Smell is a very important sense. It has always been to me. I have always appreciated the sense of smell more than the sense of taste. I always felt that the sense of smell was stronger. Without the ability smell a person can’t smell their morning coffee, or when their dinner is ready, or the smell afterwards when it has just finished raining, the smell of freshly cut lawn, a loaf of break baking or a newborn baby.

But smell can also take a person back to a different time in their lives. It can take them home. I guess this is why aromatherapy is such a hit.

I was making breakfast for myself this morning. I was cooking a Basterorma Omelet and the smell hit me strongly. It took me back to my aunt’s house when I was ten years old and visiting Armenian for the first time in five years. I could see my aunt’s face and the feast she had put out for my parents, brother and me. There were jams and bread, cheeses, olives and fruit and also a Basterorma omelet.

Basterorma is a dried Armenian deli meat. You can eat it with bread or in an omelet. It takes weeks to cure but it is worth it.

I also remembered my parents making Basterorma when they first brought their house. They would make the sauce to coat the meat with and then hang to dry. My brother and I would try to steal a bite before it was ready but we’d always get caught. The smell of that meat was just too much but in the end always worth it.

Next week on the Network Food is Cook With Your Kids Week. I don't have any kids but I found most of the programs interesting and informative. I've filed most of the information under my kid portion of my brain. I am looking forward to viewing - Rachael Ray's Block Party on Sunday, October 3 at 9pm ET/PT.

Cook With Your Kids Week 

Happy Birthday to my baby brother who turns 28 today. May you have a wonderful year filled with security and finding your own place in the world. I hope it is also filled with health and surrounding yourself with good folks! I love you Jakop!

Some seafood recipes I want to share. They have been adapted from SouthBeach.

Stuffed Sole

4 thin cut pieces of sole
1/2 pound of shrimp
1/2 a pound of scallops
1/2 a cup of fennel or a tablespoon of fennel seed
mustard seed(whole or crushed)
celery seed(whole or crushed)
2 cloves of chopped garlic


Sauce for sole
1 clove of chopped garlic
2 cups of chicken stock
1 tablespoon of mustard

Cook the shrimp and scallops with the seasonings and garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil until seafood is cooked thoroughly. About 10 minutes.

Put the mixture in each piece of sole and tighten with toothpicks. Cook in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes.

While fish is baking prepare the sauce by sautéing garlic in a half a tablespoon of olive oil. Put in chicken stock and mustard and cook till sauce is reduced by half. Pour on top of the soul and enjoy.

Soutbeach Gumbo

1 pound of shrimp
1 pound of scallops
1 Green pepper
1 celery stalk
1 onion
1 leek
1 24 ounce can of crushed tomatoes
Few drops of Worchester Sauce
Few drops of Hot Sauce
Black Pepper
Clove of chopped garlic

Sauté the garlic in olive oil. When golden add the vegetables, black pepper, and cook about 10 minutes. Add the can of crushed tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the seafood and hot sauce and cook for ten more minutes.

We viewed Hellboy on Paperview this weekend. I liked it and I didn't like it. I thought it was clever to combine history with fantasy, but I felt the writing could have been stronger.

Friday and Sunday were a nice two days off. Saturday completely SUCKED!!

It was one of the worst days of our lives. But as Niel so wisely said later on "If this was a bad day we are pretty lucky".

