Wednesday, October 31, 2007

there's at least one good thing
about Vancouver, WA


What?!? His little eyes need protection
from those harmful UVA/UVB rays too.


As you can see. We went to Vancouver for the weekend to visit the little mister...& andy 'n jen too. We had a belated birthday breakfast for Jen and enjoyed some chill time hanging out and playing games.



Thanks for the sweet relaxing weekend friends.
with love, your white friend meg

And now for a plethora of little mister photos. You know you love it.

the, I-can't-get-enough-of-his-drooling-little-face-and-his-"hey-these-are-my-hands"-moments...



Oh and when he laughs, it melts me into forgetting
there's a 2 hour drive ahead of us and staying longer than we should.




and lastly...in honor of the Oaks' (thanks for the phone call, can you tell you had been on our minds?)


Happy Halloween.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

fall leaves & cheers for scholars









The colors won't last forever, but while they're here, I'm a happy girl.


I couldn't resist snapping this picture
as we stood outside on the sidewalk.
Two of my favorite things to see...
fall leaves & shoes


A while ago, I'm done saying when, cause it makes me look like I'm a slacker, and I'm not a slacker. I want to blog. I love to blog and I love sharing about all the things we're up to... I'm just a bit bombarded with life...so I can't mention the exact date, cause it was over a week ago and I don't remember it, but...

on a crisp Sunday afternoon, we attended as "sit in parents" for an amazing Gutenberg student as she was honored, along with her class, for her accomplishments at this fine institution. They're half way done with their 4 year Course Requirements and after accomplishing the rigorous 2 year exams they were presented with Greek New Testaments at a Tea & Luncheon.


The 2 year exams as described from the Gutenberg Website:

Second-Year Qualifying Exams
At the end of the second year, students take exams that they must pass in order to qualify for advancement to the final two years of the program. The exams, designed to determine the student’s mastery level of basic learning skills and necessary background material, cover the content of all their courses during the first two years. A written math exam focuses on the student’s ability to think mathematically and problem solve. An oral science exam focuses on the nature of science. A Greek exam consists of translating a selection and defending it orally before a panel of tutors. An oral Western Civilization exam gives students ample opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned; administered individually to students by a panel of tutors, the exam consists of a wide range of questions covering the whole scope of history.


I hope you're impressed. I certainly am. Congratulations Class of 2009!

Thursday, October 25, 2007

randumb things in the form of a list of sorts

i can honestly say that this is my first time being tagged, or knowing I've been tagged and since it was from one of my oldest friends, Flo I'm going to oblige. Oh, and I like cooking, and hopefully, it will help me get sleepy.

8 random things about my kitchen

* I recently got rid of my stovetop kettle and opted for an electric kettle, after 8 years of wanting one. And that was preceded with getting rid of my electric coffee maker and opting for a stovetop espresso maker.

* my dish soap lives on my counter in a blue wine bottle from the tiny town of Harmony, CA population 18.

* I love to bake and I get a giddy grin every time I do because all of my basic ingredients are stored in a vintage set of green tupperware containers. They don't shout "Meg!" like so many other shades or styles would, but for some reason I can't bring myself to get rid of them.

* My every ingredient is water. Seriously. Water is the best ingredient no matter what you're making. The power of steam is a cook's best friend. Just think about it. Think, think about it... You know I'm right.

* I adore lids. Lids on pots. Lids on skillets. Lids on the cast iron. I'm a big fan of lids and I don't like it when they're washed in the dishwasher. I don't trust the dishwasher with my lids. I think it's going to damage them in some way and then they won't fit and then...well, what's the point of a lid that doesn't fit?

* There's a trivet I got when I worked at a wine store in my kitchen that says, "I love to cook with wine, sometimes, I even put it in the food." And if I'm cooking and I see it, it's tucked away behind the coffee canister, I almost feel forced into pouring a glass of wine for myself.

