Gift

Cara purred for me today. Not sure what got into her, but she plopped herself down in front of me as I worked on the computer. In addition to making the screen go nuts will all the tricks her belly does to the keyboard, she purred as I scratched her neck and face. It wasn't like Angel's I-am-so-happy-my-belly-rumbles purr, but it was lovely. Just a tiny hum with minimal rumbling even when I touched her throat. I'll take it. I think this makes it her third purr since we adopted her.

Duh-nce

Ok, I know I'm not the brightest person in the world, state, or even my county. I have odd random thoughts a lot. Here's a question for you...

Our culture doesn't generally revere older people. They're fine and all but we don't adore them the way, say the Japanese, respect and cherish their seniors. Many of our seniors are essentially put out to pasture in theirs 60s from the workplace, subtly or not. We claim that they aren't as quick thinking or innovative or whatever. True or not, we don't think older workers are as productive or efficient. If that's the case, why do we elect politicians who are often in their 60s and 70s? Wouldn't they be just as slow as Betty in Marketing or Harold in Engineering? I mean, wouldn't Senator Age 72 be just as slow or tired? Is it because Congress isn't really run by the politicians but their staff?

Santa Claws

(sniff) You stink. You smell like beef and cheese! You don't smell like Santa.


Santa came early this year. Our kids are so spoiled. We won a raffle held by our favorite store, PetSage. I love the knowledgeable staff and how the owner cares about our kitties' well-being and not just her profits. Earlier this year, she removed most of her dry cat food because they didn't meet her standards. She's got a degree in animal nutrition or something like that. Anyway, we won! This picture doesn't show the gift well, but I love Davis' facial expression. More on Flickr. I thought it was a sleigh shaped scratcher but it's not quite that. It was displayed very high up so I didn't get a good view of it. We won't talk about the price sticker on it, eh?

We put up a tree this year (didn't last year bc of travel) and the kids love it. Davis has this ability to be quietly laying down somewhere and quickly slip into the library when he hears the doors open. He's really good at it too. Like her nemesis, Cara loves to chew on the pine needles. Despite them being FAKE. She's much slicker than Davis though. He goes "ooh, tree!" and starts chomping. Cara takes her time. "La la la...I'm just laying her like a good little girl, mom. What? I can sniff the tree if I want." nibble nibble, CHOMP!

Tree Decorating 101

Oh Christmas tree...

My Special Someone

I love Bri. :) Pretty much sums it up, eh? Applicable in so many different situations!

I have no idea how she did it, but she found me measuring cups AND spoons made in USA! I'll be placing an order once I figure out how many to buy of each. Gotta share the love, you know. I suddenly feel the urge to hoard...BUT it's really to maximize the cost of shipping.

Thank you Bri!!!!

Christmas Wish

"The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear." ~Buddy the Elf

My Christmas wish this year is for someone to find me a set of measuring cups or spoons made in USA. That special someone doesn't have to buy them for me--just tell me where I can find such items. Material type unimportant. Cost is no object. They just have to be semi-normal measuring cups or spoons. Not the gaudy ones "as seen on Paula Deen" on Amazon. Mission IMPOSSIBLE.

PSA

I got this from a group/forum. Not sure of original source. Pretty cat.

Name Calling

Marion Nestle refers to people like me as pet guardians/parents. Kinda neat. Everyone knows cats aren't owned by anyone. I certainly protect and care for my kids like a guardian or parent though.

I had a CPS note on an adopter application. CPS. Child (or in this case, Cat) Protective Services? Turns out it was from Chief Pooper Scooper aka Director. Wah. I was in tears. I think that will be QE's new title. He can add that to his alphabet soup professional credentials.

BBF

Six years ago today, I took the day off work to pick up my buddy from the shelter. I got there as soon as it opened because I didn't want my boy to be in there any longer than he had to. My precious boy only cost us $23--feline leukemia test $15, flea treatment $5, collar $3. Talk about the deal of the century! Seriously though, it kinda makes me wonder why anyone would pay $300 to a breeder. We met Davis the weekend before at a public shelter. He was in the sick room because he caught a cold. I held him against my belly. He purred. As we gazed into each other's eyes, I asked if we could be his parents. I told him I wanted to be his mommy. That was the last time I got to hold him without getting smacked or bitten.

His days were already numbered when I contacted the Humane Society about him. Knowing he would probably get put down the weekend of our meeting definitely put pressure on me to adopt him. I don't regret it though. No, Davis is not the perfect cat. He is not normal. I call him special needs, our vet who has a similar cat, calls hers "not very bright" (hahaha). Davis' little heart was broken and he was probably mistreated in his past. He had no reason to trust humans. He didn't know his name when we adopted him. He learned "Davis" in about a week or two, so I don't think his previous humans interacted with him much. It's taken a lot of love and patience for our boy to trust us. What a long journey it's been. So worth it though.

Davis sleeps between my legs in the winter. If I cough excessively, he will walk up to my face and check to see if I am ok. He dashes to greet me when I wake up. He still only purrs and drools for me. That's why we will be best buddies forever.

Cholesterol

QE's cholesterol dropped more than 60 points. No changes in lifestyle other than me "making" him vegetarian. Pretty cool, eh?

He sometimes eats meat but rarely in my presence. It doesn't bother me if he does, but I do wish he ate good, healthy meat that was treated humanely while living.

Apparently salvaged pet food gets fed to the animals raised for human consumption. If you think about it, it's really gross. Pet food is usually made with beef, chicken or turkey by-products like ears, hooves, beaks, organs, etc--all the stuff that can't be made into hot dogs or sausage. If the pet food is non-saleable, it gets sold to farms (if you can call them that) as food for cows, pigs and chickens. So...these animals are forced to be cannibals. Normally this isn't an issue, except that during the pet food scare last year, some tainted food was fed to animals that were then slaughtered for human consumption.

Panic

I forgot that chickens molt in the winter (November-March). As of right now, Polyface has NO EGGS available. What am I going to do??? To make matters worse, my dad wants more eggs. I should encourage him to eat good pastured eggs but I can't provide him with any! How am I going to make it until March without eggs?? Our CSA has been providing us with a dozen almost weekly but it's not a steady supply. Meltdown in 3...2...1...

Plot

http://www.catswhothrowupgrass.com/kill.php

2+0=Bag

I have a bag fetish of sorts. I don't switch purses to match my outfits or anything, but I am always looking for that perfect tote, work bag, or purse. Timbuk2 has a sale on custom bags so of course I had to buy one. I asked my brother if he wanted to piggyback on my order since shipping would have been the same. Fast forward to last weekend and he busts my chops. "Why do you need another bag when you already have one?" Oh yeah...my moment of glory. "We have TWO incomes and ZERO kids, so I can buy as many bags I want and still spend less in a year than the cost of raising a kid." Oooffa! Got my tightwad bro where it hurt! :) Plus my bags' total value don't even come close to the Louis Vuitton bag his wife carries.

Cara and piglet had a mutual curiosity and fascination with each other. Very cute. The moment he walked into our house, Cara rushed over to inspect him. I held piglet's hand out for her to smell and then he gently touched her. Oh boy. He was so amused by her soft fur. He tried to pursue her so he could touch her again. Little sucker is a FAST crawler! Cara and Angel stayed out of piglet's reach most of the time. Treats weren't worth the possible assault from him.

