RR on the Kob

High Anxiety

2008-09-14T21:08:00.002-04:00

Since I discovered that someone had managed to get into my apartment and stole my beautiful Canon Rebel (film!) camera and a brand spanking new pair of Uggs (the non-Uggly type) I am guilty of being paranoid. Every time I come home I look around for something slightly out of place, or something missing. I turn the doorknob before I unlock the deadbolt, making sure that my apartment is still locked, check that my jewelry is undisturbed and ascertain that my replacement boots are still in my closet.

Over the past week I've been getting slowly better about remembering how I've lived here for over a year, without anything amiss, and had practically managed to calm down a bit. Then today, I realized my pink tool kit is missing. Of course, this is such a ridiculous thing for someone to steal that I continue to search for it, thinking that it will turn up. Nevertheless, it reinforces the feeling of violation, that someone was shopping through my belongings as if at Macy's, trying on my shoes, pawing through my dresser and taking what pleases her (I've decided it has to be a female).

I keep musing on ways that I could make myself more secure: an alarm system, large dog (not likely), more locks, security web cam, safe to hid my valuables. Any of these options would provide more security, but still something could be taken. I'm not going to lock up my laptop each day, nor bolt my tv to the wall.

Maybe I could coat my apartment with some sort of dye so that I could tell who was lurking... For now, it's an alarm system and some pepper spray as defense. And maybe a safe. And some booby traps.

Big Bird: Jumbo Chicken, Spinach, and Herb Burgers with Mushrooms and Swiss

2007-07-04T10:59:00.000-04:00

These burgers are huge. Gigantic. I could barely finish one, and I forgot to buy spinach so they could have been even larger. They were, however, quite tasty and something I am planning on making again.

I think the spinach in the burgers would help to make them less dense. Chicken doesn't have a lot of fat so it's easy to pack down, and when you do, the fat won't cook away leaving a lighter structure as it does with beef. Rachael says this serves 4, I say make 6 normal sized patties, maybe even 8. Because of my inexperience making patties, I made them a little higher than they should have been and they were a real mouthful to eat. My mushrooms came out fantastic and they were a great addition to the recipe. I would suggest tossing in some onions with them to caramelize.

This recipe clocked in at 35 minutes. Without the prep it would have been 30 min, and my ginormous burgers took a longer time to cook. I think this one is possible to make in under 30 minutes. The burgers themselves were super easy to put together, I 'd even suggest doing so ahead of time. Ground chicken doesn't grill well because of the lack of fat, so stick with a frying pan.

PS- ignore the strewn clothes in the background, waiting to be put away in my closet (moving in)

A New Start

2007-07-04T10:46:00.000-04:00

So I haven't updated in like forever. Graduation and job searching and generally trying to live a non-online life does that. But now I've settled down and cooked a few more meals and told myself that I will update on a more regular basis. Plus my friends might actually, possibly, occasionally read this and then they can see what I'm up to, or at least miss my cooking. I cooked a few winners this past week while I was slacking, waiting for my job to start and have a few more planned. I think I might start posting other things that I make that are good too. Which is amusing considering dinner this week will be franks and beans. July 4th just got me in the mood for good, summer, unhealthy food. It makes me miss The Lake and this is one small way to recreate it. Now if I only had a penguin floaty tube and a noodle. Life would be complete.

I decided that my new digs needed some green so I bought a basil plant. I was about to get a new pot for it when I discovered that there was a window box outside my kitchen window, hanging out on the fire escape! Life these past few weeks have been like that, full of really useful surprises that just help to lift my spirits.

I started work on Monday and I'm really excited. Everyone has been helpful in making me feel at home and what I'll be working on is pretty cool. I've been able to look on as other projects are being run, and everything is so fascinating. I love learning how things are made. My other job, the flour development, is going pretty well too. I need to push myself a little more on it, but so far I've been really pleased with my results. One day, I will become a true food scientist. However, for the next very long time, I will be quite content working where I do now. I guess every job seems fabulous the first week. I have high hopes.

In fact, I have high hopes for a lot of things right now but we'll see where that leads to . . .

