1. I'm a Texan. I haven't lived in Texas for seven years, but it runs so deeply in my veins that I just can't be anything else. I still have a Texas drivers license. When I was in Japan and people asked me where I was from, I said Texas, and then the US when I got their blank looks. Hearing cicadas in the evening takes me almost physically back to hot Texas summers and sweet iced tea and playing in the creek at my Grandparents ranch. It turns out it's true, you can take the girl out of Texas, but you can't take Texas out of the girl. My buddy has really been enjoying all the country music I've been playing lately. Not.
2. There is a turkey living at one of the intersections in Lake Bluff IL, where the shuttle drives on it's way to work from the train station. A live turkey. It has been on one street corner all summer, oblivious to the traffic, and the noise, and all the traffic accidents he has caused. We on the shuttle call him Butter Ball, but the town of Lake Bluff voted to name him Fred. Fred? What?!? Where is the imagination? Butter Ball isn't even that good, way too obvious. Tom is subtle, Flapper would be original, and that's just what I came up with in the last 30 seconds. Still, Fred is alive and well and has his own face book page.
3. I recently realized that if I look out the window on the train to and from work, there are several places where I can see the lake, and that it is beautiful. I've been riding the train for almost a year, but literally last week was the first time that I picked my head up out of my book long enough to check out the scenery. And it was beautiful.
4. I made oreo bon bons yesterday. They are sinfull. And delicious.
5. My apartment is clean. Like clean. It's what we did yesterday. Now Collette is rubbing on the carpet, recovering it with fur. Thanks Collette.
This has been random bits, brought to you by the morning rain, the letter R, the number 3, and all the things I've thought to say this week but was too busy/tired to blog about. Now I'm going to go buy a new filter for my vacuum. Wild! : )
-CMT
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Half marathon
This morning I ran a half marathon, averaging 9.20 min/mile. The best part was not falling this week. It rained miles 3-8, but my iPhone was in a plastic bag, so that was ok. I feel ok so far. . .
My buddy moved in with me yesterday. We have a lot of stuff, and it is going to be interesting combining it all into a single apartment. But it is also very exciting. The apartment is a complete disaster, and the cats are going crazy with all the new things to jump on. Here are some pictures of Lucy and Celeste playing on the sofa. Lucy is the little one acting crazy under the cushion. Celeste is the larger, stately on who can't be bothered to move away, even though she knows she is about to be attacked.
Celeste and Collette are very cute together, they sleep together a lot. It's hard to get pictures of Collette because she spends most of her time hiding still, but when she chooses to hang out with the rest of us, she is a very cute addition.
I've picked all kinds of fun new recipes for this week. Stay tuned. . . : )
-CMT
My buddy moved in with me yesterday. We have a lot of stuff, and it is going to be interesting combining it all into a single apartment. But it is also very exciting. The apartment is a complete disaster, and the cats are going crazy with all the new things to jump on. Here are some pictures of Lucy and Celeste playing on the sofa. Lucy is the little one acting crazy under the cushion. Celeste is the larger, stately on who can't be bothered to move away, even though she knows she is about to be attacked.
Celeste and Collette are very cute together, they sleep together a lot. It's hard to get pictures of Collette because she spends most of her time hiding still, but when she chooses to hang out with the rest of us, she is a very cute addition.
I've picked all kinds of fun new recipes for this week. Stay tuned. . . : )
-CMT
Friday, July 23, 2010
Fiesta!
It's been so long since I had five minutes to sit down.
Last weekend was a 12 mile run. It went incredibly smoothly. I had a Garmin heart monitor that my mom is lending me, and it was AMAZING. It told me my heart rate, the pace I was running, how long and how far I had run. Everything I wanted to know, right there on my wrist. The only hiccup came around mile 7.5, when I tripped on an uneven part of the sidewalk and tumbled little-kid style head over heals, scratching up my palm pretty bad and breaking my plastic water bottle in the process. I had to finish the run with my palm bleeding and no water. But I still averaged a 10 min mile! I've been good about my runs this week, which is impressive mostly because I've been averaging 6 hours of sleep and an hour a night helping my buddy move. My apartment is in a state for which there are no words. . . This weekend we will be doing nothing but cleaning, and then we will have two people to keep it clean, which might, in theory, result in a clean apartment most of the time. That is if that cats cooperate.
