RIP MCA
Shingle and unable to mingle…
Hello, I’m back. Alive. Well. Kicking.
I think I may need a ghost writer, as clearly my commitment to documenting my current chapter is becoming increasingly flaky. I blame a sudden and sharp rise in my friend tally, coupled with my schedule this quarter which has me on an American Regional-Work-Sustainable Purchasing-Work-Latin Cuisine-Work-nail varnish application and removal treadmill set to ‘jolt’.
So to re-cap. For the first time in my life I can identify with what it means to be a straight A student (and apparently an 85 year old man), as I ended last quarter with a nasty case of, in the Doctor’s words ‘stress-induced Shingles’. Quite a treat. The diagnosed ‘stress’ was not helped by being summoned over the loud speaker (*mortified*) at Walgreens pharmacy to be told the prescribed antibiotics would be $237 and was I ‘okay with this’. Needless to say I turned my back on modern medicine and opted to heal myself with broccoli and coconut water. Anyway, fear not, I am now shingle free and once again allowed within close proximity of pregnant women, phew.
So this quarter is mainly culinary with the exception of the desserts we make as part of the menus in each class. American Regional, as the title suggests, sees us ‘visit’ a different region of the US each week to make the cuisine that characterises that area. It’s a great lesson in American history for me which up until now I have largely ignored… My fave class of all however, is Latin Cuisine where we make amazing Mexican and Sth American food, including tortillas from scratch and even stewed cactus (it’s good!).
School aside, lots going on, there was the once (once as in never again) in a lifetime experience of the Olive Garden courtesy of Mary Elizabeth’s gift card, where the chairs have wheels on to simulate some kind of nursing home esq dining experience, with the food to match.
Went to see a friend of my friend and potential future roomie Don ‘The Don’, perform improv which is big in these parts, very funny and that is about all I can tell you, as this also coincided with being schooled in the merits of American whiskey…
Even more amusing than the improv, was a recent dinner party at a friend’s home where it became apparent that I was the theme. We sat down to a meal of scotch eggs and jacket potatoes all set to a British playlist, in homage, to well…me. Ahhh Americans!
I finally succumbed to a US ph which perhaps explains the sudden spike in social activity, but have to say, while I can now let people know that I’m lost and late (the grid system hasn’t improved my navigation ‘issues’) I’m finding the reintroduction of mobile communications and text messaging in my life exhausting. Sigh. Being elusive really was a simpler time.
A busy few weeks ahead, cannot contain my excitement at prospect of impending arrival of one of my nearest and dearest’s, and my first visitor (the rest of you slackers take note), the brilliant Beth Gwen. This will be followed by finishing up the quarter and my summer hiatus to London 2012, in the hope of gainful employment for a bit before returning back to school in the autumn.
Some pics below of recent culinary outputs, excited to see some of you very soon, and Londoners, please start spreading the Baking-Comms-Prof-for-hire word.
