The Great Snow Hysteria of '09

I'm sure we will have more snow hysteria this winter.
But seriously.
I really can't stress this enough.
There are about a million people in Milwaukee.
And I'm using Milwaukee collectively.
As in outlying areas and suburbs.
How is that you all FREAK OUT at the mention of an impending storm.
All the weather teams go into snow apocalypse mode.
Here are the facts, kids.
We live in Wisconsin.
A state that has a football field that is affectionately known as the Frozen Tundra.
We get snow.
We get ice.
We get rain.
We get sleet.
We get frozen rain.
We get temperatures that are below zero with and without the wind chill factor.
Or windshield factor as I used to say as child.
Sometimes it's a lot of snow.
Sometimes it's not so much.
Sometimes people have off of school/work because of snow.
Sometimes people drive like dickfaces in the snow.
We have to shovel.
We have to dig cars out of the snow.
We slip and fall on the ice because assy people don't shovel.

These are the facts.
Unless we are getting 5 feet of snow, i.e. the second ice age.
There is no need for all of this hysteria.
The streets will get plowed. It might take a while.
You might have to cancel an appointment.
Or go to work late.
The bottom line is, the freakouts need to stop.
And this is all people are talking about.
I feel like I'm in the movie Groundhog Day every year.
Because EVERY YEAR this happens.

Storm of the Century!
Storm of the Centruy!
And I wake up this morning to find that I can still see blades of grass through the snow in my backyard, the roads are wet, but I was still able to drive the speed limit.
And that was it.
Sure it's supposed to get a bit colder (like tonight!) and then the wet roads will freeze and it will be a little dangerous to go out. But most likely this will happen tonight, when we are sleeping.
And most likely roads will be plowed/salted/drive-able tomorrow when we all have to go to work and do it again.

Has no one read "The Long Winter" by Laura Ingalls Wilder? If the Ingalls can get through white-out snow (they had to have a rope from the house to the barn to find their way!), we can get through our first real snow fall.
Icy roads and all.

As a side note, it is snowing heavily right now.
Nothing that would stop me from going anywhere.
Mostly because I know how to drive and dress for the snow.

And while we're on this topic.
Can we please, PLEASE stop complaining about the cold.
And can we please stop making comments like "Where's the global warming here?"
If you don't like all four seasons, please move.
There are other states that are warmer and I would love to not hear you complain incessantly from October to April about the weather.

In other news.
Tiger Woods isn't Jesus!
How is this a shock to people?
Really?
Really?
After EVERYTHING we know about celebrities, nay, celebrities that are in the public eye and idolized, how is this a shocker?
I love the comment, "It's not that he had an affair. It's the amount of affairs he had."
Really.
So you think when a celebrity gets caught, it's just super unfortunate bad luck.
The first time they would ever cheat and they get caught.
I'm gonna go with a no.
The comment I really did love, however, was written by a former call-girl (writer for the Daily Beast) who stated that Tiger's problem was that he slept with star-fuckers. Okay so she didn't use the term star-fucker, but she stated he slept with people who wanted to be on his arm. If he would have chose a classy call girl, this wouldn't be an issue (most likely) because call girls don't stalk their clients, cause problems at home. Because, apparently, there is a call girl code of conduct, which is protecting the client at all costs.

Which makes me think Tiger is an even bigger narcissist, because he wants to be with ladies who actually WANT him, not just pretend to want him.

And since I love segways (the literary device, not the motorized device), at one of Obama's town hall meetings, a kid who looked as if he were about 16 asked the president if he's thought about decriminalizing gambling, prostitution, marijuana, and other non-violent victimless crimes. And while the whole crowd laughed at this idea, "Silly child" they were most likely thinking.