Green Festival

We went to the Green Festival yesterday. It was a lot of fun to see all types of products, services, and advocacy groups there. The highlight for me was meeting Dr. Marion Nestle (rhymes with "wrestle") and having her sign my books. As an academic, she doesn't seem to be as warm and fuzzy or as eloquent as Joel Salatin. Dr. Nestle has another book coming out next year about the conflicts of interest veterinarians may have in putting patients on prescription diets. Most of these foods are corn-based, the very ingredient causing ailments in animals, especially cats.

The festival had a great turnout, lots of awesome vendors (and freebies!), and lots of enthusiastic participants. I think my challenge next year will be to go vegan for a week, AND not have my diet consist primarily of processed, pre-packaged vegan food.

Our CSA is going fantabulously. I am enjoying the autumn share much more than summer. All the beautiful squashes, greens, and eggs are just amazing. Just don't put turnip greens in lasagna. We've also gotten different varieties of apples and pears. There's a semi-tart red apple that I really like. It's very crisp and not mealy at all. The skin isn't all red like red delicious. We got another variety that is just cute--perfect little red apples with a good flavor. It's neat to see apples without that waxy, shiny coating on it. I think they taste better too.

sweater

Stories

My friends (ode to Darin!), I could not make up stories like this if I tried. Background: My performance appraisal last year consisted of them orally telling me I was doing fine. The department (non)manager nervously told me my bonus and raise without discussion.

In discussing why I wanted a performance appraisal this year, I told the lead Dementor that I wanted feedback on areas of improvement, and for my performance/growth to be documented. I used an example that if I dressed or behaved inappropriately, they would need it documented in case of an eventual termination. He responded with "Please dress inappropriately" and laughed.

Matchmaking

Well, I helped a meezer find her furever home! We are waiting for the Center to approve the match and I don't expect them to reject it. She's a special-needs kitty, so this make it all the more meaningful for me. It is so hard not to get emotionally attached to my adopters and the meezers. I am also helping transport two little boys to their furever homes tomorrow.

I am happy that I can help kitties but also saddened that there are SO MANY kitties needing a home! And this is only one rescue, saving only Siamese cats. There are many other cats, dogs, bunnies, ferrets, and a ton of other animals who desperately want to love and be loved.

Saving the world one kitty at a time.

Fraud

My new name for Cara is Fraud. She tricked us into adopting her.

Good Belly

I hate most dairy. The mere thought of milk makes me gag. I try to avoid buying milk so I don't have to touch the container and risk getting any milk cooties on my hands.

Walking through Wegmans yesterday, there were a few tasting tables set up. One of them was for Good Belly. The lady invited me to try a probiotic drink. I cautiously approached her, still uncommitted to actually standing in front of her display. She quickly chirps about what it is, sensing my skepticism. She said 'dairy-free' and my face relaxed with relief. I moved closer so she could tell me more about it. I tried and subsequently purchased the blueberry flavor.

QE thought the whole exchange was hilarious because it was obvious I was ready to run if she said yogurt, milk, or dairy. Once the lovely lady promised me no dairy was in sight, we were BFFs.

Heroes

Colin Powell endorsed Barack Obama. Wow. Powell is one of my heroes. He has integrity, ethics, and strong values; qualities not often exemplified, especially in public figures. I respect the man for his hard work and honesty. It will be interesting to see if this endorsement will sway or affect other Republicans.

I know one person who will remain unchanged. She is a down-home redneck racist who refuses to support Obama despite being a democrat because she "just can't". She can't bring herself to let "that one" become president because he is a secret Muslim terrorist out to inflict evil on our country. The scary part is that she is totally serious. I work with not one, but two people who openly express these views. What's laughable is that they will tell ME of all people about their biases.

Just a few weeks ago, this same woman told me how she was horrified to see two middle school boys walking with her granddaughter after school. One of the boys had his arms around the girl. Long story short, she wasn't mad that the boys were hanging off her granddaughter or that one said "she's my bitch". It was because the boys were black and she was aghast at what the neighbors might think.

My Ra

QE calls our youngest Caranator (like Terminator) since she leaves a path of violence and destruction. Apparently many cats get returned, even YEARS later. I still wonder if we're doing the right thing by keeping our little RaRa.

There's something about her that is so darn cute! We tend to forgive her antics because the sweet moments are so precious, it makes everything worthwhile. The way she grabs for treats, the way she looks around while laying flat on her back, the way she answers "noooo" when asked if she loves mommy.

I guess I equate our relationship with the cats to marriage. Well, theoretically anyway. We chose to create this relationship, so it only seems right to honor our commitment and endure "for better or for worse". There are a few instances where a divorce is necessary, like abuse or illegal activities, but there's nothing equivalent in the animal world. Those things don't spontaneously develop, so I wonder whether both parties entered the marriage with sound mind and judgment. Given the divorce rate, I have to think that most are for convenience. Being too young when married, growing apart, or just falling out of love are lame excuses. That is plain lack of effort, poor decision making, or a third party. Given the commonality of divorce, it's no surprise that disposing of animals doesn't even register to many people. Easy come, easy go. We can now dump off unwanted children at a hospital with no questions asked!

Cara seems content most of the time. I don't think the rescue tricked us into adopting her. I chose her. Her adoption photo was a bad-ass rebel cat--she's sitting behind a bookcase with a scowl on her face. Sigh...if only I didn't think it was cute or funny. But I did. And now I pay the price for it. Every. Single. Day. I keep waiting for that one day when Cara realizes she enjoys being loved and is glad to be sharing her life with us.

I have fallen for a handsome young fellow. His hindleg was recently amputated. He is a lovebug but we can't take him in because we already live in a war zone. Thanks a lot, CARA!

Yesh

Mooch has the right philosophy on life--focus on the good things, keep your perspective, and everything will be fine. I left work a little after noon today and it was awesome. It was just nice to be away from Azkaban.

So much going on. Made some good changes in my life. A cleansing of sorts, I think. I am getting way too attached to the meezers. Not sure if that's a good idea. It's probably not healthy for me to be so emotionally involved.

I can't decide if my kitties are killers. I bought them a rabbit fur toy. It had feathers on one end so I don't have to actually touch the fur. Cara and Davis both showed interest in it but have not "killed" it yet. Does that mean they are compassionate? They've lost their predator edge?

She would never admit it, but Cara loves me. She will scurry from wherever she is to greet me. She waits for me to take her collar at night and give her a neck scratch. Cara purred for me once. Oh, what a treat!

Piglet will be here in a bit over a month! I keep seeing workbooks and have the urge to buy some for him until I remember he's not even one yet. Ooops.

Driving home today, school buses were dropping off children. No big deal, except that there were parents waiting at the bus stops for the kids!! The bus deposits children right out side the various apartment complexes in broad daylight. Was it necessary for an adult to be there waiting? Very cool though. It's a foreign concept to me since my SAHM never did that with me. Even on my first day of kindergarten, I walked to the bus stop alone. She waved at me from our balcony. When we moved, I walked to school alone beginning in first grade. Mom was rarely awake in the mornings when I left for school. Never means none--rarely means maybe a handful of times from kindergarten through high school. Heck, there were times when AM kindergarten was canceled because of snow and I was at the bus stop. The big kids had to tell me I didn't have school and to go home. So given my experiences, it's very weird for me to see parents waiting at a bus stop for their tater tots.

