Dorm Room Culinary Queen

I am officially the Culinary Queen when it comes to Dorm Room food prep. At my disposal is a hot pot express (aka my new best friend), a kettle and a coffee maker. Yesterday I prepared the ever delicious mac and cheese (not easy mac!) in the hot pot express. Delicious and filling as I was able to eat an entire box. Today was more of a challenge, with risotto cooking in the hot pot express. While it did take a while to cook (20+ minutes) it is delicious, and filling, as well as an alternative to the repetitive nature of caf food. My beautiful creation can be seen above in my lovely new bright red bowl from Walmart. I have discovered that almost anything that I can do in a saucepan can be prepared in the hot pot express, so more culinary creations may be posted on this blog. I do have to say that it is becoming increasingly difficult to find vegetarian alternatives in the caf (I have been meat-free since September 5) so their will be more and more alternatives made in my room (stay tuned for posts involving my attempts at cooking vegetarian bacon).

On a side note, my impulsive side emerged yesterday, and I now have chunks of red in my hair. Maddie, Megan and Courtney decided that they were going to dye their hair yesterday, and on a trip to Billings Bridge, I decided to take a plunge and purchase L'Oreal's Color Rays "brush-on streaks" in Fuchsia Flash. As per usual, the end result was not anywhere near the color shown on the box, but I am happy with my reddish-purple chunks in my hair. I figured if I was to alter my hair color, it was go big or go home, and thus I went for a dramatic color.
My before shot, is pictured at the side, with me in my lovely frosh week shirt, and Maddie on the side. Apart from the "streaking party" not a lot is new in res. Have had a couple of relaxing days, with a trip to South Keys occurring yesterday prior to the trip to Billings Bridge. I now am in possession of all of my textbooks, as well as a fourth-year journalism student contact thanks to Chapters. It's good that I have all of my textbooks, as my work load is increasing slightly. I also played basketball this week with some guys on my floor, and my skills have not diminished entirely since I stopped playing two years ago. I was quite impressed with the fact that I can still shoot! My room is becoming increasingly organized with time, as I acquire more tools in aiding my lack of usable storage. I have my second weekly news quiz this week, and I am sure that I can't do any worse than I did last week, so I am not overly concerned with it. I have read an excessive amount of news this week, and I hope that I retain at least some of the details.
At side is the end result of my lovely hair. As well as a small glimpse at my res room (more pictures to come if Megan & I ever keep our room clean!) Plans for this weekend include donating blood on Friday, a trip downtown that evening to take pictures, and go out for dinner, studying Saturday, as well as a floor Toga party! Sunday will probably be another lazy day as was last week. I hopefully will be acquiring more images to post this weekend to show a better look at my life at Carleton.

Lazy Afternoon

I can't even begin to describe the beauty of Ottawa in the fall. One of these days I'm actually going to get out there and take pictures, but I keep forgetting my camera when I head out. So for now, I'll leave you with a picture of the tree outside of my window. I'm having a lazy day, I barely slept last night, but it was a good night. This weekend in general has been good, relaxing, awkward, exciting and full of random trips.

Friday I handed in my first assignment, a reading report for Mass Communications, that I may or may not have done correctly. After discussion group I came back, did laundry (yes, I am becoming slightly more domestic) before heading out to South Keys. I now have more food, and less money. The night consisted of watching a disc of Will & Grace (I'm finished season 2 now) and eating ice cream to cheer myself up, from my first real bout of homesickness. Followed by alcohol consumption and staying up till 2 am not really doing anything. Kind of a lame night, but feeling better about the fact that I'm not going home for Thanksgiving.

On Saturday, I went to the St. Laurent Centre, to a used book sale hosted by Friends of the National Archives and National Library of Canada (that is possibly the name?) I bought a cheap book ($1!), but the selection was not phenomenal despite there being a large quantity of books. I also managed to find a copy of The Rocky Horror Picture Show for $10, in order to refresh my memory of prompts for the Halloween viewing at a local theatre. The bus ride to St. Laurent is brutal. It takes an hour each way, through downtown and then some. However, it was nice to see a different part of Ottawa then I had previously. That night (last night) we watched RHPS, several people passing by were virgins, and many were scarred by the entire experience. Following this was a trip to Ottawa U, to several residences before heading down to Hull, to Le Bop. Standing in line for 45 minutes (or around there) was not fun, but it was definitely a better experience then standing outside of Cowboys for over that when it was freezing outside. Le Bop is unlike my usual clubs/bars in Calgary, especially in the fact that the bartenders are French. I didn't practice my French skills (I should learn double rum and coke in French and qualify that as my use of the language for the week). Finally heading back to res, arriving around 3 am. All I can say is that I'm glad I'm not in Glengarry as someone pulled the fire alarm and they were forced to go outside.

This morning I went out for brunch with Steph, Bryan, and some of their friends. I was too tired to make note of where we went, but it was pretty far away. A delicious four-cheese omelet, and three cups of coffee later I felt rejuvenated. Since then I've done pretty much nothing, I'm chipping away at Maus, and I'm part way through the second book. I'm really enjoying it (thanks for the recommendation Brett & Kevin!) and can't wait to sit down and read more of it. Plans for the night include reading news headlines and catching up on my work. Overall pretty good weekend, and only two more weeks until Thanksgiving.

Busy Life

It's beautiful here. I can't even imagine living in Calgary anymore, knowing that I would be bundled up, hibernating away from the thought of snow. Watching the leaves fall off the tree before they change to the beautiful yellows, oranges, reds of autumn. Here I can watch the tree outside my window change to a perfect shade of fall. It is still at least 20 degrees outside, constantly warm, enjoyable, making walking around campus pleasurable. Sun shining in my window, lighting up the room, enjoying the peacefulness of the morning before the construction begins.

For once in my life I feel like I actually enjoy going to school. All though the days are often long, and the readings consistently uninteresting, I enjoy knowing that I am working towards a goal that seemed unattainable for so many years. Still, my first assignment seemed to take forever, as the chapter was boring, and my concentration level low. I did finish it, and while it seems on the long side, I hope the quality of my work reflects the quantity of time I put into it.

Three hours of class today, fast-talking professor followed by a discussion group for the class. My energy level has been fading these last few days, and perhaps this weekend I may attempt to get in some much-needed rest. To possibly fight the confusion and just relax. Two books of an enjoyable nature to read, and newly downloaded albums to listen to. Add a possibility of enjoying a few episodes of Will & Grace, as well as brunch with my cousin and it could be the perfect way to unwind for the weekend...
...Or it could be wishful thinking in the chaotic atmosphere of residence.