Zzz.

I don't think I'd have planned a huge bbq chez nous for tomorrow AFTER THE 10K RUN if I'd known how wrecked I was going to be after my exam today. This paper/exam block has been more exhausting than any other. Is this what upper-level-undergrad is? Soul-sucking?

Anyways, it's 8:30 and I think I'm allowed to sleep now.

Anatomy of a berfday

So I got up and went to the gym, because berfday or no I still have to run ten K's on Sunday, and a fatter me = brokener knees. So...boo.

But Joel brought me these! I have got to look into getting a real vase so I can stop putting my flowers in that fancy glass I jacked from Red Robin. So yay.

And then I studied Chaucer for eleventy hours, because berfday or no, I still have to write an exam tomorrow. Booo.

But then one of our Perpetual-Bedroom-Ceiling-Spiders made the mistake of crawling onto a side-wall, and I killed it with Joel's moccasin *shhhh* and the other PBCS seems to have died of its own accord, so when I go to bed tonight I won't dream of leggggggs on my face. TRIUMPH!

And then the mail came and my berfday card wasn't in it, because berfday or no, CanadaPost is still run by monkeys a monopoly. Booooo.

But then the sun came out, and I made Chaucer come outside and hang out with me there. He is made of paper and only weighs thirty pounds, so I get to boss him around like this. Wheee!

And then Joel came home and we had to put on grown-up clothes and go to this...dinner...thing...for some project he's doing, because berfday or no, I am a doctor's wife.

.

But I didn't have to cook, so score one for me!

.

But whoever DID cook was a fish-happy moron, so I just had soup, except that the soup was clam chowder, so I just had salad and a biscuit because berfday or no, fishes are gross.

.

But then I went to bed and had exam-mares for the last time this semester....we'll call that one a draw.

.

Overall, I've had worse birthdays, but I've also had ones that didn't involve so much fish and Middle English. But Joel's going to take me whale-watching, so zoot zoot in the end.

Serenadator!!!

Ok, if you haven't heard of Susan Boyle by now, I'd like to know how much rent you pay for that rock you've been living under, and if you aren't totally sick of her by this point then you obviously don't spend as much time trawling teh intarwebs as I do.



But if you're looking for a new little someting to blow your minds, I recommend you check out Shaheen. I know, we are busy people. Please just watch til about the 1:07 mark. Then you may re-affix your jaw to your face, and go on about your day.



For the record, however, my favorite big-voice-small-body is still Bianca Ryan from three years back. This girl could use a stylist who doesn't take her tips from my 7th grade graduation, but she's got CHOPS!

And it was a good time.

What did we do for our anniversary?

We slept in and did not go to the gym, and it was awesome.

Then Joel went to school, because that's what he does. I cleaned the house, which sounds kind of shitty but you know when the messes and piles and stains have become a part of the house, and it's almost a legitimate option to burn the whole thing down and start over? I feel like I've just showered after not having touched water for days.

Then we took our gift cards and went to Boston Pizza to watch playoff hockey. It was like our honeymoon all over again, except with better beer. Also, the Canucks won.

Two and counting

Two years ago today I woke up at six so that someone else could do my hair and make-up and my minions could pack my bags (you guys were such good minions) and I could go get hitched.

One year ago today we were living in Dave and Shari's basement in Abbotsford, going to fishing derbies and food fairs and not knowing if Joel had gotten into med school.

Then Joel graduated...

...and then became a dementor.

Just joking. That dementor part never happened. But he did get into med school, which was a huge relief to us all.

(You can't tell, but that paper says 'You got into med school and may proceed to feel awesome about it.)

Then we moved in with Joel's parents for a few days, and ate all their food and stored all our stuff in their spare room while we went to Mexico.

Then we moved to Mexico, where we ate many sketchy meats and exotic fruits and I turned out to be not as allergic to cats as I had always claimed.

And then Joel turned into Sub-Zero.

Ok, that didn't actually happen either, but we did get to watch a surgery.

And then we moved in with my parents for a few days and ate all their food and rummaged through the stuff we'd been storing in their garage, and threw a bunch of it out.

And then we moved in with an enormous cat in Vancouver.

I know, the picture quality on this one is terrible, but I need you to see how massive this cat is. Also, how tiny our bed was. Joel is not a small man.
.
Joel went to med school for a semester, and I did yet another semester of please-let-this-transfer.
.
Then we went for a bit of a ski.
.
Then we braved the Great Blizzard of New Years Day 2009 (a holdover from the Great Blizzard of Most of Christmas Break 2008) to move to Victoria, where it never snows and is always Christmas.

Now we live at Mile Zero, Beginning of the Known World. I have (almost) finished a full semester of Courses That Will All Apply To My Degree and Joel has (less almost) finished his second semester and first full year of med school. We are settling in and making friends and getting library cards and throwing lavish bbqs on our deck. Also, we have a deck.
.
It has been the longest year, and I mean that in the best way. Here's to longer, better ones to come.

From my Outbox

Dear SparkNotes,

Thx for helping me pass more of my exams than I care to admit.

Luvvvvv, Raych


Dear Blog,

I have an exam this afternoon, but then I have a gap until the next one. I promise that somewhere in that gap, I will write you up the story of how Robyn and I visited many museums. There will be fotos.

