her feet?

My next door office neighbor likes to talk to herself, and she's been quite the chatterer today (and it's only just 8 a.m.). Just a second ago, out of nowhere, she said "funky." I think I can go home happy now.

sort of embarrassed to admit this

I've been watching American Idol.

(Here I pause to wait for the barrage of beer bottles and rotten tomatoes to end.)

Yes, it's true. I've gone over to the dark side. Actually, I've gone *back* to the dark side. I watched several seasons way back when, then stopped because I grew a conscience and some dignity. But now, well, can dignity and a conscience shrink from lack of use?

Anyway, this stuff that these people sing is never anything that I would pay money to listen to, but ... well ... the fact of the matter is ... this season is actually ... GOOD! I can't believe I'm saying that, but it's the truth. I like the changes they've made this season. They seriously needed them. And the contestants this year? I watched last night - "Country Night" which would normally nauseate me - and really I can only name maybe two people that I think should be sent home. The rest of them I actually liked! I mean, I really really liked! On COUNTRY NIGHT for cripes sake! We're in for quite a competition here.

So yeah, I'm kind of excited to hear what these guys do in upcoming weeks when the theme is something I actually tolerate on a regular basis.


In case you're interested, here are my evaluations and predictions for the Top 13 (including the 2 who have already been eliminated:


Jorge: Eliminated last week, and I don't miss him. He was one of the stronger personalities, but one of the weaker singers.

Jasmine: Eliminated last week, and I don't miss her either. She's too green and needs to live a little before starting a career. Any career.

Danny: I've really liked him from the beginning and I think he has a chance to win it all. I think he has the stage presence to pull off any kind of musical performance, which is good on this show.

Anoop: I'm undecided on Anoop Dog. I think he's talented, but maybe not talented enough? I don't know. It just feels like he's trying too hard or something. But at least he doesn't bore me. And I kind of liked the song he chose last night.

Allison: I really enjoy her performances and I think she has a cool voice. But I tend to forget about her as soon as she's done. Don't know what that's about. But she can seriously sing.

Matt: I wasn't crazy about him at first, but this week he did awesome! I don't get the Justin Timberlake comparisons, but the kid is very talented, especially behind a piano.

Scott: Speaking of pianos, Paula was right when she said Scott was using the piano as a crutch. I give him kudos for doing this kind of thing with what could be a damaging handicap (he's blind, if you didn't know), but he really is the weakest singer. I don't want to sound like the bad guy, but I think he is getting the sympathy "good for you" votes.

Lil: I really like Lil and her R&B vibe. I think she needs to up her game a little in order to stand out more, but I think (and hope) that she could make it all the way.

Megan: Megan, Megan, Megan. What can I say about Megan? She's weird and tattooed and quirky in both her vocals and her onstage shimmies. Personally, I love it, and I always look forward to her performances, but I could see how the general populous might not want to keep her around.

Michael: I liked him at the beginning, but I think his star is fading. He's just becoming very blah. I don't think he'll stick around for more than a few more weeks, if that.

Alexis: I like Alexis. I really liked her performance last week, but this week wasn't as strong. Still, she's one of my faves and I think she'll go far. As long as she keeps being "dirty," that is, but maybe they can stop saying that word? Please?

Kris: This kid is adorable, and he can sing. Yes, that's all I'm going to say.

Adam: So, saving the weirdest for last, there's Adam. I missed some of the early auditions and Hollywood week episodes, so I really didn't know much about this Adam kid until last week. And, um, I LIKE IT!! He's kind of weird and goth and wears makeup and nail polish and tight leather pants, and he's got a voice like I've never heard before. He can do a fantastic falsetto, and really knows how to work the crowd. I wasn't sure what to make of last night's Middle-Eastern-tinged version of "Ring of Fire" But I think I maybe liked it? I liked judge Kara's comment, "It left me confused and sort of happy." Yes, definitely. And I think Adam is going places. Whether it's to American Idol's hall of fame, or to another planet where he can be ruler of the tight-pants girly-singers, remains to be seen.

Seacrest, out.

remembrance

Yesterday at work, we all received small black ribbon pins in memory of four of our employees (from a different sector) who were killed in the recent plane crash in New York. At 10:20 in the morning, we observed a moment of silence in their honor.

During this moment of silence, I was reminded of another time when I was given a ribbon to remember someone who had passed away.