We saw an ad for a dealership in Manhattan(Hyundai on 11th and 47th Street) and decided to try our luck there. We were shown a car we liked and agreed to purchase it at one price. Stupidly we gave them a down payment without talking to the finance department first. The car now was three times the amount we were originally told it was going to be. I know our credit stinks but three times the amount is absurd! We could have brought a new car with that! We tell them we change our minds and want our down payment back. They say no. They say we have to wait a week or two. First off you lie about the amount of money the car is, you lie about that you are the manager and you are not, why should I believe I will not get the run around and get our money back. So we flip out on them and call the police. We wanted a record of what happened with the city so we don't seem like we are trying to rob a dealership. The attitude of the people we dealt with changed really quickly when the law walked in. Thankfully Niel got the money back today in cash. We feel a lot better about that part. But we will wait a few more months just to regain ourselves before we go back out there. This does not make me feel good about househunting in the future. It was the worst feeling. I felt like we were talking to the devil himself. The total disregard for us as humans and consumers was terrible. I felt violated. We were in no condition to take the train home and thankfully Niel's brother picked us up. We both were a hysterical mess. I was a lot worse. I started to cry. I hate that! I try to call anyone we can think of cause now I just want to kill them. I still want to harm them but will do it through a legal process. Now that we won't have to sue them, I am just going to put a complaint through the Dept. of Consumer Affairs and their parent company. I may still call the local news so people can be warned. They took a feeling of "Wow we are so grown up, our first car together" to "Is this really happening?"
A lot of useless time was spent with a new salesman and getting the money for a down payment and the whole drama I mentioned above; we could have actually done something productive on Saturday such as keeping our date with Jennifer and Renzo to meet their new baby and we could have also seen the Stars Wars DVD Niel purchased.

Today Niel and I had both had this Friday off and we decided to go car hunting. Niel got a local paper and circled some cars he wanted to see.
I understood that buying a car meant a lot of research about cars and looking at them, but I forgot the part about having to speak to a sales person. Ewww.
Dealing with car sales people is disgusting. The ones we have met are so aggressive. They are such leaches. I totally understand their livelihood depends on a sale, but for the love of God, no means "get the hell away from me until I need you." We've had salesman (they have all been men) get angry at us, call us clueless and fat. Do you think we are going to get a car from you? I don't think so buster. This makes us not look forward to house hunting, which won't be for a while unfortunately and thankfully. Hopefully we will get a car soon and get this ordeal over with.

After going to four different places we decided to treat ourselves to a movie, Shaun of the Dead. Everyone must see this movie. It was so funny and sweet. I know its a strange thing to say about a horror flick but if you see it hopefully you'll understand. It's about these two British guys in the U.K. and a few friends who have to deal with a virus that is making people zombies. I am so buying this film when it comes out on DVD.

I discovered that a Michaels craft store will be opening in Queens. I was a little bummed when the Michaels in Forest Hills closed down a few year back, and now to have another Michaels in Queens will be so much easier than shlepping out to the island when I need something. Woopie!!!

The latest issue of Real Simple has a good breakdown about both presidential candidates. Unfortunetly there is no link to it so either pick up an issue or I can fax you a copy of that article. Just email me with your fax number. Maybe it will get some people to go out their and vote.

Last but not least Niel and I will get to meet our friends Jennifer and Renzo's baby girl this weekend. Can't wait.

One of my favorite childhood authors S.E. Hinton. (The Outsiders, Tex, Rumble Fish) will be publishing her first non teen book, Hawkes Harbor.

Everyone who reads this blog hopefully knows by now I don't care much for the Republican party, but I really think it is disgusting to treat this person with such disdain. Berkeley was the hub of free speech 50 years ago. Are we only supposed to have rights for Democrats or Liberals or like minded people? I think people are a bit too focused with being right instead taking care of each other.

It looks like Ms. Britney wedding was fake. Apparently there is some law in California prohibiting people from filing for a marriage license while getting a prenup. So her "real" wedding will be delayed. Some of the terms of her prenup was if she and Kevin Federline do divorce(snort)then he will receive $300,000 a year, but will not be allowed to discuss their marriage and any gifts over $10,000 will come with a legal notice saying who will receive the item after the divorce. I guess this is love in Hollywood. Or lack there of?

Did anyone watch the Emmy's on Saturday night? Who was that wacky old woman who won an Emmy? I think her name is Elaine Rich? I was so pissed that James Gandolfini did not win for best actor. I don't know why James Spader won? He was only on The Practice for a season before it was cancelled. Grrr.

I want to share some recipes that Niel and I have enjoyed lately.

