More Lemony Goodness and a Magical Tale

Lemons are my new favorite food. They are a springy color, they smell fantastic and you can slice them up and put them in your bath. This dish has lemon zest in it, enough said.
This refreshing meal is sophisticated, delicious and just speaks of springtime. The vibrant colors of the vegetables and the tangy zing of the dressing makes this dish look wonderful and taste delicious. It can be a little expensive (for poor college students) and it takes a bit of time, but it is worth it.

Lemony Shrimp with Couscous (adapted from my roommate's recipe card)
1cup water
3/4 cup uncooked couscous
1cup cooked, peeled and deveined shrimp (You can cook and devein your own shrimp if you have the patience or want an excuse to talk to someone for a long time)
1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper
1/4 cup very finely chopped fresh parsley
3 Tablespoons chopped green onions
Almost 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon zest
2 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Boil 1 cup water in small saucepan; add couscous. Immediately remove from heat cover and let stand 5 minutes or until done. Fluff with fork. Chop shrimp into large pieces, careful not to cut them too small as they will lose presence in couscous, you could even leave them whole if you wanted. Add chopped shrimp, green onions and red pepper to couscous. Mix lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, allspice, salt, and pepper and then pour over couscous mixture. Cover and chill for at least an hour to let flavors set, overnight if desired.

Red Pepper Salad (adapted from my roommate's recipe card)
1/4 cup canola oil
1-2 (?) teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1-2 (?) teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
ground pepper
several large bell peppers (1 green, 1 yellow and 1 red makes a nice coloring)

Cut peppers into strips. Beat together oil, vinegars and salt together. Pour over peppers  and adjust taste as needed, aka add more balsamic or red wine vinegar. Cover and let sit for at least 30 min.

*Just an idea: The shrimp and couscous has a very delicate flavor than some can enjoy on its own. If you want to add a little more kick try mixing the couscous with the red pepper salad. The dressing on the red peppers will make the whole meal more intense.

And for the Magical Tale- This is a story I started writing earlier in the semester. It is not finished and I have no idea where it is going but enjoy it for what it is!

Part I: The Chapter in Which an Old Man Comes to my Work

 The Chapter in Which an Old Man Comes to my Work 

So I was sitting at my computer at work today just fuming. I had just gotten off the phone with an angry mom and my cold just made everything at least 52 times worse. I couldn't breathe and it was way too hot and things kept going wrong. I was stressed about housing too. I was sitting at my desk just feeling sorry for myself when the front door opened. An old man with a long white beard strode in purposefully. His long brown robe seemed slightly out of place in the normal BYU gear clad students who all stared up at him. He walked over to my desk and just stared at me. I can't recall the last time an old man with a robe approached me at work so I didn't know proper protocol. I'll admit I was probably a little rude.
"Um hi. "
"Hello Cynthia" He responded quite pleasantly.
"Can I help you?" I asked dumbly
"Yes. You can follow me"
At this point everyone in the room was staring at me. I had no idea what to do. I was weirded out, I was tired and confused and I was pretty sure the heat was making me hallucinate this whole thing.
"Um. I'm sorry, but I'm at work right now..." I trailed off hoping he would just leave.
"Ah" he said with a mysterious air.
But the thing was, I was not in the mood for mysterious people. Actually I was not in the mood for people period. I shifted uncomfortably in my chair and looked at Sheri across the desk. She looked at me with wide eyes and shrugged her shoulders. I swear I always get the crazy people on my shift.
The old man leaned in closer over my desk and lowered his voice.
"You have a choice Cynthia. You can take a chance for a great life with me or you can stay here in the safety of your own mediocre life"
Now I should have argued about my life being mediocre, because its really not. But instead I shrunk into my seat and remained silent.
"You have exactly 9 seconds to choose starting now" He looked away from me for the first time since entering the room and stared intently at the clock behind me. I dont know what overcame me, I really dont. But I stood up, grabbed my backpack and joined him outside of my desk.
"Thats better" he said with a little half smile "Now lets get going"
"Can i change first? I am still in my work clothes"
"I don't think that will be necessary" he said casually
I looked down at myself and realized my slacks and heels had been replaced with long shorts and hiking boots. I looked up to see that the counseling center had melted away and I was in the middle of an unfamiliar forest. Thoroughly weirded out and regretting my rash decision to leave work with a strange old man, I turned to look at him. He as sitting calmly on a rock with his eyes closed. I know it is probably rude to interrupt people who are supposed to be meditating or something, but I figured it was also kind of rude to wisk away unsuspecting Cynthia's into forests without telling them why.
"Ummm excuse me" I said softly
He didn't hear me or chose to ignore me and so I called again loudly.
"Hey! I'm still here. Wherever here is..."
"Oh I know you are still here, I can feel your anger and turmoil in the air around you"
"I'm not angry" I said defensively, "I just want to know whats going on!"
"I will explain what is going on when you are ready"
I looked at him with obvious disdain on my face, "I'm ready now"
"Oh no you are not, we have a great deal ahead of us and i need you to be as prepared as possible'
"Oh and not telling me anything will really solve that" i muttered sarcastically.
The old man opened one eye and peered at me, "Oh yes, you are perfect for this"
"For what?!" I finally yelled at him.
Both of his eyes shot open and he glared at me. "Shh. you will wake them..."

