Ouch.....

That really smarts.

While I posses an irrational soft spot for both countries in last night's world cup match I was really hoping for a Brazil win and at the very least a more competitive showing by both teams rather than a massacre. Brazil may not make it through this.

(Germany on the other hand is better equipped to deal with crushing defeats). 

Sinto muito, meu país.

Track Inspection

Last week the engineering firm we've hired at the railroad came up to do their field inspection on the 33 miles of track that we are rehabbing this summer (hopefully). The weather was (surprisingly) beautiful for mid April in Northern Nevada with temps in the mid 60's and the occasional quick afternoon thunderstorm. I spent most of the time riding on top of the tool box in the back of our Hi-rail truck soaking in the sunshine. The work consisted of getting out every quarter mile to count ties and look at ballast (gravel). Consequently I didn't get much work done on the house that week, but I was back at it today. As for everything else, all quiet on the western front.

Slightly Obsessed

This group is more fun than they should be. Listen at your own risk. 

The God of Cake

It seems best to start this post out with the picture first. Once again, Julia Child's magic book has turned me into something more than I am. My cousin and I decided to tackle one of Julia's cake recipes this weekend. Despite being horrible at reading directions and (quite frankly) crap at execution this vision turned out better than we thought was possible! This cake blows every expectation you have of chocolate cake out of the water. It's dense and smooth and the almond and rum make for a chocolate experience like you've never had before. A word on rum: I'm not sure how pirates (or anybody) drink the stuff. It smells like paint thinner. Use in a well ventilated area. The icing is basically chocolate butter, and speaking as one who is normally not a fan of frosting it is a revelation. So far we are 2 for 2 with Julia's cook book. Chocolate Almond Cake is a winner for sure.

Moving, Remodeling, and Other Stuff

In case you hadn't heard, I QUIT! It's true. After giving it some thought back in the beginning of February (right about the time I was facing the ominous onset of my 30's) I decided that it really was time to stop working for the engineering company I was working for and who's house I was living in and find something else to do. The job offered me an AMAZING amount of flexibility schedule-wise and paid the bills, but it really had no prospects for advancement or promotion. Plus, living in a house owned by my employer really put me in a pretty much constantly close proximity to work. So hence, I QUIT! I'm still working for the railroad with some pretty big projects coming up this summer and of course there is the laundromat, but currently I'm still on the search for another job. I didn't time my exit from my position with engineering company really well so my house remodel was not quite done ( well let's be honest, nowhere near done really) when I moved out of the company house at the end of February so I set my office up in my unfinished basement, scattered my stuff around between family and storage and have been staying with my Grandparents (who conveniently live right across the street from my new house) until I can move in. Here are some before and current pics of the what's been done so far.

Kitchen Before:

Kitchen Currently:

Living Room Before:

Living Room Currently:

Anyway, you get the idea. All the wall board on the outside walls has been removed. I've removed all the old plumbing and one wall. As soon as my contractor gets back into town he's going to replace all the windows. I'll be starting on the new wiring and insulation (not looking forward to the insulation part). I've got a couple of things to clean up this week first though. I've been removing all the old carpeting tack strips and staples and I need to do a few yard work things this week while the weather is nice. Things are moving along though. 

In other news: I've been helping the missionaries out some with all the spare time I've had. Took a quick trip to LA to see my brother and his family last week. Registered as candidate for public office (TV District Board Seat E). Of course the aforementioned applying for jobs. I was even able to spend some time in the garage yesterday which I don't think I've been able to do for awhile. 

There really is nothing more satisfying than a clean and organized garage (I know this might not look like a clean and organized garage but I assure you it is).

So Much Butter!

Check out what my awesome sister got me for my birthday! 600+ pages of butter! I can't wait! (too many exclamation points? NO WAY!)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Croissant of My Own

For some reason that I am having trouble recalling at the moment my cousin and I decided that we needed to try making croissants from scratch this past weekend. The 24+ hour ordeal started about 5pm on Saturday and involved A LOT of butter and what seemed like more rolling of dough than is humanly conceivable.

This is what the dough looked like after about 20 hours. Lots of buttery layers. After all was said and done were they better than Pillsbury crescent rolls? Yes! Have I purchased better croissants? Probably. Nonetheless, there is a certain awe factor to serving someone a croissant you made from scratch. They were very flaky, but not as light as I thought they should be, and their appearance was more biscuit-like in color in some spots than we would have preferred. At least they weren't an unqualified disaster.

The three best looking creations of the batch.