Hallmark Holiday

On behalf of all the animals in the world, Happy World Vegetarian Day!


Ellen was at some event and Proposition 2 came up. She said something like "I know lots of stupid people and we don't kill them!"

Eden

Your result for Reincarnation Placement Exam...

Garden of Eden

34% Intrigue, 29% Civilization, 47% Humanity, 15% Urbanization.

It's the Garden of Eden for you!

Well, this is about as cozy and simple as life can get. We hope you like it here. The real estate is not well developed, but the garden is top-flight.

Your answers indicate that you basically want to just coast through life. You don't want any trouble, and you don't want any special privileges either. That's fine with us. It's entirely possible to live a pleasant life without trouble or strife, and Eden is the perfect spot for it, as long as you don't... well...

Just try to behave better than the previous tenants. Evictions can be rough.

Take Reincarnation Placement Exam at HelloQuizzy

The Good Life

Aside from the message, everyone can now see what I've seen in-person--cheepy chicks, furry piggies, cows coming when called! Very cool. Maybe the moo-moos can tutor my kitties.

We got mutant eggs with our CSA share this week. We are officially overloaded with eggs now. Not to mention I am picking up another (ahem!) dozen this week. And we still have (cough!) dozen in the fridge. Quiche anyone?

Having been separated from QE for a week, it's really cool to know that I can be independent. Oddly, the kitties don't miss him. At all. Kinda freaks me out, actually.

I have been semi-vegetarian for over a year now. Ate meat at two weddings (talk about crappy food!) Had sushi for dad's bday, did that weekend flesh binge in May. I think that was it. This year I want to be 100% vegetarian, so I need to be more conscious of how cheeses are made. I've found a few vegetarian/vegan groups in Ravelry. It's nice to have the support and know I'm not the only one who fields rude comments and questions. Now that I think about it, I think my entire day has been vegan, without even trying! Amy's breakfast burrito, grilled veggie sandwich, pasta with CSA veggies.

A Drink to Our Health

The first large study of humans exposed to a chemical widely used in everyday plastics has found that people with higher levels of bisphenol A had higher rates of heart disease, diabetes and liver abnormalities.

Despite more than 100 studies by government-funded scientists and university laboratories that have linked BPA exposure to health effects in animals, the FDA has deemed it safe, largely on the basis of two studies funded by the chemical industry.

BPA is ubiquitous in modern life; it is used to give polycarbonate plastic its shatterproof quality and found in everything from water bottles to dental sealants to the linings of canned food and drinks. The chemical can leach into food and liquid; one recent federal study detected BPA in the urine of 93 percent of the population.

Full article here.

It's Back!!

Our little hook tail is back! Cara spent much of yesterday sleeping and appears to be doing much better today. Her tail resumed its perky position with a curved tip. :) She seems to have little interest in bugging her siblings and both don't seem to view her as threatening. Hopefully Cara has learned her lesson, but we are doubtful. My little baby is sleeping right now with the most angelic face. Who knew a cute face could shield such a fierce and stubborn little girl inside.

I've had doubts in the past few years about whether opting out of a child was the right decision. After adopting Cara, I think we definitely made the right choice. She has given us enough taste of parenthood to know it's not for us. The heartache, the worries, the discipline. And to know that how we behave and treat the kid can impact his/her life is just too much pressure. Stubborn Cara can't be molded or influenced the way a human child can. I still want a human baby, I just don't think I'm up for dealing with a child.

Wounded Victim?

Where do I even begin...I think I get at least one Good Mom Point for being so observant and in tune with my kitties. QE was convinced that Cara was fine last night. I knew something was off but I didn't know what. This morning, I found Cara with a sad tail. Our baby always has a happy perky tail pointing straight up when she sees me. Something with definitely wrong with my little baby. Turns out her tail got bitten. We think it was Davis. The vet's office says that facial wounds mean the cat was the aggressor; tail wounds mean she was trying to run away and thus the victim. Cara is never a victim of anything other that evil mom's belly nuzzles. We were sent on our way with antibiotics and a bill equivalent to a Knit Happens sale. (It's a good thing I skipped the sale, eh?!) The staff advised to wait until Cara is "less mad" before administering the antibiotics. WTH I cautiously asked if she bit anyone. Everyone eyed me carefully before saying no, but she was very angry at everyone. Oh dear. I swear our file is a-la-Elaine from Seinfeld. "Crazy mom convinced her cats hate each other. Gets separation anxiety when she has to drop them off. A total pill. The newest cat is a demon."

8 PM hour: ok, I can't start the weekend on such heartbreaking thoughts (for me at least). Poor Cara ate some food about four hours ago and has been hiding/sleeping since. I didn't even bother with the canned food drama--everyone got all kibble tonight. It just breaks my heart to see my baby in pain. This totally sucks. See, one more good reason why I just cannot have human children--I would probably be one of those psycho moms who freaks at her child's papercut. (Side story: someone brought their daughter into work a few weeks ago, maybe age 8ish. She lost her two adult front teeth bc another girl pushed her. Without thinking, I asked if she pushed the girl back. Her mom bugged her eyes at me. Ooops!)


This boy was a sweetie. He drooled when I petted him.



This little girl cried every time I paid attention to someone else.



This little fellow was simply hilarious. He and his brother were so tiny it was unreal. The camera really does add five pounds. :)

B-I-N-G-O

This is so funny I can't decide if it's offensive. I hit bingo four times. Without the stork.

Special

Happy Birthday Princess Angel!

Meow Mix

2 cases quality food: $66
prescription canned and kibbles: $64
food critics complaining at every meal: priceless

I know there are lurkers who would never pay that much for food. I pity your cats/dogs for being stuck with you.

Slave Girl

MY PIGLET IS COMING!!!

My little piglet will be celebrating his first birthday with me! Ok, with us. :) If I recall correctly, kids that age can stand on their own and like to gnaw on stuff. At least that's what I remember with pnut...assuming that was when she was 1. I have to start planning his party!!!

Today started out pretty awesome already but this news makes it super. I pre-ordered Volume 2 of Goo Goo Dolls' greatest hits on their website and I got an autographed lithograph! WOOOOOT! I received it last night and thought they made a mistake. Got an email this morning confirming I was one of the lucky fans to get my lith signed. I bet my email address got their attention. :) Will post a pic of it soon.

Clipped Wings

I love my new Civic but it does not have the same performance as my tC. Sure it's quieter and smoother but acceleration with A/C on is...like driving a Hyundai or Corolla--at least what I think it must be like since I've never driven either. Without A/C the Civic can hold its own. On the plus side, I can go further even with a smaller gas tank. Maybe that's because I know it has no performance so I haven't even bothered gunning the engine. I sort of miss my tC. I've never seen a car seat or children in a tC so it definitely has more of a cool factor going for it. At least my Civic is a coupe and not a sedan. Now if only I could drop an Accord engine into it...

Heritage Lost? Really?!

