Ugh. I'm in a rut.
My baking business isn't going anywhere. I really, really want to give up because I'm afraid it will never get started, and all this effort I'm putting toward it will be for nothing. I need a commercial kitchen to operate if I'm going to be a "business." So far I haven't found one. I know I need to look harder, but I am just so afraid to call people and ask them. I'm afraid of having to "sell" myself to a complete stranger. I can't stand salespeople. I'm afraid that the rent I'd have to pay will be more than any profit I could ever make. And I'm afraid to put a lot of money into this, because what if I don't like it?
My brilliant co-worker Pam suggested that I just operate on a "donation-based" system. That way, I wouldn't be considered a business and wouldn't have to go through all the license and tax B.S. It was what I wanted in the first place. I even felt a few minutes of exhiliration at finally being able to get my baking business rolling. So I put an ad in our bulletin at work. The ad made it for two days before it was pulled and I learned that we can't post ads about people making money in side jobs.
So I feel like I've lost my audience. Now what do I do?
Re-reading this, I feel like I'm being utterly negative about the whole situation. It's often easy for me to focus on the problem instead of the solution. I just want to go home and do nothing today.
To add to this, I've been having motivation troubles all week. I seriously have to push myself to get the littlest thing done at work. Two days ago I was supposed to find a paper online, something that would take all of two minutes, and I haven't even done that yet. I'm just feeling so bored, so uninterested, so much like I don't belong here. I'm not a scientist or a researcher. I'm... a scanner. I like being involved in a multitude of things. I like pursuing new interests all the time. I like having each day be different from the last. I like finding new challenges. I suppose people I work with find their jobs satisfying in those ways, but I don't. I get even more depressed when I realize I have to work here for two more years. I know things will improve, but it's just hard to convince myself of that. The only things that keep me sane and happy are the people I work with and the committees I serve on. I know it'll get better. I guess I'm just in a negative mood today. As Erika said in one of her posts, I'm "seeing the world through black glasses."
Only 4-1/2 hours to go.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover rabbit
Leftover potatoes with cottage cheese
Apple
Probably some kind of chocolate to cheer myself up :)
Friday, September 29, 2006
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Bowling League
I wish I had some good pictures for this blog posting. I think that when the day comes where I get a digital camera I will go hog-wild and take pictures of everything I encounter that day, just so I can post them in my blog.
The FPL (where I work) Bowling League is said to be the second-oldest continually-running bowling league in the nation. The FPL has been around since 1910, so I imagine they began their league around that time. Our teams are named after species of wood, so we have the Pines, Walnuts, Maples, etc. The Pines are supposedly the oldest team of the league.
I was a full-time bowler two years ago, and last year and this year I'm a substitute bowler. That means I don't have to come every week, and I don't have to pay any dues.
Bowling is very popular in Wisconsin, so it seems there's a bowling alley on every corner. I've been to some pretty fancy bowling alleys in Madison. There's one where you simply push a button to get the bumpers up, and there are computer screens advising you on which angle to throw the ball to score your spare. But somehow we ended up at the Bowling Green in Middleton (a suburb of Madison). Nice people and all, but the place is not the kind of yuppie bowling-alley you'd see in Madison. It's kind of smoky and dim, with low, tiled ceilings and ugly carpet. The same people have worked there since I started coming to bowling. The women are middle-aged with poorly-died hair and bad fashion sense, and the men aren't much to look at, either. Granted, they seem like nice people, although the one and only cocktail waitress, a lady, doesn't seem to wait on female customers. And the 1980s-era computers used for scoring have been known to break, and our balls often get eaten between frames. Maybe we keep bowling there because they don't charge much. God knows the beer's cheap!
We only have about 24 people in the league, and I'm the youngest FPL employee by about 30 years. A lot of the people in the league are retirees, friends of FPL employees, and family. Some of those retired guys are so old and hunched over that it looks painful to walk, yet they can bowl a 150 three games in a row. Zach is a full-time bowler on a team called the Locusts. His bowling partner is 80 years old.
Not only does the FPL Bowling League have a wide age range among its participants, it also has a wide range of ability. Thank god for handicap scoring! The highest average in our league is about 205, and the lowest is around 98. At the end of the last season, my average was 133.
At the risk of sounding cheesy, I think the best part of the bowling league is getting to know people and have fun. Our league is pretty relaxed and everyone's very supportive of each other. Even if someone gets four gutter-balls in a row, their teammates and opponents will still cheer them on. I'm not a competitive person when it comes to sports, so this is the attitude I like.
And I think it would be really cool if we all had matching polyester bowling shirts like this:
Just kidding!!
Today's Lunch:
Ham and bacon sandwich on whole wheat with Light Miracle Whip and yellow mustard
Apple
The FPL (where I work) Bowling League is said to be the second-oldest continually-running bowling league in the nation. The FPL has been around since 1910, so I imagine they began their league around that time. Our teams are named after species of wood, so we have the Pines, Walnuts, Maples, etc. The Pines are supposedly the oldest team of the league.
I was a full-time bowler two years ago, and last year and this year I'm a substitute bowler. That means I don't have to come every week, and I don't have to pay any dues.
Bowling is very popular in Wisconsin, so it seems there's a bowling alley on every corner. I've been to some pretty fancy bowling alleys in Madison. There's one where you simply push a button to get the bumpers up, and there are computer screens advising you on which angle to throw the ball to score your spare. But somehow we ended up at the Bowling Green in Middleton (a suburb of Madison). Nice people and all, but the place is not the kind of yuppie bowling-alley you'd see in Madison. It's kind of smoky and dim, with low, tiled ceilings and ugly carpet. The same people have worked there since I started coming to bowling. The women are middle-aged with poorly-died hair and bad fashion sense, and the men aren't much to look at, either. Granted, they seem like nice people, although the one and only cocktail waitress, a lady, doesn't seem to wait on female customers. And the 1980s-era computers used for scoring have been known to break, and our balls often get eaten between frames. Maybe we keep bowling there because they don't charge much. God knows the beer's cheap!
We only have about 24 people in the league, and I'm the youngest FPL employee by about 30 years. A lot of the people in the league are retirees, friends of FPL employees, and family. Some of those retired guys are so old and hunched over that it looks painful to walk, yet they can bowl a 150 three games in a row. Zach is a full-time bowler on a team called the Locusts. His bowling partner is 80 years old.
