ecclectic shock

lobster virgin

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 04:37:01 GMT

A couple weekends ago, Farmboy had a sale on lobster so my mom decided to treat us to a nice surf n' turf meal. I invited Matt to the dinner and he accepted even though it would be his first lobster experience; a lobster virgin, if you will. This impressed me because trying new food can be intimidating to some, especially when you run the risk of accidentally hitting your girlfriend's parents with a lobster claw.

Fortunately, no one was hit with a lobster claw this time but watching Matt take on the lobster made me more alert to how truly odd lobster-eating is. The different techniques and tools needed to enjoy a full lobster is baffling! My family doesn't eat lobster very often so we only have very modest supplies when it comes to eating lobster. Besides our very own hands, we had a pair of lobster crackers that we used to help break the hard outer shell. At one point, I was desperate to use a pair of kitchen scissors to help me and, since my mom would not allow "scissors" and "lobster" in the same sentence, I resorted to drop-kicking my lobster into submission. When I wasn't using my pro-wrestling skills, I did try to master the art of the lobster crackers. In theory, it's easy to use this tool. You place the lobster claw in the middle then squeeze to break it. Open to find lobstery goodness. In practice, the lobster crackers are a joke. If you do manage to make a crack, it is usually only a tease and never big enough or in the right place to ever give you a clean, easy break. Another scenario if you make a crack is that what seems like a gallon of water comes gushing out of it. At this one particular dinner, the juices created a perfect arc from the claw to Matt's side of the table. The rest of the time instead of the lobster cracking its slippery surface escapes the crackers and ends up in rather inopportune places. Everytime we have lobster, my parents mention a date they went on to a lobster place where one of my dad's lobster claws ended up on the table of diners next to them. What a romantic evening!

I find it funny that in a society I consider to be relatively proper in terms of eating habits, we have adopted quite an uncharacteristic affinity for lobster. It is (usually) completely unacceptable to use your hands instead of designated utensils, make any sort of noise with your body (i.e. slurping, burping), and even put your elbows on the table (though my parents never enforced this rule because, like me, they don't find elbows all that offensive). How does lobster fit into this etiquette schema?! Okay, don't lick your fingers, don't use your hands to pick up your food... except if it's a red, boiled shellfish then you can practically gnaw the shell off and suck the meat out. Even more, people go out to eat lobster... in public. I'm comfortable eating lobster in front of my parents but they also changed my diapers when I wasn't on solid food (think about it). I would not go to a restaurant that actual people frequent and order a lobster. To me, this sounds like an SNL skit about people making an ass of themselves.

While we were eating, I began to wonder if anyone can eat lobster gracefully. Then it dawned on me the main point in lobster etiquette is to throw all etiquette out the window. I could tell that my lobster (get it? Friends?) was having a hard time with how uncouth and unattractive dismembering a shellfish for meat is. I also knew that, like my first few experiences with lobster, it's disheartening. I find lobster is a food that grows on you everytime you eat it. My first few times eating lobster I felt like it was way too much work for such little reward. I mean, the whole balancing act of getting the meat is more cardio than I generally get in a weeks time all for a handful or so of meat. I have grown more fond of lobster, though I should end this post by saying that I enjoy crab so much more. And so ends the tale of my boyfriend losing his lobster virginity to me.

end of experimental farm pictures

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:52:45 GMT

Proof that cows love denim.

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:51:37 GMT

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:50:09 GMT

So jealous of Elisa's camera. Here she's rubbing it in my face. Bitch.

The View Isn't Good From Here

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 15:51:46 GMT

Paris Hilton is on The View right now and her skin is blending in with the show's bright orange background. The moral of this story, and I've said this before, is that tanning is not the answer. I should do a PSA on this.

Room Makeover Update

Sun, 31 May 2009 22:04:17 GMT

Earlier this month, I wrote about my ongoing room makeover. Unfortunately, from the time when we scoured my room of all its junk (which was back in March, I think) to now not much progress has been done. In that time period, Matt and I both took a necessary break from room cleaning, had exams, and then I had my wisdom teeth removed. Not to mention, I'm a master procrastinator when it comes to cleaning; it's in my genes.

Last weekend, however, I forced myself (more like, Matt forced me to force myself) to clear my room, with Matt's help, of its junk to prepare for painting and ultimately, furniture rearranging. Most of the things we moved I actually am keeping but it was completely necessary to clear my room to fake a clean slate. Once the room is painted and reorganized, I'll figure out where to put all the junk which will undoubtedly convince me to tear what little hair I do have out of their roots. On a lighter note, I haven't seen so much of my carpet since I moved into my room. Still, when I walk into my room, I halt as to not stub my toe or knock over a mountainous pile of books. I'm trying to convince myself to take advantage of the space and exercise, but I'd rather use that time to eat, evidently.

Since the last post on my room, I have a much clearer picture of how I would like my room to look. The walls will be painted a light aquamarine color and the furniture will be completely rearranged. Since the colors of my furniture are all neutral, I'm going to make the room pop with accents, like pillows, pictures, etc. (Elisa has been so excited at the prospect of my redecorating she has already spoiled me with pillow cases, picture holders, etc.!) I don't want to follow a strict color scheme and I'm hoping my room will have an ecclectic vibe - like me! I'm hoping when it's complete my room will be more of a safe haven for me to relax, exercise (ha), blog, and study instead of a place that actually induces stress. My goal is to have my room complete by the end of summer so I'll keep updating on the progress if I can find time away from banging my head against the brick wall that is the Room Makeover.

Sun, 31 May 2009 21:22:27 GMT

Sun, 31 May 2009 21:14:57 GMT

The cow version of Molly and Quincy.

