So I do a lot of blog reading during the day and am constantly amazed at the lack of what I consider general knowledge. And when these bloggers reveal these amazing truths that everyone has already known about for years, they get a stream of praise and “OMG! I totally didn’t know that. You are a genius!” I’m baffled and a bit disgusted at how many people are so slow to hear about something so mainstream, and then I wonder maybe if I’m being a bit too harsh.
Like just hearing about bad-for-you chemicals in just about every product you put on your body, or how using plastic bags is bad for the environment or how many weird things are in prepackaged food and how it’s just better (and easy) to make it yourself. Seriously? Are you people living under a rock or just illiterate? This is not news! You are not some pioneer in healthy living, you are late to party that has been rocking for years.
But maybe I’m wrong. Maybe not everyone watches tv or reads or keeps up with current events. I dunno, sometimes I think people are retarded and slow, but maybe I’m just being stuck up because I know so much more than the common person.
I’m lucky enough to not have to work and so I have lots of time to learn new things all the time. And I know not everyone has time to keep up with all the things going on. So am I too harsh with people or are they really just slow?
I don’t really care, I just needed to vent. :)
Today is my husband’s birthday! He’s 25 today! We started our celebration on Friday with some of his school friends. Saturday I baked him a cake and we ate it last night with our D&D friends. Tonight we’ll be going out to dinner just the two of us and he’ll be getting his presents.
I love birthdays!
Someone bowed to me today. I was out alone, buying Richard’s birthday present, wearing what I usually wear: a dress, boots, scarf and a jacket. I got whistled at, thanked for bringing the sunshine, told to shake it, not stir it and bowed to. Not more than 2 years ago this would have been an every day thing for me, handled with a gracious smile and an extra sway to my hips as a parting gift.
Ever since I’ve been married though, I’m never without Richard when I go out. And thus, no cat calls or anything of that sort. I never noticed the lack of it until today. I was unprepared; it flustered me. It wasn’t until I was safe at home that I could bask in the knowledge that I still have “it.” Though it was a pleasant reminder of my inherent sex appeal, I’ll stick with my husband on outings if I can help it. After all, I’m a lady. ::snerk::
It worked! It worked perfectly. 1 part borax, 1 part baking soda and 1 part water. I mixed it up and put it into our just emptied liquid dishwasher soap container. Shake before using and use about 2 tablespoons. For me, that’s just enough to fill the soap compartment in our dishwasher.
I’m so excited that it worked! It’s so easy and cheap to make. You can be a bit extravagant and add some lemon essential oil if you want, but I don’t really care what my dishes smell like so long as they’re clean. I’ve read about some people having problems with a cloudy film on their glasses and that has to do with water temperature. Luckily we have a hot start option so we’re good.
Oh, and that pizza we made last night?
Sooo good!
Homemade crust, homemade sauce, onions, bell peppers, chicken, olives on my bit, and lots of cheese. It was a little small, making only 4 pieces, but 1 was enough to satisfy me. Richard ate both of his pieces. :) It was the first time for Richard to make and enjoy a homemade pizza and he loved it. I grew up making them, but this was the first time for me to make one as an adult. A special meal indeed. :)
I’m finally a Washintonian! Is that the right word? Whatever.
Richard and I went to the licensing place a few days ago and I just got my ID card in the mail today! I’m also a donor and will be registered to vote soon. Not that I’ll ever vote. I’ll leave that to the people who know what they’re talking about and care.
But yeah! I can officially say I live here now. I’m glad I went with Richard too, because otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to prove that I live here. We had to use his proof and our marriage certificate to prove that I live here too. But the people working there were super nice and very helpful.
Other than that, nothing really exciting has been going on. I did, however, just make some homemade dishwasher soap so we’ll see how that works tonight after dinner. Which will be homemade pizza. So yum.
Whether it’s a stranger from Craigslist who’s supposed to come pick something up, or even a friend who blows you off. It happens over and over and I’m sick of it. Now I understand that people are busy and things come up, but when it becomes a habit, I stop being so understanding.
I have a new rule now. You get two chances. After that, I’m done with you. I don’t know what it is about Seattle that makes people this way, but I’m not going to take it. I love it here, and I’d really hate to have to move away in order to make friends and have a decent social life. Two chances people! That’s it.
