The Perpetual Camp-Out

The neighborhood saw my unmentionables swaying on the balcony clothesline this afternoon. No biggie, none of us have dryers, and I’m lucky, I have a washer! I started the load right after school, so ~3:30 pm, done at 4pm and on the line. Aparently 100% cotton takes 100% longer to dry, because that’s all that’s out there now. Hopefully my T-shirts won’t get stolen in the middle of the night. I felt guilty putting my six Victoria’s Secret Body Collection bras out on the line. At $50 a pop seems like they deserved a little better.

The Vegetable Guy and the Meat Guy came to campus today-- Ross’s little ‘local farmers’ market.’ The Banana Guy didn’t come. I got 4 big island tomatoes, a huge cucumber, and 6 small onions for $10EC ($3.72 US). I thought the Vegetable Guy and the Meat Guy were the same until I got home and the neighbor excitedly asked if I gotten fresh meat from the Meat Guy. I finished my leftover chicken from the Chicken Lady today as well. See? Who needs a car when the food comes to you!

What’s even better-- my pizza story. Okay, so I get this recipe off the internet (and cross referenced it with a dozen other pizza recipes from the internet). I can’t find yeast at the store so I buy Pillsbury “Best” self-rising flour. Add 1 1/3 cups chilled water, add a splash of vegetable oil, then add the 2 cups flour the recipe calls for. I turn the oven on, start mixing the dough. It’s not doing the dough thing; I add more and more and more flour until I had almost 6 cups (not what recipe called for).

I check oven. Oven not on. Oven is gas; not good! I go to neighbor’s apartment. Oh wow was lighting that oven’s pilot light the scariest thing I’ve ever done! It was way in the back and not at all obvious, and I only had ONE match.

So back to the pizza: I cut the dough in half- better save some for later. Add more flour and flatten (smush) it to fit in a frying pan (remember I’m camping here and logic went out the window when I boarded the plane). I add my pizza sauce, cut up my block of cheese, put it in the oven for 45 minutes, and WA-LA-PRESTO! 3 hours since I started the whole endeavor, an english muffin with pizza sauce and cheese!!! I don’t know what I did to screw up the pizza crust; goes to show I am not domestic at all. I’ve been using the rest of the dough in the mornings as breakfast with homemade gooseberry jam I purchased from a cab driver.

When I find a good pot, I will (attempt) grow the seeds from the tomatoes I just bought AND the Texas wildflowers a friend gave me to colonize the island. Should be another great big fun mess! Now, back to studying...