I made it…

This week I could finally breathe a sigh of relief. I’ve been holding that breath since November 14, 2010. That’s the day I submitted my critical essay to the International Sigma Tau Delta Convention. I’d worked months on the paper previous to that, editing every little part and having quite a few nervous breakdowns before finally giving in and hitting the submit button. It was a long wait, but I finally found out the results:
…I WAS ACCEPTED…

That’s right, folks. I will be making my way to Pittsburgh in a few months to present a paper on the women in the Grimm Brother’s Snow White, presenting Snow White as an Eve archetype and the Queen as a devil figure. I’m elated, ecstatic, and to tell the truth, a bit nervous. Getting accepted to the conference has been the most important thing to me, and I made it. I actually made it.

When I was originally working on the paper, I took a small break one night to do a little sketch of the Disney-esque Snow White. I hoped one day I would be able to celebrate by adding her to my journal, and here she is, in all of her glory and mine, ready and waiting for me to add the words that express the joy filling my soul. I love the little touch of the fresh rose petals which remind me of the original text where the apple has one side white and the other red. They even look like little apple slices across the page…Lovely. 🙂

Also, I am very excited to share with you what I’ve been working on in my painting class, but it’s just not ready yet. I’m overjoyed that I’m discovering I’m not a terrible failure with oil paints, but we’ll see what you think when I eventually finish the project and share the pics from start to finish.

Until then, another thing I’m rather proud of myself is the fact that I’ve been making my own canvas, something I never dreamed in my life I would do. I cut the wood myself (and didn’t even lose a finger!), assembled the frame, and pulled the canvas. Sweet stuff. I’m rather fond of it. 🙂 Hopefully I can be just as proud of what it becomes as I am of just assembling the canvas.

This couldn’t get more random…

My brain is a little addled with all the work, stress, pressure, etc. I am under at the moment, so I doubt this post will be very cohesive at all.

First and foremost, I want to do a plug for the absolute love of my internet life: Etsy. Seriously, if you have not been to the site before, stop reading this and click the link! An entire website where users sell their handmade or vintage goods. What could be better than that? I literally spend hours every week building up my list of favorites and crying when I see that my bank account has inadequate funds to feed my etsy addiction. I don’t currently have an etsy shop of my own, but I’m sure there’s one on the horizon. While I’ve purchased several items including handmade jewelry and books, my latest purchase is just making me absolutely giddy. Check it out.

Nerdy Snow White = Amazing. This is even more amazing due to the fact that, by the end of this semester, I will have spent an entire year working with the Snow White character as part of my Senior Project/Paper/Thesis…whatever you would like to call it. I am, in fact, a supreme Snow White nerd. I scored this sweet decal from the folks at Vinylstudio.

Anyhow, I also wanted to share with you an amazing (and quick!) meal I threw together last night. I defrosted some chicken and Italian sausage we had kept in the freezer, and sauteed them together in a pan while tossing some penne pasta in boiling water.
My sauce consisted of the following:
2 cloves garlic
1/2 yellow onion
3 or 4 sun dried tomatoes
–sautee those together in just a tablespoon of EVOO at the bottom of your saucepan-
1 can of diced tomatoes — let these sweat for a few minutes with your garlic, onion, and sun dried tomatoes
1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. cajun seasoning
I like to add a few extra shakes of oregano here…
—
Pour in 1 pint of heavy cream
1/2 stick of butter
(because what could be better than cream AND butter)
1 Tbsp. of flour
Stir together and bring to a boil then let simmer…

When your chicken and sausage is done and you have drained your pasta, toss it all together and mix in the sauce….

TAH-DAH!
Chicken and Sausage Penne in Sun Dried Tomato Alfredo

Last, I just wanted to share with you the thing that made me smile today. When I walked into ValueCity Furniture, sitting on a bar directly in front of the door was this giant glittery lizard. I couldn’t help but laugh! It’s so unique it makes me want one, but I certainly won’t be shelling out the $129.99 for it, although they did have quite a few miniature versions for $4.99. Tell me this doesn’t make you giggle…