Went to Walters Art Museum today. It’s in a nice neighborhood (south of Penn Station) which felt very safe mid-morning on a Sunday. Their collection was kind of eclectic. Not a traditional art museum (with lots of impressionist and modern paintings) but mostly sculpture and weird ancient artifacts and a nice exhibit of local artist Herman Maril, which I liked. My favorite was “Languid Cat.”
1. Going to the grocery store on a Sunday night. It’s always very busy and there’s not much fresh produce left.
2. Eating at restaurants on Friday or Saturday nights. Also very busy and usually the service and food aren’t as good. Tuesday nights are the best!
3. Seeing 80% of drivers talking on their cell phone (no headsets or bluetooth earpieces) while they drive. ARGH! I especially notice it when I’m walking and I try to be extra cautious crossing the street because I know they are distracted and sometimes don’t see me.
4. Two year contracts on cell phone plans. I’d rather pay a few hundred dollars extra for a phone up front and not feel stuck with any carrier. I hate being at a point at 1.5 years and wanting to switch but being unable to. Often, the batteries on cell phones don’t last two years (especially if you drop, abuse them like I do).
5. Driving to/from BWI during rush hour. I’d rather take an early morning flight or late night flight to avoid driving through downtown Baltimore around 9-10 am.
6. Ink jet printers. I hate how the ink costs more than the printer. But, alas, I like to print in color–especially cards and photos, so I can’t complain. Just gotta find a place that will fill ink cartridges instead of buying new ones every time.
7. The parking lot at the Trader Joe’s in Towson. There’s a secret entrance and it’s not obvious how to get there. The store is also hidden. You can’t actually find it unless you are a local or something. Hmpf!
8. Baltimore city income tax. What’s up with that?! I guess I shouldn’t complain because sales tax is only 6% here and they don’t tax groceries (like they do in Chicago).
9. Off! bug repellent. Why does it have to be so sticky? I put it on after I take a shower in the evenings–clean and dry–so I won’t get bit to death by mosquitoes, but then I feel dirty again cuz the stuff is so greasy (but effective)!
10. Ikea’s locations. I was thinking about this the other day. Ikea stores are always in the middle of nowhere. That way, we have to drive several hours to get there and we will be less inclined to take anything back because it’s super-inconvenient to make any returns. That’s my theory.
I bought some frozen cod at Trader Joe’s over a week ago. My goal was to learn to cook fish when I moved to Maryland (where seafood is more abundant than in Chicago). However, I’m pretty sure TJ’s frozen cod hails not from the East Coast but from Alaska or somewhere. Nonetheless, I’m trying to expand my culinary repertoire. After defrosting the cod and searching all over the internet for ways to cook cod that didn’t involve using my oven (since it was 88 degrees outside today). The only recipes I could find were those that involved deep frying. I thought maybe I could make a nice pan-seared cod or stir-fried cod. But no recipes were available on allrecipes.com. I remembered I had a box of pancake mix that I used to make pancakes for my bro. (I love to use up ingredients that I already have. It makes me feel productive.) So I googled “bisquick” “fried cod” and came up with dozens of “beer battered cod” recipes. I finally gave in and followed the advice of this blogger. Instead of Smithwick’s, which they didn’t sell at the Hopkins Deli liquor store, I bought Dogfish Head Aprihop.
The fried cod turned out really great. I added too much cayenne pepper and didn’t have any paprika. But the texture was amazing. Super crispy on the outside, soft and flaky inside. I don’t own a deep fryer (for good reason–I would be 200 pounds by now) but I have a high quality, heavy duty 2 quart saucepan and decided to cut my cod up into small 2 inch strips (as suggested in the recipe). Frying took about 30 minutes total (3-5 minutes per round) because my little pot could only fit 1-2 pieces of fish. Here are some photos depicting my endeavors.
I want to make bacon fried rice for dinner. My brother brought my old rice cooker. I made basmati rice this morning. I have leftover bacon and some frozen peas and lots of eggs. I hope it will make a nice dinner. It’s quite hot in Baltimore today. I have finally learned to do double integration using Win EPR of my EPR spectra of heme oxygenase and quantify its concentration using a calibration curve of the stabile nitroxyl radical, TEMPOL. Lots more to learn this week. I want to do some stop-flow experiments using the “teaching lab” apparatus (which is not inside a glove box). Also, I think studies of Mn(III) coordinated to some organic (phosphate) ligands may be in the works…
Update (7/15/09): here are photos from last night’s dinner. Caesar salad was yummy and fried rice made nice leftovers for lunch today. Also, I have plans to do more EPR on July 28 and 29th. Until then, I am going to consider studying lignin peroxidase (which converts Mn(II) to Mn(III). The rate and conversion efficiency of Mn(III) production can be measured using various oxalate, malonate and pyrophosphate ligands to stabilze the Mn(III) generated.
My brother brought my volvo to Baltimore so I can have a car. He’s moving to California to finish his last two years of law school as a transfer at UCLA. We had a nice day. We went running (he ran, I walked) through the woods near my apartment this morning. Then, I made pancakes and bacon for breakfast. He went to school with me at Johns Hopkins and did work in my office while I did lab work. We had lunch at Niwana, a Korean restaurant across from my school. I had a dolsot bibimbap (in a stone bowl) which was very tasty. However, the service sucked. They even charged us for the wrong table. Inexperienced waiter.