Chicken Stuffed with Spinach

Ingredients for dish
1 Package of Frozen Spinach Soufflé
4 thin cut chicken breasts
1 Garlic minced
1 table spoon of olive oil
Ingredients for sauce
1 cup of chicken broth
1 teaspoon of mustard
1 minced garlic
Cook garlic till golden in olive oil. Discard garlic. While garlic is cooking cut the frozen spinach soufflé in four pieces and roll in the chicken breasts. Put a few toothpicks through the chicken to hold the chicken mixture. Brown chicken on both sides for 8 minutes and then bake in a 350 oven for 20 minutes. While chicken is baking make sauce. Cook for fifteen minutes on a low heat to thicken sauce. Pour sauce on top of the chicken and enjoy!


New Beef Burgundy

Ingredients for dish
1 cup of whole wheat flour
pinch of salt & pepper
1 lb of beef cubed(if you cannot find beef cubed, get a whole piece of meat and cut away)
A cup of pearl onions
A package of mushrooms
2 pieces of garlic minced
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 cups of red wine(the kind you would drink)
4 cups of beef stock

In a Ziploc bag shake the cubes of beef and flour and salt and pepper mixture. In a large pot with a table spoon of olive oil cook the beef till browned. Remove the beef and put on a plate. Cook the mushrooms, garlic and pearl onions till done. About 10 minutes. Add back the beef, the wine and the beef stock and let it come to a boil. After the boil lower the heat to the lowest setting and cook for 2 hours.
I cooked this the night before, let it cool and we let the dish sit (in the fridge) till the next evening and the sauce became very thick. It was so good!!!!!!!!
I think I will try some recipes from this cook for next week's meals.

If you would like more information on low carb diets then check out this link

Since today is the first day off Fall(ok not really till 12:30 this afternoon)I wanted to share some facts about my favorite season. I found the information in Woman’s Day.

Autumn: The season of the year between Summer and Winter, lasting from the Autumnal equinox to the Winter solstice. A period of maturity or decline. When the leaves fall from the trees. Synonyms: Fall; Harvest.

The leaves change color in Autumn because during the Winter there is not enough sunlight or rain for photosynthesis, which is how plants make their food. In the Fall the green chlorophyll used for photosynthesis breaks down, revealing the leaf’s other break colors. Small amounts of these “Fall colors” exist in the leaves year round, but are masked by the chlorophyll. The reds and the purples of some trees are made from food trapped in the leaves after photosynthesis ends. Finally, the leaves turn yellow or brown as the tree’s waste breaks down.

In 2002 American consumed 42.2 pounds of apple products per person.

The largest pumpkin ever grown topped 1,000 pounds.

Nearly two billion dollars worth of Halloween candy is sold every year in the U.S.

About 280 million turkeys are sold for Thanksgiving dinners in the U.S. each year.

In honor of today being The International Day of Peace I found a short story by Maya Angelou I would like to share:

A Bridge Of Words
Fifty years ago, during a visit to Yugoslavia, I made it my business to learn Serbo-Croatian. While performing in the country, I was invited to a home to meet some other artists, writers, and composers. In the home was a grandmother. Her face was immediately struck with panic, when she saw me.
The host, hostess, and other guests came quickly and apologetically to me.
"Miss Angelou, please excuse her. She is 80 years old. She has never seen a black person before."
I greeted her in Serbo-Croatian, "Good evening, Madame." I asked, "Will you please sit with me?" She gazed at my face and then touched my cheek. Her hand then touched my hair and now my other cheek. She then called to her granddaughter. "Go and bring food and drink."
The grandmother began speaking to me so fast, I could not keep up, and we laughed. She left the room and returned with the grandfather. He screamed and turned quickly to escape; the grandmother caught him by the arm and guided him to the sofa. He sat on one side of me and she sat on the other. The grandmother told him I was a good girl, because I spoke a little Serbo-Croatian, he declared me a Yugoslav. Just a very dark one.
He asked, "Who is your father?"
"Bailey Johnson"
What a strange name for a Croatian. But I am sure I know him. Who is his father?"
"William Johnson"
"Vilyon? What does he do? I know everybody. I am 93 years old."
"He was a farmer."
"Oh yes, I knew him. His farm was just over the mountain. His father was better than he."
No one could have convinced the grandfather that I belonged to a different race and country.
The grandfather reached out to me because I tried to speak his language. If you make an effort and try to understand someone's world, you can overcome history, culture, and separation. This memory makes me weep with love and joy.

