My Hodge Podge of Ponderings

New Job

2007-07-23T10:42:00.000-06:00

I've begun a new role with the bank. Starting today I am now working as a financial adviser! Keep your fingers crossed for me- hopefully the sales pressure will not be a thick as it was at telephone banking.

There is already a perk- I have limited internet access (such as posting on my blog). This can only result in more updates!

In other news, Jason and I have started renovations. So far we (along with the much appreciated help of my family, Sami, Markita, and Frank) have managed to pull up all the carpet (except on the stairs), removed the padding and staples, and have about half of the priming completed. For pre-renovation pictures, take a look at Jason's blog (linked on the left).

Ugh....Lawyers!

2007-07-18T08:39:00.000-06:00

Jason and I have purchased a condo in Halifax and finally stop paying rent. The entire process was okay, up until our lawyer (and if anyone is planning on buying in HRM let me know so you don't end up with the same guy). Because he is disorganized, he likes to blame other parties. For example, yesterday at 11am he phones to tell be I need a money order (never mentioned in previous conversations with the lawyer) for the down payment for the next morning, before the local banks open, and associated costs- but he doesn't know how much it needs to be made out for. But because I bank with a virtual bank, it's impossible to get things done on incredibly short notice. Even with branch banks, if I hadn't had yesterday off of work, this would have been impossible since most branches close before the end of my shift at work.

When I explain why this might be a problem, he tries to make me feel bad about how I should change banks! I'm quite satisfied with my banking- and to have a stranger tell me how to handle my finances in a blunt, rude manner did not sit well with me. I waited all day yesterday for him to phone to tell me the exact amount, which he did not (which he assures me is due to the ineptitude of the current owner's lawyer). And still has not. I also ended up having to pay $20 for bank fees so everything could be done quickly. I asked (I figure it never hurts to ask) if I could have the $20 deducted from the legal costs since it was he lack of providing information that created this problem. (BTW, he also made me complete and pay for all the photocopying of ID's etc.). He ranted for a bit about "How could I ask him to cover my bank charges!!!". I stood my ground and explained why I was asking, and working for so long in customer service, I was prepared for him to say no. But he did agree to followed by a rant about how inappropriate it was for me even ask. It may be just me, but when I hire someone to provide a service I expect to be given the necessary information, and if I am paying him hundreds of dollars I expect some politeness. He also ranted about how he went out of his way to drop off papers on a Saturday. Honestly, I don't work Tuesdays or Wednesdays, and the only time there isn't anyone at home is between 11am and 3pm on weekdays. I never asked for him to come over on a Saturday, he offered! After the call, I broke down in tears.

Today he came over at 10:15am to sign the final paperwork. He was 10 minutes late- but I'm sure he'll find away to blame it on me as well. I told him to forget about the $20 (I figured it was easier to let it go than bother with it. CIBC was nice enough to waive part of the $20, as for the remaining amount, I suppose my lawyer must be living well below the poverty line to afford the difference to correct his omission or care for his reputation). Even after I told him it was okay and to let it go. He did rant for a good 5 minutes again about how I could ask for it. And he also mentioned it at least two more times during the 20 minute meeting. The rant began with "I don't think you know who I am." Someone obviously has an inflated ego. During the rant, he mentioned that he was discussing me with his coworkers and they couldn't believe that I asked for a reduction in fee! The nerve of me!

It's very unprofessional to discuss clients with coworkers! The only good thing about this lawyer is that I'll never have to meet him again! I wasn't going to mention his name, but I'm still quite upset so I'll stick with last name: Mr. Smith.

A more traditional approach

2007-01-31T09:48:00.000-06:00

I've been trying to decide for a long time now what I want to be when I grow up. Yeah, I'm already 25 and have no clue what I want to do with my life. Looking back, I shouldn't be surprised. I've drifted through education, never really having to pick a career. I mean, I love plants and they're really cool, but there aren't a lot of job opportunities in the field. I knew all this before I began my graduate studies in botany.

