there's nothing like it

yay camp! i miss the internet, i miss my family, i miss my friends, i miss sca events, i miss sleep, and i miss my apartment, but i love it here. i'm online at the bar and grille 18 miles from camp, and the air conditioning is way too cold after a week of 90 degree temps. i want to put up some photos for you, but the wireless is uber slow, so just check flickr every once in a while, and you may see something fun. :) my staff is a lot of fun, for the most part, and things are going really well. and i have an awesome tan. i hope everyone is having a great summer and i can't wait to see you all!

jack's dull

apparently all work and no play really does make jack a dull boy. scientists have figured out that boring jobs turn our minds off.

huh.

truffle bliss

so, as i said earlier, jessica and i stopped at the chubby chipmonk in deadwood. this is a dangerous place. full of delicious chocolate and such. we bought a box of eight different truffles to try. not only were they all delicious, they were beautiful too. they were also almost too big to fit in the little holder thingy in the box. here are the ones we tried, and a bit of a description of the flavor as i remember it:

here we are, enjoying the first of the truffle bliss:


the first was creme brule. i'm not sure how to do the little accent thingy, so just imagine it's there. sweet, delicious, creamy white chocolate center surrounded by tasty white chocolate with little sugar bits on top. i've never had creme brule, but if it tastes like this, i won't turn it down!




2: the blueberry. one of the prettiest in the box! the picture doesn't do it justice. again, a white chocolate center, with blueberry chips on the outside. i'm not really a blueberry fan, but this was still pretty good.



3: and here is the first of the alcohol flavored truffles: amaretto. dark chocolate center, almond bits on the shell, uber tasty!



4: grand marnier (again, with the no french accent thingy). in those russel stoffer boxed chocolates, i've always hated the orange creme filled ones. this truffle, with its dark chocolate center and just a hint of the orange liqueur, this kicked their butt.



5: dark chocolate coconut. sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't, but almond joy and mounds have nothing on this. sooooo gooood!


6: the 'signature dark buttercream' has a hint of golden dust on top, and is just wonderfully simple dark chocolate. yum.



7: baileys. need i say more? dark chocolate center, irish cream. priceless.



8: i know you'd never guess it, but i picked this one. dark chocolate mint. it comes wrapped in its own bit of protective foil, to keep it from influencing the flavor of the other truffles. it worked, and it was unbelievably tasty as well. i may be a bit partial though. :)



it happened to be good friday when we stopped there, so jessica, being the good catholic, couldn't eat between meals, and therefore could not sample the truffles. i had to sacrifice myself, and sample them for her. i even tried the chili one. not terrible, but i don't think i'd get it on a regular basis. we sampled the truffle goodness throughout the next few days, one at a time. such self-restraint! i'm proud of us both.

stay tunned for the rest of the adventure...

as april sneaks up and slaps me in the face...

so, i was going to post my pictures of spring break with jessica here, but first, i must tell you about the dream i had last night. i dreamed that i was about nine months pregnant, about to give birth on a stranger's futon, but don't worry, they had called their midwife. i remember being worried that i hadn't felt the baby move, and then it

started kicking, so i knew it was ok, then it occurred to me that i didn't know who the father was, and i couldn't remember conceiving the kid. then i woke up.

so, either this means that i am knocked up, and will give birth to the second coming of christ or i have babies on the mind. i think the second is much more likely because a) if the first is true, i haven't been visited by any messenger angels, and you'd think God would at least let me know. and i'm probably not the best candidate for that anyway, and b) it seems like every time i talk to one of my friends they tell me that they (or a mutual acquaintance) are pregnant. what is it with everyone getting knocked up? i love babies and all, but holy crap people! all of your kids are going to be so much older than mine by the time i end up having kids, that we won't be able to hang out during play dates. won't anyone wait for me? i feel so left out. :(
just kidding - i can wait. at least long enough to find a man. :)

i found this cartoon here. you should check it out, there are alot of amazing things there to waste you time. :)

anywho, travel with me back in time... about a month ago, jessica came to visit. the following is a photo essay of our adventures.

here we can see jessica pointing to the wine glass that has a college logo on it for, as she said "mack-a-last-er" college. apparently she didn't see the little guy in a kilt. :) it was good times. the wine was the stuff i bought on the wool gathering adventure, and it was great! i think we watched stardust that night, which was also awesome!


one day (possibly the next), we went to the fish hatchery, and saw the saddest trout in the world:


then jessica was the king of the world...


we then went to deadwood, first for a chiropractor appointment, then we came upon the chubby chipmunk. glorious! the tasting of the truffles will be in another post...
we then went up and wandered around mount moriah cemetery. we found tons of interesting gravestones:



well, that covers through good friday, so i'm going to cut it off for now, and fill you in on the rest later...

ps: if you want to see all of the pictures, you can go to my flickr site.

OMG

thanks to my big sister, who just sent me the link to this:

that's right, bacon lollipops. i am speechless.

apparently, the store is new, and they only offer two flavors: maple-bacon and absinthe. yup, absinthe. they sound like an interesting company.

the SD barbie email

this is a forward that's been making the rounds, and it's pretty entertaining, so instead of forwarding this to you people, i thought that i would just post it for all to see. enjoy!

