With the temperature dropping - well, sometimes up, sometimes down, sometimes rainy, sometimes windy - I have been experimenting with making soup.
I don't profess to be better than Cambell's or Progresso but I was hoping it might be more convenient to make Pho than have to go out to a restaurant every time I wanted some.
It is certainly not as simple as opening a can and heating it up but it was a fair approximation of Pho, I thought. I used this guy's recipe and it was easy to understand and follow. We began with roasting the ginger and onions on the stove:
(Did not expect the skin to peel off and fly everywhere, or the juices to spit out quite so quickly.) After the roasting, the skins came off:
Chicken bits go in the water:
Add all the flavor ingredients:
And boil for a very long time:
Drain the liquid out and discard the solids:
Yes, this exercise was just for the broth.
For the actual eating, we use the broth and a lot of other items. There is a lot of preparation of ingredients for this thing:
Then we assembled the individual bowls by layering the cooked noodles:
Mushrooms:
Chicken:
Onions:
Scallions:
Cilantro:
Then add the steaming hot broth over it all:
Tasted totally awesome:
But it sure took a while. Can't say I'll be whipping that up on a regular basis.
This is me makin' soup.
I have a lot of clothes.
At least I believe I do, and when it comes to laundry it sure looks like I do.
But in a space like this:
My wardrobe would look pitiful. Just pitiful.
Tarzan and I combined wouldn't fill it up.
And this is just one of two for the master bedroom.
This is me not even pretending.
When I made the pizza it looked exactly like the picture in the recipe:
But I'm pretty sure it wasn't supposed to taste that nasty. Something in the crust area was just not good. I remembered the salt so that wasn't it.
This is me and it didn't taste like it looked.
The thing about compromise is this; neither side gets EVERYthing that they want and both have to give up things that are vitally important but less so than the things they get to keep.
It's not a great system but it's better than a completely dictatorial, might-makes-right plan.
And that's where the country is with gun control these days. (Or pretty much any hot topic that is flying in the media.)
The far end of one side wants any person to have any number of any type of gun, no questions asked.
The far end of the other side thinks we should have a big pot, melt all the guns down and then we all smoke a peace pipe because all the world's problems will be solved.
Obviously, neither point of view is correct.
Especially when it comes to legislation on the topic. Yes, yes, all people should be self regulating and responsible but they aren't and there have to be rules.
Just not stupid ones.
So enters the compromise part.
Some guns should be allowed - the one side just needs to deal with that - but there does need to be regulation - and the other side needs to deal with that.
What is wrong with a background check?
They make people wait to get Harley Davidson motorcycles.
It takes nine months for a kid.
I see not the problem with waiting a bit to get a gun.
This is me and I wish people were more logical.
I saw the wisdom in BHB's question about soldering my wedding and engagement rings together.
They look kind of like this:
Her comment made a lot of sense this morning when in reaching for my glasses, I brushed against my rings and they went bouncing down behind the headboard of the bed.
I've managed to find and retrieve the solitaire but I can't find the band anywhere.
Tarzan and I are going to have to unmake and undo the bed this evening.
This is me searching.
And this is what the end of a zillion pages of material, 15 kids, nine months of chiding, scolding, driving, drilling, begging, crying, laughing, cajoling, praising, and commiserating and two days of competition looks like:
This is me and it's all over but the awards.
Does anyone else find that you don't hear your phone ring even when it's in your pocket, but you can hear your voicemail alert from halfway across town?
This is me, or is it just me?
Whoever thought of the organizational system for the Department of Motor Vehicles was a sick, sick person.
It seems like a good idea to have all the required vehicular services in one place and it would appear to be convenient to allow people to renew licenses and vehicles online but it really is just the first steps in their scheme to drive us all insane.
After going to the website and filling out the forms, paying the fees and printing my receipt I waited.
And waited.
And then the registration on my car expired while I was waiting and now I tremble in fear every time a police officer drives by.
