Well, I’m not. I’m actually wide awake… and quite pleased with life. Who would have thought that one could pull off a B- in a class while failing 4 out of 5 tests (and the passing grade was a 67)?? All the scientists in heaven are probably crying right now as they watch me celebrate a positive outcome of utter failure in the dreaded Physical Science class. Well, let’s just hope that I don’t randomly have to teach a chem class when I grow up and enter the world of teaching. I never thought I’d say this, but thank you NCLB. Thank you for mandating that teachers be highly qualified. Hopefully that means I’m off the hook. Yes, it still ticks me off a little, but at least some part of it works in my favor.
That aside, now I get to relax a little– which involves running my guts out and working full time while occasionally enjoying some poolside sunshine. Yeah, relax a little. Work has many wonders to offer which may or may not involve getting covered in machine grease and/or paper dust, heavy lifting, getting a bajillion paper cuts, and reading the same signature of the same book over and over again until its committed to my photographic memory. The plus? Steely muscles and finally understanding the proper use of bleed zones, crop marks, and all that nerdy print stuff. I love it.
Now that it’s 2AM, maybe I’ll try to go to bed.
[RACHEL]
Filed under: Music, School | Tags: chill out, homework, Music, pink floyd, rock
Daddy raised me right… he showed me what good music was. In case you were wondering, it’s possible to trip out without illegal/harmful substances, just bust out the Floyd and you’re on your way to another world. I can’t tell you how many times I forgot I was doing homework in high school, due to my being completely lost in Pink Floyd. Those were good times. Pink Floyd helps me to chill out and get some rest on red-eye flights. Pink Floyd, contrary to the first statement about forgetting homework, provided me with the twisted state of mind required to make a web page that actually works. May heaven rejoice. Yes, Pink Floyd helps me to do my web programming.
Now, here’s a cool site where you too can get lost in the sound… it’s a little feature within the PF site called Oh, By the Way. Go and explore!
[RACHEL]
Filed under: food, life... | Tags: food, health, lentils, trader joe's, vegetarian
About a month ago my mom came to visit me at the Y. As is customary, she came with many goodies for me to sample. Among those was a package of pre-cooked vacuum packed lentils from Trader Joe’s. I stuck them in the fridge, and forgot about them. About a week later I saw them and realized that I should either eat or freeze them… because wasting food is bad. So I froze them. What the crud do you do with lentils?? Last night I was in a freakishly healthy mood, I’d just been out running and I wanted something to eat that wasn’t trashy. And, I didn’t have anything else to eat. So, out came the lentils. I thawed them out, and meanwhile searched the internet for a lentil recipe that sounded appetizing. After searching through a ridiculous number of recipes, I finally settled on one I found on 101 Cookbooks for Vegetarian Lentil Burgers. Not only were they fun and easy to make, but they were also very delicious and filling. I made my own toasted bread crumbs from whole wheat bread, and seasoned them with garlic Mrs. Dash and Italian herbs, because I didn’t have any bread crumbs on hand. I also added a little cayenne powder and garlic to spice things up. In addition, I held the salt for an extra measure of heart health. These burgers are heavenly! They would be great topped with sauteed spinach, mushrooms, and caramelized onions, and maybe a little Provolone cheese or grated Parmesan. I had extras, so I froze it in a ziploc to pan fry another day. I can’t wait to try these out again… this time I’ll actually have the tasty toppers I’m imagining would be so good 
[RACHEL]
ps. I also thought I’d mention that these TJ lentils are even good PLAIN!! That’s right, a treat straight from the bag. Who knew? I always thought I hated lentils, but this is the beginning of a new and beautiful love. Makes me wish we had a Trader Joe’s here in Utah.