The spectacle begins, and a flurry of feathers flashes as the birds engage in a furious, fatal dance. Men try to revive the faltering roosters by sucking from their beaks the blood pooled in their lungs. Some wounded birds continue to drag themselves around the pit until, finally, with a mortal stab, the bird dies. The limp body is carried to the trash.

Washington Post article

CSA Week 10

Sweet peppers
PURPLE string beans!
potatoes
beets
rosemary
grape tomatoes
yellow squash
tomatoes
sugar pears
red-eye black-eyed peas

My Precious Eggs

I got a free book, Holy Cows and Hog Heaven, for my first buying club order from Polyface last time. It was published several years ago so things may have changed, but Farmer Salatin said that organic eggs follow different procedures than the industry. Instead of sell-by dates from the day of laying, organic eggs had sell-by dates based on the packing date. Why? Because the processors did not have a consistent supply. Nothing like paying $4 for a dozen of old eggs.

Praying for Time

Listening to George. My heart is racing. I saw him. So close. omg...it's like being there all over again. eeeeeeee Faith just came on. He danced just like in the video! sigh...

Week 8.75

It's funny that QE and I are now at a loss for meals when we don't have CSA shares to use. Last week was an off week and we've been kinda drifting along until yesterday.

Okra
Brandywine tomato
Beefsteak tomato
Eggplants
Sugar pears (so cute and tiny!)
Basil
Grape tomatoes
Sweet peppers
Carrots
Beets
Green beans

My dad is looking forward to eggs on Wednesday. He called to confirm I was delivering them to his house. :)

Vote for Queen Liz!

Liz Lovely got nominated in a few categories...would love if you supported them. Best part is that VegNews is giving away WEEKLY cookie baskets from Liz! Oh, there are other prizes too, but I would prefer Liz cookies. :)

She Monkey

Soul Free

My monkey seems a bit scrawny. He was a PITA to knit using dpns but it was probably more tolerable than seaming per the pattern. I think I am willing to make one more, maybe with him wearing pants.

Surprisingly, I haven't been knitting as much as I want to this week. These old bones need longer to recover from a concert now. My voice is back but my belly still hurts. We visited my mom at work to show her my gorgeous concert tee and she goes "is that your Goo Goo?" No ma, it's George! Don't you recognize George? "What?! I thought you were over him in high school! Definitely in college! Oh dear..."
There was a review of George's concert in yesterday's paper. They mentioned his last concert in the US was 17 years ago. I was there. Seven.teen years ago. Ouch. QE and I (ok, mostly me) are still re-living the concert. Oh so awesome. Sigh...oh George.

I accidentally gave up info about 1986. QE was hysterical.

Feeling Good

George Michael is simply amazing. Last night's performance exceeded all expectations. Last night was the most special and memorable event in my life, second only to my wedding day. It started with the restaurant for our pre-concert dinner playing Listen Without Prejudice. Coincidence? QE encouraged me to buy way more concert swag than I ever would have if he wasn't there. He was no angel, egging me at every opportunity though. I made the mistake of sharing obscure George trivia with him and said "back in '88" at dinner. I don't think I'll ever live that down.

My throat is sore, voice hoarse. My legs are tired, my abs sore. QE dubbed me the human shrill because I screamed when nobody else did, screamed every time George did a signature dance move, screamed because he smiled, screamed when he spoke. OMG...George dances like he always has--not good by dancing standards but we love him unconditionally. George still has a great smile. Love the accent, love the dimples. He's so beautiful and comfortable in his own skin. He's got a great sense of humor too. He wore the cop outfit for Outside. I loved it.

As you can see from my photos, we had awesome seats. No photo manipulation there (not sure how to do it--ha!) We were exactly at the center of the stage. George took a drink and mopped his face after every song. He kept his jacket on the entire time and sweat actually soaked through. Crazy. I was drenched in sweat before the first song even finished. The collar on my shirt was still soaked two hours after the concert ended. Best time ever.

George performed some of my favorites that I wasn't expecting. Hard Day was awesome. One More Try was pretty much the anthem of my adolescence. My senior yearbook quote was from Kissing a Fool. George seemed to get a kick out of us true fans knowing every pause, every inflection, every nuance of his songs. What's funny is that George doesn't care about performing. He sees himself as a songwriter. He wants us to enjoy his songs long after he's gone. George has certainly touched my life. All of his songs bring back memories of my past, my history. George was a huge part of my life growing up. His music touched me, affected me, helped shape me. I played One More Try so much growing up my MOM knew the words. The kids I babysat in middle school looked for George videos on MTV--at age 2 and 4. I don't remember much of the music mix we compiled for our wedding and most of it didn't get played, I don't think. But Freedom 90 was blasted after most of our guests left. That's one of the few memories I have of our reception. We have an awesome photo of me and QE dancing to that song.

Last night was worth every dollar I spent for the concert and associated expenses. QE might beg to differ though. But if George never performs again, I would still be happy to have experienced such a perfect 'goodbye tour'. I've always been open about George being the #1 man in my life (til I met QE). All the stupid boys I wasted time with knew that. Tolerating George Michael music and accepting that I was a big George fan was part of the deal. I could go on forever but if you've read this far, you've probably experienced enough pain for a week.
George Michael Forever.

Set list according to GeorgeMichael.com:

First Half

Waiting (Reprise)
Fast Love/I'm Your Man
Father Figure
Hard Day
Everything She Wants
One More Try
Different Corner--he did NOT perform this! My favorite of all time!
Easier Affair
Too Funky
Star People

Interval
John & Elvis video

Second Half

Faith
Spinning The Wheel
Feeling Good
Roxanne
Kissing A Fool
Amazing
Flawless
Outside

Encore #1--Careless Whisper

Encore #2--Freedom 90, Freedom Reprise

CSA Share, Week 7.5

Well, our veggie bin is packed. Still haven't eaten the beans from last week. QE brought home a HUGE haul of green and yellow squash from some guy's garden too. He was giving it away at work and someone told him we were vegetarians so we got a big bag full of them. What I don't understand is why people bother growing so many of anything if they give it away. They are sooo pretty. And big. Anyway, the squash will continue to be eaten or we may re-gift some to my folks. We also still have half a head of red cabbage. This week's share represented one and half shares since the farm had to skip a week in May and next week is a bye week. We'll get another extra half share the week before our next bye week.

8 ears of corn (used in summer corn chowder last night--YUM)
Yukon gold potatoes (just perfect)
one baby watermelon (so cute!!!)
one cantaloupe
beefsteak tomatoes
2 tiny eggplants (adorable!)
Cubanelle peppers (WTH?!)
basil
red grape tomatoes
slicing tomatoes

12 sides of me

Learned about this from LaundryTown



1. My first name.
2. My favorite style of food.
3. My high school.
4. My favorite color.
5. My celebrity crush.
6. Favorite drink.
7. Dream vacation.
8. Favorite dessert.
9. What I want to be when I grow up.
10. What I love most in life.
11. One word to describe me.
12. My Grandmother’s first name.

