Spinach Tofu Pasta Bake

Our Awesome Roommate Culinary Adventure tonight:  a variation on stuffed shells

(ARCA, for short)

The grocery store where we shop (Food City) didn't have large pasta shells, but they DID have all sorts of other pasta on sale for $0.75 per bag, so we went for Rigatoni pasta tonight.  The other day we found the Asian supermarket, Mekong, and acquired the tofu.  Yum!    Blend tofu, spinach, ricotta cheese, garlic together, add mozzarella (on top), tomato sauce, tomatoes, onions, and pasta...and the result is a GIANT casserole bake that cost us a grand total of something like $5.   Leftover servings: seven.  That's probably enough to feed both of us for the rest of the week!   (Of course, spreading out the pasta awesomeness.)

Yes,  Qiudi and I may be a little obsessed with Food City.  I think I've never spent more than $25 dollars there at one time, and that was even buying chicken and tons of produce.  (Yeah, I only buy chicken if it's less than $0.99/lb.)  Their produce is SO cost effective, it's really not worth it to go anywhere else.  The one-mile drive doesn't hurt their case, either. 

Currently, there are 20 avocados in our refrigerator -- they were 5/ $1.00, limit 10 each.  So, we bought 10.  I like avocados cut in half with salt on top, eaten with a grapefruit spoon.  Yummy lunches, they are.  And, I eat them fast enough, they won't go bad.  I could get used to this.  I finally feel like I'm not going broke by just eating!  Produce is less expensive than non-fresh stuff here. It's quite strange.

Now, on to the first FULL week of school.  Soon, the large ensembles will be going, and I will finally have a full schedule!   Goodnight, friends.

Random things I think about...

Why are people so afraid of self-reflection?  Are they afraid of what they will see?  Are they afraid of seeing something they don't like, or even worse, something that they're proud of?  Or something they love?  In our society where outward appearances seem prized above all else, does this mean we have distorted what a ...True person is?    (Sometimes I think so.  Sometimes I think our society and therefore we as a whole do not place enough emphasis on being people of substance.)

The written word is powerful.  I feel empowered when I write.  But, through my writing and self-reflection, I am also even more painfully aware of those things about myself that I want to change.  The insecurities, silly pride, or sometimes just plain ignorance.  There is so much I want to learn about and so much I want to study, and, consequently, so much I want to eventually share with the world...if I reach a point where I am able to share those things.

I want to make a meaningful difference.  I don't want to just be "that pianist" who is good to work with or who does good work.  I truly want to make a difference in people's lives.  I know that may sound silly, since I am by trade a classical pianist -- and who could make a difference doing THAT, anyway?? -- but I truly believe that there is a way.  I will find a way to make a difference.  If I can succeed in doing that, then I will consider my life a success.  Don't get me wrong; there are PLENTY of things I want to do -- the specific list is pretty long -- but making a difference in people's lives is, I suppose, my goal behind it all.  I truly believe that my musical voice is at least a little bit unique -- so if there is a way to make a difference, I won't stop searching until I find it.

Adventures in ...

... Public Transportation

Until moving to Arizona, I had never ridden a city bus in the United States.   Other countries? Sure.  Spain, Luxembourg, Germany ... but never America.  So, at first, it was a very strange experience riding a bus here -- actually being able to understand everything being spoken, what a concept!  (Really, it's just a reflection on my rustiness of foreign languages, but that is a different subject.)  Arizona State has a cool discount program for students called the U-Pass, and it is quite affordable -- and gives students unlimited access to all the bus routes and the light rail.  The bus even stops directly in front of the school of music, and there is also a stop right outside the gate of the apartment.  That was actually a factor in choosing the current abode: how far is it, to walk to the bus?

I have the feeling that I am going to get to know the bus drivers as the semester continues on.  I have observed that the drivers seem to have a good rapport with the regular passengers, though obviously the nature of their job prevents them from lengthy conversations.  Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised, but I figured that since Phoenix is so large, people would be much less warm and approachable than I have found them to be.  So far, I have found that even the complete strangers -- those who have no reason to take time out of their busy lives or current task -- will take time to wish a stranger good day.
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... Cooking -- with my new roommate, Qiudi!