So I've been thinking about why I like plants. There are of course the immediate perks: they don't complain, easy to maintain (especially since I dealt with the dead ones), no one is horrified if you kill a few accidentally. I think my true love of plants comes from an ethnobotanical view (plants and people). Our daily activities require plants, right down to my cotton underwear!

Those who know me, know that I'm not in anyway a vegetarian, but the more I see of chronic illnesses in the news (including obesity), I think people need to simplify their lives. Pills typically treat symptoms. Tylenol is great for a fever and makes you feel better while your body fights the cause. There was an excellent editorial in the New York Times recently, Unhappy Meals. The author discussed that by trying to analyze the components of food, we've lost track of the food as a whole. Sure fibre is great, but I'm sure that Shreddies act differently in your body than apples. The whole is different than the sum of its parts.

With this in mind, I've started thinking that perhaps a good career for me would be either as a Naturopathic doctor or a registered dietitian. If I tend to feel crappy some days maybe it's because of what I've been feeding myself.

I'll admit that I'm a selfish person. Where I'm currently employed, there is a employee assistance programme (EAP). This programme gives counseling and advice and naturopathic programmes along with dietitians :). Today I phoned the programme to have them send me a naturopathic kit. When it arrives I'll phone the naturopath and see where it takes me. If it goes well, I'm also covered by my medical benefits to go see a naturopath here in Halifax.

I'm feeling pretty excited about it all. :)

Happy New Year

2006-12-31T19:30:00.000-06:00

I'm chosing to look forward at the end of 2006. Not that 2006 was a bad year- I finished my thesis, vacationed in Punta Cana, moved closer to home, and learned so much about personal banking- but right now I'm more interested in planning my future. Must be the new banker in me :)

Last year, I'm pretty convinced I didn't reach any of my old resolutions- I definetly haven't been updating my blog! But Dec.31 is time to dream of where we want to be in 365 days. I don't believe in doing resolutions cold turkey, but would rather have the year to reach these goals.

First, I need to keep in contact with everyone. Maybe if I update regularily, people will start coming to my blog again. I also need to start sending handwritten letters. Emails just aren't personal enough. I'll need to make an address book in excel to keep me on track. Maybe next year my goal will be to remember birthdates- but let's just keep this one thing at a time.

Next I need to take care of myself. As per the status quo, I'll try to be heathier. The Dance Dance Revolution game and mat (to be referred to as DDR in future posts) is a good start. Next, I need to take care of my sanity. Perhaps it is time to get a journal and on the oppisite end, more spontaeous. And finally, I want to develop a taste for fine foods and wine.

I know other resolutions will come to mind later and through out the new year...for now this is a good start. Time to pour me a glass of wine (XOXO, Shiraz Cabernet "a passionate pairing of shiraz and cabernet").

Thesis Completed

2006-08-22T08:54:00.000-06:00

I defended August 9- in all honest the oral exam wasn't nearly as tough as I had anticipated, although there were a few strange questions from my external: "which gene do you think would work best for creating a phylogeny?" (FYI, I didn't do any genetics or molec work during my thesis.). I also spoke before thinking, and told my supervisor that his question asking me to define a genus was "RATHER OBSCURE". After taking the thirty minutes or so to make the corrections to my thesis, it took a week to get all the printing and paperwork done. My thesis was submitted to the university last Thursday. Hopefully it will be bound and ready for pick up before I move.

Speaking of moving, movers are coming to pick up my stuff on August 30 and we have to vacate our apartment on August 31. We are going to try to spend the night of the 31st at a friend (who is kind enough to accept us and our cats) before flying out to Halifax on September 1st. We should be arriving in NS around 9:30pm. Furniture should be arriving on Sept. 3. Five days without furniture is a while, but much better than the last time when it took 12 days for our stuff to arrive in Guelph from Fredericton.

2006-08-10T09:28:00.000-06:00

Raining in Axelrod

It was a very exciting day here in my lab on the day I defended.

