Saturday, June 30

Less hair, and lots of hair

It's not very often that I can say on one night that I'm going to do something, and then be able to tell you, on the very next night, that I've done them. So, here it goes ...
Haircut: CHECK!! Hey, did y'all ever hear about Great Clips? They, like, sit you down, spray your hair with water, and then cut it, for only $13. No shampoo. No blow-drying. Just water, cut and leave. I didn't want any color; it was raining, so I didn't want any nifty blow-dry; and I wanted to wash and dry it myself anyway. Win, win, win. Why do I feel like it's okay to cheat on Malia with some other hair stylist just because the "other stylist" didn't touch my head or my color, or because it was so inexpensive?
Book: CHECK!! I've started on The Wolf Gift, and I'm 136 pages into it. It's pretty awesome, and I'm enjoying the fact that I'm enjoying an Anne rice book again. In fact, once I'm done here, and chatted with Mom, I'll be diving back into the tome. Who knows when I'll get to sleep tonight.
You see? I've accomplished everything I had intended to this weekend in one day! I can totally take tomorrow off! Not really. I'll probably finish my book tomorrow, which is very exciting, and I'd still like to venture over to Ulta for some pretty hair decorative pieces.
Also, I'm considering my Ding Dong and strawberry dessert for this evening, as well.

Friday, June 29

Friday night fantasticness

ITEM!: I'm going to get my hairs cut this weekend. I'm so over this long hair, and the long hairs all over my house. I wish I was one of those women who enjoyed having their hair down all the time, but I'm not. I'd like to take the time to style the hair every morning, too, but I don't. I took the time to grow out this mass of hair that's really too thin to be this long, but I don't care. I'll be salon hopping tomorrow, looking for somewhere that will take me without an appointment, and will happily cut about eight inches from my hair's length. Also, I may be heading over to Ulta, looking for some product to put in my hair every morning to help with the fly-away hairs. Not any anti-frizz stuff, because my hair clearly rejects such things, but something that'll just calm the shit down, you know?
ITEM!: Brian and I are getting really tired of not seeing movies lately. I think I'll send him to see Ted by himself this weekend, since it looks super funny. Me? I'd like to see Magic Mike. Or Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Or Moonrise Kingdom. Or People Like Us. Or Rock of Ages. I have such a list. I need that kid back in summer camp so I can get on this.
ITEM!: I'm going to start reading The Wolf Gift, by Anne Rice, tomorrow. I'm actually pretty excited to dig into it. I haven't read any of her stuff in several years, because with her going all Catholic and only writing about God and angels, I lost every bit of interest in reading her books. She has since renounced her faith in Catholicism, and is again writing interesting books. Because I loved her all those years ago, I'm giving her a shot of making me love her books again, too.
ITEM!: I totally gave up on my puzzle. And I don't feel guilty, either. I boxed up all the loose pieces that were laid out on the table, but separated all the put-together pieces into chunks and laid them in the box atop the loose pieces. So, for when I have more time, patience and desire for the puzzle, all my work these weeks won't be for naught. My dining room table is my own again. Best part: no one else in my house has noticed, so I haven't had to admit my failure to finish.
ITEM!: I had a Ding Dong and strawberries for dessert. It was almost fancy, like something a person could get at The Cheesecake Factory, or Off Vine.

Thursday, June 28

Houston Astros baseball!!

You want to know something that's frustrating?
Explaining baseball to a five-year-old.
I do my best, you know, with having the patience for this conversation. And at the beginning of the game, she does a pretty good job of keeping up. But once we get into the middle to later innings of the game, it gets painful discussing ... again ... where the home runs are, and why foul balls don't count, and when does "our" team get to hit again. I try so hard. But come the seventh inning, I was done. "Why don't you just lay back against me and just watch?"
At any rate, we left during the eighth inning when the Astros were winning, but by the time we were home, the Astros had lost to the Padres after a grand slam in the ninth inning. I'm glad we left early. The kid would have been very unhappy if our team lost.

