It's sunny in Seattle today, supposed to be in the 70's tomorrow and 60's all weekend with rain. Yay. My parents are visiting today through Tuesday, so it should make for an interesting weekend. Today they are hanging out with my brother who lives here too, but tomorrow they're on their own because I am working. I am taking Monday off so we're heading to do some sight seeing over the weekend to some new "non-Seattle" Seattle things...like the Ballard Lock, Nordic Heritage Museum, UW Arboretum and Japanese Gardens, Skagit Valley tulips, etc., etc., etc. No Space Needle, Pike Place Market, etc. this time since this is the 3rd time they've been here and we've already done those things, and I just "did" them with my brother in law and sister in law 6 weeks ago.
I have a whirlwind of things happening work and personal-wise over the next few months...should be interesting. Hopefully the swine flu doesn't get me before then. :)
April 30, 2009
April 22, 2009
Gross Monday...
Monday night, I went to Fred Meyer because it was on my way home. I had to get some more pots for re-potting my plants and wanted to see if I could get some more veggies and/or flowers for the deck and potting soil and didn't want to pay a ton of cash somewhere else. I never shop at Fred Meyer because they're over-priced IMO (at least compared to Target) and kind of out of the way for me. But I figured I'd give it a try. As usual, I found things that were "ok" but not exactly what I wanted. I wanted flower boxes, of which I'd gotten one last year for about $6 each but they didn't have them and only had ones that wouldn't fit on my deck for $15 each. So I opted for two large round pots and two more large hanging pots. I wanted some cascading flowers/greenery for the hanging pots but didn't really find anything, so I ended up with some smaller flowers. I did get a steal on some cherry tomatoes that can be planted in a hanging basket for $.99 each though which was unexpected.
As I grabbed my pots, plants, potting soil and gardening gloves, I made my way to the check out. Aside from the fact that it was an express lane, and the two people in front of me had about 30 items (the sign above the checkout actually says "about 12 items" which apparently means up to 30) I got in line and waited to put my things on the belt.
After doing so, I moved forward so the woman behind me could put her things on the belt. She immediately started talking to me. I smiled politely and turned forward. She started saying how hot it was in the store (all the doors were open and a nice breeze was blowing in.) I get to the front where my overly cheerful cashier was ringing me out and having a conversation about wines with her next door cashier neighbor. Not about wines they had for sale mind you, but just types of wine in general. Then she rang up my plants and the price came up wrong, so I had to get her to stop her convo to correct it.
Sometime during this, I look back and see the woman behind me with what appears to be some sort of creamy donut frosting on her face. She asks for a paper towel and I assume it's for her face. The cashier takes about a century to get her the towel, then continues to ring me up. I keep watching the woman behind me as she uses the paper towel on the floor. I think she must have spilled something and she'll ask the cashier for another towel for her face. She doesn't. What she does do is lean over her little plastic bag from the bakery section and proceeds to throw up in it. I instantly recoil, becuse it's gross, but also because I don't want to accidentally get "sprayed". I point this out to the cashier who has totalled my order, I've run my card and am "waiting for cashier". She just stands there and looks at the woman, and watches her throw up. No helping. No offering of paper towels. No calling over the intercom for a "cleanup", as it's hazardous material. I look at her and ask her to punch the button to charge my card. She doesn't move. So at this point, I'm trapped between my cart filled with things that aren't paid for and the woman behind me throwing up, who with each cough is pushing her cart into me.
What seemed like 20 mins was probably only a few seconds before the cashier snapped out of it, hit the button and handed me my reciept. As I walked away, the cashier started ringing the woman's things up - ummm...she's probably a bit busy throwing up and maybe needs a second before getting her credit card out to pay you, you think? Maybe it's ok to put your blinky light on signaling a manager and get the aisle cleaned up and allow the woman to compose herself before shoving her out the door with her purchases?
Ugh - I had to leave the store before I saw the end of it because I was feeling nauseous. I felt so bad for the woman, but couldn't do any more than I did without creating my own "mess". Yeah, I don't really like shopping at Fred Meyer and I think that sealed the deal for me...I doubt I'll ever go back.
On another note, and a much nicer one, I did manage to replant all of our potted flowers last night, as well as some new veggies and took some photos...our deck is small and the sun only hits it directly for about 4 hours in the morning, but things seem to do ok there. I was actually thinking of asking if I could have a small plot of land to build a garden at my complex yesterday since I like growing our own veggies...might bring it up this weekend to our manager as a community thing since we have a lot of older women who live there who might join in. Anyway, here are our plants so far for the spring:
Geraniums, gerbera daisies and some other flowers I forget the name of... :)
Gerberas
Serrano peppers, golden oregano and poblano peppers...hopefully these peppers grow and we get a few good ones for cooking/making salsa
Parsley and geraniums and unknown flowers in the back. I used some of this parsley last night with our dinner and it was delish
Tumbling Tom tomatoes in the hanging pot
Some greenery that is supposed to bloom into red flowers similar to impatiens..
