I don’t think I’ve ever had a martini and the last time I had a Manhattan I was a 17-year-old exchange student in Ecuador. At the welcoming reception they were handing out room-temperature brown drinks, with a maraschino cherry and no ice. They were nasty and I haven’t touched one since.

Let’s be honest here, I seldom order a drink in a restaurant because I think they’re overpriced and don’t always taste that great, so unless I have all the ingredients on hand for something special like a pina colada, I stick with the tried and true.

So, if it’s not wine or champagne or the occasional beer, here’s what I drink:

1. Gin and tonic with extra lime. My favorite summer drink.
2. Margarita on the rocks. With salt. The best ones taste like fresh limes with a kick.
3. In college, we made up a drink where you mix frozen limeade and vodka (or maybe it was gin) in a blender. A little water, a little crushed ice and you have a grown up slushy.  You can throw in some strawberries if you’re so inclined. Haven’t had one in years but I remember we didn’t usually need more than one to make the party merry. By the way the drinking age was 18 then, not that it much mattered.
4. Non-alcoholic: cranberry juice, club soda and — yes– lime. This is actually more Jack’s favorite, but it is refreshing.
5. Bloody Mary made with spicy V-8. When you’re having one of those days, along with cheese and crackers, it can do for dinner.
6. An occasional pina colada, because who can resist pineapple and coconut?
7. Mojitos, yum.

And that’s it. Yes, I know I’m in a rut.

If I can put my hands on what I need within a reasonable time then my organizational system is Good Enough to do the job.

We receive a monthly statement that needs to be saved for tax purposes. When those statements arrive I can put them in their own folder, in chronological order, neatly labeled and filed alphabetically in the top drawer. At the end of the year I can pull those statements out of their folder, staple them together and pull the info I need from them for the accountant before moving them to the archive drawer.

Or I can stuff those statements in one big blue divided tax folder, along with all the property tax receipts, medical receipts and pay stubs. I know where they are, they’re all in one place, so what if they’re not alpha/orderly? Who cares? It’s Good Enough.

Life is too interesting to spend it alphabetizing,

On the other hand, my knitting needles HAVE to be organized. I use them all the time, I want to find the proper size without using a needle gauge or searching through project baskets. So I have the circulars stored in a bag with a sleeve for every size. Some sizes are organized by length or material if necessary. I have a plastic tube for each size of my double points. Everything is labeled so I know what’s what and can pull out a needle — or put it back– in a jiffy. Good Enough is a little more rigid  here.

My spices are sort of organized. They’re in three spots: a wooden block of neatly labeled glass bottles; a drawer for odd shaped/liquid things like vanilla or cinnamon sticks, and then there’s the bags of spices that are thrown together in a plastic container in the pantry. The spices I use the most are the least organized but for some reason it’s still Good Enough for me.

My desk is the biggest challenge but it works Good Enough for me. There’s one pile for bills and things that need attention within the next few weeks. And the other pile is filing. That may not get touched for 6 months, but I know if I’m looking for something, that’s where I’m going to find it.

I do have spurts of organization — and who doesn’t love browsing the aisles of the office store coveting all the little doodads that are guaranteed to bring order to your life. It’s just that something else always comes along that seems to be more interesting than straightening the kitchen drawers.

I live with someone who loves to be organized. He ties his shoelaces before putting his shoes away in the closet. His clothes are sorted by sleeve length and color. (I tried that. It lasted about two weeks.) His receipts for the house are neat and orderly. His workshop is a testament to organization and efficiency.

Some days I don’t know how we manage to cohabitate.

For the last several months I’ve been struggling to keep the blog going. Not because I don’t have anything to say but because I have this idea that I should always start a post with a picture. If you find my words boring at least you’ll have something to look at while you think “get to the point already”.

While I like playing in Photoshop Elements I have a beginner’s level of understanding so processing photos probably doubles or triples the time it takes me to post. Especially when winter’s short days means I’m either using the flash for indoor shots or setting up a complicated arrangement for a light box which takes more time.

