Blackberry Cobbler... Yes, Please!

First of all, I know that I should not use the oven during the middle of a hot July afternoon. I know all of that about how one hour of oven use takes the house's cooling system three hours to cool it down. Yeah, I know it is not energy efficient. But Dang It... I wanted to sleep in and have a lazy morning. To compensate, I baked three dishes at once and turned the AC up two degrees to 80. I think progress is that I am mindful of my energy choices and made an effort to compensate.

So... what did I make? Blackberry Pie! I made it Douglas Company Cobbler style. For those of you not familiar with my Aunt Sandy or with DouCo, I'll fill you in... its the best dessert EVER. (Non Chocolate, of course, but then there was Toll house Pie and French Silk...) I made it extra juicy, extra sweet, and deep dish. I remember watching Aunt Sandy make it, and I (as always) research recipes and methods online and merge the ideas together to make my final creation.

Here's how I did it:

- First get some fresh blackberries, about half a gallon or five cups. Mine came from my mother's patch and are extra delicious because she spent an hour gathering them to me and then another hour and a half transporting them to my house!

- Next, pour sugar onto the berries. I could have used Splenda, but that's not in the DouCo recipe. I am pretty liberal with sugar, and I never measure. My best guess is that I used 1.5 cups.

-Let those berries get juicy. Stir them and let them "Rest" for as long as you want. I was preparing other foods and eating lunch, so it was about 45 minutes.

- Unroll a pre-made pie crust (FYI - you get what you pay for if you buy the store brand!) and place it in a deep dish pie pan or a larger glass baking pan. You might need to stretch it out! You can go fancy and flute the edges of the crust. I always do. I use Martha's technique.

- Pour in the berries. Add a bout half a stick of butter, cut into small chunks, to the top and add a few tablespoons of sugar.

- Its time for the top crust. I decided to use a cookie cutter instead of a lattice crust. It took an extra five minutes, but I had five minutes to spend. The main idea is to have some "vents" in the top crust for steam to escape. You can brush egg White on top of crust, add a little more sugar and then...

- Pop her in the oven. I used about 375 degrees, though because I was baking other things, it was around 400 for awhile and 350 for a few minutes. Take the pie out when the topping is golden colored and the filling is bubbling - about an hour.

- Serve it with vanilla ice cream, real whip cream, or with nothing at all... hot or cold.

My blackberry pie lasted less than 24 hours, so you can imagine how deelish it was! Good luck on yours!

Buy Nothing Challenge

Okay, I've been reading Crunchy Chicken's blog for awhile and am learning ways to live more simply, buy less, and not waste. Yeah, she is totally a liberal, crunchy, nutty lady who doesn't use toilet paper and grows lots of food in her garden, but she has good ideas and great intention.

So I am going to TRY to do this challenge. Here are the basic rules:

No new clothes
No new gadgets
No new furniture or
housewares
No salon
services (except haircuts)
No new makeup
No new
tools
No whatever else people buy
No eating out

Since I still haven't been paid by the University this summer, it might be easy for me to complete it. We've already budgeted next month's income and found it goes for bills and little else. I don't really need more make up, shampoo, or other fun things I like to buy at Target.

I am starting my new teaching job, so I'll have to buy at least two versatile outfits that are professional and make me excited to wake up and put on teacher clothes. I know Kohl's is having a big sale in a few weeks, as is Macy's. I think clearance racks will be okay and won't be too wasteful.

Our neighborhood is having its annual yard sale on August 23. I think I'll trade out some of my un-needed items then.

My husband is thrifty, resourceful, and a saver. He rarely buys things for himself, and he never buys things without thinking about it first (usually for quite sometime). Since he is not an impulse shopper and is not into consumerism, I bet he'll be all for this challenge.

