Eating Cheap in College

I'm a poor college student.

I have a cup of coffee and something small (like a bagel or yogurt) for breakfast. Then I take a sliced apple to school for lunch.

When I get home in the evening, I have limited options since I try to save money at the grocery store. Noodles, peanut butter and jelly, frozen pizza, you get the idea.

However, I'm also trying to eat healthy. It's hard. I feel like I have little variety. So, today for dinner I decided to do something different with my pasta. I made a delicious pasta dinner with only three ingredients:

Tomato sauce

Cream cheese

Noodles (I used penne)

I put about a cup of the sauce in a pan, then added about two spoonfuls(teaspoons) of cream cheese. Over low heat, I stirred the sauce while the cream cheese melted, and thickened the sauce.

When the cream cheese was all melted, I simply poured it over the cooked penne noodles.

Simple, but delicious, a change from the mundane, and (most importantly) not expensive. I figure the box of pasta cost me about a $1, the sauce about a $1.50 and the cream cheese $1.20. I can get more than one meal out of these ingredients, so I have a few meals right there for about $1 each. :)

Next time, I think I may try adding some ground beef... or chicken.

Job Hunting

I am about five weeks away from graduating from college and entering the real world dun dun duuun. Dramatic music aside, it is scary! I am searching for a job in the field I have come to love-book publishing-while hoping that I can find one where I can telecommute so I can stay here with my fiancé. What if I don't find a job? A good job that is. I also have to find time to work on my writing. I still hold the dream of publishing my story close to my heart. I will do it. No matter what.

What happens to a dream deferred?

..does it explode?

Ok, being dramatic again. But really, I know I'm probably graduating with a sparkle of idealism, a head full of dreams, and the idea that the world is mine. At least I realize this, even if I'm not willing to let it go. Ask me again in a year.

Psycho exercise

For my creative writing homework, we were supposed to write a frightening scene. Not sure I'm happy with this result.

--

Rich shouldn’t be home yet. I massaged the shampoo into my hair, waiting for him to come tell me he was back. Nothing happened, though I could swear I heard something scrape against the wall. I turned the water off, standing a moment to listen. The house was silent. I stepped out onto the bathmat and wrapped a towel around me. Opening the door, I peered down the hall.

“Hey, Rich.”

Nothing. I couldn’t see into the kitchen from here. As I stepped out into the hall, I called out again.

“Hey, Rich, is that you?”

A thin bent shadow darted across the wall. That wasn’t Rich. Something was in the kitchen.

I froze paralyzed. I took a step backwards, never moving my eyes from where I had seen the shadow.

It appeared around the corner. The figure was black as if clothed in a robe. It leaned against the wall, fingers scraping as it moved. Its wide staring eyes filled my vision. The scream would not escape my throat. I threw myself into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me. I tried three times before I could get my trembling fingers to lock the door. I pressed my body up against the wall. I could feel sobs welling in my throat, and behind my eyes.

The scraping came closer, and closer, and closer. Then silence. I tried to hold my breath.

The doorknob rattled.

Erasers

They may technically be toys, but I think these things are amazing.

IWAKO

The erasers are just too cute. There is something I find irresistible about little, cute, brightly colored animals. I bought my self a blue elephant... and now I want a white one. :)

Oh, and a hedgehog!