finally!!

i woke up this morning and promptly discovered i have finally attained enlightenment.

i have a third eye directly between my eyes, and slightly elevated on my forehead.

i knew all that reading about easter religions was bound to pay off, someday.

mil besos-- the bodhisattva of clearasil

justice in the universe and chicken soup

and so it goes that the best team money can buy is crushed by their rivals. i have no idea what has spurred on my love affair with baseball this year, nor what has prompted my seeminly undying devotion to the bosox, but i will say that baseball may be the saving grace of western society-- but only if the freaking american league will dump the designated hitter rule. the world series starts on saturday. hot diggity.

in other news, well, there is no other news. i'm just working, trying to digest political, social, religious, etc. kind of information. lately, i can't seem to read enough, or hear enough, or think about enough. i'm trying not to talk so much, but for a chatterbox like me, that's a tough deal. life is good.

i made a damn good pot of chicken soup for my high school kids last night. it was spicy, and chickeny, and full of noodle goodness. and just because i can, i'll include the recipe below.

needed: one large stock pot, chicken parts or whole chicken (if you're not picky about white vs. dark meat, it's cheaper to buy a whole chicken), six or seven ribs of celery, four or five carrots, one large sweet yellow onion, about 20 cloves of garlic (no seriously), mrs. dash's bold and spicy, a small box of knorr chicken boullion cubes, a carton of sliced mushrooms, six or seven stalks of fresh rosemary, salt and pepper, one large package of small egg noodles.

if you are using a whole chicken--wash it inside and out with cold running water. salt and pepper it, and shove a couple of spare rosemary stalks under the skin. if you are using chicken parts, i recommend that you use two dark pieces for every white piece you use. throw the chicken in the pot, and cover it with water, plus about two inches. turn the fire on high. while that's cooking, chop your veggies. chop coursely, or dice finely, depending on your preference. i know my kids like to pick things out, so i chop big. leave the garlic cloves whole. i'll tell you why in a minute.

once everything is chopped, throw the veggies, the garlic, and the mrs. dash in, as well. readjust your salt and pepper. you can leave out the salt, if you want, since you are using the chicken boullion. by the way, you should put that box in now. did i mention that the water should be boiling at this point? a nice rolling boil to cook that chicken...

the chicken is done cooking when the juices in the fattest part of the breast and thigh run clear, or when the thin bone in the leg slides cleanly out. you want to get the chicken just before this point. put the parts or the carcass in a separate bowl, and turn the fire down to low, add the noodles at this point. also, check your flavor, and adjust as necessary.

allow the chicken to cool a bit, and then remove the skin and discard. at this point, you can remove the meat and return it to the pot, or if you're using pieces, and want a more rustic presentation peel the skin off, and throw the meat back in the pot to finish cooking. when you plate up, everyone can have their own piece of chicken in the bowl. i saw that on a show once, it just looks messier for everyone.

once the noodles are aldente, turn the pot all the way off. you're ready to eat now. you can serve this with brown and serve rolls, or an artisan bread, etc. and the reason you want to leave those garlic cloves whole is because they make an excellent butter substitute, now that they are all mushy and good. we also followed with sugar cookies and butter cream icing. woo hoo.

randomly yours--

mil besos, r

falling up

just finished reading "white oleander" by janet fitch. forget that it's an oprah book club selection-- it's a great book. i read it in four nights. searingly beautiful. seriously. i found myself thinking about what was said in the book more deeply than i've thought about just about anything in a long time. thoughts that would keep me up, keep me reading, keep me thinking. i'm half-tempted to re-read it this week. it's a book about home, about longing, about belonging, about love, about growing up, and about lonliness, which the protagonist's mother claims is THE human condition. interesting, no? seriously, pick up this book.

life is good. same insanity, different dress.

mil besos--rmg

the grass is always greener on the sliver side of the cloud...

or whatever. like anyone ever believes that crap, anyway. seriously. i know i've been negative nelly lately, but i'm just not in the mood to be positive polly at the moment. no, right now, i think i'd like to be get-it-done gloria. yeah, that's it.

what am i getting done you might ask? well, i'll be perfectly honest i'm trying like hell to get it all done. it's time to clean house, people. and i'm not talking about getting rid of old sweaters. i'm talking about a serious attitude adjustment, some good introspection being had, some good work on myself and my relationships. i think it's about getting rid of the bullshit, to be blunt. and you know what? it's exciting.

i've been thinking about strategic planning for my job alot lately. some of that is self-preservation, and some of that is about ending the professional funk i seem to be stuck in, and some of that is about really coming up with a well-articulated vision/mission that people can invest in and be excited by. it's a daunting task, to tell the truth. and it's risky. risky because it will seem to some that i'm calling some people to task for not doing the same kind of planning. it's risky because it's a new thing for this place, and new things are always risky. but it's time to do it, nonetheless. best case scenario: it works, it's contagious, and things get better. worst case scenario: the whole thing implodes and sucks, and then i get fired for being too smart for my own good, or looking like a subverter. either way, there will be change. change i can deal with. but mediocrity and status quo are pretty much making me want to throw up on an hourly basis, to be perfectly honest.

and as far as that goes, the strategic plan is extending itself into my life. granted, it's not the same plan as the work one. shocked, aren't you? i know i was...

no, the life plan is different. and it's not about being unflexible. it's about calling myself into account. when i was 20, there were about 9 million things i wanted to do when i grew up. well, i am up. and i've done some of those things. and other of those things, i have let grow very far away, for no good reason other than that i was being lazy or fatalistic about them. and it's time to reconnect with those things. it's time to make a list of goals, simple though they may be, and just start doing them. no one is keeping me from them but myself. and i can do something about that. everyday.

thanks for listening to the existential rant...

life is good. the seasons are changing...

mil besos--rachel