Not only does the FPL Bowling League have a wide age range among its participants, it also has a wide range of ability. Thank god for handicap scoring! The highest average in our league is about 205, and the lowest is around 98. At the end of the last season, my average was 133.
At the risk of sounding cheesy, I think the best part of the bowling league is getting to know people and have fun. Our league is pretty relaxed and everyone's very supportive of each other. Even if someone gets four gutter-balls in a row, their teammates and opponents will still cheer them on. I'm not a competitive person when it comes to sports, so this is the attitude I like.
And I think it would be really cool if we all had matching polyester bowling shirts like this:
Just kidding!!
Today's Lunch:
Ham and bacon sandwich on whole wheat with Light Miracle Whip and yellow mustard
Apple
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Little Miss Sunshine
On saturday, before our slumber party, Zach and I did a little shopping at Greenway Station. I didn't have much money, so I wasn't planning on buying much, but I did purchase a good wine key.
I have an older wine opener that really stinks. If you ever buy a corkscrew, don't get one that looks like this:
It requires two hands to pull up the cork, and your wine bottle could easily slip off the table.
I was so excited to use my new wine opener that I bought some wine last night. I decided on a cheap moscato (a dessert wine). I think the brand was Foxhorn or Woodbridge; one of those cheapies [ed note: it was Sutter Home]. I can't wait to try out my new corkscrew and see how it tastes.
After our shopping, we saw a movie called Little Miss Sunshine.
It was so hilarious! It's kind of a dark comedy about a messed-up family that takes a trip to California so that Olive, the daughter, can compete in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. The family consists of a father who thinks no one should be a failure, an uncle who tried to commit suicide, a teenage brother who is taking a stand against speaking, a crazy grandfather, and a mom who is trying to hold them all together.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover boiled potatoes topped with cottage cheese
Leftover broccoli and cauliflower, sauteed in garlic
Apple
I have an older wine opener that really stinks. If you ever buy a corkscrew, don't get one that looks like this:
It requires two hands to pull up the cork, and your wine bottle could easily slip off the table.
I was so excited to use my new wine opener that I bought some wine last night. I decided on a cheap moscato (a dessert wine). I think the brand was Foxhorn or Woodbridge; one of those cheapies [ed note: it was Sutter Home]. I can't wait to try out my new corkscrew and see how it tastes.
After our shopping, we saw a movie called Little Miss Sunshine.
It was so hilarious! It's kind of a dark comedy about a messed-up family that takes a trip to California so that Olive, the daughter, can compete in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. The family consists of a father who thinks no one should be a failure, an uncle who tried to commit suicide, a teenage brother who is taking a stand against speaking, a crazy grandfather, and a mom who is trying to hold them all together.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover boiled potatoes topped with cottage cheese
Leftover broccoli and cauliflower, sauteed in garlic
Apple
Monday, September 25, 2006
Bad '80s movies
Zach and I had a slumber party saturday night. First, we went to the video store and rented 5 movies for $5 (all VHS). Then, when we got home, we pulled the mattress off the bed in the guest room, laid a blanket on the floor in the living room, and put the mattress on top of it. We proceeded to lay in the bed and watch bad '80s movies.
First we saw Hard Bodies, a B-movie movie from 1984. It's about some old dudes who go to California to pick up hot chicks but can't seem to attract any. So they find a young stud to "teach" them how to be babe magnets.
Looking on the IMDB (internet movie database) website, I learned that this movie was originally made for Playboy TV but was made into a feature film instead. No kidding! There were so many gratuitous boob shots, it was crazy. I looked at the cast listing, and many of the actresses had porn-star-ish names like Courtney Gains, Teal Roberts, Cindy Silver, and Darcy DeMoss. Ha ha! So I guess we kind of rented a soft-core porno flick.
Next we watched Body Shots, a crappy movie from 1999. It starred people we actually heard of, like Tara Reid, Amanda Peet and Jerry O'Connell, so we thought it'd be decent (although I never was impressed with Tara Reid). Not as many gratuitous boob shots, just Tara's boobs before she got implants. The cover of the movie made it seem like it would be good and funny and stuff, but it turned out to be weird and depressing. Wouldn't recommend it to anyone, unless you're a huge Tara Reid fan.
Yesterday, we watched another crappy '80s movie called Fraternity Vacation. It was the worst of the three. A couple of fraternity dudes go to Palm Beach for spring break and bring their nerdy pledge, Wendell, with them. They rent out Wendell's cousin's flat for the week and try to pick up chicks. It was so boring that we ended up fast-forwarding through parts of it. In the end, Wendell, the nerdy guy, gets the hot girl. A few gratuitous boob shots were included.
I scoped out this movie on IMDB and learned that the guy who played Wendell spent the majority of his acting career in the gay pornography film industry. Verrry interesting...
Now we have two movies left to see. I think they're both serious films.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover minestrone soup
Garlic roll
Apple
First we saw Hard Bodies, a B-movie movie from 1984. It's about some old dudes who go to California to pick up hot chicks but can't seem to attract any. So they find a young stud to "teach" them how to be babe magnets.
Looking on the IMDB (internet movie database) website, I learned that this movie was originally made for Playboy TV but was made into a feature film instead. No kidding! There were so many gratuitous boob shots, it was crazy. I looked at the cast listing, and many of the actresses had porn-star-ish names like Courtney Gains, Teal Roberts, Cindy Silver, and Darcy DeMoss. Ha ha! So I guess we kind of rented a soft-core porno flick.
Next we watched Body Shots, a crappy movie from 1999. It starred people we actually heard of, like Tara Reid, Amanda Peet and Jerry O'Connell, so we thought it'd be decent (although I never was impressed with Tara Reid). Not as many gratuitous boob shots, just Tara's boobs before she got implants. The cover of the movie made it seem like it would be good and funny and stuff, but it turned out to be weird and depressing. Wouldn't recommend it to anyone, unless you're a huge Tara Reid fan.
Yesterday, we watched another crappy '80s movie called Fraternity Vacation. It was the worst of the three. A couple of fraternity dudes go to Palm Beach for spring break and bring their nerdy pledge, Wendell, with them. They rent out Wendell's cousin's flat for the week and try to pick up chicks. It was so boring that we ended up fast-forwarding through parts of it. In the end, Wendell, the nerdy guy, gets the hot girl. A few gratuitous boob shots were included.
I scoped out this movie on IMDB and learned that the guy who played Wendell spent the majority of his acting career in the gay pornography film industry. Verrry interesting...