Here's a poll, in three parts:

1. Will you try out this "Buy Nothing Challenge" - for a day? Weekend? Week? Month?


2. What are some things you buy without needing, therefore using money less effectively and creating more waste?
   
3. How can I fill up that "shopping void" I'll probably have?

A semi-related idea...I found something interesting... Buy Nothing Christmas. I am probably NOT going to do this, because I think Christmas is celebration time, full of wrapping paper and hot chocolate and carolers at the mall. But it is interesting! Check it out.

10,000 BC

Last night we watched 10,000 BC (I like that they didn't say BCE - before common era). I originally rented it for my Dad to watch since he was in town this weekend and we'd seen a preview for it during "I am Legend" and he mentioned it looked neat.

I didn't have high hopes for this movie. I didn't like "Encino Man" or "Apocalypto", and I thought "Ten Thousand" might be in the same vein. It wasn't.

It was told like a legend, similar to "Braveheart". Actually, it was similar to many heroic films, as it had are warriors, an oppressed people, men wearing face paint, a central love story, an element of magic or super powers, and camaraderie. It had lots of rising action, so much so that I couldn't tell when the climax occurred (at first) and then almost ended in way reminiscent of "Romeo and Juliet". There was only little tragedy in this movie; it was mostly about hope and perseverance and loyalty.

(It also had a nice tribute to farmers, so much so that I wondered if the directors/producers had a personal and political agenda about becoming vegetarian. )

Over all, it was a good alternative to the Monday night junk TV and ultra humid Missouri weather. I'd recommend it to almost anyone, unless that "anyone" loved chick flicks. The war scenes weren't too gory (though it is rated PG 13), there wasn't nudity, and a little bit of mythology was interspersed. Also, there weren't ANY curse words. Maybe they didn't have them then? I also appreciated the references to Pangaea and climate changes that occurred during the ice ages of that time. The references are inaccurate, but it made me look them up to verify anyway. Don't expect an epic plot or great dialogue, just expect lots of running through the jungle and a CG saber tooth tiger. And a happy ending.

Strawberry and Banana Bread

Last week, Hy-vee had a strawberry sale. I eagerly bought two medium boxes for $3.50. I thought we'd eat them plain or I'd bake a pie.

But I didn't.

They sat patiently in the refrigerator and got soft.

The 16 oz of berries weren't inedible, but they weren't juicy and delicious.

I turned to my favorite recipe search engine, http://www.recipezaar.com/. My key words were "old strawberries" or "almost rotten berries". Low and behold, I got a few hits.


I loosely followed a recipe from recipezaar.com, using a banana bread base recipe, with strawberries constituting half the fruit. Luckily, I had bananas in the freezer and every ingredient except sugar.

(I try to keep bananas in the house at least once a month. And so begins the race of eating them before they spoil! I usually have two over ripe ones. that beg to be made into bread. I read somewhere that you can freeze the over ripe bananas (with or without peel, either way is equally as easy) for a few months until you want to make bread. You don't even need to defrost them because since they are the last ingredient in your recipe and thaw by the time you are ready for them.)

I had to get creative and devise a sugar substitute. I did have Splenda, but not the cooking kind. I also had brown sugar. Both the cookbooks and online foodies said that those sugars aren't preferable, but that adding powdered sugar, or confectioners' sugar, at a 1 1/4 : 1 ratio would be fine.

The cake (I used a Bundt pan, so its a cake) turned out sponge-y, moist, delicious. Not too sweet, more of a breakfast bread cake. I topped it with some powdered sugar and used whip topping from the can to decorate.

Its a recipe I will try again! I really liked the strawberry chunks. I hope the photograph shows the scrumptiousness of it. :o)

You Showed Me Some Games.

Here are some snaps from the Softball Tournament this weekend. I love how enthusiastic my husband looks, especially compared to how unenthusiastic the day could have been for him.

It was hot.

Really hot.It was humid.

The fields were muddy.

They had some bad calls.

They lost one game.

There was a mistake in communication, and the whole team left, only to find out that they were scheduled to play at that time.

They had to forfeit the game.

They won the division last year, but didn't even play on Sunday this year.

