It was such a gorgeously hot spring day here today that the Snook and I decided to head to Victoria Park for a picnic. It was a good day for people-watching, with lots of folks playing Frisbee and just soaking up the sun. One guy was even throwing a boomerang around! That’s the first time I’ve ever seen anybody do that (with a proper wooden boomerang, not a Nerf version). Even the Snook was impressed.

The Herald‘s got another article on Steve Irwin: “Is this the best known Aussie in the world?” My new little step-brother Colfax loves the Crocodile Hunter. Of course, given that that’s all he knows about the country, he’s probably too scared now to ever visit. 🙂

The Greatest Low-Carb Recipe EVAH!
The Snook discovered this the other day and I just have to share. Even you non-dieters would probably love it. I know it sounds gross at first, and believe me, I was a big doubter. Just bear with me. It’s called a Mock Danish. Basically, you take 2 oz. of cream cheese (i.e. 1/4 of a Philly block) and melt in the microwave. Then you mix it all up with one egg. Add a little vanilla, lemon, and artificial sweetener. Nuke for two more minutes. Like I said, I know it sounds gross. But get this – it is so good. It is reminiscent of a cream cheese danish, and also a nice cheesecake. Personally, it reminds me of a good eggy custard. I like it with a handful of blueberries and a little cream and cinnamon on top, or with a spoonful of some Weight Watchers jam I got. Plus it has, like, no carbs in it (depending on what you add). It’s good for dessert or even for breakfast. It’s warm and nummy and soothing and it takes all of five minutes to prepare. Yes, I know you’re still dwelling on the grossness. Up until the point I tasted it, I was too. Just give this one a try next time you’re in the mood for something cheesecakey.

Friday Five:

1. What is your biggest pet peeve? Why?
Biggest? I can’t choose. I have so many. I get annoyed when people have to go to the bathroom too often. Seriously. I think it has to do with having a younger brother with a bladder the size of a teacup. The number of times we’d have to pull over so he could pee in a cornfield… I also hate it when people say “nu-cu-lar” instead of “nuclear”. I’m irritated by parents who push inappropriate strollers (filled with inappropriate children) to inappropriate places. I rage when mobile phones ring during a movie. And I have a whole subset of pet peeves just for my gym, such as women who wear make-up on the treadmill, guys who wear combat boots instead of gym shoes, and old women who think they can get away with wearing just a sports bra as a top. Like I said, I got a lot.

2. What irritating habits do you have?
I crack my knuckles. I snore (just a little). I do this thing where I fiddle with the edges of fabric, like the hem of a pillowcase or a curtain. That drives my sister crazy. And I have this pathetic inability to just, you know, do stuff. I’m a procrastinator and I’m lazy. I’ll decide to do something but then when the time comes, I’ll find an excuse to back out. (Hence my spotty training record at the gym.) It even annoys me.

3. Have you tried to change the irritating habits or just let them be?
I’ve tried to change the last one, but it never lasts. I’ll get this surge of empowerment and make all these “To Do” lists and stuff, but eventually I just peter out. It doesn’t help that the Snook is exactly the same way, so we just enable each other’s slackerdom. It’s a vicious circle.

4. What grosses you out more than anything else? Why?
I can’t watch scenes in movies where people receive injections. It’s just squicks me out. (I don’t mind getting them myself, as long as I don’t have to watch.)

5. What one thing can you never see yourself doing that other people do?
Sadly, eat sushi or oysters. I just can’t do the raw fish thing. I think eventually I might work up to cooked seafood, but there’s no way I could eat something that’s been plucked straight out of the sea. The very smell makes me ill.

Thank you for financing global terror. Hee!

My Roald Dahl enthusiasm finally returned yesterday and I got to work going through a pile of about 400 unanswered e-mails. Ugh. I did come across one interesting one though. A game show researcher contacted me to clear up some questions they were going to run about Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The show? The Weakest Link. (I was going to tip off Ernie, but it looks like he didn’t need my help!)

Metafilter has a post about Roald Dahl today. As you might imagine, I’m all over that.

Matt linked to an amazing collection of Barbie dolls that have been repainted and costumed to look like Hollywood movie stars. It sounds cheesy, but give them a look. This guy is amazing. If he can transform a mass-produced doll into Liza Minelli, why can’t the toy companies make an action figure that looks anything like the real actor?

I’ve been thinking about teaching. I was whinging to the Snook the other day about my dissatisfaction with I.T. work when he suggested that I go back to school. Since I had so much fun leading training courses in London, he thought I should look into getting teaching credentials here. It’s an interesting idea. My friend Max teaches, as do my friends Liz and Kel in California. Ma Snook is a teacher-librarian. If you’d asked my second-grade self what I wanted to be when I grew up, I’d have said “a teacher” without hesitation. So I decided to look into it.

Unfortunately, it seems it’s a lot more difficult than I anticipated. Not only would it take two full years for me to get my Masters of Teaching from Sydney Uni, but as I’m still classified as an “International” student (because my permanent residency won’t be fully “permanent” for two more years), I’d have to pay about four times the tuition that Australian students would. Then there’s the question of whether my enthusiasm for training eager adults would in any way translate into enthusiasm for teaching sullen and obligated young people. I’m not sure. I just finished reading this five-part story about a journalist who took a year off to teach seventh grade English. His experiences are pretty eye-opening. I was always a good student, and in class I resented the teacher having to go so slowly and repetitively for the sake of other kids who couldn’t care less. Apparently, though, that’s exactly what teachers are forced to do. I like the idea of “breaking through” with a difficult student and teaching them something new, but realistically, how often does that happen? I’m not sure I could deal with putting out a lot of effort and seeing it go to waste. Someone once told me that journalism and education are the most cynical professions and that you lose your youthful idealism pretty quickly. I get depressed enough in I.T.; would it really be wise to make a move? (Article link courtesy of Moire.)

Nooo! Lance is not going into space! All my work was in vain.