If you wanna be happy...

5 THINGS TO EAT BEFORE YOU DIE

The question has been asked of food bloggers: what 5 foods should you eat before you die? The answers, given by food lovin' bloggers from around the world, are as varied and interesting as the foodblog world. As a wanna be foodblog writer, I have been thinking of my own answers and ideas.

Food, for me, has always been as much about the place and the people as about the food itself. I have an amazing number of food memories in which I don't remember the food as much as the setting. More on that later. Here is my list of foods that I have come to love and believe everybody should try at least once:

1. Green Papaya Salad The mix of hot and sweet, salty and sour make this my favourite Thai salad. I've tried a number of recipes, some better then others, but at the end of the day, it's the smell, texture and overwhelming yummyness of the first taste that always does me...

2. Basil Sorbet yes, it does sound odd and not really dessert-like. Well, it's not supposed to be: a palate cleanser after a big meal, it should be savoured in small quantities (maybe with some fresh strawberries) just as a little pick me up. fabulous.

3. Dark Chocolate Truffles (preferably homemade) chocolate is an ancient food of the kings, a gift of the gods. Chocolate has been shown to be an anti depressant, good for the heart and an aphrodisiac. need I say more, seriously? Anyway, not everyone likes dark chocolate (which is high in antioxidants- which prevent cancer), preferring the overly sweet, milky concoctions found in the corner store. Regardless. Everyone should have good chocolate at least once. My friend Lulu showed me how to make tuffles a couple of years ago and there's no looking back.

4. figs with parma ham and buffalo mozzarella with lemon and honey I found this "super sexy salad" recipe on Jamie Oliver's website over the summer and found it so ridiculous that I had to try it. Sexy? Figs? well, the ingredient list sounded good- fresh figs, parma ham and buffalo mozzarella drizzled in lemon and honey and the rest is history. I love this combination and suggest everybody invest in the food importation business: I'm gonna need some fresh figs year round.

5. ???? I dunno. I love olives and garden ripe tomatoes in season and new potatoes (ok- I love all potatoes) and seafood ... blueberries and custard and raspberries and tortes (made without flour! woo-hoo!)
this past year has opened some amazing food doors for me: finding a new life without gluten has been both strange and wonderful. So this one is blank- need to find out the fifth food worth living for.

and-- with my list (kind of) complete--- TAG! you're it!

on purpose

I have, throughtout my life, wanted many things for and of myself:
to be carefree; to not worry so much about being liked, or getting approval from others; to be a good daughter, student, girlfriend, dog owner; to be able to wear long dangly earrings and hippie clothes; to be a successful lawyer...

All that in aid of saying that there are some changes are being made around here, my friends.
First, as you can see, the template and a couple of other blog renovations.
Other moves are bigger, albeit more subtle. So- bear with me.


This summer has been awesome. My classes, while not the most stimulating all the times, have really helped my French. I've enjoyed volunteering at Santropol and working at Stanton's (ok- maybe I didn't enjoy that part, but lip gloss isn't cheap).
My mother's arriving tonight, we're going to Ottawa so things are going to be even more chaotic for the next couple of weeks. After that things should be a little more timely around here...


And love don't play any games with me
Anymore like she did before
The world won't wait, so I better shake
That thing right out there through the door
Hell, I still love you (Ryan Adams)

Still Life and Recipes

In an attempt to channel my deepening love of all things foodie, and to use up film prior to going to the Lifetime Commitment Ceremony, I took a bunch of photos. Most of them didn't turn out too well (aka the anchovy shots), but a couple did. Please note the beautiful herbs- my balcony garden is gorgeous. I'll try and post more pictures as time goes on- my tomato plant? fantastic.

Here's what we're eating

*Roasted Vegetable Salad*
~ I got a version of this recipe from the Fields of Greens cookbook years ago. The original called for a lot of ingredients (including Champagne vinegar) which seemed along way off many years ago in Halifax. None the less, I was addicted to roasted vegetables and have eaten variations of it over the years
roast a mixture of veggies: garlic,
onions, zucchini, eggplant, red peppers, mushrooms (or others). when done, slice, mix together & toss with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, pepper, fresh basil.
let it sit for awhile for all the flavors to mix and enjoy!

