the other one in the couple

Last Thursday I cooked. It wasn't much, most of it was prepared ahead of time, and not everything tasted great, but I still cooked.

Cooking isn't that out of the ordinary for me, but since we started having these dinner parties, I hadn't. Normally cep would create this and that and the other thing while I would chop and mix and serve and clean. However, just last week we started a rotation of themed dinners. Of the two themes we drew, "the other one in the couple" sounded miles more interesting than "tex-mex," so I swallowed my pride and made some food for our small-ish party of 6 (with cep doing the helping this time).

My first "course" was bruschetta. I've made this many times before and many times better before, but I needed something quick that wouldn't leave people hungry early-on. I also tried to dress it up with some fancy plating, but "fancy plating" only goes so far when I'm producing it.

The main meal was our super-garlicy spaghetti. Crescent Dragonwagon (originally "Ellen Zolotow") has this amazing recipe that has even forced my father to reach for more heat-reducing baguette. Again, it's simple: throw X things in a food processor, boil some pasta, voila! Surprisingly, I enjoyed this just as much as the many times cep has made it. I'm thankful that our friends like garlic as much as we do, for I believe we were all still breathing it the next day.

The part of the dinner that I'm most proud of is dessert. I don't bake. I can't even pretend that I bake. I believe I've made both cookies and cornbread, both from mixes, so I really wanted to outdo myself (and others' expectations) this time. Cannolis. Sure, they weren't traditional, but I'm still sure my late grandmother would've been proud. Again with cep's help, I made cannoli shells from pizelles and a white chocolate mousse that everyone could eat. The most competent baker at the table even complimented them. It only took 4 straight nights prior getting the recipes worked out, a little crushed pistachio, and some chocolate chips before people were happy. I thought a vegan cannoli filling would've been interesting, but it never set and tasted almost exactly like the 2 cups of powdered sugar that went into it (surprise surprise).

The end of the night found both Dan and I winning rounds of Zombie Fluxx, a new game that Ian insists must come out again around Halloween. How odd is that? I won? And Dan? Craziness! It just proves that it was a night to surpass expectations all around.

the 5-year cluster

This past weekend saw cep and I attend her college reunion à la Oberlin. I had never visited, so it was a great opportunity for me to get acquainted with the school and those people she still cares about from her time there. The grounds were beautiful, though a part of that was apparently due to the mass planting effort that always happens during the week preceding the commencement and reunion festivities (yes, they happen on the same weekend). All the people I met were really nice and welcoming, though most found it hard to believe any non-alum was game enough to attend. It's already hard to remember all the fun moments from the weekend, so I've listed most of them below.

Locations visited: Science Center / South, cep's sophomore dorm / Tappan Square, the quad / Bead Paradise, a women's clothier etc. / the college bookstore (actually a Barnes and Noble branch now) / Ginkgo Gallery / Uncommon Objects, the FAVA store / Hall Auditorium / Old "B", properly Old Barrows, a co-op that might be shutting down soon / King / Warner, the theater building / 'Sco at Wilder, the club in the basement of the student union / "the arb" (-oretum) / Mudd, the library

Food/drink consumed at/from: The Mandarin, Chinese take-out / Gibson's, a bakery-plus / JavaZone, a coffee-breakfast-shop / Tank, a co-op / Yesterday's Ice Cream (because Miller's was renovating) / The Feve, one of only two bars in town / Jen's house / Weia Teia, fancy asian / Stevenson, "fancy" dinner at dining hall == painful / Quick and Delicious, a greasy-spoon / Oberlin Market

Activities accomplished: Tappan trees / whole wheat donuts / missing Giant 3-Way Plug / weeping beech / bee tree / chased a raccoon into the sewer / echo spot / womb chairs / fish tree / Illumination / tots at The Feve

New people met: Tracey, Jonathan / Sarah, Anne, Mooch, Asher/ (Ellie's) Josh / Ellen / Amy, Lilly, Chloe, Lydia / Staab, Jess, Catherine / JoEllen, Texas Jess, Katya / Abby / Jen, Chris, Tamar, Ann plus family, Keith, Val / Eric, Yoko / Maria, our waitress / ABJ, Kia / Sensei (Ron) / Mike, Connie, other associated Grubes

every saga has a beginning

I wondered about doing this again, blogging. Some out there may remember my first attempt. Someone (and I do mean one) may also remember my second. They were OK. They were fun while they lasted, but they served a purpose I didn't have. Oddly enough, I'm not even sure what my purpose now is. I told myself I would start blogging at my twenty-ninth birthday, and I just missed it.

What will I write about? What will I say? What will be the weather at the next Chicago Fire game I attend? No One Knows. I'll try to be here writing, saying, attending, nevertheless.