Uphill Climb

As I write this, I am frantically running back and forth to my kitchen, lovingly adding more chicken broth to my risotto and giving it a nice little mix. With a glass of wine. And then I intend to eat my risotto with chopsticks, because I haven't used them since I've moved to this town. So, it's more or less an average evening.

I have, as of late, but wherefore I know not (spot the nerd reference), developed an unhealthy obsession with Mad Men. I've stopped reading and now spend my free time completely engulfed in the lives of Don Draper and Peggy. Oh, Peggy. How did you manage to get yourself a private office, at 22, as a female in an advertising agency in 1960? I don't even get a door on my shared office. You're my hero. Let's be best friends.

OfficeMate and I successfully climbed to McAfee's Knob this past weekend. Well, climbed is a very strong word for what I did. I huffed. I sat on a log and was passed by children and people legitimately doing the Appalachian Trail with massive backpacks. I shamed OfficeMate by making him stop, too. He climbed. I huffed.Aside from my being shamefully out of shape (It was hot! I was getting over a cold! We only brought one water bottle! I ran cross country nine years ago! Doesn't that count for anything anymore?), the view at the top was absolutely worth it. The view is absolutely breathtaking, and I'm embarrassed it took me until now to get out there. It honestly is not that far from where I'm currently living. I am also now one of those cliche people with a facebook photo of themselves at the top. Sue me.

And finally, sadly, I've begun job hunting again. Much like my hike this weekend, I'm horribly out of shape. If you're a prospective employer, hey, what's up? Let's chat sometime. Job hunting is soul-crushing work. I've said it before and I'll say it again; the whole process is like a bad dating scene. "Hey, I think we'd be great together! I like combating (insert nonprofit mission statement here), too! We should get together sometime. No, I'm looking for something long-term. I think we'd work really well together. Please give me a shot! I THINK YOU'RE CUTE! PLEASE CALL ME!"

Ah, the joys of being back here, not even 12 months since the last time.

When I'm a Real Adult...

So my computer gave up. Last Monday, he just refused to turn on anymore. Awesome, right?

Luckily, I was Charleston-bound last week yet again, because my brother graduated! This also means that my parents were able to bring brother's old (and I mean old) laptop - an iBook from 2004 that shall suffice as my computer until I have a real salary and can invest in one of my own. They keyboard pops out. I don't know why. Apple, what were you thinking?? So I apologize for the lack of blogging last week - I just had no computer. But check out my new, sweet, top-of-the-line-seven-years-ago gear! (Stock photo since I'm afraid of asking this one to open a jpeg)

In addition to using a seven-year old computer right now, I am also driving the world's most sneaker-like Kia Soul, which I had previously only associated with hamsters. When Mr. Merlot got hit back in February, I played many a fun game of phone tag with various insurance companies, and last week the whole situation was finally resolved. Mr. Merlot is in the shop getting his bumper fixed right now. Fingers crossed that he'll get a new T out of this whole situation!

This Kia though... oh man. I've always mocked people with particularly boxy cars. The Nissan Cube, most Scions, and now I'm in one. A friend asked me if the Soul had any redeeming quality, and I told him the key fob had a beeper lock thing. That's sad for two reasons: 1, Mr. Merlot doesn't have a fancy key fob and 2, that's the best thing I can come up with about the Soul. Thankfully, it's only until tomorrow when I can be reunited with my ghetto Corolla.

It's not uncommon to hear me utter the phrase, "When I'm a real adult, I'm going to have (insert whatever I'm kvetching about my lack of at the moment)." The past week's events have swelled up the urge to write that list out. And so I bring you...

