This pretty much covers today’s obsessions.
Happy windows-wide-open weather!
Showing posts with label weather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weather. Show all posts
Jul. 15: Mini-vacay report
Do you hate when people say “vacay”? I kinda do too.
We just got home from a week in Southern Oregon and boy, are our arms tired!
(That is a very stupid joke. It doesn’t even make sense, because we didn’t fly to Southern Oregon, and I didn’t even suggest we flew in the sentence and let’s just start over, mmmkay?)
Last week we went to Southern Oregon. It was the vacation we took instead of going to San Francisco (the certainty of having to deal with crowds of America’s Cup watchers kept us away), and we really had a great time. Here’s how:
Saturday
Our goal on this trip was to find out if this book was science fiction:
Here we go…
We left home and drove to Medford. My mom lives there, in case you haven’t been paying attention. We sometimes call her “Mother Mary,” in case you haven’t been paying attention to that either. That evening we hung out at Mother Mary’s comfy and welcoming house, ran some errands, and not a whole lot else. Why is driving so exhausting, even as passengers? Vic wondered that aloud. More than once.
Sunday
A break from all that time in the car was in order, so we stayed in town all day. We went to Despicable Me 2. The kids and I had gone the week before, but Vic and Mom hadn’t; the movie is super-fun and definitely worth seeing more than once. Afterward we had lunch at Kaleidoscope Pizza. I’m sure there are similar pizza places in Portland and I definitely want to find them because YUM.
Monday
We got up early and headed to Brookings, which is on the southern Oregon coast. I hadn’t been there since I was a kid and didn’t realize that the best (only?) route there from Medford is through California. How weird is that? We drove north to Grants Pass, southwest across the state border to Crescent City, and back up north to Brookings. It’s cocoa for cuckoo poops, that’s what it is.
We drove along the very edge of the Redwoods and were tempted to drive a bit farther south to drive through that one tree, but stayed on course to the beach instead. We thought the weather would be better there. We are bad interpreters of weather forecasts.
Harris Beach is beautiful, at least it appeared to be when we could see through all the fog. The skies were disappointing, yes, but generally, the weather was warm so we didn’t mind much. I even got a sunburn, proving that clouds and fogs do not mean sunscreen is unnecessary. Katie and Jack did lots of wave-jumping and sand-throwing, and the dogs enjoyed romping up and down the coast.
It really was a fantastic day, and we were slightly pleased to find the southern coast weather as unreliable as the areas we visit on the central and northern parts of the coast. But our love of Harris Beach waned a few days later, when we saw this news item:
Health advisory lifted at Harris Beach
July 13, 2013
A public health advisory warning against water contact at Harris Beach was lifted Friday by the Oregon Health Authority, according to a news release.
The advisory was issued July 1 after water samples showed higher-than-normal levels of fecal bacteria at the east end of Goat Island in Curry County.
Recent samples taken by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality showed bacteria levels had subsided and the water no longer posed a higher-than-normal risk, the release said.
But officials recommendeded [sic] staying out of large pools and runoff from water frequented by birds, whose waste was believed to be the source of the contamination.
The Oregon Beach Monitoring Program monitors the waters along Oregon's coastline for the presence of fecal bacteria annually from Labor Day through Memorial Day.
Marine waters are tested for enterococcus, which is an indicator of the presence of other bacteria. Enterococcus is present in human and animal waste.
Fecal bacteria can cause anything from diarrhea and stomach cramps to skin rashes or no reaction at all, but it is the largest threat to the elderly, children and those more vulnerable to waterborne bacteria.
Source: http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130713/NEWS07/307130328
Fecal bacteria levels were higher than normal? There are acceptable levels??? Yikes.
Vic and I researched Trip Advisor extensively to find the best places to visit on the southern coast, but we didn’t think to check recent news reports. [sing-song voice] Geniuses! But really, shouldn’t there have been a bunch of warning signs posted along the beach if we were supposed to stay out of the water? We didn’t see a single one.
Fortunately, none of us have been stricken with E. coli poisoning. Whew.
