Seattle Au Natural

Two years of togetherness...

Jesse & I celebrated our two year anniversary yesterday, and Jesse surprised me with a lovely dinner at a little French bistro in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, Thomas St. Bistro. It was on par with the last place Jesse took me, Table 219 (also in Capitol Hill). Reminiscent of my days in French-influenced West Africa and the little time I have spent in France, the meal came with a fixed price that included four courses (soup, salad, entree, dessert). The owner was multi-talented, as he greeted and served customers while also cooking all of the food. I'm still unsure how exactly he did that. He offered the hospitality I would expect of an authentic French dining experience, and also had employed two young guitarists to play jazz as part of a fantastic ambience. I did the unthinkable and actually took pictures which you can now enjoy...

Thank you to my handsome guy!

First course: Creamy vegetarian basil soup

Sweet Jesse makes for a happy Pegs!
(Kari, you can see the top I chose to wear...it's matched with dark jeans and bronze heels.)

Thomas St. Bistro
(The restaurant filled up quickly while we were there, but this is when we were only the second couple in the place.)

Third course: Poulet Dijon Pasta for me (pictured here) and Smoked Salmon Pasta for Jesse

It's nice that after two years together, you don't have to worry so much about how ridiculous you look trying to eat pasta.

Fourth course: Cheesecake with strawberries drizzled on top

Our table setting

"Ooh, my man is so dreamy."

Here's to a very unconventional two years!

*Note: We will celebrate part II of our anniversary when I treat Jesse to the movie "Date Night" this weekend...Steve Carrell and Tina Fey should be a lovely couple to double date with!

What I've been up to, since clearly it isn't blogging...

Studying. I've been reading and reading, which is the typical beginning of the quarter sitch. Soon, it will transition into a little reading, but mostly writing as papers come due. Lucky for me, I like both.

Kickball. Our team had its second game yesterday, on a beautiful and sunny Sunday. I actually got hot in my one long-sleeve layer--yay for Spring! Sadly, we lost...and I am NOT a good loser. Somehow, I got nominated to pitch which was pretty fun. And I really like my teammates. I knew exactly one, my roommate who coordinated the team, so it's been great to meet new peeps.

Committee-making. I was able to meet with two faculty members who are both very interested in my topic, and able/willing to be on my committee! Yay! Three down, one to go.

Friends time. I've been able to spend time with some near 'n' dear ones...although my grad student budget may not be able to sustain this, unless I can find lots of free stuff to do. Roommate Leah has my social calendar planned through June, including Bat Boy: The Musical at the UW, the Seattle Symphony, and a Seattle Mariners game.

Exercising. Most days at the IMA, but I've branched out too...anyone done Zumba? I tried it on Saturday and it was a WORKOUT...think salsa meets hip hop meets aerobics. Really fun, really tiring. I was sweating like a...fill-in-the-blank, Mrs. Darling (you always have the best similes). However, while I've done really well with exercising, I've done very poorly at eating well. After Zumba, I had a Deluxe Huevos Rancheros brunch. Pretty sure those didn't quite balance out.

Jesse time. Have I mentioned how nice it is to actually see my boyfriend, and not rely on phone and video chats? Well, it is. And either he's gotten funnier, or I've gotten more...easy-to-make-laugher. Either way, I'll take it. Tomorrow is a special day for us...two year anniversary! And let me tell you, it's been an unconventional two years! Jesse is surprising me with dinner somewhere...don't know where yet, but I've told him I NEED to dress appropriately, so I'll need at least a hint. Although, Jesse enjoys bringing out my gullible side so he may find it hilarious to tell me it's a fancy place and take me to Taco Bell...or tell me it's a casual dive, and then I end up severely under-dressed and unable to get in to the fancy place he actually planned.

All you have to do is...

I met with Most Supportive Advisor Ever, Jim, late last week. Jim inspires me. You see, he just turned 40 and is already an Associate Dean of the Graduate School at the UW. This is truly impressive. He's one of the most energetic people I've ever been around, the kind where just watching them or reading their FB page makes you tired. Nonetheless, I always feel encouraged and motivated by our meetings. I left with this Here's How It's Going to Go (HHIGTG) List:

1. Form dissertation committee by the middle of this quarter (about 5 weeks from now).
2. Meet with the committee by the end of the quarter to have an open conversation about dissertation topic and provide my working paper.
3. Talk about writing portion of General Exam, which will likely be very similar to the first three chapters of the dissertation.
4. Go write my tail off for the second half of the summer.
5. During Autumn quarter (last quarter of coursework, unless something goes awry), defend General Exam written portion (oral portion of GE). The committee will take this opportunity to tell me the good/needs improvement areas, and (hopefully) pass me through. At that point, I am considered "ABD" (all but dissertation, or All But Dead in academic circles).
6. Starting in January, enroll in dissertation credits and DO the study! Jim thinks graduating by summer is a distinct possibility.

Other Here's How It's Going To Go Lists:
HHIGTG: Courses
*Currently in 2 for the Spring.
*1 in the Summer.
*2 in the Autumn.

HHIGTG: Professional Development
*Advising Handbook project--in progress with the COE Dean of Student Services
*Hopefully find a position on campus to fund the remainder of this degree
*Exploring a College Bound mentor program, working with college-bound juniors and seniors
*Exploring student organizations on campus, such as the Associated Students of the College of Education (ASCE) meeting I went to yesterday.

Could my life BE any different than it was a month ago?

New move, new blog!

So, you noticed. It looks different, eh? I decided with a new location, I should have a new blog (look).

I've been in Seattle for one week tomorrow. I have already established a sort of routine, mostly because I feel like it would be far too easy to lounge around in my pj's all day which leads (in my case) to lack of productivity and eventual depressed blah-ness.

The typical day right now involves:

using Seattle's Metro system
(the #7 transfer to the #48)

working out at the IMA (UW's fantastic exercise facility)


studying on/around campus
(usually in Suzzallo Library's reading room)

and class on Monday nights and Wednesday mornings
(in Miller Hall)

Oh yes, and I play adult co-ed kickball on Sundays. Woot!
Underdog Kickball League - Ballard Boys & Girls Club

Photos from here and here.