#366 Sweet Lemon Salmon with Mini Carrots and Dill

2007-03-02T15:41:00.000-05:00

With the way that I made this recipe, it's more of Sweet Lemon Salmon with Mini Carrots and Cilantro. Stupid Giant. I looked all over for fresh dill but they had none! I'm sticking with Superfresh after this. So, instead of buying dried dill I just used the cilantro I had lying around since I felt like this would be one of the few times that I'd use dill. This recipe also called for a skillet that could be transfered from the stove to the oven, but I only have non-stick and after learning in my Engineering in the Kitchen class what teflon can do to a person when exposed to very high temperatures (read: teflon toxicosis) I just cooked the salmon on the skillet. The fact that Rachael called for the fish to be moved to the oven puzzled me as one of my favorite recipes from the book, Salmon with Honey Lime Glaze and Corn and Black Bean Salsa (I'll put that up eventually) uses a similar glaze but the fish is cooked only on the stovetop.

This was one of the quicker recipes I've tried so far- only 25 minutes from start to finish. It's very simple; all you have to cook is the fish and the carrots. I wound up making potatoes too since I felt like I needed something more than just carrots, as much as I love them and all, they just don't cut it as an only side dish. The carrots did need the fresh dill. Cilantro went well with the meal, but any fresh herb would give the carrots a needed kick. I would, however, use less butter than what was called for. The bag of carrots I bought was two ounces more than what was called for and I used half as much butter and I still think that was too much. In fact, I think olive oil would be a good substitute. I really liked the glaze for the fish, but it too was missing a kick. I think red pepper flakes and a little more salt would make for a good contrast between the sweetness of all the sugar and honey.

Once again, no picture. this one wasn't very impressive looking though.

#40: Mostly Green Curry Chicken Over Coconut Jasmine Rice

2007-02-13T21:31:00.000-05:00

This recipe had to be one of the easiest in the book, or at least with the shortest directions. Chop everything. Put in pan. Cook. I actually made this for company so I got distracted and forgot to take a picture or accurately time how long this took me to make. Although the flavors were there, it lacked some color. I would suggest adding red instead of green peppers but I don't think the flavors of the red would go quite as well. Maybe yellow? Or perhaps add corn instead of peas, even though the peas were a nice touch. All of the vegetables that were added were green or white and it just needed something for contrast.

That being said, this is a winner. As I said, extremely easy, tasty and I love the coconut rice, I think I'll have to make that on a regular basis.

Time: 34 minutes, with less efficient than normal chopping time and a break to answer the door.

Things to remeber: Find something not green for garnish?

226: Chicken and Sweet Potato Curry-in-a-Hurry

2007-02-03T17:42:00.000-05:00

I was getting bored with safe recipes. Needed something a little spicier. I didn't think that I would be able to find curry powder/paste around here, but then a friend said it's available at the supermarket. Duh. And now I realize there's an Indian grocer down the street.

2 lbs of chicken seemed reasonable when I was buying it, but while chopping I realized just how much that was. This recipe definitely makes more than the promised 4 servings. Most of her meals that call for 1 or 1.5 lbs of meat last me for 4-5 meals. This one will probably last me for at least 6 or 7 plus a lunch. I'm sure that this meal will freeze nicely though so I can break it back out in a week or two.

Next time I would cut the peppers into smaller strips (I kept them the full length of the pepper) and be more careful about cutting the sweet potatoes into thin pieces, no more than 1/2 an inch. I bought a sweet potato that more closely resembled a nerf football, and I cut it into wedges that were closer to 3/4 or 1 inch thick. The problem with this was that they needed more than the prescribed 3-4 minutes at the beginning of the recipe to cook and because they were still slightly raw, I needed to simmer the mixture longer.

Figuring that half-and-half would be comparable to light cream, since the supermarket only had a small thing of light cream and I hate wasting things, I went ahead and used the light cream. I should have referenced my What Einstein Told His Cook by Robert Wolke, because the light cream did not give the dish the same texture as regular cream or half and half would have.

