Statcounter!

So, I do love the whole statcounter application and like to check periodically to see what google searches and otherwise are bringing visitors to the site. Lately we've had a decline in folks searching for either Sting's favorite pasta or Tom Selleck's Avocado ranch. Instead, people have been searching for "corn chowder" (seasonal, I guess...), toy assembly instructions and chuck taylor low tops. I also got a random search for "scarlett johannson boob feel". Do remember this is a family-friendly blog, so please keep the boob feel requests to a minimum.

In other statcounter news, to our mysterious reader from the Minneapolis area, I do hope you go to visit the AZ Gallery to check out the photo I'll have on display! I have read that the gallery is next door (or in some other close proximity) to the Tanpopo Noodle House!

I Think This Image Speaks for Itself...

That was the small backhoe in the yard to work on the drainline. Now that's done and the plumbers are coming back on Tuesday to finish the work and sometime next week we'll have the plumbing inspected. Downside? Tonight the washer hook-up must have come undone again because I had a utility room floor full of standing water. (Second time in four or five days... Ugh.)

But, on the bright side, we did give our materials list to Frank and he expects to have our floorboards in two or three days. We also did some test matching of stain on one of our old boards that the Husband had planed and a pumpkin pine board that Frank gave us and Minwax's "Gunstock" oil-based stain was a near perfect match for the color that our floors are now. It's just a shade lighter, which given that one of the goals of this remodel is to make the kitchen brighter, lighter should work.

Once the pluming inspection is done we can drywall the ceiling and essentially every other wall in the place, then once the new floorboards are down we can get the floor sanded. Once the drywall is done and the floor sanded the cabinets can go in. Once the cabinets are in, we can get the countertop templates made and have the floor stained/refinished. Meanwhile, Tuesday is the measure day for the utility room floor... the utility room floor will need to be installed at some point preferably before the kitchen floor is sanded (as the w/d will need to be moved out of the utility room and most likely into the kitchen while the work is being done...)

Monday is our big meeting with the folks from the HD and their subcontractor Carlos. So far all Carlos' guys have done was some light demo (while they did remove the cabinets and the ceiling, the plumbers and electricians have removed more of the walls than they did...) they have done nothing else. Carlos started off on a slightly wrong foot initially by filing our permits with the wrong township (who called me and then I had to pick them up and take them to the right township). Then when he and his guys showed up to do the demo he argued that while he would demo the ceiling, carting away the demolished ceiling wasn't in the contract (because that makes so much sense!) We figured that it was a good idea to meet with Carlos, our HD designer and the contracting company who hired Carlos to go over exactly what is in our contract, since Carlos seems to think that much of cabinetry installation is our burden, even though at this stage it seems like that's all we're really paying HD to do.

Tomorrow? Some plastering.

More Stuff and Dinner.

One backhoe later, we have a new drain pipe. We also have a large hole in the backyard. But the backhoe is still in the yard and supposedly tomorrow it will be filled and reseeded. The plumbers think they'll actually be able to finish all of their work tomorrow... then we have drywall people coming on Tuesday and a floor measure scheduled for the utility/laundry room also on Tuesday.

What's left? Well, a lot. We have to make our materials list for the hardwood floor this weekend and get that to Agincourt for fabrication of our floorboards. Then I have to find a new person to refinish the floors since Blue Knight wasn't going to be available until September (and they didn't seem too thrilled about doing the work anyway). Then we have to have the range hood vented to the outside, have the cabinets installed, have the granite templates made and have the finish electrical done. I also still need to order my faucet, pick out a disposal and compactor and order subway tile for the backsplash. But we do feel like we're making progress.

In other news, on the cooking front we bought a rice cooker! Last night we barbequed chicken kabobs on the grill and had yellow rice from the ye old rice cooker. Tonight? We grilled salmon on cedar planks (which caught fire, just a little bit), had more yellow rice and made fruit/bell pepper salsa. It was generally yummy. Shout out to the Mom who was in charge of grilling the salmon!

One More Thing.

Cashmerino Aran. I had been knitting a sweater for Baby out of Debbie Bliss' Cashmerino Aran and I ran out of yarn. Really I think I probably have the extra ball of yarn somewhere but I can't find it. Does my local yarn store have this? No. The Wooly Lamb? They do but not in colorway 300205. What about Rowan Denim? The Itty Bitty Hats book (which, I found thanks to Thisbe and could quite possibly be the best baby hat book ever!) has a nifty hat made in denim with a felted flower attached. Nobody carries denim, or at least it seems that way. Thankfully the Cucumberpatch has both! and they're being shipped *from the UK* for only $5 flat rate. How cool is that?

Today's Updates

Vin Diesel and his crew showed up this morning (I think there were at least three guys, possibly four, there were easily three trucks in the driveway...) to begin the day by putting a camera in the drain line. Yeah. That just sounds like already we're going to get expensive.

Then, I'm here at CLE. It's Professional Responsibility day. Midway through the first hour we lose sound. When this happened on the first day immediately an Eddie Haskell from the audience jumped up and went outside to complain. Today? We all just sat here. You hear a few chuckles from the back of the room. Then somebody says "we're getting as much out of this as we were before". They fix the sound after about 5-6 minutes. Is the tape rewound? Nope.

Next thing, the guy on the video says that we're going to be watching a few vignettes. I hadn't thought much of it. Then I realize we're watching the people on the tape watch vignettes. You hear music start, the lights go down. They're watching a video and we're watching a video of people watching a video. After a few moments the person who did the tape actually moved the camera and focused in on the screen, but it was a bit surreal-- watching a videotape of a show projected on the screen that we're watching this show projected on. Clearly film quality and sound were issues.

At least today I'm utilizing the free (?) wi-fi.

Zzzzzz

For some reason I am *so* sleepy right now (I suppose it could have something to do with sitting through this lecture on how to fill out the NJ transfer inheritance tax form...) I went to sleep not too late, woke up not to early and have been caffineated, but still... at any time my head is going to hit the desk.

What's Next?

Plumbing! We got a call this morning bright and early to say that the plumbers will be starting work tomorrow morning.

CLE: Day Two

Today's lecture is "Real Estate Closings" complex real estate financing transactions? Leasing? REITs? Nope. Residential house closings. Yeah, because I don't know anything about this. So far we've gone through a title report, survey, line-by-line of a form of house sale contract and right now we're going through a HUD statement. Line by line.

Again, this would be great for a first year who has never practiced and who plans to be a sole practictioner. If that's not you, then you've just wasted 6 hours of your life that you're never getting back.

The Batman

Sorry to go against conventional wisdom but, The Dark Knight? I thought it was boring. Really boring. We went to a 10:35pm showing and there was something wrong with the reels so they just kept showing us preview after preview such that the movie didn't start until 11! Then it was like two and a half hours long. We had watched a behind the scenes thing on tv and it talked about how Christopher Nolan didn't want to use CGI. Normally I would agree with that but come on, Gotham is supposed to be kind of creepy, not sunny Chicago. And Maggie Gyllenhaal? Sorry, I have to say even Katie Holmes was better. Thoughts?

OMFG

Today I'm doing my CLE for NJ. Unfortunately, for those of us who have joined the NJ Bar late, even if you have been practicing in another state for a dog's age you're stuck doing a first year CLE course (for a week, with homework). I'm at the seminar, I walk in and there's a giant projector screen with a lecture being shown. Is it live? Are we doing a video conference where the lecturer can see us too? Nope. It's a videotape. We've now actually lost sound.

I get to look forward to a whole week of this in an uncomfortable chair in a room with insufficient air conditioning! In NY I've been practicing long enough where I can do CLE via videotape, but I can do that at home, on my couch, thanks to a webcast (oh, and no homework).

Now the silence has just been broken by a Bon Jovi ringtone. Which I guess proves I'm in New Jersey.

Can I just say, my compatriots here are taking this very seriously, about half of them are taking notes on laptops. I'm getting bad flashbacks to law school.

A Portrait of America

I've had another photo chosen for a show! A picture I took on the Paris trip will be shown in the "Portrait of America" show at the AZ Gallery in St. Paul, Minnesota (the show is going on during the Republican Convention... so we'll see if they get some good foot traffic!)

Let Me Tell You About My Floor...