Now we have two movies left to see. I think they're both serious films.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover minestrone soup
Garlic roll
Apple
Friday, September 22, 2006
Rabbit food
Last night I had my first taste of rabbit. I bought the rabbit w
hole and you could see its little arms and legs. It was kind of spooky. It reminded me of those cartoons where the cooked turkey climbs up off the dinner table and starts prancing around the room. Or, better yet, when the turkey talks in a funny voice and points at people with its drumstick arm. Those cartoons were so funny. I think they were Bugs Bunny cartoons.
I hate saying this, because I think every food should have its own description of its flavor, but the rabbit kind of tasted like chicken. It even looked like chicken, in that it was white when cooked, and is supposed to be lower in fat. I think the rabbit industry (if there is one) should borrow the pork industry's motto:
hole and you could see its little arms and legs. It was kind of spooky. It reminded me of those cartoons where the cooked turkey climbs up off the dinner table and starts prancing around the room. Or, better yet, when the turkey talks in a funny voice and points at people with its drumstick arm. Those cartoons were so funny. I think they were Bugs Bunny cartoons.I hate saying this, because I think every food should have its own description of its flavor, but the rabbit kind of tasted like chicken. It even looked like chicken, in that it was white when cooked, and is supposed to be lower in fat. I think the rabbit industry (if there is one) should borrow the pork industry's motto:
Rabbit - The Other White Meat
The only problem was that the rabbit was so lean that the meat kind of came out dry. Not that that would deter Zach and me from eating it, but something to remember in the future.
Which reminds me.. tonight I don't have to make dinner! Zach lost a bet last night (we were arguing over what time Grey's Anatomy came on) so tonight I don't have to cook. I told him he couldn't make me macaroni and cheese or hot dogs. That stuff's nasty. I don't know about the rest of the world, but eating pure chemicals kind of gives me the willies.
Today four (yes, four) issues of Consumer Reports showed up in my inbox at work. Apparently somebody let them build up before routing them on. I love that magazine. Now I'll have some entertainment on my way home from work.
Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich with yellow mustard on whole wheat bread
Apple
Radishes
The only problem was that the rabbit was so lean that the meat kind of came out dry. Not that that would deter Zach and me from eating it, but something to remember in the future.
Which reminds me.. tonight I don't have to make dinner! Zach lost a bet last night (we were arguing over what time Grey's Anatomy came on) so tonight I don't have to cook. I told him he couldn't make me macaroni and cheese or hot dogs. That stuff's nasty. I don't know about the rest of the world, but eating pure chemicals kind of gives me the willies.
Today four (yes, four) issues of Consumer Reports showed up in my inbox at work. Apparently somebody let them build up before routing them on. I love that magazine. Now I'll have some entertainment on my way home from work.
Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich with yellow mustard on whole wheat bread
Apple
Radishes
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Rabbits, chickens, and models
The Evansville Piggly Wiggly is the only store I've been to that sells fresh rabbit. Even better, it offers fresh rabbit on a continual basis. And it's cheap! I bought a whole rabbit for $4.
Seeing the rabbit inspired me to inquire about other unusual meats. I spoke to the butcher, a nice man named Lee, about ordering meats from the meat department. He said they're more than happy to make special orders for customers. I'm so excited! Now I can get stuff like fresh, un-cured ham, fresh (not frozen) turkey, and weird things like tripe (the lining of a cow's stomach) and soup bones. And soon they're going to offer lamb on a regular basis, too. Tonight I'm going to roast my rabbit in a wine sauce. Here's the recipe.
Last night I cooked some buffalo chicken breast tenders (do they call them tenders because they always leave the tendon in them? I hate that). I heated my wok to medium-high and threw a tbsp. of butter and a splash of olive oil in it. I coated the tenders with flour, then placed them in the wok. I stirred them around a bit, and soon they had a nice brown crust on them. I turned the heat down to medium-low until they were cooked through. Then I threw some buffalo wing sauce on them, turned up the heat again to reduce the sauce, and served them. They were sooo good! The chicken wasn't dry for once and the sauce had just enough spice to it. I served them with some stuffing (for Zach) and pasta salad (for me).
As we finished dinner, America's Next Top Model came on. Wow, that show really focuses on Tyra. She's kind of crazy. Zach and I were laughing when the girls walked through their house and Tyra's face was plastered everywhere. It reminded us of Zoolander. And then they made Tyra out to be some kind of enigma. She would make this big, grand entrance into the room with her hair being blown around by a fan and would speak very dramatically. It was like she was the queen. I thought it was all very strange, but at the same time fascinating. As for the contestants, my vote goes to Brooke. She seems really sweet and I thought her white-girl rap was creative.
Today's Lunch:
Sloppy joe
Pasta salad (whole wheat shell pasta, celery, radishes, carrots, broccoli and cauliflower in a balsamic vinaigrette)
Apple
Seeing the rabbit inspired me to inquire about other unusual meats. I spoke to the butcher, a nice man named Lee, about ordering meats from the meat department. He said they're more than happy to make special orders for customers. I'm so excited! Now I can get stuff like fresh, un-cured ham, fresh (not frozen) turkey, and weird things like tripe (the lining of a cow's stomach) and soup bones. And soon they're going to offer lamb on a regular basis, too. Tonight I'm going to roast my rabbit in a wine sauce. Here's the recipe.
Last night I cooked some buffalo chicken breast tenders (do they call them tenders because they always leave the tendon in them? I hate that). I heated my wok to medium-high and threw a tbsp. of butter and a splash of olive oil in it. I coated the tenders with flour, then placed them in the wok. I stirred them around a bit, and soon they had a nice brown crust on them. I turned the heat down to medium-low until they were cooked through. Then I threw some buffalo wing sauce on them, turned up the heat again to reduce the sauce, and served them. They were sooo good! The chicken wasn't dry for once and the sauce had just enough spice to it. I served them with some stuffing (for Zach) and pasta salad (for me).
As we finished dinner, America's Next Top Model came on. Wow, that show really focuses on Tyra. She's kind of crazy. Zach and I were laughing when the girls walked through their house and Tyra's face was plastered everywhere. It reminded us of Zoolander. And then they made Tyra out to be some kind of enigma. She would make this big, grand entrance into the room with her hair being blown around by a fan and would speak very dramatically. It was like she was the queen. I thought it was all very strange, but at the same time fascinating. As for the contestants, my vote goes to Brooke. She seems really sweet and I thought her white-girl rap was creative.