Today I finally had enough time to call the "help" number and it seemed quaint that they offered me a callback option. That is, if I left my number in the phone tree queue, the DMV would call me back in less than an hour. It sounded good so I followed the simple instructions and waited.
Sure enough, less than an hour later I was called back but it wasn't a person it was the phone tree and it wouldn't accept my entry, even though it was the number the message told me to press and then I was told I had exceeded my number of attempts (I pressed it only 3 times) and they hung up on me.
So I called the original number back and while I was trying to get an actual person - they didn't have an option for "I really need my stickers now please" - the callback number called me again and I gave it a second try and AGAIN it wouldn't recognize ANY of the numbers I pressed and AGAIN it hung up on me.
So I called AGAIN and this time opted for a real person where I would have to sit on hold for an hour and wait for them.
Which I did.
When a real person answered I told him my dilemma, he said it wasn't a problem, he would transfer me to the department that could re-issue my stickers. I heard the hold music for a few bars and then I was back in the phone tree again, looking for a real person AGAIN and I had to wait ANOTHER hour and then when I did get a person - much more helpful than the last - she said they can't transfer to other departments and all I need to do is go to AAA and they will get me my stickers.
Done.
This is me and bureaucracy blows...a lot.
I have another resolution this year - I hope to not throw out so much food.
Our fridge is not a fancy Sub-Zero that is only one jar deep, so we lose leftovers sometimes and when I find them again, they aren't quite as edible as they once were.
What this means is that I have to learn to make less for a meal
OR
There will be more meals of leftovers. I was proud of the one we ate the other night:
The quality of the photo isn't so good - but we emptied six Tupperware containers for that meal which made me happy.
Chicken sandwiches, mixed vegetables, sweet potato fries and coleslaw.
I think we might have to worry about our cholesterol, but the fridge will be clean.
This is me and it felt good.
Usually I offer pictures of some extreme lifestyle choice or home decorating piece that is off the charts.
This week.
Just as a comparison.
I bring you a picture of a life beyond.
In the opposite direction:
This is the fence on the back alley of one of the houses on our block:
It's hard to know who because often the fronts don't match the alley sides of the properties and no one we know really looks like a razor-wire type.
This is me; I live and work a world apart, separated by 10 miles.
I love the Jungle in January.
It has been kind of cold here recently, Thanksgiving, Christmas and the rest of that mess were dark, busy days and really stressed.
But January has an absence of activities, the days are getting visibly lighter, for longer and the sun comes out just in time for the kids to go back to college and make the parents from out of town jealous.
And there seem to be more holidays with fewer expectations. Which allows for stuff to actually get done.
Witness Tarzan and our yard. He has been on fire with the yard work this month and we have made some serious changes. Our poor unproducing apricot tree in the front yard finally had to go:
I didn't even get to say goodbye:
We installed an avocado tree in it's place:
We also took out the really tall, unknown type of tree in the backyard - that provided shade but nothing else - and happened to be infested with termites:
Instead we planted a lime tree:
And then today, while the president was watching parades and kissing people on national television, Tarzan and I finally trimmed the orange tree in the front yard. The thing was way out of control and, because they could, people were reaching the branches and stealing oranges. So we trimmed it back:
It means fewer oranges next year but hopefully the branches won't drag on the ground and if we thin it better, we'll get nicer sized fruit.
Provided we cut it right.
This is me and we're doing yard work.
It's after my shower, I've dried off and am getting dressed.
There are no other distractions, I'm not in a hurry, nothing to get to right away.
I have done this literally thousands of times.
Pulling on my T-shirt, I miss the edge and smack myself full in the face, cutting the inside of my lip on my tooth.
This is me and who punches their own face before breakfast?
I had a great post in mind on my way home today. It was brief, witty and really made a point.
But somewhere in the hour it took me to get home...
I forgot it.
So you are left with these enviable kitchen photos instead. From one end of the kitchen:
The other:
And around the corner:
Do you know how many burners are on that stove?
Eight.
8.
