Tv Ne Cede Malis Sed Contra Avdentior Ito

- Mixed greens & spinach
- Almonds, lightly toasted (or however you prefer them)
- Sesame seeds

In a bowl, crush cloves of garlic (to taste) with salt and pepper. Add olive oil and red wine vinegar. Mix.

Combine greens, almonds, and sesame seeds in bowl. Toss. Enjoy.

Spinach, almonds, and sesame seeds are all foods said to ease and/or prevent headaches.

Yesterday was a good day. Not the kind of good day that is fun, but the kind in which important things happen and at the end of the day, you feel...renewed. I spent my morning waking up leisurely, and then met Zach for coffee at Bean There. It was nice. We just talked, mostly about relationships. He did most of the talking, too. I'm glad that he feels he can confide in me and talk to me.

On my way home, I called Mom and talked to her about...everything. My concerns, my fears, my insecurities and frustrations. Sometimes I wonder if I can do anything at all without her. It feels as if talking to her always helps untangle my thoughts, feelings, my life.

Once I got home, Jesse and I left to go to the store and bought the ingredients for beef stew (because it is tasty!). After we got back and began cooking, we also started talking. I think it was the most honest we have been with each other since our first summer together. Or maybe we have never been so honest with each other before. It was very therapeutic. I finally felt that we were on the same page and wanting the same things, from each other and in the long run.

I still don't know how we're going to navigate the near future, but I feel much better about it. I think we will find our own answer, maybe not as conventional an answer as we expected, but something that will work for both of us.

I am reminded again that in relationships there is no "right" way to be or live. What works for one couple won't work for another. That's all right. Jesse and I will find a path that we can walk together, or not. But I think we will.

Ingredients:
- carrots (a bunch/bag/whatever)
- flour
- butter
- chicken stock
- milk
- ginger (fresh &/or powdered)
- salt
- black pepper
- white pepper
- cumin
- paprika

Slice up the carrots. Boil them in a large pot with salt and ginger until soft. When the carrots are easily pierced with a fork, strain them. I find it can be helpful to save the water which is full of carrot-ginger flavor, in case it is needed later, but it is fine to simply drain the carrots. Also, it is pretty much impossible to overcook the carrots, so if you are not sure if they are soft enough, go ahead and keep cooking them.

Heat the chicken soup in a small sauce pan. It does not need to boil, just be steaming. This can be done while boiling the carrots. In the now empty pot, make a roux. (To make a roux, melt a pat of butter on low heat. The size of the pat depends on the quantity of soup you are making, but does not generally need to be very large. Once the butter is melted, gradually add in flour, mixing it with the butter until you have a small, doughy glob).

Add the chicken broth to the roux. Start with one ladle at a time, mixing as thoroughly as possible. If you are not planning to blend the soup, a whisk is recommended. When the roux and broth are combined, add the carrots back in.

Depending on how creamy you want your soup to be, you may want to add more broth. Also add in the milk, now. If the amount of broth has not completely submerged the carrots, I add enough milk that they are just covered by liquid. Otherwise, I base my amount on color. Err on the side of caution, because you can always add more later. Stir. Add salt, pepper, and ginger.

Turn off the heat. If you have a large food processor, I envy you. I have a tiny food processor and a normal=sized blender. I blend the soup in smallish amounts, approx. 2 full ladles at a time. I pour the blended soup into a separate bowl, and then scrape the bowl back into the pot when all the soup has been blended. This ensures that you have blended everything. If you only want to blend some of it, you do not have to do this. If you can think of a more efficient way to achieve the same effect, more power to you.

Once the whole quantity--or however much you want--has been blended, pour it back into the pot and turn the flame on low. Taste it. Add more seasonings to taste. I favor obscene amounts of ginger with white pepper, and more subtle amounts of paprika and cumin. Other spices you might want to consider are chili powder and nutmeg, or mace.

Serve hot. I find this dish is especially delicious on heavy, gray, cold days.

[Note: I have never written a recipe before. I did my best.]