One of the coolest parts about this trip—and the beach was lovely, it really was—involved a liquor store just over the California border. If you Google a phrase like “why is alcohol cheaper in California” you’ll find a variety of ideas and even contradictions; all I know is that, for the most part, the liquor store outlets near the California-Oregon border had much better prices than I’ve ever seen at home. Mother Mary and I stocked up like the world’s about to end and we want to be drunk when it does. Or maybe we were buying in preparation for the Global Booze Wars. Those are happening, right? We be ready.
Tuesday
The show was spectacular. Somewhat sadly—but just somewhat—our kids recognized much of the music from the particularly hilarious My Fair Laddy episode of The Simpsons. In other words, Jack didn’t hate My Fair Lady. If you ask him to sing anything from it, though, you’ll hear “Wouldn’t It Be Adequate,” “I’m Gettin’ Blue Pants in the Morning,” and “In the Shack Where You Live.” Sorry. There’s only so much culture I can try to pound into that kid.
After the show, Mom treated us to a delicious dinner at Larks Home Kitchen Cuisine, the restaurant in Ashland Springs Hotel. Ten thumbs up.
I love Ashland, and there are lots of eateries worth a try, but here’s something I don’t understand: why do so many restaurants refuse to split checks? Larks actually had it printed at the bottom of their menu that they have a one-check-per-table policy. Is it really that much extra effort for them? And wouldn’t you think they should be willing to split checks just to please their customers, many of whom visit Ashland in large groups? Servers will inevitably get bigger tips that way, right? Puzzling.
Wednesday
Back to California! We left the dogs at home this time, and headed down I-5 to the Shasta area, touring Shasta Dam and appreciating shady parking spots and our vehicle’s powerful A/C. It was H-O-T HOT in them parts. Beautiful scenery though.
Since we were a handful of miles from Redding and the northernmost In-n-Out Burger, we went a leeetle bit out of our way for lunch. Those of us who ordered cheeseburgers were glad to make the detour. And did we stop at a liquor store before crossing back into Oregon? You bet your sweet open container ass we did!
The really memorable thing about the day was doing things we’d (mostly) not done before. I mean, how many times have we seen the sign to Shasta Dam/Lake from I-5 and thought “We should do that someday”? Too many times.
Thursday
We had tentatively planned to go back to Portland on Thursday, but Mom convinced us to stay for one more day of relaxation. We spent the hot morning in Auntie Donna’s pool and then went out for lunch, came home and watched the first two Iron Man movies, Life of Pi, and the film version of My Fair Lady. Except for the packing-up-to-go-home part, it was a bonus day of even more vacation fun.
Friday
We drove back north. ‘Twas a long and boring drive, but sooo worth it for our week of vacation with Mother Mary. Thank you, Mom, for hosting us!
Conclusion: this book had some excellent ideas for family activities. Not science fiction-y at all.
Since we’ve been home, the list of things we hoped to get done over the weekend mostly went undone. Today Vic is back to work and I’m doing all our vacation laundry. Blech.
*Lyric lifted from Spamalot and shamelessly paraphrased. I apologize.
Jul. 1: June in review
Special days I celebrated this month and how:
- The last day of school on June 14. From what I remember, it was a good time.
- Mother Mary’s birthday. We took her out for lunch but that’s about it. Bad Jen.
- Father’s Day. I don’t remember how we celebrated. Wow. I’m a terrible daughter and wife.
Gifts I gave and/or received this month:
- End-of-the-school-year parting gifts from friends. Such sweet surprises!
- Mother Mary’s birthday gift was a slightly customized version of this bracelet. I got myself a matching one. The etsy seller has some really fun items—she’s my new favorite.
Books I read this month:
- Why Moms Are Weird, again, by Pamela Ribon. I so enjoy the way she weaves stories.
- Forget About It, by Caprice Crane. Very light, but cute.
- Angels & Demons, by Dan Brown. A page-turner.
- The Girls’ Guide to Hunting & Fishing, by Melissa Bank. Fun read.
Movies and TV shows worth mentioning:
- Katie and I saw Brave. Loveliness.
