new stuff!

Testing out new toy! (backpack) I cashed in my member discount at REI this month and pulled the trigger on a new pack.

So far, so good.

Cooking with heat

So for whatever reason, I've been thinking about our grocery budget lately. In the sense that I'm sure we spend more than we need to. I am also struggling with my fridge/freezer because I feel like it's either totally empty or ridiculously, overflowingly full. I also feel like when it's full I end up buying things I had in there anyway and for some reason once I freeze something I like to keep it forever. Freezing for me is more of an archive thing rather than a put it in here for now so it doesn't rot but make sure to actually use it, probably soon deal. I feel like a freezer in my mind is preparation for the apocalypse. I don't know why, but case in point: tomatoes. We had a ridiculous amount of cherry tomatoes this year, so I would blend and freeze them in bags. Haven't used one yet, though I have a BUNCH, and I have made things in which they would have been perfect. And known it at the time but not been able to use them. I know not from where my issue comes. My freezer is a little library, only instead of books it's ziploc bags of tomatoes, squashes, wine and stock. (fill a bag, freeze it flat, stand it up and file! and keep! forever!) The first step is admitting I have a problem, and I'm working through it.

Anyway, I decided last weekend to begin tracking spending (last Sunday to be specific, because last Sat we went to a slow foods dinner, which we had to bring a dish to that I naively thought had to be made of local food so I shot my wad at the farmer's market. I was wrong, the dinner wasn't quite what we were looking for, but now we know what that's all about.) Back to the grocery thing: we both make decent scratch and not having kids gives one all sorts of luxury choices, like $10/lb coffee (which I justify as budget-y because it equals 2 starbucks cups), so I think we just don't bother being as smart as we could be because we don't totally need to. I do a lot of "ugh, I can't believe this cost x much" and then buying it anyway because I can. Lots of people can't and there's a big thing going on for the next month or to see what it's like to live on food stamps, which average less than $30 per person per week. Check it out. It comes at a good time for me, and sort of fits in with my plan.

So, anyway, you may recall my having a fit 6 months or so ago about not throwing away food. We've actually been doing ok with this one, as I've figured out that the problem is largely that I get bored eating most things more than twice so I've started recycling stuff into other food. Leftover pork roast that I didn't love got chopped up, sauteed with some onion, coriander and cumin seeds, added to black beans and voila! white girl wannabe Cuban pork deliciousness. Chicken soup gets boiled down, thickened up, padded with more veggies and becomes chicken pot pie. Those are the only two I have so far, but I'm feeling pretty good about the concept. My dad used to do it all the time and so I know I have the raw materials to make it work.

This ties in with the above freezer ramble because to the end of saving money, stopping wasting food, not using anything just once, and not shopping for what I already need, this week I am not going to the grocery store. Ok, that's a lie I'm going to the store, but not in the "ooh I saw this recipe online today so I'm going to stock up on what I need to make it" way. The only things I'm going to buy are under $20 total worth of milk, and some more vegetables (a one time deal) because I don't think I have enough of those to make it through. But otherwise, I think that's about all I'm allowing myself to buy. Things one needs to survive that can't be replaced or made. I have a ridiculous amount of shit in the pantries, I refuse to believe that I can't cabinet commando a miracle a day for a whole week. My goto starch is rice, but I have couscous and all manner of other random grains kicking it cupboard style, and I think it's time we got to know one another.

I actually had this fit/epiphany last night and was able to scare up a decent african groundnut stew just out of things I had in the freezer. Normally I would have gone ot the store for carrots, yams and spinach but in keeping with my boycott I just made it without and subbed in some kale
I did however use some couscous. This is what real progress looks like bitches!

Holy Crap

So lots of days when the dog(s) and I go down to the pond for the workday seventh inning stretch, we flush out this beautiful heron that's hanging out. I think he was using us as a layover for a while, because he just appeared a couple of weeks ago, he was def not there the whole time. Unless he followed HN home from work, because he has one there too. But I digress...

