My New Roommate, Part IV

That’s right, I’m bringing Roman numerals back to the blogosphere.

I take having roommates very seriously. My family and friends are welcome to stay with me whenever they want, but houseguests are one thing, and roommates are a completely different matter. I’ve been lucky in that I’ve never had any horrible roommate situations, but now I’m at a point in my life where I prefer living alone. I don’t want a roommate, I don’t need a roommate.

But there are always exceptions. And that brings us back to the Roman numerals.

Whenever I see brussel sprouts on the stalk, I immediately bring one home to live with me, with the hopes that we will become best friends and inseparable roommates. It never turns out that way. One of us always ends up devouring the other.

My first brussel sprout stalk roommate and I lived together way back in October 2010, when this blog was a wee little blogling. It was the first time I’d ever seen a brussel sprout stalk in my life, and I was mesmerized. I snatched it up and brought it home, and it took well to my apartment, and even helped with the chores. You can read about it here.

My next brussel sprout stalk roommate was the exact opposite from the first one. It borrowed my shoes without asking and kicked my ass in Scrabble ever single time. Read that recap here.

My third brussel sprout stalk roommate was the worst yet! It filled my bed with crumbs and keep trying to scare me. Click here for the full story.

You think I’d have learned my lesson, right? Nope. They had brussel sprout stalks at Trader Joe’s the other day, and I couldn’t resist bringing one home.

And…. guess what? It was a troublemaker. Boy, was it a troublemaker. Within minutes, it had filled my desktop with internet porn…

…and that night I busted it using my toothbrush!

The fact that it couldn’t be bothered to close the lid on the toothpaste was extra demerits. But I will say this: at least this brussel sprout stalk felt guilty. After I flew off the handle about the toothbrush, it stayed out of my way for a while. I think it was trying to blend in with its surroundings, although a brussel sprout stalk is very easily spotted.

Feeling guilty wasn’t enough, though. The brussel sprout stalk refused to apologize, so I had no choice. It wasn’t long before the maiming began.

The brussel sprouts ended up my crockpot, alongside an onion and some broccoli and cauliflower I wanted to use up. I added some Ponzu sauce, which is an Asian sauce that often used for dumplings.

I haven’t tried the concoction yet – I forgot to take pictures when it was finished, and now it’s separated into smaller containers for some of my lunches this week. But I’m sure it’ll be a delicious way to cap off another brussel sprout stalk roommate experience.

When will I ever learn?

Before I go, I wanted to share some pictures from a great hike I went on yesterday. I went with my friend Krueger and her friend Jane to Calabasas Peak, a beautiful area about 40 minutes away. We hiked on trails in and around Red Rock Canyon, and climbed on some stunning rock formations. All told, we hiked for 3.5 hours – a fantastic afternoon!

There I am, on a rock.

Krueger, on a different rock.

Me, on yet another rock.

Keep it up, David!