Carbon Cloud

She had probably been manhandled to wear this particular sweater countless times before and knew better than to try and avoid it. She pretended it was a continuation of her natural coat, allowed herself five seconds to stare out of the window in despair, and went back to jumping around and barking like a little devil.

It was a beautiful, albeit a warm day for January, and we didn't want to waste it and Igby's sweater. We journeyed into the backyard and I watched as Thuy tried to camouflage Igby from the black cat that lurked in the bushes outside of her gate.

'You want to take some pictures,' I asked Thuy.

'I'm gonna take pictures of you and Igby! Pick her up,' Thuy screamed in delight at the thought of me falling in love with her dog for the umpteenth time.

This was the only photo where I looked like a human.

Thuy looks a lot better holding Igby, don't you think?

After a few hours sitting inside and looking at designers' websites, Igby's barking and whining made Thuy realize that maybe it was time for us to walk her. It's a shame that dogs haven't evolved to use the commodes yet.

Christmas cards I made and sent out to my friends.

Me and Clare on her graduation day.

Clare, Emily, Ty, and Abigail with me at Baker Street Pub.

Clare posing with her 2013 Mass Effect calendar.

Milk and cookies. Nectar of the gods, but only when with Red Bull.

I wanted to name him Apollo. The name actually stuck for most of the day until my brother admitted he didn't like it because all he could think of was Apolo Anton Ohno. I wanted it because Lee Adama. His name at the shelter was Sparky, which I find to be more of a dog's name but it suited him so well. He's just everywhere! My mom wanted him to have an 'A' name though because she didn't want to have to get another monogrammed stocking for him so he could share with Amber.

The blue collar really complements his gray and white coat.

Cleaning himself.

This was the picture on the shelter website that made me fall in love with him. The hat wasn't included so I'm gonna have to crochet him one because OH MY GOD. And to make sure Amber doesn't get jealous, I'll make her one too. I feel bad because I neglected her all day so I could get to know this little guy.

At PetSmart, he shared a cage with another cat which looked pretty similar but they weren't related. The other cat was actually the one my brother wanted to adopt but a couple had JUST adopted him when we got there. The two kittens were in their cage and Wrigley (the other cat) was cleaning Adam. It was so cute! Five minutes later, an employee removed Wrigley from the cage to go home with his new family. Adam looked so lonely after that and had nothing to do and no one to play with that he started dozing off. I got so sad that the two cats were separated that I literally started crying in front of his cage window. Just. Tears.

Sniffing an outlet because she's an idiot.

Abigail's thoughtful face. Phong's drunky face.

SHISO NAUGHTY

We each got Viva Las Vegas rolls along with different second rolls. I didn't take a picture of the VLV roll because I have before.

My Tootsy Maki roll: Kani kama crab mix, shrimp and cucumber rolled and topped with crunchy tempura bits; drizzled with a sweet eel sauce.

Abigail's Rainbow Roll: The classic California Roll is topped with tuna, yellowtail, shrimp, salmon & avocado to look like a rainbow.

Phong's Yellowtail Roll: Fresh yellowtail & Sriracha are combined with cucumber then rolled in seaweed & rice.

We dropped Abigail off because she's a pooface and didn't want to go bargain shopping with us, then headed off to REI and the mall! It was late so the hustle and bustle (and danger) of Black Friday had thinned out immensely. So had the available items. :(

Phong bought some expensive items for his bike from REI (a lock and some lights)! The price label for the lock said that it was $25, which seemed like an incredible deal for a U-lock and cable lock combo. We had hit the jackpot! It wasn't until we got to the register that we saw it was $47. Sigh. We can never have cheap, good things. Booooo.

When we got to the mall, Phong was still so down about the amount of cash he'd blown at REI that he just dragged his feet and cried about not being able to buy anything else. People behind us actually slipped and fell from the tears that had fallen from his face and created a puddle on the ground. Or he could have just wet himself. We'll never know; it's one of life's endless mysteries.

I got two things from two stores.

Pantone's Color of the Year (Tangerine Tango) nail polish set from Sephora and a black purse from H&M.

