greeting card gripes

So it’s Little Bro’s birthday today, and I’m off to find him a card to go with his shiny new gift…

Since when did a couple inches of folded paper cost SIX DOLLARS?! Back in the day (read: maybe two years ago, maybe more) didn’t they only cost about $3? And those were the pricey, musical ones. Or the kind with the fake dollar bill inside. Jeez. Well screw Hallmark, I am going vintage and making my own cards from now on. Hope people will start re-appreciating construction paper and sparkly stickers…

dying of thirst here

Figuratively speaking, of course.

Our water purifier/filter thingy broke, and now there is nothing but tap water to drink. Well, for me there is anyway. I’m not a big fan of pop, or juice. I just like plain old H2O. But I’m a water snob, and the tap water in our house tastes funky, and I’m too lazy to go out to the supermarket and buy some of the bottled variety. I’ve been surviving on tea, and the occasional glass of Crystal Light-mixed beverage for the past few days – but it’s just not the same.

Today all I’ve had to drink is a glass of soy milk…

UPDATE: I tried a sip of tap water from the bathroom upstairs… for some reason it seems to taste better than the tap water from the kitchen. Don’t get me wrong, it still has that funny Fresh Out of the Tap after taste, but I suppose I will have to survive on this until our water situation gets fixed. I need to weather this drought somehow!

something blue, by emily giffin

Yeah, Something Blew alright. (My apologies right now if you read this book and enjoyed it. You probably don’t want to read any further…) Yes, it was so bad I felt compelled to bitch about it.

Granted, it was one of those Shopaholic-type, chick-lit books. You know the ones with the heroines (and I’m using that term loosely here, the main character in Giffin’s book is no “heroine” by any means) that have no worries in life besides whether they can afford to buy those ‘adorable’ zebra print stretch pants on sale for $500, or if they should spend the money on a manicure for their poofy little dog instead. 

Well this particular character, Darcy, was all that, and she was a horrible, horrible b*tch! Relishing the many times she cheated on her fiance, how she could manipulate people with her looks, lying to get her way, always demanding to be the center of attention… I could go on forever about her flaws and how I wonder how Giffin supposed anyone would be able to relate to her in some way… but I’m nice, so I wont. Not now anyway. The book begins with the revelation that Darcy just discovered her best friend had slept with her fiance. One would almost think she was wronged by the way she was acting, until you discover, soon after, that she was sleeping with one of the groomsmen during that time anyway. That pretty much sets the stage for the rest of the book; we get to see Darcy being a hypocrite, throwing tantrums, crying, complaining and for the most part stomping her feet like a child and demanding that someone let her have her way for about a couple hundred pages. Lovely.

The only reason why I continued reading was in hopes that something terrible would happen to her. Each time I turned the page I was secretly hoping that maybe she would get hit by a bus - and then all of a sudden, she changed and was suddenly this warm, selfless, altruistic person practically overnight. That just doesn’t happen people! Not after 30 years of being a completely shallow, self-centered, whiny little spoiled brat, and certainly not within the span of one weekend. What followed was a series of tired cliches that went on until the ending, where it should come as no surprise that everyone lived happily ever after. How convenient. Made me think the author had grown as tired as I had of her own book, and just put it out of it’s misery.

Call me a grouch, call me no fun, call me Miss Angry Cranky-Pants or whatever you like, but I just could not get into this book, even as a ‘light read’ before bed (and picking up a book with more substance). If it wasn’t for the fact that it was a gift from a well-meaning relative, I think would have thrown it in the trash by now.

My Recommendation? If you’re looking for something to read in between soap operas, by all means have a go at it, Something Blue is packed with predictable drama. If, however, you’re like me, and you like your fiction with some semblance of depth or believability… I’d stay clear. I’m sure there are better things you could do with the few hours it takes to read this ‘book’. Like cleaning your toilet, for example. Wish I had done that instead, at least it would have been more engaging.

arg!!

I realise that lately I’ve been preoccupied with posting about food (and/or kitchen products and appliances). But so be it! We STILL don’t have a freakin’ microwave. What gives people??!

still no microwave

So we’ve had this fancy new microwave for a few days now which, under normal circumstances, is all well and good… but I  have yet to use it. In fact, no one has. It’s still in the box! Turns out that Sears sells the same model my Mom picked up the other day (she found it at Canadian Tire) for $20 more, but if something were to go wrong with it, you could take it to Sears and let them repair it for free so she wants that one instead. Says it would be “more convenient”. Nevermind the fact that the one we have has something called a warranty.