Today's Lunch:
Sloppy joe
Pasta salad (whole wheat shell pasta, celery, radishes, carrots, broccoli and cauliflower in a balsamic vinaigrette)
Apple
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Fake food
The Hungry Girl website and Randi's recent blog entry kind of got me thinking about my body image and my weight.
The last time I remember being satisfied with my body (as in a size 8, which would be huge for Randi - ha ha) was my junior year in college, which was 2002. When I think back to that time, I remember how much I cared about what I ate and how much I weighed and how often I worked out. Over the years, I've kind of let that go. And I haven't really regretted it, either.
My thoughts on the Hungry Girl site - great website for people on a diet who don't mind eating fake foods. I love Hungry Girl; she touts cool products and tells me which salads at Wendy's are really bad for you - but I can't stand eating "fake food" anymore. No wonder her website's called Hungry Girl - she doesn't seem to eat anything satisfying! Here are what I consider to be "fake foods":
I read this great article in Oprah (August, 2005) where the columnist, Jancee Dunn, decided to stop eating "fake" food for a month. Not only did she feel more satisfied and energetic, but she only gained 2 pounds. And that was from eating all those "no-no" foods like full-fat ice cream, homemade pudding, and steak. She realized she wouldn't be able to eat like that all the time, but it was certainly better than fat-free fudgesicles and diet lemonade.
I'm pretty happy eating real foods. Instead of fat-free light yogurt, I eat Dannon naturals, which actually have less carbs than the light stuff. Instead of gagging on fat-free cream cheese and American cheese singles, I eat full-fat cream cheese very rarely and choose a small amount of real cheddar. However, I have been known to indulge on fatty breakfast foods like eggs and white-flour pancakes from the local cafe.
Today's Lunch:
Ham, salami and cheddar with light Miracle Whip and yellow mustard on a hoagie bun
Banana
The last time I remember being satisfied with my body (as in a size 8, which would be huge for Randi - ha ha) was my junior year in college, which was 2002. When I think back to that time, I remember how much I cared about what I ate and how much I weighed and how often I worked out. Over the years, I've kind of let that go. And I haven't really regretted it, either.
My thoughts on the Hungry Girl site - great website for people on a diet who don't mind eating fake foods. I love Hungry Girl; she touts cool products and tells me which salads at Wendy's are really bad for you - but I can't stand eating "fake food" anymore. No wonder her website's called Hungry Girl - she doesn't seem to eat anything satisfying! Here are what I consider to be "fake foods":
- fat free Ranch dressing
- fat free and sugar-free pudding
- sugar-free Jell-o
- Crystal Lite and sugar-free lemonade (tastes like pure aspartame)
- Carb Clever yogurt (that is not how any food should taste!)
- fat free cream cheese
- fat free American cheese singles
- fat free cottage cheese
- fat free ice cream (which is an oxymoron), but Healthy Choice isn't too bad
- iceburg lettuce
I read this great article in Oprah (August, 2005) where the columnist, Jancee Dunn, decided to stop eating "fake" food for a month. Not only did she feel more satisfied and energetic, but she only gained 2 pounds. And that was from eating all those "no-no" foods like full-fat ice cream, homemade pudding, and steak. She realized she wouldn't be able to eat like that all the time, but it was certainly better than fat-free fudgesicles and diet lemonade.
I'm pretty happy eating real foods. Instead of fat-free light yogurt, I eat Dannon naturals, which actually have less carbs than the light stuff. Instead of gagging on fat-free cream cheese and American cheese singles, I eat full-fat cream cheese very rarely and choose a small amount of real cheddar. However, I have been known to indulge on fatty breakfast foods like eggs and white-flour pancakes from the local cafe.
Today's Lunch:
Ham, salami and cheddar with light Miracle Whip and yellow mustard on a hoagie bun
Banana
Monday, September 18, 2006
My weekend
My parents came to town over the weekend. They got in friday evening, around 8:00, and left this morning. So we had a few days to hang out with them.
It's really nice seeing the parents again; if anyone in the world knows me best, it's them. And my siblings. And I think Zach's doing some catching up, too. He doesn't have the 18-year advantage that the rest of my family has.
So here's what we did:
Saturday:
Zach and his coworker Jake cut down this big dead maple tree in our yard. Zach was estimating they'd be done at noon, and then we could go out and do stuff in the afternoon. But they didn't finish cutting the tree down until about 5:00. They also needed to buck up all the pieces, chip the branches, and rake the debris. But Zach decided to save that for sunday.
Once they finished, we had dinner (leftover sandwiches and salads from lunch) and went to Magnolia Bluff to watch the sunset. We had originally wanted to go to the Green County Cheese Days in Monroe, but figured we didn't have time. But we enjoyed the view from atop the bluff and I'm glad we went somewhere.
Sunday:
Shopping! We first went to the Eplegaarden, an orchard in Fitchburg with Norweigan flair. There was a huge line to pick the apples, so we just bought a couple bags of Honeycrisps and went on our way.
Next we went to Madison. We went to the Home Depot to look at cabinets, as my parents wanted to get us a couple of cabinets to take the place of the fungus-infested dishwasher in our kitchen. We've been hanging onto the dishwasher because it has a nice butcherblock countertop, but otherwise it's pretty gross.
Here's a picture of how that part of the kitchen looked before.
Now the dishwasher is gone, but we salvaged the butcher block counter top. Now, to the left of the stove is an 18" cabinet with the butcher block counter top, and to the right of the stove is a 12" cabinet with a new piece of countertop on it. Next I'd like to get some wall cabinets and some sort of range hood over the stove. The cabinets only cost about $60 each at Home Depot, and they were nicer than the cabinets at Menard's because they weren't just particleboard on the inside - they had a nice coat of veneer on them. That makes me happy.
The only thing with buying new cabinets is trying to match them to the rest of the kitchen. I realize we will never be able to match them to the cabinets we currently have (which are made of pine), so I'm thinking of painting them. My mom thought this would be a good solution since there is such thing as "too much wood" in a kitchen. So we're thinking of having white or off-white cabinets with a colored (blue?) wall. Any ideas from the peanut gallery?