When I was in 8th grade, I spent quite a bit of time in the hospital. Every few weeks, I would go in for a night or two to have an I.V. treatment (something like chemotherapy). One day while I was sitting in my hospital bed whiling away the hours until it was time to go home again, I glimpsed a boy walking into the room next door who looked familiar. Over the next few hours, I saw nurses, doctors, and family members going in and out of the room frequently. I particularly remember the boy's Dad. At one point, he came out into the hall holding a mask over his mouth. He lowered the mask and smiled at me.

It must have been the next morning when I saw the boy again. Only this time he was being wheeled out of the room in a wheelchair, looking like he'd been through a war. That was the last time I ever saw him.

The following Monday at school, the hallways were full of whispers. I could only understand that something bad had happened to someone. Finally, there was an announcement from the Principal. A boy named Jason had taken ill over the weekend. He had acute Leukemia. There were complications with his treatment and he passed away on Sunday.

I don't think I realized right away that this was the boy I had seen at the hospital. I didn't want to believe that I was the last of his classmates to see him alive.

What I learned later was that some bleeding in his mouth (possibly triggered by tightening of braces - the memory is a little bit foggy here) had tipped his doctors off that there was something not quite right. This led to the leukemia diagnosis. He needed a blood transfusion, which I believe is what was happening in the room next door to mine. For reasons unknown to me, he was then transferred to a hospital in the city. There is where they discovered that the transfusion had caused a clot in his brain. He had been scheduled to start chemotherapy the very next day, but sadly, he never made it that far.

A few days after the announcement, all of the students at the Junior High were given little cream-colored ribbons in memory of Jason. I pinned mine on my backpack, which is where it stayed all year, and all through High School, too. When I looked at it, I thought of that young boy I had seen at the hospital. But even more often than that, I thought of his Dad, and the brave smile he had given me from the hallway that day. His family was going through Hell, and he still found the strength to smile at the stranger in the next room.

the house

It's been almost 2 years since my Dad retired, and about a year for my Mom. In this time, they have, like most retired couples do, thrown around the idea of selling their too-big, too-hard-to-care-for house, and moving into something smaller. Perhaps a little 2-bedroom house in town with a little yard, or maybe a townhouse in one of those retirement villages, or possibly even a house far away in a much warmer climate, where my Dad's hips and knees won't bother him so much, and he will never have to snow blow another driveway ever again.

In my mind, this possibility has always been a "someday" kind of thing. On some distant day that I don't have to think about, my parents will move out of the house they've lived in for the past 20+ years. There will be a teary goodbye, all the neighbors will come over with their best wishes, and maybe we'll even bury a time capsule. Right next to the circle of cement at the top of the driveway that used to hold up the basketball hoop, but my Dad was never able to dig up because it went too deep, and maybe he didn't want to anyway since it has the hand prints of me and my brother and the paw print of our old dog Emily.

But it seems that "someday" is coming much sooner than I had hoped. They plan to put the house on the market either this Spring or next. They've already had two people come out to give them a recommendation on how much to list it for, and they've begun the staging process.

A few weeks ago, I was devastated to learn that my Dad had gone through half of the enormous bookcase (that he built) in the living room and given a ton of books to Goodwill. I got mad at him for not asking me if I wanted any of them, which I know was completely selfish and bratty. But I think that what I was really feeling was the sentimental attachment to the house and all the objects in it. Even though the books belonged to my parents, I felt like they had just given away a part of my life. The process was starting - the process that would end with them not living there anymore, and me having no reason to drive out to my old neighborhood anymore. The next day, my Dad called me up and told me he was sorry for upsetting me, and that he wanted me to be there when they went through the other half of the bookcase. As guilty and ridiculous as I felt for blowing up at them, I felt happier that they decided to include me in this process of change. And after the second book purge, I came home with a box and a half of great old books that either I'd loved as a kid (the Tolkien Bestiary), sounded like an interesting read (a biography of Jack Kerouac), or were just really cool (a leather-bound Atlas from the WWII era). The other night when I went over to their house for dinner, I found a couple more boxes of old stuff they wanted me to go through before they threw it out, sent it to Goodwill, or put it in the "garage sale" pile. This time it was kids books that had been in a bookcase down in the basement for who knows how long. Even though I have no idea what I'm going to do with them, I decided to keep quite a few of these old books, for various sentimental reasons (one of them was a personalized story about Mother Goose given to me by my Grandma, who passed away last year).

I am going to accumulate more "stuff" during this move than is physically possible to fit into my apartment. I know that my parents will only be taking one living room set with them when they move, so they've offered the second one to me. My Mom has also mentioned giving me the dining room set. And to my shock, they lately offered me the antique record player that we've had for as long as I can remember. Even in the house before this one.