- I Redboxed Jeff, Who Lives at Home. Great cast, so-so movie.
New recipes or restaurants I tried:
- The kids and I had breakfast at IKEA. I like some of their regular food, but had never tried their breakfast before. It was delicious. Totally cheap and way yummy.
- I made key lime cake balls. More accurately, they were cookie balls. Or truffles. Yes, truffles sounds better. Key Lime Truffles. Here’s the closest thing to the recipe I ended up using. They were pretty good, but I will definitely add more lime juice next time to cut the crazy-sweetness.
Special or unusual purchases I made:
- We bought two tents for using at Relay for Life this year. I never thought I’d own a tent, since I hate camping so, so, so much, but THANK BUDDHA the North Clackamas Relay isn’t in the wilderness. With air mattresses and my favorite down comforter, I be way cozy, but JUST FOR ONE NIGHT. Then I go back to having a nighttime restroom closer than a half-lap away.
- I bought the supplies for our Lap Beads Relay for Life fundraiser. My fingers are sore from adding jump rings to eleventy billion charms and lobster clasps.
- Floats! I floated! I’ve pre-purchased four more floats; just the idea that I have them available to me at any time is relaxing all by itself. That’s weird, isn’t it?
This month’s disappointments:
- We had to send Oliver away. Sad face.
- June 7, the anniversary of my dad’s death, is always a tough day. It’s been seven years.
- The weather. Ugh. We’ve had a few perfect and gorgeous days, but they’ve been unpredictable, with way, way too much rain and cold.
- Sunshine visited, but then she left again.
My accomplishments:
- My office is in a usable state again! Lucy’s got roaming rights to the entire house now, so I don’t have to be downstairs all the time and that means I’m pretty much living in my office. I like. I like very much. It’s a happy place.
- I made planning calendars all pretty-like. Picture proof to come.
- I lived through the school year. That’s big.
Anything else noteworthy:
- Katie and Jack had their piano recitals—Katie’s fifth, Jack’s third. They’re both doing so well and really enjoy it—though if you ask Jack, he’ll deny it. Katie is starting guitar now, and I’m sooo glad it’s not violin. Early guitar practice, even when the notes are wrong, is much less likely to make my ears bleed than anything as vile as a violin. Vile-lin. THAT’S what it should be called.
- One of Katie’s electives for the last term of sixth grade was Musical Theater. I don’t know why they called it that, because there was nothing musical about it. The class went to a high school play—not a musical, just a regular ol’ play—and their big performance at the end of the term was changed from an evening program to a during-class performance; most parents couldn’t even be there. We took off work to watch, and I was surprised at how unprepared the students were—they didn’t have props or microphones when they needed them, didn’t know their lines, and the whole thing was as though they were doing it for the first time. I don’t expect perfection, but I don’t see what guidance the teacher gave them at all. I was disappointed with what could have been a very fun learning experience for them.
This wasn’t the only meaningless middle school elective, though… my friend’s daughter took a sewing class in which the only project was one of those no-sew fleece pillows. WTF??? - I finally figured out how to get Jack to clean up his room: ground him. Unfortunately, he thought it was kinda cool to be grounded, so it took him a week to clean enough to be set free. Whatever… it’s done. We had to go through his garbage carefully, though. Where Katie keeps every scrap of paper EVER (oh, how I wish I were exaggerating), Jack throws out old yearbooks, pictures, books he wrote in first grade, and clothes. Sheesh.
Here’s to a sunny July! Smell ya later, doods.
April 29: Month in review
Special days I celebrated this month and how:
- We did that belated anniversary celebration mini-vacation. Such fun.
- Victor was honored for 20 years of work at the hospital at their annual awards banquet. I played the
proud wifeone who was thankful for a regular paycheck. - This weekend Victor’s with former classmates in Seattle for their 30th high school reunion. He was out until 1am last night, so either they were having a really great time together or he forgot where he was staying and drove around for hours crying about how old he is.
- There were lots of celebrations at school in April. The volunteer appreciation dinner was my favorite.
