cuando tengo que comer una hamburguesa

there are many advantages of not dining out:

• save scratch
• know what's in yr grub
• don't get ill from potential gorging
  
• using yr own bathroom
• avoiding inflated prices
• eat in peace
• no annoying doggy bags to feel obligated to eat out of as seen here
  

these are things i must remind myself of when i crave a juicy cheeseburger and frothy soda.

forget gore-tex

monday, we went to the Seattle zoo. forget the space needle. this was the best zoo i've ever visited. it was raining and cold. we saw maybe fifty other visitors. it was a perfect day.
the whole place is laid out like a system of trails cutting through the wilderness. each trail head indicates entrance to another area of the world. southeast asian, african sahara...
my favorite was the pacific northwest trail. there was a pair of brown bears sleeping on their sides, their front paws propped against each other like a dreamy dance. streams bubble over rocks and pools of water teeming with salmon. a beautiful herd of elk roamed the expansive enclosure. eery white-grey wolves stood silent following us with their eyes. it was the most pristine and authentic representation of an environment i've seen.
here's perfect weather-proofing: the incessant rain rolling off one of the two bald eagles' feathered backs.

karrotesuppe
let's discuss delicious vegetarian options for dinner, supper, or even a very hearty (and maybe desperate and creative) breakfast. this soup is great even as a gespacho. no kidding, even picky kids (or husbands for that matter) will likely enjoy this bowl. soooo easy as well. 50 min. tops. ready?
1. sweat like, 3-4 chopped shallots in a bit of olive oil
2. add 6-8 peeled and coined carrots and 2 T sherry/white wine
3. add a pinch of nutmeg and toss to coat and mingle the flavors
4. add 4 cups of veggie broth ( i love Better than Bouillon)
5. salt and pepper
6. bring to boil and simmer for 30-40 min.
7. skim any scum
8. blend till smooth with 1 cup milk
grub! tastes great with cracked pepper on top.

one day this last spring, we discovered a rather unusual remedy for the incessant meowing of our dear feline. Benny (short for Benhamin. not Benjamin which means son of my right hand. Benhamin meaning son of my pain) is part siamese and therefore quite verbal. we were trying to relax after our intense days working for the good of education and electrians respectively. Benny was reprimanding us for leaving him for the day and the furball wouldn't shut it.
we enjoined two of my lovely husband's recently unsheathed not-so-lovely smelling socks and every so gently, however snuggly, tied them around Benny's neck. silence and tranquility followed.
i'd like to know the chemical properties of a sweaty sock. there couldn't be any harm in attempts at marketing such a successful barbituate.

winter (norm) breakage

everything i've ever heard about the pacific nw is that it's terribly dreary and damp raining all the time and cultivating feelings of self-worthlessness and meloncholy rooted solely the inability to metabolize calcium due to vitamin D deficiency. so... i come to sunny cali for xmas. i leave the clear sunny in-the-20s degree diapason then characterizing southern wash. and come here.

redding. "oh it will be in the 60s" is anticipated and i don't doubt this news reflecting back to the sunburn i received for thanksgiving.

we arrived amidst rain and have had but one day of reprieve since. nor cal i scoff you. you who yields 110 degree summers and forest fires attempting rivalry to hell itself. you who mocks the pac nw and then dumps its very surplus on refugees from therein. yv not seen the last of me...

here's the steelhead quilt
i made for my dad.
lookit! the red one is spawning!

squirrel watching

there are no black cats...

only cat-shaped holes in the universe