Where did all the time go?
So much and so little.
Z is back in Hawaii and already arguing with his parents. Aah, some things really never change. J and I are working on exactly what needs to be done to the house. There's still a lot to be done, but the house is really looking better. The pictures J posted were taken at night, so you can't quite see the the detail of what we've done, but there's still a big difference from what it was even a few months ago.
In the coming weeks the kitchen floor will be re-done, the countertops installed, and new lights installed as well. In the long run, we'll also be re-finishing the kitchen cabinet, repainting the cabinet that J made, making and installing a vent hood for the stove, and eventually repainting the entire kitchen. All the floors in the rest of the house are going the be re-finished, there's a goodly bit of painting and wall-flaw fixing that needs to be done, and eventually the stairwell to the kitchen will be opened up at the bottom, allowing for more light and a less narrow feel. The bathroom floor needs to be re-tiled, but we haven't found the right tiles just yet. We also need a new couch, or at least a decent cover.
I passed Xenosaga III a few nights ago (finally!) and although, I still long for Xenogears (could square just update it for the ps2 or something? That's all I really want), I enjoyed it. The ending made me sad though, because I really liked Jin. He was essentially Citan. Abel designed as mini-Fei made me happy though. Now I'm playing Persona 3, which J doesn't like because the english voices are annoying (as always). I'm still amused that shooting yourself in the head with a special "evoker" gun is how you channel your persona, rather than just calling upon it as was the case in the original 2 games. I do miss the old battle/card system where you could attempt to charm monsters into giving you their cards. All in all though, I am enjoying it. *yay!*
I keep meaning to take pictures of the new jewelry and upload them, but...well lots of excuses why I haven't. Shame on me, I know. I've got a good 40 hairsticks and a bunch of necklaces and bracelets. Right now it's all rainy and stormy (prolly due to that category 5 hurricane in the gulf), so the light isn't very good for taking crisp pictures without a flash. I think I'm going to learn how to solder this week so I can solder the links on my jumprings, making them extra sturdy.
I've been baking lately and trying out new recipes. The results: I've perfected my chocolate chunk (or coconut) macadamia nut cookies. I prefer the coconut mac nut, but apparently I am in the minority. J even requested that I make them sans nuts so they are simply chocolate chunk. How....unappealingly simple, especially when I'm not big on chocolate chip cookies. For me, they need to have something extra like oatmeal or mac nuts to add some kind of kick. I'm stuck on the coconut mac nut for nostalgia reasons. When I was a kid, getting cookies from Mrs. Fields was a big deal. It didn't happen often, as they were pricey even then, but the coconut mac nut was my favorite. Now I can make own and I think mine are better. That feels really good. I also baked some vanilla chai cupcake with chocolate frosting for Neel's birthday and they were ok. Not enough flavor. So I made a chai cake with chai frosting this Sunday and it was much better. Now I just want to bake cupcakes. I don't know why, but I totally do. I even bought another cupcake pan so I could do 24 at once. I wish to be a cupcake making goddess. A dynamo of cupcake goodness for some unfathomable reason. Oh, I also make a mean quiche lorraine. In fact, I think I'll make some for dinner tonight.
The garden is doing fantastically. We've got 3 kinds of basil growing, so I should be able to make pesto at least once a week or every two weeks, storing some in the freezer for winter consumption. The green peppers are getting pretty big, but unfortunately the jalapenos didn't take off. *sniff* What we thought was cucumber is actually a bean plant, so in about a week we should have a ton of beans. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them...The mint is still trying to take over everything and the oregano and chives are doing really well. The tomatoes didn't take this year, which is a bummer. Also, even though it's prolly way to let to get anything out of them, we have melon plants growing (and growing well). Cantelope. We're considering trying to bring one in the house over the winter and attempt to replant it next year. I'll have to let you know how that goes.
Oh yah, apparently my brother's wife is due in October or November, which makes her a helluva lot farther along than I had thought. I need to get started on that apple hat. We have a friend who's due tomorrow, I wonder if she'll have the baby. I really need to knit those damn hats.
