quick update

2009-02-19T14:18:00.000-08:00

1. The Saab saga continues! The bracket that holds the alternator in place had cracked, and a replacement was not to be found in the junkyard, so John had to special order it. Hopefully we'll get our car back today or tomorrow!

2. We spent last weekend in Santa Cruz with Nina, Sibley, Nate, Jess and other cool people. It was pretty dry on Saturday, so we got to take a nice walk on the beach and climb up to the treehouse. But Sunday was very wet and windy - too stormy to go through with the bonfire as planned. Plan B, B for Boardgames, was an excellent alternative. Settlers of Catan, Mafia, Munchkin, good stuff. And plenty of good food and wine to boot!

3. I had a biology midterm on Wednesday, so spent most of Monday and Tuesday cramming for it. I think it went well.

4. As soon as I got out of my midterm, I gave my long-neglected bike some much-deserved love. I cleaned and oiled the chain, and I polished up the gears. I tried using dental floss, but it wasn't strong enough, so I ended up using a bamboo skewer to pick away all the layers of crud. (I really wish I had a set of dental tools!) It rides like a dream now.

5. I finally used up the last of our 14-pound turkey - the one that Scott bought right after Thanksgiving for $5 and the remains of which have been lingering in our freezer. I made a beautiful turkey wild rice hotdish with it.

6. Scott and I are going climbing tonight, and will probably have a date night tomorrow night, but the weekend will be full of writing for him and midterm studying for me. Pretty crazy how quickly the quarter is going by.

I got to ride in a tow truck today!

2009-02-10T12:24:00.002-08:00

The Saab saga continues... I was on my way to visit my hospice patient this morning - driving instead of biking, since I had my violin along and was planning to play for her. I noticed the radio acting funny - it got very quiet and then turned off by itself. Then my turn signal stopped blinking. And then the whole car started sounding weak. I decided I'd head back home and save my visit for another day, but at the very next intersection, while I was waiting in the left turn lane, the old panzer died. A very good samaritan let me borrow his phone to call Scott (I'd forgotten mine, of course), and he helped me push it to a curb. Scott called a tow truck to take the Saab to our trusty mechanic John. John looked a little nervous when he saw it come in - he had just installed a new clutch, so he was relieved when I told him the clutch was fine and it was probably the alternator.

Napping!

2009-02-09T15:42:00.000-08:00

I had a lovely, relaxing weekend. Watched Battlestar Galactica on Saturday night with friends. Dim sum in Sacramento on Sunday, and dinner and games at Brian & Marion's house on Sunday night. Played some pickup on Saturday morning, took a nice afternoon nap on Sunday. But I'm tired today! I went home at 1pm and took a solid nap, despite the jackhammers working right outside my window! Glad I live close enough so that I can go home between classes and nap.

25 Things About Me

2009-02-07T17:43:00.000-08:00

(This is a Facebook chain letter.)

1. I really like being 27 years old, because it’s three cubed. Being 29 will be nice too, since it’s the first of a pair of twin primes. I’m not so psyched about turning 28. This year Scott will turn 32, which is very cool – it’s two to the 5th, so when you write it in binary it’s 10,000. I can’t wait til I turn 10,000!
2. I’ve wanted to be a doctor most of my life but didn’t pursue it until I turned 27 that I realized: if I don’t at least try to go to medical school, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.
3. I can clap with one hand.
4. There are three pink things I like. First, pink painted fingernails (mine, in particular). Second, my hot pink shoes from Payless with big pink flowers on the toes. Third, beets, and the way they turn everything they come into contact with magenta… including my pee.
5. I have a terrible memory for faces. I’m pretty good with names.
6. I’m proud of these three things. First, the blue quilt with yellow stars I sewed for myself in high school. Second, the marathon I ran in 4 hours and 20 minutes. Third, the fact that I can do an honest-to-goodness pull-up (2 or 3 in a row on a good day!).
7. One of the most important things I learned at Wellesley is how many ways there are to be a woman.
8. The best part of my day is dinner with Scott. Nearly every night, we cook dinner together, from scratch, and sit down at the dining room table to eat together. We light a candle and pour wine. Scott made time for this ritual all year last year, when he was horrifically busy studying for prelims, and all this winter, when my weird schedule means that most nights I get home from lab or practice after 9pm.
9. I like to pick music that goes with whatever we’re having for dinner. For instance, Bach cantatas go with a frittata.
10. The second best part of my day is my morning ritual – drinking espresso (with frothed milk!) out of Turkish tea glasses with Scott.
11. I’ll wear my grandmother’s wedding dress when I get married next fall! My mom and aunt also wore it, so I’ll be its fourth bride.
12. The thing I miss most about Duluth, besides my family, is Lake Superior.
13. I don’t own a Bundt pan, even though they were invented in Minnesota, and I’m a fan of all things Minnesotan.
14. The thing I miss most about Rome is the pizza. Pizza is my favorite food, and I feel like an 8-year-old when I say that, but it’s completely true.
15. I miss my friends from DC so much, I can’t remember what else I miss!
16. The thing I love most about Davis, besides the people, is the produce.
17. When I go to the gym, I feel great disdain for the people on the treadmills and elliptical trainers and moderate disdain for those on the weight machines. I believe that CrossFit workouts are the absolute best and try not to be too evangelical about it.
18. I’ve dreamt I was dead several times, and I’ve dreamt about our dead pets.
19. I wish I didn’t drool so much when I sleep.
20. I like going to the dentist, because I get such rave reviews of my oral hygiene. I floss at least six days a week. And it doesn’t hurt having overactive salivary glands.
21. I’ve only ever dated ultimate Frisbee players.
22. Someday I’ll layout.
23. Scott is turning me into a lover of board games. Right now Race for the Galaxy is our favorite. But I’m still not so sure about Settlers of Catan.
24. We don’t own a TV, and I don’t miss it, but Scott and I do watch Battlestar Galactica every week at a friend’s house.
25. I keep a ten-year journal. I’m five years into it, so on any given day, I can tell you exactly what I was doing on that day in any year going back to 2004.

We're in!

2009-01-23T09:42:00.000-08:00

We moved into our new apartment yesterday! There's a lot of unpacking left to do, but things are not in total disarray, and it definitely feels good to have all the heavy lifting out of the way.

If anyone (in Davis) has a microwave they're not using, let us know! We need one...

The Year of the Camel!