1. You know
2. Vegetarian
3. Hayfield
4. Brown
5. Prince William
6. Espresso
7. Nice
8. Baklava
9. Not working
10. Animals
11. Feisty
12. Helen

Spoiled

Oh, I got spoiled in my Ravelry swap! KnittyK (out of respect for her privacy, I won't use her full screen name in case she uses it on other sites) put together the nicest, most thoughtful package for me. I love the scarf she knitted for me. For moi!!! I would never have the patience to knit that for myself--especially with no mistakes! Then there's the blocking. I swear KnittyK sent love in her package because everything was so nice. Like good karma nice. The purty brown/red yarn is Malabrigo--another popular yarn that gets people all worked up but I had no idea why. And the red yarn she dyed herself. It is a very rich red. So awesome. She says I should knit something for piglet with it. A shout out to my piglet! It's amazing how a "stranger" can be so nice to another human being. There's the possibility that participants can get screwed over in a swap, so to be openly nice without getting something in return is just darn warm and fuzzy.

120 eggs

OH.YEAH I ordered 10 dozen eggs from Polyface. I am so excited I am ready to jump out of my skin. :) I haven't decided if it's worth going into work after the pick up but if I do, I will have to make arrangements with Grandpa Goo to care for my little beauties. My dad will have to run a nursery day care for my little eggs! (you can ignore my craziness) He'll get to keep however many he wants as a babysitting fee. I could take them home and then drive to work but that's backtracking and NOT earth-friendly. Dad passed on officially ordering eggs or meat since he "just bought a dozen eggs for $3. They are the nice ones that come in the special boxes." Oy. "Besides, your eggs were rather small last time [they were medium eggs, DAD!!!!] Although, they did have a much yellower yolk." I tried to explain to him that the yellowness comes from hens who eat real grass and peck at real dirt and bugs. He's convinced that his eggs are just as good, coming from hens with freedom to roam. Someday, dad.

It recently occurred to me that our kitties are innocent victims of us being vegetarian. They don't get to mooch bits of meat from our meals anymore.

"My" Men

Tony Gonzalez, tight end for the KC Chiefs went vegan. I don't think he stuck with it for various reasons, but the fact that he tried makes him one sexy athlete. It's admirable a muscular NFL athlete even bothered with it. The teasing he endured, the scrutiny from trainers...it takes a real man to adopt a "sissy hippy" diet, even if temporary. I need to do more research to see if he is still vegan.

Those who know me probably know my source.

When industrial food magnates hire the best clever-speak grads, things may not be what they seem. In May 2007 Tyson received praise from foodies and launched a $70 million ad campaign touting its antibiotic-free chicken. Sounded like real progress for our side . . . NOT.

What the label actually said was "Raised Without Antibiotics." Under pressure from chicken competitors Perdue and Sanderson Farms, the USDA told Tyson in June 2008 it couldn't use the label anymore. Tyson was injecting the embryos before hatching with antibiotics, thus claiming the birds were "raised" without antibiotics.

Tyson has now sued the USDA for "arbitrarily and capriciously" calling its hand, arguing that "raised" means post-hatching, not pre-hatching. Tyson says the embryo is not part of the "raising" process. USDA says it is. Interesting ramifications. Does"raising" a child include pre-natal care? And if so, when does life begin? "Oh what a clever web we weave . . . ."

Veggie Tails

Davis and Angel decided to join us for dinner last night. Cara was still in her room, so the amigos had a blast just lounging around. This week's share:

sweet corn--much yummier than last week. QE found a worm though. Gross.
red cabbage--how the heck do I prepare it???
celebrity tomatoes
beefsteak tomato (they all looked the same to me)
yellow (wax?) beans
basil
red grape tomatoes

It's so weird to see veggies in their true state. Unwaxed cucumbers, corn tips eaten off, blemished tomatoes, spotty green beans. The flavors are so much more intense though. I need to hug our farmers.

Organic Supermarket Droupout

Salatin needs to quit the name calling! QE and I agreed that their eggs are a great value and I will be hoarding next time. I will have to take time off from work but it will be worth it.

Gettin Piggy With It

Blech. I bought bacon from Polyface a few weeks ago for QE. He decided to cook some up this morning. Oh.vomit. The stench of swine was so nasty I dry heaved. I don't care if QE or anyone eats piggies but the smell of pig cooking just stinks. Bacon, of all things, is supposed to smell nice. QE reports that although bacon is cured, it doesn't have the smoke flavor as store-bought stuff. He said it tasted as good, if not better, than the regular stuff. QE thought it was too salty but attributed to him not being a regular bacon eater. Even turkey bacon is a rare thing for him. He decided he will give away the rest of the bacon. I am glad. From this point forward I think our house will be a pig-free zone. Cooked pork is fine. I just can't stand the smell of it cooking.

Got my Wollmeise yesterday. Oh so pretty and soft. It smelled nice too. I still don't understand why it's so treasured. Maybe I have to knit it to appreciate it. (secret: I have another on the way!) I resumed work on my monkey. The head was too big for a project, so I decided to make the full doll. He's cute. Lots of seaming involved despite using dpns. Totally not enjoying making the hat for charity. The acrylic/nylon blend is splitty but soft. Maybe it's the pattern I hate. So freakin boring and dull. I am knitting it flat since that monkey's dpn work had me on dpn overload. At this rate, I really don't want to knit more than one hat. But it's for people in need, so I will try to squeeze a few more out. I might knit double-strand next time to make it go faster.

Summertime

(it's the new NKOTB song, btw...)

It's officially summer. The first REAL summer I've experienced in years. WE GOT TOMATOES!!! The last time I ate a raw tomato was years ago when I grew them myself.

Tonight's dinner was veggie patties with a tomato and fresh corn. Dessert was cantaloupe with blueberries from Wegmans.


CSA share for the week:

yukon gold potatoes
corn
cucumbers
carrots
green beans
cantaloupe
green leaf lettuce
sweet (and purple!) peppers
grape tomatoes
slicing tomatoes
tiny garlic

Wollmeise!

Wollmeise is a cult-favorite sock yarn hand-painted by "Claudia" in Germany. People go nuts for it. I don't understand it, but have accepted it. Til now. Just managed to score some. Totally not going to get gifted to anyone nor made into something for anyone other than moi. Might just have to charge a fee for the privilege of seeing it, and a surcharge to touch it. :) Hm. Maybe I should join the Selfish Knitters group on Ravelry. (The premise is that they feel unappreciated for their work so they knit for themselves or those who feel the knitting lub.) Although, I feel the love quite often. Probably because I only knit and gift knits to people I know appreciate it. WOLLMEISE!!!

Here are the birdies I made:

Arf! Arf!

I got my books a few nights ago. I can't wait to make this doggie. I have some boring obligations to get out of the way first (charity knits) and then I'll start on my puppy. I haven't decided on colors or yarn yet, but I'm definitely going to make one for myself. Maybe in pink cotton angora.

Interesting (0)

My cats are killing me. Two days at home and I am a sneezing, snotty mess. We spent most of the day out yesterday and I was fine. A few hours at home and the suffering resumes. Two of the stinkybutts refuse to get brushed, so that doesn't help my condition. Not that they care. We got hairballs four days in a row last week. Barf count: Angel-2, Davis-1, Cara-1

Went to Wegmans twice yesterday. The guy at the coffee bar area recognized and remembered us too. How embarrassing!

