Sunday, June 28, 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Amaze A Ball!
Mogwai has started to have some separation anxiety, or behavioral issues, or she's found her inner puppy or something. Every single day while I am at work, she pulls all the sheets and the three down blankets off the bed, and tumps her water dishes on them. Every effing day I get home and the house is ripped apart. I needed to find something to keep her happy -- voila! The Amaze A Ball!
You put kibble or small treats in it, and the dog knocks it all around the house causing the treats to fall out. Now, Mogwai is as dumb as a box of rocks, as most of you know, but she figured it out. Now she can't stop.
You all know how fat she is -- this dog has crawled under chairs, under furniture, even under the bed to chase this ball. Today, in fact, she got stuck under the bed with the ball. I had to rescue her.
I plan on setting up the web cam to catch her tearing the place up, and will take video of her with the Amaze A Ball once I clean the house.
Why can't I clean the house? I need some motivation. It is really bad, the health department is going to condemn it pretty soon.
You put kibble or small treats in it, and the dog knocks it all around the house causing the treats to fall out. Now, Mogwai is as dumb as a box of rocks, as most of you know, but she figured it out. Now she can't stop.
You all know how fat she is -- this dog has crawled under chairs, under furniture, even under the bed to chase this ball. Today, in fact, she got stuck under the bed with the ball. I had to rescue her.
I plan on setting up the web cam to catch her tearing the place up, and will take video of her with the Amaze A Ball once I clean the house.
Why can't I clean the house? I need some motivation. It is really bad, the health department is going to condemn it pretty soon.
Jacket Obsession.
I admit, I have become addicted to jackets. It is kind of like those kids that are all straight and narrow in high school, never exposed to anything immoral...when they finally get to college they go nuts. I never got to buy jackets, so now that I have a use for them, I have gone crazy. I have now officially purchased 14 jackets since I arrived -- wool coats, parkas, down jackets, microfiber jackets, rain coats, you name it, I have it.
It all started with trial and error, though. Before I left Texas, I bought the warmest coat that I could find. I thought I was all set. But noooo...that "warmest" Texas coat only got me through two weeks in November here. The next one I bought was a cheap parka from Target...nowhere near warm enough. Then came massive research into the intricacies of "what makes a jacket warm." You need inner stretchy cuffs to keep the cold out of your sleeves, you must have an attached hood, an inner neck sleeve thing that zips over your face is also a must, also temperature rating: -0 is a MUST for me.
Below are the newest added to the collection, I am going to kick winter's ass next year:
Coat 12, above, is the lovely Delancey coat from Lands' End. I am quickly discovering that Lands' End has the warmest coats within my budget. REI has the warmest coats of all, but they cost an arm and a leg! Dri-off finish for those blizzardy days, Polar Thin insulation, zip-up neck warmer, handwarmer pockets, inner knit cuffs...awesome. -15 rating, $159 on clearance for $59.99.
Coat number 13, lucky 13! Weatherly Jacket. Waterproof, Polar Thin insulation, sherpa collar, handwarmer pockets, -10 rating, $59.50 on clearance for $29.99. This one is super light, but super warm, will be perfect for the fall.
I also treated myself to this hat to match:
I am going to look like April from In Treatment...minus the whole cancer thing.
Jacket 14, microfiber rain coat. No hood, which is upsetting, but I bought a cute little rain hat. The no hood is going to drive me nuts. $79, I paid $31.
I had the Kelly Raincoat, the only coat I paid full price for, but on my quest to become Amy Winehouse, it doesn't fit anymore. So mad! $149 down the drain. Anyone need a gorgeous wonderful rain coat? If not, I am paying to have it tailored, because it is worth it.
So now you must be thinking, wow, 14 coats, she's done, right? Nope. The ones below are on my list -- I am checking these daily. When I have enough money in about two weeks, if they are still on sale and still available, they are mine.
Petite Commuter Coat, so cute and stylish. Perfect for fall and spring.
Single breasted trench, perfect for spring. I want this one NOW, eying it for #15.
Ideal perfect wonderful jacket. Only one size left, and alas, it isn't mine. But I expect this coat to come out again in the fall, and I will pay full price for it. -25 degrees, totally worth it.
Very ugly coat, but rated -40. It is SO mine.
A couple of more things I need for my assault on winter 2009-2010 and the eventual move to Moscow:
Ski mask. I know it is totally pervy to people in Texas, but I need it.
A really good fleece jacket for under my heavy jacket. Layering!
Really good fleece/thermal pants for under my work pants.
Keep these in mind for Mexican Independence Day!
It all started with trial and error, though. Before I left Texas, I bought the warmest coat that I could find. I thought I was all set. But noooo...that "warmest" Texas coat only got me through two weeks in November here. The next one I bought was a cheap parka from Target...nowhere near warm enough. Then came massive research into the intricacies of "what makes a jacket warm." You need inner stretchy cuffs to keep the cold out of your sleeves, you must have an attached hood, an inner neck sleeve thing that zips over your face is also a must, also temperature rating: -0 is a MUST for me.
Below are the newest added to the collection, I am going to kick winter's ass next year:
Coat 12, above, is the lovely Delancey coat from Lands' End. I am quickly discovering that Lands' End has the warmest coats within my budget. REI has the warmest coats of all, but they cost an arm and a leg! Dri-off finish for those blizzardy days, Polar Thin insulation, zip-up neck warmer, handwarmer pockets, inner knit cuffs...awesome. -15 rating, $159 on clearance for $59.99.