The hardwood floor people, as I mentioned before, really don't want to have anything to do with our floor. "It's below grade" Apparently, the American Association of Wood Floor Workers or something or other doesn't recommend installing hardwoods below grade. Okay, but 80% of the floor is already covered with hardwoods that looked pretty neat, why would I want to rip that up? So, we found a local guy who has pumpkin pine and other reclaimed woods at decent prices and they'll mill them for us. As with the bulk of our home improvement projects that which starts out with people doing the work for us usually devolves into us doing the work ourselves. For now it looks like we're going to be figuring out how to rearrange certain of the floor boards (very Tetris-esque) in order to patch the areas which don't have wood currently, and then attaching the boards to the subfloor (omg, there actually is a subfloor! Who knew!?!) Then either we'll be sanding the floor down or perhaps we can find someone who will do it... and then refinishing. Oy!

Otherwise, still waiting for the plumbing permit.

What Else is New

Today we passed our rough electrical inspection but it was day two of no work while we await word on our plumbing permit. The hardwood floor guy came by to give an estimate and basically wanted nothing to do with our floor, suggesting we pull it up and use tile or laminate. Needless to say that's not happening so instead we're off to find reclaimed pumpkin pine as there was no floor under the cabinets. Interestingly, though the floor boards did appear to be notched for the cabinets so it is not completely clear what came first... the floor or the cabinets? Either way it's staying.

On other fronts, tonight I made stuffed shells in the toaster oven... in an Emile Henry loaf pan (as I didn't buy a tinfoil pan when I was at Wegmans and the "disposable" bakeware that I did buy at Wegmans was not rated for either toaster oven use or for baking longer than an hour (neither of which was clear until you unwrapped the packaging...) The shells actually weren't bad!

Suede...

Husband noted he looks like top American designer Michael Kors! He's Michael's love child!

Today!

I don't have any new updates on the kitchen, except to say our plumber looks like Vin Diesel.

In other news, today Miss Baby and I spent the day traversing the tri-state area. On the last Wednesday of each month Grant Wilfley does an open casting call for SAG and non-SAG extras at their Connecticut satellite office in Stamford. We headed up north today to visit with Leda and to register. We met up with Miss Leda at her office and she showed us around the world's largest trading floor-- it was pretty nifty. It was like an airport terminal that someone filled with Bloomberg screens and traders. It was pretty neat that they have a catwalk above the trading floor so you can look down at everybody in the "pit" and get that human zoo feeling!

Next it was over to Progress Drive for our casting call (which Leda joined us for)... there were a few other people there including at least one real stage mom who brought props with her to make sure her tots smiled for the camera-- she also mentioned that one of her little boys had gotten a black eye this week and she was thinking she'd cover it with make-up. (Okay, can we say taking this a bit too seriously??) Of course she also had her own picture taken too (sorry to be mean but she really could have used make-up more than her tot...) If you're going to go there and everything you may as well comb your hair and throw on some lipstick, no?

Afterwards Miss B and I headed in to Greenwich to do some wandering around on Greenwich Ave. We stopped in to the world's smallest Saks (to replace a pair of sunglasses which have gone missing) and I actually got asked where I get my haircut! (I do have to say it was fun being able to say that I got my hair done in Paris!) It is starting to get a bit shaggy though so I'm going to have to visit Julien at FF sometime soon. We also hit up Jacadi (big sale), Vineyard Vines (small sale) and Starbucks for a slice of marble pound cake.

Unfortunately we didn't time things too great so on the way home we hit a *ton* of traffic once we hit the Bronx. We jumped off of 95 up the Bronx River Parkway to Fordham Road/Route 1 and proceeded to cross the Bronx on surface streets until we got to the Henry Hudson Parkway. The Garmin spent the whole time trying to get us back on 95. I think by now the British Garmin lady's head is spinning. Can I also say, something's telling me not too many people combine shopping in Greenwich with crossing the Bronx.

Plans for tomorrow? Stay local.

The Fortune Cookie

Tonight we got Chinese food from Tiger Noodles. The Husband's fortune was: "No job is so simple that it cannot be done wrong." I think quite an apropos nugget of wisdom for our current remodeling circumstances.

Take My Freezer, Please

More updates: Today should be the last day of the electrical work. Devi has brought another guy with him today who looks as though if Dave Ziskind has a relative in the electrical trade this guy is it.

While lunching in the dining room/make-shift kitchen today we heard a knock on the front door. It was a large tatooed guy (with headscarf) out in the drive way asking if he could take the old freezer (noting his similarly tattooed friend already had it on its side about to go into a pickup truck). (Thank God!)

Other news? The washing machine drains through a small rubber hose that has been snaked underneath our pumpkin pine floor. Sure, that's up to code.

Tour Notes...

So, what with all the kitchen stuff going on we've had less time to focus on the important stuff in life like... the Tour de France. Yup its been going on for the past few weeks and it ended today with the peloton cycling into Paris to do their last run on the Champs Elysses. This year's tour coverage on Versus was kind of lame. One of the guys who had been doing it for the past couple of years is no longer with them (but I have heard his distinctive voice on NBC lately... don't ask his name though, I have no idea...) and Versus loves to play the same four commercials over and over again. It's like they couldn't sell airtime to anybody but four sponsors. One of the sponsors is Saab (who's slogan should be: "born from old Jet parts"). What's made this worse is the Saab commercial in and of itself is repitious so you really feel like blowing your brains out after you've seen it by about the third or fourth time. Another Tour observation? Teams. The cyclying teams are always weird-- for example, why was Lance Armstrong sponsored by the US Postal Service for all those years?? Our stamp prices increase so Lance can get a new bike? But I digress. This year's winner of the wackiest team award has to go to the Garmin-Chipotle Team. I have visions of the Garmin side of the team leading the riders off of the scheduled route in order to get to the finish line faster but doing so in a way that is utterly circuitious and nonsensical (as this is what our Garmin ususally does when it's giving us directions). As for the Chipotle side of the team-- well, why don't you tell me... how well do you think Mexican food and endurance cycling would go together?

And, as usual there have been the "doping" scandals. Every other day it seemed like somebody was being thrown out of the race because they were using performance enhancing drugs... as if they thought they weren't going to be tested??

Finally, our hats off to Oscar Perrero who managed to fall off of the side of one of the cliffs during the race and land on the same road he had been riding on, just quite a distance below while running into some of the other cyclists. Oscar was out of the race but at least he only broke a femur.

A Few More Pictures...

Here's a picture of the large pile of electrical accoutrement that were unceremoniously ripped from the ceiling, etc. Oh, and that larger hole in the center of the wall? That is where a junction box with four live wires was hidden behind the drywall. But, in our favor is the fact that whoever put in the outlet below that hole left a note inside the box that the outlet was attached to "for the electrician" which diagrammed where the live wires were hidden! It's like a treasure map! (In fact, if you click on the picture you can see the note which has been tacked onto the wall near the larger hole-- the front side is addressed to the next electrician, the back side which you can't see shows the diagram...)





This is a picture of the doorway sized hole that was behind our fridge. If you were to cut a hole in the drywall that covers the backside of this hole you'd have a doorway to our boiler-room... woo-hoo! Guess that cinder block wall between the kitchen and utility/boiler room isn't load bearing after all!

Here's the remnant of another receptacle that was walled up behind a false wall... if you click on the picture you can see the spiffy wallpaper that used to adorn the kitchen. It looks to be some sort of red/maroon argyle pattern. Any guesses as to what decade that's from??

PR!

Okay so Stella totally thinks she's Cher circa 1976 and what's with Suede talking in the third person?? Carry on!

Food Glorious Food

Having to prepare all of our food in the dining room in a make-shift kitchen has started off as a good test in how to feed a toddler. When all you've got is a panini maker, toaster oven, toaster and a microwave you need to be creative. This morning I made scrambled eggs in the microwave (thanks to all those years watching the guys at Ess-a-bagel do it. However, I struck a miss this evening at dinner when I attempted to give the little lady the equivalent of a toddler-sized MRE. I should have known when the "Graduates Lil' Entree" didn't need to be refrigerated. At first she was a good sport, trying the chicken, mashed potatoes and carrots but after about three bites she just looked at me as if to say, "Lady, you took me to Paris and you expect me to eat *this*?"

During the first week of August, while I'm toiling away at a week long NJCLE seminar, the Mom and Dad will be watching Miss B so I've complied a few food tips for the care and feeding of Miss Baby.

If "Cheese" is in the name, it's usually fair game. Case in point, macaroni and cheese, ham and cheese, cheeseburger.

If "Dog" is in the name, it's a no-go.. for instance: corn dog, devil dog.

Much like conjugating latin verbs, there are always irregularities. Chili Cheese dog? Well, cheese does appear in the name, but cheese is always overruled by the use of "dog". Chili cheese dog? That'd be a no.

