Cooking Double

So you know what's cool? When you find a recipe you really like, then find that it can easily become another recipe. The other night, Zan and I decided that this recipe from The Pioneer Woman looked simple and tasty. After a bit of a stressful time at the grocery store(s) buying the ingredients (Trader Joe's doesn't carry fettucini noodles, fyi, had to go to Harris Teeter), I returned home ready to cook. The creamy tomato pasta turned out pretty well, but I think I put in too many red pepper flakes because I underestimated their potency. Luckily, Zan really likes spicy things, so he thought it was great. I was a bit disappointed as I had been looking forward to a milder sauce, but the more I ate, the more I thought, this tastes vaguely familiar...

Then it hit me! This was the base of a tikka masala! There was a lot of leftover sauce (expect to eat this for a few nights if you are cooking for two), so the next night, using the leftover sauce from the original recipe, complete with its spicy red pepper flakes, I made tikka masala. To make the tikka masala from half the original recipe, here's what to do: first, add about two tablespoons more cream, a copious amount of garam masala, probably at least two or three tablespoons (I didn't really measure, as I was experimenting, so judge it for yourself), about a tablespoon of coriander, half a tablespoon of black pepper, and a teaspoon or so of tumeric. Mix it all together, add chicken, pour over white or jasmine rice.

Yep, it's just that easy! Use your imagination with most foods/recipes and you'll find that you can make easy delicious meals from simple ingredients!!!

(Photo from The Pioneer Woman)

Tea with Alice

Having tea out of this gigantic teacup makes me so happy.


I can't imagine using any other mug, teacup, or thermos. Nor do I like to imagine mornings (and some evenings) without tea. Alice in Wonderland is one of my favorite Disney films (the animated version, I mean), and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass have been favorite books of mine since elementary school. I adapted the story as a play and directed it in my third grade class. I even took a course devoted solely to studying the works of Lewis Carroll and their musical adaptations my senior year of college; I wrote a set of villanelles about the Jabberwocky, Jub-Jub Bird, and Bandersnatch.

All of this to say, it's fitting that I take my tea in an Alice teacup.

Butterfly in the sky...

Is it a problem how much I love watching children's television programs on PBS in the morning? And how much I miss getting to regularly watch Sesame Street, Clifford, Arthur, and Reading Rainbow? Oh, and Lambchop and Wishbone!!! And then all of the adorable shows on the Disney Channel, like Under The Umbrella Tree. I think this all started up again when I was children's book shopping. The Cat in the Hat just came on! Ahhh, nostalgia.

Also, Sesame Street just keeps getting cooler. If you want the happiest, cutest laugh of your day, watch Celebrity Lullabies with Ricky Gervais and Elmo.

Hidden Gems; or, The Art and Mystery of Microfilm

Yes, that title was composed in the style of an eighteenth-century play title. What can I say? I've become completely enveloped by the 1700s. Whether for my masters or for work, I'm daily immersed in that longest of centuries. In the past two weeks I’ve read more books than I care to list regarding my thesis, and I’ve begun The Sylph by Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire (oh, it’s scandalous and wonderful!).

But this entry is about my job: I'm a research assistant for a blind doctoral student. I read microfilm for her since, clearly, she cannot, and then put the information into a document which her computer converts into a form she can access. Right now I’m in the process of going through the Court Order Books of a county in western Virginia from the last half of the 1700s. The Court Order Books are pretty much just how they sound: records of the proceeds of the court. They include all types of cases, from servants running away, to women having bastard children, to acknowledging deeds of lease and release, appointing constables, clearing roads, cases of debt, attachment, trespass, slander, and even the odd few of people affronting others in the Court Yard or cohabiting with someone else’s wife. Primarily, I’m looking for cases involving apprentices, such as children being bound or getting a guardian. Mostly, these are pretty cut and dry entries in the Court Records, but in between times I find instances that remind me that the eighteenth century is really a… an interesting place.

(If the wording seems un-P.C., please don’t be offended. I just want to state right here that I’m using the words from the Court Order Books.)