* I love the idea of a garlic press and I use garlic in almost everything I cook and I own multiple vintage press' but I never use them. I'd rather peel, smash, chop, and mince it by hand than get discouraged, annoyed, ticked off and frustrated with my adorable vintage garlic press. But, now that I've discovered Trader Joe's frozen garlic cubes, I think I'm ready to hang my garlic press' on the wall as decoration.

* I have my grandmother's childhood cookbook on a shelf in my kitchen. It's tattered and worn. The cover has released itself from the pages and her seven year old pencil written notes are fading every day. But still, I reach up on my tip toes and gingerly take it down so I can lean up against the counter and slide each page from side to side and be reminded of her extravagant cookie baking, her homemade jams and jellies or the family feasts she would prepare and display on her grandmother's china. My mother recently sent me a package that contained my grandma Chloe's apron from when she was a little girl and I think I'm ready to find it a home near her old cookbook.


I tag Bella, Jen, Val, and well shucks, I think everyone else I know has been tagged by Flop. But, if you're reading this and you haven't been tagged, consider this me tagging you and get on with it. If you can't or don't want to blog about 8 random things about your kitchen, then I am giving the order to tell us 8 random things about....

{not so} glamorous

*note* see andy's comment it's a rebuttal slash endorsement.

I don't know if I am going to attempt to, as my husband put it "catch up", perhaps I'll just allow myself to once again become a blogger. I think over the past couple of weeks, I've been busy sure, but I just haven't thought there was anything the blogger-spere would be interested in. Not because it hasn't been exciting, trust me, it has. It's just the thought hadn't really crossed my mind to jot it down in a blog. I was just enjoying the experiences and forgetting to express them in writing. Which I love to do, so go figure really.

Then, today, for the first time in a while, I thought to myself -"I'll have to write a blog about that!" and so, here it goes.

I tripped. Not just a little trip followed by a little jog-recover either. Andy described it as "a little trip that didn't look like much at first".
(*not actual sidewalk in question)

But it was after the little trip when everything got real interesting. The trip was small, like stubbing your big toe, until I recovered, wobbled in a crumpling, stumbling, skidding collapsing heap on the sidewalk. It was the longest trip I have ever experienced.


Lucky for me, only a slightly un-homeless looking women and a completely homeless looking guy saw some part of the event. There weren't any cars on the street at the time and so I was at least saved from the dreaded drive-by shouting.

I was walking with Andy, and let me tell you a bit about what happened as we walked down the street back to my office after the fall.
He started laughing. Laughing. At the time, in the midst of both my hands and my left leg painful with sidewalk-burn, I was upset, wait, no, I was very, very upset. Are you kidding? You're laughing? He tried to "explain" his laughter and deter me from feeling upset, but I don't think it worked. Who does that? Who laughs? He says he wasn't laughing at me falling, he was I think, laughing at the fact that when he saw me trip he thought there was really no way a little trip would land me on the ground. And then to think about how badly it all really turned out? Well, that's funny. I guess.

I can't stay upset at him though. Look at that face. I mean, come on. And who can complain when we ate Fresh Wraps and Green Chicken Curry from Sweet Basil? My favorite lunch treat. All in all I guess I have to say, the whole thing wasn't so bad and look! I'm thinking to myself "I've got to blog about that" again. So, good.

He just got back from his run and he said, "what are you up to?" and I said, "i wrote a blog." He said, "i can't wait to read it, what's it about." And I said something like, "I don't know if you'll like it." And he started laughing and said, "Is it about when you fell today and I laughed?" And I got a furrowed brow going and i said, "see you did laugh at me!" And he said, "no, it's just cause you're always cute in everything, and besides, if you did say that then it'd be a welcomed change."
And then he says, "I didn't laugh at you, I'm going to have to go on there and comment!" I love moments like these.

i'm so happy it's getting cold again, I love bundling up
and heading outside with a group of good friends...
but that, is another story...

Monday, October 22, 2007

and her name shall be moe-ptuh no more

So you know when you're feeling down and you don't think anything will cheer you up? That's how I was a week ago. As one friend later called it, I was a little bit in the belly of the whale, having a Jonah moment.