Hot Days

2006-08-01T10:51:00.000-06:00

The temperature here in Guelph is insane: currently 32C and 44C (humidex). Last night the temperature didn't go below 37C (humidex). With our apartment on the third floor and no air circulation from the windows, it was a sweaty, uncomfortable night. That cat's probably had a worse time of it. When the apartment is warm they lay in the cold (empty) bathtub.

Temperature is forcast to continue to climb today (to about 36C and 49C-humidex) and not cool very much tonight. But hopefully a cold fron will pass though on Wednesday.

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Thesis Update:

Defense next Wednesday at 9:30am followed by a 2-hour oral examination. Then end is almost close enought to touch.

After the defense I have about 2 weeks of paper work to finish.

Rick Mercer's Appology to the US

2006-07-23T19:49:00.002-06:00

A Canadian Apology

A truly Canadian Apology to the USA... Courtesy of Rick Mercer from This Hour Has 22 Minutes, CBC Television:

On behalf of Canadians everywhere I'd like to offer an apology to the United States of America. We haven't been getting along very well recently and for that, I am truly sorry. I'm sorry we called George Bush a moron. He is a moron but, it wasn't nice of us to point it out. If it's any consolation, the fact that he's a moron shouldn't reflect poorly on the people of America. After all it's not like you actually elected him.

I'm sorry about our softwood lumber. Just because we have more trees than you doesn't give us the right to sell you lumber that's cheaper and better than your own.

I'm sorry we beat you in Olympic hockey. In our defence I guess our excuse would be that our team was much, much, much, much better than yours. I'm sorry we burnt down your White House during the war of 1812. I notice you've rebuilt it! It's Very Nice.

I'm sorry about your beer. I know we had nothing to do with your beer but, we feel your pain.

I'm sorry about our waffling on Iraq. I mean, when you're going up against a crazed dictator, you want to have your friends by your side. I realize it took more than two years before you guys pitched in against Hitler, but that was different. Everyone knew he had weapons.

And finally on behalf of all Canadians, I'm sorry that we're constantly apologizing for things in a passive-aggressive way which is really a thinly veiled criticism. I sincerely hope that you're not upset over this. We've seen what you do to countries you get upset with.

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I especially like the Iraq part.

Physics Phunny

2006-07-23T15:26:00.000-06:00

It's been a while since I've heard many physics jokes, but I'm sure someone will appreciate this. I was suprised that got it.

Getting Ready to Graduate: Step 1 Completed

2006-07-21T17:45:00.001-06:00

Finally managed to hand in my thesis to the graduate secretary after much fustration over a missing signature on a silly form. At UoG, there is a form that needs to be signed by all committee members before the thesis is handed in. The form simply states that each person has read the thesis and whether or not it should be defended.

The catch is that the thesis can be defended regardless of whether your committee agrees with you. With one of my advisors teaching in Iowa and currently on vacation, we thought that an email would sufficient. In the past, she and my supervisor assured me, that was always possible. The graduate secretary said she would look into it. Unfortunate for me, the secretary went on a week long vacation right when I was supposed to be handing it in. When she gets back, I'm informed that an email won't cut it anymore, and so I'm stuck waiting as my advisor does not have access to a fax machine for two weeks. Lovely.

The rest of the stress is because there is only a narrow time frame in which I can defend. My advisor begins teaching during the last two weeks of August and the thesis defense cannot occur until at least 3 weeks once has been submitted to give the examination committee time to read. On top of this my supervisor is away on vacation, leaving everything up to me. Ugh.

The good news? I finally managed to submit the thesis this afternoon!

Finally figured out the banner

2006-07-21T17:37:00.000-06:00

As you can see, I have finally figured out how to get the banner at the right place and size along with a few minor adjustments. Not I just need to figure out how to standardize the font. How can I change the template so that the font of my posts will always be Palatino Linotype, 14px, 1.5 spacing? Any suggestions would be well appreciated.