I find the winter challenging from a photography standpoint. How many times can you take a picture of a sleeping cat or snow in your backyard and make it look like anything other than the other 11-billionty pictures you’ve posted.

If I could get the cats to do tricks or  if I could transform them into sheep or llamas or even chickens, that would be a little different since not everyone can go to their local animal shelter and bring one home, but anyway, I can’t and they’ll never be anything but sleeping cats so I can either write and not give you photos or not write at all.

So I don’t post because I think you deserve photos to make up for the sloppy writing.

As an example, I had a good list for last week’s Ten on Tuesday, it’s all written and ready to go. I didn’t post it because I wanted to take pics of a few items. I ran out of time on Tuesday and then it was Wednesday and that was another disaster and Thursday and Friday were pretty much the same, and after that I reached the stage of “what’s the point?”

So no post, all the while I’m nagging myself that I’m neglecting the blog. I’ve reached the point in my head that I’ve considered whether I should take the blog down since I resent feeling like this is  another obligation I have to meet or that I”m not doing a good job.

However, my interest has always been more in the writing than the photography, probably because I’m better at the first than the second, not great, just better.

Therefore as an alternative to taking down the blog, I’ve decided to absolve myself of all guilt about not giving you something pretty to look at, and just sit down and write. Feel free to move along, there’s nothing to see here, if you’re so inclined.

Since quiet time is over, I’m going to post Tuesday’s damn list so it doesn’t get wasted, like the other dozen posts sitting in draft waiting for pictures that were never taken. Imagine there’s a picture of a tea mug, a pen, a book and eyeliner illustrating it.

So there.

Ten on Tuesday

Ten things I couldn’t live without. Technically some of these aren’t “things” but when I thought about what makes my life richer these were the ten things that bubbled to the top first (people and pets excluded).

1. My glasses. I’m blind as a bat.
2. Moisturizer. It’s winter, the air is cold and dry. ‘Nuff said.
3. Computer/internet. I suppose I really could live without it, but who wants to?
4. Four-wheeled transportation. Bus service and bike lanes in this town are non-existent and work is 15 miles away. Yup, a car keeps me in clover.
5. My favorite knitting scissors. They once got mixed up with others and while I got back a pair that looked identical they didn’t cut the same. I knew it with the first snip. I threw a hissy fit until they were returned. I’m not proud of my behavior, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
6. Tea in the morning in my favorite mug.
7. The sound of birds in the spring. To more fully appreciate your sense of hearing live with a person who’s going deaf.
8. Good knives. Paring, cook’s, slicing, serrated. Out of the block of knives those are the four that get used every day. I have been known to wrap them in towels and take them on vacation with me since I’ve never seen a rental cottage that has a decent knife. Jack sharpens them by hand and the only time I’ve cut myself is when I don’t pay attention.
9. Books. All kinds. I don’t own an e-reader and imagine I’d probably like it but in the end, I’d miss the heft and smell of a book, the tactile sense of turning pages, being able to pick it up, open it at any spot and start reading. If we replaced all our books with electronic editions, I’d have to remodel the house because there are bookshelves in every room excluding the bathrooms — if there were space I expect we’d slap up some shelves in there too. A dinosaur in the making over here.
10. A good pen. My current favorite writes well, is easily replaceable, fits my hand. I had a fancy custom gold pen that was a thank you gift for a seminar discussion I once led. I carried that pen in my purse for 15 years until I lost the cap at the grocery store. I searched for half an hour but never found it and ended up throwing the pen away.

There’s a bunch more I came up with. My stash of course. Eyeliner. Chocolate. Walking shoes.

Ready for New Year’s Eve

Not resolutions, but ten goals for 2011.