The set was alone in a clear, plastic box marked '$7'. I couldn't believe that anything from Pantone would be as inexpensive as $7 so I groveled at Phong's feet to ask a sales associate to check the price of the set. BEHOLD! A set of FOUR nail polishes for only SEVEN DOLLARS. Sold! :)

Your cream cheese will need to be at room temperature. I forgot to set it out a few hours before so I filled a large bowl with warm water and placed my still-wrapped packs in it while I prepared the crust.

When I made this with Phong, we didn't have a food processor so we spent ten years crushing up the ginger snaps by hand in Ziploc bags. With my handy, retro, loud, sticky food processor at home, it took more or less two minutes to measure out the ingredients and press the button with a '2' above it.

When it's done, it will look so delicious that you'll want to just grab a spoon and shovel it all into your mouth. But stop! You need this for the crust for a cheesecake that will blow your top off!

Pour all of it into your greased springform pan and pack it down with your clean fingers. Push some onto the sides to create a 1-inch tall rim. Then bake in your oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for five minutes.

Now cream your softened cream cheese. Remember to scrape down the sides.

After the cream cheese is creamed, add the eggs one at a time. Then the brown sugar, pumpkin puree, vanilla, and spices.

Hey, remember that crust you just baked? After it had cooled down enough the handle, wrap the bottom of the pan in two sheets of aluminum foil to prevent major leakage.

Pour your cheesecake batter into the pan and place the pan inside another pan in the middle of your oven. This is for a water bath to prevent cracking on the top of your cheesecake. Pour some hot water into the bigger pan until the water level is about three quarters up the sides of the springform. (I didn't pay attention and the water was only about halfway so I had some cracking. Oh well, still tasted good.)

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 60-70 minutes. I cooked it for 60 minutes, then turned off the oven, opened the oven door partially to let out the hot air and let the cheesecake rest in there for another 10 minutes.

The cracking became less apparent after it set overnight in the fridge because it wasn't as inflated with air from cooking.

Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Recipe (from Closet Cooking)

Ingredients: 2 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs 1/3 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 6 tablespoons butter (melted) 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese (room temperature) 3 eggs 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup pumpkin puree 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Mix the gingersnap cookie crumbs, sugar, ginger and butter and press into the bottom and up 1 inch along the sides of a 9-inch greased springform pan.

Bake the crust in a preheated 350F oven for 5 minutes and set aside.

Cream the cream cheese.

Mix in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the brown sugar, pumpkin puree, vanilla, and spices.

Pour the mixture into the springform pan.

Bake in a preheated 350F oven until it is set, about 60-70 minutes.

Let it cool completely.

Chill the cheesecake in the fridge overnight.

The third was in Austin with my bffsssss! I had dinner on Friday night with Abigail, Phong, Tasha, David, Chelsea, Thomas, James, Michelle, and Evan. Then we headed over to Abigail's and started the night. Bart and Terence ended up joining us about thirty minutes into the party. People played beer pong and a lot of us just sat around drinking and being social. I went downtown for the first time (I don't count Chelsea's birthday really) and we got a free round of drinks because this guy thought Michelle was attractive. There was some drama but all in all a good night.

Abigail, Phong, and I went to Georgetown to have lunch at Laurie's Tea House with Eddie and Priscila the next afternoon. I thought I would be going home right after so I had to hurry a little bit. Felt really shitty having to leave like that. :( But then somehow things changed and I ended up staying another night? Idek. Chelsea and I had a good heart to heart. Then Phong and I went to WINGZUP and ate in Tasha's room with Abigail. Slept early and woke up at 7am so Michelle and I could leave and get to her house before noon. Good weekend. Great weekend.

Abigail cooking eggs and mushrooms to help ease their hangovers.

I didn't get anymore good/worthy pictures from that weekend. :(

Fourth was with my mom and my brother. We went to Mi Cocina, my favorite Tex-Mex restaurant. However, it was a complete disappointment this time and I won't delve into it because it will just make me sad.

I bought two tickets to the Flo concert during the summer because I knew I wanted to go but not alone. So for Clare's birthday, I gave her one of the tickets. It was the most magical experience ever. I got to see an angel sing. :D

During one of her songs, she ran around the entire pavilion and so for two seconds, she was within two feet of me. I don't really have words to describe this concert. It's more like a huge amalgam of great feelings.