I found a case from 1777 where an Indian boy claimed that he was being detained as a slave. The case dragged out over several court sessions and into 1778. Each time the case was mentioned, it grew more interesting. The Indian boy, it was revealed, was called Nat. Later it came out that he was either “Indian or Mulato,” and that he was being poorly treated—so much so that the court records used the word “inhumanely”. That’s kind of a big deal. It stated that if he was found to be a slave, Mary, his “owner”, would have to provide him with “adequate clothing.” As it was, he was removed from her home and was bound out by the sheriff until the case was resolved. Seriously folks, I was on the edge of my seat as the months passed and they kept deferring judgment until the next court. Finally, finally, Mary appeared in court with a document that supposedly proved he was legally owned, and the court ruled… that “he was no slave, but a free man!!!!” (Italics and exclamation points my own.) Seriously, my heart felt lightened and all was right with the world when I read that.

Then there are the sillier things:

*For example: "James Lochard Gent having made oath that he was afraid Duncan McFarland and his son William McFarland would kill or Injure some of his flock of Creatures, It's ordered that the Sherif [sic] take them into Custody." …Flock of (magical?) creatures!

*Or this: "John Mitchell an Indented Servant to John Hannah in Open Court agreed to serve his said Master two years after his present time by Indenture is Expired he the said Hannah agreeing to teach him the art and mistery [sic] of a Black Smith [sic] and Gun Smith [sic]." …Never really thought of smithing in quite those terms before…

*Then a man came into court and said he had been affronted by another man in the Court Yard who called him “a Fool and a whoresbird.” Awesome, I’m totally bringing that one back! Another man brought a suit against a guy who had “biten [sic] his ear.”

*The records also list the prices set for ordinaries, including “lodging with clean sheets” (well, I should hope!) and prices for “whiskey punch a quart with white sugar,” “New England rum,” “peach brandy,” and “French brandy.” Yum.

*Finally, a man named William Wallace keeps coming up in the records. Seriously. I’m sure he didn’t have blue face paint, but that doesn’t stop the mental images.

Those are just a few examples of the endless fun that the eighteenth century provides, without including all the bastard children, adultery, horse thieves, horse buggerers (oh, yes!), and more that I’ve discovered! And these are the everyday folk at the courthouse! I haven’t even gotten around to the telling you about the theatre folk yet, or, even more shockingly, if possible, life in the ton of eighteenth-century London!

Check back soon for even more historical fun!

("High Life Below Stairs," by John Collet, London, England, 1763.
From the collections of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)

Simple Joys

For an idea of how I'm feeling right now, I give you a post that my friend Cat wrote. Blood, sweat, and tears, amen. Worrying about what I will do when I'm done with grad school, also a huge concern. I spend four hours a day reading microfilm, then another few hours reading for my thesis, and I still feel as if I'm so far behind I can't stand it. This feeling of stress isn't new; in fact, it's almost comfortingly familiar, in a bad way. After this summer, I kind of can't believe that I let myself go through the past four or five years feeling this way. Constantly worrying, not hanging out with my friends when I get the chance, and having panic attacks at 2:00 PM (because, what happened to the day??? How is it 2:00 PM? I've been awake since 8:00 and have done nothing with my life! (Oh right, I've spent four hours reading microfilm, and I've eaten lunch.))

Basically, I'm feeling at a complete loss about where to go. Maybe that last bit is new. I haven't felt quite like that before. It seems now that every time I think I'm on track, I find that I can't please everyone on my committee, or else myself. I keep looking at my thesis materials with a sense of bewilderment. How do all of these go together again? Where is my argument? It must be somewhere in these piles of notes and books!!!

But, I know (as Cat notes) that all of these stressful feelings aren't good for my sanity. So I've begun to think about all of the little, lovely things that happen in my life.

I love the way my cabinet smells like the English Breakfast and Earl Grey teas that I just bought.
I love talking to my best friends on G-chat while drinking said tea.
I love calling my mom every morning and being able to tell her everything.
I love my yoga class, and how much calmer I feel afterward.
I love getting sweet-nothing text messages from my boyfriend.
I love having dinner at the apartment, and playing a board game.
I love Trader Joe's risotto, which I eat too much.
I love making and eating lunch while watching the Travel Channel.
I love the autumn weather that's slowly rolling in.
I love finding interesting cases in the Court Order Books I'm reading.
I love getting to set my own hours with my job.
Actually, I love my job. I get to read documents from the 1700s!
I love knowing that I'm not alone in my stressed-out mindset.