[Further note: This recipe is based on one in the American Girl's Samantha Cookbook, which my father and I have tweaked and altered over time. Since I have not looked at that recipe in more than ten years, I have no idea how much it has changed. Originally, of course, the soup was made with cream and considerably less ginger. Beyond that, who knows?]

Both my jobs are full of blah right now. There are certain people at the bookstore who are causing me a lot of frustration, but other than that things are good there. At Visions, though...I'm feeling very looked-down on and I'm starting to feel that there are certain things that my boss is too inconsistent about. Also, I'm trying hard to do things to keep both jobs happy, and then she'll just throw me a curve ball that really screws things up. I'm trying to go visit Aunt Mary in October, and she wants me to trade the Friday I want off for Thursday...which means that I have to ask for Thursday through Sunday off from the bookstore, instead of just Saturday and Sunday. She knows full well that I'm juggling two jobs. It just got to me. And snide remarks from one of the stylists about people who work minimum wage jobs had me all worked up, too. I'm just getting a little ground down by the atmosphere, I guess. I was going to keep both jobs until Jesse and I moved, but I think I might give my notice at the end of the holidays at Visions, unless the funk there right now goes away soon.

I had a bug for a few days. I think I'm over it, or mostly over it. But it was not pleasant. Money is a constant worry right now. Every time I think Jesse and I are getting things figured out, suddenly they are awful again.

I hit a wall again with my Finster writing project. I just can't seem to get really going with it. That makes me sad. Anyway, that basically sums everything up.

Oh, Sheets is my new running buddy. She comes with me in the morning, and she is very excited about it. Also, she's super cute. Aww. I chose the icon for this entry with her and the Barely-There Bear in mind. (Jesse and I like to make up silly names and rhymes and stuff with Bear's name. Barely-There Bear sticks because...well, let's face it: he's dumb).

I got up at 5.30 this morning to go running (ostensibly) with Lillian. We ended up doing most of it at a walk, but when we went our separate ways at 21st and Colonial, I jogged part of the rest of the way home. I alternated jogging and walking, and it worked out pretty well. All in all, a good morning. Except that Jesse is late for class. Not because of me, but it would be a nicer morning if it were a good morning for him, too.

Gotta make new budget/finance spreadsheets now.

Love.

P.S. As I was leaving to meet Lillian, it started to drizzle, a nice soft caterpillar rain. It made everything nicer. Cooler and more pleasant.

Title: Naruto
Mangaka: Masashi Kishimoto
Chapters: 487, ongoing, weekly
US Publisher: Viz Media
Categories: shonen, battle, ninja
One Manga ranking: 1
My rating: *** (3/5)

Naruto is one of the most popular mangas, both in the US and in Japan. The main character is Uzumaki Naruto. He's possessed by the nine-tailed fox spirit, and shunned by the other ninjas in his village. His dream is to show them all he's a great ninja and become Hokage.

( OM Synopsis, My Rating )

[Note: My rating system essentially works like this: 0/5 = absolutely worthless and horrible. 1/5 = unoriginal, why read this when you could read something better?. 2/5 = I'll read it if nothing else is available. 3/5 = I read it regularly. 4/5 = I follow it regularly and really love it. 5/5 = ZOMG THE AWESOME!]

[Edit: I am not trying to be harsh on Naruto. I just feel very neutral about it. I will try and write this better when I am less sleepy. Apologies to the Naruto fans who are probably not reading this, but could be.]

Today has been nice. Jesse and I took the puppies for a walk. The weather was pleasant and warm, with heavy clouds rolling through the blue sky. It was sprinkling around the dog park, but that meant that when we got there, the park was empty. Sheets and Sirius were able to run around for a few minutes before some other dogs arrived. They were mostly good and friendly and well-behaved with the other dogs. On our way back we saw a rainbow! It was pretty. We had a nice afternoon.

Tomorrow is White Day and Uncle Adrian's birthday. And it's almost St. Patrick's Day!! Yay!

spring here in a rush
although trees naked of leaves
the green smell of grass.

Dusty scent of earth
sunlight falling through warm air
breezeless spring hovers

Twixt night and morning
awaiting an unwanted day
Do I hear your steps?