- It wasn’t for a special occasion, but it was definitely a special day when Sherilee came to Portland earlier this month. We caught up over shopping and lunch at Gustav’s—the only thing that would’ve made it better was more time. Possibly more fondue.
- Happy anniversary to Eric and Kim F’n Wick! Today marks one year since their royal wedding.
Gifts I gave and/or received this month:
- The kids got chocolate bunnies on Easter. The Easter Bunny has gotten really lazy.
- My dear friend Stephanie gave us a gift bag of goodies last week. We love her!
Books I read this month:
- The Shadow of the Wind, by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. Loved it.
- The Beginner’s Goodbye, by Anne Tyler. Better than her last few novels.
- Let’s Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir), by Jenny Lawson (The Bloggess). You’ll pee yourself.
- Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns), by Mindy Kaling (Kelly on The Office). Meh.
Movies and TV shows worth mentioning:
- Jack and I saw Titanic on the 100th anniversary of the collision. We went over to Bridgeport to see it in IMAX and 3D, which made it better than I expected (doesn’t it seem like old movies that are reformatted into 3D are not usually improved all that much?). He’s been asking lots of questions ever since. Grandpa Curt would be proud—as far back as I can remember, Dad was fascinated with the ship; when it was finally found in 1985, he got me interested in it too.
- Is Smash the best thing on TV, or what?
- This past week’s Community is a must-see if you’re a Law & Order fan.
- Both the east- and west-coast live versions of 30 Rock were LOL-funny.
New recipes or restaurants I tried:
Nothing remarkable.
Special or unusual purchases I made:
Can’t think of any. Wait, does deliciously addictive hard pear cider count for “special or unusual”? If it does, then ignore my first answer.
This month’s disappointments:
- Reality is sinking in: my BFF is moving far, far away. If not for special drugs, I don’t know how I’d get through it.
- Not so much disappointing as sad, my grandma passed away on April 20.
My accomplishments:
I didn’t kill a single person. Month ain’t over yet, though.
Anything else noteworthy:
- Katie went to Outdoor School this past week. She sounded so much like me when she described the experience—she talked about the uncomfortable, smelly parts as much as the super-fun memory-making parts. My Outdoor School experience 30 years ago wasn’t a total suck-fest, but it wasn’t nonstop cool, either.
- I’ve been surprised at how many people aren’t familiar with the concept of Outdoor School—is this really just an Oregon thing???
- Last month I whined about the horrible weather. This month I have to show off the beautiful blooms in our front yard:
That’s it, doods.
Mar. 30: Soooo done with March
Special days I celebrated this month and how:
The kids went to a few birthday parties. We “celebrated” St. Patrick’s Day in that we used it as an excuse to eat corned beef in Reuben sandwich form. We marked a bittersweet day for Sunshine the other night that was way more fun than it should have been (mostly because it involved voodoo and some really, really fun people).
Gifts I gave and/or received this month:
Um… none? Not any memorable ones, anyway. I’m not pouting…
Books I read this month:
- The Shadow of the Wind. Still reading, and loving, this beautiful story.
- I wrote about the other books I’ve been reading here.
- I haven’t read it yet (obvy), but Anne Tyler’s new book comes out next week!
Movies and TV shows worth mentioning:
I so rarely see movies, and I already go on way too much about the TV shows I love. Can I talk instead about seeing the touring production of Wicked in Portland last night? It was Jack’s first time, and he really enjoyed it—I KNEW he would!—he saw one of his best buddies there so the shame factor was lowered considerably. Two shows left in our season: Million Dollar Quartet in May and Jersey Boys in July. We decided not to renew for next season, so Jack’s off the hook for at least a year and then I hope to start dragging him to musicals again.
New recipes or restaurants I tried:
Victor made pulled pork (heehee), which became delicious sandwiches. I tried a new recipe for chicken enchilada soup; Vic loved it but I thought it was “meh.” If I tried any new restaurants, they were unremarkable because I don’t remember them.