So, Qiudi and I have been talking about cooking things once or twice a week together.  Our first cooking adventure was Wednesday, and we decided to cook Ratatouille!   It was a little bit of a modified version, because we just used the ingredients we had.  We used fresh tomatoes instead of stewed, added potatoes instead of zucchini, etc.   All together, I think the entire (giant!) meal cost us approximately $6...and we had 8 servings of leftovers after stuffing ourselves.  It was so tasty, and might become a staple.  It's just a nice way to have a bunch of vegetables all together.    Our next cooking adventure will be tofu-stuffed giant pasta shells.   It's been awesome to be able to spend time together as roommates and get to know one another -- in fact, it's only been a week but is so comfortable, I feel like we have been roommates much longer.  It's always awesome when that happens.  AND, we even have the exact same old laptop too!  It was just meant to be!  No one has this laptop anymore -- it's a 2008 model.  Win!



... First day of classes

None of the performance-based classes will be busy until next week, so the first day of classes was pretty relaxing.  I had one meeting to pick up some music and my office keys (I get an office -- shared with two other people.  Awesome!), then our first French diction class.   This class is going to be so much fun!  Actually, the ratio of pianist to singer is about 1:1, which is a very unusual ratio, so the in-class accompanying should be very interesting.  Usually there are 12-15 singers and 1-2 pianists.   We didn't cover too much, since it's the first day, but we at least all met one another and had first assignment/overview of the class.  It is shaping up to be an awesome semester, so far.



Grammar note:   By the way, I have not said this on the blog here yet, but I realize that I have not had an actual grammar class in years even if I write a good bit.  I realize I have family and friends who have much more experience than I do in this area.  Any writing critiques / grammar corrections are freely welcomed, since I am constantly working to improve my skills.


More adventures coming soon, I'm very sure.  Ensemble classes will begin next week, I think, so many fun things to report soon.  New music, orchestra, wind ensemble, and plenty more!

Cooking Adventures and French Cafe Music

This very moment, I am listening to French Cafe music and taking a break from general cleaning of the apartment.  I wrote this post the other day, and am happy to report the pound cake was actually tasty, even if a bit ugly.  French Cafe music makes me feel like I don't live here, somehow ... it's so different and fun.  Good Friday evening music!  And, have I mentioned that I absolutely LOVE listening to French being sung? Reminds me of good times in South Carolina with Jenny...

So, I don't normally post about food on here...but it's also not every day that I make my great-grandmother's pound cake recipe, either.  Since it was a bit of a momentous occasion (and two days til my new roommate arrives! Excited!), I decided to document it.  

The beginning of any cooking adventure of mine lately, involves a text or phone call to one of my friends or family members, because apparently, in the past when I have cooked, I just figured I would remember the recipe for the next time -- after all, I have my favorite cookie recipe down by heart.  Unfortunately, my memory does not work that way, and I forget everything, including simple chicken recipes.  So, step one: Text Mom!    Step two: Buy ingredients, and ask Mom clarification like "unsalted or salted butter?"  I am not sure why I can never remember the most basic things like that.  Perhaps because I can see how you could use both, so I forget which one is actually used on a more regular basis.

Step three:  Wait.  ......  Wait for the ingredients to get to room temperature.   Unfortunately, that took a lot longer than I had budgeted time for, last night.  No worries, I just had my morning coffee and then began baking this morning!

Step four:  Begin mixing things.  ...and creating the most awesome kind of kitchen mess, ever.  I was quite fortunate that it takes an hour and a half to cook these things, because I sure had a huge disaster area of a kitchen to clean while the cakes were baking.   Of course, being the cook, I was contractually required to sample the leftover batter that didn't make it to the pan, and the results were Oh So Yummy.  I couldn't wait to eat this cake!  Mostly, I am very glad that I have friends here in AZ to share this with, because otherwise I most likely would eat the...whole...thing... by myself.  And, that would not help the avoidance of this Type II diabetes that I want to, well, avoid.

(I really can't believe I'm about to make a blog post about pound cake!  Well, I suppose sillier things have happened...)

