You wouldn't believe....

This meal looks pretty good, huh? It's for Emmy. Put her in the bin, get the white jacket, she's loony! I'm not, really. Yesterday we got a notice from BJ's Wholesale telling us that the food that we purchased for Emmy could be a batch of dry food that was contaminated with Salmonella. So for the in between getting a new bag of food I made her a bunch of rice, boiled chicken tenders, and peas. I'd say that this is a pretty well balanced meal for anyone. There aren't any spices so it may not taste that great, but it's gourmet for Emmy!




Aside from the food recall, this past weekend we took care of my boss' darling little poodle, Josie. (Pronounced Jo-sIe. The "I" is accented, not like how we pronounce Josie.) I was a little (well maybe a lot) nervous that Emmy would beat up on her because she is old. She had already practically attacked her in the office, but everything was okay in the end. I might even say that they are friends. They sure both wanted to sleep on the bed! After I dropped Josie off at the Celery office I went to go cheer on Edward's inter mural soccer team. They won! They also gave me team shirts since I'm the cheerleader for the team. I wouldn't say I'm the best cheerleader as I yell at them to get on their marks and to drop back when they aren't running fast enough. The poor keeper has to listen to me yell because I stand right next to him. If the team would only listen to me, they'd realize that I'm not full of hot air. I kind of know what you have to do in the game. Hehehe. The goalie agrees with what I have to say, so at least I know I'm not just a ranting fan.

Then we went out to BJ's to stock up of food. While we were out in that area we went to the India Bazaar. We got a whole bunch of spices for less than you'd get in a small bottle of McCormick's. They are huge bags! We also got some microwavable Indian food that was absolutely amazing. We're probably putting our Indian friends to shame by loving this stuff, but it is sooooo good. Cheap, easy, and good. Can't beat that.



Josie the Celery dog.


Also, Edward's Uncle Walter is declining in health. He is currently in hospice so at least he is comfortable. We expect to go down to Georgia in the next few weeks. It is difficult to talk/write about, but please think good thoughts for Edward's family.
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My brain feels like it is going to explode. This is my current away message:
I need a drink. The beginning of my story was originally only 11 pages and now after cutting the parts that were too backstory-ish I only have seven. The preface is totally gone. Goodbye, good night, you're gone. Four pages of writing down the drain. The worst part is that I wrote a lot to fill in the blanks and it's still so short. My brain is about to burst. creativity can only work for so many hours in a given day. Apparently 3.5 is my max.

I didn't even get through the whole manuscript! Writing a hundred good pages is looking very bleak at the moment. I know I can pop out a hundred pages, but I want/need good pages. I'm very frustrated at the moment.

Cake Decorting

I'm getting better at this cake decorating stuff. I might just need to take it up as a hobby. It's not so bad when I'm not try to make a 3D cake that refuses to be 3D.




This cake is for a co-worker's party that Ed and I are going to tonight.

Peppers!

Look! Today after my walk with the little doggy I noticed some red peppers! I'm very excited to use them. There are a lot more green ones on the plants, but I want to wait for them to turn red. The Jalapenos are looking good too!





P.S. You should congratulate us. Emmy an I ran all the way up the stairs on the Approach. The hill between the actual Approach and stairs at RPI was a little too steep to run all the way up.

Shepherd's Pie Night

All week I was waiting for Shepherd's Pie night. I got this recipe from the Kraft Food's Family & Food Magazine a while back and we loved it. Since a lot of the MBA kids expressed an interest in the delectable dish, I made a huge batch. I think I gained an extra bicep trying to stir 11 lbs of meat in my dutch oven. I like to make my own mashed potatoes, so I did them a few hours before I made the meat mixture. It is so simple and tasty that I'll probably do it again soon...but just for Edward and myself.






Our friend Nadeem and Edward


After we all ate, we went out to play some soccer in the parking lot across the street. It was pretty fun and I got really into it. Nadeem was helping me work on my head balls and now my forehead feels bruised! No headers in games for me.