When I'm a Real Adult, I'm Going to Have:

-A car that's not a Kia. I love Mr. Merlot and he's allowed to join me in Real Adult land.
-A laptop that both works and is younger than 7 years old. This computer is older than brother's dog.
-A garbage disposal. No more peeling carrots over the trashcan and getting sad when they slip into strawberry stems and moldy leftovers.
-An ice maker, because making ice one tray at a time is sad.
-A dishwasher, because nothing sucks more than making a big meal and then having to wash every damn dish by hand.
-Central air conditioning, so that when it's 90+ degrees outside, I don't have to hope the itty bitty window unit can reach my bedroom.
-A toilet with a balloon in the tank and a handle that isn't held together by a rusting paper clip. Yes, you read that properly. I don't even know how my toilet is able to flush without exploding.
-DVR. Because no one should have to choose between House and How I Met Your Mother.
-A gas range. Not only do they cook more evenly and ensure you can cook after the power goes out, food doesn't get stuck on them and then later set off the smoke detector when you try to boil water.
-A double oven. I've never had one and can't help but imagine they'd be so helpful.
-A ceiling that doesn't leak onto my electronics. Or really, one that just doesn't leak at all.
-More than two chairs at my dining room table so that if you have a third person over, you don't have to drag over a chair from the living room. And if a fourth person comes over, they don't have to sit on the armrest of the third living room chair. As for five or more people... that's when we eat around the coffee table.
-A shower that doesn't go cold for 2-5 minutes while you still have conditioner in your hair or shaving cream on your legs.
-More counter space than the pittance I currently have.
-A washing machine and dryer in my house/place of residence. Laundromats with men who talk to themselves and machines that eat your delicates are just unpleasant, awkward and expensive.
-Windows that don't allow huge breezes in, forcing you to tape plastic bags over windows in the winter. (Our sail came down about a month ago, and our window is back!)
-Windows that don't shatter when you try to close them, forever scarring you and making you rethink shutting the windows in the future.

All that being said, I realize this is the time in my life to live with a leaky ceiling, tape plastic bags over my windows, and warn visitors about the toilet. "Don't be frightened if it sounds like jet engine when you flush it, and you don't forget to jiggle the handle after the bowl drains!" In all of the ghettoness, there's a level of endearing charm.

What I Did Over My Spring Vacation

Yeah, that's right, we're doing this grade-school, journal-entry style.

Day One
Day One was spent traveling around the region in search of antique stores with Brittanica. We ended up at an adorable store in Buchanan, VA where I irresponsibly purchased a ring, scarf and the world's best salt and pepper shaker. Buchanan is also a lovely town. I ended the day grabbing dinner with some fantastic friends.

Day Two
Day Two was rainy. Like, rainy to the point that OfficeMate and I had to have our trashcan ready for Ceiling Leak Part III. It didn't leak, miracle of miracles (did the repairmen fix the roofing issue? MAYBE!), but we were prepared nonetheless. Britannica coaxed me out of the apartment to see Jane Eyre, which was honestly fantastic. For any literature nerds out there, I was supremely impressed with this redentiion. This was also my first soiree with The Grandin Theater, which was just as quaint and fantastic as I had hoped.

By Tuesday night, I was beginning to feel slightly ill. I had initally chalked it up to allergies, but this was worse than allergies. I went to bed, and awoke to ...

Day Three
Sick. So very ill. Sinus headache, runny nose, congested beyond belief... the list of symptons could go on. How I got ill, I'm still not sure. My only adventure yesterday was to CVS to buy some Sudafed and a second box of tissues for the apartment. I played a few rounds of Mario Kart 64 with OfficeMate (who promptly schooled me), napped a lot, and enjoyed watching Barcelona beat Real Madrid 2-0.


Day Four
Better! Only one Sudafed today, and I'm still alive and kicking. I woke up early(ish) and began the dreaded job-hunting process. I have my resume ready to go and cranked out a few cover letters. (Okay, one. But I want to have more done before I go to bed!) OfficeMate and I deep-cleaned the kitchen and bathroom, because it seemed appropriate.
You know how I get antsy sometimes in this town, and turn to cooking? Well, after churning out the cover letters (...singular. Letter.), I high-tailed it to Kroger and got my grocery ON.

