Son of a...!

Here I am, it is 3 on Tuesday and I am stuck at 16 pages on a 15-18 page paper. At this point, it is not even about making the page limit, it is about writing a coherent paper that will help me retain my grade describe the poor performance I turned in for the final a week ago. And even more than that, this is the paper I submitted for consideration to one of my associations to present in the Spring of 2008. Augh! This is what I want to write about but I am just stuck! I don't know if it is because I don't have enough information or if I am trying too hard or if I really need to rethink my topic, which I just don't have time for. So here I am, venting in this space and trying to motivate myself to get done in one hour so I can proofread and bake cupcakes as my contribution to tonight's celebration.

oh, and here is a little hint on what my paper is about....

Yes, that is right, I join the rest of the world in writing about J.Lo's butt. My paper is titled, “Butt” What Does it all Mean? The Performance of Latinidad in Popular Culture and its Effect on Latina Identity. of course, this is the third title I have created...

get er dun, part II!

Well, this weekend is starting differently. I just finished everything I need to get done for the classes I teach. I graded all of the final lab assignments(45), the last of the speeches(24), and wrote my final exams (2 versions to help prevent cheating). All I have to do is copy the exams for my classes today at some point and grade the scantron tests and prepare the test key before Wednesday. Easy, breezy, done!

Woo hoo! On the home stretch. I have a paper due Tuesday evening that I need to get working on and I took all day Tuesday off to prepare. Next on the list, X-mas shopping!

get er dun!

i turned in my final and i presented on the paper that i still need to write which is due on tuesday. still have lots of grading for my classes i teach and getting sick again. i just got well from a cold at thanksgiving and here i have a bad headache and feeling queasy. bleh.

Primal Scream

[insert here]

I have a final due at 7. What I have written so far is not good but I have four out of five questions answered. One more to go and then research and present my final paper in class tonight. I can do this in 2.5 hours, right?

big sigh.

It's been a while

Since I did a music blog. As I am taking a break from finishing my final exam.





Soundtrack of my life

So, here's how it works:

1. Open your music library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool

1. Opening Credits: Bodels by 311

2. Waking Up: If I Could by Seal

3.First Day At School: When I Look into your Eyes by Andre 3000

4.Falling In Love: Rainy Days and Mondays by The Carpenters

5.Fight Song: If you Could Only See by Tonic

6.Breaking Up: Too Little Too Late by Barenaked Ladies

7.Prom: baby Hold On by Dixie Chicks

8.Life: Girl by Tori Amos

9.Mental breakdown:Blue Jean by David Bowie

10.Driving: PJ & Rooster by Outkast

11.Flashback: Sixteen by No Doubt

12.Getting back together: I Love You by Sarah McLachlan

13.Wedding: Ready to Run by Dixie Chicks

14.Birth of Child: 125 pt. 3 (Connections) by Joell Ortiz

15.Final Battle: Intuition (Todd Terry Radio Remix) by Jewel

16.Death Scene: Pulse by Ani DiFranco

17.Funeral Song: American Angel by George Michael

18.End Credits: Come Original by 311


Wow, some of those are strangely appropriate, at least with the song title I did not change anything up, I swear, I just hit party shuffle in iTunes and started typing.

Okay! Back to work!

As Requested via Email

Hey Lucky,

I was going to give you the Mac n' cheese recipe straight out of the Better Homes and Garden Cookbook since that is the one I use all the time but in typing up the recipe, I realized that I don't use that one at all. I will give you the recipe as best as I remember, the noodle size is an estimate, I usually just use one package and fill the dish, if there is any extra - I'll eat it or put it in Tupperware.



Marz' Mac n Cheese

Ingredients:
16 oz. pkg Elbow macaroni
Approx. 1/4 Lb mild cheddar - shredded(or what ever amount looks good to you)
Approx. 1/4 Lb jack cheese - shredded

White Sauce Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons butter (or margarine)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350.

Follow the package instructions to boil the noodle. Drain, and rinse noodles. Place half the noodles in the casserole dish and half the cheese on top of the noodles. Or, you can put half the noodles in the dish and then mix half the cheese into the noodles. Keep the other half of the noodles and cheese within reach for after making the white sauce.