*Basil Sorbet*
~ I read about this recipe shortly after planting my herbs and fell in love with the idea. It's so wonderful, perfect after a meal, with fresh strawberries or on it's own. The one problem? It melts quickly in the heat!

1/2 c sugar * 1/2 c water * 1/2 c lime juice * 10-15 leaves of basil
make a simple syrup by boiling the water & sugar together for 5 mins. allow to cool & blender with the lime juice. When it's lovely & frothy add the basil juice and blend until it's a gorgeous green colour. Put in the freezer, allow to freeze and then blender again. Allow to freeze throughly before serving. yummy!

Today
The vegetables would like to be cut
By someone who is singing God's name.

Because
Once we were all tomatoes,
Potatoes, onions or
Zucchini. - Hafiz

Summer Lovin'

The Lifetime Commitment Ceremony was wonderful. One of the best weddings I've ever been to. The coolest thing about the actual ceremony was that because they had chosen not to follow any particular tradition, they were able to incorporate what they wanted and include the people they loved. Everyone wandered around on a bit of a high afterwards. Anyway, it was great,camping was good (cold but good) and my home in Ottawa is still standing (and is relatively clean, even). So yippee!

Back at the ranch, Sweet Pea's parents are staying with us. They are showering Miss Belle with love which she appreciates. She's been more difficult lately (more on that another time) so it's nice to have people who are ok with dogs and understand their temperments somewhat.

I've enjoyed meeting them & we've had quite a bit of one on one time since Sweet Pea's been at work while I've been out of school. They're lovely people, one can see where Sweet Pea [SP] gets his mannerisms. It's been a little like camping in that we're in the living room for the most part. I've managed to get stuff done but sometimes a girl wants to hang out in her sweatpants, watch bad TV and eat ice cream out of the carton, no?

Mrs. Pea has made her opinions known about Christmas and babies, but it was done in such a way that, while firm, was none threatening. Mr. Pea was a little bit more relaxed in the conversation, but all in all it was rather funny. Especially since I don't really care about Xmas (they're welcome to him by all means) and babies are a long way off. Anyway, they care about their son and wanted me to know that. and they leave Tuesday.

The Mark of Cain

... so I woke up Sunday morning to find a bloody gash on my forehead. Something had bitten me in the middle of the night and I had scratched it. Because of the extreme heat it won't close and heal- I keep sweating & it? keeps oozing. yuck. it's like a third eye or something. Oh sure, you're saying "stop exagerating- it can't be that bad". well... y'know when you're talking to someone with a horrible deformity/ growth/ cold sore and it's all intense eye contact so you don't stare at the growth or something? people are doing that to me. Half the time I forget I've got the mark of the beast on my forehead, see myself in the mirror and "ACK"! I'm going to a wedding (or rather a "Life Commitment Ceremony" more on that later) and considered getting a cute bindi or something to cover it so that the pictures wouldn't have an open wound in them. but that's kind of Gwen Stefani circa 1998. Besides- I rocked that look hard back then & try not to duplicate. So if you see me- be kind.

On another note, my father has a protrusion on his forehead (this is a new thing-kind of freaked me out the first time I saw it) but in typical fashion he has christened it his unicorn horn so- maybe this is the start of something big. Besides, becoming a unicorn is better than being cursed by G*d.


WORK started working some shifts at Stanton's in Westmount. good to see a lot of people. and my blog has been discovered by some of the runners there. which is cool- slightly nerve wracking. since no one ever comments I always assume this is some kind of black hole. I'll try not to edit myself and keep going here. and compliments on my writing? are awesome & appreciated - thanks A!

THE NOT WEDDING
off to Derek & Simone's Life Commitment Ceremony this Weekend (or not wedding as we call it in my house). This involves a roadtrip, camping, a stop in Ottawa, some school buses and a vegan meal. All in all, an adventure and a good time. The lovelies are, of course, relaxed about presents. I am making some pantry items for them (Red Curry Paste, Chilli Oil, Mango Chutney) and enjoying it. and i may have discovered a fantastic chutney recipe... will keep y'all posted.

lot's more news on the way- gimme time folks!