Ravelry is taking over my life. I dream about it every night. I can see the website images in my mind. Last night, it was about my budget swap and whether my spoilee will like my package. Conversations with QE begin with "On Ravelry..."

Nummy

I placed an order yesterday. Knitting books. It's not my fault. I had to order enough for free shipping. And some were books I always wanted. Plus, they were 40% off! Besides the books are so I can make cute things for other people! I need to start thinking about Christmas gifts. And birthdays! Piglet turns 1 in November. I need to plan and prepare!

Swap

Kinda funny sounding word, eh? My group's swap is underway. I'm excited about the thought of getting a package filled with goodies, but not as stoked as I thought I would be. Maybe it's because some have a "gimme...I want..." mentality that's turning me off. For me it's more about the unknown. Plus, I'm too preoccupied with my package to my spoilee. :) The options are endless and $20 budget is so limiting. I already know I will go over, the question is how much.

Anyway, I'm excited. Buying loot for others is just as fun. Buying her yarn will be difficult (no, I'm not telling why!!!) Not being creative, I'm having some difficulty coming up with other stuff for her box. Well, at least given the dollar-limit.

I am very excited about the coupon/yarn swap I'm in too. Coupons! I put in a request for Zyrtec. Ha!

Summer knitting:
spoilee
charity hat(s)
a monkey or two or five
maybe another sweater for piglet

Cat Caste

Me: How many humans does it take to keep Angel and Davis happy?
QE: We haven't found out yet.
Me: Is having cats worth it?
QE: YEAH! They love us.

Beautifully Imperfect

Just signed up for the fall CSA. Here's what we're projected to get:

acorn squash, apples, arugula, beans, bok choi, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, garlic greens, head and loose leaf lettuces, herbs, leafy greens, peas, potatoes, pumpkins, radishes, sweet potatoes, swiss chard, tatsoi, winter squash

I can't wait to plan our Thanksgiving meal around the goodies! I never thought it possible to actually love vegetables: to admire their beauty, adore each bump, appreciate every crinkly leaf. My only complaint so far is that we didn't get enough garlic with last week's share. After price-checking each haul with the stores, I think we got a great deal. Sure we might not have ever chosen to buy turnip or cabbage, but we're expanding our veggie horizons. Imagine, a vegetarian actually eating vegetables! (QE isn't a full vegetarian--he goes on fish benders. I should send him to rehab. HA!)

Foxy Foxy!

QE saw a fox in our backyard the other morning. I got there in time only to see our visitor scampering away. He wasn't as orange as I expected. Big tail. QE says we like foxes because they eat rodents. Poor mousies! I hope the fox didn't find the bunny nest in our yard. One night a week or so ago, I saw a prairie dog (ok, probably a groundhog or gopher) sitting right by the curb on our street.

Happy Birthday to...

George Michael! Who turns 45 today. I took today off from work just to celebrate.

Ok, not really. I planned on taking a few hours off for an appt and it kinda spun out of control from there. Despite the major running around, I absolutely LOVE having a day off. I asked the Nazi Dementor about working part-time and he flatly said no. A-hole wasn't even open to discussing what I had in mind--no talk about # hours, pay, logistics, nothing. "Can I work part-time?" --"No. End of discussion." My predecessor started out as full-time and went AWOL. As in showing up less than 40 hours in a MONTH. WTF I think I'll consider working a four-day workweek and taking a day off anyway. If he wants me to put in 40 hours, I'll put in 40. Go f yourself now, eh? I've digressed...this wasn't supposed to be a rant or vent (amazing how this particular company brings out all my rage)

I shared breakfast with Cara this morning. She enjoys having me around for bfast and acts especially excited on Fridays. How does she know when it's Friday anyway?? Mon-Thurs, she will circle around me as I cram stuff into my work bag. It took me a while to figure it out, but she waits for me to give her some of my bfast even as I am running out the door. So I will pick off some english muffin or waffle for her as I rush out. I eat bfast at home on Fridays. She sits and waits for me at the coffee table.

I picked up my first Polyface buying club order today. So awesome. The entire experience only took 5-10 minutes, but there's something cool about the community gathering around to pick up their food from a local farmer. Someone had a van full of snotty kids. Breeders. One threw a metal Hot Wheels-type of car at me while several others were running around the parking lot. Theoretically, it's fine to run around. Probably ill-advised given the number of cars going in and out.

Going to Trader Joe's on a weekday mid-day is probably like going to a playground--kids hanging off carts like monkeys in a cage. Oh my. It's days like this that I am so glad we chose not to have children. I hope my piglet does not turn like like the beasts I encountered today. He's got good parents who will teach and discipline him. Obviously not all kids are devils. But well-behaved ones are becoming rare. Just like SAHMs. Correlation????

My Boy

My piglet is so adorable. Sure, I know he's not really mine, but I'm thankful papa and mama piggies let me call their piglet "mine". I am still tickled that my dorky brother can produce such a perfect little being. :) I give full credit to my SIL. Ha! I can stare at piglet's picture all day. I got to see him via webcam this morning. What a great way to start the week. Piglet has gotten so big! He's long and lean with a big ol' melon head. And he's got two little teethies on the bottom! I love little rat teeth! Papa pig reports that he's very smart and full of personality. My little piglet. Is it weird for me to be so attached and devoted to a child that's not my own? I think so. Can't really explain it though. I hope to be the best aunt possible--to be his confidante, his friend, his guardian, and most importantly, his favorite. :) Maybe I should decorate my knitting room to be "his room" for when he visits. That's got to be worth a few bribe points, eh? Oh piglet!

Strawberry Sundae

I love QE. Sure, he takes good care of us (meoow?) and has lots of letters after his name on business cards, but he also allows me to buy yarn without limit. tee hee... I joined a swap on Ravelry and my goodie box has to include at least one hank/skein/ball of yarn. Poor me, I have to buy yarn. But in addition to the swap, I wanted to buy some for myself. I mean, not fair to buy yarn for others and not myself, right? :) I asked QE how much I was allowed to spend. He said I could buy whatever I want but "try to use restraint". BWAH! Does he know who he's talking to?! I mean, have I ever done anything half-ass? Have I ever not obsessed about something? I thought it was cute that despite knowing I don't need yarn, he loves me enough to allow me to buy to my heart's content. (Have I ever mentioned how easy it is to buy using PayPal?!) It's definitely emotional buying. But I figure it's better emotional eating right?

One of the moderators of my swap also dyes yarn. She's having a sale and free shipping. Great service, great colors, great prices. She does custom jobs too. She's in San Diego and has SD Chargers colors too. Oy. :) I can't wait to get my yarn. We won't say how much I bought, but I did get this (strawberry sundae):

Fibers

Started a cute sweater for piglet. Golden yellow (creme brulee!) with red (pomegranate) and light green (honeydew) scoops. Those are the actual names of the yarn colors. Yum! No stripes on the sleeves for my piggy though.

I need to buy yarn. LYS needs to have a crazy summer sale already. Probably won't happen til July or August. I will take a day off again despite not having leave. And this time I will buy yarn in quantities no less than 1000 yards to ensure I have enough for yet-unknown projects. I'm thinking of selling some of my yarn if I can't figure out what to do with it. Or maybe someone needs to have a baby girl soon. Doubtful that a mom would appreciate an alpaca silk sweater though--expecting her to handwash the garment would be quite inconsiderate of me.