But.
Why not?
To quote E, "It would be political suicide."
Would it?
Would bringing us out of the recession be political suicide?
People need to think out of the box for this. We are no longer an industrial country.
And what makes money?
And has been around since biblical times?
Gambling, prostitution, and drugs.
I've been saying it for years and I'll say it again.
I think if you legalize marijauna, tax the shit out of it, and donezo!
Economy fixed!
Is it that simple?
God I hope not, because if it were that simple we should all be kicking ourselves for not doing this 24 years ago.
But it is something I think needs to be looked into.
Even the police chief on Law and Order smokes pot for her cancer!

And prostitution, why not have it be legal?
I don't understand that at all.
Because it's sex?
Because it's sex out of marriage?
We're still up in arms about this?
Seriously?
Bah Humbug.

Why I love Don Draper

Maybe I was in a weird place night, drinking boxed wine and eating homemade tostadas (I really don't think I will ever buy pre-made tostada shells again!), E was in the other room and I settled in for a night of catching up on my favorite television shows.

I should preface by saying that while by and large I do love Mad Men, some shows are kind of hit or miss. But this episode.
This episode drew me in.
It was almost like a movie, complete with happy-ish ending.
I loved it.

And.

I'm gonna say it.

I love Don Draper.
I love his character, even though everything in me as a feminist says I shouldn't.
But he's dreamy!
He's a bad boy!
Sometimes he likes his kids!
He's successful!
He's good at his job!

So while my love of Don Draper is unabashed, I can't help wondering why I like him. Do his looks trump everything? It's similar to the movie High Fidelity.
You're rooting for John Cusack.
But why?
He's a horrible horrible person.
And even though you know this about him, something still draws you in.
Is it cos you know deep down John Cusack=Lloyd Dobler?
I don't know.
I can't explain it. I have no such history with Don Draper.
Nothing in the show indicates that he will eventually be a good person.
He continues to drink and smoke like a banshee (but who looks better doing it? eh? Eh? EH?)
He continues to have mistresses.
He has started taking a more active role in his kids' life, which I guess is a bonus, but could also be related to him effing the teacher.
Yet there I was enthralled in this season-ender.

So.
This last episode got me thinking.
Do I hate Betty simply because she's with Don and I'm a jealous viewer?
She gets to look at Don the whole time the tv is off and I'm relegated to just viewing him for 44 minutes on a Sunday night?
I will be the first to admit.
I'm a totally jealous person, being a perpetual have-not, it's really REALLY easy to do.
But then it hit me.
I don't like Betty's character because she's a thank-less whiner.
She's weak.
She lets thinks happen TO her rather than just doing them.
Even her affair is/was passive.
There is no depth to her, unlike the other female characters on the show.
Rather than moving up, like every other main woman character on the show, she's moving laterally, or stationarily (is that even a word?).
It's like a friend that just keeps making the same mistake with a different name.
Except she's not my friend, but yet I have to hear about it constantly (or at least every Sunday for 44 minutes).
I know!
It's like my annoying co-worker who is a total martyr for EVERY effing cause in the world, and you would never talk to this person otherwise, but there you are, trapped on a lunch break and you have to hear all of her "Woe is me" tales, except you could give two flying f-bombs about her life.
That is exactly how the Betty Draper situation is.
Except I can turn Mrs. Draper off.
I never do, but the option is always there.

The Never-Ending Recession

And I'm back.
I wish I had lots to say.
What I've been up to.
What's the latest news from Joe.
Unfortunately.
Unemployment is now in double digits, and I have to say.
I feel kind of left out.
Because technically I should be part of that scene, you know?
Ooh!
Ooh!
I DID make the realization that I am probably one of the 9 million UNDERemployed today.
So thank god for that.
This blog is not for naught.


It turns out that people still love to party during the recession.
We still have beer and boxed wine left over from Halloween!
SCORE!
And as an added bonus we spent less at the grocery store than I expected.
Hizzah!

The party, after much internal worrying (why I do these things to myself, I will never know) was a smashing success.
And by smashing, I mean everyone was sufficiently smashed by the end of the night.
And we were performing smash hits of every era.
Without the karaoke television.
Because apparently that tv was another victim of the recession.
We don't know why it doesn't work anymore, but it doesn't.
JT had the brills idea that we should just sing without the tv, because this is what the party derails to anyway, and since I was lit from the delicious sangria M&Z had served at the party of the first part, I was all in for this.