Other irregularities include "roll" "roll" on its own, as in a round bread product, works. Lobster roll? That might work. Taylor pork roll? While I have succumbed to the unique goodness that is pressed pork roll I really think there is no place in Miss B's internal workings for that particular food product.

All this Kitchen Renovation Work

is making me sleepy...



Today we have the electricians! Devi has been our electrician from the start and he's very nice but he always seems to be a bit on the inexperienced side. Kind of like he might very well be a brain surgeon back in the Ukraine but lighting doesn't seem to be his thing. Thankfully, the electricians travel in pairs and they've paired him up with someone who supposedly has 23 years of experience, but either way electrician #2 has the appearance of someone who knows what they're doing. First they measured out the room and went according to the design to layout outlets/appliance receptacles and then they went over all of the placement with me. Now they're ripping out all of the old wiring that we don't need or is outdated (we requested this since the kitchen wiring has always been spotty at best). Then they're planning to bring back an extra guy tomorrow to start on the lighting, etc.

On other fronts, we think we may go with a hood inside of a piece of cabinetry rather than a hood with a chimney... I contacted H&H Gas and Appliance and they're willing to match Ferguson's price on the Wolf Rangetop and the hood price (which includes the needed blower) is much more reasonable than the hood plus chimney plus blower... of course then you have to add in the cost of the vent cover, but we'll deal with that. I'm supposed to visit Marilyn at the HD tomorrow...

Oh, by the way, did I mention the giant-door-sized hole that was behind the frige? Clearly, that's going to need to be fixed. And, for some reason the "wall" behind where the old cooktop used to be is some sort of metal sheeting afixed to a metal netting which was 'afixed' (by a method which is unclear) to the underlying cinderblock. Even our Ukrainian friend indicated that this was reminscient of a bomb shelter.

Real-Time Remodel Blogging...

So the guys are at the house now demo-ing the ceiling in the kitchen. They were supposed to come back and do it yesterday but there was a little mishap with the burglar alarm and alas they fled the scene (seemed fishy... can you say undocumented worker? That, alas, is Home Depot's problem...) anyhoo. They were supposed to come "this afternoon" which interestingly enough meant 4:15 but they didn't actually enter the house until 4:30 since it was raining outside and they didn't seem to want to leave their truck. By the way, the truck? It's got the road runner painted on it in multiple places and there are flames by the grill (you can draw your own conclusions, but it certainly is a spiffy custom paint job for whatever that is worth... pictures will follow). I think that someone out there is conspiring against me however as Baby went down for a nap a few minutes before the guys arrived (and began blowing the horn of their truck to get my attention... (said truck is of course outfitted with a novelty horn). I was hoping to catch a bit of a nap myself but alas, while so far it seems to not have disturbed Baby I can't really see myself falling asleep during demo. So instead I made crispy crowns in the new toaster oven which has been set up in our dining room kitchenette. Nothing says "new toaster oven" like that burning plastic smell you get the first time you use it. Especially when you have to put it on 450. I'm just shocked that the Dining Room fuse didn't blow. The sheer fact that I had the nerve to have the microwave plugged in simultaneously while using the toaster oven (let's not even think about *using* it simultaneously, I'm just talking plugged in here...) normally would have blown the fuse!

Tomorrow's adventure will be a visit from the electricians. We'll see how that goes. Oh, one last thing. Our Kitchen sink's drain line is the last drain connected into the main drain line for the house-- every other drain is above the drain line but the kitchen sink drain is more parallel to the line and it links a short distance before the drain leaves the house. Carlos and the boys forgot to cap the drain line last night when they left. This obviously necessitated a trip to HD to pick up a cap. Oh, and let's not forget that while they did "shut off" the gas line to the cooktop (there is an emergency shut off valve about an inch from where they cut the line), they didn't cap the cut line for that either-- they just put some electrical tape over the end. Thank god we're not smokers.

The Kitchen

remodel has begun.

















After Demo...

FYI...

USA Quick Facts from Census.gov

Weef in the City!

As noted in the post below, yesterday started off with a bang! Then, as I'm walking into Penn Station (okay, fighting through the horde of passengers exiting my train in order to get up off the platform and into the station...) I hear the muffled ring of my cell phone. It's the Husband. Turns out Bar Americain, though having taken our 11:30am reservation via Open Table last week, is "closed" and has to cancel our reservation. Emily from Bar Americain didn't say why (I'm guessing private party, though who knows, it could have been the health department ;) she was nice enough to get me another reservation at The Modern once I told her Mesa Grill was too far for our travels. However, after thinking on it, I remembered Blue Fin located right in Times Square... called them and got us a 12pm reservation (as power was down on portions of the New Haven line the ladies were running a few minutes behind...). I headed to TKTS where the ladies met up with me and we got tickets to Young Frankenstein! I was a bit shocked that the TKTS 50% off price was still $66 (mostly shocked that it meant the tickets regularly go for over $120!) eeoch! We managed to get out of TKTS by 11:15 so we headed over to Muji at 40th and 8th in the New York Times Building to do some shopping-- neat store, kind of a higher priced, much more serene IKEA (with clothes) I got a set of the New York Blocks and some office products. After shopping we headed back uptown to Blue Fin where KK joined us for brunch.

Once we finished brunching we headed over to the Hilton theater for Young Frankenstein. The show was funny and the Mom would have enjoyed the tap dancing routine to "Puttin' on the Ritz". One of the most exciting parts of the day came next-- when we went to Juniors for little fella cheesecakes after the show! Can anyone say sugar high? Unfortunately it was like 95 degrees while doing all of this but the gals were troupers and we did take shelter in air conditioning wherever we could. Looking forward next to our knitting circle this fall!

oh, and ps. I got another double decker train on the way home.... double woo-hoo!

Woo-hoo!

I'm off to the city to visit with Leda and Mel... I'm on the 9:44am and shock of shocks, its a double decker! It is a perfect convergence of train travel-- a 67 minute train, air conditioning and I got an aisle seat with a normal looking lady next to me at the window. The rest of the car is full-- no stress about picking up sweaty stragglers in Elizabeth or being stuck sitting next to who-knows-who! I actually remembered my iPod and headphones and have knitting! Let's hope TKTS has tickets for something good!

Manic Crafting!

So the Husband had to go back to the office to work on a lease abstract (Hi Husband!) and Carlos the contractor left a message earlier today saying that our permits are in and the kitchen demo can begin which means I'm going to lose my sewing space for a while... what does all of this amount to? Manic crafting!

Yes, this evening while watching a) Jimmy Kimmel (until I found the remote under a pile of laundry) and b) French language television (apres remote recovery) I sewed up this nifty little sundress for Miss Baby.





The plan had been to finish the pants for the pants/top set that I made with the fabric from KK, but alas, my bobbin had navy thread and so I decided to be lazy and do that project which could be pulled off with said navy thread. Voila! navy polka dot sundress. Bloomers will follow under separate cover (I got too tired...) but thankfully the dress is long enough I think I can get away with coordinating bloomers from another one of Miss B's outfits in the mean time.



This project was pretty simple given that the fabric (it was a remnant!) came pre-smocked... all I had to do was sew up the seams, sew front and back panel together and make the straps.



It's all very Project Runway. I find that during Top Chef, I really put the cooking into high gear and PR inspires more daring crafting. If only Bravo would come up with some sort of knitting-based reality competition I might finally be able to finish my backlog of knitwear projects. (Don't even get me started on my needlepoint...)

Henry Moore at the Botanical Garden!

The New York Botanical Garden is having an exhibition of Henry Moore sculpture (and they're hosting a photo contest about it!) Who's with me?

The Flux Capacitor

Our electricians came by today. It seems as though the permit from the township for the new electrical work in the kitchen has been issued, so they wanted to take a closer look at things and put together a material list. Today we had two guys-- the same guy who came by to give us the initial quote and a second guy who seemed, at first, like he had a better grasp of electricity than the other guy. Things were going fine until he started to give us the sales pitch about some of their other "products". This is electrical work. The only products we want are lights, light switches and wire. What more is there? Apparently there is this "machine" that can both act as a whole-house surge protector and can also reduce the amount of watts (or amps, I really wasn't paying attention) that one actually pulls from the main feed, thus reducing your electricity bill. The guy gave us some mumbo jumbo about how when you flip the switch on the machine it acts to somehow control the extra "wasted" electricity which isn't being used by inefficient motorized items in our home (such as air conditioners, the pool pump, ceiling fans, etc.) He claimed that motors are generally inefficient and they pull more power off of the line than they actually use. All of this sounded to me like the ye old "descrambler" boxes that people used to sell out of the trunks of their car so you could tap into premium cable channels (I'm not pointing any fingers or anything, 410e9th... ;) )... what was even better still was when one of the electricians went out to the van and came back in with a giant black suitcase to demonstrate this "product"! Inside the case was an electric meter, a box with two switches on it and a small motor. I felt like I was in an episode of Doctor Who, or better yet, that we were about to generate 1.21 Gigawatts!