2009-01-17T10:14:00.000-08:00

It's awful - the times when I have the most to write about, I also have the least amount of time to write about it! Here's a recap of the last month.

December 11 - I made Christmas presents for my family the night before I left for Minnesota! Of course I couldn't blog about it until everyone had received their gifts, and I had the worst time keeping them a secret. I used an antique fabric stamp that I bought in Turkey and printed t-shirts and scarves with it.

Later December: I had a wonderful, cozy, snowy vacation in Duluth. The worst part was not the -10°F weather; it was not having Margaret there. I kept waiting for her to arrive, but alas she spent Christmas in Colorado this year - it would have been too short a trip to be worth it. I did get to visit Alissa and her family at their beautiful cabin, just south of Duluth. It was a treat, even before her mom sent us home with a loaf of cardamom bread!

December 24-25: Wonderful family feasts on both days. The Christmas Eve service was beautiful - really fantastic music. My grandma was down from Baudette to spend the holiday with us, and my mom's sister and her family came up from the Cities on Christmas day.

Grandma, Mom, Fred, Dad and the Turkey
Andrew, Peter and Benjamin on the couch, the rest of the family in the kitchen.
Late December: Scott and I flew to L.A. on the 27th, and spent the week with his family. We started off in the desert - hikes through Joshua Tree National Park and dinner at a very posh country club with friends of theirs (we drove to dinner in their Rolls Royce!). We had a big family dinner, with Michael's family (Michael is Julie's fiance) and with my Aunt Barbara. Scott and I spent a night and a day with Aunt B, which was great - I don't get to see her nearly often enough, especially now that we live in the same state! Julie and I went shopping for bridesmaids dresses at vintages places (Scott and Michael and Becky gamely came along). I bought a really cute one for Margaret to wear, and Julie found some good options. I'm jealous she gets to shop at these places whenever she wants!

Sporting our CamelWear at Joshua Tree!
Video from the car window

New Year's Eve: A quiet evening with the McNivens. We got to watch a DVD of Scott's grandparents talking about their childhoods and the war years (including how they met). The movie was about 10 years old, and it was wonderful to "meet" Scott's grandpa, who passed away a few years ago.

January 1: We got back to Davis and had a few days to get our lives in order (laundry! bills!) before heading to San Francisco for the weekend. Scott attended an economics conference, and I got to hang out with my friends Mavis and Maya. We drank tea, visited the De Young museum, and then drank more tea. Scott says he had fun at the conference, but I think I got the better end of the deal.

January 5: Classes started, which was just as stressful for me as it was at the beginning of fall quarter. Since I'm taking classes as an extension student, I can't pre-register and have to just show up and hope there's space in the class for me. Happily, I got into all four classes that I wanted to take: easy bio (intro) and hard bio (genetics), easy chem (intro) and hard chem (organic). My schedule is a little crazy, but I'm so thankful that I can take all of these classes.

January 9: We flew to Austin for Sarah and Keith's wedding! It was a great weekend, filled with lots of friends (Scott's high school buddies) and amazing food and beer (much of it homemade by the couple and their families) and a great dance. I spent lots of time working on my M.S. application essays, but at least I had partners in crime - Jess was writing her M.B.A. application essays, and Scott was writing proposals. I submitted my application on Monday when we got back. Yay! Now I just have to wait and see if they'll take me...

This week: Tonight is the 5th Annual Minnesota Party, and on Thursday we're moving into our new apartment!

More snowy bliss in Duluth.

2008-12-19T15:58:00.000-08:00

Scott and I met with the pastor who will be presiding over our wedding next fall, and since the church is so close to the Lakewalk, we went down and took a walk afterwards. Short, because there was a strong wind coming off the lake, and it was cold. Here's a video of the waves crashing up on the breakwater.

It's been snowing all day - big, fluffy "Christmas card" flakes. Scott and I helped Mom clean off the driveway, so we don't feel too guilty about sitting inside and drinking tea during the rest of the day.

More photos here!

Life is good

2008-12-17T12:50:00.001-08:00

1. I took the GRE this morning! Given that I only studied for three and a half days, I'm pretty happy with my scores. And I'm pretty happy to have it over with.

2. Scott is en route to Minnesota as I type! He'll get to Duluth around midnight... just 9 more hours to go.

3. My mom took me to go see the Minnesota Ballet's production of The Nutcracker! We were supposed to go on Sunday, but bad weather postponed it to Monday night. I danced in this production all the way through my senior year of high school, so it brought back lots of great memories. The only strange part was not recognizing any of the dancers - Lindsay was supposed to be in Merlitons, and Anna should have been the Chinese Maiden. Thank goodness Suzanne was still the Snow Queen and Robert was Mother Ginger.

4. My dad took me out for pizza last night, since my mom was at a meeting and neither one of us felt like cooking. I am such a spoiled daughter... especially when I'm the only kid home. (Fred gets in tomorrow, so then things will return to normalcy around here.

Finally, a few photos to illustrate the last post.
Mom's baking extravaganza!

The view out the back door - very white, and very cold!

And, just for fun, here's a picture from last year. Scott and I are both very much looking forward to NOT having our noses buried in our computers this year! Maybe we can actually play in the snow instead!

At home in Duluth!

2008-12-14T14:22:00.000-08:00

Right now, Mom is in the kitchen cooking spritz cookies, biscotti, cranberry chutney, venison stew and apple carrot spice bread.

I'm in the kitchen studying GRE vocab: distaff, dyspeptic, enconium, etc. Lots of interstitial chat with Mom though...

Dad is outside. He got out the BIG snow blower for the first time this year and is clearing out the driveway. It's stopped snowing, but it's still blowing, so some of the snow will probably drift back in over night. Still, better to get the bulk of the work done this evening, when the temperature is in the double digits. Tomorrow, the predicted low temperature is -18. The predicted high is -7. Uf da!

Apartment excitement! And a master's degree?

2008-12-11T18:50:00.000-08:00

Scott and I ran through the Arboretum today, and took a quick detour to check out our new apartment. The great news is that it's on the ground floor, and the patio faces south, so we can plant a little garden for ourselves! Not quite as much fun as a kitten, but it is exciting.

I'm all done with finals, but still have a pretty full plate. I've decided to apply to the M.S. program in Nutritional Biology at UC Davis. And my application is due January 15th. I registered to take the GREs (next Wednesday! eek!) and contacted professors about writing recommendation letters and have been meeting with nutrition faculty about research I could help out with. I'm still hoping to have a low-stress Christmas break... we'll see!