Sky Captain Rocked! The movie was so beautiful to look at. Kudos to the designers. I am very impressed with the actors ability to show all those emotions since nothing around them was real! The story line was thrilling as well. Jude Law is nice on the eyes and Gwyneth Paltrow has that old type of Hollywood beauty to her. The only other modern actress at the moment I can think of who has the same old Hollywood quality is Cate Blanchett. A fine film with a good twist!

Saturday it rained on and off. I had plans to see some movies and do some grocery shopping. I only ended up seeing one movie, Vanity Fair and did end up doing some grocery shopping. It was visually stunning. The director is Indian, so it had a lot of Indian themes to it, although it was set in England. Reese Witherspoon is a good actress. It kind of dragged on in the end though. I then went home and watched Emma and The Whole Ten Yards on Pay Per View. I really enjoyed Emma. The Whole Ten Yards was funny, but the writing was lacking. Matthew Perry pretty much carried it.

I wanted to share some more frames I had made. If you'd like to purchase any go to my frame site.

Halloweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!! 


Bug Frame 


Gardening Frame 


Tulips Frame 


Ladybugs Frame 


I am really enjoying the Scissor Sisterse song "Take Your Mama".

Vh1 has this new show called Inside Out. Cameramen follow around celebrities in a course of some months to see what it is being like that particular actor. The one I saw was the two part episode with Leah Remini where they followed her around during her engagement, wedding, pregnancy and delivery of her first child. VH1 or MTV should consider having a reality show with her. She is very entertaining. I remember when she was trying to make it as an actress on such shows as Who's The Boss and Saved By The Bell.

Today Niel and I are going to run some errands and see Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow. Niel's really psyched to see it.

Now that Summer is almost over Niel is back to his duties as scout master for a local boy scout troop. He shares some of the duties with another person. This means Friday night meetings, and occasionally sometimes up to three meetings a week, and camping trips. So this weekend he will be going on his first camping trip of the year. I am thinking of things to occupy myself with while he will be away. I think I'll go to the movies. There are some films I really can't see with Niel(Princess Diaries 2 and Vanity Fair);they'd torture him.

I know this position brings happiness to Niel as well as frustration. Like many relationships in life work, marriage, friendship, volunteer it needs nurturing. You have to water a plant to have it grow. When one person is organized and they work around a bit of chaos it can be aggravating. I am proud of my husband whatever he decides to do. In the end he needs to make himself happy and healthy.

Niel recently discovered that a neighbor a few doors down has been removing the weeds in front of our apartment building. I wonder if he is also the same guy that left the two mums in the front as well? I would think this would be the landlord's job?

Besides offering tennis lessons (which Niel & I will be taking) my old high school is also offering sewing classes, knitting classes, pottery classes and a cake decorating class. Unfortunetly they are at the same time as the tennis lesson. Hopefully they will still be available in the Spring so I can enroll in a couple of them. They charge a lot less then other places I have looked into. And hopefully by the end of this year I'll have my license and by next Summer I'll have my certificatication in party planning. I think it's better to have a degree rather than just going in nilly willy.

Sold another item on Ebay. I think Ebay is adding their own price for shipping though. Even though I add my own shipping price, which is lower than theirs. Hopefully I can find good homes for all the pieces I have inherited. I do feel very guilty for selling them(of course not so guilty that I don't sell them)because family memebers put thought in giving me these items. But they really are not my or Niel's taste.

Marc McGrath, frontman for Sugar Ray is now the new cohost for Extra. I guess no more Sugar Ray Albums?

Even though it was a two day weekend I felt like I accomplished a lot by cleaning the house which also included some closets, making more frames and doing a bit of writing. Niel also got to see some buddies.

Rachael Ray is going to have a third show on The Food Network, Inside Dish with Rachael Ray. It is going to premier on November 5 at 9PM. Ms. Ray is going to be going to the homes of celebrities to find out what their favorite foods are.