Coat number 13, lucky 13! Weatherly Jacket. Waterproof, Polar Thin insulation, sherpa collar, handwarmer pockets, -10 rating, $59.50 on clearance for $29.99. This one is super light, but super warm, will be perfect for the fall.
I also treated myself to this hat to match:
I am going to look like April from In Treatment...minus the whole cancer thing.
Jacket 14, microfiber rain coat. No hood, which is upsetting, but I bought a cute little rain hat. The no hood is going to drive me nuts. $79, I paid $31.
I had the Kelly Raincoat, the only coat I paid full price for, but on my quest to become Amy Winehouse, it doesn't fit anymore. So mad! $149 down the drain. Anyone need a gorgeous wonderful rain coat? If not, I am paying to have it tailored, because it is worth it.
So now you must be thinking, wow, 14 coats, she's done, right? Nope. The ones below are on my list -- I am checking these daily. When I have enough money in about two weeks, if they are still on sale and still available, they are mine.
Petite Commuter Coat, so cute and stylish. Perfect for fall and spring.
Single breasted trench, perfect for spring. I want this one NOW, eying it for #15.
Ideal perfect wonderful jacket. Only one size left, and alas, it isn't mine. But I expect this coat to come out again in the fall, and I will pay full price for it. -25 degrees, totally worth it.
Very ugly coat, but rated -40. It is SO mine.
A couple of more things I need for my assault on winter 2009-2010 and the eventual move to Moscow:
Ski mask. I know it is totally pervy to people in Texas, but I need it.
A really good fleece jacket for under my heavy jacket. Layering!
Really good fleece/thermal pants for under my work pants.
Keep these in mind for Mexican Independence Day!
Another Photo Dump
So I joined the YMCA, so I can complete my transformation into Amy Winehouse. It is right across the street from my house, so I have no excuses not to go. In fact, since I see it 800 times a day, it is always on my mind, so maybe the locale motivation thing is backfiring.
It has been too cool to use the air conditioning. Apparently window units only work when it gets above 80 or so, otherwise they just blow room temperature air. So now we are doing fans in the window, and Mogwai loves the fans as much as she loves the air conditioner. Excuse the dust, but you know my style is super dirty.
This is what I ate all last week. I am getting so adventurous in cooking! I NEVER would have cooked for myself this time last year. The whole meal has less than 400 calories, no preservatives, and tastes amazing -- suck it Lean Cuisine!
It is turkey meatloaf made with steel cut oats instead of bread crumbs, poultry seasoning, and some shredded carrots topped with a bit of light turkey gravy. Roasted red potatoes -- Renaked's recipe, minus the olive oil. And finally, carrots simmered for over an hour in apple cider. If you decide to make those, just know, they're like crack -- you cannot stop once you've had one.
Mogwai lost her dog tag in a tragic walking accident in Brookline. She has been acting really emo lately, so I bought her the black one below. It just arrived in the mail today, very stylish, and all the information was correct! I was really expecting they would make a mistake on the phone number or address, with my luck...if you want an awesome dog tag cheap and quick, go to www.luckypet.com. It came in less than a week, and looks great.
It has been too cool to use the air conditioning. Apparently window units only work when it gets above 80 or so, otherwise they just blow room temperature air. So now we are doing fans in the window, and Mogwai loves the fans as much as she loves the air conditioner. Excuse the dust, but you know my style is super dirty.
This is what I ate all last week. I am getting so adventurous in cooking! I NEVER would have cooked for myself this time last year. The whole meal has less than 400 calories, no preservatives, and tastes amazing -- suck it Lean Cuisine!
It is turkey meatloaf made with steel cut oats instead of bread crumbs, poultry seasoning, and some shredded carrots topped with a bit of light turkey gravy. Roasted red potatoes -- Renaked's recipe, minus the olive oil. And finally, carrots simmered for over an hour in apple cider. If you decide to make those, just know, they're like crack -- you cannot stop once you've had one.
Mogwai lost her dog tag in a tragic walking accident in Brookline. She has been acting really emo lately, so I bought her the black one below. It just arrived in the mail today, very stylish, and all the information was correct! I was really expecting they would make a mistake on the phone number or address, with my luck...if you want an awesome dog tag cheap and quick, go to www.luckypet.com. It came in less than a week, and looks great.
Duck Parade
I know! It has been over a month since I posted. One of the fun things we did was go to the annual Duckling Day Parade in the Boston Public Gardens. You can read about it here. It is based on the book Make Way For Ducklings, that you can read about here! Basically it is a story about a mama and papa duck in Boston who decide to make their home in the duck pond at the public garden. Apparently they march through the streets trying to get to the pond, and every Mother's Day, kids from all over dress up like ducklings and re-create the story.
The Harvard band began the parade, and there were giant police horses:
They have permanent statues of the ducks in the park. For some reason people like to steal them. Frequently.
Stories on stolen ducks, if you are interested. Apparently they have been stolen five times in Bean Town. Moscow (my future home) has the same duckling statues, and those get stolen, too. Poor ducks.
The Harvard band began the parade, and there were giant police horses:
They have permanent statues of the ducks in the park. For some reason people like to steal them. Frequently.
Stories on stolen ducks, if you are interested. Apparently they have been stolen five times in Bean Town. Moscow (my future home) has the same duckling statues, and those get stolen, too. Poor ducks.
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