Thursday, July 31, 2008

Sing Yellow Again!

At some point during our tenure at 152 Johnson Street, my roommates and I compiled a list. On this list were 10-15 men who we wanted to fulfill various tasks around the house for us, and when they weren't serving their duties, we decided would live in the basement. Some of these lucky guys were Jamie Oliver, who would be our cook, Hugh Grant, our butler, Patrick Swayze, our dance instructor…. The list changed over time as we became enamored of new guys but one was a constant. Chris Martin was to sing us to sleep every night. And we cackled as we used a British accent to whine 'But when are you going to let me go? I miss my children…', to which we would have obviously replied 'Shush Chris, sing 'Yellow' again!'.

He sang 'Yellow' to me on Tuesday night and it was amazing.

My friend Ash and I decided that we really wanted to see Coldplay as they were going to be in town, and braved the scalpers to finally score fairly decent tickets. The concert was absolutely amazing, the whole arena singing along and swaying to the music. Am now obsessed with the new album, most of which I heard at the concert. If you haven't listened to it yet, you simply must.

Yes his dancing was crazy, yes his voice is amazing and he held the crowd in the palm of his hand. I love going to concerts, the energy of the crowd, seeing what a band can do live… everything about them combines to create an experience that I always appreciate. Its taken a little while but I'm starting to really appreciate Montreal for everything it offers. For a long time I didn't see something I couldn't get in Ottawa, with less snow and a smaller commute. But this summer, getting to go to jazz fest, the beach, and Coldplay on a whim, has made me really appreciate what the city has to offer.

So of course I'm leaving. On Monday I'm off to the north of Quebec to do field work for my Masters, and I will try to use this blog to keep people updated. So stay tuned! I still have a lot to organize before I go, but am still not too anxious. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Weird. Definitely weird.

I leave for my field work in approximately a week and a half. I only have housing arranged at the last locale, and had to buy bear spray for this trip as a just in case, but still necessary, measure for the chance that I meet a bear in the forest. Not too long ago, all of these facts would have led me to FLIP OUT. Tears, sobbing, inability to sleep, gnawing of the stomach, development of nervous ticks, etc.
But while I am currently feeling some trepidation, I remain oddly calm. I can't affix dates of when I'll be certain places, so can't book accommodation yet. But it'll work out. The chances of me encountering a bear are rather small, in part due to me buying one of the more annoying bear bells ever but that's a GOOD thing! Any bears will hear me coming for miles and we will not encounter each other. Or they'll hear the ATV I've been down I'm going to learn how to drive into the bush (there's a real reason to flip out), and make themselves scarce.
Yes there is some nervousness, but its not chronic and its not debilitating. I'd like to say its because I had some sort of major epiphany, moment of zen, etc. but I didn't. Well, I kind of did. When my skin was keeping me in the throes of misery and I was a frequent patron of Google University, with it's vast repository of GROSS pictures, most things I consulted told me that stress was a major part of eczema. 'Stress?' I laughed. 'I'm a grad student, stress is inevitable!'
But while I know that most graduate students are often under stress, I had to recognize that the stress I felt and the way I dealt with it (ignoring until tears erupt or completely breakdown, lather, repeat second, third and fourth years of undergrad) were not healthy. So I took myself in hand and called the school counseling service, and requested an appointment.
I've since been having semi-regular appointments with a rather geeky looking, quite quirky, but insightful psychiatrist who has helped me realize that expecting everything to happen now and be perfect, yet always imagining the worst that could happen, is no way to go through life. I was very nervous about going the first time, and did actually burst into tears, but its a step I'm really glad I took. I wouldn't say its completely changed me, but adjusted my thinking just enough that I can get out of my head and enjoy my life, without expecting an avalanche at any moment.
Maybe one day I'll even manage to not be emotionally affected by contestants being kicked off So You Think You Can Dance before I think its their time. Perhaps I can work on that next week with my therapist, because thanks to my current state of calm, we're kind of running out of things to talk about.... nah, I'm sure I'll find a proper crisis before then. Kidding, really. (Or AM I?)