The thing is, I'm not sure if hanging on to things from the house is going to make it easier or harder for me to accept that they're selling it. That house embodies my family. It was my uncle's construction company that built it. When it was just a hole in the ground, my Dad, brother, and I brought a maple sapling that we'd dug out from behind the garage of our old house, and planted it in the far corner of the backyard of the new house. It's a big, healthy, beautiful tree now, but for a long time, you could still see the crooks in the trunk caused by it's rough beginning. During construction, I used to make things out of the scraps of colored wires left on the floor after the electrical work. I remember the first thing I ever put in my bedroom closet - a My Little Pony corral - and I don't think the room even had walls yet. My little brother only remembers living in this house.

Saying goodbye to this place is going to be difficult, to say the least. We built that house in 1987 and it's always been home base for me and my brother. The place we knew we could always come back to. I visit my parents at least once a week, sometimes more, rarely less. I know that that won't change if they move, and my brother and I will be just as welcome in the new place, but will it feel right? Will it be home? And if they do decide to move out of state ... well I just don't know what I'll do on Wednesday nights anymore.

Have you ever been walking down a long hallway, like at work or something, and you're passing by people, some of them you know, some of them you don't know, and you pass by someone you know, or you sort of know, and you think "smile" but your mouth doesn't actually smile, and then you wonder why you don't have any friends at work?

No?

Ok, nevermind.

yowza!

I haven't written anything in a while, have I? Hmm. I'm trying to think of why that might be ... I was really busy with work for a couple weeks there, but that doesn't usually stop me from documenting my thoughts ... dunno. I guess I've been feeling like I'm in some kind of state of suspended animation or something lately. I haven't been having any deep thoughts, no emotional turmoil, no quirky observations, no rhetorical questions. Just ... existing. Don't get me wrong, I've been perfectly happy with the status quo. It's just not very conducive to blogging.

But here's something. I have been trying to straighten myself out with regards to my diet. Some recent bouts of tummy turmoil ('Turmoil' is a great word, isn't it? I've already used it twice in this entry!!) have clued me in to the fact that I don't exactly eat what I should be eating. Several months ago I decided to cut out all artificial sweeteners (bye-bye Diet Coke), limit my caffeine intake, and drink more water. Now that my bladder has gotten used to the idea, it's been pretty smooth sailing on those seas (I should maybe consider rephrasing that sentence.). But now is the time for a more drastic overhaul of my old eating habits. I need to buy more fresh veggies, more whole foods (bye-bye blue box mac and cheese), and perhaps most importantly, learn to ...*gasp* ... COOK!!! Sadly, this is where the problem lies. It's not that I crave the processed, bad-for-you foods, it's that I am interminably lazy. I don't want to take the time to cook something myself when it's so much easier to throw something in the microwave for a few minutes and be done with it. Even making a salad is exhausting work for me, cutting up all those veggies. I tried once to make one huge salad that I could divide up and eat over a couple days, but then I forgot about it and after the third or fourth day, the whole thing had already gone bad. Utter failure.

However, I was very proud of myself after I went to the grocery store yesterday. I intended to buy some yogurt for my lunches, and perhaps a couple of other things if they struck my fancy. I ended up completely filling my basket, and 90% of it was fresh produce! Go me! I plan to make a trip back to the store in a couple days to get ingredients for some soup I'm going to attempt to make this weekend (a 4-day weekend for me! Whoo!).

... and I have no idea how to end this entry. Perhaps "Here's to healthy eating!" works?

The End.

a new perspective

I did some reflecting on New Year's Eve after returning home from the party circuit, and I came to a new conclusion about myself. Something I've never really considered before, but makes a lot of sense.

I think I want to be single.

I was watching some crappy movie a few weeks ago, in which a father imparts the wisdom to his daughter that people have the love life that they want to have. Meaning, you create the situation in which you are most comfortable. Now there are some serious holes in this reasoning, I know, but it does have a grain of truth in it. And when applied to my life, it fits. I remain single because that is how I am comfortable, it's what I know how to do, and it gives me room to find what makes me happy without pinning all my hopes and dreams on someone else. If I was seriously unhappy, and needed that relationship to feel complete or fulfilled, then I would have it. I would be trying a lot harder to find someone. And even if I was failing, I would still be going on a lot more dates, flirting with a lot more people, and just generally putting myself out there a lot more. And the truth is, I'm not doing any of those things. I've never signed up with an Internet dating site, I don't particularly like set-ups, and after numerous failures (and the conclusion that I repeatedly pick the wrong people), I resolved quite some time ago that I would no longer ask anyone out. I wanted to let them come to me. I reverted back to the old-fashioned idea of the male as the pursuer. I figured that since I always picked the wrong people, maybe a person who pick me would be right. But ... well ... that didn't really work either. Not to mention was totally lazy.

