Monday, March 26, 2012

Hungry Hunger Games

This is just a really brief update from my post this past weekend. I didn't end up getting things on Etsy because I got distracted by doing other stuff- like going to see The Hunger Games. J and I thought the movie was so-so. We agreed that we both liked Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson as Katniss and Peeta, respectively but that some of the other actors were okay. Haymitch, Rue, and Cinna were more characters we thought were acted well. All in all, I think the movie wasn't as dark as the books. I am one of the people who think these books are inappropriate for young children. I wouldn't censor a child from reading the books, but I don't think that children can understand the full impact of the messages. In the end, people who have not read the books will miss the finer points of the story. I was interested to see how they would explain the unique things like tracker jackers and mocking jays, but they could have done more with the sheer horror that was the muttations. If you read the books, you will understand these comments. This being said, it was pretty good and it was the first big blockbuster I've been to in a long time. (The theatre was full! Once, down here, J and I were the only people in a theatre for the latest Morgan Spurlock movie.) J and I had a much more in depth discussion regarding our feelings on the film's interpretation of the book, but this is just my quick blurb.

After we saw the movie, J really wanted Nacho Mama's Nachos from Lime. For $7 you get the largest serving of nachos with the works. As we don't eat meat, we have ordered it with black beans and sauteed onions in the past for added protein (I didn't like it), but the extra beans is so excessive that I cannot imagine loading ground beef, chicken, or steak onto them. I didn't eat much of the nachos, but I ordered sopapillas for the first time, and they were simply amazing. They were also really cheap. For about three dollars you get enough little pastries for you and a friend. I could have eaten them all by myself though, they were really delicious. The only thing was, I felt bad for going up to a counter and ordering food after watching these kids battle to the death for basic supplies. If I was a tribute, I'd probably be the first to die in the Hunger Games because my survival skills are outdated (although I have some OLS lessons in the back of my head somewhere) and I couldn't outrun a turtle. And they don't have sopapillas out in the wild.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Moment in March

For the last month, work has been reasonable. (The co-workers are another story...) I was able to meet deadlines with ease in February, but things are picking up again. I wrote all of my deadlines on my calendar for April and it is going to be a doozy of a month. On top of the work itself, registration will begin on the 2nd, and it will be back to desperate students scrambling to get into their classes. J's family will be visiting right in the thick of it, so I won't get to take any time off of work. I'll have the evenings to spend with them, though.

School for J has picked up considerably as well. I would say he's in the final stretch, but his final stretch is less of a sprint and more of an intense marathon. He's a runner, so I'm sure he appreciates this analogy. I honestly do not know how he does it. He still tries to make time for me and Ruby, he finds time to work out, he completes his school work, and he does a lot to build his resume.

Despite not having friends to hang out with, I'm still plenty busy. I took three baby steps towards selling crafts. I ordered my business cards, purchased a domain name for a website, and I laid out the Etsy page. I hope to list a couple of items tomorrow. If I do, I'll let people know. I've scaled back a bit with volunteering. It is hard to do it every week (J needs me home for the furry baby), but I'm still doing that and my craft night. I've hit a crafting plateau... There are things I like to do, but don't have the money for. There are things I have the supplies to do, but don't have the patience for. And there are things that I've tried to do, but I don't really enjoy. Having something to work towards- like gifts- helps my motivation, but sometimes I just need a break.

I have been using my usual crafting time for reading. I finished five books in March. I don't know if I'll start another right away. I caved and read The Hunger Games trilogy. I finished the three books in 48 hours. I read them quickly because I just wanted to be done with them. I thought they were good. I didn't love them and I found the story line exceedingly disturbing, but at least the violence wasn't as detailed as I thought it would be. That said, it still gave me nightmares. I appreciate the message that the author tried to convey and I thought the social commentary was scathingly brutal, yet truthful. It was also good to be able to discuss books with J. We rarely read the same things. He is much more cerebral in his free reading choices, where I tend to read books for entertainment. I still read plenty of non-fiction, but you won't find me reading history books about hurricanes. :) I also read the book because J kept bringing up seeing the movie. He doesn't usually get to pick what we see (well- we barely go to movies), and since he kept talking about it, I figured I'd see what all of the hullabaloo was about.

The only other notable thing that has happened in the last couple of weeks is that we found a great dessert place. It is called Atelier Monnier and they serve traditional French desserts that are presented in a more modern way. The individual serving desserts run about $5, but you will NOT be hungry when you leave. The first time we went I had a berry tart. It was excellent. The second time we went I tried their eclair. It was very beautiful and even had a small gold leaf detail. I was expecting a regular cream filling, but it was chocolate cream. It was good, but a little rich for my taste. I'm one of the few women who doesn't go gaga over chocolate. I prefer fruity, tart flavors. Still, the eclair was good. J had sorbet both times and it was amazing. They have macaroons. I've never had one and I'm looking forward to trying. They also make bread and sell wine. It's a pretty cool shop. We'll be back.

Well, I figured I'd take this moment to post, because I know things will get busy in April. Here's hoping I have the energy to keep up!