Hmm…I took this pic last week on the way to work. After I get my coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts, I have to walk through the grass (no sidewalks on this stretch of 22nd street). Sometimes it’s wet and my shoes get soaked..but on this cool, brisk morning, I walked through frozen, crunchy, frosty grass.
Here’s the pic…kind of blurry, because it’s my cellphone…but I like the leaves in the middle of it all:
Frosty, yes..and crunchy, too.
Oh, I should take my camera with me to work. I’d probably get some pretty interesting shots of..well…everything!
Speaking of “everything”, I’ve decided to try out a new name for my blog. I really don’t write about pharmacy much anymore. I mean…I’m in the pharmacy 8 hours a day, so why the heck would I want to write about it and the pills I stare at all day long? A post about work here and there is fine…but my life isn’t all about the drugs. I think I write about a little bit of everything…hence, the new name! We’ll see how it goes.
My granddaughter. ♥
Warm, snuggly and adorable.
Yep, it’s that time of the year again. I will have tiny zombies, ghosts, witches & superheros lurching up my front-porch stairs and demanding candy.
Actually, my son & his girlfriend will be doing the candy distribution this year. I will be wrangling my brand-new granddaughter. (Yes, my daughter & her fiance had a baby three months ago…so I am officially a “nana”- *sigh*) My granddaughter (aka “the little button”) will be dressing up as a teddy bear.
There will be a cuteness overload, I guarantee.
Now..on to Halloween. Since my son’s girlfriend is Mexican, and from the way far-west suburbs, she asked where in this neighborhood we could procure some sugar skulls for Dia de los Muertos. I really had no clue, so I hopped on the good old innernet to search, and came upon this site called “Skull-A-Day”.
I am not a big huge skull fan, but I do think they’re cool. Especially since this is Halloween. Anyway..they have all things related to skulls, even a page were you can post pictures of things that look like skulls. Meaning, if you fried up your tortilla and saw a skull design in all its toasty-goodness, you could submit the pic to Skull-A-Day’s “Simulacra” page and you just might get your pic posted there.
I get all excited because, yes, I’m a goofball & it doesn’t take much to get me excited, and also because I thought to myself…” Hey!! I can send them that pic from my kayaking adventure of the skull-in-the-trees !!!!!”
So I did. Here’s the pic. Do you see a skull design in the trees? It’s in the cluster of light-green leaves in the center.
It's watching you!
Still don’t see it? Here’s the outline:
Spooooky!!!
Yes, Skull-A-Day is an awesome site, full of neat pics and cool freebies, too. I just downloaded a TrueType font of the Skullphabet. And..I never DID find a place to buy sugar skulls. In case you’re stymied as to what these things are, here’s a pic:
Scary-sweet!
And here’s what your little ofrenda would look like if you were into the tradición:
Dia de los Muertos ofrenda
So, whatever you celebrate…All Souls Day, Day of the Dead, Halloween, etc. Make it a good one. Get lots of candy! And remember to brush your teeth!
Yessirree! My guy and I went out a-kayaking the Saturday before last. We left at the ass-crack of dawn because we had a 1-1/2 – 2 hr. ride ahead of us. And, he had to drag the kayaks out of my garage. Not an easy feat, since the garage is jam-packed full of his work equipment and assorted ..umm…stuff. Behold:
That's a lot of stuff!
We drag them out and wrestle them onto the truck rack, and set off on our journey. We got to Ottawa, IL about an hour before our shuttle left, and had a delicious breakfast. Can’t remember the name of the restaurant, but it was the best home-cooking I’ve tasted in a while.
Long story short:
We kayaked the lower Fox River, also known as “the Dells of the Fox” because the sandstone rock formations and cliffs along the shore look like the Wisconsin Dells. Let me tell you, it was fantabulous! I love, Love, LOVE kayaking! Here are some pics, submitted for your viewing pleasure:
Some of the trees have already begun to change color...
The water was as smooth as glass in some places...
Here's my guy...going with the flow.
That's me in my Cubs Zambrano t-shirt. We really didn't paddle too much..
St Peter sandstone cliffs. They say swallows nest here, but we didn't see any...
Flowers growing in the rocks. (See the detail photo below)
Here they are close up.
We stopped at this little gravel landing to hunt for clams. Isn't it pretty?
Lots of caves in the rocks. (I know, I'm a dork.)