Happy Place

QE thought I was a nerd for getting excited about this. I think such beauty deserves our admiration and love.
We've been to our Wegmans three times in one week. And that's with restraint. It's our new hang out. Nothing to do? Let's go to Wegmans. What's for breakfast? Let's go to Wegmans. I didn't think anything could replace Target as our default. QE teased me all weekend. Every time he asked, with no intention of taking me, if I wanted to go I said yes. WAH! So mean! What I find amusing is all those snobs from up "north" who used to scoff at our po-dunk county are now flocking to our store. They should visit "their" store in Fairfax and leave our newer-bigger-brighter store to us losers. I think we might be going again tonight. This will probably end my TJ visits too.

Tommy

Such a quick knit. I'm tempted to make more. Would that be a flock? Herd? Clutch? Brood? Pride! Pack! Yup, turtles are bad asses and form a pack. :)

Ample

Got my Ravelry t-shirt the other night. It is thinner than most tees and I would have scoffed if I saw it in a store. I've never experienced American Apparel before (so much for made in USA--it felt more like made in India or Turkey). The good news is the shirt fits. But I think that has more to do with it being stretchy vs me slimming down. It's not skin-tight but QE says I can't wear it out of the house bc it showcases my girls. He couldn't quit staring. Very funny.

Almost finished with my turtle. I think I'll name him Tommy.

Busy Bee

Here's some of my Ravelry loot. Note it's "some". heh heh...the too-small t-shirt is on its way. I also bought some yarn from a Raveler--there will be no evidence of that though. Ever. "Some" yarn is also on the way from Knit Picks. None is strictly for me. Sweater for piglet, monkey hats, and a few other small projects. I think that's all the goodies I have outstanding. Maybe. I hope. :)

I finished two bee hats and more than a dozen cupcakes. Loved the Rowan cotton. I was especially proud of knitting gauge without a swatch. Amazing things happen when using the yarn and needles called for in a pattern. Ok, the bee hat pattern was my own, but still. Very neat. And jogless joining of colors! I learned this on Kate, but I'm still tickled by how it works. Yep, I'm a dork.


The evil green onions and napa cabbage got sent to Grandpa Goo. The big white onion bulbs mocked me as I packed them up. Who knew green onions could be so darn big? They looked nothing like the puny things at grocery stores. The first thing my dad said was, "wow, what a great scent." Oh.BARF



We gave up the napa only because it was so darn big. It was very nice though. I guess we could have kept it, but sharing our bounty with dad was cool.

I told him about Polyface and now he's interested in some goodies. As a former chef, he has a weird snobbery about previously frozen meat. I'm not fond of it either, but I understand why Polyface does it. It didn't affect the flavor or texture presumably because it was properly packaged and handled. Meant to give him some eggs today too but forgot. Once he tastes these I'm hoping he won't buy Eggland's Best anymore. "But they are cage-free and have EB stamped on each egg!" I used to believe in the stamp too, til I realized the gub'ment is out to get me. :)

Oh. In planning for Father's Day, Dad said we shouldn't bother going out to eat since I'm "still" vegetarian and there's nothing I can eat. (still cracks me up) I told him that's my problem and can find something regardless of where we go. He finally relented. Plans for lunch on Sunday for now.

CSA Week 2

sugar snap peas--soooo good, even raw!
asparagus
oregano--never had fresh before! wow!!! The leaves are a bit fuzzy.
napa cabbage
kohlrabi--purple this time
garlic scapes
green onions--so big and so gross...totally getting dropped off at Em's
green and yellow squash--QE said they were perfectly smooth and flawless
broccoli--never seen such beautifully tight green buds before. Wish we got more of this. Only one tiny head. :(
radishes

We had the sugar snap peas with squash and oregano for dinner last night. With produce like this, I could totally go vegan. The squash were smaller than the 8-inchers at the store, but they were firmer, crisper and just had this different essence about it. The peas were awesome. Crisp and slightly sweet raw. QE didn't like it, but I was quite intrigued by it. I didn't know we could eat it raw and assumed it would be bitter. Man, with such goodies, I'm not sure I can ever go back to veggies at the grocery store. I am afraid I'll get spoiled by these fresh (and expensive) produce. We would never buy so much veggies on our own, so this CSA is a good thing. I was hoping for more turnips. Those rock on the grill. Kohlrabi was good on the grill too, but turnips are so much cuter and tastier. My only complaint would be that we don't get a lot of anything. It's just a sampling. Perfect amounts for two people, but I totally would have traded for more broccoli or sugar snap peas. Those darn onions are a monstrosity. Gyah. I would have preferred yellow onion instead of the nasty green stuff. Just having that in my fridge upsets me. :)

Not sure how to say this...

but I think I love my Goo more than I love George. Sure, Robby is dead weight, but hearing John still makes my heart skip a beat. George will always have a place in my heart, but Goo Goo Dolls rock my world.

Oh, and if I was John, I would decline the Songwriter Hall of Fame's loser award...he's getting some award not for going into the HoF, but Starlight recognition...for up and coming, bright young talent. WHAT A CROCK. He's been in the business for 20+ years. How's that for up and coming. Alicia Keys, John Legend, John Mayer, Rob Thomas have all received this award in past years. Not knocking any of them at all. They are all very good. But John's been writing songs long before most of them. He and Rob Thomas made it big in the mid-90s. I'm fairly certain the others were still relatively obscure. John, take your award, pack it in some cat poo and ship it back to the No Talent Ass Clowns at the SHoF. (hee hee...I've been looking for an opportunity to use that line from Office Space!)

Obsessive Stalking

My Ravelry addiction paid off. I ordered the organic veggie bag and the pint glasses. Probably doesn't mean much to non-Ravelers but I'll share pics when I receive my goodies. :) The loot was sold out within hours in May. They reordered and just got them in. We won't talk about the frequency of my stalking, ok? My favorite feature is on the forums. If you write "cake", a little slice of cake will show up next to the word. Easily amused, I know.

ETA: (I don't know what this means, except Ravelers do this on their posts. I know it has to do with adding stuff after the original post though. hahaha) Anyway, the BEST part about shopping on Ravelry is that you pay by PayPal. No whipping out credit cards necessary! How much easier can it be?! Online shopping is so wonderful. I think QE needs to take up a second job. HA!

Retrospective

QE and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary last week. Although it sounds like a long time, we both agree it doesn't seem like it's been that long. I've known QE for a very long time and it's reassuring to have the same mate in my life all these years, who knew me way back when and still love, accept and LIKE me now. In addition to gaining "a few" (ahem, times ten) pounds, I have evolved over the years...probably not all for the best. He still loves and cherishes me like the day we married. My mom says we still behave like we're newlyweds. :)

The other constant person in most of my adult life is Em. I've known Em for what seems like a lifetime. She knew me when I was still a teenager. WTF Em watched me transform from a naive, nice, sweet girl into the mean, cruel, and cynical bitch I am today. And yet she stuck by me through all of the drama and joys. Em came to visit me for lunch on Friday. It was awesome catching up and seeing her. She looks very happy and glows. (oh barf, right???) Em grounds me, calms me. She's one of the few people who knows the real me. Most of my anger and hostility isn't ill-will as much as sarcasm, I think. It's my coping mechanism, bracing for the next screw-over I will experience. Em understands that and lets me unleash the worst in myself and manages to overlook and forgive my flaws. That is true love.

