mipmup.

my favorite childhood character.

strawberry shortcake. who else?

because i was (easily) convinced to buy a (another) half flat of strawberries at the farmers' market, i put the internets into overdrive to find me a little somepin' somepin'. alas, they came through with brown sugar shortcakes, topped with roasted strawberries and freshly whipped cream. email me for recipes, as the stupid cooking light site is all curtain-ed and whatnot for subscribers only. and the roasted strawberries actually came from fine cooking.

alas, they seemed to be a hit with my better half's co-workers.

strawberry shortcake. is there anything bettah?

stealer.

someone stole my library card number.

i mean, who does that kind of thing? and why does that kind of thing always happen to yours truly?

i went to check-out a book yesterday and found out the news. thankfully, the grand total fines were: $1.00. yep. just one buck. which, after about 20 minutes, were waived. but anyway, i had to argue with the semi-snooty librarian supervisor about why "black knight" and "woman to woman" (ironically, this book seems to be about god or something. is our thief a believer?) were never books i placed on hold. last december. and if they weren't my materials, why i didn't return two messages left for me. (didn't get them. sorry, i was busy attending to my father with the brain injury lady!). i ended up having to buy a new library card for $3. it's always the victim that gets punished, man. always the victim.

snooty librarian accused me of losing my key chain card since i didn't have it attached to my key ring. uh. sorry. i don't put that crap on my key ring, lady! then she said i must have lost it. not likely as it's probably tucked away in my papers somewhere. i think that my number may have been lifted from their site or something, since that's really the way i use my card the most: to research stuff online. i'm now highly suspicious of their databases.

to top all of this off, i was with my dad  so i felt like i was about two years old. not that effective for giving it to the librarian, you know?

stealers suck.

cabbage cortido.

is it me or do all the fruits and vegetables seem to simply hum with flavor this year? i really need to get a rolling cart so i can load up with even more delights at the farmers' market. i bought some regular old cabbage yesterday and since i made chili for lunch, i was trying to think of a nice accompaniment to it. i remembered cabbage cortido, a side dish served along pupusas. i tried it only once, but really enjoyed it. i searched and found this recipe, which i adapted a little. it's super, super spicy, so i may have to add another head of cabbage. it's quite easy to make and we'll bring it to a bbq next weekend. hopefully, it will tone down by then!

saturation point? check.

can cruise fire his publicist now? oh yeah. that'd make for a bad family picnic this year, huh? with all the pda and the defending of the "religion" and now fighting with matt. it's just all so annoying. photo credit (sans my "addition"): ap.

friday favorites.

here are my favorites for this week (the puppy edition!):

• earth-friendly waste bags. i confess i hadn't really thought about the environmental impact of my doggie's waste bags before now, but the ones i'm using are plastic and, i'm pretty sure, not good for the environment. these are 100% compostable and biodegradable. i can finally feel good about poop. $8.95 for 50 bags.
• personalized collar. my better half suggested we emblazon one with "vicious" for haley. totally apropos. $49.
• design your own pet bed. the cool thing about these dog beds is that they are stain-, moisture-, odor- and bacteria-resistant and machine-washable. i love the choices of fabrics, too. users can select different fabric for the top and bottom and gusset (middle). personalization is free. as it should be, since these puppies start at $190.
• enamel dog bowls. finally! a dog bowl without cutesy paw prints or "woof" on it. i like these modern colors, too. as far as my favorites, it was a tie between these and these. start at $9.50.
• silver-buckle collar. a silver buckle is a "must have" accessory for the stylish pup. this company is using two colors of grosgrain on the collar, which i'm not totally sure about, but i do like the silver buckle! they have leather ones available here. $42, or beginning at $25 for leather. matching lead available!
• new favorite dog site. well-designed with excellent product choices. and they have brick and mortar stores in the san diego area, too!
• new favorite magazine. "the voice of modern dog culture." need i say more? it's so "best in show." i'm subscribing.

photo credits: barker & meowsky; trixie + peanut; crypton fabric; fetch pets; aud & m.

