Crafty

A groupon I bought was for a local paint-your-own ceramics store that also does fused glass projects. I used Valentine's Day as an excuse to make CF go with me. I also did not tell him what exactly we were doing until a couple of hours before hand because I did not want to listen to him make fun of it. I told him that there used to be a show on TV called 'Blind Date', and that what we were doing is an activity that they would have done on that TV show.

Guess who did which one.

When I did tell him what we were doing and he gave me a questioning look and said, "I'm not very creative." I told him he could do something manly like a sports-related project.

When we were finished with out projects and leaving the store, he admitted it was fun.

Then we went to the hardware store where he bought and stocked a toolbox...Even though I already have all the tools he wanted to buy, but that is another post.

Solidarity

I mentioned a while back that I would love to read a good objective history about unions. Sadly, if any of you three readers know of one, you have not passed on that information. ;-) It is certainly in the forefront of many Americans' lives right now. I do not pretend to know what is best or that I understand fully the issues or budget in WI. I know people who are required to pay union dues in both the public and private sectors; who while maybe their salary and benefits are better compensation for their education, training, and effort than they might be without a union, have found themselves in ridiculous, illogical situations or not getting a job because of union rules and/or internal politics.

I wonder whether ultimately, people should just have the option to pay those dues or not. That way, the workers decide if they unions are worth it and are not forced in or out of unions due to legislative action or established unions. I guess that would get tricky, but still. I mean, if it is a budget issue and unions make requested financial concessions, what's the big deal? How can legislators argue they are representing Americans when so many Americans clearly do not agree with them?

My biggest issue/concern/problem with unions is how notoriously they protect the lazy and undeserving worker (see above reference to a friend who did not get a union job due to internal union politics/excuses). I think that the good workers get punished for that. While I and others could then argue that the good valuable workers would have nothing to worry about without a union if they are good valuable workers, at the heart of the matter is maybe whether that is a valid argument. I could envision without a union that a productive, hard-working public employee of many years would be laid off because over those years their salary and benefits had increased such that the public entity would rather replace them with an entry-level cheaper employee. That certainly has been known to happen in the private sector, but is it right that it happens in the public sector? And would it only happen in some areas, say education or nursing, and not in others, say police and fire? Then it would not be fair.

Regardless, I would be interested to hear firsthand or otherwise, anonymous or not, experiences or opinions with/about unions, their role and importance historically and in modern times in promoting worders lives.

This whole long rambling post was purely because I got an email with photos from the demonstrations of solidarity across the country and LAUGHED at this one in particular.

Bullies

This is not about people bullies, but animal bullies. I had only seen one starling around the feeders at a time before, but they clearly figured out where there is food. Starlings are actually quite clever birds; according to this they are the same family as myna birds, and myna birds can learn to talk/mimic human speech. They are also noisy and took over the feeder yesterday.

 

CF defends the red squirrels that run up the feeder because, "They need to eat too". Whatever. It's hilarious opening the door and watching them fly through the air to run away. I should have taken a video of that! The way my cat just flew through to the door when it ran by? I think she would totally get it if I let her out. I should have brought her over to CF's when he had mice!

ANYWAY. My problem with the squirrels (and blue jays and crows and ravens) is that when they are on the feeder, other birds do not go to the feeder. Except the chickadees. I am pretty sure they are not afraid of much.

I also noticed these (I think) finches. Watch as they jump at the snow. They jump at it to turn over the snow to get to the thistle that is covered up. Clever! The little birds are not bullies, they are just cute. :-)

P.S. I informed CF it is his fault I am turning into my bird-loving mother because he is the one who gave me the first feeder.

Heart healthy

According to the calendar my health insurance company sent me, February was heart health month. Oatmeal is a great breakfast to help lower cholesterol, and even though the following recipe has eggs in it, they are not really as evil as they have been made out to be historically. Anyway. I got this recipe from a local spice company's monthly email, and I recommend it. I already changed it to include what I changed when I cooked it. :-)

Preheat oven to 350.
Beat together:

• 2/3 c sugar
• 1/3 c applesauce
• 1/3 c light olive oil (light in color and flavor, not in oil, and meant for baking)
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/2 c milk

Add in:

• 2 1/2 t of the companies pumpkin pie spice mix; OR ~ 1 1/2 t cinnamon, 1/2 t ground ginger, 1/2 t nutmeg, 1/2 t allspice
• 1 t baking powder
• 1 t sea salt

Mix in:

• 2 1/2 c old fashioned oatmeal
• 2 med apples, peeled and diced
• 1 1/4 c raisins/dried cranberries

Bake in a greased 9x13 or 2 8x8 pans for 20 - 30 minutes until center is firm and the dish is set.
This morning I reheated some and put on a couple dollops of yogurt.

March is diabetes awareness and colon cancer awareness month, it seems. My first thought was that I should make my goal to get my Dad to face up to his health problems? But on second thought, I probably shouldn't for fear he will disown me and dump on my Mom about how uncaring and not understanding I am.

Drive safely!

