Adventures in Pie Making

3:15 - finally get started no-baking pies after morning out with Scott, stop at Publix (**shudder**), and crazy drive surrounded by rock trucks

3:35 - finished coring, peeling, and "finely chopping" 1 1/2 apples (recipe calls for 1, but I "cored" an awful lot out), rinse cranberries, pop one into mouth only to find out that cranberries are the most sour food EVER!

3:37 - mix apples, cranberries, and other ingredients in saucepan, wait anxiously for boil (because immediately after the boil I have to turn down to simmer or else!)

3:40 - let cats out on balcony to enjoy beautiful fall weather

3:43 - Milo cries to be let in, so I let him in.

3:44 - Milo cries to be let back out, so I open the door and he looks up at me as if to say, "are you CRAZY? it's cold out there!" Kilo, with his orca-like insulation, remains on the balcony.

3:53 - add entire "optional" tablespoon of sugar to cran-apple recipe, realizing that cranberries have NO place in civilized desserts. remove fruit from stovetop to cool.

Start pie #2

3:55 - realize cool whip for pie #2 was supposed to be thawed. go watch last night's Desperate Housewives, come back later!

Start pie #2 again!

5:20 - start whisking cream cheese, milk, and sugar for bottom layer of pumpkin pie, realize that perhaps the fridge-temperature of our apartment wasn't warm enough to soften said cream cheese

5:30 - marvel that the lead story on the 5:30 newscast was the mouse infestation of Apopka. that's right - there's officially no news tonight in Orlando!

5:38 - give up on "silky smooth" texture for pie bottom, decide that cottage cheese is close enough.

5:45 - finish goo for second layer of pumpkin pie, dump on top and smooth

5:47 - get creative and decide to plop the leftover white goo in the middle of the pie, like a delicate cloud of whipped cream in a sky of pumpkin

5:48 - realize "delicate cloud" looks more like a plop of cottage cheese

5:50 - pour cooled fruit mixture (I tasted it - it tastes like apple pie!) on top of bottom layer, which is made of plain yogurt, sour cream, sugar, vanilla extract, and lemon extract (and tastes just like vanilla yogurt!).

5:55 - take picture of pie triumph


6:00 - blog

Still to Come Tonight:

I promised Scott I would make the cornbread for his cornbread dressing (which we "Yankees" would call stuffing). The benefit for me is that I get to turn the oven on. My hands may warm up a little during the baking process!

I need to clean the cat box. Fa la la.

I should clean up the crap all over the apartment. Need to find some empty boxes to stow stuff for 24 hours...

I can almost smell the turkey!

mmm...Turkey...

Scalzi's Weekend Assignment: It's time for Thanksgiving dinner! Which do you prefer -- white meat, or dark meat? Explain your answer. Because it seems that most people have a preference one way or another, and sometimes they can get testy about it.

I believe that each meat has its strengths. On Thanksgiving day, I like pretty slices of white meat on my plate. Of course, I'm not sure if any single piece of turkey ever makes it into my mouth without at least one of the following dolloped on top: mashed potato, sweet potato or cranberry sauce.

For sandwiches, casseroles, and all that jazz, I prefer the little chunks of dark meat. They are also the best ones for reaching in the fridge and shoving in your mouth when no one is looking. :o)

And lucky me - I get to enjoy this feast two days earlier than the rest of the world. Gotta love the hospitality industry!

Extra credit: Being Thanksgiving, note one thing you've been thankful for in 2006.

I'm thankful that Scott and I are FINALLY able to go on vacation on our honeymoon... three years late. The year we got married, we were broke from moving and paying for a party for everyone we knew. The next year, I had a $700 hospital bill to contend with. The next year, my car had a $1500 breakdown. Now we get to sail away into the sunset together. (this doesn't mean I'm not thankful for our health, or the love of our families, or any of that stuff. I figured I'd stray from the standard cliche answers)

No-Baking for the Holidays

Somehow our guest list for Thanksgiving on Tuesday is now sitting at an amazing SEVEN. Last year, it was just me and Scott in our own little food orgy. Now we'll be surrounded by family. That's great, in a non-traditional sitting-around-the-living-room-floor sort of way.

My original plan was to make the no-bake (because have YOU ever tried to get near the oven on Thanksgiving?) pumpkin cheesecake I made last year. It was oh-so-tasty, and Scott and I have been jonesing for one since about September. With seven people, you need more than one pie though, especially when the pie is so tasty. And I figured it wouldn't be proper to have two of the same pie. So I did an AOL search for "no bake pie" and came up with a gajillion recipes. Blueberry? nah. Pumpkin? got that covered. Cranberry Apple? hey... now we're talking!

