I am sure it is very obvious by now that this winter has been very wussy. Though we weren't in MA last year, I was told the winter of 2010-11 was brutal. In fact, it was listed as the third 'whitest winter' (ie. greatest snowfall) on record. After this past October's freak snow storm I was afraid we would be heading down that same direction, but that surprise snow shower was pretty much where winter stopped. According to the Blue Hill Observatory located south of Boston, this winter (Nov-Feb) had the warmest average temps on record and was the second least snowy on record. I am sure there is still time for a few snow showers to sneak in, but it is not looking too hopeful.
I hope I am not alone when I feel that these extremes in temperature and precipitation are not normal. I do, however, feel like the minority when people praise our 'great weather' these past few months. Though I must admit to liking the convenience of not having to scrape snow off the car every other day and being able to walk in the streets without slipping on ice, and of course the warmer temperatures take the edge off the bitterness of winter, these are things I enjoy even more when they occur at season-appropriate times, like in mid-late spring. These extremes are indicators that something in NOT RIGHT. And though we might be having fun in our 60 degree (and today 70 degree) temps in WINTER, I am already very concerned over how sweltering hot our summer will be. To those of you who 'don't mind hot summers', try living without air conditioning for a couple years (or try doing some physical activity outside) and take some accountability for the totally unnatural changes we are making to our planet.
Since we can't beat the inevitable heat, Seth and I have totally been considering moving to New Zealand for the northern hemisphere summer. Either that or I can pretend to be an ex-camp counselor and apply for that nutrition internship in Alaska :o)
Monday, March 12, 2012
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Old bread maker, meet new bread maker, Bread Man
We are going to have to say good-bye to a good friend of ours, bread maker. We bought him when we first moved to Waltham, and we met him at a community garage sale (a very affluent community) with the extravagant price-tag of $5. Since that very auspicious morning, he has made two or three loaves a week for us, with the exception of last year, of course, when we were in Florence. (We missed him dearly during that time, especially since our only choice for bread came unsalted, the "typical" Tuscan style.)
Bread maker's paddle crank has been starting to corrode, so we figure it is time to find a replacement since apparently that brand (Regal) is no longer in business. Meet Bread Man. He has some 90 different settings. His little operation light makes him look like a UFO in the dark. He is a real man. Don't know how many of his fancy features we will be using considering I only ever make one type of bread (the type where I dump in flours, oats, and water willy-nilly without measuring anything), but Bread Man made a loaf very nicely this morning so I think he will be able to fill big shoes. The real bonus will be that his dough setting has a delay start feature (which our very basic original maker didn't have), so it will be easier to make pizzas :o)
My first loaf using the easy no-exact-measuring-technique came out great. I think the horizontal bread pan helps the heavy ingredients to rise.
**If anyone is need of parts for a Regal Kitchen Pro (K6743) bread machine, let me know! The only thing wrong with this one is the seal and paddle. I want our beloved machine to keep on giving for as long as possible ;o)
Bread maker's paddle crank has been starting to corrode, so we figure it is time to find a replacement since apparently that brand (Regal) is no longer in business. Meet Bread Man. He has some 90 different settings. His little operation light makes him look like a UFO in the dark. He is a real man. Don't know how many of his fancy features we will be using considering I only ever make one type of bread (the type where I dump in flours, oats, and water willy-nilly without measuring anything), but Bread Man made a loaf very nicely this morning so I think he will be able to fill big shoes. The real bonus will be that his dough setting has a delay start feature (which our very basic original maker didn't have), so it will be easier to make pizzas :o)
Good-bye friend, and hello shiny chrome Breadman Ultimate Plus!
My first loaf using the easy no-exact-measuring-technique came out great. I think the horizontal bread pan helps the heavy ingredients to rise.
**If anyone is need of parts for a Regal Kitchen Pro (K6743) bread machine, let me know! The only thing wrong with this one is the seal and paddle. I want our beloved machine to keep on giving for as long as possible ;o)
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Forty Day Food Challenge
So I have decided to actually give something up for Lent this year. I don't consider myself a very religious person so I am going to use Lent as an excuse to challenge myself. I have done something similar in the past--while living at Johns College in Canberra I did a 'reverse' Ramadan. While so many of our Muslim friends were fasting during the day, I decided to fast at night and gave up my beloved pre-bed snack for the month. This was actually really hard.