So, that was that. We did the 11:00 am excursion and got back at around 4pm. 8 miles down the lower Fox River, and it was wonderful. I have to give props to Randy & Jackie of River Adventures. Check out their site here. Relaxing and fun because you’re left to your own devices and can stay out as long as you like. I’m hoping we get a nice Indian Summer weekend this month so we can go back and see the autumn colors. But if not, there’s always next year. I can’t wait!
I’ve been in the yellow zone for a while, now. Must be the kayak influence. So, while I was waiting for my second bus the other day, I spied an absolutely adorable Mini Cooper on it’s way to the iconic hospital. How do I know its destination? Why, the parking pass hanging from the rearview, of course.
Anyway..I figured the person driving the Mini must be a doctor or at least a head nurse, to be able to afford a Mini. Are they expensive? I dunno. Too lazy to look it up, but it’s an import, so I’m guessing they cost a few more bones than is average.
But, enough of my blather…take a look at the adorableness:
It's just my size!
Yep. The Mini Cooper is giving my other fave car a run for it’s money.
Ah, well. Perhaps my Mini dreams will come true..after I win the lottery. All I have to do is buy a ticket now and then, right?
Imagine 4 of these babies....
That’s what my guy bought. He had a fit of retail lust, for sure…but in a guy kind of way. If I had spent the same amount on MY chosen objects d’retail lust , I’d be buried beneath a huge pile of yarn, beads, fabric, watercolor paper and pencils…Oh..I could go on & on! Craft lust is like that, you know.
So…the aforementioned kayaks are languishing in my garage, along with all his other junk. (One of these days, I’ll grab the camera and take a snap of the innards of my garage. Hehe…that should be…interesting!)
Anyway…Don’t get me wrong, I love my guy madly. But FOUR kayaks? One for himself, and one for each of the kids. Oh, and one of these days, he’s going to take me kayaking..just the two of us. Which should be interesting since I’m a total klutz. I have visions of myself tipping over, getting stuck inside the kayak, falling off the pier trying to get in, etc., etc. Good thing I’m an excellent swimmer.
I figure it’ll make for some great comic relief, and will be sure to bring a waterproof camera. That is, if our kayaking adventure ever happens. We’re both working like maniacs, and barely have the energy to leave the couch once we get home. Or in my case, the bed. Yup, when I get home from work, I make the fatal mistake of traipsing upstairs to my beloved bedroom, lying down on the bed and telling myself: “I’ll just have a little lie-down. 5 minutes, that’s all.”
You know what comes next: 7 hours later, I wake up..still dressed in my work clothes, still in the same position (lying across the bed, on my back, feet still on the floor). The whole evening wasted. I really should stop doing that. Perhaps the joy of kayaking will open up a whole new world for me and prevent me from coming home and vegging out? Perhaps.
But I’m not betting on it. Heh.
Ok, so it sounds a lot more important than it really is. What is it, anyway? I knitted a cable. Yes..an actual CABLE! They look so hard to do, but they’re really not. Behold!
It's pink. It's fat. It's my first cable!
I know this pic is huge, but I’m too lazy to re-size it, and besides, isn’t detail important? Since I don’t own a cable needle, and a dpn kept falling out, I used a crochet hook to hold the stitches to the front. Necessity. The mother of invention and all that. I’ll probably seam it and make it into a cowl, but to me, this yarn seems kind of itchy. It’s Bernat Alpaca in Peony. I love the color.
And I love me some cables, too!
No, the Dalai Lama is not my brother, but he is celebrating his birthday today..along with my brother in Australia.
Two of the coolest dudes on the planet!
First, because he’s older…here’s the DL:
You're awesome!
Blessings
Wait..the party has just begun!
Happy Birthday! Party on, dude!
Yup..I love the Dalia Lama. He is the epitome of peace and goodness. One of my fave people on this blessed star.
Here’s the other…MY BRO!
Happy Birthday to my faraway brother, whom I miss terribly and love with all my heart:
Do you know the mushroom man?
He's a very handy bloke!
My bro and lovely sis-in-law, Liz.
This pic above is from a visit my brother and his wife made to Chi-town two years ago. They had a great time, and we loved seeing them. I cried when I saw him for the first time in more than 10 years. I really miss him.
Me, my bro, and our puppy, Sheila. 1962, Chicago, IL.
Here we are, long ago and far away (for him, not me). I was 5 years old, he was 12 years old.
