I for one am proud of my Tarheels for making it to the Elite 8 in March Madness! GO H.E.E.L.S!

HUNGER GAMES…..a.m.a.z.i.n.g! Midnight showing was fabulous.

Incoming First Year’s coming to campus for visit days was….R.e.f.r.e.s.h.i.n.g!

2 days until my cousin Mikelle gets here…double T.r.o.u.b.l.e!

 Pageant season is in full swing….Y.a.y!

Grandpa celebrated his 86th Birthday….C.u.t.e!

Baseball season has officially arrived….Go T.W.I.N.S!(Or Go Joe Mauer ;))

SPRING IS HERE :)

]]> http://arsenicwit.wordpress.com/2012/03/28/slow-cooker-tom-kha-tofu/ Thu, 29 Mar 2012 00:24:04 +0000 H. http://arsenicwit.wordpress.com/2012/03/28/slow-cooker-tom-kha-tofu/

There’s one thing I love, and that’s Thai food. I love pad thai and green curry, but my favorite is Tom Kha Gai. It’s delicious, coconut milk-y goodness; it’s creamy and yet tart with the lemongrass and kaffir leaves. Unfortunately, I live 40 minutes away from any good Thai food, so when the desire suddenly hits me, I can’t just call up a Thai restaurant and ask for take-out.

I got the Thai food craving this weekend–except it was 6pm and the idea of driving 40 minutes one-way just for some Thai food didn’t seem like something worthwhile. I had to embrace the idea that if I want Thai food, I’ll have to learn to make it myself. I’ve already figured out green curry (as long as I have green curry paste, but that’s in the local grocery store now).

However, I didn’t want to stand over any soup, slaving away at the stove. After some searching, I found this recipe for Tom Kha Gai in the slow cooker, then improvised it for my tastes. It was really good! It tasted almost exactly like my favorite Thai restaurant’s Tom Kha Tofu.

One thing I wanted to do was make it vegetarian, and since I like my food spicy, I added some chili oil. I also couldn’t find any kaffir leaves, but the lime taste can be achieved with lime peel (discarded when served). I also used ginger root instead of galangal, since the latter isn’t at the local grocery store. I think that to achieve a more coconut creaminess, another can or half can of coconut milk may be worthwhile (I’ll have to experiment with that in the future).

But, despite the changes and possible revisions in the future, it was delicious!

Anyway, without further ado, my revised “Tom Kha Tofu” Thai soup.

Vegetarian Tom Kha Gai in the slow cooker.

Slow Cooker Version of Tom Kha Tofu (Vegetarian Tom Kha Gai)

Ingredients

• 4 cups (2 cans) vegetable broth
• 1 10 oz. can coconut milk
• 4 ¼-inch slices fresh ginger root
• 1 3 inch piece of lemongrass sliced lengthwise
• 2-3 large pieces of lime zest (like two 2×3 inch pieces of peel…)
• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
• ½ tablespoon crushed red pepper
• ½ tablespoon chili oil
• 1 clove of garlic minced very finely or crushed
• juice from one lime
• One package extra firm tofu
• Vegetables to add to the soup (I used sliced button mushrooms and bamboo shoots)
• Basil, julienned
• 1 tablespoon vegetarian fish sauce, golden mountain sauce, or soy sauce (optional)

Directions

1. Add all of the ingredients except the last five.
2. Cook on high for four hours (although, because there’s no meat in this soup, you can technically cook for less time; I’ve cut it down to high for three hours without difficulty. On the flip-side, if you’re going out, you can leave it cooking all day without problems).
3. 30 minutes before serving, add basil, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots.
4. Cut extra firm tofu into cubes, then pan fry until browned on all sides (2-3 minutes per side, usually). Use peanut oil for a robust flavor. Add the tofu into the slow cooker 10 minutes before serving the soup.
5. Serve with white or brown rice.

Canned tuna seemed like a cheap way to get those Omega-3s they rave about. I was worried, though, that canned tuna would taste really fishy (it did) so I hunted for a recipe that could hide the fishy-ness. Enter this Tuna Croquettes recipe. While it did downplay the fishy taste, I think in the future I’ll add some curry powder.