What is it? You need some chap stick or lip gloss or something? Because your lips keep getting stuck on your teeth. Or is that your idea of a smile? - Joanne (Michelle Pfeiffer) from Tequila Sunrise

~ only one of the best movies ever also, a fantastic cocktail:


- 2 oz Tequila
- 4 oz Orange Juice
- 1 oz Grenadine
- Glassware: Highball Glass

Mix ingredients in a mixing glass with ice cubes. Strain into a highball glass over crushed ice.

A Scar on my Porcelin Skin

Your Ex-Lover Is Dead- Stars

I love this band, the album (Set Yourself On Fire) & the song... so good

Sweet Potato Salad

Inspired by DD, my foodie friend/ training partner, I made a Sweet Potato Salad with Honey Dijon Dressing.
After swim practice (warmup of 550+ 3*400), I sauteed some shrimp with garlic and chilli garlic sauce on top of the salad. Fantastic! next time I'm going to experiment with a Chipotle-Cilantro- Lime Dressing. Oh! how I love the sweet potato. and in my brave new GF world, I'm going to be eating a lot of them.

The past month has been slow. It's hot and I move slower anyway but then I've felt drifty, sleepy and not really clear of what's going on.

My tri has come and gone. It was the nastiest day I could have imagined and I loved it. So, that's something I'll be doing again.

Marks have come back and, while my legal genius has yet to be recognized I am happy with the results. that being said, I'm questioning what's next. I love this- but the parts I love aren't necessarily what's rewarded. I have to figure out how to get there. Hmmm...
I will definately be eating Sweet Potato Salad though. Here's the recipe:

Sweet Potato Salad
2-3 sweet potatoes- chopped, cooked but still maintaining their structure and consistency (not too soft, in other words)
red peppers- chopped into chunks
red onion- chopped fine
DD sugested celery (I'm not a big fan-seems a bit of a wasted vegetable), maybe lightly roasted corn, some black beans or carrot would also work

Honey Dijon Dressing
2 Tbsp honey
2 tsp dijon mustard
oil/ apple cidar vinegar/ salt & pepper

or, Chipotle-Cilantro & Lime Dressing
chipotle pepper- chopped fine
chopped cilantro
juice of 1-2 limes
oil - touch of mustard
salt & pepper

another day

in a few hours I write my final exam: I feel the usual mixture of excitement & dread. Today's going to be awesome: write the exam, have a job interview immediately afterwards (I know!), meet up with people and the celebrations begin!

But, before all that, this is a bit of a special moment for us here at SadieBelle because it was one year ago today that we had our first post. One year and 43 posts later we're still here.

It's been quite a year: ran a marathon, moved cities, started law school, renewed a relationship, did moot court, started training for a triathlon, discovered I was celiac and written more exams in the past 6 months then I had ever done before.
What next? well, I'm going to Disneyland. Not really, but I suspect I won't be posting as much as I have this month for awhile (it's a great distraction when you're at the computer for 12 hours a day). I think I'll read some great books (thanks for the suggestions, all) and cook and continue training and walk Belle a lot. Then I'll be back, lot's to talk about really: relationships & truisms, Mile High (still the best thing EVER), Belle's aching to give her views, Miss Legal Manners has a few things up her sleeve, I need to chat about the tri, there are recipes & of course, year one round up.

Take care-I'm going to bed.
SB

wise words

"Always be ready to kill your students"
- Grand Master Masaaki Haatsumi, ninja master

I think sometimes that law profs think like that: make sure the students sweat and are tortured by the end of the month. It's a combination of fear, mind bending and boredom. My last exam is tomorrow. And then- still don't know. I do believe that tequila shall be involved, however.

suggestions

summer is fast approaching and with the chance to READ BOOKS! real books, not text books that involve Lord Denning rambling on and on, etc, ad nauseum.
I'll take any suggestion for a reading list- email me or leave it in the comments. I will read just about anything but I don't love horror/ fantasy/ sci fi. other than that? you're on

countdowns

There are a lot of things I am counting down right now. We present:
Sadie Belle by the numbers...