And really, I love the eighteenth-century. I love, love, love it.

So I guess, that makes all of this worthwhile.

Of Babies and Birthdays

Yesterday involved a trip to MedExpress, a baby shower, a ferry ride, and a birthday party, in that order. Luckily, the trip to MedExpress ended with the doctor advising Zan to take Motrin and apply ice, instead of, as I had feared, a spontaneously collapsed lung. You think I'm being a hypochondriac for Zan, but the MedExpress doctors feared the same and ran a chest x-ray just to be sure. But it's ok, because it's far less serious than that and he most likely won't randomly keel over. I'm paranoid right now, ok? I think it's valid, given the track record of the past couple of months when it comes to young men I care about.

So after the huge relief at MedExpress, we headed to Target because I had been remiss the past couple of days and needed to get a few last minute gifts for the two parties I planned to attend. I had bought a children's book for Kristi's baby shower, but not a present.

Tangent: picking out children's books is the most difficult thing in the entire world. I kept seeing ones that I wanted to get, and narrowing it down to one was so hard. I mean, how to choose with books such as The Rainbow Fish, The Giving Tree, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie... I settled on Strega Nona by Tommy DiPaolo. But I spent about forty-five minutes in the picture book section trying to decide. I even bought myself a Chris Van Allsburg book that I had loved but had never owned. I'm a sucker for books, even children's books. Maybe especially children's books.

Anyway, Zan and I went to Target where I went a bit crazy buying Halloween cards, baby shower cards, birthday cards, and pretty gift bags. I think we also picked out some nice gifts for Kristi and Annie. But the trip to Target meant a bit of a later start getting to Kristi's, which led to a late arrival at the baby shower, since it was a two hour drive away. Still, I think having my schedule thrown off by a sudden trip to MedExpress was a good enough excuse.

The baby shower was beautiful. Kristi looks so gorgeous and I can't believe that she's going to be a mother so soon. I know she'll be a good one, but I'm still amazed that someone my age could possibly be starting a family. Logically, I know that girls much younger than me have had children, but to see Kristi's huge belly, to feel Natali move... it's magical and surreal. I never thought I would say that. I'm so anti-having-children, and normally think they are all little crying balls of annoying, but, witnessing Kristi's pregnancy really makes it feel a bit more like the miracle everyone says it is. Because, it is. I'm so excited to meet Natali and to watch her grow and to spoil her with toys and books and clothes. Kristi is a few months younger than me, but she already has a husband, a little house, a nursery, two dogs, and a baby on the way. In some ways it makes me feel so young. Most of the time, though, I'm happy for her because she has what she has always wanted, and I'm happy for me because I don't have that yet. We are each fulfilling our dreams, and they have always been very different. I think, for all we've been through, we have each arrived at such a wonderful place in our lives.

After the baby shower, I drove the two hours home, then jumped in Zan's car for the ferry ride across the river to Smithfield for Annie's birthday party. So much fun!!! They live in an old nineteenth-century farmhouse, which appealed to the historian in me. Annie and her family are so fantastic. We had the best food, and there was a birthday cake, and Annie loved her presents, and in the background her father and some of her family friends were playing folk music on the guitar. Then Josh texted and said he's in the 'burg and we're going to get lunch today and everything combined so I just felt happy. Zan is healthy, Kristi is having a beautiful baby, Annie was surrounded by love for her birthday, her sister Mandy (also my friend) is excited to leave for her study abroad trip to England, and my cousin is visiting. It just seems like the world is full of such joyful things.

Especially those ferry rides. :)

The Quest for the Great Fall Cider

A few nights ago at the apartment, Mike's brother brought in the nectar of the Gods, something I had long forgotten about since last October, the beautiful, the amazing, Woodchuck Fall Cider. For anyone who has not yet tried this Limited Edition Woodchuck Cider, I suggest you hit up your nearest grocery store or convenience store ASAP (if you are over the age of 21 and carrying a valid photo I.D.). This stuff is what autumn-themed ciders have desired to be since time immemorial. It's the perfect blend of cinnamon and cloves, and whatever else tastes like the color of the leaves in October and the blue sky of September. Heavenly.