1. Don’t save all the good fiber until I’m a better spinner. Spin some of the good stuff now, the sheep are producing more every day.
2. Spin and knit more from stash. It’s unrealistic for me to say I’m not going to buy yarn or fiber, but I can buy less and use more of what I already own. I started doing that this year but I don’t have a final tally on whether I succeeded(another blog post).
3. Make realistic plans for the garden: I’ll have less free time and more demands on what’s left, so tone down the seed ordering.
4. Seriously clean out the bookcases. This will be tough since they’re not all my books and the incentive to cooperate is low.
5. Do some professional stuff for my career (boring stuff, I promise not to blog about it much).
6. Tackle this one big honkin’ knit project that I’ve been ignoring for too long (another blog post).
7. Get a physical. It’s been years (not counting the emergency room visit this year).
8. Stop saving every plastic container that comes in the house. This will make Jack happy (so maybe he’ll throw away his old insurance textbooks) and convince me I’m not turning into my mother.
9. Blog more often than Tuesdays: kill the zombies. Again.
10. OK, so one resolution: Knock off the worrying, it’s the enemy of sleep and does nothing to solve a problem.

And that’s it. Not reaching for the stars but enough to keep me busy. What about you?

1. Books. This is one of my first-to-buy gifts as well since it’s like have a department store with every shape and size of pants you could possibly want. Our local big-chain also lets a local animal shelter raise money during the holidays by offering wrapping services for any size donation, always a blessing for Ms. Fumblefingers.
2. Get thee to the grocery store. Buy a gift bag, a travel mug, a small sample size bag of coffee and find the kiosk with the gift cards. There will be one for a coffee chain. Or swing by your local java junction on the way home, pick up a mocha latte for yourself  and a gift card for your bud. Done and caffeinated.
3. Flowers or holiday arrangement. You don’t need to even leave the house. Pick up the phone or go online and order something green and sparkly to brighten the holidays. Best of all, they deliver.
4. Stop at a stationery shop. With so many people sending e-mails, giving a gift of note cards or small pack of stationery to have on hand will be an unexpected and useful gift. Don’t forget a pen and stamps. You’re likely to find cute little tchotchkes that need to come live on your gift shelf as well. Granted, there aren’t that many stationery stores left, but I can think of a couple locally that don’t involve braving the malls.
5. DVDs — easy to pick up anywhere, including the book store, and if it’s for a child, you have something to keep them busy on Christmas Day once the adrenaline starts wearing off.
6. Food, of course. Unless you really want to take the time to bake so close to the Big Day, I suggest a trip to the local bakery or chocolatier.  Or put together a soup mix with beans, rice, spices and a recipe, hie back to the grocery store (you were going there to buy beans anyway) for a soup mug and a wooden spoon and you’re done.
7. Hobby stuff. I try not to do gift cards (except if it involves teenagers) as the main gift, but a gift card to my favorite yarn shop always fills me with greed glee. (When did this become about me? /ahem)
8. Don’t forget your local garden center. It may be cold and snowy but the shop is likely to have bulbs for forcing, poinsettias if you like them, gloves and small tools, decorative pots, all enough to get your favorite gardener through the dark days.
9. Hit the local museum gift shop for plenty of gifty items. Take a few minutes for the museum as well.
10. Your skills and time. Offer your services to baby sit, shovel a walk, run errands, fix a leaky faucet or a floppy door. It’s all good.

And look at that. Ten last minute ideas for Christmas.

I wrote this Tuesday morning, and then started whacking away at the list instead of posting it so some of these things are done. Now tempus fugit people.  (Loosely translated to time’s a-wasting.) So carpe diem.

Here’s what’s percolating to the top of the list this week.