I was disscussing blogs today with labmates. They don't feel keeping an unthemed blog as very worthy. I understand the point, as I doubt any random people would find my thoughts interesting. Unless of course, you know who I am and because I am horrible at sending emails making this is the only way to see what I have been up to.

I'm thinking about making two theme blogs...to appease those people who are critics of personal blogs. The first about food and recipes and the second about my cats. People who don't have cats will not understand that blog, but there are still many cat lovers in the world.

Taking Nike for a walk

2006-07-20T17:24:00.000-06:00

The banner is coming along. I've changed my template again. The other one was too difficult for me to figure what everything meant. This one is a bit more intuitive.

Do you like the frogs in the banner? The picture was taken last July 3 (the last day of the Harvard Tropical Botanical Course). These little golden frogs were so cute...and I just can't resist the macro function on my camera. We have two Nikon cameras in the lab, but niether are as good for these shots as my (relatively) old Olympus, bought three years ago.

Today Larry and Cameron left for Spain where they will meet Lewis an Manuel. With Usher gone to England, only Erin, Mike, and I will be in the lab tomorrow and continuing into next week. Tim doesn't really count: a family member has been diagnosed with a terminal illness. I really sympathize with the guy. Whenever things start to calm down and he can focus on his thesis, something happens, something that must be dealth with.

Nike went for a walk last night. She is getting very obediant about walking, although we still get strange looks for walking a cat on a leash. We met a well trained dog, Steve, and his owner Mike. Nike was freaked out a first and Steve patiently sat at his master's feet. After about 5 minutes, Nike could get to within a foot of the dog before she hissed. I was proud of her. For the past three days I have been taking Nike outside for a walk around 7:30pm. It was raining (the street at the back of my building flooded with about a foot of water) her today so I wasn't planning on taking her outside, but she's givining me the look, standing on her hind legs and putting her chin on my arm as I write this. Time to find out if she minds the wet grass.

2006-07-19T12:55:00.000-06:00

I have made a banner for the top of my blog, all I need to do if figure out how to put it in the template.

What to Do?

2006-07-18T11:55:00.001-06:00

Hmmm...just a post mostly for myself as I try to figure out what to do after school today. I was thinking about walking to Zellers and picking up some organizing stuff (but I may put this off until tomorrow, because, by then I may need some groceries).

I can continuing sorting and organizing the bedroom.
Yesterday I went through my clothes to figure out what to keep and what to get rid of when I move. Movers charge by the pound.Start playing the Sims or RollerCoaster Tycoon.
Finish reading book and return it to the library tomorrow (and check to see if my hat is in the lost an found).
Personalize the template for this blog: make a banner and whatnot.
Take Artemis outside for a walk. It is her turn since Nike got to go yesterday. When I brought her in, she sat by the door and yowled for half an hour, wanting to go back outside. Funny cat.

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Last night, I did not fall asleep until after 1:30am. That 1h30 nap yesterday afternoon was not very good for my sleeping habits or my insomnia. Artemis slept on the bed with me while I was watching TV, but I don't know where Nike was hiding (probably trying to chew her way into a bag of treats). Usually Nike is the social one and Artemis is off on her own. When I woke this morning, they were both in bed with me. I'd probably be very lonely on my own if I didn't have the cats (I feel a bit disappointed having to say that. What ever happened to being a tough bitch?)

statz rappers

2006-07-17T10:24:00.000-06:00


This is too funny! Makes me happy that I didn't have to do any stats for my thesis. As a TA, I have never thought to do this.

2006-07-17T09:46:00.000-06:00

Jason is off to NB this morning, leaving me with cats in our hot apartment for the next week and a half. This will be the first time I have had the apartment to myself since we moved to Guelph. I have a few ideas of what I'm going to be doing during this time.

