Today...
....is my birthday!
...is my last day of finals!
...is the day my roommates and I are putting on a Christmas party!
...is the day I won't get any sleep *yawn*!
...is the day I get a free drink at my favorite coffee place (birthday special! :D)
Lately, life has been lived from latte to latte, from tea cup to tea cup, from one caffeine fix to the next. As far as my teeth go, I'm definetely going for the "British" look. I hope none of the Grab Bag readers are British. If you are British, I apologize for the sweeping generality I made regarding your dental hygiene. Actually I think that British teeth are quite cool. Bleached white chiclet chompers are not exactly my ideal. Crest white strips should never enter the picture ;)
I'm almost finished with my last paper on John Steinbeck. He's been my good friend these past, oh, three months. I chose East of Eden for a semester-long study for one of my literature classes. After my first interpretive essay, I was ready to throw the book out the window. But as time wore on and I studied it more in-depth, I began to appreciate the many layers which Steinbeck incorporated in the story. It's not an light-hearted book, as far as the content of the storyline goes. And, it's quite a lengthy novel. I knew I'd never read it unless I forced myself to for class credit (I tried to read it on a whim back in high school... I think I got to page 50). But if you're a fast reader, and if you've got some time, I would certainly recommend it.
Part of the reason I'm minoring in writing/literature is because it allows me to read books that I never would read on my own time. I really enjoy fiction, but when it comes to my own personal reading, I typically choose books on saints and the like. But I'm learning that there is a certain level of truth to be found in everything, even fiction. It's my job to look for the good, and guard myself against that which corrodes the soul (with God's help and discernment, of course).
Speaking of God... I hope to become better acquainted with Him once this chaotic semester is laid to rest. Lord have mercy on me a sinner...
By the way, Christmas is next week! If you're running out of lenten meal ideas, try this! It's my own quick variation of a recipe I found on a bean can label this evening. I've become quite the cooking fiend... you'll have to excuse my excessive recipes!!!!
Yummy Beans... and Rice
(yes, that's the offical name of this recipe. From now on, you must refer to it strictly as such ;D)
Time: 15-20 minutes
Servings: 1-2... increase portions as you see fit!
Prepare and cook rice on stove. Once it has boiled and simmered, set timer for 15-20 minutes. In seperate pan, mix following ingredients:
1 can of black beans
1-2 cups of stewed/chopped tomatoes (canned)
1/4 cup white corn
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 t olive oil
A couple dashes of each:
paprika
Thyme
Basil
Black pepper
Italian Seasoning
While the rice cooks, stir all of the above ingredients together in an adequately-sized saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When rice is ready, the beans will be too! Tastes great with a few vegan meatballs (or, for after Christmas, sliced Italian sausage would be good!). Don't let the "chunky, colorful" consistency scare you, it really does taste good ;)
Okay... if this sounds far-fetched, then perhaps I'm the only one desperate for new recipe ideas...! :D hehehe.
7 comments:
Happy birthday to a very super duper special girl :) Great post, I liked what you had to say about write/lit minor.
your Job
Happy Birthday! May God grant you many years! Chronia Polla! The beans and rice recipe sounds great... we will have to try it:) I read East of Eden... excellent book. I am an avid reader... and a fast reader. Regarding reading classical works of fiction... (now I'm trying to remember this off the top of my head)... someone asked Fr. Seraphim Rose (I believe it was him) what to read... church fathers, lives of saints, etc. Fr. Seraphim said read David Copperfield by Charles Dickens:) There is much beauty in classic lit, art, and music (it's the discerning part that can be tricky).
"Fr. Seraphim said read David Copperfield..."
Actually, this story was recounted by Fr. Seraphim (and recounted in Fr. Damascene's biography) but the actual events took place on Mt. Athos. FWIW....
(Coincidently, I've passed this story along on Katie's blog before...)
Happy Birthday Katie!
Thanks for the clarification, Karl. I don't remember reading it on Katie's website, but I do remember reading it in a Fr. Seraphim book (actually, I also remember Paul reading it out loud to me one night, a long time ago... he then went out and bought David Copperfield... and never read it:) although I did read it)
Yeah, I read the story to Carrie out loud too! :)
David Copperfield is good...but A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations are getter, IMO. In any case, Dickens is tough. The books are just so long!
I had to read David Copperfield this term... I think I had about 3 more chapters to finish, but I didn't. But it was so much reading! If it hadn't been an assignment, I don't think I could have read it... props to you Christina!!!
Our class read DC serially, like 3 chapters a week. It helped to read it at this slow pace; I'm sure it helped the Victorian readers when it was originally released in sequential format.
I'm not sure if I'll read any more Dickens... but who knows? I might :)
Actually, East of Eden has some wonderful biblical symbolism (although Steinbeck says he was an athiest) as well as a great moral on the free will that God has given us.
I read Great Expectations my senior year of high school. We were supposed to read it over Christmas break with a test the day we returned (this was honors english). I loved it! It is still my favorite Dickens book. Needless to say I was the only student that actually read the book that Christmas break. See what a geek I really am?!?!?
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