(I'm still planning to go to medical school afterwards... I think I'll be in school forever.)

Good news & bad news

2008-12-09T16:21:00.000-08:00

First, the good news! Scott and I get to move into Solano Park! This is a subsidized apartment complex for UCD students, so we'll be saving $500 per month on rent, and it's even closer to downtown and to campus. Now that both of us are students, this is wonderful news for our bank account.

The bad news is that Solano Park doesn't allow pets. Not even kittens. So we won't be getting a kitten for a few years.

Feeling vacation-y...

2008-12-08T17:00:00.000-08:00

So much good stuff going on... besides the imminent kitten.

1. The advent calendar I made for my sister a while ago finally arrived! I sent if off before Thanksgiving, and it was supposed to get there on December 1st, so I was nervous about its whereabouts when it still hadn't arrived a week later. But today it showed up, safe and sound. Yay!

2. My bro is arriving tomorrow! I get to pick him up at 6:15 AM (how's that for sibling love), take him and his buddies out for breakfast (I'm thinking Ciocolat), and then send them off in our trusty Saab on a climbing & bouldering trip in Bishop. I'm excited to see him, and to show him around Davis.

3. I took my bio and chem exams today, and they both went well. I just have one left (Physiology) to take on Thursday.

4. I'm making stock from our turkey carcass. It doesn't actually fit in our dutch oven, and the neck is sort of hanging out the side, but I bet it will be tasty!

5. I get to go climbing with Scott tonight.

Kitten update...

2008-12-07T20:35:00.000-08:00

We just made plans to pick up our kitten on January 1st! Here's what his breeder has to say about him:

He is big, going to be the biggest in his litter. He is very playful. He is a little shyer than most of them. He loves interactive toys, will pounce and hang on since his jumping is generally good enough to cling to the toy. His color is red silver, similar to his mother's. I have had other people come in and ask for him because he is so handsome.

So it sounds like we're getting the most athletic, most handsome cat. We'll try to make sure it doesn't get to his head (or ours). How on earth am I supposed to study for final exams when there's a kitten to anticipate?

Submit your kitten vote!

2008-12-04T11:40:00.000-08:00

Thanks for all the great name suggestions! Now it's time to vote. Here's the official ballot. Voting ends when the kitten comes home, sometime after January 1st. I promise to post photos!

Call for kitten names!

2008-11-29T22:28:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, Scott and I are getting a kitten this Christmas! A hypoallergenic Siberian cream and white tabby, like this one:

We were thinking that a Siberian name would be good. For instance, Numi - the supreme god or father god of the Ob-Ugrian peoples in Siberia. Or Taiga, which is the world's largest biome, is characterized by coniferous forests, and happens to cover Siberia and northern Minnesota. Taiga has the added bonus of sounded like a bad-ass version of Tiger. "Tigah!"

But then again, Mr. Scratchy Pants would make a pretty great name, in honor of Mr. Splashy Pants, a humpback whale in the South Pacific Ocean who's being tracked with a satellite tag by Greenpeace. (The Wikipedia article is really worth reading if you haven't heard of Mr. Splashy Pants before.)

What do you think? Have any better ideas? Send us your ideas for names (or post them in the comments), and in a few weeks we'll put it all up for a vote on the world wide web!

- Libby & Scott

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T11:41:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving weekend is off to a beautiful beginning. I started cooking Thanksgiving dishes yesterday:
Chipotle-mashed sweet potatoes (my favorite Thanksgiving recipe) and a cranberry-apple relish. And, for Wednesday night dinner, I made a fantastic squash stew from my new Vegetable Love cookbook (recipe below). Scott and I had a relaxed evening - we drank a bottle of dark chocolate oatmeal stout beer, nibbled on dark chocolate, and watched TV - the second episode of Supernatural that his sister Julie guest starred in (Go Julie! She was great!) and then an episode of Nova that was all about fractals - I loved it.

This morning, we both woke up at 4 am, so I baked the dinner rolls (very easy, when you already have a bunch of dough in the fridge). We went back to bed from 6-9. Woke up, went for a run (it's beautiful out today!), made a Northwest Waldorf salad, and called to wish my parents a happy Thanksgiving. We're just about ready to head over to Lindsay & Nathan's house. What a wonderful day.

Also, here are some photos from our trip to Yosemite, a week and a half ago.

Yosemite November 2008

Coconut-Jarrahdale Vegetale Stew

* 3 T butter
* 2 medium onions, diced (2 cups)
* 2 medium carrots, chopped (1/2 cup)
* 1 bunch broccoli, chopped (5 cups)
* 2-3 pounds of winter squash (Jarrahdale, acorn, etc.)
* 1 cup coconut milk
* 1/2 cup stock/broth
* 1 T ground cardamom
* 2 T celery seeds
* 1 T salt
* Black pepper

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions. Cook for 3 minutes, or until limp & translucent. Increase teh heat to high. Add the carrots, broccoli and squash. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionaly.
2. Reduce heat to medium-high. Add the coconut milk and stock. Bring to a boil. Stir in the cardamom and celery seeds. Continue to boil for 3 minutes. Cover, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the squash is cooked through.
3. Remove the lid and cook over high heat to reduce and thicken the sauce. Season with salt and pepper.

From Vegetable Love by Barbara Kafka

New cookbook yields delightful results

2008-11-10T22:22:00.001-08:00

Mini pumpkins!

I saw them at the farmers market, and even though we already had four large winter squashes sitting on our counter at home, I couldn't resist taking these little guys home with me.

At the time, I had only a vague notion of filling them with something and baking them for a while. But then along came a fantastic new cookbook: Vegetable Love, by Barbara Kafka. It's a book for non-vegetarians who love vegetables. I found a recipe for ground lamb stuffing, and seeing as we'd had a pound of ground lab in the freezer for quite some time, it seemed like a good first recipe to try. The lamb was spicy (from curry and chipotle powder), and the pumpkin was sweet, and we will certainly be making this again in the future!

Berkeley Day Trip

2008-11-06T17:28:00.000-08:00

I had a great day in Berkeley today - it's only about an hour from Davis, and a very easy trip on I-80. I spent $120 at Games of Berkeley (some Christmas shopping!) and $40 at The Cheeseboard (truffle goat cheese!). But the highlight of the trip, and the reason for it, was visiting with my friend Anna, who's in town for work for a few weeks. It's always fun to reconnect with a Minnesotan, especially one who endured many Nutcracker seasons with you. And, of course, it's a bonus when that person has an excellent taste for cheese and can help you decide how to spend your money on the stuff.

