Day 85-88: March goes out with some green

I noticed most of the photos for this post are green--my favorite color! I swear, this was unintentional :).

Day 85:

I am pretty adventurous when it comes to food these days. *Thud* Did anyone else hear my mom faint? I put her through some troubles when I was little, as I was a very picky eater. These days, I try to reward myself by buying something new at the grocery store every once in a while to curb my creativity and eagerness to try new things.

This past week, I bought these green tea tapioca balls (no, no...not THAT kind of tapioca. I'm not brave enough to try that again quite yet). They're very easy to prepare, just boil in water for about 5 minutes, drain and serve plain or with a bit of honey, the latter of which I preferred. I think these are very similar to the "bubbles" found in boba (bubble tea) served at some Thai and other Asian restaurants. The verdict--actually pretty good! I don't think I would buy them again, simply because they're not all that economical, but they were a fun treat!

Here they are straight out of the package:

And after they're cooked:

I love their coloring!

Day 86:

Grocery shoppin' day. Tony and I picked up a refrigerated pepperoni pizza at the Commissary, and dressed it up with some black olives and mushrooms--so delicious!

Look at his thumb. It's so manly :).

Day 87:

Saturday, while I was at work, Tony did all of the laundry! YAY! I helped him fold it whenever I got home, but I was relieved that I didn't have to lug it down to the laundry facility and back!

Day 88:

Brussels sprouts, I love you.

Side Note: Puppies

So, I go into work early on a regular basis, which limits my human contact. Normally, while my experiments are running, I'm either planning the next experiment, reading a paper, thinking about how overwhelmed I am, or, if I'm really lucky and I feel super productive--I get to talk to my office mates or I surf the web.

Today is Saturday, and I went in to work at 7 AM. I do this not because I like the pain and isolation, but rather, so I can leave guilt free in the late morning early afternoon, and spend the rest of the day with Tony. Since it's Saturday, 9:45 AM, my gel is running and I don't feel like reading another paper about the unfolded protein response in cells, and the first other human (aside from the security guards) I've seen in lab today just rolled in, I'm going to show you a photo.

This is not a photo I took, but it is a photo I edited slightly to look awesome :). Tony's mom and dad are in the market for a second puppy (they just got a new Schipperke puppy a few months ago, and they decided they wanted another little furry guy running around the house). They are using the same breeder they used before, and Tony's dad sent us a few photos of potential pups they might want to own. Here's a photo of a little guy who they probably won't choose, because he may grow to be nearly double the size of the other new puppy (18 lbs versus 10 lbs is just not a fair fight...). He's a chubster, and he's adorable.

I mean, look at those cheeks! That stare! That little button nose! Too bad he's a big boned fella, otherwise I would totally suggest to Tony's family that they NEED this puppy. I'm sure it's just the angle of the photo, and the moment the photograph was taken, but seriously, how could anything look cuter?

Here's a photo of Shadow, the new puppy Tony's parents already own:

He's a mischievous puppy, and he likes to bother their older dog, Rob, A LOT.

I bet deep down, Rob likes the company, though. Rob doesn't express his emotions very well to people other than my father-in-law, whom he absolutely adores. I wonder what the next puppy will bring to the family in terms of personality?

Off to the world of science...

Day 82-84: The Light at the End of the Tunnel

So, those of you who know my current schedule will be pleased to know...*drumroll*...Tony's new job is 8 AM-5 PM. YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY! No more even looking at my clock at 3:47 AM***, let alone shutting off the most annoying alarm in the history of waking up.

***I realized this morning that I put the wrong time earlier. I guess even I am in denial about how early I wake up. Yuck.***

Sorry. Just had to get that off my chest. Hopefully, I will soon be "normal," or as normal as someone like me can be. Awesome. On to the photos, or more appropriately, what I've realized has become a documentation of my life. Enjoy, y'all.