I first heard about Falun Gong when the paper I work for had a large advertisiment about it. Then I was given a flyer by an Asian women on the street. This is when I really learned more about it.

"Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient practice based on truthfulness, compassion and tolerance. It includes gentle excerise and mediation. It was made public in China in 1992 and is now practiced in 60 countries. The persecution of Falun Gong began in July 1999 when the government felt threatned by its popularity and wanted to elimnate it. 70 to 100 million people who practiced it were treated as criminals and anyone associated with them were treated the same way. Some have been tortured to death, been bankrup financially and reputations destroyed."

To learn more about this visit here or sign a petition here.

I love Friday nights because I know I have a two day stretch without having to worry about putting orders through, making sales and getting copy from designers. It is a nice feeling to know all I have to do is clean and just enjoy the weekend.

Saturday Niel and I drove into Old Westbury to go to Old Westbury Gardens after getting the car cleaned. This 150 acre Charles II style estate used to be the country home of fiancier and sportsmen John Phipps and his wife Margarita and now is a historic landmark.

We were originally thinking of doing some things closer to home, but most of the places we wanted to visit that we have been to before in the city which had new exhibits were too pricey. And the Irish Fair in Coney Island or the fair on Fresh Pond Road were going to have foods we couldn't really eat.

Old Wetbury Gardens was a lot of fun. It had many ponds and gardens and a neat mansion with a lot of antiques. Niel got obsessed with this rabbit(who let Niel get closer and closer) and taking pictures of bees. We also got fixated with tackling each other down. Niel won every time. There was also some type of convention with ladies who wear red hats. We saw them all day. Plus there was a rehearsal for a wedding. You can bring a picnic and eat on the grass or on benches or in their cafe. There is also a gift shop within the house. I couldn't take pictures inside the house. Here are some pics to peruse.

Sunday we putzed around the apartment and went grocery shopping.

Today is the three year anniversary of 9/11. Please let us not forget all those people who have perished, survived, and all their loved ones who only now have memories.

Still on my search to find dim sum we like I have two more places left to try.

Dim Sum Go Go

Jing Fong Restaurant

Of course it will have to be for a special occasion because the dishes don't fit into our new eating lifestyle. Waaaah!!!

Plus now that my beloved Bubble Tea gives me stomach aches(so can't have anymore) two places near my neighborhood have opened up Bubble Tea shops. Drats!!!!!

Also on my quest to find a good Pad Thai recipe, I saw an episode where Paula Deen(yes the Southern cook!) made some. I was quite impressed and am waiting for a special day to cook some. Maybe I can use some whole wheat noodles instead of rice noodles to cook them. Does that dishonor the recipe?

I think out of all the Food Network chefs she is my favorite. I do like Rachael Ray a lot too though, because she'll try anything and make the dish into a thirty minute meal, but Paul Deen dishes feel so comforting to me. Plus I like her personality. It's so warm, inviting and funny.

TheJoey show premiered last night. I liked it and never realized before how funny Joey is. I don't know if this is because the other characters are new to me and I haven't decided if I think they are funny or not. The writing was not bad, but Matt Leblanc definitely really knows the character of Joey. One would hope he would after 10 years on Friends. (sniff)

One of my new coworkers Anna( a second friend I know of that name) just called me to thank me for the chicken recipe I got from Goldeelox's site. She said she enjoyed it too. It was nice to get a thank you call.

Ken Jennings is back on jeopardy and keeps on ticking, just like the Energizer Bunny. Go Ken Jennings go!!!

Niel and I saw the Dave Chappelle special on Showtime. At first I was kind of miffed that he compared himself to all of the legendary comedians that performed in the same hall in San Francisco as himself. I thought to myself that Richard Pryor's act was so much more controversial than his sounded. Then about twenty minutes into his performance he said some things that made me go "wow"! I quickly changed my mind.

We've also been enjoying the Ultimate Film Fanatic on IFC. I heard about the show a while ago when Tracy Lords made an appearance on the WB 11 morning news in New York. I told Niel about it and we recently started watching it. Niel is hooked.