I got to catch up with old mates, my house was full of dogs for part of the party, and all my besties were there.
Well.
Almost all of them:
My mom couldn't make it because of my aunt's party.
LN couldn't make it because there is a recession and gas is expensive.
MG couldn't make the party of the second part because she had KG duty.
Being a parent sure cuts into the fun having time.
I know this much is true.

In other news.
E and I are still broke, but I think we're getting better at it.
The party was hard to finance but I don't think people even realized we didn't have the ridick spread we usually do, and I have to give M&Z major props for having some of the most delicious food ever served at a party. DELICIOUS!
SCRUMTULESCENT!

And in frugal gourmet news:
We learned how to can.
Aww yeah.
Color us thrifty.
Or possibly poisoned with botulism.
We don't know!
While we don't have a pressure CANNER, we have a pressure COOKER.
A pressure cooker with no gague. So we really have no idea what pressure things were cooked at, or how long REALLY things should be cooked for.
We found out our pressure cooker (most pressure cookers, really) cook at about 15psi.
So we're hoping this one does too.
We then found a recipe similar to the one we were making and copied the cooking time.
And then we canned.
Awwww lawdy did we can.

We're hoping we'll be fine as there are many other ways to get botulism that I just read about and since I haven't gotten botulism yet, I'm thinking I might have an immunity.
Jk folks, jk.
But seriously.
8 pints of tomato sauce later we are stocked for this winter!!!
False.
We are stocked for like 2 weeks.
Maybe.
But we are very exicted (already) for next summer to can salsa, and more sauce using super fly and super fresh ingredients.
PLUS! Since we now know how easy it is to can, I think I will ask for a REAL canner from Jolly Old St. Nicholas. And then my mind will be free of botulism worries.

Frugal fall gourmet:
Made my annual batch of pumpkin-curry soup.
So delicious and it really makes a lot.
I WOULD can it, but darnzoes, I made it with butter.
And I have no idea if pumpkin soup would can well even if I made it with olive oil.
Things to think about people.
Well if you're poor anyway.

Recession Part III; Week One

Where have you been?
Why haven't you posted.
By now, I would hope that the readers of this blog are used to my sporadic postings.
You bloggers with real jobs and families that blog everyday just for the "love of it" amaze me.
Actually people with real jobs amaze me.
"The pay phone outside always amazes me"
If you can tell me what move the above quote is from, you will win a prize!

Well I can tell you what I have been up to:

• saving the neighborhood from fire
• making and freezing soup
• taking part in neighborhood activities begrudgingly
• getting my foster dog adopted (this weekend!)
• closing Miller Park
• reading a pretty bad book from the library
• recovering from a two phase sickness
• being a dance-dance-dance-dance-dancin' machine (watchyagetdown, watchyagetdown)
• getting keys at my job (looks like somebody's a for-real employee!)
• planning my annual halloween party--co-hosted this year by my CSPBFF, MG!
• being text-stalked on the MCTS.
  

So it's not as if I've just been lazing about. Well the recovering part of sickness, yes, but for the most part even my last Brewer games (sigh.) were listened to/watched while cleaning our incessant mess of a house.

Before I delve into the details of what has been going on, I should say why this is the third (but let's be real, most likely not final) part of the recession. For October is the month that we start with our budget. Our for-real, make or break budget to get us out of debt. Not all debt, but at least credit card debt. I've asked you once, and I will ask you again. Please bear with us as we deny activities because we're picking up extra shifts, or if we can't go out because we blew our going-out money for the month (oh yes, we have a wee bit budgeted for) on strippers and cocaine.
That last part was a joke people. It would be whores.
Stripper+coke=whores
Or, you know, we blew our going out money on dog food. That is probably a little bit more likely.
On to bigger, less depressing things.

