sherpa with a purse

2010-10-27T01:00:00.000-05:00

Woah, 3 years, have passed, how did that happen?

Also, I forgot about this blog. Welcome.

2007-08-03T09:30:00.001-05:00

Week and a half to go.

Packing in progress. Sort of.

Must finish grading today. And do laundry.

Facebook has added too many fun new applications, making me procrastinate.

We leave 2 weeks from today.

2007-07-30T20:14:00.001-05:00

I'm officially freaking out.

2007-07-12T16:31:00.000-05:00

At Starbucks, 51st @ Broadway. I broke down and got a one month subscription to T-Mobile (I'm willing to share my account, I would be online 24/7 for a month if I could to get my use out of it...) No luck with the apartment hunt yet. I looked at a few places in Crown Heights, one of which was a 4 block uphill walk to the subway, laundry 2 blocks away. Large apt., though. Saw a nice one with renovations in progress, but it was on the first floor. A few more showings scheduled for tonight. A few more tomorrow. I really, really, really hope that I can find something.

the search is on

2007-07-11T16:35:00.000-05:00

I'm here in New York at urocafe in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. I saw a hipster-looking guy in the window with a Macbook so I popped in. It was kind of an odd sight, since every other building is a Polish restaurant/grocery and there are old ladies everywhere in their housedresses carrying shopping bags. It sort of reminds me of Ukraine (except that I can read some of the signs and you can drink the water. And talk to the people in the shops.) So urocafe, they serve ANCORA COFFEE. I told the owner that I was from Madison and we have Ancora shops all over the place and he got excited. It's a cute little place with Ikea tables and chairs. Speaking of Ikea, Loftstel, the hostel where I'm staying, is awesome. It's a newly renovated brownstone in Bed-Stuy (yes, I felt very, very white walking around) decked out in Ikea furniture. The owner is about 25, studied in Amsterdam, and used to attend the same international student nights at Mick O'Connels that I did in Utrecht (although probably not at the same time). There is still some furniture being built and empty, flat Ikea boxes strewn about in places...and the same shower curtain and bathmat that I have in Madison. Just like home!

Tonight I'm looking at an apt in Sheepshead Bay and one in Flatbush. First, though, I need to get something to eat. The first place I tried to go was closed by order of the dept. of hygiene. Good thing it was closed, the last thing I need now is food poisioning.

My New York Age is 25

2007-07-09T05:10:00.000-05:00

My New York age is 25

This New York age puts you-generally speaking-into the young category. That's what you were hoping for, right? Run and tell your friends. Then get drunk (as usual). Then sleep it off. Then pop an Adderall. Then come back and consider experimenting with a more mature type of New York life (just once in a while). Have you ever been to the Village Vanguard or the Living Theatre? Eaten at Elaine's? Taken a date to Michael Feinstein? Before you laugh, check 'em out and see what old-school NYC experiences you can add to the new.

What's your New York age? Take the Time Out New York quiz and find out!

2007-07-02T17:01:00.000-05:00

Freaking out about finding an apartment in NYC. I'm going next week for a few days to look at apartments, I really, really hope that I can find something then.

I just got notification about registering for classes and orientation today! wwhheee!! I'm really going to grad school! I can't believe that it starts in 2 months. Less than 2 months.

6 weeks left in Madison. Holy shit.

2007-06-05T11:05:00.000-05:00

We (and all of our 8 bags) returned safely from Ukraine on Thursday.

I sprained my ankle in Kharkov on Saturday and was taken to the hospital; it was just a minor sprain (it wasn't even bruised) but the people we were staying with insisted that I get it examined. They wrapped my ankle in gauze (!!), told me to keep it unwrapped at night (!!), and not to wear high heels (umm, duh). Then we had to pay the doctor. The American medical system is so much more complicated than the one in Ukraine...I didn't even have to fill out any forms, I just slipped the doctor some money. Thankfully nothing serious happened to either of us when we were there. If anything major did happen we would have had to go to Kiev, which is 8 hours away.

We left for Kiev on Monday morning, spent Monday relaxing in our fancy airport hotel and went into the city on Tuesday. On Wednesday morning we left; 36 or so hours later we were in Madison.

More pictures and stories to come!

2007-05-25T12:25:00.000-05:00

Today we went to the zoo and walked around the city some more. Colette bought our bus tickets to Kiev, we'll go on Monday.

I've been eaten alive by some sort of bug here, not sure what they are but their bites itch like crazy!

Time to go back to the apartment, otherwise Lyena will think we're out joining some rebel group.

Tomorrow - more exploring! :-)

2007-05-25T08:30:00.000-05:00

Last night Colette and I stayed out "late". We were hanging out at McDonald's, where all of the cool, beautiful people hang out. Really. The McDonald's on Pushkinskaya (Pushkin Street, named after the poet) is THE place to be at night if you're 20, size 0, wear pointy shoes, and blonde. I'm none of those things, but it's still fun to hang out there. They eat McFlurry's (McFlurries?), drink large Fantas, and smoke their Koccak cigarettes (which are a little less than 20 cents a pack) out on the patio. If it wasn't for the playground and the bright red "I'm Lovin' It!" umbrellas on the tables you'd swear that you were at a cafe in Paris (although it would smell better and everyone would be smoking Galouises instead - which, according to Wikipedia, have not been sold in the States since 2003 - take that you Freedom-Fry eating Americans!).

This morning we went out and got Cheboureki and strawberries at the market before getting on the metro. We gave an old woman some strawberries and a snack (quite possibly the only thing she'll eat all day) from the kiosk. There are so many older women here who are homeless (or if not homeless, living in extreme poverty). Most are single and have no families, their husbands/boyfriends killed in WWII or elsewhere, and have no children or other family to take are of them. It's heartbreaking to see them. They're not the people who we generally think of as being homeless (e.g., mentally ill, drug/alcohol abusters); these are the women who built the Soviet Union who have had their country and everything that they ever worked for taken away from them. They spent their lives working, enjoying a decent standard of living. Working in the USSR they were guaranteed a decent pension in their old age, but when the USSR fell that was gone. Their pensions are now around $30/mo. These women are everywhere, doing whatever they can to make a bit of money - selling flowers and vegetables from their gardens, standing on the street with a makeshift lemonade stand (a bottle of juice and cups) selling drinks to passersby.

Today we will go to the zoo and buy our tickets to Kiev (EDIT: We did not buy our bus tickets at the zoo.) - we only have a few more days left in Ukraine and will spend our last 2 in Kiev. And of course there will be more walking aimlessly around the city! :)

2007-05-24T13:35:00.000-05:00

It's hot. 88 degrees today, the high is expected to be 90 degrees tomorrow. Needless to say, we didn't do much. Went to a market (for about 20 minutes because it was so damn hot!); got yelled at by some lady for taking a picture of her DVD stall in the metro station ("Hey stupid girl, what the hell are you doing?!" in Russian); ate пельмени (Pel-Meni) and various desserts at Target; finished reading Eat, Pray, Love; watched a little bit of Rent; and hung out on the porch and painted my toes green.

The best part - today when I checked my email I got notification that I can teach again this summer! Yay!! Job! Health insurance! ROCK!!!!

SEX in Ukraine

2007-05-23T03:33:00.000-05:00

SEX in Ukraine is wonderful. For those who don't know, SEX = Stash Enhancing Expedition = buying a shit-ton of yarn for super cheap. Yesterday Colette took me to this yarn shop on Sumskaya in Kharkiv. Angora, mohair, alpaca, merino...all for less than $4 a skein. I was like a kid in a candy store, literally. I walked around saying "oohh this is nice! I think I'll have 2 - no, make it 3! - of those! And oohh pretty! 2 of those, too!" You could tell that the shopkeepers (and the customers) were looking at me, big fat American tourist with lots of money, like I was crazy. They kept asking what will I knit? Who knows! But do you really need to have a project in mind when you can get a ball of off-brand Kid Silk Haze for $1.50! I spent about 280 grivnas, or about $56. I can understand why they would look at me strangely - that's about half of what a professional (e.g., teacher) makes in a month. I would look at someone strangely, too, if they walked into the Sow's Ear and bought $500 worth of yarn in 20 minutes.

Here's most of it...there were 24 balls total. I'll be back for more.

Being here has made me realize how rich I am as an American. I can walk into a grocery store and buy luxury food without even thinking twice about it. (Like the 11 gryvna, or $2 box of muesli that I bought yesterday...) Or buy $50 worth of yarn.