Organize stuff for the move to Halifax
Take the cats for a walk...well, at least Nike (the whitish one)
Watch some TV (I've downloaded America's Next Top Model to stop me from snacking. Since I don't have anybody to cook for, I'll be tempted to each crackers and cheese for every meal)
Do a little baking for the lab
Read (I'm reading a good fantasy book now called "The Decoy Princess"-not sure if it is part of a series)
Apply for jobs

Which reminds me- if anyone has any ideas on jobs in Halifax I'd love to know. Once we move to Halifax and pay Dal tuition, the savings will be minute. Hopefully I'll find a job quickly. I'm a bit stressed out about it.

I'll probably be updating my blog quite a bit over the next few days. I'm thing about putting in some picture of my trip to Montreal. Unfortunately the pictures might be very boring- usually all the focus is on plants and people only make it in the frame when I need something for scale :) Dr. Riding would be proud.

Just a quick post

2006-06-17T20:11:00.000-06:00

Just have time for a quickie...

A bit of unfortunate news- looks like I won't be home in July. I have to finish my thesis by July 12 (and I'll be away at a conference for a week in June and I still have 3/4's of it to write.

It is a stressful time! But I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Back from vacation

2006-06-10T07:53:00.000-06:00

It wasn't a trip across Canada, but it was still wonderful. I spent a week at a 5-star resort in Punta Cana. The weather was nice and the ocean warm. The everyday responsiblities were far from my mind. No thoughts of running errands, getting groceries, cooking, cleaning, or writing my thesis. Although most meals were buffet style, we did eat at three themed restaraunts: Japanese, French, and Mexican. I think the Japanese was my favorite. Unfortunately the airconditioning was broken that day, and the heat dampened my appetite. They had the best salmon/ginger sushi!

In the evenings there were shows put on by the staff- comedies and whatnot. Most was in Spanshish- but we managed to catch the jist of it. Once that show ended you could walk over to the night time entertainment- live dancing on stage, casino, shopping, piano bar, and disco. Unfortunately, we were usually pretty tired by then and didn't stay up very late.

During the day there were day trips touring the country side, seeing schools. And a bit of botany: chocolate, coffee, sugar cane, vanilla, and bananas. Another trip we took was snorkeling with sharks- they were about 7 feet long, but vegetarian. Other days we relaxed on the beach, went kayaking, hung out in the pool, walked along the beach, and played games. After lunch, we were ready for a nice afternoon nap.

Although I'm not a fan of flying, the crew was pleasant and the food decent. Movies included Chronicles of Narnia, Nanny McPhee, and The New World. BTW, the New World is was to scenery based to show at 10pm!

We arrived back around 3am. The cats were surprised to see us. Nike, the friendly one, ran away to the window sill in the bedroom when we came in. After a few minutes I went to see her. She hissed at me!!! She soon calmed down and returned to her normal spoiled self.

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Everyday there was a highlighted drink. The local coctail was coco loco:

crushed ice
milk
coconut
sugar
rum

Mix to taste and puree in blender.

Turning over a new leaf

2006-04-25T06:02:00.000-06:00

I've had a rough couple of weeks here in the lab. My supervisor decided to hire help around this lab, not based on experience but because he is living with another grad student in lab. The new person is in first year courses and has no lab experience. On the other hand the third year student who has been volunteering all sememster, who knew how to do everything couldn't get a job. On top of it, the new hire's girlfriend (who is in the lab) is suposed to train her boyfriend on all the lab techniques, unfortunately, she really doesn't know how to do anything herself, and has been driving everyone crazy with stupid questions.

Last week I was so frustrated by all of this. I work hard so that my credentials will land me a job, and here I see someone getting hired based solely on who he is fucking. It's been very discouraging. If asked, I'm going to refuse to train this new guy. I've already trained someone- someone my supervisor didn't feel like hiring. Besides, I'm going to be busy writing my thesis.

After a rough week, I'm ready to change my attitude. From now on, when I am in lab, I'm only going to say nice things or nothing at all (it helps that my supervisor has gone to England for a few weeks!). It's going to be tough.

