crazy eights

If you're a longtime follower of The Happy Homekeeper, you may have read previous posts about my love for my dog, Ella, or about our theme parties we have to celebrate her birthday. Well, Ella just turned eight, and we celebrated with a Bloody Mary Birthday Brunch.

I'd like to say that we went all out and made a fabulous spread. But, it was a little weak food-wise. You may recall that last year we baked a red-velvet cake and made tequila lime popcorn. This year, we scrambled some eggs for breakfast burritos, assembled a fruit salad, bought some bagels, and baked some blueberry muffins (from a box). Our Bloody Mary bar was outstanding, though, as were our bellinis. And, the guests who attended were some of the finest - The Chemist included.

I have to say, though, either three Bloody Marys in an afternoon are a bit too much or there was a full moon. Our day ended with a strange request for us to attend a house meeting to vote our downstairs neighbors off the island for a party that they threw the night before (one which we attended, thank you very much) and a late afternoon visit to those downstairs neighbors who apparently keep their apartment unlocked when they are not home. Apparently, everyone has stopped being polite and started getting real here on Calvert Street. Maybe there will be a rose on my doorstep tomorrow morning.

Watched The Secret Lives of Pippa Lee.

garden clean-up

for rent

We are not homeowners today. Maybe early next week. Keep your fingers crossed.

race around the track

When I finished up with graduate school, the number one question I got asked by people in academia was, "Did you get a tenure track job?" I didn't, and I didn't care. My job pretty much has all the perks of tenure. I can become an associate professor, if I like, and I can also become a full professor, if I work hard enough. I scoffed at the naysayers. After all, they were the ones who said I couldn't write a dissertation on chick lit. I'd show them. I'm always happiest at the margins.

Until yesterday... when my reappointment files were due. Since I don't have a tenure track job, I have to reapply for my job every three years, which means writing a teaching statement, a research statement, and a service statement as well as compiling an enormous pile of extraneous material including past syllabi, writing assignments, and student samples. Since I take my job seriously (and since March marked the start of Women's History Month and our "capstone" event for our program), I patiently waited until the start of Spring Break on Friday afternoon at 5 pm to begin compiling these documents. It took forever. Forever.

Only now am I emerging from this trauma. The sad thing is that I just wanted to get it all done so that I could have some time to grade. That's what spring break is for, right? Okay... I lie. My calendar is also filled with doctor's appointments, a haircut, and having my taxes done. I'm looking forward to a slight reprieve at the end of the week when we head to the sandy beaches of the Lehigh Valley.

P.S. - A big welcome to Baby B! So glad you could make it in time for St. Patrick's Day!

Watched The Informant. Re-watched half of The Talented Mr. Ripley. Still watching Weeds: Season 5.

the great pretenders

Mr. Beeton and I have a knack for pretending (see "surf's up"). That's what we did this past Saturday when we walked around Brightwood, imagining that it was already March 24th. We parked in front of our soon-to-be home on Quackenbos (love that name!), got out, and walked Ella (who hadn't yet been officially introduced to her new neighborhood) around such sites as Whittier Elementary School, Coolidge High School, and the Takoma Community Center (known to Brightwood insiders as Healthy U).

And last night, we ate gazpacho. The sun has been feeling a bit warmer these past few days, and the birds have been chirping with joy now that the mounds of snow are slowly melting. It is starting to feel like spring. So, I jumped the gun a bit and made one of our favorite summertime meals. I tasted the farmer's market, endless hours of reading, and sun in every bite.

Gazpacho

• 3 1/2 cups tomato juice
• 8 plum tomatoes, seeded, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 cucumber, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 green onion, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced, seeded jalapeno chili
• 2 garlic cloves, minced

Combine 1 cup tomato juice, half of tomatoes, half of cucumber, and half of bell pepper in a blender. Puree until smooth. Pour into large bowl. Stir in remaining tomatoes, cucumber, and bell pepper. Add onion, cilantro, parsley, lemon juice, green onion, jalapeno, and garlic. Transfer 1 cup mixture to blender. Add 2 1/2 cups tomato juice to the blender and puree. Pour back into large bowl and stir to combine. Thin with additional tomato juice, if desired. Season with salt and fresh ground black pepper. Cover; chill for 2 hours... though we usually can't wait.

march into the madness

Watched Three Coins in the Fountain. Watching Weeds: Season 5. Finished watching Big Love: Season 3.