Unlike the pumpkin pie, which requires no more culinary skill than "measure, stir, dump, chill, slice," this pie requires a little chopping, some boiling, and some adding sugar "to taste." (mmm... I wish to taste a lot of sugar!) I feel that I am up to the task, and am sending Scott to the store for the ingredients.

I think Pie Day will be Monday, although my schedule keeps getting tighter and tighter. Wish me luck!

Sucking Slightly Less

This picture has nothing to do with anything. I just wanted to throw it out there for all the world to see. And to remind me how nice it was to be on vacation.

The dentist (who, by the way, I still love, despite the fact that he was wearing Florida Gators scrubs today) says I might have a sinus infection pressing on the nerve of my tooth that's still "riled up" from what he did to it last month. Or there might be a little infection in the tooth causing the pain. So he gave me a prescription for a week's worth of amoxicillin (yogurt... must remember to buy more yogurt...), and a new pain prescription.

The sad thing about Hydrocodone - you can't take it at work. But there's always Motrin for the day time.

Work was a little better too. I still haven't made any confirmation calls this week, but I only have seven saved voicemails left from my days off, and have dealt with all of the calls that came in during my shift.

On the bright side, we (yes, we - although I only got to ask one question) interviewed one lady for the open part-time position on Thursday, and I think the boss has another interview on Tuesday. The one that I got to speak to was nice, professional, and didn't have that vacant look accompanied by a string of drool that NG always had. I'm a big fan. I guess it's unrealistic to expect to have someone hired and trained in time to help with the holiday crush (it's already started), but my hope is to have someone hired by the beginning of the year. I might even ask to go back to a five-day week. I love having a 3-day weekend, but the OT days I have been working are really starting to take a toll.

So it occurs to me that this pain pill I took before I started this entry may have kicked in. I've been writing paragraph upon paragraph in my mind, but none of it has come out onto the computer screen. I guess that means it's time for bed. Sorry I couldn't wait up for you, honey. I'm a little stoned!

Reality Sucks

Yes, it's true. Work on Thursdays is always a little rough because I have to clean up the messes created on my days off. They were nice enough to save me 20-30 voicemails, they failed to call to confirm a reservation for a party of six that ended up having two vegans in it (our chefs can prepare an awesome vegan meal, including dessert, with a day's notice. these people got a fruit plate for dessert).

To top it all off, I haven't mentioned it before, but one side of my mouth has been giving me trouble for about two weeks. In that time, I've been popping ibuprofen like it's candy. And of course, this has started making an impact on my stomach. So I called the dentist yesterday and set up an appointment for this morning at 9:30. I'm hoping that it's the nerve on the one top tooth that I got worked on before that's somehow getting rubbed and is sending pain messages to the bottom jaw. And even if it is, I doubt this is going to be a pleasant trip. He's going to shoot my mouth with that damn cold air and it's probably going to make me cry.

...and then I get to set off on another fun-filled day at the office.

Mojito!

As I previously mentioned, Scott found a new favorite beverage while we were down at the beach - the mojito.

Personally, I didn't see the charm. It's just rum, simple syrup, mint leaves, and a little fizzy water. I prefer my alcohol fruit-based.

...although I guarantee that in 5 hours or less I'll be sitting at my desk wishing that I could get my hands on a mojito, or anything else to take the sting out of the first day back to work.

Home!

It is with deep regret that Mr. and Mrs. ParkHopper announce that they have returned from their mini vacation. What did we do?

We sat out on our balcony and watched the waves (see above)

We napped, listening to the waves

We walked on the beach, occasionally getting our feet wet in the waves

We read books, listening to the waves

We slept with the balcony door open, lulled to sleep by the sound of the waves

We realized that each of us thought the other had fed the cats (they're fine... and they were oh so very glad to see us!)

We played a 9-hole round of mini golf (both of us were over par! sheesh!)

We ate... lots

We filled a bag with seashells

We went in the jacuzzi

Scott discovered the Mojito

What we didn't do:

We didn't leave resort property

We didn't do anything work-related

We didn't swim (ocean temp. was 72. it felt nice on the feet, but I wouldn't have wanted to stick my whole body in it!)

The resort was absolutely beautiful. And as you may have already guessed, we pretty much spent our time 90% relaxing, 10% doing other stuff. Maybe 10% is too high an estimate! I guess I can understand how people are willing to live on the coast, despite the risk of hurricanes. It's pretty spectacular.