A little added bonus.
The 2008 fire fighter of the year

Hiding from the Roomba

When your dog sheds fur like it's an Olympic sport, you need a Roomba. I think most people know that I like to have a nice clean house, but don't like to vacuum or dust. (There isn't a dusting robot yet, but I'm getting better at dusting the family room. Hey at least it's a step up from not dusting at all.) This past Christmas my parents got me a Roomba, which I was ecstatic about. The only problem is that our darling little dog-ter (get it, like daughter?) doesn't like it very much so she hides. Of course she found the comfiest place among the folded laundry to sit and blend in while the robot was doing it's thing. I almost missed her sitting there when I walked by!




The Culprit and her hiding place.




Yawn, that robot can't get me from up here.





It's not my fault I have so much fur. It get's cold here. If you grew some fur then maybe you wouldn't be so cold during the winter, Mommy.

Today will be a good day

Despite the fact that I had to wake up at 7 30 to do some reading before work, today will be a wonderful day. I was able to talk to Juni via webcam and the program called Skype. You don't need to have a webcam to talk, but you do need a microphone. Most laptops come with them built in now-a-days. There is also a chat function, but that's not really that cool since there are so many messenger programs out there. Anyways, it was almost like we were talking to each other from different rooms. It reminded me of that Oreo commercial where the dad and boy are eating Oreos together and a the end you find out that the dad is on a business trip. We were saying goodnight and good morning to one another upon parting. Hopefully we can Skype more, but it'll be hard since I don't wake up at 7am normally. Nevertheless, it was a great start to a very long day.

Change in Menu plans

I decided to have a Shepherd's Pie night for the MBA kids, so that will be taking place on Friday. Instead of having the pork on Thursday, we will be having the BBQ Beef Sandwiches then and the Pie Party on Friday. Since the pork is still frozen, this change shouldn't be a problem.

This probably isn't the most traditional Shepherd's Pie recipe, but it sure is delicious.

Two recipes

These are the two that Julie requested (Monday and Wednesday). If you want any of the other days I can email and post them for you guys too.

Compliments of Betty Crocker's Slow Cooker Cookbook

Monday

Beef and Potatoes with Rosemary
8 Servings

1 lb medium red potatoes, cut into fourths
1 C baby-cut carrots
3 lb beef boneless chuck roast
2 T Dijon mustard
2 T chopped fresh or 1 1/2 t dried rosemary leaves, crumbled
1 t chopped fresh or 1/2 t dried thyme leaves
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 small onion, finely chopped (1/4 C)
1 1/2 C beef broth

Directions:

1.Arrange potatoes and carrots in 3 1/2 to 6 quart slow cooker.
2. Trim excess fat from beef. Mix mustard, rosemary, thyme, salt and paper; spread evenly over beef. Place beef in slow cooker. Sprinkle onion over beef. Pour broth evenly over beef and vegetables.
3. Cover and cook on low heat setting to 8- 10 hours or until beef and vegetables are tender.
4. Remove beef and vegetables from cooker, using slotted spoon; place on serving platter. Skim fat from beef juices in cooker if desired. Serve with beef juices.

Wednesday

Hungarian Goulash
8 servings

2 T vegetable oil
2 lb beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 large onion, sliced
1 can (14 1/2 oz) ready-to-serve beef broth
1 can (6oz) tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T paprika
1 t salt
1/4 t caraway seed, if desired
1/4 t pepper
1/4 cold water
3 T all-purpose flour
1 medium bell pepper, cut into strips
8 C hot cooked noodles, for serving

Directions

1. Heat oil in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Cook beef in oil about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown; drain. Place beef and onion 3 1/2 to 6 quart slow cooker.
2. Mix broth, tomato paste, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, salt, caraway seed and pepper; stir into beef mixture.
3. Cover and cook on low heat setting 8-10 hours until beef is tender.
4. Mix water and flour; gradually stir into beef mixture. Stir in bell pepper. Cover and cook on high heat setting 30 minutes.
5. Serve goulash over noodles.

Works Cited
Betty Crocker's: Slow Cooker Cook Book. General Mills, Inc. 1999. 56, 68.