Niel also brought himself a hockey video game and one of the game options is air hockey. I looooooooooooooooooove regular air hockey and am having fun playing the online version.

I've heard from a few different blogs recently about a new product that Burt's Bee's offers called Lip Color. I purchased two different shades. One looks nice and the other is a lot brighter then I had figured. Maybe I can mix it with a darker shade and it can be salvageable. I hardly every wear lipstick but own a few of them. But I figured since it's a Burt's Bees product it is decent. Well they put a bit too much mint in the ingredients(at least I think its mint)because it burns my lips for a few minutes. I guess they figured the intense tingling will plump a users lips. Sheesh.

Why am I finding all these restaurants to try now that Niel & I are on South Beach? WHY LORD WHY!!!! I guess we can go to them the day we can have carbs? Hrumph!

Teeny

The Grocery

Ino

The South Beach Diet in a nutshell. The diet or the lifestyle as I like to call it is split up in three formats Phase 1, 2 and 3. Phase one normally takes two weeks for people to complete. In those two weeks a person needs to rid their body of sugar. That means staying away from sugar and carbs; such as rice, bread, pasta, sweets, and fruit. The book has suggested meal plans to help a person accomplish this. There is even a recipe book, which luckily my husband’s mother gave us. Both our mothers let us borrow their copies of the South beach book. The first two weeks were difficult for me. It took me almost a week for the cravings to completely stop. What helped me were the no carb and no sugar Jell-O brand gelatin. It was surprisingly yummy. I also drank a few decaf iced coffees with Splenda, a sugar substitute.

Phase two you can start slowly brining back carbs since some carbs such as fruit and complex carbohydrates are good for a person. The recipe book said it was ok to eat up to three servings of fruit a day. The nutritional benefits outweigh the sugar. I have also heard from different people that a person’s body digests natural sugar differently than processed sugar.

Phase two is also all about choices. Learning how to refeed yourself. If a person is going to have the occasional carb with their dish, have a piece of whole grain bread, instead of white(which is just sugar), have the whole grain pasta instead of regular pasta, have brown rice, or other varieties of whole grain rices. And occasionally a potato is ok. If I am going to eat no carbs(minus fruits) for four to 6 meals out of the week, maybe I can have two meals with healthy carbs. Plus portion control plays a factor. The book suggests to eat rice and pastas the size of a golf ball per meal. It varies with each person, some people, not in the beginning can have a slice of whole grain bread, a banana and apple a day and still lose weight. Others may not. You have to see what carbs work for you. Mostly everyone we know is aware we are on South Beach and hopefully wouldn’t consider us rude if we go to their home and not eat the carb item, if there is one. Or maybe we know we are going to their house and not eat so many carbs that week so when we are over at a friend’s house we can partake in a carb. It’s all about choices. The same could apply if we are out to dinner. Although most places now offer carb-free menu options, some do not and we just have to make the choice of not eating the side item if it is not a vegetable or saving our carb meal for that night out. And the same goes for holidays and parties. It gives one something to look forward to so you don’t feel so deprived. Trust me it is not easy going to a fast food place and ordering a salad instead of a nice burger meal, but my body is healthier for it.

Here is a site with good information about phase one, what foods to avoid during that time, what foods is considered healthy and so on. Phase 3 is now that you know how to feed yourself just continue with what you were doing on phase 2.

We can even have a slice of pizza if we want to. The pizza sauce usually made of tomatoes is a great cancer fighter; olive oil is a healthy fat, as is mozzarella. The problem is the crust. So instead of getting a regular crust, opt for the thin crust.

We’ve also realized that going to the supermarket means reading labels more carefully. Just because something says fat free does not mean it is better for a person; without the fat there is also less flavor, and companies want people to buy their food products so they’ll include more sugar. Opt to go with the whole product instead of the fat free one.

My husband has lost so far 12 pounds during our phase one (which ended yesterday) on South Beach which means his cholesterol is going down, the reason we started this new life. I have lost six pounds. I understand that women lose weight slower than a man does, but that is not a determent, because my not so good cholesterol will get better also, just with a bit more time.

