A Little Dirt Never Hurt

Garden plants at hand. Check. Tiller. Check. Greenish thumb. check.

Lemon Boy, German Queen, Mr. Stripey, and Yellow Pear

I love the names. hehe Good ol' reliable Celebrity tomatoes? Nah... Only oddly shaped,

colored, and sized tomatoes for this casa. We like to shake things up. I need to get an early variety, but I figured I'd better get the garden tilled first. I'm getting ambitious this year and expanding my garden to add a few more square feet of space. Every tomato variety I chose is indeterminate (doh!), meaning they grow all crazy and sprawling rather than a nice upright, compact, determinant plant. We'll definitely need the extra space. I'm looking for some good tomato cages. :) The little circle ones just won't cut it.

Hopefully, the ground will dry up enough tomorrow for me to get out and get my hands dirty. I feel like I'm behind already. (My parents have had onions in the ground since January!) Of course I will be cussing blisters on my hands during the process, but nothing beats home grown produce.

Now if I can just get someone to build me a chicken coop.

Elephants & Apples

While I was ignoring my iPhone last night and lamenting my inability to make notes in the library book, I forgot about this handy app/site called EverNote that allows you to take notes, photos, and voice recordings on your phone and sync them with your computer. Duh! I'd heard about EverNote in our English Dept. technology training a few weeks ago and haven't had any use for it in my own classroom yet, but this sure will be handy for my own personal use.

Speaking of syncing computers... I have my eye on a MacBook Pro. I like to go to the Apple Store and stare at the 17" one. My old Dell laptop has seen better days and I am slowly becoming a Mac gal. We use them at work and I like them for my purposes. Plus, I rather enjoy being more tech savvy about something than Joe for once. Is it bad I secretly enjoy watching him struggle navigating my mom's iMac, calling it bad names, and then swooping in to rescue him? hehe Joe is a quick learner though...so I know my Mac prowess will be short lived ...and he'll be back to being techie supreme in no time. The only thing standing between me and my dream computer is this blasted austerity program (which is still going well btw). Priorities...priorities.... sigh. I mean, technically, I don't need a new computer...we have a desktop and two laptops for cryin' outloud. Tempted by an Apple. ugh.

Somebody Call an Exorcist

Well, after dinner last night Joe sat down to watch stupid "24" episodes (he's on a kick) and being completely uninterested, I decided to curl up in the guest room where the light is good with Pheebs, and put a dent in my reading assignment.

It was a little difficult to transition from Harper Lee's style (we're reading To Kill a Mockingbird in class) to McCarthy's style, which is concise and lacks punctuation in dialogue. However, once I got over the bleakness of the landscape and into the characters, I couldn't put the stupid book down. I was possessed by some unseen force to read to an ungodly hour of the morning (for a work night).

I only stopped twice the whole night for a restroom break and to tell Joe goodnight. I stayed up and read the whole danged book...save 20 or so pages. Even my iPhone, close at hand wasn't able to distract me, rather I used it as a tool to look up possible mythological and biblical allusions. See, I'm not well versed in either, so unless they are super obvious, I have to do a little research if I suspect something. I should probably do a better job educating myself on both so I don't miss anything.

Anywhosies, one thing that irked me about my pristine library book was that I couldn't make notes in it as I read. I'm going to have to make a trip to Half Price Books soon so I can do this with the remaining books. And, as if my zeal couldn't possibly get any more annoying...I searched for discussion questions today on my conference (after finishing the last 20 pages when my students were reading silently) and found some good ones on Oprah's Book Club site. Still, I'm not quite sure how I feel about the book and I think I'm going to need to let it stew before I make any judgements.

Joe has a copy of the movie version of"The Road." Honestly, I am not as enthusiastic about watching it as reading the book. It was pretty dreary. Maybe I'll watch it this summer to refresh my memory when the class is in session.

One down, two to go! I'd better save some reading for TAKS week.

"The power of Christ compels you to put down the book and go to sleep, my child."

Nerd Alert!

It is official. You're looking at a reformed grad school drop out. I registered for the summer and fall semesters today and I am chomping at the bit to get started....so much so, I checked out three of the required books from our school/city library for a Lit. class. (Actually, because I was so eager and couldn't get away from my classroom, I sent a student aide down to the library to check them out for me. haha)

I plan to get a head start on my reading. There's something liberating about reading on one's own volition rather than being hounded by deadlines. I am usually a procrastinator, so I always set myself up for cram sessions. Guess I probably could've just checked out one book, but I wanted to have them.