For White Sauce: Using a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Once it is completely melted, add in the flour, salt and pepper. Stir the ingredients together; you should end up with a kind of paste at the bottom of the pan (your rue). Caution, be sure to keep stirring so this paste does not burn. Add the milk in, it is best to add it a third at a time, stirring the paste into the milk so you don't end up with lumps, although you can add it in all at once if you really want to. Keep stirring constantly until the sauce starts to thicken up. It will feel like you are stirring forever and then all of the sudden, the liquid will start thickening up. You want it to a consistency of cream.

Immediately pour half the sauce into the casserole dish. Add the rest of the noodles and most of the cheese, reserve a little of the cheese for a decorative topping. Pour the rest of the sauce over the top of the noodles and cheese, covering the dish as evenly as possible. Use the last of the cheese to sprinkle in the middle of the dish.

Put the casserole in the heated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and you have a nice light browning of the top.


So, that is the basic recipe. Sometimes, for a little bit of a kick, I use cayenne pepper in place of the black pepper. Just eyeball the amount, you don't need a lot. Or if I am feeling gourmet, I use white pepper so you can't see the flecks in the white sauce. I also tend to double the white sauce recipe I gave you above so that the dish is extra creamy (2 cups of milk, etc.). You can also put half the noodles in the dish, then a layer of cheese and then a second layer of noodles and cheese and then make the white sauce and pour it over the entire dish at one shot. The sauce will drip down through the dish and it is easier to construct that way. I like to be sure that the sauce is all the way through the dish using the method I describe in the recipe above since once I let the sauce get too thick while stirring and it didn't sink in and the casserole had a weird layer of sauce that baked into it. My brother liked it but I wasn't too crazy about it. But that only happened once.

Hope you enjoy!

Love,

Marz

Shoot me...

shoot me now. I realized that I am listening to speakers in my classes, both the ones I teach and the ones I am in, for the next two weeks straight. And there are very few good speakers, even in the graduate classes!

Bleh

I am suppose to be working on my final due tonight (not really, officially it is but we can turn it in later) but all I want to do is mess around on the internet, reading blogs and pulling research for my paper due in 2 weeks, research that I have no time to read all of it but is fascinating all the same. This is why I took the morning off of work, to sleep in, try to get over the cold I got for Thanksgiving and catch up on my work.

So far I have the page formatted and one sentence written. Too bad it is suppose to be a 10-15 page paper that answers 5 questions in essay form. Maybe writing this will get me motivated.

Hmm, not even I believe that. I am going to take a shower and get my butt in gear. I have 2 hours before I have to be at school.

Oh my...

I leave tomorrow for Chicago for a conference. Here is the weather forecast:

high/low
Tomorrow - 59/32
Thursday - 46/28
Friday - 44/32
Saturday - 50/35

I am packing a coat and thermals and warm socks. I hope it is enough. Wish me luck!

they wax and shine the red sky yet cannot take it with them.

This is the line of magnet poetry that faces me at my desk everyday. And I am procrastinating from writing my 2-3 page paper that is due tonight at 7...


As my father would say, 'animo!

Lordy..

It's October and I haven't posted this month yet. It's crazy. It's not that I have bitten off more than I can chew, it's that I an juggling so much, I don't have time for much else.

To my 3, make that 2 loyal readers - so sorry. I don't even have a cupcake picture to post since I have not baked since mid-August. Right now, I am trying to stay afloat, not get sick and keep my sanity. Sometimes it feels like my priorities are exactly in that order.

How about a picture from my trip to Mexico?

Ah, that's better. I was there! Climbed it too. Later!

Okay...

Lemmee 'xplain.

The office I work out of is a big room with 12 tables for the Teaching Associates and one sort of cubicle for the part timer. Any who, I am the oldest in the room by one year, by the calender. The divide is much greater than that.

If someone is in office hours, the door is open. If no one is, most of the time the door is shut. The problem comes from the really inappropriate, nasty, sexual, sexist and general immature conversations that go on no matter if the door is open or closed.