After completion, my apartment smelled delicious, and my sweatshirt absorbed in the curry scent. I spent the next day sniffing my clothes :D The meal was equally delicious although it was missing some slight flavoring. I think a dash of cinnamon might help.

Total time: 37 min. (the extra simmering added time, but it still would have taken me longer than 30 minutes)

For next time: cut peppers and sweet potatoes smaller, use the biggest pan possible, use heavy cream or half and half and add cinnamon.

My gourmet dinner:

A Concept

2007-02-03T17:30:00.000-05:00

After much pondering, I've decided on a blog theme. Something that will catapult me to the same level as veganlunchbox and pinkisthenewblog. Reviewing my Rachael Ray dinners. Honestly, as an ISTJ I document time and improvements to recipes I try so I figured I might as well document my cooking.

What got the wheels in my head turning was an article in the NY Times (I'm pretty sure) where a reporter followed some of her recipes. However, she was not such a big fan and had trouble finishing the recipes in under 30 minutes. I believed this was a travesty as one recipe (salmon with honey-lime glaze) took me about 20 to complete and plate.

For your reference, I own 365: No Repeats. And yes, I really am another Rachel R.

Extreme Reaches of Boredom

2007-01-15T12:52:00.000-05:00

What happens when one has nothing to do for 3 weeks? She starts thinking about stuff. Not that I've done nothing- I've started the job search and have taken my knitting to the next level. Other than that, the only people that I've seen are my parents, relatives and a childhood friend. I am considering going to the movies today but because of the holiday all of the mall rats will be out and I hate going alone- it makes me feel lonely. I've done it plenty of times before but it's pretty depressing, however I think I'm at my breaking point.

I've come to some conclusions about high school while I've had the ample time to let my mind wander. I hated it. That is nothing new. I was a jock in the drama/non-athlete crowd, as in I played a few sports and loved that but the social heirarchy of high school mandated that I wasn't as cool as my teammates becaue I was good friends with the drama crowd so I never hung out with them other than sports related stuff, although they were a fun bunch, and I always had games and never actually did drama so all of my good friends ignored me for their cooler drama friends. I had a few close friends, and those were the only ones I really kept in touch with after high school.

Unfortunately, out of those close friends, I barely speak to any of them. One I saw every break for a few years and then I realized how different we had become. I don't just mean what we wanted to do with our lives were different, but it seemed like to me she had lost all direction in life and was really happy getting into bar fights and waitressing in the south. She was just so different than what she was like when we were best friends in high school. My real best friend in high school never contacted me (maybe once) after graduation but I never expected her to anyway. (I know, what a friend).

This break has been depressing because I realized how one friend that I was really close to I let drift away and we hadn't spoke in a year or so. I used to love hanging out with him and being ridiculous. Now when I im-ed him it was just awkward and forced. I just get so tired of having to be the one keeping in touch and doing all the work. A lot of people from my high school commuted to college, including this friend and one other. I finally realized that part of the reason I have to do the planning is that they never are far from school friends. For me, everyone is a few hundred miles away and I don't get to see them (other than a few people who live pretty close) during breaks so I have to relay on high school friends for any social contact with people who I'm not related to. Commuting people do not have to experience the being away from all of your friends situation because most people still live within half an hour of each other. Case and point: if I want to see anyone I have to do all the work because they have other friends. I mean, I would probably do the same thing if I commuted (although I'd probably kill myself from living with my parents first) but every now and then it's nice to have a call or something reciprocated so that I know I'm not the only one that cares. Not that I do that anymore since I've given up...

I guess I feel kind of abandoned.

Going through that and now looking for a job where I'm continually told "being average at a good school is much worse than being over-average at a state school" has put a damper on life right now. Underaverage grades? Good luck finding a job. Just think- I could have slacked off at Northeastern for 5 years and gotten a 3.5+ and had my pick of a job. However, I worked my ass off at Hopkins for 4 years and have under a 3. Should have picked the easy route! And then I would have had a new car (since I would have had a full scholarship there my parents would have bought me a car), my pick of jobs, and the possibility of drinking if I had homework due, as opposed to paying 40,000$ a year, searching long and hard for a job that interests me and only going out if my work was done or under control (once a week).