So what do you do after a 12 mile run? You have a Fiesta! Calories obviously don't count after that kind of body punishing experience, so I made a giant plate of this:
And they were the best nachos I've ever had in my life. : )
Hopefully I'll be back to posting more now that life is a little less hectic.
-CMT
Last weekend was a 12 mile run. It went incredibly smoothly. I had a Garmin heart monitor that my mom is lending me, and it was AMAZING. It told me my heart rate, the pace I was running, how long and how far I had run. Everything I wanted to know, right there on my wrist. The only hiccup came around mile 7.5, when I tripped on an uneven part of the sidewalk and tumbled little-kid style head over heals, scratching up my palm pretty bad and breaking my plastic water bottle in the process. I had to finish the run with my palm bleeding and no water. But I still averaged a 10 min mile! I've been good about my runs this week, which is impressive mostly because I've been averaging 6 hours of sleep and an hour a night helping my buddy move. My apartment is in a state for which there are no words. . . This weekend we will be doing nothing but cleaning, and then we will have two people to keep it clean, which might, in theory, result in a clean apartment most of the time. That is if that cats cooperate.
So what do you do after a 12 mile run? You have a Fiesta! Calories obviously don't count after that kind of body punishing experience, so I made a giant plate of this:
And they were the best nachos I've ever had in my life. : )Hopefully I'll be back to posting more now that life is a little less hectic.
-CMT
Old things
I love old things. I'd say that is a consistent thread in my life, but right now I'm applying it to this book:
It's Heloise All around the house. This edition was printed in 1965, and I'd like to share a small excerpt from the introduction. "Let's tackle the problems with gusto, but let our daily moods (rather than the day of the week) dictate what task to do at a given time. Who says you have to wash on Monday, iron on Tuesday, deep-clean on Wednesday. . . ect., ect.?"
First, take a deep breath and stop laughing. Then, think back to the time when this was the conventional wisdom passed from mother to daughter. It wasn't that long ago. My Grandma's would have learned this as the expected way to act to maintain a proper household. My mom certainly kept a clean house, but I never got the sense that it was a craft, merely something you do to keep things under control. Without an entire society to pressure me into knowing what deep cleaning is, little else that I'm supposed to do it because it was a Wednesday, my poor mom raised a daughter who often as not tries to cajole her boyfriend into unloading the dishwasher so I won't have to. I love this book, and will continue to post sections that catch my attention or make me laugh. Today's piece of advice - If an alarm clock doesn't wake you up, set it on a metal pie pan.
-CMT
It's Heloise All around the house. This edition was printed in 1965, and I'd like to share a small excerpt from the introduction. "Let's tackle the problems with gusto, but let our daily moods (rather than the day of the week) dictate what task to do at a given time. Who says you have to wash on Monday, iron on Tuesday, deep-clean on Wednesday. . . ect., ect.?"First, take a deep breath and stop laughing. Then, think back to the time when this was the conventional wisdom passed from mother to daughter. It wasn't that long ago. My Grandma's would have learned this as the expected way to act to maintain a proper household. My mom certainly kept a clean house, but I never got the sense that it was a craft, merely something you do to keep things under control. Without an entire society to pressure me into knowing what deep cleaning is, little else that I'm supposed to do it because it was a Wednesday, my poor mom raised a daughter who often as not tries to cajole her boyfriend into unloading the dishwasher so I won't have to. I love this book, and will continue to post sections that catch my attention or make me laugh. Today's piece of advice - If an alarm clock doesn't wake you up, set it on a metal pie pan.
-CMT
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Oh My
On re-reading my last post, I've decided to stop watching cooking shows. Bright note? Was I channeling Rachel Ray?
On another note, I wish I had dimples.
On another note, it's hard to not trip over cats in the morning.
On another note, I like Futurama and Family Guy, both and equally. Well, equally right now.
Tomorrow's Friday!
-CMT
On another note, I wish I had dimples.
On another note, it's hard to not trip over cats in the morning.
On another note, I like Futurama and Family Guy, both and equally. Well, equally right now.
Tomorrow's Friday!
-CMT
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
I am a fan. . .
