Hey guess what?

My back hurts because I've been coughing so much with this DELIGHTFUL head cold who decided to visit starting Monday. He's still here. I want to kill him.

That is all.

Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I hope you are having a wonderful day today. Remember that dinner I was talking about? Well...here are the pictures.

Christmas Eve Dinner

Helen and Eric came over and we went snowshoeing beforehand. I hadn't done that before and I would totally do it again.

The black beans were from Helen and so was an amazing flourless chocolate cake that I just realized I never took a picture of. Damn!

Well...it was amazing anyhow.

Enjoy!

Liberty Heights Fresh

I went to Liberty Heights Fresh today. You need to go there. Do you know why?

Because they are awesome.

Not only is everyone extremely friendly and helpful, but they have incredible gourmet treasures to please even the most discriminating foodie in Salt Lake. Plus it's a locally owned business! You can't beat that!

Today I suddenly developed a craving for blood orange juice. Jennifer gave me some in San Francisco and it was delicious. I thought Liberty Heights Fresh might have some.



This place is so exciting to walk into. Just the way it's set up makes me start to drool. The entire back wall of the store is nothing but olive oils and different balsamic vinegars. WOW.



Also...if you need some cheese, they may or may not have a few varieties to choose from.



Unfortunately the blood orange juice wasn't in stock (quelle horreur!) BUT the gentleman helping me (Ed) was so nice I didn't care. He showed me the fresh blood oranges they had and even SLICED ONE OPEN so I could have a taste.

HE SLICED OPEN A $92,834,709,283,479.99 BLOOD ORANGE JUST SO I COULD HAVE A TASTE.

Would they do that in a big supermarket?

They DID have clementine juice, however, and I got some of that plus a big jug of fresh, organic apple cider they make themselves. I am drinking some now. It's like taking a bite of an apple. For real.

Aaahhhhhh.

So go there. Buy things. They are awesome and deserve it.

Mmm.

Good Evening!

I just got done finishing up a really nice Christmas dinner my parents and their friends John, Karen and Alice. We decided to have it a little early and with an Asian theme. Here are the photos!

Dinner!

Let me note, however that people are coming over on Christmas Eve too for a Latin American themed dinner so JUST YOU WAIT.

I love cooking.

Flight of The Conchords

This is my new favorite song. I already think the show is hilarious.



Only FOTC could make a whole entire song out of phrases from a French textbook...and a ridiculously funny one at that. Genius!

Bogie Goes to Work

Guess what? My afternoon was INCREDIBLE.

Do you know why?

I BROUGHT BOGIE TO WORK. Yes! Yes I did! He behaved so well too! He was a little squirty when he first came in...



But then he relaxed. I could even leave the door open!



After that he was just plain bored.



He was with me from just after lunch until we went home. I was really proud of him AND grateful I can bring him into work! On top of that I finished a massive project!

Such an awesome day...

Not yet.

I'm not ready to talk about the special stuff so I just won't.

Rather, I'm going to talk about the other stuff. The daily stuff. For example...here is my bed. My mom gave me the bedding. The coverlet and pillow shams were found for a STEAL at a nearby discount store and I love them. Thank you mom!



Also GUESS WHAT? I went to San Francisco over Thanksgiving! I stayed with my friend Jennifer, her boyfriend John and her dogs Merlin and Stevie. We had a great time!

Click here for the pictures!

Also I am trying out Flickr for photo hosting and I like it.

MORE TO COME.

I'm so sorry...

Some really big things are happening in my life right now. They are good things, but I can't really write about them until they've settled and make sense.

Stay tuned. If you want.

Whoa Canada.

I had a decidedly Canadian morning. It was completely by chance.

A few weeks ago I was on hold with a Canadian company and liked the radio station they used (Mix 96 in Montreal), so I found it online and started listening to it. Today they played "The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson which, at the time, I didn't know the name of so I sent an email to ask.

THE D.J. GAVE ME A SHOUT OUT.

FROM CANADA.

It was AWESOME.

While reeling from this I noticed not only was I wearing the hoodie my friend Jeannie sent me from Canada, but I was snacking on a Dare brand maple cookie (also from Canada).

THEN.

I looked at the paper the maple cookies were resting on and had to take a picture. It was too funny.



(Note: McGill University is in Montreal.)

(WHERE THE RADIO STATION IS LOCATED.)