Bike joy.

2008-11-03T13:01:00.000-08:00

I got my bike fixed up over the weekend, and it feels wonderful to ride! A new chain, new shifter cables, new tires, and a tightened-up headset. It's so crisp!

Other things that brought me happiness these past few days:

Rainy days, and the sun coming out after the rain
A college campus on Halloween - I can't think of a better place to spend the day. My favorite part was the two dancing Storm Troopers - they were roaming campus (and lecture halls!) all afternoon, along with a guy carrying a boombox, dancing away. Awesome.
The looong line of students waiting to vote (early) in the student union
Planning a Yosemite camping trip!
Celebrating at Ivona's baby shower

Craftiness!

2008-11-02T10:27:00.000-08:00

I realized I never posted a finished picture of the baby quilt I made this summer. Here it is! I get to give it to Ivona today at her baby shower.

Yesterday, Scott and I went to a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) party in Woodland. Each person got a skeleton to decorate as an ancestor. I decided to try to do my great-grandmother Marie Elizabeth. I don't know what she looked like, but I gave her blond braids, and she's holding some flowers and a kitten. (My three-year-old helper decorated her skirt, and gave her another white kitten.) Definitely a fun activity.

In other news, the fall rains have finally arrived. I'm not necessarily looking forward to biking in them for the next few months, but it is nice to have a change in seasons. It makes our apartment feel nice and warm and cozy, and it makes me appreciate the the sunny days much more. The markets are full of winter squashes and big, beautiful, leafy greens. We didn't carve a pumpkin for Halloween, but we did eat one for dinner! I need to outfit my bike with fenders and buy a pair of rainboots, and then I think I'll be all set for the season.

Fun sites to keep me from studying for midterms!

2008-10-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

1. Planarity
2. This Is Sand
3. Palin As President

Classes, Corvallis, Cat!

2008-10-13T21:50:00.000-07:00

Good thing #1: I'm officially enrolled in three pre-med classes at UC Davis this quarter! I didn't know if I'd get in, since priority goes to the degree-seeking students, but happily there was space for me. And so far, I'm really enjoying them. My first chemistry midterm is this Friday, followed by biology and physiology midterms on Monday.

Good thing #2: Regionals was fantastic. It was a long trip (a 9-hour drive to Corvallis, OR) but totally worth it. We played really well together; we were seeded 10th and finished 6th. Last year, the team came in 11th. I'm happy with how I played, and it was good to be outside on some beautiful fall days.

Good thing #3: Scott and I are getting a kitten!! I've been wanting a cat of my own for a long time, but had resigned myself to petlessness since Scott is allergic to cats and dogs. But then two weeks ago, we were sitting on the couch and, out of the blue, he asked me if I'd like to get a kitten. I was speechless. Turns out he found a breeder down in Los Gatos who breeds Siberians with particularly low levels of the protein Scott's allergic to. We went down to visit her that afternoon, and after spending an hour in her house, Scott proclaimed he was not allergic. We put down a deposit on one of the week-old kittens that was mewing on the couch and made tentative plans to pick him up when he's old enough to leave his mother, right after the new year. He'll look something like this:

We're already researching which tricks to teach him.

Minnesota Adventures

2008-09-19T08:22:00.000-07:00

We've been in MN for a week and a half now, and have just a few days left. So far, it's been fantastic. My parents and Scott and I spent a long weekend at the cabin, where I finished two quilts, went running with my mom, took some very chilly dips in the lake, cooked up some tasty dinners, and generally spent quality time with the people I love.

Back in Duluth, we plunged into all sorts of wedding planning - reception site & food, flowers, invitations, dress, and more. We have a lot of work to do, but it feels good to have so much started on this far in advance. Apart from wedding appointments, Scott and I did some hiking around Hawk Ridge - a beautiful wilderness area in the city, and a great spot for watching the hawk migration this time of year.

Now we're down in St. Paul. We visited the science museum yesterday, as well as a terrific musical instrument museum. Today we're off to the Walker art museum, and we're having lunch with my aunts, cousin and sister. Tonight we're going to my second cousin's wedding - I'm looking forward to a pretty fun party. And I'm excited that Scott is healthy enough to dance with me!

2008-09-18T08:23:00.000-07:00

Quilt update

2008-09-07T14:21:00.000-07:00

Two-thirds of the quilt squares are sewn! I've got 12 more pink ones and 6 more greens to make. I'm pretty happy with how it's coming along.

365 days and counting!

2008-09-05T11:00:00.000-07:00

Today is our first ante-anniversary. Exactly one year to go before we get married! Being a math nerd, I'm referring to it as our i ² anniversary. (In math, i = √(-1), so i ² = -1.) I'm not sure how we'll celebrate, but there's a free chocolate tasting at the Co-op tonight, and that sounds like a good place to start.

Also, we had our friends Myra and Chris over last night for a barbecue and a game of Euchre. We made these lamb meatballs, and they were delicious. We also grilled some thick slices of watermelon (brushed with olive oil and and chipotle chili powder), which was pretty tasty.

Next quilting project!

2008-09-04T15:26:00.000-07:00

A not-so-focused photo of the quilt I'm starting! An easy pattern, so the sewing should go quickly.

Name this vegetable!

2008-09-03T22:07:00.000-07:00

What has...
The size and shape of a spaghetti squash,
the color of a marigold,
the firmness of a not-quite-ripe eggplant,
the scent of a cucumber, and a cucumber-esque flavor, except drier and with a slightly bitter aftertaste?

Don't worry, we have no idea what it is either. But tonight we cooked it up with some bulgar and beet greens, and it was all right! Kind of slimy, the way you'd expect cooked cucumber to be. We decided to name it faux-cumber.

What to do with a bunch of toasted hotdog buns?

2008-09-01T21:13:00.000-07:00

At a recent barbecue, we toasted some buns to go with our brats. But they got forgotten, and everyone happily munched on the brats straight up. We dutifully preserved the toasted buns in the freezer, and tonight they made for an excellent bread pudding. We followed this recipe pretty roughly, so that we had the right ratios of bread, eggs, milk and veggies, and the right oven time and temperature. But we used the vegetables we happened to have on hand (a leek, two zucchinis, some weird "climbing spinach", and a can of Green Giant mushrooms that's been languishing in the cupboard since the Minnesota Party). Highly recommended!

