Those who aren't here in Australia for me to flaunt my awesome desktop background I thought I would share it with you here. For Christmas my adorable nieces were given their first set of Husky gear and here is the results of their photo shoot. :)
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Next Generation of Dawg Fans
Ok... one more procrastination :)
Those who aren't here in Australia for me to flaunt my awesome desktop background I thought I would share it with you here. For Christmas my adorable nieces were given their first set of Husky gear and here is the results of their photo shoot. :)
Those who aren't here in Australia for me to flaunt my awesome desktop background I thought I would share it with you here. For Christmas my adorable nieces were given their first set of Husky gear and here is the results of their photo shoot. :)
Back to Reality
This week marks the start of my last session of school - which I find both scary and exciting. The new class of both exchange students and full-timers have started so there are about 90 new people wandering around the school. As a result there have been a flurry of social things to go to, drinks to have, etc. Now this is on top of trying to figure out what class I want to take, finalising the scope for a project I'm working on, and finishing my online course. So this week has been a blur and I think that trend will continue.
I'm back to spending most of my day at school, partly because of school work and the very effective air conditioning the school has. :) But the hope is that once I finalise my schedule and begin to get a resemblance of a routine I can begin to try to find a job... that's the mission critical thing for this session. Luckily the first round of student loan checks have arrived so while I'm still having to work 3-4 nights a week they will help make it so I'm not living completely hand to mouth.
All in all it's been a great start to the year and I'm keeping the fingers crossed that all the hard work will pay off. OK... now I need to stop procastinating on some work, but wanted to at least post a little update.
I'm back to spending most of my day at school, partly because of school work and the very effective air conditioning the school has. :) But the hope is that once I finalise my schedule and begin to get a resemblance of a routine I can begin to try to find a job... that's the mission critical thing for this session. Luckily the first round of student loan checks have arrived so while I'm still having to work 3-4 nights a week they will help make it so I'm not living completely hand to mouth.
All in all it's been a great start to the year and I'm keeping the fingers crossed that all the hard work will pay off. OK... now I need to stop procastinating on some work, but wanted to at least post a little update.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
It's not Christmas without...
So there are some definite things which I consider are necessities to Christmas. I will also note that these are in no particular order... except the fact that I'm quite hungry right now which may have an influence.... ;)
#1 My Mom's Cinnamon Bread
Now, those who have had this bread will know why this is a necessity. While it may seem like just bread, but once toasted and liberal amounts of butter are applied the cinnamon and sugar sections take on this amazing gooey consistency. Our family has made an art of eating this bread so that you can most effectively savor this effect. You first eat the top crust as this is the most crunch (and also has a tendency to break on when taken out of the toaster). Once the crust is finished, you eat your way around the edge of the bread, pulling it away from the inner circle and swirl. The swirl is left for last as this is where all the goodness lies, and if eaten first there is a tendency to not see a point in the rest of the bread. :)
All in all, it's amazing and I never feel like it is Christmas or the holiday season without it.
#2 COOKIES!!
Every family has their standard cookies. Us McClelland's don't discriminate and while we have our standards, are known to also branch out. This year we experimented with a new recipe for sugar cookies which used lemon rind and introduced a new spin on a classic. I was able to spend a day with Kirsten baking cookies at her parents house, and then decorating the cookies. I must admit that these cookies were probably some of my best frosting art I've ever created. Kirste - the bar has been set for next year.
#3 Family and Friends
This is an obvious, especially given I live literally on the other side of the world. I hadn't seen my family and friends for at least a year and most more than that. Let alone the fact that I hadn't been in Seattle for a year and a half... So I was so happy to be able to spend some quality time with all my friends and family. For those who I wasn't able to catch up with - there is always next year.
