Vay-Kay.

You guys, I am so excited.

I am very fortunate, for the moment, because my parents live only 5 hours away. There's no telling if this phenomenon will repeat itself anytime during my adult life; so I'm trying to take full advantage of it. To adhere to this policy of full-advantage-taking, Daniel and I are headed down to the sunshine state on Thursday to visit them until Sunday! I'm very excited. I've already informed them that I will be clearing out the oyster supply in Jacksonville, and that the Maker's Mark factory better start sending more bottles down that way because I'll surely be making an impact on their stock as well.

It will be nice to get away from Atlanta for a few days, and finally be surrounded by people who will talk to me without it being either forced or required by our co-worker status. It's weird to think that people, somewhere out there, care about what I have to say! Maybe, if I'm lucky enough, they won't pretend to use a microplane to mutilate their ears every time I speak! Maybe they'll call me by my real name instead of "extern", "girl", "devil girl", or any of the other (much more obscene) nicknames that my kitchen comrades have concocted for me. (It may sound like I'm joking about all of this, but I'm actually not. I'm stoked to have a legitimate conversation with my family, who cares about me and what I'm talking about.)

I'm also excited to report that the new Miyazaki movie, "From Up on Poppy Hill", is coming to Atlanta on April 19th, and that I will be at the Atlantic Station Regal Cinemas at midnight on the 18th to see it! If anyone is close to Atlanta at that point and wants to come see it with me...I would love to have a group of Miyazaki nerds to watch it with!

Picture of the movie poster.

Recently I've been considering what I would like to do with my life after graduation. I've always joked about moving to Canada if this country can't get things straight (or maybe a little LESS straight...), but now I'm kindof seriously considering it. I looked up the citizenship process and it isn't that difficult: you have to speak either French or English (I am fluent in both), you can't be a criminal (I'm not...), you have to be 18, and you have to live in their country for 3 years. I figured I could get a permanent work Visa and then apply later on if I love it as much as I think I'm going to. I don't know for sure yet, and I have to discuss it with Daniel, but it's slowly becoming a real option for my future.

So today I got called off of work because we had 11 covers on the reservation book for this evening. Aaron said they just didn't need a second person to come in. SO, I did a few thing to cheer myself up. I went to Lenox Square mall with Daniel where I purchased a few things from Forever 21, a Starbucks coffee, and a Subway sandwich. It's been so long since I've bought clothes for myself, and walking out of a store with a bag of things for ME to wear that are actually CUTE...it's just such a nice feeling. I'm pretty sure I'm out of spending money for the month, but the stuff I got was actually really needed. I am now the proud owner of three pairs of jeans! Woot! I'm like a real female now!

Now, to conclude, here are some pictures.

Macarons with a raspberry fennel ganache filling. 

Chef tasting dessert: Celery Ganache, Matcha Apples, Pâte a choux, Toasted Buttermilk, and Almonds.

Passion Fruit Pâte a Fruit.

Recently-baked violet creme brulées.

Working on a Kugelhopf for one of my besties! (Rather ineffectively, I might add.) 

And then I'm weird again.

I'll post pictures from our trip when we return! I hope everyone has a great week/weekend. :)

Brief Blah Blah

I have such great intentions (and plenty of time) to update this blog, but I always forget. Plus, interesting things rarely happen to me anymore. It is also hard to make them happen when you are seriously lacking in the cash department.

I decided I would update today, because at least SOMETHING new happened yesterday. I worked my first solo shift! Usually, when I work, I have either Billy or Chef Aaron there with me for the entire shift. Aaron spends more time upstairs, allowing me to run the station solo for most of the evening, but he always at least stops by to make sure everything is running smoothly. Billy always works side-by-side with me for the entire night.

I know a lot of you are like "woah, that's dumb, I've been working by myself for my entire externship." Well, congratulations. I haven't been, and I'm excited to say that I felt comfortable to run the station, plate desserts, discuss cheeses with servers, and close everything correctly for the first time by myself since I started at Restaurant Eugene. I also heard from one of the guys on the line that they didn't let the previous extern run the station solo until her last three weeks on the job. I'm proud of myself!

Today has been relatively boring, but I got too caught up (meaning two weeks ahead) on my externship manual (again), and it's USA's Law and Order: SVU marathon day so I haven't been lacking for entertainment. I'm looking forward to going in to work tomorrow because we have a buyout (where someone basically "rents" the restaurant for the entire evening), and I haven't gotten to work one yet. It should be an interesting experience.

I don't have too many pictures to post now, but I'll see what I can dig up to share with you guys!

Well, this is something.

Atlanta Blues.

Well, my plans to go to Knoxville on Thursday have (yet again) been canceled, because Jeremy is sick. He thinks it's strep, and I refuse to go anywhere near that. Ain't nobody got time for strep! I'm hoping to hear later today that he doesn't have strep, and that whatever he has isn't contagious so that Daniel and I can still venture up that way.

I am really struggling in Atlanta. I like my job, my living situation is great-ish, and nothing is ACTUALLY wrong, I'm just lonely. And stressed. And it's making me depressed. It's starting to manifest itself physically. I have no appetite, and even when I do, I feel nauseous every time I eat. I've basically stopped drinking, with only a rare exception, and it's been since then that this ickiness has come over my stomach.

I'm not sure what to do with myself, since all of my coworkers are men and it would be weird for me to ask them to hang out. I literally have no time to make friends with anyone else, nor do I have any idea how to. I've never not had school or Naples, and now I don't understand how adults make friends outside of their jobs. I just don't get it.

So I've got to figure some things out. I know I only have a few months here, but it's getting silly how sad I am. Turns out, I'm not as much of a loner as I thought I was, I need human interaction. Daniel is always great to have around, but when I have days off and he doesn't, I literally sit by myself until he calls me to come get him at 11:30 at night.

Most of my classmates have been telling me how jealous they are of all of my spare time, and all of the things they would do with it, but I don't think they understand how it's affected me. I get really depressed when I'm forced to be stagnant, and having more than one day off a week makes me remember how lonely I actually am in this city. I'm too far ahead on my externship manual to continue working on it, and there aren't many other things besides Lego Harry Potter that can keep me occupied. It's sad.

Anyway, I made soup today, and I'll share it with you to not end this entry on a sad note.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup:
6 T unsalted butter
1 small onion, diced
1/4 cup flour
2 cups lactose free 2% milk
3 cups chicken stock
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper
Paprika
4 cups broccoli florets
1 large carrot, diced
3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Melt butter, cook onions in it until tender (about 5 minutes). Whisk in flour and cook roux until golden. Gradually whisk in milk. Then add stock, bay leaves, salt, pepper, and paprika (the latter 3 to taste). Cook about 20 minutes or until the mixture has thickened. Add vegetables and cook another 20 minutes until they are tender. Immersion blender the soup. Stir in the cheese and whisk until it melts. Serve hot.

It's a good soup, and I'm going to use it to trick my body into digesting food. I'm hoping that by consuming a primarily-liquid, calorie-rich food, that my body will be less angry when I eat. We'll see what happens.