aight den!

thankfully, all is well.

after a lot of introspection, i'm feeling much relieved. tonight is "i don't have cancer yet" night, which we'll celebrate with many drinks toasting to my a-ok c word and ovaries.

thanks for all your good wishes and thoughts. you made me feel all warm and fuzzy.

laundry day.

this cat loves warm, fresh laundry. who doesn't?

no gnus.

the whole thing took about five minutes yesterday. well, maybe a little longer since i undressed from the waist up instead of the waist down. hello? and guzzling the water was not that big of a deal. and not releasing wasn't the worst thing ever.

what did suck was when my better half asked the half-android half-human technician giving me the ultrasound if she saw anything unusual, she remained true to her leader answering, "i can't say." we are pretty certain she had a pulse, but it's really up in the air.

won't have any news til tuesday, but i promise to keep you posted just like gary gnu used to do.

friday favorites.

here are my favorites for this week:

• doggie travel tags. we must take haley with us when we next travel. it's just simply a must. as a paranoid individual, i'm paranoid about her running off while we're on holiday (um. even though she has our cell phone numbers engraved on her tag. ahem.). now i can set aside (some) my worries and attach on of these to her collar with our hotel info. unless of course the collar falls off. or the person that finds her doesn't see that. or she happens to wander 100 miles away from our hotel. $5.50 (with free shipping!).

• storage boxes. we don't have a lot of storage pieces in the room formerly known as the office, so i opt for filling our closet with these boxes. they're easy to stack and oh so easy to fill. receipts, cds, user manuals, photos. the opportunities are endless! the only thing i don't like is that they require assembly, but what doesn't at ikea? various sizes and colors. these are $9.99 for two.

• oxo brite. i'm not a fan of chemicals as you probably already know and i'll do whatever i can to avoid using them, especially on things that i wear, thankyouverymuch. i just recently tried this product and was happy to discover that it actually works, unlike some others i have tried. it truly got my whites whiter! now i wonder if i can use it to bleach my sink? $11.75.

• green tea toothpaste. remember how i was talking about switching toothpastes because of sls? after a good bit of research and inquiries to the companies regarding animal-derived ingredients (nature's gate, jason's and weleda do not use them in the products i asked about. email me if you want more 411), i tried this green tea toothpaste, which i give 8.5 out of 10. the only reason it's not a perfect 10 is that it tea-stained my toothbrush which sort of made me wonder what's it's doing to my teeth. i'll balance that comment with the fact that i like it extra-special much because it has myrrh, which is excellent for a healthy mouth. (for the record, i also tried jason's nutrismile, but it gave me a tummy ache. i don't know why. i swear i'm not eating it.) $6.99.

• bariani olive oil. this is my favorite olive oil, though i don't keep it stocked since i'm in la and it's produced in sacramento. which would mean i'd have to order it (which i've done) or load up on it at a san francisco farmers' market next time i'm up there or visit one of these stores, which i'm frankly too lazy to do. i might just have to though, i've been craving it like a madwoman. it's flavorful, made by a small producer that is family owned- and operated, organic and produced in a limited quantity. try it! you'll like it! $17, 1.0 liter; $9, 500 ml or $4.75, 250 ml. also available in cases.
  

ps wish my bladder and i luck today as i fill it with 32 ounces of fluid and resist "releasing" until after the ultrasound. ugh.

photo credits: george; ikea; earth friendly products; levland/nature's gate; bariani.

the c word.

no, not that one. gross.

any time your doctor utters the other, scarier c word in your presence, when she's talking about you and your uterus, methinks you have cause for alarm. that word just shakes me out of that whole "i'm a full-time caregiver, i can't possibly have a life" syndrome i've been facing. or the "god, i hate annuals" syndrome. or even the "my life is inert" syndrome i've been toying with. i see now (again) that normal and routine are not things to take for granted. on a positive note, i did learn that i have "nice, very active bowels." i'm going for another ultrasound on friday to find out what the hell is going on down there in my c word. wish me luck.