(Recipe below the pictures.)

(Recipe originally from Food Network.)

Ingredients

• 1 can albacore tuna, drained well
• 2 green onions, chopped fine
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup panko bread crumbs, divided
• Canola oil, for sauteing
• Horseradish sauce for dipping (optional)

Directions

March 25h, 2012

Click Thumbnail for larger sizes:

Granted, I did this skittle Monday night, and I’m finally getting around to the pictures now, so ignore some of the chipping.

So, yeah, if you’ll notice, it isn’t perfect. I didn’t have all the time in the world Monday night, but I got it done. I used Essie’s “Haunt as Hello” and “Turning Heads Red”, Mattese Elite’s “Neon (06) Caution”, Revlon’s “Tangerine”, and Vite’s Dry Fast Top Coat. All of the colors except for the Revlon were gifts from my very good friend, R. [want me to link to your blog, gf?] I even have to hand it to her for the Mattese Elite; I had said neon yellow would look horrible on me so she sent me a bottle of it. I grudgingly accept that it doesn’t look like a squashed banana peel on my nails that will make my skin look alien green-ish (as I feared), it actually looks good.

The unfortunate thing about Mattese Elite is that to get a true neon color (which I wanted, since it was Neon Day I was doing this for), you have to put at least three coats on the nail and it takes forever to dry. For some reason, this time, even after waiting twenty minutes and then putting the Dry Fast Top Coat and then waiting another twenty minutes, I still managed to mess the neon yellow up. You can see the lines were something pressed into the color and left an impression. Remember, this was after forty minutes and a quick dry top coat.

Also, “Haute as Hello” needs three coats as well. I only did two and you can still see the application was uneven. I’m really liking the application of “Turning Heads Red” and “Tangerine.” Simple, fast, and the color really shines through. I may just do a manicure with “Tangerine” next — you know, a spring-ish one.

(P.S. I really need to lotion my hand. Look at those dry knuckles! How embarrassing! )

I’ve been doing well so far. Most of the time, I just take leftovers. In fact, I now purposefully plan meals so there will be leftovers. But, sometimes I make a lunch I’m particularly proud of. This one is delicious pita sandwiches (stuffed with peppered turkey lunch meat, arugula, and provolone), cucumber slices, and strawberries.

(The container was bought at Target for $5 for two. It’s been very handy, since it comes with compartments, and I don’t know why, but having my food compartmentalized makes me happy. )

One of my best friends made her very own bed headboard. This doesn’t surprise me one bit. She has always had the crafty gene out of any of my friends. Some of my favorite home or style items are creations she has made.

This is her latest project, a Cottage Chic Headboard to compliment her new styled bedroom all the way up in Anchorage, Alaska. I lived with Caitlin for 2 years in college and she has always had fabulous taste in all things decor. Contact her at cmvernlund@gmail.com if you’d like a step by step tutorial about how to complete this project, but here are the steps through photos:

Enjoy!

Absolutely and positively great right?!

It’s a very blustery day today, interjected with a serious case of the sprinkles. I enjoy days like this; there’s something alive about the desert nature when it looks stormy. Unfortunately, I’m also unsure of what to do on this day, my last day of Spring Break. Oh, I’m not bored — I have tons of things to do. In fact, I have a 6-item list on my white board in the “office nook,” but I’m not sure what to tackle first or just say “fuck it” and work on my writing all day. Or read M is for Murder by Sue Grafton*.

I know I must get some chores done, and since I like to clean my apartment when there’s light out, I think I’ll tackle that first. I just have to make myself do it. I had a nasty shock with my taxes (known as most likely a lack of refund in my horizon), and I think I’ve figured out the theme for 2012. You see, I’ve begun to notice, now that I’ve reached “adulthood” and must be “responsible,” that every year has a “theme.” 2009 was the Year of Unemployment. 2010 was the Year of Employment (also known as “How H. Lost Her Naivete About the Education Field”). 2011 was the Year of Emotional WTF. 2012 seems to be the Year of Interesting & Painful Ways Fate Detaches H. from Her Savings. In the last month alone, a very expensive month for me, I’ve had some dental work, then my car died, and now this. I’m feeling a little self-pitying right now (another argument for cleaning. Mindless, menial work always helps; and the sense of self-satisfaction when looking at a clean homestead is always nice when one is feeling sorry for oneself).