I just completed my training at the other job for harassment, both the not how to harass and how to handle harassment as a supervisor. Oh My God. It has really been bothering me. I mean, its bad, really bad.

I mentioned it to one of the other TAs when we left to get food and she asked what she could do to help. I came up with the idea that we all needed to be responsible for our office hours when the door is open.

It happened today. When someone is telling a story and is repeating what happened, which involves screaming "She's a cum-sucking whore", yeah, I had to step in. So I used my, 'the door is open, maybe we should watch our language.' It worked.

Then it happened again this afternoon. I always start with, "Is someone in office hours?" I try to point out that I am not being a stick in the mud, I am trying to make sure we are not opening the office up to harassment allegations and more importantly, we look professional. So I used the maybe we should watch what we say line... It didn't work, they quieted down for a moment and then started back up again. And I had to go to my other job so I grabbed my bag and left.

So there is the story behind my comment early, delivered when I returned to the TA office from the other job. Its frustrating. I don't have time nor the energy to deal with this kind of crap. Its so juvenile.

Sometimes...

I really hate my life. I am the policeman of my office. More later.

Okay...

I'm still planning a real post, maybe with pictures of my various trip and B-day. However, considering I am writing this while I am still at work on a Friday night at 7:23 p.m., it may be a little while.

Ah, I love grading papers.



Gratuitous cupcake picture from the Seattle trip.

starting upper left, Blueberry Creme, Cherry Creme, Chocolate with Amarula flavored buttercream, Cookies and Creme, Tiramisu

Hi

I'm still alive, just overwhelmed. Hope to write a little something soon.

Friday

Super tired, preparing for class last night and didn't sleep much. Now I don't want to do anything but haven't finished my hand out for class tomorrow.

Tomorrow night should be fun, right now I am more tired and have too many things to get done to be excited. the Jessica will be there - yeah!

later. And happy 30 to me, tomorrow at 10:00 sharp - when I begin class (hee hee).

Short and Dirty

- Spoke with Ms. S today - finally! My fault, I have had her name next to "call" on my to do list for several days now.

- First day of training for teaching. Yawn inducing and still no lesson plans for first few classes.

- Had a lovely dinner with Meesh last Thursday. She came to campus to buy her books, we had a lovely chat and dinner at Veggie Delight.

- As I mentioned to Ms. S, I have already received some lovely Birthday gifts, Plet helped me organize the party - doing all that icky call around for prices and locations, Ms. S is staying in Vegas and taking care of business - which is exactly where I want her to be right now (there are other years), my big sis hosted me in Seattle and Ms. B sent me "Vegan with a Vengance" (Book love from far away, I love it!)

- Speaking of Settle, I am still planning on posting but until I do, here are a couple teaser pics:
Tiramsu Cupcakes (Sorry T3, they have coffee and alcohol in them!)

Marble cupcakes with an almost perfect yin-yang shape on the bottom, the dot in the top is actually where a bubble and therefore a hole formed in the cupcake, I haven't done anything to this cupcake other than bake it and peel the wrapper off. And yes, that is my chubby hand holding the cupcake. Nice nails though right?

More to come.

Whew Becky!

Okay, will post all about my Seattle trip soon. In the meantime, here are some highlights:

- Ate vegetarian Vietnamese food with my big sis - new favorite! Nothing like a good Pho and spring rolls.
- Went to the Experimental Music Program - amazing.
- Had an almost vegan cupcake and Champagne party with my sis and her friends
- walked everywhere


I like Seattle, not sure if I could live there but love to visit. So green and I love that there is art everywhere. I will post more later with photos. Oh - my sister lives in the Queen Anne neighborhood so we were able to walk to the space needle. Didn't go up since the lines were horrible, I'll have to do it next time.


Okay, I am suppose to be working and since it is my boss' last day, I better get going! (tear)

Shhhh...

I'm not suppose to know yet but I just found out that when my current boss leaves the company on August 15, I am going to be reporting to my previous boss, who is really cool and we get a long like a house on fire.

