Happy May!
I'm starting off the month right. I've already: voted early, been invited to TWO (2)!! potlucks, moved out of my dorm, moved back into my home, tried to break my thumb, bought new earrings, and been to the library.
Right now I'm making a cobbler of sorts (at least, that's what I'm gonna say it is). It's peach slices, blueberries, and yellow cake mix. Seriously, that's all it requires. You can see the recipe here at The Pioneer Woman Cooks which is by a lovely woman named Ree who produces wonderful, fattening recipes that I am dying to try out. Now that I have the time, I (and my lucky family) will certainly be trying these out. She uses cherries and pineapple in her recipe, but reading through the comments encouraged me to try out my version. We'll see how it goes! This recipe is being specifically made for the first of two potlucks I'm going to. Jared's Cinco-de-Mayo potluck requires nothing more than a dish of food to share and a willingness to be yelled at in Spanish.
The next potluck is on Saturday - a going away party for a friend of mine who's moving to Colorado. He's decided on a Western theme, so I bought a four dollar hat to match. What I can't figure out is what to bring. I was thinking about lasagna, but then you have those weirdos who want to know what's in it and if it's vegetarian and nitpick about how their mommas make it and I'm not sure I can take that. Mac and cheese is starting to look better and better.
I did indeed vote early. I voted for Obama, if you must know. I'm a fan of his idea about opt-out savings, which takes advantage of the idea of inertia. As you know, most people are lazy. Some are only a little bit lazy, others are professional couch potatoes, but we all are. His idea about saving for retirement means that employers would be required to put their employees in a 401(k) immediately, at a 3% rate of savings. If you decided you didn't want to do that, you'd have to opt out. It's the same sort of idea that put USA Today at the top of the most-read newspaper list. By working out a deal with hoteliers, that USA Today that arrives at your door right before checkout is an extra 75c. Hardly anyone will call down to the desk to say they didn't order that, they didn't want it, and could the hotel please take it off their bill please? So, inertia works. It also doesn't work, if you see what I mean. (Har-dee-har-har)
It was the moving out of my dorm that made me almost break my thumb. I had lofted beds that I was required to lower to knee level. Apparently they had booked an elderly camp of sorts and thought they'd get free labor out of all the college kids before they left. Well, I put in an effort, a strong effort, and managed to catch my thumb in between the bed frame and a rubber mallet for my trouble. In a matter of moments, I had a purple egg growing. I gave up about ten minutes later when I determined that not only did I need my thumb to do this sort of thing, but that I couldn't work through the pain anymore. I went home and iced it. There's still a serious bruise, but I think I'll be ok. Nothing broken, at least.
I finally started my summer reading list after reserving a bunch of books online a couple nights ago. They all arrived at Cameron Village Public yesterday, and today I went to get them. I picked up The Children of Henry VIII and The Life of Elizabeth I, both by Alison Weir, Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw (the basis for My Fair Lady), Hotel Du Lac by Anita Brookner, and Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. I'm always excited by the prospect of new historical fiction (especially about the Tudors), but the one I'm most looking forward to out of this batch is Fried Green Tomatoes. I had the movie as a kid and loved it. A lot of my family is from Alabama, so this is right up my alley, and I'm thrilled to be reading the book version of a favorite.
Yesterday I went to the Handmade Market. It's a huge conglomeration of all things handmade from right here in Raleigh, and it was amazing. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling well at all, so I didn't stay long. I did buy earrings, which are beautiful and delicate, muted tones of dangling stones. I think my body just decided to crash after all the stress of exams and the like - my throat felt like it was coming out of my mouth and I couldn't speak to save my life.
Welllll, that's it so far but it's only May 4!