I'm sorry, if I'm not erecting a giant windmill in my backyard through which I can actually sell power back to the Power Company and out onto the "grid", then I'm just not interested.

It's 2:26am, What Do You Think You're Doing??

I just finished watching Cassandra's Dream. I have mixed feelings. But it does make me more curious to see In Bruges as Colin Farell wasn't bad. I guess he's trying to make up for Miami Vice.

Long Way Down!

Will be airing on Fox Reality starting August 2nd! Check out Charley and Ewan as they travel from John O'Groats to Johannesburg!

Houston, We Have Problem.

So I'm furiously trying to revise a 142 page Loan Agreement while the Husband and Miss Baby are heading up to Chipotle to pick up dinner. I get a call. It's a cell phone number I'm not familiar with. On the other end? "This is Mike from Chipotle." "Okay." "We are in the process of making your order and we've encountered a problem." (I submitted our order via web about a half an hour ago, so no standing in line for the Fam!). "You've asked for pinto beans in your vegetarian bol." To which I respond that I know that the pinto beans are made with bacon and that the Husband isn't really a vegetarian he just likes the vegetables (which is a polite way of saying he wouldn't hit a dead dog in the butt with the Chipotle meat products...)

Do we really need to waste human energy with things like this?

And here I am, telling you about it. And, you're reading it!

Maybe next time in the "notes" portion of my internet order I can say-- I KNOW, THE BEANS ARE MADE WITH BACON!!!

Who knew vegetarians could be taken so seriously.

The Regular Baby Look

Grown out of that onesie? Just cut off the snap part and voila! you've got a t-shirt!

The New Yorker...

With all this hullabaloo about this week's New Yorker cover... I think it's suspicious that mine hasn't shown up. Sure, last week, the Town Topics arrived a day late, today no New Yorker... if US isn't in the box on Friday, I'm calling the postmaster, that's all I'm saying.

Facebook.

Thanks to the magic of Facebook I can now know that the random guy I was poorly set-up with on a "blind" date in college (you know, the 5 foot 6 inch gymnast who kind of looked like Steven Spielberg and who was sent to Kiribati by the Peace Corps after graduation) has a hairline that appears to have receded all the way to Detroit.

France's Newest Additions...

The Jolie-Pitt Twins have arrived! (As the Mom noted, Kathy Lee Gifford mentioned on the Today show that this will quickly take the wind out of the sails of Matthew McConaughey's son being the "most beautiful baby" in Hollywood.)

An American Haunting...

We live in a house that is from 1760. Okay, so not all of the house is from 1760 (though from the wiring in the kitchen you'd never guess it wasn't that old!), but our dining room/library/nursery are, and in houses that old there are bound to be some wacky things that have happened in all those years. A while back, the Mom swore that one day during one of her visits she could hear footsteps following her down our lower staircase. Ever since she's be convinced our house is haunted. Now I've heard rumbles and grumbles before (finally figuring out that some very large grumbles are actually emanating out of the local quarry when they do blasting activities (!), but I really didn't think too much about the haunted thing until just recently.

One night the Husband came home late from work and I had been hanging out in the kitchen. He came into the kitchen and we were chatting and then we both heard a woman's voice, from behind where the Husband was standing. Husband though he heard her say "Anna". I heard a distinct voice with a two-syllable sound. We looked around-- no talking toys (a frequent contributor to household background noise these days), the cat hasn't learned to speak, the Husband's talking cell phone was in the family room. Nothing. Now I'm sure there is a logical non-paranormal explanation for all of this, but it was a bit creepy.

When you have a house this old (and you're a bit of a type A) you might find yourself doing research on the ownership. Needless to say I happened to have researched the census records for our town, cross-referenced against the deed records that the Husband had pulled together at Middlesex County's recorder's office. Turns out, according to the 1820 census there was an Anna who lived in our town with the family who owned our parcel. She was 19 at the time. In 1870 there was another Anna (though, based on age information, not the same Anna from 1820).

Then, there's the picture, below-- this was taken in our family room. It looks like there's a hand in the frame. I took the picture, it's not my hand and my mom swears its not her hand. Wacky, no?

Radio Days...

So I'm kind of like John McCain in that I really don't listen to the radio anymore. (I had heard somewhere that Mr. McCain claims that he never got back into popular music after having been in the prison camp for 5 years...) for me it's been a considerably less drastic decline from radio listening. I blame the iPod. Now that I can have every song I own at my fingertips I have no need to listen to the radio. The radio makes me too tense anyway... to paraphrase Carrie Fisher-- I need instant gratification. I always found myself toggling between the various stations on the car radio because somewhere out in the airwaves might be that *perfect* song. Now, with the iPod on shuffle, it's just one button away... I can continually go through music I already know that I like.

To be fair, I do still listen to public radio (NPR and the Met's live Opera broadcasts-- which used to be a fave in college... sit on a Saturday afternoon with a dijon burger from the Ivy room studying to live opera? let me tell you that's a way to pack on those freshman fifteen... but I digress).

Before the iPod and a format change I was also a big fan of Mix 102.7 (the old Disco/Dance station out of NYC). Out of all radio stations I find that a disco channel has the highest likelihood of playing music I'll like.

Luckily, though, not listening to the radio has not made me completely out of touch with "today's music". I noticed this the other night when I was up to the wee hours drafting a Loan Agreement. I was in the kitchen and had on one of the music choice channels on tv-- it was "adult alternative" (I'm not sure why I stopped on this particular station...) but in the end I actually heard enough songs that are of the genre typically played in Starbucks/JCrew's dressing room/commercials for cars or soap operas that I recognized a few as one's I'd want to download. Finally, I knew the name of such and such and whatnot. Better than the radio which never seems to tell you who sang the song that you actually liked.

The other song-listening anomaly which I suffer from is repetition. Ana once remarked how in high school I would listen to the same song over and over again (in particular, "Get Connected" by Stereo MCs, which thanks to Miss A's mention I went and downloaded). Yes, even over fifteen years later my listening style remains the same. I'll get a song in my head and I'll listen to it literally like a broken record. How else could I have learned all of the words to "Whatta Man", "Shoop" and "It's the End of the World as We Know It"?

Moral of the story? iTunes gift certificates are always welcome.

Cabinets!

Babysitter!

Okay, so today is the first day when Baby seemed to be comfortable with Miss Babysitter. Since sneaking away from the family room (which I know, you're not supposed to sneak away-- but trust me, it works best)... I've been able to: 1) move wet laundry to dryer and put new laundry in washer, 2) unload/load dishwasher, 3) clean 2 tubs, 2 sinks and 2 toilets (whoopie!), 3) take pictures for two Ebay auctions, 4) send some work emails and 5) send some emails to prospective kitchen cabinet purchasers. I feel accomplished! ;)

Maternity Wear...

So, now that I have (thankfully) gone back to my pre-pregnancy weight, I still have these lingering items in my wardrobe known as "maternity clothes". Now don't get me wrong-- I had some maternity items that were really neat-- I got a really great dress on sale from Cadeau, I had a little (okay, large) Lilly Pulitzer dress and a neat DVF blouse. I also had some maternity items which weren't fashionable at all but served their purpose at the time and I couldn't have lived without (read: keds flip flops once my feet got huge and Liz Lange sweat-suit material capri pants that always kind of reminded me of those torn pants that the Hulk wears...) I also had a couple of great items that weren't maternity but were big enough to cover the bump (a great purple CK top, a black Club Monaco stretchy dress that I had had forever... etc.)

In order to have gotten to the place that I am today I not only had to lose a bazillion pounds of water weight and actual weight, but I also had to donate/throw away/burn things like the Hulk pants noted above. You can't lose weight if you still have clothes that comfortably fit your post-pregnancy body-- hulk pants? You're out. This brings us to yet another category of clothes: Transition items bought after Miss B arrived but before I could fit into my old clothes. While I have some things that I wore while pregnant that I will still wear today (the CK top noted above, the club monaco dress and a few other things that only walk that fine line between "is it maternity or is it memorex"), some of the transition items are things I never want to see again. Case in point-- a generic pink Ralph Lauren polo shirt. I wore it so many times last summer I never want to see it again.

