"Popular-ler-laar"

I was so stressed on birthday week... but for four blissful hours I pretended like there was no such thing as being a dialysis nurse and seminary student who was in desperate need of sleep.

The roomie and I dressed up and went to go see Wicked.

It was THOROUGHLY enjoyed. (as you can tell, we were almost to the roof- nosebleed seating for sure!)

I also now know that I would love to play Glinda. She has the best lines... and her songs are ALL in my range. Not only that, but she gets to sing fun descants while floating in a bubble over a chorus of munchkins.

My favorite line? ... promise it's not a spoiler...

When she looks up from braiding her friend's hair and sharing secrets during a sleepover.... realizes it's past midnight.... and suddenly tosses up her hand above her head and bends backward as she sings (high notes), 

"it's a brand new daaaaayyyyyy!" 

Sandy leaned over and sarcastically giggled in my ear, "That's not you at all." :) 

Now I just have to figure out how to be popular...

"Popular!You're gonna be popular!I'll teach you the proper poiseWhen you talk to boysLittle ways to flirt and flounce (Ooh!)I'll show you what shoes to wearHow to fix your hairEverything that really counts" 

To repurpose

 <<<<< I saw this link on Pinterest the other day that has me thinking about repurposing. I think this may be one way that 'weird' Louisville is rubbing off on me, and I kinda like the idea of reusing rather than buying new to fill up spaces with more stuff.

And as I enter my last 'twenties' birthday week (eeks!),  tonight I'm also starting to think about repurposing things in my life. You know, giving them new purpose. Or taking bad habits and renewing them. A la Romans 12:1. 

A friend who has gone through so much this year, quoted something from 

One Year Book of Hope on her blog

 that she found helpful... and though I cannot 

even fathom how painful 

it might be to lose a child... 

 I thought that with just one word tweak,

 this quote was repurposable for my situation as well. 

"Your singleness has given you an incredible gift. It has given you the gift of being forced to reconsider the very purpose of your life. Those who are sailing through a comfortable life at this point have not yet been forced to carefully consider their lives and surrender their dreams. But because you have been shaken to the core, you see clearly that if you cling to your own plans and desires, you will never discover the freedom and joy found in losing your life for Jesus. "

apparently I like food

In the middle of life's craziness.... and I do feel like I'm officially crazy now that I'm postponing the inevitable book review even more by not even reading the book till the day before it is due... and definitely not trying to memorize all that needs to be memorized for a midterm on Friday...

I'm procrastinating. In a big way. Because my brain can't seem to handle much else...

And as I downloaded some iPhone pictures I realized that all my pictures revolved around three things. 

Things I want to remember, 

people I like... 

and mostly, food. 

Yup. Apparently I like food.

A lot. 

 Cuban sampler plate at Havana Rumba. Mmmmm.

 Surprising find at the international market behind work. Yay Turkish cookies!

 I have a strange addiction to red licorice. I get sick every time I eat a whole package. Which happens more than I'd like. But sometimes I just gotta have it. This time my roomie enabled the addiction along with some encouragement for the long day ahead!

 Love love love love love my fresh, local produce boxes!

 Macedonian halva. Yes please.

 What else should I have done with handmade whole-wheat ricotta ravioli but serve them up with some fantastic imported basil EVOO, cherry tomatoes, and fresh steamed green beans?

 My special blend to keep me awake on Tuesday nights late class times without impeding sleeping the 5 hrs I can get before waking up at 4am to be at work on Wednesday morning. Trader Joe's Jasmine green tea and mint melange tea.

 Definitely a favorite creation of mine. Nachos with steamed spinach, black beans, red peppers and mozzarella. Broiled to gooey and crunchy perfection and served with real Mexican salsa.

 A different twist on ravioli. Again with the green beans, but some of the ravioli are spinach ravioli and I tossed cherry tomatoes with fresh basil this time. Too bad some red vino is not allowed for the cute stemware at this time. :P

 My favorite part about this breakfast sandwich was it's location- Anchorage, KY.

 So healthy... so good. Asiago cheese bread, acorn squash, chicken meatballs with tomato sauce... topped with fresh basil, of course!

Who doesn't love Indian food night?! Especially when it's with friends who have been to India so they can help you order! 

 The ladies at work now make fun of me for me coffee obsession.... maybe it's a good thing they haven't truly found out about how much I love the other things at coffee shops? 

 Louisville is fantastic in so many, many, many ways. Not the least of which is multiple different ethnic foods. I really enjoyed everything on this Ethiopian platter!

I steamed then lightly roasted local edamame, sweet corn, and red peppers with some EVOO... broiled some Asiago bread to make it crusty... mmmm!

 This is to broadcast the itty-bitty Asian market a 5 minute walk away from my house :) 

... my recent favorite? The buckwheat noodles and tofu that reminded me of a sweet time with a friend in Russia. ... well... maybe it was the coffee Mochi. Coffee or friendship. Hm. Sad that this is a choice in my brain.

Thankfully I can usually make the choice coffee AND friendship! :D