Astranoir

I have now officially moved into my duplex! I’m out of my apartment completely, but am only partially unpacked. I made some unpacking progress today. I also got my new washer and dryer! I installed them myself (with a little help from Kes on the dryer cord shield thing), and they seem to be working properly.

I cooked with quinoa on my own for the first time this evening. I used red quinoa cooked in my rice cooker with 1 part quinoa to 2 parts vegetable broth (not stock). I cooked carrot, garlic, green bell pepper, chicken and broccoli in a skillet until the chicken was fully cooked, and the vegetables were tender. I then added some of the cooked quinoa, and continued cooking everything until it was warm all the way through. Other than the garlic in the skillet, and the vegetable broth, I didn’t add any seasoning. I really enjoyed it. It tasted like a slightly crunchy fried rice. I’m taking my leftovers to work for lunch tomorrow, yum! Kes tried some and liked it as well, even though he thought it looked a little weird.

The main issue I found while cooking this dish in the skillet and serving it is that the quinoa seems to jump everywhere at the slightest provocation. I had to be careful, and stir/serve more slowly than I would with some other type of dish. I ended up meticulously cleaning the kitchen so there was nothing around to tempt the mouse that appears to still be living in my home. The dish was definitely tasty, though!

I went walking in what will be my new neighborhood today.  I was pleased to realize there’s a park just a couple blocks away.  It’s not very big; it has a swing set, some playground equipment with slides, a basketball court, and an area for grilling.  It’s still nice to have a park within easy walking distance.  Interestingly, various groups can “adopt the park,” (which I’m assuming has something to do with cleaning up trash) and one of the adoptive groups for this park is the NWA Filipino American group.  I didn’t know we had one, how cool!

I already knew I’d be less than a mile from a grocery store, but I’ll also be less than a mile away from an optometrist, a dentist, a health clinic, and several banks.  I’m excited to move.

Even though I would have a late start, I’m considering participating in Creativity Boot Camp, with writing being my medium.  If I get up the gumption to join in the fun, I’ll be sure to post my creations here.  Anyone else who’s interested should participate too!  I know a lot of people are using photography as their medium, but as far as I know, anything goes.

Today’s the 25th anniversary of The Goonies! My copy has been missing since I moved to this apartment, so Kes and I picked up another copy from Hastings to watch. I love this movie

Also, Torchwood (a Doctor Who-related show I mentioned enjoying a lot) is coming out with a new season soon, apparently.  Hopefully Starz will let me stream it on Netflix.