My My, Hey Hey...

So I haven't posted in a while. I've been pretty busy. Lots going on with the new job and all. And I've been travelling. And I don't like advertising when I'm away from my family. But I'll be home soon.

So a quick update:

I flew to Chicago to spend some time in the HQ of my new company, Adapt. Right now, I'm in Indy. I drove down from Chicago with a coworker for a conference. The Indy 500 is next weekend and Indy fever is in the air. There's five real Indy cars in the lobby. They are surprisingly small in real life. People in Indy are very friendly, but I really miss home and can't wait to get there. I miss my wife and my boy and my dogs. I've been talking to all of them on the speaker phone. When I talk to the dogs, they run to the front door and start barking.

Anyway, here's a picture of Travis and I outside the Old Town School of Folk Music - one of the coolest places to be in the whole wide world. I bought a banjo and had it shipped home. I also bought a book that I have been reading. I plan to be an expert by the time it arrives.




And here's a picture of me at the conference with Jerry and Sue, a couple of my new coworkers...




Things are good, but busy. I'll catch you up and post some more pictures when I get home.

This station is experiencing...

...technical difficulties...Pleast stand by...

No posts in the last three days?

Yikes. Anyway, I've been busy. So a quick update now and more tomorrow. The dogs are doing much better. And I've been really busy with work. Tonight, we had 11 people over for dinner on short notice and we pulled it off. More about that, and pictures, in tomorrow's post. For now, I'll just say I felt like the stereotypical 50s housewife whose husband calls at 3:00 to say a couple of guys from the office are coming over afterwork for dinner. "You don't mind, do you honey?" And I did, a little. But like I said, Jake and I pulled it off. And it was fun. Met some cool people. Had some good grub. And when I wake up in the morning, Jake will have done half the dishes. Then one more day of work and it's my birthday.

Oh, crap, I'm going to be 35! Or something.

Update on The Ultimate PBB...

Wow! Lots of comments on that one. I'm responding in a new post so I can put in a link or two...

Peanut butter in the oven at 400° sounds to me like a big sloppy gooey mess in the oven, Scott. I bet they just cook the dough, and probably fold over the edges to create a lip. Then, when the dough is cripy, pull it and add the peanut butter and bacon. The peanut butter will melt from the heat of the crust and the bacon on top, I'm sure. Sauted onions might be a nice touch as well? But creamy or chunky peanut butter? I would use chunky. Maybe this could be made healthy with a wheat crust, some kind of natural low fat peanut butter (or soy nut butter?) and those fake bacon tofu strips that Rachel likes on her sandwiches. Maybe we can have a nasty cook off afternoon and try both.

And Ted, there was this great Saturday Night Live fake commercial for Taco Town:

The fictitious "Taco Time" taco is: A crunchy all beef taco smothered in nacho cheese, lettuce, tomato, and special Southwestern sauce; wrapped in a soft flour tortilla with a layer of re-fried beans in between; wrapped in a savory corn tortilla with a middle layer of Monterrey jack cheese; wrapped in a deep fried gordita shell smeared with a layer of special 'guacomolito' sauce; wrapped in a corn husk filled with pico de gallo; wrapped in an authentic Parisian crepe filled with egg, gruyere, sausage and portobello mushrooms; wrapped in a Chicago-style, deep-dish, meat lover's pizza; rolled up in a blueberry pancake; dipped in batter and deep fried until it's golden brown; and served in a commemorative tote bag filled with spicy vegetarian chili.

These guys actually made it...(click)

Here's a link to the video...(click)

It just doesn't get any "awesomer" than that. Possibly the best fake SNL commercial ever? Beats the crap out of the Bass-O-Matic 2000.

The Ultimate...

No, not two chicks at the same time.

Ted, maybe you should skip this one. Or not. I have honestly been working on cooking healthier. But not last night. Last night, I improved on my previous One Sided Toast sandwich with the Ultimate Peanut Butter And Bacon Sandwich. Which is pretty much as far from healthy as yo can get short of, say, a bacon grease milkshake.