Here's a picture of Saltovka, where were are staying. This was taken from the balcony of our room. Today brings more walking around the city. I'm lugging my big blue Timbuk2 bag around so I can bring a 2 liter bottle of water with me. Unfortunately, I got the "with gas" kind this morning! I really need to learn how to read the labels!

2007-05-22T05:39:00.000-05:00

Hello from Ukraine! Colette and I arrived in Kharkiv on Saturday morning after about 36 hours of traveling. The journey here wasn't as arduous as I had expected - our trans-Atlantic flight was as good as it can get. The seats were huge and comfortable and we had televisions with movies (good, new movies!), music, and video games built in. The food wasn't too bad, either. We watched Toy Story 2 and Children of Men (now I want to read the book - the movie didn't provide enough back story). After the flight we made a mad dash through Amsterdam Schiphol buying Dutch books (Frog and Toad Zijn Altijd Samen!) and food (a case of stroopwafels and 4 jars of pindakaas!) among other things.

After that we had a short flight to Kiev (where I wasn't allowed to knit during take off or landing, the stewardess thought that I would poke myself or something...) followed by a 6 hour wait at Kiev Boryspil airport where I had the realization of "oh crap. I can't even buy a bottle of water because I can't speak Russian!" which prompted me to buy a Russian phrasebook (with much difficulty, since I don't know Russian - thankfully Colette does!) My lack of Russian-speaking caused me to get "Kiev'ed" at the coffee bar - I paid about $6 for a cappucino while the girls behind were saying "how much" in Ukranian and laughing while they tucked my 20 grivna bill into their notebook. Nice. Very nice. Welcome to Ukraine. Luckily everything else is super cheap (a pack of Marlboro Lights costs about $1, a huge meal at McDonald's costs $5, and the subway - which is quite nice - costs 15 cents). I'm picking up some Russian, and can read Cyrillic now!

We're staying in Saltovka, which is a huge Soviet housing complex on the edge of town. There are nearly 600,000 residents, each living in a small apartment. There are hundreds of buildings, each about 6-12 stories tall and surrounded by tree-filled courtyards. Even though all of the buildings are the same the families that live there have taken the time to personalize them - there are gardens with fences created out of blue spray painted tires and benches made out of old shelving units. The concrete is crumbling in some places, brand new in others. Fancy business men drive by in their brand new Land Rovers and BMW's while old men drive their Soviet era Volgas. Women walk around in mini-skirts and 3-inch heels, which makes me feel quite schlubby in my Chacos and linen pants. They drink tea more than water. We're odd for wanting to drink cold water. And the coffee? INSTANT. Any kind you want. Nescafe, Jacobs, MacCoffee...YUM! Thankfully I planned ahead and brought 2.5 lbs. of Steep N Brew coffee and my French press.

Today we're going to wander around the city and check out some of the parks.

Pictures to come!

2007-05-17T05:10:00.000-05:00

Colette and I are leaving in a few hours - watch for pictures (including Soviet-style architecture and statues of scowling men!) from our travels.

Koninginnedag

2007-04-30T10:41:00.000-05:00

Happy Queen's Day!

2007-03-20T20:52:00.000-05:00

I have (semi-) good news! I called the director of one of the grad programs I applied to and I have a really, really good chance of getting in! I should know in about 2 weeks. And the best part? They offer funding.

It's a huge ego boost, especially since I've been having such a crappy time lately.

2007-03-19T18:17:00.000-05:00

The grad school news isn't so great - I'm still only admitted to Northeastern, and still no funding. I got the "official" rejection letter from UPenn today, but I knew about 6 weeks ago that I was rejected. And I got rejected from UMass, which was completely unexpected.

So, I'm just waiting on 3 programs now: CUNY, NYU (Psych), and UPenn. I doubt I'm in anywhere, as it's really, really late to hear back from Penn. CUNY doesn't really offer funding. No clue what's going on with the NYU program. So yeah. No clue what I'm doing with my life. Any ideas?

2007-03-08T20:31:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was the first tornado siren of the year, which means that it's almost summertime! We heard it when the cats were at the vet. Apparently the cats have gingivitis and need to be on a special diet to alleviate plaque and tartar and stuff. They need to be on this diet permanently. The food is expensive (as in $15 for a 10lb. bag). wtf.

Interviewed at the mortgage call center place today...yeeaaahhh..."laid back" atmosphere doesn't beign to describe it. Think of 3-4 guys sitting around in the basement of some office building hand-dialing phone numbers from a list of people. The pay is decent, and it would only be 2 nights a week, so maybe I'll try it and see how it goes (until I can find something more...?). It's a bit different from selling subscriptions to the MSO while staring out at the lake...but it might work.

2007-03-06T22:44:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow I have 2 job interviews - one is at a temp agency for random office jobs and the other is at an outbound call center for a mortgage company. I've done outbound call center jobs before and it was OK, most of the time people don't even answer the phone. I guess at this place you get huge bonuses (like up to $30/hr) depending on how much you sell (or how many offers you get, or whatever).

In other news, the turkey is almost all gone. I had to cook it. I didn't have people over, and it's kinda good that I didn't. Cooking a turkey was way more work than I expected and I didn't exactly carve it to Thanksgiving-dinner-perfection. Next time someone gives me a turkey, though, I'll have people over. It's gotta be easier the second time around!

2007-03-06T15:56:00.000-06:00

Still no decisions.

I'm not teaching this summer. I need to find a job.

2007-03-02T20:26:00.000-06:00

You Belong in the East Village

A little bit arty, a little bit punk - you seem to set trends that many people follow.
It's likely that you're an academic of sorts, even if it's just on the weekends.

Where Should Your Inner New Yorker Live?

2007-03-02T19:16:00.000-06:00

Neko Case is coming to Madison!

The waiting continues, no grad school news.

It's snowing and blowing outside, I almost slid into a snowbank outside of Whole Foods while driving home from work today.

2007-03-01T19:34:00.000-06:00

still waiting...

2007-02-27T23:33:00.000-06:00

First major rejection today, from Northwestern.

I'm officially accepted to Northeastern, although I don't know about funding.

I still have 7 schools to hear back from.

I'm sick of the waiting.

2007-02-24T18:27:00.000-06:00

The busses stopped running at 6pm. Colette is at work; they never, ever close. I hope she gets home alright tonight.

Happy blizzard! I am going to celebrate by grading papers.

blizzard warning!

2007-02-24T10:15:00.000-06:00

Another 7 to 14 inches of snow by Monday, winds up to 40 mph at times...IF YOU LEAVE THE SAFETY OF INDOORS...YOU ARE PUTTING YOUR LIFE AT RISK.

That sounds serious. Like it will affect society and commerce.

The snow has stopped for a bit and the roads are clear. I should brush off the car (luckily I got a spot right in front of the house!). It's going to start up again in a few hours, though, there's a big gray mass moving this way on the weather map.

I love weather.

2007-02-23T22:33:00.000-06:00

The past 2 days have been spring-like, it's such a tease. I was finally able to drag my bike out of the basement and bike down to work. I ended up biking about 5 miles yesterday and it was great. It got a bit cold (and icy!) on the way home last night but it was great - and I loved that I didn't have to wait for the bus or anything. I went to Cafe Porta Alba (the pizza's pretty good, but I felt like it was overpriced) with a friend who I met in Utrecht and haven't seen for a long time. We used to travel a lot together (sleeping in airports in Dublin...wandering away from tour groups in Ireland...) but we drifted apart after returning to Madison. It was great to see her, I really need to be more social. I've been cooped up in the house so long working on my grad school apps that I haven't had the time (or the motivation) to do anything besides lie around. So - my plan is to make a turkey dinner sometime in the next week or so and invite people over. My mom gave me a turkey last weekend (and by "gave" I mean demanded that I take the turkey home with me so that she could finally have her freezer back) and I'm going to attempt to make a full Thanksgiving-esque dinner, which should be extremely interesting, especially since some people have closets that are larger than our kitchen.

So, the point of this post is the crazy winter storm warning we're under right now:

MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW WILL FALL TONIGHT AND EARLY SATURDAY. THIS SNOW WILL PRECEDE THE HEAVIER SNOW SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING. SNOW AMOUNTS OF 6 TO 9 INCHES ARE LIKELY BY SATURDAY MORNING. BRISK EAST WINDS OF 15 TO 25 MPH WILL CAUSE BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW. A WINTER STORM WATCH IS ISSUED WHEN HEAVY SNOW IS EXPECTED TO ACCUMULATE TO LEVELS THAT WILL CAUSE MAJOR IMPACTS TO COMMERCE AND SOCIETY.