And they're interchangeable with the griddle, deep fat fryer or grill parts, so one could be making pancakes, have room for both kinds of eggs and the bacon AND still have space left over for the kettle to boil water for hot chocolate, because it is really, really cold right now. (I know, only relatively, but we don't have heat or insulation, so we're feeling it.)
I don't envy much that I see at these houses. But a really great stove like that makes me drool a tiny bit.
This is me and it wouldn't fit in my living room, let alone the kitchen.
She is a constant inspiration for things I want to do better.
She has 2-3/4 kids, lives in a land that has winter, and manages more blogs and blog names than I can keep track of, but I call her Rocketgirl.
And she gave me a light bulb moment today on one of her other blogs when she posted this: Move Slowly And Don't Stop
Such a brilliant concept. Rome wasn't built in a day and I won't manage everything on my list at once, but as long as I keep going and working, I am making progress.
This is me and my new life mantra.
I am sure I learned this at some point in my education but I didn't put it all together until this evening on my way home from work. I was listening to the radio - NPR as usual now - and someone was talking about Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation, slavery, the Civil War, normal stuff and the guest mentioned that there were two ways to go with slavery. If it was to survive in America, slavery had to expand. Otherwise it would die out and as a Republican, Lincoln did not want any more slaves in the union. So he signed the paper to free them all. It amused me to think of how mixed up the political landscape is; back in the day it was the Democrats who wanted to expand slavery and make more money.
What's that song, "the times, they are a changing?"
This is me and the irony made me smile.
It was with great trepidation that I went with ATL and Tarzan to see Les Miserables last night.
Not that I didn't want to see it. I did. I have seen the stage show many times, I have all the concerts and I really like it.
No, I was scared to see the film because Russell Crowe was going to play one of the leads as - my favorite character - Javert. I had no idea if he could sing - all of the other lead actors I have heard sing before - and it would be disastrous for me if Javert could not sing, or worse, sang poorly and ruined it.
I apologize to Russell Crowe.
He should not give up his lucrative career and start doing show tunes, but he did well. Far better than I conceived he could. (I was pretty sure I could tell if the take they used was an early one or a late one because his voice was better for the former and less musical for the latter.) He wasn't showy but he held it up adequately.
The heartbreak for me was Hugh Jackman. He looked the part, he acted the part but he didn't sing the part. There were too many flat and/or low notes - I know they rewrote A LOT of things - but even with that he wasn't selling it. There were times he almost broke loose but he never made it consistently and "Bring Him Home" was so sad. I winced and hoped he would stop singing soon.
However, having Colm Wilkinson in the show was so cool.
Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonhem Carter were exactly what I envision every time I hear "Master of the House."
Amanda Seyfried did an adequate job as Cosette, which is a 2-dimensional character anyway. A little on the light side, but she's the soprano so it's forgiven.
Eddie Redmayne, Aaron Tveit and the rest of the barricade cast were fantastic. Loved them all. "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" was one of the best sung numbers in the whole thing.
Samantha Barks as Eponine was excellent. Pity it's such a small part but she did it really well. She was Tarzan's favorite.
I have only one thing to say about Anne Hathaway as Fantine. Bravo.
The scenery was amazing; having a complete picture for the songs I know so well was just perfect.
This is me and I applauded the end credits until ATL had to tell me to stop because people were looking.
I received an unexpected call this evening on the way home from work; from Fleighund's wife, BGE, with an invite for dinner.
We have been trying to get together since before Thanksgiving but schedules being what they are and holidays being what they are we never made it.
Spur of the moment seemed to work for us.
We went and ate and laughed and discussed how many towels a couple needs to be happy and watched a video of Tarzan's parents driving around a crazy ice resort in the country they are visiting.
This is me and we have nice friends.
It's a little bit scary to find out one is a prophetess of sorts. This is my post from the end of 2011 and it's eerily accurate in some ways.
Not so much in the handling-of-my-own-stuff ways, more in the the people didn't change - why-would-I-expect-them-to? - ways and here we are in the same place a whole year later.