1. Sew the Minimalist cardigan together that’s blocked and ready to go.  (Nope, still sitting on the chair. )
2. Finish the Christmas shopping. We just got back from breakfast out and hit a couple stores on the way home. (Did more shopping last night so I think I have just a few things to pick up before I’m done.)
3. Write and send the Christmas cards. Haven’t touched this but did remember to buy stamps.
4. Pick up two pairs of pants at the seamstress. She’s had them since before Thanksgiving, this will be the third trip to pick them up because they’re never ready. (Here’s a hint: this will be the last trip, ready or not.) ((They were ready, so the rant I had prepared went for naught.))
5. Grocery shopping: remember to buy a cookie tray for tomorrow’s gift to the rehab center. (No grocery shopping, but found a cookie tray lurking in the cupboard. The cookies have been delivered and consumed.)
6. Finish wrapping gifts and get them in the mail. (Partially done. The fruitcake is on its way, Geri and Fred!)
7. Make an end-of-year donation to Harvesters for their Backsnack program. The local paper is partnering  to raise $100,000 for this program which sends kids home from school on the weekends with a backpack full of non-perishable food. Can you imagine the pain of not being able to feed your family this time of year, never mind being able to afford Christmas? I can’t believe we can’t do better than letting children go hungry. (Not done but soon.)
8. Figure out what knitting to take to pass the time in the waiting room  on Friday. (Got it.)
9. Bake the two batches of cookie dough sitting in the fridge. (Done. Cookies have been taste-tested, not that I really wanted any (ahem) and distributed to the recipients with most of the remainder frozen.)
10. Start a pot of cat grass for Cleo, a girl needs her greens in the winter. She’ll go through several pots of grass this winter before the days of spring green up her favorite spot on the lawn. (Not done.)

And on and on.

With Black Friday and Cyber Monday just behind us, it’s no wonder that Carole came up with a Ten on Tuesday topic about our ten favorite online shopping sites.

I actually use shopping sites more for info than for buying, preferring to shop locally when I can. Even if the price is a little more in the store, I figure I’m saving a local job and not paying shipping charges which go up all the time. Of course, then I pay sales tax, but hey, our roads need repair.

I tend to buy from the same places over and over, particularly when I have good service. Amazon (1) gets used for gifts, an occasional book and the odd necessity — like the egg poacher insert I bought this summer after the old poacher died and my experiments with poaching eggs in water were a failure.  The new one is a vast improvement although I keep overcooking Jack’s eggs.

Then there’s King Arthur Flour (2) where once a year I buy my dried fruit for the Christmas fruitcake — only this year my sister surprised me with the makings for the fruitcake (yes, Geri, it’s made and maturing, it’ll be on its way soon).I also use it for an occasional splurge like scone mixes or a kitchen gadget.

Lee Valley Tools (3), “for “serious woodworkers and gardeners” is a favorite for both of us. Good company, great service and excellent products.

I used to order online from Penzeys Spices (4) until they opened a store in the metro area but I’m still going to count it. Cinnamon, vanilla, allspice, peppercorns, rubs, sea salt, they’ve got it all.

I buy from Talbots (5) and Pendleton (6) when their clothes are on sale, even though I could drive around town and visit a store. The selection locally isn’t that great. The only down side for these two companies are their hefty shipping charges, but I do like their clothes.  And Lands’ End (7)  for jeans. (I went to link to Lands’ End Monday nite and their site had crashed from the volume. Good thing I wasn’t in the mood to shop.)

I very seldom buy yarn or fiber online so you won’t find any enabling here although I did a lot of looking at spinning wheels this summer on the Yarn Barn (Kansas) (8) and The Woolery (9) websites. And Interweave’s (10) damaged book sale usually gets a few bucks from me each year. I’ve never bought a “damaged” book from them that was in less than near-perfect condition and with the steep discounts I’ve gotten some bargains.

And there you have it. Now I suppose I should start thinking about Christmas shopping.

Ten things to love about Thanksgiving.

1. Getting together with family, even the annoying ones.
2. It’s on a Thursday. Seriously. You get a holiday in the middle of the week and then you have the weekend to recover and eat leftovers.
3. It’s much less commercialized than Christmas. Except for the food and the need to overeat, but I can control that.
4. I like our Thanksgiving because we don’t always do turkey. I love turkey/gravy and mashed potatoes but it’s a lot of work and then there’s the carcass to deal with afterward. I don’t really like turkey soup. I know, weird, because chicken soup is my favorite. Last year we had Cornish game hens. This year we’re having roast beef, mashed potatoes, something green and that’s it. Probably not even pumpkin pie, but maybe I’ll make a few small pumpkin tarts to enjoy.
5. It marks the start of the holiday season and because people aren’t sick of the holidays yet, they’re in a good mood. Strangers at the grocery store say pardon me with a smile instead of an impatient frown. I expect by December 24th the frowns will be back.
6. It hasn’t snowed yet.
7. Football and Thanksgiving Day parades.
8. The Plaza lighting ceremony happens every Thanksgiving night at 6 pm. Thousands of people jam into the streets around the Country Club Plaza to count down the minutes until they flip the switch. All the buildings for several square blocks are outlined in multi-colored splendor from Thanksgiving to mid-January.  We’ve joined the crowds a few times on Thanksgiving, but lately we just plan to have dinner on the Plaza  a couple times during the holiday season. That way we can walk around the streets, admiring all the lights without dealing with the crowds.
9. Taking a walk before or after Thanksgiving dinner.
10. Putting up the Christmas lights.