In other news, we had a great Labor Day weekend. It was great to see the Gruver/Kelly clan on Thursday, and Mavis and Maya were extremely gracious hosts - as always. Scott and I spent most of Thursday at the SF MOMA, checking out the Frida Kahlo exhibit, the Lee Miller exhibit, and (my favorite) selections from their permanent exhibit. We met up with a friend from Scott's Grinnell days and drank very girly (sweet, pink, and stiff) cocktails on a rooftop deck. Then we headed west to have dinner with some Amherst friends at an excellent Italian wine bar.

I played in a tournament on Saturday and Sunday. Not nearly as exciting as the Best Tournament Ever two weeks ago in Chico, but it was good to play. And I hardly got sunburnt!

Summer vacations

2008-08-28T10:30:00.000-07:00

I'm not taking any classes right now (but I am crashing some general chemistry lectures, in an attempt to brush up on the stuff before I take organic chemistry in the fall). Also, I'm not working (but reading a general chemistry textbook cover to cover definitely feels like work). Scott is minimally employed. Hence, we have time for fun stuff!

DC Adventures (Friday, 8/8 - Thursday 8/14)
First and foremost, I got to visit so many wonderful people - my aunt and uncle, my frisbee communities, my Delafield friends, even my Bohemian Caverns Belgian beer aficionado friends.

Second, I got to visit a bunch of Smithsonian art museums. My favorite was the Martin Puryear show at the National Gallery, followed closely by a Jim Henson exhibit. (Did you know the original Kermit was sewn from Henson's mother's worn-out spring coat?) Actually, I think the recently opened Renwick gallery for American crafts ties for first - small, but extremely well-curated. I forgot how much I enjoy seeing art.

Third, I got to eat some of my favorite foods: pizza from Coppi's, gueuze (a very sour Belgian beer) at Brasserie Beck (where there are nine gueuzes on the menu!), hummus from the Greek Deli downtown (which I consumed in the beautiful little "secret garden" just south of Dupont Circle), and hot, crunchy, delicious falafel sandwich from Amsterdam Falafel in Adams Morgan.

All in all, an extremely satisfying vacation.

Chico Tournament aka Best Tournament Ever (Saturday, 8/16 - Sunday, 8/17)
I got home from DC late on Thursday night, did laundry on Friday, and then left for Chico at 5am Saturday morning. Our first game was at 8am. Fortunately, our team was caffeinated and sufficiently warmed-up, and we ended up winning all four games!

We finished early afternoon and ate lunch at the Sierra Nevada brewery. Then we went swimming at Bear Hole - a gorgeous stream running through a mini-gorge, with lots of opportunities for exploring, jumping off high rocks, and napping in the sun.

As if we hadn't had enough fun so far, we proceeded to a teammate's aunt's house - a 14,000 square foot, took six years to build, custom-built house overlooking a canyon. She and her husband fed us pizza and beer and stuffed zucchini and salad and fresh strawberry pie. We explored the house, relaxed on one of several balconies while the sky faded to black, and watched Olympics.

We won our first two games on Sunday and then lost in the finals - disappointing, but it's hard to feel bad when your team has already won six games in a row. We stretched, drank beer and generally wound-down on the fields for a bit before heading home.

Fun in Sacramento! (Saturday, 8/23 - Sunday, 8/24)
We checked out the California State Fair on Saturday. I got to see goats, earless goats, pygmy goats, horses, cows, seals, chickens, chinchillas, guinea pigs, kittens, bats and hatching quails. We saw a fish taco cooking demonstration, Chinese acrobats and some pretty neat art and crafts. The food options didn't hold a candle to the MN State Fair, and I was generally disappointed by the scale of things. You'd think a state as big as this would have a giant state fair, but Minnesota's really does take the cake. High quality food (even though it's all served on a stick), tons of beautiful quilts, more extensive displays. Still, it was a fun day at the fair.

We headed back to Sac on Sunday. Our first stop was the farmers market, which (as reported) is much bigger and less frou-frou than Davis's. We loaded up on tomatoes, basil, peaches and figs. Our car smelled wonderful. Second stop was the Sutter's Fort State Historic Park, where we spent about two hours learning about John Sutter and his (mis)adventures in the Central Valley. Lots of interesting artifacts and audio commentary - definitely a place worth visiting, especially if you don't know as much as you should about your state's history.

Live in Reno! (Wednesday, 8/27)
Last night, Scott and our friend Sharon and I drove over to Reno for an outdoor Neko Case concert. We had a nice drive through the Sierras and dinner at a funky vegetarian diner (the Pneumatic Diner, highly recommended, if you're ever in the area) before arriving at the amphitheater. It's a small venue, and we had great seats. The show was short, but high quality. An excellent mini-adventure.

Escaping the Heat in San Francisco (Thursday, 8/28 - Sunday, 8/31)
It's supposed to hit 104°F here today, so I'm happy to have an excuse to evacuate to San Francisco. Mavis and Maya are having a presidential candidate party - we get to watch Obama give his acceptance speech, and we get to dress up as our favorite presidential candidate (past, present, future or imaginary). I think I'll go as MacGyver.

We'll spend the night there, and go see a Frida Kahlo show at the SF MOMA in the morning. Not sure what's in store for the rest of Friday, but I'm sure we can find something fun to do!

We'll spend another night there, and then head to a tournament at Golden Gate Park on Saturday morning. Scott still can't play - his hamstring pulls are better, but now he's recovering from a calf pull. Poor guy.

Culinary Adventures Wrap-Up (Ongoing)
Scott and I paid a visit to the UCD Meat Lab (a USDA-certified processing plant on campus, where students learn about meat processing) and bought some extremely fresh brats and chorizo sausages. We hosted a little barbecue in order to eat them. We grilled a bunch of veggies as well. Scott's talent as a master marinator is becoming apparent - he has a gift for throwing together fantastic marinades.

Also...
Peach cobbler
Pizza with fresh tomatoes and homemade ricotta
Fresh figs and goat cheese on toast
Stir-fried yam leaves - sweet and very tasty!

That's all for now. My computer is running out of battery power, it's almost noon and I'm still in my pajamas, and I have nothing more to say. Be well!

Happy birthday, Julia!