Anyway, Spring Break was alright. I got less done than I was hoping, but I relaxed a lot. Sometimes, I wonder if it would be easier not to have breaks between work. I know I say this from a position of advantage, since one of the few good things about the educational field is vacations are basically guaranteed (and often used as an excuse for seriously low pay), but it’s tough to take time off and then be expected to jump right back on the horse. But I also know if I didn’t have breaks from classrooms filled with teenagers, I’d probably go off the deep end. I think vacations are more for the teachers than the students.

Ironically, I spent most this weekend trying to get patio chairs from Ikea. The store is about 40 minutes away from me and I went there on Friday thinking, “I have a little extra money and I’ve really wanted a chair on the balcony so I can sip coffee and look at my view. Might as well get it done.” Ikea is one of those stores you can’t really just pop in and out of, so after I spent an hour and a half looking for the type of chair I wanted (which was in my budget), finding the area they were located in, trying and deciding on one, etc. I headed down to the warehouse area only to find…they didn’t have them in stock! When would they get the chairs back in stock? Probably 4 AM Saturday morning.

Saturday came and I “um-ed” and “uh-ed” an hour away wondering if I should make the drive back to Ikea. After all, gas prices are only rising. “Oh, when am I going to get another chance if I don’t go today?” I muttered to myself. “And if I assemble the chairs tonight, I can have coffee on the balcony Sunday!” I got on the highway, went there, bought the chairs, noticed a storm was coming in and I definitely didn’t want to risk being on the highway during a storm, so I canceled my plans for bookstore time and came right back. I assembled the chairs (a two-hour ordeal; the first chair took the bulk of that time, but then I assembled the other chair in half an hour, since I had the hang of it and had found a wrench in my toolbox), stacked them in the corner, went to bed…and woke up to the storm. After all of that, no coffee on the balcony!

But, I did do my nails…and here are some horrible photographs of them:

I know. For a photography buff, those aren’t very well done. I took the photos very quickly; the second one gives some idea of shine. They’re very shiny in the light. I used…something and something…I’ll check the nail polish bottles later.

Only after finishing did I realize it probably wasn’t the best idea to do my nails before I planned to clean.

* I’m currently having a lot of fun with mystery novels. I usually read fantasy/sci-fi type stuff, but I’ve been bored with it lately (I think my lack of writing time has been a factor, as I also write mostly fantasy/sci-fi type stuff). As a result, I’ve gotten back into the mystery novel. Mysteries are wonderful to just pick up and read; they don’t have to be a series where book one must be followed by book two and so on and so forth. They’re engaging because we all want to know whodunnit. And, many of them have very good female protagonists, something I’m partial to. I just finished C is for Corpse by Sue Grafton, and highly recommend the series of “Alphabet Murders,” as they are known, that feature the protagonist Kinsey Millhone.

Continued…

Opposition: That little “charm”, especially in relationships.

One of my favorite conversations I had with Tia was during our drive to the Oregon Coast. The break down of this post is this: Her and I disagreed on how to handle a social topic/issue in the U.S. For the record, before this gets political, we both love Jesus, we both love all different kinds of people, but we both disagree on how the best way to handle this current social topic.

We kept mentioning that we love those people who can be black and white on an issue and how we admire their boldness to stick to their confident answers. We felt we were more in the grey or the middle of the road when it comes to some issues that the church would view as less than admirable. For the most part, I am in a community full of people who are in higher education or about 90% of my time is spent in this particular community. She is in a community full of church body members or at least 90% of the time as well. So, naturally we have conversations with like-minded people. It’s essential to have friends, colleagues, and family members that are not in the same community or it’s too easy to get caught up in a bubble that is out of touch with reality. So, having this conversation was golden.

