When you care enough to leave a note

This is the note I left under the windshield wiper:

It’s a good thing I’m a good driver so I saw you when you started to cut me off. Otherwise we’d both have big problems!

It’s worth going a few extra feet and making a turn rather than cutting off someone — and prevents “accidents”.

Yeah, the sudden urge to go straight from a left-turn-only lane so you can go to the grocery store. That’s an urge worth resisting folks. I followed the car into the same lot. I parked in the next lane. The people wouldn’t get out of the car until after I went in the store (people equals “adult” driver and child in front passenger seat). The car was still there when I came out so I used an envelope to leave the note. I’m sure it will make a big impression. uh huh.

And the note I didn’t leave:

If you’re going to make a practice of cutting people off, maybe having a particularly identifiable car isn’t such a hot idea. Lose the lovely lei hanging from the mirror, dimwit

And don’t forget the….

If you haven’t been to see the new Wallace and Grommit flick yet, go! You need to be able to speak intelligently and knowledgably about it during next year’s Oscar’s buzz. I went tonight and had a great time. How are we programed that we can be so accepting of little claymation characters? Just fabulous.

And you know you’re spending some time in the right place when at the end of the film the entire audience chimes in on the final

Cheeeeeeeeeeeese!

I couldn’t post photos before but here is the little challenge quilt I made for my guild’s challenge this year. The challenge was to make at least four log cabin blocks and sew them together into something. There were a lot of entries and an abundance of finished pieces.

It’s always interesting to me that I tend to think of my quilts as being oriented in a particular way. There’s usually no particular reason for this — at least for non-pictorial quilts. Last night though, looking at this piece hanging turned 90 degrees, I thought the effect was quite different and to my eye I didn’t like it as much. But that’s just me.

In other news, my powerbook arrived back from the mothership, replete with a new keyboard and battery. Although I might be lusting in my heart for one of those new quad powermacs, I have to say that after reinstalling the OS and doing a complete clean install, the little Rev A 12″ PB really flies. Since I’m doing most of my work on the G5 now, I figured it was a good idea to strip down the laptop a bit.

And finally, I got out my Rev A ipod last night, did a couple of software updates on it and it works like a champ. I got this in either late November or early December 2001. The date of the first iPod announcement remains one of my top-most exciting moments of working for Apple.

Anyway, I revved it up last night so I could take it to work today and compare it to the new ipod videos. The new ones we have in stock are 30G (as opposed to the 5G original) and are about half the thickness of the original. Amazing. But it was great to say that yes, this was an original – still worked, still happy after all these years, and it’s in really good shape too!

I followed a link from BornFamous to The World’s Healthiest Foods and found they were focusing on beets. Mmmmmmm – love beets, but hate to cook the fresh ones. I know, I know, but canned beets can’t be beat! Hot, cold you name it. Marinated – served on salad with some feta. mmmmmm

Anyway, I ended up here and thought this was really funny

Don’t let their size or hardness of their shell intimidate you. Here are a few tips in cooking with winter squash:

1. Winter squash is easily prone to decay, so it is important to carefully inspect it before purchase. Choose ones that are firm, heavy for their size and have dull, not glossy, rinds. The rind should be hard, as soft rinds may indicate that the squash is watery and lacking in flavor. Avoid those with any signs of decay, which manifest as areas that are water-soaked areas or moldy.
2. After washing winter squash, cut it in half and remove the seeds and fibrous material in the cavity. Depending upon the recipe preparation, you can either use it peeled or unpeeled.

But they didn’t tell you how to cut the big ones. So here’s my free, unsolicited advice: Don’t cut – drop. Wash off any mud from the outside of the squash and carry that sucker outside. Drop it from shoulder-height onto a sidewalk or driveway. Pick up the big pieces and go inside and cook something delish.

Although I like baked squash a lot, and am fond of a good squash bisque soup, I really really like mashed up squash and that’s super easy to do. Cut up your broken squash into hand-sized pieces and put into a steamer. Steam for 20-30 minutes or until the flesh of the squash is nice and tender. Scoop out of the shell and proceed – mash like potatoes or whatever. doesnt get any easier and it won’t be watery at all. I like to mash it with an old-fashioned masher, adding a little butter, salt and pepper.

Good and good for you!

Despite the 6″ of rain this weekend, as measured in my own rain gauge, I’m still here. Saturday involved a lot of oven stuff – good because did I mention the 6″ of rain? total tally: 2 pot roasts, including potatoes and carrots; 36 sticky buns; 2 ciabatta; 2 pizzas. All of it was pretty tasty, let me tell you!

Now I’ve tried my tried and true fannie farmer c1972 pot roast recipe (delicious and extremely simple, made in the dutch oven on top of the stove) and my online friend Kathe’s version, made in the oven over a longer time, with a few more ingredients but still dead on simple. Both different, both delish.

Went to the Berkshire Quilt Festival with Mom – good time had by all. I think I did all right by the vendors. You can see some interesting mushrooms and some flood pictures here.

I saw a beautiful male pheasant the other day on my way home. Good to know that there are some still out there. Seeing as he was taking his own sweet time strutting his stuff across the road, I’m thinking natural selection is working against them…