I love that quote. Kinda saucy. It is from Jim Davis - and actor who lived from 1915 to 1981. I also love carrot cake and I know Jean loves it even more.
After Ma's appointment at NIH today we stopped at Trader Joe's and picked up the last few ingredients for a carrot cake. It was my first attempt and it actually came out pretty darn good.
On Flickr. It is cold. cold. cold.
It probably isn't actually all that cold really. But it seems much too cold for this early in the winter. Even for up here in Maine.
Here are some other pics from flickr that made me shiver just looking at them...
I have tried a lot of foods. Maybe without thinking.
I got this meme from my sister Suz's blog. I have seen similar ones on other blogs.
I did not even realize that I had eaten many of these foods, until I clicked on the link to find out what it was.
What have you put in your mouth?
Try this out. It's fun and maybe a bit surprising:
1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.
5) Pass it on!
1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi peas
32. Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with buttery spread and jam
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Stroopwafle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña colada
58. Birch beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian
66. Homemade Sausages
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can
76. Pomegranate
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy
79. Jerky
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and “cheese”
88. Flowers
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chips
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Raw cookie dough
I have been watching a LOT of MSNBC over the past few months. It is campaign season, after all.
One thing I have noticed is how good Andrea Mitchell looks. I like her political analysis. I like her devotion to Tim Russert. I like her on-air manner.
But man, I like her flawless nip/tuck. She looks fantastic.
Now, as I go on and on about Mitch's lift, I am reminded of one that is more catastrophic - Priscilla Presley.
PP was on Dancing with the Stars last season. I am not exaggerating, but...every time I saw her, I cringed. Her face no longer looked 3 dimensional or truly human. She looked cartoonish.
How can the results of facelifts be sooo radically different?
I am watching the 2008 all-star game with my father. ZZZZZZZ.
Apparently it is a big deal cuz the game is being played at Yankee Stadium during this, its last year. The new one opens next year.
I have only been to Yankee Stadium once.
It was to see Patti LaBelle and Cyndi Lauper perform for 55,000 screaming fans at the closing ceremonies for Gay Games IV which were planned to coincide with Stonewall 25, the 25th anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Inn riots in Greenwich Village in New York City, and the June 26th "International March on the United Nations to Affirm the Human rights of Lesbian and Gay People".
It was a memorable visit.
I recently became the proud father of some amazing orchids. Fifteen of them, to be exact.
I have no gardening experience. I do not have a green thumb. I once considered buying an orchid at Wholefoods - but it seemed like too much of a commitment at the time.
Fortunately, I got the gaggle (herd?) of orchids from a friend's mother who is an expert cultivator. She was careful in the clippings she gave me and sent along written potting instructions too. She is wonderful.
Also, fortunately, I have a friend - John - here in DC who is an expert on orchids. He even blogs about one of his beauties every friday. I call him the Orchid Whisperer.
John came over today and we spent 4 hours planting my orchid clippings. They now live out on my balcony. He thinks some of them should survive - even under my care.
I hope they survive. They were a very special gift and their path to my balcony in Columbia Heights was an exciting one.
All flowers have a meaning. The Victorians used to use flowers as a symbol to express their feelings.
I still use flowers to express my feelings. I like to have fresh flowers around me at home - especially since I am working from my home now when I am in DC. The tulips above are in my living room and looked especially radiant this weekend in the light at sunrise.
Now tulips in general mean fame, charity and the perfect lover.
For some reason on this trip to Whole Foods when presented with the rainbow of tulips, the yellow ones stood out. Interestingly, the meaning of yellow tulips is...hopeless love. Oh, those Victorians!
On the same shopping trip, I was struck by these daffodils. The stems were so short and there were no blooms yet. They were really kinda ugly - but look what they became.
These are in my dining room and I look at them while I am working.
And the meaning of Daffodils? Respect. So it seems appropriate that I have these daffodils in the bamboo vase that I got in Japan and that looks to me like a kimono.
And color? Doesn't color have meaning too. Of course it does. But really, color has more than just meaning. It has impact.
For centuries it's been known that colors can dramatically affect our health, inner harmony and even our emotions. Color is a living energy. It is a property of light.
Yellow is the solar plexus chakra. It energizes, relieves depression, improves memory, stimulates appetite and helps in digestive problems. Spiritually it is the color of wisdom and connects us to our mental self.
Ahh...yellow - the perfect antidote for the tail end of winter!
![6886-1[1]](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2386/2294993512_d27c5a7c35_o.jpg)
Really. Or at least not the most miserable.
Just ask Forbes magazine.
Misery is defined as a state of great unhappiness and emotional distress. Forbes has come up with an index to measure the misery of the 150 largest cities in the U.S.
For all these cities, the misery index looks at the unemployment rates, personal tax rates, commute times, weather, crime and even some measure of pollution - or toxic waste really (the measure is superfund sites).
Washington was not in the top 10. I am a bit surprised - as our crime is pretty bad as are our commute times. I guess our weather is ok. employment is probably pretty good and stable - thanks to the federal govt. There really isn't a lot of toxic waste in DC - at least not in the literal sense.
So the big losers - home to the miserable masses...
Yeah DC! We aren't the most miserable!
For a video tour of the top ten - go here.
I reeallly like tulips. I love their simplicity and form and even their stems and leaves. I like their basic coloring - very crisp but rich.
When I was in graduate school in Seattle, I would always try to have some fresh tulips in my house to keep me cheery during the drudgery of writing my thesis. It usually worked.
To this day, I still try to get fresh tulips every week in the springtime. The pic above is of some tulips at my parents house today. Daryl is peeking around them.
The pic below is of some tulips at my place in DC earlier this week. It was snowing.
Now some fun Tulip facts:
Even though tulips are now commonly associated with Holland (and Washington state), they are originally from the Middle East and were the favorites of Turkish sultans.
In fact, the word "tulip" actually comes from the Ottoman Turkish word for turban or muslin.
When the tulip first arrived in Holland in the late 1500s, they were considered a precious commodity and even a single bulb cost lots-o-money. Even the wealthy had trouble attaining a full bed of bulbs.
In Victorian times, red tulips were considered a declaration of love, making them an ideal gift for any romantic occasion.
Maybe getting tulips for myself every week is like declaring my love for myself on a regular basis. Not such a bad idea...