I mean, REALLY. You can't PLAN this kind of thing if you tried! It's too much of a coincidence. Could this possibly some sort of hidden message? (Eh?)

Probably not but how funny was all that business??

For real.

Here's a video of the song. You may remember this from the Old Navy commercial.

Hm.

I was reading an article about obesity issues. It seems the American Medical Association has determined that you aren't more likely to die early from being overweight as previously thought. They did say, however, that due to natural weight gain with age, you are at risk of becoming obese easier than someone who isn't overweight.

Good to know, but something was a bit off about the ad placement in this article. Can you tell what it is?



Yeah.

Lucky

Lucky was put to sleep today after some medical complications. I am happy that he will no longer be in pain but very sad I won't see his sweet face again.

These are the last pictures I took of him. He was adorable as ever.





Most of all, my heart goes out to Shelley and Rich, Lucky's parents. They loved him very much.

This is a poem I like to share when someone has lost a pet. It's very comforting.

-Rainbow Bridge-

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.

There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together.

-Unknown

We love and miss you Lucky.

People, people everywhere...

I went out to lunch today at McDonald’s.

Yes, McDonald’s.

Honestly the grilled chicken sandwich with a side salad is pretty tasty. Don’t groan until you’ve tried it. Also it is cheap. Again…don’t groan until you’ve tried it.

ANYWAY that isn’t the point. What happened while I was there is what this post will be about.

I sat down with my tray at a table next to a couple obviously involved in a deep, tense conversation. The woman was facing my table and the man had his back to me. She looked over as I sat down with that “I really wish you weren’t sitting next to us” look on her face.

There wasn’t anywhere else to sit.

The couple had finished eating and sat in silence, staring at each other. The woman was in scrubs and the man was in coveralls and work boots. Occasionally the woman would make a brief comment about her job (like “I miss the day shift nurses. They are nicer during the day shift”) which would be met with stern silence from the man. She would look down at her soda, then off to the side, then back at him. Then she’d make another comment and the cycle would repeat itself.

This occurred about 3 or 4 times until, without any warning, the man got up and walked off with his tray. He dumped it in the garbage and went directly outside to his truck, leaving the woman at the table. She wandered around a bit looking nervous, threw out her trash, got on her cell phone, and then joined him in his truck outside. They drove off together to who knows where.

Think of all the different ways you could interpret that situation. So many ways! I kept wondering what possibly could have happened between them to prompt it. Were they lovers meeting for a lunchtime rendezvous? Were they a married couple on the brink of divorce? Were they total strangers who were about to knock off someone they mutually hate? WHO KNOWS??

People watching is captivating sometimes, isn’t it?

Stream of consciousness

I was just reading this post which was hilarious (and involves potty humor...literally. You've been warned) and that made me Google cockroaches and on this page I learned that wasps, which I formerly despised, can be used as one of the very few insecticides against roaches because wasps EAT COCKROACH EGGS.

I have a new appreciation for wasps.

Funny how the mind works, isn't it?

HOLY CRAP!

My coworker found this!! Remember this weirdness??



My parents, sister and I listened to the record from the newspaper in the dining room waaaaaaaaaay back in 1989. I still remember that "futuristic" stereo (yes, the stereo was in the dining room. Trust me. It was snazzy). Our wasn't a winning one either. HA!

I really like the graphics this person used and wonder if they got the song from their record. I can't believe one of those things would play now.

Wow!

Randomplations.

Hm.

Two nights ago I had a creepy nightmare. I was in a car and it was very dark and raining pretty hard. My phone was ringing and I picked it up to answer but couldn't speak at all. Every time I tried to say anything, all that came out was a squeak. I went home and wandered around wondering what to do and started to panic. I decided to call my parents but each time I tried to dial their number I would get it wrong and have to go back to fix it, triggering more panic until I couldn't even hold onto the phone anymore. Eventually I woke up, my heart pounding so loud it felt like it was in my ears.

There is a protocol I follow after nightmares which has worked pretty well up to this point. I get up, get a drink (because I'm usually parched), switch on the bedroom light and go back to bed. However, this time, for the first time in a very long time, it didn't work. I couldn't sleep. At all.

Another friend of mine had mentioned she had been having trouble sleeping lately so I sent a text message asking if she was awake. Either she would be and would get the message, or she wouldn't be, wouldn't hear her phone and continue getting much needed sleep.