6 to 9 inches of snow tonight will precede the heavier snow tomorrow night. wtf! I think 6 to 9 inches of snow is indicative of a pretty heavy snowfall. My favorite part of the warning is the part about how the snow will cause major impacts to commerce and society. It sounds like a research report - The Effect of Snow on Commerce and Society. Maybe one of my students should do that for their IP.

2007-02-21T13:45:00.000-06:00

No grad school-related mail today, but I got an email from Northeastern today. They're having an open house next weekend and I'm "strongly encouraged" to attend. I would go if it was an interview and my admission/funding decisions were contingent on my attendance, but there's no way that I can go to Boston for a day or weekend. (Now if Penn offered me an interview/open house weekend I'd hop on a plane right away...Plus, my sister-out-law is there so I could possibly stay in the dorms and pretend I'm an undergrad again)

It's now 44 degrees outside and sunny. I've got the windows open and the kittens are sitting on the windowsills. I think I might go for a run (!!) or finally drag my bike out of the basement (I miss my bike so much...I hate taking the bus down to class). Tonight we're going out to dinner at the Arbat, Madison's premiere Russian restaurant! I will not be having the borscht.

time to celebrate!

2007-02-20T16:15:00.001-06:00

I'm in at Northeastern! So the program is ranked in the 70's, and it's just an MA program, but I'm in! :-) Info on funding (TAship, most likely) to follow. whhhoooohhhooooo!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-02-20T10:34:00.000-06:00

Still no word from grad schools. Well, I did get one rejection from UPenn's Ed, Culture, & Society program, but there are very few spots and many applicants have worked in the field/already have graduate degrees. I'm being reviewed for their MA program. I also got my rejection letter from BC, which is funny, because I never actually completed my application. After researching the program and faculty some more I realized that it was a terrible fit. It was nice that they sent a letter though, to make it official. Oddly, it went to my mom's house.

So now I don't know what to do with myself. I used to spend all of my free time working on my applications, reading grad school application message boards, researching programs, worrying about my writing sample, etc. And now? I don't know what to do with myself. I guess now is the time to pull out my sewing machine, read all those books I want to read, purge my dresser of old clothes I'll never wear again, and basically not worry about having something to work on 24/7. It's an odd feeling.

Yesterday I interviewed with the Wisconsin Relay, a TTY phone relay system. I did a typing test (60+ words a minute) and a spelling test, which was fun. I haven't had a spelling test since second grade. I need to get another job, since I'm not too busy now with the applications I might as well be working and trying to save some money.

Off to class! Today I get to talk about the gerbils' vigilance behavior. fun!

Holy crap! I'm 25!

2007-02-13T01:35:00.000-06:00

I'm 25! Colette made me a rose-shaped Bundt cake which was delicious. (It's her secret recipe, she makes me this cake every year...maybe I can convince her to make me one when it's not my birthday, too.) My birthday was fun. We went to the Sow's Ear, a cute little yarn-coffee shop. I got a free mocha and a free scone because it was my birthday. Went out for Lao-Thai food at Vientiene Palace (the fancier one, not the one with light pink walls) then came back home to make cake, knit and drink cosmos. I got some wonderful presents - a crock pot from my mom and a new toaster and coffee grinder from Colette, knitting needles and stitch markers from Sara, and an ulu (mine was a Mezzaluna from KitchenAid) from Inky. And I bought myself some yarn on eBay.

It was a good birthday, and yes, I did find a new wrinkle.

2007-01-30T22:29:00.000-06:00

I'm finishing up my writing sample tonight and sending it out tomorrow. These applications will FINALLY be done. THANK GOD.

Now if only I could stay up for the next 10 hours with the mental clarity to continue reading and writing...

2007-01-26T18:56:00.000-06:00

The best customer question at work today: "What is the new Wilford Opal book?"

Les Mis

2007-01-24T22:45:00.001-06:00

Les Mis Theatre
Originally uploaded by jennesy.

3rd row seats!

2007-01-24T22:37:00.000-06:00

Quick update!

Went to NYC over break - stayed at the Grand Hyatt, ate at Junior's and Veselka, went to the Tenement Museum, Purl Soho (yarn shop), American Girl, Les Mis, Sleeping Beauty...

STILL applying to grad school. Almost done, 2 more SOP's to write (that's statements-of-purpose to you lucky folks who aren't applying right now) and a writing sample that's calling my name...

Classes started, it's much easier the 4th time around...

it's the holiday (err...grading!) season!!

2006-12-21T22:11:00.000-06:00

I'm in the midst of grading HELL right now. Not only am I grading papers but I have to check and make sure that all of their materials were turned in, too (e.g., articles). Some students make my life a lot easier (like...umm...the ones who actually followed the directions/had common sense and punched holes in the materials they put into a binder) and some must have some deep hatred of organization or me or something (those would be the people who just threw a sheaf of loose papers into a binder so they can spill out all over the floor. mad that your paper has a footprint and kitty litter on it? get a hole puncher.).

Working all day tomorrow, come visit. We're going to be busy! You can watch me being perky and interacting with customers! I stopped by today and the line was all the way to the staircase. I was sneaky and checked out in the cafe. Speaking of the cafe, any guesses on how much coffee I'll need to make it through tomorrow?

2006-12-17T14:14:00.000-06:00

I just finished watching An Inconvenient Truth while wrapping Christmas presents. I feel guilty sitting here with the windows open in my huge apartment with the real Christmas tree with sparkling little lights. I'm sure that the heat is on (I can't control it) and I'm letting it fly out the window, and I know that live Christmas trees are ultimately bad for the environment. (But they smell so good!) I realize that I'm wasting a ton of paper (and by extension, trees, oil, etc.) and that some little kids somewhere were probably exploited while making some of the gifts I'm wrapping up. I know that I gave a ton of money to big corporations (most notably Borders, Target, and Mattel) in order to give the people I love gifts. (At least I'm not buying them a bunch of cheapo plastic things that will be thrown out in a few months, though.) It sickens me that the people of this town collectively spend about $50,000 at a bookstore each day in December while kids who live about 10 minutes away don't even have winter coats (not that they need them today because it's 43 degrees outside, but still).

So why do I do it? Because I like giving people gifts. It's fun to pick out the perfect DVD or book or kitchen utensil or whatever. I like surprising people and seeing them get happy when they get something they've been wanting or something totally unexpected. I used to be really averse to the forced shopping/gift-giving that goes along with holidays; I hate the idea of "having" to get someone a gift just because it's Christmas or their birthday. Recently I've been buying things for people whenever I see something that someone would like, which makes giving gifts much more enjoyable. The downside of this is that now I have SO many presents for everyone! They do look quite nice under the tree, though.

there wasn't an icon for Madison Metro...

2006-12-14T14:54:00.000-06:00

which Metros have you been on?

Got at b3co.com!

cuddly milo

2006-12-13T23:19:00.000-06:00

One of my grad school applications is due on Friday, the rest aren't due until the end of December or mid-January. Unfortunately, this one app is really 3 apps in disguise, as I'm applying to 3 programs at the same school. yuck. Even worse, they want a writing sample. WTF!? I haven't written a paper in 2 years. The papers that I do have, in retrospect, are CRAP. Honestly, I can't believe that I wrote that stuff and got A's on it. Grade inflation, anyone? Anyway, I need to re-write one of these papers FAST. Hopefully they will just read my SoP and think I'm fabulous and just toss the writing sample out. Riiight.

Speaking of that, any volunteers to read and/or edit my SoP?

Went to ABQ with Colette this weekend, her great-grandfather passed away. I'm sorry that I never got to meet him.

Back to my SoP. Milo's sitting on my lap between me and the computer, making it a bit difficult to type. He's been very lovey since yesterday. (Although he wouldn't even look at me when I first got home!)

Milo & Safran

2006-12-07T11:49:00.000-06:00

PB274436
Originally uploaded by Colette Denali.

They're finally getting along! Milo has gotten SO much more well-behaved since he got a baby brother. Now he has someone else to attack instead of us.

I have big news!!! I have a pic to post, but I want to wait till I can talk to some more people...so you'll just have to wait and see!!

2006-11-28T19:41:00.000-06:00

I lost NaBloPoMo. I got lazy a little bit ago then just kind of fell off. Oh well. I'll still post more often than once a month.

