Wow, didn't realize how lax I had become in my blogging duties. But times have become quite busy in the morning lately, what with work and new routines. I do wish I could be of a mind to do this in the evening, when I'm relaxing, but sadly it escapes my mind. How odd, as I'm usually doing so many other things at night which are equally as taxing. Oh well, I promise to myself that I'll check in more frequently.
At any rate, this by far is my favorite holiday, and not just because of the d
Up until about a week ago, much of the North American continent was in a very gripping Arctic snap--so bad that it was likened to having a hurricane-type pattern of wave after wave of winter storms. Extreme bitter cold, snow measured in feet...yet on the West Coast we had nothing but gorgeous weather. Sunshine, spring-like temps...in February. Not really normal, although it was somewhat, in that we usually have a week or so of warm weather in this second month on the calendar. But not for li
Let the fruits (and vegetables) of summer appear!
Like a good Genovese girl, I have a basil plant in a pot in the backyard. It's a staple for me; if I only can grow one herb, it's Italian basil. The reason is simple: it's one of the few herbs which really doesn't hold up well when bought at the store and kept in the fridge. I've had a lack of counterspace my entire adult life, so that pretty much prohibits me leaving it in a mug of water on the counter...besides, Bella gets a bit too poss
I love it once mid-November rolls around. People actually start caring about each other and acting upon it. Ok, it should happen all year long, of course, but some is better than none, I guess.
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The other day a local news channel did a story about how food and money donations at the local food banks was horrifically low, so low that Thanksgiving turkeys were either in short supply or non-existent; at one major food bank in Oak
Well, it's official. I just sent off my first paper, with the hopes that it will get published.
Ok, let's not get our egos pumped up hugely here. It's a working paper, meaning that it's not posing a 'novel' idea per se, rather it's going to lead to a bigger, better paper. Also, the chances of it getting published are slim...you just can't expect everything you send off to be published. But still...there's a sense of accomplishment associated with this. I have officially taken the next
Sure, the song talks about the holiday spirit, the thrill of meeting up with family and friends, of enjoying a bit of Christmas Cheer as we celebrate a season of giving.
But, see, this also is a most wonderful time of year for the professorial types. It's the end of fall term.
Most of my grading for the semester is done...everything but the final exams and some wayward homework assignments that seem to find my mailbox on campus. And then...judgment day, or days, in my case; Monday ni
Boxes...they're everywhere.
Here...there...everywhere.
Empty boxes, waiting to be filled with all sorts of momentos and knick-knacks.
Partially-filled boxes, waiting to be completed, marked, and taped.
Full boxes, bursting at the seems, ready to be shipped off to their new, albeit temporary home.
Now I can't find a blessed thing, for all of these boxes are surrounding me!
First, if you've never heard of the Blues Brothers, educate yourself.
Well, for many years now I've been convinced that I'm a/the lost long Blues Sister. Yes, true, I never was an orphan growing up in a convent; true enough, Curtis and the Penguin were never my mentors in life. But the blues live within me. As does Rhythm and Blues. It moves my soul, makes me sway to the beat, and makes me want dress in black suit, white shirt, black tie, and Raybans. Ok, so I was born in the year that
So I'm in the dressing room of the gym, after a good workout, and I'm stripping off to go into the showers. Now, if one were to look at pictures of me, even if they only saw my face, they would guess (and correctly so) that I am prolifically freckly. Indeed, previous boyfriends have kidded around that they could play connect-the-dots on my body, and would be amused for hours. 'Tis true. Freckles and moles are all over, and have been since I was a babe. I have been made aware of my sensitive
It's hard to come up with a 'favorite month', but if I had to, it'd be August. Let's weigh the facts:
PRODUCE!!! The tomatoes right now are unreal...just the most amazing thing ever. I know people swear that canning tomatoes helps 'seal in the goodness,' but even the most awesome canned tomatoes pale in comparison to the goodness at my farmers' market right now. Holy Christ, I eat them as fruit. And that's nothing to say for the peaches and nectarines (surprising, as we didn't get qui
To all the Europeans who frequent the board and who occasionally read this blog, I ask for an explanation.
What the bloody hell is all the fuss about Eurovision?
First, there are countries in the contest that are not even part of Europe (Armenia? Azerbaijan? Georgia?). Now, I realize that there are many out there who would consider Europe and Asia as one continent, but even if we accept the fact that the word 'Europe' has a geographical connotation to it, much like the words 'Centra
It took 14 weeks...14 weeks of students who were so stubborn and, in some cases, ignorant...who continuously come to class despite being severely under the weather. And in this case, the maladies mostly revolved around strep throat and bad colds.
Yep, 14 weeks of my immune system fighting the tough battles. Of waging war against those horrific germs who were trying to invade my temple.
Finally...I have become collateral damage in that war against the ill-feelings that are typical wit
Valentine's Day is a bogus holiday, as far as I'm concerned. Why do we need one day for women to expect to be lavished with gifts, making their men suffer as far as what to do next? I really never did like the day; I'd rather celebrate with the one I love all throughout the year. And while in recent years I haven't had a person to share this pitiful day with, it never ceases to amaze me how many hoops men will jump through, and how many hoops women will put up for them.