Z is back in Hawaii and already arguing with his parents. Aah, some things really never change. J and I are working on exactly what needs to be done to the house. There's still a lot to be done, but the house is really looking better. The pictures J posted were taken at night, so you can't quite see the the detail of what we've done, but there's still a big difference from what it was even a few months ago.
In the coming weeks the kitchen floor will be re-done, the countertops installed, and new lights installed as well. In the long run, we'll also be re-finishing the kitchen cabinet, repainting the cabinet that J made, making and installing a vent hood for the stove, and eventually repainting the entire kitchen. All the floors in the rest of the house are going the be re-finished, there's a goodly bit of painting and wall-flaw fixing that needs to be done, and eventually the stairwell to the kitchen will be opened up at the bottom, allowing for more light and a less narrow feel. The bathroom floor needs to be re-tiled, but we haven't found the right tiles just yet. We also need a new couch, or at least a decent cover.
I passed Xenosaga III a few nights ago (finally!) and although, I still long for Xenogears (could square just update it for the ps2 or something? That's all I really want), I enjoyed it. The ending made me sad though, because I really liked Jin. He was essentially Citan. Abel designed as mini-Fei made me happy though. Now I'm playing Persona 3, which J doesn't like because the english voices are annoying (as always). I'm still amused that shooting yourself in the head with a special "evoker" gun is how you channel your persona, rather than just calling upon it as was the case in the original 2 games. I do miss the old battle/card system where you could attempt to charm monsters into giving you their cards. All in all though, I am enjoying it. *yay!*
I keep meaning to take pictures of the new jewelry and upload them, but...well lots of excuses why I haven't. Shame on me, I know. I've got a good 40 hairsticks and a bunch of necklaces and bracelets. Right now it's all rainy and stormy (prolly due to that category 5 hurricane in the gulf), so the light isn't very good for taking crisp pictures without a flash. I think I'm going to learn how to solder this week so I can solder the links on my jumprings, making them extra sturdy.
I've been baking lately and trying out new recipes. The results: I've perfected my chocolate chunk (or coconut) macadamia nut cookies. I prefer the coconut mac nut, but apparently I am in the minority. J even requested that I make them sans nuts so they are simply chocolate chunk. How....unappealingly simple, especially when I'm not big on chocolate chip cookies. For me, they need to have something extra like oatmeal or mac nuts to add some kind of kick. I'm stuck on the coconut mac nut for nostalgia reasons. When I was a kid, getting cookies from Mrs. Fields was a big deal. It didn't happen often, as they were pricey even then, but the coconut mac nut was my favorite. Now I can make own and I think mine are better. That feels really good. I also baked some vanilla chai cupcake with chocolate frosting for Neel's birthday and they were ok. Not enough flavor. So I made a chai cake with chai frosting this Sunday and it was much better. Now I just want to bake cupcakes. I don't know why, but I totally do. I even bought another cupcake pan so I could do 24 at once. I wish to be a cupcake making goddess. A dynamo of cupcake goodness for some unfathomable reason. Oh, I also make a mean quiche lorraine. In fact, I think I'll make some for dinner tonight.
The garden is doing fantastically. We've got 3 kinds of basil growing, so I should be able to make pesto at least once a week or every two weeks, storing some in the freezer for winter consumption. The green peppers are getting pretty big, but unfortunately the jalapenos didn't take off. *sniff* What we thought was cucumber is actually a bean plant, so in about a week we should have a ton of beans. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them...The mint is still trying to take over everything and the oregano and chives are doing really well. The tomatoes didn't take this year, which is a bummer. Also, even though it's prolly way to let to get anything out of them, we have melon plants growing (and growing well). Cantelope. We're considering trying to bring one in the house over the winter and attempt to replant it next year. I'll have to let you know how that goes.
Oh yah, apparently my brother's wife is due in October or November, which makes her a helluva lot farther along than I had thought. I need to get started on that apple hat. We have a friend who's due tomorrow, I wonder if she'll have the baby. I really need to knit those damn hats.