You see, a week or so ago, I bought a bunch of fresh basil for a salad I made for an office party. Since I'm not accustomed to fresh basil in my kitchen, I never thought to use it. I realized today that it was beginning to look a little wonky, so, with the assistance of OfficeMate's cashews, I made some mad delicious pesto. Who knew you didn't have to have pine nuts to make pesto? (These ladies. Best new blog find, seriously. I have an unhealthy addiction to food blogs.)

While making pesto, my neighborhood earned some street cred. The Po Po visited my building. Why, I'm still not sure. But here's a picture for proof! It also proves that I'm a creeper and take photos out of my window while trying to be sneaky about moving the curtain aside.
Day Five
We shall see! Tomorrow is supposed to be a glorious 68 degrees and sunny meaning... I want to get my hike on. Hopefully OfficeMate won't be too sick (my bad!) to go.

Travels, Nonprofit Rambles, and ... I miss my kitchen.

Charleston was lovely and sunny and the perfect place for me to go. Driving back, I encountered a fair amount of traffic, allowing my weekend total of hours with Mr. Merlot to hover around the 16 range. I know I say I love my car, but goodness. Enough is enough. Wait Wait Don't Tell Me podcasts and gorgeous sunsets as I approached the mountains made up for it, though. Enjoy this photo of radiant South Carolina.... or, the French place Brother and I got brunch at before my departure on Sunday. Don't mind Brother's awkward stance.

Upon my return to the office Monday morning, I learned that our client with whom I had dedicated much time to would not be renewing their contract with us for another year. There are an array of reasons why this makes perfect sense for both us and them, but I couldn't help feeling slightly glum. Their Executive Director is a phenomenal woman with nothing but dedication to her job, and I'll miss working with such a great person. It feels oddly like a break up, though. Coworkers have approached me asking to return things to this client, others come up and ask, "Is it true??" Let's just make it facebook official already.

I now, though, have more time to focus on raising funds for our office, something that is definitely needed. One of the caveats of being a 501(c)3 which offers fundraising services to other nonprofits is that it gets awfully complicated to factor in time and resources to raise your own funds. I've gotten incredibly used to writing grant proposals for underprivileged children with an educational focus, and now I have to shift that focus completely. This is good, though. I've already begun a draft for a contract with a new client, and the change in material is so very welcome.

I've already learned so much at this job, and while I know I have so much more to absorb regarding the nonprofit world and development in general, these are all things that I never could have learned in the classroom. Years of analytical papers regarding the Helsinki Accords and international theorists was all for naught. Don't get me wrong - I'm all for higher education, but it's amazing how many things you can't learn from a textbook or a scantron.

That was very work-related. I could also write about the delicious duck confit corn hash I had this weekend, or my mussels, or the foie gras ... but that would just prove that I had a fat French kid's weekend with Brother. Although, good Lord, I missed fat kid French food something fierce. It's good to have it back in my arteries. Sometimes I wish I could've done AmeriCorps in France. (Yes, I know that wouldn't work for so many reasons...)

I haven't legitimately cooked in a while. Sure, some quiches here, some generic chicken dish there, but once I'm done with these ridiculous travels, I'm getting myself back to trying more exciting things. I have a ton of pork chops in my freezer, and suggestions are welcome!

Pi(e), Sunshine and Bowling

First off, I would like to wish each and every one of you the happiest of Pi Days. Today, March 14th, is also 3.14. In honor of Pi Day, I convinced OfficeMate that we needed to stop at Kroger so I could procure the necessary ingredients to make chicken pot pie. I have made one other pot pie since moving to this apartment; it was a Kraft recipe and I am not proud of it. Why Kraft feels that cream cheese is an acceptable substitute for a rue is beyond me. This time, I went the legit route with butter and flour. ...and premade pie crusts. Don't judge. I'm still lazy.

