Reasons to Not Cook

The title of this post is probably a little misleading--I actually enjoy cooking. One of the reasons I was glad to be done with the show was to be able to cook dinner for my family, and eat it together!

Evidently, I forgot a few things during my hiatus from chef-dom. Mainly, I forgot how to put things into, and take them out of the oven safely. I have two huge burns on my arm, from two separate meals. Does anyone know if oven gloves exist that will cover me up to my elbows? I think that might offer me just enough protection. Perhaps I should just rig myself up in full firefighter gear. I'll have to check with the in laws on that.

I'd love to take a picture to show you the extent of my clumsiness, but my camera has officially died. Kaput. No workie no more. So you'll just have to take my word for it--they're lovely burns. Blistery, red, owie burns. (Boo-urns. Literally.)

So, while I'm camera-less for a while, until I dig up some moola to go buy me a fancy new one, I AM the proud new owner of a video camera. Whether or not you see video posts will entirely depend on my skill as a camera woman, and my ability to upload to the computer. Hmmm..this could take awhile.

Grab a Shoe, Preferrably Someone Else's: Scary Ew Bugs

I've been wanted to do another edition of this for a while now. I have a very special bug, close to my heart (thankfully, not literally) that I've been wanting to feature. You would not believe the difficulty I've had in getting the picture. It's just on the computer in my studio, yet getting it off has become a project.



Instead, I give you the Scary Ew Bug. For the longest time we didn't know the actual name of this nasty thing, so my dear friends dubbed them Scary Ew Bugs. Picture this: a younger me, arriving to visit my best friends during a college break. Winter, I think. I arrive on a bus, late at night, and it's around 3 am by the time we get to their apartment in a beautiful old home. I go into the bathroom to get into my jammies, and at some point, the nastiest, grossest bug I had ever seen (up until then) goes running under the pile of clothes I had on the floor. You can imagine the jumping and screaming that went on, as I ran to get Bev. (Steph, I think you were already sleeping. Smart girl.) Bev nodded wisely, and told me it was very likely a Scary Ew Bug I had just seen.



Thanks to this site, (which also is where I got the photo) we now know that they're not actually called Scary Ew Bugs, but rather Scutigera coleoptrata, or house centipede. They'll always be Scary Ew Bugs to me.

Lazy Days of Summer...ish

Today's the perfect summer day for me, in that it actually feels like fall. I love cooler days with a breeze--still warm enough for shorts, but I can go for a run without feeling like I'm melting in the heat.

The relaxing weather fits life right now. We finished the musical on Sunday. I'm sad to see it over, because it was so much fun, and I already miss all my new friends. (Angels, if you're reading this--Applebee's soon, right?) However, it's SOOOO nice to just have a quiet evening to ourselves, to finally get caught up on housework (I attacked the kitchen yesterday, and today the bathroom gets it!) and just have that overall sense of peace that was lacking in all the show frenzy. Even Wiggle Man is more relaxed...well, as relaxed as he gets. Right now he's licking his baby touch n' feel book. I guess he needs a break from wrestling his stuffed Eeyore.

I actually get to cook dinners this week, instead of eating Wawa goodies in the car on the way to rehearsal. We're going to eat real food, at a real table. At least, that's the plan.

I also have big plans to actually find the spare battery to my camera, or at least find the charger so I can charge the dead one. Maybe then I'll get some pictures back up here.

So, I'm off to enjoy real life again for a bit. And if I can pry his face off of his book, spend some time with my kid!

I Forgot to Title This...That's How Crazy It Is Here!

Sorry I haven't posted in a week--it's been absolutely insane here. Good insane. Fun insane. But insane nonetheless. It's been a week of family gatherings, which are always fun and always food-filled.

We're also in our last week of rehearsals for Children of Eden, which means late nights. Thankfully Wiggle Man has been sleeping well this week, or I might look like The Angel of Wrath rather than The Angel of Forgiveness, which is my part in the production. I learned last night it's very hard to look powerfully angelic for 3.5 hours.