Now, there are pretty much two camps when it comes to bacon and peanut butter sandwiches - those who think it is a disgusting concotction, and those who have actually had one. I have never met anyone who has had one that does not find it delicious. I never would have thought of such a thing, but my Dad used to make them. I don't know where he got the idea.

Anyway, I applied my new toast technique to this classic, and it was amazing! The main benefit over the old way is that the peanut butter does not get so drippy that it falls out of the sandwich.

Rachel took Jake over the hill for some blodwork yesterday, and so I had the house and the kitchen to myself. I got to work...















Here's what the toast looks like when done...















And here's my spread.



That's where I stopped taking pictures. I think I would be too disgusted with myself if I took a picture of myself eating this meal in bed watching T.V.

The dogs are doing better today. Moe is still taking things slow. But they ate their breakfast and went outside to do their business. And they did their business well. And the Middletown Animal Hospital called today to check on them. I can't recommend them highly enough if you are in the area and your animals ever get sick.

Oh, and I came across this .gif. It's small, but it cracks me up.

Puppy Homecoming...

Our puppies are home. I picked them up a half hour ago. They look thin, but they are very active and stoked to be home. Moe has some obvious discomfort in her belly area and she is reluctant to lie down. She's also taking it really slow on the stairs.

They heard my voice ans started howling before I even went back. And when I went back, Moe did her Chewbacca impression non-stop until we let her out.























Here's the part that sucked...



But what are you gonna do? All I can think of is treat them well and hope they don't ever get sick like this again. They are part of our family, and they bring us joy. Frustration, too, but we are working on that and they are improving. And we're gonna spend a bunch of time training Moe to mellow out. Cody is already pretty mellow. And dogs are the best thing to have for home security.

Anyway, I'm glad to have this ordeal behind us. We are looking at a week or so of home convalescense, special food, and meds. We'll get results of their most recent blood tests tomorrow. And hopefully in a week or two they will be back to normal.

Among the silly little things that make me happy...

...is getting that jug of milk where the expiration date (or is it sell by? sniff it, I guess) is your birthday. I got one. And it makes me happy.

My new favorite thing...

I wish I took a picture. Next time I will. So you know that Sting song, Englishman In New York? There's a line that says, "I don't drink coffee, I take tea my dear/I like my toast done on one side." Well, I always wondered how you get your toast done on one side short of using the broiler. But tonight! Oh tonight! It was a glorious sandwich!

I decided I wanted a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for dinner.

That's right, peanut butter and jelly (Family Guy version.)

It was late and I didn't want anything too heavy. Anyway, it occured to me that I could put two pieces of bread in one slot of the toaster thereby toasting each piece on the outside. It sounds crazy, I know. But hey, that's me, I live on the edge. I'm extreme long after it was cool to be extreme.

It was awesome. Quite possibly the very best I've ever had. The outside was crunchy, but the inside was warm and soft and a little steamy. The peanut butter got melty, but not so melty that it dripped out on my shirt or anything. And the jelly didn't get hot like it does when you toast both sides of the bread.

In my opinion, this is cooking bordering on art. I took ingredients - peanut butter, jelly, and bread, followed some general principles, and got creative.

And you know what - this is just the sort of wacky thing that could really take off and sweep the nation. Perhaps I will be famous soon for inventing the toasted PBJ with a soft steamy center. But that just doesn't quite roll off the tongue right. I need a name for my creation. You know, "fried bread with an egg in the middle" would never have caught on if it weren't called "Birds In A Nest."

How about "Crunchy Chewy Peanut Butter and Jelly?" CCPBJ for short. Crunchewy PBJ? Best Damned Peanut Butter and Jelly Ever - BDPBJE?

PBJ ala E?

Any ideas? Maybe make one, eat it, and see if it inspires you.

Another night at the vet...

Hello, and thanks to everyone who has written or called asking about the dogs. They are spending one more night at the vet. Dr. Smith says they continue to improve. And we are re-testing their blood. Hopefully I will be picking them up tomorrow. And hopefully, it was the dog food and they will be fine going forward with a new brand. I called Purina and they are sending me a mailer so I can send them a sample. I wonder if they would admit to it being their food. I wonder if they will pay the vet bill. I think it would be pretty funny if they sent me free dog food.