Special or unusual purchases I made:
I suppose we “purchased” Lucy’s fixin’… I got some new earrings… Vic got boring clothes… I bought all the good “Smash” songs from iTunes… I bought my first bottle of essential oil—lavender, one of my favorite scents—and now look forward to lots of homemade hair tonics, cleaners, deodorizers, etc. Pinterest has so many ideas that call for essential oil.
This month’s disappointments:
Too many meetings… some way-awkward PTO stuff… all that friggin’ snow…
My accomplishments:
I managed to keep a very loose hold on my sanity. The kids were home for WAY too much of their spring break and—get this—they expected to be entertained. And fed! Given the circumstances, I’d say keeping my sanity was a pretty darn big accomplishment.
Something I considered doing: redesigning my web site. Sherilee did hers, and it got my wheels turning… but I finally decided that I just don’t have the energy to attempt such a project right now. I mean, I’ve got a billion work and school things going anyway, and a redesign always seems minor and then you lose all your archives and yell curse words and wish you’d never been born. So you’re gonna have to please just live with the current look for a while longer. Thanks.
Anything else noteworthy:
The kids’ report cards for the second trimester were great. Jack’s showed lots of improvement.
With all the rain and grey skies we’ve had lately, all the color in our yard is a welcome sight. Purple and white crocuses, yellow daffodils, pink hyacinths, periwinkle periwinkle (it is—it’s periwinkle), tulips on their way… and lots of new growth on the greenery. Now, if the sun would come out and dry the yard up a little, I could work in it. Also, some sun would make me way less grouchy.
That’s it, doods.
Mar. 26: Currently
Happy new week.
I am currently:
Listening
…to the relative peace of the house. The kids are in Seattle. The dogs are in separate rooms for now, so they’re not doing that Tasmanian Devil tornado thing all over the place. The Monday landscapers finished the neighborhood early and all their noise is done. I can actually hear birds chirping! The frogs are quiet for now—probably tired after croaking ALL NIGHT LONG OMG I HATE THOSE FROGS SO MUCH.
Eating
…gummy bears. Breakfast of champions.
Drinking
…iced coffee. Makes for a better-balanced breakfast of champions. Yup.
Feeling
…very happy. We had such a nice weekend. The weather was beautiful on Saturday and we spent a lot of time out in it. Early yesterday the kids took off to Seattle with Grandpa & Grandma, so Victor and I had most the day to ourselves. We ran errands, went shopping, had lunch out, watched some Hulu, and thoroughly appreciated a kid-free day.
…eager about coming events. Tonight we’re having dinner with one of my fave sisters-in-law, Sally, who’s visiting from Florida. We’ve got tickets to see Wicked on Thursday night—it’ll be Jack’s first time (my fifth, Vic’s fourth, Katie’s third… we’re fans, obvy). At this time next week, Vic and I will be belatedly celebrating our 15th anniversary in Long Beach, Washington. And a lunch (involving fondue!) with Sherilee next week? Yes, please!
Wanting
…to hang with friends I haven’t seen nearly enough lately. Val, this means you!
Needing
…to do some gardening while the weather’s nice. Will I get outside today? I sure hope so… but reading away the afternoon doesn’t sound terrible either. Pretty sure my laziness will beat my ambition. It usually does.
accomplishing
…some projects that have been on my to-do list for a long time. Last month I bought a rug for our kitchen, and on Friday I finally put it down. This actually turned out to be a pretty time-consuming project, involving moving the other rug out (and cleaning it before storage), thoroughly scrubbing the floors (might as well do all the hardwoods, not just the kitchen, right?), and getting the new rug perfectly situated underneath the table and chairs. Because Lucy loves to chase the broom and mop, I did most of the work while she was at the vet last week. And y’know how one minor task often turns into eleventy more? That’s where I am now: prioritizing the eleventy others. Only a couple of them involve paint. (Can you hear my husband groaning over the mention of “paint”??? He totally is.)
Enjoying
…vicariously, my friends’ spring break vacations. Some are on ships, one is in Texas, several have family visiting… and then there’s me. Staying home. I’m trying not to whine too much, because a big trip is in the works for later this year—I hope I hope I hope. Plus there’s our getaway thing next week.