Well...apparently she was getting much needed sleep.

Damn.

It was after midnight. Nobody else was really available at that hour. I have always been a pretty independent person and proud of my ability to get along just fine alone, but suddenly I didn't want to be alone. I didn't want to be by myself. I didn't want to be lying there staring at the ceiling with a pillow in my arms wondering what the hell that noise in the other room was. My very small apartment began to feel cavernous and I just wanted to get the hell out of there and never look back.

But that wasn't an option.

It was after midnight.

Also I was in softie pants and socks.

Could it be that my staunchly independent veneer is starting to crack? Is it possible my needs are changing as I grow older? Was this just a momentary thing or will it lead to a bigger problem to resolve within myself later?

Who knows? Either way it scared the ever-loving shit out of me.

Eventually I know this will all make sense. Until then I'm getting a dog.

Well...once I move to a place that allows them of course.

Lucky!

I just finished watching Lucky for the weekend. Seeing him is always fun. This picture was taken while we were playing fetch in the backyard with his favorite tennis ball.



Aww. :-)

What happens when there's no internet at home.

You bust out the markers and make an interpretation of Bogie as a Dia de los Muertos mask.



BE WARNED. This may happen to YOU.

Friend Blog and Casserole Idea.

Hello!

I must be brief as I am at the coffee house and forgot the power cord (BAD MICHAEL) so here we go.

Want some awesome and fun hand-crafted items?? Go to my friend Tanya's blog Alternate Bliss for some fun stuff! Yay!

Also...I made a casserole last night that turned out halfway decent so I thought I'd share. Yes, it IS a CASSEROLE but it was quick, easy and delicious so it's worth looking into.

I took mezzi tubetti (you could use any other small pasta really), and added mushroom marinara, basil, oregano, soy meat replacement (one last bag from that time in my life we are not to speak of), about 1/4 of a package of light shredded cheese and topped it with Italian seasoned bread crumbs. Mmm.



My friends Sean and Lanisa came over and Sean had, like, 4 servings so it must have been awesome! Go me!

Anyway that's about it. I have to go before my laptop dies on me. BYE!

Did you know...??

It's National Coming Out Day. You are supposed to wear jeans in support of said day.

My jeans won't button anymore.

Ironic, isn't it?

Catch up with ketchup.

Technical and time-management issues have prevented me from posting as I wanted to this week, so here's a quick update of what has transpired in my corner of the world since last Sunday.

Are you comfy?

Would you like something to drink?

Have you gone to the restroom?

Yes?

Okay.

READYSETGO.

Last Sunday Jackie and I made brunch! It turned out really nice. My pans are a bit...unique when it comes to making pancakes but with all the windows open and the front door gaping out onto the courtyard you barely noticed the thick smoke coming from my kitchen.

Barely at all!

Jackie brought yummy fruit and that was a nice addition! Thank you Jackie!

BRUNCH.

FRUIT.

After brunch Jackie was reading a magazine I had on the couch and suggested we go to IKEA. I have no idea what might have persuaded her to suddenly want to go.



It was awesome as usual.

Then the week started. Things were lovely.

THEN.

MY SISTER AND BROTHER-IN-LAW CAME TO VISIT.

YES.

They both haven't been back here for two years and it is so great to see them again!

MY SISTER!



(A picture of my brother-in-law is forthcoming.)

At this point we're catching up and showing them everything that has changed since they left. They will be here a week. I'm so excited.

That's all for now...more to come!

Friday Night

Last night was fun! Rebecca needed to pick up her frame from the restorer so Michael and I went with her to make it an evening. Why not?

On our way!

First we got the frame. The frame was very nice but the cool dogs who live in the studio were out wandering around so I couldn't get a picture of them (which was sad). But at least the frame was nice. After that we went to get lotus seed mooncakes because it's Harvest Moon this weekend! I found a new Chinese Market online and we went on an adventure to find it. I must say, Rebecca is very patient when navigating an unfamiliar neighborhood with a map reader who has the map upside down (me).

Mooncakes!

After that we went to Acme Burger for dinner. I had a cheeseburger and it was AWESOME.

Cheeseburger!

We were sated and very happy. On our way home we stopped at Wild Oats so Rebecca and Michael could get vitamins and I could get a GIANT HUNK OF CALLEBAUT MILK CHOCOLATE.

CHOCOLATE!