Oh, that puppy… she was insane! I was terrified of her! Ahh…memories!
So, Happy Birthday, Alex. You’re right up there with the Dalai Lama in my book. How sweet is that?
Hmmm…almost as sweet as THIS:
A LOOOONG time ago, in a city far away.....
See the little cowboy boots? Some things never change!
Love you, bro.
Look! A post that has nothing to do with food! We need a break from all that cooking, right? In between my cooking adventures, I have to maintain a somewhat tidy home. Well…bedroom, anyway.
I changed my sheets this weekend . I change them once a week, whether they need it or not. Call it a quirk, but I adore clean, crisp sheets. Now, if you have a cat, you know how much they love it when you change the sheets. It gives them a chance to play on a large, free-of-cat-hair surface. It also gives them a chance to annoy the human by not moving an inch when the rest of the bedding is added.
So I strip the bed, and get out my least favorite sheet. The striped one. Only because it was clean. As soon as I began to strip the bed, my darling Panda emerged from one of her many hidey-holes to check out the action. Oh, she just loves it when I change the sheets.
I put the sheet on, and she hopped on the bed and proceeded to stretch languidly…
"Thanks for the clean sheets, foolish human!"
Knowing that resistance was futile, I did what I usually do: I make the bed with Panda in it, knowing that sooner or later, she’ll overheat and shimmy out from under the freshly-made bed.
I apply my satin coverlet. She doesn’t move, of course:
That's her. Not movin'. No way.
Let’s see what she’s doing under there:
"Do You MIND? I'm trying to be invisible, here!"
Oh well. Guess I’d better finish up. On with the comforter. It’s actually a goosedown comforter inside a duvet. It’s pretty heavy, but Panda doesn’t seem to care…as you can see:
"I'm in ur bed...stealing ur warm."
About 15 minutes later, she crawled out from under…and planted herself on top. So she could breathe, I guess:
"Not only have I claimed your bed, I've claimed your sweater, too!"
Now, my darling girl has a bed all her own. But I guess Panda feels she shouldn’t limit herself to such a small domain. This is the only picture I have of her lying in the aforementioned cat bed:
"I'm trying it out. But just this once."
It’s a really nice bed. Only problem is..she wouldn’t use it unless it was on my desk. Which really cut down on my desk space. I put it on the floor…she wouldn’t go near it. On the radiator? Nope. On my bed? Hell, no. That’s just redundant.
So..the cat bed languishes in the closet, while Panda languishes on her MY bed. She IS the Queen, after all.
“I’m cooking again. Pastelón de Papas. I think I’ve gone mad.”
Yep. I’m not planning on turning this into a cooking blog, but I have been doing quite a lot of cooking lately. Because I’ve gone mad, you see.
Anyway..how this latest recipe came about: I was talking to one of my friends at work about cooking. ( She’s a sweetie named Ivette who hails from Puerto Rico), and I mentioned to her that I had 3 lbs. of potatoes left over from my previous cooking jag. What to do with them? They were on the verge of sprouting, and I didn’t want to waste them. Ivette’s suggestion? Pastelón de Papas! It’s basically a casserole layered with mashed potatoes, ground seasoned beef, and more potatoes on top, with cheese sprinkled on. Oh, dear. Sounds good! So, she gave me the recipe.
This weekend, I set to work, boiling my potatoes in preparation. After they were done, I mashed them (peels on), and set them aside.
Then…I sauteéd the peppers & onions:
Smells heavenly!
Added the beef….
No pink, please.
Add to that the saucy stuff….
A pinch of this & that...
After it was done simmering, it was time to construct the pastelón…a layer of mashed potatoes on the bottom, meat in the middle, the remaining mashed potatoes on top, and into the oven for ten minutes….
Toast it up!
After 10 minutes, I pulled it out and added a mix of cheddar & chihuahua cheeses. Another 10 minutes and this is what emerged:
Beautifully hot & toasty!
Here’s a pic of a Pastelón slice:
A meal in a slice!
And here’s what happened after the kids got a hold of it:
Get it while it's hot!
Yep. A rousing success. Another keeper of a recipe. Everyone loved it. Because, who doesn’t love meat & ‘taters…especially when it’s an all-in-one-deal??
If you’d like to try this recipe, you can find it on my “Food, Glorious Food!” page. And many thanks to Ivette for a delicious dish!