…way too much TV. I think I actually watch more TV now than I did before we cancelled cable—Hulu makes it so dang easy. GCB is a recent guilty pleasure, and Bent has been amusing. I’m totally obsessed with Smash… happy that Community is back on… 30 Rock is as funny as ever… still waiting to find Suburgatory a waste of time and it’s not happening… Cougar Town is clever, sweet, and underrated… I catch CSI episodes online as often as possible (they’re not on Hulu, just cbs.com)… I can’t believe I’m still watching Alcatraz and Grimm, which are so NOT my usual types of must-see TV… as well as my other old favorites, The Office, Modern Family, The Middle, Parks & Recreation, SVU… See, way, way too much TV.
sharing silly stuff
I’m off to decide how best to waste my day. Smell ya later—
Mar. 24: Beautiful day to be outdoors
Thursday morning we woke to two inches of snow—the most we’ve add all winter—and school was on a 2-hour delay. Yesterday was sunny and gorgeous and I needed my sunglasses at 7am.
Weather is so stupid.
But when it’s sunshiney and warm(ish) and beautiful and cheery, I will not complain.
(Weather is still totally stupid.)
Victor mowed the backyard today. It took him longer to clean up the yard than it did to mow. All the stuff out there is courtesy of our giant puppy. Here’s a pic I took of Her Silliness about a month ago:
It’s a little hard to see, but that’s a big piece of firewood, tons of bamboo leaves and tree branches—or, as Lucy would put it if she could speak, “my trophies!” What you can’t see here are the plastic bags that once held pea gravel (I think she ate all the gravel out of them and then dragged the bags into the yard), and the pieces of Charlie Brown tree. A few years ago Victor came home with the saddest little pine tree, but he loved it back to health—seriously, I don’t know *what* he was doing out there with that tree night after night—and it got all bushy and not Charlie Brown-y. AND THEN LUCY CAME TO LIVE HERE.
We took our sweet girl in to be spayed yesterday. She’s still a little wobbly and groggy, and 53 groggy pounds is a LOT to herd around the house, especially wearing an Elizabethan collar (her, not me). We’re trying to keep her apart from the little dog for 24 hours or so, just to let her heal a bit before they start in again with their constant romping. That is also a challenge, and a noisy one. There is lots of barking (them, not me) and whining (mostly me). I’m glad dogs recover faster from abdominal surgeries than people do.
On a beautiful day like today, though, Lucy is LOVING being outside and sunbathing on the deck, chewing on something she shouldn’t have.
Tummy stitches and everything, that is one happy pup.
Mar. 1: Bits o’ nothing
Funny.
(I still don’t get it, though.)
Yesterday I pointed to a guy crossing the street in front of us and said to Victor, “You should get a sweater like that.” Right away he was all NO WAY, I HATE SWEATERS, THEY’RE TOO TIGHT, THEY’RE TOO HOT, THEY’RE TOO TIGHT, AND THEY’RE ALSO TOO HOT.
And it went on like that for a good 15 minutes. I swear, his voice went up at least one octave.
Geez.
I shall never bring up the topic of sweaters again.
The PTO received a brochure from the Oregon Area Jewish Committee that listed and explained all the Jewish holy days. I find this useful because…
- I never know when they are.
- I never know what they mean.
- Those two things make me seem ignorant and insensitive.
- I am ignorant and insensitive—there’s no “seem” about it.
…so I read it over and then quizzed Jack, “Hey, do you know what Yom Kippur is?”
“Um… Chinese food?”
You know what show is more amusing than I expect it to be? Cougar Town. I am not joking about that—it really is LOL-worthy.
On March 1, 1961, John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps. Makes all I’ve accomplished so far today seem trivial.
Day ain’t over yet.
BUT I’m pretty sure anything I do accomplish today won’t come be Peace Corps-y. Nowadays getting through one day without the puppy chewing up something we treasure is a success.
There we Manullangs go with the over-achieving again.
This has happened to us twice in the past five days, once with a large, heavy and awkward item. What a pain in the ass. Makes you wonder why they even put those plastic security thingies on stuff. They obviously don’t set off alarms.