We don't need to water, let the mother fucker burn. Burn mother fucker, burn.
I had a wee bit of cash left over from my cousin's wedding and I decided I really liked the way nail polish looked on my fingers. However, it kept chipping and chipping. After two days of wearing it I looked like a hooker.
So I called the one who knows all about beauty and glamour.
David Bowie.
Jk jk.
PO.
She advised me that a base and top coat were necessary.
So off I went to Target to find a base and top coat (PO advised to not get the 2-in-1).
And that is when I see a fire down the alley.
In a garbage can.
In a plastic garbage can.
For a split second I think about not calling 911 as I am tired.
But then the whole, saving-the neighborhood thing kicks in.
So I call 911.
After 4 rings they pick up and I inform them of the fire.
Within about a minute, the fire truck is there putting out the fire in the alley, then a girl comes running down the alley to inform us all watching the action, that there is another trash can fire.
So the group of us that has amassed goes down the block to look at the other fire.
And this fire was alot bigger than our pesky fire in the alley.
My one neighbor then continued talking about how if he would have seen the arsonist he would have popped him.
These are the people in your neighborhood.

Soup is good food!
It's true it is, and E and I have been getting really good at making it.
Weekend days= bread making and soup making.
Not to mention, homemade soup is so so good for you.
Currently frozen in our freezer; cabbage-beer stew (surprisingly delicious!), carrot-dill soup (okay, would add a thickener next time...maybe a turnip or rutabaga?), homemade mac-n-cheese (okay so it's not a soup but freezes just the same!)
This weekend I plan on making the Comet tomato soup which everyone agrees is actually better than Comet's tomato soup.

Won't you be my neighbor?
As some of you know, I serve on the board of our neighborhood association.
And this year, I am serving begrudgingly.
Maybe it's the weather, or maybe it's because I've lived here a while and just see the same stuff all the time.
Or maybe it's because most people only seem to care about the board when a road isn't paved to their liking.
Oh yes. This really happens.
I am thinking I might just not have the You-Rah-Rah CSP attitude.
So we plan this event.
Fall Fest.
And it's a big event. Mostly it's for the neighborhood kids to take part in some free activities and it's a good internal marketing for the association. I get that. I really do.
It's just SO full of kids, and not quiet church kids.
But loud, and let's be real, sometimes rude and sassy city kids.
Now there were plenty of behaved kids, a surprising amount in fact. But few parents, and literally one of the parent's was wasted. So while it is a good, there is also a twinge of sadness to the event.
Anyway. So E had to back out of his previous commitment to volunteer as he picked up a shift for two hours (see above regarding recession part III), shitty? Of course, but it's not as if the event rested solely on his shoulders, and I had alerted the board that I would not be able to help until 1-ish as I had to work that day.
So I get this email chastising me for backing out and blah blah blah. Not addressed just to me, but to the whole board. I then air our dirty laundry saying exactly what I've told you; we're broke, we come first, we need the money, etc. NOT TO mention that I told the board two months ago I had to work.
I then get an email, addressed just to me, of course, saying "I do remember you saying something about that."
Of course you do.
Now.
And I suppose it might help to mention that there was a board member who didn't show up to the event.
At all.
And as far as I could tell he didn't get any emails.
And if he did, they weren't addressed to the whole board.
In spite of this in-fighting (ha ha ha) the event went well, a scant amount of money was raised, and kids got free food, games and prizes.

Logan
The weekend prior to Fall Fest was our annual Greyhound Gala, which, much to our dismay we were unable to attend due to weddings and film festivals. According to everyone, he was going to get adopted at the gala.
He is currently napping in our t.v. room.
BUT!
He IS getting adopted this weekend.
YES!
While we have enjoyed Logan's stay with us, I truly feel he will have a great home with his new family, complete with greyhounds who actually want to play with him!
Logan has also cured me from ever thinking I could handle a puppy of any kind.
Working at the WHS has also helped me with this.