Wednesday, June 27

So, it's "X-Men" ... again

There is something to be said for no good television on every night. However, it also tends to make the evenings a bit boring. I can read, sure. But I've powered through three books in 10 days, and I'm ready to take a little break. I get bored with the stuff online, too. And now, with the lack of movies (STILL), I don't have as much other stuff to watch. I miss my TV, and it'll be a while until it's on. All I can do is wait anxiously for the Olympics, because that is the beginning of the TV days again. Also, awesomely, it is the Olympics.

On a repeat of Modern Family tonight, the characters dealt directly and indirectly with a family that had lost all their possessions in a fire. That scenario began a conversation between Brian and I in regards to what we would grab, if it could be only one thing (Sydney, Oliver, Daisy and he or I are already safe outside) what it would be. I spent some time considering, and I think it would be my computer. It has all the photos of the last six years on it. It's all knowing, and would be the most important instrument to getting our lives back together. Everything else can be replaced: it's paper, or electronics, or the like. Brian decided on grabbing his wallet, since we'd need some form of paying for things. This also led me to realize that we don't have a Fire Plan. TASK FOR FRIDAY.

Tuesday, June 26

I wanna talk to somebody ...

ITEM!: I'm having issues with my phone ... again. For some reason, it's muting me when I'm talking to people, where I can hear them, but they can't hear me. It is ... inconvenient. I made a call to AT&T this evening, and they'll be checking my phone records and usages for any problems via their service. I don't think it's them though, as this muting issue happened tonight while I tried to talk with Andrea, who, I think, is on Verizon. The big fear in the house though is that it's the phone. Brian has already told me that he won't buy me a new phone if this one isn't working properly. (He's so MEAN!) But I suspect that this will be his issue only until the first day that I don't have a working phone and am out and about with his daughter and he can't contact me. AT&T will call me back on Thursday to let me know the results of their investigation.
ITEM!: I made chocolate, chocolate chip muffins tonight to accompany our dinner. They're pretty good, I think, but I may have to have another one before bed tonight to be sure.
ITEM!: Going to the aquarium today was a spectacularly bad idea: there were more camp groups and people there than I care to ever deal with any day of the year, and it was hot outside, and there was only one working bathroom in the whole place. Also, I should remember to always buy the all-day pass, as no matter what, buying admission to rides and the exhibits a la carte will cost the exact same. That is a rule forever more. Sydney had a good day though, and (as is my life's philosophy these last five years) that's all that matters.
ITEM!: However, I'm falling behind in my movie watching, and this is all Sydney's fault. But, she has told me a few times over the last several days that she would like to go back to summer camp, so I may get back to watching movies during the day that aren't G or PG. It'll probably be too late to watch The Avengers a second time, but it will get me into Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, which I don't think will be as good as the book.
ITEM!: Also, and once again, the lack of movies available at my fingertips is frustrating the hell out of me.

Monday, June 25

But look, they're so fast!

Brian and I started to explain the Olympics to Sydney tonight. We managed to come across the Olympic trials on television, and took that opportunity to begin the process of preparing her for the totality of the Olympics experience in our household. This will be the first time she'll be old enough to understand what's going on, and to cheer with us for our team. We're actually pretty excited to have her involved with us. I mean, for Brian and I, the Olympics are all-encompassing. We watch it all, well, as much as we can anyway. And we're looking forward to infecting the kid with our Olympic spirit. As it was, she is convinced that she can swim faster than all those other guys.
As for her reaction, well, it was less than I had hoped for, but without having the actual Olympics happening right in front of her, I didn't expect a whole lot. I'm sure we'll be able to get her into the pomp and circumstance when the time comes, so I'm not discouraged, by any means.
Also, Mom will be here for the Opening Ceremonies, and I'm giddy about sharing it with her, too!

Friday, June 22

Love that man!

