Merry Christmas

I am on a blissful four week break from school, and the only tedious chore in front of me is studying for the GRE which I take January 9th.

I'm looking forward to visiting my sister-in-law in Grand Rapids for Christmas, where it is almost wholly her problem to worry about feeding people and having a clean house. All I have to do is make the homemade cranberry sauce and the dessert.

Here's some holiday funny - it's the classic Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer special meets some Stanley Kubrick style direction (WARNING: this clip features some pretty fluent and creative use of swear words, so if you offend easily this is probably not for you).

Vote

Hands down, this is the best political ad I've ever seen. It's a parody of the 2000 Anheuser-Busch "Wassup" commercial. My favorite part is where they incorporate the Hurricane Katrina guy.

GO, OBAMA, GO!

Checkmate

I'm not 100% intellectual. I find chess horribly boring (we're a Scrabble family, thank you very much). But I think I could get into it if it were more like this....

Sick and Tired

I haven't posted in awhile. I've been very sick for about 3 months now. After a couple of doctors and numerous appointments I now know I have a really bad stomach infection. I'm finally getting the medicines I need and I'm on my way to a full and complete recovery.

However, this whole experience has taught me quite a bit about the American health care experience. Three months ago I would not have believed that an insured somebody in America could walk around for months undiagnosed and untreated. I thought that happened in Africa. But when it takes 3 weeks for the specialist to fit you in, and 4 weeks for the anesthesiologist to fit you in, well you can just savor your chronic nausea and gripping abdominal cramps for a while.

Some other observations:

• Each doctor spent an average of 3 minutes talking to/interrupting me.
• Over the course of figuring out what I really had, I was told I might have three other diseases. Theses other diseases were told to me in purely clinical terms, so that I could go home and look them up on WebMD/Wikipedia for myself. I was never told why I might have gotten these diseases, how I might gain some temporary relief from symptoms, or what a lifetime of having "X" disease was going to entail. Instead, around the 2:45 minute mark, each doctor would announce "It sounds like you have "X" disease", write out a prescription, and then promptly scurry out of the room.
• Each visit charged insurance about $200.
• When you are sick, your insurance provider will become worse than any bill collector/stalker ex-girlfriend you have ever had. Our insurance provider started a massive phone and mail campaign to me and my husband, demanding to know why this full time college student didn't have any other insurance provider to bill. At one point, they denied all the charges for one of my appointments. When my husband called to question this, our insurance provider told him that I "had called and cancelled my coverage." I am not making this up. They resorted to outright lying to try to avoid paying benefits.

What kills me is that my husband works for the largest hospital in our city. We are not uninsured. We pay for the best health insurance package his employer offers. And what does the best get you: indifferent, cold doctors / harassing, parasitic insurance companies. And for all this, I still can't imagine the horror of going through something like this with NO INSURANCE. We would be bankrupt by now.

I'm no Michael Moore lover, and I don't think he knows what's best for this country. But he does have a point: health care is a joke in this country. And the last laugh is, as usual, on you the consumer.

I know what single issue I'm voting on in two weeks.

Life List Item #118 Completed: Give Up Television And The Internet For One Week

This is the first non consensual life list item I've completed.

So, did you know Louisville, Kentucky gets hurricanes? I sure didn't, that is until last Sunday when the remnants of Hurricane Ike pounded our city with reported 75 mph winds. The four hour storm caused plenty of damage and knocked out power to over half the cities' residents.

We were in the half with no power, and remained so, until late last night. So if you're counting with me, that's six full days without power (I was sleeping when the power came back on, so it's only been within the last few hours I've had the chance to start greedily sucking up my share of energy).

Here's a synopsis of my media free week:
Day 1: The storm rages, and power is knocked out early in the day. I'm not too worried, since any time the power has gone out before, it's always been fixed within 12 hours.
Day 2: College classes are cancelled, so I'm off. And lucky so, since I'm now getting a better picture of how long this outage is going to last. Me and Rory wait in a line to buy gas, wait in a line to buy ice, wait in a line to buy a cooler, wait in a line to use an ATM, and wait in a line to get fast food. The people in the fast food line are the angriest. Later that night, I get to study organic chemistry by candlelight (not recommended).
Day 3: I think this was the first day I missed television. Rory was still pretty engrossed by the idea of grilling all of our soon to perish freezer stock, so I don't think he missed it yet.
Day 4: OK, getting a little frustrated here. At this point, I could care less about the internet or television; all I want more than anything in the world is an endless supply of ice cold drinks.
Day 5: I'm vaguely aware that our country is in the throes of yet another economic crisis, because I hear the NPR announcer wailing about it when I run out to charge my cell phone on the car charger. Rory is tired of eating grilled meat.
Day 6: I'm getting angry, and my clothes smell bad.
Day 7: Hallelujah! Like Santa Claus, the shadowy LG&E repairmen have appeared in the night and bestowed warmth and good cheer to our entire street!