It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.
Yeah that's right.
I'm breaking out the Boyz II Men.
Because who doesn't love/hate that song?
So my dear friend AA accompanied me to the final Brewer game of the o9 season at Miller Park.
It was, like so many other games I've seen there this year, a loss, but we had fun. And I have to say, as cheesy as it is, it was a good feeling that although the Brewers were totally out of any playoff race, and most likely finishing under .500 at that point, and there was a Packer game on, the stadium was pretty full.
Nice work, Crew.
Now comes the off-season guessing game.
Will we trade Fielder?
Who should we trade?
Who can we get for who?
Boring to most people, but interesting for people with theories.
So I will say it here first.
Fielder doesn't go UNLESS we get two ace pitchers for him.
Not two Dave Bushes.
Not two Jeff Suppans (which only one year left on his ridick contract!)
Two CC's.
Two Sheets, but healthy Sheets.
Then, and only then, will I support a Fielder trade.

Arabian Jazz
While I'm almost done with this book, I don't recommend it to anyone. While the writer has some pretty passages, as a whole the book doesn't work and is wholly unbelievable. Nurses wearing white caps in the 90s? WHAT?!? Skip it.

Sick.
And not the way skaters say sick.
Literally.
I *kind of* had a cold two weeks ago. But I shrugged it off, got a little more sleep than usual, and plowed through. Then Saturday night came and I had a sore throat.
Sore throat?
I haven't had one of those since my tonsils were removed in the 4th grade. I painted my nails, watched some recorded television, and called it a night.
The next day I felt a little worse, but stayed in my jammies all day, cleaned the downstairs, and went to bed early.
Monday, Monday. Can't trust that day.
I sounded awful, and felt worse.
Buckets. It was bad.
I went home and even though the game of the century was on, Favre-less Packers vs. Favre-full Vikings, I went to bed.
At 6pm.
And didn't wake up until the next day.
While I didn't feel completely better.
I felt a helluva lot better.
And today I'm up at 4am, blogging.
My throat is still a bit scratchy, but all in all, better? You bet!

Dancin' Queen
Not even drunk at my cousin's wedding, but I was a dancing fool. At one point it was just me and my cousin EB dancing and singing to love shack together. After interprative dancing to "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green, my aunts told me I should be an "entertainer."
Because that is a real job.

Keys.
Yep I'm a key holder now.
This doesn't really mean anything, except I don't have to wait for people to get there, and I will be able to come in whenever I want. I also got glowing reviews, but reviews don't really mean all that much to me when no pay-raise is involved.
True.
I take some pride, but not THAT much pride.

This is Halloween!
As I'm sure most of you know. I will be throwing the annual Halloween bash this year.
BUT!
Added bonus!
MG (writer of Gerni in Mke) will be hosting part one, which is a classy-costumed potluck.
Part II is the usual debauchery and mayhem that takes place almost on a monthly basis at my house.
It is recession style so BYOB to part II, although some beer and wine will be provided.

Jeepers Creepers, where'd you get those peepers?
So I am pretty sure I was texted about incessantly on the bus yesterday. It's very rare that I ever think people are paying attention to me, but this was a little strange.
First of all, the dude appeared out of nowhere, I think he may have moved to sit closer me.
Second, either my timing was amazing, or he was literally giving somebody a play by play of everything I was doing: turning pages in my book warranted texts, tapping my foot to my ipod, yawning--kind of creepy right? Or am I just totally full of myself? Either way, I like to think of as the official start of the halloween season, creeped on on the bus.

Recession Part II; Shorty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low

Apparently, much to my shock and awe.
People read this thing.
They miss it when I don't post.
They always ask when more posts are coming.
They ask if it will continue since I am now employed.

So I will soldier on.