Love Raych


Dear Facebook Profile,

I'm sorry I had to change you out of 'Pirate' and back to 'English,' but I had to create an event and I couldn't figure out what you were telling me to do. It is a measure of how long you've been piratized that I still think of events as 'grogfests' and am not entirely sure where to click to see my own profile.

Love Rrrrrrrrrrrrraych

Do you hear them chomping?

These exams are eating my soul.

How to make elaborate treats!

How to make excessively elaborate Easter treats, by Robyn and Rachel.
.

Set aside entire afternoon. You will need it.

.

Don stylish reversible apron.

Or stylish eyesore.

Cream together half a cup each of the following things: margarine, peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar. Toss in an egg. Also, half a teaspoon vanilla, one and a quarter cups flour, three-quarters teaspoon baking soda, and a half-teaspoon salt. Mash together but good, throw in fridge until later.

.

Toss coconut into oven. Crank oven up to arbitrary heat, because you think you know what you're doing. Turn away for a split second too long. Remove burnt coconut from oven.

Doff aprons, run to store to pick up more coconut. Toast properly this time (at, like, 275, checking and stirring every few minutes).

Pull peanut butter dough out of fridge. Roll into balls, toss in greased mini muffin tins.

Bake at 325 for 16 mins. Take out and IMMEDIATELY squish down with measuring spoon or melon baller or something suitably round-backed, to make delicious cookie cups. Let cool five more minutes, then pop out of pans.

Take deep breath and prepare to be freaked out. Throw a cup of butter, a half cup of corn syrup (corn oil won't do), two cups of brown sugar and a teaspoon of salt into a pot. Bring to a boil, stirring.

STOP STIRRING! Allow to boil WITHOUT STIRRING for five minutes. This will go against any basic kitchen instinct that you have. You will have minor heart palpitations. You will hope that you can still salvage the pot after you get THIS MESS out of it.

Realize that nothing bad has happened, sigh of relief prematurely. Remove caramel from heat. Add a teaspoon of vanilla extract and a half teaspoon of baking soda. Let out a little screamlet because you forgot that this causes fizzing. Stir to combine.

.

Set up an assembly line of your cookie cups, caramel, and coconut (only dip out a bit of caramel at a time, as it will cool within MINUTES and this will take you a lot longer than minutes).

Dip rim of cup in caramel, then in coconut. Poof! A nest.

Fill nest with caramel, add mini-eggs (the micro-mini eggs work particularly well).

Stand back and observe your opus.

Look smug, and then share, because you will have MANY of them.

Robyn and Rachel have a Rumpus, part I

Hello chatzlings! As promised, Robyn came to visit and we had a rumpus. If we are FBF's, then you've probably seen photos and know that most of what we did was feed the bunns. But we did other things, and since all I'll be doing for the next 3 weeks is studying, I figure I'll spread our adventures out. Also, more posts = more pictures.

SO!

On Monday I went to school to look over my papers one last time before deciding that I didn't care any more and handing them in as-was. I may regret this when the marks roll in, but my brain was broken and my eyeballs felt like sand.

Robyn showed up around noon and we drove downtown to walk along the water and smell the waffles and generally remark on how beautiful Victoria is and what idiots the drivers are and how downtown doesn't look like a downtown at all, and why is this sign here?

We went into the Parliament Building, which was mostly full of perturbing signs and doors that said Do Not Enter. Also much Canadiana.

We checked out Russel Books and found this whole wall of General Fiction that I've never noticed before, distracted as I was by the OTHER wall of General Fiction on the other side of the store. Trust me to miss something this massive.

We snagged a bag of baby carrots and went to feed the UVic bunns (in a blatant flout of the many signs advising us not to). Things started slow, with a lone interested bunn, but pretty soon word got out and we were swarmed.

Excuse the darkness of photos. Dusk is prime bunn-time.

And then it got full-dark and then there were mosquitos and then we went home. Stay tuned tomorrow (or the next day! Or, you know, whenever) for the Day of Many Museums, or How to Make Elaborate Easter Treats, or something else!!!

It's like I'm in two places at once.

Guten tag, mes amis! While I was over here writing papers, another article I writ flew into the intersphere. I wish for all the world I could take credit for the title, 'Joaquin a Fine Line', but I would be a lying dirty bastard. Kind of like Joaquin.

What I actually do all day

While I'm over here puzzling out representations of the polymorphous body in 16th century literature, you guys can all go check out my new hero. Now even the aurally-impaired can enjoy everyone's favorite crazy ex-Mouseketeer.

(September, this is mostly for you.)

A nibble to get you through the weekend.

I know. I know! I pretty well am a food blog these days, except not one of those awesome ones that posts regularly and with recipes and pictures of the step-by-step process and a witty commentary and so on. But other than make tasty treats, I've pretty well just been writing papers for the last six days (two due yesterday, two due this coming Monday).

.

Next week I will have many interesting things to post. Robyn is coming for a visit, and we will get up to all kinds of mischief.

.

Until then, enjoy these pictures of times when I am a genius (i.e. put cookie dough into brownie batter):

times when I am predictable (i.e. make cinnamon buns because they are impossible to make wrongly):

and times when I exhibit how little I know about working with cream cheese (i.e. make undercooked brownies topped with delicious runny goop, which I totally saw as not one of my shiningest hours, but which one of Joel's classmates said were one of the BEST THINGS SHE HAD EATEN IN LIFE! So.).