I've wanted to do that for a LONG time. Later that night I made some jasmine tea and sat around in my pajamas and fuzzy robe drinking it because it's finally chilly enough to do something like that. Finally!

No...there isn't a picture. Heh.

You know...this thought just occurred to me. The whole time I was wearing my green sushi shirt. You know, the one I got from Threadless. It's printed with an array of sushi on the front with a slug slithering off a piece of nigiri. This one (picture taken after I got home in apparently very bad lighting):

Uhh...

Don't get me wrong. I love sushi! This was more of an ironic piece. In any case it just dawned on me that I wore it into the Chinese Market. I wonder what they thought of it in there?

Such a wonderful night. :-)

Things that of which are different.

Hello.

First of all, I would like to show you the new duvet cover and pillow shams I got at IKEA. They were marked down from $25 to $9 simply because the wrapped plastic package holding the linens fell out of the box. That's all that was missing. The box. The box that I would have thrown out anyway. It was kickass.



Secondly, I am drinking black coffee this morning and came to a realization that I CAN drink black coffee when it's made properly. The reason why I have had trouble in the past is because I was the one making the coffee...therefore it was strong enough to melt concrete. This coffee was from one of my favorite local haunts (Cafe Ville Bella on Harrison next to Baskin Robbins GO THERE NOW) and it's DELICIOUS.

Also generic cornflakes are now apparently bilingual. Me gusta eso.



That's it for now. Bye!

Matt Smolenski

This story was awesome.

If you're having a bad day, just read that story.

Awesome.

AHOY THAR!!!

It be International Talk Like a Pirate Day, ye landlubbers!!

Seriously. It is.

See?

YARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Erm...

So I got a new phone. It's great. It's a Nokia 6133 with a camera and I like it very much.

The only problem is that when I swapped in my sim card all the phone numbers in there were lost.

Heh.

If you talk to me regularly by phone (and you know who you are), please send me an email (if I haven't asked you already) with your number so I can put it back in! Agh!!

Thank you kindly.

Love,

Me

Weekend.

Hello.

I have had a nice weekend. Rebecca and I went downtown yesterday and decided to start a new blog topic - $20 Saturdays! We wondered if it was possible to have a fun day and a nice lunch in Salt Lake on $20. We found out that you can. In the next week I will be posting things about that so stay tuned. You can't wait, I know.

Now I am watching Lucky again and he is adorable as ever. Aww!

I don't have much else to say. Okay bye!

Fiesta Friday

Post something about your community that makes you happy!

This makes me happy!

FrontRunner!!

Also this commercial we made at work!



Yay!

Explanation

After reading the last post, you may be wondering what happened. Why would someone seemingly so dedicated to vegetarianism (for the most part) suddenly have a change of heart?

Well, this is what happened.

I WAS VERY HUNGRY.

Each day the hunger built upon itself. It started out barely noticeable and just grew and grew as I ate lighter and lighter things, coming to a deliciously roasted climax with a side of A1 last night - which shall be referred to henceforth as “The Night of Meats.”

After exercising (and having a light salad with kidney beans for dinner), I was driving home on a route that takes me past McDonald’s.

Yes. McDonald’s.

I started thinking about their cheeseburgers and how we all love to hate them…how we all secretly love biting into their savory/salty goodness even though we know full well that’s not actually food we’re biting into.

No.

It’s a specially engineered, legalized meaty disc of CRACK.

I don’t know what came over me. Before I knew it I had wolfed down THREE DOUBLE CHEESEBURGERS in the PARKING LOT while SITTING in my CAR.

They didn’t even make it home.

As I sat there masticating this thought crossed my mind: “How can I claim vegetarian status when I am sitting here eating BEEF?? This isn’t excusable fish or justifiable poultry…this is HARDCORE DEAD COW.”

The Holy Grail of meats.

Clearly my body was saying something to me. My body was VERY HUNGRY and TIRED of being DEPRIVED.

At least that’s what I’m going to tell myself.

What’s more is that I have not suffered any digestive consequences from that “meal” whatsoever. None! Not a one! In fact I feel really good today!

It’s like a hole in my psyche has been filled.

With a cow leg.

So that’s pretty much it. I am a meat eater again. I welcome your recipes. Look forward to mine.

Peace out.

Carnivore.

This had to end.

