Sisterly Wisdom

My little sister called me today to give me some ideas for her birthday. She'll be 10 in a week. We talked about living in a small town compared to living in a huge metropolis. I said that the good thing about living in a small town is that you don't have to pay for parking, but the bad thing is that you can't get everything you want (meaning purple sweet potatoes and pretty origami paper).

To that, she promptly replied, "You don't need everything you want because you get lazy, poor, and fat!"

How true. I thought that I was supposed to be the sister who passed on wisdom.

Winning Draws is for Winners

What could be better than 4 miniature slices of bread?

Why, 4 miniature slices of bread smothered in Nutella, of course!

What to do with dried-out miniature bread?

Fry it up as a grilled cheese:Cheddar & Ham for Jason; Mozzarella, Tomato, & Basil for me.

None for you, Evil Kitty!

Bad Kitty!

Now to explain the title of this post, "Winning Draws is for Winners."
My mom sent me a big ol' box o' baking on Tuesday, and after spending the night in the Vancouver post office, I picked it up on Friday. (And no, I was not able to pick up the parcel for my husband without his written authorization even though we have the same address and share the same last name.) The box contained my favourite chocolate chip cookies, ginger snaps, brownies, and two miniature loaves of bread. The bread was so cute that I had to take pictures of it! Food is more fun if it is GIANT or miniature.

When I called my mom to say thank-you, she told me that my sister, Jocalyn (age 9), won a miniature loaf pan in a draw. Jocalyn has a long history of winning draws. She has won a backpack, and a GIANT teddy bear. I'm not sure if she is particularly lucky, or if there is just such a high chance of winning in her very small town of Fairview, AB. She also wins coloring contests on a fairly regular basis, but that has to do with skill, not luck. All of my siblings have mad coloring skillz.

The miniature loaf pan made me think of the things other people have won in draws. The most outstanding prize in the circle of my acquaintances has to be when Jason (age 11) won a draw for a purebred Arabian which was a descendant of a famous racehorse. Yep, he won a horse! I shouldn't tell my sister that -- she'll probably get jealous.

Also, I won a door prize at a chamber music concert that I bribed Jason to attend with me. It was Piazolla's "Tango Nuevo" for accordion and strings, and I told him it would be like the music from 12Monkeys. It turns out I was telling the truth. The person who composed the soundtrack for 12 Monkeys borrowed extensively from Piazolla. (By the way, Piazolla learned classical composition from Ginastera, the man I have been obsessed about for the past 2 years.) Anyway, back to the door prize. We both filled out a form to put in a box at intermission, and Jason actually put his own information down instead of mine. After intermission, there was a brief speech, then the first violinist drew a name, and it was mine, and then the cellist drew a name, and it was Jason's. Whisperings of conspiracy floated around the concert hall. We could not leave Con Hall that evening without people commenting on the "fix," or the "grand scheme." We each won a $25 gift certificate for The Gramophone. (And no, I was not able to collect the prize on my husband's behalf: he had to walk up to the stage and get it himself.)

What have you won in a draw? Publish a comment and your name will be entered in a draw.

Robust Nectarine

NECTARINE, Evil Kitty (9 cm tall), Grapefruit

Today I went to a quaint fresh fruit & veg market by Burt's house. After eating a cucumber from Safeway that tasted like cardboard, I have made a commitment to go to the market where the fruit is large and colorful, and the prices are low. I bought a huge bag of colored peppers for $1.49. They have fresh herbs, too! Included with every purchase: FREE fruit flies! When I saw a stack of giant nectarines, I just had to buy one. Here she is:

She's bursting out of her skin! She is so full of juiciness.

Now, I'm sure a lot of you are wondering why I am not a hand model. Sadly, like for most things, my hands are overqualified.

The bowl is overflowing!

Does anyone know how to store fresh basil? I think I've got to wrap it in damp paper towel like Baby Jesus. You have no idea how good my pizza is going to taste tonight.

I love teaching

Connor, a 7 year old beginner piano student, made my day today by asking:

"Hey, is that the terrible clef?"

Completely Finished My Degree!

Tuesday, September 5, at approximately 6:00 am, I completed the final requirement of my Master of Music degree. The final requirement was Ethics Training which should have taken me 8 hours to do, but ended up taking me 15 hours. This was the first year grad students at the U of A had to do this training, and I got to be one of the guinea pigs. I know I'm not retarded, so why did it take me so long? Maybe it is because I took time to research and consider the questions. Perhaps it is because I don't have the ability to hand-in half-assed assignments. Anyway, after pulling an all-nighter, which is my usual modus operandi,* I successfully jumped through the final hoop.

I read Steven Colbert's 2006 Commencement Address and drank a glass of wine to celebrate.

You must now call me "Master Bonnie" Wait a minute, that's not right. Call me "Mistress Bonnie" Uh... that's not right, either.

Convocation is November 22, 2006 and I hope my money and work situation will allow me to walk across that stage wearing that fun cape and stylish hat.

Please do not go out of your way to send me lavish gifts and accolades.**
Or you can, if you want to.

:)

* All of the Latin I know, I learned from TV.
** Did you know that besides being an expression of praise, an accolade is a brace or a line used in music to join two or more staves carrying simultaneous parts? How fitting!