2008-08-15T14:05:00.001-07:00

Since it's Julia Child's birthday today (and because I'm feeling very happy to be home again), I'm making a nice dinner tonight. Here's the plan:

Peach & blue cheese bruscetta

Rosemary Rack of Lamb with Balsamic-Raisin Reduction (recipe)
Polenta
Spinach salad

Peach (and brandy) Galette

It's going to be tasty!

2008-08-14T08:31:00.000-07:00

At the zoo this morning!

Ogunquit, Boston, DC

2008-08-09T17:01:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update on my East Coast adventures...

We were in Maine until Wednesday evening. This was my third time attending the reunion, but the first time we've had a chance to stay more than a few days. It was wonderful to have such an uncompressed schedule - no sense of urgency that you have to cram in all the fun stuff into two days (lobster dinner, trips to the beach, runs on the beach, long walks on the beach, walks along the Marginal Way to get coffee or saltwater taffy, etc.). It was great to spend so much time with the family.

On Wednesday night, Scott's dad dropped us off in Boston, so we could have dinner with Gabi - one of his high school friends. We spent Thursday morning at Wellesley - just wandering through the buildings and the grounds. Scott was very patient with my reminiscences and nostalgia. We had lunch with my friend Robin and dinner with Nate and Jess and various members of their family. An excellent day.

We were kindly delivered to the airport on Friday morning, and Scott headed west, and I headed south. I arrived in DC just in time for happy hour at Cafe Asia with some of my old teammates. I eventually retired to Aaron's, where we watched the opening ceremonies in Beijing until midnight.

I'm out at my aunt and uncle's today. The weather is absolutely gorgeous - not too hot, and not humid. The three of us picked peaches off the tree in their backyard, and then my aunt and I went and picked blackberries at a local farm - we came home with about 11 pounds of berries and made a very tasty peach and blackberry cobbler, which we ate out on the deck after dinner. Life is good.

(Poor Scott didn't get home until 12:30 am PT, which is 3:30 ET, to an empty, grocery-less house. He told me he got good heirloom tomatos at the farmers market this morning, though, and they always cheer us up.)

All's well.

2008-08-05T10:50:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to say that I am very thoroughly enjoying Maine. It's been a little bit cloudy and rainy, but that hasn't dampened anyone's spirits. It's great to be here.

2008-08-01T20:36:00.000-07:00

1630h - Board bus to the airport. Receive call from JetBlue that they have to rebook me. Big props to JB for calling me and rebooking things before I even arrived at the airport!

1730h - Fail to get off the bus at the airport. (I rang the stop bell 5 seconds too late, and bus driver told me she'd lose her job if she stopped anywhere unofficial.) Ride all the way into Sacramento and back out again.

1830h - Arrive at airport, attempt to check in. Since my new flight won't leave until midnight, I can't check my bags til 8pm. Sit and wait in the baggage claim area. One New Yorker down, 97 to go! (Great article on the Chinese pianist Lang Lang.)

2000h - Check in! Breeze through security! (I was the only one in line.)

2030h - Chat with the best custodian ever in the ladies' room. She had enough flair to work at TGIFriday's, plus a curly blonde wig and tons of glittery makeup on her face. When I complimented her on the big pink flower in her hair, she told me where I could find one of my own - over at Gate B1, where they tape flower to the pens to keep people from walking off with them. (She didn't steal the flower though, they'd given it to her.) I'm seriously considering going to ask for one - it's pretty fantastic.

Just a few more hours of waiting until I can board the flight and try to fall asleep. Less than 12 hours until I see Scott! The delay is annoying, but I'm happy with JetBlue's customer service, happy that my detour into Sacramento didn't make me miss my originally scheduled flight, happy about the glittery custodian, and happy that this airport has fast, free wifi. Just think how much happier I'll be when I'm in Maine, with my betrothed and my family-to-be!

2008-08-01T08:47:00.000-07:00

0330h - Noisy neighbors wake me up. Noisy trains and an unquiet mind keep me awake.
0400h - I roll out of bed and have the second half of last night's burrito for breakfast while studying for my bio final exam.
0630h - Starting to feel sleepy, I head back to bed!
0700h - A phone call wakes me up. A wrong number.
0730h - Caffeinating and cramming at Mishka's.

Coming up...
1100h - Two-hour exam!
1300h - Pack
1630h - Catch the bus to the airport
1900h - Up, up and away! I'm fairly confident I'll be able to sleep on tonight's "red-eye."

Looking forward to the East Coast!

2008-07-28T10:12:00.000-07:00

Lots going on lately, hence the light blogging. I have one week left of bio, which feels good. I'm still really enjoying the class and am looking forward to the next courses in the series.

Travels:
This past Saturday, we went to San Rafael for a one-day round robin tournament. We lost all four games, which is disappointing, but it was good to be there nonetheless.
On Wednesday, Scott leaves for Maine, and on Friday night I'll follow him out there for his family reunion. I'm excited for the beach! We'll stay through the week, visit some friends in Boston, and then part ways - Scott back to California (to study for one more prelim), and me to DC to visit old friends and old haunts. I'm disappointed Scott can't come along, but I'll have plenty to keep me busy.

When I get home, I get to start studying general chemistry in earnest. And reading wedding books!

Hospice volunteer training

2008-07-18T19:15:00.000-07:00

Today was my third out of four full days of hospice volunteer training. I have six more hours tomorrow, and then I'll be more or less ready to start work as a volunteer. On the whole, training has been very good - informative, productive and interesting. I've learned an incredible amount about the process of dying - the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of it, both from the patient's point of view and from the survivors'.

Last Saturday was a particularly intense morning. We went through a guided imagery meditation on what it's like to be diagnosed with and die from a terminal illness. I'm sure I only felt a fraction of the emotions I'd experience in real life, but that was enough for me - it was heartbreaking. It made me remember a dream I had 10 or 15 years ago, in which I had opted for euthenasia and was at my own pre-funeral. I woke up sobbing, because I couldn't stand the thought of leaving my family behind. Discussions of this kind of loss are not easy to have. I'm grateful for the range of experience and insight that my classmates bring to the table.

From what our leaders and classmates keep telling us, being part of the dying process can be a profoundly good thing. I'm nervous about starting this work, but excited somehow. Already, this training has given me a deeper perspective on my life, and I can only imagine how it will develop over the course of this year.