This attitude was inspired by a dream I had last night. An ex of mine was getting married. In a city we walked past each other while I was on my way to a pub. Upon recognition, I was just going to look away and continue, but I realized that this wasn't right. I made eye contact and smiled. More things happened in the dream (I was working in a video store, moving out of my appartment, buying a house with a swimming pool). He and I met again. This time I was able to do more than smile, I said "congratulations".

Homemade Meat?

2006-03-28T06:49:00.000-06:00

It is an interesting concept- growing meat cells at home. Something I am usre will make vegans happy- especially considering how awful Tofu can be when not properply prepared. On a safety end, this meat would be free of prions, viruses, bacteria, and fecal material. But does it taste the same. The texture of meat comes from how much activity the animal gets and what sort of food it eats. I doubt chemicals in a Petri dish will live up to comparison (something like Veggie hot dogs).

I am impressed that someone ever thought of doing this. It shouldn't be surprising considering scientists can grow human ears on rats.

If given the option, I would try it.

V for Vendetta

2006-03-25T17:29:00.000-06:00

It is the best movie that I have seen in a very long time. Amazing acting, great story. I think that Natalie Portman should win an award for her performance.

Either that, or I like men with masked and with mystery.

With everything that is going on in the world today (terrorism, wars, cocky governments) this film definitely makes one think.

I would like to write lots about this film, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone.

Dance!

2006-03-14T17:39:00.000-06:00

Every play dance dance revolution? I have the borrowed game at my appartment. There is a mat with arrows on the floor. Funky music plays and you step on the buttons with your feet when prompted. I have quickly discovered that I have abosutely no foot-eye coordination! With a bit (well, okay, a whole lot) of practice I can almost make it through the lessons. I'm considering buying the game.

It's made me think. The mat has all the buttons on a normal PlayStation controller. You can play any game with. What a great fitness idea. Instead of sitting on chair playing games, you can be active and add a challenge to game play. Especially in the more monotonous parts, like leveling up in any Final Fantatsy game. I have the PS mat, but you can buy ones that are compatble with multiple consoles (the come with adaptors) and you can plug in as many as there is room. I bet there would be lots of fun while drinking and playing mario cart!

Ikea and Exams

2006-03-05T09:54:00.000-06:00

They have been a few busy days since I last posted. Mom and Alicsa arrived on Wednesday evening. For supper I planned on making Vietnamese beef noodle soup, but since it was ash Wednesday I had to change the beef to shrimp and the beef broth to vegetable broth. It tasted great. I was impressed at how well Mom could use chopsticks on her first try. Just as an asides- eating with chopsticks is great: you have to eat more slowly which leads to enjoying the food.

Thursday morning, Mom and I spent two hours looking at stores downtown. There are some pretty nice places and nice things to look at, but we didn't buy anthing since the next day we were going to Ikea. I walked to campus around noon to TA my small class of 7. That was fun. I really prefer having 7 students instead of 52! I was able to spend some time one on one with one student to help him understand things beyond the scope of the lab. I sometimes wonder if I would prefer teaching over research... Thursday night we all went to Angels Diner to celebrate Alicsa's birthday. Afterwards we had Dairy Queen icecream cake. It has been ages since I've had that kind of cake. I've missed it. My favorite part? The crunchy chocolate fudge layer!

Ikea is amazing - I wish I had gone there when I first moved in. That way I really would have decorated the place. It's hard for me to be motivated to buy lots of stuff knowing that I'll be moving in a few months. But definitely my kind of store. Maybe Alicsa will drive me there again next weekend?

Yesterday was busy. Proctoring the exam at 8:30am. I was happy to have been trusted enough to head one of the exam rooms :). Afterwards lots and lots of marking. Did you know that there is a gremlin gene. It doesn't have to do with not eating after midnight, but with birds having webbed feet or seperated toes. The is also a Sonic Hedgehog gene/mutation that makes limbs have lines of symmetry/line of reflection. If I ever discoverd a gene, I would definitely name it something cool like these ones.

For two nights I have been staying up late playing clue with Mom, Alicsa, and Jason. Everyone has won games except me. This is different- usually I have uncanny luck at new games!