. . . of chopped fresh herbs in salad. I don't know where I picked it up , probably on one of the cooking shows that I watch continuously. I love basil and cilantro equally, depending on my mood. Tonight I was in the mood for basil. Herbs just add such a unique bright note to salads. If you haven't tried it, try it tonight, it will change your view of salad forever. This is what mine looked like. . .
Now obviously I didn't just make salad for dinner. I also had a delicious pesto pita pizza. These pitas freeze well, and are always ready for a quick pizza meal. I used leftover chicken to add some protein, but really the pesto base and mozzarella cheese were the stars. Yum!
-CMT
Now obviously I didn't just make salad for dinner. I also had a delicious pesto pita pizza. These pitas freeze well, and are always ready for a quick pizza meal. I used leftover chicken to add some protein, but really the pesto base and mozzarella cheese were the stars. Yum!
-CMT
Monday, July 19, 2010
The Cast of Characters
This is Lucy:
She is my baby, my first cat. When she was younger, I used to do things like this to her.
She is also crazy. She gets scared when I sneeze, and when she hears silverware rattle together. She chirps constantly, is always on my lap, and is always trying to lick me. She greets me right at the door every time I come home, and is always happy to see me. She was raised by humans from the day she was born, which has pretty much convinced her that she is a human.
This is Celeste. She is giant, fluffy, and possibly the softest animal I have ever felt. She has mastered the art of relaxation, you can be sure that where ever she is laying is the softest place in the house. When you pick her up, she immediately stretches all her legs out and goes limp. I've known her for about 5 years, she was the first cat I ever spent a lot of time around. She is also crazy. Celeste sees ghosts. She will randomly stare around her making chirping noises, and then run around the house at random for no apparent reason. She also can't get up on the bed without struggling and clawing the last few inches. She is possibly the least athletic cat in the history of cats. She and Lucy do look similar, Celeste is much larger, and has green eyes to Lucy's gold.
Then there's Collette. She has beautiful markings. She is also the definition of "scardy cat". She is always tense, always wary, never quite relaxed. Even when she sleeps she has one eye open. Collette does everything on her own terms. She wants to be pet, but only when she comes over to rub her face on you. She wants to be brushed, but only as long as she is in the mood. She wants to play, but only with some toys and when she wants to. But when she plays, she is hands down the most acrobatic cat I've ever seen. She can do a full flip in the air while catching a pretend mouse. I spent the first 3 years of knowing her staying away from her and her sharp, unpredictable claws. Now that I understand her we're friends. But I'm still happy to do things on her terms.
These are the characters in my house, leaving their fur all over everything.
-CMT
She is my baby, my first cat. When she was younger, I used to do things like this to her.
She is also crazy. She gets scared when I sneeze, and when she hears silverware rattle together. She chirps constantly, is always on my lap, and is always trying to lick me. She greets me right at the door every time I come home, and is always happy to see me. She was raised by humans from the day she was born, which has pretty much convinced her that she is a human.
This is Celeste. She is giant, fluffy, and possibly the softest animal I have ever felt. She has mastered the art of relaxation, you can be sure that where ever she is laying is the softest place in the house. When you pick her up, she immediately stretches all her legs out and goes limp. I've known her for about 5 years, she was the first cat I ever spent a lot of time around. She is also crazy. Celeste sees ghosts. She will randomly stare around her making chirping noises, and then run around the house at random for no apparent reason. She also can't get up on the bed without struggling and clawing the last few inches. She is possibly the least athletic cat in the history of cats. She and Lucy do look similar, Celeste is much larger, and has green eyes to Lucy's gold.
Then there's Collette. She has beautiful markings. She is also the definition of "scardy cat". She is always tense, always wary, never quite relaxed. Even when she sleeps she has one eye open. Collette does everything on her own terms. She wants to be pet, but only when she comes over to rub her face on you. She wants to be brushed, but only as long as she is in the mood. She wants to play, but only with some toys and when she wants to. But when she plays, she is hands down the most acrobatic cat I've ever seen. She can do a full flip in the air while catching a pretend mouse. I spent the first 3 years of knowing her staying away from her and her sharp, unpredictable claws. Now that I understand her we're friends. But I'm still happy to do things on her terms.
These are the characters in my house, leaving their fur all over everything.-CMT
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