When we got home from work, we found the street behind my house (where the volvo was parked) flooded with about 6 inches of water. A water main had broken (due to construction further down the street, perhaps?) and they turned off the water in my apartment building until at least 11 pm tonight. Since we couldn’t use the restrooms or even wash our hands, I suggested we go out for dinner. I wanted to show my brother downtown Baltimore.
We drove to the Inner Harbor and ate at McCormick and Schmick’s. I had been to this restaurant in Boston. I didn’t expect anything special because it was in a touristy part of the city, but I liked the location (right on the water) and the fact that the area was safe. We found some street parking ($1/hour instead of $5/hour in the lots) and enjoyed a nice meal (nice service and good ambience). I had blackened catfish (from North Carolina?) with a cajun sauce underneath. The sauce was good, but the catfish too salty. My bro had a top sirloin steak. He enjoyed some nice food after eating fast food during last school last year. We shared a crab cake, which came with some creamy cole slaw. I liked the cole slaw more than the crab cake. It couldn’t compare with the awesome Faidley’s crab cake (at Lexington Market) but the crab was high quality–it just wasn’t fried enough for me.
After dinner, we walked back to the car and then we were going to get gelato. I wanted to stop at a cute shop along the street. When I went to pay for an item, I realized I had left my credit card at McCormick and Schmick’s (typical me). I suspect that the waitress forgot to return my credit card. Otherwise, I was just stupid and left it on the table. Either way, I got it back and then my bro and I walked 1/2 mile to Fells Point for Gelato at Pitango. It was well worth the walk. I had pistachio gelato–which I had been craving! The walk back from Fells Point along the river was nice and scenic. Makes me want to live near the harbor during my 2nd year of postdoc–especially when Ben moves out here. It will be nice to wake up and see the water/boats out the window.
Yesterday, I went to open the restroom door (I leave it closed sometimes because the toilet makes a lot of noise after flushing) and found that when I turned the knob, it just kept turning and turning. I couldn’t get it to catch in order to release the piece that sticks inside the door frame. I was really frustrated and really really had to use the restroom. As I continued to turn the knob, I found that I could actually just unscrew it by turning. The knob came off, but the door was still shut. I used a screw driver to try to wedge the door open. I banged on the door. I even considered crawling through the bathroom window (I live on the 4th floor) from outside by jumping between my balcony and the bathroom. Finally, I gave up and knocked on my neighbors’ door for help. The neighbors next door weren’t home. An elderly couple live across the hall and down a few doors. The wife answered and I told her my situation. I was panicking and very upset. She said her husband had just jumped in the shower but she would send him over when he got out. After 10 minutes while I continued to pound on the bathroom door and contemplated breaking it down by brute force, the neighbor (Tom) came over and looked at my bathroom door. He put a flat headed screw driver inside and turned it such that the wide flat part pushed against the square hole inside the door knob hole. Voila. The door opened. OH MY GOD! I felt so relieved. Tom asked if I wanted to close the door and try it again. I said. No way, I’m leaving the door open from now on. AUGHH!!!! He left and I finally got to use my restroom.
If you are interested, this is what I do on a lazy Sunday. Sometimes I go to work, but today, I am staying home. For breakfast, I ate some Cuban Black Beans from Trader Joe’s. I also drank some gunpowder green tea. I didn’t eat on the balcony. I ate at the dining table and looked out the window. I also took my vitamins. I admit that I don’t take my vitamins every day, but I am trying to be more consistent. It’s good for me.
I enjoy going to church on Sundays but today, I am not feeling well so I will stay home. My brother may come this afternoon (to bring me the volvo and some of his other stuff–like a printer) as he moves to Los Angeles for law school. I haven’t heard any news from him so either he hasn’t left yet or he’ll call when he gets closer. I decided to wash my pillow cases in preparation for his visit. I tossed into the laundry my flat sheet also because 2 pillow cases doesn’t constitute a good laundry load. I am a little worried about drying these items. I’d like to use the dryers downstairs but they cost $1.75 per load and I don’t think I have enough quarters. If necessary, I may go to the store to get quarters or else dry flat sheet and pillow case in my lint-emitting unvented dryer for a short amount of time. I guess I could hang the flat sheet in my bathroom and then the pillowcases shouldn’t take long to dry in the dryer. My food plans for today: if my bro comes, I want to make buffalo burgers. I have frozen patties (from Trader Joe’s ) and frozen buns (I bought a bag a few weeks ago and didn’t eat them all). I also have ketchup. But I am thinking of going to Giant to pick up chips or potato salad as accompaniments. Well, potato salad at Giant might be scary–their deli doesn’t look so good. Maybe I’ll find something canned or frozen to serve with the burgers. It’s possible my bro may not even make it here for dinner so no pressure. I just enjoy thinking and planning my upcoming meals and cooking.