(will post more pictures when possible - Blogger is having issues)
Today's Lunch:
Leftover pasta salad with cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, and celery in a balsamic vinaigrette)
Leftover turkey stew with potatoes, carrots, celery and onions in a gravy
Apple
Banana
It's really nice seeing the parents again; if anyone in the world knows me best, it's them. And my siblings. And I think Zach's doing some catching up, too. He doesn't have the 18-year advantage that the rest of my family has.
So here's what we did:
Saturday:
Zach and his coworker Jake cut down this big dead maple tree in our yard. Zach was estimating they'd be done at noon, and then we could go out and do stuff in the afternoon. But they didn't finish cutting the tree down until about 5:00. They also needed to buck up all the pieces, chip the branches, and rake the debris. But Zach decided to save that for sunday.
Once they finished, we had dinner (leftover sandwiches and salads from lunch) and went to Magnolia Bluff to watch the sunset. We had originally wanted to go to the Green County Cheese Days in Monroe, but figured we didn't have time. But we enjoyed the view from atop the bluff and I'm glad we went somewhere.
Sunday:
Shopping! We first went to the Eplegaarden, an orchard in Fitchburg with Norweigan flair. There was a huge line to pick the apples, so we just bought a couple bags of Honeycrisps and went on our way.
Next we went to Madison. We went to the Home Depot to look at cabinets, as my parents wanted to get us a couple of cabinets to take the place of the fungus-infested dishwasher in our kitchen. We've been hanging onto the dishwasher because it has a nice butcherblock countertop, but otherwise it's pretty gross.
Here's a picture of how that part of the kitchen looked before.
Now the dishwasher is gone, but we salvaged the butcher block counter top. Now, to the left of the stove is an 18" cabinet with the butcher block counter top, and to the right of the stove is a 12" cabinet with a new piece of countertop on it. Next I'd like to get some wall cabinets and some sort of range hood over the stove. The cabinets only cost about $60 each at Home Depot, and they were nicer than the cabinets at Menard's because they weren't just particleboard on the inside - they had a nice coat of veneer on them. That makes me happy.
The only thing with buying new cabinets is trying to match them to the rest of the kitchen. I realize we will never be able to match them to the cabinets we currently have (which are made of pine), so I'm thinking of painting them. My mom thought this would be a good solution since there is such thing as "too much wood" in a kitchen. So we're thinking of having white or off-white cabinets with a colored (blue?) wall. Any ideas from the peanut gallery?
(will post more pictures when possible - Blogger is having issues)
Today's Lunch:
Leftover pasta salad with cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, and celery in a balsamic vinaigrette)
Leftover turkey stew with potatoes, carrots, celery and onions in a gravy
Apple
Banana
Friday, September 15, 2006
Book review
I was up late last night reading Citizen Girl, by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus (the same women who wrote The Nanny Diaries). I would definitely place the book in my guilty pleasure/chick lit category, but that's not a bad thing. If you're looking for something enlightening, read War and Peace. But if you're looking for some good, fun entertainment, read this book.
It's about a young woman trying to find a job that makes actual use of her talent. Apparently, a lot of college graduates land a job right out of school, but spend the first few years of their career fetching supplies and getting very acquainted with filing cabinets (has this happened to you or anyone you know?). The book begins with a scene where the girl is working in the bathroom. It's not because she likes to go to the bathroom and work at the same time, it's because her child-size desk (like those desks from grade school where the top lifts) doesn't allot her enough space to get any work done. Her boss, a woman well-respected in her field, does not give the girl respectable work at her level; rather, the girl is just an underpaid gopher/personal assistant with a fancy title.
When the girl begins job-hunting again, she meets a cute guy and lands what seems to be a better job. I'm about 2/3 of the way through the book and don't want to spoil it for anybody, but I will say that it's interesting enough to make me not want to go to bed. It's a fun read for those who like chick lit.
P.S. If you're interested in The Nanny Diaries, I'd recommend reading this article from the New York Times. It's about a couple who find their own nanny's blog online, and it reveals some very interesting information about her that the couple didn't necessarily want to know.
It's about a young woman trying to find a job that makes actual use of her talent. Apparently, a lot of college graduates land a job right out of school, but spend the first few years of their career fetching supplies and getting very acquainted with filing cabinets (has this happened to you or anyone you know?). The book begins with a scene where the girl is working in the bathroom. It's not because she likes to go to the bathroom and work at the same time, it's because her child-size desk (like those desks from grade school where the top lifts) doesn't allot her enough space to get any work done. Her boss, a woman well-respected in her field, does not give the girl respectable work at her level; rather, the girl is just an underpaid gopher/personal assistant with a fancy title.
When the girl begins job-hunting again, she meets a cute guy and lands what seems to be a better job. I'm about 2/3 of the way through the book and don't want to spoil it for anybody, but I will say that it's interesting enough to make me not want to go to bed. It's a fun read for those who like chick lit.
P.S. If you're interested in The Nanny Diaries, I'd recommend reading this article from the New York Times. It's about a couple who find their own nanny's blog online, and it reveals some very interesting information about her that the couple didn't necessarily want to know.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
The safest place in the country
According to Money Magazine, the top 10 places to live in the country are as follows:
Well, I think this list needs to be looked at again. Our country often falls victim to a number of natural disasters. We have floods, hurricanes, wildfires, etc. It seems that our friends at Money Magazine didn't take natural disasters into account when assessing the best places to live in the country.
Here are some maps displaying the density of natural disasters in the country (click on the maps to enlarge). If you look at Michigan, and zone in on the Keweenaw Peninsula (that little shark-fin sticking up in the U.P.), you'll see that it's black in all four pictures. Yup, ALL FOUR. From what I gather, it's the only place in the country that is safe from earthquakes, wildfires, floods, and hurricanes. Therefore, I can conclude that Houghton is the safest place to live. Wouldn't you rather raise your children there?
I guess there's a mild chance of an avalanche occuring on Mont Ripley, but I'll take my chances.
Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich on sourdough-wheat with mild cheddar and light Miracle Whip
Popcorn
Salad greens with Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Fort Collins, CO
- Naperville, IL
- Sugar Land, TX
- Columbia, MD
- Cary, NC
- Overland Park, KS
- Scottsdale, AZ
- Boise, ID
- Fairfield, CT
- Eden Prairie, MN
Well, I think this list needs to be looked at again. Our country often falls victim to a number of natural disasters. We have floods, hurricanes, wildfires, etc. It seems that our friends at Money Magazine didn't take natural disasters into account when assessing the best places to live in the country.