One more thing to add: Luckily, my feet went back to their old size.

Updates!

Tomorrow, between 8 and noon-- the cabinets arrive!

Dinner!

Tonight I made Ina Garten's take on Chicken Milanese and it was good (we've made this before!) In addition I made a vegetable/couscous dish. I sauteed onions (half of one sweet onion, sliced) and then added a yellow pepper (cut in large chunks), zuchini-- sliced thin and then quartered, and eggplant quarters. (I had cut up the eggplant ahead of time and tossed it with kosher salt to draw out any bitterness). I added olive oil and some balsamic vinegar to the mix together with freshly ground black pepper, some salt, basil and oregano. Once the vegetables began to soften I added a half a can of diced tomatoes to the mix. I let this simmer, covered until the vegetables were tender. Then I wanted to add a box of Near East Couscous (Parmesan flavor...). I poured the contents of the couscous spice sack into a bowl and added some water-- eyeballing it to make sure that once the water and spice sack mixture was added to the vegetables there wouldn't be too much liquid for making the couscous. I whisked the spice sack contents with the water and then added the mixture to the vegetables. I turned the heat up and once the liquid in the vegetables was bubbling I added the couscous, turned off the heat and covered the pot. Five minutes later-- poof! Puffy couscous surrounded by tasty vegetables.

Quantum of Solace...

It's the new James Bond movie... opening November 7th!!

Cry for Help (aka Save Me from Dessert...)

Okay, someone needs to take away the peanut butter and jelly bars because I just keep eating them!

La Samaritaine....

So, here's the latest news on La Samaritaine... looks like LVMH will be turning the old girl into a river-front hotel, to open in 2013, so long as the "town hall" approves it. Let's hope they'll keep their rooftop cafe, complete with croque monsieurs!

The Numerology of Bruce Willis...

While watching The Fifth Element this evening, the Husband took stock of all of the movies that Bruce Willis has been in with numbers in their titles.

We've got: Die Hard 2, Die Hard with a Vengance (aka Die Hard 3), Live Free or Die Hard (aka Die Hard 4.0), Four Rooms, the Fifth Element, the Sixth Sense, Lucky Number Slevin (we think this is close enough...), The Whole Nine Yards, the Whole Ten Yards, Twelve Monkeys (and Ocean's Twelve), Sixteen Blocks and That '70's Show.

These were just the ones we could remember. A quick IMdB search revealed that he was also in a movie called "The First Deadly Sin" and did a cameo in Loaded Weapon 1
Now if only we could somehow harness this in to a fomula for accurately predicting lotto numbers...

Weekend!

Yesterday we went to visit the Thisbe Family for their annual Fourth of July bash (which yes, was technically on the Fifth of July!) Much fun was had by all and the sliders were *really* tasty!!

Today's big excitment was a short trip to Sesame Place!

Five Seasons of Fabulous!

Project Runway is back on Bravo!, this month... as they say, "watch what happens"!

Random Observations...

Two nights ago the Husband called me out in to the backyard. With all the lights off and the moon dark all we could see in the woods next to the yard were a thousand fire flies. Their twinkle reminded me of the random sparkling of the Eiffel Tower (but slower, in New Jersey, and with bugs).

Today makes day two both i) with no bottle for Miss B, and ii) abandonment of the big plastic tub in favor of the really big tub!

I feel as though I'm clearly getting waaay too old. I saw another add for Lollapalooza 2008. I remember fondly Lollapalooza 1992. Eeek.

Tonight we made a well calculated run to our local Baskin Robbins for their new soft serve (meaning that we no longer have to drive all the way to Hamilton to get drive-thru Dairy Queen!) (And people wonder why their is an obesity problem in America-- here we are during dinner googling BR to find the nearest drive-thru ice cream joint.)...

Dinner and an Update!

Tonight's dinner was carrot soup, inspired by a vegetable soup that we had while we were in Paris. I started by sauteeing mire poix, then adding a bit of white wine and two cans of vegetable broth. To that I added half a bag of petite carrots (rough cut), about 6 or 7 small red skin potatoes (also rough cut) and some cut leeks. I let the vegetables simmer in the broth/mire poix until tender. I also added a bit of garlic, salt and pepper. Once the vegetables were tender I added a box of Pacific organic Roasted Carrot Soup (from WF) and a touch of cream. Used the immersion blender to puree the soup, served with herbed goat cheese toasts, umm!

In other fronts, we got a call today from the delivery folks to schedule delivery of.... the kitchen cabinets! They're going to arrive next Thursday! (Let the demolition begin!) Now we must begin the search in earnest for i) lighting, ii) an acceptable alternative to our poorly located radiator, iii) backsplash materials and iv) a faucet! Woo-hoo!

Would Someone Please

tell me why I'm paying for HBO when one of tonight's movie selections is Fletch??

We liked Anne Hathaway Before...

but we have a new found respect for her now!

Amazing Race... in French...

So, I was just watching "Peking Express" on TV5 Monde, aka France's answer to the Amazing Race. It's pretty cool, but I will say it's just not the same without Phil.

The Unusuals, aka Fox Force Five...

"Well, the way they make shows is, they make one show. That show's called a pilot. Then they show that show to the people who make shows, and on the strength of that one show they decide if they're going to make more shows. Some pilots get picked and become television programs. Some don't, become nothing. She starred in one of the ones that became nothing." -- Samuel L. Jackson, as Jules Winnfield, Pulp Fiction

Okay, so I'm not starring in anything ala Mrs. Mia Wallace, but yesterday I was an extra in an overnight shoot for a new ABC pilot, "The Unusuals". I fear this pilot may go the way of Fox Force Five, but I figured what the hell, I may as well give it a try.

I got a call on Thursday from C and G Casting about a shoot on Saturday night (note, I didn't realize at the time that it wasn't just a shoot on Saturday night, it was an overnight shoot, starting on Saturday, ending sometime as yet undisclosed on Sunday. On Friday I called in for more details and was told to wear a spring casual outfit and bring a change of clothes that were more business appropriate. I was then told to call back on Saturday morning for call time, location, etc. Saturday morning I find out that this is an overnight and that I need to arrive at 6pm at 4 West 43rd Street (aka the home of the Unification Church, otherwise known as the Moonies, who apparently rent out their auditorium space for extra cash...) our "holding" area.

I show up at 6, fill out my pay form, and proceed to pick out a table to sit to await further instructions. I sat with two older women (one easily in her sixties, the other probably seventy-- then again we all know that seventy is the new forty). After a little bit another older woman joined us (who was also easily in her seventies), as she knew the other two from previous jobs. I took this time to do some work for The Job (because nothing says "waiting as an extra" like drafting a Loan Agreement) and listen to the conversations all around. After a bit, I joined in the chatting asking about waivers and the union, etc. The ladies were Vicenza Terrence and a third who's name I didn't catch. Both Vicenza and Terrence live in the Village and have been on Law and Order! Most recently, they've been extras for Rescue Me. They were a hoot and very fun to chat with. After a bit the wardrobe lady came and assessed all of us. Luckily I got the thumbs up for my outfit, while unfortunately one of my table mates had to change out of her striped blouse and put on a sweater she had brought-- downside? it was cashmere and our holding area was decidedly not air conditioned. I was really a bit surprised that this whole extra thing is much of a "do-it-yourself" affair... the outfits that people had on totally ran the gamut. I guess in a production the director doesn't mind leaving certain things to chance!

After about an hour and a half or two hours the PA's called for extras number 26-77 (all of us non-SAG folk) to go on set. There had been rumors that we would be at Grand Central, but instead we were sent over to the subway station for the Shuttle. It was pretty neat-- the film crew had closed one of the subway entrances and had two subways and one platform cordoned off. We were put on a car (with A/C!) and told to await further instructions. Everybody was very sociable and chatty and I met a nice man from Brooklyn in his forties that just decided to give the whole acting thing a go. After a bit we were joined by Teddy (who I think must have been an AD) and told what the scene was going to be and what we would be doing-- a hand full of us were chosen to go out and populate another subway car where the shot would be taking place. Our group was cut in half, with the first bunch of people going in the car. Then the rest of us kind of felt like the kids who don't get picked for dodge ball on the playground. After a few more minutes though three more of us were taken into the car. A couple, and me. The couple followed Teddy into the car and were told to sit down, I was standing behind Teddy and when he turned around he asked me: "Were you brought in here?" I quickly said, "Yes". Then he told me to stand near the door, holding on to one of the poles. Turns out I got to be placed right next to the action of the scene-- I'm sure that when its all said and done my head will be cut out of the frame, but just so you all know-- I was wearing tan linen Eileen Fisher pants and brown Prada pumps. If this thing ever airs, you'll know those linen pants are me!!