2 exams left
5 days until exams are over
1 year of law school, over!

26 days until my first triathlon

3 "walks" a day
walks we take when it's raining: 0
bags / day: 3

it's one a.m. i must be alone here...

... only a slight paraphrase of Matchbox 20
I have less than 9 hours before my first exam starts, I'm freaking out, rewritting my summary (yes, again, thank you very much- this new habit of constant rewriting is getting to me)
I need to reread the FOI paper beofre I hand it in- I do manage to blast Stephen Harper & the Conservatives, so I'm sure she'll be happy.
still very tired. feeling very disastisfied with myself- haven't been able to get out much (except for mini walks with Belle) I'm still sick and my allergies have kicked in. I've been thinking about getting all my hair chopped off- very short like I used to wear it-- any thoughts? let me know...
other than that- mistake calls! and i, for one, listen...

writing my paper- an up to the minute account

there have been a few people who have complained to me over the past couple of months that I've disappeared: i'm not "sharing" the "real me" here. well folks, i'm tired, exhausted, had very little sleep, it's too early to call anyone to bitch so- here goes: i am going to blog writing this $%&@ paper for JSL- not only the STUPIDEST class EVER but the STUPIDEST assignment.
My beloved roomate arrived home last night - i'm going to guess he was intoxicated- and woke me up. I'm stressed and had no sleep. I've been awake since 5, it's 7:30, I'm listening to some kind of Easter church service on the CBC and I'm on page 2. I swear if MH woke up I'd hurt him...
ok--
7:20 page 2....
more later
9 am- writing paper
9:30 freak out at boyfriend
page 3
spend next hour showering/ walking dog/ eating/ preparing food for library/ dishes
11 am- freak out at MH: resist his attempts to calm me
his response? "i'm a bastard" i am so very tired and angry...
11:30 am- at library, holding at page 3
12:30- 4 pages folks, uh-huh!
eating my edamame as I write - I need some sleep & some Advil extra strength long lasting gel caps. My head is killing me- probably a heady mix of allergies and lack of sleep
so tired... 4 Pages!
1:30 - on page 5: finished my quesadillas
going write the damn conclusion & be done with it
tried to put my head down - can't sleep
- 5 pages people: looks like it's going to be exactly 5. This is good, tweak a few things, add a footnote or two. This is my Seinfeld paper- a paper about nothing!
1:45- Done! that's right D-O-N-O-N-O-N-E!
gotta get the contracts under - really? I need to sleep and maybe crying a little.
effing contracts... gotta get the summary done: trying to a table of easily readable rules & the cases separately briefed- i don't know...
3- Open Office is now refusing to open my documents: Frustration in particular. Irony aside I need this %$#@&* it!
- leave computer with Mike in the library (we've been watching each other's ccomputers as the other goes for walk, pee break, etc), sprint home, get memory stick so i can save what Open Office has chosen not to destroy
that's the problem with free source programmes- you can't focus all of your rage on a single person like Bill Gates
3:30 - find the house exactly as I left it. All of my please for MH to do his bit & clean up were for naught. good to know that he's consistent at least.
3:45- back in library, my area has been over run by someone wearing- perfume? $#@!%&*!
ok- i know I'm hypersensitive to this, especially when I'm in the midst of allergy season. and now that there's the celiac thing, I'm risking turning into one of THOSE people who annoy me to no end. but, sweet mary & joseph. the woman is 10 feet away from me and I can smell her. bleck...
5ish- going home, summary almost complete, paper in need of editing. and a dog who needs to be walked
so- that's my exciting life. i don't have time for anything else.
stupid law school.

stupid blogger, stupid computer

for some reason I can't retrieve an awesome post- complete with pictures of Molly Ringwald & Lord Denning (a fine day when you can have the two of them included) that i wrote yesterday. AND Blogger won't let me cut & paste a post I wrote while I didn't have access to the internet. Stupid Blogger grrrrr...
well folks, my blog-versary is fast approaching: 1 year! gosh... sadly, since I'm in the middle of exams and what not- my actual time on the internet is very rare and the celebration will be muted. for now- I'll post when I can...
PS- stupid blogger's spell check? doesn't recognize the words "Blogger" and "blog"- &^(*^(*^&(*er

More Law School Geekdom

I don't know how many of you saw Brokeback Mountain or what you thought about it. I saw it with Michael & it was mmmm... not great. Frankly, I thought My Beautiful Launderette was far more progressive, interesting and hotter (yeah, I said it) than Brokeback. And it had a young (& yummy) Daniel Day Lewis.
The best thing for me has been the parodies of Brokeback. If you haven't seen Brokeback to the future, I suggest you goggle it right now.

