the nutrient dense shopping trip (and other things that keep us going)

1 onion
2 green bell peppers
1 red bell pepper
some tomatoes, still on the vine
8 oz mushrooms
1 lb of broccoli
1 avocado
1 apple
2 lbs of bananas
cranberries
orange juice


garbanzo beans
black beans
a dozen free range (ethical!) eggs
2 lbs of beef for soup


plain yogurt
fruit flavored yogurt for the kids


cornmeal
brown rice
slow cooking oats
barley


1 bottle of white wine




Although I often forget them, I have discovered some other things, besides eating well, that I know are essential to my well being.

First and foremost are those (obvious) basics I've mentioned before; plenty of sunlight, fresh air, exercise, personal space, and PLENTY of time to relax. To those who would suggest that working a 40-hour-work-week, day in and day out, is even remotely sane I say "Mon Dieu! What do you think life is all about, anyways?"

something you might not know about me

I am an extraordinary matchmaker.


Some of the people I've introduced are still together, nearly a decade later.


Anyways, I'm going to sacrifice my own interests here, and match (the adorable) Brandon Ballengee with (the eclecticly-lovely) Vaughn Bell.



Anyways, writing my big paper for art history this weekend. My chosen topic: ecology-art.

I'd sorta just like a completely blank canvas

I mean, if we are all going to say what we want for Christmas, and all.


I'd like to have not broken the glass bowl (full of my homemade, organic, cranberry sauce) at Friendsgiving.

I'd like to have not said a stupid thing to someone yesterday night.

And just now, for that matter.

I'd like to be forgiven for what I've done to you, if we know each other well enough for trespasses. A few in particular come to mind.

I'd like to have never been in love with T, who made me a worse person, and worse for wear, too. Maybe that's true of all love; it's quite possibly never a "good idea"...

I'd like to meet you for the first time all over again, unless our first meeting was decently memorable.

I'd especially like the chance to do some things over again, to mother my children better than I have till this point in time (but not just today, in general, I usually strive to do better in this dept).

looks like fun

ding ding!

Oh, yeah, just wanted toss some onomatopoeia your way, as I hang out in my office.

Both Gloria and Linda have left for the holidays and I am veritably drunk on power. I turned the radio to WMNF, ate some pumpkin pie with my lunch (free campus food day), I have the keys to the building dangling daintily from my wrist, and I can't leave my post, except to save the day (which I have technically already done twice today). Now if I could just conjure up a cup of coffee.


Oh, and as far as the "ding ding"... I'm also pretty excited about suddenly having a bell on my bike. Thanks for the present, B!

I went all the way to Orlando, and all I got was this...

(actually very nice) tee shirt! It says "Keep It Wheel", hee hee.

No, seriously, it was a complete surprise to me.

Tee shirts were handed out for first, second, and third place, as well as "dead last" and "fell flat on his face". I got the prize for donating extra food. Woo! Not dead last, and I didn't fall on my face!! :D

And actually, that's not all I got. I got to spend time doing something for a good cause, socializing with people I'm newly acquainted with, meeting some new people, having a great time riding (the weather was amazing, the food at Etho's was really good, and we all drank beer and hung out for a while after the race).

Oh, but folks, thats not the end of the story.

There's a MORAL to this tale.

A girl I know offered to drive, and I took her up on her offer. NOTE: I would have been fine driving myself. I have a bike rack on my car for this very purpose.

We agreed that we'd be coming home that same day. NOTE: I had agreed to go to those parties because I was going to be coming home Saturday evening.

After several additional factors came into play, she made a split-second-cross-4-lanes-of-interstate-traffic to drive to SOME GUY'S house in Orlando, some guy she doesn't even really know that well, and who was a complete stranger to me, announcing that she was not, in fact, driving me back to Pinellas Co. as planned.

I was actually almost relieved she wasn't driving, because her road rage had came out of hiding to the point where she was being extremely agressive, not to mention rude, to other cars, and even pedestrians (all with the bikes on the back of her SUV)!

She had decided we could "crash there" because she was too exhausted and hungry to go home.

However, I had no intention of staying there. I offered to drive (she said no), I suggested we stop for food and coffee (she was not interested), until I finally started calling madly for train/bus info, but by this time, all the ticket offices were closed.

NOTE: I could have gotten a ride with any number of people from Etho's, if I had known she'd flip out... Many of them live over this way, and were driving back, too.

ADDITIONAL NOTE: I could have purchased a Greyhound bus or train ticket right there in downtown Orlando if I had known!

I was livid, to say the least.


Anyways, my bike and I did make it back home last night, thanks to the timeless strength of the bonds of friendship. My roommate called a friend in Orlando who came and rescued me and brought me back here, in exchange for our couch to sleep on, and my promise to make breakfast.


Moral of the story: don't go to Orlando with someone you don't implicitly trust.