Monet and Epi waiting patiently for their turn on the porch...
I'll have to see if I can get a clear shot of the whole porch but it looks nice with three hanging pots across the front, and then little groupings on each side with the flower box in the center with the peppers and oregano in them. I really want a garden space though...I'd plant cucumbers, romaine lettuce and beefsteak tomatoes if I had one!
As I grabbed my pots, plants, potting soil and gardening gloves, I made my way to the check out. Aside from the fact that it was an express lane, and the two people in front of me had about 30 items (the sign above the checkout actually says "about 12 items" which apparently means up to 30) I got in line and waited to put my things on the belt.
After doing so, I moved forward so the woman behind me could put her things on the belt. She immediately started talking to me. I smiled politely and turned forward. She started saying how hot it was in the store (all the doors were open and a nice breeze was blowing in.) I get to the front where my overly cheerful cashier was ringing me out and having a conversation about wines with her next door cashier neighbor. Not about wines they had for sale mind you, but just types of wine in general. Then she rang up my plants and the price came up wrong, so I had to get her to stop her convo to correct it.
Sometime during this, I look back and see the woman behind me with what appears to be some sort of creamy donut frosting on her face. She asks for a paper towel and I assume it's for her face. The cashier takes about a century to get her the towel, then continues to ring me up. I keep watching the woman behind me as she uses the paper towel on the floor. I think she must have spilled something and she'll ask the cashier for another towel for her face. She doesn't. What she does do is lean over her little plastic bag from the bakery section and proceeds to throw up in it. I instantly recoil, becuse it's gross, but also because I don't want to accidentally get "sprayed". I point this out to the cashier who has totalled my order, I've run my card and am "waiting for cashier". She just stands there and looks at the woman, and watches her throw up. No helping. No offering of paper towels. No calling over the intercom for a "cleanup", as it's hazardous material. I look at her and ask her to punch the button to charge my card. She doesn't move. So at this point, I'm trapped between my cart filled with things that aren't paid for and the woman behind me throwing up, who with each cough is pushing her cart into me.
What seemed like 20 mins was probably only a few seconds before the cashier snapped out of it, hit the button and handed me my reciept. As I walked away, the cashier started ringing the woman's things up - ummm...she's probably a bit busy throwing up and maybe needs a second before getting her credit card out to pay you, you think? Maybe it's ok to put your blinky light on signaling a manager and get the aisle cleaned up and allow the woman to compose herself before shoving her out the door with her purchases?
Ugh - I had to leave the store before I saw the end of it because I was feeling nauseous. I felt so bad for the woman, but couldn't do any more than I did without creating my own "mess". Yeah, I don't really like shopping at Fred Meyer and I think that sealed the deal for me...I doubt I'll ever go back.
On another note, and a much nicer one, I did manage to replant all of our potted flowers last night, as well as some new veggies and took some photos...our deck is small and the sun only hits it directly for about 4 hours in the morning, but things seem to do ok there. I was actually thinking of asking if I could have a small plot of land to build a garden at my complex yesterday since I like growing our own veggies...might bring it up this weekend to our manager as a community thing since we have a lot of older women who live there who might join in. Anyway, here are our plants so far for the spring:
Geraniums, gerbera daisies and some other flowers I forget the name of... :)
Gerberas
Serrano peppers, golden oregano and poblano peppers...hopefully these peppers grow and we get a few good ones for cooking/making salsa
Parsley and geraniums and unknown flowers in the back. I used some of this parsley last night with our dinner and it was delish
Tumbling Tom tomatoes in the hanging pot
Some greenery that is supposed to bloom into red flowers similar to impatiens..
Monet and Epi waiting patiently for their turn on the porch...
I'll have to see if I can get a clear shot of the whole porch but it looks nice with three hanging pots across the front, and then little groupings on each side with the flower box in the center with the peppers and oregano in them. I really want a garden space though...I'd plant cucumbers, romaine lettuce and beefsteak tomatoes if I had one!
April 16, 2009
Pay It Forward
So I received a lovely package in the mail the other day from Erin over at From The Land Of Cotton. If you haven't read her blog, head on over to check it out.
My camera battery is dead, but please be assured it was a cute package, right down to the wrapping paper! Inside were: two cute hot pink dish towels with pineapples on them, a bright blue oven mitt, a little pen, Easter bunny Pez and a magnetic pad with my initial on it. Such cute things and they arrived on the perfect day - a rainy, dreary day here in Seattle, and the bright colors screamed "fun" and "springtime" so I was very happy!