I have learned a few things in 2012 and I am serious about making resolutions this time around. Mostly because I came as close as I ever have to keeping a resolution this year. I vowed to drink more water and get as close as I could to the recommended 64 oz. a day.
I did really well up until the fall and then it got cold, I got extra busy, my "sippy" cup got lost and it all fell apart.
This year, I resolve to delegate more and let other people sink or swim on their own. No volunteering myself to help them out, no hovering. If they need help, they can ask or they can recruit their own "slave labor." I am done with doing it all. If they want to do something, I am going to let them be in charge of doing it.
I also resolve to judge people less and just let it go. (This is purely a selfish resolution because it keeps my stress level down.)
I also resolve to blog regularly. Not more posts, but a more regimented method. This two months of nothing, three months of everyday was hard but I appreciate the discipline. I will be better.
Tarzan and I resolve to visit the temple more often. We need the peace, support and blessings that comes from going on a regular basis.
It's a new year and hopefully a better one than we just ended.
Peace, prosperity and health for everyone!
This is me and HAPPY NEW YEAR!
I think I used every single fancy gadget in my kitchen today.
Tarzan and I had the bright idea to make some fancy food for our New Year's Eve "party." Which is consisting of him and me, a pile of food and USC in the Sun Bowl. (What is with those announcers? They have apparently never called a game on national television before.)
We had the time and shrimp was on sale this week. 50% off regular is a decent price for the little buggers so we decided on Coconut Shrimp:
With Mango Dipping Sauce:
Then, because I found another recipe to try, we made Crab Rangoon:
It is one of Tarzan's favorite childhood foods and we have been looking for a substitute for years. This was close, but not enough cream cheese, I think, or too much everything else.
And to top it off - because I am in the groove with the soup - we had Tom Kah Gai:
Essentially, coconut soup. A little off balance for me. Not sure what to add to fix it next time but Tarzan loves/loved it, so he'll eat all the iterations while I figure out what I am missing.
Final score - USC: 7, and Georgia Tech: 21 (So not my favorite game of the year.)
This is me, stuffed.
I think today is the first day I have left for church when it was dark - well not really dark but cloudy and grey and early; 8am meetings - and come home when it was dark.
(No baptisms or anything, just regular RS President stuff.)
The leaving and arriving in the dark used to happen when we lived in the Frozen North but we were much, MUCH closer to the top of the world then we are now.
It was just a really long day. Which threw off the dinner/calling family/post church activities. Thank goodness tomorrow is an almost-holiday.
This is me and there has got to be a better system.
I'm not sure what happened to Thursday...
I only just realized that not only didn't I post that day, but I didn't even turn on my computer that day.
Tarzan and I slept a lot on Thursday. We've slept a lot every day. We've been using this week to recuperate from the rest of the year and especially December and I think we skipped a day.
Except for the missing a day so close to the end of my 90 streak, I don't know that anyone is bothered by the lapse.
Tomorrow we kind of have to get back to regular life - church and all - but then we have a few more days of rest and relaxation. Tarzan has until the 7th so he's not even thinking of the end of vacation yet.
I remember those days.
I wonder if there's a profession I could get into that let's me have the same vacation schedule that Tarzan gets but doesn't have me dealing with teenagers all day long?
This is me and it's been a nice couple of days.
Tarzan and I saw Skyfall last night. The latest in the little franchise known as James Bond.
It was interesting.
Exciting, implausible, explosive and 007 as always.
And Daniel Craig gets to flaunt his pecs a few times which is never bad.
I fear I am too practical though, as I wondered throughout the flick, how many times can a person almost die before they really do?
And M got some back story finally which was cool.
I thought Q was adorable. I would totally crush on him if he was real.
Silva was a really creepy villain, but his demise was a tad anticlimactic.
And despite the continuous jokes about him aging, James sure managed to thwart hypothermia there at the end with no sweat.
In all, it was a fun romp. We had an empty theater, which was nice and it was a great date.
This is me and who names their kid after a vegetable?