Sometimes I feel really stupid. I wrote the wrong date for the travel itinerary requested for the Gordon Research Conference so the travel agent booked the ticket for the date I wrote. I was looking at July calendar instead of August. I didn’t catch it until this morning. I called Southwest and they let me change the ticket to the correct date with no penalty and no hassle. YAY!
On a brighter note, I purchased a plane ticket to go back to Chicago for our 3rd wedding anniversary on September 3, 2009. It falls on the Thursday before Labor Day weekend. Airfare was a little steeper than usual but since I purchased the tickets almost 2 months in advance, I don’t feel bad about the price. We have a nice bottle of Oregon wine from the Albrechtsons that they gave us at our wedding. I will try to make more frequent short trips to Chicago. It will make my missing Ben a little more bearable. The plane ride is short and BWI is a small airport only 20 minutes away by car. Once my bro brings the volvo, getting to/from the airport won’t be as big of an ordeal as it was in June (when I took a bus to the light rail in the pouring rain and it took over 1.5 hours) or on the way back, when I paid over $50 for a taxi cab ride.
My brother called. He is near Wheeling, West Virginia. That means he is only ~5 hours away! Hopefully the weather will cool down before he arrives. Temperatures are in the mid-80s today. About 50% humidity, which is a nice day but not if you’re moving stuff/carrying boxes. I found a private parking lot near BWI that charges $6.40 per day (plus tax). The other option is the normal BWI parking lot run by the airport that charges $8.00 per day. I also found some airport shuttles that charge $23 to $36 each way. So if I am parking more than 10 days, maybe the shuttle is better but any less, and I will probably drive. The other option is taking the light rail ($3.50 total, including bus to light rail station) one way and the shuttle on the way back. Or find free parking near the light rail. But I don’t want my car to get broken into while I’m out of town, which could also happen if it’s parked in front of my apartment. Hm…
I vacuumed my floors this morning. And cleaned the dust off my grate/vent in the kitchen. I feel like I clean several times a week but my hair is still everywhere and dust builds up quickly here. I wonder how air quality compares to Chicago. I always felt kind of grimy when I lived in the city near busy streets and highways. The sky seems less smoggy here but there seems to always be a layer of black soot-like dust on my window sills after a week of accumulation. I didn’t have quite as much dust in Evanston. I wonder if warmer weather causes more dust buildup?
Living apart from my husband sucks. I realize how important he is to me. Who’s going to tell me that everything’s going to be ok when I make stupid mistakes and do dumb things each day? I miss Ben and count the days until we can be together again. I need someone to point out the fun details of life and provide a different view of the world–or else I’ll go crazy.
Ben and I went to the Washington Nationals baseball game yesterday at 1 pm in National Park (about 1 hour away from Baltimore). We sat in Section 209 and ate Five Guys burgers, chili cheese fries, gelato, drank Dogfish Head beer (I had woodchuck apple cider :). Ben made an extensive list of food choices at the ballpark, which I think is useful for future visits and others who attend baseball games at this relatively new (1 year old) park. We parked for free at RFK stadium (where the Washington Redskins play) and took the free shuttlebus (10 min ride) to the ballpark near Navy Yard metro station. The game was very exciting. The nationals were down 0-3 against the Braves. Then Adam Dunn hit his 300th home run and the Nats scored 4 more points during a rally in the 8th inning. They won and people went home happy :)
Section: food stand (what’s good there)
106: Base Line Brews (Yuengling Lager cans, consider Wild Goose)
110: Base Line Brews (Starr Hill Jomo, Old Dominion?, avoid Drop Top or Fordham)
218: Anacostia Station (Crab sandwich)
217: Ben’s Chili Nacho Bar
211: South Capitol Grill (burgers and fries–where we go the chili cheese fries)
214: Pat’s pizza (non-Papa John’s pizza, including chicken Caesar pizzas)
210: Triple Play Grill (encased meats)
209: Nats Bar (closest full-service bar)
244: Red Loft Bar (Dogfish Head in lower level bar (on tap), open to everyone, indoor views)
111: Mayorga Coffee
112: La Piccola Gelateria (long line, we got chocolate and mint chip–great on a hot day!)
238: Gray’s Grill (all-beef hot dogs, grilled chicken sandwich, crab cakes)
240: Five Guys (serves full size burgers, no junior size, only large fries, which we didn’t get)
108: Gifford’s Ice Cream (shakes, bars, helmet sundaes, other ice cream treats)
204: Nats Dogs (hotdog, chips, and soda for $7)
117: Taste the Majors (Cuban sandwich, Philly cheesesteak)
111: Nutty Bavarian (nuts)
106: Noah’s Pretzels (Pretzels, slushies, pretzel dogs)
143: Kosher Grill (Kosher dogs, knishes, falafel and schwarma)
106: Hard Times Cafe (local fave with wings, chili creations like frito macs)
130: Georgetown Grill (fish and chips, crab cakes)
143: Funnel Cake Stand
135: Frozen Rope (jumbo homemade cookies and ice cream in a cone)
109: Ben’s Chili Bowl (local fave with Ben’s original half smoke “all the way” chili dog)
Powered by WordPress
