I've been up since 4 am. I'm not going to lie, this will not be on making the list of "best christmas ever." I am still a bit bitter that because Paul and I don't have insane personal problems or don't pop out babies by the thousands that we are left to hold down the fort in this arctic wasteland whilst people with Dr. Phil worthy complexes are at home enjoying friends and family. I could get all after school special about this and note that our current circumstance helps us to appreciate the importance of family. However, I'm not nearing that stage of rationale quite yet. So here I sit on Christmas morning with a cup of tea reading archives of cynical_nurse, holding back a few tears, and entertaining the cat with the pull strings of my PJs. I'm quite sure that I'm being melodramatic currently, which could be attributed to one of many factors.
In a few hours we will head over to a friends house to exchange gifts and watch their kids open some presents. I am hoping my mood will lighten between now and then.
Just for the record, Paul and I are planning a faux high risk pregnancy with quadruplets. I , of course, will have an emergency C-section dated for december 24th 2008. I will also seek the advice of a prestigious faux high risk OB that happens to practice in southeastern virginia. (thus our fool proof plan for ensuring that we will be home for Christmas next year) I am quite positive that with my acting skills/powers of persuasion and Paul's innocent demeanor, we can pull this off. I think my current svelte appearance could pull off a first trimester pregnancy... after that I'd have to resort to oversized sweatshirts, pillows, and an occasional watermelon. You the reader could also be an accomplice: Be sure and send congratulatory cards, flowers, and cigars to Paul @ work.
Yup, I've got it all planned out ...
(and we're seriously just kidding)
Merry Christmas
Chelsea and Pauly
Bleu and Beaker too
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Monday, December 10, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
My semester is coming to an end and quite frankly I'll be glad to rid myself of a few of those classes. I thought for sure that the end of my pharmacology course would have me screaming joyously in the streets. I'm starting to realize that I'm going to miss my ridiculously long tests and the oh so nefarious "none of the above" option that has literally brought me to tears on several occasions. But, thanks to my professor, I wouldnt know Mupirocin from Succinylcholine. And with that, I leave you with some mixed media to my liking.
Thank you Perry Bible Fellowship for feeding my sick twisted humor:
My favorite little excerpt from Waking Life:
Thank you Perry Bible Fellowship for feeding my sick twisted humor:
My favorite little excerpt from Waking Life:
Monday, December 3, 2007
tea for two
I've always been a fan of tea for the most part, but the limits of my palette included varieties of bagged celestial seasonings or tazo teas. When I moved to this unforgiving climate, I took a huge liking to broadening my horizons when it came to heated beverages. Basically, without the extra warmth of tea, coffee, or cocoa your body will cease to function properly in the winter. That being said, I'm constantly on the lookout for a good cup of tea. A few months ago, I stumbled upon Teavana. I think that for the quality of tea that you get, the price is most certainly reasonable. Here is my review of 3 tea selections:
The first tea I tried was Teavana's " Earl Grey Creme." Upon opening the tea for the first time, the aroma that exuded from the packaging was a bit overwhelming. I recognized the familiar earthy tinge common to earl grey tea but the combination of the bergamot oils in addition to the blue mallow flower made for a most interesting scent. Per the instructions on the packaging I brewed my tea for 3 minutes in my handy dandy Bodum Tea Press. I will admit that the smell of the tea itself made me a bit aprehensive. However, I was pleasantly surprised upon my first sip, it was though the curious juxtaposition of the essences suddenly made sense. The flavor was classic earl grey but with a nice subtle twist. I'm going to give it 4 Britney C-Section Scars out of 5.
The second tea I tried was Teavana's "Ginger Peach Apricot." (flavored black tea) Unlike the earl grey, this tea smelled absolutely heavenly upon opening. The bits of ginger and dried fruit really helped to create a nice visual aesthetic. I found that brewing this tea for a bit longer than 3 minutes actually helped develop more flavor. The taste of the tea was just as it sounds, bright peach flavorings coupled with citrus like ginger undertones. I was really pleased with the flavor of this tea and feel it would translate well into an iced tea. I also found that through up to 3 consecutive steeps, the flavor remained fairly constant. I'm going to give this tea 5 Britney C-Section Scars out of 5.