Suffice to say, I am one extra cranky person in the mornings. You can only have cereal and yogurt so many times.

trying my hand at “curry”

I got to make dinner tonight, and was told to have it ready by 7pm when most people would be home. I’m done around 6:45 and hungry… but I decided to be kind and wait up for my Mom who was running a number of errands after work, but I didn’t realise just how long that would take. I was ravenous, and a little (actually, a lot) on the cranky side when she came home sometime after eight, but she brought back a microwave (yay!) so all was forgiven. I made some ‘curried’ chicken from a recipe I saw in a Chatelaine magazine; it called for bananas, which I thought was a little odd, but I thought what the hey.

And I say “curried” the way I do because it was not very spicy, or curry-like at all. It looked like curry, and smelled a bit like it too, but it had a really mild, sweet flavour thanks to the banana that must have overpowered all the other spices I added. And to top it off, the rice I randomly picked out of the pantry to go with the chicken was basmati rice, a rice which I later discovered has a somewhat sweet taste to it. I just thought it sounded fancy, and more exciting than plain old white rice so I threw it into the pot. Don’t get me wrong, dinner still tasted good, and no one complained (to me anyway). Not even my little brother who usually groans when he finds out that I made dinner. I’m not sure I would make it again though; next time I’ll try “regular” curry sans fruity ingredients.

I am quite proud of myself though, I made that dinner with no supervision whatsoever. You should all be proud.

microwave oatmeal

I  broke the microwave.Don’t ask me how, it just happened. There I was, a bowl of cold oats and milk at the ready, my hand on the microwave door. I put my oatmeal-to-be inside, closed it and pushed the one minute button, and then it makes a sort of cracking noise, then shuts off.

Worst part of it was, no one else was home at the time, so I had to cook that oatmeal ye olde fashioned way: on the stove. In a pot that is now coated with charred oats and burnt milk I can’t seem to scrape off no matter how hard I scrub. How long are you supposed to cook oatmeal on the stove anyway? I think I’m just going to leave that pot in the sink, and then disappear out of the house when the others come home and discover it. After all that, the oatmeal was only so-so and probably not worth the trouble. (Don’t tell anyone).

*crossing fingers*

I’m still sick. I know I’m exaggerating, but it feels like it’s been , well, forever since I’ve felt like a normal person. These days I’ve been completely nauseous, light-headed, headachey and just all around weak. I’m having trouble sleeping too, so I’m doubly exhausted. Not to mention that I feel like a blob since I haven’t done much more than sleep, get up to make tea, and lie in bed with my notepad, or a book or two (or five). Oh, and then sleep some more.

I’ll keep my fingers crossed that I get better by maybe tomorrow (wishful thinking, I know). A friend of mine and I were planning on hanging out this weekend, and if that falls through I’ll be very sad – I haven’t seen her in a while, and I want to go shopping. Actually, I’ll be happy if I can just get out of my house and spend some time outside in the sunlight for a little bit. I must be morphing into some version of a sickly, Rip Van Winkle mole-person. Hmm, now that I think about it, perhaps venturing into direct sunlight right away is not such a good idea after all. What if I start melting? At least if I go shopping I’ll be safe under artificial lighting. Keeping those fingers crossed.

self-improvement: day 1

Or not.

Today was supposed to be the first day of the two-week diet and training  regime I put together to Stay in Shape and Stop Eating Crap (mostly to stop eating crap), but I woke up feeling all nauseous and headachey. Just my luck. As you may have surmised, I’ve been a bit lax lately in terms of my eating habits and gym attendance, and I’m hoping that by making this folly public that maybe I can be more motivated to get back on track. Normally I try to make it to the gym at least four times a week to do both cardio and weight-training, and I save one day a week (usually sunday) for a yoga/pilates class.

As far as the eating habits go… well. Let’s just say I have a sweet tooth, and very little self-control. Sometimes. Okay, okay, all the time. Luckily I have been blessed with a relatively speedy metabolism, so as long as I continue to work out, it doesn’t show. But those crappy habits will all change soon, at least after I start feeling better.

Today, I had some green tea (good), but then I followed it with the only cure I know for throw-uppyness: really salty crackers (bad… although they are SOO good). I had wanted to make an omlete for breakfast, but I’m afraid my stomach won’t be able to handle it, and then I’ll have to resort to having some soup or something. And as I’m not a fan of soup, unless its of the “Cream of [whatever]” variety, and that = also bad. I can only hope that I’m feeling better by tomorrow so that I can at least go to my favourite yoga/pilates class. And possibly on monday I can get the ball rolling for good.