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What's a girl to do? I've got leftovers of a seasoned long-grain and wild rice mix (which is excellent), and I don't really want a ton to eat. Well, you create new culinary delights!
Ok, that's going overboard...but somehow I got in my head that a Mediterranean Fried Rice was in order.
I've been making fried rice for years...it's actually really easy, but requires regular rice, either white or brown. Wild rice does not make for good fried rice, at all...it's too chewy, and doesn't abs
There are certain words in Old Castilian that occur in my dataset which I have traced their etymology...and they are Arabic borrowings. Not unusual at all; because of almost 800 years of Moorish rule, and the close contact between the Romance-speaking Iberians, the Jewish shopkeepers and the Arabic-speaking Moors, there's about 10% of the Spanish, Portuguese, and Catalan vocabularies which is Semitic (mostly Arabic) in origin.
So, I have about 8 words in my dataset which are Arabic in origi
Lost Warrior's comment about holiday traditions got me thinking about one in my family: Ramos Fizzes. Depending on who you believe, it was created in New Orleans (by some bartender named Ramos) or in San Francisco (prolly not true, but I'm sticking by this version out of sheer regional pride--and, yes, I truly believe that the martini was created in a bar in Martinez, California...screw NYC). Certainly the recipe in our family is a version of the ones more commonly known...the use of Peychaud'
The president of the college made a big but welcomed decision for today. It's the first day of classes for the spring semester, and of course everyone wants to watch the inauguration instead of going to class. So Tom decided that the main theater would broadcast streaming video of the festivities all day long, starting at 8am. I personally thanked him a couple of times; this was truly a community-building event, and he did the right thing. Many 8am classes came in and watched instead of doin
4 May 2007. That's the defense date. From now until the end of March, I'll be using any time I have that's not spent in the classroom or on the retail floor probably in the library, working furiously to finish my dissertation in full. The pre-defense went well--many comments, mostly that I need to focus more on my topic (I'm too talkative and vague...go figure lol), but my committee gave me very specific details as to how to hone this. But, overall, they liked what I had written so far...and
I want this on record: I have the coolest students ever.
My Intermediate Spanish class is a unique group. 60% of them are over the age of 50, and are taking this to better their knowledge...no requirements here. The rest are a mix of college-aged and teenaged students, taking the course for credit towards their school or degree. They all knew, like their colleagues in my other classes, that I was gone last week for my dissertation defense. But this class was different.
First, they bo
Spring has hit fully here in lovely California! Baseball is in the final tuning before the season starts, March Madness has hit the populace (and, yes, I got my brackets in...my normal one on Yahoo and another that I got dragged into). Hockey and basketball have hit their home stretches...and the playoff-bound teams are trying to jockey for position while the others are just trying to finish the season on a non-negative note. For a sports nut like me, this is one of the best times ever.
Baseball season is back! Wheeeeeeeeeeee! The grand spring tradition is here! Hey now, I love all sports (and I don't consider golf, bowling, or race car driving to be sports; they're amusements), but baseball always seems to tug at my heart strings a bit more. My Giants are 4-0--an amazing feat for a couple of reasons. One, well, they are the only undefeated team left (162-0, baby!...oh, yeah, right). But more importantly, compared to last year's DISMAL start, this is positively amazing.
Today I have been at a 4-year public university, having a second interview for an Assistant Professor position. I'm not tired; I'm not fatigued. I'm...wilted. Why, you ask? Well, let me tell you the schedule for the day. Note that I got **location censured to protect my chances** yesterday afternoon, and rested up well last night.
7:30am--picked up by the department chair
8:00am--meeting with dean--all talk by her, whilst I sat and nodded and listened
9:00am--meeting with selection co
For the completely ignorant, there is a vote going on...well, later tonight...regarding the institutionalization of a type of national health care system. To put it mildly, it's a hotly debated topic. We Americans have a very strong sense of "I am my own person"--basically, we are a wee-bit leery of people, particularly big governments, telling us how to live our lives. And yet we also are concerned with the "common good," such that we really don't want our fellow Americans to suffer and we r
Today is the beginning of...well, it's Spring Break for me, nothing huge. But it's still a bit of vacation time. There are no major plans this year, as the budget and smaller income has reduced my options. But at the very least I hope to go into San Francisco a few times and really enjoy myself. Among the activities:
--Going to the De Young Museum at the very least, as they have a King Tut exhibition that is supposed to be pretty good. Besides, I haven't gone there since they reopened a
Certain musicians have a hold on you...they get you early in life, and then stay with you forever. Not in a bad way...just that something about their work resonates with you forever. And everyone has more than one. For me, the list includes:
Duke Ellington
Jimi Hendrix
Prince
Yoko Kanno
Who's that last one, you ask? One of the most prolific Japanese anime and soundtrack composers and musicians ever.
The funny part is that I'm not an anime fan, per se. Quite literally 99.9% of it
