snow weekend.

With winter almost over, I finally experienced winter like I should have been doing all winter. (Only there was that lack of snow problem.) On Friday night I broke in my brand new $15 sled at Como Park. And I really broke it in....it now has a crack in it! Sheesh. I thought it was expensive, and then it breaks?

Today I did something pretty monumental: I used my cross country skis for the first time in seven years. You see, nordic skiing was a huge part of my life all through middle and high school - I was on the ski team for six years, 7th grade up to senior year. I was consistently a junior varsity skier even though my team won the state title a few times. (Hey! I helped cheer them on! That counts for something.)

As significant and memorable as that time was, I somehow managed to keep my skis shelved for ages. So when I put my boots in the bindings today I was a little nervous...but it would be like riding a bike, right? I was a little awkward at first, and the hill was tough, but soon I was remembering different techniques. By the end of my first lap around the course, I was feeling more confident. More polished. In fact, I felt...graceful. I was a skier. And then...I fell right on my butt. It hurt both my body and my temporarily inflated self esteem.

I didn't ski for too much longer after that. (It's hard work, yo!) And now that I officially feel Minnesotan again....I can't wait for spring.

snow day.

It finally happened, the thing we all thought would never happen: my school district canceled school because of the weather. We dreamed, we hemmed and hawed, we made plans for what we would do if it happened and what we would do if it didn't. And then came the call: NO SCHOOL! They decided some time last night. Oh, sweet, glorious, weather inflicted three day weekend! And the funny thing is, the roads didn't even seem that bad today.

Part of the beauty of the unexpected day off is that it is rife with possibility. Oh, the things I could accomplish today! I could send care packages, finish books, start writing books, thoroughly clean my apartment, and maybe even cure cancer! Or I could sleep until 11, go work on school crap at the coffee shop, and make cookies. I guess the day wasn't a total loss, but I always feel like I could have done more. But there's still time for sledding and other fun. Hooray!

Funny link of the day: Switzerland Accidentally Invades Liechtenstein.

you don't have to take my word for it.

I recommend the following:

• When you bring your groceries or other purchases out to your car, take a ride on the shopping cart. Stick one foot on the back, use the other to push off, and don't forget to lean forward to stay in balance. If you're really feeling uninhibited, you might want to squeal, "WHEEE!!!" as you fly through the parking lot. Don't forget to slow down! That part can get awkward. But however you choose to brake, you will find yourself at your vehicle in half the time and twice the fun. Hell, THRICE the fun.
  
• You don't have a dishwasher, and frankly, washing dishes can suck. I know how it is, I feel your pain (and your dry hands). But! It doesn't have to suck so much. This works especially great if you have a laptop or stereo in your kitchen. While you're doing dishes, put on your favorite tunes and sing. Or dance. Or both! Shake those hips, clean those plates, work those pipes, rinse those forks. It's all about the mix.
• Your cat is lonely because you work all day and are too tired to play! This problem can be temporarily solved provided you have the following: a cat, cat toys, hardwood floors, and lovely pop music. Put on your favorite poppy song and spin your feet on the floor as you play with your cat. I recommend "Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken" by Camera Obscura.
  

And there you are. Three ideas for a happier life. Or a happier few minutes of your life.

snow emergency.

The Hunter-Gatherer, Parking Division

Speaking of parking, I had my own parking troubles to deal with today. More like..snow problems. The phantom snowstorm that people kept making threats about FINALLY appeared and...well, brought a lot of snow with it. It's funny what a pile of snow will do to people - it makes them NICE. As I tried to dig out my plowed in car with a sled (no shovel), a nice church going family helped me out. Then comes more help with a shovel. Later in the afternoon when I was trying to move my car somewhere else so it doesn't get towed tonight, I got stuck in a parking lot trying to turn around. Another nice man helped shovel me out, and then when I told him of my plight he said I should just park there, as they never tow. So when I walked back to my place and saw a girl trying to dig out her car with an ice scraper, I grabbed the shovel from my building and passed along the favor.

Here's to hoping my car isn't towed by the morning.

triple digits!

I was about to update my silly blog with something inconsequential, but then I realized that it would be my 100th post. Such a monumental occasion deserves something better, more refined. I started this as a link blog back from the days when I was on the internet looking at silly stuff all the time, and I wanted to share my favorite links. But every now and then it branched out, and now its focus is even more scattered. I figured all this out as I was scanning through my old posts, and I thought I'd share my favorites.

