routine interrupted

yes, it's spring break! i admit its kind of hard staying on campus for a two-week long break...ugh. but hopefully the "quiet" will mean a productive two weeks. plus, i look forward to exploring fun coffee shops and cafes as the weather warms up. i have homework to catch up on, internship writing, and a few papers to research. also, i am working. so i guess i'll be busy. the rain today doesn't help the "i'm trapped in a big city" feeling but this week is supposed to be mostly sunny and 50's (keep your fingers crossed!!). one thing I hate about this time of year in the city: when the snow melts there is dog poop all over the sidewalks. it seems especially bad this year. gross. If you are going to have a dog in the city, as least clean up its poop!!

i try not to think about how glorious it would be to have a car that would get me out of the city to wide open fields and forests...or, even better, to mountains for rock-climbing and camping. sigh. i don't think i was made for the city.

Tiffany and I kicked off spring break by going to see Alice and Wonderland in 3D. I liked it. I wouldn't let my young children see it (it is Tim Burton) but it was well done and i enjoyed it. On a side note, i think 3D movies are probably really bad for our eyes. Mine felt strangely over-stimulated. huh.

Lace and i watched 5 episodes of ALIAS back-to-back last night. I know, nothing says spring break like sitting on the couch freaking out about how cool Sydney is or how wretched the plot becomes by season five. ah, gotta love ALIAS.

Today is 1. laundry 2. grading papers 3. the oscars.

Also, i've made a few promises from time to time about posting recipes (probably mostly for my sister or hallie :)). I have two new favorites. The first involves tofu, which probably makes most of you scrunch up your nose. But before you dismiss the idea as "hippie" or "earthy" (because i know you people are out there) consider the fact that a big block of tofu at Trader Joe's costs $1.99 and lasts for a very long time. When you are on a tight budget and can't afford to purchase meat on a very regular basis, tofu is a great source of protein. Alright, I've defended it enough. Now for the recipe.

"Tofu Scramble" (improvise: i've never actually measured my quantities)

In a frying pan saute over medium-high heat for several minutes:
1/2 a small onion, chopped
1-2 cloves of garlic (cloves, hallie ;))
1/4 green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 red bell pepper, chopped
pinch of salt and pepper
1/4 tsp ground cumin

stir in:
1 1/2 cups crumbled tofu (I cut off about 1/4 of a trader joe's block of "firm" tofu and crumble it up in a bowl so it sort of looks like scrambled eggs).
turn heat down to medium-low until tofu is hot or until it turns a little golden (preference)

I had half of a baked potato left over once and threw that in--i really liked the addition.
I prefer to make burritos out of it with a little cheese melted on top. You can even add salsa if you want. MmmM"

"Quinoa with Black Beans and Cilantro"
This is a great recipe my sister sent me a few days ago. I just made it today. The link is here. I cut the recipe in half and still have two meals of it left over. I stuffed a Trader Joe's whole wheat pita with the quinoa-goodness and then put the cheese on top. Yum.

Just some fun and inexpensive ideas.

oh yeah, and instead of buying fresh cilantro i used some of the frozen pureed cubes I had in the freezer (also TJ's). It tasted great.

Alright. I want to go work on grading before dinner.