Here’s hoping you and yours enjoy your holiday!

Go see why Carole and the other Tenners love Thanksgiving.

It always comes back to food doesn’t it? Ten things in my refrigerator.

1. Horseradish, can’t live without it.
2. Fiori di Sicilia. This is a great citrusy flavor for cookies and light cakes.
3. Chipotles in adobo sauce, I used it for making pulled pork about a month ago and now wonder what I’m going to do with the other 7/8 of a can.
4. 3 different kinds of wet cat food: a diet food for Cleo and two for Mr. Picky.
5. At least 6 kinds of salad dressing for Jack, (I use olive oil and vinegar)
6. Eggplant which needs to get cooked soon, it’s beginning to look not-fresh
7. Vicki’s roasted tomato sauce, perhaps to go with the eggplant? I think so.
8. Drinks: orange, grape, cranberry juices, apple cider, lemonade and milk — again for Jack. That’s a few more than normal but we typically have a lot of juices in the house.
9. Half of a turkey/Swiss cheese sandwich, pineapple and carrots packaged up for today’s lunch
10. Leftovers from last night’s dinner of pot roast and gravy.

And of course about a hundred other things, some of which are probably ready for the disposal. And we won’t talk about the garage refrigerator.

Go see what Carole and others have lurking in their icebox.

Ten ways to Lighten My Mood. Are you insinuating I’m cranky???!!!!?

1. Plant sunflowers in your garden.
2. Go out to lunch with a friend.
3. Change the routine. We all need a little variety. So that would be peanut butter on the English muffin instead of jam.
4. Spend time puttering in the garden. As long as there are no aphids. Bastids.
5. Read an entertaining book. Fiction is best, although I just read Laurie Hertzel’s memoir News to Me: Adventures of an Accidental Journalist about growing up in the newspaper business and loved it.
6. Soak up some Vitamin D from the sun. Definitely need sun.
7. Get rid of that one thing that’s been nagging you because it’s not done, needs work, is a mess or is a constant irritation (We’re not talking husbands here, people. Stop it.) Throw that project in the trash and stop feeling guilty about it. You’ll feel so much better.
8. Clean something. It works to have my space tidy and organized. Because mostly it’s not. So when I get it organized I give myself a pat on the back.
9. I generally don’t eat to make myself feel better, but if I did it would be coffee ice cream in the summer and a baked potato with lots of butter and cheese in the winter.
10. Move. Go for a walk, a bike ride, stretch, do yoga, whatever it takes to get those endorphins flowing.

Go see Carole for more ideas.

~

Life is busy, busy, busy. I got approached to host a get-together for a local political candidate and turned that down only to get sucked into working for the campaign. Should have seen that one coming.

There’s been very little time to play with the Ladybug so the bonding process is slow. She’s beginning to grow on me but so far I haven’t been tempted to name her. Either she doesn’t need a name or Bug will have to do.

The garden is sort of winding down for the year. There’s not  a lot to do except water occasionally and watch things grow. And attack aphids. I’ve planted fall crops of carrots, spinach, beets and Swiss Chard so hopefully we’ll get a harvest of some sort later this year. The straw bales are decomposing nicely. While straw may make good compost, as a growing medium my considered opinion is that it sucks. Or maybe I’m just a lousy gardener.

/sigh

Next year.