And now hours later, sitting in my air conditioned cocoon, reading tabloid trash online, getting ready to dive into a week's worth of unwatched Netflix.... I'm almost ready to start taking it for granted all over again.

Life List Item #77 Completed: Keep Regular Medical Appointments

I'll admit it. I don't like going to the doctor or the dentist. I'd rather have symptoms drag out for a month, if it means putting off understanding the terms of my health insurance coverage and then completing the daunting task of actually finding a decent in-plan doctor or dentist.

It's not that I'm lazy per se, just that I've never seen the payoff as all that great. Think about it, you go through the tedium of finding someone to treat you, and the reward is to have them poke, prod, and drill you, potentially while you're not wearing half your clothes and answering a series of embarrassing questions.

Well no more. This past year I've kept every check up.

I think what's turned it around for me is the dentist we go to here in Louisville. When I was a teenager, my Mom started dragging us to this horrid family dentist. My beef with this guy is that he would start by wedging about half of his dental instruments into your gaping maw, and THEN proceed to ask roughly 2 billion open-ended questions about school, sports, the weather, current events, the origins of the universe, the duality of man, the existence of Sasquatch, etc., etc., etc.! It was ridiculous, and a total power play by this sadistic dentist. "So, could you tell me in 800 words or more, what your position on abortion is?" "Gnf thuk mool phoo..."

I love my new dentist. I honestly think he doesn't even know my name. He comes in with a perfunctory "How are you doing today?", waits for my perfunctory "Fine.", then sits down and (SILENTLY) gets to business. Just the way I like it.

Things To Do Around Louisville Before You Die

This past week, I had an entire week off between a very trying summer semester and jumping into a just as daunting fall semester. Needless to say, on my break I wanted to do something purely entertaining and thoroughly mindless. Luckily, Kentucky had the perfect destination to soothe my battered brain: Cave City.

Cave City is about an hour south of Louisville, and is notable for having the most extensive cave system on earth (aptly named Mammoth Cave). However, I would argue it should be more notable for having the world's most extensive system of tourist traps. The shear number and variety of roadside attractions is gape-inducing. The first cluster of attractions were so coated in fiberglass wonder; my steely reserve instantly melted into a slack-jawed stupor.

Yes, we went in the cave. No, I didn't care for the cave. All I could think about was being unceremoniously crushed by tons of limestone. And the fact that the cave is not installed with indoor plumbing. Something tells me the National Parks Service frowns mightily on the prospect of visitors crapping in their majestic cave. As I've said before, Rory's the nature lover in this duo; give me mystery spots, mini-golfs, giant fiberglass dinosaurs, and gleaming public bathrooms as far as the eye can see. And in that respect Cave City did not disappoint.

Cave City is also home to one of the last surviving "Wigwam Motels" in this nation (each "room" being a fully furnished tepee). We totally would have stayed here the night, if we hadn't had to get home to the terriers. None the less Rory drove by it so I could happily gawk.

Next stop was Big Mike's Mystery Spot (which of course featured the requisite large fiberglass dinosaur). When we went in to tour the mystery spot, we were politely informed that the spot was "closed for repairs". I guess the water-runs-uphill room was broken or something. Still, Big Mike had a big gift shop, practically brimming over with geodes and cheap novelties, so all was not lost.

My favorite attraction was hands down Dinosaur World. Dinosaur World was actually kind of heavy on the educational materials, unlike the now defunct Dinosaur Park back in Irish Hills, Michigan (I still remember it as having simian-looking cavemen gleefully roaming alongside dinosaurs - so much for historical accuracy). But it was also heavy on big freakin' statues. Perfect!

And this was only the tip of the iceberg as far as what this town had to offer. Numerous mini-golfs, a frontier town, a couple go-kart tracks, an Australia-themed petting zoo, water slides, bumper boats, tons of kitschy museums, and an alpine slide make Cave City well worth the drive.

