Monday, March 09, 2009

Monday

Life: There's a storm which has somehow effected my cable. Outside: wind. Inside: still images for each of the bazillion channels I don't need but subscribe to anyway. It's a four hour long commercial for Scope.

Teaching: I'm grading. And scheduling. And grading. And planning readings for the next month. And lesson plans. And grading. And writing articles. And course notes. And grading. And ... why did I think I could do all of this in one week?

Life: The wind storm keeps setting off car alarms. HONK. HONK. HONK. HONK.

Cats: Rosie realized that we were trying to catch her. We were. I was trying to pack up to leave my father's house on Saturday and the last thing that needed to be packed was Rosie. I needed to grab and shove her into her cat carrier for her two hour long car nap. Once I got her out from under the bed she darted to the basement. Then into the furnace room. Then into the back room of the furnace room which is little more than the space underneath the stairs. Eventually I pried her out of the corner under the bottom most step with a 4' long, 2" diameter dowel. She was covered in cobwebs and nastiness. My father's comment: "Well, at least it's clean down there now."

Life: HONK. HONK. HONK. HONK.

Writing: I never get as much done as I intend to. I keep telling myself that I'll write when I have time after semester has ended. How stupid is that? I need to learn to write and work simultaneously. I need to not be so lazy. I need to watch less House. I think I sighed about six times while thinking and writing this section. Make that seven.

Cooking: While at home during spring break, I finally paid attention to how my father makes his fruit sauce for steak. I knew that he cooks the steak in a cast iron skillet, browns on each side then pops the covered skillet into the oven for 5-10 minutes. After which, he removes the meat to a covered plate and adds wine, and appricot preserves to the pan drippings which he then reduces. I just never paid much attention to how long it takes something to "reduce." Turns out that I was monumentally afraid of the rapidly boiling wine in the pan so in previous attempts I stopped boiling before the wind boiled off. The result was not tasty. Tonight I proved that I can, in fact, copy his recipe.

Life: HONK.

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