So the following is Brokeback Moot. Many of you will remember my travails at the Moot Court in November. Y'know- from whence the lovely eye twitch comes and the crushing of alarmingly low self esteem. So, imagine my delight when I found the following in my inbox! God bless the University of Alberta! and, for those who are law students: Carbolic Smoke Ball? I want one!

you know you're a law student when... II

1- you are seriously worried that you've missed something in your legal analysis of the Tim Horton's cup case
2- you realize that you simply cannot read everything
3- you are ridiculously proud that your boyfriend knows all about the Ogopogo case (he does!)
4- you understand where the lawyers are assholes stories start
5- you start calculating what a 70 hour work week would look like

but i love this. that's the thing. for the first time in a long time i feel like i am exactly where i am supposed to be. sure, it's scary and somewhat soul crushing but i love it. i get the impression that some expect this to be the 'hapless adventures of a girl in law school' blog, and I can't do that. sure, i'm still hapless (I'm still ME) but i'm not wandering in the wilderness anymore...

you know you are a law student when...

1. you hear great celebrity gossip about a marriage (or divorce) and your first thought is: I'd like to see that prenup!
2. you are sad to realize you can't blame a fictious governmental agency for a kid burning his house down
3. everywhere you go you start looking for a plug for your laptop
4. you hear a loud noise outside and run out- excited to see some liability!
5. you start a debate what colour highlighter you'd come back as. with yourself. at 2:40 in the morning.

5 more weeks!

Oscar Fashion & Gossip Update

First up - Oscar fashion
This was the first time since- 1993? that I haven't watched at least a part of the Oscars.
I watch for the clothes. So, I've been checking out the gossip blogs for the past week.
if you'd like to see some awesome outfits and get great gossip, check out some of the following sites...
www.gofugyourself.typepad.com
http://celebritysmack.blogspot.com
http://celebritysailing.blogspot.com
there are so many blogs out there- those are some of my faves.
Now the outfits that were the best (ie worst) at the Oscars were...
Charlieze Theron! I know!
I kind of love the idea- strips of material, wrapped mummy style around. It's different. But - in forest green? with a bow on her shoulder? Why? Why?
Char, honey- you're gorgeous, perfect legs & lovely hair; you have money, people *give* you pretty clothes. Why the Mummy in the Forest look? Is it because you & Stuart broke up? Yes, he was very pretty. But this is the time to bring out the A clothes sweetie. pretty lip glosses (look at the lip gloss reviews in the post below! they'd look fab on you).




Ms. Sharon Stone is another one who just- I dunno. Say what you will about the Stone-inator- she's got ummm.... eggs! and she knows how to dress but this looks like ... like... Windsor Forks circa 1985. don't get me started about the Lohan. I want to like her (i really really do- mean girls rocked!) but she is circling the drain. Ms Stone has Basic Instinct 2 coming out soon. it's all so uck.
Stone is hot. I saw her in Broken Flowers and she's still got it.
Anyway, in case you can't tell from the photos - Stone is wearing *frosty blue eyeshadow*, and I'm pretty sure she's not being ironic. Her hair is a teased, sprayed and coiffed confection. A tribute to the 80s hairbands- maybe her next role is as an aging Poison groupie?


Madonna has been saying in interviews that her daughter, Lourdes is concerned that her mother is gay. Apparantly, she saw the MTV awards show & watched her mother kissing Britney Spears. Madonna's got some crazy story about passing on 'rock star energy'. um, ok? If I were Madonna, I'd actually be more worried about my daughter thinking I had syph or something but I guess that's just me.