So, in the tradition of Pay It Forward, the first three people to respond to this post will receive some goodies from me! This is a great way for me to see who and if anyone actually reads this blog!
My camera battery is dead, but please be assured it was a cute package, right down to the wrapping paper! Inside were: two cute hot pink dish towels with pineapples on them, a bright blue oven mitt, a little pen, Easter bunny Pez and a magnetic pad with my initial on it. Such cute things and they arrived on the perfect day - a rainy, dreary day here in Seattle, and the bright colors screamed "fun" and "springtime" so I was very happy!
So, in the tradition of Pay It Forward, the first three people to respond to this post will receive some goodies from me! This is a great way for me to see who and if anyone actually reads this blog!
April 10, 2009
April 9, 2009
PEEPtini recipes...in honor of Easter
For the Easter drinker, may I suggest a PEEPtini this year...
Lemon PEEPtini
- 1 oz Limoncello
- 1 oz Vodka
- 1/2 oz Sweet and sour mix
- 1 peep
- Tang, for rimming the glass
Mix all liquid items in a shaker. Shake, pour into glass rimmed with Tang. Float the peep. Enjoy.
Lemon PEEPtini
- 1 oz Limoncello
- 1 oz Vodka
- 1/2 oz Sweet and sour mix
- 1 peep
- Tang, for rimming the glass
Mix all liquid items in a shaker. Shake, pour into glass rimmed with Tang. Float the peep. Enjoy.
Pink PEEPtini
-1 oz limoncello
-1 oz raspberry vodka
-1 tsp frozen pink lemonade concentrate
- Sugar to rim the glass
-1 pink peep
Rim glass with sugar. Mix the liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice, pour into a martini glass. Don’t forget to float the peep.
Blue-on-Blue PEEPtini
-6 parts vodka
-1 part blue curacao
-1 dash Angostura bitters
-Cocktail olive
Combine liquid ingredients in a cocktail shaker with cracked ice and shake well. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish two blue PEEPs.
Chocolate Mint Cocktail PEEPtini
-2 oz. Light rum
-½ oz. White creme de menthe
-½ oz. Godiva Liqueur
-Mint sprig for garnish
Combine rum and liqueurs in mixing glass. Add ice and stir to chill. Strain into your Swank Martini Glass and garnish with chocolate and green PEEPs.
Fuzzy PEEPtini
-4 parts vanilla-flavored vodka
-1 part coffee-flavored vodka
-1 teaspoon peach schnapps
-Fresh peach slice
Combine liquid ingredients in a cocktail glass and garnish with a fresh red PEEP.
CosmoPEEPitan PEEPtini
-4 parts vodka
-2 parts triple sec
-2 parts cranberry juice
-1 part fresh lime juice
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with cracked ice and shake well. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, garnish with pink PEEPs. Enjoy your CosmoPEEPitan PEEPtini!
April 6, 2009
My weekend!
I had a busy weekend, busier than most have been recently. But oh so much fun!
Friday - I left work a bit early and headed downtown to meet friends for a happy hour at Twilight Martini Lounge. This is right by Pike Place Market and has a super yummy and cheap happy hour menu! We shared updates on our lives, good food and drinks!
I left the bar around 8pm, and drove my other friend home, and then came home to meet Tito as he was on his way out to Fremont to hang out with a friend. This is a friend of ours from undergrad who moved out here last year. He is from Kenya, and leaving for a matter of months to go home and see his family. He's not 100% sure if he's coming back so Tito wanted a chance to see him before he left. I stayed home and cleaned the house though since it was a boys night. :)
Saturday - I woke up to sunshine! I headed out and hit up the DMV to finally get my WA license after 3 years of living here. It took only 20 minutes, they asked no questions about how long I'd lived here, gave me my old license after punching a hole in it and sent me on my way for my photo. Stupid lady taking the photo, had me stand back, I smiled. Kept smiling. She didn't look like she was going to take the photo, but I still smiled. She looked down to her left and talked to someone of which made me think she wasn't going to take the photo yet so I looked at who she was talking to. Turned me head back around to the camera and she snapped the photo then. The result? A photo of my dead pan with my eyes half opened. I asked her if we could take it again and she said no. I usually have good license photos too! So I think I'm going to look into "losing" the license and see if I can get another one taken where I at least have my eyes open!