I suggest you borrow the book from the library or someone you may know who has decided to lead the South beach lifestyle to attain further information.

I subscribe to Kraft's magazine(its free). They have some good recipes and information on cooking and products. Their recent issue had a lot of advice about low carb lifestyles. They have actually begun a partnership with Southbeach.

Here are two lists of alternative foods that Kraft has introduced based on their new relationship with South Beach.

And low carb recipes. There is also an interesting article about Kraft foods that have zero carbs. And a carb counter.

Last night's dinner of Sausage and Peppers:
Sausage and Peppers 


Salad 


I boiled 9 sausages in water until the water evaporated. Usually takes an hour. While the sausage cooked in another pan I sautéed one onion, half a large green pepper and red pepper in olive oil and seasoned it with salt and pepper. After about ten minutes I added 8 ounces of tomato sauce and 4 ounces of water to the pepper and onion mixture and let it cook up until the sausages were browned and the water evaporated. I then put the sausages in the tomato veggie medley and let that cook a few minutes more. I grated some mozzarella cheese on top and enjoyed it with a nice salad.

In other news the NYC subways are flooded and now all trains are cancelled. Hopefully by the time I leave for work that will change. My train station was flooded and not just the tracks. There was water coming in from the ceiling and two inches of water on the floor. From NPR via Niel:
"housands of people are walking across the Brooklyn Bridge this morning to get to work, because a record heavy rainfall knocked out most subway service between Brooklyn and Manhattan. Here are some of the lines affected... · 1, 2, 3 and 9 suspended between Times Sq. and 96th Street; · 2 trains are running on the 5 line between Nevins in Brooklyn and 149th in Bronx; · M train suspended between Chambers and Bay Parkway · F trains are running on the 8th Avenue line instead of Sixth Ave. from West 4th street to Queens Plaza · E trains are suspended between the World Trade Center and Queens Plaza; · N and Q service is suspended between DeKalb Ave. and 57th; · The W train is suspended in both directions between Whitehall and Ditmars in Queens · No V trains are running ; · LIRR trains into Penn Station are experiencing 20 to 30 minute delays as a result of a third rail problem in one of the East River tunnels. · LaGuardia is reporting 90-min delays; We will be following the transit problems and keep you updated on WNYC. "

I left work late yesterday waiting for ads. I hate leaving work late. I know I'm not the only one. I totally feel not as relaxed the next day and missing out on hubby time. Can't people have any consideration for other people's time?!!!!

The weekend is over, again. Pooh. It was all about errands, crafting, writing, seeing family and friends, cleaning, decorating the house for Fall/Halloween, car research and spending time with Ripley.

Ripley if some of you don't know is my brother in laws dog. He is Golden Retriever. We think with Collie mixed in as well. Ripley is a sweet and full of life dog. It was a treat for the two of us to hang out with him; while Mike was away. We took him on long and regulated walks and brought water in case he got thirsty (Oh yeah he was!!) and paper to scoop up poop. Hopefully it didn't spoil him. Luckily Niel and I did not have any serious plans for the weekend. Unfortunately my asthma started reacting to all the hair he was shedding. It looked like we could have made a whole new dog with all that hair! Here are some pictures of our walks.

Ripley 


I am doing a shameless plug! Niel also redesigned my frame page. We decided to put it on a blog because it was easier to create and since blogger now has those arrows on top, people might find it. Here is a frame for the first day of school and one for Halloween. Check it out!

To cool for school! Adorn your home with pictures of your little ones on their first day of school! 


Boo! Frame 

I also stumbled upon the most fabulous chicken recipe on Goldeelox's blog. The picture does not do the recipe justice. The sauce was thick and flavorful. It was hot and bubbly. It was heavenly. Wonderful for the new nip in the air. MMMMMMMMMMMM!!!! We ate it with sauted green beans and tomato in garlic and oregano and salad.

Heavenly Chicken!!! 

I am happy both conventions and the Olympics went off with out any problems.
Niel and I were having various discussions about how the media hypes things up in general(especially the war on terror) just to sell papers or have their channels viewed. Most of the information the media has been receiving about any threats have been from our own government. It is sad this is the only thing the government can show for themselves is the war. It is not surprising though.