Here are some maps displaying the density of natural disasters in the country (click on the maps to enlarge). If you look at Michigan, and zone in on the Keweenaw Peninsula (that little shark-fin sticking up in the U.P.), you'll see that it's black in all four pictures. Yup, ALL FOUR. From what I gather, it's the only place in the country that is safe from earthquakes, wildfires, floods, and hurricanes. Therefore, I can conclude that Houghton is the safest place to live. Wouldn't you rather raise your children there?
I guess there's a mild chance of an avalanche occuring on Mont Ripley, but I'll take my chances.
Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich on sourdough-wheat with mild cheddar and light Miracle Whip
Popcorn
Salad greens with Newman's Own Balsamic Vinaigrette
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
The Classmates Poster-Child and other randomness
I don't know about the rest of the world, but I feel like I'm a pretty accomplished web surfer. I can find just about anything using good ol' Mozilla. When I do a google search and find a good result, and then click on it and the page doesn't come up, I use my other friend, Mr. Cache Button. And voila! The page is there. I've used him to look at scientific papers that are no longer free on the web. Mr. Cache button always comes to the rescue.
I somehow got off the subject there. The title of this blog is "The Classmates Poster-Child" for a reason. When I go web-surfing, I often come across those ads for classmates.com. I've checked out Classmates, and my high school peers don't look much different than they did in high school. Plus, to even see someone's picture, you have to pay money. What a load of poo. Instead I use websites like facebook or myspace to stalk those former classmates, and it's free.
I've noticed in those Classmates ads that they always show the same woman, this homely-looking girl with bad hair and huge glasses. In one ad they act shocked that this homely -looking girl (possibly the class dork) married this good-looking blond guy (possibly the class jock). And - gasp - they had 7 kids. That means this hunky guy married her and actually has sex with her. She must be a babe now! Or he's not as shallow as we all thought he was.
And today, I noticed a new ad:
This woman's face is everywhere! And yes, this confirms it - she must be a total babe now.
I found a blog where someone else wrote about the Classmates phenomena. There are other characters involved, and possibly even infidelity. You can read more about the Classmates saga here.
And now, for other randomness...
Today I got hot chocolate at a gas station. It tasted like chalk. I don't think I'll be doing that again.
I'm always thirsty and I pee a lot. My vision seems blurry too, but that could mean I need new contacts. Or.. maybe I have diabetes?
My parents are coming to visit this weekend. It will be my dad's first time seeing our new house. Yay! And Zach is going to take down the huge dead maple in our yard. Hooray!
I'm at work and the heat just got turned back on. Now my office is nice and toasty. Can't say the same about our house... that heat ain't comin' on til Halloween (Mom, you may want to bring some sweaters with you.)
I read an article in Time about stem cells and what they are. Making it illegal to use stem cells in research is a crazy load of crap.
My library fine was $19!! Can you believe it? I calculated $1/day/movie, and since they were 3, maybe 4 days overdue, they couldn't have cost more than $12. I don't know where the other $7 came from, and I didn't think to ask until I was already home. Sheesh.
I have a Smokey Bear tattoo on my arm. Almost everything I'm wearing today is from a thrift store.
Did you know that today is International Chocolate Day? I may have to raid our secretary's candy stash. Oh, and tomorrow's popcorn day at work. Yesss.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover ham and lentil soup
Leftover garlic bread
Apple
I somehow got off the subject there. The title of this blog is "The Classmates Poster-Child" for a reason. When I go web-surfing, I often come across those ads for classmates.com. I've checked out Classmates, and my high school peers don't look much different than they did in high school. Plus, to even see someone's picture, you have to pay money. What a load of poo. Instead I use websites like facebook or myspace to stalk those former classmates, and it's free.
I've noticed in those Classmates ads that they always show the same woman, this homely-looking girl with bad hair and huge glasses. In one ad they act shocked that this homely -looking girl (possibly the class dork) married this good-looking blond guy (possibly the class jock). And - gasp - they had 7 kids. That means this hunky guy married her and actually has sex with her. She must be a babe now! Or he's not as shallow as we all thought he was.
And today, I noticed a new ad:
This woman's face is everywhere! And yes, this confirms it - she must be a total babe now.
I found a blog where someone else wrote about the Classmates phenomena. There are other characters involved, and possibly even infidelity. You can read more about the Classmates saga here.
And now, for other randomness...
Today I got hot chocolate at a gas station. It tasted like chalk. I don't think I'll be doing that again.
I'm always thirsty and I pee a lot. My vision seems blurry too, but that could mean I need new contacts. Or.. maybe I have diabetes?
My parents are coming to visit this weekend. It will be my dad's first time seeing our new house. Yay! And Zach is going to take down the huge dead maple in our yard. Hooray!
I'm at work and the heat just got turned back on. Now my office is nice and toasty. Can't say the same about our house... that heat ain't comin' on til Halloween (Mom, you may want to bring some sweaters with you.)
I read an article in Time about stem cells and what they are. Making it illegal to use stem cells in research is a crazy load of crap.
My library fine was $19!! Can you believe it? I calculated $1/day/movie, and since they were 3, maybe 4 days overdue, they couldn't have cost more than $12. I don't know where the other $7 came from, and I didn't think to ask until I was already home. Sheesh.
I have a Smokey Bear tattoo on my arm. Almost everything I'm wearing today is from a thrift store.
Did you know that today is International Chocolate Day? I may have to raid our secretary's candy stash. Oh, and tomorrow's popcorn day at work. Yesss.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover ham and lentil soup
Leftover garlic bread
Apple
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
My day off
I ended up taking the whole day off yesterday, since my weekend was really only one day long. Zach had the day off, too (coincidence?), since it was raining, so we had a chance to spend some time together.
We watched the movie Frida, about the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. It was a good movie, if not a little long. We thought the cartoon montages were strange, but figured they were the type of art Frida would have done. Overall, it was an entertaining movie (maybe because of all the sex) and we enjoyed it.
I made ham and lentil soup sunday night and heated it up to eat yesterday for lunch. I made the mistake of heating the pot with the burner set on "high." The soup got scorched on the bottom and now all the soup tastes kind of scorched. I was really bummed. Next time I will be more patient and heat the soup on "medium."
I started feeling really claustrophobic after spending the day inside, so I told Zach we needed to leave the house. So after we watched King of Queens, my favorite show, we had dinner at Romano's, an Italian restaurant. We both got the chicken parmesan, and even though our server was a little annoying we had a great time.