So I guess what I'm saying is, my passive approach to dating and relationships speaks volumes about what it is I really want. I'm not willing to work for it, so it must not be that important to me, right? Anyway, assuming I don't completely abandon this new way of thinking in, like, a week or something, you will see a whole lot less whining on this website in the year to come.

Reflections on 2008

My favorite new things about 2008:

- New Prez Obama!
- New apartment!
- New car!
- New job!
- New babies (NOT MINE!! Shoutouts to Dex and Olivia. Love you kiddos.)

Some fave experiences of 2008:

- Seeing a friend's shocked face at her surprise baby shower
- Cuatro de Mayo at El Mariachi with margaritas the size of your head
- Going to the Sex and the City movie with the girls
- Visiting a friend in the hospital while she was IN LABOR!!
- Being almost able to see Stevie Wonder on the jumbo screen if I stood on my tippy-toes at the Taste of Chicago
- 4th of July barbecue with a good friend's family
- Baton Club - transvestites are awesome
- Getting drenched to the bone while attempting to watch Blues Brothers in the park
- Lollapalooza - and seeing Gogol Bordello twice in one day - insanity, I tell you
- Celebrating a good friend being 5 years cancer-free
- Celebrating my Mom being 5 years cancer-free
- Mars Cheese Castle!!! And Jelly Belly side trip!! And the pyramid house!
- Roller Derby and lots of Jack Daniels
- Having a good old fashioned pajama party for my birthday
- Our fantastically awesome Gogol Bordello Halloween costumes
- Kristkindlmarket on the day after Thanksgiving
- A whole weekend of baking Christmas cookies with my Mom
- My little bro unexpectedly (to me) coming home for the holidays

Some of the not-so-good parts of 2008 that should be reflected upon:

- My Grandma passed away this year - she was 90 and had a long, full life, but she will be missed
- My never-ending health issues
- Car debacle - the century-old water mains of Chicago had it in for me this year
- Recession - even the cost of the washers/dryers in my building went up
- Blagojevich - and we were just getting used to being proud to be from Illinois ...
- Several of my good friends moved away
- Packing up and moving AGAIN - not to mention apartment hunting in sub-zero temperatures

I don't make New Year's resolutions, but if I did I would resolve to:

- Meet a lot of new people
- Think of ways to save money and plan on taking a trip abroad, maybe England or Ireland
- Learn to cook and try new healthy recipes (already started this one and made a positively yummy salmon dish the other day)
- Get my apartment in shape because I plan to stay there for some time

Happy New Year, everyone! Hope 2009 is fantastic, especially to all 2 of you who read this blog! ;)

gotta love winter in Chicago

It seems to me that the past tense of the word "snow" should be "snew." Blow -> blew, grow -> grew, so why not snow -> snew?

Anyway, yesterday it snew quite a bit. After work, I left the parking lot at 4:30, and arrived home ... at 9:00. A few minutes after, actually, since I had to park a couple blocks away. It took me 2 1/2 hours just to go the ten miles to the Des Plaines Oasis, where I stopped to grab a slice of pizza and take a little breather. So glad I did, too, because the rest of the way after that was much easier. So if you subtract the half-hour or so that I spent at the Oasis, it took me 4 hours to make a trip that should have taken about an hour. FOUR HOURS!! It's those storms that begin mid-afternoon that really kill ya. The trucks don't have time to get out there and make any headway with the plowing before it's suddenly rush hour and there's nothing they can do anyway. On my way home I saw a grand total of 1 truck on the road ... and it was plowing the shoulder.

a gripey morning

This morning I was totally frustrated with the world. Well, with my very small world, anyway. It all started when I couldn't get up the hill ...

(This is the part where everything gets all fuzzy and we flash back to earlier today, with my voice narrating in the background. After a short musical interlude of course.)