On the other hand, I found this great career website for jobs in food which I think could be a real asset. One head hunting company has emailed me back through it, but they're more agriculture than foods. And located in the midwest. We'll see.

It's Winter!!!

2006-12-05T18:58:00.000-05:00

All I can say is it's finally winter because:
a) It's cold (finally)
b) There are pretty lights on campus
c) Classes are almost over/Finals are about to begin
d) MALLOMARS!!!

Yum.

Silly Little Bunny Face

2006-10-18T18:48:00.000-04:00

Today Jasmine died. My brother bathed her on Saturday and noticed that she had a growth on her chest. On Monday he took her to the vet first thing, but the vet said that the tests were inconclusive. He was in the process of moving and after the appointment brought her to his new place. Because of all of the excitement of the vet (first time she's ever had to go), the bath (she hated them, but they were necessary) and the move, it was just too much for her. That night she started to wheeze when she breathed, stopped eating or drinking and just lay in the corner. This morning, he took her to a different vet first thing and they took an x-ray. She had a tumor that had basically grown to take up all of her lungs. She had to be put to sleep.

For a rabbit, Jasmine was very well traveled. She started out at UPenn, in one of the Penn Tower's dorm rooms in a 10 gallon fishtank. Later, she spent time on a row house just off campus where she got to hang out with the dudes and get lots of attention. After she completed her college years, she came back home with Ben to NY. He wound up taking a year off before grad school in Colorado being a ski/snowboard bum and I got to take care of her. I had never had a real pet before and it was wonderful to have company while I wrote my college apps and did my homework. I'll never forget her little face peeking up the side of the chair, trying to get me to pet her while I chatted on aim. She also developed a "fondness" for my penguin and duck slippers. I'm pretty sure at that point I still even had bunny slippers that she enjoyed. Her favorite toy was a plush soccer ball that she could bat around, although it was practically the same size as her. Sometimes I would fall asleep in my brother's old room (where she was kept) on his bed and she would jump on me, usuallly scaring the crap out of me in the process and causing her to freak out and jump off quickly, hiding under her favorite piece of furniture. Once she got underneath the cardboard bed ruffle that we designed as a "bunny bumper" and almost got lost inside of the boxspring! She was very inquisitive and her little pink nose was always moving. Jasmine was a bunny with some attitude, a "you know you want to pet me, so quit fooling around" girl that disliked it when you poked her tush. Later she would play games with Ben, taunting him to catch her and then run away and slowly sneak back. However, I never got to do that with her because she was her daddy's girl. No one could take his place and during that time I could tell that she missed him. She lost a little spark in her personality. However, every time that he came back she would at first give him the cold cotton tail but soon warm up and become mush in his hands.

After spending 9 months in NY, Jas went on a car trip all the way to Colorado. She became a true ski bunny there (although it was during the summer), but was soon moved out to LA where she enjoyed a dressing room devoted to her care, nice weather, and the loving companionship of my brother. When he moved out to LA, he didn't know anyone and Jas was his buddy. He would get home from school and she would be so excited to see him that she would run circles around him and poop. Pooping was her favorite way to express endearment. She pooped everywhere.

It's sad to think that since the tumor had spread so much how long she was in pain for. My brother said that looking back, she didn't have quite as much spring in her step the past few months, but other than that, no symptoms manifested themselves. The excitement of the move was just too much for her. My brother said that he couldn't watch them put her to sleep but he spent her last few hours with him, I can just see it, Jasmine with her head all the way on the ground, my brother cupping her head with his hand, running his thumb over her white streak on her forehead. She would only put her head on the ground for him. She would almost do it for me, but no one was like her Bennie.

This was her typical Jasmine "pet me now" look:

I'll miss you fluffy girl.

Let's Go Mets!!!!

2006-10-09T20:23:00.000-04:00

Mets=amazing.
David Wright = My Hero/My Man.

However, the game on Wednesday conflicts with Project Runway. Luckily, Bravo only airs PR, West Wing, Actor's Studio and now Six Feet Under so in the next week I'll have about 50 opportunities to watch it.