For the next forty days (starting after Fat Tuesday, of course!), I am going to follow a plant-based, minimally processed diet. This is kinda like being vegan--I will not be eating any animals or animal products--but I will also not eat processed foods. Seth and I already follow a mostly vegetarian diet, and we hardly eat processed foods anyway, but I guess this will make it more official. Here are some rules for myself:
1) Obviously, no meat, fish, eggs, cheese, milk, cheese, etc.
2) No packaged foods like crackers, chips, canned soups, frozen meals, etc. This won't be hard since I never buy these things anyways.
3) Baked goods are ok, so long as they do not contain milk, butter, or eggs, and they were made from scratch (Pillsbury cake mixes are not exactly 'minimally processed').
4) I can eat whatever is served at our Table of 8 group next month. I already told the host I don't have any dietary restrictions and I don't want to burden anyone.
5) Cereal is ok, even though it is packaged
6) No sugar substitutes like Splenda. I usually like to use these for my tea to reduce cavities ;o)
The more challenging points: NO cheese sprinkled on my salads and pastas, NO Laughing Cow cheese wedges, NO Marshmallow Fluff, NO milk or cream for my coffee and tea, and NO YOGURT!!! :o(
Let's see how the 'no yogurt' thing goes...
For the next forty days (starting after Fat Tuesday, of course!), I am going to follow a plant-based, minimally processed diet. This is kinda like being vegan--I will not be eating any animals or animal products--but I will also not eat processed foods. Seth and I already follow a mostly vegetarian diet, and we hardly eat processed foods anyway, but I guess this will make it more official. Here are some rules for myself:
1) Obviously, no meat, fish, eggs, cheese, milk, cheese, etc.
2) No packaged foods like crackers, chips, canned soups, frozen meals, etc. This won't be hard since I never buy these things anyways.
3) Baked goods are ok, so long as they do not contain milk, butter, or eggs, and they were made from scratch (Pillsbury cake mixes are not exactly 'minimally processed').
4) I can eat whatever is served at our Table of 8 group next month. I already told the host I don't have any dietary restrictions and I don't want to burden anyone.
5) Cereal is ok, even though it is packaged
6) No sugar substitutes like Splenda. I usually like to use these for my tea to reduce cavities ;o)
The more challenging points: NO cheese sprinkled on my salads and pastas, NO Laughing Cow cheese wedges, NO Marshmallow Fluff, NO milk or cream for my coffee and tea, and NO YOGURT!!! :o(
Let's see how the 'no yogurt' thing goes...
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Bringing Up Bébé
Ok, so I'll be first to admit that I really am not all that great with kids and I have no clue what it is like to be a parent, but hearing about this new book on NPR (Pamela Druckerman’s Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting) and reading the related Times article Why American Kids are Brats really radiated with me. Basically, I realized I am always happy to attend to a well-mannered, pleasant kid; a bit of old-fashioned politeness goes a looong way with me. Adults shouldn't have to completely give up their own lives once they have children (or even when they mind someone else's), and to me it isn't worth the effort spending time with sour lemons, whether young or old.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Mixing things up
So, this morning I am doing what I imagine 90% of all other Americans do when they get out of bed: I took a shower, I am having breakfast, and will soon go off to school/work. What is different for me is that I am NOT exercising, which is a nice change in some ways but also bumming me out. This is the first time in nearly a year and a half (since August 10th, 2010, to be exact) that I have not gone running.
Why this change? I didn't get some sudden injury or illness, thank goodness, and the weather is good, though a bit cold. Well, I went in for my annual checkup two days ago and my doctor asked if I exercise and if so, how much. When I told her I run about 6.5-7.5 miles a day, every day (about 45 miles a week), she seemed fairly disgusted, especially when I told her my shins are sensitive to the touch... and have been for the past 5 years. In my own defense, my shins have not been getting any worse in the past year an a half, though they also are not getting any better. I figure I can't keep up my consistent track record forever (though in comparison Seth seems to have done well for himself), and if I am to miss a day or two, I should do it on my own terms and not wait until my shins start getting really bad again. So, I figure it couldn't hurt to have a day off from trotting through the dark woods once a week, though I still do plan to hit the FSU gym after my morning class :o)
Why this change? I didn't get some sudden injury or illness, thank goodness, and the weather is good, though a bit cold. Well, I went in for my annual checkup two days ago and my doctor asked if I exercise and if so, how much. When I told her I run about 6.5-7.5 miles a day, every day (about 45 miles a week), she seemed fairly disgusted, especially when I told her my shins are sensitive to the touch... and have been for the past 5 years. In my own defense, my shins have not been getting any worse in the past year an a half, though they also are not getting any better. I figure I can't keep up my consistent track record forever (though in comparison Seth seems to have done well for himself), and if I am to miss a day or two, I should do it on my own terms and not wait until my shins start getting really bad again. So, I figure it couldn't hurt to have a day off from trotting through the dark woods once a week, though I still do plan to hit the FSU gym after my morning class :o)
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Long Holiday
Seth and I sure had a nice slow holiday--while I caught up on my reading of fun books and magazines, Seth pounded away at his course syllabi and worked his way back into the spotlight by playing guitar and singing at his favorite Chapel Hill haunt, The Cave.