Day 82:

Group meeting. On a Monday. Ugh. I was really thankful when I got home to find dinner made, and a special treat waiting for me in the refrigerator: Berry Lemonade Jones' Soda. It's expensive, and it's arguably not good for you (too much sugar), but after a long day and a long group meeting I was thankful for its caloric deliciousness. Thank goodness it's so expensive, otherwise I would undoubtedly already have Jones' soda love handles.

Day 83:

Ok, so I actually took this photo today...I know...cheater. The reason I took this photo today was because I accidentally fell asleep on the couch at 5:30 PM (Tony did too), and, for all intensive purposes didn't wake up until the following morning. Allow me to quote the Green Mile: "I is tired, Boss. Dog tired."

One more week of the unholy early rising. One more week.

Day 84:

I don't know if y'all have heard of this book, but I found it to be outstanding back in the days I was dating Tony. I am re-reading it again now from a much different perspective, and armed with a much better knowledge about my life partner. I never thought I would hear myself say "Hmm. Yeah, that sounds about right..." to so many points in this book. Moreover, I appreciate its biblical perspective about marriage and the interesting relationship between women and men. I definitely would recommend this to daters, and newlyweds, along with veterans (like my mom and Dad, who I believe are going on close to 40 years of marriage this year), who will probably find its contents equally interesting.

Day 77-81: This is a Marathon.

Day 77:

By request from my friend, Poppet, I'm going to update you on the vanilla extract project. Basically, the alcohol is starting to obtain a darker color, though definitely not as dark as a store bought extract yet. We'll have to wait a few more weeks :).

Day 78:

The 'maters are growing. Soon we'll have to transplant them into a larger planter so they can really start to take off. I can't wait to have fresh tomatoes to cook with!

Day 79:

The Girl Scouts. Are. Everywhere. My hips are not thanking them, but my taste buds...well that's another story. I honkin' LOVE samoas. Not to be a tease, but I did find a few recipes on the internet for homemade samoas (om nom nom), and I'm definitely going to try to make them. I don't mind supporting the Girl Scouts, but at $4 a box those little princesses are becoming price gouging hags. Seriously.

Day 80:

I took Saturday off, without any regrets. Tony and I went to a flea market down by the area near Sherman St. (one of the offices Tony works at when he's not on Coronado). There was some guy in a sombrero selling his art (i.e. fingerpaintin'), and I thought it was really lovely. It'll go with the only other real piece of art I own, a-la-Brittni. For whatever reason, trees are very symbolic to me. I must have been influenced early on by Disney's version of Pocahontas. Hah.

Day 81:

I semi-successfully warded of a migraine today--the second one in two weeks--by loading up on prescription strength Motrin. Num. I made some lavender honey bunches, which use dried lavender flowers, which, you guessed it, smell like lavender. The honey bunches taste okay, but it's a little hard to get over the whole "hmm..smells like soap" thing. Tony's napping, and I'm going to see what he thinks before I share the love on the cooking blog. I'm pretty sure these bad boys would taste pretty excellent without the lavender, so the recipe may show up even if I get the "Yuck, tastes like soap!" reaction.

 

Day 73-76

This weekend Tony surprised me by going on not one, but TWO mini-trips to try and get me feeling better. I'm a really lucky lady to have him around.

Monday and Tuesday were not good days in the happiness department, and I, therefore, don't have any really interesting photos to post. We'll pretend that day 75 and 76 didn't happen, and I'll just put up a bunch of photos from the weekend. You'll forgive me, right?

Day 73:

Tony and I went on a little hike on one of the trails in the Lake Poway area by our apartment. The flowers were bloomin', the birds were singing (quacking/honking), and it was a really pleasant afternoon after a busy morning at work.

This is one of my favorite photos, and I can't really find a reason. It's not edited, which means it was actually a good photo to begin with! Success is welcomed with open arms in any area of my life right now. Sometimes, I congratulate myself for getting out of bed.

Look at this twisty beast. Nature is amazing.

There were fields of flowers covering the mountain sides. The whole countryside was purple, yellow, green and red. 

This photo was taken by the lake, this little fella was about 30 miles from the ocean. I guess he didn't mind since there were about 5o million kids wanting to feed him stale bread..

Honker.