Words cannot express how excited I am about the Mets right now. It's ridiculous. I'm so siked.

Right now I have an excessive amount of crap to get done before next Thursday. 1 senior lab, due right after we get back, 1 orgo lab due next Thurs, plus 2 prelabs due this Thurs and Fri, 1 homework set due this Tuesday and another most likely due Monday when we get back. And a midterm tomorrow 1 hr after 5 hours of playing with a distillation column. However, I'm in ok shape. 1 prelab done, 1/2 orgo lab, started next week's hw set. I am determined not to do horribly this semester.

I ate some spinach today. Not dead yet. (Crosses fingers)

Overload

2006-10-03T17:29:00.000-04:00

If I live through these next three weeks then I will be able to live through a similar three weeks which will in turn allow me to live through yet another similar three weeks. Oh boy. I forgot how terrible it was going to be this semester. I'm dreaming of my 12 credit spring, three of which will probably be research. And I just need to figure out process control in a week and then I'll be ok until our senior lab report is due. That makes up 2 weeks, plus my orgo lab report (eeeaaassssyyy), process control homework and p chem homework. Oh, and regattas every weekend plus 2 sorority meetings per week plus waking up at 4:38 for crew practice. I have resigned myself to being in very poor shape this year until after crew season when I swear I will go to the gym before p chem. (Ha I doubt it'll happen but it's nice to dream). So much for being in bikini shape come the winter cruise :( But then I'll probably just wear it anyway and remember that even when I feel like I can't I usually can get away with it.

I'm so siked for HOTC though! The hotel will be awesome. Not to mention our ultimate coxswain room. It's going to be a blast. And I get to see my parents!

Dr. Bore

2006-09-13T19:29:00.000-04:00

aka, well I won't say just in case someone sees this.

So lab yesterday was the first time I ever thought "Is this ballpoint pen sharp enough to break the skin of my hand? How much pressure would it take and would I be able to excuse myself from class without looking suicidal?" Speaking of suicidal, according to Dr. B suicide is fine by him although homicide, including manslaughter is a horrific thing that people should be put to death for. Accidents are included in this, even if they are caused inadvertantly. But mostly they're caused by stupid people, of which there will be at least one in our lab class, although that is a much lower ratio than outside of school. One other thing stupid people do is not use the restroom when they have to. It's distracting, practically the same as trying to multi-task (which is impossible, he can't do it at all and therefore doesn't believe anyone else can, especially if you're talking on your cell phone and driving and someone calls you to say that you brother died in a horrible accident and then there you go, not paying attention to the road and wind up in an accident and dead too and then how will your mother feel?) and you can injure yourself or cause an accident (continue into accident/homicide/suicide rant) and then where would that leave you?

Needless to say I am really looking forward to having him tear apart our lab plans every other week and generally be patronizing and make our lives miserable.

Not.

School Days, School Days

2006-09-07T16:18:00.000-04:00

Aaaaaannnddd so it begins! Officially a senior today! Except I didn't actually have class, which was more of a bonus, although I feel like at this point I would prefer to just go to it. Tomorrow I'll have class at 9 am :/ bah. Instead of being in class today I am watching the US Open and TLC/Discovery Health. Discovery Health is my new TLC. Honestly. The drama is more real, they don't always have a happy birth that goes perfectly (sounds great, right?). And they have pregnant models. There is a comic factor to that show. I mean a 9 months pregnant women trying to give the sexy eye to a camera. Not that pregnant women don't deserve to be looked upon as sexy (lord knows I'll want to feel that way) but when they pose them with their bellies showing or have them in bikinis walking down the catwalk- just kind of amusing.

I can't decide whether or not I want to go home for the holidays. According to a erratic email my mother sent me, my older brother (one in London) may come home (for work?) that weekend. In which case I would want to go home. This would mean that I would have to go home on Friday night and then come back on Sunday night/Monday morning. Might be hectic, although I really would like to. Sigh. Maybe I can go to NJ instead. But it's not the same, plus their temple is so crowded that my family may not be able to sneak me in. And then there's the issue of my super-comfy bed at home. in Oct. I think I'll get myself an invitation to DC. I hate making those awkward phone calls to family members..."Hi! How are you! What are you doing for the holidays? Can I come spend it with you and stay over?" In theory I've already been invited but still. I hate being on the phone. I'd much prefer letters or emails or face to face contact. Maybe that's just my anti-social behavior talking.