Then my man made a call and asked a friend to come by and work at cheering me up. So this guy showed up.




And he brought this with him.





















It is a beautiful, Millennium Falcon-esk, canary Moped. Or as we lovingly refer to it a Moeptuh.


So here I am, takin' it for a bit of a ride. Lovin it and wishing I'd opted to wear the helmet. But never-the-less, feeling smiley for the first time in a time. For some reason blogger hasn't made it possible for people with Macs to upload videos. Otherwise you guys would see a sweet, sweet video of me ridin dirty all on this moeptuh.

Thank you to my man. Don't I have a good one? I haven't mentioned this before have I? And of course, how could he resist taking it out for a bit of a spin himself? He is now trying to convince me that we need to find a couple of moeptuhs for ourselves. Joesighmah has even offered to assist us in creating our own custom bikes, I guess time will tell.

And a big thank you Jo-sigh-mah for taking time out of your Saturday to ride your moe-ptuh over to my house. You made my day brighter, one (meaning me) might even call you a bit of a hero.


Monday, October 8, 2007

days & beauty


Who wouldn't love a man that brings you this at the end of a long day?


We took a little trip to the store on saturday, and low and behold, when we returned I had more gifts than on Christmas morning. We went for no real reason except to maybe get out of the house and hang out together, not in front of a t.v. screen. We watched a bunch of movies this weekend, since we had a day off together, again - I think it's becoming a trend - and we've been doing some major cuddle catching up...so movies we did watch.

Back to the trip to the store. I found slippers, finally, for seven bucks. They're just what I've been looking for, soft and fuzzy on the inside, a little lip on the back to cover up the heel and, of course, they're black. What else would you expect? Oh, and did I mention that they weren't expensive, cause that matters, and I think it should.

Andy got something too... it's for him to take, but it's really for me, to be able to sleep without the snore. I don't know if it worked last night, I'm going to just keep telling myself that it's working and even if it isn't, perhaps the placebo affect will keep me dreamin'.

So, my runpal mentioned I should share with everyone that I surpassed the 3 mile mark. It wasn't intentional, but I think now that I've done it, I'm going to make a new goal to run a little harder and a little longer for my weekend run. Cause, geez, I did it and I wasn't hating it, actually...I have to confess. I think I actually liked it.

















After our run tonight, I left my runpal's home with arm fulls of fresh flowers and mint from her courtyard garden. The house looks so much happier and smells delicious. Thank you.


Friday, October 5, 2007

meglet 101


Alright already. I'll divulge details.

*This recipe - well, honestly, it's not a recipe, it's more of a concept - did not come from me not being able to flip an omelet, I'm a pro. It came from the desire to not have to eat veggies covered with the raw egg on the inside of the omelet. And...to take out the step I used to use to avoid the raw egg, the omelet flip before the veggies went in.


This may look long, but trust me, it's not a hard recipe...read on, read on.

The trick to a meglet is not in the consistency of the ingredients. In fact, one of the great traits of a meglet is that, like an omelet, the "filling" can be to your liking.
Here is a list of some of the options frequently used in our house:

mushrooms, bell pepper - preferably red &/or yellow, artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, olives - black or kalamatta, squash, eggplant, you get the idea. And then, there's the meat options, we've been known to use turkey kielbasa, veggie links, chicken chirizo, or the real stuff (but only for one) bacon, beef sausage, and that.

Now. The trick.
The trick is in the pot and the starter ingredients.
1. Use a pot, like a small soup pot, with a lid. I suggest using a small one, cause each meglet is a single serving.

2. Saute' your meat in the pot

3. Use the grease to then saute' the first of your starter ingredients - onions, yellow, red, sweet - your choice (with a meglet it's always "your choice".) If you don't use a meat, like me, then use the tiny-ist little bit of Olive Oil in the pot.

4. Garlic. Your second starter ingredient. Add Garlic. If you think you don't like garlic, trust me, you do and you probably don't know it, so add garlic - minced, crushed, fresh or a frozen cube (have you seen these? they're great, Trader Joe's)

5. Right about here I'm probably adding fresh ground pepper and salt, and possibly any slew of herbs that I may have on hand like fresh basil or oregano or a blend of both.