I am officially no longer a vegetarian. Please feel free to bombard me with any meat involved/meat-laden/meaty meat meat recipes with meat sauce and a side of meat that you may have to offer. I'm all ears.

Thank you.

Details to follow.

MICHELLE!!

Remember Michelle?

Well, as you know, she contacted me. We have been chatting and having a good time getting reconnected. Last week her grandfather died. That was very sad for her and her family, however he lived in Salt Lake and his funeral was here.

So we got to meet. Again. After 7 years.

It was wonderful.

HERE SHE IS!!

US!!

We had an awesome lunch at Trio, found delicious cookies at Liberty Heights Fresh, I showed off the library (she moved before it opened), and stopped for an exquisite Thai dinner at Sawadee.

Obviously the circumstances could have been better for her, but it still was really great to see her again and only made us both feel wonderful for reconnecting.

Yes.

Acme Burger Company.

Wow!

On Saturday Rebecca and I went to Acme Burger Company. It's a new spot behind Rose Wagner off Broadway (200 West between 200 and 300 South). They were having a soft opening as they have only been in business a couple weeks.

We were not disappointed.

This isn't your average "Burger Place." There is a full bar and the menu has everything from your basic ground beef to ostrich burgers, Kobe skirt steak and Hawaiian monchong.

Adding to the diverse menu is a very sleek, eclectic interior with vibrant colors, and a giant plastic hammerhead shark suspended from the ceiling. There are several flat screen televisions in the corners and one of them, above the bar, is connected to a camera in the kitchen where you can watch your food get prepared.

I had the 3 bean veggie burger complete with sundried tomatoes, baby artichoke hearts and feta. It was so soft I ate it with a fork and loved it. Rebecca had an adorable mini burger with the grilled caesar salad. I didn't know people actually GRILLED the LETTUCE. With creamy homemade caesar dressing and fresh parmesan it was quite a treat. We shared a huge order of pomme frites which were crisp and delicious as well.

Granted they are brand new and things always change with time, but we loved this place and highly recommend it.

Of course we brought the camera. Here are the pictures.

Outside

The Food

The 'Straunt

Kitchen Cam!

They had chalk and special paint on the bathroom walls. I had to draw something. I just had to!

(YES, I took a picture in the BATHROOM. Get over it.)

Delicious! Go there now!!

Overshare!

Would you like an overshare? I took this picture weeks ago intending to post it but never did UNTIL NOW.

The Medicine Cabinet

Thank you. That is all.

Spring Roll Stir Fry

On Friday night Jordan, Kevin, Jackie and I thought it would be nice to get together and make spring rolls. I was in charge of bringing the ingredients. Being the forward thinker that I am, I left everything to the very last minute and couldn't find spring roll wrappers ANYWHERE at ANY SUPERMARKET as I rushed, already 20 minutes late, to get the crap we needed.

This is how I felt.



But luckily they're all very easy going people so we made do with what we had. I stir-fried (is that a word?) the veggies and served them on top of the vermicelli rather than rolling it all up in a wrapper. This is what I did.

Michael's Spring Roll Stir Fry

1 large red pepper
1 bunch green onions
1 large cucumber (or zucchini)
1 small bag baby carrots
Garlic salt to taste
Parsley flakes to taste
1 package rice noodles
3T soy sauce

Chop all the vegetables into chunks and simmer with soy sauce, garlic salt and parsley covered on very low heat for about 10 minutes like this.



Don't simmer too long lest they get mushy. Soften the vermicelli in hot water (about 10 minutes after the water comes to a boil - it's on the package) with some parsley while the veggies simmer. Drain the noodles and set aside.

Place a bed of noodles on a plate and pile on the veggies.



DELICIOUS WITH WINE.



Have fun!

I would just like to say...

...that washing your B-12 energy vitamins down with Red Bull is NOT a recommended combination.

My head is actually hissing.

WHATcam?

I have no idea what to say about this.

Justine/Justin Cam.

They mounted CAMERAS on their HATS to record their EVERY MOVE on the INTERNET.

It just seems exhausting. Also they look really goofy.

WHOA.

Wouldn’t you know it? All I had to do was write that little blurb in my previous post and suddenly the words came flowing out of my fingers onto the keyboard.

ZZISSHHHHHHH.