Britney Spears may/ may not be pregnant. Isn't she over yet? Why do we care? If I have to look at god awful pics of Brit Brit everytime I try to get some good gossip for the rest of my life.

Paris Hilton is banned from Vanity Fair parties by Graydon Carter. That may be the best editorial decision made by Vanity Fair in years.

There are some awesome pics of a very drunk Jake Gyllen-whatever partying with the Brokeback people on Oscar Eve. He's obviously drunk and enjoying himself, really funny.

AND Jessica Simpson seems to have been dumped by Adam Levine. I've heard only that one song of Maroon 5 and yeah, not feeling it. Anyway, she will be dumped!

that's all for now...

Law School Nutters/ Lipstick Roundup 2006

I've been reading a bunch of other law school blogs and man! we're a crazed bunch. My friend RR said just the other day that he knows why nobody like lawyers. We're trained to be assholes in lawschool. They make us compete from day one- we're always tired and behind and they force us to tread over each other. Career Day was another example. Can't even... what were the best things I got from Career Fair? A great blue stress ball that Belle quite likes and... some Tim Horton gift certificates. I did talk to some awesome people and feel a bit better about the whole will-I-have-a-job-when-I'm-done thing. Dr. Don was awesome.

I feel out of the rut i was in for most of February. It IS the worst month...
to alleviate the boredom, I've started to wear more makeup. Now, I always wear a little. I'm a redhead so without mascara i look albino. But apparently I don't look like I'm wearing any (which makes me very upset- I want to be fabulous, dang it!)
Yesterday I wore my green Juxt MAC eyeshadow. I love it so much- got lots of compliments AND ended up being on TV. I love makeup. This weekend I'm off to buy new eyeshadows- thinking of hitting the Stila & MAC counters (more on that later).

As most of you know, I've been on a hunt for the perfect lipstick for as long as I can remember. I just counted 9 lipsticks- not counting the cheek-lip combinations and I recently bought a great new gloss for $3 and think it works- very glossy. I've had to start chucking stuff out (some is really old).
Here are my favorites:

Baby Doll – Nars- obviously this is pink: a beautiful deep bubble gum colour. this product is called a 'lip lacquer', very similar in texture and wear to MAC's lip glass. So it's a little sticky but you can wear it by itself or over another colour. If i buy this product again I would probably choose a darker colour.

Laura – NYC- this is called a liquid lipstick and is very much like the Stila lip polish (much cheaper naturally). This is a dark pink, more impact than a gloss but not a traditional lipstick. I love it- I always get complements on it.

VooDoo – Black Opal- this is a proper lip gloss, comes in a cute pot and all. It's a shiny orange with lots of gold overtones. Fabulous. I've had it forever and used it sparingly. It works over a simple lip liner, or another colour. I'll be finished it soon and will mourn its passing. I've started looking for a replacement; which leads me to my latest find...

554A – NYC – it doesn't have a proper name but I got it last night and I think I'm in love. It's a pinkish (surprise!) orange with gloss to spare. The product is called liquid lip shine. So far so good...

Black Honey – Clinique – I believe this is technically a lip stain, its dark colour belies the fact that it looks great on everyone, matches everything and manages to look professional without drag queen. This is the interview and job lipstick as well as the one you wear that your boyfriend doesn't quite realize is lipstick.

Cream Soda – Oil of Olay – fantastic lip liner that works with everything. I read in Glamour years ago that Kevin Aucoin swore by this- I bought it in bulk before they stopped making cosmetics.