The third tea I tried was Teavana's "Rooibos Thai Tea Blend." For those of you not familiar with rooibos "tea" its actually not "tea" per say. Rooibos or red tea actually comes from a bush in the legume family which is native to africa. Now that we're back from that tangent... Rooibos tea is brewed a bit longer than most teas because of the external "shell" on the bits of plant. (similar to cooking white vs. wild rice) I opted to brew the tea for about 8min or so. I absolutely loved the flavor of this tea. I did take the time to make an iced version with condensed milk as often seen in thai restaurants. The tea was delightfully mellow with hints of almost caramel (most likely stemming from the almond essence.) I'm going to give this 5 Britney C-Section Scars out of 5.
MMM MMMMM
I hope you enjoyed my ramblings.
The first tea I tried was Teavana's " Earl Grey Creme." Upon opening the tea for the first time, the aroma that exuded from the packaging was a bit overwhelming. I recognized the familiar earthy tinge common to earl grey tea but the combination of the bergamot oils in addition to the blue mallow flower made for a most interesting scent. Per the instructions on the packaging I brewed my tea for 3 minutes in my handy dandy Bodum Tea Press. I will admit that the smell of the tea itself made me a bit aprehensive. However, I was pleasantly surprised upon my first sip, it was though the curious juxtaposition of the essences suddenly made sense. The flavor was classic earl grey but with a nice subtle twist. I'm going to give it 4 Britney C-Section Scars out of 5.
The second tea I tried was Teavana's "Ginger Peach Apricot." (flavored black tea) Unlike the earl grey, this tea smelled absolutely heavenly upon opening. The bits of ginger and dried fruit really helped to create a nice visual aesthetic. I found that brewing this tea for a bit longer than 3 minutes actually helped develop more flavor. The taste of the tea was just as it sounds, bright peach flavorings coupled with citrus like ginger undertones. I was really pleased with the flavor of this tea and feel it would translate well into an iced tea. I also found that through up to 3 consecutive steeps, the flavor remained fairly constant. I'm going to give this tea 5 Britney C-Section Scars out of 5.
The third tea I tried was Teavana's "Rooibos Thai Tea Blend." For those of you not familiar with rooibos "tea" its actually not "tea" per say. Rooibos or red tea actually comes from a bush in the legume family which is native to africa. Now that we're back from that tangent... Rooibos tea is brewed a bit longer than most teas because of the external "shell" on the bits of plant. (similar to cooking white vs. wild rice) I opted to brew the tea for about 8min or so. I absolutely loved the flavor of this tea. I did take the time to make an iced version with condensed milk as often seen in thai restaurants. The tea was delightfully mellow with hints of almost caramel (most likely stemming from the almond essence.) I'm going to give this 5 Britney C-Section Scars out of 5.
MMM MMMMM
I hope you enjoyed my ramblings.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
snow day
I had the good fortune to catch a cold this weekend. Luckily, I had the power to ignore my most miserable symptoms to get some cooking done. We spent most of the morning shoveling snow. Well, when I say "we" I mean Paul shoveled snow and I stood on the sidelines sneezing and offering moral support. I did, however, make him a carafe of dunkin donuts coffee... I'm sure that counts for something. We spent a good portion of our afternoon preparing "Tortiera di Finnochi e Patate", which, in layman's terms means fennel layered potatoes. We then promptly got started on our roasted pork loin with a maple mustard crust. Overall, everything turned out amazing. Our Calphalon roasting pan was clearly worth the investment. I'm planning on spending the rest of the evening wandering around in my pajamas and sipping on tea.
Saturday, December 1, 2007
busy busy
Today Paul and I awoke to snowfall. We braved sister winter in order to benefit our culinary pursuits. I think driving in white out conditions and sliding on ice is well worth it when you are in need of fennel and shitake mushrooms.
When we arrived home, I threw on some Bing Crosby and pieced together our hand me down faux christmas tree. I think it all turned out well considering I had a great dane stealing ornaments and a sneaky cat running away with my ribbon. Sans tree decorating, we enjoyed some tasty asian lettuce wraps courtesy of Paul. Speaking of christmas, we spotted some CLASSY and TASTEFUL christmas decorations exhibited by our neighbors. (p.s. they are from texas)
When we arrived home, I threw on some Bing Crosby and pieced together our hand me down faux christmas tree. I think it all turned out well considering I had a great dane stealing ornaments and a sneaky cat running away with my ribbon. Sans tree decorating, we enjoyed some tasty asian lettuce wraps courtesy of Paul. Speaking of christmas, we spotted some CLASSY and TASTEFUL christmas decorations exhibited by our neighbors. (p.s. they are from texas)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
