Quinoa with cranberry, raisins, and almonds

I experimented a little bit tonight while vegetarian Jake played softball, and the results were good. Toot!

2 cups of quinoa
1 13oz can vegetable broth
handful of dried cranberries (I used Craisins)
handful of golden raisins
handful of sliced almonds
1 cup peas (mine were frozen)
2 reconstituted dried mushrooms
2 bay leaves
1 stick cinnamon
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp masala powder
2 cloves garlic
1 small onion
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter vegan?
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
4 whole cardomom pods

On low-medium heat, toast quinoa for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. In a separate pan, fry onions in oil. Wait a few minutes and then throw in the rest of the spices, dried fruits, mushrooms, and butter. Stir-fry for after another 5 minutes to get the flavor out, then stir in the peas and quinoa until the mixture coats the quinoa. Stir for another few minutes. Then add the broth, and simmer covered for 15-20-25 minutes, depending on how tender you like the quinoa. Add a little water as it's cooking if the mixture gets too dry.

And that's it!

Jake says, "It's got a spicy sweetness. Delicious!"

iPhone mod

i cannot describe to you the excitement that i felt upon receiving the new body kit for my iphone, but suffice it to say that i was excited. unemployment has done several things to me: 1. i get excited over the smallest "projects" because real projects i used to work on always involved some irish dude hounding me to no end for status reports; the only irish dude hounding me these days just wants seitan in his rice 2. i have no money to spend on things like i used to, so repair and salvage are two words that have replaced my daily vernacular whose words used to include "buy" and "new."

last week i spent an hour sewing up an umbrella that the nor'easter destroyed — that project went undocumented for various reasons, not the least of which included humility. this week i am restoring my iphone 3g to its 2007 splendor. i ordered this kit on ebay for $8.88 from guess where... Hong Kong. if you didn't guess that, it's probably because you're not chinese. the number 8 portends good luck in chinese culture.... so does praying to your ancestors, wearing mounds of jade, and stepping in dog shit. so, one may deduce that this fortuitous trifecta of 8's i was charged was like stepping in a pile of dog shit while wearing my mom's jade bangles, while talking aloud to my dead grandmother. i digress. here, let me show you what i mean:

it really was a mess. and i'm embarrassed to admit how long all this actually took me. but despite the mess on the table (i don't know what the vaseline is doing on the counter), i really did have a system of sorts for keeping track of which screws went where.

but all worth it! for here is what butch has to say

"i will henceforth be known as Garfield."
i say, "what frivolity!"

Fire Pelosi?

Fire Pelosi? No, fire the babies in Congress that sulk and refuse to work past 2pm. Seriously. If I decided I didn't feel like working because a bunch of my co-workers voted to replace the coffee machine with a carton of teabags, I'd be fired right? That's basically what the Republicans colluded to do yesterday and today. Like a bunch a babies, they walked out on their jobs because they didn't like a bill meant to help millions of Americans; a bill that was voted upon and passed democratically. The image above was taken directly from the venerable GOP's front page. They've sunk to a new low. It's imagery meant to incite; It's unsophisticated; And it reduces any meaningful dialogue on health care to irreconcilable rhetoric. But then again, should we be surprised with their tactics?


I mean, they honestly think that they're nobly "protesting" against the evils of... universal health care (democratic doublespeak for socialism. wink/gasp!). There's something discordant about a bunch of old white men in pressed suits holding a sit-in singing We Shall Overcome. This isn't exactly the 60's and the Capitol isn't exactly Woolworth's.

Minimizing the gay tax

There is a very informative series of Q&A in the NY Times. It's been essential to my becoming familiar with the basic financials of being in a committed same-sex relationship under statutes that don't make it illegal to be in a relationship (anymore), but doesn't reward nor condone it either.

There are 4 parts, with questions and answers on topics including being a dependent of your spouse; domestic partners health insurance and its taxation; joint property ownership; mortgage deduction; gift taxes; etc.

law school

I keep meaning to write something meaningful—it's been months since I've written anything in the least introspective....

I quit my job almost a year ago last April with the expectation that I would relax and figure out what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. But after three weeks of twiddling my thumbs, I started thinking about going to law school. I studied for the LSAT for a month (big mistake!); took it; canceled the score; fled to California in shame to camp, freeride at Northstar (yahoo!), and visit my dead grandparents in an urn; returned to NYC; decided to take the LSAT again; studied for another month; took the LSAT again; did terribly; fled to Japan/SEAsia in shame; decided to take it again; studied for another month; took the LSAT; applied to law schools (in late December); and here I am now. Anyways, I realize law school's going to be much less forgiving of my impetuousness, so I've got a lot to work on in that area. I have no regrets quitting my job because it's really helped me figure out who I was not. I was NOT a programmer. Ugh. I can't believe I programmed code for that long, interned at my desk (those cheap fuckers at Bloomberg didn't give anyone a cubicle under the guise that the "open seating arrangements" promoted communication and the exchange of ideas. um, right. i suppose the fact that you could fit four times as many people on the floor didn't factor into that decision.) Um er... where was I? Oh yes... I was sitting in front of a computer for nine years surrounded by copious amounts of junk food to keep me working late, and spent most of my day speaking to for-loops and classes filled with members I cared nothing for. Anyways, for the sake of balance, I think I should confess that I don't regret working there either. I only regret working there for so long; long after I stopped growing as a person.

Moving along.... I'm off to my first kickboxing class at the gym, but if you're interested in how my law school thing is going, here's the link to my profile on lawschoolnumbers.com: engine law school