Step five:  Clean up the disaster area!  Turns out it wasn't quite as bad as I thought, because I created a homemade dropcloth made of blue paper towels (the shop kind, aka the best kind).  So, most of the batter that escaped the bowl landed on the dropcloths.   See, I accidentally forgot to pack my amazing stand mixer, and only have a small hand-held mixer.  It works fine, but I am so used to the mixer sitting still and adding things into the bowl, that my sometimes-clumsiness was in fine form while I attempted to use the hand-held one.  After a few spectacular slinging of batter, I remembered what actually worked, and had more success keeping the food IN the bowl.

Favorite step is the last one:  Eat and share with friends!  Yummy.

Rest - Ralph Vaughan Williams

Continuing the poetry trend, Ralph Vaughan Williams has set the text of this Christina Rossetti poem.  I had the extreme privilege of getting to sing in a chamber choir in undergrad, and this was one of the selections we performed.  It is one of the few pieces that has stayed with me, 8-9 years later.   It just is such a beautiful picture, to me.   Now that I think about it, it's the way Vaughan Williams sets the text that is so touching.  There are a few recordings on youtube if you wish to find them, but I won't put links in here.  (Partly because I'm not sure how the video will embed...)

Why am I posting so much poetry?  Well, I guess because my day-to-day life isn't so interesting quite yet.  But it WILL be -- my new roommate moves in on Saturday!


Rest
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O earth, lie heavily upon her eyes,
Seal her sweet eyes weary of watching, Earth;
Lie close around her, leave no room for mirth
With its harsh laughter, nor for sound of sighs.
She hath no questions, she hath no replies,
Hush'd in and curtain'd with a blessed dearth
Of all that irk'd her from the hour of birth;
With stillness that is almost Paradise.

Darkness more clear than noonday holdeth her,
Silence more musical than any song;
Even her very heart has ceased to stir:
Until the morning of Eternity
Her rest shall not begin, nor end, but be;
And when she wakes (and when she wakes), she will not think it long.

Ode, by Arthur Shaughnessy

So, it would seem I am on a bit of a poetry kick lately.

An interesting poem.  I must admit, I'm not completely sure what I think of every bit of it quite yet.  Still digesting it, but I figured I would share.  I may have to go find out what inspired Mr. Arthur to write this.

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We are the music makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams; --
World-losers and world-forsakers,
On whom the pale moon gleams:
Yet we are the movers and shakers
Of the world for ever, it seems.

With wonderful deathless ditties
We build up the world's great cities,
And out of a fabulous story
We fashion an empire's glory:
One man with a dream, at pleasure,
Shall go forth and conquer a crown;
And three with a new song's measure
Can trample a kingdom down.

We, in the ages lying
In the buried past of the earth,
Built Ninevah with our sighing,
And Babel itself in our mirth;
And o'erthrew them with prophesying
To the old of the new world's worth;
For each age is a dream that is dying,
Or one that is coming to birth.

A breath of our inspiration
Is the life of each generation;
A wondrous thing of our dreaming
Unearthly, impossible seeming --
The soldier, the king, and the peasant
Are working together in one,
Til our dream shall become their present,
And their work in the world be done.

They had no vision amazing
Of the goodly house they are raising;
They had no divine foreshowing
Of the land to which they are going:
But on one man's soul it hath broken,
A light that doth not depart;
And his look, or a word he hath spoken,
Wrought flame in another man's heart.

And therefore today is thrilling
With a past day's late fulfilling;
And the multitudes are enlisted
In the faith that their fathers resisted,
And, scorning the dream of tomorrow,
Are bringing to pass, as they may,
In the world, for its joy or its sorrow,
The dream that was scorned yesterday.

But we, with our dreaming and singing,
Ceaseless and sorrowless we!
The glory about us clinging
Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing:
O men!  It must ever be
That we dwell, in our dreaming and singing,
A little apart from ye.

For we are afar with the dawning
And the suns that are not yet high,
And out of the infinite morning
Intrepid, you hear us cry --
How, in spite of our human scorning,
Once more God's future draws nigh,
And already goes forth the warning
That ye of the past must die.