a goodbye

My great aunt Stella died about a month ago. She'd been sick for a long time and everyone knew she would pass soon. And then she did. Her grandson Daniel, who she adored, was by her side.
The funeral was sad- a goodbye to someone we loved in complicated ways. A good woman, who was often afraid, strong and sometimes unforgiving, with a stubborness. I hope she was happy in her life, in her choices and, ultimately, in her death.
I've been thinking a lot about death over the past couple of months. It's always fascinated me as a topic- I'm always curious to here other's experiences with their loved ones dying. I watched the series finale of Six Feet Under - without giving anything away, we go into the future and see how all these people that we've grown to love (& hate) in real and complicated ways die. Someone told me, while I was mourning Auntie Stella, that with a death a whole world dies. With Auntie's death, i lost my last link to my grandparents' generation.
there is a speech near the end of Angels in America, where Harper sees the souls of the dead moving up into the heavens (a sort of rapture, if you will) and speaks of the painful process of life. I've had conversations about life with many people & one common theme is the grasping for meaning in our lives and in the lessons we learn from each other. this conversation always leads to a discussion of loss and why we suffer. this painful process of the loves, the sorrows, the joys, births and deaths are all a part of our life and our evolution. they may not mean anything but they point to the future and may lead to solace. at least i hope so.

Night flight to San Francisco - chase the moon across America.
I dreamed we were there. The plane leapt the tropopause, the safe air, and attained the outer rim, the ozone, which was ragged and torn, patches of it threadbare as old cheesecloth, and that was frightening. But I saw something that only I could see, because of my astonishing ability to see such things: Souls were rising, from the earth far below, souls of the dead, of people who had perished, from famine, from war, from the plague, and they floated up, like skydivers in reverse, limbs all akimbo, wheeling and spinning. And the souls of these departed joined hands, clasped ankles, and formed a web, a great net of souls, and the souls were three-atom oxygen molecules, of the stuff of ozone, and the outer rim absorbed them, and was repaired. Nothing's lost forever. In this world, there's a kind of painful progress. Longing for what we've left behind, and dreaming ahead. At least I think that's so. (Tony Kushner, Angels in America)

So- goodbye to my Auntie Stella and all the world that was hers.

Sadie's Southern Adventure (part one)

As many of you know, I went to Georgia and South Carolina over my January Reading Week.
I've yet to post pictures, etc for a variety of reasons, including:
1- I need to get them developed 2- I need to upload them 3-I need to find time to write a coherant narrative
However, my trip began & ended with my sweetie & I driving around the Atlanta perimeter and almost losing my mind (his patience was lost). Someone forwarded this film clip about- the perimeter highway around Atlanta. So, I thought this would be a good place to start.
I have a month of classes left. That means I have 5 assignments before 4 exams. Please bear with me. In the meantime- enjoy!
more to come

best site ever

http://www.thingsmygirlfriendandihavearguedabout.com/

yes, i know i've a million other things that I have to do AND if I'm going to update this, i shoud be writing about my trip, or school, or my dog, or my birthday, or the death of Auntie Stella.

but - check out the website!

I'm Betty Grable!

... and I am wasting way too much time

You are Betty Grable

The ulitmate girl next door You're the perfect girl for most guys Pretty yet approachable. Beautiful yet real.

What Famous Pinup Are You?

That young woman is taking off her shirt!

... or, tales from a Nickelback concert

so, Nickelback was in town last night. My brother is on tour with the band as security and to provide the lead singer (Chad... something?) with some personal training. Anyway... yours truly was able to get VIP passes for the concert and went back stage!

Seeing my brother for the first time in quite awhile was great. I miss him and wish we could have more time together. He's ma great man and I wish we had more chances to connect. So, I'd gotten backstage and was trying to find Chris. Everybody kept asking me if I was his cousin. They seemed quite surprised that I was his sister (they kept asking me why I was so small! excuse me, I had on my heels!)

and there he came down the hallway next to a very famous lead singer. He's gained some weight- but in a positive way. Less skinny and scary from his marathon moment. He now has a bolt in his ear (!) and is sporting some bizarre facial hair. But- I would still pick him out in a crowd!

I met Chad- very nice and unassuming. He introduced himself- no assumption that we would know who he was. He asked if he could borrow Chris for awhile. And - with that we were escorted to the VIP seating on the floor. Best seats in the house (which was very full).

The concert was great. I think that the music (and the band personalities) would probably be better suited to a smaller venue. But the amount of sound, fire (I could feel the heat where I was and worried about those onstage), fireworks and general shennigans were pretty great. and there in the corner of the stage was my (not so) little brother. dressed all in black he looked like a floating head!

I recognized some of the songs- sang along with them: Photograph is a lovely song and I think anyone who has grown up in a small town recognizes the quality of life they are singing about.