Working on my personal statement now. Still looking at grad programs. Some of the deadlines are in 2 weeks, and I still need to get all of the crap to my recommenders. (and tell one prof that he's writing a letter for me...his grad student said so...but she said to wait...)

Oh yeah, and I have papers to grade, too.

But - we're getting Chinese food tonight! :-)

100000!

2006-11-20T02:16:00.000-06:00

100000!
Originally uploaded by jennesy.

My mom's Taurus just hit 100,000 miles this weekend!

2006-11-19T22:18:00.000-06:00

tired.

dizzy.

entirely too much work to do.

that is all.

2006-11-18T23:13:00.000-06:00

Went to the Folk Fair in Milwaukee today. Representatives from lots of the cultural organizations around the state come and set up booths where they display random stuff from their culture/country. When you go in you get a passport and whenever you go to a booth you get a stamp. I liked the Arab booth because it had a "Merokkan End Table" from The Sims 2. The Polish people made us answer trivia questions before they would let us get stamps. (Because it's really important to know that Liberace was Polish and also from West Allis.) Most of the countries there also had a food booth. We had Greek honey puffs, German cookies and other sweets, Nepali turkey dumplings, and fried bananas and fried squid from the Phillippines among other things. yum! About half of the people there were dressed in their national costume/traditional clothes/lederhosen. It's really funny to see a huge Wisconsin guy dressed in traditional Swiss garb talking on his cell phone while eating an egg roll. Of course there was knitting from a few countries (I got a Christmas tree ornament of Turkish socks!) and also some people making bobbin lace.

Now I'm watching Iron Chef. The secret ingredient? Cranberries! My sou chef Bobby is going into the kitchen now...

2006-11-17T17:21:00.000-06:00

The Dutch have just banned face coverings, including burquas, in public places. They claim that it's a public safety measure, saying that garments covering the face may make others feel threatened and that burquas in particular could be used by suicide bombers. Others say that face coverings make communication and integration into a new culture more difficult, hampering Dutch efforts to integrate immigrants into society. According to Reuters this shouldn't present much of a problem, since only about 50 women in Holland actually wear a burqua; they're are already illegal in schools and on public transportation in the Netherlands. However, this law doesn't seem as strict as the French law prohibiting religious attire of any kind (crosses or head scarves) in public schools.

How does this fit into the supposedly tolerant Dutch society? Tolerance for immigrants, particularly Muslims (even native-born Muslims, at that) has dramatically decreased in the past 4 years since the murders of Pym Fortuyn (gay right-wing anti-Muslim politician) and Theo VanGogh (great-grandson of Vincent and controversial filmmaker who made a film with ex-Muslim politician Ayaan Hirsi Ali who, oddly enough, now works for the conservative think tank American Enterprise Institute in DC).

I don't particularly agree with this new law. People should be able to do what they want, wear what they want, worship however they want, love whomever they want. Most developed countries allow their residents these freedoms (and some developing countries, too, as is evidenced by South Africa's recent passage of a bill allowing civil unions). Not that I agree with the idea that a woman's body, including her face, should be completely covered at all times, but I do believe that people should have the choice to wear it if they want. It's understandable that the government would want to ban this type of clothing, citing safety reasons, but there haven't been any suicide bombings in Holland (none in Western Europe come to mind, either, but correct me if I'm wrong) and facial coverings are already banned on public transport. So will banning burquas really make the Netherlands a safer place? What this does is show how the Dutch government's tolerance for non-Westerners is reaching a new low. It's likely that this ban will cause more problems than it's attempting to alleviate. (Kind of like that whole marriage ban thing here in WI...take away people's rights in order to prevent some huge unidentifiable catastrophe from happening...)

baby Safran

2006-11-16T00:30:00.000-06:00

Safran and Jen (small enough to fit in her hand)
Originally uploaded by Colette Denali.

he's so small! such a cuddler too, if you look at him he starts purring.

Safran, 3 months and 2 weeks old

2006-11-16T00:27:00.000-06:00

Safran, 3 months and 2 weeks old
Originally uploaded by Colette Denali.

We got a new cat from Pet World yesterday. Colette and I went to get gerbil food and couldn't resist baby Safran. We'd been talking about getting another cat (mainly so Milo has someone to play with and bite besides us) in the next few months but when we saw this little guy we had to take him. He's such a cuddler. He doesn't bite like Milo does, I keep wanting to jerk my hand away from him expecting to get bitten, but nothing, not even a little nip. He purrs constantly, even when Milo is getting ready to pounce on him. If you look at him or come in the same room as him he'll start to purr. The two cats are starting to get along better. Milo's still pouncing on him and swatting, but Safran (named after "Jonfen" Safran Foer and saffron) is starting to fight back. Or not even fight back, really, just kind of sit there and watch Milo try to attack him.

He's a cutie. Expect more pics and stories!

Flickr

2006-11-16T00:26:00.000-06:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

2006-11-15T13:12:00.000-06:00

You Should Learn French

C'est super! You appreciate the finer things in life... wine, art, cheese, love affairs.
You are definitely a Parisian at heart. You just need your tongue to catch up...

What Language Should You Learn?

I really should. Then I'll be able to order in French and impress Colette. Although she (and the waitress) would probably laugh at my accent. Plus, it would be fun to speak Frutch (French-Dutch) in Belgium.

I think I have the sick

2006-11-14T11:15:00.000-06:00

I think I'm getting sick. I couldn't sleep last night, my throat is all scratchy, I'm coughing a lot, and I'm soooo sleepy. Why!?! I can't get sick now!

happy monday

2006-11-13T11:39:00.000-06:00

so sleepy! it's one of those sleepy days. rainy, cold, grey, etc. i want to be at home snuggling in bed. instead i'm here at work, meeting with students, being tired, and looking haggard.

i need to grade, too. ugh.

2006-11-12T23:56:00.000-06:00

slept in (yay!), cleaned the house, did some grad school application related stuff, went to Trader Joe's, watched Best in Show, and now I'm going to bed.

i've had a fun, albeit unproductive, weekend

this week will be filled with student meetings. joy.

2006-11-11T23:23:00.000-06:00

I got a new printer today. I haven't gotten a new printer since August 2000. I went with the very low-low end basic ink-jet printer. The ink cartridges cost as much as the printer, which make me wonder where the mark-up is, on the printer or on the ink? If a printer costs $50, but comes with $45 worth of ink, does that mean that the printer is worth $5? Or that they overcharge for ink? Anyway, it's basically the new version of my old printer. yay.

Tonight I participated in some sort of experiment with mustard. I'm not too sure what the experiment is about, but the mustard was good. And watching Joel down a spoonful of mustard after scooping some up into a jar was hilarious. Went to Tex Tubb's after that for chimichangas, margaritas, and a debate over which writing style is better, APA or Chicago. (I prefer APA, but of course I've got a biased opinion.)

Tomorrow I need to get my ass in gear and actually start my grad school apps. I also need to start grading. I've been putting this stuff off for the past 2 days while pretending to be busy with housework, looking up random stuff on the internet (Wikipedia is very addicting), and running errands.

Time for bed!

ps - Colette is very cute.

2006-11-10T23:51:00.000-06:00

Today we had a thunder snow storm. Very cool - thunder, lightning, snow, and sleet, all at the same time.

Milo had fun playing with the gerbils last night. At about 6am he knocked their cage over and they scurried all over the house/hid in their cardboard tubes.

The gerbils are safely in their new cage and Milo is being entertained with his jingle ball.

don't go on a persimmon diet

2006-11-09T23:31:00.000-06:00

Went to see Margaret Cho at the Orpheum tonight. Hilarious show. She started by jumping up and shouting that the democrats won (thank god!) and everyone started cheering. I'm glad that the dems took both the House and Senate but I can't bring myself to be fully satisfied or happy yet. We lost on the marriage amendment. Half of the people in Wisconsin hate us enough to change the constitution. Whenever I see people now, in stores, or walking down the street, I wonder how they voted. And WHY they voted that way.

Anyway - it was great to laugh and be in a room with like-minded people.

This side of town . . .: And so the attack on domestic partner benefits begins . . .

2006-11-08T17:35:00.000-06:00

This side of town . . .: And so the attack on domestic partner benefits begins . . .