Now, to come back to this conversation a week later after processing…For some reason, we couldn’t let our weekend conversation die down. There was an unsettling in our hearts that was not okay with feeling like we were in the grey. However, we realized we aren’t in the grey as much as we thought. We know where we stand, it’s just about articulating and forming full reliable facts and experiences to formulate the idea we are endorsing. Overall, we definitely stay closer to the grey area or middle line because we never want to fully close ourselves off to someone else’s truth. We never want to turn our backs away from opposition. Opposition makes your truth true. So, instead of making it into an argument, we’ve taken great value in our disagreements.

We agreed that if we were given the same situation with a social issue, we would have the same way of dealing with it (mostly aimed towards people). However, we would only differ in the voting booth. It’s taken us many hours, many months of wrestling with social issues and honestly if we think about it too much, it’s counter-productive and rips any progress you’ve made to shreds. So don’t wander lust too much, it could be defective.

Moral of the conversation is that it’s okay to be in the grey. Then, as Tia said, “It’s okay to be in the grey until we have the right knowledge, wisdom, and peace to go into the black and white area.” As I came to my own conclusion on what I think about the black, white, and grey thinking people, I came to the peace that true black and white thinking people are not extremists. They only end up at their decisions after carefully considering the opposing option. They also were grey at one point because those who can skillfully choose have done their research or their time to properly reflect.

Now, of course, there are black and white thinking people that I despise…The kind of people that make their decisions without any regards to others, especially about social issues. In opinion, I am starting to believe the “extreme” thinkers who I used to think were black and white are the real grey thinkers. They’ve only regurgitated what they’ve been taught and they’ve never been empathic enough to realize the counter-situation. They’ve also never developed further enough to comprehend a life outside of their own body and experiences. So, until that can transcend into their own body, mind, and heart, their opinions and beliefs aren’t extreme truths, they are just extreme opinions with not much context to prove their opinions credible.

So, learn what color you are on the black, white, and grey scale. Experience all the colors of decision-making. It makes for stronger selves, friendships, and communities.

I had the pleasure of having some of the best conversations with Tia during my Oregon trip (check out photos from post below). Despite everything that had been happening, I came away from our conversations feeling like I finally processed my yearlong thoughts. So, I am going to be posting the “Middle of the Road” conversations that Tia and I kept having on Saturday. It sounds silly, but having a blog has made me a better being. It’s a place where I can be me. It’s where I go to process the final thought or product I’ve been harboring or maybe just to dissect it.

Context: Tia and I met one another at church camp 12 years ago. We are both adopted, grew up in South Dakota towns, and we went to the same church in different towns (Her Dad was a Pastor)…yep, she is a PK kid! At the core, we are alike, our hobbies/interests greatly differ, but now she is living and working in Eugene, Oregon after completing her Bachelors/Pastoral Studies at New Hope Bible College. She is currently working for an Open Bible Church who just celebrated its 2-year anniversary. I went to Eugene to get away for a few days and to visit her over my birthday. We realized we’ve never celebrated my birthday on my birthday together and that this should be the first of many. Whew.

Here it goes, the Middle of the Road conversations:

On our cold chilly and rainy Saturday, we were both sitting in the Bagel/Coffee shop in Eugene, Oregon talking about our jobs, visions, and desires for the present to the future. She drew me a sketch of what her future will hopefully look like and I sat there just in awe and amazement of whom she is.

Tia is a person who loves people where they are. She doesn’t pull a Jayme and love them for their potential (one of my greatest flaws), she loves people for who they are, not what they can be. In her sketch, she drew a map, an outline for her visions. She desires to foster a church where people of all types meet, greet, and grow. She yearns for their development as the keys to opening all of these aspects. She wants the church to be more than a Sunday building, but for a place where people can eat, hang out, and become friends. She wants to serve the local community to meet needs that are not met. She wants to help make a difference. To say she is awesome is a big understatement.

