Thank the gods....

every single one of them, for nightfall. My head aches less, my room feels less like a prison, and I can almost breathe again. Supposedly, we'll have rain tonight. Hopefully that will get rid of some of the pollen and cool things down a touch. No matter what though, things in Kyna-land they are a-changing.

From now on I'm going to try to sleep just a few hours a night, get up silly early (like 4am), and work a few hours. Once it starts to get hot/sunny I'll get myself breakfast and toddle back to rest through the hottest part of the day. Once it cools down, I'll go back to work. My goal is to work 6-8 hours per day on my dissertation and I can do that, I just need to readjust my schedule.

In other news, I'm going to bite my lip at the cost and finally get my glasses replaced. I have a updated prescription, I just didn't have time to fill it before I left the US. It's only a small change, but it might help some. *shrug*

Now off to bed, once I down some paracetamol. Stupid headache.

I flip on the radio...

to hear Alanis telling me "every things going to be fine, fine, fine." Here's hoping she's right. I'm clearing out 100+ emails and boy do I hope it will all be fine.

Mail!!!!

I just got a package from the lovely pullthestars! *bounce* Thank you sweetie, your timing is impeccable.
In other news I'm almost done with the initial cleaning of my email and I may post up some random articles here in a bit.

I think we just had thunder. I love the rain.

Random News Round-up

I always intend to do this and never seem to get around to it, like so much in life I guess. Well here goes.

( Cut for length )

Finally, I think this is my favourite article out of the lot. From the Washington Post - Former Aide Takes Aim at War on Terror. Long story short this guy was a counter terrorism advisor to the White House (for Regan, Bush I, Clinton, and Bush II), resigned , and went to work for John Kerry’s campaign, because he felt that they are lousing up the “war on terror.” Frankly, much of what he said agrees with the vague worries that I have every time I see something about the “war”, that we are not addressing the root cause, we are alienating ourselves, and basically making the overall problem worse, not better. If you read nothing else, I suggest this article.

Okay, that’s it. I’m all articled out. Now I have to go write personal emails, respond to responses from research requests, write some snail mail, pay some bills, eat, and research. It’s gonna be a busy night.

Banana Clafouti

I was still hungry after my dinner, so I decided to finally try this recipe. OMG, sooo yummy and easy. I used a blender, but you could potentially skip it and just use a good whisk, making sure everything is well mixed. I did though skip the butter and sugar under the broiler bit, and it was still warm and tasty. One of my flatmates even agrees, so I decided to share. Yum Yum.

Banana Clafouti (baked banana pudding)
Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
2/3 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large banana, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into bits

In a blender blend together 1/3 cup of the sugar, the flour, the eggs, the milk, the vanilla, and the salt until the mixture is smooth. Arrange the banana slices in one layer in a buttered 3-cup gratin dish or flameproof shallow baking dish, pour the pudding over them, and bake the clafouti in the middle of a preheated 400°F. oven for 20 minutes, or until the top is puffed and springy to the touch. Sprinkle the top with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar, dot it with the butter, and broil the clafouti under a preheated broiler about 3 inches from the heat for 1 to 2 minutes, or until it is browned.

Serves 2.
Gourmet (November 1992)