We went to a bike show this weekend. Hubby found THE motorcycle he wants to get for himself next spring and I found the leather jacket I'll buy myself next month. Did you know if you use the flash on your camera when taking a picture of reflective tape, the tape glows? Very cool. We took some pictures to find the riding gear that had the most reflective piping.
Fall is my most favorite season of the year. I just got married in August and it seems like I'm feeling especially excited these days. I'm sure it's a combination of being done with the planning part of the wedding, painting our house and not having any major activies that we are committed to. I guess that equals more time. We don't watch cable tv so there's plenty of time to work on hobbies now. Gardening is a new one for me. I'm determined to make it work for my health, my spirit and my budget.
Last month we took advantage a great fall day and headed out to Malty WA. This is one of those blink-and-you'll-miss-it towns but - FlowerWorld is there. It's huge, like 15-acres huge. We were told to take a lunch and spend the day. So we took our dog, walked around in the morning, ate lunch at the nearyby cafe and went back.
It's great time to buy new trees and put them in the ground. Now is also the time to plant garlic, shallots, onions, peonies and any bulbs you want for the spring.You could spend $20 and work up a small corner of your yard for a few bulbs. You could even plant them in containers if you want.
The nursery's and garden sections of the stores are having great sales right now. This weekend I'm going to build a potting bench based on a design out of P. Allen Smith's book 'Living in the Garden Home'. He has an easy-going style that I can appreciate.
I was getting overloaded with all of the gardening books at the library. To give myself a chance at really enjoying a garden, I decided to start planting in the fall. My choices are limited and I can ease into the maintenance of pruning and building small structures.
Time to make a pot of clam chowder and start scanning my apple recipes. Save yourself some money by buying apples and pears while they're in season and making your applesauce, butter, pies, etc. It's well worth it. If I have time, I'll even add a little hand-made card with the ingredients I used and where I bought them (organic flour, apples, etc.)
This is a nice consideration, especially when so many people have dietary concerns these days. - Just a little something special.
Day three of the laughfest-test is on. I think I'm going to include activities that generally make me happy enough to hum. That's always a good sign that my mood is 'up'. My hubby and I went to our state-certified motorcycle safety course this weekend. Huge grins on this. Riding a motorcycle has been on my list of 'things to learn and do in my lifetime'. I won't be taking any passengers for a few months until I get some more practice in, but riding a bike is definetly in my 'zen' zone.
I heard some new music this weekend. The Ditty Bops were definitely eclectic but I couldn't help smile with songs like "Your Head's Too Big", "Ooh La La" and "Angel with an Attitude". My toes were tapping. I could clean house or bake bread to this; not too fast or loud but kinda goofy, plus their website is very cool.
I've also started listening to an all male quartet from Ireland; young guys that sing acapella. The High Kings are great for all ages. I can't help but want to drink a pint of beer and eat warm bread with a bowl of Colcannon. It's nice to hear tight harmonies.
If you're up for a taste of something different, I just found eTown.org. Based out of Boulder Colorado, this weekly radio broadcast records live sessions with artists and plays on several stations, like NPR. I just heard a great interview with the Bare Naked Ladies.
I listen to a lot of podcasts.
Usually the subject matter runs the gamet from to web-development, business intelligence and emerging trends to cooking, crafts and motorcycles. I stumbled upon a really good show called Manager Tools. It's for helping people be more effective managers and leaders but they actually give you tools and techniques rather then just theory.
As of late, I've been a bit anxious about the unemployment rate and some bad feelings I've experienced at my current position. I think that's what drove me to listen to '5 Ways to Master Horstman's 3rd Law of Interviewing'. I was expecting the same Top Lists that are on every other job board and was pleasantly surprised. This show focused on your attitude and energy levels in the interview.
Horstman states that smiling is the 'hands-down' best way to win over an interview. He even gives ways to practice smiling and hits home by discussing how many of us don't smile very often.
I had to agree. I haven't been my cheery smiley self for quite some time. Lifestyle changes, work, kids - basically the daily grind, has dulled my sense of humor. I've been inspired by this little piece on expressing energy and have decided to take action.
Being the 'plan-and-list' girl that I am, I'm going to read, watch, listen to comedy and get downright silly in the next six weeks. As of yesterday, I have also taken a queue from my cousin and started a daily photo journal. I'm sure there will be nothing but positive results from this exercise. Plus, who knows what opportunities may come my way as a result of it.
My husband forwarded a link to me this morning. The Orwell Prize, Britain’s pre-eminent prize for political writing, is publishing George Orwell’s diaries as a blog. From 9th August 2008, Orwell’s domestic and political diaries (from 9th August 1938 until October 1942) are being posted in real-time, exactly 70 years after the entries were written.
This is an incredible read. He initally starts out talking about the weather and his plants. Then he moves into subtle things that he notices on the train as changes start to occur before WWI. The entries read like a blog. It's a bit eerie.
http://orwelldiaries.wordpress.com/
Did you know today, as in October 1st, is World Vegetarian Awareness Day? It was founded in 1977 and endorsed in 1978. Who knew? I'm not sure their awareness campaign is working all that well, but I feel relieved that I now have a source to point my friends and family to. While I don't have any definitive future plans to stop eating meat, I am open to the possibility that it may happen gradually as I work on my health.
After finding out that several of my family members are allergic or sensitive to gluten, I've been hunting down some good recipes. I bought my first issue of Vegetarian Times this week and wha-la, there in the editor's column is the mention about Veg Day. I immediately tried three recipes. They were fantastic.
There were several reasons I bought that magazine. Aside from the great-looking front cover, the biggest reason was that I was thinking about the news I had heard on the radio as I was driving to the grocery store. The hot news right now is that the U.S. Senate is scheduled to vote on a $700 billion financial bailout package. This whole situation is seriously depressing and somehow I still think we taxpayers are going to have to pay for this in one form or another.
You may be thinking, "Carmen, you've fallen off the truck, ur... track." let me make the connection. Regardless of the vote tonight, our country is going to go through some very serious changes. I am optimistic and truly believe that good things can come from the 'ashes'. Maybe a phoenix? Maybe something nice and shiny and made of chrome? Maybe a few seeds of surprise and delight? One can only hope and vote.
Anyway, I immediately kicked into survival mode. How I can save money and keep up our spirits while all these changes are happening? I am a 'plan and list' kind of a girl so I put some thought to the expenses that I take care of. Food was the first 'essential' that came to mind. In just a few days, I've located a source for purchasing beans and legumes in bulk, found my local natural food co-op, met the manager of my neighborhood grocery store and looked up the harvest calendar for our area. I can freeze and can my own fruit and veg.
I also thought about eating less, like portions. That's about the hardest thing to do for me. I love to cook and eat! Sooo, I bought new containers and starting making lunches before serving myself. Seems to be working, though it's early.
Looking to buy local, I found a few excellent sources for natural, organic grass-fed beef, pork and lamb. I was surprised that the cost wasn't nearly as expensive as I thought it would be. It really is true that you eat less when you have a higher quality of food.
I think this blog may turn into a series of how I'm preparing for leaner times, and altering my lifestyle to a healthier outlook. We'll see...
C'mon Pops...you really thought you'd make a better Chocolate and Peanut Butter cereal than Reeses? Really?
I admit, I spend most of my time on Facebook. I used to use LiveJournal a lot, then I used Vox for awhile, then I did nothing for a bit...pretended like I could stand to use mySpace for a minute, then ended up on Facebook where I wanted to develop applications using Platform. However, I kind of miss the old journals and I know some people refuse to migrate to Facebook, so I was glad when I found this facebook app called Blog It (powered by TypePad).