Cooking together

Julie and I are going to try something new. We're going to cook the same thing on the same night so that it's like we're eating together. If anyone wants to do this with us please let me know. Since Ed and I eat pretty late it will be around dinner time for all of you. Maybe we can even Skype and use the video cam on my comp so that you all can see us chowing down. I'll make sure to show you my food. Heheh.

I'll post what recipe we will be doing when we collaborate a little more. The recipes that I plan to do for my menu this week are mostly crock pot recipes, but I think that they can all be adapted for a regular pot if you have the time.

Sept 15-21 Menu

Beef & Potatoes with Rosemary -- Monday
Cook-su --Tuesday (Grandma Levie's recipe)
Hungarian Goulash --Wednesday
Pork Roast with Sherry-Plum sauce --Thursday
BBQ Beef sandwiches-- Friday

No time!

Okay, so I know that I haven't been on that much to blog. I'm just so swamped with school! I have to have at least the first chapter of my advanced project (AP) emailed to my adviser and peers by Saturday and I have about two pages written. I think there are seven pages in total with the preface, but that's not a whole lot considering I had all summer. To my defense, I was reading the giant list of books that I was assigned...though there was quite a bit of vegging on the sofa in front of the Food Network. Hey, it was the summer.

For now I'm just trying to stay on top of all the reading and writing I have to do. I have a full short story to turn in next Thursday that I'm not looking forward to. I just finished (like 10 minutes ago) a two paged annotation on a story that I've read every semester since I started at St. Rose. I started writing on this story called Girl by Jamaica Kincaid, but I only had about two paragraphs of BS to say about it. It's not really a story in form, but I guess experimental stuff makes it into anthologies these days. The annotation would have been longer than the actual "story".

Anyways, I have a few plays and another two paged paper due on Monday as well as job training and trying to have a social life. I've already had to turn down a few invites for tonight and this weekend. For shame...school shouldn't interfere with socializing this much.

So to show you what my calendar looks like for the next few days I'll put it down for you:

1. Finish writing part 1 of AP manuscript
2. Write full short story manuscript
3. Edit both manuscripts so I don't look like a 5th grader trying to write stories
4. Job training Friday, 10am-5pm
5. Read The Three Sisters by Chekhov
6. Read Heartbreak House by Shaw
7. Read Direction and Acting by Stanislavski
8. Write competent paper on one of the formerly mentioned
9. Take Emmy to the vet to check out her eye (she got something in it and it won't come out)
10. Read and critique two classmate's manuscripts
11. Read two short stories from the fiction anthology
12. Write two paged annotation for one of the stories
13. Make weekly menu
14. Grocery shop
15. Go to Target (This is the stress relief)
16. Remind myself that this is only the third week of the semester

I've also been playing indoor soccer on Wednesdays. It's freaking awesome. Last night I got totally pumped up because the Disturbed song Stricken came on. I beat a girl who is about Edward's height to the ball and I started way behind her. I don't have any ball handling skills, but my teammates were like:

Them: "You really took off."
Me: "Yeah a good song came on and I got really into it."
Them: "That's what it takes you to move?"
Me: Shrug

Wouldn't that song get you pumped up and aggressive too? I'd like to increase my soccer playing time since I only get to go once a week, but I think I'm going to look for some Ultimate Frisbee or adult gymnastics. The only problem is that this all takes precious moola that I don't have. However, it is well worth it if I can keep my sanity and get in shape without feeling like I'm working out.

Princess Emmy

Introducing Princess Emmy, Princess of 13th St.

I'm an Auntie!

Yesterday Melanie went into labor while I was at the CS BBQ. At 10:53PM PST on September 7, 2008 Talan Austin Montgomery was born. He weighs 7lbs and 12oz. I'm so happy!



This picture is from Shanna's phone.

Cupcakes and Dutch Oven christening

Julie got me these cool Pampered Chef frosting mechanisms. Even though I said that I was done with decorating cakes, I really wanted to try these. I made spice cake with vanilla pudding (an experiment that turned out well) and used store bought frosting with some food coloring. We had some people come over and they seemed to be impressed. Thanks Julie!