2006-11-08T16:58:00.000-06:00

and people bin raising up their voices
since it just ain't bin right
with all the righteous rage
and all the bitter spite
that will accompany us out
of this long night

-ani

maybe we should move to South Africa

2006-11-08T00:26:00.000-06:00

Wow. I thought that the people of Wisconsin were smarter than that. We've got a progressive history here. I'm stunned that people failed to see how ridiculous it is to completely outlaw any type of legal recognition for two adults in a relationship of mutual support. What kind of regressive society are we living in that actually re-writes the fucking state constitution to limit people's rights?! (Not that this country hasn't limited people's rights before...but I thought the whole 14th amendment/Civil Rights Act of 1964 was supposed to stop that...then again, it's ok to treat gay people like crap because of the whole "protected class" issue.) What is going to happen to "traditional marriage" if gay folks are allowed to be on their partner's health insurance plan or get their social security benefits? "Traditional marriage" is already in shambles - less than half of Americans are married, of those that are married half of them will be divorced. Hell, Britney Spears is getting her second divorce.

And how did we vote FOR the death penalty?! Granted, we didn't exactly vote to bring back the death penalty (it's been outlawed in WI since 1853) but to allow executions in murder cases in which DNA evidence is produced. Most developed countries (and some developing countries) have banned executions. As one of my Dutch roommates said 3 years ago, this is the beginning of the end of America as we know it.

Where is Wisconsin (and more importantly, this country) headed? We talk about preserving family values, but only if they are in the type of family that they want to see. We want to be moral but yet will kill rather than lock up a criminal.

The greatest tragedy in mankind's entire history may be the hijacking of morality by religion. (thanks, Dan)

VOTE!!

2006-11-07T00:17:00.000-06:00

No matter where you live there is some sort of election going on today - so go vote!!

And if you're in WI you better be voting NO on the marriage amendment!

"pumpkin mix" m&m's

2006-11-06T23:51:00.000-06:00

I'm eating "pumpkin mix" M&M's which are brown and orange. When I was little I always thought that M&M's tasted better when they came from a big bag. I think I was right.

Left work/school early today, there's some major cold/flu/sick going around. Another TA is out, Colette's out, Sara's out, and about a third of my students have been terribly sick in the past few weeks. I'm usually pretty healthy, so hopefully it'll pass quickly.

I need to get a new printer - I've had this one for 6 years now and it has worked fantastically until now. I'm not sure if I should get the cheapo one for $45 or spend another $30 or so and get one with a copier and scanner. I've gotta get one soon, so I can print off all of this grad school stuff (which I really need to spend more time on.)

The house is marginally cleaner now. I have too much crap. Time for bed.

boneless buffalo wings

2006-11-05T23:47:00.000-06:00

squeaking in at the last minute! i'm finding it hard to blog every day, especially when i'm not home till late and have 20+ frantic last-minute emails from my students. their papers are due tomorrow, which means i'll spend the next 2 weeks grading.

went to work (on a sunday! again!), where i found a book on the social history of early modern dutch. boring, you say? yes, it probably is, especially since it's published by a university press and probably isn't meant for anyone outside of dutch studies/linguistics to read. i also talked to a guy who is participating in NaNoWriMo, which takes much more dedication than NaBloPoMo.

after work, colette and i went to target and then to uno's for some pizza and boneless buffalo wings. yum. we had a good waiter this time, which was reflected in his tip. we either get fantastic or incredibly shitty waiters. (like the guy last week at applebee's who barely came over and took a looong time to bring our drinks, our food, the bill, etc.)

and now we're back at home, and i'm writing back to all of those emails and doing other assorted boring stuff. oh yeah, and freaking out because i did absolutely nothing on my grad school applications this weekend.

meeting with prof tomorrow to re-visit old research. finally, i can do some research of my own instead of just teaching people how to do it!

pumpkin, not from a can

2006-11-04T23:31:00.000-06:00

Today was the last Farmer's Market of the year. My mom and I went up and got over 25 pounds of squash for $7 and 8 pumpkins for $1. The farmers were practically giving the food away. I'll be making plenty of squash soup (mmm...) and I'm going to attempt making breads and muffins and other assorted baked goods with fresh pumpkin. That's right, fresh pumpkin, not from a can. I know it would be easier to just pop open a can, but why do that when you can buy the pumpkin from the farmer herself!

Had lunch at Monty's with mom and Colette, got stuck behind the marching band in post-game traffic (I thought the cops were going to be directing the pedestrians making traffic go faster, but they just stopped the traffic to let the band through). Grammy and Grampy came over after the game to see the apt and meet Milo. Thankfully there was no awkwardness because of my semi-messy house and those pictures of me kissing a girl hanging up on the wall.

I convinced my mom to go to one of the fancy yarn shops in town where we ooohhhhed and aaaaahhhhed at all of the pretty yarns and gawked at the prices. There are so many beautiful yarns there. Unfortunately, they are very very pricey, some costing $40 for 100 yards. They had some really cute baby hats that looked like cupcakes, gorgeous sweaters knit with silk yarn, and yarn made from bamboo. There are a few other yarn shops around that I have to check out. This one is my favorite so far because they do have some yarn that's actually affordable (a whole wall of Cascade 220!!) and there's a coffee shop and deck overlooking the lake.

Time for bed! Tomorrow, playing with books.

free lunch

2006-11-03T20:06:00.000-06:00

I love Panera. Today I got (what was supposed to be) a hot sandwich and salad. The sandwich was cold, they made me a new one and I got my money back because I had to wait an extra half hour.

bananas

2006-11-02T17:52:00.000-06:00

It's cold and dark and I have to bike home.

Met with students all day. Good times.

Met with prof today about grad school. Maybe I should go to grad school in Europe. :)

2006-11-01T10:25:00.000-06:00

It's about time I wrote a proper blog post. It's been what, 2 months or so?

Why am I posting, you ask? In celebration of NaBloPoMo, of course!

Here's what I've been up to for the past few months or so:

I got a car! It's been dubbed "Stevie" in honor of Steve Irwin since I got it the day after he was attacked by a stingray. It's a black 92 Honda Civic and gets between 28-38 mpg. (Who needs a Prius! Ha!) Bonus: I found a stash of Bollywood tapes in the backseat last weekend.

I'm TA'ing again, same as over the summer. EXACTLY the same (if you know what I mean...) except that things have slowed down considerably. We only do one week's worth of material at a time, rather than 2. I like it, but I'm getting bored. This is my 4th time teaching the class and I'm getting antsy. I want to teach something besides methods. I may revisit some of my old undergrad research in the next few weeks.

Which brings me to my next point: I'm reapplying to grad school. I've decided that I unconsciously sabotaged my applications last year because I knew I didn't want to do Social Psych. After some reflection, I decided that there's really only one piece of Social Psych that I'm really interested in and I could really care less about the rest of it. So, this time around I'm applying to Sociology and interdisciplinary programs in the social sciences. I've got a few schools picked out, apps are due anywhere from the dreaded December 15th to February 1st. (Yes! February!) Unfortunately, since these programs are more qualitative (which is what I want) they also require a writing sample. Last week I had the humbling experience of re-reading some of my papers I wrote as an undergrad. Ouch. I was embarrassed by my horrible disregard for APA style! If that was one of my student's papers...yeah. Not good. Soo...I have some major editing and writing in store in the next few weeks. I think I'm going to submit my Psych thesis (I need to completely re-do the data analyses and re-read the literature, I haven't even looked at that stuff for about three years) and a paper I wrote on Dutch immigration and integration. That one is a little bit better but completely lacks organization. Again, I need to re-read everything because it's been so long since I even glanced at that stuff. Then there's the personal statement, emailing faculty members, and keeping all of the paperwork, requirements, and deadlines in order. I need a personal assistant! Maybe I could hire one of my students...

Let's see...Other than that things have been pretty uneventful, which is good. Colette and I toyed with the idea of going to NYC in November to "look at grad schools" and see an Ani concert. Maybe we'll go in January when things are a little less crazy.

Last night Colette and I went to Arbat, a new Russian restaurant in town, and saw Running with Scissors. I don't think I'm a huge fan of Russian food. It's OK, but I've never really liked beets so the borscht wasn't my favorite. I did like the dumplings and fried potato-onion-pie things (Chebourashki? no wait, I think that's the little ). Very hearty and filling. The kitchen is right in the middle of the restaurant so you can see them cooking. It looked like the only kitchen appliances they had were a food processor and an Oster blender that looks just like mine. I think that means I can make Russian food at home!