Aaand just like that, the magic and anticipation of Christmas is done, the music is off the radio, the Valentine's candy appears on shelves, and all there is to do is go back to work and endure cold, dark days while we wait for spring to come.
This is me and aren't I a bundle of laughs today?
This is me and Merry Christmas everybody!
'Twas the night before Christmas and everyone was gathered at Aunt Richie's holiday party.
Including her daughter and granddaughter, her sister-in-law, various friends, her husband and his son from a previous marriage - who hates her - her husband's nephew, his ex-wife, two daughters AND his new girlfriend who looked to be about 22 years old. (The nephew is about 70.)
All smushed into one tiny side room of a really nice restaurant.
The dirty looks exchanged around the room, the seating card rearranging, the PDAs, the snide remarks.
The food was fabulous, the dessert decadent, Tarzan was enthralling - several people commented on how fun he is to have at a party - polygamy was mentioned at least twice - there was a lot of laughing and I think we agreed to drive an RV to Vegas sometime next year.
And I heard someone exclaim as we drove off into the night, "Did you see what she was wearing?!"
This is me and if I'd had time I would have put it into iambic pentameter.
After all the stress, worry and scheduling conflicts; the changing of songs and then changing back; after the nerves and the tears and the practice...
The Christmas Sacrament Program is all over and it went okay.
Surely not our most professional sounding work ever - we miss you Rocketgirl and PhatFiddle and your violins - but it was all local talent and everyone tried their very best.
Tarzan and I sang, which was a first for us, but the final number (ours was a male/female duet) blew everyone away so I never thought to ask if we sounded good or not.
Now ALL the obligations are done and I have one whole day before Christmas to finish my gift shopping and baking and thanking of people.
Some specific one I need to mention:
Seth - thank you for mastering that piece in 2 days so Brenda didn't have to play alone. You're my hero.
Leafy - thank you for coming from across town to play the hairy piano part and then being okay when they skipped ahead and missed part of it. Coolest accompanist EVER.
SuperMom - thank you for playing for half of the numbers and then singing for the other half. I would quit if not for you.
This is me and I wonder if these things are worth all the stress and trouble, OR would it be as good without the stress and trouble?
There are times when I feel all proud of myself for recognizing notes or being able to dink along on the piano for a bit.
Today, when I sat behind the man who not only could play Mannheim Steamroller's 'Stille Nacht,' but accompany two violinists who weren't sure where they were all the time, and still have it sound good, I knew my talents do not lie in that direction.
Not even a little bit.
I am a little envious of their skills, but even more glad I know people who can do it and are willing to share.
This is me and tomorrow will be good.
Well, I've lived through both 11:00s of the day and it seems the world isn't ending.
So it looks like I have to clean and do the laundry this weekend after all.
Crap-ola. I hope when it does come for real, it's before I break out the vacuum and the foaming cleanser.
This is me and there are miles to go before I sleep.
All I can say, if tomorrow is the end of the world, is thank goodness.
I could use the rest.
I am so tired.
Not the sleepy-didn't-get-enough-shut-eye-last-night kind of tired, but the turn-off-the-phone-don't-go-out-please-leave-me-alone kind of tired.
This has been a tough year and a really hard month and I will be glad to see it all end. If the world ends too, well it's been nice while it lasted.
I'm going to take a nap.
This is me. Wiped. Out.
Yes, that is a tennis court in front of the pool:
And yes that is a pool in front of the back house.
No, that is not the main house. That is the pool house.
The main house is behind me as I take this picture, and it has it's own zip code.
I wonder what they would say if I told them my house is smaller than the tennis court...
This is me and who sweeps up at this shack?
The down side to all this rain is that Stingy lives on a hill.
A very steep hill:
And in the manner of roads on steep hills, her street angles back and forth to allow the water to drain all the way to the sewer and not flood anyone's property:
My luck, or Stingy's, depending, being what it is, her driveway opens right where the water changes sides of the street:
So, when I stepped from the car today, it was into the wave of water washing down he hill. And it went right up, over my shoe, down into my socks. Both of them.
It was not good.