Hello, lovely! Thanks for letting me celebrate a punny day!Second of all, Sunday was Daylight Savings - that thing we love in the fall and hate in the Spring. I went into it all optimistic yesterday (the 70 degrees helped) being all, "Hooray for sunshine!" I even went for a run! I know, I know!!

It was this morning when my alarm went off that I automatically subtracted that hour that had been stolen from my life and cursed Eastern Standard Time with all my being.

That being said, I welcome the sunshine. It is 7:20p and the sun is just now setting. I no longer feel the need to eat dinner at 5:45p with the old folks. I can come home and go for a run (ha) in the sunlight as opposed to telling myself, "Let's make this a short run because it's getting dark (and you're tired because it's been a whole five minutes)." With the sunshine comes warmth, green, life, flowers, and allergies. I bought Claritan the other day, but keep forgetting to take it.

Also, I have a ridiculous sneeze.
...It sucks to be my coworkers.

This past Saturday one of our clients, Big Brothers Big Sisters of SWVA, whom I made a shameless plug for here, had their annual Bowl For Kids Sake. Essentially, many teams go, bowl, and raise money for BBBS. All the folks at the office decided to get together and form a team, some even luring their spouses under what I can only assume were false pretenses. Many thanks to my gracious parents who donated $10 to my team. I, not being gifted with much athletic prowess, bowled an impressive 123 my first game (my second game's score isn't important). I also won a door prize, which is impressive if you know my family's lack of skill when it comes to winning prizes (for more information, ask my poor parents about years and years of Catholic Schools Week bingo). So, now I have $10 to a seafood restaurant located about 40 minutes away. Is it tasteless to use it at the bar? Maybe I can take OfficeMate and myself out to a dinner of an appetizer. Fancy!

That's neither here nor there. Here is our lovely team; photocred goes to the BBBS staff who was taking team photos. Except, the man in the red shirt wasn't on our team. He just wanted to be within a decent radius of us in an attempt to absorb some of our awesomeness.For more information on a great organization, check out their national site here. Hooray for shameless nonprofit plugs!

Also, a final aside, I assure you. I am over halfway through my AmeriCorps term. That is surreal. 'Tis all.

Enjoy the sunshine and pie, folks.

Geocaching and Kitchen Adventures

I spend a lot of time trying to find ways to pass the time in Roanoke. Generally, I get disillusioned after only finding information for shuffleboard tournaments and girl scout award ceremonies, but sometimes something comes up that seems legitimately interesting.

One of the blogs I follow, Rage Against the Minivan, mentioned geocaching. Upon further observation and some solid researching (thanks, Wikipedia!), I learned that it's really just a scavenger hunt for nerds. They even have a legit site for which you need a login. People hide waterproof containers in random locations, and then you get to find it using your GPS device. Or, in my and OfficeMate's case - our iPhones. Sometimes they're filled with fun trinkets, and the idea is if you take something, you leave something as well.

So we did what any normal 20-something in Roanoke would do (because honestly, there can't be more than like 5 more of us) - we went geocaching. There's a park-ish type area a few blocks from our place, so off we went. We began with the caches ranked one-star, or the most simple, and ended up scaling some serious cliffs, and later, walking on some now-out-of-use railroad tracks. Child-friendly? Please. Keep in mind, I of course, was not dressed for this occasion and was scaling cliffs in traction-less flats and trying to keep my Raybans from falling off my head.

After approximately an hour or so of this madness, I began to think this whole thing was a hoax. It was some master plan created by the internet to make two people in Roanoke look like idiots in their neighborhood and potentially trespass for the second time in two weeks. I also questioned whether this was a Peter Pan type scenario - that perhaps we were just too old to properly geocache - since it is really created for children.And then I spotted it. A flash of white inside a tree trunk. At first I thought it was my awful eyes seeing what they wanted to see, but no! It was there! A plastic container with a sheet to sign claiming you had found it, full of fun things for the taking. I took a magic capsule (currently growing into what I can only hope is a dinosaur) in exchange for an old cell phone charm from high school. Walking back to the apartment, we spotted the initial one we were searching for just by chance - of course. I still have a lone monkey from a barrel of monkeys that I need to give to another geocache, so there's still at least one adventure left in this department. Also, I'm telling myself this totally counts as exercise.

