The reemergence of the albino robin

Lately, in Raleigh, Dad has been spotting an albino robin in the backyard, which I assume it is the same one I saw one morning last summer (see the July 24th 2008 entry). I'm jealous I can't be there to see it!

A turtle without a shell... finds a shell

Yesterday was a big day for us and our simple, minimalist apartment: we FINALLY bought a desk. It's hard to imagine that we have gone all this time without a proper work-space. What is a 'student' and a professor without a desk? Until now we have been doing most of our work at the kitchen table, which will probably remain a place to use the computer and write since 1) that is the only place we pick up internet and 2) we only have one desk ;o)

The desk and chair, bought off Craigs list (of course), are very beautiful solid oak. The desk is rather small because we wanted to make sure we could fit it up the stairs and into the apartment, yet it was too big to fit comfortably in the car--we left half of it sticking out of the trunk, which we tied down with rope, and then had to drive several miles down I95. You occasionally see this sort of thing and pity (or snicker at) the poor folks with their trunks wide open and awkward, and I can't believe it was our turn to do it. I am so glad we made it!

A sushi first

A few nights ago I tried making sushi for the first time. Not terribly familiar with Japanese food, and always intimidated by sushi (a fine art, really), I finally got the motivation to give it a try. I kept the ingredients/filling simple to start off with, and I was pretty happy with how they turned out. However, I'll need to keep 'practicing.' I don't think Seth will complain ;o)

New York

The other weekend, during our Spring Break (or was it Winter Break? Mid-semester break?) Seth and I were lucky enough to spend two nights in New York City, staying with Bo in The Village. The trip wasn't entirely non-work related--Seth had a date with some madrigals in Columbia University's special collections library. Besides this, we had some time to explore Chinatown, feasting on sweet buns and other treats, wandered around Central Park, and visited the mind-boggling amazing MOMA (Muesum of Modern Art) during one of their Free Friday afternoons. We also got to catch up with Chad, a friend from Chapel Hill studying at Columbia, over dinner with Bo and Natalie.

The Village

Times Square

Central Park

One thing we got to indulge in was a handful of the specialty food places New York is known for. Having such a high population density, the city seems to have developed numerous amazing eateries, many of which fill some tiny niche in the culinary world. (Ironically the best shops are also located in tiny little spaces, making seating virtually impossible). Just around the corner (literally) from Bo's apartment is a place that specializes in peanut butter sandwiches. Though extremely overpriced ($5 for a simple, but large PB&J), we had a coupon and I couldn't resist! The next day we had lunch at a place (around the other corner) called Hummus Place. Guess what they specialize in.

Peanut Butter and Co. Notice all the wonderful, gooey peanut butter and jelly in that white bread, and the free jar of PB! Ignore the bag of potato chips.

Bo, Natalie, Seth and me enjoying big bowls of hummus.

New York City is extremely overwhelming--there is just so much to do, so much culture and history and endless places to drink coffee. I don't even dare to flip through a travel guide or look up "things to do in Manhattan"--luckily we have 'locals' to show us neat hot spots! Hopefully we can fit in one more visit with Bo before she moves to Boston this summer. However, it will be even better to have her close by!

Our morning runs consisted of heading east from West 3rd St until we reached the East River (NYC is big into cardinal directions), following FDR Dr clockwise along the southern tip of the island until eventually reaching West 3rd St. The first day we (actually, I) paused to take a look at the Statue of Liberty, and the second day we visited Ground Zero.

East River Park

Three bridges

City dog

Battery Park

Ground Zero

A few little things

Things have been pretty even-paced since returning to Waltham from our holiday vacation. Every day it's pretty much wake up, run, class, work on article, gym to watch Oprah (if I didn't run), yoga (2x/week), cook dinner, attempt to read/work, and bed. Besides this, we have seen several plays, made a few excursions to Cambridge, and a couple times a week go to the one (rather expensive) coffee shop in town to do work. Here are a few highlights:

Seth, digging out the car

Watching the Inauguration at Brandeis

Dinner at Veggie Planet Pizza in Cambridge (mmm... butternut squash and goat cheese...)

