Challenges and Chocolate Hopes

Greetings all,
I hope it didn't show too much in my post on Wednesday,  but this has been something of a difficult week. Following a nice gentle "settling in" period at work, I am now suddenly being asked to do things and discuss the results with some level of intellectual input. Perhaps it shouldn't have been quite the surprise that it was, but by golly I wasn't prepared for that!
Still, it is far better to be challenged so that my brain doesn't turn into a slug whilst I am here, and today I was able to participate in a very interesting (to me at least) discussion about what our paper should contain when we write it. Bring on next week!
The last two evenings here have been absolutely beautiful, which has also helped to lift my gloom. On Wednesday I decided to make the most of the moody twilight and take some photos of my surroundings. If you are taking any interest in my Flickr feed, you may notice that there are a couple of sets entitled Sunlit Sprinkler Systems and Concrete Playground, which may give you a feel for the limited subject matter I have in my immediate vicinity, but which I nonetheless had lots of fun putting together.
Last night I (finally) managed to rent a bicycle and so sped off into Richland to delight in all of its diversions. The lake path is just as beautiful by bike, and much much quicker. I arrived in town to find a free rock concert in the main square, which I made the most of and just had time to sample the fare at "Wendy's" (essentially it's MacDonalds but with "rustic" chips!) before heading home.
Now, I'm aware this could so easily become an American Food blog, and though I am not trying to make it such, this is a tea break, so some discussion of munchies is only fair. Besides, I simply have to tell you about chocolate and macadamia hopes.
Oh just repeating the name of them makes me glad I have one stashed in my cupboard.
Chocolate and macadamia hopes are easily the most delicious food I have tasted while I am here, but that doesn't do them justice (mac and cheese was not good, and the PB&J is still lurking in my cupboard). A hope is a lot like a cookie, but about the thickness of an Eccles cake and they sell them in the canteen here, still warm from the oven so that the chocolate chips are all melty and the whole macadamia nuts pleasantly crunchy. In summary, I cannot think of a more delectable companion for afternoon tea. Next up: pretzel-centred m&ms!