We even were told to act! When the action of the scene took place those of us near the actors were supposed to react--- but Teddy specifically told us *not* to overact. When we were doing the rehearsals I specifically didn't really change my facial expression too much and one of the other extras made a comment-- to which I noted that there was no way in hell that I was going to be considered to be "overacting" and manage to get myself thrown off that subway car before we actually filmed anything! Noting that during all of this, one of the guys next to me kept talking to the "talent" which I had read before was strictly verboten. I kept waiting for one of the PA's to come and tell the guy to knock it off, especially when he started asking Harold Perrineau where he is living these days, and then started giving him suggestions on how to play the scene. We ended up shooting the scene four times, two different ways and then were sent back to holding!

Upon going back to the holding pen, Vicenza and Terrence had been joined by some other new faces and they wanted to know the details... one big detail to note is that by this time (after nine pm) we still hadn't been fed anything... but I guess that's all par for the course. I'll know in the future to certainly pack my own snacks.

We were all shuttled back to the subway station once more before we did get dinner (which was surprisingly good-- I certainly didn't expect to have mussels, clams and shrimp as part of the buffet) and then we hung out at holding until about 12:45 when it was back to set. During dinner the Sag Rep on set was hanging around by our table and answering questions-- one of the most surreal discussions of the evening was about the pay rate, union rules and availability of parts for playing the "victim" on Law and Order. Apparently, if you're in full body make-up it means an extra whole $18.00 per day. One of the other extras had driven up from Philly and she brought her dachshund with her. Vicenza noted that since we hadn't been asked to bring pets, the dog wouldn't be getting any money out of this "gig".

I can honestly say both that I have never spent so much time in one day on a subway car nor have I ever spoken to so many random people all at once. Everybody was amazingly nice (and a bit kooky, but I think that's to be expected... especially when you're sitting around underground watching stunt men do their thing at 3am). Also, on a funny note, there was one girl from Hightstown and Eugene, a Russian gentleman from East Brunswick. Eugene was in the scene with me on the subway car and at the end of the night we were instructed to walk up and down the platform for an "establishment" shot. When I asked him whether he was a full time actor he said that he wasn't-- he works for a mortgage company here in Princeton, but he did say that he'd like to pursue acting because, he "has a look". He said that "I don't have to be Robert DeNiro, but a few lines would be nice" (all said in a bit of a thick Russian accent). Eugene would be perfect as a Bond Villain (much like Dr. Gamburg) though a little on the short side.

Overall it was a neat experience, even if all I'm getting paid is about $100 for 11.3 hours of "work". It was great to see how the production happens and I do have to say I was a bit envious of the crew when craft services came around at 3:30 or so with a giant tray full of cannoli.

I finally got signed out after 5:00am, as the sun was coming up and got home by 6:45. It was kind of like overnight jury duty, except the pay was slightly better.

I will say, if nothing else it was an experience. If you're in New York, you have some free time and you're looking for a unique evening social event I say go for it, after all, somebody has to be that person in the background riding on the subway car-- why not have it be you?

Le Piano Oublié

Tonight we watched "Le Piano Oublié", aka The Forgotten Piano on TV5 Monde. It was a very well told French TV movie, essentially. But without commercials it kept us hooked such that we actually sat at the kitchen table and watched it on the world's smallest tv until it was all done. Now I'm watching Venus Beaute (Institut)(again)... love this whole foreign tv thing!

In the category of someone who will be needing a letter of reference soon...

Nancy Byrne, Executive Director, New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism was quoted in yesterday's Town Topics. Ms. Byrne is quoted as saying: "When you say 'New Jersey' people cringe." While this may be true, should it really be coming out of the mouth of the Executive Director of the State's tourism board???

The Oscars

That was tonight's final Jeopardy! category. The clue was (paraphrasing) "This person has earned 1 nomination in acting, 6 in directing and 14 as a writer."

All three contestants missed it (one said Orson Welles (!?!), two John Huston). Alex says: "The answer: "Woody Allen, oooo don't you hate yourself for missing that one? the viewers at home missed it too, no one ever gets this one..."

No Alex, you're wrong, me and most of the other Jeopardy! viewers in the New York area *knew* it was Woody Allen! How could you *not* know that???

Clerks.

Back in College, Leda and I were big fans of the movie Clerks.

"Just because they serve you, doesn't mean they like you."

Toy Assembly Instructions.

Congratulations! You've just bought a large overly plastick-y toy for your child! We know that you pride yourself on only feeding your child organic food, only dressing them in organic cotton and striving to only buy wooden toys made in Western Europe but let's face it, you can only do that for so long. Educational toys? Once toddlerhood hits that's out the window. Now let's get down to the real work-- assembly!

Did you think that after actually making a child from scratch you would be done with building things for a while? Ha! That was only the beginning. Yes, that's right, we've employed people at slave wages in a far off country to put together roughly 1/4of this particular toy. The rest is up to you. We know you're up to the challenge! As a starter, we've enclosed most of the screws that you will need. Please note, however, that we have not actually threaded any of the openings through which those screws are supposed to be screwed into. That part? It's up to you. (Noting, that to make this endeavor that much more exciting for you, we have enclosed screws that don't have pointy ends). As an added mental and physical challenge the depth through which said screws are to be placed will vary based on the location of the screw so if you start assembling this product with a short screwdriver you will be, in a word, screwed. You'll need a long thin screwdriver (noting that you'll probably have less torque with said screwdriver making it even more difficult to install previously described blunt screws). You can thank us later!

Also note that when building this toy we suggest that you attempt to break it, as that is really the only true test of seeing whether you have built it properly to withstand the force that is a toddler. Door-knob on little house door? We know it's flimsy. Good luck. You spend most of your day as it is trying to keep small household items from becoming choking hazards? Guess what, when your child attempts to rip the door handle off this product, or rip the door off its hinges, the screws? You're right, they will be choking hazards. See, and you thought this item would be providing your child with fun and excitement for months to come? I bet you didn't think that it would continue to occupy your time as well!

Once you've completed assembly don't forget the batteries! We specifically did not note on the outside of the package what kind of batteries you'd be needing because we thought you would appreiciate the surprise. Double AA batteries? Of course not, far too common! Triple AAA batteries? Do you have some of those lying around? Yes? Good, that's not what we're looking for. D batteries? I see you've bought some of those too, no, we don't need D batteries, alas you'll need three C batteries. Just enough to make that four pack of C batteries seem like overkill and one more than you could buy in a two pack. (Editorial note: -- This raises a question-- What about the B battery? Trust me, if we thought there was even a one in a million chance that someone in North America carried B batteries, you'd be driving out to Radio Shack to buy some). Wondering how an iPod can hold 10,000 songs and be as slim as a credit card but it requires Three C batteries to operate a small light bulb, sound effects for a creaking door and three versions of the alphabet song? We wondered that too, but we thought relying on gi-normous batteries would be a nice old school throwback to your own childhood. Fun, no?

Finally, thank you for your purchase and good luck!
You're going to need it.

America's Newest Homeowner!

Fung Wah Bus!

So I'm totally stealing this picture from 410e9th it was just too funny not too-- the infamous Fung Wah buses drive like maniacs on the turnpike!

Another Friend of Bill W.

I saw the above phrase on a bumper sticker today. Tell me, doesn't advertising that you're in AA defeat the purpose of it being Alcoholics Anonymous?

George Carlin...

Poor George. Someplace just got a lot funnier.

Below are a few quotes to remember him by:

"Most people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit."

"Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?"

"Some people see things that are and ask, Why? Some people dream of things that never were and ask, Why not? Some people have to go to work and don't have time for all that."

"Don Ho can sign autographs 3.4 times faster than Efrem Zimbalist Jr."

"You will not hear me say "bottom line", "game plan", "role model", "scenario", or "hopefully". I will not "kick back", "mellow out", or "be on a roll"! I will not "go for it", and I will not "check it out". I don't even know what "it" is!"

Cookie Monster...

The Mom advised of this great quote from Cookie Monster this week: "Me been there, Me have crazy times in the 70's and 80's. Me the Robert Downey Jr. of cookies."