Great hail!  we cry to the corners
From the dazzling unknown shore;
Bring us hither your sun and your summers;
And renew our world as of yore;
You shall teach us your song's new numbers,
And things that we dreamed not before:
Yea, in spite of a dreamer who slumbers,
And a singer who sings no more.

Being Alone

It's been awhile since I've been alone for an extended period of time.  I think I have most always enjoyed being alone, actually.  I know it makes some people uncomfortable, but I very much enjoy the time to think and reflect.  Moving to a completely new place only seems to magnify this.  It's a good time to reevaluate and start over.  Of course, certain things I don't necessarily want to start over, and will not start over (and don't need to, either)... but in general, it's a nice time to sit down and take stock of the positive changes that Have happened vs. the ones that still Need to happen.  I had almost forgotten the move to South Carolina, but this recent move brought back a few memories.

When I moved to South Carolina, I did a horrible job of (a) telling anyone I was leaving, from what I remember, and (b) keeping in touch with anyone after I left.  I pretty much just left and disappeared.  Part of it I'm sure was a lack of organization, but I have never naturally been great at keeping in touch with people, as some of you my friends well know, I'm sure.  I'm still pretty bad at it, actually.  It's something I am trying to work on, for sure.  I have a few friends I have already exchanged snail mail addresses with, so if you'd like to correspond the super-slow way, let me know.  Send me an email or something to let me know.  Of course, email correspondence is fine too, I just don't have internet here yet. Have to travel for internet.

Being alone.  I don't mind being alone at all these days, and often times like it a lot.  Sometimes it's nice to analyze myself and write thoughts down -- things I want to change about myself or things I have noticed about my interaction with the world or other people.  Sometimes, it's just nice to reevaluate what is truly important to me in life. And sometimes, being without people on which you have relied on in the past (for one thing or another), can be quite the helpful experience.  Not always comfortable or easy, but always helpful.  I don't like relying on people, in general, though I do it all the time and I think it's a very normal thing to do.  I guess humans are at heart social creatures, so we all need one another in some form or another.  Sometimes, though, it's fun to pretend like I'm a solo explorer, ready to discover things that no one else could have possibly figured out yet. Just a Southern girl discovering the desert and enjoying it all.  Nevermind the fact that it has all been experienced and discovered before -- since I haven't experienced it, I can pretend that I'm somehow doing new things.    ;-)

Of course, now that I have internet, I am chilling at a friend's house!  I'm sure my days will soon be filled with not so much being alone, but that will not stop me from enjoying all my moments of being alone before life becomes crazy again.  I may even do something crazy like return to my cross-stitch project after catching up on snail mail correspondence.

Goodbye South Carolina, Goodbye Alabama, the Long Trip and Getting Settled in Tempe

...Also known as the day that would never end.

Has it really been already more than a week since I updated this? It feels like one long day.  Today I will actually have a few updates, since I don't have internet at the apartment yet and tend to write here, then travel for internet.  (We are spoiled with internet in our residences, aren't we?)

But first...a random observation.
Driving in Phoenix is actually quite fun.  There are plenty of cars on the road, which could create problems if people were inconsiderate or bad drivers (though I'm sure there are plenty of those), or there were huge speed differentials like in Atlanta.  Overall, though, it seems like Phoenix-area drivers are actually observant and courteous most of the time!  That was highly surprising to me, somehow.  Generally, on the highways, it doesn't seem like people speed So much -- everyone tends to keep a similar speed throughout all lanes -- and, if you put your blinker on, people will actually adjust speed and allow you to merge if your lane is going a few mph slower than theirs.  It's quite strange and is taking some getting used to.  Then, they have lots of entrance ramps where the ramps are metered during high traffic hours. One car per green light, and each lane takes turns, with really smoothly running results.  People actually merge well here, it seems!  I felt like the out-of-place driver, actually, as I'm sure I was merging a little too close (for their comfort, not mine) behind a few people needlessly.  Good job, Phoenix.  Perhaps my first impression is incorrect, and I will let you know if that turns out to be the case -- but I am impressed with the overall quality and courteousness of driving, so far.  Even on the busy city streets, people are relatively courteous.


Moving...