Life's a Beach!

I'm at the beach. Of course, it's November, so it's not really a traditional "beach" vacation. The important thing is that I'M the tourist. I'M the one asking stupid questions. And I'm NOT the one catering to some dumb tourist's every whim.

Try not to miss me too much. I'll be back tomorrow.

All My Bags Are Packed...

I hope I packed enough!

Milo is in charge until we get back.

No wild kitty parties,
No peeing on the carpet,
No sneaking into the bedroom and eating ZoePig.

...and while it looks like the weather isn't too favorable for swimsuits, I might actually get to wear my green suede jacket.

That's What I Get...

I dreamed last night that I had my stomach pumped. I hadn't been poisoned or anything - I had just eaten too much and I asked to have it done. I figure this is my subconscious reaching out and slapping me to say either

a) beware Thanksgiving, or

b) no more Taco Bell at 11pm.

I think I'm going with b.

Winner, Party of 2

Scott and I had quite a week in the world of silly contests. I won a copy of the Desperate Housewives PC game (I can't wait to sleep with John the hot gardener! What? That's not the point of the game? Darn!). And Scott won a $5 gift card from Kohl's.

In other news, I'm on the downward slope of my whopping 5-day work week. This is great, because we're going to wake up Monday, pack our bathing suits and my bottle of champagne, and drive off into the sunset. Hmm...we're going east...I guess that means we'll be driving off into the sunrise. And since we'll be travelling in the middle of the day, let's just say "driving off away from here!" And of course, it's November. The bathing suits are more of a symbolic gesture.

Childrens Books

From Scalzi's Weekend Assignment: share your favorite book from when you were a child, say, when you were eight or ten years old.

The Dollhouse Murders, by Betty Ren Wright, changed my life. It's just a silly kiddie-horror book about a dollhouse that helps solve an old murder (or something like that...), but it's the book that forever made me a reader.

I picked up this book from the library cart in third grade*. Before that, I'd get the picture book about horses or the the thinnest book I could find on another topic. Reading just wasn't my bag, baby!

About 2/3 of the way through the book, I vividly remember running into the kitchen and grabbing my mom's hand and making her feel my heart - it was pounding out of my chest! Who knew reading could be like this??? From that moment on, I tore through all varieties of "kid lit" - Sweet Valley High, R.L. Stine, and so on. I had become a reader. And I still am to this day.

So while I can't say this was the best book I've ever read, it will always be a childhood favorite.

*the school was under construction and there was no library. Instead, the librarian came around with a cart, much like prison.

Sunbeam

Let it be known that I love my cat. I tolerate most cats, but I have a special bond with this kitty. That being said, I think cats are the strangest creatures on earth. I mean, if I slept in this position, do you know how many aches and pains I'd wake up with in the morning?

Election Night

I love election night. I love attempting to watch TV and finally giving up and watching the results scroll across the bottom of the screen. I love that somehow the TV news people are able to project winners with just 1% of the precincts reporting. I also loved the hour-long "Midterm Midtacular" on Comedy Central. It was a beautiful night of television.

And on this particular "morning after," I love that we are back to having a two-party government. We can now get back to appropriate checks & balances. It will be interesting to see what ends up happening in the Senate in the days to come. I smell recounts!

Locally, my choice for Governor got his tush handed to him. My Senator won (duh!), and I split the rest pretty evenly. All six of the state Constitution amendments passed, which is half disappointing. I'm glad, though, that the amendment to change the majority needed to pass future amendments passed (albeit with a majority that wouldn't pass with the new restriction!).

This will probably be my last politics/election post of the year, unless something crazy happens. We now return to stupid pictures of my cats, already in progress.

Caption the Cat - Democracy Edition

As always, please leave a caption for Milo in the comments.

This picture, by the way, was a bit of a moral victory for me. Scott said he didn't think the cat would sit for a picture with a sticker stuck to him. He sat for four. I also got him to jump up on my lap to take the picture. Who'sAGoodBoy??? And yes, I had to add the text back onto the sticker - the flash totally washed it out. But the actual sticker was affixed to the cat.

Today was particularly full for a Tuesday. We got up at the butt-crack of dawn for our 8:30 eye doctor appointments, stopped at Cracker Barrel for breakfast (service was slow... and Al Sharpton hasn't yet returned our call), VOTED, played a round of mini golf at Winter Summerland (I lost by 2 because I choked on holes 16 & 17), and went grocery shopping.