I need to figure out what to feed myself this week...jelly meatballs and then some special roasted chicken perhaps?

Lies and Damn Lies

2006-08-27T00:20:00.000-04:00

Things that my brother has told me that I recently found out he made up (to everyone's amusement):

1) The highest score in mini-golf wins.
-Although mini-golf is a sport built around ridiculousness, it is, in fact,the lowest score that wins in mini-golf and not the highest. The goal is not to take as many strokes as possible.

2)Every Hanukah, the Hanukah snails pull Hanukah Harry's dreidle around to every little Jewish boy's and girl's houses, helping him distribute the required 8 gifts.
-The Hanukah snails, Hanukah Harry's equivalent of Santa's reindeer, are in fact, a figment of my brother's imagination. I apologize to anyone to whom I have explained the purpose of the Hanukah snails. I am no longer in wonder why no one else in the world knows about the snails. Until a few weeks ago, I believed that they were a normal lie that parents tell their chidren in order for them to feel less "special" at Christmas time.

3) The game "Who can punch the softest" is a lot of fun and no one will get hurt.
-The point of the game "Who can punch the softest" is not to punch the softest. It is to punch your younger siblings hard while they try to punch very, very softly.

At least they never told me that I was adopted.

Ye Olde London Towne

2006-08-24T15:56:00.001-04:00

I think I've finally recovered from London. It was fantastic and exhausting. Spending only 6 days in a time zone 5 hrs ahead and walking all over the city from 9 am to 8 pm tuckered me out. A short list of what we saw:
-Hyde Park
-Westminster Abbey
-the V&A museum
-Salisbury Cathedral and town
-Stonhenge
-Sting's house
-Tower of London(all of it)
-British Museum (Rosetta Stone!!)
-Changing of the Guards
-Harrod's, Top Shop
-Pub Walk on the Thames
-Globe Theater (Antony and Cleopatra)
-Buckingham Palace
-Borough Market
-Tate Modern

You know, just a few things. Needless to say, the next few days after we got back I was asleep by 10 pm. In fact, on Saturday when we got back, I was "watching the Met game" on the couch at 9 and my brother called. My parents answered that I was sleeping so he should tak to me later. It has been said that I protested that I wasn't sleeping and that I was still watching the game. Alas, I have absolutely no recollection of this.

The one part that sucked was time spent in the airport. We knew that our flight was delayed to 11 pm from 9, so we left an hour later for the airport. When we got there, we were given clear plastic baggies like everyone else traveling to London and told that our flight would now be leaving at 2 am. Woohoo. We sat around the airport for a while and then went through security at like 10 to go to our gate. FYI, the seats at JFK are not conducive to sleeping. But the plane that we are taking gets into the gate at 12 and we leave around 12:30, flight goes swimmingly. (Virgin Atlantic is awesome, all entertainment is on demand!) Coming back is a different story. We get to Heathrow under 3 hours before (my parents' fault), since we were told that everything was much better than before, in fact, we were even allowed carry ons, although reduced in size. (so no tampons in a clear baggie) We're standing in line to check in for you know, only like 2 hours. Then we had to go through security. We walk to the area. The line is through all of the shopping areas, food areas and out to the parking garage. Our flight leaves in 30 min. (It was delayed half an hour but we didn't find that out until we got to the gate). The line is moving, and there are people calling out flight times. "11:35" "11:45" Ok. Our flight is at 11:55 so they'll call us soon and then we can just skip ahead. At this point they stop calling out times. We finally get up to where we can see the metal detectors. By this time we have less than 15 min and there's still a snaking line. We literally had our shoes off and threw everything into the metal detector, pick it up on the other side and run. We make it to the gate at 11:53. And then the flight is delayed 30 minutes so it turns out ok, although they start to board just after we have time to catch our breaths. And of course, I get to sit in the row with the screaming baby!! His parents were really trying to calm him, but he was a little guy and his ears probably hurt. Still, 6 hours of a screaming baby on a 7 hour flight is a bit much.