It's nice to have a little more information about the upcoming semester.

Oh, I also found out that I will be teaching from 10-11 and 12-1 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. (No Julie, you may not come and sit in the back of the class to see me teach. The classrooms are tiny and I am capped at 26 students. Plus, do you really want to spend $5.00 on parking for one hour?)

This weekend

It was an adventure. I guess I failed to mention that I was working the retreat I was at this weekend, rather than attending it. It occurred to me that this means that I will be working ten days in a row. That's last Monday through this Wednesday when I fly out to Seattle to visit my big sis, leaving for the airport straight from work. At least I had from 3:00 yesterday off until I came into work this morning and I have my evenings free. Wee!

I'll try to write more later, but no guarantee.

Arizona!

I loved AZ except for...

These are HUGE and they fly! Ew ew ew ew ew ew!

This one was dead when we came out the next morning and Ms. B picked it up so I could get a good picture. EW!

We had so much fun, the three amigas. It rained every afternoon and one day we saw a double rainbow. Here is a partial picture. Meesh actually has a video following the whole double rainbow. so pretty!
That's the Mr. on the right, out taking a look.

I liked Tombstone, nothing like $6.00 for three cranberry vodkas. We had a good time with the Kareoke bar. Meesh sang Earl by the Dixie Chicks and Ms. B sang...oh heck, I can't remember! Meesh? Ms. B? What were the other songs sung that night? Maybe next time I will get up and sing.

Below is a picture of the main hotel in Bisbee, where we visited for the day.

Got to try lots of yummy flavored honey from "The Killer Bee Honey Company". The Orange honey and the Cinnamon honey were my favorites. I need to order myself some. I couldn't buy any then because the jars were over 3 oz. and I only had carry-on luggage. A great afternoon, even though we had a flat tire and that is an adventure for another time. Plus, I don't have the best pics for that.

This was my attempt to take a picture of the storm that was falling in slect areas while we were driving back to Tombstone. It was so pretty. It was strange to see how the rain was falling in some places but not in others.


Any who, that is some of the trip. It was a lot of hanging out and visiting. One of my favorite memories was sitting in the hot tub in the evening with our hosts and enjoying a glass of wine and some great conversation. I can't wait to go back for another visit. 8 months is too long to go without seeing a good friend. Hmm, that means I need to get my butt to Vegas as well....

Ciao!

Holy Moley!

Just checked out August's Horoscope at my favorite site: Check out how it starts for me.

You are a flexible, mutable sign, so when the chips are down, you roll with the punches better than most signs, but that doesn't mean it's been easy. In the coming two years, your entire life will look different, with new friends, associates, and possibly a new position, home, or partner - or the whole kit and caboodle. It will be exciting, but change demands a great deal of adjustment, and that's been the hard part.

Not what I wanted to hear...

A Tale of Two Cupcakes

Yes, this past weekend I baked cupcakes twice. And since I have been a little lazy on the posting, here are two sets of pictures to drool over.

First, Pineapple Right Side Up cupcakes for my Saturday night dinner party. Single view.

And these are full size cupcakes for a change, not minis as I am want to make. Here is half a dozen.


For future bakings, I think I would like to try a lighter whipped pineapple mousse type topping. As yummy as the pineapple compote on top was, I think I would like a lighter sweet as to not overpower the delicious spicy cupcake below. I also got some critique on the use of the marachino cherries. I was told I should have used a half cherry and I had a couple people pick their's off, which I kinda don't understand, I think they're yummy! My only change with the cherries is I might wash them off a bit so I don't have the red juice drip on my cupcakes like you can see in the picture above.

Cupcakes #2
For work I decided to try my hand at the Chai Latte cupcakes. After several false starts finding out that I was missing ingredient after ingredient, I finally got baking. Mini's at work:(Yes, that is the 'marble' table in the breakroom)

Once again, I had a heck of a time with the recipe. I had to really play with the baking time as they seemed uncooked in the middle and I also feared that they were sticking to the lining. So I sprayed the liners, which then made them rise funny because of the extra 'oil'. The next morning they were fine, the original batch came off the papers with out any problem.