Today would have been my Gramps' 90th birthday. Because of that, I spent some time thinking about some of the things I wish for him, as he hangs out and watches us.
I'm sad that he didn't see Brian and I get married.
I'm more upset than I can ever tell you that he never had the chance to meet Sydney.
I'm glad that he didn't have to live through our losses of Howie, Auntie Donna and Grandma. I don't know if he'd have been able to handle all that.
I'm sad that he wasn't around to hug us while we dealt with all that.
I'm glad he didn't have to see how douchey and cunty my cousins became to my mom.
I'm sorry he missed out on all the newer stuff at Disneyland, and that he never saw California Adventure, and most especially that we never took him to Disney World.
I'm glad that Sydney loves vanilla so much, because it makes me think of him all the time, and it's a weird cosmic connection between them.
I wish I could be in charge of his Facebook. Also, I think he'd totally dig the blog.
I'm glad we had so much time.
I'm sorry we didn't have more time.

It's a Nook, not a Kindle

How quickly my loyalties switched.
I am now the proud owner of a Nook, reading tablet. It's the Barnes & Noble tablet, and I like it better. I spent some time at Best Buy messing around with all the tablets, and came to a conclusion quickly: I prefer the Nook. First and foremost, it doesn't display ads, which the basic Kindle does (you want no ads? Pay for the Kindle Fire, which is $100 more). Also, the pages flash a bit too much, and gave me an eye ache from the couple minutes I spent reading a sample on it. Also, the displays were less pleasing to my eye, and the menus and such were lacking.
The Nook, obviously, was the opposite of all those things, and didn't show any ads. The ads thing bothered me more than it probably should have, for the same reason, I think, that I refuse to have car-dealer advertisements on a car, but also because, really, who wants to look at ads while you're reading? The Best Buy guy said that they're along the bottom of every page of the book you're reading. That's just wrong. So, I'm rolling Nook, which I've decided is better for me anyway, given my loyalty to the Barnes & Noble.
I've downloaded a couple free books onto it already. And I've established my Nook account on the B&N website. But don't be thinking that I'm going strictly e-reader. I still have a three-piece pile of actual books to be read, and I'm just as eager to enjoy those as I am the little bits and bots in the Nook.

Thursday, June 21

Mosquitoes suck ... literally

Let's talk about mosquito bites for a moment. I spent 10 minutes outside the other day, and have 11 mosquito bites to show for it. On the up side, this did not happen in my backyard, or anywhere that I visit regularly. So, in future, this particular situation can be avoided. On the down side, I didn't realize that this would be a problem the morning this happened, thereby avoiding this particular situation.
No kidding, as I applied the calamine lotion last night, I counted the bites on my legs. Six on one leg, and five on the other. The bites messed with my nerves so much that whenever I moved my legs and my pants rubbed against them, I got the chills. Yesterday was one of the most uncomfortable days ever. Today was better, marginally, but I still would go on little scratching sprees, where I would go to town on the damn things because scratching them just felt so good. I look forward to tomorrow, when they'll feel even better. (Yes, that's my life sometimes: looking forward to the next day just so this one will be over!)

This from About.com when asked why mosquito bites itch:
Only the female mosquito feeds on blood. Though we commonly call them mosquito bites, she's not really biting you at all. The mosquito pierces the upper layer of your skin with her proboscis, a straw-like mouthpart that allows her to drink fluids. Once the proboscis breaks through the epidermis, the mosquito uses it to search for a blood vessel in the dermal layer underneath.
When she locates a vessel, the mosquito releases some of her saliva into the wound. Mosquito saliva contains an anti-coagulant that keeps your blood flowing until she is finished with her meal.
Now your immune system realizes something is going on, and histamine is produced to combat the foreign substance. The histamine reaches the area under attack, causing blood vessels there to swell. It's the action of the histamine that causes the red bump, called a wheal.
But what about the itching? When the blood vessels expand, nerves in the area become irritated by the swelling. You feel this irritation as an itchy sensation.

I won't use any actual pictures of actual mosquitoes biting people, though there are plenty online. In fact, even though this one is a cartoon image, and he looks kinda silly, I think you can see how sinister he can be, in his body language.

