It's like Anne says,

If you've ever read or watched Anne of Green Gables, you can understand the weight of friendship. Finding a kindred spirit isn't something that happens ever day, and the older you get, the more difficult it seems to become.

I miss the days of elementary school, when sitting next to someone is really all it takes to strike up a friendship.

For me, an added challenge is my, shall we say, transient nature. I've recently re-located for the umpteenth time, and while I hope with all hopes that this city sticks (or rather, I stick to this city), it's hard not to look back and the friendships left behind along the way. This is not to say that I've abandoned all amigos with every move. No, the magic of social media makes that VERY difficult to accomplish...not that I've tried...*ahem* Still, there's something so valuable about being able to spend physical time with someone (not *that* kind of physical). It creates lasting bonds that Facebook and texting just can't match.

So, to my dearest friends, thank you. And if you really are my bosom friend, you'll know exactly what I mean.

Discovering the Lazy Overachiever in Me

So I have now been working for 1 full, torturous, exhausting, and irritating year. I am about ready to bring on the retirement but that is a very far far off dream. One thing I noticed about myself is that as much as I would like to rejoice in the fact that I can just do my job and come home and then proceed to vegetate on the couch, I can't! I always need something to strive for, something to work at, something to achieve. For example, I am presenting my 2 year old Master's Thesis paper at a conference on Friday. I am scared shitless because I am not sure I know how to do it anymore. I am imagining some old crusty scholar asking me "soooo you finished this research 2 years ago. Where has this work progressed to now?" To which I would be forced to respond, "I took all that wonderful research and history knowledge and got a job as an engineering secretary." To which I am sure I would receive a very disturbed look of confusion and then a polite nod.

So why am I doing this? I suppose it lies in the fact that I can never stop. I need more knowledge, more publications, more street cred., and more importantly, more progress. More MORE MOREEEEE! Sorry I got carried away.

I wish I could come home and sit on the couch, watch TV, each cheetos, and sigh in relief that I am done another day. I am caught between the thrill of being lazy and the passion to achieve. God sometimes being a millennial is just the worst. Oh well at least we are super technologically savvy.

Feeling Hot...is Hot

It is insanely hot in Southwestern Ontario today and I have noticed many people commenting on the "feels like" temperature the weather reports always give you. I could not agree more that it does not make any bloody difference if they tell us its 31 if it "feels like" 41. For God's sake lets call a duck a duck here. If it feels like its 41 then its 41, people are melting and I am hot, cranky, irritable, and raging.
So my suggestion is that they do away with the actual temperature, as it is not providing us with any reasonable indication of anything, and simply tell us its 41 degrees and let us complain about that. We do not need 2 sweltering temperatures to contemplate as we get into our burning hot vehicles and yell at our spiteful air conditioning that we are convinced is trying to mess with us. We just need the 1 temperature. The REAL one.

Karate Kid?....No. Just No

I recently got wind that there will be a new Karate Kid movie coming out this summer. Now this in itself was not that bad, albeit not that good either. However, when I realized that Will Smith's 12 year old, 2 foot tall, corn rowed son was the new Daniel Sun I actually exclaimed "ohh come on!" loudly at the TV.

Jackie Chan....I don't hate you. You may stay.

Bears? Bears!

Being from "up north," I've seen my share of animals in the wild. Black bears are quite common, and though they're to be treated with respect (read: don't try to feed them or pet them), they're probably the least threatening to humans. My favourite approach is to make yourself as big and loud as possible. Generally, the bear will turn and mosey away. I like to imagine them thinking "What freaks. These guys are so not worth it." Of course, if you're in your car and you encounter a black bear, I recommend skipping these steps and remaining safely inside. Obviously.

As the old adage says: black fight back, brown lie down. I've never seen a grizzly bear. I don't imagine I want to.


Speaking of bears...
This news story is ridiculous on so many levels.

Because we're historians, after all.

How do you say "quickie" in French? by Tony Perrottet

In Combat: LIFE's Great War Photos

Simply Egg-stravagant

I really enjoy a specific breakfast spot but do not enjoy their ridiculously overpriced meals that I am sure actually cost a tenth of what I get charged. ***cough----Cora's---cough**
So in the interest of saving my broke, student loan paying, under wage paid self I decided to reverse engineer one of my favorites of the bank breaking breakfast nook. See what happens when you work in the Engineering Dept.