These were not my favorite but they were inhaled at work! Normally there are a few left in the main break room when I am ready to go home and I transfer them to a paper plate and they are gone by the next morning. The cupcakes were gone by 4:00. And I take a seperate container to the Design Factory since it is a seperate building and they rarely come up to the break room. Those cupcakes were gone by three, and I usually have to give them two days to finish and then there are usually a couple still there. Who knew?

Coming up next, an overview of my AZ trip and finally! some of my Mexico trip.

"oh hell no..."

Scanning the news today, I ran across this little item, originally posted under regional news on CNN.com. This story details how a 15 year old girl in Missouri has alleged that a sheriff's deputy sodomized her before returning her to a relative's house this week.

The "Oh hell no" part comes from the second line in the article. And I quote,

"This is a nightmare that any police administrator does not want to face," Jackson County Sheriff Tom Phillips said."

So, this is a nightmare for the police administration? Really? How about the teenage girl who no doubt suffered physical and emotional trauma from this act of violence that was perpetrated against her by a figure of authority? This dumb ass 34 year old deputy no doubt thought that he could get away with abusing a young woman while he was on duty, especially since he caught her out after curfew and she had been reported as a runaway earlier.

And then this idiot states how tough this is for the police administration...Wow, what compassion.

"There was nothing in his background that would indicate anything like this would ever occur," Phillips said. Because rapists look crazy and wear a big red 'R' on their chest and list rape as a hobby on job applications....

He said he wants the public to know that the sheriff's department is taking the allegations very seriously. That's comforting...

"Even if it's one of our own, we are going to begin an investigation thoroughly and quickly and take the appropriate action if it's necessary," Phillips said.

No charges have been filed. Phillips said he expects the case will be presented to the Jackson County prosecutor's office on Monday.

I wait with baited breath for a follow up on this case. Ain't gonna' happen.

This crap pisses me off.

What is wrong with people? part I

Some of you may remember back over a year ago when I would frequently post articles I would find on crime in the news from MSN.com. That was back when I was working at the newspaper and had way too much time on my hands to read the news online while I was at work. I have been having extra time at work recently but here I love my job and actually keep asking for more. Slightly different atmosphere. But I digress.

In this recent article on MSN.com, police in Reno, NV have arrested and charged Michael Straw, 25, and Iana Straw, 23, with Child Neglect because they were too busy playing Internet and video games to care for their two children, ages 22 months and 11 months. Say it with me, what is wrong with these people?

Both children were undernourished, one suffering from severe dehydration, the other from starvation. Both suffered from infections.

“They had food; they just chose not to give it to their kids because they were too busy playing video games,” [prosecutor Kelli Ann] Viloria told the Reno Gazette-Journal.

The American Medical Association has been discussing if video game addition should be designated as a mental disorder, like alcoholism. But they cannot come to an agreement and therefore, have not made a determination yet.

"Patrick Killen, spokesman for Nevada Child Abuse Prevention, said video game addiction’s correlation to child abuse is 'a new spin on an old problem.'"

Poor babies. At least the article reports that in foster care, both children are doing well and gaining weight. I am normally not a vicious person but I was glad to read that these 'parents' face a maximum 12 year sentence in this case.

Brooklyn Brownie Cupcakes

My co-workers better feel the love, I had baking problems this time and it is really hard to tell why. I changed to real cupcake liners (mini's from Michael's Crafts) and I followed the recipe's instructions to fill the liners all the way to the top. They turned out looking like this.


I can't serve these. So that was 2 dozen that were donated to the family. Which they appreciated. The next batched turned out like this:



Much better.

Interesting recipe, it calls for 2 tablespoons of Bourbon or whiskey. I used an aged whiskey, made the same year I was born. How is that for showing some love for a good bye party? So, is it a good thing that I have been asked to bake for an event or a bad thing?

Another Batch

So, I will get to my trip and the wedding I attended but in the meantime, enjoy these pictures of Chocolate Cherry Creme Cupcakes.