The movie was interesting, like a real-life The Royal Tenenbaums. Go see it. Be prepared to ask "when is it over" and "where is this movie going" after about an hour when the plot seems to be going nowhere. Trust me, it gets even weirder at the end.

Oh yeah. I'm also on MySpace now. I know. I'm no longer cool.

2006-10-31T23:36:00.000-06:00

Happy NaBloPoMo!

new URL coming soon!

2006-10-23T09:26:00.000-05:00

Woah it's been a long time since I posted! I'll give an update on the past 2 months or so soon, promise.

Anyway, I've decided to change the URL on my blog. Between my students and applying to grad school (yup, going through that again) I think I should be more anonymous - or at least not have my whole name linked to my blog. Anyone have any ideas? If you want the new URL and aren't someone that I talk to often let me know.

2006-09-19T17:22:00.000-05:00

Well, I have a new (used) car! It's a 92 Honda Civic, black. I was able to wrench a Bollywood cassette from the player and now it works again! I can listen to my iPod on it now, but I have developed an addiction to John Tesh's "Intelligence for Life" talk show. I love the Lite Rock!

Milo is very big now. He had his testicles removed in a very blasé (to us) surgery. As a result, he got his City of Madison Cat License. He has to wear his name/phone # tag, his rabies tag, and his license. Milo is very burdered in the neck region.

Now that the academic year has begun, I spend a lot of time being important and answering students' emails and questions. As such, I should go write to them.

See ya later!

maybe I should stop reading the "Shopaholic" series

2006-08-28T19:26:00.000-05:00

I'm on the hunt for a used car. Specifically, a Honda or Toyota under $5k that's still got some life left in it and hasn't been flooded, neglected, or so poorly maintained that the battery has corroded. I've been zealously watching craigslist in hopes of finding my dream car, but nothing has come up yet. (There was a beautiful blue 1970 Mustang listed...yeah...I don't even have a driveway.)

Moving is over - thank god - but the unpacking continues. The living room floor was unearthed yesterday, we may be able to hook up the tv soon. Colette and I rented a mini-van last weekend and went to Ikea - it's probably a good thing that there isn't one in Madison. We had a good time pronouncing the Swedish-esque names of the goods (Lack, Grundatl, Flarke, Bekvam, Aneboda, etc.), eating meatballs with lingonberry sauce, sitting on Nick, Jeff and Herman, and lounging in beds of model apartments. Herman came home with us.

In other shopping news (oddly, it actually was news), Madison finally got an H&M! There are 4 H&M's in Utrecht, which I went to at least once a week when I lived there. Since then, every time I go to a big city (Boston, Chicago, or New York) I've "stocked up" at H&M, that is to say, bought way more than I needed to. I don't know if this means I'll buy fewer things at H&M because it's just a short bus ride away, or that I'll go more often and buy more than I would have on semi-annual trips to Chicago. Whatever the case, I'm glad we finally have one in Madison.

Oh yeah. And the gerbils had babies last night. Seven of 'em.

2006-08-12T14:14:00.000-05:00

The landlord is upstairs, ripping out the carpet in Nicole and Marisa's new apartment. I hope he doesn't decide to come and visit me/my apartment, as I'm harboring an illegal kitty.

Went to the Farmer's Market this morning and got melon, tomatoes, zucchini, and 4 basil plants for a quarter. The basil that I have now is being eaten by Peter Rabbit and his friends and looks kinda grody. (Not at all like last summer...remember the jungle-eqsue fire escape porch?)

I just read Before the Mortgage, a book about life, well, before the mortgage. It's a collection of essays by 20- and 30-something writers on roommates, apartment hunting (I loved the piece on the craigslist addiction), Boston marriages, etc. There's even a piece by Anna Chlumsky of My Girl. The best line in the book is when one of the editors' 11-year-old nieces says "God, it sucks you only have one bed...it really sucks" when she's visiting the editor and her partner. The book was reviewed in the new issue of Bitch which came out yesterday.

I'm off to the terrace to grade/escape from the landlord. Happy moving weekend!!

falure to launch

2006-08-12T01:45:00.000-05:00

oh. my. god. that movie was horrible.

i'm going to bed.

Packing. Grading. Moving.

2006-08-11T22:43:00.000-05:00

Packing.

I have 6+ Rubbermaid bins that Colette and Sara brought me last week. Half of them are full, the rest are saved for conquering the bedroom, which I'm scared to pack. I haven't done laundry in a good long while and there are random clothes, towels, sheets, socks, etc. strewn about. I don't even want to think about the closet.

Grading.

I have 7 projects and an exam to grade. I feel as if I should break out of my normal grading routine for these papers, that I should be sitting in my office grading them rather than grading them at home on the couch, or on the Terrace, or at a coffeeshop, or wherever. At least I only have 7 and not 32 this time.

Moving.

We have an apartment. It's getting painted right now. The owner asked me today what color I wanted and I said "I dunno...white is ok I guess." Then when I hung up I realized that I finally had the chance to live in a place with colored walls, and I told him to paint them white. Oh well. We're moving in on Tuesday. My movers (Mom, Bobby, and Dan) are all lined up, the truck is reserved. I got a cargo van from enterprise (if anyone needs help moving - or just wants to drive around Madison in a "murder van" - let me know, I have it until Wednesday morning.

Colette is in Seattle/Portland and called me from Mt. St. Helens today. Sleater-Kinney shows tonight and tomorrow - I'm jealous!

Milo is being very very cute - he played with a glitter ball for about 2 hours straight today.

So now, instead of packing or grading, I'm wathing Failure to Launch. I have all the time in the world, I don't move until Tuesday...

2006-08-01T16:08:00.000-05:00

I'm at Ancora escaping the heat. According to weather.com, it's 93 degrees, with a heat index of 100; it's about 100 degrees in the apartment. HOT. Yesterday I escaped to West Towne Mall where I shopped the clearance sale at Pottery Barn (!!), hung out at Barnes & Noble (where I read the illustrated version of Eats, Shoots and Leaves) and got a rain check for a fan.

Assuming everything goes well, I'll sign the lease on the new (air-conditioned!) apartment tomorrow. The landlord sounds fabulous, the apartment is beautiful and about 750 sq. ft., which is a huge step up from the 450 sq. ft. that we're living in now. There are hardwood floors, a huge living room, and space for a table! It's also right on the bus line, which is great - maybe I will hold off on buying a car for a little while more. (umm...I need to hold off anyway...) The apartment search was horrible - I'm so glad it's over. I saw way too many dumpy places, including what looked like a crack house on Willy St. (room full of mattresses? broken windows?? disconnect notices from MG&E??? riiiight.) There was a beautiful 2-bedroom on E. Mifflin, but it was rented before we decided to take it. Then there was the house on Vilas, beautiful apartment with a HUGE kitchen and tons of closets (closets that could have easily been mini-offices), but the owners wanted a $1200 seciruty deposit. riiiight. Seriously, if we're gonna put down $1200 for a one-bedroom, we might as well be getting a condo!

I'm across the street from where they're building a new Trader Joe's. They are trying to fit a vegetable refrigerator shelf thingy in there. It's kind of fun to watch. It just barely fit!

Off to grade! See ya later!!

I love chick lit.

2006-08-01T16:07:00.000-05:00

Finnish Finnish Finnish. Hallo!!! Finnish Finnish Finnish

hagelslag isn't just sprinkles...

2006-08-01T15:59:00.000-05:00

Sprinkles or jimmies? Either way they're tops
By Richard Hartel
Special to The Capital Times

You might ask for sprinkles. You might ask for jimmies. Either way, you're asking for those little chocolate candy pieces that transform plain ice cream into a fun treat.

What you call these little chocolate bits seems to depend on where you live. In many places on the East Coast, Philadelphia and Boston, for example, chocolate sprinkles are called jimmies. But it's not the entire East Coast, since New Yorkers call them sprinkles. And some people as far west as Michigan and even Wisconsin call them jimmies.

The term sprinkles applies to a wide range of candy-type pieces that are scattered onto ice cream and other treats. From chocolate or rainbow-colored pieces to multi-colored sugar crystals, sprinkles come in numerous sizes, shapes and colors. Even those little silver or white candy balls, known as nonpareils, qualify as sprinkles.

The term "jimmies" is thought to have originated in the 1930s in Bethlehem, Pa., at the Just Born candy company. Although most well-known for marshmallow Peeps, Just Born also made the small chocolate sprinkles at that time. As the story goes, the man who ran the company's sprinkle-making machine was named Jimmy, and apparently the name stuck.
Sprinkles or jimmies? Either way they're tops
sugarcraft.com
Sugarcraft Inc. makes sprinkles in Hamilton, Ohio.