This is when me writing down a recipe gets a bit ridiculous cause I don't really ever follow or write down a recipe. So bare with me as I rant about "oh the possibilities".

6. Add any or all the veggies you or your guest chooses.

This is what we think makes a meglet better than an omelet, the browning of the "fillings". Stir and mix, mix and stir until everything looks good to you, typically less than 2 minutes.

7. Pour your pre-scrambled eggs (whatever your favorite type are, whites only, with a little milk...) right into the pot, on top of your filling. Give it one quick stir so the egg makes it under everything then,

8. The last trick...add about a Tablespoon of water, cover the pot and let it steam for 2-5 minutes depending on how thick the whole thing is.

9. Get out a plate, dish up your roasted red potatoes and lightly turn your meglet onto the dish. There's no need to use a spatula (if you have good non-stick cookware) that's half the beauty of it.

10. Add cheese if you so desire - or add cheese to the top of the meglet while it's still inside the pot during the last 45 seconds of steaming - I don't typically use this technic though cause then you can't flip the meglet out on the plate you have to use the dreaded spatula and risk breaking the perfect circle.
Now, enjoy your first meglet!

If I'm making this for a few people I get 4 pots going at once on the stove top, potatoes in the oven and all the ingredients out on the counter. Everyone chooses their fillings, puts them into a pot and I easily do the rest. I hope you'll try them someday and tell me how it goes.

Now it's your turn. Do you have a specialty? Some recipe you invented or perfected that you want to share with the world?

Since tomorrow's Saturday, there's a good chance that we may make meglets and roasted potatoes for breakfast/brunch so I may add a photo or two if it happens. Happy Weekend!

Thursday, October 4, 2007

my happy man
and a bit about a kitty


Yesterday we took an impromptu day off from work. We hung out in our living room, listening to good music and chatting with each other. Andy made meglets and potatoes for breakfast. What are meglets you ask? Well, they're something I invented a few years back and my husband aptly named. They are my special variation on the omelet, and they're the best -cause no matter how many you make each one is easy and delicious.

After we ate breakfast and I did a little work over the phone, we ended up deciding that we should keep the day going how it was, skip work for once and just hang out together. Like people that like each other should. It's a good thing we both dictate our own work schedules, cause I've never been the type that calls in sick to play hookie.

We slowly cleaned up, got ready and dressed and meandered our way downtown, to McKenzie River Music, our locally owned new and used music store.



What a day we had. After many years of hoping, dreaming and patiently waiting, we found an amazing used amp. It boasts two twelve inch speakers, a built in foot pedal and other fantastic things that musicians love and I don't have a clue about (like, this one goes to Eleven). After trading in some of his old equipment, (which he was given an unbelievable trade in price for) and them voluntarily taking 50 bucks off the sticker price (it had been hiding in the shop for almost 2 years), we walked out with a new-to-us amp for way less than we expected! It felt great to be able to encourage and support my husband in this way, making an investment in his talent. It goes without saying that his smile is still shining from the joy.

"home sweet home"


Among other things that have been going on, something disturbing has been going on with Ki Ki. Ya, our kitty. That's right, I'm blogging about my kitty. She's my baby, my only baby, so I get to. She hasn't been cuddly or wanting to be around us, in fact she's been mean. Andy laid down on the carpet by her and was petting her and she started to purr, until she spontaneously swiped at him, claws out, right across the cheek.

We think she's depressed. Her two best friends that lived next door moved and I think, she's just now realized that they're never coming out to play again. Andy thinks it's the change in the weather. She can't go outside, it's raining and cold and dreary and the sun doesn't come out. We're trying to be cuddly and loving to her...but...it doesn't seem to be working.



Could it be that we're just being too affectionate? She does get irritated with unwanted affection. But anyways, I'm happy to report that right now, she's cuddling on my lap while I write. And, I might add, she climbed up here all on her own, found a sweet spot and has been purring loudly and hugging me for the past bit.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

i smile about the memory

*a sitting with walter update.