Immediately after my finals, we drove to Geneva, NY, just in time to spend Christmas with Seth's family. A few days later we hit the road again to celebrate the new year Southern style in Raleigh. After a week and a half here we took off back up north to NY, with an overnight stop to visit Mark, Gina, Kate, and Adah at their new home in Fairfax, VA, not too far from their old home. We used to enjoy paying them a visit on our way between NC and NY, and it is nice to be able do that once again. Now that we are back in Waltham, it is time to start concentrating on the start of the semester...
On New Years Day I went with my family to Topsail Island for their annual Dolphin Dip. This started as a fundraiser a few years ago but now everyone in the community participates 'for fun'. Basically, it involves a mass of people jumping into the chilly ocean at the stroke of midday (ie. at noon there is a countdown and everyone rushes in, gets hit by a wave or two, then almost immediately rushes back out). After all the hype I was convinced the water would be deathly cold (my brother was dramatizing the urgency for medics to be on hand), but it was a warm day, about 70 degrees, and the water, though cold, was not 'bone-freezing cold'. In fact, there were a couple girls, about 7 or 8, splashing around in the waves even before the countdown began.
Dad, Andrew, and I did the Dip
Dinner at Stromboli's
Carter helping Mom pack away the Christmas decorations
Meeting up with Meghan in Chapel Hill before Seth's big gig. It was quite a plate of hummus, a nice change from eating meat twice a day for several weeks (I think I filled my yearly quota of Animal during the break).
Seth rocking out with John, old-school style, at the Cave.
Immediately after my finals, we drove to Geneva, NY, just in time to spend Christmas with Seth's family. A few days later we hit the road again to celebrate the new year Southern style in Raleigh. After a week and a half here we took off back up north to NY, with an overnight stop to visit Mark, Gina, Kate, and Adah at their new home in Fairfax, VA, not too far from their old home. We used to enjoy paying them a visit on our way between NC and NY, and it is nice to be able do that once again. Now that we are back in Waltham, it is time to start concentrating on the start of the semester...
On New Years Day I went with my family to Topsail Island for their annual Dolphin Dip. This started as a fundraiser a few years ago but now everyone in the community participates 'for fun'. Basically, it involves a mass of people jumping into the chilly ocean at the stroke of midday (ie. at noon there is a countdown and everyone rushes in, gets hit by a wave or two, then almost immediately rushes back out). After all the hype I was convinced the water would be deathly cold (my brother was dramatizing the urgency for medics to be on hand), but it was a warm day, about 70 degrees, and the water, though cold, was not 'bone-freezing cold'. In fact, there were a couple girls, about 7 or 8, splashing around in the waves even before the countdown began.
Dad, Andrew, and I did the Dip
Dinner at Stromboli's
Carter helping Mom pack away the Christmas decorations
Meeting up with Meghan in Chapel Hill before Seth's big gig. It was quite a plate of hummus, a nice change from eating meat twice a day for several weeks (I think I filled my yearly quota of Animal during the break).
Seth rocking out with John, old-school style, at the Cave.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Christmas in New York
Instead of staying in town and studying for finals for a week, Seth and I took off for a three-night stay in New York City. It is always nice to be in a big city for Christmas (such as Paris, last year), though it would have been extra nice to have had some snow on the ground (not complaining here; the weather was fantastic, and we left just before the temps plummeted today).
We stayed in an HI hostel in the Upper West Side. This was my first time staying in a hostel in the US, and in fact, it happens to be the largest in the world, with over 660 beds. Holy mackerel! Very clean, but noisy and with little personality, in case you find yourself looking for accommodation in the Big Apple.