Despite these set backs, my husband came through with a sparkling smile and an attitude that radiated warmth and joy. He was happy to have had the chance to play ball all day. Of course, he was annoyed that they had to forfeit for a dumb mistake, but he did not take his annoyance out on anyone. His annoyance didn't turn into sarcasm or anger. He is so good at looking on the bright side of situations and so good at being thankful. He is also so considerate. My chiropractor recommended I not sit in bleachers again;rather, get a stadium chair. Dan got up early and bought a DELUXE, cush, great chair for me. That was very thoughtful, and I don't have as much back pain as I cold have. Dan is so good at showing his love and his positive attitude through his actions.

My parents came to see the games and spend the day with us. We also visited some of the best local establishments... G&D, Sam's Club, Bass Pro, and El Jimador!

It was such fun to play with baby Taylor, too. She was a little cuddly, despite the hot temperatures and lack of nap time. I think my mom really enjoyed interacting with her.

Show Me Softball!

Its time for Show Me Games Softball tournament. This year, my parents will come to watch Dan's team take another championship (probably).

These photos are from last year, during the last weekend of July. Holy cow! Its the last weekend of July! What a quick summer!

A Vote for Obama, a Vote for.... Infanticide?

I am getting more fired up, politically speaking, in my mid, almost late twenties. I am 25 with a birthday on the way. I realize that the older I get, the better I am at analyzing choices. I am becoming more responsible with the gifts God as blessed me with, such as democracy, affluence (yep, I am in the top 4.25% globally, according to this http://www.globalrichlist.com/ link), opportunities for health care and education, and a mortagage payment for a great starter house.

Another thing I have decided to do is to unapologetically share information about causes I believe in. Here is one such cause: Why Jesus Would not Vote for Barak Obama Yes, the article is published by a conservative magazine. That's the point! His views on abortion and infanticide are not aligned with conservative views or with God's views.

Take the time to read the article, especially if you have a passion for children or infants or human beings.

Cartoon from the Chicago Sun-Times

The best quote from the article: OK, Sen. Obama, let's reason. Explain why you support abortion for whatever rationale, at whatever gestation, by whatever means. Explain why you support infanticide, if banning it might interfere with abortion.
Then, since you brought it up, explain how, despite all that, you think Jesus should vote for you, either now or in the hereafter, particularly given His statement, "It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around the neck than to face the punishment in store for harming one of these little ones."

Ah, shucks!

Thanks to my lovely friend Hilary's lovely husband Chris, I had the double delight of tasting a fresh, juicy, sweet perfect summer vegetable today and the joy of DIY preserving the aforementioned goodness for consumption in the future, when sweet corn season has ended.

I thought that this wiki was very useful and informative. Living with an engineer who creates contraptions all the time, I really appreciated the creative process shown for cooling the corn in the blanching process.

Here is Chris with his 10.5 month old daughter, Taylor. She loves the corn as much as we do!

You might notice some BBQ sauce on the corn. That's right, Dan puts the ears on the grill, heats them through, and adds Show-Me sauce. So tasty! We used to soak de-silked corn with the shucks still on in water and then put them on the grill for about 20 minutes. We found that it is fun to eat them that way, but much more labor intensive compared to putting them straight on the Webber kettle. We often use non-local, frozen extra sweet Nibblers if there is no local corn! Yes, BBQ Corn, as well as BBQ Broccoli are staple side dishes in the Haid house.

Looking at the world through rose (and fern and gold and blue) colored glasses

A Fresh Perspective of MU

This week I am teaching a course for English professors who are from Chongqing University. I've noticed them marvel at my campus and ask questions that piqued my own curiosity. We toured Jesse Hall, AP Green Chapel, Hill Hall, and Townsend Hall. I was surprised that I had never noticed the historic art displayed gallery style on all floors of Jesse. I was also struck by the beauty of AP Green, a place I have been so close to in proximity, and a place that could truly bring me closer to myself and closer to God if I use it for meditation or prayer.


1. The photographs are of stain glass windows in the chapel.

I think the colors represent peace and hope.

