Lessons in yeast

Just another normal day on Claire's kitchen counter.  Got my rice cooker over there, my O.J., my ginger tea, my favourite cat coaster, and - oh, that?  THAT'S what happens when you put bread dough in the fridge overnight with naive plans to roll it out into cinnamon buns the next day.

Apparently even the highest-quality Tupperware - and I make no compromises when it comes to container quality - is no match for dough determined to make its second rise.  Well.  I've learned.

I was GOING to save the debut of my newest domestic skill - bread-making! - for when I'd made my first perfectly-formed loaf.  But you know what?  The Internet is full of intimidatingly flawless DIY baking/crafting projects, and I'm pretty sure the road to those gorgeous cupcakes and yak-yarn iPod snugglies was paved with... well, things that looked like my first loaf of bread: 

But you know what?  It might be crooked with a gaping air hole in the middle, and the crust might be marred by two burn lines from my toaster oven's top elements, but that bread is freaking DELICIOUS.  And it was practically free.  Ugly wins!

Recipe here - but reduce sugar, boost salt, IMHO.

Update on sad-sack sickness: thanks in no small part to all the Get-Well lovin' I received electronically, my gross cold is now only a cough!  Hooray!  I sound like a baby seal with SARS, but I can retire the hankies.  Thank you for all your kind emails.

Siiiiiick. Blegh.

Healthy readers,

Today is my third day in bed after being struck full-force by the angry fist of The Worst Cold In The World.  Delicate sniffles?  Soft Victorian coughs?  Nope.  Half-closed, red, puffy eyes?  Maximum-velocity sneezing that makes my head snap back?  Exhaustion of my ENTIRE supply and back-up supply of hankies?  That's more like it.

But you know what's great about being sick?  Having full license to watch total,  unadulterated, crap on DVD.  Yayyy!  I have so far viewed, or at least had playing in the background while I passed out open-mouthed: Eclipse, The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants 2, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and Bride Wars.  I also threw in some Curb Your Enthusiasm (which has ironic humour) but only because I ran out of Gossip Girl.

Now.  A few boiled dumplings, some ginger tea, and back to bed I go.  Please beam immune system virtual boosters!


(No photos today - there's nothing you want to see here, I promise.)

Canada FLASHBACK!: (Part 1 of 4: Newfoundland)

Mmkay, so because I had such a transcendently terrific trip home this summer, I just had to post some photos.  I know, I know, I wasn't In Shanghai, as such, but, well, my heart was, most of the time, and, um - just give me a break this time.  The show begins!

I went to Newfoundland to visit university friend Laura, who, with lovely partner Travis, recently produced darling, darling baby Sylvia Jean.  Laura's town is so small they don't have house numbers, which, let me tell you, was a refreshing contrast to Shanghai.  It was ten days of baby cuddles, home improvement projects, baking, and the occasional glass of wine.  Perfect.  PER-fect.  I've loved Newfoundland since I spent Christmas there in 2007, and Newfoundland in the summer is all about the crisp breezes over a grey ocean, and boats hauling in capelin (wee silvery fish).  I can be all about that, too. 

Travis' dad Barry shows me how to pitch a live lobster into a giant pot of boiling seawater.  Thanks for the sacrifice, Lobster, you and your brothers were delicious.

Laura, Sylvia and I went puffin-viewing.  Sylvia: "Fresh Newfoundland air, mnyum, mnyum."

Did we make heart-shaped moose burgers?  Of COURSE we did.

Shirley's Haven is a seniors' residence, in case you had other ideas.

Sad face at the airport!  I'm Edmonton-bound.  Until next time, mon amie.

Chris visited!

What better way to settle back in to Shanghai life than by showing a friend around town?  Chris and I struggled through beginner Mandarin together at the U of A, and he's been working in Beijing (sidenote: I. Love. Beijing.  The wide open skies, the cute cafés.  I strive to move there for awhile sometime, no matter what it would do to my blog title).  Now he lives in Wuhan, a mere six-hour train ride from Shanghai.  Well, not that mere.  Thanks, Chris.

So, we slammed down the fifteen-twos with a few games of crib; bought glasses and Feiyue shoes; stopped by the Hongqiao driving range; spent an uncharacteristic-for-me-but-actually-super-fun evening at a nearby hipster bar; and, you know, made sock puppets.  Iiiiiit was awesome.

Dinner at Wagas with Eric, Allison, and Chris' student Panda.  Yes, Panda.

1. We're both trash-talking cribbage players, but only one of us got skunked.  It wasn't me.

Chris (left) watches his ball sail into the far fence.

Chris' new glasses match Colonel Sanders'.

Mom taught me how to make these, and now I'm kind of obsessed.  Chris' excitement almost eclipsed my own.  He made the one on the right, and is going is going to pressure his high school students to craft them too.

Hello (again), world

Yep, it's been a year since I last posted, thanks to blocks on Blogger, Twitter, Facebook, and other things that help people network and organize big events. Like craft parties and potlucks. Or, I guess, protests and rallies. Anyway, I found posting remotely really wasn't my thing. It's like painting without your glasses - you have a general idea of what you're doing, but no satisfaction in seeing the finished product.

BUT! I've just purchased a program that lets me get online through other, less internetically-inhibited cities. As such, I'll be posting regularly, and in a fancy new layout to boot. And to catch everyone up, here's a summary of the past year:

• PROFESSIONALLY: (Very) full-time job doing marketing and events for a non-profit. Learned tons, worked really hard, and finished my year-long contract in June 2010. On the side, I helped my friend Bonnie develop local baking service Sweet Bon-O-Mine. These days, I'm working for self taking assorted contracts and moonlighting as a private English tutor, like every other half-pat (locally-employed expat) here.

• PERSONALLY: Expanded the cast of Claire's Life with new friends, all of whom will surely make their way onto the blog at some point. I've also solidified relationships with People In My Neighbourhood (PIMN), which goes a long way towards making me feel at home here, like when my DVD guy thrusts out the latest romantic comedy when I ride by him on my bike. (Oh, and people, I don't discuss my dating life online. It makes people uncomfortable. Especially me.)

• OTHERLY: Still in my darling apartment, which now features both a couch AND bookshelves. Shazam! // I spent almost three months in Canada this summer. // I'm rocking new glasses like Anastasia Krupnik's, though I still wear my usuals when I'm feeling unobtrusive. // My Chinese is way better than it was. Now I can discuss way more than my ideal husband. // I bought a new camera and am in love with it. // I still suck at cooking, but I sure can make a mean pot of rice.

So, I'm back. Thank you for staying around, and always tell me what you'd like to hear more about - I am nothing without you, dear readers!

- Claire