The peach-blueberry cobbler/cake thing that is not my dissertation

Procrastinating because I don't want to do anything to prepare for my final defense (Monday, August 3, 10:00 a.m. -- keep your fingers crossed, pals!).

So, what to do, what to do....

Bake! Layer of cake, layer of peaches and blueberries, layer of cake, a drizzle of vegan margarine, and a sprinkling of sugar.

Before:





After:

The delicious regional soda that is not my dissertation

One of my pals found this in western PA and was kind enough to share both a 20 oz bottle and a 12 oz can with me.



This stuff is genius! It's white birch beer, which is supposedly why it's clear. And it packs quite a wallop, with a sweet bite to it. Extra points for it possibly being the fizziest soda I've ever ever ever had. I usually drink fountain sodas to get the major carbonation I'm craving, but this one was super fizz-ola in both bottle and can forms. And the best part, perhaps, is the fabulous story of the Pennsylvania Black Bears on the back label.



Love, love, love.

Mr. J. Pete Nardi,



I'd like to shake your hand! And drink more of your soda. Who can hook me up?

The vegan twice-baked stuffed potato that is not my dissertation

jealous?

I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on these pots all day.

Seriously, y'all's. I have a problem.

All I want to do is cook. Breaded, Italian herb-crusted tofu. Tofu with lemon and capers. Baked tofu with soy and ginger. Brownies. Cookies. Pudding. Tomato sauce with fresh basil, chili flakes, and kalamata olives. Lemon garlic broccoli with chili flakes. Tofu omelettes. Vegan meatloaf. Mashed potatoes. Gravy! Potato enchiladas with green chili sauce. Lasagna with tofu/spinach mousse. Spaghetti sandwiches. Lemon bars. Custard-y fruit tarts. Coconut cake with lemon curd. Pot pie. Mujadarreh. Split pea soup. Kale-lentil stew. Bread. I want to use my new pots and pans, my tiny baby whisk, my mini muffin tins. I wake up at night with recipes in my noggin. Too many to write down.

Instead, I think I'll work on my results section. Guess where my heart is(n't).

Foodie Dreams

Why am I doing a PhD? Pre-grad school, I had decided I'd try opening a vegan restaurant if I didn't get it. I got in, and I've gradually become more aware of really wanting to open a place where I can serve food to people. It makes me happy. Maybe post-doctoral career?

The goal: vegan lunch counter complete with blue-plate specials (I'm a southerner, for crying out loud) that makes a foray into fancy schmancy in the evenings. Everything would all be from scratch, including the bready things and desserts.

What would you want to be on the menu?

What I Did During My Bronchitis-Themed Staycation

Tuesday: Doc-in-a-box says, "Girl, you sick!"



Wednesday: Sleep. Take Drugs. Sleep. Sleep. Drug. Sleep. Does anyone else get hot-face when they take Prednisone? It's ooky.

Thursday: See Wednesday. Bake 4 loaves of bread (3 edible ones), motivation unknown...



Friday: Begin to feel stir-crazy. Not better, just stir-crazy. Make ill-advised late morning trip to 'burbs to stake out stainless steel cookwear. Go home empty-handed. Return to mall on Friday night to enjoy teenagers ogling each other. Adorable, actually.

Be in right place at right time to tell young lady (25?) that her tiny dress has inched up to her waist on one side, baring her unclad cheek to all. I think I was the only one to notice. She was appropriately horrified.

Return home with Emeril's 10-piece set. I can't stand the man, but All-Clad's done good with this one.



Also, snuck in a Martha cookie dough scoop. Can't wait to use it! Because I'm a dork!



Ate perfectly spicy kung pao tofu. Smoky peppers = amazing. Do you eat them? Or am I the only one?



Watched Ghost Whisperer. See "dork" comment.

Not bad, huh?

What's your week been like?

Half full

Being positive is hard. See? I was just negative about being positive. Oops. I've been trying to be more positive lately, and it's been a challenge. It's alerted me as to just how negative I am. I can't imagine that I'm all that pleasant to be around, what with all of my complaining and my negative attitude and such. I'll keep trying, but no promises. I mean: I'm sure it'll be great! I'm also trying not to swear, and it's really tricky, that one. I've tried before unsuccessfully. I think I may have been a sailor in a past life, and I brought the mouth with me.

Anyways, I'm getting out of town for a couple of days and I'm so excited! I haven't been out of town just for fun in quite a while. I think it was in late May when I went to San Francisco for a conference and stayed 4 extra days for a mini-vacation. Which was awesome and incredible and briefly made me want to be a northwest coaster. Then, I looked up cost of living info, and that's just not gonna happen. I've got student loans. And a habit of eating. Plus, I'm a tad nervous about earthquakes and giant wild fires. But that's just me.

So, NY here I come! When I get back, I'll review the MVP bus company (supposedly there's wifi on the bus for those of us who have panic attacks when we're away from the internet for more than an hour at a time) and all of the delicious food I eat (vegan Thanksgiving and veggie dim sum!). I won't review the couple of friends I'll get to see, as that might be inappropriate and anyways, I expect that seeing them will be a five star experience. See, I'm all about being positive.

My, but you've changed.

Where have I been (when not oversharing about leg grossness)? Not procrastinating! I've surprised myself, my friends, and my advisor by actually doing some work on my dissertation. Weird! I might actually finish the program one day. A girl can dream...

I've also been doing a hella lot of cooking. I think it's fall motivation. Soups galore, blueberry oatmeal crumb bars, and plenty of other yummy stuff. Yay for fall!

Well, I think I'll go do some laundry and draft a general cover letter for job searching purposes. Ah, the exciting life of a grad student.

Things I thought about last night when I couldn't sleep

1. Games to play at a bar or in your nearest hipster hangout:

Hipster or lumberjack?
Hipster or Matt Dillon's character from Over the Edge?

2. How delicious would it be to pan fry patties made from vegan cheese grits and serve them with collards and red-eye gravy?

3. I really need to get a back-up drive for my dissertation stuff.

4. OBAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!




The end.

PS -- send cupcakes

Seriously, folks, I'm dying over here! Must have!