Musings Musing From the Last Day of September, 2009

Today may not have been my best day ever, but the way I have it figured, if I can work the Grateful Dead and the Beatles into one class period, it can't be all bad.

I Love Cheese

I really do. My favorite cheese is asiago. It's great on pizza. However, I also really dig these twisty cheddar and mozzerella string cheeses (Mom and I like to eat those on road trips, it seems). Let's see, if we're talking cheddar, my rule is: the sharper the better. I tend to like loud flavors (I also like my chocolate dark, my peppers hot, and my sourdough, well, sour). Anyway, if the cheddar doesn't bring tears to my eyes or make me start foaming at the mouth like a rabid dog, I'll probably pass. Okay, so maybe I wouldn't. After all, it's very rare that I pass on cheese...

...unless of course that cheese would be any type of Swiss. I've always been a little scared of Swiss cheese. When I was a little kid the fact that this cheese had holes in it scared the (insert noun here) out of me. Additionally, I'm not crazy about the taste (described by many as "nutty"--whatever that's supposed to mean).

Anyway, back to cheeses I do like. I'm a pretty big fan of pepper jack. I remember riding the Smoky Mountain Railroad through the Nantahala Gorge in North Carolina and hogging all the complementary pepper jack cubes and still being greedy for more. Note: cheddar cubes were also provided, but seeing as how they were not particularly sharp, the cheese snob in me put them away, opting for the deliciously salty (though not all that spicy) pepper jack.

Whatever I do, I've learned to avoid fresh mozzerella like the plague (apologies for the cliche). But I do. I once stupidly assumed I'd like fresh mozzerella after watching some Martha Stewart cooking show in which she made some sort of fresh mozzerella crap that appeared delicious on TV; well, when I finally tried fresh mozzerella for the first time (in Scottsdale, Arizona), I almost threw up. I think this is because fresh mozzerella is not sharp.

Other cheeses I appreciate include Parmesan and Romano. I like them in gratable chunks and in powdered form both. In fact, my favorite pizza includes parmesan, romano, and asiago on a homemade crust with slices of green olives. I could go for one of those about now.

So, does the fact that I just blogged about cheese make me cheesy? Or is it because I just made a bad pun about it?

Check out Sunday Scribblings for more cheesy posts.

I Said My Name Was Ramblin' Rose

Dear Jerry,

I find I'm thinking about you more and more every day. I've even found myself listening to such tunes as "Mississippi Half-Step," or whatever it's called. I never really figured out what the official title is, but you do a good job on it. Anyway, I've also been listening to "Shakedown Street," or whatever it's called. I apologize, Jerry--since I only own one of your band's albums, I have to rely on Sirius 32 and YouTube for my song titles. Bobby hasn't filled me in on any official titles yet.

Anyway, my point is that I'm gaining a whole new appreciation for your singing. And watching you pick guitar on the Half Step song--I had to stop grading papers for at least a whole minute to watch in awe as my jaw dropped. Very impressive fretboard work. That being said, I think Bobby can do a pretty good job with a guitar as well.

Point being, Jerry, maybe I was a little rash in my last letter. I mean, we'd been spending so much time together and all that maybe I just needed a fresh sound. I don't know. I don't even know what I'm trying to say. My emotions are you everywhere tonight. I mean, I really like Bobby, you know? But if things don't work out between us and I decide I need to listen to a different style of music, do you think you could find it in your heart to forgive me and take me back as a fan? I am still your fan, Jerry. I don't want you to ever forget that. But I'm just going through so much right now, what with changing my musical tastes everyday and all. It's just a lot for a girl to handle. You do understand, don't you Jerry? I knew you would. Thanks for always being there to support me in my decisions.

Your increasingly Grateful fan,
Sunshine Jones

Feeling Good...

Well, I'm done grading papers for now. Unless, of course, some late papers come in. But for tonight, I'm done! I've been grading for about two weeks now. I haven't had an honest to goodness weekend in three weeks, if that makes any sense. Now I need to finish planning classes for the remainder of the week.