Both of his eyes shot open and he glared at me. "Shh. you will wake them..."

As far as I could see, we were alone in this strange forest "Wake who?"

"The babies, they are very sensitive to loud noises"

Now I like babies, I really do, but for some reason I got the feeling that babies wouldn't just be hanging out in the middle of a forest. "I don't see any babies..."

"That's because they are sleeping Cynthia"

"And how do you even know my name? I should have asked you that before I let you drag me here"

"I know your name because I already know you. I have known you for years"

I looked at him quizzically. This better not be one of those weird Star Wars things where I find out this creeper is my grandfather or something...

"So how come i don't know you?"

"Oh you do. Just in a different way." he answered vaguely

"Please, enlighten me" I said as I plunked down in the dirt.

"All in good time, first I think you should meet the babies" And with that he stood up from the boulder and strode purposefully into the woods. I had no choice but to stand up and follow. We scrambled over brush and broken trees and I found myself panting to keep up with this 90 year old crazy man. The air got drier as we went further in and it soon became too hot for the light jacket I was wearing. We stopped at the edge of a murky pool of water and the old man stooped down and scooped some in his hands to drink. The dirty water hardly looked sanitary but I was fairly thirsty at this point. As I dipped my hands in the water I was shocked at how cold the water was, it felt like glacier runoff and certainly did not belong in this burning hot forest. I noticed the old man was watching me carefully as I drank the water. Oddly, as the muddy water hit my mouth, I felt much better. The forest around me solidified and I straightened up. The old man looked satisfied and steered me toward a shallow pool of water contained in a few rocks. I looked down at the pool and back at the old man with my eyebrows raised. 

"Those are lizards" i said bluntly "You brought me all this way to see some baby lizards?"

"Look closer Cynthia"

I stooped down and stared intently at the lizards. They were the same murky color as the water around them and they had unhealthy looking lumps covered in slime on their backs. They were actually kind of cool looking and their eyes were sort of different, but nothing too out of the ordinary. 

"Can I pick them up?"

The old man smiled for the first time, "Of course"

I picked up the smallest one, its tiny claws scraping my palm. It was so small, its whole body fit in my hand and just its tail flopped over the edge. I laughed out loud as he tried to slip between my fingers. 

The slimy lumps on the lizards back began to quiver and I froze. I looked over at the old man with concern but he was still smiling. I watched as the slime parted and a wiry little appendage poked out. More skin unfolded to reveal a rather crumpled pair of wings. 

To be Continued