Company is leaving today but coming back this weekend. All in all, this visit is going better than I thought.

2006-02-28T06:54:00.000-06:00

Although I do not have much to say this morning, I figure that it is good to keep in the habit of updating my blog.

The biggest thing on my mind lately is finishing my thesis in 6 months. Time flies. I think that I am running on time, but I'll be keeping my fingers crossed. Out of all the people I have met at Guelph, none of them have finished their M.Sc. in less than 7 sememesters (28 months). I'm trying to finish in the predicted amount of time of 24 months. I think that I am more or less on track. I started examining some extra material which wasn't part of the original plan. However, the way I see it, I've got two months to finish collecting data, and then four months to write my thesis.

Since I might be moving in September, I really need to finish on time. It will be good motivations since that is also when my lease ends. I'll miss this appartment. It is really nice and spacious.

In other news, Mom is flying into Windsor today to see Alicsa. Tomorrow they plan on driving here and staying until Sunday. And, as some of you from UNB know, I'm not always the tidiest person. I'm going to try to leave school early so I can tidy and hide the things mother's shouldn't see! I am very anxious to see how Mom reacts to the cats- she's never like felines.

Pizza

2006-02-24T11:45:00.000-06:00

My new tradition (currently lasting 5 weeks) is to make pizza on the weekend. It works well for throwing together all the leftovers in the fridge. I've been trying differente dough recipes from the food network and have settled on two: one by Alton Brown, the host of Good Eats and the other by Emeril. Brown's is currently my favorite. The best thing about homemade dough is that you can add spices and herbs to it. I prefer oregano and garlic salt. I'm not including all directions on how to mix the dough- I just toss everything into my food processor and then walk away for 15 minutes. I like to Make mine into pizza "wrap" just like the did at Pizza Pizza at UNB.

2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 to 1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon pure olive oil
3/4 cup warm water
2 cups flour (either bread flour or all-purpose flour)
1 teaspoon instant yeast

knead for 15 to minutes

Tear off a small piece of dough and flatten into a disc. Stretch the dough until thin. Hold it up to the light and look to see if you can see the light through it. If the dough tears before it forms, knead the dough for an additional 5 to 10 minutes.

Roll the pizza dough into a smooth ball on the countertop. Place into a stainless steel or glass bowl. Add 2 teaspoons of olive oil or spray with non-stick spray to the bowl and toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 18 to 24 hours. (I know it takes a while- but definitely worth the effort!)

Turn the oven to its highest temperature, about 500 degrees F. If

Split the pizza dough into 2-4 equal parts using a knife or a dough scraper. Flatten into a disk onto the countertop and then fold the dough into a ball.
Wet hands barely with water and rub them onto the countertop to dampen the surface. Roll the dough on the surface until it tightens. Cover one ball with a tea towel and rest for 30 minutes.
Repeat the steps with the other pieces of dough. If not baking the remaining pizza immediately, spray the inside of a ziptop bag with cooking spray and place the dough ball into the bag. Refrigerate for up to 6 days.

Sprinkle the flour onto baking sheet. Using your hands, form a lip around the edges of the pizza. Stretch the dough into a round disc, rotating after each stretch. Toss the dough in the air if you dare. Place on baking sheet (you may want to sprinkle flour on the sheet first to make sure the dough doesn't stick.

(Top and bake the pizza immediately for a crisp crust or rest the dough for 30 minutes if you want a chewy texture.)

Turn off heat in oven. Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. Rest for 3 minutes before slicing.

Morning Ramblings

2006-02-21T08:25:00.000-06:00

This is going to be an unproductive day. I came to campus at 9am to discover that the power to my building is out. There was scheduled maintainence this morning that was supposed to end at 8am but a transformer blew. Since all of my work depends on me either accessing the computer in the lab or using a microscope (which requires electricity)- I have nothing else to do this morning but blog. Power should be back by noon. I was planning on only having a half day and leaving campus at noon. I have errands to run today: groceries, buying a new navel "ring", tidying before my cousin comes to visit this evening, etc. This is the first time in two years that I haven't had a piece of metal in my belly button. Quite the interesting scar.