Before - yer basic chocolate cupcake

After - With Cherry Creme and Buttercream filling, topped with more buttercream, semisweet chocolate shavings and a maraschino cherry.

Minis! for work (over 2 dozen)
I made the large ones for a family dinner last night.

Yummy. And tomorrow I will be baking is Brooklyn Brownie Cupcakes for a co-worker's going away party.

Back!

So, most of you already know that after a day and a half of adventures at airports I finally arrived back in LA yesterday afternoon. I am back at work today (so tired!) but hope to have a real post and maybe even some pictures for you all soon.

Ciao!

Summer S'mores

Okay, here we have another batch of cupcakes, this time S'more cupcakes. New pictures taken on my new camera.

Topped with Vegan Buttercream, mini semisweet chocolate chips and a mini square of Graham cracker. The others in the background are also sprinkled with graham crumbs.

This will be my last post until 4th of July. I am leaving very early Tuesday morning (4:00 a.m.) and flying out to Mexico with my friend JW and her friend Valeria. Valeria will no doubt be my friend by the time we return. We are going to have a lot of fun and I promise to take a lot of pictures and share them with you all when I return. We will be going all over the place, Cuidad Victoria, San Juan de los Lagos, Guanajuato, Dolores Hidalgo, San Miguel de Allende, Puebla, Veracruz, Poza Rica, and Tampico. I still have several things to get done before I leave and boy, I wish I had taken tomorrow off of work. Course, I also wish that I was getting paid for my vacation time but we all know the old saying, "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride."

Buenas Noche y escribo luego.

Cupcakes

Here is a picture from last weekend. No baking this weekend due to bachlorette party craziness and general feelings of sickness and ickiness.


Sorry about the picture not being framed right, I am shooting blind since I broke the LCD screen on my digital camera.

Oh, they are Red velveteen cupcakes with vegan buttercream frosting. Half have crushed pecans, half without. They went like hotcakes.

Haven't felt like writing anything lately, been going to the gym a lot, so ti-ti.

Ciao...

Silence

Hey all, sorry I haven't been posting lately but we are having internet problems at home and I have been super busy at work this week. I have also not been able to read any blogger posts, so I feel very out of it. Some quick updates:

I have pictures to post of the mini- red velveteen cupcakes I made last week with special guest baker, Meesh. They went over like a house on fire at work.

I went to the gym three days this week, which is a new record for me.

Bought tickets to go to Mexico for a week with mi amiga JW and Meesh and I bought tickets to go to Arizona to visit Ms. B. Next on the ticket buying list is a flight to go visit Ms. S up in Vegas. I am going to have a fun and action packed vacation summer.

I am so glad that Rescue Me has returned to FX. So fantastic although I never saw season 1 or 2 and that is making it a little harder for me to watch season 4.

Gotta go, will write more later.

Random bits

--The cupcakes went over well at work. People really liked the frosting, which I personally thought was too...I don't know the right term, greasy maybe? I won't tell you what went into the recipe or you may not eat it [when you get the chance ;) ]. I was even asked for the recipe. Moral dilemma, do I share the recipe or tell the person the name of the book so she buys it herself?

--I am looking forward to making more cupcakes. I want to try a red velvet cupcake for a co-worker's B-day next. But that would necessitate baking tomorrow night and I am not sure if I will have the time or energy. After all, mi hermano tiene un cumpleano manana (I think the effect is lost since I can't include tildes and accents but I think you get the gist).

Also on my 'cupcake radar', pineapple right side up cake cupcakes, and black forest cupcakes.

--I keep crossing stuff off my to-do list. Yay!

--I LOVE Amy Winehouse. If you have not checked out her album, Back to Black, I highly recommend picking it up. She has this very old school girl group sound with modern lyrics. I love love love this album. Can't say it enough.

--Decided not to go to Minnesota for my MALCS conference this summer. Too expensive and there is some stuff I need to save for.

--Did I mention that the inside drivers door handle is breaking on my car? Yeah, right now I pretty much have to roll down the window and open my car door from the outside. It is kind of embarrassing. But I am taking it in to get it fixed this weekend. Car repairs suck, time and money.