Potlatch 2008

2008-07-17T12:11:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post to say that Potlatch was absolutely fantastic this year. It's the biggest coed ultimate tournament in the world - 100 teams - and one of the most spirited. After every game, teams get together and exchange gifts, play games, sing songs, etc. I had the honor of playing with "Chiquita," a team of many of my friends from DC. They were excellent teammates and camping buddies. (Most people camp on the perimeter of the field.) I was at the tournament for just 3 days, Thursday night to Sunday night, but it felt like a nice long vacation. I was able to just focus on and enjoy my surroundings, and I didn't have one single physics or biology dream! The only downside was that Scott couldn't come.

Many thanks to Paul for captaining, and to everyone else who helped organize, buy t-shirts, drove around and generally made for a ridiculously fun weekend.

Arrival in Seattle - REALLY happy to be here!

Playing a banana-eating game with Team Stella: The Pirate King's Daughter!

Sharing a beer-garita with Captain "Top Banana" Paul

Tozer sporting the fantastic banana costume

Me sporting my Carmen Miranda-esque costume

Last but not least, Team Chiquita:

Watermelon and other fun things

2008-06-29T21:45:00.000-07:00

Maybe I should have been studying for Monday's physics midterm, but I spent a few hours in the kitchen instead and was happily productive there. I made cheese (with dill), pickled grapes (with jalapeños and ginger) and watermelon soup (with more jalapeños and ginger). For dinner Scott and I made a very tasty watermelon and tomato salad, based on these two recipes: Mark Bittman's and Cooking Light's. It's so nice to have a fridge filled with good food!

Other fun stuff...
- I got to play in a small tournament yesterday in San Francisco - 4 short games, which was enough to get worn out and to feel like we really earned out burrito dinners.
- Scott and I are petsitting a very cute guinea pig named Hazelnut. She has a zebra-print hammock in her cage!
- I get to go to Seattle next weekend for Potlatch! I'm a little nervous about the homework crunch, but I'm very very impatient to see everyone and to play all weekend!

Bummer

2008-06-26T20:35:00.000-07:00

Alas, Scott pulled his hamstring at our track workout tonight. His other hamstring, the one he wasn't already nursing back to health. It means he's out for most of the rest of the frisbee season. I was really looking forward to playing with him this summer, so I'm (selfishly) very bummed out... and I'm not even the one who has to stop playing.

Sigh.

Çok Güzel Dinner

2008-06-22T18:12:00.000-07:00

Just finished eating a fantastic dinner - if someone fed it to me in turkey, I'd tell them it was "çok güzel" (pronounced "choke gazelle") - very nice. I figured I'd better record the recipe so that I can make it again sometime...

1. Brown some ground lamb (about 6 oz.). Season it with cumin and parsley.
2. Take the lamb out of the pan, but leave the grease in. Sautee an onion and some zucchinis (I used one green and one yellow, diced to half-inch chunks). Add a little olive oil if it starts sticking. Season with dill and harissa.
3. Stir in a diced tomato and the lamb.
4. Serve over a whole grain of your choice. (We had wheat berries seasoned with a veggie bullion cube.)
5. Top with yogurt sauce. (Yogurt, lemon juice, dill, mint.)

I had a tasty Turkish lunch yesterday, from a Mediterranean deli in San Francisco - lamaçun ("llama June"), which is ground meat on a thin pizza-like crust. Greasy and delicious!

Side note: Scott's first (and most difficult) preliminary exam is tomorrow morning, so send him and his classmates your prayers or good vibes or whatever you deem helpful!

Beautiful AM in SF

2008-06-21T08:10:00.000-07:00

I went to a CrossFit class in San Francisco this morning - this was the view on the walk there. Beautiful scenery, lots of sun, a nice reflection of the bridge. TONS of people were out walking, running, cycling, generally enjoying themselves. Lovely day!

Opera at the Ballpark

2008-06-20T20:33:00.001-07:00

Mavis and Maia and I went to the SF Giants stadium on Friday night and watched... an opera! the San Francisco Opera simulcasted the evening's performance of "Lucia de Lammermoor" to the ballpark. And they didn't even charge admission! It was a beautiful performance, and it was a bunch of fun to be watching it outside.

Arts and Crafts

2008-06-19T07:33:00.000-07:00

At our hospice volunteer training session yesterday, we got to make "soul collages"! We sifted through magazine pictures spread out on a table, selected ones that answered "Who am I? Why am I here?", and then glued them into a collage. It was a very touchy-feely exercise, but everyone enjoyed it, and it was a really good way for us to get to know each other and to do a little self-exploration. Here's mine!

Two good Bittman recipes

2008-06-18T23:21:00.000-07:00

Fun stuff from "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" this week! On Monday, I made a very tasty raw beet salad - I diced some raw beets, carrots (half pound each), a little zucchini and a few shallots in the food processor and then added a tablespoon of grated ginger, salt and pepper, dijon mustard, olive oil, lime juice and a little kefir (which is sort of like sour cream). It was delicious, and very pretty. I love cooking with beets.

Last night, I made cheese! It took a little time, but it was totally mindless and easy.
(1) Bring two parts milk to a boil.
(2) Stir in one part buttermilk. (I made buttermilk by adding lemon juice to regular milk.)
(3) Once it separates into curds and whey (this takes about 10 minutes, I think), pour it into a bowl lined with 3 layers of cheesecloth.
(4) Gather the edges of the cheesecloth together, so you have a ball of curds in the middle. Run it under cold water to cool it down, and then squeeze out as much water and whey as you can.
(5) Tie the bundle to a spoon and let it drain/set for an hour and a half.
(6) Unwrap and enjoy!
My first attempt is tasty, but I'm already looking forward to Take 2 - you can add seasonings between steps 2 and 3, so I'm planning to add salt (1/2 teaspoon) and whatever fresh herbs look good at the farmers market. And some beet juice for color, of course.

Carpestummus

2008-06-14T22:48:00.000-07:00

Some very successful kitchen spontaneity I wanted to share! I steamed some carrot greens and pureed them with a cup of chickpeas, a little olive oil and lemon juice, and some other spices that I cannot recall. It turned out beautifully - a carroty pesto hummus sort of thing. We ate it over whole-wheat pasta and lightly boiled carrots.

Carrot greens really are worth eating; I'm surprised there aren't more recipes for them.