This particular class is on "survival literature." There's a nice mix of fiction and non-fiction. I think I'll start with The Road by Cormac McCarthy....I liked "No Country for Old Men" the movie, so maybe this book will be just as good. Plus, I don't know if you can tell from the photo, but this book is brand spankin' new. Not a single bent corner or worn page. Even reflects the post-its on my computer. It is just begging to be read.

Oh, and do you like my new layout? I'm still toying with the background and trying to figure out how I can stretch the banner to the full size rather than using the constraints of Blogger's photo-instead-o-text option. Oh well, it works for now. Enjoy!

Spring Break: Parte Dos

This week flew by!

Our swanky new Grind n Brew came in though and I love it. Except for one thing. You know how when you get a new car and it has a new car smell? Well that's great for cars, but not for coffee makers. After following the instructions of running water through the system to clear out "factory dust," we brewed our first pot yesterday morning. It tasted like it was brewed with a tire. Yes, completely offensive. Blech! Now we're trying vinegar and water to rid the coffee maker of the source of the nasty burnt rubber taste and smell. I hope we can get it out, otherwise it's going back.

Joe was super productive while I was gone last night and attached the hanging hardware to some of Wonderland prints and picked this spot to hang them. Nice!

Where was I last night? At the best concert evah! My friend, Cindy, and a couple of her friends grabbed a bite at Twisted Root Burger (where I had a salad... haha) and then headed over to the AAC for the Black Eyed Peas concert...with Ludacris opening. Yeah, it was awesome. It was a great show...and much more interactive than Britney and just as entertaining.

I was feeling super sassy with my new outfit (bought with a gift card Joe received from NBC, thankyouverymuch!) and my uber-glam make up (courtesy of the nicest MAC makeup artist in the world). And you can see neither in this photo. lol

Me and Cindy waiting for the concert to kick off.

After the concert we headed over to the Lizard Lounge ...wait wait ...before you judge...I only went there because Will.i.am. from the BEP was going to dj. Now, I have not been there since 2001 and I must say that the place hasn't changed a bit. Really, nothing good came of this trip to said Lizard Lounge...well other than making me feel very very glad to be married. It was like a scene from Jersey Shore..with house music and fist pumping...well, minus the steroids and poufs. I was innocently bopping around to the beat trying to pass the time and shift some weight off of my feet, (which were killing me...danged fabulous heels!) and someone whose face I never even saw started dancing all up on me. Now, I wasn't even dancing...because techno isn't my thing. I was literally just slightly bending my knees to the rhythm. Ugh..and then I have to shake off some dude like a dog humping my leg. I felt so violated. Didn't even ask me if I wanted to dance...just came up behind me and started grinding his pelvis on my rear! Really, guy? That's what you're going with? Ugh. I hate that. To make matters worse..after having rationalized paying a stupid cover charge thinking that Will.i.am was going to play some fun mixes like he did at the concert, he played more techno when he finally arrived. But other than that, the evening was perfect! lol

I am now officially counting down the weeks and days till summer break...and dreaming of the warm weather that we were fortunate to have over the last week...until it started snowing today...what the heck? "Global Warming" truly is a misnomer... I think Tom Friedman's term, "Global Weirding," is much more accurate to describe this winter.

Spring Break Part 1

We're off to a great start! Yesterday Joe and I went to Cafe Brazil in Deep Ellum for brunch (breakfast rellenos & sweet potato hash...yum!!) and then headed over to the Dallas Farmer's Market to stock up on fresh produce. This has become a Sunday ritual that I thoroughly enjoy..and I am pretty sure Joe does too. It was a gorgeous spring afternoon with the flowering trees in full bloom and the market buzzing with people.

I have to give a shout out to Savoy Sorbet, a local vendor. Linn, the proprietor, wouldn't let us pass her booth without trying her sorbet. We tried the Mojito flavor, and as a mojito aficionado, I was super skeptical about how good it would be. Oh.my.gosh. It was soooo good. Just like the best real, fresh, no-artificial-flavor-minty-limey-mojito I've ever had...minus the rum. I got a little 4 oz cup to enjoy while strolling through the Market. Very refreshing!

I discovered that Central Market sells Savoy Sorbet. It will have to tide me over until Cuba Libre reopens (if they ever do). Though La Duni on McKinney St. has excellent mojitos, too, they are $10 a piece...ouch! Sorbet it is!