The Ravenswood tracks go right through my neighborhood, so all of the E/W streets have to pass under them, including the side street that I take just about every day while going to work. Since Ravenswood Ave. follows the tracks, in some parts it is divided into a lane on each side. Where this happens, the cross-streets usually have a stop sign on either side of the underpass. This is the case on my normally trusty route to work. Well. The genius politicians in my dear city decided that this year they weren't going to salt the side streets in order to save money. (Can you see where this is going?) Having had a bit of weather over the last few days, the ice is beginning to build up. When you're driving on a flat surface, this is tolerable. However, the road slopes downward to go under the Ravenswood tracks, and back up to go back out. And I believe I mentioned the stop signs? The first one, not a problem. It's the one on the way back up that's the killer. If there's no traffic, I can safely roll through it to keep up my momentum and get up the relatively-tiny-but-covered-in-ice hill. But today, of course, there was a car waiting to go through, so I had to come to a COMPLETE stop at the sign. And when I tried to get going again? Well, let's just say that the wheels were on my side but the rest of the car had other ideas. Namely, not moving. Luckily, there was nobody behind me, so I backed down under the tracks again and tried to make it up with a "running start." It took three attempts at this before I finally made it through. Not a great start to the day. So. I think I'm going to be changing my route tomorrow.

Anyway, this got me thinking about why there's not enough money to salt properly, and where the money is going instead, and why they keep raising prices on things (Parking! Public transportation!) and yet we see little to no increase of service. Is it because of the recession? Is it because of the Olympic bid? Is it because of political corruption? Which, of course, opened up another can of thought-worms. I wasn't able to listen to any radio station this morning without hearing about how Illinois is by far the most corrupt state, according to the FBI, and how our dear governor is a sociopathic asshat. It all just made me want to move, but not enough to make me, you know, actually MOVE. I just wanted to. And I was grumpy. And now I'm grumbling to you about it because you're a good listener.

I know all of this is a pretty lengthy way of saying winter sucks, and politicians suck, and recession sucks. But hey, you asked. Oh wait ...

in case you were going to ask

On the road this morning, I was driving behind a Jeep that's top was covered only by sheets of plastic. On the back, the spare tire cover said in large brown all-caps letters, "HELL YES IT'S COLD."

Christmas Heidi style

In these tough economic times, it only makes sense to try to cut back a little bit this Christmas. Luckily, things have been working out pretty well on that front.

First off, my extended family, who get together every Christmas Day, collectively decided not to do the adult grab-bag gift exchange this year. I'm a little sad about this because I actually enjoy Christmas shopping and picking out gifts for people, but then I keep reminding myself that it's saving me about $30. So that's good. As for the kids in that same group, I have never been expected to give them gifts, but most years I try to do a little something for them. It is usually something homemade, or an inexpensive trinket. This year, however, my idea of some personalized candies fell through, so I am making the tough decision to not get them anything. I would bake them some cookies (and still might change my mind), but my Mom has also decided to scale back, and she will be giving the kids either some tasty baked goods or popcorn-ball snowmen. Our Christmas party will be a little bit different this year without the massive gift exchange portion of the night, but I am sure the spirit will be there all the same.

As for my immediate family, I have decided this year to do a photo collage project for each of them (Mom, Dad, brother). The only thing that actually needs to be purchased for these gifts would be the frames, and I ended up getting some inexpensive ones from Target. Score! I am super excited about these gifts especially, because making them is going to be just as much fun as giving them. And that is saying a lot because I am fully expecting tears on Christmas morning.

What about everyone else on my list, you ask?? COOKIES!! The last few years, I have baked about a metric ton of cookies, and this year will be no different. Recession or no recession, cookies are a must-have for me. I think I've decided on 8 different varieties. Some of which are old favorites I've made a thousand times before, some are newer favorites from the past couple years, and some are recipes I've never tried before. My Mom and I are getting together this Saturday for a bake-a-palooza in her kitchen and I could not be more excited. TO BAKE! Yes, you can call me a nerd if you want. I don't mind. :) But chances are, if you know me, you will have the opportunity to try some of my home-baked yummies at some point this Christmas season.

So that is my grand plan for saving a little moolah this holiday season. No mall madness for me. No trendy gadgets, expensive doodads, bingle balls, whofoo fluff, goowho gums, whiffer bloofs, wuzzle wuz, snaffer snoof, dang-donglers, bizilbiz or wums!

to tree or not to tree?

Christmas is my absolute favoritest of holidays. (Look, I just made up a new word!) But every year, I am encountered with a dilemma. Do I decorate, or do I not? I spend Christmas Eve and Day (and sometimes the following day) at my parents' house, and they do the whole tree/decorations/twinkle lights thing, so every year I ask myself if it is worth the time and effort to decorate my own apartment.