Then I lifted weights, doing upper body. Tomorrow I'll do lower body. Soon I'll be able to kick some booty.
Oh, and tonight I have to go to the library. I have 3 movies that are 3 days overdue. I guess that's what happens when you leave town and forget to return things first. So I'll have to cough up a hefty fine for that one. Grr.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover broccoli salad (brocco-slaw, sunflower seeds, and slivered almonds in a vinaigrette)
Turkey sandwich with yellow mustard on whole wheat
Diet root beer
We watched the movie Frida, about the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. It was a good movie, if not a little long. We thought the cartoon montages were strange, but figured they were the type of art Frida would have done. Overall, it was an entertaining movie (maybe because of all the sex) and we enjoyed it.
I made ham and lentil soup sunday night and heated it up to eat yesterday for lunch. I made the mistake of heating the pot with the burner set on "high." The soup got scorched on the bottom and now all the soup tastes kind of scorched. I was really bummed. Next time I will be more patient and heat the soup on "medium."
I started feeling really claustrophobic after spending the day inside, so I told Zach we needed to leave the house. So after we watched King of Queens, my favorite show, we had dinner at Romano's, an Italian restaurant. We both got the chicken parmesan, and even though our server was a little annoying we had a great time.
Then I lifted weights, doing upper body. Tomorrow I'll do lower body. Soon I'll be able to kick some booty.
Oh, and tonight I have to go to the library. I have 3 movies that are 3 days overdue. I guess that's what happens when you leave town and forget to return things first. So I'll have to cough up a hefty fine for that one. Grr.
Today's Lunch:
Leftover broccoli salad (brocco-slaw, sunflower seeds, and slivered almonds in a vinaigrette)
Turkey sandwich with yellow mustard on whole wheat
Diet root beer
Monday, September 11, 2006
Career Counseling
Yesterday I had my first appointment with my career counselor, Erica. I came into contact with her when she did a presentation at our lab about finding a career or switching careers, and she also talked about the Myers-Briggs Test. She offered a discount to people interested in making an appointment with her, so to see her yesterday it cost only $10. I am so happy I went.
My Myers-Briggs combination is ENTP. She found a great article about ENTPs and had me read it (here is the link). I am "The Visionary." Some interesting points:
Turkey sandwich on whole wheat with yellow mustard
Plum
Apple
Banana
My Myers-Briggs combination is ENTP. She found a great article about ENTPs and had me read it (here is the link). I am "The Visionary." Some interesting points:
- My primary interest in life is understanding the world I live in. This means I use my intuition to process this information, and am usually quick and accurate in my ability to size up a situation.
- ENTPs are good at almost anything that interests them. Yeah, baby!
- As we grow and develop our intuitive abilities and insights, we become aware of possibilities. This makes us good problem solvers.
- We are idea people. We see possibilities everywhere, and get excited and enthusiastic about our ideas.
- The downside: ENTPs often develop ideas but don't actually take action on them. Or, they may not finish what they start.
- We are not the best at making decisions, but we are quite rational and logical in reaching conclusions.
- We are also fluent conversationalists and enjoy verbal sparring. Sometimes we switch sides just for the love of the debate (I definitely do that).
- Another downside: ENTPs aren't the best at sensing and feeling. Sometimes we forget to tend to the details in our lives, and sometimes we may not value other people's input and may become harsh and aggressive.
I thought these were very interesting points. However, Erica told me, I am interested in so many different things that it would be difficult for me to find one job that would meet all these interests. I think what makes me different from the people I work with is they are passionate about one thing (research) and are willing to put a lot of time and energy into it. I'm not passionate about anything, really; I just am interested in many things. She recommended that I read "Refuse to Choose," a book about people like me (we're called "scanners"), by Barbara Sher. I ordered it on Amazon last night (along with Alanna's recommendation of a book about the food Lewis and Clark ate).
Today's Lunch:Turkey sandwich on whole wheat with yellow mustard
Plum
Apple
Banana
Logging Congress
I went to Green Bay last thursday to present a poster at the Lake States Logging Congress. The Logging Congress is basically a trade show for people in the forestry/logging/sawmill industry. I brought a poster displaying tree-testing technology that originated at the Lab where I work, and how it became a commercial product that anyone could use. The Logging Congress went from noon to five on thursday, all day friday, and 8-2 on saturday. I did a lot of talking so now my throat kind of hurts. There were some very interesting people there, ranging from loggers right out of the woods to professional contractors. Some notable events:
- I was talking to a man from lower Michigan, and he said, "I need to get my son married off. Are you single?" I was like, "what is this, the 1800s? Who 'marries' their kids off?" Of course I didn't say that, I just politely said that I was taken.
- There was a man who looked like 1970s Elvis! He had black hair slicked back on the sides, long sideburns, and those crazy glasses with all the rhinestones on the frame. I didn't talk to him, but I bet he was an impersonator.
- I talked to a man who literally reeked of beer, and it was 10:00 in the morning.
- I saw an old man whose skin looked very yellow. Liver problems, anyone?
I bought a couple of shirts that have Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox on them. And I attended a cooking show, but it was basically a lady trying to sell cookware. I didn't buy anything, but I scored some free food and a cheap paring knife.
I decided to go camping instead of staying in a hotel. I figured it would be fun, since I like camping and I haven't gone all summer. The first night I didn't get to my campsite until about 10:00, and it was just too late to set up my tent. So I slept in the back of my Forest Service-issue station wagon ("the shaggin' wagon"). In the morning I set up my tent. Then, the second night when I came back, it was dark (probably 9:00), and it was raining. I decided to nix sleeping in the tent with the soggy floor and crashed in the wagon again. It was actually very cozy and comfortable.
On the drive home saturday, what should have been a 3-hour ride became a six-hour trek when I stopped to take a nap. Later, I thought I missed my turnoff and tried to make up for it but ended up on a country road somewhere. I remembered to bring so many things with me, like all my camping cookware that I never used, but I forgot to bring a map. And I am special, since I need a map to get from one major Wisconsin city to another.
Saturday night I finally made it home. Zach was in Milwaukee at a Brewers' game with some buddies, so Kitty and I had the house to ourselves. We watched "The Motorcycle Diaries" and the final installment of PBS's "Manor House." It was very quiet but admittedly lonely without Zach around. Today I'm taking the morning off from work to rest and get some things done around the house.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
How much are you worth?
