Update and Mini Caprese Salads

After I returned to Boulder from my trip to Wisconsin on a Saturday (remember, before Wisconsin, I only had four days in Boulder after my trip to NJ), Dave left for a Phish concert in Telluride on Sunday with his buddies.  Wednesday he returned to Boulder and Friday his parents arrived for a last-minute trip to take care of some family stuff.  They were fun and easy house guests and after spending several days with them and Dave's aunts and cousins, they all left town on Wednesday, my first day of work.  The next day at 7:00 am, Dave left for a wedding in San Diego.  Monday I had my first day of classes and Dave returned that evening.  A week and a half later, things finally feel like they are settling down.  Since we left for NJ on July 15, summer just whizzed by.

Now my semester has started.  I'm teaching four classes, one new, very upper level class and two other subjects that I have taught before.  Luckily, amidst my vacationing this summer, I was able to organize and prep the classes I have taught before by revamping my old materials, and I got a start on my new class.  This has made my first two weeks of class a breeze.  Well, that and the fact that my schedule is infinitely better than the schedules I dealt with last year. (Here, teach a night class, then an early morning class the next day, oh, and it won't be in a subject matter you know anything about, and you have two lab classes, and, by the way, I'll let you know what classes you're teaching 48 hours before the first day of class.)  Things are going to start kicking in to gear next week, but for the time being, I'm enjoying everything going as planned. 

While Dave was out of town I had a freak-out moment when I figured my life was going to go from peaceful to insanity once classes started and I decided to stock up on the necessities, should I never have time to run an errand until Thanksgiving.  Amidst my errands I found a two-pack of fresh mozzarella at Costco and a basil plant for sale at Soopers.  These, plus cherry tomatoes from my tub plants, all contributed to making a fun recipe I saw on another blog-- mini caprese salads! 

Just slice two ends off of your cherry tomato, one to make the thing stand up, and the other to clean out a little of the runny insides.  Then stuff your cherry tomato with a small piece of fresh mozzarella, top with a slice of basil, fresh cracked pepper, salt, and a drizzle of olive oil.  These little guys are cute as hell, but frankly, not worth the work if you're just feeding yourself.  In that case, a regular old caprese salad will do the trick.  However, I imagine these would be fun to bring to a party as finger food.  Sorry friends, I have kept this treat to myself!

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