I also used my new dutch oven to make my favorite chili. We took it to the CS BBQ today and it was all gone by the time we got home. Success!

Correction post

Okay, before you all think that I'm manic depressive or anything, I want you to know that it's not that bad. I'm not looking to throw myself off the highest building in Troy or going to gas myself in the bathroom. It was brought to my attention that I was being a lot more negative than my old self. Since this is bringing down others around me, I want to change my spoil sport attitude and concentrate on the good things in life. So before you think that I'm going off the deep end, I'm not. I just need to remember what the good things about Troy are.

Also, the interview yesterday turned out well. I got a job at a startup company called Celery. I'll be a customer service rep so that I can telecommute, which work perfectly with my holiday trips home. Everything is looking up already!

My new pot!

Edward's gift for me finally came. Check it out. It's BEAUTIFUL! And yes...it is a pot, more specifically a dutch oven (obviously not the fart under the sheet kind). I finally wised up and asked for what I wanted this year instead of just letting him get whatever he wanted for me. In the past this has resulted in an MP3 player, GPS, and external harddrive. Although these were very nice gifts, I'd much rather have a really nice pot. I'm sooooo excited. This year it's a dutch oven for me! I want to go hunt down a duck and cook it.

Thinking positive

Last night Ed and I had a nice long talk about staying here for his MBA (an extra year after I finish). At first I was very upset and wrote an overly dramatic "I hate the world" piece, which I won't post because of the foul language, but it ultimately helped calm me down. Ed pointed out that I've been so negative lately that he worries that if we move home and we give up everything (school and job opportunities) here that I will still be unhappy with my situation at home. Let's face it, finding a job in CA, especially SF, will be even harder than here. As much as I like my mom's cooking and my twin sized bed, I can't live under my parent's roof for the rest of my life. Getting experience out here would be much more beneficial for when I hit the Bay Area job market. Plus, the cons of moving home are just as bad, if not worse, than if I stayed out here with him to get his MBA (that is if he can get the funding). While reflecting through my writing, I realized that I don't just want a ring on my finger, I also want to go home. One is not good enough anymore. Even if we got married and then had to come back out here for school, I know that I wouldn't be any happier. I want to be happy with my marriage and not use as a piece of tape to keep me on the East Coast (besides, it'd be scotch tape, not duck). If Ed and I can make it through these ultimately insignificant four years of our life, then maybe we are meant for each other. I'm sure that we can make it through four winters in Troy and then be happy together for the next fifty years. All in all, I've realized that marriage won't solve the problem. I'm the only one who can do anything for myself at this point. And while I really want to move home and get married, I don't want to live my life with Ed and know that he's bitter that I held him back from getting a free MBA. If I move home in May then he will come too, which means that he won't get his masters in business administration or an MBA. Although I don't like the fact that he was putting a dollar value to himself in terms of the future job market, it does make sense. It would benefit us in the future. I had said that I want to go back in May and start a family. Of course he pointed out that neither of us are financially ready to start a family.

Be that as it may, I still know that I want to be home. As he is much better at looking at the future and focusing on it, I am trying to follow his lead by being more positive. I have noticed that I know that the future is the best thing to focus on, but I have difficulty doing that. So my only option is to focus on the positive things about living in Troy. We've come to the conclusion that I've been borderline depressed and that an attitude adjustment will do me good. We've discussed this many times, but now that there really is a possibility that we'll have to stay longer I think it's best for both of us if I rethink my outlook on life. I don't want to take any medication/go to the doctor for it because I don't think I'm that bad so I'm going to try to actually do something about it. I woke up to a bright and sunny day today so I'm feeling very hopeful. I emailed a friend about going to play soccer with her and I have an interview this afternoon. Things are looking good.

With that said, I'm trying to turn over a new leaf and would be very appreciative if you all, family and friends, would help keep my outlook on life on the up and up. Yell at me if you see any negative posts or chat conversations! Ed and I are in this for the long haul.