Our polling place is the fire station. I had to stand in a line three-deep (behind my husband - damn that same last name - and an amazon woman who looked like she could snap us both in half) to sign the register, but then got to go right to the voting machine. I really wish those touch-screen things spit out some kind of paper receipt. Maybe then I'd trust it a little bit more.

It turns out that Scott and I voted the same for Senate, a few of the local and state offices, and five of the six amendments. That means we didn't cancel each other out and my vote actually counted. Somehow that just tickles me.

I hope everyone else out there went out and voted... especially the Democrats. And I CAN'T WAIT for the special live hour-long Daily Show/Colbert Report tonight. woot!

Jamie24601

This week, Scalzi's Monday Photo Shoot was a little perplexing: Take a picture of something that relates to your name. It can be your first name, or your last name, or of your middle name (we're not picky). Even nicknames work. And since this is AOL, if you want you may use your screenname as well. Basically, if a name relates to you, let's see a picture of a representation.

I decided to go with my AOL screen name. Why? Well, I'm not in the habit of broadcasting my last name or my maiden name. And what am I going to take a picture of that says "Jamie," besides a picture of myself?

And so I present my graphic representation of Jamie24601. Of course, the "Jamie" part is me. The 24601 is a reference to the prisoner number assigned to Jean Valjean in Victor Hugo's Les Miserables. I suppose I could have taken a picture of me with the book, but the CD case was much more convenient (and lighter)!

I made up this screen name during my last semester of college. I was in a funk (ok, deep depression) and felt as though I was being unjustly persecuted by the world surrounding me. So I adopted a name that was a subtle slap in the face to everyone who was ticking me off. So subtle, in fact, that in the years that I have had this address, less than five people have ever gotten the reference... or at least commented on it to me. Sometimes people assume that 24601 is my zip code (sorry, I don't live in Amonate, VA). And my Aunt Rose once referred to me as "Jamie90210."

I got my first Les Mis tape when I was in the 8th grade, and it is still one of my favorite soundtracks. I saw the show once in Philly and was incredibly disappointed. And I saw the movie that came out a few years back. They took some creative license at the end and Valjean lived and walked away into the sunset. I almost gave up on Hollywood after that! The novel, in all its unabridged glory, took me two years on and off to finish. It was well worth it though, and I'm so glad that I own it.

By the way, this picture also answers the question of what my hair would look like the next day, with no special hair product or anything. Slightly scary, I know, but it was quite nice to spend all of three minutes blow drying it this morning!

Oh No!

I guess it's a good thing we went to Gatorland when we did!

A massive fire at one of Central Florida's oldest attractions, Gatorland, engulfed the park's gift shop and damaged other surrounding offices and structures, including the well-known alligator mouth entrance Monday, according to Local 6 News.

(photo and text courtesy of local6.com)

This picture is the best I've seen. That, of course, is the giant gator mouth you have to walk through to get into the gift shop. Well, had to walk through...

They say that the only animals killed were the creepy-crawlies they kept in the gift shop. And the firefighters did a great job keeping the fire from spreading down the old wood boardwalk through the primary gator enclosure.

As much as I thought Gatorland was a cheesy little roadside attraction, it was something I enjoyed. I hope they're able to rebuild and reopen.

Yep...It's Gone...

And there you have it, folks. Me, minus ten inches of hair. It turns out I had enough hair left that I *could* have gotten a bob, but I had already steeled myself for a bad haircut so I decided to get one anyway.

As you might be able to tell, the picture of the front of me was taken in the salon, all fresh and bouncy with "product" in my hair. I took the picture of the back when I got home, after Beth and I putzed around the Magic Kingdom for a while. The back looked so cute - all flippy and fun - when I first got it done, but my hair holds no style. It just flat-out (har har) refuses to do anything but straight.

I don't hate it, but I certainly don't love it. On a scale of 1-10, I'm sitting comfortably at a 4. It'll be interesting to see how I feel about it tomorrow when I actually have to attempt to style it myself.

One Month!

...and where will YOU be one month from today?

Hair Today...

...Gone Tomorrow!

It's official - Beth and I are going to get our hair chopped tomorrow. (yes, tomorrow. I have wonky days off this week due to a trade with a co-worker) I've already steadied myself emotionally for the inevitable bad haircut. It's only hair, and of course it'll grow back. And it'll be nice to have a 5-minute blow-dry in the morning. And my shampoo/condititioner usage will be cut in half. And Locks of Love is a worthy cause deserving of 10" of my hair... much more worthy than the bathroom drain!

So here's my hair on it's last day of longness, complete with red line approximating how much I'm going to lose. **gulp**