You can also see Cookie answer the Proust Questionnaire on NPR...

More Things We Love...

that Starbucks sells a "Kid's" drink (aka 8 ounces of Milk), this concept, combined with drive-thru Starbucks can be a life saver.

A New Hope...

MSNBC published a list of 10 Weekend Getaways for the summer. Included in this list are exotic destinations like Rekyavik and the Azores. Also included? New Hope, Pennsylvania. Okay, so they have suggested the entire Bucks County region, but they do specifically mention New Hope. We went to New Hope last weekend. Mind you, it is a cute town, there is at least one decent antique shop and there are a couple of restaurants that look promising, but really, the place is on par with Helen, Georgia (and I say this and I'm about a thirty minute drive from the place, let alone 1.5 hours from New York or 2.5 from Baltimore, etc., etc.) There are one too many shops selling tie-dye and patchouli and there are also a few too many biker types for this to be a top weekend destination. As an FYI, Lambertville, NJ across the Delaware River looks a bit nicer... but I still wouldn't suggest to anybody that its a place you'd want to actually fly to get to!

An Open Letter to Wait Staff--

Yes, that's right, I've come to dine at your establishment and I'm ballsy enough to bring my child along with me. More realistically put, my child needs to eat and I am merely a food-stuff facilitator. I kind of like to think of myself as mom-slash-personal-assistant-slash-handler and I'm handling Napoleon's ID. Think of me more as those people who do advance work for the President, or for Castro.

Now that I'm here, let's try and work together to make this as enjoyable (or at least as less of a teeth-clenching and hair-raising) experience as possible. Here are a few ground rules to govern our relationship, or a list of demands, as you may see it:

1) I intend to leave you a large tip. Recognize this in advance. I feel it is necessary and perhaps the only way I can secure the ability to return to your restaurant in the future and as a small compensation for the cheerios and other detritus which we will be leaving behind, under our table and spread about a three table radius of the high chair/booster seat when we leave. (Case in point-- a hamburger bun strewn on the floor, under the table and stepped on at Brasserie? This alone warranted 30%).

2) The minute our butts hit the chair at whatever table you've stuck us with (understanding that it will most likely be the most undesirable table in the place, farthest away from (x) other diners, (y) your colleagues lucky enough not to have gotten us assigned to their station and/or (z) anyone with all of their hearing) you need to immediately bring us a bread basket. It doesn't need to be free, it just needs to be full. The key to a happy, quiet child? One who's mouth is full. Nothing can quite accomplish this as quickly as carbohydrates.

3) Now that we've gotten the bread, take our orders and bring us out our food as soon as humanly possible. Appetizers? Bring out everything as soon as it's ready. Entrees? We'll take them ASAP and leave the appetizers right where they are. The bread? Its novelty is fleeting. We'll need new and exciting food options about every 7 to 10 minutes (and that's if we're lucky). A European, relaxed dining experience? If I wanted that I'd have stayed in France. What we both need to understand is that I'm on borrowed time. I've got exactly two pieces of bread, eight forkfulls of kid's sized macaroni and cheese and about ten french fries before I've got to get the check and get the hell out of here or you're going to start to see fireworks. In that time I've got to not only feed my little one but I've also got to order my own food, consume it and pay the check. Trust me, speed is key.

4) Bring me whatever I ask for, no matter how odd it may seem. A glass of ice cubes, a shrimp fork and some lemon wedges? Spare napkins, ketchup packets and two wine lists? Whatever it is, just bring it. Keeping a baby/toddler/child happy in a public eating establishment is less of a balancing act and more like trying to defuse a small explosive device. If I need ice for my sippy cup understand that in that gi-normous diaper bag I'm straddled with I don't have a sno-cone machine. There's only so much a person can carry without having to hire a sherpa, sometimes you just can't be that self-sufficient. Bring me a glass of ice. If I ask for ice water, I'm not asking for "cold" water, I'm asking for "ICE" water. If [insert name of your favorite celebrity] were eating at your station and [he/she] asked for ICE water would you bring them cold water, or a glass of ice with water in it? Ever see that movie "As Good As It Gets"? Well, until a human being hits about the age of 10, we're all about as OCD as Jack Nicholson. Understand that as a parent, I have been through this drill every day since my little person was born. I know what she likes and can anticipate her needs better than you can. If I need ice (or lemon wedges, or extra napkins or whatever) to avert a meltdown, bring it. I'm not asking for you to negotiate peace in the middle east, I just want some ice.

5) Understand that your help in these matters is appreiciated and this can't be a successful endeavor without you. Trust me, neither I nor you want to interrupt the other diners, I'm doing my best but I can't do it alone. I also can't live for the next eighteen years only going to drive-thrus. When in doubt, just remember rule #1 above.

Westport, CT and the GWB...

(On the Post Road Bridge)























(At Compo Beach)

























(Ocean view)





















(Crossing the Bridge)





















copyright 2008

Adventures in Homemaking...

The other day I met up with KK, who I hadn't seen in forever, and she gave me some wonderful fabric (alas, we are both sewers and knitters!) So, I started to make a little top and pants set for Miss B...

(Front)

(Back)

(Pants, in process...)













I also used this as a chance to make a little dress and bloomer set out of some neat batik print fabric I had hanging around and some coordinating striped fabric (which started out as a quilters "fat quarter"-- turns out the "fat quarter" (which were on sale this week at Jo-Ann for 99 cents) is the perfect amount of fabric for bloomers-- with extra to spare!




I didn't use any formal patterns, just used the top/pants set for comparison for sizing and an existing pair of bloomers for size purposes. Not bad, I guess all that paper folding in art class as a kid has finally come in handy!

Audition

Yesterday I read a review, in the New York Times, of "Audition", the Barbara Walters memoir. In his review, David Kelly writes:

"In the prologue, Walters recalls that during her years on the “Today” show she would leave her building at 5 a.m. every day, usually with a garment bag. Outside, the “ladies of the evening” thought she was one of them, only more successful. “I would get into this long black limousine with its uniformed driver, and we would glide off into the early-morning light. And you know what effect all this had on the ladies? I gave them hope. Perhaps this book may do that for you.” On behalf of the millions of people who have been on the streets of New York at 5 in the morning and know what it’s like to give hookers false hope, I’m happy to say: Mission accomplished."

It just made me laugh.

Things We Love...

The Panini Press (Krupps, thanks to the Mom and Dad) perfect for making sandwiches for Baby!

Bliss' Lemon and Sage Soapy Sap (makes bubbles for a bubble bath that actually last, and who doesn't like the smell of lemony goodness?)

Jo-Ann Fabrics (Truly the home of pre-recession pricing-- with the exception of patterns, of course-- it's great you can go in there, by things for multiple projects and it's all under $15.00. Today I got fusible binding, two packages of elastic, two spools of guterman thread in fashion colors, fabric for two projects and a "fat quarter" of quilting fabric for $14 and change.)

The Ye Old Blackberry (for some reason, I can now check my AOL account from my Blackberry--- woo-hoo! Yet another way to waste time on the web anywhere at anytime!)

iTunes (okay, so I do have a love-hate relationship with Apple, but after watching a wacky French film ("Pur Week-End") last night on TV5, I was able to go on to iTunes and buy two songs heard in the film, including one that is considered Yiddish Hip-Hop.... how random is that?)

Lovejoy

For years and years one of the Dad's favorite shows has been Lovejoy, a British import formerly on A&E, with Ian McShane in the title role. You rarely see Lovejoy on tv these days, but interestingly, on Sunday nights one of our PBS stations has been showing them. This Sunday's episode is one in which Lovejoy (a crafty antiques dealer) has been recently released from a short jail stint after having been wrongly convicted of dealing in stolen property. What did Lovejoy do during is time in prison? "I've begun writing a book on Spode."

Fortunes for Babies

Last night we had PF Chang's for dinner. Sophie's fortune? "You'll soon make a big first step".

TV5 Monde!

The Husband had me call Verizon the other day to see if we could get the "triple play" package rate for our cable, phone and internet services since we already had all three but weren't getting any discount. So, I called and got us the discount and at the same time signed us up for the French language tv station TV5 Monde. We're been watching it ever since (the cat is in all her glory). Tonight we were watching some sort of variety program called Les Annees Bonheur and they had George McCrae singing his disco one hit wonder "Rock Your Baby". So he comes out on stage followed by a pack of dancing girls and I notice that all of the dancing girls have on the silk orange and pink Marimekko print top that I bought earlier this season at H&M. Talk about random!