After the DMV, I drove over to the UVillage to walk around and go to H&M. Hadn't been there in awhile, and picked up a cute little top, some black satin peep toe espadrilles and a collection of little turquoise wooden beaded bracelets. I also headed to Crate and Barrel but didn't find anything to really buy but picked up a new shoe rack and some storage things at Storables. (Have to bring the shoe rack back because it was missing a piece which was annoying to find out.) Headed home and made brownies, and pico de gallo.
Tito headed to Kirkland to meet up with Erik and Mike for a man playdate. :) Headed out to M's house for B's birthday dinner. Had a great time enjoying fajitas, chips and salsa and pico, and brownies with ice cream and chocolate sauce, as well as wine, beer and good company! After dinner, we headed to a new martini bar in Kirkland. It was packed and a little small for the space, but B and M snagged a table and we camped out for the rest of the night.
Sunday - woke up, grocery shopped, then got lunch at Subway and Tito and I headed to St. Edward's State Park to enjoy the sunshine and have a picnic. We spent three hours in the sunshine, soaking up Vitamin D, relaxing, reading, and just loving life. Headed home, grabbed some movies and settled in and watched both (Role Models and 7 Pounds.) We liked both of them for different reasons, and it was nice to spend a good day together, and good evening snuggling and just enjoying each other's company.
Some photos from the weekend:
Jess and I (playing with the color accent feature on my new camera)
Jess and purple coat!
Not a great shot of me, but with my new license
The ladies at dinner
Happy Birthday B!
On the way to the bar - I'm riding in the "big girl" seat in the middle of E's new Highlander
Cheers to B!
The ladies
Tito and I at St. Edward's State Park enjoying the sunshine!
Epi and I after a day in the sun (with Monet looking on in the background)
Friday - I left work a bit early and headed downtown to meet friends for a happy hour at Twilight Martini Lounge. This is right by Pike Place Market and has a super yummy and cheap happy hour menu! We shared updates on our lives, good food and drinks!
I left the bar around 8pm, and drove my other friend home, and then came home to meet Tito as he was on his way out to Fremont to hang out with a friend. This is a friend of ours from undergrad who moved out here last year. He is from Kenya, and leaving for a matter of months to go home and see his family. He's not 100% sure if he's coming back so Tito wanted a chance to see him before he left. I stayed home and cleaned the house though since it was a boys night. :)
Saturday - I woke up to sunshine! I headed out and hit up the DMV to finally get my WA license after 3 years of living here. It took only 20 minutes, they asked no questions about how long I'd lived here, gave me my old license after punching a hole in it and sent me on my way for my photo. Stupid lady taking the photo, had me stand back, I smiled. Kept smiling. She didn't look like she was going to take the photo, but I still smiled. She looked down to her left and talked to someone of which made me think she wasn't going to take the photo yet so I looked at who she was talking to. Turned me head back around to the camera and she snapped the photo then. The result? A photo of my dead pan with my eyes half opened. I asked her if we could take it again and she said no. I usually have good license photos too! So I think I'm going to look into "losing" the license and see if I can get another one taken where I at least have my eyes open!
After the DMV, I drove over to the UVillage to walk around and go to H&M. Hadn't been there in awhile, and picked up a cute little top, some black satin peep toe espadrilles and a collection of little turquoise wooden beaded bracelets. I also headed to Crate and Barrel but didn't find anything to really buy but picked up a new shoe rack and some storage things at Storables. (Have to bring the shoe rack back because it was missing a piece which was annoying to find out.) Headed home and made brownies, and pico de gallo.
Tito headed to Kirkland to meet up with Erik and Mike for a man playdate. :) Headed out to M's house for B's birthday dinner. Had a great time enjoying fajitas, chips and salsa and pico, and brownies with ice cream and chocolate sauce, as well as wine, beer and good company! After dinner, we headed to a new martini bar in Kirkland. It was packed and a little small for the space, but B and M snagged a table and we camped out for the rest of the night.
Sunday - woke up, grocery shopped, then got lunch at Subway and Tito and I headed to St. Edward's State Park to enjoy the sunshine and have a picnic. We spent three hours in the sunshine, soaking up Vitamin D, relaxing, reading, and just loving life. Headed home, grabbed some movies and settled in and watched both (Role Models and 7 Pounds.) We liked both of them for different reasons, and it was nice to spend a good day together, and good evening snuggling and just enjoying each other's company.
Some photos from the weekend:
Jess and I (playing with the color accent feature on my new camera)
Jess and purple coat!
Not a great shot of me, but with my new license
The ladies at dinner
Happy Birthday B!
On the way to the bar - I'm riding in the "big girl" seat in the middle of E's new Highlander
Cheers to B!
The ladies
Tito and I at St. Edward's State Park enjoying the sunshine!
Epi and I after a day in the sun (with Monet looking on in the background)
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