Explanation

I think that last entry requires a little bit of explanation. Why on earth would I go on a three-page rant about cheeses? Why would I spend that much on cheese? Well, I'll start from the beginning.

Alice likes Boar's Head ham. It's the only type of ham she had ever eaten before coming to Oklahoma. But it's elite. They don't sell it at Walmart, which is basically the main grocery store in these parts. So one day Alice asked the woman behind the Walmart deli counter if there was anywhere nearby that might have it. The helpful Walmart employee quickly named Forward Foods as the place to go. I remembered having seen it on Main Street while riding deliveries, so one Sunday afternoon, Alice and I took a trip up to Main Street and walked around. We found Forward Foods with relative ease. It turns out that that store and the one next to it (a record shop) are the only two places open on Sundays. Anyway, we go in, and I am AWED by their cheese display. I mean, just look at that! So I go to the counter and read the descriptions on several of them, but there were just too many to read them all. So I tell the person behind the counter that I have no idea what I'm looking for, except that I'm hoping for something on the less expensive end--I am, after all, a college student. He asks me if I've tried the "Prima Donna" and I say no, so he slices off a sample of it for me.

OH MY GOD. Have I mentioned lately how much I love good cheese? I think it was even better because I haven't had real cheese in such a long time. I've been limited to the Walmart selection--and they hardly even stock extra sharp cheddar down here. They have nothing for those of us with more sophisticated cheese tastes. But this Prima Donna was delicious. I ask how much it is... Oh... oh... um... Hmm... That's the trouble with good cheeses. They're really flipping expensive. $16.99/lb... I try a few more cheeses, on the less expensive end, but he started me off with one of the best and I just couldn't bring my mind away from it. I bought 0.42 lb. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how it all began.

A few days later, I was telling Kate about all this. She tried my Prima Donna, loved it, and we decided that we would have to have a cheese party. Thursday, February 12, we walked back up to Main Street and went to Forward Foods. We took pictures on the way (remind me to upload these--it includes a picture of the James Garner statue!) and then when we were inside, we hatched a plan. We would split the costs of buying several really small samples of cheese. $3 samples, to be precies. And 10 of them. Well, we ran a little bit over our intended price range. $41.50 was our final total. Although, in our defense, that included crackers. Yeah, a kind of weak defense, I know. Also in our defense, it was delicious.

And then you have people like Richard, who just can't appreciate a good cheese. He tried a tiny piece of the Prima Donna and spit it out in the trash. I tried to keep him away from the rest of the cheeses after that incident, but one day Kate and I were partying it up in the office and he decided to scoop up a finger full of the bleu. That was dumb. That bleu is the cheese with the physical bite. I tried to warn him.

So that's our cheese adventure. Kate and I have tried all of our cheeses, but I haven't finished writing about them all, obviously. Nonetheless, deliciousness.

And now, a brief summary of everything else going on in my life:

• The Couch center president (who just replaced the previous president over break) is resigning. I intend to apply for his position. I'll probably be running against Eddie. Final decisions will probably be made by Thursday night.
• Shannon is happily moved in. It's working out very well.
• I had my first physics test of the semester yesterday. It went... alright. Could have been better.
• I had my first math test of the semester sometime last week. 47/50. That's a lot better than the first test in the previous semester: 53/100 (class average 37/100). Yeah, I like this teacher a lot better.
• On the same day that I got my math test back, I also got back the first real programming project from my Programming for Non-Majors class. 600/600. Bitchin'.
• I've become nocturnal again. I'm working on adjusting that. Last night I was actually asleep by 1:00. The previous night, I didn't go to sleep until 6:30.
• Big dilemma going on regarding spring break.