I was curious as to who A.P. Green was, and found a brief history of a determined and benevolent entrepreneur here: http://shs.umsystem.edu/famousmissourians/entrepreneurs/green/green.shtml

Punishment vs. Consequences

“I’ve got two daughters, 9 years old and 6 years old. I’m going to teach them first of all about values and morals but if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby. I don’t want them punished with an STD at the age of 16, you know.”

-Barack Obama, March 29, 2008

Sources:
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0804/01/gb.01.html
http://mediamatters.org/items/200804010008

Okay, I know that the full quote has to do with young students getting STDs and AIDS, and that he told the reporters lots of great opinions on educating about the effects of sex... and I agree with his viewpoint about sex ed in health classes.

But he did make the comment about being punished for choices. I think there is a difference between punishment and consequences. Am I punished by foreclosure if I don't pay my mortgage? Or is that a consequence? Am I punished by getting a sunburn if I fail to wear sunscreen, or is that a consequence of UV overexposure? Am I punished with a speeding ticket, or is that a consequence for not obeying traffic laws? Am I punished by weight gain if I indulge in fast food regularly, or is it a consquence of my nutrition choices? I could go on and on, probably.

Therefore, I think I've got to make the point that a pregnancy, planned or unplanned, is a consequence of sex. A conception is not a punishment, but the emotional, physical, and financial ramifications are consequences that must be faced.


Poll: A) Do you think most Obama supporters know about his position on this matter?
and
B) Do they hold similar views?

Hulu and SNL - Best Skits Ever...

I think that this is my ALL TIME favorite SNL skit. I wanted to post it so you could laugh, too. Then I found lots of other favorite skits that I wanted to share with you.

2. The Chronic (what?) Cles of Narnia

3. Special Present in a Box

4. Two A Holes at Christmas Tree Lot

5. Chris Farley, Adam Sandler, David Spade being GIRLS

FUNNY WORKOUT VIDEO...

6. Are you Driving? No, I'm Walken!!

7. Christmas Classic - Schwetty Balls


8.Its time for the Noonies!!


9.And Suze Orman... Yep, that Kristin Wiig is funny!!



10.Here is The Opera MAN!

11.Debbie Downer!

12.Massive Headwound Harry!



12. Compulsive Liar


I hope you laughed 12 times!!

Two thumbs up!

Here are some of my favorite scenes from the fabulous movie, Mama Mia (I saw this movie with three of my former Korean students, and they loved it, too.)

I had fun at the movies two times this summer! First, SATC and then last night's Mama Mia. The Today Show had the cast on this week and showed snippets from some of the dance scenes. Ann Curry, my favorite anchor, remarked that it was one of best times she had at the movies. Therefore, I went expecting a pleasant experience; however, I had a FUN experience!

What made the movie FUN was its vibrant color, joyful dances, and beautiful costumes. It was great to see Colin Firth, who will always be Mr. Darcy to me, wearing eye liner in one scene and being cute and old. It was fun to see Amanda S., who is on one of my favorite shows Big Love, giggle and run around in cute one piece swimming suits. It was fun to see the cast, with lots of extras a la My Big Fat Greek Wedding darting through the scenes singing.

What made the movie FUN-STRANGE was seeing Meryl Streep, whom I admire for being dramatic, weeping on a bed like a teenager and then leaping on the bed as if it were a trampoline. It was fun-strange to see Peirce Bronson start singing romantic ballads and wave his arms dramatically during the songs. It was fun-strange to hear the audience start singing "Mama Mia", the second song and continue to hear the singing throughout the theater for the duration of the movie. It was fun-strange that ever four or five minutes a new musical number began, sometimes awkwardly, but finished with a flourish.

I laughed in this movie A LOT. I wouldn't call this a comedy exactly, though it is funny, its mostly just fun.Sometimes I laughed because of the "sitcom" humor, but mostly because of the fun it was watching the dancing and singing.