I also had the somewhat discouraging experience of bridesmaid dress shopping yesterday. Don't misunderstand me--I love being a bridesmaid. I love the dresses we're considering, which not always a given, as many of you know. I'm not complaining about the cost--they're pretty reasonable for the dresses we're getting. Even the colour is beautiful.

The problem? Bridesmaids dress makers have an elaborate plot to make me feel fat. The size dress I will have to buy is TEN sizes bigger than my actual dress size. Now, I knew this going in. I've done this four times before, for heaven's sake. Only once have I ever had a bridesmaid dress that was my actual dress size. Every other one has been 8-10 sizes bigger than my actual size. Does anyone know why this is necessary?

At any rate, we consoled ourselves in true female fashion by going out to lunch. And not ordering the salad.

Food Hangovers

Can someone tell me if "food hangover" is an official term? Because if not, it needs to be. That is totally what I experienced this morning. Now, let me be clear--I've never had an actual hangover, being pure as the driven snow like I am. Ahem. But from what I've seen on sitcoms (a wealth of sociological study there) my symptoms were similar. That general, overall gross feeling, headache, aversion to food...no light sensitivity, though.

Let me paint you a picture of my wild and crazy night. We had another rehearsal for Children of Eden. The show is finally starting to come together in bits and pieces. A bunch of us went out for wings after rehearsal, to celebrate my birthday. I'm not sure if it was the wings that did it, or the fries, or the chocolate cake they made me order, so they could sing to me. We closed the place down, and stuffed, we stumbled to our cars.

That leads us back to this morning, and my food hangover. Of course, it was all worth it. Teriyaki wings and chocolate cake are always worth any next morning queasiness.

Guilty Pleasures

We all have 'em. I probably have more than my share, but meh. Then I thought, hey...if you tell everyone your guilty pleasures, they're not so guilty anymore. Confession is good for the soul. I started thinking about this the other day when Hubba Hubba noticed I was watching Reba. I used to watch it because when you don't have cable, it's Reba or Oprah at 4 pm. I pick Reba. But the more I watch it, the more hilarious it is. In fact, even Hubba Hubba laughed out loud at some of those crazy Hart family antics.

Napping during the day is another fabulous thing to do when Wiggle Man lets me. Ditto for reading. Alright, anything that isn't housework is great to do in the afternoon! Watching several episodes of Friends in a row may seem like a waste of time, but it's an indulgent waste of time. Actually, it comes in quite handy when you're playing Scene It! Friends edition.

Chocolate is a whole category of guilty pleasure. My current favourite is dark chocolate covered peanuts. In fact, there's a bag on the computer desk right now. They constituted "lunch" when I added some cherries. With a big glass of water for my health.

I could go on and on, but I'm going to go be productive, and practice my stuff for Children of Eden, our family's current obsession. (Wiggle Man and Hubba Hubba will both be in the show, so it really is a family affair.) If you're local, talk to me about tickets!

Things are Different

I have TWO fans! Who knew? :) Camilla, my fellow foreigner on our Mommy boards, was also waiting through my two week blog drought. So, in honour of Mommy diversity, here are some things that are different in the U.S, that you Americans may or may not be aware of.

1) Spelling. I'm not spelling things like "favour" and "honour" wrong. :)

2) Corn Pops. I have no idea why, but U.S. Corn Pops are different than our Canadian ones. I don't like yours. :(

3) Candy. Why can't we all have the same candy and chocolate bars? Why can't I get a Crunchie or Smarties down here? (Canadian Smarties are chocolate. What Americans call Smarties we call Rockets, and we usually only eat them around Hallowe'en.

4) Euchre rules. I don't know why Americans think they can order their partner up, and not go alone. I will never understand that one. :)

5) Words. I had never heard the terms "spigot" or "hopper" until I moved to the States. Why can't we all say "tap" and "restroom"?

I'm sure there are lots more differences that we can share and come to blows over. Feel free to share your favourites.