*Sioux Falls Barbie*
This queen Barbie is sold only at Macy's. She comes with an assortment of Chanel Handbags, a Volvo, a French poodle named Charisse, and a Lincoln County McMansion. Plastic surgery available upon request. Hey, she has to look beautiful when she works at KELOland TV. CitiBank Ken sold separately.

* Rapid City Barbie*
This tough little sport comes with optional hiking boots or mountain bike.When she's not selling magnets at Mount Rushmore,
she can be spotted off-roading in her Land Rover or running on the bike path.
Inhaler included to give relief during forest fires.
Buy her while you can because Ken works at Ellsworth and might begetting transferred!

*Spearfish Barbie*
This doll is made of actual tofu. She has long straight brown hair, arch-less feet, hairy armpits, no makeup and Birkenstocks with white socks. She prefers that you call her Ocean . She does not want or need a Ken doll, but if you purchase two Spearfish Barbies and the optional Hybrid Toyota, you get a "Free Tibet" bumper sticker for free.

*Aberdeen Barbie*
This "Frost Queen" comes with an entire winter wardrobe! Her parka is reversible and can be used as an emergency igloo whenever needed. Package includes a shrink for seasonal depression.

*Vermillion Barbie*
This young, hip girl actually comes with her own pepper spray. Her USD sweater is made of real wool and her Cavalier gets great mileage between the Empire Mall and Vermillion. Available keg with purchase of makeup. Ken doll sold separately with broken cell phone... he never seems to calls back.

*Mitchell Barbie*
This brassy, tobacco-chewing gal comes with camouflage overalls, Cabela's Credit Card, and a rifle. She can be found just north of town shooting pheasants and drinking an ice cold 40. Cabela Ken available with purchase of Chevy Silverado.

*Brookings Barbie*
This modern day homemaker Barbie is available with Ford Windstar Minivan or Honda Odyssey Minivan with matching Wal*Mart sweats. She gets lost easily while taking Stacy to her soccer games and has no full-time occupation other than the PTA. Ken doll sold with matching Daktronics company car.

*Sturgis Barbie*
This recently paroled Barbie comes with a 9mm handgun, leather chaps, and a Meth Lab Kit. This model is only available after dark and must be paid for in cash (preferably small, untraceable bills) ...unless you are a cop, then we don't know what you are talking about. Harley sold separately along with deadbeat Ken. Jail uniform available with purchase of Mobile Home.

*Belle Fourche Barbie*
This model comes dressed in her own Wrangler jeans, a NASCAR t-shirt and Care Bears tattoo on her shoulder. She has a six-pack of Bud light and a Johnny Cash CD set. She can spit over 5 feet and kick mullet-haired Ken's butt when she is drunk. Purchase her Mega Ton Dodge Dually pickup truck separately and get a confederate flag bumper sticker absolutely free.

*Deadwood Barbie*
She may be a 75 year-old, Brandy drinking, Virginia Slim smoking cuss, but she has more audacity than Calamity Jane. She just got out from Gambler's Anonymous and needs to get rid of some spare change. Deadwood Barbie can be found at the Monday night "Kevin Costner Fanclub" meeting just down the street from Cadillac Jack's Prime Rib Buffet. Ken comes free, but is usually working two jobs to keep a roof over their head.

*Pierre Barbie*
She comes with scooter and a state employee ID card, bowling ball, pool stick and dart case. Khakis can be rolled into capris. Ken available with purchase of fishing boat.

random thoughts for a random day

+ = a great day!

today was einstein's birthday and pi day.
seems to be a good day to celebrate! (i'm a nerd, i'll admit it).
einstein is one of my favorite people ever. i found a book filled with his letters to and from children. it's awesome. plus it has a picture on the cover of him wearing blue fuzzy slippers. like i said... awesome!

as another showcase for my nerdyness, i would like to inform you that i saw previews for 'john adams,' and the history geek in me is way excited to see it, but i don't get hbo, so i may never got too.

speaking of tv, i have been seeing ads for the new bachelor series, and apparently the guy is english. as i contemplated why they would choose an englishman (there are many reasons both bad and good), he proceeded to say, 'i'm here to steal your women!' now i see. he's shagged and left every woman in england, and is now attempting to take america.

anywho, in different tv news, i have stumbled across a new show called pop fiction. even though i think many celebrities are idiots, i have to give them props for this show. it makes the evil wench in me a little giddy. the only things dumber than celebrities like paris hilton are the paparazzi that follow her around. beautiful!

so, i've been thinking lately, and i have realized that i will be done with school in may. that means, my friends, that i will be able to read books that i don't HAVE to read. :) the only trouble is, i have trouble deciding what i want to read. so, i am asking for your input. i'll be adding a list to the side of my blog, and i will be filling it in with books that you suggest (if i want to read them and/or haven't read them already). feel free to comment on any blog post with a book suggestion. it would be helpful to me.
thanks!