It's been awfully lonely working alone without them here.

Si, se puede...

So I made burritos tonight. Just a coincidence, really- not any kind of solidarity statement. We were going to have them last night but with the dogs and all, we just didn't get around to it. They were yummy. And Ted, I did use vegetarian no fat beans.

Work was good, I got a lot done, but had a few computer problems. My laptop seems to want to freeze up right as I reach for the "save" button. Jake and I did some chores together. He pulled weeds while I washed the Jetta. And Rachel went to the store.

Anyway, we had dinner, and then watched 24. And then, as usual, we watched the 10:00 News while Rachel repeatedly said, "I have to go to bed." And we got sucked in to coverage of the marches today which led to a lively discussion.

And the weird thing is this issue seems like just a major time suck to me. I don't see an answer. I think it may be just another Republican "wedge" issue like abortion or school prayer. Maybe they are trying to get us all xenophobic ahead of the upcoming elections? I don't know. Rachel thinks that the people who hir the illegals should be punished and not the illegals themselves. We saw one total idiot of a woman whose big concern was that "the car washes are closed because they are all run by Mexicans. So guess what- I have a dirty car." Oh you poor lady. She made me almost throw up a little.

Then there's the issue of people who want them all kicked out -how would you like to pay $40 for a car wash instead of $20? How about $60 for your family dinner at the Olive Garden instead of $50? $1.79 for that head of lettuce instead of $0.79? (I still can't find the damned cents sign on a computer.) If you argue that the immigrants are a drain on our economy and social services and education and law enforcement budgets, well, yes, they are. But they also reduce the prices we pay for a lot of goods and services. Is it a wash? I don't know.

If you argue for immigration reform and crimiinalizing it, well, I don't think that will do much to stem the tide. If you argue for amnesty, well, guess what, then those people will be expanding the roles of the WalMart work force and more illegals will come to fill the vacancies left by those who are now working and paying taxes. Or they will continue to work illegally despite the amnesty because there will always be a market for cheap labor.

So I don't see a solution. Do any of you? I think things just carry on the way they have and the whole "felony" status in the house bill will just go away. Although, this did get me thinking about all of those detention center contracts awarded to KBR/Halliburton. Am I missing something? Is it in anyone's best interest to round them all up as felons?

Also in politics - where are we on this whole Governor's race? I know I don't want any more Ahnold. And I like Westly. But there's Angelides who seems to have the cop/fire vote. I'll have to check with my neighbor the Sheriff's Deputy to be sure. I like that Westly is focussing on education and a better future rather than the police/fire sare tactics in Angelides campaign. The latter almost sounds Republican, but we know Ahnold can't get the cop vote. Or the teachers and nurses for that matter. Whose he got? The immigrants? I doubt it. Just big old business. I am worried that if Westly wins, Angelides will run indie and split the vote leaving us with more Ahnold. I really hope this doesn't happen.

On another topic, the dogs are doing OK as of this afternoon when Dr. Smith...I mean Jeff called with an update. They may be able to come home tomorrow, but that will depend largely on the results of the blood tests. Oh, and Moe is worse off than Cody and smells really bad. A bit of a mixed message there, but there it is, that was his update this afternoon. I asked if I could visit, and he said he would prefer it if I did so in the morning while they are sedated. So maybe I'll go. I'm a little torn because I don't want to get them worked up, but I think they would like to know how much we are thinking about them and that we are coming back for them.

Thanks for the thoughts and prayers and kind words from all of you readers and those like Brie who have this blog read to you.

Puppy Update...

The vet, Dr. Smith, called this morning and they are both doing much better today and responding to treatment. He said, "Between 50% and 75% better today." They are still dehydrated, but they are not vomiting, no diahrrea (cha cha cha), and they both urinated normally.

I am feeling a lot better today knowing that they are better.

And now that I am feling better, I can joke about how I still have "Dr. Smith" associations in my brain with Lost In Space. "You bubble headed booby!" Like nothing good can come from Dr. Smith, you know? Maybe I should refer to him as Jeff instead.

And special thanks to anonymous who posted some ideas on my last entry.