We got home safely and in time to listen to the '86 Mets reunion.

Anyone going to London I suggest a pub walk. Here is my half pint of Young's Waggledance:

And the after shot of my first ever pint:

London or Bust??

2006-08-10T23:19:00.000-04:00

Sooooo as of right now I'm still going. . .although my mom is ready to cancel so we'll see whether or not we actually go. If she does decide against it I'm putting up a hissy fit for myself to go. And if not I'll be able to spend a week with my parents! What joy!!!!! If not, then I'll be able to walk through Heathrow with a clear plastic bag full of tampons! Yay!!

Why Does MLB.com Hate Me?

2006-08-08T19:32:00.000-04:00

It's Mike Piazza's big return to Shea tonight; I've honestly been looking forward to this for like a month. If I could, I'd be in Queens cheering for him as he saunters up to bat. Alas, I am in Baltimore and MLB.com hates me. Every big game so far my computer has refused to play the games streaming on internet radio on Windows Media Player. I am about to write an angry letter to MLB yelling at them for this problem. Right now, I can't even try to listen to it as I have "logged in too many times. Try back later" popping up each time I do. Soooooooo angry. At least I have Phish Food to drown my sorrows in.

I got to go to the SEM (scanning electron microscope for you non-sciencey types). This is what nanowires look like:

Soooooooooooooo cool. Definitely the coolest toy I've ever gotten to played with.

Not Depressing

2006-08-07T13:52:00.000-04:00

After dropping Barry off at the airport last week, Laura and I took a detour to the Baltimore Cupcake Factory:

YUM- and it had pink frosting and sprinkles! I think it's the best cupcake ever. Other than the others I've had from there of course.

End of an Era

2006-08-07T11:19:00.000-04:00

Ok, so Lukasz, I'm giving in and writing a blog. Ha, now we'll see if you can find it.

I decided that I need some sort of outlet for all of my obsessing because I never actually write in my journal and as we all know, my generation is all about projecting themselves and sharing their lives with the entire world. I'm just giving in to peer pressure! Now everyone will know how much I obsess over stuff, although I never show it.

My summer: food, Spoons, bike rides, jdates, cupcakes, adventures, good times all around.

It's hard to believe that this will be my last summer vacation ever. Everyone keeps asking what I'm planning on doing next year but I reallly only have one option: work. Unfortunately, dear old Johnnh Hop was not conducive to allowing me more options. I'll be off working next summer. Who knows where or doing what. Hopefully on the east coast. I think I would miss family and friends too much if I moved too far, although I could always go to LA. It's scary. For years you get asked that question, "What do you want to do when you grow up?" Well, I'm grown up now! I know what I would like to do, who knows if I'll be able to. Life is filled with so much uncertainty at this point, it's amazing how much only a year makes. Last year all the uncertainty was about being an upperclassman, now it's about graduating, and finding a job, and a place to live, and staying in touch with everyone I love so much and finding a mate. There's a transition from being able to live from test to test, or class to class to determining my future so that I'm not left broke and at home sleeping in my old lavendar room.

This summer has been so much fun, it just slipped by. I really have enjoyed living in Baltimore and becoming a sort of transplanted local this summer. There's still so many more things that I would like to do but I know that unless I live around here next year I'll probably never get to do them. That's what scares me, leaving exciting adventures unexplored. At least we went to Ocean City. That was a blast. And I have the slighlty pink skin to prove it. The next time I take a vacation like that I'll have to worry about work and how I'm spending my own money- not my parents. I know- I'm a spoiled college kid.

I read some excellent beach trash yesterday. It's called "Dumping Billy". A guy, of course a good looking, successful one that comes off as an arrogant jerk dates every girl in Brooklyn. The interesting part is that after he dumps them, they all wind up married to the next guy they date. If only it were that easy. I've had my summer of fun, I'm leaving any more to next summer. Maybe I won't end up an old maid.

I know this is depressing, but the next posts should be better.