Wednesday, June 20

I'm anti-Muppet

It's official: I don't like the Muppets.
I didn't really think too much about it until this morning, but while I was watching The Muppets Take Manhattan with my kiddo, I realized that I've never really liked the Muppets. People love Kermit the Frog. They love Miss Piggy. I don't have those warm, fuzzy feelings about The Muppet Show, or any of the Muppet movies. I guess I've always tried to enjoy the Muppets, but I've never loved them as others do. I can think of only one piece of Muppets memorabilia I ever had, a Miss Piggy pillow that served as the sitting place on my rocking chair. Beyond that, I've got no love for anything specifically Muppet.
And this movie today was painful. Forget that it was made in the 70s or something. Forget how awful and over the top the acting was. Just the Muppet-ness of the movie was enough to have me eager for it to be over. And to finally have me reconcile with the fact that I don't like the Muppets. And I'm okay with it.

Tuesday, June 19

More reading, less deforestation

So, have I told you how much I want a Kindle? It's funny; I was such an Apple elitist about the reading tablets, until I read a couple books on my iPad, and then held Michelle's Kindle. The iPad, I must tell you, is not a comfortable device to read on. I find it too big, and too heavy, to be very conducive to reading. When I held the Kindle, I discovered that a reading device can be lighter, smaller, and more like a book than the iPad.
And the best part is that I don't want the super expensive Kindle, either. Emily just got the Kindle Fire, which is the light-up, Internet-surfing tablet. It looks cool, but is definitely heavier than the basic Kindle I want, and is bigger, as well. It's like a smaller-sized iPad, with all the same things of the iPad (as a reading device).
I'm looking at the Kindle Touch, without the 3G, as wi-fi has served me perfectly well with my iPad, and I can't imagine a scenario when I have to get a book so badly that I can't wait until I get to a hot spot to download it.
Reason why I'm still trying out the e-readers: There are so many books that I want to read and I want to try out, but I'm leery of buying them simply because, if I hate it, I don't want to have killed a bunch of trees for it. I'd hate for a rainforest to be deforested simply because I want to "maybe" read a book. In fact, I hate myself that any trees died for my copy of Fifty Shades of Grey.

Saturday, June 16

I flip for flip flops

One thing that I love about living in warm environments is the prodigious wearing of flip flops. I have, actually, worn through a couple pair in the last few years. In Arizona, of course, six months out of the year are flip flop months. We'll see as the summer progresses here how long I'll be able to wear my favorite kinds of shoes.
And I've become quite the connoisseur of flip flops, having a favorite brand, and specific likes and dislikes. I love, love, love my Reef flips. Likes include the comfortable foot beds and non-chaffing uppers (when they're not rubber). Dislikes include rubber uppers, because they give me rubbing spots and blisters after minimal wear. (In fact, I tried a pair with sparkly rubber uppers yesterday, and after a mere hour, I was feeling the raw spot on my foot. Not good.)
So, already I know I've got a couple pair to donate, and need to dig through the flip flop bin to better prepare for the summer. I have two pairs that actually have to be replaced (the aforementioned "worn through" pairs). And because of all this, I have investigated and fallen in love with the Reef website.
I'm gonna get this pair, I think. I like the polka dots.

Friday, June 15

Give me my movies back!

The UNTHINKABLE has happened! Our cable company, Dave's Cable Company, has turned off our free premium movie channels! Suddenly, all I get is HBO (the one we actually pay for).
This is, simply put, unacceptable. Someone over at Dave's needs to get their ass back on square one, where there was a glitch in the system and we got all the paid-movie channels for nothing. Because this is ridiculous. To go from, like, 50 movie channels to only seven movie channels is depressing. It's cruel and unusual punishment for this entertainment junkie.
I miss Encore. I miss Cinemax. I miss Starz. And Brian was all, "Well, we had free channels for eight months. That was awesome." I'm like, "Let's call and complain that we don't get free channels anymore!" (Mom will understand the awesomeness of that...) And Brian says, "That's dumb. They'd just go ahead and charge us retroactively for all the channels. And we don't have another $100 a month to actually pay for them all." I say, "DAMN."
I knew I was addicted and dependent on them, but I was just hoping that the yahoos would never figure it out, or that we'd have them until we moved, and then I could soothe my lack of movies with being in a nicer apartment. Now, I'm in the same place with less diversionary things around me. But still! I want my movies back!