Sunny Days...

I am studying for finals this week, and don't have a lot of time to post. However, for whatever reason lately I have accumulated several "Sesame Street" themed funny videos in my inbox. I'll post them now for your amusement, instead of studying.

Incidentally, Oscar the Grouch was always my favorite character. Oscar always played it straight, whether it was telling you he hated your new haircut, or just to let you know that he loved trash. You'd never get that kind of honesty out of Big Bird.

Bert and Ernie, Detroit-style...



An orange sings from "Carmen", classic stop-motion animation from Sesame Street that I remember finding riveting as a six year old (God bless, Jim Henson)



And to round it out here's a version of Sesame Street from my generation's Richard Pryor, the one and only Dave Chappelle...

Breaking Nutrition News

When I'm too busy with classes (as I am now, I DREAM about advanced chemistry), it's a lot easier for me to just slap a funny video up here.

This video gets bonus points because Yum! Brand is a local, Louisville based company. My favorite line from this is "Sometimes I just don't feel like moving my arms."


New Wearable Feedbags Let Americans Eat More, Move Less

Punk'd - Ashton Kutcher + Babies = Darn Funny

Life List Item #103 Completed: Know How To Make (At Least) A Three-Tiered Wedding Cake

Our old Michigan friend Eric got married to our new Michigan friend Meghan over Memorial Day weekend. I got to make their cake.


I had made a little two-tiered cake while at Sullivan, but this is now the biggest and the baddest of the cakes I have made. The structural support is pretty intuitive, and basically if you can do two-tiers, I think you can figure out how to do as many more as you want after that.


Eric and Meghan's cake consisted of two raspberry filled chocolate layers, and a pastry cream filled white cake layer. All of it got coated in white butter cream (because fondant tastes gross! You heard it here first - only Europeans like eating fondant covered cakes).


The finishing touches were some little sugar paste lily bud sprays, wrapped in ribbon.


Without further ado...

Everybody said it tasted good, which is the most important thing, because if it doesn't that's all anybody remembers.

Besides the cake, it was a beautiful ceremony with perfect weather, and a jumpin' reception.

While in Michigan for the wedding, Rory and I took advantage of proximity to visit his sister, brother-in-law, and parents in Grand Rapids. We had an awesome weekend. The highlight for me was when we got to go shopping at my hands-down, all time favorite grocery store, Horrock's.

Horrock's is a chain of grocery stores in Michigan who specialize in really amazing, fresh, cheap produce, really good cheese, and even better wine. If it weren't for the pellagra, I think I could live on just those 3 food groups. Seriously, if you live in Michigan and you've never been to Horrock's, you're missing out on a real face-stuffing gem.

What Teachers Make

Something my Mom sent me awhile ago, but I like it and you should like it too (diatribe by teacher Taylor Mali)!

Life List Item #101 Completed: Do Something With My Hair

I've had some crappy luck this week. In the grand scheme of Myanmar, China earthquakes, and people that are choosing between a gallon of gas or a gallon of milk, my problems are all pretty small time, just frustrating.

It started with a minor car accident last week (which was my fault, although I was not ticketed), followed by a flat-busted television set (totally unwatchable, and unlike most Americans it is the only set we own), culminating in a violent allergic reaction to some type of satanic Kentucky plant that left one of my eyes swollen shut and hives up my face and neck. I was just going for a hike!!

The day I had the car accident, I was actually on my way to get my haircut at a nice salon, something I haven't done in probably 5 years. The accident turned this competent, confident, go-getter into a wailing, helpless mess. The other car was barely dented, while my front end was crushed in and vomiting radiator fluid all over the street. Rory was the only person I called, and within minutes he had handled the insurance issues, got a tow truck, called the collision place, and arrived on the scene to pick me up. Once the car had been towed, he turned to me, and in his best soothing nurse's voice said "I know you're pretty upset right now. But why don't we go and get you that haircut anyways? I bet it'll make you feel a lot better."

And you know what? It did. I guess the moral of this story is a great haircut and a great husband can improve any situation. This morning I got up to see the aftermath of my reaction to the wilds of Kentucky. My face looks like I've been in a bar brawl, with a bruised eye and scratches on my face and neck. But damn, if my hair didn't look perfect - and that was after crawling out of bed! Life is good.