I wonder if I can buy one of the plastic security thingie remover thingies on eBay. I totally should.
My new Sonicare is awesome. Added bonus: it’s a great ring cleaner. My rings are always gunked up with hand sanitizer goo, and this sparkles them right up.
That, my friends, is the very definition of spit shine.
I’m off to start my day, forming Peace Corps ‘n stuff. I hope you contribute to society today too.
Jan. 13: IDCEAYWTPFriday
- We’re supposed to get snow here tomorrow night. This does not make me happy. However, after a week of work, doctor appointments, meetings, and deadlines, I don’t mind having an excuse to stay home and do nothing. Bring it, Mother Nature.
- The puppy has finally figured out that she can no longer fit under the couch. While I enjoyed the Wonder Woman feeling I got every time I lifted the couch to get her un-stuck, I’m glad she’s stopped trying to hide under furniture. Now she seems to be perfectly content to poop in her crate and sit right out in the open, proud as can be.
- Puppy training has hit some bumps, obvy.
- So, it seems that our home is breaking, literally. As I laser leveled a family room wall to hang pictures last week, Jack pointed out that the beam stopped and then started again. I investigated, and found a spot where the wall actually swells way out into the room. It casts a friggin’ shadow! When we had nail pops all over the place a few years back, I was annoyed, but this is way worse. I hate our house so much. I know, I should be grateful we have one. I am. I just want a better one.
- We got rid of cable TV a while back and have been handling it surprisingly well. However, there are still an awful lot of shows that aren’t available to watch online, so I started trial memberships of Hulu Plus and Netflix to see which we like best. Imagine my delight in seeing that Hulu has every episode of Law & Order: SVU! Who needs the USA network’s silly marathons when I can make my own? (Cue Victor’s eye roll…)
- The cat has found a good place to hide from the dogs:
- My uncle Mel, my dad’s brother, died this week. So sad. My aunt Hazel is the only one of Dad’s siblings left.
- I met up with my author friend Lisa Schroeder for lunch on Tuesday. She’s one of the most charming people I know (and I know a LOT of charming people)—we had such a nice visit. Thanks for coming across town, Lisa!
- The last time I made shortbread I noticed that it tasted odd, and the only thing I could figure out is that the flour or sugar had taken on the smell of the plastic containers in which they’d been stored. I invested a lot of $$ outfitting my cabinets with Tupperware Modular Mates, so this was a bummer of a discovery. I decided to switch my food storage from plastic to glass, and here are two of the cabinets where I made big changes:
STORAGE BEFORE STORAGE AFTER
- For the most part, I used 1-quart and 2-quart mason jars as my new containers. I found glass jars at IKEA that are perfect for tea storage—they’re less ugly to have on the counter and we drink tea often enough that it DOES get left out on the counter. I stuck to small-ish jars because glass itself is so heavy and I drop stuff a lot. Since two quarts of flour didn’t seem like enough to have on hand, I ended up filling two large jars with flour because I sleep better knowing I’ve got enough flour to make a gazillion dozen cookies at any given moment. Of course, that’ll never happen because I hate making cookies. Oh, and notice the almost-clear top shelf—what an improvement!
SPICE CABINET BEFORE SPICE CABINET AFTER
- This was a much bigger change because I was able to toss more than half of the original contents. I swear, I think most of that stuff was with us when we moved in here 14 years ago. The big red container holds all the cake decorating supplies, and the open plastic container holds MiO and drink mixes. Almost all of my spices are new (most expensive and boring grocery store haul EVER), and stored in awesome little IKEA jars. Notice the clear top shelf… that’s probably my favorite part. Happy, happy—so productive!
- I can’t wait to make a new batch of shortbread!
- My ex-friend Cristina told me I had to watch Grimm and I did and now I’m mad at her. IT’S SCARY! I’ve had nightmares for the first time in years, and I think one episode made me pee a little. I do admit that being filmed in Portland makes it more watchable than it might be otherwise, but Cristina is still not forgiven.
Happy weekend! Smell ya later.