I cried in this movie more than two times. Why did I cry? I couldn't figure it out at first. The scenes were carefree and glorious.... so why did I cry? I think its because that is how I felt spending times with Ann, Amy, and Mary, my great girlfriends, and Rachel, my super fun sister, and during high school at MASC camp, and during the dancing parts of really good weddings. It was joyous. Aside from all that emotion leaking out my eyes in the good memory times, I also felt sentimental during the scenes of the mother-daughter-wedding-preparation times. The mom brushing her daughter's hair and singing about her quick childhood... of course.

Cards Win! And SmileBox website

Make a Smilebox slideshow

I just found this cool website, called Smilebox, which I learned about from highschool friend, Amanda. I decided to try it out using the photos I took when my mom took us to the Cards vs. KC three weekends ago.

It was a really nice day... a long day... a fun day... a perfect weather day.

Make a Smilebox postcard

And here's another design from the website. It's interactive! You can click on the Mini Taylor Pictures and see a larger version.

I did, yes I did.

I was like the Little Engine That Could today. I went for a run. I didn't think I could do it, but then I changed my attitude and kept going!

Or, I did Interval Running, and it was much better than I expected. I haven't ran in over 8 months. I really liked feeling sweaty and exhausted.

The lessons I learned today are:

a) Its really hard to get started and motivated, but once I have started, it gets better

b) I can't get what I don't have by doing what I have always done

c) Going out earlier is better... its really HOT and HUMID around 11 am.

While I ran/walked, I listened to two podcasts that have been waiting on my iPod. I listed to Joyce Meyer's Every Day Life and Stin's MyBodyCoach . It was really helpful to have Stin's podcast for interval training because it kept switching up the music and giving me a great soundtrack to replace my negative inner dialogue. Joyce's podcasts are always so straightforward and honest. This sermon was about getting over past grief and taking hold of the life God gave you. What a great message to inspire positive change in my life!

I decided to meet my neighbors tonight. They probably had no idea that I am outgoing and friendly by the way I have only waved from the driveway or nodded as we drove by. My husband is virtually the Welcome Wagon when it comes to meeting neighbors, but they moved in the week of my miscarriage last year, and I just never got out of the rut I was in to meet them. But, they are super kind and super interesting. And young! Yeah, they are 22 and have been married less than a year. I remember what that was like. Geez, it feels like longer than three years have passed since I've been in their shoes!

Hopefully restarting my exercise program and recommitting to being Friendly Mrs Haid can help this positive change ball keep a-rollin.

Calm, Affirming Thoughts in my life

Two months ago I bought a Women of Faith study guide called: Being Myself; How Do I Take This Mask Off?.

This particular study seemed appropriate for personal and spiritual growth. As a recovering person, I am moving into uncharted territories. I don't know who I am without the ED thoughts and behaviors, and I've forgotten the things that make me full of worth. I listened to my secular therapist talk to me about making my own choices based on what I prefer the most, not what "should be" in some one's standards, and not what would make others happy. It was extremely difficult for me to make decisions!

I decided to embrace Dr. S's ideas about offering myself forgiveness, giving myself many options and all are good, and to sit with the emotions and allow them to happen. Meditate. Radically accept myself for who I am today. Notice the world in this moment, this breath.

That is nice, and I wish I could live in that Kabot-Zinn Utopia, a dim room lit by lamps or candles, stretchy pants, long deep breaths, peaceful music, and yoga postures. I think I would emerge as a happy, healthy woman if I had such a retreat available for me to use in the morning.

Instead, I live in a cluttered life. Its cluttered with lots of purses full of lip gloss, my always lost cell phone, half-read books, a Planner that is inconsistently used, and Ice Tea cups. My life is cluttered with thoughts that flit across my brain and reappear minutes later. I'm cluttered by lots of half-finished ideas and half-finished projects and half-finished choices. Spontaneity

causes some of this clutter.

I need a Biblical anchor for this. I chose the Women of Faith Bible study to help me keep my Christian focus on the radar. When I use Christ as my compass, I'm able to steer through both the lovely yoga life and the indecisive cluttered life.