After the show, we were back stage (walking past the great Czech hockey player Dominic Hasek, just back from the Olympics to play for the Senators and taking in a Nickelback concert- guess he's a fan. It was fun to chat with Chris for a bit. But he had to get on a bus for the 16 hour drive to Green Bay. It was great to catch up with him and see him working at a job he truly loves!

... and now I have Nickelback songs caught in an endless loop.

more than this

back in school and it's nuts...
in Torts it's all about negligence. and i'm slowly beginning to get it. It's a different way of approaching the world. I think the reason i love Torts so much is that it is real. this is real life and real people and this is where the ethics of the profession begin to play a role. In criminal law we just finished studying sexual assault (or rape, because that's what it is, at the end of the day). Amazing to hear some of my classmates' opinions. Sometimes i think the prof is brave just for standing up there. Now we're on intoxication! WOOO HOOO! and one DQ was discussing his being a 'conniseur of the drink'. man, there are some people who just deserve to be smacked.

In other news, my great aunt Stella, an interesting dame in the truest senses of those words, died last week and I was off at a family funeral this weekend. it's sad, seeing so many people that I know I will never see again. and there's a lot of pain there. family stuff is hard. and even in the hardness there is love and saddness and a desire to take meaning where one finds it. more on that later...

and now, my favorite news of the week: Dick Cheney shoots a man! Awesome!



and PETA perhaps says it best of all:
"Mr. Cheney, there is so much violence in the world that is beyond our control, but you can avoid hurting innocent animals (and well-connected lawyers) by putting down your guns and taking up a nonviolent sport."

UP DATE

Yeah, so I missed December. I know. Someone emailed me recently and asked what was going on with SadieBelle and well, I had no answer.
Here's a quick catch up

DECEMBER...
> After over 10 years without exams I wrote 5 in less than 2 weeks. Really stressful, more than I can say. It took awhile to recover and then? back in school.
> Xmas was great. I did nothing, didn't even really read that much. I slept and ran and played with my dog. That's about it.
> Xmas Day was fantastic. I spent it with friends and enjoyed myself. I've realized that I don't like Xmas very much. There's a lot of pressure and other crap. I actually felt bad that I hadn't sent out many Xmas cards and started panicking- somehow I was letting the side down. Blech...
> New Year's Eve was lovely and that's all I'll say about that.

SO NOW...
I've just finished my January term and the Alternative Dispute Resolution module. I have such mixed feelings about all of it; the organization was dreadful-hard to separate my utter bitchiness about that from any other critiques. The last workshop I attended was essentially about community work and public policy and mediation. The kinds of things I'd begun doing in Boston with WellChild lo those many years ago. It was interesting and I did enjoy it- made me a little sad of the wasted 'Montreal years' but I'm here now...

Yes, I have my exam results back and, while my legal genius has yet to be recognized, I feel pretty good about them. Not too shameful or terrible.

My sweetie is taking me to South Carolina next week. It's the Law School Spring Break which is so sad considering it's not even that cold yet. But I will get the chance to see some people I haven't seen in awhile, eat Bar-B-Que, run in shorts, visit the hollowed ground where Jimmy Tilly ( a pivotal character in the Wilmot family history) lived and try and catch up on my sleep. Fantastic!

I'm applying for summer jobs- please think good thoughts for me during this time. It's very stressful: not many jobs and everybody applying.

I have found the BEST. TV. SHOW. EVER. It's called Mile High- sexy British flight attendants, on an airline called Fresh (clearly a rip off of Virgin). So good- my new crack. It's got everything! strippers! drugs! random sex! Did I mention they were sexy? M downloads it off the internet and I've seen most of the second season. need to see the first season... LOVE IT. Even the theme song makes me happy "the world the world the world is mine- and I'm feeling so di-vine"

Now, I have to have a bit of a rant. I am furious about the fact that, next week, Stephen Harper will become prime minister of the country. I blame the bloody liberals for this. If they weren't so corrupt and everything else this wouldn't be happening. Now I'll have to become a pot smoking, lesbian single mother as a form of protest. H-E-Double Toothpick!