--Went to the eye doctor today, my eyes were dilated. Good news, all is healthy and clear so they released me to my regular optometrist. No more having to drive to L.A. to see the doctor! Everyone is so cool in that office but I have to say, I had to advocate for myself in a way that I was just not use to in the doctor's office.

And that's all I have. I'm tired, so talk to you all later.

What I did today

Besides cleaning my room and reading a little,

Vegan Cookie and Cream Cupcakes with Vegan Cookie and Cream Buttercream Frosting. Okay, not really vegan since I used real oreos instead of a vegan style of cookie but what ev'. They are 2 dozen mini cupcakes that I am taking to work.

I'll let you know if people like them there.

The weekend went by way too fast. I'll try to write something real later.

2 English Men

So Zippersparks asked me an interesting question about my last post. He asked how I rate Hugh Laurie "in comparison to that guy you like, from Harry Potter." (He is referring to Alan Rickman as Professor Snape).

This made me realize that apparently I have a thing for older grumpy Englishmen who have very few redeeming qualitites.

And apparently I am not the only one who likes Alan Rickman as Professor Snape. Check out this site I found while looking for a picture to post...

So who do I think is sexier?

Hmm, do I have to pick one over the other?

Summer Lovin'

Had me a blast, summer lovin' happened so fast.

But seriously, summer is here, school is out and I for one am ready for some fun. It is nice to finally tackle some of that list of things to do once finals are over. Probably the most important and biggest change is reorganizing and cleaning my room. Not that it was horrible but I had stacks of books and papers on every surface of my room for the past month and a half. And the stacks of books were easily over a foot high, no exaggeration. It was simply a matter of getting what I didn't need out of the way while I worked on all the end of year projects.

So I bought a couple under bed bins (no more room under there - too many bins!), put away all my just for fum books and started shelving all the books I have been collecting over the semester that are related to what I am studying or that were given to me (thanks dad). Even with just the small chance of moving these books, my room looks much better and I am much happier. Now I just need to tackle all of the papers I have lying around. One step at a time.

And now a word about books this summer. I have a list of books that I want to read this summer to give me a better grasp of my major. I said the same thing last year and read maybe 2 books, if that. Well, I think if I keep bouncing back between one academic book and one book for fun and cut back on TV, I will be more successful this summer. For example, I reread "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" last week and I want to start reading Gloria Azeldua's "Borderlands" this week, which will be my academic book. Her work is cited way too often for me not to read it ASAP, especially since I have it in my possession. Fun, fun. And hopefully, I can do a little writing about each book as I finish it. I think the key there is to keep current with my writing because I know myself, if I don't do it right away, I won't do it at all.

In other summer goals, I have already made a basic vanilla cupcake recipe out of my new cookbook, "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World." Not bad. I can't wait to try some of the more complicated and fun recipes, like pumpkin chocolate Chip cupcakes with Cinnamon frosting. Sounds delish, no?

I also went ahead and preordered the next Harry Potter book. I have been debating if I wanted to preorder it and I went ahead and caved last night. What can you do?

Alright, I have to get going, I still have quite a few things I want to tackle on my to do list and the season finally of House M.D. is tonight. I really love that show, ever since Italy.

And I'm sorry, but Hugh Laurie is so sexy for an older guy.

Ciao!

Okay, Eww

Not that I wanted to return to blogging with a gross story but I've had it.

See, I have my laptop at work today and I am on my lunch break so I feel free to do a little writing. I have this coworker/friend/colleague/whatever, who is constantly ... I don't know quite how to describe it. Slurping, snorting... It is this horrible sound that I associate with having a running nose. You know, that sound you make when you have a running nose, don't have a tissue but are trying to keep snot off your sleeve? And it is constant. We work in an open area and it is really loud when he makes this sound. So gross!


All it makes me want to say is, Oh get a tissue already!

I will return with a real post soon. Cuz, "School's out for summer!"

Now THAT's a final exam

Met at Alcapulco to turn in our papers, the profe bought a round - ah the life of a graduate student - so happy right now...

Hey...