I have been making this item repeatedly for about a month and think I have figured it out.
**WARNING: this item is not suggested for those with high cholesterol, those trying to watch their waist line, or those that do not seriously love a whole lot of egg action**

Erica's Poorman's Egg-stravaganza:

3 - Eggs
2- Slices of bread (white, whole wheat, raisin...whatever you like...shake it up)
1- Slice of Swiss Cheese (may I suggest Emmental...its got more kick)
2-Slices of Black Forest Ham
a dash- of Cinnamon

Cooking it:
1. Beat 2 eggs in a bowl; add the cinnamon to the eggs
2. dip the bread in the eggs
3. ok we are making french toast here so you get it...butter the pan to all hell and start to make french toast.
4. When the french toast is nearly cooked fry up the remaining egg (I would suggest breaking the yolk so that its pretty flattened and all mixed together) **but not scrambled**
5. Place fried egg, ham slices, and swiss cheese on top of french toast slice and top it with the other piece of french toast.
6. Now, in the spirit of grill cheese, let the cheese melt and the french toast crisp up on each side.


Now enjoy your heart attack inducing indulgence.....LOVE IT!

E.T Phone Home

As I thoroughly enjoy bringing realism and doom and gloom to an otherwise chipper and upbeat blog, courtesy of the hopeful, happy, and wonderfully optimistic Krista, I present my thoughts on the universe and us.

So lately I have been really into shows about the universe. Astrophysics is really as nerdy as I have always thought it was but it is incredibly interesting to think about life and existence on such a grand scale. I think I find it so interesting because it not only points out how incredibly insignificant we are as a planet but also how insignificant our teeny tiny milky way is to the greater picture. For example, one show demonstrated our size and significance by comparing the universe to a beach. It stated that the universe is made up of so many galaxies that if you considered each galaxy as a grain of sand then the number of galaxies in the universe would be about as many grains of sand on every beach on the planet earth. That is pretty insane. Just think about how many grains of sand is in just one handful off of one beach. That is a whole lot of galaxies.


Now this may all sound really depressing and cynical but if you realize how little our planet matters then you really don't feel as if you have to accomplish much. I mean I used to feel like I was not living up to my potential as an educated human being but considering how minuscule we are anyways...who cares. Therefore, all we need to do is have fun, enjoy life, enjoy each other, and not worry about being important to anyone but those that surround us. Although, thinking about this can also leave you with a smile on your faces as you are overcome with a sense of awe as you wonder how this massive expanse of the universe all came to be. Pretty cool....pretty cool.

My god I bet Stephen Hawkins is pretty depressed having dedicated his life to this topic.

Ok sorry next time I will write about cooking or something more cheerful...lol.

Screw Nestle, make your own Quik!

As I might have mentioned before, I stand vehemently on the opposition side of the water privatization issue. I equate the purchasing of bottled water with peeing in a public place; if it's an emergency, then do what you've gotta do. Otherwise, just wait until there's a tap (or toilet) available. (*Note: This site does not condone public urination.)

Still, I know that Erica and I do not want this blog to become overly preachy and annoying. So, I'll limit myself on the water debate...for now. (almost)

The point is, I boycott the company Nestle. I primarily avoid them because of their hideous human rights violations in their efforts to control the earth's water supply. However, there are quite a number of products under their corporate umbrella (many of which are opposed by a number of groups for various reasons) and this includes the squeezably convenient Nestle Quik chocolate syrup. Unfortunately, there is not a lot of competition for this product, so my options are limited. The solution? Homemade chocolate sauce.

Recipe: Homemade chocolate sauce

I don't actually tend to "follow" recipes per se, but lucky for you, it couldn't be any simpler.

3-4 cups water
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 cups cocoa powder
pinch of salt

I actually used vanilla sugar (sugar infused with vanilla beans/seeds) and omitted the extract. Either would work.

1. Mix the cocoa powder and water over medium heat.
2. When cocoa dissolved, mix in sugar. Stir to dissolve.
3. Add vanilla and salt.
4. Bring to boil for 1-3 minutes
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes to make sure everything is dissolved and the flavours have developed.
6. Allow to cool completely, then store in a glass jar in the fridge.

Will keep for a couple of months. Use a couple of tablespoons for chocolate milk or drizzle liberally over ice cream!

On food

"One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well. "
-Virginia Woolf

This morning I jazzed up my coffee (Bialetti Moka Express!)with a shot of Baileys Irish Cream (I'm pretty sure it should be Bailey's Irish Cream, but I default to the website title. I'll overlook your apostrophe confusion THIS time, Mr. Bailey!) and shaved French dark chocolate. I thought I had died and gone to heaven.

What a way to start a Sunday.