But it got a whole lot not better as the day went on.
First I walked the dog in my soggy socks. Then I went to work at Aunt Ritchie's and she has specific rules about no shoes in the house, but I couldn't walk around in my literally dripping socks, so I took them off too, but then my feet were super cold, so I wore the shoe covers she keeps to protect the carpet from service personnel.
That was marginally better.
The house boy noticed my socks dripping onto the garage floor and suggested they go in the dryer - but even by the time I left to go home they hadn't dried out enough - and my shoes were still sopping, so it's been a day.
This is me with - albeit warm - wet feet.
So this is why nothing grew in that pot:
This is me and it all makes sense now.
It's raining today and I enjoy the benefits that come from the rain, however, I am feeling a little wimpy for feeling the cold.
It's 54 degrees outside in the wind and the rain today.
Once upon a time, when I lived in the Frozen North, 54 degrees meant we shed out jackets and ran around so excited that summer had finally come. Of course, that was after six months of snow, boots, fur hoods and numbers in the negative numbers. The WAY negative numbers. So I suppose it's like they say and it's all relative.
Plus, we don't have insulation or central heating in our house now and we had both when I was growing up.
This is me and it's a different world down here.
What to say on days like this? It is a crying shame that some people feel their only recourse is a gun.
Turned on others or themselves.
Sad that lives can be shattered by a stranger's bad mood.
All we can do is hug those we love and try to be nicer to everyone around us.
Maybe a smile or a handshake would have helped, maybe not. At least we would have tried.
This is me and what to say?
While I dream of this:
The blog might be the only thing getting decorated this year. We're lucky if we manage to hang a wreath on the door:
This is me and I love the season, hate the scheduling.
When Tarzan and I were first married I would hear tales of his mother staying up until the wee small hours of the morning working on lessons for school, editing papers, planning Visiting Teaching excursions or sending letters to family.
I will admit to thinking she was nuts.
Why on earth would anyone stay up that late/early? Do it tomorrow or plan it better and then it would all be done in a timely manner.
Ah. The naivete of youth.
I respectfully ask for Gamma's forgiveness for ever thinking she wasn't better organized; when the truth is, she was SO organized she had everything scheduled down to the last minute detail and was going to get it all done or the delicate balance she had made between work, family and church would collapse.
Or at least, that's what I'm thinking as I stay up late to make gingerbread men for Christmas plates that Tarzan is taking on the last day of school - tomorrow - for his fellow teachers.
Sure, I could have done it a different night this week, but all the days are scheduled out the wazoo. With weddings and parties and shopping and weather and family and the business and the car being sick - it's back now and just fine - and all that stuff, I understand the scheduling conflicts, the emergencies that come up, assignments that someone falls through on, or get changed.
And just plain not having enough hours in the day.
I am reminded of a book we used to read when I was a kid with the Sesame Street characters and Ernie keeps putting "one more thing," and "one more thing" into Bert's bath until there isn't any room for Bert.
This is me and as it is I need a week to get caught up to where I'm only behind a little.
It was a pretty cool house anyway. Pool, great kitchen, sun room, huge bedrooms, great closets, and then...
And then.
I walked into the "family room" and saw this on the wall:
Oh yes it is.
And lest you think I am kidding, here is the label:
This is me and I saw The King's suit.
My car is sick, poor thing. Apparently the regulator for the motor that raises and lowers the window on the rear passenger side has failed.
And I need a new one.
Which is fine, except they're keeping my car for 3 days, 3! DAYS! to diagnose the problem (yesterday), order the part (today) and install it (tomorrow).
This puts a tiny crimp in our regular, tightly, down-to-the-second, don't-forget-the-last-minute-detail, scheduled days that Tarzan and I have worked 12 years to perfect.
He's on his bike for school since it's a mere 3 miles from home to there. And I have his car for the 15miles is it for me. As neither the bus nor train go to the neighborhoods where I work that is not a viable option. (I've thought it was a bit stupid of the neighborhood councils. All their 'help' come via public transportation. How do they get up and down the hill?)