So I used my cast iron skillet again last night. I had to. I made burgers. With homemade buns of course. Gotta love that bucket of bread dough.
Anyways. The burgers. They were huge! They must have been a good half pound each and cooked up beautifully in my new skillet. When it came time to assemble we ran into a little problem. I had no idea how we were going to eat them. Even if I hadn’t put any toppings on, they still would have been to big to fit into my mouth. But I did put toppings on. Because I love a challenge.
Monster Burger
I’m just lucky we didn’t have any lettuce or tomatoes. I took 1 bite into it (the bun mostly) and knew it would be impossible. My plate was covered in grease and ketchup so I asked Richard for a new one. And a knife. The plan was to cut that sucker in half, but it would have none of it. The burger fell apart and the bun refused to separate. By the time I got that damn thing cut all the way through, it was a mess. I wanted to cry. But I was hungry. One half remained mostly intact so I ate that first. I was full by the end of it, but I couldn’t let it get the better of me. I finished the whole burger. There were some bun bits left, but they were simply casualties of my burger war. I came out covered in grease and condiments, ready for a nap, and most of all, victorious.
I also made sweet potato fries, which were delicious as well.
I’ve always known the goodness that is cast iron cookware having grown up with it. But I was never allowed to actually cook with it lest I mess it up. But now that I am the proud owner of my own skillet, I can reap my own cast irony rewards! And tonight, that’s what I did.
I didn’t have to use it tonight. But I couldn’t let a new toy go unplayed with. I made a soup for dinner tonight; one of those “put what you have in” soups. Mirepoix, white beans, garlic, pork, parsley and basil. I used my cast iron skillet to brown the pork and get the veggies started before I dumped them into the soup. And it was wonderful! The skillet came pre-seasoned and for once, they weren’t lying. It worked just the way it was supposed to. Nothing stuck.
And of course I had to use my silicone baking mat too. I grabbed a chunk out of my bread bucket and baked it up for dinner. And it didn’t stick either! Fantastic! Soup, fresh bread and Julie and Julia. A perfect evening.
If you haven’t heard of Swagbucks, you may want to look them up. It’s a search engine that goes on your toolbar. The more you use it, the more swagbucks you get. You can then trade those swagbucks for real things. I saved some up and got 2 $20 e-gift cards to Target. I got myself a cast iron skillet and a silicone baking mat. And all I had to pay was 46 cents! It’s been a week and I finally have my stuff!
Both are things we needed, and to get them for free is just the greatest thing ever. I love free stuff!
I had started knitting a cardigan about a year and a half ago. And I just finished it. The main pieces knit up easily enough with the sleeves being a bit boring. I finished the main pieces and one sleeve within a few weeks and then we moved. Several months later I knit the other sleeve and attached the front to the back. I was really excited to be so close to done. All I needed to do is knit the ruffles and attach the sleeves. So I immediately started on the ruffle. It suuuuucked!
It was hard enough to pick up 133 stitches evenly over a course of around 150 stitches and then to do all of the yarn overs and weird crap for 9 rows? Fuhgetaboutit. I got fed up pretty quickly and only wound up doing 4 rows. On only half of it. I left the other half bare and the sleeves off for a good year. I busied myself with other projects but always saw the yarn for the sweater. Calling to me. Begging to be made into something quick and warm. Like hand warmers. But I couldn’t use it. Not until I had finished the sweater, lest I use too much and have a sweater I couldn’t finish. And I had worked too damn hard on that sweater to leave it unfinished.
It wasn’t until this past weekend that I decided to finally finish it. The holidays were over and my knitting demands are now over. Until April rolls around at least. I have a baby blanket to finish by then. So I vowed to finish this damned cardigan once and for all and to finish it fast so that I could get back to the blanket.
And I did. :)
Finished!
I must admit that I’m super proud of myself for this. I have never made a garment before and this is thus, my first foray into seaming. And it’s gorgeous. Unfortunately, due to massive amounts of tasty, calorie laden food this holiday season, it no longer fits me. Ah well. I plan on losing the weight, and if all else fails, I can sell it!
Also, pecan milk is way easier and tastier to make than rice milk. But sadly, not nearly as cheap. Oh and chalk? Can’t be done. At least not with what I have at home. Oh well.
I'm a house wife in Seattle who's world inside her head is much more preferable than the one outside her window.