You may have been wondering, "What has blogger Jj been up to?"
Mostly.
I've been in a facebook war.
A facebook war with the anti-healthcare reform people.
And by anti-healthcare reform people, I mean my brother, some of his friends, and my aunt.
Mostly the argument consists of this:
If you can't afford healthcare it is because you spend your money on useless crap (extra cars, vacations, designer clothes) and really everyone should be able to budget for healthcare.
And that if we become a socialist country (I love that single payer= socialism, and I love that socialism is still a bad word), we won't get to pick which doctors we see, or what procedures to have done, and abortions! Death panels!
When a liberal like me brings up the fact that lots of things in 'Mrrrka are socialist like the fire and police departments, the USPS, the public school systems, they then bring it back to a family-budgeting issue.
So I gave up.
But I would like to say:
E and I only have one car (and it's almost paid off!), live in a place we can afford, don't buy designer clothes (hells we can't even get haircuts!), and WE haven't taken a vacation since 2002, and the $800 we spent on that vacation isn't going to help much if I needed to fix a broken leg.
I guess it's just painful to hear that people think I shouldn't have healthcare.
Because that is the bottom line.

In addition to the argument with my aunt, I have also been victim to my first facebook snub!
Can you believe it?
Aunt KB, the super anti-choice (she sends web videos!), Nobama, refused me as a friend.
Or ignored me.
I don't know.
All I know is this:
Friendship was pending, and now, I have to request all over again.
Now some of you might be saying, why would even WANT to be friends with someone like that?
Who cares?
We love Obama!
But.
She is family, number one.
I do like her, and she is pretty funny.
Sure her political alignments are all out of whack (I still don't understand how so many "Christians" are against helping the poor and un/der insured, but I decided I wouldn't play that card), and she just sent my cousin an email telling her how important it was to repent before her wedding so she can be pure for her wedding and tell her children (yep, two kids out of wedlock), that although they're here, she was still pure before god.
People, you don't even understand this, until it happens to you.
So.
I totally called her out on it.
I emailed her and said something along the lines of "Why no friend add? Thanks alot, jerkzoes." Then added something pertinent.
Bonus?
I get to see the WHOLE lot of the anti-choice Nobamas this weekend at the said non-pure wedding.
I hope they play "Low" by Flo-Rida:


Because I've had this song in my head for the past three days.
I'm a ridiculous white person.
I will probably learn the lyrics.
Yep.
I'm thinking this will be the jam for Halloween 09.
And Logan, the foster dog really seems to dig it.

Also, I may have said it before, but Bill Maher and I are of one mind.
Just sayin'
I'm very glad there is somebody famous sharing my points of view with the world.
Well done, Mr. Maher.
Well done indeed.

And who doesn't love T-Pain?

Recession Part II; Week ???

I'll figure out the week later and edit it.
And then I will have to erase this whole introduction.

But.
Back by popular demand.
It's as if the fates had this all lined up.
First the CSPBFF tells me I need to right this blog and write this blog.
Then JV, one of my old corporate coffeemates tells me she misses me.

You guys!
You really do know how to make a kid blush.

So here I am, with the grand return of VOTR.
I have to say you haven't missed all that much.
Still working, although things are starting to irritate me.
Which probably means I'm a bit too invested.
It's the midwestern in me, what can I say?

Things that have happened that I've been thinking about.
E and I are probably going to consolidate our debt, which would enable us to get out of pesky credit card debt alot sooner than if we didn't.
While we were both worried about his option at first, I realized we could keep our budget for booze/going out pretty much the same! And if we take home-booze out of the grocery budget, well. Who needs to eat when you have a box of Franzia to drink.
So I'm asking all my friends to bear with us as we navigate the waters of having (and sticking to!) a budget.

Another thing that happened that I have been thinking about is Obama's speech to Congress.
And the ridiculous outburst of Joe Wilson.
What I was REALLY excited about is there was a man being interviewed on NPR who basically said my thoughts exactly.
It's not only a ridiculous lack of respect, but if you compound this with the birthers' movement, the death panels, the nazi-sympathizers, etc, it's not just a difference of opinion. There is a deeper issue.
And I think we all know what this deeper issue is.
Color!
If this were a white male democrat, I don't think we would be having half of these issues.
Yes, we would still have those calling us libbies socialists.
But I'm convinced there would be no name calling, no birthers' movements.

