Songs to hate me by #7

I was oddly fascinated by the song and video in the 80's.  There was just something about that guy - I couldn't take me eyes off him.  Didn't know if I was attracted, repulsed, or whatever.  Maybe I just envied that hair and wardrobe.  Oh Baby shake that finger at me!

Cruel Vegetable Summer

Been a very weird summer for my garden.

Evidently we are experiencing blossom drop.   Our weird wet Spring which launched immediately into high heat and humidity means we have lush tomato bushes, but hardly any fruit.  And they fruit that DID show up is still inexplicably green.

Rabbits ate all my spinach, lettuce, and beet tops in June.  After we fixed the fence they just never recovered. I replanted in July but they were a bust.

The peas that were supposed to be climbing the corn never showed.  The squash plants grew lovely foliage but no fruit.

The beans are climbing but I have yet to see any pods.

The corn stalks commit suicide each week, and one of them just breaks off.

The onions however seem to be just fine.  So it'll be a Fall of French Onion Soup.  Good thing we don't really depend on the garden for survival.

Still hoping to get some raspberry and peach jam made.  Summer's not over yet, right?  RIGHT?!

Healing Me

So remember I said I needed to get healthy?  Here's what I did with your advice.

1. I've tried to eat as little white sugar as possible.

2. I've tried to eat a minimum of 5 servings of fruit and vegetable a day.  Four of those I get in my daily Green Monster fruit smoothie

3. I've been walking 30-60 minutes everyday.  Even today, when a sinus infection has me feeling like crud, I still walked over an hour to get my medication. 

The results have been slow, but they ARE there.  My clothes are loose and my knees don't ache like usual.

Just thought you'd like to know.

Put THIS in your blender and drink it:
GREEN MONSTER
In the blender put
1 banana
a handful of blueberries & strawberries or any other fruit you have handy. Frozen is fine.
a handful of fresh spinach - trust me you won't taste it.
a serving of vanilla whey protein powder
1/2 cup milk or soy milk or almond milk
4-5 ice cubes

Songs to hate me by #6

Thought I'd forgotten this series?
I freakin LOVED this song when I was a kid.  That's just how I roll.

Skunked

President Obama will be speaking 15 minutes away tomorrow in a very small Minnesota town.  Today the advance team was passing out 500 tickets for the event.  Johnny C and I headed out on the chance we could snag a couple.

I don't use this phrase often but what a CF.  There were about 800 people already in line, many who had been there since 2:30am.  The local  police department was trying to keep things organized.  The tiny town had been told only Wednesday this was happening.

People were calm and easygoing, but as the sun beat down and the temps climbed and STILL the line hadn't moved it was clear something was very wrong.  For some unfathomable reason they let over 900 people stand in the midday sun, near heatstroke, knowing they had only enough tickets for half of them.

Thankfully they arranged for portable bathrooms, but that was the only nod to actual human comfort.  Some enterprising locals were selling water for $2 a bottle.

After sweltering for over 3 hours, and holding pass #835 and #852 we decided to bail.  It was ultimately a good decision.  After 3pm they finally turned away over 900 folks.

But we gave it a good try and I have the sunburn to prove it.

Squished Again

So like Whiskeymarie, last year I had to interview for my own job.  And like her, I got it back and thoroughly enjoyed it.  I mean I really REALLY like this job.  However today I've been told it's being hacked into several pieces none of which is benefits eligible.

So it's back to job searching.  Perhaps I can find something part-time and mix it with the jumble of shattered pieces that used to be my job.  I would really like to be reasonably well-employed, and not have to hold my breath all year long while budgets and decision are hammered out.  Too much to ask I guess.

Not much, you?

Even with my work-deprived summer I still don't find time to blog.  So here are tidbits to munch on.

1. Best description of the latest federal budget I've read - "A sugar-coated Satan sandwich".

2. About 2 weeks ago I started my own version of a low-sugar weight loss program.  So far amazingly good.  Been eating lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.  Avoiding all desserts, chips, fast food, etc.  I gave up soda last year.  It's been surprisingly simple, and I have a lot more energy.

3. Been musing on the spiritual gifts of our new austere lifestyle; I appreciate every little thing I have.  I've grown less focused on material things, I've learned to quit worrying about the future and focus on the day at hand.  More on that later.

4. On the flip side I get very frustrated when dumb-as-dirt idiots like the cast of  Jersey Shore are rolling in it, while folks like Johnny C and I can't catch a break.

5. Been reading some GREAT books.  Friend me on goodreads.com and see what I've been up to.

6. The garden has been a patchwork of failure and success.  The lettuce, spinach, and beet tops were all eaten away by rabbits.  However the tomatoes, pumpkins, squash, onions, zinnias, and sunflowers are taking over.  I also planted some late red beans, and so far so good.  As long as our first frost stays away until October I might actually get a harvest.

7. When one of you lucky bastards wins the lottery, remember your friend Mnmom!

8. I really, really don't like the Republicans in power right now.

9. I want to ease the stress and sadness in my husband's eyes.  For his sake and a million other reasons I wish his family lived closer.

10. Did Iowa, Wisconsin, and southern Canada send all their mosquitoes to Minnesota this year?  They are KILLING me!