sheets off. eyes open. sunrays beaming their little solar powerparticles into my cheeks. mmmmm.

one small poke of hope dissolving the chinese water-torturous apocalyptic rains of late...

the days of summer are intensifying, as i'm working to complete my masters thesis (the writing's underway!), secure a job for the fall, and yet still enjoy the sweetness of each day. happily enough, i have recently discovered a job opening that i've been forever secretly yearning for; a girl couldn't ask for a more satisfying position her first year in the real world. i'll keep it secret for now, just so i dont jinx myself, but the prospect is so tantalizing that the excitement flitted through dreams, worked through freudian slips, and bathed existence in a rosy pink sheen. it's no secret that i work hard and passionately in projects i really believe in, sustaining by pure pleasure. right now i'm approaching one of the most critical milestones (to begin embracing the joys and headaches of the real world) and i want to follow the path that's most true to myself. not necessarily to my bank account or to what i've been trained to do, but something i can be proud of. something that satisfies. something that, frankly, will knock someone's pretty socks off.

so that's been keeping me going lately.

last week was the rainy class-of-2006 incarnation of commencement at mit and beyond...



here i present the 'graduating class' (quotes intentional) of the sociable media group. the happy enrobed grad is our resident dbdbking, francis, who has finished his masters and will go off and make big bucks on his pulsating pixels. his cute, proud mom came from hongkong, and there were tons of happy fams visiting lab to partake in the festivities and eat mini-quiches. aaron, on the left, is finishing up his masters this summer and continuing onto the ph.d. program this fall. as for me (my height defies the magic of photoshop), i'm completing my masters degree at the end of july (pretty strict personal deadline, though i have funding until august) and then moving on. mit, understandably, has a rule dictacting that you may not participate in commencement until you have truly finished (i.e. gotten your thesis signed). so ostensibly i should be in cap and gown next june, with my degree proudly clutched underneath hands that have been waiting for it for... so.... long.....

it was an incredible feeling to see the masses of black robes descending onto the green patches on campus. it stirred up a bit of nostalgia (hey, graduating college wasn't so far long ago, and wasn't too physically far either), yet i was a bit of a mixture between regret and determination. i should be out there, with hot new shoes and a hot new diploma, with friends and family and future. however, i must remind me that this is grad school, not college. time is not nearly as structured, as plentiful, or as predictable. at least half of the media lab masters candidates slated to graduate this spring need the summer to finish up. i joined smg nine months into my time at the lab, so i suppose i had a delayed start as well. i'm working now, regret-free, to get done what i need to get done. at least spending long hours in lab will provide copious free air-conditioning throughout the hazy days of summer. see? definitely a plus.

so yeah. job applications are flying and my spirit is soaring.

last week, in a flurry of slipshod gastronomy, i made these:



i often feel sorry for the veggies from boston organics that i neglect for days at a time. these taters were having a sprouts party, but i cooed for their forgiveness as i prepared garlic roasted potatoes, courtesy of michael chu of cooking for engineers (the recipe in chart form is the awesomely nerdy trademark). neck-in-neck with wasabi and nutella, course sea salt is a girl's best condiment friend.

last night i made a superb off-the-handle dinner for niknak and co (where co == christine). of course, inspired by the lonely organic vegetables in the pantry, i made a mashed sweet potato + sliced carrots deal (adapted from this recipe), laden with perfectly finishing touches of butter, honey, and red cayenne. it was thanksgiving on the tongue, i tell you. the main entrée was chicken with broccoli, green beans, rosemary, lemon, and garlic. i'm so proud for the meal, which was almost exclusively organic / free-range! yep, even the lemon. :) plenty of leftovers for another hungry-busting bash soon...

i know i promised another bout of zappos mania, but to be honest, the majority of them just didn't fit, and i get kind of frustrated with sandal fit and sizing. here's the relative best of the group:



vaneli qasim, being all delightfully 'i dont need a u after my q, thankyouverymuch'. black calf leather and a fierce little wedge. they're classy, italian-looking, and walk-round-town comfortable. however, they're a bit of a challenge to justify at $90. i still have some time to return them (a year, in fact), but i'm still reconsidering as the pair sits prettily in the living room...

hope everyone had fun knitting in public yesterday; i did my bit at the amc movie theatre in fenway, where i saw x-men3 with my roomie (our first date!). the movie, especially compared the first two in the series, was a bit disappointing: a film review shall be forthcoming. while i waited for the showtime i worked on my cashmere scarf next to the DDR machine, which played the same unfairly catchy dance mix every five minutes. bubbly pop, bubbly pop...