And since we're on the topic of racism in American.
Serena Williams had what the press is calling a "meltdown" but what I would prefer to call "outburst" or "how I talk internally."
After missing match point at some tennis match (E will be divorcing me shortly for not knowing this), she said to the line judge, audibly "I will take this expletive ball and shove it down your expletive throat."
One of my favorite games to play after an incident like this is to think of the most ridiculous swear words:
I will take this shit ball and shove it down your ass throat.
I will take this dickie shiner ball and shove it down your thunder cunt throat (those ones actually make sense!)
What can you come up with?!
But back to the race issue.
I found this interesting because, I don't particularily like the Williams sisters.
I'm still stuck on Jennifer Capriatti.
But the fact that this was the HUGE news.
Was it because it was tennis?
Was it because it was lady tennis?
Was it because it was black lady tennis?
Most of me thinks it's because it's tennis, as John McEnroe also got alot of media attention for his "meltdowns."
But I don't think they were called meltdowns for him.
He was just an angry dude.
But ladies, or maybe just black ladies, can't be angry.
We have to have a meltdown, an emotional freakout, for us to use language that way.
Just some thoughts.

In television news:
The True Blood season finale was fantastic.
I heart that show.
And I wish vampers were real.

The Brewers are still playing baseball, and I have to say, I kind of enjoy watching baseball when every strike/hit/play doesn't mean we will/won't go to the playoffs. Now I just watch/listen for fun. And it's great.
Which I like to think makes me a True Blue Brew Crew fan.
Rhyming is fun.

I would also like to take this time to apologize to my readers for letting this dear blog fall by the wayside.
I was fairly depressed and/or sick the past couple of weeks and was in no way prepared to entertain the masses with my pithy remarks about what's going on in my world.
But you guys still love me.
Just like Jesus.

This weekend was E's film premiere.
And apparently I made a faux pas by telling the director of said film, when asked what I thought about the film, "It was better than I thought it was going to be."
Oops.
E will most likely never work in this town again.
I would like to defend myself by saying that E said this to EVERYONE he saw that night.
Everyone, except the director apparently.
Would have been nice to know that.
In more defense, I thought that having been trapped in a 40 minute phone call with this dude about film theory (after meeting him once), also entitled me to this answer.
Apparently not.

And if I ever made a film?
I would like all of you to be brutally honest with me.
Just an FYI.

My hair is getting ridiculously long, but I kind of like the side swoopiness of my bangs.
It's very Mandy Slade post-Maxwell Demon.
Which is actually a science term regarding paradox.
I learned that from Carl Sagan.

In other news, I made a delicious cinnamon-raisin bread which I had to give to my grandmother as part of her 12 month Christmas present.
But rest assured some of you will be receiving this for Christmas.
See above regarding budgets and bearing with me.

The bad news?
Summer is almost over.
But my tomatoes are growing and they are constant and delicious!
Plus I still have to harvest my carrots!
Gardening is radical.

The good news?
With summer ending comes everyone's favorite time of year.
HALLOWEEN!
Stay tuned for details.

Love is kind of crazy with a spooky little thing like you.

Recession Part II; Week Three

Well I still haven't gotten fired.
Or "laid off."
But I did get two wee reprimands!
Yep.

Reprimand #1:
Passive aggressive in nature, said in front of almost the entire staff:
"Having a time issue, are we?"
Which I replied honestly, "Yep, I guess I can't seem to figure out the traffic."
Which is true.
The biggest thing about this job that I don't like is that it's 20-30 minutes away.
Which isn't a huge deal, I guess. The whole "beggars can't be choosers" adage.
But christ-on-a-cracker do I hate traffic.
I wouldn't hate it so much if it was the same everyday. If I could leave at the same time and get to work at the same time. But this doesn't happen in my world.
So I continue to hate traffic with a passion.
I hate it so much that I've resigned myself to getting to work 15 minutes early so I don't have to deal with it.
I hate it so much that I've decided to skip the freeway altogether and take the "backroads" there. Which adds about 10 minutes to my drive time, but I don't have to deal with multiple d-bags cutting me off only to slam on the brakes because there really was a reason I wasn't tailgating the person in front of me.
I would also like to note that with this many people currently out of work, I would really hate to see traffic when the recession is over.