I am worth $1,577,210 on HumanForSale.com
I had to make up a few answers, though.
I never took the SATs, only the ACTs, so I made up a score.
Same with my score on Face the Jury.. I gave myself a 10. :)
I got negative money for having big feet, though! LOL.
Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich on whole wheat with dijon mustard
Apple
Peanuts
I had to make up a few answers, though.
I never took the SATs, only the ACTs, so I made up a score.
Same with my score on Face the Jury.. I gave myself a 10. :)
I got negative money for having big feet, though! LOL.
Today's Lunch:
Turkey sandwich on whole wheat with dijon mustard
Apple
Peanuts
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Blogger's Block
I haven't felt much like blogging lately. I think I've been in a funk, just not enjoying life the way I normally do. It's been difficult for me to be productive at work and at home. Hopefully I just needed a long weekend and things will be back to normal this week.
Last night I couldn't sleep. I read my book (Back Roads, by Tawni O'Dell) until about 11:30, hoping I'd get sleepy. When I turned off the light, it took me a long time to drift off. Then I woke up at 3:00 and couldn't get back to sleep. So I went in the living room and read my book and Kitty sat on the couch with me. So in essence I had three hours of sleep and I'm feeling zombie-like.
Speaking of zombie-like, I went to Woodman's, an employee-owned grocery store chain in the area. I know there are two in Madison and one in Janesville, but as for the rest of Wisconsin I'm not sure. Anyhow, Woodman's is huge and carries just about anything you can think of and their prices are extremely cheap. So the store is always crowded. As I wandered around the store yesterday buying my food, I was almost feeling claustrophobic from all the people there. It was like a traffic jam. There were carts everywhere, blocking aisles and lines of people moving down the corridors, patiently waiting for each other to move, just like in traffic jams. I had to wait in a line just to get at the peaches. Checking out is the worst. Sometime in the store's history, aisles of food were installed in the spot where people would normally stand while in line for the cash register. So now, when people wait in line for a register, they're standing in the middle of a crowded aisle of shampoo. It's insane. Zach hates going to Woodman's because the one time I dragged him there, there were people literally running in the produce department, and it wasn't like they were goofing off. They were really just being frantic. The reason I go back is because they have a great selection and it's so freakin' cheap. I bought a cartful of groceries (6 bags) and paid $50. When I was comparing the prices of stores for my baking business, Woodman's even beat out Sam's Club. There have been repeated requests from Madison residents to build a Costco in the area, but Costco keeps responding with the standard "we have no plans to build a store in your area." Maybe some day...
On friday Zach and I decided to do a little "bar tour" and have a drink at each downtown Evansville bar. That's not much of a feat, considering there are only three of them. We started at the VFW hall, which is open to the public. We walked into a stark white room with glaring fluorescent lights. There were about 10 people there, but it was pretty silent because they were all staring at the football game on large (but not big-screen) TV. We bought ourselves a beer ($1.50 each, cans only) and started hanging out. Four hours later, we were still there, and the locals that were left (4 now) kept trying to buy us more drinks.We finally just had to leave.
Next we went to the Night Owl, arguably the best bar/restaurant in town. We had a couple of drinks there, too. We skipped the third bar because someone told us it's not a good idea to go there after 9:30. So maybe some other time. We had taken our bikes to town, and as we hopped on them to ride home, I fell (I was a little intoxicated) and ripped my pants and skinned one knee and bruised the other. I think I was making distressed cat noises as I sat on the ground in pain. But alas, we made it home in one piece and had only spent $5 each, including tips.
Hey, after writing this blog I am feeling a little more inspired. Perhaps getting started is the hardest part.
Last night I couldn't sleep. I read my book (Back Roads, by Tawni O'Dell) until about 11:30, hoping I'd get sleepy. When I turned off the light, it took me a long time to drift off. Then I woke up at 3:00 and couldn't get back to sleep. So I went in the living room and read my book and Kitty sat on the couch with me. So in essence I had three hours of sleep and I'm feeling zombie-like.
Speaking of zombie-like, I went to Woodman's, an employee-owned grocery store chain in the area. I know there are two in Madison and one in Janesville, but as for the rest of Wisconsin I'm not sure. Anyhow, Woodman's is huge and carries just about anything you can think of and their prices are extremely cheap. So the store is always crowded. As I wandered around the store yesterday buying my food, I was almost feeling claustrophobic from all the people there. It was like a traffic jam. There were carts everywhere, blocking aisles and lines of people moving down the corridors, patiently waiting for each other to move, just like in traffic jams. I had to wait in a line just to get at the peaches. Checking out is the worst. Sometime in the store's history, aisles of food were installed in the spot where people would normally stand while in line for the cash register. So now, when people wait in line for a register, they're standing in the middle of a crowded aisle of shampoo. It's insane. Zach hates going to Woodman's because the one time I dragged him there, there were people literally running in the produce department, and it wasn't like they were goofing off. They were really just being frantic. The reason I go back is because they have a great selection and it's so freakin' cheap. I bought a cartful of groceries (6 bags) and paid $50. When I was comparing the prices of stores for my baking business, Woodman's even beat out Sam's Club. There have been repeated requests from Madison residents to build a Costco in the area, but Costco keeps responding with the standard "we have no plans to build a store in your area." Maybe some day...
On friday Zach and I decided to do a little "bar tour" and have a drink at each downtown Evansville bar. That's not much of a feat, considering there are only three of them. We started at the VFW hall, which is open to the public. We walked into a stark white room with glaring fluorescent lights. There were about 10 people there, but it was pretty silent because they were all staring at the football game on large (but not big-screen) TV. We bought ourselves a beer ($1.50 each, cans only) and started hanging out. Four hours later, we were still there, and the locals that were left (4 now) kept trying to buy us more drinks.We finally just had to leave.
Next we went to the Night Owl, arguably the best bar/restaurant in town. We had a couple of drinks there, too. We skipped the third bar because someone told us it's not a good idea to go there after 9:30. So maybe some other time. We had taken our bikes to town, and as we hopped on them to ride home, I fell (I was a little intoxicated) and ripped my pants and skinned one knee and bruised the other. I think I was making distressed cat noises as I sat on the ground in pain. But alas, we made it home in one piece and had only spent $5 each, including tips.
Hey, after writing this blog I am feeling a little more inspired. Perhaps getting started is the hardest part.
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