Summer on a cracker.
I spent much of the weekend at spacealien_vamp's marathoning Avatar with s_vamp and her mother megory while being thoroughly spoiled with fresh, home-cooked food. I would never have the courage to try making my own pizza, but I did pick up the recipe for a delicious snacker meal consisting of a fresh basil leaf, fresh mozzarella, and a slice of -- you guessed it, fresh -- tomato served on a cracker. That will go alongside my bleu cheese and orzo salad for yummy meals that can be assembled in minutes.
Avatar thoughts
megory and s_vamp had watched the first 12 episodes before I arrived, and megory had the entire series nailed halfway through the first season. I'm not a good actress, so I think I looked too conspicuously noncommittal when she talked about the characters and Zuko's future and Aang's goals and possible romances. (Pssst, s_vamp, if your mom can bear any more tv, show her the "School Shipping" short.) This was my first time watching Avatar without multitasking, and I was pleasantly surprised by the many little details I had never seen. Then, when I got home, I discovered the NickToons is milking the series this summer by airing enhanced episodes ("enhanced" = video pop-ups). I will never stop watching Avatar.
Oh! And I got to see wednesday_10_00's blanket in progress. Jealous!
Manga thoughts
I also stole read s_vamp's copy of G-Defend 35. BEST VOLUME EVER... except for all the other best volumes ever. (May I whine again about how much I miss the halcyon days of g_defend and recaps?) I hereby vow to bring my manga collection up-to-date and use the super-short stories in this omnibus for translation practice. And then in 2012 I will segue into using the KKM novels for translation practice, like I promised Sara I would two years ago.
Twitter thoughts
I signed up for a Twitter account...which I haven't bothered to integrate into my online life at all. It seemed like a good idea at the time. I wasn't posting much to LJ, and I thought I might say more if I could only post 140 characters at a time, since that is truly the way I talk. Except no. I do concede Twitter would be a wonderful platform for a close circle of friends with smart phones and Europasses. OMG! I'm at the Eiffel Tower!
Budget thoughts
Must I keep reminding you? 2009 is the year of budget posts. This is my first month living off of last month's income, aka YNAB rule #1. YAY! I actually thought that I would feel the exhilaration last month, when I slotted my paycheck for this month's budget while I lived off the buffer I had built up. I didn't. I was little concerned that all my stress at work had driven the joy out of me.
I still haven't mastered the art of budgeting for occasional expenses, like car maintenance and clothing and vacations and electronic gizmos. (Yes, I consider clothing an occasional expense. Now you know.) The problem is these categories don't have a fixed dollar amount to build toward, unlike other annual expenses. And they're mostly optional, which means they get a lower priority when I'm doling out the dollars. (I know, car maintenance isn't really optional, but Toyota isn't going to come knocking on my door if I skip an oil change. And Toyotas being the hearty little vehicles they are, my car won't let me know that I'm taking a few months off its life with my foolishness.)
Avatar thoughts
megory and s_vamp had watched the first 12 episodes before I arrived, and megory had the entire series nailed halfway through the first season. I'm not a good actress, so I think I looked too conspicuously noncommittal when she talked about the characters and Zuko's future and Aang's goals and possible romances. (Pssst, s_vamp, if your mom can bear any more tv, show her the "School Shipping" short.) This was my first time watching Avatar without multitasking, and I was pleasantly surprised by the many little details I had never seen. Then, when I got home, I discovered the NickToons is milking the series this summer by airing enhanced episodes ("enhanced" = video pop-ups). I will never stop watching Avatar.
Oh! And I got to see wednesday_10_00's blanket in progress. Jealous!
Manga thoughts
I also stole read s_vamp's copy of G-Defend 35. BEST VOLUME EVER... except for all the other best volumes ever. (May I whine again about how much I miss the halcyon days of g_defend and recaps?) I hereby vow to bring my manga collection up-to-date and use the super-short stories in this omnibus for translation practice. And then in 2012 I will segue into using the KKM novels for translation practice, like I promised Sara I would two years ago.
Twitter thoughts
I signed up for a Twitter account...which I haven't bothered to integrate into my online life at all. It seemed like a good idea at the time. I wasn't posting much to LJ, and I thought I might say more if I could only post 140 characters at a time, since that is truly the way I talk. Except no. I do concede Twitter would be a wonderful platform for a close circle of friends with smart phones and Europasses. OMG! I'm at the Eiffel Tower!
Budget thoughts
Must I keep reminding you? 2009 is the year of budget posts. This is my first month living off of last month's income, aka YNAB rule #1. YAY! I actually thought that I would feel the exhilaration last month, when I slotted my paycheck for this month's budget while I lived off the buffer I had built up. I didn't. I was little concerned that all my stress at work had driven the joy out of me.
I still haven't mastered the art of budgeting for occasional expenses, like car maintenance and clothing and vacations and electronic gizmos. (Yes, I consider clothing an occasional expense. Now you know.) The problem is these categories don't have a fixed dollar amount to build toward, unlike other annual expenses. And they're mostly optional, which means they get a lower priority when I'm doling out the dollars. (I know, car maintenance isn't really optional, but Toyota isn't going to come knocking on my door if I skip an oil change. And Toyotas being the hearty little vehicles they are, my car won't let me know that I'm taking a few months off its life with my foolishness.)