a little bit of everything

So... I haven't written anything for awhile. Not because my life has been particularly exciting, because it hasn't. Well, maybe a little bit.



Scones with raisins and nuts.


Chocolate cheesecake for Andrew's birthday! It got a little cracked in the middle - I think if I had taken it out of the oven 3 minutes earlier it wouldn't have cracked... next time.

Chicken Parmesan (with window ledge basil) for Andrew's birthday dinner, recipe from Food Matters by Mark Bittman. We substituted eggplant for mushrooms.


My bruise from giving blood. Pictures are of Day 2 and Day 10. I had the bruise for two weeks, just disappearing before heading east for the JCLorst wedding.

We're not very coordinated. Also, Jake is a fight instigator while Rachel just wants to love.

And then Andrew's high school friends Ross and Linnea got married last weekend, which meant Andrew stood up in the wedding and got to dress classy-like. I enjoyed it.

They really liked those suspenders. I may or may not have encouraged some suspender-action. Your call. Also, I think that's a fantastic picture of Ross (red tie).

Window ledge basil and cilantro! It's doing pretty well in its present condition. I switch between worrying about over-watering and under-watering. They get plenty of sunlight and it's been so hot lately that I've been watering them daily to make sure they don't die. If they die, I can't eat them.

This little cilantro plant didn't turn out too well... I think too much sunlight/heat. Oh well, I can put something else in that pot.


The street broke open and gushed water last week. They're still fixing it (often loudly at 7 AM). There was literally a crack in the street and a bubble of water coming out of it. I don't know how it happened, but it flowed for 24 hours before the city had someone down there. You can see in the picture where the crack is - at a downward angle away from orange vested-dude where the water is shiny.

My DJ set from DDPP last week:

Kari - expect a CD with your package. It's sitting on my counter and I just have to write a letter, burn some CDs, find a present and then mail it. Also, I really wanted to buy a Toy Story 3 padded envelope to send to you, but I thought it might look too fun and someone would steal it.

I am on book 53 for the year, which makes me within sight of my 6o books goal. My last ten books have been Codex, Lev Grossman (Not as good as The Magicians - skip Codex); Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Barbara Kingsolver (seasonal recipes!); Buying In, Rob Walker; God in the White House, Randall "what I like to call ..." Balmer; Pearl of China, Anchee Min (very good! couldn't get into her Madame Mao book though); Picking Bones From Ash, Marie Mutsuki Mockett (recommend it); Sherlock Holmes and the Red Demon, Larry Millett (Holmes in Minnesota - yes!); The Happiness Project, Gretchen Rubin (enjoyed it); Black is the New White, Paul Mooney (really funny. I want to see more of his stand-up now); Where Men Win Glory, Jon Krakauer (about Pat Tillman's life, death and ensuing military cover up).

Ok. I have to go buy some QTips. I ran out on Saturday and it's hard for me to do without them. They're one of the things I'd bring to a deserted island. Yesterday it was difficult for me to shower and then not QTip my ears. I can't go on like this much longer.

Bacher out.

from the children

"My grandma treats Mommy like a child!"

"Oh really?"

"Yeah!"

"Who told you that?"

"Uh...."

Last day at the daycare today.

some stuff

Hehe, we got married.

My windowsill basil tastes and smells delicious. Mmmmmmmm. After I touch it, my hands still smell like basil.

we dance

We don’t have ideology; we don’t have theology; we dance.
-Shinto monk to Joseph Campbell

registry guilt

Well, the Bellin Run this weekend happened as planned. I did not run as planned because apparently, my plans were off. Thank you, Nike+. That 6.5 mile run I did last week? 6 miles. Nike+ tracked my 10k at 7.6 miles. So my expectation of running a 10:30 pace? Based on inaccurate numbers. It just meant I had to readjust my expectations. I ran faster than I did last year by 2 minutes, but I still felt I could have done better. I think it's hard to do well when you're standing around for at least 45 minutes before your wave starts. Maybe I'd do better on another 10k.

Andrew and I are getting things ready for our wedding this weekend and the party in August. We had some extra time today before going to a work picnic, so we went to Target and started of thinking of things we'd like on the registry. There's somethings we know for sure (box set of Indiana Jones movies, magnetic knife stripe), but we (especially Andrew) feel conflicted about asking for a bunch of stuff. We already live together and have collected things like dishes, pots and pans, etc. We could register for nicer things, but as a whole, we have no real issue with the things we have. It seems wasteful to register for things we don't really need or would simply like to have because we have the option of having them. I'm surviving perfectly fine without an egg plate so far.

However, people like to bring gifts to weddings and we want to help people celebrate their excitement with us. People coming to the small wedding this weekend have already asked about what they can bring - both in terms of gifts as well as food.

I don't know. My non-materialistic side is brushing up against the idea of going into Target and pointing at stuff I want. Any suggestions for managing feelings of registry guilt?



EDIT:
Of course. As soon as I write out my registry guilt, I head over to A Practical Wedding and Meg offers her lovely, often incredibly useful, advice:

The registry is not about the wedding, the registry is about the marriage. For us, we hope that means a long life with a passel of kids, a ton of family gatherings, and lots of cooking. So for us, that’s what a registry is about – letting our friends and loved ones build that home for us. The registry is like a barn raising.

photos and the like

View from the living room window looking towards downtown. If you stand on the street, you've got a great view of downtown.

Living room.

Kitchen, showing my favorite part of the apartment - the step up. Also the massive counterspace.

Living room from the entryway.

Bookcase next to the bathroom. YDS diploma.

Also - running the Bellin this Saturday. If last Saturday was anything like this Saturday, I'll be doing just fine.

eh. this is happening in my life.

Getting married in 10 days. FYI.

New apartment. Pictures soon.

Winding down a year with the MRC. Hazy future, but not too worried yet.