Little Italy (uncanny, except the street is too wide)
Our first night we met with Ting Chun, a friend of Seth's from Brandeis. Here we are at the amazing Shake Shack, after having eaten hamburgers! Made with beef! I haven't had a full-size (beef) hamburger in probably a couple years. It was so good I went back for seconds :o) 
We spent the mornings in classic New York fashion, running through Central Park
One of the lakes in Central Park
Friday morning we visited the American Museum of Natural History with the main objective of saying hello to our dinosaur friends.
I really like the hat on this big guy
After museum number one, we met with my cousin, Christina, at museum number two, the Met. After getting a quick taste for the museum (it is GINGANTIC), we joined up with her husband, Kevin, for dinner and a show. We ate at a Japanese ramen place in the very funky East Village.
So good!
The four of us went to a very eclectic concert in "Alphabet City", at an exceptionally tiny (though famous, of course) venue called The Stone, owned by John Zorn. All non-profit, it has two sets a night, does not sell drinks or other refreshments, and consists of a single room with concrete floors and fold-out chairs. It is truly 'all about the music'. Our show consisted of a Gamelan 'invocation' and awkwardly transitioned into a strangely charismatic band from Tennessee called the Terror Pigeons. The funniest part of the evening was that the band brought a variety of homemade desserts that corresponded with stories from their songs. Since no food is allowed in the club, the audience shared cookies, root beer floats, and cake shaped like pizza on the sidewalk outside after the set.
The cake really did resemble pizza, though we had to avoid swallowing the Juicy Fruit gum cheese.
Seth and I with Christina and Kevin outside the inconspicuous club, The Stone. Only in New York.
The next day Seth and I took a walk through midtown. Here is Union Square, wearing its winter coat.
The flatiron building
A close-up of the hanging paper cup exhibit at the nose of the flatiron
A guy pushing a tree in a shopping cart. Creativity is directly proportional to city size.
A visit to the New York Public Library gave way to a surprise exhibit--they were showing a host of interesting items such as a Gutenberg Bible, Virginia Woolf's walking stick and diary, sketches by Beethoven, and T.S. Eliot's typescript of "The Wasteland" with Ezra Pound's scribbled comments.
We eventually made our way to Rockefeller Center to see The Tree. It was quite a tree, indeed. The crowds of pushy people and megaphones from the surrounding cop cars squalling 'keep on the sidewalk' dramatically took away from the Christmas in New York romance, but at least we were warned of what to expect in advance. It was nice to see the spectacle nonetheless.
While we were in Rockefeller Center we got hooked by a mysterious countdown on the side of the Saks building. Of course, we waited alongside hundreds of other curious passersby to see what would happen after 13minutes. I won't divulge what surprise awaited us, you'll have to see it for yourself ;o)
After trying in vain to see a few of the famous 5th Avenue window displays (of course we had to go the weekend before Christmas!), we gave up and went underground to speed our way to Tribeca, to a small theater called The Flea (see? small!). We saw a really cool play called "She Kills Monsters", about an ultra geek girl who plays Dungeon and Dragons. I was totally unable to relate.
The show was awesome, and the only way to make the evening even better was to follow it with a fantastic Vietnamese dinner on the edge of Chinatown. God, why does Waltham (or even Boston) not have any place even remotely like this??
After a chilly start this morning we headed back to Waltham. It was a really wonderful trip, and the getaway was long sought-after. I figure if they are going to run my final exams up until Dec. 22nd, the least I can do for myself is get out of town! It was also wonderful to see Ting Chun and Christina and Kevin. It is nice having people to visit :o)
As a side note, I must declare that during our time in NYC Seth and I were extremely impressed by how courteous and friendly New Yorkers were. In one morning we saw an elderly woman dash to hold open a door for a lady with a stroller, a man pick up a random bicycle that was blown over by the wind (the bike was not his), a fellow in a suit trip while crossing the road only to have an onlooker rush to his aid, and time after time on the subway people were offering their seats to others. People we met off the street were ultra nice (they were not even trying to sell us crap), and no one was pushy or creepy, like the stereotypes would have you would expect. Even the runners and dog-walkers in Central Park at 7am were greeting us and smiling. Not even the Christmas Spirit can invoke this sort of compassion from Florentines or Bostonians, or the "cheery" Aussies.
We stayed in an HI hostel in the Upper West Side. This was my first time staying in a hostel in the US, and in fact, it happens to be the largest in the world, with over 660 beds. Holy mackerel! Very clean, but noisy and with little personality, in case you find yourself looking for accommodation in the Big Apple.