We just got hit with 4 - 6ish inches of snow. Let me tell you, that really brings out the best in drivers.  One non-driving thing I decided today was that all fraternities and sororities in snowy places should use dues to invest in a snow blower and blow the damn sidewalks around their "houses".

But on to things I think would help make the roads safer, some of which may seem obvious to you.

1. Clean your front and rear windshields so you can see in front and behind you.
2. Clean your lights so that people can see your headlights when you are coming and your brakelights when you are stopping.
3. Get off the phone. If you must be on the phone, spin out on the highway so you are out of the way before you dial.
4. Do not tailgate people. If you are in a big truck tailgating someone and she taps on her brakes because she cannot go any faster than the big pick-up truck in front of her, instead of flashing your headlights at her, why don't you just stop riding her ass? You know, hypothetically speaking.
5. Learn to drive your car in the snow. If you remain extremely uncomfortable driving on snowy roads, avoid doing so or get a car in which you are more comfortable doing so. [Knock on wood] I have never been in a snow related accident and my car is front wheel drive with questionable tires. It is all about learning when to step on the gas, avoid the brakes, and how to turn the wheel.
6. If you are desperate to switch lanes, take your foot off the gas as you go through the pile of snow in the middle of the highway. You will surely slow down, but then you can speed back up and pass the person you were behind. Trust me, this works and you do not end up on the side of the road facing the wrong direction.
7. Do not think that if you are in a big pick-up truck with four-wheel drive and the bed weighted down that you are immune to hazardous road conditions. Two-thirds of the cars I saw off the highway yesterday were pick-up trucks. Yes, I counted.
8. Turn on your headlights. If it is still snowing, it makes you easier to see.
9. Take your time. Slow down. With a 70 mph speed limit, if you end up going 55 mph all the way home instead, look at the bright side - your gas mileage will be WAAAAYYYYY better than usual.
10. Use your blinker. This, like many other things on the list, will make the road safer even when there are not wintery conditions. I promise that if you have your blinker on, I will leave a safe distance for you to get out of the REALLY snowy lane into the mildly snowy lane in front of me instead of proving you have AWD as you plug away in the REALLY snowy lane drifting in and out of my lane, thus blocking me from driving the last 2 miles to work in a (wintery and snowy) timely fashion.

Muffin top

I have taken to eating breakfast in the car on the way to work. That way I can take my thyroid medicine when I wake up on an empty stomach, save time by not having breakfast at home, and get to work that extra five minutes early that allows me to get a slightly earlier shuttle. Although with the warmer weather last week, I decided I really should just walk to and from my car (~ 0.75 miles each way). And I like to cook. I went through a pancake phase, but they are hard to put syrup on and eat in the car. Now I am on a muffin kick.

My new recipe is a little heartier than the yogurt-banana muffins I have made before. Now that I have made them once, I will have to play with the recipe. I got those heart-shaped muffin foils to bring in muffins to work on Valentine's day. They work really well!

Anyway, here is the recipe from a Dannon Light & Fit yogurt. It of course called for its own vanilla yogurt, which I replaced with plain yogurt and vanilla.

1 c flour
1 c old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 c firmly packed brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 c raisins, plumped (I just threw them in)
1 c yogurt
1 large egg, slightly beaten
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 375. Mix dry ingredients and raisins. Mix yogurt, egg and oil. Add wet mixture to dry and stir until just combined. Divide to 10 muffins and back 22 - 25 minutes. The nutrition facts are approximate because I did not follow the recipe exactly, but: ~180 calories, ~4g fat, ~33g carbs, ~1g fiber, ~4g protein.

Next up, these breakfast recipes: quinoa ginger-pecan muffins and a baked oatmeal recipe I cannot seem to track a  link down for right now.

Meaning

Today, I started thinking about songs that do mean something to me and thought maybe I would share a few of those.

** And as you move on, remember me,
Remember us and all we used to be
I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile.
I've watched you sleeping for a while.
I'd be the father of your child.
I'd spend a lifetime with you.

** I never took heavy words for granted,
And I never took the undeserved advantage,
No I never took the easy way,
So why don't you take it a little easy on me now.

** I am watching your chest rise and fall
like the tides of my life,
and the rest of it all
and your bones have been my bedframe
and your flesh has been my pillow
I am waiting for sleep
to offer up the deep
with both hands

** I'll be falling all about my own thing
And I know your the heaviest weight
When your not here that's hung around my head
And your lips burn wild
Thrown from the face of a child
And in your eyes
The seeing of the greatest few
Do what you will, always
Walk where you like, your step,
Do as you please,
I'll back you up

Sing along

“When people hear good music, it makes them homesick for something they never had, and never will have.”
~Edgar Watson Howe

When I was younger, I was not nearly as easily moved as I am now. For example, I can easily get teary when I hear songs that do not actually apply to my life, because I think about how I would feel if they did. Way back when, the only song I remember getting teary to was 'Butterfly kisses', which my sister had for her Father-Daughter dance at her wedding. Now though, there are a whole slew of songs that can make me get teary. Some that I have posted before certainly work, but take the following lyrics for (additional) example(s) (some maybe need to be in the context of the whole song, but you get the point):