Happy Memorial Day

Star Spangled Banner | Funny Jokes at JibJab

Life List Item #109 Completed: Go To A Drive-In

I LOVE roadside attractions. I will make Rory drive 20 miles out of our way if it means we might get to see a good mystery spot or play 18 holes of Biblical mini-golf. If I have my choice of two routes, I'll take the longer of the two if it passes a large fiberglass eyesore of any type (the route I currently take to school takes me right by these two eyesores, "the world's largest bats", TWICE... on the way there and back).

But despite this love affair with kitschy Americana, I've never been to a drive-in. That all changed last night, when Rory and I crossed the river to go to the drive-in theater in Georgetown, Indiana.

We saw "Ironman" which was OK, but the movie could not compete with the festive atmosphere. We had an absolute blast. I enjoyed being able to mock the movie out loud in the privacy of the Jeep, and I liked that I got to bring my own blanket. I'm always cold, so any activity that encourages you to bring your own blanket is alright with me.

We got there early, and there was definitely a fun, family picnic-type vibe. Getting there early also gave us an opportunity to peruse the snack bar at length, and this topic nearly deserves a separate posting of it's own. Rory and I normally eat really healthy (hello, grad-school degree in Nutrition), but sometimes you just see something in your travels that at least in the name of science demands to be tried. So here are our picks of the exceptional: the chili dog, the deep-fried Twinkie, and the deep-fried Snickers bar.

The chili dog in and of itself was not exceptional, until I noticed that you applied the chili yourself out of this big pump that probably hasn't been cleaned in the last ten years. I myself didn't eat this item, so you'll have to email Rory for a final verdict.

Next up, deep-fried Twinkie vs. deep-fried Snickers bar. Both items were coated in a batter and served up on a stick a la fair food, but the Twinkie was the definitive winner in this culinary smack down. The cakelike texture of the Twinkie allowed it to absorb far more delicious trans fats than the weak Snickers bars, which just got all melty and nasty looking. Rory also gave props to the Twinkies "toasted marshmallow kind of flavor", but to me it tasted like a really greasy donut. At any rate, I'm not the sweets eater in this marriage, so I did the curiosity bites and Rory dispatched with the rest.

All in all, it was a great time and we will probably go again. A really good value too at $8 per person for a double feature.

And while I'm on my Americana theme, I'll recommend one of my favorite websites: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/ . Even if shoe trees, giant messiahs, and funny water towers don't blow your skirt up, this is a highly entertaining and well documented site.

And while I was uploading my drive-in pics, I found these old, but funny Homer pictures. He's a good little dog, but also a weird little dog as one of his favorite things is to be held like a baby...

Another Semester Ends... :)

Which means I am on vacation, sort of, until June 11 when summer classes start (then I get to go to chemistry classes for 6 hours a day, 4 days a week).

In the meantime, I intend to catch up on my Netflix, catch up on my book list, go to Michigan (briefly, at the end of the month), clean our Boston terrier-infested house, enjoy cooking stuff with my farmer's market finds, scratch off a couple life list items, and go with Rory to Huber's in Indiana to pick long beans and blackberries (our new 4th of July tradition).

And now, since I'm feeling too lazy to write more, I'll just post something I find amusing: "The Shawshank Redemption In Under A Minute":

Shawshank in a Minute | Funny Jokes at JibJab

Be More Empowered

This is a commercial that still airs fairly regularly on PBS (and yes, I enjoy watching PBS, especially the cooking shows - Jacques Pepin is a GOD). The ending still gets me every time...

Graduation Day

This morning was my graduation day from Sullivan University. I graduated summa cum laude, was the recipient of the President's cup (which is this big trophy they hand you on stage for being an uber-nerd with really high grades), and I was the second! person out of about 600 to cross the stage. This was terrifying in that I had no idea what I was supposed to be doing, having not watched anybody else. But it all worked out in the end, and I'm glad I got to go before the whole audience got restless.
Our commencement speaker was John Yarmuth, who is are local congressman. Personally, I found this somewhat funny, since the chancellor of Sullivan was a vocal supporter of his opponent in that last election, but I guess that's what makes you an effective politician. His speech was about good times versus bad times, and focused heavily on current economic news and public sentiment. The theme of his speech was how the personal responsibility and hard work of graduates like us is the key to more "good times" (which I was not really expecting, since our congressman is a Democrat. I really thought he was going to say Barack Obama would forgive all our college loans if we vote for him in the fall). It was a good speech.