I'm going to vegetarian hell. hahahaha I had sushi Saturday night (and a mildly cranky tummy), grilled Polyface steaks Sunday (no side effects), and made a Tuscan (Polyface) beef soup yesterday (snarky belly). I don't miss meat. Not the flavor, not the texture, nothing. That's not to say I hate it, I just don't care if I ever eat meat again or not. I assume I will probably eat animal flesh again at some point in my life, but I won't make an effort to do so, nor will I go along with it just because I am in a group setting.

There was a BS potluck at work on Friday and one person was asking about every dish. She explained she was vegetarian which got a few people flustered. I told her I was too and was considering going vegan. Holy tofu! I was kidding of course, but several people froze in shock and disbelief. I still can't figure out how my eating choices affects them. I should have brought a lasagna made with soy cheese and not tell them until after everyone ate...that would have freaked them out. HA!

I Love Adam Reid

My knitting queue is building rather quickly. I have become a Ravelry addict and find myself logging on about every 15 minutes. As a result, I see cute projects others have completed and want to knit them myself. Mostly baby stuff. My piglet is growing too quickly--I can't keep up with his size. His mom reports that he wears a 12 mos onesie--he's only 6 months old! He has a very long body so I'm not sure what size to knit for him anymore. I bought yarn yesterday. Rowan cotton for cupcakes (I'm the victim!). I also bought needles for the bee hats I have to make (poor me!).

Yesterday's haul also included an All-Clad MC2 casserole pot that is the perfect size for us at an awesome price (confirmed with numerous checks online). QE thinks I am a total dork for getting excited about cookware. It's made in USA! So pretty! I admit, I must have looked like a nerd clutching the display model close to my chest lest anyone snatch it from my hands. I also scored saucers for ten cents each! LOVE Crate & Barrel outlet! Last week I was near tears while admiring the half-sheet and square baking pans I bought online from Williams-Sonoma. Oh the beauty...the weight of the pans...made in USA by Chicago Metallic exclusively for W-S. I've eyed similar pans at Sur la Table by Chicago Metallic and those were not US-made. Does it really make a difference? Not sure. But at a minimum, it saves on freight and energy unless the pans were made in Alaska or Hawaii. Wah. So beautiful. I need to find a reason to buy the GoldTouch non-stick pans but I usually use parchment paper, so non-stick is unnecessary. America's Test Kitchen rated GoldTouch best non-stick too.

Woot on the Loot

Last night, QE greeted me in the garage cussing up a storm. It was like a little kid trying to fit as many cuss words into a sentence that barely made sense. He finally explained he was cussing for asparagus. :) We got some beautiful, tender asparagus. Even the fat ones were tender. Our CSA loot also included kale with red spines, kohlrabi, a specific variety of turnips, garlic scapes, and a dozen eggs. We now have five and half dozen eggs in the fridge. What the heck am I supposed to do with turnips and kohlrabi?! The turnips aren't big...cute little white balls, just like in those Mario video games. Two the size of tennis balls and a baby turnip.

Cat: (wo)Man-Do

Davis has moved past a mere hunger strike. Mealtime now involves me chasing him and carrying him to his room. And after all that, he still refuses to eat. A fresh can of food at room temperature gets snubbed. A gently warmed plate of food gets snubbed. A plate of food garnished with kibble gets snubbed. He will reluctantly eat a tiny bit if I sit with him while he eats.

Cara is addicted to Da Bird and is oblivious to her surroundings. She has slammed into our coffee table, tumbled head-over-tail, and run into walls just to get Da Bird. She has worked herself into a full dog-style pant with hanging tongue madness. And will continue to chase if I don't force her to take a break! Cara can easily destroy the toy in days--we try not to let her chew the feathers too much in hopes it lasts a week. So far it has. Ok, not really. That's a $5/week habit she's got there. I bought a knockoff with the same brown with white spots feathers, but she's not fooled. Grrr...it would save us $1/toy.

Angel is in full princess mode. She expects several brushing sessions per day. Let's clarify: for every time we're in the bathroom (a.m. getting ready for work and p.m. getting ready for bed) Angel expects several brushings. My bathroom routine is brush Angel, brush teeth, brush Angel, shower, put in contacts, brush Angel. PM: Brush Angel, brush teeth, brush Angel, take off eye makeup, brush Angel, wash face, brush Angel, slap on facial products, brush Angel.

Mulesing

WTF Is nothing cruelty-free anymore?! The one thing I do to ESCAPE from all the evils of the world also contributes to animal suffering. This is supposedly only applicable to Australian wool, but others say NZ and other countries do it as well. Maybe I should boycott Aussie wool just for the fact that it takes a lot of resources to ship yarn from there to here.

Mulesing is the surgical mutilation, without the use of anesthetic, of merino sheep. Skin from the animal's tail area is sliced away with hand shears, leaving a bleeding, gaping wound. The purpose of mulesing is to create a large area of scar tissue devoid of wool. This keeps the rear end of the sheep cleaner and therefore reduces the likelihood of fly strike.

Chicken Guts

Finished the Cinderella socks. It's a smidge small/short in the foot. That's what I get for not doing gauge. :) Tried to look for neat cardigan patterns and ran into two obstacles--I either don't have enough yarn for the project or the pattern is only written in one size, usually 34-inch bust. Um, yeah. I have boobs, jugs, hooters. My rib cage is probably 34 inches without any boobage.

Had a great time at Polyface and made a few friends. It's weird to know that my mental image of a farm rarely exists in the real world. I hope the animals at Polyface know how lucky they are to be living there. Chipotle execs were at the farm too, to talk business about whether Polyface can supply piggies for all VA stores or maybe supply beef and chicken for the C-ville store. We went to that Chipotle--QE said the meat seemed drier since it is leaner and cooked in-store.

I've realized that I loooove getting packages. Probably explains why I've been buying stuff online. It's quite neat...you click a few times, enter your info and voila! Things start showing up at the door!

Marrying Liz

Got our Liz cookies last night. Ginger who? Oreo what? I'm all about Chocolate Moose Dragons. The only thing that sucks is they are on sale now. I paid full price (and worth every penny!) but still...SALE! The cacao nibs add crunch, no bitterness. The cookie tastes like a fudgy brownie with the texture of batter. Liz is expanding distribution and we should be able to find them at Whole Foods and other hippie stores. Not sure if that's a good thing...too accessible to this CMD monster. :) QE said the SnickerDudes are good too. I was too in love with my cookies to fully hear what he said.

C is for Cookie

Today is the day QE and I have been waiting for. Liz Lovely's new cookies!!!!!

Almost done with my second sock. Can't wait to start on cupcakes again. And another pair of socks with Em. :)

With summer and grilling season on the way, I wonder how many tree-huggers will shun grilling since it is bad for the environment. I read that charcoal grilling is worse than gas, but both are still harmful.