Tony: "That rite thurs a Spinekorn." 

Just trying to keep you entertained...Spinekorn catcher.

Day 74: Point Loma

Thank goodness for the calming of the ocean. Here are a few pictures from the Cabrillo National Monument in Point Loma. 

The ocean was calm.

Though there were a few waves, and a few surfers.

 

Flowers bloomed even by the ocean! 

All in all, it was a really lovely, migraine free weekend :). Hurray! (Remember day 75 and 76 don't exist for all intensive purposes. It's much more productive and healthy to dwell on the good rather than the bad.)

Day 71 and 72: Thank Goodness the Weekend's Here!

Day 71:

I wanted to make dinner, dang it, since we had been living of leftovers and quesadillas for the past few days. I made a hearty lentil and barley stew, which I'll post on the cooking blog eventually. It was really good--and healthy too! Normally, for Tony those combinations don't occur frequently...:).

This is the pearl barley I used in the soup. I'm trying to be artistic, and I'm failing :(. 

Suggestions?

Day 72:

I went to water the plants today and I saw something AMAZING.

Do you see it?

Maybe now:

THE SEEDS ARE SPROUTING! This means that my black thumb is doing better than it did last year, after I killed our love bonzai, along with about 10 kinds of vegetables and flowers in San Antonio. Now I'm all about the watering. These babies get dry out here quick, so I try to remember to water them at least every other day. I'm on my way to having some home grown tomatoes and basil!

Day 68-70: Recovery

I feel like graduate school is effectively killing me. It's sapping me of my spirit, changing my personality into a bitter, jaded individual, and it's physically causing me troubles (i.e. migraines). Why? BECAUSE I LET IT!

I'm choosing to allow graduate school (the stress and people involved therein) to get the best of me. I've been working very hard on myself the past few weeks. I've tried to make positive changes, like going to bed earlier, exercising more regularly/vigorously, eating normally, focusing my eyes on God, participating in church, but something still has to give. I can't figure out what's wrong, but I'll let y'all know when I do.

For now, I'll just try not to be a whiny baby. I hate it when I'm a whiny baby.

Day 68:

I had a headache Sunday afternoon and into Monday. We don't have curtains in our apartment (I know, you might as well pass wife of the year award right on down to me...), and Monday afternoon my head was exploding. Tony, being resourceful and wonderful, put this blanket up to help me feel better. It blocks out a lot of the light (unfortunately, not the noise), and helped me relax. He's so great.

Day 69:

This is the work horse. Tony and I built this computer together in the fall (okay, he built it, I just thought I was building it), and we use it on a daily basis. It has all of my photo editing software on it, and a huge processor and lots of memory space so I can edit my photos quickly and efficiently. Plus, it lights up blue and has about 18 fans to cool it off, including a heat sink that's shaped like a butterfly. Guess who picked that part out?

Day 70:

I was too exhausted/blue to cook dinner tonight, so Tony made leftovers for himself, and a quesadilla (or, as he likes to call it a 'diller) for me. See? I told you he's really great :).

Day 65-67: Thankful, yet still a stressball.

So the day 65 and 66 posts do not have a picture. Why? Because I'm a dummy and forgot to put my memory card in my camera. I didn't realize my memory card wasn't in my camera until we made it to Borrego Springs, CA, which is about 1.5 hours away from our apartment. YAAAAAY. Let me tell you what, I had a mild nervous breakdown in the desert, followed by a painful headache all because of a dumb memory card. I bawled out in the middle of nowhere, in a town that had fewer stores than RV camping locations. Poor Tony. He did his best to ask around to perhaps buy a cheap card, but the best we could do was a $5 dollar disposable camera from the Middle-of-Nowhere-Mart. Dang, y'all. I need to calm down.

Nevertheless, I wrote descriptions of the pictures that I took--yet never saved to my memory card. The missing picture for day 65 is probably the most painful out of the whole bunch.