Sun, 31 May 2009 20:43:42 GMT

"No more pictures, please!"

vista, i'm looking at you

Thu, 28 May 2009 14:13:10 GMT

Mysteriously, the volume icon on my taskbar is nowhere to be found. Vista decides to redecorate for me arbitrarily. Thanks for that.

Wed, 27 May 2009 19:59:52 GMT

Wed, 27 May 2009 19:49:42 GMT

Easy there.

experimental farm: baby calves edition

Wed, 27 May 2009 18:56:54 GMT

This little calf was so bold. Just look at his face. He was mooing at us the entire time, and loved eating denim.

kelsey to the rescue!

Wed, 27 May 2009 18:24:36 GMT

I had today off from work so instead of bustling around this morning, I got to take it easy and watch my favorite morning talk shows (see: Ellen and The View, though the latter is getting pretty boring). I started to get thirsty so I headed upstairs to get a drink when I see Quincy standing there which isn't too abnormal. I walk around the corner into the dark living room and see Molly's face. I say hi to her and she immediately starts whining, which is not typical of her. At a closer look, I see that Molly is stuck between the couch and the wall/window. I then did what any loving dog owner would do in this situation: I grabbed the camera and took a picture.

I'm not a terrible dog owner; I knew she wasn't hurt, just a little alarmed. She currently had her two front paws up on the back of the couch, attempting to hop over it and onto the floor. This was never going to happen, nor am I capable of lifting her up over the couch. I pulled the couch out from the wall/window so she could hop onto the floor and walk out. She had no idea what I was trying to get her to do and my pulling the couch out only made her much more panicked. I tried lifting her paws off the back of the couch so she'd be forced to put them down on the ground, but she was gripping onto the couch with her nails. Knowing everything I was doing was just making her more scared, I squeezed myself onto the floor where I was hoping she would jump down to. After she saw me on the floor, she understood how she could get out and did so.

As soon as she was out, Quincy, who is very maternal with Molly, started barking and yelping in anger and relief. Molly grabbed one of her dozens of toys and started victory lapping around the house with happiness. At one point, she ran towards me and, all 55 pounds of her, bounced onto my lap and gave me an appreciative kiss. I was thankful at that moment that due to dogs' poor short term memory, my baby wouldn't remember me taking a picture instead of rescuing her.

goodbye, gypsy!

Wed, 27 May 2009 02:39:21 GMT

Evidence of Gypsy sharing her food with me. These cows make me want to own a farm, get dairy cows and goats, and spend the day taking care of them and then reading Perez and blogging. That's the life, in my opinion.

Wed, 27 May 2009 02:28:37 GMT

Gypsy was eating when I took this picture. She sensed our bond as well because, at one point, she nudged some of her hay towards me. I didn't know how to break it to her that I was actually craving a hamburger.

gypsy's 15 minutes

Wed, 27 May 2009 01:58:41 GMT

My favorite cow at the Experimental Farm, Gypsy, on the left with another cutie cow. The cows are so sweet with each other; it was very endearing.

Tue, 26 May 2009 00:08:36 GMT

Beautiful cow.

Tue, 26 May 2009 00:04:40 GMT

Mon, 25 May 2009 23:54:01 GMT

Black sheep.

seasonal affective disorder? what's that?

Sun, 24 May 2009 21:03:43 GMT

This weekend has been absolutely beautiful in Ottawa. We've seen a few nice days this past week which had me slightly depressed as I was mostly at work this week. This weekend has made up for it, however, ten times over. I've had the chance to lounge around the deck, read, and occasionally play with the dogs all of which are some of my favorite summer pastimes.

Unfortunately, yesterday I was cursed with either a nasty cold or a bad case of allergies (though I'm not sure what I would be allergic to) and was suffering from a head cold, cough, and incessant sneezing for most of the evening. This morning when I woke up I felt just as bad but found an hour in the sun cured most of my ailments. This proves my theory that the Sun cures everything. And please notice I capitalized the Sun much as I would capitalize "God" because it truly is my personal savior.

Though my depression has improved light years from what it once was, I still get the winter blues, or seasonal affective disorder as medical professionals would say. After hiding out in my room for what I like to call my hibernation period for almost 6 months during the winter, my body and mind rejoice the balmy weather. I love to walk around outside barefoot so often that my feet are constantly black with dirt. I love stepping out of the bath to dry my hair in the Sun instead of toiling with a blow dryer. I love the plants that also love the Sun so much that they flower in celebration. Like them, I feel the most alive in the summer.

During this time, I can't stand staying inside, and even now I'm itching to get outside to my favorite chair to start a new book. I have never been one to stay inside a house freezing from air conditioning, like many people I know do. I consider the time I spend with myself outside very much like a prayer, a meditation. It's an end to the problems of the year and the beginning of rebuilding myself.

Sun, 24 May 2009 20:44:46 GMT

I'm Little Bo Beep and those are my sheep.

Sun, 24 May 2009 20:42:52 GMT

As you can see, one of the adult sheep was very curious about what happens in the goats' pen. Notice cute baby goat in the background.

experimental farm pictures begin

Sun, 24 May 2009 20:40:07 GMT

Elisa, Matt, and I took a day trip to the Experimental Farm a few weeks ago. It was the perfect sunny day to spend outside, and also the perfect time of year because there were lots of baby animals to see. Unfortunately, there were also lots of young humans and that was not as joyous.

Here are some baby sheep nuzzling with their mom. I might also note that none of these pictures are very good because it was quite difficult to get a shot due to the bars in the way. So, I'm not attempting to show off my excellence in photography (or lack thereof) but instead just show you really cute animals!

YES.

Sat, 23 May 2009 16:17:34 GMT

Love it.