peel the chayote before steaming

I forgot. But it didn't matter - chayote is so yummalicious (and healthy, too!) that I'll even eat it with my hands, sliding each section through my teeth. They say to alternate colors of vegetables, for more nutrients, but I'm a fan of the greens - chayote, zucchini, broccoli, cucumbers, spinach, cabbage. Yum. Though I have been eyeing the pumpkins in the grocery store, thinking of a yummy pumpkin soup I had once. Or made once. I don't remember. One thing that The Roommate said when we separated is that she'll miss my cooking because she really likes it. So do I. After Jenny's visit and hitting several bad eating spots, I've pretty much given up on eating out. Isn't that CRAZY!? In New Orleans?! I'll get over it, I'm sure, but for now, I rush home to mix up a pita stuffed with 9-vegetable salad and just the lightest touch of Cesar dressing. Everyplace else, they put too much dressing on, too few vegetables, something wrong. Or a yummy chick pea-chicken-couscous dish I made last night (it's all C's this week, in honor of CeCe's cholera). All I hope is that Dayton and the girls like my cooking. Or that he does the majority of cooking. Or both.

Here are more random thoughts as I don't do my homework (it's CrimLaw, and lots of cases about parents killing their children - it's not fun and I need another break):
My Torts prof is getting to be as annoying as the stalker chick. Today in class he used my name as an example FIVE TIMES and even came up to my seat to express some BS about me being almost killed and lying in a hospital bed. OK, I'm flattered that he knows my name. Maybe he has fond associations with my name. But he needs to KNOCK IT OFF if only because The Anti-Colonizer who sits beside me is getting annoyed about all the attention in our vicinity. It's creepy, too. It's different in a class of 20 people - but we have over 70 people in the class. And it's different when you're in classes where you NEED examples and kids WANT to be used as such. Nothing like that here!

I'm in "babeville." People here (outside the law school, of course) use "babe" all the time. I was walking home from the gym today and on the way a street was blocked off for picking up debris, and the guy holding the sign and flags said, "Hold on, babe" and he ran to tell the guys to stop to let me pass. Or, I walk up to customer service at Winn Dixie to get some stamps and the woman behind the counter says, "Whacha need, babe?" Or when I run into my former neighbor Paulette at Whole Foods, I get a "How ya likin' it there, babe?"

I like the babe. I get a little miffed now when people call me "ma'am." It distances me from them. I mean, it's ok when people significantly younger say "ma'am," but not when a store clerk does.

Simultaneously, Dayton has started calling me that regularly. I'm not sure if I called him that and he picked up on it, or if he just suddenly was aware that it's a good thing to call me. I think I've even started saying it right - it's a real soft B at the end.

I still haven't gotten used to using titles here - it's awkward for me. "Yes, sir," and "Yes, ma'am," are worlds away from the reality I was raised in. But it's rude here to not. To just say "yes" or "no" is missing something - and to the people I don't want to call babe, there's a silence that puts a flashing sign above my head, "NOT FROM THE SOUTH." Because the accent, I can get it good now - my ear has it picked up and I'll slip into whatever accent is being used (though with the Chalmette accent, it doesn't feel as natural). And people, IT'S NOT A DRAWL. Dr. John speaks with a drawl, but he's not typical New Orleans. Don't get me wrong - he's pure New Orleans. I just haven't heard many people here who talk like him.

On that, check this out. Dr. John designed boxers from the NOLA Sewage and Water Board meters, with the wisdom: "Remember, the more shorts you have, the less often you have to do laundry!" Truer words never spoke. And here's a link to a good song of his.