Physics on My Mind

2008-06-14T22:40:00.000-07:00

Physics is going well, and for the most part I'm enjoying the work, but I fear I'm taking it a little too seriously. I'm struggling to figure out how electric circuits work. At least twice now, I've had dreams about solving homework problems. But I realized this class has completely pervaded my consciousness the other day at my weekly track workout. I was running warm-up laps with my frisbee teammates and I had this sudden vision - almost like deja vu - of myself as an electron traveling around an circuit. It was pretty funny, but it didn't bring any clarity to my homework problems.

What's cooking

2008-06-08T18:34:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted any kitchen adventures for a while now, but we've been cooking up some pretty good stuff.

I improvised a beet hummus the other day that turned out surprisingly well. It all started with a beet (raw) and the food processor - the plan was to chop it up and serve it over zucchini. But before I knew it, the thing was puréed, and I figured it was a good opportunity to dress it up a little. I added a cup of black beans and some harissa (red pepper paste) from Turkey, and a little soy sauce and rice vinegar. I couldn't quite figure out what else it needed, but fortunately Scott hit the nail on the head when he added a healthy splash of lemon juice. The end result was sweet, tangy, a little bit spicy, and very tasty over sauteéd zucchini and bulgar.

Lunch yesterday was less exotic but no less pleasing to the palate. I baked a fresh loaf of bread (spiked with rosemary) to go with heirloom tomato slices (so sweet!) and fontina cheese. And we had mizuna salad dressed with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and Turkish pomegranate syrup. We'd been pretty impatient for tomatoes to return to the farmers market, so now that they're back we're savoring each one.

Today's recipe was a departure from my usual culinary repertoire - sugary, processed ingredients rather than fresh whole foods - but it was a hit at the barbecue party, so I figured I'd better share. S'mores pie! I took some shortcuts, like using a pre-made graham cracker crust and store-bought marshmallows. I'm sure the real recipe is excellent (it was published in Gourmet magazine, after all), but the quick'n'easy version is still worth making, especially for outdoor summertime events. Just be careful not to burn the marshmallows under the broiler like I did. Unless you like charred marshmallows.

Return to studentdom

2008-06-06T22:12:00.000-07:00

I started taking a physics class this week! It's my first step of a very long journey to medical school, and it feels pretty good to be on the road! The metaphorical road, that is. The real road is a commute to Sacramento. The trip there is a quick 20 minutes, but the way home coincides with rush hour and can take twice as long. For someone who's never had more than a 20-minute bike commute, this feels quite draining. And having to fill up the gas tank is pretty draining too.

The class itself is so-so. (I've been spoiled by engaged teachers and classmates ever since 7th grade.) But... I really like having physics homework. I love figuring out the math and logic of it all. I'm pretty rusty - I took the pre-requisite for this class in 1998 - but so far, I'm remembering (or figuring out, or googling) everything I need to know. Already this week, I learned how a photocopier works and what a superconductor is. And my inner geek is yelling, Geez! This stuff is really cool!

Glum Monday

2008-06-02T12:25:00.000-07:00

I'm suffering from tournament withdrawl today - the result of 36 incredible hours with Night Train at the Cal States tournament in Santa Cruz.

We played six games altogether - four on Saturday, two on Sunday. We played well - we made smart decisions; we executed good throws, catches, cuts and defense; we were fired up, focused and intense; and we ran hard, the result of a few months of weekly track workouts. Now that it's all over, there's nothing I'd rather do than go back to the field and play another game.

Spending time with Night Train off the field was almost as much fun as playing on the field with them. The highlight was the tournament party on Saturday night, where I discovered that my teammates are very fun dancers. I knew this was a great team, but I didn't know how great!

Man, I love this sport and the people who play it.

Memorial Day weekend climbing trip!

2008-05-27T11:49:00.000-07:00

I spent the weekend on an Outdoor Adventures trip to Owens Gorge - it was fantastic.

Saturday
We met at 5:30 am. It was dark and drizzling, and despite my decaffeinated state and lack of sleep, I was pretty darn excited. We packed up the 8-person van and set off on the 6-hour drive to Owens Gorge. We had two guides and five participants. Everyone was friendly and good-natured, smart and interesting. We got along exceedingly well, and it was nice to have such a small group.

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We arrived just before noon and went straight to the gorge, pulled out our gear and our lunches, and hiked down. By 1:30, we had two ropes set up and were climbing our first routes!

We climbed 4 routes altogether on Saturday afternoon - a 5.7, a 5.8, and two 5.9s. It's a very different experience from climbing in a gym. Most notably, there isn't any brightly colored tape telling you where to put your feet and hands. You have to think for yourself how to get from the bottom of the top, the result of which is a *great* sense of satisfaction when you figure out how to get past a problem spot. It's incredibly rewarding.

Here's Lisa climbing up a 5.9, one of the tallest routes we did.

After a few hours, we packed up, found a campsite, and made burritos for dinner. Then we ate cookies and chocolate around the campfire until 10, when we were very ready for bed.

Sunday
We were up around 7, and were at the wall climbing by 10. We got four runs in (a 6, two 8s and a 9) before a rain shower made the rock too slippery and cold to climb. (Our fingers were numb by the time we made it to the top.)

By the time we had packed up all our gear, the rain had cleared. We probably could have kept climbing, but we were pretty chilly, and our fingers were worn out, so we hiked out and went to a natural hot springs. We soaked our cares away and then headed into the town of Bishop. We visited a great gallery, founded by Galen Rowell, a very talented climber and photographer. We stopped at a cafe for the hot chocolate we'd been craving all day, and then went home to our campsite... just as it started to drizzle again. We set up a shelter over the picnic table and spent the rest of the night huddled under it. It rained steadily all night long.

Monday
Since it rained all night long, we couldn't go climbing at Owens Gorge in the morning. Definitely a disappointment. We packed up camp, and headed off on a short hike to the top of a bluff to see some petroglyphs. I'm not sure how old they were, or what they meant, but they were incredible. We spent some time puzzling over them, but didn't come to any conclusions. (Photo coming soon.) The sun had come out by then, so we continued down the dirt road about a mile to the Happy Boulders - one of the best bouldering locations in an area famous for good bouldering. We had a great time poking around, trying this and that, abusing our fingers one last time before we had to head home. It was nice and sunny out, and we were very happy boulderers.

At noon, we loaded up the van and drove the 6 hours home, about as tired as we had been on Saturday morning. It was a fantastic trip - I really like climbing outdoors, and I was fortunate to have such great traveling companions.

Here are a few more photos from the trip.