Three Christmases ago, I lived with a roommate, and he went out and bought us a live tree, which we set up in the living room. I dragged out all the decorations I had collected during my years of working in a gift shop, and our place ended up looking pretty festive. But the next year, no tree, and minimal decorations. (Perhaps the lack of tree was due to the fact that after the first Christmas, we were remiss in our duties to dispose of the tree in a timely manner. Our eventual tree disposal method involved several garbage bags, a small saw, and my roommate's trunk.) That was the last Christmas I had a roommate, so when the next one rolled around, I was even less inclined to get a tree because I'd have to do the whole thing myself. And I lived in a 4th floor walk-up. Alone. With no good spot to set up a tree anyway. That year I didn't even bring out my pink Rubbermaid boxes full of decorations. As a matter of fact, those pink Rubbermaid boxes of decorations spent that Christmas in my family's basement. So very sad, it was.

But this year. THIS YEAR, I am living in an apartment that I am enamored with. Yes, I do still live alone, but it's much easier to imagine decorating when you love the place you live. I have a spot in my living room that I think would be perfect for a tree. It would require minimal rearranging of furniture (just a chair and an end table), and would be out of the way, yet in a highly visible location. I would still have to lug it up many, many stairs (What is it with me and the 4th floor?) and would probably need help with that and with setting it up in the stand. But this year I am seriously considering going all out with the decorations. Even though nobody will be seeing them but me. :)

As a side note, my apologies to Thanksgiving, which tends to get the shaft most years. If it makes Thanksgiving fans any happier, I am keeping my pumpkins and gourds on display through the end of November. :)

afterglow

I'm not going to say anything here about yesterday's election results except this: Congratulations, President-Elect Barack Obama! Your victory has made me proud to be an American.

In other much more important news, I just overheard someone say this: "I found Dad a cute vest for Christmas." There are just so many things wrong with that sentence.

ok, I'll play by your rules

Somewhat on the topic of the last post, I wanted to share something that happened JUSTNOW!! I believe I have mentioned previously that I have a very conservative coworker who likes to send out e-mails of questionable validity that perpetuate rumors about Obama, or others involved in his campaign. He never seems to check the truth of these things before blindly sending them on, so whenever I receive one, I go straight to snopes.com to check it out. Normally, I just satisfy myself with the knowledge that whatever his e-mail says is false, and don't forward the snopes link to the coworker. I don't particularly want to open that can of worms. But today, I'd had enough of it. I received an e-mail with an alleged article about Obama's views on the National Anthem that was so over the top, I could not let it slide. So I found it on snopes and sent the link to the 8 or so recipients of the original e-mail, saying "This is not true." The response I got was priceless. My very conservative coworker responded that he'd received an e-mail just a couple of weeks ago saying that snopes was owned by "a rabidly pro-Obama couple" who skewed their research in favor of Obama. And then he forwarded me said article. Now, if you've read enough of these kinds of things, you learn to see the signs that it is false before ever having to look it up. This thing was full of red flags. But again, I did not want to let this slide, so I decided to play a little game. The anti-snopes e-mail listed truthorfiction.com as a better source for verifying the e-mails you receive, so I did a little research of my own, and found this. I sent it out to the recipients of the original e-mail. I haven't gotten a response.

;)

I wanted to write about other stuff, but this is what came out

So, in case you've haven't noticed all the strange commercials on TV telling you how evil one person is and how awesome another person is, there's an election going on round these parts. Generally, I'm not a very political person. I care about the issues I care about, but I don't involve myself in the political process other than casting my vote when the time comes. But this election seems different somehow. Maybe it's because the issues I care about are front and center, or maybe I'm just getting older (and wiser?), or perhaps it's because my job security is somewhat dependent upon what party is in office. No wait, that can't be it because I'm voting for the other guy ... but that's a moral dilemma for another day. My point is this: I am worried about the future of my country, and the people who live in it. Therefore I cannot in good conscience vote for McCain. I am voting for Obama because he believes that the same things are important that I do. Health care is important to me because of who I am. Abortion rights are important to me because of who I am. Put simply, Obama represents me. If I was at all undecided about McCain at any point, the decision became much easier for me when he chose Palin as a running mate. Not because of her own family issues (which a surprising number of people have a problem with), but because she personifies the problems that I see in the government. A staunchly Republican friend of mine asked me why I wouldn't vote for the candidate with a female running mate. His reasoning being that I am a woman and wouldn't I want to see a woman in the White House? My response was, what kind of a woman would I be if I voted for someone based solely on gender? Especially someone whose views on abortion show so little respect to those of her own gender? But the closer we get to Election Day, the more confidence I have that Obama will win the Presidency. My most recent bit of good news was hearing that both my middle-of-the-road Mother and historically Republican Father will be voting for Obama this year. I was sitting at the computer at my parents' house the other day, reading an e-mail I'd gotten from the Obama campaign. I jokingly said to my Dad, "Look Dad, Joe Biden sent me an e-mail!" In the ensuing conversation, he asked how I could have become a Democrat, growing up in a Republican household. I said I didn't know, but mentioned that I'd voted for the Democratic Presidential candidate in the last two elections, and will be doing so this year as well. His response: "Why you little ... person!" Yes Dad, I am a little person.