Waiting for the bus in Central Square. It was much colder than it looks (it was in the single-digits). Being a Northerner, Seth hides it well.

Chinese New Year dinner, with homemade steamed buns :o)

The first time any of our poinsettias (which we keep for multiple years) has actually regrown its red leaves. Unfortunately it didn't quite make it in time for Christmas (maybe it will be ready by Easter?).

On our warm and slushy run this morning. I had meant to photograph the park with pretty, fresh, fluffy snow, but I forgot.

Things released from the melting snow

With temperatures rocketing 20-30 degrees (F) higher this past week--and with a bit of rain to help--the snow has been melting remarkably fast, revealing grass, walkways, wider roads, and several other little surprises, some of which are more pleasant than others:

1) The lady who, at any given moment, can be seen walking her dog around the neighborhood. They disappeared for a month or two during the worst of it, but like all hibernating creatures, they are now are back at their usual routine. I feel very stalker-esque here, but the pair will, without a doubt, be spending a good several hours outside our apartment every day from now until probably mid-December.


2) Rubbish freeing itself from the once massive snowdrift outside our apartment. It is pretty gross, but I am sure when the winds pick up this afternoon they will be blown free from the sidewalk's icy grip and flutter off to bigger, better places--probably to the neighbor's yard, or the church parking lot across the street.


3) Prospect Hill, littered with poopies. Much to our distaste, 'dogs' (actually more like horses, judging by the size and quantity) usually like to do their business right in the best path to run, and seldom do their owners heed the signs at the park entrance to clean up afterwards. Luckily, during the all-too brief period when it snowed fairly regularly, they would get buried and hidden under layers of fresh snow, just like fossils in a stream bed being covered by sediment. However, now that the snow is receding, the perfectly preserved poo is more like woolly mammoths being exposed from melting glacial ice. As if trying to dance around icy patches, slush, and generally uneven snow wasn't hard enough...


4) Fair-weather runners. Even on very nice days, it is rare to see joggers in the park, but when it was cold and snowy they are extremely few and far between (I saw one or two the past few months, and I think Seth saw another). Like the birds and the beasts, here is a person waking up from the deep freeze, and most likely trying to melt away those extra pumpkin pie pounds. (Yes, I already admitted to being a stalker).




And happy 200th birthday to Charles Darwin! Even after all his good work, it's too bad he couldn't have an even bigger impact on the typical American:

A Gallup poll released this week shows that 39 percent of Americans say they "believe in the theory of evolution," while a quarter say they do not believe in the theory, and another 36 percent don't have an opinion either way.

This follows an earlier Gallup poll on the issue, conducted last May, that found only 14 percent of Americans believe that humans developed over millions of years from less advanced forms of life. Forty-four percent believe that God created human beings almost overnight within the past 10,000 years, and another 36 percent believe that God guided humans' evolution from animals over a much longer period of time. (From CNN)

It has been a long time coming

In just two hours, Obama will be sworn in as our new president. Finally, I can say our president without squeaming! There is such a wonderful electricity--perhaps for me partly fueled by Oprah and her daily up-to-the second count-down of his swearing in?--and so many others also feel as though this moment is deserved, especially after enduring eight long years of He Who Shall Not Be Named.

On to other obviously more important news--snow has been building up like crazy here (at least it seems like it has been) and has not been melting back. Besides running on the unmaintained trails on Prospect Hill (which make me feel slow and miserable like some prehistoric creature stuck in a tar-pit), the only other inconvenience for me is trying to climb up this steep, slippery hill and over a chain fence en route to school. This morning I sank into the giant fluffy, dirty snowdrift on the other side of the hill, which borders a parking lot at the edge of campus. It was snow-tastic.

Campus this morning