Wednesday, June 13

Secrets kept no longer

I have a traitor in my midst. She used to be my quietest and most trusted ally. Now, she's a tattletale. Or a potential tattletale anyway.
Sydney and I ventured to the mall this morning to pick up Brian's Father's Day gift. It's nothing special, just something he needs. We made our purchase.
Sydney says to me, "Can I tell Daddy about his present?"
"No, baby, it's a surprise."
"So, I can't tell him?"
"Nope. If you tell him, it won't be a surprise."
"I'm not very good with secrets," she said. This, of course, made my heart sing because it means that she doesn't keep stuff from me, but it also means that she has become incapable of being my partner in crime.
"It's not really a secret. It's a surprise." Will this work?
"It's not good to keep a secret from Daddy." The child, obviously, has a lot to learn about boys and girls.
"Well, if you simply must tell Daddy, go ahead. I don't want you to lie to him. But if he doesn't ask you anything about our day, then you won't be keeping a secret from him, right?" Yes? Will this kind of wifely logic work with her?
"Okay. I'll try to keep it a surprise."
Brian, thankfully, rolled with my pantomimed request to not ask about our day, and now knows, without even being told, that we did some Father's Day stuff. Sydney is bursting with a need to tell him about his present. And I'm mourning the loss of doing anything with my kid and not having Brian find out about it that night. My partner/ally/compatriot is no longer to be trusted to keep her mouth shut. *sigh*

Monday, June 11

Really? This is a problem? *sigh*

I feel like I've got too many projects started, and not enough time to follow through with any of them. I'm reading a book, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies; constructing a puzzle, a 2,000-piece difficulty involving snowmen; and, always, the farming. I sit here tonight watching the Kings game with the book on the arm of the chair next to me, the computer on my lap, and the puzzle within feet of me (mocking me). Also, I'm tired, and could totally use a whole bunch of sleep tonight.
Weirdly, I feel overwhelmed by this selection of leisure-time activities. I've managed to segment my day into farm time, puzzle time and book time. Tonight, I shall dream of zombies and snowmen working on a farm, and all will be well.

Also,
Hair Non-Frizziness Experiment #2
Product: BedHead's CONTROL FREAK Serum Frizz Control and Straightener
Process: Apply evenly to damp hair.
Odd difficulties I had: If you can believe it, none.
Longevity: Oh, who knows. It's a serum that I applied to my hair. "Until next wash"?
Snap judgment: I am less frizzy, but we'll see how it handles the weather tomorrow. It could very easily become something that I use all the time, depending on how out of control the follicles get in the humidity this week.

Sunday, June 10

Also, "True Blood" was on tonight!

Awesome things about my day today:
I made Rice Krispy treats. They're in the fridge, and they're delicious.
I started a new 2,000-piece puzzle because I finally have a dining-room table big enough for it, and decent space to spread out.
Smashburger for lunch.
I finally dug some stuff out of the storage unit that I've been wanting up here.
Tomorrow is mine and Sydney's first day of summer vacation together.

Saturday, June 9

And then there were braids

Well, that hair experiment was a bit of a failure. After washing and drying my hair this morning, I found it to be of the exact same curl and frizz consistency. I'm not positive, but I think I may have fried it with the chemicals, too. So, there's that.
Also, Sydney asked for braids in her hair today, and when I was able to deliver the braids and do them well, she was very pleased. In fact, she wanted to sleep with them tonight. Only after I promised that I would do braids again tomorrow morning, did she consent to allow me to brush them out.
Also, I wish I had follicular stories for Brian, Oliver and Daisy, so I could make this entire post about the family's hair.