So what am I going to do now that I've graduated, you might ask? Good question. In the immediate future, not terribly much, since I'm also still working towards my other degree. But I will share with you some of the things I got out of this experience:

• The opportunity to teach. First and foremost, this was the best thing they did for me (and since it was an invitation to the position, not something I applied for, I owe them that much more). Did you ever walk into your dream home, or meet the person you were destined to marry and have that gut feeling of everything being right in your world? Well, that's me teaching at the college level. That's where I fit, that's what I'm supposed to do. Thanks for the focus and the clarity.
• A ridiculously broad knowledge of food and cooking. Want to know what balsamic vinegar's made out of? How about the difference between Thai and Indian curries? Need to know what temperature to bake that at? I do, and could probably eke out a dissertation if my life depended on it.
• The chance to learn from some great teachers. Some of the notables: Chef Dodd, whom I feared, yet learned the most from. Chef Payne, the one I respected the most. Chef Engle, still my favorite because he was the nicest.

That being said, I don't think I'm going to stop at a Master's in Nutrition. I think I'm getting on the PhD train. This would give me the most leverage in teaching at the college level and all of you would have to call me Doctor Baker (after all, I didn't go to eight years of food/cooking/nutrition school just to have you call me Mrs. Baker. Kind of makes me wish I had married someone with the last name Food, so I could be "Doctor Food".). So with any luck, Sullivan I'll see you again, but from the other side of the classroom.

P.S. Thanks Rory for all your love and support, for coming with me today, and always encouraging me to go for my dreams. I never would have been here without you. You'll always be the best part of the journey and the destination.

One Degree Down, One To Go...

I am all finished with my culinary degree from Sullivan. I graduate Summa Cum Laude on April 12, which also happens to be the same day as Thunder Over Louisville (which I will be attending this year!).
I'll miss going to Sullivan (it's fun), but now that I only have one school to go to I'm hoping to accelerate the Nutrition degree. I have two more semesters really heavy on organic chemistry and biochemistry, and then it's all nutrition.
Someday, I'll actually be finished with school and hopefully be in a good position to teach other aspiring chefs and food lovers. But until then, I'm enjoying the ride.
It would seem like I should be more effusive about the passing of this milestone, but it is 70, sunny, I worked all day, it's me and Rory's date night, and now me and Rory are going to drink some beers and shoot some pool at the sleazy bar near our house (I guess you can always tell when I plan the date).

Life List Item No. 67 Completed: See An Eclipse

You may have heard that there was a lunar eclipse last night, where the earth moved between the sun and the full moon. Around 9 pm yesterday, myself, Rory, and two reluctant Bostons gathered outside on a very chilly night to view nature's spectacle.

My first impression of the event was this: I must watch entirely too much sci-fi and/or campy horror space movies. I say this because I honestly expected the whole eclipse to last about 5 minutes, like it would be this dramatic blotting out of the moon and don't blink lest you miss it. Not so! It's like 3 hours long from start to finish. You can take a bathroom break and not miss anything.

Secondly, the moon further shattered my overblown expectations by not blacking out completely. Instead it turned reddish (I'm sure for some very important scientific reason that I am way to lazy to look up right now).

Finally, the whole event just left me contemplating how amazing it all is really. It's remarkable that humans have the capacity to test, and learn, and theorize, and prove how the world around and beyond them works. That's awesome.

Things I Made At School This Week

I love my baking class on Saturday's. Chef Turner is the best, since she let's me work on the more advanced cakes, for example:

Garde Manger's theme this week was gourmet appetizers, so I got to make (among other things) a sauteed foie gras appetizer. Foie gras is fattened duck liver that is now illegal to serve in Chicago due to the inhumane treatment of the duck (and please don't email me about animal rights because it is delicious!). Mine looked sort of like this, but I made a blueberry sauce to go with mine (and here you see the compromises made by a nutritionist/chef: pair an animal product that is approximately 98% fat with a fruit that is high in antioxidants):I also memorized about 30 different polyatomic ions for Chemistry this week, but I don't have any fun pictures to accompany that (ammonium ions, RULE, YEAH, WOO-HOO!!!).

All in all, I love what I'm learning right now (even the ionic stuff). I know not everybody sees an immediate connection between culinary school and a Master's in Nutrition, but I really think it's the wave of the future as far as this country is going. You have all these aging baby boomers, who are at the age for facing healthy lifestyle issues, but they've also been eating like typical Americans for the last 50 years. I see a huge demand for nutritious food that feels indulgent. You gotta love America, the land of having your cake and eating it too.

