Blogging, FTL.

Fail blog.

Seriously, sorry guys.  I wish I had some epic excuse for my absence, like I won the lottery and we paid off all of Dr. D's loans and then flew to Africa and opened a health clinic.  Or I decided to surprise him and move out to CA with him for two months during his research rotation and we've been having such an amazing time that I haven't had a moment to spare for e-emoting.  Or I'm writing a book and am now contractually obligated not to utter another cyber word until my first draft is completed.

Alas, it is none of those things.  It's something much less sexy: work.

July and August are probably the two busiest months for my job, and next week it will all culminate in a fantastical, stressful whirlygig of chaos as 30,000+ students descend upon our currently serene campus.  I am simultaneously excited for and resistant to this time of year---mostly because I find that my summer to-do list is only a third of the way finished, and the beginning of this school year marks what will likely be my last year at this university.

Oh, and have I mentioned I'm EXHAUSTED?

So there you have it.  My pseudo-apologetic excuse for the prolonged blog silence, sprinkled with justifications and a dash of pity-party.

And here comes the ambiguous reassurance of a return to semi-regular posting: I've got a few posts in the works, so when things settle down at work after next week, you'll have some of those coming your way.

I'll leave you with this picture of J-dog as "Hairy Potter," because it's my blog and I do what I want.

Mmkay... brb. (ish).

Too Hot to Handle (baking)

We have recently had some bouts of positively stifling heat combined with humidity, which make for sticky air, frizzy hair, and not a whole lot of motivation to fire up the oven.

Unfortunately baking has become something of a stress/boredom relief tactic for yours truly, and since work has become busier and Dr. D has been away, I find myself in no short supply of either stress or boredom.  So I found myself faced with the following conundrum: do I suffer more sweltering temperatures by turning on the oven, or do I get off my lazy duff and learn a new recipe that doesn't require baking?

The latter won out, my friends.  And I am so very glad it did.

I modified a version of this recipe which I found on Pinterest, and I must warn you that 30+ bite-sized balls of heavenly peanut buttery chocolate goodness is dangerous to have just hanging around, so make plans to give some away or freeze half of the batch for later.

Chocolate-Dipped Peanut Butter Bites

2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
6 tablespoons butter, softened
Dipping chocolate (make your own or buy at the store---I prefer dark chocolate varieties)



Combine powdered sugar, butter, and peanut butter in a large bowl until well blended. {I eventually broke down and used my hands---worked like a charm!} Chill the mixture for 30 minutes.  Shape mixture into 1 inch balls and place them on wax paper-lined baking sheets.  Chill the balls again for another 20 minutes or so.  Create and/or melt the dipping chocolate and drop the balls one at a time into it.  Using a fork, remove the ball from the dipping chocolate, let the excess chocolate drip off briefly, and place on the wax paper to dry.  Makes approxiamately 35.  Store tightly sealed in the refrigerator or freezer.