So last night, I wanted another bottle to go along with my Twilight Zone watching (oh hey, it was even a Tuesday!). Zan and I piled into his car, drove to Harris Teeter, ran to the cider/beer section, and found----- only the Granny Smith, Amber, and Pear varieties. Not deterred, Zan drove us to the Bloom on 199. We ran in and found---- only the Amber variety. WHAT??!! So then we went to Fresh Market (which I mistakenly called Farm World), but it was closed. THREE grocery stores had failed me. In a last ditch effort, we decided to go home the circuitous route via the Bloom on Richmond Road, then to the Farm Fresh. We walked into our second Bloom and found an empty row labeled "Wdchck Lmtd Ed." Clearly, they had once had it. I almost cried. As I stood there mourning the empty row, Zan reached around and handed me a cold bottle of--- Woodchuck Fall Cider!

There were five cold bottles sitting in a row in the "make your own six-pack" section. I got four (I left one for the next person who was on a Quest for Great Fall Cider), and happily returned home to an episode of that ground-breaking, friend-making Sci-Fi show I love, with a cold bottle of autumn goodness in my hand :).

Sniff with your wisdom-nose

I had a meeting with my adviser yesterday, and he thinks I'm on a good track with my thesis. I told him that I have three and a half books left to read, then 27 chapters from various other books, and then outlining and writing. I told him I thought I could have it done by the end of December or mid-January. Then he said a surprising thing: "Take your time. Don't rush it, since you don't have to."

In fact, he thinks it would be best for me to not try to complete it by the end of December, but rather to take until March-- even to get an extension if necessary-- so that I can really make it of good quality, the absolute best I can write. Because he thinks I can get it published. Which kind of made my head spin a little. A published thesis would be amazing. It would help with jobs, with future Ph.D programs should I choose to go that route, with anything. So... while on the one hand I feel a little less pressure to get it done now, I feel a little more pressure to get it done fantastically.

I'm completing lots of reading, though. I've written down a list of every single book I'm planning to use for my thesis, made notes of which chapters I need to read, put a check-mark next to those I have read, and have a rough idea of the rate at which I need to be reading. And once the reading of the books is done, it's time for hours with my newspapers database! I've spent the past two days out by the pool alternating between chapters of Hugh Rankin's The Theater in Colonial America and Philip Pullman's The Amber Spyglass. Doing this "alternating chapters" business keeps me interested in what I'm reading, and lets me set goals for myself.

Then there's my job. I spoke to my new employer on Wednesday to learn the basics, though I find that every time I begin to probe around, I have a new question. I'm starting with apprentice records of Augusta County, all on microfilm at another library, and I had to do some quick research to even figure out how to find the apprentice records within the available microfilm, and then how to get them from there to Swem. So, already learning.

I think I'll only be working about twelve hours a week, which is lovely, and the hours are very flexible... but it's going to be a lot of hard work. And lonely work, perhaps, sitting in front of a microfilm reader all alone, or recording books. Still, I couldn't have asked for a better job for this year, and I think I'm going to come out on the other side with much sharper research skills, a few library contacts, and an expanded knowledge of education in eighteenth-century Virginia. It's nice that the research I'm doing for my job and the research I'm doing for my thesis both center in eighteenth-century Virginia.

In other news, I'm beginning to smell autumn in the air. Hurricane Earl went through last night, but stayed farther East than originally forecast (thank goodness!), but it made today a typical rainy Williamsburg fall day. The air is heavy with humidity, but cooler. It's making me nostalgic-- the weather, the month, everything. Campus is filled with students; Swem is just the same as ever. Grocery stores have begun to carry autumn brews, and pumpkin ales and coffees are now back on menus. Soon it will be time for sweaters, crisp morning walks in CW, apple cider from Aroma's, falling leaves... the candy store even got it's Halloween candy in a few days ago!

The prospect of autumn is a comforting one, after the summer. This past summer was too hot and too sad, for me, my family, and even some of my friends. I don't think I will really be over it for awhile, but hopefully autumn will usher in peace and happy days along with its cool weather.