SO. Let’s see. My aunt has been visiting us to help with my dad (who is doing phenomenally well by the way) and we had a wonderful time together. She left for Philadelphia this morning and I will miss having her around. Each weekend since she’s been here I’ve taken her around and shown her some fun things in this area. We’ve gone to Ninth and Ninth, the University of Utah’s campus, City Library, Sugarhouse, a really great Vietnamese restaurant and other awesome places.

Let me say this however before I continue. Most of the time I didn’t have my camera. My aunt and I enjoyed the time we had and to be honest, it would have been a bother. I love sharing pictures with all of you but sometimes it’s not possible for whatever reason and that is going to have to be okay. Cool?

Cool.

So…moving on…here are the pictures I DO have of her and I enjoying tea at Tea Grotto. It’s one of my favorite places to go.

Auntie Pat!

The Menu!

Apricot Ginger deliciousness. Mmm.

We also made a stop at City Library and went to the roof garden.

Hi!

Lemongrass I think.

We really had a wonderful time visiting (I haven’t seen her in ten years) and getting to know each other (TEN YEARS). I was also delighted to find she has the same affinity for Asian cuisine that I do. It’s proof I wasn’t adopted! Hooray!

I hope things are going well for all of you and thank you for sticking around. I promise to be more blogilent (?) in the future.

Or something.

What?

Hi.

Just so you know, I'm still here. I have many things to say and pictures to share with you but can't get enough time to blog all about it. Everything is fine, I am just very busy - happy though.

I will see you very soon. :-)

Summer Squash Crunch

Do you have extra squash or zucchini lying about? Try this. I made it last night and it was lovely. Nothing was really measured out (as is my m.o.) so it's really up to you to decide how much to use.

Two people have commented on the deliciousness today (I brought some to share).

Summer Squash Crunch

1 large squash (or zucchini OR EGGPLANT EVEN)
Olive oil
Sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Oregano
Panko bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese
Marinara (for plating)

Wash and slice the squash, lie slices flat on a glass baking dish. Coat one side lightly with olive oil and sprinkle on sea salt, ground black pepper and oregano. Turn the pieces over and repeat, but add the parmesan and bread crumbs.

Bake at 450F for 15-20 minutes or until crispy. When plating, pour marinara on the plate first and place the squash on top.

Delicious with a fresh green salad. Mmm.

Sunday Morning

Hello. My dad is getting better each day and he is enjoying time with his sister. I have also been enjoying visiting with her - I haven't seen her in 10 years!

He is able to walk around at a regular pace and get up from the sofa without help. It's amazing how much you have to re-learn after major surgery! Each day he makes more progress and gains more confidence.

Things are going well. I will, of course, keep you posted.

Home.

My dad has been released from the hospital and is now resting at home. His sister is coming in tomorrow from Philadelphia to help care for him until the 29th and he is relieved to be home.

That is all.

Sunday

My dad needed another pint of blood (his second) because the nurse gave him Plavix, a blood thinner, the night before his surgery - and he wasn't supposed to. Luckily everything worked out. My dad is doing just fine, can talk, can walk around and is eating solid food. He should be moved to a regular room today and is in very good spirits.

Everyone else has been absolutely wonderful. The service my dad has received has really impressed him and put us all at ease. We know he is being cared for extremely well. To view it from another angle, that one mistake could have had a disastrous result had everyone else not been so attentive. Thank goodness for them. Really.

My mom came over for dinner last week and I made salmon with vegetables and broiled ciabatta bread. I feel secure enough to post the picture. Things are getting back to normal.



The salmon was baked at 450F for, well, I wasn't looking at the time. Until it flaked. 20 minutes? Something like that. It was rubbed in olive oil and coated with "Slap Ya Mama" Cajun seasoning (thanks Rebecca), Asian Panko bread crumbs (thanks mom), and a little grated parmesan. The vegetables were steamed and then tossed with raspberry vinaigrette and I think there was some black pepper added too. The bread was just broiled in the oven with part-skim mozzarella on it.

Aaahh. That felt good to write.

Happy Sunday!

Today.

My dad had his surgery this morning around 8 a.m. It all went smoothly. His blood was a little too thin still so they had to give him some platelets, but other than that everything went well.

He was moved into his room in Critical Care at 2 p.m. and we saw him briefly. We went back about an hour and a half ago (6 p.m.) and he was awake and able to move a little bit. He isn't nearly as pale as we thought and he could crack jokes which is definitely a good sign. When we left he even pushed the button to move his bed up to get a better view outside.