Here's hoping this doesn't happen too often. We live in a car dependant city.
This is me and have just the one vehicle for a bit.
An indicator of how my month is going; I intended to send BHB and Seth a program outline for the Christmas sacrament meeting in two weeks.
Instead I sent them the list of Christmas presents for the entire family, including the one planned for them.
So, now I have to rethink my gift planning and hope BHB has a short memory.
This is me and it was not my finest move.
Why are there not any green or yellow or PINK buildings in downtowns?
This is me and it would be pretty.
It's not in the handbook but apparently one of my duties as Relief Society President can be photographer:
I can't say it was all sunshine and roses:
But in my defense they were really booking it up the aisle.
Others were much better:
This is me and I'm not giving Ansel or Annie a run for their money.
If I may say, after a 14-hour day of driving across the largest geographical city in the country - if not the planet - twice; all for the good of an event wherein I am not related to anyone involved, spending large amounts of money that isn't mine, and doing a lot of talking on the phone while in said traffic...
After all of that, may I say that missionaries, especially, ESPECIALLY the elders, should not be allowed to plan/manage/heck, even comment on a wedding.
Not even their own.
This is me and it had better go well tomorrow.
So, tonight was like the Perfect Storm; but in a good way.
It began a few months ago when ATL got an email about a movie showing. She gets them frequently and sometimes the movies are good - we saw 'How The West Was Won' a while back - and sometimes the movies are epic.
Like tonight.
ATL got tickets for us to go and see 'White Christmas' on the big screen:
Actually, on a big screen on a lawn next to some studio lot. And all the major actors daughters came and spoke for a few minute before the show. Which was very sweet.
The movie was as adorable as always - even Tarzan said it was good - and then at the end, when the snow comes to save the inn, the hosting group had fans turned on and blew fake snow all over the audience. It was also very cute and romantic.
It wasn't soap snow, which I thought was a decent fake alternative, but it looked good. In fact, in this picture ATL took, it looks like a veritable blizzard:
But it was fun and the movie was of course excellent and we made it on time - quite a feat for us making it from our neighborhood to this one in only 40 minutes - and everyone ate (also quite an accomplishment) and it was all twelve kinds of awesome.
This is me and I love this perk of living in The Jungle.
When I was working in architecture there was a lot we had to do with fire walls and area separations, so I am no stranger to doors in odd places and hold opens and all that sort of thing.
I have never seen a door in an open hallway though:
And it's all the way up:
On an open air hallway. What's the area that is being separated? It's a little weird:
This is me and I really want to hear the Building Department's reasoning for this one.
I love Kellogg's Rice Krispies. Hands down my favorite cold breakfast cereal.
And did you know they are puffier and take longer to absorb milk than any store brand iteration of the same type?
This is me and even breakfast teaches me.
I do not love Facebook as a lot of people do. It's good for getting pictures to and from across the world and it's nice to catch up with old and new friends, but I guess the point is that I don't see every trend or cute picture that goes on because I don't visit that much.
And that's okay with me.
It also means that when I do see something good or appropriate, I find ever so much more interesting because I haven't seen 25 other things, equally as good or appropriate.
The short version is, when I signed on today I was met with a statement from RHM that perfectly captured my state of being these days. With her permission I quote it to you now:
"With great power comes ridiculous responsibilities."
Summed up the whole day in six words. I need to be that efficient and then I might not have the challenges I do.
This is me and it's so true.
It's seldom that we get what is termed "weather" out here in the Jungle. At least weather like the rest of the country gets.
So when it does come, it's a surprise - people SO freak out on the roads - but it's also cool and exciting because it's new.
We're getting some rain this weekend and sometimes, when it takes a break, we get crazy clouds:
With the sun setting behind the rain clouds and the new clouds rolling in over the top, it looks nice:
This is me and it's nice.
The following may be slightly offensive to some peoples, but the point is extremely valid:
Many thanks to whoever comes up with these things. I wish I was that witty.
This is me and you can only blame spell-check so much.