In all my whining over the past month or so about the papers I've been procrastinating on, I honestly have to say I love my life. Good friends, a job I love...I have everything I have asked for and been working towards.


Oh, in case you were wondering about the turn around, I have 10 out of 12 pages written on my paper, I just feel good this morning.

Procrastination

I just can't seem to get myself in gear. I've written about 6 pages, not in order, so I still have 6 to go. I keep getting distracted. Part of me says, I can totally pound something out late tonight but I like sleep. Sleep is good, especially overnight in big chunks. 'Sigh' I just have to make it through Tuesday night, I have another final that night that I haven't studied for yet either. But that is what Monday night is for...

Final Paper

Well, I have read most of my sources, or at least enough to be coherant for my final paper, due Monday night. Now all I have to do is write the dang thing, a 12 - 15 page position paper that has something to do with Communication and Technology. I chose to look at the way that technology has changed feminist rhetoric between the second and third waves. My paper is tenitively titled, "Feminist Rhetoric at the Speed of Light:Technology’s Effect in Rhetorical Strategies From Second Wave to Third Wave Feminism". How is that for a title?

I know part of my problem is, unlike many of my classmates, I actually felt it was necessary to read my sources rather than just wing it and look for quotes when I need them. I read some great articles and I wish that I had another week to read and sythesis but such is life. Ah well, back to work!

Better Living through Chemistry

Right now, I have two different chemicals battling it out in my system:



That's right, Alcohol and caffeine. Only one page left to write on my paper but I think the alcohol is winning. Nothing like a small glass of red wine to help you relax. And I can always make my paper coherent tomorrow, right? It's due at 4...

Buenas Noches

Finals Soundtrack

What I listened to today to get ready for finals:

The Anthem/Good Charlotte
Privilege/Incubus
I'm Alive/Seal
Believe[Radio Edit]/Elton John
I'm Afraid of Americans/David Bowie
Overlap/Ani DiFranco
Darkside[Non-LP Version]/Unwritten Law
Don't Stay Home/311
I Know/Fiona Apple
My Wave/Soundgarden
Drive/Incubus
Don't Stand So Close to Me '86/The Police
Blue [live]/Wham
Hotel/Tori Amos
Si Te Vas/Shakira

I don't wanna do my homework! I don't wanna!

2 weeks to go and I can't wait.

4 in 12

Wow. So I found out today that for the Teaching job I got next year, there are twelve positions total and only 4 were open for the fall.

I didn't know how tough the competition was. Of course, I don't know how many people applied but I can name two off the top of my head who applied but did not get accepted.

I really have been blessed/lucky, haven't I?

Friday Night

Long night, long week. Ready for bed, goodnight.

Oy!

The weekend was crazy and this week is more of the same. I hope to post more soon.

Oh, big shout out to my cousin Jefferson, congrats on our receiving your MFA this weekend. I really wanted to go but couldn't get away on Friday.

gym, gym, gym

Wednesday's suuuck [sing-song].

So I went to the gym last night, per my usual Tuesday night routine and JW took me through a leg workout. I woke up okay and did 20 minutes on the treadmill at the advice of mi hermano. I took my shower and now, oh it hurts to sit down. And I bet that tomorrow will be even worse.

In other news, I got everything done for my Monday and Tuesday class but I think I am in trouble for tonight's class. And this is the essay final that is due tonight. I just don't have the mental energy to do anything at this point in the week. I am going to try to write this paper today at work but I don't know if I can get it done. I will turn something in tonight but I may have hung myself on this one.

Hooray

Well, because my boss is so cool and let me clock out of work early so I could work on my paper, I finished it in the nick of time at 6:00 tonight. Turns out I didn't format it correctly but I have the excuse that I didn't take the class that everyone else has, so hopefully I can slide by with that one. I'll let you know how it all turns out.

One poster, a handout and an essay exam to go.

Screwed

It's 6 a.m. and I have a 6 - 8 page book review due at 7 p.m. tonight. I have the paper formatted, an outline done and the introduction written. I finished reading the book around 1 a.m. this morning. Yeah, I really screwed up this time.