2012-05-29

Beaches, Wasabi, and Good Things

Today is the last day of a three-day weekend, and I am happy to report that I...am still working, dammit, at 9:58 PM. But, I did get to go to the beach, and I am also currently eating chips with a wasabi-mayo dip, so...life is not so bad.

In trying to get rid of the stuff in my fridge, I'd been meaning to make this dip for a while. (Wasabi: done. Mayo: still to go.) It reminded me of Frjtz in The Mission, and though I only have unsalted corn tortilla chips instead of fries, it still makes for a good late-night working snack.

Speaking of a good snack, I managed to consume greens yesterday! And in the form of lettuce in a salad, no less. I had lettuce wilting in the fridge, along with some sprightly basil, so I combined them with leftover (nearly dead-and-gone) mozzarella and—get this—flaked salted-and-grilled-mackerel for a nice, healthy side dish. It tickles me that I got the jar of mackerel on clearance. If there is anyone out there who buys fish in a jar on clearance, that is my new best friend.

So, yes. Despite the work—beaches, wasabi, and good things. And if you know what book that references, you can also be my new best friend.

2012-05-22

Tea Time

I have a TA meeting at noon, so I am eating my lunch in my office. And I realize, I like to drink tea.

Well, it's not so much that I like to drink tea, really. I'm not good at brewing tea. I never get the water to the right temperature, and I steep the wrong amount of tea leaves for the wrong amount of time.

But still. I like to have tea in my office (with tea bags...so shoot me), at breakfast (with catechin powder), or before I go to bed (with mint leaves and lemon slices). I like the process of making (even bad) tea. I like the hurriedness of grabbing tea before I start grading. I like using up all the hot water in the kettle to bleed ever last bit of tea I can from my leaves. (I know I know, bad practice...)

Oh, come on. Do you really want to tell me how I should drink tea? You really think that there's only one way, the right way, to brew and drink tea? Please.

And my favorite is when I drink tea, or hot chocolate, or sometimes even the occasional latte with someone. I like the conversation, the sitting, the break from the rush of everyday life. (Actually, in that case, hot chocolate really is my poison of choice...with whipped cream, of course.) And in those moments, I really do appreciate the construction of tea time.

2012-05-19

Sayonara Yellow Brick Road

We've been covering North American '60s music in my TA class, and I was reminded of this book, which I saw through a CUP email a while ago. (Not what Bobbo mentioned, but still.)

I grew up listening to The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, and all sorts of other soft/hard rock and pop from the United States, but it wasn't until I started teaching in grad school that I figured out how the music fit into the historical context of the United States. Now I'm curious to learn about the movement of music between the United States and Japan and its influence on what all I listen to now, starting with decades past in Japan and other parts of East Asia.

If I had more time I would invest more energy into writing and playing music, but for now I am going to have to be content with the occasional guitar and last.fm sessions...

2012-05-08

A time for everything.

But apparently this month is not the time for writing anything at all. I wanted to write about all sorts of things—Guatemala, ūman ribu, p'ansori, symphony, The Wave Pictures...but apparently there is no time.

So much for my New Year's Resolutions. I need to finish up my Chinese composition so that I can plan section...or sleep. Whichever comes first. I'm sure I know the rational answer to that question: Work before all!

My goals for the next two weeks: Translate, grade papers, grade midterms, read for chapter, write blog posts (x4), write chapter, read library books, clean house, take stuff to Goodwill. Though, of course, not necessarily in that order.

Did I miss anything?

2012-05-01

Minefield

I spent some wonderful time this past weekend in a library filled with books from/about East Asia. I feel reinvigorated about working...which, of course, is why I'm blogging about non-academic things at 12:35 AM.

Today was filled with good things—good conversation, good talk, good comments on my project. I'm also about to walk into a minefield that's probably going to kill me before I get out of it alive.

(Actually, that's a horrible thing to say...I should consider with gravity the reality that people face of living near minefields. Bad Toktok. Bad.)

Oh, come on. I was just kidding...

[Bamboo from Berkeley's C.V. Starr East Asian Library...some lovely design there.]