Its hard for me to begin a new study, since I have commitment issues and don't keep regimented morning or even schedules. I did begin the first week of June when I was at John and Ann's home. For three consecutive nights, I prayed, read the bible, did the workbook. Over that month when I came back, I read the chapters again and reviewed my responses. I did not go further until last night. I got a great surprise from the study. Here it is in its entirely.

Psalm 139
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1
O LORD, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.
2
You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my every thought when far away.
3
You chart the path ahead of me and tell me where to stop and rest. Every moment
you know where I am.
4
You know what I am going to say even before I say it, LORD.
5
You both precede and follow me.

You place your hand of blessing on my head.
6
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to know!
7
I can never escape from your spirit! I can never get away from your presence!
8
If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the place of the dead,
you are there.
9
If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
10
even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.
11
I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night—
12
but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright
as day. Darkness and light are both alike to you.
13
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my
mother's womb.
14
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!

Your workmanship is
marvelous—and how well I know it.
15
You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16
You saw me before I was born.

Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
17
How precious are your thoughts about me,
O God! They are innumerable!
18
I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up
in the morning, you are still with me!
19
O God, if only you would destroy the wicked! Get out of my life, you
murderers!
20
They blaspheme you; your enemies take your name in vain.
21
O LORD, shouldn't I hate those who hate you? Shouldn't I despise those who
resist you?
22
Yes, I hate them with complete hatred, for your enemies are my enemies.
23
Search me, O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my thoughts.
24
Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life

My surprise is how my heart softened when I read about how God knows me, He gets me better than I get me. He thinks about me all the time. He made me a complex person, so my bits of dysfunctional days or depression don't make Him think differently of me. God saw me when I was a fetus and had wishes and hopes for me. He looks at me and sees the possibilities. I have a strong emotional reaction to this! I feel lucky, I feel free to be me, I feel loved. God doesn't seem like a distant thing, instead, God is a moving force in my daily life

I especially like these promises from God. I think they make me realize God is alive and working in my life, and that I need to stop, breath, and just rest for awhile. God can do the work!

1. Your hand will guide me your strength will support me (10)
2. You proceed and follow me, you put a hand of blessing on my head (5)
3. How precious are your thoughts about me, Oh God! They are innumerable (10),
4. You are with me when I wake up in the morning(11)
5. You help me refine my life by pointing out mistakes to help me have a clean heart. (23)
6. You lead me on the path for everlasting life.(24)

I've been working on several posts...

But none have been published, except this. I will finish them up soon. As for now... Quick Poll: Does anyone salt their watermelon? I just discovered that my husband does. Isn't that cooky? Or should I add that extra NaCl?

Judge a Book by Its Cover...

One of my Korean students (a precocious pre-4th grader named Jessica) and I perused the Columbia Pubic Library for some new books. She filled her basket with R.L. Stine's Goosebumps, the new Nancy Drew Mysteries series, and about twelve other books she randomly grabbed off of the shelves. "Sometimes I just find some books with interesting covers and try them," she told me. I told her I did the same thing, and how that is known as judging a book by its cover. She told me that if an author really wanted kids to read their books, the cover should be interesting!

Good point, Jessica. If I want others to be interested in me, I should probably make sure my cover and any "press releases" are favorable.

Amid the F-I section, she stopped at a section of books. There were about five of each copy, which indicates the author is very popular with Boone County kids. "You just have to read this one, Bethany!", she said. She picked up the book, Double Identity and gave it to me. I asked her why she liked it, and she replied, "Well, its mysterious and the main character is a girl. I like books with girls as main characters." (BTW, I prefer the protagonist of most novels to be female, too. I actually can't think of my last favorite book with a male in the main role).

"Plus her name is Bethany, too!" Jessica showed me the synopsis on the back cover. Indeed, Bethany was the main character. My name is fairly uncommon. I've never read a book with a person named Bethany, and the only movie I've seen with my name in it is National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (and Aunt Bethany did nothing for the namesake, IMO).