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Sheer awesomeness

You all need to check this out IMMEDIATELY!

Monday, July 14, 2008

Methods

Spend enough time with me and you'll learn that I LOVE to bake. Love to find new recipes, use old favourites, make a mess of the kitchen, harass my neighbours for more icing sugar (long story), etc. It's a stress reliever for me, which I didn't really understand until I looked back at the methodology I used to make banana bread this evening. At work, my methods have to be quite particular and precise, so as not to waste reagent, allow for cross contamination, etc. It seems that I want to rebel from time to time. Observe:

Locale: Montreal, Quebec – my kitchen

The instructions read (my actions are in pink):

I've assembled all the ingredients on the counter, along with my laptop currently blasting 'The Dance' by Charlotte Martin. I'm following a recipe I found on YumSugar (Lite Banana Bread)

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife (Look into flour container, realize there probably isn't the 2 cups required, so turn container upside down and whack the bottom to shake all the excess into the bowl).

Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk (Or a fork, considering as the whisk is in the large implement vase and is nearly impossible to force it back in after use). (Start and win a staring contest with your cat. Then rub in your win by chasing her around the apartment).

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 1 minute) (Realize you don't have a mixer anymore, so again employ the fork technique. Dance to the Pussycat Dolls 'When I Grow Up' as you do so. {WHAT?! I like them……}) Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana (Which had been frozen in your freezer for an indeterminate amount of time, causing your roommate to frequently ask if you were going to do anything with those {SEE Liz? You go away, I get industrious}. So these are frozen bananas that have been thawing, and kind of squelch out of the peel. Go 'Ewwwwwwwwwww!' as you extract each, causing the cat to look at you weird), yogurt, and vanilla (Spill vanilla all over counter, use bad words); beat until blended (Or until the end of 'Promiscuous' by Nelly Furtado. Already a classic).

Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. (Add chocolate chips as seriously, there is nothing better than banana and chocolate chips. Eat a few to make sure they're still good. Add more to bowl) Spoon batter into an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray (Don't have either in the cupboard but substitute square pan and margarine rubbed in with a paper towel. Rich in fiber!)

Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan (Drop onto plate as don't have wire racks). Cool completely on wire rack (Cut out a piece, try, and proclaim delicious. Cat still doesn't care but feel good knowing will go to a meeting tomorrow armed with baked goods. Wash down with a big glass of water and some anti skin itch drugs. My life is so glamorous….)

So I think I like to bake because it lets me hit things, dance around my kitchen and eat chocolate all to be sure that I deliver the best possible product to my friends and colleagues. I am so going to be a weird mom one day. (We'll get into my current unhealthy obsession with mommy blogs another day)

Monday, July 7, 2008

Amazing

Things that are currently amazing:

  • Fudgesicles. I don't mean that I am currently having a oh so chocolately popsicle but I had a lot this weekend and they made me a much happier person. I had a lot though, requiring the roomie to pick up some more on her way home because SHE is amazing.
  • The 'Restore Session' option when Firefox closes inexplicably (which is definitely not amazing or cool), especially when I've just found a really useful article I want to download…. And also preserving the blog I'm reading on the other pane, written by a woman who is finishing her dissertation with a 16 month old, pregnant with another one, thus is not allowed caffeine or alcohol and is thus my hero.
  • My air conditioner, its going to make sleeping so much easier tonight.
  • The feeling of getting stuff done, and taking steps forwards. Not that I'm not jealous of people in most of the buildings on the downtown campus who's water has been shut down and thus were sent home early *shakes fist*.

Its been a while since my last, rather whiny post. Since then I have improved a lot but am feeling itchy and blotchy again today, so made yet another dermatologist appointment. Hopefully will not go crazy before I leave for the field….