pros and cons

Five good things about the frigid temperatures:

1. Yesterday I arrived at my house at the exact same moment as the Jehovah Witnesses. But because I was wearing my burka - er - parka, I was able to walk right past them without them recognizing me.
2. It's sunny! It's sunny! Hurray!
3. I like sleeping in socks with lots of heavy blankets.
4. Coffee tastes even better than usual when I have my hands wrapped around the mug.
5. Lexi enjoys winter and it is nice to have an enthusiastic companion when I head out doors.

Five bad things about the frigid temperatures:

1. My poor chapped hands. :[
2. It is nearly impossible to get out of bed in the morning, what with all those blankets weighing me down.
3. The wind really does a number on my eyes. And the constant tearing really does a number on my cheeks. Bought facial oil today!
4. Despite my enthusiastic companion, I don't really want to go outside. But because of her, I have to.
5. Our heating bill will be through the roof.

Aforementioned enthusiastic companion...

january theme song - bonus edition

Two theme songs this month. Although the original speech given by Haile Selassie I at the United Nations in 1963 referred specifically to the exploitation of Africa and the nuclear arms crisis, his words are still incredibly relevant today. Feeling dispirited on several fronts this week and not sure that Bob Marley is helping. 50 years and nothing has fundamentally changed...

That until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned; That until there are no longer first-class and second-class citizens of any nation; That until the color of a man's skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes; That until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race; That until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but a fleeting illusion, to be pursued but never attained; And until the ignoble and unhappy regimes that hold our brothers in Angola, in Mozambique and in South Africa in subhuman bondage have been toppled and destroyed; Until bigotry and prejudice and malicious and inhuman self-interest have been replaced by understanding and tolerance and good-will; Until all Africans stand and speak as free beings, equal in the eyes of all men, as they are in the eyes of Heaven; Until that day, the African continent will not know peace. We Africans will fight, if necessary, and we know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil.

But there is another part to the speech, which didn't make it into the song. And this is what I'm trying to keep in mind while I listen... to be a better person; to have courage; to stand up against prejudice; to be thoughtful and considerate.

And we must look into ourselves, into the depth of our souls. We must become something we have never been and for which our education and experience and environment have ill-prepared us. We must become bigger than we have been: more courageous, greater in spirit, larger in outlook. We must become members of a new race, overcoming petty prejudice, owing our ultimate allegiance not to nations but to our fellow men within the human community.

it was a dark and stormy day

Not much snow yet but the wind is howling and the temperature is dropping. The sun never came out and I haven't been able to wake up properly today. I can't imagine living in Iqaluit or someplace colder and darker than Winnipeg. It is definitely one of those days to fill your belly with something hot. May I suggest roasted parsnip soup? If you have the ingredients on hand, of course. No sense heading out in this. I don't have the ingredients; I have something better...... leftovers!

This soup seems complicated but it's really not. Roast the veggies, warm broth and cream (I used milk), blend. I found the immersion blender didn't work very effectively so I used a regular blender. And the parsley oil was really pretty but it didn't add much flavour. You can definitely skip it.

Yukon Gold Potato, Parsnip & Roasted Garlic Soup with Parsley Oil

Parsley Oil:

1/2    cup (125 mL) Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/2    cup (125 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt

Roasted Garlic:

2    heads of garlic, tops sliced off
Olive oil
Sea salt

Potato & Parsnip Soup:

1    tbsp (15 mL) melted butter
1    tbsp (15 mL) olive oil
2    lbs (1 kg) Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
3    parsnips, peeled and cubed
2    onions, peeled, stemmed and quartered
4    cups (1 L) vegetable broth
1/2    cup (125 mL) heavy cream
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Parsley Oil:

Combine parsley leaves with olive oil in a food processor. Process until puréed and bright green. Let steep for about 1 hour then strain oil through a fine-mesh sieve, discarding solids and reserving oil. Season with a little sea salt then transfer oil to a jar with a tight-fitting lid.

Roasted Garlic:

Drizzle garlic heads with olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Wrap tightly in aluminum foil.

Potato & Parsnip Soup:

Preheat oven to 400 F (200 C). In a large bowl, combine butter and olive oil, whisking to mix. Add next 3 ingredients and toss to coat. Place mixture and wrapped garlic in a baking dish; season vegetables with salt and pepper. Roast in oven for about 40 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring the vegetables halfway through the cooking time. Remove baking dish from oven. Place vegetable mixture into a large pot set over low heat along with broth and cream. Using an immersion blender, process until mixture is smooth, adding more broth if soup is too thick. When garlic is cool to the touch, squeeze cloves into soup. Using an immersion blender, process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste; cover and cook until soup is warmed through.

To Assemble:

Spoon soup into bowls then drizzle with Parsley Oil and some fresh cracked pepper. Serve immediately.

Serves 4

january theme song

I miss O. On Skype, there are no debates over the correct meaning of the word 'fey' or how tight Lexi's collar should be. Even the purchase of a new duvet cover happened without any wrangling. *sigh*

We used to leave the blue lights on and there was a beat
Ever since you have been gone it's all caffeine-free

Hmmmm mmmm hmmmm....
None of them want to fight me

Combat baby come back baby 
Fight off the lethargy
Don't go quietly
Combat baby
Said you would never give up easy
Combat baby come back

Get back in town I wanna paint it black
I want to be wrong but

La la la la....
No one here wants to fight me like you do

I try to be so nice 
Compromise
Something something.... seventies child 

Do doo doo doo Do da doo doo

Combat baby come back baby 
Combat baby come back
Bye bye bye bye bye bye bye bye baby
Combat baby come back

How I miss your ranting
Do you miss my all time lows?

i hereby resolve to....

Looking back at previous years, it is clear that I don't have a great record of success. *sigh* The two main resolutions that keep showing up are fitness and finances. I do okay for a while and then something happens, I falter and then try again the next January.

My 2009 resolution was actually accomplished. When I turned 40 a year and a half later I was in great shape. Very fit, felt fantastic.... and then..... grad school, followed by a midlife crisis, followed by bronchitis, followed by more grad school, followed by meningitis. First on the list...

1. Exercise daily. With no specific goals in terms of losing weight, shrinking a size or anything like that. Just want that fit, fantastic feeling back.

1b. Eat properly. This is really only for the next three months. I usually have a good diet but when I'm on my own I tend to get lazy. No popcorn for dinner.

Finances are okay. Not saving but not going deeper into debt. Just need to maintain the status quo. The monetary problem I've had the last year is my lack of employment. I don't need a job while I have a scholarship but not being able to find a job has been incredibly distracting and caused a great deal of anxiety. So...

2. Quit stressing about lack of work. It isn't helpful and it is taking up brain space that should be used for school.

Which brings me to number three...

3. Buckle down! O. is gone until the beginning of April. How much of my thesis can I get done between now and then?

And finally...

4. Brush Lexi's teeth daily. I was doing this in the fall for about 6 weeks and her breath improved noticeably. Then I went away for three weeks and didn't really get back into it when I returned. It would benefit both of us if I take up this task again. :]