And I, ladies and gentleman, am just the chick to decorate that cake!

Weekend Plans

Sadly, I can relate to this video. Getting older sucks.

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/b776c00c54

Life List Item No. 31 Completed: Try Truffles

There's two different kinds of edible truffles; the little candy bon-bon forms, and then there's the stinky mucho expensive fungus from France or Italy. This posting deals with the latter.

One of the fringe benefits of going to culinary school is that I get to knock out most of the eating related life list items about every month or so. In my final quarter at Sullivan, one of my classes is Garde Manger Lab. In this class you learn a lot of the more advanced butchery techniques, classical and banquet preparations, and plate presentation. It's a lot of fun, but also I think it is one of the more challenging labs.

Falling under the category of butchery, this week our classes made pates (in my case, one made out of rabbits). So class, now that we each have a tube of what tastes like meat-flavored butter wrapped in bacon, what do we do next? We garnish it with more expensive food of course! The truffles came in a can (which I guess connoisseurs turn their noses up at). But at $68 for what was about an 8 oz. can, I don't see a lot of fresh truffle in my future. When the can was opened there was a distinctive "earthy" smell, and the truffles themselves resembled lumps of charcoal.

I would describe the taste as a mushroom on steroids. I mean there was definitely that meaty taste that all mushrooms have, but this was much more intensely so. It also tasted a lot more earthy and complex than your average porcini. All in all, a fun item to complete, but at these prices, hardly habit forming.

Happy New Year!

I'll be perfectly honest with you - I'm just not all that excited about nature. I hate canoeing and mosquitoes, I dislike camping and snakes, and to me hiking is just walking with a bunch of trees and bushes in your way. My idea of "roughing it" is using the little bottles of 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner that they give you in the cheaper hotel chains. I think of a "good hike" as walking 10 blocks in Chicago because you don't feel like having weirdos breathe on you in the L. I prefer to get my nature while whizzing by it at 70 mph in my nice, comfy car, or having the wonder and beauty of it explained to me by glossy documentaries narrated by Morgan Freeman (as an aside, I'd also like to state for the record that I HATE the Grand Canyon. "OOOhhhh, look Honey - we just drove 4 hours through the sweltering desert heat with are kids fighting in the backseat to LOOK AT A REALLY BIG HOLE IN THE GROUND FOR 10 WHOLE MINUTES!!!" It would be awesome if somebody bombed this thing, but then it would probably just become a "Grander" Canyon, since it would be just that much bigger of a hole to gawk at).

However, fate would lead me to marry a man raised in the backwoods of Northern Michigan. If you've ever been to Northern Michigan the primary activities available to you are: drinkin' beers underage eh, drinkin' beers of age yah, choppin' wood, riding your 4-wheeler, and lookin' at dah nature. Due to this fact, about every 3 months or so, Rory starts clamoring that it's time for us to "go hiking" (but I'd like to point out that in 4 and 1/2 years of marriage, I've only had to camp once, so ha ha). Well folks, today was that day.

We went to Red River Gorge in Eastern Kentucky, about 2 hours driving from Louisville. This park is famous for it's natural arch formations like the one shown above. We did a little less than a 5 mile hike in 35 degree weather. And now for a visual representation of what each of us brought to "go hiking":

Rory:

• 1 giant back pack
• 1 specially formulated walking stick
• 8 changes of clothes
• 3 days worth of food
• 2 weeks worth of water
• 1 giant thermos of hot coffee (yum!)
• 1 first aid kit
• Matches
• Probably a complete set of Encyclopedia Britannica

Nicki:

• 1 Swiss Army knife
• (Also I had chap stick and hand lotion in my coat pocket, but I won't count this since in the case of an emergency all it would do is soothe and heal our cracked and dry skin)

I did find one thing kind of neat on the hike though. At one part we had to cross over this narrow ridge, and the gorge literally fell away in a sheer drop on either side. This is not a great picture, but it looked like this:

My favorite part of the day was when we came home and ate clam chowder for dinner (MMM.... LOVE CLAM CHOWDER!!!). It was a pretty good hike, and here are some more pictures (for those of you that are into the whole nature thing):

Some creepy caves that probably have Deliverance style hillbillies living in them:

More gorge:

Random Gary shot for no good reason:

The End. Happy 2008!!!