Frog and Goat

Today the better-half had something to return to Tuesday Morning (if you don’t have a Tuesday Morning in your area, it is a store that sells household goods for 50-80% off) before the time expired on returns. What was he returning? Something he purchased for his mother’s birthday. We got it home and it didn’t work. Have I mentioned that nearly everything we do for her ends up this way?

The store has been closed for the last few weeks for restocking and we were worried they wouldn’t open in time for the item to be returned. Although, honestly, they would have either given us our money back or I was prepared to make a scene. While the better-half went through the process of getting his money back, I wandered around. I couldn’t really tell what “new treasures” were there since it looked like the same old stuff piled on top of the same old stuff.

Continue reading →

Yesterday I stopped by a produce stand on the way home and bought 2 ichiban eggplants, 4 ears of sweet corn and a 25lb box of #3 tomatoes. Total cost? $6. Eating canned tomatoes in the middle of winter? Really tasty. (You didn’t think I was going to throw that lame “priceless” in there, did you?)

I pulled back the husks of two ears of corn and de-silked them. Then I wrapped a slice of bacon around the ear and tied the husks back around. We grilled them and they were really good, if a little singed. We decided to try again tomorrow by soaking the ears in salted water and then wrapping the bacon around and cooking on a cooler fire.

A good thing, I guess: last night when I was throwing the corn silk in our totally and completely lame compost pile, I noticed a piece of cabbage I threw away a month or so ago has sprouted with a baby cabbage. I can’t get jack in the way of vegetables to grow in the sunniest part of the yard, but the compost pile at the edge of the woods grows cabbage. Go figure.

I’m a little food-centric lately, aren’t I?

Another good thing: mailing the reminder of our vacation rental money. We’re a month away from the beach. Weeeeeee!

Mary Chapin Carpenter has a new song out called “My Heaven” and in it she sings about her own personal heaven. Since hearing her perform this song, I’ve been thinking about what I’d like to have in my personal heaven. Here’s an incomplete list in no particular order of importance:

-the chance to talk to my mother
-BBQ
-finding surprising music and good food (like the time we ate at the Green Mesquite and heard WST)
-flying without the aid of a plane
-driving a convertible Jaguar really fast and for a really long time
-the ability and opportunity to sing standards in a smoky bar (I wouldn’t care about second hand smoke because I’d already be dead)
-walking on the moon
-a limitless supply of vodka tonics and good solid draft beer
-a bowl of perfectly popped, buttered and salted popcorn whenever I wanted it
-the opportunity to know what sex is like for the opposite sex
-the chance to pee standing up (I want the freedom to whip it out and write my initials in the snow)
-the ability to right small wrongs on a whim (like making people say thank you when you hold the door open for them)
-snorkeling all afternoon without getting tired or too wrinkly

What does your version of heaven look like?