All that mojito sensory experience really made me nostalgic for Key West. sigh.

Today my organizing fiend of a co-worker, Heather, inspired me to do a little organizing. She's in the midst of a 30(ish) Day Organizing Challenge and is kicking arse. I opened my pantry today after shopping and decided that I needed to do a little rearranging and culling myself. I threw away all of the really unhealthy stuff (Honey Combs Cereal? Really, Joe? I mean, how old are we? LOL). Yeah, so he's probably going to be pissed when he gets over the shock of my organizational whim and discovers that I tossed his crap-tastic cereal.

PANTRY BEFORE :(

PANTRY AFTER :)

Maybe I'll get ambitious and take on another organizing challenge. There's an under cabinet disaster area needing major attention. It's under the junk drawer...and it's like the junk drawer overflowed to the cabinet below it. Company coming and need to clear random clutter off of the counter? Mmmhmm... it ends up there. I think I'll have to get some baskets to contain the random stuff. Sounds like I need to make another Hobby Lobby run.

I ♥ Hobby Lobby & Etsy!

Earlier this week I happened upon these fabulous/slightly creepy prints on Etsy. I fell in love with the Alice in Wonderland ones and had to have some. The seller had a package deal that I couldn't pass up. Today, after dropping Phoebe off (tear), I swung by Hobby Lobby hoping that their frames were 50% off this week. They were!!! I picked up three 11x14 gallery frames for $5 each! I'm going to have to go back and get some more tomorrow because I am pleased with how nice they look. I haven't decided where all I am going to hang these yet, but I lurve them! I am even scheming to try to blow one of them up on the poster maker at school so I can have some relevant literary art on my classroom wall. There's an Edgar Allan Poe print by the same seller that I have my eye on too.
I will have to post pics when I hang them. One of the drawbacks of my bargain frames is an absence of hanging materials. :\

Noticias

I am finally going back to finish my Masters Degree. I found a program at TCU that will allow me to take online classes or traditional classes. I could be finished as soon as August '11. I am so so excited and can't wait until registration opens. Don't think for one second that I don't still bleed burnt orange...but I must get some purple to incorpoate into my wardrobe. :) And how stinkin' cute is that horny toad, ahem..horned frog, in the TCU logo?!

In baby news...
My dog is going to be a momma. You see, when I bought Pheebs from the show kennel, her purchase came with a breeding contract. Apparently she is such a fine yorkie specimen that the breeder wanted to continue her bloodline (she gets pick of the litter).

Phoebe's "come hither" pose...or is it a "bugger off" look? lol

Well, the logistics of arranging the rendezvous have been worked out. Pheebs will stay with the breeder this weekend, get knocked up by a stapping young stud by the name of "Harley," and will come back home with me until she is a couple of weeks from her due date (50 days or so). Since I will be in school and unable to care for newborn puppies, Pheebs will be staying with the breeder until the puppies are a few days old.

Here's Phoebe's baby-daddy, Harley. teehee Isn't he cute?

It's Spring Break! Woowhoo! I am not traveling this year. :( I wish I could hop on a plane to Japan or North Carolina to visit family members, but plane tickets are not cheap to either of those places, and Joe's airline miles expired in January. As you could imagine, making 6 roundtrips to and from the Middle East racks up the miles. Boo! Too bad we never had the sense of urgency to use them! (or find out if they expired!)

So I am staying in D-town and will be attending the Black Eyed Peas concert with a friend. Ludacris is opening. Holla! Other than that, Joe is on Spring Break too, so I will get to spend the evenings with him and spend my days as a domestic engineer...maybe do a little painting.

"World Famous Potato Soup"

We spent some time at my parents' house this weekend. My mom was having a vertigo attack yesterday morning and asked if I would mind making some potato soup. So I went to work searching for a good recipe online. Most recipes called for cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup, but my mom didn't want anything pre-made...or anything too rich. A challenge!

I ended up using this recipe from YouTube with a few tweaks. It seemed to have the least processed ingredients and was pretty quick and easy. I used 1 cup half and half and 1 cup cream rather than 2 cups of cream. I also withheld stirring in the Gouda and let everyone put as much or as little as they wanted. Oh, and I crisped up some bacon to crumble into the soup before serving. We had it for lunch and again for dinner. My dad liked it so much he asked me to make my "World Famous" soup again today. More like "YouTube Soup." I don't care...it's GOOOD!