Things are going well. Again, we can't thank all of you enough for all your supportive prayers and wishes.

Talk to you soon.

Quick Update.

Hello.

My dad's surgery will be tomorrow at 8 a.m. He is in very good spirits and after talking to the surgeon it looks like he'll be home in about a week and could be golfing by September. Without using his driver, that is.

Again, thank you all for your prayers, good thoughts and wishes. We are very grateful to know all of you.

I will keep in touch.

Another Update.

Hello.

My dad had his angiogram yesterday and they determined they would go for bypass surgery after all...which is what we were hoping for. They identified all the areas (7) that are going to be bypassed and now are waiting until Thursday so his blood can clot sufficiently during surgery. He is a little tired, but is in good spirits and doing really well in the hospital. His cardiologist spoke with him about the procedure and the information was encouraging. There is a very low mortality rate and he is in such good health recovery will be rapid.

Thank you to everyone who has expressed best wishes. We really appreciate it.

I will keep you posted!

Surgery

Let me update you on my dad's condition.

He was scheduled to see his cardiologist for an angiogram on Monday, then bypass surgery after if the angiogram warranted it (which it probably will). The doctor told him to take it very easy and basically just "sit there and read" until then as he has new blockage in areas he didn't before.

That's what he did. He just sat there cautiously waiting for Monday.

Well...on Friday night he was having chest pains. He went into the hospital and they checked him out. Around 3 a.m. Saturday he was released because everything seemed fine.

Around 4 p.m. Saturday he had another heart attack.

My mom called the ambulance and they rushed him to emergency. Letting him go home was clearly a bad idea, but they were only doing what they thought was right. He really did seem to be just fine.

Now he is stable and feeling very good, but they're not taking chances this time. He is going to be under observation until Monday, and the cardiologist on duty may do the angiogram and get him into surgery today if he feels he should.

I will keep you posted. Please send good thoughts.

Electric Weinermobile

Whoa.

Tuesday evening I went to lunch with my mom at Macool's where we had some excellent grilled chicken and sweet potato fries. Mmm. On the way home I noticed something odd in the traffic line. Luckily I had my camera so I documented the discovery.

What's that orange blob thing? Could it be??

OH MY GOD IT'S THE WEINERMOBILE!

HI WEINERMOBILE!

Wow! I didn't think they drove that thing anymore! That was so awesome! Plus I had my camera!

It's incredible what a simple hot dog-shaped car will do to one's mood, isn't it?

After lunch I went to my parents house and chit-chatted a bit. They were quite tickled to see the pictures and didn't seem to mind I had been taking the pictures not only while driving, but while making a left-hand turn as well.

Shhhhh.

Now I am writing this jamming out to Electric Slide. Remember how they played that at the club on Friday? The song just won't get out of my head!

IT'S ELECTRIC!!

Okay bye.

Don't give up on us yet.

Something occurred to me the other day.

When Jeannie and I went to Park City, we were taking pictures at the bottom of Main Street and a woman came by asking if we both wanted to be in the picture. She offered to take our picture and it was nice of her.

She didn’t run off with the camera.

She didn’t need a copy of the photo.

She simply wanted to help us enjoy our vacation.

Things like that renew my faith in humankind. Recently I read this story about Michael Vick’s “not guilty” plea and it boggles my mind how some people can be so selfish and blind to the big picture, and usually on purpose. He actually rode off in an SUV and had his attorney read a statement “from him” to the media. Part of it was an apology to his mother which was read while his mother stood there by herself, her son already leaving the scene.

What a fine gentleman.

Stories like that make me very disappointed with the state of things today. I’m not that old but it just seems to be a much more inconsiderate world than it was before.

But there are still good people out there. People clued in onto what was going on and caught him. People protested at the NFL headquarters on behalf of the defenseless animals. Falcons owner Arthur Blank told Vick to “concentrate on his legal problems, not football” and suspended him from training camp.

Plus…there was that lady in Park City.

These are very important reminders that we are still good for the most part.

I'm holding onto that.

Weekend.

I had a great weekend! On Friday I went to my friend Jordan's birthday dinner and we all dined on a delightful spinach/chicken (depending on your meat preference) alfredo lasagna made by our Jackie, then had a French mixed fruit tart purchased by yours truly from Gourmandie's on 3rd East.

(Go there. MMM.)