Friday, June 8

Hair maybe-make-better attempt ONE

Hair Non-Frizziness Experiment #1
Product: Bumble & Bumble's CONCEN-Straight smoothing treatment
Process: Wash and don't condition; towel dry, comb and section hair; apply serum (which looks incredibly similar to semen) liberally to hair, covering it from roots to ends; let sit for 30 minutes, combing through every five minutes; rinse hair with warm water only; thoroughly dry hair, then flat-iron (the product is set with the heat); and finally, leave it for 24 hours before washing, with no crimping, binding, barrettes, or even putting it behind ears.
Odd difficulties I had: 1.) combing through my unconditioned hair. Holy crap, I shed a whole lot, and it's even worse when it's all knotted up and I have to dig through it; 2.) breathing after a while, because it's all chemicals and the fumes were icky; and 3.) not putting my hair behind my ears, since it's long hair now, and it bugs when it's in my face.
Longevity: This is supposed to last for 30 washes. The directions say that it will do it's part in smoothing hair and handling frizz, but if you want stick-straight hair, you'll still have to flat-iron it. I'm not interested in stick-straight, I just want it to not bug me when I look in the mirror.
Snap Judgment: I think it may be okay, but we'll know better after I wash it tomorrow morning. Also, it smelled kinda bad, so you know it was working.

Thursday, June 7

Exhausting, really. More than tired

I hate when something happens, and I feel like I can't write about it here. It's the worst kind of censorship. The censorship of Who Might Read This.
Did y'all see that episode of Friends where Joey, Chandler, Monica and Rachel decide to go on a trip and not invite Ross and Phoebe? You see, Chandler decided that Ross and Phoebe weren't as much fun to have around anymore, and decided they should be excluded from the trip. Joey, Monica and Rachel didn't stand up for Ross and Phoebe, thereby sanctioning the excommunication with their inaction. The whole thing got even crazier when no one talked about how shitty that move was, and the entire episode was a series of passive aggressive "polite interactions."
Sounds painful, right? I mean, we're looking at a group of friends who have shared everything, had a great time together, been each others' rocks, and would literally travel across country to spend time with each other. So why does Chandler get to decide that Ross and Phoebe shouldn't be included? Why won't anyone else say anything? Why has this situation, in the show (of course), devolved into people acting like high school kids with their super-exclusive clique when really, they're all almost middle age and no one should be allowed to dictate which friends should be allowed to participate in all-group activities based on that one person's perception of their fun barometer? Isn't there room for everybody, whether Chandler likes it or not?
The whole thing just makes me tired.

Wednesday, June 6

Wednesday ITEM! list

ITEM!: I put a house plant next to my "extra" air conditioner today, to give the unit some company. Now it looks more like a piece of furniture, rather than a random piece of machinery attached to the dining room window. And it makes me happier, as now I look at that corner of my apartment and no longer do mental gymnastics making it look better via my imagination.
ITEM!: Brian's making me watch an MMA fight on Showtime right now. I hate these things because these guys get so beaten up, but also because I have lingering information about martial arts. My latent knowledge is weird, but what's more weird is that tonight I hear names and see faces that I remember meeting, all those years ago. I have a bizarre resume, people. Bizarre.
ITEM!: I did some summer cleaning today. I'm eager to get more done tomorrow, and even more on Friday. I love going through my house and putting things away, or piling them for donation, or for taking down to storage. It's an obsession, I think. I feel bad for my husband and kid sometimes, because I really am just a force to be reckoned with when it comes to the Cleaning Out Hurricane. Stuff just disappears, and they roll with it pretty well.
ITEM!: I love marshmallows. They're yummy.