Still feeling a bit nostalgic today, I am listening to La Femme Nikita soundtrack on my mp3 player. I love this sort of music! Intense and mysterious---probably the opposite of what people think of me. I used to wish to be like Nikita: sexy, mysterious, confident, fashionable, dangerous with an immense amount of power and information. And I don't forget Michael. The closest I have come to this is my damn fine skill of observation. Observing is what I am trained to do afterall. BTW, my favorite song on the sound track: Fear and Love (Morcheeba). Next playlist today will be the Darren Hayes cd.

As for other news, I am planning to take two weeks vacation to visit any parts west of Guelph. I haven't decided if I want to focus on BC and the Rockies or include Saskatechwan and Mannitoba. I've been thinking about taking 5 days to camp in the mountains around Jasper...but I am not 100% certain because weather is such a big factor. I'd definitely like to visit Victoria (British Gardens) and Edmonton to meet my cousin (once removed...I think...I've never really figured out the whole "removed" terminology). Further travel this summer will be a somewhat short trip home in July (no matter how long I stay, it never feels long enough!), and potentially moving to Halifax for September. At first I wasn't a big fan of moving to Halifax, but I am warming up to the idea since I have friends there (mainly Kelly and some friends from UNB in Digby). Mom is thrilled by the idea of me being back in NS - she says she will visit 3 times a month! *sigh*

Update
I bought the replacement metal works for my navel. After being free of the piercing for less than 5 hours, the hole had already begun to heal! A safety pin worked to fix the problem painlessly. I was dreading possibly having to have it repierced (which hurts a whole lot!). I wonder if it is more painful than a tatoo?

Reconnecting

2006-02-20T16:31:00.000-06:00

Two thoughts under this heading:

1) Why is it so hard to keep in touch with good friends? Today was a good day. I was in contact with three friends that I haven't spent much time communicating with in many months. It is not that I am a bad friend but just that I am a lazy person. It is not New Year's but maybe reconnecting with friends should be my resolution. The way I look at it, such resolutions shouldn't be limited to January but should encompass all of the year. As an aside, I also broke out my flute for probably the first time in about a year. It didn't sounds too sweet, but I'll work on it.

2) My MicroSoft Windows died on the weekend and left me disconnected. As a nice surprise the person at the call centre was really nice and gave great customer support - I'm not surprised. It was located across the Cansoe Causeway from Cape Breton :). Unfortunately, I only have Windows for 30 days until I can contact the company who sold me the computer.

I know this was a boring post, but I'll have something more interesting to say tomorrow. I'm going out with my cousin for a three course fondue dinner.

Comments fixed :)

2006-02-20T06:56:00.000-06:00

You can now post a comment without being a member (I forgot to click the button when I set this up). My supervisor is away this week (he gets a spring break even if I don't get vacations) so I'll be wasting time and making a longer post later today.

2006-02-18T06:41:00.000-06:00

I've recently heard about a study on plants, global warming, and rising water levels. It seems that because there is more carbon dioxide in the air, plants don't need to leave their stomata (think air wholes) open for as long to get the CO2 neccessary for photosynthesis. This causes plants to lose less water to evaporation. So, to summarize plants need less water and don't drink up as much from the soil and this extra water causes rivers and streams water level to increase.

However, I think that it is interesting to not that the process of water evaporation is how plants suck up water. So if they can produce more photosynthates (products of photosynthesis) then they will need more water because plants get electrons for the electron transport chain from water. If this were the case, then water levels wouldn't increase. This of course assumes that plants are going to want to grow bigger or store more energy (and why wouldn't they, it gives a competetive advantage). If plants grow really big (I'm not saying this will happen anytime soon), then they will take carbon dioxide out of the air, give off more oxygen, and suck up water. Maybe this will eventually (I'm thinking centuries) lead to Earth recovering from our pollution.