How to Beat the High Cost of Living, Part Deux

Check out the Book Sale at the library in Rocky Hill. Today I got two hardcover books for $1.00! (It was half price day) Tomorrow? It's $5 bag of books day! And, Miss B and I also hit up an estate sale-- we're now the proud owner of a pair of Staffordshire dogs-- Score!

Momzilla

We're on our way out the door to go to Gymboree this afternoon and I'm carrying all twenty odd pounds of Sophie (who's got a bottle herself), my overfilled purse is on my shoulder, I've got a burp cloth, lip gloss, a hairbrush and a mini bottle of Poland spring in my right hand. This is all a long way of saying I've got my hands full, as usual. I walk over to the Wagon and I happen to spot an evil looking spider on the roof-rack/side-rail thingie. Now I know-- the spider is black, the rail is black, the garage is dark-- how the heck did I see this thing? I have no idea, I just have this wacky hightened spidey sense. So, what's a mom with her handsfull to do? Bend her right leg and step out of her three inch platform sandals-- grab said sandal with "free" left hand, whack spider with shoe, and proceed to go about her day.

It's What's for Dinner...

Tonight it's macadamia/panko crusted tilapia in a lemon garlic sauce with yellow rice and my favorite bell pepper and fruit salsa. This time I made the salsa with half of an orange pepper and half of a red pepper, roughly diced. I tossed those together and then added a little bit of very finely chopped jalepeno pepper (with seeds). Then I added mandarin orange slices (rough cut) and diced pineapple. To that mixture I added some cilantro and lemon juice. I find it tends to be a nice light accompaniment to the fish-- great for summer.

Next week, in anticipation of not being able to do theme weeks (other than "Microwave Week" and "Toaster Oven Week" during the kitchen reno...) I'm going to make some of the recipes from this month's Food & Wine. They have a fish and chips recipe that looks good, a take on the traditional tuna melt-- a tuna and gruyere pannini and a sun-dried tomato flan. We'll see how it goes!

Gemini's Twin...

As always, I love to read Miss B's horoscope. In this month's InStyle Magazine, it advises that "you choose clothes in classic shapes and styles but continually reinvent your look by wearing them with statement pieces from your vast collection of accessories."

Back in homeroom...

I certainly would have never expected this sentence out of Farah Abdi...

I, [State Your Name]

the Husband and I were sworn in yesterday to the NJ Bar. Surprisingly, the ceremony was quite short and to the point. But, no compliants. When its practically 100 degrees and you find yourself in Trenton, there really is no need to stick around.

Okay, People....

tonight is the Top Chef finale... as discussed with the Mom, we both think Stephanie will win. (Noting, however, that we're thinking she will win since a woman hasn't won yet... personally, I think Richard is the most talented of the three remainders...) Thoughts?

More Randomness...

Miss Baby seems entirely enthralled by the Judy Garland documentary from 1979 that we're watching. We were just flipping through the channels, but when we got to channel 200 Judy was singing a song and Miss B stared at the screen and has been enjoying each song since. This is doubly random considering that this morning during bathtime she clapped and danced along to Run-D.M.C. I guess it just goes to show, when you love music you can have diverse taste.

Ebay.

Before we went to Paris we invested in a Maclaren stroller. It was on sale for $99 at Babies R' Us as it was a 2007 model and they were getting in the new 2008's (as if these things were cars!). It was a really cute gray/pink combo and it was light as a feather and super easy to fold up. One afternoon let's just say it had a bit of a run-in with the wagon while I was backing out of the garage. When folded it had a tendency to roll if you tried to stand it up and alas, when it was taken out of the trunk and propped up in the garage, I went to back out and it had slipped into the wagon's path. I had thought I felt something with the back tires and then I knew I had hit something when the front tires got it. I took it inside and the wheels were pretty bent out of shape and the plastic "hubcaps" were all scraped. I unfolded it and it had a bit of a distinct swagger when rolled. I thought that it really wouldn't do for the cobblestones of Paris so a new 2008 model was in our future.

What do you do when you have a stroller that you've rolled over with your car? Sell it on ebay, of course! So, after prying the tires back into shape with a screwdriver I took some pictures, described the condition of the stroller and posted the auction. After 7 days I had a winning bidder at $102.50 (plus $25 shipping...noting that this was more than I initially paid, before I drove over it!) This seemed great! Then I got an email from my winning bidder, asking how much shipping was to French Polynesia. You see, my auction specifically noted that international bidders were to pay actual shipping. My bidder, being a first time ebayer hadn't noticed this until after she won my auction. How much is shipping for a stroller to Tahiti? Approximately $80. Next thing I get a notification from Ebay that my winning bidder is going to send me $10,352.50 via personal check. Okay, I think to myself, that'll cover shipping. I then checked what the current exchange rate is from the currency used in FP to the US Dollar and basically my bidder had failed to make the conversion when noting how much she was sending by check.

Thankfully, a few hours after being notified of the $80 shipping fee my winning bidder agreed that she wanted to cancel the auction. This let me offer the item up to another bidder. The bidder who eventually ended up with the stroller paid $92.00 (yes, that's right a mere $7.00 less than what I originally paid) plus $25 shipping. When I checked my ebay feedback rating the new (rolled over) stroller's owner said: "Great Deal!" Gee, I was thinking the same thing.

Cooking and Baking...

On Monday we had salmon. I had gotten two salmon filets, some asparagus and wild rice at WF figuring that I'd figure out what to do with it when I got home. Originally I thought I would bake the salmon in the oven over the asparagus, but the salmon had the skins on and I thought I'd check some of my cookbooks for a different recipe. I had also picked up some pecan panko. In the Gourmet Cookbook I decided between salmon in a balsamic reduction (is there any other kind?) and salmon cooked on a bed of salt. I went for the salt!

It was pretty neat, if I may say so. The recipe called for two cups of sea salt/kosher salt to be put on the bottom of a pan, heat on high for four minutes or until the salt begins to smoke a bit. Pat your salmon filets dry and season with salt and pepper (I also added the pecan panko to the top of the filets... Then you place your salmon filets on the salt, skin side down. Cover and watch the fun begin until the salmon is cooked through. It was pretty nifty, I came back a few minutes later (after setting up my asparagus to roast in the oven in a citrus dill marinade and got the wild rice cooking) and there was my salmon all pink! Unfortunately, as we do not yet have an actual exhaust fan that exits the house, the kitchen has smelled like salt/salmon since Monday but the overall outcome was really tasty and incredibly easy. The salmon was nice and moist and was a great accompaniment for the asparagus and rice.

Then, tonight I made my version of cobb salad-- I threw in the kitchen sink including mini heirloom tomatoes, red peppers, ham, chicken, avocado, blue cheese, monterey jack and hardboiled egg. But, where's the challenge in putting together a salad? I also took my first try at Madelines.

Since trying honey madelines at Fauchon in Paris I had been on a quest to make my own. The Mom got me a bone fide made in France madeline pan and then it was just off to find a recipe. I had found a recipe on the web, the Mom had sent me one, there's one in Ina Garten's Paris cookbook, there's one in Baking with Julia, there's one in the Martha Stewart cookies book then there's one in "The New French Baker". Problem? They're all slightly different. The one on the web had me using unbleached all-purpose flour. Patricia Wells? All-purpose flour and under no circumstances use "unbleached"! Gourmet, Martha and Julia? All use cake flour. Turns out the difference between all-purpose flour and cake flour has to do with the gluten content and thus the "toughness" or doughiness. Bread flour has a high gluten content, all-purpose is a blended flour with intermediate gluten levels, cake and pastry flour being those with even less gluten so they are considered "softer" flours.

Then, to add even more confusion to this process, some of the recipes have you baking at 400, some at 350, some at 375. Some people have you refrigerate the batter for up to an hour before baking. It seems there is little consensus in the world of madelines and of course, I couldn't find the "official" Fauchon recipe.

I ended up going with the Gourmet recipe, even though it called for cake flour and all I had was unbleached all-purpose. I also wanted to try and make these "honey" flavored like what I had at the Place de Madeline so I used three spoons full of Fauchon acacia honey once the batter was final. The end result? Really tasty! The color was a bit uneven (the shell/fan side was a bit more brown than I would have liked which I attributed to the fact that I had buttered/floured the pan) but that's something I can work on. I figure next time I'll get some cake flour and maybe try the Julia Child version. One of my cookbooks also had a chocolate/orange recipe-- I think I may just try the orange... we'll see what a little Grand Marnier can do!