Since finding my camera battery, then loosing all the digital photos on my hard drive, I have realized what a life saver this blog has been. I post about life and things I'm doing and then I post photos from all of the events, and then, when I transfer all my photos to my external hard drive and erase them from my laptop hard drive and then realize that they are not on the external hard drive ... I don't have to cry for too long, cause they are on blogger, along with little journal entries and they are saved from hard drive erasing sadness.

Since I didn't have my camera to take photos of walter in his worst state I thought it was fitting to show an update of how his leg is doing after being hit by a car (while on his bike), having surgery to put a metal pole in his leg, and being forced to hobble about for a month.



This was taken at the Wandering Goat coffee shop where Walter works. They make a beautiful and delicious tasting cappucinio. go there and drink one.



We were all there to see my husband's band play a show. It was worth the wait, the place was packed with heros and heroines, the science was delivered and the science buttons were devoured by all the friends of science.

Although this was on September 17th and I'm just talking about it now, does not mean I didn't love it and adore seeing everyone I hadn't seen in forever or that I wasn't proud of my husband ... it's because - let's say it all together now - I was just too busy to blog!

lies, lies, they're all lies


thanks to elixer, there is no more moderating of comments. Ya, short lived, i know, but i said it might be.
so forget about the previous post and just go on with your normal daily blog reading and commenting like nothing was ever said on the subject. For those that have no idea what I'm talking about you can check out the previous post, or if you don't care still check out the previous post, or at least the last bit, cause that's just me bragging about a new personal best mile time.

I moderated walter's comment and i said, "publish" but, I don't see it, cause something dumb about the moderate comment thing is that it only shows you the person's comment, not what post they commented on. sorry walter, i can't figure out where you posted or what you said. i think you wanted to hang out, and i am down with that. perhaps i'll call you on the phone, since i'm also down with the old fashioned way of communicating.

ya. moderating comments has no real benefit, does it?

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

only to inform

just so everyone knows...

i've switched my blog comments to the kind that doesn't instantly publish cause people are commenting on previous posts and I don't know it and this is the only way I can figure out to keep track when someone comments on a post and instead of switching to wordpress to blog I'm doing this "moderating" thing. Don't worry if your comment doesn't show up automatically, it will show up. I may forgo this soon, but for now, this is what's what.

and so, please don't stop commenting, in fact, comment more cause I love the conversations that evolve.

and also.
*update on my best run ever, today I ran 2.55 miles and my pace was a consistent - 11:47, thanks Bella!

Monday, October 1, 2007

the Real World
- truue storeez

All the chores are done and we're upstairs, as a family. Here's what we're all doing...


I'm about to blog this, Andy's going to play Mercenaries, and Ki Ki's looking at me with a strange smirk on her face. She'll calm down and sprawl out in a minute.

Tonight Andy made dinner (As I mentioned in a previous post, he's such a jerk!), Yumm Bowls, see you just buy the sauce, cook the beans - they were dry, he did the crockpot thing all night - cook the brown rice, collect all your favorite toppings, chop, dice, mix and assemble. For those that have no idea what I'm talking about check out the restaurant's website

I was washing the pots and bowls and he was on the couch telling me stories he heard on Radio Lab or This American Life. I loved it. We were just hanging out, as you do.

And then he says, "do you like how I'm informing you about things and not just going upstairs?"
"Ya, it's very sweet of you."
- he sits up and looks at me "Hey, you know what? - Chicken Butt!"

And here I thought he was going to say something like, "It's because I love you."

And then there's this conversation a bit later in the night...
I was still trying to remember the new sweet nickname he had called me and thought earlier tonight he may have repeated it.

me - "Earlier, did you just call me hon or something else?"
"No I called you Baby. Remember?"
"You did?"
"Ya, I said, "Stop being a BABY!"

I'll leave you with that.
loves and goodnight.

"I can't believe I have to put up with this."