Review of silicone bakeware
Review of new Aquafresh toothpaste (which I now use all the time)
Analysis of friendster PR photos
Ode to Martha Stewart
Weekend magazine survey
Mini pop culture review
My lunar love affair

And now I will make the promise that my next 100 posts will be amazing in every way. Happy 100th post, blog!

rants.

1. Gap Body cotton hipster underwear
My friend and I have the same problem: we LOVE this underwear. LOVE IT. Except...both of us have had pairs start to unravel after only a few washings. We want to buy more, but we know that they're just going to fall apart! What's a girl to do?

2. Myspace
Truth be told, ever since I've made my profile private I spend very little time on there. But on occasion I do like to check up on friends who insist on using the service - it's just the nature of the beast. Only whenever I try to open a message, see someone's new pictures, or read their blog, it takes FOREVER. And a day. How millions of people are completely addicted to a site that barely works is beyond me.

3. My shower
My apartment is old. It has charm, and it also has charm. My shower is the opposite of charming. Let's ignore the fact that it is low flow - that I can handle. The bigger annoyance is its completely manic temperature control. Scalding hot! Ice cold! And so I spend half my shower in the corner, trying to fiddle with the knobs enough so I don't burn/freeze myself. I never knew I could swear so much at falling water.

meet selby.

This is my new friend Selby. She's a cat! I got her a couple of weeks ago from the Humane Society. She is a play addict, is very affectionate, and can also be completely needy. She is living up to my grand theory called Selby Loves Everyone. It's been tested on three people so far. My friends say she's like a dog.

If you're wondering about the name, it's a street in my neighborhood. A friend and I went back and forth about cats named after streets, and which prominent Twin Cities streets would make the best names for cats. So, without further adieu, some lists with good and bad street names for cats.

Good names:

• Selby
• Franklin
• Cleveland
• Marshall
• Lyndale
• Emerson
• Dupont

Bad names:

• Payne
• University
• First Ave.
• Grand
• Summit
• West Seventh Street
• Ford Parkway
  

in other news

I think Micheal Pollan is my new hero.

The last page of his essay pretty much sums up all my food related resolutions, only much more eloquently than I could put it.

on books and beets.

Cook more. Eat better. Read more.

When I'm in someone's apartment for the first time, whether it's a friend or acquaintance, one of my favorite things to do is explore their bookshelves. (I also use that as a pick-up line..Hey baby, I'd like to explore your bookshelves....) I like running my fingers along the spines, noticing if they organize in any certain ways or if it's haphazard, and wondering if they have actually read all the books their shelves contain. But lately all I notice is, "Hey this person has way more books than I do!"

I have a few reasons for not buying books. The triple threat of the high price of new books, my somewhat frugal nature, and the fact that I'm a library fiend certainly don't help. But I've also come to realize a more crucial cause: when I buy books, I'm not very motivated to read them. I always think, "Oh, that book, that will be around all the time, like when I'm in the depths of despair with nothing to read. But this library book! This library book has a deadline!"

I'm not about to go buy loads of books any time soon, but I'm trying to change my outlook a bit. My most recent book purchase was The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan, which is quite fitting with my current food obsession. I even started reading it!

Speaking of books about food, I still think one of my best reference books is the Joy of Cooking. I love the fact that you can get practical information about nearly any food, such as beets! Which brings us to beets. (oh transitions, I'm trying.)

So....going along with goals for the year, I've decided that I want to branch out more in terms of recipes and ingredients. And one food I haven't tried, or at least don't remember eating, is beets. Weird, huh? My first venture into the beet world ending up being a beet salad with goat cheese and candied walnuts on spinach. And it was yummy. The end!

(yeah, strong finish. I need to sleep.)

i resolve.

It's the 10th of January and I still don't have any suitable resolutions. I've come to the conclusion that if you want to be able to reach your resolution, it has to be measurable in some way. For instance...running a marathon. You either do it or you don't. (Or maybe you try and have to drop out along the way, but you get my point, right?) And so I'm stuck, as I can't think of any good quantifiable goals for the year. Instead, my "resolution" list ends up looking something this:

Cook more. Bake more. Eat better. Eat more local, more organic. Read more. Write more (correspondence). Write more (non-fiction, blogs). Listen more (music). Learn more. Internet less. Run more. Drive less. Walk/bike more. Sleep more. Socialize more. Create more. Travel more. Dwell less. Give more (time, emotions, money).

Or I could just put it as my friend so eloquently did: "I want to be less dumb!" And isn't that what self improvement is all about?