The Dutch have a similar chocolate sprinkle product, called Hagelslag. They sprinkle chocolate Hagelslag onto buttered bread for breakfast or lunch. No, it's not named after the person who first developed them. In Dutch, Hagel means hail, and Hagelslag means pellet.

A hail of small pellets. Exactly what happens when you pour sprinkles onto ice cream or cupcakes!

Chocolate sprinkles are made largely of sugar and corn starch, with a little fat to soften the texture and some cocoa powder to give it flavor and color. They taste a little like chocolate, but really don't have much flavor of their own. The rainbow-colored sprinkles have no flavor added whatsoever.

The Dutch chocolate Hagelslag, on the other hand, is actually chocolate that's been made into a paste by adding powdered sugar. They actually taste good, whereas chocolate sprinkles need ice cream or cupcakes to be palatable. Do any of you eat sprinkles by themselves?

Other candy products made from sugar and corn starch are candy cigarettes and those little candy dots (Candy Buttons) attached to a strip of paper. Remember them? Although they're much harder than sprinkles (they have lower water content and don't have the fat to soften the texture), they're made in much the same way.

To make chocolate sprinkles, the sugar, corn starch, fat and cocoa are mixed to form a paste, sort of like a candy Play-Doh. The paste is then extruded in a machine that looks like a pasta press to form thin strands of candy. Multiple ribbons of chocolate candy vermicelli exit the bottom of the extruder.

The candy strands are collected on a vibrating bed and broken into small pieces by shaking. The pieces that are too short or too long are returned to the mixing head to take another trip through the extruder. Those with the right size and shape move on to the polishing stage.

To improve their appearance, sprinkles are coated with confectioner's glaze and wax until they're nice and shiny.

Confectioner's glaze is the candy maker's term for edible shellac. A thin layer of shellac puts a shine on the sprinkles just like it does on a nice wooden desk. Confectioner's glaze and wax give the shine to everything from malted milk balls to jelly beans.

Chocolate sprinkles or jimmies, whichever you call them, go well on ice cream, cupcakes and cookies. But why stop there? How about a peanut butter and sprinkle sandwich? Or cream cheese and rainbow sprinkles on a bagel? What interesting combinations with sprinkles have you tried?

To share your own sprinkle story or to get more information about the field of food science, contact Rich Hartel at rwhartel@wisc.edu. Hartel is a professor of food engineering in the Department of Food Science at UW-Madison.
Published: August 1, 2006

onion rings and SEX at Wal-Mart

2006-07-22T16:46:00.000-05:00

Home at my mom's house for my brother Dan's birthday. He's 20 - I feel old. He's always been my little brother. I remember when he was born! Unfortunately there won't be any birthday cake or ribs - he had to have emergency surgery to get his wisdom teeth removed on his birthday. My mom offered to make him a pudding cup and stick a candle in it. At least he gets to have milkshakes for dinner!

Went to lunch at Heineman's with my mom - the best onion rings and a huge chicken ceasar sandwich. Yum. Then we took a trip up to Wal-Mart for a SEX (that's a "stash-enhancing expidition") and bought a bag full of yarn. Because, ya know, you need to have one skein of every color! And where else can you get 200 yds of yarn for $1.97! I also got some snazzy red and yellow plastic needles (sz. 13) and a brass thimble. (ooohhh! classy! and from Wal-Mart!)

See ya later!

Milo wants the gerbils

2006-07-22T16:41:00.000-05:00

Milo wants the gerbils
Originally uploaded by Colette Denali.

2006-07-19T10:11:00.000-05:00

I'm 18% Dixie, what are you?

forget Saramago and Kundera, it's summer

2006-07-14T19:31:00.000-05:00

Now THIS is a Sherpa with a Purse - chick lit about a woman who leaves her fancy job in London to go trekking in Nepal. She's after a guy, of course. I couldn't resist the cover, which shows a real sherpa with a purse.

With or Without You by Carole Matthews

I've been reading chick lit lately (semi-trashy novels which generally have pink covers and are about 20-something women working in advertising/PR/journalism, enjoy shopping, and have a hot, unattainable male love interest). I just finished Bridget Jones' Diary and am finishing up Sophie Kinsella's Confessions of a Shopaholic. I can read trashy novels every once in a while. At least these have a bit more depth than the Gossip Girl books. (You know you love me!)

milo 2!

2006-07-11T22:34:00.000-05:00

P7113066
Originally uploaded by Colette Denali.

More Milo...cutie!

Baby Milo!

2006-07-11T19:59:00.000-05:00

Colette and I got a kitten this weekend! His name is Milo and he's a Russian Blue. And very playful.

2006-06-28T11:03:00.000-05:00

Round-trip fare from Madison to LaGuardia this weekend = $180. WHY WHY WHY does SmarterTraveler.com tempt me like this?! If I wasn't teaching I think maybe I'd go. Or maybe not, I am kinda broke. I'm thinking I might go to NYC for a few days at the end of the summer, just for a break and some time for myself. I want to wander around the city and get lost.

I'm so bored in Madison.

Last night Colette and I went to the Terrace and played Scrabble, visited Sara at work, and went to Pasqual's for nachos and burritos with Sam (who is leaving in a few weeks!). The night before that we went to Coldstone and played "Guess the Country" (a game which I am horrible at! damn Lebanon! and Finland! agh!).

I still want the Yaris, although since I don't drive stick it's gonna cost $13k. A used car sounds so much better. A real full-time job to pay for the car (and $3/gal. gas), however, doesn't sound so fun.

2006-06-20T14:11:00.000-05:00

I really want a car. This is what I have my eye on now, a Toyota Yaris. It's really cute (European design! ooohhh!) and gets about 40 mpg. Starts at about $11,000.

I should buy used, if anything. agh!

those poor jeans!

2006-06-18T23:41:00.000-05:00

kff-sweaterandaccessoriesjeansa
Originally uploaded by jennesy.

Seriously...who would knit this? It's from Lion Brand's website. Spice up your jeans, top, and dog with AN UGLY FUR BORDER!

2006-06-18T22:10:00.000-05:00

Haven't been doing too much lately, just enjoying the rest of my break. Classes start tomorrow. I've never had summer classes so I'm not sure how it will go. Seems like it will be twice as fast as classes during the semester. Sadly, there are the same number of papers in the summer as there are during the semester, so I'll be grading lots. BUT - I only have 8 students, which is nothing compared to the 32 I had last semester.

I need to quit the second job, find a new job, retake the GRE, and get my shit together to reapply to grad school in the fall.

Now I get to plan an ice-breaker for tomorrow morning! BINGO!

That's Right! I'm back!

2006-06-12T16:02:00.000-05:00

Dear Journal,
It's been a crazy few weeks! I went to New Mexico with Colette. Here are some highlights from my trip:

1. Gambling. I really like gambling. I even got my own perks membership at the Isleta Casino and Resort. Some favorite games include Video Poker and a 50s themed video slot machine. The bonus round gives you lots of small winnings. I did not win a Jeep- the guy who did, however, said "What! Another car!" and stalked off.

2. Monopoly. Have you ever played a tri-generational game of Monopoly with me, Colette, her Aunt, her Uncle, her brother, and two cousin? You're missing out. Philip got really upset because by the time he made it around the board, every last property had been purchased. Did I mention gambling? When I got back from the casino at 9, the game had just ended due to bedtimes, after 7 hours. That's right. Seven hours.

3. Knitting. I totally knit socks! (By the way, you should read "Knit Socks!" It's a wonderful book about, you guessed it, knitting socks.) I knit a blue sock during our 9 hour wait in O'Hare and flight from Chicago to Albuquerque. I ran out of yarn so I was unable to finish it's twin, but I did start on yes, I did, a THIRD SOCK! A pink one, no less.

4. Hot Springs. I am a fan of hot springs, particularly Ojo Caliente. I loved the Mud Tub! I also got a whole quart of Lithia water. It's supposed to boost your mood, but really, it just tastes a bit... dank. A definite highlight of the trip was a couple who showed up at the end- a gentleman in a leopard print speedo and his female companion in a hunter orange thong bikini. Gross. We booked it after that. (Although Colette's brother did stare at the lady for a bit of time.)

