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Wednesday, June 04, 2008
little updates and miscellanea
Still not the big post. I really, really thought about sitting here and fleshing out my notes and coming up with an articulate post about something that really matters to me, but that felt too much like school and darnit, I'm on vacation. So it's snippety updates instead. For now.
The garden is going like gangbusters (that is, if gangbusters go in a green, thriving, and surprisingly not-dead manner). We had our first little mini-harvest from it this weekend, when we ate spinach on our hamburgers, which is surprisingly good. There's more spinach ready (begging) to be picked but there's not enough to freeze and I don't have lettuce on hand to make a salad and we've never been cooked-spinach-as-a-side-dish people, although we may have to start or else the spinach will rot on the plants and that would be a shame. The only puzzling thing about the garden (other than the fact that I have personally touched, breathed on, and handled every plant in it and yet none have died) is that I'm getting these little mounds, like gopher mounds but with no holes and no plant damage, here and there in the garden. Do toads do this? We've recently transplanted some toads to the garden to help keep the eeeevil grasshoppers at bay. I will have to research this.
Hey, remember that couch-to-5K thing? I'm pretty much still on the couch. Well, on the computer chair, anyway. The fact is, I did it twice, on a Friday and a Sunday when T was home to ride herd on the kids, and then what with him working and all of our evening commitments, I couldn't find a way (barring getting up with T at 4:30: not happening) to squeeze in the third weekly workout. Now, however, we only have one weeknight commitment per week, and I am determined to start afresh (oh, this is killing me: what Austen adaptation is that from? or am I delusional? it would kind of defeat the purpose here if I were to sit and watch all of them this afternoon). So last night I stayed up until 2 AM making the obviously very necessary iTunes playlists for the first week. See, the thing about C25K is that you start out doing 60 seconds of running and then 90 seconds of walking, repeated for 20 minutes, which means that you either:
- a) fumble with the buttons on your daughter's watch trying to make the timer function work, something that's increasingly hard to do as my eyes get older buttons and labels and stuff keep getting smaller
- b) clip your kitchen timer to your shorts, which also entails much fumbling and also possible battery loss
- c) hire a trainer or your former PE teacher to run alongside you with a watch and a whistle -- too expensive, not to mention, hello, embarrassing, but really, we didn't know how lucky we were, being forced to do PE for free every day, did we? or
- d) spend a huge amount of time creating 90- or 60-second snippets of appropriately-paced songs and compiling them into a playlist that will not only motivate you to run EVERY SINGLE DAY but also magically melt fat off your thighs while you just sit there and listen to them.
The choice is obvious, no? (Actually, for the walking portions for the first week I used Librivox recordings, except that then I realized that I would have to make three daily playlists instead of one weekly one, unless I wanted to listen to the same story every day. Oops.)
I don't think I ever posted about the end of school. It ended. The end. OK, OK, seriously, I really enjoyed both my classes this semester, and my grades were good (easy when you're taking six units! I'm telling you, people, this is the way to go!). However, I don't see how I'm going to make it through next semester, when my two classes are both online to save on gas (and because there's nothing offered locally that will do me any good), so I'll only have one classroom meeting per month, and both of the classes sound a little... boring. Especially Principles of Interpersonal Communication. The description sounds like it'll involve a whole bunch of I-statements-instead-of-you-statements kind of stuff. I wanted to take Fundamentals of Speech for that requirement instead, because for all my talkativeness I really get nervous when it's time to do any public speaking and I could use the practice, but that class meets every week, and every trip to the main campus costs $40 at current gas prices. I just couldn't bring myself to do it.
Also, good news: T finally got the promotion he's deserved for the past seven years, so that he is now actually being paid for the job he does (I know, what a novel concept!). Not that we get to go have a fun time with that money, or, you know, pay extra on our mortgage or buy yarn or anything, since it will juuuust allow us enough breathing room to be able to pay our gas bill if we're very careful and maybe put a tiny bit in savings. It's definitely a welcome help, though.
In all other areas of life, there's nothing new to report, really. I mean, there's little stuff, like how I managed to spill a pint of very messy, sticky stir-fry sauce all over the counter while I was cooking dinner the other night, or how I mistakenly poured a quart or so of nasty used deep-frying oil into the quarter-full (big) container of new, clean oil instead of into the OLD OIL container kept below the sink -- a mistake I didn't discover until I went to stir-fry the abovementioned dinner -- or how Scout got our hopes all up by not barking/growling at T once all last weekend, but then apparently once more mistook him for an intruder with Evil Intentions when he came home from work on Monday. Or -- ooh -- how I actually finished two knitting projects last week. Two! Finished! Knitting! Including [fanfare] THE ELEPHANT!
But that's all. Really.
Comments
But at least you DIDN'T leave out an entire 5lb bag of shredded cheese all night. =( (that is at least 6 weeks worth of cheese) sigh. I am really upset about that.
Posted by: debi at June 4, 2008 02:03 PM
I forgot to say congratulations on the elephant!! what other project did you finish?
Posted by: debi at June 4, 2008 02:57 PM
Rachel, a really great way to eat spinach is straight from the plant. My son does this. Also..in sandwiches, or cooked with a tad of butter and some crushed garlic. Yummy stuff! Congrats on the first harvest. Radishes grow really fast too..if you like those.
Posted by: debbie at June 4, 2008 10:04 PM
One good way to cook spinach is to stir-fry it a little in oil, with garlic and maybe pepper and salt. Also mushrooms if you like them and tomatoes, fresh or sundried. Maybe some bell pepper, thinly sliced. And / or olives. They you toss it all with cooked pasta and more oil (olive, preferably, but I don't know how food prices are affecting that), garlic, more pepper, and a little salt. Or you could have the spinach with other stir-fried veggies. Don't overcook it.
Also, is it just me or is it a bit weird that they're giving a course called "Principles of Interpersonal Communication" on the Internet?
Posted by: Paula at June 5, 2008 03:53 AM
I was going to say the same thing as Paula, about it being weird to have that class on the internet. It does sound a little ... boring ... but at least it's much cheaper, with the price of gas.
It irritates me that we have to think of "how much gas does this cost me?" Grrr.
Posted by: mary at June 5, 2008 11:12 AM
I am so happy for you all in regards to T's raise. He really does deserve it. What a relief!
Oh and I'm feeling very ignored by you. I'm in a great huff and tiffy because you haven't been by to visit me at all. I know you've given up on Myspace, but I'm still blogging there...Lots of new stuff.
Posted by: jennifer at June 7, 2008 01:26 PM
YAY T!!! That's awesome. Congratulations. :)
I am sure you remembered this by now, but it is my pleasure to remind you that it is Maria in P&P who is "determined to start afresh" after Lady Catherine instructs her on the best way to place gowns.
I think it's been a year or so since I watched P&P! Too long.
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