one weird thing, one random thought

Weird Thing

I just got a voice mail on my work phone. It was a recording, in Spanish, that I believe was telling me I'd won some sort of prize. I need to listen again, but I think it said something about pressing numbers on the phone (obviously meant for if the recipient actually answered), and I know I heard the word 'regalo.' Congratulations to my high school Spanish teachers, who have allowed me to translate about 1/20th of a short spammy phone message. Yay!

Random Thought

I have a song in my head. The reason it is in my head is because on Monday I was watching TV (Chuck) and the song was played in the episode. I own that particular CD (The National - Boxer), and hearing it in the show made me want to listen to the CD. Over and over again for 3 days. So the song being stuck in my head is no surprise at all really. But that wasn't my random thought. The thought was that I think I prefer the music featured in TV shows and movies to be unknown to me. That way it stays pleasantly in the background of my consciousness, only to emerge if it is something truly spectacular that I need to be listening to. If I know the song already, my attention is drawn away from what is happening on screen, towards the realm of "OMG, I know that song! Hey, that's So-And-So Band! Cool! I want to sing along! Whee, this is fun! But hmm, that's kind of an odd place to put that song, during this scene here. I always thought the song was about this other thing. Now I totally have to go listen to it again! Maybe I got the lyrics wrong. I could look them up online ... wait ... wasn't I doing something? Oh yeah, TV's on."

kitchen-y goodness

Hey there kiddos. (I declare that we can all be kiddos today.)

Fall is here and I could not be happier. Yes, I am one of those weirdos who actually likes the cooler weather and the end of summer. So sue me. But one of the things I like best about fall is all the yummy treats that come into fashion this time of year. Baked goods, apples, pumpkins, etc. (If this is all sounding very deja vu-ish, it's because I mentioned this is my last post, but bear with me here. I am going somewhere.)

The other week I found a recipe online (from Evite, no less) that sounded just too good to be true. Simple instructions, delicious ingredients - many of which most people might already have around the house. In fact, that's kind of the point of the recipe. What was it, you ask? Why, it was Pumpkin Bread Pudding of course! (Meaning bread pudding *with pumpkin*, not *made with pumpkin bread*.) I have never made bread pudding before, and only eaten it probably 3 or 4 times in my life, but this recipe came along at just the right time, because at the exact moment of discovery, I had one rather old, most likely very hard loaf of whole grain bread in my fridge and I was at a loss as to what to do with it. So I see pumpkin bread pudding and think, I can make a dessert out of an old loaf of bread??!! Sold!! Where do I sign up?

The other day, after a mad search for a can of pumpkin puree (I tried my usual grocery store on two separate days, then finally bit the bullet and went to a different one. It must be pumpkin pie season!!), I finally made the recipe and ... YUMMY!!! If I made it again, I would make a couple small changes, but for the most part, it turned out perfect, and now it calls to me from the fridge as soon as I get home from work each day. So I cut myself a piece and have dessert first. So what. Life's short.

If this sounds as good to you as it did to me (and delivered!) here's the recipe:

6 cups bread, crusts removed, cut into 1/2 in. cubes (The recipe called for French bread, but the awesome thing about bread pudding is that you can use whatever you have. I had some Brownberry whole grain bread and it worked great.)
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup whole milk
1 15 oz. can pumpkin puree (Not pumpkin pie filling. That already has spices mixed in and we will be adding our own spices)
3 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup candied/crystallized ginger, finely diced (Here is where I might make a substitution next time. The candied ginger I used kept kind of a crisp texture even after baking, which sort of surprised me when I tasted the pudding. The second day, it was a little less crisp, but if you want to avoid this all together, I'd try adding powdered ginger instead, for the flavor, and perhaps a bit more sugar, though I have no idea how much of either.)