After that it was dancing at the club, which at first I didn't want to do/wasn't dressed for, but after some pep talks (and donated "clubwear"), I went after all and had a great time.

They did the ELECTRIC SLIDE.

AWESOME.

Then on Saturday Rebecca and I went to the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale where she found sandals and she also found some great new brown plaid Converse shoes for me!

She has a great eye for these things you know.

After getting the shoes and talking to Jackie (who couldn't sit out a sale of these proportions either), I also found a snazzy North Face jacket in brown with a beige lining FOR 40% OFF.

So it was a good shopping trip.

Rebecca and I went to an antique restorer after Nordie's to have him look at a picture frame of hers. He had two dogs with him in the studio. One was a very sweet brown and white-spotted pitbull named Otis and another was an ADORABLE black pitbull/bassett hound mix named Tank. They were so cute! I only wish I had a picture!

After droppping off the picture frame we went to lunch at Cafe Trio which was marvelous as usual, then headed over to meet up with her husband so they could go to a birthday party in the canyon. They went their way and I went home to crash. Heh.

Sunday I joined Jackie, Ashley, Jordan and Kevin at the coffee house and we chatted for a bit. It was really nice to see them all at once. I can't remember the last time that happened! Coffee was great as always, then we said our goodbyes and I went to my mom's house for dinner. We had Asian Wraps and angel food cake with chocolate pudding and strawberries for dessert. It was delicious! Thank you mom!

After seeing my mom (and Bogie), I came over to Shelley's house to watch Lucky until Tuesday! He's such a sweetheart! Now the two of us are down in the cool basement and are going to sleep.

Good night!

¡Arañas!

Hobo spider.

I’m pretty sure that’s what it was.

After being gone for nearly 3 weeks, I came home and started putting things away. While placing my new body salt in the bathtub I saw it on the side wall, just below the faucet.

Hobo.

Spider.

You may not know this but I am TERRIFIED of spiders. ESPECIALLY ones that are VERY, VERY POISONOUS.

I try not to kill insects. I don’t know what each of them contribute to the environment for certain and don’t want to go killing them willy-nilly unaware that it’s actually contributing to some eventual horrific eco-catastrophe that could have been avoided if we didn’t go around killing insects all willy-nilly.

You never know.

But this was a special case. Hobo spider venom can, in some cases, cause necrosis.

Necrosis would be the DEATH of SKIN TISSUE.

So I killed it. Specifically I grabbed it off the wall with about 300 yards of toilet paper wadded up in my hand and flushed it down to a watery death.

Karma can understand. It was self-defense.

Surprisingly I was able to sleep just fine last night. This morning I did a quick check to make sure there wasn’t another skin-killing spider hanging out in the shower before I stepped in.

Holy crap.

Oh...and don't feel it's necessary to tell me that spiders flushed down the toilet can survive and come back. I don't want to hear it. It's gone so therefore it's dead.

Vegetariano.

I ate chicken.

Twice.

First I was with Jeannie and there wasn’t anything on the menu I could eat besides fish (which I had already eaten three times that week and couldn’t have again lest I develop Mercury poisoning).

So it had to be chicken.

It didn’t make me sick like that turkey burger did awhile back (similar situation with lack of dietary choices), so I figured that was whatever it was, I had the chicken and wouldn’t be doing it again.

OH.

Guess what? Last night I went to another restaurant (why is it always in a restaurant?) and was going to order fish when I realized ONCE AGAIN I had reached the maximum recommended allotment of fish for the week.

Damn.

So I had chicken fajitas. They were okay. A little overcooked but okay. Honestly I can’t say I really love chicken and want more of it, but I can’t say it was horrible to eat it again. I’m in the middle.

Vegetarianism is great, but sometimes it’s hard to find something to eat. I’m not even a full-on vegetarian (eating mercury-laden fish and all) and still have problems! So, until I figure out how to fix that, occasionally I may eat chicken.

Ew.

I feel like I’m giving up.

The Last Day.

MONDAY/LUNES

Monday was the last full day Jeannie was here. We had a very nice time doing things around town.

First we went to Rooster's for brunch. Hooray!

Hummus Platter!

I am trying Polygamy and I like it (it's a beer there).

Jeannie bought this in Park City!

After that we went up to Powder Mountain
and Jeannie took these lovely photos.

After the mountains we went home! She had to leave the next day! :-(