Happy birthday, Todd!

Last night in the shower, Thea finger-painted this portrait of her dad in honor of his birthday yesterday. I think it captures his essence quite well.



Poor Todd, he hasn't had much of a birthday celebration this year. He has a cold, which always knocks him on his ass, and a stye in his eye, so he's generally feeling pretty miserable. In fact, he will be unable to use his birthday present from me: tickets to see Stereolab in concert tonight at the 9:30 with his best friend.

On the bright side, I'm going to see Stereolab at the 9:30 tonight with a fabulous guy! Woohoo!

19 ways of looking at a KellyGO

My friend Spleen has a meme on her blog that I'm totally stealing, just because I have nothing to say these days.

1. Do you like blue cheese?
I love all the stinky cheeses.

2. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments?
Very. One doctor diagnosed me with "white coat hypertension."

3. Favorite Christmas Song?
"Little Drummer Boy." It's Thea's favorite Christmas song, too.

4. Do you work with people who idolize you?
I'm not sure they even respect me.

5. Do you have A.D.D.?
No, I have a great ability to focus.

6. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment.
"ADD, what a weird question."
"The idolizing question was weird, too."
"Who wrote this?"

7. Name something you bought yesterday.
It wasn't yesterday, but the last thing I bought was four kids' Halloween costumes: cheetah, dalmatian puppy, lizard, and dinosaur.

8. Current worry right now?
That the bank collapses will make it impossible for Todd to get enough student loans to cover daycare. (This is actually a very real and present concern.)

9. Current hate right now?
That one of our dogs needs his butt glands expressed.

10. Favorite place to be?
My dining room.

11. Where would you like to go?
Most pressingly, to visit my sister and her girlfriend in Asbury Park, NJ, or to Hawaii to visit family there.

12. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets?
I don't really think about sheets that much.

13. Favorite girl's name?
Theadora

14. Favorite boy's name?
Liam

15. Last thing that made you laugh?
A friend telling me and Spleen about how his dog's anal glands needed to be expressed, but he couldn't figure out what was causing the smell and ... well, then it just got obscene.

16. Worst injury you've ever had?
Breaking my arm doing cartwheels.

17. Does someone have a crush on you?
Oh god, no. I have two kids. No one wants any piece of that.

18. What is your favorite book?
The Exile and the Kingdom by Albert Camus

19. What were you doing 12 AM last night?
Counting backwards from 100 to one and then up again to 100, over and over.

A warning to all other clowns who enter Value Village

Many thanks to everyone who weighed in on the "do I make or buy the kids' Halloween costumes" conundrum on Twitter and Facebook. I decided to see what I could find at my local thrift store, as I lack both the skill and the patience to make costume-making a fun experience for any of us.

As I was combing the racks for dinosaurs and princesses, I looked up and was horrified to see Bozo hanged in a gruesome display of clownicide. It's not quite as awful as the clowns I saw at the same place around this time last year, but it's close.

The boy loves cupcakes

My chocolate-zucchini cupcakes with powdered sugar instead of frosting were a big hit, as usual.

Anyone? Anyone?

Last night I had drinks with my old coworkers (and good friends) on the roof of the Watergate. E and I went to the Safeway downstairs to get some snacks to go with the copious amounts of wine and beer we had, and we ran into Ben Stein, who lives at the Watergate.



I think we scared him a little.

High point of my anniversary

Today was the anniversary of Todd's and my first date. To celebrate, we got the kids hopped up on eclairs and cake, and then turned them loose in the shower with fingerpaints.

Well, that was unexpected

In general, I'm not a sentimental person. After becoming a mother, I will admit to being a sucker for kids, but as a rule, I'm practical and logical, a "see a problem, solve a problem" kind of person. I tend not to dwell on things, and am good at learning from hardship and letting go.

So I was quite surprised when I remembered the date and then burst into tears in the shower this morning.

I've been a little too close to weeping all morning, in fact. Reading my post from the fifth anniversary of 9/11 has thoroughly depressed me, but it also reminded me of the way my neighborhood came together as a community of friends in the weeks and months that followed. Like when I went across the street to the 7/11 where I always got my coffee, and the guy behind the counter looked haggard, as I'm sure I did. He said, "Are you okay?" I said, "I've been better, but I'm okay. How are you doing?" "This is crazy. I'm freaking out," he replied.

It was like that everywhere I went. We all had each other's backs, we were all in this together, and we all wanted to see each other through to the other side, safe and sound.

Mmm-mm-meme: The Omnivore's 100

Nylonthread tagged me with a fun meme, which I've been meaning to do, anyway, and so appreciate the nudge. Very Good Taste (via Postbourgie and Ezra Klein) gave a list of food items, plus the following instructions:

1. Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4. Optional extra: Post a comment here at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile [Wait, does alligator count?]
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis [I tried to have haggis when Todd and I went to Scotland years ago, but it was during the mad cow disease scare. Sadly, there was no haggis to be found.]
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

If anyone could help me out with the things not bolded or crossed off the list, I'd be much obliged.

Dog tired from a run around the lake

Second breakfast by the lake

Why I love Twitter

Every morning when I wake up, I check my email and then check Twitter to see what people were talking about overnight. I skipped the broadcast of the Republican National Convention because, wow, one can only take so much hostility before responding in kind. But I was sorry to miss the Palin speech. Between FakeSarahPalin and the rest, I felt like I caught the best parts, at least.

[Larger size.]

Moderation is for suckers

Around New Year's Eve, there was someone on a morning show talking about resolutions. She said that if one were to make a single resolution, it should be Moderation In Everything. "You can have cake," she said, "but just have a couple bites. You don't have to have the whole thing."

The idea of pleasure doled out in tiny, bite-sized pieces kind of pisses me off. Yes, god forbid anyone should overindulge, should eat a whole freaking piece of cake or drink that one bourbon too many (or few bourbons; no judgment here) or stay out scandalously late.

I think a better philosophy of life, a better resolution to make, would be to strive for balance. Be extravagant and lavish and even unseemly, but also strive for some yin with your yang. This is, for me, one of the biggest appeals of running.

Speaking of self-indulgence for which you have to pay, I've made these bacon-wrapped jalapenos twice and have gorged myself on them both times. Below is the recipe, mainly so I don't forget it, but do go check it out on the Pioneer Woman's site. The photos are awesome.

Bacon-Wrapped Jalapenos

Ingredients:
Fresh jalapenos
Cream cheese
Bacon

Slice jalapenos lengthwise and remove some seeds and veins. Slice bacon into thirds or halves. Fill jalapenos with cream cheese. Wrap bacon around them and secure with a toothpick. Place them on a rack and bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Try not to eat them all, but really, you did all the work and probably deserve them more than anyone else. No one else will appreciate them like you do, anyway.