So, starting last night at about 10:30 pm, I began reading this book. I was drawn in by the higher level vocabulary, well placed clues and foreshadowing, and the "teacher talk" the book inspired. What a great read aloud! Each short chapter is a cliff hanger. The girl is a normal 12 year old, has an unusual family, and is learning about secrets from her past. I think most fourth, fifths, sixth, and seventh graders would dig this read. So far, I am on page 149, and I am eagerly turning its pages.

Here's the bibliography, if you are interested!

Haddix, M. P. (2005) Double identity. Simon and Schuster, NY

Also by this author, The Shadow Children series. It has gripped the attention of all my students, 3rd grade to 6th grade. I'll be reading those next!

Sari Project Finished!!!

Here's a little project I finished two weeks ago. I've been cleaning and trying to make my house look as good as it can be. Housework is not my favorite past-time, but its pleasant to relax in a clean house and not stare up at cobwebs or have "stuff" everywhere.

Up next... kitchen time! We'll be tiling, painting, installing chair rails, and adding some color to the most undecorated part of our help. That is, once my first teacher paycheck arrives!

Some Good Things

Here are some of the things that make life enjoyable right now, in no particular order.


1. Chocolate Chex. With or without milk. Morning or Night

2. Teaching the class: Advanced Business English and American Culture.

3. Stanford Blach's one liners in Sex in the City

4. Tofu. I can't get enough.

Recent Reads...

I've been reading quite a lot lately. Here is a scope of the books, along with a few of my thoughts:

The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen by Syrie James.
Yes, I've mentioned this one before, however, I am still not finished with the book. Its not because this book is especially difficult to read. On the contrary, its a delightful read! The author's premise : "What if, hidden in an old attic chest, Jane Austen's memoirs were discovered after hundreds of years? What if those pages revealed the untld story of a life-changing love affair?" The book is written in a first person, diary style format. The language is a bit less obtuse
than Austen's style, but its wit and clever descriptions ring true to Austen's style. This is a book I'd read twice!

English as a Second Language by Megan Crane.
Hmmm. I definately judged a book by its cover on this one! I saw it in the New Fiction section a the Columbia Public Library. It looked jazzy, with hot pink and a cute font. After one week of trying to connect with the main characters and slogging through less that exciting plots, I just gave up and returned it. Usually I love books about independent women meeting scoundrels and then Mr. Darcys, but geez. Enough is enough! There are too many good books in the world to spend time with a snoozer. You can quote me on that! (PS, I often read the ending of books that I am not sure I am going to like, or select a random chapter and start reading. That helps me determine if I want to keep going!)

The Wedding Officer, by Anthony Capella
This novel made me re-consider my menus for the month after I finished reading it! I fell in love with the descriptions of Italian food. Some of Capella's chapters are sumptuious, sexy, and mouth watering. Other descriptions, like of the War in Italy and prositutes, were not so appetizing. I leared quite a lot, too. I didn't know there was a vocanic eruption during WW2 which was a major factor in Italy's battle front. I also didn't know much about England's role in the war. I enjoyed this book, finishing its 300 something pages in a weekend. (PS, I did skip the last few chapters before the end, they were a little tedious).

Out of Sync, by Lance Bass
I read this book in about 45 minutes. I had watched Lance on the Tyra show over Christmas vacation. Yes, I watch Tyra every once in awhile. Yes, I am/was a huge *NSYNC fan. My sister Rachel and I even went to the PopOdyessy Tour! I picked up this book because it reminded me a bit of my childhood. I loved watching the Disney Channel's Mikey Mouse Club. I had all the CDs. I bet some of my friends from St. James grew up just like Lance, gay, but under the radar gay. The book as a whole is written in first person narrative. It reminds me of writing samples of a junior high student, only with spell check. On the whole, it was an interesting use of my time. If it weren't rainy and I weren't just chilling at the library, I wouldn't have spent the time reading it. But, it reminded me of the song. "Dirty Pop" ... what a fun song to stick in my head!