Wait that’s a song ….
But could insert overworked and underpaid, stupid busy, or any number of other clichés.
Including spring ahead – the time change everyone hates (well, except Mark – he likes that it stays light later in the day, but I miss the light in the morning) that I am suffering the effects of on this Monday.
I had a week last week – Monday I woke up with cold sores erupting in both corners of my mouth. It was the library school advising week, so on top of everything else, I had 14 30-minute student appointments, either in-person or on the phone. Plus lots of emailed questions that really made me feel like I just couldn’t win – the more carefully I explained the more questions I got.
On Wednesday, I went down to Chicago for a whirlwind, less than 12-hour visit. I arrived at 6:30, and we went to a member event at the Art Institute, a preview of the Van Gogh’s Bedrooms show. On the bus down, I worked some and then treated myself to an encore presentation of the Downton Abbey finale – watched the DVD on my laptop.
The member preview was fun, but we decided, rather than free audio tour being an event feature, for it to really be a premium member event, they should’ve given us a chance to view the show audio tour free. We went to Shake Shack after. As we walked over I said I wanted to go there for a reason that most people wouldn’t share – the burgers would be smaller than Burger Bar, the next closest burger joint on Michigan Ave. The Google review says, “Hip, counter-serve chain for gourmet takes on fast-food classics like burgers & frozen custard.” and that’s about the size of it. I had a plain burger, which was nicely browned, on a plain egg bun. And a glass of white wine that came in a disposable plastic glass – somewhat to my horror.
Thursday morning we caught the 7:30 AM train to Madison, and I was back in the office before 11:00. I met Heike for coffee after work at the King St. Colectivo – I actually had tea instead – then took the bus home. Where we had curried chicken salad sandwiches, made with the Downton Abbey finale tea sandwidges chicken salad, for dinner.
Meanwhile, something was wrong with Kahn. He was staying all curled up on his cushion, not going to eat, holding his body funny. Megan took him to the vet on Wednesday – and they kept him until Saturday. He’s got kidney disease evidently. Cost her $2K. I decided to stop charging her rent to help out a little.
Then on Friday it was in to the office for my last two advising appointments, then an on-campus meeting, and out to the far east side for a WI Library Association meeting – choosing the literary awards. Back home and fried rice for supper (made with last weekend’s pork roast) and scallion pancakes from the freezer. I found a recipe I really like last spring on serious eats. I made them once to take to a block party, and then a second time, and froze them, in the uncooked state, thinking they’d fry up just fine. Not quite as expected – they were a bit doughy, and the first one I didn’t have the oil hot enough, and that one went straight into the trash. I think if I try it again, I’ll fry them, and cool them, and freeze them cooked. And then the symphony – Emmanuel Ax – who was quite impressive.
On Saturday, I had an early haircut, then we met Belinda & Stephen at the Monroe St. Colectivo, then I had Mark drop me off at WI Film Fest volunteer training. I walked home – got to see Kahn in all his glory, released from the vet with a blue and pink neck collar – one of those cones to keep him from biting his incisions – that Megan said made him look like a beautiful flower. I went out and did a little grocery shopping, then worked on email and presentations.
Al and Emma came for the weekend, for their annual Phantom Lake pub crawl on Saturday, and help Al with his taxes. I thought they were staying at Emma’s parent’s on Friday, but they sneaked in after I went to bed. I made beef enchiladas for dinner, with red and green sauce, and refried beans and cornbread. I tried to make the green sauce with turkey broth and the New Mexico green chiles Jenny sent at Christmas, but it did not come out the way I wanted – it was a thin sauce with random hunks of green, instead of the more uniformly green, more unctuous sauce I was hoping for. The cornbread was not my favorite, and the beans, also sent from New Mexico, seemed bland. It was all good together, though – better than the sum of its parts, and I bet I can make a good taco casserole kind of thing with what’s left. Al and Emma ordered a pizza – I guess, since they had rolled in from the bar crawl, they didn’t really notice how much I was cooking.
We all kind of retired to our separate corners, Mark watched TV upstairs, Al & Emma in the living room, and Megan hung out in her room with Kahn. I had the couch in the sunroom with my cats, where I read a book I need to review for the library association literary awards – a murder mystery set in small town Wisconsin – and ate too many Hershey’s mini milk chocolate Easter eggs. Each one is a touch bigger than a Hershey’s kiss. I had a stomach ache on Sunday morning.
On Sunday, Al did his taxes, and I got my tax stuff together, and they got on the road back to Chicago before noon. I sent them home with a pan of enchiladas. We had bagels for breakfast and then I went off to Monona Terrace where I gave a 30-minute slide presentation at the CSA open house – on how to use up all the veggies in your box.
I started walking home in the rain, and realized I could stop at work and record my lectures for online class in the coming week – so I did, and left my laptop there. I got the free 80 bus home, which was super crowded because of the rain. We had tuna melts and corn chips for supper. It was the Sunday that went by extra fast, because of the time change, but like I said, I didn’t really feel the effects until Monday, when I’ve been sleepy all day.