The recipe said to make some cinnamon whipped cream to top it with, but ... well ... I am not quite that ambitious, so I bought me some Reddi-Whip. :) Also, you'll need an 11x7 in. baking pan, which I myself had to go out and buy (cheap) because who has that size?? I mean really!?

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Arrange the bread cubes in the pan, then pour over the whipping cream and the milk, stirring to combine (make sure all the cubes are soaking in the liquid). Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, pumpkin, brown sugar, spices, vanilla and salt. Here is where I would make one more suggestion. The recipe says to pour this pumpkin mixture over the bread/cream in the pan and stir to combine, then stir in the ginger - all within the baking pan. However, when I tried this ... well ... that baking pan is mighty small, and it was hard as hell trying to keep the stuff from going over the edges. And why oh why would you need to wait until the end to add the ginger? I added the ginger directly to the pumpkin mixture. And what I will be doing next time is pouring the *bread/cream mixture* into the *bowl*, stirring to combine, then transferring back to the pan to bake. But whatever way you choose, the next step is to bake about 60 minutes, or until set.

Once it's baked and cooled, cut into 6 pieces, top with whipped cream and enjoy!! You'll be so DYING to try it by the time it's done because while it's baking, your house is going to smell absolutely heavenly.

See? Easy as pi - er - pudding. :)

update of awesomeness

Wow, I really haven't posted in a while, have I? Sorry about that. Been busy with ... stuff.

Well, first and foremost, I'm sure you are all incredibly anxious to see the results of the TYG-Meter. :) The week I kept track, my very repetitive office neighbor used the phrase "There you go" 11 times on Monday, 4 times on Tuesday (v. low), 8 times on Wednesday, 12 times on Thursday, and 7 times on Friday. And that was only when I was within earshot. But I really should have counted them up yesterday because I swear she must have said it 80,000 times all before lunch.


As for my not-so-regular recaps of the lovely and wonderful Project Runway, I will be cancelling this feature. Reasons being a lack of motivation and a general apathy towards this season's contestants. I will say one more thing, though. I think Jerell will be the winner, and he deserves it.


So yeah, in other news, I had a birthday last week. On the day itself, I went to visit the p's and had a nice home-cooked dinner (yummy). My gifts this year were of the domestic goddess variety - a new iron and a new toaster. Sooooo badly needed. Then, the following night, I had some of my girlfriends over for some cocktails and gossip. All while in our PJ's, sitting on pillows on the floor. I wanted to get back to basics this year. And it was awesome.

The weather around here is finally turning Fall-ish. It's sad to see the Summer go, but Fall is my favorite season, so I'm very happy as well. (How I can be happy and sad at the same time is a mystery to me.) This is great sleeping weather, though it does make it a bit harder to get up in the morning. ;) But, I am so looking forward to the trips to pumpkin farms and apple orchards, the delicious scent of the season in the air, breaking out the sweaters, and putting together a Halloween costume.

And the sooner Fall comes, the sooner Christmas is here.

And Christmas is awesome.

I've been meaning to tell you ...

Project Runway - I didn't get a chance to write about the Brooke Shields episode from 2 weeks ago, but I have to say I was shocked to see Kelli go. Her outfit was not great, but I never questioned her taste level. And once again I thought the judges were on crack when they picked the winner. Keith's dress was plain ugly IMHO, and Jerell's was clearly a higher quality garment that even *I* would wear. But whatever. As for the drag episode ... most colorful episode EVER! Fun fun fun. I want drag queens as friends. I loved all of the top 3 and didn't care who won either way. So congrats, Joe. Bottom 3, I was glad Jerell didn't get auf'd, and I think they made a good decision to send Daniel home because he just wasn't paying attention to the jobs at hand. And cute as he was, he never ever smiled, and he was starting to look like a bobble-head. Though Keith better be the next to go because I'm getting reeeeally bored with him. We should call him "Scrappy" or something. And seriously? His so-called specialty of doing the fabric swatches all over the place, with unfinished edges, is really more of a cheat to get him out of hemming, or having to create something with a real shape! C'mon!!

TYG-meter - My neighbor says "There you go" about a bazillion times a day. Not as in "You asked for this report, and I have it ready, so there you go." But the slang-ish "There you go" meaning, "You're right" or "That's a good idea." Except she uses it as a filler so much that it's also taken on the meanings "What you said is very funny" and "That's very interesting." I was curious how many times she really does say it, so every day this week I'm keeping count. So far today we're at 6, which seems low, to tell you the truth. I just dread the day when I find myself saying it!! Gawd!