Getting rain here tonight...

But I don't care. I must say, the rain put the song "Brown Eyed Women" in my head. Especially the part about the sound of the thunder and the rain pouring down or something like that.

Anyway, I'm in a musical mindset tonight and feeling good. Who knows how long this mood will last. I'm also kind of tired though...

I Need a Miracle (Every Day)

Dear Jerry,

It hurts me to write this letter, but to get to the point, I am going to have to leave you for Bob Weir. To be honest, it was "Samson and Delilah" that did it for me. However, he really had me at "Sugar Magnolia."

Don't get me wrong, Jerry, I still love you for "Franklin's Tower," "Friend of the Devil," and "U.S. Blues." It's just that those aren't my top songs at the moment. I apologize for being so fickle.

Really Jerry, it's not you, it's me. I love your sound, but sometimes it's just too mellow for me. I can't help myself, but I really love the screaming rhythm of music like "One More Saturday Night."

I really do dig your lead guitar skills, and I like you better in a full beard and mustache. In my opinion, Bobby should go back to the long sideburns, long ponytail, and hair in the face look he had going on in '72; but you Jerry--you rocked that bushy beard look.

In closing, I'll "say my piece and get out." We've had some good times together Jerry Garcia, but for the time being, I think I'm going to have to listen to another lead singer. I hope you'll understand.

Your fan,
Sunshine Jones

P.S. Please don't take it personally, Jerry. I'm sure I'll come around and favor your songs again sometime. After all, you were my first favorite Grateful Dead lead.

No Falling Asleep in This Service...

I never cease to be amazed at the stuff I hear at church. Tonight Pastor Tom sang a bit of "Let's Get it On" to explain how Jacob must have felt at the end of his seven-year stint of work for Laban to "earn" Rachel. Sometimes I think he does things like this just to keep us awake. Not that there's much fear of falling asleep during a 5:00 PM service, but you never know!

My Students Are Awesome!

I've been teaching for just over a week now. I guess you could say a week and a half, though I had Labor Day off. In this period of time, I have already had students refer to me as "Professor" (even though I only have a Master's degree), a student who asked to call me "Master," (though he never decided to actually call me that--which leads me to wonder: if a PhD is a doctor, is a person with an MA a master???), a student say I was cool, a student say he enjoyed coming to my class, and a whole class that wants to celebrate my birthday.

I have four groups right now, but will be adding a fifth in October. The students are a riot! They really know how to make me laugh and have a good time. Fortunately, I can make them laugh too, usually.

If the classes get loud and I have to quiet them down, many of the students will shush the noisy ones. It's amazing. I don't want to jinx anything, but it's like they're really "on my side."

I know you're not really supposed to apologize for lack of bloggage, but I just wanted to let everybody know what's up. I'm teaching full-time now, so I'll still try to blog when I can, but I haven't been able to do memes for a while now. Peace out, y'all!

Terrific News!

Update: I found another copy of my novella! I am SO EXCITED right now!

Angry...

Okay, so I met up with my cousins at a local coffeehouse. Objective: good fellowship and writing. I didn't get much writing done because I was so out of the habit (new job = not a lot of spare time until I get into the swing of things). Anyway, I did write a little today. Fired up from that, I came home to open up my novella and possibly add some to it. First, I couldn't find my novella. I found the first chapter and nothing more on my computer's hard drive. No biggie, I thought, I'll get out the old flash drive--it'll be there in its entirety. No. It's gone. The victim of a corrupted file. Now I'm not even in the mood to write. I'm just mad. I know I've printed out the stuff I've written, but I also didn't bring it with me. The stuff is nearly 1300 miles away. That is not cool with me. I mean yeah, I can still write chapters, but I'm not happy with my USB drive right now. Of all things to ruin, it ATE MY NOVELLA. (insert expletive of your choice here--insert a couple actually).

I have to head to the school to hold my office hour. Maybe I can get some grading done and feel better about the whole prospect of writing afterward. Thing is, I thought I had my novella saved in about three different places, so I don't know what happened.