Reprimand #2 was done privately, and in a friendly tone.
I found this reprimand quite hilarious, because it plays right into my whole "Homeless Barbie" routine.
As I'm sitting at my desk-ish area, the practice manager (PM) says to me, "Do you know the sole of your shoes is coming undone?"
"Oh that? Yeah, I guess." Then I pause and maybe shrug my shoulders, as I flip the part of the sole that is coming off of the shoe, not extremely noticeable in my opinion, but whatevs. PM keeps kind of looking at me and my old old shoes.
"Is that I problem?" I ask. Thinking she's going to say something about slipping and falling, or a health issue.
"Well, it just looks kind of scruffy."
"Oh, alright. Well I will just wear other shoes then."
Because let's be real, it's not like I don't have other shoes. But I thought the way she went about it was just really funny. Like I almost had to control myself from laughing.
And to be clear, the rest of the staff, well most of them, wear CROCS.
Because THOSE are the epitome of class and non-scruffiness.
Even E was like, you should just wear your crocs.
To which I replied, "I don't want to be seen in public with those things on."
And he laughed.
Because it's true.
I will admit to owning crocs, but I wear them for their intended use, around the house and gardening.
And going into our gross basement.
Kind of like a rubber house-shoe.
Not to mention, the faux-sherpa lined ones are PERFECT for the winter-time and letting the dog out.
But we don't wear them to the store.
We don't wear them to bars.
And, I refuse to wear them to work.
At least at this point.
I have a super cute pair of pink and olive KangaRoos that I will be rocking at the Vet office from now on.
But that doesn't mean I will look any less homeless.
Just a fair warning.

Recession food:
Homemade black bean burgers made by E.
I have since deemed him the official BBB of our household.
They were delicious and will go excellently with the gazpacho that I whipped up today.
If we ever have expendable income, I think one of my first purchases will be a food processor.
Hand chopping the gazpacho veggies has deemed this necessary by my account.
But the gazpacho is delicious, especially for the first time ever making it! Here is the recipe, take from "The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook" by Karen Brooks, a cookbook picked up after our neighbor couldn't sell it at our neighborhood rummage sale. This recipe turned out great and I have to say, it ain't just for vegetarians! Not to mention, this recipe is vegan and requires no oven! And let's be real...it's been warm lately.

Gazpacho (cold spanish soup)

• 4 tomatoes, cut into small pieces
• 1 green pepper, chopped (I used a HUGE red pepper cos that is what we had)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 cucumber, chopped
• 2 c. tomato juice (in true recession fashion, I didn't have tomato juice, but I thinned about a 1/2 c. of pasta sauce and made it into tomato juice!)
• 1 1/2 cloves of garlic, crushed (I used about 3-4 cloves of garlic as it wasn't the freshest garlic around)
• 1 tbsp. parsley (I have fresh basil so I coarsely chopped about a 1/3 c. of it)
• 3 tbsp. oil (I used olive oil)
• 3 tbsp cider or wine vinegar (I used red wine vinegar)
• salt and cayenned pepper to taste (I sprinkled a liberal amount of each)
• 10 pitted black olives (I left these out, because while I love to draw olives, they are on the food I hate list)

In a large bowl mix all ingredients. Blend half of mixture and mix with unblended mixture. Add olives if you're using them. It says to serve with croutons, but I think it's delicious all on it's own.

In other news.
Tonight's tv schedule is looking to be tops:
True Blood
Mad Men
Hung
Entourage.
Although, I have to say, Entourage is kind of getting lame. Ari isn't as funny as he used to be, and all his friends just seem to be lame. I gues it's still better than network, but it truly is a mind suck and doesn't offer too much in the way of entertainment...but maybe something exciting is bound to happen. Whatevs.