Ironically, God has given me those same types of desires, but within the education system. We marveled how similar God has intertwined our lives the past 12 years and how we travel the same road in the same direction, we are just divided by the white dotted line of the different “type” of travel we will do in our lives. Either way, God has always led our friendship in a positive, challenging, and healthy way.

Moral of the story is that how often do we sit down and sketch our present to the future? How often do we outline the future, but we skip over what we are doing now? It’s equally important to build a bridge from point A to point K as it is from point J to point K. How often do we forget to ask our closest friends what their aspirations are? And how do they plan on getting there? When was the last time we asked our significant other what is their purpose and how are they defining that purpose? When was the last time we asked ourselves that question? How often do we get caught up in the beginning of the year resolutions/goals, but forget to dust them off come middle of March? As I’ve been saying earlier, let’s not beat ourselves up for the things we aren’t doing well or maybe you’re a superstar and have been doing all of these things well all along. But let’s not get down on some of the things we haven’t been doing, let’s just remind ourselves to stay the steady course. Let’s travel in the same direction as those who inspire us and travel in the same direction as our hopes and dreams. Sketches and outlines don’t have an expiration date. They don’t have an age, race, faith, religion, or gender. Sketches and outlines are inclusive, so let’s start sketching, coloring, and filling our blank sheets of paper with as much information, scribbles, re-do’s, lines, circles, and words as possible. Let’s not be in the middle of the road, let’s pick a direction and start traveling.

We meant to be like "12" years of friendship, but I guess it's 21. HA.

One of my other favorite memories of being 22 combines my love for blogging, especially best friend bloggers who blog about home (Check my friend Becky’s first post ever here. She is new to blogging!) and my love for athletics at my Alma Mater: THE South Dakota State University- Sorry ESPN, we are not San Diego State University…Although I would have loved to live near a beach for 4 years!

Last night, both the mens and womens basketball team clenched a victory to win the Summit League Tournament which makes them seeds in the March Madness NCAA tournament this month. The Mens team made history by winning in overtime. I know this doesn’t sound like a big deal to most….BUT—> I’ve already read what the big city critics and big time universities are saying about my sweet D1 Alma Mater and here is what I have to say to you…

This is more than just a game. Many of the athletes on South Dakota State’s roster are home grown. They worked on farms, grew up in small towns, and they’ve spent many days of their life harvesting corn, tending to cattle, and working in conditions that are not considered fair by any means from sun up to sun down. They know how to work hard, which was very evident in their overtime performance last night. In South Dakota, we don’t get to pull a LeBron James- we don’t get to work with the best coaches in the nation or choose the team we want to play on. We don’t know the best scouts, we don’t get to handpick our team or transfer to a school that is a “better” opportunity. We do it the old fashioned way- we re-invent our game with the kids we were given the chance to be on a team with. We hit the gym, we spend hours playing on a GRAVEL basketball court in the summer (trust me I don’t know how many basketballs I’ve popped in my lifetime), and in the winter…we are at the gym before chores and after chores. This is all the while we are involved in other activities, being a student, working on the farm, and picking up a side job at the grocery store for real cash…Because we don’t get allowances for working on the farm. This win was not just a win for a “team” or a “school” it was a win for the state. To all the kids who grew up dreaming a big dream, but never had the big city amenities to make some of those dreams happen. To the people who are loyal- to the extreme…and to those who don’t pick the best, but they work hard enough to beat the best. This win was for the parents, who saved all of their harvest cash to pay off the farm expenses and kept a little side cash to put their kid in a “big time” basketball camp for the summer. To the family and friends who traveled in harsh conditions in -40 degree weather with blizzards, icey roads, and snow drifting interstates just to watch their son or daughter play. To the friends who stayed late after games to celebrate and rose early to encourage that hard work resumes the next day. To the the coaches, athletic trainers, athletes, fans, managers, score keepers, and camera crew who faithfully put their trust in a team to lead a city or a town.

The nation may look at us like hicks with sticks (according to some observers), but if there is anything I have learned, never underestimate the power and determination of a Midwestern kid. That’s our best kept secret, we work quietly under the radar and before you know it, we’ve wiped you off the map. I’m not saying we are the better or worse than those that do not have this same life story- but it’s OUR story, and it is our story to happily tell. Congratulations South Dakota State University. You’ve made this alum a very proud Jackrabbit! I couldn’t have asked for a better earlier birthday present. GO BIG. GO BLUE. GO JACKS!