I will be very happy once the election is over and the lesser of two evils has hopefully one. If you read my blog, you already know who I think that is and I can go back to my own party. Right now the two party system is popular and someday that might change and return to a time when third and fourth parties were popular, but we have to try the best we can with what we have.

I felt like I stepped into some weird sort of time portal the last few days. On Wednesday when going to work Niel and I saw this Asian lady in Brooklyn in traditional looking Asian clothing. Thursday morning it looked like one of the members of A Flock Of Seagulls stepped onto our train during rush hour. Then when I went out for a walk on Thursday there was some dude dressed as Spiderman in the street that people could take pictures with. In the evening going home there was protestor with a W mask and a chicken suit for a body. People are quite creative.

I picked up the latest issue of Martha Stewart Kids. I didn't bring anything to read with me on Wednesday and I had already read all of my regular magazines. It really is pretty much a magazine for kids but crafty adults like me found it enjoyable too. The magazine although not as thick as the regular Martha Stewart Living still is packed with tons of crafty activities. It was the Halloween issue, so it was dedicated to the holiday. It had various wacky hairstyles kids can don while trick or treating, cookie recipes for school bake sales and so forth. Niel is thinking right about now, "oh no she sees another magazine she likes." Seeing Ms. Martha's magazines inspire me and makes me want a home of my own even more to paint, decorate, host get togethers, have a garden and just be something of ours.

With all the drama going on in the world today(elections, me encountering drunks at the post office while all I want to do is mail out my items, hurricanes destroying the South, hostages in Russia, tramplings in Ikea)life can get a little overwhelming. I was sent these jokes and for the moment they cheered me up. I hope they do the same for you.

Dirty Dishes

A son is visiting his father from college. The father is putting food on plates to serve to his son for lunch. The son notices the plates are a bit dirty. He says to his father "Dad these plates don't really look too clean". The father replies "There as clean as coldwater can get them." The son does not reply not wanting to insult his father any longer. After lunch they go out to the barn and the son sees a new pet dog. The son asks his father what the dog's name is and his father replies "Coldwater."

The Bird..

Mrs. Davidson's dishwasher quit working so she calls a repairman. Since she
has to go to work the next day, she tells him, "I'll leave the key under the mat. Fix the dishwasher, leave the bill on the counter, and I'll mail you the cheque.
Oh, by the way, don't worry about my Bull Dog, he won't bother you. But,
whatever you do, do NOT, under ANY circumstances, talk to my parrot!"
When the repair man arrives at Mrs. Davidson's apartment the next day,
he discovers the biggest and meanest Bull Dog he has ever seen.
But just as she said, the dog just lay there on the carpet watching the
repairman go about his business. The Parrot, however, drove him nuts the whole time with his incessant yelling, cursing, and name calling.
Finally the repairman couldn't contain himself any longer and yelled, "Shut
up, you stupid ugly bird!" To which the parrot replied, "Get him, Spike!"

Although the first day of Fall is not technically till Sept. 20, for me the first day of Autumn is today. It has a lot to do with school always starting in early September. For a few weeks now I have felt Fall in the air with the crispness and slightly cooler days. There are TV ads airing for hot chocolate, corduroys, sweaters and school supplies. I look forward to the leaves changing, pumpkins adorning the steps of homes, trick or treaters, mums in flower boxes, regular t.v. coming back and apple picking.


Fall frame 

Summer has been really wonderful with day trips, weddings, showers, movies, cooking new recipes, watching Summer t.v. and eating berries.

Ocean Frame 

A new show I was surprised I enjoyed but I really do is Dog the Bounty Hunter. Niel and I both thought it would have more ass kicking on the show, but this is the nicest bounty hunter I have seen. Plus I got to see shots of Hawaii(where Dog lives and works) are breathtaking.

The third season of Last Comic Standing has started already and this season the cast of season 1 and 2 square off against each other. Instead of a dance off I guess its a joke off?

Scrubs's first episode of its third season aired last night. It is a thoughtful and hysterical show.