Anyhow, so when dogs and I go down there, we have on numerous occasions disturbed his nap and peace of life so he takes off, which is an awesome sight. He's HUGE and the pond is small so in the scale he sort of looks like a raptor and he does these crazy slow, looooong wing beats and just makes some serious TIME! His feet drag in the water and he just goes up the littlest bit at a time as he heads over the bushes into the golf course. AMAZING sight, and everytime I am totally shocked and rendered speechless (as opposed to the running conversation I am no doubt carrying on with my imaginary friend come to life the dog)

I bring my camera with me all the time, and I have NEVER managed to get a picture of him. Ever. By the time I recover from how awesome he is, he's gone.

Today was no exception.

BUT, he did take a crap while he was heading off and I managed to get a picture of that so you have some idea of his size.

My foot for scale (it's UGG time hos!!):

Love always wins

and Kitty always gets his man!

Orion is our special guest star dog of the week, and Kitty instantly took to him. Who doesn't love a giant hunk of pitbull wrapped around the heart of a teddy bear?

It took a solid week, lots of bared teeth and growling and a few "run for your life" moments but Kitty finally won.

The week in Blackberry

Sunday; I discovered a few things in the garden.

1) a rabbit. an asshole rabbit. dude ate all my basil. boo!

2) Zinnias. I love zinnias and they love fall. So bright and cheery in the foggy morning.


3) Tomatoes are still coming in. Some finally got caught up with the plague o'tomatoes of '09, but we have a few soldiers, like this yellow grape tomato dude here. Cayennes (not pictured) and Thai peppers still coming in as well, and plenty of green ones. Even got some jalapenos! Like 3, but I had given up so it's a win.

4)My good for nothing dog is robbing me! check out the background. What she's doing is while I'm in the garden picking tomatoes, she's cruising the fence line eating stragglers.

5) It's been ~10 years that I've had this dog and I will never not find humor in her ability to look totally BUSTED when she is.

Monday; Holly, CJ and Will.He.Is showed up to make small talk, chow down on some happy fish HN killed once and drop off Orion.

Tuesday; So far our guest seems to be enjoying himself, and he's nothing if not motivating to Star. Never have I seen this dog jump further off the dock or run harder then when Orion looks interested in something.

Otherwise, their interactions consist mostly of doing the exact same things in opposite directions or orders of execution, and pretending to ignore each other while actually being keenly interested in what the other is doing, but faking not so as to catch them in the act of something.

Here we have Star ecstatically writhing and Orion scouting the water.

Trading places. No interaction had whatsoever.


There's also a lot of shoulder to shoulder being uninterested in each other. This is some of my favorite stuff.

The best part is neither of them will sleep during the day. They don't want to miss anything. They're completely exhausted by the end of the day and night is peace time.

bienvenue à l'abattoir

Doesn't it sound exotic? Reading up on the secret to tender pork and came across the word abattoir. I am entranced; those around me, perplexed.

Survived the wedding in my heels, although there were incidents with some old ladies. I can only take this as a sign that the heels carried off the look I was going for. And I managed to maintain my classy facade, and didn't tell anyone that hos with fragile hips ought watch out the way their denture holders run. AND I had been drinking. This is major progress, and I take it as a sign of the maturity that was bound to come with age.

Anyhow. Today has been le bon dimanche.

Here's why:

• HN. It would be vulgar to go into particulars.

• Simple Green and the Shop Vac: A Love Story. I have absolutely DOUCHED my house today. With our travels, then my solo (work) travels, and HN juggling school and coaching, things like "putting things away", "taking out trash" and "living like humans" go right by the wayside. We have been planning this weekend as the big clean for a few days now, which means that pretty much ALL housekeeping starts to go by the wayside as "eh, it'll be taken care of this weekend" has become my mantra. We even found another chicken of the woods fungus that his dad had sent us, that we'd put aside and totally forgotten about (AND it turned out to be the source of a smell we'd both been wondering about for days. BONUS!) So basically my house looked like a crime scene, and not in the cool be on tv show way. Now, it looks good and smells good.
  

• Cheesy detective books. Like balm for the soul and awesome for wasting hours.

• Pork. Making delicious pork roast right now. Preeeeeetty excited.

• Wine. Yeah, it's that kind of party, just like back in the day in Hampden. Le Sigh. Were I feeling red, it would be like this, in case anyone's looking for tasty recommendations.

I am learning this dance as you read

Next wedding I go to ima BRING IT