Meanwhile, in my kitchen...
When my sister came to visit, she brought with her a bag of spinach, courtesy of my mother. Not being sure what to do with it, I left it for a few days. On Monday, I used my fancy Epicurious app (quite possibly my favorite one on my phone) and found a recipe for Bibimbap. I threw in some spinach and carrots, and had to stop there for lack of space in my bowl. Now, I am far from Korean, and I've had legitimate Bibimbap two or three times, and while mine was not nearly as tasty, it was still pretty solid and not half bad for a Latina trying to be Asian for one night.

This morning, I made sour cream pancakes to rid myself of sour cream that had been building up since Mexican a few nights back. Also courtesy of the Epicurious app, and also delicious. All my culinary successes from the week (I OWNED that spaghetti!) had made me ambitious, and I decided to try a souffle. A spinach-mushroom Parmesan-Chevre souffle.

He's beautiful, as you can see. However, I folded my egg whites in all wrong, ruining the consistency towards the center. Seeing as he was my very first souffle though, I shall continue to be proud of myself.

Welcome to the Kitchen!

After Monday's baking fiasco, I took a break from my kitchen. Enjoy this photo/proof of my non-muffins. Yes, that is my pot of failure rice back there.

I went out to eat Tuesday and Wednesday night, something that is rarely seen in these parts. My eating out, that is. Last night, the kitchen and I rekindled our romance via porkchops brought to you by the New York Times. They were delicious and I highly recommend them.

Now, Tuesday night, OfficeMate and I were welcomed home by the sight of two boxes in front of our door. They were addressed to me, with no information regarding who possibly could have sent them. After Nancy Drewing the situation for a few hours, I deduced that they were from family friends. The boxes contained a massive crockpot and a super sexy hand mixer.

As a result, I would like to offer a warm welcome to my various new small kitchen appliances, both the ones that joined this week, and others that joined over Christmas.

Immersion Blender
This was a biggie on my Christmas wish list. He was a gift from my brother and, amusingly enough, I gifted him the same make&model. Mine came with a variety of fun attachments that includes a mini-food-processor type thing. It has proven most useful for making emergency breadcrumbs. The blender has been used for large amounts of various soups. Win. Also, not to be forgotten, although not new, my electric kettle that you can see in the background also holds a very special place in my heart. He is used CONSTANTLY, comforting me with tea and waking me up with coffee on a daily basis.



Mandolin Slicer
This bad boy assisted me in my potatoes au gratin endeavor, and you know what? They were delicious. Also a Christmas gift, he has the ability to slice things the same width, and mine even has the capacity to handle julienne strips! Fancy!



Crock Pot
Four quarts. FOUR. Seen cooking in there is my Adobo Chicken that will be ready for dinner this evening, circa 9pm, probably with rice, if I can get over my scarring rice experience from Monday. I can't get over the size and sexiness of this crock pot. It even locks, so I can bring it with me without spilling things. Brilliant! I'm going to be getting my slow cooker ON these next few weeks.


Hand Mixer
We eat a lot of potatoes. Generally as a result of my making a ton of homefries on the weekends. I've made mashed potatoes a few times but get discouraged when I have to mash them with two small forks. Now, I can mash 'em with a hand mixer! Also, I intend on using him to conquer my fear of baking. I have a carrot cake recipe lined up, and together, the hand mixer and I will defeat baking!

Also, I bought an iPhone. Irresponsible spending? I like to think not. I budgeted for it! Get stoked for a comparison update of old phone vs. new phone when it comes in. I fear old phone won't stand a chance.