It's Easter, and it's snowing. There's still snow on the ground too. We've already broken a record. I don't know that we really need all that much more snow. Snow on Easter. I'm not sure if I can remember too many Easters when it's snowed, but then again, this year Easter is really early.I *finally* finished my teal cotton sweater (see above) that I've been working on for what seems like forever! It felt really good to get it done. Of course, as I'm finishing it up, I had this terrible thought, "what if it doesn't fit?" All that work would be for naught! But I tried it on, and it fit nicely. I'm quite happy with it.I knit with Plymouth's Fantasy Naturale, and I don't think it was a lot of fun to knit with! I kept splitting the yarn. And it was really slippery on metal needles, so I had to use bamboo needles, which meant that it took longer to knit. I'm just faster with metal.Now, all I have to do is wait until it warms up so that I can actually wear something with short sleeves! I suppose I could just get impatient too and wear it over another shirt like I did in the picture.
Falcoon is entertained by the goldfish. I'd just fed them, so they were being pretty active. I sure do wish I could somehow keep my fish from knocking over the decorations in the tank! It looks prettier when the decorations are actually standing up.
Craig and I eat a lot of chicken, primarily boneless, skinless chicken breasts. And really they are not that exciting. I am also always looking for ways to make cooking easier. So here's my method for making tasty chicken breasts. - Get a family-sized package of boneless skinless chicken breasts (not frozen - this is important)
- Set out a bunch of freezer bags. For five breasts, I set out five bags.
- Butterfly the breasts so you get two pieces of chicken and cut off the bits of fat. I figure that is approximately a portion for each person (there are only two of us).
- Thouroughly coat the chicken pieces in spices. I use a variety of dry spices. But some of my favorites are Jerk and Rotisserie.
- Put each butterflied and spiced breast in a bag, label it, and stick it in the freezer.
- When the chicken freezes, the spices get sucked into the meat and embue it with flavor.
Now, when it's time to make dinner, you can pull a bag out of the freezer and cook the chicken. I typically use my George Foreman Grill for this, but in the summer, I'd use my gas grill. It's just too cold now to even consider outdoor grilling. You could also cook them in a pan with olive oil or Pam spray. Last night, we had curry spiced chicken breasts with peas and rice. Very simple very tasty.
I had a very nice Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I worked Christmas Eve morning to finish assembling the bulletins for the church services that evening. There were three Christmas Eve services and one Christmas Day service. I finished up and went home for a bit to relax before going back to church for the 5pm service. It was very nice, and I enjoyed the candlelight. They turned off all the lights in the church, and we all held candles for Silent Night, which was just so cool. The acolytes lit the candles on the end of the row, and each person lit their candle off the person sitting next to them, so candlelight was passed all around the church. After church, we went over to Chris's place. He made us dinner, which was so nice of him. And Chris is an excellent cook, so that's a big plus too. He made a ham, mashed potatoes, and corn. Yummy. Then we played Rock Band on the Xbox 360. It's kind of like Guitar Hero, except that there is a drum kit and microphone in addition to the fake guitar. I did vocals while Craig and Chris switched between guitar and drums. I have no sense of rhythm, and have learned that the hard way with some of these new video games where you play guitar or drums, so I just hogged the microphone. It was a lot of fun, and I scored 100% on vocals for Black Sabbath's Paranoid. I did not miss one note or beat. Rock on!
I don't have a picture to post. You wouldn't really want to see my world today. The fog is so heavy and has been for the last three days that when I venture outside, I feel like I'm in a 10-20 square foot box surrounded by nothingness. The first day of fog, I thought the trees looked ethereal against the snow, but now I am just sick of fog. I needed to get some pet supplies, so I ventured out to Mounds Pet Food Warehouse on Verona Road. Good thing I knew sort of how to get there and where it was because about all I could see was the tail lights of the car in front of me. Of course with three days of fog comes bad air, very bad air. And mixing very bad air (particulate matter day to be specific) with bad asthma is a bad combination. I wanted to get into work today and get some stuff done, but I ended up getting in so late because I just could not get myself going. Grooming Falcoon, the cat, this morning took everything out of me. But he's all spiffed up and has no more mats. I use an electric trimmer like some men use to groom their hair. Craig held him while I groomed. I don't think Falcoon appreciated it too much until we were done, and he was like hey, no more mats and tangles! Yay! He petted my feet while I brushed my teeth. For those who do not have asthma, inhalers taste awful and you can get yeast infections in your mouth if you don't rinse. Yuck. So if I can, I brush my teeth after taking my inhaler.I put on my bright orange sweater and macaw earrings today to brighten my immediate viewpoint some. Seems to be working a bit. I'm actually looking forward to tonight's snowstorm to clear out some of this nasty fog and air. And for those who know me, I don't typically look forward to snowstorms because I don't like driving in snow. I wonder how I'm going to get to church services this weekend. I want to go, but I don't want to have a car accident either. I guess I'll play it by ear.
Falcoon and Sid are hanging out in the bathroom. Running faucets are so fascinating to kitties! I'm quite impressed with how well Falcoon has managed to fit into our house. He and Sid have become best buds.
This is Falcoon. He's the latest feline addition to our household. He's a purebred Maine Coon cat, and his name I'm guessing is derived from him looking like a falcon in coloring and his breed. We went down to Chicago to pick him up on Saturday at a cat show.He does not know how to show his best in cat shows, but he's a big lover and cuddlebug. He wants hugs and kisses all the time (when he's not hunting, that is). So he's a year old, a mere kitten and small by Maine Coon standards, and he's retired from the cat show life. Maine Coons are "working cats." They were bred for hunting, and this cat has a strong hunting instinct. So, it's a good thing we live in an older house on the outskirts of a suburb, so there are plenty of things for him to hunt, ala bugs and mice. I know, I know, eww. But hey what are cats for, right? Well other than petting and loving.Currently, he's getting used to us and our house. There are a lot of strange sounds and scents for him to contend with. Oh yes and two other cats. For right now, he's separated from them. He's got the downstairs guest suite all to himself. We're letting him get used to things slowly and at his own pace.