#1 My Mom's Cinnamon Bread
Now, those who have had this bread will know why this is a necessity. While it may seem like just bread, but once toasted and liberal amounts of butter are applied the cinnamon and sugar sections take on this amazing gooey consistency. Our family has made an art of eating this bread so that you can most effectively savor this effect. You first eat the top crust as this is the most crunch (and also has a tendency to break on when taken out of the toaster). Once the crust is finished, you eat your way around the edge of the bread, pulling it away from the inner circle and swirl. The swirl is left for last as this is where all the goodness lies, and if eaten first there is a tendency to not see a point in the rest of the bread. :)
All in all, it's amazing and I never feel like it is Christmas or the holiday season without it.
#2 COOKIES!!
Every family has their standard cookies. Us McClelland's don't discriminate and while we have our standards, are known to also branch out. This year we experimented with a new recipe for sugar cookies which used lemon rind and introduced a new spin on a classic. I was able to spend a day with Kirsten baking cookies at her parents house, and then decorating the cookies. I must admit that these cookies were probably some of my best frosting art I've ever created. Kirste - the bar has been set for next year.
#3 Family and Friends
This is an obvious, especially given I live literally on the other side of the world. I hadn't seen my family and friends for at least a year and most more than that. Let alone the fact that I hadn't been in Seattle for a year and a half... So I was so happy to be able to spend some quality time with all my friends and family. For those who I wasn't able to catch up with - there is always next year.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
An Amazing New Years Eve and Day!!
In past new year's celebrations there is usually a feeling of anticlimax and disappointment at the end of the night. Which probably has to do with the major hangover I typically have too. But this year I can truly say it was an amazing new year's even and day. My night started with a BBQ with some friends and the drinking began at around 3 PM. Later we were going to the Botanical gardens to watch the fireworks. We managed to get there for the preview which was at 9 and were able to find a group of people to sit with and enjoy the view.
The area we were in was directly facing the Opera House and the bridge so it was an amazing place to be. Here is a picture so you have an idea of our view.
The midnight fireworks were amazing, and while I tried to take some video they are in 20 second bits and don't have the music... so I found a YouTube version for those who'd like to see it. The fantastic part was not only did they have fireworks going from the bridge and barges in , the harbor, but they were also going off of the buildings dowtown. All in all, it was an amazing show.
Links to the show:
Part 1: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=v7UbL4nfeJE&feature=related
Part 2: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=WLfv2aqigz0&feature=channel
To top off a great night, we actually managed to get a cab within 5 minutes so didn't have to fight with all the other people to get home - which would have completely ruined the night. Those of you who have fought for cabs in Sydney know what I mean... it sucks.
The next morning I was up at 8 and headed to a beach for a nice relaxing day of sun worshiping. :) My Irish friends met up with me later and we made a day of it - with probably 5 hours at the beach I'm surprised I didn't turn into a lobster, but managed to get a bit of tan and only burn a couple spots on my back where I obviously couldn't reach w/ the sunscreen.
When we'd had enough of the beach we went to the local pub for a drink before showering up for a nice Italian dinner.
All in all it was fantastic. Good friends, good show, and good times all around.
The area we were in was directly facing the Opera House and the bridge so it was an amazing place to be. Here is a picture so you have an idea of our view.
The midnight fireworks were amazing, and while I tried to take some video they are in 20 second bits and don't have the music... so I found a YouTube version for those who'd like to see it. The fantastic part was not only did they have fireworks going from the bridge and barges in , the harbor, but they were also going off of the buildings dowtown. All in all, it was an amazing show.
Links to the show:
Part 1: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=v7UbL4nfeJE&feature=related
Part 2: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=WLfv2aqigz0&feature=channel
To top off a great night, we actually managed to get a cab within 5 minutes so didn't have to fight with all the other people to get home - which would have completely ruined the night. Those of you who have fought for cabs in Sydney know what I mean... it sucks.
The next morning I was up at 8 and headed to a beach for a nice relaxing day of sun worshiping. :) My Irish friends met up with me later and we made a day of it - with probably 5 hours at the beach I'm surprised I didn't turn into a lobster, but managed to get a bit of tan and only burn a couple spots on my back where I obviously couldn't reach w/ the sunscreen.
When we'd had enough of the beach we went to the local pub for a drink before showering up for a nice Italian dinner.
All in all it was fantastic. Good friends, good show, and good times all around.
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