Day 65:

It's official---Tony got a new (much better) job! In this downward spiraling economy, we were really losing hope that Tony would not be able to move away from his current position to something better and more challenging. But, right as we hit the breaking point (on so, so many levels), God intervened, and Tony was offered not one but TWO jobs on the same day. I don't know if they'll have different hours than right now (though, I've been selfishly praying that they do---I feel like if I have to wake up at 3:50 A.M. for the entirety of my graduate career, I'll be knocking years off of my life), but the position is much more prestigious, and it will challenge Tony.

Friday he was so happy, and it did my heart so good to see him that way. He was chatty--talking about everything: cars (his fave topic), music, his new position, his old position, stories about basic training, why he wants to go back into the military as an officer, among other things. Normally, he's a pretty quiet fellow, and I'm the one talking. I probably won't ever forget that day, even though I don't have a picture of his smiling face to show for it.

Day 66:

Saturday = science in the morning, God in the afternoon.

I did take a photo of Poway lit up at night from the road of a neighboring mountain (Poway is in a valley). It was gorgeous, yet I have nothing to show for it. Sigh-o-rama.

Day 67:

I am way too hard on myself. My cry in the desert was necessary, though. It was a build up of months of sleep deprivation, and self-criticism. I just could not believe I screwed up something so simple as a memory card. Tony, of course, was patting my back, probably thinking "What in the...?" He did save the day by thinking out of the box and buying a cheap-o disposable camera. I knew the photos would not be nearly as good as if I had my real camera, but I dried my tears and went to work.

All of the pictures were over-exposed, but it gave me a chance to work on my Photoshop skills, which is always something I look forward to improving.

For example, here is a straight-out-of-the-camera shot of the mountains in the Borrego badlands:

And here is my edited version:

The edit darkened the washed out (over-exposed) foreground of the photo, and darkened the blue of the sky (the same as using a circular polarizing filter on a lens).

Here's a photo of Tony and me, after my cry-face finally faded away. Sigh.

I like being out in the middle of nowhere--it makes me feel so small. The sanctuary of the desert is amazing. The various birds and bugs are harmonizing, and everything is very still. I wish that I could experience the stillness I felt there all of the time. It makes me joyful for simply existing.

What's that, Wild Bill Hiccup? You want to see an old-timey picture? Hmm...I'll see what I can do...

Well, if you've made it this far in the post, you deserve to be left with a treat. Here's a picture of Tony wearing my sunglasses, making a disgusted face while I plant one on him. I just wanted to leave you with excellence.

Day 61-64: A mish-mash.

Day 61:

I love plants! Especially those that feed me. I started a planter with tomato and basil on Monday. Tony and I started a out-of-the-pot garden back in San Antonio, but most of the plants died a ghastly death due to the outrageous heat and too much sun. Sigh. Hopefully these little guys will fare better.

Day 62:

I need to relax...on so many levels. One of my favorite things in the whole world is tea. I haven't really tried a tea I didn't like, and I love trying new flavors. I'm also a big fan of loose tea. A few leaves never hurt anyone...at least I hope not! Tuesday night I tried to wind down with a mug of peppermint tea.

And yes, I did crop the picture so you can't see me looking like a fool in the reflection of the teapot...

Day 63:

I was exhausted, and forgot to take a picture. Sorry. I did, however, get suckered into a Face-deal phenomenon called "album cover." Here's what resulted below. The instructions of how I got my band name, album name, and cover photo are listed below. Face-deal and I have a love-hate relationship.

1 - Go to "wikipedia." Hit “random”
or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - Go to "Random quotations"
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

3 - Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 - Use photoshop or similar to put it all together.

5 - Post it to FB with this text in the "caption" and TAG the friends you want to join in.

Day 64:

I was able to take a picture outside! It was still light out when I remember to take a photo--holy cow. This is a picture of trees outside of our apartment in the setting sun.

Day 60: Nilla Extract Progress

Day 60:

Well, not a whole lot has happened with the extract I began to make last week. The vodka has turned a light yellowish color, indicating that at least something is happening. I'll keep y'all updated as necessary. The extract can't be used for about another 2 months anyway, but I thought I'd at least show you the early stages.

Happy Sunday :).