5. Sonic. This is a fantastic drive-in fast food place. I love their onion rings. I also love the way they carry your food out to the car. I like to make lots of requests of customer service professionals, so this works well for me. I sampled Sonic in a few different cities. In Española, a man came up selling candles that "fell off a truck." I told the guy that "I think we're okay," causing Philip to set off into peals of laughter.

6. Pooping. Philip and I bonded rather heartily over stories about pooping and poop mishaps. Ask me about them sometime!

7. Chihuahuas. I am in love with the Montoyas' chihuahua, Lola. I am seriously thinking of replacing Colette with her. Lola snuggled with me constantly and followed me wherever I went. She yelped sadly when I climbed on top of the train car in their orchard. Lola also slept on my chest every night. Even though everyone else is sick of her snarfling, I kept the bedroom door open every night so that Lola could join me. Too bad she can't jump the foot from the floor to the bed!

8. Warehouse stores. Who doesn't love the ability to buy restaurant sized condiments, contact solution, and a $1.50 hot dog/ coke combo all in one place? I do!

So that's New Mexico!

See you later!

Love,
Jen

where have YOU been?

2006-05-23T22:01:00.000-05:00

create your own visited countries map

2006-05-21T22:32:00.000-05:00

I'd like to thank my ghost writer!! Without you, it would probably be another month before I updated.

The sleeves (latest knitting project) are almost done. Photos to come soon!

Toilets and Asparagus

2006-05-19T22:22:00.000-05:00

Can you believe it? Two posts in one day! I am going to be such a prolific blogger that soon I'll be up to 5 visits a day!

I really want to play my violin more. About a week ago, I stayed in during the rain and played the entire Fiddler on the Roof book for Colette. When her boss lent us her car to move, we went out to Wardbrodt and I spent far too much money on more sheet music. I also grabbed some easier books so that I can play duets with C.

The landlord *finally* had someone come and fix the toilet! Previously, it had been unattached the floor. Generally, a toilet is bolted to the floor so that it does not sway from side to side when one sits upon it. Not so in Apt. #2! Although the plumber was a bit chagrined at the news that he'd be fixing a toilet to the floor, he did it. It had been wobbling for so long that I found it rather disconcerting to sit my bottom on solid... ground. Now, if only we can get the shower to drain!

Well, I've got to watch some more Buffy before I head to bed. With any luck, it's off to the Farmer's Market in the morning. Beastly Colette never wakes up in time to go, so I'll likely head there toute seule. The last time I went, I picked up a plethora of asparagus and made a lovely stirfry with ginger.

See ya later!

Coffeeshop.

2006-05-19T19:55:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been a while since I've updated this blog. Sorry about that Hillary- I've always appreciated how great you are with comments!

Yesterday Colette and I went to a coffeeshop near our house. Time for a customer service rant! Colette had some really terrible hot pink iced tea. She had one sip and threw it in the bushes. We sat out on the back "patio." It was really a yard, just so you know. In order to get there, one must squeeze between a row of bushes and the owner's car. I spilled my latte on myself, argh! Once we reached the backyard area, we chose a table and sat down. As we settled into our seats, the chairs themselves settled about 3 inches deep into the dirt! Yikes! The table was also quite wobby- our drinks sloshed a few times when Colette accidentally hit her foot on the table. Bad news! It's great to have a coffeeshop near our house, but not for $5.31 (for a small latte and iced tea!), sinking chairs, sloshy drinks, and a squeeze through the bushes.

In other news, I've really been enjoying watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer lately. Don't laugh! I'm running out of TV-on-DVD options and I'm getting sucked in.

Well, I've got to run because Colette and I are getting a pizza tonight.

See you later!

2006-05-10T17:10:00.000-05:00

Sorry that Jen's Loan is getting neglected. I've been spending way too much time grading.

Going to NM in a few weeks.

Teaching 225 - again - this summer. I have a 50% appointment, so, half the grading (acutally, one-quarter of the grading that I'm doing now...), but half the pay, too. I need to find an additional job. I don't want more hours at Borders.

Made my first student loan payment. Yuck. Also sent in the deposit to NYU. I'm deferring for a year, and will start in Fall 07. (If I don't get into any PhD programs elsewhere.)

in a 3-way mixed-ANOVA haze.

2006-05-01T19:19:00.001-05:00

Grading is hard. Reading the IPs is hard. These projects are about 10 times more complicated than the projects from last semester. Last semester, everyone had one (MAYBE two) 3x2 between-subjects ANOVAs. This time around, there are many many (oh, like 6-10) 3 way mixed ANOVAs. I didn't even know how to interpret a 3-way mixed ANOVA a month ago. yuck.

These students should all get gold stars. I did make them cookies and cupcakes. I think that counts.

2006-04-26T20:17:00.000-05:00

I spoke too soon. I think my computer is dead. I hate Best Buy. They better get me a new one.

UWash

2006-04-26T16:46:00.000-05:00

Spoke with a nice woman at the University of Washington today about my application. The Social area made 5 offers this year (out of about 200+ applicants), 4 people accepted. One of the faculty members I applied to work with is possibly leaving in the next year or two to take another offer, and the other is retiring. The people who took students this year aren't in my area of Social (and they're brand new faculty who aren't even listed on their website).

This softens the rejection a bit. At least I know that they considered my application and being accepted there was out of my control. (It did take them until 4/14 to tell me they didn't want me.)

NYU offered to find me $18500 in federal loans. Not sure where the rest of it is supposed to come from. Also, no tuition remission for master's students (even in the case of an RA/TA-ship). But, I CAN defer for a year and be guaranteed a spot in the Fall 2007 class. I just need to send in my $250 deposit.

In other news, I think the computer is working again.

I HATE BEST BUY!!

2006-04-22T23:31:00.000-05:00

So I took my laptop in a few weeks ago to fix the inverter on the screen (the backlight went out, a common problem on laptops/LCD screens)...soo...I picked it up, tried to use it, and THE FUCKING THING DOESN'T WORK! I have corrupt system files. My system crashes. I can't get into Windows. I get crazy error messages that even my CS-major-computer-geek-brother can't even decipher.

It worked fine when I took it in, the only problem was with the screen.

Best Buy fucked up my computer. I'm pissed.

This is what it looked like on the way out

2006-04-19T23:57:00.000-05:00

Still no money for NYU, but I've got a few leads on research opportunities. I think I'm going, but there's no way in hell I'm going to take out $100,000 in loans for 2 years of school. For a MASTER'S DEGREE. When I still have to go into a 5 year PhD program.
Essentially, the MA program will help me get accepted into a PhD program. Why can't I just be one of those lucky people who gets full funding for 5 years right off the bat for their PhD program. Grr.

But, if there's no money, I can't go.

2006-04-19T23:55:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite artists has a Google logo!

NYU!!!

2006-04-17T14:05:00.000-05:00

I GOT INTO NYU!!!!!

I got accepted into the Master's in General Psychology program. No funding. I applied to the PhD program, but I guess they referred me to the MA program.

It's still good news!!

FUCK

2006-04-15T12:44:00.000-05:00

FUCK! I lost my $300 camera somewhere between my house and Memorial Union this morning. Here's my post on craigslist: I lost a Canon EOS Rebel Ti SLR film camera this morning. It was in a black LowePro triangular camera case. I think I may have left it on the east-bound 6 bus between Spooner/Breese @ Regent and Johnson @ Park, or else it may be near the bus stop around Spooner/Breese @ Regent.

Soo...if you see a random camera somewhere, tell me!

weekend highlights...

2006-04-10T11:35:00.000-05:00

Friday - Borders. whoo. Shopping at the mall. Fun. Bought cute summer clothes, which are inspiring me to work out more. I want to have cute muscular arms. (Not like body builder arms, but not flabby. You know.)

Saturday - Went RUNNING. That's right. RUNNING. More like run for 5 minutes, walk for 10. But you know. RUNNING. Good enough. Screen on my laptop died, took it to Best Buy, it'll come back in 2-3 weeks. I hope they can replicate the problem (and FIX it, it's pretty erratic). Colette moved her desktop over to my house, so now there's a fancy computer sitting on my desk. (It's really on the floor...same thing.) Sam got the Sims, and we spent Saturday night installing all of the expansion packs.

Sunday - Cleaned the windows on the sunporch - with newspaper (Thank you Bust!). It's so much cheaper than paper towels! Except your hands get covered in newsprint. Go figure. Went rollerblading with Nicole. Organized photos.