Ciocolatto!

Hoping to get some temporary relief to my cold and headache I decided to make myself a cup of hot something. I search through the various sachets stashed in one of my desk's drawers and finally settle on one called Alfonso's Gourmet Cocoa. I fill my large mug with hot water from the hot pot in the office kitchen and pour in the contents of sachet. To my delight, I find that it tastes not like typical 3-in-1 hot chocolate mix but more like the kind of cocoa drink you get from chocolate tablea (large round tablets of cocoa that you dissolve in boiling water in a saucepan). Very reminiscent of the thick rich hot chocolate we had in Rome a few years ago! Mmmm.

Evolution?

On my way to the ladies' restroom, I saw a stray tom cat come running out of the men's restroom. A common litter box was probably no longer good enough for him.

Inheritance

It's just my second day back from Holy Week break and I'm constantly harassed by students who want to know their current class standings, when their final exams will be, need to present their thesis to me before their coming defense on Wednesday, etc. On top of this, I've also been receiving requests from those higher up in the university's administration to produce so-and-so documents or papers needed on this-and-that date. The latter is all part of my responsibilities that go with my administrative role here in our department. No wonder a former colleague who use to hold this position was so stressed out when dealing with all this especially at this time of the year. And now it's my turn.

Heard again

I'm listening to WFIU radio over the Internet and the piano concerto being played sounds familiar. I'm guessing that it's by Camille Saint-saens when a passage tells me that it's definitely by that composer. I hadn't heard this concerto (Piano Concerto No. 4 in c minor) for more than twenty years. The last time I heard it was during a piano concerto competition where the accompaniment was provided on a second piano.