Nuke-you-lar

Hmm, it wasn't that exciting of a week. I had a major paper due on Friday, so I wrapped that up Thursday evening. It was a research paper, and I do actually enjoy looking through historical sources and writing about what I find. I was specifically talking about the Fourth of July and Pioneer Day in 1880. Emmeline B. Wells wrote a speech about the contributions of pioneer women, but her speech was read by a man because it was suspicious for women to speak to mixed audiences in those days.

Anyway, that's not the only thing I was working on. I have a presentation I have to give on Thursday this coming week for my science and technology class. I will be discussing the history of paleontology. I'm not done yet, and I'm nervous, but it's nice to know that no matter what, whether my presentation goes well or poorly, it will all be done after Thursday. Then I will be done with two of my three biggest projects for the semester.

Since I was working on these things, I basically told myself I couldn't have fun until they were done, but there were still some things I was able to do. 

We grad students in the science and technology class read a book called The Radiance of France, which was about how France formed a national identity around nuclear power in the postwar/Cold War era. It was a well written book, but I found the topic to be a little boring. Anyway, one of the students arranged for us to go on a tour of a nuclear reactor on the University of Utah campus. We had to leave our recording devices in another room, then we put on blue lab coats as we gathered around the reactor. It was a giant pool of clear water. At first I thought it was an empty pool with glass on top, since it was so clear. There were lots of fuel rods in it. There was also an older reactor that hadn't been used in decades; it was painted with the U's logo and some Egyptian hieroglyphics. But our tour guide operated under the assumption that we knew how nuclear reactors work. I don't really. So it was interesting to see the reactor, but the tour went on very long, and I didn't feel like I learned much. Before we left, they put a Geiger counter to our hands and the soles of our shoes to make sure we weren't exposed to radiation.

I also told myself that I couldn't have fun, but trail running is exercise, even though it is fun, so I was able to do that twice this week: once on the Woodbriar Trail,

and once in North Canyon, my very favorite place.

Even though it no longer has the green of June or the yellow of September, North Canyon in November still has its own stunning beauty.

When I'm doing homework, Jimmy likes to sit on my lap. It makes it harder to type, but it makes homework that much better.

He also likes to come on my bed in the middle of the night when he hears me moving around, so I will lie on my back so he can come sit on me. That makes it hard to go back to sleep. But I can't be mad at him. I don't know how much longer I will still have him, so I have to love him while I can.

 ***

Time for another installment of pumpkinundation roundup!

Trader Joe's Thanksgiving Pie Chocolate Truffles have four flavors (left to right): salted caramel pecan, caramel apple cinnamon, cranberry ginger cinnamon, and chocolate and vanilla crème. The first is enjoyable but more caramel than pecan. 8/10. The apple is paradoxically the most like a pie but least good; the flavor feels artificial. 6/10. The cranberry doesn't taste much like cranberry, but it's still nice. 7/10. And the last is good but boring. 7/10.

Pumpkin Pie Larabars have actual pumpkin, but they are just OK. 6/10.

I was eager to try the new Crumbl Pecan Pie Cookie, since they do a terrible job of scheduling seasonal cookies and pecan pie is my favorite pie. The cookie tastes like shortbread, and the filling is reminiscent of pecan pie. But I just didn't think they worked that well together. It was good but not great. 7/10.

Trader Joe's has a lot of turkey stuff this time of year, so I didn't know whether Trader Joe's Turkey Corn Dogs were a seasonal offering or a regular one. I thought the hot dog was too tough, but then again, our microwave is weird. 6/10.

The Fiiz Pumpkin Spice Frappe mostly tastes like caramel, but at least it doesn't taste as artificial as some pumpkin spice products. I don't actually know what's in a frappe. 7/10.

bNutty Pecan Pie Gourmet Peanut Butter is one of those peanut butters you have to stir first, and I hate that! It has crunchy bits. It's a sweet peanut butter, but I wouldn't really call it a pecan pie flavor. 7/10.

This B&D Burgers Pumpkin Shake was OK. It had a weak pumpkin flavor, but it wasn't very exciting. 6/10.

Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Creamy Cashew Cultured Yogurt Alternative is a vegan version of Greek Yogurt. Wait—you mean people are taking something that is not Greek yogurt and trying to make it taste like Greek yogurt? I thought the only appeal of Greek yogurt was its protein content. It certainly doesn't taste that good. This has the same sourness. 4/10.

The Trader Joe's Gobbler Quesadilla has turkey, butternut squash, kale, and cranberries. It's hard to go wrong with a quesadilla, though I could do without the rough texture of the kale. 8/10.

I got these Bobo's Apple Pie Stuffed Oat Bites at the Fourth of July and had one leftover. The apple filling might not be super authentic, but it adds some needed moisture to the dry oat bar. 7/10.

Trader Joe's Turkey & Pumpkin Mole Burrito doesn't taste that seasonal, and I'm not a huge fan of mole, but it's hard to go wrong with a burrito. 7/10.