Sep. 7: This ain’t cool
Today is my kids’ second day of school. They both left wearing shorts. It’s 90,000,000° outside (I *might* have some extra zeroes there). The A/C already came on, promising the indoors will be a cool respite from the outdoors, even though having the windows already closed means the air will be stale and icky within hours. The car’s interior is seventh-level-of-hell-hot, and second degree burns to any skin that comes in contact with said interior is a given. And yet… I see people posting on Facebook and in their blogs about the cool fall weather, even rain. WTF???
I’m not complaining—the warm weather here is lovely, even when it’s too hot to enjoy. Just knowing it’s out there makes me happy.
But it ain’t fall here, folks. It ain’t. You are wrong, people who live in other parts of the country. Wrong, I tells ya. The calendar says it’s still summer and so does the thermometer in my car.
Now, pass the iced tea before the heat exhaustion kills me dead.
Aug. 1: Currently
1. listening
As is typical on Monday mornings in our neighborhood, I’m listening to all the landscapers working very, very noisily. Sometimes they wait until after 8am to start up the power tools, like our noise ordinance says they should, and this morning I didn’t hear them until 9. Either they’re lazy sleeper-inners, or they had lots to do before they got to our street.
I’m also hearing Jack dig through his boxes of LEGOs. He just came in to show me a cute little forest scene he’d built onto a platform—it had big trees and sweet red posies, and then I noticed… the flames, my god, the flames! They were everywhere! I love his evil little creations.
2. eating
I haven’t eaten anything today, but I’m getting hungry. On today’s menu: Kraft mac and cheese, most likely. It’s the one thing the kids and I always agree on.
3. drinking
I just finished my morning coffee, and now I’m working on a huge tumbler of water. Can’t remember if I’ve written about the water I’ve been drinking lately—the “recipe” has been all over Pinterest and other sites. I fill my big two gallon pitcher with water and toss in slices of lemon, lime, orange and cucumber. Every time I pour some to drink, I refill the pitcher with water. The fruit and cucumber slices last about two weeks. I’ve noticed that after five days or so, the lemon is a bit potent, so I’ve been adding more cucumbers and they seem to cut the puckery-ness. I love water and don’t usually have a problem getting my 6-8 glasses a day, but having the flavored water keeps the soda temptations low. Tis good.
4. wearing
I’m wearing pants and a tank top. Boring.
5. feeling
I’m feeling excited about some new photo projects I’m working on. A while back Vic’s aunt gave him a frame similar to this:
…and I went through a bunch of our Disney vacation photos to fill each space in the collage. This frame will hang in the hallway upstairs. I’m also replacing the photos in the frames on our staircase wall. Instead of portraits of our siblings and parents from our wedding day, we’ll frame some of the nicer snapshots from our travels.
I’m feeling declutter-y, so I’ll be making a stop at Goodwill today.
I’m feeling relieved that Katie seems to be doing better this morning after spending most the weekend sick sick sick.
I’m feeling sad and hopeless that my sister’s and my relationship will ever be the way it once was. We are both very stubborn.
6. weather
This says it all:
Look at all o’ dem yeller circles!
7. wanting
I want to go to somewhere.
We’re thinking of doing a day trip this week (maybe Mt. St. Helens? Vic and I haven’t been up there for almost 20 years). Vic has vacation scheduled for most of this month, but since he’s had to take so much forced time off (stoopid hospital budget cuts), he doesn’t have nearly enough vacation days to use—which is why we aren’t headed to Florida right now, like we planned last winter. Instead, he’ll take a day off here and there, and hopefully every one of those days will involve us getting outta town.
8. needing
I need to make lunch or teach the kids how to do it their own damn selves.
9. thinking
There’s a lot of stuff crammed into my noggin right now. I need to focus on just one area if I expect this day to be at all productive.
10. enjoying
On Friday, it looks like I’ll get to enjoy a quick lunch with Sherilee as she passes through town. We’ll be enjoying Saturday afternoon at the Lassens to celebrate Theo’s birthday. On Sunday, we’ll enjoy a family outing to see Les Miz.
I think that’s it for now.
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