The view from the Chinatown Bus of Manhattan rising up from behind this massive cemetery
Little Italy (uncanny, except the street is too wide)
Our first night we met with Ting Chun, a friend of Seth's from Brandeis. Here we are at the amazing Shake Shack, after having eaten hamburgers! Made with beef! I haven't had a full-size (beef) hamburger in probably a couple years. It was so good I went back for seconds :o) 
We spent the mornings in classic New York fashion, running through Central Park
One of the lakes in Central Park
Friday morning we visited the American Museum of Natural History with the main objective of saying hello to our dinosaur friends.
I really like the hat on this big guy
After museum number one, we met with my cousin, Christina, at museum number two, the Met. After getting a quick taste for the museum (it is GINGANTIC), we joined up with her husband, Kevin, for dinner and a show. We ate at a Japanese ramen place in the very funky East Village.
So good!
The four of us went to a very eclectic concert in "Alphabet City", at an exceptionally tiny (though famous, of course) venue called The Stone, owned by John Zorn. All non-profit, it has two sets a night, does not sell drinks or other refreshments, and consists of a single room with concrete floors and fold-out chairs. It is truly 'all about the music'. Our show consisted of a Gamelan 'invocation' and awkwardly transitioned into a strangely charismatic band from Tennessee called the Terror Pigeons. The funniest part of the evening was that the band brought a variety of homemade desserts that corresponded with stories from their songs. Since no food is allowed in the club, the audience shared cookies, root beer floats, and cake shaped like pizza on the sidewalk outside after the set.The band brought dessert for its audience. How thoughtful!
The cake really did resemble pizza, though we had to avoid swallowing the Juicy Fruit gum cheese.
Seth and I with Christina and Kevin outside the inconspicuous club, The Stone. Only in New York.
The next day Seth and I took a walk through midtown. Here is Union Square, wearing its winter coat.
The flatiron building
A close-up of the hanging paper cup exhibit at the nose of the flatiron
A guy pushing a tree in a shopping cart. Creativity is directly proportional to city size.
A visit to the New York Public Library gave way to a surprise exhibit--they were showing a host of interesting items such as a Gutenberg Bible, Virginia Woolf's walking stick and diary, sketches by Beethoven, and T.S. Eliot's typescript of "The Wasteland" with Ezra Pound's scribbled comments.
We eventually made our way to Rockefeller Center to see The Tree. It was quite a tree, indeed. The crowds of pushy people and megaphones from the surrounding cop cars squalling 'keep on the sidewalk' dramatically took away from the Christmas in New York romance, but at least we were warned of what to expect in advance. It was nice to see the spectacle nonetheless.
While we were in Rockefeller Center we got hooked by a mysterious countdown on the side of the Saks building. Of course, we waited alongside hundreds of other curious passersby to see what would happen after 13minutes. I won't divulge what surprise awaited us, you'll have to see it for yourself ;o)Seth wondering what would happen after 11 minutes and 30 seconds. Saks sure knows how to build suspense!
After trying in vain to see a few of the famous 5th Avenue window displays (of course we had to go the weekend before Christmas!), we gave up and went underground to speed our way to Tribeca, to a small theater called The Flea (see? small!). We saw a really cool play called "She Kills Monsters", about an ultra geek girl who plays Dungeon and Dragons. I was totally unable to relate.
The show was awesome, and the only way to make the evening even better was to follow it with a fantastic Vietnamese dinner on the edge of Chinatown. God, why does Waltham (or even Boston) not have any place even remotely like this??
After a chilly start this morning we headed back to Waltham. It was a really wonderful trip, and the getaway was long sought-after. I figure if they are going to run my final exams up until Dec. 22nd, the least I can do for myself is get out of town! It was also wonderful to see Ting Chun and Christina and Kevin. It is nice having people to visit :o)
As a side note, I must declare that during our time in NYC Seth and I were extremely impressed by how courteous and friendly New Yorkers were. In one morning we saw an elderly woman dash to hold open a door for a lady with a stroller, a man pick up a random bicycle that was blown over by the wind (the bike was not his), a fellow in a suit trip while crossing the road only to have an onlooker rush to his aid, and time after time on the subway people were offering their seats to others. People we met off the street were ultra nice (they were not even trying to sell us crap), and no one was pushy or creepy, like the stereotypes would have you would expect. Even the runners and dog-walkers in Central Park at 7am were greeting us and smiling. Not even the Christmas Spirit can invoke this sort of compassion from Florentines or Bostonians, or the "cheery" Aussies.
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