There is something beautiful about choosing. I had to own many of my career, faith-driven, fiscal, and relationship decisions at 22 and it’s something I’ve learned through and grown from. At 22, I’ve learned to let go of friendships that are toxic, repair the ones that needed rebuilding, and I cherished the ones that were genuine, gritty, and truthful. At 22, I chose to stay in Higher Education and I chose to pick a profession where Jesus and I meet to live out his gospel and my vision & purpose according to the timeframe in my life. I chose, but I chose by living by the convictions that alarmed me and the people who loved me. 22 has been challenging & beautiFul.

Check back to a countdown of my favorite moments of being 22 this week :)

One of my favorite memories of being 22 includes graduating college. Statistically speaking, being a first generation student, a woman of color, and from a very low socioeconomic status background, I should not have been walking across that stage. I did though, I certainly did. I beat the odds and the adversity that came with it. Being 22 never felt more victorious than having that diploma in my hands.

Jeremiah 29:11

Courtesy of ESPN: “How do you silence Cameron Crazies? GET EVEN! #UNC”

I have some big news to tell you! To make it short, when I created MEDA, my goal for the organization was that it would be sustainable without much social media attention and eventually without having to be the middle person of who receives and delivers the cards.  MEDA has surpassed any goal or expectation that it was ever given.

With that said, I decided that when I went on to pursue my Masters degree, I would see how manageable my first semester was and that would determine if I would renew the annual licenses in 9 different states for MEDA. Unfortunately, with not knowing where I will be every 6 months and participating in a graduate program that requires more time than I expected in the classroom, in an assistantship, and everything else that comes with being a transplant, is more than enough to commit to.

Fortunately, I have made strong connections with people, churches, pageant titleholders, universities, and group organizations that on their own send 1,000 cards per month to local hospitals. I have arranged contracts with certain hospitals in the country that will allow these groups to submit cards to the children in the hospitals under MEDA’s name even if the legal non-profit name is not technically purchased. I am grateful they are willing to work with the people who want to continue MEDA’s mission. So please keep sending cards! I am going to keep the facebook page open for a while, so if you want, you can contact me about which hospitals are legally okay with people and groups sending cards to kids who need their day brightened.

I am at an exciting time in my life where my professional and personal life are changing and I am learning that over-committing is not something I want to continue doing no matter how much I am attached to what I am committing to.

Finally, I wanted to thank you for all of your support, love, and encouragement. From collecting pens for schools in the Republic of Congo to collecting U.S. Troops supplies for our men and women overseas to providing kids a momentary time of happiness, MEDA has made an impact. I met some incredible people through this journey and I know my late grandmother Meda Grosse would be proud to see her name attached to something that pay’s it forward to society. Although it breaks my heart to see this chapter ending in my life, I know it will continue on my own accord thanks to all of you who keep me humble and accountable for what I contribute to society.

There aren’t enough words that could express how thankful I am that people still want to continue to create color and creativity and add it to someone’s day. It’s not always about the longevity of something; it’s the effects that matter. So, for one last time, I want to thank you. I hope you continue to Make.Each.Day.Aspiring, I know you will.

Love with x’s and o’s,

Jayme Alexis Brunner

Be a kid, again. Repeat!

Laugh as much as you breathe.

Build a beautiful fort.

Give yourself a break. Sleep in and hit snooze.

Spend quality time with others.

Shop for bold.

Watch a sunset and a sunrise

Volunteer or Pay it Forward.

Fall in love, with who you want to fall in love with.

Hand write a letter or a thank you note.

And Cherish. Simply cherish the moments you are living :)

Plaid Shirt! (Buy 1 get 1 free at Forever 21)

Moccasins (50% off at Maurices)

Rounded mini-messenger bags (Tj Maxx and Gordmon’s are having huge sales on these)

Feather Earrings