It has been a good and relaxing week. Several storm fronts have come through, making S-Turns (the break across the street from our apartment) pretty much unsurfable and the rest of the west side water choppy and too big for snorkeling or much of anything else. Staying out of the water has been a bit of a bonus, though, providing time for us to clean house and catch up on other things that have been recently thrown by the wayside in favor of getting outside to play.

My camera finally made it back about a week ago, and I've been out shooting almost every day. Today, I saw a man being pulled on his skateboard by his leashed husky, a line of six red cars parked in a row and a giant sea turtle on the beach...among other things! It's been a relief to get out and take pictures again.

Ben and I spent a day in town recently, checking out a few places we hadn't been before and making the rounds on a few old haunts, including the book store. Ah, the bookstore, my one true addiction. Every time I go, I end up spending more money and coming out with more books than I ever mean to. At least it's towards a higher purpose, right? Anyway, this time I ended up with the best and most complete vegetarian cookbook I have ever seen. It's 350 recipes long and full of interesting and helpful references about how and when to use both common and unusual ingredients. It even explains the particulars of more difficult cooking procesesses. It's called "Vegetarian Planet" by DiDi Emmons. Last night I made calzones and butter bananas, and tonight Ben's making gourmet potato skins and gaspazcho. Yum! Check it out, if you're looking for something delicious, new and meatless!

Now that we're on the subject of information, let's talk movies! Last night, we rented "Food Inc." by Magnolia films. It's a very well done documentary on where our food comes from and the way it's produced. The movie is so full of information that isn't readily out in the open that it's overwhelming and a little scary. Some of it I knew already, but the parts I didn't were shocking enough to make me even more curious about America's "factory" approach to food. One of the more interesting points the film made was that with a very limited number of cash crops (corn, soy beans, etc.), we have a very limited number of ingredients that are used in increasingly stranger and more chemically modified combinations to make the variety of flavors we enjoy today. It details how the corporate structure of American food is based on a series of quick fixes that are often inefficient and harmful in the long run. In any case, veggie or not, it's really really interesting and I HIGHLY recommend it!

Work is going smoothly, however boring it may be. The weather's great, as always, but I'm starting to miss the snow more and more. Our fourth roommate Ryan left for Juneau a few days ago and we're back to the original three. All in all, things are going really well! More soon,

Molly