Tuesday, June 5

Air conditioners are pretty awesome

Well, this is working out better than I thought it would. What you're seeing in that picture there is the portable air conditioner that we bought for the loft apartment in Phoenix, but that we couldn't use because we had no usable window upstairs from which to vent the hot air. In this apartment, the unit is able to be much more help, and now helps keep the living room, dining room and kitchen a cooler temperature.
It's a loud air conditioner, which means that the television is louder, which means the entire apartment feels louder. So the solution becomes that I am turning the unit off when I go to bed, so I can turn down the TV.
To be sure, the apartment a/c itself isn't a bad one. It's just that it has to work really hard to get this main room cool enough, and the room makes that incredibly difficult during the afternoons and early evenings. So, the second a/c is being used as a supplement, and it's doing a pretty perfect job at it.
I think I'm gonna put a plant next to it.

Monday, June 4

School's out for summer

The decision has been made to pull Sydney out of summer camp (that she doesn't want to do anyway), to save a bit on our expenses this summer. As we have already paid for this week, her summer of "fun things" begins next Monday. What I'm making myself busy with until then is creating a schedule, and making a list of things for us to have accomplished by the end of the summer break.
Activities include the park, library and swimming on Monday (all this is subject to change as I tweak and add activities); museum or zoo on Tuesday; movies and swimming on Wednesday; family adventure day (Brian's day off) on Thursday; and roller skating or ice skating and swimming on Friday. With this, the weekends a more open for stuff Brian and I want to do, and will, therefore, be more relaxing.
As for the Things to Learn list: tie shoes; dial Mommy's phone number; emergencies and 9-1-1; tell time; and something else I wrote down but don't remember. This list is, of course, incredibly fluid in regards to what to add to it, but the things themselves will be learned. Got any additional ideas? Let me know.
Sydney is so excited about the summer now. She can't stop talking about all the "fun things" we're going to do, and how much we're going to play. I'm pretty excited, too. I love spending that kind of time with her. Sadly, the Kimmie Time days are over for the season, but it's an easy trade.

Saturday, June 2

Blended goodness

I wish I could tell you that my blender died tonight because of all the margaritas that we drink, but no, the machine's turning thing in the base crumbled due to a shocking lack of use in the last 10 years. It's a little plastic piece that I'm hoping I'll be able to find on Cuisinart's web site, but still, it killed our blender-based smoothie idea. Instead, I made a smoothie in a food processor.
Sydney decided on the smoothie ingredients: vanilla yogurt, fresh blueberries and ice. I must admit that it was quite good. I'm having a desire to try it with plain yogurt, and pineapple, or some strawberries, or blackberries. Okay, how about watermelon? Would that even taste like anything? I'm interested in experimenting!
But I don't like using the food processor, so will have to figure out the fix for my blender. Like, fast.
Or, could this be a reason to buy a new, pretty, red blender?

Friday, June 1

JUNE!! And summer

The Queen of England's "Diamond Jubilee" anniversary. My minimal knowledge of English royalty and vague remembrances of information from the news lately tells me that the Queen has led the United Kingdom for 60 years this month. She's having a couple big parties, and everyone seems to be really excited about it. In fact, I saw Meredith Veira in front of a large English building, so it must be big, if she's pulled out of retirement to cover this for Today. Anyway, hence the avatar. She's awesome. She's noble. She's got weird hair and an uncomfortable collar.
Daisy's fourth birthday. I can't believe that, a) she's managed to live to four, and b) she's managed to live to four. I love that dog, and she rocks and all that, but a calm, canine presence was not something I foresaw when she was a puppy. I wish we could get her something sinful to eat for her birthday, but she's on her diet, and has lost more than half a pound. But, she did live to four. Okay, maybe some chicken nuggets.
Sydney starts summer camp. Sydney's school is year-round, though the summer is more of a camp atmosphere. I had asked about pulling her out for the summer, but was told that I'd lose her spot in August, when regular class starts again, and would still have to pay 50 percent of her tuition during that "out" time. So, summer camp! But today, she did ask me about staying home, so I think I'll ask again next week.
Summer begins. It's been warm lately, though the humidity isn't as bad as I expect it will get in the next several weeks. In regards to the hair, I've begun an experiment tonight: I flat-ironed my hair to straighten it, and will see how long that lasts in this weather. If it works, summer may just be tolerable after all.