The promised details

Regarding moving: Andrew and I are moving in together, so at least one of us would have needed to move. We both love my place, but at $1200 plus utilities, this puts it at a bit over fifty percent of our combined monthly incomes, which is a scary place to be. I figured that by getting a one bedroom instead of a two bedroom apartment, we could save money. But this place will be even cheaper than we expected (a huge selling point). Our list of pros and cons were both long, but the pros were definitely longer. The landlord (living below) smokes like a chimney - con. It's in my current neighborhood, where you can walk to dozens of shops and there's decent public transportation - pro. It's tiny - con. But there's loads of storage - pro. I'm allowed to put in a garden - pro. It's decorated in 1960's dark wood paneling and fake brick - figure that one out yourself.

We're moving in late July, so that means there's still a long time to wait before we discover if we chose well or not. But we've chosen, and (except at 4am when I can't sleep and all the world is a scary place) I think we've chosen well. And, for goodness sakes, it's only an apartment.

Regarding the rolls: First off, I don't even know what they're called. Some recipes call them "Vietnamese Fresh Spring Rolls," some "Summer Rolls," some "Salad Rolls." But here's how you make them.

1. Get thee to an Asian grocery, and buy rice vermicelli and rice paper rounds.
2. Cook the rice vermicelli about 5-8 minutes, until done, and then drain and rinse with cold water.
3. Slice into matchsticks or thin slices the flavoring ingredients. Vegetables should be raw, but meat cooked and cooled. I used red pepper, lots of fresh basil, and fried tofu, but other recipes call for bean sprouts, lettuce, carrots, cilantro, mint, shrimp, or pork.
4. Soak each paper round in warm water for about 30 seconds just until soft. Lay it on the plate, fill with a handful of cooked noodles and a few of each of your flavorings, and then roll like a burrito.
5. I made a dipping sauce of peanut butter, rice vinegar, and chili sauce, but I think you could also try peanut and lime, maybe with some cilantro, with heat to taste.
6. They say that you can prepare them a few hours ahead of time, but I ate the leftovers from the meal two days later and the basil was still crunchy, although the skin tore more easily.

Here's what theylook like. Yum.