** Phone rang early one morning
Her momma's voice, she'd been crying
Said it's your daddy, you need to come home
This is it, I think he's dying
She laid the phone down by his head
The last words that he said
Cowgirl don't cry

** Why don't you stay
I'm up off my knees
I'm so tired of being lonely
You can't give me what I need

** Hope you let your intuition
Precede my reputation
'Cause I have one
Well I am what you see
I am not what they say
But if I turned out to be
Could you love me anyway

** Now vicariously I have her in me
I want to peel off my skin
let the water wash in
You always said that I was hiding
That I was hiding from you
But you are capable of things I could not do

And this one I was singing, loudly, on my drive home tonight. It certainly did not make me teary. :-)

I dug my key into the side of his
Pretty little souped up 4 wheel drive,
Carved my name into his leather seats
I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights,
Slashed a hole in all 4 tires
Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats.

20/40

I do not think that hindsight is 20/20. Over the past three to five years I frequently wonder whether my career path of choice is the right one for me, but am still undecided. I wonder if I had met with some sort of career planner in college if I would be on the academic career path right now. I see the benefits of what I am trying to accomplish now and also the benefits of life as a teacher (what I see in hindsight as my likely Plan B). CF was saying today that it seems as though people who are good students but not outstanding in high school become teachers and students who are good but not outstanding in college become professors.

One, I was slightly insulted; two, I think that certain people are just good at certain things and go with it.

And I often wonder if the bad times in graduate school were really worth it. I wonder why I cannot get myself to sit down on weekends and do the reading and writing I really should be doing. I wonder if I get lucky with jobs and do not push myself enough to be a successful scientist. I wonder if I have gone too far with my education and training and would have been better off with a focused masters degree and a career started earlier in my life.

But while I am sure that I would have been happy taking a different path, I am constantly reminded that had anything gone differently, I would not have met CF. I would gladly give back the hard times before him, but look forward to figuring out the hard times to come with him.

A decade

I do not remember exactly what day my grandmother died, but it ten years ago on a weekend in February around Valentine's Day and before her birthday (that she shared with my Mom). This weekend fits the bill, and it is amazing what happens in a decade.

I wrote a bit about how my grandfather has changed. Everyone's family has their thing, but I thought we already had that thing covered with my uncle, the (recovering?) alcoholic. [Recovering is a question because whenever it was that he last contacted my grandfather maybe two years ago, he claimed he had been sober for some months.] Now there is a potential court date because my grandfather has been brainwashed and accuses my mother of stealing from him and claims she is unfit as a co-trustee. He is working with his new wife's lawyer, which seems like a big ol' conflict of interest if you ask me. Lest you think I only portray one version of the story, there is lots of other information about my grandfather's wife's past that includes name changes, leaving town, coming back to town, children with no jobs living in housing my grandfather is paying for, new cars purchased, money gifted, and the list of crazy things that play into the story go on and on...

What type of woman in her later years would marry an older man who is unhealthy if they clearly give no inclination of actually taking care of him? Is it suspicious that every time my grandfather is living with said woman, he ends up in the hospital or assisted living in a short period of time for health purposes? Who thinks that they will some day go to court and defend their mother against her father? Who thinks that there are people out there who finagle their way into an old man's wallet so far that they turn that man against his own daughter?

These are, of course, rhetorical questions, because sadly I am sure this happens more than you would expect. It just makes you feel bad inside.

Sprinkles!

Snow day!

On Monday, I declared today a snow day because of the forecast...which did not turn out to be sooo bad right where I live, but I am glad that I am not commuting on snowy roads today regardless.The view out my back door was not all that snowy this morning. Only ~ 4 - 6 inches more than when I went to bed.

But when I was filling my bird feeders, I noticed a nice layer of snow got inside through that little hole. I guess it was pretty windy!

When I went to shovel out front, I discovered it had, in fact, been quite windy. There was a nice big drift down the walkway to shovel.

I have been moderately productive today, as far as work goes. I have hung out with the cat a bit (i.e. she kept my lap warm most of the morning and would complain when I had to get up to use the bathroom). She would be a mighty hunter given the chance. Look at her ears flattened so she is not seen by those unsuspecting birds on the other side of the door.

I also managed to kill time in the kitchen. Big surprise. I made some muffins I have made before, but of course did not follow the same recipe closely. I did use flax meal as an egg substitute per the suggestion on the bag of flax, and it worked quite well! I also added rhubarb because I have a lot in my freezer. Then I broke a glass pie plate when I was getting out a container in which to store the muffins. I have to remember there is glass in my trash and not gouge the palm of my hand like I did almost 10 years ago pushing trash down with broken glass in there. Then I cleaned my Britta filter, because this isn't right.

The water around here just has lots of minerals and stuff in it. Nice, huh?

And I finally used one of the gifts that CF gave me (and realized I think I lost the cover to the sugar bowl). I even have a tea light in the bottom warmer, but do not think that it is keeping the tea hot.

Off to finish up a presentation to present a paper for lab meeting on Friday and some reading and maybe even writing...Oh! I am going to use some of the chicken broth I made a couple of weeks ago for homemade chicken soup for dinner. Yum.