The day after my last day in South Carolina, was my last day in Alabama.  I left my overnight bag in the moving van, so walked outside around 10 pm Saturday night to get it.  It started like any other necessary errand. I was tired and ready to go to sleep, and only went outside by necessity.  The air was wonderfully humid, the cicadas were yelling their funny song, and the moon was bright.  Standing in the middle of the field, I closed my eyes and just enjoyed the evening, then decided to try to memorize the sky.

I wonder if anyone has ever tried to play the sky.

Somehow, I was looking in the right place, and saw a meteorite fall.  It was quite neat, and I'm glad I could see one before I left.  It was the time with the people, though, that was most important. I didn't get to see everyone before I left, but I did get to see most of my family before leaving on the cross-country trek.  Now that I'm here in Arizona, it was strange leaving the places that I have known for my whole life to move to a place that feels like a completely alien planet.  I don't mean alien bad, by the way -- just different.  I'm excited to explore the area, if I can bring myself to spend the money on gas to actually get out and do it!  That will be the difficult part, but I'm determined to do it -- so, an in-progress list is being compiled of all the places I want to see before school starts.  I'm keeping that list short, for sure, for obvious purposes.

The cross-country trip.   Dad and I left Alabama, drove past Houston and slept. Drove past El Paso and slept again, then drove the rest of the way and arrived Tuesday, July 31, approximately 3 pm local time.  That would be currently Pacific time, since Arizona doesn't observe Daylight Savings time. We were able to get into the apartment a little bit early, and somehow unloaded everything in less than 6 hours (Why did I pack so many books?! I'm glad I put the same amount in storage!), with the wonderfully appreciated help of one of my new neighbors' hand trucks!  He was a very nice young man to allow us to borrow that.  Today (this morning), he returned to pick it up, and mentioned he was moving his girlfriend into a new place today.  I suggested he borrow our furniture movers, so he did!   I hope they helped as much as his furniture truck helped us.  The next three days were spent placing furniture, organizing kitchen and patio, and hanging pictures -- now, all that's left are the little things to unpack.  Books, organizing clothes and cleaning supplies, etc.

The only slightly scary part of the trip was unloading the car from the trailer.  I was reversing off the trailer, and then felt the entire thing lurch and heard a large banging noise.  I figured there wasn't really anything I could do about it (and Dad wasn't freaking out, he kept motioning me off the trailer), so I kept going.  Besides, I wasn't exactly sure WHAT the noise was...  Turns out, the ratcheting system on the trailer had apparently been working itself loose the entire trip and was no longer holding the trailer onto the truck!  The UHaul guy seemed to think that someone tampered with it on purpose, but we think it was probably just a gradual process.  We had been checking the trailer throughout the trip and hadn't noticed a problem, but I don't remember either of us tightening that one part to be sure it was still tight.  It was nice that the trailer waited til unloading to fall off, though the way it was designed, it wouldn't have fallen off under forward load.  Now, if we had been braking really hard and hit a huge bump, perhaps that could have caused an issue, but in the end, all was okay.   Somehow, in the end, all is always okay.

My car's AC may be on the fritz too -- it quit working for a little while, but then Dad started trying different things.  Turns out my AC will not work if the recirculation button is on, anymore.  It works most of the time otherwise.  Who knows, I will probably only be driving it to the grocery store anyway.

I have decided that all this sunshine makes me sleepy!  I haven't taken a nap in the middle of the day in forever, but I fell asleep on the couch for an hour this evening.  Of course, I'm sure my eating habits of the day could have been a factor, but I personally like "sunshine" best.  I need to avoid too many naps in the middle of these days leading up to classes, or my sleep schedule will be too strange to deal with school!

I still feel like I might be returning to South Carolina, or Alabama, any moment -- like I'm just at another short-term job, or an audition, or vacation.  It's strange to think that I will live here for at least 3 1/2 years -- but exciting at the same time.

I hope to have plenty of stories soon, as I plan to visit the Grand Canyon sometime before classes start, and perhaps Sonoma and Flagstaff too.  Or other wanderings around Phoenix metro area.  I must find good thrift stores and second hand shops soon....and maybe a dollar movie theater. ;-)
Before those things, though, I am definitely going to the Farmer's Market in town, and seeing what it has to offer.  I'm surprisingly excited about fresh produce!